Post by fifthhorseman on May 2, 2020 21:42:42 GMT -5
CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING from FLORIDA
EPISODE 11
EPISODE 11
A 60-second video montage showcasing some of the greatest stars that competed in the classic CWF, as well as FCW and NXT, opens the telecast. The clip ended with a still shot of David and Kerry Von Erich swinging punches at each other outside a locker room, surrounded by a swarm of other wrestlers.
Lance Russell: “Hello, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Championship Wrestling from Florida! We have four great matches scheduled for you tonight, but before we get to the action in the ring, let's extend a warm Florida welcome to the owner and president of CWF... Bobby 'the Brain' Heenan.”
The welcome was not warm, but Heenan took it all in stride. He had a microphone in his hand, and after the crowd settled down, he got right to business. “I'm sure you all saw the brawl that took place last week – at least, until we went off the air. Well, let me assure you that I jumped right in between those two big Texans and told them to knock it off, or I'd deal with them personally! Needless to say, things settled down pretty quickly after that.”
“I'm going to tell you what I told them. You guys want to fight, great – but save it for Battle of the Belts. They want to do it, and you all want to see it, right? Right. So, in just a few weeks, it'll be the 'Yellow Rose of Texas', David Von Erich, versus his younger brother, the 'Texas Tornado', Kerry Von Erich... in a Texas bullrope match! Tied together at the wrist by a thick, coarse rope, with a cowbell attached in the middle for whoever to use as they see fit, and the only way to win is by pinfall or submission.”
“This is gonna be brutal, so it requires a special referee. A man that'll call it down the middle, and not be intimidated by either man. But I got one. The special referee for this match... is their father, from WCW – Fritz Von Erich!”
The crowd gasped, and Heenan gave them a slight bow. He gestured towards Russell, indicating he'd be back for the main event, and returned to his office.
HADE VANSEN (w/Kevin Sullivan) vs. TERRY TAYLOR:
vs.
vs.
Taylor enjoyed a rare weight advantage in this one, and combined with his elite technical prowess, he was the favorite going in. However, Vansen was a true wild card: fast, able to strike from all angles, and unorthodox. Sullivan's coaching from the outside helped as well, along with his unseen interference at various points of the match. Aside from Sullivan's distractions, it was a surprisingly clean – and competitive – battle, and the night began with a rare 15-minute draw. When the bell rang, Taylor wisely slid out of the opposite side of the ring before Vansen and Sullivan could take out their frustrations on him – and he was just as mad about the draw as well.
COMMERCIAL
A cameraman was positioned outside Heenan's office. His door opened, and the team of Steve Keirn and Mike Graham were escorted out by the CWF head honcho. They were obviously displeased, and Keirn wondered aloud, “Come on, Bobby – when are we going to get another shot at the Freebirds?”
Heenan shrugged his shoulders. “If the two of you show me something against the Ascension later on tonight, I'll think about it. Look, between the two of you, you have, what, 25? 30 combined tag-team championship reigns here in Florida? You two are great, don't get me wrong... but I think of you as my gatekeepers. The guys that other guys fight first before getting their chance at the champs.”
Graham: “But not good enough to be the champs – is that what you're saying?”
He shrugged again. “Well, you don't have the belts right now, do you? Now, if there isn't anything else, I have to get ready for another big announcement.” Heenan retreated to his office, and the veteran grapplers were left in the hallway, frustrated and bothered by "the Brain's" words.
LEO KRUGER vs. HEATH SLATER (w/Eric Bugenhagen):
vs.
vs.
2MB rocked down to the ring first. Kruger emerged from the curtain next, as creepy as ever, and he didn't wait for the bell to ring. He jumped Slater from behind, and took early control of the match. The mercenary was vicious – but his foe was no slouch, and the multi-time WWE tag champ fought back.
They were only a few minutes in, when a surprising figure appeared and strode down the ramp to watch the battle more closely... Sean O'Haire. He was about ten feet away from the ring when Bugenhagen moved over to intercept him. The referee jumped out of the ring to defuse the situation when yet another man – the same hooded and masked man that helped O'Haire break Louie Spicolli's arm two weeks earlier – ran in through the crowd on the opposite side, and nailed Slater with a wicked spinebuster. He rolled right back out and ducked under the apron, and when the referee returned, Kruger picked his opponent up and laid him out with the KrugerEnd facebuster at 5:23.
Kruger met O'Haire on the ramp and the two nodded in mutual appreciation. But Bugenhagen was furious, and he ran in the opposite direction, towards the mystery man. It was a short chase, and the air guitarist managed to pull the mask away just as O'Haire intercepted him with a clothesline. The interloper was Dexter Lumis – and as Slater tended to his friend, the sinister trio – O'Haire, Lumis, and Kruger – simply walked away from the scene.
A vignette came on, focusing on Sonny Siaki - more specifically, the slump he endured in recent weeks. Footage from a couple of his earlier matches were shown, including the three-way dance against Murphy and Steamboat, and the subsequent backstage bullying by Cameron and Nation. The shot changed to a taped monologue by the Samoan five-tooler himself.
“When I was growing up, I dreamed about playing in the NFL – until a spinal injury took that dream away from me. But I didn't let that bring me down. I shifted course, and became a professional wrestler – and a damn good one, too. But something else came up, and this time, I had to make a choice. It wasn't another injury, or a chance to jump to another promotion. No, I decided to donate one of my kidneys to my brother. And it took me out of the game for a long time. But I'm back now, and I'll be better than ever before. Bobby Heenan, I'm begging you to put me on Battle of the Belts. Singles match, tag team, battle royale, whatever you want. I'm gonna show you, I'm gonna show the world, that you made the best business decision of your life signing Sonny Siaki to a contract.”
COMMERCIAL
Back to Bobby Heenan's office, where 2MB were demanding another match. Heenan looked at his watch, and yelled back, “Fine! But here's the deal – if you want it, it's gotta happen before my main event, so don't even bother gearing up - you don't have time. And it will be one-on-one, Bugenhagen and Lumis - Slater, you already wrestled tonight, and so did Kruger, so go hit the showers. Got it? Great. Now get out!”
NO DISQUALIFICATION MATCH
The ASCCENSION (w/Kevin Sullivan) vs. MIKE GRAHAM and STEVE KEIRN:
vs.
The ASCCENSION (w/Kevin Sullivan) vs. MIKE GRAHAM and STEVE KEIRN:
vs.
The two teams couldn't be more different, in terms of appearance or style. Konnor and Viktor were quick and violent, while their foes were a classically-trained, smooth-operating duo who used the five-count to perfection. Ironically, this was almost their downfall – out of habit, they stayed within the rules, but with Sullivan haranguing his troops and reminding them to do whatever they wanted, the Ascension slowly took charge. They isolated Keirn and hit him with everything in their arsenal. However, Graham had enough and brought a chair into play, blasting his adversaries with it. All four men were fighting now, and the weapon proved to be the deciding factor. Sullivan tripped Graham, and pulled him outside, while his men nailed Keirn with a chair-assisted Fall of Man. It was all over at 12:49.
COMMERCIAL
A hype vignette aired, promising the imminent debut of the man... called Rusev.
DEXTER LUMIS (w/Leo Kruger) vs. ERIC BUGENHAGEN (w/Heath Slater):
vs.
vs.
Both men came out in their street clothes, and that suited both of them just fine. This time around, though, the official didn't wait for any shenanigans – he ejected Slater and Kruger from ringside immediately, and he instructed the announcer to warn O'Haire in the back as well. When the match actually started, it was a battle of two powerhouses. They weren't the biggest guys in CWF, but pound for pound, they were two of the strongest.
It wasn't a very pretty match, but it was intense. Bugenhagen impressed in his CWF singles “debut”, but Lumis's experience, and ability to ignore pain, saw him take control and not relinquish it. Big strikes, unexpected aerial moves, and another spinebuster eventually put Lumis in a perfect position to lock the novice into the kata gatame, choking Bugenhagen out at 6:11.
COMMERCIAL
Bobby Heenan strutted back out to call the main event with Russell, but before he sat down, he addressed the crowd for a second time. “Before we get this tag-team match underway – good luck, Rick! - I wanted to give you all the scoop. The CWF Florida Tag-Team titles will be defended at Battle of the Belts by the Fabulous Freebirds against... not just one, but two very deserving teams. The Upperclassmen – Chris Nowinski and Alex Riley – have certainly proven themselves over the last few weeks. And so have Larry Cameron and Uhaa Nation... they've really impressed me with their new attitude. So in just a couple of weeks, all three teams will face off in a TLC match... but with a patented Bobby Heenan twist!”
He paused for effect, and continued. “The Upperclassmen and the House of Humperdink will start things off against each other, while Mr. Hayes and Mr. Garvin watch alongside you, Russell. I'm giving them a ten-minute headstart, so to speak. They can join the match anytime they want between the opening bell and the 10-minute mark, assuming it even gets that far. If the other two teams knock each other out before then, well, it's an easy night for the champs - they can just climb up the ladder and take their gold back. But if, say, Uhaa Nation is on his way up the ladder and the Upperclassmen are nowhere in sight - well, the Freebirds better hustle their way down down to the ring. Doesn't that sound awesome? Now, let's get this show moving again!”
DON MURACO (w/Bob Orton, Jr.) and RICK RUDE (w/Percy Pringle III) vs. NIGEL McGUINNESS and RAZOR RAMON:
vs.
vs.
The champion picked Muraco for a variety of reasons: “the Rock” was mean, and as strong as a bull; he was impressively sadistic in exiling Drake Maverick the week before; and perhaps most importantly, Rude knew that he came with company. With “the Ace” in their corner, it was a de facto handicap match.
McGuinness and Muraco led things off, but everyone wanted to see the champion and his challenger go at it. It took a few minutes for that to occur, but when Rude and Ramon finally locked up, the audience went crazy. Heenan's eyes lit up with dollar signs as he watched the two titans trade punches, and he winced when the “Bad Guy” nearly threw Rude into the lights with a huge back-bodydrop. Ramon took charge, but a few moments later, a distraction from Orton was all it took for the Florida champ to bury a knee into his foe's spine.
Now it was the heels' turn. Rude and Muraco were veterans that had plenty of tag experience, and they kept Ramon on their side of the ring. He was beat down, double- and triple-teamed until he escaped a Rude Awakening attempt and dove toward McGuinness. The Brit was fired up, and he took both of his opponents on until Ramon recovered – and then it got doubly chaotic.
The referee could barely control it, and they were all fighting inside and outside the ring. “Cowboy Bob” and Pringle weren't just observers, and in that chaos, Muraco and Orton whipped Ramon toward the steel ringpost on the outside. However, McGuinness saw it coming, and slingshotted Rude in that direction as well. Rude was sandwiched between the post and his 285-pound adversary, and as Pringle watched on in horror over the ref's shoulder, his man was barely able to stand.
Ramon rolled Rude back into the ring, and as McGuinness clung to both Muraco and Orton with all of his strength, the Cuban cradled Rude for the three-count. The crowd was shocked for a second, then stood to cheer the win. Ramon limped up the ramp with his tag partner, riding a wave of momentum as the show faded to black.