Ric Flair = WANTED~!

[sek69]

 

WSOC TV in Charlotte reported today that Ric Flair is facing assault charges after a road rage incident on Wednesday. A driver, whose name was not listed, alleged Flair attacked him and his car. He said he the driver behind him was flashing their headlights, so he hit his breaks. He said the car pulled alongside him and the driver immediately recognized Ric Flair. He said Flair got out of his war, walked to the vehicle, grabbed him by the neck and damaged his car. Police confirmed warrants for Flair out for simple assault and damage to personal property. Flair is said to be still on the road, although given the storyline from last night, he will almost surely not be on the Raw show tonight.

 

 

Maybe HHH was making an in-joke by saying Flair's "not wanted here"....

[Strummer]

The first thing that came to my mind seeing this was that Meltzer will bury this in the Observer like he did the Plane Ride from Hell because of his man-love for Flair.

[sek69]

I actually copied that from WO.com

[Strummer]

yes, but there are still "gray areas" in the case. Flair's lawyer is denying that anything happened. Will Dave look deep into what really happened or will he not reveal information like he did in the PRFH. Dave also reported that Flair was in on the PRFH but didn't go in depth in the newsletter so he could protect Flair.

[sek69]

Since I've tangled with people who think Flair > Jesus, I wonder how many of those opinions would change if Meltz would ever have covered stuff like this in depth.

[Strummer]

It has always bothered me when those people react to Flair's antics (getting drunk, exposing himself, sexual harrassment, etc.) with "LOL, it's just Flair being Flair, Gotta love him!!" but when another wrestler gets caught doing the same thing it's "How unprofessional!!,That's bad PR for the company, fire him!"

[Guest SweetMama Scaat]

Looking as ONLY he can look:

 

 

Stylin and profilin'

[Loss]

Flair will always be an all-time favorite of mine, but man, guys from that era sure do live their gimmicks a little too much. Ric is 56 years old and is getting charged with things like this and has been involved in some other questionable things in the past few years as well. His wife left him recently. It's all kinda sad.

[Strummer]

You can almost see the tears landing on Meltzer's keyboard:

 

--Ric Flair is having the week. WSOC-TV in Charlotte got Flair's divorce papers which include Beth accusing him of slapping, kicking, choking and biting her, bring up both steroid and alcohol abuse. Flair claimed Beth assaulted him more than once, striking him in both the head and body and he feared for both his physical and emotional safety.

 

[Guest TheShawshankRudotion]

You know that if that were Hogan, he'd have written another book on it.

[sek69]

 

Ric Flair wrestles with a divorce

 

Accusations exchanged; IRS was owed a million

 

SCOTT DODD

 

[email protected]

 

 

Pro wrestler Ric Flair has been pinned by the IRS over back taxes and is fighting a nasty divorce battle with his wife.

 

Flair, one of Charlotte's best-known celebrities, owed the federal government $1 million in 1997, according to a statement from his accountant. The IRS began garnishing Flair's wrestling salary this year, seizing more than $200,000 so far.

 

Flair and his wife Elizabeth separated in February after 22 years of marriage. In a divorce filing, she accuses Flair of "cruel behavior" and says he slapped, kicked, choked, threw, bit and spit on her and pulled her hair.

 

Her complaint, which was filed in May, also accuses Flair of abusing alcohol and steroids, causing him to become "enraged, paranoid, emotionally unbalanced and violent," and says he exposed himself to her friends and committed adultery.

 

Flair acknowledges in court filings that he had a "tumultuous" marriage, but he denies the abusive behavior and steroid use and says his wife is trying to humiliate him with the allegations.

 

He accuses her of destructive behavior and says she hit him -- not the other way around.

 

Flair, whose real name is Richard Fliehr, and his wife did not return calls for comment.

 

Flair's attorney also wouldn't comment on the allegations, saying the divorce "isn't news" because it was filed months ago.

 

"We're defending the case, and we're not going to talk about their domestic problems," said Bill Diehl, perhaps Charlotte's best-known lawyer. "She accused him of being a bad boy. He accused her of being a bad girl. That's where we stand."

 

Flair was in the news earlier this week after being accused of road rage on Interstate 485.

 

The divorce case file at the Mecklenburg County Courthouse has grown as thick as two phone books, stuffed with financial records, credit card bills and property tax records.

 

There's also a letter from the judge, ruling that Flair must pay Elizabeth $20,000 a month until the case is settled, based on their previous living expenses.

 

Judge Jane Harper says the payment includes $2,000 for gifts, which Harper calls "obscenely high although far less than she says she needs," and $200 for religious contributions. "Whether she makes this or not," the judge writes, "I've included it to encourage someone in this family to share a tiny smidgen of their huge wealth with someone besides themselves."

 

The judge also says she'll consider freezing the couple's assets until the case is decided, because Flair used money from a retirement account "to get $92,000 for his girlfriend's finger."

 

Flair, in response to his wife's complaint, denies her charges and says it was her abusive conduct that led him to leave her. His response and counterclaim, filed in August, calls her "emotionally unstable, verbally abusive and physically violent."

 

He also accuses his wife of hitting him in an effort to provoke him into retaliating physically.

 

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police records going back to 2002 don't show any calls for service relating to domestic abuse at the Fliehrs' south Charlotte home.

 

Elizabeth says she once called police to report abuse and Flair pulled open a wrestling scar to appear bloody, so it would look like she attacked him.

 

Flair says he and his wife have been separated three times and that she condoned and encouraged his "marital misconduct."

 

The wrestler says he is involved with a woman who he has taken on trips and bought gifts, but he invokes his right to privacy on the question of whether the relationship is sexual.

 

Much of the case file deals with the family's financial situation and wrangling over money.

 

Flair says he and his wife "lived well beyond our means" and racked up substantial debt to the IRS and other creditors.

 

In an affidavit asking for support payments, Elizabeth estimates that she spends $65,000 a year on clothing and $50,000 on vacations. She said she spent $50,000 on Christmas gifts in 2004. The family also owns a boat, a country club membership, and a house in the Piper Glen neighborhood with an estimated $1.2 million tax value, according to court records.

 

Flair, known for his "Nature Boy" persona and piercing "Wooooo," said he's due to make $500,000 from his WWE contract this year. But he hasn't received a paycheck since April, he says, due to the IRS' actions.

 

Flair also says he's concerned about his future in wrestling.

 

"I am 56 years old," the star writes, "working in a business that demands physical fitness and is dominated by performers much younger than I.

 

"There is no guarantee that even next year, I will be employed."

 

 

That's seriously one of the saddest things I've ever read.

 

WTF was Flair thinking anyway? I could see him living large like this back in 1986, but he went thru a divorce already and he's getting older, why is he still blowing money like he's still got a fat Starrcade paycheck waiting for him?

[Guest TheShawshankRudotion]

He's a professional wrestler.

 

They're all nuts.

[sek69]

You know, people have asked me why I've never tried to get into the wrestling business in some capacity since I've had a passion for it for so long.

 

This story's the reason why.

[Guest savagerulz]

I got many a chuckle out of this:

 

WWE's Ric Flair: Wrestling legend?

By Eric Schomburg

 

For years, there has been a question in professional wrestling, ?why is Ric Flair still wrestling?? The answer has finally been revealed, and the answer is, Ric Flair is broke.

 

As a fan of professional wrestling, I can honestly say that I do NOT understand what is so special about Ric Flair. It?s interesting, because neither does Vince McMahon or Eric Bischoff. Just because Ric Flair is a supposed 16 time ?world champion,? doesn?t mean he?s anything special in professional wrestling.

 

Ric Flair?s financial woes involve the IRS, in which the 16 time world champion owes the IRS more than $1 million since 1997, and his wages are being garnished $200,000 this year.

 

If that wasn?t enough, Ric Flair has a warrant out for his arrest. Apparently, the ?Nature Boy,? was in a car accident and was angered, for good reason, but allegedly he approached the motorist that hit him and assaulted him and kicked the motorist?s car which led to Flair being charged for assault and battering and for damaging property.

 

Does it get any worse? You bet it does. In May of this year, Ric Flair?s wife filed for divorce, citing steroid and alcohol abuse. To this day he is paying his ex-wife $20,000 a month until the divorce is finalized. Not only that, but the judge that is working on the divorce is considering freezing his assets due to him buying a $92,000 ring for his girlfriend.

 

While I don?t hate Ric Flair for his financial troubles, and I do wish that Flair can bounce back from these woes; however, as a wrestling fan, I don?t appreciate Ric Flair as a wrestler.

 

Ric Flair, in my opinion, is one of the most overrated wrestlers of all time. I don?t care how many times this guy has been world champion, this guy, quite frankly, sucks. While yes, he may be 56 years old, and he may still be in good shape, this guy, claiming that he?s the greatest wrestler of all time, is a joke to me.

 

I remember at the end of the final Nitro, it was Ric Flair vs. Sting, and I DIDN?T WATCH IT! Why? Because Ric Flair isn?t even a great technical wrestler, and he?s boring. I didn?t watch it, because I didn?t want to watch it. He can do a figure-four leg lock, big deal. Ric Flair can take bumps, big deal. Ric Flair can blade himself, big deal.

 

Here?s my problem with Ric Flair, he?s unprofessional, he talks a lot of smack inside and outside the ring, and yet he can?t back it up.

 

I understand that Ric Flair in the past has had some great matches with the likes of Dusty Rhodes, Ricky Steamboat, and Harley Race, I?m not denying that he was once great, but lately, he?s been boring and downright disgraceful as a pro-wrestler.

 

Trust me, I don?t hate Ric Flair, because that would give him heel bonus points. I don?t hate Ric Flair, I just wish Ric Flair would go away. He?s old, he?s boring, he?s lousy as a wrestler, and while I?m at it, he?s a joke as an intercontinental champion.

 

That?s another thing that irritates me about how the WWE is pushing Ric Flair as the IC champion. Ric Flair is a babyface, and yet wrestling fans are outraged that this old fart is an IC champion. Let?s not give the belt to someone who might need it or could use it like, Edge, or Carlito, or Shelton Benjamin, or Rob Conway, but nope the mighty WWE gave it to Ric Flair. Despite he was 16 time world champion, he wins a second rate title in the WWE. Not to say the IC title doesn?t have prestige, but would you ever see Hulk Hogan win the IC belt? No. The WWE really screwed up by giving Flair the IC title, it?s equivalent to David Arquette winning the WCW title.

 

I understand that Ric Flair has his personal opinions about other wrestlers, but what he says doesn?t hold any water to me. For example, in a radio interview with James Walsh on the Blaze 1260 AM in Arizona, Ric Flair has been quoted that ?Bret Hart never made Vince McMahon any money.? This quote is ludicrous considering who said it, and the history and contributions that Bret Hart put in with the WWE. Personally, I can attest that Bret did make money for Vince, because while yes, if you compare Bret to Hulk Hogan?s run as world champion, Bret is obviously not the one making the most money; however, if you compare Bret to Flair, or even Shawn Michaels, or even Triple H, Bret has made more money. To be honest, if anyone didn?t make Vince McMahon any money is Ric Flair.

 

Flair has even stated his disdain with Mick Foley. Flair has stated that ?Mick Foley is nothing more than just a glorified stuntman.? While it may seem that Foley is just a stuntman and not a wrestler he obviously has also made more money in the WWE. I give more credit and respect to Mick Foley as a pro-wrestler than Ric Flair.

 

I think Flair is just jealous of both Bret and Foley, because they were ten times better than Flair as performers, and the fact that Flair hasn?t made Vince any money, and yet a stuntman and a better technical wrestler made more money. Hell, the Ultimate Warrior has made more money than Ric Flair.

 

To be honest, Ric Flair was a flash in the pan, and while yes a lot of people including Jim Cornette, Triple H, Batista, and other wrestlers believe that Flair is a legend, and while I agree to some extent, I disagree that Flair has emulated those like Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Hulk Hogan, Ultimate Warrior, Andre the Giant, Jeff Jarrett, John Cena, Vince McMahon, Sting, Stone Cold Steve Austin, the Rock, and even JBL.

 

Not to totally bash Ric Flair, because God knows I have said things about Hulk Hogan I have regretted now knowing what the wrestling business is all about, Ric Flair has had some great matches and had some great feuds. Feuds with the likes of Terry Funk, Sting, Lex Luger, Harley Race, Ricky Steamboat, Randy Savage, Roddy Piper, and Dusty Rhodes come to mind when I think of Flair, and while yes, I understand that Flair is just making an honest living and trying to clear up his financial woes, and I respect that; however, by saying the things that he said about Bret and Foley, is the same reason why I was upset with Hulk Hogan?s remarks about Steve Austin and the Rock, because it was not giving credit where credit is rightfully due.

 

One thing that wrestlers need to understand, both past and present, is that the wrestling company has to evolve and change. It?s one reason why I was upset with Batista for saying that A.J. Styles didn?t have any talent, because little does Batista realize is A.J. Styles is ahead of his time, and wrestlers will evolve to that type of style.

 

If Hogan could give Austin his credit, Batista give Styles his credit, and of course Flair give Foley and Bret their credit they would be better established as legends or as ?professionals.?

 

Ric Flair's legacy ended in 1993, but other than that he's just a shadow of his former self.

[Loss]

That article is stupid and the writer has no understanding of wrestling.

 

1 - If you give belts to people who need them, over time, they mean nothing. Wrestlers don't need belts, belts need wrestlers. There are exceptions, but that's largely true, especially with the top titles.

 

2 - HHH, like it or not, has drawn WAY more money for WWE than Bret Hart. Peak-to-peak, he's right about Michaels, but sadly, Shawn could be credited with more high buyrates since he's returned in an era where wrestling is bigger and he's happened to be headlining.

 

3 - What the hell is a technical wrestler?

 

I agree that Flair should have retired in 1993, but man, for a wrestler to be nothing important, this guy sure did write a lot about him.

[sek69]

The guy's full of shit on some points (LOL @ Warrior outdrawing Flair), but his basic premise is pretty much correct. Flair post-1993 has been pretty sad to watch at times.

[Guest Alfdogg]

Maybe he just meant Flair in the WWF with the Warrior line, and not over the course of their whole careers. What was the comparision there? I've heard that '92 was one of the worst years financially in WWF history.

 

And while the line about Arquette was pretty gross exaggeration, I fail to see how any positives come from putting the I-C title on Flair, if he's just going to be a job boy for HHH and not put the same effort into feuds with younger guys.

[Loss]

And while the line about Arquette was pretty gross exaggeration, I fail to see how any positives come from putting the I-C title on Flair, if he's just going to be a job boy for HHH and not put the same effort into feuds with younger guys.

I wouldn't have argued that point at all.

[Mad Dog]

So I noticed Flair went overseas with them for the Afghanistan show. Isn't that kind of illegal for him at this point and time?

[Guest savagerulz]

So I noticed Flair went overseas with them for the Afghanistan show.  Isn't that kind of illegal for him at this point and time?

Unless he's on trial for murder, no. There's nothing that says you can't leave the country if you have a court date pending. It's when you've done something serious enough that you're considered a flight risk that you have to surrender your passport.