The night I was born, Ric Flair defeated Harley Race in a steel cage at the first ever Starrcade to win the NWA World Title in front of nearly 16,000 fans in Greensboro, North Carolina. That same night, Fritz Von Erich’s Dallas-based promotion, World Class Championship Wrestling, held the Thanksgiving Star Wars, featuring three of the former wrestler-turned-promoter’s sons: David Von Erich, Kerry Von Erich, and Mike Von Erich, who made his debut match, in front of over 19,000 attendees at Dallas’ Reunion Arena.
November 24, 1983, was indeed a banner night in wrestling history. This night set the stage for another landmark event: 40 years ago, Kerry Von Erich defeated Ric Flair for the NWA World Title in front of over 50,000 fans at Texas Stadium on May 6, 1984. This was the biggest wrestling match before Hulk Hogan slammed Andre the Giant at WrestleMania III.
However, it was never truly meant to unfold this way. Kerry’s title shot was a result of a coin toss rather than a planned opportunity. David Von Erich, the brother originally groomed to hold the NWA belt, died after the Thanksgiving Star Wars, on February 10, 1984, in a hotel room in Japan. The official cause of death was listed as ruptured intestines, a claim supported by Fritz and his other sons who said David had suffered a brutal blow to the sternum in a match in Japan the day before. History, however, has proven this claim false, as David never wrestled during that tour.
Many wrestlers, including Ric Flair, have presented different versions of events. Flair and others suggest that Bruiser Brody, a WCCW star and close friend of the Von Erich family, disposed of the empty painkiller bottle after David’s overdose.
This version seems more plausible when considering the Von Erich family’s history. David did not wrestle in Japan, making the Von Erich version unlikely. Additionally, Mike Von Erich’s death was an intentional overdose of alcohol and sleeping pills. According to interviews with Kevin Von Erich, the only surviving Von Erich, Mike left the same pills for his youngest brother, Chris, for when he felt it was time to exit. Chris, however, chose to take his own life in 1991. Kerry, who wrestled in one of the biggest matches of his time, also committed suicide nine years after winning the World Title from Flair. The pattern of suicide within the Von Erich family lends credence to Flair’s version of David’s death.
During late 1983 and early 1984, Flair was at the heart of the Von Erich wrestling world, with David being his primary rival, not Kerry. David defeated Flair for the NWA Missouri Heavyweight Title on September 16, 1983, and later transitioned the belt to Harley Race in January 1984. At the 1983 Thanksgiving Star Wars, David was the Texas Heavyweight Champion, successfully defending his title against Kamala. On Christmas night, December 25, 1983, Flair and David battled for the World Title in Dallas, with Flair retaining the belt.
After defeating David on Christmas, Flair criticized Mike’s wrestling ability, leading David to issue a challenge: if Mike could last ten minutes in a cage with Flair without being pinned, Flair would have to defend the title against David again under any stipulations David chose. Mike succeeded in lasting ten minutes on January 30, 1984, and David was granted his title shot. The NWA voting committee had already decided to put the World Title on David sometime in March or April 1984.
Fritz Von Erich, a legendary heel known for his Nazi persona and contentious relationships with promoters, had long chased the NWA World Title. Once Fritz retired and his sons took over his promotion, the quest for the belt became a central focus.
The delay in David’s title shot was due to Fritz’s plan for David to tour Japan. Fritz, always the opportunist, was among the first promoters to recognize the benefits of international tours and talent exchanges. This, combined with WCCW’s international broadcasting contracts with Christian Broadcasting Network and ESPN, made Von Erich’s Dallas-based promotion arguably the most popular in the world before WrestleMania. Even when David, according to Kevin, complained of illness before his flight to Japan, Fritz insisted he go.
David never returned. The match with Flair scheduled for after his return in March or April 1984 never occurred.
Fritz spoke publicly about David’s death being a freak accident and claimed that the best way to honor David’s legacy was for another Von Erich, Kerry or Kevin, to win the NWA Title. The Lapsed Fan Wrestling Podcast and VICELAND’s “Dark Side of the Ring” episodes on the Von Erichs reveal how Fritz deflected from the emotional impact of these tragedies and continued to use them to promote WCCW.
Despite the circumstances, Fritz’s lobbying succeeded, and it was agreed that at a special David Von Erich Memorial Parade of Champions at Texas Stadium on May 6, 1984, Ric Flair would drop the NWA World Title to a Von Erich brother. The decision came down to a coin toss between barefoot high-flyer Kevin and muscle-bound Kerry. Kerry won the toss.
David, not Kevin or Kerry, was originally booked for the title because he was the best blend of wrestling ability, promo skills, and reliability. Although all the Von Erich brothers struggled with drug addiction, Kerry was the most visibly troubled. Flair’s autobiography recounts Kerry’s erratic behavior, including wrestling without tying his boots and leaving matches to hit on women in the crowd. Kevin, while less publicly troubled by addiction, lacked the mic skills that David possessed.
Plans changed after David’s death, reducing what might have been a prolonged Von Erich reign to a single moment. On May 6, 1984, over 50,000 fans filled Texas Stadium. Besides the main event, where Kerry faced Flair for the title, Fritz came out of retirement for one match, teaming with sons Kevin and Mike against the Fabulous Freebirds.
Kerry entered the ring wearing a sequined jacket with David’s name and a yellow rose (a nod to David’s nickname, “The Yellow Rose of Texas”). The crowd erupted in support of the hometown hero.
The match played out with Flair performing his signature moves: tossing from the top rope, chopping, and attempting the Figure Four Leglock, which Kerry blocked. Kerry then reversed a Flair hip toss into a backslide for the title. The crowd’s reaction was as loud as, if not louder than, Hulk Hogan’s slam of Andre the Giant at WrestleMania III.
Kerry’s family, including his mother Doris, came to celebrate and honor David.
The celebration was short-lived. Kerry, already known for missing matches and wrestling intoxicated, was quickly stripped of the title by the NWA, which booked Flair to regain the belt just eighteen days later in Japan. Flair held the title for another two years before losing it to Dusty Rhodes in July 1986.
Following this, the Von Erichs faced further tragedy. Fritz refused overtures from Vince McMahon and urged his sons to do the same. Kerry eventually joined the WWF as the Texas Tornado but struggled with injuries and was soon released. Kerry’s life ended tragically in 1993 when he was arrested for drug possession and subsequently took his own life at just 33 years old.
Flair, meanwhile, continued to be a dominant force in wrestling, becoming a central figure in every major promotion except ECW.
What should have been the Von Erichs’ grand introduction to the world in May 1984 and the beginning of their international prominence became their peak moment. Due to Kerry’s struggles, Kevin’s reluctance to embrace the spotlight, and Fritz’s refusal to collaborate with other promotions, the Von Erich family’s story became one of repeated tragedy. After David, Mike, Chris, Kerry, and Fritz all died, the Von Erich legacy is remembered as a tale of what might have been, punctuated by a historic title win that was overshadowed by subsequent events.
