klunderbunker
Welcome to My (And Not Sly's) House
Starrcade 1986
Date: November 27, 1986
Location: Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, North Carolina/The Omni, Atlanta, Georgia
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Rick Stewart, Bob Caudle, Johnny Weaver
So this is another one in my sudden surge through Starrcade. This is a show far more famous for what didnt happen here rather than what did. This was supposed to be Magnum TAs night. Its widely known that he was going to get the world title and become the NWAs answer to Hulk Hogan which very well could have worked if done right. However, he wrapped his car around a tree and never wrestled again.
Instead we get the rapidly turned face Nikita Koloff fighting for the title. I guess he was all they could think of. Anyway, the rest of the card is built around a scaffold matche which is rather dumb ideas but whatever. This is a VERY hard show to find complete as the Turner version hacked it to death, cutting about half the card, which to be fair could have saved the company from charges of selling torture. This is considered an awful show so lets get to it.
A final few notes: this goes back and forth between Atlanta and Greensboro and Ill do my best to tell you which is which. Also Ill be going in the order I have here, which isnt the order the PPV aired in. This is how they were released on the tape I have, but again Ill let you know the actual order as well as I can.
This has to be out of order as we have zero introduction, as in not even a video or welcome to the show.
Brad Armstrong vs. Jimmy Garvin
This is the seventh match listed on the card, so Id assume this was the first match at one of the venues. Garvin is allegedly gorgeous here and comes out to Sharp Dressed Man so at least we get a good song out of this. He couldnt do much but that man could strut. No entrance for Armstrong, who is one of the most underrated in ring guys ever. Tony Schiavone is the in ring announcer.
Garvin has his wife Precious with him and is the heel here. Tony and some guy named Rick are the announcers. No clue who Rick is. The referees name is Scrappy. I always hated that fucking dog. Nice and quick mat stuff to start. Garvin was actually decent at this point. Apparently his name is Rick Stewart and this is in Atlanta. I tend to like guys in white tights but Garvin isnt working for me.
Did everyone in the 80s have long curly hair other than Flair? Amrstrong goes to the arm and controls Garvin on the mat. The commentary is non-existent for the most part here. Im not sure if I like that or not. Solie was known for not saying a word for mintues at a time which is weird, but its what Id prefer over Cole never shutting up. Garvin goes for the leg and plays to the crowd at the same time. See how easy that is? He shouts HE AINT GOING NOWHERE and the fans loudly boo.
And now back to Armstrong with a chinlock. I dont think theyve both been on their feet 30 seconds so far. Precious distracts the referee so Garvin can use some hair. Again: simple yet effective. Armstrong gets caught in a headscissors and does a reverse nip up to get out of it. Nice one. This is coming off like the longest opening sequence in history. Literally theyve been fighting almost ten minutes and have been on the mat well over 8.
Garvin gets a rollup for two with tights. For no apparent reason the referee stops counting and goes around to check for tights. Why? What if Garvin wasnt cheating and the referee just cost Garvin a pin? The biggest move of the match so far: Garvin hits a belly to back on Armstrong. Garvin throws him to the floor and Precious gets on his nerves. Three minutes left as you can see the ending coming.
Two minutes to go and they hit head to head so we can take a nap. The crowd is staying into this which is rather surprising for some reason. Garvin shoots the half for two as were down to 60 seconds. Sleeper is countered and we get some rollups with 30 to go. Garvin misses a top rope splash as the bell rings.
Rating: C+. I liked this. They cranked it WAY up at about 5 minutes to go and it got good. The mat work was rather interesting to see as it was very different from what you would have been used to today. This wasnt bad and its definitely not for everyone, but I liked it fairly well.
Armstrong beats up Garvin afterwards.
As I expected were off to Greensboro now where someone is singing in Spanish.
Hector Guerrero/Baron Von Rashcke vs. Shaska Whatley/Barbarian
So if I understand this right were skipping Tim Horner/Nelson Royal vs. The Kernoodle Brothers. Hector is more famous as the Gobbledygooker and Eddies more talented older brother. Barbarian you know. Rashcke is a famous heel and the original manager of the Powers of Pain, one of which is Barbarian. Whatley is a midcard heel.
Big brawl to start. The commentators are Bob Caudle and Johnny Weaver, who is famous for being credited with inventing the sleeper. Whatley is a very fat man. Hector is of course moving so fast hes hard to keep track of. The heels take over on Hector and hes in trouble already. Power vs. speed at the moment which is the best combination possible. And there goes Barbarian to the floor as Hector hits a big old plancha which is INSANE at this time.
Barbarian drops him over the railing and you literally cant see it. There arent any lights there and the only reason I know is because were told that. Weaver leaves to go interview Dusty Rhodes. Thanks Big Dust for taking our commentator so he can talk to you. Guerrero is getting picked apart here. The fans want the Baron. Total heel dominance as Hector cant get a tag.
He does a thing where he runs around the ring on his knees which was one of Eddies things later on. Whatley spits on him but Guerrero gets a RUNNING SPIT on him, which somehow lets him get the tag. Weird. Raschke is a famous heel but is a face here which is odd to see. Whatley misses a corner splash and Baron gets a quick pin. This was clipped.
Rating: D. Its five minutes of Hector getting beaten down then a one minute annihilation by Baron who was shall we say sloppy. This was more or less nothing of note and not very good at all. Weak little match but it got the crowd going so Ill give it points for that I suppose.
Big beatdown on Baron afterwards. Dang he looks old.
US Tag Titles: Khruscher Khruschev/Ivan Koloff vs. Kansas Jayhawks
The Jayhawks are Bobby Jaggers (regional guy) and Dutch Mantel (semi-famous guy, former creative member in TNA). Koloff beat Sammartino to break his seven year run with the title and Khruschev is more famous as Smash of Demolition. This is No DQ. I would assume that after this well be alternating from city to city, as in the next match is in Greensboro then back to Atlanta and so on. If not Ill let you know.
Mantel and Ivan start us off. This is a rematch of the US Tag Title Tournament. Big brawl to start as the Russians are in trouble. Why are they tagging if there are no disqualifications? I never get that. Rollup gets two for Ivan and that ends his offense. Nothing at all worth anything so far. Off to Khruschev now vs. Mantel. Mantel botches a drop toehold and Ivan comes in. Dutch never was known for his in ring prowess.
Jaggers looks like Buddy Rose once he got fat. The No DQ aspect has meant nothing so far in the slightest. The Russians take over here and beat the tar out of Mantel, proving once and for all that Communism isnt all bad. Hot tag to Bobby and the match goes into slow motion. Everyone goes at it at once, leaving Khruschev vs. Jaggers who I think are the legal men. Ivan gets his chain but Mantel gets his whip to stop the chain shot. And then Jaggers gets hit in the head by the chain to end it. That last sequence took about 45 seconds.
Rating: D. Pretty stupid match here as everyone was big and slow. The Russians were just a heel team and outside of Central States Wrestling the Jayhawks were just another team. I dont get the point in having the big whip spot if the match ends like 4 seconds later either but thats whatever I guess.
Rick Rude vs. Wahoo McDaniel
This is an Indian Strap Match. Shame were not going to get the Kernoodle Brothers match. Id have loved that for some strange reason. Wahoos headdress is bigger than his ass which is saying something. Rude is managed by Paul Jones, perhaps the most worthless manager in recorded history. There is literally an argument where they both shout NO YOU PUT IT ON FIRST! Wahoo McDaniel is a very fat man.
I think this is the tap the corners version but its not really clear. Wow there really was no intro to this show or anything like that. Either that or the tape I have is short. And what would a violent strap match be without a headlock? Yeah its the corner version. Boring as hell match so far with no explanation as to why these two are fighting.
Rude gets two corners but Wahoo stops him. Wahoo hits him with the strap as I remember how utterly boring these matches can be. The ropes here in Greensboro were always really loud. Three in a row for Wahoo but Rude gets all pesky and were back to the start now. Rude keeps going up top and misses the second time. And then Wahoo gets three in a row and Rude knocks him into the fourth to give McDaniel the win.
Rating: F+. Oh who cares? Would it be that hard to tell us why theyre feuding? Apparently it would be as that was never information we were privy to here. I hate when shows do that. I have no idea why they were fighting but obviously no one would ever watch this match and not know the context right?
Rude and Jones beat down Wahoo afterwards but Baron and Hector make the save.
Central States Title: Sam Houston vs. Bill Dundee
Houston is champion here. This is the title out of the Kansas City promotion. Tony tells us there is animosity here but doesnt go into why. Better than nothing I guess but not by much. Dundee was born in Scotland but raised in Australia and got famous in Memphis. Well of course he did. Houston was rather small and is rather boring on top of that.
Bulldog, Sams finisher, doesnt work as Dundee is doing all kinds of basic heel tactics to stay ahead in this. Dundee hits a top rope punch which looked more like a splash but whatever. The heel and his man boobs take over. Dundee seems fond of grabbing Sams ass.
Now we head to the leg for some Flair inspired offense. And then the referee goes down but sees Dundee use Sams boot against him for the DQ. Its Sams boot, its been in the match the entire time, yet its a foreign object? Then how is Sam allowed to kick at all? I hate stupid plot holes like that.
Rating: D. This was a painfully generic match with a VERY stupid finish. Sam looked like a jobber out there at times and Dundees offense was all over the place. Just not a very good match at all and of course its one of the longest so far tonight. Yeah Ive got nothing to say here.
Paul Jones vs. Jimmy Valiant
They hate each other, this is like their third hair vs. hair match and THANKFULLY this ends the feud. This feud went on forever and NO ONE cared. Basically Valiant is a really old guy and Jones hated him for no apparent reason and had like 5 guys randomly fight him. One of them, Manny Fernandez, is locked in a cage here. Oh and its Valiants valets hair against Jones.
Jones basically cant do anything so he grabs a foreign object to get a bit of offense in as apparently this feud has been going on for three years. Valiant is busted open. Basically imagine a Bobby Heenan match but with even less talent. Valiant makes his comeback with his 90% punching offense. Sleeper goes on and Valiant gets Jones foreign object to knock him out for the pin.
Rating: F. With it being the way I described it, what other grade would you expect here? No one wanted to see this at this point, but for some reason Valiant got a big pop. Maybe people did want to see it but it certainly doesnt hold up today.
Post match the hair is shaved but some of Jones men come down to massacre Valiant.
Ronnie Garvin vs. Big Bubba Rogers
This is a Louisville street fight in Atlanta. Rogers is more famous as the Big Boss Man and is still Cornettes bodyguard here. More or less a Texas Deathmatch here as you get a pin and the other person has until ten to get up. Ok scratch that as you can win by pin or a ten count. Well if you can get a ten why not cover them for a three so they have seven seconds less?
Also falls count anywhere on the floor of the Omni. Wouldnt that mean the ring is out of bounds since the mat is above the floor. Boss Man is HUGE here, probably getting over 420 or so. Garvin, that vermin, does nothing but punch for the most part. Basically both guys go in and then get thrown back out seconds later. And Garvin throws soda in Bubbas face. Why would punches be stronger with soda in his eyes?
Bubba gets a shot in with a roll of quarters and Garvin stays down for seven. Since Bubba couldnt put a foot on him though hes up at seven and we keep going. Bubba is a pale, pale man. Garvin ties him to the ropes which does nothing before a bearhug does even less. This is weak as hell if youre missing that. They waste more time as Bubba is knocked to the floor for eight.
Back in the ring Bubba goes up but is slammed off. Garvin covers but is launched onto the referee. A Piledriver gets two and Cornette pops him with the tennis racket. Ten is counted on both guys, first man up wins, Garvin almost gets up, Bubba grabs Youngs pants so Cornette gets another racket shot to give Bubba the win. Wow that was a long sentence.
Rating: D. This was almost nothing but punches from Garvin and boring. Also who has an 8 minute last man standing (more or less as there were two covers) match? And who thought Ronnie Garvin should be out there at all? This was just boring. Its not particularly horrible, but there was just nothing special going on here at all.
TV Title: Dusty Rhodes vs. Tully Blanchard
First blood match here with Dusty holding the title, naturally. And here we have a MAJOR issue with editing tapes. JJ is seen standing in the corner behind Tully and is fine. Dusty takes his shirt off and goes to throw it away but the camera cuts and you never see it hit the ground. What you DO see is JJ, busted WIDE open and bleeding profusely without being touched at all.
Heres what happened. He tried to put a helmet on Tully and was told no. He tried to put Vaseline on Tully but was told no. He was trying something else and Dusty DRILLED him with an elbow and it busted JJ open. This made Tully realize he couldnt take an elbow or hed get busted, which is pointed out here. BUT OF COURSE we dont need to see that because we needed the room for Boogie Woogie Man vs. a manager in their THIRD hair vs. hair match!
Now we hear about it but still no explanation of the elbow to Dillon. Ah theres the explanation. But we couldnt see the elbow itself could we? Nah thats a waste of time I suppose. They circle each other A LOT and punch a bit. Boring match so far. Dusty gets the elbow and then chops him. And lets go for the leg because SO many people bleed from the leg. I guess Dusty thinks that since he oozes fat from everywhere that normal people regularly bleed from everywhere.
Dusty goes into the corner with him and JJ pulls Dustys leg, bringing him down on the referee. RIP Earl Hebner I guess as that is like a boulder hitting you. Dusty punches Tully until hes busted open. JJ uses the Vaseline from earlier to close the wound and hands Tully a roll of quarters to drill Dusty with and bust him open. The referee sees it and we have a new champion.
Rating: D. This was about 50% stalling, 35% punches and 15% laying around. Yep its a Dusty Rhodes match after 85. This was a way for Dusty to lose the title without having to be pinned and of course we get a false finish because that is Dustys custom. Also dude, the same weapon spot (roll of coins) in back to back matches? You couldnt get brass knuckles or something? Seriously?
Midnight Express vs. Road Warriors
This is the Skywalkers match, which means scaffold. You have to throw them off to win. Its Condrey and Eaton if youre curious. The Express doesnt want to go up. This match is famous for its post match spot far more than anything in the match. Condrey keeps climbing back down. Cornettes rantings are hilarious. The scaffold here is at least wide so they have some room to maneuver.
Hawk vs. Condrey and Animal vs. Eaton as they move slowly and do little more than punch out of pure fear. Honestly who can blame them though? The match is of course painfully boring as you sit here being afraid of them dying and such. The Express throws powder to take the advantage and Hawk almost is thrown down.
Eaton falls under the scaffold but holds onto the ladder and Hawks feet. He looks terrified and understandably so. I never got why this kind of match was considered good due to the guys being terrified. Condrey is like screw this and tries to leave but Hawk stops him. They fight on the ladders to get to the scaffold.
Were under the scaffold now as it turns into a big game of chicken where the Midnights get kicked down. I like that much better as it gives them six less feet to fall which is a big difference. The Warriors and Ellering chase Cornette up the scaffold and Cornette, who is TERRIFIED of heights in real life is stuck. He tries to go under also and winds up falling.
Bubba was supposed to catch him and COMPLETELY misses, sending him crashing down feet first, obliterating his knees which are still messed up to this day. He screams/cries to Bubba to PLEASE carry him to the back but Bubba apparently has lost any sort of understanding of the English language because he just doesnt get it at all which apparently Animal was dying of laughter from on top of the scaffold.
Rating: D. I do not like these matches. Im scared of heights also so these matches are a bit much for my tastes. Also the whole idea is kind of stupid as if you dont fall right you break a limb like Cornette more or less did here. I do not get the idea of these matches and theyre never any good because the guys are afraid of, you know, death.
World Tag Titles: Rock and Roll Express vs. Ole Anderson/Arn Anderson
Cage match here. This is the Greensboro main event. HUGE pop for the Express. If you didnt guess, this should be awesome. Why is the referee checking them in a cage match? Arn with a mullet is a weird sight. They have to tag here which I actually wont complain about given whos in there. Gibson vs. Ole to start and its a brawl almost immediately with everyone in there.
Sweet damn Morton is over. He had a mini-feud with Flair that was fairly awesome. All Express so far which I can almost guarantee wont last long. Dang Arn and Ole look a lot alike. Robert vs. Arn here. Gibson gets his knee worked on as were just waiting for Morton to come in and get destroyed. Figure Four is blocked but Ole is right back into it.
The fans chant Rock and Roll. I would have thought this was a country crowd. Step over toe hole has Roberts in big trouble as they rip the knee apart. Enziguri hits Arn and theres Morton who eats cage and flies around like a rag doll. If youve never seen a Rock and Roll Express match, in short, the idea is that Robert starts and makes the hot tag to Ricky who then is annihilated for a long time and then gets away for the REAL hot tag to Robert which leads to the finish.
Weavers speech is getting very slurred here so I think he might be channeling his inner Heenan. Lots of arm work here as you would expect. I love that hammerlock slam for some reason. Its fun watching Arn and Ole rip the arm apart like that. It never fails at being awesome for some reason. Morton is busted open and Weaver can barely talk. Ricky gets a knee lift out of NOWHERE and the crowd pops like a cherry.
No tag though as Ole gets a knee in to stop the tag. I think the match is clipped a bit here as that camera shot jumped a bit. Not sure though. They slug it out on their knees and Morton is in big trouble. Spinebuster gets two. Is there ANYONE that did less for more pay other than Robert Gibson? He was on the apron for 70% of the time but was considered the leader of the team.
AGAIN Morton cant get the tag and again his arm gets worked on. You would think it would break off by now. Morton throws punches to take Arn down but collapses from exhaustion. For the fifth time he cant make a tag. These false tags are awesome because when it happens the place is going to erupt.
Just to show off, Ricky gets a small package for two. And then heres Gibson in as hes just like fuck it lets fight. Dropkick to Ole and Ricky pins him. Wait what? NO HOT TAG? You tease it for 10 minutes and NOTHING? I REALLY do not agree with that ending at all.
Rating: B-. This was a very good match but like I said the ending is just odd. Why tease it that many times if youre not going to do it. Actually the more I think about it, no one expected the pin there so there was definitely an element of surprise thrown in. That worked well from that side of things. Maybe its not so bad, but it didnt work as well as it could have I dont think.
Video about Magnum, which is really sad as he was 27 when he had to retire.
NWA World Title: Ric Flair vs. Nikita Koloff
More or less everyone knows Flair keeps the belt here which to be fair isnt their fault. Like I mentioned in the intro, everyone knew this was Magnums night until he got hurt so they did the best they could. At least it wasnt Dusty again. That music works every time for Flair. Its rare to see an evil Russian getting cheered but thats the case here.
Also this might be the only time where the US Champion actually was the #1 contender to the world title as Nikita is the US Champion at this point. That belt just looks right on Flair. Theres no other way to put it. Nikita shoves him around and Flair goes out to stall. Chops (called right hands by Tony) just tick Nikita off so Flair hides again.
Fairly back and forth for a good while here as Flair cant figure Nikita out and Nikita cant get anything going for long as Flair keeps escaping. Not bad or anything but just slow starting. Koloff, whose finisher is a running clothesline, gets a running choke instead because hes stupid I guess. Nikita goes over the top and wouldnt you know it, hes hurt his knee.
Flair goes after it and of course runs his mouth because thats what he does best. Figure Four is on already which is rather early Id think. Rope is grabbed and Nikita absorbs chops etc. For about the fourth time tonight, Flair hits Nikita in the head and it wakes Nikita up. Well no one ever accused Flair of being the smartest guy in the world I suppose.
The Flair Flop always makes me chuckle. His eyes roll back into his head and its always funny. Down goes Young and his leg might be hurt. What is this, the 4th match tonight with a ref bump? Nikita hits the Sickle but theres no referee of course. Nikita tries to get him up but is rammed into him so we get a second referee. And so much for that as Nikita hits him with a Sickle too. Koloff shoves Young away twice and the main event of Starrcade ends in a double disqualification.
Rating: C+. Rather standard stuff here with nothing standing out at all for the most part. Flair did his usual thing and Nikita was your typical monster. What more do you really need here? I get that its the last minute replacement but dang man, a double DQ to end the biggest show of the year? I dont know about that.
Big pull apart brawl with the locker room emptying as Raw goes off the air! Wait its WCW so make that Nitro! By big I mean they brawl for like five minutes. Flair is declared the winner I guess by DQ.
Overall Rating: F+. This was really rather bad. Too many gimmick matches, a strange ending and just not very much good wrestling at all. 86 was a weird year as they were shifting from Dusty vs. Horsemen to someone else vs. Horsemen. The problem is no one knew who those people were as Luger was a rookie and Sting would be a rookie next year. It was supposed to be Magnum but that fell through obviously. This is a pretty big misfire from the NWA here and its a rather bad show. Not recommended at all.
Date: November 27, 1986
Location: Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, North Carolina/The Omni, Atlanta, Georgia
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Rick Stewart, Bob Caudle, Johnny Weaver
So this is another one in my sudden surge through Starrcade. This is a show far more famous for what didnt happen here rather than what did. This was supposed to be Magnum TAs night. Its widely known that he was going to get the world title and become the NWAs answer to Hulk Hogan which very well could have worked if done right. However, he wrapped his car around a tree and never wrestled again.
Instead we get the rapidly turned face Nikita Koloff fighting for the title. I guess he was all they could think of. Anyway, the rest of the card is built around a scaffold matche which is rather dumb ideas but whatever. This is a VERY hard show to find complete as the Turner version hacked it to death, cutting about half the card, which to be fair could have saved the company from charges of selling torture. This is considered an awful show so lets get to it.
A final few notes: this goes back and forth between Atlanta and Greensboro and Ill do my best to tell you which is which. Also Ill be going in the order I have here, which isnt the order the PPV aired in. This is how they were released on the tape I have, but again Ill let you know the actual order as well as I can.
This has to be out of order as we have zero introduction, as in not even a video or welcome to the show.
Brad Armstrong vs. Jimmy Garvin
This is the seventh match listed on the card, so Id assume this was the first match at one of the venues. Garvin is allegedly gorgeous here and comes out to Sharp Dressed Man so at least we get a good song out of this. He couldnt do much but that man could strut. No entrance for Armstrong, who is one of the most underrated in ring guys ever. Tony Schiavone is the in ring announcer.
Garvin has his wife Precious with him and is the heel here. Tony and some guy named Rick are the announcers. No clue who Rick is. The referees name is Scrappy. I always hated that fucking dog. Nice and quick mat stuff to start. Garvin was actually decent at this point. Apparently his name is Rick Stewart and this is in Atlanta. I tend to like guys in white tights but Garvin isnt working for me.
Did everyone in the 80s have long curly hair other than Flair? Amrstrong goes to the arm and controls Garvin on the mat. The commentary is non-existent for the most part here. Im not sure if I like that or not. Solie was known for not saying a word for mintues at a time which is weird, but its what Id prefer over Cole never shutting up. Garvin goes for the leg and plays to the crowd at the same time. See how easy that is? He shouts HE AINT GOING NOWHERE and the fans loudly boo.
And now back to Armstrong with a chinlock. I dont think theyve both been on their feet 30 seconds so far. Precious distracts the referee so Garvin can use some hair. Again: simple yet effective. Armstrong gets caught in a headscissors and does a reverse nip up to get out of it. Nice one. This is coming off like the longest opening sequence in history. Literally theyve been fighting almost ten minutes and have been on the mat well over 8.
Garvin gets a rollup for two with tights. For no apparent reason the referee stops counting and goes around to check for tights. Why? What if Garvin wasnt cheating and the referee just cost Garvin a pin? The biggest move of the match so far: Garvin hits a belly to back on Armstrong. Garvin throws him to the floor and Precious gets on his nerves. Three minutes left as you can see the ending coming.
Two minutes to go and they hit head to head so we can take a nap. The crowd is staying into this which is rather surprising for some reason. Garvin shoots the half for two as were down to 60 seconds. Sleeper is countered and we get some rollups with 30 to go. Garvin misses a top rope splash as the bell rings.
Rating: C+. I liked this. They cranked it WAY up at about 5 minutes to go and it got good. The mat work was rather interesting to see as it was very different from what you would have been used to today. This wasnt bad and its definitely not for everyone, but I liked it fairly well.
Armstrong beats up Garvin afterwards.
As I expected were off to Greensboro now where someone is singing in Spanish.
Hector Guerrero/Baron Von Rashcke vs. Shaska Whatley/Barbarian
So if I understand this right were skipping Tim Horner/Nelson Royal vs. The Kernoodle Brothers. Hector is more famous as the Gobbledygooker and Eddies more talented older brother. Barbarian you know. Rashcke is a famous heel and the original manager of the Powers of Pain, one of which is Barbarian. Whatley is a midcard heel.
Big brawl to start. The commentators are Bob Caudle and Johnny Weaver, who is famous for being credited with inventing the sleeper. Whatley is a very fat man. Hector is of course moving so fast hes hard to keep track of. The heels take over on Hector and hes in trouble already. Power vs. speed at the moment which is the best combination possible. And there goes Barbarian to the floor as Hector hits a big old plancha which is INSANE at this time.
Barbarian drops him over the railing and you literally cant see it. There arent any lights there and the only reason I know is because were told that. Weaver leaves to go interview Dusty Rhodes. Thanks Big Dust for taking our commentator so he can talk to you. Guerrero is getting picked apart here. The fans want the Baron. Total heel dominance as Hector cant get a tag.
He does a thing where he runs around the ring on his knees which was one of Eddies things later on. Whatley spits on him but Guerrero gets a RUNNING SPIT on him, which somehow lets him get the tag. Weird. Raschke is a famous heel but is a face here which is odd to see. Whatley misses a corner splash and Baron gets a quick pin. This was clipped.
Rating: D. Its five minutes of Hector getting beaten down then a one minute annihilation by Baron who was shall we say sloppy. This was more or less nothing of note and not very good at all. Weak little match but it got the crowd going so Ill give it points for that I suppose.
Big beatdown on Baron afterwards. Dang he looks old.
US Tag Titles: Khruscher Khruschev/Ivan Koloff vs. Kansas Jayhawks
The Jayhawks are Bobby Jaggers (regional guy) and Dutch Mantel (semi-famous guy, former creative member in TNA). Koloff beat Sammartino to break his seven year run with the title and Khruschev is more famous as Smash of Demolition. This is No DQ. I would assume that after this well be alternating from city to city, as in the next match is in Greensboro then back to Atlanta and so on. If not Ill let you know.
Mantel and Ivan start us off. This is a rematch of the US Tag Title Tournament. Big brawl to start as the Russians are in trouble. Why are they tagging if there are no disqualifications? I never get that. Rollup gets two for Ivan and that ends his offense. Nothing at all worth anything so far. Off to Khruschev now vs. Mantel. Mantel botches a drop toehold and Ivan comes in. Dutch never was known for his in ring prowess.
Jaggers looks like Buddy Rose once he got fat. The No DQ aspect has meant nothing so far in the slightest. The Russians take over here and beat the tar out of Mantel, proving once and for all that Communism isnt all bad. Hot tag to Bobby and the match goes into slow motion. Everyone goes at it at once, leaving Khruschev vs. Jaggers who I think are the legal men. Ivan gets his chain but Mantel gets his whip to stop the chain shot. And then Jaggers gets hit in the head by the chain to end it. That last sequence took about 45 seconds.
Rating: D. Pretty stupid match here as everyone was big and slow. The Russians were just a heel team and outside of Central States Wrestling the Jayhawks were just another team. I dont get the point in having the big whip spot if the match ends like 4 seconds later either but thats whatever I guess.
Rick Rude vs. Wahoo McDaniel
This is an Indian Strap Match. Shame were not going to get the Kernoodle Brothers match. Id have loved that for some strange reason. Wahoos headdress is bigger than his ass which is saying something. Rude is managed by Paul Jones, perhaps the most worthless manager in recorded history. There is literally an argument where they both shout NO YOU PUT IT ON FIRST! Wahoo McDaniel is a very fat man.
I think this is the tap the corners version but its not really clear. Wow there really was no intro to this show or anything like that. Either that or the tape I have is short. And what would a violent strap match be without a headlock? Yeah its the corner version. Boring as hell match so far with no explanation as to why these two are fighting.
Rude gets two corners but Wahoo stops him. Wahoo hits him with the strap as I remember how utterly boring these matches can be. The ropes here in Greensboro were always really loud. Three in a row for Wahoo but Rude gets all pesky and were back to the start now. Rude keeps going up top and misses the second time. And then Wahoo gets three in a row and Rude knocks him into the fourth to give McDaniel the win.
Rating: F+. Oh who cares? Would it be that hard to tell us why theyre feuding? Apparently it would be as that was never information we were privy to here. I hate when shows do that. I have no idea why they were fighting but obviously no one would ever watch this match and not know the context right?
Rude and Jones beat down Wahoo afterwards but Baron and Hector make the save.
Central States Title: Sam Houston vs. Bill Dundee
Houston is champion here. This is the title out of the Kansas City promotion. Tony tells us there is animosity here but doesnt go into why. Better than nothing I guess but not by much. Dundee was born in Scotland but raised in Australia and got famous in Memphis. Well of course he did. Houston was rather small and is rather boring on top of that.
Bulldog, Sams finisher, doesnt work as Dundee is doing all kinds of basic heel tactics to stay ahead in this. Dundee hits a top rope punch which looked more like a splash but whatever. The heel and his man boobs take over. Dundee seems fond of grabbing Sams ass.
Now we head to the leg for some Flair inspired offense. And then the referee goes down but sees Dundee use Sams boot against him for the DQ. Its Sams boot, its been in the match the entire time, yet its a foreign object? Then how is Sam allowed to kick at all? I hate stupid plot holes like that.
Rating: D. This was a painfully generic match with a VERY stupid finish. Sam looked like a jobber out there at times and Dundees offense was all over the place. Just not a very good match at all and of course its one of the longest so far tonight. Yeah Ive got nothing to say here.
Paul Jones vs. Jimmy Valiant
They hate each other, this is like their third hair vs. hair match and THANKFULLY this ends the feud. This feud went on forever and NO ONE cared. Basically Valiant is a really old guy and Jones hated him for no apparent reason and had like 5 guys randomly fight him. One of them, Manny Fernandez, is locked in a cage here. Oh and its Valiants valets hair against Jones.
Jones basically cant do anything so he grabs a foreign object to get a bit of offense in as apparently this feud has been going on for three years. Valiant is busted open. Basically imagine a Bobby Heenan match but with even less talent. Valiant makes his comeback with his 90% punching offense. Sleeper goes on and Valiant gets Jones foreign object to knock him out for the pin.
Rating: F. With it being the way I described it, what other grade would you expect here? No one wanted to see this at this point, but for some reason Valiant got a big pop. Maybe people did want to see it but it certainly doesnt hold up today.
Post match the hair is shaved but some of Jones men come down to massacre Valiant.
Ronnie Garvin vs. Big Bubba Rogers
This is a Louisville street fight in Atlanta. Rogers is more famous as the Big Boss Man and is still Cornettes bodyguard here. More or less a Texas Deathmatch here as you get a pin and the other person has until ten to get up. Ok scratch that as you can win by pin or a ten count. Well if you can get a ten why not cover them for a three so they have seven seconds less?
Also falls count anywhere on the floor of the Omni. Wouldnt that mean the ring is out of bounds since the mat is above the floor. Boss Man is HUGE here, probably getting over 420 or so. Garvin, that vermin, does nothing but punch for the most part. Basically both guys go in and then get thrown back out seconds later. And Garvin throws soda in Bubbas face. Why would punches be stronger with soda in his eyes?
Bubba gets a shot in with a roll of quarters and Garvin stays down for seven. Since Bubba couldnt put a foot on him though hes up at seven and we keep going. Bubba is a pale, pale man. Garvin ties him to the ropes which does nothing before a bearhug does even less. This is weak as hell if youre missing that. They waste more time as Bubba is knocked to the floor for eight.
Back in the ring Bubba goes up but is slammed off. Garvin covers but is launched onto the referee. A Piledriver gets two and Cornette pops him with the tennis racket. Ten is counted on both guys, first man up wins, Garvin almost gets up, Bubba grabs Youngs pants so Cornette gets another racket shot to give Bubba the win. Wow that was a long sentence.
Rating: D. This was almost nothing but punches from Garvin and boring. Also who has an 8 minute last man standing (more or less as there were two covers) match? And who thought Ronnie Garvin should be out there at all? This was just boring. Its not particularly horrible, but there was just nothing special going on here at all.
TV Title: Dusty Rhodes vs. Tully Blanchard
First blood match here with Dusty holding the title, naturally. And here we have a MAJOR issue with editing tapes. JJ is seen standing in the corner behind Tully and is fine. Dusty takes his shirt off and goes to throw it away but the camera cuts and you never see it hit the ground. What you DO see is JJ, busted WIDE open and bleeding profusely without being touched at all.
Heres what happened. He tried to put a helmet on Tully and was told no. He tried to put Vaseline on Tully but was told no. He was trying something else and Dusty DRILLED him with an elbow and it busted JJ open. This made Tully realize he couldnt take an elbow or hed get busted, which is pointed out here. BUT OF COURSE we dont need to see that because we needed the room for Boogie Woogie Man vs. a manager in their THIRD hair vs. hair match!
Now we hear about it but still no explanation of the elbow to Dillon. Ah theres the explanation. But we couldnt see the elbow itself could we? Nah thats a waste of time I suppose. They circle each other A LOT and punch a bit. Boring match so far. Dusty gets the elbow and then chops him. And lets go for the leg because SO many people bleed from the leg. I guess Dusty thinks that since he oozes fat from everywhere that normal people regularly bleed from everywhere.
Dusty goes into the corner with him and JJ pulls Dustys leg, bringing him down on the referee. RIP Earl Hebner I guess as that is like a boulder hitting you. Dusty punches Tully until hes busted open. JJ uses the Vaseline from earlier to close the wound and hands Tully a roll of quarters to drill Dusty with and bust him open. The referee sees it and we have a new champion.
Rating: D. This was about 50% stalling, 35% punches and 15% laying around. Yep its a Dusty Rhodes match after 85. This was a way for Dusty to lose the title without having to be pinned and of course we get a false finish because that is Dustys custom. Also dude, the same weapon spot (roll of coins) in back to back matches? You couldnt get brass knuckles or something? Seriously?
Midnight Express vs. Road Warriors
This is the Skywalkers match, which means scaffold. You have to throw them off to win. Its Condrey and Eaton if youre curious. The Express doesnt want to go up. This match is famous for its post match spot far more than anything in the match. Condrey keeps climbing back down. Cornettes rantings are hilarious. The scaffold here is at least wide so they have some room to maneuver.
Hawk vs. Condrey and Animal vs. Eaton as they move slowly and do little more than punch out of pure fear. Honestly who can blame them though? The match is of course painfully boring as you sit here being afraid of them dying and such. The Express throws powder to take the advantage and Hawk almost is thrown down.
Eaton falls under the scaffold but holds onto the ladder and Hawks feet. He looks terrified and understandably so. I never got why this kind of match was considered good due to the guys being terrified. Condrey is like screw this and tries to leave but Hawk stops him. They fight on the ladders to get to the scaffold.
Were under the scaffold now as it turns into a big game of chicken where the Midnights get kicked down. I like that much better as it gives them six less feet to fall which is a big difference. The Warriors and Ellering chase Cornette up the scaffold and Cornette, who is TERRIFIED of heights in real life is stuck. He tries to go under also and winds up falling.
Bubba was supposed to catch him and COMPLETELY misses, sending him crashing down feet first, obliterating his knees which are still messed up to this day. He screams/cries to Bubba to PLEASE carry him to the back but Bubba apparently has lost any sort of understanding of the English language because he just doesnt get it at all which apparently Animal was dying of laughter from on top of the scaffold.
Rating: D. I do not like these matches. Im scared of heights also so these matches are a bit much for my tastes. Also the whole idea is kind of stupid as if you dont fall right you break a limb like Cornette more or less did here. I do not get the idea of these matches and theyre never any good because the guys are afraid of, you know, death.
World Tag Titles: Rock and Roll Express vs. Ole Anderson/Arn Anderson
Cage match here. This is the Greensboro main event. HUGE pop for the Express. If you didnt guess, this should be awesome. Why is the referee checking them in a cage match? Arn with a mullet is a weird sight. They have to tag here which I actually wont complain about given whos in there. Gibson vs. Ole to start and its a brawl almost immediately with everyone in there.
Sweet damn Morton is over. He had a mini-feud with Flair that was fairly awesome. All Express so far which I can almost guarantee wont last long. Dang Arn and Ole look a lot alike. Robert vs. Arn here. Gibson gets his knee worked on as were just waiting for Morton to come in and get destroyed. Figure Four is blocked but Ole is right back into it.
The fans chant Rock and Roll. I would have thought this was a country crowd. Step over toe hole has Roberts in big trouble as they rip the knee apart. Enziguri hits Arn and theres Morton who eats cage and flies around like a rag doll. If youve never seen a Rock and Roll Express match, in short, the idea is that Robert starts and makes the hot tag to Ricky who then is annihilated for a long time and then gets away for the REAL hot tag to Robert which leads to the finish.
Weavers speech is getting very slurred here so I think he might be channeling his inner Heenan. Lots of arm work here as you would expect. I love that hammerlock slam for some reason. Its fun watching Arn and Ole rip the arm apart like that. It never fails at being awesome for some reason. Morton is busted open and Weaver can barely talk. Ricky gets a knee lift out of NOWHERE and the crowd pops like a cherry.
No tag though as Ole gets a knee in to stop the tag. I think the match is clipped a bit here as that camera shot jumped a bit. Not sure though. They slug it out on their knees and Morton is in big trouble. Spinebuster gets two. Is there ANYONE that did less for more pay other than Robert Gibson? He was on the apron for 70% of the time but was considered the leader of the team.
AGAIN Morton cant get the tag and again his arm gets worked on. You would think it would break off by now. Morton throws punches to take Arn down but collapses from exhaustion. For the fifth time he cant make a tag. These false tags are awesome because when it happens the place is going to erupt.
Just to show off, Ricky gets a small package for two. And then heres Gibson in as hes just like fuck it lets fight. Dropkick to Ole and Ricky pins him. Wait what? NO HOT TAG? You tease it for 10 minutes and NOTHING? I REALLY do not agree with that ending at all.
Rating: B-. This was a very good match but like I said the ending is just odd. Why tease it that many times if youre not going to do it. Actually the more I think about it, no one expected the pin there so there was definitely an element of surprise thrown in. That worked well from that side of things. Maybe its not so bad, but it didnt work as well as it could have I dont think.
Video about Magnum, which is really sad as he was 27 when he had to retire.
NWA World Title: Ric Flair vs. Nikita Koloff
More or less everyone knows Flair keeps the belt here which to be fair isnt their fault. Like I mentioned in the intro, everyone knew this was Magnums night until he got hurt so they did the best they could. At least it wasnt Dusty again. That music works every time for Flair. Its rare to see an evil Russian getting cheered but thats the case here.
Also this might be the only time where the US Champion actually was the #1 contender to the world title as Nikita is the US Champion at this point. That belt just looks right on Flair. Theres no other way to put it. Nikita shoves him around and Flair goes out to stall. Chops (called right hands by Tony) just tick Nikita off so Flair hides again.
Fairly back and forth for a good while here as Flair cant figure Nikita out and Nikita cant get anything going for long as Flair keeps escaping. Not bad or anything but just slow starting. Koloff, whose finisher is a running clothesline, gets a running choke instead because hes stupid I guess. Nikita goes over the top and wouldnt you know it, hes hurt his knee.
Flair goes after it and of course runs his mouth because thats what he does best. Figure Four is on already which is rather early Id think. Rope is grabbed and Nikita absorbs chops etc. For about the fourth time tonight, Flair hits Nikita in the head and it wakes Nikita up. Well no one ever accused Flair of being the smartest guy in the world I suppose.
The Flair Flop always makes me chuckle. His eyes roll back into his head and its always funny. Down goes Young and his leg might be hurt. What is this, the 4th match tonight with a ref bump? Nikita hits the Sickle but theres no referee of course. Nikita tries to get him up but is rammed into him so we get a second referee. And so much for that as Nikita hits him with a Sickle too. Koloff shoves Young away twice and the main event of Starrcade ends in a double disqualification.
Rating: C+. Rather standard stuff here with nothing standing out at all for the most part. Flair did his usual thing and Nikita was your typical monster. What more do you really need here? I get that its the last minute replacement but dang man, a double DQ to end the biggest show of the year? I dont know about that.
Big pull apart brawl with the locker room emptying as Raw goes off the air! Wait its WCW so make that Nitro! By big I mean they brawl for like five minutes. Flair is declared the winner I guess by DQ.
Overall Rating: F+. This was really rather bad. Too many gimmick matches, a strange ending and just not very much good wrestling at all. 86 was a weird year as they were shifting from Dusty vs. Horsemen to someone else vs. Horsemen. The problem is no one knew who those people were as Luger was a rookie and Sting would be a rookie next year. It was supposed to be Magnum but that fell through obviously. This is a pretty big misfire from the NWA here and its a rather bad show. Not recommended at all.