Larry Zbyszko

[Mr. Lacelle]

I've always been a huge fan of Larry, my fandom for peaked during his run as AWA champ, he could get a watchable match out of any opponent. The only peer I can think of for pure heel hate was Tully Blanchard. Larry could be teamed with Arn, Rude or whoever and you can bet the chant you'd hear would be "Larry Sucks"

 

I know he gets a lot of flack for his stalling techniques but I think it was used effectively because fans who otherwise would just be going along with the show or bored would be actively rooting for whoever Larry was up against to just kick his ass, thus an effective heel.

 

I love Larry's promos. He always sounded intelligent & like he believed everything he was saying, which is integral for a wrestler. Naturally everyone loves the Regal matches, which other matches stand out? Someone needs to make a comp, hint hint.

[Superstar Sleeze]

Zbyszko is a great pure heel. He is detestable, loathsome, and obnoxious. We need more like him. He was not afraid to bump and show ass and great at verbal selling. More Larry Legend is needed in this world. Where in the world was he from 1981-1985?

Larry Zbyszko vs Barry Windham - WCW Main Event 11/24/91

 

The wacky WCW TV taping/airing schedule strikes again as this was taped prior to Larry earning the "Cruncher" moniker by crushing Big Barry hand in a car door at Halloween Havoc. We never really did a get a blowoff for that, for shame. Larry is just excellent in this short match. As good as Barry is, Zbyszko could have been in there with anybody and this would have been great. I enjoyed his infamous stalling tactics this go around especially when he went over to the chicks with the "I LOVE BARRY" sign and tears it up. What a saucy boss! Zbyszko does every stalling tactic in the book and once gets trapped, he is not afraid to let the audience know his frustration ad they are loving it. On the flip side, when he gets his opening he is right on Windham on the outside and in the ring. You get the real sense of his desperation to control the bigger and better Windham. Thats what a heel should be hiding behind his bravado but actually wicked insecure in high pressure situations like this. Windham ends up scoring the victory with a flash pin. The Enforcers looks to put the boots to him, but Ron Simmons was in to make the save. Great Larry performance and worth seeing for a classic heel performance.

[Ricky Jackson]

Where in the world was he from 1981-1985?

 

After his last date for WWF in 1981 (2/7 in Boston) Larry essentially vanishes for two years. Wrestlingdata.com has the intriguing match of Larry Z and Bobby Heenan vs Tsuruta and Tenryu on 7/4/81, and it looks like he spent the month of July touring All Japan. 1982 has five results for the short-lived Northeast based, and I believe Bruno-backed, IWF promotion (two matches against Dominic...yeah!) and a tour of All Japan in October. By March 83 he is in Georgia (he famously buys the National title from Killer Tim Brooks, see below) and he stays until April 84. By 3/25/84 he is in the AWA.

 

[Johnny Sorrow]

And he just won WWF Wrestler of the Year for 1980 on the latest Titans of Wrestling podcast.

[Timbo Slice]

I just watched him in the incredible Steamboat/Rhodes vs. Enforcers tag from Clash XVII and he was so great in that match. Really hamming it up, really solid work in the ring, especially with cutoffs, great selling...he was a joy to watch with Arn. I've never understood him being loathed, as I thought he was at least a good wrestler for a lot of what I saw him in.

[Johnny Sorrow]

The greatest urban legends in wrestling are people exaggerating how long he did the stalling bit in a match they saw.

I love his stalling cause it's a heel trick to get heat that even the "smartest " of fans get all upset about, Proving he was such a great wrestler that he can get heat from the fun real fans AND the "smart " types .

[Superstar Sleeze]

Since Larry Legend is a hot subject might as well tack this one here. I am a little shocked this did not make the '92 yearbook.

Dangerous Alliance (Larry Zbyszko, Arn Anderson & Bobby Eaton) vs. Dont Step To Sweetwater (Barry Windham, Dustin Rhodes & Ron Simmons) - Clash of the Champions XVIII

Barry Windham is BACK, BABY! He is coming for you Larry Z! Paul E. cuts a promo before the match saying one of the heroes of WCW will be going to the Magnum TA retirement home, but aint nobody gonna deny Barry. I loved the opening with Eaton rattling off a neckbreaker, big right and a superplex and Barry just no selling it. Crowd and I lost out shit for that. Windham hits a superplex of his own and then we get the triple figure-fours. Ron Simmons does the Ricky Morton/Shawn Michaels flip out of the double top wristlock and double shoulderblock, which is impressive given his size. He then catches Eaton mid-air into bearhug. The more I watch early WCW the more I understand the Simmons push. Then Dustin/Eaton tango and Dustin is awesome. He throws out Eaton onto the ramp and just hurls himself over the top rope onto Eaton. The babyfaces were fired up for this and I love it. Windham and Zbyszko the Reckoning! Big Barry chants. Where was the payoff singles match??? Larry Z sidesteps the lariat and Barry crashes and burns and when Barry tags Dustin he does the same thing. Jeez, Dustin you are supposed to learn from your mentor's mistakes not play Monkey See, Monkey Do.

Paul E. get his brick cell phone shot in Dustin, which means we get a Dustin FIP. O yes! Arn runs through his offense: spinebuser and wicked DDT, but cant keep the kid down. Eaton now hits his flying elbow, but Dustin's heart dont pump kool-aid. Eaton crotches himself on the middle turnbuckle -> HOT TAG TO BARRY!!! Melee ensues, but this time there ain't no Alabama Jam opportunity. Instead, Windham swats Eaton right out of the air with a right to pick up the win. What a great, high-energy six-man tag, definitely my favorite six-man tag. I am a big Windham fan, glad to see him back and kicking ass. The match was super tight and efficient no dead spots and everything served a purpose. The heat segment even included some cool heel moves, which is a nice treat. This was a perfect first match back for Windham. He wins, but does not exact full revenge from Larry "The Cruncher" Zbyszko setting up the bitchin SuperBrawl tag match. ***3/4

[Superstar Sleeze]

You cant say no to more Larry Z, BABY!

 

In a matchup that if it were have had happened in 1980 WWF would have made the Titans of Wrestling crew cream their pants in 2014, I present The Living Legend vs The Dragon, but unfortunately from 1992.

 

Larry Zbyszko w/Paul E. & Mad USA vs Ricky Steamboat - Worldwide 01/25/92

Madusa, what the fuck? Her fashion sense is truly abysmal. It actually would have been funny if Paul E. appointed Missy as the Director of Covert Operations only she is the biggest blabbermouth and keeps ruining his plans. It had potential to deliver some decent comedy segments. The added benefit of Madusa was clearly physicality, but God from pant suits to being dressed like a 12 year old from the early 90s (in her defense it was the early 90s, but she still she was a grown woman). Enough of all this stalling (see what I did there), lets get to the action. Actually Larry Z gets right to business and takes a page out of Steamboat book with two quick nearfalls early and gloats to the Steamer. The fans sure do love telling Paul E. he sucks and even better when they stop he starts his own Paul E.Sucks chant, but pounding the mat in rhythm. Well played, Mr. Dangerously! Steamboat says two can play that game and gets two quick nearfalls of his own, but instead of gloating he chops him. Larry Z powders claiming to have been chopped in the throat. Returning to the ring, The Living Legend actually strings together some offense catching Steamboat in a criss cross with an atomic drop and then a spin kick, that was pretty neat. Steamboat's comeback was a little tepid and he takes a spill when Madusa pulls down the middle rope. Zbyszko looks to bring him in the hard way, but Steamboat chops him away and propels himself on top of him to garner the victory. After the match in a show of unity, the Dangerous Alliance come out to lay the boots to Steamboat, The crowd calls for Sting as Rude threatens to belt him and Sting & Co. (Dustin, Windham, Simmons) make the save. That was the most Four Horsemen the Dangerous Alliance has looked. Still the Four Horsemen always talked about partying together and it really felt like a close-knit group. This still feels more like five wrestlers that happen to have the same manager, which there is nothing wrong with that business model. I just don't think it is a totally apples to apples comparison. These two had a great match in them, but unfortunately did not have the time to deliver it.

[SomethingSavage]

Love me some Larry Z. I can clearly see why some people would be turned away by the stalling, the hamming it up, or even the lack of versatility in terms of his offense, but I always dug the guy. His body of work is better appreciated from a distance, to be sure. That being said, there certainly are some matches out there that can be viewed as islands unto themselves and still enjoyed - simply from start to finish for what they are.

 

I really got a kick out of his AWA Title reign. I know it came way too late in the game to make a difference for them, but I don't care. The LarryLand promos & interviews were terrific, plus the matches themselves DELIVERED. And he wasn't exactly working with the cream of the crop out there. He was having these incredibly fun matches - that felt like honest to God competitive contests, in which he could be in serious danger of losing the strap at any given moment - against such a wide variety of opponents. Everyone from DJ Peterson and Mitch Snow on over to a green-as-grass Trooper Del Wilkes got a shot. And, again, these matches were worthwhile.

 

The quick "in & out" stuff he did later in WCW was probably his best stuff though. The feud with Regal was given this tremendous buildup with a real sense of disdain and hostility behind it. Ditto for the work with Hall, which REALLY allowed Larry to step up as a fantastic commentator in my view.

 

If Larry's work in-ring is underrated, then his stuff at the announce booth is a forgotten gem for sure. I haven't been around this board long enough to gather the general consensus on his time behind the booth, but I'm a HUGE fan of Larry on the headset. Even IF he overstepped the boundaries of being overbearing or obnoxious at times, it doesn't matter. His commentary still carried a lot of weight, very much in the same vein as a Jesse Ventura.

 

Larry on commentary never strayed TOO FAR to one side. He generally praised both heels and babyfaces alike. He also bashed both and called them out as it was warranted. But when it came to Hall - and this was key to their feud - he just had this scorn and hatred for the nWo that ran so deep. It was absolutely essential to the program they went on to work together.

[Superstar Sleeze]

Dangerous Alliance (Bobby Eaton & Larry Zbyszko) w/Mad USA vs The Steiners - WCW Saturday Night 3/21/92

 

The Steiners are great TV match workers because they have a ton of spots to pop a crowd that make you want to watch them in longer matches even if those matches do not always result in excellent matches. It does not get much better than Eaton and Zbyszko stooging and bumping for these powerhouses. The one element that Zbyszko brings that Anderson does not is heat and lots of it. The Larry Sucks chants started early and did not let up. The first three quarters of this match is a Steiners showcase. Scotty is so good at combining power moves with his amateur moves that make for a lot of cool spots. Rick is always there to knock the heels down the peg when they are feeling smart with a Steinerline. Eaton finally looks to get something going with an eyerake, but Scotty catches him with a belly to belly on the floor, but as Scotty ducks under Eaton he eats a spinkick from The Living Legend. I liked how that transition was earned rather than just abruptly changing course. Scotty is no great shakes as a FIP, but the heels were good at taking it to him with choking, sweet Eaton punches and a flying elbow. Would have liked to seen a Zbyszko piledriver that they teased. Scotty hits a Tiger Driver and tags in Rick for the home stretch. Madusa gets sandwhiched between Larry Z and the ropes. Scotty detains Eaton while Rick hits a belly to belly and the Steiner Bulldog for the win. It is an excellent showcase match for the Steiner, but without making the Dangerous Alliance to be jabronis. They still got their heat and Larry Z added a lot of heat to this match.

[goc]

If Larry's work in-ring is underrated, then his stuff at the announce booth is a forgotten gem for sure. I haven't been around this board long enough to gather the general consensus on his time behind the booth, but I'm a HUGE fan of Larry on the headset. Even IF he overstepped the boundaries of being overbearing or obnoxious at times, it doesn't matter. His commentary still carried a lot of weight, very much in the same vein as a Jesse Ventura.

 

Larry on commentary never strayed TOO FAR to one side. He generally praised both heels and babyfaces alike. He also bashed both and called them out as it was warranted. But when it came to Hall - and this was key to their feud - he just had this scorn and hatred for the nWo that ran so deep. It was absolutely essential to the program they went on to work together.

He seems to have a bad rep as an announcer around the internet, but I always liked him. I thought he was a really good fit for WCW, he was very good at putting over what was happening in the ring and why, when he wanted to. Yes he sometimes would get off on rants about women or golf but they also had a lot of really pointless filler matches on Nitro where it's not like there was anything going on in the ring that he could talk about anyway.

[(BP)]

Larry had that air of authority and knowledge, like Ventura or Regal, that cannot be faked on commentary. He could be a blowhard for sure, but I liked his announcing a lot.

[C.S.]

My two favorite Larry matches (keeping in mind that I wasn't around for the Bruno or AWA stuff):

 

- The Enforcers vs. Dustin Rhodes and mystery partner (a returning Ricky Steamboat, subbing for an injured Barry Windham) for the WCW World Tag Team Titles. Probably the first truly "great" match I ever saw.

 

- Lord Steven Regal vs. Larry for the WCW World Television Title. Despite not being a natural babyface at all, Larry had me rooting for him to win the belt (which he did) - and I was a big Regal fan even at the time.