wrestling / Video Reviews
Universal Wrestling Federation (5.2.1987) Review
Image Credit: Universal Wrestling Federation
Loading...-Cold open: We get a montage of One Man Gang squashing one jobber after another, to the sounds of “Winner Takes It All” by Sammy Hagar.
‘Cause winner takes it all
Loser takes a fall
Fight to the beginning of the end
-Mr. Hagar seems to know something about this week’s booking plans. But we’ve reached the point where the UWF has had to start making decisions based on who’s still there, instead of who they want to push. The report from the concurrent issue of Observer: Sam Houston, Bruce Prichard, and Gang all gave their notice in the past two weeks, and Ted DiBiase doesn’t seem to be tipping his hand one way or the other. Missy Hyatt has left the company AGAIN to take another crack at Missy’s Manor at the WWF TV tapings, and again, they didn’t do a burial or anything.
-Also, unrelated to behind-the-scenes business dealings, Savannah Jack’s career has ended as abruptly as it began. He entered the wrestling business in 1986 at the age of 38, immediately got a big push as Bill Watts’ last attempt to replace Junkyard Dog, and then a few weeks ago, he coughed up a blood clot before a TV taping and instantly decided, “Welp, that’s it for my career” and hung it up.
-Originally aired May 2, 1987.
-Your host is Jim Ross, who is now sitting at ringside for commentary, the first sign of the Crockettization of the company.
-JR introduces us to NFL star John Ayres, who played football for West Texas State and therefore knew a lot of pro wrestlers. By several accounts, he was planning on a post-NFL career in pro wrestling because of that, but those plans pretty much stalled beyond his new gig as the figurehead commissioner of the UWF. Ayers takes credit for bringing Big Bubba into the UWF, saying Gang hasn’t ever really wrestled anyone built similarly to him and he wanted to see him physically matched by an opponent. That’s a pretty good explanation for abruptly bringing in Bubba and declaring him #1 contender.
-Eddie Gilbert comes out to personally congratulate Ayers on making a such a shrewd business decision and says he’s excited about seeing this bout.
HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE: ONE MAN GANG (Champion) vs. BIG BUBBA ROGERS
-Dr. Death sits in for commentary as JR curiously observes that Akbar didn’t come to the ring with Gang.
-Lockups go nowhere, and Gang seems completely thrown that they went nowhere. They collide on shoulderblocks and again, nothing happens, and Gang seems shocked that Bubba isn’t affected. Gang goes for the big guns early and tries for a bodyslam, but Bubba won’t go up. Bubba tries his own slam. Gang resists that too, but Gang is doing some pretty good acting in there, as everything he does in the ring is based on being larger than the other guy and he’s just utterly confused about what to do when that’s not the case.
-Bubba Irish whips Gang into the corner. Gang moves out of the way of the corner charge, and Bubba does an incredible bump for a guy his size, going over the top and down onto the concrete. Gang pounces and hammers on Bubba, giving him a small cut. Bubba fights back, and the crowd has voted for Bubba as the designated babyface for this match.
-Back in, Bubba wallops Gang with a forearm and chokes him over the top rope, but he misses an axehandle. Gang goes for the quick pin and Bubba kicks out so aggressively that Gang falls out to the floor. He makes it back in but Bubba immediately surprises him with an enziguiri(!) and takes Gang out to the floor, ramming his head into a table and then into a post, and Gang is BLEEDING. Bubba has a cut, but Gang is a bloody mess instantly.
-We pause for a poorly timed house show promo, as Jim Ross announces that Sting & Rick Steiner are the new Tag Team Champions following a controversial victory over Terry Taylor & Chris Adams. JR talks to Terry & Chris. Terry assures Chris that he’s not upset about the loss and says they’ll just do everything they can to get those belts back. Chris says that he was knocked loopy during the bout and still doesn’t even really understand HOW they lost, so he thinks the first step here is to try to get some videotape of the match and figure out what happened that caused him to get pinned, and Terry is pants-shittingly nervous right away at the idea of reviewing the videotape.
-Back to the ring, Skandar Akbar is here and Gang goes over to ask where the hell he’s been, and Bubba takes advantage of the distraction, chopping Gang down for a two-count. Gang is worn down so badly that he accidentally hangs himself up in the ropes, and Bubba unloads a series of kneelifts and kicks to take advantage.
-Gang finally gets free and throws his own kicks while Dr. Death gives us a few glimpses into why he was never asked to do guest commentary after this. It’s actually a little endearing, as it’s clearly because he’s just WATCHING the match and invested in it, and JR keeps prompting him to talk.
-Legdrop by Bubba, and he takes a bit of a breather with a chinlock. Gang fights out and they trade right hands. Bubba comes off the ropes, but Gang clotheslines him with a hard THWACK that will rattle your teeth just watching it. Bubba looks like it knocked him out, so Gang goes for the kill with the 747 splash off the turnbuckles. Bubba rolls, Gang crashes. Referee gets bumped juuuuuuuuuust hard enough for Bubba to go off the top rope illegally for his own splash, which connects, and the referee rolls over and recovers in time to count three. Bubba is your new champ. Both guys let it all hang out; with Bubba, you have a guy getting a huge opportunity barely over a year into the business and not wanting to blow it; with Gang, you had a total professional who was on his way out the door, knew the right thing to do, and DID IT. Gang made Bubba look like a badass here, and in fact, the parting camera shot of Gang’s UWF tenure is Gang writhing and having a borderline seizure on the mat to sell the impact of the splash, and the referee signals for medical assistance.
-We go now to footage from the Omni to see HOW Chris Adams lost that Tag Team Title match. Adams is fighting off both opponents after a hot tag. Taylor recovers and joins the fun to make it a full pier sixer. The finish is a classic spot, Adams suplexes Sting from the apron back into the ring and Eddie Gilbert hooks Adams’ leg from the floor. Here’s your twist: Adams manages to get a foot on the ropes, but as Taylor slugs it out with Steiner, Taylor accidentally(?) kicks Adams’ foot off the ropes, allowing Sting to cinch up on him for a tighter three-count.
GENTLEMAN CHRIS ADAMS & TERRY TAYLOR vs. BOB BRADLEY & RED DEVIL
-Another sign of new management in charge, we don’t have a ring announcer anymore.
-Bradley gets to be the tackling dummy for all of Adams and Taylor’s offense. Adams knocks him out to the floor and seems a little hesitant about tagging Taylor in. Red Devil tags in and misses a corner charge. Snap suplex by Taylor. Adams comes back in and knocks him out with a superkick, but again, Taylor insists on tagging in and dropping a knee so he can get the pin himself.
-JR tells Chris & Terry what they saw on the tape, and Terry just desperately wants to stop this discussion and says to leave it in the past, and he walks off to avoid this going any further.
STEVE COX vs. SUPER NINJA
-Suplex by the Ninja gets two. Cox bounces right back from that and finishes quickly with the Russian legsweep.
-We go to action on Power Pro Wrestling. Gary Young is squashing Jeff Raitz, who’s giving it a good shot but Young is too much for him. Referee gets bumped and Young figures, “Meh, I’m a heel” and unleashes all the dirty tactics while the referee is out, and Chavo Guerrero is so disgusted by this, he just strolls to the ring, knocks out Young, wakes up the referee, and helps Raitz get the biggest win of his career.
-So then Chavo is battling the Super Ninja, and goose/gander and all that, so Gary Young shows up, but Chavo anticipates Young would do that, so he avoids the surprise attack and gets the win over Super Ninja, and Young is fuming about the screw-up.
CHAVO GUERRERO vs. MIKE BOYETTE
-Chavo works the arm of Boyette, who “still has a perfect record for 1987,” according to JR.
-Chavo ties up Boyette, who goes to the eyes to break. Chavo recovers quickly and finishes Boyette with an overhead suplex.
STING & RICK STEINER (Tag Team Champions, with Eddie Gilbert) vs. JEFF RAITZ & MIKE REED
-JR is handed a note asking him to come to the dressing room as soon as this match is over. Man, at least see if the note is signed first.
-Steiner takes Reed’s head off with a clothesline from the top rope. Sting holds him up in a body vice and Steiner comes with a forearm to finish.
-JR is in the dressing room as requested. So it turns out that Skandar Akbar arranged a business deal for Bubba to come into the UWF. Gang was turning lazy and complacent, so Akbar ditched him for Bubba to make a point about what he expects from members of Devastation, Inc.
