Diamonds Are Forever: Favorite Match #3

The Nature Boy's Profile

Real Name: Richard Morgan Fliehr
Birth Date: February 25, 1949 in Memphis, TN.
Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina
Height/Weight: 6'1'' 243 lbs.
Trained By: Verne Gagne
Pro Debut: 1972 (AWA)
Nicknames: The Nature Boy, The REAL World's Champion, Slick Ric, The Greatest Wrestler Of All Time, The Dirtiest Player in the Game, Naitch, "Slick" Ric
Finishing Move: Figure Four Leglock
Signature Moves: Flair Chops, Low Blows, Chop Block, Knee Drop, Thumb to the Eye, Shinbreaker, Nosedive, Turnbuckle Flip
Trademarks: Bleach Blonde Hair, Ornate Sequined Robes, Custom Made Suits, Shouts WOOOO!!!!, The Nature Boy "Strut," The Four Horsemen, Also Sprach Zarathustra (his theme song and the theme to the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey), Limosuines, Jet Airplanes, Big Houses, Donzis, and Fine Women
Championships: 7 NWA World Heavyweight Titles; 10 WCW Heavyweight Titles; 2 WWF Heavyweight Titles; 6 NWA/WCW US Titles; 3 NWA World Tag Team Titles; 3 Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Titles; 3 Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Titles; 2 Mid-Atlantic Television Titles; 1 Missisouri State Heavyweight Title; 1 WWE Intercontinental Title; 3 WWE World Tag Team Titles

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Favorite Match #3

3. Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship at NWA's Wrestle War '89; May 7th, 1989 at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee
This was the final match (and in my opinion the best) of Flair and Steamboat's historical run that took place back in 1989. It was the materialistic Nature Boy and Ricky "the family man" Steamboat for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. The powers to be in WCW at the time added an extra stipulation, stating that this would be Flair's last shot at the World Title. If he lost, Ric Flair would never again wrestle for the title. Like the champion he was, Slic' Ric never panicked. He continued his flamboyant lifestyle, shoving his $1,000 suits, hordes of women, and $20,000 Rolex down Steamboat's throat. In turn, the Dragon continued to promote wholesome family values. Like I documented in my rivalry piece on these two great athletes, Steamboat had beaten Flair for the title in their first big match of '89 and the outcome of their second match was highly controversial. Everything had been building to this moment and at Wrestle War '89 in Nashville, Tennessee Ric Flair made the best of his "last chance," beating the Dragon for the belt in an epic encounter still talked about and highly regarded to this day. The match definitely lived up to all the hype in terms of both wrestling and intensity. Many wrestling fans and historians cite this match as one of the greatest professional wrestling matches of all-time. In fact, it was even voted as 1989's "Match of the Year" by Pro Wrestling Illustrated.