Written by: Bob Colling
World Wrestling Federation House Show
Date: 4/22/1991
From: New York, NY
Opening Contest: Haku vs. Ricky Steamboat: Steamboat gets an entrance and shows off his fire spitting gimmick while Haku didn’t get an entrance. Steamboat comes off the ropes to shoulder block Haku and is sent over the ropes but pulls himself back in. Steamboat arm drags Haku a few times sending Haku to the floor. Steamboat continues to control Haku with a chop and arm drag. Steamboat controls Haku on the mat working on the left arm. Haku delivers a chop in the corner and several strikes but Steamboat tries to right out but isn’t very successful. Haku misses a running attack in the corner and Ricky arm drags Haku to the canvas. Steamboat misses a shoulder ram in the corner and Haku works over Steamboat with stomps in the corner. Haku grabs Steamboat by his feet and slams him to the canvas out of the corner. Haku and Steamboat trade strikes in the corner until Haku gets the advantage. Haku comes off the ropes and nails Steamboat with a short arm clothesline for a two count. Haku nails Steamboat with a few overhand strikes to the shoulders of Steamboat. Steamboat chops Haku but is met with a kick to the chest and a few clotheslines as Haku avoided a backdrop. Steamboat staggers around and falls to the floor. Haku headbutts Steamboat on the apron and attempts a suplex into the ring driving Steamboat down to the canvas. Haku goes for the cover but only manages a two count. Haku controls Steamboat on the mat with a sleeper hold but isn’t going to win the match. Haku brings Steamboat to the corner and chops him several times. Steamboat fights back with strikes but Haku cuts him off with a strike. Steamboat delivers a flurry of chops to drop Haku for a two count. Steamboat avoids Haku in the corner and heads to the top. Steamboat leaps off and connects with a flying cross body for the win! (*1/2. I was kind of expecting more out of these two. The crowd seemed rather dead for this. The match was a little boring, though there were a few moments where I had hope it would turnaround. That just never happened. Steamboat does perform a great looking cross body.)
Second Contest: The Bushwhackers vs. Paul Roma & Hercules: Luke and Hercules start the match with Luke wanting to shake hands. Butch comes into the ring as Hercules wasn’t interested in it. Hercules turns his back and is met with a double clothesline. Roma comes in and they are both getting their butts bitten. Roma gets knocked to the floor with a clothesline. This is exactly why I dislike the Bushwhacker matches in the WWF. Roma decks Luke with a cheap shot and stomps away on him. Roma avoids Luke in the corner and taunts the fans while Luke rams his head into the corner. Butch enters and holds Roma to allow Luke to deliver an eye rake. They are just making Roma and Hercules look like fools and I’m getting quite annoyed with this. Roma controls Luke following an elbow strike coming off the ropes and chokes Luke on the apron for a few moments while Hercules gets a few stomps in, too. Hercules clotheslines Luke for a near fall. Luke is met with a double clothesline. Roma scoop slams Luke and comes off the ropes to deliver an elbow drop for a two count. Luke fights out of the corner with right hands on Roma but an eye rake stops his offense. Roma nails Luke with a running forearm shot in the corner. Roma goes to the top rope and connects with an axe handle. Roma sends Luke hard into the corner and taunts the fans. Roma misses a charge in the corner hitting the corner chest first. Luke gets to his corner and Butch is tagged in. Butch hammers away on Roma with strikes and a clothesline. Butch clotheslines Hercules in the corner before ramming the opponents into each other head first. Hercules is sent to the floor where he trips Butch. That doesn’t last long as Roma gets decked but Hercules enters and elbow drops Butch for the win. (DUD. Hey, at least the Bushwhackers lost the match. However, this was just dreadful. The comedy isn’t funny. Hercules and Roma weren’t able to do anything that was memorable. The Bushwhackers were basic as all hell. This felt like a 20 minute match to me and it wasn’t even half that length. In closing, I hate the Bushwhackers.)
Lord Alfred Hayes interviews The Mountie at ringside during his entrance. Mountie insults Bossman saying that he is just a hick and Mountie oversees the entire world. He’s going to show who the real boss is tonight.
Third Contest: Big Bossman vs. The Mountie: Bossman boots a charging Mountie and grabs the shock stick. The referee takes it away and Mountie gets up to attack Bossman from behind. Bossman catches Mountie on a leapfrog hitting a spine buster. Bossman slaps Mountie in the face and demands that he gets up. Bossman pulls Mountie up slap him again. Bossman nails Mountie with a palm strike to knock Mountie to the floor. Bossman decks Mountie on the floor with a right hand. Bossman rams Mountie face first onto the apron and has maintained control of the contest. Bossman is playing to the crowd while telling Mountie to get up. Bossman jumps onto Mountie’s back while Mountie was across the middle rope. Bossman chokes Mountie on the canvas with his boot. Bossman drops Mountie with a right hand in the corner. Bossman sends Mountie into the corner but misses a splash and flies over the top crashing to the floor. As Bossman fell to the floor he apparently hit the ring steps face first, too. Mountie goes to the floor and kicks away on Bossman. Mountie wraps Bossman’s right leg in the ropes and stomps away on the injured right knee. Mountie wraps Bossman’s knee around the ring post. Mountie continues to work over the right knee with stomps. Bossman is hobbling around and Mountie teases him while delivering right hands. Mountie gets on the microphone and says he’s going to show us who the real boss is. Bossman fights back with several strikes and hits a side walk slam for the victory. (**. I enjoyed the segment and match between these two. A clean loss for Mountie isn’t the end of the world since he is easily dislikable and can get his heat back quickly.) After the match, Mountie proves this by attacking Bossman with his shock stick. Mountie shocks Bossman a few times with it while the referee isn’t exactly putting forth the best effort to prevent the attack. A few more officials need to come out to help Bossman out.
Prior to the next match, Sgt. Slaughter rips on the fans saying that he rules the world and calls them maggots.
Fourth Contest: WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan vs. Sgt. Slaughter: Slaughter and Adnan attack Hogan as he gets in the ring but Hogan overpowers them sending Adnan to the floor. Hogan decks Slaughter to the floor, as well. Hogan sends Slaughter chest first into the guard railing before choking Slaughter with a camera cord. Hogan rolls Slaughter into the ring and he’s fired up. Slaughter is begging off in the corner but Hogan hammers away on the challenger with several right hands. Hogan backdrops Slaughter followed by a running clothesline. Hogan tosses Slaughter into the corner where Slaughter hit the ring post shoulder first it looked like. Hogan mounts Slaughter hammering away on him with a flurry of right hands. Hogan sends Slaughter to the floor and Slaughter lands on the announcers table. Hogan follows Slaughter to the floor and delivers a throat thrust. Hogan has a steel chair whacking Slaughter over the back with it. Hogan rolls Slaughter into the ring and demands Slaughter get up. Hogan has a bandage on his forehead, by the way. Hogan clotheslines Slaughter followed by a few elbow drops and a boot scrape. Slaughter avoids a backdrop with a boot to the chest. Slaughter gets control hammering away on Hogan against the ropes. Slaughter rubs Hogan’s eyes across the top rope. Slaughter is focusing on the burn mark on Hogan’s forehead from a fireball attack recently. Slaughter rams Hogan face first into his boot in the corner. Slaughter hammers away on Hogan to keep control dropping the champion to the canvas. Slaughter punches Hogan to the floor and Adnan attacks him. Hogan is busted wide open at this point.
Adnan rams Hogan face first into the apron and is laid out on the floor bleeding from his forehead. Slaughter stands on the apron stomping on Hogan and taunts the fans. Slaughter punches Hogan off the apron with a right hand. Slaughter rams Hogan face first into the ring steps. Slaughter has the WWF World Championship and decks Hogan with it! The referee has seen all of this and didn’t call for the bell. Slaughter rams Hogan into the guard railing followed by a few stomps on the floor. Adnan distracts the referee as Slaughter decks Hogan with the ring bell. Hogan is laid out on the floor, again. Slaughter doesn’t want to win by count-out as Hogan gets to the apron as Slaughter stopped the referee. Slaughter punches a bloodied Hogan down to the canvas for a two count. Hogan is trying to get a second wind but isn’t able to yet. Slaughter rips Hogan’s open flesh on the canvas over the middle rope. Slaughter beats on Hogan across the back as Hogan staggered around the ring. Slaughter taunts Hogan by spitting on him and follows up with stomps. Slaughter goes for the camel clutch and gets the hold locked in! Heenan is convinced that Slaughter is going to win the title tonight! Slaughter digs his fingers into Hogan’s forehead a few times. Hogan breaks the hold and knocks Slaughter through the middle rope to the floor. Slaughter gets back into the ring but is met with a right hand. Hogan and Slaughter eye rake each other with Slaughter getting the better of the exchange. Slaughter continues to work over Hogan hitting a backbreaker for a two count.
Slaughter heads to the top rope and delivers a knee drop to the lower back go Hogan! Slaughter goes for the cover but Hogan powers out and begins to Hulk Up. Slaughter delivers several right hands but Hogan isn’t hurt by them. Hogan stomps around the ring and points at Slaughter. Hogan hammers away on Slaughter before delivering a big boot. Slaughter staggers and gets hammered away. Slaughter tosses Hogan away and the referee gets knocked down. Slaughter throat thrusts Hogan to stop him and Adnan tosses a chair into the ring. Slaughter can’t stand up with the chair in his hands. Slaughter whacks the referee with the chair a few times over the back. Slaughter waits for Hogan to get up but misses Hogan in the corner. Hogan avoids another chair shot and this time Slaughter hits the ropes whacking himself in the head with it. Hogan has the chair and hits Adnan with it. Hogan rams the chair into Slaughter’s face, too! The referee has gotten up and grabs the chair from Hogan. The referee believes that Hogan hit him with the chair and calls for the bell to give the match to Slaughter by disqualification. After the match, Adnan gives Slaughter stuff for a fireball. Slaughter tries to toss the fireball into Hogan’s face but he blocked it with the chair. Hogan goes to the floor and whacks Slaughter with the chair a few times over the back. (***. This was an enjoyable brawl and it sets up their rematch in June very well with the usage of various weapons. The crowd was into it and it held my interest throughout.)
We hear comments from some guys involved in a battle royal where the winner would face WWF Intercontinental Champion Mr. Perfect in Long Island. Perfect isn’t at all scared and is confident he could beat eighteen men in one night. Footage of a recent attack by the Undertaker on Ultimate Warrior is also shown. Undertaker viciously attacked Warrior during the Funeral Parlor segment hosted by his manager Paul Bearer. Taker knocked Warrior out with a shot to the head with an urn. Taker ended up putting Warrior in the casket. Bearer locks the Warrior in the casket. Eventually, some officials came out to open the casket. Warrior is passed out in the casket when it is finally opened. They are playing it off as if Warrior had died. Officials give him CPR and Warrior wakes up.
Fifth Contest: IRS vs. Jimmy Snuka: IRS is looking quite slender for his return to MSG after four years when he simply went by Mike Rotunda. IRS complains of a hair pull that didn’t actually take place. IRS tries to get out of a headlock but Snuka keeps control until the referee forces him to let go. Snuka shoulder blocks IRS and counters a hip toss with one of his own. IRS shoulder blocks Snuka but runs into a chop and he rolls to the floor to regroup. IRS goes under the ring and puts something into his boot. IRS sends Snuka over the top to the floor. IRS heads to the floor and works over Snuka with a right hand. IRS continues to hammer away on Snuka before returning to the ring. IRS grabs Snuka on the apron delivering a right hand. IRS brings Snuka into the ring from the apron with a vertical suplex. IRS comes off the ropes to deliver a couple of elbow drops for a two count. IRS puts an abdominal stretch on Snuka and holds the ropes for the cheap advantage. The referee notices it and Snuka hip tosses his way out of the hold but misses an elbow drop. IRS misses a splash in the corner and Snuka rams him head first into the top turnbuckle a few times. Snuka chops IRS before getting on the middle rope and delivering a few chops to the neck. Snuka hits a springboard cross body out of the corner but IRS rolls through and pins Snuka with a handful of tights. (*1/4. There wasn’t much going on here. It’s clear that IRS changed his attire before SummerSlam and becoming a key fixture on TV. I think that was a good decision, too. Anyway, Snuka is just used to get over new talent. This match didn’t really do much for me.)
Sixth Contest: The Warlord vs. Kerry Von Erich: Warlord shoves Von Erich into the corner and poses for the crowd. Von Erich shoves Warlord and drops to a knee to play to the crowd, which annoys Warlord. They go with a test of strength which sees Warlord drop Von Erich to his knees. Von Erich gets up but is met with a knee lift and Von Erich goes back to the canvas. Von Erich gets up again and kicks out of the hold. Von Erich ducks a clothesline and blocks a big boot. Von Erich decks Warlord with a right hand but is stopped by a bear hug. Von Erich gets out of the hold and they end up on the floor where Warlord rams Von Erich face first into the ring steps. Warlord taunts the crowd while Von Erich struggles on the floor. Warlord comes off the apron with a strike and drives Von Erich back first into the ring post. Von Erich attempts a sunset flip from the apron but Warlord blocks it by punching Von Erich. Warlord drives Von Erich into the apron and they return to the ring. Warlord works over Von Erich with basic strikes in the ring. Von Erich tries a slam but Warlord lands on top and nearly wins the match. Warlord picks Von Erich up and delivers a backbreaker. Warlord misses a jumping headbutt attempt. Von Erich hammers away on Warlord and delivers a clothesline but Warlord only staggers. Von Erich drops Warlord with a discus punch but Warlord gets his boot on the bottom rope. Kerry jumps onto Warlord’s back to put a sleeper on him. Warlord staggers and they both fall over the top to the floor. They continue to brawl on the floor and they are both counted out to end the match. Well, Von Erich nearly rolled back into the ring in time, but he failed to do so. (1/2*. Talk about a match being used as filler. They went about nine minutes and it probably could have gone half the amount of time and had the same impact. Fans didn’t respond to this at all.)
Seventh Contest: Kato, Pat Tanaka & Mr. Fuji vs. Shawn Michaels, Marty Jannetty & Virgil: Well, Mr. Fuji being in a wrestling ring in 1991 can’t possibly lead to a good result. Tanaka and Michaels start the match. Tanaka shoves Michaels but he is met with a shove back and he bumps to the mat. Tanaka cheap shots Michaels with a right hand and keeps control with a few strikes. Tanaka comes off the ropes and super kicks Michaels. Tanaka overhand strikes Michaels but is met with a clothesline from Michaels. Michaels pummels Tanaka on the canvas but Kato enters and Jannetty takes care of him. Rockers atomic drop both men and Virgil enters to deliver a clothesline on both men. Virgil tags into the match to try his luck with Kato. Virgil has the crowd heavily behind him but he is incredibly awkward in the ring. Virgil punches Tanaka but Kato drop toe holds Virgil into the middle turnbuckle. Fuji tags in and delivers several strikes to drop Virgil to the canvas. Virgil fights back with several strikes to drop Fuji. Fuji comes back with a strike and Kato quickly tags back in. Kato chops Virgil in the corner several times. Kato avoids Virgil in the corner but backs off when Virgil threatens a punch. Kato goes to the floor but is shoved by Virgil from behind. Virgil chases Kato on the floor and is punched by both Virgil and Jannetty. Michaels decks Tanaka on the other side, too. Jannetty and Tanaka are now in the ring but Tanaka gets sent to the floor. Jannetty sends Kato into the ropes and he crashes to the floor thanks to Tanaka holding down the ropes. Michaels rams them into each other head first and goes back to his corner. Jannetty gets a two count on Kato. Rockers drop Kato with a double back elbow shot. Michaels has the cover but Kato kicks out at two. Michaels comes off the ropes but Tanaka delivers a knee strike and Kato hit a backbreaker. Fuji tags in and delivers a headbutt to the groin of Michaels. Kato sends Michaels hard back first into the corner and Tanaka returns to stomp away on Michaels. Tanaka continues with a leaping headbutt dive to the lower back of Michaels. Tanaka keeps Michaels on the mat with a sleeper hold. Michaels breaks free of the hold but is met with a forearm shot and Tanaka nearly wins the match. Kato quickly tags in and prevents Michaels from tagging out. Tanaka leaps over Kato to splash down onto Michaels across the ropes. Kato controls Michaels with a chin lock. Michaels struggles to his feet with Kato on his shoulders and drops Kato throat first across the top rope. Michaels tries to tag out but Tanaka prevents that from happening. Michaels ducks a clothesline to hit a double clothesline. Michaels crawls over to his corner and tags in Jannetty. Jannetty cleans house with right hands. Jannetty slams Kato and drops Tanaka with an elbow strike. Jannetty nearly pins Tanaka after a power slam. Kato gets sent to the floor as Tanaka is nailed with a double super kick. Virgil clotheslines Tanaka upon being tagged in. Virgil puts the cobra clutch on Tanaka and is able to win the match by forcing Tanaka to pass out. (*1/2. The finish felt a little flat as they didn’t really time it in a good way to get Virgil the shining moment. It indirectly continues his feud with DiBiase, who competes in the main event. It was a decent match for the undercard for the show.)
Howard Finkel lets us know the card for the next show on Monday June 3rd. The complete card is as follows:
The Berzerker battles Tugboat (this got boos)
The Barbarian squares off against Bret Hart (little pop)
Demolition Smash will wrestle Ricky Steamboat
Col. Mustafa wrestles Jim Duggan (good pop for Duggan)
The Mountie takes on Big Bossman in a return match
Paul Roma & Hercules battles Legion of Doom (good pop)
Earthquake competes in singles action against Jake Roberts (good pop)
The main event will be a Desert Storm match, which is no disqualification. WWF World Champion Hulk Hogan battles Sgt. Slaughter. (Biggest pop out of the bunch)
Main Event: Roddy Piper vs. Ted DiBiase: Piper goes right at DiBiase hammering away on him with right hands on the canvas. Piper rams DiBiase head first into the top turnbuckle while choking DiBiase with a belt around his neck. The referee stops Piper but Piper takes off his kilt and chokes DiBiase in the corner again. DiBiase staggers out and is dropped to the canvas. Piper drops DiBiase across the top rope groin first. Piper is selling his left knee struggling in the ring as Sherri tried to pull DiBiase out of the ring. Piper pulls her into the ring. Sherri jumps onto Piper’s back but Piper gets her off and plants a kiss on her! DiBiase is sitting in the corner trying to recover. DiBiase comes up from behind and decks Piper. Piper fights back with several punches but Sherri holds his foot to allow DiBiase to pummel Piper. Piper comes off the ropes and drives DiBiase face first into the canvas to counter a backdrop. DiBiase boots Piper in the corner and tries regain his composure. DiBiase puts Piper in the tree of woe and punches the inured knee of Piper. DiBiase takes the bandage off of Piper and gets a few more shots in. The crowd is in seemingly stunned silence. Sherri tosses a chair into DiBiase who decks Piper with it in rather weak fashion. DiBiase has the cover but Piper kicks out at two. DiBiase drives Piper’s knee down into the canvas a few times to damage Pipers injured left knee some more. DiBiase pulls Piper to the corner and wraps his knee around the ring post. DiBiase continues to work over Piper’s left knee while taunting the fans. Piper kicks DiBiase away to avoid a figure four. DiBiase comes off the middle rope but is punched in the gut. Piper tosses a drink into Ted’s face and hammers away on him. Bobby Heenan gets mad because Sherri took his drink! Sherri gives DiBiase another steel chair and whacks Piper on the leg. Sherri was distracting the referee and DiBiase gets a figure four on Piper right in the middle of the ring. The referee is calling for the bell to award the match to DiBiase. The announcement is that Piper didn’t submit but rather the referee stopped the match to prevent further damage to his knee. Thus, DiBiase wins the match. After the match, Piper rams DiBiase into Sherri and clotheslines both of them. Piper hits DiBiase with a high heel shoe and his bandage. Sherri tries to escape but Piper is able to pull off her skirt as Sherri and DiBiase run backstage. Piper tosses the referee over the top to the floor and plays to the crowd to end the program. (**1/4. I enjoyed the match since it wasn’t heavy on in-ring and they disguised it pretty well with chair shots and DiBiase working over the knee. I thought the fans would have showed some more emotion to the match, but I was entertained by it regardless.)
Final Thoughts:
An average house show this month for the MSG crowd. The crowd didn’t seem to provide much reaction to anything that didn’t involve Hogan or Piper. To be fair, it didn’t feel like the best show they could have put on. There was a bunch of filler and it felt like and it hurt the show. The bad outweighs the good here and I have to give it a thumbs in the middle.
Thanks for reading.