WWF Superstars of Wrestling 5/12/1990

WWF Superstars of Wrestling 5/12/1990

Last week's show is here: https://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2019/04/wwf-superstars-of-wrestling-551990.html 

Next week's show is here: https://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2024/02/wwf-superstars-of-wrestling-5191990.html

It's Mother's Day and Jesse is hyped up. Vince says he has a face only a mother could love.

Tonight is Beefcake vs Bravo in an IC Tourney match, The Brother Love Show, The Bushwhackers, Earthquake, The Barbarian and Tugboat.

The Bushwhackers vs Buddy Rose and Elmer Johnson

Buddy slaps Luke on the ropes and laughs at him. Luke ducks and Butch nails Buddy. Buddy almost runs into a fist then Luke bites Buddy in the butt. Buddy takes a double clothesline and goes out to the floor. Rhythm and Blues do an inset. They say they could use another hit and they will give it to them. Hart says it could be their biggest hit. Jesse says Valentine looks like Elvis.

Butch nails Buddy in the gut. Butch is sent hard into the buckles. Elmer gets in and takes a battering ram to the gut. Elmer takes a double gutbuster and is pinned.

It was a quick squash that was half comedy. I always liked the battering ram finisher. Buddy meant to catch himself when he was hanging out of the ring but slipped and went down hard to the floor.

WWF Event Center

The Million Dollar Man Ted Dibiase interfered during a Big Boss Man vs Akeem match. He jumps Boss Man from behind with Virgil. Boss Man takes a double clothesline then they handcuff him to the ropes. Jesse says Ted will read him his right here. Boss Man is pounded on then Virgil grabs Boss Man's night stick. Boss Man has the key to the cuffs and unlocks himself. He then hits a big body block on Ted and the heels go running.

Mean Gene says Ted and Boss Man can't wait to get their hands on each other.

Ted Dibiase does a promo with Virgil. He asks him how it feels to be on the receiving end of those handcuffs and tied to the top rope like a criminal. He said when you cross the Million Dollar Man, you crossed the wrong man and said he has a taste of what's to come.

The Big Boss Man does a promo. He said he proved to everyone that him and Virgil are backstabbing pieces of trash. He says he will chase them and administer his style of justice and they won't like it.

The Barbarian vs Jim Gorman

 

Jim is wearing White and Black and kind of looks like Jim Brunzell. The Barbarian has a skull on a chain and bone. Bobby Heenan is with Barb.

Jim nails Barb from behind then is whipped hard into the buckles. Jesse gives him credit for trying. Barb chops Jim down then back elbows him. We get a loud "Weasel" chant for Bobby then Barb chops him down again. Vince says Barb is taking Hulk Hogan vitamin's to get as big as he is. Barb hits a big boot to the face then hits a nice top rope diving lariat for the win.

It was another quick squash. Barb's diving lariat was real nice here and he really got his foot up on the face kick. Barb did not have that skull on the bone and chain for a while.

We go to the Intercontinental Title Tournament bracket. Mr. Perfect has no semi-final opponent due to Roddy Piper and Rick Martel going to a draw, so he gets a bye into the finals. Tito Santana fights the winner of the next round.

WWF Intercontinental Title Tournament 2nd Round - Dino Bravo vs Brutus Beefcake

Jimmy Hart is with Dino Bravo. Jesse says this one relies on who is more up for the match. He says Dino has the strength advantage but Brutus has the clippers. Brutus chases Dino out with his clippers before this starts. Jesse asks why Hart needs a megaphone when he has such a big mouth? Mr. Perfect says being Mr. Perfect means being perfect in every situation. He says Beefcake and Bravo are another situation he will master on his way to becoming the perfect IC champ.

Dino side headlocks Brutus and shoulders him over. Brutus crossbodies him for 2. Brutus hits a hip toss then slams him. Brutus misses an elbow drop then Dino does as well. Brutus lariats Dino over twice and Dino rolls out. Brutus goes after Dino outside and bangs his head off the apron.

Hart goes to hit Brutus with the megaphone and Brutus catches him. Dino then nails Brutus from behind. Jesse said Brutus drew that on himself. Dino stomps Brutus then atomic drops him. Dino hits a gutwrench suplex for 2. Dino 2nd rope double axe handles him for 2. Dino pushes the ref and argues with him over the count. Jesse said if you can intimidate the ref, they may count quicker next time.

Brutus is thrown into the buckles. Dino comes off the top and is hit in the gut. Brutus hits a knee lift then hits punches. Brutus back body drops him then does a jumping knee. Bravo misses a shot then Brutus puts him in the sleeper. Jimmy Hart gets on the ropes then Mr. Perfect comes out. Perfect and Brutus fight outside then Dino joins in. Brutus and Beefcake bang their heads off the apron. Dino thinks he has it won but the ref says it's a double countout. Even the announcers were fooled here by thinking Dino won it.

Dino argues with the ref and Brutus grabs his clippers. Brutus corners Hart and Hart runs for it, leaving his jacket behind. Dino then escorts Hart to safety.

It was a short but action packed match here. There wasn't a single dull moment and no time was wasted. The screwy finish made sense but it should have been a DQ due to Mr. Perfect being out there when he shouldn't have been.

WWF Event Center

They talk about the 6/2/1990 Boston Garden card. Bobby Heenan talks for Rick Rude about the Ultimate Warrior. Heenan says Warrior has something they want. Bobby says Rude is going through the most extensive training of any athlete in any sport. He said he beat him before for the IC Title and will beat him for this title too. The Rockers say some people are given a foot and take a mile. They say the Japanese bombed us at Pearl Harbor and now the Japanese buy up everything in site. Shawn says they are not going to buy up the tag team scene here. Marty said he doesn't know what they threw in their eyes but says the rules are going out the window and they will play the way they play. 

The Orient Express vs Louis Spicolli and Mark Young

Tanaka kicks and shoulders over Young. Young hits armdrags on Tanaka then Tanaka back elbows him. Young takes a double kick to the chest. Louis gets chopped by Sato and they say Spicolli sounds like an italian ice cream. Sato chops Louis the snapmares him. They say this month's WWF Magazine has an article on The Orient Express. Louis' head is banged off the buckles then he takes boots to the guts from both opponents. Sato knee drops Louis then Louis gets his head banged off of Tanaka's head.

Tanaka chops Louis then superkicks him. Sato boots Louis while Tanaka holds him then hits knees on Louis' face against the bottom rope. Sato hits a kick to the gut then Sat odoes a wild looking forearm with his back facing Louis. Sato sitout powerbombs Louis and wins it.

It went a little longer than it needed to. Sato's powerbomb was nice here and Louis took most of the whooping here.

The Brother Love Show

Love thanks "Brother Vincent" and Jesse said they love Brother Love in Texas. Love says two lovers know their place in society and it's below the feet of Savage and Sherri. He then brings out Dusty Rhodes and Sapphire. Dusty has a polka dot jacket on.

Love said Sapphire learned all about humiliation at the feet of Savage. We see clips of Sherri making Sapphire kiss Savage's boot. Love said that's only half the story. He said the other half of the story is "Brother Dream" kissing the feet of Sherri and Savage. Dusty said Love is out here shooting his mouth off and wants to tell him about Americana. Dusty said his dad and mom worked labor jobs and said nobody embarrasses Dusty in public. He said there will be some dues paid and tells him he can kiss his butt. Love asks Sapphire what she thinks and she slaps him to end the segment. Jesse calls it a cheapshot.

We see clips of The Bolsheviks fighting after their match. They do a promo. Boris says he's a true Russian but Volkoff is of Lithuanian heritage. Boris says there's no problems between them.

Earthquake vs Jerry Monti

I don't like the odds of our buddy Jerry here. Quake makes the ring shake then clubs Jerry's back. We do an inset promo with Jim Duggan. Jim Duggan said Quake knows he isn't sleeping well at night because Duggan is down his throat. Duggan said he won't quit until he takes down Quake. Quake powerslams Jerry then elbow drops him. Quake jumps around Jerry then butt drops him for the quick win.

Quake hits a second and third butt drop after. The stretcher is put in the ring and Jerry is put on it. Quake comes back in and scares off the paramedics. Quake then hits another butt drop. He teases another then Jim Duggan comes out. He hits Quake with the 2x4 and sends him out of the ring. 

We see Rick Rude working the jump rope. Bobby said Warrior sees the finest human specimen and said Warrior knows what they know - it's all over for The Ultimate Warrior. Rude hits the heavy bag. He said training hasn't been easy and the toughest part is yet to come. Rude said all men are not created equal and said they found that out last time Rude beat him. Rude said he took his title and it will happen again. Rude said he will take his title and break him like a wild stallion. He said he will put out the raging fire that makes The Warrior be The Warrior. He says he will bust him up.

Tugboat vs The Brooklyn Brawler

They lock up. Tug pushes him back and Brawler bumps off the buckles. Hulk Hogan does an inset. He said there's a lot of big ships in the harbor of the WWF but says Tugboat will push them out to the high sea's and over the edge of the earth if they aren't Hulkamaniacs. He says, "whatcha gonna do when the tugboat comes cuttin' through?".

Brawler gets some shots in on Tugboat. Tug hits a kick and a boot. Brawler goes out and comes back in. Tug blocks Brawler's slam then gives him one of his own. Tug hits a nice lariat then corner splashes him. Tug splashes Brawler on the mat and gets the win.

It was an okay squash here. Tug's lariat was nice and I liked Hulk's inset promo.

WWF Event Center

They talk about the 5/18/1990 Worcester Centrum show. Dino Bravo and Jimmy Hart talk about The Red Rooster. Dino said it's not easy to find an opponent when you are the world's strongest man. He said it will be the most painful experience of Rooster's career. He said he can't stand the sight of him and will get rid of him once and for all. Dusty Rhodes then does a promo. He tells Macho there's lots of people getting on their hands and knees to work. He said he embarrassed Sapphire in public but said that's what this country is all about. He said dues have to be paid for Sapphire being forced to kiss his feet. Dusty said he wants no crying when this is over. Sapphire comes in. She said she doesn't know much about wrestling but she will teach them some pain. 

Dusty basically cut the exact same promo here that he did on The Brother Love Show, but this one was better as he explained it more.

Next week has Bad News Brown, The Rockers vs The Bolsheviks, The Million Dollar Man, Demolition and Mr. Perfect vs Tito Santana in the Intercontinental Tournament Final. Tito says it's him and Perfect next week. He said he wants him at his best because he is. Tito said he won't be Mr. Perfect anymore because he will be the intercontinental champion. Mr. Perfect says the title is on the line next week. He said he hasn't seen him at his best yet but will next week when he becomes the perfect intercontinental champ.

Overall thoughts: It was a very fast paced show with no time wasted. Nobody got the most out of an hour quite like the WWF used to. None of the matches were must see since they were all squashes but a lot happened. They did a good job pushing the Boss Man/Dibiase and Dusty/Savage feuds. The Rude/Warrior feud is really unlike what the WWF had been doing at the time. I thought it was lame that they had double byes here for the IC Title tournament with both Tito and Perfect getting free passes to the finals. It kind of defeats the purpose of doing a tournament. Despite being champ, The Ultimate Warrior was nowhere to be found here while Hulk was on this one.