Sage Cortez
So, it’s time for a few more months of WWF action! Lots of new debuts coming, and they’re setting up some big summer cards. There’s also the aftermath of the Jim Duggan & Iron Sheik case. I don’t have any idea what to expect in terms of TV and angle quality, because so many people are debuting. One of them is returning, and it’s the Junkyard Dog. No expectations there.
Before getting to the matches, there is one thing to cover. The Midnight Rockers made their debut on June 3rd. According to the WON, there was a crackdown on wrestler behavior after the Duggan & Sheik incident. The Rockers got caught acting like idiots right after the TV taping, and got fired. Dumb way to throw away an opportunity.
– June 7th, 1987, from Sam Houston Coliseum, in Houston, Texas
The One Man Gang vs. Ted DiBiase
Pre-Match Thoughts: DiBiase is debuting here without any gimmick. I don’t think it counts as much of a debut, considering it’s only in Houston, but it’s a match to watch. It’s also going to be interesting to see how both of these guys work in their roles. That’s my main reason for checking it out. Both of these guys are UWF guys, too, hence the reason for it being in Houston.
Match Review: Gang is a scary looking dude. He shoves DiBiase back into the corner, showcasing his power. He beats DiBiase up, and gives him a bodyslam. Gang tries an elbow drop, and misses. DiBiase whips Gang into the corner, gets in some punches, and bites Gang to a nice ovation. DiBiase follows with a dropkick, knocking Gang to the floor. When he gets back in, it’s time for a TEST OF STRENGTH. He wins that, but plucky Ted comes back up to his feet and gains an advantage, putting a wristlock on his opponent. That becomes a hammerlock, as Gang goes down. DiBiase works that hold nicely, until Gang grabs a hold of his face. With it broken, Gang launches him into a corner. That couldn’t have felt good. Gang puts a bear hug on DiBiase, which is a hold that looks so much more painful than it actually is. After DiBiase breaks free, Gang misses a charge to the corner, and DiBiase lands an elbow from the second rope. DiBiase lands another dropkick, and tries another…only to land on his back as Gang moves. Gang misses an elbow drop, and DiBiase puts a spinning toe-hold on Gang. That’s such a corny move. Gang kicks free, and blocks a DiBiase charge to the corner. He punches DiBiase, and covers him, while placing his feet on the ropes. That’s a smart move for a big guy. It gets him the pinfall victory at 9:32.
The bell rings to end the match, but this isn’t over. Sam Houston comes out, and tells the referee about Gang’s cheating. Gang gets pissed off and tries to pick on Houston, so Houston and DiBiase clear Gang out of the ring with a double dropkick.
My Thoughts: Imagine if they had made Houston and DiBiase a tag team. That would have been horrible. This match was not horrible. It was nothing special either, but there was crisp work here, and other than Ted’s dropkicks, nothing looked silly. As somebody who hasn’t watched very much Mid-South Wrestling, it’s weird to see him work as a babyface. **. Glad they gave him a gimmick, and that he never worked as a babyface on TV for Vince.
– Taped to air June 13th, 1987, on Superstars of Wrestling, from Memorial Auditorium in Buffalo, New York
Honky Tonk Man (w/Jimmy Hart) vs. Ricky Steamboat for the WWF Intercontinental Championship
Pre-Match Thoughts: Big match for Superstars. In all likelihood people expected an easy Steamboat victory. I don’t know why anyone would have expected something different.
Match Review: To begin the match, HTM attacks an unsuspecting Steamboat, and throws him over the top rope. Steamboat has the intention of skinning the cat, after he kicks Jimmy Hart that is. After skinning the cat, he backdrops HTM over the top rope, and back suplexes him back into the ring from the apron. Steamboat keeps working him over, with a lot of chops. Steamboat cradles HTM up for 2, but HTM’s kick out knocked Steamboat into the turnbuckle. He gives Steamboat some blows to the neck, and a bodyslam for good measure. Up to the second rope HTM goes, and he misses an elbow drop. Steamboat puts his head down for a backdrop, gets kicked, and HTM goes for SHAKE, RATTLE, AND ROLL. Steamboat turns that into a real backdrop, and causes HTM to miss a charge to the corner. After more chops, Steamboat heads up top for a flying chop, but Jimmy Hart distracts the referee so he can’t count a cover. Steamboat then dropkicks a charging HTM into his manager, and tries a small package. HTM uses the ropes to reverse, the referee never spots it, and HTM WINS THE INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPIONSHIP after 3:53 of action. The crowd HATED that.
My Thoughts: At the time, this was a major surprise. Nobody knew that Steamboat was going on hiatus, but he was, and he had to drop the title. This was a really disappointing championship reign for Steamboat. He didn’t exactly set the world on fire. When he comes back, it will be better to see him chase the title…if that happens. ** for the match, which is historic and recommended to watch. This also sets up Randy Savage for a turn angle, because they’ll need another babyface draw for house shows…that is good news.
– June 14th, 1987, from Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York
King Harley Race (w/Neckbrace Heenan) vs. Hulk Hogan in a TEXAS DEATH MATCH for the WWF Championship
Pre-Match Thoughts: A gimmick match! A death match at that! I can’t believe the cartoony WWF of this era would run any match called a DEATH match. That’s very un-kid friendly. Would you let your kids watch a match where it’s implied that the loser WILL DIE? Apparently, if Hogan doesn’t win this match, he will quit wrestling.
Match Review: Hogan is wearing white trunks. There is likely blood in his future. Race attacks him to begin the match, and winds up getting backdropped down to the floor. On the floor, Hogan tosses Race into the guardrail, and back in we go. He clotheslines Race with his shirt, and chokes him to a big cheer. Hogan chops Race to knock him out of the ring again, and rams him into a TV monitor. Then worst of all, he breaks a chair over Race’s head. Haha. The chair is wrapped around Race’s head, which is made clear when Hogan continues to punch him. Race replies with a low blow, and has control when they get back in the ring. He drops a bunch of knees on the champion, and now we notice some blood on Race. Race gives Hogan a piledriver, and covers for a close 2 count. After a few more headbutts, Hogan takes a tumble nearly out of the ring. Race gives him a gutwrench suplex, garnering a 2 count. Hogan tosses Race over the top, and Harley takes a massive bump there. Yikes. Hogan chases Heenan around the ring now, but Race follows and eventually tosses him into the ring post. Now Race has a chair, and hits Hogan in the throat. Ha! He tries a diving headbutt on the floor, and…his head impacts the floor, not Hogan. Back inside, Hogan lands a big boot, and an atomic drop. He charges into Race with a clothesline, knocking him out of the ring yet again. This match is awesome. Hogan rams Race’s head into the post, and whacks him on the back with another chair. I don’t know how he gets control, but Race tries for a piledriver, and actually lands it. ON THE FLOOR. We’re back in the ring again, and Race has the championship belt. He hits Hogan in the gut with it, and heads up to the top rope. It’s time for the DIVING HEADBUTT, but he lands on the belt, not Hogan. Hogan struts around the ring, hits Race in the head with the belt, and pins him for the 3 count at 9:56.
My Thoughts: Great match! It’s one of Hogan’s best, that I’ve seen anyway. There was nice use of weapons, blood, and wrestling moves. The only thing was, it wasn’t a Texas Death Match. So calling it that was just a bit of nice advertising. The bout showed that Race actually did still have the ability to have great matches. This was in doubt, but after this match and his other matches with Hogan, it was no longer in doubt for me. He bumped for Hogan as well as anyone possibly could have. They also have an SNME match from 1988 that is supposed to be pretty good, I haven’t seen it before though. ***1/2, and recommended. Check this one out!
– June 20th, 1987, from the Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Kamala (w/Mr. Fuji & Kimchee) vs. Ricky Steamboat
Pre-Match Thoughts: Yeah, I know Kamala sucks, but this match is quite unique.
Match Review: Kamala tries chasing Steamboat around the ring, and can’t catch up to him. That goes on for a little while, until Steamboat gets kicked in the face. Kamala considers going up to the top rope after dishing out more punishment, but he changed his mind. Kamala keeps chopping away, and lifts Steamboat in the air while choking him. His offense is so unbelievably boring, but he misses a charge to the corner and is no longer on offense. Steamboat planned on running into Kamala, but Kimchee grabbed his foot. Steamboat gets rid of Kimchee, and comes off the top rope with a flying chop. Fuji distracts the referee, and Kimchee continues to grab Steamboat, which eventually allows Kamala to slam him off the top rope. Kamala follows with a splash, and pins Steamboat at 6:01.
My Thoughts: Damn, Steamboat is getting jobbed out. Truthfully, I could have written at least half of this review before watching the match. It was that predictable. It sucks to see Steamboat lose matches in this fashion, but I could have avoided seeing it by not watching it…yet I did not. 1/2*.
Now, at the tapings on June 23rd, a few guys were suspended for positive drug tests. According to Bret Hart’s book, Jake Roberts and Brian Blair tested postitive for cocaine and were suspended for a few weeks. So Jake’s hiatus from in-ring action is going to be extended even further. In the WON, it did not mention who tested positive. Also, the Iron Sheik got put on probation after his drug case, but regardless will not be back. They did bring Mr. T back, however. He is the new enforcer of the WWF, whatever that’s supposed to mean. I’m going to cover very little of that crap.
– July 10th, 1987, from Sam Houston Coliseum in Houston, Texas
Frenchy Martin vs. THE DINGO WARRIOR
Pre-Match Thoughts: I like how Warrior is from Queens. That’s a strange location for a DINGO WARRIOR to be from. Unfortunately, the Houston shows bombed hard at the box office. They tried putting Hogan on a previous show, Savage vs. HTM on this one, and it never worked. This was a UWF town. Obviously, this is Warrior’s debut, but not a nationwide TV debut as this was only on TV in Houston.
Match Review: I expect Warrior to look very bad here. The two men lock up, and Warrior no-sells some stuff. WHAT A POWERFUL MAN. Warrior places Martin on the top turnbuckle, showcasing even more power. Warrior lands a big elbow on Martin, who bails to the outside. Martin wants to shake hands with the crazy man, but Warrior winds up giving him a bodyslam. Warrior follows with a gorilla press slam, and pins Martin for a 3 count at 4:37. Weak.
My Thoughts: I don’t rate squash matches. Warrior is obviously extremely green, and we’ll see how that pans out going forward.
– July 15th, 1987, from the Civic Center in Glens Falls, New York
The Junkyard Dog & Rick Martel vs. The Hart Foundation (w/Jimmy Hart) for the WWF Tag Team Championships
Pre-Match Thoughts: It’s Duggan’s town, but he isn’t there! Neither is Tom Zenk, because he quit. Imagine if they had kept Martel with such a bad partner for months on end. He looks so goofy in this team. The Hart Foundation are the best, so watching them never gets old. I just realized if JYD puts effort in, these teams are similar speed & power combinations.
Match Review: DeGeorge and Bruno are the commentators. Oh dear. Bret attacks Martel from behind, but misses a charge to the corner and Martel gives he and Neidhart a couple of arm drags. Bret and Martel do a test of strength when things settle down, and Martel wins it, leading to an armbar. Bret tries a sunset flip, but Martel sits down and gets a 2 count. JYD enters the ring, as does Neidhart, and it’s power time. JYD’s getting even more fat, but he still has POWER. JYD rolls Neidhart up in a small package for 2, then Neidhart leaves the ring before JYD can headbutt him. Neidhart hilariously pulls his straps down, and clotheslines JYD. Bret tags in, and sadly it looks like JYD will be our face in peril. Neidhart chokes JYD with the tag rope, thanks to Bret’s work in distracting the ref. Neidhart misses a charge to the corner, and JYD tags out, so I guess I was wrong! Martel backdrops Bret, then tries to hit Bret, only for Neidhart to trip him. Smart move. Martel is given an inverted atomic drop by Bret Hart, and again the Foundation CHEATS by choking Martel. Neidhart’s in, and he tags out, for something good. Bret gives Martel a backbreaker, Neidhart follows with an elbow from the second turnbuckle, and that gets 2. Bret dumps Martel to the outside, and JYD pushes his partner back into the ring so that he can get beaten up. Neidhart throws Martel out yet again, and JYD has to chase Bret away from the scene. While that’s going on, Neidhart drops Martel on the guardrail. Martel is pushed back in again by his partner, and Neidhart puts a chinlock on Martel, setting us up for our finish. Martel powers out, and gets kneed in the back by Bret while running the ropes. These Hart Foundation cheating moves are so awesome. Bret tags in, and continues to prevent Martel from making a tag. Neidhart distracts the referee so that he doesn’t see a tag, and Neidhart tries a double team on Martel…only to dropkick Bret on accident. That was awesome.
Martel finally makes a legal tag out, and the crowd goes crazy as JYD beats the shit out of the Hart Foundation. Slowly beats the shit out of them, that is. Martel and JYD toss Bret into a standing Neidhart, and the referee gets distracted once again. So Neidhart grabs JYD, puts him in HART ATTACK position, and BLAMMO, as Bret flies off the top rope with a clothesline. For some idiotic reason, the referee disqualified the Hart Foundation, at 12:23.
My Thoughts: That finish ruined the match! Does JYD really have the status of a guy who can’t take a pinfall? Besides that, it was quite good. The Foundation was able to give out their usual double teams, and with Martel selling and working for them, they seemed to work even better than usual. The Hart Foundation is a real team, made apparent by their use of tag team tactics. If only every other team in the world did that. **3/4 for the match, I was going to give it more, but that finish…
– Taped to air July 18th, 1987, on Superstars of Wrestling, from Market Square Arena in Indianapolis, Indiana
The Snake Pit with Hulk Hogan
Indiana is a nice market for the WWF. This sold out, the SNME taping sold out and had a hot crowd…no wonder that the state was chosen as the location of the big Hogan/Andre angle. Here, we have Hulk Hogan in the Snake pit. Haven’t seen too many of these from mid-1987. Funny how Hogan and Jake are on friendly terms now. Hilariously, during the middle of this interview, KILLER KHAN and Mr. Fuji show up. Khan and Hogan square off, and Khan spits GREEN MIST in Hogan’s face. AMAZING. Jake’s reaction was awesome. Hogan hardly ever looked as weak as he did here.
– July 24th, 1987, from Sam Houston Coliseum, in Houston, Texas
Sherri Martel vs. The Fabulous Moolah for the WWF Women’s Championship
Pre-Match Thoughts: I think it is time to explain why I haven’t reviewed any of the women’s tag division matches. It’s simple. The resolution on most of these YouTube videos isn’t very good. I can’t commit to reviewing something where I can’t tell the people apart. So, unless the matches are on WWE Network, I’m not reviewing them. It’s going to be extremely difficult to review the Survivor Series tag match because I don’t know names, but so it goes. It’s not like Moolah wrestled much by this point, and this is Sherri’s debut.
Match Review: Gorilla’s comment about this being a “tremendous crowd” is amusing. This is an extremely small crowd. Jimmy Hart is on commentary with him. Moolah and Sherri lock up, and the old lady gets shoved down. She pulls Sherri’s hair to gain control, and they exchange arm holds after that. Moolah’s hold of choice is a hammerlock, and Sherri reverses to a chinlock. She seems very evil, and we know Moolah is, so this matchup is weird. Moolah chokes Sherri in the conrer, and Sherri does the exact same thing, so the confusion continues. The commentary is much more interesting than the match, and while typing that, Moolah gives Sherri a backdrop for 2. Moolah keeps working the arm, until letting go and kneeing Sherri in the face. This is so boring. Moolah keeps choking Sherri with the top rope, and after dropping to the outside, Sherri brings her back in with a slingshot. She then catapults Moolah around the ring, and chokes her. Sherri uses the top rope on her chokes too, but gets thrown down to the floor by Moolah. Moolah tries to pick her up and slam her into the ring, but Sherri reverses it into a cradle, and beats Moolah at 7:56! OUR LONG NATIONAL NIGHTMARE IS FINALLY OVER!
My Thoughts: Glad to see Moolah go, but that was a horrific match. Is it on the levels of the worst matches I’ve seen? It actually was. I haven’t been so bored while watching a wrestling match for some time. Everyone should stay the hell away from this match. I made a snap decision to watch this for historical purposes and regretted it halfway in. -**.
– July 25th, 1987, from Madison Square Garden, in New York City, New York
The British Bulldogs vs. The Hart Foundation (w/Jimmy Hart) for the WWF Tag Team Championships
Pre-Match Thoughts: I think this is the last time I’m watching this matchup. I hope they do it big.
Match Review: The Foundation quickly attacks, and we’re underway. It’s Bret and Davey in the ring, until Neidhart tags in to beat Davey up. Poor Davey is getting choked and all of that, and the Hart Foundation stupidly runs into each other to put a stop to it. Dynamite gives Bret a snap suplex, getting one of the slowest 2 counts I’ve ever seen. Davey tags in again, and puts a chinlock on the Hitman. Bret gets up, and Davey puts him in a crucifix for a 2 count. That’s a much underutilized move these days. Dynamite makes the switch in, lands a clothesline, and covers for another 2 count. Davey comes back in, and they give Bret a double headbutt. Davey follows with a FISHERMAN’S SUPLEX, and it gets 2. Bret finally stumbles towards his corner, and Neidhart is ready to give Dynamite some serious punishment. Instead, Bret does it, by ramming Dynamite’s face into the railing. He puts Dynamite back in the ring, and they give Dynamite their backbreaker-elbow combination. That gets a very close 2 count. Dynamite reverses a bodyslam to get a 2 count of his own, but Neidhart broke up the cover. Neidhart also tags in, but gets headbutted. Bret has to stop Dynamite from making a tag, which he does, and the referee gets distracted. Davey’s legal tag is not legal, and the Foundation takes that opportunity to double team. Neidhart whips Bret into the corner at full speed, Bret misses his charge, and Dynamite backdrops Neidhart over the top rope.
Davey finally makes the tag in, and goes to work on Bret. Big clothesline, a monkey flip, and a knee drop off the second rope is what follows. It gets 2. He also gives Bret an enormous delayed suplex, for another super slow 2 count. Davey picks up Bret for the powerslam, and gives it to him. This is a destruction! The cover only gets 2 again! Davey tries another powerslam, but Bret puts a sleeper on him. Dynamite headbutts Bret from behind, and Davey tries a gorilla press…only to drop Bret, crotching him on the top rope. That’s a great move. Davey picks Bret up for a suplex, but Neidhart trips Davey, and Bret falls on top for a 3 count after around 11 minutes.
After the match, the Bulldogs tear Jimmy Hart’s clothes off, and gorilla press slam him onto Neidhart. But what’s done is done, and sadly these matches are…done.
My Thoughts: This was a nice match, and slightly better than their last SNME match as a workrate affair. It didn’t have a finish as strong, but Dynamite seemed more able to work. That’s a good thing, but as we know, it wasn’t a good thing for him in the end. Slightly higher rating here, ***1/4. There are some variations with three of these guys involved later, but nothing with all four of them.
– Taped to air on Superstars of Wrestling, some vignettes…
Aired on 6/27…
IT’S THE MILLION DOLLAR MAN! I love this character, and obviously Vince did too. This thing with Virgil is too much though. TED DIBIASE DOESN’T NEED A DAMN APPOINTMENT FOR HIS CUT FINGER.
Aired on 7/4…
Ted DiBiase wants to swim in a pool without getting other people’s germs on his body. Everybody’s got a price! Hilarious when the guy who took DiBiase’s money kicked everyone out of the pool. Virgil was good there too.
Aired on 7/18…
First on this clip, is Mr. T in the Snake Pit. He’s supposed to be the new enforcer of the WWF. This didn’t work out, I assume because he wasn’t a draw and cost too much money to use. I’m glad it didn’t work. Danny Davis interrupts Jake in the middle of his conversation, and I’ve just realized the snake they’re using on this episode of Superstars is enormous. And with that, I’m fast forwarding. I hate snakes.
Second is another Million Dollar Man vignette. He needs a seat at a restaurant, but the place is full. Who cares? Everybody has a price! When another patron gets upset, DiBiase puts Virgil in the path of that clown. Yes!
Sadly, that is all. There were some good matches, strong angles, and some interesting debuts. There are a few things not mentioned yet though. Apparently, there’s a guy who is going to debut, and managers are fighting over who will manage him. The guy is named ‘Bam Bam.’ Whatever that means. Another wrestler named Rick Rude is having house show matches before his TV debut airs. Paul Orndorff is about to come back. Superstar Billy Graham is about to come back! Some of this stuff sounds really good, and I’ll be watching after my next review, which is of the Great American Bash 1987 tape.
Best: Harley Race vs. Hulk Hogan. It was a great match, end of story.
Worst: Sherri vs. Moolah. It was a terrible match, the worst I’ve seen since starting this watch project. End of story.
