Perhaps it's because my thirty-first birthday is coming up. Don't get me wrong, getting older doesn't bother me at all; or at least that's what I am telling myself. Each year passes and I don't really notice it. I still feel like I'm a kid and act like it most of the time. I'm in pretty good shape; sure not like AJ Styles or Chris Masters, but more so than Nunzio. The only thing that bugs me as years go by is that I am becoming too old to ever become a wrestler. Of course, if I can get a start before 40, perhaps I can continue for a while. But I don't really have aspirations to be a wrestler and this column isn't about some lame dreams I have had since I was 16 and wrestling in high school. With Shawn Michaels possibly becoming a part time wrestler like the Undertaker, there has been a lot of talk that it's the best thing for him. He's pushing 41 years old. They keep telling me it's time for him to step aside and let the younger wrestlers shine. He doesn't deserve another World Title but let him have the US or IC Title.

I don't understand this line of thinking at all. I have tried defending Michaels by saying that he still puts on amazing matches. The man is in phenomenal shape. He's keeps giving to the sport and should deserve to keep giving even more. If he's healthy and he enjoys competing and fans want to see him, let him continue.

My defense is generally met with comments that seem to want to point out how ludicrous my thoughts are. I have been told that wrestling is now a young man's sport. Back in the day, it was a big deal for a wrestler to win a World Title in his 30's, but now it's more appropriate for him to get it in his 20's. Some have even gone as far as telling me that most wrestlers shouldn't wrestler past their mid 30's. And I have one thing to say to all of that: It's the most ridiculous amount of tripe I have ever heard in my life.

I am going to prove this too. Following here is my argument why wrestlers should not retire just because they are getting older.

Ric Flair

Of course Flair is going to be my first example. Most people think he's too old, too flabby and needs to retire soon. But a lot of newer fans don't realize that people have been calling for Flair's retirement for almost two decades. It's nothing new. If Flair had retired when he was approaching Michael's age, here are some things we may have missed out on.

Flair turned 40 in 1989. This is the age most younger fans have been pushing wrestler to retire at. Yet this was the year that Flair had what some people consider the greatest wrestling feud of all time. He faced Rick Steamboat in some of the greatest matches ever. The two traded titles in the best matches of the year. Afterwards, he had a classic match with Terry Funk. These are matches I wouldn't give up for anything.

So, should Flair have retired after that" If he did we would not have seen him win the 1992 Royal Rumble right before his forty-third birthday. At the time, this was the single greatest battle royal performance of all time. It still stands today as probably the greatest Royal Rumble match ever.

I could go on and on about Flair, but it's a discussion I have made already. Flair's performances against Kurt Angle, Triple H and Edge of recent time have been great. Although Flair is pushing it at the almost age of 57, there's no good argument to say that he should have retired all of the previous times people have said he should.

Bret Hart

Bret Hart turned 40 in 1997. Although the end of this year saw him involved in the famous Montreal match, and was followed by a mediocre run in WCW, it also was the year the famous Wrestlemania 13 submission match with Steve Austin took place. I have yet to talk to anyone who really didn't like this match. I was in attendance at the event and it is still the best live match I have ever seen. If Hart retired, we may have never seen it.

Hart's WCW run wasn't great, but that wasn't really his fault, either. He still put forth the effort we all know that Bret has always been capable of. He had good matches with Chris Benoit and still had a better work rate than most people in the business. He carried this on until he retired at the age of 43.

Chris Benoit

Yes, Benoit is only 38. But he'll be 39 in a few months. I haven't yet heard one person calling for his retirement though. A large part of the internet community seems to think that Benoit deserves another title run. I wholeheartedly agree, of course. His matches are still some of the best in the entire sport. I don't see him slowing down, either. Benoit wrestles like a young man and can probably carry on for years to come. It's not really necessary to point out any matches because Benoit hardly ever puts on a poor performance.

Booker T

I have never been a fan of Booker. Never have I doubted his ability, however. For those who don't play close attention to the ages of wrestlers, Booker is actually three months older than Shawn Michaels. He'll turn 41 in May. He has the body and the flexibility of a much younger man and I haven't heard a single person tell me that Booker should retire. It would be wrong to say that his best years are behind him too. The man is continuing at full speed and I honestly think if he's used right, he may even have another World Title reign in his future. As is the case with Benoit, Booker always puts forth maximum effort and is one of the most talented wrestlers on SmackDown!

Terry Funk Funk is probably the best example. Although, for his own health, retiring may have been a good thing, here is a man who never slowed down, despite his age. Funk may have been 31 when he won the NWA World Title for the only time, but his greatest fame arguably didn't occur until after he was 40. If Funk would have retired at 40, we would never have seen his classic match with Ric Flair. Funk was 45 when this match happened. Still, it's not what we think when we hear Terry Funk. Overlooking the very strange run he had in the WWF, Terry Funk is one of the people responsible for the success in ECW. So far, he's the only 50 plus year old I can think of that regularly had the moonsault in his move set. Even though Mick Foley is referred to as the 'Hardcore Legend," this is a name that should apply to Funk as well. Wrestling on a knee that should have been replaced, Funk continuously battled pain to put on extremely entertaining matches. No matter who he faced, nor what matches he competing in, Funk looked like an old man in body only. At the age of 61, Funk still wrestles occasionally. I haven't seen any of his recent matches at all, so I can't attest for the quality of them. But I believe that ECW might not have been the same without his contribution. I think his time there was invaluable, despite his age.

The Boogeyman

Okay, this was really a joke. See, even I have a sense of humor, lame though it may be.

Now, for every wrestler who fits my categories, there are many more who don't. Some older wresters are incapable of putting together an entertaining match in any way. Roddy Piper's and Randy Savage's recent matches have been nothing but a total embarrassment. I don't feel personally Hulk Hogan nor Kevin Nash have enough ability to move around a ring to be entertaining. So, my argument is not all encompassing.

But as long as a wrestler is healthy and keeps putting on matches that fans want to see, they should be allowed to do so. Older wrestlers wrestling is not something new. Abdullah the Butcher is north of 70 and still gets in the ring every now and then. Lou Thesz has competed in seven different decades, losing his last World Title at the age of 50.

So for those thinking Shawn should retire, get the thought out of your head. The man puts on better matches than almost anyone in wrestling and certainly almost anyone in the WWE. If he continues doing this for years and wants to, I will be happy to keep watching him.

by Jacob Kuhn ..