Puerto Rico Wrestling

[Dylan Waco]

Dusty Rhodes v. Ric Flair - ?

 

 

This was about the perfect length for these two, included all the staples and was a very good match. I'm not sure any sort of real review is necessary because people know what these guys are going to do. Still this had some nice touches like Flair picking up a thrown item to use as a weapon to gain an advantage and Dusty missing an early elbow attempt to Flair's leg which played into the armwork Flair had been doing. Dusty's jabs looked really outstanding in this and the big comeback and nut shot from Dusty got over huge with the crowd. You knew this was going to some sort of bullshit finish, but it was a hell of a lot of fun in getting to that point and this made me want to go back and watch more Dusty/Flair matches.

 

The Sheepherders v. The Invaders - 7/86

 

 

Outstanding tag match, largely because it build logically and organically. It started with the general babyface control spots from the Invaders, working the arm. All standard, but well executed, with the Herders selling everything well. They take over with the old knee to the back off of the criss cross and they controlled the match with punches and cheating. Really liked some of the fist drops and there was one really strong cut off spot. Off the hot tag it looks like things might change up, but instead we get a really compelling final portion of the match as one of the Invader's gets bumped to the floor and another gets isolated. This "go it alone" theme sort of dominates from that point forward with each guy trying to save the other and failing. There is another great cut off on a double crotch spot from the Herders and all of the stuff with the foreign object and flagpole DQ finish was really well pieced together. Post-match flagpole shot to the arm looked absolutely brutal to. I like matches that escalate from one stage to the next, so this was a home run.

 

Bruiser Brody v. Dory Funk Jr. - 2/88

 

 

This is my gift to John Williams. Thank you John for providing me with the back story and history of AJPW half a life time ago when I was a kid looking to discover new things (that sounds mildly perverse). Now let me return the favor by viewing this classic encounter between your two all time favorites. You know what? These two should have only been allowed to wrestle each other, because they had that miracle on the AJPW Set and this was actually an entertaining brawl. Brody even sells a fair amount in this and the bit with Brody destroying the wooden chair and Dory using piece of it to go all Sheik on Brody was pretty clever. I'm not really sure how well Brody getting stabbed in stomach in PR match in 1988 ages, but this was solid stuff really. Both guys took some big bumps by their standards and I even sort of liked the finish. Completely painless and actually pretty good all things considered.

 

Huracan Castillo Jr./Ricky Santana vs. El Exotico/Dan Kroffat - 3/89

 

 

I am not sure if Castillo and Santana are your PR equivalent of blowjob babyface team, but Exotico/Kroffat are Memphis as fuck in this. Tons of misdirection, mistimed, accidentally hitting each other, bitching at each other, stooging spots and they all work really well. Exotico looks and acts like a Latin Billy Joe Travis which is a major plus. The faces take a big bulk of this, but it's done smartly so that it doesn't come across like they are eating the match alive. I really liked a lot of the offense in this as well. Castillo hit some cool suplex variations and a tope, Kroffat does his flashy stuff, Exotico brings a nice splash and Santana throws some sweet chops and cuts off a slow motion Kroffat spinkick with a really nice shinbuster. That one in particular was done seamlessly and looked great. Kroffat also took some really sweet bumps in this, getting height on a face plant and running right through a bit lariat. Finishing spot with the dropkdown/splash combo was perfectly executed. This was kind of like your RnR's v. Nasty Boys match from the AWA Set.

 

The Batten Twins v. Miguel Perez Jr./Huracan Castillo Jr. - 7/89

 

 

Sub-ten minute match, but they cram in a bunch of stuff to make it exciting and interesting. The Batten's take a bunch of wild bumps in the early going, crashing into the boards with great velocity. When they take over it is really basic stuff, but well structured and watching mulletted rednecks dance taunting jigs is always a plus. I didn't know the back story here with the seconds and don't understand why they were allowed to run into the ring wildly near the finish, but I guess in PR violence is the only rule that really matters. This was sufficiently violent and the finish worked okay for what they were shooting for. I really liked the first 2/3rds of this. Final third was okay, but didn't blow me away.

 

The Invaders v. Ron/Chicky Starr - 1986 (?)

 

 

Really strange finish as they go to a time limit draw out of nowhere. Up until that point this is a good match as the Invaders dominate early, Chicky takes some big bumps and I love the foreign object stuff. The heels end up going for a Hart Attack clothesline down the stretch that is flubbed in such a way that it actually looks far more brutal then normal. Then Ron hits this really stiff jumping DDT and the match is over. Very WWFish with the faces being saved by the bell. Odd.

 

The Invaders v. Ron/Chicky Starr - 5/25/88

 

 

This is a studio match so that's kind of neat. Ron Starr is a couple of years older here and looks like, fat old man Jacques Rougeau. The opening goes about like you think with the Starr's bumping around and getting there ass kicked. Then they take over by twisting and yanking at the mask of Invader 1. They aren't trying to unmask him, but instead are trying to blind him so that they can get in their licks against a defenseless man. Eventually he has enough and rips his own mask off and the fight is back on. The faces bust open the heels and have them reeling, when Ron pulls down the rope on Invader 1 and fucking destroys him with a chair. He's laying in a thick pile of blood on the floor and then the Starr's hop in the ring and beat the piss out of Invader 3 with a chair. The match gets tossed out and Colon comes out for the save and they beat his ass with the chair too. The match itself was solid, but the angle really got this over as a big moment and it was cool to see the heels lay all the big stars to waste.

 

Invader 1 v. Ron Starr - 9/86

 

 

Ron Starr's look here is classic. Kind of like Van Hammer dressing up as a GI Joe character. I also loved how he kept posturing early like he was a tough motherfucker, and then backing off in fear every time Invader closed space or bumped him around. Starr also worked really tight with his forearms and early there were a couple of really cool exchanges, including a flash arm whip/escape thingie from Invader and Starr doing this great leaping stomp to the head of Invader on a drop down rope running exchange. I know that sounds really simple, but it was done in such a way where it looked like he was going to go with the flow, then caught himself and just dropped the bomb instead. Invader ends up on the floor and this woman dressed to the nines, with Glamour Shots hair runs from the back, decks Invader with a wooden chair and busts him open. Invader is really awesome here stumbling around with this concussed look in his eye, dripping blood and collapsing into a pile of chairs. Invader struggles back into the ring, leaving behind a massive mess of chairs that was the front row and this turns into a great slugfest. Invader is chucking out huge forearms and Starr fights back with jabs right to the cut. Then Invader throws this wild lariat, followed shortly after by a double lariat that knocked both guys out. This led to a lengthy parity exchange with both guys barely evading big blows from the other. Invader ends up going for a big crossbody counter, but Starr gets out of the way and crushes him with a big jumping DDT for the decisive finish. This was pretty awesome.

 

Ron Starr v. Invader 1 - Street Fight 1986

 

 

Wild, all over the ball park brawl. They go way up into the stands and fight among the people for several minutes. Starr ends up sprinting away from him and they go to a wild exchange with both guys brawling on the a dugout and Starr whipping Invader with a weight belt. Then they brawl on the camera stand which leads to a hilarious scramble as the camera guy tries to figure out how the fuck to get a shot. Both guys bleed and look exhausted, but Starr keeps at it with the belt. When Invader gets the upperhand again he tries to climb up the netting behind the backstop which I thought was hysterical. Back in the ring Starr takes control and hits a nice butterfly suplex and a senton, but takes a nut shot on a second senton attempt. Then we get a shit finish with both guys failing to make a ten count. Really fun stuff over all.

 

Super Black Ninja v. Invader 1 - Street Fight 1988

 

 

What a nutty brawl this was. Invader 1 is wearing the mask here and blades early on and Muta targets the fuck out of it throughout. Seriously Invader's mask is just coated with blood for almost the entirety of the match. For his trouble Muta eats a huge chair shot early and takes some wild bumps where he flings himself into people and objects on the floor with abandon. They choke each other and beat each other with one of Muta's shoes. There is this great spot where Invader is hoping to make a big comeback and Muta does this sliding kick to his nuts with his shoe less foot. Cool spot with Muta choking him out with a mic chord and hitting a sweet looking moonsault for a near fall. Crazy spot with both guys flying over the top, then Invader starts beating Muta with a belt. Invader makes a run and then they go into a great segment where each guy chops the other down and they do strike exchanges from their knees covered in blood. Muta's second tries to give him the upper hand, but Invader hits Muta with a suitcase and pins him. Post-match Bobby Jaggers shows up and picks the bones of the injured Invader. Really exciting brawl, that was given enough time to tell a story too.

[Tim Evans]

Here's a sheephearders vs Invaders barb wire match from 1997. It's not the whole match but what is shown looks great:

 

Tom is right about Pierroth's run. He had some good matches vs Colon and came to Puerto Rico with Jerry Estrada and Vilano 3.

[puropotsy]

That sounds right. I believe Garvin went back to PR after the WWF run was over and then had that cup of coffee in SMW. Kind of like Sheik in that he peaked winning the title and was never really a big impact player again after that.

 

I think I'm going to watch all the Colon v. Ayala matches later today. If Colon can get multiple great matches with Ayala (who is very limited based on what I've seen), it will cement him as a guy shooting up my chart as an all timer.

Garvin was active in Puerto Rico in the fall of 1988 at the same time that he was in the AWA. He was WWC Universal Champion at the same time that he was AWA TV Champion

[Dylan Waco]

Terry Funk v. Carlos Colon - 9/21/86

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TodbDQ85q4Q

 

I've seen this many times and still really enjoy it. I don't know if we get the best of Colon here, but I think that's largely because this was Terry doing his PR thing and that doesn't necessarily play to Colon's strengths. Lots of stumbling Funk, Funk throwing chairs, Funk falling over chairs, Funk taking comedic bumps, Funk punching, et. I really love the spot with Funk alternating between a hair pull assisted sleeper and a blatant choke, which he switches up depending on the positioning of the ref. The camera work on the piledrivers and nut shot was pretty poor, which is too bad. Funk selling the leg on the suplex is cool and I like how Dory's run-in was a way of setting up parity for the headbutt-a-thon that led to the finish. This is not a great match, but Funk in PR is an act I find really entertaining.

 

Carlos Colon v. Abdullah The Butcher - 9/20/86

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9uMNSK1e1Y

 

This isn't the 91 match but few things are. On the other hand this was what you expect from Colon and Abby - guys getting stabbed and bleeding. This wasn't a match filled with little touches. It was Colon selling an ass beating and then delivering on one. Abby seemed to really have his working shoes on here as his selling of the big shots was great, he did a great see-saw spot in the ropes teasing a bump to the floor and took a monkey flip and a suplex. I also really liked the camera catching Gary Hart pass the foreign object to Abby for his last gasp. Colon ends up winning by stabbing, which is the only way a match between these two should end. This didn't have floor brawling, but it got better as it went along and had me really hooked by the end.

 

Carlos Colon v. Abdullah The Butcher - ?

 

 

I think this is from 1988 but I'm not positive. This is much crazier than the previous match I watched as Colon tries to ambush Abby on the floor and gets attacked with a 2X4. Colon is a bloody mess seconds in and Abby keeps it up, beating him with a camera of all things. Colon fights back with a huge metal trash can. In the ring Colon starts to make his comeback and Abby cuts him off with the really brutal looking shot from the fork. Lots of sick shots, some rapid fire, some scrapes across the head, some with the object tearing at Colon's mouth. Carlos is able to fight back, biting and stiffing Abby with punches, but when he brings Chicky Starr into the ring, Abby throws powder in his eyes and the match gets tossed out. Good shit while it lasted.

 

Carlos Colon v. Abdullah The Butcher - 9/21/85

 

 

This will be my last Colon v. Abby match of the night, but it's got the best opening one could ever hope for as Abby is managed by red tux JJ Dillon and Colon comes out to "We Are The World." This is not as wild as the second match and was worked opposite of the first match with Colon on offense first and Abby following from behind. This did include some pretty good bumps from Abby and Colon really brought out a lot of offense for a match that was basically a bloodbath. JJ ended up getting busted open and then Abby and Carlos brawled off camera into a crazed crowd. I liked this, but which we could have gotten a closer look at the ending brawl.

[Dylan Waco]

I'm sure google could answer this, but who were the Texas Hangmen in PR?

[Tim Evans]

Bull Pain and Mike Moran.

[Dylan Waco]

Bull Pain and Mike Moran.

I was 90% sure Bull Pain was one of them. Where else did Moran work?

[tomk]

As part of Hangmen in AWA and USWA. I think he was just Mean Mike in Windy City (I want to say he trained either Christopher Daniels or Kevin Quin there)

[Dylan Waco]

Texas Hangmen v. Giant Warrior/Miguel Perez Jr. - 1990

 

 

This is JIP and basically just your normal tv tag match, though I've got to say the Hangmen do carry themselves in such a way that they come across as major ass kickers in everything they do. Perez looks kind of silly in this and Giant Warrior working as a sympathy babyface is absurd on the surface of it, but the Hangmen have just a violent aura to them that the match is more entertaining to watch than it should be. Hot studio crowd helps as well and the post-match chaos with the hanging, Colon save was good tv.

 

Texas Hangmen v. Miguel Perez Jr/Huracan Castillo Jr. - 1990

 

 

This is from a stadium show, but was worked pretty similarly to the aforementioned match. I'm not saying these teams couldn't work a really good straight tag match, but this wasn't it. You just need more time to really get things going in that regard and this might have been five minutes bell-to-bell, with some clipped out. Post-match stuff was similar to the first match too.

 

Texas Hangmen v. Carlos Colon/Invader 1 - 10/90

 

 

This is less a great match than a great angle, following a good match, but it was still a hell of a lot of fun to watch. The match was actually JIP and fairly straight forward with the Hangmen doubling up on Colon, who sold, made the hot tag and then Invader scored a flash pin. Solid, but nothing outstanding. But the post-match angle was out of this world. Basically The Hangmen destroy Invader 1, while the entire heel locker room empties and surrounds the ring to keep any babyfaces from successfully breaking through. Eric Embry is there looking super sleazy. At one point a woman wrestler hits the ring and gets floored and Embry gets a hold of her and is manhandling her. At this point TNT comes out and turns face, by clobbering Embry and getting into the ring to break up the Hangmen's attack on Invader 1. TNT casually walks off while the rest of the faces try to attend to Invader 1 who eventually gets stretchered off. Really awesome stuff.

[Dylan Waco]

Invader 3 v. Manny Fernandez - 1988

 

 

This is your all time wrestling urban myth, as for years the "story" sold on this match via youtube was that it was Manny's revenge on Invader for murdering Brody. Of course this occurred months before Brody was killed and of course it was a different Invader, but this myth persisted for years. People believe what they want to believe, but it doesn't hurt that the blood spewing in this is completely disgusting even by the standards of Puerto Rico. I assume the pig blood in a condom story is true which makes this even more vile. In any case the match leading up to that was pretty "eh" but that's not why you watch this.

 

Invader 3 v. Manny Fernandez - 1989

 

 

This would be a pretty good match on it's own, but if you watch it after the aforementioned angle it's much better than it would be in isolation. I'm assuming this is Invader 3's comeback from the bloodletting and he runs in with an axehandle and beats the shit out of Manny with it. Eventually Chicky Starr just snatches it out of his hands and Manny ends up taking over with a really reckless hot shot. It comes across as an act of complete desperation and really works. From there this match is all about Manny attacking the throat area of Invader 3, which plays off the big angle from a few months before. Lots of nasty knee drops, a really stiff lariat and a couple of head scissors variations. The crowd stays hot for this and Chicky is really great as a second on the outside. Manny eventually goes for the big knee off the top, but Invader catches him and slams him. Invader throws some great shots, but gets caught again. Chicky tries to intervene but ends up decking Manny in the throat. Manny actually kicks out, but you still think Invader has him, so it's a big surprise when Manny hits the Flying Burrito for the finish. The hope spots were well worked and I really liked the story of this, including the ending which is the sort of "sometimes evil prevails" finish that wrestling promotions are usually terrified to run.

 

Carlos Colon v. The Iron Sheik - 1/6/88

 

 

This is really weird. Colon and Sheik get into it before they can even take off their gear and you think this is going to be really heated, wild stuff. Colon stays on top of him and Sheik keeps fleeing to the floor where he is blatantly messing with a foreign object he is setting up for the heat section. He eventually gets a shot off with it and hits a nice suplex and a few other spots, but then Colon takes right back over. Colon does hit a really cool looking running powerslam, but it's just odd to see Colon eat up so much of this with Sheik as a bloody mess. Chicky Starr runs in for the DQ and the post match here is way better than the match itself with Colon getting busted open and locked in the Camel Clutch. He eventually escapes and does this crazy vault over the top to the floor where he beats the shit out of the fleeing Sheik with the Universal Title. This was worth watching, but it's not the match you expect.

[Dylan Waco]

Texas Hangmen v. Carlos Colon/TNT - 1990

 

 

This is insanely frustrating, because no finish is shown and what is there is awesome. The first ten minutes is some of the best "faces steamrolling" heels stuff I've seen in wrestling. If you can't mark out for Colon smashing one of the Hangmen's face into home plate there is something wrong with you. The faces completely destroy the Hangmen for ten straight minutes, with the Hangmen getting nothing in and it completely works, mainly because the crowd is so amped to see TNT as a face. This is PR and Colon, but TNT is getting monster pops for every single offensive move he does from headbutts, to kicks, to shots with illegally smuggled weapons. Meanwhile the Hangmen are cussing out people in the front row and just trying to survive. They eventually take over with a nut shot on Carlos and bust him open hardway with some sick punches in the corner. The heat section is really starting to get going and BAM. That's it. No second half on youtube. I had a long fucking day and only time to watch one match tonight and this pisses me off far more than it should

[Dylan Waco]

TNT/Invader 1 v. Texas Hangmen -1990

 

 

Man this was even better than the Colon/TNT v. Hangmen brawl. It's not every day you get to see guys in S and M gear disrobe in front of thousands of people, cops casually spraying what looked like mace in the air and some sort of gunpowder fueled device exploding and leaving behind a huge trail of smoke in the middle of a match. The crowd is fucking amped as fuck to see Invader 1's return from the the attempted murder at the hands of the Hangmen and they love them some TNT too. TNT is crushing one of the Hangmen with sick punches and kicks, while Invader takes the other one all around the infield bumping him off a dugout and smacking him with chairs. Things break down further and he ends up picking up this random, non-gimmicked table over his head and crushing both of the Hangmen with it. The Hangmen are great bruisers on offense and they get there by just sort of desperately steamrolling TNT into their corner. Really fun peril section as TNT is a really expressive seller from underneath and takes one nutty head first corner bump on a hope spot gone wrong. When he makes the hot tag this turns into a completely wild affair again with the Hangmen trying to cheat via various means, Invader decking a ref, El Profe getting hung with the noose, and the Hangmen chased out of the building while getting slapped around with their own weapon. Totally awesome "revenge" brawl.

 

Carlos Colon v. TNT - 1986

 

 

This is a studio match and angle at the beginning of TNT's first big push and it is really outstanding stuff. Colon tries to work a clean match and that last for about 2 seconds as TNT brings the fire power so he has to fight back. This ends up turning into this great back and fourth fight, with both guys throwing punches, chops, thrusts, kicks, et at a break neck pace. There was one really awesome chop to the head by TNT with a great close up of Colon wincing in pain. Colon even hits a pair of nice dropkicks and a butterfly suplex of all things. TNT locks in the Cobra Clutch and Colon is absolutely desperate to get out of the move. He kicks off the ropes and they knock down the ref, then Colon kicks off the ropes again but TNT keeps holding on. He goes to kick off of the ropes but TNT pulls him back into the ring so Colon breaks free with a short elbow. It looks like Colon is going to make a comeback but El Profe climbs in the ring and fucking waffles him full tilt with a briefcase and TNT locks the hold on again choking Colon out. The ref signals for the bell and you think it's going to be a title switch, but he ends up DQing TNT and giving the match to Colon. Meanwhile Colon is foaming at the mouth. This is totally classic as it looks like Colon rubbed shaving cream into his mouth when Profe covered his face with a towel. They have to bring a doctor in to rub Colon's shoulders and revive him and even then Carlos is drooling over himself and looking like he's about to yack. Awesome tv segment from beginning to end.

 

Carlos Colon/Miguel Perez Jr v. The Sheepherders - ?

 

 

I thought this was pretty great. I loved the opening face shine, with the Herders getting worked over. Perez through a reckless chairshot, Colon had a great punch exchange with Luke Williams and the spot with Colon taking the slow mo bump off of the double leg, only to kick Luke right in the face was awesome. I love Colon, but really the stars of this were the Herders. They were bumping all over the place for the faces and I loved them once they took over on Perez. I am a mark for kidney based offense and they opened up some serious violence on Perez's kidney's. On top of the typical strikes, they busted out a Finlayesque looking body slam, a cool spot where one Herder whipped the other into the outstretched boot of the other and their double rib breaker. Really good shit and entirely focused on Perez back. When Perez finally gets the hot tag, it's back to crazy bumps from the Herders and Colon is fun as shit breaking out a double dropkick of all things onto both Herders. Perez ends up scoring the win off of a flash O'Conner roll to get his revenge and post match the faces beat the hell out of Luke and Butch some more. PR is the gift that keeps on giving.

[Dylan Waco]

Carlos Colon v. TNT - 1990

 

 

This was a chore to get through, but a part of me wishes this existed in full, because the good parts of this were good and I have a feeling the slow parts wouldn't have seemed as bad in the context of a more complete match. Anyhow, this was about 30 minutes of a sixty minute draw. The opening stuff is there, then there is a cut and we come back with TNT bleeding. I'm not going to even attempt a run down, but there are some hot near falls down the stretch and they work figure-four v. cobra clutch as a theme of sorts. What's really notable about this is that the ring is completely caked in mud and trash and so are both guys. I'm not someone easily disgusted, but Colon and TNT are rolling around in filth with huge open wounds on their heads for over a half an hour (at least). It's almost worth watching just for that, even if the entire idea of it is insane.

 

Ric Flair v. Tommy Gilbert - 1982

 

 

The promo before this is pretty cool. This was by no means an outstanding match, but it's so randomly awesome that this occurred in a PR studio that it has a lot of charm. On some level this your standard Flair studio match, where he gives the underdog a good bit, gets his stiff shots in, and ends up winning of of a face mistake. Having said that Flair busted out some solid offense here and I really liked Gilbert's work underneath. Again nothing out of this world, but I liked the way he sold Flair's offense and he had some really interesting spots himself. Really liked his cradle counter and his crossbody where he almost walked himself up Flair's body was neat. He got in a couple of good dropkicks too and took a nice bump before the finish. Nothing special, but a fun find.

 

Tony Atlas v. Stan Hansen

 

 

Another studio match. This was really short, but actually fairly fun while it lasted mainly due to Hansen. Atlas isn't any good, but this features maybe my all time favorite racist wrestling spot, as Hansen goes to knee Atlas in the head and of course ole hard headed Tony hurts Hansen's knee. Stan actually sells the knee for the entire rest of the match. They end up doing a bit with the bullrope on the floor and the match gets tossed out as Hansen barely misses splattering Tony's head with a chair.

[rzombie1988]

DYLAN! You NEED to check out last week's WWC 2/10. SAVIO VEGA AT AGE 48 vs CARLOS COLON AT AGE 64! AND IT'S AWESOME! HOLY SHIT!!!!

 

I just finished last week's shows and they were pretty awesome. Savio Vega is having an absolutely insane run right now and is the most underrated wrestler on the planet IN 2013. I'm being totally serious when I'm saying that he would be one of my top contenders for Wrestler of the Year at this point in time. No, he's not having epic Japanese matches with high emphasis on big moves, but he's having awesome brawls, he's selling like a champ and he's just being an awesome and believeable 1980's heel.

 

Here are last week's shows:

02/09 WWC: http://www.sendspace.com/file/dhqlba

Review is here: http://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2013/02/ww...ibre-tv_16.html

 

02/10 WWC: http://www.sendspace.com/file/8nrvfi

Review is here: http://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2013/02/ww...re-tv_5999.html

 

2/9 has a really good tag match with one of the better hot tag comebacks I've seen in a long time. It also has THE SANDMAN. There is also a good Sons of Samoa interview with two fat and bloody Samoan's challenging for a SAMOAN DEATH MATCH, in English! It also has some highlights of the 2/10 show and has Andy Leavine from Tough Enough in the opener.

 

2/10 has SAVIO VEGA(age 48) vs CARLOS COLON(age 64). I swear, this was good. The crowd was super hot for this and Carlos Colon was perfect in role. He's 64 and HE SOLD LIKE IT! One shot, boom he's down. Perfect. Carlos stuck to brawls throughout his career and therefore really hasn't degraded like alot of older wrestlers do. He's still 64 but the dude didn't forget how to work. The show also has a decent Ray Gonzalez vs Savio Vega Baseball Bat on a Pole Match. Screwy finish, as with the Colon match, but this is Puerto Rico and that's how they roll. There is also a decent Sons of Samoa vs Thunder y Lightning match that is worth a look.

 

On both shows there's also some Carlito appearances.

 

Overall, it's been a great year wrestling wise in Puerto Rico. WWC is legit becoming my favorite show to watch, though definitely not for their production values.

[Dylan Waco]

I read Meltzer's write up of the most recent angle they did and it sounded awesome. I am downloading these now. Thanks rob.

[Dylan Waco]

I can't get either of those sendspace links to work

[Tim Evans]

2/9 is on Youtube.

[Dylan Waco]

Texas Hangmen v. Bronco 1/Invader 1 - 1991

 

 

Good example of how to build a solid match on fundamentals with all the big spots crammed in toward the end for maximum effect. I am not sure I like the Hangmen as cowards/stooges, but it's PR and that is expected of heels and they put in the effort. The face control is all armwork and the heel control is all clubbing/cut off the ring spots on Bronco. Bronco comes back with these really wild, full body lariats than the Hangmen sell the fuck out of. The Hangmen take some really big bumps toward the end of this and they do a good job mixing things up as there are about four different points where it seems certain the finish is coming and then it doesn't come. I also thought the Hangmen's stomps down the stretch looked really brutal. Pretty sure this is early stages of this feud and it was a solid match for what it was.

 

Carlos Colon v. Savio Vega - 2/10/13

 

 

I have not been following PR tv, so my knowledge of the angle involved at the end of the match is limited, but basically Invader 1 turned on Colon and helped Savio win and now (I think) Savio has partially control of the company. Anyhow if this is the match Rob is talking about it is actually really good considering the age of the guys involved. Colon is obviously slower than he used to be, but his timing is still there and his selling was really good in this. Plus he looked like a retiree. Savio is awesome both with his facial expressions, his selling and his body language. The whole match is built around two guys stabbing each other with Colon eating most of it, before escaping from a Cobra Clutch with a string of nut shots, before getting his licks in. This isn't a MOTYC or anything like that, but it was a really cool brawl.

 

Invader 1 v. Leo Burke - Taped Fist Match 1990

 

 

Kind of a strange match in that you expect this to be two guys teeing off on each other and instead it's a match of Burke working the arm and trying to avoid shots from Invader 1's taped fists. In a strange way it kind of works because you can buy Leo trying to weaken the punchers weapons and the way he cowers and retreats every time Invader cocks his fists is great. They really milk the few taped fist shots that get thrown and the first one that hits a jaw is a knockout blow. On the other hand, this is an odd PR match not to include blood and if they were going to go with the theme they went with it needed longer than six minutes to develop fully.

 

Victor Jovica v. Abdullah The Butcher - Chain Match

 

 

I thought this was pretty great. I had absolutely no expectations coming in which may have helped this, but they had me from the jump as Abby is wearing an executioner hood and ambushes Jovica at the bell busting him open. Jovica works the whole match covered in blood, but the most amazing thing about this is how much Abby gives him. Abby takes a couple of really awesome slow mo bumps in this, and even spills out to the floor at one point. I loved the transitions here as Abby was on the defensive a ton, but would come back with a well placed boot, or a shot with the fork, or cut off Jovica trying to get to the corners by falling to the floor. Jovica for his part made great use of the chain, whipping the shit out of Abby with it, chocking him, smashing him in the face with it, et. You could argue that the attempts at the end of the match were a little "your turn, my turn" but I really bought them and Abby sprinting with forearms to keep Jovica down ruled. I also loved the finish with Abby almost getting to the fourth corner, when Jovica pulls the chain up and wallops him in the nuts and then runs around to smack all four corners. This was some good shit right here.

[Dylan Waco]

Carlos Colon v. TNT - 11/86

 

 

This was a follow up to the tv match I watched the other day. El Profe is suspended above the ring in a cage. A rare match from this era where Colon does not build to or go to the figure-four at all. He's actually on the defensive a ton early, with TNT attacking his arm relentlessly. They do some really good spots off of rope running exchanges, including a really great looking hooking clothesline from Colon and an awesome kick from TNT. Later Carlos sold the fuck out of a back kick, going totally dead legged but staying on his feet and getting caught in the cobra clutch. Colon is awesome here desperately trying to escape by wildly kicking off the ropes, but TNT won't let up. Finally Colon goes to old faithful - the back kick to the nuts. From there this really escalates into a wild brawl, with TNT taking some nice bumps. TNT blades himself dangerously on a posting and the match ends on a countout as they brawl wildly on the floor. Really good match.

[Dylan Waco]

Ron Garvin v. Carlos Colon - 1991

 

 

This is pretty crazy because it's a good match, but it's not at all the match you think. When I saw these two I expected this to be a toe-to-toe brawl and they tease that early with lots of disrespect and posturing. And then Colon goes to work a headlock. For a long time. And then Garvin fires back with a neck vice. And then they work spots based around abdominal stretches and sleepers and of course the figure-four. And somehow, someone, this slowly becomes a good match. If you can get past the disappointment of what expectations are, this really does develop nicely with Garvin cheating like crazy every chance he gets, Colon really selling well when Garvin was on offense, some big strikes when they did come, a cool figure four sequence with some good leg selling from Garvin and a really cool finish with Ronnie going for the KO punch, Colon ducking and hitting a bridging back drop of all things for the fall and the title. I'm sure had they gone with the knock down drag out it would have been a better match, but I was impressed by what they were able to do with the direction they chose to go.

 

The Youngbloods v. The Kansas Jayhawks - Indian Strap Match?

 

 

This is hurt some by a wide camera angle, but still if you are looking for a bloody brawl, with some stiff shots and a crazy spot or two PR will deliver pretty much every time. Jaggers cracks a whip at The Youngbloods as they approached the ring and Kroffat is just laughable as a cowboy. The whole of this match was made of clubbing and dudes getting lashed with a strap. Kroffat appeared to be busted open pretty badly. Loved the spot with the Youngblood who was tied to Kroffat tugging on the strap from the floor and Kroffat effectively tope'ing thin air and crashing to the ground. This set up the finish with Jaggers trailing behind to steal a win from the babyface on the fourth corner. Not a great match, but it was quick and hit most of the right notes for a match of this sort.

 

Ricky Santana v. Mr. Pogo

 

 

This was okay. I continue to like Santana as an underdog babyface, who well shed half of his body weight in blood per match, but Pogo just isn't very good. I did like Pogo's bowing in between offensive moves and it was amusing to see Rufus R. Jones of all people show up to help get the finish overturned at the end. But otherwise this was completely passable.

[El Boricua]

Oh man, this thread brings back some memories for me. As the user name suggests, I'm Puerto Rican and grew up watching WWC on the weekends. Some of these matches I remember vividly, some I probably saw but can't recall too well, some I remember hearing about and then there's the stuff I've never seen before. As a frame of reference, I really started watching full-time around 90-91, with the late 80's being a somewhat hazy area of hearing about some wrestlers but not really watching. I'll start watching some of the links this weekend and chime in with opinions and (where possible) some background info I can recall. If anyone needs a translation or summary of any spanish commentary or promos in the videos, let me know and I'll see if I can help.

 

Looking over the thread, one thing that caught my attention (well, one of several) was Dylan's review of the Leo Burke vs. Invader 1 taped fist match. Specifically, the comments about the dynamic of Burke avoiding Invader's taped fist punches. There's actually some context to why Leo Burke would be avoiding those punches like if they were the plague. Invader's finisher is the Heart Punch. Back when Invader debuted in the late 70's, he would wrestle with his fists taped up more often than not (maybe all the time but this was before I was born). Anyway, what happened was the unfortuante incident in 1978 when Michel Martel passed away about half an hour after wrestling on that night's card. His opponent that night had been the Invader, who won the match via heart punch. This being wrestling, they used the unfortunate real life circumstance as part of a wrestling angle.

 

What happened was that the wrestling commision ruled that the heart punch was a dangerous move and was being banned. Now, I'm not sure it it was just the taped fist version or the actual move that was banned, but a ban did occur. This also ignited a feud between Pierre Martel and brothers Daniel and Rick against Invader, which ended when Pierre turned face after admitting that Invader was not responsible for his brother's death. Although the heart punch was being used by the Invader again, the taped fist was no longer used regularly. Instead, throughout the years, it's only been busted out when an Invader feud has escalated. Because of the previous angle, the taped fist heart punch in Puerto Rico has been set up as a very serious and even deadly maneuver. Heck, the heart punch itself was treated as serious if given more than once in the same match. I remember a TV studio match between Invader and King Kong where Invader hit him once with the heart punch, which staggered Kong but did not knock him down. Invader then proceeded to jump off the second turnbuckle with another one, which knocked Kong down and allowed Invader to get the pin. However, Kong stayed down, and a trainer came out and gave him chest compressions to revive him. That's how serious the heart punch has been put over in the PR wrestling context.

 

Anyway, every so often when a feud has escalated, sometimes a match would be made as a taped fist match (particularly if Invader is involved). In many cases though, the match itself is not a taped fist match, but a stipulation would be that the Invader would have his fist taped ("con el puno vendado'). This was one way to indicate to the fan base that this has just become that much more serious if the Invader was willing to bust out the taped fist.

 

So that would be the reason for Burke to stay away from Invader's taped fists, because in the context of PR wrestling logic/psychology, those fists are likely to be deadly. When you watch Invader matches, keep a lookout to see if his fist is taped. That's an indication that that feud's been escalated and is probably at or near the blowoff.

[Dylan Waco]

Awesome background info here. I am going to get back to watching PR in the next few days and as questions come up I may throw them at you. Welcome aboard

[Dylan Waco]

Abdullah The Butcher v. Carlos Colon - ?(1986)

 

 

I'm not even sure you can really call this a match, but whatever it is, it's a hell of a spectacle. Colon is coming back at Abby for revenge after Abby had blinded him by throwing ammonia in his eyes. The baseball stadium is as packed as I've ever seen it. I got the feeling that the original plan in the early going was to go to the floor, but with so many fans up this close they never really spill out to the floor until the match is over and things start slow. And then a couple of minutes in Colon pulls out an object and starts stabbing the fuck out of Abby, gouging at his eyes with fish hooks, punching him in the face, stomping him hard, et. It is a total and complete mugging and it just goes on and on. Abby gets a couple of token shots here or there, but this is the most one sided match I've ever seen of this length. The doctor keeps coming in and checking on Abby to see if he can continue and Abby keeps waiving him off. At one point blood literally spurts out of Abby's head and onto the camera where it stays for the rest of the match. Eventually Colon wins (I think?) by stoppage and chases Abby to the back with a chair. Then Colon is carried to the dugout on the shoulders of fans. This is probably longer than it had any right being, but at no point was I bored by this and it's one of the more entertainingly bizarre things I've ever seen in wrestling.

 

El Profe v. Hugo Savinovich - Loser Gets Painted Yellow 1987

 

 

This is a helluva a lot of fun. Hugo comes out to a huge reaction getting swarmed by kids, runs in the ring and starts choking Profe with his headband which ruled. For a manager v. semi-retired wrestler/announcer you won't find a lot of matches with better offense then this. It may have actually been too much in some ways, but this had a cross body, some nasty Profe knees, a great assisted double stomp from Profe, a Profe senton, suplexes from Hugo, sunset flips and other shit I'm forgetting. It was fairly back and fourth, but I thought it was segmented well with Profe having to go to the nuts every time he took over on offense and Hugo's selling of everything being good when he wasn't rattling off offense. Finish looked really great as Profe went for a splash off the top and ate the double knees. Post-match is incredible was the fans surround Profe on all sides as he tries to flee and then he gets held down while Hugo literally takes a paintbrush and paints him yellow from head-to-toe. I did not like this quite as much as Cowbunga v. Jim Cornette, but for your crazy matches of that ilk, this was close.

 

Wahoo McDaniel v. Dan Spivey - 1988

 

 

This is almost worth watching just for Spivey's mullet and parachute pants. The match itself is okay for a brief affair. Lots of Spivey's offense looks like dog shit, but Wahoo bleeds a gusher which kind of disguises how shitty a lot of it looks. Anyhow Wahoo gets his ass beat and wins on a schoolboy. Nothing match really.

[El Boricua]

Thank you for the welcome Dylan. I don't know if you're aware of this (you probably are), but the previously mentioned Pierre Martel is your avatar picture Frenchy Martin. A month or so ago Invader was going to wrestle at the WWC Euphoria event against Carlito and he was announced as having his fist taped. The WWC apparently sent someone to Canada to interview Pierre Martel to put over the devastating effects and seriousness of the taped fist. Even today, the taped fist is still being treated as dangerous.

[El Boricua]

All right, the first match is the Colon vs. Hansen cage match, but that's actually the blowoff of the feud. This is a feud I think I had heard off, but it's before my time as an actual viewer, so it's mostly new to me. I'm going to try to list the feud in order with some additional info where needed. Bear in mind that I may mix up a detail here and there, but I think I got the gist of the feud down.

 

First, this isn't Stan Hansen's first stint in WWC. He had shown up in 1984 to team up with Bruiser Brody. They went on a rampage of destruction, taking out a few wrestlers including Carlos Colon. Faced with such a destructive duo, Carlos did the only thing he could do and that was look for a partner up to the task of handling Brody and Hansen. That partner ended up being Abudllah the Butcher, his blood enemy and rival. The angle that set up the team up is the intro in the following link.

 

Carlos Colon/Abdullah the Butcher vs. Bruiser Brody/Stan Hansen - Lumberjack Match Fall 84

 

 

The prevailing story for the initial team up was could Abdullah be trusted. The match in the link is actually the second of three matches the teams of Colon/Abdullah and Brody/Hansen had. The first was at the Aniversario 84 show, the second is this lumberjack matchn (in an attempt to contain them in the ring), and the last match was a cage match (the only way you could really contain them). The last match is famous for reigniting the Colon/Abdullah feud. Colon won the match for his team by escaping the cage, but in doing so he left Abdullah alone in the cage with Hansen and Brody, who proceeded to beat up Abdullah. By the time Colon managed to go back in, they had done quite the number on Abdullah. Obviously, Abdullah was pissed at being left high and dry by Carlos and proceeded to attack him. This is what reignited that feud. Anyway, Hansen was already known in Puerto Rico when he made his return in late 1986 to challenge fo the Universal title.