Top Fifteen Stables in Wrestling: Number Fourteen

While our next stable had three different versions in three different wrestling promotions,  there is no doubt that most successful version was the version that existed in World Championship Wrestling.  This stable would include several legendary names such as Larry Zbyszko, Arn Anderson, "Ravishing" Rick Rude, and "Stunning" Steve Austin.  They would be led by Paul Heyman-- then known as Paul E. Dangerously.

During 1991, Dangerously had been working for as a commentator for WCW, teaming with Jim Ross.  In the middle of that year, Eric Bischoff "fired" Dangerously as a commentator.  At the 1991 Halloween Havoc, the first signs of the Dangerous Alliance began to come to light.  While Bischoff worked as a valet in the parking and Dustin Rhodes and Barry Windham pulled up, Arn Anderson and Larry Zbyszko came out and attacked Windham and Bischoff.  During the attack, Zbyszko the car door on Windham's hand, breaking it.  Later on the show, the mysterious masked Halloween Mayhem came and easily squashed Tom Zenk.  After the match during an interview segment with Bischoff, Dangerously unmasked Mayhem to reveal he was in fact "Ravishing" Rick Rude.  Dangerously stated in the interview that while fired as commentator, he still held his manager's license, and would use Rude to wreak havoc and exact revenge on WCW.

A few weeks later at Clash of Champions XVII, WCW United States Champion Sting was attacked by WCW World Champ Lex Luger, injuring his right knee.  Sting was forced to go to the hospital to get checked.  While out of the arena, Dangerously announced he had found a loophole in the contract that stated if Sting was unable to make his match with Rude, Sting would be forced to forfeit the title to Rude.  Sting would make it back to the ring just in time to defend his title, but, clearly injured, was unable to defeat Rude-- who became the new US champ.  On the next World Championship Wrestling (in the years before WCW Monday Nitro), Dangerously introduced his Dangerous Alliance of "Ravishing" Rick Rude, Madusa, Bobby Eaton, Anderson, Zbyszko, and "Stunning" Steve Austin.

Over the next six months, the Dangerous Alliance would dominate WCW.  Anderson and Eaton would win the WCW Tag Team Championship, Austin would hold the WCW Television title, and Rude had the U.S. title.  They would feud with the likes Sting, Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, Dustin Rhodes, and Nikita Koloff.  They would go back and forth against their rivals until they settled the score in a gruesome "War Games" match at WrestleWar on May 17, 1992, in Jacksonville, Florida.  During the match, Zbyszko picked up the turnbuckle that Rude had removed and attempted to hit Sting with it.  However, Sting moved out of the way and Zbyszko hit his stablemate Eaton.  This allowed Sting to place Eaton in an armbar and gain the submission victory for his team.  After the match, Zbyszko was expelled from the Alliance, marking the beginning of the end for the faction.

Over the next few months, Rude and Madusa would go their separate ways, and Anderson and Eaton would begin running with Michael Hayes.  Anderson and Eaton would return to Dangerously after he fired Madusa publicly at the 1992 Halloween Havoc and she came after him.  The Alliance, however, had their days numbered.  By the end of November 1992, after Clash of Champions, the Dangerous Alliance would be completely as Dangerously had left WCW due to a bitter contract dispute with the company.

With the talent that amassed the Dangerous Alliance, there is no telling how far this stable could have gone had Heyman (Dangerously) not left WCW with his contract dispute.  There is no doubt that they could have made a serious push for the world title with Rude.  Austin could have then made a run for the U.S. title.  Even Zbyszko had the talent to go for some gold.  Unfortunately, this never materialized and the Dangerous Alliance would end with only potential to talk about.  This stable was still among the best because they had a great heel manager in Paul E. Dangerously, a top wrestler to surround a supporting cast around in Rude, and enforcers like Arn Anderson and Larry Zbyszko to take care of the dirty work that needed to be done.  Bobby Eaton and Steve Austin also had the potential to carry out attacks when needed.