WCW Prime for July 3 featured a few new contests so those will be recapped before we go on to WCW Pro. Tony Schiavone and Dusty Rhodes called the action for the Primematches.
–Sergeant Craig Pittman (23-2) beats Red Tyler via submission to the Code Red at 3:20:
Pittman needs to be reheated after losing a couple of matches to Hacksaw Jim Duggan so he works over Tyler’s arm for a short while before applying the Code Red for a boring submission win. Dusty says that he is going to try Pittman’s move of doing pushups over Tyler’s body on his wife when he gets home.
–Prime “MOOOO” Match of the Week: Big Bubba Rogers (18-5) wrestles Hacksaw Jim Duggan (24-3) to a double count out at 2:25:
This match was recorded at the WCW Worldwide tapings on May 3. Both men faced each other on WCW Pro on June 3, with Duggan defeating Rogers via disqualification. Duggan shows that he is not the moron as he uses Rogers suspenders to his advantage by pulling them back and having them smack against his adversaries back. It is a very cartoonish spot, but it works for the Disney audience. And that is all that can be said for this one as both men brawl on the floor for a quick double count out finish. At least Rogers avoided losing a feature match with this outcome, while Duggan has a six-match winning streak snapped.
And now onto WCW Pro for July 8 where Chris Cruise replaces Gordon Solie as the show’s play-by-play announcer. He still works with Dusty Rhodes and Larry Zbyszko in the booth and this show kicks off a new set of tapings in Gainesville, Georgia. That event took place on June 20.
–Opening Contest: The Blue Bloods (13-1-1) defeat Joey Barrett & Dave Walby when Lord Steven Regal makes Walby submit to the Regal Stretch at 2:24:
Barrett, who has not been seen in 1995, was another longtime WCW jobber. He takes a double inverted suplex from the Blue Bloods and is not able to tag Walby during the match. The Bloods would benefit from a finisher than included both participants rather than having Earl Robert Eaton do a top rope move and then having Regal tag in and do the submission.
–Gene Okerlund does the weekly Bash at the Beach Control Center. WCW Champion Hulk Hogan and Jimmy Hart cannot be bothered to show up to a television taping, so they do another pre-recorded promo from California. Hogan promises to stick his boot down Vader’s throat at Bash at the Beach and says that the winner will take wrestling into the rest of the decade. Two new matches are also added to the pay-per-view: Hacksaw Jim Duggan vs. Kamala and Dave Sullivan vs. Diamond Dallas Page.
–Call 1-900-909-9900 to hear about who the Ultimate Warrior has signed with and about him opening a wrestling school. Okerlund even uses the Warrior’s real name to hype the hotline.
–Hacksaw Jim Duggan (24-3-1) pins Rick Thames after a three-point stance clothesline at 2:10:
Duggan does his own version of the airplane spin, opting to just twist with Thames in the bodyslam position rather than putting him over his shoulders. That dazes Thames and sets up the three-point stance clothesline for Duggan’s twenty-fifth win of the year.
–Non-Title Match: Harlem Heat (WCW Tag Team Champions w/Sister Sherri) (30-4-2) defeat Chris Sawyer & Vern Henderson when Booker T pins Henderson after the Harlem Hangover at 3:07:
Harlem Heat triumph with their usual combination of speed and power. The announcers discuss how the Heat can lose the tag team titles at Bash at the Beach even if they are not pinned or submitted.
–Cruise interviews the Heat, who say that they are going to use the triangle match to wipe out the top contenders for their titles.
–Vader tells Hulk Hogan in a taped promo that three men paid the price because he is ducking him. Those three men were the three guys he beat up in Memphis that were part of the roadkill tour video package.
–Kamala (w/Kevin Sullivan) (1-0) pins John Taylor after a splash at 1:03:
Taylor accidentally moves out of the corner for a blind charge, so Kamala awkwardly has to beat him down before hitting the splash and winning in a little more than a minute. After the match, Sullivan runs into the ring and shields Kamala’s eyes for reasons that are still unexplained. Zbyszko says that he has no idea what is going on.
–The Nasty Boys (33-3-2) beat Dick Slater & Bunkhouse Buck (w/Colonel Robert Parker) (13-6) via disqualification when the Blue Bloods interfere at 7:48:
That plea for WCW not to book a feud between these two teams must have fallen on deaf ears as they collide for the second consecutive show. Unlike last week, this match has more spots for the crowd to pop like the Pit Stop and a wild brawl in the opening moments. That makes for a better match until Slater and Buck use their anemic offense. Brian Knobbs breaking up a pin after Slater and Buck use their double fist finisher on Jerry Sags triggers a wild brawl until the Blue Bloods interfere and cause a disqualification. Rating: *½
–After the bell, the Bloods and Nasties brawl and then Harlem Heat and Sister Sherri come out. Sherri gets knocked off the apron but Parker saves her. Parker then plants a kiss on Sherri and she responds by biting his face, causing Slater and Buck to intervene.
The Last Word: The post-match antics were great, showing all of the chaos that currently surrounds the WCW tag team division. It also continued the Harlem Heat-Dick Slater & Bunkhouse Buck storyline that is being built around Sister Sherri and Colonel Robert Parker. The tag team division is light on teams but doing the triangle match angle was a nice way to book around the dearth of babyface talents that WCW had at the time.
Up Next: WCW Worldwide for July 8!