WWF The Big Event (August 1986)

With the WWF becoming increasingly popular in the mid-80s, the need for a summer blowoff show to wrap up all the post WrestleMania angles, and wipe the slate clean to build new angles for the next WrestleMania became increasingly necessary. The concept of an end of summer WWF supercard wasn’t new (similar cards had been run at Shea Stadium in 1972, 1976, and 1980), and would eventually, in 1988, lead to the introduction of SummerSlam. In 1986, the WWF produced The Big Event – sold on the anticipated showdown between WWF Champion Hulk Hogan and former best friend Paul Orndorff.

From Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Your Hosts are Gorilla Monsoon, Ernie Ladd, and Johnny Valiant. As a testament to the WWF’s popularity at this point, late August evenings in Toronto tend to get quite cool, but they still managed to set an attendance record for pro-wrestling, drawing over 60,000 fans to the outdoor stadium.


Opening Match: The Killer Bees v Jimmy Jack Funk and Hoss Funk: B. Brian Blair starts with Hoss (Dory Funk), and unloads about eight consecutive bodyslams. Funk railroads him into the corner for some double-teaming, but Blair turns the tables, and tags Jim Brunzell. He continues to dominate, and a bodypress gets two on Hoss. Tag to Jimmy Jack, but he walks into an armdrag/armbar from Blair, and Brunzell gets him in a sleeper. Cheap shot from Hoss turns the tide, but the Bee's don their masks to make the switch, and Jimmy Jack walks into an inside cradle at 6:53. Really dull opener. This was pretty much the last stand for Dory, as he left the WWF shortly after, and essentially retired. ¼*

Don Muraco v King Tonga: Big criss cross ends with Tonga unloading bodyslams, and Muraco bails to the floor to regroup. Back in, Muraco tries to match him in a slugfest, but ends up getting dropkicked to the floor. Tonga with an armbar, so Muraco manager Mr. Fuji gets involved to turn the tide. Muraco with a powerslam, and a super-exciting nervehold. Somewhere, a young Yokozuna was getting an erection. Had nothing to do with the match, but the kid was nineteen at the time. Probably had one for most of 1986, so it's a safe bet. Tonga powers up, so Muraco gets more aggressive and posts the knee. Kneebreaker, and he tries for a figure four - but Tonga shoves him off. Muraco keeps ripping at the leg, and hits a falling headbutt to the nuts for good measure. That spot must have come in handy in his personal life, too. With Tonga's balls busted, Muraco manages the figure four, but Tonga makes the ropes. Don keeps on it, but gets slammed as he goes to the top rope, and Tonga unloads chops. Flying bodypress, but the time limit expires at 20:00, and we have a draw. Again, really slow, really dull stuff - Muraco looking especially lethargic. Who books a stadium show, and throws two slugs out there to go twenty minutes in the second match? Did the hot dog vendors pay them off, or something? ¼*

Tony Garea v Ted Arcidi: Big power-stalemate to start, until Arcidi slams him, and unloads a backelbow. Garea tries to come back with a dropkick, but walks into a bearhug at 2:41 – most of which was Arcidi posing. Aaannnnndd DUD

The Junkyard Dog v Adrian Adonis: Adonis tries to jump him coming in, but the Dog starts firing off headbutts, and Adrian Flair Flips to the floor. He stalls forever out there, until JYD tries to drag him back in, but Adonis manager Jimmy Hart sprays perfume in his eyes to slow him down. Adrian with a pair of kneedrops, and a 2^nd rope version gets two. He dumps the Dog for Hart to spray down again, but JYD has had ENOUGH - and rams them together to take a countout victory at 4:15. God, the shit people would sit through when promised Hulk Hogan. - ½*

Dick Slater v Mike Sharpe: Slater gets Sharpe in a hammerlock early, so he dives to the ropes to break. Test-of-strength goes Slater's way, too, so Sharpe bails to regroup. Slater with a swinging neckbreaker, and a Russian legsweep to set up a flying axehandle – and that’s enough for the pin at 6:24. Not much of a match, but always fun to watch Sharpe's (the Arthur Janov of wrestling psychology) overenthusiastic selling. DUD

Six-Man Tag Team Match: Bobby Heenan, King Kong Bundy, and Big John Studd v Lou Albano and The Machines: The Machine's were masked men, created as part of an angle with Bobby Heenan, where he got Andre the Giant suspended from the WWF, so he returned under a mask fooling no one except the always gullible WWF Officials. In this case, we have Super Machine (Bill Eadie - future Demolition Ax) and Big Machine (Blackjack Mulligan - Barry Windham's dad) with Andre on the floor as 'Giant Machine.' John Studd starts with Super Machine, and they do a power-stalemate. Bundy tags in, and we have another power-stalemate. Bundy misses a blind charge, but it just turns into a staredown as opposed to either Machine capitalizing. Tag back to Studd, and he manages to take down Big Machine with a barrage of forearms (allowing Bobby Heenan his token tag in to kick a guy while he's down), and the heels cut the ring in half. Machine gets the tag off to Lou Albano, and Heenan cowers, so Studd and Bundy triple-team Albano, until Giant Machine runs in to save - getting the Machines disqualified in the process at 7:49. Well placed on the card, as the crowd needed a jolt, but as a match, this was nothing more than an excuse to get sixty thousand people to chant 'weasel.' DUD

Snake Pit Match: Jake Roberts v Ricky Steamboat: The gimmick here is supposed to be that both guys bring their respective animals to ringside (snake and komodo dragon), but they couldn't get them across the border into Canada, so it's announced that the animals are barred for 'safety reasons,' and it's basically just a No Disqualification Match with no animals involved - in pits, or otherwise. Jake jumps him on his way through the ropes, but Steamboat starts unloading chops, and backdrops him. Jake bails to the floor, but Steamboat is on him, and fires off another series of chops. Wristlock gives them both a chance to scope out the crowd, but Jake leverages into the ropes, and they spill to the floor. Roberts slams him out there, but Steamboat bops him with a chair, and catches him with a flying tomahawk chop on the way back in for two. Armbar, so Jake goes to the rope again - but this time Steamboat forces him into the corner for a ten-punch. Cross corner whip, but Jake reverses, and Ricky goes flying over the top. Jake follows with a slingshot into the post, and tosses him into the rail for good measure - drawing blood. Inside, Jake just destroys him with a series of closed fists, but Ricky railroads into the corner when he tries for the DDT. Jake softens him up with an inverted atomic drop, and a gutbuster, but makes the mistake of making an arrogant cover, and Steamboat cradles him for the pin at 10:17. Fun match, which practically looked like a classic compared to the parade of shit we've seen so far. **

Hercules v Billy Jack Haynes: They go to a stalemate off of the first few lockups, until Haynes manages a standing side-headlock. Criss cross allows Herc a clothesline, and he plods around for a bit before going to a bearhug. Haynes rings his ears to break, so Herc drops a series of elbows for two. Into the corner, but Billy Jack has fists of fury! Backelbow, and a backbreaker set up a 2^nd rope elbowdrop for two. He goes for the Full Nelson (his finisher), but Hercules mule kicks his way free, and dumps him. Suplex back in gets two, so Herc tries a neckbreaker, but Haynes counters into a backslide for the pin at 6:08. They looked positively bored out there - slowly plodding around between moves. These two would continue to feud into WrestleMania III. DUD

The Dream Team v The Fabulous Rougeau Brothers: The Dream Team jump them before the bell, but the Rougeau's turn it around, and clean house. Greg Valentine starts with Jacques Rougeau, and Rougeau quickly hits a sunset flip for two. Raymond Rougeau tags with a savate kick for two, and Jacques with a diving backelbow for two. Abdominal stretch, but Valentine manages to get the tag off to Brutus Beefcake. He unloads on Raymond in the corner, and Valentine tags back in with a flying elbowsmash. The Rougeau's stop the effort with a double-team dropkick for two, but Valentine drives Jacques into the wrong part of town for some abuse, but a four-way brawl breaks out, and the Rougeau's nail Beefcake with an assisted flying senton bomb. They spill to the outside for Valentine to catch Raymond with a cheap shot, and now the Dream Team can properly cut the ring in half. They trade off with quick tags, but Valentine misses an elbowdrop, and Raymond scrambles to tag. Jacques is a house of arson, but misses a 2^nd rope kneedrop on Valentine, and The Hammer zeroes right in with the Figure Four. That triggers a four-way brawl, and Raymond sunset flips Valentine as he tries another Figure Four on Jacques for the pin at 14:51. Nice ending to a well paced formula tag match. **

Harley Race v Pedro Morales: Morales puts him on the floor with a big right hand right away, but Race drags him onto the apron for an elbowsmash. To the floor, Harley with a falling headbutt, and a shot to the post, but Pedro beats the count back in. Race tries a suplex, but Morales reverses, and hooks an inside cradle for two. Sunset flip for two, and he starts firing off closed fists, so Harley supermarket sweeps him, and gets the pin with two feet on the ropes at 3:23 - drawing a pretty thunderous 'bullshit' chant. Morales was about a year away from retirement - this was more about being able to promote Race/Morales than actually putting on the match, but both guys made a nice effort. ½*

Main Event: WWF Title Match: Hulk Hogan v Paul Orndorff: Great angle here, with Orndorff turning face to help Hogan against Roddy Piper and Bob Orton the year before, but becoming increasingly frustrated with Hogan's constant glory-hogging to the point where he turned on him, and laid him out with a piledriver on TV. Um, to clarify, a piledriver that aired on WWF television programming - not a piledriver onto a television. Orndorff BLASTS him with a clothesline on the way in, and they get into a schoolyard scuffle. Slugfest goes Hogan's way - putting Orndorff on the floor - but Paul doesn't hold back, dragging Hogan out. Ram into the apron reversed by the champ, and he hits a clothesline on the way in. Cross corner clothesline, and an atomic drop, so Orndorff manager Bobby Heenan gets involved - luring Hogan into a chase. That allows Paul a cheap shot, and a clothesline puts the Hulkster on the outside. Orndorff - filled with hate - suplexes Hulk out there, then proudly walks in to mock the Hulkamaniacs as the referee counts. Hogan beats it in - enraging Orndorff further - and he dives onto Hogan with elbowsmashes to put him back on the floor. This time, Orndorff drags him in to continue the abuse, and the Boogie-Woogie elbow gets two. Flying axehandle, and he goes for the Piledriver (nearly giving half the crowd a heart attack in the process) - but Hogan backdrops out. Orndorff still gets him with a side suplex, but Hogan's HULKING UP!! High Knee! Ref Bump! Short-Clothesline! Piledriver! - but Bobby Heenan runs in with a chair to break it up. Orndorff covers, and the downed referee dramatically crawls over – only to disqualify him for Heenan's interference at 11:05. Intense battle (you could practically feel Orndorff's hatred),  even with the non-finish. They would do the real blowoff with their famous cage match on Saturday Night's Main Event in January, allowing them to continue to pack a few more months worth of house show gates first. *

BUExperience:  It’s certainly historically significant, and has the feel of a proper stadium show to make for a nice atmosphere – but the wrestling is just so shamelessly bad, there’s really no reason to dig it up. DUD