FTR

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe and All Elite Wrestling.

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Ric Flair Interested in Having Another Match

Just over one year after having his retirement match, WWE Hall of Famer and pro wrestling legend "Nature Boy" Ric Flair is itching to get back in the ring.

During an appearance on Insight with Chris Van Vliet (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), Flair discussed his desire to have another match against one of his greatest opponents:

"I want to wrestle again right now. Isn't it crazy?" Flair said. "I feel like because Ricky Morton, the guy that I should have chosen for my last match, would have been great. Ricky Morton is still wrestling."

At 67 years of age, Morton is seven years younger than Flair, and he continues to wrestle fairly regularly for NWA and on the independent scene.

Morton, who is one half of the legendary tag team The Rock 'n' Roll Express, is widely regarded as one of the greatest babyfaces in pro wrestling history, which made him the perfect opponent for Flair during their prime.

Flair and Morton faced off multiple times with their most famous battles coming in 1986 when Flair defended the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.

Most notably, Flair beat Morton in a steel cage match at The Great American Bash 1986 to retain the title.

In July 2022, Flair had what was billed as his last match, teaming with his son-in-law, Andrade El Idolo, to beat Jeff Jarrett and Jay Lethal in a tag team match.

It was remarkable that Flair was able to have the match since he nearly died back in 2017 due to a bowel obstruction that led to kidney failure.

Flair told Van Vliet that having his retirement match last year gave him a reason to work out and get in shape, and he would like to do that again if possible.

While it would perhaps be somewhat disappointing to fans who thought they were witnessing Flair's final match last year, one more battle between Flair and Morton is something many old-school wrestling fans would undoubtedly love to see.

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Reported Backstage Notes on NXT vs. AEW

On Tuesday night, WWE NXT and AEW Dynamite went head to head for the first time since 2021.

Originally, AEW debuted Dynamite in October 2021, and in an apparent attempt to cap AEW's growth, WWE moved NXT from its streaming service to USA Network and decided to air it on Wednesday night's from 8 p.m. ET to 10 p.m. ET in direct competition with Dynamite.

The "Wednesday Night War" lasted from October 2019 until April 2021 when the decision was made to move NXT to Tuesday nights. AEW won the ratings battle the vast majority of the time, prompting WWE to change the direction of NXT and make it more focused on building inexperienced stars from the ground up.

On Tuesday, the head-to-head battle returned since Dynamite was moved from its usual Wednesday slot to accommodate the MLB playoffs.

According to Fightful Select (h/t H Jenkins of Ringside News), both WWE and AEW were posturing and making changes to their shows as late as Monday.

Fightful also reported that sources within WWE and AEW had "strong confidence" that they would be able to deliver quality shows.

While NXT typically features up-and-coming talent, WWE loaded the show up with main roster stars and legends making appearances, including John Cena, Cody Rhodes, The Undertaker, Asuka and LA Knight.

As for AEW, several huge matches were booked for the show, including WWE Hall of Famer Adam "Edge" Copeland's AEW in-ring debut against Luchasaurus.

AEW also booked a pair of title changes with Orange Cassidy beating Rey Fenix for the International Championship and Hikaru Shida winning the AEW Women's World Championship from Saraya.

Both WWE and AEW clearly made moves with the intent of trying to win the ratings battle, and all eyes within the pro wrestling world figure to be on the viewership numbers when they drop Wednesday.

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FTR's Wheeler Reportedly Not Injured

Despite rumors to the contrary. Cash Wheeler of AEW's FTR tag team is reportedly not dealing with an injury.

Rumors and speculation of an injury cropped up over the weekend when Ricky Starks and Big Bill decisively beat FTR for the AEW World Tag Team Championships on an episode of Collision.

According to Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t Andrew Ravens of WrestlingNews.co), the surprising booking was simply a pro wrestling angle that had nothing to do with anyone being injured.

Meltzer noted that Wheeler is not injured, and the match was booked in a way that would put Starks and Bill "over big," while also setting the stage for a likely rematch in the future.

Wheeler and Dax Harwood became two-time AEW world tag team champs when they beat The Gunns in April, and they had several quality title defenses during their 185 days as champion.

Given that Starks and Bill weren't a firmly established team, few expected them to knock off FTR, but they did precisely that in arguably one of the most shocking booking decisions in AEW history.

Now, Starks and Bill can potentially be built into a dominant team, while FTR must work their way back to the top in an effort to become the first three-time tag champs in AEW history.

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