From The Network – NWA Clash of the Champions IV: Season’s Beatings

NWA Clash of the Champions IV: Season’s Beatings
12-7-88
Chattanooga, TN

Your hosts are Jim Ross and Bob Caudle.

US Tag Team Championship Tournament Finals- Ron Simmons and Eddie Gilbert vs. The Fantastics (Tommy Rogers and Bobby Fulton)
Simmons and Fulton start. Dropkick by Fulton and Simmons comes back with a back breaker. Press slam by Simmons and Rogers tags in. Dropkick by Rogers and Gilbert tags in. Hip toss by Gilbert and he misses an elbow drop. Rogers covers for 2 and he goes to work on the arm of Gilbert. Tag to Fulton and Gilbert gets the sunset flip for 1. They battle for control and Fulton gets the small package for 2. Tag to Simmons and he grabs the hammerlock. He throws some knees at the arm of Fulton but Fulton runs to the ropes, sending Simmons to the floor. Back in, Fulton gets a small package for 1. Tag to Rogers and Simmons gets a roll-up for 2. Simmons overpowers Rogers but Rogers comes back with a dropkick. He goes up and misses a flying elbow drop. Flying shoulder tackle by Simmons but he is in the ropes as Simmons goes for the cover. Tag to Gilbert and he grabs an arm bar. Rogers escapes and catches Gilbert with a roll-up for 2. Gilbert works the hammerlock but Rogers escapes and Fulton tags in. Dropkick by Fulton and he begins to work the arm of Gilbert. Gilbert escapes and we reach a standstill. Drop toe hold by Gilbert and Simmons tags in. He rolls Fulton up for 2 and grabs a standing front face lock. Simmons charges in the corner but misses and Rogers tags in. The Fantastics work over the now injured shoulder of Simmons and Simmons catches Rogers with a backdrop. He misses an elbow drop and Rogers goes right back to the arm of Simmons. Cross arm breaker by Rogers but Simmons breaks and hits a back elbow. Tag to Gilbert and he hits a swinging neck breaker for 2. Suplex by Gilbert gets 2. Suplex by Rogers and Fulton tags in along with Simmons. Slam by Simmons and he misses an elbow drop. Leg drop by Fulton gets 2. He goes to the chin lock and Rogers tags in. Knee lift by Rogers gets 2. Back elbow by Rogers and he gets a jackknife roll-up for 2. Simmons backs Rogers in the corner and hits some chest presses against him. Tag to Gilbert and he hits an atomic drop. Knees to the back by Gilbert and he hits a back suplex for 2. Tag to Simmons and he works the arm of Rogers. Simmons charges in the corner but misses and hits the post shoulder first. Tag to Fulton and he goes up and leaps but Rogers catches him with a powerslam on the way down!!! Tag to Gilbert and he gets the O’Connor roll for 2 as the kick out sends him to the post shoulder first. Rogers knocks Gilbert off the apron sending him crashing into the railings. Back in, Rogers drop toe holds Gilbert and begins to work over the injured shoulder of Gilbert. Tag to Fulton and he hits the Divorce Court. He continues to work the arm of Gilbert and Rogers tags in. He hits some leg drops on the arm and grabs a cross arm breaker. Tag to Fulton and he grabs an arm bar to prevent Gilbert from making the tag. Tag to Rogers and he hip tosses Gilbert into the short arm scissors. Gilbert fights out so Fulton tags in and he hits a hammerlock slam. Dropping head butt misses and Gilbert hits a hip toss. Tag to Rogers and he works the hammerlock. Gilberts backs him to the corner to break and Rogers again goes to the arm to prevent the tag. Gilbert breaks with a headscissors and Rogers goes to send him to the corner shoulder first but Gilbert drops down sending Rogers crashing into the corner. Tag to Fulton and he knocks Gilbert to the floor to prevent the tag. Gilbert catches Fulton with the hot shot and there’s one minute left!!! Gilbert works over Fulton in the corner and he charges but misses and hits the post shoulder first. Fulton rolls him up for 3, just before time runs out!!!!!
Winners- The Fantastics ****1/4 ( This was the easiest thirty minute match I think I’ve ever watched. The selling of the arm by Eddie Gilbert was some of the best-selling I have ever seen and the fact that all that arm work played into the finish was just outstanding. The Fantastics are such an underrated tag team from the time period, the crowd adored them and watching them work is a sight to behold. A gem of a tag team match and one I recommend you watch immediately. )

The Italian Stallion vs. Steve Williams w/Kevin Sullivan
Stallion overpowers Williams to start and he hits a hip toss followed by a dropkick knocking Williams to the floor. Back in, Williams takes Stallion down and goes for the heel of Stallion but he goes into the ropes to block. Stallion catches Williams with a lariat and Williams bails again to recover. Back in, Williams hits the Olympic Slam and he slams Stallion. Elbow drop misses and Stallion hits a leg drop for 2. Leg drop to the arm by Stallion and he works over the arm. Williams catches Stallion with a half cloverleaf and uses the ropes for leverage but Stallion takes him over into the short arm scissors. Williams breaks and Stallion hits a cross body for 2 and the kick out sends him to the floor. Back in, Williams rubs Stallions’ face against the mat and he dumps Stallion to the floor. Sullivan gets a cheap shot in and he works over Stallion on the floor. Williams suplexes Stallion back in for 2. Rights by Stallion and Williams catches him with a knee to the midsection. Sleeper by Williams but Stallion fights out. Lariat by Stallion and he misses an elbow drop. Williams trucks Stallion and he hits a dropkick. Roll-up by Williams gets 2 and he works the leg of Stallion. Stallion goes to the ropes to break and Williams hits a knee strike knocking Stallion to the floor. Sullivan gets another cheap shot in and Williams hits a double axe handle off the apron. Back in, Stallion works over Williams in the corner and he hits some punches in the corner. Williams takes him out with an inverted atomic drop and Williams hits an elbow drop to the back for 2. Front face lock by Williams and he converts it into a sleeper. Stallion runs Williams into the corner, forcing him to break the hold. William goes up and misses a diving head butt off the top. Rights by Stallion and he hits a dropkick. Powerslam by Stallion and Williams catches him with the Oklahoma Stampede for 3.
Winner- Steve Williams ** ( This was the opposite of the opener in that the length of this match was absolutely ridiculous. Williams did not need fifteenth minutes to put away the Stallion and it just dragged as you could tell Williams could put him away at any point but they just kept it going with rest hold and dreadfully boring limb work. )

Junkyard Dog says he’s here in the NWA to help Ivan Koloff. He calls Paul Jones the devil and he kick the devil down.

Ivan Koloff vs. Paul Jones
Koloff is wrestling with one hand tied behind his back. Ivan chokes away on Jones and Jones bails. Back in, they slug it out and Jones backs off. Head butt by Koloff and he stomps away on Jones. Koloff chokes away again and eventually the ref finally forces Koloff to break. Koloff with an inside kick to the thigh and he knocks Koloff down. Elbow drop and a knee drop by Jones and he chokes Koloff with the rope that tied his arm up. They go to the floor and Jones sends Koloff into the post shoulder first. Jones stomps away and back in, Jones stomps away. Rights by Koloff and Jones bails. Jones drives a spike into Koloff and he stomps away. Koloff rakes the eyes and Jones bails. Jones goes to use the spike again but Koloff grabs it and he nails Jones with it for 3!!!
Winner- Ivan Koloff * ( This was what it was. Koloff got his revenge and Jones took a good beating for a none worker. I had no problems with this. )

After the match, the Russian Assassins attack Koloff but Junkyard Dog chases them away.

Rick Steiner says Alex taught him how to use the belly to belly suplex. Alex is Rick’s fist. This gimmick didn’t get over.

Road Warrior Animal w/Paul Ellering vs. Dusty Rhodes
The winner of this match takes control of the NWA 6 Man Tag Team Championship. Dusty gives Ellering a bionic elbow and he throws jabs at Animal. Clothesline by Rhodes and he misses an elbow drop. Elbow drop by Animal and he charges in the corner but misses. Dusty wraps Animal’s leg off the post a few times and he clips the leg of Animal. Figure-4 by Dusty and he knocks the ref out of the ring for some reason. Ellering nails Dusty to break and Animal rakes the injured eye of Dusty. Dusty takes Animal down and he rakes the face of Animal. Hawk comes in and he attacks Dusty. They double team Dusty but Sting comes out and attacks the Road Warriors!!! Dusty nails Animal in the leg with a chair multiple times and the ref calls for the DQ. Road Warrior Animal gets possession of the belts.
Winner by DQ- Road Warrior Animal * ( This match got short changed on time and the finish was typical Dusty garbage but at least it continued the build toward Starrcade. )

Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton and Stan Lane) w/Jim Cornette vs. Ric Flair and Barry Windham w/JJ Dillon
Eaton and Flair start. Eaton slaps Flair to start and he mocks Flair. Chops by Flair but Eaton fires back with rights. Backdrop by Eaton and he sends Flair to the corner. Flair goes to the apron and Lane nails him, sending Flair back into the ring. Tag to Lne and he throws a karate kick. Enzuigiri by Lane and Windham tags in. Dropkick by Lane and Windham comes back with rights. Slam by Windham and he goes up. Flying elbow drop misses and Lane hits a dropkick. Karate kick by Lane knocks Windham to the floor. Lane slingshots Windham back in and Eaton tags in along with Flair. Eaton hip tosses Flair and he hip tosses Windham as he comes in. He slams both and Flair pokes the eye to come back. Double clothesline by Eaton and they go to the floor to recover. Back in, Flair overpowers Lane but Lane drop toe holds him into the Figure-4. Eaton applies the Figure-4 on Windham!!!! They break the hold and Lane hits a back elbow for 2. Spin kick by Lane and Flair comes back with a knee to the midsection. Flair knocks Lane down and Eaton comes in to trade blows. Eaton knocks Flair down and tags Lane in. Back elbow by Flair and Windham tags in. Powerslam by Windham gets 2. Knee drop misses as Paul E. Dangerously cuts a promo on the Midnight Express. Tag to Flair and he goes up. Lane tosses him off the top and Eaton tags in. Punches in the corner by Eaton and Flair goes up and leaps but Eaton nails him on the way down. Swinging neck breaker by Eaton and the Express hit a double flapjack of Flair for 2 as Flair gets his foot on the ropes. O’Connor roll by Eaton gets 2 as Windham came in late so they have an awkward moment before Windham broke it up. Inverted atomic drop by Windham and he knocks Eaton to the floor. Windham suplexes Eaton back in and he hits a powerslam on Eaton. Tag to Flair and he hits a knee drop. Flair works over Eaton in the corner and Eaton bails to recover. Windham drops Eaton on the railings and Flair works him over on the floor. Back in, Windham tags in and hits the lariat on Eaton for 1!!! Gut wrench suplex by Windham and he hits a knee drop. Sleeper by Windham but Eaton rolls out. Tag to Flair and he knocks Eaton down with a chop. They slug it out and Lane gets the tag. He cleans house and rams Flair and Windham’s heads together. Tag to Eaton and they hit High/Low on Windham. Lane super kicks Flair to the floor and Eaton goes up. Alabama Jam by Eaton and Cornette nails Dillon in the back with his tennis racket as he gives Flair a show. Flair nails Eaton with the show and Windham rolls on top for 3!!!
Winners- Ric Flair and Barry Windham ***3/4 ( This was a blast. Just classic Midnight Express tag action combined with the always fun heel antics of the Horsemen. I thought the finish was cheap though and it didn’t have the emotion or heat of the opening tag match but this was still an excellent main event. )

Jim Cornette cuts a promo saying the Midnight Express stood toe to toe with Flair and Windham. He warns Ric Flair if he uses a shoe at Starrcade against Lex Lugar he loses his title. Cornette wants a rematch down the line.

7.5

The final score: review Good

The 411

The two tag matches lived up to expectations here, as both were outstanding contests. The middle portion of the show was a bit of a chore to sit through, as the matches were pretty pedestrian and some of the booking was poor. At least everything on this show had some sort of purpose and did build up interest for the big Starrcade show that was on the horizon. For a two hour show with two quality tag team matches, you really can't go wrong. I think that was a solid addition of the Clash of the Champions and is worth a look if you have some time on your hands.