30 YEARS AGO – WWE LIVE EVENT REPORT (8/18/1996): Vader & Jim Cornette vs. Shawn Michaels & Jose Lothario, Mankind & Goldust vs. Undertaker & Jake Roberts, Steve Austin & Hunter vs. Mero & Savio Vega

PWTorch features unmatched archives of live wrestling reports (not just results, but match details, context, and analysis). The following is a report originally published in the Pro Wrestling Torch Newsletter #403 (Cover-Dated Aug. 24, 1996). To read more pre-Internet wrestling coverage, become a PWTorch VIP member to unlock nearly 2,000 back issues of the Pro Wrestling Torch Newsletter going back to the late 1980s. VIP INFO PAGE

WWF LIVE EVENT REPORT
“DOUBLE TROUBLE”
AUGUST 18, 1996
UNIONDALE, NY AT NASSAU COLISEUM
REPORT BY ADAM, PWTORCH CORRESPONDENT

Aug. 18, 1996 — Att: 6,800 paid

(1) The Bushwackers beat Justin Hawk Bradshaw & Uncle Zebekiah after Bradshaw accidentally hit Zeb with the lariat. It was about what you’d expect if you had any expectations to…

(2) The Grim Twins beat The New Rockers. The Rockers opened by attacking the Twins before the bell. The Twins made a comeback and beat up on Cassidy until Jannetty tagged in and took over. After that the Rockers exchanged tags behind the ref’s back. The Twins then made a comeback to absolutely no fan reaction. In the end one of the Twins rolled up Cassidy for the three count. Afterward Cassidy threw a temper tantrum.

(3) Marc Mero & Savio Vega beat Steve Austin & Hunter Hearst Helmsley. Hunter and Mero began with a test of strength. Austin then tagged in, but Mero cut him off. Mero then tagged Savio. Both heels jumped to ringside. Hunter threw Mero over the top rope to take over offense. Hunter began pummeling Mero in the corner. Austin then tagged in and charged Mero. Mero, though, caught Austin with a slingshot. Savio got a hot tag and cleaned house until Austin kicked Vega as he went for a back bodydrop.0 Austin threw Savio into the ringstairs on the outside. Then the heels took over on Savio. After about five or ten minutes of the heels working over Savio, Savio made a comeback and hit Austin with his spinning wheel kick. Hunter then got sling-shotted into Austin who was climbing the top rope. Hunter tried a pedigree, but Savio backdropped out of it and hot-tagged Mero. Mero cleaned house until Austin broke up a pin attempt on Hunter. Hunter and Austin then double-Irish whipped Mero into the ropes, but Savio grabbed Austin bouncing off the ropes and Mero hit the high crossbody on Hunter for the pin. Very good match. Best of the night.

(4) Mankind & Goldust beat Undertaker & Jake Roberts. Undertaker ran in as the lights in the arena went out and hit both heels as Roberts got his snake out and threw it onto Goldust. Goldust and Roberts started the match. Then when Goldust tagged in Mankind, Roberts immediately tagged in Mankind at ringside and nailed him. He then threw Mankind over the railing and they brawled among the fans for about 15 seconds. Undertaker then threw Mankind back over the railing. The match slowed down as Roberts tagged in and the heels took over offense. Undertaker eventually got a hot tag and cleared the ring of both heels. Undertaker went for the tombstone, but Paul Bearer grabbed his ankle. Undertaker went after him at ringside when Mankind attacked him and they brawled up the aisle. While this was going on, Roberts DDT’d Goldust. The ref counted to one, but then realized that Goldust wasn’t the legal man and stopped his count. Mankind came back into the ring and applied the Mandible claw on Roberts for the win. The heels left the babyfaces lying in the ring.

(5) The Godwinns beat The Smoking Gunns (w/Sunny). After a typical match between these two, Henry caught Billy with a powerslam for the win. The Godwinns celebrated as if they had won, but this is the Nassau Coliseum—there’s no title changes here—so the match continued when the ref ruled Henry wasn’t the legal man. After the match was restarted, Henry hit the slop drop, but Sunny ran in to interfere. The Gunns then fled and took a deliberate countout.

(6) Owen Hart & British Bulldog beat Sid & Jim Neidhart (his mystery partner). When Howard Finkle brought out Neidhart as the mystery partner, some thought “Who?” Sid opened the match against Bulldog. Owen tagged in and powerslammed Sid. Sid attempted to tag Neidhart, but Neidhart teased a heel turn by not reaching for the tag. Sid eventually rebounded off the ropes and tapped Neidhart to tag him in. Neidhart and Owen shook hands. Bulldog then tagged in and after a couple of clean breaks, he and Bulldog shook hands. Then out of nowhere Bulldog and Owen attacked Neidhart, but Neidhart made a comeback and sent them both out of the ring. A few minutes later Owen missed a top rope splash. Neidhart hot-tagged Sid, who chokeslammed both Owen and Bulldog. He then tagged in Neidhart about 15 seconds later after a miraculous recovery. Owen rolled up Neidhart for a three count with a hook of the tights. As Sid attacked Bulldog and Owen, Vader ran in and attacked Sid. They triple teamed him and hit a Vader bomb and left Sid lying. All of this while Neidhart disappeared from the scene.

(7) Shawn Michaels & Jose Lothario beat Jim Cornette & Vader via DQ. Cornette grabbed the mic and asked if we had ever seen two physical specimens like him and Vader. When the match started, Cornette came in and demanded to face Michaels. So Michaels did tag in and Cornette immediately tagged Vader. After some quick moves by Michaels, Michaels ducked under a boot, tripped Vader, and posted him between the legs.

Vader then went to work on Michaels and then tagged in Cornette, who threw some punches. Michaels then came back for a brief comeback and Cornette immediately tagged out. Vader then hit a backdrop for a two count. Cornette then tagged back in and raked Michaels’s back and threw a few more punches, then tagged Vader again. Vader applied his famous half-hearted bearhug. Michaels got out of it and hit a clothesline. With both men down Lothario ran in and punched out Cornette. Cornette made a comeback and hit Lothario with his tennis racquet. He then went to the outside of the ring and hit Lothario about three times with his tennis racquet.

Back in the ring Michaels set up the superkick for Vader, but instead of hitting Vader, hit Jim Cornette on purpose. Cornette fell down to the ring apron. Sid came to the ring to stop Cornette from interfering. As Michaels set up Vader for the finish, Goldust and Mankind ran to the ring. After they both tried to get the best of Michaels, Sid fended them off. Undertaker joined in to even the odds. Undertaker sent all the heels fleeing from the scene. Michaels, Undertaker, Sid, and Lothario celebrated together.

FINAL THOUGHTS: The WWF hadn’t been to Nassau in about 7 months. It wasn’t bad relative to past Nassau shows in recent years. The crowd was into the action. They return Dec. 27, no matches were announced…

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