Lex Luger Discusses Winning World Title In WCW Following Ric Flair's Departure For WWF

Lex Luger is a two-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion. His first televised World Heavyweight Title opportunity came less than a year into his career against Ric Flair at the third NWA Battle of the Belts in September 1986 and ended in a time-limit draw. The duo had four more World Title matches on pay-per-views in 1988 and 1990. However, it's the scheduled title match against Flair that never happened at WCW's Great American Bash in 1991 that could have been their biggest.

Luger recently sat down with WWE and detailed the experience saying, "I was set for after all my hundreds, literally, matches with Ric Flair, I was finally gonna win the big gold belt and defeat 'The Nature Boy' to become World Champion. Then right before the pay-per-view, the rug got snatched out from under not just me, but everybody in our company. Ric comes here to WWE ... and takes the big gold belt with him."

Luger was disappointed, but undeterred. He explained, "I wasn't wrestling Ric, but at the same time, selfishly, this is gonna be a real opportunity to me, that maybe I can stand up and be molded or shaped into the type of World Champion for WCW, not at Ric's level, but this might be a big opportunity."

Luger faced Barry Windham who he said was "so good" for the vacant WCW World Title in Baltimore, a city he called "one of my best cities." He fondly recalled how the match was "one of the few times anybody got out of my Torture Rack."

He was also happy they brought in Mr. Hughes as a bodyguard and Harley Race to manage him, calling him "iconic" and saying, "using his finish and [to] win the World Title clean against a guy of Barry Windham's caliber definitely was a very cool moment in my career." Luger would capture the WCW World Title again in 1997.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit WWE with an h/t to Wrestling INC. for the transcription.