10 'Passing The Torch' Wrestling Matches

4. Harley Race Vs. Ric Flair (NWA Starrcade 1983)

Sure, Ric Flair had already been NWA World Champion by the time he toppled renowned tough guy Harley Race at the first Starrcade event in 1983. Despite that, it was the Steel Cage win in Greensboro, North Carolina (with ex-Champ Gene Kiniski as the special guest ref) that cemented Flair as the star of the 80s.

As if longtime fans needed further proof that this would be Ric's night, the show was even sub-titled 'A Flair For The Gold'. That, along with Harley's veteran status by comparison, portrayed the 'Nature Boy' as a would-be successor to the NWA's top man of the 70s.

A new era was dawning, and it'd establish Flair as the organisation's premier superstar.

Race and Flair would then go on to trade the NWA Title on house shows in New Zealand and Singapore. Neither switch was technically recognised by the governing body though, meaning Starrcade '93 was really Harley's swan song with the belt.