Abdullah the Butcher vs. Carlos Colon (September 1981)

[El Boricua]

Abdullah the Butcher vs. Carlos Colon (September 1981)

[Grimmas]

Ear work is something you don't get to see enough. Colon just wears Abby out for the first part of the match, a really long shine segment where I keep expecting a cheap shot by Abby to start the heat sequence, but it keeps getting delayed. An actual kick gets Abby the control, not any cheating. That really surprised me. It's PR and Abby, so of course blood.

 

Abby's control segment with low bloods, strikes and lots of evil laughing is great. Colon really has a nice fired up comeback which includes a cartwheel! Second brawl on the outside and Abby takes the control back including a battering ram into the ringpost. Freaking great and now Colon is bleeding. Double juice! Is this the most PR match ever?

 

I love them going toe to toe all wobbly back in the ring. Abby's kicks are great. There is a freaking fight in the crowd too. What the hell? Brawling some more and the referee stopped the match due to blood.

 

A little slow at times, but a damn fine wrestling match. *** 1/2

 

Post match has more crowd brawling! This is PR baby!

[elliott]

Stream of consciousness from the opening moments of the PR Set.

“Puerto Rico Puerto Rico Puerto Rico! Oh this is gonna be great. I’m so excited. I’ve been waiting so long for this set. Fuck yeah! There’s Abdullah apparently getting a head massage at a Saudi Arabian Spa. Oh cool English commentary I wasn’t expecting English commen OHHHHHHHH NNOOOOOOOOO! FUCK HOLY FUCK FUCK!”

 

This whole goddamn thing starts off with an extreme close-up of Abdullah the Butcher’s disgusting forehead getting stitched up. Seriously. I like blood in wrestling but FUCK this was on a different level. I might have seen brain for a second. So I guess we’re off and running folks.

 

Colon shows no fear and goes right at Abby punching him in the ear and ripping at it. Carlos has a nice overhand right and looks like he’s blasting Abby right in the ear. Abby does a good job putting over the opening beat down. It’s just punching, biting and tearing at the ear repeatedly. Naturally the spills to the outside and Colon plays “king of the mountain for a while.” Abby is being thoroughly dominated early on. Colon has really awesome facial expressions in this. Abby takes over with a short quick kick and a throat chop and immediately starts headbutting and beating the shit out of Colon including low blowing him just for the hell of it. Abby seemed to go on offense as soon as he saw blood which is a cool transition because it puts over the idea of Abby as a “Wild Animal” and racist shit like that. He sees his own blood and he snaps. Its like Abdullah’s Hulk Up or Dropping the Strap is blading himself which, seriously. What is cooler than that? Abby is awesome on offense with kicks chops and headbutts. Colon makes a comeback using a mule kick low blow, which I know is a signature spot and is awesome because Abby already hit him in the balls and this is payback. This spills to the outside and they take turns posting the shit out of each other and now both guys are bloody as fuck. Instead of doing crazy spots this finished with both guys covered in blood taking turns blasting the shit out of each other until Abby destroyed Colon with elbow drops leading to a ref stoppage from blood. Post match is intense fun that you should just watch.

[WingedEagle]

Opening the set with Abby having his head stitched together is quite apropos. This was the blood and violence you want and expect from these two but without the insanity of a gimmick or blow off match. From Colon attacking the ear (I'd ask why, but will opt instead for why not?) at the start to Abby's thrusts to the throat -- always a favorite and something I constantly forget how much I love, to the double juice this was a hot way to kick off Puerto Rico. A blood stoppage finish that felt a bit premature along with some extended stalling early on hold this back a bit, but just a bit. Very fun and a very different vibe from most territories and promotions. We'll see how far into the set I keep saying that. ***

 

Some other random likes and thoughts:

 

- Abby looks pretty terrifying and insane when he mutters to himself as his lips vibrate as blood flows down his face after jabbing someone in the throat.

 

- We weren't on the verge of a riot, but when that crowd was right up next to the ring and you could see policy gathering a few rows deep it felt like something crazy could happen. Have a feeling this is not your PWG / west coast Brooklyn crowd.

 

- Speaking of the crowd, loved the Ed "Too Tall" Jones lookalike in the first row who couldn't even be bothered to uncross his arms early on.

 

- Again expected a riot when someone clearly hit Abby on his way out. All involved were fortunate things didn't escalat.e

 

- Colon looked older with the stache and for whatever reason looked quite dusty.

[elliott]

From Colon attacking the ear (I'd ask why, but will opt instead for why not?)

 

I love the ear attack because its unique, brutal, and fucks up your equilibrium. A monster like Abby is going to ignore/only be further angered by something like arm work. Abby isn't some mere mortal so you have to approach him differently from a normal wrestler. Ear work fucks up his balance and his ability to think clearly (well as clearly as Abby can). I dug it. And Colon was so focused and forceful attacking the ear. I haven't seen a single Abby/Colon match yet that would contend for my top 5, but I've really liked every one of them and they take different approaches to each of their matches which you wouldn't expect.

[WingedEagle]

 

From Colon attacking the ear (I'd ask why, but will opt instead for why not?)

 

I love the ear attack because its unique, brutal, and fucks up your equilibrium. A monster like Abby is going to ignore/only be further angered by something like arm work. Abby isn't some mere mortal so you have to approach him differently from a normal wrestler. Ear work fucks up his balance and his ability to think clearly (well as clearly as Abby can). I dug it. And Colon was so focused and forceful attacking the ear. I haven't seen a single Abby/Colon match yet that would contend for my top 5, but I've really liked every one of them and they take different approaches to each of their matches which you wouldn't expect.

 

 

Awesome, great to hear that they're all so different. The ear attack was completely unexpected and not something I sure I've ever seen right out of the gate. Its one thing were there's a storyline or blood that makes it a focus, but this was so unique and grabbed your attention right away because of it.

[KB8]

How about this for an introduction. It's taking place in Trinidad and Tobago for the West Indies Championship and I'm like 98% certain it's the first match I've ever seen from Trinidad and Tobago. So there's another one off the old bucket list! The ring mat looks squishy, like a dodgy mattress or a burst bouncy castle. Early parts were all about Colon punching Abby in the ear and trying to rip the ear off Abby's head. Abby sells with mild annoyance. Then Abby goes bonkos and man this might be the most fun I've had watching Abby punch folk in the throat and kick them in the eye with the toe of his boot. He does it at Abdullah the Butcher speed but it all looked great. His elbow drops fucking rule as well, btw. About seven minutes in and both guys have tapped a gusher and Savinovich is on commentary calling the referee a full blown idiot for not stopping the match before a riot ensues. You're listening to it thinking "yeah okay, mate, I'm sure a riot will ensue" and then a few score Trinidadians surround the ring like some shit is brewing. The commentators also reiterate that anything they say about Abby that may be misconstrued as insulting is purely accidental and in the heat of the broadcast because they don't want Abby or his people hunting them down and assassinating them or something. Which was awesome. Eventually the ref' does throw out the match, but Abdullah isn't done and keeps going after Colon post-match. Someone jumps in the ring - a wrestler from the territory, apparently - and Abby punches him in the throat so people outside start trying to grab Abby's legs and yank at his tights. Then Abby steps out the ring and everybody scatters like Abby is the fucking plague incarnate! Fans literally start fighting with each other. Abby goes full Hansen and waddles into this mass of people and folk are terrified, running over each other to get away. Remember when people believed a morbidly obese bag of walnuts who moved at the speed of moss from Windsor, Ontario was a psychotic murderer from the Sudan? Hot damn, that was the pro-wrestling. Bring back the kayfabe! This ruled like fuck.

[Graham Crackers]

I wasn't in love with it but it was straightforward and entertaining and I suppose it acts as a good introduction to the set. The thing I liked the most was the different ways Colon and Abdullah sold each other's strikes. Colon could control Abby with extended barrages of strikes but it would one take Abdullah one throat thrust to knock Colon off his feet. I'm definitely curious to see what their other matches are like.

[Migs]

I can't find the original thread for this match and I didn't have any mind blowing to say about it, so I'll just note that I had it at **1/2.

[fishbaugh]

The dark side of wrestling is embodied by Abby and his nasty forehead -- he's one guy I never want to be watching when my wife walks in the room. Like I want to explain blading to her, or see the look on her face as she wonders why she married someone with such a sick hobby. We get the very rare ear-based offense by Colon in the early going, but it s a little slow the first 5-7 minutes. Double juice picks things up, as does the surging crowd, and Hugo starts calling the ref a "damn idiot"! Also love that this match was in T&T, and that they keep bringing it up on commentary. T&T is one of those places I heard about as a kid, and have always wanted to visit as I went through a real big Creole fascination phase.

 

This never approached great, but it was compelling and violent and bloody and tense. Terrible timing on the stoppage hurt it a bit -- Abby was bleeding hard long before Colon was ever busted open, so it felt kind of silly. After match was really great with the T&T wrestlers scraping around ringside and causing the crowd to scatter.

 

Rating: 6