Control21 Posted February 14 Author Report Share Posted February 14 I found something pretty interesting while browsing the Wrestling Classics board a few weeks ago. Someone over there posted an old contract from the first iteration of UWF Japan (1984-1985) that a friend shared with them. The original topic is here: WrestlingClassics.com Message Board: UWF Japan Contract UWF Contract Page 1 UWF Contract Page 2 UWF Contract Page 3 It's an interesting bit of history, especially if you are familiar with the 90s AJPW guidelines floating around on the internet given to foreign wrestlers who toured with the promotion during that period. It appears this wrestler in particular was paid about $10,000 in 2024 money for a three-week tour. Not bad I think! That comes out to about $120,000 for a full year. Also, I know some of you have asked about the dynamics of winning/losing in UWF, and how it worked in reality. This recent tweet sums it up pretty well. It's partially what made the ascents of wrestlers like Minoru Suzuki, Masakatsu Funaki, and Kiyoshi Tamura so fascinating. It's something hopefully I've been capturing well, and something to keep in mind with UWF's new dojo trainees debuting next month! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevinmcfl Posted February 14 Report Share Posted February 14 Very interesting. Any idea who it was for? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ma Stump Puller Posted February 14 Report Share Posted February 14 38 minutes ago, kevinmcfl said: Very interesting. Any idea who it was for? With a bit of digging it actually isn't THAT tricky despite the censors. UWF Original didn't have a ton of foreign talent past the first few months before they started doing more Catch/shoot-work. -started working 15th of November -finished on the 5h of December (so anyone who started and ended on those exact dates would match) -seems to be American given the Miami/Japan transfer (so exclude any British workers) -original thread states he trained under Boris Malenko, mostly did dates in Florida All of this info confirms the identity as Scotty Williams, I believe (though the thread above also mentions Jim Savage, so that could also be the case lol) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Control21 Posted February 14 Author Report Share Posted February 14 1 hour ago, Ma Stump Puller said: With a bit of digging it actually isn't THAT tricky despite the censors. UWF Original didn't have a ton of foreign talent past the first few months before they started doing more Catch/shoot-work. -started working 15th of November -finished on the 5h of December (so anyone who started and ended on those exact dates would match) -seems to be American given the Miami/Japan transfer (so exclude any British workers) -original thread states he trained under Boris Malenko, mostly did dates in Florida All of this info confirms the identity as Scotty Williams, I believe (though the thread above also mentions Jim Savage, so that could also be the case lol) Yeah, it appears to be Jim Savage going by the original thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Control21 Posted February 17 Author Report Share Posted February 17 Quote February 15th, 1989 It appears Allen “Bad News Brown” Coage will be making his debut for UWF at the upcoming show in Tokushima on February 27th. Sources have confirmed to us that Coage remains under contract with WWF, but will be doing shows for UWF going forward for the time being. The exact reasons why aren’t very clear at the moment, but Coage is said to be excited about the prospect of wrestling for UWF and is eager for a change in pace. As previously discussed, the UWF style is a natural fit for Coage, and even at 45 years old, can still go as we have seen in WWF and other US promotions for the past few years. His opponent is yet to be named as of press time. The big news coming out of the January 26th event in Tokyo was the announcement Lou Thesz gave in a surprise appearance. Thesz stated that he will be sponsoring a 24-man tournament starting in August, and invited all “credible claimants” to participate in the tournament which will crown a new “undisputed world heavyweight champion.” Thesz, who has been retired since 1979, has kept a close eye on the Japanese wrestling scene and has grown fond of UWF and their style of wrestling. Thesz has told people close to him that he thinks UWF is bringing back true wrestling as he sees it, and he was eager to lend the promotion his old heavyweight belt as the award for the tournament. Thesz will of course be getting paid for his promotional work with UWF going forward. It is interesting that UWF now has three of the most significant wrestlers historically in terms of the development of that strand of wrestling, particularly as all three have backgrounds in catch wrestling. Thesz has historically had some heat with Karl Gotch, but people say that those disagreements are a thing of the past. People who attended the January 26th show at the Nippon Budokan have gone on endlessly about how cool it was to see Billy Robinson, Karl Gotch, and Lou Thesz standing together in the same ring. UWF plans to hold the tournament final in the Tokyo Dome in December, which can be considered ambitious but realistic considering UWF’s momentum at the moment. No ticket sale date has been announced yet, but Japanese publications have covered the planned event extensively. There is no doubt interest in the show will be very high. The Tokyo Dome, which opened last year, hosts 60,000+ at capacity and UWF could be the first wrestling promotion to hold an event at the venue. NJPW has also discussed having an event there sometime this year. Word is going around that Bob Backlund will be flying to Japan next week to continue his preparation for the upcoming rematch with Nobuhiko Takada. People close to Backlund have been saying he’s training like a madman and wants to be in top condition for the match. He’s been doing sparring with several amateur wrestlers in North Dakota and has built his own gym in Connecticut. Backlund plans on visiting the UWF dojo and wants to continue his work in mastering the style of wrestling. Another match being planned for the Tokushima event includes Salman Hashimikov and Aleksandr Karelin, which would be a huge matchup between two of the best Soviet wrestlers of the 1980s. Salman Hashimikov has gone toe-to-toe with Gary Albright, Steve Williams, and the Koslowski brothers, and would be a huge test for Karelin. There is a lot of interest in Japan over Karelin's debut in a UWF rules match and many are expecting him to make a name for himself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevinmcfl Posted February 18 Report Share Posted February 18 Looking forward to seeing what Bad News and Backlund can do in your realm! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spaldoni Posted February 19 Report Share Posted February 19 Sounds like bad news for the UWF wrestlers. I can totally see Backlund going all out in his training. I'm excited for the huge rematch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Autistic Dragon Posted February 19 Report Share Posted February 19 Backlund is taking his return to the UWF incredibly seriously. Meanwhile Allen is ready to show what he can really do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Control21 Posted February 23 Author Report Share Posted February 23 Card Announcement: UWF Newborn - "Fighting Base Tokushima" February 27th, 1989 Tokushima, Japan Tokushima City Gymnasium Yasuto Sekishima vs Erik Paulson Wayne Shamrock vs Shigeo Miyato Yoji Anjo vs Masakatsu Funaki Andrei Kopylov vs Mark Fleming Nikolai Zouev vs Norman Smiley Bad News Allen vs Chris Dolman David Gobejishvili vs Marty Jones Aleksandr Karelin vs Salman Hashimikov Bob Backlund vs Nobuhiko Takada Akira Maeda vs Volk Han Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainmakerrtv Posted February 23 Report Share Posted February 23 Lots of great matches, the two headliners being clear must watch. The Intra Russian match between Karelin and Hashimikov is intriguing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spaldoni Posted February 24 Report Share Posted February 24 What a stacked card! So many intriguing match ups, but I can't wait to see a determined Backlund. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LowBlowPodcast Posted February 26 Report Share Posted February 26 I went back and played some UFC Undisputed 3 - it has Pride Fighting in it and I thought of your stuff here. Excited to see how Bad News can come over here and prove his worth... dude is an Olympic Medalist. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Control21 Posted February 26 Author Report Share Posted February 26 20 minutes ago, LowBlowPodcast said: I went back and played some UFC Undisputed 3 - it has Pride Fighting in it and I thought of your stuff here. Excited to see how Bad News can come over here and prove his worth... dude is an Olympic Medalist. I lost my disc for that game a long time ago. It sucks because that Pride FC mode was really good. Almost an entirely different game. PRIDE took a lot of cues from UWFi, RINGS, and even UWF Newborn to an extent with their production values and the way they introduced fighters at the beginning of their events. Here's the intro UWF did for the U-COSMOS show in 1989. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LowBlowPodcast Posted February 26 Report Share Posted February 26 Do you think Pride was on the level? I have heard stories about the early shows almost being pre-booked and then it turned more into a sport due to getting popularity going and such. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Control21 Posted February 27 Author Report Share Posted February 27 UWF Newborn – “Fighting Base Tokushima” February 27th, 1989 Tokushima, Japan Tokushima City Gymnasium Attendance: 4,500 (sold out) Broadcast: WOWOW (taped) The broadcast opens with the UWF theme playing in Tokushima City Gymnasium, with the commentary crew welcoming viewers as we get to see some of the wrestlers being introduced, most notably Akira Maeda, Volk Han, Nobuhiko Takada, Bob Backlund, David Gobejishvili, Marty Jones, Aleksandr Karelin, and Salman Hashimikov. Nobuhiko Takada welcomes the fans to the show and states that he is looking forward to facing Bob Backlund tonight. Akira Maeda gives some brief remarks as well and says that he is ready to get back to his winning ways. Before the proceedings begin, we get the first official rankings for UWF Newborn, and graphics for each wrestler are shown as the names are announced. 1) Nobuhiko Takada (10-0) 2) Akira Maeda (8-1) 3) Satoru Sayama (5-2) 4) Yoshiaki Fujiwara (6-3) 5) Masakatsu Funaki (5-3) 6) Yorinaga Nakamura (4-2) 7) Norman Smiley (3-2) 8) Kazuo Yamazaki (5-5) 9) Wayne Shamrock (3-3) 10) Tatsuo Nakano (3-1-4) Yasuto Sekishima vs Erik Paulson Both Sekishima and Paulson put forth a spirited and committed effort in the opening bout, with the two competitors displaying their athleticism and conditioning in a primarily grappling-based match that featured quick counterwork and excellent technical skill as they battled for supremacy on the canvas. Paulson appeared to build some momentum early as he caught Sekishima with a heel hook and kneebar that sent his opponent to the ropes twice. Sekishima kept up with the American though, and settled into the match as he appeared to predict Paulson’s maneuvers on the canvas and countered them with a few surprising submissions of his own. When the match did become a striking contest, Sekishima was better on the draw and caught Paulson with a few sharp palm strikes. After getting knocked down, Paulson appeared to waver as Sekishima took control of the match and eventually snagged the victory with an excellent rear-naked choke after a final grappling exchange on the mat. The crowd seemed to be very pleased by Sekishima’s victory as he notched another win under his belt. Sekishima defeats Paulson via submission (rear-naked choke), 11:08 Wayne Shamrock vs Shigeo Miyato After building some momentum for himself, Miyato comes up against a tough challenge in Wayne Shamrock, who has built somewhat of a reputation as an outstanding rookie so far. Shamrock was eager to build on his success so far too. The result was a feisty contest between two wrestlers who have improved since last summer. At first, Shamrock appeared to have Miyato on the backfoot with some tough palm strikes and knees as he attempted to corner Miyato several times. Miyato fought his way out though, and sought to get the match to the canvas where he was more comfortable as a wrestler. Shamrock can hold his own here too, but Miyato was eager to exert some control of the match and looked to tire out Shamrock with controlled, calculated submission work. Shamrock remained relaxed and didn’t panic too much to fall into Miyato’s trap as he primarily defended from underneath. After sending Shamrock to the ropes with a clever toehold, Miyato was forced to contend with Shamrock again in the stand-up. Shamrock softened up Miyato with more palm strikes and mixed things up with some well-timed low kicks. Shamrock got the crowd going with a beautifully executed German suplex, and Miyato looked to be in trouble as Shamrock started to exert his strength and eventually landed another suplex, this time a snap side suplex. Miyato was caught in the middle of the ring with a keylock from Shamrock but somehow found the strength to reach the ropes with his legs to break the hold. The two exchanged some more rope breaks to make the match even 1-1 after some more grappling on the canvas. Miyato, with the crowd growing behind him, eventually found the strength to get a double-leg takedown on Shamrock and followed things up with a kneebar. Shamrock struggled to get to the ropes, but Miyato locked the hold in tight. Miyato secured another win and celebrated with a quite joyous crowd. Miyato defeats Shamrock via submission (kneebar), 12:13 Yoji Anjo vs Masakatsu Funaki Anjo came out swinging against Funaki, landing a series of palm strikes to start the match and get his opponent on the backfoot early. Funaki looked to be in danger in the early stages of the match, with Anjo using speed and quickness to try and catch Funaki off guard with several submission attempts. Funaki appeared a bit stunned by Anjo’s great technique, especially with leg-based takedowns. Eventually, Funaki settled into the match and found the tempo needed to keep up with Anjo’s speed on the grappling side, and demonstrated his intelligence when it came to countering holds and finding openings of his own. After sending Anjo the ropes with a single-leg Boston crab, Funaki evens the match at 1-1 and gets the chance to land a few sharp strikes on Anjo as a receipt for the earlier exchange at the beginning of the match. Anjo gets stunned by Funaki and gets knocked down, as Funaki celebrates getting one up over his opponent. Anjo finds his feet just in time to break the ten count, but Funaki continues to apply the pressure. Anjo gets cornered in a turnbuckle by Funaki, who lands some devastating knee strikes as he earns himself another knockdown over Anjo. Anjo comes back later in the match and puts up a decent fight as he tries to reclaim some momentum in the match, but Funaki lands a picture-perfect German Suplex on Anjo and then turns it into a variation of a full-nelson choke as Anjo is forced to tap, handing Funaki the victory. Funaki defeats Anjo via submission (full-nelson choke), 11:47 Andrei Kopylov vs Mark Fleming On paper, this appeared to be a very interesting contest between a still relatively unknown SAMBO specialist and a student of Lou Thesz. It lived up to those expectations as Fleming and Kopylov put on a brilliant grappling display to start the proceedings. Kopylov was very creative in his approach, finding openings that Fleming did not expect, but Fleming did well to defend himself and catch Kopylov off guard a few times. The two trade rope break exchanges, with each finding an unexpected joint hold to send their opponent scrambling to the ropes. The match eventually settles at 1-1, and the two slow the pace down as they attempt to conserve energy and establish a more conservative pace to gain control of the match. Fleming attempts to execute his trademark STF hold early, but Kopylov does well to escape from Fleming’s clutches and brings the match back to their feet again, where Kopylov manages to land a few kicks and palm strikes on Fleming. Fleming preferred getting the match back to the canvas and did well to wrestle Kopylov back down with some Thesz-inspired trickery. Fleming established some momentum here and built up a 2-1 lead after forcing Kopylov to use some more rope break attempts. But just when Fleming thought he had control of the match, Kopylov baited Fleming into giving up his knee, which Kopylov seized with a rolling takedown and then turned into a snappy kneebar. Fleming tried to fight his way to the ropes, but the SAMBO specialist earned a victory as Fleming decided to tap out. Kopylov celebrates as the crowd applauds the unassuming Russian for his first win in UWF. The WOWOW commentary desk was seemingly impressed as well. Kopylov defeats Fleming via submission (kneebar), 13:04 (a young Andrei Kopylov...with hair!) Nikolai Zouev vs Norman Smiley In another tantalizing match, Smiley’s grappling prowess came up against Nikolai Zouev, who proved to be another dangerous SAMBO specialist in his debut match against Kazuo Yamazaki last month. Smiley and Zouev tested each other out early and utilized cautious strategies while they felt out their respective strengths and weaknesses. The British-born Karl Gotch trainee finally got a read on the Russian and managed to exert more control, using solid catch wrestling fundamentals to keep Zouev from going on the offense. Smiley got an early rope break from Zouev for his efforts and kept pressing the advantage but Zouev settled into the match and got creative with his counterwork as he surprised Smiley with some clever moves to get his opponent working from underneath. Zouev’s leg lock abilities in particular stood out, as he caused Smiley all sorts of trouble whenever he got control of his lower limbs. Smiley exhausted two rope breaks in quick succession as his opponent got the better of him, giving Zouev a 1-0 lead. Zouev continued to impress the audience as he got a great read on his opponent and countered almost anything Smiley threw at him on the grappling side. Very little striking here, except for an occasional leg kick from Zouev. The two clearly preferred to keep the match on the canvas, and the fans were treated to a great grappling contest. Zouev built up a 2-0 lead on points after a few more minutes passed where he demonstrated his expertise in SAMBO and caught Smiley off-guard several times. At one point, Zouev got a Huzinga roll on Smiley that he turned into a cross-armbreaker. But anyone in attendance knew that they couldn’t count Smiley out, and he fought back as he switched up his strategy to be more aggressive, particularly with leg entries and takedowns. While one may have been cautious about getting into a leglock battle with Zouev, this didn’t deter Smiley and he used his entries to attack Zouev’s other limbs. Smiley finally managed to send Zouev to the ropes again and reduced his opponent’s lead to 2-1. Smiley mixed things up briefly with some leg kicks of his own but continued to prefer keeping the match grounded. It appeared Zouev was starting to fatigue a bit, and Smiley sensed this by doing anything he could to keep Zouev moving, which in turn made the Russian more vulnerable. With the match past the 15:00 mark, Zouev was caught by a surprise low-leg sweep from Smiley, who applied an ankle hold at first, but then quickly turned into his opponent’s leg for an Achilles hold. Zouev had a hard time adjusting and couldn’t work his way out of the move, leading to a well-earned submission victory for Smiley. After the match, the WOWOW commentary crew was sure to highlight Zouev’s credible performance and also called Smiley one of the more impressive wrestlers in UWF so far. Smiley defeats Zouev via submission (Achilles hold), 16:02 (A young Nikolai Zouev...the long lost Von Erich brother?) Bad News Allen vs Chris Dolman The debuting Bad News Allen came out to a nice reception from the crowd, as another famous American wrestler with credentials in Japan makes their way into the UWF squared circle for the first time. Allen knows all too well that his opponent, Chris Dolman, also has a legitimate background in combat sports (Judo and SAMBO) and is ready for the challenge despite his own impressive credentials as an Olympic bronze medalist in Judo. Dolman quickly realized though that Allen had a significant power advantage, and had to defend himself for most of the match. Dolman did get some offense in early and used some good throwing maneuvers to get Allen off his feet, but the WWF star was quick to get back up and used his Judo background to return the favor. While Dolman was able to defend himself on the canvas, Allen’s striking ability became the key factor in the match and his powerful punches was enough to soften up the Dutchman. Dolman did his best to keep the match on the canvas, but Allen eventually found a way to hit his opponent with two consecutive Judo throws, and followed things up with a devastating STO. Allen quickly seized the advantage after this and applied a cross-armbreaker for the submission victory. The crowd seemed impressed by Allen’s performance and the commentary crew noted how Bad News Allen presents a formidable challenge to anyone with his skills as a judoka and pro-wrestler. Allen defeats Dolman via submission (cross-armbreaker), 7:52 (UWFi program featuring Bad News Allen) David Gobejishvili vs Marty Jones The 6’7 Georgian freestylist and Olympic medalist made his presence immediately felt again as he entered the arena in his red singlet and walked into the ring. Marty Jones, wearing his more pro-style blue singlet, did not look intimidated at all as he stared down his opponent and waited for the bell to sound. David and Marty immediately locked up and used their respective backgrounds in amateur wrestling to open the match with a nice grappling flow. David naturally relied on his freestylist background and attempted to keep Marty on the canvas with counters, while Marty did his best to keep his much larger opponent guessing. The crowd seemed to have enjoyed the display in amateur wrestling, and both wrestlers looked competent and fresh, with a bit of a stalemate ensuring as they attempted to reset a few times back on their feet. After a few minutes into the match, Marty seemed to switch up his approach by utilizing more catch wrestling holds as taught by his mentor, Billy Robinson. He aimed for the tall Georgian’s limbs more and found a few openings to give the Olympian something to think about as he defended himself from a more submission-minded Marty Jones. David, who has been training under Robinson as well over the past few months, started to display some solid fundamentals in catch as began to counter Marty’s grappling and deployed a few solid attempts at a double wristlock, but Marty did well to roll out of them each time and had a great defense against a very credentialed opponent. Very little striking here as the match remained mostly on the canvas besides some attempts at a reset. As the match evolved, David even started deploying some traditional Georgian wrestling moves (Chidaoba, a form of wrestling popular in the still Soviet republic), which saw David do some nice sweeping throws, such as a rolling fireman’s carry slam. Marty seemed caught off guard here, and perhaps this is where the Georgian started to exert more control in his match as he opened up his arsenal and got the crowd behind him with his exotic wrestling moves. Marty, for his part, started to become more aggressive and his catch wrestling background served him well as he countered some attempts by the Georgian to take him down to the mat. Marty used some nice wrist control ability to get the Georgian down to the canvas instead, popping the crowd by bringing the 6’7 Olympian to the mat with a simple wristlock. Marty went for David’s arm for a cross-armbreaker but wasn’t able to get all of it as the Georgian defended well. David managed to gain side control and went for a straight armlock, but Marty was able to escape to the ropes just in time, giving the match its first rope escape. Marty attempted some flashier British wrestling, trying to get David off his feet, but the Georgian got his hands around his opponent and lifted him in a side suplex that also ended up as a piledriver of some sort. Marty hits the canvas pretty hard and seems a bit dazed as the Georgian applies a double wristlock and forces Marty Jones to submit as he tries to reach the ropes with his legs, but can’t get there in time. Gobejishvili defeats Jones via submission (double wristlock), 15:34 Aleksandr Karelin vs Salman Hashimikov Karelin, followed by his cornermen, entered Tokushima City Gymnasium with a certain presence as Metallica’s "For Whom The Bell Tolls” played loudly, with the fans excited to see the well-built Soviet gold medalist back in Japan again. Even in a smaller market, people seemed to be aware of Karelin’s credentials. Salman Hashimikov, to his credit, entered with a similar reception as the burly Chechen matched even a younger Karelin in terms of size and the “intimidation factor.” Nobuyuki Furuta did the ring announcements and Karelin, in his red singlet, seemed very eager to start the match and did some warm-ups in his corner while Salman Hashimikov’s name was announced. Hashimikov, in his blue singlet, just stared intently at this opponent. Karelin had a word with his cornermen, who seemed to be advising their prized countryman on the traditional UWF ruleset. After some anticipation from the crowd, the bell sounded to begin the match to the delight of the fans. Karelin and Hashimikov wasted no time in closing the distance, as each attempted to display their strength over the other. Karelin applied Greco-Roman locks while Hashimikov looked for a leg takedown, but Karelin defended well and made it difficult for the Chechen to find a clean single-leg or double-leg takedown. After the first minute passed as a stalemate with Karelin exerting more control with his Greco-Roman hold, the crowd was treated to an early display of Karelin’s technique and sheer power as he tossed Hashimikov sideways with a Greco-Roman hold still applied. The upper body takedown was impressive and the crowd cheered as Karelin quickly established side control and looked for a headlock. Karelin, like most Soviet wrestlers, also has some training in SAMBO and showed some degree of comfort as he looked for an opening on Hashimikov. Hashmikov, as a freestylist, didn’t panic as he defended himself from an early submission attempt. The opening minutes of the match saw Karelin control Hashimikov on the canvas, and Karelin eventually forced his fellow countryman to go for the ropes after he regained side control from a scramble between the two and opted for a straight armlock that gave Hashimikov something to think about. Karelin secured a 1-0 lead on points after another engagement on the canvas ended with Karelin attempting a shoulder lock that caused Hashimikov to opt for an escape route again. Hashimikov started to utilize his power to try and get Karelin off his feet and was successful in executing a belly-to-belly suplex as he somehow managed to get his formidable opponent off the ground. The crowd reacted quite surprised at this development, and Karelin seemed a bit shocked himself as Hashimikov found an opportunity to get some momentum on the canvas. Hashimikov attempted to get a cross-armbreaker, but Karelin rolled over to the ropes pretty quickly to get a break. The Chechen immediately applied more pressure after the clean break and scored an ankle pick to knock Karelin off his feet again. Karelin’s cornermen become quite vocal as they shout instructions, telling the Olympic champion how to defend himself from Hashimikov’s leg lock attempts. Karelin appeared a bit flustered as Hashimikov seemed to be determined to find an opening, and Karelin finally relented to grab the nearest rope to even the match at 1-1, giving Hashimikov his first point. If Hashimikov thought he found a few weaknesses to exploit further, he was wrong. Karelin’s face indicated a shift in gears and the Siberian monster revealed himself before the UWF audience for the first time. Hashimikov found himself being smothered by an aggressive Karelin who urgently looked to grab his opponent for a suplex. He easily found Hashimikov’s back and delivered a powerful German suplex. Hashimikov tried to recover quickly, but found himself attacked again as Karelin locked Hashimikov’s arms for a Dragon suplex! The crowd ate it all up as Hashimikov was sent flying backward for a second time. Karelin locked up with Hashimikov again and scrambled on the mat with him briefly, but Karelin managed to get a gut-wrench hold on Hashimikov as he lay prone on the canvas. The crowd knew what was coming next instinctively. Karelin locked his arms around Hashimikov’s waste and lifted his large, barrel-chested opponent easily as he swung him around the air and slammed him onto the canvas, square on the neck. The ‘Karelin Lift” sent the Tokushima crowd into the loudest frenzy of the night. Hashimikov seemingly felt like he was just hit by a truck, and struggled to find his feet as the referee, Motoyuki Kitazawa, initiated a ten count. Hashimikov failed to respond in time as the crowd followed the referee’s count vocally. Kitazawa signaled for the bell and Nobuyuki Furuta announced Karelin as the winner, but Karelin did not show much emotion as he helped Hashimikov back to his feet. The two had a brief interaction but did not shake hands and they returned to their respective corners stoically. Hashimikov was probably disappointed in defeat, and Karelin probably realized that he was pushed to the limits by someone from his own country who follows a similar craft. Regardless, it was clear that Karelin is now a force to be reckoned with. The WOWOW commentary crew was very much into the match the whole time, and they got some moments to catch their breath and recap what just happened. Karelin defeats Hashimikov via KO, 15:06 Bob Backlund vs Nobuhiko Takada The crowd seemingly only had a few moments to prepare for the next match as Nobuyuki Furuta announced the next match as the semi-main event. Bob Backlund’s music hit soon after and he made his way to ring to a few chants of “Back-lund!” Backlund looked to be in very good condition for this match and wore his traditional blue trunks with kick pads. This time, his boots had “UWF” imprinted down on the side. Perhaps as a signal that he was ready to embrace what UWF represented and beat Takada at his own game. Takada came out next to his music, and he got a much louder reception of course. The chants of “Ta-ka-da!” didn’t seem to bother Backlund much and he stared down Takada all the way to the ring announcements. The bell sounded to commence the match, and immediately Backlund attacked Takada by going for a double-leg takedown, which he managed to execute despite some resistance from Takada. Takada defended himself on the mat as Backlund tried to lock his arms up and looked for an angle to get a cross-armbreaker, but Takada snuck in a clever attempt at a triangle choke, which forced Backlund to quickly roll over to the nearest ropes for a rope escape. The crowd cheered as Takada managed to get one over Backlund very early in the match. Backlund was undeterred though, and kept the pressure on Takada as he attempted to close the distance to avoid Takada’s strikes. Takada threw some early leg kicks, but Backlund had the tempo of the match in his favor as he used his amateur wrestling background to get Takada back to the canvas with a clever armdrag hip toss. Backlund appeared to be better at this stage on this grappling side, as he managed to find ways to gain control of Takada’s back and create issues as he looked for various holds and submission angles. Perhaps to the viewer, it may have seemed like Backlund was softening up Takada for a Crossface Chicken Wing. Takada was forced to the ropes to even things up on that front after Backlund attempted a single-leg Boston crab. Back on his feet, Takada opted for more low kicks to give Backlund something to think about, but Backlund managed to close the distance again and scored a quick belly-to-belly bodyslam to get his opponent back on the canvas. Takada looked to be struggling a bit to defend himself from an agile and strong Backlund and had to find his way back on his feet after an extended grappling exchange on the canvas. Takada managed to land a few more hard kicks as the match continued to evolve, slowing down Backlund’s offense a bit and allowing himself some distance to get some offense of his own going. Takada landed a nice overhead rolling kick on Backlund, which allowed Takada to gain control of Backlund’s back. After trying to lock in a rear-naked choke, Takada enjoyed a 1-0 lead as Backlund went for his second rope break. Takada maintained his momentum with his striking game after the reset and landed some high kicks on Backlund which led to the first knockdown of the match. Soranaka started the ten count and Backlund recovered quickly, but Takada held a 2-0 lead and seemed to be starting to enjoy himself as he recognized the boisterous crowd with a wry smile. Backlund came back with a leg trip takedown to take Takada back to the canvas, but Takada defended well and used some excellent counterwork to challenge Backlund’s amateur wrestling style as he avoided situations where Backlund could use his strength to cause further damage. The match continued with plenty of action, and after some time, things were tied 2-2 in terms of the score after Backlund caused Takada to exhaust his second rope break of the match and followed things up by showing off his boxing skills, punishing Takada with some sharp fists to the lower body. Takada didn’t have much trouble responding to his first ten count of the match either. It became apparent by this point that both competitors really wanted to win and send the other home with a loss. Takada responded after the ten count with a furious display of striking, trying to punish Backlund’s abdomen to weaken his ability to execute any more suplexes or throws. In a bit of a call back to the last match, Takada wrestled Backlund to the canvas and locked in a double wristlock near the center of the ring, but this time Backlund managed to break the hold by getting to the ropes just in time with his legs. With his fourth rope escape, the match now stood at 3-2 for Takada. The match came to a point where the two were starting to slug it out, with Backlund landing some hard punches to the abdomen, mixed in with some thrust kicks, as Takada fired back with sharp kicks. With the match approaching the 20:00 mark, the two seemed more exhausted and things were reaching their fever pitch. Backlund managed to lure Takada in close and executed a perfectly done Olympic slam on Takada, and Backlund immediately took the opportunity to go for a Crossface Chicken Wing! Takada seemed to be locked in near the center of the ring, and the crowd urged him on to fight out of it. Takada struggled and seemed to be fading, but managed to find the strength needed to roll to the nearest ropes to break the hold. Backlund was in control of the match now though, and started to punish Takada with more fists to the lower body, and mixed things up with knees from the clinch. Takada got knocked down each time but kept getting back up. Doing his best to fight back, Takada connected a few jumping roundhouse kicks, but Backlund seemed to be in the zone and stayed on his feet. The ring announcer gave a public warning that Takada was on his final down, albeit a bit drowned out by the anxious crowd. After a nicely done German suplex and more knees to his stomach near a turnbuckle, Takada collapsed to the canvas for the 5th and final time. Backlund lifted his arms in the air to celebrate his triumph, and Takada had to collect himself and figure out what just happened. Backlund defeats Takada via TKO, 22:52 After the match, Backlund celebrated a bit more with the result made official and as Takada got back to his feet, the two had a brief staredown, but Takada nodded in Backlund’s direction and seemed to recognize his opponent’s effort in making the score between the two even. The WOWOW commentary team recapped the events and noted that while Takada was defeated, he was not submitted or knocked out. They say that Akira Maeda has a chance tonight to reclaim some momentum after losing to Takada last night. Akira Maeda vs Volk Han After a few brief moments, Nobuyuki Furuta stood in the center of the ring and announced the next match as the main event. Volk Han entered first to “Second Rendez-vous,” and made his way to the ring with a focused look. Maeda entered next to “Captured.” The reception for Maeda is much louder of course, and it felt like the crowd in Tokushima City Gymnasium had been waiting for this moment all night as they filled the air in the arena with chants of “Ma-e-da!” “Ma-e-da!” After the ring introductions from Furuta, Maeda and Han shook hands and the bell to start the match quickly followed. Volk Han decided to open the match in an attempt to catch Maeda off guard, going for a spinning back fist. Maeda seemed surprised but managed to dodge the strike attempt and got the crowd excited as he moved like he was dodging someone coming at him with a knife. Maeda quickly responded with some fierce kicks, giving Han something to think about as they connected pretty hard. Han closed the distance as he moved diligently towards his opponent, and managed to secure a clinch on Maeda with an arm-triangle grip. The Dagestani took Maeda down to the canvas with a hip toss throw and established control on the canvas as Maeda scrambled to get his defense going, with Volk Han looking for an early submission attempt. Volk Han attempted an arm entanglement lock, while Maeda countered with a cross-armbreaker attempt. The two ended up in a leglock exchange until they both managed to roll to the ropes for a clean break and reset. Volk Han and Akira Maeda lock up again after some brief leg kicks from Maeda, which Volk Han responded to with his own set of strikes. The Soviet SAMBO specialist took Maeda down with a headlock takedown and regained some momentum on the canvas he looked for a cross-armbreaker. Maeda countered well and prevented Volk Han from getting any attempts at submissions until Han managed to sneak in a cross-heel hold near the ropes, which was enough to give Maeda something to think about and give Han his first rope break of the match. The two found themselves on the mat again in quick order. Han demonstrated his dangerous grappling ability again as he forced Maeda to the ropes with a clever heel hook. Maeda came back at Han swinging and connected a few high kicks. Maeda followed things up with a sharp palm strike to the face of his opponent, giving him the first knockdown of the match to tie things at 1-1. Volk Han got back up relatively quickly. As the match developed, it seemed as if Volk Han’s Command SAMBO background was giving him an edge over Maeda. Not just in grappling, but in the “shock-and-awe” factor as well. Volk Han utilized techniques such as the kani-basami to take Maeda down to the canvas at any time he wanted it seemed. This caused Maeda to give up some more rope breaks at times when he might have been able to conserve them. Within a few minutes, Han built up a lead again at 2-1 after Maeda had to use two more rope breaks to escape submission attempts from his opponent. Maeda had some moments of his own, and eventually was able to get the Dagestani back to the mat with side control, and used a nice double wristlock attempt to get Han going for the ropes to tie things back up at 2-2. Maeda attempted to exert more control over the match as he opted for more striking. Han gave Maeda enough to think about with techniques like the spinning back fist and jumping axe kick, but Maeda’s powerful kicks eventually earned him a third knockdown, and Volk Han’s opponent retook control of the match with a 3-2 lead to the delight of the crowd. Whenever Volk Han did get Maeda to the canvas, it appeared Maeda opted for the strategy of quickly going for the ropes to break whatever hold his opponent could get on him. Perhaps he felt like he had points to spare. This eventually evened the score at 3-3 as the contest evolved. Regardless, Maeda scored another knockdown on Volk, this time after a series of knees after Maeda secured a clinch with his opponent. The match was now 4-3 in favor of Maeda, and Volk Han was on his last down. The ring announcer announced the 15:00 mark soon after. After another brief striking exchange, with Maeda seemingly getting the better of Volk Han, Maeda opted to go for a Capture suplex to the joy of the crowd and immediately went for a heel hook on his opponent. Perhaps in a moment of excitement, Maeda got a little sloppy with his hold and left his knee open to a counter from the dashing Command SAMBO specialist. Volk Han sensed an opening and seized Maeda’s knee for a devastating calf-slicer. Maeda instantly felt the pain ripping through his body and tapped as Volk Han secured the hold with everything he had. The crowd was vocally shocked, and Volk Han celebrated his huge upset win while Maeda pounded the canvas in frustration. Han defeats Maeda via submission (calf-slicer), 17:32 Nobuyuki Furuta made the result official and announced the Soviet newcomer as the winner. The crowd, despite cherishing Maeda as a real-life superhero, seemed to voice approval for the Dagestani grappler. Volk Han seemed quite pleased with himself, and the WOWOW commentary crew seemed excited to talk about the upset while recapping the match. Maeda still seemed a bit frustrated, but eventually opted to walk over to his foe and shook hands with Volk. Maeda then raised Volk Han’s arm in the air for the crowd. The commentary team recaps the evening’s events and they talk about how Bob Backlund and Volk Han have upset perhaps the two best wrestlers not only in Japan but the world. Some of them say that both Backlund and Han have established themselves as top contenders in UWF already. They also revisit the Karelin vs Hashimikov match and talk about how impressive Karelin looked again. They run down the rest of the event and mention the next upcoming show on March 22nd in Sapporo. They advertise Akira Maeda meeting his old foe, Yoshiaki Fujiwara, as the main event and mention the debut of some of the new trainees from the UWF dojo. We get some insight from Maeda backstage as he gives an interview. Maeda seems to be selling the knee quite a bit and says that he is upset that he lost twice in a row and Volk Han deserves credit for being better tonight. He says that might have been overconfident and promises to make it known why he is the best wrestler in the world. The team signs off and we get rolling credits set to highlights from the event, as Queen’s “We Are the Champions” plays. (OOC: Taking inspiration from the notes Kevin does for his WCW shows sometimes, here are some of my thoughts on the way I did this show - 1) In reality, 1989 Akira Maeda and Nobuhiko Takada weren't going to take that many losses. Bob Backlund was originally going to work more UWF shows after his debut in December 1988, but UWF only did one more match with him a few months later against Masakatsu Funaki. Would Backlund beat Takada in a rematch? That might have been likely. Akira Maeda was at the peak of his fame and popularity, and he won most of his matches as a result (only losing once to Takada before the U-COSMOS show in November). Akira Maeda was kinda famous for not putting too many people over. In RINGS, Maeda became more open to this but it was out of necessity. He didn't have too many established stars on his roster and had to put over people like Volk Han and Dick Vrij to make them more credible in the eyes of fans. Volk Han and Maeda also had a close relationship, which played into my thinking for the main event. What would happen if 1989 Maeda came up against Volk Han? I guess that's why we call this fantasy booking...we simply don't know. I think Maeda would have been open to it, especially since guys like Volk Han had credentials he saw as legitimate (Maeda claims that he recruited Volk Han for RINGS because he was looking for people who served in the military and practiced martial arts). In any case, I saw this as a way to establish Backlund and Volk Han as credible members of the UWF roster going forward, and make them the top gaijins so to speak, along with Hashimikov, Zangiev, Dick Vrij, and on the American side, the Koslowskis. Just like in RINGS, I think the Russians are going to be a big factor in UWF Newborn and will certainly be one of the main threats to the top stars. Also, I think having Takada and Maeda both lose on the same night cancels each other out to some degree, and protects them in the long run. 2) I've been debating how to represent Aleksandr Karelin and David Gobejishvili as professional wrestlers in the UWF mold. I think I decided to give Gobejishvili a developing knowledge of catch wrestling from training with Billy Robinson, along with Chidaoba, which he probably had experience in as well. This would mesh well with his freestyle wrestling background, and make him more of a danger on the wrestling mat than he was in real life (he actually lost to Minoru Suzuki in a shoot in PWFG when they brought him in for a show in 1992, and he was a deer in the headlights). We all know Karelin was one of the greatest Greco-Roman wrestlers of all time, and from his one match with Akira Maeda in 1999, we know that he probably would have leaned into that if he had done more pro wrestling matches. I figured I would have him use his Greco-Roman background mixed in with SAMBO training to soften people up, and then use his pure power with suplexes and throwing moves to finish his opponents off. Which is where his trademark "Karelin Lift" can come in. Salman Hashimikov was a great wrestler as well, but he wasn't Karelin. I figured having Hashimikov lose to Karelin would make sense in the grand scheme of things. 3) Bad News Allen had a brief run in UWFi in real life. He was known for using his Judo background to boss his opponents around before finishing things off with a simple submission move like a cross-armbreaker. I think he had more in the tank in 1989 compared to 1993 though, and probably could have done really well in UWF at that point. Hopefully, I can do him justice and prove how good he was here. 4) The ranking system is mostly just for fun, and based on actual W-L records so far. RINGS did something similar, so I decided to bring that to UWF Newborn as well.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Autistic Dragon Posted February 28 Report Share Posted February 28 Nothing like a ranking system to sell that "real sport" feeling. The Russians are taking over the UWF. Mr Backlund evens the score with Takada while Madea seems to be entering a bit of a slump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainmakerrtv Posted February 28 Report Share Posted February 28 Karelin with a big win over his countryman. Gotta say, last 2 matches could be considered upsets, certainly took me by surprise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlet-Left Posted February 29 Report Share Posted February 29 Happy to see Bad News Allen get a solid win on his debut! Big fan of the blow-for-blow write-ups here! It's great to see Bob Backlund even up the scoreboard! Cool show, with a really fun finish to end on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Control21 Posted March 1 Author Report Share Posted March 1 On 2/26/2024 at 12:44 PM, LowBlowPodcast said: Do you think Pride was on the level? I have heard stories about the early shows almost being pre-booked and then it turned more into a sport due to getting popularity going and such. There were a few worked PRIDE fights like Takada vs Coleman and Otsuka vs Takada, but most of the early stuff was a shoot I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spaldoni Posted March 2 Report Share Posted March 2 Paulson was tough but Sekishima's experience really came into play. When it came to stand up fighting, Shamrock was in control but the ground game was the key factor as Miyato scores the win. Anjo came out swinging but Funaki weathered the storm, regained control and finished things up nicely for the win. Kopylov played it smart to get the submission win over Fleming. Kopylov got some good buzz tonight. Zouev and Smiley give the fans a great grappling contest. The commentary team and I were both impressed by Smiley's victory. Wow, Zouev does look like a Von Erich LOL Brown looked awesome and that can only mean bad news for future opponents. Props to Marty for giving a 6'7" man a match. That finishing sequence by David sure sealed the deal. The Russians impressed the Japanese fans with their power and technique. Karelin tore the house down with his finisher. Karelin will give the fans and press a lot to talk about. Takada came to fight but man once Backlund got in the zone he really took it to Takada. Backlund evens things up. After 2 great matches, I'm hoping we get a money making rubber match. WOW! Shocker! Han gives Maeda his second loss in a row. What an upset. We'll see how Maeda regroups from this. Meanwhile Han is now well established. I like the direction the UWF is going. Now that a lot of foreign wrestlers have become known in Japan, this sets up a lot of intriguing possibilities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Control21 Posted March 11 Author Report Share Posted March 11 Quote March 7th, 1989 UWF’s show in Tokushima is being considered another success, with another sold-out arena (this time in a smaller market). The event was broadcast on WOWOW on tape delay. The show at the Nippon Budokan earlier in January was on a live broadcast, so it appears WOWOW will do both formats depending on event timing. The most notable result of the event saw Volk Han go over Akira Maeda in a clean win via submission, which is a bit of a shock as Volk Han is a newcomer without any previous wrestling experience that we know of. The crowd itself was a bit shocked as well, but people who attended or watched the show have said that the crowd got behind Volk Han pretty quickly and now it seems like he’s being considered a legitimate threat by the fans. Akira Maeda has become one of the most popular wrestlers in Japan, and not many people expected him to lose two matches in a row, especially against an unknown like Volk Han. For now, it appears the gambit paid off, but whether or not this will hurt Maeda or UWF in the long run is something worth keeping an eye on. In the semi-main event, Nobuhiko Takada lost via TKO to Bob Backlund in another match that was reportedly very good. Backlund getting his win back was to be expected perhaps, but having him beat Takada on the same night Akira Maeda lost might balance the losses suffered by both. Other results on the card saw Aleksandr Karelin defeat Salman Hashimikov in another impressive match. Karelin got over with the crowd easily, and while Hashmikov has already been built up as a tough foreign wrestler for UWF, Karelin is just that much better, and having him win here makes sense. Bad News Allen also made his debut for UWF as expected in a winning effort over Chris Dolman. Another Russian Olympic medalist from last summer, David Gobejishvili, defeated Marty Jones via submission. Yasuto Sekishima defeated Erik Paulson in the opener via submission, Wayne Shamrock came up short against Shigeo Miyato, Masakatsu Funaki defeated Anjo via submission, and Andrei Kopylov defeated Mark Fleming via submission while Nikolai Zouev lost to Norman Smiley via submission. Last week’s event was also notable for introducing a ranking system, which would further differentiate UWF from other promotions in Japan with the sports-based approach and focus on realism. UWF’s next event will be held on March 22nd in Sapporo, with Akira Maeda vs Yoshiaki Fujiwara already advertised as the main event. You would expect Akira Maeda to get back to winning ways here, but Yoshiaki Fujiwara is also clean off a win over Satoru Sayama so anything is possible. Current trainees from the UWF dojo are also expected to debut, and there is a lot of hype around Kiyoshi Tamura in particular. There is a lot of belief from sources that Tamura could prove to be the best prospect of the class, although there is a lot of talent elsewhere as well. Masahito Kakihara is also being praised for the potential he has shown so far in the dojo. Bob Backlund was said to be very pleased with how his rematch against Takada unfolded and is looking forward to his next match. Any issues between him and the UWF office have been resolved. Bad News Allen also enjoyed his debut in UWF, and he was apparently very impressed by the backstage professionalism of the roster and UWF staff. UWF officials have discussed introducing pinfalls to the ruleset a bit more in recent weeks. Nothing has been confirmed yet, but sources say that it could be introduced by April at the earliest. Karl Gotch and Billy Robinson have both been an advocate of the pinfall being brought back and even in the context of the UWF style, it does make sense. Catch wrestling contests traditionally had pinfalls and submissions were often designed around either scoring a pinfall or reversing one. Lou Thesz has proposed the idea as well to UWF officials. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Autistic Dragon Posted March 11 Report Share Posted March 11 Maeda looks to get back on track in Sapporo. Interested to see if the UWF adds pinfalls to the mix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Control21 Posted March 13 Author Report Share Posted March 13 If anyone is interested, someone made a very good video on the history of the UWF in the 1980s. It's well worth your time. The only thing I would add/correct is that Sayama was trained by Karl Gotch and was his live-in student for a while. Although later on, Gotch soured on Sayama for a variety of reasons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LowBlowPodcast Posted March 15 Report Share Posted March 15 I may have asked this before, but did Billy Robinson ever work for UWF? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rainmakerrtv Posted March 15 Report Share Posted March 15 42 minutes ago, LowBlowPodcast said: I may have asked this before, but did Billy Robinson ever work for UWF? I know he had that exhibition match with Bock in UWFi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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