As a general rule, WWE have only inducted retired wrestlers into their Hall of Fame, with the notable exception of Hulk Hogan. But, thankfully, you can hardly consider Hogan a regular wrestler in 2008, and this Saturday night in Orlando, Florida, Flair will become the first wrestler to be inducted into the Hall who you would still consider to be an active, regular wrestler.

So while all the signs may point to Flair losing to Shawn Michaels this Sunday night, and as a result retiring from the WWE (at least as an in-ring performer), I'm not entirely convinced it will happen.

Should Flair retire at WrestleMania? In some respects, I suppose he should. 'Mania is the biggest show of the calendar year, and it's the show that the majority of professional wrestlers dream about being involved with.

But while a spot on the WrestleMania card will give a wrestler a nice payday, and will be seen by up to three times the number of viewers who would purchase any other of WWE's monthly pay-per-views, it isn't really the biggest stage to say goodbye to a career that has spanned five decades.

It's a relatively safe bet to predict that Sunday night's show will be purchased by around a million people. Internally, WWE are hoping that they achieve 1 million buys in the United States alone, but for the sake of discussion, let's say WrestleMania is purchased in a million homes worldwide this Sunday night.

If Flair loses on Sunday, and retires, then wrestling fans will tune in to WWE's Raw broadcast next Monday night to see a Flair-less show.

But bear in mind here, the average audience that WWE's Monday night show brings in is a lot higher than the numbers that WrestleMania will ever produce.

And while having Flair lose on what is dubbed 'The Grandest Stage of Them All' will be seen as a fitting tribute by those in the business, keeping Flair's career alive and kicking for just another 24 hours gives him the opportunity to retire on the largest stage of them all, with millions of wrestling fans getting the opportunity to witness one of the - if not the - all-time great say goodbye to professional wrestling.

Of course, having Flair retire on Monday brings up the question of how to book this Sunday's match with Michaels.

I don't think having Michaels lose to Flair by pinfall or submission makes much sense, although Michaels losing wouldn't harm his career at all.

With Flair fast approaching 60, there's no doubting that he's nowhere near his prime in the ring. But being in the ring against Shawn Michaels, that shouldn't matter on Sunday night.

But the idea of Flair, now in his late fifties, beating Michaels, who even in his mid-40s has plenty of offer, doesn't work for me.

Instead, I'd like to see the man who has given it his all over the past 40 years, and the man who has become synonymous with WrestleMania, tear the house down and build up to a finish that sees Flair simply pass out somehow.

Whether that's through sheer exhaustion, or whether they do some angle that sees Flair pass out through blood loss, but I think they can book the ending here in a way that allows both men to steal the show before allowing Flair to retire in front of a much larger audience the following night.

Regardless of the outcome on Sunday night, and whether or not it is Flair's final in-ring performance as a wrestler, there's one thing for sure: Ric Flair is the man.