Ric Flair WWE
Professional wrestler Ric Flair of 'ESPN's 30 for 30: 'Nature Boy'' speaks onstage during the ESPN portion of the 2017 Summer Television Critics Association Press Tour at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on July 26, 2017 in Beverly Hills, California. Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images

The world of professional wrestling almost lost a legend one year ago. It was on Aug. 14, 2017 that Ric Flair was put into a medically induced coma and forced to undergo life-saving surgery in an Atlanta hospital.

Flair, 69, spent more than a month in the hospital and 10 days on life support because of issues with multiple organs that almost took his life. He survived both kidney failure and congestive heart failure and had to have a pacemaker implanted. A month ago, Flair underwent successful surgery to reverse the ileostomy procedure that was performed on him last year.

It’s been a long road for The Nature Boy, but he seems to be well on his way to a full recovery.

“Now I feel great,” Flair told Sports Illustrated less than two weeks ago. “I just had another surgery a couple weeks ago to reverse the stoma. Now I need a couple of months of rest, and I still can’t work out yet, but I feel fantastic. It’s a miracle.”

Flair considers himself lucky to be alive, blaming his near-death experience on the lifestyle that he maintained during his years on the road. The “limousine ridin’, jet flyin’” character that Flair portrayed on TV became his real-life persona. In various interviews, he’s estimated that he averaged between 15 and 20 alcoholic drinks per day during his career, which spanned over the course of four decades.

After surviving last year’s scare, Flair vowed never to drink again. The WWE Hall of Famer is grateful for his second lease on life, and he claims to be in good physical condition for someone that wrestled as long as he did.

“I’m not physically banged up,” Flair told Sports Illustrated. “I feel great. My knees, elbows, and back, they don’t bother me at all right now. When I look at my friends with back operations, hip replacements, knee replacements, I’m just thankful I’m in one piece because so many have been through a lot.

“Hulk (Hogan) has had like nine back operations. Guys in my generation and even the generation younger than me are all physically banged up much more than me, but I’m lucky to be doing great. Thank you to all who’ve asked.”

Less than two months after being released from the hospital, Flair appeared on the Nov. 14 episode of “SmackDown Live” to congratulate his daughter, Charlotte Flair, on winning the SmackDown Women’s Championship.

Flair recently appeared in a commercial after signing an endorsement deal with an online ticket reseller. Earlier this year, he was in a music video for the song “Ric Flair Drip” by 21 Savage, Offset and Metro Boomin.