LOW - Legends of Wrestling

[Pariah]

Very cool that the Road Warriors making history once again by breaking their own record... And in rather dominating fashion... Their title reign has become a very exciting story and I can't wait to see who will be the next to challenge Hawk and Animal for the belts... Could it be the Midnight Rockers? Or the Killer Bees? Both teams scored impressive wins on this show as well...

Really enjoyed the confrontation between Severn and Studd... And the conclusion leads to another great encounter when The Beast teams up with Magnum TA against Studd and Baker...

Although it would have been cool to see Rude claim the World title, I am interested to see what will happen when Andre the Giant gets reinstated... Is another rematch in the works?

Excellent stuff, as always!

[SeahawksFan5867]

It would have been awesome to see Rick Rude win the belt but there's always next time, right?

-Brian

[gabe72]

I like your idea of putting Lane/Jannetty together as the Midnight Rockers. They seem like a perfect foil for the Fantastics. I may steal the Rocker duo idea from you to use in my fed. I'm finding that Pampero Firpo is a very interesting character and a Firpo/Link feud would be brutal. You can't go wrong with Johnny Valentine as your World champion. A very underrated wrestler in the history of wrestling and should have had a World title run before getting hurt in a plane crash IMO.

[cruefan68]

Thanks for the comments Crimson, Troy, Pariah, Seahawksfan and Gabe72. The main event was brutal with Johnny Valentine needing everything he had to retain the title against Rick Rude. It was a classic and the dice rolls had me marking out especially when Valentine rolled one over his pin to kick out of the Rude Awakening. Rude also survived a couple of Atomic Skullcrushers to his credit and very nearly won the title. As for Andre getting his title rematch I am thinking it will happen just have to figure out the venue to hold it in as well as the stipulations as both of his wins over Valentine came by DQ so there probably should be some sort of blow off match.

Gabe72 no problem go with it I felt that Stane Lane being part of the Midnight Express and Marty Jannetty being from the Midnight Rockers originally it seemed like a natural fit putting them together. They have done pretty well for me so far.

[TTX]

I remember toying teaming Lane and Jannetty for a bit when Jannetty came into the fed until Rose made it moot (plus I found I enjoyed teaming Jannetty with Smothers)

[Kat Rana]

What a show! There was so much exciting action it was exhausting to watch! The Ring Angels title match looked brutal, a good win for Martinez who retains the title. A couple of other highlights in a packed card were Ted Dibiase v Bobo Brazil - what a quality match - and of course the World Heavyweight Title defence by Johnny Valentine - I loved the arrogant sweat flick by Rude just to try an get under Valentine's skin, every part of that match was just awesome. I might have to go and have a lie down now...

[bookerbill]

Another awesome show from the garden.

[cruefan68]

Thanks for the comments Troy, Kat Rana and Bookerbill. There is nothing more fun for me than setting up and rolling out the MSG shows. Kat Rana the matches you pointed out were really fun as Brazil, Valentine and Rude all survived some close calls in those matches. Ida Mae Martinez also nearly lost the title to Judy Martin but managed to win that tough bout. I am in the process of rolling out the next CWA card from the Philadelphia Spectrum which will feature Tommy Rich getting a rematch with Roderick Strong for the LOW Tex-Arkana Television title. I hope to have that posted by this coming weekend. Thanks again to everyone for reading and commenting, I truly appreciate it.

[cruefan68]

LOW Capitol Wrestling Alliance- Philadelphia Spectrum - Philadelphia, PA (Card #1036)

● A major development took place just hours before the card as the scheduled main event of Bruiser Brody & George Steele vs. The Sheik & Sabu had to be changed. That came as a result of an impromptu press conference called by manager Abdullah Farouk, who handles The Sheik and Sabu, which was attended by PWI Editor Bill Apter who arrived on short notice from the home office of the magazine in Blue Bell, PA. Farouk said that there are many reasons why he is considered the “greatest manager in the business” and that one such reason would be revealed imminently. Moments later The Warlord entered through a side door and took a seat next to Farouk at the table. A puzzled Apter asked why The Warlord, who is managed by Captain Lou Albano, was sitting next to Farouk. That drew a sinister laugh from Farouk who said that Albano was “too stupid” to understand contracts and that he discovered a loophole which voided the contract of The Warlord. As a result he quickly signed The Warlord to a lucrative deal that morning adding the imposing wrestler to his stable. However, before another question could be asked by the press both Albano and George “The Animal” Steele entered the room. Steele went right after The Warlord while Farouk wisely jumped back to avoid a lunging Albano. LOW officials swarmed in but were also joined by The Sheik and Sabu. That resulted in a three-on-one attack on Steele until the officials were able to get order restored. An angry Albano then grabbed Apter by the collar demanding “justice, justice, justice!” before corralling Steele and storming out of the room. Apter put in a call to LOW Commissioner Charlie Cox a short time later and Cox, having already been briefed on the incident, changed the main event to a six-man tag team bout pitting Brody, Steele and Blackjack Mulligan against The Sheik, Sabu and The Warlord.

1) George South vs. C.W. Anderson was a Draw:
A battle of North Carolina natives opened things up as George South of LOW All-Star Wrestling took on “The Enforcer” C.W. Anderson, formerly part of Kings Road United. Anderson tried to jump South during the ring introductions but it backfired. South quickly caught him with a cross body block for a two count and then took over on offense for a good stretch. An Anderson Left Hand led to a near fall for “The Enforcer” and he followed with a falling armbreaker going for a submission. The two then traded control until with time running out South scored another near fall with the cross body block. Moments later the bell sounded ending the match in a time limit draw much to the frustration of Anderson. South proved his mettle, though, and did a great job representing ASW by taking Anderson to the time limit.

2) Dream Team defeated Blue World Order:
The popular Blue World Order (Stevie Richards & Blue Meanie) were in for a tough challenge as they faced the Dream Team (Brutus Beefcake & Greg Valentine). The bWo came in prepared, though, as they had the Dream Team on the defensive for a good stretch including Meanie hitting the Meaniesault on Beefcake for a near fall. It was a counter by Beefcake and a powerslam on Richards that helped turn things around for the Dream Team. They cut the ring off isolating Richards who twice had to be saved by the Meanie, first when trapped in the Sleeper Hold by Beefcake and then when trapped in the Figure Four Leglock by Valentine. The bWo mounted a nice comeback late but the Meanie was left lying after a clothesline and kneedrop by Beefcake. That set up Valentine trapping the Meanie in the Figure Four Leglock and resulted in a submission victory for the Dream Team.

3) Midnight Express defeated Jimmy Valiant, Kip James & Al Snow by DQ:
Trios action was up next as Jimmy “Boogie Woogie Man” Valiant, Kip James & Al Snow joined forces to battle the Jim Cornette-led Midnight Express threesome of “Loverboy” Dennis Condrey, “Beautiful” Bobby Eaton and “Ravishing” Randy Rose. The crowd was rocking early as Valiant got the better of Condrey and even blew a kiss at Cornette frustrating the manager. James tagged in and, after recovering from a double clothesline, he hit the Standing Leg Drop on Condrey for what could have been a pin but Eaton made the save. Cornette got involved striking James in the back with the tennis racquet leading to Eaton rolling him up for a two count. Rose and Snow both had good runs during their time in including Snow hitting the moonsault. In the end it looked like the Express had it won with the Rocket Launcher on Snow but James made a timely save. The Express then hit the Veg-O-Matic on Snow with Rose making the cover but Valiant, who moments earlier grabbed the tennis racquet from Cornette, broke up the pin using the weapon. The referee then called for the bell giving the Midnight Express the win by disqualification as Valiant and James attended to the fallen Snow. The Express then jumped the two men and grabbed the tennis racquet back much to the relief of a beleaguered Cornette.

4) The Mongols defeated Love Brothers:
A battle of heel tag teams saw the Love Brothers (Reginald & Hartford Love) take on The Mongols (Bepo & Geeto) who were accompanied by Abdullah Farouk. The Love Brothers were on point early and had the larger Bepo on trouble. They near won it when Reginald hit a fistdrop on Bepo resulting in a big near fall. Farouk was in a foul mood at ringside and barked instructions at his men to get it together. The Mongols began mounting a counter attack and scored a near fall on Reginald after they hit the double clothesline. That seemed to turn the tables and Bepo had Reginald on the verge of submission with a bearhug but Hartford broke it up. Bepo won the ensuing brawl, however, and tossed Hartford over the top rope. As Geeto jumped out attacking Hartford it was Bepo nailing Reginald with a Running Stomp to score the pin. Farouk looked on pleased as his dangerous team picked up a big victory over the very capable Love Brothers.

5) LOW Junior Heavyweight title: Exotic Adrian Street© defeated Les Thatcher to retain the title:
Popular veteran star Les Thatcher received a golden opportunity as he challenged Exotic Adrian Street for the LOW Junior Heavyweight title. The flamboyant Street, accompanied by his valet Miss Linda, pranced around the ring during the introductions displaying his pink and purple championship belt. His prancing around served to rile up Thatcher who exploded on offense early. He caught Street with a flying headscissors and series of dropkicks resulting in near falls. He then applied the Stump Puller going for the submission but Miss Linda distracted the referee to break it up. Street took over on offense soon after and, with some more help from Miss Linda, he scored some near falls on Thatcher. Miss Linda used her perfume spray to blind Thatcher at one point allowing Street to execute the Crucifix for a big near fall. The crowd erupted in cheers when Thatcher avoided the pin there and began coming back giving the champion some anxious moments. Street managed to weather the storm and caught Thatcher with a fireman’s carry throat drop followed up by another Crucifix to score the pin. Street was successful in his version two title defense but there was no doubt that Thatcher pushed him to the limits in what was an exciting championship match.

6) LOW Tex-Arkana Television title: Tommy Rich vs. Roderick Strong© was a DDQ:
This was a rematch from Madison Square Garden in New York, NY (Card #1016) where “Wildfire” Tommy Rich lost on a disqualification when challenging Roderick Strong for the LOW Tex-Arkana Television title. Manager Truth Martini protested the idea of Rich getting a title rematch but LOW Commissioner Charlie Cox ordered it due to the controversial nature of their initial encounter. Martini was not happy as he quoted from page thirty-one of the Book of Truth stating that “A Wildfire would be extinguished despite attempts by outside forces to fan the flames”. The crowd jeered that but then cheered as a “fiiired up” Rich hit the ring ready for action. Rich was dominant early nailing Strong with elbows and uppercuts before delivering a piledriver. Martini paced nervously at ringside before Strong caught Rich with a half nelson backbreaker and rocked him with a rolling elbow. The battle went out to the floor where the two traded blows as the referee tried to get the match back inside. It was to no avail and he wound up calling for the bell ordering a double disqualification. That result allowed Strong to retain the title in his thirty first defense and sent a jubilant Martini dashing towards the timekeeper’s table where he grabbed the belt and retreated to the back with Strong.

7) Nick Bockwinkel & Curt Hennig defeated Angelo Mosca & Larry Zbyszko:
Nick Bockwinkel and Curt Hennig joined forces to take on Angelo “King Kong” Mosca and the self-proclaimed “Living Legend” Larry Zbyszko. Manager J.J. Dillon, who represents Mosca, was at ringside for him and Zbyszko hoping to guide the team to victory. Zbyszko grabbed the mic from ring announcer Gary Michael Cappetta to speak about all of his “glorious years” in professional wrestling while Mosca pushed Cappetta into the corner. That led to Bockwinkel and Hennig hitting the ring to save Cappetta and get the match off to a wild start. That proved to be a disaster for the Mosca and Zbyszko team as they never got on track once the bell sounded. That led to Dillon looking on helplessly as Bockwinkel caught Mosca and trapped him in the Figure Four Leglock. Mosca was able to make the ropes for a break but was left in a bad way. Hennig moved in quickly and caught him with a Rolling Neck Snap and cradled his legs to score a snake eyes pin as Bockwinkel prevented Zbyszko from making the save. Dillon slammed the ring apron in frustration over the loss as the defeated Mosca and Zbyszko bailed out of the ring. It was later learned that Dillon requested and got a rematch so it will be Bockwinkel and Hennig facing Mosca and Zbyszko at the Omni in Atlanta, GA (Card #1044).

8) The Sheik, Sabu & The Warlord defeated Bruiser Brody, Blackjack Mulligan & George Steele:
After the events earlier in the day, which were broadcast to the fans in the building via the video screen prior to the match, a highly anticipated main event saw Bruiser Brody, Blackjack Mulligan and George “The Animal” Steele take on The Sheik, Sabu and The Warlord. Managers Captain Lou Albano and Abdullah Farouk were both at ringside adding even more heat to the encounter. Brody and Mulligan looked real uneasy dealing with Albano but knew that his presence was needed in order to keep Steele under control. Farouk, on the other hand, proudly stood behind his new acquisition in The Warlord and smirked at Albano knowing that he had gotten one over on his rival manager. This match was heated before it even started and the heat was off the charts as Brody battled The Sheik at the opening bell. The two men traded control and at one point Brody was nearly counted out after The Warlord clotheslined him on the floor. Mulligan seized the advantage when he tagged in and caught Sabu in the Claw Hold going for the submission but it was broken up in the ropes. Steele and Sabu then had a wild brawl both in and out of the ring which featured both Albano and Farouk stalking each other. The Warlord took over and nearly scored a submission on Steele with the bearhug but Brody made the save. The turning point came when The Sheik stabbed Steele with a sharp object busting him open. Sabu followed up trapping Steele in the Camel Clutch as The Sheik and The Warlord battled Brody and Mulligan out to the floor. The referee checked on the bloody Steele but there was no response and he called for the bell giving Sabu a submission victory. It was a call the official had to make but Albano was upset protesting it while Farouk gathered his troops and retreated back to the locker room.

[Pariah]

That last minute change to the main event was a stroke of booking genius... And we certainly can't overlook the brilliance of Farouk, who swiped the Warlord right out from under Albano's nose... Have to ask - Was this the result of a roll on a commissioner's card of some kind? Or was it just something you imagined? Either way, it was a lot of fun and I'm pleased that Farouk's team won the battle...

Rich looked great in his title match against Roddy Strong, but it wasn't enough... Holy snap! Truth Martini is elated for obvious reasons... This LOW Tex-Arkana Television Championship run is becoming the stuff of legends...

Another excellent performance by the Dream Team... Wondering how close they are coming to receiving a shot at the Road Warriors... They've gotta be getting close, right?

A true pleasure to read, my friend... Always exceptional!