DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show: 1981 – Flair wins his first World title
On today’s show, we pick up our longform history of pro wrestling series in the late summer of 1981 and cover August and September.
Bob Backlund’s reign as WWF Champion continues, Nick Bockwinkel has a largely forgettable feud with Sheik Adnan, and Dusty Rhodes as NWA World Champion has a run through Florida until losing the title to Ric Flair. Thus, this episode begins the first reign by Ric Flair as World Champion. Plus, Jimmy Valiant in Memphis and much more!
Karl Stern
Karl Stern is a pro wrestling historian specializing in the 1980s and pioneer era (pre-1900) of pro wrestling. He is an author who has written several books on wrestling and independently runs the When It Was Cool retro pop culture website.