Ric Flair Attempts to Trademark 'The Man' Nickname
Of all of Ric Flair's famous catchphrases, one stands tall above the rest — 'To be the man, [...]
Of all of Ric Flair's famous catchphrases, one stands tall above the rest — "To be the man, you've gotta beat the man." Now it appears "The Nature Boy" wants to get his hands on the trademark for the nickname "The Man."
Flair seemed to take exception to both Becky Lynch and Taylor Swift for referring to themselves by his old nickname when he tweeted back on Aug. 24.
I Hate To Break It To You Both @BeckyLynchWWE And @taylorswift13, But I’m THE MAN!!! And To Be THE MAN, You Gotta Beat THE MAN! WOOOOO! #theman
— Ric Flair® (@RicFlairNatrBoy) August 24, 2019
Two days later Flair filed for the trademark on "The Man," which states it's for, "Entertainment services, namely, wrestling exhibitions, live appearances and performances by a professional wrestler and entertainer rendered live and through broadcast media, namely, television and radio, and via the internet or commercial online service; providing wrestling news and information via a global computer network; Providing information in the fields of sports and entertainment via an online community portal; Providing a website in the field of sports entertainment; Fan club services; organizing and staging entertainment events with wrestling fan club members; Providing online newsletters in the fields of sports entertainment; Online journals, namely, blogs, in the fields of sports entertainment."
Lynch started referring to herself as "The Man" after her gimmick change in late August 2018, which has since become a staple of her persona and virtually all of her merchandise. Back in April she explained the thought process behind the nickname in an interview with PEOPLE.
"When we look at different sports, we look at this in the industry here, any industry, you need a top person, the person of exceptional ability who is usually referred to as 'The Man,' " Lynch said. "They're the man, and up until now, the man has usually been a man.
"But when I rolled up, when I took that top spot, when I said, 'I'm the top dog, I'm the top star, I'm the face of this company,' I am now 'The Man,' and that's how it came about," she continued.
Lynch won the WrestleMania 35 main event against both Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey, becoming both Raw and SmackDown Women's Champion in the process. She has since managed to keep ahold of the Raw title, with her latest defense coming against Natalya at SummerSlam. She recently kicked off a feud against Sasha Banks, and is booked to defend her title once again on Sept. 15 at Clash of Champions.
