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The last WWE SmackDown of 2022 ended up being one of the best episodes of the year as John Cena made his in-ring return in the main event. Interestingly enough, a few other veterans also showed up backstage, and amongst them was Ric Flair, who recently opened up about the visit on his podcast.
Ric Flair was briefly at loggerheads with WWE officials after he was removed from the company's signature video package last year. Flair came under fire following a controversial "The Plane Ride from Hell" episode of Dark Side Of The Ring.
The Nature Boy has since buried his differences with WWE and recently made his backstage return for the first time in several months. The 16-time world champion was at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, FL, this past weekend and met with several members of the roster, including Roman Reigns and John Cena.
An emotional Flair admitted that he felt great about being accepted back into the WWE family, as you can view below on his To Be The Man podcast:
"I was in the building. I went and saw Roman and John. God, it was just like, the greatest time; I mean, I really felt like part of the family again. I'm like; it's just, I just had a ball." [8:30 - 8:42]
While Ric Flair wasn't around for the entire show, he spoke with a few high-ranking officials during his brief time behind the scenes. Flair even had lengthy conversations with long-time executive Kevin Dunn and his former Evolution partner, Triple H.
The veteran added that WWE still has personnel who've been around for decades, and he was glad to see them after a long time.
"I can't believe I was in the building. I was there for an hour and a half, saw everybody, Hunter. Everybody was great; I felt like I was family again, which was the greatest feeling. Some of those guys, not the wrestlers, of course, but some of the technical people have been there for years. Talked to Kevin Dunn a lot, I mean. For me, it was very heartwarming." [10:30 - 11:00]
"I cleared it with Hunter" - Ric Flair on his backstage visit on WWE SmackDown
As noted above, Ric Flair had not appeared backstage at a WWE event since he parted ways with the promotion in August 2021.
While the 73-year-old has continued to remain relevant in wrestling circles, he has always longed to have a good relationship with his former company. Fans of The Nature Boy will be happy that there are no longer any hard feelings between WWE and the legendary star.
Ric Flair clarified that he asked Triple H for approval before coming to SmackDown and had a lot of fun interacting with the stars in the locker room. Flair continued:
"The first show I've been to since that bulls*** with the airplane. But you know what? I just walked in, and Kevin Dunn said come on, and of course, I cleared it with Hunter. Hunter couldn't have been nicer. Anything that I was ever cross about with them, with me, it didn't exist that day. It was perfect. I took Chad [Bronstein] and his son, and we met Roman. Roman was great. John was great." [21:45 - 22:20]
Did you enjoy the final SmackDown episode of 2022? Let us know in the comments section below.
Please credit the To Be The Man podcast with a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling if you use any quotes from the article.
