Michael Hayes, Terry Gordy, Buddy Roberts and Jimmy Garvin. The Fabulous Freebirds. While they are better known for their time spent in WCW they did have a short stint in WWF but their impact lives on.
In 1979 Bill Watts brought together Michael Hayes, Terry Gordy and Buddy Roberts. They became a sort of gang, instead of being a strictly two-man tag team they often cycled through partnerships during matches. Their feud with the Von Erichs was outstanding and long lasting which is perhaps why Kevin Von Erich is going to induct them into the Hall of Fame. I admit, I don’t know much about them as they were before “my time” aka I was too little to be in the room when this was on TV. Still, I looked into videos and articles about this group and honestly, I was not disappointed.
Not only were their matches spectacular but any interaction between the groups was always on point, giving the best show they could for the crowd. In one of their memorable moments, in which the Von Erichs were defending the Six Man World Heavyweight Title we saw Kevin, David and Kerry Von Erich square off against Michael Hayes, Terry Gordy and Buddy Roberts. At the onset of this match Kevin Von Erich has something important to say to the Freebirds and the crowd.
“Hey Freebirds, you listen to me and you listen good! You got everybody in the world believing this is a war between Texas and Georgia. and i have relatives that died under the southern flag and i’ll tell you right now this war is not between Texas and Georgia. It’s between decency and filth!”
See the rest of the match, promo to finish here.
As for their short time in WWF the rumor goes that their WWF time was limited after an incident with Andre the Giant. In the story relayed by Bret Hart, the Freebirds had arrived late to a show (allegedly drunk) which upset Andre. He saw this as unprofessional and apparently told them they were fired. The next day they were no longer with the company.
After WWF they worked in a few other promotions before the group disbanded in 1994 after fifteen years together.
Since their time as wrestlers Gordy, Roberts and another member who joined the group later in it’s legacy, Brad Armstrong (Badstreet) have all since passed away. Hayes and Garvin will be inducted while Gordy and Roberts will be inducted posthumously. Badstreet, as well as other that were affiliated with the group will not be inducted as they were not part of the original group.
A notable part of this legacy rests in “The Freebird Rule”. “The Freebird Rule” states that any two of the three members of the group could defend the tag team titles on any night, as they saw fit. This rule has been used in many promotions for many titles, both tag and single titles. In WCW The Wolfpac (Kevin Nash, Scott Hall and Syxx) used it. When a title is co-held, such as it was with Chyna and Chris Jericho co-holding the WWF Intercontinental Championship. The New Day currently uses this tactic though we more often than not see Kofi Kingston and Big E Langston in the ring with Xavier Woods outside of it.
What is your favorite memory of the Fabulous Freebirds? Share in the comments so I can learn more about these legendary inductees!
