10 Worst Ever Wrestling Retirements

1. Ric Flair (WCW Halloween Havoc 1994)

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The darkest chapter in WCW's often abhorrent treatment of their finest ever performer, Ric Flair's retirement match loss to Hulk Hogan at Halloween Havoc 1994 was an utter embarrassment.

The October steel cage match was originally intended to be a deciding contest between the two, with the company doubling their typical buyrates for their first encounter at July's Bash at the Beach and drawing monster ratings for their Clash of the Champions rematch the following month.

In truth though, Hogan had never looked troubled by Flair in the feud. His loss at the Clash was via count-out following an extended figure four leglock and high heel shoe attack from Sensuous Sherri.

Nonetheless, the rubber match was booked with with Hogan ally Mr T as referee and both men's careers on the line.

Despite copious abuse from Sherri, Flair and a masked assailant that had been attacking Hogan for weeks, 'The Hulkster' was still easily victorious.

Retiring 'The Nature Boy' alongside a handcuffed and previously assaulted Mr T, WCW didn't even show Ric's emotional departure.

He was hastily ushered to the back while Hogan celebrated with ringsider Muhammed Ali, then unmasked his new enemy as former best friend Brutus Beefcake to commence their ludicrous build to December's Starrcade '94.

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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