ECW 10/23/96 Jericho vs. Michinoku! Benoit vs. Simmons!
Oct 23, 2013 14:11:17 GMT
Post by jackknight on Oct 23, 2013 14:11:17 GMT
10/23/96 - Cole Field House College Park, MD
"Mean" Gene Okerlund and "The Genius" Lanny Poffo welcome us to the Cole Field House in College Park, Maryland for another exciting edition of Eastern Championship Wrestling! They then briefly talk about last week's show focusing on Dustin Rhodes and Tommy Dreamer retaining the ECW Tag-Team Titles in a brutal bout with Destruction Inc.; Brimstone and Pogo the Clown defeating Papa Shango and Matt Borne which caused a wild brawl at the close of the show and Eastern States Champ Chris Benoit's violent showdown with Ron Simmons! They then tell us that this past Saturday on Weekend Warriors ECW President Eric Bischoff announced that Ron Simmons would get a shot at the Eastern States Title because of his performance here last week and it will take place right here in tonight's huge Main Event!
They then run down the rest of tonight's huge card which will see the # 1 Contender for the ECW Championship "The Long Island Loud-Mouth" in action as well as exciting new ECW superstar "Latino Heat" Eddie Guerrero; and Brimstone and Pogo the Clown will be in action against the Tag-Team Champions Tommy Dreamer and Dustin Rhodes in a non-Title bout! But first we'll see the new team of "Mr. Wednesday Night" Rob Van Dam and "Ravishing" Rick Rude; World's Finest in action against those crazy hillbillies; The Bayou Boys!
Match: World's Finest vs. The Bayou Boys
Referee: S.D. Jones
"The Redneck Rebel" Doug Gilbert and his Cousin Jamie are a well oiled Tag-Team who make quick tags to keep themselves fresh as they battle it out first with Rob Van Dam whom they hit with a Double DDT for a two count for Doug and Rude with the Dosey Doe setting up an atomic drop followed by a diving clothesline from Cousin Jamie that takes "The Ravishin One" down for a close two. He later gives Rick some trouble by trapping him in the Trailer Hitch modified figure four before reversing it! Jamie's screams his head off before Gilbert breaks it up with a stomp. RVD and Rude are no slouches of course and give back whatever the Bayou Boys dish out and then some before Rick hits the Rude Awakening delayed hangman's neckbreaker on Doug Gilbert before "Mr. Wednesday Night" goes airborne and connects with the 5-Star Frog Splash for the pinfall.
After the match we're taken to the ECW Banner where Correspondent Terri Runnels talks to ECW Champion "The Enforcer" Arn Anderson about Chris Jericho's antics last week. He has the Title over his shoulder with Tully Blanchard and Scott Taylor at his side. Arn tells her that Chris is nothing but an ass-clown. And has done nothing but talk since he's known him because that's what the "The Loud-Mouth" is great at. Now Double A ain't taking nothing away from Jericho, he's a hell of a competitor when he's focused. But Arn Anderson isn't worried about losing the Title at Wrestle Annual because while "The Enforcer" has more than enough in the tank to put him down by himself, one thing that he can guarantee is that Chris Jericho's greatest enemy is "The Long Island Loud-Mouth himself. And when all is said and done, Jericho just doesn't have what it takes to become ECW Champion.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
Match: Tully Blanchard vs. The Blitzkrieg w/ The Baron & Aryan
Referee: Danny Davis
As the match begins Lanny Poffo notes that chickenshit Scott Taylor isn't at ringside with Tully Blanchard tonight and Okerlund says that he talked with Blanchard earlier today and he didn't want the young man at ringside because he has a match of his own later tonight. And we all know how much "Mangler's Monster" like collateral damage.
Tully may have made a mistake however. He takes the fight right to The Blitzkrieg and though he takes a beating here and there he holds his own until the Baron von Raschke distracts him and then it's all "The Monster" as he beats Blanchard from one side of the ring to the other before getting him up on his shoulder for the Muscle Buster and a three count!
We're then brought backstage to the locker room where William Regal has just arrived and is putting his stuff away in his locker when he's approached by Homicide?!
The young grappler tells the gringo that he didn't ask OR need his help out there last week. And that William Regal had best keep his punk ass out of his business from here on out. William says it didn't look that way last week, but if he fancies getting his ass kicked, next time he won't bother. Cheerio. He turns his back on Homicide and he attacks Regal from behind! He begins pounding on Regal, but William soon recovers and grabbing Homicide by the head slams him into the locker!
Match: Eddie Guerrero vs. Erin O'Grady
Referee: S.D. Jones
Eddie Guerrero is already inside the ring with Hernandez and having a good chuckle at Homicide's expense as Regal bashes his head into the locker again on the big screen. Irish Folk music then hits and out from the back pops "The Leprechaun" Erin O'Grady! He throws coins to the crowd while the announcers talk about his win over Steve Blackman this past Saturday on Weekend Warriors!
Jones starts the match and Erin O'Grady gives "Latino Heat" a good back and forth contest, hitting the diving double boot stomp, several hurrancanranas; and the Hops Splash which puts Eddie down for the two! This last move seems to have insulted Guerrero who slaps the taste out of O'Grady's mouth while telling him "that's not a Frogsplash esse!" He then punishes Erin with the Three Amigos triple consecutive vertical suplexes before heading up top and connecting with the Frog Splash! He hooks O'Grady's leg and gets the win.
Guerrero is celebrating with a little dance in the ring when Hernandez rushes to the ring but doesn't make it in time before Homicide has slid in and popping up cracks Eddie in the head with a lead pipe!
Guerrero has been busted open! He doesn't get a second sweing however because Hernandez is in the ring and flattens him with a high-impact shoulder block! Homicide quickly rolls out of the ring and stumbles up the ramp while Hernandez checks on Guerrero who looks livid.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
"Mean" Gene and Lanny welcome us back before reminding us that next week's show will be coming to us live from the Delaware Field House in Newark, Delaware! Lanny says it'll be an especially spooky Halloween edition of the show! Okerlund seems incredulous, but says that Poffo will be there... and that's kind of scary. They tell us that tickets for the show are sold out, but those folks at home can tune in right here on Eastern Championship's home station of TNN The Nashville Network to catch all the exciting ECW action live!
Match: Chris Jericho vs. Taka Michinoku
Referee: Danny Davis
"The Long Island" Loud-Mouth and Taka Michinoku give the fans their money's worth in this one as the two men battle back and forth with several nearfalls by each. Michinoku hits several hurrancanrana, a running dropkick to a corner hung Jericho, a springboard corkscew moonsault; and even traps his opponent in the Dick Killer arm trap bridging cobra clutch for a bit. Not to be outdone, Chris unloads with an explosion of Chops throughout the match, a Frankensteiner in answer to Taka's use of the hurrancanrana, a missile dropkick; and a springboard moonsault of his own! Michinoku takes "The Loud-Mouth's" head clean off toward the end of the match causing Jericho to face plant and and Taka goes for the pin! 1!... 2!... Chris kicks out and battles out of a double chickenwing hold, dominating the remainder of the match before locking in the Walls of Jericho elevated Boston Crab for the win here tonight. The # 1 Contender gets his hand raised in victory.
After the match we're brought to another promo by the "Macho Man" Randy Savage who is at the gym working out. There's a ring set up behind him and Savage tells us that there is a reason he isn't in that ring tonight. Because he isn't going to set foot into a ring again until he's back where he belongs in ECW! Dig it! And when he sets foot in that ring, when he makes his triumphant return; that can only mean one thing brother! Bad news for "The Canadian Crippler" Chris Benoit! And that message is on it's way, you'd better believe. Yeah. Cause it isn't gonna be a year from now! Or a month! Because it's only going to be seven days, count em; when the "Macho Man" Randy Savage returns to action; right here next week! Ooooh Yeah!
COMMERCIAL BREAK
We're brought down to the boiler room of the Wicomico Youth & Civic Center where "The Soul Stealer" Papa Shango is in the middle or a rant chastising the villainous cabla; The Dark Circle! He blames everyone in this room for their failure last week! Brother Windham! "The Man-Beast" Rhino and "The Machiavellan Mauler" Mongo Vyle! But none share in this blame as deeply as the one known as "The Ring Master" Matt Borne! To which Borne swears his innocence. But they had better believe that Shango... and the very Dark One himself trusts none of them trusts them not! The worms! The maggots! The filth! Judgment shall fall! And it shall fall on the-
"Screw this shit," Vyle interrupts. He has had enough. Shango and his Dark Lord don't trust Destruction Inc.? Well that's just fine! Cause he don't trust Shango either and as for the Dark Lord... why don't he come down here and take out Brimstone himself?! Forget it. He's out of here. Vyle storms toward the staircase before turning for Rhino and says that they should get out of here. But Rhyno isn't leaving! Mongo can't believe it. He tells Rhino "then forget you too" and storms off.
Match: Scott Taylor vs. Aryan von Raschke w/ The Baron & The Blitzkrieg
Referee: S.D Jones
Aryan von Raschke mocks Tully Blanchard who isn't at ringside after being hit with a Muscle Buster by The Blitzkrieg early in the evening. He also mocks Scott Taylor who he understimates here and the two men battle back and forth with Taylor surprising Aryan on a number of occasions including kicking out of Von Raschke's jumping Tombstone Piledriver just before the three count! Aryan can't believe it but keeps on Scott dominating the match for a bit before he whips Taylor into the ropes and charges in only to catch a boot to the face! Scott hops up top and connects with the diving Chop Drop on Von Raschke knocking him to the ground! He pulls a seated Aryan to his feet, but the two time Lightweight Champ pushes Taylor away and fies off with the Sieg Heil! superkick! But Taylor ducks it and hits one of his own! He hooks the leg! 1!... 2!... 3! Scott Taylor has won it! He can't believe it!
But the Baron can as he throws a tantrum at ringside! Taylor is happy about his big win until he turns right into the walking wall known as The Blitzkrieg who grabs him by the throat and delivers the Telegraph from Berling chokeslam! Scott is out cold as Aryan gets to his feet and begins yelling at him as ECW goes to...
COMMERCIAL BREAK
Tag-Team Match: Brimstone & Pogo the Clown vs. Tommy Dreamer & Dustin Rhodes
Referee: Danny Davis
Brimstone, Pogo the Clown; and Luna Vachon come down to the ring where ECW Head of Security "Rugged" Ronnie Garvin is already waiting with his security team.
Lanny talks about how it doesn't take a "Genius" or even someone of Gene's intellectual level to realize that the Dark Circle might interfere in this one. The Tag-Team Champs then appear on the ramp with Beulah McGillicutty. Brimstone starts things off with Tommy Dreamer and hands the native New Yorker a sizeable beating early on, though "The Innovator" hangs in there and gets his fair share of offence in. "The Dark Prophet" Snake Eyes Dreamer in the corner before grabbing him for the Chokeslam! But he stops?!
Because up on the ramp Papa Shango has appeared! He's with Barry Windham and Rhino who're... rolling a huge cross to the ring? "The Soul Stealer" is on the mic telling us that all the traitors, all the defilers of The Dark One must be brought to the light! They must be punished! Must be purified by the flame! And that tonight justice has just begun to be served! Because judgement for "The Ring Master" has been dealt!
Rhino and Windham the turn the cross and Matt Borne has be crucified! Gene can't believe it! And back in his corner Tommy takes a double take before having Dustin Rhodes pull out his flask. Okerlund could use a drink to as he can't believe this heinous act! Just how far is Shango willing to go?! This last act seems to have even upset Luna and Pogo who are now under the cross looking up at Borne! Vachon begins screaming bloody murder at Shango who cackles maniacally! Just then however Matt Borne leaps off the cross!
And he attacks Pogo the Clown! He lands right on his target and begins hammering away with hard lefts and rights! He's pummeling Pogo's head in and the Clown has been busted wide open! Gene is too shocked to say anything, the first thing that happened tonight that shocked Lanny. While inside the ring Papa Shango, Barry Windham; and Rhino have attacked Brimstone! While "The Prophet" puts up a fight early on, he is soon on the receiving end of a beating! Shango is laughing the whole time and Ronnie Garvin who seems to have come back to his senses assembles his team to break it up! Dreamer and Rhodes meanwhile seem to find the whole situation amusing as they head to the back before the...
COMMERCIAL BREAK
Okerlund and Poffo welcome us back from the last commercial break of th evening before showing us a clip of what took place during the break. We see that with a great deal of trouble the fight was broken up and Garvin's security team couldn't even get the job down until the Tag-Team Champions came back and helped escort Shango, Windham; and Rhino to the back while EMTs appeared on the scene to see to the wounds incurred by Brimstone and Pogo. They then hype tonight's huge Main Event in which the Eastern States Championship is on the line! They talk about "The Canadian Crippler's" problems with Ron Simmons are of his own making, Chris Benoit having attacked Simmons following Ron's match at ECW's big event September to Remember. After what Okerlund calls "Benoit ducking Simmons for a spell," they were given a match last week. One that Benoit may have indeed lost had he not gotten himself Disqualified when he attacked Simmons with a steel chair! This past Wednesday ECW President Eric Bischoff looked to correct this by granting Simmons a shot at Benoit's Title here tonight!
Gertner: The following contest is scheduled for one fall and is for the Eastern States Title! Introducing first the challenger from Perry, Georgia weighing 270 lbs.; Ron Simmons!
Simmons comes down to the ring before giving a high five to referee S.D. Jones. He stalks about the ring until the Talking Heads play.
Gertner: And now introducing his opponent this evening from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada accomanpied to the ring by "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase; and weighing 234 lbs.; he is the Eastern States Champion "The Canadian Crippler" Chris Benoit!
Eastern States Title Match: Chris Benoit vs. Ron Simmons
Referee: S.D. Jones
The two men stare one another down until the bell rings and all hell breaks loose! They collide in the middle of the ring and begin trading punches! Ron Simmons grabs Chris Benoit and forces him into the corner, but they don't stay there for long. Chris pushes his way out and into the opposes corner where he lights Simmosn up with a Chop! Ron fires back with a hard right! And he begins unloading on the Eastern States Champ! But Chris ain't going down without a fight and grabbing Ron by the head begins striking back with a barrage of knees! And another chop! And another knee! Ron frees himself from the corner, bu Chris keeps on coming! Simmons falls out onto the apron, where Benoit kicks him down to the floor! He follows him out, hits several knees to the face and slams Ron face first into the announcer's table! Lanny is having flashbacks of last week. And Benoit goes for a suplex! But Simmons blocks it and battles back with several back elbows! And freeing himself comes in for a clothesline! But Chris ducks it and hits Ron in the kidneys! Simmons goes down hard and lifting him up Benoit rolls him back into the ring. Chris follows him right back in grabs a front headlock and drops the challenger with a quick snap suplex and the cover!
Ron kicks out at two. Benoit is back up and helping Ron to his feet runs him head first into the corner! And he chops him down to the mat! "Mean" Gene says that Ron is looking like he's hurting here tonight and those chair shots last week may have taken more out of Simmons than we'll ever know. And as Ron gets to his feet Chris scoops him up for another suplex! He runs the ropes and delivers an elbow drop to the back of Simmons. And rolling him over makes another cover! Another two! Ron is back up and retreating now as Benoit Chops him about the ring! He's slow and methodial as he takes the challenger apart. And pulling him from the corner he whips him into the opposing turn buckle and charges in! But Simmons gets his foot up and catches the Eastern States Champ flush in the mush! Simmons catches a breather, but it isn't much of one because Chris is right back up and Ron clubs him with a forearm shot! And another! And another! Benoit goes down! He pulls Chris up to his feet and runs him into the top turnbuckle! And whips him hard into the opposing one! Ron rushes in! But this time it's "The Canadian Crippler" who responds with a boot to the face!
Chris follows Ron across the ring and takes him down to the mat with a drop toe hold! And getting back to his feet grabs Simmons by the legs, wraps him up and locks in the Sharpshooter! But Ron is fighting it and he's reaching for the ropes! He's inching his way across the ring and he's almost there! But Chris drags him back to the center of the ring! Simmons has got to tap! Benoit is putting on the pressure! Ron is dragging himself across the ring! And he makes it breaking the hold!
Benoit lets him have it with several stomps. And as Ron hobbles to his feet Chris decks him! But Ron fires back! He begins unloading on Benoit! He is hammering away when Chris dodges, goes behind, locks the waist; and German Suplex! And another one! And the third! Benoit has hit the Hat Trick! Chris is up and the fans are booing him. He doesn't care, he makes the throat slashing motion! And Chris climbs up top looking for the Flying Headbutt! And he goes airborne!
But Simmons has rolled out of the way letting Chris' head catch nothing but canvas! Both men are down and the ref begins the count! 1!... 2!... Both men are back up at 3! Chris goes for the clothesline, but Ron ducks under it; hits the ropes and hits the shoulder tackle! Benoit gets back to his feet, but Simmons has run back to the ropes and connects with a second spear! Benoit is stunned as he crawls back to his feet and Ron is right there waiting with a hammerlock powerslam! Chris Benoit is down and Ron pulls him up to his feet and hits the Dominator inverted front powerslam! He makes the cover! 1!... 2!
Benoit is pulled by his foot out of the ring! By the "Million Dollar Man!" Ron Simmons is fuming and shouting at Ted over the top rope when he his grabbed from behind by... Alex Porteau!
Who kicks him in the gut and hits the kneeling powerbomb! Jones calls for the bell and Benoit draws the DQ yet again! Benoit looks pissed as he gets into the ring and DiBiase hands him his Title! Porteau looks to celebrate in the win! But Chris pushes the young man into the ropes and clobbers him with a slap across the face! Alex goes down like a sack of bricks and rolls out of the ring! DiBiase doesn't look happy with this at all and is having some tense words with "The Crippler" as the...
Lights Fade.
Working on it now.