What the World Was Watching: WWF Monday Night RAW – 06.06.94

Vince McMahon and Randy Savage are in the booth, doing the last episode from the Youngstown, Ohio taping.

Opening Lumberjack King of the Ring Qualifying Contest: Tatanka (16-1-2) defeats Crush (15-1-1) after Lex Luger interferes at 17:06 shown:

Lumberjacks around the ring include Thurman Plugg, Razor Ramon, the 1-2-3 Kid, Doink the Clown, Irwin R. Schyster, Bam Bam Bigelow, Adam Bomb, Jeff Jarrett, Nikolai Volkoff, the Bushwhackers, Duke Droese, the Smoking Gunns, Owen Hart, Yokozuna, Kwang (in a red mask), Mr. Fuji, and Mabel. The lumberjack introductions almost lead to some fights as Mabel keeps Doink from attacking Jarrett and Ramon and IRS have a shoving match that ends with Ramon hitting him. After IRS distracts Tatanka and lets Crush get a jump on him, babyfaces and heels get into the ring and the match almost turns into a battle royal. McMahon says that Luger was not allowed to be a lumberjack per the orders of WWF President Jack Tunney. It is more entertaining to see the lumberjacks interact with each other than watch the match, which drags out with Crush rest holds. Near-fall exchanges are mixed in but there is not a good flow to the action. There is a funny bit where Bigelow counts a near-fall by hitting the apron and Tatanka thinks the cadence is from referee Earl Hebner and kicks out. The lumberjacks start fighting each other when Yokozuna stomps Tatanka after Crush tosses Tatanka to the floor. That does not cue the finish as one would expect, so the bout drags out some more. When Crush is thrown out on the babyface side he decides to fight the lumberjacks, which is a bad call as that invites out Luger, who blasts Crush with a running forearm. The babyfaces then throw Crush into the ring, where Tatanka crawls over and pins him. Rating: *½

The babyfaces flood into the ring and celebrate with Tatanka, who looks like he is exhausted.

Todd Pettengill provides The King of the Ring Report. WWF Champion Bret Hart tells Intercontinental Champion Diesel that a diesel truck cannot outrun a Porsche. Roddy Piper does another promo on boardwalk, saying he would be happy to help Bret at The King of the Ring. He puts himself over as a street fighter.

McMahon and Savage promote The King of the Ring Hotline. Call 1-900-454-KING to vote in polls and hear daily interviews! It is $1.49 for the first minute and 99 cents for every minute thereafter!

Fans are told that next week’s episode will be a “Countdown to the Crowning” special. The main event will see WWF Tag Team Champions the Headshrinkers battle the Quebecers, with the winner defending the gold against Crush & Yokozuna at The King of the Ring.

Bam Bam Bigelow (w/Luna Vachon) (17-2) pins John Paul after a splash at 2:48:

Paul is on his second tour of job duty to a lot of the WWF’s stars. Savage reads copy to promote a USA film as Bigelow wins, treading water as the WWF has had nothing for him to do since WrestleMania.

Footage of Men on a Mission, the Headshrinkers, and Bam Bam Bigelow winning the D-Day tug of war challenge against the Combined Seaforces of the Armed Forces is shown. Bigelow was happy to win, breaking the babyface-heel line to give Mabel a hug.

Instead of having Roddy Piper on the King’s Court, Jerry Lawler welcomes out an impersonator instead. The impersonator gets Piper’s laugh and cadence down, although the voice is not always consistent. The segment drags as Lawler pokes fun at Piper’s physique and the impersonator says that his kilt is a skirt. The fake Piper begs out of The King of the Ring match, so Lawler has him kiss his boots and crawl out of the ring.

Razor Ramon (16-1) pins Keith Davis after the Razor’s Edge at 4:04:

Davis is Jeff Hardy, who is unrecognizable without long hair. Like his brother Matt, he was self-trained after the two practiced matches on a trampoline and he started working the North Carolina independents in 1994. He was not going to be used at this taping but a wrestler named Keith Davis did not show up and Hardy lied about his age, claiming he was 18 when he was 16.

Ramon stretches the newcomer as McMahon and Savage wonder who will be in Bret Hart’s corner at The King of the Ring. They also hype the Hall of Fame ceremony that will take place in a few days. Ramon tells Davis “Welcome to the big time!” before he kicks him in the face. According to Jeff, Ramon was in a bad mood so he was stiff throughout the match. As the squash plods along, Savage predicts IRS, Ramon, the 1-2-3 Kid, and Owen Hart to win their first round matches in the King of the Ring Tournament. Davis almost takes the Razor’s Edge finish on his shoulder.

Paul Bearer does another pre-recorded segment saying that he doubts Ted DiBiase can produce the Undertaker next week.

DiBiase joins the commentators, promising to have the Undertaker with him on Superstars.

Tune in next week to see WWF Tag Team Champions the Headshrinkers defend their titles against the Quebecers!

The Last Word: The lumberjack match had fun interactions between those standing outside the ring, which was the only good thing about this show. Next week’s episode is framed as a preview for The King of the Ring but at least the Tag Team title match should be good.

Up Next: WWF Superstars for June 11!

And if you would like to read a compiled breakdown of 1990-1993 WWF, 1993-1994 ECW, or of various promotions in 1995, check out my Amazon author page to purchase e-books or paperback copies!