Leighty’s Retro Rankings: 1992 WCW and WWF PPV Matches

-I have finished my run with 1992 and it was certainly a bounce back year from 1991. It is one of those years in wrestling that is always remembered. We thought it was going to be the last year for Hulk Hogan, which led to Vince trying something new by the end of the year. The WWF was still in their Big Four PPV model and that would change the next year. Over in WCW, they started strong with The Dangerous Alliance story and then things got rocky when Bill Watts took over. If you liked mat based, long matches with Doc and Gordy smothering other teams, the summer of 92 was right up your alley. The NWA was brought back into a partnership with WCW, which meant two World Title Matches on PPV and boy, did some of them stink.

-As noted in the past with this column, this is only WCW/WWF PPV Matches. I don’t include Clash of Champions or SNME as it doesn’t seem fair to compare them to PPV Matches.

-Finally, these are obviously my rankings and we all have our favorites as far as wrestler, style, etc. There is always room for healthy debate and discussion, but at the end of the day it is just my opinion. If you have a different take that’s cool, but just be respectful to anyone with a different opinion. Let’s get to it!

77) NWA World Heavyweight Championship: Masahiro Chono (c) vs. Rick Rude DUD (WCW Halloween Havoc)

76) Spin The Wheel Make The Deal: Coal Miner’s Glove: Sting vs. Jake Roberts DUD (WCW Halloween Havoc)

75) WWF Tag Team Titles: Money Inc (c) vs. The Natural Disasters DUD (WWF WrestleMania VIII)

74) NWA World Tag Team Title Tournament Final: The Miracle Violence Connection vs. Dustin Rhodes and Barry Windham DUD (WCW Great American Bash)

73) Kamala vs. The Undertaker DUD (WWF SummerSlam)

72) Todd Champion vs. Super Invader 1/4* (WCW WrestleWar)

71) WCW World Heavyweight Championship: Ron Simmons (c) vs. The Barbarian 1/4* (WCW Halloween Havoc)

70) The Beverly Brothers vs. The Bushwhackers 1/2* (WWF Royal Rumble)

69) Nailz vs. Virgil 1/2* (WWF SummerSlam)

68) NWA World Heavyweight Championship: Masahiro Chono (c) vs. The Great Muta 1/2* (WCW Starrcade)

67) Owen Hart vs. Skinner 1/2* (WWF WrestleMania VIII)

66) The Nasty Boys, Repo Man, and The Mountie vs. Virgil, The Big Boss Man, Jim Duggan, and Sgt. Slaughter * (WWF WrestleMania VIII)

65) Repo Man vs. Crush * (WWF SummerSlam)

64) WCW World Heavyweight Championship: Ron Simmons (c) vs. Steve Williams * (WCW Starrcade)

63) Yokozuna vs Crush SQUASH (WWF Survivor Series)

62) Ron Simmons vs. Mr. Hughes * (WCW WrestleWar)

61) Coffin Match: The Undertaker vs. Kamala * (WWF Survivor Series)

60) Nightstick on a Pole Match: Nailz vs. The Big Boss Man * (WWF Survivor Series)

59) Marcus Alexander Bagwell vs. The Taylor Made Man * (WCW SuperBrawl II)

58) The Undertaker vs. Jake Roberts * (WWF WrestleMania VIII)

57) Richard Morton vs. Big Josh *1/4 (WCW WrestleWar)

56) Tracy vs. Johnny B. Badd *1/2 (WCW WrestleWar)

55) Survivor Series Tag Team Elimination Match: Money Inc and The Beverly Brothers vs. The Natural Disasters and The Nasty Boys *1/2 (WWF Survivor Series)

54) Rick Martel vs. Tatanka *1/2 (WWF Survivor Series)

53) Battlebowl Battle Royal *1/2 (WCW Starrcade)

52) Lethal Lottery: Sting and Steve Williams vs. Jushin Thunder Liger and Erik Watts *1/2 (WCW Starrcade)

51) Taylor Made Man vs. Ron Simmons *1/2 (WCW Beach Blast)

50) Lethal Lottery: Cactus Jack and Johnny B Bad vs. Dan Spivey and Van Hammer *1/2 (WCW Starrcade)

49) Rick Martel vs. Tatanka *1/2 (WWF WrestleMania VIII)

48) WWF Tag Team Titles: The Legion of Doom (c) vs. The Natural Disasters *3/4 (WWF Royal Rumble)

47) Hulk Hogan vs. Sid Justice *3/4 (WWF WrestleMania VIII)

46) Marcus Alexander Bagwell vs. Greg Valentine ** (WCW Beach Blast)

45) NWA World Tag Team Title Tournament: The Miracle Violence Connection vs. Ricky Steamboat and Nikita Koloff ** (WCW Great American Bash)

44) NWA World Tag Team Title Tournament: Hiroshi Hase and Shinya Hashimoto vs. The Fabulous Freebirds ** (WCW Great American Bash)

43) NWA World Tag Team Title Tournament: Hiroshi Hase and Shinya Hashimoto vs. Dustin Rhodes and Barry Windham ** (WCW Great American Bash)

42) WWF Tag Titles: The Natural Disasters (c) vs. The Beverly Brothers ** (WWF SummerSlam)

41) Arn Anderson, Bobby Eaton, Steve Austin vs. Barry Windham, Dustin Rhodes, Nikita Koloff ** (WCW Beach Blast)

40) WWF Intercontinental Championship: The Mountie (c) vs. Roddy Piper ** (WWF Royal Rumble)

39) Money Inc. vs. The Legion of Doom ** (WWF SummerSlam)

38) High Energy vs. The Headshrinkers ** (WWF Survivor Series)

37) Lethal Lottery: Dustin Rhodes and Big Van Vader vs. Barbarian and Kensuke Sasaki ** (WCW Starrcade)

36) WCW US Tag Titles: Taylor Made Man (c) and Greg Valentine (c) vs. The Fabulous Freebirds ** (WCW WrestleWar)

35) Marcus Alexander Bagwell vs. Scotty Flamingo **1/4 (WCW WrestleWar)

34) WCW World Heavyweight Title: Lex Luger (c) vs. Sting **1/4 (WCW SuperBrawl II)

33) Tito Santana vs. Shawn Michaels **1/2 (WWF WrestleMania VIII)

32) Shane Douglas, The Z Man, and Johnny Gunn vs. Arn Anderson, Bobby Eaton, and Michael Hayes **1/2 (WCW Halloween Havoc)

31) WCW United States Title: No DQ: Big Van Vader vs. Nikita Koloff **1/2 (WCW Halloween Havoc)

30) WCW World Tag Titles: Bob Eaton (c) and Arn Anderson (c) vs. The Steiner Brothers **3/4 (WCW SuperBrawl II)

29) Shawn Michaels vs. Rick Martel **3/4 (WWF SummerSlam)

28) Lethal Lottery: Barry Windham and Great Muta vs. Brian Pillman and 2 Cold Scorpio **3/4 (WCW Starrcade)

27) WCW World Tag Team Championship: The Steiner Brothers (c) vs. The Miracle Violence Connection *** (WCW Beach Blast)

26) The Orient Express vs. The New Foundation *** (WWF Royal Rumble)

25) Unified World Tag Team Titles: Dustin Rhodes (c) and Barry Windham (c) vs. Steve Williams and Steve Austin *** (WCW Halloween Havoc)

24) Cactus Jack vs. Ron Simmons *** (WCW SuperBrawl II)

23) NWA World Tag Team Title Tournament: Rick Rude and Steve Austin vs. Dustin Rhodes and Barry Windham *** (WCW Great American Bash)

22) Randy Savage and Mr. Perfect vs. Razor Ramon and Ric Flair *** (WWF Survivor Series)

21) WCW United States Title: Rick Rude (c) vs. Ricky Steamboat *** (WCW SuperBrawl II)

20) Richard Morton and Vinnie Vegas vs. The Z Man and Van Hammer ***1/4 (WCW SuperBrawl II)

19) Steve Austin and Larry Zbyszko vs. Dustin Rhodes and Barry Windham ***1/2 (WCW SuperBrawl II)

18) WCW Light Heavyweight Championship: Brian Pillman (c) vs. Scotty Flamingo ***1/2 (WCW Beach Blast)

17) NWA World Tag Team Title Tournament: Brian Pillman and Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Ricky Steamboat and Nikita Koloff ***1/2 (WCW Great American Bash)

16) Brian Pillman vs Ricky Steamboat ***1/2 (WCW Halloween Havoc)

15) WWF Championship: Bret Hart (c) vs. Shawn Michaels ***3/4 (WWF Survivor Series)

14) WCW Light Heavyweight Championship: Brian Pillman (c) vs The Z Man **** (WCW WrestleWar)

13) Unified Tag Titles: Ricky Steamboat and Shane Douglas vs. Barry Windham and Brian Pillman **** (WCW Starrcade)

12) WWF Championship: Randy Savage (c) vs The Ultimate Warrior **** (WWF SummerSlam)

11) WCW World Heavyweight Championship: Sting (c) vs. Big Van Vader **** (WCW Great American Bash)

10) WCW World Tag Team Championship: The Steiner Brothers (c) vs. Tatsumi Fujinami and Takayuki Iizuka (WCW WrestleWar) ****1/4

9) Falls Count Anywhere on The Gulf Coast: Sting vs. Cactus Jack ****1/4 (WCW Beach Blast)

8) WWF Intercontinental Championship: Bret Hart (c) vs. The British Bulldog ****1/2(WWF SummerSlam)

7) WWF Intercontinental Championship: Roddy Piper (c) vs. Bret Hart ****1/2 (WWF WrestleMania VIII)

6) King of Cable Tournament Final: Sting vs. Big Van Vader ****1/2 (WCW Starrcade)

5) WCW United States Championship: 30 Minute Iron Man Match: Rick Rude (c) vs. Ricky Steamboat ****3/4 (WCW Beach Blast)

4) WCW Light Heavyweight Championship: Brian Pillman (c) vs. Jushin Thunder Liger ***** (WCW SuperBrawl II)

-You may have heard of this match! Liger has been Champion since Christmas Night when he beat Pillman for the Title. Pillman with a shoulder tackle and they each try for a dropkick and nothing doing. The crowd applauds before that became a common thing. Pillman with a take down and goes to an armbar then into a hammerlock. Liger gets to the ropes but gets caught with a head scissors and a dropkick sends Liger to the floor. Dropkick through the ropes has Liger backing away to slow things for the time being. We go again and now Liger gets the take down and goes after the leg. Pillman breaks by dropping a leg on Liger’s head. He fires chops off in the corner, but Liger floats over and comes off the opposite ropes with a moonsault press for two. Pillman gets sent to the floor and Liger does a handspring fake to pop the crowd. Pillman back in and hooks a seated abdominal stretch and then transitions into a head scissors. Liger is able to escape and looks for a Bow and Arrow, but Pillman gets to the bottom rope to break. Liger buries shoulders in the corner and hits a dropkick in the opposite corner. The crowd is digging what they are seeing! Pillman with a crucifix for two as Jesse notes Liger reminds him of The Predator. Liger with a roll-up for two. Nasty belly to back suplex from Pillman gets two. That was sweet! Chops from Pillman! He misses a knee in the corner though and Liger starts firing off leg kicks. Knee-breaker from Liger and he hooks a Figure-Four to pop the crowd. I am shocked we didn’t get a “We Want Flair,” chant. Pillman fights off his shoulders to avoid being pinned as the crowd is rumbling. They start slapping each other and the crowd starts a USA chant. Pillman turns the hold and they both end up in the ropes to force a break. Liger back to the leg kicks and he stomps the knee. Modified half-crab as he drives a knee in the back as well. Pillman fights to get up and hits an enziguiri. Pillman with a head scissors again, but gets backdropped to the floor. Liger out with a Senton off the top and the crowd is losing it now. They fight over a suplex on the apron and neither can get it, so Pillman runs Liger into the buckle and gets a springboard clothesline. Pillman is actually drawing some boos as the crowd is that into Liger. Pillman sends Liger to the floor with a suplex and then comes off the top with a crossbody to the floor. Damn! Pillman off the apron with another dive, but Liger moves and Pillman crashes into the railing. Liger heads up, but gets caught with a dropkick on the way down. Now Pillman up and they each try a dropkick and miss which leaves both men down. Liger up first with some chops, but he gets caught with a powerslam for two. Liger back with a bridging suplex for two! They fight up top and Pillman drops Liger on his face to block a superplex. Pillman gets a close two off a crossbody and he seems to be frustrated. Pillman sets too early on a backdrop and Liger hits a powerbomb into a pin for two. Another one is countered into a roll-up for two. Now Liger sets too early and Pillman drops him with a DDT, but it only gets two as Liger was close enough to reach out for the bottom rope. They each miss a clothesline and end up diving at each other and hitting heads. Pillman up top, but Liger shakes the ropes. Superplex from Liger gets two! Liger up again and he misses the flying headbutt. Pillman gets a roll-up into a bridge for the pin at 17:00.

Winner and New WCW Light Heavyweight Champion: Flyin’ Brian via pin at 17:00
-This is an all time classic and for the longest time was considered the greatest PPV opener ever. The match just flies by and the crowd eats up everything they are doing by the end. A match that influenced a generation and is required viewing. It is hard to compare to the craziness we get today with the high flying but that doesn’t take away from this one being amazing. 

3) War Games: Sting’s Squadron vs. The Dangerous Alliance ***** (WCW WrestleWar)

-Let’s Go! Dangerously having a game plan on a large piece of paper is brilliant. This man might have a good mind for the business. Austin and Windham start and it’s just a slug-fest to start which is perfect. Shoulder tackle by Barry and he blocks being sent into the steel cage. Ross lets us know Windham took the TV Title off Austin not too long ago. He misses an elbow and Austin runs his into the buckle. Barry goes to the eyes because he has Horsemen DNA in his blood. Austin with a backdrop and he drops an elbow as the show Paul going over the plan with the rest of his team. Austin blocks going into the cage so Barry takes the eyes again and hits a SWANK DDT! Austin blocks going into the cage again and clotheslines Barry over the top and between the two rings. LUCHA AUSTIN as he dives over the ropes and hits a clothesline that sends both men into the other ring. Austin uses the top of the cage to swing and try a kick, but Barry avoids and brings Austin down from the cage. Now Austin gets sent into the steel and again and we have bleeding at the 3:30 mark. Cheese grater action from Barry because we really need to make sure the blood is flowing. The timer is dead on as we have 1 minute left in this period. Barry bites at the wound which annoys Jesse, but I mean, it’s WAR GAMES! We see the coin toss and it’s Tails so The Dangerous Alliance win (shocking) and Rick Rude is the third man in the match. Windham and Rude trade blows as Austin tries to pull his bloody carcass to his feet. He gets back in and the advantage is with the DA for the next 60 seconds. Austin off the top with a clothesline and his blood is staining the canvas. Barry gets sent into the cage and hey, he’s bleeding now as well. Things are even now as Steamboat enters the match and the crowd is going crazy. He fires off right hands for everyone and Austin gets sent into the steel. Rude as well! DDT for Rude! DDT for Austin! Might as well DDT the cameraman in the ring as well. Austin saves Rude but Steamboat hangs from the roof and mule kicks Austin. He then gets a head scissors take down on Rude as we have 45 seconds until the next entrant. They pair off in the two rings as Arn looks to be the next one in the ring and good for Austin starting this one, but Arn made a career out of starting War Games. Arn in and DDT for Barry! SPINEBUSTER for Dragon! Rude and Arn get a double Boston Crab on Dragon before Barry makes the save. Rude with a piledriver on Steamboat as DA takes control with the advantage. Dragon goes flying over both sets of ropes into the other ring in a sweet visual. Double clothesline leave both of then down as Dustin enters the match. Anderson vs. Rhodes in War Games is just everything that is right with the World. Dustin with an inverted atomic drop and clotheslines for everyone. Steamboat has a Boston Crab on Rude as they know someone has to submit to end this one at some point, so take a chance to work on an injury if possible. Arn gets held upside down between the two rings and bounced up and down by Barry in a tremendous spot. Dragon with a figure-four on Rude, but he turns it over before Dragon rolls it back. Larry is the next one in and Dustin punches him in the face. Cool! Madusa starts climbing the cage and slips Arn the phone in a small gap. Sting chases up after her and threatens her until he drops down. That was great as we didn’t get people going to the roof of War Games. Arn puts the phone to good use as The DA regain control. The right ring is just stained with blood! Dustin goes into the cage and you don’t have to ask a Rhodes twice to shed blood. Rude and Steamboat are just destroying each other. Sting in and the crowd is losing their mind. Rude gets bench pressed into the roof off the cage and I want to stand and applaud. Arn into the steel and then Austin takes a crazy bump off a backdrop into the cage. That was wild! Cheese grater action for Arn as he is bleeding like a stuck pig. Crimson Masks everywhere! Austin with a lariat on Barry! Rude gets his head stuck between the rings while Sting and Steamboat pulls his legs apart. Eaton is the last man in for The Dangerous Alliance. Man, the blood pouring from Rhodes is frightening! These men look exhausted and that’s the point! Larry and Rude are trying to rip the buckle from the corner which has the ropes sagging. CANNIBALIZE THE RING! Ross brings up that people question how loyal Koloff is and we get our answer as he rushes into the ring and decks Arn. He goes into the cage because he’s not bloody enough. Koloff stares down Sting as Dangerously yells for him to deck Sting. Instead he pushes Sting out of the way and takes the bullet for him. Sting with a clothesline and then he and Koloff hug to pop the crowd. They go crazy with right hands and this crowd is on fire! Dustin with a boot to Larry’s face. Rude is back to working on the buckle. Sting with a Stinger Splash and Scorpion on Anderson. Eaton makes the save and we see the buckle has been removed. Just carnage and blood over the place and it’s glorious! Dustin with a slam on Austin, but he misses an elbow off the top. Eaton grabs the steel bar that connects the buckle to the corner. Larry goes to deck Sting, but he moves and Eaton gets clocked in the shoulder. Sting hooks a submission move on the shoulder and Eaton is toast as he surrenders at 23:24 to end the GREATEST WAR GAMES MATCH EVER!

Winners: Sting Squadron via surrender at 23:24
-Just a beautiful display of carnage! Some people think this is how the nWo angle should have ended but we would never get this type of bloodletting in the mid to late 90s in WCW. This is 25 minutes just flying by and a perfect way to blowoff the Dangerous Alliance angle. Every wrestling fan needs to see this match

2) WWF Championship: 30 Man Royal Rumble Match ***** (WWF Royal Rumble)

-As noted, Jack Tunney had Hogan vacate the WWF Championship after the controversial way he beat Taker at This Tuesday in Texas. In a genius move, the winner of The Rumble gets the gold and to be fair to Hogan and Taker, they are guaranteed a number from 20-30. The British Bulldog is #1 and Ted Dibiase is #2, as Gorilla notes Ted didn’t buy off a better number this year.  I assume since for WWF Title this year, people weren’t as willing to sell.  Dibiase with a gut-wrench suplex and then drops a fist.  Gorilla notes Rick Martel has the current record for longest time in The Rumble.  I am sure that will last!  Ted gets cocky and Bulldog sends him over the top with a clothesline at 1:25.  Ric Flair is #3 and Heenan is losing his mind as he yells, “damn it.”  Gorilla is right there to twist the knife and then he tells Heenan to sit down before he has a heart attack.  Here we go as the crowd is ready for this.  Flair is cocky still, but gets shoved on his ass.  Flair goes to the eyes but Bulldog back with Gorilla Press Slam.  Clothesline from Bulldog as Flair is just inserting Bulldog in his Luger formula.  Flair misses a chop and eats another clothesline before begging off.  Jerry Saggs is next at #4 as Bulldog pounds away on Flair in the corner.  Saggs decks Bulldog from behind and we get a double team with him and Flair.  Heenan: “Let Saggs do all the work.”  Bulldog explodes out of the corner with a double clothesline and fires Saggs over the top, but he hangs on.  He is stupid though and poses on the apron, so Bulldog dropkicks him to the floor.  Heenan goes on a rant about how this isn’t fair to Flair as Haku enters as #5.  He attacks Bulldog to give Flair a second to regroup.  CHOPS to Bulldog!  Haku kicks Flair as Heenan wonders if he has gone nuts.  Flair throws punches, which Haku no sells, so Flair rolls under the bottom rope to the floor.  Haku with a SWANK piledriver on Bulldog.  That was fantastic!  Chops to Flair in the corner followed by a headbutt.  Heenan is now cheering for Bulldog to help Flair.  Haku gets dumped by Bulldog and here’s Shawn Michaels at 6.  I am sure he was geeking out over the idea of being in there with Flair and they immediately go at it.  Cool!  Backdrop from Shawn and a superkick, without the love this time.  Bulldog with a Gorilla Press to Shawn as he starts bumping all over the place.  Clothesline sends him to the apron, but he gets back in and hits Bulldog with a superkick.  Shawn gets bounced around by Bulldog and ends up getting bounced on his balls on the top rope.  Tito Santana is next at 7 and he goes right for Flair which is quickly becoming a theme.  Flair is teetering and Heenan is nearly crying as Gorilla tells him to kiss his meal ticket goodbye.  Flair with a belly to back suplex on Tito while Shawn teases being eliminated with Bulldog.  Flair decks Bulldog in his kibbles n bits to get a groan from the crowd.  Tito hits Flair with the Flying Jalapeño as Barbarian is next at 8.  Gorilla notes Barbarian doesn’t like Flair and Heenan says he barely liked him when he was his manager.  Barbarian and Flair nearly have Bulldog out while Tito and Shawn give us a Mania VIII preview.  Shawn continues to get dumped to the apron, but survives.  Texas Tornado is 9 and he certainly has history with Flair and goes right after him.  Discus Punch leads to a Flair Flop!  Not to be outdone Shawn goes a 360 spin off the discus punch and then gets sent into the corner with a slingshot.  Gorilla is a little fast with him times as he notes Bulldog has been in for over 16 minutes.  It’s actually been 15:30 but close enough.  Tito pounds away on Flair as the crowd starts the countdown.  Repo Man is out at 10 and he sneaks around the ring.  He slowly gets into the ring and goes after Shawn.  Tito with a crossbody on The Barbarian and then he saves Bulldog from Flair.  Bulldog and Tornado double team Shawn as Gorilla’s math gets worse.  Flair tells us they had Flair budgeted for 30 minutes.  Greg Valentine is 11 and he and Flair trade chops in the corner.  There’s another Flair Flop!  Gorilla continues to poke at Heenan and he starts yelling for Monsoon to shut-up.  It can’t be stressed enough how much the commentary adds to the enjoyment of this match.  Nikolai Volkoff in at 12 and he just kind of stands around in the ring before settling on trading blows with The Barbarian.  Hammer and Flair continue to chop the crap out of each other like old friends are one to do.  Valentine puts Flair in the figure-four to a big pop as Volkoff gets tossed at 21:30.  Eh, he wasn’t doing much anyway.  The Big Boss Man is 13 to pop the crowd and he fires off right hands on everyone.  Hammer gets dumped at 23:35 by Flair, I think.  Shawn starts flopping over the ropes, but is back in.  Repo Man is tossed at 23:00!  Flair fires off chops to Tito in the corner while Shawn and Tornado beat on each other in the opposite corner.  Flair dumps Bulldog at 23:40 to end his run.  Tornado is next at 23:49.  Boss Man with a splash in the corner on Barbarian.  Shawn and Tito eliminate each other at 24:10. Hercules is the next in with #14.  Flair seems to form a team with Barbarian, but then turns on him which seems dumb and Heenan’s voice breaks.  Gorilla Press Slam!  Hercules dumps Barbarian at 25:20 and then Boss Man dumps him at 25:24.  Boss Man nearly goes out, but is back in and it’s just him and Flair.  He charges at Flair, but misses and Boss Man is out at 26:00.  Heenan thinks Flair has won as he is the last man in the ring.  He does a Flair Flop, but gets no time as Roddy Piper is 15 and the crowd is on fire.  Piper runs wild so Flair bails to the floor under the ropes.  Piper follows and hits a clothesline as this is all just great stuff!  Piper no sells a neck snap on the ropes and pounds away in the corner as the crowd counts along.  Inverted Atomic Drop does nothing and Piper with a poke to the eyes.  AIRPLANE SPIN!  Heenan is audibly crying as Piper hooks a sleeper.  I love this all so much!  Jake Roberts is 16 to many, many boos.  Jake just sits back and tells Piper to do what he needs.  Then he decks Piper when he turns his back.  Sweet!  Flair wants to team with Jake, but I mean, he is a snake and he drops Flair with a short arm clothesline.  DDT is prepped, but Piper hits a clothesline.  Heenan thanks Piper and notes that “it’s a kilt, not a skirt.”  A few seconds later, Piper kicks Flair and it’s “you skirt wearing freak.”  Jim Duggan is 17 as the star power just keeps coming.  He goes crazy with right hands on Flair and hits a clothesline.  Duggan and Piper start trading blows which is cool to see as it shows this really is every man for himself.  Flair with a belly-to-back on Piper while Jake gets an inverted atomic drop on Duggan.  Piper and Flair start trading chops and then Duggan decks Flair for good measure.  IRS is 18 and he makes sure to take his time, which is smart.  Duggan grabs IRS by the tie and holds him at bay so he can punch him repeatedly in the face.  Cool!  Duggan runs Jake and Flair into each other to save Piper.  Heck with that, should have pushed him!  Piper would understand.  IRS and Flair double team Piper as Monsoon continues to exaggerate Flair’s time in the ring.  Jimmy Snuka is 19 and he goes right after Flair.  Headbutt!  Double chop and it’s a reverse Flair Flop!  Piper unloads with chops in the corner on Flair and then nearly dumps him.  Jake picks up where Piper left off, but he can’t get Flair out.  In a nice touch Jake makes sure to keep checking the entrance as the crowd counts as he is nervous about Savage.  Taker is #20 which is a crappy number for him considering he could only get 20-30.  He sends Snuka packing at 37:15 to many boos, but then he goes after Flair to a pop.  Heenan is resigned to the fact that it is over as Taker starts choking Flair.  Here’s Randy Savage at 21 and Jake immediately hits the floor.  That’s awesome!  Taker decks Savage and now, Jake is back in the ring.  He misses a clothesline and Savage is all over him.  He heads up top and hits a double ax and a high knee puts Jake out to a massive pop at 39:29.  Savage actually jumps over the top to eliminate himself, but he screwed up there and Taker rolls him back in to cover.  Vince must be in Heenan’s ear as we get a cover that you have to be thrown out by someone for it to count.  Yeah, that’s not the rule we know, but it was a solid way to get around it.  Flair and Savage start attacking each other in another Mania VIII preview.  Just a hunch but I think they would have good chemistry together.  Just keep Flair away from Liz.  Flair hits Taker in the tombstones or “he tried to lift him,” as Heenan tells us.  Bezerker is in at 22 and he has a tough guy battle with Duggan.  Flair tries to suplex Savage to the floor, but Savage brings him back in and Taker goes to a choke.  Fun spot as Taker and Piper both choke Flair, so Taker uses the other hand to choke Piper.  Virgil is 23 and I think he should have been early to have one last run against Dibiase and especially since it’s one year since Virgil broke away in epic fashion.  Taker with another choke on Flair and they are always great because Heenan loses his mind.  Heenan asking Monsoon how long Flair has been in every 2 minutes is a fun running gag as well.  Gorilla’s time is still a few minutes off, but it’s getting a little better.  Colonel Mustafa is next at 24and Gorilla notes, “by they time they get there, someone else will be on the way down.”  Now Heenan’s Mania X-7 joke at Sheik getting to the ring makes me smile even more.  Piper pounds away on Piper in the corner again before Taker saves.  No matter though as Savage resumes where Piper left off.  Rick Martel is 25 as Flair is nearing his longevity record.  He must know because he goes right after Flair.  Mustafa is gingerly dumped at 48:52.  Flair ties himself around the bottom ropes to make sure he is safe for a few minutes at least.  Taker lifts Savage off the mat with a double choke and here’s HULK HOGAN AT 26.  The crowd is losing it now and shit is on!  Flair and Taker run into each other!  Eye rakes for both.  IRS and Taker get run into each other as Heenan starts begging to God and apologizes for everything he has done.  Hogan sends Taker packing with a clothesline at 50:58 and Bezerker goes next at 51:07 as the crowd is totally losing it now.  Hogan tears off his shirt as Virgil and Duggan get dumped at 51:39.  We have six left in the ring and make that seven as Skinner is 27.  Hogan nearly has Flair gone and there’s Heenan crying again.  I love it!  Hogan beats on IRS as a Mania IX tease.  Now Monsoon is saying Flair needs 60 more seconds to pass Martel’s record, but he passed that already.  Flair and Piper find their way back to each other and fire off chops.  Hogan hits a running clothesline on Flair and Skinner as Sergeant Slaughter joins us at 28.  Skinner gets dumped by Martel at 54:20.  Slaughter goes after Flair because it’s just tradition now.  Hogan and Piper go at to renew their issues and gives us a tease of 1996 WCW.  Sid Justice is 29 and Hogan wants to puke as he forgot about him.  Sadly, he doesn’t wreck shop and throw out some deadwood.  Slaughter beats on Savage which is pretty shitty to do considering Savage is the reason he won the WWF Title the previous year.  Flair with a chop to Hogan, but Sid beats on him in the corner.  Warlord is out last entrant as he drew 30 and it’s time to find a new champion.  Flair and Hogan end up on the floor and Hogan reverses a suplex out there.  Slaughter takes his crazy bump over the post to eliminate him at 59:00.  Back in the ring Hogan catches Flair with the big boot.  Piper pulls IRS out by the tie and he is gone at 59:50.  We are down to seven!  Sid and Hogan send Warlord out at 1:00:16.  Down to six!  Sid eliminates Piper and Martel at 1:00:42 and we are down to Sid, Hogan, Flair and Savage.  That’s a hell of a Final Four and our Double Main Event at Mania.  Savage gets dumped by Sid at 1:01:05.  Down to three!  Flair gets dumped to the apron, and Sid sneaks up and dumps Hogan to a big pop at 1:01:35.  Hogan cries and even as a Hogan fan, he is just being a baby here.  He grabs Sid and Flair dumps him to win it at 1:02:02.

Winner and New WWF Champion: Ric Flair at 1:02:02
-There is much left to say about this one. It’s an amazing showing by Flair and Heenan was on another level doing commentary with Gorilla knowing exactly how to play off him. It’s a match that deserves all the praise and the commentary 100% helps elevate it as well. The running thread of everyone going after Flair was great. Flair never really backed down and deserves all the praise for working for an hour. The star power in this one is nuts and there are some many memorable moments. In recent years, people have tried to knock this one and say it’s nostalgia that makes people love it so. No, it’s still amazing and is required viewing by any wrestling fan. 

1) WWF Championship: Ric Flair (c) vs. Randy Savage ***** (WWF WrestleMania VIII)

-Spoiler: This match is ***** all day and I am just going to enjoy every second of it as I review it. One of my favorite matches of all time and Heenan and Monsoon kill it again. I am ready for this! The crowd goes crazy for Savage as he runs to the ring. Wonder why they didn’t bring the ring carts back for this show? Savage would have ran anyway as he wants Flair! Savage chases Flair up the aisle and decks him from behind. Perfect pulls Savage off by the hair and probably should be a DQ, but the ref knows better. Savage goes after Perfect but decides to go into the ring. Flair lands a chop, but misses a second one and Savage hits a clothesline. Knee to the back followed by right hands and Savage goes to the eyes. Mounted punches in the corner. Flair tries an inverted atomic drop, but Savage counters and hits a clothesline as Heenan’s voice is already cracking. Back elbow gets a two count! Savage back to the eyes and nose and he walks the ref back, but Flair catches him with a backdrop that sends him to the floor. Nice! Chops from Flair and Savage’s sell of them is always great. Flair runs Savage back first into the apron and then puts the boots to him back in the ring. More chops in the corner followed by a delayed vertical suplex for two. Nice belly-to-back suplex gets two! Heenan wants to see the pictures, and tells us Liz’s hear still pounds for Flair. Back to the floor where Flair runs Savage back first into the apron. Suplex back into the ring as Flair shows off some power again. That gets two! Flair is getting annoyed with the ref’s count. Hard whip to the corner as the crowd is begging Savage to get back into this one. Savage shows life as he fires off right hands in response to chops from Flair. Savage counters a back drop attempt with a reverse neckbreaker as Heenan’s voice cracks again. Funny! Savage with more jabs and Flair goes to the eyes to stop him. Flair heads up and gets slammed off because that’s what happens. Nice touch with Savage climbing up the bottom rope to get more height on the slam. Flair begs off, but Savage sends him into the corner and gets a backdrop. Clothesline and then a hooking clothesline. Flair begs off some more and Savage spits on him. Fair! Flair Flip in the corner and he runs the apron and comes off the top, but Savage catches him with a clothesline on the way down for two. The crowd bought that one and they are pissed! Clothesline sends Flair to the floor and Savage follows out with a double axe. That sends Flair into the railing and now he is BLEEDING! They didn’t have the sense to lie and Vince was not happy with Flair blading. Savage sends him into the post and Heenan is crying as Monsoon notes that Flair is bleeding. I love this so much! Suplex on the floor as Flair starts screaming for God. Heenan wants the match stopped but this isn’t the NWA in Baltimore! Savage heads up as Flair is staggering around the ring and a double ax gets another close two. Again, the crowd is pissed! Slam from Savage and he heads up again. Flying Elbow, but Perfect pulls Savage off the cover in an all time great DICK move. Did I mention, how much I love this match? Savage goes after Perfect, who throws something to Flair. He blasts Savage in the face and slips the object back to Perfect, but Savage is out at two. Flair is angered now and goes crazy with right hands and a choke as we get a loud “Macho” chant. Remember how I said Perfect was a dick, well, he goes a step above and runs a chair into Savage’s knee. Hey, here’s Elizabeth storming down to the ring because this is GREAT and I love it all. Hey, there’s a young Shane McMahon among the officials trying to convince Liz to head back. She is staying though and Ric is destroying the knee know. Knee-breaker followed by The Figure-Four! Perfect is there to add leverage because he is a DICK! Savage nearly gets counted down, but is up as Heenan screams for the pictures. Oh, Liz looks great as well! Flair has a crimson mask as Heenan claims Liz just winked at Flair. Haha! The ref kicks Perfect’s hand away as Savage is able to reverse the hold. Small package from Savage gets two, but his leg is shot. Flair tells Liz this is for her and fires off some chops in the corner. Another knee-breaker and Flair gives one Woo too many as Savage gets a roll-up with a handful of tights for the pin at 18:02. Amazing!

Winner and Once Again WWF Champion: Randy Savage via pin at 18:02
-I made it clear how I feel about this match. Everything about it is perfect to me and I will never say anything negative about it. It’s one of my favorite matches ever and just makes me so happy watching it. Everything just hits so well including the commentary and the post match brawl.

-Flair kisses Liz after the match and she slaps the piss out of him and then Savage tackles him. Officials try to pull them apart, but Perfect helps Flair and Savage gets the beat down again. The poor man is being held down by officials as Perfect and Flair stomp him. The crowd chants for Hogan, but not this time as Savage deserves his moment. Even if he has to get the crapped kicked out of him before getting it. Fink gives us one of his greatest announcements of a winner of all time and Savage gets to celebrate with Liz with pyro going off. Just classic stuff and it brings a smile to my face. Also, the way it paid off what happened with Savage and Liz the previous year is amazing. I think the kids today call it CINEMA! The Macho Man arc through these Manias is just fantastic and the man was Mr. WrestleMania before Shawn Michaels.

-Oh, we aren’t done yet as Mooney is backstage with an angered Perfect and Flair. They are pissed about Savage using a hand full of tights while ignoring all their cheating and it’s so great. Heenan rushes in and is nearly in tears. Flair cuts an all time great promo with blood on his face. He isn’t sweating this one as he is going to reassemble the team and wants to see Savage do it again as one time means nothing to his career. One time means nothing as far as divorces to him either! They show Savage using the tights and again, the way they ignore what Perfect did out there is fantastic. Flair promises to kiss Liz one more time as Heenan takes his frustrations out on a payphone.

-Over to Gene with our new WWF Champion, Randy Savage, and he wants more of Flair as this was just a piece. “You haven’t been beat up properly.” I love it! These two were made to feud and wrestle each other. Gene wants to talk to Liz, but Savage hands her the belt, tells her it belongs to her and has her leave. He rips his shirt and tells Flair he can have all of him next time. One more “Oh Yeah,” off camera as Gene throws us to intermission. I don’t know how many times I have to say it, but I LOVE THIS MATCH AND FEUD!

-There is my list, and I totally understand if people feel The Rumble Match or WarGames or Bulldog/Bret should be in the top spot. It comes down to personal preference when dealing with top tier matches and Flair/Savage is one of my favorite matches of all time. What I did notice with this countdown is Brian Pillman had an amazing year as he just went crazy with BANGER after BANGER. He had six matches in the Top 20, which is every PPV match he had for the year. On the WWF side, Bret killed it with Piper, Bulldog and Shawn and of course Flair had the amazing Rumble and Mania performance. It was a fun year that I loved going back through and now I turn my attention to 1993. Thanks for reading!