CLASSIC AWA 4/29/08 TV REPORT
- 04/29/2008 (10:11:19 pm)
- Georgiann Makropoulos
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April 29th airs a 1988 episode of Verne Gagne’s AWA All Star Wrestling from Nashville Tennessee.
Beauty & Beast versus Top Guns (Jon Paul & Ricky Rice)
Paul and Rice would tag back and forth, working on the left arms of their opponents. Paul and Rice double arm twisted, flipped Beauty with a double arm grapevine, to synchronized leg drops on his arms. After leg dropping Beast’s arm, Paul’s leg would be used to add pressure to a wrist lock. A tagged Rice bounded off the ropes, leap frogging over Paul’s back to land on Beast’s wrist locked arm. Beauty fought Rice back to Beast’s corner, where both men double teamed him. Rice ducked Beauty’s clothesline, then hit Beauty with an off the ropes flying cross body press. Rice whipped Beauty in for a dropkick, then tagged Paul, who drove off the top ropes with the F-14 finisher (Superfly splash). This match made it past the four minute point.
Ken Rafer versus Colonel DeBeers (with Diamond Dallas Page & the Diamond Doll)
Page brought a gurney (wheeled stretcher), then got on the microphone, to say that DeBeers will have his opponents leave on the stretcher. Rafer fought back unsuccessfully against DeBeers’ onslaught of forearms and knees. DeBeers dropped Rafer with a right fist, following up with a back breaker and rope burn. DeBeers drove Rafer into the mat with a face drop piledriver, lifted Rafer to stop the pin at 2, but then ending the match after a second face drop piledriver in this under three minute match. As Rafer laid on the mat, DeBeers walked over his neck, to have have his arm raised by page. Heading back to the dressing room, DeBeers argued with a fan, as the officials placed Rafer on the wheeled stretcher.
At AWA studio, Larry Nelson presented the clip of former WWE ladies’ champion Wendi Richter getting attacked by Badd Company (Paul Diamond & Pat Tanaka) during her match with AWA ladies’ champion Madusa Miceli. Richter was then interviewed, saying that she can now solely concentrate on Madusa, now that she had Top Guns in the Super Clash mixed six person tag match. Richter said "Beware Madusa, because I’m after you!"
Nature’s Best versus Continental Wrestling Association tag team champions Rock ‘n Roll RPMs (Mike Davis & Tommy Lane)
RPMs followed their manager Downtown Bruno (WWF’s Harvey Wippleman) to Molly Hatchet’s "Flirtin’ with Disaster" Nature’s Best #1 took a double back elbow, Lane side drop suplex and a Davis vertical suplex. After enduring a body slam and leg drop by Lane, a tagged Davis threw #1 to his corner to tag in his partner.
#2 was whipped off the ropes, flipped by Davis’ knee lift, and then took an RPMs double clotheline. After Lane wrenched on a seated #2 with a head twist, Davis threw #2 back to his corner. #1 was whipped to the ropes to a Davis back body drop into a Lane powerbomb pin, as Davis rushed to knock away #2, closing the match after three minutes
Brickhouse Brown versus "Gorgeous" Gary Young
Young hammered Brown against the ropes, but Brown fired back with fist, a high dropkick and swift powerslam, before punch knocked Young from the ring. Brown yanks the top rope to fling Young in from the ring apron, but would wipe out when Young ducked Brown’s flying cross body press. An Irish whipped Brown was lifted by the waist and dropped face down to the canvas. After Borwn blocked a turnbuckle smash, Young had his head slammed to the turnbuckle.
Young’s mercy pleads fell on deaf ears as Brown landed a back elbow from an Irish whip. A series of eyes rakes, opened Young’s opportunity for a back body drop. Brown fought back with fists, then caught Young with a flying headbutt. Brown was tripped by Bruno, when running into the ropes, and went after Bruno on the apron, after Young missed landing an elbow drop.
With his opponent’s attention away, Young was able to get the clothesline on Brown. Young climbed the top ropes, but only connected with the mat when leaping off. Brown then took to the top ropes, and landed a flying splash to pinfall victory, in this match that reached past five minutes.
World Class champion "Modern Day Warrior" Kerry Von Erich versus AWA champion Jerry "The King" Lawler in a title vs title unification main event match
Von Erich shoots in, causing Lawler to back in the corner. After faking out Lawler with on a second approach, Von Erich does a dancing strut to cheers. Both men then roll around the ropes in a collar and elbow lock up. Lawler wins in an off the ropes collision, then does his own dancing strut to cheers. Von Erich lands a kick to the mid section before dropping Lawler with a clothesline. Von Erich repeats this tactic, but Lawler ducked the first clothesline, only to be taken down with a second.
Lawler traps Von Erich for a 2 count in the inside cradle. An angered Von Erich shoves Lawler into corner, and Lawler shoves back. Lawler is whipped to the ropes, ducks Von Erich’s clothesline and then nails Von Erich down with a clothesline. On Von Erich’s return, Lawler backed him to the corner and landed a punch to no effect. Von Erich spun around and blasted Lawler across the ring with a discus punch.
Von Erich body slammed Lawler, but missed the elbow drop. Lawler mounted the ropes from the corner, but when he came down, Von Erich caught Lawler’s skull in the iron claw. Lawler flails his arms while being taken down to a seated position. Lawler turns his body, loosening the claw enough to land elbows to the mid section, for a release. Lawler then takes Von Erich down with a harsh right first.
Lawler takes down the strap on his singlet, and then exchanges fists with Von Erich. Both men stand their ground, even after a Von Erich discus punch. The referee gets in between the men, backs them off of the punches. Lawler and Von Erich look at each other, nod, and then knock the ref out on the floor by punching him at the same time.
Lawler and Von Erich go back to trading punches, and a second referee enters to signal the bell, for a double disqualification, ending the match after nine minutes. After both men back away, Von Erich gets on the microphone to say "I didn’t come all the way here from Texas for a disqualification. I’m not leaving this ring until there is a winner!", as the crowd cheers. The bell rings to restart the match.
Lawler takes Von Erich into the corner with left fists, Von Erich would punch out of the corner, and the referee would get mashed in the corner when Lawler whipped Von Erich to the corner. As the referee is ailing, Von Erich kicks Lawler in the stomach, and then plants Lawler to the mat with the piledriver. Von Erich pin covers Lawler as the ref recovers to count 1..2..3. Von Erich stood with raised arms to the cheering crowd, in under two minutes of the restarted match.
Von Erich picks up a yellow rose that a fan threw into the ring, and the referee hands him the World Class and AWA championship belts. The first referee returns to the ring to wave off the decision, as he witnessed the piledriver. The piledriver is outlawed by the Tennessee athletic commission, meaning Von Erich would be disqualified, instead of winning the AWA title. Lawler then got on the mic to say that he should be World Class champion, because World Class rules has a champion lose the title via disqualification. Von Erich took the mic to state that World Class doesn’t have "sissy rules" that make the piledriver illegal. Both
men retain their respective championships.
At AWA studio, Larry Nelson was joined by The Iron Sheik and Sheik Adnan El Kassey. "It’s none of your business" Sheik Adnan told Nelson, when asked if he and the Iron Sheik would be apart of SuperClash III. Iron Sheik said "Intelligent American people know about The Iron Sheik". Iron Sheik continued with it being his "pleasure to be in the roughest and toughest area, the AWA." Iron Sheik added that Adnan brought him there on a promise to meet AWA champion Jerry "The King" Lawler.
Then a special look at Sgt. Slaughter aired. This was a video montage of Sarge with his fans, then body slamming and back body dropping Boris Zhukov at the Tropicana in Las Vegas. This was followed by Sarge giving Nick Bockwinkel a Slaughter Cannon (clothesline) and Cobra Clutch, before chasing Zhukov.
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David
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