Ric Flair v Ricky Steamboat (WCW 14/5/94)
--Really like the Spring Stampede match (Spring Stampede is a contender for best PPV ever, btw), but holy son of a mother this was even better. The idea of a wrestler vacating a belt and winning it back without anyone else winning it has always seemed dumb to me, but this truly felt like it was either guy's ballgame. Flair's heel shtick never gets old no matter how many times you've seen it, or no matter how many time you've seen it with the same opponent, and Steamboat is the perfect hope spot/cross-bodying/fiery fan favourite combatant for him. Loved Steamboat turning the screws and going for Flair's leg, and the figure four on him was a great spot. Flair's in "I'm better than Hulk Hogan" mode, but no matter how much he has to prove he's got to go to the ropes to get leverage and shove referees and all that and it's the Ric Flair you want. Bobby Heenan losing his mind whenever they went to a commercial break was the greatest thing ever. Finish is god-awful, and I think it actually hurt the match. After thirty minutes of grappling and outside-suplexes, Flair catches Steamboat with some demented head butt thing while Steamer's going for a leapfrog and pins him clean after waiting a few seconds. Apart from that, though, this was the business.
Ric Flair v Ricky Steamboat (WCW 24/7/94)
--Never really seen these two in a thirteen-minute spring environment, and it's a shame because this was five batches of fun. Flair lost the WCW Title to Hulk a week earlier at Bash at the Beach, and Sherri's by his side here and she's the greatest bitch wrestling's ever had. She gets a ton of cheap shots in with her high heel and bitch-slapping hand and Steamboat's staring her down only for Ric to catch him in the back. The referee interrogates Sherri and she's making the Sign of the Cross and promises she did nothing but stood and watched this fine pro-wrasslin' match. Then there's crowd members yelling and she's calling them fat pigs and saying they'll lose their fake teeth if they don't shut up or something. SHERRI CARRY JOB. Nah seriously this was a blast, with thirteen minutes instead of thirty five they work a lot more like a TV match around this time and have the feeling out being way cut down. Steamboat shines with his usual chop job and everything, and he gets Flair complaining about hair pulls and doing his Flair flops and stuff. Finish has Steamboat with Flair in the figure-four and getting his revenge on Sherri simultaneously. Then we get Steve Austin coming out and all hell is broken. Yeah, pile o' fun was this.
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