Results from Evansville Coliseum – January 22, 1986
Bill Dundee over Steve Keirn in an AWA Southern Heavyweight title Loser Leaves Town match
Dutch Mantell retained the International title over Rick Casey
“Nature Boy” Buddy Landel defeated Koko Ware to win the Mid-America title
Sheepherders defeated the Fantastics in a Pledge match, forcing the Fantastics to sing the New Zealand national anthem in the middle of the ring.
One Year in Memphis – January 25, 1986
As always, Lance Russell and Dave Brown welcomed us to the show. Brown promised that we’d be seeing the Fantastics, Dirty Rhodes, a Bill Dundee Southern heavyweight title defense, and a match that would see Billy Travis and David Haskins taking on Dutch Mantell and Buddy Landel. Russell added that we’d also be seeing a brand-new wrestler to the area – Larry Hamilton.
After a commercial break, we came back to see Hamilton making his entrance to the studio to face the masked Invader. The Invader started things off with a shove and Hamilton began firing back. Hamilton kept on the Invader by whipping him across the ring, putting him down with a dropkick, slamming him, and dropping a knee. A leg drop earned Hamilton two.
Hamilton locked the Invader in an armbar before dropping a knee into the Invader’s shoulder. Hamilton kept working the arm as Lance Russell filled us in about a US tag team title reign that Hamilton had with Pistol Pez Whatley.
Hamilton kept the Invader in a wristlock until the Invader made the ropes and the ref broke the hold. The two locked back up and Hamilton locked the wristlock right back on.
The Invader got loose with a Greco-Roman thumb to the eye only for Hamilton to regain control and hit a belly to belly suplex for the win at 3:00.
We came back from commercial to see Lance Russell telling us about Wednesday’s show at the Evansville Coliseum. Buddy Landel joined him to talk about the match and then Bill Dundee came in to talk about his barbed wire match. Dundee brought up that the match was happening because Koko “claimed†that Dundee had helped Landel beat him for the title. Dutch Mantell then came in, pointing out that he was still the International champion and would be Rick Casey again.
Jonathan Boyd then joined the fun to talk about how the Sheepherders would be running the Fantastics out of town. Boyd brought up how much money Dundee was making running people out of town, and he wanted a share of it.
After a break, the Fantastics made their entrance into the studio as Russell reminded the fans of the Fantastic Date with the Fantastics contest. They’d be facing Tony Falk and Pat Rose. Falk stopped by the announce desk to tell Russell that he knew they’d be beating the Fantastics.
Russell complimented Falk’s attitude but added that he didn’t know how realistic the win was.
Rose started the match against Tommy Rogers. The two locked up and Rose took Rogers down with a waistlock. Rogers and Rose battled, trying to take each other down until Rose made the ropes. The two locked up again and after a criss-cross Rose leveled Rogers with a clothesline before heading up top. Rose dropped down to avoid the DQ and continued hammering Rogers.
Rose headed up top again, got caught by Rogers, and was pitched off the turnbuckle. Rogers brought in Fulton who went after Rose’s arm. A shoulder block by Fulton staggered Rose, who caught Fulton with a hiptoss. Rose missed with an elbow and Fulton caught him with an arm drag before bringing Rogers back in.
Rogers went to the second rope and clubbed Rose’s arm. Rose jabbed Rogers in the eye and tagged in Tony Falk. This turned out to be a bad idea as Rogers immediately began dominating Falk. Things didn’t improve for Falk as Fulton tagged back in. Falk got in an offensive move or two but still wound up with Fulton gaining the momentum before bringing Rogers back in.
Rogers kept pressure on Falk’s arm and Falk only got free by pulling Rogers’s hair. Rogers reversed an Irish whip and flipped Falk into the center of the ring before tagging Fulton back in.
Falk backed Fulton into his corner and tagged Rose in. Rose gained the advantage on Fulton and hammered him in the corner before whipping him across the ring and stopping him with a clothesline for 2. Rose came off the second rope and dropped a fist on Fulton for a two.
Rose brought Falk back in as Rogers tried to break up the double team. Fulton soon began fighting back against Falk only for Falk to keep the advantage. Falk peppered Fulton with punches before hitting a reverse neck breaker and followed it with a clothesline that earned him a two count.
Fulton managed to escape and Falk quickly brought Rose back in. Rose suplexed Fulton and then got flipped into a small package for a one count. That started Fulton getting some momentum so Rose brought Falk back in.
That turned out to be a bad idea as Fulton gained the advantage and tagged in Rogers, who began decimating both Falk and Rose. The Fantastics whipped both opponents into each other and after the do-si-do Rose was outside the ring. Rogers splashed Falk from the second rope (called the Rogers Rocket) and earned the win at 7:55.
The Fantastics then joined Russell at the interview set. Russell ran down the specifics for the Fantastic Date with the Fantastics and Fulton mentioned that they’d already received over 400 entries.
That was, of course, Buddy Landel’s cue. Landel bashed the Fantastics and asked how the Win a Date with the Nature Boy contest was going. Russell mentioned that the Landel contest had only received two entries.
Landel decided that the contest was rigged and put himself over for the ladies. He decided that the problem was that the mail had simply been misaddressed. Russell obliged by putting up a different screen for the Landel address (which was the same, only with Landel’s name instead of the Fantastics’).
As Fulton put down Landel, out came Jonathan Boyd and the Sheepherders with a steel chair to attack. In no time at all both Fantastics were busted open. Dirty Rhodes, Rick Casey, and Koko Ware ran in for the save.
We came back to hear more about Wednesday’s show. We cut to a taped interview where Koko talked about the barbed wire match.
We came back to the arena for Billy Travis and David Haskins to face Landel and Mantell. Mantell and Travis started us off. Travis caught Mantell in a headlock and took Mantell down which caused Mantell to fight back and get control of Travis’s arm before pulling him down by the hair.
Mantell headlocked Travis and brought Landel in. The two locked up again and Landel gained the advantage before tagging Mantell in to hammer Travis. Travis hit Mantell with a cross-body that earned a one count before tagging Haskins in.
Mantell punched Haskins in the face before tagging Landel back in to hammer Haskins with chops. Landel brought Mantell back in only for Haskins to dodge a charge and tag Travis in.
Dutch quickly tagged Landel in and the two engaged in a quick double team before Mantell left the ring. Landel turned Travis into a punching bag before hip tossing him and tagging Mantell back in.
Mantell caught Travis with an elbow that earned him a two count. As Haskins tried to fire up the crowd, Travis tried to gain some momentum, only to have Landel tag back in.
That soon proved to be the formula for the match. Whenever Travis seemed to be making any sort of a comeback, Mantell or Landel would simply bring the other man back in and continue the punishment.
After a Mantell power slam that earned a two count, Travis managed to tag Haskins in. Haskins quickly attacked both Mantell and Landel, only for Landel to lock him in the figure four for the win at 5:56.
After a quick commercial, we saw Dirty Rhodes coming out to take on Keith Erich. Rhodes and Erich circled until Dirty locked in a side headlock. Rhodes body slammed Erich as Dave Brown pointed out Dirty’s 100 pound weight advantage. Dirty covered for a quick one count and Erich broke by making the ropes.
Rhodes’s game plan seemed to keep using his weight by taking Erich down and laying on top of him. Rhodes finally hit a Bionic Elbow and dropped an elbow on the prone Erich for the win at 1:50.
We came back from commercial to see Russell backstage. Rick Casey was there to put over their match as he reminded the fans that Mantell had beaten him for the International title. The Fantastics then came in and Fulton said that they’d been forced to sing “Waltzing Matilda†after their last match against the Sheepherders. Rogers chimed in that they’d be running the Sheepherders out of town.
We then got a music video of Bill Dundee set to “Bad to the Bone.†Highlights were added of Dundee’s dirty tricks against Steve Keirn and Ricky Morton.
After the video, we had Dundee defending his title against Tracy Smothers. Smothers soon gained control of Dundee by locking Dundee’s head between his knees. Dundee jawed with the crowd and found himself wrist locked by Smothers. Dundee made the ropes and broke the hold. Dundee took Smothers down before working on Smothers’s leg.
Dundee strolled around the ring and jawed with the crowd again and again wound up headscissored by Smothers. Dundee escaped and returned his attention to the crowd. Dundee took Smothers down first with a hair pull and then a trunks pull, which began infuriating Smothers.
A smack to the back of the head had Smothers seeing red so Dundee took a walk around the ringside area. Dundee came back in at 5 and began taking firm control of the match, finally pitching Smothers through the ropes to the outside.
Dundee began working to keep Smothers on the outside. As Dundee argued with the fans, Smothers finally got back in and got rabbit punched by Dundee.
A big forearm from Smothers staggered the champion and Dundee got serious. Smothers reversed an Irish whip and Dundee went for another walk.
Dundee came back in and turned his attention back to the fans before taking Smothers down with a side headlock. Dundee chopped Smothers, infuriating Smothers again, and Dundee went for another walk where he jawed with the fans.
Smothers, meanwhile, met Dundee and began firing away. Dundee slipped a chain out of his tights, wrapped it around his fist, and popped Smothers with it for the win at 8:31.
We came back for Russell and Brown to quickly recap the show. The show closed with Russell bidding us farewell and promising another good show next week.
CARD FOR WEDNESDAY NIGHT’S SHOW AT THE EVANSVILLE COLISEUM
Loser Leave Town match
Sheepherders vs. the Fantastics
Taped Fist match
Dutch Mantell © vs. Rick Casey
Barbed Wire match
Bill Dundee vs. Koko Ware
Mid-America title
Buddy Landel © vs. Tracy Smothers
