Ric Flair's Last Match | |
---|---|
Promotion | Jim Crockett Promotions |
Date | July 31, 2022 |
City | Nashville, Tennessee, United States |
Venue | Nashville Municipal Auditorium |
Attendance | 6,800 [1] |
Buy rate | 24,020–29,020 [1] |
Tagline(s) | Walkin' That Aisle – One Last Time |
Ric Flair's Last Match was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event and supershow. It took place on July 31, 2022, at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee and aired on FITE and In Demand. The event was produced and promoted by Conrad Thompson and David Crockett under the banner of Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP) as part of the Starrcast V convention, and was the first card promoted under the JCP banner since 1988. Ric Flair headlined the event in the advertised final match of his 50-year career, teaming with his son-in-law Andrade El Idolo to defeat Jay Lethal and Jeff Jarrett.
Wrestlers from All Elite Wrestling (AEW), Black Label Pro (BLP), DDT Pro-Wrestling (DDT), Future Stars of Wrestling (FSW), Game Changer Wrestling (GCW), Impact Wrestling, Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA), Major League Wrestling (MLW), National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), Progress Wrestling, Pro Wrestling Revolver (PWR), Ring of Honor (ROH), Terminus: Modern Age Grappling, and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) performed during the event. It was the first event to feature cooperation from all major American professional wrestling promotions since the 3rd Annual Brian Pillman Memorial Show in 2000.
The show drew 6,800 fans for a live gate of $448,502, making it the second highest-grossing North American independent professional wrestling event in modern history behind All In.
Ric Flair debuted as a professional wrestler on December 10, 1972. [2] Flair lost his first retirement match against Shawn Michaels at WWE's WrestleMania XXIV in March 2008. He later wrestled on the Hulkamania: Let The Battle Begin tour in 2009 and for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) from 2010–2011. Flair has said he only came back to wrestle after the match with Michaels because he was significantly in debt, and regrets having done so. [3]
Footage surfaced of Flair training with former TNA rival Jay Lethal in April 2022. [4] It was then announced in May 2022 that Flair would wrestle one final match at Tennessee State Fairground Sports Arena on July 31, 2022, as part of his son-in-law Conrad Thompson's Starrcast convention. [5] The convention was held the same weekend as WWE's SummerSlam, which took place at nearby Nissan Stadium on July 30.
The wrestling card, titled Ric Flair's Final Match, was later moved to the larger Nashville Municipal Auditorium due to high demand. [6] Flair previously headlined events at Nashville Municipal Auditorium including WrestleWar '89: Music City Showdown against Ricky Steamboat, and Starrcade '95: World Cup of Wrestling against Randy Savage.
Nashville mayor John Cooper declared July 31 "Ric Flair Day" in honor of the occasion. [7]
The event included eleven matches that resulted from scripted storylines, in which wrestlers portrayed heroes, villains, or less distinguishable characters in scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match. [8]
Storylines were produced in a three-part weekly web series titled Ric Flair: The Last Match that aired between July 11, 2022 and July 25, 2022 on the show's official website. Narrated by Darius Rucker, the first episode detailed Flair's battle with alcoholism and subsequent health problems following the death of his son Reid Flair in 2013. [9] The second episode saw Flair get attacked by training partner Jay Lethal and WWE executive Jeff Jarrett outside of Tennessee State Fairground Sports Arena following the event's press conference on June 23, 2022. Lethal was insulted that Flair could not get him booked on the card, and Jarrett was insulted that Flair disrespected his father, Jerry Jarrett. Flair was left bloodied in a parking lot following the attack. It was then announced that Flair would team with son-in-law Andrade El Idolo to face Jarrett and Lethal in the main event. [10] The third and final episode featured a contract signing between the main event teams, brokered by promoter David Crockett.
An angle was filmed during Game Changer Wrestling's The People vs. GCW event at Starrcast on July 29, 2022. Nick Gage told Conrad Thompson that since he did not book any GCW wrestlers for Ric Flair's Final Match, they would have to invade the show. [11]
The originally planned main event was reported to have been Ric Flair teaming with FTR (Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood) to take on Ricky Steamboat and the Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson) in a six-man tag team match. Steamboat confirmed that he was offered the match, but turned it down. [12] Matt Cardona proposed defending the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship against Flair, but he was injured soon after and forced to forfeit his title. [13] Ren Narita was scheduled to face Clark Connors on the undercard, but Connors was injured and replaced by Yuya Uemura. [14]
Role: | Name: |
---|---|
English commentators | Tony Schiavone |
David Crockett | |
Ian Riccaboni (ROH and NJPW) | |
Tom Hannifan (Impact) | |
Scott D'Amore (Impact) | |
Joe Dombrowski (MLW and AAA) | |
Dave Prazak (GCW and MLW) | |
Nick Aldis (NWA) | |
Spanish commentators | Carlos Cabrera |
Hugo Savinovich | |
Ring announcers | Cyrus Fees |
David Penzer (main event) | |
Referees | Brandon Tolle |
Daniel Spencer | |
Dave Harmon | |
Dave Miller | |
Derek Sabato | |
Mike Chioda (main event) | |
Mike Posey | |
Interviewer | Josh Shernoff |
The event's pre-show was broadcast free on YouTube at 6:05pm EDT, a nod to the traditional timeslot JCP's World Championship Wrestling program aired on TBS throughout the 1980s.
In the opening contest of the pre-show, New Japan Pro Wrestling star Yuya Uemura faced Ren Narita, a young lion in New Japan's Dojo. Narita took the victory by pinning Uemura with a bridging belly to belly suplex.
Tony Schiavone introduced Ric Flair for an interview segment, but instead Jay Lethal came out with Karen Jarrett to do a Flair impersonation and antagonize the crowd. Jarrett was interrupted by loud "Who are you?" chants from the audience.
Frank the Clown then entered the ring to insult Ric Flair, at which point Jacob Fatu came out. Frank the Clown attempted to escape up the entranceway, but Mick Foley prevented him from leaving and threw him back in the ring to get beatdown by Fatu.
The second contest of the show and final contest of the pre-show saw Game Changer Wrestling (GCW) star Mance Warner win the Bunkhouse Battle Royale by last eliminating Bully Ray. Prior to the match, the announced participants were already in the ring when Nick Gage came out and declared that he had brought a contingent of GCW stars as surprise entrants.
In the opening contest of the pay-per-view broadcast, The Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin) took on The Wolves in a tag team match. The Motor City Machine Guns picked up the victory after performing Skull and Bones on Edwards, who was pinned.
The second contest of the pay-per-view saw Davey Boy Smith Jr. take on Killer Kross (with Scarlett Bordeaux) in singles competition, with both men representing Major League Wrestling. Kross hit Smith Jr. with The Quickening and won by pinfall.
The pay-per-view's third contest was a Four Corners Match to determine the #1 contender to the Progress World Championship. The participants were Alan Angels, Jonathan Gresham, Konosuke Takeshita and Nick Wayne. Gresham won by pinfall after performing a bridging O'Connor Roll on Angels.
In the fourth contest of the pay-per-view, Rock 'n' Roll Express (Ricky Morton and Kerry Morton) (with Robert Gibson) took on The Four Horsemen (Brian Pillman Jr. and Brock Anderson) (with Arn Anderson) in a tag team match. The Four Horsemen picked up the victory after Anderson hit Ricky Morton with a Gourdbuster and pinned him.
The fifth contest of the pay-per-view was a Four-way match between Bandido, Black Taurus, Laredo Kid and Rey Fénix. This showcase of stars from Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide was won by Fénix after he caught Black Taurus with the Fire Thunder Driver and pinned him.
The pay-per-view's sixth contest saw Impact World Champion Josh Alexander defend his title against Major League Wrestling star Jacob Fatu. The match ended in a no contest after interference by Brian Myers, Matt Cardona and Mark Sterling. Diamond Dallas Page ran in from the crowd to save Alexander from a beatdown, hitting Cardona with a Diamond Cutter.
A backstage segment saw Jerry Jarrett and Jerry Lawler consulting Jeff Jarrett in his locker room regarding the main event, with the group consensus being that Ric Flair stole his strut from Jackie Fargo and that Jeff needed to reclaim it.
In the seventh contest of the pay-per-view, The Von Erichs (Marshall Von Erich and Ross Von Erich) took on The Briscoes (Jay Briscoe and Mark Briscoe) in a tag team match. The Briscoes picked up the victory after Mark hit Ross with a Froggy Bow and pinned him.
The penultimate match of the pay-per-view saw Impact Knockouts World Champion Jordynne Grace defend her title against Deonna Purrazzo and Rachael Ellering in a three-way match. Grace retained her title after tapping out Ellering with a rear naked choke.
In the main event, Ric Flair and Andrade El Idolo took on Jay Lethal and Jeff Jarrett (with Karen Jarrett) in a tag team match. The finish came after Conrad Thompson threw brass knuckles to El Idolo. El Idolo then gave the brass knuckles to Flair, who used them to knock out Jarrett. Referee Mike Chioda was knocked out, causing El Idolo to call for another referee from the back. Flair put Jarrett in the figure-four leglock, and with Jarrett's shoulders pinned to the mat, referee Dave Miller counted the pinfall. After the match, Flair greeted his family at ringside along with colleagues in attendance such as Bret Hart, Mick Foley and The Undertaker. Tony Schiavone then interviewed Flair ringside before he made his way up the entrance ramp, stopping to embrace singer Kid Rock and hoist the Big Gold Belt as the broadcast went off the air.
The production quality and overall presentation of the show was praised. [15] Brian James and Scott D'Amore produced and timed the matches. [16] Matches were agented by Bully Ray, Daniel McDevitt, Scott Armstrong, Sinn Bodhi, Tom Prichard and Wolfie D. [17] The broadcast was produced by David Sahadi, Josh Mathews and Keith Mitchell. [16]
Reviews of the show consistently pointed to the four-way between Bandido, Black Taurus, Laredo Kid and Rey Fénix as the best match of the night. [18] [19] [20] Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Newsletter gave that match a 4½-star rating. [21]
Multiple reviewers described watching Flair's performance in the main event as "uncomfortable" due to his poor physical condition. [18] [20] In the leadup to the match, Flair revealed that he had been suffering from plantar fasciitis and planned on drinking prior to the bout. [22] Flair claimed that he passed out twice during the match due to dehydration. [23] His doctor later determined that Flair had in fact passed out after suffering a heart attack. [24]
The show drew 6,800 fans for a live gate of $448,502, with an estimated 20,000–25,000 viewers on FITE and 4,200 viewers on In Demand. [1] It was the second highest-grossing North American independent professional wrestling event in modern history behind All In. [1]
Possible follow-up events have been rumored. During the Foley Is Pod panel at Starrcast, Conrad Thompson and Mick Foley discussed the idea of Mick Foley's Last Match. [25] Booker T confirmed that he was approached by Thompson to take part in Harlem Heat's Last Match, but turned it down. [26] Diamond Dallas Page also confirmed that he turned down an offer from Thompson. [27] Starrcast filed to trademark Southwest Championship Wrestling on August 5, 2022, and SuperClash on September 7, 2022. [28] [29]
Mance Warner was awarded a non-title match against interim AEW World Champion Jon Moxley after his Bunkhouse Battle Royale win, with the stipulation that Warner would earn a future title shot if victorious. [30] Moxley defeated Warner on the August 5, 2022 episode of AEW Rampage . [31]
Before the match in July 2022, Flair had vowed to honor his word and never wrestle again, but said he would continue in the business as a manager. [32] A few days after the bout however, he regretted announcing that it would be his final match. [33] During a September 2022 celebration for the 50th anniversary of his debut in professional wrestling, Flair announced that he would never retire. [34]
Richard Morgan Fliehr, known professionally as Ric Flair, is an American professional wrestler. Regarded by multiple peers and journalists as the greatest professional wrestler of all time, Flair has had a career spanning over 50 years in 6 decades.
Jim Crockett Promotions is a family-owned professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1931, the promotion emerged as a cornerstone of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). By the 1980s, Jim Crockett Promotions was, along with the World Wrestling Federation, one of the two largest promotions in the United States. The Crockett family sold a majority interest in the promotion to Turner Broadcasting System, resulting in the creation of World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in 1988. In 2022, Jim Crockett Promotions Inc. was restarted by Jim Crockett's son and Jim Crockett Jr's brother, David Crockett.
Steve Borden, better known by the ring name Sting, is an American retired professional wrestler. Borden is best known for his time spent as the face of two American professional wrestling promotions: World Championship Wrestling (WCW) from 1988 to 2001 and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) from 2006 to 2014, as well as his retirement run in All Elite Wrestling (AEW) from 2020 to 2024. Although the World Wrestling Federation purchased WCW in 2001, Borden did not sign with them at the time; he would later sign with WWE from 2014 to 2020. Prior to WCW, he wrestled for the National Wrestling Alliance's (NWA) Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP)—which became WCW in 1988—the Universal Wrestling Federation (UWF), and the Continental Wrestling Association (CWA). Borden wore face-paint throughout his career, and in 1996, changed from the multi-colored paint of his "Surfer" persona to the monochromatic paint of the "Crow" gimmick; he also incorporated elements of The Joker in the later part of his time in TNA.
Jeffrey Leonard Jarrett is an American professional wrestler and promoter. He is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he also serves as Director of Business Development.
The Four Horsemen is an American professional wrestling stable who originally consisted of Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, Ole Anderson, and Tully Blanchard.
The ROH World Championship is a professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by Ring of Honor (ROH). It is considered the most prestigious title in the promotion. The current champion is Mark Briscoe, who is in his first reign. In addition to being in ROH, the championship is also defended on All Elite Wrestling's (AEW) programs, as AEW and ROH are both owned by Tony Khan.
Frank Benedict Gerdelman is an American professional wrestler and musician currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), performing under the ring name Frankie Kazarian. He is also known for his work in Ring of Honor (ROH) and All Elite Wrestling (AEW), as well as several independent promotions, most notably Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG), where he has won multiple tag-team and singles championships.
The NWA National Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling championship owned and promoted by the U.S.-based, National Wrestling Alliance (NWA).
Michael Joseph Canzano is a retired American professional wrestling senior referee, who most recently worked for World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). Before his release on April 15, 2020, Chioda was the longest-tenured referee in WWE history, having been with the company for over three decades.
Jamar Shipman, better known by the ring name Jay Lethal, is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). He is best known for his tenures in Ring of Honor (ROH) and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA).
The NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling, which promoted shows in the U.S. states of Oregon and Washington.
Bound for Glory IV was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) promotion that took place on October 12, 2008 at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. It was the fourth event under the Bound for Glory name and the tenth event in the 2008 TNA PPV schedule.
Immortal was a heel professional wrestling alliance in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). It originally consisted of leaders Eric Bischoff and Hulk Hogan, as well as Abyss, Jeff Hardy and Jeff Jarrett, and later also came to include Bully Ray, Chris Harris, Gunner, Kurt Angle, Matt Hardy, Mr. Anderson, Murphy, Ric Flair, Rob Terry, Scott Steiner, and Tommy Dreamer as well as the members of the formerly separate stable Fortune. Referee Jackson James and valet Karen Jarrett were also affiliated with the group. Jeff Hardy was a two-time TNA World Heavyweight Champion, while Anderson and Angle were one-time TNA World Heavyweight Champions as members of the stable, and Jarrett was also a one-time holder of the AAA Mega Championship in the Mexican promotion AAA. The group's name was derived from Hogan's long-standing nickname "The Immortal".
The 2011 Lockdown was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) promotion, that took place on April 17, 2011 at the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was the seventh event under the Lockdown chronology and the fourth event of the 2011 TNA PPV schedule. In the concept of Lockdown events, every match was booked to take place inside a steel cage.
Starrcast is a professional wrestling fan convention promoted by Conrad Thompson. The event typically runs for four days— from Thursday to Sunday – and features wrestlers, wrestling personalities and podcast hosts, interviews, fan activities, and meet-and-greets.
Mance Warner is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to Game Changer Wrestling (GCW), where he is the current GCW World Champion in his first reign. He also performs on the independent circuit. He has previously competed in Combat Zone Wrestling where he is a former CZW World Heavyweight Champion, and IWA Mid-South where he has held both the IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Championship and Tag Team championship. Warner is also a former AAW Heavyweight Champion, with his run being the longest in company history.
Komander is a Mexican luchador enmascarado, currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). He additionally wrestles for AEW's Mexican partner promotion Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA), where he is the current AAA World Cruiserweight Champion in his first reign.
The Wrld on GCW was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event promoted by Game Changer Wrestling (GCW) that was held on January 23, 2022. The event was held at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City, marking the promotion's debut in the Hammerstein Ballroom and the first wrestling event held in the venue since 2019. The event was available on FITE TV and via traditional PPV outlets, making it the first GCW event to air on traditional PPV.
Nicholas Wayne Finley is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he performs under the ring name Nick Wayne. Wayne is a member of The Patriarchy stable, and is one-third of the current AEW World Trios Champions with Patriarchy stablemates Christian Cage and Killswitch in their first reign.