Clash of the Champions XVII

Legacy Review

Clash of the Champions XVII

November 19, 1991 from the Savannah Civic Center in Savannah, GA

Commentary: Jim Ross and Tony Schiavone

Lumberjack Match: Big Josh def Thomas Rich (w/Alexandra York) in 6:03- The lumberjack is in a lumberjack match. How original. Rich jumps Josh at the bell, wraps his flannel around his head and beats him down. After a bit Josh gets pissed and no sells a shoulderblock. Rich tries to bail but can't get out. Josh belly to belly suplex and he does the log roll. Rich rolls out and the lumberjacks argue. The face turned Fabulous Freebirds push everyone away and roll Rich back in. Josh gets thrown out and the heels attack. Buddy Lee Parker throws TICKETS at him! That's serious heel work. Rich goes sneaky style (copyright Rocky Romero) and chokes Josh with his wrist tape. The heel turned Young Pistols join the choke party. Rich suplex for 2. He goes up top but Josh slams him off. Criss cross. Rich's York Foundation teammate Terrance Taylor trips him! Completely on purpose! Josh hits the Northern Exposure (Earthquake splash) for the pin. The lumberjack wins the lumberjack match. How original. The Taylor trip was supposed to be the catalyst for a feud to break the York Foundation up, but with the changes in WCW management coming in '92 the whole thing was backburnered and the group quietly fizzled out. There was another heel stable forming that would (rightly) take all the oxygen out of the arena anyway. *

 

"Beautiful" Bobby Eaton def Firebreaker Chip in 4:52- Eaton's still in his short lived babyface phase so we get the Code of Honor handshake to start. (Incidentally I'm writing this on the day ROH announced it was suspending operations after Final Battle '21. I know they plan to come back and hope they do, but if they don't it was a hell of a run. Golden Age ROH from around 2004-2010 kept indie wrestling in the US alive and produced so much great talent it's almost hard to fathom.) What exactly is a firebreaker anyway? Does he literally break the fire with his hands, or is it more of a mental thing where he breaks it down through psychological trickery? Anyway. Eaton outwrestles Chip a bit before sitting in a headlock for a while. Chip springs to the top rope and Eaton casually walks out of range. Chip comes off anyway, lands on his feet, then bounces to the opposite second turnbuckle for a crossbody for 2. Back to the headlock. After he's had enough Eaton backs him hard into the corner. He ducks a Chip crossbody in the corner. Chip lands on his feet on the apron and springs up to the top rope, coming off with a clothesline for 2. Eaton does some nice chain wrestling. Chip turns it into a half nelson to try to get a leverage pin. Eaton pops out of the corner with a clothesline to wake up the completely moribund crowd. He hits a crossbody but Chip rolls through it for 2. Chip gets a sunset flip. Eaton's kickout sends Chip into the corner (with an obvious foot plant and launch well after Eaton's push) and Eaton hits a back suplex with a bridge for the pin. Pure carry job by Eaton. He'd go back to his natural heel role soon after this and join the rapidly expanding Dangerous Alliance. *1/2

Next up is an ad for Starrcade '91, which will feature the first ever Lethal Lottery and Battlebowl. After that Tony is with Sting, who's being presented with his last mystery gift box which will reveal who's been sending Cactus Jack and Abdullah the Butcher after him. This one is no ordinary gift box, it's a royal chariot being carried by a bunch of beefed up extras that look like they just walked off the Roman segment of History of the World Part I. The curtains open and out comes....Medusa! She gets all slinky with Sting, not unlike Sherri trying to seduce the Ultimate Warrior earlier in the year. While Sting's staring at her in a not completely disgusted or uninterested way Lex Luger comes out of the chariot and clips Sting's bad knee! It was Luger all along! Luger works Sting's knee over before the face locker room chases him off.

 

"The Z Man" Tom Zenk def The Diamond Studd in 1:24-We JIP the match after commercial with Studd hitting a bulldog off the second rope. But no time for that crap, we go right to the back to check on Sting. He's on a stretcher with medics looking him over. They load him into an ambulance and drive off to the Local Medical Facility. Back in the ring Zenk hits a karate kick and crucifixes Studd to win. Studd gives him the Diamond Death Drop after because after two straight Clash jobber losses he needed some heat back. NR

 

WCW World Television Championship: "Stunning" Steve Austin (c) (w/Lady Blossom) def PN News in 4:21- Austin jumps before the bell. News counters with a choke and some corner pounding. Avalanche and clothesline to the back of Austin's head. Austin begs off. He suckers News in on the floor, but News reverses a whip and Austin goes into the guardrail. Back in Austin tries to slam News and it goes less than ideal. News hits a dropkick, or as much as he can do. Austin grabs News' tights and pulls him onto the ramp. Austin charges. News backdrops him back into the ring. Belly to belly suplex by News. Blossom puts Austin's foot on the rope. News goes after her. Austin LEAPS over the top rope and hits News in the back of the head. He dodges another News avalanche, stacks him up and gets his feet up on the ropes in the corner for the pin. Another pure carry job. But man, I'm always amazed how Austin moved in his younger days before he destroyed his knees (and Owen Hart almost paralyzed him). He was one of the quickest SOBs I've ever seen in a ring. *1/4

 

Cactus Jack def Van Hammer in 4:03- Another heel jump before the bell. Jack bites. Hammer hits a back suplex and dropkicks Jack to the floor. Big boot, slam and legdrop by Hammer for 2. Who's he been watching tape of brother? Foley does some nice misdirection to hit a faceplant. Cactus Clothesline! Elbow off the second rope to the floor! The crowd for no discernible logical reason actually chants for Hammer and he hulks up off of it. Jack takes a Bret bump and Hammer hammers him with a stiff clothesline to the back of the head. Knee off the top rope. Jack kicks out! Midring collision and Jack falls to the floor. While the ref "can't see" Jack grabs Hammer's guitar, which conveniently is one of those funky triangular '80s ones and is the exact perfect shape for ramming into someone's throat. Jack uses it as it was designed and gets a 3 count. Hammer gives him the slingshot suplex on the ramp after and they continue fighting all the way to the back. *1/2

JR is on the phone with Eric Bischoff, who's at the Local Medical Facility Sting is being examined at. Bischoff says three doctors, including an orthopedic surgeon, are with Sting right now, then says an orderly just gave him a thumbs up. What could it mean? Stay tuned for more.

 

WCW World Tag Team Championship: "The Natural" Dustin Rhodes and a mystery partner (w/Barry Windham) def The Enforcers (c) in 14:48- Windham can't go due to getting his hand crunched in a car door by Zbyszko at Halloween Havoc so we have a mystery partner replacing him. Someone walks in with a huge dragon head on and walking very gingerly down the ramp due to barely being able to see. It should be obvious who it is, but Tony provides a surprisingly nice bit of misdirection by saying maybe it's someone from Japan. Dustin takes the head off.....BAH GAWD IT'S RICKY STEAMBOAT! Steamboat had last been seen buried in midcard hell and going nowhere on WWF programming. The heels are not surprisingly furious and have to calm themselves down. Steamboat and Arn start. Steamboat comes out hot so Arn rakes his eyes to slow him down. Steamboat fights out of the heel corner and we're donnybrooking early! All four guys fight on the floor, then the faces clear the ring and the heels need to regroup. The crowd's going absolutely bonkers. Arn: "He's just a man". When they get back going the faces work Zbyszko's arm for a bit, including Steamboat posting it. Zbyszko works Dustin over to his corner and tags. Arn takes control and goes up top. Dustin tries to slam him off. Arn pokes him in the eye to counter and hits a double ax handle off the top. Dustin gets a boot up in the corner and goes nuts with bionic elbows on everyone. Arn goes into mega super ultra selling mode flopping out of the ring and wants a time out. Zbyszko wants Steamboat and gets him. Steamboat hits a reverse kick. Zbyszko slaps him to rile him up and leads him in a chase. The Enforcers maneuver Steamboat into an Arm ambush and he goes in peril. Dustin tries to run in and the heels double team. Steamboat tries to chop back and Arn cuts him off with a shot just north of a bit south of Saskatoon. Steamboat with a sunset flip. Arn fights and just manages to tag before going over. Zbyszko abdominal stretch with outside help. They continue to focus on Steamboat's back. Arn with a back suplex for 2. Steamboat never stays down long and keeps trying to fight back. Faceplant on Arn! Zbyszko cuts off a tag and hits a backbreaker for 2. Consummate babyface Steamboat with a desperation eye rake! He tries for a slam but his back gives out and Zbyszko falls on top of him for 2. Arn hooks in a bear hug and gets a near fall off it. He goes for a leverage pin but Steamboat wraps him up in a body scissors. Arn turns that into a Boston crab! The Enforcers swap and Zbyszko drags Steamboat back into their corner with his own Boston crab. Steamboat crawls back. Arn distracts the ref and he doesn't see the tag. Steamboat ducks a punch and atomic drops Arn. Arn goes into the corner, bounces off, and hits heads with Steamboat. He's still up first and goes up top again. Steamboat gets his boots up! Crawl...hot tag! Dustin cleans house. Arn reverses a whip. Dustin sneaky tags Steamboat and hits a bulldog! Steamboat goes up top and hits the crossbody! Dustin cuts Zbyszko as the ref counts 3 and we have new champions! What an incredible match. Perfectly paced and logically laid out like you always got with Arn Anderson tag matches, not a second wasted, and everyone in the ring worked their asses off, even chronic staller Zbyszko. Possibly WCW's match of the year for 1991. ****3/4

Next up is a video feature on the soon to debut in the US Jushin Thunder Liger, featuring footage from New Japan and some horrible music. After that Paul E is with JR. He disavows anything to do with Luger or Medusa and says what happened to Sting was tragic......BUT, "I'm not lying, this time", he points out a clause in the match contract that if Sting doesn't appear, he forfeits the US title to Rick Rude. After commercial JR is on the phone with Bischoff again. Bischoff tells Sting about the contract clause. Sting yells "I'm getting back!" and commandeers an ambulance.

 

WCW Light Heavyweight Championship: "Flyin'" Brian Pillman (c) def Johnny B Badd (w/Teddy Long) in 4:19- Someone in the back messed up and played Pillman's music for Badd's entrance and they have to pause for the tape to rewind. Badd and Long (or "Peanut Head" as JR likes to call him) have been having some disagreements lately but look on the same page at the start. Badd breaks out the fisticuffs early. Pillman responds with chops. A dropkick sends Badd to the ramp. Pillman with a springboard clothesline! Badd throws Pillman off the ramp into the guardrail. Pillman comes back in with a slingshot tackle for 2. He goes up top for a splash but Badd gets his knees up. Now Badd tries coming off the top but Pillman dropkicks him! Spinning heel kick for 2. Badd gets a diving clothesline and goes up top again. Sunset flip off the top. But Long's distracting the ref! Pillman pushes Badd into Long and rolls him up for 3. After the bell Badd and Long argue, leading to Badd punching him out. This was the start of Badd's face turn. Match was fine for the time they got. **1/4

 

WCW United States Heavyweight Championship: "Ravishing" Rick Rude (w/Paul E Dangerously) def Sting (c) in 4:50- Paul E cuts a promo while we see the ambulance arrive with Sting. Sting limps back in (after picking the wrong door, not unlike the bits where Chris Jericho got lost outside the arena). Rude meets him on the ramp and we have a slugfest! Sting press slams Rude on the ramp! Rude's tights game is an A+ again tonight, with a picture of the US title belt on them. Back in Rude rakes Sting's eyes and goes up top. Sting gives him a punch in the gut on the way down. Huge Sting backdrop. He clotheslines Rude 360 over onto the ramp. Rude grabs Sting's leg, drags him down, and posts the bad knee. Fistdrop off the top and Rude gives us the hip swivel. He goes for the Rude Awakening but Sting powers out. He punches back, and Rude does a delayed fall but when he does he comes down on Sting's knee! Paul E with a phone shot. Sting kicks out! Sting DDT. Paul E's on the apron again. Rude clips Sting's knee again, rolls him up and grabs a handful of tights for the pin and the title! Good match showing instant chemistry between these two, and a great angle. Even with the bum knee the heels still needed to use every trick in the book to win. Rude would go on to hold the US title for just over a year, a reign that only ended due to injury. ***

Paul E, Rude and Medusa are in the back with Tony. Paul E says he set up EVERYTHING! Luger, Medusa, the boxes, he was behind it all, and WCW can suck it! This was the foundation that the entire Dangerous Alliance was built on.

 

WCW World Heavyweight Championship: "The Total Package" Lex Luger (c) (w/Harley Race) def Rick Steiner (w/Scott Steiner) in 11:30- The first Clash of '91 had Scott getting a world title shot, and the last one sees Rick getting one. This actually had some build, with Rick pinning Luger in a non-match with a ref present and beating Mr. Hughes in an actual match, both with the belly to belly suplex. The ref kicks Hughes out before the match starts. Rough stalemate lockups. Rick gets leg takedowns and Luger gets right to the ropes. Lots of the usual heel Luger stalling. They finally crank up a speed run. Rick catches Luger and powerslams him, and a Steinerline sends him to the floor. Race and Luger consult and the match slows to a crawl again. Luger gives Rick a buckle shot and of course Rick no sells it and pounds his head into it some more. Nothing up there to hurt. He ducks a Luger clothesline and hits a German suplex for 2. Luger reverses a corner whip and Rick Bret bumps. Scott has the ref distracted so Luger lifts Rick up and drops him on the top rope crotch first. Huge Luger clothesline. Rick blocks a suplex and hits his own. Luger hits clubbing blows and Rick shrugs them off. Rick comeback powerslam for 2. Bulldog off the top rope! Luger gets a foot on the rope. Belly to belly superplex! Hughes comes back out. Scott backdrops him into the ring and gives him a Frankensteiner! Rick suplexes Race in! Old man still taking the bumps. In the confusion Luger grabs the world title belt. He whacks Rick with it, and covers him for 3. Pretty typical '91 Luger title defense. It could have been pretty good if Luger was motivated and they didn't take forever to get out of first gear. The overbooking wasn't too bad in this case though. *3/4

OVERALL SHOW THOUGHTS- With five title matches and two title changes, probably because Starrcade was going to be all Lethal Lottery matches, this Clash certainly feels more consequential than previous ones. The first half is the usual listless Jim Herd era show, but the second half picks up pretty well. Everything involving Sting/Rude/Paul E is both good and important, and the tag title match is a must watch. This is a key show in the rise of the hottest angle in WCW in years, the Dangerous Alliance.

OVERALL SHOW GRADE: C