|Date: February 25, 1990
|Venue: Greensboro, Coliseum |City: Greensboro, North Carolina
|Attendance: 7,894 |Buys: 175,000

|tweet me: @BastionBlogger

The show kicks off with an awful hip hop video. It’s very early 90’s. 

Jim Ross welcomes us to North Carolina. He’s joined by Terry Funk. Ross tells us that Dan Spivey is injured and won’t wrestle in the Chicago Street Fight tonight. 

Backstage to Gordon Solie who is with Theodore R. Long. Long tells us that Dan Spivey is injured and he has hired another wrestler for the night that will replace him. Long has another big big surprise too. 

The Dynamic Dudes (Johnny & Shane) vs. Kevin Sullivan & Buzz Sawyer

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

Wrestlewar PPV Record: The Dynamic Dudes are 1-0, Kevin Sullivan is 0-1 and Buzz Sawyer wrestles at this event for the first time tonight.

Match: The Dudes get a decent pop for a change. Buzz Sawyer and Johnny kick off the match. Johnny Ace dictates a quick pace, dropkicking Sawyer out of the ring and hitting a dive. Both men make tags and the Dynamic Dudes continue to keep control. Sullivan and Sawyer get angry with one another and then finally take control as Buzz hits a suplex on Shane outside the ring. Sawyer hits a nice belly to belly for the first near fall of the night. Sullivan and Sawyer make quick tags, keeping Shane away from his partner. Johnny Ace does finally get the hot tag and picks up the pace. Sawyer counters a head scissors and hits a suplex before going to the top and hitting a splash for the three.

Result: Kevin Sullivan and Buzz Sawyer win by pinfall.

Review: This wasn’t a bad way to kick off the show. Buzz Sawyer actually impressed me in this match, he has a good array of suplexes and he’s more athletic than he looks. I am surprised that The Dynamic Dudes didn’t win as Sullivan and Sawyer were more of a make-shift team. Not a bad match to be honest.

Rating: 6/10

Missy Hyatt is backstage with Norman. Norman asks for a hug for good luck. And then a kiss. He asks for another kiss but Hyatt throws back to ringside. 

Norman vs. Cactus Jack Manson

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

Wrestlewar PPV Record: These two men wrestle at this event for the first time tonight.

Match: Cactus Jack attacks Norman as he gets into the ring and lays into the bigger man from there. Norman uses his size to take control, hitting strikes and applying bear hugs. Norman hits a big avalanche in the corner and then whips Cactus from one post to another. The fight goes to the outside where Norman back body drops Jack over the barricade. Cactus sends Norman into the ring post and then hits a dropkick off the apron. Back in the ring and Cactus Jack keeps control, biting and hitting strikes. Jack applies chin locks but Norman powers him up and hits an electric chair drop. Jack avoids a splash and bites Norman again. They’ve really given these two men some time. It’s back and forth for a while until Norman counters a piledriver and then sits down on Cactus for the three.

Result: Norman wins by pinfall.

Review: Another result that surprised me, I thought Cactus Jack would pick up the win. This match was ok, better than I thought it might be. I love all the outside stuff with Cactus Jack, he takes some hits out there. I really think Jack should’ve picked up the win though, he got a big upside and I can see him going a lot further in WCW than Norman.

Rating: 5/10

Gordon Solie is backstage with Jim Cornette and The Midnight Express. Cornette says that they still hate The Rock N Roll Express. Stan says that today is the day the music died. 

The Rock N Roll Express (Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson) vs. The Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton & Stan Lane)

Background: The Rock N Roll Express recently returned to WCW and instantly continued the rivalry with their oldest foes, The Midnight Express. Neither team made it to the finals of the United States Tag Team Championships tournament and so they meet tonight to end this rivalry once and for all.

Previous PPV matches: This is the 4th PPV match between these two teams and The Rock N Roll Express have won the previous 3.

Wrestlewar PPV Record: Both teams wrestle at this event for the first time tonight.

Match: Robert Gibson and Stan Lane kick off the match. Gibson frustrates Lane early and Jim Cornette gets up on the apron. Referee Nick Patrick and Jim Cornette then get into it much to the enjoyment of the crowd. Ricky and Robert fight off Bobby and Stan and The Midnight Express struggle to get into the match. There’s a miscommunication between Bobby and Stan and Jim Cornette has to steady his team. Ricky Morton tags in and picks up the pace. Morton kicks Stan Lane out of the ring. The Rock N Roll Express continue to dominate, also taking out Jim Cornette who tries to get involved. The Midnight Express take control as Stan Lane powerslams Ricky Morton on the outside. Cornette gets involved again, jabbing Morton with the handle of his tennis racket. There’s some nice double teaming from Lane and Eaton from here. Once again it turns into a 3 on 2 as Cornette gets involved.

Stan Lane and Bobby Eaton dominate with blind tags and submission holds, keeping Ricky Morton away from his corner. After a quick start this match has slowed down now. Eaton hits a big elbow drop but Robert Gibson breaks up the pinfall attempt. There’s plenty of chinlocks and hammerlocks from The Midnight Express. Morton sells for a long time as both opponents lay into him. Ricky gets his knees up as Eaton comes off the top and Robert Gibson finally gets the tag. Morton picks up the pace, hitting both opponents with dropkicks and clotheslines. All four men then go at it but Cornette nails Gibson with the tennis racket behind the referees back. The Midnight Express attempt a flapjack but Gibson counters and Morton takes out Eaton with a spear. Gibson cradles Lane for the three!

Result: The Rock N Roll Express win by pinfall.

Review: This was a really good match. The psychology and selling from Ricky Morton really stood out. The Midnight Express work really well as a team and the chemistry is still there with these two teams. It’s three for three tonight with results I wasn’t expecting. A big win for Ricky and Robert.

Rating: 7.75/10

Gordon Solie is backstage with The Legion Of Doom. They don’t sweat The Skyscrapers.

The Road Warriors (Hawk & Animal) vs. The Skyscrapers (Mean Mark Callous & The Masked Skyscraper) – Chicago Street Fight

Background: The Road Warriors have had a rivalry with The Skyscrapers for months now. When Sid got injured just before Starrcade, he was replace by Mean Mark Callous. However before this event Dan Spivey also got injured and tonight he is replaced by The Masked Skyscraper.

Previous PPV matches: This is a first time PPV match between the Road Warriors and this combination of Skyscrapers.

Wrestlewar PPV Record: The Road Warriors are 1-0, Mean Mark and The Masked Skyscraper make their Wrestlewar debut tonight.

Match: Paul Ellering challenges Teddy Long before the match and then lays him out with a right hand. The four men in the match then go at it. Doom then welk out from the back in suits and stand with Teddy Long. This match is chaos as all four men go at it. Animal and The Masked Skyscraper go to the outside and they’re soon followed by Mean Mark and Hawk. Mean Mark chokes Hawk with some rope. Animal takes down both Skyscraper with a clothesline. The Road Warriors hit The Doomsday Device on The Masked Skyscraper and Mean Mark doesn’t attempt to save him, he just walks to the back. After the match The Road Warriors launch Teddy Long into Doom. We then get a fight between The Road Warriors and Doom! Hawk and Animal clear the ring of Doom who head to the back with Teddy Long.

Result: The Road Warriors win by pinfall.

Review: This was just an all out fight between these two teams. Sadly The Skyscrapers are so far away from where they once were that it was hard to care about them anymore. Especially with the Masked Skyscraper. I think this could be the end of The Skyscrapers. The Road Warriors win and it looks like they will transition into a feud with Doom going forward.

Rating: 4/10

Brian Pillman & Z Man (c) vs. The Fabulous Freebirds (Micheal “PS” Hayes & Jimmy Garvin) – US Tag Team Championship match

Background: This is a rematch from the finals of the United States Tag Team tournament finals where Brian Pillman and Z-Man defeated The Fabulous Freebirds to win the championships.

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

Wrestlewar PPV Record: Michael Hayes is 1-0, the other three men in the match make their Wrestlewar debut tonight.

Match: Two women get in the ring before the match and look to take The Freebirds jackets off but instead Jimmy and Michael get attacked by the champions. Amazing that this is the 5th match so far tonight and the 4th tag team match. And there’s still the world tag team championship match to come. Michael Hayes and Flyin’ Brian kick off the match. Jimmy Garvin tags in and he wants The Z-Man who tags in. The champions dictate a quick pace in the early going, keeping control against Jimmy Garvin. Michael Hayes tags in and Pillman hits him with a nice springboard body press. Hayes hits Z-Man with a clothesline and then tags in Garvin. Hayes takes control for his team, applies a sleeper to Pillman and a left hand. Hayes hits a high cross body on Pillman and then tags in Garvin. Pillman makes a hot tag to Z-Man who doesn’t have a lot of luck either. Z-Man locks on a sleeper to Hayes but Garvin breaks it up with a double axe handle. Garvin dominates with a chinlock as The Freebirds keep Z-Man away from his corner.

Michael Hayes and Jimmy Garvin have essentially taken it in turns to apply chinlocks to Z-Man. Z-Man hits a DDT and finally makes the hot tag to Flyin’ Brian who dropkicks anyone in sight. All hell breaks loose. Pillman hits a high cross body on Garvin and pins him for the three. The Freebirds lose the match. butattack the champions after the match.

Result: Z-Man and Brian Pillman win by pinfall.

Review: This match had a slow pace to it for the most part. I think it was given too much time and it dragged on a bit in parts. I think we’ve seen too many tag team matches at this stage and ost of them have followed the same format. I lost count of how many chinlocks we saw. The champions retain tonight in a slow match.

Rating: 3.5/10

The Steiner Brothers (Rick & Scott) (c) vs. Arn & Ole Anderson – World Tag Team Championship match

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

Wrestlewar PPV Record: Rick Steiner is 1-0, the other three men wrestle at this event for the first time tonight.

Match: Scott Steiner and Arn Anderson kick off the match but soon it kicks off with all four men. The Anderson’s really struggle to get into the match in the early going. Rick hits one of his trademark powerslams on Arn. Scott tags on and continues the momentum for his team, even locking the figure four on Ole. We haven’t had a heel win since the opener. Ole takes control with a cheap shot on Rick. The Anderson’s keep control against Scott, making quick tags and keeping him away from Rick. Scott hits a frankensteiner on Arn before both men make tags. Rick lays into both Anderson’s and then rolls Ole up for the three! The Steiners retain.

Result: The Steiner Brothers retain by pinfall.

Review: This was a decent match. It was hard-hitting at times. The Steiners could out of this looking really good, they dominated for long parts, causing the Andersons to retreat. This was a solid tag team title match and a good defence for Scott and Rick. Arn is still TV Champion so can go back to having singles matches.

Rating: 6/10

After the match The Anderson’s attack Scott, doing more damage to his arm. 

We’re shown an interview from Gordon Solie with Lex Luger. Luger says he is nervous and angry. 

Gordon Solie is then backstage with Ric Flair and Woman. Flair and Woman don’t sweat Luger. 

Sting is introduced as a special observer for the main event. 

Ric Flair (c) vs. Lex Luger – World Heavyweight Championship match

Background: Ric Flair was scheduled to defend the World Heavyweight Championship against Sting tonight after Sting won the championship series at Starrcade. Ric Flair and The Andersons would take Sting out, injuring him unable to compete at Wrestlewar. Lex Luger was announced as the replacement, the Horseman gave. him the opportunity to back out and Luger didn’t.

Previous PPV matches: Ric Flair has beaten Lex Luger twice on PPV before and they’ve also drawn once.

Wrestlewar PPV Record: Ric Flair is 1-0, Lex Luger is 0-1.

Match: It’s a cagey start to the match. Lex overpowers Ric which causes the champion to retreat a few times. Ric retreats up the entrance ramp but Luger carries him back to the ring. Lex then hits a military press not once, not twice but three times. Lex targets the back of Flair, softening him up for the rack. Lex misses with a clothesline and goes flying over the top which gives Ric the advantage. Flair hits plenty of chops, right hands and knee drops. Luger attempts to get back into the match but Flair slows him down with a poke to the eye. Woman also gets involved. The fight goes to the outside where Luger fights back. Back in the ring and Lex applies a sleeper and then hits a suplex and smashes Ric’s knee into the ringpost.

Luger fires up a few times just to receive a thumb in the eye. It’s back and forth between the two men from here. Flair works the left leg of his challenger before applying the figure four! Ric uses the ropes for leverage which causes Sting to make his way back to the ring (on crutches). Sting fires Luger up, he reversed the figure four and then hits a big military press. Luger tosses Flair across the ring and hits clotheslines and a suplex for a very near fall. Lex hits a powerslam and then receives a slap from woman. Flair hits a running knee and wipes out the referee. Luger hits a superplex but the referee is down. Lex applies the rack as The Anderson’s take out Sting on the outside. Luger leaves the ring to help out Sting but he gets counted out! Ric Flair retains by count out! There’s a 3 on 1 attack after the bell until The Steiners make the save.

Result: Ric Flair wins by countout.

Review: This was a really good match. Lex Luger has his best matches against Ric Flair, the two men have a lot of chemistry. Flair is so good at selling for Lex, making him look like a million dollars. Lex Luger was of course the stand in for Sting, who I can see being the man to dethrone Flair. Lex was a good stand in for the night and still has that main event presence about him. I was unsure whether he’d go back to being a heel following this match but the way it ended suggests that Luger is very much a babyface. But he is not champion.

Rating: 8/10

And that was Wrestlewar 90. It was a decent show with a realy mix of quality. The opener was decent with Kevin Sullivan and Buzz Sawyer beating The Dynamic Dudes. I am surprised by this result but it could mean the beginning of the end for the Dudes. Norman then beat Cactus Jack Manson in a match that really should’ve gone the other way. I really don’t understand this result. Cactus is one of the most captivating members of the roster and had a unique style in the ring. Realistically Norman is reaching his ceiling. The Rock N Roll Express then had a great match with their old rivals, The Midnight Express. These two teams have so much chemistry and a throwaway match turned out to be one of the best matches in recent memory. Another surprising result as Ricky and Robert have had a stop-start return to the territory. The Road Warriors beat the makeshift Skyscrapers. The Skyscrapers had such a great start but are slowly diminishing into a team that I don’t care about. The Masked Skyscraper? Come on.

Z-Man and Brian Pillman beat The Fabulous Freebirds to retain the midcard tag team championships. I’m not sure what it is but I’m not buying Z-Man and Pillman as a team. They’re too white meat for me, surely one of them has to turn on the other soon. This was a really disappointing match. I like The Freebirds, I like Pillman but I didn’t like this match. The Steiner Brothers beat The Andersons in a good tag team match, retaining the world tag team championships. I really like The Steiners. The win looked a little flukey with a roll up but it doesn’t hurt Arn and Ole. The main event was a good one. Ric Flair beats Lex Luger in a way that makes me think the rivalry will continue. Luger lost the match because he chose to help Sting on the outside. I really enjoyed the main event though, Lex is. atop three guy with Ric Flair and Sting.

Overall Rating: 57.5/100 (ranked 7th out of 17 WCW PPV’s reviewed so far)

Match Of The Night: Ric Flair vs. Lex Luger
Worst Match Of The Night: Brian Pillman & Z-Man vs. The Fabulous Freebirds
Surprise Of The Night: Kevin Sullivan & Buzz Sawyer defeat The Dynamic Dudes
Worst Booking Of The Night: Norman defeats Cactus Jack Manson
Superstar Of The Night: Ric Flair
Wrestlewar 90 Will Be Remembered For: Ric Flsir beating Lex Luger in the main event