WWE News: Ric Flair Reveals Why He Refused To Put Over Lex Luger

In WWE news, Ric Flair revealed the reason why he refused to put over Lex Luger, according to latest episode of the WOOOOO! Nation podcast interview show.

While having a really friendly discussion with his good friend, Sting, during his weekly podcast interview show, Ric Flair revealed the reason why he refused to drop the NWA World Heavyweight Championship to Lex Luger. It was not because he had a thing against his former Four Horsemen stablemate. Flair told listeners that he did not go along with the plans that promoter Jim Herd had come up with because he had promised the title to Sting.

The real life backstage feud between Ric Flair and Jim Herd is legendary. Back in 1988, Herd used his friendship with Turner executive Jack Petrik to get himself hired as the new executive vice president of WCW. He had experience as the manager of a radio station and was a regional manager for Pizza Hut. However, pro wrestling was not a part of his background. Many in the industry believed that would cause a lot of conflict for Herd. Years later, we now know that those assumptions were proven to be true. His war with Flair was a prime example.

Over the years, there’s been plenty of stories about Ric Flair and Jim Herd. Many know about how Herd infamously tried to force Flair to cut his hair, wear a diamond erring and change his name to “Spartacus.” Backstage heat between the two also escalated when it was time to negotiate a new contract for the Nature Boy. One of their biggest arguments was over the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. Herd felt that Lex Luger was the best person to carry the promotion. Ric, on the other hand, felt that Sting was the chosen one, so he promised the belt to him.

There are those that believe that Ric Flair had issues with Lex Luger. That stems from the fact that the Nature Boy never dropped the NWA World Heavyweight Championship to the Total Package when the two of them were involved in an extremely long feud. At the time, the championship chase felt like it was going to lead a big career highlight moment for Luger. The big moment for Lex came when he defeated Barry Windham at the Great American Bash in 1991 to capture the belt that Herd had stripped from flair.

The situation between Ric Flair and Jim Herd was so bad that the former actually decided to leave WCW, which had been his home for a very long time. It was the catalyst that led to Flair finally venturing up north to WWE. Things didn’t exactly cool off once they were in separate companies. Herd sued Flair for showing up in World Wrestling Entertainment with the big gold world heavyweight championship belt and claiming to still be champion, which he was because the NWA still recognized him as their titleholder. At the time, WCW split away from the NWA.

During the WHOOOOO! Nation podcast interview show, Ric Flair also made sure to defend Lex Luger. He stated that Luger never got to the same level as Sting because he was pushed way too early by the promoters. That prevented Lex from being able to learn properly. Flair pointed out that he was pushed too soon as a member of the Four Horsemen, a stable which was designed at the time for top level performers. The Nature Boy praised the athleticism and chiseled physique that Luger possessed. Flair wanted to reiterate that he had nothing personal against Luger.

Do you blame Ric Flair for not putting over Lex Luger at the time?