Ric Flair takes another personal shot at Paul Finebaum, backs Jim Harbaugh
The ongoing back-and-forth between former WWE superstar Ric Flair and ESPN’s Paul Finebaum doesn’t seem like it will die down any time soon. The beef began when Finebaum criticized Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh for dubbing the Wolverines as “America’s Team” and Flair clapped back calling Finebaum a “non-athletic SEC journalist.”
Now as Michigan is set to play Alabama in a College Football Playoff semifinal game, Flair isn’t letting up in his support of the team. He posted a screenshot of a text message that he claimed was from Finebaum to Twitter on Monday evening.
“You’ve lost so many friends in the South for being petty about Kirby (Smart) and embracing Harbaugh,” the supposed text from Finebaum read. “So sad.”
Along with the photo, Flair took another shot at Finebaum and doubled down on his belief in the Wolverines to beat the Crimson Tide.
“I Just Received This From Mr. @finebaum,” he wrote. “Thank You For Your Expertise. However, I Disagree That I’ve Lost Anything In Terms Of Popularity In The South. You Wish You Could Be Half The Man That @CoachJim4UM Is. $10,000 On Michigan! I Want To Say STFU, But Since I’m A Class Act, I’ll Just Say Be Silent! Put Up Or Shut Up!”
Michigan has been under fire this season as a result of allegations it stole opponents signs. That resulted in an NCAA investigation and suspension of Harbaugh for the final three games of the season. The coach returned for the Big Ten Championship this past week as the Wolverines defeated Iowa by a score of 26-0.
Alabama reached the College Football Playoff after defeating No. 1 Georgia in the SEC Championship. The Wolverines and Crimson Tide will now play in the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day for a trip to the national championship.
It’s safe to say we know who both Flair and Finebaum will be rooting for in that one.
Paul Finebaum slams Ric Flair for postgame shot after Michigan victory
Forget Randy Savage. Paul Finebaum is Ric Flair’s new archenemy. After Michigan’s 30-24 win over Ohio State on to end the regular season, the WWE legend called out Finebaum on social media.
“The Michigan Wolverines, Denied Your Coach, The Great [Jim Harbaugh], You Still Prevailed! HaHa, Big 10, NCAA, And Especially You [Finebaum]! Quit Being A Hater And Start Being A Believer!” Flair said on X, formally known as Twitter. “Quit Snubbing The Big 10! WOOOOO!”
Finebaum hasn’t been shy in voicing his disregard for head coach Jim Harbaugh and Michigan football during the NCAA’s investigation into the program for stealing opposing teams’ signals. He didn’t hesitate to attack Flair, either.
“Ric Flair, let’s be honest, is done,” Finebaum said. “The guy used to be at the epicenter of his sport, and now he’s in his seventies and washed up and basically scraping for dollars. He was a friend of our show. He’d call in occasionally. He was a Georgia fan. We liked that.
“He was on the sidelines two years ago in Athens. I don’t know exactly what happened, but he tries to shake hands with with Kirby Smart and he blows him off. The next thing you know, Ric Flair is in Ann Arbor in Harbaugh’s office and Georgia’s playing Michigan down in the Orange Bowl a couple years ago in the playoffs. Since then, he’s all in on Michigan.”
On3’s Grant Grubbs contributed to this article.