10 Wrestling Facts We Didn't Know Last Week (Jan 16)

3. Ric Flair Didn't Know He'd Be Champion In WWF

Utterly outraged by the management of Jim Herd, 'Nature Boy' Ric Flair decided it was time to leave World Championship Wrestling in late-1991. One of Herd's big ideas for the recognisable grappler was to change his appearance dramatically, shaving his trademark bleach-blonde hair and renaming him 'Spartacus'. Naturally, Flair wasn't impressed, and he decided to give Vince McMahon's WWF a shot. Heading in to the federation, McMahon offered Flair no assurances about his positioning, but did tell him that he'd be set to make a lot of money. Winning the WWF Heavyweight Title was never discussed between both men, at least not initially. Flair told this story during his recent appearance on Steve Austin's podcast special for the WWE Network. Winning the title at the 1992 Royal Rumble wasn't pre-planned before Flair made his debut, it was an organic decision. That may fascinate many wrestling fans, who would have been under the impression that Flair was guaranteed success before joining the WWF.