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[1985-07-13-WWF-MSG, NY] Terry Funk vs Lanny Poffo


Superstar Sleeze

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Terry Funk vs Lanny Poffo - WWF MSG 7/13/85

Hot damn, I forgot how well Funk laid in his offense. This was a classic roughhouser vs gymnast match with a hint of NWA Championship title defense. Funk was awfully selfess in this match. He started off with his usual WOAH NELLY grab of the ropes on a criss cross that is such a great spot. Then he added a tangled up in the ropes spot and a big bump through the ropes on an atomic drop. He would pound away at Lanny with some serious blow, but Lanny was able to show some real cool offense and get this MSG crowd behind him. I really liked his standing arm stretcher and even busted out the moonsault. Funk went for the spinning toehold in the middle of the match, but Poffo kicked him off. Funk stopped him in his tracks with a couple stiff headbutts, but ended up flopping on his kiester through the ropes after that. In addition to the moonsault, they did a suplex from the ring to the floor. This is really mind blowing stuff for 1985. Funk his a great spinning delayed vertical suplex, but only got two. He then pushed the ref and cowered. Hmmmm...this was followed up by a flip into the turbuckles where he ended up on his belly on top tunbuckle for Poffo to do some leg press. I was very entertained by all this, but with all this floppin', flippin and ref pushin, I mean where's the psychology Poffo is a nothing happening JTTS why he is giving him all this. I am just being a wise ass. Flair or Funk, I don't care if people complain or if people are consistent. I just care that the wrestling is entertaining. This match kicked ass. Just as the crowd was really getting behind Poffo after the moonsault, Funk slapped on the sleeper for the win and there was an audible reaction for Lanny to make a comeback. Funk pretty much made them a popular midcard babyface if they wanted it just in one match. That's pretty incredible. Then Funk knows it is his duty to revive him after the sleeper so he brands him in the chest that ought to wake his ass up. Really great veteran vs young wrestler match. ***3/4

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  • 4 weeks later...

I came to the forum looking to see what people thought about the British Bulldogs vs Hart Foundation match from the same card, but instead found this review. I tracked the match down on Daily Motion and I have to agree, it was tremendous fun! Funk particularly was awesome here, both on offence and in his selling. Terry had a way of doing the most ridiculously exaggerated sells but somehow not make them look ridiculous. Also, Lanny played his part well here and his 80s perm and moustache combination must earn this match at least another quarter-star.

 

Having watched it back-to-back with the Foundation vs Bulldogs match, I definitely found watching this match much more enjoyable, which is what it's all about at the end of the day.

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  • GSR changed the title to [1985-07-13-WWF-MSG, NY] Terry Funk vs Lanny Poffo
  • 5 months later...

I was not interested in this match when I was a kid. Back then I began to suspect that the people who made the Best of the WWF Volumes were selecting random meaningless matches (especially with the women, midgets, TV taping DQ matches, jobbers, and random tags). Lo and behold, I am going through this series as a grizzled veteran, and I must say I was BLOWN AWAY by Terry Funk vs Lanny Poffo. I gave it chance because I love Funk and Poffo is underrated and a good shoot interviewer and was glad I paid attention. This match broke so many routines for WWF in 1985. I would love to hear the story behind this match.

I was expecting a squash. At best, I was expecting Lanny Poffo to shine and then do the job. Instead, we get an actual lengthy even-steven match with multiple comebacks, insane bumps, highspots, and an actual chance Poffo wins by pinfall or DQ.

Funk's heel character work as a crazed cowboy was both humorous and scary at the same time. He's like a 1800s drunk outlaw who shoots his pistol randomly at saloons. Poffo actually pulled off an early hurricanrana and Funk took it like a champ.

As far as the question of the psychology of how a JJTS could be so effective, actually WWWF/WWF has always been like this- TV jobbers had much longer and more effective undercard matches at house shows. So I wouldn't think too hard about that trope.

I know Jim Cornette  and others criticize modern day indie workers for "wanting to get all their shit in", but Funk let Poffo "get all his shit in" (Ric Flair and Harley Race were also open-minded about that). Poffo could have made a decent mid-card act in this time frame. I feel his gymnastic moves made up for his lack of muscle.

I really, really loved this match. In many ways, it is perfect. I highly recommend it. It is truly a hidden gem and I wish more JTTS WWF matches were as entertaining like this was.

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  • 1 year later...

Sometimes I watch something like this and wonder if I'll ever get bored of it. You know, the shtick or the wrestlers or what they're doing or...you know, whatever. I love Tenryu being a bastard and kicking people in the eye. I love Fuerza acting like a dipshit and feigning being punched in the willy. I love Funk running riot and doing everything he does in this match. But what if that was ALL I could watch? What if I could never watch anything else? What if, for whatever reason, this was all the universe had to offer? Would I get fed up? Would I pine for the Kenny Omegas and Will Ospreays of the world, just for something a little different? I could never say for sure and I hope such a scenario never occurs, but I do feel pretty confident that the answer is no. I don't think I will ever get bored of Tenryu kicking people in the eye or Fuerza feigning being punched in the willy or Terry Funk being Terry Funk. This was very much Terry Funk being Terry Funk, btw. Obviously it ruled like fuck. Before the match even starts he picks a fight with the ring attendant and whips him in the face with his chaps. He does this with several people not involved in the match over the course of the thing. A cameraman gets spat on because he happened to be in the way. Finkel almost gets knocked off the apron as Funk shakes the ropes so hard and old Howard just looks at him like "ffs mate can you maybe not bother?" The ref' (technically not involved) gets shoved for counting too slow, but then when Funk realises he's fucked up he swiftly begs for forgiveness. His whole performance was crazy Funk to a tee, but you had that little pinch of comedy with the bumps. He also has this amazing aura where even the most potentially ludicrous things could plausibly happen because it's him who's attempting them. Usually if you're watching a match at MSG in 1985 and someone tries to suplex an opponent from inside the ring to the concrete you think it's obviously getting reversed. Surely, right? Who would actually do that, you know? Then Funk tries it and you wonder if maybe it'll happen after all. And then he actually does it! His stooging was impeccable. He almost falls though the ropes several times and when Poffo does his little backflip early on Funk has this amazing "what the hell is going on here?" reaction. Poffo hits a bunch of crazy acrobat stuff for 1985 and by the end people are just losing their shit; for the moonsault, the hurricanrana, the awesome spot where he leg presses Funk in the corner, basically every bit of offence he can muster. Ultimately you know how it's going to play out, but there's that tiny bit of hope that Poffo will escape the sleeper and bamboozle Funk long enough to do the impossible. After the match Funk brands him with the branding iron and then, branding iron raised high, shouts "SYMBOLIC!" I mean how could you ever possibly get bored of that?
 

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