SUMMARY: RUNNING TIME: 1 Hour, 56 Min.
In 1990 (as this show repetitively reminds viewers before each match with an UWF title card), Herb Abrams founded his short-lived Universal Wrestling Federation. After the abject failure of 1991’s UWF Beach Brawl Pay-Per-View, this event held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, in Las Vegas, Nevada, was the promotion’s last gasp on September 23, 1994. An estimated 300 to 600 fans were purportedly in attendance.
Aired live on cable by the UWF’s financial backer, SportsChannel America, the Blackjack Brawl (projected as the first of a trilogy) would consist of eleven bouts. Of them, nine are title matches – most of which were either vacant or newly created championships.
Stationed at ringside are commentators John Tolos and Carlo Gianelli, along with Abrams and the event’s namesake, “Blackjack” Mulligan, conducting post-match interviews. Steve Rossi is the show’s long-winded ring announcer. Of note, several WWF and WCW veterans provide the bulk of Blackjack Brawl’s in-ring talent.
The card is as follows:
- “Dangerous” Dan Spivey vs. Johnny Ace (with Missy Hyatt) for the inaugural UWF Americas Championship (7:20).
2. Mando Guerrero vs. “Wildman” Jack Armstrong for the inaugural UWF Junior Heavyweight Championship (4:36).
3. Sunny Beach vs. Dr. Feelgood (with Missy Hyatt) for the vacant UWF SportsChannel TV Championship (5:26).
4. UWF Southern States Champion Bob Orton Jr. vs. Finland “Hellraiser” Thor {aka the WWF’s Ludvig Borga} (6:12).
Note: Exactly why a Southern States title is being defended in the Nevada desert is anyone’s guess.
5. Karate Kid vs. Little Tokyo for the inaugural UWF Midget World Title (7:33).
6. Sampson vs. Irish Assassin (4:13).
Note: Billed from ‘Greece,’ Sampson replaces ‘Hercules.’ It’s not specified if the UWF’s no-show ‘Hercules’ is the same wrestler previously employed by the WWF.
7/ Tyler “The Lion” Mane vs. Steve “The Wild Thing” Ray for the inaugural UWF MGM Grand Championship (7:25).
Note: Mane subsequently played Victor Creed/Sabretooth in 2000’s first X-Men film.
8. Tina Moretti {aka the WWF’s Ivory} vs. Candi Devine/Divine for the vacant UWF Women’s World Championship (3:26).
9. The Killer Bees: Jim Brunzell & B. Brian Blair vs. The New Powers of Pain: Warlord & Power Warrior (with David Power) for the inaugural UWF World Tag Team Championship (11:49).
10. “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka vs. Cactus Jack {aka Mick Foley}in a lumberjack match (9:03).
Lumberjacks: Among them are the Warlord; The Power Twins; the Killer Bees; Dr. Feelgood; Sunny Beach; & Steve Ray.
11. UWF World Champion “Dr. Death” Steve Williams (with Johnny Ace) vs. “Malicious” Sid Vicious (with Dan Spivey) (11:01).
Note: To clarify, Abrams’ UWF is unrelated to the same-named Mid-South/UWF promotion that Bill Watts owned the mid-80’s. Ironically, Williams was the final World Champion for both incarnations.
REVIEW:
One might as well deem the UWF Blackjack Brawl as a pitiful Pay-Per-View wanna-be. Case in point: the show’s dubious reputation in pro wrestling history demonstrates why upper mid-card big league stars will carry a glorified indie promotion only so far. More so, the UWF’s ultra-cheap production values are left glaringly exposed in a ritzy venue like the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
Aside from dreadful performances by long-time valet Hyatt and Abrams himself, the match quality is mostly just forgettable. Specifically,
- Spivey vs. Johnny Ace – with Missy Hyatt.
Rating: 4 Stars. What stands out most is the match’s trifecta of bleached blondes. Aside from a quirky twist finish, the back-and-forth ground game between two uninspired WCW veterans is a bore.
2. Mando Guerrero vs. “Wildman” Jack Armstrong.
Rating: 3 Stars. Given how the unknown Armstrong contributes virtually nothing here, it’s a shame how Guerrero is disrespected. Such mistreatment includes the commentators’ culturally racist jibes and even an on-screen typo badly misspelling Guerrero’s name.
3. Sunny Beach vs. Dr. Feelgood – with Missy Hyatt.
Rating: 3 Stars. Playing a trashy femme fatale, Hyatt’s lazy effort gives all wrestling valets a bad name. This bout’s blah wrestling is only worsened by an amateurish post-match skirmish.
4. UWF Southern States Champion Bob Orton Jr. vs. Finland “Hellraiser” Thor.
Rating: 5 Stars. With a bloodied Orton taking nasty blows, this brawl is somehow watchable.
5. Karate Kid vs. Little Tokyo.
Rating: 5 Stars. One amusing sequence is inspired: specifically, one wrestler hides behind the referee while the other unknowingly continues their ring crisscross. Bolstered by Karate Kid’s slick athleticism, this bout is better than expected.
6. Sampson vs. Irish Assassin.
Rating: 3 Stars. In a rudimentary clash of anonymous powerlifters, this bout is instantly forgettable.
7. Tyler Mane vs. Steve Ray.
Rating: 5 Stars. Aside from Mane’s plushy lion’s head poncho, it’s a decent effort. Vibe-wise, one may find Ray & Mane’s straight-forward choreography reminiscent of mid-80’s World Class Championship Wrestling. Suffice to say, both young participants exhibit some raw star potential.
8. Tina Moretti vs. Candi Devine/Divine.
Rating: 6 Stars. Despite the show’s shortest running time, Devine/Divine & Moretti (aka Ivory) efficiently execute their bout. Their choreography, in that sense, is a throwback to the classy mid-80’s.
9. Killer Bees (Jim Brunzell & B. Brian Blair) vs. The New Powers of Pain (Warlord & Power Warrior) – with David Power.
Rating: N/A. Except for a clip found elsewhere of the Bees’ title win, no footage of this tag match could be located.
10. “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka vs. Cactus Jack (aka Mick Foley).
Rating: 4 Stars. Only predictable ringside chaos keeps this slow-pitch brawl from being an utter disappointment.
11. “Dr. Death” Steve Williams – with Johnny Ace vs. “Malicious” Sid Vicious – with Dan Spivey.
Rating: 7½ Stars. As Vicious counters the reliable Williams with a solid performance displaying actual wrestling, their slugfest delivers the necessary goods. Spelled out by Abrams afterwards, the cheap finish is meant to provoke a steel cage rematch that never happened. In general, this main event’s brawny star power easily surpasses the rest of the program.
The intriguing Williams/Vicious main event receives far too little help from the undercard – in other words, the finale is sabotaged by a prior overload of mind-numbing title matches.
As middling as the UWF Blackjack Brawl is, one vital ingredient absent is the genuine spark emanating from a second and preferably game-changing thriller. One could imagine the possibilities, if any two of these ex-NWA/WCW free agents had participated: Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, “Ravishing” Rick Rude, Steve Austin, Nikita Koloff, Tully Blanchard, or Mulligan’s versatile son, Barry Windham.
Presuming both players were both healthy and well-conditioned, any such match-up could have helped Williams & Vicious by igniting this show’s reputation with a second high-caliber showdown – without some meaningless championship at stake. Instead, all fans get is a for-rent sales pitch from several journeymen seeking future gigs with either the WWF or WCW.
Reminiscent of the fading AWA and World Class promotions of the Late 80’s, it’s inevitable that one good slugfest can’t save the UWF Blackjack Brawl from pro wrestling’s dustbin.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 3½ Stars
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