WCW Starrcade 1995: World Cup of Wrestling 12/27/1995

WCW Starrcade 1995: World Cup of Wrestling 12/27/1995

Pre-show thoughts: Going into this as someone who has only been watching Nitro, I legit have no clue what the card is outside of three-way and the world title match. They didn't mention it at all, yet alone actually try to build up some of the various Japanese guys.  That was poorly done. But, the two top matches are what are going to draw people and should be focused on the most. Nitro has been all about the drama between Lex/Hulk/Sting/Macho and little else.

They used Japanese style graphics for the card run-down here which was cool. The card doesn't really resemble what has been going on at Nitro at all.

Bobby Heenan, Tony Schiavone and Dusty Rhodes are on commentary.

Dusty says the magnitude of Starrcade is immeasurable. He says we will see some clubberin' and hiney-kicking. Dusty says Sting will have to make a stand in the triangle match and said he can't think of a better place to be. Heenan says Savage is in trouble with a bad arm and back and says Flair will be the next champ.

World Cup Of Wrestling Match #1 - Chris Benoit vs Jushin Liger

Liger is with Sonny Ono. Dusty calls him "Sonny Bono". CB throws him down off the lock-up. CB side headlocks him. CB shoulders him over and Liger hits armdrags. Liger dropkicks him and baseball slides him. Liger then cannonballs him off the apron.

CB tries to take him down off the double knuckle lock. Liger is rolled and headscissors him. Liger then koppo kicks him. CB tilt-a-whirl backbreakers him. Liger armdrags him and hits an overhead belly to belly suplex. Liger dropkicks him out.

CB hits a snap suplex then backdrops him. CB lariats him then puts him in a lion tamer. CB hits chops and hedbutts. Liger palm strike flurries him then CB germans him for 2. Liger surfboards him then dragon sleepers him off of it.

Liger camel clutches him then CB electric chair drops him. Liger rolls over on a backdrop attempt then Liger tombstones him. CB suerplexes him then slams him.

CB misses a top rope headbutt then Liger koppo kicks him in the corner. Liger sitout powerbombs him for 2. Liger brainbusters him for 2. CB hits a running shot then hits germans. CB powerbombs him then top rope headbutts him. Kevin Sullivan comes out and distracts CB. Liger hits a messy hurricanrana and wins.

Thoughts: It was a good opener here with fast paced and hard hitting action. I have no idea why Sullivan was out here for this but the announcer's blamed Brian Pillman. 

Eddie Guerrero is interviewed by Mean Gene Okerlund. He said Kevin Sullivan should have stayed out of Benoit's match. Eddie says it's an honor to represent WCW in the World Cup of Wrestling and says he's proud to be here. He said he had to be at the top to be here and put his hours in the gym and ring. He said he will go out there, give it his best and hopefully come out as the winner.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title World Cup Of Wrestling #2 Match - Koji Kanemoto (c) vs. Alex Wright

They lock up and Alex hammerlocks him. Koji reverses it and Alex trips him. Alex armdrags him then Koji armdrags him. Koji side headlocks him and trips him. Koji spinning knee drops Alex's leg. Alex enzugiri's him and hits euros. Alex yanks on the arm and Koji wristlocks him.

Alex hip throws him then armdrags him. Alex does nice headscissors and dropkicks him. Alex crossbodies him over the top. Alex baseball slides him then plancha's him outside. Alex snapmares and sleepers him. Koji hits chops then elbows him in the head.

Koji does a nice spinning heel kick. Alex is laid on the top rope and Koji chops him. Koji dropkicks him as he lays on top. Koji dropkicks him off the apron hen plancha's him outside.

Koji is sent into the rails and Alex hits euros. Koji tiger suplexes him for 1. Koji top rope moonsaults him. Alex goes an up and over him in the corner then hits a german. Alex leg lariats him then hits corner spears.  

Alex running back elbows him in the corner. Alex slingshot splashes him for a 2 count. They try to dropkick each other at the same time. Alex 2nd rope twisting crossbodies him. Koji spin kicks him then 2nd rope corkscrew sentons him for 2. Koji comes off the top and is dropkicked. Alex top rope dropkicks him then superplexes him for 2.

Alex goes for another up and over but Koji hits snake eyes off of it. Koji then jack knife pins him and wins.

Thoughts: The finish was weak and not well done. The action was good but it did start to drag a little near the end.

Mean Gene Okerlund interviews Sonny Ono. Sonny's happy about it being 2-0 and says it will be 5-0. Gene says it can't be as it ends at 4 wins. Sonny talks about buying Iowa and says this is America, everything is for sale. 

Bobby Heenan says the Japanese own Texas and Dusty corrects him, saying don't start on me about Texas.

World Cup Of Wrestling Match #3 - Lex Luger vs. Masahiro Chono

Lex boots and side headlocks Chono. Lex shoulders him over then gorilla press slams him. Chono flying forearms him then running facekicks him. Lex goes out. They get back and Lex hits shots on Chono. Chono is sent into the buckles then Chono suplexes Lex. Chono knee chokes him in the corner.

Lex hits forearms then Chono reverse ddt's him. Chono then STF's him. Chono hits forearms and atomic drops Lex. Chono facekicks him and Dusty rants about Tony calling it a mafia kick. Lex back elbows Chono and Dusty calls it the "Sicilian elbow". Heenan says to follow it up with the Yugoslavian neckbreaker. Lex torture racks Chono and wins. WCW is now down 2-1.

Thoughts: It wasn't that great. It just didn't get enough time and that affected the quality of it. Dusty going off on the yakuza kick was hilarious.

Mean Gene interviews Sting. Sting says it's 2-1 and WCW is coming on strong. Sting says Johnny B. Badd will even the score. Gene brings up Kensuke Sasaki beating him for the US Title. Sting says it was a bad day. He said the US Title isn't up for grabs but pride is. Sting says Sonny Ono can buy WCW over his dead body. Gene asks about the triangle match and Lex. Sting says him and Lex are friends. He says things got edgy with Macho and Lex last week. Sting says he will never forget what Flair did to him and he says he wants Macho Man so bad he can taste it.

World Cup Of Wrestling Match #4 - Johnny B. Badd vs. Masa Saito

The Diamond Doll comes out with Badd and does some nice cartwheels. Heenan says she looks like a bimbo cheerleadr now and Dusty says she's just having fun. Doll is wearing Badd style gear.

Sonny Ono gets on the mic. He says Doll should be home doing dishes and cooking. He says that's what's wrong with this country. Doll says this isn't a Japanese bath house. She says she ain't no geisha and says if this sport is just for men, what is Ono doing here? 

Saito has some unusual and black tights on. Saito backs him up on the ropes and bows. Saito hip throws him then cobra clutches him. They trade chops and Saito throws some good ones. Saito hits him in the throat then bangsh is head off the buckles. Saito chops him and pulls on the nose. Ono chokes Badd with the flag.

Saito backdrops him. Saito lariats Badd then Ono chokes Badd. Saito russian legsweeps him. Badd hits punches hen kneelifts him. Badd top rope double axe handles him.

Badd top rope sunset flips him. Badd drops Saito with punches then Badd suplexes him. Ono gets on the apron and Badd grabs him. Saito hits Badd from behind and throws him over the top. Saito is then disqualified.

Doll gets in the ring after. Saito stares her down. Badd hits punches and dropkicks Saito out. Badd flip dives Saito after but totally misses.

Thoughts: The finish was lame here and probably one of the last times someone got DQ'd for throwing a wrestler over the top. They did match up surprisingly well otherwise though. Saito threw some nice fiery shots and Badd was happy to trade with him. I don't understand why they protected Saito over Chono since Chono was one of the stars NJPW was pushing.

Mean Gene Okerlund interviews Jimmy Hart and Lex Luger. Hart says Kevin Sullivan has a short fuse and The Four Horsemen will be in trouble. Lex says all the best are after the WCW Title and Macho holds it. Lex says he owns Macho and says he's a pathetic, one-armed champ. He said he has beaten him every time he faced him. Lex asks Hart not to come out there with him. Hart says he's here for a long time, not a good time. He says to please bring back the gold. He says the Total Package will reign supreme tonight.

World Cup Of Wrestling Match #5 - Eddie Guerrero vs. Shinjiro Otani

They lock up and Otani armlocks him. Otani grabs him by the hair then camel clutches him. Eddie slips out. Eddie enzugiri's him then rakes his face with his foot. Otani single leg crabs him.

Otani monkey flips him then pops-up Eddie up. Eddie hits a hurricanrana off of it and sends Otani out. Eddie hits a slingshot swanton then crabs him. Eddie hits a stiff jack knife powerbomb for 2. Eddie brainbusters him for 2.

Eddie misses a corner charge and takes a springboard dropkick out. Otani springboard crossbodies him outside. Otani hits another dropkick then sits on his face and pulls on his face. 

Otani sleepers him then Eddie backdrops him. Otani germans him for 2. Otani springboard spinning heel kicks him then slams him. Eddie 2nd rope hurricanrana's him for 2. Eddie hits splash mountain for 2. Otani leglocks him.

They go out. Otani is sent into the rails and slammed on the floor. Eddie springboard twisting crossbodies him outside. Otani suplexes him in then springboard dropkicks him in the back of the head.Eddie hurricanrana's him. They roll each other up for pin attempts and Otani wins.

Thoughts: It went a little longer than it needed to and the crowd wasn't that into it. The work was really good though with Otani looking crisp and hitting everything perfectly. It was a stiff, high-flying match.

NJPW now leads 3-2.

Mean Gene interviews Macho Man Randy Savage. Randy says the pressure is on him and hopefully it's on Sting later. He says he's been the underdog all of his life. Macho says it's a moment in time and he's coming to take advantage of it. He says he's coming to get Tenzan. Gene says Hulk asked about Macho's frame of mind. Macho says he's in the zone.

World Cup Of Wrestling Match #6 - Randy Savage vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan

They lock up and HT is backed up into the corner. HT boots him and bangs his head off the buckles. HT lariats him then foot chokes him. HT his headbutts and eye rakes him. HT spinning heel kicks him.

HT mongolian chops him then bangs Macho's head off the post and rails. HT water wheel drops him then 2nd rope headbutts him for 2. HT misses a top rope moonsault and is lariated from behind. Macho botches dropping him on the ropes then hits a top rope elbow drop. Macho wins.

Thoughts: It wasn't that interesting with Tenzan getting almost all the offense in then getting beaten at the end.

The score is now tied 3-3.

Heenan knocks stuff over at the commentary desk while Dusty talks.

Mean Gene interviews Ric Flair. He says The World Cup of Wrestling is important, but he's talking about the world title tonight. Ric says he will be fresh while Lex and Sting have wrestled already in the triangle match. He says he will win the title.

World Cup Of Wrestling Match #7 - Sting vs. Kensuke Sasaki

Sting comes out with the US flag though he doesn't wear his USA attire. KS boots Sting and bangs his head off the buckles. KS slams him and chinlocks him. Sting hits shots on KS then corner splashes him.

KS bulldogs him from the side. Sting hits a dropkick and lariats him over the top. KS powerslams him then hits a stiff brainbuster. KS puts him in strangle hold alpha then KS shoulder throws him.

KS scorpion deathlocks Sting then dragon screws him. Sting enzugiri's him. Sting hits a lariat and a facebuster. Sting then scorpion deathlocks him and wins.

Thoughts: KS got a lot of offense in early, Sting made his comeback and won. It should have been better than it was but the crowd didn't care and they didn't give enough time.

WCW wins The World Cup of Wrestling 4-3.

Mean Gene talks to Team WCW after. Sting tries to lead a USA chant with Canadian Chris Benoit.

WCW World Heavyweight Title #1 Contendership Triangle Match - Sting vs. Lex Luger vs. Ric Flair

Only two men are allowed in the ring here at all times. They do a coin toss to determine the first two in.

Ric chops him and takes a gorilla press slam and clothesline. Ric grabs the ropes to avoid the scorpion deathlock. Ric hammerlocks Sting then stomps him. Ric hits chops and punches then hammerlocks hi magain. Ric chops and struts then Sting struts bakc. Sting hitposses him then dropkicks him. Sting gorilla press slams him and hits corner punches. Sting facebusters Ric. Ric rolls out and throws Sting into the rails.

Sting running forearms Ric and no sells being sent into the rails. Sting hiptosses Ric and Ric avoids the dropkick. Ric punches Sting down. Ric sends Sting over the top then chops him outside. Ric knee drops him in the ring. Ric suplexes him and Sting no sells it.

Sting hits punches then Sting gorilla press slams him. Sting superplexes him. Lex breaks up a pin attempt from Sting on Ric. Sting and Lex have words and Ric hits Sting from behind.  

Lex tags himself in and Ric begs off. Ric goes out and Lex brings him back in. Ric hits Lex low and tries to shoulder him but Lex doesn't budge. Lex gorilla press slams him and hits corner punches. Ric eye pokes him.

Ric goes after Lex's knee. Ric chairs Lex's leg then butt drops the leg.  Ric knees Lex in the crotch then figure fours him. Ric then turns it around. Ric suplexes him. Lex gorilla press slams Ric.

Ric tags in Sting, forcing Sting and Lex to fight. They stare each other, unsure what to do, then shake hands. Lex boots him then Sting hits corner punches. Sting hits a lariat, Lex gets up and Sting lariats him down.

Lex hits corner spears. Lex is thrown into the buckles, but he bounces off and lariats Sting. Lex drops Sting on the ropes throat first and stands on his throat. Sting hits a top rope crossbody for 2. Sting goes for a vader bomb but Lex gets his knees up.

Lex hits elbow drops. Sting hits shots on Lex, goes for the scorpion deathlock and Lex hits him low. Lex atomic drops him and Sting cradles him. Sting sunset flips him for 2. Sting facebusters Lex then stinger splashes him. Lex torture racks him and the ref gets hit. Ric clips Lex and throws Sting out. Lex and Sting are out of the ring. The ref starts counting. Sting goes to get in and Lex grabs him. Both get counted out and Ric Flair wins.

Thoughts: The match was painfully slow in front of a dead crowd. The first half of this was so boring with them doing little but punches, chops and kicks at a snail's pace. It got more interesting when Lex and Sting got in together, putting their friendship to the test. I liked that part and I liked the finish with Lex stopping Sting from getting in despite them being friends. This was not a match was perfect logic though. There were clearly no DQ's here yet the wrestlers were willing to obey the rules by tagging in and out. This might have been better in front of a different crowd and probably would have been better as a regular three way. Then things could have moved a little quicker and we still could have got all three against each other.

Lex is holding his knee after and asks Sting for help. Sting doesn't help. Jimmy Hart then talks to Ric and seems to be supporting him even though he just beat Lex.

WCW World Heavyweight Title Match - Randy Savage (c) vs. Ric Flair

Macho does a backslide early. He throws his shirt at Ric. Ric boots and chops him. Macho hits punches. Paul Orndorff comes out in a neck brace. Ric atomic drops Macho. Macho bangs Ric's head off the buckle. Ric is thrown into the corner and goes out to the floor off of it. Macho comes off the top on Ric outside and is hit. Doug Dillinger gets Paul to leave.

Ric hits shots on Macho on the rails and Jimmy Hart boots Macho. Ric works Macho's injured arm and knee drops it. Ric eye pokes him. Macho hits punches then Ric puts him in a sleeper.

Macho hits punches then back body drops him. Macho hits lariats and punches. Jimmy Hart gets on the apron. Macho comes off the top on Ric and is hit in the gut. Jimmy gives Ric his megaphone but Macho uses it on Ric. Ric is bleeding and Macho top rope elbow drops him. Hart is distracting the ref. Benoit and Pillman attack but Macho thwarts them. Arn comes in and nails Macho with knucks then Ric pins Macho.

Thoughts: It was hard to buy that the ref couldn't see or do anything about what was going on. There were just too many people involved. The match wasn't much. Ric worked the arm as he should have but they didn't have much time to work with here which limited how good the match would be. I don't know why they didn't get Paul Orndorff involved here somehow or how security could stop him but not The Horsemen. This ends Macho's lame duck title reign where he won it due to bad reffing and lost it less than a month later. I don't have much faith in Ric's reign lasting very long either.

Pillman whips Macho with the title belt after and beats him up.

Overall thoughts: It was a long show that was very wrestling heavy. The crowd was dead all night long and I don't know if I blame them considering there were so many Japanese wrestlers they likely weren't familiar with. Due to there being so many matches and due to some people wrestling twice, some of the matches didn't really get enough time. The triangle match was a good idea on paper but the first half of it was so dull and boring. The second half of it got better. The Flair/Savage title match wasn't long enough and the interference could have been done better. I also thought Hulk should have been on the show and I'm pretty sure he only wasn't because of it being a holiday week. I didn't really like this one overall though as there were a bunch of random matches and the top two matches didn't deliver. I would probably give it about a 5 out 10.