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Journalism of Courage
It has been more than 15 years since his retirement from international cricket, but Andrew Flintoff remains one of the most iconic English players of the last 30 years. The 42-year-old, who retired in 2010 after playing 79 Tests, 141 ODIs and seven T20Is for England, took up boxing post-retirement and was also in talks with WWE for a stint in professional wrestling. Flintoff ultimately declined the offer, citing family time and the lengthy period required to be spent in the USA. The former all-rounder has now opened up on how he almost secured a WWE contract, with an idea of fighting The Undertaker in Manchester. He attended a two-week professional wrestling training camp in the USA but parted ways with the organization weeks later. At that time, Flintoff was also part of a Sky Sports documentary on his boxing career and later fought American Richard Dawson in a professional bout in Manchester, which he won.
“I went to a wrestling camp. WWE. I needed a job. I went to fight the Undertaker. I got a contract. I live in hope (Laughs). No, but he (WWE chief Vince McMahon) said to me at the end of it. They said—because I wanted to do a documentary on it, and then I did one on boxing instead—and they said at the end that they liked me going to the wrestling camp. They said, ‘You can’t do your documentary, but we would like you to join us.’ I was like, ‘You know what?’ He (McMahon) said, ‘Well, usually you are in the wrestling academy for two or three years. We will get you through in 18 months. Like Wrestlemania and Royal Rumbles.’ Imagine that, me coming in your underpants,” Flintoff shared about the supposed move to WWE in a chat with the YouTube show Beard Before Wicket.
When asked what name he would have picked for himself in WWE, Flintoff was quick to reply. “Well, I was thinking like Big Fred or Sir Fred.”
The England all-rounder, who suffered facial injuries while shooting for the BBC show Top Gear, was also the England U19 captain prior to his international debut against South Africa in a Test match in 1998. When asked about his experience playing on the Asian subcontinent, including in Pakistan, he shared a story about the team staying in a biscuit factory, but also noted being impressed with the passion for cricket.
“First time I went, it was a shock. I went in the mid-90s. I was England’s U-19 captain, and we went to Pakistan. The U19s, wherever you go in the world, don’t stay in the best places. And Pakistan, I think over the few years has changed a hell of a lot, hasn’t it? We went to Sahiwal. We stayed in a biscuit factory. No, seriously. There is a cricket pitch near the biscuit factory, and we played a game. There were rooms around the outfield, so the lads were staying in them. I was the captain, so I had a nice room. But their rooms always had rats. So one by one, I was getting a knock on the door. I ended with everybody in my room. But one of the things I love is the passion for cricket. In India, it’s the same. It’s just vibrant. As a cricketer, where would you get an opportunity to play in front of 100,000 people? 60,000 people? It’s incredible,” Flintoff added.
