David Mantell

Les Falcons D'Or Vs Yann Caradec & Patrique Martineau. This is the episode I posted a video of in my last post

And just look who their manager is! Yes folks HASSAN BAMBANI, everyone's favourite loveable funny smiling midget Bon and football mascot. Working as a heel manager with a scowl and wearing the world's smallest funeral director outfit. Been going through episodes of New Catch Season 1 from 1988 in preparation for a deep dive when I came across this and just had to share now this instant.

Some Reslo this week from 1987 and an odd one - Comedian versus Monster: Round 1: Corneely/Corneely (we've had a few spellings of his name on here) doesn't do anything comic- or technical - or even aggressive. He just gets the snot pounded out of him. Even when he tries to domcomedybfalls, he's getting too much sympathy for the audience to laugh at him. After three minutes of this, the bell goes. Chang/Mason sensibly doesn't twist while agead- he makes it a clean round break. Round 2. Kevin is very angry and lets rip a whole tirade in his Irish accent. He's sympathisably angry so it doesn't really get any laughs. Mason collars him and slowly marches him around the ring. Kevin finally gets some offence, bending Chang's fingers back so Chang throws him to the mat and resumes. Chang gets a double underhook suplex, the first scientific move of the match- and scores a KNOCKOUT. If you didn't like Corneely's previous comedy, watch this for the schadenfreude of him getting beaten up. Otherwise it's an execution and a vehicle for Chang to build him up for bigger things like his one and only ITV appearance later that year.

The tape reel finishes with a Catch Á Quatre. Two fast paced high flying superheroes Angelito and the young Flesh Gordon team up to face Black Shadow and Elliot Frederick, future Grim Rocker, present Rocky du Ring. I'm wondering if Rocky has nothing to do with Stallone's character and is actually an Anglecism for a Rocker as in a biker - think the Rockers as in Peter Lapaque and Tommy Lorne (not Michaels and Janette!) - the Greasers whoo fought mods in Brighton. Alleged African-American (actually Moroccan) Black Shadow's heel work over several years has drawn praise on here. Première Manche: Flesh easily absorbs Eliot's early attack and goes to work with an array of armdrags. Angelito easily rolls out of Elliott's throws and gets some good armdrags of his own off top wristlocks. Shadow gets the same treatment briefly has a long press on Angelito who wedges out. Flesh tries forca reverse snapmare but doesn't get the height so settles for a rear snapmare instead. He spins out of a standing hammerlock to get a shoulderblock. Angelito and Rocky take turns reversing whips on each other. Angelito resists side chancery throws by Black Shadow, lands feet first from a leg flip and comes right back with a dropkick. Eliot gets an advantage with illegal punches on Flesh. Shadow hits ringside after Angelito dodges a charge. Flesh gets a huaracanrana into double kneepress on Eliot and Shadow has to rescue him from a fall. Angelito gets a good money climb on fellow Spaniard Eliot but a second attempt sees him overpowered and backdropped by Le Rocky then kneedropped and covered for 2 by Shadow. Les Méchants are getting their heat on Angelio- he sells one bump spinning to a crash. Gordon gets hot tag.and one armdrags I to crosspress gets them the opening fall although La Publique are slow to react. Deuxième Manche: starts much the sam3 as th3vfirst- high flying stuff from Les Bons. Angelito is caught in a full nelson and Elite is as adept at helping the hold as Ken Joyce was keeping it on Jeff Kaye last week on the British thread. Angelito even tries spinning le Rocky off but he clings on. Angelito eventually throws Elliot forward like a rear snapmare onto the mat but he leg flips Angelito into the ropes. Eliot works Angelito on the mat and flips him to ringside. Angelito lands badly, Gordon comes to his side and acsecond drags him back to Les Bons' corner. Les Méchants go to work on Flesh, both stomping him on the mat, which earns Shadow un Avertisement. The villains keep Flesh in their corner until he suddenly gets a sunset flip into doubl3 leg nelson on Shadow while Angelito gets one of his own flying off the top onto Eliot. But L'Arbitre won't have them both scoring pins and refuses the counts. In response, Les Bons throw Les Méchants outside and everyone brawls at ringside. The two Spaniards get back and Frederico throws Angelito on top of his partner. But Angelito gets backs and gets a quick victory roll on Le Rocky for the second straight tombée and the win. Good high flying show from the babyfaces. A pity we don't get to see Shadow antagonise the crowd as much as some other bouts of his.

1988 - 17 December, on the day of ITV's The Final Bell and just nine days before the French equivalent, the season finale of New Catch Series 1. Salvatore Bellomo, weeks after appearing the latter and a month short of 16 years after being Tini Salvatore on World of Sport's January 1973 Fanfare for Europe here works villain for one of the first times, teaming with one of the German speaking Worlds most infamous villains. Kauroff starts the dirty stuff early concealing illegal punches to Schumann from referee Mick McMichael. Bellomo keeps the treatment going but he and Kauroff have an at times awkward relationship, arguing over a tag. When Bellomo scores a pin,however, Kauroff is happy t9 be his friend. When Steinblock equalises on Bellomo, the villains abandon competing, instead throwing Schumann out of the ring and double teaming Steinblock, tying him in the ropes by the neck and beating down on him 7ntil McMichael disqualifies the heels. Short highlight package of what was probably a fairly unsophisticated face/heel tag.

Quite a nice vlog from Josh Faulkner on Mighty John Quinn, even if he neglects to mention the "/My Daddy said all Limeys were Cowards in WW2" speech.

You'd be AMAZED who knows all about old British Wrestling - and who nearly got involved themselves ...

I forgot to mention, this is two months after he was special referee for the Harley Race Vs Junkyard Dog main event at Bercy Stadium for the WWF's debut European show. Probably both that show and this had a whole load of spectators from the respective opposite sides of the Rhine. In fact I guess many people went to both.

Dynamite Kid was off to Stampede so the British Welterweight title was vacant. Two aging but skills scientific greats, both soon to become referees, are hx bing a quarter final together. Joyce was European Welterweight champion previously (a title Dynamite also vacated) but, as Kent mentions, despite several close shaves, has never had the British title. Round 1 KJ counters an armbar with a kip up, JK with a Steve Grey horizontal mat spin. KJ does a rollout and while down gets a legspread. JK twists sideways to easily unhook himself. Double interlock and JK falls backwards, scissors and arm and makes it into a figure 4 top wristlock on the mat. KJ stand up and straights thecarm to make an armbar. JK rolls out but KJ drags him back down into a guard armlock twice. JK rolls, kips back, cartwheels out and gets a rare whip on a KJ who instead of his usual resisting takes the somersault and lands neatly on his feet. KJ gets a rear waistlock into front folding press for 2, JK gets a double arm stretch pushing against the shoulders. he rolls back and risks a folding press unpicking both grips but he does it. He helps JK up, they shake hands, quickly KJ gets a whip and forces a somersault bump but JK is up by 5. Double interlock and JK gets a neat drop toehold into ankle scissor. Ken tries to make an Indian Deathlock of it but to not much effect so referee Max Ward calls for a break and they comply. KJ gets a Japanese Stranglehold and resists JK's attempt to twist out. The bell stops a second attempt. Round 2 . Double interlock into JK side headlock but KJ headstands out. He does a Mike Marino esque escape from a second one - less corkscrew more spin-ny. Double interlock again and JK leans back and gets crossed headscissors but KJ slips out easily pulling himself a few inches backwards. JK gets a standing top wristlock, KJ counters with a perfect French Catch style Scisseaux Volees takedown. He drags JK away from the ropes by the hold, easily prevents JK kipping out or getting the hold upright. He does briefly get a kip up but KJ pulls him back down in the hold. He keeps the arm and pulls JK back in again The third time JK gets the upright kneeling position and pulls his head free but KJ pushes him back in. The fourth time, JK assumes the upside down position and anklescissors KJ's feet to uncork the headscissor. KJ gets another full Japanese Stranglehold off a double Interlock. JK tries slipping downwards in it 5en slipping upwards and out but he bell saves him the trouble. Round 3 and JK gets a single leg into toe and ankle hold. KJ widens the legs and boots JK in the stomach so that the lower centre of gravity is too much and H3 falls backwards. JK gets the side chancery but KJ blocks it in his characteristic style. JK tries and fails again, releases and then suddenly reapplies the side chancery and gets the throw. KJ gets a shoulderblock and dodged a JK flying tackle but JK leapfrogs him and gets a cross buttock throw and press for three! First fall to Jeff Kaye. Round 4. JK gets a single leg into ground leglock. KJ counters with both a half chinlock and bashing JK's grip with his heel, which works. They start over and JK gets a headlock but KJ does a more obviously Mike Marino esque twistout. KJ gets a standing full nelson, twice JK breaks one side but KJ goes behind to reapply. A slip down/backroll escape ends with KJ reapplying the hold. A force out and backwards dropkick finally does the trick flooring KJ for 6. JK throws KJ who rolls upright. JK tries a dropkick, KJ catches the feet but JK curls through into the Boston Crab position and crawling into the crab escape. then flips KJ over and sits up into a double knee press. KJ fells him for a double leg nelson but JK folds back into a folding press but KJ crawls forward. It's all too near the ropes so they break. (At which point we get a long advert breaks courtesy of the Fight Network. Fast forward). Double interlock ends with JK's foot on KJs hand so they break again. KJ gets double legs and crouches to try his usual banging the head on the mat low waistlock. JK tries to avoid the bangs with a beautifully done bridge. Hectries to sit up but gets a headbang. A second try and he comes forward, overbalances KJ and gets a double kneepress but KJ wedges out. JK is up at 3. He gets a hammerlock off a double Interlock but KJ goes through the legs for a rear legdive and fells JK who boots him off into the ropes and tries catch him on the rebound but KJ arrests his own momentum, walks over and casually takes an anklelock on JK. (Memo to Orange bloody Cassidy. THIS is how you do casual -not trying to play footsie with your opponent.). KJ clamps down on the single toehold. He folds up various other JK appendages and turns him over to make some kind of Indian Deathlock but the bell rings. Round 5 KJ easily slips out of a partial front chancery and escapes a rear waistlock slipping through the legs and behind to take down JK and turn him over into the reverse double leg nelson. JK easily slips out and gets a toehold but KJ goes up on his head. JK grabs the other foot but it's a stalemate. KJ again dodges a JK flying tackle and JK needs 7 to get up but then cartwheels cheerfully out of a throw. JK goes for the neck but KJ whips him but JK lands on his feet. He tries double legs but aKJ sharply folds him over ina front folding press for the equaliser. 1-1. Round 6. JK backrolls off a single arm interlock but KJ gets a firmer grip. KJ gets the standing back hammerlock and keeps hold a while until aJK tries rolling out but is caught in a guard armlock. JK gets up, goes into a headstand and while upside down gets a headscissors takedown on KJ but Runs Out Of Mat. He gets an arm and tries for a posting but KJ characteristically sits down to block this! He resists a second time and lets JK drag him by thecarm before getting up and whipping JK to the ropes. JK comes back with a bodycheck but KJ springs up. JK dives over for a sunset flip and pulls him down with his legs but KJ swings over by his neck and goes forward folding pressing JK and sealing it with a headstand. Ken Joyce wins 2-1 and goes through to the semifinals to lose to Steve Grey who draws with other semifinalist Jim Breaks in FA Cup Final day ITV before Breaks wins the rematch and belt at the Royal Albert Hall that summer - only for the wheel to turn full circle as Breaks' new challenger is Dynamite's young cousin Young David aka Davey Boy Smith. But that is for the future. For now, a fantastic technical bout from Ken Joyce and Jeff Kaye and a good antidote to Wanz/Andre 1987.

Okay here is That Special 1987 Bout: The rematch. Three to four weeks after Survivor Series 87 and less than seven weeks before actually capturing a World title on The Main Event, Andre has a crack at Otto's CWA belt. I guess this is a title shot earned by his non title victory over Wanz the previous year. If Andre was somewhat heelish in the previous bout, this time he is totally the Evil Giant of his 1987-1990 WWF stint. He's got the black one armed leotard on like Cyanide Syd Cooper, Steve Haggerty or Billy Canataxaro. Or indeed Bobby Heenan who is the one missing piece of the puzzle here. Actually it's not the first time Heenan has no showed a Heenan Family visit to the German speaking world - back in 1983 instead of accompanying Nick Bockwinkel on a transatlantic trip to face Otto, (a return match from Wanz's AWA World title exchanges) Bocky was instead accompanied by his old enemy Verne Gagne in what I guess must have been a rare heel performance by Bald Old Verne. Otto comes down to the ring in a patriotic Austrian Red and White Just think of patriotism in wrestling as a blank slate. It can be filled with Stars and Stripes or Maple leaves, or Union Jacks and Tricolores. Or it can be the kind of cod Welsh nationalism we got on Reslo, or here the local pride of the Osterleichs ((c)Giant Haystacks.) And so to the match. Runde 1. Didier Gapp in charge I believe. Andre takes his time starting, soaking up heel heat. He works totally as Heel Andre of the late 80, slow, lumbering but deadly. He gets a triangle choke early on (taught to him by Ted DiBiase perhaps? - it's a fine Million Dollar Dream if ever I saw one.) He gets a double underhook and is going for the Sloppy Suplex that would beat Hogan 47days later when the bell goes. Runde 2.Morecstallin. A bearhug. Otto gets a big pop pounding Andre to the mat but Andre trips and leglocks him. Both men have a bald second- Otto's is Steve Wright, Andre's has a beard and looks halfway between Baron Von Rashcke and Marquis Eduardo. Runde 3. Andre gets the leglock but Otto gets a rope break-Andre is slow to release and soon choking Otto on the ropes. MC pronounced Andre's name like the A in Andrew. Otto gets a chinlock, Andre gets the rope break, Otto pounds Andre in retaliation for earlier and I think gets a yellow card for it. Bell goes as Andre has Otto cornered. Runde 4. Andre gets standing chinlock. Changes to armbar, trying to make it into a double wristlock. Otto counters with successful single leg takedown. He makes a standing leglock of it. He converts it to a Frank Gotch toehold but the other leg gets free. Otto switches to armbars on the mat but Andre throws him off. Andre chops down as the bells goes. DJ plays If I Had A Hammer by the Seekers. Runde 5. Andre gets double underarms, switching briefly to double straight arms - gawd, is he planning a surfboard? Otto corners and beats Andre down.Then Andre's turn. Then Otto's. Otto is knocked down for a KO count but saved by the bell. Runde 6: Andre is at work on Otto's arm, headbutting the tricep and trying to make it into a hammerlock again. Andre gets thrown outside but pulls Otto out with him. They brawl at ringside, the count gets near to 10, Otto crawls back and beats the count, Andre does not. Otto is the winner and still the champion. Better luck for Andre 47 days later in Indianapolis. Verdict- It's a pretty lousy match between two plesiosaurs but no worse than anything Andre and Hulk did in the same time period. Okay, a few weeks of 1988/1989 and then we go back to 1987 - it'll last about a year (longer if interruptions occur) but it will finish off the 1980s project unless more footage becomes available.

Eduardo. The original Marquis before Jacky Richard. I'm kind of taking to him as a heel character, a snarling aggressive thug snob who thinks rules and decency are below him. He's got the butler Paul Butin Fluchard (actually a promoter) with him, interfering and all the usual stuff. Mallard is an older guy, I think this is the only bout we have of him . Ed struts around as he throws off Gerald. He's quite a power wrestler, dominating Mallard. He looks down his nose at la publique when they boo him for hairpulls. La Publique in turn love it when the arrogant brute takes a bump. George Weiss. a heel ref of the Michel Saulnier school, behaved himself in the last bout but he's starting to show favour to Le Méchant Marquis. At one point Le Marquis holds Mallard down while Butin does humiliating things to him with his feather duster. When Eduardo gets thrown from from the ring he struts around ringside, chest puffed up in arrogant fury. Butin ends up tied by the foot to all three ring ropes and a second has to rescue him. At one point Le Marquis is pitched out of the ring on top of Paul and he gives the common servant a good slapping. The end icones when the butler trips Mallard and Eduardo crosspresses him for a pin which Weiss counts, followdowns rule bevdamned. It's basically a vehicle for le Marquis and he comes over as just as much a brute as Mambo Le Primitiv in his own way. Sadly Eduardo only had one other TV match as Marquis before Marquis Richard took over the gimmick in 1985.

That's 1986 done. But there are only three or four 1988-1989 bouts Vs perhaps a year of 1987. So next week we'll do one very important 1987 bout, get 88-89 out of the way then come back for that year's with of 1877. See you next week for that special 1987 bout.

We've finally reached our last 1986 bout and it's a special one: Two big men go at it that summer. Otto is now obese, eight years into his second CWA title reign. Next year he and Peter Wilhelm will seize the IBV from Nico S and turn it into Catch Wrestling Austria. Andre has let the Machines angle get its own steam and is off having a rest , filming the Princess Bride,, chilling out - and having this match. Andre had plenty of visits eastwards across the Rhine before moving from France to Quebec. This is part of a professionally filmed Otto's Greatest Fights videotape - we see a caption slides with an image of the CWA belt. Runde 1 is very much built around armlocks,double wristlocks, Hammerlocks from front, position armbars. If Andre doesn't have a kimura/double wristlock/ hammerlock with bar in place, he is desperate y trying to get one, try to bend a straight Otto arm into a figure four position. It's very much an old German.Wrestling, the slow leverage battles of Axe CV6 Otto tries to counter with a crotch holds, trying for a slam. Andre is hesitant to release on the bell and although his alliance with Heenan is 6 months off, he settles into the heel role for this bout from this point. To be fair he only knew much of rounds from trips to the UK, Spain and Germany/Austria. Runde 2 is more of a slug and punch brawl. Otto slugs out of the armlock attempt and off they go. Andre tries choking Otto who shoves him to ringside and later ties him up. Otto is now the one trying for a double wristlock. He levers Andre down, turns him into the Guard, tries and tries for a cross press but Andre turns him over and gets an American small package for one (or maybe it was a very messy side folding press.Andrecgets up but misses a splash and is kicked around as he gets the ropes. They brawl in the ropes as the bell (hooter goes). Runde 3 - more of the same - armbars on the ropes - slug and punch. Andre gets a leglock on the mat. Otto gets a top wristlock on the mat then an armhank. Andre sells it noisily. Aand eventually gets his own leglock. Into Gotch toehold!. Otto tries to push up and holds on until the hooter goes. Runde 4. Andre gets long knockdowns from an elbow and a headbutt then choked Otto until Wanz reverses on the ropes. Wanz ejected Andre sits on Otto like he did in the WWF.to opponents such as Ax. Otto gets a front chancer.y into abdominal stretch. The hooter goes. Runde 5. Oddly like the finish of WM3. Andre goes to work, misses a boot, Otto gets a slam and somersault splash but Andre puts up a boot to catch Otto on the chin. Andre covers Otto and eventually gets a very slow 3 count for the one fall required

Astonishingly I can't find an earlier review for this 1978 tournament final, billed as the King Of the Ring, just like the WWF. Grey was newly crowned British Lightweight champion- a title he held on and off until his 2021 retirement (since when Nino Bryant has held it) occasionally dropping to the latest TBW sensation like Kid McCoy or Tony Stewart.. Rocco had recently lost his British Heavy Middleweight title to Marty Jones in a title v S ti5le match. This sounds promising. Originally this was supposed to be the second semifinal but Huntsman (Not Aristocrat!) and vicious heel Tally Ho Kaye has been " Disgraced And Disqualified" which sums up the British attitude to DQs. They were not a cheap way out., they were a source of SHAME. Unless the heel was such a villain that they didn't care about wins or losses, just fouling and hurting them. The sort of miscreant who wears school expulsions and even prison time as badges of pride. Naylor is in no fit state to wrestle the winner of this match so it gets upgraded to Final. Round 1. Grey willingly takes a hard bump from a Rocco wristlever to position himself for a ground position dropkick. He can also come upright from a throw. We get to see Rocco's own reversing skill as H3 rolls out of an armbar the classic British way. He gets a top wristlock but Grey pulls it down, gets a foot inside and forces Rocco to take a spinning bump. Grey dodges the rebound from,m a Rocco headlock and bodycheck charge. They exchange armlocks and Grey gets a back hammerlock but Rocco picks it open with one foot th3 reaches back and gets a neat rear snapmare but Grey takes the bump rolling til upright. Rocco gets a side chancery into underhook suplex into cross press for 2. Grey gets an armdrag and Rocco gets a side folding press for 2. Rocco picks off one side of a double Interlock and makes the other arm into a hammerlock. Grey counters with a backdrop but Rocco holds on with a flying headscissor and with motion arrested, convets to a sunset flip and front double leg nelson. Grey counters with a double ankle smash. Rocco gets a whip into ropes and bodycheck on the rebound for 6, then a bodyslam and double kneepress for several 2s. He then breaks out the forearm smashes for a 4 and a 6 but happily goes back to science with a snapmare into rear seated chinlock, adjusting sides. Grey gets Rocco's barring arm straightened into a wrist lever. Rocco picks it off with a foot an snapmares Steve down into the chinlock again but Grey uses the same escape to wristlock. He briefly tries a straight arm lift but Rocco gets him down. However Grey gets a second ground placed dropkick. Rocco gets a cross buttock throw into a side headlock. He switches to a chinlock then a crosspress for 2, then an armbar into low armdrags into another crosspress, this time for a couple of 2s. Rocco gets a stomach lunge. He gets a headlock, arrests a throw, gets a cross buttock of his of but gets headscissored. He turns it to the upside down position and nearly uncorks the hold with his knees, earning himself some applause - heel or no, that was good! He gets a full nelson but the bell goes - he slightly shoves Grey off which Grey isn't too happy about. Still a very good scientific first round. Probably the second most scientific round I have seen from Rocco, second only to his December 1981 World title match with Dynamite Kid. Will it last? I somehow doubt it. Round 2. Rocco off too a start with a front chancery into double underhook suplex into crosspress for a couple of 2s. Finally he gets into brawling mode, mainly with kicks that come so thick and fast it's hard for referee Max Ward to claim not continuous movement. He gets two side chancery throws, the secomd of which puts Steve Grey on the ring apron to tumble to the floor. He is back at 3 but straight into a magnificent Rocco monkey climb. A second I e gets a bump but Grey absorbs i5 well enough to fire back with a dropkick. Rocco recovers, whips Grey to the ropes, catches Grey's flyingbtacl3 attempt and gets a face first Piledriver (Tombstone) for six then another one plus double knees for the opening pin. Rocco now in the lead. Round 3 Rocco gets a stomp, a headbutt for 6 and a forearm for 6., an axe handle. kneelifts chops. Finally he slams the already downed Grey's head in the mat and gets a public warning. But he continues the roughhouse gameplan- Kent reckons he is going for Steve's back. After a headbutt he goes for a neck suspension backbreaker across his own back but Grey rolls upwards and flips into a standing front facing position, levering his head free of the grip to get a double Interlock and lean back dropkick.He gets a couple of headsmashes of his own for which Ward privately warns him but lets go for retaliation. Rocco is complaining of teeth hit. He clamps Grey on the ropes, gets a whip and kick to stomach for 7, a slam and double knees for 2, crosspress for another 2. He let's Grey up but gets a grovit. Grey whips him, catches the kneecap in passin. Gets the legbut A Rocco grabs the top rope. Rocco gets free and lunges for Grey's stomach. He backdrops and crosspresses Grey for 1s and 2s. He switches to double kneepress but after 1Grey bridges up, gets a leaning rear chancery, but Rocco shrugs him off to fall down. Grey is up at 8 but into a posting for 7, a rear forearm smash for 8, another posting and into an over the shoulder backbreaker (on top of all th3vback weakeners) looking for a second straight submission. But Grey breaks open the grip, slides down and gets a big backdrop for 7. With the clock winding down, Grey gets a legdive and all four limbs ready for a surfboard but the bell goes before he can hoist Rocco up. It's halfway through and Grey is still trailing. Round 4 Rocco gets a butt to the stomach. Side chancery throw and somersault splash, his sheer speed helping him get round the continuous motion rule. He gets a front chancery I to double underhook but instead of going for a suplex drives in a knee to Grey's chest. It gets a 2 mainly because Rocco brazenly kicks Steve on the mat, causing Ward to abort the count. Grey is barely up when Rocco gets an axehandle for 6, a posting for 5and a boot in the behind for 7, a side chancery takedown into seated chinlock into headlock and strangle. But Grey is pressed up and levers his head out, taking an armbar with him to help get a posting. Rocco stays up, gets a kne3 on Grey as he moves in and a front chancery but again Grey gets free and takes a convenient posting arm with him. The posting done, he follows with a dropkick, backdrop and a slightly awkward flying bodypress for the equaliser. One each with two rounds left. Round 5. Rocco gets a headlock and some illegal concealed punches. Grey falls and Rocco stomps him, earning himself a Second and Final Public Warning. Th3 next one, he will share Tally Ho Kaye's "Disgraceful" fate. Nonetheless Rocco gets some headbutts and Grey gets a spinning kick (nothing too fancy mind) and stomps. He throws Rocco hard , gets a leg on the ropes. Rocco kicks him off gets a kneelift, catches Grey's flying tackle attempt, slams him upside down into the corner gets anothercslam during which Grey's legs catch the ropes but it looks enough of an accident that Ward lets it go. He gets a whip but Grey responds with an easy kneelift.Rocco nonetheless gets double legs into a single leg Boston Crab for the deciding submission. Rocco is winner , 1978 King of the Ring and soon wins a tournament to get his British Heavy Middleweight title back. He does give up on moving up the weights, instead moving sideways to become World champion, holding that title on and off for a decade till he retires. Like I said, that first round is the most scientific I've ever seen of Rocco (still possible rival Round 1 of the Dec '81 Rocco Dynamite World title match. The crest stayed just about my preferred side of the Good Wrestling Match/Good Fight schism. That's two good matches so far this weekend, this and the surprising 1984: Primitiv-Lopez French Catch match. The German bout however will be at the other end of the speed spectrum from these two.

Okay, let's do another one of these unedited mid 80s tapes. Mambo is called Mongo here but otherwise it's the same Masked King Kong I reviewed three weeks ago. Same furry ITV BBC Patric Lopez later on would wear a full rugby playing costume on New Catch and Reslo on S4C in Wales but here he's just a no nonsense wrestler with a legitimate Rugby playing background like Mal Kirk. In many ways it's not different from American Footballers - Wahoo, Steve Williams, Duggan, Luger. Simmons - who make the "Gridiron To Grapplr" mov3 as Gordon Solie once termed it. Unlike other recent apprentices by Le Primitiv, there is no doubt here who Le Bon is. Without his rugge4 gear Patric is pretty athletic, cartwheeling from a MLP throw and nearly aborting a sidestepped dropkick. He backflips out of an armbar. Mongo gets some armdrags in. Lopez gets a classic Scisseaux Volees takedown (sadly we get a shot of the Orchestre instead of seeing how Primitiv freed his head from the scissor. Lopez has a great counter to standing full nelson, leaping up and twisting mid air to make a flying cross buttock throw into takedown. Mongo ends up ringside. He gets back but Lopez dropkicks him back out. Lopez dives foward to get a handstanding headscissors into huaracanrana into front double leg nelson. They do a slower slightly clumsier version of the back and forth folding press attempts of which the lighter weights in Britain are masters. Mongo goes into a headstand, he tries for the huaracanrana, doesn't quite manage it but does get a backdrop out of the situation. He gets a bearhug (not a gorilla hug?) and gives Lopez his own visit to ringside. Mongo follows in with a TOPÉ!!!!. Let's just stop to consider that- a man in a Gorillagram suit does a Topé on French TV in 1984. Even the TV station are impressed enough to do a slo-mo replay. Mongo gets an Ivan Koloff kneedrop for a 10 count KNOCKOUT!!! Seconds carry Lopez out. L'Orchestre are delighted with their man, a spectator less so- he tries to goad Le Primitiv into a fight before bouncers eject him. Mongo (not Steve McMichael) joins th3 party at ringside and they all parade off in a conga line to who knows where. Much better than a match between one wrestler with a gimmick and one with an idea fo4 a gimmick had any right to be. Some really good exchanges and ideas and some ahead of their time flying spots. Even in Britain it took visiting Japanese like Yamada to get those moves on ITV. Coming next week - Marquis Eduardo Vs Gerald Mallard. Feel free to let the video run on and spoiler yourselves before that.

Regarding OJ's first point it's just as well that none of Walton, the audience and ITV executives had seen Brody's N-bomb dropping behaviour on German home video circa 1985 which may possibly have sown the seed for fellow German tournament scenester Ed Wisowski's Colonel DeBeers gimmick in the AWA the next year. Perhaps Miss Petite Fleur was an attempt to back away from that kind of dark heat. Talking of Germany/Austria , Brody has the Vienna Cup he won the previous year 1986 with him. Alan also has a familiar face seconding him, his equally hearing challenged second Jimmy Napper, with whom he chats in sign language between rounds. Round 1: A couple of lockups end with Kilby against the ropes and Brody getting in a crafty knee as he breaks. Bald Brody complains about a hairpull (file under The Best, the Old Jokes are). When the situation is reversed, Alan asks the crowd if he should deal similarly and Brody is quick to take advantage. Kilby is up against the ropes but he ducks a descending heel of hand from Brody who ends up falling out of the ring. Kilby flips him in and dropkicks him out. Someone very audibly shouts something homophobic at Brody - a reference to his former "mean moody" Magnificent Maurice gimmick? We finally get some science as Brody gets a semi Japanese Stranglehold., forcing Kilby to the guard on the mat. Kilby forces his way upright but Brody takes him back down The first good reversal as Kilby straightens the barring arm into a rear wristlock. Brody the cowardly heel dives for a rope escape.. iIt makes little difference anyway as the bell goes. Cut to Round 3: Brody uses pressure points to drive Kilby to his knees, slipping his own knee in and getting a 4 count. He posts Kilby. He gets a late knee and slingshots him by the throat off the top rope, each of which earn him a private warning from ref Jeff Kaye. A forearm smash gets him a six count and a hangman's lift an opening submission. Cut to Round 5: Apparently Brody is on his second and final public warning, presumably accrued during round 2 (Kaye alludes to this in round 3 so I think both were in Round 2). Brody gets a single legdive into toehold , trying to turn Kilby for a single leg Boston Crab but Alan boots him off in the skull. Alan gets to work with a side chancery, mule kick and flying forearm smash. Brody swings at Alan and misses. allowing Alan to get behind. trip Brody and get an equalising pin with a side folding press - about the best technical move so far. At this point Brody is disqualified. Presumably for a third public warning but we never get to see what, however Kilby is down on the mat when we come back from an action replay so presumably Brody attacked Kilby between rounds. This was originally an opening match for Marty Jones Vs Owen Hart and a Golden Grappler trophy semifinal. Apart from that great folding press it was mostly a strength bout which is a pity as 8 know both men are capable of better.

Okay. the last remaining match from the above video. Les Pihranas, like Mambo and Les Maniaks (and some would add Jessy Texas, le Rocky du Ring, Marquis Richard with his butler and even Flesh Gordon himself) were symptomatic of the more cartoony direction French Catch too in the mid 1980s. They all paved the way for Travesti Man. Scott Rider, Bad Mask and Cybernic Machine. They perform the breast stroke as a sort of wardance to symbolise themselves swimming over to their "prey" Flesh himself is still in his young skinny phase and is tagging with veteran Bon and former masked man Angelito "Le Petit Prince de la Voltige" - ironically LEEEE Petit Prince, Daniel Dubail, was still active at this time. Première Manche: Say what you will about the Piranhas but whoever was behind the green masks knew their Catch onions. Angelito gets some feet first landings from a rear snapmare and a throw. He also gets a decent monkey climb. Cazal who had already made a dreadful pun about Pihranas/Jean Pradinas, keeps it going with references to fishy anatomy like the dorsal fin. Flesh, like Angelito has a very aerial attack. But surprisingly so do the Pihranas - one of them gets a quick opening fall with a Superfly splash. Flesh protests on deaf ears, L'Arbitre is George Weiss who fancies himself as the second coming of horrid little man Michel Saulnier. Deuxième Manche: the Fish get underway stomping on Angelito. Choking him with yellow trim from their outfits (which one Piranha tucks away under hi collar. Flesh gets in a good missile dropkick before either playing VIP or arguing with Weiss. He gets some good armdrags in. Cazal thinks the Piranhas would have more joy in a swimming pool match, haha. Flesh takes some armdrag bumps. The masked team again use their yellow trim as an international objects. La publique shouts for Avertisements but George Weiss ignores them (and gets the Aux Chiottes Arbitre treatment for this). Flesh misses the flying headscissor takedown but gets an armdrag to make up for it. Angelito gets a front chancery but the Pihrana back drops him. He gets a victory rolls but no follow up pin attempt. Flesh and the fish miss a lot of flying moves. Angelito tags in, gets a bunch of missile dropkicks and a victory roll for the equalising pin. During the Interval, Weiss picks a fight with Les Bons ové who is the legal man in. L'Arbitre takes refuge in Les Piranhss corner. La Belle. Angelito gets a a good flying headscissors and both sides some high bumping backdrops. The fish men begin to double team Angelito causing another Ref versus Flesh argument. Flesh gets an Avertisement , I believe a deuxiéme et derniére. An old guy in the crowd sticks his oar in and has to be led back by security. Flesh tags in, handles both masked men. Angelito joins him for some 2 on 2 which earns less Bons a DQ. A fishy victory, an early example of the faces get DQd "Pas de justice dans Le Monde!!!" finish which would go on to be a favourite of Flesh main events for WS. A decent high flying tag bout if you can look past the Fish Vs Superheroes gimmicks.

Okay, one more Bremen 1986 bout to go. Sadly not a great deal to write about. A generic 80s American versus a technically underdeveloped strength based Heavyweight. Not a lot to write about the action- Samson gets a few good cross buttock throws into side headlock and side chanceries into side headlocks on the mat but that's as good as it gets. No blow by blow for this one. Rambo is totally heel at this point. I thought I heard some German fans shouting for him but I think they were actually chanting Samson. It goes to the final round time limit draw. Referee Mick McMichael of Doncaster picks Samson as the winner. There is an afterbirth where Rambo stages a sit in protest until Samson ejects him. MC is shouty and adopts the French practice of getting the crowd to offer the workers "primes" (cash tips). It's enough when a redcoat at Butlins does this, never mind some guy yamming on to a filled out Stadhalle. Video quality is pretty grotty especially when you consider it was copied to DVD. Quite a few audio and colour signal dropouts. Quite a few cheesy 80s pop records from the DJ between rounds. Some I don't know, some I should and one I know only too well. Black Lace's cover of Agadoo with the English lyrics minus the bit from the original French "Agadou" where the girl frames him up for theft and he does a stretch in the hole. For the antidote to this horrid song, look up the Chicken Song by Spitting Image.

All the French Catch playlists are here: https://www.youtube.com/@alessio5083/playlists Personally I think Alessio should create another playlist "Catch Français 1988-present" and have it cover both seasons of New Catch ('88 and '91), the Feb '91 FR3 bout and all the post 1992 Eurostars/(I)WS(F) footage up to the present. I also think the 1989 New Caledonian tapping should in a separate playlist unto itself.

Actually we haven't covered off that particular bout. We did their Hannover bout earlier in this thread, we did their 1987 ITV bout on the British thread and on a personal level I've watched this one a few times when the smart TV put it on next after StClair/Wright but we've not examined that particular bout on here. So her3 goes. DJ plays some something I don't recognise about a train to Moscow. Referee Barry Douglas, allegedly of New Zealand and not a Relwyskow family Scion oh no, stands around. (At least the MC says it's him, I thought it was Didi). Casey (ex Steve McHoy, son of Wild Angus) does a very British blue eye entry. Manfred Mann's Mighty Quinn comes on and in he comes. MC claims Casey/McHoy is English, luckily McHoy doesn't kick the crap out of him for that one. His dad would have murdered the guy. Mind you, Quinn is announced as Alaskan. Runde 1 Quinn refuses a handshake. They look up, Quinn gets an armbar, Casey half turns, seemingly takes a bump then strikes with a ground placed dropkick. It even gets Quinn a KO count although it stops at Swei. Quinn gets the arm again but Steve counters with a single legdive into standing single toehold. MJQ successfully gets to the ropes. Steve this time gets an arm, applies weakeners, almost goes for a Jim Breaks special, forces a similar bump on Quinn then follows with a legdrop on the arm. Quinn is up at 4. They double interlock, Quinn gets a boot to the stomach, side chancery and bodycheck. He charges in for another but Steve catches him with a cross buttock throw at press for 2. Quinn gets a concealed illegal punch in a headlock and a four count. Casey feints a left hook at him and gets a private warning. Quinn gets a standing headlock into cross buttock throw into ground side headlock. He resists Steve's attempt to their over and gets a crosspress for 1. He next tries a standing full nelson, Casey tries throwing his man off and eventually succeeds, flipping him forward with Quinn taking a bump comparable to a decent bodyslam. End of round. DJ plays Kelly Marie "Feels Like I'm In Love" Runde 2 Casey seems to want to make it a boxing match (perhaps Quinn does a lot of dodgy fist stuff we can't see on the grainy video.). The crowd approve, the ref doesn't. Quinn boots Casey down in a single interlock. Case, still in the wristlever , backrolls a bit then does a classic British forward roll in th3 hold. He comes upright but Quinn pulls him down by the hair. But Casey kips right up and grapevines Quinn. Eventually Casey goes down but then kips up again, gets a forward roll, rolls backwards and puts himself into an underhook position to backdrop Quinn for a 3 KO Count He gets a legdive into crosspress on the mat for 1. Quinn has an arm on the ropes but Casey is reluctant to let go, feeling Quinn should doma less cheap escape. The crowd agree but the ref demands a break. Quinn gets a heel of hand blow and back elbow. The count on Casey is at four when Quin delivers a guillotine elbow so late it gets massive heat but the ref lets it gomand restarts the count which reaches 3. Casey gets a butt to stomach and something we don't see because of a crowd shot. He lands blows and tries a posting but Quinn makes it a whip to the ropes into a backdrop for 5. Quinn breaks the count stomping Casey on the mat. Despite warnings from the referee he keeps this up. Not sure if he gets a public warning or not, I see no cards. Somewhere in this the bell goes. DJ plays something cheesy and 1970s easy listening with a bouzouki on it. Runde 3 Quinn just generally batters Casey, shoulderblocking him for 6. Just as I'm about to give up the blow by blow, Casey absorbs a posting, goes behind Quinn and gets a rear rollup folding press for 1. Casey gets a kick to Quinn's head off the ropes and it all goes quite brawlsome. Casey gets a near snapmare into Legdrop for 4, slam and missile dropkick for 7!and flying tackle pin attempt for 2, a swinging neck breaker for 2, a posting into slam into crosspress for 2 Quinn puts Casey to ringside some way we don't see due to a crowd shot More stomps and a guillotine elbowsmash from Quinn. Casey on the mat stops the count by grabbing Quinn's foot. An irritated Quinn, once Casey is up, gets a concealed illegal punch to the chin. It goes slug and punch and Casey puts Quinn outside. End of round. DJ plays Karma Chameleon by Culture Club (this in 1986 when Boy George had split up with the song's subject, drummer Jon Moss and was in the depths of heroin addiction.) Runde 4 This time it's Quinn's turn to offer a handshake and Casey's turn to refuse. They brawl a bit then Casey gets a decent snapmare into legdrop and a dropkick for 5. Casey posts Quinn who catches him charging in with a boot for 7. Quinn misses a back elbow, tries for a slam but Casey slips out the back. He tries bouncing Quinn off the ropes for a roll up but Quinn doesn't go with it so when Casey falls backwards trying to pull Quinn down the Canadian heel splashes and crosspresses him for the winning pinfall and the crowd are FURIOUS!!! First two runden are just about a scientific wrestling match although brawling is Quinn's forté. Only by runde 3 does it become more a good fight than a good wrestling match as Kent Walton would say. Still a few curate's egg bits even after that.

I'm guessing it's the second bout because England has quite thick longish hair here, not exactly an Afro tho (his curl were veering that way by 1981 and the Sammy Lee match). Also because we see the blue World of Sport studio plus globe insignia and and I seem to recall that came in about 1979 when I was 5, replacing the yellow look. We JIP in Round 2. Kid tries an arm but England gets a cobra clutch first, bu5 oddly uses it to throw Kid who takes the bump. Kid tries to flip out of smother throw but again bumps instead. England fares better, twice coming upright after going over on both hands and looking smug about it. John gets the best of a double Interlock tes5 of strength but Kid bridges to avoid a pin and powers back. John also does a fine bridge and contemptuously pushes Kid down. Kid widens John's legs to fell him and catches him with a headbutt as he gets up then gets double legs into a folding press for the opening fall. (I should have liked to have seen that scoreless first round if Round 2is anything to go by!) Round 3. Comedy spot - John who was raging angrily after the bell - slams Kid's head into all four corners to no effect. Kid needs just one corner to get results. Kid gets a bit naughty and starts pulling John off the canvas to throw him down. The ref Peter Szakacs ets it go because England is blatantly stalling and eventually gives England a count of 7 to get him up the proper way. John tries an illegal punch but hurts his hand on Kid's head. He has more joy with a couple of postings and back of shoulders forearm s ash and some illegal stomps and some more postings. He gets a pair of gorilla presses and drops to the front for 8 then puts on an abdominal stretch which becomes a Zoltan Boscik 3 in 1 Special for an equalising submission. He then refuses to release and gets a public warning for it. But it is some work in progress for a second submission. Round 4. Kid gets to work with headbutts. England goes outside to the ring apron to stall, Kid flips him in by the head. England gets a single legdive takedown and leglock, Kid contemplates and delivers a heel smash to the cranium but England carries on work with the leg, splashing the knee several times (nearly getting another public warning) and leaving Chocolate limping on his right leg. England gets that Second And Final Public Warning for following a headbutt to the stomach with some more illegal stomps. John gets a fireman's carry and contemplates throwing Kid to ringside for a knockout. Problems - he's two Public Warnings down and a throw to ringside from immediately adjacent to the ropes will bring a third PW and disqualification. He decides to get round the rules by making it look like a double knockout by going over the ropes himself, hoping to be the one to make it back in time. Very crafty but takes quite a bump of his own account. The count reaches 10. England recovers a second too late and scurries back like the Hare seeing the Tortoise crossing the finish line, claiming a KO win. Certainly Kid got the worst of it but Szakacs confirms it's a double knockout. Nice try England but it didn't quite come off. Good short blue eye Vs villain match. England -unlike Tejero on the French Catch thread - actually got som3 good moves in rather than be a carpenter and make 53 good guy lok good. Interesting take on the knockout finish, I expect OJ won't approve but I thought it quite an imaginative finish, England caught in his own snare.

I thought OJ did a review of this straight underneath Mambo Vs Elliot. I was mistaken. Never mind. Actually I was right. Here it is: In between the Gorillagram and the fishy tag team next week, we have this old timers match. It's not their last ever meeting either, 5hey were on opposite sides the next year if a tag match I've already reviewed. Tejero looks visibly older here, shorter greyer hair looking less like his 23F namesake and more like a Spanish backbench Cortes member for the Partido Popular. Cohen just looks like an older British blue eye, Ike Wayne Bridges. Cohen gets an early Bon dominance, throwing Tejero around and out of the ring, flipping out of throws himself to land upright. Tejero is just carpenter for all this. The fans who cheered Allez Elliot into the last bout cheer Allez Cohen here. Cohen does a good Steve Grey head standing escape from a Tejero armbar. It's technical but it's focused on Bon Vs Méchant, not a balanced scientific match, it's all about making the Bon look good. We get a lot of crowd shots and one female fan in particular. She is probably a ringside granny by now at WS shows. Tejero does get a good planchette Japonaise which is something. Cohen does the Rick steamboat flip back into the ring, headscissors Tejero and flings him out. On the other hand he gets himself tied in the ropes a couple of times early on but the ref helps him out. Tejero does get advantages now and then with bits of dirty work or brawling but Cohen comes back with something technical. Tejero tries a sunset flip but Cohen just falls on him as he goes over. Cohen gets the winning fall by scooting through Tejero's legs and coming back off the ropes with a flying tackle and crosspress for the 3. That man .Jean Pradinas gets an on screen credit and mention from Daniel Cazal then there is a tape gap until next week's match. Something for the older fans in between the cavalcade of costumed characters that was the direction French Catch was going in by this point. We'll get a hearty taste of that next weekend.

I think this match deserves better. It's only eight minutes long but it was James Mason's coming of age moment. From the start. James handstands to lever out of a side headlock, then has Grey down for a 1 count when he tries to twist out of a headlock of Mason's own. Grey tries bridging out and cuts the pin count to 1 before wedging his way out. Grey gets an armbar but James does a two stage roll through. He tries a whip of his own but Grey rolls upright in one move. Grey handstands in Mason's next armbar and uses a foot to pick off the hold and take an armbar himself on young James. When Grey converts to a whip, Mason comes back off the ropes with a sunset flip into double leg nelson for 2 before Steve double ankle smashes his way out. Grey goes for the arm but Mason is quicker and gets a single leg into toehold, weakening the knee as he goes. Grey spins him off and Mason takes a somersault bump to go with the leg whip. Up at 6, James again gets the sunset flip into double leg nelson but Steve rolls backwards with the momentum and gets James' legs, pushing him back for a folding press of his own. James spins him off but Steve goes with it and cartwheels back upright.James develops an armbar into a back hammerlock, turns Grey into the guard and cross presses him for several one counts but Grey keeps getting an arm free. So James gets a doubl3 Interlock into armlever but Grey kicks him off and side chancery throws him, takes a single leg and applies a folding single leglock. From there he gets the other leg in a matching leglock and gets both wrists and leans back to complete the surfboard but James gets an arm free and escapes. He's still selling and Grey whips him but James surprises him with a side folding press for 2. Grey kicks out but James gets a backslide for another two count. He gets another armlever off a double Interlock and tries for the arm lift but Grey forearm smashes his way out. James gets yet another 2 count, this time with a flying tackle but Grey comes back with a snapmare into chinlock. James turns round in the hold arm straightens the arm into another armbar forcing Steve to take a hard somersault bump to untwist the arm. But Grey rolls backwards and gets in a crafty ground position dropkick. Yet again James gets the sunset flip into double leg nelson for 2 - this time Grey uses his heel to bash his way out. Grey tries a double leg takedown into folding press but James easily crawls out. From a double Interlock James gets a side chancery into side headlock into chinlock into lengthways press (now that's a rare conversion!) for a one count. James looks ready to try again but Grey doubl3 knees him in the head and posts him. Grey gets a monkey climb but Mason makes a feet first landing! He tries a dropkick but Grey catches his legs in mid flight and pulls him down for a Boston Crab but James not only flips him over but hooks both legs for the Davey Boy at Summerslam 92 folding press to get the pin, the win and the place in the World title final. Eight minutes of glorious technical wrestling with the one Grey kick and one Grey forearm smash being the only concessions to brawling. A TBW becomes a Young Master.

Not actually a match but the Ringerparade from the start of Bremen 1986. The real Dick Murdoch gets particularly strong heat - did German audiences know of his KKK connections? The heel team from the last match get plenty of hatred too.

Nice news feature from 2018 with Flesh Gordon looking smart in street clothes, Monsieur Jacky Richard as L'Arbitre, Prince Zéfy, Angel Bombita and an 11 year old megafan all interviewed.