Memphis Wrestling (7.12.1980) Review

-We’re jumping ahead about three months, which, if I know this promotion, means we’ve missed 14 title changes.

-Originally aired July 12, 1980.

EL MONGOL (with Jimmy Hart) vs. CARL FERGIE
-Some quick Googling finds that Mongol is at the tail end of a very long career, and he’s 50 years old at the time of this show.

-Fergie works the arm and Mongol is frustrated early on about some young scrub holding his own in there. Mongol comes to life with a clothesline and a forearm. Mongol chokes him and stomps away for a two-count. Fergie mounts a comeback with a backdrop and a slam, but he can’t do better than a one-count. Fergie charges at Mongol, but Mongol grabs him and throws him over the top rope to the concrete, getting himself DQed. Mongol tries to win the war with a post-match attack, but Fergie clears the ring, and the commentators are a little surprised that Carl Fergie had such a good showing in that match.

-We get words from the legendary SPUTNIK MONROE! Jerry Jarrett and Tojo Yamomoto got roped into wrestling a match against the Blond Bombers, but they knew manager Danny Davis would be a problem, Jerry Jarrett asked Sputnik to come out of retirement as a personal favor, so Sputnik came out of retirement to beat the hell out of Davis, expecting “Cadillac money” for doing it, but Jerry Jarrett is only paying him “shoeshine money,” so Sputnik basically just announces he’s going to be a heel from now on (“I’m gonna stand on the OTHER side of the ring!”) because he’s insulted by the crappy payday.

-Jerry Jarrett and Tojo Yamomoto come in and clarify that they were each paid $500 for the match and they paid what they thought was fair out of that. For some reason it cracks me up that Jerry openly said the specific amount he paid himself for the match. Meanwhile, half the locker room was probably screaming “FIVE HUNDRED?!”

JERRY BRYANT vs. DAVID OSWALD
-Bryant tries mat wrestling. David takes an aggressive approach, elbowing him down. Bryant tries a side headlock to neutralize him. Oswald sticks with the elbows because they work for him, and another hard elbow gets two. Bryant ducks a clothesline attempt and takes Oswald’s head off with a clothesline of his own for three.

We go to the Mid-South Coliseum, Jimmy Valiant & Bill Dundee vs. Paul Ellering and Killer Karl Krupp. Referee is distracted by a brawl on the floor while Dundee steals a foreign object from Ellering and knocks him out with it. Ellering revives by the time the referee gets back in there, and he steals his weapon back, but Dundee ducks the punch and sunset flips him for three.

-We go to action from Lexington, Kentucky, Paul Ellering defending his title against Bill Dundee. Referee gets bumped and Krupp heads to ringside with a weapon to take advantage, but Jimmy Valiant comes to the rescue.

KILLER KARL KRUPP (with Jimmy Hart) vs. JOE STARK
-Krupp is a big German guy, basically Baron Von Raschke with Bald Bull’s head photoshopped onto his body. Big boot from Krupp gets a quick win.

PAUL ELLERING (Southern Heavyweight Champion, with Jimmy Hart) vs. DAVID MCGEE
-Ellering has now achieved 19th-century U.S. President-level mutton chops.

-Snapmare and a big elbow get the two-count. Slams by Ellering, and a bearhug gets the win. Bonus points to McGee, who punched Ellering repeatedly, saw that wasn’t enough, tried sliding his arms through Elllering’s arms to pry them apart, saw that wasn’t enough, and then conceded. Even if a bearhug is totally effective, it’s the easiest submission hold to fight, so fight it a bit before you give up.

EXPIRATION OF TIME, NON-TITLE: KEN LUCAS & RICK MORTON (Southern Tag Team Champions) vs. WAYNE HALL & BUB SMITH
-Hall and Smith both look like truck drivers who were offered twenty bucks and lunch if they could leave their seats at the diner and just come across the street and wrestle this one match real quick. Bub Smith has a BIT of a resume, from Googling around, but Wayne Hall is a complete mystery.

-Side headlock by Lucas. Morton tags in and tries his version. Hall manages to make the tag while Morton is holding onto him. Smith gets caught in an armbar. Hall tags back in, and Morton tries a stump puller, but Hall just rolls backwards onto the too-light Morton for a two-count. Morton tries a chinlock. Lucas slams Hall for a three-count at the exact moment that Lance Russell announces there’s no TV time remaining, and again, the Expiration of Time premise is totally wasted. It’s two jobbers! Let the faces get two wins for god’s sake!

7.0

The final score: review Good

The 411

Another solid week (minus the ongoing waste of Expiration of Time) from this promotion.