Just over two months ago, it was announced that Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat was making a shock return to the ring, aged 69, for Big Time Wrestling on November 27th. This was particularly unexpected because he’d turned down the opportunity to be the opponent for Ric Flair’s Last Match, saying he didn’t want to spoil his previous comeback, which saw him wrestle Chris Jericho.
Now though, he is all in for a six-man match that sees the WWE Hall of Famer teaming with FTR against Jay Lethal, Brock Anderson, and, yet to be confirmed, third person. In addition, it’s also revealed that Arn Anderson would appear as a manager for his son’s team. And now he has spoken to Sports Illustrated about the bout, admitting he still thinks he can entertain a crowd but seems to be planning on FTR to carry the work rate portion of the match.
I think I can still entertain the crowd. I’m wrestling with some great workers and I’m teaming with FTR, who are phenomenal. I keep telling myself, ‘Don’t be stupid, Steamboat.’ I’m going to be smart about this. My goal is to sprinkle in some ‘Ricky Steamboat dust’ throughout the match. If I can do that, I’ll be happy.
Ricky SteamboatWith the show being just hours away, the big question is who the mysterious third man is. And with Jay Lethal and Brock Anderson being of a different generation to Steamboat, it would seem likely that a veteran performer will take up this spot. Of course, this will now lead to speculation about it being Ric Flair, as he has already revealed that he resumed training once he heard about Steamboat’s return and has previously expressed his regret at promoting his last match as that. However, given how that match was only four months ago, it seems unlikely he’d compete again quite so soon. Therefore leaving the spot open for someone else from Steamboat’s past, like Tully Blanchard, Dustin Rhodes, or Shane Douglas.
