National Wrestling Alliance / World Championship Wrestling - Saturday, June 22nd, 1985
- Show opens with a few seconds from last week...you guessed it. No, not Jimmy Valiant applying a nerve hold. It was Flair coming off the top rope onto the back of Magnum's neck.
- Opening credits.
- Tony Schiavone flying solo again this week. Buzz Sawyer, Brett Sawyer, Ric Flair, Tully Blanchard w/Baby Doll, Superstar Billy Graham, Dusty Rhodes...all here today.
- Schiavone has a letter from Portland, OR. Written by his mom, a young blind fan who cannot walk wrote in to say that Ron Garvin deserves a rematch. Schiavone has some good news...in an unprecedented move by the NWA Board Of Governors, they have reinstated Ron Garvin to come back for a rematch.
- "Mad Dog" Buzz Sawyer & Brett "Wayne" Sawyer vs. Larry Clark & Randy Barber
- Brett offers Randy Barber a handshake as the match starts, which Barber refuses.
- Leg takedown and mat wrestling by Brett to start.
- Whip and dropkick on Barber...Clark tries to do a run-in, dropkick on Clark. Another dropkick on Barber. Another dropkick on Clark.
- Two flying headscissors on Barber. Buzz tagged in.
- Buzz with a back elbow, Buzz knocks Clark off the apron.
- Double-team move on Barber by the Sawyers, with a leg drop off the top rope by Brett on Barber's left arm. Brett is back in.
- Barber rolls out, comes back in and tags Clark in.
- Arm twist by Brett. Buzz tagged in, works on the arm.
- Brett tagged in and he continues with the hammerlock.
- Clark into the ropes. Hold broken, Brett goes right back to the arm.
- Buzz tagged in, headbutt to the arm, then to an armbar from behind on Clark.
- Brett tagged in, elbow off the top onto Clark's arm.
- Barber tagged in. More work on the arm, Buzz tagged in.
- Pressure on the arm, elbow drop, more pressure on the arm.
- Brett tagged in, Buzz with a power slam, Brett with a splash off the top rope. 1-2-3.
- Your Winners: Buzz & Brett Sawyer via pinfall
- Schiavone is with World TV Champ Tully Blanchard and Baby Doll. Tully says "That was a great match to start, but the Sawyers weren't against the Andersons, were they?" Tully says that Dusty paid someone off in the engineering booth so that it wouldn't be shown last week how bad Tully hurt him. "Dusty Rhodes, if you've got the guts, step into the squared circle, and I'll hurt you one more time."
- Commercials.
- Schiavone turns things over to a taped interview with "Cowboy" Bill Watts. Watts gives us a xenophobic pro-American rant. Watts says he told Dusty Rhodes to find them a partner so they can take the six-man tag team titles from the Russians.
- NWA/WCW U.S. Heavyweight Champion Magnum T.A. vs. Paul Garner
- Garner with the initial offense with some shots in the abdomen.
- Magnum turns it around quickly with a whip and a dropkick.
- Whip, belly-to-belly suplex, and it's over. 1-2-3.
- Your Winner: NWA/WCW U.S. Heavyweight Champion Magnum T.A. via pinfall
- Time of the match: 45 seconds. Time from the first lock up: 35 seconds.
- Schiavone interviews Dusty Rhodes, who's in a jacket, tie, and blue jeans. Dusty says America is going to stand up, and that he is The American Dream. Tully Blanchard's nightmare now begins, and Baby Doll is a Jezebel off the street. Next time he sees Baby Doll, he's going to knock her on her big white can.
- Commercials.
- A happy 60th anniversary to a couple from Texas.
- Here's the "Unpredictable" Dick Slater. He talks about captives in Beirut. (Ah...now I understand the context of Watts' and Rhodes' comments, given when they were made.) Slater says that all Americans pray that the captives get home safe. Slater is after Flair and the Anderson Brothers.
- Jimmy "Boogie Woogie Man" Valiant vs. Carl Styles
- Valiant with a face rake, punch, hip toss, hip toss, and Styles rolls out.
- Slingshot in by Valiant, thumb to the throat, arm twist, bite to the fingers.
- Another arm twist, Styles taken down by the hair.
- Another face rake, another face rake.
- Arm bar on the mat, choke.
- Whip, back elbow by Valiant, elbow drop, 1-2-3.
- Your Winner: "Boogie Woogie Man" Jimmy Valiant
- Wow, that was brutally bad.
- It dawned on me what Valiant's matches remind me of. They remind me of Junkyard Dog matches from the same era. Both Valiant and Dog just stand there, call the moves, and the opponent runs into them.
- Schiavone with Ric Flair in his robed splendor, with a bandage on his head. Oddly, Flair's nameplate isn't on the belt. The girls are hollering for Slick Ric. He says he is a "modern day sex symbol", among other things. Flair is impressed that Rhodes actually came out in a jacket and tie, looking like a professional athlete. Flair promotes himself some more. As for Nikita, Flair is going to show America what he is made of.
- NWA/WCW World Television Champion Tully Blanchard w/Baby Doll vs. Terry Flynn
- Handshake from Tully to start. Two clean breaks from Tully to start the match.
- Hair pull by Tully, knee to the midsection, elbows, snapmare into a seated headlock.
- Headbreaker on the thigh by Tully. Flynn gets a few shots in, but Tully lures him into the corner and lays waste.
- Power shots by Tully, Flynn to the floor
- Tully positions Flynn to get slapped by Baby Doll.
- Tully just trashes Flynn in the ring. Stomps the crap out of him.
- Dusty is at ringside.
- Slingshot suplex, it's over.
- Your Winner: And still NWA/WCW Television Heavyweight Champion, Tully Blanchard
- Dusty is in the ring, and he and Baby Doll go nose-to-nose and start jawing.
- Dusty grabs Baby Doll by the face and pushes her down. The editing of the show is such that you don't really see it, but it seems that it did happen.
- Tully starts beating the hell out of Dusty.
- Baby Doll tosses the referee from the ring.
- Tully goes up top, and Dusty turns the tables.
- Dusty gets Tully in the figure-four.
- Baby Doll starts beating on Dusty.
- Dusty breaks the hold and goes after Baby Doll.
- Tully puts on the loaded elbow pad and levels Dusty.
- We go to commercial.
- Schiavone shows a video of the AWA Tag Team Champions, The Road Warriors, against David Dillinger and Joel Deaton. There must have been cross-promotion between the NWA and AWA at the time. In addition to this video being shown, the match is in an NWA ring and Tommy Young is the referee. The match shown was a total squash, the finish being a powerslam off the second rope by Animal.
- NWA/WCW World Heavyweight Tag Team Champions Ivan & Nikita Koloff vs. Alan Martin & Mark Cooper
- Nikita and Ivan attack before the bell...even before they gets their belts off.
- Once things get settled, it's Nikita and Martin to start.
- Beating. Ivan tagged in.
- Beating. Nikita tagged in.
- Schiavone says the Russians will be facing the Road Warriors.
- Martin is thrown out, and Ivan adds in a little beating outside the ring.
- Nikita still punishing Martin and throwing him back to the floor. More from Ivan on the floor. Damn, Martin really is taking a beating here.
- Whip by Nikita, Russian Hammer, followed by a choke.
- Finally, Cooper tagged in. Cooper straight into a Russian Sicle. 1-2-3.
- Your Winners: NWA/WCW World Heavyweight Tag Team Champions Ivan & Nikita Koloff via pinfall
- Schiavone interviews Superstar Billy Graham. Man, Graham sounds like a cross between Jimmy Valiant and Dusty Rhodes. Definitely doesn't seem like the Graham of WWF fame. He prattles on about how pumped and pretty he is.
- Ric Flair, Ole Anderson & Arn Anderson vs. Rocky King, Pez Whatley & Italian Stallion
- All three of the bad guys have their belts with them.
- Arn vs. Whatley. Whatley with the initial advantage, with everything Arn tries being reversed on him.
- Ole in. Ole gets the same treatment, getting pinballed by all three guys on the other team.
- Flair in. Whatley is a one-man wrecking crew.
- Six-man donneybrook. Absolute pandemonium.
- Finally, it's the three bad guys going to work on Whatley, and Stallion is tagged in.
- Ole, then Arn go to work.
- Flair in, lots of stomps.
- He starts taking Stallion apart. Cover, one count.
- Ole in. Single-leg Boston Crab with Flair giving extra leverage.
- Arn in. Arn continues to work on Stallion's left knee.
- Ole in, back to work on the left knee.
- Commercial.
- The punishment continues, except that it's Rocky King now getting it from Flair.
- Ole in, Arn in...still working on the left knee of King.
- It's a little weird...King could easily grab the nearby rope and get a temporary reprieve.
- Flair tagged in. He misses an elbow and Whatley is tagged in. Whatley is house-a-hire. Flair Flip.
- Whatley takes on all three of them until Flair drags Whatley out.
- Chaos with all six men in.
- Magnum TA is at ringside.
- Order is restored, and it's Flair and Rocky King.
- Shinbreaker by Flair. Ole tagged in.
- Ole working on King's left knee.
- Arn tagged in. Stomp, stomp, stomp.
- Flair goes over to confront to Magnum.
- Flair tagged in. Kneebreaker, punches.
- Arn tagged in. Ole tagged in. They are destorying King's leg.
- Magnum's going on about "unsportsmanlike conduct" and how they are just trying to hurt someone. I disagree. King's concious, and if he's hurt that bad, he should submit. That's my two cents, anyway.
- Arn tagged in. Gourdbuster.
- Flair tagged in. Figure-four. King gives up.
- You'd have thought that Whatley and Stallion would have at least tried to make the save.
- Your Winners: Ric Flair, Ole & Arn Anderson via submission.
- Flair goes over to goad Magnum, while having the Andersons on either side of him.
- Flair and the Andersons back off when Jimmy Valiant and Dick Slater appear and it's three-on-three instead of three-on-one.
- Valiant decides to give an interview after the excitement dies down. Jimmy Valiant wants Paul Jones in a dog collar match. Valiant ends the interview by giving Schiavone a kiss.
- Shiavone interviews the Koloffs. Ivan has a Road Warriors t-shirt on that's modified with a magic marker to say "Gutless Warriors". Schiavone asks why Crockett was attacked. Ivan says it was the only way to get Nikita a contract with Flair. Ivan says The Road Warriors are afraid of The Koloffs. Schiavone shows the video of Crockett getting attacked. Nikita really did knock Crockett on his ass with a clothesline. Not a particularly vicious one, but Nikita did knock Crockett on his ass.
- Jason Walker vs. Buddy Landel w/ JJ Dillon
- Landel struts to start.
- Lock up, no clean break from Landel. Landel complains about the quality of his opponent.
- Some amateur wrestling moves from Landel.
- It's all Landel. In the corner, some power moves, huge hip toss, drop kick, snape mare, and a combination arm and chin lock.
- Landel goes to throw Walker out and Walker doesn't exit properly.
- Dillon throws Walker back in.
- Back to the chin and arm lock. Landel puts Walker in the ropes so Dillon can bitch-slap him.
- Back to the chin and arm lock with some slaps for good measure.
- Knee, stomp, knee, chop by Landel. Back to the chin and arm lock.
- Landel's making his opponent say "Buddy Landel is THE Nature Boy".
- Every attempt at a comeback by Walker is thwarted.
- Big spinning elbow drop by Landel. Figure-four leglock. It's over.
- Your Winner: Buddy Landel via submission
- Landel doesn't break the hold and Dillon actually adds leverage at first.
- Schiavone interviews Black Bart. Schiavone reads a letter saying that Ron Garvin got a raw deal. Black Bart goes absolutely nuts and manhandles Schiavone. Black Bart says he wants Garvin to "get his butt back here" to settle this. Schiavone shows the tape of the way Bart won the belt to prove his point.
- Thunderbolt Patterson vs. Tom Lane
- Ugh...I have the feeling I'm going to enjoy this about as much as I enjoyed the Jimmy Valiant match.
- Lock up, clean break from Patterson in the corner.
- Some amateur-style mat wrestling, another clean break from Patterson in the ropes.
- Patterson is goofing around as he breaks each hold.
- More amateur-style mat wrestling.
- Another clean break from Patterson.
- Shots back and forth, with Patterson's moves being ridiculously exagerrated.
- This match is pretty well-contested without Lane resorting to any rule-breaking.
- Lane whipped into the corner, Patterson delivers the double-thrust to the chest as Lane comes out. 1-2-3.
- Your Winner: Thunderbolt Patterson via pinfall
- Schiavone interviews Dusty Rhodes. Dusty thinks Baby Doll should be hemmed in by barbed wire like one of his heffers. Dusty wants a barbed wire match against Tully with Baby Doll suspended above the ring. Dusty tells the viewers to send a postcard in if they want to be Dusty's valet. Exit Dusty, enter Kevin Sullivan...oddly with no confrontation. Sullivan starts talking some quasi-mystical stuff...Sullivan is gunning for Dick Slater. Sullivan says he's going to cripple Dick Slater and put him out of wrestling once and for all.
- Gerald Findley vs. Kevin Sullivan
- Sullivan bolts straight from his interview into the ring and attacks Findley before the opening bell.
- Findley to the floor. Beating on the floor. Findley tossed back into the ring.
- Short beating in the ring. Sullivan tries to throw Findley out and for the second time in this show, someone screws up being tossed out of the ring. Sullivan tries again and succeeds.
- Slater's with Schiavone and Slater is ranting and raving.
- Sullivan is yelling at Slater as he beats up Findley outside the ring.
- Back in the ring, clothesline by Sullivan.
- Slater says if Sullivan wants to put him out, go ahead and try.
- Findley thrown out of the ring yet again. More punishment by Sullivan on the floor.
- Sullivan finally gets a snapmare on the third attempt.
- Sullivan sits on Findley's back and puts a chinlock on him. Sullivan's got his eyes rolling back in his head. Findley submits.
- Your Winner: Kevin Sullivan via submission
- Sullivan throws Findley from the ring as Slater, sans shirt, goes to the ring. Sullivan throws the referee out. As Slater approaches the ring...we go to commercial?!
- Mark Hill vs. Superstar Billy Graham
- Graham is posing for the crowd after the opening bell and Mark Hill attacks from behind. That's about the only offense that Hill will probably get.
- Kicks, punches, basic power moves by Graham.
- Hill is tossed from the ring and we almost have our third failed attempt at someone being thrown out of the ring.
- Hill is right back in so he can be on the receiving end of a headlock.
- Jim Cornette and his "fabulous" Midnight Express will be here next week.
- Graham punctuates the headlock with clubbing blows and returns to the headlock. Graham isn't exactly putting on a scientific clinic here.
- Whip, back body drop by Graham which almost goes really wrong.
- Stomp, stomp, front face lock, knees while in the ropes, clubbing blows.
- Hill tries to come back but the moves have no effect.
- The fans are chanting "Boring!".
- Just basic power moves over and over again. As a matter of fact, this is boring.
- Hill tossed out again.
- More power moves...big whips into the corner.
- Full nelson and Hill submits.
- Your Winner: Superstar Billy Graham via submission
- Schiavone interviews Thunderbolt Patterson. Patterson's all over the place in his interview but, in short, he's going after Black Bart's National Heavyweight Title. Patterson really had trouble completing his sentences.
- NWA/WCW National Heavyweight Champion Black Bart vs. Nick Busick
- Busick is built pretty solid.
- The crowd is shouting "Garvin...Garvin...".
- Clubbing blows by Bart, with a lot of head butts to Busick's left shoulder.
- Busick keeps trying to come back with his own clubbing blows, but they seem to have limited effect, at best.
- Armbar by Bart...still working on the left arm and shoulder.
- When Bart can't keep the man in the hold legally, he does a hair pull.
- Schiavone notes that Bart's finisher, the leg drop off the second rope, is called The Trash Compactor.
- The crowd is chanting "Boring...boring...".
- Busick thrown out, he comes back in, and Bart's offense on the left arm with a lot of head butts to the shoulder continues.
- Body slam by Bart, followed by The Trash Compactor. 1-2-3.
- Your Winner: NWA/WCW National Heavyweight Champion Black Bart via pinfall
- Schiavone interviews Magnum TA. Magnum says that Flair has brought in the Andersons because he knows he's in trouble and he can't handle Magnum alone. Magnum's got his own cowboys...Rhodes, Valiant, Slater, Fernandez...but Magnum doesn't let them get the job done for him. Magnum says that it's only a matter of time...Flair's belt is hanging by a thread. Magnum is the number-one contender, and Flair will have to deal with him.
- That's it for this week.
- The Good: The six-man tag match. The match on its own was good, but it's got the added interest of watching the Four Horsemen come together.
- The Bad: Thunderbolt Patterson's interview
- The Ugly: Jimmy Valiant's match