[1986-12-06-NWA-World Championship Wrestling] Rock & Roll Express vs Rick Rude & Manny Fernandez

[Superstar Sleeze]

NWA World Tag Team Champions Rock N Roll Express vs Ragin & Ravishin (Manny Fernandez & Rick Rude) - WCW TV 12/6/86

 

I am going to sound like a broken record, but again I thought this heat segment on Morton was too long. I don't really think they needed to go 30 minutes in this match. They established their point and manufactured the drama, but prolonging the agony on Morton's arm only served to lessen the impact of the finish. I thought all three RnR matches I have seen are at about the same level and with the same issue. I would probably put this middle of the pack, but I think they are very close to each other. I liked the shine of this one a lot and probably the most of three. I thought they did a great job dazzling them with speed early. Rude & Fernandez were great at selling that. I have seen limited Manny Fernandez, but he was very athletic and very impressive in how he moved in the ring. He was definitely the workhorse of the team, but I thought Rude carried his end. Fernandez missed an impressive second rope elbow drop and they went to work on the arm. They establish the red herring of Morton favoring his injured, taped arm from Starrcade after every arm drag. You expect that to be the transition into the heat segment. The kids chanting "Break It!" when Gibson had Manny in the arm stretcher was funny. It turns out ti was not Morton's arm that needed to be worried about but Gibson's injured leg, which Manny kicked and promptly tagged out. Rude cut him off and held him down for Manny to come off the top rope with a knee crashing down on Gibson injured knee. They worked the leg with deathlock and they wrenched. We got the standard Gibson crawling to the wrong corner drama. Rude takes a HUGE back body drop and thats enough for Gibson to roll through to make the tag, Like many RnR matches, the first hot tag is short lived and the Ragin Bull wails away on Morton's bad arm. Like in the Gibson heat segment, one of the first moves is Fernandez crashing down from the turnbuckles onto Morton arm. They do the good heel work of pulling the bandage off and even use the Anderson hammerlock slam. There is a lot of arm holds, but they are being wrenched and some good double teams. I wish the RNR Express member on the apron would assert himself more. Morton getting rammed into the steel post, Paul Jones getting a lick in and Rude coming crashing down off the apron was a nice mix-up, but again it was back to the arm bar. Inverted atomic drop on Rude, which is not as awesome as an atomic drop on Rude. FINALLY HOT TAG! Again quick finish, which was the general norm, but I feel like RNR Crockett matches have quicker finishes than WWF even. Morton injures himself on a dropkick. Gibson goes for the O'Connor Roll, Rude decks him so Manny ends up on top for the win and NEW WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS! This was a great limb-based double FIP tag team match that was very enjoyable. ****1/4

[paul sosnowski]

Available on the Network, Vault, World Championship Wrestling, 1986.  December 6th episode.   Don't miss the pre-match interviews and set up from earlier in the show!!!