1983 - The Tournament

[Sartagis]

Sartagis official third round line-up predictions [B]Seiji Sakaguchi[/B] vs The Original Kendo Nagasaki [B]Bruiser Brody[/B] vs Osamu Kido [B]Dusty Rhodes[/B] vs Big Daddy Tatsumi Fujinami vs [B]Dr Wagner[/B] Mick McManus vs [B]Jos Leduc[/B] Johnny Saint vs [B]Rick Martel[/B] Antonio Inoki vs [B]Jumbo Tsurata[/B] [B]Leo Burke[/B] vs Killer Khan Lets go Burke!!

[Jaded]

Thanks Sartagis! [U][U]Normal match: Seiji Sakaguchi vs The Original Kendo Nagasaki[/U][/U] Nagasaki won a good first round match against El Satanico, then beat a weakened Ricky Steamboat in the second. He’s probably favourite here – Sakaguchi won against Huracan Ramirez in a long first round bout and then took a real beating as he pulled off the huge upset win against the Sheik of Araby in a hardcore match. Seiji comes in hard with an uppercut and a kick to the thigh, only for Kendo to completely shrug them off and take the bout to the mat. As he goes for a knee drive, though, Sakaguchi slips out of it, but can’t keep the Brit under control for long as the masked man comes back with a judo chop. Seiji slows things down as he manages to take Kendo to the ground and keep him in a series of facelocks, and as Kendo goes for a spear, takes him straight back to the mat with a double knee lift. Three kicks to the thigh follow, and an elbow driven straight into the knee, before a pair of knee drops and a body scissors. George Gillette can see his man’s in trouble, and leaps onto the apron, distracting Seiji for long enough for Kendo to hit a short arm knee to the stomach, then lock on a straddled arm bar. Hammerlock kick follows, and then comes the step over leg lock, and no doubt at all here, Kendo has stolen this one! E rating. [U]Cage match: Bruiser Brody vs Osamu Kido [/U] Wildman Brody won a stunning first round brawl against 54 year old Mad Dog Vachon, then took a 2/3 falls match against Riki Chosyu comparatively easily, winning 2-0. Meanwhile Kido took a dire opening round bout against legend Mil Mascaras, then a popular win over Giant Haystacks in another fairly poor match. Brody starts as he means to go on, powering Osamu into the corner and charging in with a massive big boot. He goes for a second one, though, allowing Kido to duck and take his leg out, but quickly powers out of a headlock attempt by Osamu. Big suplex by Bruiser, but a choke attempt is broken, and Osamu hits a European Uppercut – which Brody completely shakes off! Bruiser hits a vicious kick to the back of Kido, then takes him down with a full arm drag and twist, and manages a bear squeeze before dropping Osamu to the mat, picking him up by the hair and wailing away at his face with a series of hard right hands. Running chop to the head follows as Kido staggers to his feet, and a head twist has him in serious jeopardy. A giant choke adds to his problems, but Kido rolls out of the way of a falling axhandle, and hits a chop, then judo throws his opponent. Arm breaker follows and is segued into a series of armlocks, but Brody breaks one, and gets the big bear hug. Brody goes for a massive big boot but gets judo swept, and Osamu puts on a choke to leave Bruiser gasping for breath, then starts to climb the cage… and makes it! F rating.

[D. Boons Ghost]

Haha! Gillette saving Kendo is superb. I'm sure they had a nice cup of tea and laughed about it afterwards. In between psychic healings, of course. :)

[Jaded]

[U]Dusty Rhodes vs Big Daddy [/U] Big Daddy has won two superb matches, against Strong Koboyashi and Dos Caras, Dusty has taken out two pretty tough customers in the Mongolian Stomper and Otto Wanz. Two massive crowd favourites here, and it’s Daddy who dominates the early exchanges, punching and elbowing Rhodes then hitting some huge forearms and a big elbow drop. Another elbow drop misses, though, allowing the Dream to get on a chinlock which Daddy needs to go to the ropes to break. Series of headlocks and arm bars follow until Big Daddy powers out of one, hurls Dusty to the corner, and hits a seated hammer, but then misses an axhandle. He quickly reverses an attempt to send him to the ropes, though, and hits a running boot then a spread eagled stomp. Grounded double axhandle and a head twist have Rhodes seeing stars, and Daddy picks Dusty up to take him back down with his patented belly bounce. As Daddy plays to the crowd, though, Dusty recovers quicker than his opponent was expecting, and takes him down to the ground, hitting a series of elbow drops. A falling fistdrop misses, however, allowing the Brit to hit a seated hammer, then a head vice and a huge slam. Big Daddy Elbow follows… and that’s it for the Dream! F rating.

[captainlou]

After reading the results so far this round, we could be looking at a Big Daddy vs. Antonio Inoki matchup. That would be my prediction for the finals.

[Jaded]

[U]Normal match: Tatsumi Fujinami vs Dr Wagner[/U] Tatusmi’s all over this one from the start, taking down Wagner with a judo trip and then keeping him on the ground for a good few minutes. Wagner eventually recovers with a snap mare, and gets a warning from the referee for repeatedly using a closed fist against his opponent, and Tatsumi takes advantage of this to blast away with some stiff kicks then a riki chop and a knee jab. Driving body scissors by the Japanese wrestler sees the babyface in total control here, and he locks on a grounded cobra lock, with Wagner only just managing to make the ropes. Fujinami hits a huge bodyslam and springs up top, but Wagner just manages to roll out of the way of a flying knee drop. Wagner gets a figure four locked on, moves to a leg grapevine, then back to a figure four. He gets a big pescado then a series of headbutts, drawing the ref’s ire, but as he goes for another leg grapevine Tatsumi slips out of the back and gets an Octopus Stretch for the submission victory! D rating.

[Jaded]

[U]First blood match: Mick McManus vs Jos Leduc[/U] In a battle of two hated villains here, Leduc should have a huge advantage, with McManus having taken a big beating in his first round match which was exacerbated by a tough second round bout. It looks like Mick knows he’ll be struggling if the match goes long, as he explodes into offense with a bunch of stiff forearms and punches, then takes Jos to the mat. Leduc fights back though, getting a pair of massive headbutts, then stomping his downed opponent, but as he picks McManus up Mick gets a stiff shot to the head in and hits two forearms. As McManus goes for a forearm blow Jos blocks it and slams him, then gets the headbutt again and an eye rake, before biting his arm and hitting a rope assisted knee drop. Jos claws at Mick’s face, and the stitches Mick had after his first round match can’t handle this, coming apart and letting the blood flow out for the quick win for the lumberjack. F rating.

[Jaded]

[U]Johnny Saint vs Rick Martel[/U] Saint is a British hero, Martel is working as a heel here. Johnny was involved in one of the best matches so far in the tournament last round, pulling off a shock win against Terry Funk, while Martel pulled off an even bigger upset, defeating ‘Nature Boy’ Ric Flair. For the first five minutes or so, neither can get an advantage, Saint shrugging off anything Martel does but never really getting his own moves going. Atomic drop and forearm flurry from Martel put him in control, eventually, but he crotches himself as he attempts to dropkick Saint into the corner. The Brit legend capitalizes with a head scissors but Martel quickly comes back with a hammerlock drive, then gets a 10 punch in the corner, only for Saint to counter a forearm shot with a bodyslam and get a bridging double armbar for the 2 count. He locks on a Boston crab and nearly gets a submission victory, only for Rick to break it, but a small package wins it for Johnny! C rating.

[Jaded]

[U]Normal match: Antonio Inoki vs Jumbo Tsurata[/U] 2 bona fide Japanese legends go at it here, with Jumbo having beaten Hulk Hogan, one of the hot favourites to win, and Inoki having downed the Mexican El Solitario. Inoki starts off ultra-stiff, kicking the living daylights out of Jumbo, but Tsurata comes back by taking him to the ground. Airplane spin toss and huge knee drop follows up for Jumbo, and he keeps him on the ground with a series of arm and leglocks. Several kicks to the thigh and a knee jab follow, but Inoki ducks a clothesline to hit a suplex. A double knee rear chinlock attempt is broken, allowing Tsurata to hit a short arm deep hip toss, then he goes for a wrist lock only for Inoki to sweep his legs from below. Out of nowhere, though, Jumbo locks on the step over face lock… and Antonio taps out! E rating. [U]Normal match: Leo Burke vs Killer Khan[/U] Khan got a massive shock win as he beat Andre the Giant last round, while Burke knocked out this recapper’s personal favourite, Jackie Pallo. This is a straight-out brawl from the start, Killer using the headbutt whenever possible while Leo goes for punches, forearms and repeated European uppercuts. Hammerlock drive by Khan sends Leo to the corner, then a flurry of punches. Burke comes out fighting and gets 2 from a Thesz press, then goes for a forearm flurry but Khan counters with a Samoan drop. Double chop to the neck hurts Leo, but a knee drop misses, allowing the Canadian to hit a Cradle suplex for two and a half! Leo goes for another Thesz press but Khan moves, hitting a running chop then a massive running kick to the head and a seated chop flurry, before choking him out with a boot. Hammerlock drive takes Burke to the corner, but as Killer charges in with a clothesline, Leo comes out with a clothesline of his own, and gets a bridging roll up which is agonizingly close to giving him the victory. As he goes for a belly to back cradle suplex, Khan slips out, and tries to hurl Leo over the top rope, only for Burke to land on the apron and shoulder charge him, then slip into the ring and get a cradle suplex for the win! B rating. [U]Quarter Final Line Up[/U] The Original Kendo Nagasaki vs Osamu Kido Big Daddy vs Dr Wagner Jos Leduc vs Johnny Saint Jumbo Tsurata vs Leo Burke

[D. Boons Ghost]

Predictions: [B]The Original Kendo Nagasaki[/B] vs Osamu Kido [B]Big Daddy[/B] vs Dr Wagner (simply because I'm hoping for a Daddy v Nagasaki bout - Easy! Easy!!) Jos Leduc vs [B]Johnny Saint[/B] (As much as I admire Leduc, Saint has been awesome so far) [B]Jumbo Tsurata[/B] vs Leo Burke (Tough, tough choice here. Both guys have looked super thus far -- but I'm going with Jumbo because he made Inoki cry. Heh) ----- This has been a lot of fun to follow, Jaded. I thank you for taking the time to share these results. :) ... Even though I still have no clue how Shirley could have possibly advanced so far. His brother running this tourny, or what? :D

[Jaded]

[U]The Original Kendo Nagasaki vs Osamu Kido[/U] Nagasaki has been somewhat lucky to get this far – Ricky Steamboat and Huracan Ramirez were both weakened by tough bouts before they faced him, and he still needed the help of manager George Gillette to get past Huracan. Babyface Kido has wrestled 3 matches which were all pretty low quality. Resthold central for the first quarter of an hour or so, with neither man taking charge until Kido gets the airplane spin, then an arm trap head twist, but misses a knee drop. Kendo goes for a hammerlock, but Osamu slips out, and lands a series of kicks to the thigh then a short armed knee drive to the stomach. Kido locks on the abdominal stretch, and to the fans’ delight, it looks like this one’s over, but Nagasaki somehow manages to hold in there and eventually break it. A big enziguri gets a two count for Kido, but Kendo manages a desperate kick to the gut as Osamu charges in with a forearm, and Nagasaki hurls his opponent through the ropes and to the outside. Kendo locks on a self-stranglehold, and it’s very close to a double count-out here, but he lets go and they just make it in in time. A short arm deep hip toss follows, but as Nagasaki goes for a German suplex, Osamu elbows his way free and bounces off the ropes with a running knee for two. Flurry of chops from Kido, who briefly gets a Boston crab on only for Kendo to reach the ropes for the enforced break. Running knee follows and gets an oh-so-close two count. Flurry of chops again, setting up the rolling short arm scissors, and this one’s over! Kido advances in the best match we’ve had for quite some time here. A rating. [U]Normal match: Big Daddy vs Dr Wagner[/U] Big Daddy has a huge size advantage here, and tries to make it count with some stiff forearms, but Wagner comes back with chops, headbutts, and some illegal punches, drawing an early warning from the referee. Kick to the gut puts the Brit back in charge, and he hurls the doctor into the corner, ramming his head into the turnbuckle 10 times as the crowd count along. The pair trade uppercuts and chops, and Wagner scores a huge pescado, but Daddy quickly comes back with another corner toss and 10 turnbuckle smashes again. Head vice and double ax handle follow, and Daddy goes for the running belly butt, but Wagner goes low with a punch, drawing the wrath of the ref again. Another pescado follows, then a forearm flurry and an inverse figure four leglock and a series of headbutts which bust open the big man. Wagner keeps Daddy on the ground switching between various leglocks for three or four minutes, until the giant finally powers out, only to be taken down by La Escalera, and there’s no escaping that hold! D rating.

[Jaded]

(I appreciate this tournament has now lasted longer than some wrestler's careers... sorry! After these two, it's the semis.) [U]Cage match: Jos Leduc vs Johnny Saint [/U] And after that giant killing in the previous match, Saint is the only Brit left. This match definitely plays to his opponent’s strengths, though, as the madman headbutts and chokes him straight away to gain a clear advantage. Saint manages to take Leduc down with a fireman’s carry and keep him there for a few minutes, but Leduc is the clear favourite here. Double backbreaker and seated hammer for Jos put him firmly in control, but then he misses with a rope assisted knee drop. Double knee lift follows for Saint, then a figure four cross, and a hammerlock. A series of European uppercuts staggers Leduc, but Jos fights back by biting a chunk out of the popular British star! Spread eagled stomp follows, and Leduc tries to remove a turnbuckle cover, but Saint manages to roll him up then springboard on to the cage, starting to climb out, only for Leduc to catch him easily. Johnny goes for a double knee backbreaker but Leduc blasts him with a low blow and starts to climb out, although he’s caught in turn. Piledriver follows from Jos, busting Saint open, but the bloodied Brit won’t quit and catches Leduc’s escape attempt. A series of headbutts leaves Saint’s crimson mask looking even worse, and Leduc now goes in his trunks and pulls out a chair splinter, which he proceeds to shove in Saint’s eye! Somehow though, Johnny won’t quit! Leduc tosses him to the mat and starts to climb out, but as he reaches the top, Saint staggers to his feet and manages to climb up and pull him back in. Short arm knee lift takes Leduc down and Johnny buys some time with a step over leg lock. He holds it on for three or four minutes and tries to escape before Jos recovers, but Leduc is up and stops him. Step over leg lock again, and Jos looks like his legs are really hurt here… and this time, when Saint lets go and climbs over, the lumberjack can’t make the save! A popular win here, but at what cost? C+ rating. [U]Jumbo Tsurata vs Leo Burke[/U] The usual catch-as-catch-can stuff early on, with neither dominating, and both men going to the ropes fairly often to break up holds. Tsurata gets a great airplane spin as Burke’s forearm attempt misses, and follows up with a vicious knee jab, then a sweeping hip toss. No joy with a judo throw, however, Burke blocking the attempt and going for a series of arm bars followed by a handstand knee drive to the leg. Charging forearm leaves Jumbo reeling, but a second attempt gets countered by another airplane spin, and Jumbo moves into control with a judo toss and a few big knees. A knee drop attempt misses, though, allowing Leo to apply a leg grapevine, but no joy as he goes for a handstand knee drive. Three kicks to the thigh by Tsurata, then a judo throw, and another airplane spin. As Tsurata goes for another throw, though, Leo sidesteps him, bouncing off the ropes with a Thesz press, but Jumbo kicks out at two. Small package gets two and three quarters, and a second Thesz press gets another two count. Bodyslam follows, and Burke locks on the spinning toe hold, but Tsurata escapes. He doesn’t get far, however, walking straight into a cradle suplex, and this one’s over! B rating. OOC: The last 3 matches are now DONE. Will post over the next couple of days, just leaving it for now in case anyone is still interested enough to want to predict. Semis: Osamu Kido vs Dr Wagner Johnny Saint vs Leo Burke Final: ??? vs ???

[Jaded]

Semi-finals: [U]Osamu Kido vs Dr Wagner[/U] Wagner dominates this one to start off with, with a mixture of headlocks and forearms, but Kido comes back with some kicks and a series of facelocks of his own. Wagner punches and headbutts his way back on top, with the ref giving him tons of warnings but never looking like he’ll risk provoking a riot by disqualifying the rudo unless he does something really heelish. Kido manages to block an attempted throw by the Mexican star, and hit a judo toss, then drops to the ground and lock in the Gotch toehold… and this one’s done! Terrible match, but Kido makes the final. F rating.

[Jaded]

[U]Johnny Saint vs Leo Burke[/U] Two of the biggest babyfaces in the world collide here, and we’re expecting a lot less cheating than in the previous bout. Saint dominates the early exchanges with forearms and knee drives, but a series of hammerlocks pull Burke back into contention and he gets Johnny down to the ground, where he works over Saint’s left knee for some time. Saint gets back after blocking a couple of submission attempts, but his knee gives out on him when he’s throwing a forearm and it’s clear that Leo has done a good job of punishing the body part. A series of arm bars from Burke seem to have him in clear control, but the two end up standing up and brawling for a few minutes and Saint clearly has the advantage here, hitting a massive charging forearm which puts the Canadian down hard. Spinning toehold by Saint is broken, but as soon as Leo gets up, Johnny hits the Johnny Saint Special – and that’s all she wrote! D rating.

[Jaded]

[B]2/3 falls: Osamu Kido vs Johnny Saint[/B] The pair hold a grappling clinic for the first twenty minutes or so, with neither holding the advantage for more than about 60 seconds at a time. It’s Saint who’s the first to really take control, using that charging forearm again and getting the Boston Crab locked in, only for Kido to power out, then block an attempt at the Johnny Saint Special and get a judo toss. As Kido goes for a chop, though, Saint gets a hammerlock takedown, then the spinning toehold, only for Osamu to power out of it and clamp on the Gotch Toehold! No way out of that move, and it’s 1-0 Kido! Running knee follows as soon as the match restarts, and Osamu makes the cover to get two and a half. Forearm strike flurry inadvertently sends the Brit to the outside, but Osamu allows him back in, even holding open the ropes as a sign of respect. Chop flurry follows from Kido, who nearly locks on the Toehold again, but Saint manages to avoid it and almost locks on the Lady of the Lake, only for Osamu to in turn avoid that. Spinning toe hold by Johnny, and for a moment the fans think Kido’s submitted, but he’s clearly shaking his head and manages to break it. Saint goes for it again, but Kido avoids it, reversing a small package attempt to get a two count and blasting away with a series of chops then a barrage of forearms to take Saint down – where he locks on the Gotch Toehold again! Ladies and Gentlemen, the WINNER of this tournament… OSAMU KIDO! Thanks for reading, all!