MOTW 94: Roddy Piper vs Buzz Sawyer
"M.O.T.W. #94: Roddy Piper vs. 'Mad-Dog' Buzz Sawyer" - ink & digital illustration
It's the big 94th addition to our 'Match of the Week' illustration series & this week we celebrate an amazing piece of unearthed Pro Wrestling footage - thought to be lost to the sands of time.
This incredible 'Dog Collar Chain' match between two dudes that I totally adore took place on August 14th, 1983 in Georgia Championship Wrestling
at the world-famous Omni in Atlanta, GA.
So I can't tell you how excited I was when I heard this show had been finally found & was coming to the Vault YouTube channel. I'd read about this match (& watched the absolutely amazing promos leading up to it) many years ago but never believed the footage actually existed. Safe to say I had very high hopes for a match between two of the absolute masters of the gimmick. And two absolute mad-men! This met & even somehow exceeded my lofty expectations!
Just a furious intensity right out of the gate & a masterclass in making a gimmick-match magical! From the early testing of wills & neck strength with the chain, through a delightful escalation in chaotic brutality & bloodshed between two total maniacs. Both guys just had such an electric physical charisma and presence about them that just works so well off of one another.
We all know that Rowdy Roddy Piper is one of the best of all time but I hope this gets Buzz onto a lot of folks' radar. As his relatively short but stellar career is certainly something that I have developed a lot of love for over the years. Just an amazing unhinged, wild neanderthal of a human in the best of ways!
This was easily the best thing I watched this past week & I highly recommend it to everyone (along with those insane GCW TV lead-up promos of course). Gritty, electric territory-wrasslin' at its' finest! Here's hoping for more Omni shows on the Vault!
P.S. everyone check out the great Phil Schneider's special 'emergency' Way of the Blade podcast on this with fellow Segunda Caida aficionado Eric Ritz!
ENJOY!
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