WWF Superstars of Wrestling December 26th, 1987

December 26, 1987

From the Sun Dome in Tampa, FL

Your hosts are Bruno Sammartino, Jesse “The Body” Ventura, and Vince McMahon

In action this week will be Rick Rude, Brutus Beefcake, One Man Gang, Bam Bam Bigelow, and the Honky Tonk Man. Also, this week’s featured match consists of the British Bulldogs vs. The Islanders

Bam Bam Bigelow w/ Oliver Humperdink vs. Van Van Horne

Bigelow hits Van Horne with a suplex and a falling headbutt. We then get an insert promo from the One Man Gang and Slick, who tells Bam Bam that he is not impressed and the only reason he won the battle royal (televised on the 10/31 edition of Superstars) was due to the fact everyone attacked Gang first and eliminated him. Back to the match as Bigelow hits a press slam and a dropkick before scoring the win with a slingshot splash (2:23).

Thoughts: Impressive showcase for Bam Bam as they planted the seed here for his feud with the One Man Gang.

Craig DeGeorge is on the interview platform with Ted DiBiase and Virgil. He asks DiBiase his thoughts on Hulk Hogan declining his offer to buy the WWF World Heavyweight Title. An upset DiBiase tells us he offered Hogan a “stupendous” amount of money that if he announced it to the crowd, there heads would spin. DiBiase then smiles and says there is more than one way to “humble a Hulk” before screaming about how he is a man who gets what he wants and what he wants is the WWF World Heavyweight Title and that he will buy it and we can take that to the bank. Solid promo by DiBiase as this story will continue with an even more pissed off DiBiase. They are doing a fine job at keeping you in suspense to see what he will do next.

One Man Gang w/ Slick vs. Tom Horn

Gang beats on Horn as we get “breaking” comments from Bigelow, who is pissed over what Gang said and will challenge him one-on-one anytime. Shortly after that, Gang puts Horn away with the front suplex (1:47).

Thoughts: And they are really going with the Bigelow/Gang feud, which should be fun. Nice to see Bam Bam finally get a feud with someone.

Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake vs. Rick Gantner

We get an insert promo from Greg Valentine, who threatens Beefcake to “get him good” when he slaps on his figure-four leg lock. Beefcake clotheslines Gantner as the announcers talk him up. He barely gets Gantner over for a backdrop then just after that puts him away with the sleeper (2:16). After the match, Beefcake cuts off some of Gantner’s hair before spray painting a “B” on his chest.

Thoughts: A lot of cheers for Beefcake as they also stressed his feud with Valentine.

DeGeorge is with Randy Savage, who tells us he has a lot of momentum heading into 1988. He then switches focus to the Honky Tonk Man and how he has him right in the “danger zone.” Savage then tells Honky he better bring extra tights because in addition to beating him for the Intercontinental Title, he is going to humiliate Honky by stripping him naked. A mighty fine promo from the Macho Man, who quite frankly was in the zone here.

We are shown comments from fans who all believe that Hulk Hogan made the right decision in not selling his WWF Heavyweight Title to Ted DiBiase. All of the kids were happy and as the segment ends, Jesse wants to know where they polled these people and if they were all really in agreement.

Brady Boone vs. Honky Tonk Man w/ Jimmy Hart

Before the match, Honky gives us all a “special introduction,” which is his girlfriend Peggy Sue (Its really Sherri Martel in a disguise) and they dance for a bit. Match starts with Honky beating on Boone, who comes back with a jumping back elbow smash. Boone hits a snap suplex and climbs up top, where he backflips over Honky. However, Boone misses a splash of sorts in the corner, which looked odd, then Honky gets the win with the Shake, Rattle, and Roll (1:35).

Thoughts: The addition of Peggy Sue didn’t really add to Honky’s act. He had more than enough heel heat already at this point.

WWF Update with Craig DeGeorge. This week’s topic was the “Slammy Awards,” particularly the almost show-long brawl between King Harley Race and Hacksaw Jim Duggan. They are certainly pushing and creating all sorts of singles feuds tonight.

The Islanders w/ Bobby Heenan vs. British Bulldogs

Matilda chases away the Islanders and Heenan, who states he will not have a match unless Matilda is removed from ringside, and they huddle at the entrance ramp before going back to the ring. Heenan motions for the Islanders to go separate ways as he talks to the referee then distracts the Bulldogs on the apron until the Islanders sneak attack them. Heenan heads over to Matilda, on her platform, and yells at it before as the Islanders pick up Matilda and along with Heenan, run through the back and out the arena. The camera shows the Bulldogs running backstage and through the halls as they attempt to retrieve their mascot. The bell never rang, meaning it was not an official match.

Thoughts: And now they have a new tag team feud. I thought it was well-done and Matilda was pushed a lot during this time so to kick it off by having her kidnapped was instant heel heat for the Islanders right off of the bat.

“Ravishing” Rick Rude vs. Jerry Allen

Heenan is obviously not here as he took off with his team. Jesse gloats over Rude winning his “Jesse the Body” award as Vince puts over the physiques of other wrestlers, such as the Ultimate Warrior. Rude is beating on Allen then quickly makes him submit to the backbreaker (0:49).

Thoughts: They are teasing an eventual confrontation between Rude and Warrior as the result of the Rude’s Slammy Award. I am fine with that.

Ultimate Warrior vs. Rick Renslow

Warrior comes running down the aisles and has incorporated the rope shaking as part of his entrance. Vince asks Jesse why Warrior did not win his award as Jesse notes Rude has more defined abs then suggests to the others if they do not agree with his choice, maybe the two wrestlers should settle it in the ring to declare the winner. Warrior is overpowering Renslow, and it looks pretty bad, until he gets the win with a press slam followed by a splash (1:43).

Thoughts: Warrior’s crowd reactions were getting stronger and stronger on a weekly basis at this point. He had a unique look and a cool entrance to go along with a weird kind of charisma that instantly caught on with fans.

DeGeorge is near the exit door backstage as he has no idea where the Islanders and Heenan have taken Matilda. We will get a follow-up on this in the coming weeks.

Next week, we will get the 1987 year in review show (I will not be reviewing this, instead going to the next first-run show, which is the 1/9/88 show).

Final Thoughts: I thought this was an excellent show. Every match and segment served a purpose here as the company now has all sorts of feuds going on at the moment. They created three feuds with one show (Gang/Bam Bam, Islanders/Bulldogs, and Rude/Warrior) and left a cliffhanger as to what DiBiase would do next regarding his plans to buy Hogan’s title.

Here is my schedule for the rest of the week:

Thursday @ noon EST: Kayfabe Commentaries 1996 ECW Timeline as told by Raven

Friday @ 2pm EST: WWF Madison Square Garden 12/26/87

Sunday @ 3pm pm EST: WWF Wrestling Challenge 12/27/87

Tuesday @ 900pm EST: WWF Saturday Night’s Main Event 1/2/88

Also, feel free to email me any questions at BBayless781@gmail.com and follow me on Twitter at https://twitter.com/mrbayless1982