Rick Rude vs Bruiser Brody (WCWA, 5-4-1986)

WCWA 3rd Von Erich Memorial Parade of Champions, Irving, TX

A request! This is for World Class’ world heavyweight title, held by Rude here in their post-NWA period. The belt can change hands on a disqualification here, and they’ve got a 60-minute time limit.

Brody also did a barbed wire match with Terry Gordy on this show. A lot of people worked double duty on this show, which still did a little over 24,000 at Texas Stadium.

(Requests open and tips always appreciated!)

One Match From Each of the First 10 WrestleManias

Today is WrestleMania. Well, tonight is the first part of the 40th WrestleMania, which now comes in two parts, because there is no greater master than money, and they can sell out two nights in a stadium with ease, or come so close that it doesn’t matter they didn’t; the point is these things make a lot of money for a company that could, just once, sacrifice bonus money for something special, but obviously they will not.

I don’t watch wrestling much anymore. This will change sometime, in one way or another; I have increasing doubts I will ever follow current wrestling the way I have in the past, though I did watch ACTION’s DEAN~!!! show on Thursday and the Ring of Honor show on Friday, and enjoyed both other than simply not having the desire to spend four hours watching wrestling shows anymore. It’s actually not that I have a lot else to be doing, but I do have other things I could do.

Tito Santana vs Rick Rude (WWF, 2-11-1989)

WWF on NESN, Boston, MA

From Boston Garden, and the “Supertape” Coliseum Video again. Rod Trongard and Lord Alfred Hayes are on the card. Tito de-shirts and Trongard points out a pleased lady in the audience.

(Requests open and tips always appreciated!)

Hulk Hogan vs Rick Rude (WWF, 1-9-1988)

WWF on NESN, Boston, MA

Hulk Hogan and Rick Rude had two singles matches ever, best I can tell, though there may have been a few more on house shows. This was their first, and the second came nine days later in Vancouver. It’s been pretty famously passed around for years that Hogan simply did not want to work with Rude, cited as one of the reasons Rude left the WWF in late 1990 and wound up in WCW about a year later.

(Ko-fi requests open!)

Rick Rude vs Lance Von Erich (WCCW, 12-25-1985)

WCCW Christmas Star Wars, Dallas, GA

Request via Ko-fi. To say that 1985 is no longer the height of World Class would be an understatement. The request was an amended one and for “World Class Star Wars shows matches, particularly Von Erichs-Freebirds stuff,” but there’s only so much of that available in full, so I wanted to chuck this in, too.

Ultimate Warrior vs Rick Rude (WWF, 8-27-1990)

WWF SummerSlam, Philadelphia, PA

This is the second half of the “double main event” for the SummerSlam ’90, following Hogan-Earthquake. The faith in Warrior’s title reign was just not there. These two had met at SummerSlam ’89, too, where Warrior regained the Intercontinental title from Rude, after Rude had beaten Warrior at WrestleMania V. This is in a STEEL CAGE to end their feud. It also more or less ends Rude’s WWF run.

Jake Roberts vs Rick Rude (WWF, 3-27-1988)

WWF WrestleMania IV, Atlantic City, NJ

Request via Ko-fi. The final of the six first round WWF title tournament matches at Mania IV. This is also the match that separates the strong from the weak when it comes to re-watching this show.

Jake Roberts & Jim Duggan vs Andre the Giant & Rick Rude (WWF, 5-31-1988)

WWF, Fresno, CA

What a tag team encounter this figures to be. Two of my favorites, but Ricky Rude and Jake Snake could both be guilty of lazing through matches, and if there’s ever a time to laze through something, it’s a tag that also involves WWF Duggan and ’88 Andre.

Jake Roberts vs Rick Rude (WWF, 10-29-1988)

WWF Saturday Night’s Main Event, Baltimore, MD

This was a big feud for both in ’88. They’d met at WrestleMania IV in an excruciatingly bad 15-minute draw in the opening round of the WWF title tournament, but took off from there when they involved Jake’s wife, Cheryl, and had Ricky Rude get tights with her head airbrushed on his hog. This was taped 10/25 for SNME.

Sting’s Squadron vs The Dangerous Alliance (WCW, 5-17-1992)

WCW WrestleWar, Jacksonville, FL

A request! Maybe the best WarGames match ever. STING’S SQUADRON are Sting, Ricky Steamboat, Barry Windham, Dustin Rhodes, and Nikita Koloff, while THE DANGEROUS ALLIANCE are Rick Rude, Steve Austin, Arn Anderson, Bobby Eaton, and Larry Zbyszko.