CLASSIC AWA 3/19/08 TV REPORT
- 03/19/2008 (8:21:05 pm)
- Georgiann Makropoulos
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March 19th aired a classic AWA June 24th 1986 episode from the Showboat Sports Pavilion in Las Vegas Nevada. There was some boxing on that cut into AWA’s time, and ESPN Classic chose to air only enough of the AWA program to finish the hour with, starting at 1:16.
Col. DeBeers (posted on screen as Du Beers) pinned Dennis Stamp a little past the 8 minute mark with his finisher, a body press piledriver. From the Funk family’s hometown of Amarillo Texas, the Terry Funk like Stamp had a pretty impressive showing. Stamp controlled much of the match with an arm lock on Debeers’ left arm. DeBeers didn’t turn this around until he dropped back, forcing Stamp to fall forward into the ropes. DeBeers would use stomps, punches, knees, and turn a backbreaker into a gut buster. DeBeers tried for a vertical suplex but Stamp pulled his weight back, and then slowly muscled up and over DeBeers into the suplex. Stamp then chopped DeBeers down with a knife edge chop, but DeBeers then placed a boot in Stamp’s mid section. When DeBeers Irish whipped Stamp in for another boot to the stomach, Stamp held the foot, a panicked DeBeers pleaded with Stamp only to lull him in with an enzuigiri (kick to head). Then pulled Stamp in for his finisher and for Robert Warren’s three. Up Next: The Outspoken Colonel! was posted on screen, but ESPN Classic just went into another match instead of airing the interview.
Curt Hennig pinned Jay York in just under 5 minutes after a mid rope missile dropkick and roll up pin. Commentator and wrestling legend, Lord James Blears would use his father’s saying to describe Curt Hennig and Larry "The Ax" Hennig, stating "A worthy son for a worthy sire." Hennig would break the hammerlock by hip tossing York, but York would apply a cross face wrist lock that resembled Sgt. Slaughter’s Cobra Clutch. York would plead to referee Larry Losawski, that his sneaky punches where open hand slaps. Hennig dazzed York with right palm strike, then a leg take down followed by a fall away hamstring stretch (wrestler drops their body to mat while holding opponent’s leg, causing hyper extension) on York’s left leg. Hennig would bring York down again, by flipping him with an arm twist. York is whipped into the corner, back body dropped and escapes the pin at 2. York used his right fist (commentator Rod Trongard said left) eye raked, turnbuckle smashed and Irish whipped Hennig into the corner. As York was staggering towards him, Hennig sprung himself to the middle ropes and planted York with a missile dropkick. Hennig grabs York’s legs and forward rolls over York’s body for Losawski’s three. The screen posted Coming Up: Comments from Curt, but like with DeBeers, ESPN has the show go right into another match instead.
The main event saw Boris Zhukov & Nord the Barbarian defeat the Midnight Rockers (Shawn Michaels & Marty Jannetty) just past the 12 minute point, when Michaels was pinned by Zhukov after being pushed from the top rope to the ropes. Before the bell, Boris outstretched the Soviet flag, as Nord was outside the ring giving his Bruiser Brody like "hussing" call. Announcer Larry Nelson mistakenly listed the Rockers as 515 lbs in the introductions. Jannetty blocked Zhukov’s right forearm in the corner, then with rights fists, Jennetty backed Boris into the opposite corner. Jannetty whipped Boris back to the original corner and flipped him with a back body drop, cauing Boris to flee the ring. After some stalling by Boris, Jannetty wrapped his left arm around Zhukov’s massive cranium, lifted himself up with steps from middle to top turnbuckle, then shifted his weight to his right to flip Zhukov to the mat. After a break by Boris, Jannetty repeated this maneuver.
After the tag, Boris was double Irish whipped into the ropes and was dropped after a pair of flying back elbows. Boris escapes the pin, a tagged Nord steps over the ropes (Blears said "I always wished I was able to do that") and Shawn engages with him in a collar elbow tie up. Shawn gets a side headlock on Nord, and holds on, Shawn is tossed away to his feet after a Nord pick up and throw. Shawn goes to his corner, for some advice from Jannetty. Nord kicks, clobs and whips Shawn into the ropes. Shawn fires back with a cross body press and is caught in mid air by Nord, who then drops Shawn on his knee for a backbreaker. A kick out at two, would then lead to a gorilla press type Nord slam, but a Shawn would fire back with rights after Nord missed with a flying knee drop.
With Jannetty tagged, Nord is double whipped into the ropes and is back body dropped by both Michaels and Jannetty. Something occurs to the video that looks like it was edited, but Trongard and Blears explained that there was some technical difficulty due to a raging storm occuring outside the Showboat Sports Pavilion. Nord headlocked Shawn to Zhukov’s corner for a boot and turnbuckle smashs by Boris. Shawn would return by shooting Zhukov over the turnbuckles onto the steel corner connecter. Boris jolted back and looked like he was cut open, but that turned out to be something just showing up on the video. Shawn would repeat this move in a different corner, a tagged Jannetty would work on the side headlock. Jannetty whipped Zhukov to the ropes, a tagged Michaels ran to the other side of the ropes, Jannetty hip tossed Zhukov down and Shawn landed on him with a leaping leg drop.
Nord kicked Shawn off the pin attempt, then Shawn had his headlock to inside cradle pin on Boris broken by another boot by Nord. Jannetty came in but thought better of attacking an exiting Nord. A tagged Jannetty would flip Boris over for a headlock, but have it broken when Zhukov performed a back suplex on him. Jannetty punched at Nord’s mid section, after receiving a boot, then Marty would leap from the middle rope with fist drops on Nord. After brining Nord to one knee after the second, Nord caught Jannetty in mid air on Marty’s third attempt. Blears said Nord has Marty cradled like a baby, as Jannetty showed agonizing pain on his face from the bear hug. Jannetty was able to punch free, whipped Nord to the corner, but would be immediately folded up after his charge met a lightning high boot of Nord.
A disoriented Jannetty falls from standing to seated position, and then get flattened by a size 10 ½ head butt from Zhukov. Shawn rushes in and kick Zhukov off at the count of 1. Boris clubs the chest of a seated Jannetty, then puts in into a bear hug. Jannetty hip tosses Boris, a tagged Michaels leaps over the top ropes, as the crowd cheers Shawn hammer rights on Boris. An Irish whip becomes a back body drop, then a high dropkick and body slam, would lead to Shawn quick spring to a middle rope fist drop on Zhukov. Now all four men are in the ring, after Nord kicks Shawn off. A corner whipped Boris would catch a dropkick by Shawn, and then Michaels rushed to Jannetty to assist a whip on Nord into a Midnight Rockers double dropkick. Referee Gary DeRousha’s attention was to Nord on the arena floor, as "Playboy" Buddy Rose rushed to the ring to push a top rope perched Michaels onto the ropes. DeRousha turns to see Boris drop cover on Michaels and he drops down to administer the three count. As the ref signals the bell, Nord pushed Jannetty into the steel ring post on the floor.
Larry Nelson interviewed the Midnights in the ring, saying that everyone but the ref saw what happened. Both Rockers were tired but angered, as Jannetty sarcastically praised Rose and Somers as non defending champions, and Shawn said that Rose must be worried about them, since he has interfere on a match he’s not officially involved in. Shawn said "If they want us so bad, you drag your fat butts to the rings, and we’ll slap you around like we always do." and added that this is the last time Buddy Rose was going to interfere. Jannetty said "Everybody knows that you’re nothing but a yellow belly, jelly belly coward, and I guarantee you buddy, we’re coming after you and Doug (Somers), and we’re gonna get you!"
Catch the glory days of the AWA, Monday through Friday at 1 am eastern standard time on ESPN Classic channel.
David
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