While WrestleMania is the biggest annual event in professional wrestling, it’s no secret that Starrcade was in many ways the equivalent kind of show for the National Wrestling Alliance and, in time, WCW. Indeed, Starrcade actually predated WrestleMania by a year and a half. While not every iteration of the event was brilliant or conventional—including the experimental World Cup gimmick that took hold of Starrcade 1995 and the BattleBowl-centric versions in 1991 and 1992, not to mention lackluster editions in 1994 and a number of WCW’s latter years—Starrcade nonetheless remained a celebrated brand. Indeed, its name value was sufficient for WWE to even pick up the ball and run with it for special house shows in 2017, 2018, and 2019. It all started in 1983, though, at the Greensboro Coliseum for not only the original Starrcade, but one of the best iterations of the supershow.

Ric Flair Vs. Harley Race: A Flare For The Gold

Starrcade 1983 NWA Championship Ric Flair Vs. Harley Race

Ric Flair won his very first world championship on a house show, but the NWA was smart enough to capitalize on an opportunity for a do-over. Harley Race won his title back and set the stage for an epic rematch—a Steel Cage, No Disqualification Match for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, where the whole world had the chance to see Flair win the tile for his second of his sixteen world title reigns. It was a full-blown passing of the torch moment, and it happened at the original Starrcade

This was one of the best built matches in wrestling history, with the angle of Race offering a bounty for other wrestlers to take out Flair ahead of Starrcade, and The Nature Boy cutting a fine early promo that set the stage for the event’s branding as “A Flare for the Gold.” Flair and Race predictably delivered in a fitting swan song for Race’s time as a main eventer, and the dawn of Flair as “The Man” in pro wrestling.

Ric Flair Beating Harley Race Wasn’t The Only Passing Of The Torch Moment

Ric Flair Ricky Steamboat Jay Youngblood Champions

While the original Starrcade will always be best remembered for Harley Race doing the honors to fomally launch Ric Flair into the stratosphere, a lower key torch passing moment occurred in the tag title picture. There, veteran heels Jerry and Jack Brisco put over a couple younger babyfaces named Ricky Steamboat and Jay Youngblood.

Related: Could Ricky The Dragon Steamboat Have Made A Good Heel?The tag team match holds up as a fine piece of technical work with sound tag team psychology. More so, though, it represented a changing of the guard as Steamboat and Youngblood took the title, ushering the Brisco Brothers out of the spotlight in the twilight of their in-ring careers. Steamboat would, of course, emerge as the budding star of the affair as he would, by the end of the decade, join his opponent Jack on the list of NWA World Heavyweight Champions.

Roddy Piper Vs Greg Valentine: The Dog Collar Match

Starrcade 1983 Greg Valentine Vs. Roddy Piper Dog Collar Match

While the main event of Starrcade 1983 was historically important and a great bout, the Dog Collar Match between Roddy Piper and Greg Valentine threatened to steal the show. Hot Rod and The Hammer delivered a stiff, bloody brawl that really put over both men’s toughness and animosity toward one another. Play-by-play man Gordon Solie only enhanced the affair by selling the drama that damage to Piper’s ear had compromised his balance.

Though a more kid-friendly sensibility would take wrestling by storm as WWE started going national in the years to follow (ironically, with Piper featured in that transition), this Dog Collar Match highlighted some of the old school brutality that kept adults hooked on pro wrestling in this era. It felt like a fight, and both Valentine and Piper were sound, smart enough workers to tell a meaningful story amidst the bedlam.

The rest of the card for Starrcade 1983 may not have lived up to the lofty standards of the three most heavily featured bouts. Nonetheless, there were additional highlights like Wahoo McDaniel and Mark Youngblood beating Bob Orton Jr. and Dick Slater, not to mention Carlos Colon and Abdullah the Butcher bringing their longstanding rivalry from Puerto Rico to North Carolina. This wasn’t the best action between the two, but may be their best-preserved battle for happening at such a marquee event. It probably isn’t fair to link the success of the original Starrcade to the original WrestleMania. One might make the case, however, that Starrcade established a blueprint for what a true supercard might look like, and the foundation that major promotions might build around a specific, special night on an annual basis.