Welcome back to the Dark Match Dungeon! It’s been a while since we did this, hasn’t it? I’ve been caught up in a great many things, such as the G1 Climax tournament and trying not to melt in the Texas heat, but I’m back with more vintage goodness! In case you’re a first-timer, this is where we take a look back and find forgotten footage of today’s wrestling stars. Since it’s been a while since our last edition, I felt obligated to change it up a bit today. We’ve seen WWE, TNA, New Japan, and NWA territories, but you know what we haven’t seen? World of Sport. That’s right, today we’ll be throwing it way, way back to the old UK television staple which gave us an early look at NXT’s head Brit in charge, William Regal. Here he is at just 18 years old, under the name Roy Regal.
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What To Look For:
- Regal’s opponent, Marty Jones. Jones is a world-traveled veteran who became one of England’s biggest wrestling stars of the 1980’s. He still wrestles from time to time, and if Wikipedia is to be believed, he and I have the same birthday. Cheers, Marty!
- This is kind of a Dark Match Dungeon mainstay, but LOOK AT THAT HAIR. Regal looks like he’s auditioning for Poison.
- Mountevans’ Rules. In British wrestling, there used to be a strict set of rules, initially introduced by a committee to increase the legitimacy of pro wrestling shortly after World War II. Bouts are split into a set number of 5-minute rounds, usually decided by best two out of three falls. Due to the popularity of the World of Sport wrestling segments, these rules are sometimes referred to as World of Sport Rules.
- Something of a comedy spot when Regal times his drop-down incorrectly. This is the first comedy spot I’ve seen that’s older than I am.
- If you thought Japanese audiences were quiet, get a load of England in the ’80s.
This match popped up on Regal’s very own Twitter feed a while back, so he’s probably got a good sense of humor about the hair and such. It appears to have taken place sometime in 1986, so Regal still had a few years of touring the UK at this point before he eventually left for America. I keep forgetting that he hasn’t even hit 50 yet, so long may he reign o’er NXT.
