AWA TV 9-8-88 Slaughter vs Orndorff and Taylor vs Neidhart
Sept 27, 2017 17:18:14 GMT
Post by Chitohausen on Sept 27, 2017 17:18:14 GMT
AWA “PRO WRESTLING USA”
Airdate: Friday, September 8, 1988
Broadcast nationwide on Superstation WGN
Taped September 6, 1988 at the DECC Arena in Duluth, MN
“From coast to coast, border to border, and continent to continent, this is the AWA, the major leagues of professional wrestling!”
Rod Trongard opens the show, and welcomes his co-host Diamond Dallas Page!
Tonight, we’ve got a big show in store, the Can-Am Express will be here, we’ll see Tiger Mask and Wild Pegasus take on the British Bulldogs for the World tag titles. Terry Taylor will square off with Hart Foundation member Jim Neidhart, and in the main event, Sgt. Slaughter meets Paul Orndorff, though unfortunately for Slaughter, the Americas title will not be on the line.
Trongard talks about “Super Sunday”, coming up in one month’s time, on Sunday night, October 8. The show will originate from the St. Paul Civic Center, and will be broadcast all around the Midwest via closed circuit! On that card, potentially the biggest match in wrestling history, as AWA World champion Steve Williams faces PWF and United National champ Stan Hansen, with the winner being crowned the first Triple Crown champion! Plus, that match can’t be stopped for blood, and there will be no DQ’s or count-outs, so there must be a winner!
Trongard and Page are then joined by AWA World heavyweight champion “Dr. Death” Steve Williams.
Footage is shown of Hansen beating Genichiro Tenryu at an All-Japan show to win the PWF World title and the NWA United National title. We then see clips of the two previous matches between Williams and Hansen. The first ended in a count-out, and the second was stopped when a representative from the Minnesota State Athletic Commission determined that both men were bleeding too heavily for the match to continue.
Williams says it’s all led up to this match at Super Sunday, where one of them will leave the ring with all three belts as the new Triple Crown champion! Doc says the fans know that he’s not one to come out here and brag about what he’s going to do, he prefers to get in the ring and let his fists do the talking! But he will say that with the fans in his corner, he’s confident that he will beat Hansen on October 8 and become the Triple Crown champ!
THE CAN-AM EXPRESS: TOM ZENK & PHIL LAFLEUR VS. THE MASKED TERRORS. The Can-Am Express get the win when Lafleur delivers the Canadian Rocky Buster, a rolling firemans slam, on one of the masked men and pins him.
Magnum TA is standing by with Jimmy Hart and the AWA World Television champion “Cowboy” Bob Orton Jr. Orton talks about Terry Taylor, and says that Taylor should be careful about running his mouth, because despite what Taylor might tell these fans, the LAST thing Taylor really wants is to get in the ring with the Ace!
Jimmy Hart says Taylor is a punk, and what Terry isn’t telling these people is that when he first came back to the AWA, he asked, no he BEGGED, Hart to let him join the Hart Foundation! Jimmy says that there’s no room in his Foundation for losers like Terry Taylor!
Orton says that’s right, Taylor doesn’t have what it takes to be a member of the Hart Foundation, and if Taylor does somehow find the guts to actually face him in the ring, which he doubts, he will be more than happy to show all these people that Terry isn’t even in his league!
AWA WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP:
THE BRITISH BULLDOGS: DAVEY BOY SMITH & DYNAMITE KID VS. TIGER MASK II & WILD PEGASUS. The challengers are young and may be lacking experience, but one thing they’re not lacking is heart. They take the fight right to the champions, and there are times in the match where it looks like they may even pull off the upset! On commentary, Trongard says that, watching Pegasus, you can tell that Dynamite Kid was an influence for him, as he uses a lot of the same moves. It’s one of those moves that brings about the end for the challengers, as Pegasus goes for a signature DK move, the falling headbutt off the top rope, onto Davey Boy, but Smith rolls out of the way, then covers the stunned masked man for the 1, 2, 3!
As a show of respect, the champions shake hands with the challengers after the match.
Trongard and Page are joined at the broadcast desk by Sgt. Slaughter. Trongard says that Slaughter will face Paul Orndorff tonight in the main event, but it will be a non-title match.
Slaugther says that those pukes Jimmy Hart and Paul Orndorff did everything they could to avoid having to put the title on the line, they got Hart’s high-priced lawyers involved, and in the end, a compromise was made, that he would get another match with Orndorff, but the title wouldn’t be on the line. Slaughter says it doesn’t matter to him, while he would love to hold the Americas title, this has become personal and right now he’s more interested in shutting Orndorff’s mouth than winning the title, so he’s not complaining.
Trongard says that one would think that if Slaughter wins this match tonight, the AWA would definitely grant him another shot at the Americas title, no matter what Jimmy Hart does.
Slaughter agrees, and says tonight is about teaching that maggot Orndorff a lesson, and after he does that, he’ll worry about getting another shot at the belt.
TERRY TAYLOR VS. JIM “THE ANVIL” NEIDHART (w/ Jimmy Hart). Neidhart jumps Taylor from behind to start the match, and spends the first few minutes pounding Taylor into the mat. Neidhart gets a series of close nearfalls, but can’t keep Taylor down for the three-count. Terry eventually battles back, but he’s taken a lot of abuse, and Neidhart quickly regains the advantage. Neidhart whips Taylor into the ropes and attempts a running clothesline, but Terry ducks, bounces off the opposite ropes . . . AND HITS THE FLYING FOREARM!!!!
Neidhart goes down like a sack of potatoes, and Taylor quickly covers him for the 1, 2, 3!
After getting his hand raised, Taylor asks Larry Nelson for the house mic. Taylor says that he beat one of Jimmy Hart’s goons, now he wants Bob Orton to come out and face him!
Orton makes his way to the ring, a smug expression on his face. He gets into the ring and grabs the house mic out of Taylor’s hand. Orton says that Taylor got lucky just now, if the bout had been scored on points, Neidhart would’ve won hands down. Taylor has done nothing to show him or anyone else that he’s deserving of a shot at the TV title.
Taylor gets in Orton’s face . . . but Neidhart jumps him from behind again!
Neidhart and Orton put the boots to Taylor. Terry tries to fight back, but Jimmy Hart gets involved as well, delivering a cheap shot that puts Taylor on the mat. Orton and Neidhart then hold Taylor up by his arms, as Jimmy smacks him in the head with his megaphone!
Hart, Orton and Neidhart then head to the announce desk as several referees come out and tend to Taylor in the ring.
Trongard says that was a despicable display, especially by Orton, who’s supposed to be a champion.
Hart, Orton and Neidhart have a good laugh, and Jimmy says that Orton was right, the only thing Terry Taylor proved tonight is that he’s a chump!
The three of them continue to laugh about what they did to Taylor as they leave the broadcast area.
Page says that was great, and after that beating, he doesn’t think the Hart Foundation will be hearing any more from Terry Taylor!
NON-TITLE MATCH:
“MR. WONDERFUL” PAUL ORNDORFF (w/ Jimmy Hart) VS. SGT. SLAUGHTER. We’re treated to hard-hitting, back and forth bout here. As the match progresses, Orndorff takes control, and every time Slaughter makes a comeback, Orndorff relies on a dirty trick like a thumb to the eye or a low blow to put a stop to it.
Around the 10-minute mark, Orndorff goes to whip Slaughter into the corner, but the Sarge reverses it, sending Orndorff into the corner instead. Slaughter climbs up to the second turnbuckle, and repeatedly punches Orndorff, as the fans in attendance count along with each punch. Orndorff, though dazed, is able to push Slaughter off the ropes, then hooks Sarge’s legs, and puts his own feet on the middle rope for leverage.
The referee moves into position to start the count, but Terry Taylor comes running down the aisle, a big bandage on his head from the earlier assault with the megaphone. Taylor gets the referee’s attention and points out Orndorff’s feet on the ropes.
The ref stops counting, and Orndorff jumps up, thinking he’d won, but the ref admonishes him for using the ropes for leverage. Orndorff then sees Taylor at ringside, and starts yelling at him, telling Taylor to stay out of his business or he’ll get hurt again!
This has given Slaughter a chance to recover, and while Orndorff is distracted by Taylor, Slaughter comes up behind the champ . . . AND LOCKS ON THE COBRA CLUTCH!!!!!
Slaughter pulls Orndorff away from the ropes, and cinches the hold in. Moments later, Orndorff is out, and the referee raises and drops Orndorff’s arm three times . . . and declares Slaughter the winner!
We’re out of time for this week, and Trongard and Page wrap things up, then take a moment to hype next week’s show, and remind the fans to check out whether Super Sunday will be available at a venue in their area on October 8.
Credits Roll
© 1988, AMERICAN WRESTLING ASSOCIATION
Working on it now.