Match #7 – Coal Miner’s Glove Match: Sting vs. Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts
Jake quickly rushes up the pole for the glove and Sting cuts him off with a scoop slam. He follows it with a second one, Stinger goes for the pole but Jake cuts him off with a forearm. Collar and elbow tie up, Jake with position, he misses with a big right and Sting backs off. Another tie up, Jake with a knee and a clothesline, he sends Sting for the ride but eats a right fist. They measure one another, Jake with a side headlock, they hit the ropes, Sting leapfrogs but then misses a drop kick. Jake goes to work on Sting’s back with knees before putting his boot to the mid section.

Roberts throws Sting over the top rope and gives chase, Sting throws Jake into the post. He darts around the ring confusing Jake before finally grabbing his arm and throwing him into the post once again. Sting hits the ring and climbs the pole, Jake is right behind him and he’s pulled down. Belly to back suplex by Roberts but his shoulder is reeling. Sting goes back to work on the shoulder and he sits on a hammerlock. Up to their feet, Jake breaks the hold and hip blocks Sting to the apron. He tries for the glove and Sting is there to sit him down on the top turnbuckle. Roberts tumbles back into the ring after the low blow and Sting steps on his head.

Sting stomps away on his opponent and he goes back to work on the left arm. Stinger holds an arm bar and gives some clubbing forearms. Up to vertical, Sting holds the arm, Jake throws him out of the ring but Sting hangs on. A brawl ensues on the floor. Jake hits Sting with a chair before rolling him back to the ring. Jake tries choking Sting out with his boot, he takes the tape from him wrist and chokes the fan favorite. The ref tries breaking it up and he finally relinquishes. Jake measures Sting for a knee lift but he moves out of the way, both men are down. Sting with an Irish whip, he goes for a Stinger Splash but Roberts moves. Jake picks Sting up for a short clothesline and he signals for the DDT.

Front facelock and he nails Sting with a DDT, hurting his own arm along the way. Roberts is slow to go for the glove, Sting crawls his way up and he pulls him down. Jake catches Sting with an elbow knocking him backwards on the apron. Sting shakes it off, charges and spins around the pole, he catches Jake in the face with an elbow and he makes the climb. Cactus Jack rushes down the entrance ramp and hands Jake a bag with his snake. Sting grabs the coal miners glove, he gives Jake a shot to the back and the cobra appears to bite Jake. Sting rolls Jake up and picks up the win.
Winner: Sting (Roll-Up)

• EA’s Take: Sort of a pointless gimmick to this match and the finish was clearly…let’s just say the snake definitely did not bite Jake’s face, but how can you go wrong with these two? Roberts, of course, became a household name with his ‘Jake the Snake’ gimmick in WWF prior to this date, but made his surprise debut on Main Event in August. Aligning himself with Barbarian and Cactus Jack, it’s very short lived, as Jake’s gone the following month. In his own words, he signed a lucrative deal with WCW after leaving the WWF post-WrestleMania VIII. However, he had to wait 90 days and just as that was about to hit, the man who signed Roberts stepped down. In his place, came Bill Watts, who Jake had serious heat with from their days in Mid-South and that million dollar deal was no longer on the table. Instead, he got a significantly smaller contract.

EA’s Finisher: Decent show overall, it’s still a little confusing with multiple titles for everything. Bill Watts has an interesting legacy and I’ve heard him defend some of the rule changes he made during this era. I suppose this show displayed how long his DQ for jumping off the top rope rule lasted. The main event had a useless gimmick, by the time is was used it appeared the snake was a bigger factor than the glove. The wheel should have been set-up to land on a more exciting match and Sting/Roberts legitimately did not know what kind of match they’d be having until the spin of the wheel. Rhodes and Austin delivered once again, giving bright spots while WCW continues to be the hamster in the wheel.

Top Three To Watch
1 – Barry Windham & Dustin Rhodes vs. Steve Williams & Steve Austin
2 – Rick Rude vs. Masahiro Chono
3 – Ricky Steamboat vs. Brian Pillman

Pages: 1 2 3 4