The Enlightenment: World Class Championship Wrestling (01.13.83) Posted by J.D. Dunn on 10.04.2007
The greatest angle of the 1980s?
World Class Championship Wrestling (01.13.83) by J.D. Dunn
This is it. One of the greatest turns and sparks to a feud that you will ever see.
A little backstory if you haven't read my other reviews for World Class:
Kerry Von Erich went to a draw with World Champion Ric Flair several months earlier, earning a rematch inside of a cage at this show. Flair paid off the Great Kabuki to injure Kerry, forcing Kerry out of action for a few weeks.
Meanwhile, the Von Erichs heavily recruited the Fabulous Freebirds Michael Hayes, Buddy Roberts, and Terry Gordy despite the Freebirds controversial reputation. Among other things, the Freebirds helped battle against the evil Skandor Akbar's Devastation Inc.
Earlier in this show (broadcast on last week's TV show), the Freebirds were scheduled to wrestle in the World Class Six-Man Tag Title finals to crown the first Six-Man Champions. Unfortunately, Buddy Roberts was stuck in Denver due to a blizzard. Being the all-around good guy that he is, David Von Erich offered to substitute for Roberts. David and the Freebirds won the title, and David, being the all-around good guy that he is, surrendered his third of the title because he wanted the Freebirds to be champs together.
Because of the shenanigans in the last Flair/Kerry match, the NWA allowed the fans to elect a second referee in the ring. The fans voted for the Von Erich's good friend Michael Hayes. And the rest is history
Taped December 25, 1982
From Dallas, Texas.
Your host is Bill Mercer.
We get a recap of the last time Flair and Kerry Von Erich met. Kerry puts Flair in the sleeper hold, but outside referee David Manning disqualifies him for hitting an official. In the second fall, Von Erich puts Flair out with the Iron Claw. The third fall sees them both pummeling the hell out of each other for the double DQ.
NWA Heavyweight Title, Cage Match: Ric Flair vs. Kerry Von Erich.
Before the match, Hayes says he doesn't want anyone interfering on behalf of Flair, so he's appointing Terry Gordy to watch the door. Kerry takes him down into a leg grapevine early. Flair scurries to the corner and demands that Kerry be backed off. Of course, once Kerry backs off, Flair cheapshots him in the gut and goes to work. Flair backs him into the ropes and lays in the chops, so Hayes shoves Flair back to give Kerry breathing room. SLEEPER BY KERRY! Flair backdrops out of it, but Kerry goes up top and drops a fist on his head. Flair sells it like his eardrum is broken and leaking out the other side of his head. Flair catches Kerry with an elbow to the throat (called a "knee" by Mercer). He chokes Kerry out on the ropes, and you see the ref dynamic come into play as Manning tries to use his count while Hayes just gets in there and physically shoves Flair back. Kerry recovers and launches Flair's face into the cage and to the other side! Flair blocks the Iron Claw and stomps on Kerry's kneecap to take over again. Flair is bleeding heavily from the shots to the cage. Kerry misses a kneedrop, and Flair is able to lock in the figure-four. Kerry gets his shoulder counted a few times, but he reverses it and starts working Flair's leg. Flair fires back and comes off the top right into the Iron Claw! Flair fades and falls to his shoulders, but his foot grazes the ropes. Hayes rules that a ropebreak over David Manning's objections. When Kerry refuses to break, Hayes yanks him off violently. Kerry and Hayes get into it for a bit, allowing Flair to jump Kerry from behind. Flair refuses to listen to Hayes, so Hayes hauls off and NAILS HIM with a punch. He tells Kerry to cover because Flair is knocked out in the middle of the ring. Kerry saw what happened, and he refuses to take the fall that way. Hayes actually grabs him and physically throws him on Flair for two. Kerry still refuses to take the fall and argues with Hayes about his officiating. Finally fed up, Hayes starts to leave the cage. Then, in a moment of serendipity, Flair knees Kerry in the back, knocking him into Hayes who tumbles off the apron to the floor. Of course, the Freebirds think Kerry did it on purpose, so Gordy SLAMS the door shut on Kerry's head. Kerry crumbles back into the ring, and Hayes counts a protest three just to be an asshole. Referee David Manning waves off the count, and the Freebirds walk out of the match. Kerry continues for a few more seconds, even hitting the discus punch, but he collapses on the mat, and David Manning calls the match to protect Kerry at 24:32. Even without the historical angle, this is quite a good match. Flair hadn't yet fallen into his formulaic matches, so there was still a lot of creativity involved. Plus, Kerry was crazy over, making for nearly constant heat. ****
After the match, David and Kevin Von Erich run down to check on Kerry. David makes no bones about it. He lays this loss squarely at the feet of Michael Hayes and Terry Gordy. And thus, one of the top money-drawing feuds in wrestling history was born. After this, it was sellout after sellout until David's death a few years later. Dallas-Ft. Worth became *the* place to be for all of the hottest talent in the world.
The 411: You *have* to see this match at least once in your life if you're a wrestling fan. It totally changed the dynamic of the NWA, making WCCW a player right alongside Florida and JCP. Unfortunately, the NWA would never really capitalize because of the Eastern power center and, well, you see where they are now. Definitely see this match, though!
