When Ric Flair joined WWE in late 2001, he did so as somebody that was booked as a co-owner of the company. It wasn't the greatest angle and it was at a time when WWE had a lot of confusing things going on, but he was essentially in the role of a guy in power. Then in 2002 when they did the draft lottery he was in charge of the Raw brand too. As an in-ring performer, even though he was in his 50s he was still solid. It wasn't late 1980s or early 1990s Ric Flair, but he was still better than a lot of people on the show. One of the things he said years after his WWE return was that he wasn't very confident when he first got there and it wasn't until he started working with Triple H in 2003 when he got his confidence back. Evolution started in January 2003, but throughout 2003 there was a lot of stop and go kind of moments within the group. Batista was hurt for much of the year and Triple H even had a match with Flair in the main event on Raw. It was a really good match that Flair almost won. A week after, Flair was back at the side of Triple H and with Orton as well. A lot of people dislike Triple H for a lot of reasons, but he always took care of his favorite wrestler Ric Flair. Flair's inclusion in the group was key because he represented a wrestler from the past that was considered for a very long time. Having him there to mentor Triple H, Batista and Orton was perfect. Nobody else could have fit that role the way Flair did.
John wrote at WhatCulture from December 2013 to December 2015. It was fun, but it's over for now. Follow him on Twitter @johnreport. You can also send an email to mrjohncanton@gmail.com with any questions or comments as well.
