17 WWE Returns Confirmed For Raw 25th Anniversary Show

16. Ric Flair

Steve Austin
WWE.com

'The Nature Boy' said his first farewell to WWE in 1993 following a scintillating retirement match with Mr Perfect on only the third ever episode of the flagship show, but his real last goodbye dominated an emotionally charged post-WrestleMania Raw in 2008 following his 2001 return to Vince McMahon's employ.

Things looked bleak health-wise for Flair in 2017, but a brief appearance on SmackDown Live alongside daughter Charlotte at the tail-end of the year was an thoroughly pleasing return to form for one of the greatest of all time. He'll presumably be in similarly fine fettle in whichever arena gets the good fortune of his presence.

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