Hey Yo Stud Muffins & Foxy Ladies,
Pro Wrestling Love vol. 41:
The Best of US Wrestling 1977-1982
(Note: Excludes WWF & Portland)
Objective: Break up the Greatest Match Ever Project (hosted at http://gweproject.freeforums.net/) into more manageable chunks to help me build my Top 100 List for the project.
Motivation: Contribute to the discussion around these matches to enrich my own understanding of pro wrestling and give a fresh perspective for old matches and even hopefully discover great pro wrestling matches that have been hidden by the sands of time.
Subject: This forty-first volume of Pro Wrestling Love is the conclusion of the Top 12 countdown of the best matches to take place in the United States between 1977-1982 (excluding World Wrestling Federation and Portland). The WWF during the Bob Backlund Era has already been covered and I will do a separate series on “Playboy” Buddy Rose and Portland at a later time. Footage from this era is very hit or miss. There is almost nothing from Mid-Atlantic, World Class or Mid-South, things do get better in 1982. The AWA is heavily clipped in this era. From Memphis there is a good amount of stuff from 1981 and 1982 and much of the list is comprised of Jerry Lawler and his work during these years. The bulk of the findings are thanks to Bruce Tharpe and the NWA Classics On Demand streaming service that uncovered a treasure trove of wrestling matches from Houston. By 1983, there is plenty of footage to treat each major territory separately and before 1977 there is a real dearth of footage so that is how the time period was selected. You can revisit past Pro Wrestling Love Volumes at ridingspacemountain.blogspot.com. You can check out the full version of these reviews in ProWrestlingOnly.com by going to the forums and finding the folders associated with the date of the match.
Contact Info: @superstarsleeze on Twitter, Instagram & ProWrestlingOnly.com.
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| MY EYE! MY EYE! MY EYE! (I couldnt find a picture of Funk selling so this will have to do) |
Top Six Match of US Pro Wrestling 1977-1982
#6. Jerry "The King" Lawler vs Terry Funk- Memphis 4/6/81 Empty Arena
Probably the most famous wrestling match in Memphis wrestling history is the unusual Empty Arena match pitting Lawler and Terry Funk together to blow off their feud. Funk having complained of homerism in the Funks' recent matches against Lawler wanted to an old fashioned mano y mano shootout. It is hard to say who is more valuable in this segment Terry Funk or Lance Russell. This may be Russell's brightest moment as he just knocks it out of the park presenting this as a unique, unnerving happening in pro wrestling. Terry Funk is raving mad in this match swearing up a storm. He is the perfect psychopath. First he is happy to prove Lawler is a coward counting him out after demanding Lance do it. Then he switches gears is totally pissed Lawler did not come and made him out to be a fool. A total lunatic. Just as he is about take his frustration out on Lance Russell out walks the King in all his regal splendor as if the Mid-South Coliseum was packed to the rafters. This leads Funk to get in the awesome dig "Don't you know that there is not anybody here...you JACKASS!" The actual match is short and sweet as a shoot bar fight would be and thats what they were going for. Throwing each other into chairs, flailing punches, and hey it is pro wrestling so we get a PILEDRIVER on the floor by Funk. Terry deperately wants Lawler to say I Quit on TV. He goes to stab Lawler in the eye, but The King fights back and kicks the stakes into TERRY FUNK'S EYE! MY EYE! MY EYE! DOCTOR! I CAN'T SEE! MY EYE! Amazing, amazing selling. It is visceral, scary and disturbing. More of an angle than a match, but fuck it, this is an all-timer through and through.
#5. Jerry "The King" Lawler vs Terry Funk - Memphis 3/23/81, No DQ
The entrance of Lawler with the trumpets heralding the arrival of The King was majestic and the crowd heat was awesome. I loved the all-white Lawler attire because you knew the blood would flow in this one and plus all white is a bitchin look.
The battle of the two best punchers in the history of pro wrestling does not disappoint as this is a rough 'n' tumble affair. Funk's bumps in the beginning are very entertaining especially getting caught up in the rope that acts as the boundary between crowd and wrestlers and letting himself be tripped into the ring. They go blow for blow. The King really takes command when he drives Funk headfirst into the bell splitting him wide open. Lawler looked to have this one in hand, but that pipsqueek, Jimmy Hart, came in and hit Lawler with a cane. This annoyed Lawler more than anything else, but Funk was able to go low and then hit a pair of headbutts to turn it in his favor. Funk started gnawing at the forehead and cut him open. Funk fires away with punches to the top of Lawler's head. Lawler is staggered, but still on his feet. Slowly, but surely he seems to be absorbing the blows of Funk. STRAP DOWN! BOMBS AWAY! Huge rights to Funk's jaw and one says him spinning out of control. Fist drop! The Mouth of South introduces a chair and Lawler blasts Jimmy Hart. Funk is able to recover the chair and drive the chair repeatedly into the knee of Lawler. Jerry really sells this all very well. Funk is able to tear the tights and I think he was trying to move the kneepad off the knee to set up his world famous Spinning Toehold, which is he is able to apply. However, as he is leaning over, Lawler blasts him in the head and Funk's staggered selling is money. Hart throws the chair back in to Funk. Funk throws bellbottom-donning Jerry Calhoun. Lawler is able to get a hold of the chair and give Funk a taste of his own medicine destroying his leg. He really did a number on Funk's leg. Funk's selling and the heat for all this is awesome. Funk is crawling away on the outside on his belly and Lawler is relentless. It is a countout!
The beginning was what you expect from a Lawler/Funk brawl with great punches, fun spots and blood, but once the chair got involved the drama went through the roof. Definitely one of all-time great 1980s classics from Memphis.
#4. NWA World Heavyweight Champion Harley Race vs Terry Funk - Houston 7/1/77
Holy Grail is an understatement as anything from Terry Funk in the 1970s especially a long traditional NWA Championship bout is a huge prize. Race defeated Terry Funk in Toronto for the World's Championship in Februrary of '77 and now five months later Funk is challenging for the belt.
First Fall: If you watch closely, Funk is reviewing the rules with the ref and makes a specific point about how chopping to throat is illegal but below is not. First move of the match, a chop by Terry Funk! The first 15 minutes focused on matwork. Terry Funk looked great working the arm. The best part was definitely how he set up the arm stretcher by stepping on Harley's face. I dont mean he placed his boot on Harley's face. He put both his feet right on the face of the champion. It was some nasty work. Harley made sure to add some movement. Funk hit not one, but two press slams on Harley. I dont think I have ever seen Funk do that. The first one was a beauty and an emphatic way to regain control. There is 4 minutes of clipping and we come back to Harley working a tight headlock. Very similar to a tight Backlund style one with plenty of wringing. Great struggle from Funk. Funk is able to earn an armbar but quickly loses control to a headscissors. Race is working his holds very well, very tight. Great pressure on the headscissors. Funk stands up with Race draped over his back, but Race maintains the hold and Funk falls forward. Funk hits a couple lefts while in the headscissors and stands up with it and this time gets out. I like how this does not start the Funk immediately instead Funk is still selling so it is Race landing the blows. Race goes for an arm wringers, but Funk starts throwing right-handed chops and eventually Funk breaks Race's clasp and starts to mount a comeback. I really enjoyed Race totally whiffing on a straight left closed fist only for Funk to punch him in the face. I love Funk's reaction to the ref to throw his hands up like he is innocent. Stuff like that makes closed fists feel so much more important. Funk wants the spinning toehold, but cant apply it. Then it is Race with a figure-4 attempt but he cant get it. Funk takes a nasty spill to the floor when Race side-steps him on a criss-cross. Race bring back in the hardway with a vertical suplex. Funk does an excellent job selling the back. Abdominal Stretch gives Race the fall. I have watched thousands of pro wrestling matches and never seen the abdominal stretch earn a fall and now I have seen it twice. Great first fall. It really puts Funk on display. He is so innovative and unpredictable. If that is something you value, then he is your man. Even little things, like how he falls through the ropes on his apron and re-enters the ring feels different. This is the best possible Race as he is toned down not throwing out too much. He is sticking to the fundamentals. He is still a blackhole of charisma but everything looks tight. Race 1-0.
Second Fall: Even though Harley won the first fall. It was not definitive. Funk came back strong in the opening of the second fall. Backing Harley into a corner and slapping him around. This drew the ire of Race. Who charged into a bodyslam. Funk came over, but Race butted him in the abdomen. Great transition. Race went back to work on the back as that is how he won the first fall. Funk eventually wrestled a headlock on Race. They break free and Race wants an abdominal stretch, but Funk gets a backslide for two. Funk urgently pounces and hits a piledriver for three. This has been the Terry Funk show. Great individual performance. Characteristically short second fall. Tied 1-1.
Third Fall: Excellent fall, ***** stuff here. Harley decides that he wants to make this match a battle of fisticuffs. He is hitting harder than in the Wahoo match. Funk blasts him back! Atomic Drop! 1-2-NO! Both feet over the ropes. Dont leave anything to chance. Funk lays a clever trap. He takes a knee over by the ropes. Baiting Race to come over and Funk picks the ankle. SPINNING TOEHOLD! Race starts punching him in the face. He keeps punching until he busts Funk wide open. Great bladejob. This was great drama. It was Funk's Spinning Toehold vs. Race working the cut. I loved the spot where Race hits a kneedrop on the cut, but comes up clutching his bad knee. Funk has one last gasp in the Spinning Toehold, but Harley grabs him by the hair Funk tries to block the left hand, but Harley breaks free and starts taking wicked shots to the cut. Funk gradually loses his strength each punch taking more of him until he finally succumbs to collapse, bloody and convulsing he takes a wild swing at the ref who calls for a blood stoppage because he knows Funk has lost it. Wow! Damn great finish to set up a big time rematch. Race starts headbutting Funk in the cut while announcer calls for a doctor. Wild!
Little bit of overhype calling this the greatest NWA Championship of all time aside, this match is fantastic and a terrific Terry Funk performance. So many little touches that are unique to Funk and so many innovative spots that I dont think have been seen since 1977 and were seen before. The third fall was high drama and you always want to peak at the finish and these two did just that.
#3. ICW Heavyweight Champion Randy Savage vs Ron Garvin - ICW Steel Cage 1982/83
Best babyface Savage performance of his career besides the Savage/Flair GAB '95 match. Savage is an all-time great as a heel by being a totally despicable human and someone who always makes the babyface look like a million bucks. As a babyface, he relies a lot on his selling (he is world-class), but there is not much in the way of offense. The selling keeps it from feeling like an exhibition, but still I wish there would be more struggle in his babyface matches. I think that this cage match with Garvin really shows babyface Savage in a violent war over the ICW Championship. This should go down as one of the all-time great cage matches and reminder how great the stipulation can be. From the outset, they let us know that this is going to be a street fight with the way they were tussling over a front facelock and how they were clawing and choking each other. There was nothing pretty about it, but it was incredibly compelling. Unlike so many cage matches, it never felt claustrophobic, they were still able to brawl and use the cage as a weapon. We get double juice as these two just hate each other. Of course, this match features Savage's amazing trademark selling as he is staggered and collapsing after each hope spot. I love how the piledriver is treated like such a kill shot and each is doing all they can to avoid the other's. So much talk about Savage, but Garvin was awesome on top using the cage at will and choking Savage. He was a true heel. The best part of the match is in the middle of the match, a boxing match breaks out and two of the best working punches going at it. Down goes Garvin! Savage scampers on his knees to pin, but only two. I love the urgency! They are looking to end it in a most violent way, piledriver, but neither can get it. Savage misses his top rope elbow. Ruh roh! Garvin throws him into the ref and gets the belt and blasts Savage. He is hanging Savage and this match just ventured into classic territory. Savage kicks him off as a survival tactic. Savage throws the belt at Garvin to stop the top rope knee drop. HE PILEDRIVES HIM OFF THE TOP ROPE! THAT IS HOW YOU PAY OFF TEASES, BITCHES!
#2. NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair vs Kerry Von Erich - WCCW 8/15/82
The common knock on men like Von Erich and Luger is that they are broomsticks that are plugged into the Flair formula and out pops a classic. It can't be further from the truth. I can understand you can be distracted by the glistening He-Man physique and that horseface, but if you watch as intently as Kerry laid one on that young girl at ringside then you will see Kerry was a phenomenal seller. Early on, Flair does his usual bridge escape out of a headscissors and watch Kerry's face, he flinches in pain. Or when he has a headscissors on Flair, he conveys the internal struggle not to ball up his fist and punch Flair to the audience. During the match, Flair is always struggling looking for an opening with short knees or chops and Kerry is great selling the immediate pain. He gives Flair these brief openings, but always fires back up. In the second fall, Kerry is just excelling at writhing in pain from Flair's leg work and really expressing how close he is to giving up. Now, Flair is no slouch as he is tremendous in his verbal selling especially when Kerry reverses the pressure. This entire match is a master class in selling by both men. Each man really is thinking shoot while they are working. They respond to each other and moments in the match in a real sporting manner.
Each time, I discover new spots and elements that make it a better match. Such as during the abdominal stretch, Von Erich makes a point to exaggerate his gesture that he is looking to put on the Claw, which really whips the crowd into a frenzy. The crowd was nuclear for Kerry from the get-go and totally rabid at the prospect of him dethroning Ric Flair especially after defeating previous Champion Harley Race in a de facto No. 1 Contender’s match just months previous to this. Flair, as usual, is a cardio freak, but my favorite moment is how he slowly ramps up his heelishness. At first testing his strength and clearly being bested, he resorts to hair pulling to win an over the top wristlock. Another thing, I love is that when Kerry has Flair in a head scissors in the beginning, they do not just lie on the mat. Flair is very broadly attempting to escape the hold, but cant. This does two things, it puts over Kerry’s strength and most importantly, keeps the audience engaged. Flair does a lot of things really well, but he is exceptional at keeping the audience engaged even during perfunctory matwork.
The beginning is all about putting over Kerry’s strength. This is accomplished by holding multiple head-scissors, winning over the top wristlocks and a visually impressive arm wrench that Flair bumps wells, which the crowd pops loudly for. Flair gets some offense in the corner, which is Flair’s domain. Besides Vader, I do not think there is a wrestler that is better in the corner than Flair. Flair takes over with a knee-lift and begins taking shortcuts like the aforementioned hair pull. Off a missed elbow, they do a well-executed tussle for the ab stretch I brought up earlier. I love how they made each other work for it with Kerry ultimately winning. An eye-rake (Flair shortcuts) breaks it up, but Kerry hits two pretty impressive dropkicks. Flair’s next shortcut is to hold the rope down as Kerry crashes to the floor, which leads to Flair’s big flurry of offensive: dropping Kerry across the top rope, knee drop and piledriver. Kerry catches Flair with back body drop, but Flair blocks the corner. Flair pushes the ref, but as Kerry winds up for the discus punch he catches the ref in the head. Kerry puts on the sleeper, BUT THERE IS NO REF, here he comes and now the bell is ringing. KERRY WINS THE FIRST FALL!!! Right!?!?! Right!?!?!?
The original referee disqualifies Kerry for the punch much to the dismay of the crowd and to relief of a visually exhausted and desperate Flair. I liked the finish to the first fall even if it was a clusterfuck because Kerry was clearly put over as more dominant than Flair. Flair’s escape with a DQ finish in the first fall allows for Kerry to once again be perceived as the underdog as he has the unenviable task to win two straight falls against The Man. Another great element is that all of Flair’s control segments were initiated by shortcuts thus always making Kerry look better in comparison.
The second fall rules all and by itself would probably be one of my favorite matches of all time. Flair is still coughing from the sleeper hold and begs off immediately. Kerry and the crowd smell blood. Kerry slaps on the sleeper, but Flair makes use of the Bret leverage move to send Kerry crashing to the floor. Flair capitalizes this by wrenching Kerry’s leg across the apron. NOW WE GO TO SCHOOL!!! Flair is absolutely crazed during this control segment as he clearly a desperate champ doing anything to take down the physically superior Kerry Von Erich. Flair hits the shinbreaker to a physically diminished Von Erich side-headlock. After Flair works over the leg, it is time for the Figure-4 Leglock whipping the crowd into frenzy. Just minutes ago, they thought their hero had the first fall in the bag and now it looks he is about to lose two straight falls. WAIT!!! Kerry had reversed the pressure and now Flair scrambles for the ropes. Flair tries to go back to the knee, but Keryr blocks with the vaunted Von Erich Claw. Flair blades like a champ off the claw and eventually is pinned. Flair’s control segment was fuckin awesome and Kerry sold his knee like champ. Then when it came to the hit finish everyone erupted when the claw was slapped on just when it seemed like Flair had this one in the bag.
Flair is drenched in sweat and blood and looking for a fight with the universal sign of “Put up your dukes”. A spirited two-minute intense brawl breaks out and the ref loses control of the match. At first, I was disappointed by the finish, but in retrospect it is a really good to put over the intense nature of the match and it would ultimately setup the Huge Christmas Day 1982 Cage match.
The basic idea of the Flair formula was executed, which is to make your opponent look like a million bucks and keep the audience engaged. However, Flair was not always a chickenshit heel as he vacillated among begging off, desperation and crazed. There was an urgency to each fall. Kerry felt like he NEEDED to win the first one and came out hot, but was robbed. Kerry NEEDED to win the second one or he lost, but by the same token Flair felt he NEEDED to win based off Kerry’s stellar performance in the first fall. Kerry played his part well and definitely added more than just his Texas star power. He sold well and worked hard to keep up with Flair and sell the importance of the match. I LOVE this match because there is never a dull moment and the match builds perfectly on itself until the wild brawl at the end.
#1. Southern Heavyweight Champion Jerry Lawler vs Dutch Mantell - Memphis 3/22/82
Background: Lawler was entangled in his interminable feud with Jimmy Hart and his First Family. He had recruited the Dirty Dutchman to help him wrestle these men in tag team matches. Then one night, the Mantell walks out on Lawler as he is being battered by the First Family. Next week on TV, Lawler calls Dutch yellow and wants to know why he walked out. Dutch noted that it was Lawler’s mouth that got him in trouble and he was tired of fighting Lawler’s battles. Dutch also feels as though Lawler disrespected him by not acknowledging his prowess in the ring. All in all, it is not most unreasonable thing someone has said. Lawler, is pissed because someone he trusted to have his back left him to the jackals. This is when wrestling is at its best, two men who in their own mind have merit to their grounds, but at the same time it is a very contentious issue. Most of the crowd sides with Lawler as he instigates the first brawl. So after a month or so of matches, Lawler and Mantell were contracted to square off in Memphis, TN for the Southern Heavyweight Title in a No Disqualification Match. This was about as close you would get to face vs face in the early 80s. Lawler was positioned as the babyface, but the Dutchman definitely had his supporters.
Lawler starts off hot with some beautiful punches and has Mantell rocking. Lawler has some of the prettiest, worked punches ever thrown. They even work in a spot where Dutch whiffs on a kick when Lawler telepgraphs the back body drop, which is a neat little spot I have never seen before. Lance Russell, the Voice of Memphis, even notes how peculiar this fast start is for Lawler given that he is normally slow-starter. He reasons out that it must due to the nature of this heated feud that Lawler just wants to beat the ever-lovin piss out of Dutch and there is no time like the present. I paraphrased that, but you get the gist. Lawler even busts out an enziguri much to the delight of the crowd!!! Dutch takes a powder as he attempts to adjust his strategy. Well when in a No DQ, might as well as grab a steel chair. Lawler ends up with the chair and throws outside the ring and hits Dutch in the shoulder. I am a total sucker for chair throws because they always look so damn violent. Then Dutch totally ups him with the Mother of All Chair Throws: hurling the chair across the ring into the King’s knee with pinpoint accuracy and brutality.
Mantell takes over and lays Lawler to waste with punches before applying the Spinning Toehold. Lawler punches Mantell's knee to break free and comes back with his own punches. Mantell dives on the knee and then switches gears to open a cut above the eye of Lawler. He makes up for his lack of creative offense by keeping Lawler on the outside and busting him over the eye. Lawler’s selling is elicits sympathy from the raucous crowd that try to urge him. A great spot is Lawler whiffing on the desperation right and you feel the end is near for our hero. Loved that spot on the second go-around. Dutch gets a two off a vertical suplex and there is all like “Lets quit fuckin around” and pulverizes Lalwer with a chair, BUT Lawler gets his foot on the ropes. Mantell is really hot after Jerry breaks pinfalls off of a knee drop, a PILEDRIVER (Memphis Death Move), and a splash. Great heat segement sequence. Lawler Up and Strap Down and Full Steam Ahead. Rights and lefts leave the Dirty Dutchman reeling and then he sends him into the post for retribution. The crowd is feeling it, but Lawler gets greedy and Dutch catches him with knees on his second splash attempt.
Into the finish, we go as they are trading rights and lefts. Their heads collide off a Irish whip spot sending Mantell out onto the floor. Lawler has Dutch at his mercy as he punches repeatedly with Mantell using the ropes to hold him from crashing off the apron. Lawler gets greedy again, playing to the crowd for one more punch, Dutch capitalizes with a gut shot and then slingshots over for a sunset flip and the victory. Your Winner and New Southern Heavyweight Champion “Dirty” Dutch Mantell. Several fans celebrate Dutch's victory showing that King did not have unanimous support in Memphis.
I liked that they didn’t run the ropes at all sticking to that real-fight feel that these are two guys that just want to fuck each other up. I like that it was Lawler’s desire to inflict more punishment on Dutch that cost him the match, whereas Dutch was more concerned about winning and thus proving he was the better wrestler. Lawler’s selling was really well done, theatrical enough for the live audience to see it, but not so cheesy that it takes you out of the competition (love that header he took on missing that right). The match had memorable spots like the chair throws. The heat segment was one of the best I have seen in Memphis with Dutch really pouring it on. I think what I really gained on this second watch after having watched over two dozen Lawler matches now was how special this finish was. Lawler's comebacks were a death knell for his opponent and only something crazy like interference would save them from imminent doom. So for someone to actually beat Lawler in the midst of THE VAUNTED LAWLER COMEBACK is a HOLY SHIT momment! Like I said it is because Lawler was being cocky playing to the crowd and wanting to get one more lick in when he had the match won. This was a really interesting dynamic.
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)! Santana snapmares out and hoists Gagne up, but unbeknowst to Tito, Gagne tags Brunzell. Then Brunzell hits the most HOLY SHIT dropkick on Tito. He dropkicks him right in the head for the win. That was the best damn dropkick.