Posted February 17, 200817 yr comment_5428201 Ric Flair vs. Jumbo Tsuruta (NWA Title, 6/8/82) (34:01) - I love Flair on the Mid Atlantic/NWA set. I love him more in Japan. Two back-to-back kickass Flair matches on one show. Once again, this is all about Jumbo and Flair fighting for every move. There isn’t any real body work (which I love) but these types of matches stand up as a war of attrition where you see each guy throw out his arsenal and seeing if the other guy can withstand it. Some notable spots include Jumbo’s body press) where he gets enough air to hit Flair in the head) and Jumbo’s missile dropkick which isn’t spectacular by itself. It is just something you don’t expect from Jumbo. The match ends with an awkward German suplex where both guys get pinned. So-so ending to a great match and an easy nomination. (AJC 72)
April 6, 201015 yr comment_5449074 Another excellent match between these two. I have it a bit behind their '81 and '83 showdowns but it's still a top 20 candidate. Basically, Jumbo came off as the stronger wrestler, winning almost every direct exchange and keeping Flair on the run with a bunch of nearfalls that popped the crowd. Flair had to get aggressive and a little dirty just to stay in it. He finally gained a small advantage by working the leg, and Jumbo sold the pain of the figure four as well as anyone. I liked that they teased the crowd by spilling to the outside but then beat the count to keep wrestling. The double pin ending was probably the worst part of the match. But both guys worked hard and well for 35 minutes. Flair brought out a fire in Jumbo that wasn't always apparent in this era and Jumbo had the great, athletic offense that played into Flair's strengths as a bumper and seller. No-doubt nomination here.
August 25, 201015 yr comment_5454979 NWA World Heavyweight Title: "Nature Boy" Ric Flair © vs. Jumbo Tsuruta (6/8/82) This may be the debut show of the legendary red/blue AJ mat. Fuyuki as Flair's attendant here was funny. Now this was an awesome match with that epic feel you want in your world title matches as both men were locked in a tough battle not just physically but mentally as they were trying to figure out what it took to beat the other one and how to do it. Jumbo was so great as the fired up babyface as it was like he had watched Flair work in the US against his normal opponents and thought "I want to have matches like this dammit." The fans were great here as well as they were hot the whole match and wanted Jumbo to win in the worst way. The finishing sequence was just awesome with the fans going nuts because they avoided a double countout to the double pinfall. Slam dunk nomination.
