Mid-South Wrestling (1.26.1985) Review

-Originally aired January 26, 1985.

-Your hosts are Jim Ross and Ted DiBiase.

-The Guerreros are in the ring to announce that they’re filing a formal protest. They had two referees for the first time ever, they won ANYWAY, and then Mid-South just announces, “We don’t want you to have the belts.” Rock & Roll Express warns that they have two pissed-off Mexicans on their trail, and the Alamo already proved what happens when you have that.

ALAMO BUSTERS vs. PVT. TERRY DANIELS & SHAWN MICHAELS
-Chavo takes down Daniels and stands on his face. Hector suplexes Daniels for two. Michaels tags in and gets double-slammed by the Busters. Overhead suplex by Chavo gets three.

BRAD ARMSTRONG vs. JIM ROSE
-Armstrong is billed at 225 pounds. He used to be billed at 385 pounds and then he finally lost that damn title belt.

-Waistlock takedown by Brad, who has a lot more freedom of movement without the chronic muscle soreness that came with possessing that horrible title belt. Powerslam gets a quick three-count, and then Brad hurries off to the chiropractor to undo all the damage that that godawful North American Title did to his spine.

TV TITLE: TERRY TAYLOR (Champion) vs. “Nature Boy” BUDDY LANDELL
-Crowd chants “Buddy,” and as we learned from Bill Watts the last time they chanted that, it’s a goof on Buddy because chanting his name actually means that the fans hate him.

-Taylor just beats and beats on Buddy as this turns into a very one-sided affair right away. Wristlock by Terry, but Buddy clocks him with a forearm and celebrates with a strut. Landell lifts Terry in a bearhug and stunguns him, then works the arm over. Terry comes back with a big right and dropkicks Buddy. Five-arm connects with an audible THWACK, and he pins Buddy clean as a sheet to retain the title.

ICEMAN KING PARSONS vs. SHEIK HERCULES HERNANDEZ (with Skandar Akbar)
-Parsons shoulderblocks Herc and chops him down, with Herc going cross-eyed for the sell of it. Slam and a stomp while Ted DiBiase cheerfully assures us that Herc is just messing with Parsons and letting him get the early advantage is just part of his effective strategy.

-Herc rams him against the ropes and follows with a forearm, proving DiBiase’s point even sooner than I expected. Stungun follows and Herc applies his finisher, but Parsons BREAKS THE HOLD, the first man ever to do so, and Herc is so shocked that he falls immediate victim to a clothesline, and Parson gets a three-count just from that. Herc attacks with Akbar’s riding crop after the bell, but Parsons grabs a chair (“That’s barred from Mid-South!” DiBiase protests) and chases them off. To be fair after my ragging on him the past few weeks, the crowd is starting to get behind Parsons a bit now.

JAKE “The Snake” ROBERTS vs. TIM HORNER
-DiBiase lets us know that Roberts is a good friend of his, because their styles are similar and because Ted knows that his good friend Jake would never stoop so low as to steal a belt from him. Horner applies a side headlock as DiBiase shifts gears to the previous match and warns King Parsons never to bring a barred folding chair into the ring for a match against Ted DiBiase.

-Side headlock by Horner, and Jake stays in the hold and very slyly rolls down Tim’s kneepad for some reason. Jake finally escapes, runs the ropes, and clips the knee, and CONVINCINGLY so. Jake twists and turns the knee. Horner gets back to his feet and hits a Russian legsweep for two. Attempted backdrop and Horner counters it by leapfrogging Jake, but he comes down on his bad knee and buckles in pain, and Jake DDTs him to finally put him away. Good match with a nice eeeeevil story guiding it.

“Dr. Death” STEVE WILLIAMS vs. SAMMY HALL
-This jobber has never seen natural sunlight and eats no more than 700 calories a day. Clothesline by Doc, and Sammy looks genuinely terrified as Doc connects with it. Chinlock and a slam by Doc. Tackle by Doc, and the Oklahoma Stampede finishes.

BILLY HAYNES vs. KAMALA (with Friday & Skandar Akbar)
-From Sam Houston Coliseum in Houston. Bill Watts explains that we might remember Billy Haynes from when he went by the name Billy Jack, but he’s now going by his real name. He would, of course, tinker with the name a little further, and by the time he entered Crockett country, he was known as Billy Mays Hays.

-Kamala attacks as Haynes is entering the ring and chops away, but Haynes is ready for a fight and unloads right hands. Kamala goes to the ribs. Haynes hangs in there with chops, but Kamala goes to his trademark nurplizer. Kamala switches to a choke, then chops the throat. Watts notes again that Kamala has actually learned “cheating” and he’s actually somewhat smart about it, so, yes, he’s a savage, but we’re slowly seeing that he’s kind of aware of how wrestling works and that could make him more dangerous. Again, that was kind of a neat twist to make with the character and they didn’t go farther with it.

-Kamala goes back to the nurplizer. Friday distracts and again, Kamala is savvy enough to switch to a chokehold. Bill Watts, just for the hell of it, decides to bring up the fact that Kamala has kicked JYD and Andre the Giant’s asses on past occasions, no real reason, just thought he’d mention that.

-Haynes fights back to his feet, stinging Kamala with chops and kicks. and Haynes shocks the crowd by slamming Kamala. Akbar gets desperate and trips Billy from the floor, and Kamala dives onto him with a splash for the three-count. Pretty exciting all the way through.

7.6

The final score: review Good

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