Doug Gilbert vs. The Great Muta

Background: There’s no background to this match as Doug Gilbert fills in for Junkyard Dog.

Previous PPV matches: This is a first time match between these two men.

Match: For some reason JYD no-showed the event tonight so we’ve got Doug Gilbert. It doesn’t go well for Gilbert who gets dominated from the opening bell. Muta has his manager Gary Hart in his corner. Gilbert gets a bit of offence on but never for long. Doug’s brother Eddie comes out to ringside. Muta hits a moonsault and get the three.

Result: The Great Muta wins by pinfall.

Review: This match was ok. It wasn’t the match we wanted but it was the one we got. The Great Muta looks like a generational talent. I could see him in some all time classic matches given the time.

Rating: 3.75/10

Ranger Ross vs. Butch Reed

Background: There’s not a lot of background between these two men but they were on opposite teams on a recent episode of WCW.

Previous PPV matches: This is a first time PPV match between these two men.

Match: Ranger Ross starts the match well using fairly basic wrestling moves. Teddy Long walks to the ring making notes. In the ring it’s back and forth until Butch Reed takes control with elbow drops and a chinlock. Reed uses plenty of heel tactics to keep the advantage, using the ropes and Ross’ trunks. Ross hits some comedy martial arts jabs. Reed hits a suplex and a top rope shoulder block for the win.

Result: Butch Reed wins by pinfall.

Review: Another forgettable match tonight. A good win for Butch Reed against an opponent who still seems very green. Reed was the right winner in the end.

Rating: 4/10

Dick Murdoch vs. Bob Orton – Bullrope match

Background: On April 1 edition of World Championship Wrestling, Bob Orton Jr. returned to NWA and formed an alliance with Gary Hart. On April 2 edition of Clash of the Champions VI, Orton defeated Dick Murdoch with the help of Hart. This resulted in a rivalry between Orton and Murdoch, resulting in both men interfering in each other’s matches. On April 29 edition of World Championship Wrestling, Murdoch announced that he would compete against Orton in a bullrope match at WrestleWar

Previous PPV matches: This is a first PPV match between these two men.

Match: Bob Orton is joined by Gary Hart. This feels like an old school match between two veterans. It’s all Murdoch in the early going, he hits lots of jabs. Orton soon takes control, hitting strikes of his own. Dick lays into Bob with his cowboy boot but can’t keep cowboy down for the three. Orton goes to the top but Murdoch pulls him down and hog ties his legs before hitting a few elbow drops and pinning him for the win!

Result: Dick Murdoch wins by pinfall.

Review: This was a really fun match. It was hard-hitting, it was old school and it was a fight. Dick Murdoch wins, which I think was the right result. I didn’t have high expectations for this match but it was much better than I thought it would be. Both men are past their prime now and they will have to adapt to stick around.

Rating: 4.75/10

The Dynamic Dudes (Shane Douglas & Johnny Ace) vs. The Samoan Swat Team (Fatu & Samu)

Background: On April 29 edition of World Championship Wrestling, it was announced that Samoan Swat Team would face Dynamic Dudes (Shane Douglas and Johnny Ace) in a tag team match at WrestleWar. Dynamic Dudes made their debut a week after the announcement.

Previous PPV matches: This is a first time match between these two teams.

Match: The Samoan Swat Team have Paul E Dangerously in their corner, the Dynamic Dudes have skateboards in theirs. Johnny and Fatu kick off the match. Fatu no-sells any offence to the head but Johnny hits power slams on both opponents. The Dudes make quick tags against Samu. Fatu makes a blind tag to take control for his team. Plenty of double teaming from the Samoan Swat Team. Samu accidentally nails his own partner at one point but it doesn’t affect the momentum of the Swat Team as they keep Johnny away from his partner. Paul Heyman grabs a mic and berates Johnny who promptly makes a tag to Shane! Shane picks up the pace against both opponents until he gets nailed with a clothesline. Fatu hits a big splash off the top but Johnny makes the save. Fatu looks for a powerslam on Shane but Johnny comes off the top with a dropkick and Shane lands on Fatu and gets the three!

Result: The Dynamic Dudes win by pinfall.

Review: This was a fun tag team match. It was a mix of styles and the two teams did have chemistry. I’m a big fan of the Samoan Swat Team and Paul E. Dangerously. I’d love to see the Samoans against The Road Warriors at some point. With a heel team currently on top of the division it makes sense to build some babyface teams up.

Rating: 5.5/10

Lex Luger (c) vs. Michael “PS” Hayes – United States Championship match

Background: A secondary rivalry heading into the event was between Lex Luger and Michael Hayes for the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship. At Chi-Town Rumble, Luger defeated Barry Windham to win the title. On March 18 edition of World Championship Wrestling, Luger and Hayes wrestled Barry and Kendall Windham in a tag team match. Hayes turned on Luger and allowed Barry and Kendall to win the match, thus joining Hiro Matsuda’s group Yamazaki Corporation. On May 7 edition of World Championship Wrestling, it was announced that Luger would defend the United States Championship against Hayes at WrestleWar.

Previous PPV matches: This. isa first time PPV match between these two men.

Match: I like this match on paper a lot. Michael Hayes gets the better of Luger in the early going. Teddy Long is back at ringside making notes. Hayes looks for a DDT but Luger counters. Lex takes control, using his power. Hayes fires Luger out of the ring and rams him into the ringpost to regain the advantage. Hiro Matsuda gets involved on the outside, throwing Lex into the barricade. Hayes dominates for a while until Luger counters a bulldog and then fires up with three military presses. Luger motions for a torture rack but Hayes slips down and hits a DDT. The referee gets knocked down and Terry Gordy walks out, pushes Hayes on top of Luger and the referee counts the 3! New United States Champion!

Result: Michael Hayes wins the United States Championship by pinfall.

Review: This was a good match. I enjoyed it, it’s my favourite match so far tonight. Michael Hayes makes a great heel and I look forward to his US title reign. Lex probably doesn’t need the title. He can be inserted into the main event picture as and when. He would make a good foe for whoever walks out with the title tonight. I was surprised by Terry Gordy coming out but in hindsight maybe it was obvious. I suspect this rivalry isn’t over yet.

Rating: 6.75/10

Sting (c) vs. The Iron Sheik – TV Championship match

Background: Another secondary rivalry heading into the event was between Sting and Iron Sheik for the NWA World Television Championship. On February 25 edition of World Championship Wrestling, Sheik debuted in NWA and issued a challenge to top competitors of the company including Ricky Steamboat and Lex Luger. On April 1 edition of World Championship Wrestling, Sting defeated Mike Rotunda to win the NWA World Television Championship. On April 15 edition of World Championship Wrestling, Sheik challenged Sting for the Television Championship. Later that night, it was announced that Sting would defend the title against Sheik at WrestleWar.

Previous PPV matches: This is a first time match between these two men.

Match: The Iron Sheik attacks Sting before the bell with his Iran flag. Sting soon fires up and takes down Sheik before choking him with his headscarf. It’s back and forth from here with Sting looking for a much quicker pace than Sheik. Sting hits a Stinger splash and then applies the Scorpion Deathlock to win the match.

Result: Sting wins by submission.

Review: This was short and sweet. It wasn’t terrible, they did well considering the amount of time they had. Sting is a great talent, he wrestles a fast pace and is really popular. Iron Sheik was a fun opponent for Sting and in the grand scheme of things is a really big opponent but he wasn’t going to take the title tonight.

Rating: 3/10

Ricky Steamboat (c) vs. Ric Flair – World Heavyweight Championship match

Background: At Chi-Town Rumble, Steamboat defeated Flair to win the title. On April 2 Clash of the Champions VI, Steamboat defeated Flair in a Two out of three falls match to retain the title. However, Flair’s foot was on the bottom rope during the ending of the third fall. As a result, it was announced on April 9 edition of Main Event that a rematch would take place between the two for the title at WrestleWar.

Previous PPV matches: This is a second PPV match between these two men. Ricky Steamboat previously beat Ric Flair at the Chi-Town Rumble earlier this year.

Match: It’s a back and forth start to the match. Steamboat’s arm drags against Ric Flair’s chops. Ricky Steamboat soon takes control and slowly picks apart his challenger with submission holds. Flair gets a few strikes in to take control. The match has a slow pace to it thus far, you can sense they are pacing themselves. Ricky does fire up with a couple of dropkicks which sends Flair out of the ring. Every time Flair tries to mount a comeback the champion applies submission holds to take him back down. We’re told at the 15 minute mark that all three judges have awarded Ricky Steamboat the points so far. Steamboat continues the assault with right hands and a hard Irish whip sending Flair up and over.

Flair throws Steamboat out of the ring and into the crowd. Flair’s advantage doesn’t last long as Steamboat goes right back to work on Flair. But Ricky misses with a cross body and goes flying over the top rope. Ric Flair finally gets a good portion of the match in control. Ric hits a suplex on the outside as we’re told that the judges have given Flair a 2-1 in the past 15 minutes. It’s back and forth for a while as the pace quickens. Steamboat hits a superplex, Flair counters the chickenwing and Ricky hits a chop off the top. He tries for a second but Flair hits the ropes which sends the champion to the outside. Ric Flair applies a figure four but Steamboat gets to the ropes. Steamboat looks for a powerslam but Ric Flair rolls through with a small package for the victory.

Result: Ric Flair wins by pinfall.

Review: This was a fantastic match. I’m not sure if it was as good as their Chi-Town Rumble match but it was amazing. These two men have great chemistry. I’m not sure there will ever be a trilogy as good as this one. I’ma little surprised that Ric Flair won, I would have liked to have seen Steamboat carry on as champion. But it looks like we’re going in a new direction going forward. Steamboat probably has the second best reign of the past 7 or 8 years.

Rating: 9.25/10

The Varsity Club (Mike Rotunda & Dr Death Steve Williams) (c) vs. The Road Warriors (Animal & Hawk) = World Tag Team Championship match

Background: At Chi-Town Rumble, Road Warriors defeated Club members Kevin Sullivan and Steve Williams to retain the titles. On April 2 edition of Clash of the Champions VI, Road Warriors lost the title to Club members Mike Rotunda and Williams with the help of referee Teddy Long, who favoured Rotunda and Williams. On April 15 edition of World Championship Wrestling, it was announced that Rotunda and Williams would defend the titles against Road Warriors in a rematch at WrestleWar.

Previous PPV matches: This is a first time match between this combination of teams.

Match: The Road Warriors come out and clear the ring before the bell has even rung. The match officially begins with Animal and Dr Death. Kevin Sullivan tries to get involved and special guest referee Nikita Koloff sends him to the back. It’s a back and forth match between the two teams with neither getting the advantage for too long. Hawk clotheslines Dr Death from the apron before attempting another clothesline but Williams ducks and Hawk hits the ringpost. All hell soon breaks loose with all four men going at it. The Road Warriors dispose of Rotunda and then hit Dr Death with clotheslines and then their top rope clothesline. Kevin Sullivan and Dan Spivey emerge and pull Nikita Koloff out of the ring before laying into him on the outside! The bell finally rings, The Road Warriors win by disqualification!

Result: The Road Warriors win by disqualification.

Review: This match didn’t really feel like it had got going. The Road Warriors pick up the win but the Varsity Club keep their titles. It seems like sensible booking. This feud continues.

Rating: 3.5/10

The First Family (Eddie Gilbert & Rick Steiner) (c) vs. The Varsity Club (Kevin Sullivan & Dan Spivey) – United States Tag Team Championship match

Background: At Chi-Town Rumble, the United States Tag Team Champions Kevin Sullivan and Steve Williams failed in their opportunity for the NWA World Tag Team Championship against Road Warriors. On March 18 edition of World Championship Wrestling, Eddie Gilbert and Rick Steiner defeated Sullivan and Williams to win the United States Tag Team Championship. On April 2 edition of Clash of the Champions VI, Gilbert and Steiner defeated Sullivan and Dan Spivey to retain the titles. This led to a title defense for Gilbert and Steiner against Sullivan and Spivey at WrestleWar.

Previous PPV matches: This is a first time PPV tag team match between these two teams.

Match: All hell breaks loose before the bell even rings. Dan Spivey smashes Rick Steiner into the ringpost on the outside whilst Kevin Sullivan goes to work on Eddie Gilbert inside the ring. Steiner is injured on the outside as Spivey and Sullivan make quick tags against Gilbert. Anytime Steiner gets to his feet he gets taken out by one of his opponents. Eventually Steiner does get up to the apron and he clobbers Sullivan with a clothesline. Gilbert lands on top of him and the referee counts the three!

Result: Rick Steiner and Eddie Gilbert retain by pinfall.

Review: The psychology was good in this match but the execution was pretty average. I was surprised there was no hot tag to Steiner but he did make the difference at the end. I have no idea why this match went on last. Gilbert and Steiner retain their US Tag Team Championships tonight.

Rating: 4/10