Bob Backlund vs. Greg Valentine - 5 Star Classic - 19/02/1979

WWWF Heavyweight Title Match: Bob Backlund (c) vs. Greg Valentine - WWWF on MSG Network - 19/02/1979

Classic wrestling broadway. Quintessential Backlund offensive showcase with tremendous storytelling and amazing selling. The opening exchanges give the match a hot start with some cage, methodical lock-ups/headlocks, followed by explosive exchanges, where Backlund gets the better of Valentine, before going back to the wrestling. Valentine would occasionally get the better of Backlund with a knee to the gut, or solar plexus as Vince McMahon on commentary liked to say. Backlund was able to bridge out of Valentine, who was putting all of his weight on his stomach but Valentine maintained control. Despite the prolonged holds, these two had a knack of getting a lot of drama out of them, both during the hold and the eventual escape or counter-reel back in spots. Valentine, for example, applies a Full Nelson and rather than race to counter, they keep the hold locked on to get the drama and then comes the reversal by Backlund, who kept putting Valentine in the hold, despite Valentine’s crafty efforts to escape. I imagine some may find this repetitive but I can’t help but get sucked in and invested in that style of wrestling. The short arm scissor spots are always great. Backlund keeps switching how he does them, or how he escapes them. Sometimes, he’ll lift his opponents up or, in this case, he rakes his boot in Valentine’s face. I miss this move in wrestling. I believe only Naomichi Marufuji, of all people, is one of the last users of the hold. Backlund continues his smart use of wrestling holds and the methods in which he used to keep the MSG crowd engaged, like his row-a-boat armbars. It’s always a humiliating move for Valentine, who uses it for extra motivation to escape the move, which he does, almost pinning Backlund, while still in the hold, using the ropes as help. Backlund gets pissed and smacks him with his heel before going back to the arm. Valentine is able to get some distance from Backlund before Valentine is able to shoulder block him to the floor, giving Valentine the floor to apply a short arm scissors of his own. This leads to the Gotch Lift that I mentioned previously and Backlud slams Valentine and drop-kicks him before throwing Valentine over for an Americana. 

Valentine gets viscous from there. He smashes into Backlund’s chest, like Sheamus does on the apron, and slams his foot into Backlud’s knee, which was bent. Backlud rams into Valentine’s ribs and does a sunset flip for the first meaningful pinfall of the match 30-35 minutes into the bout. They exchange elbows but their selling is truly what stands out in that moment. Nothing big. Just acknowledgement of the pain or the lack of blood flowing in the arm from the past 30 minute of arm holds. Valentine wins the series of elbow strikes and goes for the arm to set up the Figure Four. Backlund finds ways to escape but Valentine persists with his incredible work on the joints. Backlund seems to tire by this point and can’t regain the advantage when given the chance unlike the start of the match, allowing Valentine to get the first blows in when Backlund escapes a hold. Instead Backlund is stuck kicking Valentine in the kidneys while Valentine wraps himself around Backlund’s knee. Valentine eventually gets too cocky and tries to hit the Atomic Drop which Backlund reverses and does one of his own. Backlund and Valentine get desperate and start doing splashes but both get reversed (One is missed, the other is stopped via knees to the stomach) and they fight in the ring with crushing blows. Valentine gets rocked by one and Backlund goes for the leg but Valentine escapes the Figure Four, tries his own and that gets stopped. No one can get the advantage towards the back end of the match. 

There is an amazing spot where Backlund is trying to whip Valentine into the ropes to apply the Abdominal Stretch and Valentine is desperately holding on for dear life. High intense drama simmers to the surface in the closing exchanges, Valentine tries to go to the air with a flying knee but Backlund punches him in the gut and throws Valentine in the corner but Valentine won’t stop throwing punches. If he’s not going to win, he’s not going to lose. Then we end on one final punch exchange and a Piledriver. The bell rings to signal the end but Valentine isn’t stopping, instead going for the Figure Four, finally applying it after an hour of trying. 

Amazing broadway. Greg Valentine puts in an all time performance in the Garden in every way. Backlund isn’t that far off, excelling offensively. The drama, the selling, the wrestling, all of it comes together beautifully. The pacing and style of the era may vary with some others. But to me, this is a classic. *****