Ric Flair's WWE Future

The big topic of debate this week is the return (or potential return) of Ric Flair to the wrestling ring.

Ric Flair Returns

Will he return?

That's the big question that has been on the minds of every wrestling fans over the last few days. The Nature Boy is once again the topic of interest in professional wrestling.

At the Judgment Day pay per view this past Sunday, WWE managed to surprise the fans with an unannounced return of Ric Flair, the legendary former NWA World Heavyweight Champion.

Ric Flair made a surprising appearance to save Batista, who was being pummeled by the Legacy trio of Cody Rhodes, Ted DiBiase, and Randy Orton.

The surprise appearance was accompanied almost immediately by reports that Ric Flair had come to an agreement with WWE to make a short comeback.

Return Rumors

Rumors have been flying around that Ric Flair has developed the itch to return to the wrestling ring; the very same ring that he said goodbye to in March of 2008.

Ric Flair reportedly contacted WWE about returning to the ring. He stated that he would like to start wrestling again if he had the blessings of certain people in the company (one of whom is Shawn Michaels).

The company decided to listen because they'd much rather have him wrestling in WWE than in another company.

Ring of Honor and TNA would both love to feature a match with Ric Flair. The marketing potential behind that would be enormous.

There are also wrestling promotions from around the world that have expressed interest in doing a match with Ric Flair (interestingly enough, Sean Waltman is being considered as a potential opponent).

The latest rumor right now has Ric Flair signing a deal to return to WWE for a few months as a wrestler.

Tarnishing Things

A lot of people are against the idea of Ric Flair wrestling again because they're afraid that he's going to tarnish things by doing so.

I take a slightly different approach.

We all know that Terry Funk has returned from retirement at least a dozen times (a month). These returns have done nothing to tarnish my memories of him. In fact, these returns have become a part of his legacy.

If Ric Flair returned to the ring, it won't tarnish his legacy either. He's still going to be one of the greatest world champions of all time. He's still going to be regarded as one of the most entertaining guys of all time.

The thing that will get tarnished is that retirement celebration that WWE threw for him.

If you're really worried about that being tarnished, keep in mind that Ric Flair has publicly stated that he didn't choose to retire. The company forced it upon him. They wanted to use it as a marketing tool.

Closing Thoughts

I might not have a popular opinion on this, but I think that if he wants to return, Ric Flair should return. He's earned the right to make that choice.