WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair has become a surprisingly controversial figure in recent years, with his outspoken comments about the professional wrestling business and its various personalities making him particularly divisive.
Now, in a new interview with Ariel Helwani, the Nature Boy revealed that WWE banned him from this year's WrestleMania 42 in Las Vegas.
As with most things Flair these days, the reason is pretty bonkers. However, it's hard to blame the company for deciding it might be best for the 16-time WWE Champion to sit out the Show of Shows this year.
According to Flair, when things got heated between his daughter, Charlotte Flair, and Tiffany Stratton ahead of their WrestleMania 41 match, he decided to call Stratton's then-boyfriend, Ludwig Kaiser.
"I didn’t get invited to WrestleMania this year. I threatened to beat up Tiffany Stratton’s boyfriend last year, and I wasn’t allowed to go," he revealed. "A 24-year-old kid, threatened by a 76-year-old man, and I can’t go to WrestleMania. Are you kidding me? That English kid. He’s going to go as far in wrestling as a gnat. He’ll be a fly on the wall in a year."
As an aside, Kaiser is 35 years old and German. The WWE Superstar is currently portraying El Grande Americano II in the Mexico-based AAA, where he's found great success.
Back to Flair, and he explained, "They had that thing where Tiffany made smart remarks about Ashley’s divorces, which we both know she’s not smart enough to have written; somebody gave her the script. He implied that he wouldn’t 'bum one' off Ashley. Okay, I need your number, and I got it, because I can get anyone’s number that I want any minute of any day."
"I called him and said, 'When I see you, I’m going to beat the shit out of you.' He went like a little bitch, told Hunter, and I wasn’t allowed to go. He’s going to really go far in the business. A 76-year-old tells a 24-year-old kid that he’s going to kick his ass and where is he now? Is he even on the roster? Little punk," an incensed Flair added.
Flair's relationship with WWE isn't great right now, and it turns out he also wasn't a fan of how his daughter was booked at the Show of Shows on Sunday. As a reminder, she was booked in the Women's Tag Team Championship match, where she teamed with Alexa Bliss in a losing effort.
"I didn’t like her match at all, and I think that Ashley needs to be a singles wrestler, and I know she enjoys her relationship with Alexa," he said, "but if Ashley is not in a title picture right now, in my life and as a spectator, without her in the main event in a singles match."
You can hear more from Flair in the player below.