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Full text of "Wrestling88 magazine, 1988-Spring
"
See other formats
Sting’s Career: ae 14423 Sm Spring 1988
ALOOK AHEAD a
FROM THE PUBLISHERS OF
PRO WRESTLING ILLUSTRATED
pa +)
THE HOGAN-SAVAGE ALLIANCE
CAN DESTROY THE WWF!
o Nr6956"14 ll
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SPRING 1988
“FOR TODAY’S WRESTLING FAN”
VOLUME 6 NUMBER 1
The managers debate
| 8 CROSSFIRE:
KERRY VON ERICH
“The Modern-Day Warrior” discusses
his comeback from a near-fatal injury
as he’s grilled by Wrestling 88 editors
Bill Apter and Eddie Ellner
22 HEAD TO HEAD:
WENDI RICHTER VS.
SHERRI MARTEL
Two of the greatest woman wrestlers of
the decade. The former WWF women’s
champ vs. the current champ. Who
would win if they wrestled today? Four
noted experts offer analyses
28 INTERVIEW 88:
CURT HENNIG
The AWA World heavyweight cham-
pion talks about his father, his change
of attitude, and the quality of his title
reign in this exclusive Wrestling 88
interview
32 CORNETTE, ELLERING, &
DILLON: A HEATED DEBATE ON
THE FINE ART OF MANAGING
Three of the sport's most notorious
managers get together for a once-in-a-
lifetime roundtable discussion
4
A
j
Hogan and Savage unite
P
Sting: The next five years
a en THE
HOGAN-SAVAGE ALLIANCE
CAN DESTROY THE WWF!
The balance of power in the World
Wrestling Federation is being tilted in
a dangerous direction. It’s only a mat-
ter of time before this unusual tag
team self-destructs!
36 A LOOK AHEAD:
THE CAREER OF STING—1988-1993
This young star is on the verge of
greatness. What form will that great-
ness take? Wrestling 88 takes a look
into the future
4O sanrrcacnc
HEARTTHROBS: STRIKE FORCE IS
AWESOME!
Rick Martel and Tito Santana have
gripped the imagination of the wres-
tling world like few teams before them
4x PRIVATE SIDE:
TULLY BLANCHARD
Wrestling 88 joins this dangerous
member of The Four Horsemen on a
rare afternoon off vacationing with his
wife in the Caribbean
Tully: Caribbean vacation
4S. YOU DECIDE:
SHOULD WRESTLING’S 30-DAY
RULE BE ABOLISHED?
Should champions defend their titles
once every 30 days? More often? Less
often? The issue has scandalized the
NWA, and now it’s time for you to
speak out. Read the arguments on
both sides of the issue and cast your
vote today
DEPARTMENTS
Opening Beil ............ Orc rpecrs 6
Feedback .. ero:
Newsline...
In This Corner.............000:
Manager’s Forum.
Scouting Report...
Scoreboard. 0:2 s: ocT 87 = i
] MAY 79 OCT 81 NOV 83 NOV 85 NOV 87 ]
I JULY79 DEC 81 DEC 83 DEC 8S pece7 | STATE ——__ ZIP) _ eee >
JAN 88
I For allvorders except the United States and Canada you MUST ADD one dollat (U.S) for every back wssue ordered for boat Il
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Do Not Onder Any Issue Not Listed. Do Not Send Goins,
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Be sure to fi
in the gaps in your collection of INSIDE
WRESTLING, ‘The magazine that rips the lid off pro
wrestling.” Get all the information you need to keep up
on the pro wrestling scene. Don’t be left out. Avoid
sellouts—order today!
July 1974/Stories include:
zko, Heenan, Strongbow.
September 1974/Stories include: Sam-
Martino, Graham, Brooks, Bruiser
November 1974/Stories include: Gar-
vins, Mascaras, Sammartino, Graham.
‘August 1975/Stories include: Valentine,
Garea, Rhodes, Sammartino,
‘September 1975/Siories include: Mas-
caras, Funk, Valiants, Gagne.
February 1976/Stories include! Andre,
Strongbow, Lewin, Brazil
March 1976/Stories include: Ladd,
Funk, Sheik, Robinson,
April 1976/Stories include: Mascaras,
Albano, Flair, Brisco.
August 1976/Stories include: Funks,
Mascaras, Sammartino, Putski,
September 1976/Stories include: An-
dre, Funk, Hansen, Mascaras.
October 1976/Stories include: Sammar-
tino, Race, Johnson, Jones.
November 1976/Sitories include: Mas-
caras, Wrestling Il, Funk, Sammartino.
December 1976/Stories include
Stasiak, Rhodes, Bockwinkel, Orton,
January 1977/Stories include; Sammar-
lino, Brisco, Funk, Gagne,
August 1977/Siories include: Backlund,
Graham, Mascaras, Lawler
September 1977/Stories include: Sam-
martino, Andre, Mascaras, Brisco.
October 1977/Stories include: Andre,
Rhodes, Backlund, Mulligan,
November 1977/Stories include: Gra-
ham, Rhodes, Mascaras, Gagne
December 197/Stories include: Andre,
Mascaras, Johnson, Maivia
March 1978/Stories include; Rhodes,
Valentine, Backlund, Bockwinkel
‘April 1978/Stories include: Backlund,
Graham, Steamboat, Bruiser
August 1978/Stories include: Backlund,
Rhodes, Andre, Hansen,
October 1978/Stories include: Sammar-
tino, Andre, Rhodes, McDaniel.
November 1978/Stories include:
Rhodes, Backlund, Flair, Sleamboat
area, Zby:
I INSIDE WRESTLING press WARES | Make Check Payable And Send To: ONLY
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December 1978/Stories include: Sar
martino, Rhodes, Wrestling I, Bravo,
January 1979/Stories include: Sammar-
tino, Mulligan, Rhodes, Backlund.
February 1979/Stories include: Race,
Sammartino, Steamboat, Ladd
April 1979/Stories include: Andre, Flair,
Backlund, Jones.
May 1979/Stories include: Steamboat,
Rhodes, Backlund, Heenan.
June 1979/Stories include: Rhodes, Su:
perstar, Bockwinkel, Backlund
July 1979/Stories include: Rhodes,
Lada, Valiant, Brower.
August 1979/Stories include: Flair, Gar-
vin, Race, Sammartino,
September 1979/Stories include:
Steamboat, Mascaras, Strongbow,
Garvin,
February 1980/Stories include: Patera,
‘Snuka, Santana, Albano.
April 1980/Stories include: Hogan, Rich,
Backlund, Mascaras.
May 1980/Stories include: Sammartino,
Murdoch, Mulligan, Bockwinkel.
June 1980/Stories include: Putski, An-
dre, Hernandez, Keim.
July 1980/Stories include: Rhodes, Von
Erich, Superstar, Blassie.
‘August 1980/Stories include: Sammar-
tino, Wrestling Il, Baker, Kolo
September 1980/Stories include: Mas-
aras, Rhodes, Ladd, Iron Sheik
November 1980/Stories include:
Rhodes, Putski, Bockwinkel, Koloff.
January 1981/Storiesineglude:
Snuka, Morales, Sialer
February 1981/Stories include: Back-
lund, DiBiase, Bravo, Anderson.
April 1981/Stories include: Albano,
Sammartino Jr,, Race, McGraw.
May 1981/Stories include: Iron Sheik,
Von Erich, Backlund, Santana
June 1981/Stories include: Rhodes,
Hansen, Piper, Gagne,
September 1981/Stories include:
Patera, Koloff, Khan, Junkyard Dog.
January 1982/Stories include: Flair, Ho-
gan, Race, Humperdink.
===
February 1982/Stoties include: Valen-
tine, Flait, Steamboat, Rhodes.
March 1982/Stories include: Rich, Back-
jund, idol, Spoiler.
April 1982/Stories include: Rhodes, An-
dre, Von Erich, Piper.
May 1982/Stories include: Backlund,
Rhodes, Hogan, Von Erich,
June 1982/Stories include: Valentine,
Von Erich, Slaughter, Morales.
July 1982/Stories include: Hogan,
Rhodes, Steamboat, Adonis.
‘August 1982/Stories include: Andre,
Bockwinkel, Steamboat, Backlund.
‘September 1982/Stories include: Atlas,
Piper, Lawler, Brody.
October 1982/Stories inolude: Rich, An-
dre, Piper, Dillon
November 1982/Stories include: Flair,
Snuka, Von Erich, Slaughter.
December 1982/Stories include: Mulli-
gan, Rich, Lawler, Grand Wizard.
February 1983/Stories include: Rhodes,
Hogan, DiBiase, Race,
March 1983/Siories include: Junkyard
Dog, Graham, Johnson, Funk.
April 1983/Stories include: Snuka,
Patera, Kabuki, Rich
May 1983/Stories include: Rich, Snuka,
Sullivan, Steamboat,
June 1983/Stories include: Studd, Gar-
Vin, Rogers, Orton.
July 1983/Stories include: Hogan, Free-
birds, Rhodes, Youngblood,
‘August 1983/Stories include: Junkyard
Dog, Garvin, Sullivan, Lawler
September 1983/Stories include: Zbys-
2ko, Piper, Andre, Hayes.
October 1983/Stories include: Wrestling
Il, Backlund, Junkyard Dog, Rhodes,
November 1983/Stories include: Ho-
gan, Reed, Von Erich, Dillon.
December 1989/Stories include; Von
Erich, Samoans, Valiant, Road Warriors,
March 1984/Stories include: Junkyard
Dog, Rich, Rhodes, Garvin.
April 1984/Stories include: Flair, Steam-
boat, Superstar, Windham.
May 1984/Stories include: Iron Sheik,
Steamboat, Rotundo, Von Erich.
June 1984/Stories include: Flair,
Slaughter, Cornette, DiBiase.
July 1984/Stories include: Valiant, Flair,
Martel, Wrestling II,
‘August 1984/Stories include: Junkyard
Dog, Magnum T.A., Idol, Spoiler
September 1984/Stories include: Mar-
te}, Brody, Von Erich, Iron Sheik,
October 1984/Stories include: Bill
Jack, Road Warriors, Steamboat,
November 1984/Stories Include:
Rhodes, Rich, Hernandez, Warriors:
December 1984/Stories include: Ho-
gan, Warriors, Sullivan, Magnum T:A,
January 1985/Stories include: Magnum
TA, Rhodes, Atlas, Von Erich
February 1985/Stories include: Rich,
‘Adams, Valiant, Flair
March 1985/Stories include: Backlund,
Billy Jack, Kolofts, Von Erichs.
per.
April 1985/Stories include; Warriors, Al
bano & Hogan, Steamboat, Gordy.
May 1985/Stories include: Slaughter,
Garvin, Albano, Koloffs.
June 1985/Stories include: Warriors,
Slaughter, Von Erichs, Studd & Patera.
July 1985/Stories include: Hogan, Von
Erich, Nikita, Warriors.
August 1985/Stories include: Wrestle~
mania, Zbyszko vs, The Tonga Kid.
September 1985/Stories include: Piper,
Flair, Fantastics, Magnum T.A,
October 1985/Stories include: Russian
menace, Von Erichs, Rude & Barr,
November 1985/Stories include:
boat, Adams, Freebirds, Cornette.
December 1985/Stories include: San-
tana, Brody, Andersons, Murdoch,
January 1986/Stories include: Steam-
boat, Mike Von Erich, Warriors.
February 1986/Stories include; A'n’R
Express, Warriors, Mulligan & Windham,
March 1986/Stories include; Windham
& Rotundo, Warriors-Russians, Rude.
April 1986/Stories include: Scott Hall,
Rhodes, Flair, Andre, Bill Watts
May 1986/Stories include; Randy Sav-
age, Stan Hansen, Rock 'n’ Rolls.
June 1986/Stories include: Bulldogs,
Windham-Flair, Lance Von, Blanchard,
July 1986/All-American Special Issue.
Stories include: Hogan, Slaughter, T.A
August 1986/Stories include: Wrestle~
Mania 2, Garvins, Martel, Fab Ones.
September 1986/Stories include:
AndreRhodes-T.A,, Adams, Windham.
October 1986/Stories include: Flair-Lu+
gar, Savage, Fantastics, Warriors
November 1986/Stories include: War-
riors-Flair, Bulldogs, Watts, Adams.
December 1986/Stories include: Ho-
gan-Adonis, R&R Express, Baby Doll
January 1987/Stories include: Rude-
Flair, Piper, T.A., Taylor
February 1987/Stories include: Hogan-
Piper-Omdortt, Taylor, Flair,
March 1987/Stories include: Flair,
Missy, Luger, Bulldogs, Kolotfs,
April 1987/Stories include; Windham,
Steamboat, Ellering, Duggan.
May 1987/Stories include: Windham &
Luger, Steamboat, Hogan-Andre.
June 1987/Stories include: Piper-Ado-
niis, Horsemen, Adams, Hall, Brody.
July 1987/Stories include: Danny Davis,
DiBiase, Rockers, Rotundo, Andersons.
‘August 1987/Stories include: Dusty &
Nikita, Hogan, Mike Von, Cornette.
September 1987/Stories include: Ho-
gar-Race, R&R Exp., Rich, Honky Tonk.
October 1987/Stories include: R&F Ex-
press, Hogan, Taylor-Adams, Lawler,
November 1987/Stories include: War
Games, Mr. T, Bulldogs, Rhodes
December 1987/Stories include: Free-
birds, Rhodes, Magnum, Savage, Perez.
January 1988/Stories include: R&R-
Horsemen, Hogan, Flair-Garvin.
team
‘Do Not Order Any Issue Not Listed. Do Not Send Coins.
Do Not Use Old Order Forms.
CROSSFIRE
BILL APTER: Kerry, despite mas-
sive injuries incurred in a June 1986
motorcycle accident, you insist you
will return to the ring on a fulltime
basis,
EDDIE ELLNER: Despite doctors’
reports to the contrary and his own
obvious physical instability.
BA: There you have it, Kerry. Can
you come back, despite all the wide-
spread pessimism about your
condition?
KERRY VON ERICH: As far as I’m
concerned, I’m already back. I’ve
wrestled several exhibition matches
without any ill effects.
EE: Yes, you sure did, You took the
best Matt Borne had to offer for an
entire minute and limped your way
back to the dressing room. Very
impressive,
KVE: If you’re going to distort the
truth, I don’t see much sense in sit-
ting here and talking to you.
BA: What actually happened last
month in Texas, Eddie, was that Ker-
ry wrestled three one-minute spar-
ring sessions against Frank Lancaster,
Matt Borne, and Killer Brooks. And it
tumed out to be more than just a
sparring session once Brooks
stepped into the ring, didn’t it?
KVE: The intention of the entire ex-
ercise was to give me a chance to
get back into the ring with real
competition ...
EE: You call Matt Borne real
competition?
BA: Will you let him finish?
KVE: (visibly angered) ... so I
could show the fans that I’m on my
way back. It wasn’t intended to
demonstrate anything beyond that.
But Killer Brooks had other ideas.
The unedited transcript follows
} es _ =
Kerry Von Erich (right) locks up with Frank Lan-
caster during his sparring session at The Cotton
Bowl in Dallas,
He came out with the intention of
injuring me. I had no choice but to
put him away. When Adias at-
tacked me, it was a reflex to throw
the discus punch. I think that how I
did against those two convinced all
doubters about my abilities to come
back. I wasn’t looking for a brawl.
The sparring sessions shouldn’t
have been anything spectacular.
EE: As far as I'm concerned, you got
your wish. The exhibition was any-
thing but spectacular.
BA: How can you say that? After al-
most a year out of the ring Keny
knocks out Killer Brooks and sends
Brian Adias fleeing from the ring. If
that's not spectacular, what is?
KVE: No, he’s right, Bill. It wasn’t
spectacular. It wasn’t anything I
couldn’t do before my accident.
That’s why the sparring session was
important. It reconfirmed my abili-
KERRY VON ERICH
Almost everyone in the sport of wrestling has deep respect for Senior Editor Bill Apter.
Associate Editor Eddie Ellner is an exception. He doesn’t care for Apter
or his views on professional wrestling. Each issue, these two editors will grill a wrestler
about hot issues in his career, catching the grappler in the CROSSFIRE!
ties. For me, it provided a big dose
of self-confidence. And that alone
makes it important.
EE: My problem with this whole sce-
nario is your failure, Kerry, to learn
from recent history. You'd have ev-
eryone believe that you're complete-
ly recovered from a devastating,
near-fatal motorcycle accident. Your
left ankle is fused at the joint, Your
flexibility and mobility is obviously
impaired. Yet, after five minutes in
the ring—granted, a successful five
minutes against opponents who
‘ probably underestimated your capa-
bilities—you're acting like the six-mil-
lion-dollar man.
KVE: I know my limitations. I know
my strengths. I know them better
than anyone. Even better than my
doctors. Ultimately, it is my decision
to come back, mine and mine alone.
You can make fun of the Von Erich
magic all you want. I tell you it ex-
ists. We recover from our wounds.
We not only endure, but we thrive.
And we will triumph.
EE: I'm sorry, Kerry, but you sound
like a preacher in a tent revival meet-
ing. I appreciate your frustration in
not being able to wrestle, but I can’t
help thinking that the pressure you
feel to return to the top is ... well,
let's just say that anything less than
the best is unacceptable for a Von
Erich. Care to comment?
KVE: (silence)
BA: Kerry ... What do you think?
Does he have a point?
KVE: There is nothing to approxi-
mate the pressure a Von Erich feels.
Our family has always chosen the
word responsibility. There is a tan-
(Continued on page 58)
18 / Wrestling 88
| “| know my limitations. | know my
strengths. | know them better than
anyone. Even better than my doctors.
Ultimately, it is my decision to come
back, mine and mine alone.””
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SCOUTING REPORT
Avid wrestling fans, like the wrestlers themselves, keep close tabs on the career
progress of their favorite stars. The editors of Wrestling 88 invite you to clip this
Page, save it, and compare this issue’s “‘Scouting Report’’ with those of future
featured wrestlers
LARRY ZBYSZKO
SPEED: Not lightning fast by any means, Zbyszko isn’t slow, either.
He'll never win a match with his speed, but he manages to get around
the ring effectively. Zbyszko is similar to his former mentor Bruno Sam-
martino in this way. “The Living Legend's” speed was never a factor,
however, because there weren't fast men like Randy Savage and Rick
Steamboat in the WWF in the 1960s and early ‘70s. But now Zbyszko is in
the NWA, where fast wrestlers such as Rick Morton and Ric Flair are the
rile, He's not going to get any faster, so he'll have to B-
adapt.
STRENGTH: Nick Bockwinkel, Curt Hennig, Greg Gagne: all fine
wrestlers who rely on scientific skills rather than strength. Zbyszko fits
right in. But what's going to happen in the NWA when he meets strong-
men like Nikita Koloff or The Road Warriors? Zbyszko is not a powerful
man. He does not spend a great deal of time in the gym bodybuilding.
But the time has come. There are few men in the NWA that Zbyszko can.
beat in a test of strength. As Zbyszko moves up the ladder (0
of title contenders, this will be detrimental. aE
TECHNICAL KNOWLEDGE: Zbyszko's martial arts knowledge
and scientific wrestling skills were well documented in the AWA, where
he almost ended Nick Bockwinkel’s career with a pair of nunchaku sticks.
Zbyszko is a martial arts expert. And let's not forget: He leamed the
basics of wrestling from Bruno Sammartino, one of the all-time greats.
There is a problem, however: Zbyszko, a sadistic madman with no re-
spect for his opponents, sometimes goes out of control and forgets his
vast wrestling skills. When he tums into a brawler, Zbyszko B
is usually out of his league. cn
PHYSICAL CONDITION: Better than average, although he lacks
muscle tone. Nobody's ever caught Zbyszko in the middle of jogging 10
miles or undergoing a strenuous workout, but he does pay attention to his
physique. Zbyszko hasn't allowed himself to get fat and is actually at a
perfect wrestling weight: just under 250 pounds. He’s also never suffered
a career-threatening injury and has been careful not to wear himself down -
with a heavy match schedule. Zbyszko paces himself well B
during a match and can go the distance with almost anyone.
RING INTELLIGENCE: Occasionally brilliant, Zbyszko's ability to
psych out opponents is incredible. Zbyszko is not a big man, nor does he
look threatening, but opponents know the treachery he's capable of,
They know he'll stop at nothing to hurt them, giving Zbyszko a big edge
before the bell rings, He always knows his opponent's wealmesses and
usually comes up with the appropriate countermove. Strangely, however,
Zbyszko lacks concentration. He's unable to maintain a single plan of
attack for more than a few minutes. It's an unfortunate B
problem for an otherwise brilliant man. ate
OVERALL GRADE: Although Zbyszko takes great pride in maim-
ing his enemies, he sometimes appears unaggressive before a match. He
constantly stalls, perhaps hoping to further psych out his opponents. Even
once the bell rings, he'll take needless strolls around the ring. Indeed, it
often appears Zbyszko doesn’t want to wrestle. In his overall score, this
factor is important. Last year in the AWA, Zbyszko seemed content to
advise World champion Curt Hennig. Zbyszko is a talented wrestler. He
has the ability to win a major title. But he doesn’t seem interested.
Perhaps his association with Baby Doll will help in that B-
respect.
Wrestling 88 / 21
HEAD TO HEAD
WENDI
RICHTER
Two years is an eternity in professional wrestling. The
cover story in the April 1986 issue of Pro Wrestling
Illustrated asked, “Is Wendi Richter More Popular Than
Hulk Hogan?” At that time, Richter was nearly as popular
as the World heavyweight champion. Now the question
seems ridiculous.
Richter rose to fame in 1984 when rock singer Cyndi
Lauper became involved in a feud with Capt. Lou Albano.
At the height of their feud, Lauper recruited Richter to
challenge Albano's friend, The Fabulous Moolah, for the
WWF World women's title. The now-famous “Brawl To
Settle It All,” won by Richter and broadcast live on MTV,
drew unprecedented attention to women's wrestling.
Richter lost the belt to Lelani Kai in February 1985 and
a rematch was scheduled for the following month as part
of WrestleMania I at Madison Square Garden. Hogan was
on the card, but the Richter-Kai match was considered
the main event by many people.
Even Richter's archnivals couldn’t deny her popularity.
“There's no love lost between Richter and myself,” said
AWA women’s champion Sheri Martel at the time. “TI
feel that she's ducking me. But I'd be lying if I didn’t say
women wrestlers all over the country owe her a big debt
vs.
SHERRI
MARTEL
of gratitude. She’s put us on the map.”
Things have changed since then. Richter became in-
volved in a contract squabble and left the WWF at the
height of her popularity. Although she's currently the
World Wrestling. Council women's champion, Richter is
no longer a national figure.
On the other hand, Martel's career has taken off. This
past summer Martel signed with the WWF. In her first
match against Moolah, on July 24 in Houston, Martel won
the title. The victory by the attractive, shapely, and very
talented Martel was taken as a sign that women’s wres-
tling was on the rise once again.
The comparisons between Richter and Martel are obvi-
ous. Both are attractive, both defeated Moolah for the
World belt, and both were considered the saviors of
women’s wrestling. Although she isn’t as popular as Rich-
ter was, Martel is, in effect, the new Wendi Richter.
The prospects for a Richter-Martel match, however, are
not good; Richter is unlikely to return to the WWF, Mar-
tel is unlikely to leave it. But what would happen if they
did meet? We commissioned four well-informed panelists
to give us their analysis of such a match and decide a
Possible outcome.
22 / Wrestling 88
HEAD TO HEAD
CAPT. LOU ALBANO
I'm going to try and be very analytical
about this because we're discussing a very
important part of my career. Wendi Richter is
@ great wrestler, there’s no doubt about it,
and back in 1984 and 1985 she was a great
star in the WWF. She had a certain charisma
that only certain people, such as myself, can
Rave.
Wendi and Cyndi helped me see the light
and I'll never forget the night she beat Moo-
“ lah in “The Braw! To Settle It All” Richter
wrestled a perfect match against one of the great wrestlers of all time. I
haven't seen Wendi too many times since then, but I doubt if she's lost
any of the truly great abilities that made her a tily areat star She's still
a great wrestler, and she still has great charisma.
Now Sherri Martel is a beautiful woman, she’s got sex appeal, she’s
got wrestling ability, she beat Fabulous Moolah, and she can wrestle
for Capt. Lou any day. Let me tell you something, daddy, Sherri Martel
against Wendi Richter would be a great match. It would be the great-
est ladies’ match of all time. It would send the galaxies reeling and
people running to their doors to jump into their cars and buy tickets.
‘We would have two beautiful women and two great wrestlers and
people's bones would be shakin’, daddy.
Now here's what would happen, and you can take this to the bank. It
would be a great match, an unbelievable match, and Wendi would
come out on top because she has the hunger in her eyes and she has
the scientific ability to counter anything Shem would do. Wendi Rich-
ter is a great one and the great ones always come out on top.
Capt. Lou Albano managed 12 different duos to 16 WWF World tag
team championships prior to his retirement last year. He is currently
national fundraising chairman for the Multiple Sclerosis Foundation.
MISTY BLUE SIMIMES
First of all, I'd just like to say that it's good
to see “Head to Head” featuring a women’s
match for once. Women’s wrestling deserves
more respect and attention than it gets. You
look at women like myself, Sherri Martel, and
Wendi Richter, and you're looking at three of
the greatest wrestlers in the world, male or
female. Magazines rarely have stories about
women, and I'm happy that Wrestling 88 is
doing this, I'm glad to be a part of it
I feel I owe a debt of gratitude to Wendi
Besaee she made women’s wrestling so big for three years and she
beat Moolah, who did more to hurt the sport than anybody else. Wendi
brought excitement to women’s wrestling and she made people care
about it. But the most important thing is that she’s such a good wrestler.
People forget that she has incredible pure wrestling skills and that,
combined with her amazing toughness, makes her pretty hard to beat.
After all, she’s still a champion.
As for Shei, well, I'm glad she won the title from Moolah and I'm
glad to see she's defending it on a regular basis. Shen is also a very
talented wrestler, although she sometimes stretches the niles too far,
and she has a lot of charisma.
Sher vs. Wendi would be very exciting because the two are so
evenly matched. They're both in good shape and would have no
trouble if the match lasted over an hour, which I think it would. One of
two things would happen: Either Sherri would have to adapt to Wendi’s
scientific style or Wendi would have to adapt to Shemi’s brawling style.
Whoever forced the other to adapt would win. I think Wendi’s smart
enough to be patient. She'd wear Sherri down.
Misty Blue Simmes is one of the top-rated female wrestlers in the
world. She currently holds the IWF and NWA U.S. women’s belts,
DICK WOHERLE
T’ve officiated matches involving both these
young ladies and I've always been im-
pressed by their incredible abilities. You
know, many fans and wrestling promoters
feel that women can't wrestle as well as men,
but those people probably haven't seen
Wendi Richter or Sherri Martel in action.
Wendi, of course, was a great star, much
greater than Sherri is right now. Referees
je have a lot of pride and we always want 10
"= work the best matches. Back when Wendi
was so popular in the WWE, every ref I knew wanted to work one of
‘her matches. It was an honor. Besides, Wendi represented, and still
represents, everything that's good about wrestling. She's very fair, rare-
ly breaks the niles, and wrestles her heart out every time.
Shemi, of course, can get a little out of hand sometimes, but that
doesn't take away from her incredible abilities. You see, she likes to
hurt her opponents and she absolutely hates Moolah, so people only
see the vicious side of her. It overshadows her marvelous wrestling
skills and her dogged determination. Nobody wants to win more than
Sheni. And, of course, she’s also a very attractive young lady.
I think a match between Wendi Richter and Shem Martel would put
women's wrestling back into the national headlines. It's a natural and
they wouldn't need Cyndi Lauper or Lou Albano to get the feud going.
When you pit two well-matched and extremely talented athletes against
each other, it doesn't really matter what sex they are.
Td rather not say who would win. I might have to referee that match
one day.
Dick Woherle has been a referee for every major wrestling federa-
tion in North America and has worked matches involving both Mar-
tel and Richter,
LARRY NELSON
Te had more than a few run-ins with
Sheri Martel, so I might be a little biased
about this. Sherri is a very volatile young
lady, and when she was in the AWA she
constantly: stuck her nose in where it didn't
belong. You know, she was manager for Bud-
_ dy Rose and Doug Somers, the former AWA
World tag team champions, and she was the
main reason why they held the belts for so
. Jong. She constantly interfered in their
matches.
‘As a wrestler, though, she was outstanding, although definitely a
mulebreaker. Sher has the killer instinct—there’s no doubt about that—
and she never backs down from anyone. That's what makes her such a
fine wrestler. She also really had to work her way up to the top, so she
knows what it takes to win. I can't say I particularly like Sherri, but I
respect her abilities,
Wendi Richter is also a fine wrestler, but I think she's dropped off
‘over the past few years. I mean, she's still a champion down in Puerto
Rico, but the competition isn't very strong down there. It leads me to
believe that Wendi might not be able to wrestle against the big girls
anymore. Maybe that whole feud with Moolah and Lelani Kai drained
her. You know, a person can get old awfully fast in this sport.
I think Shen's at the peak of her career right now, while Wendi is. a
few years past her prime. Wendi would give her a tough match, but in
the end Marel would win out, She'd start resorting to her vicious
tulebreaking and that would spell the end for Richter. She'd wouldn't
be strong enough to counter Sheri. And if Wendi wanted to wrestle
scientifically, I think Sherri could match her in that department, too.
Larry Nelson is the voice of the AWA and can currently be seen
weekly on ESPN’s AWA Championship Wrestling.
Wrestling 88 / 23
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@ “Jaguar” Rimi Yokota vs. Tarantula
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SCOREBOARD
This is a feud Jim Comette
desperately trying to avo sid.
ognized what a potentially devas
ing team The New Breed was and
he wanted to diffuse the team be-
fore it threatened The Midnic ight
press’ U.S. tag team title reign
he made a lucrative offer to C
Champion and Sean Royal, and an-
swer from this brave nev
a forceful “No!” Insulted
barrassed, Comette vowed to
‘stroy the men who claim t
the year 2002. Nobody |
Comette and gets away with
so Comette believes.
Six months ago, Comette had
nothing to worry about from the
Breed. A serious auto accident
sidelined Champion and Royal or
several months. Fortunately,
juries were not as severe i
suspected. Royal came back and
wrestled in singles matches until
Champion joined him a few months
later, As a result of the ac ident,
Champion sported a forearm cast
adomed with space-age circuitry
(“Advanced cybemetic technology
from the year 2002,” Champion
‘said. “I will heal more quickly and
team was be
aton chinlocks Royal (left); Lane covers Champion (right)
be stronger than before. Today's
doctors are 20 years away from
fully understanding how it works”).
Comette scoffs at such futuristic
remedies. “A few wires and lights
on a plaster cast isn’t gonna fool
anybody,” Comette said. “When
my men get him in the ting, they'll
y thing to pieces and
8 the head with it. No
man says ‘no’ to me and gets away
with it.”
In venues throughout the NWA,
thousands of fans are thrilling to this
exciting feud. The New Breed is, in
many respects, an even younger
version of the still-young Midnight
Express. Champion has the fear-
lessness and aerial recklessness of
Bobby Eaton. Royal has the cool
and the ring smarts of Stan Lane. All
four men possess a keen apprecia-
tion of scientific wrestling, but also
recognize the need to brawl their
way out of tough spots. The differ-
ence, as The New Breed has quick-
ly discovered, is Comette.
The Breed can match the Mid-
nights move for move and punch
for punch, but they cannot counter
Comette (or Big Bubba Rogers)
alone. The trouble is, they don’t
want anyone at ringside helping
them. But Comette’s interference,
often earning his team disqualifica-
tions and hence saving their US.
title belts, will have to be overcome
by the Breed if they are to succeed
in their current war.
When Comette stays out of the
way, a Midnights-Breed match can
be as technically superb as any
Midnights-Rock ’n’ Roll Express en-
counter. Both teams enjoy punish-
ing each other with the difficult ae-
tial maneuvers that are |
simultaneously beautiful and fright-
ening. It is a constant game of one-
upmanship, the match within the
match: Who can do the tough |
moves better?
It's hard to tell whether this feud
will last as long as the Midnights-
Rock ’n’ Rolls war, but it has all the
earmarks of a long-lasting classic.
For The New Breed, the US. tag
team belts and their establishment
as one of the best teams in the
sport is at stake.
At stake for Jim Comette and The
Midnight Express is something
even more important: survival.
Wrestling 88 / 25
SCOREBOARD
26 / Wrestling 88
SCOREBOARD
BAM BAM BIGELOW
vs.
HERCULES HERNANDEZ
When Hercules Hemandez heard
that Bam Bam Bigelow was coming to
the WWF, he didn’t worry. He had
heard about the exploits of this nim-
ble giant, but his manager, Bobby
Heenan, had assured him that
Bigelow would soon be joining the
Heenan family.
That, of course, never happened.
After five managers courted the big
man for more than a month, Bigelow
surprised nearly everyone by choos-
ing Oliver Humperdink to guide his
career. It was a bold move, consider-
ing that Humperdink had never man-
aged in the WWF. Neither he nor
Bigelow were familiar with the tactics
of Heenan and his henchmen.
Bigelow slams Hercules
It wasn’t long before Bigelow final-
ly got his shots at Hernandez. De-
spite being outweighed by more
than 100 pounds, Hercules has been
unfazed by the behemoth. A recent
bout in Rochester saw the two men
trading power moves such as slams
and shouldersmashes. Hercules was
certain that his physique would sup-
ply him with the energy to overcome
Bigelow, but Bam Bam, with Humper-
dink’s help, had Hemandez figured
out that night. He scored a decisive
pin, giving Heenan a severe setback
in his quest for WWF domination.
Hart catches Yamada in an abdominal stretch
Owen Hart’s accomplishments had
been well-publicized long before he
ever atived in Japan. The rookie
who has dominated much of the ac-
tion in Calgary's Stampede Wrestling
was already widely respected for his
combination of scientific and aerial
skills. Outclassing much of his oppo-
sition, Hart quickly rose to the top in
Stampede and looked to expand his
horizons.
So when Japanese promoters came
to Hart with a lucrative contract to
tour the island nation, the young star
eagerly accepted.
Hart's first Japanese tour found him
battling the top stars of the Orient,
including Keichi Yamada, who
looked forward to the opportunity to
test his abilities against the highly
OWEN HART vs. KEICHI YAMADA
touted Canadian star. He was a wor-
thy opponent, forcing Hart to brawl
more than he wanted to. But al-
though it was, for the most part, not
his type of match, Hart proved he is
able to wrestle any style he needs to
win.
Refreshed and enlightened by the
experience, Hart says he’d like to
wrestle in Japan on a regular basis.
His willingness to experiment helps
make Hart the great ring technician
he is. His rivals in Stampede, like Ja-
son the Terrible and Makian Singh,
already know how dangerous Hart
can be. It won’t be long before wres-
tlers the world over start to familiar-
ize themselves with the talents of
Owen Hart. This future superstar is
already a dangerous opponent. [J
Wrestling 88 / 27
28 / Wrestling 88
INTERVIEW 88
CURT HENNIG
As of this writing, two generations of wrestling greatness are giving new meaning to the term ‘‘family feud” in the
American Wrestling Association. Current AWA World champion Curt Hennig, backed by his father Larry “The Ax”
Hennig, is locked in a heated battle with Greg Gagne, son of legendary nine-time AWA titlist Verne Gagne. Both
fathers have rallied to their sons’ support, but so far the Hennigs have been ahead in this war.
In arecent title match in Minneapolis, Greg seemed well on his way to defeating Curt when Larry took it upon
himself to interfere. After devastating Greg with a surprise ‘‘ax attack,” the elder Hennig rolled his semiconscious
son onto the younger Gagne for the pin. The referee saw nothing.
It was not the first time Curt has been involved in a controversial finish to a title match. From the May 2, 1987,
match in which he won the title from Nick Bockwinkel to this most recent defense against Greg Gagne, Hennig has
shown a tendency to resort to blatantly illegal tactics whenever his title appears to be in danger. What seemed a
temporary disregard of the rules against Bockwinkel has now become a dangerous habit. Hennig’s transformation
from impressive scientific wrestler to consummate rulebreaker is now complete.
Anyone chronicling Hennig’s title reign will find the phrases “foreign objects’ and “‘outside interference" —
inevitably followed by “the referee missed it"—recurring with shocking regularity. Hennig is as crafty as a fox when
it comes to hiding his misdeeds; the AWA championship committee has never been able to prove a thing.
No proof is necessary to Gagne, Wahoo McDaniel, D.J. Peterson, and Jerry Lawler. Each has found himself a
victim of Hennig’s rulebreaking. All have sworn revenge, but Hennig keeps them at bay through a fine combination
of ducking, cheating, and non-title matches.
How long Hennig can retain his title in the face of such determined opposition is the principal question in the AWA.
That, along with Hennig’s new-found professional relationship with his father, were the main themes of an
extensive interview Hennig gave to Wrestling 88 Associate Editor Gian Trotta in Minneapolis.
“ Hennig was at intervals arrogant, charming, flippant, and deaaly serious,” Trotta recounted. ‘A tough
combination to figure out, and a tough man to pin down—no pun intended. But if one fact did emerge clearly, it was
that he is a young man with no regrets over the path he has chosen in the sport.”
WRESTLING 88: Well, Curt, I'd like
to congratulate you on your most
recent title defense against Greg
Gagne, but somehow | just can’t
bring myself to...
HENNIG: ... admit what a thrilling
sight it was to see two generations
of wrestling excellence once again
show their superiority over the
Gagnes in every way? Go ahead,
spit it out!
WRESTLING 88: It was a sight, I'll
grant you that. But you were clearly
knocked out. Only your father’s “ax
attack” on Greg saved your title.
Your father had no business in the
ting. He was just in your corner to
provide moral support.
HENNIG: Well, then, | guess my fa-
ther just provided a little bit more
moral support that Greggie’s dad.
Hahaha! Come on, Trotta! In two
years it'll be 1990 and you're still
thinking ‘in my corner’ means not in
the ring. | was proud to have my
dad there to witness my victory.
WRESTLING 88: Witness? He
practically guaranteed it with his ri-
diculous interference!
HENNIG: Well, it’s true | wrestle
better in his presence. | mean,
didn’t you play better in Little
League with your dad in the
stands?
WRESTLING 88: Of course | did,
but my father never came out of the
stands and elbowsmashed the op-
posing pitcher!
HENNIG: (laughs) Why not? | mean,
my dad would have back then if |
had asked him to, but | was too
stupid. | might have ended up on
the Minnesota Twins that way! But
believe me, | wouldn't trade this belt
for anything in the world! I’m glad
my dad can enjoy it with me.
WRESTLING 88: For a while, rela-
tions between you two were tense.
How would you describe your rela-
tionship. with him now?
HENNIG: Well, he didn't agree with
my style at first, but now we get
along just great. We do a lot of
hunting and fishing together, and in
the slow times we just talk about
wrestling, past, present, and future.
We love talking about the differ-
ences between our early careers,
styles, and all that. Wrestling’s defi-
nitely changed in the last 20 years.
You know, my dad was a great
wrestler in his time. And while he's
won the AWA World tag team
championship with Harley Race, he
never won the AWA World heavy-
weight title. He did come real close
‘on several occasions, but it was the
one honor in wrestling he really
wanted that he never had the
chance to enjoy. He didn’t want to
see me make the same mistakes
on the way to the title. But he said
that helping me defend it against
the Gagnes was almost as good as
his having won it himself. Having
Greggie’s dad watching helplessly
in the other corner while | beat him
only iced the cake. It was a sight for
Wrestling 88 / 29
AWA World champion Curt Hennig tries to roll Greg Gagne into a Boston crab. The old Gagne-Hennig
feud has resumed, with former champion Verne Gagne in his son's corner and Larry ‘The Ax” Hennig
helping out Curt illegally.
sore eyes, all right.
WRESTLING 88: But you four have
a rematch scheduled soon. | don’t
think that your father will be able to
interfere as easily this time.
HENNIG: No, he'll just have the
best seat in the house to see me
win. Of course, if Greggie and his
dad pull something crooked, then
my dad has to get involved. You're
also making a couple of hasty as-
sumptions. One, that Greg is going
to give me trouble; two, that his
daddy will even show up.
WRESTLING 88; What was your fa-
ther’s reaction when you beat Bork-
winkel for the title?
HENNIG: He was eestatic! Not only
berause | sucreeded in doing
something that he'd always
dreamed of, but also because of the
way | did it.
WRESTLING 88: Meaning?
HENNIG: He said | had _ finally
grown enough to forget the fans
and be my own man. After a losing
a whole bunch of matches against
Bockwinkel, | finally realized that |
had to take a different attitude if |
was ever going to beat that slippery
old Dutchman. The rest, as they
say, is history. Of course, it would
have been much easier if | had lis-
tened to my dad’s advice from the
start, but he figured that | would
eventually come to my senses and
learn what needs to be done to get
ahead in this sport. And he thought
that | would be better off, having
learned from experience the right
and wrong ways to win and hold a
title. | now know the right way.
WRESTLING 88: He told you that?
A CHAMPIONSHIP RECORD TO BE PROUD OF?
Controversy has hovered around Curt Hennig like
bees to honey ever since he defeated Nick Bockwinkel
in Las Vegas for the AWA World title on May 2, 1987.
Bockwinkel claimed that Larry Zbyzsko came out and
handed Hennig a foreign object; Hennig’s half-hearted
denials were supported by the AWA championship
committee, which reviewed tapes of the match and
allowed the decision to stand.
If anyone thought that the manner of Hennig’s victory
would be a one-shot affair, they were dead wrong.
Hennig’s record of outside interference and foreign ob-
ject use rivals Ric Flair’s NWA record of self-
disqualification.
When Hennig traveled to Memphis to take on Jerry
“The King” Lawler in his home court, the three-count
that would have won Lawler the belt was interrupted by
Lawler's enemy, Brickhouse Brown, who emerged from
the audience to thwart “The King’s” coronation. Coinci-
dence or complicity? Concrete evidence was lacking.
30 / Wrestling 88
A September 18 title match against Wahoo McDaniel
in Las Vegas ended when Hennig pulled a roll of coins
from his trunks and used it to practically scalp McDan-
iel. In an almost unbelievable display of ineptitude, the
referee failed to notice the loose coins flipping about the
ting. The evidence this time was conclusive, but Mc-
Daniel refused to file a protest, claiming that he did not
want to start a precedent where titles would change
hands in the board room. He also stated his preference to
pay back Hennig in his way—with an Indian strap match.
With the departure of Larry Zbyzsko to the National
Wrestling Alliance, many observers felt that Hennig was
left very vulnerable. But Hennig’s father, Larry, a notori-
ous rulebreaker through most of his career, rallied to
his son’s support. His interference in several recent title
matches convinced many observers that, unless official
action is taken soon, Hennig will remain unbeatable by
conventional means.
—Gian Trotta
HENNIG: Not in so many words,
but | got the drift. Dad’s not the
talky type, he lets his actions speak
louder than his words.
WRESTLING 88: What exactly has
he been hinting at?
HENNIG: It was basically to adopt
the strategy he used when he was
on top. Forget the fans, trust only
yourself, use your enemies to con-
trol your enemies, and do every-
thing that you have to in order to
win! That last one was the most
important. It's better to be a contro-
versial winner than a good loser any
day of the week. Let’s face it, you
wouldn't be here interviewing me if |
was just the number-one contender
to the World belt, or the co-holder of
the tag team title. There’s some-
thing special about being champ.
People recognize you. Their voices
drop in respect when they say,
“Look, that’s Curt Hennig.”
WRESTLING 88: Are you sure that
“respect” is the right word to use
here?
HENNIG: Sure. I’m not talking
about the idiots that show up at the
arena, but real, down-home people,
the kind who appreciate a job well
done. Those fans in the arenas, |
sometimes think they come down
from another planet just for the
night and then zip back up. | never
get reactions like theirs on the
street. Wherever | go, I’m treated
with respect and appreciation.
That's because while | don’t care
what the fans think during the
match, I’m not out to make people
deliberately mad. My goal is to stay
champion, and to have a good time
doing it. I'm a young guy, not bad
looking, and | usually have plenty of
energy left over to party after my
matches. In the meantime, | foresee
a long and illustrious title reign.
WRESTLING 88: So far your reign
has been characterized by a num-
ber of controversies. | want to talk
more about the topic of outside in-
terference. In the match where you
won the belt from Nick Bockwinkel,
and immediately afterward, Larry
Zbyzsko was constantly interfering
‘on your behalf. Down in Memphis a
few months back, Jerry Lawler had
you beat, but Brickhouse Brown ran
in. Gagne almost had you beat
when your father interfered. There
are dozens of such stories. How do
you reconcile these facts to your
claim that you're now your “own
man”?
HENNIG: A lucky man, sure, but
still my own man. Is it my fault that
Hennig takes Gagne down with a clothesline (above)
and smacks Nick Bockwinkel (below). Ever since he
won the AWA title from Bockwinkel, Hennig has
resorted to all sorts of underhanded tactics to keep
the belt. His favorite seems to be hitting his oppo-
nent with a roll of coins.
I'm such a good wrestler that other
wrestlers come out and watch me
when | wrestle? They’re hoping to
learn something, or maybe they're
looking for weaknesses, but it’s al-
ways useless because | never wres-
tle the same way twice against the
same opponent. But all this so-
called “outside interference’ starts,
like, okay, listen: Sometimes one
wrestler in the stands or dressing
room is itching to settle some
scores with some guy who's wres-
tling me at the time. What better
time to settle the score than when
these guys are occupied wrestling
me, the toughest competition they'll
probably ever face? So they're not
interfering on my behalf, they're just
settling scores that have nothing to
do with me. But because | indirectly
benefit by it, you reporters add two
and two and get five.
WRESTLING 88: So you're saying
it all happens by chance?
HENNIG: Well, aren’t you writers al-
ways saying that truth is stranger
than fiction?
WRESTLING 88: Well, | can’t tell
where one begins and ends here.
So I'll just thank you and wish you
luck. We're all wondering what your
next surprise will be.
HENNIG: Let my opponents worry
about that. In the meantime, don’t
believe everything you hear about
me until you get my side of the
story first. Oo
Wrestling 88 / 31
(ROM THE BEGINNING, Associate
Editor Eddie Ellner's desire to fly Jim
Comette, J.J. Dillon, and Paul Ellering to
New York, lock them in a room, and record
their conversation was an idea laden with
risk. Personality conflicts, plus the activities
of each man’s stable, threatened to under-
mine the enterprise.
Timing was also a problem. It would re-
quire extraordinary luck to squeeze a free
day from their schedules. According to
Cornette’s secretary, the fiery manager had
commitments until 1991. Spokesmen for
Ellering and Dillon revealed calendars
equally hectic.
Ellner persevered. He wrote to each
manager, appealing to their egos and their
sense of history:
“You men are without parallel in the an-
nals of wrestling. Despite your the great for-
tunes, despite the fact none of you have to
work another day in your lives, you continue
to manage. Why? The answers are obvious.
You could no sooner leave the ring than you
could cut out your hearts. Imagine, gentle-
men, if Napoleon, Alexander the Great, and
General Patton had met. How fascinated
and intrigued the world would have been!
Now imagine Ellering, Cornette, and Dillon
locked in strategic debate. Suspend the
feuds, Forget the anger. Let's get together
for a couple of hours and di:
Like it was meant to be di
The editors remained r i
“They're too fixed in their hatred,” was the
prevailing opinion. “The only hatchet
want to bury is in each other's heaa
had struck a chord. Four
days later, Jim Cornette agreed to a meeting.
After an hour-long phone conversation with
Senior Editor Bill Apter, Ellering capitulat-
ed. Only Dillon remained tentative. Al-
though taken by the idea, the manager of
The Four Horsemen suspected a trap. After
repeated assurances about security—plus a
promise to supply him with an ample supply
of beluga caviar—he accepted our invitation.
As if it had been simple all along, the
managerial meeting of the century was set.
“Where's the beer:
“This roast beef isn’t rare enough.”
«
“Get me a Perrier!”
They were assembled in splendor in a
four-room suite, and three of wrestling's
greatest minds were talking food.
“If | don't get rare roast beef in two min-
utes, I'm leaving.”
“Can someone open up a window? That
che suffocating me.”
“Where's the beer?”
It figured to take some time before Eller-
ing, Cornette, and Dillon became comtort-
able enough to relax. As Ellering said when
he entered the room (after twice nearly tum-
ing around for the airport and a flight back
to Minneapolis), “I can't believe I'm here. I
can't believe I'm going to talk with two men
Thate so much.”
The animosity stemmed more from differ-
ences between the wrestlers they managed
than from the managers themselves, At ear-
lier points in their careers, the three men
were actually quite fond of one anothi
which we learn as we join the conversation
in progress...
JIM CORNETTE: Remember, we even in-
corporated under, uh, what the hell was that
Dillon, Ellering, & Comatte: )
A HEATED
DEBATE ON
THE FINE ART
OF MANAGING
What do you think
the conversation
was about when
three of professional
wrestling’s most
successful—and
controversial—
managers found them-
selves in the same
room? Read this
feature and find out!
32 / Wrestling 88
name?
J.J. DILLON: Managers Anonymous. Jeez.
Sounds like a bunch of drunks. What an asi-
nine idea it was.
PAUL ELLERING: Well, not really. The
concept made sense back then. We were
much younger. Rather than one manager
creating a stable of wrestlers to which he
couldn't possibly provide the necessary indi-
vidual attention, our idea was to create a sta-
ble of managers who could interchangeably
manage a stable of wrestlers.
DILLON: It was going to revolutionize the
sport.
CORNETTE: It may very well have. If we
were different people. But none of us could
work together. We needed autonomy.
EDDIE ELLNER: It's interesting to note
that none of you manage a “stable” of wres-
tlers, as most people view it. Ellering has
The Road Warriors. Dillon has The Four
Horsemen. Cornette, you have The Mid-
night Express . .
CORNETTE: Don't forget Big Bubba.
ELLERING: Hell, man, you should forget
Big Bubba. I don’t know what you expect to
do with that lug.
CORNETTE: The same thing you did with
Hawk and Animal. Mold and shape. Bend
and mend. Train, train, train, and then train
some more. Big Bubba will become a domi-
nant force very quickly
DILLON: Hawk and Animal are natural
athletes, much like [Lex] Luger is. They're
incredibly gifted and endowed. They take to
instruction like a calf does her mother's
milk. Big Bubba is no athlete. He's a dime-
a-dozen stiff. There’s very little you can do
with him.
CORNETTE: You said the same thing
about Bobby Eaton.
ELLERING: I'm still trying to figure out
how you made that bum into a wrestler.
DILLON: Eaton takes the same tennis les-
sons Jimmy does. (laughter)
ELLNER: When you guys scout your wres-
tlers, what characteristics are most impor-
tant?
ELLERING: Mental toughness.
CORNETTE: Ring smarts. An ability to ab-
sorb and execute my instructions.
DILLON: Relentlessness. Toughness.
Singlemindedness.
ELLNER: You all agree, then, that mental
attitude is more important than physical
attributes?
ELLERING: You assume a certain level of
physical proficiency. But face it, not every-
one can be The Road Wanors.
DILLON: Or Lex Luger. Look at [Ric]
Flair. Look at [Tully] Blanchard. These are
average-sized men. They're often giving
away 50, 60 pounds a match, yet they're
proven winners. Because they're smart and
tough. Muscles can’t replace ring savvy. Re-
member, and few people do, this sport is at
least 75 percent strategy.
ELLERING: And it’s always 100 percent
execution.
CORNETTE: Absolutely. Never underesti-
mate smarts. I'll take a midget with a brain
over a big lug anyday.
ELLNER: Or a Big Bubba?
CORNETTE: Part of the thrill of being a
manager is to do what others claim is impos-
sible. When I said The Midnight Express
would win the NWA World title, everyone—
(Continued on page 56)
Wrestling 88 / 33
When Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage joined hands and joined forces
on Saturday Night’s Main Event, every wrestler in the WWF bolted
upright and wondered where the ax would fall next—because that
momentous handshake could alter the WWF beyond all recognition!
By Gian Trotta
HEN, AT THE behest of Miss
Elizabeth, World Wrestling Fed-
eration heavyweight champion Hulk
Hogan rushed out of the dressing
room to rescue Randy Savage from a
brutal beating at the hands of The
Honky Tonk Man and The Hart
Foundation, the excitement level was
such that few fans gave any thought to
the long-term effects of Hogan’s
action.
The fallout from that September 23
explosion at the Hersheypark Arena—
when the WWF World champion and
his toughest challenger engaged in an
impromptu brawl against the Intercon-
tinental and then-tag team champi-
ons—has yet to settle on the WWF.
Since Honky Tonk and the Harts were
chased from the ring, the Hogan-Sav-
age tag team—appropriately dubbed
The Megapowers—has kept a low
profile.
Yet the very fact that they exist has
tulebreakers, fan favorites, officials,
and fans wondering: In what direction
will The Megapowers direct their con-
siderable talents?
WWF champion Hulk Hogan rips his shirt off
(right) before battling One Man Gang (top). With
Randy Savage, “The Hulkster” could win the
WWF tag team title.
34/ Wrestling 88
On paper they look awesome. To
say that The Megapowers can totally
steamroll their opposition is hardly
news. Indeed, they have the potential
to totally upset the precarious balance
of power in the WWF between both
singles wrestlers and tag teams, fan fa-
vorites and rulebreakers.
Hogan and Savage could, in a mat-
ter of just months, accomplish the
kind of domination in the WWF that
The Four Horsemen have achieved in
the NWA.
Hogan has defended his World
heavyweight belt against some fear-
some rulebreakers for the past four
years; Savage outbrawled and outwres-
tled the best fan favorites during his
Intercontinental title reign. Together,
Hogan and Savage know the styles,
strengths, and weaknesses of just about
every wrestler in the WWF.
Where and how they will employ
this combination of strength and sav-
vy, however, remains an open
question.
Considering Hogan and Savage’s
past records, current strengths, and fu-
ture prospects, there are at several
paths that The Megapowers may
choose to travel over the next few
months. On analysis, three paths ap-
pear to be most likely, Let’s examine
in greater detail these three possible
scenarios.
tek
SCENARIO #1: In the wake of the
Thanksgiving Survivors’ Series, Hogan
continues his schedule of defenses of
the WWE heavyweight title while Sav-
age continues his pursuit of the Inter-
continental title held by The Honky
Tonk Man. Both men guard the other
from outside interference. In addition,
they team together whenever possible
in a quest for the WWF World tag
team belts.
Though Strike Force has defeated
The Hart Foundation for the title, by
following this course The Megapowers
could pull off the wrestling equivalent
of a grand slam. Assuming that they
emerge victorious, two men would
hold all four WWF belts for the first
time in its history. With no more
worlds to conquer, the inevitable ques-
tion would arise: ‘‘What if Savage met
Hogan in a scientific match?” A title
ys. title match would attract incredible
attention. WrestleMania V’s main
event, perhaps?
ANALYSIS: While this scenario
would please many fans and constitute
an enduring high point in wrestling his-
tory, two titles would have to change
hands before The Megapowers could
begin their quest. If The Hart Founda-
tion (or any other rulebreaking tag
team) wins the title from Strike Force
(possible) and if Savage beats Honky
Tonk (probable), then The Mega-
powers could go for all four belts—
and probably win them.
But it may prove to be too costly a
victory. Once before, a WWF heavy-
weight champion simultaneously held
the World tag team championship.
That was back in 1980 when then-
champion Bob Backlund teamed with
Pedro Morales to defeat The Samoans.
But Backlund, claiming a conflict of
interest, chose to give up the tag team
title and the belts were put up in a
tournament. The conscientious Back-
lund felt that he could not adequately
defend both titles to the satisfaction of
the fans—or himself. Modesty and a
commitment to frequent title defenses
have never been Savage or Hogan’s
strong points, and one cannot picture
either of them giving up a hard-earned
title, even if a majority of fans were to
call for it.
(Continued on page 60)
Savage shoves The Honky Tonk Man into the bot-
tom tumbuckle (right) and is whipped into the
ropes (top). Everyone is speculating as to how
long a Savage-Hogan partnership will last.
Wrestling 88 / 35
SE8
. ae
_\, CAREER OF
STING
1988-1993
By Dave Rosenbaum
6eé OU WANT TO know why so
many young prospects with a
world of ability never make it big?””
Bob Roop asked rhetorically from his
office in Tampa, Florida. ‘Never even
get a title shot? It’s eyestrain, plain and
simple.”’
Roop, who with Hiro Matsuda
helped train Lex Luger during the
Horseman’s rookie year in Florida,
wasn’t saying that blindness or an in-
ability to see opponents from far away
is the reason so many young wrestlers
never make it big.
“They read all those newspaper clip-
pings saying how great they are,”’ said
Roop, ‘‘and they start to believe them.
Eyestrain. A young wrestler must learn
to ignore favorable press clippings.””
The list of wrestlers who could’ve,
should’ye, but didn’t make it to the top
is virtually endless, and as 1987 turns to
1988, there are murmurs among wres-
tling experts that Sting, unable to direct
his career toward a major title and lack-
ing in some fundamental skills, is about
to join the list.
Almost a year after leaving Eddie
Gilbert’s ‘First Family,” Sting is still in-
volved in a feud with Gilbert and Rick
Steiner. Neither of these men have titles,
but neither does Sting. He’s a top con-
tender to Steve Williams’ UWF title, but
has yet to get a title shot. He’s had only
a few matches against U.S. champion
Lex Luger. The NWA World title isn’t
even a consideration right now.
It’s clear that 1988 ust be Sting’s
year. In 1986 he was an impressive
rookie. In 1987 he got rid of Gilbert and
improved dramatically as a singles wres-
tler. In a way, Sting’s career begins for
real in 1988. The pressure is on; the ex-
perts expect Sting to win a major title
before 1989.
But it isn’t likely to turn out that way,
simply because Sting isn’t skilled as a
scientific wrestler. His strength, power,
and determination can only take him so
far. To fully realize his potential, Sting
needs somebody to channel his energy,
abilities, and athletic prowess toward
developing a scientific repertoire.
With this in mind, Sting must decide
in 1988 to hire an adviser (perhaps Bob
Roop or Hiro Matsuda) or a manager
(maybe Paul Ellering or Capt. Lou Al-
bano). Perhaps he can coerce a man
who has seldom managed before to help
him out, such as Lou Thesz (who ad-
vised Magnum T.A. early in his career)
or Buddy Rogers (who managed Jimmy
Snuka), both of whom have extensive
scientific knowledge.
“By late 1988, I can definitely see
Sting making the move [to hire a man-
ager],”’ said Barry Windham. “The dif-
ficulty with that is you don’t want to
hire somebody like [Jim] Cornette or
Gen. Skandor Akbar. That just takes
you backward. But I would have to
agree that Sting is going to have trouble
getting over the top alone, and by Sep-
tember or October he'll start getting
frustrated. At that point, he’ll have two
choices: either hire a manager or be-
come a rulebreaker once again.’”
And return to Gilbert’s camp? That
doesn’t seem likely. ‘That phase of my
life is over,” Sting said in late 1987.
“T’m sure I’ll make some mistakes be-
fore my career is over—everybody
does—but that won’t be one of them.”
Sting, however, has another choice.
There is a place in wrestling where scien-
tific ability doesn’t count for much and
aman can get by on power alone.
wie
In 1989, Hulk Hogan will probably
still be WWF World heavyweight cham-
pion. There isn’t a man now in the
WWF that can beat him. In all likeli-
hood, Randy Savage will have finally
regained the Intercontinental belt from
The Honky Tonk Man. Once again, as
for most of the past four years, the
WWF will have as champions powerful,
strong men who rarely use scientific ma-
neuvers: bruising, punishing brawlers.
Sting can find a home there. It’s no
secret that Sting is a hotly sought-after
commodity, and that Vince McMahon,
head of the WWF, would like nothing
better than to add Sting to his vast ros-
ter of wrestlers.
There isn’t a man in wrestling that
can beat McMahon in an all-out bidding
war, and such a battle between McMa-
hon and Jim Crockett Promotions will
land Sting in the WWF by early 1989.
Sting headlocks his former manager, Eddie Gil-
bert. By dumping Gilbert, Sting dramatically im-
proved his career options. Those options include
getting a different, more decent manager.
Following an
outstanding rookie
year and a fine
1987, Sting is on
the verge of
wrestling greatness.
But what course will
his career take? In
this special
Wrestling 88
feature, we'll look
ahead at the coming
years of Sting’s
career
Wrestling 88 / 37
Sting powerslams Terry Taylor, the man who took his place in Gilbert's “First Family." Sting’s future
may include a trip to the WWF, where he would quickly become a top contender to both the World and
Intercontinental titles.
Butch Reed night after night?
Probably not.
Sting’s main reason for coming to the
WWF, besides money, would be the
chance to become a big star and win a
major title. He’s already wasted the first
three years of his career. In 1989, Sting
would be a veteran without a singles title
to his credit.
And there’s one other problem: The
WWP’s two singles champions, Hogan
and Savage, are fan favorites. The
WWP’s policy is to not grant fan favor-
ites matches against fan favorite cham-
pions. Sting’s career could reach a cross-
roads as the decade comes to an end,
forcing him to make another decision.
wk
MeMahon’s gala end-of-the-decade
New Year’s Eve bash—and you know
there’s going to be one—is history.
Sting has reached the point where he’s
no longer wrestling middle-of-the card
matches, but he isn’t in main events, ei-
ther. His prospects for a title shot look
bleak. Sting has reached the end of the
road in the WWF and all he can do is
wait for Hogan or Savage to get beaten
by a rulebreaker.
But Sting is too talented to wait. So,
“Tf that doesn’t happen, I’d be very sur-
prised,” said a wrestling insider with
vast knowledge of wrestling’s power
structure, “Sting is a natural for the
WWE. He’s big, he’s strong, he has
style, charisma, and he’s a brawler.
Sting would fit perfectly into McMa-
hon’s marketing strategies.”’
Sting dolls, Sting videos, even Sting
ice cream bars—you’ll probably see
them all by the end of 1989. But first
guys wrestle in main events,” said the
insider, ‘‘so Sting wouldn’t be getting
much in the way of top opposition; at
best, he might headline minor shows in
smaller towns.””
There could be a problem if this hap-
pens. Sting is used to being a star. Al-
though he never won a singles title in the
UWF, he held the tag belts with both
Gilbert and Steiner. As a UWF singles
wrestler, he consistently wrestled in
with little choice, Sting will make the de-
cision he put off in late 1988: hire a
manager. His choice, however, will stun
wrestling fans. A few months prior to
WrestleMania VI, Sting will announce
an alliance with Bobby ‘The Brain”
Heenan.
From a 1987 perspective, this move
makes sense, Heenan is an expert at get-
ting his men title shots and would wel-
come Sting into his stable of strongmen.
he’ll have to go through his trial period.
“McMahon usually doesn’t let his new
main events. Would Sting be happy
Jing Bob Orton, Ron Bass, or
By 1990, Sting should be at the peak of
his abilities. He will have experience
ING EVENTUALLY goes to the WWF, he’s likely
to meet up with former tag team partner The Ultimate
Warrior, Sting and Rock—as Warrior was known back in
1986—formed The Blade Runners
and were top contenders to the
UWF tag team belts.
But Eddie Gilbert got in the way.
Gilbert, who managed The Blade
Runners and Kortsia Korchenko,
was involved in a feud with then-
UWF President Bill Watts. “Rock
felt Gilbert’s feud with Watts made
it impossible for us to get treated
fairly,” said Sting. “I didn’t exactly
agree with him—I thought we
could get by on our own—but he
wasn’t taking any chances and left
Powerteam U.S.A.
the area. Kortsia took off, too.”
Prior to their arrival in the UWF, Sting and the Warrior
ae |
were in Powerteam U.S.A., a quartet of handsome, muscu-
lar wrestlers formed by Rick Bassman in California. Two
other members of Powerteam, Garland Donoho and Mark
Miller, never continued in the sport, but the success of Sting
and the Warrior proves that Bassman had a good eye for
talent.
After parting with Sting in the spring of 1986, Rock
changed his wrestling name to Dingo Warrior and signed
with World Class Championship Wrestling. Dingo and
Lance Von Erich held the World Class tag team belts for a
short time in 1986. On Feburary 2, 1987, Dingo won the
World Class Texas title from Bob Bradley.
This past June, Dingo left World Class to sign a contract
with the WWF where he became known as The Ultimate
Warrior. The Warrior is extremely popular and rapidly be-
coming a contender for a major title. His good looks and
outstanding physique make him a natural for the WWF.
It’s a course Sting might someday follow.
—Dave Rosenbaum
38 / Wrestling 88
against all types of wrestlers. Angry at
Savage and Hogan for not granting him
a title shot, he won’t think twice about
become a rulebreaker,
“The only real question,’ says veter-
an wrestling columnist Matt Brock, ‘‘is
will he wait until 1990? That seems like
along time, especially for a talent like
Sting. I think, however, that it’s a move
he’ll have to make. Hogan is very hesi-
tant to give matches to men he thinks
he'll have trouble with, and Savage, for
all of his ‘Macho Man’ image, tends to
pick on opponents that can’t brawl with
him.”
Sting will finally get his long-awaited
title shot at WrestleMania VI against ei-
ther Hogan or Savage (which one he
wrestles really doesn’t matter.) This
match, and the ones that follow, will
help him realize that he was, born to be a
rulebreaker. Sting held both of his
UWF tag team titles as a rulebreaker.
And being a rulebreaker will not spoil
his appeal to the female fans—after all,
he’s still Sting.
Sting will follow this path for the rest
of his career, although he won’t always
be in Heenan’s camp. He will eventually
get disgusted by “The Brain’s’”’ greed
and cowardliness (qualities that will nev-
er change in Heenan). He'll realize that
he can be a rulebreaker on his own, just
like he was a fan favorite on his own.
He'll also realize, once again, that he
must develop his scientific skills to be-
come a superstar.
Sting won't win the Intercontinental
Rick Steiner stops Sting from ramming his head
into the ring apron. Together they were UWF tag
team champions.
or WWF titles at WrestleMania VI. Ho-
gan and Savage will turn back his chal-
lenges throughout the summer. Once
again, Sting will realize that his power
and strength is neutralized by the power
and strength of Hogan and Savage.
As 1990 comes to an end, Sting is the
top contender to the Intercontinental
belt, getting title shots on a weekly ba-
sis. He occasionally wrestles Hogan for
the World title. But he can’t get over the
top.
“J think,”’ says Bob Roop, ‘‘that
would be a good time for him to call me
or Hiro in.”
toe
Who knows what wrestling will be
like in 1991? Some federations may no
longer exist. There’s a possibility that
only the NWA and WWF will still be in
business. Television (particularly cable)
may play an even stronger role than it
does now. Hogan and Savage could be
gone from the WWF. More talented
newcomers like Sting will enter the
sport, and many veterans will retire.
Rulebreakers will become fan favorites;
fan favorites will become rulebreakers.
With this in mind, predicting the
course of Sting’s career from 1991 to
1993 can only be based on what has
happened to similar wrestlers with simi-
lar abilities in similar situations. Based
on Sting’s potential, ability, and what
figures to happen to him from 1988 to
1990, however, some realistic conclu-
sions can be drawn.
@ Early in 1991, Sting will leave
Heenan’s camp and hire a retired scien-
tific wrestler as trainer and adviser.
“The combination of scientific ability
with his incredible power would be tre-
mendously imposing,”’ said Lou Thesz.
“There are already lots of brawlers in
the sport. Those who can combine wres-
tling and brawling are very rare.’
@ Sting’s incredible popularity and
marketability will make other wrestlers
jealous. Rulebreakers and fan favorites
alike will gun for this hot star. Sneak-at-
tacks will be commonplace and, at this
point, Sting might have to‘overcome a
major injury. And he’ll have to avoid
getting embroiled in a useless feud that
could sidetrack his title aspirations.
@ He'll be tempted by Hollywood
agents, filmmakers, and TV producers.
Like many other WWF stars, Sting will
start appearing in TV shows and mov-
ies. And like Hogan, Andre the Giant,
Roddy Piper, and Jesse Ventura, Sting
will be forced into a decision: wrestling
or Hollywood?
@ In 1992, he will put off the move to
Hollywood because he still hasn’t
achieved his major goal: a world heavy-
Displaying another facet of his repertoire—his
power—Sting lifts up Taylor by his throat, If Sting
lives up to his potential, he'll someday be a world
champion.
weight championship. More than five
years have passed since Sting was a
champion of any kind. Wrestling ana-
lysts are starting to doubt that he will
ever fulfill his potential. He’ll continue
to work on improving his scientific skills
while building up his physique, still
looking for that perfect combination.
@ Finally, in mid-1992, Jim Crockett
Promotions will get involved in another
bidding war with McMahon, The NWA
will offer Sting a lucrative contract.
Sting, wanting to go back home a star,
will return to the NWA with the assur-
ance that he’ll get a series of title shots
against the NWA World champion.
@ In early 1993, Sting will win the
NWA World heavyweight champion-
ship. ‘1993 seems like about the right
time,”’ said veteran TV commentator
Gordon Solie. “It takes a long time for
a young wrestler to achieve champion-
ship status—look how long it took Ron-
nie Garvin—and really make it big. If
Sting can win the NWA title by 1993,
that’s pretty good; eight years in wres-
tling is not a long time.””
There’s little doubt that Sting is capa-
ble of achieving greatness. But his career
will undoubtedly be filled with pitfalls
and challenges; he’ll have to avoid ca-
reer-threatening injuries and the influ-
ence of shady individuals hoping to cap-
italize on his ability.
If he does, the world will one day be
his. 1
Wrestling 88 / 39
The teaming of Rick Martel and Tito Santana, two veterans
with a world of ability, is the best thing to happen in the WWF
in a long time. They’re the new WWF World tag team
champions—and the idols of millions of fans around the
country!
Hartbreaking
Heartthrobs
STRIKE FORCE
IS AWESOME!
By Stu Saks
ICK MARTEL AND Tito San-
tana started off on two different
ends of the world and somehow ended
up running into each other. Two more
different men have seldom existed; two
more similar men have seldom existed.
Strike Force should never have hap-
pened; Strike Force was a natural.
Strike Force is a living, breathing,
wrestling contradiction.
Rick Martel, born 31 years ago in
French-speaking Quebec City, was no
different than any young Canadian
boy. He played amateur hockey and at
one time dreamed of playing in the
National Hockey League. But hockey
competition is tough in Canada and
Martel decided instead to become a
professional wrestler at the tender age
of 16.
Success in wrestling came slowly for
young Martel. A thick French accent
40 / Wrestling 88
made him difficult to understand on
interviews, but his natural ability even-
tually shone through. An: outstanding
athlete with a marvelous physique,
Martel developed into a fine scientific
and aerial wrestler. In 1980, he teamed
with Tony Garea to defeat The Samo-
ans for the WWF World tag team
title.
Martel and Garea lost the belts after
four months, but won them again later
in 1981. Martel left the WWF for the
AWA and, in May 1984, scored his
greatest victory by beating Jumbo Tsu-
ruta for the AWA World heavyweight
championship. A back injury contrib-
uted to his loss of the title to Stan
Hansen in December 1985, but Martel
was finally established as a worldwide
star. He also continued to be popular
with the female fans, who loved his
good looks and earlier had voted him
“Wrestling’s Sexiest Superstar’ in a
1982 Wrestling Superstars magazine
poll.
Tito Santana, born 34 years ago in
Mission, Texas, is of Mexican ancestry
and never considered playing ice hock-
ey. Down in Texas, football is king
and Santana was an outstanding play-
er. He was a tight end for the West
Texas State team quarterbacked by
Tully Blanchard. Santana signed as a
free agent with the Kansas City Chiefs
of the National Football League; cut
by the Chiefs, he managed to secure a
spot with the Canadian Football
League.
Santana retired from football and
became a pro wrestler 12 years ago.
His Mexican accent made him hard to
understand on interviews, but, like
Martel, Santana used his great speed
(Continued on page 50)
Rick Martel armbars Greg Valentine (right), When
Martel and Tito Santana teamed to form Strike
Force (below), they captured the fancy of the
wrestling public,
THE PRIVATE SIDE
'N THE RING, Tully Blanchard is cool, calculating, and uncom-
promising. Blanchard will do anything to stay on top. He's
maimed numerous opponents and doesn’t think twice about
breaking the mules, Blanchard is considered by most opponents
the most dangerous of the notorious Four Horsemen.
Outside the ring, Blanchard occupies a position as the financial
wizard of the Horsemen. He pays strict attention to the bottom
line, and works closely with manager JJ. Dillon in keeping Tully
Blanchard Enterprises well in the black during bleak financial
times. To Blanchard, money and success mean everything; there's
no place in this world for somebody of weak mind and soft heart.
Blanchard is very demanding.
But as Senior Editor Bill Apter found out, there's another side to
Blanchard, a side Apter saw while spending a day on St. Maarten
in the Virgin Islands with Tully and his lovely wife Rene. "Tully
and Rene were on vacation and they invited me to spend a day
with them,” explained Apter. “I've never seen Tully alone with his
wife and I couldn't believe how different he was. Maybe Tully has
a heart after all. Seeing them together, you'd never believe that
Tully is a vicious rulebreaker.”
i
yest
is
TULLY BLANCHARD
Their day on the beautiful Caribbean island began at the tourist
information center, where Tully and Rene planned the day's activ-
ities. They decided to go sightseeing later in the week, then went
into town and shopped.
“You're not going to believe this,” Apter said, “but Tully actual-
ly picked out a dress for Rene and bought it for her, Imagine,
Tully Blanchard shopping for dresses! Then they went to the
perfume counter and he started smelling all the fragrances. He
picked out a bottle for her and she didn’t like it, but he insisted
a bought that for her, too, I guess you just don't say no to
ly!"
“Rene's a real clothing fanatic,” said Tully, “and I want her to
have all the best things. She’s the wife of the greatest wrestler in
the world and she should look that way. There’s nothing in the
world that’s too expensive for Tully Blanchard, especially where
Rene’s concemed.”
After the Blanchards ate a light lunch, they decided to go
golfing. The hectic life of a professional wrestler doesn’t allow
much time for leisure, but Tully is a fine golfer, Tully and Rene
played impressively (Rene scored 102, Tully shot an 86), then
a > a
Tully Blanchard stops at the St. Maarten tourist information center (top left)
before he and his wife Rene begin a day of shopping and relaxation. Tully
playfully entices Rene to try yet another brand of perfume at the gift shop
(left). The Blanchards model St. Maarten caps (above).
42 / Wrestling 88
THE PRIVATE SIDE
Wrestling 88 / 43
Ronnie Garvin executes “The Garvin Stomp" against Ric
Flair. Shortly after defeating Flair for the NWA World title,
Garvin took a 40-day hiatus from title matches. Should this
have been allowed?
YOU DECIDE
SHOULD WRESTLING’'S
30-DAY RULE BE ABOLISHED?
'N WRESTLING PARLANCE,
perhaps no greater compliment
can be paid to a titlist than to call
him “a fighting champion.” It's a
type of praise that’s often harder
to earn than a belt itself. Winning
a title is one thing; to defend it
night after night against top con-
tenders for any length of time is
an entirely different matter. It is
the tue test of a champion.
Not all fighters are champions,
and not all champions are fighters.
Some are content to rest on their
laurels and expend minimum ef-
fort toward defending their belts.
For them, defenses are few and
far between, often against substan-
dard opposition. Others try to
hedge their bets by scheduling a
large number of non-title matches.
To avoid such situations, each
wrestling federation has adopted
plied with the 30-day rule.
7\\ 4
WWF World champion Hulk Hogan struggles to escape
from One Man Gang’s bearhug. Hogan has forthrightly com-
And sometimes the rules them-
selves aren't even followed—by
the federations that make them.
Recently, a dangerous precedent
was set in the NWA. The 30-day
mule was overuled in favor of
champion Ron Garvin being al-
lowed to indulge in “special train-
ing” and a suspension of title
matches for 40 days prior to his
. Starrcade match with Flair. Gar-
vin’s request for the mle suspen-
sion took much of the luster off his
September victory over Flair.
The NWA’s selective enforce-
ment of the mule is a shameful ex-
ample of fence-straddling; either
the mule is in effect or it is not.
With this incident in mind, we
appeal to our readers to answer
the question: “Should the 30-day
mule be abolished?” The pros and
cons are presented below. Read
variations of what has come to be
known as the “30-day me.” As the name implies, it
requires champions to face ranked (the qualification var-
ies with the federation) contenders at least once a month.
Some champions rise to the challenge. Ric Flair’s NWA
World title reigns have been characterized by almost
nightly defenses. WWF World champion Hulk Hogan
sometimes wrestles as rarely as once every 10 days.
AWA World champion Curt Hennig wrestles more often
than Hogan, but an inordinate number of non-title match-
es tarnish his reputation.
“There are two ways a champion is judged by the fans,
and by history,” Flair has said. “One is the frequency of
title defenses, and the other is the quality of the oppo-
nents faced. Love me or hate me, you've got to admit
that my title reigns have always been characterized by
frequent defenses against the top names in the sport.
That, very simply, is why Ric Flair will go down in history
as the best ever.”
“Hey, it makes no sense to me that people criticize me
for not defending my belt more often,” Hennig said. “I’m
just going by the mules, and the rules say once every
month. Any more than that is just gravy, buddy, and the
fans ought to drop to their knees and thank me for
defending the belt more than once a month. I don't have
to, you know. I do it because I feel like it. But I don't
have to. I’m just following the rules.”
and consider them, then send in
the ballot on page 59. The results of your vote will ap-
pear in the Summer 1988 edition of Wrestling 88.
THE 30-DAY RULE SHOULD BE ABOLISHED
Preparation. Thirty days may seem like a long time,
but in a sport in which a champion has to concern him-
self with as many as five top contenders at the same time,
it is not. By way of comparison, the various boxing feder-
ations only decree a mandatory defense against the rec-
ognized number-one contender as often as from once
every six months to once per year (they encourage “vol-
untary defenses” against other contenders during this
interval). The 30-day mule favors the challenger, who is
allowed as much time as he feels necessary to prepare
himself for his title match.
© Risk of injury. Title matches are generally the longest
and most grueling in the sport, with the winner often
emerging as weak as the loser—thus becoming easy
prey for the next challenger. The 30-day rule has been
accused of increasing reputations at the cost of shorten-
ing careers. A longer interval between title matches
would give champions more time to recover physically,
thus making the athletes stronger and more able to de-
fend themselves. As a result, injuries in the sport would
decrease across the board.
@ Overexposure. There is a fine line between protecting
(Continued on page 59)
Wrestling 88 / 45
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GOLDEN MOMENT
OOKING AT THEM today, it’s hard to believe that Greg
Valentine and Dino Bravo were ever at odds. The Dream
Team, leading contenders to the WWF World tag team champi-
onship currently held by Strike Force, seems to be a match
made in heaven. Bravo and Valentine are constantly supporting
and encouraging each other, each man a perfect complement to
the other's vicious, sadistic, rulebreaking style.
But it wasn’t always that way. In the late 1970s, Bravo was one
of the most popular wrestlers in the WWF. He won the tag team
title with Dominic DeNucci and was a top championship con-
tender with longtime partner Gino Brito. Bravo also wrestled
occasionally in singles matches and, in 1979, engaged in a brutal
war with the man who would become his future tag team part-
ner, Greg Valentine.
At the time, Valentine was the swom enemy of virtually every
upstanding fan favorite in the WWF. A cool, calculating mad-
man, Valentine was afraid of no one and had already left several
battered wrestlers lying in his wake. He broke Chief Jay Strong-
bow’s leg with a figure-four leglock. WWF World champion Bob
Backlund nearly had his title reign and his life ended by Valen-
tine. DeNucci, Ivan Putski, and Dusty Rhodes all fell victim to
“The Hammer.”
Like those before him, Bravo was also unable to stop Valen-
tine’s reign of terror. His first mistake was using scientific wres-
tling to counter Valentine's nefarious tactics. Valentine actually
tried to draw Bravo into a bloody slugfest, but Dino refused and
tried to outwrestle his fiendish rival. As it tumed out, Bravo's
boasts that “Valentine can be had” were never backed up.
Part of Bravo's problem was Valentine’s unpredictabilty. Valen-
tine was a madman in every way and didn’t react like a normal
wrestler. “Everything I did had an expected countermove,” said
Bravo. “It's kind of like chess. But Valentine doesn’t wrestle
cleanly.” On the other hand, Valentine never fulfilled his prom-
ise to run Bravo out of wrestling.
Years later, close friends of both wrestlers will tell you that
those early matches were largely responsible for the formation
of The Dream Team. The battles with Valentine helped convince
Bravo to change his style; he realized his scientific knowledge
was useless against such a man. And Valentine gladly wel-
comed Bravo to his nightmare. Oo
Wrestling 88 / 49
Strike Force
(Continued from page 41)
Martel flips his way out of a double-team by Terry Gibbs and Barry Horowitz, Both Martel and Santana
possess similar flexibility and the ability to react quickly when caught in a tight spot. It almost seems as
though their teaming was inevitable.
and athletic ability to break through.
In 1979, Santana teamed with Ivan
Putski to win the WWF World tag
team title. They lost the belts in April
1980 to The Samoans, who subse-
quently lost them to Martel and Garea.
Santana’s greatest victory also oc-
curred in 1984, On February 11—three
months before Martel won the AWA
championship—Santana defeated Mag-
nificent Muraco in Boston for the
WWF Intercontinental title. His reign
lasted seven months, but in July 1985
Santana won the belt again by defeat-
ing Greg Valentine
Santana, though slowed by a knee
injury, remained in the WWF after
losing the belt to Randy Savage. Mar-
tel, after a brief stint in Canada, re-
turned to the WWF in early 1987 with
partner Tom Zenk as The Can-Am
Connection. Santana wrestled mostly
in singles matches and occasionally
teamed with Davey Boy Smith of The
British Bulldogs while Dynamite Kid
was recovering from a back injury.
The Can-Ams, most observers be-
lieved, were heirs apparent to the
WWF tag team throne.
The turning point came last summer
when Zenk walked out on Martel.
Stunned by Zenk’s sudden departure,
Martel tried several new partners, in-
cluding Junkyard Dog, Jake Roberts,
and George Steele, but none of these
combinations clicked.
The Martel-Steele partnership was
particularly ludicrous. In a tournament
for a shot at the Harts’ title in late
50 / Wrestling 88
July 1987, Martel and Steele beat Ka-
mala and Samoan Sika in the opening
round when Steele pinned Sika after
knocking him out with a weapon. But
in the second round, Dino Bravo and
Greg Valentine eliminated them when
Valentine used Steele’s weapon to score
the pin.
Weapons are not part of Martel’s
repertoire. Steele was dumped.
Finally, Martel teamed with San-
tana, and from that very first night it
<
&
make a serious run at the tag team title.
was apparent that the two were made
for each other.
“The thing that struck me the first
time I saw them team,” said veteran
reporter Matt Brock, “‘is that I always
had to look twice to see which one was
in the ring. Santana and Martel have
very similar styles and physiques and
they complement each other superbly.
It’s almost as if there are two Santanas
or two Martels instead of one of each.
They never stop coming at you. That
has to be very confusing for
opponents.””
So it was that two men with totally
different backgrounds, but comparable
wrestling styles and similar appeals to
the fans, came together. Fresh, exuber-
ant, high-flying, exciting, and—in the
words of one young female fan at a
recent Madison Square Garden show—
“absolutely gorgeous,” Martel and
Santana have made an impact on wres-
tling like few teams before them.
“Tito makes you forget Tom Zenk
ever existed,” said Belinda Brady of
Brooklyn, New York. “I always
thought Tito was gorgeous, but put
him next to Martel and all his good
features come out so much more. I
was a big Can-Am fan, but it always
seemed to me Zenk was holding them
back. He was too inexperienced and
Martel was just too good for him.
With Strike Force, there’s no real
stronger man. They’re both great!””
She has a point. Although seemingly
a
ie
——
Santana and Martel prepare to whip Islander Tama across the ring. Although Martel and Tom Zenk’s
Can-Am Connection was very good, Martel realized he'd need an experienced partner like Santana to
more talented than The Hart Founda-
tion, the Can-Ams never went over the
top to win the World championship.
In retrospect, Zenk was in a learning
stage and wasn’t ready to win a World
title. The Zenk-Martel duo worked be-
cause of their similar styles and unlim-
ited energy. They could outlast almost
any pair of opponents. But when the
Harts resorted to rulebreaking and
brawling tactics, Zenk wasn’t experi-
enced enough to hold off the assault.
And Martel could only help so much.
The reason for Zenk’s departure has
never been verified. Zenk left without
an explanation. Martel only said that
Zenk walked out on him. The WWF
had no comment on the situation. In-
siders say Zenk felt frustrated by his
inability to help Martel win the belts;
he realized he was the weak link in the
team and didn’t want to bear the bur-
den. Martel was dismayed when Zenk
walked out on him—justifiably feeling
that he had wasted six months teaching
the youngster—but now admits it’s the
best thing that ever happened to him.
“Rick isn’t the kind of guy to bad-
mouth a former partner, especially
when they broke up on pretty good
terms,” said a WWF insider. “I think
Rick was concerned about never find-
ing another good partner—he and
Tom were pretty good, after all. Rick
realizes, however, that he and Zenk
were never going to win anything. San-
tana, of course, had already won quite
a bit.”
Martel and Santana formed an elec-
trifying combination. Their early
matches against The Islanders were
thrilling, certainly the best tag team
matches of the year in the WWF. At
first The Islanders held their own, but
as Martel and Santana improved their
timing and teamwork, Strike Force
dominated. Finally, after a few months
together, they were ready to take on
The Hart Foundation for the World
title.
In boxing, the classic matches are
those pitting a pure boxer against a
puncher. The three Muhammad Ali-
Joe Frazier fights of the early 1970s
and the two Sugar Ray Leonard-Ro-
berto Duran fights of 1980 are perfect
examples. In hockey, in the 1987 Stan-
ley Cup playoffs, the fast-skating,
high-scoring Edmonton Oilers took on
the hard-checking, defensive-minded
Philadelphia Flyers in a thrilling seven-
game series. Opposites attract
fans.
Strike Force and The Hart Founda-
tion couldn’t be more different. Brett
(Continued on page 52)
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Wrestling 88 / 51
| BOX 48
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52 / Wrestling 88
Strike Force
(Continued from page 51)
Hart and Jim Neidhart look like bar-
room bouncers with their huge arms
and fearsome appearances. They rely
on brawling, stretching the rules, and
the devious tactics of their hated man-
ager Jimmy Hart.
The Harts have been accused of
paying off referees; they won the title
in January 1987 from The British Bull-
dogs when referee Danny Davis spent
most of the match standing over an
injured Dynamite Kid. Davis was sub-
sequently fired by the WWF as a refer-
ee and hired by the Harts, who trained
him to wrestle.
Strike Force doesn’t have a manag-
er. With their combined 25-plus years
of experience in the sport, Martel and
Santana don’t need one. And they
don’t need somebody to synchronize
their styles, either. Martel and Santana
are perfectly in sync. More important,
Martel and Santana detest teams who
break the rules. To them, a tainted
victory is no victory at all.
The differences between the two
teams was plainly spelled out by WWF
commentator Jesse Ventura prior to
their October 27 title bout at Syra-
cuse’s War Memorial Auditorium.
“This is a classic match of the speed
of Strike Force against the deceit and
strength of The Hart Foundation,”
said Ventura. As it turned out, Strike
Force used a combination of speed and
strength to win the belts.
The Hart Foundation took control
from the start with Hart pounding on
Martel’s midsection. Martel turned
things around with a flying dropkick
and an armdrag, then Santana came in
to double-team Hart. Santana contin-
ued to work on “The Hitman’s’”’ arm,
but Neidhart managed to tag in.
At that point, Santana made a criti-
cal error. Instead of using his speed to
wear down Neidhart, he elected to en-
gage in a slugfest with his bigger,
stronger opponent. Neidhart got the
best of this duel and whipped Santana
into the ropes, where he was kneed in
the kidney by Hart. Santana was in
pain and tried to hold off a double-
teaming effort by the Harts. Martel
tried to help out several times, but only
distracted the referee long enough for
the Harts to further double-team San-
tana. Tito managed to escape from
several near-pins but was obviously in
pain and exhausted from fighting off
the Harts.
Neidhart mauled Santana and re-
peatedly smashed his face into the mat.
Santana tried to get out of the ring but
was too tired to make the pin. Finally,
Santana summoned up enough energy
to reverse Hart into the turnbuckle.
Tito tagged Martel just as Hart tagged
off to Neidhart.
By this time, Martel was well-rested
and ready for battle. Fired-up by the
frenzied sellout crowd, Martel slugged
it out with Neidhart and, incredibly,
came out on top. Neidhart whipped
Martel into the turnbuckle, but Rick
jumped to the second rope, twisted his
body, and executed a perfect flying
bodypress. Martel covered Neidhart
and hooked the leg for the pin, but
Hart ran in to make the save.
Santana armbars Tama. Martel feels that he has a
better chance for quick success with Tito than he
did with Tom Zenk,
Then Santana rushed into the ring
and pounded on Hart. He whipped
him into the ropes and out of the ring,
then joined with Santana to double-
bodyslam Neidhart. The Hart Founda-
tion was at the end of the line. Martel
went in for the pin, but at the last
moment elected to finish things off
with a submission hold. He applied a
Boston crab and Neidhart immediately
submitted.
It was a shocking moment. The
Boston crab, after all, usually isn’t
overpowering, and Neidhart was in it
for less than three seconds. Perhaps
Neidhart realized losing was inevitable.
The Harts had done everything they
(Continued on page 54)
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Cover stories noted in BOLDFACE.]
June 1982/COLOR PINUP: Nick Bock-
winkel. Adonis & Ventura, Snuka,
Patera, Flair.
‘August 1982/COLOR PINUP: Dino Bra-
vo. Steamboat & Rich, Andre, Martel,
Piper, Blassie,
October 1982/COLOR PINUP: Jerry
Lawler. Ric Flair, Rhodes, Graham,
Race, Funk Jr
January 1983/COLOR PINUP: Ken
Patera. Rick Steamboat, Rich, Brody,
Sullivan, Backlund.
February 1983/COLOR PINUP: Ivan
Putski. Rhodes vs. Garvin, Snuka, Su-
per Destroyer, Bockwinkel, Funk.
April 1983/COLOR PINUP: Superstar
Graham. Mil Mascaras, Valentine, Om-
dorif, Hart
June 1983/COLOR PINUP: Cowboy
Bob Orton. Rick Martel, Von Erich,
‘Slaughter, Muraco.
July 1983/COLOR PINUP: Ivan Koloff
Tommy Rich, Patera, Von Erich, Snuka.
‘August 1983/COLOR PINUP: Larry
Zbyszko. Roddy Piper, Sullivan, Zbys-
2ko, Von Erich, Wrestling I
October 1983/COLOR PINUP: Junk-
yard Dog. Tommy Rich, Johnson, Ado-
niis, Rhodes, Piper
November 1983/COLOR PINUP:
Roddy Piper. Harley Race, Santana,
Mascaras, Ellering, Valiant, Race.
December 1983/COLOR PINUP: Wa-
hoo McDaniel. Dusty Rhodes, Hayes,
Steamboat, Hansen, DiBiase.
January 1984/COLOR PINUP: Harley
Race. Rick Martel, Snuka, Freebirds,
Dillon, Sawyer.
February 1984/COLOR PINUP: Jim
Garvin & Sunshine. Greg Valentine, Su-
er Destroyer, Race, Sawyer, Abdullah.
May 1984/COLOR PINUP: Hacksaw
Butch Reed. Hulk Hogan, Road War-
riors, Fabulous Ones, Flair, Rotundo.
June 1984/COLOR PINUP: Dick Slater.
Ted DiBiase, Wrestling lI, Magnum T.A.,
Patera, Hogan.
July 1984/COLOR PINUP: Paul Eller-
ing. Jimmy Valiant, JYD, Fab Ones,
Gagne, Windham.
August 1984/COLOR PINUP: Stan
Hansen. Jerry Lawler, Sullivan, Slaugh-
ter, Blackwell & Patera, Flair
H
——— — —
October 1984/COLOR PINUP: Billy
Jack. Kerry Von Erich, Martel, Blan-
chard, Fabulous Blonds, Armstrong.
November 1984/COLOR PINUP: Rick
Martel, Sgt. Slaughter, Von Erich, Road
Warriors, Windham, Rotundo,
January 1985/COLOR PINUP: Tito
Santana. Road Warriors, Billy Jack,
Hayes, 1984 fan ballot.
February 1985/COLOR PINUP: Mag-
num T.A. Rick Martel, Hogan, Backlund,
Ellering.
April 1985/COLOR PINUP: Ronnie Gar-
vin, Jimmy Snuka, Warriors, Gordy,
Flair, Rhodes.
June 1985/COLOR PINUP: Barry Wind-
ham. Dusty Rhodes, Slaughter, Hogan,
Von Erich, T.A.
See es
a ©
LLUSTRATED
rescowmbencrwem
‘Sears content on
Biwnces mae ens oe
JULY 1985
July 1985/COLOR PINUP: Sgt. Siaugh-
ter. Hogan vs. Piper, Warriors, One
Man Gang, T.A., Martel
‘September 1985/COLOR PINUP: Junk-
yard Dog. Magnum T.A, Von Erich, Ho-
‘gan, AWA scouting reports.
October 1985/COLOR PINUP: Chris
Adams. Rick Steamboat, Warriors,
Nikita, WWF scouting reports.
November 1985/COLOR PINUP: Ran-
dy Savage. Ric Flair, Slaughter, Steam-
boat, World Class scouting reports.
DECEMBER 1985
December 1985/COLOR PINUP: Jesse
Ventura. Great American Bash, Von
Erich, Omdorff, Wiliams & DiBiase.
January 1986/COLOR PINUP: Hack-
‘saw Duggan. Hulk Hogan, T.A., Brody,
February 1986/COLOR PINUP: Nikita
Koloff. Mike Von Erich, Warriors, San-
tana, Taylor, Barbarian, Race.
April 1986/COLOR PINUP: Ric Flair:
Wendi Richter, Adams & Hernandez,
Dusty & Warriors vs. Flair & Andersons.
May 1986/COLOR PINUP: Rick Steam-
boat. Road Warriors, Humongous, Bull
dogs, Hansen vs. Martel
June 1986/COLOR PINUP: Kevin Von
Erich. Hulk Hogan, Adams, Duggan,
‘Scott Hall.
July 1986/COLOR PINUP: King Kong
Bundy. R & R Express, Hall and Hennig,
Ventura, Warriors
August 1986/COLOR PINUP: Dusty
Bhodes. Randy Savage. Lugar vs
Race, Blanchard vs. Flair, Rude.
October 1986/COLOR PINUP: John
Studd. Nikita Koloff, Savage vs. Bundy,
Landell, Flair vs. Lugar, Simpson.
November 1986/COLOR PINUP: Baby
Doll. British Bulldogs, Von Erich, Han-
sen, Gordy, Flair-Tully-Arn-Ole.
December 1986/COLOR PINUP: Great
American Bash. Great American Bash,
{Midnight Rockers, Von Erich, Windham.
=
January 1987/COLOR PINUP: Fabu-
lous Freebirds. Roddy Piper, Nikita vs,
T.A., Snuka, Simpson.
February 1987/COLOR PINUP: Savage
& Elizabeth, UWF Tournament, T.A.,
Baby Doll, Hogan vs. Omdorft
April 1987/COLOR PINUP: Lex Luger.
Dusty & Nikita, DiBiase, DeBeers, Din-
90, WF Housecleaning,
May 1987/COLOR PINUP: Steve Wil-
liams. Andre-Hogan, UWF Tourny, Al-
bano, Cornette, Dynamite Kid, Kerry,
June 1987/COLOR PINUP: Hulk Ho-
gan. Magnum T.A., Can-Ams, Warriors,
Freebirds, Hall:
July 1987/COLOR PINUP: Midnight
Rockers. Steamboat-Savage, Luger,
Duggan, Garvins, Sting
August 1987/COLOR PINUP: Jim Gar-
vin & Precious. Hogan-Andre, Warriors,
Windham-Fiair, Gordy, Bigelow.
October 1987/COLOR PINUP: Ted Di-
Biase. Ric Flair, Williams, Rockers, Ho-
gan vs. Steamboat, NWA & WWF.
November 1987/COLOR PINUP:
George Steele. Nikita Koloff, Warriors,
Harts, Hogan, Windham.
January 1988/COLOR PINUP: The
Road Warriors. Ted DiBiase, Flair-Gar-
vins, Hogan & Ventura, Zbyszko,
February 1988/COLOR PINUP: Ronnie
Garvin. Randy Savage, Garvin-Flair,
Von Erichs, Freebirds,
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Strike Force
(Continued from page 52)
could to defeat Strike Force, but
couldn’t even outbraw! them late in the
match. Martel probably could have
kept the Boston crab on all night with
Hart preoccupied outside the ring. And
with his men not there to protect him,
Jimmy Hart didn’t dare venture into
the ring.
He didn’t dare stop what was meant
to be.
Strike Force’s emergence as the
WWF World tag team champions is
the best thing to happen to the WWF
since the actual teaming of Martel and
Santana. The WWF is often criticized
as being a haven for musclebound
monsters with little pure wrestling abili-
ty. World champion Hulk Hogan is
nothing more than a brawler—albeit a
great one. Intercontinental champion
The Honky Tonk Man is not consid-
ered worthy of his title. Even Randy
Savage, a brilliant athlete with fantastic
aerial skills, depends on punishing his
opponents rather than wrestling them.
And when was the last time any
WWF title changed hands on a
submission?
Strike Force gives the WWE credi-
bility as a federation with real wres-
tlers. Wrestling is nor bodybuilding. It
is not a test of strength. In wrestling, a
small man with good knowledge of
wrestling moves should be able to beat
a big man who relies solely on power.
Wrestling is a test of skills, and in that
regard Strike Force has few peers in
the entire world. They are what wres-
tling should be, not what the WWF
often professes it to be.
And they figure to stay on top for a
long time. The Hart Foundation prob-
ably never would have won the belts
without Davis’ biased officiating. The
Islanders have already been tossed
aside by Strike Force. Nikolai Volkoff
and Boris Zukhov, The Bolsheviks, are
a one-dimensional tag team; they are
not main event stars. Greg Valentine
and Dino Bravo will give Strike Force
a run for their money, but don’t have
enough speed to beat them.
The fans, of course, wouldn’t mind
if Martel and Santana retained the
belts forever. ‘‘They make me proud
to be a WWF fan,” said Tracey Jones
of Baltimore.
“Tito and Rick are my heroes,” said
George Spalletta of San Francisco,
“They’re the best tag team I’ve seen in
a long time,” said Mike D’Arpino of
Miami.
Strike Force is awesome! oO
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September 1981/Backlund-Mosca,
Freebirds, Flair, Rich, Junkyard Dog,
October 1981/Rich-Race, Hogan-Han-
sen, Moondogs, Freebirds, Putski-Koloft,
November 1981/Rhodes-DiBiase,
Steamboat, Mulligan, McDaniel, Spoiler.
December 1981/Muraco-Morales,
Patera, Steele, Andre,
March 1982/Valentine, Brisco-Funk,
Steele, Flair, Hayes.
April 1982/Spoller, Idol-Hayes, Mo-
rales, Super D, Ladd.
May 1982/Rich-Flair, Backlund, Super-
star, Dillon, Wrestling I
June 1982/Tommy Rich, Jimmy
Snuka, Wrestlers rate each other,
July 1982/Steamboat-Idol, Albano,
Rhodes, Patera.
August 1982/Piper-Rich, Flair-Slater,
Rhodes, Valentine, Bockwinkel
October 1982/Funk-Abdullah, Orton,
Kabuki, Von Erich,
November 1982/Piper, Abdullah, Saito,
Von Erich, Mascaras.
December 1982/Backlund-Rose,
Rhodes-Flair, Albano, Humperdink
January 1983/Rich, McDaniel-Valen-
tine, Patera, Brisco, Bockwinkel.
February 1983/Flair-Race, Morales-
Rose, Patera, Bravo, Spoiler
March 1983/Flair-Bass, Snuka, Sulli-
van, Steamboat, Patera.
| SPORTS REVIEW WRESTLING
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WE SHING
il 1983/Backlund-Graham, Briscos,
Rhodes, Hogan, Samoans.
May 1983/Muraco, Dillon, Sulivan,
Reed, Brisco, Von Erich.
June 1983/Piper, Bockwinkel-Patter-
son, Brody, Sullivan, Baba
July 1983/Valiant-Humperdink, Martel,
Hernandez, Murdoch, Armstrong,
October 1983/Martel-Valentine, Mulli-
gan, Lawler, Von Erichs, Bruno.
November 1983/Andre-Mulligan, Ka-
mala-Brody, Slater, Backlund.
December 1983/Windham-LeDuc,
Santana, Sullivan, Garvin,
January 1984/Andre-Abdullah, Bock-
winkel, Gilbert, Windham, Flair, Mosca.
February 1984/Rich-Sawyer, Idol-Han-
sen, Martel, Parsons, Von Erich.
March 1984/Starrcade "83, Closeups
on Atlanta and Dallas cards.
April 1984/Von Erich-Gordy, Dillon &
Nagasaki, Graham, DiBiase, Omdortt
May 1984/LeDuc-Sawyer, Assassins,
‘The Men Who Make Wrestling Fly!
dune 1984/Windham-Fiair, Gilbert,
‘Sawyer, Bockwinkel, Tsuruta.
July 1984/Flair-Gordy, Duggan, Blan-
chard, Brisco, AWA tag tourny.
T.V. SPORTS
BOLDFACE.]
August 1984/Rich & Gilbert, Adams-
Hayes, Von Erich, Faces Of Wrestling
‘September 1984/Fiair-Steamboat,
Freebirds-Von Erichs—Special cover-
age of two big cards.
October 1984/Sullivan-Rhodes, Free-
birds video, Atlas, Orange Bow card.
November 1984/Von Erich & Billy
Jack, Andre, Fab Ones, Summer Wars!
December 1984/Rich-Gilbert, Martel,
Mascaras, Youngblood, World Class.
1985/Flair-McDaniel, Missing
Link, Backlund, Fabulous Ones, Pro
Wrestling USA, Valentine.
February 1985/Sullivan-Graham, Her-
nandez & Nicola Roberts, Bruno ur.
Steamboat, Warriors.
March 1985/Starrcade '84 featuring
Flair, Rhodes, Steamboat, Koloffs, 1985
Datebook, Hayes, wrestling school.
April 1985/Von Erich-Blackwell,
Haynes-Barr, Hart, inwins, 1984 in Pic-
tures, Blair
May 1985/Albano, Freebirds-Flair,
Steamboat, Hernandez, Las Vegas.
June 1985/Pro Wrestling U.S.A, Von
Erich, Richter, Windham, Taylor.
August 1985/Flair-Nikita, Omdortt,
Slaughter, Parade of Champions I
‘September 1985/Adams-Von Erich,
‘Omdortf, Sawyer, Kamala, Barr
October 1985/Martel-Hayes, Richter,
‘Savage, Adams, T.A., Warriors,
November 1985/Freebirds-Warriors,
Mid-South, Haynes, Rhodes, Savage.
December 1985/Hogan, Zbyszko-Mar-
tel, Murdoch, Dillon, fiendish faces.
collection of SPORTS REVIEW
WRESTLING, the magazine jam-packed
with action photography and in-depth
stories. Don’t miss out on an issue.
Quantities are limited, so order today!
[NOTE: Cover stories noted in
June 1986/Hogan-Muraco, Midnight
Express, Freebird, Battle of Belts I,
July 1986/Omdorft-Piper, Blanchard-
T.A., Matches of '80s, Sheepherders,
Bockwinkel, Bulldogs.
August 1986/Crockett Cup Tourny,
Jake Roberts, Midnight Rockers, Von
Erichs, Wrestling Il
‘September 1986/Bulldogs, Blanchard-
Gibson, Lugar, Dundee, UWF tourny.
October 1986/Omdortf, Rude-Brody,
Bash, Bockwinkel, Gordy, Adams.
November 1986/Andersons-R&R Ex-
press, Machine, Gordy, Managers.
December 1986/Machines, Fantastics,
Warriors, WWF Muchnick Toury.
January 1987/Russians, Hyatt-Dark
Journey, WWF Top 50, Fab Ones.
February 1987/Road Warriors, Savage,
Windham & Lugar, 1987 Datebook.
March 1987/Kamala-Hogan, Starrcade
86, Allas, Williams, Tatum.
April 1987/1986 In Pictures, Kevin Von,
Flair, Rich, Hennig-Bockwinkel,
May 1987/Nikita-Flair, Bulldogs, Alba-
‘no's career, Snuka-DeBeers, Taylor,
June 1987/Hogan-Andre, Hall, Par-
sons, Garvin, WWF title history.
July 1987/Midnight Express, Savage-
Steamboat, Adams, NWA in Boston.
just 1987/Nord-Kevin, Armstrong-
Flair, Hogan & Patera, Crockett Cup.
September 1987/Hogan, Akbar, Luger-
Nikita, Summer Feuds, charity shows.
October 1987/Windham, Bigelow,
Bockwinkel, Western States tourny.
November 1987/Bash, Honky Tonk,
Hart, Sheepherders, Condrey.
December 1987/Grappling Ghouls,
January 1986/Savage-Santana, Abdul-
lah, Humongous, Von Raschke,
Comiskey Park, Taylor,
February 1986/Junkyard Dog, Rude,
Patrick, Garvin, Reed, Datebook
March 1986/Starrcade ’85, Ventura,
Windham, Sunshine, Slaughter.
April 1986/Savage-Hogan, Martel-Han-
‘sen, 1985 in Pictures, Warnors, DiBiase.
May 1986/Sammartino, R&R Express,
‘Sunshine-Hyatt, Slater, Devastating
Holds, Hall & Hennig.
Make Check Payable And Send To:
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January 1988/Honky Tonk, Garvin,
TA. career, Arcidi, Hogan.
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56 / Wrestling 88
Managers
(Continued from page 33)
including everyone in this room—laughed.
But I made it happen. Big Bubba might end
up a bum, but I don’t think so. Right now
let's call him a reclamation project.
ELLNER: What have been your greatest
career achievements thus far?
DILLON: Forming The Four Horsemen.
Assuaging the egos of four of the greatest
wrestlers in the world and tuming them into
a well-oiled, loyal machine. Few people un-
derstand the breadth of that
accomplishment.
ELLERING: | agree. It's hard to keep Hawk
and Animal focused sometimes. They insist
on doing their own thing, As a manager,
you must remain levelheaded. Only through
your patience and consistency can your
wrestlers learn the same. What Dillon's done
with his Horsemen is pretty remarkable. I
don’t know how you keep Flair, Luger,
Blanchard, and Anderson in line. Those are
four reckless boys.
CORNETT! xryone thinks Blanchard’s
US. title victory over Magnum TT.A. [in July
1985] was your greatest managerial coup. I
time | hear that.
DILLON: Hey, it’s not my fault Magnum.
was so overrated. I knew Tully would win
that match, Tully knew he'd win the match.
It was no problem. Fans look at faces and
personalities. They don’t know what the hell
is going on.
ELLERING: But they cause problems.
They almost cost me the Warriors.
ELLNER: How so?
ELLERING: They start cheering for you,
and the next thing you know you start listen
ing and stop paying attention to what's go-
ing on in the ring, No one realizes what the
Waniors recently went through. No one re-
alizes how close the team came to breaking
up. My greatest achievement was in keeping
them together.
CORNETTE: | think Animal has improved
a lot in the past year.
DILLON: Yeah, now he can move to the
left. L used to tell my guys, just go at Animal
to the left, he moves like a snail. Now, no
more. ‘Bout time you picked up on that,
Paul.
ELLERING: Screw you, too. I've been beg-
ging Animal for years to work on that. You
know as well as I do that these guys don’t
listen all the time.
DILLON: At least it’s not as bad as it used
to be. Now our wrestlers respect us. When
we first started out, then there was trouble.
CORNETTE: Even now you have prob-
lems. For an entire year I wanted Dennis
Condrey to pick up the sleeperhold.
DILLON: That would have surprised the
hell out of everyone.
ELLNER: Why?
DILLON: Hell, everyone knows that when
Condrey was barely a rookie he was hospi-
talized by a sleeperhold. Ever since, he’s
been scared to death of it
CORNETTE: Precisely, | begged him to
pick it up. I spent thousands of dollars on
psychiatrists and hypnotists to cure him of
his phobia, but he wouldn’t hear of it. Final-
ly, Thad no choice but to let him go. He
brought Eaton down. The Express was go-
ing nowhere.
DILLON: Did Condrey know you were talk-
ing to [Stan] Lane?
CORNETTE: Never talk to the monkey
when the organ grinder is in the room. I
wanted Condrey out of there. And I wanted
the transition to be smooth,
ELLERING: Lane was quite an acquisition.
Tremember cursing you when I heard about
it
CORNETTE: It worked out well.
The phone rings. Ric Flair wants to speak
to J.J, Dillon. The mood in the room subtly
changes. “He's probably can't find a cork-
screw,” Ellering whispers to Comette. Corn-
ette chuckles. Dillon hangs up the phone
and demands to know what Ellering said.
ELLERING: What was the matter? Flair’s
dry cleaning didn’t come out right?
DILLON: Any discussion of fashion, class,
and style could not benefit by anything you
might add. Why don’t you go to the slums
and meet the Warriors? They're probably
hard at work beating up teenagers.
CORNETTE: (laughs)
ELLERING: What the hell are you laughing
about? Couldn't be about the upcoming Ex-
press-Waniors match—you're too scared to
sign that contract.
CORNETTE: Last time we wrestled, the
Warriors didn’t put up much of a fight. 1
hate to embarrass a colleague. Paul, do
yourself a favor: Stay in Japan. Keep wres-
tling those human eggrolls. You don’t want
to come back to America. Mess with the Ex-
press or the Horsemen and you're asking
for trouble.
DILLON: Don't mention The Midnight Ex-
press in the same breath as The Four
Horsemen. You guys are right out of
Disneyland. Your’re practically as bad as
Morton and Gibson.
ELLNER: That's low. Maybe you should re-
consider that last remark.
Dillon reconsidered. Rather than retract his
statement, he grabbed an apple from a bowl
of fruit on the table and hurled it at Com-
ette. Ellering whipped off his smoking jacket
and, armed with a wooden spoon, prepared
himself for battle. Fortunately, Wrestling
88 security guards separated the combat-
ants and escorted them to their separate
limousines.
Three legendary managers talking wres-
tling. At least for a while they did, 1)
WRESTLING USA
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Wrestling 88 / 57
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58 / Wrestling 88
Crossfire
(Continued from page 18)
gible give and take between us the
public. The feeling is so strong you
can almost grab hold of it. Lots of
wrestlers have been unable to han-
dle it. Chris Adams, Brian Adias, Al
Madril . . . heck, we’ve lost some of
our best friends because of how in-
timidating the Von Erich mystique
is. Funny thing is, there is no mys-
tique. Our family has been greatly
blessed with tremendous physical
ability. The public took to us and
we took to them. If there’s some-
thing mystical about that, so be it.
We like to consider ourselves role
models in a day and age when good
role models are sorely lacking.
There’s nothing wrong in serving as
a positive role model, is there?
EE: No, but you're not superheroes,
and in portraying yourselves as such,
you're doing your public—and your-
selves—an injustice.
KVE: I don’t think Kevin or I think
of ourselves as ‘‘superheroes.” In
fact, that’s a myth propagated by
the media. They love to create he-
roes out of men. Like I said, the
Von Erichs are flesh and blood, just
like everyone else. We just don’t
recognize any limitations. Insofar as
wanting to return to my old form, I
don’t think that’s a problem peculiar
to the Von Erich family. Show me a
professional athlete in any sport
who doesn’t hope against hope that
he'll come back to 100 percent fol-
lowing a serious injury. Look at
Magnum T.A.! Heck, it’s the nature
of being an athlete. Believe me
when I tell you you’d react the
same way.
BA: Some people believe one rea-
son your father is more active around
ringside lately is because he is fright-
ened. He’s scared something may
happen to you and Kevin.
KVE: That’s the craziest thing I
ever heard.
EE: Then how do you explain his
interference in Kevin's title match
against Al Perez? In addition to your
own interference, I might add.
KVE: No one just wrestles Al Perez.
Both Gary Hart and Brian Adias
were at ringside with foreign ob-
jects. Before my father and I got
involved, they had already tried
several times to interfere.
BA: A review of the match by World
Class officials reversed Kevin's vic-
tory and gave the decision—and the
belt—back to Perez. That would vin-
dicate his actions somewhat.
Kerry (bodystamming Ted Arcidi) says he never
had any doubts that he would retum from his leg
injury.
KVE: Don’t be naive, Bill. Commis-
sions inevitably make mistakes.
And as soon as a Von Erich is seen
doing anything slightly illegal,
they’re pounced upon.
EE: C’mon! You guys have been get-
ting away with murder for years!
There are enough reasons to cry for
the Von Erichs without having to
make any up.
KVE: When you reach our level, the
truth—for good or bad—always
seems to get lost in the shuffle. All
we want is to go about our busi-
ness—which is to wrestle and win,
establish a loving rapport with those
who support us, and a simple un-
derstanding with those who dislike
us. We’re not gods, but we are spe-
cial. The Von Erichs have weath-
ered many storms. We can help
people. And as long as we have a
breath in us, we'll do our best to do
‘SO. oO
You Decide
(Continued from page 45)
Curt Hennig leglocks Jeff Jarrett. As AWA World champion, Hennig has been having more nontitle
matches than most world titleholders, but he is well within his rights as long as he defends the belt at
least once every 30 days. The NWA’s decision to let Ronnie Garvin take a 40-day hiatus between
defenses raised new questions about the feasibility of the rule.
r
THE PRESS SHOULD REPORT WRESTLERS’ PERSONAL PROBLEMS
One of the toughest questions facing wrestling journalists today is whether or not—and
to what extent—we should cover the private lives of wrestlers, and our Winter 1987 poll
showed fans supporting the press’ right to report these doings by a three-to-one margin.
Jeanette Hyer of Stockton, Missouri, spoke for the 25.2 percent minority when she
wrote: “I think a wrestler's personal problems should stay personal, unless he wants to
talk about it. Then and only then should they be printed. A wrestling reporter's job is to
report on what happens in the ring, the wrestler’s public life, and that’s all. Wrestlers,
like everyone else, deserve privacy.”
But the vast majority of fans (74.8 percent), while acknowledging wrestlers’ rights to
privacy, thought that the press should pull no punches.
“To best understand the stars we love and hate, like Chris Adams, Gino Hemandez,
Hacksaw Duggan, Mike Von Erich, Hulk Hogan, and so on, we must know all the
behind-the-scenes facts,” wrote Clinton Freeman of New York City.
Lynn Marei Seim of Westland, Missouri, added, “I think we should know some of the
facts, like causes of death and brushes with the law. They're celebrities . . . if they can’t
handle the press, then they should find another line of work.”
Lynn Jenkins of Philadelphia attempted to balance both sides when she wrote: “I feel
that the press should report some, but not all, personal problems. If a wrestler is
arrested for doing drugs or physically assaulting an innocent bystander, the press should
report it. But at all other times the press should give them privacy.”
tht to know.
The debate will no doubt continue, but the fans have reaffirmed their
I Box 48, Rockville Centre, NY 11571
|
| () Yes, the 30-day rule should be abolished
| () No, the 30-day mile should not be abolished
I
a championship's value and overex-
posing the champion. Frequent title
defenses are fine—up to a point. Too
many can foster an ambivalent attitude
among the fans. Perhaps less-frequent
defenses against top contenders
would attract greater interest in the ti-
tle matches that do occur.
THE 30-DAY RULE SHOULD NOT BE
ABOLISHED
Credibility. The more frequently a
title is defended the more prestigious
it becomes. It’s that simple. To simply
place the title on the shelf and not
defend it is ludicrous; you might as
well not have the title at all. One title
defense every 30 days provides at
least a miriimum level of credibility to
a champion and his championship.
Precedent. The mule, in fact, is fine
as it is. Defending a title once every 30
days is flexibility enough for the
sport’s champions. The problem is not
the mule, but the enforcement of that
mile. The nile has served the sport
well over past decades, but if federa-
tions choose to ignore the mle (as in
the recent NWA decision), then there
is serious trouble.
Accountability. A few champions
have shown that they value their titles
over the respect of the fans and the
financial health of the promotion. The
30-day mule is the court of last resort
for promoters to get these so-called
“champions” to shape up. The cham-
pion is faced with a decision: defend
the title or be stripped of it. Given that
choice, even the most unconscientious
of champions would choose to defend
his belt. oO
Wrestling 88 / 59
The 100th issue of Pro Wrestling
Iilustrated was a remarkable publishing
event. Cover-dated December 1987,
this 100-page super spectacular was
jam-packed with stunning color and
special features, including:
@The 10 Most Influential Wrestlers
Of The PW1I Years
@ The 10 Greatest Events Of The
PwiYears
@ The PW/ Achievement Awards:
A Retrospective
@ The First 100 Issues:
A Special Fan Poll
@ Behind The Scenes At PW/
All this and much, much more was
included in this magnificent anniversary
edition. We have limited supplies of this
newsstand sellout. If you missed it the
first time around, order now—the 100th
issue comes around only once ina
lifetime! Only $5.00.
[and send to:
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I please rush me ———— copies of the
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60 / Wrestling 88
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ONLY $5 EACH |
Hogan stops Savage with a boot to the head (top)
and sneaks up on him (above). They could easily
become foes again.
SCENARIO #2: Like Marley’s
ghost, the shadow of Paul Orndorff
looms over The Megapowers, recalling
“Mr. Wonderful’s’? conversion, aver-
sion, and reversion to Hulkamania.
The similarities between Orndorff’s as-
sociation with Hogan and Savage’s are
many. So many, in fact, that a 25-cent
phone call to Orndorff might be the
buy of Savage’s lifetime.
During a live ‘‘Piper’s Pit” at the
Nassau Coliseum back in May 1985,
Roddy Piper was verbally shredding
tag team partner Orndorff for being
pinned at WrestleMania I. Fisticuffs
erupted, and ‘Mr. Wonderful’? was
being sorely bested by Piper and Bob
Orton—until Hogan emerged from the
dressing room to make another cele-
brated save and gain another partner.
Yet Hogan and Orndorff did not
challenge either Nikolai Volkoff and
The Iron Sheik or, later, Greg Valen-
tine and Brutus Beefcake for the tag
team title that year. Orndorff couldn’t
challenge Ricky Steamboat for the I-C
Megapowers
(Continued from page 35)
ES. Tae
title, nor Hogan himself. He finally
tired of playing second fiddle in the
WWF band and turned against Hogan.
Their August 1986 grudge match in
Toronto’s Exhibition Stadium drew
70,000 fans, a record that was eclipsed
only by WrestleMania III. Orndorff
lost, and one year later, after a falling
out with manager Bobby Heenan, once
again turned fan favorite—to a decid-
edly lukewarm response.
Scenario number two is complete
when you take the above two para-
graphs and substitute “‘Randy Savage”
for ‘Paul Orndorff.””
ANALYSIS: Though praised at first
for rescuing Orndorff, Hogan was
soon accused of using “Mr. Wonder-
ful’ solely for his own ends. If the I-C
and tag titles elude the ‘Macho Man,”
then he might consider Hogan’s friend-
ship too big a burden, jettison it, and
once again go for the heavyweight title.
Or Savage might take the more di-
rect Orndorffian approach of Pearl
Harboring the champ while they were
still friends in order to gain a physical
and mental advantage for any subse-
quent title clash.
Elizabeth’s role in The Megapowers
has yet to be defined, but she will
continue to exert much influence on
the ‘Macho Man.” Whether Hogan
will accept advice from a woman—no
matter how smart and savvy—is an-
other story. Although she brought
them together, she could just as easily
be the cause of their falling out by
virtue of her great popularity which,
coupled with Savage’s, would allow
them to outstrip Hogan’s. This could
be the catalyst for our third and final
scenario .. .
ee
SCENARIO #3: The Megapowers
enjoy a successful partnership, over-
coming all foes except one: jealousy.
Hogan finds himself unable to accept
Savage’s (and Elizabeth’s) increased
fame, as ‘‘Machomania’’ continues to
eclipse “‘Hulkamania.’’ Crowds, liber-
ally sprinkled with fans dressed in full
“Macho Man’’ regalia, flock to the
matches. Savage and Elizabeth make a
workout video that sets sales records
before going on to give critically ac-
claimed performances in Rocky VI at
the special request of Sly Stallone.
The last straw comes when Hogan is
introduced as ‘‘Macho Man’s tag team
partner.’’ Purple with jealousy, “The
Hulkster’? goes berserk, trashes the
ring announcer, slaps Elizabeth, and
legdrops Savage into unconsciousness.
At a press conference the next day,
Hogan announces that he’ll return to
the rulebreaking tactics of his early ca-
reer: ‘I got sick of these little kids
bothering me for autographs,’ he says.
“And how dare Savage commit the
unpardonable crime of becoming more
popular than me and asking for a title
shot! The title gets defended only when
I feel like it!”’
WWF officials, however, force Ho-
gan to defend his title against Savage
in WrestleMania V. After 45 minutes
of non-stop action, Savage hits Hogan
with five consecutive flying elbows to
become the new WWF _ heavyweight
champion.
ANALYSIS; Though a bit extreme,
this scenario does conform to prece-
dent and personalities. The Hogan-
Savage alliance is, at its roots, as im-
permanent as Hogan-Orndorff before
it, and for the same reason: Each party
wants to dominate the sport entirely.
Within a year, the two men will clash
in the wrestling equivalent of World
War III. And the WWF, which gained
its power with a heroic Hulk Hogan
on top, would never be the same.
Out of the question? Not at all.
Think about it. oi
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Wrestling 88 / 61
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Feedback
(Continued from page 9)
Now I'm not saying Perez wasn’t al-
ready a good wrestler; he is a very
good one. I’m saying that Hart is a
great manager. Perez can’t miss with
Hart in his corner. It is unbelievable
that Hart has never won the World
Class championship until now. There
must have been some sort of conspira-
cy holding him back. Managers, as
you know, are naturally very jealous of
one another. They wouldn't think
twice about selling out one of their
own.
Back to Perez. I think he'll be World
Class champion for a long time. I think
Kevin Von Erich is outstanding, but he
seems to have too much on his mind,
what with all the problems his family’s
had lately. Sure, Kerry might come
back, but he’s in the same boat as
Kevin. The person who might come
closest to beating Perez is Chris Ad-
ams. He’s excellent. I'm glad he’s
back, but I don’t think that even he
could defeat Perez right now. Perez
has that spark in his eyes that says,
“Tm great and nobody's gonna beat
me.”
MICHAEL ELLIS
Houston
Ted DiBiase, a moral leper by Denise Jenkins’
‘standards, clotheslines Hillbilly Jim.
TOTALLY DISGUSTED
I just finished reading your article
on Ted DiBiase (‘Morally Bankrupt:
The Sellout Of Million-Dollar Man Ted.
DiBiase,” Winter 1987) and I find it dis-
gusting for DiBiase to act the way he
does. I thought DiBiase didn’t care
about money. I thought that he only
cared about being a wrestler.
In the long mun, DiBiase will be the
victim. His promising career will be
tamished by greed and the almighty
dollar.
DENISE JENKINS
Philadelphia 1
INFOCENTER
Do you have a wrestling history question? A question about wrestling’s
current events? How about a technical question regarding the rules of the
sport? In each issue, Wrestling 88’s research department will provide the
answers, Send your questions to:
InfoCenter
Box
48
Rockville Centre, NY 11571
a There seems to be a discrepancy
mas to how fast a referee is sup-
posed to make the three-count on a pin
or the 10-count when a wrestler is outside
the ring. A lot of times, the ref makes the
count real fast, and other times it seems
to take forever. Are there any mules gov-
eming how long a three-count or a 10-
count is supposed to take?—Ralph Baker,
Chicago
Avs” the miles couldn't be
mclearer. According to the National
Wrestling Alliance’s Official Rules of Pro-
fessional Wrestling, “To be pinned, both
of a contestant’s shoulders must be held
to the mat for three consecutive seconds,
as witnessed and counted off by the ref-
eree in charge of the event ... In the
event that a wrestler is thrown outside the
ring, he shall have 10 seconds as counted
off by the referee in which to reenter the
ring. The count shall continue only while
the remaining contestant is in a neutral
comer, making no effort to impede his
opponent's return to the ring.” The rules
are the same for every federation.
mJately, the AWA has been refer-
mring to itself as the “original
league of wrestling.” My grandfather tells
me that the NWA started in 1908. Is this
true? Also, who was the first NWA World
heavyweight champion?—Steve Gentry,
Cincinnati
As™ NWA has the AWA beat by
mmore than 50 years. According to
George W. Morton and George M. O'Br-
en's Wrestling To Rasslin’ (copyright 1985,
Bowling Green State University Press), in
1904 Frank Gotch defeated Tom Jenkins
for the United States wrestling champion-
ship, “which prompted promoters from
around the country to form the first loose
organization for the sport, the National
Wrestling Alliance ... By 1908, the pro-
motional network of booking offices, the
NWA, had moved from the old rural fair
circuit into the cities to expand operations
to yearround matches that would draw
on the large metropolitan public.” The
American Wrestling Association wasn't
formed until August 16, 1960. Title recog-
nition was given to Verne Gagne, who at
the time was generally considered the
uncrowned champion in wrestling.
I understand that before the mid-
‘20s or so, masked wrestlers were
not allowed to wrestle in New York. As-
suming this is true, can you please tell me
why?—Michael J.S. Durand, San Francisco
For years, the New York State Ath-
tic Commission forbade wres-
tlers from competing under a mask. The
mule, they reasoned, served as a safe-
guard against one wrestler taking a physi-
cal and then being replaced by another
wrestler at match time. The commission,
which came under a lot of pressure from
fans, promoters, and the masked wres-
tlers themselves for this rule, finally lifted
the ban in December 1972 for a match
between The Spoiler and Mil Mascaras.
a What were the origins of the feud
mbetween Pedro Morales and
Bruno Sammartino back in 1972? I under-
stand their match at Shea Stadium was a
classic and that George “The Animal”
Steele was somehow involved.—Teny
Plycart, Reading, PA
Morales and Sammartino were
very close friends for many years.
In fact, Bruno strapped the WWF World
championship belt around Morales’ waist
after Pedro defeated Ivan Koloff for the
tile at Madison Square Garden. Bruno
and Pedro were making a rare appear-
ance as a tag team, on TV, against tag
team champions Prof. Toru Tanaka and
Mr. Fuji. Everything came apart when Fuji
threw salt in Bruno's eyes. A blinded
Bruno began to flail wildly and caught
Morales with an accidental blow. Morales
fell to the mat, and Tanaka threw salt in
his eyes. Tanaka then grabbed Bruno and
threw him on top of Morales. Blinded, the
two began swinging at each other, and
they didn’t stop—even when their vision
cleared up. The two wrestled for Morales’
WWF title at Shea Stadium. The match
ended in a curfew draw after 76 minutes.
Afterward, the two men embraced out of
respect and, a month later, challenged
Tanaka and Fuji at Madison Square Gar-
den the following month. Regarding
Steele, “The Animal,” for some unex-
plained reason, mshed the ring during
the match. He was intercepted by securi-
ty guards. No one knew which wrestler
he was after. a
A SECOND
HANCE TO CATCH
“THE
BIG ONES”
4
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PWi
The year-end issues of Pro Wrestling Illustrated
are always the most anticipated wrestling
magazines of the year. And the 1985 and 1986
issues were the best ones we ever published. Each
is more than 90 pages, and contains the year-end
features PW/ readers have come to expect. We
have limited supplies of these newsstand sell-
outs, so don't be disappointed twice. Order your
copies today. Only $5.00 each.
Tmake check or money order payable
land send to:
i “THE BIG ONES”
ee
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| checked below. | enclose $5.00 for each one
am ordering.
(] PWI March 1987
(1986 Year-End Special)
State —
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Please allow 3-4 weeks for delivery.
Wrestling 88 7 63
= ane
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!
RATINGS
For period ended November 18, 1987
Ratings for the Top 10 and for Tag teams are based on
won-lost records for the past month, quality of opposition,
and the inherent skill of each wrestler. Most Hated and
Most Popular ratings are based on nationwide surveys of
wrestling fans and on mail that comes to our offices. Other
categories are compiled with the assistance of wrestlers,
promoters, and reporters, with the number one positions
being awarded to the major champion in each regional
category as of press time.
TOP10
TAG TEAMS
1—THE ROAD WARRIORS
No. 1 contenders to NWA tag team title
2—TULLY BLANCHARD & ARN ANDERSON
NWA World tag team champions
3—RICK MARTEL & TITO SANTANA
WWF World tag team champions
4—BOBBY EATON & STAN LANE
USS. tag team champions
1—HULK HOGAN
WWF World champion
2—RONNIE GARVIN
NWA World champion
3—RIC FLAIR
No. 1 contender: NWA title
4—LEX LUGER
U.S. champion
5—STEVE WILLIAMS
UWE champion
6—BARRY WINDHAM
Western States champion
7—NIKITA KOLOFF
NWA TV champion
8—RANDY SAVAGE
No. 1 contender: WWF IC tite
9—CURT HENNIG
AWA World champion
10—AL PEREZ
World Class champion
5—THE HART FOUNDATION
No. 1 contenders to WWF tag team title
6—THE ROCK 'N ROLL EXPRESS
No. 2 contenders to NWA tag team title
7—THE ISLANDERS
No. 3 contenders to WWF tag team title
8—THE BRITISH BULLDOGS
No. 2 contenders to WWF tag team title
9—THE SHEEPHERDERS
UWF tag team champions
10—DENNIS CONDREY & RANDY ROSE
AWA World tag team champions
1—HULK HOGAN
302, Venice Beach, CA
2—RANDY SAVAGE
245, Sarasota, FL
3—DUSTY RHODES
302, Austin, TX
4—STEVE WILLIAMS
265, Norman, OK
5—RONNIE GARVIN
231, Montreal, Quebec
MOST POPULAR
6—NIKITA KOLOFF
275, Moscow, Russia
7—BARRY WINDHAM
236, Sweetwater, TX
8—JAKE ROBERTS
246, Stone Mountain, GA
9—CHRIS ADAMS
228, Stratford on Avon, England
10—JERRY LAWLER
234, Memphis, TN
es
1—LEX LUGER
268, Chicago, IL
2—RIC FLAIR
243, Minneapolis, MN
3—NIKITA KOLOFF
275, Moscow, Russia
4—DUSTY RHODES
302, Austin, TX
5—BARRY WINDHAM
236, Sweetwater, TX
NWA
World Champion: RONNIE GARVIN 210, Montreal, Quebec
6—TULLY BLANCHARD
235, San Antonio, TX
7—STING
270, parts unknown
8—MIKE ROTUNDO
245, Syracuse, NY
9—BUBBA ROGERS
348, Louisville, KY
10—TERRY TAYLOR
225, Vero Beach, FL
MOST HATED
1—THE HONKY TONK MAN
255, Memphis. TN
2—RIC FLAIR
243, Minneapolis, MN
3—LEX LUGER
268, Chicago, IL
4—TULLY BLANCHARD
235, San Antonio, TX
5—TERRY TAYLOR
225, Vero Beach, FL
6—LARRY ZBYSZKO
248, Pittsburgh, PA
7—TED DiBIASE
247, Omaha, NB
8—CURT HENNIG
235, Minneapolis, MN
9—KING KONG BUNDY
446, Atlantic City, NU
10—AL PEREZ
238, Tampa, FL
AWA
World Champion: CURT HENNIG 235, Minneapolis, MN
1—WAHOO McDANIEL
260, Midland, TX
2—GREG GAGNE
220, Robbinsdale, MN
3—TOMMY RICH
242, Hendersonville, TN
4—JERRY BLACKWELL
474, Stone Mountain, GA
5—JERRY LAWLER
234, Memphis, TN
6—ADRIAN ADONIS
312, New York, NY
7—KEVIN KELLY
271, Oakland CA
8—DICK SLATER
235, Albany, NY
9—D.J. PETERSON
245, St. Joseph, MO
10—JEFF JARRETT
200, Hendersonville, TN
1—THE HONKY TONK MAN
255, Memphis, TN
2—RANDY SAVAGE
245, Sarasota, FL
3—ONE MAN GANG
468, Chicago, IL
4—BAM BAM BIGELOW
368, Mt. Laurel, NJ
5—TED DiBIASE
247, Omaha, NB
World Champion: HULK HOGAN 302, Venice Beach, CA
6—KILLER KHAN
275, Mongolia
7—RICK RUDE
246, Robbinsdale, MN
8—JAKE ROBERTS
246, Stone Mountain, GA
9—HACKSAW DUGGAN
280, Glens Falls, NY
10—KING KONG BUNDY
446, Atlantic City, NJ
UWF
UWF Champion: STEVE WILLIAMS 265, Norman, OK
1—BARRY WINDHAM
236, Sweetwater, TX
2—TERRY TAYLOR
225, Vero Beach, FL
3—BLACK BART
261, Pampa, TX
4—STING
270, parts unknown
5—EDDIE GILBERT
222, Lexington, TN
6—BIG BUBBA ROGERS
348, Louisville, KY
7—LARRY ZBYSZKO
248, Pittsburgh, PA
8—RON SIMMONS
260, Perry, GA
9—RICK STEINER
248, Detroit, MI
10—SHANE DOUGLAS
223, Pittsburgh, PA
64/ Wrestling 88
RATINGS
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
U.S. Champion: LEX LUGER 268, Chicago, IL
1—DUSTY RHODES 6—STING
302, Austin, TX 270, parts unknown
2—NIKITA KOLOFF 7—LARRY ZBYSZKO
275, Moscow, Russia 248, Pittsburgh, PA
3-RIC FLAIR 8—ARN ANDERSON
243, Minneapolis, MN 249, Minneapolis, MN
4—TULLY BLANCHARD © 9—KEVIN SULLIVAN
235, San Antonio, TX 252, Boston, MA
5—BARRY WINDHAM 10—JIM GARVIN
236, Sweetwater, TX 235, Tampa, FL
WORLD CLASS
World Class Champion: AL PEREZ 238, Tampa, FL
1—KEVIN VON ERICH 6—ERIC EMBRY
235, Denton, TX 225, Lexington, KY
2—MATT BORNE 7—THE IRON SHEIK
235, Portland, OR 262, Teheran, Iran
3—BRIAN ADIAS 8—SHAUN SIMPSON
238, Denton, TX 225, Johannesburg, S. Africa
4—TONY ATLAS 9—VIC STEAMBOAT
247, Roanoke, VA 235, Honolulu, HI
5—TED ARCIDI 10—THE THING
300, Boston, MA 230, parts unknown
STAMPEDE
North American Champion: OWEN HART 223, Calgary, Alberta
1—GAMA SINGH 6—STEVE DiSALVO
220, Karachi, Pakistan 298, Boston, MA
2—JASON THE TERRIBLE = 7—HIRO HASE
265, parts unknown 225, Ho Chi Minh City
3—CPL. KIRCHNER 8—PHIL LAFLEUR
240, Ft. Bragg, NC 245, Montreal, Quebec
4—MAKIAN SINGH 9—BRUCE HART
380, Saginaw, MI 211, Calgary, Alberta
5—BRIAN PILLMAN 10—ZODIAC
225, Cincinnati, OH 230, parts unknown
MID-SOUTHERN
AWA Souther Champion: BOBBY JAGGERS 275, Dunlap, KS
1—MANNY FERNANDEZ 6—STEVE KEIRN
245, El Paso, TX 238, Tampa, FL
2—JERRY LAWLER 7—CARL FERGIE
234, Memphis, TN 230, Memphis, TN
3—JEFF JARRETT 8—BILLY TRAVIS
200, Hendersonville, TN 218, Houston, TX
4—JIMMY JACK FUNK 9—HECTOR GUERRERO
243, Portland, OR 218, Mexico City, Mexico
5—BILL DUNDEE 10—DON BASS
214, Melbourne, Australia 230, Memphis, TN
CONTINENTAL
Continental Champion: DUTCH MANTELL 224, Oi Trough, TX
1—WENDELL COOLEY 6—SCOTT ARMSTRONG
220, Milton, FL 225, Marietta, GA
2—DOUG FURNAS 7—DAN DAVIS
265, Commerce, OK 238, Nashville, TN
3—TOM PRITCHARD 8—ROBERT FULLER
220, Houston, TX 238, Dyresburg, TN
4—THE BULLET 9—JONATHAN BOYD
234, parts unknown 240, New Zealand
5—TONY ANTHONY 10—JIMMY GOLDEN
235, Bucksnorth, TN 235, Montgomery, AL
Goodbye, Florida—hello, Stampede!
There's a major change on our ratings
pages this issue. The Florida ratings are
gone and have been replaced by a top 10
for Stampede Wrestling. This change
came about for a very good reason: after
nearly 40 years in the business, Champion-
ship Wrestling From Florida no longer
exists.
CWF was associated with the NWA, and
its various champions often received shots
at the NWA World heavyweight and tag
team champions. Despite its association
with the NWA, CWF ran its own cards in
Florida. In the past year, however, Jim
Crockett Promotions took over CWF and
began sending more NWA stars to Florida.
Eventually, the difference between WCW
and CWF became minute; finally, CWF of-
fices were shut down.
Owen Hart vs. Makian Singh
The decision to boost Stampede Wres-
tling into a permanent ratings spot was
rather easy. Operating out of Calgary in
the Canadian province of Alberta, Stam-
pede is one of the fastest-growing promo-
tions in the sport. Stampede North Ameri-
can Champion Owen Hart, one several
promising young wrestlers competing in
WILD WEST
1—THE MISSING LINK 6—JACK VICTORY
273, parts unknown 230, Atlantic City, NJ
2—ICEMAN PARSONS 7—BILL IRWIN
245, St. Louis, MO 250, Duluth, MN
3—BUDDY ROBERTS 8—SOLOMON GRUNDY
247, Del City, OK 450, Louisville, KY
4—LANCE VON ERICH 9—JEFF RAITZ
260, Arlington, TX 235, Dallas, TX
5—JOHN TATUM 10—BOB BRADLEY
236, Hollywood, CA 240, Boston, MA
Stampede, was named 1987 Rookie of the
Year in the annual Pro Wrestling Illustrated
fan poll.
There are two other belts recognized by
Stampede: the British Commonwealth
championship, currently held by Gama
Singh, and the International tag team title,
which is presently vacant (but was most re-
cently held by Bruce Hart and Brian
Pillman), The British Commonwealth
champion will receive an automatic num-
ber-one rating behind the Stampede North
American champion.
In our revolving ratings category this is-
sue, we feature the recently formed Wild
West group that operates out of Texas.
What's your opinion? We'd like to
know! Send your comments and sugges-
tions to: “Ratings Analysis” c/o Wrestling
88, Box 48, Rockville Centre, NY 11871.
Wrestling 88 / 65
THIS JUSTIN...
The Dream Team has split up| Greg Valentine and Dino Bravo, who
formed one of the top-ranked teams in the WWF, have left manager
Johnny V and signed contracts with separate managers. Valentine,
who recently was rumored to be headed for the NWA, signed with
Jimmy Hart; Bravo will be managed by Frenchy Martin, a new
addition to the WWF managing corps. According to WWF insiders,
Valentine was on the verge of going to the NWA when Hart offered
him a lucrative contract. Hart is also the manager of
Intercontinental champion The Honky Tonk Man and former WWF tag
champs The Hart Foundation. Valentine, a former Intercontinental
and World tag champion, and Bravo, also a tag champ, apparently
made the move so they could pursue singles careers. Valentine is
an outstanding singles wrestler and wants a shot at World
champion Hulk Hogan. Bravo, who has spent most of his career in
tag teams, is also hoping for a match against Hogan. "'Hart is
the man to get it for Valentine,'' said a WWF source. ''But the
jury's still out on Martin. It remains to be seen how much pull
he'll have with WWF officials."'
Stan Hansen and Terry Gordy are negotiating with World Class
officials to begin wrestling in that area by late December or
early January. A former AWA World heavyweight champion, Hansen
has wrestled predominantly in Japan and minor federations since
forfeiting the title to Nick Bockwinkel in mid-1986 and is hoping
to make a strong U.S. comeback. Gordy was a member of The
Freebirds, who broke up this past summer. The Freebirds were a
top team in the World Class area for many years and were
archrivals of the Von Erichs before signing with the UWF in 1986.
Gordy is a former UWF heavyweight champion. '"It makes sense for
me to come back here,'' said Gordy. ''The people down here are
familiar with my style and I've already proven I can handle the
competition.'' Hansen could not be reached for comment, but World
Class officials are anxious to continue rebuilding their talent
pool. Chris Adams returned to World Class this past November
after spending over a year in the UWF.
The 1988 Crockett Cup is tentatively scheduled for Las Vegas and
negotiations are underway to hold the 1989 edition of the NWA's
$1 million tag team tournament in Japan, according to Jim
Crockett Promotions. "We're looking to hold this year's Crockett
Cup in a city befitting its growing standing in the sports
world,'' said Jim Crockett. "'Though it's not finalized yet, Las
Vegas would be a great city to host the tournament. As for 1989,
we like to think of the Crockett Cup as an international event,
so it only makes sense that we hold it in Japan where wrestling
is extremely popular.'' In only two years, The Crockett Cup has
become one of the most prestigious events on the wrestling
calendar. It was was held in Baltimore last year and in New
Orleans in 1986.
ae
66 / Wrestling 88
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