WCCW- January 22, 1983
by erick von erich
It's time for more World Class fun on WWE 24/7. In the WWE studio, Michael Hayes and Kevin Von Erich have a little kayfabe heat, again. I'm guessing that after a few epiodes, Kevin will slap the Iron Claw on Hayes or something. They start rambling, but eventually agree on one important fact: King Kong Bundy is a big man. The actual show cues up with Bill Mercer hyping up some of the matches and interviews we'll see on tonight's show. But with so much going on in World Class, let's get down to ringside for..
NWA American Heavyweight Championship:
Kevin Von Erich (c) vs. King Kong Bundy
Taped from the "Holiday Star Wars" show from Reunion Arena (same show that
had the Kerry/Flair match, Ken Mantell's battle royal, etc). This match is the tail-end of the
big Bundy vs. Von Erichs feud that had filled World Class for most of 1982. A pretty big angle
that jump-started Bundy's career and led to his trademark cueball look. Quite nicely, WWE 24/7 even
adds a little flashback video clip of "Big Daddy Bundy", with a crewcut and jeans. Anyways, Kevin enters the ring
in a big puffy cape, while Bundy is introduced as "Devastation, Inc". Kevin starts with
a side headlock and flips Bundy over to the mat. Bundy counters with a head scissors to break. You
read that right. Kevin gets a drop-kick, but Bundy quickly begins working on the arm. Bundy cranks
a hammerlock and that's enough for "Go Kevin, Go" from the crowd. Kevin rolls out of the hold
and lands another drop-kick. Bundy tosses him outside and won't let him back in. Kevin eventually
runs to the opposite side, shoulderblocks his wway in and leaps over for a sunset flip and a 2 count.
Kevin tries to hook the Von Erich Claw, but Bundy fights it off. Bundy nails him in the eyes, then
whips to the ropes for a reverse elbow. Kevin goes up top, but Bundy grabs referee David Manning
and pulls him in front of Kevin's bodypress attempt. While Manning is bumped, Bundy tosses
Kevin over the top rope, then brings him in for a failed avalance attempt.
Manning is fully revived and disqualifies Bundy, either for grabbing the ref or for
tossing Kevin over the top. Really not a bad little match, but a weak ending. Essentially,
it was the "sequel" to their December 14th match, in which Bundy scored a 3 count after some illegal tactics.
A Very Special Interview with Kerry Von Erich
From a special sit-down studio interview with Bill Mercer. Kerry's
lookin' dapper in his FUR COAT. As the old Bud Light commercial said: "a look
that's half Aunt Esther, half street pimp". Kerry has horrible vocal delivery, but
offers his hateful opinions of the Freebirds as he views clips of the cage match.
Brian Adias (w/Kerry Von Erich) vs. Terry Gordy
Back to the Sportatroium for current action. Mercer tells us about the big storyline: the Freebirds
have refused to sign for any singles matches against the Von Erichs... so Kerry went out and
got special permission to be Adias' corner man. Kerry grabs the mic and invites Michael Hayes to
come out from the lockerroom. Gordy comes out solo, but stalls getting into the ring. Good tactic,
since it allows the crowd to get frustarted with the guy. The match begins as they fight over a headlock,
until Adias hip-tosses Gordy. Gordy drops him on the ropes, neck-first, then lands a swinging neckbreaker.
Gordy pounds away, hits a kneedrop and gets a 2 count. Gordy works the reverse chinlock as Hayes slowly
walks down the aisle in streetclothes. In the ring, they brawl until Adias hooks a sleeper. That allows
the crowd to focus on the outside antics, where Kerry starts chasing Hayes around ringside. He chases
Hayes back to the locker, but in the ring Gordy nails Adias with a piledriver and scores the
3 count. Kerry runs back to the ring and lands a discus punch to send Gordy packing. Kerry is incredibly
wobbly and suffice it to say that he probably would have violated a "substance abuse policy" that night.
A Very Special Interview with Referee David Manning
Manning, the referee from the big cage match is in for another sitdown interview with Mercer.
Very informative, as Manning is comfortable with his speaking role and details all the
points of the cage match. He accurately points out how he became suspicious of the Freebirds
after David Von Erich had helped them win the 6-man Tag Titles. Right before the match, he thought it
was rather fishy that Hayes had the idea of Gordy as the "key keeper" of the cage.
Manning then talks about Hayes' officiating sucked-- specifically how he tried to get Kerry to break
a hold on Flair after Flair had only grazed the bottom rope. According to Manning, in a cage match you
only call for a rope break when the ropes are hindering someone. Manning concludes by announcing
that there was a return clause in the contract and that Kerry WILL be getting a rematch with Flair.
The Samoan vs. King Kong Bundy
Before the match, Bundy is at ringside with Mercer. He is now known only as "Devastation, Inc" and
unlike the match shown earlier, if World Class wants to show any future Bundy matches, they'll
need permission from "me and The Man". Bundy then gets in the ring to squash the Samoan. Bundy shoves him
around, slams him and drops an elbow. He works a reverse chinlock on his knee, then whips
the Samoan to the corner for an avalanche. Bundy follows up with a backbreaker and a flying
splash to score the elementary 3 count victory.
In the final sgement, Bundy joins Mercer at the desk to plug Devastation, Inc. Bundy talks about how the mysterious "Man" has pulled off a big coup in acquiring the Great Kabuki for their organization. In all these episodes, Bundy has been terrific on the mic; something that he wasn't known for, later in his career.
Why'd You Tape This??
Another so-so episode as far as wrestling goes, but great angle advancement. They continued the Freebird
stuff and they also pumped up Bundy, lest we forget that he's still a pretty big threat. Bundy hanging out
with Kabuki is nothing new, but teasing fans with the formation of Devastation, Inc and "the Man" is a
new angle. Bundy had become almost a 'tweener since he came clean on the bounty place on Kerry (citing
the Great Kabuki, no less), but this affirms that he's still the big, boisterous, rule-breaking meanie
we all love. It'll be another month before we get to see another episode, but this show is
the one I look forward to the most on WWE 24/7.
Boom-da-da-da-boom, da-da-da-boom, da-da-da-boom
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