UWF BEST BOUTS VOL. VI

August 29, 1985

Akira Maeda . . . does a damned fine job at making Takada seem like the next big thing.

Osamu Kido . . . tries to tie up the junior heavyweight legend like a pretzel.

Kazuo Yamazaki . . . finally gets some respect, by getting to tear down the house with Fujiwara!

AKIRA MAEDA vs. NOBUHIKO TAKADA

While it’s not too much of a surprise that this is yet another good match from Takada, it’s somewhat of a surprise that it’s as much due to Maeda as it is Takada. Maeda does for Takada, all the things that he wouldn’t do for Yamazaki in February. Maeda sells admirably for Takada’s kicks, and when Takada gets him on the mat and surprises him with the crossface chickenwing, Maeda puts it over in an appropriate manner. When Maeda gets angry and decides that he’s had enough and tries to brutalize Takada with some of his own strikes, Takada sucks them up, and then starts to return the favor, and Maeda is just as much surprised as he is hurt.

The only odd thing here is the suplex exchange, Takada gives Maeda a spikey German suplex, and Maeda just gets up and hits Takada with a Dragon suplex. But, Maeda follows the suplex by trying to get Takada into an arm lock, only for Takada to get the ropes before Maeda has it applied. It’s fine to use the suplex to stun Takada to get the hold on, but, that doesn’t happen, so there wasn’t any reason to waste the suplex nor to blow off Takada’s. At least they have a good finish to make up for that one blunder, with Takada once again trying to take down Maeda with his kicks, and Maeda catching him in a legbar for a very quick submission, which gets over just how dangerous Maeda is on the mat. Maeda may have been thoroughly dominated in the match, but, the one opening was all he needed to put Takada away.

SUPER TIGER vs. OSAMU KIDO

The clipping means that this isn’t as drawn out, but, this seems similar to Sayama’s match with Fujiwara from the previous December. Sayama is seriously outgunned on the mat, as shown by him using the most basic holds, like the single leg crab, which Kido can easily escape, and, when Kido uses anything more advanced, Sayama has to bail for the ropes or Kido has to let him up. Finally, Sayama quits playing to Kido’s strengths and plays to his own, by trying to clobber Kido until he’s cross-eyed. Sayama can’t keep him down for good, but, he wears him down enough to make him submit to a choke.

YOSHIAKI FUJIWARA vs. KAZUO YAMAZAKI

This is easily Yamazaki’s best match since his match with Takada on 12/5, for the simple fact that Fujiwara was willing to help him, and let him, look like a competent fighter, rather than just chew him up and spit him out the way that Maeda and Kido (and even Sayama, to some extent) had done. The mat exchanges between Yamazaki and Fujiwara are probably the best mat work that’s been done in the UWF, easily better than anything from Maeda or Sayama. Fujiwara is every bit as good as Maeda was at putting over strikes, and he also remembers to sell the effects of Yamazaki’s holds.

In fact, they even seem to go out of their way to surpass Maeda/Takada by doing the same suplex spot, and getting it right, by having Yamazaki use a German suplex to get Fujiwara into the juji-gatame. And, they have a better finish, that plays off the previous suplex spot, that sends the same message as Maeda/Takada, and also puts over both wrestlers. Yamazaki attempts a second suplex, and Fujiwara counters into his namesake armbar, and after struggling for few seconds, Yamazaki gives up. Fujiwara’s prowess is shown to be just as strong as Maeda’s, and it also lends some credibility to Yamazaki’s German suplex that Fujiwara thought it was threatening enough to go straight for the kill.

Conclusion: The main event alone makes this show worth getting, but, the harshest description for the other two matches would be ‘fun.’