Mid-South Wrestling – September 29th, 1983

September 29, 1983

Your hosts are Boyd Pierce and Jim Ross

This week we will see Junkyard Dog vs. King Kong Bundy, Butch Reed vs. Magnum TA, Jerry Oates teams with his brother and more.

We are shown clips of last week’s JYD vs. One Man Gang match where Krusher Darsow made the save after JYD was tripled teamed. It also showed Darsow’s interview where he said Skandor Akbar gave him $500 to attack JYD but that he wanted Ross to give the money back.

Frank LaVert vs. Krusher Darsow

Pierce incorrectly notes that this is LaVert’s Mid-South debut. Darsow breaks cleanly after backing LaVert into the ropes. He now works a hammerlock then switches to an armbar until LaVert reaches the ropes. Ross notes how Darsow’s only loss is against JYD as he tosses LaVert to break up a side headlock. The fans cheer then LaVert catches Darsow with an elbow smash and hammers away. Darsow fights back then knocks LaVert down and follows with a backdrop. Darsow hits a slam then uses the backbreaker submission for the win (2:59).

Thoughts: Darsow was over here as they are starting to build him up as a face.

Bob Stanton & Doug Vines vs. Jerry Oates & Marty Oates

Marty is in fact Marty Jannetty. Ross puts over Jerry as a former North American Heavyweight Champion as Jerry works over Stanton after a fast-paced sequence. Marty comes in and takes Vines down with a fireman’s carry. Jerry tags in and works a front facelock after getting a nearfall with a rollup. The Oates Brothers stay in control until Vines hits Marty with an atomic drop. Marty comes back with an awkward-looking clothesline on Stanton then tags out as Jerry runs wild. The match breaks down then Jerry puts Stanton away with a spinning toe hold (3:39).

Thoughts: Jerry did most of the offense for his team. He also trained Marty and even got him into the business. Their stint in Mid-South was brief.

Nikolai Volkoff vs. Art Crews

Volkoff immediately beats on Crews to start. He cuts off a comeback then boots Crews around the ring. Ross puts over Volkoff for being able to do a 600 lbs one hand lift as he manhandles Crews. Volkoff then clotheslines Crews as Ross says Volkoff is a legend in Russia and we will learn more about him in the coming weeks. Volkoff remains in control then hits an overhead backbreaker for the win (2:07).

Thoughts: Another completely dominant win for Volkoff as its clear he will get pushed as a top heel.

King Kong Bundy vs. Junkyard Dog

The crowd is insane for JYD. Bundy has to win the match with his five count gimmick. Match starts with JYD taking Bundy over with a snapmare. JYD uses another snapmare then goes to a chinlock. JYD cranks the neck as Pierce puts over his physical condition. JYD wins a slugfest then gets a two count with a clothesline before reapplying a chinlock. Bundy reverses and grounds JYD with a hammerlock. Bundy follows with a splash but JYD kicks out at four. Bundy now goes for a piledriver but JYD reverses. JYD comes back with a forearm smash then a clothesline before a powerslam gets the win (4:10) *1/4.

Thoughts: Slow-paced, mainly due to JYD, but the end was unsurprising as Bundy was being phased out while JYD was the top guy in the company. Bundy actually lost a loser leaves Houston match a week or so before this aired and would be in Georgia by November.

We are shown clips from last week’s “Battle of the Hacksaws” which saw Jim Duggan defeat Butch Reed.

“Hacksaw” Butch Reed vs. Magnum TA

This is a non-title match. Reed keeps trying to ground Magnum but Magnum escapes every time. Magnum hits a pair of dropkicks then works the arm. Reed decks Magnum in the face and now beats him in the corner. Reed gets kicked in the face after ducking his head for a backdrop as Magnum now regains control. Reed catches Magnum with a double knee smash in the corner then runs him over a few times but gets a bit cocky and ends up caught in a belly-to-belly suplex for a nearfall. Reed is able to run Magnum into the corner then dumps him throat-first across the top rope a couple of times before a flying shoulder tackle gets the win (5:01) **1/2. After the match, Reed continues to talk trash then calls out Duggan. The fans cheer as JYD now runs out to tend to Magnum. Reed tries a sneak attack then bails after he was backed into the corner.

Thoughts: Fast-paced, especially when compared to the previous match, and while a bit rough towards the end it was a good TV match. And with JYD running out to check on Magnum then back off Reed I expect him to stay in the title picture too even if Duggan beat Reed last week and was already one-half of the champions with Magnum.

Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart vs. Sam Hall

Neidhart attacks Hall then throws him across the ring. Neidhart hits a slam then no-sells a few attacks before hitting another slam. Ross says Neidhart is an unpredictable person as Neidhart hits yet another slam. Neidhart continues his beat down then hits the Samoan Drop for the win (1:46).

Thoughts: A showcase for Neidhart as he also seems to be in line for a strong push as a heel.

The Missing Link w/ Skandor Akbar vs. Mike Bond

Link beats on Bond to start. Link rams his own head into the turnbuckle after Bond tried a turnbuckle smash then misses a flying headbutt. Bond sends Link into the corner then tries a few cradles and a slam but cannot put Link away. Link misses a falling headbutt but is able to regain control as Ross says Lanny Poffo will be here next week. He was also billed as debuting this week during the last show. Link hits a back drop but tries another one and gets kicked in the face. Link catches Bond with a dropkick then hits a few headbutts before the flying headbutt to the kidney gets the win (3:07) 1/2*.

Thoughts: They tried to make this competitive but it just was not any good. Link is not getting over and Bond is not very good at all inside of the ring.

Final Thoughts: The main focus was on JYD as he defeated Bundy then ran off the champion. We also saw Reed get avenge for last week’s lost against Duggan by beating his partner. Besides that we saw a new tag team and some of the other newer talents getting their pushes. The newer talents are not all that exciting though and they really miss DiBiase in the promotion now as all the heels are bigger, power wrestlers but no one that can lead guys around the ring.

Here is my schedule for the next several days:

Sunday: WWF Wrestling Challenge 11/10/91

Monday: WWF Prime Time Wrestling 11/11/91

Tuesday: WWF Superstars of Wrestling 11/16/91

Wednesday: WWF Wrestling Challenge 11/17/91

Thursday: WWF Prime Time Wrestling 11/18/91

Friday: WWF Superstars of Wrestling 11/23/91

Saturday: Mid-South Wrestling 10/6/83