Terry Funk did an interview. Here are some highlights:
On Injuries: “I don’t want to die in the ring,” says the 65-year-old Funk, who has pulled up stakes in Amarillo, Texas. “I want to die on my back porch, drinking beer.
“It gets tougher and tougher in the morning. Hell, I used to jump out of bed, then I rolled out, now I crawl out. I know why I did it, but when I saw the end result, I’d get up the next morning and I couldn’t walk, sometimes it was, ‘What the hell am I doing?’ I’ve got a tremendous amount of pride in what I do.”
On Wrestling Today: “Even before my father started wrestling, it was pure. Now, in 2010, it’s pure entertainment. You have to create an interest in yourself. But how do you do that if you don’t have TV or pay-per-view. You have to create the best match you can, but all you have is word of mouth. You have to have a tremendous athletic match or you have to do a double flip off the top rope and disappear up your ass.
“Wrestling has become what the fans want it to be. The people running UFC, football and basketball have to watch it or the fans will take over those, too. The fans will dictate what’s best for them.”
On Flair: “Ric Flair definitely hated me for all the things I said about him,” says Funk. “I said he kind of looked like Barbara Bush. And I said he had a banana nose. He really does. What they didn’t tell me about I Quit match was if you say I quit, you had to retire. They didn’t announce that anywhere until the last night and on a microphone where I couldn’t hear it.”I wouldn’t have quit. I’d like to have him in the ring again. Maybe UFC or MMA. I’d straighten him out. I guess if I don’t like him, it doesn’t make him a bad person.”
