The Nature Boy. A major pay per viewattraction throughout his career, Flair headlined at the premier annual NWAWCW event, Starrcade, on ten occasions, while also co headlining its WWF counterpart, Wrestle. Mania, in 1. 99. 2, after winning that years Royal Rumble. PWI awarded him their Wrestler of the Year award a record six times, while Wrestling Observer Newsletter named him the Wrestler of the Year an award named after him and Lou Thesz a record eight times. The only two time WWE Hall of Fame inductee, first inducted in 2. The Four Horsemen, he is also an NWA Hall of Famer. Download Gimp 2 7 5 Italiano Singles. Flair is officially recognized by WWE and Pro Wrestling Illustrated PWI as a 1. NWA World Heavyweight Champion, six time. WCW World Heavyweight Champion, and two time. WWF Champion,1. He considers himself a 2. He was the first holder of the WCW World Heavyweight Championship and the WCW International World Heavyweight Championship which he also held last. As the inaugural WCW World Heavyweight Champion, he became the first person to complete WCWs Triple Crown, having already held the United States Heavyweight and World Tag Team Championships. He then completed WWEs version of the Triple Crown when he won the Intercontinental Championship, after already holding the WWF Championship and the World Tag Team Championship. Early lifeeditFliehr was born on February 2. Memphis, Tennessee. His birth name is widely perceived to be Fred Phillips, although on different documents he is also credited as Fred Demaree or Stewart, while his biological parents were Luther and Olive Phillips the latter of which was also credited under the Demaree and Stewart surnames. He was adopted and at the time of his adoption arranged by the Tennessee Childrens Home Society his father was completing a residency in Detroit. Shortly afterward, the family settled in Edina, Minnesota, where the young Fliehr lived throughout his childhood and after ninth grade he attended Wayland Academy, a coeducational boarding school in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, for four years five years total in high school, during which time he participated in interscholastic wrestling, football and track. Professional wrestling careereditAmerican Wrestling Association 1. Flair trained as a professional wrestler with Verne Gagne. He attended Gagnes first wrestling camp with Greg Gagne, Jim Brunzell, The Iron Sheik and Ken Patera at Gagnes barn outside Minneapolis in the winter of 1. On December 1. 0, 1. Rice Lake, Wisconsin, battling George Scrap Iron Gadaski to a 1. Ric Flair. 45 During his time in the American Wrestling Association AWA, Flair had matches with Dusty Rhodes, Chris Taylor, Andr the Giant, Larry Hennig and Wahoo Mc. Daniel. 1. 92. 0Japan 1. Flair first competed in Japan in 1. International Wrestling Enterprise IWE, due to a working agreement between AWA promoter Verne Gagne and the IWE. After Flair left the AWA for Jim Crockett Jr. Mid Atlantic Championship Wrestling MACW in 1. All Japan Pro Wrestling AJPW. On April 2. 7, 1. Flair challenged for the NWA United National Championship in a losing effort. Throughout the 1. Flair defended the NWA World Heavyweight Championship in All Japan against the likes of Genichiro Tenryu, Riki Choshu, Jumbo Tsuruta, Harley Race, and Kerry Von Erich. On October 2. 1, 1. Flair wrestled Rick Martel in a double title match where he defended the NWA World Heavyweight Championship and challenged for the AWA World Heavyweight Championship, but the match ended in a double countout. As All Japan withdrew from the National Wrestling Alliance NWA in the late 1. World Championship Wrestling WCW began a working agreement with New Japan Pro Wrestling NJPW. In 1. 98. 9, the working agreement led to a feud between Flair and Keiji Mutoh, who was wrestling under The Great Muta gimmick, in the United States for WCW. On March 2. 1, 1. Flair defended the NWA World Heavyweight Championship and challenged Tatsumi Fujinami for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship in a double title match on the WCWNew Japan Supershow at the Tokyo Dome. Fujinami beat Flair for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, but later lost the title at WCWs Super. Brawl on May 1. 9, 1. United States. 2. When Flair left WCW for the World Wrestling Federation WWF in 1. Japan in the Super World of Sports SWS promotion, due to an agreement between WWF and SWS. He defended and retained the WWF World Heavyweight Championship against Genichiro Tenryu on September 1. In August 1. 99. 5, under a WCW contract, Flair participated in the G1 Climax tournament in New Japan, where he beat Shiro Koshinaka, drew Masahiro Chono, and lost to Keiji Mutoh. On July 1. 7, 1. 99. Flair challenged Shinya Hashimoto for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship in a losing effort in NJPW. Once again under the WWE banner, Flair continued to tour Japan periodically between 2. He successfully defended the World Tag Team Championship with Batista against The Dudley Boyz twice in February 2. On the February 7, 2. Raw, broadcast from the Saitama Super Arena in Japan, Flair lost to Shawn Michaels in a singles match. In February 2. 00. Flair wrestled Mr. Kennedy in the Ariake Coliseum and William Regal in the Budokan Hall, both under the stipulation that he would retire if he lost. On January 2, 2. 01. All Japan announced that Flair would make his return to AJPW for the first time in five years on January 2. Keiji Mutoh to take on Tatsumi Fujinami and Seiya Sanada. This would have been his first professional wrestling match since his September 2. Sting on Impact Wrestling and his first for All Japan since March 1. However, on January 2. All Japan event, the promotion announced that Flair was forced to pull out of his match because of a sudden illness,2. Flair was replaced in the match by his son Reid, but also ended up getting involved in the match himself, delivering chops to Seiya Sanada. Jim Crockett PromotionsWorld Championship WrestlingeditBecoming the Nature Boy 1. In 1. 97. 4, Flair left the AWA for Jim Crocketts Mid Atlantic region in the National Wrestling Alliance NWA1. February 9, 1. 97. Paul Jones for the Mid Atlantic TV Championship. On October 4, 1. 97. Flairs career nearly ended when he was in a serious plane crash in Wilmington, North Carolina that took the life of the pilot and paralyzed Johnny Valentine also on board were Mr. Wrestling, Bob Bruggers, and promoter David Crockett. Flair broke his back in three places and, at age 2. Flair conducted a rigorous physical therapy schedule, however, and he returned to the ring just eight months later, where he resumed his feud with Wahoo Mc. Daniel in February 1. The crash did force Flair to change his wrestling technique away from the power brawling style he had used early on, which led him to adopt the Nature Boy style he would use throughout his career.