WWE at John Labatt Centre (10/14/02)

John Labatt Centre

London, Ontario

October 14, 2002

While the stars of Raw were in Montreal, the stars of Smackdown were in London....Ontario that is. The John Labatt Centre opened literally two days earlier so the venue is brand new. Last week's Smackdown was lackluster but this Canada run has produced some high quality house shows. Unfortunately they don't have the services of Christian and Lance Storm who had to report back to Raw in Montreal. Let's see what they come up with tonight.

Match 1

Crash Holly vs Tajiri

We open things up with Cruiserweight action as Crash takes on the Japanase buzz-saw. Tajiri wins it with the buzz kick.

Winner: Tajiri by pinfall

Match 2

John Cena and Shannon Moore vs Bull Buchanan and Shelton Benjamin

This match had been part of the circuit for a week as Shelton continues his tryout run. In the ancient days of yore before NXT was invented, guys like Shelton had to have their run on the houses before getting put on TV. Benjamin pinned Moore with the spinebuster.

Winners: Benjamin and Buchanan by pinfall

Match 3

Rey Mysterio Jr vs Jamie Noble (with Nidia) for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship

You know the drill, Mysterio was having wins on TV but putting over Noble on the houses. Nidia held the foot of Mysterio during the 619 and Noble rolled up him for the pin.

Winner: Noble by pinfall (still Cruiserweight champion)

Match 4

Billy & Chuck vs Los Guerreros (Eddie and Chavo Jr)

With 3 Minute Warning busy on Raw, Billy and Chuck took on the Guerreros. Unfortunately Billy Gunn legitimately injured his shoulder and would be out until next June. Palumbo took the El Paso Lasso instead. Bye bye Billy.

Winners: Los Guerreros by submission

Match 5

Edge vs Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship

Edge had been facing Brock on the houses until they got to Canada when Chris Jericho or Chris Benoit would get the matches. Finally in Ontario, Edge gets his shot at Brock. Eddie Guerrero costs Edge the victory as Brock uses the distraction to hit the F-5.

Winner: Lesnar by pinfall (still WWE Champion)

Match 6

Dawn Marie vs Torrie Wilson in a Bra & Panties Match

Funaki was the special guest referee for this nonsense and as usual, Torrie wins.

Winner: Wilson

Match 7

Val Venis and Billy Kidman vs Reverend D'Von and Ron Simmons

Just to get booked, they put Kidman and Val together as a makeshift tag team against D'Von and Ron. D'Von wins it with Saving Grace on Kidman.

Winners: D'Von and Simmons

Match 8

Matt Hardy vs Chris Benoit

Mattitude was in full effect but Chris Benoit was not amused. Benoit wins it with the Crippler Crossface.

Winner: Benoit by submission

Match 9

Rikishi vs Kurt Angle in a Kiss My Ass Match

This had been on the houses with different endings every night. This time Rikishi wins the match with the Rikishi driver but Bull Buchanan and Nidia of all people come in to attack. Rey Mysterio Jr (??) runs in to save Rikishi from the 3 on 1 beat down. Kind of a hodge podge for the finish but Rikishi still gets the duke.

Winner: Rikishi by pinfall

With both shows in Canada, Smackdown went back to normal without the Raw guys. This had been the card the past week but its also the last time we'll see Billy Gunn for awhile. Chuck would be on his own for about 3 months. No Mercy was just 6 days away but apart from HHH vs Kane, the finals of the WWE Tag Team Championship tournament and Brock Lesnar vs Undertaker, we have no card. This week should fill it out. Raw is coming up live from Montreal so I'll see you there.

WWWF at Madison Square Garden (11/15/71) Incomplete

Madison Square Garden

New York City, NY

November 15, 1971

We've finally made it back to Madison Square Garden for the big inter-promotional showdown between WWA Champion Freddie Blassie representing Mike LeBell's territory against WWWF Heavyweight Champion Pedro Morales representing Vince McMahon Sr's territory. We have a pretty stacked card as Tarzan Tyler and Luke Graham put the tag belts on the line against Victor Rivera and Chief Jay Strongbow. Stan "The Man" Stasiak takes on Gorilla Monsoon and Rene Goulet goes one on one with Manuel Soto. Who's gonna walk out of MSG as the heavyweight champ? Let's find out.

Match 1

"Popeye" Chuck Richards vs The Black Demon

Chris Candido's grandfather jerks the curtain at MSG against the human punching bag Black Demon.....and somehow loses. Demon wins it.

Time of match: 8:27

Winner: Black Demon

Match 2

Manuel Soto vs Rene Goulet

Two younger stars going at each other in friendly competition as Soto meets Goulet. Rene Goulet had a rough life before wrestling in Quebec City. Born Robert Bedard, Rene aspired to be a pro hockey defenseman but a skate slashed his throat, and he wanted to be a boxer but a pro-boxer told him he'd be punch drunk. He made his wrestling debut in 1957 and later changed his name to Rene Goulet because of popular Canadian singer Robert Goulet.  It was a hard fought contest but both faces were protected as the match ended in a 20 minute draw. Both men shook hands afterwards.

Time of match: 20:00

Winner: No one (draw)

Match 3

Mike Monroe vs Karl Gotch

Karl Gotch was born Charles Istaz in Belgium and wrestled in the 1948 Olympics at the age of 24. Now he was 47 years old and making a name in the WWWF. His opponent Monroe was a standard jobber of the time period. Gotch may have been 47 but he won the match.


Time of match: 11:05

Winner: Gotch

Match 4

The Rugged Russians (Igor & Ivan) vs Jimmy Valiant and "Beautiful" Bobby Harmon

There's a lot to unpack here. The Russians were actually Spanish and Cuban respectively. Igor was born Juan Onaindia in Bizkaia, Spain. Ivan was Pedro Godoy, a Cuban immigrant. Handsome Jimmy was born Jim Fanning and he started wrestling in 1964 as Jim Vallen. He came to New York as Jimmy Valiant and  eventually would form a team with John L Sullivan, but that's a story for another day. Beautiful Bobby was NOT Bobby Eaton who would have been 13 years old at the time but Bobby Harmon. The Russians got the victory here.

Winners: The Rugged Russians

Match 5

Gorilla Monsoon vs Stan "The Man" Stasiak

Stan "The Man" Stasiak was born George Stipich in Arvida, Quebec and was a lifelong wrestling fan, even getting knocked out trying to take a swing at legendary Canadian wrestler Don Leo Jonathan. Growing up in Quebec, naturally he played hockey and as a sign of things to come, he was a goon in Juniors. His last coach convinced him to give up hockey and take up his real love of wrestling after throwing too many sucker punches. When he first started he wrestled as Emile (his middle name) Koverly as a 21 year old in 1958 and in 1960 wrestled a fellow 23 year old youngster named Gino Marella...yes, the one and only Gorilla Monsoon. Later that year he made his United States debut by taking the name of long dead wrestler Stanley Stasiak who died 30 years before. Imagine someone calling themselves "Eddie Gilbert" now. So 11 years later Stasiak battles Monsoon again. This time Monsoon got the win.

Time of match: 9:51

Winner: Monsoon

Match 6

Chief Jay Strongbow and Victor Rivera vs Tarzan Tyler and "Crazy" Luke Graham for the WWWF Tag Team Championship

Ah the legendary Tarzan Tyler. He was born Camille Tourville in Montreal and was nicknamed "Tarzan" by his friends growing up in Montreal. He started wrestling in the 1950's and had been a top heel in the US and Canada ever since. Three days before this show, Graham and Tyler defeated The Mongols to unify the World and International tag team titles and now they defend against Strongbow and Rivera. Strongbow and Rivera won.....by disqualification. The champs retain.

Time of match: 24:45

Winners: Strongbow and Rivera by disqualification (Tyler & Graham retain)

Match 7

WWA Champion "Classy" Freddie Blassie vs Pedro Morales for the WWWF Heavyweight Championship

Inter-promotional matches were common back in these days and on this night, Mike LeBell's WWA out in California sent Blassie to take on Vince Sr's champion Pedro Morales. Thankfully a short clip of this match is on Youtube so I'll do the best I can to describe what goes on. Blassie complains to the ref that Morales hit him in the face before locking up. Blassie rakes the eyes and bites him in the corner then brings him to the other corner. Blassie heaves Morales over the top rope to the floor into the timekeeper's table. Blassie sends him into the ring post and Morales sells the left shoulder. Blassie goes onto the apron and puts the boots to Pedro. Blassie bites the head of Morales and sends him into the ring post a second time. The ref backs up Blassie to give Morales some room but Blassie continues to attack. Blassie covers but the ref refuses to the count.....what? I've never seen that before. Apparently Blassie needs to apply a hold according to Captain Lou on the overdub. We cut to Blassie hitting a scoop slam on Pedro before dropping some knees on the throat of Morales. Blassie covers for 1...2....nope, Morales kicks out. Blassie chokes Morales and bites the head but Morales gets a big left hand to the ribs. Morales lands another left to the ribs and rallies with more left hands to drop Blassie. Fred gets up and Morales continues to fire away with Blassie countering with bites. Captain Lou on the overdub calls Blassie "The Vampire" as Morales turns the tables by biting Blassie. The ref then calls for the bell and declares Pedro the winner.....what??? Lou on commentary says Blassie was disqualified but the official reason was the match was stopped due to Blassie's blood loss. Albano missed the fact Blassie was busted open and in those days, apparently matches were stopped because of it. Well that's one way for Blassie to keep his California heat by not actually getting pinned or submitted. Pedro wins the match and keeps his title.

Time of match: 8:24

Winners: Morales by stoppage (still WWWF champion)

Its a shame only a clip from the main event remains because this sounded like a fun show on paper to watch. Jimmy Valiant against the Russians would have been funny to see and anytime Monsoon or Stasiak is in the ring is a jolly good time. Still, Morales kept the belt and a few of the heels were hot on his trail. It'll be interesting to see who steps up to Tyler & Graham next as well. This was definitely the home run show but we pick up the action three days later in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. I'll see you then.

WWWF at Lewiston Armory (2/8/71)

 

Lewiston Armory

Lewiston, Maine

February 8, 1971

Anyone want to ask what Vince McMahon Sr was thinking? On the same day you're running a very important Madison Square Garden card, you decide to run a double shot up in Maine? Thankfully none of these guys had to drive all the way to NYC for that night's card but still, this is overkill. You could have had this the day before or the day after. Anyway what we do have here is a women's tag team match along with Chief Jay Strongbow battling it out with Bulldog Brower. Let's get on with this totally useless card.

Match 1

"Nobleman" Joe Turco vs Tomas Marin

These two had been curtain jerkers in other cards so its no surprise to see them doing it here up in Maine. Just like their other bouts, this went the 20 minute time limit.

Winner: No one (Draw)

Match 2

Miguel Feliciano vs The Black Demon

Demon had beaten Joe Turco two days earlier in Springfield while Miguel was coming off a loss to The Wolfman four days earlier in Philadelphia. Surprisingly the Demon won this match as well. Talk about a hot streak for Black Demon standards.

Winner: The Black Demon

Match 3

Chuck Richards vs Mike Conrad

The man known as Popeye takes on perennial punching bag Conrad in this one. Richards gets the duke 25 years before his grandson would win the WWF Tag Team Championship.

Winner: Richards

Match 4

Sharon Joy and Barbara Owens vs Donna Christianello and Toni Rose

Moolah girls in action. Sharon and Donna we already know but who are the other two? Toni Rose was trained by Moolah and grew up in Terra Haute, Indiana....the hometown of Larry Bird. Barbara started wrestling as a 16 year old in 1965 and was very active in the late 60's. Ironically this was her only appearance in the McMahon territory in 1971. Donna and Toni won the match.

Winners: Toni and Donna

Match 5

Bulldog Brower vs Chief Jay Strongbow

The main event of the show had more implications than meets the eye. If Koloff were to successfully retain the WWWF Heavyweight title that night, a victory over Brower would theoretically put Strongbow in line for a title shot at the Garden. Now if Morales were to lose, Bulldog could lobby for a US title match immediately. If Morales to win, Bulldog would put himself up there for a future match with Pedro at the Garden if he beat Strongbow. The fans went home happy as Brower got himself disqualified to give Strongbow the win.

Winner: Strongbow

Who knows why Vince decided to have this completely useless card the same day as his big Madison Square Garden show but money is money I guess. Then again, this was 1971, the Garden show wouldn't be on television so at least the fans got to see live wrestling. Even if the rest of the card was lackluster, if Koloff were to dispatch Morales then Chief Jay Strongbow would be waiting. It all comes down to what happens at Madison Square Garden. See you all for the big one.

WWWF at Philadelphia Arena (2/4/71)

Philadelphia Arena

Philadelphia, PA

February 4, 1971

We are just 4 days away from Madison Square Garden with the big showdown between US Champion Pedro Morales and the Heavyweight champion Ivan Koloff. Tonight in Philly, the hot newcomer Blackjack Mulligan looks to continue his winning ways against Chuck Richards while Bulldog Brower wants another title shot, having to go through Jimmy Jones first. In the main event, Koloff defends the title against Lee Wong. Let's get to the show.

Match 1

Miguel Feliciano vs The Wolfman

Wolfman defeated Feliciano back on the 28th in Washington so Miguel wanted another crack at him. Unfortunately for Miguel, The Wolfman won.

Winner: Wolfman

Match 2

"Popeye" Chuck Richards vs Blackjack Mulligan

Mulligan had been on a hot streak since showing up in the territory on the 18th. "Popeye" Chuck Richards was his next test on his way to a future title shot against either Koloff or Morales, whoever won in MSG. Mulligan beat Richards to continue his streak.

Winner: Mulligan

Match 3

Jimmy Jones vs Bulldog Brower

For those that don't know, Jones was actually the legendary Burrhead Jones who damn near got the Fuller territory disbanded a few years after his WWWF stint. He was working as an elevator operator when he got trained. Vince Sr named him Jimmy Jones and he was in the Alabama territory as a heel until he was turned face by Jimmy Golden aka Bunkhouse Buck in WCW. Golden and Jones lost a "tar and feather" tag team match in which Jones was tarred and feathered, much to the chagrin of the NAACP who filed a formal complaint against Tri-States Wrestling. Back on this night, Bulldog got the duke.

Winner: Brower

Match 4

Mike Conrad vs Gorilla Monsoon

The perennial punching bag Conrad takes on the fan favorite Monsoon in this one. Monsoon wins it....as if you couldn't guess that would happen.

Winner: Monsoon

Match 5

Lee Wong vs "The Russian Bear" Ivan Koloff for the WWWF Heavyweight Championship

Its the main event of the evening. With Koloff locked in to face Pedro Morales in four days, it made sense to have someone like Wong main event the Philly show against Koloff. Not to anyone's surprise, Koloff won to retain the title.

Winner: Koloff (still WWWF Champion)

Philadelphia can't be happy that Wong lost to Koloff but they did get to see Monsoon win a match. Monsoon had a date with Beppo Mongol in four days at Madison Square Garden so he needed a big win to gain some steam. Mulligan was the one to watch, he was on a hot streak and was definitely being pushed to be a future opponent for Pedro Morales one way or another. In the event Pedro lost to Ivan, he'd still be the US champion. Bulldog Brower was still lurking around as well so there was much to do around the territory. It was all coming to ahead at MSG but we still have some cards to go to get there. The following day WWWF was coming back to North Attleboro, see you there.

WWWF at Zembo Shrine Center (1/29/71)

Zembo Shrine Center

Harrisburg, PA

January 29, 1971

Its Friday night and Vince Mcmahon Sr has booked a double shot. While half the crew is in North Attleboro the other half are here at the Zembo Mosque for WWWF action. This card was actually the big draw as the main event features a sneak preview of Madison Square Garden in 10 days. WWWF Heavyweight Champion Ivan Koloff teams with the International Tag Team Champions The Mongols to take on number 1 contender Pedro Morales, Gorilla Monsoon and Chief Jay Strongbow in a special six man tag  3 out of 5 falls match. Other matches include "Golden Boy" Arnold Skaaland taking on Blackjack Mulligan, "Popeye" Chuck Richards taking on Gene Dubois and The Black Demon taking on Hurricane Rivera. Let's get to the matches

Match 1

"Popeye" Chuck Richards vs Gene Dubois

Interesting opening match as Chris Candido's grandfather takes on Ontario promoter Dave McKigney.  Dubois got the win....wow, no opening match draw?

Winner: Dubois

Match 2

Hurricane Rivera vs The Black Demon

Demon had been a punching bag all month but in essence so has Rivera. Something has to give, right? Wrong! They fought to a 20 minute draw.

Winner: No one (Draw)

Match 3

"Golden Boy" Arnold Skaaland vs Blackjack Mulligan

Mulligan was quickly gaining steam with big victories to set himself up for future matches so it made sense to put him with the crafty veteran Skaaland. Mulligan got the win to further move up the ladder.

Winner: Mulligan

Match 4

WWWF United States Champion Pedro Morales, Chief Jay Strongbow and Gorilla Monsoon vs WWWF Heavyweight Champion Ivan Koloff and WWWF International Tag Team Champions The Mongols (Geeto & Beppo) in a 3 out of 5 falls match

Talk about a tag match that would be a PLE main event today. You got the world champ and the tag champs against the number one contenders for both titles. Koloff and Morales had a date with destiny ten days later while Monsoon would be facing Geeto. Not much is known about the match apart from it ended in a no-contest. Probably were tied two falls apiece before a pier six brawl erupted with both teams being counted out or disqualified. Good way to keep everyone's heat intact. Still, having Koloff and Morales face each other before the big Garden show should have done a lot of business.

Winners: No one (Draw)

The show has been lost to time at it was a spot show long before the era of recorded television, house shows, ppvs, etc....but that main event with all the talent and the stories going in would have been a MSG main event any time. The Mongols wouldn't be defending the straps at MSG but Koloff and Morales would be going mano e mano. The ramifications were huge as Koloff really didn't have many credible contenders apart from maybe Gorilla Monsoon while if Morales won, he had plenty of heels to chose from as opponents. As for this show, if only it was recorded. Now the next show was taking place the exact same day in North Attleboro, I'll see you there.

WWWF at National Arena (1/28/71)

National Arena

Washington, DC

January 28, 1971

We're eleven days away from Madison Square Garden but in the old days long before PPV and Cable TV, some house shows were more important than others. Vince McMahon Sr always had an affinity for Washington, DC hence the name Capitol Wrestling. We got a huge eight match card featuring Pedro Morales and Gorilla Monsoon going after the tag belts from The Mongols. Jean DuBois gets a shot at the Heavyweight crown when he faces Ivan Koloff and Blackjack Mulligan is back facing Lee Wong. Vince wanted the home run show in the nation's capital so let's get to it.

Match 1

Miguel Feliciano vs The Wolfman

Wolfman needed a big win to get his heat back after losing to Pedro in the Garden so he has to start at the bottom. Taking on local Baltimore jobber Feliciano was step one in getting back on track. Wolfman did win the match.

Winner: Wolfman

Match 2

Lee Wong vs Blackjack Mulligan

Needing a fresh heel, Vince Sr brought in Blackjack Mulligan to do some damage in the territory. He faces Lee Wong in the second match of the night and wins it. He's starting to gain steam for sure.

Winner: Mulligan

Match 3

"Popeye" Chuck Richards vs Manuel Soto

Interesting battle here as both of them have taken some losses lately so one of them has to win, right? Well it turns out Soto won this one.

Winner: Soto

Match 4

"Nobleman" Joe Turco vs Chief Jay Strongbow

Another big battle as both of them have lost some high profile matches. Strongbow needed a win to get back in the hunt for Koloff and Turco just had to establish himself again. Unfortunately for Joe, Strongbow got the duke.

Winner: Strongbow

Match 5

Jean Dubois vs "Russian Bear" Ivan Koloff for the WWWF Heavyweight Championship

Somehow, someway Dave McKigney got himself a WWWF Heavyweight title shot against Koloff. As I mentioned before, the big showdown with Pedro was less than two weeks away so it made sense for Koloff to beat up on the curtain jerkers on the spot show circuit to save the heavy hitters for future MSG shows. As expected, Koloff beats McKigney.

Winner: Koloff (Still WWWF Champion)

Match 6

Bulldog Brower vs Tomas Marin

Bulldog was very irate after failing to win the US title from Pedro Morales so he asked for an open challenge, anyone will do. Tomas Marin stepped up to the plate only to be dispatched by the angry Bulldog.

Winner: Bulldog

Match 7

Vincente Pometti vs Ernie Lassiter

The big rematch from three weeks earlier in the same arena as Pometti looks to avenge his loss to Ernie. Unfortunately for him, Ernie won again.

Winner: Lassiter

Match 8

WWWF US Champion Pedro Morales & Gorilla Monsoon vs The Mongols (Geeto & Beppo) for the WWWF International Tag Team Championship in a 2 out of 3 falls match.

Kind of telegraphing who wins this match because Pedro didn't need two belts. Ironically The Mongols would be split up for singles competition at MSG. The actual details of this match has been lost to time but as per norm, the bout ended in a draw. Don't know how the fans were sent home happy, maybe the faces cleaned house of the heels at the end.

Winners: No one (Draw)

Eight match cards are usually reserved for the big shows but remember this was 1971 and the "big" shows were still house shows. Basically Boston, Philadelphia, DC and New York were the core areas so Vince Sr usually had the home run shows booked for there. Koloff continues his run with the world title but Morales his hot on his trail. Blackjack Mulligan looked to put himself in a good position with Bulldog and Wolfman lurking around. The Mongols still had a stranglehold on the tag belts so things were done with purpose on this night. Well the crew was about to get busy because Vince Sr booked a double shot for the next day. Half the crew would go to North Attleboro while the other half went to Harrisburg, PA. That's where we'll pick up next time.

WWWF at Witchi's Sports Arena (1/1/71)

Witchi's Sports Arena

North Attleboro, MA

January 1, 1971

Happy New Year everyone! Its a new year for the World Wide Wrestling Federation and to kick the year off, we have a special show at the Witchi's Sports Arena in North Attleboro, Massachusetts. We got Arnold Skaaland, The Mongols and Joe Turco on the card. Let's kick the year off in style.....and 5 to 1 odds that half the card is hung over.

Match 1

Sandokan vs "Golden Boy" Arnold Skaaland

We kick the year off with the pride of Peru, Sandokan against the Golden Boy. Skaaland we all know but who was his opponent? Sandokan was born Luis Salazar Arenas and was the future promoter of GXLL in Mexico. Skaaland got the win.

Winner: Skaaland

Match 2

"Popeye" Chuck Richards vs Hurricane Rivera

Now this would have been a treat. Popeye Chuck was a badass wrestler in the 50's and 60's and is best known for being the grandfather of Chris "Skip" Candido. Hurricane Rivera was a veteran in Puerto Rico and Mexico. His real name is Jose Rivera which is why years later Jose Luis Rivera worked as Jose Luis or Mac so fans wouldn't get confused. It didn't work because when Hurricane died in October 2022, people thought it was Jose Luis. Richards got the win.

Winner: Richards

Match 3

The Black Demon vs "The Russian Bear" Ivan Koloff

Demon is actually Tony Nero. He wrestled mostly under this real name Anthony Aurelio but by now he was 47 years old and working as The Black Demon. The beauty of working in the days before cable and internet is you could go from territory to territory under different names and no one knew the wiser.  Koloff was due to face Bruno in a few weeks and he got the win here.

Winner: Ivan Koloff

Match 4

Tomas Marin vs "Nobleman" Joe Turco

Who is Tomas Marin? Tomas was a star in Puerto Rico who could have passed for a Wild Samoan with a big afro and bushy mustache.  Turco got the win here

Winner: Joe Turco

Match 5

Gorilla Monsoon and Manuel Soto vs The Mongols (Geeto and Beppo) in a 2 out of 3 falls match for the WWWF International Tag Team Championship

Lot of legends in this main event match. The WWE Tag Team titles as we know it hadn't been invented yet, The Mongols were the International Tag Team Champions at the time. Soto was a Puerto Rican star who was a fan favorite in New York since the late 60's. The Mongols were supposedly Mongolian when clearly neither of them were. Geeto Mongol was born Newton Tattrie in Nova Scotia and became a mainstay of Stampede Wrestling. That's where he met a young 20 year old Yugoslavian/Croatian named Josip Peruzovic in 1967. After training Josip, he was renamed Beppo Mongol and formed a tag team with Geeto. On June 15, 1970 the Mongols defeated Tony Marino and Victor Rivera to win the tag straps. So we got a fake Chinaman and two fake Mongolians.....wrestling everyone. Apparently the bout ended in a draw. By the way, if you ever see Beppo Mongol and thinks he looks familiar, its because he eventually became Nikolai Volkoff.

Winners: No one (Mongols retain)

Sounds like an interesting card for a local house show. North Attleboro is nowhere near the Boston Garden so a five match card seems pretty standard. The show did have a purpose with the tag belts on the line and building Ivan Koloff as Bruno Sammartino's next opponent at Madison Square Garden. Wrestling in those days was more "you gotta be there" than it is today and its unfortunate that so many matches and shows from the 70's have been lost to time. Still, we got MSG coming up so we got something to look forward to.