What the World Was Watching: WWF Wrestling Challenge – December 12, 1993

Gorilla Monsoon replaces Bobby Heenan as color commentator on Wrestling Challenge, joining Jim Ross to call the action. They are wrapping up the messy taping in Carbondale, Pennsylvania.

Opening Contest: Tatanka (38-1-3) pins Reno Riggins after the Papoose to Go at 3:43:

Monsoon criticizes WWF President Jack Tunney for reinstating Shawn Michaels but not collecting his old Intercontinental title belt. Like the Brooklyn Brawler on Superstars, Riggins gets in a bit of offense but Tatanka still rolls to victory. This is the third time Tatanka has beaten Riggins this year.

There is an ad for a Salvation Army benefit at the Paramount in Madison Square Garden this Thursday. The WWF was airing more of its charity work as part of Vince McMahon’s public relations campaign for his federal steroid trial.

The Headshrinkers (w/Afa) (29-2-1) defeat Steve Smith & Frank Kanyak when Fatu pins Smith after the splash off the top rope at 2:27:

The squash is background noise for Ross and Monsoon to put over the Salvation Army benefit. After the Headshrinkers win their thirtieth match of the year, Kanyak runs into the ring and Samu busts him over the head with a pineapple, which explodes.

Doink the Clown (w/Dink) (33-7-3) defeats Glen Ruth via submission to an STF at 2:39:

This time Doink brings Dink to the ring in a little red wagon. Thankfully this squash is quicker than Monday Night RAW. Dink plays jokes on Ruth and when Ruth races after him around the ring, Doink blasts him with a clothesline. Instead of using the flying butt splash, Doink wins via submission to an STF, notching his tenth-straight win.

Ludvig Borga (21-0-1) defeats Greg Hatfield via submission to the torture rack at 1:54:

The syndicated shows this week are moving Borga’s feud from Lex Luger to Tatanka, exacerbating Luger’s dance partner problem. Borga makes another wrestler submit, attempting to recover from the Survivor Series loss.

Crush (w/Mr. Fuji) (28-4-2) beats Mike Bucci via submission to the head vice at 2:25:

The elimination of split screen promos means that we are robbed of crazy Randy Savage promos during Crush squashes, which would make them more fun to watch. Bucci is overpowered and submitted with the head vice.

The Steiner Brothers (41-1) defeat Mike Khoury & Mike Sharpe when Scott pins Khoury after the Frankensteiner at 2:34:

Scott effortlessly counters a Khoury hiptoss effort into a dragon suplex. There is more talk of it being a matter of time before the Steiners get the Tag Team titles off the Quebecers, leading some to believe that was going to be a match at The Royal Rumble. Khoury lost to the Steiners last week on RAW but getting a new partner still causes him to get Frankensteinered by Scott.

Shawn Michaels (27-5-2) pins John Paul after the piledriver at 1:47:

Ross and Monsoon talk about how there is speculation about who hit Razor Ramon through the curtain on Monday Night RAW even though the camera caught Diesel’s entire body. It is a weird plot point to debate. Before the match, Michaels asks the crowd to welcome back the undisputed Intercontinental champion, which gets a lot of boos. He has no trouble with Paul as the camera shows lots of female fans cheering him on. The six-week layoff helped Michaels get rid of the excess fat he was carrying at SummerSlam.

Tune in next week to see Intercontinental Champion Razor Ramon, WWF Tag Team Champions the Quebecers, and the 1-2-3 Kid in action! Also, the Undertaker will appear for a special interview!

The Last Word: Both syndicated shows now have two babyface announcers which knocks down some of the bickering between commentators. The nice thing about today’s show is fans got seven matches but, as was usually the case for Wrestling Challenge, they did not need to tune in to see any of them.

The WWF continued its European tour, going into Germany for a few shows. Meanwhile, it still ran a domestic loop through Texas that ended up back at the Meadowlands in New Jersey on a Sunday. Here are the results of some of those cards, courtesy of thehistoryofwwe.com:

Nuremberg, Germany – Frankenhalle – December 7, 1993 (5,000; sellout): Adam Bomb beat Virgil…The Smoking Gunns defeated the Red Knight & the Black Knight (The Brooklyn Brawler & Barry Horowitz)…Tatanka beat Diesel…The 1-2-3 Kid defeated Rick Martel…Intercontinental Champion Razor Ramon defeated Irwin R. Schyster…Randy Savage beat Shawn Michaels…The Undertaker defeated WWF Champion Yokozuna via disqualification.

East Rutherford, New Jersey – The Meadowlands – December 12, 1993 (7,000): Owen Hart pinned Bastion Booger with a roll up after Booger missed an avalanche at 5:42…The Headshrinkers beat Men on a Mission when Samu pinned Mo after a flying headbutt…Rick Martel beat Virgil at 12:35…Doink the Clown pinned Bam Bam Bigelow after Dink provided a distraction at 7:28…Randy Savage wrestled Crush to a double count out at 16:14…Irwin R. Schyster defeated Marty Jannetty after the Write Off at 9:18…Razor Ramon & the 1-2-3 Kid beat Johnny Polo & Adam Bomb when Razor pinned Bomb after the Razor’s Edge at 10:55. Polo walked out on his partner after heel miscommunication in the match’s closing stages…Lex Luger pinned Ludvig Borga at 6:42.

Backstage News*: The Supreme Court recently ruled 4-3 in United States v. James Daniel Good Real Property that the federal government cannot confiscate property in drug cases without a hearing. This means that the Department of Justice’s quest to seize Titan Towers and its contents as part of Vince McMahon’s steroid trial has run into a roadblock.

-Charges have still not been dropped against Jerry Lawler, although many expect that will take place by January 7 with the accuser taking back their earlier statements.

-Even though the WWF is disappointed in how crowds have responded to Lex Luger in a main event position it is still expected that Luger will be in the main event of WrestleMania X against Yokozuna. This will, in theory, set up a match with Bret Hart at SummerSlam where many expect Bret to regain the WWF Championship.

-In talent relations news, the Big Bossman was supposed to come back in early 1994 and worked last week in Anaheim, California as a special guest referee for a Bret Hart-Jeff Jarrett match. However, he is going to show up in WCW. The WWF argues that it has the Bossman under a contract and may take legal action to prevent him from working for WCW. Mr. Perfect has allegedly opened contract negotiations with WCW as well but the WWF expects him to come back sometime in the spring or summer.

*Backstage news is provided courtesy of Dave Meltzer’s Wrestling Observer for December 20.

Up Next: Monday Night RAW for December 13!