WWF Prime Time Wrestling – September 9th, 1991

September 9, 1991

Your hosts are Sean Mooney and Bobby Heenan

Tonight’s guests are Undertaker & Paul Bearer, Legion of Doom, and Ric Flair in his WWF TV debut.

Before the show, we see Heenan backstage holding the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. He yells at the staff to clean up as the real world’s champion, Ric Flair, is tonight’s guest. The camera follows Heenan around as he berates everyone before heading out to the set.

The camera boos Heenan as he calls Flair the real world’s champion. Heenan tells Mooney never to touch the belt as the crowd likes Mooney’s suggestion to pass the belt around. The hosts run through the guests as the crowd loudly cheers the LoD. Heenan then orders Mooney to stand in the crowd and wants the crowd to give Flair a standing ovation when he comes out.

Col. Mustafa vs. The Dragon

This is from the 8/20 “Wrestling Challenge” tapings in Erie, PA. Mooney and Lord Alfred Hayes are your announcers. Mustafa chokes out Dragon after attacking from behind. Mustafa lands some shots but Dragon fights back as Mustafa bails. The announcers talk about Slaughter being in isolation then Mustafa finally heads back into the ring. Dragon hits some chops but Mustafa blocks a turnbuckle smash and hits one of his own. Mustafa now works a nerve hold but Dragon escapes and uses a sunset flip for a nearfall. Dragon hits a slam but Mustafa got his knees up on a splash attempt. Mustafa hits a gutwrench suplex for two then a clothesline before taunting the crowd. Dragon blocks a suplex and hits one of his own then heads up top for the flying body press and the win (4:08) *.

Thoughts: According to thehistoryofwwe.com, Dragon was originally scheduled to wrestle Mr. Perfect at this taping but that changed due to Perfect’s injury. So, they decided to get one of the worst replacements possible. Dragon carried this match to where it was watchable.

The Undertaker & Paul Bearer come out to the studio. They are loudly booed. Mooney calls what happened to Elizabeth at her wedding reception was one of the worst disturbing thing he has ever seen as we are shown a replay of Undertaker, Bearer, and Jake Roberts crashing the reception. Bearer then pulls out the pictures from what happened as we see a scared Elizabeth and a pic of the snake. Bearer & Undertaker then call out Sid Justice for interfering into their business as Undertaker tells Sid to rest in peace. Lots of hype for the Sid/Taker feud.

The Bushwhackers defeat Duane Gill & Barry Hardy in a match first shown on the 9/7 edition of “Superstars of Wrestling.”

Hercules w/ Slick vs. Phil Apollo

This is another match from the 8/20 Challenge tapings. The announcers talk about Power & Glory as Hercules beats on Apollo. Hercules stomps a mudhole as he is looking quite flabby here. Hercules then hits a clothesline before using the backbreaker submission for the win (1:46).

Thoughts: The company planned to split Power & Glory immediately after the October European tour but Roma got pissed and quit. I assume this was a test run for Hercules.

Back in the studio, Heenan asks some kid if Mo Howard cuts his hair. After that we are shown Heenan getting the door slammed on his face by Hulk Hogan at SummerSlam. Heenan then proclaims Flair would have beaten the “red and yellow” off of Hogan.

Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart vs. Brooklyn Brawler

This match also aired on the 9/14 edition of “Superstars of Wrestling.” Neidhart is wearing baggy blue pants and checkered boots. He scoops up Brawler for a slam then takes him down with a back elbow smash. Neidhart pulls up Brawler by the hair then hits a running powerslam for the win (1:19).

Thoughts: Neidhart is back in the ring and with a new look. However, it does not appear that there is any sort of push for him and he has struggled as a singles act throughout his career.

We are now shown a clip from Hulk Hogan’s new movie “Suburban Commando.” After that we head back to the studio where Heenan tells us that Flair was first approached for that role but turned it down as he is a wrestler and tells Hogan to take more roles. I liked this promo from Heenan and fit in with the real world’s champion story with Flair.

Jim Powers vs. Big Bully Busick w/ Harvey Whippleman

Powers still rocking the Young Stallions gear and came out to “Crank It Up.” Before the match, Busick bullies the ring attendant as Whippleman screams at him to leave. Busick shoves down Powers after grabbing some hair. Busick does it again then hits an uppercut. Busick follows with some turnbuckle smashes before tossing Powers outside. Whippleman talks trash to Powers as Busick heads out and causes some more punishment. Back inside, Busick chokes out Powers but eats boot on a charge. Powers comes back with a clothesline then a knee lift. Dropkick gets two as a light “Pee Wee”chant breaks out at Whippleman. Busick sidesteps a charge then hits a back suplex before using the Stump Puller for the win (3:06) 1/4*.

Thoughts: Busick looked the part but he sure did suck in the ring. He moved around far too slow. They are trying more to establish Whippleman as a character than they are with Busick.

WWF Update from the 9/7 edition of “Superstars of Wrestling.” . This showed Heenan’s appearance on the “Funeral Parlor” were Piper came down from the announcer’s desk to confront Heenan after getting insulted. Piper then spit on the NWA World Heavyweight Championship then at Heenan before issuing a challenge to Flair.

We are now back in the studio where Heenan brings out Ric Flair. The red carpet is rolled out as Flair makes his entrance wearing his robe. The crowd boos despite Heenan yelling at them to stand and cheer. Mooney asks Flair about encuring the wrath of both Hulk Hogan and Roddy Piper. Flair tells us several months ago, his close friend Heenan put together a winning package and if the money was right he would come into the WWF and challenge the man fans recognize as the WWF Champion. Flair then addresses Piper and says before he takes care of Hogan they need to finish some business. Flair is pissed over Piper spitting on his title belt and says he will hit Piper so hard his skirt will fall to his ankles. Heenan then wants Flair to talk about how long he has challenged Hogan as Flair says its been for about ten years. Flair says he knows who he is and that’s the real world’s champion before telling Hogan to “put up or shut up.” First off, it just felt odd seeing Flair on WWF TV. And the promo he cut wasn’t bad or anything but he was much more restrained than he was in WCW to the point he seemed like a different person. The WWF at least made Flair’s debut feel huge and the way Heenan acted throughout the show was great. Overall, solid segment but it felt like a different version of Flair that WCW/NWA fans were accustomed to prior to his WWF arrival.

Irwin R. Schyster vs. Texas Tornado

Another match from the 8/20 Challenge tapings. Before the match, IRS tells the crowd if they managed their money better they would not have to cheat on their taxes. IRS slams Tornado and falls down in the process. IRS then boots Tornado in the face before the two lockup again. IRS now takes down Tornado with a hip toss then readjusts his tie. IRS tries a cheap shot after a break but Tornado blocks that and fires away. Tornado hits a slam then soon after that IRS bails for a breather as Lord Alfred tells us that IRS just received a “receipt.” IRS heads back in knees Tornado in the gut. IRS catches Tornado with a boot then hits a flying chop. IRS heads back up top again but this time Tornado catches him with the claw. IRS manages to get himself over the ropes but Tornado maintains the hold and eventually pulls IRS back inside. IRS rolls out after getting hit with a discus punch as an “Irwin” chant comes from the crowd. Tornado suplexes IRS back inside for a nearfall but misses a charge in the corner and rams his shoulder into the post. IRS stays in control then grabs a chinlock. Tornado fights out but IRS cuts him off with a knee smash. IRS now catches Tornado with a sleeper and uses that for a while. Tornado finally escapes but accidentally hits the ref with a discus punch after IRS dragged the ref in front of him. IRS proclaims that he has won the match and wants the ref to ring the bell as Tornado helps up the ref then ends up winning as IRS is disqualified for using the ref as a shield (8:18) 3/4*.

Thoughts: The work was bad early then settled into a snoozefest. The finish was weak but they wanted to get IRS some heel heat I suppose. And protect Tornado somewhat. These are the only conclusions I can come up with.

In the studio, the hosts talk briefly about the eventual Hogan/Flair showdown.

Back from break, Mooney plugs the Hulk Hogan 1-900 number as Heenan is on the phone claiming he’s asking the USA Network for an extra hour of TV.

Tanaka w/ Mr. Fuji vs. “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka

This is from the 8/19 “Superstars of Wrestling” tapings in Rochester, NY. We are joined in progress as Tanaka takes down Snuka with a body block. Tanaka gets a two count with a thrust kick then uses some cheap heel tactics. Tanaka hits a headbutt to the groin but soon after that Snuka comes back with a clothesline. Snuka chops down Tanaka after an Irish whip sequence then hits a backbreaker before using the Superfly Splash for the win (3:35). After the match we see that Fuji is unhappy with his man.

Thoughts: Snuka was not getting pushed or anything but they gave him a win here. And when this match aired, Kato (Paul Diamond) was serving a suspension for a drug test failure and it pretty much ended their run as a team. And a month or so ago on Prime Time we saw Fuji walk out on Kato so its clear they were going to split up the team at some point. This match was nothing special.

The Legion of Doom are now out in the studio. They are wearing Zubaz and holding the Tag Title belts. Lord Alfred tells the LoD all of Europe offers their congratulations. Even the Royal Family, who are looking forward to seeing them. Hawk offers the queen a big hug and “juicy” kiss. Animal then talks about how the Nasty Boys ran their mouths but failed to beat them. We now see a clip of the LoD’s altercation with the Natural Disasters at SummerSlam. LoD said they came out to help out an obviously hurt Andre. Hawk then says they are “naturally nuts” and do not care about the Natural Disasters because they backup their talk and will knock down whoever the WWF lines up for them. Hawk cut a wacky 80’s promo here and it was quite entertaining.

We are now shown clips of the six-man tag match at SummerSlam. They are just promoting the Coliseum Home Video Release with these clips.

The “Barber Shop” segment with guests Ted DiBiase & Sensational Sherri from the 9/8 edition of “Wrestling Challenge” airs.

Clips of Bret Hart defeating Mr. Perfect at SummerSlam for the Intercontinental Title. After that, Mooney lists off The Berzerker, Texas Tornado, The Dragon, Big Bully Busick, and The Warlord as challengers for Bret.

Warlord defeats Mark Thomas in a match first shown on the 9/7 edition of “Superstars of Wrestling.”

Mooney and Heenan are now in the audience next to Jameson, whose still reading “WWF Magazine.” This is to plug the trivia game. After that we get another plug for the Hogan 1-900 number.

Dwayne Evans vs. Big Bossman

This match also aired on the 9/21 edition of “Superstars of Wrestling.” Bossman knees Evans before dropping him with an uppercut. Bossman follows with a big boot then stands on top of Evans as Lord Alfred says Bossman is sending a message to the Mountie, referring to Mountie as “Jailbird,” before Bossman uses a sidewalk slam for the win (1:03).

Thoughts: They were pushing fans to refer to Mountie as “Jailbird” on commentary and still seemed to be telling us the Bossman/Mountie feud was continuing despite the Bossman and IRS cutting promos on each other.

In the studio, Mooney tells us that next week’s guests are Sid Justice, Ted DiBiase & Sensational Sherri, and The Rockers. Heenan then tells Mooney to excuse himself before saying it was a great evening because he had the privilege of seeing the real world’s champion, Ric Flair. Heenan walks over to Flair’s robe laying across a director’s chair before addressing Hogan by saying he has now seen the robe, belt, and the man but still has not seen anything yet as he places the belt on the chair before leaving. The camera zooms in on the belt as the show goes off the air.

Final Thoughts: The theme of the show was Flair making his debut. Heenan was fantastic in putting over Flair. The company also set up for a Flair/Piper feud before going to Flair vs. Hogan. The action was not good on this show but Flair’s segment should be seen for historical purposes and the Hawk was funny during his segment. Along with the Flair segments they are trying to make Sid/Undertaker another top feud. Things are getting more interesting now that SummerSlam is over.