Portland Wrestling
1980
VOLUME 5

The current Portland wrestling champions are as follows as of 5/24/1980:
NWA World Champion: Harley Race (11/7/1979)
PNW Heavyweight Champion: Rick Martel (3/22/1980)
PNW Tag Team Champions: The Sheepherders (5/10/1980)

Your host is Frank Bonnema.

Frank Bonnema talks with the self-proclaimed People’s Army: Rick Martel and Roddy Piper. While Martel is all meek and mild-mannered, Piper explodes on the Rose Army saying all they do is talk and run their heads into walls, which isn’t exactly any kind of difficult training. However, he and Martel have been in the gymnasium training and getting ready for their next fight with them. Has there ever been a bad Piper promo in Portland?

Buddy Rose (still wearing the mask and the wig) comes down to ringside with his New Zealand Sheepherders wielding the New Zealand flag. If you’ll remember from the last time we visited Portland, Buddy Rose said he would now be fighting under this flag to piss everyone off. Roddy Piper, Rick Martel, and Dutch Savage find an American flag in the audience and bring it in the ring to for some cheap babyface love. Martel is given a dozen roses from a fan and Rose rips them up. Just so much happening!

• 2/3 Falls: Roddy Piper, Rick Martel & Dutch Savage vs. The Sheepherders & Buddy Rose – (Portland Wrestling, 5/24/80)
  

FIRST FALL: We get an extended shine sequence from the babyfaces here as they take turns outsmarting the heels. High energy and tons of fun. Crowd is HOT for everything. It gets to the point where nobody from the Rose Army wants to tag in until old man Dutch is in the ring. Just as Bonnema points out the bad leg, we see Rose pick at the leg. He misses a butt drop on the knee though, but Rose goes after the knee again and takes control. Dutch winds up punching Rose in the dick so he can make his tag to Martel. He telegraphs a backdrop to signal another face in peril segment. He gives the Sheepherders some turnbuckle smashes and tags in Dutch, but Savage telegraphs a backdrop as well. Once he gets cornered on the wrong side, Rose pulls Savage out to the floor by his bad leg. While the ref is busy with an impatient Piper, both Rose and Butch shove Savage into the ringpost. He won’t get up from that and gets counted out to award the first fall to the Rose Army at 8:29. After the bell, Rose disrespects the New Zealand flag by using the flagpole like a baseball bat. He swings the pole one time too many and the flag flies off and drapes on the ropes. Both Sheepherders are pretty pissed off about this and Rose tries to make it up to them by fixing it.

SECOND FALL: The Rose Army goes right after Dutch’s shoulder that was posted to end the last match. And why wouldn’t they? This builds to a hot tag to Piper. Turnbuckle smashes everywhere. Martel comes in and whips Butch into Rose. Piper manages to get a SLEEPERHOLD on Luke. While Savage and Martel keep Butch and Rose at bay, Piper puts Luke to sleep to win the second fall in 12:08 total. Both Luke and Rose were put to sleep with sleeperholds. Martel drapes the American flag over Rose for fun. After that, Martel and Savage fold up the flag and take it out of the ring. Once the good guys leave, Rose and Butch wake up Luke the old fashioned way. Man, Luke is really out cold!

THIRD FALL: As soon as Luke wakes up, the bell rings for the third fall. Piper finds the SLEEPERHOLD again, but Butch breaks it up. Rose goes after Piper, but then Piper goes after the mask and Rose is in trouble. The match breaks down, but Butch drills Piper with the flag pole. Rose crawls on top of Piper for the three-count. (13:48 total) This is the last match we’ll be recapping from the career of Dutch Savage. **½

From in between the first and second falls, Buddy Rose and the Sheepherders talk with Frank. Rose discusses Butch Miller getting a shot at the PNW heavyweight title on Tuesday night. He feels he’s the number one contender, but will step aside and let Butch have his chance at the the title. Butch talks about how the New Zealand flag is bringing them all kinds of success. THE TITLE IS COMING BACK TO THE ROSE ARMY, MARTEL.

After the bell, Piper gets on the mic and grabs ref Sandy Barr by the hair and tells him he can’t let the Rose Army get away with robbery like that. When Piper suggests something to Dutch and Martel, Dutch leaves and comes back with a coal miner’s glove. Savage changes the main event on Tuesday night to a coal miner’s glove match between the Sheepherders and Roddy Piper & Rick Martel. Dutch will referee to make it’s all fair and square. They either show up for the fight or the Sheepherders can go back to New Zealand. THIS WILL BE FOR OLD GLORY~!

Over at Frank Bonnema, Buddy Rose explains to the Sheepherders what a coal miner’s glove match is. Butch asks Rose what happens if Martel or Piper gets the glove first. Rose says he’ll give them “information” on what to do. Luke says if they get the glove, the Rose Army will have the northwest all to themselves. Rick Martel runs over and scares them with the glove. Butch gets back on the mic and doesn’t want a coal miner’s glove match now. They skeered.

• 2/3 Falls: PNW Tag Team Championship: The Sheepherders (c) vs. Roddy Piper & Rick Martel – (Portland Wrestling, 5/31/80)
  

FIRST FALL: So Martel and Piper won the coal miner’s glove match and will now get their tag team titles shot here. Martel is all headlocks and shoulderblocks on Luke to start. He switches to an armbar. He and Piper take turns sneaking in and out maintaining the hold. Martel shows off with a leapfrog and a dropkick to Luke when Luke tries escaping. They continue the arm work on Luke until Luke finally decides to pound on Piper’s taped left knee. Butch finally gets a tag and takes Piper to school until Piper submits to a half crab at 9:39.

SECOND FALL: Piper limps back to the ring to start the next fall. He is immediately cornered and goes back to working the left knee. Crowd cheers on Piper. After a few minutes of building it up, Piper reaches Martel for the hot tag. He rips into the Sheepherders. DOUBLE NOGGIN KNOCKER~! Martel goes back to work on Luke’s arm. Piper tags in, but knee lifts Luke with his bad knee. What were ya thinking? Back to Martel. He gets poked in the eye and Piper tags back in the match. Piper corners Butch and tags in Martel so he can land a great dropkick. Tag to Luke, Martel has dropkicks for him as well. Luke gets sent out to the floor and posted by Piper which is a callback to the six-man tag from last week. Back inside though, Martel gets Luke down on the mat and cranks on a hammerlock until he submits at 17:13 total. After the bell, Piper and Martel talk with Frank Bonnema. They got permanent plans here in Portland. Martel thanks the fans for their support. Somebody gave Martel a Raggedy Ann cake? Apparently it’s supposed to be Buddy Rose. Now Piper gets on the mic and puts down Buddy Rose. He also says some nice and confident babyface things to Rick Martel who he will be facing soon for the PNW heavyweight title.

THIRD FALL: The challengers pick up where they left off working on Luke’s arm. Luke punches out of the armbar from Martel and gets him over in the Sheepherders corner. Luke jabs Martel in the throat with his thumb. Martel is in trouble for a bit. This leads to a hot tag to Piper. The fight continues out on the floor. Back inside, Piper applies the SLEEPERHOLD to Luke when Rose flies in trying to jab Piper with the flag pole, but Piper turns to face Rose and Luke gets KO’ed for the DQ. (21:25 total) Butch is SUPER PISSED for what Rose has just done. Luke would be too if he wasn’t knocked out. Butch shoves down Rose, but then Rose gets back up and starts beating Luke some more with the pole to bust him open. Butch beats up Rose some more and tosses him to the floor. Before Rose can do any more damage, Butch ends up chasing him back to the locker room with a chair. Meanwhile, a bloody Luke Williams has to be carried back to the locker room. ***¼

They have Luke’s bloody half dead body leaned up against the railing while Butch Miller declares the Sheepherders are through with Buddy Rose. Actually a great, coherent promo from Butch talking about ridding the northwest of Rose.

• Igor Volkoff vs. Mike Hennessy – (Portland Wrestling, 5/31/80)
  

This is our first look at Igor Volkoff. No relation to Nikolai. Just another Soviet gimmick. Even Bonnema is calling this an “anticlimactic” ending to today’s program after the break up between Buddy Rose and the Sheepherders. I would agree. After the prelim stuff, Igor goes for the knee. HENNESSY WON’T GIVE UP. They end up going to the TV time limit draw at 6:22. *½

Buddy Rose shows up in the Crow’s Nest and the crowd yells “traitor” at him. He reminds Butch that he taught him everything Butch knows, but not everything *he* knows. Butch comes by and beats up Rose until jobbers come to hold back Butch. BUTCH WANTS ROSE! And Don Owen says we will see Butch Miller go after Buddy Rose – NEXT WEEK!

Final Thoughts: Another strong edition of Portland wrestling. They are FUN to watch during this period. No MOTYCs this time around, but the rivalry between these two sides is fun to watch. Plus, you have the breakup of this incarnation of the Rose Army. Important stuff here!

When we return to Portland, we’ll see Butch Miller get his hands on Buddy Rose. With no allies left in Portland, he brings some old friends back to the area. WHO WILL THEY BE? Portland Wrestling: 1980 (VOLUME 6) is next!