[1995-07-16 WCW Bash At The Beach] Randy Savage vs Ric Flair

[Superstar Sleeze]

Randy Savage vs Ric Flair - WCW Bash At The Beach 1995 Lumberjack Match

Another hidden gem hiding in plain sight...no, no, no. This does NOT touch their ultra-heated classic from Great American Bash 1995 which I consider to be the best match the two ever had and a Top 100 Match of All Time. However, it is still Savage vs Flair so this is very good, borderline great. I am not fond of lumberjack (it is lifeguards in this case because they are on a beach) match as I tend to think they hinder the performance rather than augment my enjoyment. I am very much a fan of this Huntington Beach venue. It just feels different and cool. I'd love to see venues like this, Sturgis and the Spring Break Nitros make a comeback. 

Similar to the Great American Bash match a month prior, this is very scrappy. It is fought at close quarters. It is tight punches and stiffs chops/clotheslines. However, the Lumberjacks stifle chaos/mayhem of the GAB match. Savage's performance is not as incensed or possessed as the GAB match either. Savage starts off hot and overwhelms Flair early. Flair comes out of the corner with the Atomic Drop. The fire-fights between the two are great. There are flashes of 80s Flair throughout this match. Each takes a turn dumping the other out to establish the stipulation as is customary. There are some gnarly bumps by both Flair and Savage to floor about halfway through the match. Flair goes for the sleeper twice. In a cool spot, I am not sure if Flair was getting antsy waiting for Savage to press slam or it was planned: Flair falls off the top rope and lands chin first on the crown of Savage's head and it looked like Savage had jostled the ropes. Killer spot. That looked raw and organic. Savage repays him with a sleeper of his own. Kneecrusher by Flair!!! Flair works the leg including a somersault off the middle rope to wrench the leg. Dont say Flair doesnt add wrinkles. The Figure-4 at about 10 minute mark has great heat. I would be remiss not to mention that Flair was wicked over in the beginning, which either dispels the notion that these fans were casuals OR that Flair was very over with the casual Hogan, WWF castoff crowd. Flair was going up against the beloved Macho Man not the polarizing Hogan. Once in the Figure-4, the fans did rally around Macho Man. Nice delayed vertical by Flair, shades of the 80s. Savage begins his very scrappy comeback. Flair powders the lifeguards bring him back in. Double Axehandle, which I think is the first highspot from Savage. Savage is amazing because he is the anti-workrate's fan dream but he gets workrate fans to love him too. He has so little in terms of high spots. The reason he works is because he is so fucking real in that ring and everything is a fight. Flair gets dumped again. As the ref is attending to that, best friend & Enforcer, Arn Anderson nails Savage with a DDT faster than you can say "quicker than a hiccup". 1-2-NO! I totally bit on the finish. I figured that would fuel that Flair/AA break-up. Anderson does all the hard work, but gets none of the glory.  Savage counters Flair and revs back up. Savage was looking Big Elbow but Flair feeds Double Axehandle. Bodyslam. Big Elbow 1-2-3!

It was almost too neat of a finish. I loved the AA DDT as Flair's big nearfall and am fine with Savage winning the Blowoff with the Big Elbow, but would liked something more violent or aggressive to finish such a personal, hate-filled feud. This match had a lot of spots that didnt go as planned. Young wrestlers should watch how the cover them. They make everything feel raw and organic. Watch that Flair fall from the top rope, jaw-first to Savage's head or the finish how he feeds the Double Axehandle. My read on it was Flair didnt feel ready to take the Big Elbow that his body momentum didnt take to a natural laying down position. He fed a different high spot. Macho Man used the bodyslam to lay him flat for the big finish. Nowadays people go against their natural body momentum to ham-fist that next spot. Imagine if Flair was writhing and all of sudden stopped and flipped to his back perfectly flat. It would have looked like the shits. Yet so many of today's wrestlers do that. These two are masters of the art of organic, raw pro wrestling. *** 3/4