Post by fifthhorseman on Jan 12, 2023 1:03:28 GMT -5
AWA ALL-STAR WRESTLING
EPISODE 37
EPISODE 37
Pyro from Fort Wayne, Indiana, then a 60-second sizzle reel of classic AWA action interspersed with close-ups of and highlights from members of the current AWA roster. Announcing the action, Joey Styles and Don West.
Cold open with a dozen wrestlers standing on the stage. Commissioner Eddie Graham stood in the middle of them adjacent with an opaque draw barrel. “In just a few seconds, we're going to make four three-man teams, Battlebowl-style, to fight it out in two first round Pat O'Connor Memorial Tournament matches. The winners of both matches – six men in all – will move onto the second round, where Bron Steiner and Diamond Dallas Page are waiting. So without further ado...”
Graham dropped three red balls, three blue balls, three white balls, and three black balls into the barrel and gave it a good spin. One by one, the competitors stepped up and drew a ball out to make their teams:
Red – Ilya Dragunov, Chad Gable, and Drew McIntyre
Blue – Jay Briscoe, Tajiri, and Austin Theory
White – Art Barr, Mark Briscoe, and Lance Storm
Black – Christian Cage, Tully Blanchard... and his teammate, Manny Fernandez
When the teams formed up, Graham added, “Oh, and one more thing... the black and white teams, you're wrestling each other right now.”
PAT O'CONNOR MEMORIAL CUP FIRST ROUND MATCH
ART BARR, MARK BRISCOE, and LANCE STORM vs. TULLY BLANCHARD, CHRISTIAN CAGE, and MANNY FERNANDEZ (w/Freddie Blassie):
ART BARR, MARK BRISCOE, and LANCE STORM vs. TULLY BLANCHARD, CHRISTIAN CAGE, and MANNY FERNANDEZ (w/Freddie Blassie):
vs.
The Outlaws and Cage won when the “Raging Bull” smashed Briscoe with a flying forearm after about 14 minutes. It was the typical disjointed tag battle where, other than Blanchard and Fernandez, the teammates didn't trust each other. After the match, Blassie directed his men to double-team Cage, hoping to injure him before the next round of the tournament. Storm, however, scared them out of the ring with a chair.
COMMERCIAL
West interviewed the Dynamite Kid on the stage, asking him who was next. The Englishman replied that it didn't matter because he was the best mid-heavyweight on the AWA roster, evidenced by the belt on his shoulder. That led to the Pitbulls interrupting the interview, and Jamie Noble challenged the Kid to a match later in the night, which he accepted with no hesitation.
Styles and West went through the rest of the night's card. Styles: “Later tonight, the Midnight Express will take on Harley Race and Larry Hennig. Jim Cornette successfully got his team a rematch against the Minnesota Wrestling Club for the AWA World Tag-Team titles at The Big Chill. But to get there, they have to defeat the daunting team of Hennig and Race – as you might recall, Harley Race was the last man eliminated in the Tag Rumble two weeks ago. And just to make it interesting, if the Express loses, then 'Handsome Harley' and 'the Ax' get the title match instead!”
PAT O'CONNOR MEMORIAL CUP FIRST ROUND MATCH
JAY BRISCOE, TAJIRI, and AUSTIN THEORY (w/Jimmy Hart) vs. ILYA DRAGUNOV, CHAD GABLE, and DREW McINTYRE:
JAY BRISCOE, TAJIRI, and AUSTIN THEORY (w/Jimmy Hart) vs. ILYA DRAGUNOV, CHAD GABLE, and DREW McINTYRE:
vs.
Team chemistry was an issue in this one as well. The men on both teams squabbled with each other as much as their opponents, and after a fast-paced eight minutes, McIntyre pinned Tajiri after a Claymore kick. Theory (and Hart) abandoned their team a minute earlier when the video wall showed Nick Bockwinkel and Mad Dog Vachon angrily looking for Jerry Lawler and Andy Kaufman backstage.
COMMERCIAL
Don Leo Jonathan was interviewed in the ring. He was all business, and said that he would take back his AWA World Heavyweight title against Barry Windham at The Big Chill.
After DLJ left, Bo and Duke Rotunda stormed down to the ring, much to “Iron” Mike DiBiase's chagrin. The two cocky youngsters said that they were the hottest prospects in professional wrestling, and in such high demand that WCCW begged them to stay there after their match at The End pay-per-view. They then demanded that a team – any team – meet them in the ring for a match.
Enter the Eliminators.
20 seconds later, a Total Elimination on Dallas, and Saturn and Kronus left to a huge ovation.
UWA Universal Champion Chris Jericho sent in a VTR. He said that the double- and triple-bookings were taking their toll on him, and he was sorry that he couldn't get a flight to Fort Wayne tonight. However, he would be in Chicago in a couple of weeks at The Big Chill, and said, “It's time to put you in your place, junior.”
COMMERCIAL
Arn Anderson cut a promo from the stage, his first since being ejected from the Pinnacle, and the Fort Wayne audience was 100% behind him. “The Enforcer” wasn't done with the Pinnacle, and he wouldn't rest until he got his revenge on all four of them. “And the ultimate revenge is taking the Southern Heavyweight title off that spoiled, obnoxious waste of oxygen, Maxwell Jacob Friedman!”
AWA STAMPEDE MID-HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
The DYNAMITE KID (c) vs. JAMIE NOBLE (w/Kid Kash):
vs.
The DYNAMITE KID (c) vs. JAMIE NOBLE (w/Kid Kash):
vs.
Not surprisingly, it was an intense fight between the Bulldog and the Pitbull. Fast and hard-hitting, the champion's superior power eventually got him the victory, courtesy of a second-rope electric chair on Noble. After the match, they saluted each other from opposite corners, and Dynamite left to a loud ovation.
COMMERCIAL
A “coming soon” vignette for Leviathan was shown on the big screen... but it looked like the time spent on the foreign tour made him a more polished pro. He was still a brute, but he was also wearing nice suits and had a full head of hair.
MJF commandeered a camerman and said, "Chris Daniels, buddy old pal... you know, I specifically chose you to be my opponent tonight. It's not like you're my first choice... my first choice would be that other Chris, the guy I'm going to beat for the UWA Universal title. And to be honest, you're not even my second choice... I really wanted to take a piece of his 'thrillseeking' partner, that mid Lance Storm. So you're gonna have to do - nothing personal, but the Devil is going to take down an Angel tonight."
MONEY INC. vs. the MOTOR CITY MACHINE GUNS:
vs.
vs.
Classic contrast of styles, with the bigger technicians Rotunda and DiBiase trying to slow down the faster, more dynamic Guns. The teams went a crisp ten minutes before Rotunda took advantage of an eye-poke, and hit Sabin with a Stock Market Crash (airplane spin into a Samoan drop).
COMMERCIAL
Barry Windham monologued as he walked through the backstage area with the rest of his teammates in Camp Cornette. “I'm only here to support my boys tonight – what, you didn't think I was going to make an appearance in Hick Town, Indiana? Not a chance. But what I will do is say this to the “Mormon Midget”, Don Leo Jonathan. No way in hell you're beating me!”
LARRY HENNIG/HARLEY RACE vs. the MIDNIGHT EXPRESS (w/Jim Cornette and Big Bubba Rogers):
vs.
vs.
Lane and Eaton represented the Express, who won a surprisingly physical battle after 15 minutes with a little help from the outside. Rogers tripped Hennig as he rebounded off the ropes, and his opponents caught him with a double flapjack. “Beautiful Bobby” finished things with the Alabama Jam legdrop as Lane held off Race, and the win ensured that the former tag champions would get their rematch with Gagne and Williams, two on two.
COMMERCIAL
AWA SOUTHERN HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
CHRISTOPHER DANIELS vs. MJF (w/Freddie Blassie):
vs.
vs.
Wardlow also walked out with the champ, but Blassie told him to wait on the stage as a gatekeeper, just in case Anderson, DDP, or anybody else tried to interfere. The match itself was a tougher battle than Friedman expected, as the “Fallen Angel” was faster and hit his foe from every angle imaginable. But MJF wasn't just a paper champion, and he eventually took over when his foe missed the BME moonsault, and he quickly made Daniels tap out to the Salt of the Earth armbar.
When the match ended, MJF kicked Daniels out of the ring and shouted, seemingly at Jericho, “Armbar!Armbar! I got two thousand moves, buddy – I'll see you soon!”