The Piledriver Report 5.14.08: What is Wrestling’s Greatest Feud/Rivalry of All-Time

This weekend, Major League Baseball presents this season’s first batch of Interleague games. As part of Interleague play, the fans get to see a handful of Interleague rivalries. Met vs. Yankees, Angels vs. Dodgers, and the Reds vs. Indians make up the first cross-town match-ups of the year. The geographic locations of these teams, along with the hype of the local media have turned these contests from ordinary games into nail biting rivalries.

Every sport is filled with great rivalries. In professional football, there are a countless number of rivalries. Every team in the NFC East are fierce rivals with each other. The Raiders are bitter enemies of the Kansas City Chiefs and the Denver Broncos. The New York Jets have tense battles against the Miami Dolphins and the New England Patriots. Speaking of the Patriots, their biggest rival today is the Indianapolis Colts.

In the National Basketball Association, the Spurs and Mavericks are rivals. Detroit and the Bulls once were bloodthirsty enemies, as were the Michael Jordan led Bulls against the Knicks. In the early part of this decade, the Lakers and the Sacramento Kings were bitter rivals. Perhaps the greatest rivalry in basketball history is the Lakers against the Celtics.

Hockey has its share of feuds as well. The Rangers against the Islanders, Devils, and Flyers always seems to draw blood. In the late 90s, the Red Wings and Avalanche were fierce rivals.

One of the greatest arguments in sports is which rivalry is the greatest rivalry in the history of sports. Red Sox vs. Yankees? Bears vs. Packers? Buckeyes vs. Wolverines? Florida State vs. Miami? University of North Carolina vs. Duke? Steelers vs. Raiders? Giants vs. 49ers?

The same argument could be made in the arena of sports entertainment. Who had the greatest rivalry/feud in professional wrestling? Top feuds today would include Edge vs. the Undertaker, Edge vs. Batista, Edge vs. John Cena, Batista vs. the Undertaker, John Cena vs. Randy Orton, John Cena vs. Triple H, Triple H vs. Randy Orton, and Samoa Joe vs. Kurt Angle.

Some of the greatest feuds in wrestling history include: Bruno Sammartino vs. Larry Zybyszko. Tommy Rich vs. Buzz Sawyer. Jerry Lawler vs. Eddie Gilbert. Jerry Lawler vs. Randy Savage. Ric Flair vs. Dusty Rhodes. Ric Flair vs. Harley Race. Ric Flair vs. Lex Luger. Ric Flair vs. Sting. Ric Flair vs. Kerry Von Erich. Raven vs. Tommy Dreamer. TAZ vs. Sabu. Sandman vs. Raven. Sandman vs. Tommy Dreamer. Dusty Rhodes vs. Kevin Sullivan. Dusty Rhodes vs. Harley Race. Ric Flair vs. Roddy Piper. Ric Flair vs. Randy Savage. Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant. Hulk Hogan vs. Nick Bockwinkel. Hulk Hogan vs. Iron Sheik. Hulk Hogan vs. Paul Orndorff. Hulk Hogan vs. King Kong Bundy. Hulk Hogan vs. Roddy Piper. Hulk Hogan vs. Randy Savage. Hulk Hogan vs. Sting. Roddy Piper vs. Jimmy Snuka. Roddy Piper vs. Greg Valentine. Sting vs. Lex Luger. Sting vs. Vader. Rick Rude vs. the Ultimate Warrior. Randy Savage vs. the Ultimate Warrior. Randy Savage vs. Ricky Steamboat. Randy Savage vs. Ted DiBiase. Randy Savage vs. Jake Roberts. Magnum TA vs. Nikita Koloff. Greg Valentine vs. Tito Santana. Tito Santana vs. Don Muraco. Jimmy Snuka vs. Don Muraco. Iron Sheik vs. Sgt Slaughter. Don Muraco vs. Ricky Steamboat. Ricky Steamboat vs. Rick Rude. Tully Blanchard vs. Dusty Rhodes. Tully Blanchard vs. Magnum TA. Steve Austin vs. Kurt Angle. Kurt Angle vs. Brock Lesnar. Kurt Angle vs. Chris Benoit. Kurt Angle vs. The Rock. Kurt Angle vs. Eddie Guerrero. Mick Foley vs. The Rock. Mickey Foley vs. the Undertaker. Mick Foley vs. Steve Austin. Mick Foley vs. Edge. Mick Foley vs. Randy Orton. Mick Foley vs. Vader. Shawn Michaels vs. Diesel. Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon. Shawn Michaels vs. Bret Hart. Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin. Shawn Michaels vs. Steve Austin. Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H. Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho. Shawn Michaels vs. Kurt Angle. Bret Hart vs. Curt Henning. Bret Hart vs. Yokozuna. Bret Hart vs. Diesel. Bret Hart vs. Ric Flair.

Great feuds were not just relegated to the singles ranks. Pro wrestling’s tag team division was loaded with classic rivalries. There was the Midnight Express vs. the Rock and Roll Express. The Midnight Express vs. the Fantastics. The Midnight Express vs. Tully Blanchard/Arn Anderson. The Road Warriors vs. Tully Blanchard/Arn Anderson. The Road Warriors vs. the Sky Scrapers. The Von Erichs vs. the Fabulous Freebirds. The Steiner Brothers vs. DOOM. Steiner Brothers vs. the Midnight Express. The British Bulldogs vs. the Hart Foundation. Strike Force vs. the Hart Foundation. The Nasty Boys vs. the Hart Foundation. Demolition vs. the Road Warriors. The Hardys vs. Edge/Christian. The Hardys vs. the Dudleys. The Dudleys vs. Edge/Christian. Ricky Steamboat/Jay Youngblood vs. the Minnesota Wrecking Crew. The Dudleys vs. the Eliminators. The Eliminators vs. Rob Van Dam/Sabu. The Midnight Rockers vs. Doug Somers/Buddy Rose. The Four Horsemen vs. Dusty Rhodes, the Road Warriors, and a combination of Nikita Koloff/Magnum TA/Barry Windham/Lex Luger.

What makes a great feud/rivalry? There are several factors into what turns a feud from a normal battle and into a legendary war. The first ingredient you need are two workers that the fans care about seeing who are on the same level as each other. If you give us a feud between Randy Orton and John Cena, we tend to be more interested then if the WWE presented a feud between Triple H and Snitsky. The fans could believe the storyline if either Orton or Cena comes out of their feud the victor. However, how many people would honestly believe that Snitsky would have a prayer against Triple H. There is an exception. The exception is if a new wrestler arrives into a company, and the promoter wants him to beat an established star to elevate the new wrestler. A great example of this would be when the 1-2-3 Kid upset Razor Ramon on RAW when he first started out in the WWF.

The second factor has to include one moment between the two that strikes anger in one of the participants, giving them a motive to fight the other. This action has to be so vial and reprehensible that the fans remember the incident for years to come. People still talk about the Piper’s Pit segment where Roddy Piper smashed Jimmy Snuka in the head with a coconut. Another example is when Shawn Michaels ended his tag team partnership with Marty Jannety by throwing him through a plate glass window on the Barber Shop. There could even be a moment during a match that ignites this fire, like the time that the Road Warriors turned on Dusty Rhodes in a six man tag team match, and drove a spike into the “American Dream’s” eye.

Another element that turns a feud into a classic rivalry is that each man must feel that they are fighting for something they believe in. When Hulk Hogan was feuding with Andre the Giant in 1987, he wanted Andre’s hide, because Andre attacked him on Piper’s Pit. Andre felt that he was justified in his actions, because he believed that Hogan was ducking his for the three years that he held the WWF World title. During the brutal war between the Iron Sheik and Sgt. Slaughter in 1984, each men fought the other due to the pride they felt towards their home country. The Iron Sheik believed that Iran was number one. Whereas, Sgt. Slaughter was firm in his stance that the United States of American was the greatest country on Earth.

A great feud must also have either a memorable match, or a memorable moment within a match to be considered a legendary feud. The promos leading up the each Bret Hart/Steve Austin match were great. However, what really makes their feud stand out is the match they had at WrestleMania 13. Who can forget the image of Steve Austin bleeding profusely while “passing out” from the pain of Bret’s sharpshooter leg lock. Just as memorable was the double turn between the “Hitman” and “Stone Cold” shortly after the contest.

Another memorable moment during a match that emphasized, not only their feud, but created one of the great WrestleMania moments, was when Hulk Hogan bodyslammed Andre the Giant. While the two would go on to fight on the first “The Main Event” prime time broadcast, as well as at WrestleMania IV, it was their WrestleMania III clash, and Hulk Hogan’s body slam that will be forever etched in the fans’ minds when remembering the feud between Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant.

When it comes to feuds that were brought to a higher level due to the participants having a classic match, there are several that fit this bill. Shawn Michaels battled Razor Ramon in a ladder match at WrestleMania X. This match had historical significance, as people were awakened with the realization that Shawn Michaels could be a main event performer. The match also became the predecessor to future TLC and Money in the Bank matches that would thrill the fans for years to come. Perhaps the one feud that was kicked off due to the participants having a great match had to be Sting vs. Ric Flair. The two battled against each other at the very first Clash of the Champions in 1988. They fought in a classic 45-minute draw. The match put Sting on the map. It also gave Ric Flair his greatest rival of the decade of the 1990s. After their classic battle, they had several other high profile matches, including Starrcade 1989, the Great American Bash 1990, and they wrestled against each other on the final Nitro in 2001.

The final element of a historic feud is longitivity. Most classic feuds do not have a short life span. Most of the great rivalries in the sports history usually last several months, if not years. When Tommy Rich battled “Mad Dog” Buzz Sawyer for the NWA Georgia National Title, their feud lasted close to two years and culminated in 1983 in the “Last Battle of Atlanta,” which featured Sawyer and Rich in a fully enclosed, Last Man Standing cage match. Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant’s war in the late eighties lasted almost two years. Dusty Rhodes and Ric Flair battled on and off for almost a decade.

When you take all of these factors into account, which participants were involved in the greatest feud/rivalry in professional wrestling history? For me, the answer is easy. I believe Ricky Steamboat vs. Ric Flair fought in the greatest feud of all-time.

Take a look at how the two match up to the criteria that was previously presented. When the two first began to feud in 1977, Ric Flair was in the business for only 5 years, and Ricky Steamboat was in the industry for one. While you wouldn’t consider a rookie on the same level as an established star, the early days of their feud follows the 1-2-3 Kid/Razor Ramon exception. By feuding, and beating Ric Flair, Ricky Steamboat immediately established himself as a performer to be taken seriously, so serious that he won Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s Rookie of the Year award in 1977.

To set up their first feud, a the end of May 1977, Steamboat was brought out during the beginning of a Mid-Atlantic TV show by Jim Crockett to tell the viewing audience that Ricky was leading the early voting by a “landslide” for NWA Wrestler of the Year 1977-Under 25 Division. A rookie as winning the Wrestler of the Year award. That was unheard of. This did not sit well with Ric Flair. Ric Flair and his partner, Greg Valentine, interrupted Ricky Steamboat’s first TV interview. They told him that he was “in the champion’s corner, not for punks.” Instead of fighting against uneven odds, the future “dragon” walked away. On June 11th, Ric Flair pulled the same stunt. Instead of walking away, Steamboat hit Flair with a chop to the head, “knocking him out.” Flair returned at the end of the show, angered, and challenged Steamboat to a match next week where Flair would put up his Mid-Atlantic Television title.

To set up their series of matches in 1989, on the January 14th edition of World Championship Wrestling on TBS Jim Ross interviewed NWA World Champion Ric Flair, NWA US Champion Barry Windham, & JJ Dillon. Eddie Gilbert interrupted and said he had found someone to be his partner if Flair & Windham would agree to face them the following week. Dillon agreed as long as it wasn’t Lex Luger. On January 21st, Eddie Gilbert announced his surprise tag team partner as Ricky Steamboat. Together, they beat NWA World Champion Ric Flair & NWA US Champion Barry Windham when Steamboat pinned Flair with a gorilla press slam and crossbody off the top rope. After the commercial break, Jim Ross and Tony Schiavone interviewed the victors, Steamboat let it be known that he was on a quest to win the NWA World title. Moments later, Flair, Windham, and Dillon returned ringside, confronted Steamboat, and argued they lost because they weren’t prepared to face him.

The second factor for a great feud was to have that special moment where one participant gets angered by the other. The bookers gave us two moments to set up this feud. First, there was Ric Flair antagonizing Ricky Steamboat as not being in his league. The second came when Steamboat couldn’t take it any more, and pummeled the “Nature Boy.” This led to Ric Flair wanting revenge, and issued the challenge to Ricky Steamboat for the title match.

Steamboat’s surprise appearance and pin of Ric Flair in his return match in 1989 helped to give Ric Flair the motivation to be angered enough by Ricky Steamboat that Factor #2 was accomplished. However, it would be on the following week’s show when Flair’s anger towards Steamboat would take off. To prepare for his upcoming title match against Ric Flair, Steamboat held a public workout where he sparred against Dustin Rhodes, Bob Cook, and Ric Diamond. During the segment, Flair joined the commentary team, and then slapped Steamboat in the face and assaulted him. Steamboat would once again get the upper hand by hitting a gorilla press slam, ripping Flair’s shirt off, and sending him to the arena floor.

On June 15th, 1977, Ricky Steamboat beat Ric Flair for the Mid-Atlantic TV title. While Flair and Valentine attacked Steamboat after the match, their feud would eventually take on a new meaning. Eventually, they became equals in the fans eyes, and their own, as well. They had a measure of respect for each other, and their matches were to decide who was the best. Ric Flair thought he was the best. Ricky Steamboat believed he was the better man. Their feud reached stage three. They both were fighting for their pride, as each believed they were the best.

Throughout their careers, Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat was not only about who was the better wrestler. Their rivalry was also about championships. Since beating Ric Flair for the NWA Mid Atlantic Television title Steamboat and Flair would battle for all different types of wrestling championships. On August 22nd, 1977, Ricky Steamboat and his partner Paul Jones defeated Ric Flair and Greg Valentine for the Mid-Atlantic Tag Team titles. On October 21st, 1977, Steamboat beat Flair for the NWA (Mid Atlantic) United States Heavyweight championship. Ric Flair, along with John Studd would go on to drop the NWA Mid Atlantic Tag Team titles to Ricky Steamboat and Paul Jones on August 5, 1978. Flair and Studd would go on to regain the Mid-Atlantic tag straps from Steamboat and Jones on October 30th, 1978. A few days later, Steamboat and Paul Jones regained the belts on November 5th, 1978. Ricky Steamboat won the NWA (Mid Atlantic) United States Heavyweight title for the second time by defeating Ric Flair on December 18th, 1978. He would drop the NWA (Mid Atlantic) United States Heavyweight title back to Ric Flair on April 1st, 1979.

When Ric Flair captured the NWA World Heavyweight Championship in September 1981, Ricky Steamboat was one of Flair’s top contenders during the early part of 1982. Unlike his previous success at beating Ric Flair for championship belts, the NWA World title would elude him. That would be until he made his return to the NWA in 1989, following a stint in the WWF and taking some time off from the business. Steamboat would finally win the NWA World title, beating Ric Flair on February 20, 1989 at Chi-Town Rumble. Ric Flair would regain the belt from Steamboat at Wrestle War on May 7th, 1989. In 1994, the two would battle at Spring Stampede on April 17th for the WCW World title. The match ended with both men pinning each other’s shoulders for a draw. On the next WCW Saturday Night television tapings, Ric Flair pinned Ricky Steamboat to win the held up WCW World Title. I believe this is the final match between the two rivals.

While Ric Flair has stated that Steamboat and himself had their best matches while wrestling each other on house show cards, it can not be denied that the two performers had arguably the best series of televised matches during 1989. Ricky Steamboat’s NWA World title victory over Ric Flair at that February’s Chi-Town Rumble pay per view, their April rematch at the Clash of the Champions show on TBS, and their final pay per view encounter of the year on June’s Wrestle War where Ric Flair regained the strap, each garnered 5 stars. If ever there was a series of matches the embodied Rule#4 in becoming a legendary feud, the Flair/Steamboat matches in 1989 cemented their place in history.

The final factor to becoming a classic feud was longitivity. Ric Flair and Ricky Steamboat began the rivalry in 1977. They had their final match in April 1994. Their rivalry lasted 17 years. When it comes to longitivity, Flair vs. Steamboat definitely fits the criteria, and more, of what a long classic feud should be. I can’t think of any other rivalry in wrestling history that lasted as long as Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat against the “Nature Boy” Ric Flair.

While there have been thousands and thousands of feuds throughout professional wrestling over the last fifty years, none can match the intensity, competitiveness, and magic that Flair vs. Steamboat provided the fans for almost twenty years. There have been other classics wars by many different individuals. I’m sure you could probably list a bunch off of the top of your head. You can keep them. I’ll take Flair vs. Steamboat as the greatest feud/rivalry of all-time.