It Gets So Hard In Times Like These To Hold On, But Guns They Wait To Be Stuck By, and On My Side is The King

Jerry Lawler/Bill Dundee v. Original Midnight Express AWA 10/30/87 - EPIC

PAS: This is for the AWA tag belts and is a match which on paper looks really awesome, but especially in the 80’s on paper matches were often pretty disappointing. This however was even better then it looked on paper. Lawler and Dundee are a great tag team, we all know what great individual wrestlers they are, and how well they match up against each other, but they also have great face tag team shtick. Their opening babyface in control section was just full of great stuff. I especially loved the variations on the partner blocks the Irish whip into the corner, also this was a punch marks dream match with both Lawler and Dundee breaking out tons of different combos. I especially loved the running left hook by Dundee. OMX were a lot fun in this too, especially Randy Rose who looked Eaton great in this, he takes a huge high backdrop, and has a bunch of fun offense. Slim Paul E. with his sport coat with rolled up sleeves throws in the phone and the OMX win the belts. I liked this more then any of the Rose/Somers v. Midnight Rockers matches and this was fucking with the high end Rock and Rolls v. Midnights matches.

TKG: Man this was fun. A lot of faces do stuff effectively, heels try same spots only to have the backfire. If you’ve seen the Memphis doc on youtube, you may remember the Hector Guerrero vs. Lawler spot where Hector puts Lawler across top rope and then kicks at him…Lawler tries same spot and Hector gets out of way. Lawler does same spot with Rose but with Lawler working face this time out. Lawler is caught with knee in corner and ends up face in peril eating a punch with a big bump to floor and then taking body slam on the floor running powerslam from Rose, etc. Dundee is all over the place as guy on apron…running after Heyman on the floor. Holding back heel from making tag while waiting for Lawler’s attempt to make hot tag etc. But really this match is about the early face in control section with the two faces just laying in punches and clotheslines..with Randy Rose just running head first into the fists and lariats. Dundee does a top rope knee drop with refs back turned. I don’t know what the top rope rule was at the time but ref turns around and really can’t figure out what’s going on as Lawler and Dundee switch off going for two counts on Rose before ref can figure out who is the legal man. I don’t know if it was a stunt granny but there is also a nun in the front row who punches at the air with every face punch and gets absolutely irate at all the heel cheating. I have no idea why I haven’t heard this match pimped before.

Jerry Lawler v. "Macho Man" Randy Savage WWF 7/4/94 - FUN

Pretty much a by the number Lawler heel match, which no matter how by the numbers is completely awesome..We get four or five minutes of shtick before any lock ups where King taunts the crowd, yells at the ref, pratfalls on some stairs, basically runs through the book. When we do get some contact, Lawler works a donut hole fake chain masterfully, including some truly jaw dislocating punches. No one in wrestling history knows more ways to pretend to hide a chain. He does this great taunt, after dropping Macho Man, where he does some push ups, stopping to elevate himself on one hand to pose to the crowd. Savage is a complete passenger, he does nothing in the match, as Lawler completely controls the match until he tries a piledriver, gets backflipped, Savage then tries a piledriver gets reversed but rolls through Lawler for the pin. Savages only offensive move was a sunset flip. Great opportunity to see Lawler work a broomstick, but I would have obviously liked to see Savage show up.

Jerry Lawler/Chris Michaels v. Bull Pain/Todd Morton XCW-Midwest 8/9/08 - EPIC

This is a match I had big expectations going into, and it totally exceeded them. Morton and Pain are a tremendous tag team, they take huge bumps, really violent offense, great at cutting off the ring, pretty much everything you want from a Southern Heel tag team. Morton really looks like one of the top 10 wrestlers in the world, his stuff is so crisp and athletic for a guy who has to be in his mid 40s, and his bumping is crazy. Usually in a tag match like this your big indy legend will hang around the ring apron and come in for a spot or two at the end, Lawler however worked about 70% of the match, bumping around the heels early, taking a big beating (including a ring post bump which is as good as the best post bumps on the Memphis set) and delivering the big comeback. Michaels looked good in his spots, but this was a Lawler showcase and it was awesome. Finish totally ruled with your big revenge spot by the crutch wearing Tony Falk son at ringside, and a Lawler Fireball. Hit up XCW Myspace and pick this up.

COMPLETE AND ACCURATE KING