AWA TV 12-10-87 the World title is on the line!
Dec 22, 2016 21:13:04 GMT
Post by Chitohausen on Dec 22, 2016 21:13:04 GMT
Airdate: Saturday evening, December 10, 1987
Broadcast nationwide on Superstation WGN
Taped on December 8 at Boylan High School in Rockford, IL
We see footage of last week’s main event, between Dick Slater and Buzz Sawyer, where Jim Duggan and Matt Borne were handcuffed together at ringside.
Rod Trongard opens the show, and welcomes his co-host, Magnum TA.
Trongard says that Hacksaw Jim Duggan suffered a serious neck injury last week, after Sawyer and Borne delivered two spike piledrivers onto a steel chair. Rod says at this point, they don’t know when, or even IF, Duggan will return to the ring.
They’re interrupted by Percival Pringle III and the AWA World Tag Team champions Buzz Sawyer and Matt Borne! Percy and the champions are in a good mood, with Percy saying that Sawyer and Borne gave him an early Christmas present, by ridding the wrestling world of that thug “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan!
Sawyer says that Duggan was just the first name on their “hit list”, now they’re setting their sights on Dick Slater, and Sawyer says that the holidays are a time for family and friends to be together, and says that Duggan and Slater will be together . . . when they’re sharing a hospital room!
The three of them have a good laugh about that, with Rod and Magnum just shaking their heads in disgust.
Suddenly, Dick Slater makes his way out and confronts the champions! Slater tells them to laugh it up, because he’s going to find himself another tag team partner, and when he does, Sawyer and Borne won’t be laughing! He says that he’s wrestled all over this country, and one thing he’s noticed is that Sawyer and Borne have a habit of making enemies everywhere they go! He says he’s made some calls, and he’s sure he’ll have people lining up to team with him against them!
Borne tells Slater to go out and get whoever he wants, it doesn’t matter to them, they’ll cripple anyone that gets in the ring with them, just like they did with Duggan!
Slater and the champions continue to argue back and forth as Trongard sends us to our first commercial break.
“HACKSAW” BUTCH REED (w/ Percival Pringle III) VS. BUCK ZUMHOFF. Zumhoff gets some offence in early, but once Reed gets Zumhoff down on the mat, he pummels Buck, before hitting the diving shoulderblock for the pinfall victory.
RON SIMMONS VS. “BRUISER” BOB SWEETAN. Sweetan jumps Simmons before the bell, and gives him a vicious beating. Despite the onslaught from Sweetan, Simmons is able to turn the tables, and eventually connects with a powerslam for the pinfall victory.
Trongard and Magnum are joined by Dick Slater. Slater tells them that he’s been on the phone since the earlier confrontation with Sawyer and Borne, and says that he’s got some people who are interested in coming to the AWA to help him get rid of those two jerks. He challenges them to face him and a partner of his choosing right here next week on TV!
STEVE DOLL (w/ Brian Pillman) VS. JIMMY BACKLUND. Doll picks up the win here with a bodypress from the top rope for the pinfall victory. On commentary, Trongard and Magnum mention that Doll is improving each time out.
WORLD TELEVISION CHAMPIONSHIP:
TERRY TAYLOR (champ) VS. “EXOTIC” ADRIAN STREET (w/ Miss Linda). Trongard talks about Adrian Street’s accomplishments in the sport, saying that he’s won titles all over the world, and says that Terry Taylor shouldn’t let Street’s unorthodox style throw him, because the Exotic One is as tough as they come, and has the talent to beat anyone in the world. We get a fast-paced match here, and Taylor is able to overcome Street’s antics, as well as Miss Linda trying to interfere, and the champion gets the win with the diving forearm smash.
After getting his hand raised, Taylor slides out of the ring, grabs Miss Linda and plants a kiss on her . . . and she looks to be enjoying it! This doesn’t sit well with Exotic Adrian, and he grabs Linda by the hair and drags her back to the locker room.
Trongard and Magnum take a moment to talk about the wrestling coming up on Christmas day. Rod says that the AWA will be at the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena for a matinee show on December 25, with a 1:30pm bell-time, and then that night, a star-studded event at the Met Center in Bloomington. On the evening show in Bloomington, we know that “Ravishing” Rick Rude will defend the AWA World title against the man he beat in the tournament final for the belt back in October, “Dr. Death” Steve Williams!
Magnum says that it could be Williams defending the title against Rude on Christmas night, because they will meet right here today, for the title, in our main event!
WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP:
“RAVISHING” RICK RUDE (champ) (w/ Percival Pringle III) VS. “DR. DEATH” STEVE WILLIAMS. Magnum says that there aren’t very many wrestling promotions out there that will give the fans a match of this calibre for free on television, but that’s why the AWA is the major leagues of professional wrestling, they give the fans what they want! Both men go all out, with the biggest prize in the sport on the line! We see a short feeling-out process early, but that soon gives way to an explosion of offence from both men, as they both realize that if they sit back and wait for the other to make a mistake, they could be waiting an awfully long time!
A few minutes in, Rude takes control of the match, and knocks Williams through the ropes and to the floor. As Williams climbs back up on the apron, Rude grabs him and attempts to suplex him back into the ring. Doc hooks his leg in the ropes to block it, and then reverses it, suplexing Rude right out over the top rope and all the way to the floor! Both men hit the floor hard, and both are in rough shape after that one, but Williams is up first, and rolls Rude back into the ring, following him in just in time to beat the ref’s count!
Williams stays on the offensive for the next few minutes, and punishes Rude with slams, suplexes and other power moves, looking to soften him up for the Oklahoma Stampede. At this point, “Hacksaw” Butch Reed makes his way down to the ring.
Williams gets distracted by Reed’s presence, and that gives Rude the opportunity to attack Doc from behind. Rude takes Doc down to the mat, and starts working on his neck, softening up for the Rude Awakening. A moment later, Rude attempts the neckbreaker, but Williams is able to slip out of his grip, and get Rude over with a backslide! Rude is caught by surprise, and just barely manages to get a shoulder up!
A moment later, Williams gets Rude up for the Stampede, but as he charges towards the corner, to slam Rude into the turnbuckle before delivering the powerslam, Rude is able to slip out of Williams’ grasp, and sends Doc chest-first into the turnbuckle instead. With Doc stunned, Rude grabs him . . . and hits the Rude Awakening!
Luckily for Doc, they’re close to the ropes, and he drapes his leg across the bottom rope . . . but Butch Reed shoves it off before the ref can see it! Rick Rude gets the 3-count and has won this brutal, hard-hitting affair!
Suddenly, TV champion Terry Taylor rushes out to the ring, and he tells the ref that Williams had his leg on the rope, which Rude of course denies! Taylor says that Butch Reed pushed it off the ropes, and this leads to Reed attacking Taylor from behind!
Rude joins in, and he and Reed double-team the TV champion. Taylor holds his own briefly, but soon he’s overwhelmed by the World champion and the Hacksaw!
Steve Williams slowly gets up, and shakes off the cobwebs, and notices what going on. Williams joins the fray, and helps Taylor battle Rude and Reed. As the brawl continues, Rude and Reed eventually gain the upper hand.
As Rude and Reed get the upper hand in the fight with Williams and Taylor, Rod Trongard and Magnum TA wrap things up as the show comes to an end.
Credits Roll
© 1987, AMERICAN WRESTLING ASSOCIATION
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