German catch

[ohtani's jacket]

There's so much to sift through that I'm gonna dump it here instead of dredging up individual wrestlers' threads.

Dennis Goulet vs. Terry Rudge (Hamburg 10/11/87)

German tournaments aren't like Champion Carnivals. That's the first thing you need to get out of your head. They're a string of houseshow matches, so try to have fun with them. Imagine you're there -- drinking beer, cheering on your favorite, listening to Europop between rounds. Hamburg '87 may be the last great German tournament to make tape since someone filmed a shitload of it. Grab a beer, put on some Scorpions, whatever it takes to get in the mood. Terry Rudge is a wrestling God. For most of this bout, he beats up Dennis Goulet because he deserves to get beaten up. Rudge has a whiny accent for one of the toughest men to lace up a pair, but it's awesome hearing him swear. For some reason, Goulet ends up winning. My hero lost. I'm pissed! But we'll piece Hamburg together one match at a time. 

[gordi]

Oh, f'n awesome. You are a pro wrestling finding and watching machine. Even with all the extra free time now, I can't keep up. Looking forward to this one, too.

[ohtani's jacket]

Jetlag is the guy who finds all this stuff. I just obsessively compulsively watch it. 

Rolo Brasil vs. Terry Rudge (Hamburg 9/10/87)

C'mon, Terry, you got this! I'm not sure if this is part of the tournament or not since the date seems off, but Rolo Brasil is a much trickier prospect than Goulet so I'm worried about this. If you've never watched one of these German VHS tapes from the 80s, they're pretty amateur. The guy doing the editing loves to fade in and out at the end of each round. The closest equivalent I can think of is the VHS tapes from the original JWP. One game I like to play is "guess the song between rounds." You only catch a snippet of it so it can be difficult at times. I remember spending hours trying to figure out a song in a Caswell Martin match. Rudge sure likes running his mouth. This was a better fight than the Goulet match, but Terry is playing chickenshit heel, which is beneath him in my opinion. He's Terry Rudge, so he's good at it, but he gets DQ'ed in the end after telling the ref: "Don't you start your fucking shit." Can Rudge get a win in Hamburg? Stay tuned. 

[Ricky Jackson]

This bad boy just turned up yesterday 

Has anyone committed the time and know if it's worth a watch? 

[Robert S]

1 hour ago, Ricky Jackson said:

This bad boy just turned up yesterday 

Has anyone committed the time and know if it's worth a watch? 

I just watched the pre-match stuff and it sounds like (I am 90% sure) the crowd did not learn in 37 years (okay 30 years after it became official) to not sing the "Deutschland, Deutschlan über alles" verse of the German anthem (which was identified with the Nazi regime and therefore the anthem switched to using the third stanza). At least by 89 (for the Vader match), they knew that singing "Deutschland, Deutschland über alles" was a bad idea.

[ohtani's jacket]

I'm pretty sure there was a Slaughter/Wanz match already out there. Not sure if this is a different match. 

[Ricky Jackson]

Oh probably. I just meant new to YouTube, or this channel at least 

[NintendoLogic]

There's a Slaughter/Wanz match on 7/9/83 that's been in circulation for a while. This match that just got uploaded is a different one. It looks to be about twice as long and is fought under the rounds system.

[Ricky Jackson]

Ok, cool. I checked earlier and Cagematch had two matches between them. Good to know this could be new to the scene 

[PeteF3]

3 hours ago, NintendoLogic said:

There's a Slaughter/Wanz match on 7/9/83 that's been in circulation for a while. This match that just got uploaded is a different one. It looks to be about twice as long and is fought under the rounds system.

The 12/82 match is on A Certain Tape-Trader in Western PennsylvaniaTM's Classic Germany #5, though I don't know that it's been online before. (Both Slaughter/Wanz matches are on it.)

[Jetlag]

The pro-shot Wanz/Slaughter match was in Graz (Austria). This one happened in Bremen.

 

It's good, if you can enjoy an Otto Wanz style match which is really unlike other types of pro wrestling. Slaughter kicks ass and bumps big, and there are no lengthy restholds which is good for such a long match. The most amazing thing is how over Wanz is. People were just flipping out for everything that he did. The 1st 5 minutes of the match is just the announcer reading  "sympathy premiums" (a small money bonus that fans could pay to their favourite wrestler) that Wanz received. That must have been several hundred DM Wanz made just by being there and being beloved. That kind of workrate won't come back, ever.

 

It's not as good as the Graz match since it doesn't have (visible) blood and you don't get the visual of guys heads being smashed into the glass protective wall but if you're Wanz fan or just want to see Slaughter being a badass heel you'll be happy.

The really amazing drops are those chain matches from 1991. I had no idea those happened let alone that they were taped.

[ohtani's jacket]

Terry Rudge vs. Billy Samson (Hamburg 9/18/87)

Can my boy get a win over Billy Samson? Samson embarrasses Rudge with a show of strength to start, and Terry starts taking apart Samson's leg like the wrestling god that he is. Ooh, a flick of sweat at the bell. The song between rounds is "I Wanna Dance With Somebody." Not the song I'd choose for Terry, but he does an awesome job of taunting Samson and the ref in the intervals. Rudge is in control for most of the bout and looks the goods. Then the editor does one of his beloved fades and Rudge is getting his ass handed to him. Not content with fades and dissolves, the editing dude does a fancy spiral edit. I wonder if he watched that infamous Brazos vs. Villanos match. If so, he learned from the best. Rudge keeps getting knocked down. He can barely beat the count. Damn it, he's selling this beautifully. My boy is a jobber in this tournament, but this was a nice fight. 

[ohtani's jacket]

Terry Rudge vs. Sunny War Cloud (Hamburg 9/20/87)

If Terry can't beat Sunny War Cloud then the situation is bloody hopeless. C'mon, Terry! He's not a Native American warrior, he's a bum from Quebec! Terry is great at backpedaling and telling his opponent to settle down. He's also great at beating the snot out of them during the middle part of the match. What is with this ref? He's had it in for Terry the entire tournament. My whole world crumbles as Terry gets a yellow card and then a red. That's bullshit, ref! 

[ohtani's jacket]

Terry Rudge vs. Johnny Saint (Hamburg 10/4/87)

I forgot how awesome this is. I wish we had the whole thing. If Saint had fights like this more often, he'd be one of my favorites from this era. I love the number Rudge did on Saint here, especially stomping his fingers. Can't do your usual tricks if your fingers are busted. I admired the toughness Saint showed here. The finish was badass. I love it when guys sell a roll up like a walk off homer. This was short but sweet. 

 

[Ricky Jackson]

On 5/6/2020 at 12:34 PM, Ricky Jackson said:

This bad boy just turned up yesterday 

Has anyone committed the time and know if it's worth a watch? 

Watched this today. God, Wanz sucks. Like, the worst ever Bob Backlund. Horrible babyface. Slaughter is great and tries to make something of the match, but it is an impossible task. This is the first full Wanz match I've ever seen, so please, someone point to something worthwhile from the footage available of him. I dont want to be a total dismissive jerk 

[ohtani's jacket]

I like his series with Vader. 

[Jetlag]

6 hours ago, Ricky Jackson said:

Watched this today. God, Wanz sucks. Like, the worst ever Bob Backlund. Horrible babyface. Slaughter is great and tries to make something of the match, but it is an impossible task. This is the first full Wanz match I've ever seen, so please, someone point to something worthwhile from the footage available of him. I dont want to be a total dismissive jerk 

You know, I find the statement that Wanz is a horrible babyface funny. Given he is right there getting insane reactions for the most basic shit. I'm not argueing he is good based on that, but he certainly gave the crowd exactly what they wanted. The crowds in Bremen were huge, too, so it's not like he was some niche indy guy appealing to a specific minority fanbase. It's fine if you don't like his 40 minute long forearms & body slams style of wrestling, but to say he was a horrible babyface is pretty much as close to being factually false as you can get in internet discussions of 38 year old handheld matches.

[Ricky Jackson]

That's totally fair. God knows I hate it when others shit on guys i like based on one match or whatever. Clearly he was a huge star. It wasn't his offense that bothered me. It was that he wrestled in such an unsympathetic manner. He kicked Slaughter's ass for most of the match and never really felt vulnerable. Plus he had his overzealous corner man constantly getting involved (yes, at the end of rounds, but still), while Slaughter had no help. Anyway, I'm clearly biased, as early-80s Slaughter is one of my all-time faves

[Tim Evans]

Kelly if You haven't seen them, check out Otto's matches with Terry Funk. I haven't seen the 96 one but I remember liking the 1990 one. Also the Dick Murdoch/Wanz match isn't too bad

 

[ohtani's jacket]

Indio Guajaro vs. Dave Taylor (Hamburg 10/2/87)

Apparently, Guajaro was known as "Der Wurger" in Germany (or Hamburg), which in this case I think translates to The Wrecker. You know what you're getting with Guajaro, but I think he does the gimmick better than most. This match had tremendous heat. The crowd was right behind Taylor and did their best to get under Guajaro's skin. The action was forgettable, but the crowd heat made up for it. It's not often you see Taylor get this kind of heat and he reveled in it. 

[Ricky Jackson]

2 hours ago, Tim Evans said:

Kelly if You haven't seen them, check out Otto's matches with Terry Funk. I haven't seen the 96 one but I remember liking the 1990 one. Also the Dick Murdoch/Wanz match isn't too bad

 

Thanks man 

[Robert S]

1 hour ago, ohtani's jacket said:

Indio Guajaro vs. Dave Taylor (Hamburg 10/2/87)

Apparently, Guajaro was known as "Der Wurger" in Germany (or Hamburg), which in this case I think translates to The Wrecker. You know what you're getting with Guajaro, but I think he does the gimmick better than most. This match had tremendous heat. The crowd was right behind Taylor and did their best to get under Guajaro's skin. The action was forgettable, but the crowd heat made up for it. It's not often you see Taylor get this kind of heat and he reveled in it. 

"Würger" translates to "Strangler".

[ohtani's jacket]

I saw that translation as well, but I don't remember Guajaro using a choke hold. 

[ohtani's jacket]

Rene Lasartesse vs. Johnny Saint (Hamburg '87)

It's not every day you see Rene Lasartesse wrestle Johnny Saint. Saint didn't have much of a chance, but again he showed a toughness that you don't ordinarily see from him. I guess he had to wrestling heavyweights every night. Lasartesse showed Saint the right amount of respect in terms of the offense it took to put Johnny away, and then van Buyten appeared to challenge him to a chain match. I guess I know what I'll be watching next.

[ohtani's jacket]

Franz van Buyten vs. Rene Lasartesse (Hamburg 9/17/87)

This wasn't a chain match, but it was worked like one. This is the Lasartesse that I fell in love with several years ago. The kind of wrestler who will relentlessly work on a guy. And since van Buyten was a fabulous seller, these guys were a perfect fit. I've never really thought of Lasartesse as big bumper or a great seller. He's usually the one in control and he spends the majority of a bout standing. I swear he spends more time standing and walking around the ring than any wrestler I've seen. Early on in his career it was because of his height advantage, and I suppose his aristocratic heel gimmick. Here, I guess it had something to do with his rickety old bones. But this match reminded me that he liked to do the "don't touch my ears" shtick. This was a fine match held together by Lasartesse's charisma and van Buyten's selling. The finish was a cop out, but I was kind of expecting that to happen.

Franz van Buyten vs. Rene Lasartesse (Hamburg 9/27/87)

This is listed as  a "Entscheidungskampf", which as best I can tell is some kind of decision match. I'm not sure if this is the "final" of the tournament or not. These tournaments are confusing. According to the information I have, the tournament ran from 9/15-10/22, so if this is the deciding match then the date must be wrong. I'm not even sure if the tournament lasted the entire month or if it was just part of a "season." Perhaps they ran shows after it was over. What I do know is that Lasartesse dominated this tournament in the 70s before van Buyten emerged as his rival in 1981. They shared the spoils that year and ignited a rivalry that spanned a decade. So when you think of Lasartesse vs. van Buyten, don't forget that the city of Hamburg was where it was staged. This was an excellent match. I'm not sure what the stakes were, but the match felt important. Lasartesse even wrestled a bit, leaving nothing to chance. Once again, it was the chemistry that carried this match. Van Buyten has had better matches than this, but this was by far his greatest rivalry.