SMOKY MOUNTAIN WRESTLNG TV – May 9th, 1992
– Last week on SMW TV… The Fantastics defeated The Maulers to advance to the Finals of the Tag Team Championship Tournament, and that’s pretty much it. The rest of the show was a recap of the entire tournament leading up to that, with highlights from the other five matches already featured in the tournament. The Volunteer Slam is now only two weeks away!
– Taped on April 23rd from the Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, TN. This taping will bring us through the end of May, thanks to a thin show on May 16th and May 30th being mostly recaps of the Volunteer Slam. Bob Caudle and Dutch Mantel are calling the action, and look, no Carl Stiles. Hell, no mention of Carl Stiles, either. We’re going to see Robert Gibson and the Dirty White Boy in action, Nitro Danny Davis takes on Nature Boy, Buddy Landel, and tickets are available for the Volunteer Slam! Dutch is wearing the Tag Team and Heavyweight Titles that will be awarded on May 22nd in Knoxville.
– “Rock & Roll” Robert Gibson vs. “Bad Boy” Barry Horowitz:
Showcase match for Gibson, who is scheduled to face Jimmy Golden in the 1st Round of the Tournament at the Volunteer Slam. Lockup with aggression and Horowitz with a clean break! Gibson avoids a cheap shot on the third lockup and takes the Bad Boy over with arm drags. Horowitz with a jaw breaker as Jimmy Golden joins the commentary desk. Whip and Gibson counters a back drop with a small package for two. Gut-wrench suplex for two. Horowitz with a float over neck snap and back slide for two. Snap mare out of the corner and a cradle for another two count. Caudle says hello to a new network carrying SMW in Bristol, VA. Gibson escapes a chin-lock, but gets laid out with a clothesline for two. Whip to the corner, Horowitz puts the boots on running into the boot. He charges and meets the boot, anyway. Whip and Gibson with a clothesline for two. Horowitz blocks a hip toss, but Gibson counters with the Bulldog, and that finishes at 4:30. ** Another short, solid effort, a signature of SMW TV so far.
– Bob Caudle is standing by with Jim Cornette and The Heavenly Bodies. Cornette says he’s sick and tired of people saying they shouldn’t be champions because they won’t represent the belts well. The Fantastics are far from the Knights in shining armor people make them out to be. He’s hated Bobby Fulton’s guts since he met him in 1984, and makes fun of them for claiming to be from the City of Angels when they’re from Chillicothe, Ohio. Their father’s a bum laying on the street corner with a whiskey bottle in his hand. The Fantastics storm the set before he can trash their mother. Bobby says he’s never considered Cornette a man, and if they got the guts to get in the ring, they’ll kick their [bleep] right now. Cornette continues, saying their mom was never lonely, as long as someone had 30 minutes to kill and 10 bucks to spend. The Fantastics don’ want to wait for the Volunteer Slam, they want to do it RIGHT NOW!
– SMW Tag Team Championship Match:
The Fantastics vs. The Heavenly Bodies (w/ Jim Cornette):
(Bobby & Jackie Fulton vs. Stan Lane & Tom Prichard)
Finals of the Tag Team Championship Tournament. Bob Armstrong insists this isn’t a signed match, but they can go through with it if they want to. Bobby and Prichard slug it out to start. Bobby sends him to the corner and pounds away with mounted rights. Jackie with dropkicks to clear the ring of both Heavenly Bodies. Lane complains about a hair pull during a lockup. They trade wrist-locks, with Jackie getting the upper-hand. Prichard back in and he walks into an arm drag. Whip, fist to the midsection, and Bobby with a running knee lift for two.
Whip to the corner and Bobby meets the boot charging in. The referee holds back Jackie while the Bodies double team Bobby. Whip and Lane with a hooking clothesline. Prichard misses an elbow drop and Bobby comes off the ropes for a mid-ring collision. Lane cuts off the tag attempt and cheap shots Jackie for the hell of it. He tosses Bobby over the top rope, behind the referee’s back. Remember, in SMW, that’s a Disqualification. Cornette gets a racket shot in and Prichard rams Bobby face-first into the post.
Back inside, Lane with a spinning crescent kick to the midsection. We return from a commercial break, with Prichard taking Bobby over with a suplex, and coming off the ropes with a knee drop for a near fall. Snap mare into a chin-lock. Bobby escapes, but Lane cuts the tag off, again. Whip and Bobby with a punt to the chest, but Prichard cuts him off this time. Prichard with an atomic drop and clothesline for two. Lane misses a charge, and Jackie finally gets the hot tag. He runs wild with slams and dropkicks to Lane and Prichard. Whip and elbow to Lane for two. Pump-Handle Slam for two. Jackie comes off the top with a diving body press, but he’s a bit short on it. Bobby and Prichard tussle in the ropes, drawing the attention of referee Mark Curtis. Jackie slaps a sleeper on Lane, but Cornette sneaks in and blasts him across the back with the tennis racket, and Lane crawls on top for the three count at 7:57 to become the 1st SMW Tag Team Champions. Post-match, the Fultons take a cheap shot at Cornette, but Lane attacks Jackie’s knee with the racket and slaps on a Figure-Four while Cornette works Bobby over while he’s tied in the ropes. Robert Gibson, Brian Lee, and Dixie Dy-No-Mite run in to clear the ring, but the damage is done. ***1/2 Great TV match, with fluid pacing and non-stop action. Bonus points for the post-match injury angle. The reason for shooting the angle ahead of the Volunteer Slam was the Fantastics had a scheduling conflict with a tour of Japan, and wouldn’t be available on May 22nd.
– Bob Caudle is standing by with Doug Furnas, making his 1st appearance for Smoky Mountain Wrestling. Caudle’s first question is wondering about the condition of Jackie Fulton’s knee. Furnas is “an all-time great” from the University of Tennessee and holds many records in Weightlifting. He’s been in Japan for a while, but he’s honored to get the call and get to wrestle for the people in the South. Not the best promo, not the worst.
– Doug Furnas vs. “Golden Boy” Joe Cazana:
Cazana seems to draw the short straw on time for squash matches, so let’s see if that trend continues. Furnas is introduced as the World’s Strongest Man. Furnas with a quick waist-lock takedown, but Cazana makes it to the ropes before he could transition into a hold. Furnas does it again, with the same result. Cazana’s right across the chest is completely no-sold. Crisscross and Furnas with a Gorilla Press Slam. Nice leaping ability, too. Whip and Furnas catches him off the ropes with a bear-hug. Cazana rakes the eyes to escape, but Furnas reapplies the hold. Whip and Furnas with a dropkick. Whip and a sloppy Frankensteiner finishes at 2:18. Furnas is definitely more athletic in the ring than any other “World’s Strongest Man”, but a better opponent would’ve made his offense look that much better.
– Bob Caudle is standing by with Commissioner Bob Armstrong and Hector Guerrero. Guerrero is ready to return to action. He’s grateful he wasn’t permanently injured by the Piledriver. Armstrong chimes in that Jackie’s knee is swollen to twice the size it should be, and continues to hammer home the ban of the Piledriver. Guerrero says Orndorff has made it personal, and here comes Orndorff to whine about banning his finisher. If you’re not man enough to take it, you shouldn’t be here. Tim Horner storms the set to pick a fight with Orndorff, but they’re going to have to wait until May 22nd in Knoxville.
– Scheduled in two weeks on SMW television: An 18-Man Mountain Mayhem Battle Royal for a $5,000 prize. Mantel mimes along while Caudle describes the rules of the match, and damn if he’s not entertaining. It’s basically a Royal Rumble without calling it that.
– The Dirty White Boy vs. Ben Jordan:
1st appearance for the Dirty White Boy in a few weeks, with his absence explained as training for the upcoming Tournament at the Volunteer Slam. Ron Wright is not at ringside, with the Dirty White Boy out to prove he can win on his own. Lockup and the White Boy with a hip toss. Whip to the ropes and Jordan comes back with his own hip toss, followed by a pair of dropkicks. Jordan tries to use his speed to his advantage, but the Dirty White Boy catches him off the ropes with a side slam. He plants Jordan with another slam and drops a leg across the chest. Whip and the White Boy with a clothesline. DWB with a delayed vertical suplex. Whip to the corner and another clothesline. He makes an arrogant cover, allowing Jordan to kick out at two. Forward Power-Slam, but no cover. Dirty White Boy drags things out with an atomic drop and slam. Jordan rolls away from a splash and gets some token offense in. He misses a blind body press, and the Bucksnort Blaster finishes at 4:56. Complete squash match, and a really good job at making the Dirty White Boy come across as a serious threat to leave the Volunteer Slam as the SMW Heavyweight Champion.
– Bob Caudle is standing by with Dixie Dy-No-Mite. He says he’s a Wild Card in the Volunteer Slam, and all the little fire-crackers are talking about it. Dirty White Boy will pay his dues because he has a lit a fuse in the southern stick of power. He’s American by birth and Southern by the grace of God. Good for you?
– “Nitro” Danny Davis vs. “Nature Boy” Buddy Landel:
(Advertised) TV Main Event. Landel is scheduled to compete at the Volunteer Slam, Danny Davis isn’t, so we can draw our own conclusion. Mantel makes fun of Davis being introduced from “Right Here in the USA.” They quickly exchange wrist-locks, with neither man gaining momentum. Davis with a hammer-lock, but Landel hooks the ropes to force a break. Landel with a handful of hair to take Davis down with a wrist-lock. Landel with a sucker punch and knee across the throat. Snap mare into a chin-lock, but Davis counters and drives a knee repeatedly into the left elbow. He changes up his strategy, targeting the knee and hooking a step-over toe hold. Landel rakes the eyes to escape. Davis counters a dive from the middle turnbuckle, and I almost expected an overhead belly-to-belly suplex, but he just punches, instead. Whip to the ropes, Davis with a roll-up, but Landel counters and hooks the tights for three at 4:27. * Basic stuff and never had a chance to pick up and go anywhere. Post-match, Landel gives the usual promo about winning the Championship at Volunteer Slam.
– Bob Caudle is standing by with Commissioner Bob Armstrong, and he confirms the Heavenly Bodies are officially the SMW Tag Team Champions. Bobby Fulton is taking his brother to the hospital, but when he comes back, he’s doing it with his brother, even with offers from other stars of SMW to help him in his battles with the New Champions.
Final Thoughts: The impromptu Finals for the Tag Team Championship took a mediocre episode and made it a must-see, with a great match and shooting an angle that means we definitely haven’t seen the last of the Fantastics and Heavenly Bodies battling in the ring. The rest of the show was more hype for the Volunteer Slam, with Robert Gibson, Dirty White Boy, and Buddy Landel walking away victorious over varying levels of opposition. Doug Furnas made his debut, but I don’t think he’s much of a factor for the promotion.
Next week, we cover the Highlight Show broadcast on May 16th, and finally, The Volunteer Slam. Until then, you can check out other wrestling recaps from myself and other gentlemen at http://www.DaWrestlingSite.com, and give a follow to my new, shared, Twitter @Loungin_Around, where we look to cover various topics from Sports, Entertainment, and even *gulp* Politics.