The SmarK Rant for Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling – 09.18.82
Taped from Charlotte, NC
Your host is Bob Caudle
And we have a BIG SURPRISE for Jimmy Valiant to start, as Bob Caudle and all of Jimmy’s friends pitched in with an early Christmas present, in the form of a new boombox! And it’s a nice new Panasonic one, too. That thing would be worth some MONEY on Ebay these days. I did a quick check and this guy is asking a few hundred:
So after making Jimmy’s day, Ricky Steamboat and Wahoo announce that they have some stipulations to contain the menace of Oliver Humperdink coming up, so they can all get revenge on Leroy Brown and Abdullah the Butcher as needed. I like that they’re building to specific matches on the house shows instead of just vague “good vs bad” stuff like in the beginning of the year.
Jack Brisco & Wahoo McDaniel v. Ken Timbs & Don Kernodle
Timbs is fresh off getting unmasked as The Gladiator last week, and Kernodle is no longer acting as one of Slaughter’s Privates and he’s back in his normal gear again. Wahoo and Brisco double-team Timbs in the corner and Wahoo works the leg as we learn that Gerald Brisco will be returning soon to help Jack in his quest to regain the Mid-Atlantic title from Paul Jones. Over to Kernodle, but Brisco grinds on a headlock and Wahoo comes in to work on Kernodle’s knee. Brisco with a leglock, but Kernodle fights out of that and brings Timbs back in, and he quickly gets double-teamed before Wahoo kind of invents the Michinoku Driver back in 1982. Took another 15 years to catch on but I guess we have to give him credit. Poor Timbs gets dumped on the floor, and Wahoo hauls him in and chops the crap out of him, setting up Brisco to finish with the figure-four at 6:14.
Mike Rotundo is about to head to the ring for his match, but Oliver Humperdink wants to make him an offer, and then says he’ll just hang out at ringside and “direct” things.
Mike Rotundo v. Ben Alexander
Rotundo takes him down with a headlock to start, but Alexander reverses to a hammerlock until Mike takes him down with an armdrag out of the corner and goes to work on that. Ben slams out of that, but Rotundo takes him down with another hammerlock, getting a bit more aggressive about it this time. Alexander slugs away on the ropes and gets a back elbow for two. “Do something!” advises Humperdink, showing the kind of strategy that earns him the big bucks. And then he clarifies that Rotundo should “Pull the tights”, which Rotundo ignores. Alexander puts him down with a forearm while Oliver complains to Caudle about how Rotundo isn’t listening to his surefire money tips. Rotundo wins a slugfest in the corner and runs Alexander into the other corner for two, and a legdrop gets two. He continues working on the arm and then finishes with the airplane spin at 6:12. And Humperdink immediately jumps into the ring looking to claim credit for the victory, but Rotundo wants nothing to do with anyone motivated solely by money.
Mike Davis and King Parsons chat with Caudle in advance of their match against the House of Humperdink, and Bob is pretty sure it’s gonna be a tough one for them.
Bad Bad Leroy Brown & Jos Leduc v. King Parsons & Mike Davis
Parsons gets worked over by the heels right away, and Brown puts him down with a back elbow. Leduc with a big boot, but Parsons slugs back, and then runs into Leroy’s elbow again. Finally Parsons whips him into the corner and brings Davis in, but Brown quickly cuts him off with the slam and Leduc finishes with the backbreaker at 3:01.
Oliver Humperdink joins us again and sadly he’ll have to teach Mike Rotundo a lesson for turning his offer down. And also Jos Leduc has words for Jimmy Valiant, and he’s gonna smash Jimmy’s new radio because it’s not Music City. Speaking of which, Leroy has a microphone stand and he’s going to beat on Ricky Steamboat with it, just like he used to do in Chicago.
Jim Dalton & Juan Reynosa v. Ricky Steamboat & Jay Youngblood
Dalton goes after Youngblood’s arm to start, but Steamboat comes in and shows him how that’s done. Over to Reynosa, but Youngblood puts him down with a chop and headlocks him on the mat. Steamboat and Youngblood double-team him in their corner while Caudle complains about Ric Flair dodging Wahoo McDaniel and refusing to give him a title match. Reynosa puts Youngblood down with a knee to the gut and Dalton comes in with a backdrop for two off that, and a slam for two. Another knee to the gut gets two. Youngblood fights back on Reynosa and Steamboat comes in for the double chop and then lifts up Jay for a mule kick on Reynosa that gets two. Powerslam on Reynosa gets two. Backdrop suplex gets two. He slingshots Youngblood in with a splash for two, and then finishes him off with a flying bodypress at 6:31. Love all the cool babyface double-team stuff from Steamboat & Youngblood here.
Keith Larson & Porkchop Cash discuss their match with Humperdink’s crew coming up next. Porkchop discusses percentages and their chances of winning. There’s no place for math in wrestling!
Keith Larson & Porkchop Cash v. Greg Valentine & Paul Jones
Keith works a headlock on Valentine to start, and he takes an atomic drop for his troubles. Jones comes in with a backdrop, and Valentine adds a gut wrench and goes to a chinlock. Larson fights him off and brings in Cash, who slugs away in the corner and grabs a headlock, but Valentine drops him with a back suplex and it’s back to Jones again. Cash with a dropkick on Jones, but Jones takes him down and goes for his deathlock before Cash rakes the eyes to escape. So Valentine comes in and works the leg on the mat, really tenderizing Porkchop, but Cash finally kicks him off after three attempts. Valentine puts him down again with an atomic drop and the heels continue double-teaming the leg in their corner, but Larson gets the tag and runs wild on Jones. But then Jones clips the knee and Valentine drops the elbow, brutalizes the knee, and then finishes with the figure-four at 6:42.
Afterwards, Oliver Humperdink feels like there’s too many Indians in the territory and it’s time to get rid of them. Paul Jones is DISGUSTED by the illegal payola and bribery on display at the beginning of the show, and they don’t need radios to motivate them! Also Paul has read between the lines with all the babyfaces together at the beginning, because that means they’re planning to jump on the Humperdink crew in the parking lot 4-on-2 like a bunch of cowards! Huge if true.
And we wrap it up for another week with another solid show. Nothing particularly notable this time but it’s a fun and easy watch.