You may not think pro wrestling and sports betting have anything in common, but elements of both could affect harness racing this year. In mid-May, the United States Supreme Court lifted the monopoly on sports betting, opening it up to all the states, and defending divisional champ Lost In Time, now partially owned by Ric Flair Stables, made his seasonal debut, finishing second at Pocono in a $55,605 Pennsylvania Sires Stake. Yes, that Ric Flair! The retired pro wrestler who was born Richard Morgan Fliehr, was gifted partial ownership of the colt by Scott Robinson. Robinson made the announcement at the Dan Patch Awards and Flair, presenting the award while celebrating his 69th birthday, was uncommonly humble. But Robinson is clearly a fan of wrestling and of Flair. He also works the mic pretty well. “Today is Ric’s birthday, so  . . . who would we be as a horse racing community if we didn’t get Ric Flair a birthday gift? He’s got the best car, the best watch, the best clothes, the best of everything, but there’s one thing you don’t have Ric Flair. You don’t have the best horse. I DO! But guess what? Ric Flair, my gift to you, you now own a piece of Lost in Time,” Robinson said at the awards dinner, pointing at Flair. I was excited. I too was a big wrestling fan in the heyday of the WCW, where Flair won dozens of championships. He was not the best in the ring, although he was pretty good in the day of hour-long matches, but he was one of the best interviews (known as mic workers) in the business and he still is to this day. John Campbell is a very well-spoken individual. Tim Tetrick shows energy and engagement on camera. Even Dave Miller, who used to be a one-word answer guy, has developed confidence on camera. But none of them are Ric Flair on the microphone. As we talk about how to draw fans to our sport, the idea of Flair in a winner’s circle interview, or doing color commentary on the Hambletonian broadcast, could be legendary. Wooooo! Not only was he one of the Four Horsemen, he is now actually a horseman. Then I watched the very good 30 for 30 documentary “Nature Boy” and I began to wonder. This film is a no-holds-barred look at Flair’s life. He talks about the immense volume of alcohol he drank, the thousands of women he claims to have slept with, his failure to be a good parent (although he professes great pride in his daughter Ashley, a star of the WWE as “Charlotte”). I wondered if this was a guy who would be really good representing our sport. And the answer is yes. A high profile celebrity, with an amazing story (he survived a plane crash, breaking his back when he was a young wrestler, taking nearly 18 months to return to the ring , and he also survived bouts of vertigo later in his career) and the ability to lay down some smack would really wake up harness racing. We should be out there recruiting other high profile athletes into ownership. There have been some, but while many were colorful characters in their own right (Montreal Canadians great John Ferguson comes to mind), they don’t have the profile of Flair. Imagine Steph Curry letting out an exultant F-bomb after his horse wins the Breeders Crown. Or Ndamukong Suh being interviewed after his horse loses. Colorful characters like the NFL’s Kelce brothers (Jason of the Eagles and Travis of the Chiefs) would be amazing at race track meet and greets. It would build huge interest in racing from fans of other sports. Could the legalization of sports betting make it easier or will it make it harder for this to happen? Some sports have rules regarding participants owning gambling enterprises. And we all know the Pete Rose story. If sports betting had been legal when he did it as a manager, would he be in the Hall of Fame? I don’t know. But with the way pro sports have embraced DraftKings and FanDuel and the like, I am quite sure they will jump on the sports betting bandwagon. This could allow a loosening of rules and perhaps we will see more current athletes involved in racehorse ownership. And if you don’t think Flair was an athlete, watch him work through some of those classic matches of the eighties and nineties. Sports betting will help racing. Just as full card simulcasting and racinos, it will help some tracks and jurisdictions more than others. Since most tracks have the infrastructure already in place, the tracks are the logical “go-to” locations for sports books, along with existing casinos.  Hopefully sports books will be located where gamblers have a view of the track and can see the horses. Sports betting revenues probably won’t be a windfall, but it will be profitable enough to help horsemen in those states that allow racetracks to conduct it. More important, not that I trust most politicians, is the additional taxes sports betting will create. Even if horsemen don’t get a nickel directly from this new revenue source, it will lessen the pressure on state legislators to rob from racino subsidies and (hopefully) from raising takeout rates, increasing the available funding for race purses. It is clearly a win-win. As long as there is no wagering on pro wrestling. Now go cash. Maybe on a three-team MLB parlay. See you next month.