WWE

As you may have seen right here on Uproxx, Ric Flair recently teamed up with Dennis Rodman to promote fitness game Shape Up, which may, on the surface seem a bit odd. Flair’s isn’t a spring chicken after all, and he’s never been one of the top physiques in the wrestling biz, but if you’ve actually followed the man’s career, you’d know Flair is a perfect spokesman for a fitness game.

Ric Flair has made a career of working harder than anybody else in the business, busting his ass through epic sometimes hour-long matches, and he’s remained in fighting condition well into his later years. Here’s five matches that prove Ric Flair is wrestling’s ironman…

Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat – 2/3 Falls Match (Clash of the Champions VI, 1989)

In 1989 the dastardly Ric Flair and Lou Diamond Phillips-looking sterling babyface Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat engaged in a classic trilogy of matches for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. All three matches were lengthy, but none was as lung-bustingly epic as Flair and Steamboats hour-long 2/3 falls match at Clash of the Champions VI. A lot of old-timers like to brag about wrestling hour-long matches back in the day, but nobody before (and very few since) have matched the pace and intensity Flair and Steamboat kept up throughout their hour-long confrontation. Every headlock and takedown was battled for and Flair sold every bit of offense like he’d been shot with a rifle. Frankly, I get a little winded just watching this match.

Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk – I Quit Match (Clash of Champions IX, 1989)

This match may not be the longest match on this list, but it may be the most intense. Some accuse Flair of being formulaic, but there’s no formula here, just two men fighting with everything they’ve got. Forget Flair’s cartoony flopping and top-rope misadventures – this is as real-feeling as wrestling gets.