NWA National Heavyweight Champion Tully Blanchard vs Ronnie Garvin - Great American Bash 7/26/86 Taped Fist Match

Some people really like their Worldwide contest earlier in the year for the National Title (a Georgia title inherited when Crockett absorbed Georgia). I found to be way too long and all over the place. The narrative was really hard to follow. This was a pretty basic and fun match. It is round-based, three minute rounds. It is treated more like a boxing match. Tully & JJ are the kings of these gimmick gaga matches. They have so many tricks up their sleeves. Tully looks to charge before the bell and is backdropped still in his robe and with the belt around his waist. Garvin KOs before the bell. Blanchard is laid out with the robe and belt still on. Dillon dumps water on him and fans him with a towel. Blanchard gets his ass royally kicked for the first two round. It is just Garvin pummeling him and Blanchard being the best stooge ever. Dillon busts out smelling salts to revive Blanchard. Blanchard is even more of a chickenshit gimmick than Flair ever was. Blanchard shows signs of life in the third round as he yanks the trunks causing Garvin to go head first into the corner. He follows Garvin to the outside but takes a swing at Wahoo and is atomic dropped into a fist! Blanchard is out cold on the outside at the end of third round. I love JJ throwing the water. Tully is back to getting his ass kicked. Garvin is holding him up so he take extra shots. Dillon tries to stop the count. He throws water in Wahoo's face and slips Tully some knuckledusters. Wahoo and Garvin are busy with JJ. Blanchard KOs Garvin with the foreign object. They are both down. Blanchard gets up before 10 and retains the title. This is more of a fun gimmick match with lots of bells and whistles. It is really the Tully & JJ show more than a violent slugfest. Enjoyable way to spend 15 minutes. ***1/2

Rewatched this and enjoyed immensely more than the initial version of the bout which took place on 7/5 which I will review shortly. This is good Craic as the Irish would say! ****