Post by fifthhorseman on Oct 22, 2016 18:47:34 GMT -5
UWF FRIDAY NIGHT’S MAIN EVENT
EPISODE 5
EPISODE 5
Tony Schiavone: Hello, wrestling fans – THIS is UWF Friday Night’s Main Event! I’m Tony Schiavone, alongside “the Professor”, Mike Tenay, and strap yourself in for the best wrestling action of the week! We have four sensational matches in store for you, including, in our main event, Demolition defends their UWF World Trios championship against the top contenders, the Fabulous Freebirds! But that’s not all – also in Trios competition, the Midnight Express battles the Castoffs!
Mike Tenay: And as if THAT wasn’t enough tag action for you tonight, in the Junior Heavyweight ranks, Mid-South champion Roderick Strong teams with ACH to take on Dean Malenko and Chris Candido! Last but certainly not least, Dalton Castle meets Joe Hennig! Let’s get right to the ring, where Christy Hemme is ready to make the introductions for the first match of the night – right here at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada!
THE CASTOFFS vs. THE MIDNIGHT EXPRESS (w/Jim Cornette):
vs.
As in weeks past, Eddie Gilbert and Chris Candido were on a scouting mission, sitting in on commentary. The confident Express entered the ring first, followed by the Castoffs, eager to prove their worth against their arrogant foes. Harris and Eaton started off for their respective squads, and exchanged a flurry of moves and counters that charged the crowd.
So it went for several minutes, regardless of who was in the ring. Jannetty and Neidhart, Lane and Condrey – it didn’t matter. The diverse offense and natural tag skills of the Castoffs was more than a match for the increasingly frustrated Express, who were able to isolate Harris and wear him down, But he finally made the hot tag to Neidhart, who cleared house and flattened Lane with a huge running powerslam. The referee went down to make the count… but he was pulled outside by Candido, while “Hot Stuff” kicked “the Anvil” in the head! It suddenly became a five-on-three rout, and at the end, it was obvious that – at long last – Hot Stuff International had finally made their “corporation” complete.
Backstage, Kevin Kelly found Terry Funk, who was in a sinister mood: “Seems like Commissioner Watts and the whole dang Championship Committee have forgotten a few things around here. For example, that I’m Terry Funk - the toughest, most ruggedest son of a gun in the whole UWF. They forgot that I was the man that made it to the UWF World Heavyweight championship match. They forgot that the only man ‘round these parts that has pinned the so-called champ, Bret Hart, is me. So it’s time I made ‘em remember some things and get what’s coming to me – another shot at Bret Hart’s title. I want a match next week, and I’ll get one – count on it.”
A 30-second video closed the first segment, highlighting the career achievements and hyping the UWF debut of a former World champion – AWA legend Nick Bockwinkel.
COMMERCIAL
Schiavone and Tenay discussed the shocking end of last week’s show, one in which the familiar theme song of Triple H played, distracting Billy Gunn and in all likelihood, costing the Newer Age Outlaws a victory against the Freebirds. Earlier in the day, Kelly spoke to the Outlaws, who still seemed in shock; none of them had spoken to the “Cerebral Assassin”, nor seen him, nor had any idea what had happened either.
ACH/RODERICK STRONG vs. CHRIS CANDIDO (w/Eddie Gilbert)/DEAN MALENKO:
vs.
The technically similar but otherwise mismatched duo of Candido and Malenko strode to the ring first, followed by the dynamic ACH, and finally, the Mid-South Junior Heavyweight champ. The rivals Malenko and Strong started the contest, and the grappling was intense. Neither man wanted to concede anything, and the science left even Tenay tongue-tied.
Conversely, when ACH and Candido squared off, each man saw it as an opportunity to move up in the JH rankings. ACH was a blur, coming off the top rope every chance he got, while Candido – one of the most rounded competitors in the division – used a variety of ground-based and aerial moves. The action never slowed, regardless of which two men were in the ring, but at the 15-minute mark, it came to a sudden end when “the Man of 1,000 Holds” nailed ACH with a second-rope fireman’s carry gutbuster. After the match, Malenko feigned an attack on Strong, but made his way up the ramp, gesturing that he was the uncrowned champion.
Kevin Kelly was standing backstage with TJ Perkins, who had been watching the match. Perkins noted that all four men were outstanding, and the action within the division was the strongest he had ever seen – but he was eager to prove himself. AS he was about to leave, a hand came into frame and grabbed his arm… and the camera panned to Kenny Omega, who smiled and said, “And it just got a lot tougher, new guy.”
COMMERCIAL
Before the next match began, Schiavone relayed that two matches had already been signed to next week’s Friday Night’s Main Event… kind of: Dusty Rhodes was fully healthy and teaming with his old friend, Dick Murdoch, to battle the “Raging Bull”, Manny Fernandez, and a mystery partner. Also, Terry Funk signed a blank contract, and he would fight whoever showed up.
DALTON CASTLE (w/the Boys) vs. JOE HENNIG:
A contrast in pre-match fanfare, obviously; the ultraserious Hennig entered the ring first, head down. Castle and his entourage were bold, loud, and proud, and the crowd enjoyed every second of it. But Hennig attacked him in mid-strut, battering him from pillar to post. Punches, kicks, and clotheslines kept him down, but “the Peacock” gamely fought back after a missed corner charge.
It was Castle’s turn to shine now. He used his underestimated strength to suplex Hennig with ease, focusing on his back. With “the Boys” rallying behind him, Castle finished the match about ten minutes in with his “Bang-A-Rang” facebuster.
A 60-second video package highlighting last week’s UWF-FNME action: “Dr. Death’s” debut victory over Jack Swagger; the wild Murdoch-Fernandez lumberjack match; the crazy action in the four-way elimination match that saw the Freebirds become the top contenders for the UWF World Trios titles; and the intensifying anger by Malenko towards Hodge.
COMMERCIAL
Before the main event started, an interview taped earlier in the week, after a house show, was shown. UWF North American heavyweight champion Jack Swagger suffered a countout loss to Brutus Magnus, and when asked about the loss, he half-heartedly said, “Magnus is a tough competitor, and I just couldn’t beat the count tonight. But I’m still the champ.” When he was asked about the mini-losing streak he seemed to be on, Swagger simply said, “Not an issue,” leading Schaivone and Tenay to speculate if his momentum was near its end.
DEMOLITION (c) vs. THE FABULOUS FREEBIRDS:
vs.
Before the match began, UWF Commissioner Bill Watts came down to the ring, spoke briefly with Christy Hemme, and then sat in at the announce table. Both teams entered the ring, and she made the following announcement:
“The UWF World Trios champions, Demolition, are invoking the ‘Demolition rule’, formerly known as the ‘Freebird rule’. Tonight’s championship match will be fought by two members of each team, and two members only.
The Freebirds were shocked, having prepared for this match as the legendary trio they were; Demolition sneered and laughed at their reactions. While things were sorted out by the referee, Watts explained that deep down he was a traditionalist, and he favored two-on-two tag-team competition. When Demolition came to them earlier in the week to make their argument, he agreed that the Trios champions should be able to decide how many, and which, wrestlers should defend the titles. He also decreed that the challengers had to decide which wrestlers were legal first.
Still furious, Roberts went to the floor, manning his corner. The massive Crush did the same. Gordy and Smash started things with nothing but straight right hands in the center of the ring. It wasn’t pretty after that, either – punches, elbow-smashes, forearms, and kicks weakened both men. They finally tagged out, and Ax and Hayes mixed it up next. “P.S.” took control with an eyepoke, and went for a flash DDT, but Ax back-bodydropped him almost ten feet in the air.
Demolition took over. They kept Hayes on the mat with strikes and holds that sucked the air out of his lungs for several minutes. But he refused to give up, and with the last bit of energy in his body, he tagged “Bamm Bamm” in. Gordy cleared house, taking on both Ax and Smash. A brutal piledriver on Smash got him a 2.99 count, and then all four men were in the ring. Amidst the chaos, Crush hung Hayes over the top rope, unseen by the referee. Gasping for breath, Smash nailed him with a hotshot that instantly bruised his throat, and he was pinned before Gordy or Roberts could break the count. As the show faded to black, Demolition grabbed their belts and backed up the entrance ramp.