Post by fifthhorseman on Aug 21, 2016 14:40:24 GMT -5
Day five. THIS is the Universal Wrestling Federation Tournament of Champions, and tonight, it is live from New Orleans, Louisiana! Three World Heavyweight bottom bracket matches. Three World Trios round-robin bouts. Two Mid-South Junior Heavyweight tournament matches. Strap in!
The opening contest featured, arguably, the two most evenly matched Trios in the tournament. Size, speed, technical acumen… it could not be any closer. But after a crowd-rousing 16 minutes of non-stop action, the Motor City Timesplitters defeated reDragon when Alex Shelley pinned Kyle O’Reilly after a frog splash. It was as 50/50 as matches go. Everyone was spotlighted, everyone took a beating, but in the end, MCT earned a hard-fought victory.
Jack Swagger defeated Manny Fernandez at 14:13 with a belly-to-back suplex, getting his shoulders up right before the referee counted three on the “Raging Bull”. It was a match where both men tried to dictate the style of the match, with the amateur star trying to use his scientific skill, while the burly Texan wanted to brawl it up. The pinfall came out of nowhere, to the surprise – and delight – of the hot NOLA crowd.
Before the next match started, Tony Schiavone and Mike Tenay discussed the fact that Dalton Castle received a bye in the bottom bracket, due to the Stan Hansen/Terry Gordy double-countout the night before, and that he will take on the loser of the Terry Funk/Dusty Rhodes match.
Demolition defeated the Midnight Express at 10:20 when Smash hit the “Demolition Decapitation” on Dennis Condrey. This match seemed to happen in three stages: Demolition overwhelmed the Express in the beginning, then Eaton and Lane took over on Ax, before Crush turned the tide and set the stage for the pin on Condrey. Afterwards, Cornette broke his tennis racket over Smash’s back… before running in terror.
In the first of two Mid-South Junior Heavyweight tournament battles, Dean Malenko defeated Chris Sabin by submission at 12:29 with the Texas Cloverleaf. “The Man of 1,000 Holds” was relentless and methodical in his first UWF match, while Sabin was more than game to go in this, his second match of the night. However, Malenko gradually exerted his authority over the final five minutes of the bout, and despite kicking out of a dozen pinning attempts, Sabin could not escape “the Iceman’s” punishing finisher.
The Fabulous Freebirds defeated the Newer Age Outlaws at 19:56 in another fantasy pick ‘em battle when Terry Gordy pinned Jesse James with a spike piledriver. This was Southern-styled tag-team warfare at its finest, with the NAO cast as the plucky upstarts against the heelish Freebirds. James was the proverbial face-in-peril, and took a beating from his foes before making the big tag near the end to Gunn, and then all six men were involved in a massive brawl. In the chaos that ensued, Roberts and Gordy hit the piledriver for the win.
The sixth match of the night was a scientific classic, the first of two UWF World Heavyweight championship top bracket matches. Bret Hart defeated Bob Backlund by submission at 43:41 with the Sharpshooter in a technical masterpiece that still featured plenty of hard-hitting strikes, slams, and throws. Both men would have wrestled all night if required; with over 2,800 combined days at World titlists in other federations, Backlund and Hart were champions through and through. Post-match handshakes, and plenty of respect from the crowd.
Kushida defeated Will Ospreay at 17:58 with a high-crossbody that was rolled through four times, ending with the Japanese star on top for the tight three-count. This was a flashy battle, and a complete 180 from the previous mat-oriented contest. Kushida and Ospreay fought above the mat as often as they fought on it, going to the skies for a multitude of dazzling maneuvers, several taking them outside the ring. The Brit led for most of the match, but in the end, the IWGP dynamo put Ospreay’s shoulders to the mat.
In the main event, Dusty Rhodes pinned Terry Funk at 28:26 with a small package to advance in the World Heavyweight championship tournament. This was a good, old-fashioned, NWA-styled match between two of that promotion’s most famous alumni. Equal parts brawl and mat-based, both competitors sought to work the legs and knees of the other. It wrapped up in stunning fashion, as Funk fought out of a figure-four leglock, going straight into a spinning toe hold on the “American Dream”. However, Rhodes reached up and packaged Funk, barely hanging on for the three.
The opening contest featured, arguably, the two most evenly matched Trios in the tournament. Size, speed, technical acumen… it could not be any closer. But after a crowd-rousing 16 minutes of non-stop action, the Motor City Timesplitters defeated reDragon when Alex Shelley pinned Kyle O’Reilly after a frog splash. It was as 50/50 as matches go. Everyone was spotlighted, everyone took a beating, but in the end, MCT earned a hard-fought victory.
Jack Swagger defeated Manny Fernandez at 14:13 with a belly-to-back suplex, getting his shoulders up right before the referee counted three on the “Raging Bull”. It was a match where both men tried to dictate the style of the match, with the amateur star trying to use his scientific skill, while the burly Texan wanted to brawl it up. The pinfall came out of nowhere, to the surprise – and delight – of the hot NOLA crowd.
Before the next match started, Tony Schiavone and Mike Tenay discussed the fact that Dalton Castle received a bye in the bottom bracket, due to the Stan Hansen/Terry Gordy double-countout the night before, and that he will take on the loser of the Terry Funk/Dusty Rhodes match.
Demolition defeated the Midnight Express at 10:20 when Smash hit the “Demolition Decapitation” on Dennis Condrey. This match seemed to happen in three stages: Demolition overwhelmed the Express in the beginning, then Eaton and Lane took over on Ax, before Crush turned the tide and set the stage for the pin on Condrey. Afterwards, Cornette broke his tennis racket over Smash’s back… before running in terror.
In the first of two Mid-South Junior Heavyweight tournament battles, Dean Malenko defeated Chris Sabin by submission at 12:29 with the Texas Cloverleaf. “The Man of 1,000 Holds” was relentless and methodical in his first UWF match, while Sabin was more than game to go in this, his second match of the night. However, Malenko gradually exerted his authority over the final five minutes of the bout, and despite kicking out of a dozen pinning attempts, Sabin could not escape “the Iceman’s” punishing finisher.
The Fabulous Freebirds defeated the Newer Age Outlaws at 19:56 in another fantasy pick ‘em battle when Terry Gordy pinned Jesse James with a spike piledriver. This was Southern-styled tag-team warfare at its finest, with the NAO cast as the plucky upstarts against the heelish Freebirds. James was the proverbial face-in-peril, and took a beating from his foes before making the big tag near the end to Gunn, and then all six men were involved in a massive brawl. In the chaos that ensued, Roberts and Gordy hit the piledriver for the win.
The sixth match of the night was a scientific classic, the first of two UWF World Heavyweight championship top bracket matches. Bret Hart defeated Bob Backlund by submission at 43:41 with the Sharpshooter in a technical masterpiece that still featured plenty of hard-hitting strikes, slams, and throws. Both men would have wrestled all night if required; with over 2,800 combined days at World titlists in other federations, Backlund and Hart were champions through and through. Post-match handshakes, and plenty of respect from the crowd.
Kushida defeated Will Ospreay at 17:58 with a high-crossbody that was rolled through four times, ending with the Japanese star on top for the tight three-count. This was a flashy battle, and a complete 180 from the previous mat-oriented contest. Kushida and Ospreay fought above the mat as often as they fought on it, going to the skies for a multitude of dazzling maneuvers, several taking them outside the ring. The Brit led for most of the match, but in the end, the IWGP dynamo put Ospreay’s shoulders to the mat.
In the main event, Dusty Rhodes pinned Terry Funk at 28:26 with a small package to advance in the World Heavyweight championship tournament. This was a good, old-fashioned, NWA-styled match between two of that promotion’s most famous alumni. Equal parts brawl and mat-based, both competitors sought to work the legs and knees of the other. It wrapped up in stunning fashion, as Funk fought out of a figure-four leglock, going straight into a spinning toe hold on the “American Dream”. However, Rhodes reached up and packaged Funk, barely hanging on for the three.