10 Greatest Debut Years In WWE History

10. Ric Flair

Talking of paying dues, here’s one man whose dues were indisputable on his 1991 WWE debut. Flair walked away from WCW due to a shift in ownership and a proposed change of direction for his character (cliff notes: shaved head, pierced ear, rebranded as “Spartacus”). What WCW failed to do, though, was return Flair’s deposit on his Big Gold Belt, and so he kept the strap.

This led to a glorious gimmick on his August 1991 WWE debut. With Bobby Heenan and Mr Perfect at his side, he branded himself the “real world’s champion”. He then proceeded to back his talk by winning the ‘92 Royal Rumble - one of the best Rumbles ever - from number three, gaining the vacant WWF Championship in the process.

All this led to some career-best promos from Flair, and ultimately a programme with Randy Savage at WrestleMania VIII. The two weren’t given the main event (this went to the execrable Hogan/Sid match), but stole the show with an emotional, entertaining epic, with Flair dropping the belt.

Not long after his first year, the Nature Boy regained his title, but by this point, unsatisfied with his place on the card, he soon made plans to return south. The good times didn’t last too long, but for a while, Flair’s star burned appropriately bright.