WWE legend rules out in-ring return 30 years after official retirement
The Ric Flair's Last Match event in 2022 prompted several WWE legends to express an interest in returning to the ring. Ted DiBiase Sr., also known as The Million Dollar Man, is not among those who want to wrestle again.
The 69-year-old retired as an in-ring competitor in 1993 due to a serious neck injury. He continued to perform as an on-screen character in WCW and WWE throughout the 1990s.
On his new podcast, Everybody's Got A Pod, DiBiase Sr. addressed whether he would like to wrestle one final match like Flair:
"No, no. In the words of The Million Dollar Man, everybody's got a price, but (…) I'll be 70 years old in January. People have told me, 'Ted, you don't look 70,' and I feel pretty good, but I don't know if I feel good enough to get back in that ring and have a match." [0:09 – 0:39]
DiBiase Sr. last competed in a televised match on the December 10, 2007, episode of RAW, but technically he did not wrestle.
The three-time WWE Tag Team Champion watched from backstage as Irwin R. Schyster (IRS) won a legend-filled Battle Royal. He then walked down to the ring and gave his former tag team partner some money to eliminate himself from the match. IRS agreed to do so, meaning DiBiase Sr. was declared the winner.
Ted DiBiase Sr. recalls his WWE NXT experience
In 2021, Ted DiBiase Sr. made several appearances in NXT as part of a storyline involving Cameron Grimes and LA Knight. The angle featured a moment where Knight punched the wrestling legend before repeatedly kicking him.
LA Knight wins Ted DiBiase’s Million Dollar Championship and then attacks the Million Dollar Man.
Now THAT’S a heel.
LA Knight is the ultimate arrogant scumbag. Perfect 👏
#WWENXT
https://t.co/KIEVnxb4G1
DiBiase Sr. said WWE officials wanted to reduce the level of physicality in the segment, but he insisted on taking a realistic bump on the ring canvas:
"They were gonna have somebody kinda catch me and lay me down easy, and I said, 'No, you're not. I'm gonna take a bump just like I always did. I'll show you young whipper-snappers how to work.' And I did." [0:47 – 0:58]
DiBiase Sr. was one of WWE's top stars in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2010.
What are your favorite Ted DiBiase Sr. moments? Let us know in the comments section below.
Please credit Everybody's Got A Pod and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.