50
Alundra Blayze / Madusa
vs. Bull Nakano
Alundra Blayze was hired to revive WWF's womens division when she captured the vacant Women's Championship in 1993. Her first major challenge came from Japan's Bull Nakano, trading the title back and forth. A couple of years later, they picked up the feud again (with Alundra reverting to her name Madusa) in WCW.
Last year, we presented the Top 50 Wrestling Rivalries of the 1980's. While there definitely were some outstanding feuds and matches throughout that decade.... it really doesn't hold a candle to what happened in the 1990's.
When you think about it, the 90's began as a transition period for a new crop of wrestlers, such as The Ultimate Warrior, Sting and Bret Hart. By the end of the decade, the business looked entirely different, with names such as Stone Cold Steve Austin, Bill Goldberg and The Rock ruling the industry.
Ultimately, the decade made for an interesting dichotomy, and perhaps looks like a more impressive body of work than any period before or after it.
In ranking the Top 50 Wrestling Rivalries of the 1990's, we looked at a variety of factors, including:
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What did the feud mean to its respective wrestling company?
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Is it memorable enough where it's still being talked about some 20 years later?
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Did it capture mainstream (e.g. outside of wrestling) attention?
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Did the grudge lead to a memorable match? More than one memorable match?
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Did the rivalry draw some serious money, either on the house show circuit or pay-per-view?
We also limited it to rivalries between 1990-1999, and ones that were featured the following top North American wrestling companies: WWF, WCW and ECW.
Ready? Here we go!
When Ric Flair returned to WCW in 1993, it was clear that not everyone held him in the high regard he previously had there. Namely, The Hollywood Blonds (Steve Austin and Brian Pillman) taunted Flair for his age. In response, Flair recruited his best friend and Horseman Arn Anderson in a feud with The Blonds.
49
Ric Flair & Arn Anderson
vs. The Hollywood Blonds
Any picks missing or misplaced? Leave your feedback in the Comments section below...
In 1990, WWF announcer and manager Bobby Heenan continually made disparaging remarks on air about Big Bossman's mother. This was meant to lead to a Bossman - Rick Rude rivalry, but when Rude suddenly left the company, it became the entire Heenan Family, culminating in a match with Mr. Perfect.