World Class Championship Wrestling 22/01/1983

Kevin von Erich vs King Kong Bundy

This is for Kevin’s North American title. Kevin is all fight, in the face of Bundy early doors, to the extent that he actually gets Bundy over on a side headlock. Even more unlikely, they work some mat reversals, including Bundy countering to a headscissors. Didn’t expect that. Lovely spot where Bundy won’t let Kevin back into the ring, so Kevin does laps of the ring, using his speed to sneak an opening. Von Erich get the claw, but Bundy is in the ropes. Bundy moves the referee in the way as Kevin comes off the top, taking him out, and throws von Erich over the top rope, but it seems that the ref spots it, as he pulls Kevin out of the way of an avalanche attempt to declare him the winner. Really neat match.

Brian Adias vs Terry Gordy

Adias is accompanied by Kerry von Erich, so Gordy has his focus on Kerry most of the match. It affects his concentration, as Adias breaks a headlock to get an overhead wristlock instead. Sadly, a lot of this match is Gordy holding a headlock, which isn’t very interesting. Michael Hayes comes out to lure Kerry away, and the distraction lets Gordy hit a piledriver to win.

King Kong Bundy vs The Samoan

Pretty pedestrian squash for Bundy. He just wears the Samoan down methodically, though his big kneedrop to the back looks great. An avalanche is followed by a backbreaker and a splash for the win.

WCCW Star Wars 1981

As a sucker for WCCW, and more specifically the von Erichs, this show appearing as a Hidden Gem on the WWE Network was a real treat. 

Mil Mascaras vs Killer Tim Brooks

This kicks off with a bang, Mascaras hitting a flying chop to send Brooks to the floor. They work a nice battle over a test of strength, with Brooks heeling it up, sending Mil to the mat by pulling the mask and working a top wristlock. Brooks has little moments where he acts like a face, shaking hands when both men get back to their feet, but then digging in with cheap shots and little short punches to the head. Mil gets a neat headscissors from a test of strength that looks great. Brooks takes a big bump, flying over the top into the ring post on a corner charge, before Mascaras gets the win with a top rope crossbody. Good stuff

Fritz von Erich vs the Great Kabuki

I’m a sucker for Fritz matches, probably the biggest gap between “shitty human being” and “wrestler I really like watching”. There’s a nice contrast between the two, as they both play it cautiously to start. Kabuki is all weird gestures and oddness, whereas Fritz is just a fighter, plain and simple. Both give the vibe that one good shot will give them control, and that makes their caution more effective. Fritz misses a big punch, and Kabuki takes advantage with kicks and stomps. Kabuki bites Fritz on the mat, but this lets Fritz take his own opening and apply a stomach claw. There’s also a lovely spot where Kabuki applies a nerve claw with both hands under Fritz’s left arm, but this leaves the right hand free to apply a claw with nothing to defend against it. They really make this work with very little offence, with everything feeling important. Gary Hart gets involved from ringside, grabbing von Erich’s leg (and drawing a fan from ringside to attack Hart) and this in turn draws out David von Erich to attack Kabuki. A dropkick and a backdrop, and Fritz gets the win. Fritz needing his son to win the match for him feels a bit off, and Kabuki losing to a backdrop doesn’t help, but this was nicely worked.

Kerry von Erich vs Harley Race

This is for Race’s NWA title, and Race really puts Kerry over here. It’s mentioned that Kerry beat Race in a non-title match with a sleeper, and it makes it a big deal when he reverses an early vertical suplex into a sleeper. Race looks to be out before Race takes advantage of the ref positioning to hit a low blow and break the hold. Race really sells the effects of the move, looking dazed and hitting a diving headbutt in part because it only involves falling. KvE is all fire and energy, and Race is only able to get his control spots due to his savvy. He breaks pinfalls by knowing he’s near the ropes and getting his foot in place, and he avoids Kerry’s elbow drops to give himself more time. However, Kerry is so energised that he’s able to rebound, thwarting Race from being in control too long. We get the two fighting outside, with von Erich locking on the claw. A ref bump gives Kerry a visual pin to keep him looking strong, before they head back outside. Race slams Kerry on a table, but misses a diving headbutt from the apron (a bump that has to suck, but it’s the opposite side to the hard camera, so it’s missed by the TV audience) and we get a double countout, Race grabbing Kerry’s leg to stop him getting back in.

David & Kerry von Erich vs Hercules Ayala & Ali Mustafa

This is for the heels’ NWA tag titles. This was really great, the von Erich boys looked terrific and the heels played their roles excellently. Mustafa in particular is a sneaky dickbag, breaking pinfalls, getting cheapshots and stomping Kevin behind the ref’s back. Kevin is explosive, hitting a sudden slam and a big elbow right from the bell. Nice von Erich double team, with David elevating Kevin into a splash on Ayala. Even as face-in-peril, Kevin is all motion, trying to scurry to his corner and forcing Mustafa to stay on his toes to block the tag. The faces do get a lot of tags in this match, but find it hard to maintain control as the heels keep cutting them off. We get a few melees, with all four men brawling. Nice spot with Mustafa hitting a slingshot into a big Ayala forearm, and it gets paid off with the finish, as he sets up a slingshot on David, who battles and hold him bent in place to allow a top rope sunset flip from Kevin for the victory. Great match, huge post match celebrations make this feel like a big deal.

Battle Royal

Big names here include Bruiser Brody, Jose Lothario, Ayala, Mustafa, Tim Brooks and a bunch of filler. I’m a sucker for a battle royal, but they’re a pain to recap. Mustafa and Ayala don’t spend as much time teaming up as you’d expect them to do. With pinfalls and submissions allowed, we get a few dogpile pinfalls, which is always a neat spot. We get down to Mustafa and Brooks against Brody, which makes the winner pretty obvious. Ali holds Brody in place, but he ducks and Brooks sends both himself and Mustafa to the floor to give Brody the win. Sub ten minute match, pointless but painless.

World Class Championship Wrestling 11/12/1982

The Spoiler vs Jose Lothario

Short match, but pretty hard hitting throughout. Neither guy has a problem laying in some tough looking blows, with Lothario in particular hitting some nice body shots. Both guys do a little bit of limb work, with Spoiler working the left arm of Lothario, ramming a hammerlock into the corner. For his part, Lothario stretches out the knee, as well as dropping some big elbows onto it. A double countout for fighting on the apron provides an underwhelming end to a decent bout.

The Great Kabuki, Checkmate & Magic Dragon vs Brian Adidas, Bugsy McGraw & Al Madril

All action six-man tag, worked quickly enough that the flaws of the weaker participants were covered up. The face team control Magic Dragon early on, with Adidas looking particularly good, but he soon becomes face in peril. Loved how vicious Checkmate was on tagging in, with nasty driven knees to the thighs of Adidas, and even stomping on his hands as he rested on the mat. Just not giving him time to get comfortable. Madril essentially cheats by coming in as the heels control Adidas, though the brief melee doesn’t lead to a face comeback. I liked Checkmate holding Adidas by the legs for a pin attempt and, when Adidas lifts a shoulder, Checkmate uses that momentum to turn him over for a deathlock. There’s a nice hot tag to Madril, who looks really fired up, but a flying knee to the face of Adidas by Kabuki is enough for the heel win.

Kevin von Erich vs King Kong Bundy

Bundy looks a lot leaner here than the “walking condominium” he’d be in later years, though he still substantially outweighs von Erich. Kevin looks convincing on offence against the bigger man, mainly due to the convincing aggression he puts behind his blows, and he crashes into a Bundy knee with the same full force to give Bundy the control. Love how high Bundy lifts von Erich in the air to apply a bearhug, looked really good. Kevin is really good at fighting from underneath, always trying to sneak in a punch or two, always fighting, before a Bundy blow puts him down again. The end sees Kevin avoid an avalanche, but the ref gets bumped allowing Bundy to through von Erich over the top without being disqualified, and a suplex gives him the win. Good match.

World Class Championship Wrestling 01/11/1982

The Great Kabuki vs The Samoan & Raul Castro

This is a handicap elimination match. The Samoan at least takes the fight to Kabuki, whilst Castro is basically useless, hesitant to attack from any angle. Kabuki looks good here, nice precise strikes and I loved the backwards roll into a body scissors. Kabuki forces a submission from Castro with two leg scissor knee drops. The Samoan actually fares better without his useless partner, but misses a top rope headbutt and Kabuki drops two more knee drops for the submission.

The Fabulous Freebirds vs Gran Markus II & the Destroyer

Before we’re anywhere the match starting, we get an awesome brawl as Bill Irwin and King Kong Bundy attack the Freebirds. The whole locker rooms seems to empty and the ring is filled with guys brawling. Eventually, order is restored and the match can start. It’s pretty one sided, as the Freebirds control their masked opponents. Hayes is face-in-peril for approximately 30 seconds before he hits a back suplex on the Destroyer and tags out to Gordy. Spike piledriver on Gran Markus gets the win. Fun squash, but the brawl beforehand was excellent.

Al Madril & Bugsy McGraw vs Checkmate & Magic Dragon

The opening sections, with McGraw facing Checkmate, is pretty entertaining. Checkmate constantly goes to the mat, curled in a ball, which seems to baffle McGraw who paws at his like a confused wild animal. Checkmate’s constant reverting to the ball state seems to be frustrating both McGraw and the crowd. There’s a fun spot where McGraw dives into the corner to save Madril on an Irish whip attempt, but when Magic Dragon tries to do the same, Madril changes direction and whips Checkmate into the opposite corner. The heels work over Madril to make him face-in-peril, and though he tags out to McGraw, he ends up getting tagged in pretty quickly. It looks at first like it was too quick, as Dragon beats him down, but Madril nails a crossbody to pick up the win. This was a really fun match, the two teams played off each other nicely.

Kevin von Erich vs Wild Bill Irwin

Feels a bit one-sided, considering how well Irwin was presented earlier, but I enjoyed this. Von Erich is all motion, constantly on guard. Loved his quick little leg sweep when he catches Irwin off guard. Kevin’s running forearms into the corner look terrific, really goes in full pelt. Irwin counters a headscissors attempt by dropping Von Erich neck-first on the top rope. Irwin sells his ribs as hurting even when in control, which gives Kevin openings for hope spots, and the hesitation allows Kevin to lock in an abdominal stretch. Irwin takes out the ref whilst in the hold to give KVE the win by DQ, but despite a cheap ending, this was a fun little sprint.

Best of the Von Erichs Vol 1

Since starting this blog three-and-a-half years ago, there have been a few things in wrestling I've developed a big love for. Along with current BritWres and puro, I've discovered a love of the Von Erich family, which led to me buying this DVD for $3 from the ever-reliable IVP videos.

Fritz Von Erich vs Giant Baba
Ladies and gentlemen, it's 1966, it's 2/3 falls and it's in glorious black and white. Fritz attacks early, including a vicious punt to Baba's upper chest, and the bell hasn't even sounded. Fritz batters Baba, and goes for the claw early, but Baba moves and starts working over Fritz with some good looking blows of his own. A big chop gives Baba the first fall early, but Fritz grabs him in the claw from the mat as he tries to climb off. As this is between falls, Fritz feels no need to release the hold, leaving a barely standing Baba prone at the start of the next fall. Fritz goes for the claw right away, but Baba fights with all his might to keep it off. I love the way Fritz will interject with a boot to take Baba's focus off the claw before attempting to reapply it. Baba gets rammed into the ringpost, and is left bleeding and beaten on the floor as Fritz goes back on the attack. The result of this is that the crowd goes mad everytime Fritz misses a blow or Baba gets on offence. Baba comes back to life and starts stalking Fritz around the ring, but Von Erich cheap shots and regains control. Back inside, Fritz gets the claw in the centre of the ring to win the second fall.

We cut to the third fall to see Fritz throwing someone outside the ring, but Baba takes over on him and throws him over the top rope, causing Fritz to retreat into the crowd. God, I love this match so far. Fritz is awesome at cowering off when Baba is on offence. They brawl on the floor, and Baba gives a chair to the claw hand to neutralise that threat. Von Erich retruns the favour by leathering Baba in the head with the chair, at which point the referee gives the fall to Baba by DQ. That doesn't seem to make sense, seeing as how Baba used the chair first, but that appears to be the decision. Great match.

Fritz Von Erich vs Jumbo Tsuruta
Fast forward 9 years to 1975, and Fritz still hates Baba. We know this as he gets into a brawl with him at ringside, and spends most of the prematch yelling at him. Indeed, this actually works against him right away. You know that terrible spot you get almost weekly on Raw, where a wrestler will allow himself to be distracted by a rival, leading to him being rolled-up for the loss? We essentially get that end to the first fall, only better as rather than roll Fritz up, Jumbo just decides to beat him up for two minutes and pin him, which gives the fall to Jumbo's power rather than the element of surprise.

This, of course, riles up Fritz before the second fall, and he focuses his attack....on Baba at ringside again. Eventually, he decides to focus on his opponent. Fritz is wise enough to know he can get a great reaction by just threatening the claw, so goes for it early and often, eventually locking in a stomach claw before Jumbo makes the ropes. Fritz repeatedly wears Jumbo down with the claw in the ropes, which means that, when he gets it mid-ring, Jumbo is unable to escape it, and this evens up the falls.

Jumbo is now split open from this assault, so Fritz zones in on the cut like a shark. Jumbo is weakened with bloodloss, so starts getting escorted back to the locker-room, but he ain't going out like that, breaking free and going back into the ring. Of course, he's still no match for a fit Fritz, and he ends up getting battered again before a load of trainees and Baba himself come to his rescue. Not a great match, but great wrestling that really sets up the Fritz/Baba match nicely...

Fritz Von Erich vs Giant Baba
...and here is is from one week later. They've even brought in two refs, one Japanese and one American for this, which appears to be last man standing. Typically, Fritz assaults Baba before the bell. They trade blows outside the ring, before a bloodied Fritz claws Baba and pulls him into the ring. I love the image of Fritz, blood pouring down his face, clutching Baba by the face. A few solid chops by Baba eventually frees him. Baba stomps the claw hand and then rams it into the ringpost, and suddenly Fritz has to beg off from the assault of Baba. Fritz just about survives being counted to the mat, and applies a stomach claw to Baba. The count stops on 9 when Fritz is just about sat up, which really feels like it should be a loss to me. Fritz re-claws him, but Baba slips to ringside to escape it. Baba survives being rammed into a table, and a missed Fritz blow allows him to go back on the offensive, chopping away at Von Erich. Fritz gets chopped from the apron to the floor, and these ten counts are getting closer and closer. Fritz gets sent to the floor one last time and that's it, as he fails to beat the count. Being a gracious loser, he sneaks in one final stomach claw before leaving. Really fun match, they built up the tension mastefully with the falls.

Genichiro Tenryu & Jumbo Tsuruta vs David & Kevin Von Erich
We now switch to the younger Von Erich's. The siblings are much nicer than their dad, going for pre-match handshakes and HOLY FUCK Kevin is wearing boots. I'm thrown. The Von Erichs are a bit more firey than their opponents here, who seem more stoic on offense. David clubs Jumbo behind the refs back to establish a bit of heelishness. Kevin goes for the claw, which Tenryu manages to hold off, but this leaves him open for a stomach claw, which he breaks with some stiff chops. it breaks down into a brawl with all four fighting on the outside, but luckily a brawl is something all four are good at. I like the way that, after kicking out of a Tenryu pinfall, David takes advantage of an open torso to apply a claw on the already weakened stomach. The Von Erichs continue to go for the claw, punishing both Tsuruta and Tenryu with ones to the head and the stomach. Of the two Von Erichs, it is the smaller Kevin who is on the defensive more than David, and there are a few moments where David has to save him. This leads to the finish, where Kevin accidentally dropkicks David out of the ring, and Tsuruta takes advantage, dropkicking Kevin to pick up the win. Decent back-and-forth contest, and I liked the subtle "Kevin needs David to help him survive" storyline.

Fritz Von Erich vs Jumbo Tsuruta
This is another 2/3 falls match. Jumbo is 4 year more experienced than the last time these two met, though he still gets worked over in the opening stages here, with Fritz grounding him and trying for the claw. Jumbo does get a moment to shine, nailing a dropkick, but Fritz avoids a second a locks in the claw to the head for a quick pinfall. The second fall starts with Tsuruta still feeling the effects of the claw, so Fritz goes right for the kill again. Jumbo takes a huge bump as Fritz hurls him over the top rope by the head. One thing you notice is how good Fritz is at basing whole matches around one move, cranking up the tension for the application of the claw. He even applies it to one of Jumbo's seconds when forced by the ropes to release Tsuruta. The ensuing chaos leads to Fritz being DQ'd to gift the fall to Jumbo. However, Tsuruta is down and bleeding in the ring, giving Fritz control in the opening to the fall. He drags Jumbo off the ropes and into the centre to nail one final claw, but hits the mat instead. This break allows Jumbo to hit a dropkick and a big splash to win the third fall and the match. Really fun encounter, with Fritz being his own worst enemy to gift the win to Jumbo.

Kerry Von Erich vs Genichiro Tenryu
This is for the NWA Missouri title held by Kerry. Tenryu controls to start, grinding Kerry down on the mat. Tenryu shows his smarts by going to the ropes when Kerry gets his first bit of offence with a dropkick, then grounding him again with a headscissors. As Kerry is working face here, rather than heel like Fritz, he uses the claw as a "sudden hit" move, nailing Tenryu with it from a leapfrog for a big reaction and Tenryu scrabbling to the ropes. Tenryu really starts dominating, hitting a crossbody for two before levelling Kerry with an enzuigiri. He then starts to work over the wrist of KVE, ramming it into the ringpost twice, before repeatedly stamping it in the ring to remove the claw from Von Erich's arsenal. This doesn't stop Kerry locking it on several times though, which is a bit annoying psychology wise. He clamps it on Tenryu outside the ring, before diving back in to beat the count and win. This was gearing up to be great before Von Erich stopped selling the wrist injury, and we got a sudden shitty ending. Big disappointment.

The Triumph & Tragedy of World Class Championship Wrestling

This is the selection of matches that accompanies my favourite WWE-produced documentary. I'd never really seen an Texas wrestling before buying this last December (barring the Best of Kerry video I reviewed earlier this year, which I'd watched once back in 2001). However, I really found myself loving it, and especially the awesome brawling of the Von Erich boys.

Duke Keomuka vs Ricky Starr
This is from Texas Rasslin’ in the 60’s (at a guess), and is two out of three falls. It’s heavily matbased, and is certainly an acquired taste, but I sorta dug it. Really liked Starr’s escapes from Keomuka’s holds and it’s no surprise to learn he had a popular run in England. He seems like he’d have fitted in perfectly. Keomuka gets the first fall with a Japanese Sleeper, and the commentary, though dry, really does good work at explaining what is happening and why the ref is checking Starr’s arm. Starr gets the second fall after nailing Keomuka with five dropkicks. The third fall sees Starr finally target the bare feet of his opponent. But Keomuka goes back to the matwork, targeting Starr’s left arm. However, he misses a corner charge, allowing Starr to hit two flying mares for the win. Not for everyone, but a fun curiosity.

Fritz Von Erich vs King Kong Bundy
This is Fritz’s retirement match, but is still for Bundy’s American title. Bundy looks far less intimidating with hair, and Fritz is still a huge old fella, so this doesn’t look as one-sided as a champion-vs-retiring-vet match normally would look. The match is more of a fight than a wrestling match and, whilst you’d think that would favour Bundy, they tease the idea early that Fritz can get the claw on Bundy at any time he wants to. Fritz even locks a stomach claw on Bundy when escaping a pinfall. I also dug Fritz stamping on Bundy’s head from the apron after sending the big man outside. Bundy grabs a chair, but Fritz uses it and gets the win in his send-off bout. Good fun.

Ric Flair vs Kerry Von Erich
This is a steel cage match from Christmas Day for the NWA title. Michael Hayes is the special guest co-referee, with Terry Gordy guarding the door on the outside. Flair typically plays dirty early on, only for Hayes to physically interject himself. Kerry reverses a suplex into a sleeper in a nice little move, before beginning to brutalise Flair, ramming his head into the steel and causing him to bleed. Flair starts to focus on Von Erich’s right knee, which Bill Mercer tells us was injured in a previous match. Kerry fights back, but tries a knee drop like an idiot which misses. Flair locks in the figure four, which Kerry reverses then doesn’t sell. We then come to the beginning of the end, which is an awesome bit of in-match storytelling. Flair jumps off the top straight into a Von Erich Claw, but his foot grazes the bottom rope. Hayes calls for a rope break, but the other referee disagrees. Kerry keeps the claw locked in, and Hayes forcibly pulls him off, sowing the seeds for friction between them. Flair provokes Hayes so much that Hayes waffles him, but Kerry refuses to cover him and win the title unfairly. Hayes goes to leave, and Flair pushes Kerry into Hayes, sending Hayes to the floor. Enraged, Gordy slams the steel door onto Kerry’s head, igniting the Freebirds/Von Erich feud that Texas thrived on. Hayes counts a Flair cover on Kerry, which the other ref rejects because Kerry kicked out at 2. The match goes on without the Freebirds, with Kerry out on his feet. Kerry hits the discus punch to give the crowd one last pop, but he’s done. The ref checks him and calls the bell. Good match, but the angle at the end is fantastic.

Iceman King Parsons, David Von Erich & Kevin Von Erich vs the Fabulous Freebirds
The early doors give proof (as if proof were needed) that Kevin Von Erich is a terrific brawler. It also shows how great the Claw was as a hold, as the Von Erich’s could hit it at any time and the fans would buy it as a finish. Here, all Kevin has to do is threaten it and the Sportatorium pops. The Freebirds soon take control on David and a superbly worked heat section ensues. The crowds love of the Von Erich’s really helps here, but the timing on all the near tags is perfect. In one beautifully shot moment, we see David’s hand just centimetres away from tagging Kevin, only for the Freebirds to prevent it. There is also a great false tag, before David and Buddy clash heads which leads to the actual tag. Unsurprisingly, all Hell soon breaks loose, with all three guys in, and in the madness, Buddy catches Parsons with a cheapshot to the head, which gifts the Freebirds the victory.

The Fabulous Freebirds vs Fritz, Mike & Kevin Von Erich
This is from the first David Von Erich Memorial Parade of Champions and sees Fritz come out of retirement for this Six Man Title match. The opening brawl is predictably intense, leading to the referee getting on the mic and stating this match will be fought on a 1-on-1 tag basis. This lasts for about a minute before people start getting in the ring again. Mike is correctly booked here as a fiery babyface, who lacks experience and gets caught out by the ‘Birds. That said, the Freebirds soon get a heat section on Kevin, who telegraphs a Claw attempt and gets blocked off by the ‘Birds. Fritz gets the hot tag and takes over on Roberts, which works as he’s the best Freebird for stooging and bumping for the aging Fritz. A melee ensues (shock!) and in the chaos, Kevin nails Buddy with a crossbody for three. Good match.

Iceman King Parsons vs Buddy Roberts
This is hair vs hair, with the Freebirds’ hair removal cream located at ringside. This isn’t a great match, and is pretty short, but there are some fun moments to keep it interesting, mainly Roberts stooging around for Parsons by getting tied up in the ropes, or missing three elbow drops in a row. Roberts gets the pin by rolling Parsons up and pulling so much tight that we need to censor Parsons’ arse. The ref starts to question Roberts, giving Parsons the break to attack and cover Buddy’s hair with the cream. A better angle than match.

Chris Adams & Sunshine vs Jimmy Garvin & Precious
Mixed tag rules apply here. I really liked the storytelling in this match, with Sunshine desperate to get her hands on Precious, whilst Garvin does everything he can to stop that happening. This means Garvin has to try and keep control of Adams to prevent him tagging out, which he does until Adams blasts him with a superkick and makes the tag to Sunshine. Sunshine brings Precious in forcefully and is all over her, until Precious escapes and tags in a still-woozy Garvin. Garvin manages to take control on Adams again, but Adams again tags in Sunshine. This time, however, Garvin stays in the ring and trips her, allowing Precious to take advantage. The girls give no impression that they’re wrestlers here, but do give the impression they really hate each other in their fight. In the confusion, Adams hits a sunset flip on Garvin to win.

The Great Kabuki vs Kamala
A pair of oddities, but a pair who put on an absolute stinker of a match. A Kamala bearhug seems to go on forever, killing off the usually passionate WCCW crowd. Even Bill Mercer can’t think of anything to say. Kabuki escapes, but Kamala applies a neverending nervehold. Their respective managers, Gary Hart and Skandor Akbar, start to fight so the ref calls the match off. Abysmal.

The Fantastics vs the Midnight Express
This is for the vacant tag team titles. Apparently Jim Cornette interfered in a previous match, causing the vacation, so he’s stuck with a huge man called Little John at ringside to prevent him interfering. Also, the match is held in two rings side-by-side, which means the match starts as two 1-on-1 matches. Seems a little wasteful when you’ve got two consummate tag-teams out there. Luckily, all four men soon end up in the same ring, making this more of a tornado tag situation. Eaton takes some nasty looking bumps to the wooden floor early on. He gets payback by attacking both Fantastics with a chair to take control. This is done in plain view of the ref, so obviously there are no disqualifications. Eaton really makes good use of the two rings, drapping Bobby Fulton on the ropes between rings to kick him in the stomach. Eaton whips Tommy Rogers into the ref in the corner and Little John, neglecting his only task in the match, goes to investigate, allowing Cornette to belt Fulton in the head for a Condrey roll up, which gets a three count. Moments later, Rogers rolls up Eaton for his own three count, but the MX pin was counted first. However, discussion between the two refs causes them to DQ the Express (despite the chairshots earlier being absolutely fine), giving the Fantastics the titles. Massively overbooked, but pretty fun in places. I still think a simple tag match would have yielded a better match.

Bruiser Brody & the Missing Link vs One Man Gang & Rick Rude
I was really looking forward to this, but it was largely disappointing. It just never really seemed to settle into a good groove, and the face team in particular never seemed to hit their strides, though i loved the dropkick Brody hit on OMG. Link’s offence in this match consists entirely of headbutts, thrown by grabbing his own hair. After less than 10 minutes of uneven action, Rude throws Link over the top rope and gets disqualified. Lame.

Chris Adams vs Kevin Von Erich
Reviewing the Best of Kerry tape a few months back really made me appreciate how good Kevin was, so I went into this with high hopes. My hopes were met. The early part is nicely worked, with the Claw threatened early, but we soon end up on the floor where the brawling begins. Kevin takes control in this environment and soon Adams gets slammed onto the commentary table, before getting back into the ring, bleeding. Adams grounds Von Erich with a chinlock, blood dripping down his face, and they build up the hope spots for Kevin nicely, before he gets cut off by Adams again. Things soon break down again, and Adams manages to drag the restraining rope from ringside into the ring, but gets beaten by Kevin before he can use it, and instead Kevin uses it to choke Adams, which draws the DQ win for the Gentleman. Really enjoyable stuff.

Abdullah The Butcher vs Bruiser Brody
This is a steel cage match. We’re told they did a worldwide search for a guest referee to control these two, so end up with....Fritz Von Erich, which makes me believe this search wasn’t as extensive as they suggested. This takes a while to get going, as Abby’s offence is a little dull, but things soon heat up with Brody in control, with Bruiser repeatedly kicking Abby in the head. Some of the offense looks surprisingly tame, but we do get a nice, heated slugfest with both guys on their knees. The Butcher manages to get a fork from Gary Hart at ringside, but Fritz spots him using it to stab Bruiser and floors Abby with some punches, allowing Brody to get the pin. Quite fun, though the ending certainly gives the impression that Fritz is the toughest man in the match, as he gifts Brody the win simply by punching Abdullah out. The post match brawl between Fritz and Abby/Hart is pretty cool.

The Best Of Kerry Von Erich

Ever since watching the documentary disc on The Triumph & Tragedy of World Class, followed by the Heroes Of World Class film, I've had a soft spot for the Von Erich family. This prompted me to dig out this old USWA commercial tape I once bought from the Coventry branch of Cash Generator. The World Class territory didn't get any air time in the UK, so a tape like this would be pretty rare, making the fact my 18yr old self randomly chose this even more remarkable. Let's see how it goes...

Kerry Von Erich & Steve Simpson vs Iceman King Parsons & Buddy Roberts
This is still taken from the glory days of World Class, and Buddy’s hair looks wild here. We cut to commercial before the bell sounds and we return to Kerry injured on the floor, but he soon gets the hot tag following a discus punch. Both Kerry and Buddy look a little muted here, with both doing some pretty awkward looking bumping. Suffice to say that the exchanges between Parsons and Simpson look far better. The match is pretty short and uneventful, the ending seeing heel miscommunication causing Roberts to bump over the top from a Parsons butt-butt, and Von Erich rolling the Iceman up for three. Not the best start.

Kerry Von Erich vs Al Perez
This is a cage match for the World Class title. Gary Hart is handcuffed inside the ring to one of the corners, as he was apparently due to be handcuffed to Fritz before the whole “heart attack” angle. The commentary mentions Kerry’s cage match will Ric Flair 4 years previously, before Von Erich gets two from a backslide, the move which won him Flair’s NWA title in a later match. Perez doesn’t offer much in the way of offence in this match, but his bumping is stellar and makes Kerry’s offence look far more effective. Perez manages to block the Iron Claw, but leaves himself open to a stomach claw, which weakens him. The main problem with this match is that, for a world title cage match, it’s ultimately a little tame and lacking in passion. Perez fails to convey any personality here, while Kerry seems pretty half-arsed too. The end comes when the ref takes a bump and Perez rams Kerry throat-first into Hart’s handcuffs for the win. Disappointing.

Kerry & Kevin Von Erich vs Buddy Roberts & Terry Gordy
This is billed as a Badstreet match, with all four guys in street clothes. Kevin is even wearing boots, so you know it’s serious. This is also a match which blows away the cobwebs of the last two Kerry matches, as he and Gordy go hell for leather on each other from the get-go, which only ends when Gordy grabs Kerry in a bearhug and plants him with a belly-to-belly suplex. Roberts gets in, only for Kerry to pummel him with some belt shots. Kevin gets tagged in and the whole thing breaks down to a massive brawl. One which is fucking awesome, as the hate is palpable. Kevin takes a huge suplex on the concrete floor, while Kevin gets waffled with some vicious Gordy chairshots. The Von Erichs don’t just take offence, they dish it out too- one thing that’s so good is how Kevin, the smallest man in the match, will happily leap to punch out either of his opponents. In one brilliant scene, he rolls away from Gordy to allow him to swiftly pull his boot off and use it as a weapon on the bigger man. Gordy is a beast, hitting a brutal looking piledriver on Kevin, before planting him with a big back suplex. Kerry comes in with piledrivers of his own on both opponents, prompting this glorious line on commentary: “All’s fair in love and war and pro-wrestling”. Beautiful. At some point, Chris Adams and Iceman get involved, leading to the ref throwing the match out and an even bigger brawl taking place in the ring. This is all fucking magnificent.

Kerry Von Erich vs Tarras Bulba
Though not a classic, I like this match a lot as an example of how good a story Kerry could tell when he wanted to. Bulba is a much bigger man than Kerry, so Von Erich goes to the mat, taking out Bulba’s legs and getting away when Bulba tries to grab him. When Bulba does catch hold of him, Kerry is more than up for the fight and the subsequent brawl is pretty meaty. Kerry gets the Iron Claw, but Bulba breaks it easily. The commentators comment on KVE’s taped hand and how this will affect the claw. Kerry applies it again, Bulba again breaks free easily. Von Erich starts selling the hand injury, and the match now becomes about Kerry trying to win without his most powerful weapon. KVE gets control of the match with a series of clotheslines and the discus punch, and goes for a third claw on Bulba. Bulba applies the Mongolian Claw and it becomes a battle of whose claw is strongest, a battle Kerry wins. The Punisher runs in for the DQ and assaults Kerry post-match, focusing on the injured hand. Fun little match, with a good story to carry the action.

Kerry Von Erich, Kevin Von Erich & Steve Simpson vs Iceman King Parsons, Buddy Roberts & the Angel of Death
This is for the heel team’s 6-man titles, with the faces joined by Chris Adams at ringside. We start with a melee, and the faces gain control as we hit an early break. When we return, things have changed. Parson’s knocks Kerry to the floor, who very briefly plays face-in-peril until making a tag to a fired-up Kevin. Like with the streetfight, Kevin is awesome here, brimming with energy and babyface fight. The faces take control, with the two non-legal men being quick to leap in the ring if the heels try and cheat their way to an advantage, which is a nice touch. Simpson’s offence is pretty dull, all headlocks and sleepers, so it comes as a relief when he has to play face-in-peril. Terry Taylor attacks Adams at ringside, distracting the ref and allowing the Angel of Death to come in on the offensive while Simpson is pinning Roberts, dropping an elbow and letting Buddy roll up Simpson for three. Pretty dull, with only Kevin’s offence keeping it interesting. A best of Kevin video would go down a lot better than this one, I suspect.

Kerry Von Erich & Chris Adams vs Tarras Bulba & Sheik Braddock
The crowd is very much pro-faces, to the annoyance of Braddock, who reacts badly to the Adams-friendly crowd. The faces are much quicker, and use their superior speed to send the heels out of the ring. This seems to be a few months after the previous match, as KVE has no problems with his claw hand, applying it to Bulba early doors. Bulba gets the Mongolian Claw and we get a repeat of the claw battle from the previous match, with the Iron Claw winning yet again, but Bulba gets to the ropes. Adams is soon face-in-peril, which may be for the best as his selling is pretty top-notch considering how basic the heel offence is. The hot tag to Kerry leads to all four brawling in and around the ring (including Adams choking Braddock with the safety rope). Braddock applies an interminably long chinlock to Adams, but a hot tag brings in a fired-up Kerry who rolls up Braddock for three. Abrupt ending and loooong chinlock aside, this was pretty fun and a decent way to end the tape.