WCW Clash of the Champions XIV: Dixie Dynamite

WCW Clash of the Champions XIV: Dixie Dynamite

Gainesville, GA - January 1991

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into the show, Ric Flair is the reigning WCW World Champion, Arn Anderson holds the Television Title, the United States Champion is Lex Luger, and the WCW World Tag Team Championships are around the waists of Ron Simmons and Butch Reed, aka DOOM. The Steiner Brothers were the reigning WCW United States Tag Team Champions and, shockingly, those titles somehow last for over a year after this.

COMMENTATORS: Jim Ross and Dusty Rhodes


After Starrcade 90' and before this show, Ric Flair had defeated Sting to win the WCW World Championship. I'm guessing they made the switch off TV because they didn't want to hurt Sting's overness but the Black Scorpion fiasco did plenty of damage on its own anyway. In tonight's opening contest, the former champion is tagging with the United States Champion, Lex Luger, to take on the WCW World Tag Team Champions, Doom, in a non-title contest. The crowd is very vocal for this match, which means even if the action isn't cutting edge, the match still feels like a big deal. After a commercial break, we come back to Lex Luger playing the face-in-peril, desperately in need of a tag to the Stinger. As the match goes on the crowd stays enthused, exploding when Sting hits the ring. Dan Spivey makes a run-in on the outside to take out Luger and the match falls apart, eventually ending with a BS Bill Watts-style DQ caused by Sting going flying over the top rope. As the match would go on, this same sort of thing would happen and the matches would continue with JR noting that the ref was making "judgment calls." Good enough opener. (2.5/5)

The World Television Championship is on the line next in a rematch from the previous major show, Starrcade 90'. The Z-Man, the reigning champion, was named WCW's Sexiest Wrestler in a dubious contest orchestrated by Missy Hyatt in the build-up for this show, but its his opponent, "Beautiful" Bobby Eaton, who has the more supreme mullet. When you've got Eaton in the ring, you know the in-ring work is going to be at least passable because he's just so smooth. They can't seem to hold the audience's attention, though, the crowd responses started out fairly strong and then getting milder and milder as the match wears on. For how smooth Eaton is, he probably would've benefited from the continued presence of a manager at ringside to help him garner more and more heat. Z-Man, meanwhile, had some charisma and was reliable to hold up his end of a match, but this one just never gets to that second gear. (2/5)

Alexandra York announces that she has acquired a new talent for the York Foundation. Based on wikipedia, Michael Wallstreet left WCW in early 91' - maybe even as early as January? - to become Irwin R. Schyster in the WWE (then WWF). Is this the night where we see the debut of Terrence Taylor? And, if so, do they bother to explain that prior to his departure, Wallstreet was actually feuding with Taylor? I hope so.

Back to the ring we go for The Fabulous Freebirds vs. Tommy Rich and Allen Iron Eagle. Allen Iron Eagle is greener than goose shit and though the Freebirds were very stale at this point, most of the issues lie with the once and future Joe Gomez. Tommy Rich is protected because WCW felt like Tommy Rich was worth being protected in 1991. In theory, seeing Hayes and Garvin destroy Iron Eagle as he botches spots could be interesting or funny, but their offense is so one-dimensional and boring that it doesn't work the way a Steiners squash from around this time would. One of the worst bouts I've watched recently and I've been watching lots of WCW 99'. (0.5/5)

After some hype from Paul E. Dangerously about his upcoming arm wrestling match with Missy Hyatt, Sid squashes Joey Maggs in under 2 minutes. Really nothing too special about this, but Sid squashes are almost always worth watching just for his entrance and to see the powerbomb. Extra half-point for the post-match interview. (2/5)

The next one is classic WCW inane booking as Ricky Morton makes his way down the aisle to take on "The Computerized Man of the Nineties," Terry Taylor. Now, prior to this match, Taylor was not "The Computerized Man of the Nineties," so announcing him as such is odd. His new manager, Alexandra York, doesn't show up till about halfway through the match so, again, its kind of unclear that Taylor is now part of the York Foundation (except to the home audience who get a pre-taped segment from Alexandra explaining this). To muddy the waters even more, Taylor, who one would assume would dominate this match based on the idea that he's now getting what should be a moderate-to-strong heel push, actually works this one 50/50 because either (a) he selflessly decided to sabotage his own push or (b) WCW still believed that keeping Ricky Morton strong as a singles wrestler in 1991 was a priority. Just a complete booking mess here all around and Taylor himself looks kind of pissed with the match as it goes on. Very standard match with nothing exciting or fresh. I'd rather re-watch the 2 minute Sid squash. (1.5/5)

Bill Apter presents Sting with the PWI Wrestler of the Year Award and then, in a Network Nugget of Awesomeness, Dusty Rhodes cuts a promo about the men and women in our armed forces. This show has basically become an overlong version of the Power Hour and I dig the vibe. (+1)

Ranger Ross takes on El Cubano next. According to wikipedia, Ross was being used on a limited basis in 90' (which explains why I feel like I haven't seen one of his matches in months). El Cubano and Ross put forth a decent effort and the crowd is full of patriotic fans so the reactions they get are good, but this is nothing special. Ross would end up leaving WCW soon after on bad terms, filed a discrimination suit against the company, and in an amazing story that I'd love to learn more about, became the Motorcycle Bandit and was arrested for bank robbery years later. Ranger Ross, we really hard knew ye. (1/5)

In a match that has no reason to be as good as it is, Arn Anderson and Barry Windham take on the Renegade Warriors next. The Renegade Warriors may have the lowest average rating of any performer or tag team in this blog's history as they are just routinely bad. Part of the problem is their look, which is unimpressive aside from their height. Still, because Anderson and Windham were such pros, they really carry this match into above-average territory by playing their roles to perfection and letting the comparatively limited Warriors shine with nothing more than chest chops and some spirited taunting. I read a review that described this one as a squash, but I wouldn't call it that as Anderson goes out of his way to play the overwhelmed heel for the first part of the match and has to rely on some craftiness to take control of the match. Once the Horsemen are in control, they don't just bury their opponents either, feeding in for some decent hopes at times. Windham impressively hoists one of the Youngbloods up in a snap suplex and then does it again for the finish with his patented superplex. The best match since the opener and I couldn't be more surprised to be writing that sentence about a Renegade Warriors bout. (3/5)

From here we get some excellent video footage of the Vader/Stan Hansen bout from the Tokyo Dome. The way they clobber each other in the footage is all the advertising you need to have me interested in seeing these two square off again at Wrestle War. Stan Hansen cuts a promo afterwards to drive the point home. 

Brian Pillman vs. Buddy Lee Parker follows. Despite being more filler, Pillman was so entertaining and athletic that he wills this sub-4 minute match into being one of the better contests on the card. Pillman's moveset at this time is really ahead of its time and Parker, to his credit, seems game to making Pillman look strong. Pillman hits an incredible crossbody to the entrance ramp that, in 2017, wouldn't feel like a big deal but in 1991 was the kind of thing you just didn't see on every TV show. Good showcase for Pillman but not competitive enough to be more than that. (1.5/5)

Before we cut to a break, a very brief video is shown of future WrestleMania main eventer Lawrence Taylor hanging out with Ric Flair and his buddies, including Michael Wallstreet (who had left the company by the time this airs). If you look closely you can see Nancy Sullivan hanging out too. Interesting clip.

Main event time - Ric Flair defending the WCW World Championship against Scott Steiner. The Steiners were massively over and Scott Steiner looked like a million bucks even in 91', but this match shows how ill-prepared he was for a spotlight match against the champ, let alone a run with any singles title. In the excellent Liam O'Rourke biography of Brian Pillman, I believe he found evidence that it was originally Pillman that was supposed to get this shot but that, with the passing of the book between Watts, Flair, and Rhodes, that idea got scrapped and Steiner got the shot instead. Whoops. The pre-match moments are better than anything that happens in the 20 minutes between the bells with Hiro Matsuda getting a shout-out and El Gigante showing up. There is a great visual of Flair and Gigante going toe-to-toe, the champion bravely running his mouth despite being towered over. I must say, this is the kind of moment that makes Vince McMahon bringing him into the WWE in 93' make total sense. Once the match begins, Flair dictates the pace and Steiner looks out of his element having to wrestle a mat-based, scientific match (which is somewhat surprising considering his collegiate credentials). With the Steiners, their bread-and-butter was tossing dudes on their neck and Flair was simply not going to have that happen over and over. Like in several of the matches prior, a should-be over-the-top-rope DQ goes ignored (with Steiner also botching the spot and flipping himself over the ropes) and, as expected, Rick Steiner gets involved multiple times to try to keep Flair from cheating, but the heat this match has its start just dissipates as it goes on. As the clock winds down and JR and Dusty urge Steiner to start going for the kill, he shows no increase in intensity or drive, which totally ruins the finish of the match. Even as Capetta counts down from 10, Steiner takes time to get his wind back and play to the crowd rather than try to hit Flair with his Frankensteiner or any other real game-ender. The lack of urgency is so glaring that the finish is never in question and any sort of "controversy" over whether or not Steiner got a pinfall before the time ran out is null (at least for the home audience). A sub-par performance from both guys. (1.5/5)


If this was an episode of Nitro or RAW, you'd still probably be disappointed with the good-to-bad ratio. The fact that these sorts of specials were supposed to highlight the very best WCW had to offer and entice people to buy a $30 PPV seems to have been lost on the bookers because so much of this sub-filler. Aside from two of the tag matches, there's very little to enjoy in terms of wrestling action and the main event is a major letdown but there is at least a touch of fun to be had for the kitsch/nostalgia factor. With a Kwang Score of 1.83-out-of-5, though, this one still sits firmly in the zone of...

FINAL RATING - DUDleyville