NWA — page 2

Hello You!

We have finally reached the end of Mike Reviews Main Events, with NWA/WCW Starrcade being how I’m set to bow out. I want to thank everyone who has taken the time to read these ever since I started doing them earlier in the year. It’s kind of amazing that we’ve reached the end, and I have to say I’m a little bit relieved as it looked like a daunting prospect at first.

Starrcade was traditionally WCW’s biggest event of the year (Although you wouldn’t think that considering how they booked it sometimes) and in the earlier days especially it produced some of the best matches in the company’s history.

Originally held in the Carolina’s and Georgia (Two strongholds for Jim Crockett Promotions) WCW eventually took Starrcade on the road starting in 1987, with the 87 event being the catalyst for Vince McMahon to create the Survivor Series out of pure spite. The latter events in places like Nashville and Washington never really lived up to the great ones in Greensboro and Atlanta, but Starrcade still remained a focal point of the WCW promotion, even into the nWo era of the company.

This week we’ll be covering 1989 to 1994

Hello You!

We have finally reached the end of Mike Reviews Main Events, with NWA/WCW Starrcade being how I’m set to bow out. I want to thank everyone who has taken the time to read these ever since I started doing them earlier in the year. It’s kind of amazing that we’ve reached the end, and I have to say I’m a little bit relieved as it looked like a daunting prospect at first.

Starrcade was traditionally WCW’s biggest event of the year (Although you wouldn’t think that considering how they booked it sometimes) and in the earlier days especially it produced some of the best matches in the company’s history.

Originally held in the Carolina’s and Georgia (Two strongholds for Jim Crockett Promotions) WCW eventually took Starrcade on the road starting in 1987, with the 87 event being the catalyst for Vince McMahon to create the Survivor Series out of pure spite. The latter events in places like Nashville and Washington never really lived up to the great ones in Greensboro and Atlanta, but Starrcade still remained a focal point of the WCW promotion, even into the nWo era of the company.

This week we’ll be covering 1983 to 1988

Hello You!

Back again with some NWA/WCW stuff (I’m not exactly sure what Turner’s company was called at this time and Wikipedia isn’t especially that helpful either as it lists both groups as hosting the event. The box art for the VHS release says WCW, but that might have been added in after the fact). Seeing as we’re creeping ever closer to December I decided I’d have a look at a show that I’ve never seen in full before with Starrcade 1989.

I remember watching the Turner Home Video cut of the show many moons back, but that featured a lot of clipped matches so that they could trim it down to fit onto the tape. However, thanks to the miracle of the WWE Network, I can now watch the near 3 hour show in its entirety.

Whether that’s a good idea or not is yet to be seen, as this Starrcade fell into the dreaded category of “concept show” (Which is something that happened quite a lot with Starrcade actually now I think about it. It’s strange how they did that so often with their biggest gala event instead of just promoting some big matches that fans cared about and then delivering them) with the concept being Round Robin tournaments for both the singles and tag divisions.

Of course the tag section is immediately weakened by not having The Midnight Express in it, with Jim Cornette relegated to commentary of all things, but the singles tournament features four genuine stars in the form of Ric Flair, Lex Luger, Sting and The Great Muta. It’s hard to think that having those four guys all working with one another couldn’t produce at least a couple of good matches.

I actually did this the old fashioned way by watching the show with an actual notepad and pencil before going away and typing it up later. Of course hand writing stuff takes a bit longer than typing so if I miss something pertinent it might be because I was busy scribbling something down, so apologies in advance if that should it happen.

Hello You!

Back again with another list, this time for The Great American Bash. Just to quickly explain, I’m only covering full Pay-Per-View events that happened under the NWA or WCW umbrella, so basically the previous Bash tours prior to 1988 aren’t included, which means the great War Games matches don’t make the list. Rest assured that I like them a lot however.

Also I’m ignoring the WWE Great American Bash shows for this list and decided just to focus on the NWA/WCW ones. Apologies if you’re a big fan of JBL winning the WWE Title or Muhammad Hassan getting killed off with a powerbomb, but those events aren’t going to be considered for this list because I wanted to give WCW it’s time in the sun. Maybe I can do the WWE ones on their own one day, but to be honest outside of Umaga Vs Jeff Hardy, John Cena Vs Bobby Lashley and Chris Jericho Vs Shawn Michaels I’d be drawing a blank over what matches would actually qualify to make the cut. It certainly wouldn’t be Undertaker and Big Show in a Panjabi Prison that’s for sure. Maybe I could do Six of the Worst for the WWE Bash events? Something to ponder…

This was actually quite difficult to get this down to six matches as I whittled it down to eight and then had to make some tough choices. If you look at the matches in bold in the honourable mentions, they were the two matches that only just missed out. All eight were perfectly valid choices in my mind, so I just went with the six I personally enjoyed the most. The exclusion of the two matches that didn’t make it is no comment on their quality, but I had to have six so I cut them.

As always, these are just my own personal picks. This isn’t supposed to be some sort of objective list or anything. If I leave out a match that you think warrants inclusion, then please feel free to put it down in the comments section below. As with previous lists, I’ll be listing the matches in chronological order.

So without further to do, let’s take a look at Six of the Best for The Great American Bash!

Crockett Cup 2019
Date: April 27, 2019
Location: Cabarrus Arena, Concord, North Carolina
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Jim Cornette, Joe Galli

This is something that actually caught my attention with the card alone and the promotion was secondary. The NWA has been trying to fight back over the last year or two and they’re getting close to making something of quality. In this case we have a tag team tournament to crown the new NWA Tag Team Champions, plus a few bonus matches in what could be quite the tradition. Let’s get to it.

I decided to cut Starrcade down into an 80’s and 90’s section, just because there were so many matches to select from and I wanted to give them their fair due.

As always, these are just my own personal picks. This isn’t supposed to be some sort of objective list or anything. If I leave out a match that you think warrants inclusion, then please feel free to put it down in the comments section below. As with previous lists, I’ll be listing the matches in chronological order.

So without further to do, let’s get to it!

Live from Baltimore, MD

Airdate: July 23, 1989

Attendance:  14,500

Hosted by Jim Ross & Bob Caudle

Thus far, 1989 has been great. Can the NWA continue the trend with this show? Read on!

Live from Fort Bragg in Fayetteville, NC

Airdate: June 14, 1989

Attendance:  dehydrated, perspiring Army soldiers (no A/C)

Hosted by Jim Ross & Bob Caudle

Ten-hut! Reading this reflection brings purpose, direction, and spirit to your miserable life. Drop and give me twenty!

NWA WrestleWar ’89: Music City Showdown

Live from Nashville, TN

Airdate: May 7, 1989

Attendance:  5,200

Hosted by Jim Ross & Bob Caudle

Can Steamboat/Flair III stand up against the first two classics? What will the rest of the show entail? Let’s find out!

NWA Chi-Town Rumble

Live from Chicago, IL

Airdate: February 20, 1989

Attendance:  7,500 (5,500 paid)

Hosted by Jim Ross & Magnum T.A.

Can the NWA keep up with the WWF and give us a great show?

Live from Cleveland, OH

Airdate: February 15, 1989

Attendance:  5,000

Hosted by Jim Ross & Magnum T.A.

Are you ready to hype Chi-Town Rumble? Well, Ross and Magnum are as they detail what tonight’s show contains and add the spice of NWA World Champion “Nature Boy” Ric Flair and #1 contender Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat being here. This episode has to be awesome, right?

This week’s show features two historic debuts. Also, NWA World Champion Ric Flair returns. He was sorely missed on the previous week’s program. Plus, there’s blood and an interesting six-man tag…

The NWA Title has been returned to Ric Flair after one of Dusty Rhodes’ earliest, and most infamous, Dusty Finishes. That was the big news from last week. What will this week entail? Let’s find out…

Today’s “Hidden Gems” review showcases a classic matchup for the NWA World Title between champion Ric Flair against Barry Windham. It takes place in Fayetteville, North Carolina on January 20, 1987. A little unknown history about this match: It wasn’t advertised locally. This was a TV taping for Crockett Promotions’ two syndicated programs, NWA Pro and WorldWide Wrestling. The only advertised match for the card was Ric Flair vs. Brad Armstrong! Yes, really…

We open with footage from Ric Flair’s Starrcade ’85 entrance. Flair lost the NWA Title to Dusty Rhodes at Starrcade, nine days ago. To the standard open…

Tony Schiavone & David Crockett are our hosts once again this week. They let us know the big Superstation Championship Challenge Series (SCCS) will be a six-man tag: Tully Blanchard & the Andersons vs. Billy Jack Haynes, Magnum T.A. and Sam Houston. They run down all the title changes from Starrcade (five of them). David mentions the new NWA World champion when Tony cuts him off and says we’ll talk about that later on. Sounds like Dusty’s title reign is in doubt…

Finally, the most sought after match footage in wrestling history is available. The legendary “Last Battle of Atlanta” was released Tuesday by the WWE Network as part of their new “Hidden Gems” collection. The footage had apparently been in WWE’s possession for some time. The match, a culmination of a nearly two year feud between Tommy Rich and Buzz Sawyer, was the prelude for the Hell in the Cell, according to Shawn Michaels, as this was the first time we see the entire ring enclosed by a steel cage.

Rich was one of the most popular wrestlers in the country and Sawyer, one of the most hated. They spilled blood all over the old Georgia Championship Wrestling territory. This match would finally end it all. So, without further ado…

Starrcade ’85 “The Gathering” is in the books and five new champions were crowned, including a new NWA World Heavyweight Champion, Dusty Rhodes. Two days later, we’re back in the TBS studios for another exciting edition of the Saturday night tradition, NWA World Championship Wrestling.

Continuing the chronological look back at the NWA/Jim Crockett Promotions’ run in the mid-late 80s, it’s time for Starrcade ’85 “The Gathering”. Our main event is a rematch from Starrcade ’84, NWA Champ Ric Flair vs. Dusty Rhodes. However, perhaps the most anticipated match on the card is the I Quit steel cage battle for the U.S. Title between Tully Blanchard and Magnum T.A. Let’s roll…

We are five days away from Starrcade ’85 “The Gathering”. Presumably, this show will presumably push the event heavily … We open with a video clip of how we ended last week: Dusty Rhodes and Magnum T.A. challenging the Four Horsemen to step into the ring. The Horsemen’s 4-2 advantage quickly disappears when the Road Warriors provide some backup for Magnum & Dusty. The Horsemen backdown and we go to the show open…

Twelve more days ’til Starrcade ’85 … We open with a clip of Nikita Koloff vs. Jimmy Black Blackland Backlund. The Russian Nightmare turns the scrawny ginger inside out with the Russian Sickle. Great bump by the future gigolo. We go to the show open.