September 24, 1995
From the Saginaw Civic Center in Saginaw, MI
Your hosts are Vince McMahon, Jim Ross, and Jerry “The King” Lawler
We even get a theme song for In Your House now as I guess that is also part of the New Fall season. It wasn’t that good.
The hosts give predictions for the triple header as Savio Vega’s music can be heard in the background. Lawler predicts that Owen will pin Shawn Michaels and become the new Intercontinental Champion after predicting Yokozuna would pin Diesel for the World Title on “Monday Night RAW” and later predicting Shawn & Diesel would win the Tag Titles on “Superstars.” See, now he can tell us he was correct no matter the outcome.
Savio Vega vs. Waylon Mercy
Savio stops off at the Spanish announce table to shake hands before going to the ring. We do get video clips of both guys as part of their entrance. Mercy tries a sneak attack but Savio was ready and hammers away. Mercy misses another charge then Savio works the arm. Mercy knees Savio in the gut then takes him down with a clothesline. Mercy takes Savio outside and heads out to land some chops then slams him on the ground. Mercy rolls Savio back into the ring then works over his neck for a bit. Mercy uses a hotshot for two as we see a few Mercy fans express their pleasure in the front row. Mercy beats on Vega in the corner as we go split screen with some breaking news about Owen Hart not yet here in the building and does not know how this will effect the triple header match. Savio avoids an elbow drop as Ross recalls seeing Yokozuna, Jim Cornette, and Mr. Fuji but not Owen earlier today. Mercy catches Savio with a sleeper but Savio eventually breaks out by running Mercy into the turnbuckle. Mercy then grabs a side headlock after a bit but Savio turns that into a back suplex as both men are down. They slug it out and Mercy has nothing at all behind his punches as his body is just shot. Savio drops Mercy and hits a roundhouse kick for a two count. Savio gets a few more nearfalls as this crowd is dead but ducks his head and gets kicked in the face. Mercy hits a brainbuster for a two count. Saito suplex gets two. Mercy tries for a slam but Savio floats over and attempts a bridging German suplex that gets two and looked awful because Mercy is unable to get up for anything then Savio lands a spinning heel kick for the win (7:08) *1/2.
Thoughts: They tried but Mercy was completely broken down and could barely do anything by the end. The result was a shock and a signal that Mercy is no longer geared up for a top push as a heel like he had built on the syndicated shows in the late Summer. Mercy was even downplayed on TV the past few weeks and Savio had been wrestling random matches without direction. This would end up being the only PPV appearance of Mercy and he would appear one more time on TV before leaving the company after the October tour of Germany.
Gorilla is backstage asking Cornette where Owen is and Cornette says he will be here. Dok is also backstage and Gorilla said since the fans wanted the triple header match he will not rip them off and it will in fact happen, regardless.
Sid w/ Ted DiBiase vs. Henry Godwinn
We see the clips of Sid going nuts on “Superstars” after getting slopped by Godwinn as Ross tells us that Godwinn’s back is hurt from getting powerbombed on the floor from that same show. Godwinn slugs away then counters a back drop attempt with a mat slam. Ross tells us this will be a “slobberknocker” but Lawler tells him enough of the “Oklahoma jargon.” Godwinn knocks Sid outside then brings him back in and tries a slam but his back hurts and Sid tosses him through the ropes. DiBiase stomps Godwinn as Sid distracts the ref then Sid hits a pair double axe handles from the apron. Sid brings Godwinn back into the ring and targets the back then starts punching him in the gut. Sid whips Godwinn hard into the corner and then connects with a pair of running kicks. Sid now puts Godwinn in a reverse chin lock as Vince plugs the Superstar Line. Sid now gouges the eyes of Godwinn before going back to the chin lock. Sid misses a running kick in the corner then gets punched in the gut coming off the middle rope. Godwinn runs wild and hits the Slop Drop but that only gets two as DiBiase yanked Godwinn’s leg. Godwinn heads out to back up DiBiase then goes on the apron and gets attacked. Back inside, Godwinn fights back but gets tripped up by DiBiase then Sid hits a leg drop to the back of Godwinn’s neck. Sid now hits the powerbomb and gets the win (7:23) *. DiBiase celebrates the win as Sid mocks Godwinn’s pig crawl and uses it to push him to the floor. Sid & DiBiase now argue over who gets to slop Godwinn and as that happens, Bam Bam Bigelow runs out for the attack on Sid. However, Kama comes out and beats on Bigelow then holds up Bigelow for DiBiase to use the slop bucket but Godwinn sneaks up from behind to take the slop bucket and dump it on DiBiase’s head. Godwinn bails as DiBiase flips out as Vince reminds us this is the third time DiBiase has been slopped.
Thoughts: Another match that wasn’t very good at all. Sid’s offense looks Charmin ultra soft to the point he doesn’t even seem menacing despite his stature. Sid needed a win after sliding down the midcard and they somewhat protected Godwinn with him getting tripped up leading out to the loss and he got to slop DiBiase at the end once again.
Back in the locker room as Cornette and Gorilla keep arguing. Gorilla says the match is happening and gives Cornette two options: Yokozuna fights the match beside himself or to find a partner he can sanction to team with Yokozuna. Cornette asks if this partner gets a title if he pins Shawn or Diesel and Gorilla says they will get the same rights as Owen would have had in the match.
British Bulldog vs. Bam Bam Bigelow
No Cornette with Bulldog here since he is too busy trying to find a partner for Yokozuna. Ross wonders about Bigelow’s condition after he was just attacked. Bulldog bounces off of Bigelow then complains to the ref about a hair pull. The announcers speculate as to who Cornette will select as Yokozuna’s partner as Bulldog stalls. We go split screen to see Cornette talk with Sid about being Yokozuna’s partner then return to the match as Bigelow remains in control. Bulldog avoids an elbow drop then applies a chin lock. Bigelow flips Bulldog over to escape but misses a falling headbutt. Bulldog suplexes Bigelow then taunts the crowd but turns around and gets clotheslined. Bigelow charges but Bulldog low-bridges him and Bigelow spills out to the floor. Ross asks Vince if he remembers Bulldog teaming with Dynamite Kid and Vince no-sells that and says he remembers Bulldog winning the Intercontinental Title at Wembley Stadium. Bulldog tries to suplex Bigelow back into the ring but Bigelow reverses and crotches Bulldog on the top rope. Bigelow then hits a diving headbutt for a two count and complains to the ref about a slow count but as that happened he gets chop-blocked by Bulldog. We see Bulldog now targeting the knee as the announcers talk about the opportunity you can have being Yokozuna’s partner tonight. The announcers now speculate as to whether or not Cornette is up to something with Owen not being here as Bulldog stays to work on the knee. We get some USA chants to taunt Bulldog from the crowd then Bulldog hits another chop block. Bigelow comes back with an enziguiri as both men are down but Bulldog is up first and goes back to work on the knee. Bulldog turns Bigelow over for a single leg crab as the announcers talk about the WrestleMania special. Bigelow drops Bulldog with a headbutt and has to prop himself up by holding the ropes. Bulldog catches Bigelow with a knee smash and puts on a chin lock The ref raises Bigelow’s arm twice and it drops but Bigelow raises it on the third attempt. Bigelow drives Bulldog into the corner and fires away then falls on top of Bulldog on a failed slam attempt and gets two. Bigelow blocks a sunset flip attempt with a sit-down splash then hits a falling headbutt. Bigelow goes up top for a moonsault but Bulldog rolls away then covers for a two count. Bulldog now goes up top and hits a flying headbutt for a two count. Bigelow sends Bulldog to the corner with a headbutt but Bulldog whips Bigelow into the corner then on the rebound catches him with a powerslam and the win (12:01) **1/4. Bulldog goes up the aisle and is displeased with the fans taunting him as Vince plugs Bulldog vs. Undertaker on RAW.
Thoughts: Decent enough match wrestled almost like a house-show style bout in the sense they never kicked it into the next gear. Bulldog winning was a foregone conclusion since he just turned heel and seems to be gearing up for a feud with Diesel. I liked the knee work by Bulldog but after that it was just seemed designed to kill time with chin locks and Bigelow no longer selling the knee.
We go split screen to the Superstar Line as Godwinn is smiling on the phone while DiBiase, still in his slop covered suit, is screaming into the phone.
Bob Backlund comes down the aisle holding a dictionary. He yells at the “plebeans” and the “acute limitations” they face and after his routine introduces Dean Douglas.
We get a video package on the history between Douglas and Razor Ramon
Douglas tells us he is here to teach Razor a harsh lesson and give him a test he will surely fail then proceeds to introduce Razor as the camera pans to the fans and ring announcer Manny Garcia ducking down then moving out of the way as he apparently cannot even stay off camera when necessary.
Dean Douglas w/Bob Backlund vs. Razor Ramon
Razor goes right after Douglas and clotheslines him over the top rope. Douglas paces around before going back into the ring and we get three straight side headlock/headscissor reversal sequences that did not look good before Razor decks Douglas. Lawler makes fun of Vince & Ross for being dumb as Razor sends Douglas over the top rope with a hip toss. We go split screen with Cornette speaking to Mabel, who is starting down Yokozuna, while Douglas is talking with Backlund on the outside. Douglas returns and Razor works the arm. Douglas floats over then falls down and this leads to a reversal sequence that ends with Razor hitting a fallaway slam for a two count. Douglas rolls out to the apron and Razor snaps his arm off of the top rope. Razor then brings Douglas inside by the arm and slaps his head while applying an armbar. Razor stays to work on the arm as Vince once again hypes the Superstar Line. Douglas tries a flying sunset flip but Razor counters and gets two. Razor gets another two count with a clothesline then goes back to the armbar. Douglas lands some punches then tosses Razor outside and slingshots out with a double axe handle. Douglas then sends Razor into the steps with a high knee before ramming Razor into the post. Douglas rolls Razor back inside after Backlund nearly got caught attempting to attack Razor. Douglas attacks the back of Razor as Vince refers to Savio’s win over Mercy earlier as an upset. Douglas puts Razor in a surfboard as Ross notes the rib injuries Razor suffered a few months ago. Razor reverses but Douglas is able to reach the ropes. Douglas then cheap shots Razor and continues to target the back. Douglas now uses a rear chin lock that Razor eventually breaks up with an electric chair drop. Both men are down then Douglas crawls over and drapes his arm across Razor’s chest for a two count. Razor then fights back and uses a wrist lock suplex for two as it appeared Douglas forgot it was supposed to be of the bridging variety. Douglas fights off a back suplex attempt by Razor then comes off with a flying body press but Razor rolls through for a two count. Douglas then sends Razor into the ref and then takes out Razor. Backlund tries to wake up the ref as Razor hits the Razor’s Edge. We then see 1-2-3 Kid run out behind Razor and count to three as Razor thinks he won the match only to turn around and see Kid. They shove each other and Razor sends Kid flying through the ropes but after that Douglas uses one of the worst looking reverse rollups I’ve ever seen and gets the win (14:54) **1/4. Razor is pissed off afterwards as Douglas celebrates with Backlund on the outside. We get a replay and see that Douglas pulled the tights on the rollup. Razor now heads out and tosses Kid into the ring. Kid shoves Razor and the two nearly come to blows until several officials separate them as Ross says that Douglas ruined their relationship while Vince isn’t so sure and suggests a possible alliance between Kid and Douglas.
Thoughts: They had a lot going on here but Douglas really did have a bad performance here. His timing was off and the rollup at the end embarrassing. I thought the psychology overall was fine but again, Douglas was awful. And at the time Douglas did have ring rust but man, he bombed in his first PPV with this character. However, Razor did a fine job and there was enough going on to make it exciting. The end seems to signal Kid turning heel and the story of Douglas driving them apart by manipulating them does make it appear he is clearly a level above the two on the pecking order. The plan here was to get Douglas over Razor for a feud against Shawn while Razor and Kid do their thing. I do know that Razor himself thought nothing of Douglas as a worker after this and upset he could not keep up like the others the same size.
We get an ad for the next In Your House that will air on October 22nd. We will see Undertaker vs. Mabel and the debut of Goldust. It will take place in Winnipeg, Canada. Not exactly coughing up money to see those two things.
Dok is backstage shilling the Shawn Michaels hat & sunglasses and if you call tonight you get a free “WWF Classic Video.” After that, Shawn Michaels & Diesel enter and talk about the fact Owen is not here as we hear Jean Pierre Lafitte’s music in the background. Diesel says he smells a rat and that something is up regarding Owen’s disappearance.
We hear from Bret as he is backstage. Bret has had it with Lafitte stealing and says its about time he walks the plank. We then see Bret make his entrance as he opens the door. A corny babyface interview for sure.
Jean Pierre Lafitte vs. Bret “The Hitman” Hart
Lafitte is wearing Bret’s jacket. Bret flies out with a tope and nearly kills himself in the process. Bret fires away then the match heads in the ring where he stays in control. Lafitte rakes Bret’s eyes then hammers away in the corner with Lawler cheering him on. Bret avoids a charge then works the arm and gets a nearfall with a crucifix. Bret goes back to the arm but Lafitte catches him with a clothesline as Vince tells us that the stolen jacket was given to Bret by his mother. Lafitte hammers away then Bret misses a charge and rams his post into the shoulder. Lafitte rams Bret’s shoulder into the post again and taunts the crowd. Lafitte gets backdropped over the top rope but lands on his feet and is able to drag Bret outside and ram his shoulder into the steps. We head back inside with Bret fighting back until he gets caught with a spinebuster for a two count. Lafitte applies a chin lock then catches Bret with a back elbow smash for two. Lafitte goes back to the chin lock then drops Bret with a clothesline after Bret surprised him with a sunset flip for a nearfall. Lafitte then hits a flying leg drop for two and after that goes back up top for the cannonball but misses as both men are down. Bret hits Lafitte with an inverted atomic drop then tries for the Sharpshooter but Lafitte is able to shove Bret outside. Lafitte then flies out with a somersault plancha but Bret moves away and Lafitte lands on his back. Bret sends Lafitte into the steps then rolls him back into the ring where he whips him hard into the corner. Vince talks about Bret “building momentum” as Lafitte keeps kicking out of everything. Bret comes off the middle rope with an elbow and Lafitte gets his foot up as both men are down again. Lafitte is up first then hits a rolling fireman’s carry slam that looked like it killed Bret and that gets two. Lafitte catches a floatover attempt in the corner but Bret grabs the ropes and slingshots himself on top for two. Bret eats boot on a charge in the corner and Lafitte rolls him up for two despite having his feet on the ropes. Bret sends Lafitte into the ropes with a dropkick then tries a running bulldog but Lafitte shoves Bret into the corner instead and covers for two as Bret got his foot on the ropes. Bret sends Lafitte in the ropes but misses a crossbody and then Lafitte goes up top. Lafitte whiffs on a splash then both men clothesline each other and end up on the mat. Bret then applies the Sharpshooter while on the mat and turns Lafitte over and stands to apply pressure and ends up getting the win (16:36) ***3/4. Lawler is upset Bret won as Ross reminds him Bret is the “best there is, best there was, and best there ever will be.” Bret then takes his jacket back and puts it on while posing in the ring.
Thoughts: Really good match here and a creative way for Bret to use the Sharpshooter. The last few minutes were particularly good with Bret putting on a clinic. Just a great performance here by him and Lafitte was there right along with him. And behind the scenes, Lafitte was in the doghouse over what happened the week prior in Montreal against Diesel and I’ll get to that later on in this timeline. Bret getting his jacket back at the end was a nice touch for the storyline that Bruce Prichard said he got the idea for after a feud between Dory Funk Jr. and Jose Lothario back in 1972 for the Paul Boesch promotion in Houston were Lothario took Dory’s football jacket.
We are backstage again to Dok as we see that British Bulldog will be Yokozuna’s partner tonight. Gorilla is there and will sanction Bulldog as the partner for tonight. Cornette wants to make it clear this is just for tonight and if Bulldog scored a pin he would be champion. Gorilla also tells Cornette that Bulldog getting pinned can also lose him the Tag Team Titles. Its safe to assume this was Cornette’s plan all along as why else would Mabel and Sid decline a chance at tagging and getting a title shot?
Vince then announces Alundra Blayze as she comes out modeling the triple header t- shirt as we learn it costs $20 and just available for tonight. We then see Blayze take a VHS tape out of the window sill as part of the set as you will get a video tape free with purchase of the shirt. Blayze then takes off the shirt revealing one of her own shirts and tosses it before leaving.
Triple Header Match: Yokozuna & British Bulldog (Tag Team Champions) w/ Jim Cornette & Mr. Fuji vs. Shawn Michaels (Intercontinental Champion) & Diesel (World Champion)
Vince thinks Diesel will be happy to get revenge on Bulldog. Shawn gets the best reaction of the night. Shawn & Diesel use rock, paper, scissors to determine who starts and Shawn wins. He starts off with Bulldog in fast-paced sequence that ends with him clotheslining Bulldog over the top rope. Yokozuna comes in and Shawn hammers away then Diesel sends Yokozuna through the ropes with what was supposed to be a clothesline but Yokozuna was out of position and it wound up being a forearm smash. Bulldog is back and tags out as Shawn tells Diesel he can handle Yokozuna. Shawn then mocks the sumo pose and then starts firing away until he runs into a back elbow smash. Vince tells us that Shawn has to compete as that desire burns in him then Yokozuna slams Shawn but misses an elbow drop. Diesel tags in and fires away but runs into a clothesline. Diesel comes back with a clothesline of his own and sends Yokozuna through the ropes with a big boot. Bulldog cheap shots Diesel as Fuji distracted the referee. Bulldog tags and tries the delayed vertical suplex but has to stop then tries again and its successful as that gets two. Diesel fights back and clotheslines Bulldog in the corner a few times before tagging out. Shawn heads up top and leaps off of Diesel with a splash as that gets two. Bulldog then catches Shawn in a military press and crotches him on the top rope and Yokozuna knocks Shawn to the floor. Yokozuna sends Shawn to the floor again as he is now the legal man. Bulldog tags and puts Shawn in a chin lock. Shawn escapes but Bulldog clotheslines him then taunts Diesel as the ref yells at Diesel to get back on the apron, allowing Yokozuna to walk in and put Shawn in a chin lock despite not being the legal man. Bulldog waves the Japanese flag as the crowd starts up a USA chant. Yokozuna sets up for the Bonzai Drop but Shawn moves away as both men are down then tag out. Diesel runs wild on Bulldog then the match breaks down. Shawn & Diesel use a double noggin-knocker and we get some comedy with Yokozuna falling on top of Bulldog. Cornette is up on the apron and Shawn knocks him off but as that happened, Yokozuna stopped a jackknife attempt and hit Diesel with a Samoan drop. Shawn then sends Yokozuna through the ropes with a super kick and goes back to the apron Bulldog hits Diesel with the powerslam but Shawn breaks that up with a flying elbow drop. Owen now runs out and comes off of the top but Diesel punches him and hits the jackknife for the win (16:46) **1/2. The crowd goes nuts as the Dudes with Attitudes celebrate.
Thoughts: Not a surprise but the match was good with Shawn in the ring and when he wasn’t it was a bit of a struggle. The end with Owen getting pinned foiled Cornette’s plan but as we will soon see there will be some foolery since Bulldog was the sanctioned partner replacing Owen. But once again, the crowd loved the finish and it was a satisfying ending to a otherwise middling show. Although, that feeling would be short-lived as Vince decided to go against the original plan as I will get into more on tomorrow’s RAW recap.
We get a music video recap of the show set to the knew In Your House theme.
Final Thoughts: Bret/Lafitte was excellent and the main event at least had a good ending although it ended up being a bait-and-switch situation and the rest of the show was forgettable for the most part. We see that next month’s show will have Undertaker/Mabel and after SummerSlam, who wants to see Mabel again in a marquee match?
But the real news was behind the scenes as per the “Titan Sinking” novel it was before the PPV when Vince McMahon introduced Bill Watts as in charge of the creative for the company. This would not last long but I’ll try to sprinkle in any notes about his reign while I can.
Here is my schedule for the next several days:
Sunday: WWF Monday Night RAW 9/25/95
Monday: WWF Superstars 9/30/95
Tuesday: WWF Monday Night RAW 10/2/95
Wednesday: WWF Fleet Center (Boston) 10/5/95
Thursday: WWF Monday Night RAW 10/7/95
Friday: WWF Monday Night RAW 10/9/95
Saturday: WWF Cologne, Germany 10/10/95