AWA TV 12-31-87 Highlights from Christmas night
Jan 5, 2017 1:18:32 GMT
Post by Chitohausen on Jan 5, 2017 1:18:32 GMT
Airdate: Saturday evening, December 31, 1987
Broadcast nationwide on Superstation WGN
All matches taped Christmas night at the Met Center in Bloomington, MN
Rod Trongard opens the show, and welcomes his co-host, Magnum TA.
Trongard says that this evening, we’re going to take a look back at the biggest show of the year, Christmas night at the Met Center, where not one, but TWO, World titles changed hands!
We go to a 5-minute clip, showing highlights of the preliminary matches from Christmas night, including the exciting IWGP Jr. heavyweight match, the U.S. Women’s title match, Ron Simmons and Iceman Parsons teaming up to beat the New Zealand Sheepherders, and General Skandor Akbar’s duo of Mr. Saito and Nord the Viking beating Brian Pillman and Steve Doll.
Before the first match, Trongard and Magnum talk about the history between Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka and “Playboy” Buddy Rose. While their paths didn’t cross here in the AWA until Christmas night, they’re no strangers to each other. Trongard says that they had a long rivalry in the late 70s and early 80s in Portland, and crossed paths again a few years ago in the Northeast.
From Christmas Night in Bloomington, MN, JIP:
Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka beats “Playboy” Buddy Rose by pinfall with the Superfly Splash.
Larry Nelson is backstage with General Skandor Akbar. Akbar gloats about the success his men, Saito and the Viking, had on Christmas night, defeating Brian Pillman and Steve Doll. Akbar then says that he’s using his vast wealth to continue to expand Devastation Incorporated, and says that he has found the crown jewel! He made a trip to the Orient, and on December 27, he watched a man, no a MONSTER, do what nobody else has done in many years . . . he put the legendary Antonio Inoki down for the 3-count, and he did it in less than 3 minutes!
Akbar then brings out . . .
Big Van Vader
Akbar says that Vader, along with Mr. Saito and the Viking, will bring him championship gold.
Rod Trongard and Magnum TA talk about the recent events between Terry Taylor and “Hacksaw” Butch Reed.
VTR: Rude vs Williams, 12/10/87, JIP:
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!
END VTR
VTR: Williams vs Reed, 12/24/87, JIP:
Early in the match, Percy Pringle gets involved, tripping Doc as he runs the ropes. This brings Terry Taylor out to confront Percy.
A moment later, Buzz Sawyer and Matt Borne rush out and attack Taylor, but Dick Slater and Ole Anderson arrive on the scene to make the save! Rick Rude makes his way out to give the Pringle Dynasty the advantage, and we’ve got a huge brawl on our hands!
END VTR
Trongard says that leads us to our next match from the Christmas night show, as Terry Taylor defends the TV title against Butch Reed.
From Christmas Night in Bloomington, MN, JIP:
“Hacksaw” Butch Reed (w/ Percival Pringle III) beats AWA World TV champion Terry Taylor to win the title. The match was a back and forth affair and could’ve gone either way. In the end, Taylor has the upper hand, but Percy Pringle climbs up on the apron and distracts the champion. This gives Reed the opportunity to go to the top rope, and when Taylor turns his attention back to Reed, the Hacksaw comes off the top rope with the diving shoulderblock and gets the pinfall. The fall comes at 14:55, just five seconds before the time limit for TV title matches.
Trongard and Magnum talk about the Rock n’ Roll Express, one of the top tag teams in the world today, and Trongard says that they’re on their way to the AWA!
From Christmas Night in Bloomington, MN, JIP:
AWA World champion “Ravishing” Rick Rude (w/ Percival Pringle III) battles “Dr. Death” Steve Williams to a time-limit DRAW. Neither man can put the other away within the 30-minute time limit, and the match is declared a draw. The two continue to fight for several minutes after the bell, until referees and a group of wrestlers are finally able to separate them.
Trongard and Magnum talk about another new team that’s on their way to the AWA, called the Orient Express, consisting of two young men from the Land of the Rising Sun, Masahiro Chono and Keiji Mutoh. Trongard says that Mutoh has spent some time in North America the past few years, wrestling as the White Ninja.
Trongard and Magnum then talk about Dick Slater and his rivalry with the World Tag Team champions Buzz Sawyer and Matt Borne.
VTR: Slater vs Sawyer, World Title tournament, 10/22/87, JIP:
Sawyer enjoys an early advantage, but Slater fights back and gets several nearfalls. Sawyer hits a low blow, and then plants a vicious kick to the head. Slater again fights back, and in the end, he drops Sawyer on his head with a jumping piledriver for the 1, 2, 3!
Sawyer throws a fit, and as Slater gets his hand raised, Sawyer jumps him from behind, and puts the boots to him! Percy Pringle enters the ring, and gives Sawyer the chain that he carries with him to the ring. Sawyer wraps the chain around his fist, and proceeds to beat Slater to a bloody pulp! A group of babyfaces, led by Steve Williams and Jim Duggan, hit the ring and chase Sawyer and Pringle off, but the damage has been done, and Slater is helped from the ring, unable to even stand on his own.
END VTR
VTR: Slater vs Sawyer, 12/3/87, JIP:
With the ref down, Butch Reed charges down to the ring! Reed finds the key to the handcuffs in the ref’s pocket. While that’s going on, Matt Borne sucker punches Jim Duggan, then takes the key to the cuffs from Reed, and unlocks them! As Reed pummels Duggan with a chair on the outside, Matt Borne slides into the ring, with the handcuffs, and helps Sawyer pummel Dick Slater! After giving Slater a vicious beating, they handcuff him to the ropes. Outside the ring, Reed throws Duggan into the ring, and follows him in, still holding the chair that he used to bloody Duggan.
Inside the ring, with Dick Slater cuffed to the ropes, Buzz Sawyer, Matt Borne and Butch Reed continue to pummel Duggan, with Slater getting the occasional shot from the chair as well, knocking him senseless. With both Duggan and Slater bleeding heavily, Reed drops the chair to the mat, and he and Sawyer proceed to give Duggan not one, but TWO, spike piledrivers right onto the steel chair!
Finally a group of wrestlers, led by Steve Williams and TV Champion Terry Taylor, are able to get past the heels blocking the aisleway to the ring, and run the Pringle Dynasty off!
Unfortunately, the damage has been done, and while Slater has to be helped from the ring, Duggan is loaded up onto a stretcher and carried out.
END VTR
VTR: Slater/Ole Anderson vs Sawyer/Borne, non-title match, 12/17/87, JIP:
At the start, we see all four men brawling in the ring, with Slater eventually getting the upper hand on Borne, and tossing him out of the ring, then Slater and Anderson hit a double clothesline on Sawyer, who rolls out to the floor as well. The champions talk things over with Pringle outside the ring, as Slater and Ole pace in the ring, waiting for them to come back in.
Once they finally re-enter the ring, referee Gary DeRusha is able to get one member of each team out of the ring so the match can begin. The match goes back and forth, and in the end, the team of Slater and Ole get the win when Anderson connects with a top-rope knee drop on Borne, and covers him for the pinfall, while Slater brawls with Sawyer!
END VTR
This leads us to the big tag team title match from Christmas night, as Dick Slater and Ole Anderson look to take the World Tag titles from Sawyer and Borne.
From Christmas Night in Bloomington, MN, JIP:
Dick Slater & Ole Anderson beat AWA World Tag Team Champions “Mad Dog” Buzz Sawyer & “Maniac” Matt Borne (w/ Percival Pringle III) to win the titles when, as Borne holds Anderson, Sawyer attempts to hit Ole with his chain, while Percy Pringle distracts the referee. Ole moves out of the way, and Sawyer KO’s Borne with the chain instead! Anderson knocks a shocked Mad Dog out of the ring, and as the referee turns his attention back to the match, Anderson covers Borne for the 1, 2, 3 and we’ve got NEW WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS!!!!
Trongard says that we’ll have a HUGE main event next week! He says that a rematch for the tag team titles has been signed, but not only are the titles on the line, both teams have agreed to the stipulation that whoever loses the fall for their team has to LEAVE THE AWA! Both teams agreed that the AWA isn't big enough for both of them, and that this stipulation is the only way to end this rivalry.
On top of that, a special referee has been assigned for the bout . . .
SGT. SLAUGHTER!
Credits Roll
© 1987, AMERICAN WRESTLING ASSOCIATION
Working on it now.