NWA Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament 1987 Review

NWA Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament 1987 Review
August 25, 2024
By Ryan Porzl

VHS Cover

Event: Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament 1987
Tagline: None
Date: April 10, 1987 and April 11, 1987
Location: Baltimore, Maryland
Live or Tape: Live
Arena(s): Baltimore Arena
Attendance: 9,300 (April 10th) and 13,000 (April 11th)
Announcers: None
Interviewers: None
Other: None
Broadcast: Home Video

The 1987 Crockett Cup is largely the same as the 1986 format in that it featured 24 teams with the top teams getting byes in the first round while two non tournament matches would also happen. The difference was the event was held over two nights instead of an afternoon and evening show. The two non tournament matches would be held in separate days instead of back-to-back on the second show. Also, with Jim Crockett buying out any remaining NWA territory to compete with the WWF, most of the participants are Crockett guys and not many from other NWA territories.

This review will be interesting as I'm not reviewing the heavily edited Turner Home Entertainment video but rather footage that has surfaced online in recent years. The bad news is that most of Night One is not available and I could only find about four matches. The good news is all of Night Two is available. Even better news, almost all the matches are in their entirety.

Here are the results of the matches not available
First Round: The Thunderfoots defeated Bobby Jaggers and Rocky King
First Round: Bill Dundee and The Barbarian defeated Mike Rotunda and Tim Horner
First Round: Shaska Whatley and Teijho Khan defeated Jimmy Valiant and Lazertron by DQ
First Round: Jimmy Garvin and Ron Garvin defeated Ricky Lee Jones and The Italian Stallion
First Round: Denny Brown and Todd Champion defeated Bill Mulkey and Randy Mulkey
First Round: George South and Steve Keirn vs. Mike Graham and Nelson Royal went to a DDQ
First Round: Bob Armstrong and Brad Armstrong defeated Ivan Koloff and Vladimir Petrov by DQ
First Round: The MOD Squad defeated Baron Von Raschke and Wahoo McDaniel
Second Round: Rick Rude and Manny Fernandez defeated The Thunderfoots
Second Round: The Super Powers defeated Bill Dundee and The Barbarian
Second Round: Giant Baba and Isao Takagi defeated Denny Brown and Todd Champion
Steel Cage: Ole Anderson defeated Big Bubba Rogers by KO

Night One

Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament Second Round: The Road Warriors (w/Paul Ellering) vs. Shaska Whatley and Teijho Khan- The Warriors are, of course, the returning champions having won the previous year and are actually announced as the NWA International Tag Team Champions which they were as that was at the time one of the two major tag titles in All Japan Pro Wrestling. They, along with the Pacific Wrestling Federation Tag Team Championships, would eventually be unified in All Japan's World Tag Team Championships a year later. Khan is supposed to be a powerhouse from Singapore but is, of course, an American. From what I know, Khan was one of several Minnesota guys trained by Eddie Sharkey like The Road Warriors and was a journeyman having competed for Championship Wrestling from Florida, AWA, All Japan, and NWA during the late 80s to early 90s. He didn't go too far. Speaking of The Warriors, they get their usual huge pop.

The heels jump the Warriors to start and work them over in the corner but the Warriors fight out. Hawk whips Whatley to the ropes and comes off the other side with a jumping shoulder block. Animal whips Khan to the ropes and catches him with a dropkick. The heels bail out to do some goofy overselling. Back in, it's Hawk and Khan as they tie up with Khan muscling Hawk to the corner and hits a chop. Khan whips Hawk to another corner but Hawk comes out with a back elbow. Hawk kicks Khan in the stomach and hits a train wreck. Tag to Animal who hits a gorilla press slam. Animal hits a bodyslam but misses the elbow drop. Khan drops a forearm to the back of Animal's head. Tag to Whatley with he and Khan double team whipping Animal to the ropes and catching him with a double team elbow. Whatley works over Animal with forearms and headbutts. Tag to Khan as he and Whatley hit mounted punches in the corner but Animal eventually shoves them off to a pop. Khan recovers first and works over Animal in the corner. Khan hits a bodyslam and an elbow drop for 2. Tag to Whatley as he and Khan hit a double team suplex and for some reason, Whatley returns to the apron while Khan stays in despite the tag. Khan attempts a splash but Animal gets the knees up. Hot tag to Hawk who hits a dropkick, a hangman's neckbreaker, and a jumping fist drop. Hawk whips Khan to the ropes and catches him with a powerslam to advance in 3:36 to a big pop.

Thoughts: * Fine match for what it was which was a Road Warrior mauling but the Road Warriors are always fun to watch destroy opponents. The heels surprisingly got some offense in but this was mostly the Road Warriors being the Road Warriors.

Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament Second Round: The Midnight Express (w/Jim Cornette) vs. Jimmy Garvin and Ron Garvin (w/Precious)- This was REALLY early into the third incarnation of The Midnight Express as this is the Bobby Eaton/Stan Lane combo. I think Lane debuted with the Midnights literally a week earlier on the April 4^th World Championship Wrestling. Anyway, Lane is replacing Dennis Condrey who up and walked out of the promotion and the team with no notice shortly before this. As I brought up in my Super Towns On The Superstation review, I don't think Condrey ever went on record explaining why he left. Anyway, Condrey would eventually reform the Original and underrated version of the Midnight Express with Randy Rose in the AWA with Paul Heyman (Paul E. Dangerously) as their manager.

Big brawl to start with Ron bieling Eaton out of the corner with his towel. The Garvins whips the Midnights into each other. Ron bails as Jimmy hits the Midnights with a noggin knocker. Cornette jumps on the apron and Eaton and Ron have a tug-o-war with him until Lane helps, Ron lets go, and Cornette is pulled into the ring. More brawling with Cornette's racket getting involved but no one uses it and the Midnights bail out where Precious bad mouths Cornette. Ron heads out and Eaton tries to use the racket but Ron drops Eaton with a punch. Eventually, things settle down and it's Ron and Eaton in the ring. They tie up with Eaton muscling Ron to the corner and working him over. Ron reverses a whip to another corner and catches Eaton coming out with a back body drop to a pop. Eaton cowers in the Midnight corner. Tags to Lane and Jimmy with the two tying up and Lane muscling Jimmy in the corner where he works him over.

Jimmy reverses a whip into another corner and catches Lane coming out with a back elbow. Jimmy then follows with a dropkick. Tag to Eaton who ties up and muscles Jimmy in the corner. Eaton hits a punch but Jimmy fights out of the corner with his own punches. Jimmy comes off the ropes, Eaton drops to the canvas, Jimmy jumps over, and comes off the ropes with a shoulder block. Jimmy tries to come off the ropes but Lane knees him in the back. Eaton drives knees to the back. Tag to Lane who hits a savate kick and rams Jimmy into Eaton's knee. Tag to Eaton with Lane whipping Jimmy to the ropes and then whipping Eaton into Jimmy with Eaton catching him with a back elbow. Eaton covers for 2 and applies a chinlock. Jimmy eventually gets up and Eaton transitions to a side headlock. Tag to Lane with Jimmy whipping Eaton to the ropes, leapfrogs over him, and Eaton collides with Lane to a pop.

Hot tag to Ron who cleans house and hits a noggin knocker. Ron whips Eaton to the ropes and catches him with a back body drop. Fans go nuts as Ron nails Eaton with a punch that sends Eaton out to the floor. Ron follows and attempts a piledriver but Cornette nails Ron with the racket behind the referee's back. Eaton makes it back in while Jimmy tries to help Ron in but it's too late as the Midnights win on a count out to advance at 6:25. After the match, Ron chases the Midnights and Cornette around ringside getting whatever licks he can. Eventually, he gets back in the ring as the Midnights and Cornette leave. We get a minor “Bullshit” chant before Ron decks referee Earl Hebner to a big pop and mounts him before Jimmy pulls him off.

Thoughts: * Alright but dull match. The Midnights showed their chemistry even this early in the team. However, the Garvins are the Garvins and I just can't get into their stuff. I didn't get the count out finish. Maybe Rhodes knew he would book the Garvins against Flair soon but even then, did the Garvins need to be protected? It doesn't help this won't be the last match in this tournament the Midnights will be apart of with a screwy finish.

Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament Second Round: The Armstrongs vs. Arn Anderson and Kevin Sullivan- The Armstrongs are Bob and Brad. Bob is the patriarch of the Armstrong family which featured his sons Brad, wrestler/former WWE referee Scott, Steve, and Brian (a.k.a. Road Dogg). He was a legend mostly in the southern United States for promotions like Georgia Championship Wrestling, Southeastern Championship Wrestling, and Championship Wrestling from Florida. He's also known for his run with Cornette's Smoky Mountain Wrestling throughout it's four year run in the early to mid 1990s as the promotion's commissioner and for his feud with Cornette. He also appeared for TNA during the 2000s. Sullivan is replacing Ole Anderson due to Ole getting bounced from the Horsemen in March with Lex Luger replacing him.

Brad and Anderson start with a tie up and punches. Brad gets a side headlock, Anderson whips Brad to the ropes, and Brad comes off with a shoulder block. Brad comes off, jumps over Anderson, comes off, Anderson tries to grab him but he gets out. Anderson comes off the ropes, Brad drops down, Anderson jumps over, comes off the ropes, and Brad catches him with a drop toehold. Brad drops an elbow on the leg but Anderson rakes the eyes and works over Brad. Brad falls to the apron and Anderson hangs him on the ropes where he forearms the chest repeatedly. Anderson tries to ram Brad on the top turnbuckle but Brad blocks and rams Anderson. Brad then climbs the top turnbuckle and comes off with a diving high crossbody for 2. Anderson heads to the corner. Tag to Sullivan who ties up and muscles Brad to the corner where they trade chops. Brad gets a side headlock and goes to his corner. Tag to Bob with Brad whipping Sullivan to the ropes and Bob catches him with a chop.

Bob then gets a shot at Anderson. Bob knocks Sullivan in the corner and whips him to another with Sullivan taking a Bret Hart chest first bump. Bob gets an arm wringer. Tag to Brad who comes off the second turnbuckle with an elbow to the arm and gets an arm wringer but Sullivan punches him. Sullivan rams Brad into Anderson's knee. Tag to Anderson who hits a bodyslam and comes off the ropes with a knee drop for 2. Tag to Sullivan as Anderson exposes the stomach for Sullivan to punch. Sullivan gets an arm wringer and attacks the arm. Sullivan takes Brad down but Brad reverses. Tag to Anderson who stomps at Brad. Anderson drops an elbow to the back of the head and hits a snapmare but Brad kicks him off. Tag to Bob with Anderson backing into his corner. Tie up with Anderson sending Bob into his corner but Bob fights out. Tag to Sullivan who ties up and muscles Bob to the ropes.

Sullivan whips Bob to the ropes and Bob comes off with a weak shoulder block. Bob comes off again and Sullivan catches him with a clothesline with Bob taking a messy bump.  Tag to Anderson who works over Bob. Anderson whips Bob to the ropes, misses an elbow, Bob comes off, Anderson leapfrogs, Bob stops, and catches Anderson turning around with a punch. Sullivan comes in and Bob catches him with a punch. Bob hits Anderson but Anderson reverses a whip and Sullivan trips Bob as he tries to come off the ropes. Anderson gets some shots in. Tag to Sullivan who works over Bob. Bob tries to come back with chops but Sullivan gets headbutts. Anderson sets his knee up but Bob reverses and rams Sullivan into it. Hot tag to Brad who cleans house to a good pop. All four are in the ring until Sullivan rakes Brad's eyes and throws him out. Anderson and Sullivan double team Bob until Brad gets on the apron. Sullivan charges but Brad catches him with a slingshot sunset flip back in while Bob stops Anderson to advance at 5:27 to a big pop.

Thoughts: *1/2 Another alright encounter with some solid work from Anderson, Sullivan, and Brad though the crowd didn't seem into it until the ending. Brad easily carried his team as Bob came off old, slow, and limited with lousy selling. I know Bob was around 48 but he was looking it. Finish was cool and creative.

Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament Second Round: Tully Blanchard and Lex Luger (w/JJ Dillon) vs. The MOD Squad (w/”Superstar” Bill Dundee)- Luger was still very new at this point, having joined the NWA in January after a big run in Championship Wrestling from Florida. Upon debuting, Luger made his intentions known that he wanted to be a Horsemen and after being an associate, would eventually replace Ole in March. To say the least, Luger was one of, if not, the hottest prospect in American wrestling in 1987 and while several would be considered “The Next Hulk Hogan”, it didn't take long for Luger to be the most notable to get the label. It's obvious, the NWA and Dusty Rhodes see Luger's potential as he was likely put in the Horsemen to accelerate his growth.

Blanchard and (I think) Spike start with a tie up. Spike gets a side headlock and a punch behind the referee's back. Blanchard complains of the closed fist but Spike says it was a slap. I feel like I'm watching 2020s Masanobu Fuchi. They tie up with Blanchard getting a side headlock before transitions into a hammerlock but Spike reaches the ropes. Tie up with Blanchard getting a single leg takedown but Spike kicks him off. Circle and tie up with Spike muscling Blanchard to the ropes and gives the clean break. Another tie up with Spike muscling Blanchard into the Horsemen corner. Tag to Luger who jumps Spike from behind and gets an arm wringer. Luger works over the arm until Spike tries to fight back but Luger pulls Spike down with the hair and transitions to an armbar. Spike gets up and pulls Luger down with the hair. Luger gets a head scissors but Spike eventually gets out. Tag to Basher who ties up with Luger hitting an armdrag takedown. Luger gets a wristlock.

Tag to Blanchard who kicks the stomach and hits Basher. Blanchard whips Basher to the ropes and catches him with a punch to the stomach. Blanchard hits an bionic elbow. Basher comes back with a punch to the stomach and rakes the eyes. Basher rams Blanchard into the top turnbuckle and instigates Luger to come in and distract the referee which allows Dundee to rake Blanchard's eyes and Spike getting cheap shots. Luger shoves referee Teddy Long and chases Basher out before attacking Spike while Dillon holds Spike's leg. Basher bodyslams Blanchard. Tag to Spike who covers for 2. Blanchard crawls for the tag but Spike drops an elbow to briefly prevent the tag. Blanchard still tags Luger who whips Spike to the ropes and catches him with a back elbow. Luger hits a bodyslam and then an elbow drop. Tag to Blanchard who works over Spike and whips him into Luger's knee. Tag to Luger who hits a forearm while Blanchard holds onto Spike.

Spike rakes the eyes. Tag to Basher who forearms the back repeatedly and chokes Luger on the second rope. Basher distracts the ref allowing Spike to choke Luger. Luger comes back with a punch to the stomach but Basher rakes the eyes. Tag to Spike who distracts the ref while Dundee chokes from the outside while Basher holds the legs. Blanchard comes in which further distracts the ref. Tag to Spike who hits a double ax handle. Spike whips Luger to another corner and misses the charge. Hot tag to Blanchard with Luger preventing the tag and Blanchard stomps away on Spike. Blanchard whips Spike to the ropes and catches him with a punch to the stomach. Blanchard hits some bionic elbows and a chop before Spike bails out while Blanchard stomps. Back on the apron, Blanchard tries to suplex Spike back in but Dundee trips Blanchard with Spike falling on top but Luger breaks the pin at 2. All four are now in and brawl. Luger lifts Basher up by the throat while Spike whips Blanchard to the corner and catches him coming out with a clothesline. Luger and Basher bail while Spike whips Blanchard to the corner but Blanchard gets his feet up to block the charge. Blanchard comes off the second turnbuckle with an elbow drop and covers while Dillon prevents Dundee from entering to advance in 7:30.

Thoughts: *1/2 Another alright match with some ok stuff but nothing special. The booking was a bit weird as The Horsemen were the top heels in the NWA but came off like the babyfaces here with Blanchard playing the wrestler-in-peril at times while the MODs cheated.

Night Two

Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament Quarterfinals: Tully Blanchard and Lex Luger (w/JJ Dillon) vs. The Armstrongs- Can Blanchard and Luger avenge Anderson? We'll see.

Blanchard and Brad start with a circle and tie up. Brad whips Blanchard to the ropes and catches him with an armdrag. Blanchard heads to his corner. They circle and tie up with Brad muscling Blanchard to the ropes until Blanchard muscles him to the corner and works him over. Brad sends Blanchard to the corner and works him over to a good pop. Brad biels Blanchard out of the corner and gets a head scissor takedown but Blanchard bails to regroup. Back in, Blanchard consult with Luger. They circle and tease a lock up. Tie up with Brad getting a side headlock. Blanchard tries to whip Brad off but Brad holds on. Blanchard eventually grabs the hair and then tries an atomic drop but Brad blocks and hits his own which bounces Blanchard off the ropes and Brad catches him with an armdrag takedown into an armbar. Blanchard tries for the tag but Brad pulls him back. Tag to Bob who stomps Blanchard's face and hand before getting an arm wringer. Fans chant “Luger” and I can't blame them.

Blanchard tries for the tag but still can't get it. Bob continues holding the arm. Luger tries to tag Blanchard's foot and comes in but that doesn't count which allows an illegal switch with the Armstrongs as Brad gets the armbar. Blanchard gets up and knees the stomach to get out. Blanchard whips Brad to the ropes and attempts a hip toss but Brad blocks and gets his own. Brad goes back to the armbar with Bob getting a shot in from the apron. Brad prevents the tag. Tag to Bob who continues the arm work which is really testing my patience. Blanchard kicks Bob off but Bob chops Luger off to prevent the tag and goes back to the arm. Luger comes in which results in another illegal switch with Brad getting the armbar. Ok. Which team is the face and which is heel again? Anyway, fans chant “Luger” and I want him in the ring to stop this shit. Not to mention, the Armstrongs are just annoying. Anyway, Blanchard gets an armdrag out but Brad prevents the tag again.

Fans clearly want Luger in. Luger comes in but distracts the ref thus getting more illegal switching and arm work from Bob. Blanchard gets to the corner but Luger is out of position thus no tag. Tag to Brad with Bob holding Blanchard and Brad coming off the second turnbuckle with a forearm. Another armbar. Blanchard tries for the tag but can't get it. Blanchard rakes the eyes but Brad continually stops the tag. Tag to Bob who's putting me to sleep with this arm work. Finally and I can't say that enough but FINALLY, Blanchard fights out and tags Luger to a big pop. Tag to Brad. Fans chant “Luger” as they circle and tie up with Luger shoving Brad off. Luger taunts to a good pop. Another tie up and Luger shoves to another pop. Luger poses for the crowd. Circle and tie up again with Brad sending Luger face first to the canvas to a big pop. Luger charges but Brad hits a dropkick and then another with Luger bailing to regroup.

The Armstrongs celebrate in the ring as the crowd goes nuts. Back in, they tie up with Luger muscling Brad to the ropes. Luger knees the stomach and forearms the back twice. Luger whips Brad to the ropes, misses the back elbow, and Brad comes off with a high crossbody for 2. Brad hits a punch as Luger cowers in the corner and calls for a time out. Luger than consults with Blanchard. Tie up with Luger getting an armbar and an arm wringer. Tag to Blanchard who comes off the top turnbuckle with a diving bionic elbow on the arm. Blanchard rams Brad to the top turnbuckle. Blanchard whips Brad to another corner but misses the charge and crashes shoulder first into the ring post. Brad drops Blanchard with a punch, climbs the top turnbuckle, and comes off with a missile dropkick to a big pop. Brad hits a punch and applies a side headlock. Luger distracts the referee as Blanchard whips Brad to the ropes and Dillon grabs the top rope to low bridge Brad over and out to the floor.

Bob goes after Dillon before the referee sends him back which allow Dillon and Luger to get cheapshots. Blanchard heads out and rams Brad back first into the guardrail. Blanchard heads back in to strut before heading to the apron and coming off with a bionic elbow. Blanchard hits the back and heads back in where he pulls Brad back in. Blanchard hits the back and then hits a belly-to-back suplex for 2 as Brad gets his foot on the rope. Tag to Luger who elbows the back. Luger whips Brad to the ropes and catches him with a back elbow for 2. Luger forearms the back and hits a suplex for 2 as Brad gets his foot on the rope. Tag to Blanchard with Luger getting a front facelock and Blanchard elbows the back. Blanchard whips Brad to the ropes and attempts a hip toss but Brad reverses with a backslide for 2. Blanchard misses a punch and Brad hits an atomic drop with Blanchard propelled into Luger to a big pop with Luger falling off the apron. Luger heads back to the apron and tags in but Brad makes the hot tag to Bob. Bob cleans house on Luger and then Blanchard. Luger rolls out and the referee tries to get Brad to the apron as Bob gets a side headlock, Blanchard whips him to the ropes, and Dillon trips him from the outside. All four are in the ring until Brad and Luger fight on the apron. Bob hits Blanchard with a bodyslam and covers but the referee is distracted. Dillon jumps on the apron, Blanchard whips Bob to the ropes, and Blanchard and Dillon catch him with a double team clothesline. Blanchard covers for the win and advance at 17:46.

Thoughts: -* An awful, boring, and frustrating to watch match. First problem is the match started fine but once the Armstrongs start with the arm work, this match dies one of the slowest and most painful deaths I've ever seen of a match in the 27 years I've been watching wrestling. I don't mind arm work but good god, NWA/WCW would overuse it so much during this period and this match was a case of it. Of of the near eighteen minute match, nearly ten of it is boring armbars that aren't riveting to watch, drags the match down, and don't lead to anything. Second is the structure of the match was a mess. Maybe they were trying something different but why are the Armstrongs acting heelish and doing underhanded tactics like illegal switching over Blanchard and Luger when the Horsemen are the top heels in the company? I can understand if they were countering Horsemen cheating but Blanchard and Luger didn't do anything wrong at that point. It was messy and it made the Armstrongs incredibly annoying. Even when Luger finally makes the tag, the match fails to get better. Third, this match went WAY too long for what they were going for. Why this match went nearly eighteen minutes, especially given nearly ten of it was armbars, Bob was washed up, and Luger was green, I have no idea. I actually would've given more negative stars but to be fair, the crowd was hot for this.

Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament Quarterfinals: Giant Baba and Isao Takagi vs. The Rock n' Roll Express- For the second year, Baba is back in the Crockett Cup. Takagi is a former sumo wrestler who turned pro wrestler. According to Cagematch, he debuted in March and he only had seven matches before this. He worked for Baba's All Japan throughout the remainder of the 1980s before being one of the wrestlers to follow Genichiro Tenryu out of All Japan and to form a new promotion in Super World of Sports. After SWS fell apart, Takagi worked for Tenryu's WAR promotion in the 1990s and his Tenryu Project promotion in the 2010s as well as other promotions. He's largely best known for his second run in All Japan in the 2000s under the name “Arashi” where he held several tag belts including the World Tag Team Championship with Keiji “The Great Muta” Mutoh.

Anyway, match doesn't happen as Robert Gibson comes out in street clothes and ring announcer Gary Michael Cappetta announces Ricky Morton sustained an eye injury days earlier and is unable to compete thus Baba and Takagi advance by forfeit. I'm not 100% sure if the injury was legit but the RnR didn't work again until April 20^th so it might be true.

Thoughts: No rating Match didn't happen so no rating. Definitely sucks to lose the RnR as they were among the top teams in the tournament.

Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament Quarterfinals: The Midnight Express (w/Jim Cornette and Big Bubba Rogers) vs. The Road Warriors (w/Paul Ellering)- Eaton and Hawk start with Eaton trash talking Hawk. Tie up with Eaton raking the eyes. Eaton hits a forearm and gets a side headlock but Hawk whips him to the corner. Lane comes in but Hawk catches him with a hip toss. Eaton comes out of the corner and Hawk catches him with a hip toss. Hawk hits Lane with a dropkick and then Eaton with a dropkick with the Midnights bailing to cheers. Back in, tie up with Hawk kneeing the stomach. Hawk presses Eaton in the air and hits a snake eyes in the corner. Eaton goes to his corner. Tag to Lane who ties up and muscles Hawk to the corner where he hits body shots. Hawk reverses a whip to another corner and Lane does a front flip bump into the corner. Hawk jumps off the bottom rope with stomps. Hawk rams Lane into the top turnbuckle. Tag to Animal with the Warriors double team whipping Lane to the ropes and catch him with a double team elbow. Animal hits a jumping elbow drop for 2.

Animal hits a gorilla press slam and gets an arm wringer. Animal works over the arm. Lane climbs over the top rope and tries to escape to the apron but Animal pulls him back in and leg drops the leg. Tag to Hawk who drops Lane with a punch. Lane heads to his corner to regroup. Bubba jumps on the apron and takes his jacket, hat, and sunglasses off teasing a confrontation with Hawk but cooler heads prevail. Tag to Eaton who ties up but Hawk muscles him to the Warrior corner. Tag to Animal who kicks the stomach and Hawk chops Eaton. Eaton heads to the Midnight corner to regroup. Tie up with Eaton muscling Animal to the ropes and punches Animal. Animal misses a punch and Eaton runs out of the ring with Animal chasing him until they head back in with Eaton coming off, Animal drops down, Eaton jumps over, comes off, Animal leapfrogs, Eaton comes off, and runs into Animal's head. Animal whips Eaton to the ropes, misses the clothesline, Eaton comes off, and hits a powerslam to a pop for 2.

Eaton rakes the eyes. Tag to Lane who works over Animal but Animal reverses a whip to the ropes and catches him with a back elbow with Lane doing a nice sell job. Lane rolls out to regroup. Back in, they tie up with Hawk hitting a forearm to the back and a gutwrench suplex. Hawk climbs the second turnbuckle and comes off with a second turnbuckle clothesline. Hawk covers but Eaton and Animal come in with the referee being distracted with Animal. Lane rakes the eyes and bites Hawk. Lane holds Hawk as Eaton comes off the top turnbuckle with a diving ax handle. Lane chokes Hawk on the bottom rope. Lane then instigates Animal in the ring which distracts the referee allowing Eaton to take off his wrist tape off and chokes Hawk while Cornette nails him with the racket from the outside. Tag to Eaton with Lane holding Hawk allowing Eaton to punch Hawk. Eaton thumbs the throat behind the referee. Eaton sends Hawk to the corner and bites him. Eaton distracts the referee allowing Lane to choke Hawk on the top rope and hits a hangman.

Animal chases Lane off the apron distracting the referee which allows Lane to come in for cheap shots while Eaton gets Cornette's racket but throws it away before he can use it to avoid the referee seeing it as he turns around. Eaton whips Hawk to the ropes and catches him with a jumping knee. Eaton cheap shots Animal bringing him in to distract the referee which brings Lane in and the Midnights tease using the racket again but have second thoughts as the referee turns around. We still get an illegal switch with Lane getting a side headlock. Eaton distracts the referee which allows Lane to illegally throw Hawk over the top rope and to the floor. The fans then scream to the referee what happened while Lane pleads his case. Ellering helps Hawk back in. Cornette hands Eaton the racket and jumps on the apron to distract the referee. Third times the charm as Lane holds Hawk allowing Eaton to whack him with the racket in the stomach.

Animal comes in to argue with the referee. Eaton punches the stomach and Hawk falls to the canvas. Hawk comes back with a punch to the stomach and then another to a big pop but Eaton tags Lane in and holds Hawk allowing Lane to come off the ropes with a leg drop. Lane hits a savate kick to the stomach for 2 as Hawk presses him off and to the floor. Lane quickly gets back in and tags Eaton. Lane holds Hawk while Eaton gets a punch. Eaton whips Hawk to the corner but Hawk blocks the charge with a boot. Hot tag to Animal as the crowd is nuts with Animal hitting the stomach. Animal whips Eaton to the ropes and catches him with a back elbow. Lane comes in but Animal hits him with a back elbow. Animal whips Eaton to the ropes and catches him with a back body drop. Bubba takes out Ellering outside as Animal whips Eaton to the ropes and catches him with a dropkick but Eaton knocks into the referee which knocks the ref out of the ring.

Animal covers but no referee as Lane comes in to break it with a double ax handle. Hawk comes in and all four are now in but not for long as Hawk throws Lane out of the ring. Animal whips Eaton to the ropes and comes off the other side with a jumping shoulder block while Hawk nails Lane with a chair. Animal covers but no referee. Cornette then jumps in the ring and despite Ellering's attempts to stop him, Cornette catches Animal getting up and turning around with a fireball. That's enough to drive the Warriors and Ellering apeshit as Ellering grabs Cornette's tennis racket and whacks both Cornette and Eaton with it but the referee recovers and sees it giving the Midnights the disqualification win to advance at 12:17. After the match, Animal hits Eaton with the racket. Bubba comes in but Animal whips him to the ropes and catches him with a jumping shoulder block to send him out. Ellering hits Eaton and hands the racket to Animal who hits both Eaton and Lane. Lane gets out of the ring while Hawk presses Eaton in the air and into Animal who catches him in a bearhug. Hawk comes off and the Warriors hit a hart attack to a pop. Lane pulls Eaton out and heads for the hills as Hawk goes out to punch the referee and then send Eaton to the ring post. As Hawk gets back in the ring, the Warriors and Ellering are pissed as the fans loudly chant “bullshit”. Ring announcer Gary Michael Cappetta announces the Midnights win by DQ which pisses Hawk off to chase Cappetta away. Hawk grabs the mic and tells the Midnights they're dead meat.

Thoughts: **** Great match with a great story told. The Warriors were great beating up the Midnights while the Midnights were great bumping for them though I liked Hawk doing stuff like hip tosses, a gutwrench, and both doing dropkick so it wasn't all power moves while the gutwrench is a nice suplex. The Midnights were also great doing great using every underhanded tactic to gain and maintain the advantage. The finish was great as the DQ, like last year with the Midnights, it protects the Road Warriors while getting them out of the tournament and it made sense cause why wouldn't the Warriors and Ellering go apeshit after Cornette threw a fireball at Animal? The only slight weakness was there were some slow periods like when Bubba got on the apron though it did get a good reaction.

Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament Quarterfinals: The Super Powers vs. Rick Rude and Manny Fernandez (w/Paul Jones)- Rude and Fernandez are the NWA World Tag Team Champions but the belts aren't on the line. Rude and Fernandez won the titles in December from the Rock n' Roll Express. Koloff is wearing a neck collar which is the result of Dick Murdoch giving him a brainbuster on the concrete weeks earlier. There is a lot of irony in this match as Rhodes and Fernandez were a former team who held the NWA World Tag Team Championship from October 1984 to March 1985. Even more irony was they then lost the belts to Ivan Koloff and, you guessed it, Nikita Koloff.

Sadly, this match is clipped as we start five minutes in with Fernandez and Rhodes tying up with Fernandez dropping Rhodes with a punch. Fernandez hits a few knee drops and chokes Rhodes until Rhodes rolls out. Fernandez instigates Koloff in which distracts referee Teddy Long allowing Rude to cheap shot Rhodes off camera. Small “Dusty” chant as Rhodes gets up and Fernandez punches him from the ring. Back in, Fernandez whips Rhodes to the ropes and catches him with a back elbow with Rhodes doing a Curt Hennig selljob. Fernandez covers but gets 2. Fernandez rams Rhodes into Rude's elbow. Tag to Rude who works over Rhodes. Koloff comes in but is sent by by the ref which allows Fernandez in for cheap shots. Jones then gets Koloff's attention and Koloff chases him at ringside. Rude hits a bodyslam, climbs the top turnbuckle, and coming off with a diving fist drop for 2. Rude rams Rhodes into Fernandez's boot.

Tag to Fernandez who chops Rhodes. Fernandez hits a few headbutts. Rhodes comes back with his own but Fernandez drops Rhodes with a punch and applies a chinlock. Rhodes fades and referee Teddy Long checks the arm but Rhodes keeps it up in the third check. Rhodes gets up and Fernandez punches him. Fernandez whips Rhodes to the ropes, misses a chop, and Rhodes comes off with a jumping clothesline for 2 as Rude breaks the pin. Koloff comes in and all four fight. Koloff beats up Rude in the corner as Fernandez whips Rhodes to the ropes and catches Rhodes with a back elbow. Fernandez climbs the top turnbuckle and comes off the diving high crossbody but Rhodes rolls over with his own pin to advance in 9:39 to a big pop.

Thoughts: * Hard to rate this one since I'm missing half of the match and I hate rating clipped matches but this was alright, nothing special. This would be pretty much it for Rude and Fernandez as Rude would up and leave the NWA a month later and jumped to the WWF to have his big Hall of Fame run. This left the NWA in an awkward position and eventually the belts would be returned to the Rock n' Roll Express due to a phantom title switch.

Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament Semifinals: Tully Blanchard and Lex Luger vs. Giant Baba and Isao Takagi- Blanchard and Takagi start with a tie up. Takagi gets an armdrag takedown and armbar. Blanchard gets up and eventually makes the ropes. Tag to Baba with he and Blanchard being a combination I never thought of. Tie up and Baba gets an armbar before turning it into a standing fujiwara armbar. Blanchard gets up and Baba transitions into a hammerlock. Blanchard makes it to his corner. Tag to Luger and again, Luger/Baba is quite the combo. Anyway, Luger works over Baba in the corner until Baba fights out of the corner with karate chops. They tie up and we get another armbar. Luger tries for the tag but Baba pulls him away with his hair and then falls on his ass. Tag to Takagi who gets a front facelock but Luger eventually gets a double leg takedown and applies a standing kneebar. Tag to Blanchard who kicks the leg twice and applies a leglock. Takagi tries to get out with a chinlock but can't.

Eventually, Takagi gets out and gets an armbar. Blanchard gets an armdrag but Takagi holds on. Tag to Baba who drops Blanchard a few times with karate chops and goes back to the armbar. Tag to Luger who kicks the stomach and forearms the back. Luger gets a bodyslam to a good pop and poses. Luger comes off the ropes but misses the elbow drop. Baba kicks Luger and hits a side russian legsweep. Back to the armbar. Luger is able to tag Blanchard who comes in with punches but Baba comes back with a karate chop. Baba whips Blanchard to the ropes and catches him with a chop. Baba sets up for a neckbreaker but tags Takagi who comes off the ropes with a kick. Takagi whips Blanchard to the corner and catches him coming out with a three point stance shoulder block. Luger comes in but Takagi catches him with a three point shoulder block. Takagi gets a front facelock. Tag to Baba who gets a front facelock and turns it into a pin for 2.

Baba whips Blanchard to the ropes and catches him with a boot for 2 as Luger breaks the pin. Tags to Takagi and Luger with Luger working over Takagi until Takagi makes the comeback. Takagi whips Luger to the corner but misses the three point stance charge. Luger attempts the torture rack but sloppily drops Takagi and then to make things more awkward, Luger then just hits an elbow drop for the win and advance to the finals in 8:38.

Thoughts: -* Man, Blanchard and Luger couldn't catch a break this show as they have another disaster. This was awful but not too surprising as Blanchard was really the only reliable guy here as Luger was green, Takagi was really green, and Baba was way past his prime which resulted in a very limited and dull match. Even worse, you had Baba fall trying to prevent Luger from tagging while the finish was a complete mess with Luger not able to get the rack and then having to resort to an elbow drop. The only highlight here was Blanchard and Luger bumped pretty well. Also, if you ever wanted to see Blanchard or Luger ever face Baba, here's your chance.

Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament Semifinals: The Super Powers vs. The Midnight Express (w/Jim Cornette and Big Bubba Rogers)- Koloff and Eaton start with a big “Nikita” chant from the crowd. Tie up to start with Koloff muscling Eaton to the ropes and giving a clean break though Eaton complains to referee Teddy Long. Tie up again with Eaton muscling Koloff to the ropes and punching him. Koloff chases Eaton out of the ring and back in where Eaton comes off, Koloff drops to the canvas, Eaton jumps over, Koloff sets up the russian sickle but Eaton grabs the ropes to stop himself, and goes to the apron. Koloff slingshots Eaton back in the ring to a pop and then hits a dropkick. Eaton bails to regroup with Lane, Cornette, and Bubba. Back in, tag to Lane who ties up as the fans chant “Nikita”. Lane muscles Koloff to the ropes and hits some body shots. Lane whips Koloff to the ropes and attempts a hip toss but Koloff reverses with a big hip toss.

Lane complains about his trunks being pulled. Tag to Rhodes who ties up and hits a bionic elbow on Lane and then Eaton to a pop. Tag to Eaton who ties up and gets a side headlock. Rhodes whips him to the ropes and hits a back elbow which sends Eaton between the ropes like a rocking chair with Rhodes repeatedly hitting bionic elbows until Eaton falls to the floor. Rhodes follows and hip tosses Eaton on the floor. Rhodes goes back in as Cornette argues with the ref. Fuck, this match is clipped too as we're clipped to five minutes in with Rhodes and Koloff in the ring while Bubba jumps on the apron looking for a fight. Cornette and the Midnights have to calm him down. Tags to Koloff and Lane with Lane getting an arm wringer but Koloff reverses with his own as the fans chant “Nikita”. Cornette jumps on the apron to distract the referee allowing Eaton to come off the top turnbuckle with a diving forearm on Koloff.

Lane rakes the eyes. Tag to Eaton who gets a snapmare and knees the back of the neck. Tag to Lane as Eaton has Koloff in a front facelock while Lane hits Koloff with a punch. Lane hits a swinging neckbreaker and taunts the crowd. Lane hits a leg drop and chokes Koloff. Tag to Eaton who chokes Koloff on the middle rope. Rhodes comes in but that distracts the ref long enough for Lane to choke Koloff and Bubba to get a cheap shot from the outside. Koloff crawls to the Midnight corner and Lane chokes him for his troubles. Eaton gets a snapmare and a chinlock. Koloff begins the fade as the crowd rallies behind him and referee Teddy Long repeatedly checks the arm but Koloff keeps it up on the third check. Koloff gets up but Eaton pulls Koloff down with the neck collar. Rhodes argues with the ref which allows the Midnights to illegally switch. Lane rakes Koloff with his boots. Lane hits a hot shot and hits the throat while applying a side headlock behind the ref.

Tag to Eaton as Lane instigates Rhodes to come in, distracting the ref which allows Cornette to give Eaton his racket and Eaton chokes Koloff with it. Bubba gets another cheap shot from outside. Eaton whips Koloff to the ropes but Koloff comes off the ropes with a whip of his own and comes off the other side with a jumping shoulder block. Koloff covers while Rhodes hits Lane with a bionic elbow but Koloff gets 2. As the ref sends Rhodes back, Lane holds Koloff as Eaton comes off with a jumping knee but Koloff dodges and Eaton accidentally hits Lane out of the ring. Koloff then nails Eaton with the russian sickle for the win and punch the Super Powers' ticket to the finals in 11:10 to a big pop. After the match, Cornette has a tantrum in the ring and stumbles around. It's always amazing how a guy who later bitched about silliness in wrestling spent a lot of his career being silly.

Thoughts: **** Another good Midnight match. A small part is clipped which sucks but what's there is really good. Again, the Midnights were great bumping around and using the underhanded tactics while The Super Powers were good tossing them around or beating them up. I like the psychology here of the Midnights targeting Koloff's injured neck which made sense. It's weird they didn't take the collar off but they were likely saving that for the main event. Finish was good too. Again, good crowd as well.

NWA World Heavyweight Championship: Ric Flair (c) vs. Barry Windham- This was the third of the big Flair/Windham world championship matches that occurred from 1986-1987. The first was on February 14, 1986 at Championship Wrestling from Florida's Battle of the Belt 2 show which saw Flair retain. The second was the January 24, 1987 edition of NWA Worldwide where they went to a time limit draw.

Tie up to start with Windham muscling Flair to the corner and giving a clean break. Another tie up with Flair getting a side headlock takedown with Windham constantly keeping his shoulders up until reaching the ropes. Flair gets a few arm wringers and takes Windham down by pulling the hair but Windham kips up which makes Flair back off. Tie up and Windham gets a side headlock but Flair counters with an overhead wristlock and brings Windham down to one knee. Windham gets up and takes Flair down with an armbar takedown but Flair reaches the ropes. Tie up with Windham getting a side headlock, Flair whips him to the ropes, and Windham comes off the ropes with a shoulder block. Flair cowers in the corner. Tie up with Windham getting another side headlock but Flair muscles him into the corner. Flair hits a chop but Windham no sells and Flair cowers in the corner. Tie up again with Flair kneeing the stomach, sending Windham to the corner, and hits another chop but Windham no sells that and Flair cowers in the corner again.

Flair struts as they tie up with Flair muscling Windham to the corner and hits another chop which Windham doesn't sell and Flair cowers again. Windham climbs the turnbuckles and teases the mounted punches in the corner to a big pop but decides not to. Flair hits another chop, Windham hits some punches, sends Flair to the corner, and biels him out. Windham hits a dropkick for 2 as Flair gets his foot on the ropes. Flair punches the stomach and whips Windham to the ropes but Windham comes off the ropes with a shoulder block. Windham teases coming off the ropes but drops down and gets Flair in a side headlock. Flair eventually gets up and fights out of it. Flair comes off the ropes with a shoulder block. Flair comes off the ropes, Windham tries to catch him with a drop toehold but Flair jumps over, and bails to the floor. Flair takes a bit to regroup. Back in, they tie up with Flair getting a side headlock before transitioning into a hammerlock.

Windham reverses with his own. Flair gets a drop toehold and floats over but Windham gets a hammerlock. Flair whips Windham to the ropes and Windham comes off the ropes with a shoulder block. Windham comes off the ropes again but Flair gets a hot shot. Flair hits a knee drop and then throws Windham to the floor. Flair heads out, hits a chop, and rams Windham into the guardrail. Flair breaks the count and heads out to work over Windham. Flair heads back in, pulls Windham to the apron, and hits a hangman. Flair stomps away, sends Windham to the corner, and hits a chop. Flair gets a side headlock and a punch behind the referee's back. Flair applies an armbar and pulls the rope for additional leverage but Windham won't quit. They get up with Flair getting two arm wringers before sending Windham to the corner for a chop and punch. Flair hits a snapmare and comes out of the corner with a kneedrop for 2.

Windham starts the comeback and they trade blows until Flair does a flair flop. Flair begs in the corner and this time, Windham does the mounted punches in the corner to a big pop. Windham biels Flair out of the corner but misses the dropkick. Flair hooks in the figure four leglock and grabs the ropes to extra pressure. Flair gets a 2 count but eventually gets caught by referee Tommy Young grabbing the ropes and is forced to break the hold. Flair argues and has a shoving contest with Young. Flair whips Windham in the corner with Windham doing a good limp run before rebounding out with a lariat to a big pop but can't capitalize. Windham corners Flair but Flair kicks the stomach. Flair whips Windham to the ropes and catches him with a back elbow that sends Windham over and out before crashing into the guardrail in a nice spot. Flair heads out and teases a piledriver but Tommy Young threatens to disqualify him.

Flair hits a chop and heads back in. Windham heads to the apron, catches Flair with a shoulder block to the stomach, and catches Flair running at him with a slingshot sunset flip for 2. Flair whips Windham to the ropes and tries to catch him with a hip toss but Windham reverses with a backslide for 2. Flair bails and teases walking to the back but Windham heads out and calls Flair back in. Eventually they get back in where they tie up and Flair sends Windham to the corner and hits a chop. The two trade blows until Windham wins the exchange and Flair does a reverse flop and Windham covers for 2. Flair heads to the apron where Windham hits a punch and suplexes Flair back in and does his nice float over for 2. Windham climbs the top turnbuckle but misses the diving elbow drop. Flair attempts another figure four but Windham reverses with a small package for 2. Flair hits a chop. Windham gets a side headlock, Flair whips him to the ropes, and Windham comes off the ropes with a shoulder block.

Windham comes off the ropes but Flair catches him with a sleeper hold. Windham propels him into the top turnbuckle and Flair does another flair flop. Both are down. Fans are loud as they get up and Windham nails Flair with an uppercut that sends Flair over and out to the floor. Windham heads out and repeatedly rams Flair into different guardrails. Windham breaks the count and Flair knees the stomach to no effect. Windham attempts a piledriver but Flair back body drops out. Flair throws Windham back in, climbs the top turnbuckle, and actually comes off with a diving high crossbody but Windham rolls through for 2. Windham whips Flair to the corner with Flair doing a flair flip to the apron before falling to the floor. Windham heads out but Flair low blows him behind the ref. Flair heads back in. Windham heads to the apron with Flair tries to suplex him back in but Windham lands on his feet and applies a sleeper.

Flair tries to fight out before Windham shoves him chest first into the corner and catches him coming out with another sleeper. Flair tries to make it to the ropes but fades. Windham turns it to a pin but gets 2 as Flair gets his foot on the ropes thus breaking the hold. Windham sends Flair to the middle of the ring and comes off the ropes with a splash but Flair gets his knees up. Flair picks Windham up and drops him with a chop. Flair presses his luck and climbs the top turnbuckle. Sure enough, Windham recovers, hits the stomach, and throws Flair off. Windham applies a figure four leglock. Windham punches Flair down twice for some 2 counts before Flair rakes the eyes to get out. Windham reverses a whip to the ropes and catches Flair with a powerslam for 2. Windham attempts another figure four but Flair rakes the eyes. Flair hits a chop but Windham hits some punches. Windham whips Flair to the ropes, comes off the other side, misses the lariat, and Flair comes off the ropes with a high crossbody with both supposed to go over and out but Flair falls over and to the apron while Windham falls through the ropes.

Flair heads out and whips Windham to the ring post. Flair heads back in as Windham, for some reason, no sells the post before climbing the top turnbuckle and catching Flair with a missile dropkick. Windham covers and Tommy Young seems to count 3 but Flair gets his foot on the ropes at the last millisecond which results in a big pop as Windham and the fans think he won but nope. Windham whips Flair to the ropes and catches him with another nice lariat but once again, Flair gets his foot on the ropes for 2. Windham attempts another figure four but Flair kicks Windham into the corner and gets a side headlock takedown. Windham gets a head scissor. Flair counters by falling on top for 2 as Windham bridges out and gets a backslide for 2. Flair punches the stomach and attempts a belly-to-back suplex but Windham gets out and gets an O'Connor roll for 2 but Flair rolls through and holds the trunks to retain at 25:52.

Thoughts: ***** Excellent match worthy of the hype. Great back and forth action. Great crowd. Some nice spots during the match like Flair jumping to avoid the drop toehold or the bumps they took getting knocked out of the ring. Sadly, the footage I saw did clip the cool spot of Flair hitting Windham with a back elbow that sends Windham over and out and crashing into the guardrail but you can find that on the home video version. I liked Flair did change things up a little like attempting the figure four without Windham hurting himself first or him successfully coming off the top turnbuckle for the diving high crossbody. Windham was amazing during this time with great punches and beautiful lariats. I enjoyed the little things he did like limping while being whipped into the corner shortly after the figure four spot or punching Flair down for nearfalls while applying the figure four. The end is a little sloppy as the high crossbody to the floor doesn't work the way they wanted but they still fell to the floor while Windham barely sold getting whipped into the ring post but it's a minor nitpick. Watching this match, I really wish the NWA went with my idea and did one more big match at Starrcade later in the year with Windham finally overcoming Flair for the NWA World Championship as Windham definitely would've been great in the role and it give Flair a much needed break. It's certainly better than what they went with. Speaking of which, this match was probably Flair's last great one for awhile as after this, he stumbled for the next year in lackluster matches with midcard talent like the Garvins or tag wrestlers like Hawk. It really wouldn't be until the spring of 1988 with the rise of Sting and the babyface turn of Luger that things pick up again for The Nature Boy.

Before the main event, we get perhaps the biggest moment and most famous moment of this show which is the emotional return of Magnum TA as this is his first arena appearance since his car accident in October 1986. Magnum comes out with his right arm in a sling and walking with a cane while getting a huge pop. Rhodes and Koloff then come out and embrace him. What can I say? It's definitely a touching moment and nice to see Magnum back in front of adoring fans. The only thing I will add is that it is a bit sad especially if you saw his Super Towns on the Superstation interview. There, Magnum did a sitdown interview and he looked fine. Here, he's walking with a cane and his right arm is in a sling as it's paralyzed so while it's great to see him out and about, you really see how much the car wreck screwed him up.

Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament Finals: The Super Powers vs. Tully Blanchard and Lex Luger (w/JJ Dillon)- I like the idea of this as the finals as it made sense in retrospect as Rhodes and Blanchard were still feuding at the time. Meanwhile, Luger would eventually beat Koloff for the United States Championship in the summer only for Koloff to bounce back and beat Blanchard for the Television Championship also in the summer and then Rhodes beat Luger for the United States Championship at Starrcade.

Rhodes and Blanchard start by circling. They tease a tie up but Blanchard knees the stomach and sends Rhodes to the corner to work him over. Rhodes comes back by sending Blanchard to the corner and hits a chop and bionic elbow. They come out as Rhodes repeatedly drops Blanchard with jabs and punches. Blanchard consults with Luger. Tie up with Rhodes getting a side headlock. Blanchard tries to tag but Rhodes won't let him. Eventually, Blanchard gets his feet on the top rope for the break but bridging himself which see Rhodes release the hold and Blanchard falls to the canvas in a good pop. Blanchard charges but stop when Rhodes teases the bionic elbow. Blanchard consults with Luger again. Tie up with Blanchard muscling Rhodes to the Horsemen corner but Rhodes fights out and taunts Blanchard while repeatedly teasing the bionic elbow whenever Blanchard gets near. Tag to Luger while Rhodes teases tagging Koloff which the fans want and we get a “Nikita” chant.

Tag to Koloff as he and Luger tie up with Luger shoving Koloff to the corner and does his signature taunt. Another tie up and Luger shoves Koloff to the corner again and taunts both Koloff and Rhodes. Fans chant “Nikita” as they tie up a third time and this time, Koloff shoves Luger to the corner to a big pop before taunting Luger. They circle, Luger kicks the stomach, and works over Koloff. Luger attempts a suplex but Koloff blocks. Koloff tries for his own but Luger escapes and heads to a corner. Luger wants a test of strength and the fans chant “Nikita” as Koloff obliges. They lock up with Koloff starting to win to a pop until Luger kicks the stomach dropping Koloff to his knees. Koloff gets up but Luger kicks the stomach again to drop Koloff to one knee. Koloff gets up, muscles Luger to the ropes, and hits a knucklelock monkey flip to a big pop which looked cool. As Luger tries to get up, Koloff teases the russian sickle which sees Luger bail out.

Back in, Luger talks with Blanchard before Blanchard tags in. Blanchard kicks the stomach a few times until Koloff grabs the foot, spins Blanchard around, and hits an atomic drop which sends Blanchard to the outside. Koloff heads out and chases Blanchard back in where Blanchard comes off the ropes, Koloff drops down to the canvas, Blanchard jumps over, comes off the ropes, and Koloff catches him with a bearhug. Dillon distracts the referee which allows Luger to come off the top turnbuckle with a diving double ax handle to break the hold. Rhodes comes in with a hit on Blanchard but is sent back allowing Blanchard to hit a bionic elbow on the back of the neck. Blanchard attempts a slingshot suplex but Koloff lands on his feet and nails Blanchard with a clothesline. Luger comes in and Koloff hits him with one. Dillon climbs the apron and Koloff hits him as the fans go nuts. Blanchard heads to the apron where Koloff suplexes him back in for 2.

Koloff whips Blanchard to the corner and catches him coming out with a choke takedown. Koloff sets Blanchard on the ropes and hits a running clothesline with both going over and out to the floor. Luger instigates Rhodes in which allows Dillon to rip off Koloff's neck collar. Rhodes continues arguing with referee Earl Hebner as Luger hits Koloff with a bionic elbow to the back of the neck and rams him into the guardrail. Blanchard heads back in as Luger throws Koloff back in. Tag to Luger who hits a bionic elbow to the neck. Luger whips Koloff to the ropes and catches him with a back elbow. Luger chokes with his boot and then with Koloff's singlet strap which brings Rhodes in but that distracts the referee. Luger rams Koloff into Blanchard's knee. Tag to Blanchard who covers for 2. Blanchard hits a bionic elbow to the back of the neck and then a swinging neckbreaker for 2 as the fans chant “Nikita”. Tag to Luger as Blanchard chokes Koloff on the middle rope as Luger gets cheap shots in.

Rhodes comes in to punch Luger but is sent back allowing the Horsemen to do more choking. Luger covers for 2. Luger hits a hot shot for 2. Tag to Blanchard who kicks the stomach and works over Koloff until Koloff attempts the comeback with elbows to the stomach. Tag to Luger as Blanchard prevents the tag. Luger hits a clothesline for 2. Luger hits some knee drops to the back of the neck. Tag to Blanchard with Luger holding Koloff in a front facelock as Blanchard comes off the top turnbuckle with a diving bionic elbow while the fans chant “Nikita” for 2. Blanchard applies a chinlock with Koloff eventually getting out with a snapmare. Tag to Luger as Blanchard prevents the tag. Luger gets stomps in and then cheap shots Rhodes which brings him in to distract the referee allowing Luger and Blanchard to double team Koloff. Luger gets a front facelock as Koloff tries to reach for the tag. Luger pulls the singlet to get Koloff to the horsemen corner.

Tag to Blanchard who works over Koloff. The ref is distracted off camera which allows Blanchard to toss Koloff by his singlet straps over and out to the floor. Rhodes comes in to confront Blanchard but Hebner won't allow it. Rhodes goes out to check on Koloff before being sent back to the corner. Blanchard pulls Koloff back in and works him over. Blanchard slingshots Koloff neck first into the bottom rope. Blanchard hits a bionic elbow to the back of the neck and climbs the second turnbuckle. Blanchard comes off but Koloff catches him with a nice russian sickle to a good pop. Both are down as Luger and Rhodes are yelling. Hot tag to Rhodes to a huge pop who cleans house and tees off with bionic elbows. Dillon jumps on the apron and takes a bionic elbow for his troubles. Crowd is going nuts. Rhodes hits a three point stance tackle on Blanchard and then a second. Blanchard side steps a third attempt and Rhodes crashes to the outside.

Luger heads out and fights with Rhodes distracting Earl Hebner. Dillon hands Blanchard his shoe and holds Koloff but Koloff dodges and Blanchard nails Dillon. Blanchard then hits Koloff in the back of the neck with the shoe. Meanwhile, Rhodes whips Luger to the apron. Blanchard hits a bionic elbow to the back of the neck and attempts the piledriver but can't get it. As he tries, Rhodes climbs the apron and then the top turnbuckle before coming off with a diving high crossbody for the win and the Cup at 17:29 to a huge pop.

Thoughts: ***** Another excellent match. Great action and a red hot crowd. Blanchard and Luger finally looked great and in their comfort zone as heels who act like sharks smelling blood. The story for the match was very well told with Dillon removing the neck collar and the Horsemen doing everything they could to attack the neck. The beginning was done good with Rhodes and Blanchard doing their stuff which works and then Koloff and Luger doing their “Irresistible Force Meeting The Immovable Object” stuff. I liked Koloff's stuff like the knucklelock monkey flip and the clothesline sending him and Blanchard to the outside. The ending sequence was great and hot especially the finish which was cool. I would've wanted to see a little more of Rhodes in the match but that's a minor nitpick. The Super Powers winning was a great choice and made sense as Rhodes gets some much needed revenge on Blanchard after Starrcade 1986 and Blanchard keeping the TV Title in rematches. Plus, the Super Powers, I feel, needed a big win as this is a main event dream team so they needed to win something and with Rhodes not wanting to book himself and Koloff with any of the tag belts, this made sense.

We then get Mrs. Jim Crockett Sr. and Jim Crockett Jr. come in to present the Crockett Cup and the $1 million check to a big pop while Mrs. Crockett says some stuff. Cappetta then announces the tournament would return next year.

Final Thoughts and Verdict
The 1987 Crockett Cup has it's ups and downs with the downs being ugly but the ups being amazing. Like the 1986 edition, I couldn't get most of the matches from night one but what I could get is alright but nothing special. The meat and potatoes is night two and while the first two Blanchard/Luger matches were atrocious, the rest is solid to amazing as the Super Powers/Rude and Fernandez match was alright from what I saw, the two Midnight Express matches were great, and the last two matches were Match of the Year candidates in my opinion. I recommend this show not just for the matches but also, the videos I found on YouTube feature most of the matches in their entirety which is not the case from the Turner Home Entertainment so even if you seen the Home Video version, it's worth seeing Flair/Windham in it's entirety. I can't recommend night one since I haven't seen much of it and what I saw was nothing special but if you can weather the first two Blanchard/Luger matches, night two is worth seeing.

Not recommend for Night One but Very Recommended for Night Two

Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament 1987 Facts
First Crockett Cup to be held over two nights

First Crockett Cup to feature Tully Blanchard and Lex Luger in the finals

Ole Anderson was supposed to team with Arn Anderson in the tournament but was kicked out of the Four Horsemen. He was replaced by Kevin Sullivan

Rocky King replaced Dutch Mantel as Bobby Jaggers' partner

Tully Blanchard and Lex Luger teamed up at Crockett Cup 1987. Ironically, both would return to the finals the following year but as opponents.