Note: Sorry about missing Friday’s column. I was down with the flu near the end of last week and am on the mend. I will be posting information about the Doomie’s at the end of this week.
WCW Prime on December 11 featured a new bout, with Chris Cruise and Dusty Rhodes calling the action.
–Hugh Morrus (w/Kevin Sullivan) (2-2) pins Dino Cassanova after the No Laughing Matter at 3:08:
Morrus deliberately works over Cassanova, laughing between power moves. He sandwiches Cassanova between the buckles with a clothesline and a No Laughing Matter, which hits perfectly, finishes.
And now to WCW Pro for December 16, with Cruise, Dusty, and Larry Zbyszko calling the action.
–Opening Non-Title Contest: Johnny B. Badd (Television Champion w/Kimberly) (48-5-3) beats Buddy Valentine after the Tutti Frutti at 3:13:
The announcers are using the name “Kimberly” more than the Diamond Doll now for Badd’s valet so that is what we will go with going forward. The bigger Valentine befuddles Badd early, flooring the champion with a clothesline, blocking a sunset flip, and applying a chinlock. A blind charge eats elbow, but Valentine kicks out of the Badd Mood, forcing Badd to use the Tutti Frutti to prevail.
–Masahiro Chono (w/Sonny Onoo) (2-0) beats Otis Apollo via submission to the STF at 2:26:
Chono shrugs off some dropkicks, gives Apollo an inverted DDT, and locks in the STF for an easy submission win. He refuses to break the hold until he is on the verge of being disqualified after the match.
–Eddie Guerrero (15-3-4) pins the Disco Inferno (7-9) after a forward roll at 4:24:
There is a small backstory for this bout in that Disco would dance before a few of Guerrero’s entrances on Monday Nitro, angering the young Latino talent. Guerrero also defeated Disco on the October 29 edition of Main Event. Although both men have talent, this match does not show much of it as Disco dominates with punches and kicks until Guerrero wins out of nowhere with a forward roll. Disco has now lost eight straight matches. Rating: *
–Call 1-900-909-9900 to hear what prominent American wrestling company is folding! The company in question was Jim Cornette’s Smoky Mountain Wrestling.
–Jushin Liger (w/Sonny Onoo) (1-2) defeats Bobby Starr after a fisherman’s buster at 2:24:
Dusty freaks out after Liger does a flying headbutt, arguing that Liger stabbed Starr with “one of his deer horns.” Liger runs through a lot of moves in the squash, flying all over the place against Starr before using a fisherman’s buster to score the pin.
–Chris Benoit (10-2-1) defeats Lord Steven Regal (w/Jeeves) (5-2-1) after a dragon suplex at 6:49:
Regal has had a rough 1995, as he did little in the singles ranks and then had his Blue Bloods tag team with Bobby Eaton fall off a cliff in the standings. He has not wrestled a singles match since a September loss to Sting on WCW Saturday Night. Benoit becomes the default face of the crowd since Regal has the more overt, arrogant foreign gimmick. Great grappling dominates until Regal takes out Benoit’s knee at the five-minute mark. That triggers a quick series of near-fall exchanges, causing Eaton to try to interfere after a flying headbutt and dragon suplex. Of course, Eaton has often been the incompetent partner and his foot gets stuck on the bottom rope so he cannot break up the pin in time. Rating: ***
The Last Word: The main event’s outcome was not in doubt because Chris Benoit is getting a push while Lord Steven Regal is going in the opposite direction but it was a fun match to end a show that avoided getting bogged down in boring squashes.
Up Next: WCW Worldwide for December 16!
My second book was recently published on Amazon, chronicling WCW action from January to September 1995 before the debuted of Monday Nitro. The book includes reviews, angle breakdowns, win-loss totals and breakdowns, and other relevant information about the period. You can buy it in ebook or paperback format.