The SmarK Rant for Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling – 04.26.86

The SmarK Rant for Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling – 04.26.86

The Crockett Cup would have happened a week prior in the real world but the show wouldn’t have been taped in time to talk about it, so expect a lot of vague nothing on this one.

Taped from somewhere in South Carolina

Your hosts are Bob Caudle & Johnny Weaver

Wahoo McDaniel joins us and he’s not saying he’s gonna knock Precious on her ass if she messes with him, but they should probably bring two stretchers with them next time they want to mess with him. Oh the 80s.

Hector Guerrero & Manny Fernandez v. Tony Zane & Vern Deaton

Hector and the Bull clear the ring to start and back in for a double backdrop on Deaton, and Hector finishes with a flying bodypress at 1:54.

Nighthawk joins us, and they’ve changed him from Joel “Nighthawk” Coltrane to Joe “Nighthawk” Coltrane and now he’s just NIGHTHAWK like he’s an 80s detective show. He’s literally wrestled one match on this show to date but they put him on TV week after week to do promos. So we take a look at Worldwide, as Nighthawk interrupts a Pez Whatley interview with his new Paul Jones family, and offers Pez some money in case he needs it. But of course the heels beat him down, until Manny Fernandez saves him. At least we know that Manny Fernandez is a man of strong morality who would never stoop to such actions.

Baron Von Raschke v. Gene Ligon

Ligon is one of those Crockett jobbers who I never paid attention to back in the day, but he’s clearly a solid hand. Baron hits him with a knee to the gut and Gene tries to work the arm, but Baron beats on him with forearms and follows with the CLAWHOLD to finish at 1:55.

Meanwhile, on Worldwide, Ricky Morton attacks Ric Flair and kicks his ass in the ring, tearing his expensive suit off in the process. Johnny Weaver thinks Ricky might be the one to dethrone him. Yeah we say a lot of dumb stuff when we’re drunk.

Wahoo McDaniel v. Thunderfoot

Interestingly, Weaver slips up and starts calling the show “NWA Pro Wrestling” here, three weeks before the switch to the new name came about. Wahoo instantly chops Thunderfoot into pudding and pins him at 0:48.

Nighthawk joins us again, for the second time in the same show already, in what was probably a replacement for the local drop-in promo, as he talks about getting betrayed by Pez Whatley again. Again, it’s such a bizarre memory hole for me because I was totally watching the Worldwide show at this point in my life and have all the characters burned into my brain, and I absolutely do not remember ever seeing Nighthawk.

Shaska Whatley v. George South

South misses a dropkick and Whatley drops an elbow on him and then spits on him a bunch of times before dropping him on the top rope and following with a running headbutt at 1:40 to finish. And then Paul Jones joins in with a whipping and they try to cut off South’s glorious mullet, but Jimmy Valiant returns from exile and makes the save before doing a promo where he calls Shaska a JUDAS and threatens to make them all bald headed geeks.

Paul Jones and his army do their rebuttal as Bob reminds them that they couldn’t get the job done on Valiant. Baron accuses Jimmy and his friends of being a bunch of TUGS. Sounds bad.

Magnum TA and a pretty sweet “America’s Team” shirt talk about Nikita Koloff and how he can shut up the Russians once and for all. You know, if wrestling merch was a thing you could do as easily as today, Crockett could have made millions off wrestling shirts and probably staved off bankruptcy for a while.

Gorgeous Jimmy Garvin v. Art Fleming

Jimmy has a red sequined ring gear this week, and finishes with the brainbuster at 0:55.

The Russians join us and Bob wants to know why they’re still not answering Magnum’s repeated challenges for the US title. Ivan points out that Nephew Nikita is like a fungus on Magnum, a cancer eating at him that means he can’t sleep at night and can’t eat in the day.

Leo Burke v. Ron Rossi

Burke attacks Rossi and chokes him out with his jacket in the corner, but Rossi comes back with a kneelift and drops a knee on him for the pin at 1:15. And Bob very clearly says we’re watching NWA Pro Wrestling here as they start the changeover. Well we’ve only got 3 episodes left anyway.

Nighthawk, who is basically the new co-host of the show at this point, continues talking about Paul Jones and his army, and thinks Paul is among the top 10 most evil and smartest people in the world. Hard no on both of those from me.

Ivan Koloff v. Rocky Kernodle

Ivan counters a wristlock by tossing Rocky out of the ring on his ass, but Rocky runs him into the post and goes to work on the arm in the ring. Ivan charges and hits the post again, and Rocky gets a hammerlock slam for two. So Ivan throws him out again, but Rocky comes back in with a sunset flip for two and goes back to the arm again. Ivan does a nice reversal to a headscissors, but Rocky escapes that and continues going after the arm with a hammerlock into the corner. Ivan boots him down to take over again and takes him down with the Russian Hammer chokehold for two. Rocky with another sunset flip for two and he blocks a suplex from Ivan and hits his own for two. Dropkick gets two. He even gets a monkey flip out of the corner, which is usually where the heel cuts off the plucky babyface, and that gets two. Ivan finally rakes the face to cut him off, but he misses a blind charge and Rocky rolls him up for two off that. Back to the arm again, and Rocky gets a crossbody for two. Shoulderbreaker and Rocky goes up to finish, but the flying bodypress only gets two. He ducks a clothesline and gets a rollup for one, but Ivan turns around and finally finishes with the Russian Sickle at 9:39. And the humiliated Ivan orders his troops to destroy the kid, but Magnum TA makes the save and gets into a giant brawl with Nikita until Repo Russian hits TA with his crutch to put him down. And Magnum is busted open, so all the babyfaces hit the ring and chase off the Russkies before carrying Magnum’s limp body to the back to end the show.

Too much Nighthawk on this one but the Koloff match was GREAT and the closing angle was bonkers stuff.