Ric Flair and Wendy Barlow have ended their relationship, the WWE legend announced on Monday.
Many initially believed that Barlow was Flair’s fifth wife, and the couple was divorcing after over three years of marriage.
However, while several reports indicated this was another Ric Flair divorce, that’s not the case, as he cleared up the matter, saying he and Barlow were “never married” to begin with.
Ric Flair announces split with Wendy Barlow
On Monday, Ric Flair, 72, shared a brief statement on his Instagram announcing that he and his significant other Wendy Barlow had decided to split up.
Based on Flair’s statement, it was a mutual decision, and the two are amicable, as he praised Barlow for being part of his life.
“After taking some time apart, Wendy and I have decided to go our separate ways. Please respect our privacy & our families during this time! I will love & cherish all of our memories together forever, and I will forever be thankful for all she has done to make my life better!” Flair wrote in his IG post.
Ric Flair clears up marriage misconception
Ric Flair and Wendy Barlow reportedly had what looked like a wedding ceremony in 2018, but it wasn’t an official wedding based on Flair’s exclusive comments to People.
“It was just a ceremony,” Flair commented. “We were never married.”
According to People, Barlow also said that their wedding in 2018 wasn’t official, and they’d never applied for a marriage certificate. As far as the split, Barlow indicated that she and Flair had been living away from one another for the past six months.
Flair and Barlow’s reported wedding ceremony took place at Pearl Hotel in Rosemary Beach, Florida, in September 2018, with Flair live streaming some of the event on his Facebook.
According to TMZ’s report, it included family members and special friends. Those guests included The Undertaker, Charlotte Flair, and Dennis Rodman, with WWE superstar Dolph Ziggler walking Wendy down the aisle. Flair had the Migos song Ric Flair Drip playing as he walked down the aisle.
Flair and Barlow had dated for over six years, per TMZ’s 2018 report, and knew each other from Flair’s World Championship Wrestling (WCW) days, where Barlow worked with him as Fifi the Maid.
Ric Flair also credited Barlow for helping save his life and sticking by his side during some serious health issues. In 2017, he was in a medically-induced coma for 11 days. Flair was reportedly in the early stages of kidney failure and on the verge of congestive heart failure with a 20 percent chance of survival.
Before Flair’s relationship with Barlow, he had four other marriages, each ending in divorce. Flair was married to Leslie Goodman from 1971 until 1983 and then married Elizabeth Harrell in 1983.
Following a 23-year marriage with Harrell, he married Tiffany Van DeMark in 2006. That lasted three years as the couple divorced in 2009. Flair’s fourth wife was Jackie Beams, who he was married to from 2009 through 2014.