by Bill Gutman
"What are you doing here?" he shouted at the bearded, muscular wrestler facing him. "Get out of the ring. You had your chance already. Tonight it's Billy Haynes's chance." The other wrestler just grinned.
"I am Haynes," he said, laughing.
"What is this, some kind of joke?" Jesse Barr roared back. For the man he was looking at, he knew. It was Billy Jack, a former Florida State champion and one of the strongest, toughest wrestlers around. Jesse Barr wondered all over again. What was Billy Jack standing in the ring for? He was supposed to meet Billy Haynes. Bart was still confused when the referee demanded he get ready to wrestle. At last someone explained it to him. Billy Jack was Billy Haynes. Haynes was his real name, and after years of wrestling under the name Billy Jack, Haynes decided to use his real name as a tribute to his sick father. Jesse Barr was the first to know. Or was he the last to know?
Still confused by the sudden turn of events, Barr began the match. But it was the tough Billy Jack . . . er, Billy Haynes, who was doing most of the battering. Barr tried to rally, but the muscular Haynes continued to dominate the match. Finally Barr had had it. Perhaps he felt he had been double-crossed, or because of the Billy Jack-Billy Haynes switch, he couldn't get his mind on the match. Whatever the reason, Jesse Barr decided to walk out. Technically he had lost, but since it wasn't on a pin, he didn't have to give up his Florida State title.
Later Haynes said the name switch wasn't a secret. In fact, he had announced it at a press conference and had written letters to out-of-town media people explaining it. Apparently, however, Barr had never been told.
"No one said a thing to me about him changing his name," Barr said. "Not the promoter, not the National Wrestling Alliance, not the press. Why didn't someone tell me?"
The whole episode wasn't an easy thing for Bart to accept. He felt he had been dealt a low blow, and some say the thought still lingered a few weeks later, when he lost his title to Brian Blair. Whether he will regain the crown or not is uncertain, but one thing is for sure. In the future, Jesse Barr will probably make it his business to know exactly whom he is wrestling. Because he knows now that things aren't always what they seem.
THE 60-SECOND CHAMP
It's one thing to win a championship, and it's another thing to lose it. But when you win it and lose it in the space of just 60 seconds, one minute, well, that's something else again. One of the strangest title matches ever occurred on February 16, 1984, when Sergeant Slaughter challenged Ric Flair for the NWA (National Wrestling Alliance) title at the Civic Center in Baltimore, Maryland.
The match came a year before the Sarge's heroic Battle Royal victory in New Jersey, but the ex-marine was already a popular grappler. The golden-maned Flair had been a busy champion since 1981, defending his title wherever he went. On several occasions when he lost the NWA crown, he came back to regain it.
Before the big match, Sergeant Slaughter told the press how much winning the title meant to him.
"I've fought them all," he said, "everyone from the Sheik to the Superfly, but this is the biggest bout of my entire career. It's been a lifelong dream to be a champion and I plan to leave the ring tonight with the NWA belt in my possession."
As the two gladiators entered the ring, it was obvious that on this particular night the Sarge was the crowd favorite. Referee Tommy Young gave the instructions and the two began to wrestle. Slaughter got the better of it early, but soon Flair began to show why he was the champion, at one point hurling the bigger Sarge clear out of the ring.
While the Sarge lay dazed, Flair strutted around the ring, showing his disdain for his opponent. But once the Sarge got back in, he took charge again, flinging the champ back and forth across the ring and coming close to pinning him several times. Each time Flair escaped, the Sarge became angrier. Finally he flung the exhausted Flair clear across the ring. The champion smashed into referee Young, who crumpled to the mat, semiconscious, while Flair sailed over the top rope. The fans roared. Slaughter was destroying everything in his path.
Still furious, the Sarge leaped out and went after Flair again. They both made it back into the ring as a second referee rushed in to take over for the fallen Tommy Young. Flair was still groggy, and a tremendous elbow smash by the Sarge put the champ in never-never land. Slaughter pounced on him as the ref counted Flair out.
Sergeant Slaughter slams NWA champ Ric Flair to the convas during their title bout in 1984. The Sarge later pinned Flair and thought he had won the title, only to learn a minute later that he had lost by a controversial disqualification.
The Sarge jumped for joy. He had done it, defeated Flair for the NWA title. He grabbed the championship belt and waved it to the crowd as he danced around the ring. The fans picked up on the electricity of the moment and went crazy with him. The celebration continued for a full minute, until referee Tommy Young got to his feet and began waving his arms, as if he had something to say.
Then he began talking to the officials at ringside. Suddenly everyone in the arena was quiet. Young was disqualifying Sergeant Slaughter for tossing Ric Flair over the top rope. Flair would retain his championship.
No one could believe it, least of all the Sarge, who had been champ for all of 60 seconds. Now it was being taken from him on a technicality. NWA rules state that tossing your opponent over the top rope means an automatic disqualification. Flair grabbed the belt back from the Sarge, as if to say, hey, you didn't really win this. but the Sarge and his fans knew better.
"I was robbed," the ex-marine said. "I had the man's shoulders pinned. He was beaten. How could they do this to me? The referee who disqualified me was out cold when the whole thing happened. I'm gonna win that belt if it's the last thing I do."
Ric Flair wouldn't forget the match with Sergeant Slaughter for a long time. But at least he came out of it with his title still intact. For the Sarge, it was a moral victory at best, but for 60 seconds he was on top of the world, the champion. Then it all came tumbling down in one of the strangest outcomes of a title match in wrestling history.
HELLO, MR. T
He first made his mark in the movies, appearing as the rough, tough Clubber Lang, who beat up on Sylvester Stallone in Rocky III. From there he went to television, where he became a good guy and one of the stars of the very popular TV series "The A-Team." The man, of course, is Mr. T, a rough, tough former bodyguard who has become one of the most recognizable show business personalities in the land.
Mr. T is also a wrestling fan, and a personal friend of World Wrestling Federation champion Hulk Hogan. The two met on the set of Rocky III, where the Hulk portrayed a wrestler named Thunderlips. After that, Mr. T became a regular at many of the Hulk's matches. It was his presence at an early 1985 match, when the Hulk defended his title against Rowdy Roddy Piper, that may have changed the course of professional wrestling forever.
The Piper-Hogan encounter figured to be a bitter and brutal battle. Rowdy Roddy was one of the most hated wrestlers on the scene, a guy who created as many enemies with his mouth as he did with his antics in the ring. Using his talk show, "Piper's Pit," as a forum, Rowdy Roddy insulted everyone in sight. Then, in December of 1984, Piper did something that really made him public enemy number one.
There was a huge wrestling show in New York, with more than 20,000 fans in attendance and millions more watching on cable TV. As part of the program, rock star and wrestling fan Cyndi Lauper was to be given a special award, a gold record for one of her big hits. In the midst of the presentation, Piper appeared. Professing to hate rock and roll music, Rowdy Roddy smashed the gold record over Lou Albano's head, then kicked Lauper clear across the ring. Captain Lou, of course, is a former wrestler and current manager who was also Lauper's friend and had appeared in several of her rock videos.
Piper had completely ruined the award ceremony and in doing so angered the Hulk, who immediately set the wheels in motion for their big, showdown battle. Piper made the most of the occasion, entering the ring accompanied by a twenty-piece bagpipe band, all the memb
ers wearing kilts, Piper's trademark. Rowdy Roddy again expressed his disgust for rock and roll and waited for the Hulk.
As the champ entered the ring, he stopped for a second by the front row to greet an old friend. Mr. T was in the audience and the two embraced as the crowd cheered wildly. Then the Hulk entered the ring to take care of Mr. Piper in a match dubbed "The War to Settle the Score."
In reality, however, it was just the beginning. The match was brutal, with more punching and gouging than actual wrestling. Each took turns meting out punishment to the other. But the tide turned for the villainous Piper when he began using a choke hold, then a sleeper that quickly became a choke. It weakened the Hulk, who managed to throw Roddy off, but the champ was still groggy.
That's when everything got out of hand. First Piper's crony, Cowboy Bob Orton, climbed up on the ring apron and tried to belt the Hulk with the cast on his broken arm. But the big man turned the tables and slammed Orton's arm into the ringpost. Then the champ turned back to Piper and began working him over with forearm smashes. But one of them accidentally caught the referee and he went out cold.
Then Piper got some more unexpected help. Paul "Mr. Wonderful" Orndorff appeared in the ring, climbed to the top rope, and leaped knees first onto the Hulk's back. The champ went down . . . and out! Then both Piper and Orndofff began kicking the Hulk, as the fans gasped in horror. It looked as if their hero could be seriously injured, or worse.
The next unexpected appearance in the ring was from Cyndi Lauper. The little rock star got up on the ring apron and began screaming at Piper and Orndorff. They stopped pounding the Hulk and turned their attention to Lauper. First they knocked the rock star's hat off, and the horrified crowd wondered if the two bullies were about to injure the performer of "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun." It didn't look as if Lauper was having fun now.
Suddenly the 20,000 fans at Madison Square Garden let out a huge roar. The figure of Mr. T came leaping over the ropes and into the ring. The popular television hero quickly rescued Cyndi Lauper to a rousing cheer from the fans, but when he turned his back, Piper and Orndorff jumped him, knocking him to the canvas and stomping him. By then some thirty New York policemen were in the ring, trying to restore order. When Omdorff and Piper saw the Hulk regaining his feet, they beat a hasty retreat to the safety of the locker room. The match, or what it had become, was over.
Now both Hulk Hogan and Mr. T stood in the center of the ring, hands held high, the fans cheering, and they challenged both Piper and Orndorff to return to the ring. But the villains would have no part of that. Right then and there, Mr. T offered to team with the Hulk and pay back the dirty duo who had done them wrong.
"I like to see good, hard, clean wrestling," Mr. T said, "not the cowardly, dirty stuff. That's what it was when the two of them jumped the Hulk and went after Cyndi. From now on, whenever the Hulk needs me I'll be there, because he's the greatest wrestler there ever was.
WWF champ Hulk Hogan and TV star Mr. T salute each other and their fans after Mr. T helped rescue the Hulk from the clutches of Rowdy Roddy Piper, Bob Orton, and Paul Orndorff.
Hulk Hogan was even angrier. "Piper is trying to destroy everything I stand for," he said. "What he did tonight calls for guerrilla warfare. I don't care what it takes, but Piper, Orndorff, and Orton will get it. They are three rats in a pack."
So the stage was set for more. The big match in the Garden had not only aroused the emotions of the fans, but it did a lot more for the sport of wrestling. It merged wrestling with both the music and show business industries. The Hulk was big-time now, and Mr. T vowed to wrestle with him against Piper and Orndorff. That would be an event to remember.
THE BRAWL TO SETTLE IT ALL
The sequel—called Wrestlemania—may have been the most amazing wrestling show ever. It took place March 31, 1985, in Madison Square Garden before a packed house of more than 22,500 fans. The card was also beamed through some 200 closed-circuit theaters throughout the United States and in five foreign countries. While the feature match was the eagerly awaited brawl between the team of Hulk Hogan and Mr. T versus Rowdy Roddy Piper and Paul "Mr. Wonderful" Orndorff, there were many other top-flight matches on the agenda.
It was a celebrity night, all right. The special ring announcer for the main event was New York Yankees manager Billy Martin, who is noted for a few brawls himself. And a guest referee was none other than Muhammad Ali, who needs no introduction. While the preliminary matches were exciting and action-packed, everyone was waiting for the main event, the Brawl to Settle It All!
Finally the time arrived. Piper, Orndorff, and the ever-present Orton entered first. Then, as "Eye of the Tiger" blared out of the loudspeakers, the Hulk and Mr. T entered the ring to a thunderous ovation. They were accompanied by another popular grappler, Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka, who was there just to help keep order.
As expected, the match began heatedly. Several times in the opening minutes all four combatants were in the ring at once and had to be restrained by the refs. It was obvious that there was no love lost between the two teams. But the huge crowd was loving it, already adopting Mr. T as one of their own, and chanting, "T . . . T . . . T . . . T" whenever he entered the ring.
The TV star was holding his own, especially for someone who hadn't wrestled professionally before. At one point, the evil Piper began working him over, but suddenly Mr. T punched Rowdy Roddy in the midsection, then hoisted him up, spun him around, and slammed him to the mat. And he looked like a seasoned pro doing it.
Mr. T hoists Roddy Piper to his shoulders as Hulk Hogan celebrates in the background during the Brawl to Settle It All
During another point in the match, Piper made the mistake of taking a swipe at Muhammad Ali. The former heavyweight champ immediately went into his boxing stance and drove Piper out of the ring with a series of quick left jabs. After that, Piper and Orndorff said they had had enough, that everyone was against them. They started leaving the ring and heading for the dressing room.
Referee Pat Patterson began counting. If they didn't return to the ring they would be disqualified. But no one, especially the Hulk and Mr. T, wanted the match to end like that. The champ then pinned the ref's arms to his sides, so he couldn't continue the count. He then blared out a challenge for Piper and Orndorff to return to the ring. Piper sneered, and the two returned. But as soon as they came back the Hulk grabbed them both and slammed their heads together as the crowd roared its approval.
The match reached its thrilling conclusion just minutes later. Orndorff and the Hulk were in there, but somehow Piper and Mr. T joined them and the four were again mixing it up. Omdorff had the Hulk in a full nelson when Cowboy Bob Orton decided to get into the act. He climbed the ring ropes and leaped off, intent on clobbering the Hulk with the cast on his broken arm.
But at the last second Hulk spun around and it was Orndorff who was belted by the plaster of Paris. Mr. Wonderful collapsed onto the mat and the Hulk quickly covered him. A three count and it was over. Hulk Hogan and Mr. T had done it! And to show their loyalty to a friend, Orton and Piper ran from the ring, leaving Paul Orndorff, still dazed, behind to face the victorious gladiators.
The Hulk and Mr. T embrace after their great Wrestlemania victory. The triumph of good over evil helped make professional wrestling more popular than ever.
It had been a truly amazing night. Though a former bodyguard and rugged individual, Mr. T had never wrestled before. Yet he had teamed with the great Hulk Hogan to defeat two of the best in the business. Stories of the match were all over the papers all across the country. Wrestling had become a media event. The Hulk and Mr. T, aided by Cyndi Lauper and all the special guest stars, had made Wrestlemania a night to remember.
BILL WATTS'S SNEAK ATTACK
One of the most shocking events in the history of professional wrestling took place back in 1965. On this very strangest of nights, the great World Wrestling Federation champion Bruno Sammartino was wrestling in a tag-team match against Slasher Sloan and the Golden Terror. H
is partner was a young wrestler named Bill Watts, and the two formed one of the most popular tag teams in the country.
Sammartino, of course, was already a beloved champion, dispatching many an evil villain to the delight of his legion of followers. Watts had come on the scene a year or so earlier, a big, 6'5" cowboy with a baby face and a quick smile. The fans took to him immediately, making him one of the most popular grapplers on the circuit. When Sammartino announced that he and Watts would be teaming up, there were sellout crowds waiting to see them at every turn.
Then came the match against Sloan and the Terror and the strange turn of events that is difficult to explain even to this day. The Sammartino-Watts duo was having very little difficulty and the outcome of the match wasn't really in doubt. The fans at ringside were fully enjoying the action, figuring a pin was coming soon.
Sammartino, who was in the ring, decided it was time to get his partner into the action. He went over toward the corner and held out his hand for his partner to tag it. But instead of a tag, he got something else . . . a forearm smash across the jaw! Every fan in the house gasped in disbelief. So did Sammartino. Then bam . . . it happened again! Bill Watts was hammering at the face of his partner, the great Bruno Sammartino. It looked as if he had gone berserk.
Stunned by what was happening and by the force of the blows, Bruno sank down to his knees. A few more shots and he would be out cold. And Watts was still hammering, seemingly intent on doing real damage to his erstwhile partner. Finally the referee intervened, and with some help from ringside officials, managed to pull Watts off. The champ was helped to the corner, where he was still in a daze.