WWF @ Boston Garden
March 7, 1987
by Scrooge McSuck
We're getting closer to the biggest event in WWF history, just three weeks away! That means for this deep-dive into 1987, we've only got one more TV taping cycle and a couple of live shows to get through before we re-visit WrestleMania III for one last time. The WWF ran shows in Huntsville, AL and Nashville, TN, with Huntsville headlined by Ricky Steamboat and George Steele vs Randy Savage and Honkytonk Man, while Nashville got a C-level card with Hillbilly Jim vs King Kong Bundy on top.
Gorilla Monsoon and Jimmy Hart are ringside to call the action, unless otherwise noted. The NESN broadcast tacks on Pete Doherty vs. Mario Mancini from May 1985 because REASONS, but we're not covering that.
Pedro Morales vs. Jimmy Jack Funk:
At least we're getting Morales out there and out of the way early, and it's an opponent that I won't care much about, so Morales can do his usual nonsense of taking the entire match and sell almost nothing and I'll be cool with it. Funk tries intimidating Morales with his noose, so Morales grabs a chair and the referee will have none of these shenanigans. Lockup and Morales quickly takes Funk to the canvas with a wrist-lock. Jimmy Jack forces a break in the ropes and powders. Back inside, Jimmy Jack wants a test-of-strength and Morales responds with a b*tch slap. Jeez, Morales isn't giving Funk ANYTHING, and it's not like he's moving with much motivation in anything he's doing himself. Funk finally gets some shots in the corner, with Morales selling like he's holding in a big sneeze. Funk uses the cowbell and the crowd does NOT give a sh*t about anything in this match. Jimmy Jack with a slam and flying fist drop for a two-count. Morales avoids an elbow drop and lays into Funk with left hands. Whip to the ropes and a BAAAACK body-drop, followed by a back breaker and Morales takes the W at 7:28. Jimmy Jack kicked out at 3.1, too. This was a total stinker to open the show, and I almost felt bad for Jimmy Jack. ½*"Hacksaw" Jim Duggan vs. Moondog Spot:
Welcome to the WWF, Jim Duggan! While vignettes of Duggan's arrival began airing on syndication, he hasn't worked in front of an audience yet for a TV taping. Duggan's most memorable work pre-WWF was with Bill Watts' Mid-South, and was written off UWF TV shortly into the new year. The NESN chyron misspells Duggan's name as "D--U-G-A-N". Also, Rita Marie is surprisingly still here as the third person in the ring. Spot hides in the corner and the crowd is not wasting time getting upset over the lack of action. Duggan blocks a boot, spins Spot around, and connects with an atomic drop. Whip to the corner and Duggan unloads with right hands. It's weird to see the crowd not feed into Duggan's shtick when by the end of 1987, he was one of the most popular and would remain that way for most of his career. Spot ducks an elbow but is laid out by a clothesline. Spot takes advantage of Duggan being distracted by the referee hassling him and unloads with a series of blows. Spot controls with a chin-lock (and gratuitous yanks of the hair). Duggan escapes but is cut off with an inverted atomic drop. Duggan counters a back body-drop, plants Spot with a slam and comes off the ropes with a knee across the chest for two. Spot gets knocked across the ring with a shoulder and Duggan finishes with the running clothesline at 6:20. Not the most inspired work, and again, very weird watching Duggan in a WWF match getting limited reactions. *Dan Spivey & Jerry Allen vs. The Magnificent Muraco & Bob Orton (w/ Mr. Fuji):
Allen is subbing for Mike Rotundo, who I think went back to Florida before finding his way to Jim Crockett Promotions. Muraco and Orton are on the downswing of their runs, but they're booked for WrestleMania III and their opponents aren't, so we'll consider them the odds-on-favorites to win this one. Monsoon makes sure to note Orton's "excellence of execution", a phrase he also used regularly to describe Bret Hart. Bobby Heenan has taken Jimmy Hart's spot on commentary. Spivey and Muraco start. Muraci gets the early advantage, but Orton quickly gives it up. Spivey gets the better of a slug-fest but Orton retreats to friendly territory. Muraco back in and he finds himself trapped in an arm bar. Allen comes in with a body press and the make-shift team continues working the arm. Orton cuts off Allen and takes him down with a back suplex. Muraco with a Russian leg sweep for a two-count. Allen fights out of a front face-lock but is sent to the canvas with a clothesline. Orton with a whip and dropkick, with ridiculous over-the-top celebration. Allen brings up the knees on a splash attempt and Spivey gets the hot tag. He runs wild with left hands, clotheslines and a DOUBLE NOGGIN KNOCKER... and then the match just kind of resets with Spivey grabbing a side headlock. HUH?! Spivey is the one taking the heat now, selling for 20-30 seconds and getting a hope spot before being cut off. Allen tags in with Spivey knocked to the floor. He barely makes contact with a dropkick as the match continues to fall apart. Muraco catches a body press and drops Allen across the top rope. Orton with a Super-Plex and Allen is down for the three-count at 12:03. Fuji joins in for a 3-on-1 attack until Spivey clears the ring. This was fine until the last 2-3 minutes and it fell apart like a knockoff pair of Nike shoes. *¼"Special Delivery" Jones vs. "The Outlaw" Ron Bass:
There's no hope with this show right now. We've seen Bass and Jones before (at least once, at MSG) and we know what to expect. It's going to be a showcase for Bass, but Jones is a terrible JTTS who takes too much of the matches before doing weak finish jobs. Lockup, whip to the ropes and Jones surprises Bass with a cross body press. Monsoon talks about how he's looking forward to when Ron Bass signs the contract to face Blackjack Mulligan. Jones controls with a headlock and a slam sends Bass to the floor for a breather. It's amazing how much time and effort was put into selling the idea of Bundy squashing one of the midgets at WrestleMania III. Back inside and Jones continues to control the action. The crowd isn't too into this one. Bass with a cheap-shot in the ropes, followed by an elbow. Bass with a blatant choke and slam for a two-count. Jones tries fighting out of a chin-lock, but a yank of the tights cuts him off. We get an abdominal stretch to test my ability to stay awake. Bass with a butt-ugly swinging neck breaker for two. Jones casually starts making his comeback and the crowd doesn't care. He misses a charge, smacking his shoulder on the post. Bass with a hammer-lock slam and elbow drop. It must be a cold night in the Boston Garden, because there's zero heat. Bass withstands another comeback attempt and finishes Jones with the diving elbow at 11:01. This was a night off effort at best, or your typical match out of S.D. Jones. No matter how you slice it, this was a poor match. ½*WWF Tag Team Championship Match: The Hart Foundation (c) (w/ Jimmy Hart & Danny Davis) vs. The Rougeau Brothers:
The Rougeau Brothers defeated the Hart Foundation in a Non-Title Match when we last visited the Garden on February 7th, but can they do it again with the titles on the line? Bret takes a shot at Jacques from the apron and Jacques responds. Meanwhile, Danny Davis with some words for Gorilla Monsoon at ringside. Bret is in no rush despite Jacques constantly calling him a chicken. Bret calls for a test-of-strength and plants a boot to the midsection. Jacques picks the legs of Bret and smacks him across the face, sending him to the floor for comfort. Neidhart in, pulling down the straps to show off his belly. I guess that's the proper way to balance beer drinking and lifting weights. He overpowers Raymond on several lockups, sending him into the ropes. On the third attempt, Raymond bounces off the ropes with a forearm and the Rougeaus take turns working the arm. Bret back in, planting Raymond with a slam, but he misses an elbow drop and now it's his turn to have the arm worked over. Bret blocks an O'Connor Roll but gets caught with a crescent kick to the midsection. Raymond with a snap mare and Jacques comes in with a seated splash across the leg. Bret goes to the eyes of Raymond and gives the tag to Neidhart.Whip to the ropes, Raymond blocks a cheap shot from the apron, but Neidhart blasts him with a clothesline to take control. Bret in with an illegal switch, hitting Raymond with an inverted atomic drop. The Champions take turns choking out Raymond while the referee plays the role of incompetent buffoon. Raymond surprises Neidhart with a sunset flip, but Bret gets the tag mid-move and gets a free shot. Whip to the ropes and Raymond counters a hip toss with a back-slide for two. Bret quickly regains control and dumps Raymond to the floor. Raymond fights out of a bearhug, but gets caught in unfriendly territory. Bret with a back breaker for two. Raymond brings up a boot in the corner and goes for the tag, but the referee misses it and refuses to let Jacques in. We get heel miscommunication and the REAL hot tag with Jacques running wild on Bret with a chop and flying fist drop. Jacques with a hip toss into a short arm-scissors, but Neidhart saves. Heck breaks loose with all four men in the ring. The Rougeaus hit Bret with the Tower of Quebec, but Neidhart saves again. Jacques with a small package, but Davis sneaks in to turn the move over, putting Bret on top for three to retain at 14:56. Wow, a GOOD match. I've seen better from both teams, but when you're hungry, you're more appreciative. This felt like they were pacing to go longer. 15-minutes is plenty long for the time, but I expected it to go closer to 20. ***
Outback Jack vs. Jimmy Jack Funk:
... TWO JIMMY JACK FUNK MATCHES ON ONE CARD?! Barry O is the originally listed opponent for Outback Jack, so I guess they didn't have anyone on stand-by, resulting in Jimmy Jack pulling double-duty. I've heard Outback Jack's theme music enough in one lifetime and he's only been appearing on TV for about six weeks at this point. Outhouse takes his sweet time making the rounds with the front row fans. Jimmy Jack attacks as Outhouse Jack enters the ring. Monsoon says he expected Outback Jack to come to the ring with a boomerang or kangaroo. DON'T GIVE VINCE IDEAS. Outback whips Jimmy Jack to the ropes, hits a clothesline, then hits a bulldog clothesline to finish at 1:01. Outback's entrance was three-times as long as the match itself (and yes, I'm complaining, because that entrance was too long).Six-Man Tag Team; Elimination Match:
Hulk Hogan, "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, and Billy Jack Haynes vs. "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff, "Adorable" Adrian Adonis, and Hercules (w/ Bobby Heenan & Jimmy Hart):
Main Event and final match of the night (well, for the live crowd, that is). Standard elimination rules apply, with pin-fall, submission, count-out and disqualification all eligible forms of elimination, and the match continues until an entire team has been eliminated. For the sake of team balancing, we're squeezing a little more juice out of Hogan vs Orndorff.
The bell rings and the babyfaces IMMEDIATELY attack, with each man going for someone that isn't their natural partner, and clearing the ring in short order. Piper wants Adonis and instead gets Hercules, so Hogan tags in. Lockup and Hercules with a knee to the midsection. Hogan reverses a whip and charges into the corner with a clothesline. Haynes puts the boots to Hercules, sending him to the friendly corner, tagging in Orndorff. Haynes with a shoulder block and cross body press for a two-count. Orndorff argues about a phantom yank of the trunks and the referee is having none of that crybaby nonsense. Adonis in, taking a shot at Haynes trapped against the ropes. Haynes quickly regains control, planting Adonis with a slam. Piper tags in and Adonis tags back out. Piper and Orndorff square off for old time's sake, engaging in a test-of-strength. Piper gets the advantage and tags in Hogan, who at this point should be more than satisfied with how things have played out since Orndorff's betrayal in the Summer of ‘86. Haynes gets caught in the heel corner again, giving Hercules a chance to get a receipt for earlier in the match. Haynes mounts a comeback, unloading with chops. Double reversal and Hercules wipes him out with a clothesline. Adonis works over Billy Jack and takes a shot at Piper on the apron. Piper with the blind tag and it's a slugfest, with Piper getting the better of the exchange. The fight spills to the floor and the two are counted out at 11:24. Wow, PIPER was part of the first elimination? I would have lost some cash on that bet. Piper stages a sit in, but is eventually convinced to leave, giving him a chance to get his curtain call. OK, now I know why they did it if he's not going to win it.
The dust settles and it's Hogan and Haynes vs Orndorff and Hercules. Orndorff distracts Hogan, allowing Hercules to whack him with a clothesline. If there's one thing Hercules did very well, it was that clothesline. Always looked like he was taking someone's head off with it. Heenan's guys take turns pounding away on the Hulkster. Hogan makes his own comeback and gives the duo a DOUBLE NOGGIN KNOCKER. He chooses not to tag and Orndorff counters a back body-drop attempt to regain control. We get heel miscommunication and Hogan rolls up Orndorff for three at 15:27. Despite the elimination, Orndorff sticks around to continue beating on Hogan and nails the referee. Meanwhile, Hercules hits Haynes with a low blow and elbow drop and the referee recovers to count three at 16:21. Hercules with clubbing blows across the back of Hogan. He scoops him up in his signature back breaker (Torture Rack) and let's go to make a pin attempt. HULK-UP TIME. Hogan with the roundhouse rights. Hercules eats turnbuckle, Hogan comes off the ropes with a clothesline, and the leg drop finishes the match at 18:04. Post-match, Heenan takes a bump to really send the fans home happy. Weird how they took their time with the first fall, and then rushed through the last three. I liked the match, but the one we saw at MSG was significantly better. ***¼
Final Thoughts: This was a two-match show, and I don't know if I'd say they are good enough to salvage what was a pretty poor prelim lineup. The Six-Man Tag was fun, but rushing through eliminations really killed my enjoyment, and while I was complimentary of the Hart Foundation vs Rougeau Brothers, it wasn't ground-breaking work, either. The only recommendation I can give is checking out the Main Event, just for the sake of it being a rarely used house show gimmick and it's always fun to find something you won't find anywhere else.
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