Post by fifthhorseman on Sept 27, 2020 13:50:39 GMT -5
CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING FROM FLORIDA
EPISODE 28
EPISODE 28
(Note: my updates will be shorter, probably starting next episode - real life work stuff. All good, just less free time.)
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, ending with a still shot of Sean O'Haire and Starship Coyote – formerly known as Razor Ramon – winning the CWF Florida Tag-Team titles.
Cold open in the center of the ring, where “Mean” Gene Okerlund made the ring announcements to get the night started with a flourish.
BEST-OF-FIVE SERIES, MATCH ONE
JACK BRISCO vs. DUSTY RHODES:
vs.
JACK BRISCO vs. DUSTY RHODES:
vs.
There was a lot for commentary to work with for this one: both men were former NWA World champions, both had long and respected careers, and both were crucial to the success of the Florida territory in its earlier state of existence. But in the ring, the two men didn't think about the past, they thought about the future; winning the series meant a shot against the man who held the CWF Florida Heavyweight gold, Rick Rude.
It was a rugged, mostly cleanly-fought battle, but it got more intense as it went. Neither man wanted to reveal every play in their playbook so early, so they stuck to the basics. And when it came to the basics, Brisco – the amatuer mat champ – had few peers. They almost went the full 20 minutes, but the Oklahoman toppled Rhodes with a backslide, earning the first win of the series. The “American Dream” extended his hand first, and the two sportsmen shook hands as the show went to
COMMERCIAL
Lance Russell: “Hello wrestling fans, and welcome to a star-studded edition of Championship Wrestling from Florida! I'm Lance Russell, joined on the rotating commentary desk by Jerry 'the King' Lawler. We just saw a fantastic match, and that was a big win for Jack Brisco.”
Lawler: “That was huge. Dusty has to win three out of the next four, but against a guy like Jack Brisco, that might be impossible.”
“You might be right there, King,” Russell replied, “but in the meantime, we have five other matches to call tonight, so let's get down to the ring for our next one!”
TED DiBIASE, Jr vs. LEX LUGER (w/Oliver Humperdink):
vs.
vs.
Tough draw for DiBiase, making his official CWF debut against the former five-time WCW United States champion. Regardless, the third-generation grappler more than made an impression, and used his speed to score a couple of two-counts. However, Luger's unrivaled power, and Humperdink's timely distractions, were too much to overcome, and he hoisted DiBiase into the Torture Rack for the submission victory.
But he refused to let it go. He seemed intent to breaking DiBiase in half, and in a rare move by a CWF official, the referee reversed the decision, giving the win to the newcomer by disqualification. Luger was furious. He threw his foe down to the mat, and went outside for a steel chair. But before he could use it, Richie Steamboat ran down with a chair in hand as well. As DiBiase slowly got to his feet, the “Total Package” decided to leave, and a few moments later, Steamboat helped DiBiase up the ramp.
Backstage, the melee had resumed, involving the entire House of Humperdink. Officials were holding “Superstar” Billy Graham back from Luger, as the tie-dyed titan wanted another match with his rival. Then he was attacked from behind by the Stronghold, and it was briefly a three-on-one until DiBiase and Steamboat arrived to even the odds, until, incredibly, David Von Erich arrived to help the faces. The House retreated, and the trio of faces walked away from the “Yellow Rose of Texas” as well, leaving him alone in the back.
COMMERCIAL
A VTR aired, “starring” the same powerhouse from last week's vignette. He had dark hair, and continued to throw around ungodly amounts of iron in the weight room... but this VTR also showed him sparring with a weighted tackling dummy, throwing and flipping it around with ease.
Back to live TV, and Okerlund was on the stage. “Ladies and gentlemen, presenting the new CWF Florida Tag-Team champions... Sean O'Haire, and... Starship Coyote?”
One dramatic pause later, the Devil's Advocates walked on stage, all five of them – led, of course, by O'Haire. He smiled, very proud of himself, and after taunting the crowd and tempting them with his evocative double-talk, said, “Isn't it something that, for a territory with so many established and well-known tag-teams – the Usos, the Blond Bombers, the Funks, the Destruction Crew, just to name a few – a seemingly mismatched, ad hoc unit like myself and Starship Coyote come in and in just one match, we win the most important tag-team titles in the MUW network? That shows you the strength we have. The shared vision. The supreme confidence in our abilities, individually and collectively... but I'm not telling you anything that you don't already know.”
He smirked again, and they left; Coyote never said a word.
A short video recapped the Nexus's arrival, and their immediate impact on the territory.
THE NEXUS (the PRIME TIME PLAYERS, and HEATH SLATER and JUSTIN GABRIEL) vs. the SAMOA FIGHT CLUB and the USOS:
vs.
vs.
This was not a tornado tag-team match, but it often resembled one. The action was non-stop and fast-paced, and the continuity exhibited by the Nexus was matched on the other side by the familial Samoan clan. As usual, Umaga was the MVP of the contest, overwhelming whoever stood across from him with his unmatched combination of size and quickness. However, his squad took the loss when, after a series of see-saw finishers from both teams, Slater rolled up Siaki from behind. Using the tights for additional leverage, he stole the win for his quartet, and they laughed at their beaten foes as they left.
COMMERCIAL
A recap video was shown, highlighting the action (to date) from the CWF Television Championship tournament. The second half of the video focused on the four remaining combatants, and “tales of the tape” were shown for the two matchups: Terry Funk vs. Nick Nemeth, and Barry Windham vs. Timothy Thatcher.
Russell: “Those two matches should be fantastic, and Jerry, whoever makes it to the finals, you can certainly say they've earned it. And speaking of championship matches, it's time for the first of two title defenses tonight... so take it away, 'Mean' Gene!”
CWF SOUTHERN HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
MUHAMMAD HASSAN (c, w/Freddie Blassie) vs. DREW McINTYRE:
vs.
MUHAMMAD HASSAN (c, w/Freddie Blassie) vs. DREW McINTYRE:
vs.
It started slowly, as the champion was hesitant to lock up with the Scottish powerhouse. He stalled – a lot, stepping between the ropes, whispering with Blassie, things like that. When the two finally got to work, Hassan tried to take McIntyre off his feet to negate his strength. But the former “Chosen One” was too wise for that, and he met every takedown attempt with throws, headbutts, and right fists.
The contest was less than ten minutes old when McIntyre took over. Hassan was literally on the ropes, and the big Scot laid in a series of punches that dropped him to a knee. McIntyre hit him with another headbutt, and launched him across the ring into a corner, setting him up for the Claymore kick. Hassan slowly staggered out, and with perfect aim, McIntyre connected with the kick. But before he could even make the pin, someone slid under the bottom rope in street clothes and began pummeling the champion. The referee called for the bell, disqualifying McIntyre, and the irate challenger pulled the interloper away from behind.
It was Brian Pillman.
When the crowd realized who it was, they popped, and the two men – Pillman and McIntyre – were so busy jawing at each other, they didn't see Blassie pull a woozy Hassan from the ring; he wanted to remove him from the scene before either man remembered who their real enemy was. Replays aired that revealed that the “Loose Cannon” ran down the ramp and into the ring, and as Blassie and Hassan exited, CWF President Bobby Heenan angrily appeared, and ordered both men to leave. Several officials came down to clear them out, just in time for the
COMMERCIAL
BRIAN BLAIR vs. RECKLESS YOUTH:
vs.
The crowd was still buzzing over Pillman's return, and as such, this bout didn't get the respect it probably deserved. Blair was a Florida favorite, and a vastly underappreciated mat technician; Youth, representing the Nexus, was a triple-threat of striking, grappling, and submissions.
It served its purpose, as it showcased all of Youth's skills. Blair started well, but gradually got worn down by the multi-faceted offense of his opponent, and Youth finished him off in about six minutes with a swinging fisherman's suplex.
Okerlund came in to interview the winner, and he had a lot to say. Youth: “Did you miss me? Or did you even remember I was here? Let me jog your memory – I was here from the very beginning. In fact, I won the very first match on CWF TV... but Bobby Heenan released just a month later after I got injured. And you wonder why I might hold a grudge against the establishment here?”
He laughed and continued. “After I healed up, I did what I always do – wrestle. And Gene, you know, all these fans know... I'm as good at it as anybody in the business today. In fact, when Wade Barrett called me up to take Daniel Bryan's place in the Nexus, he was just acknowledging that fact. Daniel Bryan wishes he was me. The indy darling? Hell, that's me. And because I'm a grizzled veteran, you can call me by my real name now – from now on, I'm Tom 'RY' Carter.”
The crowd booed again, and Carter decided that was the perfect time to leave. On the way up, he glanced over at the broadcast table and, for whatever reason, shouted at Lawler. “You think you're the king around here? Get in the ring with me sometime, and I'll show you why I'm the real king around here!”
Lawler stood up, and Carter just laughed and walked away.
COMMERCIAL
Heenan came out to commentary for the main event, and scolded Lawler for aggravating Carter. Lawler shot back, “I don't know what that guy's problem is, but there's an easy way to settle it!”
CWF FLORIDA HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP TRIPLE-THREAT MATCH
DORY FUNK, Jr vs. RICK RUDE (c, w/Percy Pringle III) vs. RUSEV:
vs. vs.
Before it got underway, Okerlund announced that, “to be fair to the champion”, Rude had to be involved in the official decision. In other words, Rude couldn't lose the title if Rusev pinned Funk or vice versa. The challengers were both momentarily surprised by the announcement, and Pringle gave a friendly salute to Heenan at the desk. Rude had known about the stipulation in advance, and while he was happy that his two foes would likely beat each other up for the chance to get at him... he also realized that it put a huge target on his back.
This was typical triple-threat action, but with a great mixture of competitors. Funk was a tough, technical genius who once held the NWA World title for over four years; Rusev was explosively powerful, and had a huge chip on his shoulder; Rude was an all-around stud, skilled and strong and with a devious manager in the corner.
They fought for about 20 minutes, which was essentially TV time remaining. Funk proved why he was such a dominant World champion in years past, but Rude showed why he was the man in 2020, and Rusev controlled several moments of the match as well. However, after the “Bulgarian Brute” press-slammed Funk from the ring, the “Ravishing One” stalked Rusev and hit him with a wheelbarrow stungun, dropping him neck-first across the rope. Before he could recover, the champion struck with the Rude Awakening, and eked out the win.
As Rude celebrated, Funk gingerly got back in the ring – but the reigning titleholder wouldn't have it. He hit the Texan with a low blow, then with another Rude Awakening. Both challengers were left laying by the muscular Minnesotan, and he blew a kiss to the camera as the show faded to black.