-2/15/89
-From Cleveland, OH
-Hosts are Jim Ross & Magnum T.A.
-Match 1: The Midnight Express (w/Jim Cornette) VS The Russian Assassins (w/Paul Jones)
-Match is clipped to the Assassins switching to get an advantage on Stan Lane. The Assassins work Lane over, and Paul E. Dangerously jumps on commentary to hype a 6 man between The Midnights & Cornette and The Original Midnights & Paul E. the following Monday at the Chi-Town Rumble. The Assassins keeps applying bearhugs. Lane fights out of one, but misses a flying something-or-other in the corner to keep the momentum with the Assassins. The Assassins miss the Russian Missile, allowing Lane to make the hot tag to Eaton. The Midnights hit the Rocket Launcer for the win in short order. Match was boring from what was shown. Not a good start.
-Match 2: Butch Reed VS Steve Casey
-Match is clipped to Reed suplexing Casey off the apron into the ring for a two count. Reed casually avoids a dropkick, and locks in a rear chinlock. After a long time, Casey finally fights out. Reed muscles Casey up for a Gorilla Press to a pop, then finishes with The Bomb, a flying shoulderblock from the top. Reed flexing while covering Casey for the win was the best part of what little is shown.
-NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair comes out with a bevy of ladies and new Horsemen manager Hiro Matsuda. The segment is here to illustrate the difference between Steamboat and Flair. Flair has some fans in Cleveland, especially when he tells Steamboat to "go home and help the Mrs. with the dishes". That just serves to piss Steamboat off, and the two brawl with Steamboat stripping Flair of his expensive suit. Steamboat hits the flying crossbody for a visual pin, but Matsuda interferes to help Flair turn the tide. Steamboat fights out of that predicament, and the two brawl into the crowd. Steamboat returns to the ring and puts on what is left of Flair's suit before throwing pieces into the crowd. Really strong segment to build for the PPV title match.
-Match 3: Lex Luger VS The Blackmailer (w/Hiro Matsuda)
-The Blackmailer is a masked Jack Victory. Luger controls the match, but misses a clothesline and flies out over the top. Blackmailer keeps control of the match with jobber offense until Luger reverses a vertical suplex into one of his own. Luger has enough of selling the Blackmailer's offense, and finally takes control back. Luger finishes with a superplex, a direct message to Barry Windham. This should have been a 5 minute squash. Way too much offense from a jobber.
-Match 4: NWA United States Tag Team Championship: Mike Rotunda & Dr. Death Steve Williams [c] (w/Kevin Sullivan) VS The Fantastics
-The champions work over Bobby Fulton to start. Awkward moment as Rogers and Williams are apparently supposed to do the double clothesline ---> KO spot, but Williams essentially no-sells Fulton's clothesline. A promo from Rick Steiner is inserted, and he has plans worked out for the PPV when he defends the TV title against Rotunda, that is if Rick doesn't forget and just knock the crap out of Rotunda instead. Tommy Rogers is face-in-peril for a bit, until he manages to take Williams down with a crossbody for two and make a tag to Fulton. Fulton takes an awkward bump off a backdrop, nearly blowing his knee out on the landing. The champions continue to dominate Fulton, as JR takes time out to explain the object of tag team wrestling. Williams starts playing to the crowd, hitting a huge Gorilla Press and following up with a footbal tackle. Fulton blocks the Oklahoma Stampede and finally makes a tag.
Rogers fires up on Williams. Odd moment at the finish, as Rogers is supposed to take Williams down with a crossbody from the top, but Williams is hunched over, and Rogers dives at him anyway. Rotunda gets a cheap shot on Rogers and that allows Williams to get the pin to retain. Pretty disappointing match, as the Fantastics did not get much offense in, and what the champions did to fill the time wasn't particularly exciting.
-Match 5: Ricky Steamboat (w/The Little Dragon) VS Bob Bradley
-The crowd is so into this match they chant "We Want Flair!". Steamboat looks like an elf with his red tights/green boot combination. Really basic match and the crowd gets restless, chanting "We Want Flair!" again. Ricky's style is condusive to him taking a beating, selling the hell out of it, and coming back. That doesn't work when facing a jobber. Steamboat goes up, and the crowd picks up, thinking the crossbody is finally going to end the match, but then Steamboat hits a chop, and it kills the crowd when the crossbody finish does come moments later. This was completely unneccessary.
-Match 6: NWA Television Champion Rick Steiner VS Rip Morgan (Non-Title)
-Lots of barks for Steiner. A short promo from Rotunda is inserted. Just as that ends, Rick gets a big clothesline on Morgan. Another really basic match. Rick finishes fairly quickly with a belly-to-belly suplex. A fan throws a cup of something in the ring...and Rick drinks it.
-Bob Caudle is with Sting, JYD, and Michael Hayes as they get ready for the main event. Hayes says he knows that the Road Warriors know that he knows how to beat them. As the babyfaces depart to their dressing room, Kevin Sullivan sneaks in and locks a gate, keeping the challengers stuck downstairs.
-Match 7: NWA 6 Man Tag Team Championship: The Road Warriors & Genichiro Tenryu [c] (w/Paul Ellering) VS ????
-The Varsity Club rush out to the ring and attack the champions. The champions clean house as an "L.O.D." chant breaks out. Tommy Young calls for a bell, making this an official match. Animal no-sells a clothesline from Sullivan, and drops him with one. The Varsity Club gain an advantage on Animal. Sting, JYD, & Hayes are finally freed. Rotunda works on Animal's arm, ramming it into the ringpost and guardrail. Teddy Long doesn't see Animal tag Hawk. The Varsity Club set Animal up for a Spike Piledriver, but Sting, JYD, & Hayes finally hit the ring, drawing a DQ and kicking off a wild brawl. Match was just there to set up the fight afterward.
-This show sucked, and from what I've heard, is even worse unedited. None of the matches ever got out of first gear, and there was way too much time with jobbers on offense throughout the show. The only saving grace is that since I've watched this show, I can get to the Chi-Town Rumble next.
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