Sgt. Slaughter vs Americas Champion Larry Zbyszko

[RevDarkehorse]

I hate those screwy finishes. It robs the fans. The more stuff I see like this, the happier I am to see the AWA fold. Always with the run-in, cheat win or poor finishes like this. It pi**es me off!

[WJJ1968]

@RevDarkehorse - True but Dusty drew up a lot of those in WCW as well. Maybe that's why the WWE is the only one standing.

[Chawman]

I miss Portland Wrestling, WCCW, NWA and AWA. WWE can suck it!

[johnny10301968]

Was there a belt ?

[johnny10301968]

Don,t you have the match where sgt.slaughter wins the title?

[ringgiant1]

They didn't have the promotion power, marketing skills, or employee trust to take the AWA to the next level. Verne treated his wrestlers poorly, and while he was a shooter he tried to turn guys like rooster cogburn and the trooper into stars. He was too small minded for what he had. Cause at one point he could have ate Vince Sr. alive.

[ProCorona]

AWA was just not on the same level as WWF NWA/WCW or even WCCW

[okrabay]

There was so much Verne could have done to keep the AWA going.

He ruined his own promotion not Vince.

[RevDarkehorse]

@okrabay So true. Vince didn't beat Verne, Verne beat Verne. I have a video where Baron Von Rascke talks about Verne and the AWA. He said, "you gotta take care of your talent". Verne didn't do that. He just asumed that all the talent would stick with him. It's a shame. If Verne could've pulled his head out of his a**, maybe, just maybe, the AWA could've still be around. Now we are stuck with WWE and TNA. If it weren't for You Tube, I wouldn't even watch wrestling!

[JonathanVonErich]

@RevDarkehorse Very well said , Verne beat Verne. Sad but true.

And I think Slaughter should have had the chance to be AWA world Champ.

[RustyTBone69]

The AWA should have made Sgt Slaughter the world champion in 1989. They could have built him up like Hulk Hogan. I think the fans just got tired of all the Dusty finishes. I think Zbyszko and Slaughter had 3 or 4 Dusty finishes.

[CadillacL]

That's true. The NWA TV Title was just so Dusty could have another world title :)

[RevDarkehorse]

Those AWA swerves when it came to finishes were horrible.

[DotDotkins]

The Americas Championship was never a real title, it was more of a way to help put over Sgt. Slaughter. You had a similar situation with Billy Robinson who was always billed as The British Empire Champion.

[7Boogiewoogie]

@DotDotkins Actually and you may have posted the match after you commented here but if you check out the match on your channel between Bob Backlund and Larry Zybyzko, Larry has the actual belt on. For some reason after about the Fall of 85' the Sarge never wore the belt. Another dropped opportunity by the AWA, which would have given them another reason for the fans to care about what was going on there. After the Sarge left in 86' the belt was never mentioned again. What a waste.

[WrestlingHeretic]

@7Boogiewoogie

Indeed, the "Americas belt" was actually Verne's old AWA world title belt from the 1970s.

[Lfdjake91]

I disagree. I think the AWA International TV title, a belt created just for Greg Gagne to wear, was much lamer.

[toolmachine]

i hear ya man. Zbyszko was a very goog heel

[bellsboy]

thank you dotdotkins keep em coming