David Mantell

Nine months earlier in September 1973, Angelito is back on TV. His first bout back in 1971 saw him self unmask midway through defeating Jacky Richard and that's the way he is here, receding but not yet shaven headed. That match was overseen by Babette Carole, ex catcheurs turned Madame L'Arbitre. And guess what? Two years later, she's also back! We JIP as the la Première Manche is in progress, introduced by the biker jacketed commentator as a middle aged female fan in a summer blouse looks lecherously at him. In the ring, the heels have heat, one stomping away on a fallen Bon, the other with a US Blackjack Mulligan moustache, on the ring apron. Angelito, for the Bon is he, does not long accept this treatment before com8nh up with a rear hammerlock, ducking to avoid rear snapmare attempts. El Alami, the other Bon, is a clean cut Moroccan kid, possibly a TBW, politely waiting his turn - for now - on the apron. He tags in and goes to word with Manchettes on the longer haired Guy (butch moustache is Roux). Guy fires back so Amir slips in a headbutt. The big cowboy Roux tags in. Amir does the quick armbar to hammerlock to rear legdive to drop toehold c9mboused by everyone from Flesh Gordon to Samm6 Lee. He clamps down on an armlock as Roux thrashes. When Roux backrolls he iwas forced to be hard-whipped back with a bump. Roux tried a front chancery but Alami slams him down. With the armlock on, Alami whips Roux around, slams him in the mat and still in th3vguard armlock. Roux tries the old Vic Faulkner distraction tactic but Alami fires back. Both sides tag, Angelito gets a hammerlock. Soon Roux has one on Angelito. Angelito gets a reverse snapmare on a hammerlock. Les méchants get some double teams in. The crowd give Babbette some Aux Chiottes chants. She eventuality gives the heels a beating. A confused Guy attacks a ringside second. Babbette tortures opponents by tugging their beards. Angelito gets a similar reverse snapmare to earlier my comments. Eventually Roux slams Angelito for the first fall. Deuxième Manche Guy is choking Angelito out.The heels double team him. The crowds abuse Babette until she beats up Les Méchants Alami doles them out with Manchette. Babette gets knocked down, she blames Guy and gives him a Planchette Japonaise. Méchants continue to get a hard time from Bons. Babette and each other inadvertently. Angelito snapmares Roux several time, Roux leapfrogs Angelito but winds up taking a dropkick. Commentator bizzarely claims Angelito is l'Ange Blanc's son! Angelito bars one arm of Guy's and stamps the hand of the other. He high whips and bumps Guy then tags Alami. Guy Alami around has the advantage throwing He handstands out,gets his own side chinlock. He gets a flying bulldog on by headscissor combo . All four men are in with Bons doing 2 on 2 unto the méchants. Babette gives EVERYONE un Avertisement. The heels try to double team Alami but Babette won't stand for it. Still the heels manage to work over El Alami'. Angelito tags in and neither heel wants to face him. The heels fight after Roux enters the ring - he think it's on purpose by Guy . They settle up . Roux gets idirty on the mat. So doesGuy. Angelito ends up at ringside bu6 female fans cmofo for5 him. Heels work him over. He does trick Roux into straight-arming his own partner Guy thinking it was Angelito after Guy sought help, unable to perform the straight arm himself. Angelito gets an armdrag, legdive and weakener on Guy then tags Alami and each man works a leg. Guy is eventually slingshot into Roux. Alami gets some great Scisseaux Volees on Guy, the last sending him ringside. When he gets back, Alami armdrags him down for a crossface equaliser. La Belle (Parce-ce-qu'il y avait Eu,). El Alami' gets a Manchette on Guy. He and Roux exchange fire and end up deep in the crowd. Guy ends up being thrown back to Angelito who continues the treatment in the ring. The bons both get good throws in. Heels double team Angelito Bons try out various complex pins some of which Babette doesn't like the look of until Angelito flying bodypresses Roux for the pin. Babette throws Roux out by the moustache. Afterbirth. Babette talks to camera about how sad it is that dirty wrestling continues. "La combat continue" and she has to pull them all apart Tightly packed acto into a short half hour including plenty of good science. Not a masterpiece but better than some recent ones.

More from 1983 Recklinghausen. This time heel afrokid Indio tries it on with Gunther's previous opponent Dave Morgan, a month before his match as Die Maschke Vs Steve Wright in Bamberg. Again we get a lot of into before the actual bout. We do have a commentator but he's in German. Runde 1: Indio gets a side chancery and eventual throw. Then a s3econd one. He gets a hammerlock into hiptoss but Morgan hits back with a ground dropkick. Dave gets a headlock, Indio tries atomic dropping him but can't get the lift an ends up thrown into a side headlock on the mat. Indio stands, throws Dave off, resists a bodycheck but it armdragged down twice He gets a legdive but is spun off for 6 . They lock up and Indio gets armbars in the guard. Morgan kips up but is dragged down until he gets a French style headscissor takedown. He tries a crosspress but is thrown on top of the ref. Dave and the ref shake hands. End of Runde. Runde 2. Indio gets a single leg folding press and some 1s. Morgan toupies him off. They exchange forearms. Dave leans back from a double interlock to get a double ankle smash. And forearm for t. Indio gets forearms. And a side backdrop but is flipped out of the ring. He uses a hair pull to reel Dave back into a headlock from two top wristlocks. Dave gets a front facelock and cartwheels off when Indio brreks it. Indio gets an armdrag into guard armlock. Dave uses the ref's shoulder to cartwheel out of the hold and gets an armhank. Cut to Indio furearming Dave to the mat. He bodychecks Dave but is cross buttocked and crosspressed for 2. Dave gets an armbar and boot to the stomach. He lunges and rear snapmares for 2. Indio gets nasty and stomps as the bell goes. Runde 3. Indio still doing the dirties, mostly in a corner. He eventually gets a respectable snapmare and the one follow up stomp the rules allow. He throws out Dave giving him a boot on the way out,. Runde 4 TBC Indio still pounding and fouling. Dave tries throwing him out. Cut to him flooring Dave and stomping. Dave fights back with dropkicks and flying head scissors and some pounding of his own. He ties Indio in the ropes, who stays ther3 between rundes. Runde 5 More of the same brawl n dirty from>Indio including headbutts. Dave gets a flying forearm and crosspress for for 2. He hooks the rope to stop a rebound and gets a sidewards folding press for the 3. A few Curate's Egg technical parts in this brawl. Probably brought to the mix by Dave.

Another good example of how many undercard bouts could be technical dark horses. Hayward is the former Commonwealth Games bronze medallist turned professional European Middleweight champion, quite outside the range of what the North American wrestling industry would consider hirable (a stint in Stampede notwithstanding). Here he has a veteran technician with whom to put on his scientific exhibition. Unlike such lighter or less experienced opponents as Tim Fitzmaurice where Keith's effortless superiority made crowds politely root for the opponent, Hurst is too experienced to get the sympathy vote. We join the action in round 4 . Hayward gets an arm weakener out of a one sided lockup. Hurst converts a double interlock into backdrop(putting his own head in an underhook to get it) into crosspress for a couple of 1s. Interestingly curling 1 leg to get extra downwards pressure. Hayward in the guard turns himself upright and gets an armbar in the process! He folds the arm into a hammerlock and hooks the other arm to turn Hurst into a crosspress, but his feet hit the ropes forcing a break. They are up and Lenny gets an underhook but Hayward pulls it straight and gets a weakener, (the second time he has done this in the bout instead of force a high whip plus bump . ) Lenny sells the pain, staying down for 6. Keith moves from single interlock to armbars to legdive. Hurst gets a retaliatory wrist lever. Hayward eventually re)eases the leg when Hurst figure four scissors the arm but instead lifts Hurst and places him on the top turnbuckle. They shake hands. Both men get a legdive - stalemate. A second try results in the same. Hurst gets a side chancery off a double Interlock and throws Hayward who rolls upright neatly. Hurst gets the same sid3e chancery throw but Keith takes it equally beautifully. Hurst gets a side headlock on Keith who makes it into a top wristlock and another armbar weakener. The bell goes as Hurst gropes for a leg. Round 5 starts with Hurst getting a side chancery off collar and elbow, getting the throw after some resistance. A second side chancery throw is more easily gained, even earning a 2 count. A third time Hayward stays down in a seated position and Hurst vertically splashes the back of his neck for a four count. He converts a fourth one into a kneelift.for another 4. A fifth side chancery throw and a standing full nelson ensue as Kent Walton wonders what has happened to the usually speedy Keith. Kent quickly gets his answer as Keith reverses the hold, slips down into a rear waistlock and gets his trademark German suplex finisher out of nowhere for the pin! Keith is 1-0 up. Round 6 and Hurst gets a wristlever from a collar and elbow. getting two twists and a long forward whip and bump. Any further and it would have been a posting! He gets the near posting whip again, getting even for the round 4 arm weakeners? Hayward is up at 4 but caught in a Hurst abdominal stretch, sideways on. Hayward won't submit so Hurst drives in a knee and gets another arm weakener before releasing. Hayward is up at 4 straight into another side chancery throw. Hurst whips Hayward into the ropes, misses a rear elbowsmash and gets hit with a flying tackle, but rolls over backwards as he goes down until Hurst has the cross press and an equalising pin! This finish is worth entry money in itself - a properly done version of what Wendi Richter and Leilani Kai BUNGLED at WM1. Round 7. Hurst gets a single leg off a single interlockbut Hayward leans forward, seemingly to get an inverted rear waistlock to start his trademark suplex. However the camera cuts to reveal Keith has reached all the way over and got a toehold. Stalemate and they start over. Hurst gets double legs and a lift but Hayward goes over into a sunset flip and double leg nelson attempt for 2 with Hurst giving it some SERIOUS "Aloha Arn" as he goes down. Hurst turns over and gets a high folding press for 1 but Hayward kicks out, himself getting a 6 count on Hurst. They single Interlock and this time it's Hurst who goes behind for the rear waistlock He takes Hayward down in the mount rather than attempt his opponent's speciality bridge ecsuple (I believe a relic of Hayward 's Olympic GR days.). Hayward easily twists out and gets a front chancery (allowed as Hurst is trying for a legdive on the mat.). but Hurst. Straightens the arm. Hayward briefly connects with the inverted rear waistlock - but can't get the weight for a suplex and Hurst regains armlock control with his man behind. He straightens the arm to a more conventional armbar shape Hayward does the traditional British rolloff and comes up with a sharp forearm smash. Hayward gets a double legs into folding press for 1, straight arm pres for another 1. Hurst bridges. They roll over and over with Hayward bodyscissoring his man. Both get long arm press attempts as they go on top. Hurst converts from bodyscissors to headscissors but Hayward uses the headstand escape. He lands in position to get a Gotch figure four toehold and augment it to make a simple cross surfboard. Hurst tips i5 over and lands on his knees. Hayward still hangs onto the crossface until the bell goes Round 8, the final and Hurst gets a dropkick, snapmare and twisting nose stomp. He gets an armbar into hammerlock from a collar and elbow but Hayward spins to untwist, single leg diving his man on the go and getting a single toehold, leg weakener and 5 count but is too hasty following in with another legdive and privately warned by the ref (the first such occurrence of the bout). who demands a start over. Hurst turns horizontally on a high Interlock to pull down an armbar and make another hammerlock. Hayward reaches back and tries for a rear snapmare but Hurst resists so instead Hayward reverse snapmares back over French Catch style and both men fire dropkicks, bumping heavily and both up at 9. Hurst gets a vigorous headbutt from above. Hurst gets another dropkick, Hayward a running elbowsmash, forearm and dropkick. The science seems to be fading in the final scramble for a decider, but it soon picks up again. Hurst can only get a 1 count from a crotch hold, slam and crosspress. Both men go down from a bodycheck for 8, a Hayward dropkick gets 5, a Hurst backslide gets 2 (after slipping grip on one arm first time - possibly a botch). as does a Hayward sunset flip into double leg Nelson. A Hurst side folding press hits the ropes and Runs Out Of Mat. Hurst tries leaning back from a full Interlock into a cross scissor toupie but as he locks on the feet and hand stands up, the bell finally goes 1-1 draw. Hayward looks a bit put out as a Hurst reaches for his water bottle then the Advert Break strikes, but one hopes it ended in handshakes. Several of Keith's exhibition victories including the Tim Fitzmaurice one saw Kent afterwards ponder what if Hayward faced a more experienced or heavier man. Here he gets one and doesn't get it all his own way but still,acquits himself well, getting at least 1 of 2 of his trademark bridging suplex pins. A fine technical match except for one short scramble in the final round. ,

Summer 1974, just months before the INA was formed and started taping Channel 2s colour bouts, of which this may have been one. This one starts JIP like Myers-Apollon on the British thread. Montreal has the muscles, Freddie M is the old guy. Take it from there. That's le Bon beating on Le Méchant with manchetes. Marcel tags Jean Pierre Le Compte, not to be confused with the Viscompte, Joel de Fremery. He has a moustache so easy to identify. Caclard we've seen before as a ratty little heel in patterned trunks. Reminded me of Buff Bagwell near the end of WCW. Helped turn Albert Sanniez méchant. He takes over on JP. Magnier is in and has arguments with the big tough L'Arbitre. Talking of hard nosed L'Arbitre, Delaporte has access to the commentators desk much like Mick McManus would do on ITV sometime Montreal has a side headlock on Magnier and a side headlok later on Caclard He slams and dropkicks Fred out of the ring. Les Méchants have JP cornered but L'Arbitre is of those tough Martial/Delaporte/Max Ward/Gorilla Monsoon type refs and himself pounds the heels on the ropes. It goes on like this until the heels win a fall, Magnier over JP. It seems clean enough - a crosspress in the middle of a forest of manchettes -but the crowd thinks it's a ripoff and so do the announcer and Montréal La Belle (match was 1:0 at the start says the commentator.). Heels pound on JP so e more, Caclard gets an Avertisement. Montreal gets the hot tag. He manchettes Magnier to oblivion then grabs Caclard and does him the same plus bearhugs him a good long while then switches to bodyscissors. Caclard does briefly get some in attempts in the bodyscissors. The two roll into the ropes. Marcel Montreal slams Caclard around then tags JP who continues the treatment, even giving him the old Ah Ouais bodyscissors atomic drop treatment with Montreal doing it to Magnier. JP and Caclard do finally dish up a minute or two of technical work, snapmaring and headscissoring and scissorthrowing and Gotch toe holding each other plus even the odd crawl through each others legs until Magnier comes in and it goes back to him pounding on JP. Marcel tags back and gets Magnier in an aeroplane spin, wiping out Caclard, slamming and splashing Magnier and getting the 2-1 win. Apart from that one little JP Vs Caclard bit at the 19 minute mark, it was all very slug and punch. Perhaps the science took place before the cameras started .Otherwise lightweight fun like 1983 Gunther & Gaetano vs Indio and Harris bout on the German thread.

You've got these two badly confused. Wagner is the taller German, and Dave Morgan is the shorter Brit, who notably spent a lot of time as a globe trotter and eventually settled in Germany. Wagners reputation as a worker really wasn't very good. Okay, here we go with 1983 this time. I've got the correct one for Gunther. Curly lighter hair, tall. gold trunks. Teaming with Bobby Gaetano and behaving himself to face John "Judd"/"Gunboat" Harris, a Brit like Morgan and Indio Guajaro, Germany's answer to France's Black Shadow. There's quite a bit of stop and start title sequence added years later before the bout commences. (Ther3 ar3 also so e odd voiceovers I don't understand.) When it does get going it's pretty much your typical fun 'n family friendly German tag match. The two big men start with Harris getting the early advantage with a mix of strength and dirty moves . Indio continues the trestment then Harris is back with a legdive and leglock. Th3 heels double cream Gold Gunther but a high energy Gaetano gets the hot tag, Ali shuffling, snapmaring Indio, leapfrogging Harris so H3 bodychecks the ropes and falls over for 6, Indio takes back the heat with a snapmare into some illegal stomps on the fallen Bobby, then Harris gets to forearm smashing, illegal choking work. Gaetano gets a hope spot cartwheeling out of an Indio cross buttock, leapfrogging to behind his man and scoring with some dropkicks and a chinlock.He eventually ties up both heels in the ropes and he and Gunther do all, the old battering ram spots to the baddies. By the time this is done we are 2/3 of the way through this clip. Gunther gets cornered by Harris a d the heels double team to get back their heat till Harris gets a pin on Gunther. Second fall, Gaetano tags in bu5 things still go the heels' way until Gaetano goes on a dropkicking rally, finding Harris to ringside and flying tackles Indio down for a cross press equaliser to make it 1-1. At this point things wrap up quick - between falls the two heels attack Gaetano and the referee forcing a DQ. They beat on until Gunthre comes to the rescue. Fun but lightweight compared to Myers-Apollon on the British thread.. TBC

Back in Myers' pre Iron Fist days when he wore the Union Jack trunks, he was quite the purist-friendly technician and much of that carried over into Clive's Iron Fist days so I don't see why this would be a styles clash at all. Apollon was trained by Lee Bronson who himself was trained by Wayne Bridges and was the son of 40s/50s star Norman "the Butcher " Ansell. He is however no relation to "Golden Apollon" Richie Brooks, at this point a couple of years away from turning pro. We JIP at the start of Round 3 - the bout being a warm up match, the first two rounds having been scoreless and this being quite a short round. Apollon gets in quick with a snapmare and Legdrop Of Doom for a seven count then gets a posting in. Myers stalls i the corner breaking Apollon's momentum. Myers gets a snapmare into side headlock but Johnny neatly straightens the arm into a wrist lever then switches to another snapmare and twice tries a bodycheck but the first has little impact and on the second, Clive gets in a superkick. And suplexes his man, using his duplexing arm to get the cover (see also Myers and YAMADA Vs Kendo & Rocco from 1987) and the opening fall! Myers leads one-nil. Round 4. Myers is not the only one to have scored that Saturday afternoon. This being the original transmission, the latest football scores pop up and apparently bubble perked legend Kevin Keegan hàs got a goal for Newcastle Utd. Anyway, back to the match. Apollon goes from side chancery to front chancery to suplex and gets three before Myers craftily breaks the count by putting his hands behind his get a rope break with his elbows! Myers gets an arm, teases a Johnny Saint style stepover then forces a high whip and bump. Apollon absorbs it well, taking it on his behind and swivels into a position from which it is eay 6 to spring up. Nice absorption move by John. They single interlock and Myers switches hands to get a wrist lever and deftly develops it I to a back hammerlock then a double wristlock. He armdrags his man in the hold but Runs Out Of Mat as Apollon's legs hit the ropes as he goes over. Break and double interlock . Apollon tries a lean back dropkick but Myers steps back and John crashes. Myers gets collar & elbow into armdrags I to guard armlock but Apollon gets up swiftly and gets an armbar into posting. Myers resists the posting, squatting down like Ken Joyce. Apollon has more jo6 with a snappish monkey climb, but Myers then resists a snapmare attempt. Apollon gets an armbar into ankle lock on the standing Myers. He drops the foot back as Myers seeps to be planning a superkick. (Apparently Apollon had one planted on him in the untelevised Round 1.). Myers tries for a legdive but only gets a shove to the stomach, leaving Apollon down to get a legdive attempt of his own. Apollon gets an arm and tries an armdrag but Myers clamps down to make a long press for 1 . Myers tries a double arm stretch in the guard but Apollon picks them off with his feet in a bicycle motion. Apollon gets a wrist but the bell goes. They shake hands. Kent Walton mentions that Johnny trains at a gym in the Railway Tavern which later became the Bridges pub, home of Southern Wrestlers Reunions for many years. Round 5. Apollon gets a headlock but Myers counters with his backdrop suplex but isn't quite in the right position for another pin. So instead he gets an armscissor and side headlock on, adjusting as Apollon moves. Apollon gets a headscissors and so Myers drops his own holds to fight it. He bridges up and swivels into the front upright position, spreading his man's knees to release his own head with which he butts the legs. Myers gets off a legdive swatting away Apollon's attempt at a topé to spin him off. He switches to crosspress then armbar then an attempted straight arm lift but has to drop Apollon when he threatens a headscissors. So he ends up with just a guard armlock and Apollon aiming kicks at his back. A lockup goes nowhere except Apollon falls on his seat. Again he gets an arm but Myers resists the armdrags attempt that was actually intended. Myers also resists a side chancery throw but goes with an attempt at a long suplex which switches to cross press and slam. They try for some more lockups but the bell goes before anything substantial can happen. Again they shake hands. Round 6 Apollon gets a stomach jab and posting. Myers cartwheels out of a cross buttock throw but is caught by Johnny's dropkick and briefly tied in the ropes like late period Andre or the heel in a continental tag match comedy spot. He quietly untangles himself. Apollon finally gets his armdrag in finishing on a guard armlock. Myers is up and off the ropes but runs into a sharp Apollon elbow. Johnny capitalises with a side chancery (taking advantage of Myers' head not being quite up ) and Harley Race head-drop. then another armdrag into armscissor. He pulhes Myers back and slings him into the ropes but Myers again holds the rope to break momentum. He gets an arm. whip and superkick of his own twice . Myers gets the same suplex attempt converting to powerslam as earlier - practically a Goldberg jackhammer! - and gets the second straight fall with it. Myers the winner 2-0 What I like is how a seemingly inconsequential undercard bout like this can turn into a real clinic of " Human Chess,". Good match in a Territory where such things were common.

It's horses for courses which version was better. Lane/Eaton was better for pure wrestling. Condrey/Eaton were better heels. Lane being genuinely handsome somewhat undermined the idea of a heel team of two plain-looking guys who thought they were God's gift to women. Question - could Condrey/Eaton have done a babyface run like Lane/Eaton did in 1988/1989?

Another clip of Roland Bock from Der Sportliche Held has turned up. This time he's up against Billy Samson. Fans are shown pouring into the venue and giving their comments rather like a similar piece at the Heumarkt in the 60s. We then cut to Billy with Bock in a chinlock, chin against the inner joint. Bock gets Billy up into a Fireman's Carry Takedown and throws him off. They exchange forearm smashes then Samson gets a snapmare and reapplies the chinlock in one movement. Bock seems to be going for another Fireman's Carry. aiming at Samson's ankle, but the Runde ends there (with a whistle, not a ball.). Cut to Samson getting a legdive into leglock/toehold. He works the hold for some time before switching to a standing single toe and ankle hold. Bock has to pull his shoulders forward to avoid a possible pinfall count. Occasionally he relaxed and takes a 1 count. He tries kicking Samson off, succeeding at the second attempt. Cut to Billy powering out of an armlock - he is standing and front facing - so Bock slams him down, restoring things to Bock having an armlock in the guard. Samson stands up again and gets a cross buttock throw but Bock rolls with it and so keeps his guard armlock. Samson powers up yet again and this time it's Bock who goes for the cross buttock to take things down again. Cut to Bock with the chinlock from earlier regained. Samson gets up and bounce-throws Bock off the ropes but Bock parries the throw and instead takes Samson down, back into the guard armlock. Cut to Bock getting a posting and a double underhook suplex for another 2 count. The ref is knocked over but Bock picks him up and sets him on his feet again. Cut to an interview with Nico S of the VdB. Then cut to a four man brawl at ringside with Nico dangerously close and distinctly annoyed! Bock Vs Samson is real old time German stuff, everything slow and deliberate with the last option tried being the one that works. Back to 1983 at the weekend.

Tag team action from the same January 1964 Madrid show. No idea who is who but I'm guessing the guys in black trunks who pull a double team are the heels. Mostly a brawl, someone does a good rear crawl through legs into ground dropkick, Same awful sound effects as before only worse including a "Birdies" sound effect for being dazed from one too many forearm smashes. Also a "boing" spring noice like that spring your parents put on a door to stop it banging and with which you used to play when given half a chaThe aforementioned black clad heel double team consists of a standing full nelson with the illegal man coming in to administer a headbutt to the stomach. Heels also do a simultaneous leglock on each leg and one does an over the knee backbreaker. The audience shots reminded me a lot of the spliced in "Women's Institute" shots in Monty Python's Flying Circus. especially the "Not Amused" ones. We also get a rare shot of the panel of judges, led by a bald beardy guy who looks like Lenin. Not clear who won but we last see one of the faces down in the mount getting a KO count.

Another of the remaining Alessio clips. From Jan' 64 in Madrid . Sadly with stupid sound effects, I fear. This is a pity as there's some good serious fast paced action in there. Pedro in black with a title belt takes on Polman in white trunks. Polman gets a Japanese Stranglehold but Pedro drops and armdrags Polman then tries to turn out of harm but Polman follows him and gets a hammerlock on. He then gets a wristlever and high whip and bumpb All slightly spoiled by a kick drum for the bump and hi-hat/guirros for everything else. Cut the audience members smirking. Pedro has Polman cornered but Polman backdrops him to ringside. Cut to a full finge4 interlock test of strength - and watz music Polman takes a bump (kick drum) and they exchange forearm smashes,, kneelifts, chops etc (to whip sound effects.). Polman gers another Japanese Stranglehold thhen, leapfrogs and superkicks Pedro (more whip sounds.) There is some sppeeded up footage of forearm smashes then Polman redoes his Japanese strangle to leapfrog to superkick. Pedro gets a sideways folding press but it goes into the ropes. Pedro gets a backdrop but Pollman counters with a sunset flip into double leg nelson for 2. He then tombstone Pedro for the KO win and Pedro's Spanish national title and win. This was probably a pretty good match until the jokers at the Newsreel had to ruin things.

After some consideration am posting this here rather than the French thread as it took place in Spain 2008. Yes it was for a French promotion with a French heel Vs a Belgian babyface. There was a tradition after 1975 for French promoters to take over and colonise Spain as overspill turf so it's interesting to note IWSF kept this going in Y2K8. Admittedly they had by then expanded into Switzerland and FYR Macedonia so the old wrestlers' road trip across the Pyrenees is nothing by comparison.

RIP to now All Four of the Skywalkers from Starrcade 86.

Yes I had a very nice day out for my birthday, thanks for asking. I think you all deserve an actual match, not just a clip (however rare) and chat show appearance (ditto) so here's a quickie: I'd say he had HEAT rather than was just getting heckled. "WORRA LOADA RUBBISH" is what football fans would shout at rival teams in that era.Stax had the gift of the gab anyway and could give more than he got verbally as we shall see at the fnh Round 1 - Stax easily throws off Cox's lock up attempts including a top wristlock, sending him down for a count of 4. Stax resists a legdive attempt and gets presssure points into a chinlock. Cox fires back with some forearm smashes but again Stax shrugs them off and bodychecks his man down before following in with his trademark guillotine elbowsmash. Cox is selling his ribs and the referee cuts the KO count short at 8 and awards Stax the TKO victory right then and there rather than wait the two seconds. I defy anyone to suggest that Cox is "protected" by this finish. Afterwards Stax give one hell of a powerful heel promo, waxing Alice Cooper - "No More Mr Nice Guy" and growling like an angry Bengal tiger - as the crowd in turn vents it's spleen at him. Cox was no enhancement talent but this quick squash was a vehicle to relaunch the Giant on TV after he'd been off touring the world as Kent says. Some of this we shall see - or have already seen - on the German thread. This was October 1986 and Stax had been off TV some 16 months since beating Marty Jones in June 85. This and a win over Tony Francis in November helped set up Stax for a big Xmas Triple Tag (Steve ("Roy") Regal's second TV bout and the final comeuppance of heel manager Charlie McGee).

Okay. That's me free to enjoy M6 birthday weekend. In the meantime here is the world of French Catch finally catching up with the world of Wrestling action figures.

Okay let's watch the other Noughties match Bernie posted. That will free me up to enjoy my birthday weekend. This is two years later, but still in the big arched place in Thaon Les Vosges. I mentioned BVD being an ex European Champion in 2005, this is the story of how he regained it from Starbuck, a Canadian in no way sponsored by a chain of coffee bars. Talking of which I spy a nice little open air café in th3 doorway of the venue. Starbuck looks like an evil Hacksaw Duggan. The belt is a knock off of the 1986-1987 WWF World title belt from WM2/WM3. He comes to the ring to ghastly Noughties Nu Metal. A disabled kid in a baseball cap is made keeper of the belt while the match is on Starbuck saunters from one ring side to another abusing the crowd. It is nearly five minutes into the clip before they lock up. Starbuck pushes BVD Into the corner and a slug n punch breaks out. Starbuck comes off the ropes looking for an armdrag, trying for one but getting it reversed then dropkicked by the Belgian and shoved to ringside. Bernie gets a wrist lever and takes Starbuck down to the mount. Starbuck being a North American cannot do a British rollout or French backflip or even the Spanish horizontal rollout. He does however reverse the armbar into a back hammerlock, dodges a Rear snapmare and finies up with a Manchette or two. Starbuck no sells a bodycheck and BVD pays him back in kind. We return from a slo-mo highlight to find Starbuck in charge, developing a guard armlock into something more advanced. He gets up and he and Bernie take turns with the armbar. Starbuck gets a kneeling fireman's carry takedown but BVD slips out the back to retake the hammerlock. Starbuck does roll over and gets a headscissors plus wristlock. BVD tries to bridge out then kips out. They go into a round and round repeat of this then briefly brawl as the bell rings for some reason (there are no rounds.) They brawl some mor3 and Asta uck gets a long suplex and a snap suplex. A back elbow gets a 2. Starbuck gets a snapmare suplex and guillotine elbowsmash for 2s also. He gets a chinlock on the mat but Bernie kicks upwards. They brawl on getting the odd 2 count each. Starbuck gets a reverse neckbreaker for 2. Starbuck gets in Avertisement and a nice double underhook,.a slam but misses a flying elbowsmash, a neckbreaker, a second Avertisement, a powerbomb and double leg nelson for 2. Someone somewhere is a , rear leapfrogs the champion and He slams Damme but misses another elbowsmash. Bernard battering rams Starbuck in a corner, backdrops him, posts and powerslams him. Hits two elbow drops and a reverse flying shoulderblock. Starbuck reverses a posting but BVD impacts well, backwards leapfrogs the champion but Starbuck superkicks him and gets a couple of 2s as does an over the knee backbreaker and elbowsmash, as too does a piledriver. Actually Starbuck looks to have won with the piledriver but Bernard's foot is on the bottom rope. Bernard gets a big powerslam but lands out of position for the pin cover. Both men getup wearily from a double KO count Bernard gets kneelifts, Starbuck tries and fails to get a piledriver but BVD shrugs him off. He is on a mission. He lands on the top turnbuckle from a posting and comes off with a flying bodypress for the winning fall, the same finisher he used to polish off Bad Mask in the other match to regain the title. Afterbirth - Scott Ryder comes to the ring with Cannonball who looks like the last years of Giant Haystacks to challenge new champ BVD. This would have made a good modern American epic - big spot moves and lots of 2 count false finishes - but it lacks the fluidity of the chain sequence style in any Euro territory.