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[1990-06-02-USWA-Memphis TV] Jerry Lawler vs The Snowman


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Totally bizarre spectacle. This is set up by a shoot angle with Snowman coming out of the audience at the TV studio and interrupting a Lawler interview. He accuses Lawler of ducking him because he is Black and they have a really frenetic pull apart. That leads to this match and it was one of the most realistic "guys aren't cooperating" matches I have ever seen. Lots of wild swinging awkward punches and cool Lawler takedowns, there are parts where both guys are going for the eyes which is kind of what you would expect in a racial tinged street fight. Crowd is totally electric, you get the sense they really got the crowd to buy into the whole angle. Reminded me of a Southern Fried version of Onita v. Aoyagi. Match is pretty short (about five minutes, although the footage maybe clipped) and that keeps this from the Epic pile, but it is definitely worth seeing, and something unique for Lawler.

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I'll talk more about this one when the time comes, but this is an incredible match. It's not clipped actually, it's just short. But it's probably the best sub-five minute match of all time. Lawler and Snowman do some non-cooperation spots to make it look like this match has turned into a shoot and the crowd is eating it up. The double leg takedown followed by strikes and jockeying for position really makes this feel like something out of UWFI. You don't typically see an American crowd ooh and ah for every single punch, but they make them look good enough and work the match smart enough that they get exactly that reaction. It's more the crowd reaction for a fight than a wrestling match. This will be a really fun one to rewatch, and it's one of the things I'm most excited about everyone seeing.

 

I didn't watch the other Lawler/Snowman matches on this set yet, but I did glimpse at them enough to know that they are worked in a similar style. Looking forward to catching it all.

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  • 1 month later...

Another fascinating addition to 1990's most fascinating angle. This is possibly the shootiest-looking match in history to not take place in a shoot promotion in Japan. Lots of wild, swinging haymakers, clinching, shoot takedowns, and going for the eyes. In some ways it almost comes off as inherently kayfabe-breaking because it legitimately feels way more out of control than a Moondogs match with a dozen foreign objects and tables getting involved. Snowman decks Jerry Calhoun in short order for the DQ and now I'm really anxious to see more from this. About as perfect of an appetizer-type match as you'll find. Kudos to Lawler and the promotion for giving us some of the most out-of-the-box booking you'll ever see in wrestling.

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

This is great and a total street fight. The wild punches, to the takedowns to the eye gouging . I loved how Lawler hit Snowman in the ear. I also loved when they did the takedowns they didn't shoot for submissions. They just threw bombs from the ground. Had a total school yard fight vibe. I'm not a fan of 5 minute Main events that you pay for. Maybe they should have thrown this on TV in studio, then again from what other people had said it drew out of the gate.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Snowman with a wild left to start match. We get a nice slugfest and things seem really intense. Different feeling to this one. Lawler with the ground and pound. Ref ends up calling for the bell. Ah, too soon. As a main event it is very short it s quite something to watch and crowd were into it.

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The only wrestling move in the whole match was a single-leg takedown by Snowman, but this really feels like one of the biggest bouts in Memphis history. These two guys aren't out to show off their talents; they just want to beat the living shit out of each other, and they proceed to do just that. Brilliantly done.

 

One question: If this was a non-sanctioned match, why did Calhoun DQ Snowman? I thought non-sanctioned was supposed to mean that the competitors could do whatever they wanted because the match wasn't officially happening.

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  • 8 months later...

This is a great sub-five minute match that actually feels longer because of how tense and real everyone comes across as. I didn't think anything felt worked, even the takedowns, and when there was a headlock on the ropes I winced in hopes they wouldn't shoot someone off and instead it led to the best Snowman punching sequence of the match. Just awesome.

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  • 6 months later...

Just to echo, this is the realest pro wrestling match I've ever seen. This plays really well off the studio brawl they had earlier, which also looked incredibly real. Lawler's takedowns are the highlight for me, just really fast and hard looking. And the wild, off-balance punches lend to the realism. This is incredible. Blows away my previous favorite Memphis match, the Jerry Lawler vs Jimmy Valiant match with the ether rag.

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  • 8 months later...

The Snowman and Lawler circle around each other, almost like it’s a boxing match and they’re feeling each other out. Snowman with some lefts and then he engages with Lawler, but ‘The King’ throws him to the floor with his absolutely beautiful takedown and gets in some shots of his own. And this already is like nothing I’ve ever seen before in a wrestling ring! They continue to take each other down and the Snowman is on his back kicking his feet up as if it’s MMA to stop Lawler getting to him. They start circling again and Snowman has a finger extended as if he’s signalling that he’s prepared to rip out ‘The King’s’ eye. Lawler with a flurry of punches to the mid-section and then one to the ear. Snowman tries to engage but Lawler takes him down and Jerry Calhoun is having a tough time getting them separated. Snowman lands a few big shots and Lawler fires back dropping him and then Snowman is almost pulling guard. He reverses position and Calhoun again tries to separate them. He pushes Snowman back to the corner, but Snowman nails him with a right for the DQ. Lawler and Snowman go back at it again and they exchange more punches. Lawler takes him down and then starts going for the eyes before we return to the studio.

 

This was incredible. I had not read any of the comments so didn’t know what to expect but what transfixed by this. I’m not someone who is into ‘shoot style’, but this looked like one of the most legitimate fights I’ve ever seen in a wrestling ring. From the way they held their first, to the takedowns, to indicating they were going for their opponent’s eyes, to actually going for their eyes, to kicking their legs up when they were down to stop the opponent getting at them. These two were doing MMA before the term had ever been coined, and to think, this was in Memphis and Jerry Lawler! MUST SEE STUFF and what is even better, there is clearly plenty more from these two to come.

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Of all the pro wrestling matches that have attempted to feel like a bar fight this is probably the best and most authentic one. There is nothing technical or pretty about their takedowns, nor do they possess msome impeccable boxing technique-it doesn't feel like a sport or a fake fight, but a real grudge. The match is deprived of any theatrics-while someone would usually jump in the air for Lawler's punches, here Snowman either pushes him away, down, or, when escaping, sells them by just checking his teeth. Suddenly cornering and pushing someone onto the ropes become these huge, important moments. The strong fundamentals behind their offence make you buy into the action while the chaos and the clinches allow them to carry the feel of danger without needing to go full Battlarts with the stiffness to achieve the same effect. ****

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  • GSR changed the title to [1990-06-02-USWA-Memphis TV] Jerry Lawler vs The Snowman

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