ORIENT EXPRESS VS. THE ROCKERS

 The show starts with the American flag blowing in the wind and Howard Finkel introducing the National Anthem. Vince McMahon is on the voice over to go over every entrant in this year’s Royal Rumble match and running down the rest of the card.

Gorilla Monsoon and “Rowdy” Roddy Piper are on commentary for this match. The audio cuts in and out but Roddy’s basically sending support out to the troops.

The Orient Express make their way down to the ring with Mr. Fuji. Kato is wearing the mask with Pat Tanaka hoodless. The Rockers’ music hits and the crowd wakes up, they jog to the ring and climb the turnbuckles.

 

ORIENT EXPRESS VS. THE ROCKERS

WWF Royal Rumble 1991 (19^th January 1991)

  Pat Tanaka knocks Jannetty to the floor and the Orient Express double-team Shawn Michaels. Michaels is sent off the ropes into a double backdrop, but Jannetty dropkicks Kato out of the ring.

  Marty Jannetty hits a superkick to Tanaka and The Rockers get in some offence. Tanaka is sent off the ropes into a slam from overhead but Kato pulls him from the ring as The Rockers climb back to the top rope. Stereo dives through the ropes by The Rockers! The referee finally gets control and Marty Jannetty will be starting with Kato. The fans start a USA chant as Jannetty grabs a headlock. Kato tries to send him off the ropes, but Jannetty keeps it on. Kato lifts Jannetty but Marty rolls through, taking Kato down. Piper explains that Jannetty’s weight is over Kato and he’s pushing the air from Kato’s lungs. Kato gets to his feet and breaks free with forearm shots and sends Jannetty into the ropes. Kato leapfrogs and counters a rollup, he leapfrogs Jannetty again and takes him down with a hip toss but Jannetty brings Kato down into a headscissors on the mat. Kato pushes his weight over Jannetty for a nearfall before Marty Jannetty bridges out and gets a backslide for 2. What. A. Sequence.

  They lock up and Kato backs Marty Jannetty into the ropes, he breaks clean but Tanaka gets a cheap shot from the apron, allowing Kato to take advantage. A tag from the Orient Express, but Jannetty reverses an irish whip, leapfrogging Kato and sending him into his own partner. Pat Tanaka walks into an arm drag as we see Mr. Fuji at ringside. Shawn Michaels gets the tag and hits an ax handle from the top rope to Tanaka’s arm. Tanaka is taken to the mat in an armbar, Michaels uses his knees into Tanaka’s arm but Pat Tanaka makes it to his feet. He uses Michaels’ hair to back him into the ropes and sends him into a flying forearm. Tanaka covers but only gets 2. Tanaka puts Michaels in a chinlock on the mat, but Shawn is able to get to his feet. The Orient Express gets another tag as Michaels sends Tanaka across the ring. Michaels and Kato both go prone for Tanaka running the ropes, Shawn Michaels sidesteps but Tanaka doesn’t collide with his partner for the second time so Michaels bounces their heads together.

  Apparently, the tag doesn’t count as Tanaka is sent off the ropes into a knee lift by Michaels for 2. Shawn Michaels uses a chinlock this time, keeping Tanaka near Jannetty’s corner. Pat Tanaka works to his feet and uses double-handed strikes to get out of the headlock but runs into a sleeper hold. Marty Jannetty gets in the ring as Kato is on the middle rope, he breaks the hold by flying at Shawn Michaels. Pat Tanaka barely beats Michaels to his feet, but it’s enough to catch the kick and bring Michaels down with a leg sweep. Tanaka connects with martial arts strikes which Piper calls “questionable” on commentary, it could count a closed fist. Michaels reverses positions with Tanaka in the corner and lays in right hands, drawing Kato into the match. Marty Jannetty is there to run interference, which gives Michaels time to set up for a moonsault onto Kato, The Rockers try to send Orient Express into each other, but they counter, each connecting with right hands. They try to send the Rockers into each other and Michaels leapfrogs Jannetty. Orient Express each duck the right hand but The Rockers flip back on the atomic drop attempts and send them out of the ring with dropkicks. The Rockers tease diving through the ropes and the Orient Express think they have sidestepped the attacks, but each Rocker has climbed to the top rope and they hit crossbody presses from the top to the floor!

  Kato gets into the ring, tags mean nothing as he is snapmared over by Michaels into a nearfall. Marty gets the tag and the Rockers send Kato off the ropes into a double back elbow. Jannetty covers for 2 and goes back to the chinlock as we see Fuji giving Tanaka some advice whilst he stands on the apron. Shawn Michaels gets the tag and suplexes Kato after a slight delay and Tanaka breaks up the pin. Shawn Michaels sends Kato into the corner, he tries the monkey flip but Tanaka assists with a hot shot across the top rope. Kato stomps Michaels to the side of the ring so Tanaka can get a cheap shot in before making the tag. More martial arts shots from Tanaka as Piper gets excited that we’re still in the first match. Tanaka chops Michaels down as the fans chant “USA” again, but it doesn’t do Michaels much good as the Orient Express gets the tag and hit a leapfrog splash on Michaels.

  Kato covers and Jannetty breaks up the pin. Pat Tanaka is back in the match and I don’t think there was a tag. He hits Michaels in the throat as the referee reminds him it’s an open-hand policy. Tanaka puts Michaels in the nerve hold, he tries to lock in a chinlock with it, but Michaels fights it off before starting to fade. He motions to Marty Jannetty before the referee checks the arm, but Michaels moves it, so the match continues. As does the nerve hold. Pat Tanaka forces Michaels’ shoulders to the mat but only keeps him down for 2. Tanaka goes back to the strikes and tags out to Kato, who knocks Michaels down with a chop to the head. Shawn Michaels fights back with kicks from the corner but is sent into the turnbuckles and over to the apron. Tanaka kicks Michaels back into the ring before getting the tag. A double clothesline from the Orient Express flips Michaels inside out, Tanaka covers and Michaels kicks out at 2. Shawn Michaels is sent off the ropes but he slams Tanaka’s face into the mat.

  Kato knocks Marty Jannetty down on the apron, stopping the attempt at the tag and the Orient Express try using a belt to clothesline Michaels, but he ducks it, hit the ropes and jumps into the belt, pulling Kato into Tanaka. He slowly crawls to Jannetty and gets the hot tag. Marty Jannetty connects with right hands, scoop slams, and dropkicks leaving himself in the ring with Kato. Jannetty sends Kato into the ropes, Kato runs into a powerslam and Jannetty covers 1,2 no! Kato goes for another run, this time into a jumping back elbow and both Michaels and Tanaka are getting to their feet, Tanaka breaks up the cover so Michaels takes him to ringside. Kato reverses an irish whip, a hip toss is countered and they fight over a backslide. Pat Tanaka kicks Jannetty over but Marty Jannetty is able to kick out at 2, although there wasn’t much force in it. Kato sends Marty Jannetty off the ropes and follows, Shawn Michaels trips Kato from ringside, Tanaka is stopped from running interference. Kato runs into a double superkick from the Rockers and Michaels climbs to the top rope. Marty Jannetty is ready to launch his partner, but Pat Tanaka knocks Michaels to the floor.

  Back in the ring, Kato slams Marty and catapults him into a chop from Tanaka. They try the move again, but Shawn is back in the ring, he hits Tanaka in the midsection, doubling him over. Jannetty is catapulted over Tanaka, hitting a sunset flip for the win.

WINNERS: THE ROCKERS

This was a great match, with a fast pace throughout and was innovative for the time. The (nearly) 20 minute runtime flew by and as easy as it is to say over 30 years later, you can see the potential in Shawn Michaels as he was taking the heat near the end. [***½] 7/10