World Class Wrestling Association September 19, 1987

by

Taped from Dallas, TX

Airdate: September 19, 1987 (taped 09/04)

Attendance: unknown

Hosted by Mark Lowrance

Last week, Kevin made a promise. Does he fulfill and keep his promise this week? How will Shaun fare on his own against Embry? Can Madril avenge Cowboy Tony’s stable by defeating Apollo? Atlas! SBS! Spoiler! Adias! Arcidi! Perez! Get your boots on, and let’s head to Texas!

Opening montage.

Match 1: Al Madril versus “Playboy” Vince Apollo (w/ Cowboy Tony)

Highlights:

  • Madril ducked a clothesline and dropkicked Apollo.
  • When Apollo landed a knee drop, he got 2.
  • Madril gave Apollo a cross corner whip but came up empty on his follow-through.
  • As he slammed Madril, Apollo fed Madril a back elbow for another 2.
  • Apollo missed a dropkick, so Madril popped him like a cork from a wine bottle.
  • After he clotheslined Apollo, Madril got 1.
  • He scored with a flying shoulder block and got 2.
  • While Tony jumped onto the apron, Madril CREAMED him.
  • Apollo placed a knee into Madril’s back, charged, but nailed Tony sending him reeling back to the floor.
  • 1-2-3.
  • Madril won at 3:06.

 

Rating: **

Summary: Short revenge match as Madril deals Apollo some comeuppance for last week.

After the match, the heels try to double-team him, but Madril fights them off. Frankie Lancaster joins the melee to destroy Madril, and he along with Apollo crush him with a double back elbow. As Tony and Lancaster double-backdrop him, they leave Madril laying.

Match 2: “Flamboyant” Eric Embry versus Shaun Simpson

Highlights:

  • According to Lowrance, this match has a ten-minute time limit, and should the match reach it, the referee will decide the victor. There MUST be a winner. Since the referee is Bronko Lubich, I’ll bet he chooses a nap.
  • Shaun scored with a cross body block and got 2.
  • As he reversed a cross corner whip, Shaun backdropped the “flamboyant” one.
  • Embry missed a dropkick, and Tony approached ringside with a saddle bag on his shoulder.
  • When Steve also came to ringside, Embry fed Shaun a delayed vertical suplex for 2.
  • The Dallas faithful LOUDLY chanted “go, Shaun, go,” but Embry clotheslined their hero.
  • After Embry slammed him, he mounted the second turnbuckle but missed a diving head butt.
  • Shaun rammed him face-first into the mat, hooked a modified double underhook suplex, and got 2.
  • While he gave Shaun a cross corner whip, Embry came up empty on his follow-through.
  • Shaun gave Embry a cross corner whip with two minutes remaining.
  • Dropkicking Embry, Shaun only got 2 thanks to a foot on the bottom rope.
  • Shaun secured a sunset flip for another 2.
  • Locking Embry in a backslide, Shaun couldn’t get 3.
  • He trapped Embry in an inside cradle and earned yet another 2.
  • With another sunset flip, Shaun couldn’t achieve 3 once again.
  • One minute left, and Shaun caught Embry with a second inside cradle but failed to pin him.
  • Grabbing a sleeper, Embry got sandwiched in the corner.
  • Shaun held Embry in his own sleeper with thirty seconds to go.
  • Escaping, Embry ate a dropkick, but Shaun could only get 2 since Embry placed his foot on the bottom rope again.
  • Ten seconds remained, and Shaun slapped on another inside cradle.
  • Before Lubich could reach 3, the bell rang to signal the time limit at 8:20.
  • Since there must be a winner, Lubich informed ring announcer Ralph Pulley that Shaun won much to both the delight of the Dallas faithful and dismay to Embry and Tony.

 

Rating: **½

Summary: Although exciting for Shaun, I blame Embry being the veteran for the redundancy of moves near the end. Yes, it contains some excitement, but the result of the match is predetermined by its format. Hence, different methods to cause near falls can be implemented.

Following the match, both Tony and Steve enter the ring, and the heels trap Steve in the ropes. Embry grabs some shears from Tony’s saddle bag and cuts some of Shaun’s hair. How dastardly! As the Simpson brothers chase after the heels, numerous empty seats are shown.

SPECIAL REPORT: Lowrance provides the rankings for the World Class titles.

First, the list for the World title:

Champion: Al Perez

  1. Kevin Von Erich
  2. “Maniac” Matt Borne
  3. Mil Mascaras
  4. El Canek (who?)
  5. Jumbo Tsuruta

Second, the list for the NEW World light heavyweight title:

Champion: Piet Vander Greylang

  1. Eric Embry
  2. Tony St. Clair (I won’t say anything about his sister Jasmine)
  3. Tiger Mask
  4. Enrique Vera
  5. Shaun Simpson

Third, the list for the Texas title:

Champion: Ted Arcidi

  1. “Maniac” Matt Borne
  2. Tony Atlas
  3. Frankie Lancaster
  4. Steve Simpson
  5. Kevin Von Erich (default as former WCWA World champion)

Prior to the next match, Lowrance interviews Bruiser Brody at ringside. Having taken a three-week sabbatical from the WCWA to continue his ongoing war against Abdullah the Butcher on an independent card in Marietta, GA, Brody can’t fathom all the changes that have occurred. Namely, he’s both impressed and curious about Perez and wants a match against him.

Match 3 (non-title): WCWA World champion Al Perez versus Manuel Villalobos

Highlights:

  • Madril joined the broadcast table for this match.
  • When Perez landed a knee drop, he caught Villalobos in the midsection.
  • Villalobos reversed a cross corner whip but came up empty on his follow-through.
  • As Villalobos spilled over the top rope to the floor, Perez joined and rammed him back-first into the apron.
  • He trapped Villalobos in a bear hug and sandwiched him in the corner.
  • After he fed Villalobos a helicopter slam, Perez hooked a stepover toe hold.
  • He locked Villalobos within a figure-four leg lock.
  • 1-2-3.
  • Perez won at 3:38.

 

Rating: *

Summary: Showcase match for the World champion, and the helicopter slam was a nice touch.

Afterward, Perez won’t release the hold, so Madril leaves the broadcast table to assist his tag team partner. He stomps on Perez which leads to a quick release. When they stand face-to-face, Perez and Madril shove one another. I smell a future confrontation.

SPECIAL REPORT #2: Lowrance states that Kevin broke Adias’ thumb preventing the use of the Dim Chang. On the other hand, the upcoming match was taped “four or five days ago.”

Match 4: Tony Atlas, Sweet Brown Sugar, & the Spoiler versus Brian Adias, Ted Arcidi, & the Ninja (w/ Percy Pringle)

Highlights:

  • Referee Rick Hazzard has returned! He joined Lowrance at the broadcast table for this match.
  • As Arcidi fed him a back elbow, he hip-tossed Spoiler but missed an elbow drop.
  • Atlas tagged in, but Arcidi hooked a full nelson.
  • When Atlas broke the hold, he trapped Arcidi in a full nelson if only briefly.
  • Adias tagged in, and they segued to the battle royal for the Texas title.
  • WTF?
  • After Borne eliminated two wrestlers, he got ahold of Pringle.
  • Arcidi intervened and pinned Borne to win the title.
  • WE HAVE A NEW CHAMPION!
  • Upon returning to Dallas, Arcidi locked a bear hug onto Atlas.
  • Escaping via a pair of head butts, Atlas tagged out.
  • SBS dealt Arcidi a shot to the midsection, but Adias tagged in.
  • While SBS leapfrogged him twice, he monkey-flipped Adias.
  • He dropkicked Adias before tagging out.
  • Rejoining the match, Spoiler along with SBS connected with a double clothesline.
  • Arcidi tagged in, gave Spoiler a cross corner whip, but came up empty on his follow-through.
  • Fucking up a couple of moves, Arcidi mounted the second turnbuckle and bulldozed Spoiler sheerly out of momentum.
  • He mounted the adjacent second turnbuckle, leaped, but there wasn’t any water in the pool.
  • With chaos erupting in the ring, Spoiler and SBS double-clotheslined Arcidi.
  • Atlas grabbed Adias and made him HIT THE POLE.
  • Since referee Bronko Lubich was preoccupied with returning SBS to the babyface corner, Ninja stepped in and WHACKED Spoiler with nunchucks. He must have been taking notes from Larry Zbyszko.
  • 1-2-3.
  • Arcidi, Adias, and Ninja won at 7:03.

 

Rating: ***

Summary: Quite the hodgepodge in there until Ninja used chicanery to steal victory for his team.

In a pre-taped interview, Kevin, with a large satellite dish behind him, stands behind his word to eliminate the Dim Chang. We head to the main event of the Labor Day show, and Kevin applies the Iron claw to Perez. As Adias approaches ringside, Kevin turns his attention to him. He traps Adias in the Iron claw on the floor and gets counted out.

Nonetheless, Kevin releases the hold and makes Adias HIT THE POLE. He places Adias’ right hand against the ring post and OBLITERATES it with a steel chair. While a BUSTED OPEN Adias writhes in pain with a broken thumb, Kevin grabs the microphone to inform the Fort Worth faithful that he carried out his mission to break the thumb to a thunderous response.

Conclusion:  Can someone please give the director this memo:

Although the Monday Night War was infamous for having circumstances happen that were not on the format sheet, hour-long wrestling episodes in 1987 should maintain its format at all costs. The second “special report” and the Arcidi win DURING the main event were completely out of place and stuck out like a sore thumb.

The broken thumb segment was saved until the end which made sense out of a horribly directed episode.

Next week, Borne squares off against Perez, and the Simpson brothers challenge for the held-up World tag team titles against Embry and Lancaster.

TV Rating: NONE

Stay tuned for WCCW 09-26-87!

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