WWF House Show
Date: April 22, 1985
Location: Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Attendance: 18,000
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon, Gene Okerlund

This is one of those random house shows that was put up on the WWE Vault channel and there is a good chance that it was put up forty years to the day. We are just a few weeks after the first Wrestlemania and that means it is time for the fairly unexplored fallout period from the then biggest show of all time. Let’s get to it.

Junior Heavyweight Title: The Cobra vs. Barry O

Cobra is defending but doesn’t have the belt here, which has commentary confused. O (short for Orton, and he has a nephew named Randy) jumps him to start fast, with a slam and jumping elbow getting two. Cobra gets sent outside, followed by a neck crank back inside. A running in place powerslam gives O two and we pause for O to grab his own head. Cobra breaks out of a front facelock and slugs away, setting up a slam int a legdrop for two.

O kicks his way out of a sunset flip but gets caught in a headscissors, which has Monsoon annoyed at the referee for checking for a choke. That’s broken up and O hammers away, only to get backdropped into an armbar. As commentary talks about the various champions and contenders, O breaks out but gets caught with a top rope forearm to the head. A middle rope knee gives Cobra two but O gets in a shot of his own.

O’s rope walk splash misses and Cobra just starts slugging away with forearms, setting up a jumping spinwheel kick (that was a big spot in this era). A stomp to the stomach has O bailing to the floor for a needed breather before coming inside to beg for mercy. O grabs the leg for a spinning toehold but Cobra is right back up with another spinning kick. A dropkick puts O on the floor, setting up the slingshot dive. Cobra suplexes him back inside but misses a top rope backsplash. Back up and Cobra grabs a jumping hurricanrana for the pin to retain at 13:20.

Rating: B. Oh man this was starting to get really good in the end but they went home when they should have. The biggest issue here was the clash of styles, as Cobra was wrestling a more lucha style match while O was your traditional heel. Cobra was WAY different than almost anything you would see here and O kept up with him as well as he could. This was a lot of fun and WAY better than I would have expected.

Tatsumi Fujinami vs. Matt Borne

You know, because we needed another big international star. Fujinami isn’t interested in a handshake to start so they fight over a lockup and go to the ropes. Some forearms have Borne down as commentary talks about Fujinami’s footwork. A headlock takeover lets Fujinami crank on him a bit, with Borne getting up. Fujinami backflips out of a suplex and we’re right back to the headlock takeover.

Back up and some shots to the face have Fujinami in trouble for a change, allowing Borne to yell at the referee. The chinlock goes on, allowing Borne to yell at commentary for a change. The choking continues so commentary talks about Jack Nicholson (Okerlund: “One of the biggest athletic supporters in southern California.”). Fujinami fights up, only to get pulled back into a headscissors as I’m not sure if this is the best way to use his talents.

Borne cranks away for a bit before hammering away in the corner. A front facelock keeps the bored fans all the more bored, as does Borne cutting off the comeback attempt. Fujinami finally fights out of a chinlock and hits a dropkick for two. A clothesline puts Borne down again and a bridging German suplex finishes him off at 11:31.

Rating: D+. Gah what was that? This was the clash of styles I was expecting in the opener and it was rough to see as a result. Borne was wrestling a basic style and didn’t let Fujinami do much of anything. You’re only going to get so much out of any legend when you have Borne holding him in a front facelock for so long and it killed anything they could do here.

Jimmy Hart is ready for King Kong Bundy to wreck Swede Hanson. Bundy says Hanson is tough but he’ll look small when they’re in the ring. Then it’s time for Hulk Hogan.

Swede Hanson vs. King Kong Bundy

Hanson is a big guy from North Carolina. They fight over a lockup to start as we hear about Bundy’s nine second win at Wrestlemania, because timing isn’t wrestling’s strong suit. Hanson gets in a shot of his own to rock Bundy and the fans rather approve. Back up and Hanson is rocked with a running forearm but he comes back with a forearm to stagger Bundy again.

Bundy rakes the eyes though and slowly hammers away before sending Hanson face first into the buckle. The slow beating continues as commentary lists off the reasons this company is so awesome. Hanson starts Hulking Up (as Monsoon puts it) and some chops put Bundy in the corner. That’s cut off by a quick Avalanche into a big elbow to give Bundy the pin at 4:38.

Rating: C-. While still not a good match, this was Hanson making Bundy sweat a bit more before Bundy put him away. You could clearly see that Bundy was being built up for something bigger down the line and that would probably be someone in red and yellow. Having him beat various people over and over would build him up and that’s what we saw here.

British Bulldogs vs. Rene Goulet/Johnny Rodz

This is the Bulldogs’ MSG debut as the new generation is coming in. Rodz and Kid start things off but we pause for Goulet to do his thing with his glove. Actually Goulet starts and they lock up after nearly a minute of shenanigans. Kid’s headscissors doesn’t get him very far so he spins around into an armbar to take Goulet down instead. Smith comes in and actually gets shouldered down before Rodz throws her over the top.

Back up and Smith hits a quick dropkick before a knee to the ribs cuts him off again. Kid comes in with a missile dropkick for the save (that didn’t look great) into a nipup (that looked better), followed by a gutwrench suplex for two. Rodz breaks up the chinlock and Goulet comes back in for a knee drop. Kid avoids a diving headbutt though and it’s back to Smith, who is taken down as well.

Rodz elbows Smith down but misses a legdrop, meaning the vertical suplex can connect for two. It’s back to Goulet, who grabs a test of strength on the mat, only to get monkey flipped away. Smith muscles Rodz up for the running powerslam and then fireman’s carries Goulet. Kid climbs onto Goulet’s back and hits a top rope headbutt to pin Rodz at 8:12.

Rating: B-. Not a great match, but you could tell the Bulldogs needed some better opponents. They were a great example of a team with a nice balance of power and speed and it worked well. The finishing sequence alone felt like something different than anything else you would have seen around this time and if you get them the right competition, it would go great.

Ricky Steamboat vs. Moondog Spot

Steamboat starts fast with a hiptoss into a pose into a chop to the floor as the fans seem to like Steamboat so far. Spot stays on the floor long enough that Steamboat goes outside and counters a headlock into a posting. Back in and Spot takes over with a shot to the face and an atomic drop, setting up the chinlock. That’s broken up and Steamboat gets his usually great looking sunset flip which is blocked with a shot to the head.

It’s back to the chinlock as you can see why the Moondogs aren’t so well remembered in the ring. Back up and they collide for a double down, with Steamboat not being able to slam him either. Spot’s shoulder breaker gets two so he goes up, only to get slammed back down. Steamboat strikes away, setting up the high crossbody for the pin at 7:25.

Rating: C+. Steamboat knows how to make a comeback like no other and that was the case again here. Spot wasn’t exactly great in the ring but at least he was able to be a good opponent for Steamboat. Granted it helps when you’re in the ring with one of the best ever, as Steamboat was certainly able to make anyone look good.

WWF Title: Hulk Hogan vs. Magnificent Muraco

Hogan is defending (shocking I know) and Muraco has Mr. Fuji with him. There are no entrances here, which means they didn’t want to edit out Eye Of The Tiger for Hogan. The place is just nuts for Hogan, even if he’s in the always weird looking white gear this time. A hiptoss and jumping knee send Muraco outside, followed by an armbar back inside.

That’s reversed into a slam but Hogan pulls him back down into a hammerlock (which didn’t seem to be the plan but they made a bit of a botch work fine). A legdrop onto the arm keeps Muraco in trouble and another armbar has what’s left of the arm in pain. Back up and Muraco seems to go low, setting up a pull of the leg to take Hogan down.

Muraco starts cranking on the leg but Hogan fights up and hits the corner clothesline. The big elbow misses though and Muraco drops some knees to keep Hogan down. The piledriver doesn’t work for Muraco and it’s time to Hulk Up, even though Hogan doesn’t quite have the sequence down yet. Muraco gets kicked out to the floor and Hogan follows, only for Fuji to offer a distraction. A ram into the apron/post keeps Hogan down for the countout at 13:36.

Rating: C+. This was a way to set up the rematch for the next month and that’s a fine way to go. Muraco is someone who was just big enough to feel like a threat without actually being one, though the fact that he wasn’t on Wrestlemania is a bit odd. Nice enough match to set up the ending though, with Muraco surviving most of the Hulk Up, which will make beating him all the better next time.

Post match Hogan grabs the belt and wants to keep fighting but cuts Muraco off from getting the title and chases him away.

Iron Sheik vs. Mike Rotundo

Freddie Blassie and Lou Albano are here too as Rotundo starts fast, taking Sheik down with a slam before he can even get his gear off. Sheik gets choked with his robe and sent outside for a needed breather. Rotundo grabs a headlock on the mat and cranks away a bit, followed by a sunset flip for two.

Back up and Sheik gets in a suplex before knocking Rotundo outside in a heap. A chinlock into a hammerlock doesn’t last long on Rotundo, who is back up with an atomic drop. Rotundo grinds away on a front facelock before sending Sheik outside for a change. Back in and Rotundo keeps it on the mat with a headlock, which makes sense for two people with deep amateur backgrounds.

Sheik comes back with some choking and sends him to the floor for a chair shot, which is fine with the referee for some reason. The abdominal stretch goes on, followed by the gutwrench suplex (which someone needs to bring back) but Rotundo manages his own suplex for two. Sheik misses a running knee in the corner and gets rolled up for the pin at 14:32.

Rating: B. This wound up being a heck of a match and probably the best Rotundo match I’ve ever seen. Sheik is best known as being almost a caricature for most of his career but he could have a good outing when he had the chance. This was a good example of two people having similar styles and meshing well together and that’s not a bad way to go.

Barry Windham vs. Nikolai Volkoff

Ah so it’s this kind of a show. Albano and Blassie are here again too. Windham works on the arm to start and cranks away at a wristlock. A rollup gets two on Volkoff and he claims a pull of the trunks. To be fair, there is quite a bit of trunk to pull. The arm cranking resumes with an armbar having Volkoff down but he comes back with a shot to the face. Some stomping has Windham in trouble and one heck of a gorilla press sends him flying.

The bearhug stays on the back, with Volkoff lifting him up and smiling about it like an evil powerhouse should. Windham fights out and grabs a sleeper, followed by a dropkick and atomic drop. A headbutt gives us a double down before Volkoff misses a charge into the post. Windham hammers away in the corner but the Iron Sheik comes in for the DQ at 12:29.

Rating: B-. This was another match that took me by surprise as the idea of Volkoff wrestling a good one is quite the odd thing to see. What matters the most here is that both guys were working hard and it was a solid showdown that made me want to see these teams fight again. Which they would, with Windham and Rotundo winning the titles back in about two months.

Post match the beatdown is on until Rotundo makes the save. Not bad for about thirty minutes between two singles matches to set up a tag rematch here. Though a six man tag with the managers would have been fun too.

The Fink hypes up the next MSG show on May 20. We run down the card, with Iron Sheik/Nikolai Volkoff defending against the US Express (Windham/Rotundo) and Muraco vs. Hogan II. There is a bonus match too though, as Brutus Beefcake and Johnny V will team up against David Sammartino (the fans know what’s coming and are more than up for it) and….BRUNO SAMMARTINO (and there’s the monster pop).

Tito Santana and Junkyard Dog are ready for Greg Valentine and Brutus Beefcake.

Tito Santana/Junkyard Dog vs. Brutus Beefcake/Greg Valentine

Johnny V and Jimmy Hart are both here with the villains. It’s a brawl to start with Beefcake and Valentine being knocked to the floor in a hurry. We settle down to Dog and Beefcake running the ropes to start with Dog knocking him down without much trouble. Valentine’s cheap shot from the apron doesn’t work as Beefcake runs into him, allowing Santana to come in.

Santana whips them into each other again and grabs a chinlock on Beefcake. That’s broken up and it’s off to Valentine for a gutbuster to drop Santana. The chinlock goes on for a bit before Beefcake sends Santana outside. Back in and Valentine slowly hammers (there we go) away before Beefcake uses the trunks to cut off a tag attempt. Santana fights up and hammers away, which brings in the other two.

Okerlund is begging for a double DQ but we settle back down. That doesn’t last long as Santana crawls around and gets over to Dog for the house cleaning. A falling headbutt gets two on Valentine but a second one misses as we settle down a bit. Beefcake and Valentine work on Dog’s leg but he gets over to Santana to slug away on Valentine, which just feels right. Santana’s big clothesline gets two on Valentine as everything breaks down again. The flying forearm is enough for Santana to pin Valentine at 13:14.

Rating: B-. There are certain pairs who are going to work well together no matter what they do and that is the case with Valentine and Santana. Those two could have turned a boat race into an exciting match and they made this into an entertaining tag match. If nothing else, it’s interesting to see what very well may have been the future Dream Team’s first match, only a few months before they would win the Tag Team Titles. Solid main event here, as Santana goes from starting Wrestlemania to closing the follow up show.

Post match the villains beat the winners down.

After a break, the arena clears out and the ring is swept of trash as commentary wraps us up.

Overall Rating: B. This was a heck of a show with some rather good matches (the opener, the Tag Team Title singles matches and more) and stuff to make you want to come back later. It’s interesting to see this period as well, as you pretty much don’t have much outside of Saturday Night’s Main Event to tide you over between the first two Wrestlemanias. The crowd was certainly still hot and it made for a good show here. You could definitely get the Wrestlemania fallout vibes here and that is a good sign for the coming months. I had a lot of fun with this and could definitely go with more from this era, which is critically overlooked.

Results
Cobra b. Barry O – Hurricanrana
Tatsumi Fujinami b. Matt Borne – German suplex
King Kong Bundy b. Swede Hanson – Elbow drop
British Bulldogs b. Rene Goulet/Johnny Rodz – Swan dive to Rodz
Ricky Steamboat b. Moondog Spot – High crossbody
Magnificent Muraco b. Hulk Hogan via countout
Mike Rotundo b. Iron Sheik – Rollup
Barry Windham b. Nikolai Volkoff via DQ when Iron Sheik interfered
Tito Santana/Junkyard Dog b. Brutus Beefcake/Greg Valentine – Flying forearm to Valentine

 

 

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Wrestling Challenge
Date: October 11, 1986
Location: Wicomico Youth & Civic Center, Salisbury, Maryland
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon, Bobby Heenan

We’ll do one more of these for now as the big feature from last week saw Roddy Piper vs. Adrian Adonis kicked into high gear. Other than that, there isn’t much going on as far as a major feud, with Hulk Hogan being nowhere to be seen (save for endorsing Honky Tonk Man) and Bobby Heenan wanting competition. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Quick welcome from the hosts.

Opening sequence.

Here’s what’s coming on the show.

Randy Savage vs. Billy Jack Haynes

Non-title and we’re starting with the big match for a change. Savage hides behind Elizabeth when Hayes comes at him to start, prompting Gorilla to call Savage a mouse. We get an inset interview from Elizabeth about how nice Savage is but Savage interrupts and runs her off. Haynes starts fast and knocks him to the floor where Savage needs a breather.

Back in and Savage grabs the rope to avoid a dropkick, setting up the top rope ax handle. They trade big clotheslines (Heenan liked Savage’s better) and Haynes drops a middle rope fist. The full nelson goes on but the referee gets bumped (that’s rare in 1986). Cue referee Danny Davis to DQ Haynes at 4:22.

Rating: C. This was a better match than you usually get on here, but what else were you expecting with Savage involved? Haynes is someone who had a great look but wasn’t really able to back it up with anything else. He looked solid enough in defeat here, but this was about the evil and nothing more, which isn’t the worst idea given how random of a match they had.

Say it with me: Monsoon is livid.

Ricky Steamboat is always asks what makes him mad and the answer is wrestlers who claim to need managers. He has been doing this for eleven years and hasn’t needed any help keeping track of his career. The reality is wrestlers needing help at ringside. Steamboat goes on about how he doesn’t like Jake Roberts and the DDT….and gets cut off by the music mid-sentence.

Bob Orton Jr. and Don Muraco (in something resembling a Roddy Piper costume) show us a clip from last week with the two of them and Adrian Adonis beating the daylights out of Roddy Piper.

In some new footage, we see Piper, with his knee in a huge brace and limping on a baseball bat, promising to take care of those sons of b****** (and yes it’s uncensored) and destroy the Flower Shop. Piper does just that, falling down multiple times, and promises that the war has just begun.

Orton and Muraco are happy that Piper will be limping for the rest of his life and are ready to ruin the rest of him. Then he will know that Orton carried him and that Muraco demands an apology. Piper had that fire in him and there isn’t much more intimidating than that in wrestling.

The Machines speak some Japanese (they all happen to be car manufacturers) and list off some teams they would like to face. Ichiban.

Killer Bees vs. Butch Cooper/Barry O

Blair takes Cooper to the mat to start and, in their insert interview, promise confusion through the powers of the masks. Barry O (the O is for Orton and he has a nephew named Randy) comes in and gets his arm cranked a bit but Brunzell gets pulled out of the air so Cooper can get in a single shot. It’s already back to Blair who cleans house before Brunzell finishes Cooper with a dropkick at 2:35.

Harley Race talks about how he has been the King since before he won the crown. Hawk (yes Hawk) Hogan comes up short to him and that’s why everyone was there when he was crowned. Just keep feeding him people, because he wants to hurt people. Sweet goodness that voice is awesome.

Hart Foundation vs. Mario Mancini/Nick Kiniski

Bret takes Nick (son of Gene) up against the ropes to start and a sunset flip gets two. We get an insert promo from the Harts, as they don’t seem to agree about how much they get alone. Nick armdrags Neidhart down and it’s off to Mancino, who gets taken into the corner. Heenan thinks that, save for Studd and Bundy, the Harts will be the next Tag Team Champions (yep). The Hart Attack finishes Mancini at 1:58.

Post match Danny Davis leaves before the losers leave, which has Gorilla, say it with me, livid.

We go to the Snake Pit and Jake Roberts brings out…..Hulk Hogan. Well that escalated quickly. Hogan doesn’t think much of a single python when he has two 24 inch Pythons. Roberts isn’t impressed but Hogan talks about being on the positive side of things instead of the negative like Jake. Roberts asks if he would ever turn his back on a man that he’s afraid of. Hogan says no and walks off in a pretty awesome moment.

Tito Santana/Pedro Morales vs. Ken Glover/Steve Lombardi

Santana armbars Lombardi (who is quite the brawler….from Brooklyn) and we get a quick insert promo from Pedro, who puts over Santana in Spanish. Pedro comes in and backdrops Lombardi before it’s off to Glover, who gets backdropped as well. The beating continues as Gorilla asks about all the money Heenan owes people for slamming Big John Studd. Before Heenan can answer, the atomic drop finishes Glover at 2:21.

Moondog Spot vs. Toma

Toma jumps over him to start and fires off a chop but misses an elbow. We get an insert promo from Billy Graham in the desert as Spot comes back with a suplex. Toma makes another comeback but Moondog Rex comes in for the DQ at 1:23.

Post match Haku comes in for the big beatdown as I try to get my head around the idea of the Islanders as faces. Toma is named as the winner, and for some reason his name was spelled as “Toma” before and “Tama” (the more common way it was spelled) after.

The Wizard, with Sika, shouts about wanting to hurt people. He has also found Kamala, who is ready to reach the thirty third level of communication. Anyway, Sika is a complete throwback to the old Polynesian warriors and threatens Hulk Hogan.

Overall Rating: C+. Maybe it was the people who appeared or maybe it was the lack of Junkyard Dog but this was one of the more enjoyable Wrestling Challenges I’ve seen so far. The show flew by and had some entertaining stuff throughout. Throw in Piper losing his mind as he wants revenge and this was quite the entertaining 45 or so minutes.

 

 

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WWF House Show
Date: June 27, 1986
Location: Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Attendance: 14,348
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon, Gene Okerlund

Welcome to “I feel like watching some 80s wrestling”, as we have a house show from almost three months after Wrestlemania II. This is a bit of a strange time for the WWF, as Hulk Hogan is ruling the world and there are good feuds beneath him, but he is going to need a big challenger to come after the title. That might be taken care of tonight. Let’s get to it.

Gorilla and Gene welcome us to the show and run down the top of the card.

Based on cards I can find, this show is not in the same order that it aired, but I can’t imagine it makes that much of a difference.

Les Thornton/Tiger Chung Lee vs. US Express

Unfortunately this is the Dan Spivey version of the Express. Thornton and Rotundo start things off and Thornton drops him with a running shoulder. Rotundo pulls him down into a headscissors as Gene talks about a recent golf outing. With that broken up, it’s off to Spivey to headlock Lee over. Spivey grinds away a bit but Lee gets in a shot of his own, allowing Thornton to come back in. The chinlock goes on for a bit until Spivey powers up, only to get caught in a front facelock.

Commentary talks about some of the great teams at the moment, including Iron Sheik/Nikolai Volkoff and George Steele/Junkyard Dog. I question commentary’s definition of “great” as Spivey gets taken down again. Lee comes in for a slam, only to get slammed off the top for his efforts. Rotundo comes in to finally pick up the pace, including a legdrop between Lee’s legs.

We lose the camera feed for a bit before coming back to Lee driving Rotundo into the corner so things can slow right back down. Thornton grabs a chinlock until Rotunda fights up, only to have Lee offer a distraction so the tag doesn’t count. Rotundo finally kicks him away and brings in Spivey for the house cleaning. A backdrop into a jumping elbow gets two but Lee gets dropkicked out to the floor. Back in and it’s Rotundo getting caught in the corner AGAIN as this match just won’t end. This beating doesn’t last as long as it’s back to Spivey for the bulldog to finish Thornton at 12:17.

Rating: D. Oh sweet goodness this was boring and I have no idea why it went on this long. It’s a match where you could cut the time in half and do the same thing that much better. The Spivey version of the Express didn’t work out very well and you could tell that the team was on the downside here. The action was slow and uninteresting and I was begging for it to end, making the last five minutes rather awful. Terrible choice for an opener.

Tony Atlas vs. Harley Race

Race has only been around here full time for about a month and a half now. They trade headlocks to start, with Atlas grinding him down to his knees. Back up and Race tries a headbutt but goes down to the power of racial stereotypes. We’re right back to the headlock but this time they fall outside, with Atlas being knocked over the barricade.

Atlas takes his sweet time coming back inside so Race suplexes him back in for two. Back up and Atlas grabs a suplex of his own, only to miss an elbow. Race puts him down with a swinging neckbreaker and drops some elbows. A dropkick gets Atlas out of trouble and a middle rope headbutt puts Race down again. The splash hits knees though and a sunset flip finishes for Race at 8:27.

Rating: C-. Well, it was better than the opener, at least partially because it was a bit shorter. Atlas came off as confused more than anything else, as he spent a lot of time standing around, allowing Race to either move or block it. Race is of course able to have a good match with just about anyone and he was holding it together until they finally just stopped.

King Tonga vs. Pete Doherty

Tonga is the future Haku/Meng and is currently owed $50,000 for slamming Big John Studd, which he does not seem likely to collect. Doherty is a local heel who was a bit of a mainstay around Boston and even did commentary on some of these shows. Tonga powers him around to start and Doherty is complaining about a non-existent hair pull.

Back up and Tonga kicks him away before glaring Doherty off for trying a ram into the buckle. Doherty has a breather on the floor before coming back inside to miss a charge in the corner. Tonga hammers away and hits a dropkick, followed by a superkick. A flying headbutt finishes Doherty at 4:20.

Rating: C. This was little more than a squash as Tonga ran over him and Doherty got in a grand total of nothing. That being said, that’s kind of the point of someone like Doherty, who was never going to be any kind of a threat to anyone. Tonga was at least a more interesting star and someone who moved around better than almost anyone else on the show so far, though that isn’t a high bar to clear.

Moondog Spot vs. Pedro Morales

They lock up as Gorilla talks about his matches with Bruno Sammartino here in the Garden. Morales starts fast with some backdrops and Spot needs a breather. We pause for Spot to yell at the fans before he grabs a not exactly cranked on headlock. Morales breaks that up without much effort and they stare at each other a bit more.

Spot gets in a shot of his own though and the chinlock goes on. Said chinlock is about as lazy as you can imagine but it stays on for a good while. Morales fights up and gets a sunset out of the corner for no count, allowing Spot to punch him in the face. Not that it matters as Morales small packages him for two, followed by an O’Connor roll for the pin on Spot at 7:27.

Rating: D. Is the WWF mad at Boston for some reason? There have been four matches so far and the best one has been ok at best. Morales is a legend and the fans are going to respond to him, but how interested can you get in a few punches and some rollups? Spot was even worse though, making this another lame match in a show long series of them so far.

Ricky Steamboat vs. Jake Roberts

Ok this HAS to be better. Steamboat chases him to the floor and the fight starts out there as they don’t quite like each other. They get back inside with Steamboat being sent inside but easily blocking a DDT attempt. With Roberts on the floor again, the referee almost hits Steamboat, with commentary NOT being happy with such an action.

Back in and Steamboat sends Roberts into the corner and is rather fired up. Roberts gets tied up in the ropes and hammered some more, only to break free and drop Steamboat with a hard right hand. A clothesline and a heck of a whip into the corner have Steamboat down and Roberts says hit him. Not one to be rude, Steamboat slugs away but gets punched down again as Roberts wants to box.

Steamboat is knocked through the ropes and barely hangs on from crashing out to the floor. Back in and Roberts grabs the sleeper, which he switches into a chinlock to avoid drowsiness. With Steamboat fighting up, Roberts slams him down and hammers away some more. The referee breaks that up as well and commentary still isn’t pleased.

It’s time for the snake but it takes too long, meaning Roberts has to try/miss a running knee lift. A neckbreaker drops Roberts again and Steamboat does it a second time for a bonus. Back up and Roberts hits the knee lift, sending Steamboat outside again. Roberts follows him out but gets posted and sent inside….as Steamboat is counted out at 13:28.

Rating: B. I’m not sure if it was the anger between the two of them or the fact that the show has been so dull until now but this was a rather good match. They were beating each other up and Roberts felt like he was tormenting Steamboat and trying to hurt him at the same time. On the other hand you have Steamboat getting ticked off and fighting back, which is something he does rather well in his own right. Rather strong stuff here, as most of their feud wound up being.

Post match Steamboat stays on him, even sending Roberts into the barricade to bust him open. Back in and the referee has to drag Steamboat off so Roberts can escape.

WWF Title: Hulk Hogan vs. Randy Savage

Hogan is defending and Savage’s (with Miss Elizabeth) Intercontinental Title (which he isn’t carrying) isn’t on the line. Savage jumps Hogan from behind and gets in a belt shot to the back to start rather fast. The top rope ax handle has Hogan in more trouble but Liz gets up on the apron for some reason, allowing Hogan to pop up and start throwing the right hands.

Hogan even takes Savage’s sunglasses and hammers away while wearing stolen property. Savage is sent outside and rammed shoulder first into the post to keep him in trouble. Back in and Hogan drops him again as the fans are rather pleased with these happenings. Liz runs to the back for some reason as Hogan chokes Savage in the air to make it worse.

Hogan hits a suplex and Savage’s arm gets tied in the ropes. That’s fine with Hogan, who bites away (what a monster), only to get sent outside. Savage comes off the top with an ax handle to the floor, allowing Hogan to adjust his trunks a bit. Back in and Savage hits the top rope elbow (to no reaction from commentary) for two, as it’s Hulk Up time. All of the usual sets up the legdrop to retain the title at 7:13.

Rating: C+. Stolen property and attempted cannibalism aside, this wasn’t exactly a classic but Hogan vs. Savage is always worth a look. The most telling part though was the non-reaction to the top rope elbow, as the Intercontinental Champion hitting his finisher had almost no chance of beating Hogan. That’s how big Hogan was at this point and it was rather telling for what was going to be the reality of this feud for, well, ever.

Post match Adrian Adonis comes in to beat on Hogan, who fights off both villains (Adonis’ bra is exposed). Hogan even takes Adonis’ wig as the parade of thefts continues. A lot of posing ensues.

Moondog Rex vs. Billy Jack Haynes

They take their time before locking up, with Haynes grabbing a headlock to take over. Rex powers up and gets in a cheap shot in the corner, only to have the referee block another one so Haynes can take over (commentary still isn’t pleased). Haynes grabs a chinlock with a knee in the back (a rare sight from the good guy), which is broken up with a quick belly to back. A backbreaker stays on the back as Haynes starts staggering around. Rex grabs his own chinlock before missing his own elbow, allowing Haynes to slug away. A dropkick….I think misses Rex (now busted open a bit), but Haynes slaps on the full nelson for the win at 6:08.

Rating: C-. It was better than the other Moondog match, but there were a few parts there where they didn’t quite seem to be on the same page. Haynes was a decent power guy with a good full nelson but there is only so much that he could do. At least it was short, which is rarely a high compliment for any match and it isn’t here either.

King Kong Bundy vs. Junkyard Dog

Bundy bails from the threat of a chain because, you know, it’s a chain. Gorilla says we’re in for a classic, suggesting that he doesn’t know the definition of the word “classic”. They hit the stall button for over a minute before Bundy drives him into the corner for a clean break (though the referee yells at Dog for a bit). Bundy knocks him down but misses the elbow, allowing Dog to fire off the elbows to the head.

After a quick trip tot he floor, Bundy comes back in so he can win a slugout. The splash misses but so does Dog’s headbutt as we’re getting some trash thrown inside. Bundy takes him into the corner for a short form splash, plus a chain shot to the ribs as more trash is coming in. More choking ensues as the referee takes some trash to the head.

Dog slugs back, reaches for the missing chain, and then punches some more. Dog finally grabs the chain and Bundy bails, leaving the referee to yell at Dog again. The chain is put back in the corner and they lock up again. Bundy pulls the chain in but gets headbutted, leaving Dog to toss the referee with the chain for the DQ at 7:39.

Rating: D. Not only was it a bad match, but the fans completely gave up on it about halfway through. Throw in a bad ending (along with the trash) and this was just horrible. I’m not sure what was going on here but it really didn’t work in the slightest. It’s so strange to see the fans rebel against a match like that, though it’s kind of hard to argue against in this case.

Post match Dog beats up the referee again, including a Thump (powerslam). Commentary REALLY is not pleased here as the oddness continues.

Magnificent Muraco vs. Paul Orndorff

Rematch of the Wrestlemania II opener. Fuji goes over to say something the microphones can’t quite pick up on commentary as the referee gets some of the trash from the previous match out of the ring. They fight over a lockup and break it up against the ropes as this feels like they’re taking their time. Muraco shoves him away as we’re already over two minutes in.

Some knees to the head and ribs have Orndorff in trouble and a Hennig neck snap of all things makes it worse. Orndorff knocks him to the floor for a breather though and Muraco is perfectly fine with hitting the stall button again. Back in and Orndorff starts working on the arm as we hear about his football career. The arm cranking goes on for a bit as they might as well have the clock counting down to the time limit draw on one of the advertisement boards.

More trash comes in (and is kicked out much faster this time) as Orndorff keeps the armbar going. The arm cranking reaches about three straight minutes so Gene talks about people he met on a recent flight. Muraco FINALLY fights up and sends him into the corner, setting up….a nerve hold.

Back up and Muraco sends him into the corner again, setting up another nerve hold as you can hear the fans getting REALLY fed up. One piece of trash can be seen sailing in and almost hitting the camera as this is deserving all of the anger it gets. Orndorff fights up and hammers away, accidentally showing some life in this mess. A top rope elbow to the head and an elbow drop have Muraco in trouble and the slugout is on. Orndorff grabs a small package for two as the 20 minute time limit expires at 15:11.

Rating: F. Orndorff showed some fire at the end but this was two guys going out there and more or less taking the main event off after an already horrible show. This was terrible and made me want to see their already bad Wrestlemania match again, as they weren’t trying and made no secret whatsoever about it. Just dreadful

The referee says Orndorff wins and commentary goes off about how little sense that makes, even calling it a “miscarriage of justice” to show you how serious they really are.

Overall Rating: D-. When the third best match of the night is a King Tonga squash, you know you’re in serious trouble. Roberts vs. Steamboat was rather good and Hogan vs. Savage was fun enough, but that is the grand total of anything you might want to see on a show that runs almost two hours. The fans throwing so much trash into the ring that the referee can’t get rid of it fast enough tells you everything you need to know here, as this was one of the worst house shows I’ve ever seen and most of the people involved should have felt embarrassed by what they did out there. They won’t, but they should.

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