The second quarter of 1977 had much to
offer for the fans of Mid-Atlantic
Championship Wrestling. It was an eventful
three months, and had its share of changes and
surprises. The feud between Black jack
Mulligan and Dino Bravo, along with the
arrival of newcomer Bobo Brazil got the
quarter off to a torrid start. As April turned
into May, Gene and Ole Anderson appeared on
the scene again, taking the NWA World's Tag
Team Titles from Ric Flair and Greg Valentine.
Unfortunately for Jim Crockett Promotions, the
Andersons also took the World belts with them
and out of the Mid-Atlantic area, opting to
defend the championships elsewhere. But
undoubtedly, this particular time period will
always be remembered for being the launching
pad for what arguably became the greatest feud
in professional wrestling history, the
"Nature Boy" Ric Flair versus the
"Young Lion" Ricky Steamboat. Yes,
these three months were memorable in every
sense of the word!
APRIL 1977
The feud between Blackjack Mulligan and
Dino Bravo reached its apex in April of 1977.
The two battled throughout the area many times
with various stipulations during the month. It
certainly appeared as if Bravo was destined to
capture Mulligan's prized United Stated
Heavyweight Title, but Blackjack somehow held
off the youngster from Naples, Italy. However,
Bravo was not completely shut out in the month
of April, as he teamed with Tiger Conway to
defeat the Hollywood Blondes for the
Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Titles. Bravo and Conway
proved worthy champions, holding the
Mid-Atlantic tag belts through the rest of the
quarter.
A noteworthy arrival of a big-name newcomer
also came in the month of April. Bobo Brazil,
an aging but still respected international
star, made his way into the area with much
fanfare. A huge man physically, but rather
soft-spoken, Brazil wasted no time jumping
into the Mid-Atlantic wars. Bobo was
impressive in his early bouts, wrestling a
good bit in tag teams as he started out in the
new territory. However, it soon became clear
that Brazil had his sights set on a single
individual to do battle with, the U.S.
Heavyweight Champion, Blackjack Mulligan. What
battles they would have in the coming months!
As one big star arrived in April, another
left the area at almost the same time. Rufus
R. "Freight Train" Jones had been a
main event fixture in the area for two years,
but the month of April 1977 would end Rufus'
best run in the Mid-Atlantic area. On his way
out of town, Rufus would drop the Mid-Atlantic
TV Title to Ric Flair.
The "Minnesota Wrecking Crew"
Gene and Ole Anderson returned to the area and
Mid-Atlantic TV in April. On a program of
Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling that aired
around the area on April 30, 1977, the
Andersons were their old punishing selves
defeating the preliminary team of Danny Miller
and Francisco Flores. Then, Gene and Ole came
out and watched the TV match that NWA World
Tag champs Ric Flair and Greg Valentine had.
Flair and Valentine were none too pleased by
the Andersons being in the studio with them,
and voiced their displeasure. Ole made it
clear that he and Gene were the only team
tough enough to take the titles from Ric and
Greg. Some classic "Battle of the
Bullies" World Tag Title matches between
these two teams were just around the corner in
the month of May!
MAY 1977
May started with the Andersons battling Ric
Flair and Greg Valentine over the NWA World
Tag Team Titles in several of the larger
venues around the area. A special and
intriguing stipulation in these matches was
Wahoo McDaniel being appointed as the special
referee! Wahoo had certainly had his
difficulties in the past with all four of
these men, but it was significant that the
promotion chose to have Wahoo participate in
the promos of these matches with the
Andersons. And Wahoo did factor into the
biggest of these matches, on May 8, 1977 in
the Charlotte Coliseum where Gene and Ole aced
the World titles. Flair and Valentine cried
foul, arguing that Wahoo intentionally tripped
Flair allowing the Andersons to capture the
winning pinfall. While many in attendance in
Charlotte were cheering when the Andersons won
the belts, they were likely not as
enthusiastic when Gene and Ole took the World
titles out of the Mid-Atlantic area (editor's
note: to Georgia Championship Wrestling)
and did not regularly defend them again in Jim
Crockett Promotions.
Greg Valentine got a measure of revenge
against Wahoo in May when Wahoo was awarded
and presented a picture by the NWA for being
voted the area's Wrestler of the Year for
1976. Valentine got hold of the picture and
tore it to shreds, claiming he did it because
Wahoo had cost he and Ric their prized World
titles. This incident prompted Wahoo to give
Valentine numerous title shots at his
Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Title. Greg would
take full advantage, and during the month of
June, Ric and Greg's revenge against Wahoo
would be complete.
May also saw the feud between the Masked
Superstar and the Mighty Igor get hotter and
hotter. After the "cigar in the eye"
incident, the Superstar later came out on
crutches saying Igor had broken his leg. Jim
Crockett demanded that the Superstar bring out
a Doctor's certificate to prove the leg was
broken, sensing that the Superstar was just
using this as an excuse to duck a match with
Igor. Finally, Jim Crockett forced the
Superstar to sign a contract on Mid-Atlantic
Championship Wrestling TV to wrestle Igor
before he would reinstate the Superstar to
wrestle in the area. Superstar signed the
contact, under protest, and he and Igor would
begin the final stage of their intense feud.
A newcomer arrived in the area with little
fanfare during the month of May. His name was
Tully Blanchard. Tully was a "good
guy" in the opening matches in this stint with Jim
Crockett Promotions, and was a wrestler that
really wouldn't be remembered at this time but
for his later reemergence in the Mid-Atlantic
area in 1984 as a heel superstar for the
promotion. What a difference seven years would
make in this young man's career!
The end of the month of May saw the true
emergence of Ricky Steamboat as a force to be
reckoned with in the Mid-Atlantic area.
Steamboat was brought out during the beginning
of a Mid-Atlantic TV show by Jim Crockett to
tell the viewing audience that Ricky was
leading the early voting by a
"landslide" for NWA Wrestler of the
Year 1977-Under 25 Division! (Editor's
note: the "under-25 division"?!?
What the heck....?) Clearly, this was
an ascending star! During Steamboat's first
real TV interview with Bob Caudle, Ricky was
interrupted by Ric Flair and Greg Valentine,
who told him he was in the "champion's
corner, not for punks." Ricky left the
interview area, giving way to Flair and
Valentine. However, when this same scenario
happened the next two weeks in succession,
Steamboat had finally had enough! June would
see this situation come to a head!
JUNE 1977
On an episode of Mid-Atlantic Championship
Wrestling that aired around the area on June
11, 1977, Flair once again confronted
Steamboat while he was being interviewed. This
time Steamboat reacted physically, hitting Ric
with a thrust to the head. Flair hit the
floor, and according to those at ringside, was
"knocked out cold." Flair returned
at the end of the program, incensed, demanding
a television match with Steamboat and putting
up his Mid-Atlantic TV Title. Steamboat
immediately accepted, and the match that
forever changed the wrestling world was set
for the next week, airing around the area on
June 18, 1977. The match between Flair and
Steamboat, while historic looking back, was
not one that many people gave Steamboat much
of a chance of winning. Greg Valentine
provided commentary for the match, and told
all that were watching that Steamboat was
hopelessly overmatched. But as the match wore
on, it became clear that this was not going to
be a cakewalk for Ric Flair. Ultimately,
Steamboat caught Flair with a double thrust
off of the top rope and caught Ric for a quick
pin! The crowd in the WRAL studios was
delirious, and even a post match attack on
Steamboat by Flair and Valentine could not
diminish what the youngster from Hawaii had
accomplished. He was a champion after only a
couple of months in the area, and had knocked
off the biggest star in the promotion. But
this would merely be the first battle in a
VERY long war between these two combatants!
June did see a victory for Flair and
Valentine, in their quest to get back at Wahoo
McDaniel for costing them their World Tag Team
Titles. Before Wahoo's Mid-Atlantic title
match with Valentine on June 11, 1977 in
Greensboro, Flair attacked Wahoo and left him
in bad shape to take on the fresh and ready
Valentine. Wahoo opted to wrestle the match,
but was far less than 100% and Valentine took
full advantage, capturing the prestigious
Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship. This
would set up a lengthy and intense feud
between these two, a feud that would last into
1978.
Blackjack Mulligan continued to reign
supreme as the United States Heavyweight
Champion, eventually dispatching the challenge
of Dino Bravo. But June of 1977 saw ominous
storm clouds on the horizon for Mulligan……storm
clouds named Bobo Brazil. Mulligan brought in
the Missouri Mauler as his "bounty
hunter," but the Mauler was unable to
stop Brazil's march toward Mulligan and his
U.S. Title. The matches between Blackjack and
Bobo began during the end of June, and the
question on everyone's mind was whether
Blackjack Mulligan could turn back another
determined challenger for his U.S. Title. July
would give us the answer very quickly!
The second quarter of 1977 provided
Mid-Atlantic fans many lasting memories. Ricky
Steamboat taking the area by storm, and
knocking off Ric Flair to set up a monumental
feud has to head the list. But you also had
Gene and Ole Anderson regaining their tag team
supremacy, as well as Greg Valentine becoming
a true superstar in the singles division by
knocking off Wahoo McDaniel as major
happenings. This was a top notch three month
period, making the coming summer of 1977 one
to anticipate with much excitement!
WHO'S HOT
1. Ricky Steamboat---This youngster
went from nowhere to Mid-Atlantic TV Champion
during the course of the second quarter. If
that was not enough, he stood up to and
defeated none other than the "Nature
Boy" to achieve that distinction! No
question as to who was hottest this
quarter!
2. Bobo Brazil---Brazil came into
the area and hit the ground running with quite
a winning streak. By the end of the quarter,
Bobo was zeroing in on the United States Title
and the great Blackjack Mulligan.
3. Greg Valentine---While he had a
little help from a friend, Greg nonetheless
defeated the great Chief Wahoo for the
prestigious Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Title
during this quarter. This victory legitimized
Valentine as a dominant singles performer in
the Mid-Atlantic area.
WHO'S NOT
1. Rufus R. Jones---Rufus left the
area early in the quarter, dropping his
Mid-Atlantic TV Title to Ric Flair in the
process. To be fair to Rufus, though, he did
have a great run!
2. Dino Bravo---Bravo started the
quarter out with a bang, but fizzled out a bit
as the three months progressed. Unable to win
the U.S. belt from Blackjack Mulligan despite
many attempts, Bravo should nonetheless be
given credit for winning one half of the
Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Titles dur- ing this
period.
3. Kim Duk---A member of the
"Malenko Family," Duk slid further
into the shadow of the Masked Superstar as the
quarter wore on. There would be no indivi-
dual feuds for Duk this quarter like the great
one he had with Wahoo in early 1977.
