King of the Death Match 1995

The Date:  August 20th, 1995
Location:  Kawasaki, Japan
Attendance:  Varied throughout the day, from 1,000 to 5,000

This tape is another classic in wrestling history... not because it was significantly better then any other hardcore tournament, but because Mick Foley (as Cactus Jack) made this event famous in his book (which is a must read for any wrestling fan), and WWF(E) showed very brief clips from his match against Funk for many years.  Most people don't even realize who else was on the card, or even that there was a whole card, all that mattered was the Funk vs. Cactus Jack match.  But it's not very fun to review only one match, and there were other decent matches.  Here is the entire card for the event:

Tiger Jeet Singh vs. Mr. Gannosuke
Terry Funk vs. Leatherface
Cactus Jack vs. Terry Gordy
Shoji Nakamaki vs. Hiroshi Ono
Takashi Okano vs. Flying Kid Ichihara
Terry Funk vs. Tiger Jeet Singh
Shoji Nakamaki vs. Cactus Jack
Silver King & El Texano vs. Headhunters
Dan Severn vs. Tarzan Goto
Terry Funk vs. Cactus Jack

Tiger Jeet Singh vs. Mr. Gannosuke
This is a Barbed Wire Chain Death match.  Match begins with Singh shoving down the referee, allowing Mr. Gannosuke to start his attack.  Singh quickly turns the tables, and throws Mr. Gannosuke out of the ring, onto the barbed wire board outside.  Singh drags Mr. Gannosuke to the tables over the guard rail, lays him over it, and rains chair shots on his back.  Another chair shot to the neck, and they brawl to another part of the crowd.  Singh pushes Mr. Gannosuke through another guard rail, and hits him with a chair some more.  Mr. Gannosuke returns the favor with a chair shot of his own, and we now can see that Mr. Gannosuke is busted open.  Singh grabs Mr. Gannosuke and brings him back to the ring.  Once there, Singh Irish whips Mr. Gannosuke, but Mr. Gannosuke reverses it and lands the dropkick.  Mr. Gannosuke hits another dropkick, followed by chops in the corner.  Singh swings the tide with a knee to the gut, and tries to choke out Mr. Gannosuke.  Irish whip by Singh, and Mr. Gannosuke falls out of the ring.  Singh walks him to another ring, where the chain is, and Singh starts choking Mr. Gannosuke with it.  Singh finally lets go, only to start choking him with the chain again.  The ref takes the chain, so Singh stands Mr. Gannosuke up.  The two trade punches, with  Mr. Gannosuke getting the better of it.  Kicks by Mr. Gannosuke in the corner, Irish whip, but Singh avoids the dropkick.  Irish whip by Singh, then a chokehold, but he only gets a two count.  Singh leaves the ring, and throws a barbed wire board into the ring.  Back in now, he kicks Mr. Gannosuke a few times, and pushes him onto the barbed wire board while choking him.  Mr. Gannosuke submits from the pain, and the match is over.  Your winner:  Tiger Jeet Singh

Match Thoughts:  Well this match was just awful.  The barbed wire was only used twice, and while I appreciate that his head was in it in the end, he didn't really take a "bump" to get there.  Singh just laid him on it and held him down with a choke hold.  The wrestling moves (when they happened) were not convincing, and the match was spent more roaming the crowd then in the ring.  They weren't even chained together as the match stipulated.  No redeeming traits whatsoever.  Score:  2.2

Promo by Funk, which meant I finally understood a promo for a change.

Promo by Leatherface, who also spoke in English.  He didn't have much to say though.

Terry Funk vs. Leatherface
This is a Barbed Wire Chain Death match.  Leatherface starts the match on the offense, taking Funk down.  Snapmare by Leatherface, he goes to top rope, and hits the moonsault (somewhat).  Outside the ring now, Leatherface punches Funk into the barbed wire board, and gets his chainsaw.  Leatherface hits Funk with his chainsaw a few times (not with the blade, and there was no chain on the chainsaw).  The ref takes the chainsaw, and he is finally able to chain them together.  Funk is busted open.  Leatherface hits Funk in the face with the chain, and then proceeds to choke him with it.  Leatherface releases the choke, and whips Funk with the chain.  Funk jumps up on the top rope, and pulls Leatherface over the rope with him.  On the outside now, the two trade blows with chained fists.  Fink gets the better of the face-off, and whips Leatherface with the chain numerous times.  To escape, Leatherface begins to climb a chain link fence (it separates the crowd from the ring).  Funk starts climbing also, and the two trade blows at the top of the wall.  Funk wraps the chain over Leatherface's neck, and tries to choke him out, but Leatherface nails him in the face and Funk releases the hold.  The two finally make it off the wall, as Funk falls first and Leatherface follows.  Blows by Leatherface to Funk, and he then throws the barbed wire board into the ring.  More blows by Leatherface, as he sets the barbed wire board in the corner.  Irish whip by Leatherface, sending Funk into the board.  Leatherface brings Funk back outside the ring, and sets a table up.  Funk lays down on the table, and Leatherface goes to the top rope, but Funk regains his bearings and pulls Leatherface off the top rope with the chain onto the table (which did not break).  Funk gets back in the ring, and drags Leatherface behind him.  Funk punches dazes Leatherface, and the home run shot with the hand wrapped in chain knocks him out.  Cover by Funk, and the three count.  Your winner:  Terry Funk

Match Thoughts:  Well it was better then the last match at least.  It amused me that the referee was counting to 20 as Funk was making his way into the ring, even though they had been on the floor for over a minute.  It's hard to give non-psychological garbage wrestling a good rating though, especially when it's done poorly.  Still no big bumps, even though the barbed wire board was used a bit more in this match then the last.  Worst part is, both these are high quality wrestlers (Leatherface strictly in the violent sense), and I was hoping for more.  Score:  3.9

Two more English promos, with a great (although short) promo by Cactus Jack, and another short one by Bam Bam Gordy.

Cactus Jack vs. Terry Gordy
This is a Barbed Wire Baseball Bat Thumb Tack Death match, meaning there is a shallow box in the ring with thumb tacks in it already.  The match begins with both wrestlers at ringside as the referee counts down to 10, which is when the wrestlers are supposed to start running to the ring.... but Gordy doesn't feel like waiting and charges down at 2.  Naturally he gets there first, and starts hitting Cactus Jack with the barbed wire bat.  Cactus Jack bails to the outside, but Gordy smacks around Cactus Jack with some tough shots, and Cactus Jack goes back into the ring.  Gordy tries to throw Cactus Jack into the thumbtacks, but Cactus Jack avoids them.  Punches by Cactus Jack in the turnbuckle, but Gordy fights back with shots of his own.  Irish whip by Gordy, followed by a fierce clothesline.  Gordy again tries to put Cactus Jack in the tacks, but he fights out of it.  A third attempt, but Cactus Jack goes to the outside of the ring.  Gordy follows Cactus Jack outside, punches him a few more times, but Cactus Jack throws Gordy into the post.  Both wrestlers get back in the ring, Cactus Jack attempts to put Gordy in the thumbtacks, but Gordy reverses it with a back bodydrop.  Gordy attempts to powerbomb Cactus Jack, but Cactus Jack back bodydrops him over the top rope onto the floor.  Cactus Jack goes to the top rope, but Gordy gets up in time, climbs up onto the apron and tosses Cactus Jack from the top rope to the floor.  Gordy jumps down, and kicks Cactus Jack in the head before throwing him back in the ring.  Gordy Irish whips Cactus Jack into the turnbuckle twice, following with clotheslines both times.  Cactus Jack tries to crawl away, but makes the mistake of placing his head down on the tacks, and Gordy comes up from behind and stomps his head and face into them.  Gordy follows with punches, but Cactus Jack low blows him, and both men are down.  Cactus Jack gets the barbed wire bat, but Gordy blocks the shot with his hand.  Cactus then drops the bat, places Gordy over the second rope, rebounds off the other side, and jumps on him.  Cactus Jack then goes out to the apron, and drops the guillotine leg drop.  On the outside now, Irish whip attempt by Cactus Jack, but Gordy reverses it, and clotheslines Cactus Jack over the guard rail.  Gordy then places Cactus Jack on a table, and piledrives him on it (table doesn't break).  They make their way back to the ring, with Gordy still in control.  When they get there, Gordy picks up Cactus Jack, and powerbombs him/drops him in the bed of thumbtacks.  The human pin cushion gets back up, and Gordy greets him with another powerbomb, although not on the tacks this time.  Gordy continues to punch Cactus Jack, but Cactus Jack reaches down,  grabs a bunch of thumbtacks, and throws them at Gordy.  This stuns Gordy, and allows Cactus Jack to get the DDT onto the thumbtacks.  Cover, and a three count.  Your winner:  Cactus Jack

Match Thoughts:  For a little background for this match (even though in his book Foley goes in greater detail), Gordy didn't know it was a thumbtack match, and did not want to go in the thumbtacks.  So even with the DDT, Gordy's head never hit the tacks.  Besides that small problem, in general the match was pretty good.  In order for a death match tournament to succeed, you must have at least one wrestler that is willing to take hellacious bumps.  Cactus Jack certainly fits this description, with the slam from the turnbuckle to the floor, and also taking a powerbomb in the tacks.  Much better then the last few matches, even though Gordy is a mere shadow of his old self in this match following his seizure a few years before.  Score:  5.8

Backstage, Gordy is shown quite upset.

Shoji Nakamaki vs. Hiroshi Ono
This is a Barbed Wire Board Thumb Tack Death match.  Match begins with the countdown to ten, and Ono gets the bat first, but Nakamaki kicks him and gets the bat for himself.  Nakamaki hits Ono once with the bat, then the two tie-up.  The two trade slaps, but Nakamaki gets the better of it and headbutts Ono out of the ring.  Ono is now bleeding.  They brawl into the crowd, and Nakamaki hits Ono with a steel chair.  Nakamaki continues the trek on the outside, as he Irish whips Ono into the guardrail.  A choke by Nakamaki, but Ono fights back, and rams Nakamaki into the ring post.  Ono bites Nakamaki on the forehead, body slam, but only a two count.  Nakamaki is bleeding also at this point.  Another slam by Ono, but again only a two count.  Ono goes to the top rope, and nails the flying clothesline.  Pin attempt, but another two count.  Irish whip by Ono, and a clothesline.  Another Irish whip, but this time Nakamaki ducks the clothesline and delivers one of his own.  Nakamaki throws Ono out of the ring, and brings him back to the ring with the thumbtacks.  He tries to put him in the tacks, but Ono fights him off.  STF by Nakamaki, but Ono reaches the ropes.  Nakamaki headbutts Ono back to the mat, picks him up, and bulldogs him back down.  He picks Ono up again to attempt a bulldog into the tacks, but Ono reverses it with a back suplex into the tacks.  Ono quickly picks Nakamaki back up, and delivers another back suplex into the tacks.  Cover, but only a two count.  Ono picks Nakamaki up again, but Nakamaki reverses another suplex attempt and pushes Ono into the tacks.  Nakamaki then grabs Ono, and powerbombs him into the tacks.  Cover, but only a two count.  Nakamaki drags Ono up again, and Russian leg sweeps him into the tacks.  Cover, and a three count.  Your winner:  Shoji Nakamaki

Match Thoughts:  The match started slow, but it really picked up at the end.  The tacks were used a lot more in this match then the last, with two suplexes, a drop, a powerbomb, and  Russian leg sweep all used with the tacks.  Barbed wire was never used though.  Due to the exciting chain of bumps at the end of the match, I did enjoy it quite a bit, and the match in general was kept short.  Score:  6.4

Takashi Okano vs. Flying Kid Ichihara
Ok, I looked everywhere for pictures of these wrestlers so I could know which was which, but I couldn't find any.  Therefore I am not even going to do a play-by-play, since I don't even know which wrestler is which.  I could have guessed, but I didn't want to be wrong and negate the entire report.  If anyone knows and wants to email me who is who, I will update the play-by-play later.  I did want to get some sort of representation for the match though, so you can check out a video of one of the wrestlers doing an Asai Moonsault to the other.

Match Thoughts:  It wasn't a bad cruiserweight match, but the crowd was real dead, and the wrestlers never did anything exciting enough to pop them.  The match came off as by-the-numbers and rehearsed, which isn't the feel you want for a fast paced cruiserweight match.  The two didn't botch any spots though, and they tried to entertain the crowd.  It just wasn't going to work at a death match tournament.  Score:  4.9

Terry Funk vs. Tiger Jeet Singh
This is a Barbed Wire Barricade Glass Crash Death match.  The glass boxes are at ringside, as is the barbed wire.  Match begins with Singh brutalizing some random person at ringside, but Funk comes to his aid and starts brawling with Singh.  The two fight into the crowd, and Singh hits Funk repeatedly with the arm with his sword.  More shots with the sword to Funk's arm, and Funk is down.  Singh gets a metal contraption (probably part of a chair), and jabs it into Funk's arm.  Funk's arm is bleeding now.  Back at ringside, Singh apparently knocks Funk into the glass box (camera doesn't catch it), and continues to jab Funk with the metal.  Finally the camera gets in the right position, and we get to watch Singh dig the metal into Funk's arm, cutting him even more.  The two make it back into the ring, and Singh continues to hit Funk with the metal piece.  Funk fights back though, and gives Singh a few shots with the metal piece.  Funk punches Singh down, as we see Singh going for a spike in his shoe.  He gets it out, and stabs Funk in the arm with it.  Singh drags Funk up, as Cactus Jack runs down to ringside.  Singh holds Funk, as Cactus charges with the sword used earlier.  Funk ducks though, and Cactus Jack nails Singh with the sword.  Funk quickly covers Singh, and gets the three count.  Your winner:  Terry Funk

Match Thoughts:  There really wasn't much to this match.  The glass was used, but the camera missed it, and the barbed wire wasn't used at all.  While it was disgusting watching Singh rip up Funk's arm, it certainly wasn't enough to constitute a good "garbage" match.  You can tell as the matches progress which wresters are willing to bleed and take a beating, and which are there only to give a beating.  Singh definitely falls in the latter category.  Not a good match, but at least it was short.  Score:  3.5

We see Funk walking around backstage after the match, covered in blood, but still optimistic of his chances.

Cactus Jack vs. Shoji Nakamaki
This is a Barbed Wire Barricade Spike Nail Death match.  The bed of nails is at ring side, as is the barbed wire.  Match begins with a tie-up, Cactus gets shoved into the corner, but Nakamaki backs off.  Cactus gets Nakamaki in the corner also, but does not return the favor, and kicks Nakamaki to the ground.  With Nakamaki laying on the apron, Cactus baseball slides Nakamaki, knocking him onto the barbed wire.  Cactus sets up the barbed wire board leaning against the apron, attempts to Irish whip Nakamaki into it, but Nakamaki reverses it and Cactus goes sailing into the barbed wire.  Cactus rebounds with a clothesline though, and both men are down.  Cactus gets up first, as he lays the nail bed into the ring.  Back outside, Cactus goes for the suplex, but Nakamaki reverses it into a suplex of his own.  Cactus recovers quickly though, and throws the barbed wire board at Nakamaki.  Cactus takes a strand of the barbed wire, and rubs it into Nakamaki's head.  Back in the ring, Cactus sets the bed of nails up in the corner, and drives Nakamaki's head into them.  Nakamaki gets out of it though, and headbutts Cactus twice into the bed of nails.  Nakamaki leaves the ring to get the barbed wire board, as we see Cactus's arm is bleeding.  As Nakamaki gets the barbed wire board into the ring, Cactus catches him, and chokes him against the second rope.  Cactus sets the board over Nakamaki's back, and then gets a running jump onto Nakamaki.  Cover, but only a two count.  Cactus then drops the barbed wire board onto Nakamaki, picks him up, and throws him over the ropes onto the apron.  From there, Cactus kicks Nakamaki back, and he falls to the floor with his left arm landing on the other bed of nails that is still outside.  Cactus comes out also, and slams Nakamaki onto the mat about five feet from the ring.  Cactus then lays the bed of nails on top of Nakamaki, climbs on the apron, and nails the elbow drop onto the board, driving the nails into Nakamaki.  Cactus throws Nakamaki back into the ring, covers him, but only gets a two count.  Nakamaki fights back with a few headbutts, and pushes Cactus into the bed of nails, before throwing him into the barbed wire board.  Nakamaki tries for the splash, but Cactus moves, and Nakamaki lands in the barbed wire.  Cactus suplexes Nakamaki into the board, goes to the second rope, and nails the elbow.  Cover, but only a two count.  Cactus nails another elbow, but again only gets a two count.  Cactus slams Nakamaki into the turnbuckle, but Nakamaki fights back with some headbutts.  Nakamaki gets the DDT, pin attempt, but only a two count.  Both wrestlers get to their feet, double armed DDT by Cactus into the barbed wire, and the three count cover.  Your winner:  Cactus Jack

Match Thoughts:  Another good garbage match... its no real surprise that Cactus Jack moved on to do real wrestling, since he is one of the few in this tournament that uses moves such as DDTs and suplexes.  Nakamaki holds his own, and can really take some damage.  These two matched up well, since both weren't holding anything back and were willing to do whatever it took to entertain the crowd.  The weapons at ringside were all used frequently, and I really enjoyed this match.  Score:  7.1

Promo by Cactus Jack.

Ten ring salute for a wrestler that died, didn't catch who since all I know in Japanese is "hello."

(c) Silver King & El Texano vs. The Headhunters
This match is for the IWA Tag Team Titles.  The Headhunters are brothers that look identical, and are actually called "A" and "B."  "A" will go first.  Headhunter A locks up with Silver King, and the Headhunters attempt a double team, but El Texano grabs Headhunter B and pulls him out of the ring, allowing Silver King to dropkick Headhunter A.  Headhunter A regains the advantage with a scoop slam, goes to the top rope, but El Texano catches Headhunter A up there and headbutts him off.  Pin attempt by King, but only a two count.  Headhunter B comes in, and does a spinebuster on Silver King.  Double team move on Silver King, followed by a powerbomb by Headhunter A.  Silver King tags in El Texano, who attempts to knock down Headhunter A, but is unsuccessful.  Headhunter A clotheslines El Texano down, and Headhunter B comes in for another double team, including a double leg drop/smash.  Pin attempt, but only a two count.  Double team by Silver King and El Texano on Headhunter B, with El Texano and Headhunter B landing on the outside.  Silver King soon follows, with a crossbody off the top rope to the floor.  Headhunter A gets exciting seeing all three of the other wrestlers outside the ring, so he does a plancha over the top rope onto all of them (mind you, the Headhunters are at least 300 pounds apiece).  Headhunter B in the ring now with Silver King and El Texano, double Irish whip into the corner, and a splash by El Texano.  Silver King goes to the top rope, and dropkicks Headhunter B in the back.  Cover, but only a two count.  Armbar submission by El Texano, but he releases the hold.  El Texano attempts to slam Headhunter B, but is unsuccessful.  Irish whip by Headhunter B, but El Texano reverses it into a sunset flip.  Cover, but only a two count.  El Texano tags in Silver King, attempts a double suplex, but Headhunter B reverses it and suplexes both of them.  Another attempted double suplex, and they succeed this time.  They both go to the top rope, and hit elbow drops on Headhunter B.  Cover, but only a two count.  Headhunter B gets back up, but the double headbutt doesn't work on him, and he slams both of them to the mat.  El Texano rolls across the ring, so Headhunter A gets on the top rope and splashes him, while Headhunter B goes to the other top rope and misses a moonsault.  Headhunter B Irish whips El Texano into the turnbuckle, but misses the splash.  10 hits from El Texano on Headhunter B in the corner, while Headhunter A disposes of Silver King on the outside.  El Texano attempts to fight off both Headhunters, but his attempt fails, as he is double head butted to the mat.  Headhunter A goes to the second rope, and with Headhunter B's assistance, powerbombs him.  Cover, Silver King tries to break it up, but he is too late.  Your winners and new champions:  The Headhunters

Match Thoughts:  While not great overall, this match did have some entertaining moments.  Watching the Headhunters fly around is always fun, considering that they are absolutely huge.  I don't think they used the tag rules properly, but the referee probably can't tell them apart any better then I can.  Not a bad match, and it held my attention.  Score:  5.9

Promo with Dan Severn backstage, talking about his next match.

(c) Dan Severn vs. Tarzan Goto
This match is for the NWA Heavyweight Title.  Match begins with a slap by Goto, but the referee stops Severn from getting his revenge as Goto bails to the outside of the ring.  Goto goes to get a chair, but he drops it in order to choke Severn over the top rope.  Severn lugs Goto in, but Goto does not release the hold.  Severn finally flips him over, and Goto goes back outside the ring.  Goto starts throwing chairs at the ring.  Back in the ring again, Severn gets Goto's leg for a leg submission.  Goto rolls it over, and applies a single leg Boston crab.  Goto releases the hold, and kicks Severn out of the ring.  Severn gets back in the ring, and is caught with a clothesline, and starts kicking Severn in the gut.  He picks him up, and delivers a vicious headbutt.  And two more.  Goto then applies an armbreaker, then a cross armbar.  Severn gets out of it though, and knees Goto in the head before applying a cross face chickenwing.  Goto is bleeding.  Goto gets out of the hold, and goes to the outside.  Severn follows, as Goto finds a bottle.  He breaks it and goes after Severn.  Severn has a chair though, and blocks the shot.  The bottle sticks into the chair, and Severn releases the chair as the two brawl into the crowd.  The two roll on the floor, knocking down chairs, until Goto gets the advantage and rains chair shots on Severn, and then he just starts throwing chairs at him.  Lots of chairs.  Goto comes back to the ring.  Severn looks upset, and starts chucking chairs into the ring trying to hit Goto.  So Goto throws them back.  Goto waits in the ring with a chair, preventing Severn from getting in.  Finally Severn manages to get in the ring, as he uses a chair to deflect a Goto chair shot.  Severn then nails Goto below the knee with a chair.  Both men try to hit each other with the chairs, until finally both of their chairs are knocked out of the ring.  Severn hits the belly to belly suplex, cover, but only a two count.  Severn misses the knee drop, and Goto rolls out of the ring, pulling Severn with him.  Goto then gets a chair, and hits Severn in the leg with it.  Back in the ring, Goto continues to hit Severn with the chair.  Irish whip by Goto, followed by a tough clothesline.  Cover, but only a two count.  Headbutt by Goto, followed by a facebuster.  Another cover, but again a two count.  Goto gives Severn another facebuster, but again fails the pin attempt.  Goto goes for the Irish whip, but Severn reverses it, and slams Goto to the mat.  Goto goes for a clothesline, but Severn ducks it and hits the German suplex.  Submission hold applied by Severn, a headlock of sorts, and Goto is knocked out.  Your winner and still champion:  Dan Severn

Post Match:  Goto wakes up, and he and Severn start to brawl again.  Referees and other wrestlers break them up.

Match Thoughts:  If it wasn't for the wild chair throwing, this match would have gotten a lower rating, but that one unique moment elevated it to an almost decent match.  The in-ring action seriously was lacking.  Severn never was that great in the ring, but Goto is apparently a garbage wrestler sent in to do a real match, and they didn't click.  Severn's intensity was good though, as he seemed to be legitimately peeved by being hit with chairs about 50 times.  Still not a good match though, and seemed out of place at a King of the Death Matches Tournament.  Score:  4.4

Interviews with Severn and Goto.  The garbage wrestler Goto is a better speaker then the real fighter Severn.... go figure.

Terry Funk vs Cactus Jack
This match is a No Rope Exploding Barbed Wire Landmine Time Bomb Death match.  What this means, is that the ropes have been replaced with barbed wire, there are four barbed wire boards in the ring set with C4 to explode when someone gets slammed on them, and that at a certain time during the match the ring will blow up.  Match begins with the two trading punches, then a tie-up.  Elbow to the head by Cactus, he tries to Irish whip Funk into the barbed wire, but Funk slams on the breaks.  Another tie-up, this time Funk gets the better of it, and gives Cactus a swinging neckbreaker.  Irish whip by Funk, but Cactus goes under the barbed wire, to the floor.  Meanwhile, Funk drags one of the barbed wire boards towards the middle of the ring.  Cactus gets back in, tie-up, headbutts by Cactus, and he rubs Funk's head against the barbed wire rope.  Cactus goes to suplex Funk, but Funk holds his ground and pushes Cactus into the barbed wire ropes.  Cactus returns with punches to the head, and Funk falls back onto the barbed wire board, which sets off the C4 explosive.  Cover, but only a two count.  Cactus gets back up, and holds Funk in the barbed wire ropes, but misses the elbow drop.  Back up again, Funk punches Cactus, and then performs a double armed suplex.  Irish whip by Funk sends Cactus into the barbed wire ropes.  Headbutts by Funk, then he hip tosses Cactus onto the barbed wire board, setting off the C4 explosive.  Piledriver by Funk, then Funk sets a board up against the ropes, and piledrives him into it.  Punches by Funk, sending Cactus into the barbed wire ropes.  Funk sets a barbed wire board up in the corner, and tosses Cactus into it.  Cover, but only a two count.  Cactus escapes to the outside, but catches Funk as Funk is coming out, and hits him with a brick.  Cactus lays a barbed wire board onto Funk, and then elbow drops him.  Irish whip by Cactus is reversed, and Cactus gets sent over the guard rail.  Funk brings Cactus back to the ring, punches him down to the mat, and puts on the spinning toe hold.  Singh comes down to the ring, and assaults Funk with his sword.  Cactus sets a barbed wire board up in the corner, and they Irish whip Funk into it, setting off the C4 explosive.  Neckbreaker by Cactus, but only a two count.  A double armed DDT, another cover, but another two count.  Cactus does another, and then bails the ring, since it is about to explode.  The explosion is non-convincing though, and the crowd begins to laugh and jeer.  Funk looks upset, as does Cactus.  Cactus comes back to the ring, but Funk back suplexes him onto a barbed wire board, setting off the C4 explosive.  Cactus goes outside the ring to get a ladder, and brings it in the ring.  When Funk gets up, Cactus hits him with it, and then suplexes the ladder onto him.  Cover, but only a two count.  Cactus sets up the ladder, climbs up, (Cactus is covered in blood at his point, I am not sure when he got busted open so bad) and drops the elbow.  Cover, but only a two count.  Cactus climbs the ladder again, but Funk comes up from behind and pushes it over, sending Cactus into the barbed wire ropes.  Cactus slowly recovers, crawls over to Funk, and pins him for a three count.  Your winner:  Cactus Jack

Post match:  The two lie there for several moments, evaluating their own injuries.  Funk is very concerned about his arm.  Fast forward to Cactus receiving the trophy.  Cactus goes over towards Funk (apparently in a friendly way), but Funk keeps walking.  Cactus is a bloody mess, and his arm is obviously burned.  Cactus gets the microphone, and puts Funk over. 

Great promo with Cactus Jack backstage ends the show.

Match Thoughts:  I mean, wow.  That's all one can say after watching a match like that, especially with the knowledge of what Mick Foley was really capable of.  He was paid only 300 dollars for this event, and yet walked away with many injuries.  The C4 explosions were not fake... you could see the burn marks on Cactus Jack's arm.  The ending was anti-climatic, but in another way it made sense.  These two had been through so much that day, with three matches, that it just came down to who collapsed first.  All the stipulations were used frequently, and even though the "time bomb" was merely weak fireworks, Funk and Cactus overcame that by continuing to brutalize themselves.  Even with the hype, its one of the best hardcore/"garbage" matches I have ever seen. Score:  8.0

Final Thoughts:

Well, obviously the main event boosted the score, as well it should have.  A lot of times in a tournament setting, a promotion will take the early matches to slowly build to a great final, and that is what happened here.  I am not going to go into all the details about the tournament, since Mick Foley covered it quite well in his first book.  If the event sounds interesting to you, make sure you don't just pick up the event, but also the book as well.  And I noticed there is another match on the card, but it wasn't on my tape (which I did get commercially).  So either it was edited off mine for time reasons, or it wasn't on any of the releases.  Since it wasn't a tournament match, I wasn't too concerned about it.  If you're a fan of Mick Foley or Terry Funk, I would suggest trying to see this tape.  But if you just want to see the Japanese hardcore style, there are tapes out there with a better complete show.

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