5 Past NWA Concepts That WWE Could Use Today

During the heyday of the National Wrestling Alliance, Jim Crockett Promotions was the place to be for the industry's top stars.  

Ric Flair, The Midnight Express, Magnum TA, The Road Warriors, The Four Horsemen, Nikita Koloff, The Rock & Roll Express and, of course, the American Dream Dusty Rhodes.  Some of the all-time greats, in arguably the best professional wrestling promotion of all time.

The NWA brought some of the greatest matches, and most innovative concepts, to the business, and helped elevate them above every independent promotion in operation.  

Of course, that all changed when Vince McMahon's WWF began its massive media expansion, as the company began to buy out every regional promotion it could get its hands on.  Soon, Jim Crockett folded, and the NWA as fans knew it became WCW.

But, the glory days of the NWA have not been forgotten, and even today fans still reminisce about the matches, the workers, and the concepts.

Some of those ideas would fit quite nicely in today's WWE, and with the right amount of work, I believe that these concepts could be reintroduced.

Here are five that I feel could be huge.

5. The Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament

Okay, I know, why do a tag team cup tournament, when WWE doesn't have any tag teams?

Simple.  Because this gimmick would hopefully light the fuse for a new tag division.  

The Crockett Cup was named in honor of Jim Crockett Sr., and featured some of the best tag team matches that the industry has ever seen.  Tag wrestling was yet another facet of the business that the NWA had virtually mastered, and the tournament featured the best of the best.

Another added bonus of a WWE cup tournament, is the fact that the trophy could be dedicated in honor of a Superstar who has passed on. An example?

The Eddie Guerrero Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament would be a great way to pay homage to Latino Heat, and the workers involved could simply just have fun with it, without the drama and backstage politics that have been known to happen with past events.

The best part about being a pro wrestler is just getting in the ring and having fun, doing your best to put on the match of the night.  This is a great way to do both.

4. The Bunkhouse Stampede

At first glance, the Bunkhouse Stampede was a great idea for the NWA and sold a lot of tickets whenever the event took place.

But, the problem is that whenever Jim Crockett would run in more metropolitan cities, this match appeared dated and specific to only certain areas of the country.

So, why should Vince McMahon reintroduce this match to the masses?

Because WWE runs everywhere, and whenever Raw or SmackDown goes to Texas, or to the deep south, the Bunkhouse Match would be a great way to spark that particular crowd.

The battle royal, after all these years, is still a very effective match, as evidenced by WWE fans every time one takes place on a program.  Add to that a "come as you are" stipulation, and you add more possibility and excitement than ever before.

The Bunkhouse is a historically brutal match, and considering that WWE is extremely kid-friendly these days, the contest would have to be scaled down in terms of violence.

But, having said that, the truth is Hell in a Cell is just as dangerous, and just as violent of a match, yet the participants never get color these days.  The Cell also continues to remain as popular a match as it ever has been, despite its lack of graphic content.

The Bunkhouse would be no different in that regard.

3. Clash of the Champions

Main event caliber matches, with every championship defended, and every worker stepping up his game.

And it's all for free.

It seems to make very little sense to give away an event of this nature, but that's just what the NWA did, as the Clash was their answer to Saturday Night's Main Event.

But, as WWE fans these days, our wallets take a real hit every month with the cost of their pay per views.

Where I come from, a WWE event is $44.95 every month, despite who's working, and which titles are being defended.  Ouch.

The Clash was a hit for the NWA back then, and I believe that it would be a nice change of pace for WWE to perhaps run this type of event at least once a month, as a way of saying "thank you" to the fans.

2. World Six Man Tag Team Championships

Now, this one would be just for fun.

Back in the NWA, the Six-Man Tag Belts were a big deal, and were most notably held by The Road Warriors and Dusty Rhodes.  Dusty even painted his face like Hawk and Animal, and when the three men went to war, it was all about drama and intense action.

But, in the modern-day WWE?  This would be all about the star power.

Dusty and The L.O.D. had that in spades, and that would definitely be the case today.

Imagine Randy Orton, CM Punk and Sheamus, as the WWE Six-Man Tag Team Champions, working in the main event against Cody Rhodes, The Miz and Alberto Del Rio.

Or, what about Kane, Big Show and Mason Ryan as the champs?  Maybe instead of super heavyweights, the six-man belts could fall on three cruiserweights like Rey Mysterio, Evan Bourne and Sin Cara?

The titles would not have to be defended every week, and the matches could happen on either Monday or Friday nights, or even pay per views.

The main purpose of the championships would be to get the crowd amped up, to give them an over-the-top exciting main event, and to create endless possibilities of tag team combinations.

There's enough drama surrounding championships in WWE, the six-man belts would be a welcome change of pace.

1. Wargames, the Match Beyond

I have to say, this is one that I find it hard to believe has not yet happened in WWE.

The Wargames was an extremely intense main event match that drew huge crowds who could not wait to see the very innovative bout take place.

Two rings, each one covered by a cell, and two teams of five. Again, much like the Six-Man belts, this type of match would lean very heavily on star power.  

Five of the company's top heels vs. five of the top faces, all trapped inside unforgiving steel, would equal huge pay per view buys, and add another layer of excitement to WWE evemts.

Where was this match when the Nexus was riding high on Raw?

The Wargames are classic NWA, and that may be the very reason why we will never see it happen in WWE.  That is a real shame, because for me, this match could just as quickly become classic WWE.