Taped from Shreveport, LA
Airdate: December 19, 1981 (taped 12/09)
Attendance: unknown
Hosted by Boyd Pierce & Ted DiBiase
What happens when Ellering challenges Sheik to a Persian club exhibition? How will George fare against the wily Roop? JYD! Blair! Orndorff! Orton! Wiskowski! All in action!
Opening montage.
Match 1: B. Brian Blair versus Tom Renesto
Highlights:
- Once again, Blair’s jerking the curtain on tonight’s episode. I smell a pattern.
- He leapfrogged Renesto, and a criss-cross ensued.
- When Renesto backdropped him, he got 2.
- Blair gave Renesto a cross corner whip followed by a back drop of his own.
- As he mounted the second turnbuckle, Blair unloaded a flying elbow smash for 2.
- Blair struggled but hooked a vertical suplex. Looked like Renesto sandbagged him.
- After Blair applied a figure-four leg lock, Renesto submitted.
- Blair won at 5:03.
Rating: *
Summary: Showcase match for Blair.
Ring announcer Reiser Bowden interviews Ellering who challenges “the Iron Geek” to “his clubs.”
Match 2: “Precious” Paul Ellering versus Don Serrano
Highlights:
- If you’ve only seen Ellering as the manager of the Road Warriors, he’s a well-built machine at this stage with bleached blond hair. Lest we forget, anabolic steroids were legal at this stage.
- Serrano rolled up Ellering and got 1.
- As he cartwheeled over Ellering, Serrano hooked an inside cradle for another 1.
- Ellering rebounded with a knee to the midsection and landed a pair of elbow drops.
- When he fed Serrano a back elbow, Ellering scored with a leg drop.
- He stymied Serrano with a hangman’s neckbreaker and pinned him at 2:32.
Rating: DUD
Summary: Showcase match for Ellering.
Match 3 (non-title): Louisiana champion Junkyard Dog versus Mike Boyer
Highlights:
- According to Pierce, JYD won the title on 12/7 from the Great Kabuki in New Orleans.
- JYD headbutted him so hard that Boyer spilled between the ropes to the apron.
- When he unloaded a flying forearm, JYD uncorked a powerslam.
- 1-2-3.
- JYD won at 2:09.
Rating: *
Summary: Showcase match for the beloved JYD.
Match 4: Bob Orton & “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff versus the Monk & Carlos Zapata
Highlights:
- According to Bowden, Orton was the Mississippi champion.
- Orton tagged in and slammed Zapata.
- As Orndorff tagged in, he landed a pair of fist drops.
- Orton tagged in, mounted the second turnbuckle, and knocked Zapata out of his shoes.
- When Orndorff tagged in, he scored with a knee drop and got 2.
- Zapata hooked a sunset flip and got 2.
- After Orton tagged in, he fed Zapata a fist drop for 2.
- He dealt Zapata an STO for 1.
- While Orton dropkicked Zapata, Orndorff tagged in and unleashed his own dropkick for 2.
- He gave Zapata a cross corner whip but came up empty on his follow-through.
- Tagging in, Monk tried a couple of double axe handles, but Orndorff would have NONE OF IT and delivered a knee lift.
- Orton tagged in and demolished Monk with an Orndorff-assisted high knee.
- Together, Orton and Orndorff annihilated Monk with a devastating second rope elbow smash/powerslam combo.
- Orndorff slapped on a figure-four leg lock, and Monk submitted.
- As a result, Orndorff and Orton won at 4:38.
Rating: *
Summary: Showcase match for Orton and Orndorff. Methinks these guys might have a future together down the road.
Match 5: Bob Roop versus Mike George
Highlights:
- According to Pierce, George held one-half of the Mid-South tag team titles. His partner, as you may recall from last week, was JYD.
- Roop hooked a full nelson, but George escaped.
- When Roop reapplied it, George escaped again and trapped Roop.
- He rolled up Roop and got 2.
- As he fed Roop an atomic drop, George ate a knee to the midsection.
- Roop dealt him a facebuster, but George backdropped him.
- After he flattened Roop with a side-Russian leg sweep, George got 2.
- George made a second attempt, but Roop hooked the ropes to block it.
- While George escaped a shoulder breaker attempt, he dropkicked Roop twice for 2.
- Roop’s kick-out sent George rolling to the concrete floor, and he used George’s momentum against him in making him HIT THE POLE.
- Selling the arm like death, George tried valiantly to fight back.
- On the other hand, Roop rammed him shoulder-first into the top turnbuckle and plastered George with a high knee to the injured shoulder.
- 1-2-3.
- Roop won at 7:51.
Rating: ***
Summary: Smart wrestling by Roop who used ingenuity rather than heel tactics to score victory.
Match 6: The “Polish Prince” Ed Wiskowski versus Mike Bond
Highlights:
- Wiskowski hip-tossed Bond and followed with a slam.
- As he rammed Bond face-first into the mat twice, Wiskowski slammed him again.
- He fed Bond a backbreaker and pinned him at 1:30.
Rating: DUD
Summary: Short showcase match for Wiskowski.
Bowden describes a Persian club challenge where Iron Sheik must perform twice as many repetitions as Ellering or forfeit $1,000. As Ellering thrills the Shreveport faithful with fifty reps, Akbar states Sheik will perform 200 reps following the match for $2000.
Match 7: The Iron Sheik (w/ Gen. Skandor Akbar) versus Frank Monte
Highlights:
- Sheik slammed and tossed Monte down to the concrete floor.
- Upon Monte’s return, Sheik trapped him in a bear hug.
- Monte rang Sheik’s bell to escape and followed with a hip toss.
- When Sheik fed him a belly-to-back suplex, he pinned Monte at 1:51.
Rating: DUD
Summary: Not quite the suplex showcase for Sheik like last week.
After the match, Ellering returns to the ring to witness Sheik’s performance with the clubs. Instead, Akbar stalls like there’s no tomorrow.
Thanks, Apollo.
Conclusion: Like last week, the matches provided a lot of action and showcased the top talent. Unlike last week, some sports entertainment was inserted to juice the feud between Ellering and Sheik. Also, George came close, but Roop got the duke against him. JYD, Blair, Orndorff & Orton, and Wiskowski were all victorious showing how strong a territory Mid-South was.
With respect to DiBiase’s commentary, allow me to say I enjoyed Ladd quite a bit more. Perhaps if they gave DiBiase some more money, he’d buy himself a personality.
Next week, Blair faces Orndorff, but will it kick off the show?
TV Rating: NONE
Stay tuned for MSW 12-25-81!
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