Post by fifthhorseman on Mar 2, 2022 23:07:53 GMT -5
AWA ALL-STAR WRESTLING
EPISODE 11
EPISODE 11
Pyro from Cincinnati, Ohio, then the TV credits ran, a 60-second of classic AWA action interspersed with close-ups of several members of the reborn AWA roster.
Cold open with the new AWA Southern Heavyweight champion, MJF, in the center of the ring accompanied as always by Wardlow. He was dressed in a tailored suit with all of his trademark gimmicks – the Burberry scarf, the diamond ring, and now, the gold around his waist. He cut the usual MJF promo that had the blue-collar crowd in Cincinnati riled up, but it was interrupted by the former champion, Ilya Dragunov, who charged down to the ring calling Friedman a cheater, a coward, and many other things. But before it got physical, Commissioner Hart walked out and told Dragunov if he headed to the back right now, he'd give him a title rematch at Winterslam. The Russian was satisfied with that deal – MJF was not – and he left. The in-ring celebration was over as well.
Joey Styles was solo on commentary, as his color partner Jesse Ventura was wrestling later in the night. Styles set up the five matches, and with the ring now clear, threw it down to Lee Marshall.
VERNE GAGNE (w/Chad Gable and Buzz Sawyer) vs. ADAM PAGE:
vs.
vs.
Sawyer's ribs were taped up, so he trailed both Gagne and Gable. This was a fairly quick squash, with the Minnesotan bullying the rookie Page around the ring before finishing him off with a sleeper. After the match, Gable took the microphone and said, “Tyler Bate, if you want a match at Winterslam, you'll get one. You're good, but not Olympic good.”
COMMERCIAL
Backstage, Jimmy Hart and the Spoiler waited in Stu Hart's office. The “Mouth of the South” tried to get his newest client a match at Winterslam, but the commissioner was having none of it. “Here's what I'm going to do instead. I hope your other clients, the North, are here tonight, because I don't like the way you all cheated to keep the AWA tag-team titles. You want to take on Strike Force for the UWA Universal belts? Then beat the Killer Bees, again, tonight – and if the North are counted out or disqualified, no UWA tag-team title shot. Got it?”
TRIPLE-THREAT MATCH
The EAST-WEST CONNECTION vs. the HOUNDS OF JUSTICE vs. the NEW AGE OUTLAWS:
The EAST-WEST CONNECTION vs. the HOUNDS OF JUSTICE vs. the NEW AGE OUTLAWS:
vs.
vs.
The crowd was on the HOJ's side, even when they were in against Gunn or the Road Dogg, thanks to the wildly popular hometown boy Moxley. As you'd expect in a match with three elite teams like this, it was a wild battle where it would only take a single fall to decide the winner – and even after a ref bump courtesy of Moxley taking out the official and Adonis with a crazy top-rope clothesline, Hero eventually captured the win for his team with a cyclone kick on James.
Keeping with the tag-team motif, another vignette aired for the Briscoe Brothers, promising that they would sign their AWA contracts next week.
COMMERCIAL
Desmond Wolfe walked down to the ring, and asked Marshall for the microphone. With his successful “beat the clock” win the week earlier, he was able to dictate the terms of his Winterslam match with Nick Bockwinkel. “I don't need a lot of time to defeat you. In fact, I don't need that much time to beat you twice. So, we're going to wrestle in a two out of three falls match!”
When he left, a video highlighted the size and strength of the next two combatants...
LAST MAN STANDING MATCH
DON LEO JONATHAN vs. BRODIE LEE:
vs.
DON LEO JONATHAN vs. BRODIE LEE:
vs.
Big-match intros for this one; it could not start until both men were in the ring and the bell rang, and it would not end until one man pinned or knocked out the other, and the referee counted to ten before he got up.
The brawl lasted almost 20 minutes. Lee scored the first pin with his discus clothesline, but Jonathan beat the 10-count and kept going. A few minutes later, the “Mormon Giant” got a pin of his own with a flying body-press off the top rope, but Lee staggered to his feet moments later. They wound up on the floor, the ramp, and the stage, and they battered each other over the back and chest with chair shots. The referee yelled at them to get back in the ring; this wasn't a “falls count anywhere” match.
The big men both had amazing cardio for their sizes, but it was time to go home. “Big Rig” went for another discus clothesline, but Jonathan dodged it and caught Lee as he came back off the ropes with a powerslam on a stack of chairs. Jonathan left his foe on the furniture and went to the top again, a chair in hand, and came down with a big splash, placing the chair between him and Lee. The ref counted the fall, and both men were motionless. He got to five, and Jonathan got to a knee. As the crowd counted along, he struggled to the ropes, and when the ref counted nine, the bigger man made it to his feet – Lee did not. It was tough, and bloody, but on this night, the “Mormon Giant” was the victor.
COMMERCIAL
A split-screen video of Lee and Jonathan was played for the crowd, each nursing their painful wounds in separate trainer's rooms. The scene then changed, and Ken Kennedy commandeered a camera backstage. “Everyone seems to be the mood to challenge someone the last couple of weeks, and if Stu Hart wants to give me the same right to fight as he has everyone else who raised their voice, then hear this. I'm issuing an open challenge for Winterslam. Just write your name on the dotted line, I'll be there.”
ZACK GIBSON (w/James Drake) vs. BUDDY MURPHY:
vs.
vs.
Drake was a persistent thorn in Murphy's side, and Gibson was already dangerous enough. However, the Australian never stayed down for long, and despite the constant interference, Murphy was able to pin Gibson with a victory roll in about seven minutes.
After the match, the Grizzled Young Veterans attacked Murphy before he could get out of the ring – but to everyone's surprise, Austin Theory ran out with a chair in hand and scared the Englishmen off. However, it was only because he wanted to steal the spotlight on his own, and he smashed the “Best Kept Secret” across the back with the chair. The ref angrily got in between the two wrestlers, and Theory left with a big smile.
COMMERCIAL
Ventura was at the table for the main event, and he angrily broke the news that next week, there would be another triple-threat tag match between Larry and Joe Hennig, the Midnight Express, and the Grizzled Young Veterans. The winner of that match would face the Hounds of Justice at Winterslam to determine the next contender for the AWA Tag-Team titles.
As if he didn't want to be outdone, Styles confirmed that the Ultimate Warrior would face UWA Universal Heavyweight champion Nick Aldis for that belt as well... and the “Universal Treasure” would be here on All-Star Wrestling next week!
AWA TAG-TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP REMATCH
The KILLER BEES vs. the NORTH (w/Jimmy Hart):
vs.
The KILLER BEES vs. the NORTH (w/Jimmy Hart):
vs.
The stakes were doubly huge for Page and Alexander – if they were pinned or submitted, they'd lose the AWA tag-team titles, and if they were counted out or got disqualified, they'd lost their UWA Universal tag-team title shot against Strike Force. When they walked to the ring with Jimmy Hart, it was obvious they were feeling the pressure.
Conversely, the Bees seemed loose and confident, and they dominated the first couple of minutes of the match. They were faster and smoother, and the North couldn't get out of first gear. But the longer it went on, without a pinfall, the better the North got. The “Walking Weapon”, Alexander, lived up to his name, and he was the MVP of the contest, isolating Brunzell for him and his partner.
It took a long time, but “Jumpin' Jim” finally made the hot tag to his partner, and Blair took over. Typical babyface comeback with several near-falls, and Hart was freaking out. He jumped up on the apron, and in just a few seconds, that was all it took for them to hit an elevated flip spinebuster on Blair. Page fended off Brunzell, and Alexander covered Blair's shouders for the three-count. Their manager retrieved their belts, and as they held them up to the camera, Alexander and Page shouted that Strike Force was next.