Eric Bischoff Talks WWE Not Having Long Term Storytelling, Ric Flair To AEW

WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair was released by WWE earlier this month, which was first exclusively reported by Wrestling Inc. and Fightful. The Hall of Famer stated on his Twitter account that he asked for his release following disputes about the direction of his character. The Nature Boy stated that he holds no ill-will towards WWE and they are the ones responsible for putting him in the position of life he's currently in. Following his first post-WWE appearance at AAA in Mexico, Flair has also been announced for tonight's NWA 73rd Anniversary Show in St. Louis.

Former WCW President Eric Bischoff spoke about the Flair release on the latest episode of the 83 Weeks Podcast saying he believes the 72-year-old will join AEW. Bischoff also mentioned how over Flair will be and that nobody will question the fact that he's far past his prime.

"Watch what happens when Ric Flair steps in the ring in AEW," Bischoff stated. "Just watch what happens. We saw what happened in Mexico in AAA when Ric Flair and Andrade got together. When Ric Flair steps back in the ring and starts chopping somebody, nobody is going to say to themselves 'Oh man, that was a weak chop, he doesn't chop as well as he did 20 years ago.' Nobody could give two shits, they're going to have a blast, they'll rejoice, it's going to trigger their memory and they're going to go back in time and remember some of those magic Ric Flair moments and that's what they're paying their money for."

"The idea, the narrative that older talent won't attract the demos, I'm sorry, what is 'The Demo God' Chris Jericho, 50? Come on, it should be obvious. You do need younger talent, definitely building that roster full of the future, there's no question about that. I'm not suggesting all you do is feature that older legacy talent but people still want to see them get in the ring, they still want to see them active, they still want to rejoice in seeing talent like Ric Flair to this day at 72 years old step in the ring and have some fun."

Bischoff continued to about the current state of wrestling and how he believes no company sets plans months in advance. Having worked for WWE in 2019 as the Director of SmackDown, Bischoff said he definitely knows WWE doesn't have plans many months in advance, and assumes AEW also doesn't.

"I'll be honest, I'm not sure that anybody really has, at this point in time, a three or six month story locked in," Bischoff mentioned. "I know when I was in WWE last, two or three years ago, that was definitely not the case, it was more week-to-week no matter what anybody said. I don't know what it's like in AEW because I'm not there, I'm not doing it but as recently as 24 months ago I was in the thick of it in WWE. There were no three and six months storylines locked in, I can assure you of that. Maybe that's changed, hopefully it has and I think you need to have a good plan, a three month plan, a six month plan, if you can have a year great.

"But you also have to be flexible enough and spend enough time reading the audience, not the ratings, not the quarter hours. That doesn't tell you sh**, that tells you what history is, that doesn't tell you what the audience is thinking or feeling and there's only one way to know that and that is to be out there with the audience. I hope that there are three and six month plans out there and if there are, hopefully people are paying attention to the crowd reaction as well."

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit 83 Weeks with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.