The SmarK Rant for Mid-South Wrestling – 02.12.83

The SmarK Rant for Mid-South Wrestling – 02.12.83

Originally written 08.21.25

Last time people said they were really excited for this one, so let’s give it a look!

Taped from Shreveport, LA

Your hosts are Boyd Pierce & Cowboy Bill Watts, who announces that there’s only one way to solve the North American title situation: A TOURNAMENT! March 21 in New Orleans.

Mr. Wrestling II joins us, with more masks that have been cut up and attached to threatening notes. Wrestling II is sick of this shit and tells him “for the 50,000^th time” to come and face him like a man if he’s so threatened!

Mr. Wrestling II v. Mike Bond

Wrestling II is all good and pissed off now, and that’s fine with Cowboy Bill! Because that’s how top athletes gain respect, by going out and WHOOPING PEOPLE. Also there’s nobody where promoters just pick them out of a crowd and say “You’re gonna be a star”. That’s so cute of him to say. I can think of at least a few examples where that literal thing happened. Wrestling II controls with a facelock on the mat and keeps Bond down with that. Bill is all “When you’re on the mat and he’s got you with a couple of flankers and a body ride…” but Bond goes for the mask before Bill can fully explore his story, and II goes nuts and finishes with the kneelift at 2:43.

Hacksaw Duggan may be the Louisiana state champion already, but the belt is small and doesn’t fit him, so he’s putting his hat into the ring for the North American title tournament. Also he wants to know WHERE IS THE BRASS KNUCKLES TOURNAMENT ALREADY? I’m also very curious about that because they’ve literally been bringing it up for 3 months with no announcement yet.

Hacksaw Duggan v. Art Crews

Crews dives in with a rollup for two and that just gets Duggan riled up, as he beats on Crews with forearms in the ropes. Duggan puts him down with a back elbow and goes to a chinlock while Watts regales us with tales of how Junkyard Dog used to lose matches all the time as Sylvester Ritter and then went to Calgary and suddenly became a winner, so you never know. Duggan finishes with the spear headbutt at 3:00.

Iron Mike Sharpe v. Kelly Kiniski

Mike actually takes Kelly down with a flying headscissors in something you don’t see every day, and now Watts reminisces about Ted Dibiase and his rookie year. Sharpe misses an elbow and Kelly drops an elbow on him for two and follows with a backbreaker for two. Kelly with a dropkick for two while Bill explains the lore of Ted Dibiase and his father, who ironically was also “Iron Mike”. Sharpe beats on Kelly in the corner while Bill again brings up young Dr. Death of the New Jersey Generals in the USFL. That’s literally another example of someone like Bill seeing someone and deciding they were gonna be a big star in wrestling before they ever wrestled a match. Sharpe with the clubbing forearms on the ropes and he puts Kelly down with a back elbow and follows with a dropkick before finishing with a lariat at 3:56. This heel run isn’t working out very well for young Kelly.

Tom Renesto & Sonny Rogers v. Buddy Landel & Joe Stark

I have no idea who the star team is supposed to be here. Bill continues his show-long storyline about “young guys fighting for the top” with this match, made up of four “preliminary boys” as Bill calls them. Buddy works the arm on Renesto as Watts again brings up young John Tenta from LSU, who I’m sure will shake up the wrestling industry. Stark gets a hot tag and Watts is like “Yup these guys are terrible but they try harder!” as Rogers comes off the top rope and hits his own partner by mistake, allowing Joe Stark to get the pin at 3:51, the first time I can recall seeing Stark or Budro winning at this point.

Mid-South tag team title: Ted Dibiase & Matt Borne v. Andre the Giant & Tony Atlas

Atlas works on Borne right away and fights off both heels on his own, so Tony tags in Andre and he just wrecks them. I’m very saddened to see the Megabucks fractured like this! The Rat Pack wisely bails to regroup after getting destroyed by Andre. Back in the ring, Borne attacks Andre and accidentally puts Dibiase down as a result, and Atlas comes in with a small package on Ted for two. He misses a charge and runs into Ted’s knee in the corner, allowing the champs to go to work. Borne drops a knee for two, but Andre comes in again and hits Dibiase with a big boot as Ted takes a hilarious bump off that, and Andre rams them together in much the way you’re apparently not supposed to beat up your children because the internet tells you it’s bad. Hacksaw Duggan runs in and attacks Andre as the ref is bumped, so Dibiase hits Andre with the loaded glove and Andre just shrugs it off. So Andre bearhugs both heels at the same time, but now Kamala runs in with a 2×4 and attacks Andre with that, and that’s a DQ at 6:15. So then Kamala SLAMS ANDRE and drops the big splash on him, as Andre is now bleeding and flattened, and finally JYD and Wrestling II make the save as an enraged Andre tries to regain his senses. This was a pretty awesome angle and it was crazy to see Andre looking any kind of vulnerable in 1983.

Junkyard Dog v. Marty Lunde

Dog slams Marty and hits him with headbutts to send him to the floor. Back in, Dog clotheslines him down for two and goes to a chinlock before choking him out on the ropes. Dog with a legsweep for two, but Lunde rakes the eyes, so Dog hits him with a hooking clothesline and pins him at 2:24.

Meanwhile, Bill Watts tries to interview Andre the Giant and Andre rants about Kamala and demands to have Kamala back in the ring so he can finish it himself, and he’s completely terrifying.

Don Bass v. Tim Horner

Horner with a pair of dropkicks and a flying headscissors, and he goes to work on the arm and takes Bass down with a headlock. Bass gets some shots to take over with time running out on the show, but Horner comes back with a backdrop that almost invented a Canadian Destroyer in 1983 and he follows with a bodypress for two. Thesz Press finishes at 3:12 and we’re out of time.

NEXT WEEK: Ric Flair defends the NWA World title against Kerry Von Erich in a cage match in Texas!

The theme of this show was “Young up-and-comers getting their shot at the top” but really it was three or four very specific up-and-comers who weren’t even in the territory yet that would turn things around later in the year. But oh man, that Andre angle was the good shit!