WWF Wrestling Challenge (November 2, 1986)

 

Original Airdate: November 2, 1986 (taped October 7)

From Rochester, New York; Your Hosts are Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan

WWF Intercontinental Title Match: Randy Savage v Billy Jack Haynes: They trade wristlocks to start, and Haynes gets him in a side-headlock to take control. Macho tries a whip into the ropes, but Haynes rebounds with a shoulderblock, and he goes back to the headlock. Savage uses a handful of hair to get into the ropes, and he throws a knee on the break. Savage with a nice corner whip for two, but Haynes topples him for two during a bodyslam, so Macho throws an axehandle to buy time. Savage with a snapmare to set up a kneedrop, and Haynes falls out of the ring, so Randy dives after him with a flying axehandle on the floor. Inside, Savage hooks the leg for two, but a vertical suplex gets reversed, and Haynes comes back with a backbreaker. Savage is up first, but Haynes blocks a bodyslam, and hits a press-slam. Savage throws a kick to the gut to try cutting the comeback off, but Haynes gets the full nelson on! Savage fades, but manages to swipe at referee Danny Davis while doing so, triggering an intentional DQ at 4:16. But then Davis clarifies that it’s not even that, he’s disqualifying Haynes for swinging Savage into him. Now that’s some proper crooked refereeing! Not only saving the title, but making sure he gets the winners end of the purse to boot! * ¼ 

Wrestler’s Rebuttal is WWF Champion Hulk Hogan talking about how he still thinks he’s 100% in the right in his dispute with Paul Orndorff. Well, at this point, maybe we could still buy that. This was only friend one of many that would turn on him over the years

The Islanders v Iron Mike Sharpe and Terry Gibbs: Gorilla is surprisingly progressive here, completely unbothered when discussing the idea of men wearing skirts. Meanwhile, the Dream Team split screen in to note that these guys aren’t ‘the Islanders,’ they don’t even play hockey! Tama with a flying splash at 2:44. Good energy from the hockey players here. ¼*

Ken Resnick catches up with WWF Tag Team Champions The British Bulldogs officially introduce us to Matilda 

George Steele visits a McDonalds drive-through, but doesn’t get very far as all he can do is shout ‘EAT!’ into the microphone 

Six-Man Tag Team Match: Iron Sheik, Nikolai Volkoff, and Hercules Hernandez v Corporal Kirchner, SD Jones, and Lanny Poffo: Volkoff and Jones start, and they slug it out, dominated by Jones. Tag to Poffo for a springboard flying axehandle, but Nikolai quickly fights him off, and passes to Sheik. Sheik fails to cut the ring in half, however, and Kirchner catches a tag, coming in with a vertical suplex. Kirchner adds a Samoand drop for two, so Volkoff throws a cheap shot, and Hercules puts it away with a torture rack at 1:40. That was much quicker and more dominant than I expected it to be. DUD

Resnick catches up with the Killer Bees, and I never noticed how ugly Jim Brunzell is. His face puts a fear in me

The Hart Foundation v Pedro Morales and Tito Santana: Jim Neidhart starts with Tito, and tries to use power, but ends up eating a dropkick. Jimmy Hart responds by tripping him up, but Bret Hart fails to cut off a tag after getting in, and Pedro backdrops him. Pedro with a cross corner whip, but Bret blocks the charge in, and passes to Anvil for a pounding on Pedro. Pedro fights Bret off long enough for the tag, and Tito comes in hot, Roseanne Barr the door! Tito catches Bret with a bodypress for two, but everyone spills to the outside, and it’s a double countout at 2:49. It’s like Vince Russo booking tonight with every match running two minutes. At least the Savage/Haynes match got four, almost a timelimit draw. ½*

Jake Roberts hosts the Snake Pit with guest Roddy Piper, and these two are such masters on the microphones that it’s insanely entertaining, even if they don’t really say anything of note

The Fabulous Rougeau Brothers v Tiger Chung Lee and Barry O: Raymond Rougeau starts with Barry, and they trade off to a stalemate. Tag to Jacques Rougeau and Tiger, and Jacques gets the better of a criss cross, dropkicking Lee out of the ring. Lee manages a shot to the throat on the way back in, however, and Barry tags in with a swinging neckbreaker for two. Back to Lee for a bodyslam, but a trip to the top ends badly when Ray sneaks in to slam him off. That allows the Brothers a combo on Lee at 1:51. Seriously, is this show the result of some 25 year old Russo fever dream? ¼*

President Jack Tunney announces that he, and the Championship Committee, are investigating Danny Davis’s conduct

Ricky Steamboat v Moondog Rex: Steamboat wins a criss cross with a hiptoss to start, and a headscissors takedown follows. Steamboat with a drop-toehold into a mat-based side-headlock, but Rex fights free in the corner. He tries a cross corner whip, but Ricky reverses, and uses a victory cradle at 1:24. Steamboat looked great here. ½*

Resnick catches up with the Dream Team, who are not impressed with Ozzy Osbourne. Well, that makes three of us

BUExperience: Lots of feature bouts this week, but all so short that nothing really made an impact. And I get that this show isn’t about great matches (if you wanted to see long matches, buy a ticket to a house show, or maybe you’ll get lucky on Prime Time), but this was almost comical.