Chairshot Classics: WCW SuperBrawl IV (1994) – Flair vs. Vader 2

Backstage: ‘Mean’ Gene is in the locker room standing by with Ricky Steamboat and WCW World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair. He says that Hulk Hogan has a big interest in tonight’s main event. Flair explains that if he and Hogan ever hook up, it’ll be the biggest event in the history of wrestling, but once he retains, he’s giving Ricky Steamboat a shot. Arn Anderson shows up, he tells Flair that he knows what he needs to do to take it to Big Van Vader. The Nature Boy is ready.

Match #7 is a Thundercage Match: Sting, ‘Flyin’ Brian Pillman & ‘The Natural’ Dustin Rhodes vs. WCW United States Champion ‘Stunning’ Steve Austin, WCW International World Heavyweight Champion ‘Ravishing’ Rick Rude & ‘Mr. Wonderful’ Paul Orndorff w/Col. Robert Parker
Sting and Orndorff start the match. Rude yaps at Sting and decides he wants a piece of him instead. Rude goes to the midsection and hits some forearm shots. Sting reverses the whip to the ropes, he back drops Rude and levels him with a series of clotheslines. Rude retreats and slows it down. Collar and elbow, Rude grabs the arm and tags in Orndorff. Mr Wonderful cranks on the arm and takes him down for a submission on the mat. He throws a knee in and tags in Austin. Sting reverses the wristlock and hits a shoulder block.

They hit the ropes and Austin appears to hurt his knee. Sting goes in for the Scorpion Deathlock but Orndorff ruins his plans. Stinger with a big right to Austin who rolls to the floor. He baits Sting and pulls him out to the floor. Sting reverses a whip and throws Austin into the cage. Flyin Brian takes some liberties with his old partner, and gets the official tag back inside the ring. Steve dumps Pillman and they brawl on the floor. Austin runs and baits Pillman into a backdrop into the cage. Orndorff takes a cheap shot on Pillman and Rhodes doesn’t like it. Rude is tagged in and he drops Pillman with a right before biting the bridge of his nose. Pillman tries fighting from his knees but Orndorff is tagged in. He stomps Flyin Brian in the corner and sends him to the corner.

Pillman gets his knee up, he tries coming back for a clothesline but Orndorff catches him with a belly to back suplex. Rude is tagged in and he heads for the top, ultimately landing a knee. Pillman has to kick out. Austin is tagged back in and he stomps a mudhole on his old partner. Scoop slam and a 2nd rope knee on Pillman, Sting has to break up the pin before rallying the crowd. Austin comes off the 2nd turnbuckle but Pillman cuts him off with a drop kick. Tags are made to Sting and Orndorff, big clotheslines for Mr. Wonderful and Rude. He clears the ring and chases Orndorff out to the floor. Sting rams him into the cage multiple times and rolls him back in. Tag is made to The Natural and he gets a big pop. He pays homage to his father with his rights and bionic elbows.

Orndorff with desperation throws Rhodes into the turnbuckle. Tag is made to Rude and Rhodes is in control with rights. He calls for a bulldog but Rude lifts him. Middle turnbuckle belly to back suplex by Rude and he grabs a bearhug. Belly to belly suplex by the International champ and he tags Austin back in. Rhodes fights him off and dropkicks Stunning Steve from the apron into the metal. The US Champion rolls back in and sends Rhodes for an Irish whip. He tries a 2nd time, this time Rhodes leaps to the 2nd rope and comes away with a back elbow. Tag is made to Pillman and he sends Austin with a back body drop, followed by drop kicking his other opponents off the apron. All 6 men rush the ring and it’s all out war. Rhodes, Orndorff and Rude are all dumped outside, Sting and Pillman send Austin to the ropes for a double back body drop. Sting lifts Pillman over his head and throws him on top of Austin to pick up the win for their team.
Winners: Sting, ‘Flyin’ Brian Pillman & ‘The Natural’ Dustin Rhodes (Pillman/Assisted Crossbody)

• After The Bell: An all-out brawl continues on the floor, Rude hits Sting with the cage door and a Rude Awakening before retreating to the back.

Match #8 is a Thundercage Match for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship – Special Referee The Boss: Big Van Vader w/Harley Race vs. WCW World Heavyweight Champion ‘Nature Boy’ Ric Flair
Race tells The Boss he doesn’t need to worry about locking the door, but Boss fends him off. Vader charges Flair immediately, the champ moves and pummels Vader with strikes and kicks to the midsection. Flair goes to the eyes and elbows the big man out to the floor. Flair chases him with a chair and lays in some shots. He returns to the ring for a strut. Back in the ring, he stays right on the challenger with rights, lefts and chops. Irish whip, Vader somersaults out to the apron and Flair runs into a clothesline. Body slam by Vader and a 2nd rope splash, Flair screams out in pain. Vader pulls him in for a clothesline and poses for the booing crowd.

He sets up for another splash, but instead goes all the way up for a moonsault. Flair moves, but Vader is up quickly for another body shot. Flair is dumped to the floor and Race chokes him on the cage. Vader gives chase and pummels Flair before landing a knee to the eye. The Boss redirects Vader while Race takes another cheap shot. Back in the ring, Flair fights his way out of the corner but he’s leveled with a right. Flair is right back up and tries going to the bridge of the nose, Vader tosses him away again. To the ropes and Flair is hit with a body shot. Race continues to abuse Flair with a head butt, Boss catches him and gives a warning. From the apron, it’s a vertical suplex by Vader. The big man sets the champ on the top turnbuckle, he lands a massive superplex.

He moves in for an elbow and Flair rolls away. He tries again, same result. On the outside, Race tries grabbing Flair again, The Boss cuts him off and attempts to handcuff him to the cage. Vader blindsides the guest referee and handcuffs him instead. Race steals the key to the cage and comes in to double team Flair in the ring. The Boss struggles to get free as Flair eats a splash. The two continue to mug Flair, and here comes Arn Anderson. He shakes at the cage but he can’t get in. Vader moves to the top rope while Race holds him in place. Vader dives, Flair moves and the former champ takes out his manager.

Ricky Steamboat has made his way to ringside, trying to break the lock with a steel chair. Flair cleans out Race and Vader, throwing his 1983 Starrcade opponent over the top rope. Flair uses a chair to take out his challenger and the manager. Irish whip to Race but Vader finally gets the better of Flair. Race holds him in place, but The Boss is finally able to break out from the handcuffs. He attacks Vader with a night stick which allows Flair to lock in the Figure Four and he calls for the bell immediately.
Winner and STILL WCW World Heavyweight Champion: ‘Nature Boy’ Ric Flair (Figure Four)

• EA’s Take: If you take things too literally, lots of strange logistics with this match, but at the end of the night, it was entertaining so that’s all that matters. If The Boss is the special guest referee and Vader and Race put their hands on him like that, shouldn’t that be a DQ and Flair retains? Also, Vader never said he quit and Boss seemed to call for the bell out of spite, so it was the “Montreal Screwjob” in kayfabe before the Screwjob was a thing. But you know what, sometimes in pro wrestling, you don’t have to take everything so seriously and you can just soak in the entertainment a match is attempting to provide. This match saved the show because it was otherwise fairly uninspiring.

EA’s Finisher: I have enjoyed Jesse Ventura for these last couple of years worth of PPV, but it’s great to have my all time favorite color commentator here. Is there anyone in wrestling funnier on the fly than Bobby Heenan and why is the answer no? The number of times that man has made me literally laugh out loud is insane. They mentioned Hulk Hogan for the first time on a PPV, his showdown with Flair is coming up later this year. I’ve got to say that all in all, this wasn’t the greatest show in the world. The main event was entertaining and helped salvage the day, the TV title match was solid, but they used a lot of their top guys in a 6-Man match that was good, but didn’t seem to matter much. A lot of the rest of the show felt fairly inconsequential.

Top Three To Watch
1 – Ric Flair vs. Big Van Vader
2 – Lord Steven Regal vs. Arn Anderson
3 – Sting, Dustin Rhodes & Brian Pillman vs. Steve Austin, Rick Rude & Paul Orndorff

What was your favorite match from SuperBrawl IV? Let us know on social media @theCHAIRSHOTcom and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

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