WWF Royal Rumble 1992 (Version II)

Original Airdate: January 19, 1992

From Albany, New York; Your Hosts are Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan

Opening Match: The Orient Express v The New Foundation: Kato starts with Owen Hart, and they trade wristlocks early on, with Owen controlling. Hart with a slingshot hiptoss and a rana for two, and he armdrags Kato down for another wristlock before passing to Jim Neidhart. The Anvil works an armbar, and wow, he looks like he's list quite a bit of weight since the Hart Foundation broke up. He's still big enough to toss Kato around until he tags out to Tanaka, and Jim continues to pinball his new victim around. Back to Owen for a spinebuster/2^nd rope flying elbowdrop combo for two, and a backbreaker is worth two. Hart with a backdrop and a leg-feed enzuigiri before passing back to Jim - Hart cross corner whipping the Anvil into Tanaka! Kato gets pissed and comes in to try their own tandem move, but Neidhart takes them both out, and Owen comes in with a flying bodypress onto them both as well! Dust settles on Kato and Owen, and Hart wins a criss cross with a spinheel kick for two, then vertical suplexes him for two. A cheap shot from Tanaka and Mr. Fuji turns the tide, however, and the Express cut the ring in half on Hart in energetic fashion, with restholds kept to an absolute minimum. Tanaka hits boot on a charge in the corner to allow Owen a bulldog, but Kato distracts the referee as the tag is made, and the Express continue to work Owen over. Hart manages to duck a tandem clothesline and hit both guys with a double-dropkick, however, and there's the real hot tag - Roseanne Barr the door! They take Kato out with a tope, and Tanaka eats a Rocket Launcher to finish at 17:17! And so begins a long standing tradition of Owen carrying a lesser partner to a great tag match. **** (Original rating: *** ¼)

WWF Intercontinental Title Match: Mountie v Roddy Piper: Piper throws the kilt at him to take control at the bell, but Mountie bails before the challenger can do too much damage. Roddy is right after him for more abuse on the outside, and back in Piper hits a fistdrop. Roddy with a pair of turnbuckle smashes and a bulldog to setup another fistdrop for two, but a second bulldog is blocked, and Piper misses a dropkick to lose control. Mountie is right on him with some turnbuckle smashes of his own, but a jumping backelbow is worth two, so Mountie tosses him to the outside. Piper comes back at him with a slingshot sunset flip for two, so Mountie tries dumping him again, but now he's just pissing the Hot Rod off! Roddy with a backdrop and an atomic drop, so Jimmy Hart tries to get involved, but it backfires and Piper applies the Sleeper to win his first (and only) singles title in the WWF at 5:21! Not much as a match, but it was fun, and a great moment for the long time veteran. * ½ (Original rating: ½*)

The Bushwhackers v The Beverly Brothers: The Bushwhackers play to the crowd endlessly, this one taking forever to finally get going. Luke starts with Beau Beverly, and Beau controls, so Luke starts biting his rear. That brings Blake Beverly in, but Butch is right there, and the 'Whackers clean house. Lots of stalling, and the dust settles on Butch and Blake. Blake takes a cheap shot, but Butch fights him off and hits a bulldog, so Beau comes in again - Luke cutting him off, and the 'Whackers cleaning house again. The Brothers manage to double up on Luke to take control, and they cut the ring in half on him. I'm literally fighting to stay awake through this heat segment. Hell, even as a kid I remember being really bored with this one whenever I'd rent this tape, and I had a much higher tolerance for this shit before puberty. The climax finally comes as the Genius abuses Jamison on the outside, and the Beverly's get cocky, and Butch gets the tag. He's an outhouse of fire, and Roseanne Barr the door, we've got a kettle on! Butch nearly puts it away, but falls prey to another double team, and gets pinned at 14:56. This was atrociously bad house show level slog that had no place on pay per view - let alone for fifteen minutes! -* (Original rating: -**)

WWF Tag Team Title Match: The Legion of Doom v The Natural Disasters: Hawk starts with Typhoon, and they work a few false tie-ups to illustrate that they're both strong. They measure each other for a bit, until Hawk goes up for a flying clothesline that takes Typhoon off of his feet, and gets two. Tag to Earthquake, so Hawk throws a standing dropkick, but bounces off the big guy. Earthquake decides to throw a dropkick of his own, but Hawk sees it coming from a mile away, and easily dodges. Points for effort, I guess. Tag to Animal, and a criss cross results in a double knockout spot with Earthquake. They stagger to their feet and a dazed Animal tries a bodyslam, but gets toppled for two, and Earthquake tags. Typhoon with an avalanche, but a second one misses, and Animal levels him with a lariat before tagging out. Hawk comes in with a flying axehandle, but Typhoon counters a bodypress with a three-alarm no-release backbreaker, then corner whips his ass. Tag to Earthquake to snapmare Hawk over for an elbowdrop for two, as the challengers cut the ring in half. Unfortunately, all the energy the match has had thus far suffers there, as bearhugs abound. Hawk manages to escape and hit Earthquake with a 2^nd rope flying elbowsmash to get the tag, and Animal comes in hot - Roseanne Barr the door! The challengers try to pair up on him, but eat a double clothesline, and all four men spill to the outside for a brawl. Looks like a double countout in imminent, but the Disasters beat it in for the win at 9:23. Much better than I remember it being, actually! Not to say it was good, but it certainly could have been far worse. * ¾ (Original rating: ¾*)

Main Event: WWF Title Royal Rumble Match: Two minute intervals this year. Davey Boy Smith gets #1 and Ted DiBiase gets #2 to start us off, and Davey blitzes him, but runs into an elbow during a cross corner charge, and cracked with chops in the corner. DiBiase with a clothesline and a vertical suplex, but Smith is still stirring, so Ted adds a gutwrench suplex to setup a fistdrop. Another vertical suplex is enough to give Ted the confidence to try for an elimination, but he turns his back before seeing Davey touch the ground, and gets clotheslined out while celebrating. Unfortunately for Bulldog, he didn't learn that lesson and apply it three years later. #3 is Ric Flair, and poor Bobby Heenan nearly has a heart attack on commentary. I haven't really touched on it yet, but this show is the quintessential performance of the Monsoon/Heenan partnership, and one of the best commentary jobs of all time to boot. Flair wastes no time trying a cheap shot with an eyerake, but Davey shrugs him off, and hits a press-slam. Smith keeps on him with clotheslines until Flair begs off, but Davey shows no mercy with a ten-punch count as #4 entry Jerry Sags comes down. Sags lends Flair a hand, and some older lady in the first row is INTO THIS - on her feet the entire time since Flair came out. Davey fights off the double team and tosses Sags, as poor Heenan is near tears. #5 is Haku, and luckily for Heenan's wellbeing, he helps Ric as well. That partnership doesn't last long, however, and Ric ends up having to bail to the outside to get away from Haku. But hey, it works, as the big guy refocuses on Smith with a piledriver, and Flair is able to attack from behind to setup a kneedrop. Smith ends up tossing Haku as #6 draw Shawn Michaels makes his way down, and he gets right into a slugfest with Flair - winning with a backdrop and a superkick. Smith breaks up that party by press-slamming Michaels, but a clothesline over the top fails, and Shawn hits Davey with a superkick. Seriously, everything Davey needed to win in 1995 was right here in this match. He had no one to blame but himself. I should also note that both superkicks Michaels threw didn't really find their marks here, so no wonder it took until late 1994 to get that over as a big move. Actually, a lot of stuff Shawn is doing tonight looks sloppy. Lucky they didn't give up on him. #7 is Tito Santana, and he nearly dumps Flair before Michaels saves him, and Ric capitalizes with a side suplex on Tito. Criss cross ends in Santana hitting his jumping forearm, however, as the Barbarian enters at #8. He goes for Davey, but even with Flair's help, they fail to get him out. #9 is Kerry Von Erich, and he goes right for Flair - hammering him with the discus punch right away. One for Michaels as well (sold with a terrific spiral), and Davey Boy adds a slingshot into the corner for HBK, but can't quite get him over the top. #10 is Repo Man, but he doesn't add much. Just subtracts. #11 is Greg Valentine, as we're really going through the JTTS guys now. He gets into a big chopfest with Flair, as Kerry nearly knocks Michaels out with another big punch. Before Kofi Kingston, Shawn Michaels was the go-to guy for teasing eliminations. #12 is Nikolai Volkoff, and he gets right into it with Repo Man. That's the kind of feud where the only losers are the fans. As Repo dumps Volkoff, Valentine gets Flair in a figure four, and Shawn continues to tease eliminations. Big Boss Man is #13 to end the streak of JTTS guys, and he comes in hot on everyone - throwing punches like they're going out of style! That just serves to piss everyone off, however, and they all gang up on him. He does manage to dump Repo though, as Flair backdrops Davey out, then dumps Kerry for good measure! Shawn and Tito do a double elimination as #14 draw Hercules comes in, but he just as quickly exits via Boss Man - taking Barbarian with him! Wow, the bodies have been flying here all of a sudden! All that's left in the ring is Flair and Boss Man, and Boss Man wins a criss cross with a clothesline, but misses a bodypress, and goes over the top - Flair the last man standing! Well, momentarily anyway, as #15 is none other than Roddy Piper! That was a perfectly timed bit. Piper blitzes Flair with a backdrop and a dropkick, so Ric bails, but Roddy is right on him with a clothesline on the floor. Back in, Piper keeps coming with a ten-punch in the corner, and the crowd is just eating this all up! Piper with an airplane spin to setup a sleeper, as #16 draw Jake Roberts comes down. Being the master of psychology that he is, Roberts doesn't bother laying a hand on anyone - calmly sitting in the corner and letting Piper wear Flair down in the hold until striking at the most opportune moment. That's always been one of my favorite Rumble moments, and just shows you how well booked this one was. Another great moment immediately follows, as Piper saves Flair from the DDT, so Heenan starts praising Piper, and calling it a 'kilt' for the first time. That is, until Piper hits Ric, and Bobby immediately calls him a 'skirt wearing freak.' The commentary is really just tremendous here, and this match - as great as it is - wouldn't be the same without it. #17 is Jim Duggan, and he mixes it up with any and everyone. #18 is Irwin R. Schyster, and he wisely takes his sweet time getting down the aisle, then doesn't add a whole lot once there. #19 is Jimmy Snuka, and he takes some licks at Flair. Not literally, of course. Hey, with a guy like Snuka, it doesn't hurt to clarify. The Undertaker is #20, and I suspect we are going to see some bodies hit the floor. Snuka gets tossed almost immediately, and Flair gets choked down in the corner for a while until #21 draw Randy Savage enters! And you can guess who he wants! Jake wisely bails to the floor and hides before Macho makes it down the aisle, however, and Randy ends up getting choked by Undertaker before he can find him! That allows Jake to attack, but Randy fights free, and starts unloading with rights! Flying axehandle and a high knee end Jake's night, but Savage isn't done - diving out after him to continue the beating on the outside! It takes Undertaker to finally pull him off of Jake, as Piper puts IRS in a Boston crab. #22 is Berzerker, and he spreads some love around, but walks into an atomic drop from Duggan. Flair tries to vertical suplex Savage out of the ring, but Randy reverses him back in, where Undertaker is ready and waiting with a choke. Cute bit, as Piper comes over and helps Undertaker with the choke, so Undertaker thanks him by choking his ass as well! Virgil is #23, and he wants IRS, but Berzerker gets in the way. He ends up getting into it with Piper, as #24 draw Col. Mustafa makes his way down. Lots of aimless brawling at this point, but we're nearing the end of the field, so I expect we'll be getting a big deadwood clearer shortly. Unfortunately, that is not the case with #25, as it's Rick Martel. Hulk Hogan gets #26, and that's the end of Undertaker's night. Berzerker follows him, as Virgil and Duggan work a double elimination, and Hogan refocuses on Flair. #27 is Skinner, as Ric teases an elimination via Hulk, but Irwin saves. He pays for that one, too. #28 is Sgt. Slaughter, as Martel dumps Skinner. Sarge goes after Flair, as Hogan and Piper slug it out, before deciding to pair up to work over Martel. Sid Justice is #29, as Hogan and Flair pound each other. Sadly, this match is the closest we ever came to getting Hogan/Flair on a WWF pay per view. #30 is Warlord to round out the field, as Hogan slams Flair down off the top rope, and they spill to the outside for a brawl on the floor - Hogan vertical suplexing him out there! Meanwhile, Sid gets rid of Slaughter with a nice cross corner whip, as Hogan brings Flair back in for a big boot, and Piper pulls IRS out by the necktie! Hogan and Justice work together to dump Warlord, and other than Martel, every one of the guys left in the ring now is someone you could legitimately believe could win. And hell, even Martel has the longevity record thing going for him to add some level of intrigue! Sid dumps him and Piper anyway, and we're left with Ric Flair, Randy Savage, Hulk Hogan, and Sid Justice as our final four - easily one of the best final four fields ever. Sid goes for Savage, but can't quite get him out, so Flair runs over with a high knee that knocks him loose and out. He goes back to Hogan with chops, but the Hulkster no-sells, and Flair nearly gets tossed. Unfortunately for Hogan, he turns his back on Sid as he's pounding Flair, and Justice comes from behind to toss him! Hey, fair and square. Hogan doesn't see it that way, however, and decides to pull Sid out from the floor - Flair rushing over for the assist to win the whole thing at 62:02! Yeah, I'd have booed Hogan too, what an asshole. Still my personal favorite Rumble. Absolutely loaded with excitement, high stakes, a great match long angle with Flair, and strong star power with any number of legit candidates you could easily buy winning. Not to mention perhaps the single greatest commentary job ever done to really make it memorable. I mean, you can’t even really compare this to BattleBowl. This is a legendary Rumble here – the best one to that point, and there wouldn’t be another one that even comes close to topping it until well over ten years later. *** ¾ (Original rating: *** ¾)

BUExperience: Today seeing two four-star level matches on a single pay per view isn’t extraordinary, but that was certainly not the case in 1992. Yes, the Bushwhackers match is horrible, but aside from that you’ve got one of all time best Rumble matches, a fantastic tag opener, a fantastic moment in the Piper title win, and plenty of historical significance – all set to the soundtrack of Gorilla and Bobby’s brilliant bantering. A must see.

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