Wrestlemaniacs Were Few but Furious at UCI : A Sport? Nah--but for a Small Crowd, Big Entertainment

So few people turned out for the World Wrestling Federation’s Superstars of Wrestling match at UC Irvine’s Bren Events Center on Saturday that almost everyone who did show up was able to get a ringside seat. But, though they may be small in number, Orange County’s wrestling fans are big in enthusiasm.

The event was part of the WWF’s buildup for Wrestlemania IV, the annual event that features the group’s preeminent personalities. This year’s, with arch-rivals Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant, will be held March 27 in Atlantic City.

Other preliminary bouts were held in Boston, San Francisco and Tampa on Saturday--and in Los Angeles on Sunday, which may have had something to do, officials said, with the small Irvine turnout. “A lot of people may be saving their money for the bigger show tomorrow night,” Bill Anderson said Saturday. Anderson, a San Bernardino wrestling instructor, is the WWF’s West Coast representative.

In any case, the wrestlers who showed up in Irvine--among them Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Ted (The Million Dollar Man) DiBiase, Ricky (The Dragon) Steamboat, Hercules, Koko B. Ware, Ravishing Rick Rude--were enough to satisfy Carl Cook and his friends. Cook, a 24-year-old Marine corporal, made the trek to Irvine with his wife, Arneak, and two other Marines, Colleen Jackson and Jacqueline Camacho, all 20.

“This is a Hulkamaniac right here,” Cook said by way of introducing himself. “I’ve been watching since Rick the Bruiser and Crusher.” He said his wife has been following wrestling for three or four years, having had “no choice” in the matter. “Anytime WWF was on, I would commandeer the TV,” Cook said. “If she didn’t like it, I would lock her in the bedroom and put chains on the door.”

By contrast, when 25-year-old Joe Smid and wife Linda met, both already were wrestling fans. “We’re celebrating our first anniversary of marriage,” said Linda, also 25, as she and her hubby watched DiBiase and Hacksaw Jim battle it out.

Johnny Kaisaki, his wife Armida and their two children, 15-year-old Kevin and 10-year-old Kyle, “made it a family thing,” Dad said as the clan from Ontario watched Bad News Brown, a 270-pounder from New York City, finish off his opponent, Scott Casey. Brown, enthusiastic about the battle to come, had started before the initial bell--a move that had drawn fire from some members of the audience.

Others, though, felt Bad News’ behavior was simply part of wrestling-as-show-biz, a “sport” in which the participants are really highly trained stunt men who only create the illusion of doing serious harm to one another.

“My friend calls this the last refuge of live improvisational theater and I love it,” Joe Smid said.

Kevin and Kyle weren’t having any of that, though. “Certain aspects are a little bit out of hand,” Kevin said, “but also they hit the ground and stuff. I think that must be painful.”

East-West relations came into the limelight Saturday as two wrestlers who identified themselves as Russians engaged in bouts. One, Boris Zhukov, came carrying a red Soviet flag and wearing red shorts, a red shirt and a red Windbreaker. The other, Nikolai Volkoff, asked the audience to stand while he sang the Soviet anthem.

Both were greated with catcalls and shouts of “U.S.A., U.S.A.!”

“Hey Commie,” someone in the audience shouted at Zhukov. “Jack Kemp for President! Jack Kemp for President!”

Saturday’s one title bout was between two females, titleholder Sensational Sherri and challenger Rockin’ Robin.

Sensational Sherri prevailed.