[2000-03-01-WCW-Thunder] Ric Flair vs Buff Bagwell

[soup23]

Flair is running the B level gauntlet on Thunder between Vampiro and now Buff. A pet peeve of mine is how cartoony and corny they made Uncensored right down to the logo that looks like it should be on cartoon network. WCW excelled in the themed PPV’s but Uncensored screams of the WWE model of hey, its October so we must have a Hell in a Cell match. Not much of a match and Bagwell still feels odd as a face for me. He does hit a brutal Blockbuster that is whiffed on. Total Package comes out and whacks Buff with the bat as Liz distracts Little Naitch allowing Flair to get the win. Hennig makes the save to no reaction. Yeah, WCW is pretty bad right now guys. *1/2

[Loss]

Flair had to help Bagwell lock in the figure four. Flair is always good for creatively sneaking in low blows but he was a little too giving for someone who didn't deserve it otherwise. Both guys are going through the motions big time. This may be the most auto-pilot Flair performance I've ever seen. Luger comes in with the baseball bat to hit Bagwell after Elizabeth distracts the ref. They are heels and that's fine, but there's no universe where Ric Flair should need a run-in to beat Buff Bagwell. Curt Hennig's babyface save may have worked if he hadn't turned so many times after babyface turn teases that were swerves, firmly establishing that he couldn't be trusted. Yuck to all of this.

[GSR]

Flair with a side headlock, Buff shoots him into the ropes, drop toe hold and a badly applied Figure Four. The Naitch is able to get to the ropes however, and this all in the opening seconds of the match. A backdrop sees Flair backing off but Buff is right on him. A series of punches in the corner followed with the face first drop. Bagwell reverses a hiptoss into a backslide for one, and Flair with a pair of low blows. He starts to chop him but Buff fires back. Whip to the corner and Flair takes his customary bump over the turnbuckles and onto the ring apron. Buff with a clothesline, but an eye poke stops him in his tracks. Ric climbs the turnbuckles, he’s not quick enough though and Buff catches him with a superplex. Lex Luger and Elizabeth head out at this point, probably fearing the worst for the Naitch. To follow on from the badly executed Figure Four, Buff with a badly executed Blockbuster. He makes the cover but Liz distracts Charles Robinson, and Luger is in the ring to nail Buff over the head with the baseball bat. He drags Flair on top of him and Robinson counts the three. Post-match Team Package attack Bagwell with Flair whipping him with Hogan’s belt until Curt Hennig makes the save and sees them off.

 

Not good. This reminded me of the Flair/Hennig match from Nitro where they seemingly tried to cram as many trademark Flair spots into the shortish time as possible. I thought they were doing the same here, especially after the bump in the corner where I thought ‘we just need Ric being slammed off the top’ and then he headed up there. They changed things up a bit and we got a superplex instead though! How Bagwell can’t execute a Figure Four and even manages to botch his own finished I’ll never know?