There are a lot of names that get tossed around in conversations about who is the greatest wrestler of all time or who belongs on wrestling's Mount Rushmore. If Ric Flair's name isn't part of that conversation, then you're not doing it right. The dirtiest player in the game has been in the business in one form or another since 1972.
Flair has gone through a number of evolutions over the years, pun intended. Some of them have been better than others but when it comes to Ric Flair, everything the man does is incredibly memorable. Even when he's bad, he's still pretty great.
10 Randy Orton's Manager
The most recent version of Ric Flair featured the G.O.A.T. serving as Randy Orton's de facto manager. It was, to an extent, a callback to their Evolution days, when they were both part of the most dominant faction in WWE.
While it's always nice to see Ric and Randy working together, this time was filled with foreboding and foreshadowing. Randy was in the midst of revisiting his Legend Killer gimmick of old. Fans knew it was only a matter of time before he turned on Ric, which he did. Ric was less of a manager and more of a sacrifice to a storyline.
9 Retirement Ric
Any matches that hinge on any kind of finality in a wrestler's career are dubious at best. When a career is on the line in a story, fans know it will be a temporary departure at absolute best. That's doubly true when it comes to Ric Flair.
Over the years, he's had more than his fair share of retirement matches. He had one against Hulk Hogan in WCW. That "retirement" lasted a few months. Many years later, he had an infamous one with Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania. Flair almost immediately went to work of ROH, then TNA (both considered part of this era of Ric), and then returned to WWE.
8 WWF Co-Owner
After WWF purchased WCW, the ridiculous Invasion storyline featuring WCW and ECW talent started. The problem was many of the big WCW names weren't involved in it, though they did eventually make their way to WWF/E in the years after.
Ric Flair popped up as part of the Invasion endgame. He was the public face of a consortium who bought 50% of WWF. For a time, he was the kayfabe co-owner of WWF alongside Vince McMahon. The Chairman's response to this news remains one of the greatest moments in WWF/E history.
7 Charlotte's Manager
Ric has played the role of a manager on more than a few occasions but none fit better than working with his own daughter. After she found her footing, Charlotte Flair started tearing up NXT alongside Sasha Banks, Bayley, and Becky Lynch. But her move to the main roster took her to another level.
With her father serving as her manager for a time, Charlotte cemented herself as a main event player and a worthy successor to the Flair legacy. She would have been a success without him there but having Ric Flair cheering you on never hurts.
6 Evolution
Even the best wrestlers reach a point when they lose their passion for the business and become directionless. No career is perfect. When Ric was in a creative lull, an idea came along from an old friend that defined the next few years of his in ring life.
That idea was Evolution. Led by Triple H, the faction included Ric Flair alongside relative newcomers Randy Orton and Batista. Evolution not only elevated the two young superstars, but it also reinvigorated Ric Flair's career as well as his love for the business.
5 WWF Champion
When Ric Flair made his way to WWF in 1991 with the Big Gold Belt over his shoulder, he had Bobby Heenan and Mr. Perfect at his side. That was a group of literal legends side-by-side. It doesn't get much better than that.
Flair would subsequently win the 1992 Royal Rumble to claim the then-vacant WWF Championship. This would be the beginning of an amazing feud between Ric and "Macho Man" Randy Savage that would run through the majority of the year.
4 Japanese Legend
Not enough North American fans know or talk about the incredible work Ric Flair has done in the Japanese wrestling scene. It's almost like a second career that rarely gets discussed, one that is equally legendary.
Ric has had some intense matches on the other side of the Pacific Ocean over the years but one stands above the rest. In 1995, Flair wrestled Antonio Inoki in Pyongyang, North Korea. He lost the match but these two icons of wrestling had an absolutely brilliant bout.
3 The Four Horsemen
No faction has achieved the status of The Four Horsemen. There have been a variety of members over the years, but the originals are still the best. Arn Anderson, Ole Anderson, Tully Blanchard, and Ric Flair defined The Four Horsemen in the same way that team defined their respective careers.
From 1985 to 1987, this faction was professional wrestling. It didn't matter what company you worked for or which wrestlers you cheered for, everyone knew The Four Horsemen and everyone knew Ric Flair.
2 NWA World Heavyweight Champion
In the early 1980s, NWA was the biggest name in the wrestling game. Being the champion of that company was a huge honor, one to be bestowed on only the top dog. And in 1981, Ric Flair became that top dog.
Ric's run as the NWA World Champion has become the stuff of legends. He defeated "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes to become the champion. Over the next ten years, he would feud with the likes of Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, dropping the championship and reclaiming it over and over.
1 "The Nature Boy"
Wrestlers tend to get a lot of nicknames and gimmicks on top of their ring names. While you can make an argument for any number of gimmicks being the best ever, "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair has to be on that list.
The Stylin', profilin', limousine riding, jet flying, kiss-stealing, wheelin' n' dealin' son of a gun. It was a gimmick he lived, a run that included the formation of The Four Horsemen and his tenure as the NWA World Heavyweight Champion. To be the man, you gotta beat the man, and "The Nature Boy" was the man.