10 Things We Learned From Ric Flair On Stone Cold’s Broken Skull Sessions Podcast

8. Harley Race Told Him He Was Embarrassing Himself

Speaking of damning.

At Starrcade 1993, Ric worked as a babyface (something he admits he never truly enjoyed doing) against man mountain Big Van Vader. The legendary Harley Race was at ringside, and he had some brutal feedback for Ric whilst the match was in progress. "You're embarrassing yourself, and embarrassing me", he told Flair outside the ring.

Race said Ric needed to step things up a gear and give Vader something to chew on. He wasn't working - he was warning his old friend that he didn't look like Ric Flair out there. Spurred on and angry, Ric blasted Vader with a few stiff shots and refused to let the monster heel eat him alive. This hidden narrative played out without fans ever knowing.

Backstage afterwards, Flair told Race that he had lost a step and didn't like working as a baby. That didn't cut it with Harley, and he told Ric he needed to sort things out. That honest criticism of his work is something Flair never forgot.