One of the best pure babyface wrestlers of the 1980s and early 1990s, Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat ended up a highly decorated champion by the end of his career, capturing the WWE Intercontinental Championship, the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, and the WCW World Title. On top of that, he’s a supreme in-ring talent who’s as skilled at high-flying maneuvers as he was at technical wrestling, with a 9.36 rating on the website Cagematch.net.
Speaking of Cagematch, Steamboat’s got a number of classic matches to his name, all with very high marks on said website. So let’s take a look at his 10 top-rated according to Cagematch users, which will answer which of his bouts with Ric Flair is considered the best.
10 Ricky Steamboat vs. Ric Flair (WCW Saturday Night, 5/14/1994) - 8.24
The major Flair/Steamboat feud happened in 1989, but five years later the two decided to rekindle their rivalry, leading to a second trilogy of matches that could be deemed as contenders to the original efforts. One of their best bouts happened on “The Mothership,” WCW Saturday Night, as the two fought for the WCW World Title, which had become vacant after their double pin finish at Spring Stampede. This main event bout would prove to be a 36-minute epic on television, with Flair getting the win in the end.
9 Ricky Steamboat & Dustin Rhodes vs. The Enforcers (WCW Clash of the Champions 17, 11/19/1991) - 8.35
After a less-than-stellar return to WWE as the fire-breathing Dragon, Ricky Steamboat jumped ship back to WCW, re-appearing on television a month later as Dustin Rhodes’s surprise tag team partner at Clash of the Champions, to a huge response. Taking on Tag Team Champions Arn Anderson and Larry Zbyszko, the veteran Steamboat and the rookie Rhodes were able to dethrone the bad guys in a standout match that many Cagematch users consider a perfect example of tag team wrestling. This victory earned Rhodes and Steamboat the WCW World Tag Team Titles.
8 Ricky Steamboat vs. Rick Rude (WCW Beach Blast, 6/20/1992) - 8.44
Pre-nWo WCW is a bit underrated among fans, which is a shame because they’re missing out on gems like this 30-minute Iron Man match from 1992. Once again, it’s a perfect pairing of classic babyface and classic heel, with expert in-ring storytelling and psychology.
If there’s one complaint Cagematch users had about this match, it’s WCW booker Bill Watts’ infamous banning of top-rope maneuvers. As a result, many of them were taken out of the moment when Rude gave up a point to Steamboat for doing an aerial move.
7 Ricky Steamboat vs. Ric Flair (WCW Spring Stampede, 4/17/1994) - 8.56
The aforementioned Steamboat/Flair bout from Saturday Night was actually their second meeting in their second trilogy, the first being at the Spring Stampede pay-per-view. While Cagematch users rate this high, there are many comments that the first half of the bout is rather slow and ultimately isn’t as great as their near-perfect rivalry in 1989. This match would end in a double-pin, resulting in the title being held up and both men having a second meeting for the belt.
6 Sting’s Squadron vs. The Dangerous Alliance (WCW WrestleWar, 5/17/1992) - 8.97
WrestleWar ‘92 concludes, quite appropriately, with a War Games match as a team of babyfaces including Sting, Ricky Steamboat, and Dustin Rhodes take on Paul E. Dangerously’s Dangerous Alliance, including Arn Anderson, Rick Rude, and Steve Austin. The result is not just one of Ricky Steamboat’s best bouts but is also currently the highest-rated War Games match on Cagematch, towering over even the NXT War Games matches. Users hail the match for being intense and chaotic while still remaining entertaining.
5 Ricky Steamboat vs. Randy Savage (WWE WrestleMania 3, 3/29/1987) - 9.09
While WWE had more high profile, high-stakes matches during the Golden Era — like the main event of this show — Steamboat vs. Savage at WrestleMania 3 is generally considered one of the best matches of the period, though there is some stiff competition. Meticulously constructed by its participants and loaded with pulse-pounding near falls, this perfectly wrestled ‘Mania match for the Intercontinental Championship stole the show and set the bar for what fans should expect from WWE’s biggest show of the year.
4 Ricky Steamboat vs. Ric Flair (WCW House Show, 3/18/1989) - 9.42
Normally, Cagematch doesn’t allow users to rate matches held at house shows because there’s often no way fans could see the matches, but this rare Flair/Steamboat bout is an exception. Not only does footage of the match exist, but wrestling critic Dave Meltzer (who was in attendance) gave it six stars, making it the first match to break his five-star scale.
This match, which took place between the first and second clashes of their 1989 trilogy, is also highly rated by Cagematch users. Fans who think house show bouts don’t “matter” will be surprised at how intensely performed this match was.
3 Ricky Steamboat vs. Ric Flair (WCW WrestleWar, 5/7/1989) - 9.46
All three matches of the 1989 Flair/Steamboat trilogy are so high quality that to say one is “the worst” sounds like overkill. After all, the third of their matches has the lowest rating on Cagematch, but it’s only by a handful of points. This final bout has Ricky Steamboat and Ric Flair playing off of their previous matches, building an epic half-hour affair that not only ends with Flair standing victorious, the World Champion once again, but also turning babyface thanks to his in-ring efforts (and a post-match tussle with Terry Funk).
2 Ricky Steamboat vs. Ric Flair (WCW Clash Of The Champions 6, 4/2/1989) - 9.50
After beating Ric Flair for the World Title at Chi-Town Rumble, Ricky Steamboat had to defend his belt against the former champion in a 2/3 falls match on television. Running 55 minutes, this second bout is the longest of the trilogy, and considered by many users on Cagematch to be one of the greatest of all time overall thanks to the storytelling on display between two of the greatest of this era. Steamboat ends up retaining, but the stage is set for their third encounter.
1 Ricky Steamboat vs. Ric Flair (WCW Chi-Town Rumble, 2/20/1989) - 9.55
Perhaps the epic length of the Clash of the Champions match worked against it, because the first Flair/Steamboat match of the trilogy is the shortest at 23 minutes, and as such gets a lot of praise from Cagematch users due to its fast pace. All the elements were there: a consummate heel vs. a consummate babyface, bot of whom were arguably at their peaks, and had amazing chemistry together. It may be their first encounter, but it’s got the intensity of their other matches, and is bolstered by a ridiculously hot crowd.