Posted February 7, 200817 yr comment_5427927 All Japan Classics 101 Shoehi Baba/Jumbo v. Michael Hayes/Terry Gordy (01/20/84) - The fans don’t really respond to the Freebirds and that is a shame because they do some really good stuff here with Jumbo playing FIP. Still, there was lots of resting in a match where they didn’t need to and the holds weren’t really worked in a meaningful way. I would hope there was a rematch somewhere down the line to see if these teams could do more in a more enthusiastic setting. Jumbo Tsuruta v. Nick Bockwinkle (AWA Title, 2/26/84) - For reference sake, this has Terry Funk as a 2nd referee. Maybe I need to watch all the Bock-Jumbo matches back to back. The first 5 minutes or so are Bock holding onto a headlock but he just seemed angrier here. The shots are just a little more stiff. The facial expressions show more scowls. I also like how almost every single move or hold is contested or worked. Bock isn’t content to be caught in a camel clutch. He lifts Jumbo up and rams him in the corner. When Bock has Jumbo in a leglock, Jumbo eventually transitions that into a headlock and Bock has to break the hold. Another theme of the match is Nick throwing Jumbo out of the ring several times, and every time, it is a battle just for Jumbo to get back into the ring. The match ends in a questionable double count-out but I enjoyed this enough for a nomination.
August 30, 201015 yr comment_5455172 NWA International Tag Titles: Giant Baba & Jumbo Tsuruta © vs. The Fabulous Freebirds (Terry "Bamm Bamm" Gordy & Michael Hayes) (1/20/84) I loved the Gordy/Jumbo interplay early with the shoulderblock standoff then Baba comes in and Gordy tries on him but Baba holds the ropes. I also loved the Hayes ode to Missing Link by bangng his head into the corner then hitting a nice jumping headbutt on Jumbo before ramming him right into Gordy. This soon turned right into a straight southern tag match with the Birds working over Jumbo who was FIP before Baba gets the hot tag and it turns into a 4-way brawl but the Birds would soon resume control working over Baba then again on Jumbo when he got back in. The Birds looked good here and were put over really strong as they dominated on offense and it was a different kind of domination not like the Brody/Hansen domination where it looked like a squash. This was more give and take and they actually sold well especially Hayes of course. They did botch the backdrop/powerbomb combo on Jumbo as Gordy lost him and Hayes had to help get him up but that happens. It would soon break down into a 4-way brawl again with Baba sending Hayes to the floor with a big boot and he would eventually get counted out juicing in the process. I liked this one more than Will did and I think it deserves consideration as a low-level nomination at least. I've seen Jumbo/Bock already.
