WCW Pro 3/2/1996

World Championship Wrestling presents Pro
Date: 3/2/1996
From: Orlando, FL

Matches:
1.) Harlem Heat defeated American Males
2.) Alex Wright defeated Big Bubba Rogers
3.) Diamond Dallas Page defeated Bobby Walker
4.) Cobra defeated The Gambler
5.) WCW Tag Team Champions Sting & Lex Luger defeated Public Enemy to retain the titles

Angle Developments/Notes:
1.) Booker and Bagwell kickoff the tag match with Booker getting wrist control, but Bagwell counters into a hammerlock. Booker back elbows Bagwell and delivers a right hand. Booker gets a sleeper on Bagwell, but Bagwell counters with a sleeper. Bagwell avoids a back suplex and dropkicks Booker followed by an arm drag. Riggs comes off the top with an axe handle, but Booker knee lifts Riggs followed by a few strikes before tagging in Ray. Ray hammers away on Riggs to gain the advantage against the ropes. Ray chokes Riggs against the ropes. Ray misses a clothesline and Riggs dropkicks Ray to the mat. Riggs tries for a crossbody off the top, but is caught and slammed to the mat. Ray misses a splash in the corner and Riggs gets a two count with a rollup. Ray nails Riggs with a big boot and tags in Booker. Booker connects with a scissors kick and taunts the crowd. Booker goes to the middle rope missing a forearm drop. Bagwell is ready for the tag and punches Booker a few times followed by a forearm strike. Bagwell splashes Booker for a two count as Ray made the save. Riggs dropkicks Ray to the floor. Bagwell is dropped over the top rope by Ray from the apron and that leads to Booker getting a three count for the win. (*1/2. It seems like WCW really doesn’t want the American Males involved in matches that steer away from the basics and a formula tag match. You’ve seen one tag match you’ve really seen them all and that applies here, as well.)

2.) Wright uses his size to avoid Rogers in the opening moments of the match. Rogers backs Wright against the ropes, but cleanly backs off. Rogers wants to shake hands and ends up kicking Wright in the midsection. Rogers tosses Wright into the corner. Rogers misses a splash and is dropkicked by Wright a few times. Wright pummels Rogers and yanks down on the arm. Wright shoulder blocks Rogers, but is stopped against the ropes. Rogers punches Wright and misses a clothesline. Wright gets a sleeper on Rogers and almost wins with a rollup. Rogers decks Wright with a right hand to stop that attempt. Rogers drives Wright down with a backbreaker and nearly wins the match. Rogers goes to the top, but is yanked down by Wright. Wright goes to the top hitting a crossbody for a near fall. Wright hammers away on Rogers. Wright knee lifts Rogers and delivers a spinning elbow and a running headbutt for a two count. Wright uppercuts Rogers before hitting a spinning heel kick. Wright runs into a side walk slam and Rogers wins the match cleanly. (*1/2. It is a little bizarre to see Wright lose cleanly considering he was undefeated for a while in 1995 and usually was presented strong. I got a feeling of him being an underdog and it was just a weird viewing experience. I’m not really sure the point of Rogers going over cleanly on Wright as I don’t picture Rogers being elevated up the card at this point. Maybe the Wright experiment is ending?)

3.) Sting and Rock kickoff the main event. Rock backs Sting against the ropes and manages to hit a hurricanrana in the opening minute. Rock stomps on Sting in the corner and taunts the crowd. Rock continues to hammer away on Sting in the corner. Sting blocks another hurricanrana with a powerbomb for a two count. Sting decks Grunge to the floor and Public Enemy regroup on the floor. Sting asks if the fans want to see Luger and they do. Luger tags in and tries his luck against Grunge. Grunge eye rakes Luger and delivers a few strikes against the ropes. Luger backdrops Grunge followed by a series of clotheslines. Luger press slams Grunge, but that was a struggle. Luger clotheslines Rock a couple of times. Luger easily press slams Rock to the mat and plays to the crowd as Public Enemy is on the floor regrouping. Rock hammers away on Sting to gain the advantage. Sting ducks a clothesline and arm drags Rock. Sting sends Rock hard into the corner. We get a random insert from Nitro where Sting and Luger talked about a street fight at UnCensored.

Rock tries for a hip toss, but Sting counters with a hip toss of his own. Sting hip tosses Grunge across the ring and tags in Luger. Luger comes off the middle rope to deliver an axe handle. Luger runs over Grunge with a clothesline for a two count. Rock trips Luger from the floor to help out Grunge. Grunge hammers away on Luger in the corner. Grunge rams Luger into the corner and gets a two count after a clothesline. Rock tags into the match and elbow drops Luger followed by a forearm drop for a two count. Rock nails Luger with a right hand several times. Rock clotheslines Luger coming out of the corner. Rock rams Luger into Grunge’s boot in the corner. Grunge rakes Luger’s eyes over the top rope. Rock misses a springboard moonsault attempt crashing to the mat. Sting is on the apron ready for the hot tag. Grunge tags in and Luger reaches Sting. Sting backdrops Grunge and decks Rock. Sting sends Rock and Grunge into each other. All four men are in the ring brawling. Rock decks Sting from behind, but Grunge holds Sting. Luger shoves Rock off the top into Grunge and Sting puts the Scorpion Death Lock on Grunge to win the match by submission. (*1/4. I was really surprised by how much time this match got. I have yet to watch a Public Enemy match that I enjoyed and it not be a street fight. They are a limited team and it really shows when they are in the ring against a superior team.)

Final Thoughts:
A disappointing episode of WCW Pro despite having a few feature matches highlighted this week.

Thanks for reading.