I mean, surely an attorney at law would have the common sense not to go public with Flair's appearance before having something in writing, right?

UH OH.

What do you think happens?

On the week of the show, as the NWA is doing everything it can to exploit the name of Ric Flair to sell tickets to this event, World Wrestling Entertainment pulls Flair from the show.

And get this... the NWA is surprised by WWE's decision.

World Wrestling Entertainment does not want Ric Flair to appear in a wrestling ring, especially following his retirement ceremony on Monday Night Raw.

The Nature Boy got some serious coin for his retirement weekend, and you can't blame WWE for protecting their marketing rights by keeping Flair out of a wrestling ring until it's time for him to re-appear in a ring to create attention.

And you can bet your last bottle of JR's BBQ sauce that when the time comes for Flair to appear in a wrestling ring, the initials on the side of that ring will read WWE.

World Wrestling Entertainment does not want Flair appearing on anyone else's DVD releases, either.

Can you blame them for that?

The longer Flair is kept out of the public eye, the more a simple guest appearance will mean when Vince McMahon decides "it's time to play the Flair card".

World Wrestling Entertainment has made a substantial investment in the Ric Flair brand

and they don't want anyone else tinkering with it.

The NWA went forward with a marketing campaign built around Ric Flair because, unfortunately, there's no other way for the promoters involved to get people to come to their event.

Yesterday, a store in Atlanta named Aaron's - a pretty big name in the Southeast - offered FOUR free tickets to the event to anyone who wanted to go, and would then give a discount to anyone who brought their ticket stub into the store.

I guess the NWA has given up on getting anyone to pay to see their Hall of Fame Ceremony.

NWA attorney/honcho/intellectual Robert Trobich released a statement saying: “I am deeply sorry that Ric will not be in Atlanta for the Hall of Fame ceremony.

“Ric was very honoured to be recognized by the NWA and wanted to be in Atlanta to thank his fans. Unfortunately, the WWE refused to allow him to be there.

“It is truly a sad action on their part, as the main people injured by the WWE's seeming petulance is the wrestling fans.

“Nonetheless, Ric Flair was a legend in the NWA long before the WWE was anything other than a regional promotion in the northeast.

“As such, Ric will still be a member of the 2008 class. He has earned that honour, and we intend to bestow it upon him."

What's the slang for bull excrement?

Ric Flair was a legend in the NWA long before the WWE was anything more than... blah blah blah?

If I ever need an attorney, and I do seem to need them every now and then, please don't ever have Robert Trobich present my case to a jury.

WWE is petulant because they want to protect their intellectual property rights, and their sizeable investment in the retirement of Ric Flair?

WWE is to be criticised for opting not to have Ric Flair water down the retirement ceremony the company spent so much valuable time during WrestleMania weekend to make so memorable?

A weekend-long tribute, I might add, that WWE is counting on propelling its DVD sales through the roof.

And yet, the attorney who serves as spokesperson for this incarnation of the long-dead NWA wants to point the finger at WWE when the NWA had no right to market/advertise/promote Flair to begin with?