Post by fifthhorseman on Nov 29, 2020 22:14:12 GMT -5
PRE-SHOW MATCH
The NEW DAY vs. LEX LUGER and the STRONGHOLD (w/Sir Oliver Humperdink):
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The NEW DAY vs. LEX LUGER and the STRONGHOLD (w/Sir Oliver Humperdink):
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Neither squad was happy to be on the pre-show, but that didn't mean that they weren't going to try. Humperdink's men were all power and explosiveness, which was matched on the other side by Langston; Woods and Kingston were the best wrestlers of the bunch.
Incredibly, it was the former WWE champion Kingston that was the face in peril midway through the bout, and his foes smartly worked him over on their side of the ring. They were vicious, but they got overconfident, and Kingston made a diving tag to Woods. The fresh man jumped in and took Luger, Cameron, and Brown on by himself before smartly bringing the massive Big E. It turned into a big brawl, with bodies colliding everywhere, until Langston laid out Cameron with the Big Ending.
A preview video was shown to hype the entire card, fittingly ending with the main event: Rick Rude versus Jack Brisco for the CWF Florida Heavyweight championship. Mauro Ranallo and Lance Russell added their own thoughts, and fireworks and pyro went off to signal the official start to the show.
CWF SURVIVOR SERIES 2020
SURVIVOR SERIES MATCH
THE NEXUS vs. FUTURE SHOCK, the GEORGIA OUTLAWS, and the USOS:
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As Gene Okerlund wound down the lengthy ring introductions, EC3 walked down the ramp in his wrestling gear and marched straight into the faces' corner. Barrett shouted his objections, but Carter took the microphone from “Mean Gene” and said, “You can take it up with Bobby Heenan. After you all forced Jerry Lawler to leave town, that left an open spot on this team. You didn't make it a seven-on-six handicap match, you just opened up a spot – for me. I asked Mr. Heenan if I could sub in, and guess what – he said yes. So... are we going to do this, or what?”
This match was a classic in the vein of the very first team-oriented Survivor Series matches. After 20 minutes of non-stop action, it was down to three-on-three: Barrett, Gabriel, and Tom Carter on one side, and Cole, Jimmy Uso, and EC3 on the other. However, Uso didn't last much longer, thanks to a Bull Hammer for Barrett.
For the next couple of minutes, the young Cole and “RY” Carter squared off. They traded holds and counters that challenged even Ranallo's vocabulary. Alas, the up-and-comer couldn't kick out of a fisherman's suplex, and the Nexus was up 3-1.
Barrett smirked at EC3, and said, “Bet you wish you stayed in the back now.” But on the contrary, the former TNA star simply flexed and challenged him to get in the ring. The Brit couldn't say no, and the two men exchanged heavy right hands. After a series of moves, Gabriel tagged in and showcased his aerial skills, staggering his opponent. He downed EC3 and went to the top rope, but he took too long; EC3 suddenly ran up to the middle turnbuckle and hit Gabriel with a headlock driver from eight feet in the air. Three seconds later, Gabriel was eliminated.
The Nexus leader attacked before Gabriel was even out of the ring. He was relentless, battering his foe from pillar to post. Then he picked his moment, and nailed EC3 with a Bull Hammer, a move that sent him flying between the ropes to the floor. Carter and Barrett gloated from their corner, but EC3 beat the count back in – barely. The multi-time Intercontinental champion paced over to beat on him some more... and the next thing he knew, his shoulders were on the mat courtesy of a small package. He was eliminated as well.
He didn't take the loss like a gentleman. He scooped EC3 up and dropped him with a Wasteland slam, and only left when Carter came in to drop a series of knees onto EC3's back. In fact, Barrett never left ringside. After all that damage, EC3 succumbed to a Cattle Mutilation by Carter, the sole survivor, giving the Nexus the win.
After the scene cleared, Okerlund introduced the East-West Connection, who strutted out on-stage with the WCW World Tag-Team titles around their waists. The crowd was momentarily on their side, but Ventura's heelish promo put an end to that: after calling it one of the easiest matches of his life, he said that it'd be used as a stepping stone toward the CWF Florida Tag-Team titles. He ripped the Road Warriors and Demolition, and claimed that neither team deserved a rematch. Adonis jumped in, and said that he and Ventura would be defending the WCW belts next week on Championship Wrestling from Florida, and against only the best competition in the world – because they were fighting champions, and the best team in the entire MUW Network.
CWF FLORIDA TAG-TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
The DEVIL'S ADVOCATES (c, w/Leo Kruger) vs. DORY and TERRY FUNK:
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The DEVIL'S ADVOCATES (c, w/Leo Kruger) vs. DORY and TERRY FUNK:
vs.
The Funks were immediately outnumbered when all five Advocates walked down the ramp. The referee shook his head, and told O'Haire he'd let them have one cornerman – not three. He looked his minions over, and told Leo Kruger to stay.
They were both physical teams, and it was a physical match. Coyote and O'Haire were much larger and stronger, but the Texas-tough siblings could fight with the best of them, and were vastly underrated mat technicians. The Funks wanted to put their foes on their backs and work on their legs; the Florida champions were determined to win with high-impact offense. And when it came to high-impact, the seemingly misguided Coyote was a force – the 6'7, 290-pounder threw brutal punches and connected with jarring slams and throws. The younger Funk was a bump machine for both of his opponents, and only after the two titans accidentally hit each other with clotheslines did he make the hot tag to Dory, Jr.
Funk came in and went to work on O'Haire. The longtime NWA World champ targeted his foe's large legs, and after a couple of minutes, wrenched at O'Haire's knee with his patented spinning toe hold. He kept at it, twisting and bending as the bigger man writhed in pain. Coyote made a move to get in and break the hold, but Terry cut him off, and shoulder-blocked him off the apron, taking out Kruger in the process.. and a few seconds later, Dory made O'Haire give up, just a few seconds shy of 18 minutes.
Okerlund announced the title change, and the belts were handed to the brothers, who celebrated out on the ramp, far from the Advocates. They departed quickly, so they never saw O'Haire chastising Kruger – or Coyote. He got right in his partner's face, and gave it a hard slap. And a second one.
That was too much for Coyote to take. It was as if he emerged from a dark fog, and the look on his face made it clear that he was no longer under O'Haire's spell. He shoved him down to the mat, and when Kruger angrily stepped in, he was launched about eight feet with what used to be called the Razor's Edge. Coyote left them in the ring, and as he walked away, the frown on his face slowly turned into a smile, and he extended his arms horizontally away from his body in a very familiar pose before disappearing through the curtain.
An “earlier in the day” video was shown, hyping Rude's and Brisco's arrivals at the arena, and both men had their game faces on.
SURVIVOR SERIES MATCH
The KING'S COURT vs. LEGACY:
vs.
The KING'S COURT vs. LEGACY:
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DiBiase, Steamboat, Kidd, and Smith were introduced first, and they looked confident, even without knowing who their opponents were going to be. A couple of weeks ago, they wondered if it might be Lawler and some of his friends – but that theory seemed to be out the window given Lawler's current employment status.
The lights dropped, and the crowd buzzed in anticipation. A single spotlight illuminated the stage, and one by one, Legacy's opponents made their CWF debuts.
“Lord” Steven Regal.
The “King of the Cruiserweights”, PAC.
“Prince” Finn Balor.
And finally, the “King of Kings”... Triple H.
They marched to the ring on a mission, and charged at Legacy before the bell even rang. It wasn't a match, it was a beating. They brawled inside and outside the ring, and despite the referee's warnings, he could not get it under control.
It was over in less than five minutes. PAC hit Kidd with the Red Arrow; Balor nailed Steamboat with his Coup de Grace; Regal applied his self-titled stretch to DiBiase; and Triple H laid Smith out with the Pedigree. After it was over, the “Cerebral Assassin” took the microphone from Okerlund and addressed the crowd.
“Did you all appreciate the name of our group? Call me nostalgic; I thought it was appropriate for tonight's show. But it's a name from the past, and after tonight, that's where it's gonna stay. You know me. You know what I do. What I do is lead the curve. I lead wrestling into the future. And the men standing here with me are going to lead it there as well. We aren't DX, we aren't the Bullet Club, and we're not the Regal Roundtable. We're not even Evolution.... we're the NeXT Evolution. We're the best damn wrestlers in this sport, and it won't take us long to prove it here.”
He dropped the mike and the quartet left, walking past the broadcast table where both announcers could only wonder how the NeXT Evolution would shift the balance of power in Florida.
During the break, a shot of Paul Orndorff aired, watching the show from one of the arena suites. He was alone, no managers or consultants in sight, and he seemed to enjoy the solitude. Then his cell phone rang, and he looked down at it in disgust, obviously bothered by the interruption.
A highlight video aired, comparing and contrasting the combatants in the next match: CWF Television champion Barry Windham, and MUW World Heavyweight champion Samoa Joe.
EXHIBITION MATCH, CWF TELEVISION TITLE RULES
SAMOA JOE vs. BARRY WINDHAM:
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SAMOA JOE vs. BARRY WINDHAM:
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This might have been a first in MUW history: the champion of champions was about to wrestle in a one-on-one match and his prestigious title was not on the line. It wasn't exactly a night off for Joe, either, as he was nearing the tail end of an exhausting schedule where (thus far) he had successfully defended the title in various territories against the best in the world. But that wasn't enough for the “Samoan Submission Machine”.
Windham welcomed the challenge. A win – even a good showing – against Joe would raise the tall Texan's stock even more, and perhaps put him in line for a shot against Muhammad Hassan, Rick Rude, or maybe even Joe himself.
The referee twisted the dial on the title belt, and it came up Pure Rules. Both men smiled at the outcome, and then it was on. They (legally) beat the hell out of each other, with throws and strikes and kicks, never once throwing a closed fist. Whenever either man wound up on his back, he rolled or bridged on his neck to avoid a pin. The pace never slowed, it was as even as a match could be... and just when Joe got behind Windham to lock on the Coquina Clutch, the bell rang. The ten minutes were up. Joe roughly spun the TV champ around, but in a show of respect, raised his arm. Windham did the same to the MUW kingpin, but was heard asking for a shot at Joe's title sometime down the line.
The scene shifted backstage, where Sean O'Haire sat by himself in a locker room, head down. Whatever dark thoughts he had were his own, but from off-screen, someone said, “You have nothing to be ashamed of. You had a good run with those tag-team titles, and ever since you arrived in CWF, you've had a lot of success. Unfortunately, and I say this with great respect... you can't lead those men. You need to focus on yourself – let someone else relieve you of that burden of leadership. If you listen to me, if you let me make a couple of changes that must be made for the good of the team... you won't be disappointed.”
O'Haire looked up and replied, “Why should I listen to you? Why should I trust you?”
The man called Raven stepped forward. “Oh, you can trust me.”
SURVIVOR SERIES MATCH
CHRISTIAN CAGE, “SUPERSTAR” BILLY GRAHAM, NIGEL McGUINNESS, and DUSTY RHODES vs. the GULF COAST VARSITY CLUB:
vs.
CHRISTIAN CAGE, “SUPERSTAR” BILLY GRAHAM, NIGEL McGUINNESS, and DUSTY RHODES vs. the GULF COAST VARSITY CLUB:
vs.
The betting line favored the four individual stars, but Nemeth and the Club were too cocky to care. In their minds, they were the best four pure athletes in CWF, and as a team, literally unstoppable.
But things started poorly for them. Less than three minutes in, Spivey was disqualified after throwing the referee halfway across the ring. His teammates tried to calm him down, but “Dangerous Dan” was irate, and accidentally punched his Southern Tag-Team partner, Rotunda– although Russell and Ranallo weren't entirely sure that it was an accident.
A couple of minutes later, Rotunda was eliminated by Cage with an Unprettier. The Syracuse Orangeman was in shock, and Russell suspected that he was still thinking about Spivey's powerful left-handed punch – in any event, Rotunda immediately left the ring and headed backstage.
From there, the match actually settled down. The singles stars worked well together, but the next elimination came on a countout, after Nemeth hit Graham with a ZigZag on the steel steps. The “Superstar” was rocked, and it was three-to-two. A few minutes later, Bugenhagen scored the biggest pin of his CWF life when, after a series of reversals, he crushed the “Instant Classic” with a belly-to-belly suplex, then cinched Cage in such a tight pin that he couldn't escape.
Two against two now. McGuinness and Nemeth went at it next and put on a professional wrestling clinic, and after a bunch of tags and momentum shifts, the “American Dream” put Bugenhagen away with the bionic elbow.
Nemeth slammed his hands down on the apron in frustration, but jumped back up and waved his foes on. It was basically a handicap match now, and Rhodes and McGuinness were smart enough to tag frequently. But despite their best efforts, Nemeth refused to just roll over. In fact, it took them almost ten more minutes to finally put the Kent State stalwart away, and it was the rangy Brit who ended it with his Tower of London cutter. All three men were exhausted when it was done, and Nemeth earned an ovation from the faces, and the crowd, when he slowly staggered up the ramp. The larger cheer went to the victors, of course, who followed a few moments later.
A lengthy recap package came up next, starting with clips from the night that Brian Pillman lost the Southern title in a stacked guantlet match to Muhammad Hassan, and ending with a tale of the tape comparing the competitors in the upcoming match.
CWF SOUTHERN HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
MUHAMMAD HASSAN (c, w/Freddie Blassie) vs. DREW McINTYRE:
vs.
MUHAMMAD HASSAN (c, w/Freddie Blassie) vs. DREW McINTYRE:
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McIntyre bounced back and forth in the ring awaiting his foe, but as it turned out, it took longer than he expected. Hassan walked through the curtain, followed by his manager... but then Blassie was jumped from behind by Brian Pillman! He knocked the legendary manager down with a flurry of punches until Hassan jumped on his back, and security quickly ran out to hold the “Loose Cannon” back. A few moments later, Bobby Heenan stormed out and said, “Pillman, that's the last straw! You're suspended – indefinitely – for hitting a manager! Get him out of here!”
With one last burst of strength, Pillman broke free of the guards holding him back and did the unthinkable – he took a swing at “the Brain”.
It didn't land with maximum force, but it knocked Heenan down. More importantly, it embarrassed him. The owner and president of CWF slowly got to his feet and screamed, “You're not suspended – you're fired! You're fired! That's the last straw, you punk! Get him out of here, dammit!”
The audience was stunned into silence, and as Pillman was dragged out of the arena, Heenan helped a still-dazed Blassie to his feet. Hassan walked to the ring by himself, not nearly as confident as he was five minutes ago.
Big-match intros, and the first couple of minutes of the bout were all McIntyre. He utilized his superior strength and reach, and he threw Hassan around the ring at will. The Southern Heavyweight king was not a small man, and he fought back, but McIntyre was on a mission.
The tension in the arena suddenly went to ten when Blassie came back out with Brock Lesnar. He handed the “Beast Incarnate” a clipboard, simply for show, and told him to represent the Blassie Family at ringside. So down he went, and McIntyre couldn't focus solely on his in-ring opponent. Hassan clawed his way back into the match, and whenever he found an opportunity to distract the referee, Lesnar hit McIntyre hard from outside.
And then McIntyre received help from a very unexpected source. Samoa Joe sauntered down the ramp and stood in the Scotsman's corner; Heenan couldn't very well remove him from ringside. The fight continued on the inside, but after both of them went over the top rope courtesy of a Cactus clothesline, Mcintyre and Lesnar wound up brawling as well, and the familiar adversaries had to be separated by a terrified security force, who were joined by CWF officials and even some of the wrestlers in the back.
Meanwhile, in the squared circle, Hassan went low with a punt on McIntyre below the belt when the referee was distracted. It was a vicious kick, and the champion locked in the tightest pin that he could, and he kept the former WWE champion down just long enough for a three-count. It was messy, and blatantly illegal, but all that mattered was that Hassan was still the Southern champ.
Elsewhere... Nemeth, Bugenhagen, and Rotunda were backstage, and none of them were in a good mood. Nemeth looked into the camera and said, “We lost, that's on me, but that's not what's important right now. Dan Spivey – you're done. We never should let a football player into the Varsity Club! But there's one slight problem – you and Mike are the Southern Tag-Team champions. So next week, here's the deal – you versus Mike Rotunda, man to man, for the right to keep the titles and find a partner to share them with. You may as well say yes – if you don't, who knows what Bobby Heenan will do with them.”
One more recap package, featuring the CWF Florida Heavyweight champion and the top contender.
CWF FLORIDA HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
JACK BRISCO vs. RICK RUDE (c, w/Percy Pringle III):
vs.
JACK BRISCO vs. RICK RUDE (c, w/Percy Pringle III):
vs.
It was main-event time. Heenan was in his customary spot, alongside Ranallo and Russell; before it started, he promised them that he would be delivering a state of the CWF union address on the next television show, and he had a lot to get off his chest.
But that would have to wait. Brisco and Rude stood in their respective corners during the intros, each man cool, confident, and ready to go for as long as it took. The first few minutes were a feeling-out process, with neither man willing to make an early mistake. Gradually, they each began to take more chances, expanding their offenses beyond simple lock-ups and throws. Brisco frustrated the “Ravishing One” with his collegiate mat skills, and it kept Rude from using his superior strength.
Eventually the tide would turn; Rude was a cheater and an opportunist, but he was also one of the toughest men in the business. As usual, he focused on the neck and back, using forearm shots, kneedrops, and even bearhugs to weaken Brisco. It was a very methodical middle stretch, and that suited the champion perfectly, as he made every strike and every slam count. Brisco was in obvious pain, and he couldn't get any sustained offense going – Rude was too strong and too smart to give him room to breathe.
20 minutes in, and Brisco finally began to rally. He back-dropped the champion three times, and fired off a bunch of punches that staggered Rude. Pushing him into a corner, he mounted the middle turnbuckle and laid in ten more jabs that the crowd dutifully counted off. The “Ravishing One” staggered out of the corner, and did the Flair flop to the canvas. Brisco went for the pin, but Rude powered out at 2.8. Pringle was losing it on the floor, and the rugged Oklahoman went for a figure-four leglock. Before he could complete it, though, Rude did the only thing he could do, and he raked Brisco's eyes.
That turned the tide back to the champ. Rude got to his feet, and pounded away at his foe's back yet again. The next couple of minutes were all in the Minnesotan's favor, and he positioned Brisco for his finisher, the Rude Awakening... but it was reversed into a backslide. One, two – kickout. Rude was furious, and he booted Brisco in the gut before cinching it again. He blew a kiss to the the crowd... and it was reversed again!
There was no kickout this time.
Jack Brisco was the winner. Jack Brisco was the new CWF Florida Heavyweight champion.
Rude and Pringle was distraught. The crowd was not, and they stood as one to cheer on Brisco, who accepted the title belt from the referee. After the heels slinked away, Brisco climbed each middle turnbuckle and held the belt above his head, acknowledging the crowd as confetti came down from the ceiling to end the show.