WWE Executive Director Honestly Reveals Why Ric Flair Became an Authority Figure On-Screen: “That Was the Intention, for Ric to Come In..”

Ric Flair is one of the most legendary superstars in WWE history. The “Nature Boy” has had a 40-year long wrestling career, which is a fantastic accomplishment for anyone. During his career, Flair competed in various promotions and faced several opponents.

Additionally, Flair even did different wrestling promos against Vince McMahon in 2002. Over the years, Ric Flair has explicitly been known for his iconic figure 4 submission lock and his charismatic in-ring dressing. This submission has put many wrestlers to tap out.

However, despite his in-ring action, WWE producer and former manager Bruce Prichard opened up his views on Ric Flair as an authority figure. On “Something To Wrestle With Bruce Prichard,” Conrad Thompson took Bruce back to the Attitude Era.

Conrad talked about Chris Jericho vs. Rob Van Dam for the title match. In this match, Ric Flair was the referee who was not decided initially. After Rob Van Dam put Jericho in the submission lock, even Flair put Vince McMahon in a Figure 4 submission. However, Vince wasn’t tapping out, which was surprising for Conrad.

Was Ric Flair entering the ring as an authority figure pre-decided?

Dave Melter of Wrestling Observer Radio speculated that this move was intentional. Conrad asked Bruce about him already knowing the building feud between Vince McMahon and Ric Flair at Royal Rumble 2002.

He replied, “That was the intention, Ric to come in and, Ric, you’re going to be an authority figure, and that’s it, man, you don’t have to work no more bumps, don’t work any of that. And, the next thing you know, God damn it’s Ric Flair. I mean, you know, and then Vince and um just kind of fell into place, if you will.”

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Bruce mentioned that the whole thing was already in the cards, and Vince McMahon, the company owner, was selling his art at its best. “And I mean, you know, s**t, you know, talking about Vince tapping and s**t, Vince again, not being a worker, he’s not gonna tap, he’s screaming his head off, selling the f**king hold and s**t. There’s not a referee in there to break it. So, it was fun,” Bruce added.

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Bruce Prichard enjoyed producing promos

Ric Flair and Vince McMahon were feuding as co-owners. Conrad Thompson wondered if this whole idea was of Vince McMahon or not. Bruce followed that the idea of putting Ric Flair as an authority figure was an overall creative idea that logically led itself there.

Bruce Prichard, in the 2000s, was involved in producing different promos for the WWE. The feud between ‘The Nature Boy’ and Vince later brought brawls between Jericho and Flair. In the podcast with Conrad, Bruce also mentioned how he enjoyed writing such segments.

What are your thoughts on Ric Flair, the authority figure? Let us know.