[1987-03-14-JCP-World Championship Wrestling] Barry Windham & Ronnie Garvin vs Dick Murdoch & Ivan Koloff

[Superstar Sleeze]

NWA US Tag Team Champions Barry Windham & Ronnie Garvin vs Dick Murdoch & Ivan Koloff - NWA World Championship Wrestling 3/14/87

The short-lived tag team of Windham & Garvin had some great matches against the Midnight Express but here they are having another great match with the equally short-lived tag team of Ivan Koloff & Dick Murdoch. The fans were yelling "traitor" at Murdoch so Nikita's babyface turn has not bridged the gap for all Soviets. Uncle Ivan has a Nikita replacement named Vladimir Petrov. Stone Cold Steve Austin really broke the mold when he shaved his head. Up until that point it was only Commie bastards that shaved their heads.

BW pretty much goes full Ricky Morton and wrestles the entire match and on his own and he is just fantastic. His combination of size, fire and power make the perfect lead babyface for a promotion. Cryin' shame he never got that main event run like he should have had. I have not seen too much of Uncle Ivan, but he is a pitbull in there. He gives Garvin a run for his money in terms of tenacity. Koloff vs Garvin began the match and there were some good fire fighting here. There is a lot of chinlockery on Garvin, but Garvin tags in Windham right before the commercial. Windham is rocking into the ad break. I loved how the Windham heat segment was so fluid. He was taking heat but he was fighting back too. He was not a ragdoll. There was a real sense f struggle but also definitive momentum shifts set up by either Windham missing moves (dropkick, or kneedrop) or catching Uncle Ivan on the top (first coming down and then crotching him). This leads to a great powerslam nearfall. Also Windham is able to get a great atomic drop on Dicky Murdoch sold like only he can and then catches him with the right. BW was his own house of fire, but on the same token when he missed move. They went right back to work. Murdoch rode him down the knee from the top. Windham's selling from his pummeling was top notch. WIndham hits his lariat. Tony says he needs to roll over. I wish David added "But which way?" does he roll over for the cover or the tag? He makes the tag! Garvin is a glorious house of fire, chopping everything in sight. HANDS OF STONE~! Murdoch and the big fakes Russian get involved but Garvin & Windham fend them off. What he cant fend off is Jim Cornette and Bobby Eaton. He gets a hold of Cornette but Eaton blasts with a racket. Koloff/Murdoch win the US Tag titles. Put some more heat on MX vs Windham/Garvin feud and keeps the MX hot. I dont really know what happens to Koloff & Murdoch as a team. Murdoch would go onto have an all-time classic that year with Windham in the NWA-owned UWF. This is a great exhibition of Barry Windham's talents. ***3/4

 

 

[paul sosnowski]

Murdoch was suspended in early April after performing a brainbuster on Nikita Koloff on the concrete floor.   As a result, Ivan Koloff & Dick Murdoch were stripped of the US Titles.