By James Caldwell, PWTorch.com assistant editor

Ric Flair famously retired from wrestling in WWE at last year's WrestleMania, but with Flair scheduled for a special appearance on Raw this coming Monday to confront Chris Jericho in a budding storyline, there's some thought that Flair will un-retire to replace Mickey Rourke in a match at WrestleMania 25 this April.

Like many wrestling fans who simply don't want to see last year's memory erased by having Flair return to the ring, WWE Smackdown announcer Jim Ross says he hopes Flair's role will be limited to a managerial/special appearance role at this year's WrestleMania.

"The issue for me is that I don't want to see Naitch wrestle again not just one year after retiring," Jim Ross said on jrsbarbq.com. "I think Ric keeps himself more special and his retirement, which was an entertainment and emotional work of art, special and an ever lasting memory in the minds of fans worldwide."

Ross adds: "I would love to see Ric Flair have a role at WM25 in Houston because having the greatest wrestler who ever lived at the year's biggest event just makes sense."

Link: Jim Ross blog on jrsbarbq.com.

Caldwell's Analysis: Chris Jericho's lucrative WrestleMania program certainly seemed to be building toward a battle against Mickey Rourke last week, but with Rourke teasing that he's removing himself from the equation, Jericho could be left without a program for WrestleMania. There's always a slot in the Money in the Bank match, but Jericho was too valuable of a performer in 2008 not to get the big payday at WM 25.

Flair vs. Jericho would be a headline-worthy match, but I echo Ross's sentiments that it would cheapen the moment WWE created at last year's Mania, as well as the March 31 Raw the following night. Flair in a managerial role sounds limiting to what Flair can bring to the table, so it's a matter of associating Flair with a match of high-importance, whether Jericho faces Rourke after the Oscars are announced and called, or a younger opponent that could receive a superstar rub from being in the same conversation as Jericho and Flair.

RELATED STORIES at PWTorch.com:
-- Ric Flair signed for WWE return
-- Details of Flair's EA video game deal
-- Flair's Q&A session this weekend

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