Results from Sunday night’s show at the Mid-South Coliseum, courtesy of memphiswrestlinghistory.com.
Southern Heavyweight title
Austin Idol over Bill Dundee (c) by DQ – Dundee retains
Southern Tag Team title tournament results:
Round 1
Tojo Yamamoto/Dirty Rhodes over Tony Falk/Pat Rose
Sheepherders over Koko Ware/Rick Casey
Blade Runners over Phil Hickerson/Spoiler
Fantastics over Buddy Landel/Dutch Mantell
Round 2
Sheepherders over Tojo Yamamoto/Dirty Rhodes
Fantastics over Blade Runners
Finals
Fantastics over Sheepherders to become new Southern Tag Team champions
Lance Russell and Dave Brown welcomed us to the show and told us that Bill Dundee, Billy Travis, Dirty Rhodes, Dutch Mantell, Buddy Landel were all here. The main event would consist of the Sheepherders (Taurus Bulba, Rip Morgan, and Jonathan Boyd), Tony Falk, and Pat Rose taking on Koko Ware, Rick Casey, and the Fantastics.
First up we had Dundee taking on Jim Jameson. Dundee stopped by the announce desk to jaw with Russell for a moment by telling women at home how much better it was to watch him on TV instead of their husbands. Dundee refused to fight Jameson and talked about how Greenpeace had been calling since he’d beaten up that “big whale†Big Red.
Dundee took us to his match against Big Red from the Mid-South Coliseum, with new commentary by himself, Mantell, and Landel. As Dundee battled Big Red on the screen, he began by talking about whales. Landel added to the fun by calling Dundee the Giant Killer.
On the screen, Big Red muscled Dundee down and stomped his fingers while Mantell chimed in by saying that a lost whale in the ocean was really Big Red.
Dundee took a walk outside and said he was just trying to tire out the “big old leprechaun.†Mantell chimed in by saying that Big Red shouldn’t be dressed in green.
Dundee promised not to harpoon the whale and backed Big Red into the corner while going after his eyes then banged Red’s head off the turnbuckle. In response Big Red (now known as Kermit because of his dancing) bounced Dundee off the turnbuckle and he took another walk.
Dundee threw a chair into the ring and explained that he just thought that Red looked tired. On the screen, Dundee dropkicked Red into the ropes. On commentary, Mantell explained his later interference by saying that he’d been afraid the whale would die of cardiac arrest.
Dundee choked Red down (he explained he was just trying to do mouth to mouth) and got pulled off. Landel compared Red to a waterbed as Red started dancing to get his momentum back. A clubbing forearm got classified as an illegal blow and Red took control of the match.
Dundee dodged a splash and said that Jacques Cousteau would be nice to them for not hurting the whale. On screen, Red dropped an elbow and Mantell climbed onto the apron. Red clocked Mantell, who dropped a chain (Dundee claimed it had fallen out of Red‘s pocket). Dundee grabbed the chain, wrapped his fist, and clocked Red for the win.
We headed back to the studio, where Dundee threatened to lock fans in a closet and force fans to listen to Jerry Lawler’s records, then sent us to commercial.
When we came back, Randy Hales was here to start running down the Evansville card for Wednesday night. Keirn cut an interview talking about how the Fabulous Ones had been in Florida, and then said that he couldn’t believe that Dundee would beat Lawler. He added that the stipulations for the upcoming match were a little different than Dundee had thought. Whoever the loser was would be leaving town – the stip didn’t just apply to Keirn.
We headed back to the studio to see Billy Travis taking on the masked Invader. The bell rang and both men began circling each other before Travis started working on the Invader’s left arm which forced the Invader into the ropes. They tied up again and Travis hip tossed the Invader. Another tieup saw Travis get the arm again and again the Invader went into the ropes.
Invader caught Travis in a headlock and got back dropped so Travis could escape before returning his attention to the arm. Invader finally backed Travis into a corner to force the break, then Travis slammed Invader down. Travis dropped a knee and pulled Invader back up. Travis slammed the Invader and locked his opponent in a chinlock. Travis changed his mind and went back to the arm only for Invader to fight free. The two traded blows until Travis hit a backbreaker, then splashed the Invader from the second rope for the win at 3:15.
We then headed to tape of the Blade Runners vs. Billy Travis and Phil Hickerson. Buddy Wayne rammed Travis into the corner while the Runners hammered Hickerson in the ring. While the Runners held Hickerson Wayne entered the ring and blasted Hickerson with his shoe for the DQ (busting Hickerson open in the process).
The bloody Travis fought to regain his feet as Wayne and the Runners kept hammering Hickerson. The Runners slammed Hickerson while Wayne pulled Travis in and pitched him. That brought the Spoiler into the ring. Spoiler pulled off his boot and instead of hitting Hickerson clocked Wayne, Borden, and Hellwig as Russell put over Hickerson and Spoiler as former tag team champions.
We headed back to hear Russell running down Wednesday’s card in Evansville before we headed back to the arena. We headed to an Austin Idol video to the tune of “The Kid is Hot Tonight.†The video featured Idol highlights, Idol posing, and interview clips.
We headed back to action to see the masked Raiders taking on Dirty Rhodes (Dusty’s cousin) and Tojo Yamamoto. Rhodes started against Raider 1. Rhodes got whipped across the ring, stopped, wiggled his behind, and began overpowering the Raider (utilizing Dusty‘s moveset).
Raider 2 came in and Rhodes muscled him back to his corner to bring in Tojo, who started chopping some wood. Tojo wound up in a wristlock only to escape and continue chopping the Raider.
The Raider brought his partner back in and Tojo took him down. The two locked up, backed into the ropes, and Tojo nailed him with another chop. Tojo began kicking the Raider and put him down with another chop to the back of his neck before bringing Dirty back in.
Dirty dropped the Raider with an elbow, landed another elbow on the prone Raider, and got the pin at 2:54.
Russell was back at the interview set to announce a contest – the Fantastic Date with the Fantastics. The premise was that (female) fans could mail letters (and photos) in to the TV station and the two winners would go out for dinner in a limo and then go to the next wrestling show with the Fantastics. Fulton and Rogers were there with him to help build the women’s excitement about the contest.
That brought Buddy Landel out to announce his own contest – Win the Date of a Lifetime with the Nature Boy. Landel even made the entrance requirements easier – all he needed was a picture. Landel talked about the pandemonium that the announcement was causing. Landel promised to bring the winner on TV and hinted that this could catapult the woman to stardom. Landel even offered to give away a poster of himself to the winner. Landel promised to take the girl in his personal car to the Waldorf, as opposed to the Fantastics, who’d be taking the girls “to the Krystal.†Russell decided to keep notes on which contest got the most responses.
We headed to commercial and came back to Kevin McQueen in the ring. His opponent headed out next – Dirty Dutch Mantell. The bell rang and Mantell found himself flipped across the ring. Mantell complained about McQueen pulling his hair and found himself flipped again. They locked up again and Mantell and McQueen began trading arm wringers.
Mantell backed into the corner to break it up and found himself in a headlock, which led to Mantell pulling McQueen’s hair. Mantell dropped a knee on McQueen and began firing right hands at him. He pulled McQueen up by the hair, chopped him, and locked on an armbar before kicking McQueen in the chest.
Mantell finally flapjacked McQueen down for the pinfall win at 2:06.
Landel came out next to face David Johnson. The bell rang and Landel backed away from a tie up before putting Johnson down with a kick, a chop, a punch, and a dropkick. Landel locked in a chinlock before throwing Johnson into the corner and using him as a punching bag. Landel flipped Johnson over and kept right on top of him. Landel dropped an elbow and locked on the figure four for the win.
When we came back from commercial, Russell was backstage to remind us about the card on Wednesday night. Mantell, Landell, and Dundee soon came in to do an interview. They decided the stipulation for Keirn’s match was a conspiracy and then the three of them said that it wouldn’t matter.
Dundee pointed out that Jackie Fargo and Stan Lane couldn’t help him and Keirn would be leaving.
Mantell closed the interview by promising that all three of them would win their matches that night.
That brought us to the eight-man main event. Rose was ready to jumpstart things by kicking at Casey as the Sheepherders started singing Waltzing Matilda at the commentary booth.
The bell rang and Bulba and Fulton started out. Fulton soon took control of Bulba, who couldn’t gain any momentum on Fulton. Fulton dragged Bulba to his corner and tagged in Tommy Rogers, which was Bulba’s prompt to tag Morgan in.
Morgan took control of Rogers, only for Rogers to start fighting back with kicks to the midsection. A body press and a dropkick finally put Morgan down. Morgan tagged out to bring Rose in as Fulton brought Ware in.
Rose dominated Ware so Casey tagged in as Boyd talked about the match being rigged against his team. Tony Falk came in and Casey immediately began dominating him. Falk tried to fight back with punches, but Casey reversed an Irish whip, back dropped him, and started working on an armbar as he brought Fulton back in.
Fulton dropped a leg on Falk and Rogers was tagged back in. Rogers dropkicked him and brought Fulton back in.
Falk finally got an offensive move by flipping Fulton over, whipping him into the ropes, and stopping him with a back elbow. Falk body slammed him and missed an elbow drop, which gave Fulton the chance he needed. Fulton fought back into his corner and tagged Rogers in. Rogers splashed Falk and that was all she wrote at 4:07.
Dave Brown recapped the show and Russell closed us out by reminding everyone of the Fantastic Date with the Fantastics.
FULL CARD FOR EVANSVILLE COLISEUM
Southern Heavyweight title
No Time limit – no DQ
Loser Leaves Town
Bill Dundee © vs. Steve Keirn
International title
Dutch Mantell © vs. Rick Casey
Mid-America title
Koko Ware © vs. “Nature Boy†Buddy Landel
Pledge Match
Sheepherders vs. Fantastics
Blade Runners vs. Billy Travis/Spoiler
