WarGames match: Difference between revisions
No edit summary |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 36: | Line 36: | ||
==WCW WarGames Variations== |
==WCW WarGames Variations== |
||
===[[1998]]=== |
===[[1998]]=== |
||
In 1998, WCW decided to try something different and converted WarGames into a 3-team, 9-man competition (with the same cage and entry format) for the #1 Contendership to the [[WCW World Heavyweight Title]]. [[ |
In 1998, WCW decided to try something different and converted WarGames into a 3-team, 9-man competition (with the same cage and entry format) for the #1 Contendership to the [[WCW World Heavyweight Title]]. Team [[WCW]] consisted of [[Diamond Dallas Page]], [[Roddy Piper]], and [[Ultimate Warrior]]; team [[nWo]] consisted of [[Hulk Hogan]], [[Stevie Ray]], and [[Bret Hart]]; and team [[nWo Wolfpac]] consisted of [[Kevin Nash]], [[Sting]], and [[Lex Luger]]. |
||
Page won the match by scoring the Diamond Cutter on Ray for the pinfall victory. He went on to [[Halloween Havoc]] to face [[Bill Goldberg]] for the title, only to lose after being hit with a spear and jackhammer. |
Page won the match by scoring the Diamond Cutter on Ray for the pinfall victory. He went on to [[Halloween Havoc]] to face [[Bill Goldberg]] for the title, only to lose after being hit with a spear and jackhammer. |
||
Revision as of 21:32, 14 April 2006
The WarGames Match was a gimmick match held annually in World Championship Wrestling, usually at their Fall Brawl pay per view event in September.
Format
The WarGames Match consisted of two teams (of either four or five men each) facing off with each other in staggered entry format, and was used as a method of settling major feuds between groups and building towards Halloween Havoc in October.
The setup of the cage consisted of two rings side by side with a giant ring-encompassing cage that covered both rings, but not the ringside area. A door was placed at one corner of the rectangular cage, and another was placed at the opposite end so the two teams didn't come into contact before they were supposed to.
The match began when one member of each team entered the cage. After five minutes, a member from one of the teams (determined by coin toss) would enter the cage, giving his team the temporary handicap advantage. After two minutes, a member from the other team would enter to even the odds. Entrants alternated between teams every two minutes, giving one team the temporary advantage in the numbers game before giving the other team the advantage with the freshest man and even odds.
Once all eight or ten men (depending on team size) had entered the cage, what WCW referred to as "the match beyond" began. Both teams would brawl in the cage for as long as it took until a member of either team submitted or surrendered. There was no pinfall, no knockout, and no disqualification, which often led to brutal and bloody confrontations.
Results
WCW WrestleWar 1991
The Four Horsemen (Ric Flair, Barry Windham, Sid Vicious, and Larry Zbyszko) defeated Sting, Brian Pillman, Rick Steiner, and Scott Steiner at 21:50 when Pillman was viciously knocked out by Sid Vicious.
WCW WrestleWar 1992
Sting's Squadron (Sting, Nikita Koloff, Dustin Rhodes, Ricky Steamboat, and Barry Windham) defeated The Dangerous Alliance (Arn Anderson, Bobby Eaton, Steve Austin, Larry Zbyszko, and Rick Rude) at 23:27 when Sting forced Eaton to submit.
WCW Fall Brawl 1993
Sting, Davey Boy Smith, Dustin Rhodes, and The Shockmaster defeated Sid Vicious, Vader, and Harlem Heat (Kane and Kole) at 16:39 when The Shockmaster forced Kole to submit.
WCW Fall Brawl 1994
Dusty Rhodes, Dustin Rhodes, and The Nasty Boys (Brian Knobbs and Jerry Saggs) defeated Terry Funk, Arn Anderson, Bunkhouse Buck, and Robert Parker at 19:05 when Dusty Rhodes forced Parker to submit.
WCW Fall Brawl 1995
The Hulkamaniacs (Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, Lex Luger, and Sting) defeated the Dungeon of Doom (Kamala, Zodiac, Shark, and Meng) at 18:47 when Hulk Hogan forced Zodiac to submit.
WCW Fall Brawl 1996
The nWo (Hulk Hogan, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, nWo Sting) defeated Lex Luger, Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, and Sting at 18:15 when nWo Sting forced Luger to submit to the Scorpion Deathlock. The real Sting only made a brief appearance in the match, entering and clearing house on the nWo before departing (due to distrust on the part of his teammates) and not returning, giving the nWo the 4 on 3 advantage.
WCW Fall Brawl 1997
The nWo (Buff Bagwell, Kevin Nash, Syxx, and Konnan) defeated the Four Horsemen (Chris Benoit, Steve McMichael, Ric Flair, and Curt Hennig) at 19:37 when McMichael submitted. Curt Hennig was substituting for the injured Arn Anderson and showed up while nursing a hurt arm himself, only to turn on the Horsemen and aid the nWo to a 5 on 3 victory.
WCW WarGames Variations
In 1998, WCW decided to try something different and converted WarGames into a 3-team, 9-man competition (with the same cage and entry format) for the #1 Contendership to the WCW World Heavyweight Title. Team WCW consisted of Diamond Dallas Page, Roddy Piper, and Ultimate Warrior; team nWo consisted of Hulk Hogan, Stevie Ray, and Bret Hart; and team nWo Wolfpac consisted of Kevin Nash, Sting, and Lex Luger.
Page won the match by scoring the Diamond Cutter on Ray for the pinfall victory. He went on to Halloween Havoc to face Bill Goldberg for the title, only to lose after being hit with a spear and jackhammer.
After no WarGames Match was held in 1999 (the Fall Brawl September Pay Per View name had been replaced by WCW Mayhem and the match did not shift shows), Vince Russo brought back WarGames in a new format he called "WarGames 2000", with the tagline "Russo's Revenge". It was held on an episode of WCW Nitro in 2000.
The match consisted of two teams vying for the WCW World Title in the Triple Cage in which wrestlers would have to climb a ladder in the first level cage (a Hell in a Cell style cage) to reach the second cage (a normal size steel cage), then exit the door of the cage and climb up to the top of the third cage where one could retrieve the title. In order to win, a wrestler had to retrieve the title and return back down, exiting the cage with it.
The match consisted of Sting, Booker T, Goldberg, and KroniK versus Kevin Nash, Jeff Jarrett, Scott Steiner, and The Harris Brothers. Nash was the champion heading into the match. Booker T retrieved the belt from the top, but Russo interfered on behalf of his team, helping the Harris Bros. handcuff the faces to the cage. Goldberg broke free of the handcuffs and attempted to leave the cage with the belt, but was cut off by Bret Hart, who slammed the first-level cage door in his face. Nash emerged from the cage with the belt to retain it.
Spin-Off Matches
Rob Black's XPW promotion capitalized on the popularity of the WarGames Match by holding one of their own with the same rules.
Paul Heyman's ECW promotion also capitalized on the popularity of the WarGames Match by holding a version of their own, which they dubbed the "Ultimate Jeopardy Match".
TNA Wrestling has also capitalized on the popularity of the WarGames match (albeit much later after WCW and the other mimics folded) with a version of the WarGames match of their own. It was said to be less than sufficient in bringing back the spirit of the match, as it only involved one ring and permitted pinfall for victory.
Held on September 3, 2003, it consisted of Jeff Jarrett, Chris Harris, James Storm, Raven and D-Lo Brown defeating Simon Diamond, Johnny Swinger, AJ Styles, Shane Douglas and Christopher Daniels when Jarrett pinned Daniels.
TNA has continued to capitalize on the popularity of the WarGames match with their own match, entitled Lethal Lockdown and held at TNA's annual Lockdown pay per view in April. Similar in format to their version of the WarGames match, it involves a single ring (now their six-sided ring) encompassed by their Six Sides of Steel cage, permits the usage of weapons, and victory attainable through pinfall.
In 2005, the team of Diamond Dallas Page, Sean Waltman, and BG James defeated Jeff Jarrett, Kip James, and Monty Brown in Lethal Lockdown when Waltman pinned Brown with a roll-up. BG James was substituting for the injured Kevin Nash, who was originally booked for the match but unable to compete due to a staph infection.
Lethal Lockdown 2006 looks to feature an army headed by up by Sting against an army headed up by Jeff Jarrett. Jarrett has announced his team to include Scott Steiner, Chris Harris, and James Storm. Sting is set to reveal his team on April 13, 2006.