This is one of the best things ECW ever did.

From ECW, April 12, 1997.

This is another special one as we have Terry Funk’s lifetime achievement banquet. This one is rated TV-MA and has another disclaimer to make me wonder what is on here. Joey Styles opens things up at a podium, talking about how he is new in this business but the highlight of his career has been working with Terry Funk, even when Funk tried to kill him. Joey teases the idea of strangling Paul Heyman (next to him) with a plastic bag, which Heyman takes from Joey for a shot to the arm. Getting more serious, Joey talks about how important it is to see Terry wrestle and how much it means to him.

Next up is Sandman, who is already emotional about how he has always wanted to be a wrestler and idolized the northeastern wrestlers. Sandman thanks the people who founded and operate this company for giving him a chance to live his dream. Oh and his wife too. We move on to Barely Legal tomorrow night, which features a three way dance between Sandman, Stevie Richards and Funk himself. Sandman can’t believe how far Richards has come in such a short time and it will be an honor to face Funk. It was bizarre to hear Sandman talking all sane and such like this.

Richards is up next (with an unpainted Blue Meanie) and talks about how he showed up to the ECW Arena, willing to do absolutely anything. Now he is getting to wrestle Sandman and Terry Funk on pay per view in the same arena. Richards thanks Heyman and hugs Funk, saying may the best man win.

Blue Meanie is up next and says he isn’t used to talking in a normal voice. Meanie doesn’t have much to say other thank thank you Funk.

Someone who looks like Nova says football had Joe Montana, baseball had Babe Ruth and wrestling had Funk.

Joey introduces the Eliminators (Perry Saturn and John Kronus), with Saturn saying he isn’t the best talker. He remembers thinking wrestlers were superheroes and Funk paved the road they walked down. Saturn talks about meeting Funk for the first time and being amazed that Funk thought he was a good worker, to the point where he called everyone he knew.

Kronus loves Funk and that’s it.

Styles talks about a young up and coming wrestler who is only going to get better and better. Funk: “Thank you!” It’s actually Chris Candido, with Tammy Sytch, with Chris talking about being NWA Champion and being terrified to talk to Funk for half an hour. One night they went to Dennys but Funk had locked the keys in his trunk so he had to eat in his gear, which had him panicking. Dory Funk Jr. said that wasn’t true, which is an excuse for a bunch of (funny) Funk impressions. Candido loves Funk too.

Next up is Louie Spicolli, who thought no one could beat up Hulk Hogan until Terry Funk did it. Funk always puts in the work and now he’s doing moonsaults because he can do anything.

Joey brings up the Pitbulls, who are nice guys but scare the heck out of him. They can’t believe they are in the same locker room as Funk and are very thankful for Funk helping them so much.

Now we have an introduction Joey doesn’t want to do, as he brings up Bill Alfonso. Bill talks about being brought in to ECW in 1994 and how much he loved Funk as a kid and apparently they knew each other twenty years ago. Cool enough.

Joey talks about being scared of the next speaker, even if he is a terrifying man. That would be Taz, who talks about how everyone here is great but it’s all about Funk. Taz tells a story about his first match in the company and being stunned that Funk took him aside to critique his match that night. He hopes Terry is around for another 52 years (Would you bet against him?).

Joey introduces Francine, who is rather choked up about getting to be up here. She looks at Funk like a father and hopes he walks her down the aisle when she gets married.

Now we have Sabu, who presents Terry with a trophy and whispers something in his ear before sitting back down.

Next up is a referee whose name I couldn’t understand. Funk has praised him too and can’t believe he has had the honor to be in the same ring as Funk over the years. He talks about how Funk has done so many things for so many people and talks longer than most of the wrestlers.

Now we get a more obscure name with Barry Blaustein, who has made a documentary about ECW (and was regularly mentioned by Jesse Ventura back in the late 80s). It has been an honor to get to show the greatness of wrestling, which has included seeing Funk covered in blood. Funk said he was too old for wrestling that night but Barry knew that could never be true. Blaustein has worked on a lot of big movies but he has never been prouder of anything than this.

Now we have a female wrestling promoter whose name Joey kind of mumbles. She talks about meeting Terry at a commercial for Kodak in 1984 which had nothing to do with wrestling. Then she found out what he could do in wrestling and was amazed at how great he really was.

Joey talks about Tod Gordon (ECW founder) not knowing who he was when he was trying out. Joey: “Do you know who I am now Tod?” Gordon talks about how they needed a big star who could bring the hardcore when they started and there was only one option: Abdullah the Butcher. Funk didn’t think much of the first show they had but then things got better and that is because of what Funk did.

Joey talks about trying to work for WWF and WCW but only ECW called him back. That brings up the one person who called him back: Paul Heyman (oh boy). Paul talks about how emotional this is and thanks Gordon for giving him a job in 1993. He can’t believe how far they have come and goes into a promo about how extreme ECW is. New Jack, in a white suit and top hat, stands up after a mention from Heyman, who knows Jack had that hanging in his closet.

Heyman knows that everyone here put on a suit because they know Funk deserves the honor. New Jack (in the back of the room) says something the mic doesn’t pick up and we get the ECW chant. Heyman talks about doing photography for years in the early 80s and hearing about how he should just go straight up to Funk because he was such a great guy. That got him thrown out of the locker room and Heyman didn’t see Funk again until 1989.

They met again in Amarillo, Texas and Funk offered to take him for a ride the next morning. Funk drove crazy fast and Heyman was scared to death but he met Terry’s wife….who thought Heyman was hilarious (meaning more impressions). Then they went to a show with Funk vs. Eddie Gilbert as the main event. Heyman was taken to the ring where he was terrified (mainly because Ric Flair (WCW boss at the time) was going to kill him for some reason). Funk gave him some advice that night: if Missy Hyatt gets in your face, slap the f****** s*** out of her.

Then they had the match and Funk went off the apron and head first through a table. Gilbert thought Funk was dead and Heyman knew Flair was going to kill him. Heyman went over to check on Funk, who was fine enough that he cracked a joke to him (which is hard to understand but pops the room).

Then a few days later, Funk broke his tailbone a few days before the 1989 Great American Bash. For the first time, Heyman saw Funk crying because he was devastated. There was nothing that was going to stop Funk from going to the show and giving the fans what they paid to see. Then Funk wrestled 34 straight days on the road and Heyman was so in awe that he called his father to talk about how amazing Funk was.

Heyman prayed he could find one wrestler like Funk and now he has him in ECW. The criteria to work here is work ethic and the example for that has been set by Funk himself. Heyman talks about the wrestlers who have worked so hard here and they do it because Funk made them want to. The people who work behind the scenes do the same things and they do it because of the locker room.

That brings Heyman to Funk’s protege: Tommy Dreamer. Heyman praises Dreamer for everything he has done, without even being nervous about Barely Legal. Dreamer never gets shaken up but tonight has messed with him because he wants everything to be perfect for Funk. Everyone wants to make it special, like Taz, who has never mentioned his personal life but his wife is here with him because it is worth the honor to Funk. Having Funk in the locker room is like an audience with the Pope or the President because he means that much.

Heyman explains to the fans in attendance how much this means and they give Funk a standing ovation. ECW was ready for pay per view last year with November To Remember but they needed to do something special and someone to build around. They needed Terry Funk and now Heyman knows what can happen tomorrow and it is going to be a tribute to Funk.

Heyman introduces Tommy Dreamer (after stealing the show by being an AMAZING storyteller), who thanks a bunch of the wrestlers around here, capped off by finally thanking Funk himself. Dreamer talks about what a family ECW is and (of course) breaks into tears (Dreamer: “Yeah right I’m hardcore.”). He presents Funk with a plaque and a bunch of wrestlers come up to hug Funk.

It’s time for Funk himself to speak….and he needs to go to the bathroom….and he actually runs off so we get a lot of hugs between the speakers. New Jack gives Heyman an ECW ring as Funk is back. Funk thanks everyone for the plaque and talks about what it means to him. If he could present an award tonight, it would be the Against All Odds Award to Heyman and Gordon for making it so far.

Funk praises his wife, who the fans deem hardcore. He praises his wife for the hardcore matches they have had over the years and can’t wait to spend the rest of his life and eternity with her. Funk introduces his children and announces that he is done wrestling in the United States after this year. Even the people here don’t seem to believe him but Funk has a few more things to say.

Stevie Richards came into ECW with a couple of old bags but he never mentioned their names. Then we have the referees, who Funk knows are lying because they are referees. Funk talks about how the book of Genesis says Jacob met an angel and they didn’t play hockey or baseball. They wrestled each other, because it is something is always going to be around.

Funk talks about the people in the arena and in the ring who work so hard to make their mark. Wrestling is in his heart and there are people in ECW who have that passion too. Funk has his family come around him and the family applauds everyone for being here tonight and supporting ECW.

I’m not a big ECW guy but this was GREAT, as you could feel how much Funk meant to everyone here. Heyman’s stuff was outstanding and the story of Funk in Amarillo was awesome. I didn’t think Heyman was going to be topped and then Funk came in and blew the doors off of the place with one of the most powerful wrestling speeches you will ever here. This is worth seeing, though depending on your ECW taste, you might want to just watch Heyman and Funk.

This was a big one on the indy scene for its time.

GWF Light Heavyweight Title: Lightning Kid vs. Jerry Lynn
Date: January 6, 1992
Location: Sportatorium, Dallas, Texas
Commentators: Bruce Prichard, Greg Johnson

This is from the Global Wrestling Federation, a pretty low level/lame Texas promotion which did produce some names like these two, Ahmed Johnson and John Bradshaw Layfield. The Kid (better known as 1-2-3 Kid/X-Pac) is defending and this is 2/3 falls. There are also special rules here as you have to win via your designated finisher (Lightning Strike for Kid and sleeper for Lynn). It is also the feud that made both guys’ careers and they fought each other roughly 1427 times over the years.

Feeling out process to start with Lynn grabbing the wrist but Kid springboards out to grab a wristlock of his own. Lynn busts out his own springboard to escape and it’s time for a test of strength. The Kid gets sent outside for a breather, only to get taken down amateur style back inside.

Lynn even goes into referee’s position to offer some more amateur stuff but Kid wisely kicks him in the ribs. A headscissors puts Lynn outside and a top rope flip dive takes him down again. Back in and Lynn slaps on the sleeper for two arm drops…..and the three arm drops for the first fall at 6:44.

We take a break and come back with both guys fighting back up. Kid kicks away but gets backdropped to the floor and Lynn is right there with a baseball slide. A middle rope spinning springboard dive takes Kid down again but he is right back up with the Lightning Strike (which apparently is a Tombstone) for the second fall at 9:41 shown.

Back from another break with Lynn fighting out of a front facelock and then elbowing Kid down. Another sleeper is broken up but the referee gets bumped. Lynn drops Kid again and covers out of instinct, only to have to avoid Scott Anthony’s (Raven) top rope shot with a chain, which hits Kid by mistake. The sleeper gives Lynn the title at 14:02 shown.

Rating: B-. The stipulation was a little weird but it was nice to see the two of them having to try to get into a position for their hold and that worked out well enough. It might not have been a classic, but this was amazing stuff when you consider the WWF was still in the Hogan Era. These two were ahead of their time in this country and it is great to see them getting their stuff in like this, especially in a national promotion (yeah it was national, but not exactly well received).

And now, one of the weirdest things I’ve ever seen. From May 1, 1989 with the AWA.

Battle Of Breakfast Cereal
Date: May 1, 1989
Location: Hyatt Hotel, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Commentator: Larry Nelson

So this is a VERY special one, as the AWA was hired by Kellogg’s for some in-office entertainment about how great the company was compared to General Mills, which somehow tied into wrestlers. I have no idea what else to expect here, but this could be one of the most fascinating things around, especially given who the AWA had (or didn’t have) at this point). Let’s get to it.

Larry Nelson welcomes us to a battle between Kellogg’s and General Mills.

We get the National Anthem before we’re ready to go.

The ring announcer introduces the judges, who sound like Kellogg’s executives. He lists off our card tonight, with each match having a theme and introduces all of the wrestlers. The villains are eating cereal and the good guys are in Kellogg’s jackets. This is the most ridiculous thing I have seen in years and I kind of love it.

A guy in sales comes out to yell about General Mills taking things from them. Kellogg’s is MAD and he stomps on some General Mills cereals and throws out some Kellogg’s cereals. He goes into a rant about how they’re fighting General Mills everyone, including on the loading docks. They’re fight them until h*** freezes over and then they’ll fight on the ice too! He stomps on some Wheaties (the ring is filthy) and punts a box of Kix out, promising that the Kellogg’s team will play rough. We get a “we’re mad as h*** and we’re not going to take it anymore!” chant because cereal is serious business.

We’ll start with the Melee In Minneapolis.

Total The Terrible vs. Nutra Rockne

That would be Mike Enos (eating Total cereal) vs. I believe Ricky Rice. We get a rather elaborate weapons check and commentary is over the PA system for a change. Total starts fast with an hiptoss and armdrag, followed by a slam into the corner as we’re firmly in first gear here. Rockne is back with some dropkicks into the corner and a backdrop into a hiptoss of his own. A powerslam gives Rockne two and a splash finishes Total at 3:05.

Rating: D. Yeah I wouldn’t expect much in the way of match quality on this show and that’s ok. This was about as generic of a match as you could get with neither doing anything significant. Then again they were fighting over cereal so I’m not sure how much of a difference the actually wrestling is going to be. Now clean the cereal out of the ring.

The Vice President of Marketing (from England) is NOT standing for General Mills talking about how horrible Kellogg’s cereal is and they have a war plan. They are going to build their own brand and keep their competitors guessing (idea: Put ice cream in a cereal box. They’ll never see it coming!). They’ll begin with intelligence and now they have the General Mills attack plan, which they have pieced together.

Then they are going to counterattack by exploiting weaknesses and issuing more and better coupons! They have to change things up too because their outcomes have been as predictable as one of these joke wrestling matches. They are at war and have to be more innovative. They must be tough and mean because there is only one winner in war. Nobody can put the pressure on like Kellogg’s can!

It’s the Terror in the Twin Cities!

Hondo The Honeybee Haymaker vs. Mr. Oat-portunity

That would be Wayne Bloom vs. Derek Dukes. Honey throws cereal at the Kellogg’s people, while informing them that his cereal is more nutritious. Honey’s top wristlock is countered without much trouble but he screams about a hair pull. A hammerlock counter makes him complain about the trunks being pulled.

Honey grabs a headlock as commentary talks about how he keeps cheating. Oat fights up and hits a crossbody but gets choked on the mat as we’re told we are eight minutes in. Honey hits him in the head with a box of Cheerios but Oat superkicks him down. A top rope shoulder finishes Honey at 4:40 (9:22 according to the announcer).

Rating: D+. That was some good clipping as I didn’t notice it, but it does make me wonder why we are having a nine minute cereal match. Much like the opener, the wrestling is absolutely not the point here and even though this was a pretty run of the mill (Mills?) match, the cereal box was appropriate enough.

And now, the Brawl Near St. Paul!

The General vs. Dr. K.

Colonel DeBeers vs. Wahoo McDaniel as this continues to be weird. Dr. chops him down as commentary talks about the importance of a balanced breakfast. Arm cranking and some stomping has the General in trouble but he’s back up with a headlock. That’s broken up so General rakes the eyes across the top rope. Dr. knocks him outside, which commentary calls a free sample of agony.

The General gets sent into the corner but he is back up for the slugout. The referee gets bumped (yes in this match) so General pulls a foreign object out of a box of cereal to knock Dr. silly. Cue the Sales And Marketing team (thank goodness they’re wrestlers, but at the same time, they are called the Sales And Marketing team) to shoves the General off the top and hit a double dropkick. Dr. gets the pin at 6:12.

Rating: C-. This was the best match of the night but I’m not sure how much that is saying. Wahoo can still do his thing with anyone and DeBeers is someone who worked rather well as a heel. The foreign object at least fit the idea of cereal, but they somehow managed to overbook a match on this show. That’s hard to do.

Here’s the Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing to say we should demote the General to a private. We hear a story about how sometimes you need to punch someone in the nose and they have a new strategy. As we look at some of the people in the audience looking bored out of their minds, he tells us that their budget is increased and now it is time go beat the competition.

We’ll wrap it up with the Rile in the Aisle, which is for the IN YOUR SPACE trophy!

Mills Brothers vs. Sales And Marketing

Pat Tanaka/Paul Diamond vs. Greg Gagne/Tom Zenk to wrap it up. Commentary introduces Sales And Marketing as “the S&M Team”. Zenk and Tanaka start things off with Zenk grabbing a headlock into some armdrags. Gagne misses a dropkick though and Tanaka knocks him outside. Commentary keeps calling them the S&M Team and it continues to be rather awkward.

The referee doesn’t see the tag to Zenk so Gagne is taken back down into a chinlock. Diamond comes in to grab his own chinlock but Gagns fights up for a chinlock. They collide for a double knockdown and there’s the hot tag to Zenk to clean house (and hopefully the ring). Everything breaks down and a double dropkick puts Diamond on the floor. A high crossbody finishes Tanaka at 6:04.

Rating: C. Totally watchable match here and that worked out as well as you could have expected. It’s another example of having some talented wrestlers out there and doing their thing because they know how to do just that. Diamond and Tanaka are always good for a match like this and it worked out just fine.

Larry Nelson talks about how Kellogg’s dominated and that is all the proof that you are going to need to prove who is the best cereal company.

Overall Rating: A+. Oh please like this could be ANYTHING else. This is one of the most bizarre things that I have ever seen in wrestling and I completely loved it. The wrestling was completely watchable for the most part but hearing the marketing executives talking about war with General Mills and all of those in depth references was hilarious in all kinds of ways. This was great and is worth your time if you want to see one of the strangest and most unique deals you’ll ever find in wrestling. Serially.

Call this a little preview.Chris Jericho/Johnny Swinger/Lenny Lane/Norman Smiley vs. Konnan/Hector Garza/Rey Mysterio Jr./Silver King
Date: January 27, 1999
Location: Heart O’Texas Fair Complex, Waco, Texas
Attendance: 2,423

So this is from a special that was taped called Fesitval de Lucha Libre, which was a lucha themed show that never aired in America. The idea was to have a show to counteract WWF Super Astros show (which did last for a bit) but this was never picked up so off to the Hidden Gems section it goes. For some reason Fit Finlay is here with Jericho’s team as well, as we go full international with the villainy. Jericho wants the various women at ringside gone because he is the star around here you see.

Konnan and Jericho (who is getting A LOT of cheers) start things off but Jericho hands it off to Lane instead. Mysterio comes in to hammer away after a minute of stalling. Rey sends Lenny into the corner for a Bronco Buster and a double tag brings in Swinger and Garza. Swinger takes over with a clothesline and sends him to the apron but Garza is right back with a clothesline of his own.

Smiley comes in with an elbow to the face and we get what sounds like a negative chant about someone. The crowd volume goes WAY down in a hurry and it’s Jericho suplexing Garza down for the arrogant two. King breaks up Swinger’s cover and comes in, only to get beaten up by Smiley. There’s the Swinging Slam into the Big Wiggle, which should get a lot more praise. Two referees have to hold Konnan back, allowing a quadruple stomping and a posting to keep King in trouble.

Finlay gets in a shot as well and it’s a powerslam from Lane for two back inside. A faceplant out of the corner has King down again but he scores with a spinwheel kick. There’s a dive over the top onto Lane and that’s as good as a tag around here, meaning Rey can come in to pick up the pace. Everything breaks down and Jericho gets the Liontamer on Garza for the tap at 8:00.

Rating: C. I’m not sure how many people were expecting a pretty formula based match here and it didn’t exactly fit the theme. You have Mysterio and Garza on the tecnico team and you do a pretty run of the mill American style tag match? I’m not sure what the thinking was here but it didn’t exactly work out that well.

Post match a brawl seems to break out but the camera is looking at the crowd.

For a pretty cool fight.Smackdown World Title: Brock Lesnar vs. Undertaker
Date: October 9, 2003
Location: Turkuhalli Elysee Arena, Turku, Finland

From a Smackdown house show in a country WWE doesn’t visit that long. This is very Biker Taker but his real feud is with Vince McMahon at the moment, with Lesnar as the big enforcer. The arena looks fairly cool with a wide aisle. The fans let Lesnar know that he tapped out (to Kurt Angle I believe) so the stalling is on before the bell. Or maybe it did ring in there somewhere as the referee is telling them to get to this already.

Lesnar finally gets in and drives Undertaker into the corner for a clean break. Some lockups don’t go anywhere so Undertaker powers him out to the floor for a bit of a surprise. Back in and Undertaker knocks him outside again as they’re firmly in first gear. Lesnar comes in again and stomps away in the corner but Undertaker cranks on the arm to take care of that. Old School is broken up though and Lesnar kicks away in the corner. Undertaker isn’t having that though and knocks him away, setting up a connecting Old School.

La Majistral of all things gets two on Lesnar and we’re clipped to Undertaker being knocked outside. Lesnar whips him hard into the steps for two back inside and it’s time to go after the leg. After some cranking on the mat, the leg is wrapped around the middle rope until Undertaker strikes his way to freedom. Brock grabs a spinebuster for two and it’s back to the leglock.

That’s broken up and the F5 connects for two, with Brock getting annoyed at the kickout. Lesnar grabs the chair but gets kicked in the face twice in a row. The Last Ride is broken up and the referee is bumped, meaning the chokeslam gets a delayed two. Brock clotheslines the referee by mistake so there’s no count off the Last Ride. Well Undertaker does one but it doesn’t count. Lesnar gets in a pair of chair shots to retain at 14:45 shown.

Rating: C-. Not one of their better efforts here but it could have been worse. There is a good chance that exhaustion was setting in and it’s not like a house show main event is supposed to be some grand spectacle. These two have not had the best chemistry in regular matches so the wild brawl would have been better. Still though, not awful and for a house show main event, it was acceptable enough.

Post match Undertaker chairs him down but Rhyno runs in to beat on Undertaker. Eddie Guerrero runs in for the save. Not show here: a big post match birthday celebration for Guerrero.

Some matches just work.

NWA World Title: Harley Race vs. Ric Flair
Date: November 14, 1980
Location: Richmond Coliseum, Richmond, Virginia

Race is defending and this is from Jim Crockett Promotions. It’s another collection of clips and highlights, but what else can you expect? Race jumps him before the bell but Flair fights back and hits a backdrop. A good deal of clipping takes us to Flair hitting a suplex for two so Race bails out to the floor. Back in and Flair hits a slam to set up an armbar and we’re clipped to Race leapfrogging him (egads) but getting pulled into a sleeper.

Clipped again to Race hitting something between a Tombstone and a powerslam for a delayed two. Some knees in the corner have Flair in trouble but we’re clipped to him scoring with a suplex. Clipped again to Race getting sent to the floor where Flair takes over, only to get slammed off the top on the way back in. Race misses the falling headbutt and Flair grabs the Figure Four, sending Race over to the ropes.

Flair goes after the knee and Race’s trunks start falling down for an image I never needed. The rapid fire clips take us to a half crab on Race. That’s broken up as well and we’re clipped to them falling out to the floor. Back in and the bleeding Flair unloads on him with all kinds of shots to the head against the ropes. Flair shoves the referee and holds up the title as the match was thrown out in there somewhere. Or it was a double countout based on what I can find elsewhere. All kinds of clipping, but this was a special pairing and always worth seeing.

He might have a future.

David Ruhl vs. Gino Marella
Date: March 16, 1961
Location: Exhibition Auditorium, Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada

This is from Stampede Wrestling and Marella is better known as Gorilla Monsoon. The unnamed commentator says that this is for $550 as they go to the mat to fight over arm control. Ruhl manages to roll him over and get Gino down, only to have a heck of a press to get himself out of trouble. Gino’s full nelson has Ruhl in trouble and they even go to the mat where Ruhl finally escapes.

Marella sends him flying again and some forearms have him in even more trouble. With the stand up not working, Ruhl takes him down by the leg and then forearms away at the back. Marella grabs something like an Attitude Adjustment from his knees but Ruhl is right back with a hammerlock. A crucifix gets two (after several attempts) on Marella, who gets back up, throws him around a few times, pounds on the top of Ruhl’s head, and then throws him around again. They slug it out again but time expires at 10:00.

Rating: C. Marella really did come off like a monster, but it was fascinating to see him not only in the ring but looking so young. He had a better control of the fundamentals than most people his size and that fits the kind of things he would say on commentary. Good enough match here, with Ruhl as the technician and Marella as the monster he couldn’t take down.

The star power is insane here.

Muhammad Ali vs. Buddy Wolfe
Date: June 12, 1976
Location: International Amphitheater, Chicago, Illinois

There’s a lot to unpack here as yes it is that Ali (with Freddie Blassie) and Rope has Dick the Bruiser with him. In case that isn’t enough, Verne Gagne is the referee. This is part of Ali’s training for the famous fight with Inoki and Ali hammers away as Wolfe just stands there. Wolfe finally drives him into the corner and grabs a headlock but Ali shoves him off without much effort. A double leg takedown works better for Wolfe but the rope saves Ali. It works so well that they do it again, followed by Wolfe grabbing another take down.

Back up and….the round ends, as this apparently has rounds. Round two starts with Ali being driven into the corner but coming out swinging. Wolfe puts him up against the ropes and then gets two off a slam. A backbreaker gets one so Ali unloads with right hands to rock Wolfe. That earns him another takedown and Wolfe absorbs some right hands to the face. Back up and Wolfe gets hammered in the corner as the round ends.

Round three begins with Ali pummeling him again but Wolfe gets another takedown without much effort. The same sequence works a bit better for Ali this time around, with Gagne stopping to check on Wolfe. That’s enough for Wolfe to take him down into a half crab but Ali makes the rope and unloads again to end the round and fight at 14:00. They get in another fight between rounds, with Ali hitting Gagne by mistake. I think it’s a draw but Ali is posing like a winner.

Rating: C. I have no idea what else to call this as it was some kind of weird MMA predecessor, but it did very little to make Ali look good. Ali was taken down over and over here and if someone like Wolfe can do that, what is Inoki going to do? That being said, the whole thing was such insanity that I can’t help but like it at least a little bit.

Post match Nick Bockwinkle comes in (because we didn’t have enough star power here) to say no boxer can beat a wrestler and challenges Ali if he can beat Inoki.. Nick leaves and Gagne talks about how awesome that was. Vince McMahon gets in and talks to Ali, who promises to beat Inoki and all other wrestlers. Ali thanks Blassie for training him and wants to beat up Bruno Sammartino and Gorilla Monsoon.

This kind of thing can be rather fun.

Kofi Kingston vs. Mike Mizanin
Date: March 23, 2007
Location: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio

Smackdown dark match and Kofi hadn’t debuted yet. Miz is the hometown boy and still little more than a reality show geek who has wrestled a few matches. Before the match, Miz says he and LeBron James are the only two celebrities from Cleveland but Miz was smart enough to get out. It’s so strange seeing Kofi with the generic rock music and the big Jamaican flag. Kofi, with the crazy thick accent, says no one is here to hear Miz talk.

Kofi grabs a wristlock and shouts BOOM a lot but has to keep nipping his way out of top wristlocks. The armdrag into the armbar has Miz in trouble until he sends Kofi throat first into the top rope. We hit the chinlock, followed by a quick Fameasser for two. Kofi sends him face first into the middle buckle to set up a spinwheel kick to the face. What would become known as Trouble In Paradise finishes Miz at 4:29.

Rating: D+. It was clear that neither of them were exactly polished yet, though that BOOM BOOM over and over again made it a little more annoying. Miz would take a long time to get somewhere in the ring and while Kofi got better faster, he was doing way too much with the gimmick here and it was annoying. It’s still cool to see two future Hall of Famers in a match like this though, as they have to start somewhere.

I think they call this a mash up.

Thanksgiving Day Tag Team Tournament First Round: Magnum TA/Randy Savage vs. Mongolians
Date: November 24, 1983
Location: Omni, Atlanta, Georgia
Attendance: 12,000

This is from Georgia Championship Wrestling, who held a one night tag team tournament on Thanksgiving. The ring announcer welcomes us to the show and brings in GCW boss Ole Anderson, who has a trophy and $50,000 for the winners. Savage looks like he would in his glory years and Magnum….well he never really changed. The Mongolians are your standard evil team and had been around in various versions for about twenty years at this point.

Savage and we’ll say #1 start things off with Savage taking him to the rope. With that brings up in a hurry, Magnum comes in to headlock takeover (the much bigger) #2. Savage comes back in for the same but #1 tags himself back in. Magnum isn’t having any of this and knocks both of them down before handing it back to Savage for another headlock. Some alternating front facelocks have #2 in trouble until #1 grabs one on Savage.

#2 comes in for an elbow and armbar of his own but Savage rolls over and brings Magnum back in. House is cleaned and a slam puts #2 down, only to have #1 come back in and hammer away some more. A crawl between the legs allows the hot tag to Savage and house is cleaned, including a middle rope elbow (!) to finish #1 at 7:01.

Rating: D. Definitely a pretty lame match but this was much more about “hey did you know Savage and Magnum teamed together?”. They weren’t a regular team and there was nothing about them that suggested they worked overly well together. Still though, Savage is always worth a look and the middle rope version of the elbow was bizarre.