WWE Recap: Saturday Night Main Event (May 1986)

We open the show with a preview of the card. This looks like it will suck. But here we go anyway, live with Vince McMahon and....Bobby "The Brain" Heenan? Well that's a nice surprise. They quickly set up the rivalry between the Funks and Junkyard Dog, including their Wrestlemania match. That'll be the first match tonight.


Hoss and Terry Funk w/ Jimmy Hart vs Junkyard Dog and Hulk Hogan

Hogan and JYD bring the Haiti Kid to ringside, and the Funks counter by having Jimmy Jack Funk tag along. Hogan wears some of JYD's spare chains down the aisle. JYD wears a "Hulkamania" shirt.. As soon as they hit the ring, the Dog bodyslams both Funk brothers while Hogan gets on all fours and headbutts each of them. The crowd loves it. The ring is cleared. As they finally get to actual wrestling, JYD goes at it with Hoss, then after a bodyslam, Terry. Terry looks like he's going to have a little more success, but he misses a dive at the turnbuckle and slams into the ringpost and back out of the ring. He then goes after the Haiti Kid, who Heenan refers to as a "dirty little midget" (Yikes). He's dragged back into the ring by JYD, who goes back to work. Hoss tags in, so JYD tags in Hogan. There's a silly spot where Hogan and Terry Funk bounce off the ropes at the same time. Hogan moves to the side, while Terry and Hoss bounce off the ropes back and forth multiple times before Hogan boots one, then clotheslines the other. The Funks gain the advantage once JYD is back in the ring. After a few minutes, they all wind up in the ring again, and Hoss takes a ride into the corner, then Funk is thrown into him. Jimmy Hart, meanwhile uses the branding iron on Haiti Kid on the apron. JYD carries the Kid down the aisle as we go to commercial. JYD eventually makes it back down, but Hogan gets tossed out of the ring, where Terry Funk drills him in the ribs with the branding iron. He and Hart beat on him, then Terry takes him halfway down the aisle to beat him more. JYD shows up, though, and bodyslams him on the concrete. Then Hogan gives him a backdrop. Things get back in the ring, and Hoss gets ahead of JYD. Terry tags in and throws some punches, but JYD Hulks up and takes out Terry. The Dog tries to tag, but Terry bodyslams him, then climbs the ropes. He dives, but misses, and JYD makes the hot tag. Hogan comes in on fire. Clothesline, big boot, legdrop, and the three count. Winners: Junkyard Dog and Hulk Hogan.

After the match, the Funks attack from behind and get Haiti Kid, who had returned, in the ring alone. The Funks hold him while Jimmy Hart clocks him. He tries to hold his feet for Terry to brand him, but Hogan pulls Hart's legs, then he holds Hart while the Kid takes some shots. JYD and Hogan get back in the ring with the Funks, including Jimmy Jack who showed up. The Funks just leave, however, and the babyface duo celebrate with dances and poses. The match itself was so-so, but the extracurricular activities were mostly fun. I'm a little surprised Jimmy Jack wasn't involved earlier.




King Kong Bundy w/ Bobby "The Brain" Heenan vs Uncle Elmer

They show us the weigh-ins, and Bundy has 30+ pounds on him, but I'm not buying that. They look pretty equally round, and Elmer is quite a bit taller. Anyway, they meet in the middle of the ring, literally, with neither man budging much. Bundy does start to land some punches, and gets Elmer on the mat. Elmer fights back, and hits a splash in the corner. He goes for another splash, but Bundy moves and Elmer falls. Bundy hits an elbow drop for the pin. Winner: King Kong Bundy

Smart move to keep this short. It was nothing but a couple of punches, a splash and an elbow. A monster big man is a good thing. Two big men fighting each other continues to be boring.




Adorable Adrian Adonis w/ Jimmy Hart vs "Mr Wonderful" Paul Orndorff

We're shown Adonis in his dressing room where he has a cardboard cutout of Orndorff. He praises the looks of Mr Wonderful, but says he's going to be vicious in the ring. Orndorff opens with a couple of arm drags, then back-to-back bodyslams. Adonis tumbles out of the ring. He's brought back in the hard way, then thrown hard into the corner, where he flies upside down out of the ring again. Adonis is brilliant at selling these bumps. Adonis takes his time getting back in, but is met with an abdominal stretch when he gets there. The adorable one gets control when he uses a cheap shot. He hits Orndorff with blows to the back of the head and an arm drag. It doesn't take long for Adonis, though, to take another bump to the outside. This time, Orndorff drags Jimmy Hart into the ring and tosses him over the ropes and onto Adonis. After a commercial, Mr Wonderful puts Adonis into an airplane spin. Adonis grabs the ropes, and the two of them miss a spot. They were supposed to go over the top, but it didn't happen. Hart gets involved, and Orndorff chases him into the ring. He catches him in the corner, but Adonis hits him with the megaphone from behind. He then doles out punishment for a bit, with kicks in the ribs, and an elbow drop to the throat. He also lands a nice suplex, but only gets a one-count. So he climbs the ropes, but lands on the knees of Orndorff. Now, momentum changes. Adonis gets tangled in the ropes and Orndorff hits him with some kicks to the sternum. He also takes a shot at Hart. Then, he snaps. He rips the dress off of Adonis and chokes him with it. When the ref tries to break it up, he shoves him across the ring. The crowd seemed unsure of what to do, but did cheer once Adonis fell to the floor. Winner: Adorable Adrian Adonis

This looks like the beginning of a heel turn by Orndorff, though the crowd still cheered at the end. The match was too long and one-sided. The ending was ok, though.



We're shown highlights from Hulk Hogan vs King Kong Bundy from Wrestlemania 2. Hogan also interviews with Mean Gene and says he will get revenge on Magnificent Muraco and Mr Fuji next.


Jake "The Snake" Roberts vs Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat

Roberts attacks with a clothesline before Steamboat can even get into the ring. He then drops to the floor and hits a DDT right on the concrete. He throws and unconscious Dragon back in the ring, then drops Damien on his chest. Officials come down to drive Jake off. Steamboat has to be taken off on a stretcher. Winner: None declared. Match never offically started

This was a brilliant segment that set Jake "The Snake" up as a real bad guy, and set up a revenge angle for Steamboat. The DDT looked devastating, and the announcers had the proper emotion for the scene.




Nikolai Volkoff and Iron Sheik w/ Fred Blassie vs The British Bulldogs (Tag Team Championship)

This will be a two out of three falls match. Volkoff and Davey Boy start off match number one. Smith starts strong, but Volkoff drops him on his neck on the ropes and gets control. The Sheik tags in and hits an impressive back drop. He then locks in the Camel Clutch and it's over. The heels win the first match.

Davey Boy is in pain to start round two, but he starts the match. Volkoff kicks him in his head and ribs, then the Sheik tags in and inflicts more pain. Volkoff is back in and stomps Smith some more, but Smith manages a sunset flip. The Sheik distracts the referee, though, and Volkoff gets out. Sheik hits a slam, then gets a near-fall. Volkoff gets another near-fall. The announcers speculate that Dynamite Kid must be hurt, which is why Davey Boy started this match, despite being pinned in match one. Vokoff hits power slam, but Smith manages to get his foot on the rope. Volkoff, however, thinks he got a three count, and celebrates. Davey Boy shoves him from behind into the Sheik, then rolls him up for a three-count, evening the teams at one win apiece.

Davey Boy starts the third match as well. He is immediately attacked by Volkoff. The announcers confirm that Dynamite Kid has a torn knee ligament. Smith is on the receiving end of punishment again, and Sheik locks in a Boston Crab. He reaches the ropes to break the hold. Volkoff comes in, but catches a shot from Davey Boy. The Sheik tags back in, but Smith meets him with a running power slam. He covers, but Volkoff breaks it up. Finally, Davey Boy tags in Dynamite Kid. He's limping, though, and the heels take advantage. They double-team him in the corner, then the Sheik locks in the Camel Clutch. Davey Boy comes in and so does Volkoff. In a reversal of the norm, the ref pushes Volkoff out. Davey Boy knocks the Sheik out of his hold, then rolls him up in a pin. He's not the legal man, but the ref counts to three anyway. Winners: The British Bulldogs

The story of the match, that Davey Boy Smith had to do it all alone due to injury played out nicely, but without Dynamite Kid's athletic ability, the match suffered somewhat. It was one-sided, by design, but the crowd did love the ending, even though Bobby Heenan was right that it was a miscarriage of justice.




Overall Impressions

It was a relatively uninspired card. The matches weren't very good, but they did pretty well with the stories. Jake Roberts got a big boost as a top heel, Orndorff set up a heel turn, and the Bulldogs won in questionable fashion, leaving room for further encounters with Volkoff and the Sheik.

Winners: 
Jake Roberts: He looked very strong here, and established himself as a major threat.

Losers:
The Sheik and Volkoff: Losing when you have a two-to-one advantage is never a good thing.




Things I Would Have Changed

I keep saying this, but less big man vs big man. Give us more Randy Savage or Bret Hart instead.

The ending to the tag team championship match feels off. I would have had the same finish, but with the heels winning instead.