Sage Cortez
It’s finally time to see the show where Sting gets his title shot. The NWA had been through a lot to get to this point, messed up a lot of things and went through a lot of good challengers. The undercard on this show is unspectacular bar a few matches. We have the Southern Boys challenging the Midnight Express. Doom defending their titles against the Rock ‘n’ Roll Express. Lex Luger facing MEAN MARK. The Dudes with Attitudes taking on three of the Horsemen! You know what’s crazy though? This match didn’t even sell out the arena. Bad sign.
– July 7th, 1990, from Baltimore Arena in Baltimore, Maryland
The introduction was pretty funny, especially seeing Sting in garb from the past. Don’t know who came up with that idea, but I dig it. Jim Ross and Bob Caudle will be on commentary here.
Buddy Landel vs. Brian Pillman
Pre-Match Thoughts: Landel is one of Ole’s guys. He could really work when he was feeling it and in good shape, but I hope they didn’t put him over Pillman. Pillman deserved a lot better than that. Landel wore a pink robe to the ring and looked exactly like a Flair ripoff, but way out of shape too. That was a BAD LOOK. REALLY BAD. For some reason, Jim Ross called this show Starrcade ’90.
Match Review: These two exchange slaps, then lock up, which leads to some hard chops by Landel. Pillman returns the favor, and springboards off the second rope with a cross body that gets 2. Landel comes back with more chops, then is taken down by a hip toss. Pillman sends him to the outside with some dropkicks, that was a hot start. He gets back in and Pillman grabs his arm, but Landel takes him down by grabbing the hair. He then slaps Pillman, and ducks out to avoid a reprisal. When he gets back in, Pillman gets poked in the eye. Pillman has a sunset flip blocked, then tries a cross body that Landel catches and turns into a backbreaker. Pillman gets up, chops away, then misses a dropkick. Man, he’s just flailing around with his moves. Landel covers for 2, then Pillman has a hip toss blocked and turned into a clothesline that gets 2. Pillman gets up with more chops, but is he just going to get cut off again? No, he landed 10 punches in the corner. Landel then threw him into the other corner with a reversal, and they traded chops until Landel puts Pillman down and in a chinlock. Pillman powers out, and eats a knee to the gut. This is getting funny. Back to the chinlock again, and Landel follows that with a suplex. Pillman finally gets in some offense, and hits Landel in the corner until running into a clothesline. Pillman takes Landel down with a cross body that gets reversed for 2, then Pillman goes for a cradle that gets blocked. Pillman then misses a clothesline and winds up falling onto the ramp outside the ring, and springs up quickly to the top rope. He flies back into the ring with a cross body, and that gets the victory at 9:45.
My Thoughts: I really didn’t like the structure of this match. Landel took too much offense to the point of it being obscene. Look at how far back in my review it started. He gave Pillman absolutely nothing to work with and dominated the entire match. Why would a guy with great offensive spots be given so little? I have no idea. I was surprised to see this rated so high in the WON, I’d only give it *1/4, that’s how much I disliked it.
Gordon Solie had a chance to run down the card, including mentioning that El Gigante and Vader will be appearing. Sweet!
The Iron Sheik vs. Captain Mike Rotunda
Pre-Match Thoughts: Well, this should be just great. I can see why these two matches were cut from the Turner home video. You know how much I want to watch this match right now? So much that I think I’m going to wait until the day after I type this part to watch it. That’s pretty bad, isn’t it? Sheik looks enormous, and the captain gimmick is absolutely no better.
Match Review: Sheik attacks Rotunda from behind with the Iranian flagstick, and chokes him with his tunic. Sheik finally pulls Rotunda’s jacket off, and rammed him into the turnbuckle. He takes Rotunda down with a clothesline too. Remember, these guys worked together at WrestleMania I. They have history! Rotunda takes Sheik down with a sunset flip that gets 2, then bodyslams him. Rotunda follows that with a dropkick. His body is looking pretty weird too. Ross called Sheik’s opening attack a TERRORIST ATTACK. YES IT WAS. Sheik stalled for time for a bit, then the guys traded chops with each other. Sheik wins that battle, then rams Rotunda’s head into the SPIKED BOOT. Sheik gives Rotunda a gutwrench suplex for 2, and puts him in an abdominal stretch. Rotunda reverses with a hip toss, drops an elbow, then misses a second. Sheik uses a back suplex for 2, and I’m having to refrain from a joke about them trading bombs. I just made it, I guess. Sheik loses the fight and bows down to Rotunda, then rakes the eyes and goes for a suplex that Rotunda turns into one of his own for 2. Sheik throws Rotunda out of the ring, then poses atop the turnbuckles. Haha. Sheik goes to suplex Rotunda back in, and gets a 2 count after it. Sheik goes for a double underhook, but Rotunda reverses to a backslide that gets 3 at 6:48.
My Thoughts: Sheik did his best, but this was hard to watch. They couldn’t have put together a worse matchup than this. Rotunda was boring on his best day. This wasn’t his best day and he was boring on it too. The right guy won the match, but saying Rotunda was the right guy at this stage isn’t much of a compliment. He was so much better and more important as a character when he went back to the WWF. Here, this was no fun. 1/2*. Despite Sheik working hard, that doesn’t make up for how blown up he got. It looked like a parody of a wrestling match.
Harley Race was with Gordon Solie, and on this show he was going to wrestle. He talked about Sting and Ric Flair more than his own match. I have no idea why they’d have him do that. He was in a boat crash and hurt four people, I’m surprised he’d be able to wrestle here. He looked so old, and he wasn’t even that old.
Dutch Mantell vs. Doug Furnas
Pre-Match Thoughts: Now this might be good! The obvious downside is that there’s no reason for anyone in the building to care about this match. It’s as low as a lower card match can get. Nobody in the crowd could possibly have cared. In wrestling terms, this could be really good. Furnas was very green, but he was willing and capable. Dutch could go. The crowd liked the muscles Furnas had and maybe they’d get behind him.
Match Review: Dutch’s back looked EXTREMELY hairy. Can’t help but mention it. He puts Furnas in a headlock, then did a shoulderblock spot where Furnas knocked him on his ass. Furnas does it again, sending Dutch out of the ring to get his breath. When he gets back in, Furnas levels him with a right hand and gives him a press slam. Dutch gets up and slaps Furnas, and the second time the referee had to restrain Furnas. DIRTY DUTCH AT WORK. Dutch slaps Furnas a third time, and Furnas finally is able to return the favor. He punches him in the corner, does a backflip for no reason, and follows with a dropkick. Furnas puts a wristlock on Dutch, and follows with a cross body that gets 2. He takes Dutch down with an arm drag, and bars up the arm. Dutch gets out by going to the eyes, but Furnas slams him after some ineffective punches. Furnas climbs up top and misses a big splash, and Dutch levels him with a clothesline right after. Dutch puts Furnas in a chinlock, before deciding to wrench the arm. He dumps Furnas out to the floor, and decides to follow so he can clothesline him. He brings Furnas in for a snap suplex that gets 2, and Furnas kicks out by throwing Dutch onto the referee. I hope they warned the ref of that spot. Dutch grabs onto an armbar, and lets go to push around the referee. Furnas rolls Dutch up for 2, and takes him out with a clothesline. He powerslams Dutch, and they wind up tumbling into the ropes. Furnas kicks Dutch, and things have fallen apart a little. Furnas winds up behind Dutch, gives him a belly to belly suplex, and pins him for the victory at 11:19.
My Thoughts: The ending was just not good. They both tried hard and Dutch did his best to work with Furnas, but this was a complete clash of styles and they had a hard time. Furnas still nearly missed a lot of moves, but you could easily see how much potential he had. He didn’t offer much on the microphone, and that’s why he wound up in Japan. Easy to see why he had a hard time getting over too, he didn’t exactly play to the crowd much or have any character. That connection has to be there. *3/4.
Gordon Solie was with Jim Cornette, who has a lot to say. He always does. He said that the Southern Boys better prove their wrestling credentials. They better be bad enough and tough enough to beat the Midnight Express. Good luck!
Harley Race vs. Tommy Rich
Pre-Match Thoughts: It’s bizarre to see this match years after Rich and Race had traded the NWA Championship. Also, years after Race had anything left to give in the ring. Rich had gotten in a lot better shape, but the matchup was what it was. I don’t think anyone wanted to see Harley keep wrestling. Rich was in a lot better shape, but it’s not like had been put over at all after joining the company.
Match Review: Race and Rich get right to work, with Rich giving Race a few shoulders, and Race replying with a clothesline. Race misses an elbow drop, gets bodyslammed, and Rich takes him down with a headlock. Race gets up, and Rich throws him shoulder-first into the post. Race comes back with a high knee, then picks Rich up and plants him with a piledriver that also knocks him out of the ring. These guys wind up on the ramp, and Race suplexes Rich on it. Rich crawls back towards the ring, and makes it back in only for Race to drop him with a headbutt. Race throws Rich back out of the ring, and when Rich gets back in, he winds up clotheslining Harley over the top. Rich follows and bodyslams Race on the floor, then suplexes him back in. He drops a fist from the second rope for 2, but Race hits him with a knee lift after kicking out. Race gives him a belly to belly suplex for 2, then levels him with a clothesline. Race gives Rich a swinging neckbreaker, but Rich comes back with a shot to the gut and his own knee lift. Rich then picks Race up for a slam, and both guys tumble over the top instead. Rich comes back in by headnig up top, Race rolls into the ring, and Race reverses a top rope cross body for the victory at 6:33.
My Thoughts: This was pretty fun. I was actually quite surprised. Both guys had their issues, but they tried really hard and did everything they could to put on something worth watching. I find it sad that they didn’t put Rich over, though. He obviously had the greater potential to do something for them, but Rich was more of a legend. So, I guess that was part of the decision. Maybe there was no decision to be made at all. In any case, I’d rate it **1/2. Best match so far.
Before the next match, Mean Mark and Paul E. Dangerously are with Gordon Solie. Paul E. talks about Flair possibly beating Sting, then says that Mean Mark will be the next guy to make it to the top. Mean Mark ripped a Lex Luger shirt after that.
The Southern Boys vs. The Midnight Express (w/Jim Cornette) for the NWA United States Tag Team Championships
Pre-Match Thoughts: This match is famous for how good it is. It was a perfect coming together in terms of a young team wanting to make a name for themselves, and an older team wanting to show that they still deserved their spot. That usually makes for something nice. The card was following the traditional structure, with preliminary matches between guys who didn’t matter as much…until right now. Might be hard for me to keep up with this!
Match Review: The Midnight Express go on the attack, knocking Steve Armstrong and Tracy Smothers both out of the ring. All four guys wind up brawling on the outside, then it turns out that the Boys give Eaton a double backdrop when they get in the ring. They follow with a double shoulderblock, and knock Lane off the apron. Eaton and Armstrong wind up in there resuming the match, and Armstrong takes Eaton down with an arm drag. Eaton comes back with rights, then picks Armstrong up for a bodyslam. Eaton heads up top, but Armstrong reaches his feet and slams Eaton down. Armstrong follows that with a monkey flip, and dropkicks Eaton as well. He heads up top, and comes down with a flying shoulderblock. Eaton takes another break, and Smothers makes a tag in. Eaton gets hit with a double chop, and it may be time for him to go out too. Or not. Smothers tries a powerslam, but gets clocked in the face. He comes back with a savate kick, and Eaton still won’t tag out. He locks up with Smothers once more, but Smothers shoots him into the corner and backdrops him. Smothers lands yet another savate kick, and Eaton finally makes his exit. Lane challenges Smothers to a karate fight, and winds up hitting him first to a decent sized pop from the crowd. The crowd is popping big for Lane here. Smothers catches a kick, and dishes out some of his own. Eaton runs in and gets hit too, which makes the crowd really happy. Lane takes Smothers down with a drop-toe hold, but Smothers knows how to reverse that to a hammerlock, only to get his eyes raked. Eaton tags in and gets arm dragged, but gets up for some punches. Smothers then leaps to the apron on an Irish whip and dropkicks Eaton, and Eaton tries to bail to the outside. Smothers baseball slides Eaton to knock him down, that looked a lot more slick than I made it sound. Lane gets in there and tricks the referee, leading to Smothers taking a double back elbow. Eaton then misses a charge on a whip into the corner, and Armstrong flies off the top with a cross body to take out both Eaton and Lane! The Midnight Express were then rammed into each other, which cleared the ring. Cornette’s reaction was awesome. Eaton gets back in there to face Smothers, and Smothers goes for a cradle, but Lane makes a blind tag in. Cornette distracts the referee, and Lane throws Smothers over the top to send him into the railing. Great spot. Cornette drills Smothers with the racket, and Lane knocks him from the apron into the rail when he tries to get back in the ring. These guys are pulling out everything! Lane brings Smothers back in for Eaton, who gives him a backbreaker right after Lane gives Smothers an atomic drop. Eaton nails Smothers with a clothesline, then heads back out as Lane goes to work on the back, with that elevated cross body to the back. This is so much fun. Eaton tags back in, and covers for 2. Smothers gets in a savate kick, but Eaton grabs hair to keep him from making an exit. He slams Smothers, and heads up top for a LEG DROP! Nicely done. Lane tags back in, and gets sunset flipped for 2. Lane does keep control, by setting Smothers up for a swinging neckbreaker delivered by Eaton. Eaton sends Smothers to the outside again, and tags in Lane as he brings Smothers in the hard way. Lane uses a double underhook suplex and gets 2 on the cover, then tags back out. Eaton knocks Smothers out of the ring once more, and tries to bring him back in, only for Smothers to bring Eaton to the outside. Lane gets in and clotheslines Smothers, then Smothers rams him into the buckle a lot, only for Lane to rake the eyes. After a tag, Smothers takes both guys down with a sunset flip, which merely served for him to make the tag!
Armstrong rushes in with chops for both champions, and a noggin-knocker follows that. He hits Lane with a shoulderblock, and all four wind up in there. Smothers slams Eaton, and sets Lane up for an ELEVATED MISSILE DROPKICK from Armstrong. Beautiful. Nobody counts the fall until it’s too late, so Eaton has the chance to push Armstrong off the top rope. Eaton heads up top, and after a Lane slam, THERE’S THE ROCKET LAUNCHER! Lane knocks Smothers down to prevent him from stopping the cover, but it only gets 2! Smothers and Armstrong then make an illegal switch, and Smothers cradles Eaton up for a close 2 count. I thought that was the end. Lane then kicks Smothers in the back of the head as the referee is getting Armstrong out of there. Eaton then cradles Smothers up, and there’s the victory after 18:14 of amazing action!
My Thoughts: The crowd bought ALL of those false finishes. What a classic this was. It was hard to believe in the Southern Boys as challengers because they hadn’t been around long, but they made you believe. Personally, I prefer tag team wrestling to singles wrestling. You get more action, it’s easier for me to become invested in watching duos rather than singles guys, and you get rapid near falls as we see here. Clearly the best match I’ve watched from the year 1990. They busted out everything and it all just worked. Perhaps the best thing about it was that the action was even and not dominated by anyone. It was different than other Midnight Express matches in that regard. I also loved the karate battle that Lane and Smothers had going on. I think that set the tone. There was just so much here. More high spots than you’d find on the entirety of some WWF cards. ****3/4 and recommended, no doubt about it. That’s the common rating, and it’s the right one.
The Freebirds were with Gordon Solie, and it looks like they were told to change their look a bit. They’re wearing makeup and sporting glitter. Different. They’re facing the Steiner Brothers, and looking at Michael Hayes having lipstick on while he talks about that is confusing me.
Big Van Vader vs. The Z-Man
Pre-Match Thoughts: Well, this lets us know where Zenk stands. Certainly it’s not anywhere good. It’s obvious that he was in line for getting destroyed in this match. Vader’s entrance was just awesome. The crowd cheered him very loudly even though that wasn’t the intention. His headgear was amazing, and the music fit his thing completely. The mask he wore covered more of his face than I was used to. Looked like a star.
Match Review: Zenk tried to attack Vader, but that was idiotic. Vader clobbered him with big shots, and wrecked him with an avalanche into the corner. He followed that with a clothesline, then posed for the crowd and dragged Zenk back in from the entrance ramp. Zenk tried a dropkick, then a cross body that Vader caught and turned into a press slam. Vader then lands an elbow drop, and follows that with a suplex. He hits Zenk with another clothesline, then follows with a big splash that finishes the thing at 2:15.
My Thoughts: They put Vader over huge. I’m happy to see it. Sometimes, you just gotta make a guy do the job when it needs to be done. Zenk probably didn’t want to do the job, but Vader is Vader. He would have had no right to say no. *, short and to the point.
Gordon Solie is with Ole Anderson, Barry Windham, Sid Vicious, and Arn Anderson to talk about their match against the DUDES WITH ATTITUDES. Ole was pushed as the boss of the Horsemen. Sid’s job was to stand there and look intimidating.
The Fabulous Freebirds vs. The Steiner Brothers
Pre-Match Thoughts: I guess the Freebirds are finally getting a rematch, even though the Steiners didn’t have their belts anymore. The Freebirds will need to do better in this match than that title match the year before. If they don’t, who knows where they’ll stand. They had to be the lowest on the totem pole of the heel teams, but they had name value so they wouldn’t be going anywhere. You’d think. These Freebirds were so far removed from what the Freebirds actually were that I find it a bit sad. They were in parody mode.
Match Review: The Freebirds attack, and here we go. They dumped Rick to the outside, and Hayes gave Scott Steiner a side slam. Garvin then dropped Scott on the top rope, and they hit him with a double clothesline too. Garvin goes for a DDT, but Scott backdrops him. Hayes goes for it too, and Scott blocks that as well. Rich comes in with some big STEINERLINES for everyone, which clears the ring. Scott winds up on the floor and hits both guys with a DOUBLE STEINERLINE, which settles things down for a bit. Garvin gets back in the ring to face off with Rick, and the anti-gay chants begin. Oh boy. Garvin beats up Rick for a bit, then gets backdropped after being thrown into the corner. Rick destroys him with a STEINERLINE that gets 2, and Hayes has to tag in. Rick presents his bottom to Hayes, as apparently Hayes is now homosexual. Rick then bites his butt, no clue why. Garvin tags in, as does Scott, and Garvin tries to take Scott down. Scott comes back with a hip toss, then gives one to Hayes and dropkicks both Freebirds out of the ring. The Birds tease leaving, but there’s no chance of that. Hayes and Scott are in the ring when they come back, and the chanting starts again. Hayes gets control with a kick, then rams Scott hard into the buckle. Surprised to see him working stiff, I bet he knows he’s going to get some in return. Scott stops, picks him up, and drops him with a TIGER BOMB. Sick move. Garvin gets in and Scott takes him down with a tilt-a-whirl slam, his offense was awesome. Hayes tries to leave and this time Rick chases him, but the referee gets in the way. Sadly. Hayes comes back to the ring, and the crowd starts calling him a bitch. Haha. Rick catches him and powerslams him, then Garvin leaps off the top and gets powerslammed. Garvin hits Rick with a knee from behind, and a left from Hayes sends him over the top. Garvin drills Rick with a clothesline, and the Birds give him a double suplex. Garvin hits Rick with yet another clothesline, and sends him back into the ring. Hayes bodyslams Rick and covers, but it only gets 1 on a slow count. Hayes follows that with a BULLDOG, and it gets 2. Garvin tags in for some kicks, and puts Rick in a chinlock too. Jim Ross basically just said that Garvin was gay, and dropped a line about people in San Francisco liking his makeup. Whatever. Rick goes for a bodyslam, and it turns out that Garvin reverses it for a 2 count. Rick powers out, but gets kneed in the gut, so no tag yet. Garvin bodyslams him, then heads up top once more. Rick gets up and hits him on the way down, then drops him with a bulldog after leaping from the second rope!
Rick makes the tag, as does Garvin, and Scott is going to light the world on fire with this. He powerslams Hayes, and follows that with a press slam onto Garvin. Rick gets back in there for some STEINERLINES, and Scott gives Hayes the FRANKENSTEINER. Garvin rushes in and DDT’s Scott out of nowhere, but he’s not the legal man and the referee won’t count a fall. Rick gives Hayes a BELLY TO BELLY THROW, and Scott falls on top for the cover and victory at 13:43!
My Thoughts: This was far better than expected, and actually quite good. I enjoyed it a lot despite some of the things fans were saying. It was bordering on the absurd, and coupled with JR’s commentary, that wasn’t any better. the finish was cool, all too often you see heels getting wins when they have the illegal guy in, but not here. It actually put the referee over in that he wasn’t an idiot. That’s quite rare. Rick running in and giving Hayes a suplex didn’t have any impact on that, as he had to get the illegal man out of the ring. Nice moves, great heat, ***.
Arn Anderson (NWA TV Champion), Barry Windham, and Sid Vicious vs. El Gigante, Paul Orndorff, and the Junkyard Dog
Pre-Match Thoughts: This babyface team doesn’t even belong with the likes of the Four Horsemen. What a terrible misuse of such good talent. Orndorff is also wasted having to carry his two partners. Not only that, but all these guys were going to play a part in this show later. It seemed a bit like stacking the deck, to me. This match didn’t have much of a purpose, other than to debut El Gigante. This was supposed to get people in the building, and he was supposed to be the next Andre the Giant. But it didn’t work out that way on either front. For some reason Sid was wearing a singlet, no idea why. He looked JACKED too.
Match Review: Arn and Orndorff will start, funny seeing as they just wrestled on a big show. Never mind. Sid tagged in. He goes for a backdrop, but Orndorff tries a sunset flip. Sid then lifts Orndorff up by the neck while blocking that sunset flip, and clotheslines him. Sid misses a leg drop, and Orndorff dropkicks him to the outside. Arn runs in and gets hip tosses, then eats a knee lift. Orndorff does the same to Windham, then goes for a hip toss on Sid. The two guys block each others hip tosses, and Orndorff goes for a backslide that works thanks to a JYD punch, and that gets 2. The crowd is HEATED for this. AA tags back in, and Orndorff fights out of the Horsemen corner, leading to a spot where all six guys get in until Gigante scares the Horsemen out of it. The Horsemen come up with a plan, and Orndorff drags Arn back into the ring. JYD tagged in, and hits him with a bunch of headbutts. Arn winds up in the wrong corner, and gets scared to death when Gigante squared up to hit him. Windham tags in for the first time, and his rights do nothing to JYD. JYD headbutts him too, and Windham also gets scared of the big guy. Arn gets back in there, and finally does some enforcing by cracking JYD with some punches. Windham tags back in, and drops JYD with a DDT…only for JYD not to sell it. Hard head, you know. Windham goes for a slam, but it gets blocked. JYD tags him over with a suplex, and Arn tags in, as does Orndorff. Orndorff comes in with a fury, and hits the guys with a noggin-knocker. Orndorff goes for a PILEDRIVER on Arn, but Windham leaps off the top with a double axehandle to knock him down. Sid missed his cue and had to distract the referee for about a minute. He then tags in, and puts Orndorff in a chinlock. Orndorff gets out, so Sid drops him with a powerslam that gets 2. Sid tags in Windham, and Windham takes Orndorff down with a suplex for another 2 count. Arn tags in once more, and takes Orndorff down with an elbow. Windham’s back in, and Orndorff nails him with a forearm. Orndorff makes the tag out, and in comes JYD. JYD uses a noggin-knocker, then Sid comes in to attack him from behind. The Horsemen throw JYD over the top for a DQ at 8:48, and El Gigante runs in to throw the Horsemen over the top as retaliation.
My Thoughts: Absolutely terrible finish. They advertised Gigante as being worth a watch, and he did nothing in the match. Typical WCW bait and switching. Never even legally entered the ring! Ultimately, this wasn’t any good. Orndorff was good when he was in the ring, but when JYD got in there the match went to shit. He had nothing left to offer. Sid wasn’t very good either and continued to miss his cues. 3/4* because of the poor finish.
Mean Mark Callous (w/Paul E. Dangerously) vs. Lex Luger for the NWA United States Championship
Pre-Match Thoughts: Mean Mark needed Paul to do his talking, but I hope Paul has minimal impact on this match. Before it starts, Lex Luger is with Gordon Solie. He said he’d beat up Paul if he got in his way. He also talked about Sting, and thought Sting would beat Ric Flair. This is the first time they’ve given Luger a PPV opponent that he’d have to carry, I think. We’ll see if he could. I can’t pinpoint it, but Luger didn’t look the same after coming back. Hair was different, so was his size.
Match Review: These big men lock up, and Callous goes to a wristlock. Luger reverses, and they go into the ropes. The guys lock up again, and fight over a hammerlock. Back into the ropes, and Luger takes Mean Mark down with an arm drag. They lock up once more, and Callous clocks Luger. He misses a charge to the corner, and Luger takes him down with a cross body that gets 2. Luger takes him down with another arm drag, and Dangerously starts talking ON HIS PHONE. EXCELLENT. Luger has an armbar on for a while, until Callous gets out and nails Luger with a clothesline that isn’t quite sold. Callous takes Luger down with a big boot, and goes to work on the throat and shoulder areas. He puts Luger in an armbar of his own, then takes him to the corner for OLD SCHOOL BEFORE IT WAS OLD. Great stuff. Is it just school now? Luger lands some rights, then goes for a clothesline and flies over the top instead. That’s a pretty good signature spot seeing as his leap was completely safe. Callous keeps him on the outside with a knee, then follows and rams Luger into the steps. He rams Luger into the announce table, then they go back in and Luger takes Callous down with a sunset flip that gets 2. Callous misses another charge to the corner, and a narrative that Callous has something in a glove on his hand has been pushed for a bit now. Callous winds up clubbing the back, and giving Luger a suplex that Luger does not sell. Luger gets up, and drills Callous with a clothesline. A second one follows, then a third! Luger signals for THE RACK, and PICKS HIM UP only for Callous to kick the referee during the move. Dangerously runs in and cracks Luger with his phone, and the crowd probably thinks Luger is going to win again. Dangerously wakes the referee up, Callous covers, and it only gets 2! Nice false finish. Callous takes Luger down with a clothesline, and he signals for the HEART PUNCH. He lines Luger up, and gets kicked in the face. Luger hits Dangerously to knock him off the apron, clotheslines Callous, and wins the match after a pin at 12:08!
My Thoughts: This was a solid wrestling match. Luger getting Mean Mark in THE RACK was very impressive. To pick up somebody that big before he did it to even bigger guys was a big surprise for people, I’m sure. The ending sequence was bordering on perfect. I’m actually shocked that most wrestling reviewers don’t rate this match very well. Why not? Callous did a good job, Luger did a good job, and I dug it. **3/4. They told a distinctive story of Luger finally having to beat a guy bigger than him and show that he wasn’t done after his PPV failures of the past. He passed the test.
Sting is now with Gordon Solie, and they were in the locker room. This was pre-taped. Sting said that Ric Flair was a great champion, but he’s facing somebody who’s 100% and the no disqualification stipulation is perfect for him. No easy way out for Flair this time.
The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express vs. Doom (w/Teddy Long) for the NWA Tag Team Championships
Pre-Match Thoughts: I really like this matchup for the same reason as I liked their first. In addition, they probably got twice the time to put together a match, and it’s on PPV so they’re going to go through all their best spots. Doom throwing little guys around during their power spots sounds fun too. They seemed to keep getting bigger the longer time went on, too.
Match Review: Robert Gibson and Ron Simmons will start the match. Simmons offers for Gibson to leave before taking punishment, but that’s not going to happen. He throws Gibson around instead, and makes the offer once more. Another shove, then some posing. Simmons misses a clothesline, then Gibson dodges a charge and rolls Simmons up for 2. Butch Reed tags in, and goes for a powerslam. Gibson reverses into a bodyslam, nails him with an elbow, and Reed seems surprised. Ricky Morton tags in, and gets destroyed by a shoulderblock. Reed does so once more, so Morton will have to try something new. He makes a blind tag, and the guys knock Reed down with a double clothesline. Simmons runs in and gets double suplexed, then Gibson goes for a hip toss on Reed only to be clotheslined. Gibson then winds up in the wrong corner, and Simmons tags in for a double back elbow that gets 2. Simmons slams Gibson, drops a leg on him, and rams him into Reed’s boot. Reed tags in, and gets Morton in for a distraction that allows him to throw Gibson over the top. Gibson comes back in with a sunset flip, and it gets 2. Reed replies with a swinging neckbreaker that gets 2, and there’s not much heat yet. Gibson hits Reed with a knee lift, and tags in his partner. Morton comes in with a SLEEPER, then stops Simmons from attacking him. Morton cradles Reed up, and Simmons destroys Morton with a punch from behind. That looked so stiff, but the camera angle was wide and I couldn’t really tell. Reed takes Morton down with a clothesline, and drops a few elbows on him for 2. Simmons tags in, drills Morton with some forearms, and misses a charge to the corner. Reed tags in to cut Morton off from a tag, and Morton walks into his knee to help him out with that. Reed heads up to the second rope and lands an elbow drop for 2, then grabs on with a chinlock. Morton reaches his feet, and goes for a backslide, assisted by his partner. It got 2. Simmons switches in, and slams Morton for 2. Simmons goes for a suplex, but Morton locks him up in a small package for 2. Simmons replies with a powerslam that gets 2, and the crowd still isn’t into this. It’s good nonetheless. Reed tags in and hits Morton with a double axehandle, then drops a few fists on him for 2. Reed goes to a chinlock, then throws Morton over the top again thanks to a distraction. Simmons picks Morton up for a shot from Long, rams Morton into the rail, and back in he goes. Morton blocks a backdrop with an elbow, and Simmons tags in for a bodyslam that gets 2. Morton blocks a backdrop again, and Reed rushes in to cut him off. Reed takes Morton down with a powerslam, then eats knees on a big splash.
Morton finally tags out, and Gibson comes in with some quick offense. He hits Simmons with a dropkick, and cradles him up only to get kicked in the head by Reed. Morton gets back in there, so all four are in. Gibson hits Reed with an enzuigiri that sends Reed into Long, and Long winds up inside the ring. Gibson clocks him, and Reed flies back in with a huge shoulderblock from the top. Simmons grabs onto Morton to keep him from breaking the cover, and Doom retains their titles at 15:38.
My Thoughts: This was a good tag, better than the Steiners/Freebirds match. The crowd didn’t get into it, and the explanation I read in the WON makes sense. Too many matches. That’s probably true. That’s why a card with so many matches should be positioned like WrestleMania VI. Put some preliminary type matches before the main event so the crowd can cool off and relax a little bit while seeing a guy or two they really don’t care that much about. That being said, this was the typical RnR match. Morton took a hell of a beating and there was no down time. Too bad the crowd didn’t care, I really liked it. ***1/4. These guys were a good match, had good structure, and all of that. If the match was earlier on the card, the fans would have been really into it.
Sting vs. Ric Flair for the NWA Championship in a NO DISQUALIFICATION MATCH
Pre-Match Thoughts: There are LOTS of stipulations for this. First, they have Ole Anderson handcuffed to El Gigante. They have the Junkyard Dog, Paul Orndorff, and the Steiner Brothers surrounding ringside to prevent interference. Ric Flair was with Gordon Solie before the show, and he went NUTS. I can’t even say this was one of his best promos, though. He had so many great ones that by his standards this was just fine. I’ve actually never watched this match. The deck was stacked a lot in Sting’s favor, and after the way Capital Combat finished, it had to be. This match had lost some luster, and that was reflected by the crowd. It may have been worse without the stipulations. Ole really did not like being handcuffed, and the crowd popped huge for it. El Gigante actually did well with this.
Match Review: The crowd seems awfully hyped up, and Sting shoves Flair down a few times. He also knocks Flair down with a shoulder, and Flair comes back with chops that do nothing. Sting gives Flair a press slam, a hip toss, then a dropkick. Flair winds up on the ramp, so the guys fight a little bit, until Sting hip tosses Flair on the ramp. He clotheslines Flair to send him back into the ring, and Flair comes back with a thumb to the eye. He takes Sting down, drops a knee on him, and follows that with a suplex. Sting doesn’t sell it, and rips off some clotheslines. He heads up top, and down he comes with a cross body that gets 2. Flair takes a break, gets back in there, and goes after Sting’s knee. About time that started. Sting comes out of the corner with a clothesline, but misses an elbow drop. Flair goes for the FIGURE-FOUR, but Sting kicks out of it. Flair then chops Sting back down to the canvas, and throws him out to the ramp. Flair follows, chops away again, and throws Sting back into the ring. Sting fights back after some chops by Flair, then hip tosses Flair. Sting misses a dropkick, and Flair goes back to work on the leg. Flair misses one attempt to sit on it, then grabs his ass like it hurts. He takes Sting back down, and misses a knee drop. Sting puts the FIGURE-FOUR on Flair, and the crowd pops big. Flair quickly reaches the ropes, pulls Sting out of the ring, and chops him once more. Flair sends Sting into the rail, and Sting doesn’t sell that either. Great moment. Flair gets in the ring and begs off, but it’s too late for that. Sting punches away at him, but Flair tries to head up top after a gut shot. Sting slams Flair down, and goes for a backslide after blocking a hip toss. That got a close 2 count. Flair kicks Sting quickly to regain control, and goes back to the previously injured knee. He kicks away at it, and now it’s time for the FIGURE-FOUR, but Sting kicks away. Sting gets up and grabs at his knee, so Flair chops and kicks away. Sting doesn’t sell too many of those chops, and he goes for a press slam. He should have fallen down during that spot. Sting clotheslines Flair for 2, and takes him to the corner for some punches. Sting sends Flair upside down into the corner, and clotheslines Flair before he runs the apron. Sting suplexes Flair back in from the apron, and that gets 2. Sting goes for the STINGER SPLASH, and there it is! He puts Flair in the SCORPION DEATHLOCK, and Ole tries to run towards the ring. El Gigante blocks him, and the hold is on. Here comes the Horsemen! The babyfaces meet them in the aisleway and knock them back, thus serving a purpose. Flair reaches the ropes, and bails out to the apron. Flair knocks Sting down with a shoulder and goes for a pin with his feet on the ropes, but Scott Steiner pushes those feet off. Sting rolls Flair up for 2, and they go through a spot where Sting bridges to a backslide for 2. Sting goes for another charge to the corner, but hits his knee in the corner when Flair moves out of the way. Flair goes for the FIGURE-FOUR again, and Sting blocks it with a cradle that gets 3 at 16:05! WE HAVE A NEW CHAMPION!
That pop was ENORMOUS! The crowd seemed legitimately shocked that Sting won. The Steiners put Sting on their shoulders for the celebration he deserves, what a moment! Sting walks up the aisle during a big, and long sustained pop. Time for an interview! Gordon Solie meets him in the aisle, and says that Ric Flair is the greatest world champion ever. Sting then says he has to fill Flair’s shoes, and he’s going to do the best he can.
My Thoughts: Jim Ross was amazing on commentary in those closing moments. One of the best calls for a title change that I’ve heard. This wasn’t the best Sting/Flair match, and that may have been due to the condition of Sting’s knee, but it was still a great match. They worked a shorter match than people would have expected, but the way that finish went was booked so well. They were keeping the crowd at their fingertips and had them hanging on every move. It wasn’t as special as it could have been because it wasn’t exactly the right time to do it, but I forgot about that after the first few minutes and got lost in the moment. As for critiques of the actual match, I enjoyed the overbooking. It guaranteed a finish although the execution wasn’t quite right. I think Sting should have won with his finisher, but submission finishes were a really big deal back then. The story was that Flair wasn’t getting out of this one easy, and I thought they told it well. At the point of Scott Steiner knocking Flair’s feet off the ropes, I think it caught on. I didn’t really like Sting’s movement after selling his knee, as it was basically like that part never happened. ***1/2 seems fair.
Now, as for the torch passing, they did far better in terms of how they positioned Sting than how Ultimate Warrior was initially positioned. Sting was made into the focal point of the programming, unlike the Ultimate Warrior. Flair also didn’t subtly steal his spotlight and they used Sting as their top guy. They also needed to elevate somebody else at some point. I don’t really know why Sting’s run didn’t work and don’t have the specifics, but I’ll be reading about them while typing up other articles. If you want to know why, you may have to read them. I do have some theories. One is that they had nobody else who could draw opposite Sting. I really do mean nobody else. Barry Windham had no proven drawing power. Sid Vicious had no proven drawing power. Vader did, but that wasn’t going to happen for political reasons. Luger would have, but they couldn’t turn him heel again. What they did after this show, was advertise tag matches of Ric Flair and Barry Windham against Lex Luger and Sting. That’s not bad at all. The craziest thing to me is that Jim Herd never wanted to do a Flair-Sting rematch. Why in the hell wouldn’t they?
After watching Sting’s reign before posting this article, I definitely know why his run failed. They sabotaged him by putting him in an idiotic, childish program. They simultaneously killed everything of interest on the undercard, so the whole show sucked. It was an impossible situation.
This was a very fun show, but the way things were settled, it was hard to see any direction for anyone. It seemed like they’d need to bring in new people to face their champions, or simply shuffle the deck chairs again. I don’t quite know what happens, to be honest. This is a total dark spot for me, I’ve never watched any of this stuff. It has also been so long since I created my list of matches to watch that I don’t remember the results of them. However, next up for me are the WWF matches from June all the way to SummerSlam 1990. Then I’ll cut back to watch SNME #27.
Wrestling Time: 2:01:16. Now that’s a lot of wrestling, and it showed. Before the Flair/Sting match, the crowd was getting burned out. The first hour of the show was junk, too.
Best: Midnight Express vs. Southern Boys. Not only was this the best match on the show, but one of the best tag team matches to ever take place in this country.
Worst: I thought the way the card began was a joke. The worst thing on it was Rotunda vs. Iron Sheik. None of it was good.
Card Rating: 7/10. This wasn’t in the top echelon cards, and there was a lot of filler, but it was pretty good. Many of the matches that weren’t good had heat, and some that didn’t have heat were good.
