The Nature Boy Ric Flair is one of the most decorated professional wrestlers of all time. Not only Ric Flair is a two-time WWE Hall of Famer, but also a 16-time World Champion. In addition, The Nature Boy, Ric Flair, has had a 40-year long wrestling career, which is a fantastic achievement for anyone.

During his entire career, Flair has competed in several wrestling promotions and faced many opponents. However, when ‘The Nature Boy’ started his wrestling career in 1972, the WWE legend, Dusty Rhodes, always intrigued him.

In the early years of Flair’s wrestling career, he scarcely resembled his future ‘Nature Boy’ image. Today, Ric Flair posted a picture of himself in which the fans could barely recognize him.

How did Ric Flair look in his early wrestling days?

We all know ‘The Nature Boy’ with long blonde hair and a charm of decoration on his face. But, Flair in this picture looks bulked up with short brown hair with The Texas Outlaws. After his debut year in pro wrestling, in 1973, Flair went on his first trip to Japan with The Texas Outlaws (Dusty Rhodes & Dick Murdoch).

The Nature Boy wrote, “Thank You, Dusty And Dick, For Allowing Me To Live THE AMERICAN DREAM!! WOOOOO!”

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As mentioned earlier, Dusty Rhodes had a significant influence on Flair’s wrestling career. Ric Flair always wanted to work alongside Dusty Rhodes. The Nature Boy, around this time, suggested that he would like to be a part of The Texas Outlaws.

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Flair wanted to be introduced as a family member of Dusty Rhodes. ‘Rambling’ Ricky Rhodes was the name he wanted in his early days of pro wrestling.

What made Flair change his appearance in the ring?

When ‘The Nature Boy’ went on his first trip to Japan in 73’, he paid tribute to his idols. In the picture, we can see that Ric Flair received a token of a gift from The Texas Outlaws. Dusty Rhodes and Dick Murdoch gave Flair a special edition of the Texas Outlaws t-shirt.

In his early years, Ric Flair was a 300 pounds giant of a man who dominated inside the ring with his high-impact power moves. However, a plane crash in Wilmington, North Carolina, nearly ended Flair’s wrestling career.

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In this plane crash, Flair broke his back in three places, and at the age of 26, the doctors told him that he should not wrestle again. Although, the WWE Hall of Famer made his way back into the ring in just six months. But Flair transformed his appearance on his return to the squared circle.

The airplane crash forced Flair to change his wrestling technique away from the power brawling style. Ultimately, after the crash, Ric adopted ‘The Nature Boy’ gimmick, which he used throughout his wrestling career.

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16-time World Champion Flair, even after 45 years, has a lot of respect for The Texas Outlaws. So, Flair portrayed a sweet gesture of posting a nostalgic picture with his friends and idols.