10 Times WWE Loved Making Your Favourite Wrestlers Cry

8. Ric Flair

Big Show CM Punk
WWE

Ric Flair mesmerised generations of wrestling fans with his Royal Rumble 1992 victory promo.

Holding his newly-won WWE Championship belt aloft and proclaiming it the industry's single symbol of excellence shouldn't have felt as real as it did coming from the man synonymous with the only other strap that could challenge its prestige. But he spoke with such incredible passion and - famously - "with a tear in my eye!" that every single word seemed to form a shoot promo he'd wanted to cut for years.

If only this entry stopped there.

The closer 'The Nature Boy' got to his retirement, the more that tear returned. By the time he gestured Shawn Michaels to bring his wrestling career to a conclusion (mostly) at WrestleMania XXIV, he'd fought crying more than he had Ricky Steamboat. WWE played into this the next night on his Monday Night Raw farewell.

Virtually everybody from his legendary run that had meant something to him was brought out, ahead of an entire roster clapping him off into the sunset as the greatest of all time. There wasn't a dry eye in the house, but Flair's bawling would have soaked it even if there was.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett