CAPITOL WRESTLING WITHDRAWS FROM NWA

[murphy42782]

The Capitol Wrestling Corporation leaves the NWA and becomes the World Wide Wrestling Federation

January 1963 - Vincent J. McMahon, Toots Mondt, and Company decided to leave the NWA for a number of reasons. They believed Buddy Rogers should be the champion while the NWA wanted to push Lou Thesz was the major one. Thesz, while a great mat technician, was never very popular in the Northeast Triangle as the Entertainment was in showmanship. McMahon and his cohorts, along with Buddy Rogers, decided that they could thrive after leaving and so the decision was made to leave the Alliance.

(Much like in real life, they will have a tournament to crown their 1st world champion and it will take place in April of 1963 in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil)

The Roster
Faces
Bill Watts
Bobo Brazil
Pedro Morales

Antonino Rocca & Miguel Perez
The Native Americans (Jay Strongbow & Wahoo McDaniel)
The Rougeau Brothers (Jacques Rougeau & Johnny Rougeau)

Heels
Buddy Rogers
Gene Kiniski
Gorilla Monsoon
Johnny Valentine
Killer Kowalski
Larry Hennig
Pat Patterson
The Golden Grahams (Dr. Jerry Graham, Eddie Graham, & Luke Graham)

Also Bruno Sammartino is negotiating with McMahon to make a return in coming months since he left to go to San Fransisco to wrestle for Roy Shire amidst pay disputes with the CWC. McMahon and company know they need to get Bruno away from NWA Booking and locked into a contract to perform for their new empire in professional wrestling known as the World Wide Wrestling Federation

***Just as an aside, I have through 1966 booked and just need to write them up as they are all simmed out.***

[murphy42782]

World Title Tournament - Rio De Janeiro 4/13/63

[Round 1]:
Buddy Rogers pinned Bill Watts with the Figure-Four Leglock in 0:14:40.
Rating: *** 1/4

[Round 1]:
Bobo Brazil pinned Larry Hennig with the Coco Butt in 0:02:16.
Rating: -1/2*

[Round 1]:
Jay Strongbow defeated Gene Kiniski when Gene Kiniski passed out in the Sleeper
in 0:06:21.
Rating: * 1/2

[Round 1]:
Eddie Graham defeated Jacques Rougeau Sr. when Jacques Rougeau Sr.
passed out in an armlock leglock submission in 0:08:05.
Rating: **

[Round 1]:
Antonino Rocca pinned Gorilla Monsoon after a monkey flip in 0:13:25.
Rating: * 1/4

[Round 1]:
Johnny Rougeau and Killer Kowalski battled to a draw in 0:10:00.
Rating: *** 1/4

[Round 1]:
Miguel Perez defeated Johnny Valentine via pinfall in 0:11:28.
Rating: 3/4*

[Round 1]:
Pedro Morales and Dr. Jerry Graham battled to a draw in 0:20:00.
Rating: ** 1/2

[Round 2]:
Buddy Rogers pinned Bobo Brazil with the Figure-Four Leglock in 0:14:02.
Rating: ***

[Round 2]:
Jay Strongbow defeated Eddie Graham when Eddie Graham passed out in
a figure-four leglock in 0:03:45.
Rating: ** 1/2

[Round 2]:
Antonino Rocca & Miguel Perez won via default.

[Semi-Finals]:
Buddy Rogers pinned Jay Strongbow with the Figure-Four Leglock in 0:22:57.
Rating: **** 1/2

[Semi-Finals]:
Antonino Rocca pinned Miguel Perez after a cross-body block in 0:20:58.
Rating: ** 3/4

[Finals]: Match for the vacant WWF World Heavyweight Title:
Buddy Rogers pinned Antonino Rocca after a piledriver in 0:16:17.
Rating: ** 3/4
(Buddy Rogers won the WWF World Heavyweight Title.)


Card rating: ** 3/4

This being the first card since leaving the NWA, there was little surprise the new "World Heavyweight Champion" was crowned. And little surprise that "The Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers was the victor.

Match of the night was the Semi-Final match between Buddy Rogers and Jay Strongbow. Strongbow performed well and looks to carry this momentum forth as he teams with Wahoo McDaniel to to battle two-thirds of the Golden Grahams next month.

Killer Kowalski felt he should be champ and rumor has it he was gonna shoot on Antonino Rocca, who WWWF officials wanted in the finals the following round, so they decided to have the ref call for the time limit draw 3 minutes before the origional ending of the match. Kowalski irate quit on the spot and told McMahon to shove this second rate organization up his ass.

May 11th, 1963 Live From Madison Square Garden:

World Title Match - Bill Watts vs WWWF World Champion, Buddy Rogers
The Native Americans (Jay Strongbow & Wahoo McDaniel) vs Eddie & Luke Graham
The Rougeau Brothers vs Larry Hennig & Pat Patterson
Bruno Sammartino's return to the East Coast
and the debut of a new wrestler

[magiccitydawg]

I am likeing the start of this one. Love the old-school wrestling anyway. Like Ryback says, " Feed Me More!" ;D

[snabbit888]

Very cool to see this. I'm clearly a fan of this time period as this is when I started GCW. Buddy Rogers is a great jumping block.

First question - you say you have cards through 1966 simmed. Are you running booked or unbooked?

Either way, like the use of talent. Will definitely be reading this.

[murphy42782]

Will be mostly booked. I ran the tournament knowing I wanted the "real life final". I know Rogers beat Rocca for the strap so the rest I let play out a little. Also Bruno was amidst one of his pay disputes at this point and returned shortly. Hence his inclusion in Mays card.

[murphy42782]

Next card should be up tonight hopefully. Thanks for reading.

[ianclark]

Really interested in this as don't know much about this time period in the WWF's history - keep up the good work!

[murphy42782]

Live Event at MSG - 5/11/63

The Rougeau Brothers (Jacques Rougeau Sr. and Johnny Rougeau) defeated Larry Hennig and Pat Patterson when Jacques R. made L. Hennig
submit to a side headlock in 0:08:30.
Rating: * 3/4
The Night kicked off with the brothers from North of the border coming out much to the delight of the crowd. They promised to thrill fans all across the world and as they continued to speak were mugged by Larry Hennig & Pat Patterson. Hennig & Patterson showed some promise as a team, but were no match for the Rougeau Brothers in this one

Gene Kiniski defeated Pedro Morales by disqualification in 0:10:57.
Rating: * 1/4
In a good back and forth battle, Kiniski decided to introduce brass knux into the match behind the officials back. Morales, however, saw it coming and ducked. He grabbed the knux and took a wild swing at Kiniski as the ref was turning his attention back to the fight. Morales' fiery Latin temper got the better of him as he decked not only Kiniski but the official as well.

Bobo Brazil pinned Johnny Valentine with the Coco Butt in 0:03:12.
Rating: ** 1/4
Best match of the night so far saw Bobo Brazil overcome Johnny Valentine much to the delight of fans. Brazil even had a young fan come in the ring and dance with him afterwards.

Whipper Billy Watson pinned Miguel Perez with the Piledriver in 0:17:03.
Rating: * 1/2
Next up Miguel Perez had the joy of wrestling a brand new wrestler on the roster, Canadian star Whipper Billy Watson. Bruno Sammartino spent some time wrestling up North and rumor has it put in more then a good word for Watson during his negotiations to return. Watson and Perez had a decent match. Following the bout both men shook hands in a great display of sportsmanship.

Bruno Sammartino made Dr. Jerry Graham submit to the Sammartino Backbreaker in 0:19:23.
Rating: *** 1/2
Dr. Jerry Graham came out and said while McMahon and Mondt were off kissing Bruno's ass, they failed to realize that the WWWF was already home to the greatest talent alive, referring to Himself and his brothers. This brought out Bruno and the match was on. Bruno was sharp and Dr. Jerry showed that he was every bit as ready. In the end though it was Sammartino proving to be to powerful.

Gorilla Monsoon made Antonino Rocca submit to the Airplane Spin in 0:13:51.
Rating: ***

The Golden Grahams (Eddie Graham and Luke Graham) and
The Native Americans (Jay Strongbow and Wahoo McDaniel) battled to a draw in 0:20:00.
Rating: * 1/2
The last two bouts were all about establishing a pecking order here in the WWWF and Gorilla Monsoon made everyone aware of his massive size and skill set, while Rocca & the tag teams failed to put the right foot forward. Next month it was announced will be a tournament for the Tag Team Titles.

Buddy Rogers pinned Bill Watts with the Figure-Four Leglock in 0:12:47.
Rating: ** 3/4
(Buddy Rogers retained the WWF World Heavyweight Title.)
This was a rematch from the spectacular bout in the first round of the tournament. Rematch didnt disappoint as Rogers and Watts put on a show for the MSG crowd. Rogers looked particularly good in his first title defense.

Card rating: ** 1/2


June 8th, 1963 will be a night of tag team warfare as the WWWF World Tag Team Champions will be crowned from the following teams

Antonino Rocca & Miguel Perez
The Rougeau Brothers
Jay Strongbow & Wahoo McDaniel
Bobo Brazil & Pedro Morales
Whipper Billy Watson & Gene Kiniski
Gorilla Monsoon & Johnny Valentine
Eddie & Luke Graham
and Larry Hennig & Pat Patterson

also on tap we have Bruno Sammartino, Bill Watts, Jerry Graham, and of course WWWF World Heavyweight Champion, "The Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers.

[snabbit888]

Another fun card. Whipper Billy Watson is a fun addition. Looks like Dr. Jerry Graham is going to be a top heel for awhile, which I have no problem with. The Grahams all kind of rule.

Wondering if the title is going to be put on Bruno soon though.

[JoshiQ]

A lot of these names I know, but have never seen wrestle. Their characters are known to me mostly through Ryan.

You are off to a good start. I don't think Rogers holds onto the title for long, but not sure who takes it from him. There's a good chance it is Bruno, but I wouldn't mind a slight twist on history.

[magiccitydawg]

Most of the East coast wrestling I read about in the magazines of the day, Inside Wrestling, The Wrestler, Wrestling Review, so on and so on. Here in the South, Birmingham, Alabama in particular, wrestling was run on a weekly basis. Here house shows were always on Monday nights, Dothan it was every Friday and then Saturday nights after a while. In Columbus, Georgia it was a Wednesday night weekly house show. I am interested how the house shows were in New York and for the WWWF in the day.

[murphy42782]

Tag Team Titles Tournament - Boston, MA 6/8/63

[Round 1]:
Gene Kiniski and Whipper Billy Watson defeated
Rocca & Perez (Antonino Rocca and Miguel Perez) when Kiniski defeated Perez by
countout in 0:06:42.
Rating: *

[Round 1]:
Johnny Valentine and Gorilla Monsoon defeated
The Rougeau Brothers (Jacques Rougeau Sr. and Johnny Rougeau) when Monsoon defeated Johnny R. by disqualification in 0:06:26.
Rating: ** 1/2

[Round 1]:
The Native Americans (Jay Strongbow and Wahoo McDaniel) defeated The Golden Grahams (Eddie Graham and Luke Graham) when Strongbow defeated E. Graham when E. Graham passed out in the Sleeper in 0:14:45.
Rating: *** 1/4

[Round 1]:
Pedro Morales and Bobo Brazil and Larry Hennig and Pat Patterson battled to a draw in 0:20:00.
Rating: * 1/2

Highlights from the first round included The Native Americans getting a big win vs. The Grahams. It was the best match of the round and Strongbow and Wahoo will need every minute of rest they can get. Also gaining huge fan support the zany Rougeau Brothers delighted the crowd with their in ring flare. It just didn't translate to a win.

[Semi-Finals]:
Johnny Valentine and Gorilla Monsoon defeated
Gene Kiniski and Whipper Billy Watson when J. Valentine defeated Kiniski by
disqualification in 0:05:48.
Rating: 1/2*

The Native Americans win by default

The team of Gene Kiniski and Whipper Billy Watson imploded this round. Kiniski is a rule breaker by nature and that didnt sit well with Watson.

[Finals]: Match for the vacant WWF World Tag Team Titles:
The Native Americans (Jay Strongbow and Wahoo McDaniel) defeated Johnny Valentine and Gorilla Monsoon when Strongbow made J. Valentine submit to a side headlock in 0:10:49.
Rating: * 1/2
(The Native Americans won the WWF World Tag Team Titles.)
Having last round off was very beneficial to the Native Americans as Valentine & Monsoon got only a 5 minute breather between matches as the Rougeau Brothers came out and thrilled the crowd with a gymnastics routine. Gorilla had seen enough and dropped them both with Airplane Spins. Unfortunately he couldn't do the same as Wahoo and The Chief took home the titles.

Bill Watts and Bruno Sammartino defeated Buddy Rogers and Dr. Jerry Graham when Watts pinned B. Rogers with the Bulldog Headlock in 0:13:30.
Rating: **
The Night had kicked off with an altercation between WWWF World Heavyweight Champion, Buddy Rogers and Bruno Sammartino. The scene got chaotic when Dr. Jerry Graham and his brothers ambushed Sammartino. This bout was switched from the scheduled Bill Watts vs Buddy Rogers NONTITLE bout to this tag team affair. Watts was more then happy to team with Sammartino while the heel team protested having to get in the ring with "a couple of baboons". Watts and Sammartino proved to be a good team and showed why the rulerbreaker duo objected in the first place. Watts got the W for his team as Rogers fell victim to the Bulldog. Eddie & Luke Graham rushed the ring but Bruno and Bill got out of there before anything could happen.

Card rating: * 3/4

Join us next Month live from Madison Square Garden as we have a big night of action to include:

The Native Americans defending against the team they beat in the finals, Johnny Valentine & Gorilla Monsoon

Bruno Sammartino gets a match with Buddy Rogers, but Rogers can breathe a little easier as it will be a non-title bout.

Also Bill Watts has challenged Dr. Jerry Graham to leave his brothers in the back and come face him like a man.

Plus a Grudge Match between Whipper Billy Watson and Gene Kiniski!

Antonino Rocca & Miguel Perez in an effort to show their poor showing was a fluke will challenge a new team to the roster. Who will be coming to the WWWF tag division, join us to find out.

[cardsflyinhigh]

Nice choice of having the Native Americans take the titles. Wonder if Monsoon and Valentine will keep challenging them, as it looks like a nice feud is starting between them and the Rougeaus. Should be fun to see where that goes. Wonder who else can step up to challenge for the belts. Hennig and Patterson maybe?

[magiccitydawg]

Great card. I am loving this circuit. ;D

[snabbit888]

I like the Wahoo/Strongbow team. They had a long GCW title reign and were fun to write.

Good stuff again. Keep this going!

[murphy42782]

***Thanks for all the comments and support guys. I am actually booked up through 1969, simmed through 1968, and am in the process of getting this space caught up.***

Live Event at MSG - 7/6/63

The Night kicked off with Buddy Rogers and Dr. Jerry Graham in the ring. Rogers said that due to Bill Watts cowardly attack from behind with the bulldog, He injured his nose and despite his burning desire to humiliate Bruno Sammartino here infront of his adoring MSG Fans, he simply couldn't go against the doctor's orders. Graham grabbed the mic and said that in his professional opinion Rogers could miss lengthy time and those cowards who savagely went against the rules of the contest just to maim and injure them should be fired. He called for WWWF Officials to come out and do the right thing. Instead Bruno Sammartino and Bill Watts came to the ringside area. Watts said they weren't the ones who were constantly cutting corners and he spoke with the WWWF Officials and not only is he fighting Dr. Jerry Graham tonight. They are opening the show. Bruno grabbed the mic and said the same officials assured Bruno that if Rogers tried to back out that they would strip him of the title due to the "excessive" time he would be out. Rogers and Graham were irate as an inring official called for the bell. Sammartino and Rogers were escorted from ringside and the fight was on.

Dr. Jerry Graham defeated Bill Watts by disqualification in 0:05:43.
Rating: * 1/2
Dr. Jerry Graham continued to try to duck Watts for most of the match and as it looked like Graham was going to be taken care of, his brother Eddie emerged with brass knux. He slipped them to Jerry as Luke distracted the ref. Watts saw this coming and ducked Graham's errant swing and stole the illegal object. Watts made the quick decision to deck the "Good Doctor" and didn't seem to care that he was DQ'ed he stood tall with the knux as Eddie and Luke dragged Jerry to safety.

Pedro Morales made Larry Hennig submit to the Boston Crab in 0:09:47.
Rating: *
The young Pedro Morales showed the WWWF Fans here at MSG that he has a bright future in the business as he beat the more experienced Hennig from pillar to post. His fiery Latin temper almost got the better of him, but atleast on this night, he was able to channel it in the right direction.

Luke Graham pinned Jacques Rougeau Sr. with the Thumb to the Throat in 0:05:36.
Rating: * 1/2
Luke Graham made quick work of Jacques Rougeau in this one, showing why he might be the most fearsome Graham Brother.

Johnny Rougeau made Pat Patterson submit to the Sleeper in 0:09:00.
Rating: *** 3/4
In What might be match of the night, Johnny Rougeau and Pat Patterson showed great wrestling acumen. The Rougeau's despite their goofy antics can really fly and that might be why the fans adore them. Patterson was caught in an unbreakable Sleeperhold to end it.

Bobo Brazil pinned Eddie Graham with the Coco Butt in 0:03:52.
Rating: ** 1/2
The Rough night for the elder Grahams continued as Eddie was outmatched by a very cagey Bobo Brazil. Brazil looked good in this one and looks towards title opportunities down the line.

Whipper Billy Watson defeated Gene Kiniski by disqualification in 0:09:18.
Rating: * 1/2
Whipper Billy Watson and Gene Kiniski's partnership lasted but one round in the Tag Team Titles Tournament, and completely unraveled in round 2 leading to this bout. Whipper Watson would pick up the win in this hard hitting affair via DQ. Kiniski tried everything concievable to put Watson down in this one and when he decided to adhere to the bell and leave. Whipper grabbed a mic. Watson told Kiniski he wasn't done fighting and if the official wouldn't let this match continue then he'd sign a contract for next month, to throw all the rules out the window in a NO DQ match. Kiniski got a wry smile and agreed.

The Assassins (Assassin #1 and Assassin #2) defeated
Rocca & Perez (Antonino Rocca and Miguel Perez) when Assassin #2 defeated Rocca by countout in 0:10:17.
Rating: ** 3/4
Rocca & Perez have been a legendary tag team in these parts and were disappointed with their showing last month. SO to make up for it they issued an open challenge. A masked duo came out and one grabbed a mic and said it would behoove the ethnic duo to withdraw that challenge. Rocca and Perez said they weren't going anywhere. The two teams really tore into one another and as the action got crazy, #2 rolled outside to get a breather from Rocca. Antonino had no such desires and met him on the outside. Rocca charged the masked man and after a side step and a well placed shove from #2, Rocca went careening out of control into the ringside steps. Rocca clutched his knee and was unable to meet the 10 count. It might only be by count out but a win over Rocca & Perez is nothing to sneeze at and the veteran duo is back to the drawing board.

Bruno Sammartino pinned Buddy Rogers after a powerslam in 0:23:05.
Rating: *** 3/4
This one must get the fans blood boiling. Their man not only should be champion, but what transpired after the match was sickening. Although it was a non-title bout a win for Sammartino would go a long way. Rogers was very game, and despite trying to avoid this match really seemed invested. After Sammartino scored a pinfall and undoubtedly earned a title shot, The WWWF World Heavyweight Champion decked him with the title belt. Rogers continued to lay waste to him until officials and Bill Watts broke it up.

The Native Americans (Jay Strongbow and Wahoo McDaniel) defeated Gorilla Monsoon and Johnny Valentine when Strongbow defeated Monsoon when Valentine passed out in a figure-four leglock in 0:16:47.
Rating: * 1/4
(The Native Americans retained the WWF World Tag Team Titles.)
Sammartino/Rogers is a tough act to follow but these four men are no strangers to each other or main events. Strongbow and McDaniel work as a well oiled machine and despite their impressive showing last month, Gorilla Monsoon and Johnny Valentine have not been a team nearly long enough to really overcome that. They put up a valiant effort and even looked as if they would steal the titles until the Native Americans cut the ring off and refused to let Monsoon back in. Valentine fought the last 7 minutes of this one and the frequent tags between the champs really wore on him. Eventually he would get put away with his own finisher, the figure four leglock.

Card rating: ** 1/4


Match observations:
Another great night of action in the books and coming down the line we have more fantastic matches to look forward to. Join the WWWF Live from MSG again on August 3rd!

In the main event, Bruno Sammartino and Bill Watts look to continue their success and just so the rule breaking duo of Rogers and Graham can't duck them the bout will be contested inside the confines of a STEEL CAGE

also have a rematch between Antonino Rocca & Miguel Perez and the masked Assassins

a NO DQ bout between Whipper Billy Watson and Gene Kiniski

also Johnny Rougeau and Pat Patterson hook up one more time, this time in a tag team bout with Jacques joining his brother Johnny and Larry Hennig looking to right the ship by joining sides with Patterson.

[snabbit888]

Your main event feud is really good right now. It's pretty standard WWWF fare for the time period. It's going to end with Sammartino winning the title, but I like everything Dr. Jerry & Rogers are doing to put that off.

No DQ with Whipper/Kiniski should be great.

Keep up the good stuff, murph!

[JoshiQ]

Hope the Assassins can keep up the wins.

The non-title win for Sammartino almost guarantees him a future title shot. Especially after the post-match attack.

Native Americans are looking pretty strong as champions.

Can't wait to see Bruno/Watts face Rogers/Graham inside of a steel cage.

[murphy42782]

Should have next card out in a few days. Havent had much time recently, but I have through 1970 simmed and wanna catch you guys up to atleast the same year, so I might go to more of an olivers wwf style write up to get you guys caught up.

[snabbit888]

I need short writeups early on for GCW too. With a historical circuit like this, a lot of the early time is just getting caught up to a more modern time. Looking forward to more.

[murphy42782]

Live Event at MSG - 8/3/63

Eddie Graham defeated Pedro Morales by countout in 0:08:32.
Rating: ** 1/4

Larry Hennig and Pat Patterson and The Rougeau Brothers (Jacques Rougeau Sr. and Johnny Rougeau) battled to a draw
in 0:15:00.
Rating: 3/4*

Johnny Valentine pinned Bobo Brazil after a brainbuster in 0:15:10.
Rating: 3/4*

Luke Graham and Wahoo McDaniel battled to a double countout in 0:15:37.
Rating: * 1/2

Gorilla Monsoon pinned Jay Strongbow after a roll away in 0:13:50.
Rating: *

No-DQ-Match:
Gene Kiniski pinned Whipper Billy Watson with the Backbreaker in 0:17:33.
Rating: * 3/4

No-Countout-Match:
The Assassins (Assassin #1 and Assassin #2) defeated Rocca & Perez (Antonino Rocca and Miguel Perez) when Assassin #2 pinned Perez after the Assassin Hammerlock in 0:06:05.
Rating: ** 3/4

Cage Match:
Bill Watts and Bruno Sammartino defeated Buddy Rogers and Dr. Jerry Graham when B. Sammartino made Dr. J. Graham submit to the Sammartino Backbreaker in 0:34:49.
Rating: *****


Card rating: ** 1/2


Match observations:

The Show kicked off with World Champion Buddy Rogers in the ring again accompanied by Dr. Jerry Graham. Rogers claimed that after the beatings they put on Sammartino & Watts respectively, there is no way they will show up here tonight at MSG. Graham grabbed the mic and said if those two cowards wanna show up, he'll do the gracious thing and remove the Cage Match stipulations because with their health the way it is, it would be suicide to get in the cage with two studs like The Nature Boy and The Good Doctor. Bruno Sammartino and Bill Watts had just about enough and came out and told Rogers/Graham that not only would they beat them in that ring, they would beat them in that cage and they pointed to the rafters where the cage hangs in waiting.

Other highlights of the night included another Rougeau Brothers exercise routine for the fans that saw the Brothers due syncronized push ups, jumping jacks, and tumbles to some lively up beat music. Larry Hennig and Pat Patterson came out to shut them up but the bout ended in a time limit draw. The Fans applauded the goofy Rougeaus loudly every time they got rolling.

We saw Eddie Graham, Johnny Valentine, & Gorilla Monsoon pick up big wins, while Pedro Morales, Bobo Brazil, & Jay Strongbow fell in defeat. Luke Graham and Wahoo McDaniel couldn't keep their match in the ring, violently clashing around ringside and eventually to the back.

This brought us to the 3 main attractions. No DQ Match between Whipper Billy Watson and Gene Kiniski, Antonino Rocca & Miguel Perez looking for revenge against the masked Assassins, and the Cage Match.

First up was Whipper Watson and Gene Kiniski. On any ordinary night this bout would've been the most violent, sadistic match on the card. But with the MAIN EVENT looming it made this seem almost civil. Watson and Kiniski tore each other from pillar to post and back again. They used chairs on one another and at one point Kiniski even used a broke pencil to stab Watson in the back repeatedly. After 17 Minutes of pure brutality it was Kiniski picking up the win with a devastating Backbreaker.

The team of Antonino Rocca and Miguel Perez have long been a fan favorite here in the Northeast, but it looks like they have falling on hard times, last month they issued the open challenge only to fall at the hands of The Assassins. This month they looked for revenge, but yet again fell short against the nefarious masked tandem. The Assassins look primed for the big time here in the WWWF as their fluid tag team work made a long time pair look like bumbling new comers. Rocca and Perez need to go back to the drawing board to turn their careers back on track.

The time had come for the main event. There was a certain electricity in the air for this one. Bruno Sammartino and Bill Watts made their way out together, a sign of unity, while Dr. Jerry Graham and Buddy Rogers each made their own flamboyant entrances. Rogers and Graham have been a cohesive unit since the WWWF reopened it's doors and tonight would be no different. The sides were very evenly matched and not one of the superstars involved would give an inch. At one point Eddie and Luke Graham made their way out to get involved but Bobo Brazil and Pedro Morales made their way out and dragged the younger Grahams from ringside much to the delight of the crowd. Rogers and Graham looked as if they were going to take the victory as Rogers scaled the side of the cage looking to escape while Graham had planted Watts with a suplex and looked to nail Bruno with a piledriver. Bruno powered out and backdropped Graham as Watts recovered and climbed the turnbuckles to grab Rogers. Watts superplexed Rogers from halfway up the cage and Sammartino picked up a prone Graham and locked in the Sammartino Backbreaker. All four men were bloodied, none more so then the champ, who's blond locks were died crimson on this evening. Watts and Sammartino took in the applause from the crowd as Graham dragged Rogers to the back.



Join us live from MSG on August 31st for what promises to be a stunning night of action:

Whipper Watson will battle Gorilla Monsoon in a North American Title qualifying match. In other Qualifiers Johnny Rougeau does battle with Gene Kiniski and Bobo Brazil will take on Luke Graham.

Plus based on tonight's convincing win in the cage, Bruno Sammartino challenges Buddy Rogers for the WWWF World Heavyweight Title!

[murphy42782]

Live Event at MSG - 8/31/63

The Golden Grahams (Dr. Jerry Graham and Eddie Graham), Larry Hennig and Pat Patterson and Johnny Valentine and Rocca & Perez (Antonino Rocca and Miguel Perez), Bill Watts, Jacques Rougeau Sr. and Pedro Morales battled to a No-Contest in 0:12:11.
Rating: * 1/2
The opening bout saw 10 Man tag action. The Face faction showed great team work and the fans really got behind them. One has to wonder whether thats because of their collective styles or if it's just a strong disdain for the nefarious Grahams and the other rule breakers. Either way the point is moot as was coming to a decisive end to this one. A melee broke out and when the official couldn't maintain control he threw the match out. Bill Watts and Eddie Graham got into a huge scuffle that took them all the way to the back and even after the other 8 competitors had ceased fighting officials were struggling to break up those two. As a result of this match WWWF Brass has decided to finalize 4 more spots in the North American Title Tournament next month. Bill Watts will battle Eddie Graham, Johnny Valentine will hook up with Miguel Perez, and in a special tag team qualifier, the winning team between Antonino Rocca/Pedro Morales and Larry Hennig/Pat Patterson will win their spots in the tourney.

The Native Americans come to ringside to thank fans
Chief Jay Stongbow and Wahoo McDaniel asked for some time in the ring and grabbed a mic. Strongbow thanks McDaniel for joining him on his quest to hold championship gold and thanks fans for all of their support since he broke into the business. Wahoo grabbed the mic and before he could finish The Assassins were sliding in the ring behind them. The Assassins dropped the Native Americans with brutal spiked piledrivers and draped the belts over their fallen owners, a sign that they are coming for the gold. Assassin #1 said that while Strongbow and Wahoo were dancing for the fans he was out recruiting new members to his dark militia. Assassin #2 is out on a recruitment drive, but Assassin #3 is here and next month in Washington DC The Assassins were walking out with the straps.

North American Title Tournament Qualifiers
Gene Kiniski pinned Johnny Rougeau with the Backbreaker in 0:13:10.
Rating: * 3/4

Gorilla Monsoon defeated Whipper Billy Watson by countout in 0:03:14.
Rating: * 1/4

Bobo Brazil pinned Luke Graham with the Coco Butt in 0:05:18.
Rating: * 3/4

Bobo Brazil, Gorilla Monsoon, and Gene Kiniski all punched their tickets to the North American Title Tournament being held on November 23rd live from Pittsburgh, PA. Watson, Graham, and Rougeau are all left dreaming of what couldve been

Bruno Sammartino defeated Buddy Rogers when Buddy Rogers passed out in the Sammartino Backbreaker in 0:16:58.
Rating: **** 1/4
(Bruno Sammartino won the WWF World Heavyweight Title.)
Fans around the World can rejoice as their man, Bruno Sammartino, finally put an end to the arrogant Buddy Rogers World Title Reign. For months fans have had to put up with the smug Nature Boy and his cohorts, The Graham Brothers. But alas, Sammartino was able to wrestle the belt and power away from Rogers. Fans may not like Buddy, some might even loathe him, but the man is a fine wrestler. The flow of the match was back and forth and you could feel the fans on the edge of their seats after the Cage Match last month, they could feel the momentum shift in favor of Bruno. Rogers and Sammartino's feud has raged for years and this was its apex for many fans.

Card rating: ** 1/2


Match observations:

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Matches Include:

NA Title Qualifiers
Antonino Rocca & Pedro Morales vs Larry Hennig & Pat Patterson
Bill Watts vs Eddie Graham
Miguel Perez vs Johnny Valentine

We also have Bobo Brazil vs Buddy Rogers, as the Nature Boy looks to bounce back.

And Last but not least, Bruno Sammartino defends his newly won belt versus another familiar nemesis, Dr. Jerry Graham!!!!

[JoshiQ]

Sammartino finally takes the gold! Was wondering when/if it was going to happen. He'll make a great long-term champion if that is the route you go.

Assassin #3? Huh. Wonder who that is?

[murphy42782]

Assassin #2 left so I replaced him angle wise, decided to put someone under a mask who was banned from wrestling in NY due to a 1957 match under the match.

[murphy42782]

Under a mask*