Ric Flair is sharing regret over losing his cool at a Gainesville pizza joint over the weekend … saying he should’ve just walked right out the minute things got heated.

As we previously reported, the Nature Boy was caught on camera yelling at a Piesanos staffer over an alleged bathroom interaction with the kitchen manager … and things got so tense, a patron offered to take things outside.

Naitch joined “The MJ Morning Show on Q105” to share his side of things on Wednesday … and while he does feel bad for how things went down, he explained he also felt he needed to stick up for himself.

“It just escalated and I was wrong for getting mad, but I kind of felt like I was defending my position,” Flair said on the radio show.

Flair also backtracked on his scathing review of the eatery … admitting he enjoyed his time and the meal there before things went sideways.

“I was wrong for losing my temper,” he added. “When I feel like I’m put in that area where I’m uncomfortable and all of a sudden everything just fell apart, I got upset.”

“I was wrong for getting upset. I probably just should have just walked out the door, but it caught me so off-guard because we were having a wonderful time. Then all of a sudden … someone in their kitchen said I did something wrong in the bathroom and there’s no one there except me and him.”

As for the narrative alcohol had anything to do with it, Flair denied being drunk or buzzed … saying he only had Michelob Ultras and “probably” two mixed drinks.

And get this – Flair said he ended up ordering some Piesanos grub on Uber Eats after the spat … so it sounds like he ain’t exactly boycotting the place.