William Regal did a lot of things during his illustrious career as a wrestler, authority figure and jack of all trades. When he finally retires from the business, I think he’ll most be remembered for how he would announce a match that started out in WCW & eventually became one of WWE’s annual extravaganzas.
https://x.com/WWEonFOX/status/1329618773347885057
WARGAMES! We went seventeen years between WCW’s final WarGames and NXT’s first, and spent many of those years begging WWE to bring it back. Various independent promotions tried to bring it back. Competitors like TNA & AEW introduced their own versions that took a lot from the original WarGames. Eventually, WWE did the right thing and Triple H got to indulge his WarGames dreams from the sidelines. You know that not taking part in one himself is probably one of H’s few regrets.
Today, we look back at the seven most magnificent WarGames matches to take place under the Jim Crockett Promotions/WCW/NXT/WWE banners.
7. Pete Dunne, Ricochet & War Raiders vs. The Undisputed Era (November 17, 2018)
We saw a lot of the Undisputed Era fellas during NXT’s run of WarGames matches. Roderick Strong joined the group at the end of the first one in 2017, which which was followed up by losses in 2018 & 2019. Kinda awkward, but I wouldn’t put all the blame on Roddy. After all, it was Adam Cole who took the pinfall loss each time.
Let’s talk about some of the rule differences between the WCW & WWE version. WWE made some key improvements over WCW’s version. Taking off the roof was looked down on by many old school viewers, but it opened things up for more high risk moves. WWE made the match longer, changing the two-minute intervals to three. Usually in WCW, “The Match Beyond” didn’t last all that long since the wrestlers had already been killing each other for about twenty minutes. In WWE, they wait until everybody gets in before doing the truly crazy stuff. I can see an argument for both methods there…WCW’s was more barbaric, WWE’s is flashier. Your preference may vary. In general, WWE’s production means they miss fewer key moments than the production teams in early WarGames matches did.
WWE’s greatest improvement over the WCW format is the placement of the two teams in shark cages on the entrance stage. In the early WarGames matches, the teams just stood at ringside, then eventually they had each single member emerge from the locker room. The cages lead to more entrance drama and add to the presentation. Here, we saw Bobby Fish attack Pete Dunne while he was still in the cage and threw the key in the crowd in an attempt to keep him from entering at all. Dunne entered eventually, of course.
I don’t think I’ll ever like the match ending on a pinfall though, which WWE does more often than not. Give me Submit or Surrender rules every time. Either way, this was a darn good brawl that lived up to the billing.
6. Team Ripley vs. Team Baszler (November 23, 2019)
It would have been difficult to have a women’s WarGames match in WCW. For most of the company’s existence, there weren’t enough females on the talent roster to have the match. Towards the end, they had plenty of women, but most of them weren’t capable of having the match without hurting themselves or somebody else. Once we got to 2019 & NXT was full of female wrestlers more than capable of taking part in WarGames, we saw a women’s WarGames match that lived up to the standard men had put out there.
They definitely weren’t afraid to go outside the box. For the first time, a WarGames match was basically 4 on 2. Dakota Kai decided to attack Tegan Nox instead of go to the cage and help her teammates, taking herself and her former best friend out of the match. This stacked the deck pretty high against Rhea Ripley & Candice LeRae. Being tasked to defeat a team with Io Shirai, Bianca Belair, Kay Lee Ray & Shayna Baszler on it is tough enough for four women. Fortunately for LeRae & Ripley, they had the intestinal fortitude and never say die attitude to get it done. The win definitely pushed Ripley to another level, and was part of her ascension to the top of WWE.
Some really good storytelling inside the match too. Baszler trying to handcuff Ripley wound up backfiring, as Ripley still had the handcuff on her wrist so she could cuff herself to Baszler for the finishing Riptide through chairs. The first women’s WarGames match made sure there would be others to follow.
5. Team nWo vs. Team WCW (September 15, 1996)
9/15/1996
Team nWo defeated The Four Horsemen in a #WarGames match at #FallBrawl from the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.#WCW #WorldChampionshipWrestling #83Weeks #HulkHogan #KevinNash #ScottHall #NewWorldOrder #nWo #WWE #WWEHistory pic.twitter.com/iFLIwJmDNB
— Instagram: AWrestlingHistorian (@historyofwrest) September 15, 2024
This was during the early days of the New World Order, when the numbers were small but the names were big. Hollywood Hogan, Scott Hall & Kevin Nash were set to be joined by a mystery partner, while WCW’s team was supposed to be a combination of men that had spent years feuding with each other but differences were put aside for the greater good. Ric Flair, Arn Anderson & Lex Luger were able to get along well enough, but people weren’t so sure about Sting. Especially after Sting was seen attacking Luger in a parking lot on an episode of Monday Nitro. Sting told his partners that it wasn’t him, but Luger & the Horsemen didn’t believe him. The nWo wanted us to believe Sting was on their side, and a man resembling Sting wound up being their fourth man. This man did a good enough job replicating Sting’s offense for a couple of minutes.
The real Sting came out in his assigned slot, and single handedly beat the nWo down before leaving. Sting’s disgust over his WCW comrades not trusting him led him up to the rafters for many months. The numbers were too much for WCW to handle, and Luger wound up submitting to a combination Scorpion Deathlock/facelock. The nWo got the win and all the heat afterward, even beating up Randy Savage and spraypainting Elizabeth to add to it. This match didn’t feature a ton of blood like most previous WarGames matches had, but I enjoyed it overall due to the storytelling. Flair taking three men out with low blows upon entering the ring and Luger & Anderson joining the party was a top highlight for me.
4. The Four Horsemen vs. Sting, Brian Pillman, Rick & Scott Steiner (February 24, 1991)
The Horsemen had a slightly different lineup than usual, with Ric Flair being joined by Barry Windham, Sid Vicious and Larry Zbyszko. Larry was filling in for an injured Arn Anderson, and would start teaming with Arn after the Horsemen split up a few months later. This match was all about Flyin’ Brian, who had his shoulder injured by the Horsemen the night before on WCW Saturday Night. Even though Brian was nowhere near 100%, he snuck into the ring and became the first entrant, much to the annoyance of his partners.
Pillman took a beating but kept coming back, up until Sid nearly murdered him with an attempted powerbomb. While many of us look back at the era of WarGames with the roof on top of the cage fondly, the height of said roof led to problems in multiple matches. It’s tough to blame WWE for taking the roof off once they started doing WarGames decades later. El Gigante ran faster down the ramp than we ever saw him move before or after and surrendered on behalf of Pillman, who was obviously in no shape to continue.
Looking back, it’s interesting that the only time Arn Anderson’s team won WarGames was the one he was unable to physically participate in. Unless the Horsemen won one of those Bash tour matches in 1988, which I’m pretty sure they didn’t.
3. The Bloodline vs. The Brawling Brutes, Drew McIntyre & Kevin Owens (November 26, 2022)
Everybody wanted to know if the rest of the Bloodline could trust Sami Zayn. Would he stand beside them even though his longtime best friend Kevin Owens was on the other side? Considering the number of times they’ve stabbed each other in the back during their careers, I’m still not sure why this was a question. Of course Zayn supported his fellow Bloodline members and helped beat Owens. It sure got the people going though, and started the bond between Sami & Jey Uso, who was the last member of the group to accept Sami.
There were some interesting choices in the layout of this match. Unlike almost every other WarGames match, the “good guys” actually had the man advantage. Usually this would work out terribly, but it’s not like the Bloodline were heels here anyway. Sami was the most over person in the match, and Roman Reigns’ stuff got over like it always did.
What the WWE editions of WarGames may lack in terms of blood, general chaos & frentic energy, they try to make up for with storytelling that’s easy to follow and draws people in. So far, this one has been their best effort. I wouldn’t be shocked if they top it pretty soon.
2. The Super Powers, Road Warriors & Paul Ellering vs. The Four Horsemen & J.J. Dillon (July 4, 1987)
The 1st ever War Games 💣
The Four Horsemen & JJ vs. Rhodes, Koloff & The L.O.D. 💥
Atlanta, GA – July 4, 1987
WON 5 StarWitness the major league of professional wrestling.#SurvivorSeries #wweuniverse pic.twitter.com/p991qhze6h
— Rasslin' Rabbithole (@_clipperdave_) November 25, 2023
You always remember the first time. The very first WarGames match set the tone for what was to follow. Dusty Rhodes & Arn Anderson started the match, much like they would most of WCW’s WarGames matches. Everybody bled all over the place. The fans lost their minds whenever Rhodes, Nikita Koloff or the Road Warriors did anything to the Horsemen. You could tell from the word go that the match was a success and there would be more of them to follow.
We mentioned the height of the roof causing issues for Brian Pillman in 1991, as it turns out, they knew it was a problem from the very first WarGames match. Hawk & Animal attempted a Doomsday Device on Dillon, but the lack of proper space led to Dillon landing hard on his shoulder. Dillon would compete in WarGames matches during the 1988 Bash tour, but it looks like he lost those matches by submitting to a Figure Four or Scorpion Deathlock instead of getting dumped on his shoulder. Easier ways to lose, for sure.
One may wonder why there aren’t more matches with this particular combo on the list. They had a bunch, including a bunch that never made video. Personally, I like to have more variety in these lists so I can write about more people and don’t run out of things to say. I have an issue with running out of things to say.
1. Sting’s Squadron vs. The Dangerous Alliance (May 17, 1992)
Paul E. Dangerously’s stable of talent here didn’t have the staying power of other great heel factions. It lasted roughly a year, which pales in comparison to other regular WarGames groups like the nWo, the Four Horsemen, the Undisputed Era or the Bloodline. What the Dangerous Alliance lacked in longevity, it made up for with perhaps the most stacked roster from top to bottom that any faction ever had.
Rick Rude was one of the best in-ring heels in the business in 1992. Arn Anderson & Bobby Eaton were two of the best tag team wrestlers of their generation, and since they were best of friends outside of the ring it was no surprise they meshed well together. Larry Zbyszko may have been the weak link of the group, and that was the story told leading into and after this match, but he was still really great at getting heat and being a guy nobody could imagine cheering for. Then there was this kid named Steve Austin…I’m not going to tell you that I thought Austin would become the guy that led the WWF to its biggest boom since the Rock n’ Wrestling Era, but most of us saw the potential for great things from him even in 1992. He was in a great spot to learn from four of the best. Add in Paul E. & Madusa’s ability to get heat at ringside, and the Dangerous Alliance was a top act whose only real weakness was the company featuring them. It wasn’t their fault WCW had run itself into the toilet and the wrestling business as a whole was tremendously weak in 1992 for a multitude of reasons that I could get into but would be a whole different column that nobody would read.
The Alliance had some pretty great guys to go against too. Sting was always a top guy in WCW, people feuding with him were guaranteed to get heat. There were few better in-ring babyfaces than Ricky Steamboat. Barry Windham wasn’t that far removed from being considered one of the best workers in the business. Dustin Rhodes got some flack from hardcore fans at the time being Dusty’s kid back when it wasn’t popular, but most regular fans seemed to like him just fine. Then Nikita Koloff was there as a bit of a wild card that people weren’t 100% sure they could trust due to his previous issues with Sting.
Most early WarGames matches started with Arn Anderson against Dusty Rhodes, so it surprised me to see Windham & Austin starting instead of another Anderson vs. Rhodes battle. Of course the Alliance won the coin flip and had the man advantage for most of the match. They also had Paul E.’s giant paper with all of their plans on it, which included Madusa climbing up top and dropping the phone into the ring for the Alliance to use on the Squadron. Most of the people in the match ended up bleeding profusely. Sting & Nikita officially made up and became friends again. Poor Larry Z ended up costing his team the match when he accidentally hit Bobby with a turnbuckle hook and Bobby had to submit to an armbar. Larry got all the heat from the rest of the group because it was a lot easier to be angry with him than with Bobby.
Thanks for reading! Hit me up at [email protected] or on the social media with thoughts, comments or suggestions. Feel free to hit the comment section and tell us about the War Games you liked best, even if it was the movie. Until next time, true believers!
