Terry Funk (JvK edn.)

[JerryvonKramer]

There is an existing Terry Funk thread, but I am planning a "deep dive" on the Funker in chronological order soon. However, since there have been all these new matches uploaded, I'm going to get a kick start by starting with that stuff. Then I plan to go from 70s all the way to 00s. Obviously, any and all Funk tags will be reviewed in the brother Dory thread.

Dates for remaining Terry matches from new uploads (for my own reference):

Terry Funk vs. Abdullah the Butcher (7/15/78)
Terry Funk vs. Abdullah the Butcher (7/28/78)
Terry Funk and Dick Slater vs. Abdullah The Butcher and Rufus R. Jones (7/21/78)
Terry Funk and Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Abdullah the Butcher and Kintaro Oki (7/14/79)
Terry Funk vs. Ray Candy (3/28/80)
Terry Funk vs. Jumbo Tsuruta (4/4/80)
Terry Funk vs. Rocky Hata (4/10/80)
Terry Funk and Dick Slater vs. Jumbo Tsuruta and Tiger Toguchi (4/12/80)
Terry Funk vs. Abdullah the Butcher (4/18/80)

Terry Funk and Ted DiBiase vs. Abdullah the Butcher and Ray Candy (5/1/80)
Terry Funk vs. Abdullah the Butcher (12/2/80)
Terry Funk and Billy Robinson vs. The Avenger and The Asteroid (10/22/80)
Terry Funk vs. The Asteroid (10/29/80)
Terry Funk vs. Giant Baba (4/26/81)
Terry Funk and Ashura Hara vs. Stan Hansen and Ron Bass (8/26/82)
Terry Funk vs. Crusher Blackwell (9/2/82)
Terry Funk and Giant Baba vs. Stan Hansen and Crusher Blackwell (9/8/82)

(Playlist:

)

[Matt D]

I've watched him in 3-4 of those matches so far and he's just phenomenal in them, especially playing FIP but in shines too. Something that's just crystallizing to me with Terry is the understanding he had of big moments and images.

[WingedEagle]

Hopefully you guys can highlight the ones that are must see.

[Phil Schneider]

I reviewed Funk v. Blackwell over at Segunda Caida

 

http://segundacaida.blogspot.com/2015/08/the-motherfucking-internet-terry-funk-v.html

 

Fellow SC'er MattD came across this youtube page which is uploading a treasure trove of previously unavailable AJPW stuff from the 70's and 80's (Bruno v. Brody, Murdoch v. Race ect.) This is the one that leaped out at me, a dream match you never really dreamed about. Lots of great moments in this with Funk weeble wabble selling from Blackwell's ham hock punches, Terry trying a bunch of headbutts which Blackwell smiles at, and then blasts him with a headbutt of his own (which left a swath of Terry's blood on Blackwell's head, and a rare clean finish. Blackwell is a great guy with a limited amount of footage, and it so fun for a new gem like this to show up.

[Matt D]

And I gif'd the awesome sit out samoan drop that Blackwell did.

 

https://gifs.com/gif/m6YDez

[Loss]

Ooh, can I request a priority review for the additional Funk-Jumbo singles match?

[peachchaos]

There goes my wknd.

[Superstar Sleeze]

If it was Funk & Slater vs Hansen & Bass that would have been too rich. For shame, it wasnt.

[JerryvonKramer]

Hopefully you guys can highlight the ones that are must see.

 

From matches involving Dory, these are ones I've given ***3/4 or above to:

 

Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk vs. Genichiro Tenryu and Rocky Hata (2/12/77) ****

 

Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk vs. Stan Hansen and Jimmy Snuka (4/16/82) ***3/4

 

Dory Funk Jr. And Terry Funk vs. Harley Race and Genichiro Tenryu (4/28/83) ****

 

Dory Funk Jr. And Terry Funk vs. Nick Bockwinkel and Harley Race (12/12/84) ***3/4 [come on this is a DREAM match]

 

All of those are worth going out of your way for. Not listed above because I reviewed them in Dory thread. Everyone probably needs to see that Bock / Race one, just because there are so many legends are in it. 3 NWA champs and the long-time AWA champ.

[WingedEagle]

 

Hopefully you guys can highlight the ones that are must see.

 

From matches involving Dory, these are ones I've given ***3/4 or above to:

 

Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk vs. Genichiro Tenryu and Rocky Hata (2/12/77) ****

 

Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk vs. Stan Hansen and Jimmy Snuka (4/16/82) ***3/4

 

Dory Funk Jr. And Terry Funk vs. Harley Race and Genichiro Tenryu (4/28/83) ****

 

Dory Funk Jr. And Terry Funk vs. Nick Bockwinkel and Harley Race (12/12/84) ***3/4 [come on this is a DREAM match]

 

All of those are worth going out of your way for. Not listed above because I reviewed them in Dory thread. Everyone probably needs to see that Bock / Race one, just because there are so many legends are in it. 3 NWA champs and the long-time AWA champ.

 

 

Now that's the type of guidance I'm looking for! Will hit these when I get home tomorrow.

[NitroFan]

 

Hopefully you guys can highlight the ones that are must see.

 

From matches involving Dory, these are ones I've given ***3/4 or above to:

 

Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk vs. Genichiro Tenryu and Rocky Hata (2/12/77) ****

 

Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk vs. Stan Hansen and Jimmy Snuka (4/16/82) ***3/4

 

Dory Funk Jr. And Terry Funk vs. Harley Race and Genichiro Tenryu (4/28/83) ****

 

Dory Funk Jr. And Terry Funk vs. Nick Bockwinkel and Harley Race (12/12/84) ***3/4 [come on this is a DREAM match]

 

All of those are worth going out of your way for. Not listed above because I reviewed them in Dory thread. Everyone probably needs to see that Bock / Race one, just because there are so many legends are in it. 3 NWA champs and the long-time AWA champ.

 

 

are the tenryu tags online somewhere?

[JerryvonKramer]

Here :https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCV0UiazosYuXyLKN6A6pR5A

 

He's also just added this, which I've added into the OP:

 

Terry Funk and Ted DiBiase vs. Abdullah the Butcher and Ray Candy (5/1/80)

[JerryvonKramer]

Terry Funk vs. Abdullah the Butcher (7/15/78)

I'm fairly curious to know what Abby will do in a longer singles match. I suspect the answer will involve a boatload of cheating and a significant post-match.

Sure enough, Terry is bleeding within the first six minutes and foreign objects and chairs have featured. This is almost like watching one of those old PWI articles with bloody pics, only the images are moving. Abby doesn't have a lot of ideas. See diagram.

 

Terry shows a lot of brutality in his comeback. Lays on good chair shots. Very very over with the crowd. Of course Abby is bleeding by now too. We get a break in the match while Abby won't get in. Lord James Blears gets involved. Dick Slater comes out. I think The Sheik also. Finish was either no contest, count out or DQ. I think count out with Funk winning. Yeah, Abby has run away. Terry goes crazy and starts screaming "right now! Right now in the ring!"

Actually, I think Blears has stopped the match for excessive bleeding. So the match was about 15 and post-match shenanigans 15 ha ha. I think you've got to expect that. We get to see the commentators here and everything. Cool.

This is another chapter in this classic feud. Fun to watch.

***

Terry Funk vs. Abdullah the Butcher (7/28/78)

Dramatic increase in VQ for this one compared to last match. Terry starts on top in this one and beats the crap out of Abduallah, knee drops his leg and applies the spinning to hold. Abby is dazed and Terry bites his head! Holy HepB. Texas jabs. But Abby comes back with karate thrusts.

Of course, the foreign object comes out now. Dick Slater is at ringside to protest. Bearhug now. Both men are bleeding a lot by the way, as if it needs to be said. Terry tries to headbutt his way out of it, which is mental. After quite a long time, Terry comes backdown the Bob and weave and the fancy footwork. Series of running stomps. Trouble with Abby is that you can't really throw him. Terry goes for the eyes with a blatant and nasty looking gouge. Series of elbow drops. Almost all the motion and movement in this match is coming from Funk, he's almost wrestling himself.

Randomly, the match ends with Funk getting counted out. Someone is outside the ring, who is that is it Bobo Brazil? No, it's Rufus R. Jones! Holy randomness. There's some sort of George Steele like figure there too, who is that? I'll tell you trivia fans: it is a chap called Wild Don Wayt --- looks like he worked Calgary some, but he was a Texas guy who also worked Amarillo and Kansas, and I'm guessing the connection is there through Jones. Dick Slater and Jumbo are there too. There are a lot of different conflicts going on.

Typical BS finish, but this one had a bit more of a match to it than the last one, and a great example of what a prime Terry Funk could do against a severely limited opponent.

***1/2

Terry Funk and Dick Slater vs. Abdullah The Butcher and Rufus R. Jones (7/21/78)

For whatever reason, it looks like Dory wasn't on this tour and Slater was the Terry partner replacement. Of course, some haters here would say that's a significant upgrade. I'm not getting into that, but I will say that any and all Slater we can get from the late 70s is a bonus. I find Jones being Abby's partner in crime here so random. VQ is excellent.

When Flair says he wrestled Jones for an hour in the 80s, maybe if you saw him here you'd respect exactly what he's talking about. Even in 78, Jones is an older guy, who has started to sag. Sort of barrel shaped. Think Bobo Brazil and you're half way there. He has very weird strikes and movements. I get the impression he didn't always work like this and is channeling Abby.

Terry plays FIP here in the early going. But then Slater takes over. Essentially they are working double heat. Funk at one point hilariously tries to get Jones up for a butterfly suplex, as if that was EVER going to happen. Ha ha. They do get him up for a double atomic drop though. Jones is the workrate guy for his team! And Funk does get him up for an airplane spin!!

Jones does a lot of headbutts. Slater does a body slam on him. Jones was actually only in his mid-40s here, but he seems older.

Post-match the tracking goes funny but we get a bloody brawl. And lots of bell ringing.

Not as bad as I imagined it might be. End of the tape is pretty choppy.

**1/2

[JerryvonKramer]

Terry Funk and Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Abdullah the Butcher and Kintaro Oki (7/14/79)

 

Abby's partner is named as Kim Li by the uploader, but the only record I can find of Terry tagging with Jumbo on this tour has Oki as the partner. Looking at images, it definitely looks like an older Oki. Abby was really begging around for partners when Sheik wasn't around. I reckon Tor Kamata was generally the best one for him.

 

Jumbo and Oki start out and despite fire, Jumbo finds himself if trouble. Then Terry does and it looks like he's our FIP, which is generally good news. I might take that back about Kamata, because Oki looks mobile and decent.

 

Jumbo is a very dynamic worker and it shines through during this match. Crowd is very hot for him and Terry, here. He even powers Abby over for a suplex. His elbow drops are great too. Jumbo was a terrific performer in the 70s, don't care what anyone says.

 

This was a fun 15-minute match with your typical BS finish. It's almost a given if Abby is in the match. Jumbo outshone Terry a bit here.

 

***

 

Terry Funk vs. Ray Candy (3/28/80)

 

Ray Candy is a black guy, probably better known as Kareem Muhammed, one half of the Zambuie Express. He doesn't look as big as that here. More of a Rufus R. Jones type build. In fact, it looks like he was more or less a direct replacement for Jones on this tour. Why did Abby need to have a slightly out of shape black guy as his ally?

 

He works over Funk with basic offense here. Stomps, headbutts, that sort of thing. Candy really doesn't look very good to me at all. Bearhug. The crowd solidly chants "Terry Terry" through most of this.

 

I have no complaints about this structure, I makes absolutely perfect sense for the babyface to spend the majority of the match getting his arse kicked, and Terry is so good at bumping and selling that he can play that role perfectly. Big transition is when he hits a back suplex. Now the Texas jabs. Left sends Candy down. Body slam, leg drop. Still only two. Swinging neck breaker. Still just two. Thesz press! And that's three.

 

Perfect structure, Terry great in all he does. Candy a very limited opponent. Post-match Abby sneaks in for a beatdown, but Dick Slater is out to make the save.

 

***

 

Terry Funk vs. Jumbo Tsuruta (4/4/80)

 

So what we see in context now is how much Jumbo was an ally to the Funks through their wars weigh Abby and the Sheik. So this is like a true babyface vs babyface match. At the start of this we get the end of some Abby and Ray Candy shenanigans against Funk, Slater, Jumbo and Baba. Slater looks like he was the regular Dory replacement on some of these tours. I'm guessing his was busy booking in the U.S.?

 

Jumbo has different music from the theme we'd know from later on. Of course, Terry comes out to "Spinning Toe Hold". Jumbo is over, but Terry is more over is what I'd say from the fan reaction. He seems like a real superstar here.

 

Early on Jumbo works a headlock. He is very expressive, crank it, uses his body weight well, it's a very good headlock, but it is still a headlock. Airplane spin from Terry, back suplex from Jumbo. Butterfly suplex. Side salto. Sets up for a second butterfly but seems to turn it into a modified abdominal stretch, that was an unusual spot. But I dug the offensive stretch before it. Crowd seems very solidly behind Terry.

 

Big body slam by Jumbo. Knee drop and driving the knee into the back. Reverse chinlock in the Rick Rude manner, but he's really pulling on this. Wow, this is a great chinlock. And I'm not kidding. Structurally,

Jumbo has been working de facto heel in this match. This is basically a heat sequence, and Terry is the face.

 

While I don't think matwork is Jumbo's strongest suit, he's really cranked his holds in this match. Don't see how people could call him a bland worker when he has stuff like this in his locker. Most of the stuff after the chinlock, I can't really call because I don't know if those holds have names.

 

Funk gets into a position to do his Indian deathlock. He does a series of squats before diving backwards. Cool Indian deathlock spot. Dory tends just to fall back multiple times, not seen the squats before. Jumbo escapes eventually and we get an exciting nearfall.

 

He continues to sell the leg for a while after this. Strike exchanges now, and Terry gears up for his Texas jabs. Chop suey and stiff, culminating in Jumbo's Tiger knee. I don't care if it wasn't called the tiger knee, it's the exact move Sagat did. This sends Terry out of the ring.

 

Piledriver by Jumbo now, and an awkward one. Two only. Another piledriver, and a a beautiful one. Two only. Great elbow drop by Jumbo. And a second. And a third. Backbreaker. He holds it over the knee.

 

This has been pretty exciting. I've been popping for these nearfalls. Outside the ring and Terry misses a drop kick. Suplex by Jumbo. Two only! Massive back suplex by Terry. Cover gets two. He should have hooked the leg Jess. Now we get the Texas jabs. I'd say the crowd is 100% pro-Funk. Sunset flip! Two only! Butterfly suplex by Terry. Two only!

 

Man, I'm into this. Cheap swivel nose stomp by Terry. Back slide by Jumbo. Two only! And the bell goes, time limit draw.

 

Man this was awesome. Exciting, action, built tremendously to the end, escalation of intensity and bombs from the early mat work. And post-match we get a shoving match before the hand shake. Respect but an undercurrent of resentment bubbling under. They want to keep fighting, but the ref says no.

 

I'm not sure how high I can go here, it doesn't have that definitive finish you want and a bit too much headlock for me in the early going, but it was sheer awesome from the reverse chinlock onwards. Loved it, loved it. I am unapologetically a mark for both guys. And I was popping for the nearfalls, which takes a lot to do these days.

 

****1/2

[JerryvonKramer]

Terry Funk vs. Rocky Hata (4/10/80)

 

Hata really does have a naff look. Absolutely nothing about him says "star". He looks like an overgrown student who has just got out of bed. Sort yourself out Hata, you're a disgrace!

 

Anyway, roly poly to start. Funk takes over and moves through the gears of his offense. I always like guys hitting two or three of their signature moves in a row. I love stretches of offense like that. Hata breaks it with some slaps. Piledriver by him. Funk comes back with a shinbreaker. Hata applies a headlock. Second shinbreaker by Terry. Spinning toe hold! spinning toe hold! And that's it.

 

Post-match, Abby runs in with a chain. Seems like it doesn't matter who Funk is facing, Abby will run in after the match and beat him up. He wraps the chain around his throat and chokes him out. I seem to recall Funk mentioning this angle in his book. Terry is bloodied. Six young boys hit the ring to try to get Abby off.

 

DiBiase comes out to check on Terry who is convulsing after the attack. Neat threads, Teddy. Height of fashion for 1980 that. They try to revive Terry with water, he seems like he's having an epileptic fit. Dick Slater is out now as well. Terry is swinging wildly now, doesn't know where he is. Notice how Jumbo is not out to help, neat detail.

 

It might have been post-match Abby attack number 243 but this one was quite memorable. Not only for the attack, but also for Terry's outrageous OTT selling antics. Every Terry Funk match I see, I feel like I'm seeing at least one small thing I've never seen before.

 

Match itself was a solid competitive squash against an average opponent. Post-match compelling. Seems impossible to give any Terry match in this setting less than ...

 

***

 

Terry Funk and Dick Slater vs. Jumbo Tsuruta and Tiger Toguchi (4/12/80)

 

Tiger Toguchi is Kim Duk aka Tiger Chung Lee aka the guy you can see in The Golden Child and Red Heat.

 

Funk and Slater cut off the ring well and isolate Toguchi. Slater looks good here, his execution is great, he works at a good pace. His and Funk's sequence on offense against Toguchi was a joy to watch.

 

At this point in his career, Slater wasn't yet a Terry Funk knock off. I think that was a fair bit later. Here he has some similar moves, but just seems like a smooth worker to me. His vertical suplex and piledriver are both excellent.

 

They basically destroy Toguchi in the first fall and pin him while jumbo watches on. This continues into the second fall. Toguchi is in desparate need of a tag, but it's a lot of fun watching these guys tear him apart. After watching so many Funks tags, it's interesting to see Terry as the senior parted on the team.

 

Toguchi gets his tag and Jumbo comes in with three different suplex variations on Terry. Back, gut wrench, butterfly. Beautiful. He carries on. Tiger knee. Backbreaker, holds it. I think Jumbo is such a fantastic offensive worker. Especially when he had an opponent like Funk bumping around and selling everything perfectly.

 

Slater in now and he eats some native double teaming. Shoulder breaker by Toguchi gets the second fall for 1-1.

 

Brainbuster by Terry on Toguchi to start the third fall. This match has had a shit load of action and puts paid to any notion that All Japan in 1980 was matwork heavy. This has been a ton of bombs. Funk and Slater work over Toguchi some more. He comes back with slaps. Jumbo in. Boston crab. Funk accidentally nails Slater going for a double team. Atomic drop by Jumbo. A little comedy spot now as the gajins collide and hug each other, crowd laugh.

 

Toguchi gets to work on Terry. He's looked perfectly fine in this match and hasn't brought it down one iota. Big argument with Joe Higuchi now who shouts very loudly at him. Awesome. Footage gets choppy in the last two minutes. But Terry starts his high pitch yelling and jabbing. Slater and Toguchi take an awkward tumble outside. Piledriver outside by Slater! All four men end up outside, I can see where this is headed ...

 

Yep, the bell goes. Man, this was awesome. The Funk-Jumbo mini feud of April 80 looks like it was really heated and great. I loved this, as much as the singles match. Great great stuff. Slater looked awesome here, but man, Jumbo's doomsday stretch of offense on Terry was magnificent. Loved Funk and Slater tearing Toguchi a new one in the first fall too -- I watched Steiners vs. Fujinami and Iizuka again last night for WTBBP and I thought this match had some of the same intensity as that one, only without the recklessness. On balance, I enjoy them about the same.

 

Seeing Slater here makes me even more gutted that we don't have more of his legendary team with Bob Orton Jr on tape. He looks fantastic.

 

****1/2

 

Terry Funk vs. Abdullah the Butcher (4/18/80)

 

Third of four Funk-Abby matches from the uploads. Says something about Terry's stardom in this period that he was feuding with Jumbo and Abby at the same time. Abby starts out on top here. Same old stuff, head butt, foreign object, dump, post.

 

Terry of course is bleeding in no time. Abby has been more dominant here than in previous matches. Terry had blood in his right eye and seems half blinded. He goes to the eyes as an equaliser. Texas jabs. Fist drop onto the top of the head. And again from the top rope. More punches to the top of the head. Abby bleeding now. More fist drops. With respect to Mr. Funk, he's not Ted on these fist drops.

 

Shinbreaker! Wow, Funk got Abby up for a shinbreaker. That's 400lbs! Pretty epic. Spinning toe hold! Spinning toe hold! Man, is Abby going to tap? No. Fans start chanting Terry Terry.

 

Action goes outside. Funk rams a table into Abby. Both men very groggy. Abby posted. I think we're heading into double count outs-ville. Yep, I bought the ticket back at the table shot. Oh no, match is continuing. Ref surely wasn't counting.

 

Back in and spinning toe hold! Is Abby going to tap? Come on tap! No. He rolls out of the ring. And takes the count out. They continue to fight.

 

This was a good brawl and the best of the Abby matches so far.

 

***3/4

[JerryvonKramer]

Last match before I have to go:

Terry Funk and Ted DiBiase vs. Abdullah the Butcher and Ray Candy (5/1/80)

I don't think I've ever seen DiBiase in All Japan prior to the tour in 1983, so this is a real treat for me.

This wouldn't be that long after Ted's WWF run. He had actually started with Watts in Mid South, and was also still working spots for the dying Amarillo some. He'd been to AJ before in 77 and 78, but as far as I know, we don't have him on tape there.

Funk gives Ray Candy a piledriver on the concrete while Abby mauls Ted and slams his head on a table. Abby gives Funk a back suplex in the ring as Ted nails Candy with a chair. Spinning toehold on Abby. Is he going to tap? Is he fuck. Candy breaks the hold. Ted brings a chair into the ring. Double headbutts by the heels on Funk. Spinning toe hold on Candy. He escapes, but Funk gets the inside cradle for the pin.

Bobby Jaggers comes in the ring for some reason and Funk punches him until he leaves. Random.

Jaggers goes to walk away with Abby and he slams his head into the post! Ha ha.

This was pretty much a cluster fuck but cool to see Ted in AJ so early on.

*1/2

[Matt D]

I really liked Funk/Robinson vs Avenger/Asteroid. Two-Three FIPs, some solid hot tags with work put into them, some hot comebacks. Just good stuff.

[BruceTharpe]

Terry Funk was one my favorite wrestlers as well as people. What a great person who truly loves this business. I will be in Amarillo this weekend with the NWA World Heavyweight Champion TENZAN and hope to connect with Terry for at least a little while. The last time I was in Amarillo was with Rob Conway in February - and we were literally snowed in and couldn't get a flight out. Terry Funk drove through the ice and snow to meet Rob and I for breakfast at the IHOP. What a fantastic individual.

[DR Ackermann]

At this point in his career, Slater wasn't yet a Terry Funk knock off. I think that was a fair bit later. Here he has some similar moves, but just seems like a smooth worker to me. His vertical suplex and piledriver are both excellent.

 

What match were you watching? He is 100% emulating Funk here.

[JerryvonKramer]

Watch Dick Slater later in his career and you'll see what I'm talking about. Here he was emulating Funk only to the extent that any gajin junior partner in AJ would emulate the senior to fit in with the team (see also, Ted or Gordy with Hansen). Slater is not emulating crazy Terry as he would do later.

[Jmare007]

The CC match against Jumbo was fucking awesome. Watched it after checking both Abby matches from 1980 - which were really fun, specially the one from November that only had the mandatory shitty 80's non-finish as a negative point - and it really shows how Terry could work different type of matches depending on the context and opponent. Loved Jumbo not letting Terry breath and holding him down with headlocks, chinlocks and a good chunk of suplexes. But Funk is Funk and even things outs, from then on it's a great back and forth with awesome nearfalls. I thought the match was over like 3 times before the bell signaled the draw, I was bummed that was it. I think it had like 3-4 minutes edited but it doesn't hurt the match one bit.

[peachchaos]

Somebody stop this guy!

 

He just put up a Funks-Malenkos match from 1990.

[peachchaos]

Terry Funk vs. Alexis Smirnoff (7/26/1983)

 

I'm posting this because I think what these uploads emphasize more than anything is the greatness of Terry's All Japan baby face run. Here we have a throwaway TV match in the "final stages" of Funk's career against a guy who is not Brock Lesnar or Stan Hansen, but damn sure looks like a beast when Funk is selling for him. Just an incredible performance by Funk, featuring some of his sickest looking over-the-top bumps outside of his hardcore stuff. Judging by the crowd reaction, you'd think this took place in America with all the buildup of Rocky IV, but this is the Terry Funk we never really see in the States. The match builds to the point where I think they're gonna actually go all out with blood and turn this thing into an epic, but I'm almost thankful they didn't go that far. Instead, we get something I didn't think I'd see which is coming across in spades thanks to these uploads: Terry Funk in All Japan working TV matches like John Cena. Alexis def holds his own as well, but it helps having someone like Funk who will let him really lay in with his punches. And he does lay in the potatoes, goodness. Some of that 90's AJPW stiffness to his punches in this one. When Funk gets Smirnoff in the abdominal stretch - a move I absolutely loathe, mind you - and the crowd rises to their feet in excitement because they know the Rolling Leg Split is coming, my Grinch heart grew 10 sizes. I liked this better than the Blackwell match, for what it's worth. ***3/4

[Matt D]

I really liked Oates vs Funk. It's a bit of a hard match to explain, with a lot of an exhibition feel but one that got heated but never entirely lost control.

[Matt D]

Why aren't people higher on the 7-12-83 Funk vs Bockwinkel match? The new version posted has better VQ than what we had, I think, and might be less clipped (though that could just be before and after the match). It came in 80 something on the DVDVR 80s set but it's so, so good. I don't ever hear anyone talking much about it. The better VQ really adds given so much of the work of both men are their facial expressions.