4th Anniversary Show

December 15, 1983
River City Wrestling #128
Winnipeg Arena, Winnipeg, MB

Approximate attendance; 2,900

We are welcomed by the announcers Ron Strong & Mike Stone.

Ron Strong;
On January 5th, 1980 an 8-man tournament was held to determine the first ever RCW Heavyweight Champion. Those participants were Dean Jarrett, Puppy Dog Pelequin, The Destroyer, Tom Stone, J.P. Moran, Eric Lee, Mike Valiant, and Chris Lyon. Destroyer, Valiant, and Lyon are still with us today, four years later and are appearing with us tonight. On that opening night after over 28 minutes of hard fought combat, with both men staggering, Mike Valiant tried to end the tournament final match against the Destroyer with a piledriver. However, the Destroyer would begin his first reign as RCW champion by countering with a sunset flip, and arching his back using his legs to take down and roll up Valiant for the 1, 2, 3.

Mike Stone;
And a strong champion he proved to be. He held the title for over a year. No one beat him for the belt, it was stripped due to injury. On January 24th, 1981 another 8-man tournament was held to determine a new champion. Chris Lyon at that time still beloved to the fans won that final over the mysterious and dangerous Mummy.

Ron Strong;
Our 4th anniversary show, and tonight that same Chris Lyon defends his Heavyweight title against Mike Valiant. Of the 3 original mainstays in RCW, Chris Lyon is the current champion and is on his third reign. Likewise, the Destroyer has had three title reigns. Lyon’s opponent tonight in the main event, being seconded by none other then Superstar Billy Graham, is the third mainstay since RCW began in 1980, Mike Valiant, who unlike the other two RCW icons, has never held the championship gold.

Mike Stone;
That’s right Ron, the table is set for a victory party tonight as we leave 1983 behind. The big question is whether Mike Valiant has the right stuff to finally take a seat at the head of that table, or whether Chris Lyon as the head of the Triumvirate will continue to survive at the top of the food chain here in River City Wrestling.

Ron Strong;
But we begin with something a little different.

Mike Stone;
There’s a saying, everyone loves a parade, well for wrestling fans that can be amended to everyone loves a battle royal. And tonight’s first match should appeal to them with its circus like atmosphere as we fill the ring with midgets and ladies. Midgets and ladies oh my.

Ron Strong;
Here we go River City Wrestling fans, this show is for you, enjoy.

Opening Contest;
Open Invitation Battle Royal
Winner receives a restored automobile, either a Monte Carlo for the ladies or an Austin Mini if won by a midget. Both vehicles are on display at ringside.

**due to the inclusion of midgets and ladies, this battle royal will not require participants to be thrown over the top. Any contestant who touches the ground outside the ring with both feet will be eliminated**

The midgets come out to the ring first.
Coconut Willie, Wolfman Kevin, Little Tokyo, Chili Bowl, Tiny Tom, Little Coco, Stanislav Kozlowich, and Little Feet.
They begin to push and shove one another, and then complain and hassle the two referees standing outside the ring.
This all comes to a stop when “No One Like You” by the Scorpions plays and the England Sisters come to the ring. Judging by their ring attire (tight Jordache jeans) they don’t have any serious thoughts about winning this battle royal.
They are slowly followed by other women wrestlers Iron Maiden, and White Venus.
Following after them is the buxom, and talent lacking Cherry Forever.

The first pre-match surprise appearance happens next when Stampede wrestling star Rhonda Singh comes to the ring. She is huge compared to the other wrestlers, which combined with her experience has got to make her the automatic odds on favorite to win this match.

Finally, the new duo of the muscular Valkrye and her male partner Anton Rojack make their way into the ring. As the refs get ready to start the match they try and make Rojack leave the ring. But he refuses. He grabs a mic and says this is an open battle royal and it doesn’t say that men are not allowed. He points to the midgets and says they are men, and then points to Rhonda Singh and says that she weighs as much as he does, “so what’s the problem”. Before the refs can argue the point anymore, midgets attack.

Willie, Tokyo, and Kozlowich go right after the England Sisters, while Chili, Tom, Coco, and Little Feet attack Valkrye and Rojack.

The refs leave the ring and call for the bell.

xTiny Tom eliminated by (Valkrye) 0:33
xLittle Feet eliminated by (Valkrye) 0:54
xWhite Venus eliminated by (Singh) 1:14
xCorrie England eliminated by (Willie & Tokyo) 1:23
xCoconut Willie eliminated by (Tokyo) 1:29

A minute and a half in and the action is fast and furious. The midgets learn their lesson and retreat from attacking Valkrye. Anton Rojack is just staying behind Valkrye and has yet to actually touch anyone. Rhonda Singh looks dominating and all the other ladies are attempting to avoid her. After Coconut Willie and Little Tokyo teamed up to eliminate Corrie England, Tokyo tricked Willie and betrayed him throwing him out of the ring from behind. This caused a lot of friction amongst the midgets who now divided into traditional battle lines of rulebreakers against fan favorites with Wolfman Kevin and Little Tokyo finding themselves outnumbered by Chili Bowl, Little Coco, and Stanislav Kozlowich. Much to the delight of the crowd Rhonda Singh sought out and found Tawney England while Valkrye hooked up with Iron Maiden. Rojack and Chery Forever found themselves without dance partners.

xWolfman Kevin eliminated by (Chili Bowl & Little Tokyo) 3:02
xTawney England eliminated herself 4:34
xCherry Forever eliminated by (Tokyo) 5:56
xStanislav Kozlowich eliminated by (Singh) 6:45
xIron Maiden eliminated by (Valkrye & Rojack) 8:01

Little Tokyo once again betrayed an allie as he helped to send Wolfman Kevin out of the ring, but this did not draw the ire of the crowd as near as much as when he threw out the visually appealing Cherry Forever. Tawney finally grew tired of being beaten by Rhonda Singh and just left the ring, to a loud chorus of boos.

The remaining midgets; Little Tokyo, Chili Bowl, and Little Coco, once again allied themselves together as they regrouped in one corner of the ring.
Valkrye and Anton Rojack stayed in another corner going over strategy.
In the middle of the ring Rhonda Singh tried to decide which corner to attack first.
Her decision was made easier though when Chili and Coco turned on Tokyo for some pint-sized payback. Singh then went right after Valkrye while Rojack stood stoically behind his woman.

xLittle Tokyo eliminated by (Chili Bowl & Little Coco) 9:28
xRhonda Singh eliminated by (Valkrye & Rojack) 9:54

As soon as Singh was eliminated the two remaining midgets began to double team Valkrye. Finally Rojack was into the action. He attacked Coco from behind and threw him over the top rope, much to the shock of the crowd. Chili Bowl tried to evade the big duo after that, and attack with a stick and move style but it was only a matter of time.

xLittle Coco eliminated by (Rojack) 11:12
xChili Bowl eliminated by (Valkrye & Rojack) 13:40

Co-Winners; Valkrye & Anton Rojack

Bout #2

Ben Bassarab, 218 lbs., Calgary, Alberta
V
Dynamite Kid, 207 lbs., Manchester, England

Classic collar-elbow hook-up to begin and Bassarab forces Dynamite to the buckle. They repeat this time with Kid reversing it at the last second and throwing Bassarab against the buckle, and chopping him on the bounce back. The first couple minutes of this match drives home that these men are cut from the same cloth, as they anticipate and counter each other’s moves. But the fans are pleasantly surprised when Bassarab comes out of the corner and nails Kid with a superkick to the chin. That is not a usual Bassarab move, in fact it is the finisher of his partner Phil LaFleur. Bassarab makes the cover and referee Kenny “Sodbuster” Jay makes the count 1, 2, 3 !!! Huge upset at 4:15

However, Dynamite Kid grabs a mic and starts to rant at Bassarab. Says the match, like his career so far, is a fluke. He says that if Bassarab truly wants to surpass the master then he needs to make sure that he is indeed superior, and not rely on a rookie referee and pure luck. What else can the fan favorite do when Dynamite Kid says let’s make it 2 out of 3 falls? Bassarab accepts.

Bassarab goes right at Kid, with a knee to the gut, and follows up with a series of forearms and then a German suplex out of the corner. After a near fall he works a front chancery until Kid can make it to the ropes for the break. Dynamite feigns leaving the ring only to nail Bassarab from the apron and then applies the Octopus hold. This gets the crowd really jeering Dynamite Kid. The Brit goes on the offensive now with kicks and punches, followed up by a pair of German release suplexes, the second one bounces Bassarab out of the ring. Kid is relentless and nails Bassarab with a head tope much to the amazement of the crowd.

Kid does more damage outside the ring, including hip tossing Bassarab off the ring apron to the floor below and then dropping a headbutt on him from the apron. Kid tosses Bassarab back inside the ring and sets him up for the diving headbutt. He nails it and after a slight pause to gather his senses covers, and gets the 1, 2, 3.
We are tied 1 fall apiece at 10:23

The final fall is back and forth with Kid holding the momentum for a few more minutes, then Bassarab taking it back but unable to finish off the veteran. The ring announcer declares that we are at the 20 minute mark and that this is a 25 minute time limit.

Bassarab attacks Kid with a gutbuster, followed by a vicious stomp to the breadbasket. He climbs to the top rope but when he comes off for the flying elbow the veteran Dynamite Kid lifts his knees and Bassarab wrecks himself.
Kid struggles to his feet and when his opponent does the same he nails him with a superkick. He goes for the final pin, but only gets a 2 count. Dynamite lifts Bassarab onto his shoulders and gives him a twisted looking crucifix powerbomb. Bassarab is totally out of it. Kid covers and gets the 1, 2, he lifts his head up! The fans are stunned and then outraged as a chorus of boos reigns down on the Dynamite Kid. The Kid climbs the turnbuckles and wastes valuable time discussing local breeding techniques with the crowd before returning his attention to Bassarab. He lifts him up again to deliver the same move, but this time Ben manages to hook his feet over the top strand and Kid stumbles forward, sending Bassarab tumbling to the ground. Hurt but still alive. Dynamite Kid lays in a few stomps and then sets up Bassarab for the piledriver. But Bassarab blocks it and flips Kid over his back. Bassarab stumbles forward and hangs onto the turnbuckles for dear life as the announcer proclaims 1 minute remaining in this bout.

Kid struggles to his feet, launches a kick to the ribs of Bassarab, and follows up with a rib breaker. He never lets go of his opponent and then turns it from a rib breaker to an overhead suplex. He goes for the pin and gets the 1, 2, kickout! 30 seconds remaining.

Dynamite Kid grabs Bassarab and nails him with a windmill suplex. He covers and gets 1, 2, Kickout!
Kid is frustrated but he demolishes Bassarab with a clothesline, and then drops a fist to the noggin. He picks up his opponent and sets him up for the piledriver. Bassarab though blocks it again and flips the Kid backward. The veteran though rolls with it and hooks the legs on his way down. He grabs a handful of tights to make sure, and gets the 1, 2, 3!

Dynamite Kid defeats Ben Bassarab by pinfall 2 falls to 1 at 24:54

Bout #3
Six Man Tag Match

Kelly Hobin, Stan Rodgers, & Keith Hart
V
Kendo Nagasaki, Butch Reed, & Mr. Ho

This match was pretty much just a vehicle to set up the Ho faction. They cheated to dominate most of the match with the smallest man Hart playing Ricky Morton for a while. Nagasaki did the most damage without regard for the rules or basic human conduct. It was obvious at times that Reed disagreed with what Nagasaki and Ho were doing but nothing came of it. Mr. Ho for the most part resisted the taunts of his opponents and stayed on the ring apron. When he finally did come in to try and finish off Hart the predictable occurred. Hart turned the tables, blocking a chop to the throat and turning it into a hammerlock takedown. Ho though ended up making the tag to Reed who devastated Hobin with a running clothesline. Nagasaki ended up winning the match with a dragon kick.

Nagasaki, Reed, & Ho defeated Hobin, Rodgers, & Hart by pinfall when Nagasaki pinned Hobin after a dragon kick at 12:51

Special In-ring Interview:

Ron Strong interviews Superstar Billy Graham.
Graham goes into how he heard about Lyon, Mosca, and Duncum mocking him from his good friend Mike Valiant. He let it go, the first time. He let it go, the second time. But when it continued, and when they have treated his friend Mike Valiant the shameful way they have, it’s time for the Superstar to act. He says that he will be stationed in the corner of Valiant tonight for his title shot at Chris Lyon, and has the champagne chilling in the back. SBG says that he will have his eyes peeled to outside the ring, watching out for Duncum and Mosca. He has absolute confidence that Valiant can overcome anything that Lyon can dish out tonight, and that makes his job as enforcer that much more simple.

Before he can wrap up his interview though Angelo Mosca and Bobby Duncum come out to take issue with Graham. They tell him to go back east where he belongs losing matches to Howdy Dowdy Bobby Backlund. They say it’s a case of the pot calling the kettle black because its well known that Superstar is the biggest cheat in the industry and that’s the only reason he won the WWWF title in the first place. SBG takes exception to that and it looks like the 3 will brawl. This brings Mike Valiant in from the back. When he tries to run its obvious that he’s still favoring his injured knee somewhat. He climbs the ringsteps to the apron. Suddenly, Chris Lyon jumps over the barricade from the crowd. He is wearing sunglasses and a blonde wig. He catches the feet of Valiant and pulls him down, smashing his hurting knee off the ring apron. He begins to attack it with kicks. Inside the ring SBG tries to make the save but all Mosca and Duncum need to do is get in his way and tie him up. Eventually he fights through them to make the save but by now its obvious that damage has been done to Valiant’s leg. The only question as SBG helps Valiant to the back, is how much damage and will he be able to answer the bell for the main event?

At this point we are about an hour and fifteen minutes into tonight’s show so we have the first of two intermissions to sell some T-shirts.

Bout #4

RCW Television Title Match

Bounty Hunter (champion), 275 lb.s, El Paso, Texas
V
The Destroyer, 252 lbs., parts unknown

The champ showed no respect or fear of the 3 time RCW Heavyweight champion, going straight at him at the opening bell. He used closed fists and a choke in the corner to get his message across that he was not about to roll over and play dead.
BH punished him with a pair of bodyslams and then used his boot to rake the forehead of the masked challenger. He applied a front face lock and loosened the mask enough to twist it and then pull it tight again. Destroyer tried in vain to quickly turn it and his eyesight was obscured for the next couple of minutes. Hunter attacked with a running elbowsmash, a backbreaker, and a hanging vertical suplex. His attacks lacked focus so he was unable to put the challenger away. Finally Destroyer managed to fight back with a couple of kicks. One of these kicks landed straight into the crotch of the champion who doubled over in pain. This delay was long enough for the Destroyer to turn his mask around. The champion complained to referee George Gadasky calling for what should have been an automatic disqualification. But Gadasky pointed out to BH that the contact had to be accidental as the challenger could not see.
Destroyer went on the offensive now, controlling the champ with several consecutive wear down holds, punctuated with two gutwrench suplexes. He could only get a 1 count on the champ.
BH reversed things though when he clobbered Destroyer with a lariat to the throat. The next few minutes saw control of the match switch back and forth, but with the Destroyer always short of breath and grabbing at his throat. BH would use that to his advantage by driving a thumb into his throat and then throwing him out of the ring. He followed the masked man out to the floor and then threw him into the guardrail and then the outside of the ringpost. He challenged Gadasky to disqualify him, allowing him to retain his title, but the ref did not bite.
Back inside BH put his challenger down with a bodyslam, nailed a kneedrop to the head, and then dropped an elbow from the second turnbuckle. He went for the pin but only got a two count. He whipped the Destroyer to the ropes, tried to finish him off with his Lariat finisher but the challenger hit his own finisher by countering with a crucifix into a roll. He got the 1, 2, 3, and the Bounty Hunter’s TV championship reign of a year and four days has come to an end.

The Destroyer defeated the Bounty Hunter by pinfall after a crucifix at 15:43
[The Destroyer wins the RCW Television Title]

Post-Match:
Vic Gate comes out to celebrate with his mentor. In the middle of the celebration though Destroyer breaks it off and grabs Bounty Hunter by the shoulder as he attempts to leave the ring. BH looks like he is ready to kill the new champ when he offers a handshake. But after a few seconds of hesitation the former champion surprises the crowd by accepting the handshake. He then quickly leaves the ring.

Bout #5
RCW Tag Team Title Match
Angelo Mosca & Bobby Duncum (champions) (/w Corrie England)
V
Jim Brunzell & Brad Rheinghans

The opening couple of minutes of this match belonged to Brunzell and Rheinghans who used speed and quick tags to do a number on Bobby Duncum who was reeling. This ended however when Mosca illegally entered the ring and chop blocked Brunzell from behind taking out his knee. This went into the typical Brunzell playing Ricky Morton stage for about 5 minutes before he was able to make the hot tag to Rheinghans. However, as Brunzell couldn’t even stand on the ring apron, never mind make a tag or help out Rheinghans, it was only a minute before the villains were able to double team thanks to the distractions of Corrie England. The champs focused on Rheinghans’ back, working him over with backbreakers, axhandle chops and surfboards. Rheinghans did manage to fight back and make the gallant tag to his partner. But while Brunzell was able to pepper both his opponents with punches, his rally came to an end when he delivered his finisher dropkick because he seemed to hurt his knee again (either hyper-extended on the delivery or smashed it on the mat on the fall). Both Bobby Duncum and Brunzell struggled to beat the 10 count, and both tagged out to their partners.
Rheinghans caught Mosca with a clothesline but King Kong didn’t move. He came off the ropes with a forearm to the chin which knocked the former Hamilton Ti-Cat down to his knees. But when he tried to take Mosca over with the Olympic suplex his back gave out and Mosca fell on top of him for the pin. You could have heard a pin drop as the fans registered their disappointment.

Mosca & Duncum defeated Rheinghans & Brunzell by pinfall when Mosca pinned Rheinghans at 14:02
[Angelo Mosca & Bobby Duncum retained the RCW Tag Team Titles]

Bout #6
Canadian Women’s Title Unification Match

River City Champion; Judy Martin
V
Maple Leaf Champion; LeiLani Kai

Normally the local champion would be the fan favorite in such a match-up but this was not the case with the arrogant Martin being boo’d by the Winnipeg faithful.
A big showing of the title belts being removed from both champs, and the referee presenting the new belt to the crowd was made before the match. However, knowledgeable fans were still left wondering where this Maple Leaf belt came from.
The match itself was between two tough birds who turned it into a brawl, inside and out of the ring. The action spilled into the crowd where Martin took the opportunity to slam Kai onto a steel chair. Back inside Martin finished off Kai with a piledriver.

Judy Martin defeated LeLani Kai by pinfall after a piledriver at 6:20
[Judy Martin wins the Canadian Women’s Heavyweight Title]

In-ring Promo;

Promoter and matchmaker Marty Goldstein comes to the ring, accompanied by an old codger that few wrestling fans recognize.

Goldstein] Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming out tonight for the 4th Anniversary spectacular! Tonight we have a very special announcement. At the risk of being seen as egotistical, or seeming to have illusions of grandeur, we here at RCW have decided to begin to honor our own athletes. Starting next year in 1984 we will have our first entrant into the River City Wrestling Hall of Fame.

The fans greet the announcement with polite applause.

Goldstein] Watch River City Wrestling in January and we will announce the final candidates for the sole induction spot in 1984. Which brings me to this man standing beside me. Veteran wrestling correspondent Matt Brock who works for editor in chief Bill Apter on several wrestling periodicals. Matt has been brought here because of his knowledge of, and his following of River City Wrestling. Matt I’ll let you take it from here.

Brock] Thank-you Marty, and thank you Winnipeg. That’s right, as Marty was saying I have followed RCW since its inception, due in large part to my personal friendship with local boy Bulldog Bob Brown. Which brings me right to the Hall of Fame selection method. A six man Hall of Fame committee has been created with me at the helm. We will all submit a 3 person nomination slip ranked in order of preference. The top 3 people nominated by points will go onto the final ballot. The championship committee then, in due course after some time to deliberate, will cast their votes for the candidates ranking them 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. Whomever gets the most points will be inducted in a special spring celebration.

Goldstein] Thanks Matt. The Hall of Fame committee will consist of;
• myself, Marty Goldstein, promoter and matchmaker for the last couple of years.
• Matt Brock, distinguished wrestling journalist with the Apter family of periodicals.
• Jack McAdam, who has been following RCW for his readers since its inception through his Mid-west Wrestling newsletter which has been publishing since the mid 1970’s.
• Stan Mullen, a local Winnipeg wrestling fan and for the past 30 months the President of the River City Wrestling Rooters Fan Club.
• Bulldog Bob Brown, former RCW competitor and world renowned wrestling talent.
• George Gadasky, our most senior referee, a former wrestler, RCW competitor and veteran of mid-west wrestling wars.

Goldstein] That’s it for now folks, please watch River City Wrestling in January to hear the names of the 3 finalists.

The fans once again give Goldstein and Brock some polite applause as they leave the ring.

We are now about two and a half hours since the national anthem and we take a final intermission to sell some more T-shirts and allow the male fans to visit the infamous Winnipeg Arena troughs.

Semi-Main Event
3 Round Special Boxer v Wrestler Match
** 3 minute rounds, 1 minute rest period. Can win by 10 count knockdown (closed fist punches legal) or by wrestling 3 count, submission, countout, and disqualification **

Randall “Tex” Cobb v Bad News Allen

Judges at ringside;
Matt Brock
Marty Goldstein
Kenny Jay (referee)

Round 1:
Cobb surprises Allen by starting strong. He catches Allen coming in and nails him with a right cross. Allen has to play defense and use the rope break. Cobb is relentless and lands several good head shots, one of which knocks Allen down. He gets up at the count of 6.
Allen decides he has had enough, and after a clinch he rakes the eyes of Cobb. The wrestler scoops up the boxer into a fireman’s carry. The bell rings to end the round but that doesn’t stop Allen from turning it into an airplane spin. The feet of Cobb swing around and nail referee Kenny Jay right in the head knocking him out. Allen seizes the opportunity by nailing Cobb with a slam out of the fireman’s carry. Instead of going to their separate corners though Allen goes and retrieves a chair. Cobb’s corner men are helping him to his feet when Allen appears with the chair and ~waffles~ Tex in the head with the chair, busting him wide open. Allen then applies the cobra clutch.

Round 2:
Kenny Jay finally gets to his feet with Cobb still in the cobra clutch. There is a lot of confusion and Jay after getting Allen to break, and conferring with the timekeeper calls for the 2nd round to begin. Cobb’s corner protests, both over the use of the chair as well as the lack of a full minute break in action. None the less the second round begins with Allen reapplying the cobra clutch. There isn’t a whole lot of haymakers that can be thrown by the boxer while stretched out in that hold. Allen continues to hold onto Cobb, using the abdominal stretch, taking advantage of extra leverage from the top rope until he is caught by Kenny Jay. Cobb makes a spirited comeback in the last 30 seconds but Allen leaves the ring, and then catches Cobb following him back into the ring with a kick to the gut and a scoop slam. The bell rings for the end of the 2nd round.

Round 3;
Cobb comes out having been cleaned up by his corner men, no longer wearing the crimson mask. Allen though manages to duck under a punch and takes Cobb down with a single leg. Cobb is in the guard position and avoids some punches and elbows reigned down by Allen. From his back Cobb fights back and nails Allen with a punch which catches him square in the jaw. Allen just falls straight back. Cobb though seems a bit unsure what to do with an opponent who is flat on his back, so he retreats and allows Jay to apply the count. Allen is back up at the count of 5, only to have Cobb nail him again with a combination that sends him to the mat. Instead of waiting for the 10 count he tries to make the cover, and gets 1, 2, kickout!
Cobb pulls Allen to his feet and winds up for a bolo punch, but Allen uses the ref’s lack of positioning to nail Cobb with a knee to the groin. He then follows up with a swinging neckbreaker. Cobb struggles to his feet while Allen sets him up for the enzuigiri finisher, but Cobb somehow spins just in time and catches the leg of Allen. He turns the former Judo fighter over into a half-Boston and after a few seconds makes him cry uncle.

Tex Cobb defeats Bad News Allen in a Boxer v Wrestler match by submission to the half-boston crab at 2:09 of the 3rd round

Main Event

Ring Announcer]
Ladies and gentlemen, this is the main event of the evening. Tonight you will witness two of River City Wrestling’s greatest stars ever, two men who have become stars under the RCW banner. When RCW opened its doors for the first time, on a frigid January day back in 1980, these two men both competed in the 8 man tournament to determine the first ever RCW champion. In fact they faced each other in the first round with Mike Valiant coming out ahead of Chris Lyon after over 15 minutes of action, thanks to a handful of tights. Yes these two men faced each other in their first ever pro wrestling encounter. Back then you cheered for Lyon, and it was Valiant who was jeered.
One month later saw the two men fight it out in a No DQ streetfight and again Valiant came out the winner, powerbombing young Lyon off a car, onto the street. In May of that year, on his birthday May 24th, Mike Valiant came close to winning the RCW Title from the Destroyer but had to settle for a rare countout victory instead. Destroyer beat Valiant in their June rematch by submission after 26 minutes of action. Chris Lyon would suffer an injury that same month at the hands of the KISS Army that would keep him out of action until October. Upon his return Lyon would get his first victory over Valiant in a match to determine who would get a title shot at Canadian champion Greg Valentine. The two men met once more in November, this time battling to a 30 minute time limit draw. You cheered on Chris Lyon in the re-match at the 1st Anniversary show as he defeated Valiant by submission after over 33 minutes of action.
In January of 1981 Chris Lyon would win his first ever RCW Heavyweight title as he defeated The Mummy in the finals of a tournament, after the Destroyer had been stripped of the title due to an injury. The Mummy would take that title from Lyon in March of that year. Then in June the unthinkable occurred, as Lyon turned his back on the Destroyer and helped Mike Valiant beat the masked man with some outside interference. You the fans were shocked to see Lyon ally himself with Valiant. In September they were joined by “Stampede” Clarke Roenick, and the first incarnation of the Triumvirate was born. As the second season of RCW came to a close it saw the Destroyer feuding with the Triumvirate. The champion Destroyer was able to successfully defend his title against all 3 members of the group in turn, and even brought back former rulebreaker Dean Jarrett to help him in tag action. The 2nd Anniversary show saw the team of Lyon and Valiant unsuccessful in taking the tag belts from the Royal Kiwis.
In March of 82 the team of Valiant and Lyon finally came through winning the tag team gold from the Royal Kiwis. For Valiant it was his first RCW gold, and his only gold to date in his career. The tag team was very successful defending their belts against well known names like the Destroyer, Dean Ho, Curt Hennig, and Gene Kiniski. Then in October Chris Lyon defeated the Destroyer to win his 2nd RCW Heavyweight Title, and became the first man to ever beat The Destroyer for the belt. Later that month feeling the pressure of defending both the Heavyweight and Tag Team titles Chris Lyon would shock his partner and Triumvirate teammate by forfeiting the tag titles to focus on just the Heavyweight title. At the 3rd Anniversary show Valiant teamed with Clarke Roenick in the tournament to determine new champions but they did not win the belts. Meanwhile Chris Lyon was able to successfully defend his belt against the Destroyer in a bloody cage match. That season of RCW ended with Lyon asking his Triumvirate team members to join him in the cage, to share the glory, but Valiant and Roenick just walked away.
That brings us to this year, 1983. In February Mike Valiant was the special guest referee for a loser leaves town match between his former Triumvirate team mates Chris Lyon and Clarke Roenick that also saw the RCW title on the line. Roenick believed that Valiant would call things in his favor, but was caught off guard when instead Valiant called things right down the middle. Lyon won the match and retained his title. Roenick was out of RCW, and Valiant was on the road to respectability. In March Valiant beat Greg Valentine to earn the #1 contender spot and a title shot at his former team mate Chris Lyon. On April 2nd his title shot was ruined when Greg Valentine entered the ring to attack Chris Lyon, getting Valiant disqualified. Valiant would get his re-match in April but was unable to take the belt from Lyon, yet another title disappointment for Valiant. Later that month Lyon would once again lose the RCW title to The Destroyer who would began his 3rd title reign. In June the two men, Valiant & Lyon, would find themselves back together as a tag team for one night, in an unsuccessful attempt to take the tag titles away from the Roughnecks. The match was put together by Marty Goldstein and did nothing to end the animosity between Valiant and Lyon. In fact the next week Lyon would once again defeat Valiant to become the # 1 contender for the RCW title. In July Chris would make good on that chance and defeat The Destroyer to become the 3 time RCW champion. In the process he found himself new allies in Angelo Mosca and Bobby Duncum, along with valets Corrie & Tawney England, and the second version of the Triumvirate was formed. At August’s Wrestling Summit Lyon managed to gain a victory over Superstar Billy Graham, but his unwise subsequent mocking of the legend created for himself a dangerous enemy indeed.
Like a cat with 9 lives Mike Valiant won this year’s annual Battle Royal in September to gain a title shot at Chris Lyon. However, Lyon got himself disqualified in their October match and in the process injured the knee of Valiant. Well, he’s back from the injury, but still hobbled, and tonight these two icons of River City Wrestling hook it up for all the marbles. Will tonight be the night that Mike Valiant finally wins single’s gold?

Ladies and gentlemen, this IS your Main Event of the evening.

This match is scheduled for one-fall with a time limit of 60 minutes. Your referee for this contest is George “Scrap Iron” Gadasky.

Coming first to the ring, accompanied by world famous, former WWWF Heavyweight champion, the one and only Superstar Billy Graham, the challenger. Hailing from New York City, New York, trained by the legendary Valiant Brothers themselves, a former RCW Tag Team champion, looking for elusive singles gold, standing 6’0” tall and weighing in at 234 pounds, Mike Valiant….Valiant..

The fans cheer as Valiant enters the ring wearing silver tights and boots with matching satin warm-up jacket. SBG waves to the crowd before taking up station outside the ring.

And his opponent, being accompanied to the ring by former RCW Women’s champion the ever dangerous Tawney England, your 3 time and current RCW Heavyweight champion, hailing from right here in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, trained by The Destroyer himself, standing in at 5’11 ½ inches tall and weighing in at 236 pounds, Chris Lyon…Lyon.

The fans jeer as Lyon enters the ring wearing emerald green trunks with his initials emblazoned on the back. The fans pick up the “boot…boot…boot..” chant at Tawney who is wearing skin tight designer jeans and a ¾ length sleeve Scorpions concert shirt. She removes Lyon’s black and green ring robe from his shoulders and carefully folds it up before leaving the ring.

Main Event
RCW Heavyweight Title Match
Chris Lyon (champion) (/w Tawney England)
v
Mike Valiant (/w Superstar Graham)

Gadasky gives instructions to both wrestlers before the bell. Once it is rung they meet with a collar-elbow hook-up. Valiant walks Lyon to the ropes and after a slight delay breaks clean. They hook up again but this time Lyon is quicker and delivers a knee to the gut of Valiant. He then nails him with an elbowsmash to the back of the head which drops Valiant to one knee. Lyon comes off the ropes and delivers a nasty looking dropkick which catches Valiant right in the head. Lyon covers and gets 1, 2, Valiant tosses him off with enough force to roll him right out of the ring. The crowd cheers Valiant as Tawney comes over and helps her man Lyon to his feet.
After some delay and posturing Lyon climbs back into the ring. Valiant is still limping a bit from his knee injury made worse in tonight’s earlier attack. Valiant goes right for Lyon, sending him face first to the buckle. Lyon bounces off and Valiant clobbers him with a clothesline to the back of the head. Valiant climbs to the top turnbuckle and comes off with a double axhandle to the chest of Lyon. He goes for the early pin but only gets a 2 count.
Tawney England climbs up the apron and starts jawing with the referee. Instead of distracting Graham however it just makes the veteran stand that much more at attention, looking for Mosca or Duncum. Valiant never hesitates at England’s antics. He pulls up Lyon and punishes him with a bodyslam, kneedrop, flying elbowdrop, but only gets a 1 count.
He whips Lyon to the buckle one more time face first, and this time catches him coming backward with a belly-to-back suplex. Valiant sets up Lyon for the piledriver finisher but Lyon musters enough energy to back Valiant into the ropes for a break. Instead of breaking clean though Lyon nails Valiant with a closed fist. He traps the challenger in the corner and lays in a few more fists before bieling him out to the middle of the ring. Lyon goes to work with a fist drop and then a blatant choke hold. When Gadasky makes the champ break the hold he reapplies it but this time in the disguise of a sleeperhold with Valiant in a sitting position. Everytime that he is able to he slips the forearm down into a choke position. The crowd tries to rally Valiant, and finally the challenger is on his feet and delivers some elbows to the midsection to get the break from Lyon. He whips Lyon to the buckle again, this time with too much force and the champ hits the corner and flips over the top landing on the apron before falling to the ground below.
Gadasky tries to apply the 10 count but has to stop on two occasions as Valiant comes too close and has to be restored to his neutral corner. Most likely the 10 count would have been finished twice over but Valiant wants the title tonight, not a countout victory. We are about 8 minutes into the match.
Lyon re-enters the ring but immediately leaves again, playing chicken beside England. Superstar Billy Graham has seen enough and walks over, grabs Lyon and rolls him back into the ring. He shakes a finger at England before returning to his post.
Valiant goes right to work on Lyon with a short arm clothesline, a full nelson slam, and a salto suplex. He covers but only gets a 1 count. Valiant slows things down a bit with a body scissors attempting to sap some of the energy reserve of the champion. He follows that up smartly with a bearhug, pressing his fist into the kidney area of the champ. SBG applauded the move which was reminiscent of his own bearhug. Lyon finally escaped thanks to a rake of the eyes.
Immediately Lyon struck with a kick to the knee of Valiant, catching him square on the kneecap, dropping the challenger like a stone. He briefly applied a camel clutch before abandoning the hold and going after the knee again. He banged it off the mat, kicked it, stomped it, wrapped it around the ring post, and while he distracted the referee Tawney nailed it with a steel chair. SBG snatched the chair from her a second after she hit the challenger but this just further caused a distraction with George Gadasky. Inside the ring Lyon placed the leg over the bottom strand and unmercifully stomped and sat on it.
When Gadasky peeled Lyon away from the challenger, Valiant tried to stand up using the ropes for leverage but promptly fell down. We are now about 13 minutes into the match.
Lyon then signaled for the figure-four a move that he doesn’t use as often as Mike Valiant does, as he prefers the Boston crab as a submission finisher. However, he manages to apply it and Valiant is only seconds away from submitting. SBG encourages him, telling him to reverse it. The challenger tries to turn over, but can’t do it, can’t fight through the pain. The crowd though implores him to try one more time, and this time he is successful. He turns the hold over reversing the leverage and it’s the champ who is in trouble. England though reaches under the ropes and pulls her man’s arms to the ropes for a break.
Valiant backs himself into a corner and like a caged animal strikes out against Lyon with a kick to the gut, then another. He tries to explode out of the corner with a simple clothesline but stumbles instead, falling beside Lyon. The champ regains the advantage and uses it to punish Valiant with a knee breaker drop, a rake along the ropes, and then a fallaway slam. He goes for the pin but only gets a 2 count. He drags Valiant into the middle of the ring and applies the Boston crab. As painful as that move is it may have actually been a mistake by Lyon to give up on the knee. Valiant makes his way to the ropes for a break after over a minute in the hold. Next the champ goes for the figure-four again but Valiant kicks Lyon off, and then from his back monkey flips him over when he bounces back off the ropes. Valiant crawls over and reapplies the body scissors. Lyon manages to break the hold by getting to the ropes and then leaves the ring, grabbing Valiant’s foot and violently yanking him out of the ring. Outside it turns into mayhem as SBG gets tangled up with England and this distracts the ref. Lyon stomps away at the knee with impunity. He grabs a steel chair and whacks it twice across the knee of the champion. When order is restored SBG implores his own man against re-entering the ring and continuing but Valiant uses the ringsteps to practically crawl back inside.
Lyon taunts Valiant, staying his distance and telling his opponent to quit. This however allows Valiant to recover a bit, and Lyon is shocked when Valiant is able to stand on his own two feet again. We are only seconds away from the 20 minute mark in the match.
Lyon goes for a single leg, but Valiant manages to catch him in a front facelock instead. He can’t hold back the pressure of Lyon though on his bad knee and the champ pushes him to the ropes for a break. Lyon attempts to punch on the break but its old hat to Valiant who blocks the arm, puts on an armlock and then yanks Lyon’s own arm down smacking him in the gut. Valiant grabs Lyon around the waist and proves his knee is holding up by pulling him up, turning around to face the middle of the ring and powerbombing him down to the mat. He covers but only gets a 1 count.
Valiant short arm’s Lyon and drives a knee into his stomach. He then places his leg over the back of Lyon’s neck and drives him face first into the mat. He covers again but only gets a 2 count. Valiant pulls Lyon up into position for a piledriver. Tawney England tries to climb into the ring but SBG catches her by pulling up on the second rope, bouncing her to the outside. With SBG distracted however the henchmen arrive, as Mosca and Duncum approach the ring. But SBG is quick enough to cut them off at the pass. He knocks Mosca to the ground with a clothesline and then pulls Duncum off the ring apron. Inside the ring Valiant has followed through with the piledriver and has the champ beat. He’s covering him for what seems like an eternity, but there is no ref to count as Gadasky is trying to police what is happening outside the ring. Valiant turns his back on Lyon who recovers and attacks. But Valiant is expecting it and feeds Lyon a back elbow. He then nails an earringer with Lyon’s head between his knees, followed up by a flying clothesline. He straddles the champ and resorts to closed fist punches to the head. He picks the champ up again and delivers a salto suplex. He goes for another piledriver finisher but this time its blocked when an errant arm of Lyon’s flailing around grabs a hold of Gadasky and pulls him crashing into Valiant. This distracts the challenger and Lyon strikes with a rabbit punch to the back of the head. He follows up by coming off the ropes and dropkicking Valiant right between the shoulder blades. Lyon sends Valiant to the buckle and then backdrops him high into the air. The champ climbs to the top buckle and comes off with an elbowdrop, flying half way across the ring. He covers and gets 1, 2, Kickout!
Mosca and Duncum have been sent to the back by Superstar Billy Graham. Lyon goes for a clothesline but borrowing a page from the Destroyer’s playbook Valiant counters with a crucifix into a roll, and gets 1, 2, Lyon rolls through, gets 1, grabs the bottom rope for extra leverage, 2, SBG slugs Lyon in the face sending him rolling over, and its Valiant’s pin attempt again, 1, 2, kickout!
Both men stumble to their feet. Valiant goes after Lyon but is taken down by the champ with a drop toe hold sending him sprawling over the second rope. Lyon slides out of the ring and ~waffles~ Valiant with a spinning punch to the head. Back inside he lays his weight across the middle strand choking the challenger. He attempts a belly-to-back suplex but Valiant fights back with an elbow, which Lyon ducks, then another, but it too misses. Lyon tries to take Valiant over but this time the challenger grabs the top rope. Lyon attacks on the break, clipping his knee. He bangs the knee off the mat several times more before delivering two straight knee breaker drops. Lyon goes for the figure-four but Valiant reaches up and clocks him with a fist to the chin before it can be applied. He then leg whips him to the ground, rolls over, and applies a crossface chicken wing. The champ has to survive over a minute in the hold before he is able to break it by rolling over and reaching the ropes. We are about 28 minutes into the match now.
Valiant goes for a vertical suplex but Lyon uses his leg to block the move and takes Valiant down to the mat by pushing against the knee. The champ picks up the challenger and nails him with a slingshot suplex across the top rope. He goes for the pin and gets a 2 count. He hits another slingshot suplex, goes for the pin and again only gets a 2 count. He then goes for a 3rd slingshot suplex, but this time instead he bounces Valiant off the top rope and then drops him straight down to the arena floor. Valiant’s knee smashes on the mat below and a hush falls over the crowd, fearing the worst. Lyon wastes no time following up by throwing his challenger back into the ring. He climbs to the top turnbuckle, wastes some time, maybe too much time? He flies off with a kneedrop, and nails Valiant right across the injured knee. It takes only a few fateful seconds for the champ to apply a figure-four and for the arm of Valiant to rise and fall 3 times for referee George Gadasky. Once again the championship aspirations of Mike Valiant come up short.

Chris Lyon defeats Mike Valiant by submission with the figure-four leglock at 30:47
[Chris Lyon retains the RCW Heavyweight Championship]

Post-Match:
Superstar Billy Graham helps Mike Valiant out of the ring. He and Gadasky pretty much carry Valiant to the back.
Meanwhile Chris Lyon celebrates with Bobby Duncum and Angelo Mosca (still wearing the tag team gold) and their valets Tawney and Corrie England. The ring quickly fills up with debris as another year comes to an end in River City Wrestling.

See ya in 1984