Ryan Navigates '90 - #46 (6/17 - 6/22)
“I am like a window too dark to see through; a mystery in my ways and my habits. The kind of man you’ll never understand because you’ve never been that kind of man!”
EDITOR’S NOTE: The wrestling world sustained a massive loss as Terry Brunk, best known to fans as Sabu, passed away on May 11th at the age of 60.
To many of us older fans, Sabu started off as a bit of a mythical figure; someone you often read about in the Apter mags and newsletters. The images and match descriptions really stuck with you, especially if most of your wrestling diet beforehand was the more “reigned-in” WWF and WCW fare. Hell, my first introduction to Sabu was at around 10 years old, when I read in a 1994 magazine about an incredibly wild brawl he had with Terry Funk. It was several years before I ever saw my first Sabu match, but even a write-up of one of his matches left a lasting impression. When I finally saw that specific contest nearly three decades later, it was even more insane than described.
Trained by his uncle, fellow hardcore pioneer The Original Sheik, Sabu's daredevil exploits and innovative brand of brutality made recordings of his matches a hot item among hardcore wrestling fans. Sabu had a hand in driving the popularity of tape trading and shaping the independent wrestling scene into what it would become.
Sabu was not only capable of dishing out creative violence, but he displayed ridiculous toughness. Even when sustaining broken bones, burns, and torn flesh, Sabu literally taped and superglued himself back together, and the show continued on. He rarely spoke, but that only added to his mystique.
Rocky as it might have been at times, Sabu's ECW run was his biggest success. He not only helped put eyes on the product with his wild, unpredictable fare, but he amassed many a championship. On his resume, ‘Bu had multiple ECW World Heavyweight Championships, a TV title run, and three reigns as tag champion (one with future rival Taz and two with fellow Michigander and Sheik trainee Rob Van Dam).
Sabu also had a brief WCW stint in 1995, was featured in WWE's ECW reboot, amassed plenty of work and accolades in TNA, and even had a couple of appearances in AEW. That’s not to mention the countless indie and international bookings he took throughout his career. In particular, Sabu had notable runs in FMW, AJPW, and even held the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship in NJPW.
Sabu was pure excitement, energy, and entertainment. There will never be another one like him.
Rest in peace, king.
For more on The Homicidal, Suicidal, Genocidal icon, Oliver Bateman wrote an excellent obituary that can be found here.
Good day!
We have a varied, but mostly international, slate today.
We kick off with a couple of matches from the Japan Grand Prix, AJW’s annual singles tournament. From there, we’ll take in some promos from the good ol’ USA, check out some shoot-style action from Newborn UWF, and close it off with our first look at Mexico’s Mini-Estrella action of 1990.
SUNDAY, JUNE 17th
All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling
The June 17th AJW show played host to the Japan Grand Prix, AJW’s annual singles tournament where the winner became the number one contender for the WWWA World Single Championship. The first of these tourneys took place in 1985 and, much like other annual Japanese wrestling tournaments, tended to fluctuate wildly over the years in terms of format and the number of competitors.
This year’s version is a seven-woman single-elimination tournament. Here be the brackets:
Last year’s winner, Mitsuko Nishiwashi, received a first-round bye.
Japan Grand Prix, First Round: Manami Toyota vs. Akira Hokuto - Sure, why not start off Part 46 with a matchup of two all-time future greats? During my Dive into ‘95 series, we looked at a much-heralded classic between these two, so it’ll be fun watching these two in their earlier years.
Toyota charges in right away with five dropkicks, but a missile dropkick is caught with a Boston crab attempt that Toyota wriggles out of. Hokuto soon wrecks Toyota with a pair of clotheslines and an overhead powerbomb for two. Hokuto slows things down with a sleeper, which transitions to a double chicken wing, then an armbar, but Toyota catches her in a cradle for two! Hokuto regains the upper hand and applies a torture crab hold, then turns it into a half-crab that she REALLY leans back on.
Hokuto continues stretching Toyota like Joshi taffy as the fans rhythmically chant. After some prolonged torture, Toyota finally makes the ropes. Hokuto hits a dropkick and some overhead suplexes for a two-count, then it’s back to the half-crab. Again, Toyota breaks via the ropes and dodges another dropkick, snapping up Hokuto in a jackknife cradle for two.
Toyota tries a crossbody, but Hokuto ducks! Toyota attempts to rally back with a top rope maneuver, but Hokuto dropkicks her to the floor in a nasty bump. Hokuto follows with a plancha, but she infamously destroys her knee on impact, tearing it open on the guardrail.
A tearful Hokuto tries to go full Sabu, wrapping her knee in bandaging in an effort to gut through the rest of the bout, but it was not to be. The ref eventually stops the match in favor of Toyota.
I’m not sure I can fairly rate this due to the sudden injury and stoppage, but these ladies were cooking up something fierce before Hokuto got hurt. The historical ramifications were likely why this was included on the match listing. It is believed that Hokuto was initially booked to win the entire tournament, but that unfortunate injury forced an audible to be called.
Japan Grand Prix, Final: Manami Toyota vs. Yumiko Hotta - This was another matchup that we had looked at before, as Toyota and Hotta had an absolute belter in Part 36 of Ryan’s Dive into ‘95. These two actually defeated last year’s finalists on their path to this final. After getting past Hokuto earlier, Toyota beat Madusa Miceli to make it here, while Hotta defeated Grizzly Iwamoto and last year’s winner, Mitsuko Nishiwaski, in the earlier rounds.
Like the Hokuto match, Toyota starts aggressively, cornering Hotta with a dropkick and beating her relentlessly in the corner. After dumping Hotta over the guardrail, Toyota follows with a big plancha into the crowd!
Upon re-entering, Hotta fires back with some palmstrikes and a nasty series of kicks. Hotta is revealed to be busted open from Toyota’s earlier onslaught, but she goes for a knucklelock. However, Toyota dropkicks out and again wallops Hotta in the corner…until Hotta catches a kick and slams her down.
Hotta nails a trio of clotheslines, including one from the second rope, for two, then hits a piledriver for another near-fall. Hotta then intercepts a dropkick attempt and applies a Boston crab. Toyota counters into a cradle for two, but Hotta hangs on during her escape and reapplies the hold.
Toyota reaches for the ropes, so Hotta REALLY leans to the back and cranks that thang.
Hotta releases and opts for a torture rack instead. After dumping Toyota on the mat for a two-count, Hotta grabs a double-leg grapevine before switching to an Achilles lock. The young girls in the crowd rally behind Toyota, who scratches and claws her way to the ropes. However, a relentless Hotta immediately grabs another brutal hold, this time being a high-angle half crab. Hotta then gets a Romero special, but couldn’t hold onto it for long.
Back up, Hotta hits a duo of overhead powerbombs, but Toyota kicks out at two! Toyota catches a kick, but Hotta blasts her with an enzuigiri before laying in more vicious kicks. Hotta hits a butterfly suplex, but Toyota defiantly bridges out of the pin, earning vociferous cheers from the fans. Hotta continues to wear down Toyota, this time with a grounded sleeper/chokehold.
After releasing the hold, Hotta hits a German suplex for a VERY close two-count, then earns another near-fall with a fisherman’s suplex. Toyota snatches her in a rolling cradle for a quick two, then she starts to come back with a crossbody for two. A second-rope crossbody gets another near-fall, then it’s Toyota’s time to take Hotta to the mat with a grounded rear chinlock.
Toyota releases after Hotta shows no signs of fading, then Irish whips her in for another grounded sleeper/chinlock. Toyota again lets go and drops a leg on Hotta before going for another Irish whip…but Hotta clocks her with an elbow on the rebound! However, Toyota surges back with a series of dropkicks and goes for the cover…but Hotta BARELY gets her foot on the ropes before three.
After some waistlock reversals and a roll-up attempt, Hotta hits a twisting press for another close call. Hotta goes for a tiger suplex, but Toyota collapses on top of her and hits a German suplex for another two. Toyota ducks a clothesline, but Hotta gets enough of a second one to dizzy Toyota for a backslide attempt for another near-fall.
After Hotta hits a vertical suplex for a near-fall, Toyota gets a desperation roll-up attempt, then follows with a Northern Light suplex variant for another pair of twos. Seconds later, Toyota ducks a corner clothesline and gets a sunset flip for the three!
The fans (and Toyota) are ecstatic while Hotta is absolutely crushed.
****1/4 - This was an excellent tournament final. Toyota was terrific here, especially considering she wasn’t originally intended to get past the opening round. Her aggression in the early going, selling, and desperation were palpable, and she did a great job incorporating her athleticism into the underdog story. Hotta was awesome at torturing Toyota while the fans rallied behind their hero. Her savage strikes and painful submissions, especially on someone as resilient and malleable as Toyota, really do a great job of building sympathy.
Some of the action was pretty messy, especially near the end, but it did help get across how unpredictable the story was. That said, there were a couple of instances where the action did get especially loosey goosey for my liking, but those are minor issues compared to how stellar the rest of the match was.
WWF Wrestling Challenge
“Mean” Gene Okerlund welcomes Jake “The Snake” Roberts to the interview platform this week. Jake has his snake out for everyone to see.
I’m referring to Damien, you weirdos.
Gene askes why the python isn’t in the bag, to which Jake says he needed someone to watch his back after last week. Okerlund reminds the fans that, after a Jake squash, Bad News Brown attacked him from behind. Roberts says that a tough man doesn’t attack from behind, but goes up to him face-to-face and dares to take the snake.
Jake then calls Bad News “Sad News”. Oh, got his ass.
Gene points out that Bad News Brown, much like many foes of Jake Roberts, suffers from ophidiophobia (the fear of CHIKARA star Ophidian snakes). Jake playfully asks if he really is the kind of guy who exploits the fear of other men, then confirms he very much is that man. Jake then closes the interview with this absolute banger:
“I am like a window too dark to see through; a mystery in my ways and my habits. The kind of man you’ll never understand because you’ve never been that kind of man!”
This promo was way better than what a feud involving mutant sewer rats deserved. Absolutely killer closing line from Jake there as he continues to have a banner year for promos.
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20th
USWA Evansville TV (Memphis)
From the Evansville market, we get the promo from Jerry “The King” Lawler from Part 43 that talks about Leon Spinks costing him the USWA Unified World Heavyweight Championship against The Snowman (we’ll get to that next time). This confirms my suspicions that it was meant to be placed later in the timeline and not June 13th. I talk more about the promo in Part 43, so feel free to click the hyperlink above for more.
IWA Championship Wrestling
We return to the sandy shores of IWA with a Junkyard Dog interview, conducted by someone I don’t recognize. This was taped many months ago, long before JYD started in WCW.
JYD saw his name across from Jerry “The King” Lawler’s on a marquee and said “Good golly, Miss Molly!”, then claims that there would be no better Mother’s Day or Father’s Day present than the Dog wearing a crown. JYD found himself a bone to chew on! The unknown interviewer brings up Dog’s “great” matches with Lawler in Memphis, and JYD says he’s been to the mountain top, and he’ll be back up there again!
Like with Lawler’s initial IWA interview, this was a prototypical JYD promo to establish him with a new-ish audience. I like how JYD hedged his bets, referring to both Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. Not even he knew when this episode was airing.
THURSDAY, JUNE 21st
UWF Idea
Akira Maeda vs. Nobuhiko Takada - We saw these two cross paths all the way back in January in a match that could have been better, but was still rather good.
Both men are tentative to start, trading the occasional thigh kick. Takada gets a couple of quick shots out of a collar-and-elbow tie-up, so Maeda tries to fire back with head kicks…but Takada catches one and applies a grounded anklelock. Maeda burns a rope break to escape, then we return to the cautious stand-up game. After a few kicks are teased, Maeda catches a corner kick and takes Takada down with a leglock.
After some struggle, Takada uses a rope break to end the hold, then we get Takada flurrying with some slaps and kicks, including a leaping back kick. Back on the mat, the fellas work leglocks on each other with Maeda transitioning into a side mount to go after the arm. Takada rolls over and attempts a jujigatame, but Maeda manages a partial mount and slaps Takada silly. Maeda goes for a short arm scissors, but now it’s Takada’s turn to slap and kick Maeda into gelatin.
Back up, Maeda fires back with kicks aplenty, knocking Takada down for a nine-count. Both men exchange gut punches, but Maeda rocks Takada with an uppercut for an eight-count. Takada, now down two knockdowns to zero, comes back with a kick series of his own to knock Maeda down!
Maeda arises at 8, but he quickly gets rocked by another blistering series of kicks from Takada to even the tally at two knockdowns apiece. Maeda again arises at 8, then quickly hits a brutal series of knees. He tries a spinning heel kick that barely clips Takada, who capitalizes by securing a legbar. Takada works that for a while, with Maeda trying to devise a counter using Takada’s arm, but Maeda concedes and eats a rope break instead.
With both guys on their feet, Maeda gets a bevy of palmstrikes, and we get a furious exchange of kicks and strikes until Maeda gets a single-leg takedown that he converts into an anklelock.
Takada eventually makes the ropes, then unloads with some palmstrikes, one of which appears to have caught Maeda in the eye. After a quick breather, Takada lifts Maeda into a waterwheel drop and applies a half-crab! Maeda again breaks the hold with the ropes. As that’s his third rope break, a knockdown is added to his count.
Maeda gets back up, but he quickly gets knocked down with some slaps! Maeda, now on his last knockdown, makes it back up at 8, halts a takedown attempt with a kick, then tries for a jujigatame, which succeeds! However, Takada makes the ropes for his third rope break, using up a down in the process. The current tally is 4 knockdowns against Maeda, and 3 for Takada.
Moments later, Takada intercepts a kick, and Maeda tries for a spinning kick to counter…but Takada dodges! However, Maeda himself catches a Takada kick, sinks in a DEEP ankle lock, and forces an immediate tap! Maeda snatches the win out of nowhere!
**** - Yeah, this was pretty awesome, and a much better showing than their prior match as it didn’t drag nearly as much. Both guys brought the stiff strikes and astute grappling, but the desperation, dramatic tension, and rapid-fire sequences really made this stand out. Like Yoshiaki Fujiwara, Takada’s been having a great in-ring year.
FRIDAY, JUNE 22nd
EMLL Super Viernes
Espectrito & Piratita Morgan vs. Mascarita Sagrada & Aguilita Solitaria - It’s our first look at Mini-Estrella (“Mini-Star”) action in the Navigation. I did touch on the subject when I reviewed one of these matches in my Dive into ‘95 series, but the Mini-Estrella division was meant to showcase wrestlers who either had dwarfism, or were otherwise very short. The wrestlers also typically portrayed smaller versions of existing EMLL characters.
While these contests were originally intended to be sideshow attractions played up for laughs like in the United States, minis matches evolved beyond that. Comedy would be blended in with high-level athleticism, resulting in some legitimately engrossing matches.
Sagrada was probably the most famous of the minis, having appearances in WCW, TNA, and even a couple of stints in the WWF (both as Mascarita Sagrada and as Super Nova). Sagrada also appeared in movies in his native Mexico, an uncredited cameo in the Billy Crystal/Gheorghe Muresan vehicle, “My Giant”, and an ad campaign for Virgin Mobile.
Morgan was a long-time stalwart of the mini wrestlers, having a long rivalry with Sagrada. They even had a match against each other at TNA Victory Road 2004, the company’s first monthly 3-hour PPV. Like several other minis, Morgan also appeared in the WWF in the late 1990s, under the Battalion gimmick. He sadly passed away in 2018. Solitaria also wrestled as Super Munequito, and we saw him and Espectrito in a fantastic one-on-one match in Ryan’s Dive into ‘95, Part 27.
PRIMERA CAIDA: Solitaria and Espectrito start off…or not, as they tag Sagrada and Morgan in. After a handshake, Sagrada overwhelms Morgan with a series of takedowns and armdrags before downing him with a big chop. Espectrito and Solitaria check back in, with Espectrito doing a fancy flipping entrance into the ring…only to eat an Aguilita dropkick. Espectrito comes back with some slams and suplexes, but Aguilita sends him packing with an armdrag. Sagrada and Morgan return to the fray, with Morgan collapsing Sagrada with a chop and hurling him with an armdrag.
Sagrada rallies back with a rebound crossbody, but Morgan bounces him away to counter a shoulderblock. Sagrada hits a flying headbutt, but Morgan rebuffs another one.
They exchange missed sentons, then Morgan flies out of the ring after a whiffed shoulderblock. Solitaria and Espectrito return, with Espectrito falling victim to a huge back body drop and a sweet series of armdrags that send him to the floor. Morgan comes in and blasts Aguilita with some palmstrikes, then Espectrito hits a huge flapjack. The rudos look to dish out more punishment, but Sagrada flips over Espectrito and (kind of) catches Morgan with a bodypress for three. Solitaria then counters a sunset flip attempt from Espectrito into a pin of his own for three and the first fall!
SEGUNDA CAIDA: Morgan catches Aguilita with a back body drop, but Solitaria fires back with a monkey flip. Solitaria continues to stymie Morgan with acrobatics, then Espectrito and Sagrada re-enter the match, with Espectrito gaining the upper hand with a clothesline. However, Sagrada comes back with a multi-rotation anklescissors and a huge rebound crossbody from the top rope! Sagrada looks for another rebound move, but Espectrito seeks refuge on the floor.
Morgan attacks from behind, turning the tide back in the favor of the rudos. The tecnicos are whipped into each other, then Morgan drops Aguilita with a powerbomb for three. Espectrito catches Sagrada in a torture rack for the submission and the second fall.
TERCERA CAIDA: Espectrito batters Solitaria around ringside, viciously strangling him with a television cable. In the ring, Morgan and Espectrito have their way with Sagrada, hitting a couple of press slams, and Espectrito dropkicking him off the top rope to the floor. Solitaria re-enters and gets pummeled by the baddies, with the abuse spilling to the floor.
Sagrada gives chase on the floor, even hitting Morgan with a flying headscissors! In the ring, attempted double-teams for the rudos go awry, as Aguilita dodges Espectrito’s attacks, causing him to hit Morgan a couple of times. Morgan’s had enough and starts smacking Espectrito! Solitaria’s on fire now, hitting all manner of armdrag counters…until Espectrito puts him down with a big boot.
More heel miscommunication leads to Sagrada hitting a nice flying headscissors on Morgan, then Morgan accidentally causes Sagrada to hit one on Espectrito! Sagrada then boots Espectrito (with an unwitting assist from Morgan), then Morgan monkey-flips Sagrada into an armdrag on Espectrito! Solitaria dumps Morgan out and follows with a tope suicida!
Sagrada hits a twisting senton onto Espectrito, then follows with a flying armdrag that transitions into a crucifix pin for three! Morgan is counted out, so the tecnicos win the third fall!
***1/2 - Much fun was had with this one, especially in that third fall. Those heel miscommunication spots were spectacular in their timing and cleverness. Solitaria was quite entertaining, and Sagrada was especially impressive with his high flying. Morgan and Espectrito were not only great at clowning, but they were excellent bases for the tecnicos’ aerial moves.
Post-match, some regular-sized rudos…
…come in and help beat the crap out of Sagrada and Aguilita, including Fuerza Guerrera. Some tecnicos, including Mascara Sagrada, come out to assist, and the chaos culminates in Mascarita Sagrada hitting a plancha on Fuerza that he sells like a burlap sack full of cannonballs landed on him.
THE TUGBOAT TRIBUNE
As always, the news comes courtesy of Dave Meltzer and the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
Rick Rude has been sidelined with a torn triceps, but the WWF is still advertising him for house shows.
This bait-and-switch from The Fed will go on to have much bigger ramifications later on, as we’ll see during the course of this series.
Haku had been taking his place against Ultimate Warrior at house shows.
John Nord is said to be in talks with the WWF.
This would, of course, lead to The Viking/The Berzerker wreaking havoc on the WWF midcard, starting in 1991.
HUSS!
The Hulk Hogan/Earthquake angle drew an 11.1 rating on syndication, which is pretty huge.
This ends up being a pretty successful program, especially in comparison to the Ultimate Warrior/Rick Rude feud.
Sid Vicious has apparently been missing NWA shows due to his softball league.
Sid’s still not medically cleared to wrestle until July 1st, but he’s been benching 400lbs and playing ball during his time off. That got him some pretty big heat backstage.
He’d normally be fired for something like that, but you'd end up serving Sid to the WWF on a silver platter, so they’re looking into other ways to address this.
Sid explained his side of things in an interview years ago, essentially saying he lost too much weight recovering from his punctured lung, and the office told him to go back home and gain more weight.
The quickie loss to Lex Luger at Clash of the Champions XI was apparently part of his punishment for this.
NEXT TIME: We have a new USWA Unified World Heavyweight Champion (that was spoiled in the Jerry Lawler promo from earlier)! Also, Terry Funk and Stan Hansen rumble on the river, that hot sauce thing I erroneously teased a couple of issues ago, and more!
Catch up on the rest of Ryan Navigates ‘90
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