Leaning into post-war panic as WWE, Corporal Kirchner and Nikolai Volkoff's feud dragged its heels through much of 1985 and 1986 before this pithy payoff on something substantially smaller than the 'Grandest Stage'.
Kirchner was a diet-Sgt Slaughter for Vince McMahon after the GI Joe star took his business elsewhere so the usual flag-waving jingoism briefly popped the crowd, but as usual it was fleeting and false.
The match - as was the case with most of Volkoff's work - had very little going for it after he'd belted out his heat-seaking Russian National Anthem. The two minutes felt like ten, but that was all the match really warranted on a show with so much more to get through.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett
