Cory's USWA

[Deleted]

The USWA makes its debut at the Oil Palace in Tyler, TX on September 18 with a star-studded card!
• Dan “The Beast” Severn will collide with “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan. Severn has been looking strong the last couple of weeks. Can he keep his momentum going, before he faces Steve Williams in the three-match series?
• Before challenging for the USWA World Heavyweight championship, Nick Bockwinkel will do battle with a Heenan Family rival—The Crusher. These two have traded wins in 2009. Can Crusher score another big win over Bock, or will Bock and Bobby “The Brain” prevail?
• In a grudge tag team match, the now former World Tag Team champions Magnificent Muraco and Greg “The Hammer” Valentine will take another former champion team—“Superfly” Jimmy Snuka and “The Boogie Woogie Man” “Handsome” Jimmy Valiant. Muraco and Valentine are looking for revenge on Snuka and Valiant for their attack on Muraco back in July in Birmingham, that injured his neck. Now that they’ve lost the titles, you can bet that Capt. Lou Albano’s men will be more fired up!
• Johnny Valentine continues his mission to destroy The Heenan Family, when he takes on Larry Zbyszko. Valentine looked impressive in his win against Larry “The Axe” Hennig this last week, but Zbyszko has been on a roll lately, and scored a controversial win over Valentine back in May in Tupelo. Who will win this hard-hitting bout?
• In the first of two championship bouts, “Beautiful” Bobby Eaton approaches his one-year anniversary as USWA Texas champion. But first he must defend against the man whom he beat—“Playboy” Buddy Rose. If Eaton retains, he will be a one-year champ, as he captured the gold on September 26, 2008, and there won’t be another Texas title defense by that point. Can he retain or will Rose become a two-time champ?
• The main event will be for the USWA Southern Heavyweight championship as Curt Hennig makes his first defense against two-time former champ and former World champ Frank Gotch. Neither man is very popular among the USWA fans, so it will be interesting to see with whom they side. Gotch has the technical wrestling skills, while Hennig is known for his sneakiness. Gotch will have Team RPW coach Dick Hutton in his corner, and you can bet that Bobby “The Brain” Heenan will lead his charge to the ring. Who will walk out of Tyler the “King of the South”?
All this, plus a rematch between “Nebraska Tiger Man” John Pesek and George South. Also, Diamond Dallas Page and more USWA superstars in action!


SOLID LINE UP for the inaugural show.

[Cory Olson]

Thanks to Kevin for the comments!

September 18, 2009
Card #221: Oil Palace in Tyler

1) Buff Bagwell and Chris Candido got a win in the opener via countout over Brad Armstrong and “The Birdman” Koko B. Ware. Bagwell and Candido kept Armstrong in the ring for the first several minutes of the match. Armstrong reversed a whip into the turnbuckle and sent “Buff Daddy” into the corner, then finally made the hot tag to Ware. Ware got a near fall after a crossbody block on Bagwell. Candido tagged in and worked over Koko. Suddenly Jim Cornette and The Heavenly Bodies made their way to ringside. Candido knocked Ware out of the ring, then kept Sam Platania distracted. The Bodies seized the opportunity to ram Ware’s head into the ring post, then quickly retreated to the locker room. Platania turned around and saw Ware on the floor. Armstrong tried to help his partner back in, but couldn’t get there in time, as Koko was counted out. **½

2) The Heavenly Bodies and Jim Cornette were soon back out to ringside. Cornette led his team to victory over Ted and Mike DiBiase in a very exciting match. This was a back-and-forth bout. The Bodies kept the younger DiBiase in the ring for quite a while, working him over. Ted made a comeback and tagged out to his father. “Iron” Mike hit his top rope knee drop to Dr. Tom Prichard’s back, but Prichard managed to kick out. Ted came back in and hit a power slam, and then his famed right hand. The punch busted Prichard open, but he still managed to kick out. The blood started flowing quickly and the “Doctor of Desire” was soon a bloody mess. Somehow he managed to tag out to Stan Lane, who worked over Ted. He tagged back in to Prichard and they hit a Flapjack, which busted Ted open as well. Ted was fighting hard. Prichard ran over and knocked Mike off the apron. While Tom Branch was admonishing Prichard for his actions, Cornette seized the opportunity. He jumped up on the apron and cracked Ted in the head with the tennis racquet. Ted dropped and was easy prey for “Sweet” Stan, who made the cover and got the tainted win. *****

3) “Tiger Man” John Pesek avenged his only USWA loss so far, making quick work of George South. Pesek didn’t underestimate South on this occasion. He outwrestled South at every turn. South tried his hardest for a repeat win, but Pesek was ready. Pesek scored a submission with a double wristlock. DUD

4) Diamond Dallas Page rebounded from his loss in challenging for the USWA World Heavyweight title two weeks ago to get a dominant win over Brutus Beefcake. Page had the Tyler fans behind him and used his offensive arsenal on the former Texas champ. Page busted Beefcake open after a big clothesline off the top rope. DDP used the Diamond Cutter to finally put Beefcake down for the pin. *

5) Dan “The Beast” Severn scored a submission win over “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan. Duggan was fighting not only for teammate Steve Williams, but also for his own revenge, as Severn tore his pectoral muscle back with the bow and arrow back in April. This was a hard-hitting bout, that even spilled out of the ring a few times. Duggan charged at Severn, but missed and his shoulder hit the ring post. “Hacksaw” had the advantage inside the ring and sent Severn into the corner. Severn reversed the whip and managed to push Duggan’s wounded shoulder into the buckles. He then took Duggan down into the wakigatame and forced the American hero to tap out. ½*

6) The Crusher scored a countout victory over Nick Bockwinkel. Bockwinkel started the match very aggressively, wanting to guarantee a win before his shot at the USWA World Heavyweight title on the next card. He attempted both the sleeper and the figure-four early on, but it was too soon to put down the big Crusher. Crusher utilized his brawling skills throughout the bout, even using a chair that Bockwinkel attempted to use, while Bobby Heenan had Tommy Marlin distracted. Crusher intercepted the chair and smashed Bockwinkel across the back with it. In the ring, “Da” Crusher landed the Bolo and went for a cover, but Bockwinkel managed to kick out. He later hit another Bolo and went for a cover, but Heenan again distracted Marlin. Crusher realized what was going on and was going to go after “The Brain”. Bockwinkel managed to recover and attacked Crusher outside the ring, before he could get his hands on the manager. Back in the ring, Bockwinkel nailed Crusher with a big top rope sledge. Crusher was hurt, but managed to stay upright. Bockwinkel went for the move again, but before he could jump, Crusher got to the corner and blasted him with a big forearm shot. The smash sent Bockwinkel flying off the top rope and to the floor! Heenan ran over to check on his man. Meanwhile Marlin put the count on Bockwinkel, who was still down on the floor. The count hit 10 and Marlin called for the bell, awarding the match to The Crusher! Crusher made his way back to the locker room, shaking hands with fans, while the “Beer Barrel Polka” played throughout the Oil Palace. The rest of the Heenan Family came down to check on Bockwinkel. He managed to get to his feet and walk with assistance back to the locker room. It appeared that the three-time former World champ was shook up, but otherwise OK. ***¼

7) The third countout of the card occurred, as Magnificent Muraco and Greg Valentine defeated Jimmy Snuka and Jimmy Valiant in what was a wild “bout” that barely got started. As the “Superfly” and “The Boogie Woogie Man” entered the ring, Capt. Lou Albano’s team swarmed them for an attack. The fan favorites were ready and countered the ambush. Valiant and Valentine rolled out of the ring, and “The Hammer” fled to the locker room, with “Handsome” Jimmy following him to the back. This left rivals Snuka and Muraco in the ring. The “Superfly” hit a piledriver on Muraco, then hit a Superfly Leap off the top rope. He went for a cover, but Albano started crawling in the ring, unseen by Sam Platania. Snuka saw it and got off of Muraco, to go after Albano outside the ring. He started choking the rubber banded manager, and then blasted him with chops and head butts. Meanwhile Platania was counting Snuka out and hit the 10-count. He called for the bell, giving Muraco and Valentine the countout victory, even though Valentine was not in the arena and Muraco was down and out! The fans were unhappy, but Snuka pleased them by hitting another Superfly on Muraco for good measure. While Muraco and Valentine were technically the winners, they looked far from it here and you can bet this war is far from over! neg*

8) Johnny Valentine got a disqualification victory over Larry Zbyszko. Zbyszko, as he often does, stalled locking up with the first USWA World champion in the first minute, before attacking with a cheap shot. He tried to put Valentine down on several occasions with a sleeperhold, but couldn’t keep him down. Valentine fought back using the abdominal stretch several times, before going to his patented Atomic Skullcrushers. Being in trouble, Zbyszko attempted to take off the turnbuckle pad, but Tom Branch cut him off and admonished him. While Zbyszko tried to make excuses, Valentine recovered, and nailed him from behind with a forearm, which sent Zbyszko into the buckle and busted him open. Zbyszko was irate and raked Valentine’s eyes. He then started choking Valentine in the corner. Branch warned Zbyszko about this and gave him a five-count. Zbyszko didn’t break the hold and was disqualified. Valentine finally broke the choke and went after Zbyszko and Bobby Heenan, but the duo fled. Even though Valentine got the victory, it probably wasn’t the type he would have liked. ***½

9) “Beautiful” Bobby Eaton will reach the one-year mark with his USWA Texas title reign, as he defeated former champ, and the man from whom he won the title last year, “Playboy” Buddy Rose. Although the fans weren’t too keen on Jim Cornette, they did give Eaton a nice ovation, probably since he was battling Rose! But also, they did like Eaton’s athleticism and dominance as their Lone Star State champ. Eaton used his high flying skills to rock Rose. It took one Alabama Jam to put Rose down for the pin. With his win, Eaton goes to 9-1 overall in 2009, with no losses by pin or submission in singles competition. ½*

10) The main event saw Curt Hennig make his first defense of the USWA Southern Heavyweight title against two-time former champ Frank Gotch. While Team RPW is far from the most popular group of wrestlers in the USWA today, the fans seemed to favor the challenger, most likely wanting to see history made in Tyler. The champ had the early advantage, using his quickness to control Gotch. He nailed both a standing dropkick, as well as a missile version off the top. Gotch came back and tried to ground Hennig, by locking on the rolling kneebar. Curt fought back and busted Gotch open with a big running knee lift. He hit the Hennig Plex and scored the victory to retain the gold. This was a very impressive victory for Hennig, who despite holding the Southern gold, has only wrestled a handful of singles bouts in the USWA. ***¾

[Cory Olson]

Highlights of the last three editions of USWA Championship Wrestling:
• Some more matches were announced for the card at the Sailors and Soldiers Memorial Coliseum in Evansville on October 16. In addition to the first match of the three-match challenge between Steve Williams and Dan Severn, “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka and Magnificent Muraco will collide, as well as their partners “The Boogie Woogie Man” “Handsome” Jimmy Valiant and Greg “The Hammer” Valentine. The tag team match between the four on the last card was a wild one. We’ll see who reigns supreme in singles competition!
• In the next week’s episode, the main event for that card was revealed. The Killer Bees will make their first defense of the USWA World Tag Team titles when they take on Jim Cornette’s Heavenly Bodies. The Bodies’ only loss in the USWA so far was to The Bees. Now they’ll get their opportunity to avenge that loss and become the top tag team in the USWA!
• On the October 3 edition, it was announced that Johnny Valentine will get a shot at revenge against Nick Bockwinkel, also in Evansville. Valentine will get to face Southern Heavyweight champion Curt Hennig on the next card (see Card#222 preview below), so he will have faced the three other Heenan Family members prior to this match-up. But depending on the next card, Valentine could be battling the World Heavyweight champion!

The USWA presents a big night of wrestling action on October 9 at the Civic Coliseum in Knoxville!
• “Tiger Man” John Pesek will take on his toughest challenge in the USWA to-date when he faces Greg “The Hammer” Valentine. Valentine is a two-time former World Tag Team and former Texas champion, and has scored many big upsets in the past. Can Pesek stop him?
• Diamond Dallas Page will collide with Larry Zbyszko. These two have had some big battles this year. Both men are looking for a win to move on in the USWA title picture. Who will emerge victorious?
• A big six-man tag team bout will take place when The DiBiases and “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan battle the Team RPW trio of Frank Gotch, Dan “The Beast” Severn, and Danny Hodge. The DiBiases and “Hacksaw” better beware Severn’s wakigatame!
• Johnny Valentine will collide with Southern Heavyweight champion Curt Hennig in a non-title grudge match. Hennig was instrumental in injuring Valentine, along with his father Larry and Nick Bockwinkel. While a win over the Southern champ is definitely important to Valentine, he’s also out for revenge on the undefeated Hennig!
• The main event will be a huge bout for the USWA World Heavyweight championship. Three-time current titleholder Ed “Strangler” Lewis will defend against three-time former champ Nick Bockwinkel. Bockwinkel’s mission is to become the first four-time champ. After his countout loss to The Crusher, what shape will Bockwinkel be in? Can Lewis keep the gold or will Bockwinkel win it in Knoxville?
All this plus a tag team rematch between Brad Armstrong and Koko B. Ware taking on Buff Bagwell and Chris Candido. Plus, the World Tag Team champions The Killer Bees in action, as well as The Crusher!

[Deleted]

Highlights of the last three editions of USWA Championship Wrestling:
• Some more matches were announced for the card at the Sailors and Soldiers Memorial Coliseum in Evansville on October 16. In addition to the first match of the three-match challenge between Steve Williams and Dan Severn, “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka and Magnificent Muraco will collide, as well as their partners “The Boogie Woogie Man” “Handsome” Jimmy Valiant and Greg “The Hammer” Valentine. The tag team match between the four on the last card was a wild one. We’ll see who reigns supreme in singles competition!
• In the next week’s episode, the main event for that card was revealed. The Killer Bees will make their first defense of the USWA World Tag Team titles when they take on Jim Cornette’s Heavenly Bodies. The Bodies’ only loss in the USWA so far was to The Bees. Now they’ll get their opportunity to avenge that loss and become the top tag team in the USWA!
• On the October 3 edition, it was announced that Johnny Valentine will get a shot at revenge against Nick Bockwinkel, also in Evansville. Valentine will get to face Southern Heavyweight champion Curt Hennig on the next card (see Card#222 preview below), so he will have faced the three other Heenan Family members prior to this match-up. But depending on the next card, Valentine could be battling the World Heavyweight champion!

The USWA presents a big night of wrestling action on October 9 at the Civic Coliseum in Knoxville!
• “Tiger Man” John Pesek will take on his toughest challenge in the USWA to-date when he faces Greg “The Hammer” Valentine. Valentine is a two-time former World Tag Team and former Texas champion, and has scored many big upsets in the past. Can Pesek stop him?
• Diamond Dallas Page will collide with Larry Zbyszko. These two have had some big battles this year. Both men are looking for a win to move on in the USWA title picture. Who will emerge victorious?
• A big six-man tag team bout will take place when The DiBiases and “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan battle the Team RPW trio of Frank Gotch, Dan “The Beast” Severn, and Danny Hodge. The DiBiases and “Hacksaw” better beware Severn’s wakigatame!
• Johnny Valentine will collide with Southern Heavyweight champion Curt Hennig in a non-title grudge match. Hennig was instrumental in injuring Valentine, along with his father Larry and Nick Bockwinkel. While a win over the Southern champ is definitely important to Valentine, he’s also out for revenge on the undefeated Hennig!
• The main event will be a huge bout for the USWA World Heavyweight championship. Three-time current titleholder Ed “Strangler” Lewis will defend against three-time former champ Nick Bockwinkel. Bockwinkel’s mission is to become the first four-time champ. After his countout loss to The Crusher, what shape will Bockwinkel be in? Can Lewis keep the gold or will Bockwinkel win it in Knoxville?
All this plus a tag team rematch between Brad Armstrong and Koko B. Ware taking on Buff Bagwell and Chris Candido. Plus, the World Tag Team champions The Killer Bees in action, as well as The Crusher!


The USWA is on FIRE!

[Cory Olson]

Thanks as always to Kevin for the comments and predictions!

October 9, 2009
Card #222: Civic Coliseum in Knoxville

1) Brad Armstrong and Koko B. Ware got a measure of revenge in the opener defeating Buff Bagwell and Chris Candido by countout. This was a good back-and-forth tag team match. Armstrong and “The Birdman” hit “Buff Daddy” with a double dropkick, which knocked him out of the ring. Bagwell was too hurt and couldn’t return to the ring by the 10-count. Bagwell and Candido got the countout win on the last card with help from The Heavenly Bodies, but this time it was Armstrong and Ware getting a countout win. **

2) The Heavenly Bodies defeated Cousin Luke and S.D. Jones. The Bodies kept “Special Delivery” in the ring for the first few minutes. They hit a Flapjack on Jones, then Tom Prichard followed up with an enzuigiri for a near fall. Jones tagged out to the hillbilly, who ran wild on “Sweet” Stan Lane and even hit the Hillbilly Drop for a two-count. Luke missed a splash in the corner and The Bodies took over again. They hit the Rocket Launcher and Dr. Tom got the pin. Jim Cornette was happy about his men’s win, prior to challenging for the USWA World Tag Team titles next week in Evansville. **½

3) The Crusher made short work of “The Unpredictable” Johnny Rodz. “The Man Who Made Milwaukee Famous” put Rodz down after a big Crusher Bolo in about one minute. DUD

4) World Tag Team champions The Killer Bees defeated “Playboy” Buddy Rose and “Pretty Boy” Larry Sharpe. The Bees received a big ovation from the Knoxville crowd, wrestling their first match since winning the belts from Magnificent Muraco and Greg Valentine a few weeks ago. The champs put on a tag team wrestling clinic against “Sensational” Sherri Martel’s men. Rose hit a desperation DDT out of nowhere on “Jumping” Jim Brunzell for a near fall. Sharpe tagged in, but Brunzell took over and tagged back to B. Brian Blair. Blair worked over the “Pretty Boy”, tagged Brunzell back in, and The Bees hit the Bee Sting to put Sharpe down for the count. **½

5) Larry “The Axe” Hennig defeated Antonino Rocca by DQ in a great back-and-forth battle. This was a match-up of Rocca’s speed and quickness vs. Hennig’s power and strength. Rocca went on the attack early, but got caught with a body slam in attempting a flying body press off the top rope. Hennig locked on a bear hug, which he used to make “Argentina” Rocca submit in a tag team bout a few weeks ago in Lexington (The Hennigs defeated Rocca and The Crusher). Rocca would not give tonight, and Hennig eventually released the hold. Rocca fought back with the fans rooting him on. He attempted the Argentinian Backbreaker, but couldn’t get the big man up. Hennig later blasted Rocca with The Axe and went for a cover, but Rocca kicked out. Rocca rallied back again and finally got Hennig up in the backbreaker. Hennig managed to get a leg over the top rope and Jerry Calhoun called for a break. Rocca saw that Bobby “The Brain” Heenan happened to be on that side of the ring and the Argentinian dumped Hennig over the top rope onto his own manager! Rocca was about to go out after “The Axe”, but Calhoun warned him. Rocca responded by shoving the referee down, which immediately led to a disqualification. Hennig and Heenan retreated to the locker room, before the fiery Rocca could continue his assault! ***¼

6) “Tiger Man” John Pesek scored a submission win over Greg “The Hammer” Valentine. This was a physical bout. Pesek showcased more of his “mean” side that he’s gained notoriety for in the wrestling world, slipping in some dirty tactics like eye gouging. Valentine, known for his share of dirty tactics, fought fire with fire. The bout went out of the ring on several occasions, and Capt. Lou Albano would provide occasional distractions to aid his man. In the end, it was scientific wrestling that helped Pesek win. He locked “The Hammer” in a double bar hammerlock and got the win. The Knoxville fans gave the Nebraskan a good ovation as he returned the locker room. ***

7) Larry Zbyszko scored the second victory of the night for The Heenan Family, defeating Diamond Dallas Page by countout. Page tried to wrap things up quickly, as he hit the Diamond Cutter out of nowhere, after dodging a Zbyszko karate kick. He went for the cover, but Bobby Heenan put Zbyszko’s foot on the ropes, unseen by Frank Morrell. Page continued his attack, hitting a big clothesline off the top rope. Zbyszko took over, and managed to remove the turnbuckle pad, while “The Brain” had Morrell distracted. He rammed Page’s head into the metal two times in a row. Page was knocked woozy from this. Zbyszko executed the piledriver and went for a cover, but somehow DDP managed to kick out at 2¾. Zbyszko looked shocked and was desperate for a win. He tossed Page out, and executed his piledriver on the arena floor. Page was out cold. Zbyszko crawled back and Morrell counted DDP out of the ring. The Crusher and Antonino Rocca came out and ran off Zbyszko and “The Weasel”. They checked on Page, who came to and was able to return to the locker room with some help. ***½

8) The Team RPW trio of Frank Gotch, Dan “The Beast” Severn, and Danny Hodge defeated three of their rivals—The DiBiases and “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan. Ted DiBiase and Hodge started the bout off. After Hodge gained control, he tagged out to Severn. “Iron” Mike came in and was getting beaten on by Severn, but hit a sunset flip out of nowhere for a two-count. Mike hit the top rope knee drop to Severn’s back and rolled him over for a cover, but Severn kicked out. He tagged his son back in and the DiBiases hit a double suplex on Severn. Ted went for a cover, but Severn kicked out once again. Ted locked on the figure-four lock, but Hodge made a save. Severn later caught Mike in a bow and arrow, but Mike showed his toughness and broke the hold with punches. “Hacksaw” and Hodge went at it, in a “styles clash”. Duggan had control and had the crowd chanting “USA”. He got too fired up and missed the Old Glory knee drop and landed hard. Ted and Severn were back in against one another. Out of nowhere, Ted decked “The Beast” with his big right hand and dropped him. He went for a cover, but both Gotch and Hodge jumped in to break up the pin. Duggan and Mike were both in and all six men were brawling, until Paul Neighbors got things back in control. Severn was bleeding from the punch, but managed to tag out to Gotch. Gotch and “Iron” Mike were going at it. Mike eliminated Gotch from the big eight-man tag team Elimination Match at Independence Day Bash, and Gotch was trying to beat him now, hitting the Iowa backdrop, and then locking on the rolling kneebar. Mike tried to punch out the former World champ, but Gotch fought out of the position and tagged “The Beast” back in. Severn managed to get Mike down and lock on a heel hook, which brought about a tap out. Severn didn’t release the hold immediately after the bell. Knowing the possible damage of the hold, and having been injured himself by Severn in the past, “Hacksaw” grabbed his 2X4 and clocked Severn in the shoulder with it. Severn rolled out of the ring as Gotch, Hodge, and Dick Hutton checked on him. Mike was alright after the loss, but Severn looked in worse shape. ***¼

9) Johnny Valentine gave Southern Heavyweight champion Curt Hennig his first loss in singles in a bloody non-title match. Valentine went right on the attack, hitting two Atomic Skullcrushers. Bobby Heenan jumped up on the apron to distract Valentine before he could make a cover. Hennig gained control after a big running knee lift, and then blasted Valentine with a standing dropkick for a near fall. Valentine rolled out of the ring for a breather. While Hennig distracted Frank Morrell, Nick Bockwinkel, dressed in his ring jacket for his main event match, came down to ringside. He grabbed Curt’s Southern title belt from the announcers’ table and smashed Valentine in the head with it, drawing blood. He then tossed Valentine back in the ring and arrogantly walked back to the locker room. Hennig seized the opportunity and caught Valentine in the Hennig Plex. It looked over, but somehow Valentine managed to kick out. Hennig immediately hit a second Hennig Plex, but Valentine once again kicked out. The crowd was going wild at this point! Curt went up to the top rope, but Valentine got to the corner before Hennig could come off and slammed Hennig to the mat. He then blasted Hennig with another Atomic Skullcrusher, which busted him open as well! Heenan was about to enter the ring, but Valentine saw him and dropped him with a Skullcrusher! Heenan dropped and rolled out of the ring. Valentine then picked up the Southern champ, and delivered another Skullcrusher, just for good measure, then covered him to score the pin! Valentine got his arm raised in victory, but wasn’t done. Showing his frustration over what The Heenan Family has done to him this year, he picked up Hennig and delivered two more Skullcrushers! He then grabbed a steel chair from ringside and brought it into the ring. Morrell warned Valentine about using the chair, but received a Skullcrusher from Valentine in return! Valentine cracked Hennig across the head with the chair. Bockwinkel, Larry Zbyszko, and Curt’s father, Larry ran down to ringside, but Valentine swung the chair at them. The Heenan Family was scared to enter the ring, as Valentine was going berserk! Several USWA referees and officials came down as well to try and reason with Valentine. He then dropped two more Skullcrushers, threw the chair down, and walked back to the locker room. The fans, even though they were shocked by what the saw, cheered Valentine as an “anti-hero” of sorts, knowing what Hennig and the rest of The Heenan Family has done to him. Bockwinkel, Zbyszko, and “The Axe” checked on both their manager and the Southern champ and helped them to the back. ****½

10) Thankfully for The Heenan Family, there was an intermission prior to the main event, as it gave them some time to regroup after the chaos that ensued in the last match! Bobby Heenan was visible shaken up, but still accompanied Nick Bockwinkel to the ring, as Bockwinkel challenged Ed “Strangler” Lewis for the USWA World Heavyweight championship. The bout started off with some great mat wrestling by both men, although the champ had slightly more control throughout. When he couldn’t outwrestle the “Strangler”, Bockwinkel took to some rough tactics, particularly choking Lewis on the ropes, as well as taking him outside the ring and smashing him into mat. Back in the ring, Bockwinkel applied his version of the sleeper. Lewis started fading, but out of nowhere grabbed the ropes for the break. Lewis fought back and took Bockwinkel down with the Strangler’s Headlock, but the challenger kept his shoulders off the mat and managed to break free of the hold. Bockwinkel came back and again applied the sleeper, after using more roughhouse tactics. Lewis fought hard, but dropped to his knees. Jerry Calhoun checked Lewis’ arm and it dropped three times. Calhoun called for the bell and awarded the belt to the now four-time (and record-setting) champion Nick Bockwinkel! After the events of the previous match, Bobby “The Brain” Heenan was ecstatic! He jumped into the ring and celebrated with his man. Larry Hennig and Larry Zbyszko came down to celebrate with the new champ as well. (Curt Hennig was too injured from the attack by Johnny Valentine to come out.) John Pesek came to the ring to revive the “Strangler” and help him to the back, while The Heenan Family continued their celebration and the Knoxville fans booed the sight they were seeing! ***

[Deleted]

FAN'FRIGGIN'TASTIC CARD!
Bock on top again, I hope he and Valentine meet for the strap.
The USWA is white hot fans.

[TDalton]

Thank goodness the title change didn't happen in Louisville - those crazy fans might have burned the arena down!

Nice to see Pesek overcoming that loss to George South in his debut. Great stuff!

[Cory Olson]

Thanks to Kevin and Tim for the comments!

A very newsworthy edition of USWA Championship Wrestling on October 10:
• Lance Russell interviewed the members of The Heenan Family, minus Southern Heavyweight champion Curt Hennig. The Family was in a celebratory mood, coming off Nick Bockwinkel’s fourth World title victory the night before in Knoxville. When Russell asked about Hennig’s condition, “The Brain” revealed that Hennig had suffered a concussion in Johnny Valentine’s brutal attack. Heenan pleaded to the USWA Committee that Valentine be suspended and arrested for what he did! Russell stated that that wouldn’t happen any time soon, but he had received word that Valentine would receive the next shot at Hennig’s Southern title, coming off his non-title victory. The match will take place on October 23 at the Earl Belle Community Center in Jonesboro, AR. Heenan was shocked by this, and stated that Valentine shouldn’t be “rewarded” for his “barbaric actions”. Heenan said he was going to get his lawyers to overturn the Committee’s decision.
• Bockwinkel is angry by Valentine’s attack on his teammate. But you have to give him credit; he’s not resting after regaining the World championship. In addition to facing Valentine on next week’s card (see Card #223 preview below), he’ll also face The Crusher in Jonesboro the next week. Crusher beat Bockwinkel by countout in Tyler, TX, prior to Bockwinkel regaining the gold. A non-title win over the champ would be a big win for “The Man Who Made Milwaukee Famous”!
• Also, it has already been announced that Ed “Strangler” Lewis will get a rematch for the gold on November 6 at the Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis.
• In another injury update, Frank Gotch revealed that Dan “The Beast” Severn suffered a minor shoulder separation in getting hit by “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan’s 2X4. But the former USWA champion wasn’t backing down from the three-match series and will meet Steve “Dr. Death” Williams in the ring next week!

The USWA returns to the Sailors and Soldiers Memorial Coliseum in Evansville, IN on October 16!
• Two tag teams hope to finally get a decisive decision, when Brad Armstrong and Koko B. Ware collide with Buff Bagwell and Chris Candido. Each team holds a countout win over the other. Can one team get a pin or submission decision?
• Two feuding tag teams will go at it in two singles matches. “The Boogie Woogie Man” “Handsome” Jimmy Valiant will take on Greg “The Hammer” Valentine, while “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka will face Magnificent Muraco. Capt. Lou Albano’s men got a controversial countout win on September 18 in Tyler. What will happen in Evansville?
• The Crusher will collide with Heenan Family member Larry Zbyszko. Zbyszko piledrove Diamond Dallas Page on the arena floor last week and Crusher is out for revenge on his partner’s behalf!
• In the first match of what should be an exciting three-match series, Steve “Dr. Death” Williams will collide with Dan “The Beast” Severn. This will be under standard pro wrestling rules: pinfalls, submissions, countouts, and disqualifications are all possible. What condition are both men in after recent injuries?
• World Heavyweight champion Nick Bockwinkel will collide with his rival Johnny Valentine. This is the first time the two have met since the Independence Day Bash, when Bockwinkel and The Hennigs injured Valentine’s leg. Valentine injured Curt Hennig in return, so more fuel has been added to this fire!
• The main event will be for the USWA World Tag Team titles. The Killer Bees will make their first defense when they face The Heavenly Bodies. Jim Cornette has managed the two Midnight Express versions to six total World Tag Team titles (“Sweet” Stan Lane to two of those title reigns). Can he make it seven or will The Bees sting The Bodies?
All this plus USWA Texas champion “Beautiful” Bobby Eaton, and more superstars in action!

[goblue168]

great to see bock on top.

[Cory Olson]

Thanks to Go Blue for the comments! I'm interested to see how Bock does in his fourth reign!

BREAKING NEWS!
Williams-Severn Series Postponed!

It was announced on the October 12 edition of the WMC-TV Evening News during the sports report with “Big” Jack Eaton that the three-match series between Steve “Dr. Death” Williams and Dan “The Beast” Severn was postponed. Williams did an interview that same day with "Big" Jack and stated that he wanted no excuses and wanted Severn at 100% for this series. He’s had to live with the fact that when he beat Severn in the NCAA tournament, Severn had a bad knee, and he's long heard that that was the only reason he defeated Severn on the collegiate mat. He doesn’t want wrestling fans making excuses when he beats Severn in the different forms of one-on-one combat!

As far as the October 16 card in Evansville, former USWA World champion and Severn’s Team RPW teammate Frank Gotch will take his place and do battle with Williams. Gotch defeated Williams with his toehold in the same arena back in July, and gave Williams his first pinfall or submission loss in the USWA at that time. You can bet Williams will be looking to avenge that loss in his first match back from injury!

Stay tuned, USWA fans, for more updates on the Williams-Severn series!