Ric Flair on WWE's Product "I think the current product is average"

[Shockage]

Source: Gerweck.net


Wrestling 101 has an interview with Ric Flair. On Vince McMahon as a boss: “Vince again is a great guy, he’s very honest and to the point and truthful. He is brutally honest and it takes a lot for someone in this day and age to be brutally honest but Vince is and I respect that about him. He’s the man, there is no one like him and no one has ever compared to him in this business, he has put things together that no one ever has, he’s a genius. But don’t piss him off! I’ve pissed Vince off plenty of times but oh boy did he make me aware of it and at the end of the day Vince always wins.” On the current WWE product: “I think the current product is average but that’s because you can’t replace guys like The Undertaker, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Shawn Michaels and Ric Flair, it’s very hard to replace all of those great guys, but the WWE is still the best wrestling product there is. The WWE really misses that whole attitude era but you’ll never get that back because it is just so hard to establish new names over night, you can’t just take a generation of people and try to replace them to make it better because it is a very tough and difficult business.” Flair does put over Cena, Orton, Show, Mysterio and Ziggler as stand outs but doesn’t believe the main event depth is as deep as it once was. “There are a lot of good guys there right now but it’s just not what it was when you had the likes of Steve Austin, Triple H, Kurt Angle… I think Kurt is awesome, right now he is the best wrestler in the business.” Full interview at http://tinyurl.com/bgnf4rj.

[Mighty Boosh]

Oooh, little jab at TNA there.

Anyway I think average is a good way to describe WWE right now. Then again certain things do suck big time.

I'm disappointed that Flair didn't mention Punk, not everyone here likes him but at least ever since he went heel Punk has been carrying Raw and has pretty much been the highlight of the show every week even if WWE would rather shine the light on Cena it's Punk who has stood out. Even the explosion of Ryback, Punk deserves some credit for that. I think what Punk's doing right now can match up to everybody, even Flair. Yes, Flair is the greatest of all time, but right now I have to say Punk is the man, it's been a while since a heel has been so prominent, even carrying the show.

As for Angle, he hasn't been the top draw for awhile now, good as he is I don't think right now he can be called best in the business. That said when he was headlining TNA and even early into the Hogan/Bischoff era I thought Kurt was the absolute best, the closest thing we had to a young Ric Flair. I really think there was a time only a year or so ago when Kurt really was the best in the world, The greatest today but I think Punk is closing in, he isn't there yet but he's closing in.

Wait... Flair put over Show and Mysterio and not Punk? Mysterio really? Well somethings not right there.

[RoughRoad]

Flair is just jealous that none of his 16 title reigns were as long as Punk's current title reign.

[WWE Gary]

Most of what Flair said was spot on , especially stating that guys like Austin , Rock and Taker cant be replaced . As great as Punk is as a heel , and yes I agree , without him on Raw we are left with very little ......he is nowhere near the superstar that guys like Shawn Michaels or even Ric Flair were. It's a shame we don't have that anymore in the business. That's what is lacking and that is why the ratings have plummeted. We don't have that huge household name . I remember a time when we had three or four in one roster . Right now Punk's the only one that keeps us watching . And of course Cena's the Hogan of today, but mainly with little kids .The sad thing is I don't see any future Duane Johnson's at the moment . I don't see any future Undertakers . As much as I love what Punk is doing , you've gotta say he doesn't have what those guys had .

But I definitley believe if Flair's list of great competitors include the Big Show and Mysterio , a guy who won't be active for much longer in my opinion, then Punk should have definitley got a mention . Daniel Bryan too . Bad blood i guess .

[Goldie79]

Flair is just jealous that none of his 16 title reigns were as long as Punk's current title reign.

Some of his early reigns were longer than Punks

[Goldie79]

Funny that Flair throws his own name in there as an 'irreplaceable' ..... Austin, Rock, Michaels.... and er.... Flair.
The Ric Flair of the late 70s and 80s was great no doubt.... but the era that Ric is referring to.... Ric was a wrestler in his 50s and a midcarder at that late stage in his career. He was way down the pecking order at that point

[WWE Gary]

Yes , i found that quite odd also . Little bit egocentric right ? But that's how Flair's always been . And to be fair , it's true . Even the Flair in his fifties could cut promos 100 times better than 99% of the guys we hear on the mike today. Nobody can deliver the passion and the energy he did when he stood in front of an audience with a mike . So even though the flabby belly and man breasts didn't impress anyone, he was definitely IRREPLACEABLE for that reason , even in his last years as a pro wrestler .

[RoughRoad]

Some of his early reigns were longer than Punks

In an era where title changes hands every PPV, what CM Punk has achieved is greater than those ancient title reigns of Ric Flair.

[Mighty Boosh]

Most of what Flair said was spot on , especially stating that guys like Austin , Rock and Taker cant be replaced . As great as Punk is as a heel , and yes I agree , without him on Raw we are left with very little ......he is nowhere near the superstar that guys like Shawn Michaels or even Ric Flair were. It's a shame we don't have that anymore in the business. That's what is lacking and that is why the ratings have plummeted. We don't have that huge household name . I remember a time when we had three or four in one roster . Right now Punk's the only one that keeps us watching . And of course Cena's the Hogan of today, but mainly with little kids .The sad thing is I don't see any future Duane Johnson's at the moment . I don't see any future Undertakers . As much as I love what Punk is doing , you've gotta say he doesn't have what those guys had .

But I definitley believe if Flair's list of great competitors include the Big Show and Mysterio , a guy who won't be active for much longer in my opinion, then Punk should have definitley got a mention . Daniel Bryan too . Bad blood i guess .

Is Cena the Hogan of his generation? Yes. Is he the highlight of the show? No, which Hogan actually was. Does Cena entice the audience and keep them coming for more? For the most part no, the kids will watch him but he hasn't captured everyone. That's why Punk is the man in WWE right now, everyone responds to him, even the kids that hate him want more. The kids may get their parents to pay so they can see Cena but absolutely everybody pays to see Punk, it's to see him get beat but still.

I'm not saying Punk is The Rock or Stone Cold or Ric Flair, but he's the closest thing we have RIGHT NOW. I do however disagree with you, I think Punk is on par with Undertaker and Triple H, even at their prime.