Cory's USWA

[TTX]

oh I know you're ahead of your posting, but sometimes fate seems to bring these things to happen.

[Cory Olson]

August 6, 2018
Card #553: Tupelo Sports Arena

1) “The Unpredictable” Johnny Rodz picked up a win in the opener over Mike Jackson. Jackson had another tough outing here. He kicked out of pin attempts by the New Yorker after a back elbow smash and a piledriver but got put down for the three-count after the shoulder breaker in two minutes. DUD

2) The Fantastics defeated “Dastardly” Danny Doring and The Amish RoadKill via countout. The two former Mid-America champs Doring and Tommy Rogers went at it, with Doring briefly having the upper hand after a G-Spot Sweep. He tagged to “The Angry Amish Warrior,” who immediately went up top for an Amish Splash but Rogers rolled out of the way. The Fantastics cut the ring in half on the chicken plucker, tagging in and out. Bobby Fulton scored a near fall on RoadKill with a crossbody block and Rogers scored one with a crucifix roll-up. RoadKill rolled out of the ring but Rogers followed, nailing him with a beautiful slingshot plancha. Despite Doring’s yells, RoadKill was not able to get back into the ring, so the Fantastics earned a countout victory in four minutes. While it was probably not the type of win they would have preferred, the Tupelo fans gave them a big ovation! *

3) The Barbarian picked up an impressive win over Billy Gunn in 22 minutes. The Barbarian was accompanied by Doctor X. This was a back-and-forth battle between these two. Gunn showcased his power by lifting the big Barbarian with a Cobra Clutch slam midway through the match and scoring a two-count. Gunn later executed the Famouser but Barbarian again kicked out at two. The Barbarian took control and used two shoulder breakers for a near fall. In the end, he came off the top rope with a diving head butt and then off the top again with the flying clothesline to pick up the pinfall. After the bout, Doctor X entered the ring and handed something to the Barbarian, which the big man placed into his boot. X held up a wounded Gunn, while Barbarian delivered a loaded kick to the face! Several USWA officials came down to check on Gunn, while Barbarian and X returned to the back. (None of the Armstrongs were present in Tupelo since they were not booked to wrestle on this card.) ***¼

4) The Uptown Boys were victorious over George South and Tony Boyles. South and Boyles looked like they might score a huge upset over the next challengers for the World Tag Team titles, as South scored an early two-count on Marty Jannetty after a dropkick. The Arkansas native Boyles tagged in and dropped an elbow on Jannetty for another near fall. Jannetty made the hot tag to Ric McCord, who ran wild on Boyles, including executing a side saddle suplex. McCord tagged back to Jannetty, who executed the Rocker Dropper and scored the pin in four minutes. The Uptown Boys looked ready to challenge for the USWA World Tag Team titles for the first time in next week’s main event at the Louisville Gardens! *

5) In a first-time meeting of two newcomers to the USWA in 2018, Dutch Savage came out the winner over Jackie Fargo via disqualification in six minutes. Savage had the early advantage, using a thumb to the throat to weaken “The Fabulous” Fargo. He followed up with a clothesline for a near fall. A few moments later, Savage set up Fargo for the running piledriver but before he could execute the move, Fargo blocked it and backdropped him out of it into a pinning combination. Savage kicked out at two. Fargo knocked Savage out of the ring after some big forearms and then followed him. A wild brawl took place and it looked like both combatants might get disqualified or counted out. Fargo pulled Gary Michael Cappetta off of his chair at ringside and then smashed Savage in the head with it. Unfortunately, Frank Morrell saw this and disqualified Fargo after six minutes. While Savage was shaken up from the chair shot, he had enough wherewithal to gloat about getting his hand raised! He retreated to the back before Fargo could dish out more punishment! *½

6) “The Man with The Cast Iron Stomach” Pepper Gomez picked up an impressive win over one-half of the World Tag Team champions Chris Tolos! Gomez largely dominated Tolos from the opening bell. He took Tolos down to the mat with a stomach claw and tried to get a submission or pinfall but Tolos managed to grab the bottom rope. Gomez stayed on the offensive and hit the Mexican Leap, followed immediately by the Mexican cradle to score the pinfall in about one minute and 45 seconds! Tolos was outraged by the loss, while the Tupelo fans gave the former Southern and Mid-America champion a big pop for his win! DUD

7) The First Family of Wrestling continued their battles with the Gilbert family, as two-time former World Heavyweight champion Harley Race defeated Tommy Gilbert in a very competitive 16-minute match. This was another back-and-forth bout between these two rivals with the Gilbert patriarch coming very close to scoring a win on Race. Race hit a back suplex midway through the bout for a two-count and followed up with the vertical suplex but again Gilbert kicked out. Race hit the piledriver but Gilbert got a foot on the ropes. Race went up to the top rope but before he could take off, Gilbert got to his feet and body slammed Race off the top and to the mat! Gilbert went to work on Race and hit two running knee lifts in a row but Race kicked out. Gilbert soon followed up with a third knee lift. He covered Race but Jimmy Hart distracted Jerry Calhoun. “The Mouth of The South’s” involvement brought out Eddie Gilbert from the back to keep an eye on the manager! Tommy stayed in control but Race took over with a head butt, which drew blood on Tommy. Race hit another suplex and piledriver but Gilbert managed to kick out at 2¾! Race went up top and hit the diving head butt to score the winning pinfall on his rival! ****¼

8) Mr. Hughes picked up a very big win, albeit thanks largely to Jim Cornette, over two-time former World Heavyweight champion “The Boogie Woogie Man” “Handsome” Jimmy Valiant. “The Boy from New York City” had the initial advantage, using tactics to try to defeat his larger opponent, such as the sleeper and an ear clap. Hughes got to the ropes on the sleeper and kicked out a pin attempt after the ear clap. “Handsome” Jimmy later in the match landed the Boogie Woogie elbow, landing across Hughes’s sunglasses and drawing blood on the bodyguard. He went for a cover but Hughes got a foot on the ropes. Valiant executed a neckbreaker but again Hughes kicked out. Valiant went up to the top rope but before he could leap, Cornette got up on the ring apron, pulled brass knuckles out his jacket pocket, slipped them on, and then decked “Boogie Woogie” in the face with them! Valiant dropped to the ring. Frank Morrell was focused on Hughes’s condition and did not see these antics taking place behind him. Hughes got to his feet and executed a power bomb on Valiant for good measure. He covered him and scored the pin after 24 minutes. The former Southern champion and bodyguard for Cornette was bloodied and beaten but came out the winner! ****½

9) In a tag team match-up featuring competitors in two upcoming singles championship bouts, Southern Heavyweight champion “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson and Colt “Boom Boom” Cabana defeated Mid-America Heavyweight champion Luke Harper and his employer “The Monday Night Messiah” Tyler Black. Black and Harper double teamed the host of The Art of Wrestling for several minutes. Harper took his next challenger out of the ring and sent him into the ring steps. Back inside, he tagged to Black, who hit the curb stomp but Danielson broke up a pin attempt. The Chicago native later made the hot tag to “Dragon” but Harper cut him off with a half nelson suplex. Black tagged in against the Southern champion and hit a diving knee strike for a near fall. It looked as if the rulebreakers would come out the victors when Black tossed Danielson out of the ring and went for a suicide dive. Danielson dodged the dive and Black hit the guard railing hard. Danielson tossed him back into the ring and immediately applied the LeBell Lock. Harper attempted a save but was cut off by Cabana. Black was trapped and in a lot of pain, so he tapped out after 16 minutes of action. It was a great comeback win for Danielson and Cabana! What will happen in two weeks in Jackson in the two title bouts? ***¼

10) The main event was for the USWA World Heavyweight championship. Current and two-time champion The Patriot put the title on the line against two-time former Southern Heavyweight champion “Classy” Freddie Blassie. Blassie challenged then-champion Harley Race for the title two months ago at the Nashville Fairgrounds. Blassie was in control but got disqualified when the Tolos Brothers got overzealous and attacked Race. As he had announced on Championship Wrestling, the World Tag Team champions accompanied Blassie to ringside for the start of this bout to keep an eye on him.

The champion had the early advantage and hit a power slam for a two-count. Blassie fought back and tried to bite through the champion’s mask. He got the Patriot down on the mat and delivered a series of knee drops. He covered the champion but only got a two-count. The battle was back and forth until “The King of Men” regained control, without any interference from the Toloses. He clamped on a stomach claw and drove the Patriot to the mat. Jerry Calhoun checked on the champion to see if he would get pinned or if he would submit. As he did, John Tolos, started to climb up the ring apron and then the ropes. He dove off the top and nailed Blassie from behind with a flying knee drop! Calhoun saw this and was very confused for a moment. When he saw that Blassie was attacked, he called for the bell after 16 minutes and disqualified the Patriot, giving Blassie another victory but once again not the World title. The match was over but not the action, as Chris Tolos entered the ring and grabbed Blassie by the arms. John then went into his jacket pocket and pulled out a bag. He then pulled some white powder out of it and threw it into Blassie’s eyes! Blassie writhed on the mat in pain and was screaming that he couldn’t see. The Patriot started to come to and saw what was transpiring. He tackled John but Chris stopped him and the World Tag Team champions double teamed the World champion. Suddenly, Eddie and Tommy Gilbert, “The Boogie Woogie Man” “Handsome” Jimmy Valiant (sporting a bandage from Jim Cornette’s brass knuckles), and more fan favorites sprinted to the ring. They chased off the Toloses and first checked on the Patriot’s condition. The World champion got to his feet and wanted to focus on his opponent’s condition. While the other fan favorites seemed hesitant to help Blassie, they eventually realized it was the right thing to do. Blassie was still unable to see. His former rival Valiant came over and told him that he wasn’t looking to fight but that he was there to help and that the Toloses had attacked him. Several USWA officials and paramedics came to the scene and helped Blassie to the back in one of the wildest moments in USWA history! ***¼

[bookerbill]

Great read Cory. End of the main event was classic

[TTX]

Main event was a nice twist. Also enjoy a nice Johnny Rodz win.

[neilybob]

awesome cory looking foward to the next card.

[Pariah]

The bookers appear to have made some interesting choices on this latest card... A bloody Mr Hughes going over against the Boogie Woogie Man as the two men deliver a 4.5 star performance... And a potential face turn for Blassie on the horizon following a shocking betrayal by the Tolos Brothers... Really never saw that coming.

Danielson & Cabana vs. Black & Harper was a sharp preview of the upcoming title action... And that exchange between Barbarian and Kip James was top notch... Can't wait to see how things progress there.

Awesome as always!

[victoryroll84]

The Mr. Hughes vs BWM was a cool read and that main event was fantastic

Great stuff Cory!

[Cory Olson]

Thanks to Booker Bill, Frank, Neilybob, Pariah, and Victory Roll for the comments!

After a wild conclusion to last week’s card in Tupelo, the August 11 edition of USWA Championship Wrestling was full of news!
• Footage aired following last Monday’s card at the Tupelo Sports Arena where “Classy” Freddie Blassie was rushed to North Mississippi State Hospital after having the mystery substance thrown into his eyes by World Tag Team champion John Tolos. The footage continued at the hospital, where it was revealed that the substance was Monsel’s powder, a solution used to help heal bleeding in patients after surgery. While it is certainly effective in that use, it is certainly not meant to be put into one’s eyes. A further report on the condition of the two-time former Southern Heavyweight champion will come on next week’s Championship Wrestling.
• Clips of a “Press Conference” with Bill Apter of Pro Wrestling Illustrated aired with the perpetrators of the attack—the World Tag Team champions the Tolos Brothers. Apter traveled to John’s house in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada for the interview, which took place on August 9. Apter described the attack as a “shocking betrayal” of the man who brought the Toloses to the USWA. Chris stated that while they admired Freddie Blassie’s accomplishments in pro wrestling, he and John felt that he had gotten “soft” and was “using” them to protect himself. Apter asked him to clarify. Chris pointed out three separate matches from the past year where Blassie and the Toloses were signed to battle opponents, where Blassie never wrestled legally in the bout! The three bouts were a six-man tag team match against Jimmy Valiant and the Flying Redheads from last November in Gore Springs, MS; the Battlezone Match against the same trio from New Year’s Knockout XIV in Nashville; and a six-man tag team match against Valiant, “Superstar” Bill Dundee, and “Wildfire” Tommy Rich from this past March, also in Nashville. (Clips aired of these matches while Chris narrated the history.) He said that Blassie calls himself “The King of Men” but is nothing more than a “coward,” who has used the Tolos family for his “dirty work”! John added that when they and Blassie were banned from getting title shots, due to their attack on Valiant in January in Knoxville, that that was Blassie’s idea not theirs, and it just delayed the inevitable of the Toloses winning what was “rightly theirs.” Apter pointed out how Monsel’s powder could take away Blassie’s sight permanently. John said after the way their family has been treated by Blassie, he deserves whatever he gets! Fans, you can read the entire transcript of this “Press Conference” in the latest issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated, on newsstands everywhere!
• Back in the WMC-TV Studios, Commissioner Teddy Long stated that while he was strongly considering suspending the Toloses and stripping them of the World Tag Team titles, several fan favorites, including the Uptown Boys, the Fantastics, Jimmy Valiant, the World Heavyweight champion the Patriot, and others demanded that they get an opportunity to fight on Blassie’s behalf and take one or both brothers in the ring!
• The commissioner added that The Patriot’s next defense of the World Heavyweight title will be against two-time former champion Harley Race on Labor Day—September 3 at the Municipal Auditorium in Nashville! The masked champion was interviewed in studio. He stated that losing a match via disqualification was not how he wanted to retain his title. He said that while he doesn’t admire everything Freddie Blassie has done in the past, if Blassie is able to return to the ring, he would be happy to give him a title rematch. He said that for now, he plans to hold on to the gold and keep it away from Race and the First Family of Wrestling!
• Another match for Labor Day will see a rematch between “The Man with The Cast Iron Stomach” Pepper Gomez and First Family of Wrestling member King Kong Bundy. Bundy got the win last week at the Louisville Gardens via DQ when Gomez’ new manager Ed “Strangler” Lewis interfered, after Jimmy Hart had interfered to help the New Jersey giant. Gomez hopes to avenge that loss in “Music City”!

• The commissioner also announced some more bouts for the August 20 card at the West Tennessee State Fairgrounds in Jackson!
o A man who wants the World Heavyweight title—Pepper Gomez will be in action when he battles one-half of the World Tag Team champions John Tolos! Gomez scored a quick win over John’s brother Chris last week in Tupelo. “The Man with The Cast Iron Stomach” was interviewed in studio and wished Freddie Blassie a full recovery. He emphasized how his goal is to capture the World Heavyweight title and to do so, he has hired a man who knows a lot about that title to be his manager. Into the studio walked six-time former champion Ed “Strangler” Lewis! Lewis shook hands with Gomez and Lance Russell. Lewis said that not only has he personally held the belt but he managed Lou Thesz during all four of his reigns with the title! Gomez said that it was Lewis who reintroduced him this past September when Gomez returned at the Louisville Gardens to answer Ray Stevens’ open challenge for the Mid-America championship and he has had a lot of respect for Lewis’ accomplishments, in and out of the ring. Lewis said that he will first accompany Gomez to the ring for his bout next week in Lewis’ hometown of Louisville! (See Card #554 preview below.)
o The war between the Armstrongs and Doctor X’s men will continue in two bouts on this card. The two-time former World Tag Team champions Brad and Brian Armstrong will team up to face Baron Von Raschke and The Barbarian! While the Armstrong Brothers have the advantage as far as teaming together, they cannot underestimate the power and brutality of “The Clawmaster” and the Barbarian!
o The other bout will see “Bullet” Bob Armstrong go one-on-one with Mad Dog Vachon! Which tough hombre will walk out of Jackson the victor?
o “Superstar” Bill Dundee will continue his battle with two-time former Southern Heavyweight champion “Exotic” Adrian Street! Dundee has yet to get a victory over Street, thanks largely in part to the active presence of Jim Cornette and Mr. Hughes!
o Another family will be in action, as Eddie and Doug Gilbert battle the First Family of Wrestling’s team of Ray “The Crippler” Stevens and Greg “The Hammer” Valentine! Stevens and Valentine, along with “The Mouth of The South” Jimmy Hart were interviewed. Hart said that the Gilberts are living in a fantasy if they think they can match up to the skills of the true family of wrestling! Stevens said that Commissioner Teddy Long is scared of their team, as they have not suffered a decisive loss since they started teaming in January and they still haven’t been granted a World Tag Team title shot. Valentine added that whichever team they face will regret signing a match against him and Stevens, then dropped his “hammer” elbow in the air!

• In other news, Commissioner Long announced that former Southern Heavyweight champion Mr. Hughes will receive a rematch for the title in the main event on September 17 at the Rupp Arena in Lexington! The bodyguard for Jim Cornette will challenge either “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson or “The Monday Night Messiah” Tyler Black, depending on who leaves their bout next week in Jackson as the Southern champion!
• It was also announced that three-time former World Tag Team champion Billy Gunn has decided to leave the USWA. The former New Age Outlaw plans to reunite with his brother Bart Gunn and reform the Smokin’ Gunns. The Gunns plan to head to All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). Billy sent in a message, thanking the fans for their support over the last six years.

The USWA returns to the Louisville Gardens on August 13!
• The Barbarian will be in action against Brad Armstrong! This powerhouse has been very impressive in just one month, scoring a big win over Billy Gunn last week before blasting him with a loaded kick to the face. How will Armstrong fare against the Barbarian?
• Harley Race continues his battles with the Gilberts. This week, the two-time former World Heavyweight champion will take on Doug Gilbert! Race cannot overlook the youngest Gilbert, who has pulled off upsets in the past. Can he be the first Gilbert to defeat Race?
• Two top tag teams will tangle again when The Flying Redheads face Ray “The Crippler” Stevens and Greg “The Hammer” Valentine of the First Family of Wrestling! These teams met back on Memorial Day at Engel Stadium in Chattanooga, with the First Family team coming out the victors. The Redheads are hoping for a rematch for the World Tag Team titles they lost to the Armstrongs two weeks before the Chattanooga bout, while Stevens and Valentine are awaiting their first-ever shot. Which team will triumph?
• The undefeated and popular “Wildfire” Tommy Rich will take on Mad Dog Vachon! Rich has been on fire (pun intended) since arriving in the USWA in March. He will have quite the battle against the two-time former World Tag Team champion, who has scored many big wins in singles competition over the years. Can Rich continue his winning ways or will Vachon take a bite out of him?
• Pepper Gomez is hoping to earn a shot at the World Heavyweight title in the near future. He will have his new manager Louisvillian Ed “Strangler” Lewis in his corner when he takes on King Kong Bundy of the First Family of Wrestling! Can Gomez defeat the New Jersey giant?
• The main event will be for the USWA World Tag Team titles. John and Chris Tolos will defend the gold against The Uptown Boys! The Toloses put Marty Jannetty’s first Uptown Boys partner Tommy Rogers out of action back in December in Memphis. Jannetty and Ric McCord have earned two victories over the Canadian brothers and hope to make it a third, to capture the gold and earn a small measure of revenge for “Classy” Freddie Blassie. Can they do it or will the Toloses triumph?

All these bouts, plus a return tag team match, as The Fantastics collide with “Dastardly” Danny Doring and The Amish RoadKill! Plus, Colt “Boom Boom” Cabana, Nacho Barrera, and more stars in action!

[victoryroll84]

Loved the sit down interview with Apter and the Toloses (Hamilton is only two hours from where I live lol).

Things are cooking in your fed, looking forward to the next update on all things USWA

[Cory Olson]

Thanks to Victory Roll for the comments!

August 13, 2018
Card #554: Louisville Gardens

1) Mike Jackson picked up his first decisive win with a pinfall on the masked Avenger in 10 minutes in the opener! The masked man knocked Jackson down in the first few minutes with a head butt and looked as if he might score the pin but Jackson kicked out at two. Jackson rallied back and hit a crossbody block for a near fall. Jackson stayed on the offensive and hit a flying dropkick to pick up the win, earning him big cheers from the Louisville fans! **¾

2) “Sodbuster” Kenny Jay scored a pinfall on Nacho Barrera. This was a back-and-forth bout. Barrera came off the second rope two separate times with elbow drops but couldn’t keep the “Sodbuster” down. Jay fought back and knocked the Mexican grappler down with the Sodbuster Spike to put Barrera down for the pinfall after eight minutes. ***

3) The Fantastics were victorious over “Dastardly” Danny Doring and The Amish RoadKill. Bobby Fulton hit a running knee lift on Doring in the first few minutes to pick up a two-count. The rulebreakers took control of Fulton and had him in trouble. Former Mid-America champion Doring went up top for the Danaconda but took his time, showboating. When he finally leapt, Fulton moved out of the way and Doring crashed hard. Tommy Rogers tagged back in and worked over Doring, before tagging back to Fulton. Fulton executed a flying head scissors on the “Dastardly One” and scored the pin, while Rogers kept “The Angry Amish Warrior” at bay with a dropkick. The Fantastics continued their winning ways! **

4) “Pretty Boy” Larry Sharpe scored a huge upset win over Colt “Boom Boom” Cabana, thanks in large part to Mid-America Heavyweight champion Luke Harper in five minutes. Right after the opening bell, Mid-America Heavyweight champion Luke Harper came out to the ringside area, scouting his challenger for next week in Jackson. Cabana started off on the offensive but got tripped from the outside by Harper, which Paul Morton missed. Sharpe hit a knee drop for a two-count. He tossed Cabana out of the ring and then distracted Morton. Harper came over and slammed Cabana’s head into the ring steps, then tossed him back into the ring. Sharpe took advantage and hit the piledriver. For good measure, he hit a second piledriver to ensure he would score the pinfall. Harper looked pleased with himself for causing his next challenger to lose. **¼

5) The Barbarian made short work of Brad Armstrong with a pinfall in 63 seconds. The Barbarian was accompanied by Doctor X but the masked man didn’t need to get involved, as the powerhouse dominated Brad, attacking him right at the bell. He wore him down and came off the top with the flying clothesline to score the big win. DUD

6) For the third card in a row, Harley Race battled one of the Gilberts. He scored a pinfall on Doug Gilbert in 14 minutes. The two-time former World champion Race had the early control against the youngest Gilbert. Gilbert briefly gained the advantage and sent Race into the corner. He charged in but Race moved out of the way and caught Gilbert on the rebound with a reverse rolling cradle for a near fall. Race hit the vertical suplex but Gilbert managed to kick out. He followed up with the piledriver but Gilbert got a foot on the bottom rope for a break. Race set up Gilbert for another piledriver but Gilbert backdropped Race out of the move and took control. He hit his own piledriver for a near fall. Gilbert stayed in control and hit a DDT. Race looked out of it and Gilbert made a cover but Jimmy Hart distracted Louisvillian Joe Wheeler. Gilbert went after “The Mouth of The South,” which brought out his brother “Hot Stuff” Eddie Gilbert from the back in somewhat of a surprise appearance tonight. Eddie kept Hart at bay, while Doug turned his attention back to Race. Race was sent into the ropes but stopped Doug on a backdrop attempt with a knee lift. He then grabbed Doug and delivered another piledriver to score the pinfall. It was a clean sweep for Race against the Gilberts the last three weeks! ***¾

7) Two other First Family of Wrestling members were victorious, as Ray “The Crippler” Stevens and Greg “The Hammer” Valentine defeated the former World Tag Team champions The Flying Redheads in an epic 35-minute bout. With Jimmy Hart having just returned to the locker room with Harley Race, he did not initially come out with Stevens and Valentine. However, as Red Bastien and Billy Red Lyons had “The Crippler” in trouble in the opening minutes, Hart was quickly back at ringside, screaming instructions through his megaphone! Bastien hit the airplane spin into the atomic drop and sent Stevens in the First Family team’s corner. While Hart distracted Paul Morton, “The Hammer” intercepted Hart’s megaphone and cracked Bastien in the head with it, as Bastien went to retrieve Stevens for a pin attempt. Bastien went down and Valentine entered the ring to put his own partner on top of Bastien. Morton went to count but Bastien managed to kick out. Valentine tagged in for the first time in the match and hit a shoulder breaker on Bastien for a near fall. Bastien was in trouble but managed to tag back to Lyons. From there the action was back and forth, with both teams making frequent tags. Later in the bout, Lyons kicked out after Stevens successfully landed the Bombs Away. Later, Bastien and “The Crippler” were the legal men, when Stevens tossed Bastien outside. Valentine went over and rammed Bastien’s head into the ring post. Bastien was almost counted out but with Lyons’ help returned to the ring by the count of nine. Stevens immediately went up top and landed another Bombs Away. He covered Bastien and scored the pinfall, while “The Hammer” stopped Lyons from a save, and picked up the 11th win for the First Family team! ****¾

8) “Wildfire” Tommy Rich kept up his winning ways with a pinfall on Mad Dog Vachon. The Algerian charged Rich at the bell and tried to gain an early win but Rich rallied back. Vachon managed to hold on and get to the ropes after a sleeper attempt but the Thesz Press would put Vachon down for the three-count after six minutes. Rich continues to dominate in the USWA and grow in popularity among the USWA fans! **¾

9) It was a clean sweep for the First Family of Wrestling tonight, as King Kong Bundy earned a win via disqualification over “The Man with The Cast Iron Stomach” Pepper Gomez. Bundy, as always, was accompanied by “The Mouth of The South” Jimmy Hart, while Gomez was accompanied by his new manager and Louisville native Ed “Strangler” Lewis. Gomez managed to knock the New Jersey giant down in the opening minutes with a wind-up punch to the stomach and score a two-count. Bundy fought back and caught Gomez in a bear hug. Despite Bundy’s size and strength, Gomez’ cast iron stomach helped him survive the move and avoid a submission. Bundy stayed in control but the Mexican superstar fought back and had Bundy in trouble. Gomez bounced off the ropes but was tripped by Hart from the outside. Joe Wheeler missed this but the “Strangler” did not and went after the manager! Back inside the ring, Bundy sent Gomez into the corner and hit the Atlantic City Avalanche. He went for a cover but before he could score a three- or five-count, Lewis entered the ring and stopped Wheeler’s count. He tried to explain to his fellow Louisvillian what had happened but Wheeler could not do anything without having witnessed it. Bundy got off Gomez and went after the six-time former World champion but Lewis responded with a forearm shot. This, naturally, led to Wheeler calling for the bell and disqualifying Gomez. Bundy and Hart quickly left the ringside area, despite getting the win. Lewis apologized to the former Southern and Mid-America champ but said he couldn’t sit idly by while such a travesty occurred. **¼

10) The main event was for the USWA World Tag Team titles, as the champions John and Chris Tolos defended the gold against their rivals The Uptown Boys. There has been a lot of animosity between these two teams in 2018, going back to the end of 2017, when the Toloses put Marty Jannetty’s first Uptown Boys partner Tommy Rogers out of action with an arm injury. Going into this match, the challengers held two decisive wins over the champions in recent months.

Jannetty and Ric McCord managed to keep John in the ring for the first few minutes of the match. McCord went for a submission with the figure-four leglock but John broke the hold with an eye rake. John rolled to the corner and tagged Chris. The champions double teamed McCord for several minutes until he made the tag to Jannetty, who executed the Rocker Dropper on John. Jannetty went for a cover but john got a foot underneath the bottom rope. McCord tagged back in and hit the flying body press but John again kicked out. The Toloses took over on Jannetty and had him in trouble for a long stretch of the match. Jannetty hit a Rocker Dropper out of nowhere on Chris but John saved his brother. Later, John nailed Jannetty with one of the World Tag Team title belts outside the ring, while Paul Morton was distracted by Chris and McCord inside the ring. John tossed Jannetty back inside the ring and used the corkscrew on him, which busted him open. Jannetty did not surrender to the hold but made his way the ropes. Jannetty was bleeding and hurting but stumbled to his feet. John went for a wild haymaker but Jannetty ducked, spun around, and blasted John with an amazing superkick! John dropped to the mat but so did Jannetty. As Morton put a count on both men, Jannetty managed to crawl on top of John for a cover but John kicked out at the last possible moment! Both men were still hurting but Jannetty managed to pull himself to the corner for the hot tag. Jannetty rolled to the arena floor due to the blood loss and couldn’t get back to the corner, while McCord ran wild on the champs. He got a little overzealous, as he went for a crossbody block but was caught and nailed with a backbreaker from John. John followed up with a standing knee drop and the champs hit their double team version of the flying knee drop to score the pinfall and retain the titles after 22 minutes. With Jannetty still down on the floor, he was unable to attempt a pin save on his partner. The fans in Louisville were irate at the Tolos Brothers leaving the Gardens still the champions! ****¼