Wrestling At The Chase
8/5/77
 
Taped on 8/5/77
 
Larry Matysik welcomed the fans and announced that Jesse Ventura and Ken Patera were the new NWA Tag Team Champions of the World, having defeated the Andersons last week at the Kiel! Larry also hyped tonight’s show in Kansas City at Kemper Arena. Central States Champion D.I. Bob Slaughter came out and stated that he refused to give “that traitor” Stan Hansen another shot at his title! Instead, Slaughter would defend against that “Howdy Doody looking maggott” Bob Backlund! Slaughter stated that he had a new “recruit” and Hansen would have to deal with him in KC tonight! Slaughter blew a whistle and TANK PATTON marched to the interview area! Slaughter told Patton to take care of his light work and that was an order! Patton barked, “Sir, yes, sir!” in reply and headed to the ring!
 
Tank Patton vs. Terry Sawyer: Sawyer made things interesting for a few minutes, but Patton took over finished him with a big clothesline.
 
Bob Backlund vs. George Barnes: The tough Australian gives Bob some anxious moments, but Backlund wins with the atomic drop.
 
After the match, Bob is interviewed. Bob says that he’s looking forward to wrestling for the Central States title again tonight. Bob also challenges Missouri Champion Jack Brisco. Backlund says that the ultimate goal is Terry Funk’s NWA World Title. He also wishes Jack Brisco luck on August 26 when he wrestles for the World titles. Finally, Backlund says that he and his friends, Tatsumi Fujinami and Jos LeDuc are still looking to run the Heenan Family out of the territory and get revenge for Arnold Skoaland!
 
Ted DiBiase & Harley Race vs. Bearcat Brown & Ron Slinker: Race and DiBiase dominated the early going with quick tags and superior wrestling. Brown and Slinker isolated DiBiase for a few minutes and worked him over, but the Central States Champs proved to be superior as Race finished Brown with a cradle suplex.
 
After the match, Mickey Garagiola interviewed the Central States champs at ringside. On August 26, Race and DiBiase would get an NWA World Tag Team Titles IF they were still champs. Tonight in KC, they would face Bobby Heenan’s team of Hussein Arab and “The Hulk” Sterling Golden! Race said that with the finest young wrestler going today as his partner, he was confident that they would be the next World Champions. Ted talked about how powerful both Hussein & Golden and Ventura & Patera were, but stated that he and Harley had the teamwork and the ability to face any team no matter how big and powerful!  
 
A pre-taped locker room interview is shown of Ventura and Patera just moments after their World Tag Team Title victory. Jesse does all the talking, badmouthing the “old men” Ole and Gene Anderson and saying he and Patera are the future, baby! Ventura also badmouths the Central States champions calling them “has been” and “never was”.
 
”The Hulk” Sterling Golden & The Great Hussein Arab(w/Bobby Heenan) vs. George Gadaski & Kenny Jay: Heenan’s boys gear up for their Central States Tag Title match tonight. Larry Matysik has to admit that Hussein and Golden look great. Hussein gets a submission from Gadaski via the camel clutch.
 
Pat O’Connor vs. Seiji Sakaguchi(w/Bobby Heenan): This is a nip and tuck battle between two veterans. O’Connor is on the verge of winning when Heenan distracted him. Sakaguchi took full advantage by kneeing O’Connor in the back and getting the pin! Jos LeDuc and Tasumi Fujinami were standing by for an interview and entered the ring to protest! Heenan began taunting O’Connor and Pat decked him! Ox Baker, Sterling Golden, and Hussein Arab came to ringsside, but Backlund, DiBiase, and Race also came down and Heenan’s stable retreated!
 
LeDuc, Fujinami, Backlund, and O’Connor went to the interview area. Backlund says it’s a “darn shame” that a great wrestler like O’Connor was cheated by a weasel like Heenan. LeDuc calls promoter Clarence Grigsby out. When Grigs arrives LeDuc has two requests. First, he says that he and Fujinami are scheduled to wrestle Sakaguchi and Baker tonight in KC. LeDuc asks that it be changed to a six man with O’Connor as their third man and BOBBY HEENAN AS THE OPPOSING TEAM’S THIRD MAN! Grigs agrees! LeDuc then says:
 
“Here’s my second request, Mr. Promoter! Back in the days when I worked in the lumber camp, there were times when two men would have a dispute. They’d settle things by fighting it out! The other lumberjacks would form a circle around the two men as they fought and make sure nobody interfered and neither man left until it was settled! Now, all these years later, I got a problem with this bimbo Sterling Golden! On August 26, at the Kiel, I want me and Golden in the ring and wrestlers surrounding it I want a LUMBERJACK MATCH!”
 
Grigs says that it’s about time LeDuc and Golden settled things and agrees to book the match!
 
Bobby Heenan and his family are at the interview area when we return. Heenan is irate about having to wrestle tonight! Golden is furious about the Lumberjack Match! Bobby tells Ox Baker to heart punch Tatsumi Fujinami just like he did Skoaland!
 
Tatsumi “The Dragon” Fujinami vs. Ox Baker(w/Bobby Heenan): Baker demolishes Fujinami, beating him from pillar to post. It looks like an easy win for Ox, but Tatsumi gets a backslide out of nowhere for the pin! After the match, Baker continues to beat on Tatsumi and then goes for the heart punch! Fortunately, Bob Backlund hits the ring and makes the save as Larry Matysik signs off!
 
 
August 5, 1977
Kemper Arena
Kansas City, MO
 
Tonga Fifita pins Bearcat Brown at 9:28 with a savate kick.
 
Akio Sato pins Ron Slinker at 8:11 with a sunset flip.
 
Cowboy Bob Ellis goes to a 15 minute draw with Chris Markoff.
 
Spike Huber upsets Checkmate with a flying bodypress at 18:59.
 
Jos LeDuc, Tatsumi ”The Dragon” Fujinami, and Pat O’Connor beat Ox Baker, Seiji Sakaguchi, & Bobby Heenan at 13:33 when O’Connor puts Heenan away with the sleeper.
 
Stan Hansen fights Tank Patton to a bloody and brutal double countout at 10:02. They fight for several minutes afterward and it takes several security guards and officials to break it up.
 
Ted DiBiase and Harley Race successfully defend the Central States Tag Titles by beating The Great Hussein Arab & Sterling Golden(w/Bobby Heenan) at 25:49 when Race pins Golden after ducking a big boot and hitting a belly to belly.
 
Central States Champion D.I. Bob Slaughter beats Bob Backlund at 23:22 by pinfall with his feet on the ropes for leverage.  
 
 

I'm a big fan of the Race/Dibiase team, they're, by far, my favourite team in NWA Classics right now.  I hope to see them get a run with the World Tag Team Titles at some point.
 
Too bad O'Connor lost, that's a big win for Sakaguchi.
 
That last TV match was good, Fujinami looked good in that victory.  IIRC, Fujinami was jobbing in MACW at this time, IRL, but he was so good, I'm glad to see that he's being used to his full potential in NWA Classics.
 
I really enjoyed the KC card.  The 6-man tag team match was fun, especially with Heenan being part of it.
 
Race and Dibiase had a tough challenge in Sterling Golden and the Great Hussein Arab.  I wouldn't mind seeing more matches between those two teams.