April 26, 1987
From the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix, AZ
Your hosts are Bobby Heenan and Gorilla Monsoon
Tonight's featured bout is the rare babyface vs. babyface between the Islanders and the Rougeau Brothers. Also in action will be George Steele, Billy Jack Haynes, Can-Am Connection, and the Hart Foundation.
Steve Lombardi & Iron Mike Sharpe vs. Can-Am Connection
Martel starts off getting the best of Lombardi. He then gets backed into the opposite corner and worked over briefly until he ducks an attack from Sharpe that nails Lombardi. Zenk then tags and flies halfway across the ring with a missile dropkick that gets two as we get an insert promo from Mr. Fuji telling the Can-Ams that Kamala & Sika are coming after them. Sharpe works over Zenk in the corner until he misses a charge. Lombardi then yanks Zenk by the hair as the heels regain control of the match. Sharpe and Zenk collide then Martel gets the hot-tag as he runs wild on both guys then puts Lombardi away with a slingshot splash after a powerslam from Zenk (3:11).
Thoughts: Good action from the very popular Can-Am Connection. The main goal here was to start a program with Kamala & Sika, which would progress as the show continued.
We get a repeat of the "Wrestler's Rebuttal" by Brutus Beefcake from this past episode of "Superstars of Wrestling" in which he promises to go after Adrian Adonis. Oddly enough, Adonis was fired the day after this show aired at a house show in London, Ontario to what Dave Meltzer described as frequent dress code violations and being a slob in general.
Billy Jack Haynes vs. Tiger Chung Lee
Lee sidesteps a crossbody then roughs up Haynes as we get an insert promo from Hercules promising to use his chain on Haynes, who is now in control of the match. He backdrops Lee, who is too lazy to take the move correctly, then hits a suplex before using the full nelson for the win (1:56).
Thoughts: The Haynes/Hercules feud continues. That is really all I have to say here.
Gene Okerlund is with Honky Tonk Man and Jimmy Hart, who is holding the "Ban the DDT" sign as they talk about that throughout the promo as Honky tells us everyone in the WWE wants him to sing and ask his fans for support in getting the DDT banned. Honky was truly great in this role.
Hillbilly Jim and Outback Jack are talking about the different animals they are accustom to in their homelands. Look likes they were trying to make a team here but these two were pretty low on the card and unable to be saved at this point anyway so making them a team wouldn't have been the worst idea in the world.
Nick Kiniski & Joe Mirto vs. Hart Foundation w/ Jimmy Hart & Danny Davis
Danny Davis is shown in an insert promo saying that he is at ringside to make sure the officials are doing there job. Kiniski gets the best of the Anvil then tags Mirto, who immediately gets slammed. Bret tags and beats on Mirto as the Hart Foundation are in full control of the match then put Mirto away with the Hart Attack (2:29). After the match, they let Danny Davis clear the ring of Kiniski and Mirto as they were already down on the mat.
Thoughts: Most of the focus here was on Davis as they further establish him as a chickenshit heel.
Okerlund is with Koko B. Ware and Frankie. Koko, wearing shades and an Adidas track suit, cuts a preacher-like promo on Danny Davis. He seemed coked out of his mind here. There feud seemingly lasted forever too and it was not good. The beginning of the end for Koko here as he became a curtain-jerker as the result of this feud.
The Islanders vs. Rougeau Brothers
Haku and Raymond start off the match with Raymond getting the upper hand. Jacques tags and grabs a headlock. Haku gets two off of a sunset flip then tags Tama, who goes to work on the arm. Jacques comes back with a monkey flip that saw Tama fly through the air as both guys tag out. Good action so far in this match by the way. Tama tags back in and works over the arm of Raymond as the Islanders are getting a bit more aggressive. Tama breaks up a sleeper by Raymond with a double axe handle then tags in as he hits a side slam. The Islanders get even more aggressive as Tama yanks Raymond down by the hair and goes for the cover but Jacques breaks it up. He then tags as he hammers away on Tama before catching him in an abdominal stretch. Haku breaks that up with a throat thrust then all four guys are inside as the action spills outside as they brawl until the match is ruled a double countout (6:10) **1/2. The teams fight until a few referees break up the melee.
Thoughts: Good match that was all action. This also planted the seed for the Islanders eventual heel turn as they wrestled aggressively and were doing heel tactics such as breaking up pins and pulling hair as well. Tama in particular looked great in this match. Oddly enough, the Rougeaus would turn heel about a year later after wrestling the Killer Bees in a babyface match on TV.
Snake Pit with guest Hacksaw Jim Duggan. Jake asks Duggan about why he came to the WWF as Duggan said he saw Sheik & Volkoff putting down America and was sick of it as they do not know what America is all about. Duggan said he does not go to "discotheques to read Zodiac signs" before saying that as long as he is alive, Volkoff will not sing the Russian National Anthem in this country again. Another well-received patriotic promo from Duggan.
Alex Knight & S.D. Jones vs. Kamala & Sika w/ Mr. Fuji & Kimchee
S.D. works the arm of Sika then lands a few shots until Sika rakes his eyes. Kamala tags in and destroys Knight as the Can-Am Connection issue a challenge to Kamala & Sika for a match next week as Kamala puts Knight away with a splash (1:21).
Thoughts: Quick match to make the team of Kamala & Sika look dominant in preparation for a probable match against the Can-Am Connection. Smart idea to build up a
Jesse Cortez vs. George "The Animal" Steele
Steele immediately bites the arm of Cortez then beats him down until he gets the win with a flying hammerlock (0:50). After the match, Steele takes down the referee and calls him nice before getting up and eating a turnbuckle.
Thoughts: The fans still loved Steele and quick TV matches like this were a great use of his talents.
Okerlund is with Johnny V and his snazzy new tights. The New Dream Team then come out as they call Beefcake the "weak link" of the team as the refer to him as "Fruitcake." Bravo promises us that this is the most devastating team the WWF fans will ever see. Bravo was terrible here and in general when it came to wrestling.
Craig DeGeorge is in the locker room asking Mr. Fuji if he will accept the challenge from the Can-Am Connection and he does, saying that Kamala & Sika will rip off their faces. So our featured bout for next week is all set.
Next week's featured bout will be Kamala & Sika vs. Can-Am Connection. Plus, Ricky Steamboat, King Harley Race, and Iron Sheik & Nikolai Volkoff.
Final Thoughts: Solid show. Most of the focus was on the tag team division as they had a good TV match and built up next week's featured bout well. The midcard was interesting at this time but unfortunately the top of the card as still murky post-WrestleMania III.
Schedule for the next several days:
Sunday: WWF Superstars of Wrestling 5/2/87
Tuesday: WWF Saturday Night's Main Event 5/2/87
Thursday: Shoot Interview TBD
Friday: WWF Wrestling Challenge 5/3/87
From the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix, AZ
Your hosts are Bobby Heenan and Gorilla Monsoon
Tonight's featured bout is the rare babyface vs. babyface between the Islanders and the Rougeau Brothers. Also in action will be George Steele, Billy Jack Haynes, Can-Am Connection, and the Hart Foundation.
Steve Lombardi & Iron Mike Sharpe vs. Can-Am Connection
Martel starts off getting the best of Lombardi. He then gets backed into the opposite corner and worked over briefly until he ducks an attack from Sharpe that nails Lombardi. Zenk then tags and flies halfway across the ring with a missile dropkick that gets two as we get an insert promo from Mr. Fuji telling the Can-Ams that Kamala & Sika are coming after them. Sharpe works over Zenk in the corner until he misses a charge. Lombardi then yanks Zenk by the hair as the heels regain control of the match. Sharpe and Zenk collide then Martel gets the hot-tag as he runs wild on both guys then puts Lombardi away with a slingshot splash after a powerslam from Zenk (3:11).
Thoughts: Good action from the very popular Can-Am Connection. The main goal here was to start a program with Kamala & Sika, which would progress as the show continued.
We get a repeat of the "Wrestler's Rebuttal" by Brutus Beefcake from this past episode of "Superstars of Wrestling" in which he promises to go after Adrian Adonis. Oddly enough, Adonis was fired the day after this show aired at a house show in London, Ontario to what Dave Meltzer described as frequent dress code violations and being a slob in general.
Billy Jack Haynes vs. Tiger Chung Lee
Lee sidesteps a crossbody then roughs up Haynes as we get an insert promo from Hercules promising to use his chain on Haynes, who is now in control of the match. He backdrops Lee, who is too lazy to take the move correctly, then hits a suplex before using the full nelson for the win (1:56).
Thoughts: The Haynes/Hercules feud continues. That is really all I have to say here.
Gene Okerlund is with Honky Tonk Man and Jimmy Hart, who is holding the "Ban the DDT" sign as they talk about that throughout the promo as Honky tells us everyone in the WWE wants him to sing and ask his fans for support in getting the DDT banned. Honky was truly great in this role.
Hillbilly Jim and Outback Jack are talking about the different animals they are accustom to in their homelands. Look likes they were trying to make a team here but these two were pretty low on the card and unable to be saved at this point anyway so making them a team wouldn't have been the worst idea in the world.
Nick Kiniski & Joe Mirto vs. Hart Foundation w/ Jimmy Hart & Danny Davis
Danny Davis is shown in an insert promo saying that he is at ringside to make sure the officials are doing there job. Kiniski gets the best of the Anvil then tags Mirto, who immediately gets slammed. Bret tags and beats on Mirto as the Hart Foundation are in full control of the match then put Mirto away with the Hart Attack (2:29). After the match, they let Danny Davis clear the ring of Kiniski and Mirto as they were already down on the mat.
Thoughts: Most of the focus here was on Davis as they further establish him as a chickenshit heel.
Okerlund is with Koko B. Ware and Frankie. Koko, wearing shades and an Adidas track suit, cuts a preacher-like promo on Danny Davis. He seemed coked out of his mind here. There feud seemingly lasted forever too and it was not good. The beginning of the end for Koko here as he became a curtain-jerker as the result of this feud.
The Islanders vs. Rougeau Brothers
Haku and Raymond start off the match with Raymond getting the upper hand. Jacques tags and grabs a headlock. Haku gets two off of a sunset flip then tags Tama, who goes to work on the arm. Jacques comes back with a monkey flip that saw Tama fly through the air as both guys tag out. Good action so far in this match by the way. Tama tags back in and works over the arm of Raymond as the Islanders are getting a bit more aggressive. Tama breaks up a sleeper by Raymond with a double axe handle then tags in as he hits a side slam. The Islanders get even more aggressive as Tama yanks Raymond down by the hair and goes for the cover but Jacques breaks it up. He then tags as he hammers away on Tama before catching him in an abdominal stretch. Haku breaks that up with a throat thrust then all four guys are inside as the action spills outside as they brawl until the match is ruled a double countout (6:10) **1/2. The teams fight until a few referees break up the melee.
Thoughts: Good match that was all action. This also planted the seed for the Islanders eventual heel turn as they wrestled aggressively and were doing heel tactics such as breaking up pins and pulling hair as well. Tama in particular looked great in this match. Oddly enough, the Rougeaus would turn heel about a year later after wrestling the Killer Bees in a babyface match on TV.
Snake Pit with guest Hacksaw Jim Duggan. Jake asks Duggan about why he came to the WWF as Duggan said he saw Sheik & Volkoff putting down America and was sick of it as they do not know what America is all about. Duggan said he does not go to "discotheques to read Zodiac signs" before saying that as long as he is alive, Volkoff will not sing the Russian National Anthem in this country again. Another well-received patriotic promo from Duggan.
Alex Knight & S.D. Jones vs. Kamala & Sika w/ Mr. Fuji & Kimchee
S.D. works the arm of Sika then lands a few shots until Sika rakes his eyes. Kamala tags in and destroys Knight as the Can-Am Connection issue a challenge to Kamala & Sika for a match next week as Kamala puts Knight away with a splash (1:21).
Thoughts: Quick match to make the team of Kamala & Sika look dominant in preparation for a probable match against the Can-Am Connection. Smart idea to build up a
Jesse Cortez vs. George "The Animal" Steele
Steele immediately bites the arm of Cortez then beats him down until he gets the win with a flying hammerlock (0:50). After the match, Steele takes down the referee and calls him nice before getting up and eating a turnbuckle.
Thoughts: The fans still loved Steele and quick TV matches like this were a great use of his talents.
Okerlund is with Johnny V and his snazzy new tights. The New Dream Team then come out as they call Beefcake the "weak link" of the team as the refer to him as "Fruitcake." Bravo promises us that this is the most devastating team the WWF fans will ever see. Bravo was terrible here and in general when it came to wrestling.
Craig DeGeorge is in the locker room asking Mr. Fuji if he will accept the challenge from the Can-Am Connection and he does, saying that Kamala & Sika will rip off their faces. So our featured bout for next week is all set.
Next week's featured bout will be Kamala & Sika vs. Can-Am Connection. Plus, Ricky Steamboat, King Harley Race, and Iron Sheik & Nikolai Volkoff.
Final Thoughts: Solid show. Most of the focus was on the tag team division as they had a good TV match and built up next week's featured bout well. The midcard was interesting at this time but unfortunately the top of the card as still murky post-WrestleMania III.
Schedule for the next several days:
Sunday: WWF Superstars of Wrestling 5/2/87
Tuesday: WWF Saturday Night's Main Event 5/2/87
Thursday: Shoot Interview TBD
Friday: WWF Wrestling Challenge 5/3/87