March 29, 1992

The Omni - Atlanta, GA

Storylines

With Bret Hart as the new WCW World Heavyweight Champion, Paul E. Dangerously continued to hint at ‘The Hitman’s potential place in his Dangerous Alliance. When confronted with the possibility, Hart was baffled, instead stressing his desire to compete against the best. Though he never confirmed his opposition to The Alliance, Hart got to work as champion, defending his belt against handpicked contender Brian Pillman, who had just defeated Thomas Rich.

Following their win over the dysfunctional tandem of Ricky Morton and ‘Stunning’ Steve Austin, Dustin Rhodes and Sting continued to impress in tag team competition, even defeating The Fabulous Freebirds. They earned a tag team title shot at A-Town Showdown as a result, with The Steiners endorsing their pursuit of gold after their own time-limit draw at SuperBrawl.

Elsewhere, Ricky Morton wanted revenge on The Dangerous Alliance, requesting a match with any member of the faction. Without asking him, Dangerously put Larry Zbyszko forward. ‘The Cruncher’ whined in response but Dangerously stressed the match’s importance, hinting that Zbyszko’s place in the group could be in jeopardy after his lopsided loss at SuperBrawl.

In fact, Dangerously challenged Zbyszko to get the job done on his own, announcing that he wouldn’t be ringside for the match. As a result, announcers pondered if Zbyszko’s place in the faction was being prepared for Hart, who Dangerously continued to hint at in promos.

After their exchange on PPV, Big Josh and Cactus Jack had a television main event, with the latter scoring a tainted win. On the other hand, Ron Simmons didn’t even allow Abdullah the Butcher to grace the ring, halting him mid-entrance for a violent brawl.

Elsewhere, Mr. Hughes returned, coming through the crowd to confront Big Van Vader. Before things could get physical though, the locker room emptied and the big men were kept apart. Hughes did get his hands on Harley Race, flooring the legend and enraging Vader in the process.

In their first defence as United States Tag Team Champions, Jushin Liger and Marcus Alexander Bagwell defeated State Patrol. Once Liger returned home though, Bagwell was attacked by Buddy Lee Parker and The Young Pistols. Thankfully, The Steiners made a timely save, running the trio off and setting up A-Town Showdown’s opening match.

In the meantime, the team of Diamond Dallas Page and Hollywood Bob Holly continued to score wins, with Alexandra York making their intentions clear. Diamond Studd and Vinnie Vegas remained in the win column also, watching on as they tried to one-up each other weekly. Finally, Brad Armstrong and Thomas Rich exchanged wins in a television programme, with the former coming out on top.

Event

In the opening match, Marcus Alexander Bagwell and The Steiners scored an impressive victory over Buddy Lee Parker and The Young Pistols, with Scott pinning Parker for the win.

A highly anticipated interview with Dusty Rhodes followed, as ‘The American Dream’ returned to The Omni after his Tokyo Dome retirement match in January. After an electric reaction though, Rhodes was quickly silenced, as The Dangerous Alliance made their presence felt, cornering and attacking the icon. Dustin Rhodes and Sting soon ran them off but unfortunately, the damage was done. Rhodes was headed to the hospital and Sting implored Dustin to go with him, regardless of tonight’s main event.

Up next, Johnny B. Badd caught Taylor Made Man via inside cradle for the win, faking him out with a big right hand feint.

Fresh off their attack of Dusty Rhodes, The Dangerous Alliance followed, as ‘Ravishing’ Rick Rude and ‘Stunning’ Steve Austin battled Barry Windham and Ricky Steamboat in a heated affair. Ultimately, The Alliance’s usual tactics backfired, as Steamboat ducked Madusa’s wild swing of Dangerously’s phone, leaving Austin floored. Steamboat capitalised, pinning the Television Champion for a major win. Unfortunately, Rude and co quickly retaliated, battering the victors afterwards.

The WCW World Heavyweight Title was then on the line, as Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart ran it back with Brian Pillman. In an extended cut of their television thriller, Hart won again, continuing to dominate via Sharpshooter. Again, the pair shook hands afterwards.

With his place in The Dangerously Alliance seemingly on the line, Larry Zbyszko got lucky, as Paul E. made his presence known after all to cost Ricky Morton the match. Though his true pre-match intentions were unclear, Dangerously happily stood alongside Zbyszko as they went to work on Morton. A miracle followed though, as Robert Gibson made his way through the crowd for a shocking save. Gibson ran wild on Zbyszko as Dangerously unsurprisingly bailed.

A confused Ricky Morton then began climbing to his feet, soon backing into Gibson after he’d cleared the ring. Initially ready to fight, Morton pushed Gibson away before the pair shared a triumphant hug as The Omni exploded.

Big Josh and Ron Simmons scored an unusual victory over Abdullah the Butcher and Cactus Jack, winning by count-out as the crazed brawlers battled away from the ring and through the crowd. Big Van Vader didn’t need such fortune against Mr. Hughes, ultimately toppling the big man decisively after a briefly competitive shootout.

With his partner accompanying Dusty at the hospital and other allies wearing their own wounds, Sting still entered the main event willingly. Even in a handicap match, Sting was ready to battle Arn Anderson and Bobby Eaton. In the end though, he wouldn’t need to, as Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart emerged as his impromptu partner. Hart even surprised Sting with his presence, disgusting an initially smug Dangerously as he stood alongside ‘The Franchise.’

The all-star tag team main event was an epic encounter but the champions survived, even if not without some controversy first. After the referee had been inadvertently taken out, Hart dispatched Anderson over the top rope. In the moments that followed, Sting pinned Eaton via Stinger Splash to a roar from The Omni crowd. For a moment, Hart had two belts high above his head but the referee was quickly informed of his error, reversing the decision and disqualifying the challengers.

As Hart and Sting questioned the decision, Anderson and Eaton jumped them from behind. Their plans were soon scuppered though, as Barry Windham and Ricky Steamboat re-emerged to run off the champions. A-Town Showdown concluded with Hart alongside three of WCW’s biggest heroes, their own alliance suddenly having The Dangerous Alliance on the ropes.

Results

1. The Steiner Brothers (Rick & Scott Steiner) & Marcus Alexander Bagwell defeated The Young Pistols (Scott Armstrong & Tracy Smothers) & Sgt. Buddy Lee Parker - 8:12

2. Johnny B. Badd defeated Taylor Made Man - 7:33

3. Ricky Steamboat & Barry Windham defeated Rick Rude & Steve Austin (w/Madusa) - 14:55

4. Bret Hart defeated Brian Pillman to retain the WCW World Heavyweight Championship - 18:34

5. Larry Zbyszko defeated Ricky Morton - 6:51

6. Ron Simmons & Big Josh defeated Cactus Jack & Abdullah The Butcher by count-out - 7:12

7. Big Van Vader (w/Harley Race) defeated Mr. Hughes - 4:50

8. Arn Anderson & Bobby Eaton (w/Paul E. Dangerously & Madusa) defeated Sting & Bret Hart by disqualification to retain the WCW World Tag Team Championships - 27:38