We All know Promoters 'Experimented' with every aspect of Professional Wrestling!
Nothing-it seems- was TOO Weird and Wonderful for the Wrestling Public to 'Digest'!
Some Ideas Worked Well-Others not so Well-and a Few were Absolutely Ridiculous!
I was always Interested in 'Catchweight' Contests-Unusual Pairings etc.!
Here's a Couple of quite frankly very incredulous Bouts Featuring ALAN DENNISON!
He was a WELTERWEIGHT and although a really Strong Wrestler-he was on the Smaller Side
when it came to 'Stature'!
Now in the Lower Weights-Catchweight is Fine up to within 2 Stones but any more of a' Disparity'
just didn't seem a 'Credible Match' and in many Cases an Outright 'Mis-Match'!
So what's DENNISON-at no more than 12 Stone doing here up against MAL KIRK??
Surely he'd have no chance of 'Winning'-Especially against a Man as Tough and Super-Strong
as KIRK!?- What a Strange Match-Up indeed!-Wonder what the Crowd at INVERNESS made of it?
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Dennisons height wasn't too apparent on tv but in the halls especially in catch weight bouts against a heavier opponent it was very noticeable, I saw him mainly in tag matches and thinking back he was generally the shortest in the ring even against lightweight opponents. I didn't mind him as a heel but just couldn't get away with him being a good guy, for me it didn't work.
Something that fascinates me about these many and varied bills is the various combinations of 8 / 10 /12 wrestlers that shared the dressing room together.
Never the same group twice.
Always cross-pollination: nationally, internationally. prmotionally.
From my knowledge of wrestlers, many of them will have been wanting to show to the others how many others in the business they knew.
From these stories and exaggerations and misrememberings in pre-internet times, it is hardly a surprise that so many myths have developed about all sorts of things.
Thanks for these MM, let me know if you have any more from Inverness, hard to find bills from there.
The Inverness bill dates from 1970 so although there would certainly have been a size disparity, this wasn't the "King Kong" Kirk of later years.
I recall a strange tag bout in the early seventies involving Alan Dennison on a Morrell and Beresford promotion at Nottingham Ice Rink. Rather than going against Mal Kirk, Dennison was paired with him against the team of Andy Robins and Bill Ross. It's a while ago but, from memory, it worked O.K. when Dennison faced Ross and when Robin faced Kirk but Robins versus Dennison was a stretch and Ross versus Kirk didn't really work. I recall Ross trying to keep the big man at bay with dropkicks until he could reach the tag rope.
I recall Kirk in one or two matches with lighter men. I saw him at Kings Hall, Belle Vue, facing Masambula and he had various bouts with Kellett at the time. I also recall one of his early TV bouts against Steve Logan. Of course, in the "anything goes" Crabtree era he faced Bobby Ryan in a TV tag in which he was partnered by Judd Harris and Ryan by Shirley Crabtree.
Also 'Experimenting' with Tag Team Combinations was another 'Favourite Pastime' with Promoters!-Again-for Me-Certain Parameters had to be Observed
to make for a Good Bout-or it just wouldn't AND couldn't Work!
Complimentary Styles/Skills etc were needed for the Team to 'Gel' and Operate
in a Believable Manner!
So what's ALAN DENNISON doing here Partnering KENDO NAGASAKI??
What a Strange 'Combo'!!?
You'd think all ROBIN had to do was put his Powerlock on ALAN to put him out
of the Bout right away?!-Obviously the 2 Lighter Men Faced Each Other with
DENNISON as the Baddie!-But a 'Convincing' or even Viable Pairing?
NOT for Me!
I Noticed BOTH these Venues were in SCOTLAND-EDINBURGH for the
Below Tag Match!-Wonder if that was in some way an 'Unknown' Factor here?
Who else has seen Strange Match-Ups/Tag Combos!!
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