Taped from Dallas, TX
Airdate: July 9, 1988 (taped 07/01)
Attendance: 1,100
Hosted by Marc Lowrance
How will the Simpson brothers fare against Tatum and Victory? What does Roberts have in store for Hayes this week? Wait a minute! There’s a pole match! Is Russo booking?
Opening montage.
Match 1: The Samoan SWAT Team versus Missing Link & Jason Sterling (w/ Sheena)
Highlights:
- At the onset, Sterling distracted referee John Keaton, so the SST tried to double-team Link. Smart, right?
- They double-headbutted Link, but it backfired. They did NOT do their homework.
- When Link sent both SST down to the floor with head butts, Sterling tagged in.
- He leapfrogged atop Fatu before dropkicking him.
- As Fatu stumbled into the babyface corner, Link unloaded another head butt.
- Sterling came off the ropes, but Samu put a knee into his back. SNEAKY!
- After Fatu guillotined him with the top rope, Samu tagged in.
- The SST double-headbutted Sterling to tremendous effect disrupting the theory that the acorn didn’t always fall far from the tree.
- Nevertheless, Link distracted Keaton, so the SST double-headbutted Sterling again. How dastardly!
- Samu gorilla-press-slammed Sterling as former defensive end for the Dallas Cowboys Harvey Martin joined the broadcast table.
- While Fatu tagged in, the SST double-clotheslined Sterling.
- Link distracted Keaton again, so the SST cheated like Al Capone on his taxes.
- Clotheslining Sterling, Fatu got 2.
- Sterling attempted a comeback but ate a knee to the midsection.
- With Link’s continuing distraction of Keaton, Samu illegally switched and planted Sterling with a sidewalk slam. Nefarious!
- Samu flattened Sterling with a spin kick and tagged in Fatu.
- Attempting a sunset flip, Sterling got destroyed by an incoming Samu.
- Link intervened and delivered head butts all around.
- Upon getting face-planted by Samu, Sterling laid prone and felt the wrath of a flying splash by Fatu.
- 1-2-3.
- The SST won at 5:08.
Rating: **
Summary: Sterling must have studied Ricky Morton because his face-in-peril selling was quite stellar. Regardless, the SST mowed down another team on their way up the ladder. They might need one more piece to the puzzle to reach the top of the mountain.
In the ring, Ralph Pulley interviews Tatum and Victory with the latter fibbing about his team’s training, Cutting a promo on the Simpsons, Tatum touts his strong healthy stamina that he claims he could have won Wimbledon.
Match 2: Terry “Bam Bam” Gordy versus “Hollywood” John Tatum
Highlights:
- Joined in progress, Victory stormed the ring to assist Tatum.
- They attempted to double-team Gordy, but heel miscommunication sent Victory reeling over the top rope to the floor.
- As Gordy mauled him with a clothesline, he pinned Tatum.
Rating: NONE
After the match, Victory returns to the ring and clobbers Gordy. He piledrives Gordy while Tatum procures a steel chair. As Gordy was BUSTED OPEN, Shaun hit the ring to save his partner’s bacon. He deals Tatum a ten-punch count-along, but Victory spoils the excitement.
While Tatum suplexes Shaun, Victory grabs a pair of scissors. Oh no! Before any of Shaun’s mane can be sheared, Steve returns to rescue his little brother as well as send the heels scurrying. What a return!
In the ring, Pulley interviews Shaun who brings Steve back into the fold. A rather perturbed Steve runs down Tatum and Victory.
Match 3: Black Bart (w/ General Skandor Akbar) versus Sweet Brown Sugar
Highlights:
- SBS leapfrogged Bart with ease and followed with a pair of dropkicks.
- When Bart attempted a hip toss, SBS blocked it and fed him one of his own.
- SBS dropkicked him again, but Bart rebounded with a clothesline.
- As he guillotined SBS with the top rope, Bart sent him to the floor.
- SBS returned to the apron, headbutted Bart, and hooked a sunset flip back into the ring for 1.
- After SBS unloaded a ten-punch count-along, Bart reversed a cross corner whip.
- SBS leaped to the second turnbuckle, attempted a cross body block, but there wasn’t any water in the pool.
- While Bart landed a flying leg drop, he pinned SBS at 3:44.
Rating: *
Summary: Showcase match for Bart as SBS again slipped on a banana peel and lost.
In the ring, Pulley interviews Hayes who cuts a promo on Akbar, Roberts, and “Iceman” King Parsons.
Following a commercial break, Lowrance interviews Roberts. I should point out that the previous interviews more than likely occurred after the show; however, this interview happens with the Dallas faithful chiding Roberts for his nefarious behavior. Nonetheless, Roberts calls out Hayes RIGHT NOW. Before that transpires, let’s witness a POLE match…
Match 4 (pole): Michael “P.S.” Hayes versus Buddy “Jack” Roberts
Highlights:
- Allegedly, this match occurred “last week.”
- Joined in progress, Hayes unfurled a ten-punch count-along to the delight of the Dallas faithful.
- Roberts reversed an Irish whip, but Hayes WHIFFED on a cross body block.
- As Roberts threatened to climb the pole, Hayes returned to his feet to halt his progress.
- He stymied Roberts with a DDT, climbed the pole, and retrieved Black Beauty.
- When Roberts missed a haymaker, Hayes belted him.
- 1-2-3.
- Hayes won at 1:32 shown.
Rating: NONE
Summary: I realize they don’t show the full match so that the Dallas faithful can get their money’s worth, but how many times is Hayes going to pin Roberts yet suffer humiliation for doing so?
Following the match, we return to the ring with Lowrance, Roberts, and Hayes. Roberts wants to finish their feud “once and for all.” As Hayes refuses to buy it, Roberts admits that he “ruined” Hayes’ concert back in February because he “had too much to drink.” He claims he meant to hit one of the Von Erichs with the guitar but inadvertently blasted Hayes. For that, he apologizes.
Although Roberts may be sincere, Hayes doesn’t “believe” him. Roberts brings up family tradition between the Freebirds and wants to “retire and help the youth of America.” Instead, the SST sneaks up behind Hayes, yet Roberts nails him instead. It’s a ruse!
The SST double-teams Hayes with a clothesline/belly-to-back suplex combo. Next, Samu plants Hayes with a sidewalk slam before Fatu mounts the top turnbuckle and squishes him with a flying splash. Roberts removes the glove from Hayes’ hand and shares a bond with the SST. Meanwhile, Hayes is OUT COLD. What did I say about another piece to the puzzle?
In the ring, Pulley interviews Parsons alongside Akbar. While Akbar runs down Kerry, he touts the destruction perpetrated by Kamala. Parsons refers to Kerry and Hayes as “rudy poots” to make me a happy Rock Star.
Match 5 (non-title): WCWA Texas and Wild West tag team champions “Hollywood” John Tatum & the “Heartthrob of New Jersey” Jack Victory versus Steve & Shaun Simpson
Highlights:
- Steve held Victory in a head lock and kicked in Tatum’s general direction.
- When Tatum intervened, Steve backdropped him.
- He took both heels down with a head lock/headscissors combo sending them to the floor.
- As Tatum tagged in, Steve held him at bay with an arm bar.
- Tatum tried to tag out, so Steve swung him violently toward the heel corner.
- In the process, Victory got shellacked and fell to the floor.
- Shaun tagged in, mounted the top turnbuckle, but Tatum squirmed out of his range.
- After Tatum responded with a sidewalk slam, Victory tagged in.
- Shaun leapfrogged Victory and followed with a series of dropkicks to both heels.
- While Steve joined the fray, the Simpson brothers splattered Tatum with a double dropkick. Woohoo!
- Steve tagged in, mounted the top turnbuckle, and lowered the boom onto Victory.
- Tagging in, Tatum baited Shaun into the ring causing referee John Keaton to be distracted.
- In the meantime, the heels swung Steve over the top rope to the floor. Wicked!
- Steve blocked a suplex back into the ring, but Victory halted any chance of his partner being suplexed down to the floor.
- Following Victory’s assist, Tatum successfully suplexed Steve into the ring.
- Tatum attempted to piledrive him, but Steve countered with a back drop and tagged out.
- Viciously, Lowrance took a potshot at wrestling promotions, namely Jim Crockett, who broadcasted their matches in a “studio.” I wonder what precipitated that vitriol.
- At any rate, Victory hammered Shaun from the apron and tagged in.
- He suplexed Shaun and got 2.
- To the tune of “go, Shaun, go” from the Dallas faithful, Tatum tagged in, but Shaun leapfrogged him.
- He blasted Tatum before making the HOT TAG.
- With all four wrestlers in the ring, the heels reversed stereo cross corner whips and rammed the Simpson brothers together.
- Victory mounted the top turnbuckle and connected with a cross body block.
- On the other hand, Steve used momentum to land on top.
- 1-2-3.
- The Simpson brothers won at 8:15.
Rating: ***
Summary: Extremely entertaining match that followed the tag formula and caused the Dallas faithful to LOSE THEIR DAMN MINDS.
Afterward, Victory holds Steve at bay while Tatum removes his boot and WHACKS him with it. Roberts approaches ringside and hands the Freebird hair cream to Tatum.
Tatum tries to either blind Steve again or encourage male pattern baldness at the very least, yet Steve slips away in the nick of time. Whew! Steve grabs a wooden chair and chases off the heels to a ROAR from the Dallas faithful.
Conclusion: HOT main event combined with some Freebird drama made for a fun episode. For Hayes’ sake, he would need some help to fight off the EVIL that’s Roberts and SST. No doubt Vince Russo watched this episode, saw both the pole match and the swerve, and took copious notes.
Next week, Kerry defends the World title against Kamala, and Kevin challenges for the Texas title against Taylor!
TV Rating: NONE
Stay tuned for WCCW 07-16-88!
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