From the famous Sportatorium in Dallas, World Class Championship Wrestling brings you another night of exciting action. Bugsy McGraw squares off with the Texas Heavyweight Champion, Wild Bill Irwin, in singles competition. The beloved Al Madril teams up with “The Modern Day Warrior” Kerry Von Erich to take on H&H Limited’s King Kong Bundy and their newest addition, The Superfly. Ric Flair makes his presence felt as we close in on WCCW Star Wars! All that and much more!
WCCW TV
Date: 08/07/1982
From: Dallas, Texas
MATCHES
1. Roberto Renesto vs. The Great Kabuki
2. Brian Adidas vs. “Captain” Frank Dusek
3. Bugsy McGraw vs. Wild Bill Irwin
4. Kerry Von Erich & Al Madril vs. King Kong Bundy & The Superfly
BREAKDOWN & REVIEW
- Bill Mercer welcomed us in, letting us know his partner Jay Saldi was away on assignment tonight. He was joined by Brian Adidas who helped hype the main event of the evening.
- Roberto Renesto vs. The Great Kabuki: This opening contest was set for one fall with a ten minute time limit. The bell rang and Renesto was on his back almost immediately. Kicks and chops kept Renesto at bay. A few grounded chops was enough to keep Renesto down for a three count. After the match José Lothario came down to again ask for his match against one of H&H Limited’s men. Gary Hart escorted Kabuki out and ignored the request again. Another solid squash for Kabuki who came out firing and didn’t let up. I still believe Kabuki is the promotion’s greatest heel.
- At the commentary booth, José Lothario joined Bill Mercer to talk about his challenge. He covered how Kabuki and the Dragon hurt El Solitario in Mexico. He is out for revenge and wants a taped fist match with one of them. I’m hoping Lothario and Magic Dragon end up in the ring. Not only would it help elevate Magic Dragon, but it wouldn’t tie Kabuki up in a secondary feud.
- Brian Adidas vs. “Captain” Frank Dusek: This one was also scheduled for one fall with a ten minute time limit. I fully expected and issue between David Manning and Frank Dusek, as Manning was the official for this one. These two kept it mat-based with some wrestling holds and quick escapes. A lot of pacing for this one, lock ups ending up in the ropes, stalling without much happening. An armdrag was a high spot for us here, pitting Adidas ahead of Dusek just slightly. The official kind of screwed Dusek on a false three count which allowed Adidas to sneak in the back door with a rollup to win the match. After the match, Dusek got on the house mic and said to Manning, “Mark my words, you’re gonna’ pay.” I still really don’t find much value in Frank Dusek. I also don’t find much value in an eventual match between him and a referee. I can’t wait until this program is finished.
- Next Bugsy McGraw was at ringside looking absolutely ridiculous. Bugsy brough Roscoe The Clown with him to ringside. He said that when he was H&H Limited, he had two clowns as a manager, now he just has Roscoe. When it comes to gorilla warfare, he is the gorilla! The clown line was nice, but this over-the-top Bugsy is still really odd to me… I guess that might be the point, though. Either way, it is working for the fans.
- Bugsy McGraw vs. Wild Bill Irwin: This one was set for one fall to a finish with a ten minute time limit. Arman Hussein was standing in here for Bill Irwin as his manager, no doubt to give Bugsy a hard time. Bugsy made Wild Bill look like a fool in the beginning, staying ahead of him and moving out of the way for moves causing him to stumble, trip, and fall. Bugsy continued to do his Three Stooges gimmick while moving to the floor to drink a fan’s Coke with Roscoe. Back in the ring, Irwin finally got to work on Bugsy with punches and kicks. Bugsy then instructed Roscoe to hand him up a bucket full of shredded paper which he then threw in Irwin’s face. Frustrated with the goofiness, Wild Bill stormed out of the ring and headed for the back, causing a ten count, which awarded the match to Bugsy. Again, super over-the-top, especially with a literal clown at ringside. I really wish they hadn’t put Wild Bill in this position tonight. Not much of a match happened here.
- Back at the commentary table, Bill pitched to a pre-taped interview of Al Madril and Kerry Von Erich. Kerry and Al put over their opponents as a tough challenge. Kerry said Bundy was a one-man-team in himself. Al said he was alongside the greatest partner he’s ever had and they are going to bring the fight to their opponents tonight. Next King Kong Bundy and The Superfly gave some words about themselves. Arman Hussein explained that Bundy had just been sprung from a Mexican prison, due to some scuffle he had south of the border. Bundy brushed this off and helped prop himself up, but moreso, The Superfly. He spoke on him being from Philadelphia and being the toughest to walk those streets. Their opponents were in for a world of hurt tonight. No ground-shaking promos from either team here. I will say, it was class of Bundy to shine some light on Superfly, whether the guy is long-term, or not. Two nice, quick snippets to help us stay tuned in for the main event.
- Kerry Von Erich & Al Madril vs. King Kong Bundy & The Superfly: We came back from commercial during the introductions here, so I missed the time and fall announcements. I would assume one fall with maybe a twenty minute time limit? All of a sudden, the camera cut down to ringside and there was the NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion, Ric Flair! No doubt scouting his next challenger for the title. Kerry started things off in the ring with Superfly. Before long, Bundy was in there taking it to Al Madril. A hot tag brought Kerry in and the crowd exploded. He was all over Bundy with strikes. It wouldn’t last, as Bundy went on the attack with holds and submissions. A scoop slam to Bundy kept him down for a three count, Al Madril and Kerry Von Erich being awarded the match. Afterward, Flair jumped up to the apron and bad-mouthed Kerry as the crowd got to their feet to cheer Kerry on. Kerry begged Flair to step between the ropes, but Flair remained calm before dropping back to the floor. Flair versus Kerry is money all day long. This match was solid for what it was, and the heels looked formattable. Al Madril is always the man and is right at home with the stars.
- At ringside, Bill Mercer caught up with Ric Flair. Flair admitted he was impressed and surprised with Kerry Von Erich’s athleticism and ability to slam a 450 pound man. He didn’t get in the ring to show Kerry just how impressed he was because he is nothing but class. He is the world champion, he is Ric Flair. And it won’t be King Kong Bundy or The Superfly pulling on his legs, twisting his arms, or punching him in the mouth… it will be Ric Flair! This promo closed us out for the week. No surprise here, as we got the best promo of the night from Flair. Had I been watching this live, I would’ve tried finding tickets to the Reunion Arena show for WCCW Star Wars!
FINAL THOUGHTS
It’s odd, but I think tapes got switched for tonight, because they kept mentioning Star Wars being tomorrow, yet this episode was aired on 08/07 and not 08/14… that is next week. Not sure what is going on with that, but I know the supershow was presented on 08/15. Nonetheless, we have been on a little bit of a dry spell the last month for in-ring action. I feel as though they are saving up some of the best work for their big show. The main event and stuff with Flair carried the rest of the show, no doubt. I look forward to next week, and more importantly WCCW Star Wars!
See you all then!