rainmakerrtv Posted March 31, 2017 Report Share Posted March 31, 2017 AWA All-Star Wrestling on ESPN/TSN for March 1st The Fabulous Ones vs. The Latin Assassins While Stan and Steve had made some guest appearances in the AWA in the past, they were now making their debut appearance as a full time part of the roster, and the crowd was incredibly psyched to see them. The Latin Assassins tried to intimidate them with attempted cheap shots, but the Fabs consistently outfoxed them with a cool , cocky confidence that drew cheers from the fans. They swiftly dispatched Angel Acevedo with a double belly-to-back suplex before leaving the ring to give high fives and sign autographs for the fans. Al Perez was clearly displeased with his partner as they headed out of the ring. Greg Gagne vs. Bob Roop Roop has been pretty much in the background of the Sinister Syndicate for a while, but with the departure of Ken Patera, it looks like he is out to reestablish his claim as one of the most dangerous technical wrestlers in the AWA. He had an long and intense exchange of wrestling and counter wrestling with Greg Gagne, a standout technical wrestler , before a bad fall by Gagne onto his shoulder led Roop to wage war on Gagne's arm. Roop put it through an excruciating series of arm wringers and kneedrops to the elbow before finally dispatching Gagne with a downright sadistic looking Shoulder Breaker. He even looked set to give him another had not the ref intervened. Wahoo McDaniel vs. Doug Somers Ever since joining the Bad News Breakers, Somers and his partner Leo Burke have come out of nowhere to become a force to be reckoned with in the AWA. It seems they have now set their sights on the AWA Southern Tag title, with Somers challenging one half of the current champions in Wahoo McDaniel . Wahoo found it all he could do to keep the "Pretty Boy" (?) contained, as Somers just kept coming at him full bore. Both men were busted open by the time Wahoo was able to catch Somers by suprise coming off the ropes with a big overhand Tomahawk Chop to get the three count, but even then, Somers kept coming at him after the match. It looks like Wahoo and Garvin will end up facing the Bad News Breakers sooner or later. Interview Ken Resnick stood in the ring and introduced Sheikh Adnan Kaissie. The crowd booed loudly as Kaissie came out to the ring with the Sinister Syndicate (Bob Roop, Mr. Olympia, Killer Khan, Botswana Beast & Lord Humongous). Resnick noted that Kaissie seemed strangely pleased with himself, given that he had just lost the services of Ken Patera in the AWA. Kaissie said that Patera was damaged goods, since he was incapable of getting back the World Title to the Syndicate that meant he was no longer of use to the Shiekh. He still had 5 men who could destroy Paul Orndorff, and Killer Khan was going to take care of that job in Bloomington. Kaissie then claimed that he was responsible for the Road Warriors and Jerry Blackwell being run out the AWA. The other stables played their part, but it was the Sheikh's money and planning that made it happen, and pretty soon he would be calling back in those favors. There are big things on the horizon for the Syndicate, he said, and everyone had best watch out when that happened. AWA World Tag Title Match : The Varsity Club © vs. The Can-Am Express This was the first title defense on TV for Steiner and Rotundo, and they were taking on a team that had impressed a lot of people in their recent tour of Japan. The Express showed why as they kept the Varsity Club on their toes with a lot of rapid fire combination and double team moves, tagging in and out with great speed. But Steiner, about to leave on his own tour of Japan himself, caught Zenk in mid-air with a bone crunching power slam then unleashed a series of monstrous suplexes on the young man before tagging in Rotundo to finish him off with a Samoan Drop. After the match, Ken Resnick caught up with them outside the ring and asked Rotundo how he could turn his back on his good friend, Steven Regal, all while Missy Hyatt ran her hands over Rotundo's chest. Rotundo said that Regal had done nothing but drag him into his messes and brought him trouble. The Big Man had shown him the light and he was through with being Regal's babysitter. From now on, Rotundo claimed, he was only going to associate with elite class athletes, and that means the Varsity Club, not punks like Regal and Smiley. AWA American Title match : Da Crusher © vs. Mr. Olympia Crusher came to the ring with the American Title belt around his waist and a keg of beer slung over his shoulder, to the amusement of the crowd. Olympia spent much of the match trying to work Crusher into a Sleeper hold, putting a lot of effort in trying to get it cinched in around Crusher's big bull neck. At one point it looked like he had finally trapped Crusher with the Sleeper, but Crusher drove him hard, back first, several time into the corner turnbuckle to force him to release it , and when Olympia staggered out of the corner, Crusher blasted him with the Bolo Punch to get the pin. After the match, Crusher grabbed a cup and got himself a beer from his keg while the crowd laughed with him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordi Posted March 31, 2017 Report Share Posted March 31, 2017 Enjoyed the title matches and the character work around each of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevinmcfl Posted March 31, 2017 Report Share Posted March 31, 2017 Welcome back! Great show as always. Even when I was a kid, I thought AWA on ESPN did a great show but you have taken it to another level with quality matches throughout the card. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirEdger Posted March 31, 2017 Report Share Posted March 31, 2017 Always great to see you back, rain! As usual, great lineup! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainmakerrtv Posted March 31, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2017 AWA Show from The Met Center, Bloomington, March 1st (as shown on ESPN/TSN Super Cards) Badd Company vs. The PYT Express Tanaka pinned Ware after catching him off the ropes with an Inazuma Leg Lariat Greg Gagne & Curt Hennig vs. Mr. Olympia & Bob Roop The Sinister Syndicate spent much of the match working over Gagne's injured arm, but they couldn't stop him making a blind tag out to Hennig, who then flattened Olympia with the Ax Lariat to get the win. Playboy After Dark vs. Rick Rude, Don Muraco & Bad News Allen Allen pinned Putski after hitting him with the Bad News Blaster AWA World Tag Title Match : The Varsity Club © vs. British Steel Steiner got the one two three after catching Regal in a Belly To Belly Suplex AWA American Title Match : Da Crusher © vs. Lex Luger In a wild match, Crusher caught Luger coming off the ropes with a Running Bolo Punch, but knocked him into the ref, who went flying. While Crusher was checking on the ref, a mysterious man ran into the ring and hit Crusher in the back of the head with the blunt end of a steel spike. Luger, who had by this point recovered, picked up the unconscious Crusher in the Human Torture rack and, when the ref came to and saw that Crusher was out of it, called the match in favor of Luger. As Luger and Hyatt celebrated, the mysterious man joined them in the ring. It was Kevin Sullivan! Is he the Big Man? The crowd was furious but Lex is still the new American Champ. AWA World Title Match : Paul Orndorff © vs. Killer Khan Khan had Orndorff trapped in the corner and came in with a big knee lift, but Luger dodged out of the way just in time and Khan hit his knee on the turnbuckle. Orndorff swiftly rolled up Khan for the one two three. As Orndorff's hand was held up in victory, Khan and Sheikh attacked him from behind and commenced a beat down. Out of nowhere, a man charged through the crowd into the ring (security sure haven't been earning their pay today) and clotheslined both of them out of the ring. This turned out to be none other than Sgt. Slaughter! Sarge helped Orndorff to his feet and then saluted him as the crowd exploded into cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneJackson95 Posted March 31, 2017 Report Share Posted March 31, 2017 Great stuff, I love your version of the AWA so much better than what we got IRL. I love Orndorff as champ and I think the Varsity Club actually fits better here in the '85 AWA than it did on JCP in '88. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainmakerrtv Posted March 31, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2017 AWA Show from Cobo Hall, Detroit, March 2nd British Steel vs. The Latin Assassins Regal forced Acevedo to submit to a cross armbreaker Jack Victory vs. Javier Cruz Victory pinned Cruz after the belly to back cradle suplex Buzz Sawyer vs. Vinnie Valentino Sawyer won after hitting Valentino with a crushing power slam Curt Hennig vs. Mr. Olympia Hennig got the pinfall with a cradle suplex AWA Southern Tag Title Match : Ron Garvin & Wahoo McDaniel © vs. Leo Burke & Doug Somers A bloody, out of control brawl that ended with both teams being disqualified Buddy Rose & Rick Steamboat vs. Rick Rude & Bad News Brown Steamboat thrust kicked Rude into a roll up by Rose for the win Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirEdger Posted March 31, 2017 Report Share Posted March 31, 2017 Always weird for me to see Buddy Rose as a babyface! But it still works with you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainmakerrtv Posted March 31, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2017 Buddy Rose was a great babyface for a fair stretch (close to this period) in Portland. I was as suprised as you were but he made it work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainmakerrtv Posted March 31, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2017 I will say that is does amuse me to no end to team up fat, sloppy Buddy Rose with Eurasian God Ricky Steamboat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirEdger Posted March 31, 2017 Report Share Posted March 31, 2017 Yeah, the visual is quite interesting lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boon Posted April 3, 2017 Report Share Posted April 3, 2017 Buddy Rose was a great face in Portland, in fact Buddy Rose was so good he could flip back and forth and get over, very underrated because of his WWF run.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevinmcfl Posted April 3, 2017 Report Share Posted April 3, 2017 I love Kevin Sullivan here with a young Lex Luger! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainmakerrtv Posted April 10, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2017 AWA All-Star Wrestling on ESPN/TSN for March 8th Rick Steamboat vs. Mick Foley Steamboat was making his first TV appearance after losing the AWA Southern title to Bad News Allen, and was clearly determined to show that he still had what it takes. He was facing Mick Foley, a shaggy newcomer fresh out of Dominic Denucci's school. Foley showed some decent technical skills in the opening lockup and exchanges with Steamboat, but as Steamboat maintained control of the match, Foley started firing off lefts and rights. Steamboat remained unfazed and soon went up top to polish off Foley with the flying cross body press. After the match, Steamboat offered a handshake as a show of respect to the rookie. Foley was clearly shaking his head but still accepted the handshake before leaving the ring, shaking his head all the while. The Fabulous Ones vs. The PYT Express Once again, the Fabs had the fans solidly on their side as they took on Koko Ware and Brickhouse Brown. The PYTs gave them a much stronger run for the money than the Latin Assassins did the week before, being very aggressive with double team moves on Stan and Steve. This would catch up with them when Koko failed to notice a blind tag by the Fabs and leapfrogged Keirn to go right into a big savate kick by Lane. A quick one two three later and the Fabs had picked up another victory. Al Perez vs. Vinnie Valentino It looks like the Latin Assassins are no more, as Perez came out to the ring declaring that he had dropped Angel Acevedo and from now on, he would only be looking out for himself. He would be facing his former partner in the Latin Lovers, Vinnie Valentino, as he showed no patience for Valentino's antics and went after his right arm. Perez put Valentino through a painful series of armlocks before finally forcing him to submit to an excruciating looking cross armbreaker. Just when you think Perez is down, he shows just how dangerous he can be. Mike Rotundo vs. Norman Smiley With Rotundo and Smiley's partners both being away in Japan for a tour, the remaining members of the newly crowned AWA tag champs and British Steel squared off in a singles match. Rotundo had Kevin Sullivan, Lex Luger and Missy Hyatt in his corner, but Smiley was clearly in no mood to be intimidated. He really went after Rotundo, showing technical skills that seemed to catch his more experienced opponent off guard. In the end, however, Rotundo's size and skill won out when he countered out of an attempt at the Norman Conquest and hit Smiley with the Samoan Drop to get the pin. That was not enough for the Varsity Club, however, as Lex Luger came in after the bell and locked him in the Human Torture rack. He kept him in the hold in spite of the protests of the ref, only dropping it when Da Crusher and Badd Company charged to the ring. The Varsity Club then swiftly made tracks, snickering all the way at the damage they had done. Rick Rude vs. Buddy Rose These two had squared off multiple times before, but this match went straight into the gutter from the get go. You could probably count the number of legal moves on the thumbs of one hand, with Rude's offense consisting mostly of low blows and cheap shots, and Rose firing back with eye gouges and biting. The ref tried to get it under control by intervening in Rude choking Rose in the corner, only to get a vicious low blow kick for his troubles. Another ref raced to the ring, only to be immediately side slammed by Rose . As the two continued brawling, the ring ended up being flooded with AWA officials who forced the two to separate. It was then announced that the upcoming matches between the two in San Francisco and Portland would be No DQ matches and that would be the last time these two were allowed to face each other in the ring. Sgt. Slaughter vs. Bob Roop This was Slaughter's first match in the AWA since his surprise appearance at the Met Center, and he clearly had the fans solidly on his side from the get go. The enforcer of the Sinister Syndicate clearly wanted to make Sarge's return short lived, digging into his deep well of technical tricks to get him off his feet and wear him down, but the charismatic Drill Sergeant just kept coming at him full bore. Roop looked like he might just get the Shoulder Breaker on him, but Slaughter was able to flip out of it and blast Roop with the Slaughter Cannon for the pin. He then got on the mic and challenged the Syndicate to take on his Cobra Corps at the Cow Palace. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boon Posted April 10, 2017 Report Share Posted April 10, 2017 Bubby Rose returning to Portland, as a face, in a no DQ match, I buying a plane ticket today (I wonder if Heathrow flew to Portland in 1985?), I'm assuming it's in the Portland sports arena? Someone find Don Coss and Dutch Savage to call the match from the crows nest. Rose will be as over as RVD in the ECW Arena, Ric Flair in Charlotte, Punk in Chicago and Bullet Bob in Birmingham. And against the perfect opponent in Rick Rude, great work... (Massive Buddy Rose Mark) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirEdger Posted April 10, 2017 Report Share Posted April 10, 2017 Oh yeah, those shows in Portland & San Francisco will be really interesting. Crowd will go wild for Buddy there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boon Posted April 10, 2017 Report Share Posted April 10, 2017 Here's his turn in Portland... https://youtu.be/Tx0T3zVIULs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainmakerrtv Posted April 10, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2017 AWA show from the Cow Palace, San Francisco (as seen on ESPN/TSN Super Cards) Lex Luger, Kevin Sullivan & Mike Rotundo vs. Norman Smiley & Bad Company Missy Hyatt tripped Smiley as he came off the ropes, leading to Rotundo hitting him with a leaping clothesline for the pin. After the match, Da Crusher charged the ring and attacked Kevin Sullivan David Schultz & Buzz Sawyer vs. The Brotherhood Of Poland Schultz pinned Putski after he and Sawyer caught him with a spike piledriver Rick Steamboat vs. Jack Victory Steamboat caught Victory in a Tiger Suplex for the win AWA Southern Title Match : Bad News Allen © vs. Ron Garvin Allen nailed Garvin with the Bad News Blaster to defend his belt No DQ match : Rick Rude vs. Buddy Rose Rude was about to get the Rude Awakening on Rose when the Playboy caught him with a brutal low blow back kick, no doubt as payback for all of the low blows in recent matches. Rose then wrapped Rude up in an inside cradle for the win. The Sinister Syndicate vs. The Cobra Corps The Syndicate was out first, with Sheikh Kaissie leading Bob Roop, Mr. Olympia, Killer Khan, Lord Humongous and Botswana Beast to the ring. Sgt. Slaughter came out next, with the Marine Corp Hymn playing over the PA, and got on the mic to announce the members of the Cobra Corps. First out was the World Champion, Paul Orndorff, to huge applause. Then came Greg Gagne and Curt Hennig, who were also cheered by the fans. Slaughter had a sly grin on his face, knowing he was about to reveal the ace up his sleeve. He proceded to introduce the latest member of the Cobra Corps ... CPL. SCOTT HALL!!! The crowd exploded as the huge newcomer rushed to the ring, wearing black trunks and a cammouflage pattern tank top. This threw the Syndicate into a panic as they tried to regroup and face this unknown commodity. There followed a lengthy back and forth match up which finally ended when Sarge whipped Olympia into Hall, who then hit a massive fallaway slam and pinned the masked man. The entire team congratulated each other in the ring as the fans applauded their efforts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirEdger Posted April 10, 2017 Report Share Posted April 10, 2017 Aw yes, the formal pairing of Curt Hennig & Scott Hall! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainmakerrtv Posted April 10, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2017 My inspiration was actually from a podcast discussing, I believe, the AWA 80s set. The discussion was on who would have been a better pick to be Slaughter's trainee than "Rambo" Greg Gagne. The suggestions included Hulk Hogan (not in the AWA at the same time) and Curt Hennig (not quite the right fit in my books) , and then somebody suggested Scott Hall. I thought this was a genius idea, with the green but powerful Hall pairing up with the more experienced Sarge, and has been waiting forever to try it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainmakerrtv Posted April 10, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2017 Only hitch is that haircut would have never passed Marine Corps muster, but I'll spot him a mulligan on that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevinmcfl Posted April 10, 2017 Report Share Posted April 10, 2017 The Sinister Six vs The Cobra Corps will bring months of excitement to the AWA. I really like the pairings here. Large stables just give you so many options. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordi Posted April 11, 2017 Report Share Posted April 11, 2017 Cobra Corps looks like a great face stable for that time and place. I agree with kevin that you have a lot of interesting options between them and that collection of freaks and monsters that is the Sinister Six. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainmakerrtv Posted April 11, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 11, 2017 The Syndicate have some aces of their own to pull out of their sleeves when the time is right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainmakerrtv Posted April 11, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 11, 2017 AWA show from the Portland Memorial Coliseum, Feb. 9th Norman Smiley vs. Mick Foley Smiley made Foley submit to the Norman Conquest Leo Burke & Doug Somers vs. The Latin Lovers Burke pinned Valentino after catching him in a power slam off the ropes AWA Six Man Tag Team Title Match : Mike Shaw, Dave Schultz & Buzz Sawyer vs. Ricky Steamboat & The Can-Am Express Schultz knocked Zenk off the top rope with a clothesline and then pinned him with a diving elbow smash Sgt. Slaughter, Cpl. Scott Hall & Curt Hennig vs. Botsawna Beast, Bob Roop & Mr. Olympia Slaughter and Hennig flattened Olympia with a double lariat then got the pinfall AWA World Title Match : Paul Orndorff © vs. Killer Khan Orndorff hit a sunset flip out of the corner on Khan to succesfully defend his belt The Final Battle : Buddy Rose vs. Rick Rude After a long and bloody battle, Rude tried to hit the DDT to put away Rose, but the Playboy dug in and kept blocking it until he was finally able to reverse it into the Inside Out Backbreaker and get the Final Victory over his rival. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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