WWF at Sam Houston Coliseum (October 19, 1986)

 

Original Airdate: October 19, 1986

From Houston, Texas; Your Hosts are Gorilla Monsoon and Ken Resnick

Bret Hart v Raymond Rougeau: Hart stalls for a while to start, before using an inverted atomic drop to take control, and pounding Ray in the corner. Bret with a snapmare to set up a chinlock, but Rougeau fights up, so Hart dumps him to the outside, and follows to put the boots to him. Inside, Hart uses a backbreaker for two, but Rougeau gets fired up, and makes a comeback. Rougeau with a seated senton splash for two, and a dropkick gets him another two. Irish whip, but Bret reverses, but Rougeau counters a slam with a rollup - only for Hart to reverse at 9:15. Very weak stuff for workers of this caliber. ¼*

Brutus Beefcake v SD Jones: Joined in progress, with Beefcake pounding Jones down, and using a chokehold. Beefcake with an elbowsmash for two, and a headlock allows him a strike to the head. Beefcake unloads in the corner, and a bodyslam sets up a fistdrop for two. Jones throws fists to try manufacturing a comeback, but a charge in the corner misses, and Brutus uses a 2nd rope elbowsmash for two. Jones fires back with a bodyslam, and he throws a series of jabs, but runs into a high knee at 3:29 shown of 5:35. This was teetering on negative stars, but since we didn’t get the full match, let’s be generous and call this a DUD

Greg Valentine v Steve Gatorwolf: They feel each other out early, and Valentine takes control, working an armbar. Greg holds that for a fever, but Steve starts to fight free, so Valentine dumps him to the outside. Valentine looks to pull him back in, but Steve fights him off, and makes a comeback. Steve with a bodyslam for two, and a knife-edge chops is worth two. They spill to the outside, where Valentine takes control back, and a figure four looks to finish on the way back in, but Steve has the ropes. Greg responds with a bodyslam to set up a 2nd rope elbowdrop, but Gatorwolf dodges. Steve goes on another comeback run, but he gets reversed into the corner, and Valentine vertical suplexes him for the pin at 9:10. Downright terrible most of the way, but it picked up a little bit in the third act. Still a DUD

Davey Boy Smith v Iron Sheik: Sheik attacks while everyone is expecting Nikolai Volkoff to sing the anthem, and Sheik pounds on Bulldog. He dumps Davey to the outside, but Bulldog takes control on the way back in, and holds an armbar. Davey with an atomic drop, but Sheik turns the tide back, and delivers a backdrop for two. A vertical suplex, but Smith hooks a small package for two to block, so Sheik quickly cuts him off by grabbing an abdominal stretch. He goes for the suplex again, but Smith reverses for two, and gets a sleeper on. Sheik throws an elbow to escape, and a gutwrench suplex sets up the camel clutch, but Davey makes the ropes to save himself. Sheik responds by hammering him, but Bulldog ducks a shot, and delivers a running powerslam for two. A shoulderblock follows, so Volkoff trips him up, and the referee calls the DQ at 6:06. *

WWF Title Match: Hulk Hogan v Paul Orndorff: If Hogan gets disqualified, he loses the title here. Hogan is sporting a blue Hulkamania shirt, which I don’t think I’ve ever seen. Orndorff attacks as Hulk climbs into the ring, and unloads on the champion. Hulk dodges a pointed elbowdrop, allowing him to come back, choking Paul with the t-shirt, and taking a shot at Bobby Heenan for good measure. Orndorff strikes the throat to buy time, so Hulk grabs a chair, but ends up thinking better of it. Hulk punches him out of the ring instead, so Heenan distracts him, allowing Orndorff a sneak attack. They spill to the outside, where Orndorff happily uses the chair, but Hogan beats the count. Inside, Orndorff with a pointed elbowdrop, and a backbreaker gets him two, but triggers the HULK UP!! Fists of Fury! Bodyslam! Legdrop! But instead of making the cover, he dumps Orndorff to the outside to get some revenge with the chair, but the referee intervenes again. Well, that was pointless. Back in for the big boot, but Orndorff falls out of the ring, so no cover. Hulk nails him with the chair this time when the referee isn’t looking, and he leaves Orndorff for dead to take the countout at 6:07. They weren’t drawing in Houston at this point, and the crowd was pretty tiny (under two thousand people), but damned if the people who were there didn’t make up for the people who didn’t show up. What a bullshit match, though, quick and not especially interesting. Especially for a world title main event. Odd way to try and build up a market. ½*

Nikolai Volkoff v Tama: Volkoff tries to bully him at the bell, but Tama holds his own, and wins a slugfest. Volkoff dumps him to the outside to slow him down, and he kicks at him as Tama tries climbing back in, but it backfires when Tama sweeps the leg. Tama with a headbutt drop to the groin, and a snapmare allows him a chinlock. Volkoff fights to a vertical base and into the ropes to escape, and he takes a cheap shot on the break. Volkoff drops him throat-first across the top rope, and he puts the boots to Tama until he falls out of the ring. Tama beats the count, so Volkoff gives him a pair of corner whips, and into a bearhug. Tama slugs free, so Volkoff tries a clothesline, but Tama ducks, and wins a criss cross with a sunset flip for two. A small package gets another two, and an atomic drop follows. Cross corner whip, but Volkoff reverses, and delivers a corner whip of his own - only to miss the charge in. That allows Tama a knife-edge chop, but a corner whip gets reversed, and Volkoff uses a 2nd rope axehandle for a leveraged pin at 5:51. ¾*

Main Event: $50,000 12-Tag Team Battle Royal: We've got: WWF Tag Team Champions The British Bulldogs, Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff, The Moondogs, Mike Rotundo and SD Jones, The Hart Foundation, King Kong Bundy and Big John Studd, The Fabulous Rougeau Brothers, The Islanders, Chief Jay Strongbow and Steve Gatorwolf, The Killer Bees, Big Machine and Super Machine, and The Dream Team. We get down to the Bulldogs in there with Sheik and Volkoff, and the Bulldogs dominate, but Dynamite Kid gets clobbered, allowing Volkoff to sneak up on Davey Boy Smith for the win at 9:11. DUD

BUExperience: This version omits a Jim Brunzell/Mike Rotundo opener, Big John Studd/Big Machine, and Dynamite Kid/Moondog Rex..

You should omit the rest.

DUD