World Wrestling Federation presents Shotgun Saturday Night
Date: 8/2/1997
From: Pittsburgh, PA
Matches:
1.) The Hart Foundation (WWF Intercontinental Champion Owen Hart & WWF European Champion British Bulldog) defeated The New Blackjacks (Bradshaw & Windham)
2.) Hunter Hearst Helmsley defeated Jesse James
3.) Brian Christopher defeated Ace Darling
4.) Brian Pillman defeated Lou Marconi
Angle Developments/Notes:
1.) SummersSlam is tomorrow night, so this is the last stop before the biggest event of the summer.
2.) Windham arm drags Bulldog a couple of times to kickoff the tag match. Windham arm drags Bulldog a third time and keeps arm control with elbow strikes before tagging in Bradshaw. Bradshaw kicks Bulldog followed by a strike and a big boot to knock Bulldog to the corner and tags in Owen. Bradshaw backs Owen into a corner, but backs off cleanly. Owen puts a headlock on Bradshaw and delivers a shoulder block. Bradshaw hip tosses and arm drags Owen before keeping arm control on Owen. Windham returns to the match and drops Owen with a big boot followed by a right hand into the corner. Owen punches back, but is stopped by a right hand. Windham plants Owen with a back suplex. Windham hooks Owen for a suplex and drives Owen to the mat for a near fall. Bradshaw tags back into the match and kicks Owen followed by a short arm clothesline and an elbow drop for a two count. Owen strikes Bradshaw a few times and delivers a spinning heel kick before tagging in Bulldog. Bulldog stomps Bradshaw on the mat several times. Owen returns to the match and stomps Bradshaw before putting a Boston Crab on, but Bradshaw reaches the ropes quickly. Bradshaw fights out of the corner, but Bulldog shoulder rams Bradshaw and Owen chokes Bradshaw with the Canadian flag as the referee is distracted by Windham. Bulldog works over Bradshaw as the show goes to commercial.
Bradshaw gets a rollup on Owen for a two count. Bradshaw continues with right hands and a boot, but Owen kicks Bradshaw on the side of the head. Bulldog returns to the match. Bradshaw sends Bulldog into the corner and delivers a shoulder. Bradshaw nails Bulldog with a short arm clothesline. Owen gets tagged in and sends Bradshaw into the corner, but Bradshaw nails Owen with another clothesline. Windham gets the hot tag and strikes Owen followed by a backdrop. Windham punches Bulldog out of the corner and suplexs Owen for a two count. Bulldog counters an inside cradle that Windham had on Owen, putting Owen on top and Owen steals the match. (*1/2. The finish is rather lame. I’d rather the champs cleanly win over the Blackjacks with a finishing move instead of what they did here. The action was okay, but a bit disappointing and the crowd didn’t seem invested.)
3.) A vignette promoting Brakus is shown.
4.) Helmsley backs James into a corner and slaps James. James responds with a slap to drop Helmsley. Helmsley works over James in the corner. James kicks Helmsley followed by a forearm strike. James sends Helmsley into the ropes to deliver a hip toss for a two count. James keeps arm control on the mat. James keeps wrist control on Helmsley. James block a strike and punches Helmsley into the corner. James sends Helmsley into the corner, but is met with a boot and falls to the floor. Helmsley distracts the referee allowing Chyna to clothesline James. Helmsley rolls James into the ring as the show goes to commercial.
James runs the ropes and ducks a clothesline, but Helmsley delivers a high knee lift. Helmsley chops James in the corner followed by a stomp and right hands in the corner. James counters Helmsley in the corner, but is met with an eye rake. Helmsley atomic drops James to stop his momentum. Helmsley suplexs James for a two count. Helmsley keeps a chin lock on James, but doesn’t get a submission. James strikes Helmsley, but Helmsley punches James into the corner. They trade several strikes with James getting the advantage delivering jabs. James drops Helmsley with an elbow strike after dancing for a bit. James pummels Helmsley with right hands in the corner. James clotheslines Helmsley in the corner. James atomic drops Helmsley and continues with a pump handle attempt, but Chyna causes a distraction and Helmsley hits the Pedigree to pickup the win. (*1/2. There’s nothing about James that is entertaining. The outcome was obvious from the start, but the action was rather bland despite having plenty of time to put together a quality bout.)
5.) Backstage, Mankind cuts a promo while standing behind a steel cage. Mankind says a steel cage is home for a sicko like himself, but not for a pretty boy such as Helmsley. Mankind is going to rearrange Helmsley’s face to the point that no doctor will recognize him.
6.) Jerry Lawler insults the fans during Brian Christopher’s entrance. Lawler also insults Ace Darling allowing Christopher to sneak attack Darling. Lawler does commentary at ringside throughout the contest.
7.) Christopher hit a middle rope reverse DDT and finished Darling off with a top rope leg drop for the win. Darling had a few moments of fire, and looked good in there for his brief offense. Christopher is an excellent heel and Lawler did a good job on the microphone throughout the match.
8.) WWF President Gorilla Monsoon shares a statement saying that Bret Hart is out of control. Monsoon declares that Hart is not going to run rampant in the WWF. Monsoon reveals a commissioner will be named on RAW to regain some order in the WWF.
9.) Pillman won his enhancement match following a neckbreaker.
Final Thoughts:
Brian Christopher’s match was probably the highlight of the program. It’s not an exciting show, but SummerSlam 1997 is shaping up to be a fantastic looking card. So, this is a skippable show, but SummerSlam certainly is not.
Thanks for reading.