10 "Buried" Wrestlers Who Weren't Actually Buried

7. Ronnie Garvin (NWA Starrcade 1987)

Cody Rhodes Lance Archer not buried
WWE

Ronnie Garvin's NWA World Heavyweight Championship reign is a truly curious piece of pro wrestling history.

Garvin is often listed among the worst wrestling world champions, a lame-duck from the start who should never have been anywhere near this most prestigious of titles. There were many worse champions to come, but Garvin in 1987 never fails to be remembered. His reign was over before it began, as Ric Flair squashed him for the title inside a cage at Starrcade 1987. Garvin never got close to the title again.

Was he buried? Many commentators claim he was, and that the rest of his career is proof. Garvin never got close to the main event again. What those commentators fail to appreciate is that Garvin was in above his head as soon as he won the title. He just wasn't clicking as champion, even the most hardened of Garvin fans will admit that, and putting the belt back on Flair was the only option. The experiment failed and that is important to admit. There's nothing wrong with that.

Simultaneously, putting the belt on 'Rugged' Ronnie Garvin wasn't a mistake when it was happening. His promos leading up to the title change were tremendous and his wins even more so, and there was every reason to believe that this tough guy from Quebec really could dethrone The Nature Boy.

It was a gamble that didn't pay off. Reverting back to Flair wasn't a burial of Garvin, it was simply putting the places back in the right positions.

Contributor
Contributor

Born in the middle of Wales in the middle of the 1980's, John can't quite remember when he started watching wrestling but he has a terrible feeling that Dino Bravo was involved. Now living in Prague, John spends most of his time trying to work out how Tomohiro Ishii still stands upright. His favourite wrestler of all time is Dean Malenko, but really it is Repo Man. He is the author of 'An Illustrated History of Slavic Misery', the best book about the Slavic people that you haven't yet read. You can get that and others from www.poshlostbooks.com.