WWF Prime Time Wrestling (November 25, 1986)

 

Original Airdate: November 25, 1986

Your Hosts are Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan from the studio, with Heenan dressed as a pilgrim

WWF Women's Tag Team Title Match: Leilani Kai and Judy Martin v Penny Mitchell and Candice Pardue: From Boston Massachusetts on November 1 1986. Most unusual matches. They take forever to get started here, and I really don’t care for this era of women’s wrestling (did/does anyone?), so don’t expect much in the way of play-by-play. The champs retain with a powerbomb at 10:11. Learning that a powerbomb is apparently called the ‘drip dry’ in England was the only interesting thing about this one. ½*

Hercules v Salvatore Bellomo: From Boston Massachusetts on November 1 1986. Bellomo looks so fresh faced and clean cut compared to his ECW run. Hercules knocks him around early on, but Bellomo reverses a cross corner whip. He tries a snapmare, but Hercules blocks, and goes back to hammering. Bellomo manages a standing dropkick, but Hercules still won’t go down even once, and Hercules delivers a bodyslam, then hooks the torture rack at 3:18. A complete squash here. DUD

Ken Resnick catches up with WWF Tag Team Champions The British Bulldogs, in a segment recycled from the most recent Wrestling Challenge

Bob Orton v Billy Jack Haynes: From Boston Massachusetts on November 1 1986. Joined in progress, with Orton on the defensive. Looks like this is still very early into the bout though, as they’re still posturing. Haynes with an atomic drop, and he takes Bob to the mat in a hammerlock. Bob fights to his knees, so Haynes shifts to a keylock. Orton tries muscling into a backbreaker, but Billy wrenches the keylock to block. Orton makes the ropes, so Haynes throws a bodypress for two, and goes to an overhead wristlock. Orton escapes, and a snapmare sets up a forearm drop, but Haynes dodges. Back to a wristlock, but Bob finds an inverted atomic drop to escape. He looks for a slam, but Haynes cradles for two to block, and a slugfest breaks out - Orton dumping him to the outside to cut off a potential comeback. Orton follows for a backbreaker on the floor, but Billy manages a slingshot sunset flip for two on the way back in, so Bob goes to the eyes. Bob unloads in the corner, and an inverted DDT neckbreaker gets him two. Orton goes to a chinlock, and a kneedrop rattles Haynes, ahead of a turnbuckle smash. Orton with a corner whip, and he throws a clothesline for two on the rebound. Orton with an atomic drop for two, and he gets a front-facelock on. Haynes fights free, but Bob cuts him off again, this time with a big boot. A kneedrop follows, but Haynes reverses a lift, and drops Bob throat-first across the top rope. Avalanche, but Orton blocks. That allows Bob to cue up a superplex, but Haynes blocks, and throws a 2nd rope clothesline, triggering a comeback. A 2nd rope axehandle drop gets him two, but he telegraphs a backdrop, and gets clobbered. To the outside, Bob tries a shot into the post, but Haynes reverses, and Orton hits it shoulder first. Inside, Bob latches on with a sleeper, but Haynes dives into the ropes, and both guys go crashing out. Both beat the count, but Orton is ahead, and tosses Haynes over the top as soon as Billy is back in. Haynes beats the count, so Bob welcomes him with a high knee, and he rattles Haynes with a turnbuckle smash. A hiptoss gets two, but Haynes throws rights, and snapmares him to set up a fistdrop for two. Haynes keeps slugging from there, but time expires at 19:05 shown of 21:47. This was a pretty solid piece of work, but they bungled the finish, just kind of arriving at the time limit, instead of having a hot exchange as the bell sounds. Weird timing all around, as usually with draws, they go under the announced limit, not over. This felt like it ended at the conclusion of the second act, as opposed to the climax. ** ½ 

Koko B Ware v Jimmy Jack Funk: From Boston Massachusetts on November 1 1986. Koko works a wristlock early on, so Funk tries speeding it up, but ends up getting dumped. Funk calls for a test-of-strength on the way back in, and he powers Koko down in it, getting a few two counts, as Gorilla calls for a tag match pitting the Funk brothers against Koko and Junkyard Dog. Literally only because they’re both black? Have they even had a minute of interaction thus far to justify any other explanation? Ware with a standing dropkick, and he gets a hammerlock applied, but Funk fights out. Koko responds with an armdrag into an armbar, so Funk tries a hiptoss, but Ware counters to a backslide for two. Back to the arm, as Lord Alfred Hayes calls Koko ‘stubby.’ Ware with a shoulderblock, but the criss cross continues, and Funk finds a powerslam for two. Funk holds a wristlock before dropping Koko throat-first across the top, and he dumps Ware to the outside. Koko beats the count, so Funk uses a bodyslam to set up a 2nd rope fistdrop, but Ware dodges. Ware makes a comeback from there, as Gorilla piles on, suggesting Koko join the Killer Bees as a ‘short, fat bee.’ I’m surprised he didn’t also talk about his being an ‘Africanized bee,’ or something. Funk cuts off the comeback with a scoop powerslam for two, but Koko keeps coming, and hooks a small package for two. Funk responds by grabbing his bullrope and trying to hang Koko, which thankfully draws a DQ at 12:25, before Gorilla can open his mouth too much. ½*

Sika v Scott McGhee: From Boston Massachusetts on November 1 1986. Well, you didn’t see a lot of squashes on Prime Time, so I guess this is unique, at least? And we get Wizard shouting on commentary for a bit, since of course. Sika with a Samoan drop at 4:39. DUD

The Moondogs v Raymond Rougeau and Lanny Poffo: From Boston Massachusetts on November 1 1986. Poffo is replacing Jacques Rougeau, who is out on crutches here. Rex starts with Raymond, and a criss cross ends in Rougeau delivering a monkey flip. Tag to Poffo for a dropkick to set up a somersault senton splash, but Spot breaks the cover at two, so Rougeau comes back in, and the babyfaces clean house. The dust settles back on Rex and Rougeau, and Rougeau dominates. Tag to Poffo, but he fails to cut the ring in half, and Spot gets a tag. Poffo dominates him with a headscissor takedown, but Spot manages a standing headlock, and he passes back to Rex. Cross corner whip, but Poffo reverses, and adds a headscissor takedown. Again, but Spot nails him from the outside to block on behalf of his partner, and the Moondogs go to work on Lanny. They take their sweet time, before Rougeau finally catches a hot tag, and runs wild. A backdrop on Rex gets two, so Spot comes in, and Roseanne Barr the door. The Moondogs dump Poffo and gang up on Raymond, but Jacques trips them up with his crutch, and Ray hits Rex with a bodypress at 11:02. The heat segment here was a little long, and brought down what was an otherwise peppy match. ¾*

BUExperience: Other than a surprisingly good Orton/Haynes match, not much to get excited about here. Not even anything in the way of skits or other things, either. It was pretty much just match/match/match/match, with only the brief (and recycled) Resnick interview breaking it up.