WWF Wrestling Classic '87 7-2-87 New champion crowned!
Jul 6, 2016 2:44:59 GMT
Post by Chitohausen on Jul 6, 2016 2:44:59 GMT
THE WRESTLING CLASSIC
SATURDAY AFTERNOON, JULY 2, 1987
LIVE ON USA NETWORK
FROM MEMORIAL STADIUM IN BALTIMORE, MD
Vince McMahon, Jesse “the Body” Ventura and Gorilla Monsoon are at ringside, and welcome us to the Wrestling Classic! Over the next few hours, we’ll see 16 of the top wrestlers in the world compete in a single elimination tournament to crown a new WWF World heavyweight champion, as well as Larry Zbyszko defending the IC title against the Ultimate Warrior, and the Hart Foundation squaring off with the Nasty Boys!
Before the first round matches begin, WWF President Jack Tunney comes out to the ring, holding a brand new WWF World title belt, to be awarded to the winner of the tournament.
World Title Tournament
Opening Round:
Brutus “the Barber” Beefcake defeats The Brooklyn Brawler. The Brawler is a tough customer, but Brutus makes short work of him, locking on the Sleeperhold for the victory.
“The Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase (w/ Bobby Heenan & Virgil) defeats Shawn Michaels. Michaels, one-half of the Rockers, is somewhat out of his element here, as he’s used to tag team wrestling. Still, Michaels shows why many consider him a future superstar, as he gives the Million Dollar Man all he can handle. Michaels actually looks like he may get the win, as he leaps off the top turnbuckle with a flying bodypress, but Dibiase sidesteps him, and Michaels crashes into the mat. As he slowly gets to his feet, Dibiase locks on the Million $ Dream! Michaels tries to fight it, but the lights soon go out, and Dibiase is declared the winner.
Johnny Ace (w/ Bobby Heenan) defeats Marty Jannetty. Jannetty, the other half of the Rockers, doesn’t fare any better than his tag team partner did, as he also faces a member of the Heenan Family. Jannetty uses his speed early, but once Ace gets ahold of him, things go downhill in a hurry for poor Marty. Ace debuts a vicious new maneuver that he calls the “Ace Crusher” and gets the pinfall. The announcers all comment on this devastating new move from Ace, with Jesse Ventura remarking that the referee could’ve counted to 100 and Jannetty still wouldn’t have kicked out!
Scott Hall defeats Bad News Brown. Ace’s former tag team partner Scott Hall also advances in the tournament after putting Bad News Brown away with the Bulldog. Afterwards, Hall gets on the mic and tells Johnny Ace that he’ll see him in the next round!
“Macho Man” Randy Savage (w/ Miss Elizabeth) defeats Terry Taylor (w/ Bobby Heenan). The third member of the Heenan Family in the tournament doesn’t fare as well as his stablemates. Taylor uses every dirty trick in the book, to no avail, as Savage gets the win with the flying elbowdrop.
Bam Bam Bigelow (w/ Slick) defeats George “the Animal” Steele. Bigelow uses raw power and aggression to overcome the unorthodox antics of the Animal. Bigelow gets the win after planting Steele with a brutal powerslam, then delivering the slingshot headbutt from the apron into the ring.
Jake “the Snake” Roberts defeats Paul Roma. Roberts makes short work of Roma, dropping him on his head with the DDT for the win.
“Mr. USA” Tony Atlas defeats “Outlaw” Bobby Jaggers Atlas finishes out the opening round by defeating Bobby Jaggers to advance to the second round. Late in the match, after a ref bump, Jaggers brings the bullrope he carries with him into the ring, and attempts to hit Atlas with it. Mr. USA dodges that attack, then bounces off the ropes and connects with a Lariat for the 1, 2, 3.
Before the second round begins, Mean Gene Okerlund and Lord Alfred Hayes conduct some backstage interviews.
Gene is with The Hart Foundation: Bret Hart & Jim Neidhart. They talk about facing the Nasty Boys a little later on, and say that no matter who Jimmy Hart throws at them, they’ll be victorious.
Alfred Hayes is in the heel locker room with WWF IC champion Larry Zbyszko. Larry compares the Warrior to one of the apes that you’d see at the Baltimore Zoo, and says that while Warrior may be stronger than Zbyszko, Larry won’t have any trouble outsmarting the Warrior, and predicts he’ll win the match easily.
Vince, Jesse and Gorilla talk about the first round, and make some predictions for the second round. Vince says he’s most looking forward to Scott Hall and Johnny Ace facing off in the next round, he thinks there’s going to be hell to pay for Johnny Ace!
World Title Tournament
Quarter-Finals:
“The Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase (w/ Bobby Heenan & Virgil) defeats Brutus “the Barber” Beefcake. The match goes back and forth, but late in the contest, Dibiase gains the upper hand and locks Brutus in the Million $ Dream for the win.
Scott Hall defeats Johnny Ace (w/ Bobby Heenan). This one is a war. Hall attacks Ace as soon as the bell sounds, with Ace bailing out of the ring to avoid him. Hall follows him out and chases Ace around ringside. Ace rounds a corner of the ring, and then waits for Hall to follow him, and attempts a clothesline, but Hall ducks, and nails Ace with several rights and lefts, before slamming his head into the ringpost, and rolling Ace back inside the ring. From there, Hall stays on the offensive and gets several nearfalls. Johnny Ace eventually turns the tables, but it’s short-lived, as Hall takes over again, and hits the Bulldog! Before he can cover his former tag team partner, TERRY TAYLOR hits the ring and attacks Hall! The referee calls for the Disqualification, but Taylor and Ace don’t care, they throw the ref through the ropes and to the outside, then double-team Hall. Taylor whips Hall into the ropes and connects with his flying forearm smash, then Ace drops Hall with his new Ace Crusher. They continue to stomp away at Hall, until several referees and WWF officials hit the ring to put a stop to it. Scott Hall is left a bloody mess as Taylor, Ace and Heenan retreat to the locker room, all three smiling from ear to ear!
“Macho Man” Randy Savage (w/ Miss Elizabeth) defeats Bam Bam Bigelow (w/ Slick). Bigelow is a monster, and he gives Savage all he can handle. Bigelow actually controls most of the match, and looks to have the match all but won when he goes to the apron for the slingshot headbutt. Savage, though, rolls out of the way at the last second and Bigelow crashes face-first into the mat. Savage is in rough shape, but gets to the top rope and delivers the flying elbowsmash! Savage covers Bigelow and gets the 3-count to advance to the semi finals.
Jake “the Snake” Roberts defeats “Mr. USA” Tony Atlas. Jake gets a hard-fought win with the DDT.
Mean Gene Okerlund is backstage with Jimmy Hart and the Nasty Boys: Knobbs & Sags. They talk about the match with the Hart Foundation coming up after the semi final matches, and promise to show Bret and Neidhart what nasty is all about!
Lord Alfred Hayes is with the Ultimate Warrior. Warrior talks about being the chosen one to take the IC title from Larry Zbyszko.
World Title Tournament
Semi-Finals:
“The Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase (w/ Bobby Heenan & Virgil) defeats Scott Hall. Hall is still in rough shape after the attack earlier in the show, at the hands of Johnny Ace and Terry Taylor. He was left a bloody mess, and his head is heavily bandaged for this match. Despite that, Hall tears into Dibiase as soon as the bell rings, which seems to surprise Dibiase. Hall stays on the offensive, until a rake of the eyes stops him dead in his tracks. From there, Dibiase tears the bandaging off Hall’s head, and starts gouging at the wounds on his forehead. Within minutes, Hall’s face is a crimson mask. He puts up a valiant effort, but soon the blood loss starts to take it’s toll, and he starts to slow down, and his moves don’t have the power behind them that they did at the start of the match. Dibiase takes advantage, and goes to work wearing Hall down. Dibiase eventually locks on the Million $ Dream for the win to advance to the finals.
“Macho Man” Randy Savage (w/ Miss Elizabeth) defeats Jake “the Snake” Roberts. This is an action-packed match that goes back and forth. Late in the match, the referee catches an elbow when he tries to get between Jake and Savage as they brawl along the ropes. With the referee down and out, the battle soon moves to the outside, where Jake gets the upper hand after slamming Savage’s head into the ringpost. Jake rolls the Macho Man back into the ring, then grabs a steel chair before re-entering the ring himself. Savage is dazed as Jake moves towards him, the chair held over his head. While this is going on, Brutus Beefcake charges down to the ring! Brutus jumps in the ring, and grabs ahold of the chair before Jake can hit Savage with it. Jake spins around and finds himself face to face with the Barber. Jake sucker punches Brutus, knocking him through the ropes and out of the ring, but while that’s happening, Savage has recovered, and rolls Jake up from behind, just as the referee gets back to his feet. The ref is right there, and counts 1, 2, 3! Randy Savage has pinned Jake Roberts!!
After the decision is announced, Jake confronts the referee, yelling at him that Brutus Beefcake interfered. The ref didn’t see it, and says the decision stands. Jake grabs the ref, and looks like he’s setting him up for the DDT, but Randy Savage delivers a jumping knee to the back of Jake, and the Snake rolls out of the ring. Brutus Beefcake is still outside the ring, and he attacks Jake, with the two brawling around ringside and eventually back towards the locker room.
The Nasty Boys: Knobbs & Sags (w/ Jimmy Hart) defeat the Hart Foundation: Bret Hart & Jim Neidhart. This match is a wild brawl right from the start. Eventually the four men take the fight to the floor, where Sags knocks Neidhart senseless with Jimmy Hart’s megaphone, then rolls back into the ring in time to beat the referee’s count. The Nasty Boys are declared the winners by way of a count-out.
World Title Tournament
Finals:
“The Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase (w/ Bobby Heenan & Virgil) defeats “Macho Man” Randy Savage (w/ Miss Elizabeth). The fans are treated to a classic here, even though both men have faced three opponents already today, they give it their all for the opportunity to hold the biggest prize in wrestling today, the WWF World heavyweight title! The momentum shifts several times as the match progresses, and both men get several nearfalls, but can’t seem to put their opponent away. Late in the match, Dibiase covers Savage, with his feet on the ropes, but Elizabeth points this out to the referee, who stops the count. Virgil comes over and threatens Elizabeth, which gets the attention of the Macho Man. As Savage reaches through the ropes and tries to grab Virgil, Virgil sucker punches him, and Dibiase moves in for the kill, locking the stunned Macho Man in the Million $ Dream! Savage fights it, and tries desperately to reach the ropes, but Dibiase has pulled him far enough away that he can’t reach them. The lights eventually go out for the Macho Man, and Ted Dibiase is declared the winner!
Ted Dibiase is the new WWF World heavyweight champion!!!
WWF Intercontinental Championship:
The Ultimate Warrior defeats Larry Zbyszko (champ) (w/ Bobby Heenan) to win the title. After a hard-hitting, back and forth match, the Warrior catches Zbyszko with the diving shoulderblock, and then delivers the running splash for the pinfall to win the Intercontinental title!
Vince McMahon, Jesse Ventura and Gorilla Monsoon recap today’s event, where we saw two new champions crowned, as Ted Dibiase won the tournament, although controversially, to become the new World heavyweight champion, and the Ultimate Warrior defeated Larry Zbyszko for the Intercontinental championship!
Vince thanks everyone for watching, and reminds us to tune in to WWF Superstars next weekend for all the fall-out from today’s show.
Credits Roll
© 1987, WORLD WRESTLING FEDERATION
Working on it now.