[1980-10-03-Houston Wrestling] Gino Hernandez vs Mark Lewin

[shoe]

This had its moments. Gary Hart in the Straight Jacket. Lewin keeps staring down at Hart. I like Hart sitting down next to the cop so the fans don't sucker punch him. I loved the finish of the 1st fall. This match felt like it was missing something.

[SAMS]

1980-10-03
Houston Wrestling
Gino Hernandez (c) vs. Mark Lewin
NWA American Heavyweight Title Best Two Out Of Three Falls With Gary Hart In A Straight Jacket Match
Sam Houston Coliseum, Houston, Texas, USA
★★
Card

Cagematch has the result for this mislabeled. Gino actually won 2-1 and we didn’t have the double countout finish they have written.
This actually may have been their best match together. The start, with Gary Hart asking the crowd to let Paul Beosch know that they didn’t actually want him in the straight jacket was great stalling, and his trepidation at being put in the jacket was really good stuff. It was a shame that this stipulation ultimately meant that he was absent from the body of the match for the most part so nothing was built off this.
This for sure was one of the rowdier crowds at the Coliseum and Lewin did a great job of milking certain moments to maximise their response. When doing things like the punches in the corner on the turnbuckle; he took his time and didn’t rush it and I loved how after every punch he kind of flicked his hand as if to shake off the pain he was inflicting upon himself with the force of the strikes.
The finishes for the first two falls were pretty pedestrian, but often that’s something you have to accept with the ⅔ falls match type, but the break before the final fall had Gino really going for it, beating down on Lewin with a chair and really putting him in a bad spot for the final stanza. This made Lewin’s comeback all the better and Gino was bumping hard on his chops and was almost Shawn Michaels-esque with the height he got on a few back body drops during the finishing stretch. Lewin couldn’t help himself though and he went after Gary Hart at ringside which allowed Gino to get something from his trunks. He took an absolute age with his hands shoved in there, and then I’m not really sure whether he was going for a strike, slice, or rub with the object, but I’m presuming he rubbed something in Lewin’s eyes due to his reaction. It all felt a bit deflating though as the momentum for a Lewin win was building nicely and I don’t think the twist they thought up was that great an alternative.