Ric Flair defends hard-hitting chops as Hart critiques GUNTHER

Ric Flair has weighed in on comments by Bret Hart critiquing the stiff chops of current WWE star GUNTHER, praising Hart's technical mastery while defending his own hard hitting style as a deliberate storytelling tool. Flair made the remarks in a recent interview with Escapist Magazine after Hart compared his more technical approach to wrestling with the chopheavy, physical offense associated with Flair and with GUNTHER.

Hart, in a separate interview, had said he spoke with GUNTHER about what he described as overly stiff chops and contrasted his own emphasis on precise, technical ring work with a willingness to take harder strikes. Flair acknowledged that assessment and lauded Hart as "one of the greatest technical performers of all time," but added that Hart "never liked to get smacked" during his career. "We laugh about it now, but he just hated getting chopped," Flair said.

Flair framed his own rougher approach as central to how he presented matches and connected with audiences. He pointed to classic encounters with Ricky Steamboat and Sting, and to more recent rewatching of a bout with The Rock, as examples of how striking with force made matches feel more real and heightened...