Dirt Sheets

[JHawk]

WWA news

 

The upcoming top ten rankings are going to be legit in the sense that it will be using winning percentages to determine the initial rankings, but worked in the sense that they'll be using everybody's rankings since the restructuring of the company in July to prevent someone like Nick Bockwinkel from falling out of the top ten. There's also a rumor that it will not be done weekly as originally announced, but may be done monthly to coincide with the USA specials.

 

They'll also only be including wrestlers on the full time roster, so even though the WWA's deal with Mid-South allows them use Don Muraco whenever he's not booked for Mid-South, don't expect him in the ratings.

 

Dan Spivey is expected to debut on this week's TV and will be getting at least a midcard push. They feel he has a tremendous upside but understand he's green and don't want to push him too hard too fast.

 

Ric Flair will be appearing for the company on February 18 to defend their title on the USA special. Expect his opponent to be announced on TV next week.

 

The Guerreros are being loaned out to other NWA promotions and will be booked similar to Flair.

[agentofenton]

Mid Atlantic News and Notes

 

Shocking Title Change (well, shocking to some, not to others!) with Randy Savage's debut match winning the United States Championship. We hear there is some new influences in MACW, and the direction of the company has changed a little bit in recent weeks. This title change is one of those changing directions.

 

The booker is said to be really happy with the current roster. He is focused on building towards the big super-card in Charlotte and the end of March. It has been rumored to be on Closed Circuit all around the Mid Atlantic region. He thinks if this is a success, he could have a long career in the MACW.

 

Randy Savage will be bringing in his own manager in the next few weeks.

 

Speaking of managers, Skandar Akbar is negotiating with someone(s) about signing with him. The big rumor is a tag team might be looking to get his help. No word on who this may end up being yet.

 

Expect more of these mega multiple man tag team matches to be featured on the house show circuit. They have been popular among many in the locker room and the fans alike.

 

MACW wants to get on a big cable TV network, but nothing is on the horizon for them yet. If an opportunity rises, the powers that be want to capitalize on it.

 

That's all the news fit to print today, good day folks!

[LowBlowPodcast]

Notes from The Battle of New Orleans

The biggest story coming out of the Battle of New Orleans was Bruiser Brody. He was a legit no show at the event. He worked with Mid South on Friday night in Houston against Stan Hansen in a no contest Texas Death Match. The story is unfolding that Brody was told the finish of the match in the Superdome before his match with Hansen and then subsequently phoned in his effort. Hansen, who has a good relationship with Watts, did business but Brody was non-committal. It is said that Vince McMahon brokered the deal for Brody to come into the Superdome and booked the program with Magnum and Brody taking on Gino and Tully. McMahon is said to be very high on Gino and thought the best way for him to get over again would be to pin Brody. Magnum offered himself as the sacrificial lamb, but McMahon said with his return to Mid South, they want to keep him strong for house shows and the loss on Brody would mean more. There were rumors that Brody and Magnum would go against the grain against Tully and Gino leading up to the event Saturday night, but instead, Brody no showed and Mid South was left without the top star.

 

The call for Watts to come in was very last minute, however this is one way in which Watts may cycle off television and be more in an administrative role. Mid South has been looking around the area for possible color commentators to go along with Jim Ross and have even reached out to Gorilla Monsoon but Watts balked the idea right from the get go. He said he had respect for Monsoon but he doesn't belong in Mid South. Vince McMahon is still looking to possible get him in as a road agent. Danny Hodge is a name that has been floating around to come in as a road agent and possible color guy or even Grizzly Smith who has done some booking for Watts in the past to come in and help with the new workload.

 

Outside of the Bruiser Brody debacle, the Battle of New Orleans was a major success. With around 21,000 people in attendance, the early figures shows close to if not over a $100,000 gate. Watts had his crew taping the event and he may be trying to sell it to Closed Circuit providers.

 

The Junkyard Dog is legitimately gone from Mid South at this point. Watts made and call and gave him the time off, no telling if it will be for the full year or sooner. It would be hard to see Mid South without JYD come Thanksgiving and Christmas.

 

Ted Dibiase was severely banged up following his match with the JYD. He's said to have gotten at least 10 stitches in his head and possible a ruptured disk in his back. This isn't good for Mid South as Television Champion Mr. Wrestling II may need to have his knee scoped following his contest with Scott Casey.

 

Maniac Matt Borne was in Mid South and may be gone already. He said to have had some heat with McMahon or Watts over his return and them not making it a big deal. He could be looking for work already for the right promoter.

 

Adrian Street has not made his debut on television yet and Mid South is looking for the right moment for him or the right price as other promotions have shown interest in Street but will Miss Linda be too much to bring along if he goes?

[JHawk]

WWA news

 

The big story is the future of Dick the Bruiser. Bruiser is still the owner of the WWA and is still officially part of the full time roster, but has not been on TV in months. There is a rumor that he might be looking to sell the company, and if he does, my guess is he'd retire because there's no way he'll get a push with that roster.

 

Andre the Giant is coming in for the USA special on 12/18 but likely will not wrestle a full time member of the WWA roster.

 

I'm expecting a shake up in the tag team division. Right now there are about six face tag teams as opposed to three heel teams and that's spreading potential matchups thin.

 

Expect Chris Adams to get a future shot at Ric Flair at a USA special. I'm hearing rumors they want the match 3/17 but unless Adams-Bockwinkel for the Missouri Title is done on TV, I'm not sure they can extend that feud into April.

[Boon]

Southeastern

 

- Last week Ted Turner and Ron Fuller had clear the air meeting, unfortunately it didn't all go to plan, and it seems the relationship is now at breaking point with Turner ready to pull the plug. Fuller went through the plans for Southeastern and the direction he planned to go with, which Turner didn't agree with. Rumour has it this is possibly the last week on WTBS but who knows.

 

- One of the big issues between the two is a recent talent exchange that has happen, that we will come into place within the next month. Turner was outraged at the trade, and felt it was the wrong move.

 

- Talking of talent trades, Fuller has let up a bit with Bill Watts, who haven't seen eye to eye on a few occasions, work together, firstly Steve Lombardi came in for Tracy Smothers and one more bigger talent exchange. Fuller is quoted as saying "Me and Watts have different ideas on how this business should be run, but talent is talent, and a deal was there to be done".

 

- Landell has landed and may quite an impact, look for him to become the premium talent in the territory, Fuller is big on "The Nature Boy" which has put another stars nose out of joint.

 

- Talking of Landell, he and The Heavenly Bodies will be working up north on the tail end of the Southeastern loop.

[Boon]

Southeastern

 

- Massive week for the ever changing Southeastern Championship Wrestling. The biggest piece of news is the heel turn of Bob Armstrong this past Monday in Birmingham, it's thought Armstrong was all for the idea, and wants to do a program with his sons down the line.

 

- The Fabulous Ones have finished up their run in Southeastern, it's believe they weren't happy with the money they were drawing in Alabama and are going to try their luck in Memphis. In return Fuller has picked up one of the hottest acts in tag team wrestling the Rock N Roll Express, their matches with the Heavenly Bodies will be some matches.

 

- Also moving on is Tommy Rich, Rich had a fantastic run in Southeastern as was talked about as one of the top stars of 1984 in the wrestling world. He has left on good terms but felt he run his course in Alabama. He is joining The Fabulous Ones in moving across to Memphis.

 

- Two new faces coming in to Alabama are Superstar Bill Dundee and Adrian Street. Both will be treated as top level wrestlers when they start. Dundee will also be brought in to help with the booking with Ron Fuller.

 

- Another new face behind the screens is Les Thatcher, he's role is two fold, he will be used as an on screen match maker and also booking Southeastern's sister promotion Southern States Wrestling.

 

- Talking of Southern States Wrestling, Bobby Bearden has had his promoters license revoked due to non payment of talent from the Alabama State Commission, Les Thatcher and Ron Fuller has brought the promotion from Bearden and will be promoting the shows going forward. Expect it to follow the same format.

[kevinmcfl]

 

Ted Turner and Jerry Jarrett have to come to an agreement to form the United States Wrestling Association. While Jarrett adds one of the deepest rosters in all of professional wrestling to the deal, it is Turner and WTBS that makes this a special day in professional wrestling.

 

Jarrett and Turner vow to make this a national product that will include a "World Champion" and "World Tag Team Champions." In saying that, Jarrett has released all Ric Flair and the NWA World Tag Team Champions from their upcoming Memphis commitments. WTBS will air two weekly shows on both Saturday and Sunday evenings and a monthly mega show. Turner believes that he has a new concept that brings quality matches into the homes will add to the popularity of the USWA. He was quoted as saying that fans deserve better then the hot shot vs the bottom of the rung guys gets boring.

 

Turner and Jarrett also disagreed with who should do the announcing. Jarrett said that his man, Lance Russell is the best while Turner argued for his man, Gordon Solie. Nothing better than a compromise, they decided to bring them in together and make Dave Brown more an interviewer and special segment type guy.

 

Turner convinced Jarrett that Atlanta was a key market and to win Atlanta they had to bring in Tommy Rich. Jarrett agreed and said Wildfire was also huge in Memphis. To bring in Rich, they did sacrifice Bill Dundee which is a huge loss to the Memphis fan base. The Rock n Roll Express, who were not interested in the amount of travel a national promotion might bring, decided not to sign a new contract. After a bit of scrambling, The USWA was able to secure the services of the Fabulous Ones. Both Turner and Jarrett are ecstatic with this.

 

Turner was able to convince Jarrett that the Cold War was Hot! In order to raise feelings in the fans, they needed to amp up the U.S.-Russian hatred. They were upset that Ivan Koloff was not available so they may have reached deep down into the barrel for their hated Russian when they signed Korstia Korchenko. Jarrett said the Memphis fans are familiar with him and hate him like any other Russian.

 

The former CWA would like to thank Channel 5 TV in Memphis and all of its affiliates throughout the region for their years of support.

 

Lastly, while Memphis and Atlanta will be the centers for this promotion, Turner is looking for growth. He is willing to listen to any and all "territories" that might be interested in bringing their promotion to the USWA. He promises them weekly segments on the WTBS show and also some say and control on both the World Title and The World Tag Title. Turner says all they need to do is contact them and he will listen to all offers.

[JHawk]

The USA Network is not happy with the satellite feed being unavailable due to the snowstorm that hit Indiana this past week. They filled the time airing old WWF shows from Madison Square Garden but never made it clear they were repeats, so a lot of fans tuning in thought the WWF was making a comeback,

 

Mike Rotundo is gone as a full time member of the roster. He will be back to blow off his feud with Dan Spivey, but it may be several months down the line. I understand someone is coming in to replace Rotundo on TV next week and his appearance will lead to the next chapter of the story.

 

There are rumors that Jimmy Hart may be coming in from Mid-South but they are asking for Bobby Heenan in return. Rumor is that Dick the Bruiser is interested in pulling the trigger (he and Heenan don't get along anyway) but Nick Bockwinkel might be blocking the deal.

[LowBlowPodcast]

-There will be no house show loop on Sunday or Monday for Mid South as the talent was given three days off. The reason is due to Bill Watts, Vince McMahon, Jim Ross, and Joel Watts out on the road. As of right now, Mid South is shown throughout Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Mississippi, and Arkansas. They are syndicated throughout the major towns in those areas but these four went out on the road to get more markets. Bill Watts went to Memphis to try and cash in on the CWA moving to Atlanta. Word is that those talks went well and Mid South may be shown on Memphis television, all be it, very late at night. Vince McMahon hit the major New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Baltimore markets. Word has it that these talks went great and McMahon really sold the talent from Mid South. Expect Mid South to possibly be shown in these markets as soon as June 1st. Jim Ross and Joel Watts were on tag team work as they went to El Paso, Phoenix, and Los Angeles to meet with some of those major television sponsors. These talks went well as Mid South should be popping up in West Texas along with New Mexico and Arizona. The Los Angeles talks didn't go well as they were expecting to meet with Vince McMahon. Bill Watts wasn't happy to hear this and chastised Ross and Joel for not selling the product.

 

-Speaking of Vince McMahon, it was announced to the talent this past week that Vince McMahon is now the head of "talent" in Mid South. He has gained Bill Watt's trust enough to handle all the contracts and dates of bringing in talent. The wrestlers were told to go to Vince if they had concerns. Bill Watts is now working as the head booker with the returning Grizzly Smith. Smith is back on the road after some health issues. He and Watts say they have a clear plan for Mid South going into the Summer and some big plans on how to expand the roster and the visibility of the product.

 

-One of McMahon's first attempts was to try and get some more familiar names. He has reached out to Gorilla Monsoon to come in and help him but still no word on his location. He was last seen around Detroit, but hasn't been seen since. McMahon also sent out feelers for Bobby Heenan. He feels Heenan can be more of a presence that Jimmy Hart and meshes better with the talent. Hart wasn't happy to hear about the possibility of a trade, instead of getting sour he and Vince sat in a room for around 2 hours and both walked out appearing to be happy. Some have said that Hart is going to look for ways to be better on television and cut better promos.

 

- Adrian Street and Matt Borne have effectively left Mid South Wrestling. No word on Borne's location as he was mysteriously brought in and then left without ever getting on regular television.

 

-Scott Hall was brought in to Mid South but hasn't been on the road yet. He is expected to start soon though. Bill Watts things he looks too much like Magnum TA while Vince McMahon is higher on him than Magnum. Watts told him to cut his hair and his mustache but Vince may have enough influence to stop that from happening.

 

- Bill Watts is very happy with the recent run of the Guerreros against the Fantastics. He is really pushing Bobby and Tommy as one of the top tag teams in the world. He has even talked about holding a big two day tag team tournament in Houston. He has spoken to Paul Boesch and has a possible television special on the 31st of March... this could happen.

 

- Mid South is looking to make next week's Leap Year MSW a special one as they have already advertised Ted Dibiase to be in the building. This marks the champions return since the beginning of the month.

[kevinmcfl]

UNITED STATES WRESTLING NEWS

 

- The United States Wrestling Association show opened on WTBS to mixed ratings. It did wonderful in the Memphis and Atlanta areas due mostly to the promoting of the show in the final episodes of CWA Wrestling and through advertisements in Atlanta area newspapers that stated that Tommy Rich, Butch Reed and Tony Atlas would be back in action in the new USWA.

 

-The USWA expects viewership to improve as people realize that many of the superstars from Georgia Championship Wrestling will once again be brought into their homes each and every Saturday and Sunday night along with such national figures as Jerry Lawler, Austin Idol and Roddy Piper.

 

-To try and compete with the huge, powerful promotions like the AWA and the NWA, the USWA is still looking for partners throughout the country. Jarrett says he is willing to listen to all offers and would be willing to even give up some control of his World Championships. One person Jarrett would like to speak with is Frizt Von Erich. Fritz my have some interest but Jarrett knows this is not the time or the place. While Fritz Von Erich has been upset lately that World Class Championship Wrestling has been off the air for awhile and would love to get back in the game, he is still in morning due to the death of his son David.

 

-The USWA is very unhappy with the working ability of Korstia Korchenko. He is a horrible wrestler and a bad speaker. Jarrett would love to keep him because nothing sells like a big tough Russian but other wrestlers have been complaining that they might get hurt in the ring with him. Jarrett would love to settle on a 3rd member of the House of Humperdink but is having trouble making the character fit on the national level. He recently decided that Lord Humongous was just such a strange gimmick that he thought the nation would not buy it.

[LowBlowPodcast]

There has been some dissension within Mid South on the booking and production of Power Pro. Bill Watts isn't happy with the playback of matches taped from television tapings in Fort Worth, Oklahoma City, Shreveport, and New Orleans. This was McMahon's way of saving money and booking fees to keep all the regular big names from regular tv tapings to put shows on Power Pro. It has been working well as Watts and McMahon have been bringing in big talent for television like the Freebirds, Guerreros, and Andre... then they get to be booked on MSW and then show up on Power Pro. This was evident this week on MSW with the announcement of the big North American Title tournament. The Semi-Finals will be held next week on MSW with the finals being taped after the show and airing on Power Pro the following Sunday. This was a way to save money on booking the Freebirds once instead of multiple weeks when Gordy was the only one needed.

 

Speaking of booking blunders and issues... Paul Boesch and Bill Watts are already having issues with the big $200,000 tournament. Boesch wanted to bring in Brody and Hansen but Watts says if Brody is there he will be pulling all of the Mid South talent. While the show is Mid South heavy, there is a lot of outside talent coming in but Watts was a firm NO on Brody after he no showed the Superdome in early February. It was Jim Ross and Vince McMahon who had to be the cooler ones to prevail as McMahon helped persuade Boesch while Ross and Watts calmed things down.

[Boon]

Alabama/East Tennessee

 

- Ron Fuller has been very busy since the WTBS/Georgia split. He's had Ron Wright and Les Thatcher out securing TV syndication deals across Eastern Tennessee. Fuller has secured TV in Knoxville and Chattanooga and will be taping TV bi-weekly at the Knoxville Civic Centre. Others towns being looked at are Knigsport, Johnson City and Hazard, Kentucky.

 

- Fuller has done a really great job of building his back room staff up, Les Thatcher will be heading up Southeastern's sister promotion Southern States (which should be back up and running this week), Thatcher will also act as an onscreen match maker. Ron Wright has been brought in too run the northern end of the territory in East Tennessee, he will be assisted by Phil Hickerson, expect Hickerson and The Flame (Jody Hamilton) to solely be used in East Tennessee and not Alabama going forward to help run the office there. Ken Lucas has been helping with the booking as he is winding down his career.

 

- Norvelle Austin looks to be on the move shortly, he hasn't really found his feet back in Southeastern, it's believed Koko Ware has been in contact and looking to form a team.

 

- Fuller has been working closely with Jerry Jarrett in setting up the new USWA, I could see more talent trades further down the road, as there will clearly need to blow off the Tommy Rich-Bob Armstrong feud.

 

- Bob Armstrong has done a fantastic job at slowly building to his heel turn since the turn of the year. Bullet Bob isn't overly keen on working against his sons, but may be persuaded, for now he will have his hands full with Johnny Rich and getting him over as a top level face.

 

- With no top clear face in the promotion at the moment look for Bill Dundee to fill that role when he starts.

[agentofenton]

Mid-Atlantic News

 

The official announcement of Coastal Clash, a special supercard that will be broadcast on Closed Circuit around the Mid-Atlantic area was announced on TV. This show will be headlined by an NWA World title match.

 

That show will include some big names, Andre The Giant, Stan Hansen and Bruiser Brody are all signed up for this show.

 

Junkyard Dog made a surprise debut in Mid Atlantic, as he is out of Mid-South due to his loss to Ted Dibiase. How long he is staying around is not known at this time.

 

Miss Elizabeth has also debuted, as the manager of the United States Champion, Randy "Macho Man" Savage.

 

Skandor Akbar will be adding at least two more members to his stable.

 

A new championship will be announced and crowned in the coming weeks.

[LowBlowPodcast]

-A very interesting week out of Mid South as the doors were closed for a one on one verbal clash between Bill Watts and Vince McMahon. It appears as though both men have different ideas on the Junkyard Dog and the handling of his contract in the future. Watts wanted to bring him back sooner than later with the injuries to Ted Dibiase, but McMahon is hoping to create new fresh faces out of Magnum TA, Wahoo McDaniel, and the Fantastics. The Freebirds came in for a cup of coffee and helped matters along with the Guerreros but it appears as though there are no future bookings for either of those groups in the month of March in which the tour has been labeled the March for the Gold. The big matches they are leading to are the big television title match in which we will see the return of Mr. Wrestling II on March 16th in Houston and then the return of Ted Dibiase and the defense of the North American Championship on March the 21st in Shreveport.

 

- There has been quite a bit of dissension over the production of Power Pro and Bill Watts was moments away from pulling the plug all together. It is McMahon and Jim Ross who have been on the side of keeping the production on Wednesday nights and taping it after MSW. Joel and Bill Watts don't like how the same fans are shown on MSW and on Power Pro. We could see a change in the coming weeks if the show even survives through the month of March.

 

-The Fantastics vs Guerreros was a great draw for Mid South over the past month and there was a great group of time limit draw matches and then the instant classic from the Feb. 29th episode of MSW. There was even talks of a title switch for a quick swap over the month but NWA officials couldn't be persuaded by Watts. The Fantastics are still high on the NWA's top ten tag teams and a powerful showing at the big $200,000 tournament could put them in place for a title reign.

 

-The Executioner will be returning to Mid South over the next couple of weeks on television. McMahon would like to utilize him in a different manner but Watts doesn't see that being a draw and wants to keep him as is.

 

-Lord Humongous debuted to a huge rating on MSW this week. He is coming in with a lot of hype after his debut and his alignment with Tully Blanchard and Gino Hernandez is said to be the key to his success and foreseeable future in Mid South.

[kevinmcfl]

UNITED STATES WRESTLING ASSOCIATION NEWS

 

 

-Ted Turner and Jerry Jarrett are all about expansion but they feel it would be in the best interest to the organization that if they were able to acquire other promotions who are already established and allow them to be member organizations to the USWA. It has been said that Jarrett has offered them opportunities to even control the World Champions for periods of time but so far he has received little interest. Jarrett is also thinking of vacated some of the Championship Belts in the USWA and giving complete control of them to any new promotions willing to join the USWA.

 

 

-While the ratings for the Saturday and Sunday shows are on the rise, many of the wrestlers have complained that they are not having their talents showcased enough. Ted Turner and Jerry Jarrett have told each any everyone that they must earn TV time. They have decided to increase the number of house shows per month by adding a second show to the schedule on many nights. These extra house shows will give people like Bugsy McGraw and Brett Wayne a chance to win over the fans and then maybe get a shot at TBS.

 

-The board of directors believes that the Russian angle will work no matter the Russian. They know they have like a D level Russian in Korstia Korchenko and are looking to improve this part of the roster but they do not wish to abandon the idea. They know full well that the Hatred of Russian Wrestlers means dollar signs for them.

 

-Talks with Fritz VonErich continue but it seems like he wants to Dallas to be on equal ground with Memphis and Atlanta. Other than Dallas, Fritz has little to offer as currently there is no WCCW and his sons are in Florida. We will just have to see if the VonErich name is enough to entice Turner and Jarrett.

 

-All eyes are the First Battle of Atlanta on March 12. This is the first major show for USWA and a lot is riding on this. Since it is also being televised on national TV, their is concern for the attendance. It is rumored that Turner will give free tickets to any child with an "A"on a test who is accompanied by a paying adult. His theory is that a packed Omni looks good on TV and the more people equals the more energy.

 

-There has also been the rumor that Turner is down on Plowboy Frazier and his cousins. Turner is unsure if this Hillbilly routine will be successful in some of the larger cities he wants to bring USWA to. He knows how great they are in the country side of Dixie but he would be happier adding to the Russian Mob or Ladd's Army.

[agentofenton]

Mid Atlantic News and Notes

 

Earlier, NWA and Mid Atlantic Championship Wrestling crowned new World 6-Man Tag Team Champions. There is talk that the rematch, scheduled for Coastal Clash, could have an interesting turn. Barry Windham is already scheduled to defend his TV Title that same night. Freebirds are already demanding the rematch be voided so they don't have to wrestle the Windham's and Houston again. We'll see how this develops on TV next week.

 

A rumor going around the Mid Atlantic office is that there maybe a second, one-hour TV show added to syndication. Nothing has been finalized as of yet. Word is the TV's having been doing well and fans have been writing in to see more. With the limited one-hour slot, a second show could get over more of the talent each week, as the regular roster is 30+ and each week only 8-10 guys get on the show. Formats and touring schedule is being looked at to see if this added show would be worth the added cost.

 

MACW will be heavily used in the upcoming Paul Boesch $200,000 Tag Team Tournament in Houston April 6th & 7th. Six teams and a Ricky Steamboat vs Ric Flair match already signed for that weekend. The Crockett's are extremely happy with this weekend. It will be a return to action for many of their stars as there is a small break in action after Coastal Clash. With all of the cost involved in putting together a live Closed Circuit event all across the territory, they gave the boys a little over a week off. With this Tag Team Grand Prix, it gives some of their big names a chance to get their name out there in another market and continue to build relationships with other promoters all across the United States. MACW may run a few high school shows that weekend with the remaining talent, but nothing has been decided this week. There is also talk of sending all the Mid Atlantic crew to Houston, just in case some of them are needed, so one of those two plans will be finalized for the workers this week.

 

We here there maybe a small change in the roster coming up. The Mexican team of Pierroth Jr and Blue Demon Jr. may return to Mexico for a while, and MACW will be looking for two new talents to come in and take their place. No names have been rumored as of yet.

 

Paul Jones is on the roster, but has been helping with locker room details in recent weeks. We've heard he will be debuting on TV soon, possibly at the Coastal Clash event. No word on who he is managing yet.

 

That is all the news fit to print for this week. Thanks for reading.

 

[LowBlowPodcast]

-Seedings and pairings for the big Paul Boesch $200,000 invitational tournament have been released. In some late breaking news, Bill Watts was trying to close a deal to get the Von Erichs and Dusty Rhodes on the show, but ended up with no call backs from Florida. It is believe that Graham has plans for his men outside of those dates and with the death of David Von Erich still looming, there are other priorities for the Florida based promotion.

 

-Expect to see some changes in the pairings even as they were just released. Watts tried to get all the promoters to act as he is with teams losing their seeds if they lose their titles or lose to someone in a lower seed. Boesch says it is an asinine idea but will adhere to it with the Mid South teams... which only one of them was seeded.

 

-Adrian Adonis and Dick Murdoch are finishing up a tour of Japan on the 22nd of March and should be on light duty when the tournament rolls around. They are expected to be a sleeper pick to go far.

 

-Bill Watts is doing everything in his power to get Bruiser Brody out of the tournament, even threatening to pull out of Houston all together and leave Boesch to find another promotion to run there. While that wouldn't be a problem for Mr. Boesch, he may have to make a decision on Brody sooner than later as he is in high demand and would want to be paid accordingly. Additionally, with that story, Stan Hansen would be left in the dark and needing someone to partner with. Some said he would pull someone from Japan since they would be off tour or he could even no show the tournament the day of leaving Boesch and Watts in a bad way, but that wouldn't be smart business for Hansen, who is used quite regularly by both men and makes quite a bit of money when he is around.

 

- In other news, Vince McMahon Jr was off the road this week as he was up in New York visiting with Gorilla Monsoon and his father Vince Sr. Vince Sr. has expressed some interest in reopening the WWF and Gorilla was excited about the opportunity but Vince Jr says he is locked in with Mid South and balked the talks.

 

- Ted Dibiase's return to Mid South on the 21st is expected to garner a big rating and should open the show. Watts is hoping that Dibiase will be 100% on return and that the match against Blanchard will be one of the highlights for Mid South Wrestling in 1984.

[LowBlowPodcast]

-In a big move by Bill Watts, Power Pro will be pulled from the air this week and for the subsequent future. Word is that the financing of the show along with some negative reviews from seeing the wrestlers wrestling in the same venue as MSW has caused Bill Watts to pull the plug. While Mid South is doing good numbers, the price tag for some of the top talent is too high to continue to keep two television shows on the air. There are some rumblings that issues in Oklahoma around the oil business may be cause for concern for Mid South, but Watts was quick to hush those rumors. Vince McMahon was especially irate due to this being the one way he was on television with Jim Ross hosting MSW. Watts is looking for McMahon to focus on contracts and building up the talent relations in the future and less about television. Watts was not impressed with Vince's ideas to get national coverage for Mid South. Negotiations were in the final stages to have Mid South syndicated in New York and Los Angeles and even Chicago due to McMahon's influence, but once Power Pro went down, so did the deals. There may be a chance down the line for MSW to be run on syndication, but that looks grim.

 

-Mid South is putting everything they've got into this week's edition of Mid South Wrestling with the return of Ted Dibiase and the defense against Tully Blanchard.

 

- Bill Watts was able to successfully veto Bruiser Brody's entrance into the big $200,000 tournament in Houston on April 6th and 7th. Boesch has no choice but to answer his demands as Mid South sent a lot of talent for the event. This may be the final days of Mid South in Houston if this relationship doesn't get better. No word on who Hansen will get as a partner. Ole Anderson was one name, but he isn't too high on Watt's list either. Another option could be someone from Japan... but that could come with a high price tag and booking concerns from Giant Baba as he works directly with Hansen. Dory Funk Jr was another name and even Terry Funk's name came up. His replacement is expected to be named in the coming days.

 

-Another name on the block is Kendall Windham who has been working through some nagging injuries as of late. This would leave Barry to find a partner... he wouldn't go with Hansen but could find someone else. Some have even said he would get the JYD to join him but JYD seems to be "off limits" due to his "contract status" with Mid South but anything could happen.

 

-There is talk of Mil Mascaras & Jose Lothario jumping into the tournament somehow. There are no openings, but if Hansen or Windham gets bumped, they could step right into that spot as Boesch wants to see them in the tournament.

 

-Don't expect to see the Masked Superstar around Mid South for a while as talks fell through with Bill Watts on his appearances and pay. He also has Japanese dates coming up so he may not return until mid summer if he even does at all.

 

-Watts is expected to run a Superdome show in late May and then two more this year. He wants to build up to a big show in September and then finish off the year in December.

[kevinmcfl]

 

-Jerry Jarrett and Ted Turner had a meeting this week and decided to increase the number of House Shows. The USWA will be running a show everyday in April except April 22 which is Easter Sunday. In April alone, USWA Wrestling will be in Tennessee, Georgia, Ohio, Michigan, Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky and Maryland. They hope this exposure along with the two weekly TV shows will be able to cover expenses. So far, USWA has been operating in the red. This is not because of attendance or TV ratings which have both been very good. It is just that the USWA may have to many high priced wrestlers on its roster. To help with cost, the USWA Board of Directors has decided to sell quarterly highlight reels of its best matches on VHS.

 

The USWA is still looking for a partner and is somewhat surprised that they have not found one yet. They have offered such things as control of the World Title and segments on a national TV Show. Jarrett is now traveling to Puerto Rico and Canada still hoping to find a taker. His other thought is to expand the travel loop to include both the Northeast and the West which are wrestling starved at this point. He figures the more people who can see the show life, the higher the TV ratings and thus the profits.

 

Jerry Lawler and some of the other wrestlers have expressed concerns about the current amount of travel but that was expected. The King has always been down on travel and this might be one reason the AWA and NWA never looked at him as an option to be World Champion. To appease Lawler, the USWA has agreed that its next major show, Roundhouse Revival on April 23rd will be in the Mid-South Coliseum.

 

Memphis fans are upset that Plowboy Frazier has been forced out but Ted Turner said that he didn't think that Hillbilly angle would play with a national audience. He believes that Russians would outdraw Rednecks any day of the week. Only time will tell especially since his Russian group is the bottom of the barrel.

[Perfectly Straightedge]

We have some breaking news.

 

Stampede television is set to comeback to fruition. We have heard that the reason for the pulling was due to the attack of Jake Roberts to Stu Hart. Many of the higher ups were upset about the attack and demanded Stu Hart to take Jake off television. Stu though disagreed and instead of releasing Jake. He decided to stand his ground. Their was a stalemate for a couple months but an agreement was made and now Stampede is going to be coming back to television. As for the exact date we have heard it will be on April 1st.

 

So make sure to tune in for the revival of Stampede back to your local stations.

 

We have also heard that Stampede Wrestling has decided to retire the British Commonwealth middle weight championship. Instead they are going to debut a new title during their first live show back and we have heard that Bruce Hart will be in action for that title.

 

We have also heard The Nature Boy will be making an appearance soon on Stampede Wrestling. They are working on the details but we have heard that he will be there.

[kevinmcfl]

It has finally happened! After a few months of searching for a promotion to join USWA and striking out all over the country, Ted Turner and Jerry Jarrett have just struck gold. While it is not an existing NWA or AWA territory that has decided to jump ship and join the USWA, it is one of the biggest names in the industry. Fritz Von Erich is coming aboard. He has had a tough couple of months. First, his WCCW lost its television contract and then his sons, to better their careers, moved on to Championship Wrestling from Florida only to have David lose his life. Fritz decied it was time to get back in the wrestling game and decided to begin a brand new promotion which he was going to call TNT WRESTLING as it was to be centered in Texas N Tennessee. TNT wrestling will host a weekly show in the Dallas, Texas at the Sportatorium. Who is to announce the TV show is yet to be determined as is most of the roster for TNT.

 

Jerry Jarrett got wind of this are went to Fritz to see if he would be willing to partner with USWA. Fritz was very hesitant at first but Jarrett and his partner, Ted Turner, basically gave him everything he could every ask for.

1. a 1 hour national TV show on WTBS that will begin airing late Tuesday nights so not to interfere with the Braves games and maybe move to the Sunday night show that airs from 6:05-7:05. This will be determined by the ratings that TNT is getting. This show will begin almost right away with hopes to have a show by the first week of April.
2. Fritz will be able to control his own champions which will include the TNT Heavyweight Champion and the TNT Tag Team Champions. The USWA will also use these champions in their major events to give TNT more exposure.
3. As compensation for recognizing the USWA World Champions as the true "World" Champions, Fritz will get the use of those champions on 2 TV shows a month plus use of them at any major show he runs.
4. Fritz will be responsible for his own roster and needs to find his own talent with the following exceptions: Jarrett has given Fritz the use of some of his lesser talent who will be on active in both promotions. Fritz is still negotiating with other companies for talent and he is also in the process of buying a few of the contracts from Jarrett of wrestlers Jarrett does not deem necessary for the continued success of his side of USWA.

[LowBlowPodcast]

-Huge news out of Mid South this week as Tully Blanchard and Gino Hernandez have captured the Mid South tag team titles to go along with the Mid South North American (Blanchard) and Television (Hernandez) titles. There are a lot of unhappy members of the roster due to these happenings, however there are some who know it is good for business. The plan itself was Vince McMahon's who sold the idea to Watts. The problem is, that as of today (April 1st) Bill Dundee has been brought in to take the book from McMahon. There was a release of the top tier of Mid South's advisory board...

 

Bill Watts - Owner

Jim Ross - Producer, On Air Talent

Joel Watt - Producer, Head of Television

Vince McMahon - Head of Talent Relations

Bill Dundee - Head Booker

Grizzly Smith - Assistant Booker, Head Road Agent

 

There are some who have been behind Vince from day one, however, it was all due to loyalty to his father. When Bill Watts went up to the WWF to work for Vince Sr, Vince Jr impressed him and that led to him getting the position in Mid South. Some would say that his time has not been well spent as he has tried to change things from the inside, but there are many who feel he has done good work. With Dundee in the picture, McMahon's sole purpose is to work on contracts as he has been isolated from all other aspects of the business. Joel Watts and Jim Ross are in charge of television and getting it into more markets which could be good or bad for Mid South.

 

In terms of talent, Jim Duggan has had some injuries as of late and will be taking some time off. He is expected to return in a couple of weeks after his batteries are recharged.

 

Expect Ted Dibiase to be back with Mid South full time within the month with sporadic appearances throughout April.

 

Mid South is looking to jump start a new tag team with Norvelle Austin. They have signed Koko Ware to come in when his time is done in Detroit.

 

Vince McMahon was trying to get Bobby Heenan to come into Mid South after moving Jimmy Hart but nothing came of it as of this writing. With Dundee in the picture, he may stick with Hart who he's more comfortable with.

 

McMahon was also able to bring in the Barbarian and Dino Bravo along with Frenchy Martin. McMahon thinks that Bravo is going to be a huge draw for Mid South if they were to continue expansion plans as he's already spent time in the Territory. He is also very high on the Barbarian. The price was Scott Hall and Lord Humungous, two very hot commodities for different purposes.

 

Expect Wrestling II's days to be numbered. He hasn't fully healed from the knee injury and may be on the chopping block. He does have a longtime tenure in Mid South which may help him get into an executive position but it could also hurt him in the long run.

 

In another series of heated arguments, McMahon was adamant to keep JYD off television. Watts brought him in for the $200,000 and Dundee has already said he will be back before too long. We will see how this plays out...

[kevinmcfl]

Jerry Jarrett and Fritz Von Erich spoke by phone this week and both were very excited by the success of the first TNT show last week from the Sporatorium. To further their partnership and to save each promotion money, the two agreed to increase the relationship between the two. This was evident when Jarrett agreed to send VonErich, Alexis Smirnoff, Chris Markov, Pvt. Kernode, Cpl. Kirchner, The Spoiler and in a surprising move, Bam Bam Bigelow. The hope with Bigelow is that Fritz will give him a bit of a push and then he can return to the parent company down the road with a push to the top of the sport.

 

Jarrett was also so impressed by VonErich's show that they agreed that the superstars of TNT will compete in USWA's monthly mega show and that Dallas, Texas will be the home to the JULY 4th Extravaganza at none other that the Cotton Bowl!

 

Fritz also announced that he has signed another star that will really bring nightmares to the fans in around the Memphis area because they last time he was in the area, he caused pure HAVOC!

 

USWA also announced that it has made an attempt to sure up its undercard by signing such wrestlers as Ricky Gibson, Ken Timbs and Rick McGraw.

 

The wrestlers of mainstream USWA are still complaining about the amout of travel that is expected of them. Their has been talks between the wrestlers and the Board of Directors about this situation. One solution that has been discussed would keep about 12 wrestlers centered in Memphis loop and 12 centered in the Georgia loop. The problem here is that while Jarrett, in Memphis, is completely able to run a wrestling promotion, there is nobody Ted Turner feels comfortable with to run the Atlanta side. Ole Anderson's name has come up but he is locked into a contract in Big Time Wrestling in the Detroit area.

[LowBlowPodcast]

Mid South Wrestling is going through some serious changing on the booking side of things over the next couple of weeks. From the beginning of his tenure, Bill Dundee has been making some friends and enemies. The first shot was hired when Dundee publicly went to bat up against Hernandez and Blanchard. These two have built Mid South back up in the absence of Ted Dibiase and Junkyard Dog. Hernandez and Blanchard have been booked very strong as of late holding all the titles in Mid South but Dundee isn't too high on the matter. With him in control of the book, it seems like the only man who can stop him will be Bill Watts... but will he?

 

Bobby Heenan made his debut to Mid South this week on television. This was a deal brokered by Vince McMahon who is still in control of talent relations at this time. He (Heenan), like Hernandez and Blanchard are not in Dundee's camp though. Dundee isn't a fan of Heenan's comedy in the Mid South territory and wants to keep things serious. Heenan may end up being edgier or unemployed as Dundee has claimed. Heenan has aligned himself with Murdoch and Adonis who are between tours in Japan along with "buying" the contracts of Rick Rude and King Kong Bundy. Word has it that he was interested in bringing in Big John Studd but Dundee didn't think he would draw this side of Georgia so Big John has been accepting bookings throughou the country and may be in line for a tour of Japan.

 

No word on the Masked Superstar who hasn't been around since February. While he has got a big name and great skills, he hasn't been contacted for a renewal in Mid South.

 

Mr. Wrestling II is on the chopping block as he has been telling people that he is close to retiring due to some injuries and lack of bookings. He may end up joining Jim Ross on commentary but nothing is for sure yet.

 

On the brighter side of things, Ivan Koloff and Krusher Kruschev have been making waves in Mid South with perhaps the most profitable "Russian" angle in wrestling. Look for them to continue their reign of terror and even add in a third member in the next couple of months.

 

Jim Duggan is back full time after another small batch of injuries. He is expected to be the top face in the company along with Magnum TA and possibly Ted Dibiase if and when he returns.

 

Dundee has worked with McMahon on bringing in the Barbarian and Samu. Some have said they will be billed as the new Samoans but Watts wasn't big on the name. They may just be teamed with no specific gimmick but pickings are slim on a manager for them.

 

Bobby Fulton and Tommy Rogers have been gaining a lot of steam lately and are now set for another run with Adonis and Murdoch. The winners should get into a feud with the champions but there doesn't seem to be a big push in the tag team division.

 

Mid South continues its battle to get national television but with the lack of potential buyers, the market seems to be cornered. Their relationship with the NWA continues on, and Watts has even made claim to possibly run for President. On the other hand, USWA has reached out, and if Mid South were to join them, they could corner the southern states and perhaps eclipse the NWA in size and star power.

[kevinmcfl]

USWA IS VERY EXCITED TO HEAR THAT MID-SOUTH IS STILL THINKING ABOUT JOINING! THE LINES OF COMMUNICATION ARE ALWAYS OPEN!