Superstar Sleeze

@Jimmy Redman & I are back in action! With another fun-loving, ebullient episode of Pro Wrestling Love covering #20-#16 of our Top 25 Pro Wrestling Love countdown. Stacey goes to town about Beth Phoenix vs Kelly Kelly and we get some bonus love for Nattie vs Alicia Fox. My contribution in what will become a running gag is I cant figure out how to say Pyrrhic Victory. It is always good time on Pro Wrestling Love! Click the link, download, listen and tell us what you think! https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-4uask-104ae49

I am so excited! I just cant hide it! I am about to lose control & I think I like it because I have my sista from another mista on with me for the next five shows, the one, the only @Jimmy Redman! I cannot possibly think of a better subject for me and Stacey to sink our teeth into then WWE 2010-2014! Stacey is a Superfan of this era and her Redman Report on the Top 100 WWE Matches of 2013 is the stuff of actual legend and has turned me on to so much great wrestling. https://www.cultofwhatever.com/2014/03/the-redman-report-top-100-wwe-matches-of-2013/ I always enjoy talking to Stacey and really glad we got to spend so much time together. This is part 1/5 and as anyone can expect between the two of us, we go long! I hope everyone has as much fun listening to this as we did recording it. https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-afxz4-10444e2

Thanks Frankensteiner for listening & enjoying it! I have not watched the match yet. I have a zillion things I want to do and watch, but I will put it on the list. It is Grand Finale time! What is the best WWF Match between 1988-1997? Guess what Pete & I agree! Not only that, we agree on what the second best and the third best matches are! 1-2-3 are set in stone those the top 3 definitive matches in WWF between 1988-1997. I think this is the most discussed era ever, but I think it was important thing to do. It is the one touchstone that almost all fans can discuss and have opinions on. I really had a fun time with @PeteF3 and thank you for coming on with me! Let us know what you think...what's your #1, what did we have too high, too low, what did we whiff on? https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-wgixy-1031b68

I know the longest stretch of road I think I have been down was about 2 miles of side road connecting Kilkenny to the highway. I ended up in the ditch at one point I was so worried about oncoming traffic demolishing me. Those high walls or high shrubs give you no play! Happy Belated Mother's Day! Is there really such a thing as a belated Mothers Day? After all, Mr. T says every day is Mother's Day! We are celebrating with @PeteF3's penultimate episode counting down the back half of our Top Ten of Best WWF matches between 1988-1997.We start getting into the canonical territory. I pulled up two curveballs in the beginning. Pete lays down a canon match that I dont have and we discuss that. A lot of famous matches that most everyone has watched so listen in to us weigh in on them! Click the link and enjoy! https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-u528f-102fd13

NWA World Heavyweight Champion Dory Funk Jr vs Antonio Inoki - JWA 12/2/69 Two Out of Three Falls Junior has his dad and a very blond, dare I say handsome, Harley Race with him. I really enjoyed Inoki vs Jack from 1971 and I am excited to see how these two pair. First Fall: Great Championship Style Wrestling, which I think is my favorite style. Not as good as Jack vs Inoki, but few matches are. Jack vs Inoki had amazing takedowns and scrambles with unparalleled intensity and organic nature. This match does not have next level takedowns, but features really good action. I LOVED the early shouldertackles by Inoki. Watch how Junior fed those. He would charge and meet Inoki very close to the ropes maximizing how good they looked and the impact. He looked overly aggressive and not like a fool taking a bump in the middle of the ring with a thumb up his ass. Inoki worked a lot of great arm drags and arm bars. Nice Inoki reaction to the leapfrog to go back and get that arm drag. I liked how Junior finally combatted the shoulder tackles, he waited a little longer and met Inoki when he was in stride and dropped down into a wicked drop toehold and rolled right up into the calf slicer. Excellent psychology, he took more time for himself, let Inoki come to him and then executed the counter. Fundamentals. Junior works the calf-slicer, toehold really well, but eventually loses control. Upon stand up, he takes Inoki down and is thinking STF, he has the toehold applied and but as he looks to apply the facelock, Inoki grabs wrist control and is able to maneuver into a hammerlock when Junior tries to the alleviate the pressure. Nice chaining there. Some great hammerlock work, the staples, wrenching, trying to snapmare out, but Inoki maintains control, crotch hold, but Inoki maintains control, shit like that I just love. Junior finds most success with one of my favorite moves the drop toehold. He uses that twice to escape the hammerlock. Great moment when Senior is getting in Inoki's face about Junior scoring the Drop Toehold and the ref stomps at Senior's hand. There is a 30 second clip to a stand up after a bundle of leg locks happens, I applaud this editorial decision. :p They work an awesome test of strength sequence. Some great bridges by Inoki to avoid pinfalls and loved the body scissors counters. There is a great sequence where Junior gets the monkey flip out of the knucklelock after Inoki failed but then Inoki turns that into a body scissors. I love how a big deal is made out of Junior clenching his fist as he was struggling to escape the body scissor. He uses a double axehandle to break and turns it into a deep toehold. Inoki makes the ropes, but Junior drives the knee into the back of the thigh in an unclean break. I like that Junior is ratcheting up the heel behavior. A very strong first twenty minutes. We get a 30 second clip here. We come back to the hottest part of the match. Junior begins manipulating the fingers and the crowd goes apeshit. Throwing food and garbage into the ring as Inoki sells it for all its worth. Junior presents Inoki's hand for Harley to punch this really whips the crowd into a frenzy. Junior slams the head into the steel turnbuckle. All the while, Inoki is desperately trying to fight out with the great dramatic elbows to the head. He eventually breaks free and clamps on a headlock. They do my favorite headlock spot as Junior gets over the top rope onto the apron but Inoki yanks him back in. Some more good headlock tenacity spots until Junior nails a wicked back suplex. He stomps the bad hand, slams into hard, steel objects and works a good hammerlock. Inoki is able to stand up and reset the match. He finally goes for the abdominal stretch but they get tied up in the ropes. Junior tries for the Boston Crab, but Inoki uses his leg strength to send him flying. You have got to see the heat on Inoki's Boston Crab. The crowd was going wild. This being a 2/3 falls match I thought for sure this would be a finish. Junior scurried through the 5-hole and almost got a quick pin out of it. Inoki moved to another Sleeze favorite the short arm scissors. They end up in the ropes. Junior tries playing King of the Mountain. This time is just slamming Inoki's head into the steel. Inoki eventually breaks through his defense with a lunging shoulder tackle from the apron. A couple Irish Whips hard into the buckles and a pair of bodyslams. Inoki was rocking. Third Irish Whip, Senior does the ol Funk staple of laying out on the top rope to cushion the blow for his son. Here come the flying rotten tomatoes! 1960s Japanese crowds rule! Junior takes him down into a reverse chinlock. Lots of hair pulling and top wristlock tests of strength before Inoki wins the day with a top wristlock. I am continuing to love this. I think they had some really hot sequences especially the finger manipulation, Boston Crab and his Dad's interference. I still think the Jack match is better, but this is in my top handful of 1960s Japanese matches, 40 minutes in. Really strong stuff. Harley distracts the ref and Junior uses hair to get control of his own hammerlock. They go into the bomb throwing portion on an excellent criss cross. We see Junior eat an Inoki shouldertackle because he met Inoki too close to the ropes. On the next one, he lets Inoki come to him and BANG! Amazing jumping knee to the skull. That popped me. Great nearfall. They strung together some doozies. Junior got is mouth busted open hardway I believe on one of those criss cross noggin knocker spots. Inoki got a wicked hot backslide. Junior had hot nearfalls with the Butterfly Suplex and the Bombs Away Kneedrop. Inoki had a bodyslam and really hot nearfall on an Airplane Spin that worked me up into a lather. They did some great outside the ring brawling. At one point, Inoki ripped a phone off the hook and tried to nail Junior with it, but the ref intervened and Junior got a hold of it and nailed him with it. Sheer madness. Best spot of the entire match...Inoki floats over, down the back seamlessly into an ABDOMINAL STRETCH~! MARK OUT CITY! Crowd went nuts! Junior bucked him over the top rope. Inoki gets one more abdominal stretch on an whip into the ropes but Junior is saved by the bell. Sixty minute broadway with no falls but entertaining throughout. I think there is some editing I would do rearrange some of the spots but thats just picking nits this was a blast. The first twenty minutes is excellent grappling. The middle twenty minutes is really hot babyface/heel work that still maintains the sporting nature. I liked the bombing throwing finish stretch although I did think they ran out of things to do towards the end and they were just waiting for time to expire at points. The Japanese crowd was wild, throwing fruit and garbage when the heels cheated and popping like mad for all the Inoki nearfalls. This is an excellent Broadway. ****1/2

Between a post-vaccination vacation to Miami and a slew of night shifts, I have not gotten a chance to watch much wrestling, but looking to change that and picking up where I left off. NWA International Champion Giant Baba vs Fritz Von Erich - Olympic Auditorium 12/19/69 Two out of Three Falls This is too chopped up to rate, but it also too cool to pass up. Seeing LA footage from its heyday and seeing Baba work America is worth it. There is a one old lady who is a big Baba fan and she is always shouting "Get him back in the ring, Baba!" when Baba wins by DQ at the end, the crowd pops. Nice to see Baba over as a babyface! First Fall: Dont get much, Fritz is worse for wear on the apron. This was a staple of Fritz cowering heel strategy was too be on his back in the apron or in the ropes. He lures Baba to the outside and slams him into hard objects. Then he wins with a series of dropkicks. Nice Cowboy Kick after the fall. Second Fall: Baba beats the shit out of him with chops that Fritz sells well. You can see the difference between America and Japan here. In Japan, Fritz is much more aggressive because the Japanese has a natural inclination to dislike him. Here Fritz is more cowardly to ensure the American crowd does not root for him. I like this psychology. Fritz is near the bottom rope and the ref keeps breaking Baba. Eventually, Fritz takes advantage and single leg picks Baba and applies the Stomach Claw. Baba sells this incredibly well as that is Baba's strength above all else is his selling. They play a little King of the Mountain, but Baba chops his way back in. They do two ugly criss cross spots where I think Baba was wanted the Neckbreaker Drop but does not really get it, but thats the fall. Tied 1-1. Third Fall: We dont get much. Baba hits the Giant Chop for two. Goes for it again and this time Fritz evades and applies the IRON CLAW~! Baba starts bleeding from the headcrusher. Baba was in the ropes; Fritz pulls him back into the center, but will not break so the ref disqualifies Fritz. The crowd pops which is nice. I thought it was kinda lame, but 1969 was a simpler time. Good look at Baba in America and to see the differences between America and Japan.

Matt brutha, there is no such thing as too much Rockers love. :p I will watch it when I am not too busy not nearly dying in Miami. Holy shit, take a post-vaccination vacation to Miami to celebrate no one told me that Miami was the scariest place in the world to drive. I grew up driving in Boston, have driven in Manhattan, Queens, you name it, driven on the other side of the road in tiny teeny roads in Ireland and inner city Dublin never have I feared my life more than driving in Miami. The Everglades were bitchin' as hell...saw so many alligators, so fucking cool. So sorry for being a tardy to the party on this post to let everyone know episode #3 with @PeteF3 on the Best of WWF 1988-97 is here, but the aforementioned trip to Miami and then back to back night shifts drew my attention elsewhere. This kickass episode where are still talking about match off the beaten path before we get more canonical in the Top10. Give it spin and let us know what you think. https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-hifpf-100c9c0

None other than @PeteF3 is back for more on the Pro Wrestling Love! As we continue our continue down of the Best WWF Matches from 1993-1997. We have bust up laughing about the weirdest tangent on Bret Hart. We have a good time talking about Hulk Hogan vs Sgt. Slaughter and Bret Hart vs Bob Backlund. The Jumping Bomb Angels make my list and that leads to interesting tangents about St. Louis Wrestling and Powerbombs in America. This one is chock full of goodness so dont miss out! Click the link, download & enjoy! Let us know any feedback! https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-bx682-100c965

NWA International Champion Giant Baba vs Fritz Von Erich - JWA 12/3/66 Two Out of Three Falls I watched the first fall about a week ago late one night and I thought it was bitchin' I wanted to come back to it when I was more awake and after I had seen more Baba. The first fall is still bitchin' as all get out. First Fall: ***** first fall! Incredible! Fritz is rocking a turtleneck like it is 1966, daddy, oh shit, it is 1966! Fritz is trying to intimidate Baba during the ref going over the rules. When that does not work, he clobbers him! Then just repeatedly punts him really hard in the shoulder. It was fucking wicked. You can see where Kevin got his style from. Fritz was stiff as fuck. The bell had not even rung after all these cheapshots. Baba looked bad. After a watching a ton of Baba, I know he loves to sell and work underneath so this start does not surprise me in the least. Once the bell rings, Fritz slams his head into the turnbuckles repeatedly. He throws him to the floor and beats him up. He slaps on the Iron Claw while he is in the ring and Baba is outside. Fritz has Baba dead to rites but needs to finish him in the ring. Fritz has Baba prone on the mat and is about to slap on the Claw when BABA MOVES! Fritz slams his hand into the canvas. Baba stomps the hand! OH HELL YEAH! Baba unleashes HELL & FURY ON FRITZ! GIANT CHOPS TO THE HEAD! BIG BOOT! GIANT CHOP! I love how Fritz chooses to sell this. He doesnt take flat back bumps which look ridiculously especially after the Giant Chop. He does a great discombobulated falling forward sell. Baba pins him for the first fall. It is a little controversial because Fritz was squirming, which I liked. Fritz shoots him hand up and grabs the Iron Claw! He applies it for a minute, draws blood and it takes forever for the referee to pry him off. This looks like the ultimate Pyrrhic Victory for our hero, he is up a fall but looks the worse for wear due to the nefarious tactics for Fritz Von Erich! Second Fall: They are maintaining an insanely high level. Fritz's punts are insane. They are ferocious. Fritz goes for the Claw in the corner, but BABA BLOCKS! THE DRAMA! THE TENSION! I live for this! This is why pro wrestling is the best. They milk the work in the corner so well. Fritz slowly grinds Baba from a standing position to being slumped in the corner, but still he cant apply the dreaded Claw. Fritz takes a swipe at a photographer or official. Baba throws a wicked chop and Fritz just crumples. I think this is the key to the whole match. Fritz sells every Baba blow like the most painful thing he has ever experienced. He has to fight through all this pain. On top of that, it means the Giant is never out of it, if he can land just one blow that could be the blow that puts Fritz out. Baba throws more chops at Fritz from his back. This is glorious. Fritz regains control on the outside. There is another great shot by Baba on the outside where Fritz doubles over and really takes the match to the next level. Fritz tries to apply the Claw in the ring, but slams his head into the canvas again. Baba starts clawing at the ear; this is wicked! The struggle is so real and violent. These two are scratching and clawing at each to win. Baba finally regains his composure. On the outside, Fritz is in full back pedal mode away from the pissed off Giant Monster. He throws the official in the ring to stall the Giant. I love how Fritz is cowering after all the bullshit he has pulled. Just when it looks like Fritz is going to get his, he unleashes one of those wicked punts and then slams Baba's head into the apron and then the announce table. Fritz uses the Claw to SLING BABA ACROSS THE RING! Iron Claw puts our hero away! Fritz attacks this official again throwing him out of the ring and he loses his shoe. So he whips his shoe down across his back and it makes a great sound. I am excited to see what they have in the 3rd fall because this has ruled so far! Third Fall: They complete the cycle and this is officially a phenomenal match! Fritz comes in for the kill after hitting a home run at the end of the second fall. True to form once Baba gets in that first shot, Fritz sells it like he has been shot. Fritz is left slumped in the corner. Baba gives him the universal signal for "Get up and fight like a man!". Baba is clawing the ear a chopping it. Fritz takes a huge bump over the top rope and crashes to the floor. They come back into the ring for the big finish run. This is just as nasty and scrappy as it had been the whole match. They are on the ground near the ropes trying to claw the other into submission. Fritz gets the CLAW~! on the ground! Baba ends up on the outside. He is sick and tired of this Claw business, he grabs a chair and crushes Fritz's Claw hand with two chair shots. He tries to bring the chair into the ring, but Fritz gets a hold of it and CROWNS HIM for the DQ! Great finish! An arm has to hold Fritz back and in the fracas, that official who had been bullied by Fritz, twisted Fritz's bad ear! Fucking ***** just for that! Incredible heel performance from Fritz! If you could make a Top 100 Greatest Wrestler Ever list based off one match this is the performance. He crushed it on offense, those punts, the build to the Claw and just being a jerk. Then on the flip side, I dont think anyone has sold so well for Baba. He made Baba look like a total monster. The energy was off the charts. Great brawl! Baba was terrific as the come from behind hero and avenging monster. Best Baba Match I have ever seen! I thought the finish was very satisfying as it paid off the Claw angle and the unhinged brawling nature of the match. It was match that went off the rails before the bell even rang and was pretty hanging onto the track throughout. Kickass. *****

United States Champion Johnny Valentine vs "Wild" Bull Curry - Houston 6/20/69 Two Out of Three Falls Johnny Valentine is billed as United States Champion, but I dont know which version. Apparently, Valentine injured Bull's son, Fred, so shit is personal. Bull Curry is an ugly mutha from Connecticut who looks like he could be my great uncle. Bull Curry is already 56 years old at the time of this bout! I was watching some video apparently from 1972 where they interviewed some Houston Wrestling fans. One older lady said "If Bull Curry can love as good as he fights, I would like to take him home". After watching this match, I gotta say if that woman was right and got her wish, she would have a helluva time! First Fall: Bull Curry is basically good at one thing, punching Valentine in the face. If you are going to only be good at one thing in pro wrestling make it punching people in the face. Valentine crowds up against the ropes so Bull pops him right in the jaw and Valentine is so good at selling. Valentine goes for a wristlock, whats Bull's solution to punch him in the face. Valentine is so great at clutching his jaw and selling like he is in there with a wild man. Valentine decided to grind this out with one of the most brutal, painful chinlocks you would ever see. This takes some starch out of Bull. Eventually Bull sees an opening and punches him in the gut. STAND & BANG! Johnny tries to throw hands with Bull, bad idea! Bull whups him! Johnny heads for the hills and behind the referee. This is as great as advertised. Johnny plays King of the Mountain. I think this is smart. Bull got his shine. Johnny tried to grind, Bull shined in that so now they have progressed to something new. Johnny slams him into the table. He drops The Hammer right in the mush! He keeps cutting Bull off at the pass and knocking him off the apron. Great stuff all around thus far. FIST FIGHT BREAKS OUT! Bull grabs the hair and just pounds Valentine into submission. Valentine takes a hard left jab right in the nose/cheek bone. Here comes a right! Valentine rips Bull to the ground and wrestles him down for a three count. Love the sudden finish. Bull is clearly pissed and out for blood. Valentine is here to win and retain. He squeaks out the fall. Second Fall: Johnny Valentine tries to press his advantage by throwing hands with Wild Bull, bad idea Johnny. LEFT JAB SQUARE IN THE MUSH! Bull just fucking tees off for the rest of the fall. I love bumping as much as the next guy. I think we have swung the pendulum too far in everyone bumps for everything, all the time (although my girl, Jade Cargill didnt bump except for once against Red Velvet recently so I have hope that she will do well). We could just use stand & bang stuff. Johnny is registering and selling here. He is selling on his feet. He is letting Bull do his thing which is throw wild haymakers. The facial expressions from Johnny are pitch perfect. Bull rains down the punches and busts Johnny open! YES! YES! YES! The whole Bull beating the shit out of Johnny and the way Johnny was telling the story with his eyes and you know any moment he would bump and finally that big punch lands and TIMMMMMBBBBBAAAAAAHHHHHH! Even Paul Boesch makes a Timber reference. Johnny Valentine cant answer the ten count and he loses the fall by TKO. If youre a fan of Lawler/Dundee, you gotta watch this! Third Fall: HOCKEY FIGHT! Bull has him backed into the corner, got the hair and teeing off. Ref just to break it and Bull pops him for good measure. Luckily this is not the finish. They brawl on the outside! Bull has a chair and slams Valentine. Of course it is a double countout. Bull ends up punching Danny McShane and the ref as they try to break it up. This match is for those who just love great punching. This is definitely a Memphis classic that just doesnt happen to take place in Memphis. What really elevates for me was Johnny Valentine's selling. He really ratcheted up the entertainment factor. Bull Curry was a crushing the brawling game. The finish takes it down from the super high highs but this is still a stand & bang classic. ****1/2

"Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers vs Cyclone Anaya - Chicago Wrestling 1/5/51 Two Out of Three Falls After a Baba/Kiniski was looking for something different. "Nature Boy Buddy "I am Repugnant" Rogers" - Russ Davis making his presence early and often. Ouija boards existed in 1951?!?! He uses the term "Hornswoggle". First Fall: Entertaining bout, great application of holds, lots of struggle, good movement. Anaya worked the top wristlock a lot early. Buddy opted for the headlock using side headlock takedowns. Loved how hard it was for Anaya to apply the headscissors. Anaya was really good at arm dragging from the collar-elbow tieup position. Good split leg from Anaya, Rogers picks him up like a sack of potatoes and gets out of it. Nice move by Rogers at one point to evade an Anaya move by grabbing the ropes and little Peacock strut there, put a smile on my face. Rogers is tempted to bodyslam Anaya over the top rope, but thinks better of it, Russ lets us know that would've cost him. Buddy takes Anaya down with an ugly ass headscissors, but Buddy makes up for it with a stupendous hammerlock. Buddy works a helluva hammerlock as we close in on the 15 minute mark when Anaya makes the ropes. Nature Boy rips Anaya over with two of the most ferocious snap mares you will ever see, but into all the chaos, Anaya grabs an abdominal stretch and makes the heavy favorite submit to win the first fall. Anaya 1-0. Second Fall: Is very strong, really good stuff. You can see Rogers is more offensive here being down a fall. He blocks multiple takedowns from Anaya. Anaya goes back to the well immediately going for the abdominal stretch, but Roger immediately takes him down and works a wristlock. Anaya tries to work an arm drag takedown from a collar-elbow and Rogers just deadweights him and clamps on a tight bodyscissors. Great work in the bodyscissor morphs into a crucifix. Anaya ties him in a stepover toehold looking for a pin, it looks like he might have in a standing figure-4 but Russ accurately predicts that Rogers will trip and regain control and that is what happens as he moves into a calf-slicer. Cyclone starts to pick up the pace with some shoulder blocks and Rogers powders. Roger throws a couple cheapshots up against the ropes. Russ points out that these are the first roughhousing tactics we have seen thus far. Rogers slaps Anaya. Anaya is pissed starts to punch Rogers in a headlock. Anaya looks to be running away with this when Rogers NAILS a dropkick and a beauty. Two vicious snapmares and a brutal piledriver take the fall for the Nature Boy! Tied 1-1! Bravo! Third Fall: Anaya cannot respond to start the third fall so Rogers takes the fall by TKO. Tremendous finish! Really puts over the piledriver! Love it! Really enjoyed the matwork in this. Rugged, forceful and organic. Loved the Rogers block of the arm-drag directly into a bodyscissors. Really stood out to me. Rogers felt like a big time star. Anaya seemed like a solid babyface mechanic. Rogers' snapmares were terrific. The piledriver finish was tremendous. ***3/4

NWA International Champion Giant Baba vs Gene Kiniski - JWA 12/3/70 Two Out of Three Falls Kiniski has since lost the World Championship to Dory Funk Jr and it has been about three years and some change. Kiniski is already over 40! Big Thunder still looks great. First Fall: We lose about 5 minutes at the beginning. Kiniski works a sitting crucifix that I didnt find all that interesting. Lots of similar stuff to what we saw in the 1967. Attacking the windpipe although not as much throttling. Some really good heavy hands. The footage quality of this a lot higher so the sound is crisp. Baba stands and bangs with him and that sends Kiniski scurrying although he doesnt leap over the top rope like last time. Like last time he uses a little assplay to get Baba down at one point. It is a lot of figure-4s around the head. Baba loves to work from underneath and he is a great seller. The crowd is all over Kiniski for using leverage and the ref is all over Baba when Baba breaks a hold applies his own but Big Thunder is already in the ropes. At about the 15 minute mark, business picks up as Baba starts to build momentum. He gets a really nice, forceful, organic headscissors that popped me. He has him tied up in that. Baba's second headscissors is even better and it pops the crowd too! He gets a third headscissors. This match is pretty fucking boring otherwise. I have a lot of patience and high tolerance for matwork but it is not really going anywhere and it doesnt look good. It is a lot of them 69'ing each other for lack of a better term and getting one counts. The ref is pretty frustrating in this match as there is a clear time Kiniski has Baba in a banana split but the ref never counts do they never get any heat on the hold. There was another time this happens but I forget the details. Around the 30 minute mark, shit picks up, Baba slaps the piss out of Kiniski. Kiniski slashes with some nice chops. This is pretty heated. Baba DROPKICK! One count! Baba dropkick 1-2-3! Pretty boring first fall. Lets see if they can salvage this. Baba 1-0. Second Fall: A marked improvement. Kiniski works the armbar to start, Baba morphs that into his own abdominal stretch. I love how Kiniski sold for Baba as Baba stomped a hole in him. He really looked like he wanted no more. Baba goes for the ab stretch again, but too close the ropes. Baba is pouring it on. He goes for the Giant Chop, but Kiniski holds onto the ropes. Baba says no one makes him look like a fool and he ties Kiniski up in the ropes. He comes charging in like he is a Big E, but Big Thunder moves and GIANT BABA BASICALLY SUICIDE DIVES TO THE FLOOR WITH NO ONE TO CATCH HIM! HOLY SHIT WHAT A BUMP! That woke my ass up! I thought he would just eat the countout finish. Big Thunder hits the Bombs Away kneedrop from the apron. Shockingly, Baba beats the count but succumbs to the backbreaker. Alright that was much better. Tied 1-1. Third Fall: Another very good fall. Forget to mention Kiniski has Johnny Valentine with him and a blond wrestler. They congratulate him as he continues to attack Baba in between falls. Baba is in really bad shape. He starts the third fall down and Kiniski is just beating the tar out of him. Another backbreaker for two. Baba is fighting from his back and knees, but Kiniski is in the driver's seat. As expected, the hero, Baba builds some momentum and even a Big Boot. It looks like he is going to vanquish another foreign foe. When out of nowhere, Kiniski gets behind Baba and DRILLS HIM WITH BACK DROP DRIVER! Baba sells this like a million bucks. 1-2-3! WHAT THE FUCK NEW CHAMPION?!?! Ok, I was spoiled on this as I was looking up the International Title history for the Bobo Brazil match and saw Kiniski had won it. Brazil and Kiniski are the only two men that beat Baba for the title so this was pretty crazy. This is like the end of a Nitro as the crowd is throwing all their garbage into the ring. Surprisingly they do not riot. They just pelt Kiniski with garbage. Last two falls are much better but that first fall is a snorefest. ***

NWA World Heavyweight Champion Gene Kiniski vs NWA International Champion Giant Baba - JWA 8/14/67 Two Out of Three Falls Big Thunder won me over during Sam Muchnick's retirement ceremony. Quick-witted, funny man and ex-baseball star & announcer Joe Garagiola roasted Kiniski before having him come on. Kiniski said "Joe, sarcasm is the lowest form of wit" and then totally scorched for a couple minutes. That's when I became a fan of Big Thunder! First Fall: We are JIP 30 minutes maybe even 35 minutes in so I probably wont be able to rate this, but it looks like we have the back half of a 60 minute draw so I will check it out. This might be the only footage we have of Gene Kiniski as the World's Heavyweight Champion. Baba has a full nelson on Kiniski but he falls to his back and works a crucifix. great mat work. When Kiniski breaks free, awesome attacks on the knee and the windpipe. Really liked those stomps heeling it up. Immediately, Kiniski looks like a better athlete than Bruno in terms of coordination. Good strikes and moves well. GIANT CHOP! BIG BOOT! 1-2-3! Baba up I believe 1-0! That could have been the second fall. I'll update this if I am wrong. Second Fall: This was the Kiniski revenge fall. JIP to a Kiniski hammerlock. They stand up. Stand & Bang. Kiniski literally runs away and hops over the top rope. Kiniski goes for a little assplay, that cheeky devil, that brings Baba down to the mat. Kiniski goes full bore heel with a ton of choking, knee on the throat, figure-4 the head. Baba gets in his hope spots, but Kiniski is cutting him off with cheap shots. Kinski chucks him in the crowd. They dont do too much. I liked the finish a lot. BIG THUNDER GOES UP TOP! a pair of Bombs Away Kneedrops! As called by the announcer! Best part was before the second one a fan hopped on the apron and tried to shake the top rope! The heat! Kiniski takes the second fall! Tied 1-1. Third Fall: Here come the bombs! I love how organically Baba applies a reverse waistlock into an Atomic Drop. Then theres a proto-Dangerous Back Drop Driver by Kiniski! Kiniski works in a nice comedy spot getting table topped by Baba. Lots of strikes go flying. Kiniski is choking and cheating. Baba is pressing trying to win the World Championship. Curious finish as Kiniski hits a nice, nasty backbreaker on Baba. He goes for the Bombs Away Kneedrop again and has fight off a fan. Baba catches him coming off the top in a headlock. As time expires it is Kiniski beating down Baba. Weird usually the babyface is winning at the end of regulation and leaves you feeling robbed. WAIT! What's this? They are signaling for FIVE...MORE...MINUTES! Doesnt matter if it is 1967 or 2017 that shit is always over! Five More Minutes: Excellent! BABA DROPKICK! WHAT A SELL BY BIG THUNDER! BABA FELLS THE OAK WITH A GIANT CHOP! 1-2NOOOO! I AM LOSING MY MIND 55 YEARS AFTER THE FACT! KINISKI STARTS CROWDING IN THE APRON! BOOOOOO! BACKBREAKER! FUCK NO! NOT THIS WAY! SOME FAN GET UP THEIR STOP HIM! BOMBS AWAY! FUCK NO! CMON BABA! BIG THUNDER SCALES THE TOP ROPE! BOMBS AWAY! BABA MOVED! BABA MOVED! BABA MOVED! GO BABA GO! GET EM BABA! HE'S GOING FOR THE LEG! KINISKI IS ROLLING INTO A BALL! DONT GIVE UP! BOSTON CRAB! NO SINGLE LEG CRAB! THERE'S A NUCLEAR MELTDOWN GOING ON! WE ARE ALL COLLECTIVELY LOSING OUR SHIT! TAP! TAP! TAP! CMON BABA! THE BELL RINGS! SOME FAN JUMPS IN THE RING! THE REF HAS HIS FIST COCKED & LOADED! I FUCKING LOVE PRO WRESTLING! AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! DAMN I CANT BELIEVE DIDNT WIN THE WORLD TITLE THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN FUCKING BITCHIN AS FUCK! ~**** too much cut out to rate it, but fuck watch this shit!

NWA International Champion Giant Baba vs WWWF Heavyweight Champion Bruno Sammartino - JWA 8/7/68 Been about a year & half since these two hooked it up. They have good chemistry lets see what they got in store for us this year. First Fall: Bruno dominated on the mat for the first five or so minutes. Worked the arm, hammerlocks, wristlocks, you know the deal. Baba's has some serious fillings going on. As a man with many fillings due to the witch doctor as a teenager, I notice these things. Baba is such a great seller. Baba starts to target the leg. I have not seen the Kiniski or Fritz matches, but this is the first time I have seen serious long-term body part psychology in Japan. Bruno sold really well throughout the fall, hobbling and limping. Baba went back to it repeatedly, wrenching the knee across the apron. Big Boot! I thought for sure that was the finish, got me good. Bruno comes back attacks the arm. I love that Bruno is always moving forward. They trained their babyfaces well in New York back in the day. Baba attacks the leg again. It looked like Baba had all the momentum on his side when all of sudden Bruno literally whipped Baba from pillar to post. Then hung him up in a modified Argentine Backbreaker. I say modified because Baba is literally a Giant, he did not get the waistlock on properly instead it more like he had Baba hooked for a Backslide but didnt go for the backslide if that makes any sense. Fun little fall. Like Bruno's tenacity and Baba's selling. Bruno 1-0. Second Fall: Explosive Second Fall! Bruno immediately lunges for the Bearhug, but Baba retaliates with a GIANT CHOP~! Honestly, this is my favorite aspect of Baba vs Bruno, Giant Chop vs Bearhug! Baba is fighting from his back and throwing chops and kicks wildly to stave off the charging headlong Bruno who is going for the kill with the Bearhug. Giant Chop is a great false finish. Mega Dropkick! 1-2-3! It is all knotted up. This is shaping up to be my favorite of the trilogy. Lets see if they can take it home in grand fashion! Tied 1-1. Third Fall: YES THEY DID! Awesome fall to complete an awesome match! Baba goes back to the leg which I liked a lot. I think that explains Bruno's dogged determination for the Bearhug in the second fall. He knew he was hurt and wanted to go in for the kill and make it a clean sweep. Great offensive work from Baba. While Bruno's defense was great here with the bolo punches and the knees. What really put this over the top for me was the excellent King of the Mountain Bruno did here. Baba was surrounded by the young boys trying to get back in and Bruno keeps knocking back with those knees. Finally Baba CHOPS his way back in! We get the bitchin' finish! Baba dropkicks Bruno out of the ring! Remember the dropkick won the second fall so it is explosive move. They brawl into the crowd! Baba crowns him with a chair! YES! YES! YES! Countout victory for the national hero! I would say I'd like the Dick The Bruiser match just a frog's hair more just a little more violence but these two are neck & neck for 1968 match of the year. ****1/4

NWA International Heavyweight Champion Giant Baba vs WWWF World Heavyweight Champion Bruno Sammartino - JWA 3/7/68 2 out of 3 Falls This is less than a week after their first match which was worked in a Clash of the Titans style. Bruno won the first fall with an excellent bearhug and Baba won the second fall in a rousing comeback using the big chop to the head. The third fall was a big melee as Bruno was dogged in try to use the bearhug and Baba was using the Big Chop to break free. First Fall: This is worked very much in the NWA Championship style but with two people who dont have much flair on the mat. I would say for the most part Baba has the upper hand working an assortment of armbars, wristlocks and hammerlocks. When Bruno does try things, he ends up getting bodyslammed, monkey flipped or bieled for his troubles. There is an amusing moment when they both try arm drags and they both fall down. Bruno finally starts to get something going with a Full Nelson and gets a cover. From there, he is able to take more control again with an assortment of armbars, wristlock and hammerlocks. Shortly before the 20 minute mark, Baba revs up and just kicks Bruno ass, whipping him into the ropes and throwing him around at will. Giant Chop and a kneedrop and Baba picks up a very pedestrian, run of the mill first fall. Baba 1-0. Second Fall: Much better than first fall. It revolves around Bruno working the arm of Baba tenaciously. This is much better because Baba has such skinny, little arms that it looks like Bruno could snap them at any moment. Plus Baba is much better working underneath and selling. His face told the story of anguish. He was really good. Lastly, they would work hope spots in the arm work that Baba would break free, come up short and FINALLY he would get the headlock. The first time the crowd and I popped huge. They worked the exact same sequence again to diminishing returns. Again they kick the wheels into motion. In some rope running, Bruno applies the dreaded Bearhug! GIANT CHOP TO HEAD! Baba bodyslams Bruno. He goes again, but Bruno leaps up and topples Baba with a crossbody for three. Much more entertaining fall. Tied 1-1. Third Fall: They sure made up for those first two languid falls, they WENT BALLS TO THE WALL HERE! It was twenty minutes of non-stop action. 2020s workrate has nothing on 60s workrate they fucking let it fly. If you JIP'd to the third fall, you'd be duped into this was a great match. The third fall was build around made their last third fall great the Bearhug vs The Giant Chop. What took to the next level was the tenacity of both men! Bruno was just lunging at every chance to apply the Bearhug. He would do it traditionally, he would do it from behind, he would do it from his knees, he would do it on the mat, he did it everywhere! If Baba let his guard down, Bruno was wrapping his arms around him. Nobody sells the Bearhug as well as Baba! When he was not using the Bearhug, he was throwing these awesome uppercut closed fists and WICKED knees! Baba was using the Giant Chop so well and then also mixing in kneelifts sometimes it looked precariously low and well-timed rope breaks. No will confuse these two for the deepest arsenals, they definitely repeated spots, they did double knockdown on the shouldertackle three times. They made it up for intensity. Baba was fighting from his back and knees, throwing chop and kicks to keep Bruno at bay. He would catch a Giant Chop or Big Boot but couldnt get the three count. Really enjoyable, not much in the way of psychology or narrative, but they made up for it in intensity and you totally bought in how bad each man wanted to win. I cant go higher than ***3/4 when the first two falls (35 minutes) were such a snorefest.

Not surprised you all on SC are pretty thorough. Glad people are aware. I will dig in after I finish 60s Japan.

Not pictured in the above picture, that Verne tag is a double feature, Thesz vs Bronko Nagurski is on the back end of that video.

Were people aware Chicago Film Archives after being dormant for years uploaded more footage in this past year...2 ladies' matches, a Thesz Match, a Hans Schmidt, and Verne Gagne match?

NWA International Champion Bobo Brazil vs Giant Baba - JWA 6/27/68 Somebody needs to do a documentary on Bobo Brazil! World Heavyweight Champion in Los Angeles when that mattered, Top Babyface Draw/Champion in Detroit at the peak of Detroit and Champion in Japan even if it was only for two days is a big deal. I would love to know more about him. First Fall: Very elementary. JIP to a bearhug. Bobo works a hold, Baba revs the crowd up with a comeback, Bobo goes back to a hold. Bobo's holds are bearhug, a leg lace and a sleeper/choke. Baba's best offensive work is going after Bobo's leg after the leg lace and just stomping it to smithereens. I loved Baba's selling. That really made the holds look a lot better especially on the choke. Three Coco Butts! That's all she wrote. Baba 1-0 This is not an indictment on them but something I have noticed in a lot of this 60s footage, are we sure long-term selling had been innovated yet? Like is it even a thing? If you follow pro wrestling to its logical conclusion which is to build a narrative then long term selling makes sense. If you think of pro wrestling as a simulation of combat then it does not, which is why in shoot-style there's very little long-term selling. Are we sure they were even thinking in the mindset of long-term selling & narrative-building? This applies to everything I have watched so far in the 60s. Second Fall: Baba comes out roaring and goes after that leg again. That's pretty funny after what I just wrote, but Brazil again sells it in the moment, but not ever again, which is a point favor of my assertion in fall one. Brazil works a hammerlock. Baba comes back with a ton of chops. Dropkick 1-2-NO! Is it 1968 or 1998? You can see Baba's propensity of nearfalls and repeating finishers in high stakes matches all the way back to 1968! Very cool. Two more dropkicks! The trio of dropkicks just like the trio of Coco Butts fells the giant. That's another thing I knew Bobo was big, but he is a giant! He is just as big as Baba. That's impressive! Tied 1-1. Third Fall: What a finish! Brazil hits a pair of bodyslams to open the fall, but cannot negotiate the pinfall. I love how the crowd pops for Baba reversal of a headlock into a hammerlock, simpler times! GIANT CHOP! Brazil catches air on the flat back! 1-2-NO! Big Boot! Brazil comes back with a pair shouldertackles. On third, Baba dropdown, tabletops him and Brazil goes careening into the ropes and GETS HIS HEAD CAUGHT IN THE ROPES! WOW! In 1968 couldnt believe it! Kinda silly finish as the ref counts Brazil out and awards the match & championship to Baba! Crowd is thrilled and throws their seat cushion into the ring as the physical manifestation of their joy & exuberance. I noticed this in a prior Baba match but forgot to mention it. I think this is a much more fun and not to mention safer way to express your joy than throwing chairs into the ring like in ECW. I liked the finish a lot. Its elementary, but everything made sense and the finish to each fall was awesome. ***1/2

NWA International Tag Team Champions Da Crusher & Dick The Bruiser vs Giant Baba & Antonio Inoki - JWA 8/13/69 Two Out Of Three Falls My boys are the fucking champs! They had won it two days prior to this. First Fall: We are JIP but it is like 30-60 seconds into the match based on the match times we have. The majority of the match is face in peril. The Bruiser is working over Inoki. It is really hard to tell Bruiser and Crusher apart especially from the back. Bruiser doesnt have as good of a body even though Crusher is three years older. Crusher would have been 43 at time, looks like a million bucks. Crusher was in his late 50s in the 80s, what the fuck! That's crazy, he is awesome in that tag w/Greg against the Sheiks in the Cage. Baba gets in and stands & bangs with Crusher. Crusher with a surprising single leg pickup into a stepover toehold. Bruiser comes in and works the same hold. Bruiser is slightly dirtier. He always takes the time to throw in that extra boot scrape or eye rake which I like. Baba breaks free. Inoki comes in, right back to face in peril. Bruiser looks like he is going to slam Inoki, but carries him over to Crusher who nails him with the knuckledusters from the Baba matches. He plays to the fans well, making very sure everyone sees him put in back in his tights. Plays off the ref well. It is wicked confusing what happens in the finish to the first fall. One of the times, I wish I understood Japanese. A melee breaks out on the floor and it looks like a double countout to me, but the ref awards the fall to Inoki & Baba. I agree with Crusher & Bruiser, that looked like home cooking to me. B-I Cannon 1-0 Second Fall: Another short fall. Begins with Crusher & Bruiser beating the tar out of Inoki. The hot tag to Baba does not really feel earned, just felt like Crusher stopped trying. Baba is in and raring to go. Crusher wallops him with the knuckledusters but Baba no sells and pries the knuckles out of his hand! Baba plays to the crowd and COLD COCKS CRUSHER! ALL THE STARS! That just paid off all the Baba/Crusher matches so well! I am so glad Baba finally got a hold of the knuckles and used them against Crusher! BABA DROPKICK! Which seems like his finish. Bruiser breaks that fall up and the next fall involving the Big Boot. Tag into the bloody Inoki from all the knuckles shot, Abdominal Stretch, but Bruiser breaks it up. B-I Cannon gets smart to this. Baba detains Bruiser and Inoki makes Crusher submit to the Abdominal stretch to win back the Tag Team Titles! Not quite dream match levels I had in my head, but fun and Baba getting the knuckledusters from Crusher after watching the last two matches made it worth it. ***1/2

NWA International Champion Giant Baba vs Da Crusher - JWA 1/3/68 Single Fall, No Holds Barred? The rematch from the excellent, dirty brawl from December. I was surprised this match was single fall and I am almost positive it is some sort of No Holds Barred, Death Match. I know the refs in Japan are extremely lenient but the one surefire trigger for DQ is when a wrestler attacks the ref and we see that here and Crusher is still not disqualified so I am like 99% positive it is no disqualification. I thought this match was even better than their previous effort and on par with the Dick The Bruiser match which happens about a month after this. This match is just as dirty and bloody as the previous match but I thought they built to a bigger crescendo in this one. I really liked the opening where Crusher is back into the ropes, does not give a clean break, lands a shot on Baba and Baba FIRES RIGHT BACK! Crusher complains to the ref he didnt get a clean break. Excellent heeling. Crusher goes for the eyes on the lock-up and Baba attacks the eyes on the next one! Crusher complains again! Awesome! Crusher goozles Baba and then steps on the throat so Baba retaliates with Chops to the ear. He literally yanks Crusher by the ear and then chops him in the ear repeatedly. Crusher sells this well. The action spills to outside, but we get a clip to a bearhug then Baba uses a knee to break. They spend most of the rest of the match brawling on the outside which is fine by me. Crusher tries to trap Baba's head in the apron skirt. Baba breaks free, does the same thing to Crusher and just punches him in the head. This match is the best payback match ever. Crusher gets the upper hand on the outside only for Baba to throw a seat cushion at him! Bitchin'! Crusher is pissed. He grabs some sort of rope/cord and chokes Baba with it! The ref is right there which is why I think this is No DQ. Baba then does the bulldog headlock into the ring post to bust Crusher open! Crusher goes into the tights and bloodies Baba with knuckledusters. Baba is bleeding profusely and so good at selling He keeps them on and just wallops Baba. The ref refuses to count and Crusher goes all '97 Macho Man on him, cold cocking him and ripping his shirt. I am a mark for ref abuse so I love this. Crusher KOs Baba but there's no ref! Baba tabletops Crusher who takes a huge bump to the floor. Bodyslam on the floor by bloody Baba, Atomic Stomp from the apron! BIG DROPKICK! Ref is back in! 1-2-3! Baba wins! Awesome babyface vs heel brawl, Baba fought fire with fire, never a dull moment, they ripped into each other, Crusher got meaner and more vicious as the match went on and Baba's selling and comeback were awesome! ****1/4

It is time for the FIFTH Season of Pro Wrestling Love and as always I think my guests are the biggest hook to listen as this time I have none other than @PeteF3 of right here on the PWO! Pete kicks ass in the Yearbook threads and throughout this board and I was so happy to talk to him for hours and hours about the Best Matches from the WWF between 1988-1997. The first episode looks at our #25-#21, but there is so much more! We are proof positive that there is hope that we can all get along as Pete is a Buckeye (Booooooo!) and I am a Wolverine (Lets Go Blue!) and we never came to blows! https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-tzv3j-100c956

NWA International Champion Giant Baba vs Da Crusher - JWA 12/6/67 Two Out Of Three Falls My new favorite genre is Giant Baba vs. Midwestern blue collar, barroom brawlers. This was a total no holds barred, knock down, drag out fight. There are two holds in the whole match and maybe two moves, it is just asskicking, rip roaring brawling. I didnt think it was quite as heated and intense as Dick The Bruiser's match with Baba, but this was still pretty damn good. I see there is a Baba & Inoki vs Crusher/Bruiser match that Im hyped for and that this is building to a rematch. First Fall: On the first lockup, Crusher goes for the eyes and that sets the tone for the whole match. There are no takedowns. Crusher did a couple dirty headlocks where he wrenched, went for the eyes and throat as the only holds. This was dirty and filthy as it gets. Baba didnt take shit lying down. After a couple dirty lockups & dirty headlocks, Baba just started jabbing and thumbing the eyes right back. For people that like babyface fighting fire with fire this match is for you. Baba gets just as low-down and dirty as Crusher. They spill to the outside they brawl, a chair or a bench gets slammed. I loved the finish. Crusher PUNTS Baba in the balls in plain view of the ref, bodyslams him and Brusier-esque atomic knee/stomp for the first fall. So there was two more moves in that fall. Great stuff! Crusher 1-0. Second Fall: In the break, Crusher is hitting the double bicep flex, Crusher looks like million bucks and is stomping Baba in the break. Baba comes ROARING back! I love how heels when they realize they have done gone fucked up as Baba is just SMACKING them around. It spills to the outside. Baba really loves the Bulldog headlock ram into the post, I thought that was going to be the finish, but he aint done he comes back and chops the cut! Baba hits a big boot only gets two and it is a big time dropkick that gets three. This was awesome comeback fall. Baba is such a great come from behind wrestler. Tied 1-1 Third Fall: Baba continues the asskicking until he crashes and burns on the dropkick. Crusher, who is bleeding like a stuck pig now, reaches down into his tight pulls out a pair of knuckledusters and blows Baba away. DOUBLE JUICE! Both men end up STANDING & BANGING! Crusher punching up into the cut and Baba chopping down. They do a good countout tease where Crusher slams Baba's head into the announce table. Titles can change hands on countout in Japan so that had some heat to it. Baba's bowing up, bring it on gesture back in the ring made the crowd and me come alive! Crusher went back to the knux to get the advantage Baba sold great. Ref refuses to count. Crusher beats Baba to a bloody pulp. When the ref tries to intervene, Crusher rips his shirt and throws him out of the ring to trigger the DQ. Awesome third fall to set up the rematch. Double juice, stand up brawl with ballshots, chops to the head and brass knuckles what more do you want? ****

NWA International Champion Giant Baba vs Dick The Bruiser - JWA 2/28/68 Two Out Of Three Falls HOLY SHIT! This match fucking rocked! After watching basically 12 discs of Dick The Bruiser from St. Louis Wrestling at the Chase from 1978-1981 I can tell you there is a lot that is endearing about Dick The Bruiser but absolutely none of it is due to his wrestling. I asked Twitter if he was the first rulebreaker to be presented as a babyface, but Twitter came back and said it was most likely "Wild" Bill Longson. He is just this great blue collar everyman who takes no shit. I love his hoarse, gravel-gargled voice, it sounds like he exhales a pound of sawdust when he speaks. I desperately wanted to find that awesome Dick The Bruiser match but it just wasnt possible from the time period I was watching. I got really excited at the prospect of Bruiser vs Baba in 1968 and it delivered in spades. Baba rules and this has become so clearly evident. His selling in the 1960s is otherworldly on par with Steamboat and Morton. He totally snaps in this match and delivers an asskicking. Also this is the first match I have watched recently that I felt followed a more typical psychological layout. A lot of the JWA matches I was watching felt too workrate-y, noisy, just a lot of shit that was not really connected. This felt more what I was accustomed to while also being a chaotic brawl. First Fall: We are JIP about 4 minutes in because we hear the 5 minute time call about a minute later. Oh at the start of the video they show some sort of press conference where The Bruiser in a suit with a huge ass stoggie rips a poster of Baba. I love it! They are working beautiful dueling psychology. Baba is working an absolute clinic on the arm. Great arm wrenches and attacks. Baba's knee is bandaged. Bruiser goes to that whenever he gets into trouble. Bruiser has pitbull tenacity which I love. He hits the Atomic Stomp on the knee and then executes a Single Leg Crab. The ref is asking him to break which confuses me, but it is because Baba has submitted. Baba LOVES working underneath and he is so adept at it. DB Up 1-0! Second Fall: Bruiser is fucking with the top turnbuckle. It turns out he has the tag rope, but it looks like a steel cord. He plays hide the foreign object before choking Baba in the corner and then punching Baba with it. I am officially residing in MARKOUT CITY! BRUISER BITES THE BAD KNEE! HE GOES FULL MIKE TYSON! ALL THE STARS IN THE SKY ARE NOT ENOUGH FOR THIS MATCH! Baba selling the bad knee is so good needs to be seen to be believed. Baba just starts SMACKING BRUSIER AROUND! Giant smacks to the head. Fuck you KNIFE-EDGE CHOPS RIGHT TO THE FACE! I love how Brusier will not let go of the knee and drags him out. Brusier still has the foreign object and Baba just fucking has pry him off by hitting him really hard in the face! Baba bulldogs Brusier into the ring post. Bruiser blades on camera and loses by countout. Tied 1-1. This match rules. Third Fall: Brusier is pissed and grabs a chair! Baba tussles with him and is pissed at all this bullshit that Bruiser has been trying to pull. BABA SNAPS~! He chokes the shit out of Brusier with an electrical cord. RAUCOUS MAYHEM! The ref finally rings the bell for the third fall when they are both in the ring. BABA SEES RED AND JUST CHOKES THE SHIT OUT OF HIM WITH HIS BARE FUCKING HANDS WITH BLOOD STREAMING DOWN BRUISER'S FACE! BRUISER KICKS THE BAD KNEE! Bruiser bites the bad knee again! Baba will not be denied; chops, chops, chops! Brusier tries to go for the Single Leg Crab again, but ends up tumbling to the floor. They brawl at ringside and Baba throws him in the chairs. BABA SLAMS HIM HEAD FIRST INTO THE POST! GIANT CHOP~! 1-2-3! Greatly exceeded my expectations! We are missing the first four minutes of a 20 minute match...I dont think I can go higher than ****1/4 in good conscience, but this rocked so hard. The great Dick The Brusier match has been found! Baba combined an excellent selling performance with a badass, asskicking comeback!

NWA International Heavyweight Champion Giant Baba vs WWWF World Heavyweight Champion Bruno Sammartino - JWA 3/2/67 Two Out of Three Falls Cagematch says this was only for Baba's International Heavyweight Championship, but Bruno comes out strapped up so it is unclear to me. I am pretty excited to see Bruno in his prime. Two of the biggest stars in the history of pro wrestling! Clash of The Titans! Huge fight feel! Feels like a real worlds collide match! First Fall: Bruno can wrestle! He is aggressive to start. In the pre-match interview, a lot is made about Baba's size. It could be a case that a good offense is a good defense and Bruno would rather dictate the pace. You see Baba bodyslam or shove off in these holds. No one is gonna confuse Bruno with Dory or Jack but he is adequate. Baba likes to fight from underneath which is an interesting decision, but he makes it work. He is a great sympathetic babyface even with his size. I didnt think Bruno was too heelish in the first fall. They trade full nelsons at one point. Bruno uses his patented Bearhug which looked great especially how Baba sold it for the finish to the first fall. Bruno up 1-0. I was surprised Bruno won clean in the first fall. Second Fall: As customary, this is the shorter fall. We get some crowding in the corner and even some dirty boxing from Bruno. Baba is left clutching his back from the Bearhug. Bruno locks it in close to a corner and the ref forces the break. Here comes Baba! Big HEAVY Hands from The Giant! Love his chops. They are like half-Garvin, half-Liger, but from a Behemoth! There is a great overhead chop when Bruno is on his knees that the crowd pops huge for. I thought that would be the finish, but no Baba sends him for the ride and it is JUMPING CHOP TO THE HEAD FOR THE WIN! Tied 1-1! Third Fall: Is built around each man's respective finish and I loved that psychology. Bruno would keep locking in the Bearhug and Baba would keep crowning Bruno with a wicked big chop. It was so simple and so damn effective. It is only 4 minutes but is so BIG and Titantic befitting these two international superstars. Baba started off pressing his advantage. Crowding Bruno in the corner felling the powerhouse with chops and then repeatedly stomping him when he was down in the corner. Massive boot from Baba pops me huge! Bruno comes and drives his knee into Baba's head repeatedly. He steps on Baba's throat repeatedly really heeling it up now. Goes for the cover and gets two. Bruno drives the knee into Baba's back, kicks to the back, double axehandles to the injured back. Baba is such a great seller. BEARHUG! Great sell! BIG CHOP TO THE HEAD! Bearhug won the first fall for Bruno and the Chop to head won the second fall for Baba! Bodyslam by Bruno as he keeps pressing but only gets two. Great fight over the BEARHUG! Two times in a row Bruno tries for the Bearhug and each time Baba chops the head. Then Baba rolls to the apron. Bruno does the Bearhug through the ropes! I love the tenacity! Chop to the Head! Baba is selling like a million bucks. Baba collapses to the floor. It is a double countout finish to set up the big rematch in less than a week. Bruno gives a promo saying that Baba is not a real champion because he does not finish the match in the ring, he is weak and is coward, basically. That third fall took what I thought was a very good match and made it a great match! Baba's selling was next level and really drove the match for me. Bruno not to be outdone his tenacity was awesome! Looking forward to their one hour broadway! ****1/4