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Friday, December 30, 2016

The Last Match: WWE World Champions Vol 2

In this edition of the Last Match we look at a few of the former WWWF/WWF/WWE World Champions that are no longer with us.


Stan 'The Man" Stasiak
September 9, 1984 Portland Wrestling, Portland Oregon
defeated Rick Oliver by disqualification

Stan "The Man" Stasiak is best known for defeating Pedro Morales on December 1, 1973 for the championship.  Stasiak only held the title for 9 days dropping it to Bruno Sammartino on December 10th.  Stasiak's only title defense was December 7th in North Attleboro, Massachusetts a no onctest with Chief Jay Strongbow.  The Jack Witchi's Sports Arena in North Attleboro held 1500 fans and hosted wrestling frequently until it burned down in 1979.

The Man passed away June 19, 1997


"Macho Man" Randy Savage
December 5, 2004 TNA Turning Point PPV Orlando, FL
with AJ Styles & Jeff Hardy defeated Jeff Jarrett, Kevin Nash, & Scott Hall

This was not the Macho Man of old, he wrestled in a long sleeve black shirt and pants.  He only appeared for the closing moments of the match but was able to beat up everyone before reversing a sunset flip into a pin.

Macho Man passed away May 20, 2011


Ultimate Warrior
June 25, 2008 NEW Summer Tour, Barcelona, Spain
defeated NEW Champion: Orlando Jordan to win the title

It was Warriors first match in ten years and he didn't look like the Ultimate Warrior.  He had the face paint, trunks and tassels, but short gray hair and not the physic he once had.  He won with a shoulder tackle.

Warrior passed away April 8, 2014 the Tuesday after WrestleMania XXX weekend where he was inducted in the Hall of Fame, appeared at Mania, and appeared on Raw cutting a powerful promo.


Yokozuna
October 10, 1999 Heroes of Wrestling PPV, Bay St. Louis, MO
with Jake Roberts lost to Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart & King Kong Bundy

This is the last recorded match I can find of Yoko.  When he died he was in Liverpool, England on a tour for Brian Dixon's All Star Wrestling, I can't find and record of any matches he may have participated in.


Yokozuna passed away October 23, 2000

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Saturday, December 24, 2016

AWA SuperClash III

I recently was looking through the vault section of WWE Network in the AWA and found four of their supershows, including the only AWA PPV just listed in the TV section.  The shows are this one here, Super Sunday, WrestleRock 86 and Superclash II.


SuperClash III

December 3, 1988
Chicago, IL
UIC Pavilion
Commentators: Lee Marshall & Verne Gagne
Interviewer: Larry Nelson
Ring Announcer: Gary Michael Capetta
Duration: 2 hours 34 minutes
Attendance 1,672


Cactus Jack & The Rock n' Roll RPM's vs. The Guerrero Brothers: Mando, Chavo, & Hector
Guerrero's get the win after a moonsault press from Mando onto one of the RMP's.  Ok match basically a squash. - Ray Stevens on Color Commentary

WCCW Light Heavyweight Championship: Jeff Jarrett vs. Eric Embry 
Embry was a solid hand in the ring, but there is no way in hell he was a Light Heavyweight.  Very short match only 4 minutes really no time to get it going, Embry gets the win on a roll up to capture the title for the fourth time.

Incidentally, Cactus Jack would go on to defeat Embry for the title on 12/30/1988 for a five day reign if that tells you how much they watched the scale in this division. 

"Boogie Woogie Man" Jimmy Valiant vs. Wayne Bloom
Valiant wins in 24 seconds with a back elbow and an elbow drop. 

WCCW Texas Champions: Iceman King Parsons vs. Brickhouse Brown 
Another short match, nothing to write home about.  Parson's wins after hitting Brickhouse Brown with a foreign object.

Women's Champion: Wendi Richter & The Top Guns: Derrick Dukes & Ricky Rice defeated MAdusa Miceli & Tag Team Champions: Bad Company: Paul Diamond & Pat Tanaka w/ Diamond Dallas Page 
This was a ridiculous cluster of a match!  First off another short less than 6 minute match where they tried to get too much in.  This would have been better off with Madusa and Richter having a singles match.  Richter got the pin on Madusa after Tanaka accidentally superkicked Madusa.
After the match Top Guns were announced as the new tag team champions, but as Madusa was pinned the titles officially never changed hands.


Greg Gagne vs. "Rugged" Ronnie Garvin for the vacant International Television Championship
Garvin had defeated Gagne for the Championship in September and at some point the title was held up after a controversial match.  Another match under 6 minutes, not a bad match but it should have been given more time.  The finish was abysmal as Gagne defeated Garvin by count-out to claim the vacant title.  

P.O.W.W. Lingerie Street Fight Battle Royal
The Syrian Terrorist defeated Bambi, Peggy Lee Leather, Laurie Lynn, Brandi Mae, Malibu, Nina, Pocohantas & Luna Vachon last eliminating Brandi Mae.
Two ways to be eliminated, either having your clothes stripped down to your lingerie or being thrown over the top rope to the floor. This was garbage! 

Boot Camp Match: Sgt Slaughter vs. Colonel DeBeers w/ Diamond Dallas Page
This was a no rules, no referee in the ring come as you are.  Slaughter wore his combat helmet into the ring.  In the opening moments it sat edge up in the ring, DeBeers accidentally took a bump on it, looked very uncomfortable and it appears to slightly lacerate his back.  The action spilled to the floor and Slaughter went for a pin attempt, so I guess it's falls count anywhere.
In less than six minutes Slaughter won with the cobra clutch, of course the referee had to enter the ring to call the match.  Adnan Al Kaissie and The Iron Sheik attacked Slaughter after the match.  Ironic because in just over two years these three would be programmed together in the WWF.

WCCW Tag Team Champions: The Samoan Swat Team: Samu & Fatu w/ Buddy Roberts vs. Michael P.S. Hayes & Steve Cox
Decent match, almost 8 minutes!!! Hayes had a member of the SST pinned after a DDT when Buddy Roberts clocked him when the referee wasn't looking allowing the SST to retain.

Indian Strap Match: Wahoo McDaniel vs. Manny Fernandez
This was a great match, as expected between these two.  They really beat the tar out of each other, and bloodied each other well before Wahoo hit all four corners taking home the victory.

AWA World Champion: Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. WCCW World Champion: Kerry Von Erich
This is the famous match where Kerry was playing around with the blade in the locker room and cut himself on the arm before the start of the match. At the start of the match they had Lawler slam his arm on the "ring post" to explain the blood.


This match was ok, and being the only match to go longer than 9 minutes, it lasted 18, it probably shouldn't have.  Kerry was busted open and the finish came when Kerry had Lawler down in the Iron Claw and the referee stopped the match due to cuts.

The Rock 'n Roll Express: Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson vs. The Stud Stable: Robert Fuller & Jimmy Golden
So this is the last match on the card, it's a decent match until the finish where the match was thrown out for no real reason fora  double disqualification.  Great way to end the card AWA.

There are twelve matches on this card with only one breaking the nine minute mark and that was the Championship unification match.  In my opinion none of the other matches even had a chance to really get going as they were over just as the guys got warmed up. 

Of all the AWA super shows on the network this is the worst and sad that this is also AWA's only PPV and this is what they deliver.  It's no wonder they only drew 1600 fans to a 9500 seat venue.

The AWA would have Superclash IV April 8, 1990, by then they had fallen so far that they didn't even have television cameras at the show.  The AWA would officially close it's doors just over a year later.

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Wednesday, December 21, 2016

The Last Match: Old School WWE World Champions

In this edition of The Last Match we take a look at the Old School WWE World Champions.  Champions from the 60's 70's, and early 80's.


Ivan Koloff
November 16, 2013 Superstars of Wrestling 1 PPV Rome Civic Center, GA
was defeated by "Bullet" Bob Armstrong

Ivan Koloff's career began in 1961 in Canada.  Be came Ivan Koloff in 1967 is most famously known for ending Bruno Sammartino's historic near 8 year championship reign leaving the Madison Square Garden crowd silent.  Essentially Koloff ending his in ring career in earnest in 1994 returning to the ring over 10 years later wrestling sporadically until his final match with Bullet Bob.


Pedro Morales
July 17, 1987 WWF House Show, Nassau Coliseum Long Island, NY
was defeated by Paul Orndorff




"Superstar" Billy Graham
November 7, 1987 WWF House Show, Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis, MO
defeated by "Natural" Butch Reed


Bob Backlund
August 12, 2011 JCW Legends & Icons PPV, Cave-In-Rock, IL
defeated Ken Patera in Patera's Last Match



The Iron Sheik
March 10, 2007 PX St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada
with Aaron Walpole defeated Reck

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Sunday, December 18, 2016

Roy's Review: WCW Uncensored 1995


Here is tape #2. WCW Uncensored 1995. Keep in mind while reading this that they put this show over big time as having no rules and being unsanctioned.


Match 1: The Blacktop Bully defeated Dustin Rhodes in a King of the Road Match. This was awful. Why was this even a thing let alone a thing that went about 10 minutes. It was a match inside of an 18 wheeler trailer that appeared to be designed to haul hay, that was going down the road. The object of of this match was to sound a horn that was mounted on top of the trailer. They had a really hard time standing up since the truck was going down the road and taking turns.


This is the match that got both Dustin Rhodes and The Blacktop Bully fired from WCW because the violated the no blading policy that WCW had.
1.5/10

Match 2: Meng w/Colonel Robert Parker defeated Jim Duggan in a Martial Arts match with Sonny Onoo as Special Referee. Well the first match was awful so why not continue with that trend. I guess I don't understand what the rules of a martial arts match are because this was just like a normal except the referee had on a karate gee. This was really boring with a ton of rest holds and Duggan being his usual dumbass self. The end came when Robert Parker distracted Duggan allowing Meng to hit a superkick for the win.
2/10

Match 3: Johnny B Badd w/Roc Finnegan defeated Arn Anderson w/Colonel Robert Parker in a Boxer vs. Wrestler Match. The rules were that Johnny B Badd had to wear boxing gloves and could only win by knockout. Anderson being the wrestler could win by pin or submission. The match was scheduled for 10 3 minute rounds with a 1 minute rest period between rounds.


For the first 2 rounds Anderson got annihilated so he just attacked Badd during the rest period before round 2. Anderson had the advantage for round 3. During the rest period after round 3, Roc Finnegan cut off the glove on Badd's left hand, allowing him to take it off and knockout Anderson with a taped fist.
5.5/10

Match 4: Randy Savage defeated Avalanche by DQ. Yes thats right Savage won by DQ on a show that has no rules. This was a solid match until the finish. It had a good story and solid action. The end came when Ric Flair dressed in drag came out of the crowd and attacked Savage. Flair and Avalanche double teamed Savage until Hulk Hogan came out to make the save.
6/10

Match 5: Big Bubba Rogers defeated Sting. This match was kinda average. It was great but it didn't suck. Sting had his leg worked on for most of the match. The end came when Sting tried to slam Rogers but couldn't because of his knee. Rogers fell on him and got the pin. What a terrible finish.
5/10

Match 6: The Nasty Boys (Brian Knobbs and Jerry Sags) defeated Harlem Heat (Stevie Ray and Booker T) w/Sister Sherri in a Falls Count Anywhere match. This was one of the worst brawls I have ever seen. The brawled to the concession stands and basically had a food fight. There was so much shit on the floor that nobody could stand up. It was basically a 2 on 3 match because Sherri was involved almost the entire time. The finish was terrible just like the rest of the match. They didn't even get it on camera. It had to be shown on the replay. Knobbs slammed Booker on pieces of a funnel cake stand and got the pin. Terrible.
3/10

Match 7: Hulk Hogan w/The Renegade defeated Vader w/Ric Flair in a Strap match. This was awful. I have never seen a good strap match and this one didn't break that streak. First off there was not referee which right off the bat said this was gonna be a cluster. The Renegade is an idiot with absolutely no talent just like the guy he was impersonating. Flair still had on mascara from earlier in the night. This isn't starting well. Hogan dominated the first few minutes. About 5 minutes in Jimmy Hart comes to ringside with his clothes torn to pieces.


He had apparently been held hostage backstage. Then a few minutes later a masked man came out and attacked The Renegade with a wooden chair, then he suddenly disappeared. Flair then got another wooden chair from his secret stash he had at ringside and attacked Hogan. This allowed Vader to drag Hogan around to 3 corners. Flair then put the wooden chair under Hogan and told Vader to splash him off the ropes. Vader went for a somersault but missed and wrecked himself on the chair. Flair dragged Vader to the outside. Hogan then puts the strap on Flair and drags him around to all for corners for the win even though Flair wasn't even in the match. Vader then comes back in and attacks Hogan until Renegade comes in with yet another wooden chair. This brings out another masked man. Arn Anderson comes out tied up in the masked man suit. Randy Savage then unmasks as the other masked man. The faces then celebrate in the ring. The crowd was freaking out for Savage. This was terrible. Why anybody thought this was a good idea blows my mind.
3.75/10

This show sucked. The best match was slightly above average and had a terrible ending. This was really bad and should be avoided unless your obsessed with wrestling like myself.

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Thursday, December 15, 2016

Year in Review: Shows I Attended


Even though it's mid December, based on my work schedule I can't imagine I'll be attending another wrestling event this year.  In 2016 I attended a meager 6 wrestling events.  I think my buddy Roy went to six shows last month.

I mean I took in a lot of wrestling with my podcast and all the shows on the WWE Network, and the internet, but I managed to only make it out to six events which makes me sad as I type this.

However these six shows featured the greatest match I have seen live, the second greatest match I have ever seen live, sitting front row at the biggest production wise show I have ever been to, and one of the most unique venues I have ever been to for a show.

From best to worst here we go...

Ring of Honor All Star Extravaganza VIII Pay Per View
September 30, 2016 Memorial Auditorium, Lowell, Mass

With out a doubt the biggest show I have ever sat front row at both match and production wise.  Also very lucky to have traveled to this show with great friends, Jay, Roy, Josh, Mikey, & Jesse.  This match featured the best match that I have seen live in my entire life.  Ladder Wars 6: The Addiction vs. The Young Bucks vs. The Motor City Machine Guns.

"Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels after the grueling Ladder Wars VI main event
Read the full blog report here: All Star Extravaganza VIII

Limitless Wrestling 
January 30, 2016 American Legion Orono, Maine

I simply couldn't believe my eyes when I saw Zack Sabre Jr. and Chris Hero standing across the ring from each other on a snowy night in middle of nowhere Maine.  I looked right at my new friend Bradford and he said, "I can't believe this is actually happening in the ring in front of me".  This was the greatest match that I had ever seen live in my entire life.  They held nothing back and went all out in a match that rivaled anything I had seen them do in PWG.

Chris Hero & Zack Saber Jr. shake hands before the amazing main event match
Read the full blog report here: Under Fire

Limitless Wrestling 
March 19, 2016 American Legion Orono, Maine

Another great show from Limitless Wrestling with an outstanding main event of Donovan Dijak, Ace Romero, & Anthony Greene vs. Team Pazuzu: "Dirty Daddy"m Chris Dickinson & EYFBO: Angel Ortiz & Mike Draztik.

Left to right, Dijak, Ace Romero, and Team Pauzuz
Read the full blog report here: Don't Fear the Sleeper

Limitless Wrestling 
October 29, 2016 University of Maine Orono, Maine

This show was part of the BanGOREfest Convention and was held at the UMO campus.  The building was quite large with a very high ceiling.  It felt very odd for a wrestling show.  This show featured the return of Cameron Matthews to the ring, sadly the match didn't turn out like I think he hoped it would.  Main Event was Brian Fury vs. Brian Cage, Fury is on his retirement tour and this was the last time that I would see him live.

Brian Fury has Brian Cage locked in the Boston crab
Read the full blog report here: Who Watches the Watchmen

Pro Wrestling Society 
May 7, 2016 Thatcher's Restaurant South Portland, Maine

This show was held in the back of a restaurant in what I can only conclude was a metal roof and wall addition that featured all the electrical for the building and a giant walk in cooler.  The floor was even slanted, and I don't mean slightly.  It is the most unique venue I have ever seen a wrestling show in.  The main event featured "Remarkable" Adam Booker defeated Ace Romero in crazy no holds barred match.  My first time seeing Booker in the ring in over 11 years and he was just as good as I remember.

Adam Booker
Read the full blog report here: Addicted to Chaos

IWE 
August 6, 2016 Community Center Fairfield, Maine

First IWE show in over a year.  This night featured "Mr. USA" Tony Atlas who even at 62 is still capable of putting on a match and entertaining the crowd.  The best match on the card was Maine State Champion: Amon Jordan defending his title in a triple threat match against Mike Graca & Tyler Nitro.  My first time seeing Graca and Nitro and I was quite impressed.  Saw them both again at Limitless in October.  Hope to see more of both of them going forward.

Canaan with Ace Romero
Read the full blog report here: Independent Wrestling Entertainment 

Incidentally Ace Romero competed at 5 of these six shows.

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Monday, December 12, 2016

The Last Match: Tough Enough Season 1


This edition we take a look at the contestants from the inaugural season of Tough Enough.  I'm sure we all know what Tough Enough is her are the finer details.  The first season aired on MTV from June 21, 2001 - September 27, 2001 with coaches Al Snow, Jacqueline, Tazz, & Tori.  The winners of season one was Maven Huffman and Nidia Guenard.


Maven
April 16, 2016 Union County, NJ WrestlePro
Teamed with Brian Myers & Pat Buck losing to Aesthetic Males: Beefcake Charlie, Damian Gibbs, & Mike Del

Best known in his WWE run for dropkicking and eliminating the Undertaker from the 2002 Royal Rumble.  He was also three time Hardcore champion.  He left the WWE in 2005 touring the independents until 2007.  He returned to wrestling in 2015 wrestling three matches to date.


Nidia
November 26, 2005 Neapel, Italy NWE Destiny
lost to Miss Jackie

Nidia wrestled and managed in the WWE leading Jamie Noble to the Cruiserweight Championship.  She was released from the WWE in late 2004 and wrestled a few matches on the Independents before retiring.


Christopher Nowinski
July 12, 2003 Green Bay, WI WWE Raw brand House Show
with Rodney Mack defeated Tommy Dreamer & Rosey

Nowinski started training with Chaotic Wrestling prior to joining the cast of Tough Enough.  I saw him at an independent show in Maine for Eastern Wrestling Alliance before Tough Enough.  After he failed to win the show Nowinski returned to the indy's before signing with and debuting on WWE TV June 17, 2002.  Sadly Nowinski suffered a career ending concussion.  Since then he has devoted himself to his Concussion Legacy Foundation.


Josh Mathews
November 9, 2004 Corpus Christi, TX American Bank Center WWE SmackDown
defeated Orlando Jordan

Although Mathews in ring career was short he has had the longest active career of any season one tough enough competitor.  He was hired by WWE in December 2002 first appearing as a backstage interviewer and over time the advanced to Commentator on Raw, Smackdown, WWECW, and more until he left the company in 2014.  Currently is the lead announcer on TNA Impact.


Taylor Matheny
Was a runner-up on the first season, she wrestled for independents in the United States and toured Arison in Japan.  I can't find a definitive last match other than late 2003.  In 2008 she married The Brian Kendrick and appeared on an episode of Total Divas with Kendrick as he trained Eva Marie

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Thursday, December 8, 2016

AWA SuperClash II

I recently was looking through the vault section of WWE Network in the AWA and found four of their supershows, including the only AWA PPV just listed in the TV section.  The shows are this one here, Super Sunday, WrestleRock 86 and Superclash III.

SuperClash II
May 2, 1987
San Francisco, California
The Cow Palace

Commentator: Rod Trongard
Duration: 2 hours 28 minutes

"Rock N' Roll" Buck Zumhofe vs. Sheik Adnan Al-Kaissie 
This match was horribly long!  First all the walk and talk of Al-Kaissie at the beginning of the match, then the super slow cadence of it made it practically unbearable.  Al-Kaissie got the pin with his feet on the ropes similar to how Billy Graham pinned Bruno.

Super Ninja w/ Mr. Go vs. DJ Peterson
Super Ninja's arm gauntlets cover the back of his hands and I'm pretty sure they are supposed to be chinese stars, but they are swastika's.


This match was not as terrible as the first, but pretty darn close.  15 minute time limit draw.

Women's Champion: "Sensational" Sherri Martel vs. Madusa Micelli  
1 Fall 1 hour time limit
Doug Somers accompanied Martel to ringside. Great match!  Very hard hitting, I mean these girls really put it to each other.  Madusa busted out a picture perfect airplane spin!  Martel got the win with a roll up pulling the tights.


World Heavyweight Champion: Nick Bockwinkel vs Curt Hennig 
1 Fall 1 hour time limit
Fantastic match that went 23 minutes.  Bockwinkel worked the left arm for the majority of the contest out wrestling Hennig frustrating him.  As the match built towards a finish Curt attempted several pin falls but couldn't put the champion away further frustrating him.  Then it appears Larry Zybyszko who was sitting at ringside handed Hennig a roll of quarters clocking the champion and getting the three count.


After the match Hennig gave Zybyszko the roll back, but Ray Stevens at ringside exposed the foreign object.  A meeting in the ring with the referee, Stanley Blackburn, and Stevens leading to Blackburn declaring the title to be held up until the championship committee can review the tape.
Hennig was the babyface in the match, and the fans were excited that he won the championship.
Much like at Super Sunday the crowd chanting bullshit after the reverse decision.  Eventually though the decision was upheld and Hennig was declared champion.


Six Man Tag 
The Midnight Rockers: Shawn Michaels & Marty Jannetty, and Ray "The Crippler" Stevens vs. "Playboy" Doug Somers, Kevin Kelly, & Buddy Wolfe, w/ Sherri Martel
Jannetty took a beating for a long, long time, playing what I dub the Ricky Morton roll of the tag match.  He would fire up and the crowd with rise up with him, until the heal would bring him back down.  When he finally made the hot tag, after at least 15 minutes of punishment, the crowd figuratively exploded!  It was the hottest of hot tags!
The finish came when a minute after Jannetty finally tagged out, the match broke down and Stevens rolled up Somers in a small package for the pin.  Stevens was not the legal man in the ring.

Jerry Blackwell w/ Buck Zumhofe vs. Boris Zhukov w/ Adnan Al-Kaissie
This was nothing more than a steaming pile of garbage.  Blackwell won.

Russ Francis in green jacket
Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka & Russ Francis vs. The Terrorist & The Mercenary 
Russ Francis played in the NFL for the San Francisco 49ers and he spent a lot of time on the outside of the ring in this match.  Once Snuka finally made the tag Francis showed us he could handle himself in the ring getting the win with a splash off the top rope on the Terrorist.  The crowd was jacked and could see many of them literally jumping up and down.

After the show was over they had a series of interviews in the empty arena with the majority of the wrestlers that were on the show.

Notes:

Ray Stevens joined Trongard on commentary for the The Women's and World Heavyweight championship matches.


This would be the fourth and final reign for Bockwinkel as champion who held the AWA World Championship an impressive 2,990 days in total.

Kevin Kelly would go onto the WWE to be Nailz.

The Terrorist is Brian Knobbs and The Mercenary Ron Fuller

Russ Francis is the son of wrestling promoter Ed Francis.  He competed in the WrestleMania 2 battle royal and was one of the final four competitors.  He wrestled in the late 70's while playing in the NFL.

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Monday, December 5, 2016

The Last Match: WWE World Champions

This edition of The Last Match features former WWE Champions.  I don't need to saw a whole lot about the wrestlers featured in this post as their names speak for themselves.


"Stone Cold" Steve Austin
March 30, 2003 WrestleMania XIX Seattle, WA
defeated by The Rock


"Heartbreak Kid" Shawn Michaels
March 28, 2010 WrestleMania XXVI Glendale, AZ
was defeated by The Undertaker


Bret "Hitman" Hart
January 10, 2000 WCW Nitro Buffalo, NY Marine Midland Arena
wrestled Kevin Nash to a no contest

September 12, 2011 WWE Monday Night Raw Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Scotiabank Place
with John Cena defeated Alberto Del Rio & Ricardo Rodriguez


Sgt. Slaughter
March 29, 2014 Northeast Wrestling Loch Sheldrake, NY
with Jeff Starr defeated Dalton Castle & "Man Scout" Jake Manning


Mick Foley
August 12, 2011 JCW Legends & Icons Cave-In-Rock, IL
with Terry Funk was defeated by "Rowdy" Roddy Piper & "Cowboy" Bob Orton

Mick Foley also competed in the 2012 Royal Rumble being eliminated by Cody Rhodes.

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Wednesday, November 30, 2016

Roy's Review: WWF No Way Out of Texas


February 15, 1998
Compaq Center, Houston, Texas

Match 1: The Headbangers (Mosh and Thrasher) defeated Marc Mero and Goldust w/Luna Vachon. Solid match but nothing great. Sable was sent to the back by Mero before the match started. Thrasher got his head busted open on the ring steps. Sable came back out near the end causing a distraction which allowed The Headbangers to switch places and get the win. Afterwards Sable and Luna got into a fight.
5.75/10


Match 2: Light Heavyweight Champion Taka Michinoku defeated Pantera to retain. Solid match but again nothing great. Sunny was special ring announcer for this one. Some good high spots. Brian Christopher was on commentary which made for some good one liners from him and Lawler. After the match Lawler and Christopher tried to attack Taka but he took them out with a cross body off the top.
6.25/10

Match 3: The Quebecers (Jacques and Pierre) defeated The Godwinns (Henry and Phineas). Awful. Jacques did have a sweet bald spot though.
2/10


Match 4: Bradshaw defeated NWA North American Champion Jeff Jarrett w/Jim Cornette by DQ. This was a decent match. Jarrett came to the ring with Barry Windham and The Rock N' Roll Express but they were sent to the back because they didn't have a "manager's license." Jarrett worked over Bradshaw's leg for most of the match. Near the end Cornette got involved and was bodyslammed for his trouble. This allowed Jarrett to get the tennis racket and hit Bradshaw causing the DQ. After the match Windham, Morton and Gibson came out and beat up Bradshaw until The Legion of Doom made the save.
6.5/10

Match 5: Ken Shamrock, Ahmed Johnson, Chainz, Skull and 8-Ball defeated The Nation of Domination (Faarooq, The Rock, Kama, Mark Henry and D'Lo Brown) in a War of Attrition Match. This was a surprisingly good match, mainly because the dumpy guys only had minimal ring time. D'Lo did the majority of the work for the Nation.
7/10

Match 6: Kane w/Paul Bearer defeated Vader. This seemed like it was the first real test for Kane. Vader did well considering how strong Kane was booked at the time. As for the match, it was kinda boring because it was just a bunch of moves. Kane won with a tombstone. After the match he hit Vader in the head with a huge wrench.
5.75/10

Match 7: Steve Austin, Cactus Jack, Chainsaw Charlie and Owen Hart defeated Triple H, Billy Gunn, Road Dogg and Savio Vega w/Chyna in a Non-Sanction Match. Savio was the mystery replacement for Shawn Michaels. What a letdown. This was a crazy brawl with tons of weapons and everyone taking a bunch of damage. After about 5-7 minutes it settled into a typical tag match, just with weapons. Funk took quite a beating as did Foley. Austin got the hot tag, cleaned house, then hit a stunner on Road Dogg for the win. After the match Chyna shoved Austin multiple times, then flipped him off. She received a stunner for her trouble. If you haven't seen this match before check it out. Its a good fun brawl.
8.25/10

There were a couple dumpy matches but overall a decent show.

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Friday, November 25, 2016

Lucha Mexico review



The other day I stumbled across a new documentary on Netflix called Lucha Mexico.  The Netflix synopsis was simple: The documentary captures the colorful spectacle of Lucha Libre, a form of Mexican pro wrestling performed by masked superheroes and villians.  SOLD!

The film was released in 2016 with a theatrical tour and is available on DVD.  It has a run time of 1 hour 43 minutes and although there is some English in the film it is primarily in Spanish, what do you expect its about pro wrestling in Mexico, so make sure you turn your subtitles on.

Shocker
The bulk of the movie follows luchador Shocker but also features "Strongman" Jon Anderson, Blue Demon Jr, El Hijo Del Perro Aguayo, Fabian El Gitano, Tony Salazar, Faby Apache, Sexy Star, Kemonito, Damian 666, Halloween, Julio Cesar Rivera, and Giant Bernard, no Matt Bloom the head trainer of the WWE Performance Center.  The primary promotion featured is CMLL, Consejo Mundial De Lucha Libre the oldest wrestling promotion founded in 1933.  Other promotions such as AAA, NWA Mexico, Perros Del Mal, and other independents are also featured.

This documentary is the first that I am aware that really shows the depth of Lucha Libre with Shocker headlining shows for CMLL in the world famous Arena Mexico to tent shows at farmers markets in the rain.  We also get an abridged history of Lucha Libre with wrestlers talking about their fathers and older wrestlers talking about their time in the ring.  We get a peak at the CMLL training center at Arena Mexico.

The time frame of this movie is never specified however based on the matches and contents of the movie it was filmed over a five year period from Fall 2009 until Spring 2015.

Some incidents in the film that show the timeline are:

Fabian El Gitano was murdered in his home from blunt trauma to the head on March 18, 2011

Doctor X was murdered October 11, 2011

Hector Garza
Hector Garza passed away on May 26, 2013 from lung cancer.  At the time of his death he was the Mexican National Heavyweight Champion, the Mexico City Boxing and Wrestling Commission deemed the title inactive.  As of November 25, 2016 it remains inactive.  

Perro Aguayo Jr died during a match March 20, 2015


Matches:

There are a lot of matches and clips featured in the film, but these are the ones that I could pinpoint down.  Also they are in order by date and not by appearance in the film.

November 15, 2009 
AAA Wrestling in Mexico City La Sala de Armas De La Magdalena Mixhuca in Mexico City
Sexy Star, Billy Boy, Povlo de Estrellas defeated Faby Apache, Aero Star, & May Flowers

Faby Apache
May 23, 2010
CMLL Domingos De Coliseo Arena Coliseo de Mexico City, Mexico City, Mexico
2 out of 3 falls match
Fabain El Gitano, Leono, & Pegasso defeated Los Guerreros Tuareg: Dr. X, Nitro, & Loco Max

2 out of 3 falls match
Shocker, Maximo Sexy, & Strong Man defeated Ultimo Guerrero, Taichi, & Rey Bucanero by DQ

May 25, 2010
CMLL Martes Arena Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
2 out of 3 falls match
Fabian El Gitano, Leono, & Angel Azteca Jr. defeated Bronco, Durango Kid, & Inquisidor

May 28, 2010
CMLL Super Viernes Arena Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
2 out of 3 falls match
Shocker, Strong Man, and Giant Bernard defeated Damian El Terrible, El Texano Jr. & Hector Garza in two straight falls at 10:56

June 6, 2010
CMLL Arena Puebla in Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza, Puebla, Mexico
Giant Bernard, Mascara Ano 2000 & Universo 2000 defeated Brazo de Plata, El Rayo de Jalisco Jr. & Strong Man

July 18, 2010
CMLL Infierno En El Ring 2010 PPV Arena Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
12 Man Mask vs. Mask Steel Cage
Angel De Oro defeated Angel Azteca Jr., Angel de Plata, Diamante, Dr. X, Histeria, Holligan, Monsther, Puma King, Sensei, Tiger Kid and Fabian El Gitano
Fabian El Gitano was eliminated last and therefore lost his mask during this match

Fabian El Gitano just before removing his mask
July 23, 2010
NWA Mexico El Centro Banamex, Mexico City, Mexico
Blue Demon Jr defeated PWR Heavyweight Champion: Oliver John to win the championship

July 25, 2010
Perros Del Mal El Centro Banamex, Mexico City, Mexico
Hardcore Triple Threat
Damian 666 defeated Supreme & X-Fly

2 out of 3 falls match
El Hijo del Santo, LA Par-K & Marco Corleone defeated Halloween, Lizmark Jr, & El Hijo del Perro Aguayo

December 19, 2010
CMLL Domingos De Coliseo Arena Coliseo de Mexico City, Mexico City, Mexico
2 out of 3 falls match
Shocker, Blue Panther, & La Mascara defeated Atlantic, Rey Bucanero, & Ultimo Guerrero two falls to one - this is the match where shocker injured his knee

July 24, 2011
Perros Del Mal El Centro Banamex, Mexico City, Mexico
Six Man Tag Team Match
Blue Demon Jr, Cassandro, & LA Par-K vs. Damian 666, Halloween, & El Hijo del Perro Aguayo ended in a no contest

June 16, 2012
AAA La Plaza De Toros El Pinal, Teziutlan, Puebla, Mexico
Extreme Match
Joe Lider defeats Psicosis

Six Man Tag Team Match
La Sociedad: Dark Dragon, Halloween, & Pete Powers defeated Daga, Extreme Tiger, & Juventud Guerrera

Tag Team Match
El Consejo: El Texano Jr. & Mascara Ano 2000 Jr. defeated Dr. Wagner & Silver Cain

Six Man Tag Team Match
La Sociedad: Chessman, Hector Garza, & El Hijo del Perro Aguayo defeated Cibernetico, Electroshock, & El Zorro

August 24, 2013
World of Unpredicatable Wrestling, Queens, New York
Shocker & Azteca defeated Rey Bucanero & Mystic Aztec

September 13, 2013
CMLL 80th Aniversario Arena Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
several match clips were shown

March 20, 2015
The Crash Auditorio Municipal Fausto Gutierrex Moreno, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
Extreme Tiger & Rey Mysterio Jr defeated Manik & El Hijo del Perro Aguayo
This is the match where Perro Aguayo Jr tragically died


There are a bunch of matches that I recognized luchadores in that I couldn't find when and where they took place.

I really enjoyed this documentary, I have watched it twice.  I'd like to see them do another one focusing other luchadores and  luchadoras as they have barely scratched the surface of the rich history of Lucha Libre.

Arena Mexico is only place I someday dream to go and watch an event.  I doubt it will ever happen but to see realy lucha libre in Mexico would amazing.

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Later Readers