Taped from Dallas, TX
Airdate: September 5, 1987 (taped 08/21)
Attendance: unknown
Hosted by Marc Lowrance
Can the Simpson brothers achieve a milestone by winning the World tag team titles? Can the Texas tag champs survive against Adias and Perez? How will the Spoiler fare against one of Tony’s charges?
Opening montage.
Match 1: “Maniac” Matt Borne versus Joey Jackson
Highlights:
- Jackson ambushed Borne before the bell and slammed him.
- When Jackson fed him an elbow drop, Borne rebounded with a clothesline.
- He suplexed Jackson and got 2.
- As Lowrance promoted Kevin’s being the #1 contender to Al Perez’s World title on the Labor Day show, Borne gave Jackson a cross corner whip followed by a back drop.
- Jackson reversed a cross corner whip but ate boot on his follow-through.
- After Borne dealt him an Oklahoma Stampede, he pinned Jackson at 1:30.
Rating: *
Summary: Showcase match for Borne as Jackson was left to ponder who Stacy’s dating.
Ring announcer Ralph Pulley polls members of the Dallas faithful about the Simpson brothers. While he asks a pair of yoots about them, Grandma’s also a big fan.
Prior to the next match, Apollo grabs the microphone and touts his manager Tony much to the dismay of the Dallas faithful.
Match 2: The Spoiler versus “Playboy” Vince Apollo (w/ Cowboy Tony)
Highlights:
- Lowrance continues to discuss the Light Heavyweight title, and Embry would challenge for it first in “South Africa.”
- As Spoiler hip-tossed Apollo, local radio personality John Roberts joined the broadcast table for this match.
- Apollo gave Spoiler a cross corner whip but came up empty on his follow-through.
- When he mounted the top turnbuckle, Spoiler fed Apollo a lariat.
- He dealt Apollo a swinging neckbreaker and got 1.
- After Apollo took down Spoiler, he got 2.
- He tried to unmask Spoiler but ate an inverted atomic drop to ruin his Friday late night plans.
- While Apollo delivered a snap mare, he followed with a knee drop for 2.
- Apollo hit a knee lift, but referee Bronko Lubich accidentally got shoulder-blocked during a rope sequence. HA!
- With Lubich down on the mat, Tony jumped onto the apron and hanged Spoiler with the whip. Gnarly!
- Lubich tried to intervene but got bulldozed again.
- Joining Apollo in the ring, Tony whipped Spoiler like a wild bull.
- Lubich called for the bell, and Spoiler won by DQ at 3:41.
Rating: ½*
Summary: More angle than match as Tony gets an opportunity to get one over on Spoiler.
After the match, Spoiler ducks a double clothesline and unleashes one of his own to the dastardly heels. He grabs the whip, but the heels scurry like rats before getting their comeuppance.
FRITZ’S SCRAPBOOK: Fritz is joined by Kevin who wants his belt back but doesn’t want to ban the Dim Chang. Instead, he mentions a counter maneuver to the Dim Chang—breaking the thumb. That’ll do it! Fritz discusses the WCWA rule about Kevin’s forfeiture of the World title. Finally, Kevin cuts a promo on Perez.
WORLD CLASS WRESTLER PROFILE: Gary Hart has realized his dream— “to manage the World…Champion.” As he takes pride in beating Kevin, Hart runs down the Von Erichs. He lists not only some of his charges whom the Von Erichs withstood but also Gino Hernandez. Aw. Nowadays, he manages Perez and promises that Perez’s title reign will not be short.
Match 3 for the WCWA World tag team titles: “Flamboyant” Eric Embry & the “Thumper” Frankie Lancaster (champions) versus Steve & Shaun Simpson
Highlights:
- According to Pulley, Cowboy Tony was BARRED from ringside.
- Al Madril joined the broadcast table for this match.
- When Embry tagged in, he leapfrogged Steve but got nailed.
- Shaun tagged in and dropkicked Embry.
- As he fed Embry a cross body block, Shaun got 2.
- He dealt Embry a victory roll for another 2.
- When he hooked an inside cradle, Shaun couldn’t get 3.
- He caught Embry with a sunset flip for yet another 2.
- After Lancaster tagged in, he scored with a flying forearm for 2.
- He suplexed Shaun for another 2.
- While he stymied Shaun with a swinging neckbreaker, Lancaster couldn’t get 3.
- Lancaster baited Steve into the ring to distract referee John Keaton so that Embry could give Shaun the business in the heel corner. SNEAKY!
- Leapfrogging Embry, Shaun attempted a cross body block, but Embry tried to use momentum against him.
- Shaun overcame the momentum, landed atop Embry, and got 2.
- Delivering a delayed vertical suplex, Embry got 1.
- They botched a lariat spot, so Embry improvised with his own swinging neckbreaker for another 1.
- Slamming Shaun, Embry mounted the second turnbuckle, leaped, but missed a diving head butt.
- Hot tag Steve.
- Clotheslining Lancaster, Steve followed with a dropkick to Embry.
- All four wrestlers were in the ring, and the Simpson brothers double-backdropped the champs in stereo.
- Scoring with a double dropkick, the Simpson brothers sent the champs reeling to the floor.
- Steve secured an O’Connor roll on Lancaster as the Dallas faithful were chomping at the bit.
- Do we have new champions?
- 1-2-NO!
- Embry made the save at the last possible second.
- In fact, he assisted Lancaster with some momentum.
- Lancaster malevolently hooked the trunks and pinned Shaun at 8:59.
Rating: ***
Summary: Solid tag match as the champs overcame overwhelming odds against the heavily favored Simpson brothers thanks to some timely chicanery.
Following the match, Lubich enters the ring and forcibly retrieves the World tag team belts from Embry and Lancaster. Pulley announces that the WCWA World tag team titles “have been held up.”
In an abrupt post-match interview, Steve’s happy that with the monitor backstage the WCWA allows the rules to be followed rather than broken.
For those confused, at the time, the NFL debated whether to implement instant replay. It was undoubtedly heavy water cooler talk back in 1987.
Afterward, Embry looks like he lost his dog.
Match 4 (non-title): WCWA Texas tag team champions Tony Atlas & Sweet Brown Sugar versus Al Perez & Brian Adias (w/ the Ninja)
Highlights:
- SBS slammed Perez who tagged out.
- As Atlas tagged in, Adias fled the ring in a BIG DAMN HURRY.
- Perez tagged in and hammered a distracted Atlas.
- When he landed a knee drop, Perez fell victim to an atomic drop.
- Adias distracted Atlas again, tagged in, and the heels fed Atlas a double back elbow.
- After Atlas grabbed him, Adias immediately tagged out.
- Shortly thereafter, SBS reversed a cross corner whip and backdropped Adias.
- Atlas tagged in, but Adias tagged out again.
- While all four wrestlers were in the ring, Perez tossed SBS over the top rope to the floor.
- Referee Bronko Lubich having seen the infraction called for the bell.
- As a result, SBS and Atlas won by DQ at 5:11.
- BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
Rating: *
Summary: It appears that the only method to contain Adias is to lock him in a cage. Perhaps Atlas can trap and handle him soon in that fashion.
Afterward, the heels double-clothesline Atlas. SBS rejoins the melee, and Atlas hurls Adias over the top rope onto Pulley’s table. When Atlas joins him, he bounces Adias face-first off the table. Although SBS catches Perez in the midsection, the heels hightail back to the locker room with Atlas hot on their tails.
Conclusion: Disappointing main event aside, the World tag team titles have been vacated. Methinks the Labor Day show will clear up that discrepancy. In the meantime, the Simpson brothers look incredibly strong as Shaun’s ready for primetime right out of the gate.
The story surrounding Kevin is to keep him hot as a #1 contender for the World title while continuing his feud with Adias. As evidenced within this episode, Adias also has a target on his back with Atlas.
The angle with Cowboy Tony whipping Spoiler will lead to a strap match on Labor Day. Hopefully, we get some footage in an upcoming episode. Sorry, but I won’t give it away.
Next week, Kevin and Borne battle Perez and Adias!
TV Rating: NONE
Stay tuned for WCCW 09-12-87!
Comments? Suggestions? Send them to me at rsg@rockstargary.com and follow me on Twitter (@rockstargary202).