Virgil vs. “Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase (w/ “Sensational” Sherri Martel) for the Million Dollar Championship
As we continue on through the fall, we are on the verge of what is usually the last PPV of the year in Survivor Series, but that is not the case here as we do have one more after that with This Tuesday in Texas. However, we do have Survivor Series right before it and much like the last two years, we have a special Survivor Series Showdown to help with the final push to Survivor Series. One of the big matches on the show was Roddy Piper and his team of Bret Hart, the British Bulldog, and Virgil taking on Ric Flair and his team of the Mountie, the Warlord, and Ted Dibiase. Since their last match at Summerslam, Dibiase have been looking to reclaim his Million Dollar Title that Virgil had won and now he finally gets his rematch here as both men also look to build some momentum for their team going into Survivor Series.
Since Summerslam, the two men would continue their feud on the house shows with Dibiase usually winning the matches by countout though Virgil would win a few of them, and they would continue to cut promos on each other on TV. On the 10/26 Superstars, it was revealed that Virgil and Dibiase would be on Piper and Flair’s teams respectively, and then it was announced that the two men would face off here for the Million Dollar Championship. This feud has been pretty solid though it feels like it was on its last legs and it would be interesting to see if Dibiase ends up regaining the title or if Virgil manages to hold onto it.
Dibiase was pretty hot as a heel while Virgil got a pretty good pop from the crowd. The two men square off to start and they lock up with Dibiase hitting an armdrag as they lock up again with Dibiase hitting a hiptoss, and they lock up a third time with Dibiase hooking a headlock and he goes behind Virgil before tripping him up as he begs off in the corner. They lock up with Dibiase going back to the headlock and Virgil whips him off before leaping over him and he hits a hiptoss, and he hits another hiptoss on Dibiase and ducks a shot before hooking a rollup for a two count. They lock up with Dibiase getting a knee in and he pounds on Virgil who ducks a shot and he hooks a small package for a two count though the ref clearly counts three by mistake, and Dibiase rolls outside to regroup before returning to the ring as they lock up with Dibiase working on the arm. Virgil turns it around and works on Dibiase’s arm as he goes behind him and he hooks a headlock before taking him to the mat, and Dibiase tries to roll Virgil onto his shoulders for a two count as he fights to his feet and he backs Virgil into the corner to force a break. He rams the shoulder into Virgil’s ribs and pounds on him in the corner as Virgil reverses a whip into the other corner only for Dibiase to catch him with a back elbow, and he tosses Virgil to the outside and distracts the ref as Sherri kicks at Virgil and scratches his back before grinding her shoe into Virgil’s face. Dibiase goes outside and stomps on Virgil as we go to commercial and when we come back from the break, Dibiase throws Virgil back into the ring and stomps on him before pounding on him in the corner. He continues to stomp on Virgil and hits a suplex for a two count before hooking a submission on as he grinds down on him, and Virgil fights to his feet and breaks the hold only for Dibiase to catch him with a knee to the ribs. He stomps on Virgil and drops a fist on him for a two count before going back to the submission and he gets another two count, and he hits a slam on Virgil and goes up to the middle rope only to miss the elbow. Virgil fires up on Dibiase and knocks him down as Dibiase begs off and Virgil gets a shot in before hitting a pair of clotheslines, and he hits a Russian legsweep on Dibiase for a two count and whips him into the corner as the Repo Man comes down to ringside. Virgil pounds on Dibiase in the corner as Repo Man takes the belt and puts it in his coat while Sherri distracts the ref, and Virgil goes after Repo Man who hits him in the head with the belt and he heads to the back as Dibiase gets the three and we have a new champion. After the match, Dibiase celebrates with Sherri as he takes the mike and says that he told Virgil he couldn’t keep his belt and is back to where he was when he found him, and Sherri pulls out a $100 bill and hands it to Dibiase who stands over Virgil and he continues to taunt him. Just then, Tito Santana runs down to the ring and gets in Dibiase’s face as he pounds on him and hits an atomic drop that sends Dibiase over the top to the floor, and Dibiase and Sherri head to the back as Santana checks on Virgil.
The match itself was decent as both men worked hard and put on a solid match though it wasn’t up to their match at Summerslam. As mentioned, the feud was pretty much on its last legs by this point and with Dibiase winning the title back, you had to wonder where Virgil would go from this point if his push would still continue or if he would slide down the card. To be honest, this match didn’t have much behind it as it was to have Dibiase get the title back while also putting heat on Repo Man by having him cost Virgil the title and also inject Santana into this feud as well. The crowd was into the match and Virgil, but are not happy when Dibiase gets the win. Dibiase gets the win over Virgil and reclaims his Million Dollar Championship though this issue is not quite over yet.
Final Grade: **1/2
