Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Terry Funk vs. Stan Hansen, AJPW Super Power Series - Day 14, 9/11/82


This was the main event of the last of the Super Power Series run of shows in 1982. 

This feels like a big deal. Besides the fact that it’s these two — I mean, *it is* these two after all — it was, by my account, the first time these two ever locked up in a singles affair, and they’re doing it in what is essentially a pseudo home promotion for both of them (more so for Hansen than Funk, as time passes). 

They’d met earlier in the year in a somewhat disappointing bout where the Funk’s worked together to take on Hansen and his sometimes partner Jimmy Snuka. The Funk’s scored what was billed as somewhat of an upset victory over Hansen/Snuka. 

Terry would continue to make tours in Japan throughout the year while Terry focused seemingly mostly on his commitment to the Eddie Graham territory, Championship Wrestling from Florida, for the majority of 1982. 

That brings us to the Super Power Series string of events. Earlier on in the two week period on 8/26, Hansen teamed with Outlaw Ron Bass to defeat Terry and his partner, Ashura Hara. A few days later on 9/8, Hansen now teamed with Blackwell to take on Funk, and someone a little more imposing than Hara…Giant Baba! With Baba’s help, Funk was able to beat Hansen and his partner. It’s important to note in the same day of the event, Ron Bass squared off with Jumbo Tsuruta, explaining why he wasn’t tagging with Hansen. And on this show tonight, while Hansen squares off with Funk, Bass is teaming with The Destroyer to go against the super team of Baba/Tsuruta. 

And that brings us up to date! We get the first singles meeting between two of the best Texans and best gaijin to ever grace the squared circle. 

Going back to earlier when I noted how this felt big, if everything I just explained isn’t enough for you to get that “Big Fight Feel”, just watch the match. Funk is MOBBED on his way to the ring. And I don’t mean people just rushed to the guard rails hopping for a hand slap or a hug. It was one of those cool clips you see in wrestling documentaries where the fans are literally ON TOP of the wrestler, making it almost impossible for him to move and enter the ring. I’m still relatively new to a lot of the Japanese scene, and I haven’t seen too many crowds like this so far. 

Funk enters the ring to a great ovation and chant of “TER-RY TER-RY!” Since this is the main event, all the young boys are out as well as the geisha girls with the ceremonial bouquets of flowers for the competitors. A nice scene. 

And that scene is immediately thrown to hell, as Stan Hansen storms into the arena like a bull in a china shop, destroying any and everything in his path. When he gets in the ring, he destroys the entire ceremonial set up and chases out all of the extras, because him and Funk are gonna do some FIGHTING. 

What follows is a fantastic brawl. Not the greatest I’ve ever seen. But you need to watch matches like these through the lens of its time. Funk keeps stalling to avoid the vicious onslaught and eventually it leads to Hansen going after him on the floor and into the crowd. Chairs are being thrown around, fans are in harms way — this is stuff that’s sort of watered down and commonplace nowadays, but in the early 80’s this is insane to see! 

Hansen gets Funk in the ring, and while Funk is squirrelly early on, Hansen hits him with some slams and drops to daze him, and then focuses his work entirely on Funk’s neck. Funk keeps finding ways out of it, heading to the floor, but then remembering how brief those reprieves tend to be when you’re facing Stan Hansen. 

At one point, Hansen fumbles the lead and Funk starts making a fiery comeback. Sensing that delaying this any longer could result in serious damage, Funk goes for the kill shot almost immediately by trying to lock on the Spinning Toe Hold, but in the set up, Hansen delivers an errant kick to Funk’s neck which he sells incredibly with a delayed spin and collapse. 

Hansen is back in charge and brutalizes Funk with strikes, eventually sending him to the floor. The ref tries to keep Hansen from going out, and Funk tries to recover quick. Out of desperation, he grabs one of the fans chairs in the front row and just tosses it backwards hoping for a lucky strike, but as luck would have it:


Incredible. 

The match starts to wind up when Funk reverses an Irish whip attempt that sends Hansen barreling in to the referee, knocking him down and out to the floor. The two men continue to brawl, and the outside official comes in to try and maintain order. Funk grabs him and tries to move him out of the way, in a way only the Funker can, but Hansen has a more barbaric approach, as he simply lariats the officials head clean off his shoulders. 

With both referees down, this allows Hansen’s buddy OUTLAW RON BASS to make his way out for a dastardly two on one attack. What I loved about this attack was, it wasn’t just these two aimlessly throwing shots. They came in with a purpose, like this was the plan all along. They beat Terry down, and then Bass holds Funk up by the legs from behind so Hansen can hit Funk with a lariat, that then sends Funk collapsing backwards with an awkward arch over top of the kneeling Bass. Think of the Simpsons episode where Homer became a chiropractor. 


Only there was more searing leg pain for Funk, as he lay on the floor almost completely motionless, save for his hands and legs twitching like his neck was broken.

Bass hightails it to the floor as the official gets in and, unbeknownst to Hansen, starts counting Funk out. Hansen’s too busy yelling at Funk from the ring to get up and fight him. Funk is OUT. Hansen realizes the ref is counting Funk out, so he quick pulls him in under the bottom rope and tries to pin him, BUT IT WAS TOO LATE. The ref has counted out Funk. 

An irate Bass and Hansen go to continue the beatdown on Funk, BUT TO TIE EVERYTHING TOGETHER HERE COME BABA AND JUMBO OUT TO CLEAR HOUSE TO A WILD REACTION. The heels bail out and the faces help Funk up. 

The war was not over. Because in three months time, both men would do away with the temporary allegiances they’ve made in AJPW throughout 1982 and focus on “who brought them to the dance”. Both men would enter the Real World Tag League in December, and they would meet once again. But this time, Terry would bring back his brother Dory Jr, and Hansen would make a call to none other than Bruiser Brody. And the Real World Tag League Finals explodes in one of the craziest brawls in wrestling at the time. What a scene. 

Overall, as much fun as this was, it was basic set up to get to the super blow off match in December. Not to mention, the feud would pick up and continue in Spring of ‘83 leading all the way to Terry’s first and famous retirement in August of ‘83 (FOREVER! FOREVER! FOREVER!). So in reality, if there’s a modem set up, this match would’ve taken place on RAW or SmackDown or Dynamite to set up the next leg of the program. And there’s nothing wrong with that when it’s done right, and this was done right. 

MATCH RATING: ***

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