AWA in Chicago 3-17-89 New World Tag Team Champs crowned!

[Chitohausen]

THE AMERICAN WRESTLING ASSOCIATION

SATURDAY, MARCH 17, 1989

UIC PAVILION IN CHICAGO, ILLINOIS





DAVE FINLAY beats AL SNOW. Finlay wins a hard-fought battle over the youngster from Ohio, pinning Snow after a kneeling reverse piledriver.


RICK MARTEL (w/ Jimmy Hart) beats “JUMPIN” JIM BRUNZELL. Martel and Brunzell are both immensely talented technical wrestlers, and they put on a clinic here, trading holds and counterholds. After about 18 minutes of back and forth action, Martel gets the win, after softening up Brunzell’s lower back, by locking on the Quebec Crab for the submission.


TIGER MASK & TOSHIAKI KAWADA (w/ Mr. Matsuda) battle OWEN HART & FUJI YAMADA to a time-limit DRAW. We’re treated to a contrast of styles here, with the mat-based Tiger Mask and Kawada against the high-flying duo of Owen and Yamada. Early on, Kawada lays into Owen with some vicious kicks that leave the young Canadian flat on his back on the mat, but he won’t stay down. Owen continues to take punishment from both Kawada and Tiger Mask, but is able to make it to his corner, and tag in Yamada. Yamada comes in and cleans house with dropkicks that send both Mask and Kawada to the floor. Yamada then wows the Chicago fans by diving over the top rope, onto both opponents, and squashing them against the guardrail around the ring!

Back inside, Owen has recovered, and he joins in, with Hart and Yamada hitting double dropkicks on both opponents. Kawada unleashes some of his ultra-stiff kicks to the legs of Yamada, looking to ground him. Owen comes in and gives Kawada a taste of his own medicine, connecting with some vicious kicks of his own! The match continues to go back and forth, and after 20 minutes of non-stop action, the bell sounds and the match is declared a draw. Yet another draw in the series of matches between Owen and Tiger Mask, proving that these two are about as evenly-matched as any two wrestlers can be.


CHICAGO STREETFIGHT:
THE SAMOAN SWAT TEAM: SAMU & FATU (w/ Diamond Dallas Page) beat THE FANTASTICS: TOMMY ROGERS & BOBBY FULTON. There’s no need to tag in and out in this one, all four wrestlers can be in the ring at the same time. The Fantastics use their speed advantage early on, but the match quickly becomes a brawl. That puts the Fantastics at a distinct disadvantage, and the SST gleefully pummel their opponents! The Fantastics don’t go down without a fight, but in the end, the SST get the win when Fatu drops Rogers with a chairshot to the head, and Samu then comes off the top rope with a diving headbutt for the pinfall victory.


AWA Americas champion SGT. SLAUGHTER beats KAMALA (w/ Jimmy Hart & Kimchee) by DISQUALIFICATION. This match is a barnburner right from the opening bell! The match comes to an end when Kamala repeatedly chokes Slaughter in the corner. The referee tries to get him to stop, and finally Kamala has had enough of the ref, and drops him with a big overhand chop. It takes the referee a few minutes to come to his senses, but when he does, he calls for the bell, awarding the match by DQ to Slaughter.


AWA Triple Crown champion STAN HANSEN beats “SUPERFLY” JIMMY SNUKA. Snuka gives the big Texan a tough match, but in the end, Hansen is just too much for Snuka to overcome, and the champion connects with a vicious Lariat for the pinfall.


STEVE “DR. DEATH” WILLIAMS & GARY ALBRIGHT defeat AWA World Tag Team Champions BRET HART & JIM NEIDHART to win the titles. Stipulations state that Jimmy Hart be handcuffed to Sgt. Slaughter at ringside, to ensure he can’t interfere. Jimmy is not happy about this, voicing his displeasure to everyone within earshot. Slaughter threatens him, and that seems to shut Hart up, at least for the time being. The match is a wild one, with the champions focusing their attention on Albright, the inexperienced member of the challenging team. They keep him isolated in their half of the ring early on, and work him over. Albright turns the tables though, he ducks a clothesline from Neidhart, then grabs Neidhart and hits a release German suplex, dropping Neidhart right on the back of his head and folding him up like an accordion!

Albright makes a mad dash for his corner, and tags in the former AWA World champion! Williams dominates the next few minutes, tossing Bret and Neidhart around like ragdolls! The champions briefly gain the upper hand when they double-team Williams, but Doc is on fire tonight, and he gains the upper hand again, after reversing an Irish whip, and sending Bret crashing into Neidhart. The moment sends Bret tumbling through the ropes and to the floor, and Williams then scoops Neidhart, the legal man, up and drives him into the mat with the Oklahoma Stampede!

Bret, though dazed, still tries to climb back into the ring as Doc covers Neidhart, but Bret doesn’t make it in time, and Steve Williams gets the 1, 2, 3 on Jim Neidhart!

WE HAVE NEW AWA WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS!!!!!

At this point, PAUL ORNDORFF and RICK MARTEL hit the ring. Orndorff grabs a chair, and bashes Slaughter over the head with it, while Martel gets the key to the handcuffs. Martel uncuffs Jimmy Hart, and instead cuffs Slaughter to the ring ropes. Slaughter is stunned from the chairshot, and is now cuffed to the ropes, unable to escape the assault from Orndorff and Jimmy Hart.

While Martel, Bret and Neidhart brawl with Williams and Albright in the ring, Orndorff and Jimmy Hart batter Slaughter on the outside, eventually leaving him a bloody mess before Jimmy Snuka and a group of AWA officials rush out and put a stop to it.

Despite having just lost the World Tag Team titles, Jimmy Hart and his Hart Foundation seem pretty proud of themselves as they leave the ringside area, and Snuka, Williams, Albright and several officials check on the bloody Sgt. Slaughter.