Superstar Saturday (May 1980)

## Background

Last week, Wrestle World presented Champ Clash, a PPV wherein every championship was defended, and every reigning champion retained their title.

At that event, Average Guy called out Jet Set Strutter and Mad Abner for the assault Abner had inflicted on Guy the week before, resulting in Guy injuring his hand and being unable to compete. A match for the PPV between Abner and Major Malice was announced, with Abner picking up the victory.

After Skullgore retained his Cruiserweight Championship against The Piranha at Champ Clash, former champion Michael T. Wolf, who had previously vowed to “control [his] inner wolf” after a disqualification loss to Skullgore, announced that he felt like his wolf instincts were uncontrollable. It was announced shortly before this episode of Superstar Saturday that Wolf had challenged Skullgore for a no holds barred match for the title–a match where Wolf would not need to control his vicious instincts for fear of a DQ.

## Matches

The show opened with Honest Al interviewing Average Guy, who said he wanted to call out Jet Set Strutter but that Strutter hadn’t shown up to the studio, so instead he was calling out Mad Abner. Abner came out and Guy challenged him to a match at Monster Mayhem, which Abner accepted.

After that segment, a commercial for the upcoming Monster Mayhem PPV aired featuring Tag Team Champions The Blade Blasters, Television Champion Memphis Prince, and World Champion Jet Set Strutter.

Following the commercial break, the first match of the night commenced, as the mysterious Indian wrestler Mystic Maan defeated boxer turned wrestler Max Power with his signature move, the Mumbai Mirage.

Next, Exotic Rick made his return to the ring by defeating Chameleon Kid with his patented Exotic Awakening. Despite the talent of both competitors, this match did not go over well, receiving a rare zero-star (“dud”) rating.

After that match, a match between two long-time rivals and former Television Champions took place when luchador Star Boy took on the barbaric and animalistic Piranha in an intense back-and-forth bout. Star Boy picked up the victory with the Flying Cross Chop.

The next match saw massive French heel Pierre the Enormous defeat wrestling baker Studmuffin using the Giant Elbow Drop in what was essentially a squash match.

In the night’s main event, Cruiserweight Champion Skullgore took on Michael T. Wolf in a no holds barred match for the title. Though Wolf had hoped the lack of rules in the bout would allow him to take advantage of his brutal, werewolf-like instincts, the heel Skullgore proved to be even more vicious. After a barbaric match that saw both wrestlers bloodied by the end, Skullgore finished off his opponent and retained the title.

## Reception

WW’s rating sank to 10.54, down from Champ Clash’s 12.01. RnR once again won the week’s rating war with an astonishing 19.37, bolstered by a main event in which Mason Cook won the RnR Cruiserweight Championship.

Much like Champ Clash, this episode of Superstar Saturday was a mixed bag in terms of fan reactions. The Rick/Chameleon match earned a rare “dud” rating despite featuring two talented performers, the Pierre/Studmuffin match was seen as a boring squash, and even the main event–featuring an exciting stipulation, the continuation of an ongoing feud, and a title up for grabs–received a measly 2 stars. On the other hand, the opening bout between Mystic Maan and Max Power was surprisingly well-received, and Star Boy vs. The Piranha delivered as that match-up usually does.