Inter-Promotional Bout Announced For Ric Flair's Last Match
While the Starrcast V wrestling event Ric Flair's Last Match is largely being built around, you guessed it, Ric Flair's last match, reason would dictate that more matches will be needed to fill the card when the show takes place on July 31 from Nashville Municipal Arena. As such, the event, being promoted under the Jim Crockett Promotions banner, is starting to announce other bouts, including a major inter-promotional match earlier today.
On Thursday afternoon, Starrcast founder Conrad Thompson announced the match with a post on Twitter. The post is accompanied by a Jim Crockett Promotions Control Center video, featuring JCP announcer David Crockett and Impact announcer Tom Hannifan.
"JUST SIGNED!" Thompson tweeted. Impact Wrestling's Josh Alexander puts the Impact World Title on the line July 31 as he faces MLW's Jacob Fatu for the FIRST TIME EVER! Tickets for Ric Flair's Last Match go on sale Friday at 12 pm."
JUST SIGNED! @IMPACTWRESTLING's Josh Alexander puts the IMPACT World Title on the line July 31 as he faces @MLW's Jacob Fatu for the FIRST TIME EVER! @Walking_Weapon @SAMOANWEREWOLF
Tickets for #RicFlairsLastMatch go on sale Friday at 12pm ET. https://t.co/VcHoZBpQpX pic.twitter.com/JBAkUX8d2e
— Conrad the Mortgage Guy (@HeyHeyItsConrad) June 23, 2022
Just an hour later, Thompson announced a second match for the undercard, this time a tag team content, which again featured a video with Crockett and Hannifan.
"JUST SIGNED!" Thompson tweeted, quoting himself from earlier. "A match we thought we'd never see again. The Wolves vs. Motor City Machine Guns...a decade in the making. July 31, Ric Flair's Last Match."
As noted, Alexander vs. Fatu will be the first time clash between Impact's top star and the former MLW World Heavyweight Champion. In contrast, this will be the second-ever match-up between the Motor City Machine Guns and the Wolves, who last wrestled in 2010 for 2CW promotion in Syracuse. MCMG emerged victorious in a nearly 20-minute match.
In the end, both of these matches will serve as a prelude to Flair's retirement match in a weekend largely built around the 16-time World Heavyweight Champion. As of now, however, it remains unclear who Flair will be wrestling with and against in his retirement match. Ricky Steamboat, originally tapped for the match, declined to take part after failed negotiations, while the status of AEW team FTR was thrown up in the air after it was reported that AEW owner and CEO Tony Khan hadn't yet given them clearance for the match.