Nick Bockwinkel vs Curt Hennig (AWA - 11/21/1986)

Thirded. Great match. I'm not quite as high on it as others, but in many ways it is the definitive match from the AWA in the 80s. And it runs the whole gamut as you see every kind of wrestling imaginable in the course of it. Great example of a match with a non-finish that still feels like a real finish.

Love this match. It will be on my list. Is it possible to find an unclipped version?

Defintely a number one contender for me. Greatest sixty minute match ever!

AWA World Heavyweight Champion Nick Bockwinkel vs Curt Hennig - AWA, Showboat 11/21/86



What can I possibly say about not just possibly the greatest one hour draw of all time, but possibly the greatest match of all time? It was totally engrossing. I love professional wrestling, but my mind will always wander it is just natural for me. Now you take two men put them in a single bout that goes roughly 2-3x longer than the average match and I am going to lose focus at some point and have to rewind. I have watched this match multiple times and that has never ever happened to me. It is just as gripping to me now as when I bought the WWE Curt Hennig comp. I think there are two essential facets that help it. First and foremost, is their attention to detail. Everything is a struggle from the first lock up to Bockwinkel's agony in the figure-4 one hour later. Second was their unpredictability. I don't mind predictable. I think at some point in your wrestling fandom you enjoy the routine of the push off the side headlock, come off the ropes, shoulder tackle dropdown, block the hiptoss, reverse and the babyface hiptosses the heel. Now because this match went one hour, they did not need to follow the formula to a T to make sure that crowd was invested in Curt through the shine and then build sympathy and go to a hot finish run. They could switch up the rope running sequences in such a way that I did not know how they would end. At actually, furthermore and this does not get played up enough this is technically babyface vs babyface. Bockwinkel plays the de facto heel down the stretch, but this further allows the departure from face/heel dynamics to increase unpredictability. I think when you have two really top flight babyfaces both in terms of workrate and starpower that's when pro wrestling can really feel like a sporting contest and just jam packed with drama. The beauty of it being one hour is I never can remember everything about this. Going into this rewatch, I distinctly remember loving the short arm scissors work and blood down the stretch. That was it. So everytime, I watch it the unpredictability is still there.



Nick Bockwinkel surprise dropkick and bodyslam for a quick pinfall at the start of what would be a one hour draw is one of the all-time great starts in pro wrestling history. I love a BANG BANG play like that at the beginning of a match to really jostle the crowd. Reminds me of Bock's crossbody right at the outset of his championship loss to Jumbo in AWA (another classic start). It tells the story of Bockwinkel leveraging his experience against the vim and vigor of young Curt Hennig. The beginning of the match is trying to tell the story that Hennig is Bock's equal on the mat that not only can he withstand the punishment, but keep up. They do some really interesting spots. Bock takes advantage of Curt's bumping abilities when Curt does a backroll into a standing position off a shouldertackle and Bock snaps him over with a side headlock takedown. It looks smooth as silk. Everything is earned in the early going. The headscissors work out of the headlock is just perfect pro wrestling. Hennig is just as detail-oriented as Bock. In an armabr, he places his knee on Bock's head both as a way to pin Bock down and use it as a fulcrum is awesome. Hennig keeps going back to the arm and ends up applying the short arm scissors one of my favorite holds. Bock is great at selling this slapping his hand from keeping going numb and working out of it. He works so hard just get into a toehold. He really has to pry it open. The way he is selling the arm even as he is working the toehold is masterful.

When Hennig grabs the arm again, Bock lays in the first heavy blows of the match at 20 minutes deep. Up to this, it has just been riveting clean, technical matwork. Bock is starting to feel that pressure and is looking to change gears and see if he can shake up the young challenger. Hennig sticks with arm and now goes rolling short arm scissors. Bock pulls the tights and Hennig is forced to break the hold or be pinned. Bock now takes a walk to reset. Bock is going to try every trick in the book to rattle Curt. Hennig to his credit stays calm and collected. He is wrestling well beyond on his years. There is an intensity in his eyes and his motions that makes you feel this is the most important thing in the world to him right now. Bock executed a drop toe hold and rolls right up into a leg scissors crab. One of my all time favorite spots! He wrenches it and Hennig is writhing in pain. Hennig says two can play at this game and he yanks the hair to crossface Bock and then attack the arm. A perfect move by Hennig. Hennig kneedrops the arm, which further damages the knee. Bock pounces on this mistake. They roll to the apron and Bock starts burying knees into Hennig forcing him outside. It is no more Mr. Nice Guy. Bock pops him in the crowd with a nasty forearm. Hennig takes the Bret Bump into the Oriental Sleeper! They both tumble out with the ref. Hennig sends Bock flying with a chop in the ring (great bump by Bockwinkel), but there is no ref! Hennig again to his credit stays focused and wrenches the arm against the post while Bock is trying to work an angle into a figure-4. I don't have the time to describe how expertly they are transitioning between thus dueling limb psychology and also ramping up the heat from technical masterpiece to one now where you feel that is so much at stake and some shortcuts are being taken.



At this point, Bockwinkel begins to use his favorite counteroffensive the quick jabs to the midsection to stun his opponent and set up pinning opportunities. Hennig trips up Bock up and wrenches his knee around the post. He is selling his own knee at the same time! Bockwinkel tries the bodyslamd, but his knee gives out. He is able to execute a piledriver, but it is too close to the ropes. He jumps back on Hennig's knee, but as he rears back Hennig applies a crossface and headbutts him off. Wow! Now we get the big Hennig bumrush of hot nearfalls that whips everyone into a frenzy, chop and piledriver! Bockwinkel looks totally overwhelmed by this hot rising star. Curt has wrestled a perfect match not giving way to any of Bockwinkel's tricks. He stayed with him on the mat. He found openings and now he his exploiting all the hard work by pouring on the offense. Just when it looks like Hennig may get the submission with the spinning toe hold, tragedy strikes. Bockwinkel shoves him off with his foot and Hennig is sent careening into post. He is dazed, confused and bloody. All that hard work looks like it went down the drain for one bad bump to the head.



Bockwinkel assumes his traditional role as King of the Mountain using the high ground to attack the wound of Hennig. Bockwinkel is aggressively calling for time calls. Does it get more heelish than attacking an open wound of opponent and calling for time? Bock gets him back in the ring where his teeing off until THE AXE~! Hennig hits the AXE~! HUGE BUMP! Hennig is bleeding profusely, but he will not be denied. Multiple Axes now and it looks like Bock may have bladed hard to tell as Hennig is bleeding buckets. You really believe that Hennig may pull this out just because of how damn good Bockwinkel's performance is in this. Direct quote from my notes "Bock in the figure-4 is fucking the best thing in wrestling". He is in pain, he is struggling to get out and his facial expressions are so fucking pitch perfect. He knows time on his side, but GOD FUCKING DAMNIT THIS HURTS! The crowd is all standing and I am marking out all over again. There is a nice little carny touch at the end where the ring the bell prematurely of the official count to make the crowd believe Hennig had won, but it is ruled a draw.



The story of the match is that Curt Hennig was ready. He could go toe to toe with Nick Bockwinkel. He pretty much took every single one of Bockwinkel's best shots and kept coming. If it was not for busting himself open, kayfabe-wise he had Bock on the ropes. He did make the ferocious ending in the figure-4, but he came up short of winning the title. You get a sense of pride and a sense of "not if, but when". The story of Curt Hennig's progression is he is getting better and he is able to get Bockwinkel on the ropes quicker and quicker into a match, but then these bullshit finish start to catch up to him. However, a draw is a respectable finish and Curt is a respectable man and he holds his head up high after this match. Nick Bockwinkel gives one of the most sublime performances in pro wrestling history. He gives so much of this match to Curt and he makes you believe Curt can win, but never once do you count him out and never once do you ever feel is any less of a mountain to climb. He has seen everything this wrestling world has to offer and he has a shortcut for anything. The Oriental Sleeper and the legwork were all moments that felt like gamechangers for Nick. The blow to Curt's head and the way Nick relished that and was calling for the time was proof of his expertise. 60 minutes is a long time and there was never a dull moment. *****

From My Rewatch Project on 3/6/2019

Nick Bockwinkel vs Curt Hennig (AWA Title – 11/21/1986)
Current Rank: 8
Trending: Even

At #8 there isn’t much room to go up, but I don’t think this match is going to be moving down much either. While I am hoping to watch my top 10-15 matches together to really parse out that top tier before ballot time, I have a tough time imagining this any higher than 5 and any lower than 10. This is a classic in every sense of the word to me, a masterpiece of storytelling, pacing, selling, and is punctuated about as well as any match can be. There is always room for some movement, but every time I watch this I come away thinking this is one of the greatest wrestling matches I have ever seen.

Read more: gweproject.freeforums.net/thread/657/caps-watching-project-reports?page=2#ixzz5hOiYFiM8

I think this is definitely in that conversation. I had in my top 10 at one point, but it slipped just outside at #14. That is probably more a product of me watching other matches more than anything else. It is sort of in this nebulous zone of matches that I think are are probably right outside true number one contenders, but are so varied that they could slide up and down in a given zone depending on what I am really into each year when I submit my ballot. Looking right now, I could make a case for it as high as #9. 1-8 is sort of a cut-off for me.

There's no way that my ADD-riddled brain should have been able to handle this 60-minute draw. This was a lengthy match with even lengthier holds and they managed to keep my attention the whole time. They never stop working when they are in a hold, and the exchanges outside of the holds are exciting and quick. All their fundamentals were rock-solid and this match reminded me a lot of Flair vs Steamboat. This was a simple story of experience versus youth. Bockwinkel attacks Hennig at the start of the match when he has his back turned, but that's not enough to stop Hennig from fighting back. Bock incorporates a lot of subtle heel tactics into his arsenal, and this keeps the fans backing Hennig. Just when I thought that they were about to run out of steam at the 50-minute mark, Hennig takes a rough fall to the outside and is cut open badly. This soon breaks down into a fight, with both guys bleeding buckets as they strike the hell out of each other as the time limit ticks away. You aren't going to find a better sixty-minute broadway than this. ★★★★★

Didn't think this match would be for me, and it's firmly locked in my top 10 now.