Lee Casebolt

Love the idea of the order of eliminations deciding the matches. Also very into those two Windham matches.

The Strongbows are very available

(5/26/84) Home Box Office, in association with Titan Sports, presents, live from the Civic Center in Baltimore, Maryland... Tonight's slate of professional wrestling action is sanctioned by the American Wrestling Association and the Maryland State Athletic Commission. Promos from... Freddie Blassie w/ the Killer Bs - "Fleming! Horowitz! You two no-name pencil necked geeks think you're gonna come to the big city and make a name off of my men? That's the kind of mistake that gets people hurt bad. Don't say you weren't warned!" Magnum TA w/ SD Jones & Pat Patterson - "Korchenko, you've got a brand new set of partners with you, but it's not gonna change the ending for you one bit. Grizzly Boone and Billy Graham can't protect you. Me and my good friends SD Jones and Pat Patterson are gonna put a whuppin' on all three of you jokers tonight!" Bob Backlund w/ Yoshiaki Yatsu & Arnold Skaaland - "Tonight I'd like to introduce the world to my colleague, Mr. Yoshiaki Yatsu, who has wisely chosen to place himself under my tutelage. And after he devastates some overmatched unfortunate, I will show him how one goes about becoming a champion here in Worldwide!" Jimmy Snuka - "You know, bruddah, the Superfly has learned that Bob Backlund cannot be trusted. That Bob Backlund will stab a man in the back and kick him while he's down. So you want to fight dirty, Backlund, well the Superfly can fight as dirty as any man!" Lou Albano w/ the Wild Samoans & Kamala - "Rougeaus, you pack of dummies! You shoulda kept quiet, stayed in the back, and you'da only taken one beating last week! But you couldn't do that, so ya took two! And tonight you take one more!" Rougeaus & Dino Bravo - "Last week, we had a chance at the world titles, but we've been in this sport our whole lives, and we know there are things more important than belts. So we fought for honor. And tonight we fight for revenge. And then, Samoans, we'll start hunting for your titles!" Yoshiaki Yatsu w/ Arnold Skaaland def. Jose Estrada at 4:22 with the Prison lock. Mark Fleming & Barry Horowitz def. the Killer Bs w/ Freddie Blassie when Fleming made Beefcake submit to the STF at 8:53. Jose “Invader” Gonzales def. Richard Charland with a sunset flip at 14:32. Magnum TA, SD Jones, & Pat Patterson def. Korstia Korchenko, Superstar Billy Graham, & Grizzly Boone w/ Freddie Blassie at 19:20 when Magnum TA pinned Boone with the belly to belly suplex. George Steele def. Jose Luis Rivera at 2:34 with a flying hammerlock. Jimmy Snuka © def. Bob Backlund w/ Arnold Skaaland by DQ at 8:15 to retain the AWA International Heavyweight Title. Backlund refused to release the crossface chickenwing when both men were in the ropes, and the referee was forced to call for the bell. Extra officials came in to separate the two, and had to physically restrain them to keep them from continuing to fight. Rocky Johnson © def. Ray Stevens w/ Freddie Blassie by submission with a Boston Crab at 10:35 to retain the AWA/HBO Television Title. The Wild Samoans & Kamala w/ Lou Albano and the Rougeau Brothers & Dino Bravo fought to a DCO at 10:25. After the bell, Sika hit a piledriver on Bravo after Afa had removed the floor mats. After the men were finally separated, Bravo had to be carried out on a stretcher.

But Tojo's not gonna take this lying down. What does his revenge look like?

Yes but you're a lunatic.

Bulldogs vs Road Warriors is gonna be hot, but I suspect it's the Harts/High Flyers match that'll pack the house. Calgary's so much fun.

Well now I'm rooting for Bockwinkel. Bock/Roop sounds fun as hell.

This is the second time in as many days I've yelled "holy shit!" in an empty room at a mystery partner reveal. Holy shit! That whole segment was gold.

I yelled "holy shit" in an empty room when I read "the Vachon Brothers". Picked a perfect pair for Piper.

I'm gonna start making Best of Hildred Sacksville comp tapes. Who wants a set? I like that elimination tag. It's a great gimmick match that doesn't get used enough.

Also nobody wants to book six different cards every week when you can just do one and save yourself the headache.

AWA Worldwide touring schedule for 5/20 through 5/25, 1984 - A Tour (5/20 Hartford CT, 5/21 New York City, 5/25 Pittsburgh PA) Jimmy Snuka vs. George Steele Rougeau Brothers vs. Killer Khan & Kamala Rocky Johnson vs. Ray Stevens Superstar Billy Graham vs. Dave Morgan Killer Bs vs. the Strongbows Mark Fleming & Barry Horowitz vs. Grizzly Boone & Mike Sharp Jose Gonzales vs. Richard Charland B Tour (5/20 Salisbury MD, 5/22 Butler PA, 5/23 New York City) The Wild Samoans vs. Dino Bravo & Pat Patterson Magnum TA vs. Korstia Korchenko Bob Backlund vs. Bernie Wright Yoshiaki Yatsu vs. Tim Horner Pedro Morales & Johnny Rivera vs. Pierre Lafevbre & Sailor White Billy Two Eagles vs. John Quinn SD Jones & Rene Goulet vs Shunji Takano & Yasuyuki Fujii

I didn't really notice before, but you gotta pack a lunch for a Superstars show. That May 24 card runs almost 3 1/2 hours just of ring time.

Yeah, the Islanders push surprised me a little bit but I'm not complaining. I can't get over the top of your card. Von Erichs, Freebirds, and JYD should be illegal, and then add Barry, Murdoch, and Dr D. Every house should be packed every night.

Hansen and Brody are together and all is right with the world. I mean, it's horrible news if you're Ivan Koloff or the Iron Sheik, but it's great for the rest of us.

Lord, Randy Savage murdering Bobby Heenan and Patera, Blackwell, Williams, and Fernandez brawling around them would be a show I watched over and over again until the tape broke.

Love, love, LOVE the Brad Armstrong debut. Looking forward to seeing what the Armstrong family can do against the Paul Jones Army.

Full disclosure, I'd never seen a minute of Lutte before maybe a month ago, when I stumbled across three Garvins vs Rougeaus tag matches on youtube. Life changing. I had no idea the Rougeaus could have matches like that. When I got Montreal, I knew what I had to do. Glad to hear it's working.

The machinations in Florida continue. Who hired the Briscos? What did they get out of this? And two new champs! Really looking forward to Gino's reign, in particular. His rise to the top has been lightning quick.

(5/19/84) Home Box Office, in association with Titan Sports, presents, live from Paul Sauvé Arena, in Montréal, Quebec, Canada Tonight's slate of professional wrestling action is sanctioned by the American Wrestling Association and the Quebec Athletic Commission. 1. Promos by… Hulk Hogan – “Hulkamania is running wild on HBO and in Montreal tonight, brother! The AWA World Title is on the line, and no filthy, stinking Animal is going to take what belongs to the Hulkamaniacs! George Steele, whatcha gonna do when the 24 inch pythons and 24,000 fans run wild on you?” Lou Albano w/ The Wild Samoans & Kamala – “Strongbows, this is your last chance! We’ve beaten you from pillar to post and back again! You can’t take these belts from the Wild Samoans! And Kamala’s gonna throw 19 people over that top rope tonight, daddy, and there ain’t nothin’ man nor beast nor Giant can do about that!” Magnum TA & Rocky Johnson – “Freddie Blassie, I told you last week you shouldn’t stick your nose where it doesn’t belong. Ray Stevens, that goes for you, too! But you didn’t listen, and now you’ve brought me and Rocky together.” “That’s right! And that’s a mistake you’re gonna regret. You couldn’t handle just one of us. You don’t have a chance against both of us!” Bob Backlund w/ Arnold Skaaland – “James Snuka, it seems like you lost something! But I’ve got that belt right here, Mr. Snuka. Around my waist, where it belongs. Because I am a magnanimous man, I’m going to give you a chance to get it back. You’re welcome, Mr. Snuka!” Jimmy Snuka – “Bob Backlund, you backstabbing thief! You stole a belt, but you didn’t win a title. The Superfly is gonna put you down, Backlund!” The Rougeau Brothers – [in French, subtitled] “Road Warriors, everyone knows you’re the biggest, strongest, toughest team in wrestling. But you’re in our home town now, in front of thousands of the Canadian fans, and tonight the Rougeaus prove that being the biggest and the strongest doesn’t make you the best. It’s going to be a long trip home without those belts, Road Warriors.” The Road Warriors w/ Paul Ellering – “The Road Warriors have always said, we will defend these belts anywhere against anyone, any time. Well the time is tonight, the place is here, and the Rougeaus are the lucky winners of this horrific beating. Tell ‘em, Hawk!” “Well! We are the Road Warriors. We snack on danger and we dine on death! And tonight, Ray Rougeau and his brother Arm and Hammer are the dinner guests!” 2. Mark Fleming & Barry Horowitz def. “Iron” Mike Sharpe & Grizzly Boone when Horowitz pinned Boone with the ¾ Nelson cradle at 3:13 3. Superstar Billy Graham w/ Freddie Blassie def. SD Jones with a bearhug at 4:51 4. 20 man battle royal won by Andre the Giant – also appearing Kamala, Killer Khan, Dino Bravo, Yoshiaki Yatsu, Jose Gonzales, Brian Blair, Brutus Beefcake, Bernie Wright, Dave Morgan, Pierre Lafevbre, Sailor White, Richard Charland, Shunji Takano, Yasuyuki Fujii, Johnny Rivera, Pedro Morales, SD Jones, Pat Patterson, Rene Goulet 5. Rocky Johnson & Magnum TA def. Ray Stevens & Korstia Korchenko w/ Freddie Blassie at 9:32 when Rocky put Korchenko out with a sleeper. 6. Backstage, Andre and Hogan pass in the hallway. Brief speculation about a clash between those two. Offhand mention of Andre’s overseas commitments meaning he has to leave the building immediately due to tight travel schedule. 7. Hulk Hogan © vs. George “The Animal” Steele (AWA World Heavyweight Title) – 12 minute version of the standard Hogan title defense. Hulk gets a little color from Steele biting his forehead. 8. Jimmy Snuka © vs. Bob Backlund w/ Arnold Skaaland & Yoshiaki Yatsu (AWA International Heavyweight Title) ends in a DCO at 10:24; after the bell rings, Yatsu blindsides Snuka and joins Backlund in the beatdown. Billy Two Eagles comes down to even the odds, and the heels are chased off. 9. The Wild Samoans Afa & Sika w/ Lou Albano © def. Jay & Jules Strongbow with a diving headbutt at 9:22 to defend the AWA International Tag Team titles. The Samoans just wreck the overmatched Strongbows. Postmatch, Albano gets on the stick to run down Canada in general and French Canadians in particular. After a few solid minutes of insults, the Rougeaus hit the ring in response, and Ray, Armand, Afa, and Sika brawl. The Rougeaus start to get the better of things, and Albano waves to the back. Kamala & Killer Khan come down the aisle to join the fray, and it’s a four-on-two beatdown of the Rougeaus. Dino Bravo follows, grabs a chair, and clears the ring. 10. Road Warriors © def. Raymond & Armand Rougeau with the Doomsday Device at 5:32 to retain the AWA World Tag Team titles. The Rougeaus were in a bad way when the match started, and while they fought back gamely, the champs showed no mercy.

Funk/Bock is going to be amazing.

Wow. Eventful week in World Class, with a shock opener, a surprise at the end, and a whole lot of carnage in between.

Those two top tag matches look nuts.

A Borne/Slater brawl sounds fun as hell. Can't wait to see who Piper brings for backup.

Agree on the tag booking, and that's something I have to learn to steal. Seems like a transitional period for Pacific, with Zenk and Perez making promising debuts and Valiant and Big Jim on the way out.