FEBRUARY 18
1990
WCW Main Event aired a ***1/2 match where Ric Flair and Arn Anderson faced the Rock & Roll Express. The show drew a massive 4.4 rating, shattering the record set the previous day. To put that number in context, it was on par with a good Clash of the Champions rating during the same time period, capping off the highest-rated weekend of wrestling programming ever at that point. According to legend, one of the factors in Flair’s resignation as head booker was that he expected congratulations from Jim Herd and was instead told that that ratings in the 4.0 range were hardly acceptable, as TBS executives expected them to be in the 5.0 range.
1995
Bret Hart was presented with an award on WWF Superstars by the Japanese press, which gave commentator Jerry Lawler an opening to talk about how Bret was a racist who hated Japanese people on commentary. This was all to set up a feud with the incoming Hakushi.
SMW set up the departure of the WWF-bound Chris Candido when he stumbled into saying that if he could not defeat Boo Bradley, then he would leave the territory. Also on the show, Dirty White Boy cut an excellent promo on SMW Heavyweight Champion Jerry Lawler. Speaking of Tony Anthony, he also continued his feud with Buddy Landell, interrupting Budro’s interview and stripping him from a suit down to his underwear.
WCW Saturday Night included a sit-down interview with Ric Flair where he claimed that he was tired of sitting at home and watching wrestling, since he still had much to contribute. He claimed that he would not wrestle in accordance with the Halloween Havoc ’94 stipulation, but that he may buy WCW from Ted Turner, become an advisor to someone or get back in the company some other way.
1996
The WWF held the sixth In Your House pay-per-view in front of 5,500 fans at the Louisville Gardens. In the main event, Bret Hart successfully defended the WWF World Title against Diesel in a disappointing cage match. The finish saw Undertaker come from under the ring and pull Diesel below while Bret escaped. The in-ring highlight was a **** match between Shawn Michaels and Owen Hart. The show did just over 238,000 buys, and you can watch it on the WWE Network.
1998
ARSION opened its doors at — where else? — Tokyo’s Korakuen Hall. The women’s promotion was a breath of fresh air at the time in a dying Joshi scene, placing a heavier emphasis on mat wrestling than the other groups. In the best match on the card, Yumi Fukawa and Candy Okutsu squared off in a **** match.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYSZenJ4IY0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDhBI6fQ8VI
1999
ARSION held its first anniversary show at Korakuen Hall with a card that featured what was probably the best match in the history of the company, as Mariko Yoshida faced Hiromi Yagi in a ****3/4 mat clinic.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBU87mhqtCM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqJ75KZ_eEg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiRICUGDweI
WCW Thunder aired live on TBS from Salt Lake City, UT. In the main event, Chris Benoit and Dean Malenko defeated Horace and Brian Adams in a surprisingly excellent ***3/4 match to advance to the finals of the WCW World Tag Team Title tournament at SuperBrawl. The match was held inside a cage and featured a highlight reel moment when Benoit dove from the top of the cage with a headbutt. Also on the show, Ric Flair attempted to get the build for his match with Hulk Hogan back on track after a horrendous angle on Nitro with a great interview. Meanwhile, to cover for the recently-injured Lex Luger, an angle was shot where Rey Misterio Jr. slammed Luger’s arm in a limousine door to take him out of commission going into SuperBrawl. Luger was replaced by Scott Hall, who pulled double duty on the show. The episode drew a 3.79 rating.
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6yhv5_chris-benoit-dean-malenko-vs-horace_sport
In The “To Watch” Queue:
Manami Toyota & Toshiyo Yamada vs Kyoko Inoue & Yumiko Hotta (AJW 02/18/94)
