SuperClash '85 – The Night of Champions was the first

SuperClash SuperClash was a series of major professional wrestling shows promoted by the American Wrestling Association (AWA) between 1985 and 1990, often co-promoted with other North American wrestling promotions. AWA held a total of four SuperClash shows, ...

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

supercard In sports, a card lists the matches taking place in a title match combat-sport event. Cards include a main event match and the undercard listing the rest of the matches. The undercard may be divided into a midcard and a lower card, according to t ...

event promoted by the

American Wrestling Association The American Wrestling Association (AWA) was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 until 1991. It was owned and founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo. The territory was originally part o ...

(AWA). It was billed as AWA's flagship

, their biggest event of the year. The event was held at

Comiskey Park Comiskey Park was a baseball park in Chicago, Illinois, located in the Armour Square neighborhood on the near-southwest side of the city. The stadium served as the home of the Chicago White Sox of the American League from 1910 Chicago White Sox s ...

in Chicago, Illinois on September 28, 1985, only a few months after

WrestleMania WrestleMania is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event held annually between mid-March and mid-April by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Since premiering in 1985, 37 editions followed, ...

, which was promoted by the rival

World Wrestling Federation World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and va ...

(WWF) promotion. The show drew a paid attendance of 20,347, although it was announced as 25,000. SuperClash – Night of Champions was one of the co-promotional efforts by the AWA,

National Wrestling Alliance The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling promotion and former professional wrestling governing body operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc. Founded in 1948, the NWA began as a governing body for a ...

(NWA) and

World Class Championship Wrestling World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW), later known as the World Class Wrestling Association (WCWA) (1986–1991) was an American professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter E ...

(WCCW) to compete with the WWF's increasing national presence and popularity. The jointly promoted venture was known as

Pro Wrestling USA Pro Wrestling USA was a professional wrestling promotion in the United States of America in the mid-1980s. It was an attempt to unify various federations, including the American Wrestling Association (AWA), Jim Crockett Promotions and other membe ...

. Reportedly, promoters

Verne Gagne Laverne Clarence Gagne (February 26, 1926 – April 27, 2015) was an American amateur and professional wrestler, football player, wrestling trainer, and wrestling promoter. He was the owner and promoter of the Minneapolis-based American Wrestli ...

(AWA) and Jim Crockett (NWA) disputed the live gate for the show, with Crockett claiming $288,000 and Gagne claiming $200,000 was made. Due to the money dispute, several NWA stars set to appear on Gagne's upcoming AWA events were pulled, with some cards then cancelled altogether. The show featured numerous championship matches including three world heavyweight championship matches. On the show,

Mil Máscaras Mil Máscaras (born Aarón Rodríguez Arellano, July 15, 1942) is a Mexican luchador (professional wrestler) and actor. He is regarded as one of the greatest wrestlers of the lucha libre tradition in Mexico – along with El Santo and Blue Dem ...

defended the

IWA World Heavyweight Championship IWA World Heavyweight Championship is the name given for the principal title of a number of professional wrestling promotions that operate under the acronym "I.W.A." (despite not sharing corporate name). It may refer to: * IWA World Heavyweight ...

against Buddy Roberts, despite the fact that the International Wrestling Association had closed down in 1978. Since then, Mil Máscaras continued to defend the championship, basically as his own personal championship used to give an air of prestige to some of Mil Máscaras' matches. Also on the show the team of

Jumbo Tsuruta , better known by his ring name , was a Japanese professional wrestler who wrestled for All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) for most of his career, and is well known for being the first ever Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion, having won the PWF Heavyw ...

Giant Baba , best known by his ring name , was a Japanese professional wrestler, promoter, and professional baseball player. He is best known as a co-founder of All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), a promotion he founded in 1972 along with Mitsuo Momota ...

, and

Genichiro Tenryu , better known as is a retired Japanese professional wrestler and professional wrestling promoter. At age 13, he entered sumo wrestling and stayed there for 13 years, after which he turned to Western-style professional wrestling. "Tenryu" was h ...

were billed as defending the Asian Six-Man Tag Team Championship, a championship that was never mentioned outside the promotional material for the SuperClash show. In the tenth match of the night it appeared as if

The Fabulous Freebirds The Fabulous Freebirds were a professional wrestling tag team who attained fame in the 1980s, performing into the 1990s. The team usually consisted of three wrestlers, although in different situations and points in its history, just two performed ...

( Michael Hayes and

Terry Gordy Terry Ray Gordy Sr. (April 23, 1961 – July 16, 2001) was an American professional wrestler. Gordy appeared in the United States with promotions such as Mid-South Wrestling, Georgia Championship Wrestling, World Class Championship Wrestling, Jim ...

) defeated

The Road Warriors The Road Warriors, also known as the Legion of Doom, were a professional wrestling tag team composed of Road Warrior Hawk (Michael Hegstrand) and Road Warrior Animal (Joseph Laurinaitis).. They performed under the name "The Road Warriors" in t ...

(

Hawk Hawks are birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. They are widely distributed and are found on all continents except Antarctica. * The subfamily Accipitrinae includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, sharp-shinned hawks and others. This subfa ...

and

Animal Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the Kingdom (biology), biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals Heterotroph, consume organic material, Cellular respiration#Aerobic respiration, breathe oxygen, are Motilit ...

) to win the

AWA World Tag Team Championship The American Wrestling Association (AWA) World Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling world tag team championship in the American Wrestling Association from 1960 until the promotion folded in 1991. History When the NWA Minneapolis ...

. During the match, Hayes used a set of

Brass knuckles Brass knuckles (variously referred to as knuckles, knucks, brass knucks, knucklebusters, knuckledusters, knuckle daggers, English punch, iron fist, paperweight, or a classic) are "fist-load weapons" used in hand-to-hand combat. Brass knuckles ...

on Animal to win the match. Moments later, promoter

reviewed the instant replay and decided to give the championship back to the Road Warriors, disqualifying the Freebirds. In the semi-main event,

Ric Flair Richard Morgan Fliehr (born February 25, 1949), known professionally as Ric Flair, is an American professional wrestler. Regarded by multiple peers and journalists as the greatest professional wrestler of all time, Flair has had a career spanni ...

successfully defended his

NWA World Heavyweight Championship The NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship is a world heavyweight professional wrestling championship owned and promoted by the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), an American professional wrestling promotion. The current champion is Tyrus, who is ...

against Magnum T. A. The

main event In sports, a card lists the matches taking place in a title match combat-sport event. Cards include a main event match and the undercard listing the rest of the matches. The undercard may be divided into a midcard and a lower card, according to ...

match between champion

AWA World Heavyweight Champion The AWA World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship and the highest ranked championship in the defunct American Wrestling Association (AWA). All AWA trademarks, including the AWA World Heavyweight ...

Rick Martel Richard Vigneault (born March 18, 1956) is a Canadian retired professional wrestler, trainer, and television presenter, better known by his ring name, Rick Martel. He is best known for his appearances with the American Wrestling Association, th ...

and

Stan Hansen John Stanley Hansen II (born August 29, 1949) is an American retired professional wrestler. Hansen is known for his stiff wrestling style, which he attributes to his poor eyesight. He is also known for his gimmick as a loud, violent cowboy who ...

only lasted a couple of minutes as the champion and the challenger fought first at ringside and then into the dugout of Comiskey Park, resulting in a double count-out.

Event

Preliminary matches

In the opening match,

Steve Regal Steve Regal (born August 25, 1951) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the American Wrestling Association. Professional wrestling career Born in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, Regal started wrestl ...

defended the

World Light Heavyweight Championship The World Light Heavyweight Championship was the first recognized professional wrestling world light heavyweight championship created in 1905 Title history See also * World Light Heavyweight Championship (Australian version) *World Light Heav ...

against Brad Rheingans. Rheingans hit an atomic drop on Regal and covered him for the pinfall but

Jimmy Garvin James Williams (born September 25, 1952) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring names "Gorgeous Jimmy" Garvin and Jimmy "Jam" Garvin. A member of The Fabulous Freebirds, Garvin is best known for his appearances ...

distracted the referee, allowing Regal to roll-up Rheingans and grab the tights for leverage to retain the title. Next, Candy Divine defended her World Women's Championship against

Sherri Martel Sherry Schrull (née Russell; born February 8, 1958 – June 15, 2007) was an American professional wrestler and manager, better known by her ring names, Sherri Martel and Sensational Sherri. Martel began her professional wrestling career in the ...

. Near the end of the match, Sherri hit a clothesline,

suplex A suplex is an offensive move used in sport wrestling as well as amateur wrestling and professional wrestling. It is a throw that involves lifting the opponents and bridging or rolling to slam them on their backs. Professional wrestling featu ...

and a diving splash on Divine to win the title.

would then defend the

against Buddy Roberts. Mascaras hit a flying bodypress on Roberts to retain the title. The team of Greg Gagne,

Scott Hall Scott Oliver Hall (October 20, 1958 – March 14, 2022) was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his tenures with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) under his real name and under the ring name the Diamond Studd and with the ...

and

Curt Hennig Curtis Michael Hennig (March 28, 1958 – February 10, 2003) was an American professional wrestler. He performed under his real name for promotions including the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the World Wrestling Federation (WWF; now WW ...

competed against

Ray Stevens Harold Ray Ragsdale (born January 24, 1939), known professionally as Ray Stevens, is an American country and pop singer-songwriter and comedian, known for his Grammy-winning recordings "Everything Is Beautiful" and "Misty", as well as novelty ...

Nick Bockwinkel Nicholas Warren Francis "Nick" Bockwinkel (December 6, 1934 – November 14, 2015) was an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the American Wrestling Association (AWA) in the 1970s and 1980s. Bockwinkel ...

and

Larry Zbyszko Lawrence Whistler (born December 5, 1951), better known by the ring name Larry Zbyszko, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is perhaps best known for his feud with his mentor, Bruno Sammartino, during the early 1980s as well as his ...

. After a back and forth match between the two teams, Hall

powerslam A Powerslam or simply Slam is a professional wrestling body slam move in which the wrestler performing the slam falls face-down on top of the opponent. The use of the term "powerslam" usually refers to the front powerslam or the scoop powerslam. ...

med Stevens for the win.

Little Tokyo Little Tokyo ( ja, リトル・トーキョー) also known as Little Tokyo Historic District, is an ethnically Japanese American district in downtown Los Angeles and the heart of the largest Japanese-American population in North America. It is t ...

defended the NWA World Midget's Championship against Little T. Little Tokyo hit a double chop to Little T's throat. Next,

and

defended the non-existent Asian Six-Man Tag Team Championship against

Harley Race Harley Leland Race (April 11, 1943 – August 1, 2019) was an American professional wrestler, promoter, and trainer. Race wrestled in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), the American Wrestling Association (AWA), the World Wrestling Federati ...

Bill Irwin William Mills Irwin (born April 11, 1950) is an American actor, clown, and comedian. He began as a vaudeville-style stage performer and has been noted for his contribution to the renaissance of American circus during the 1970s. He has made a nu ...

and

Scott Irwin Scott K. Irwin (May 14, 1952 – September 5, 1987) was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his tag team with his brother Barney "Bill" Irwin. Professional wrestling career Debut and the World Wide Wrestling Federation Aft ...

. Baba hit Bill Irwin with a boot to the face to retain the title. Next,

Kerry Von Erich Kerry Gene Adkisson (February 3, 1960 – February 18, 1993), better known by his ring name Kerry Von Erich, was an American professional wrestler. He was part of the Von Erich family of professional wrestlers. He is best known for his time wi ...

defended the WCCW Texas Championship against Jimmy Garvin. Von Erich missed a charge at Garvin and Garvin climbed to the top rope but Von Erich crotched him from the top and Garvin fell down and then Von Erich pinned him to retain the title. After the match, Precious berated Von Erich and Garvin attacked him but Von Erich applied an ''

Iron Claw Professional wrestling holds include a number of set moves and pins used by performers to immobilize their opponents or lead to a submission. This article covers the various pins, stretches and transition holds used in the ring. Some wrestlers u ...

'' on Garvin to make him pass out. In the following match,

The Russian Team The Russian Team was a professional wrestling team in the 1980s who attempted to prove their Soviet dominance over their opponents. History The Russian Team was formed in December 1984 in the NWA's Jim Crockett Promotions. It consisted of NWA W ...

( Krusher Khruschev,

Ivan Koloff Oreal Donald Perras (August 25, 1942 – February 18, 2017) was a Canadian professional wrestler, better known by the ring name "The Russian Bear" Ivan Koloff. He was the third wrestler to hold the WWWF Championship. Early life Perras was bo ...

and

Nikita Koloff Nikita Koloff (born Nelson Scott Simpson on March 9, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with Jim Crockett Promotions and its successor, World Championship Wrestling between 1984 and 1992, where ...

) defended the

NWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship The NWA World Six-Man Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and originally promoted in the NWA Mid-America territory based out of Tennessee. Originally called the "NWA ...

against

Crusher A crusher is a machine designed to reduce large rocks into smaller rocks, gravel, sand or rock dust. Crushers may be used to reduce the size, or change the form, of waste materials so they can be more easily disposed of or recycled, or to redu ...

Dick the Bruiser William Fritz Afflis (June 27, 1929 – November 10, 1991) was an American professional wrestler, promoter, and former NFL player, better known by his ring name, Dick the Bruiser. During his NFL days he played four seasons with the Green Bay Pac ...

and

Baron von Raschke James Donald Raschke (born July 30, 1940) is an American retired professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Baron von Raschke. Early life Raschke was a three-year letterman with the University of Nebraska–Lincoln Cornhuskers wres ...

. Baron initially made Ivan submit to a clawhold but the referee did not see the submission as he was busy in preventing other wrestlers from interfering. Nikita then hit Baron with a foreign object and Ivan pinned him to retain the titles. Next, was a Bodyslam match between

Jerry Blackwell Jerry Blackwell (April 26, 1949 – January 22, 1995) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name "Crusher" Jerry Blackwell. Blackwell competed in the 1979 World's Strongest Man contest, but withdrew early in the competit ...

and

Kamala Kamala refers to: People * Kamala (name), given name and surname, includes list of people and characters with the name ** Kamala Harris, the 49th and current Vice President of the United States * Kamala (wrestler) (1950–2020), American profe ...

and the winner would earn the prize of $10,000. Blackwell slammed down Kamala to win the challenge. After the match, Kamala's manager Sheik Adnan Al-Kaissie attacked Blackwell with his sword and a bunch of wrestlers tried to make the save but they were hit with it as well. This led to Baron von Raschke making the save with a baseball bat.

(

and

) defended the

World Tag Team Championship The world tag team championship is the name usually given to the primary tag team championships in professional wrestling promotions. Nomenclature The name of the promotion is often preceded to the term "world tag team championship" as the c ...

against

( Michael Hayes and

). A brawl took place between

Paul Ellering Paul Ellering (born August 22, 1953) is an American professional wrestling manager and former professional wrestler. He is currently signed with WWE to a legends contract. Ellering spent most of his wrestling career managing the Road Warriors (An ...

and Buddy Roberts at ringside. Animal hit a

shoulder block Strikes are offensive moves in professional wrestling, that can sometimes be used to set up an opponent for a hold or for a throw. There are a wide variety of strikes in pro wrestling, and many are known by several different names. Professional wre ...

to Gordy and covered him for the pinfall until Hayes broke it up by hitting a

diving elbow drop Aerial techniques, also known as "high-flying moves" are maneuvers in professional wrestling using the ring's posts and ropes as aids, in many cases to demonstrate the speed and agility of smaller, nimble and acrobatically inclined wrestlers prefer ...

from the middle rope allowing Gordy to pin Animal for the titles. However, this win was reversed due to the illegal man Hayes getting involved. Later,

Sgt. Slaughter Robert Rudolph Remus (born August 27, 1948), best known by his ring name Sgt. Slaughter, is a voice actor and retired American professional wrestler who is currently signed to WWE in the ambassador program. From the late 1970s to the early 19 ...

defended the America's Championship against

Boris Zhukov James Kirk Harrell (born December 13, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the American Wrestling Association (AWA) and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) under the ring name Boris Zhu ...

. Zhukov loaded his elbow pad with a foreign object and hit Slaughter with it, thus forcing the referee to disqualify him. As a result, Slaughter retained the America's Championship. In the penultimate match,

defended the

against Magnum T. A. Magnum tried to pin Flair with a

cradle Cradle may refer to: * Cradle (bed) * Bassinet, a small bed, often on rockers, in which babies and small children sleep Mechanical devices * Cradle (circus act), or aerial cradle or casting cradle used in an aerial circus act * Cradling (painting ...

but Flair reversed it into his own cradle and grabbed Magnum's tights for the pinfall to retain the title.

Main event match

In the main event,

defended the World Heavyweight Championship against

. Hansen attacked Martel with a chair before the match and then hit him with a chair again until the match finally started. Hansen and Martel began hitting each other with chairs, forcing the referee to end the match in a double disqualification, resulting in Martel retaining the title.

Results

References

{{American Wrestling Association SuperClash 1985 in professional wrestling Professional wrestling in the Chicago metropolitan area 1985 in Illinois Events in Chicago September 1985 events in the United States