Autistic Dragon

Gilbert had quite the night, his student is victorious & he's already rubbing shoulders with some of the top faces in the UWF. Rising Sun continues to impress. Roberts declares he'll beat the whole army and send the Shiek packing! Plus every match is a title match! The Freebirds talk the talk then try to walk the walk with a beatdown on Brad before the numbers have them running. Sullivan decides to demonstrate the kind of viciousness he expects from Vader. The Army goes 50/50 as DiBiase derails the Freight Train but Demolition get distracted leading to a loss to The RnR!

The reign of Wildfire officially begins and poor Lance is absolutely miserable. Busick vows to to be a fighting champion. I don't doubt him. The Teamsters with a successful debut but the real story is Ustinov taking the first step towards proving himself to the Kremlin. The Rocket is really soaring under Vin Man's leadership. Yatsu certainly brings the fury in his return to America. Nelson wins the match but I have a feeling this battle of the cowboys is just getting started. The Lightning Express may think they're ready for the National Tag Titles but they have a new obstacle in the form of da Top Dollar Phils! The Brits are ready to drop the bomb on the Olympians! Oh shit! Verne & Jerry 5 on 5 at Big Brawl! Winner gets control of the AWA! The Superfly is back and ready to defend Steamboat's honor! Mulligan has had enough of Parsons B.S & challenges him to Loser Leaves Town! This could either be a huge loss for the Syndicate or their biggest win yet!

TDT send a strong message. Konnan defeats the cagey Hector in a de facto submission match. Dingo turns the Playboy down flat! I could totally hear the Warrior's voice during that promo. Backlund & Rotundo sounds like a wrestling purists dream. Barr vs Eddie could be a good establishing feud for the youngsters. John Tenta sets off an Earthquake in his official PCW debut by aligning Oliver & TDT against the Playboy Club! The Crazy Gang makes their move to remove Simmons from the playing field permanently! McGee gets his share of damage as well. There's a bloody blowoff on the horizon.

Steiner & Rising Sun build on their successful debuts. Koko Ware & Brad Armstrong could be a formidable team...as the Yankees & the Freebirds can attest. Brody & Ladd continue their destruction with Murdoch as the victim. Roberts leads his team to victory over his former employer. How will the Shiek respond?

NWA Live @ Memorial Auditorium in Greenville SC 1/12/87 Rocky King defeats "Tough" Tony Falk with a DDT. "The Missouri Tiger" Jeff Gaylord defeats Dusty Wolfe with a spear. the next match was advertised as Dan Spivey vs Mitch Snow but it was announced over the pa system that due to an incident that would be explained on NWA Power Hour, Spivey was not medically cleared to compete. Thankfully a replacement opponent had been found....Keiichi Yamada! "Shooting Star" Keiichi Yamada defeats Mitch Snow with move off the top rope that had fans jaws on the floor! "The Ugandan Giant" Kamala w/JR Foley & Friday defeats Earthquake Ferris with "Air Africa" The Outlaws (Ron Bass & Black Bart)(no Jones) defeat True Grit (Al Tomko & Bob Brown) when Bart pinned Brown with the "Texas Trash Compacter" NWA World Television Title "British Magician" Steve Wright(c) fought "The Natural" Mark Fleming to a 20 minute time limit draw. NWA World Tag Team Titles The Minnesota Wrecking Crew (Arn & Ole Anderson)(c) (no Dillon) defeats Spartanburg Vice (Jerry Bryant & "Big" Lou Winston) when Ole pinned Winston with his patented Knee drop.

NWA Live @ The Omni in Atlanta GA 1/11/87 The opening contest was advertised as The Great Kabuki vs Brodie Chase. However it was announced over the pa system that due to a incident that would be explained on NWA Power Hour Kabuki had left the NWA! Paul Jones furiously informed Chase that this was nowhere near the blessing it seemed as now he would have the honor of being the first victim of the NEWEST member of the Army...Baron Von Raschke! Baron Von Raschke w/"Number One" Paul Jones defeats "Stray Cat" Brodie Chase with his infamous Claw! "The Electrifying" Ben Bassarab defeats "Gigolo" Jimmy Del Ray with a Flying Bodypress. The Southern Boys (Tracy Smothers & Steve Armstrong) defeat Brutha's in Arms (Shaska Whatley & Tiger Conway Jr) when Smothers pinned Whatley with the "Tennessee Jawbreaker". After the bell BIG DADDY RITTER emerged from the back & planted both Southern Boys with powerslams! He then embraced Whatley & Conway before declaring into the house mic "Daddy's home y'all!" Radiance (Doug Somers, Gary Royal & Paul Roma) defeat The War Party (Billy Two Eagles & Joe Lightfoot) & "The Polynesian Prince Siva Afi when Somers hit Two Eagles with a chair behind the referee's back. "Maniac" Matt Borne w/"Number One" Paul Jones defeats "Chief" Wahoo McDaniel with a piledriver following a distraction by Jones. NWA United States Tag Team Titles The Renegade Warriors (Chris & Mark Youngblood)(c) defeat The Koloffs (Ivan & Nikita) when Mark ducked a "Russian Sickle" attempt and pulled the Russian into a backslide for the sudden victory! After the result was announced the unidentified man from Raleigh emerged & helped the Koloffs beat down the Youngbloods. Champion vs Champion NWA World Heavyweight Champion Tully Blanchard w/JJ Dillon fought NWA United States Champion "Macho Man" Randy Savage w/Ms Elizabeth to a 45 minute time limit draw.

Great start to WCPW! I particularly like the poster up top. Hope you get that WGN special.

Addendum. NWA also sends Harley Race to WCPW for Bill Dundee.

McIntyre racks up another successful defense, strengthening her claim to another World Title shot. HLM is successful in her debut but it seems she already has people out to get her. Richter's reign of terror continues in non title action. She's really ruling the roost with an iron first.

NWA sends The Midnight Rockers & The Nasty Boys to WCPW for Dusty Rhodes, Dutch Mantel, Adrian Adonis & JYD. Also did i jump the gun with my most recent signings? IF so please let me know.

NWA signs Keiichi Yamada & Baron Von Raschke

2 intense weeks see injury, betrayal, potential politicking & two new teams enter the fray. Still a number of teams who have time to fight their way to the top.

Backlund shows why he's the leader of this crusade with a win over the leader of the Brigade. Tiger wins a tough one with Hart International's enforcer. Badd Company's trip to the dark side continues to pay off. St Clair defeats Chavo classic in what must've been a classic midcard workrate bout. US Steel manages to ground down Mando. Young shows how far he's come under Backlund's teaching by taking Owen to a draw. The MXE debut the Veg-O-Matic to retain their tag titles. Bubba overlooks Pillman & pays for it with a c.o loss which basically guarantees a rematch.

After a year of being the biggest heel in the entire game, Tommy Rich is FINALLY World Champion! Oh I can't wait for the promos. Not to mention the shirt.

NWA Live @ Norfolk Scope in Norfolk VA 1/9/87 EL Santo Negro defeats "Gigolo" Jimmy Del Ray with a Missle Dropkick. The Great Kabuki defeats Jerry Bryant with a thrust kick. "Maniac" Matt Borne defeats "Big" Lou Winston with a piledriver. NWA World Tag Team Champion Arn Anderson w/JJ Dillon defeats Billy Two Eagles with a Spinebuster. NWA United States Tag Team Champions The Renegade Warriors (Chris & Mark Youngblood) & Joe Lightfoot defeat The Commonwealth (George Barnes, Johnathan Boyd & Kamala) w/JR Foley & Friday when Mark avoided a splash by Boyd in the corner then pulled the Australian bruiser into a O'Connor roll. NWA World Heavyweight Title Tully Blanchard(c) w/JJ Dillon defeats "The Missouri Tiger" Jeff Gaylord with a slingshot suplex.

NWA Live @ Dorton Arena in Raleigh NC 1/8/87 "The Electrifying" Ben Bassarab defeats "Pretty" Paul Roma with a Flying Bodypress. "The Natural" Mark Fleming defeats "Hangman" Bobby Jagers with a Rear naked choke. "The Russian Bear" Ivan Koloff defeats Dirty Rhodes with the "Russian Sickle" "The Polynesian Prince" Siva Afi defeats "Gorgeous" Gary Royal with a jumping headbutt. Brutha's in Arms (Shaska Whatley & Tiger Conway Jr) defeat True Grit (Al Tomko & Bob Brown) when Conway pinned Tomko with his feet on the ropes. The Midnight Rockers (Marty Jannetty & Shawn Michaels) defeat The Outlaws (Ron Bass & Black Bart) w/"Number One" Paul Jones by dq when Bass was caught hitting Michaels with Mrs Betsy. NWA World Television Title "British Magician" Steve Wright(c) defeats "Pretty Boy" Doug Somers with the "Octopus Hold" "The Russian Nightmare" Nikita Koloff defeats "Dangerous" Dan Spivey when "Uncle Ivan" distracted the ref allowing an unidentified man to emerge from the crowd & strike Spivey with the Russian flag as he was setting Nikita up for the powerbomb. By the time Ivan let the ref go, the man had left the ring leaving Spivey to fall victim to the "Russian Sickle" for the tainted victory.

From the Memorial Auditorium in Spartanburg SC it's.... NWA POWER HOUR! Previously Recorded/Airing 1/7/87 On Commentary: Bob Caudle & Tony Schiavone Ring Announcer: David Crockett (The NWA opening video slams on screen with quick clips of the top stars set to "Rock Warrior" by The Rods. We end on a shot of NWA World Heavyweight Champion Tully Blanchard before cutting to Caudle & Schiavone at ringside) BC: Happy new year wrestling fans and welcome to the first NWA Power Hour of 1987! I'm Bob Caudle alongside Tony Schiavone and Tony we're kicking the new year off with a bang! TS: We certainly are Bob. Fans the new year is often associated with new beginnings and that's what you'll see tonight as every match on tonights broadcast will feature at least one wrestler making his NWA debut. On top of all that, the president of the NWA Mr Jim Crockett Jr will have an announcement later this broadcast that we've been told could very well alter the landscape of the NWA. BC: Indeed a great night in store for everyone. Now let's send it to the ring for our opening contest. Match #1 The debuting "Gigolo" Jimmy Del Ray defeats Rocky King with a moonsault. After the match Doug Somers approached Del Ray and the two left together, talking the whole time. Commercial-Bob Caudle runs down the NWA house shows for the coming week. (VTR- We see NWA president Jim Crockett Jr sitting behind a desk in a tastefully decorated office. He says following the commercial & critical success of "Christmas Chaos" the NWA will be looking to produce more Holiday centered events in the new year. As such, on Monday February 14th the NWA will present "St Valentines Day Massacre" live on the superstation! This will be a special 3 hour extravaganza based around a one night, eight team tournament where the winners will be awarded the newly reactivated NWA World Six Man Tag Team Titles! The episode of NWA Power Hour scheduled to take place on February 11th will not take place to allow the competitors to focus entirely on the big event. Details surrounding the event will be made public in the coming weeks. He finishes by saying that he expects "St Valentines Day Massacre" to be the first phase of a truly gamechanging year for the NWA as it looks to establish itself as America's premier wrestling organization in 1987. -End VTR) (Caudle & Schiavone hype the big announcement and speculate on the teams that could be included in the tournament) Match #2 Spartanburg Vice (Jerry Bryant & "Big" Lou Winston) defeat the debuting duo of Mitch Snow & Dusty Wolfe with the "Spartanburg Special" on Snow. (A quick video of "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan plays set to "Remember The Heroes" By Sammy Hager. We see clips of his high impact style with particular focus on his three point stance clothesline all in front of adoring crowds) (Caudle & Schiavone hype the arrival of Duggan who they reveal will be in next weeks main event!) Match #3 "Wild" Bill Irwin defeats Punisher with a Bycicle kick. Commercial (A video plays of a muscular man who not only tosses his opponents around with ease as one might expect, but also display some truly jaw dropping athleticism. The video ends on a graphic reading "Mega Man....coming soon") Match #4 "Chief" Wahoo McDaniel defeats the debuting "Tough" Tony Falk with a Tomahawk Chop. Commercial (A video plays showing Stan Hansen absolutely brutalising opponents. Of course the highlight of the video is a montage of him hitting his infamous Lariat with the unlucky recipient often crumbling to the mat) (Caudle & Schiavone discuss the pending arrival of Hansen, they agree it doesn't bode well for ANYONE! Switching gears, they inform the fans that Harts Afire were originally scheduled for tonight's main event but due to a sudden family emergency, they had to return to Calgary. So instead, tonight's main event will feature TWO debuting tag teams!) Main event The Southern Boys (Steve Armstrong & Tracy Smothers) defeat The Nasty Boys (Brian Knobbs & Jerry Saggs) when referee Randy Anderson was piefaced by a annoyed Saggs as Anderson was trying to tell him to leave the ring after a tag. The two teams continued to brawl and the show ends with them being pulled apart by security.

A surprising clean win from the newly knighted trio. Eddie is winning over the crowd with some hard fought losses. Payne impresses with a submission victory over the general. Adams watches Steamboat's back as he gets a win over TNT. Orton having to load his pad puts over Steele in defeat. Hector puts a win on the board for Los Guerreros. Gary Hart International is coming apart at the seems. Barry's Burly Bearded Buddy helps his hero retain the Heavyweight title, though in fairness that may have been more on Rose than anything else.

Wildfire wastes no time declaring himself #1 contender to the World Title. Rich vs Steamboat is the ultimate face/heel feud! Morrow eyeing Ustinov for his tag team? Don't see them having much in common. Vinnie leads Gold Standard to another win over the Diamond Aces. Warlord works great as the silent destroyer. Cameron is a worthy addition to the Bruise Brothers. First Ustinov now Putski? Morrow is certainly looking at a wide range of talent for his new team. I hope Jumbo dragon suplexes Vinnie so hard he shortens him. Spoiler is back and he's spoiling for another round with Dream Machine babay! The Epic Battles of the O's have lead to an epic team up! The two stupidest men in wrestling arrive in the AWA and now they've got someone to play them to the ring. Oh brother. Hmmm. It seems his recent falling out with The Koloffs has got Ustinov rethinking some things. A surprisingly mature reaction from Henning. Let's see if it carries over to his next destination. The main event doesn't even get started as they can't be bothered to wait for the bell! Their tag match is gonna be huge! Verne Gagne has had all he can stand & he can't stands no more! Let's see how he changes things!

The newest recruits to the Crazy Gang make a dominant in ring debut. Gary Hart has his eye on another Warrior for his stable but it seems this Dingo isn't biting. Oliver & TDT may have to find a couple more friends if they mean to pursue this war against the Playboy Club. The Army's newest volunteers arrive with a win. Simmons keeps his roll against the Crazy Gang going strong but they're cooking up something big. Backlund declares his intent for all PCW to hear. He's got quite the army to back up those words. I chuckled when he basically said he lost the LLT match in Florida on purpose. Damn it Gary! This is why you and your men have to coordinate cheating! Nice of Barry to stick up for Bret though.

I'll definitely be on the lookout for ways to use it more going forward.

1987 Volume 1 TENSION IN THE FOUR HORSEMEN? The Four Horsemen seem to have it all. Tully Blanchard holds the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, The Andersons hold the NWA World Tag Team Titles. They are regarded by all observers as four of the absolute best wrestlers in the world today. The Horsemen should be on cloud nine, and they are. Except one. Ric Flair finds himself in a almost alien position. Not only is he himself without a title (an uncommon sight in & of itself) but he is at this time the only Horsemen without a title. Flair has taken a step toward rectifying this with his victory in the "Merry Christmas" battle royal allowing him to challenge for a title of his choosing whenever he requests. However despite repeated questioning he has refused to disclose which title he intends to challenge for. It could be of course that Mr Flair hasn't decided yet, but it has been pointed out that there's nothing actually stopping Flair for challenging for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship...except the presumed bond between teammates. And given Flair's distant behavior recently, is that enough? MOTHER RUSSIA'S SECRET WEAPON? Easily the biggest change in the NWA coming out of its "Christmas Chaos" event was Randy Savage defeating Nikita Koloff to become the new NWA United States Champion. Many note that a large part of this victory was due to a ineffective attempt at interference from Soldat Ustinov. The Koloffs clearly share this opinion as they brutally assaulted Ustinov after the match. It seems Ustinov's punishment is just beginning however. Witnesses report a nervous Ustinov being hurried into a plane in the dead of night, of hushed talk of being "reconditioned" and of a "new asset" being brought in to aide The Koloffs on their war on America. There a great deal of uncertainty surrounding the Russian contingent at the moment and we will endeavor to keep an eye on this developing situation. PAUL JONES DECLARES TOTAL WAR! "Christmas Chaos" proved a mixed night for the men in Paul Jones' employ. While the trio of Ron Bass,Black Bart & Matt Borne were victorious over the team of Dick Slater, Bobby Jagers & Dirty Rhodes (with a post match piledriver from Borne to Slater on the ring apron leaving Slater's future in the business in doubt) The Great Kabuki failed to obtain the NWA World Television Championship, being eliminated by Dan Spivey (though he ensured Spivey's elimination in retaliation). While some men might be satisfied with betting 500 it seems Mr Jones has higher standards. He has issued a "declaration of war" against any & all who would stand in the way of his Army and Championship gold. Reports say that Kabuki in particular has been assigned to drive Dan Spivey out of the NWA entirely to "make a example of what happens to those who stand in the Army's way". Considering the talent at Mr Jones' disposal this declaration should be taken with utmost seriousness. COMINGS & GOINGS AROUND THE NWA. Gone are... Chris Benoit...it seems that JR Foley was most displeased by his protégé failing to capture the NWA World Television Championship. It has already been reported that Mr Benoit will be arriving in the UWF under the tutelage of Eddie Gilbert & it can be confirmed this is the result of Foley selling Benoit's contract. Dick Slater...Due to the piledriver from Matt Borne discussed earlier in the article. Mr Slater suffered "severe damage" to his neck as well as a concussion. Due to it being uncertain if Mr Slater can ever return to the ring he & NWA management have mutually agreed to terminate his contract so Mr Slater can focus entirely on his recovery. In a statement released with this announcement the NWA thanked Mr Slater for his time & energy and wished him a full recovery. The Warlord...Though the muscular rookie shows great promise he has noticeably struggled to find his footing in the aftermath of the disbanding of the "Spectral Hand" and has decided to seek better luck elsewhere. Arriving are... Stan "The Lariat" Hansen...One of the hardest hitting men in the sport today, Hansen has most recently been terrorizing Pacific Coast Wrestling as part of the "Crazy Gang". When approached for comment on his intentions in the NWA, Mr Hansen was succinct, "I don't have ta explanation myself ta nobody" "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan...Speaking of men who hit hard, few hit harder than the former Atlanta Falcon. A of the most popular men in the sport due to his high-impact style & his boisterous patriotism Duggan is sure to endear himself to fans across the NWA territory. Jimmy Del-Ray...Another wrestler making his way from PCW (& coincidentally another member of the "Crazy Gang") where he is a former Pacific Tag Team Champion. Del-Ray has proven to be a devious competitor unafraid to bend if not outright break the rules to get ahead. Fans can expect to find Del-Ray a talented -if detestable- part of the NWA roster. The Nasty Boys (Brian Knobbs & Jerry Saggs) Completing the Western invasion is Brian Knobbs who achieved great success as part of the "Dog Pound" along with Rick Steiner, with the two managing to obtain a degree of popularity despite their general status as rulebreakers. Determined to stay in the tag ranks but not deeming anyone on the NWA roster as suitable, Knobbs has decided to bring in a childhood friend from the streets of New York city, Jerry Saggs. Dubbed themselves "The Nasty Boys" it seems Knobbs is no more interested in playing by the rules then he was back west. Whether or not his new team can still parlay this into garnering a dedicated fanbase ala the Dog Pound remains to be seen. ONE FINAL RUMOR. While the NWA reduced the number of active titles by two courtesy of a pair of "title unification bouts" rumors are rampant that the first episode of NWA Power Hour of 1987 will feature a announcement from NWA president Jim Crockett Jr concerning the creation of a new title...or perhaps even the return of an old one. Watch this space.

NWA puts Jeff Gaylord, Ben Bassarab & Harts Afire on the block.

WWW certainly gave its two newest signees a warm welcome with a pair of title shots out of the gate. McIntyre throws her hat into the ring for a World title match. Considering Richter's behavior recently that may not be the best idea. The Trios title match is an utter explosion of violence resulting in a dq retention by the champs. This isn't over.

Badd Company's new bad attitude nets them a win over the Odd Couple. Steamboat & Adams save Atlas from a beat down & score a huge win over the Iron Bulls all while showing off their new armbands. They really seem to be coming together as a team. OMG buries the general with an avalanche! What's it gonna take to stop this monster? The Brigade retain in a slugfest against the 2 senior members of The Crazy Gang. Snow tries to get some singles gold like his Bomb Squad teammate but it's not to be. Hart's reign is off to an exciting start. The MXE put an exclamation point on their title win but I'm looking forward to more of St Clair & Big Bubba throwing hands, preferably with the TV Title on the line.