Hall’s The Wrestling Classic Review

The Wrestling Classic
Date: November 7, 1985
Location: Rosemont Horizon, Rosemont, Illinois
Attendance: 14,000
Commentators: Gorilla Monsoon, Jesse Ventura

So here we have the company’s first (at least widely available) pay per view and it’s a big tournament, with the winner receiving a bunch of money. Other than that, we have Hulk Hogan vs. Roddy Piper, which is still the hottest feud in the company. This is hardly a revolutionary idea, but it’s more about showing what the WWF can do with pay per view. Let’s get to it.

The opening looks at the wrestlers in the field, plus the title match.

Vince McMahon and Lord Alfred Hayes (plus a presenter named Susan) preview the show and run down the brackets:

Adrian Adonis
Corporal Kirchner

Dynamite Kid
Nikolai Volkoff

Ivan Putski
Randy Savage

Ricky Steamboat
Davey Boy Smith

Iron Sheik
Junkyard Dog

Moondog Spot
Terry Funk

Tito Santana
Magnificent Muraco

Bob Orton
Paul Orndorff

Not a bad field at all.

We see some of the wrestlers drawing their opponents earlier. Randy Savage blaming Elizabeth for a bad draw is on point for him.

WWF President Jack Tunney hypes the tournament as well as he can, which isn’t much at all.

Wrestling Classic First Round: Adrian Adonis vs. Corporal Kirchner

This is still tough guy Adonis with the leather jacket and he has Jimmy Hart in his corner. Kirchner fires off a dropkick to start and Adonis isn’t sure what to do. A suplex gets Adonis out of trouble and he elbows Kirchner in the head a few times as the ring is incredibly loud for some reason. The chinlock goes on but Kirchner fights up, only for a suplex to be reversed into a DDT (and a nasty one at that) to give Adonis the pin at 3:20.

Rating: C. They only had so much time here but what stands out here…well really it’s the mat, which was so loud. That happened at Wrestlemania II in the same venue so maybe there’s something to the building. Other than that, it’s a fast match with a cool looking finish, which very well may be a recurring theme for the night.

Post match Hart and Adonis brag about the win.

Wrestling Classic First Round: Dynamite Kid vs. Nikolai Volkoff

Volkoff does his singing of the Soviet National Anthem, allowing Kid to hit a missile dropkick for the pin in 10 seconds. That’s one way to cut the run time down.

Randy Savage knows he’s burning energy but he’s too hyper. Yeah Ivan Putski is strong but so what?

Wrestling Classic First Round: Randy Savage vs. Ivan Putski

Elizabeth is here with Savage. Putski begs Savage to jump him to start but Savage bails to the floor instead. Back in and Putski’s shoulder has Savage backing up against the ropes again. Putski powers him into the corner and stomps away, only for Savage to sweep the leg and put his feet on the ropes for the fast pin at 2:47.

Vince and Alfred talk about the tournament thus far (They can’t even wait until the end of the first round?) but Nikolai Volkoff runs in to rant about the unfair loss.

Wrestling Classic First Round: Ricky Steamboat vs. Davey Boy Smith

Battle of the good guys here. Smith powers him into the corner to start and hits a fast hiptoss. The gorilla press gives Smith two but Steamboat is back with a nice suplex. The splash hits raised knees though and Steamboat gets knocked into the ropes. Smith charges into the ropes and misses….and he’s hurt so the match is stopped at 2:52. Another clever way out of a match.

Naturally Steamboat checks on his friend because he’s the nicest guy in wrestling.

Junkyard Dog thinks this is a good tournament for him and thanks Chicago for….something, as he kind of trails off.

Wrestling Classic First Round: Junkyard Dog vs. The Iron Sheik

Sheik jumps him to start and chokes Dog with the robe before stomping away. Dog fights back and slugs away, with a headbutt sending Sheik outside. Back in and Dog escapes a full nelson but misses a headbutt, allowing Sheik to grab the camel clutch. For some reason Sheik lets go of it though, allowing Dog to hit a headbutt for the pin at 3:23 (why Sheik’s legs are straight up in the air on the pin isn’t clear).

Rating: C-. I’m tempted to raise the rating, just because of Sheik’s general oddness. At the same time, he was still good at this point in the ring and could work with just about anyone. On the other hand, Dog is being treated as a big deal in the tournament and he’s off to a good start, which isn’t a surprise as he was a popular name around this point.

Terry Funk wants the WWF Title, Paul Orndorff, and $50,000. Oh and to show how smart he really is. Then he spits tobacco juice at the camera.

Wrestling Classic First Round: Terry Funk vs. Moondog Spot

Jimmy Hart is here with Funk, who says neither of them want to fight, so he offers Spot a chance to walk out for a double countout. They both go to leave and the bell rings, but Funk jumps him from behind and tries to run back inside. Then he throws Spot back in…and gets counted out himself at 26 seconds to give Spot the win. As usual, the villain screws himself over as all Funk had to do was NOT HIT SPOT and run back inside to win by countout.

Post match Funk beats Spot up but Spot wins anyway.

Mr. Fuji and Magnificent Muraco are ready to beat Tito Santana.

Wrestling Classic First Round: Magnificent Muraco vs. Tito Santana

Santana’s Intercontinental Title isn’t on the line and Muraco has Mr. Fuji with him. Muraco knocks him into the corner to start and hammers away against the ropes, only for Santana to come back with a sunset flip for two. Santana whips him into the corner to take over and the armbar goes on to slow Muraco down. Muraco fights up and takes over again, setting up a quick powerslam for the pin…but Santana pops up and grabs a small package for the real pin at 3:29. Apparently Santana’s foot was in the ropes, though we didn’t see it. Not the best camera work here.

Rating: C+. This is where the show is getting a bit annoying, as I would have liked seeing these two have a long match as they worked well together and could have done it again here. Instead they have to rush through things, which makes sense for the show but it’s the most thrilling. Either way, the ending was another bit of a surprise, with the camera missing the foot on the ropes, which made it a bit weird.

Bobby Heenan does not like being called a weasel but talks about having $50,000 to whomever takes out Paul Orndorff.

Wrestling Classic First Round: Bob Orton vs. Paul Orndorff

Orndorff starts in on the arm (which is in a cast) and hits an atomic drop to send the arm into the post. The arm is rammed into the buckle and Orton goes nuts with the selling. Orndorff stays on the arm as Ventura seems to like the ruthlessness. Orton finally hits him in the face and hammers away in the corner to take over.

Orndorff’s sunset flip is blocked but he pulls the trunks down to get a near fall. Back up and Orton hammers him down for a chinlock, followed by a backslide for two. The charge into the corner misses though and Orndorff slugs away, setting up an elbow to the face. A big right hand sends Orton outside so he loads up something in the cast to knock Orndorff silly….which is a DQ at 6:30.

Rating: B-. The extra time helped here, as did the story of the bounty on Orndorff. At the same time, they were laying it in here with Orndorff’s work on the arm being rather entertaining. The more I see of both of these guys, the better I find them being and that made the match even better.

Vince and Alfred (who has to be torn off Susan) recap the first round, with Susan using a pointing stick to walk us through the matches thus far. Terry Funk storms in to say he was robbed and threatens to slap Alfred because he can beat anyone in the tournament.

Here are the updated brackets:

Adrian Adonis
Dynamite Kid

Randy Savage
Ricky Steamboat

Junkyard Dog
Moondog Spot

Tito Santana
Paul Orndorff

Wrestling Classic Quarterfinals: Dynamite Kid vs. Adrian Adonis

Jimmy Hart is here with Adonis. We get a nice touch as the Fink tells us who they beat in the first round. Kid snaps off some armdrags to start and Adonis bails out to the floor. Back in and Adonis forearms him down as Jesse Ventura walks off commentary to go talk to Randy Savage. The chinlock goes on to keep Dynamite down as Monsoon is stunned at Ventura leaving. Dynamite’s gutwrench suplex gets him out of trouble but the running headbutt misses, allowing Adonis to start in on the leg.

What would later be known as the Sharpshooter (more like a Dullshooter here as Adonis isn’t sitting back at all) stays on the leg but Dynamite makes it over to the rope. Back up and Adonis misses a charge into the corner, allowing Dynamite to drop a middle rope knee for two. The snap suplex sets up a headbutt but Hart gets on the apron. Dynamite rams them together and gets the fast pin at 5:30.

Rating: C+. Good enough here as again the extra time let them flesh things out a bit. The Sharpshooter was certainly a surprise and it made sense given the leg work from Adonis. At the same time, it didn’t help that Ventura leaving got so much of the attention, which was kind of a weird thing to focus on here.

Post match Adonis has a fit of anger.

Jesse Ventura has been scouting for Randy Savage but he is totally unbiased.

Wrestling Classic Quarterfinals: Ricky Steamboat vs. Randy Savage

Elizabeth is here with Savage, who jumps Steamboat before the bell and is quickly chopped out to the floor. Back in and Savage gets chopped down again only to come back with a belly to back suplex. Jesse Ventura returns to commentary as Steamboat fights back and gets his own suplex.

Steamboat’s high crossbody gets two as Steamboat chops Savage down again. Savage gets knocked to the apron so Steamboat tries a belly to back, only for Savage to pull out a foreign object and knock him cold for the pin at 4:02 (how he would win the Intercontinental Title in about two months).

Rating: C+. This is one of those matches that gets your attention based on the people involved and their reputations, but then you realize that they barely have time to go anywhere. That’s not the most thrilling result, but neither of them can do much of anything wrong. As has been the case tonight, it was fine enough, though more time would have made it even better.

Moondog Spot and Gene Okerlund have communication issues.

Wrestling Classic Quarterfinals: Moondog Spot vs. Junkyard Spot

There’s no referee so Spot jumps him to start, only to miss a charge. Dog hits a headbutt and counts his own pin at about 20 seconds. Somehow, this counts.

Bobby Heenan thinks someone is going to take out Paul Orndorff. Oh and Roddy Piper will beat Hulk Hogan.

Wrestling Classic Quarterfinals: Paul Orndorff vs. Tito Santana

Santana’s Intercontinental Title isn’t on the line again and they shake hands before starting. Ventura thinks Santana will go after the bounty because anyone who runs a taco stand can be bought. They fight over a top wristlock until Santana gets a headscissors to slow him down. That’s broken up so Orndorff grabs a hammerlock as commentary points out the bandage on Santana’s leg. Back up and Steamboat backs him into the ropes before grabbing a headlock.

Orndorff grabs an atomic drop and Santana comes down on the bad leg, leaving him writhing in agony. A drop toehold into a leglock has Santana in trouble and they stay in the hold for a good while. Santana gets up and is sent to the apron, where Orndorff punches him to the floor. They slug it out on the floor and Santana avoids a posting but it’s a double countout at 8:09. Ventura gloating about how they both got violent at the end is funny stuff.

Rating: B-. Take two rather talented stars who know how to crank it up when they get the chance and let them go. The double countout was a smart way to get Santana out of the tournament while also eliminating Orndorff, who is involved in one of the bigger stories. It shouldn’t be a surprise, but this might have been the best match of the show thus far.

Post match cooler heads prevail.

Alfred kisses Susan on the cheek before Vince calls him off and we get a recap of the tournament.

The remaining brackets:

Dynamite Kid
Randy Savage

Junkyard Dog
BYE

Hulk Hogan calls Roddy Piper dangerous so he’s been….watching the tournament. Either way, he’s ready to bring Hulkamania down onto Piper.

WWF Title: Roddy Piper vs. Hulk Hogan

Hogan is defending and Piper has a pipe and drum band play him to the ring (as he likes to do). They go straight to the floor to start with Hogan (in the rare all white combination) sending him over the barricade. Back in and Piper sends him into the corner and starts hammering him down, including a poke to the eye. Hogan shrugs that off and hits a running corner clothesline for the TIMBER fall.

A suplex puts Piper down and Hogan drops a big elbow before firing off the right hands. Piper goes to the eyes and hits some elbows of his own, setting up the sleeper. Hogan goes down for two arm drops but gets to his feet and sends both of them outside. Back in and Hogan wins a slugout but is sent into the referee. Piper hits him in the back with a chair and tries another shot, only for Hogan to grab his own sleeper. Cue Bob Orton with a cast shot to Hogan for the DQ at 7:15.

Rating: B-. These two worked well together every time and it was still a red hot feud so this was about as good as you were going to get, all things considered. Hogan had to be on the show in one way or another

Post match the beatdown is on until Paul Orndorff runs in for the save. The good guys pose.

The Junkyard Dog is happy with Alfred Hayes’ suggestion that he’ll be in the finals. Well the fact that he’s already in there makes that a bit more than a suggestion. Jimmy Hart runs in to yell at the Dog for recently embarrassing him, though Dog doesn’t move.

Wrestling Classic Semifinals: Dynamite Kid vs. Randy Savage

Elizabeth (changing outfits for each round) is here with Savage. We get a rather intense lockup (of course) and Savage bails out to the floor for an early breather. Back in and Kid fires off some forearms to the back before running Savage down with a shoulder. A backdrop has Savage in more trouble and Kid tries a sunset flip, only for Savage to sit down on his chest. Back up and a double clothesline leaves both of them down so Savage goes up, where Kid manages a crotching. Kid superplexes him but then (after pausing) raises his legs, allowing Savage to get a small package for the pin at 4:52.

Rating: B-. Good action for the most part, though that ending left a bit to be desired. It made sense in theory, but there was pretty much no logical reason for Kid to lift his legs up like that. Either way, Kid had a heck of a run in this tournament, though Savage was the big focal point and should have been.

The replay shows that Savage grabbed the tights in a great little bonus.

Vince talks to Susan about the sweepstakes for a Rolls Royce (I believe with Susan talking for the first time tonight). Susan saying “I wish that I could be in it right now.” is funnier than it should be.

We get the drawing for the Rolls Royce, with comments from Jack Tunney, Basil DeVito (director of promotions), the guy who handled the drawing (who talks about how his firm checked all of the entries) and Alfred Hayes, who FINALLY announces the winner (as a piece of trash comes into the ring, with the drawing guy looking at it), who is…..some guy from Illinois! He isn’t actually here or anything, but he did in fact win. This was cut from the home video version due to reasons of…well why would it be included?

Hulk Hogan thanks Paul Orndorff for helping him out and Orndorff goes on a rant about Roddy Piper and Bob Orton, likely setting up a bunch of house show matches. Hogan says they have a surprise but the interview gets cut off.

Wrestling Classic Finals: Randy Savage vs. Junkyard Dog

Elizabeth is here as usual, though Savage is banged up from the previous match and favoring his back. Savage hides behind Elizabeth to start and grabs a chair, which has Monsoon audibly rolling his eyes. The chair is thrown inside, where Dog catches it and rams it into his own head, which is a bit nuts even for Savage.

Back in and Dog shoves him down a few times before hitting an atomic drop. The bearhug goes on as Ventura keeps complaining about Savage getting an unfair draw by having an extra match. Savage rakes the eyes to get out as Gene Okerlund sits in on commentary. Dog gets rammed into the corner and dropped with a clothesline for two but the kickout sends Savage flying. Ventura: “Well he ought to. He’s fresh enough.” Gene: “Oh come on Jesse. Don’t pound a good thing into the ground.”

Savage knocks him to the floor for the top rope ax handle and then does it again for good measure. A chair to the back doesn’t draw a DQ (Gene and Gorilla don’t get why not) and Savage crawls around (Monsoon: “On all fours like a dog.” And he doesn’t even get the irony.) to choke Dog on the barricade. Back in and Dog punches him out of the air before dropping to all fours (Monsoon doesn’t seem to mind) for the headbutts. Savage’s arms get tied in the ropes before Dog backdrops him to the floor for the countout win at 9:45.

Rating: C. This was kind of a mess, but I do appreciate that Savage didn’t take a pin and basically lost because his body gave out in the end. While I can’t imagine it was planned that way, him being able to survive and win the tournament at Wrestlemania IV could have shown him getting even better in the time between. You know, assuming this tournament was ever mentioned again.

Post match Dog gets to give a victory speech but Jesse Ventura gets in to yell about this being unfair. Somehow this didn’t lead to a match between them.

The hosts wrap us up.

Credits roll, which always looks odd no matter how many times they did it.

 

Results
Adrian Adonis b. Corporal Kirchner – DDT
Dynamite Kid b. Nikolai Volkoff – Missile dropkick
Randy Savage b. Ivan Putski – Rollup with feet on the ropes
Ricky Steamboat b. Davey Boy Smith via referee stoppage
Junkyard Dog b. Iron Sheik – Headbutt
Moondog Spot b. Terry Funk via countout
Tito Santana b. Magnificent Muraco – Small package
Paul Orndorff b. Bob Orton via DQ when Orton used the cast
Dynamite Kid b. Adrian Adonis – Pin after Adonis collided with Jimmy Hart
Randy Savage b. Tito Santana – Right hand with foreign object
Junkyard Dog b. Moondog Spot – Headbutt
Tito Santana vs. Paul Orndorff went to a double countout
Hulk Hogan b. Roddy Piper via DQ when Bob Orton interfered
Randy Savage b. Dynamite Kid – Small package
Junkyard Dog b. Randy Savage via countout

 

 

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7.0

The final score: review Good

The 411

This one depends on what you wanted to see. On one hand, it is a GREAT showcase of the talent on the roster at this point. On the other hand though, no one really gets the time to stand out, as the matches had to come and go so fast. You have one match not in the tournament, which does make the title match feel important, but everything has to move so fast that nothing really stands out. It’s a fun event to see once, but the interest in watching it again is basically non-existent.