In this Mid-South Wrestling 2/6/82 review, Skandor Akbar has a master plan, Paul Orndorff squares off with Mr. Olympia, and much more.
Let’s jump in.
- Show:Â Mid-South Wrestling
- Date:Â February 6, 1982
RINGSIDE: Boyd Pierce and Bill Watts hype the big matches for this episode.
Bob Orton Jr. vs. Ken Woodby
Pretty sure this is our first look at Woodby in Mid-South, and I don’t expect his record to be 1-0 after this one. Orton takes things to the mat, where he uses his cerebral approach to go after multiple body parts. Orton hits the backbreaker and comes off the top before hitting the piledriver for the win. Woodby’s sell of the piledriver is a thing of beauty. (SQUASH)
RINGSIDE: Boyd with Ernie Ladd. The Big Cat is pissed, and Boyd isn’t taking any of his shit. GET HIM BOYD. Watts comes in and points out Skandor Akbar is in the ring representing The Samoans, and Ladd ain’t having it. He goes to the ring, and Akbar calls him a big dummy and blames him for the Samoans losing a match. Ladd hauls off on Akbar and takes it to Afa and Sika. A mystery man comes to the ring and hits a flying knee to Ladd’s knee as the medical team attends to him.
RINGSIDE: After the break, Watts reveals Ladd was helped to the back and there will be no tag title match.
Ron Cheatham vs. Ted DiBiase
This is a non-title match, the concern continues from Watts regarding Ladd’s knee injury. DiBiase’s work is fantastic at this stage of his career, and this wasn’t much of a contest with DiBiase locking in the Figure Four to notch the quick victory. (SQUASH)
RINGSIDE: Akbar is back, and he demands the tag title match be next on the show. Boyd goes off on his ass too. Watts wants to know who the mystery man is, but Akbar won’t tell him.
The Samoans (w/Skandor Akbar) vs. (c) The Junkyard Dog and Mike George – Tag Team Titles
So the match is made official based on Akbar’s demands. I love storylines like this one that weave their way throughout the entire episode. Afa and Sika control the early portion of the match, with some underhanded tactics adding to their advantage.
George eventually gets the tag and the action breaks down from there. Sika misses the headbutt off the top, but JYD moves and he takes away the chair from Afa. Here comes Akbar who throws the fire, but the chair is enough for JYD to block it. The referee is distracted, which leads to Afa hitting a Samoan drop on George on a chair to win the titles. More about the story than the match, but the crowd reaction was genuine and it had a great payoff. (**1/2)
Bob Roop vs. Frank Monte
Watts isn’t happy with how things turned out in the tag title match. He also announces Roop vs. JYD next week for the Louisiana Heavyweight title. Watts even throws in the tidbit that George was carried into the trainer’s room due to back spasms after the chair drop. The little things! Roop destroys Monte and gets the squash win. (SQUASH)
Paul Orndorff vs. Mr. Olympia
A non-title match here. Olympia gets the better of Orndorff in the early going, and that pisses off the latter. Nice back and forth, while the crowd cheers on Olympia in a big way. Orndorff reverses the momentum by nearly decapitating Olympia with a diving clothesline off the top.
Orndorff keeps going at him, but Olympia kicks out at two. Then Orndroff hits the powerslam, and Olympia kicks out at two and a half. Another kickout after the knee drop. Orndroff goes for the Figure Four, but Olympia fights him off. And now it’s Olympia reversing the piledriver attempt. Hell of a sequence.
Orndorff tries to regain control, but it’s Olympia who goes to the sleeper and Orndroff tries to fight out. But eventually, the arm drops a third time in dramatic fashion, and Olympia is your winner. This was a terrific match and easily one of the best thus far in this Mid-South rewatch series. (***1/2, Recommended)
Ed Wiskowski vs. Brian Blair
Another fun pairing. Mid-South is on a roll right now. Blair almost gets a quick small package for the win, but that only angers the Polish Prince. He beats down on Blair until the latter fights back. If you were expecting a finish in this one, you’re not getting it as these two continue to battle before the bell rings for the time limit draw.
BLAKE’S TAKE ON MID-SOUTH WRESTLING 2/6/82
Overall Rating: 8.5/10
Thoughts: A must-see episode of Mid-South Wrestling. The running storyline with Akbar stealing The Samoans from Ladd was entertaining, and the Orndorff vs. Olympia match was fantastic. This is how to effectively book an hour of pro wrestling television.
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