SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
The following are highlights of Ric Flair’s interview on Busted Open with hosts Doug Mortman and Dave LaGreca yesterday.
-On Charlotte’s ability: “I think she’s the best worker in the company, man or woman. She’s right there with Seth Rollins, or Randy Orton, or Hunter [Triple H]. There’s nothing she can’t do, A.J. [Styles], anything that they can do, she can do.”
-On their match closing the HIAC PPV: “For Vince [McMahon] to put them in the main event, you know, if I’m there and I’m watching the show, it’s a good thing they were in the main event, because nothing could have followed it.”
-On John Cena beating his 16x Championships record: “Sixteen’s not the real number anyway. They just plain won’t recognize two of them, so that’s 18, and then there were three more. No, but, I think the world of John [Cena] and I would have no problem with that happening.”
-On Goldberg’s return: “I’m not shocked by that all, Bill [Goldberg] was over. He was one of those characters they pounded into their minds for 3 or 4 years…I just texted Bill yesterday because I watched him on [ESPN] First Take, it’s hard to take that much time off and then of all people to get in the ring with for the first time is Brock, oh my god, [laughs] there ain’t nothing good about that! Bill’s a big strong guy, but I don’t think he’s ever taken a German suplex.”
LISTEN TO HIGHLIGHTS OF THE INTERVIEW ON SOUNDCLOUD HERE
Keller’s Analysis: Charlotte is not the best wrestler on the WWE roster, and Flair mentioned four of many who are better than her. That said, Dad’s get some leeway when it comes to objectivity. That said, as I said in my VIP Keller Hotline last night when reviewing this interview, I think Charlotte is really, really good and I’d think long and hard about taking the belt off of her even briefly for the next few years. She can represent an “era” of women’s wrestling and take on one challenger after another for several years. She carries herself so well, and she’s managed to avoid the “frivolity” that unfortunately Styles, Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns and even Roman Reigns have been damaged by. As for his words about Goldberg facing Lesnar in his first match back, I think he’s right to be concerned, especially after Goldberg slipped in the wrestling lock-up with Rusev and was clearly blown up afterward. Good for him in pointing out he had more than 16 title reigns. As for whether any match on the show could have followed the women, yes, Owens vs. Seth could have just fine. That said, I’m really glad the women’s match did main event the PPV. I just wish they had announced it and touted it ahead of time and gotten some attention for that going into the event.
Busted Open with Doug Mortman and Dave LaGreca can be heard Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from 2-4 p.m. Eastern Time only on SiriusXM Rush Channel 93. The full interview can be found online at SiriusXM.com/OnDemand or on your phone on the SiriusXM App.
Ric is wrong about one thing. I KNOW that there are people who would have a problem with Cena “breaking” Flair’s total title reign record. There are 3 main reasons for this: 1) As Flair pointed out, he actually has more than 16; 2) Most of Flair’s reigns were for a significant period of time. Cena’s reigns came in an era where there were title changes frequently; 3) When Flair was WHC for the NWA (or later WCW WHC) he was THE MAN in the company he worked for. Many of Cena’s reigns came during a time where WWE had TWO World Champs because of the brand split. He wasn’t THE man. He was HALF the man. In figuring who had the most WHC reigns, any reign where WWE had 2 top belts should be counted as half a reign.
Cena has a LONG way to go before he can catch Flair as the most successful WHC in history.