Ricky Steamboat is willing to let the magic of his iconic matches with Ric Flair remain in the past.
The Dragon confirmed he was offered a chance to be part of what is being billed as Flair’s final pro wrestling match, slated to take place in Nashville on July 31. But as he explained during a signing for Highspots, after pondering the opportunity, he decided to decline (h/t to Figure Four Online for transcribing).
“I was approached and [I’ve] given it some really serious thought,” Steamboat said. “A lot of respect for the guy in the ring. Both of us are night and day when it comes to stuff out of the ring.
“I thought about it for a week and just recently declined on it. I know when I wrestled Jericho at WrestleMania 25 and then we had the return match at Backlash in a singles. At 69, and I know it’s a six-man tag and I can get a little this and that in, but with all due respect to our fans, I want them to remember me that last time I was in there with Jericho when they chanted, ‘You still got it!’ I don’t want to scar that phrase.”
Steamboat added that it would be “a great payday,” but that wasn’t going to be reason enough to participate.
Flair and Steamboat have shared the ring 14 times throughout their storied wrestling careers, though not since a tag team match in WCW in 1994 — where Flair’s partner was Steve Austin, and Steamboat was paired with Sting. Their most renowned bouts came in 1989, when they met several times for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, with Steamboat winning the title at Chi-Town Rumble and Flair regaining it at WrestleWar ’89.
Considering the final match in that series is often named at or near the top of the greatest pro wrestling matches of all time, Steamboat has a bit more to think about than most people when it comes to his legacy with Flair. It would have been cool to see the Dragon and the Nature Boy one more time, but it’s also perfectly understandable why he’d want to let their rivalry stay the stuff of legend.