WWE Vintage Collection Report: 5th July 2009
By Shaun Best-Rajah.com Reporter
Hosted by: Mean Gene Okerlund

Welcome aboard. This week is the first of several weeks looking back at some of the greatest Cruiserweight wrestling action. The current defunct Cruiserweight title is on display next to Okerlund in the studio. For the first time in the history of this show, WCW is featured, with two slightly clipped bouts. An additional three full matches are also on offer so let's dive right in.

Championship Wrestling (December 7th 1982)
Tiger Mask vs Mr Saito
Okerlund credits Tiger with being one of the first to bring new aerial offense to North America. This original version of Tiger Mask was Satoru Sayama, who was the reigning Junior Heavyweight champion. Vince McMahon and Pat Patterson are on commentary. Tiger throws Saito down, leaps up top to backflip over a charge and nails a spin kick to the gut. Saito baits Tiger into a test of strength to attack then toss Tiger to the floor. Saito tackles Tiger off the apron. Tiger counters a second tackle by flipping over Saito back into the ring, which sends Saito to the floor. Tiger clears the top rope with a dive onto Saito on the concrete floor. The crowd pop big time for this, as do Vince and Patterson. Back inside, Saito retaliates with a couple of suplexes for nearfalls. Tiger misses a flying bodypress out of the corner, then fools Saito by turning a second bodypress into a sunset flip for the 1-2-3. Great little opener, which the crowd were responsive to. Tiger was like Dynamite Kid in terms of being ahead of his time. Not surprising that the two also engaged in a hot feud. Winner: TIGER MASK.

WCW Uncensored 1997 (March 16th 1997)
Ultimo Dragon w/Sonny Onoo vs Psicosis
Tony Schiavone, Mike Tenay, Bobby Heenan and Dusty Rhodes are calling the action, which is joined in progress. Psicosis was sporting a mask. Syxx was the reigning Cruiserweight champion at this point. Psicosis escapes a leglock to hit a dropkick. Dragon distracts Psicosis with a picture perfect headstand on the top turnbuckle, before kicking him away. Dragon lands an enziguiri after missing an initial effort. Both trade camel clutches. Psicosis launches an aerial assault with a guillotine legdrop and elbow from the second rope. Tenay does a great job of calling the moves and giving a background of both men, noting Psicosis as a 25-year-old, nine year pro, and Dragon being the last protege of Bruce Lee. Dragon escapes a chinlock to nail a tilt-a-whirl headscissors. Both escape sleepers, with Dragon turning one into a back suplex. Psicosis comes back with a top rope spin kick. Dragon rolls outside. Psicosis launches a barrage of offense on the floor, including a suicide dive, slingshot legdrop and clothesline along the ring apron. Psicosis is lucky not to injure himself on the first two spots. Dragon elevates Psicosis to the floor, sends him into the guardrail and hits a handspring backelbow followed by an asai moonsault. Dragon distracts the referee, enabling Onoo to plant Psicosis with a martial arts kick to the back of the head. Onoo tells the referee Psicosis slipped and had an accident, before laughing into the camera saying 'Sonny help Dragon little bit.' Following commercials, Dragon lands a top rope moonsault. Dragon tries to counter a powerbomb into a hurricanrana but Psicosis rolls through into a sunset flip for two. Dragon comes back with a la mahistrol cradle for his own nearfall. Both block superplex attempts and fall from the top rope, before telegraphing simultaneous spin kicks. Psicosis catches Dragon up top with a hurricanrana. A Psicosis nonchalant cover is flipped over into a Dragon nearfall. Dragon counters a victory roll into a running powerbomb. Dragon perches Psicosis on the top rope, nails an impressive tornado DDT then puts the luchador away with a tiger suplex. Post match sees Onoo kick Psicosis out of the way as he celebrates with Dragon. This was a good spotfest. Both Psicosis and Dragon played subtle heel roles, but the crowd didn't seem to care and were relatively quiet. Both men got in a heck of a lot more offense than would be allowed in a WWE Cruiserweight match and they looked a lot better than anytime during their brief WWE tenures. Winner: ULTIMO DRAGON.

Raw (October 13th 1997)
'Too Sexy' Brian Christopher vs Tajiri
Okerlund credits WCW with the WWF resurrecting their Junior Heavyweight Division in 1997, before talking up Tajiri as a popular international star, in his pre-Japanese Buzzsaw days. During this match, announcers Vince McMahon, Jerry Lawler and Jim Ross tease Christopher as being Lawler's son. (A true fact which was eventually revealed on TV.) Vince remarks on the striking facial resemblances between the two. Tajiri (minus a beard) is in control for most of the match. Early arm work from both leads to a Christopher hiptoss followed by his annoying screeching laugh. Christopher tackles Tajiri, who nips up, ducks a clothesline and hits a belly-to-belly suplex. Tajiri scores with kicks and a top rope missile dropkick. Christopher ducks a spin kick, before landing a stroke and running bulldog. Tajiri holds Christopher in a sunset flip position as he rolls him around the ring. Tajiri hits a handspring backelbow and kick. Lawler ridicules the 'sissy' martial arts, stating Christopher knows how to wrestle. Tajiri works over the arm, landing kicks, a clothesline and couple of jawbreakers, which send a tooth or piece of gum flying out of Christopher's mouth. Christopher seems to botch getting caught up in the ropes, failing on several attempts. Christopher clotheslines then misses a diving kneedrop from the top rope. Tajiri takes advantage with a suplex out of the corner, followed by a rolling senton and standing moonsault, but he can't put Christopher away. The end comes when Christopher reverses a rollup and pulls the tights for the cheap 1-2-3. Winner: 'TOO SEXY' BRIAN CHRISTOPHER. This was not as strong as the previous two matches and was hurt by the lack of crowd interest. They still weren't used to seeing this type of style.

Wrestling Classic Tournament Semi-Final (November 7th 1985)
Macho Man Randy Savage w/Miss Elizabeth vs Dynamite Kid
This was dubbed as the only televised match between the two. Gorilla Monsoon is calling the very first WWF PPV alongside Jesse Ventura. Both tussle into the ropes where Savage lands sucker shots. Dynamite punches back, floors Savage with a shoulder tackle and elevates him with a backbodydrop. Dynamite connects with a cross body, but both men fall close to the ropes. Savage counters a sunset flip by sitting on Dynamite 's chest. Savage ducks another cross body attempt and Dynmaite hits the mat. Both cancel the other out with clothslines. Savage gingerly heads up top, (Monsoon notes he's normally up there like a monkey) Dynamite crotches him with a standing dropkick. Dynamite delivers a superplex, both roll back, but Savage hooks the leg and is awarded the bout. Dynamite thinks he's won and argues the decision. Savage rolls out, favouring his back, and Elizabeth tends to him. Savage would lose in the final of the 16 man tournament to the Junkyard Dog. This was very solid, albeit a little short. Five more minutes would have been good. Winner: MACHO MAN RANDY SAVAGE.

Great American Bash (June 16th 1996)
WCW Cruiserweight Title
Dean Malenko vs Rey Mysterio Jnr
This was Rey's official WCW debut against the 'Iceman' and 'Man of 1,000 holds,' Malenko. It's weird to see a less than muscular Rey with no tattoos. Tony Schiavone, Mike Tenay and Dusty Rhodes are on commentary. Tenay does a good job again in putting over both men. Tenay notes Malenko as a second generation wrestler from father Boris, while Rey took the name of his uncle and trainer Rey Mysterio who also trained Konnan. Now 21, Rey started wrestling at the age of 14. Quick handshake to start. Chain wrestling doesn't separate the two, who both kip up and stare each other down. Malenko uses a single leg takedown to chinlock Rey into the ropes. Rey catches Malenko off guard with a backelbow, then launches into a tilt-a-whirl armdrag while on Malenko's shoulders to send him outside. Rey sends Malenko off the apron with a springboard dropkick from the second rope. Rey counters a test of strength by flipping back into a sunset flip, but Malenko rolls back, grabs Mysterio's legs and slingshots him over the top rope to the floor. Mysterio runs in to avoid a Malenko baseball slide. Malenko uses another test of strength to hook his legs around Rey's arm and a shot to Rey's elbow sends the luchador screaming in the corner. Malenko works over the arm with a hammerlock slam, wrenches, armwringer, armbar, kneedrops and a legscissors. Malenko follows Rey outside to tie the arm up in the guardrail and kick it. Back inside, Rey manages to walk along the top rope, dropkick Malenko, then try a victory roll, but Malenko sets Rey down and hits a running clothesline to regain control. Following commercials, Malenko hits a butterfly suplex then ties the arm up again on the mat, using a pinfall/submission combo to try and beat Rey. Malenko wrenches Rey's arm across his shoulder several times, then tries to hyperextend it on the mat. Rey gets pulled away from the ropes. Rey counters a waistlock attempt by running Malenko out of the ring. Malenko is knocked off the apron with a baseball slide and dropkick through the ropes. Rey uses the top rope to his advantage to nail a somersault dive on the floor and springboard dropkick in the ring. Rey sits on top of a powerbomb attempt, Malenko reverses into a sunset flip, but Rey counters into a jackknife pin for two. Rey nails a couple of hurricanranas from the top rope, before falling on top of a Malenko tilt-a-whirl attempt for two. Rey tries a victory roll, but Malenko turns it into a powerbomb and pins Rey with his feet on the ropes. Malenko retains his title in a thrilling bout, which was better than the earlier Dragon/Psicosis bout. The crowd were into a lot of Rey's moves and gave both men a standing ovation. WWE really dropped the ball on Dean Malenko. Winner: DEAN MALENKO.

Okerlund closes the show by promising more Cruiserweight bouts from the WWE vault next week.

This was a pretty good start to the series with a mixture of old-school aerial action, and modern high risk offense. Nice that WCW has finally been recognised too. This style would definitely be embraced in today's WWE culture. In future weeks I wouldn't mind seeing some classic Juventud Guerrera, Psicosis and Rey Mysterio footage from ECW or even some 1-2-3 Kid, Owen Hart. What Cruiserweight action would you like to see again? E-Mail me your thoughts. See you next week. Shaun.

Comments/praise/feedback/criticism/discussion points please direct to shaunmb1@hotmail.com.