Ric Flair retires

So it's the soap opera for men, and I must admit I was teary-eyed... Why? "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair, WWE Hall of Fame inductee, has retired from active in-ring wrestling. Sure he may be back for ocassional appearances and other storylines and stuff, but it won't be the same. He's been wrestling for a long time and I've watched a lot of his matches growing up. Imagine, he has been wrestling longer than my age in years.

I just watched his farewell address on RAW, and man it was moving. It's up there in emotion with the Eddie Guerero tribute. I think Flair didn't know that people were going to join him in the ring, he probably thought it was a one-man address. But no...

Triple H started the ball rolling and soon everyone who's ever teamed-up with him and is really close to his heart joined him in the ring. Four Horsemen, Batista, Ricky Steamboat, John Cena, Shawn Michaels, Greg "The Hammer" Valentine, a virtual who's who in wrestling past and present. Then the locker room emptied and, whether face or heel, the wrestlers led the whole stadium in a "Thank You Ric" chant.

It's a rare wrestling tv spectacle to see wrestlers out of character like Edge without the smirk, JBL and Randy Orton smiling and The Big Show spontaneously showing his gentle giant side. A fitting tribute to "The Stylin', profilin', limousine riding, jet flying, kiss-stealing, wheelin' n' dealin' son of a gun!"

Thank You, Ric. We'll miss the "WOOOOOOOOOOOO!"s.