Ric Flair learned during 2023 doctor’s visit that he legitimately suffered heart attack in his last match

Photo Courtesy: FITE

Flair had no idea until a year later.

Two years ago at the age of 73, Ric Flair wrestled in what was billed as his final match. It was an event centered around the main event that saw Flair and Andrade defeat Jeff Jarrett and Jay Lethal. 

There was a point during the match when Flair was on the outside of the ring and he acted as if he was having a heart attack. 

While guest appearing on the JAXXON PODCAST, Flair revealed that he legitimately suffered a heart attack during the match. In late 2023, Flair went to the doctor and underwent a coronary calcium scan and nuclear stress test. He was informed that at some point in the last two years, he had a heart attack. The doctor asked Flair if he remembers passing out during that time frame and he said he passed out three times during his last match. 

Yeah, I trained (for my last match), I got in the best shape, ever since I was 20 years old, and then I had a heart attack during the match. I had a heart attack during the match. A lot of people didn’t (know). I didn’t know myself until about six months ago because I went and got a — I go to the heart doctor like every six months because I’ve got the pacemaker, right? And they put that on me when I was real sick, not because I had a problem with my heart, but because they couldn’t get over the fact that my heart rate was so low, but it was from all of those hour-long matches and all that cardio. I used to do 500 free squats every day. 500 free squats, 500 push-ups every day. Because not every town you went to, these little towns, (not) all of ‘em had a gym, right? Or I would do the deck of cards or I would do step-ups on a chair. So my heart rate was always like 48. It drove people nuts that it was so slow. So they put that on me and then I went to get what’s called a calcium scan which I’d never had before, because a couple of guys died in our business of heart issues so, it kind of scared me so I went and I blew a number on that and the guy, you know, they give you the nuclear stress test, shoot you with the dye, put you on the treadmill, everything, right? So it’s two days of three hours of testing and this is six months ago. The guy takes me in and if you look at your heart like a round pie, there’s a piece of my heart right here, this big, it’s black, it’s gone. The guy said, ‘You’ve had a heart attack in the last two years.’ I said, ‘I never hurt.’ He said, ‘Have you passed out in the last two years?’ And during my last match, I passed out three times, and I thought it was because I was dehydrated. So I went in the locker room, I was with Kid Rock and Taker. I just drank two bottles of Gatorade and went back out to Kid Rock’s place all night long. But I had a heart attack. It didn’t hurt, no, none. I feel great, that’s my problem. I’m sure I’m just gonna fall off a chair one day (he laughed). They’re gonna say, there he is. Get that little son of a b*tch up out of here.

Flair is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling and he was featured on-screen on the lead-up to Sting’s final match at Revolution.

Flair’s Wooooo Energy products are spotlighted weekly on AEW programming. 

If the quote in this article is used, please credit the JAXXON PODCAST with an H/T to POST Wrestling for the transcription.

About Andrew Thompson 9831 Articles
A Washington D.C. native and graduate of Norfolk State University, Andrew Thompson has been covering wrestling since 2017.