Tracking the Territories 1984- Volume Three

by Liam Byrne

  The words continue as Jimmy Valiant is doing promotion from Mid-Atlantic for his return to Memphis. He kisses the announcer as has become his custom and talks about returning from Neptune yesterday. Valiant looks forward to going to ‘Jaypan’ for the final, especially as he has an old lady over there. We then get a very 80s moment as Valiant makes a ‘slit eyes’ gesture whilst talking about the competition they might meet when at the finals. One more kiss for the announcer and he is gone. Typical Valiant wildness.

  After running down various shows that are booked around the horn, we have some more words about the upcoming tournament as Dutch Mantell suggests it is the biggest event ever booked under the Memphis banner due to the $100,000 prize money. Mantell hasn’t always got on with Bill Dundee, but he knows his partner will do anything for money and they will be on the same page on that evening. Bill Dundee’s words come from the Mid-South Wrestling studios, with him talking about how $100,000 is a year’s wages in one day if they win. Dundee’s promo also gives him a chance to talk about his love for the fans, no matter what age or colour they are.

  The main event for this week see the Nightmares and the New Generation in what should be a fun match considering the Nightmares’ showing two weeks ago against the Rock and Roll Express. However, Jimmy Hart goes to Russell first to laugh about Mark Batten’s shaven beard. Russell eventually gives up and just introduces the two teams as Hart continues to berate Batten’s new look. It is Jonny Wilhoit who starts the contest for the New Generation, grabbing an early nearfall with a sunset flip as Hart decides to go backstage to find some boot polish to sort out the beard issues. Batten does find his way into the ring, but has to break away from getting dragged into the heel corner as the match effectively resets.

  Batten lands a back body drop after an Irish whip into the corner, only for Hart to distract proceedings by waving some shoe polish around. He even tries to apply it with no success as Batten escapes being close to the ropes. Hart’s shenanigans don’t seem to be affecting the face team too much as Batten hits a monkey flip and Wilhoit takes a Nightmare down with a side headlock. A shoulderblock briefly halts Wilhoit, but a powerslam and a dropkick soon redresses the balance. It takes an illegal knee to the back to stop Wilhoit’s momentum and the Nightmares keep the fresh man in as they hit a back body drop and a bodyslam. A missed elbowdrop allows Wilhoit to tag out, but Hart’s attempts to get involved as Batten enters the ring lead to an altercation at ringside with Tojo Yamamoto. This distracts the referee long enough to finally allow Hart to apply the polish to Batten’s face, leading to a disqualification. A decent enough match, though it feels a shame for the focus of the match to be so much on the beard/polish/Hart/Yamamoto.

  Brief words from Yamamoto and Batten fill the last seconds of the show as they promise revenge.

  It is interesting to see perhaps the longest Memphis show I’ve had access to as it went seventy-five minutes. What surprises me upon reflection is how little wrestling was on the show, though it never felt like it was short changing you. What that highlights to me is the value of the talkers in the territory, with moments like Eddie Gilbert’s severing of his ties with Tommy Rich an excellent segment to set up for the full dissolution of that team. Even when some of the wrestling was on the shorter side, such as the Rock and Roll Express versus Hickerson and the Spoiler, the story was interesting as we saw the ‘young punks’ get one over on the champions before eating a beating. Memphis feels like it is on the up at the moment, so long may it continue.

  MACW World Wide Wrestling 4.8.84

  As Rufus R. Jones and Kurt Von Hess promise to start us off with a bang, according to Johnny Weaver at least, we are told that Tully Blanchard and Wahoo McDaniel will be tagging on the show against Brian Adias and Pez Whatley. Nikita Koloff, Jimmy Valiant and Dusty Rhodes are also listed as Jones blocks a punch against the rope and lands one that sends Hess to the canvas. Hess uses a handful of hair to work a top wristlock, but Jones sends him off into the ropes and hits a punch to the stomach. Jones takes a shortcut by grabbing Hess’ beard, before an arm wringer is supplemented by several elbows. Hess breaks the hold with a punch before the ugliest back body drop attempt I’ve seen this year – neither man gets in position and they both crumple to the canvas. The spot is repeated – accurately this time – and it allows Jones to hit his two shoulder blocks and headbutt ‘Freight Train’ combination for the finish. An ugly, ugly squash.

  Dusty Rhodes is in the building and he has some words for David Crockett. As part of the ‘Taking Care of Business’ tour, Rhodes wants gold around his waist, especially as he has challenged Tully Blanchard for a sixty minute time limit match for the Television Title. Most notably in this promo, Rhodes proclaims Mid-Atlantic as his home from now on, though I wouldn’t be surprised to see him pop up in Florida alongside a greater presence on World Wide Wrestling.

  After a commercial break, we have Mark Youngblood in singles action against Doug Vines, with The Renegade at ringside in his corner. The Youngbloods generally don’t work as well personally in singles, as they are a perfect hot tag babyface unit, but the fans are behind Youngblood as he uses an arm to take Vines to the canvas. A shoulderblock and an armdrag end up with Youngblood using an armbar to neutralise Vines, which he then turns into a kimura-style submission. Youngblood lands a brutal chop in the corner, before weirdly going for an O’Connor Roll out of nowhere for two. A chop earns a one count, a body slam two as Youngblood makes the mistake of going for too many pins against a jobber. Vines rakes the eyes to halt the offense, though this only gets the fans behind Youngblood who almost instantly regains control. A chop, two dropkicks and a flying double chop give Youngblood the victory, but the fans only seemed really interested in the comeback.

  The local shills include Don Kernodle and Ivan Koloff promising to defeat the Renegade and Brian Adias, the Assassin #1 threatening to silence Rufus R. Jones with his taped fist, before Tully Blanchard not only talks about beating Jimmy Valiant in a Falls Count Anywhere match, but believes he will also witness a new NWA World Heavyweight Champion when Wahoo McDaniel beats Ric Flair.

  Dusty Rhodes had namedropped Barry Windham earlier in passing, but it was somewhat blink and you miss it. However, we get a video announcing the arrival of Windham to Mid-Atlantic, where apparently he has signed the biggest contract of any athlete in history: a pretty hard sell. Not only does he pick up a huge paycheque apparently, he also gets handed a set of car keys. Windham plays the game and shills Starrcade 1984 by holding up a branded t-shirt, whilst Windham’s debut for the promotion will be in the Greensboro Coliseum against Ivan Koloff. A big signing for Mid-Atlantic and unlike Rhodes, this does signal the end of Windham in Florida for quite a while outside of one more match in September.

  To further celebrate Windham coming into the territory, they show footage from a non-title match between Windham and Harley Race, back when Race was the NWA World Heavyweight Champion. Windham has Race bloodied, but over-commits to a clothesline and misses the target. Race goes for a suplex, Windham slips out of the back and rolls Race up for the three count. I could imagine that would have been a fun match to see in its entirety.

  The Assassin #1 is taking on Sam Houston in our next contest, and it is Houston who almost steals the contest in the opening moments after two leapfrogs and a crossbody catches the Assassin unawares for a two count. Houston is tentative on a rope break, giving Assassin enough time to hit a knee to the breadbasket to turn the tide. The Assassin shows his own athleticism with a dropkick, whilst he also grabs a nearfall with an elbowdrop. A shoulder to the stomach almost sends Houston through the ropes, a move that is repeated two more times before a big knee lift has Houston back down on the canvas. Houston does manage to fire back with some punches, only to run into a lifted boot in the corner. It takes a foot on the rope to break the next fall, but as the Assassin continues to work over Houston, the chants from the crowd are loud and vociferous: ‘We want Valiant!’. Selling the taped first gimmick, the Assassin picks up the win wi
th a punch to the face off of an Irish whip. A decent enough squash with some nuclear heat for the continued Valiant/Assassin feud.

  Wahoo McDaniel is with David Crockett and he is still calling conspiracy on the decision of the NWA to hold up the United States Title. McDaniel believes that if it had been Ricky Steamboat, no-one would care about McDaniel’s situation. As it looks like McDaniel is about to leave, Crockett calls him back to ask about Ric Flair, a man who McDaniel claims has turned from what he once used to be. He promises to show footage of a victory he had over Flair as he also claims that he has the most victories in history over the current NWA World Heavyweight Champion.

  Jimmy Valiant is up next and rushes straight into the corner to punch away at Jeff Sword before tripping him twice to frustrate the jobber. Weaver notices that Valiant also has his hand taped like the Assassin did, with Valiant choosing to showcase a couple of wrestling moves with a hiptoss and an armdrag. Valiant uses a handful of hair to take Sword down to the canvas and uses a nerve hold to work his opponent over. This is a move he goes back to after an Irish whip and a punch to the stomach. Sword hits Valiant with several punches, but this just fires up Valiant who uses a shoulderblock and a taped first punch to regain control. However, he goes back to the nerve hold twice more, the second time after a back elbow. He has enough time to slap it on one more time before a sleeper hold is enough for the victory. This is about three minutes longer than any Valiant squash needs to be.

  The USA chants are ringing around the building so the Russians must be in the ring. This time, we are going to see Nikita Koloff against Gary Royal, and Koloff showcases his immense power instantly by shoving Royal across the ring from a collar and elbow tie up. A hiptoss sends Royal from one corner to another, but he then avoids a Nikita clothesline and lands a couple of punches to give the crowd false hope until Koloff slaps on a vicious front facelock. A gutwrench suplex has Royal reeling on the canvas and a cobra clutch earns Koloff the win. It takes him several seconds after the bell to release the hold, much to the dislike of the fans in attendance. Koloff is green as grass, but the look is impressive so you can see why they already have him out there alongside Ivan and Kernodle.

  Crockett throws to a video after talking about someone we are all proud of, Ric Flair. Blackjack Mulligan and Dusty Rhodes, alongside several other people, are singing around a campfire, though this all stops as Flair arrives. Mulligan is initially dismissive of Flair, but to show that he is one with Mulligan’s people, Flair removes the suit he is wearing. The NWA Champion wants help with Wahoo McDaniel and Tully Blanchard, a request that initially Mulligan questions, especially due to McDaniel’s standing as one of the greatest Native American wrestlers of all time. Flair makes it clear that he isn’t trying to detract from what McDaniel has done before, but he has changed. Mulligan decides to think about things before making a decision, though he does give Flair a drink and say to join them for a singsong. This does mean that Flair’s continued words with Mulligan are somewhat drowned out by various wailing and guitar noises. It is clear by the end that Flair is selling Mulligan on the idea of the women that are in the region as much as anything else.

  After some more shilling which sees Brian Adias and The Renegade talk NWA World Tag Team Titles, Rufus R. Jones promise to bring a chair to deal with the Assassin and Ric Flair looking forward to take on Wahoo McDaniel, we get a random little interview segment prior to the ‘main event’ as Dusty Rhodes predicts an upset as Pez Whatley and Brian Adias come out to take on Tully Blanchard and Wahoo McDaniel. McDaniel uses a handful of hair to push Adias out of a collar and elbow tie up before throwing Adias with a variation of an armdrag to escape a top wristlock. Adias uses a side headlock to control his opponent and tag out to Whatley, whilst a shoulderblock then sees McDaniel escape to the floor – a tactic Crockett gets excited about because it is one of Tully’s.

  McDaniel tries to tag behind the back of Whatley, but as Blanchard gets in, he runs straight into an armdrag. A sequence sees Adias constantly get back to his feet whilst in a chinlock and with Blanchard grabbing the hair, leading to a forearm that sends Blanchard scampering to the outside as well. The match completely goes wild as Blanchard uses a handful of tights to send Adias to the outside where McDaniel sends him into the guard rail and begins brawling with Whatley as well. Adias looks in trouble but is able to escape Blanchard’s clutches and make the hot tag. Whatley is the proverbial house on fire, hitting McDaniel with a headbutt and a dropkick to both men. This would be his downfall however, as Blanchard ends up at ringside, trips Whatley as he hits the ropes and McDaniel lands a very weak looking elbowdrop for the three count. A short, but very heated match that was a good watch.

  Things aren’t quite over though, as Rhodes hits the ring after a post-match assault sees Whatley and Adias continue to get beaten down. Even Rhodes can’t stop Blanchard and McDaniel, with the end of the show seeing Adias diving on top of Rhodes body to save him from further attacks.

  The main event made up for some pretty non-descript wrestling across the show. What is interesting at this time though is that Jim Crockett seems to be opening the cheque book as we see Barry Windham and Blackjack Mulligan on the show, with hints that others may be on their way.

  World Class Championship Wrestling 4.8.84

  As the Freebirds and Von Erich merry-go-round continues, our main event sees Mike Von Erich team with Chris Adams to meet Michael Hayes and Buddy Roberts. A bigger match to my eyes would appear to be Kevin Von Erich versus Killer Khan, who has apparently become a member of Devastation Inc., something which we will learn more about in a WCCW update first up on the show.

  Skandor Akbar had been saying he had made an acquisition that would change things in World Class, with footage being shown of him revealing ‘Mr. X’, a man due to team with the Missing Link, as Killer Khan. Akbar is in the ring and lambasts Terry Gordy, calling him a ‘goof’ for bringing over a diamond in the rough like Khan and not knowing what to do with him. As Akbar talks about the stupidity of the Freebirds, Michael Hayes is in the ring to stand up for his stable. Hayes makes it clear that they never sought to own Khan and he is his own man, but that Akbar needs to take back what he said or he will get decked. Akbar makes it clear that Hayes is surrounded, leading to Khan almost getting the Oriental Spike on Hayes after a brief beatdown.

  We also get shown some action from the match as Khan and Link fought Kevin and Kerry Von Erich. The Von Erichs clear the ring of both Khan and Link, but as they fight to get back in, Hayes and Terry Gordy hit the ring for the no contest. All three teams are attacking each other as there are no alliances or friendships here, with five of the wrestlers (excluding Link) ending up in somewhat of a Mexican standoff in the middle of the ring.

  Another interview with Akbar – this time backstage - follows as he talks about knowing the value of money when it comes to bringing Khan into his stable, whilst warning Hayes that he made the biggest mistake of his life when tried to attack him. Akbar is immensely proud with what he considers one of the greatest deals he has ever made.

  Bill Mercer then throws the show to footage of himself trying to get a word with Hayes and Gordy. According to Hayes, Gordy is in the back of the van and is angry, so he is worried that something might get said on television that shouldn’t. We get some crossover here as Hayes talks about signing a contract with David Wolff, manager of Cyndi Lauper, with his concerns over the damage the Spike could have caused him. Mercer opens the back door and Gordy bursts out, telling Mercer to never touch the van. Gordy goes on a rant talking about himself doing whatever he wants to do as no-one can stop him, but Mercer queries how much of a friendship Gordy must have had with Khan. Gordy makes it clear that no friend of his would hurt Gordy’s brother, with Hayes making it clear to Mercer that they wouldn’t try and get Khan back. In between these words, Gordy finds time to take his shirt off and roll around on the concrete floor for good measure, selling his bad mood.

  First up in the ring this week is Scott Irwin, accompanied by bo
th Skandor Akbar and Bill Irwin, taking on Rick McCord. Irwin drops McCord instantly with a bodyslam before locking in a front facelock to take McCord to the mat for a one count. A hiptoss works Irwin out of a McCord armbar, but he misses a resulting legdrop. Irwin is talkative as per usual, making it clear to the ref and the fans watching at home that he is using the flat of his hand to strike at McCord’s face in a side headlock. The two men move between headlocks and armbars, with Irwin throwing the occasional strike to wear down McCord. Irwin absolutely blasts McCord with a big boot after an Irish whip, but heads back to the front facelock moments later.

  A suplex gets a two count, whilst Irwin continues the punishment with a knee to the head. He is somewhat reliant on the side headlock/front facelock as he returns to either move several times. McCord fires back after reversing an Irish whip, landing several strikes and a dropkick, but his momentum is cut off with an Irwin boot to the gut. Irwin decides to stop messing around, landing a big knee and a ‘super suplex’ for the three count. Irwin is pretty engaging to watch due to his propensity for communication with everyone, but his reliance on wear down holds makes for a dull squash.

  Killer Khan and Kevin Von Erich is up next, with Von Erich making it clear with hand gestures that it is all about the money for both Khan and Akbar. A kick to the side of Khan’s head has the monster shocked and the fans in rapture, with Von Erich pushing the early pace with a splash in the corner. However, a second attempt misses and allows Khan to maul Von Erich with strikes and a choke. Khan tries for the Oriental Spike but Von Erich is able to block it, fighting his way back to his feet in the process. Khan is sent to the canvas with a back body drop, allowing Von Erich to slap on the Iron Claw.

  Khan tries to fight his way out of the hold, but Von Erich drags the monster down to the mat. Eventually, Khan does break the hold, but Von Erich puts it back on immediately. The match is thrown out seconds later as Michael Hayes hits the ring in order to get his hands on Khan, leading to humorous sight of Hayes and Von Erich throwing each other in order to get to Khan. The Missing Link hits the ring to help Khan, but after Hayes and Von Erich run off the heels, they begin to brawl too. Naturally, Kevin Von Erich is the one who stands tall at the end. A spirited brawl that worked around Khan’s limitations, it was always going to end in an unsatisfactory way.