Written by: Bob Colling
World Championship Wrestling presents Saturday Night
Date: 3/7/1992
From: Atlanta, GA
Matches:
1.) Michael Hayes & Jimmy Garvin defeated Thomas Rich & Tracy Smothers
2.) Richard Morton defeated Brad Armstrong
3.) Dustin Rhodes & Barry Windham defeated John Peterson & Chris Sullivan
4.) Johnny B. Badd defeated Sonny Trout
5.) Cactus Jack defeated Kerry Bronson
6.) WCW United States Tag Team Champions Terrance Taylor & Greg Valentine defeated Danny Postern & Ian Weston
7.) Larry Zbyzsko, WCW World Tag Team Champions Arn Anderson & Bobby Eaton defeated WCW Lightweight Champion Brian Pillman, Tom Zenk & Marcus Alexander Bagwell
8.) WCW United States Champion Rick Rude defeated Norman Roland
9.) WCW Television Champion Steve Austin defeated Van Hammer to retain the title
Angle Developments/Notes:
1. The Fabulous Freebirds horribly lip sing their theme song, which is rather hilarious to see. Smothers and Garvin kick off the contest with Garvin knocking Smothers off his feet. Rich pummels Hayes in the corner for a brief time. Hayes cleans house and Garvin gets involved to send the heels to the floor. Hayes nearly rolls Rich up for a win moments later. Smothers gets a sneak tag and drops Hayes with a double axe handle from the top. Hayes is double teamed in the corner. Hayes drives both men to the mat with a face buster and Garvin gets the hot tag. Rich has a pin on Garvin but Hayes comes in and plants Rich with a DDT to get the win. (*. This seemed rather unorganized and was rather unenjoyable. Freebirds being in WCW at this point is odd as well to me, at least.)
2. WCW Lightweight Champion Brian Pillman is on commentary for the Armstrong/Morton contest. Morton and Armstrong start off with mat wrestling until Brad decks Richard with a right hand. Morton scoop slams Brad and heads to the top to hit a cross body but only gets a near fall! Armstrong avoids Morton in the corner and connects with an arm drag. Morton regains control but misses an elbow drop thus Brad regains control of the bout. Richard atomic drops Armstrong and hits a clothesline. Morton sends Armstrong to the floor and leaps off the apron to strike Brad with his knees. Richard nails Brad with a kick to the side of his head for a two count. Armstrong plants Morton with power slam for a near fall. Richard rolls through a roll up and uses the ropes for leverage to win the match. (*. Basic match.) After the match, Morton attacks Pillman who had entered the ring. Armstrong was knocked to the floor as well.
3. Eric Bischoff talks about the Superbrawl II party. We see some video of the Sting press conference. Sting talks about how he and Lex Luger knew it was the big moment between them. The Dangerous Alliance broke up the party and we will see that later.
4. Diamond Dallas Page talked to Eric Bischoff earlier in the day. Page wants to talk to Terry Gordy and Steve Williams. Page knows for a fact that Gordy and Williams are coming to WCW. Page is tired of the suits playing it off as if Williams and Gordy aren’t coming, but they are.
5. Dustin Rhodes and Barry Windham are interviewed after their match. Eric Bischoff hypes up their matches at the Omni tomorrow night. Windham says that the bullrope bell is destined for Larry Zbyszko. Dustin Rhodes will be wrestling against Cactus Jack at the Omni. Dustin says he can get crazy too and hopes that Jack straps his boots on real tight.
6. We get the video from Superbrawl where WCW United States Champion Rick Rude confronted new WCW World Heavyweight Champion Sting. Sting asks some questions saying that he would like to defend the championship against a lot of people and all over the world. Sting puts over Luger as being the strongest one he has ever competed against. The Dangerous Alliance enter the scene to cut the interview off with Rude leading the charge. Rude tells Sting that he is the number one contender for the WCW World Championship. Sting refuses to drink with Rude. So, Rude tosses the drink in Sting’s face. Sting and Rude begin to brawl with Rude really getting the better of the champion. The Alliance enters the scene and attacks. Finally some officials try to break up the brawl after several moments.
7. Eric Bischoff introduces the new WCW World Heavyweight Champion Sting for an interview. Sting says that they are going to have a party at the Omni for Rick Rude and Steve Austin when he teams with Ricky Steamboat. That’s all he came out to say.
8. Bischoff talks with Johnny B. Badd after his squash match win. Badd gets Brian Pillman at the Omni tomorrow night. Brian Pillman comes out and says he has some unfinished business with Richard Morton. Pillman wants Morton right now. Pillman shoves Badd out of the way to attack Morton. Badd knocks Pillman out with a left hook. Brad Armstrong runs out to save Pillman.
9. Bischoff stands with WCW United States Tag Team Champions Terrance Taylor and Greg Valentine. Valentine says they have an open contract and will wrestle anyone at any time in WCW. Hammer thinks they will be WCW World Tag Team Champions soon enough. Taylor says that every team is afraid of them. Marcus Alexander Bagwell and Tom Zenk run out to attack the champs and they brawl in the ring. Taylor sends Zenk into the ring post and Bagwell hits a fisherman suplex on Valentine and holds onto it for a cover for unknown reasons. Taylor hits a forearm shot off the top rope across Bagwell’s neck before leaving.
10. Bagwell comes out for the six man tag match with a towel around his neck. How is he medically cleared? Pillman and Anderson kick off the bout with Arn kicking Pillman on the left knee. Brian nearly pins Arn with an inside cradle and dropkicks Anderson to the floor. Pillman gets worked over briefly by Zbyszko. Pillman battles back with chops and strikes before tagging in Zenk. Zenk connects with a dropkick but Eaton soon tags in. Zenk hits a springboard cross body from the middle rope for a near fall causing Eaton to bail to the floor. Bagwell wants to be tagged in but Zenk doesn’t want to do it. Bagwell punches Eaton from the apron and holds his neck. Pillman comes off the top to hit an axe handle on Eaton’s arm. Pillman takes Eaton down with a head scissors and dropkick. Zbyszko tags back into the bout. Zbyszko works over Pillman in the corner and the Alliance hammers away on Pillman. Eaton tags in and kicks Pillman after backslide attempt. Zbyszko hits a swinging neck breaker on Brian for a near fall. Eaton and Anderson continue to control Pillman for several moments. Arn and Pillman collide in the ring and this is Pillman’s chance to tag out, but Arn cuts him off. Pillman head scissors Arn and has another chance to make a tag and Bagwell gets the tag. Bagwell hammers away with an injured neck. Bagwell is dropped throat first across the top and Eaton gets the win. (*1/2. A rather extended match that was boring. The finish was obvious with Bagwell basically screwing his team over. Arn and Eaton had some good double team moves but that’s really about it.)
11. Eric Bischoff talks with Paul E. Dangerously, WCW TV Champion Steve Austin and WCW US Champion Rick Rude. They hype up the tag match at the Omni against WCW World Heavyweight Champion Sting and Ricky Steamboat. Dangerously says that Sting wants revenge for the beating he suffered. They will finish off Sting and Steamboat at the Omni. Austin says to no expect a wrestling match but rather a war. Rude says they don’t need an invitation and that Sting’s face makeup covers the truth. Rude believes the reality is that the Dangerous Alliance can’t be stopped.
12. Hammer kicks off the main event with a shoulder block but Austin takes Hammer down with a drop toe hold and delivers a series of knee drops to the left arm of the challenger. Hammer does the same to Austin moments later. Austin pulls Hammer to the floor where Hammer slams Austin’s arm over the railing. Back in the ring, the champ regains control with strikes. Austin sends Hammer to the floor and comes off the apron with a double axe handle. Austin wraps Hammer’s left arm around the ring post. Austin brings Hammer into the ring from the apron with a suplex for a near fall. Hammer manages to hit a belly to belly suplex and has Austin reeling. Hammer slams Austin and follows up with a leg drop. Hammer knocks Dangerously off the apron. Austin hits the Stun Gun and wins the match. After the match, Rick Rude attacks Hammer for punching Dangerously. Sting and Steamboat slide into the ring as the show ends. (*1/4. A weak main event this week. They tried to tell some of story with the arm, but I wasn’t hooked into the action.)
Final Thoughts:
The Sting/Rude feud is the real reason to be watching WCW at this point. WCW has a lot of older guys in the ring and it shows. WWF seems to be considerably younger at this point and a lot more enjoyable as an overall product. In the coming months WCW gets a lot more exciting, though.
Thanks for reading.