Photo: Ric Flair reunites with legendary rival
AEW welcomed several pro wrestling stars to Revolution 2024 on Sunday night as Sting retired, ending his historic career. Ric Flair has just revealed how another legend and him reunited backstage.
Flair was at AEW Revolution on Sunday to support Sting, as he and Darby Allin retained the World Tag Team Championship over The Young Bucks. Steamboat was the special guest timekeeper, but both got physically involved to help deal with The Bucks.
The Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina is a legendary venue for the wrestling industry. Many notable matches have taken place in what is called Flair Country over the years, including Ric Flair vs. Sting, and Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat, among others.
As seen below, The Nature Boy and The Dragon reunited backstage at Revolution. Flair issued a bold declaration on their renowned 1989 'Trilogy' of matches, in which Steamboat picked up two victories.
"The Trilogy That Will Never Be Duplicated. EVER! 35 Years Ago And Still The Best Thing Going Today. WOOOOO! #AEWRevolution @AEW @REALSteamboat," Ric Flair wrote.
Flair and Steamboat worked 15 singles and tag team matches from April 1978 - July 1994. Their first bout saw Flair and Greg Valentine retain the NWA Tag Team Championship over Steamboat and Paul Jones at an NWA Columbia event on April 4, 1978. The last time they worked together was on July 19, 1994, at the WCW Saturday Night tapings as Flair and Steve Austin defeated Steamboat and Sting.
A look at the Trilogy of Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat following reunion at AEW Revolution
Ricky Steamboat and Ric Flair are two of the most accomplished Hall of Fame talents in the history of pro wrestling.
The Dragon and The Nature Boy dominated promotions like WCW, AWA, and the NWA to pave the way for multiple generations of wrestlers, and later in their careers, they even participated in a WWE storyline together.
Flair and Steamboat as opponents are most known for their 1989 Trilogy of matches. The two had six matches together in 1989, and five of those were singles contests. The three of the Trilogy are the most talked about, and that begins with Steamboat capturing the NWA World Heavyweight Championship at Chi-Town Rumble on February 20 of that year.
Steamboat then regained the title at NWA Clash of the Champions VI on April 2. The Trilogy finale saw Flair capture the gold and leave the feud as a much bigger star at NWA WrestleWar on May 7, 1989.
There were two more singles matches between the future WWE Hall of Famers during the Trilogy period. Steamboat retained the title on March 18 at an NWA Landover show, and he retained it on April 23 at a NWA WCW live event.
What are your favorite memories of Ric Flair and Ricky Steamboat? How did Sting's retirement at Revolution compare to other wrestling retirements? Sound off in the comments below!