Donovan & Miller were the first team eliminated when Donovan was pinned by Lanny Poffo. The rest of the night was easy for the Poffo boys. Fargo, Tyler, Lewis and Sweetan got so involved in pounding on each other that both teams were counted out and eliminated. Thus the Poffos won the match.  

Tyler received the brunt of the beating by Sweetan & Lewis and he was hungry for revenge. Rather than ask Fargo to team with him again, he recruited his longtime tag team partner Eddie Sullivan to face the rough pair.  Sullivan had not appeared in a Gulf Coast ring since August 31, 1974, nearly sixteen months. Win Sullivan entered the ring with his longtime partner he heard a strange sound. Cheers! The fans that had hated him for so long were now cheering him. Tyler had been hearing the fans' cheers since the summer of 1975 when he feuded with J.C. Dykes and his Mighty Yankees. His battles against Sweetan & Lewis had further endeared him to the Gulf Coast fans. Tyler & Sullivan were never popular, but were always respected by the fans as arguably the best team to have ever been in the Gulf Coast, having held the United States tag team crown in the area four times. Their meeting with the team of Bruiser Bob Sweetan & Gene Lewis would prove to be a savage battle. All four men were in the ring at the same time from the opening bell. After a brutal 20 minutes, the referee gave up all hope of controlling the match and disqualified all four men. Sweetan & Lewis were both bruised and bloodied. S&T were back with a vengeance. A rematch between the two teams saw Sullivan & Tyler win after another brutal battle when Sullivan pinned Sweetan. Bruiser Bob was so upset that he demanded a singles match against "Super Sully". 

The Bulldogs started the New Year off on a bad note when they lost to the team of Rip Tyler & Rick Gibson in a non-title match. They did bounce back and successfully defended their title against Gibson & Terry Lathan. Lanny & Randy Poffo were quickly named the number one contenders after their win in the four-team corner match. They made good on this chance and won two out of three fall from the Bulldogs, with Lanny Poffo pinning Sir Edward Heath for the win and the titles. The Poffos then faced and defeated the team of Steve Lawler & The Golden Hawk (Tony Russo) in a non-title match. 

The Bulldogs continued to have their problems with Gibson & Lathan as well. Heath faced off against Gibson in a boxing match. The bout was stopped after seven rounds and awarded to Heath when Gibson sustained a cut over his right eye and could not continue. Foley had lost a match to Lathan earlier that same night. The Bulldogs also lost a tag team match to Sullivan & Tyler in Pensacola. 

It was announced that NWA World Heavyweight champion Terry Funk would be defending his title in Mobile in February against a challenger to be named. 

Others in the area in January were Mr. Ito, Gorgeous George Jr., L.D. Lewis and Ken Lucas. 

FEBRUARY: 

Bruiser Bob Sweetan wanted to get his hands on "Sensational" Eddie Sullivan and  offered to put his Gulf Coast title on the line in order to get to him. Sully agreed and the match was set. Again it was a rousing battle between two ruffians, but Sullivan took the measure of Sweetan to win the title. Eddie Sullivan had been appearing in the Gulf Coast off and on for nearly a decade and this was the first time he had held the Gulf Coast title. Immediately after his hard fought victory over Sweetan, Sullivan was challenged by Don Carson. Carson had not been in the Gulf Coast in a couple of years or so, so his challenge was a surprise. The bout would be for the Gulf Coast title and as an extra incentive, Lee Fields announced that the winner of the match would face Terry Funk for the NWA World's Heavyweight title in Mobile on Tuesday February 17^th. The battle between the two popular tough guys went back and forth several times. Finally after a hard fought battle, Sullivan pinned Carson to retain his title and earn the World's title shot. 

Terry Funk, the younger of the two Funk brothers to have held the NWA title, had only been the champion for three months. He had defeated Jack Brisco in Miami on December 10, 1975 to win the title. In fact, Brisco was to have been defending the title against former champion Dory Funk Jr. Junior was unable to make the match and Brisco agreed to defend the title with Terry substituting for his big brother. Terry took advantage of the change and surprised Brisco by pinning him in a small package cradle when the champ attempted to apply his figure-four leg-lock. Terry Funk was the new champ! Unlike his older brother, the quiet and reserved Dory Jr., Terry was a brash and braggadocios champion. This did not set well with the Gulf Coast fans that had cheered his brother in the only title defense that he made in the area in 1971 against Donnie Fargo. The fans didn't care for Funk and Sullivan was now suddenly the most popular man in the area. Sullivan was on a roll and promised the fans that he would be the new World's champion.  

The title match between Funk and Sullivan was barnburner! The advantage changed several times with Funk trying to catch Sully in the famous Funk spinning toe-hold and Sullivan trying to apply his Boston Crab hold on the champ. Finally after 35 minutes of stellar action, Funk surprised Sullivan with a roll-up pin and retained his title. The fans gave Eddie Sullivan a standing ovation as he left the ring, defeated but not dejected.  

The British Bulldogs felt that the Poffo Brothers had defeated them for the Gulf Coast title due to the interference of their father/manager Angelo Poffo. To combat this, the Bulldogs approached Duke Miller and asked him to take over as their manager. Miller agreed and a series of matches was set up between the Bulldogs and the Poffos. The first match saw the Bulldogs lose due to Miller's interference causing their disqualification. Matchmaker Rocky McGuire had warned Miller and Angelo Poffo that if either of them got involved in the match, their team would lose. This allowed the Poffo brothers to retain the title. A six-man tag team match was set up between the Poffo Family and the Bulldogs & Miller.  The Bulldogs and the Duke were at a disadvantage, because at match time, Angelo Poffo was unable to compete due to an arm injury. Ken Lucas replaced him in the ring, but Angelo was allowed to be at ringside. He got in a few licks on Miller and his team before the match and kept them off cue throughout the match. Finally Lucas pinned Sir Edward Heath to win the match. 

A non-title match was scheduled for the same night of the World's title match between Sullivan and Funk. Duke Miller challenged Angelo Poffo to a singles match prior to the Poffo boys facing the Bulldogs in a tag team match. Miller won his match with Angelo when the elder Poffo was disqualified. The Bulldogs and Randy & Lanny Poffo were all disqualified for unnecessary roughness by both teams.  

What the fans didn't know was that Randy Poffo had had a disagreement backstage with John Foley. So he had sneaked a small blackjack into the ring and was hitting the Bulldogs with it during the match. For real. When the referee saw what was going on and knowing what legitimate tough guys Foley & Heath were, he changed the ending of the match and called for the double DQ. This probably kept a full-scale riot from breaking out and the Poffo boys from getting seriously hurt. Imagine that, the babyfaces were really cheating and the heels were in the right. When the Poffos made it back to the dressing room, they were confronted by booker Rip Tyler. Tyler was furious and when Randy Poffo got in his face, Rip slapped him and knocked him to the ground. When Randy got up, he was slapped again. In fact Rip slapped him all across the dressing room. Angelo Poffo went into his travel bag to retrieve a pistol his was carrying, but was stopped by Eddie Sullivan, who was himself armed. Things calmed down and Rip Tyler fired the Poffos and they left the Gulf Coast that night. Sometimes, what goes on behind the scenes is more exciting than what goes on in the ring, The Poffos went to Lexington, Kentucky and set up their own promotion. Called the International Wrestling Alliance, the Poffos promoted in Kentucky and Knoxville, Tennessee running opposition to Ron Fuller's Southeastern Championship Wrestling in Knoxville. After a few years, the promotion folded and Randy (now known as "Macho Man" Randy Savage) went on to become one of the biggest stars in the history of the sport in the 1980s. But he never forgot Rip Tyler. 

The Indian team of Thundercloud & Billy Jack Strongheart arrived in the territory in February. They defeated Steve Lawler & the Golden Hawk in their debut match. 

Another team debuted in February as well. Veteran villain Billy Spears brought in a new partner named Eric Spearman. Spearman had appeared off and on in the Gulf Coast under his real name, Jimmy Jones (not to be confused with Jimmy "Burrhead" Jones). Jones was a regular in Montgomery for promoter Billy Golden's Tri-State promotion. However, he now sported bleached blonde hair like his mentor. (As a side note, Spears' real last name is Spearman). Spears & Spearman began a feud with Spears' old enemy Ricky Gibson and his partner Terry Lathan. The first meeting of the two teams ended with a double disqualification after both teams employed illegal tactics. 

Others in the Gulf Coast this month were Gene Lewis, Alaskan Mike York and Lumberjack Luke. 

MARCH: 

Eddie Sullivan was on cloud line after his fine showing against the World's Heavyweight Champion and was the reigning Gulf Coast champion, but it wasn't to last. Duke Miller, who was still the reigning Alabama State champion, issued a challenge to Sullivan and Sully agreed to put his title on the line. A rugged match took place with the advantage changing several times. Finally Miller upended Sullivan and was crowned the Gulf Coast champion for the fifth time. This proved to be short-lived, however, when Miller lost the title to popular Rick Gibson the following week. Undaunted, Miller challenged Gibson to a rematch and the two fought to a thirty-minute draw in a non-title match. Gibson was originally scheduled to face Billy Spears, but Miller paid Spears to step aside and left him have the match. Miller then agreed to defend the Alabama title against Ricky and defeated the Gulf Coast champ. A return match was scheduled between the two due to the controversial decision. This time, Gibson made good and defeated Miller to win the Alabama State title. Gibson was now the Gulf Coast champion and Alabama State champion. 

With the Poffos being fired, the Gulf Coast tag team title was in limbo. Booker Rip Tyler solved this problem by quietly "awarding" the titles to himself and partner Eddie Sullivan. They faced an immediate challenge by the returning Ron Bass. Ron had with him another "brother" Dutch  Bass (Wayne Cowan AKA Dutch Mantell). The Bass Boys lost to S&T in their first shot at the crown, and were disqualified in a rematch. But they defeated the champs on March 18^th in Dothan to become the new Gulf Coast tag team champions. The Bass brothers also were involved in a wild melee with former champions, the British Bulldogs. Both teams were disqualified for their rough tactics. 

Ken Lucas had been keeping a relatively low profile in recent months, but that was about to change. Lucas defeated Mike York, the big Alaskan and newcomer Ken "Babe" Dillinger (Ken Russell) to earn a shot at Dickie Steinborn for the Mid-American Heavyweight Championship. Steinborn had just won the title in a tournament in Tennessee, where the title was normally defended under the Nick Gulas promotion. The match between Lucas and Steinborn ended in a thirty-minute draw, but Steinborn challenged Lucas to another five minutes. The two fought tooth and nail, but Lucas slowly to the advantage. Suddenly Lucas grabbed the Mid-America title belt and left for the dressing room, feeling he had shown himself to be the better man in the extra time. In the dressing room, Lee Fields stated that the additional time had not been sanctioned and that the match was a draw. The title belt was returned to Steinborn, but a rematch was ordered. The rematch was set as a best two out of three fall match with a forty-five minute time limit. Things looked bleak for Lucas when Steinborn pinned him in six seconds to take the first fall. But Ken roared back and won the next two falls to defeat Steinborn and become the new Mid-America heavyweight champion.  

The frustration of losing the Gulf Coast and Gulf Coast tag titles, as well as his close loss to the World's champion, was beginning to wear on Eddie Sullivan. He and partner Rip Tyler were facing the team of Ken Lucas & Terry Lathan with all four men sticking to the rules. S&T won the first fall when Tyler pinned Lathan, but Terry came back to pin Sullivan to take the second fall. During the third fall, Sullivan reverted back to his old self and tossed the popular Lathan over the top rope, resulting in a disqualification loss for he and Tyler. Tyler questioned Sullivan about his tactics, but Sully just shrugged it off. The two had some mild words and Sullivan left the ring. 

Andre the Giant made an appearance in Mobile. He competed in a 13 man battle royal with the winner receiving a $1000 prize. Besides the Giant, others competing were Lord Jonathan Foley, Sir Edward Heath, Babe Dillinger, Thundercloud, Billy Jack Strongheart, Ricky Fields, Ron Bass, Dutch Bass, Ken Lucas, Terry Lathan, Eddie Sullivan and newcomer Sonny Rogers. It came down to Andre in the ring with the Gulf Coast tag team champs, Ron & Dutch Bass. As big and rough as the Bass Boys were, they were no match for the 7'5", 465 pound Frenchman. Andre tossed both Bass brothers out of the ring at the same time to claim the win. 

It was announced that Danny Hodge had defeated Hiro Matsuda on March 2^nd in Shreveport, Louisiana to win the NWA World's Jr. Heavyweight title for the eighth time. Thirteen days later, Hodge was severely injured in an automobile accident and his career was ended. 

Also appearing in the Gulf Coast in March were the Mighty Yankee #1 (Curtis Smith) and Johnny Fields. 

APRIL: 

Rick Gibson, now holder of both the Gulf Coast and Alabama titles, was challenged by former holder of both titles, Duke Miller, to a stretcher match. In this match, if a man is unable to continue the match, he is given a ten-count by the referee. If he fails to answer the count, he is then placed on a stretcher and carried to the dressing room. If he can get off of the stretcher before he reaches the dressing room, he would be allowed to resume the match. If he fails and is carried to the dressing room, he loses the bout. The titles were not at stake in this match. However when match time arrived it was announced that Gibson had suffered a shoulder injury the previous Sunday in Pensacola. Miller was awarded the match by default, but his night was not over. Out of the dressing room came Gorgeous George Jr. GG climbed into the ring and issued a challenge to Miller. This surprised Miller as he and George were former allies in the infamous "Murder, Inc.". Miller refused to face George, but was ordered to do so by Preston Hall, the Alabama State Boxing & Wrestling commissioner. The match went back and forth until GG surprised Miller and rolled him up for the pin. Miller than jumped George after the match and administered a severe beating to the Gorgeous One. GG then challenged Miller to face him in a stretcher match and Miller agreed. Again, Miller and GG battered each other from stem to stern and again George came out on top as Miller was carried to the dressing room on a stretcher. But George claimed that Miller had allowed himself to be carried out to get away from the beating that George was handing him. So GG then challenged Miller to a strap match. In this match the two men would be tied together at the wrist by a six foot leather strap. Again George was giving Miller a beating when Babe Dillinger entered the ring to come to Miller's aid. Miller was disqualified and GG was declared the winner. But George was not satisfied with this so he challenged Miller & Dillinger to a tag team match. As a partner, George recruited a 6'4", 350 pound newcomer, Big Red (Jerry Reese). After a thrilling battle, George & Red came out the winners. Red pinned Dillinger with a big splash.  

Dickie Steinborn returned to the area determined to regain his Mid-America title from the man who had taken it away from him, Ken Lucas. A match was set between the two and Lucas dominated the action for much of the match. However, Steinborn managed to surprise Lucas and upended him to regain the Mid-America championship. 

The longtime partnership and friendship of Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan was severely strained due to a difference in philosophy. Tyler preferred to wrestle by the rules and hearing the cheers of the fans. Sullivan, on the other hand, wanted to win at any cost and "didn't give a hang" about what the fans thought. The two decided to remain friends, but to go their separate ways.

Sullivan got involved in a feud with old nemesis Ken Lucas. With Rick Gibson's severe injury, the Gulf Coast title ended up in Sullivan's possession. Lucas defeated Sullivan in a bloody non-title match, but was jumped by Sullivan after the match and a pier-six brawl ensued. A rematch was ordered with Sullivan's Gulf Coast title at stake. This, too, was a bloody encounter with Sullivan coming out on top to retain the title. 

Tyler, on the other hand, was determined to strip the Gulf Coast tag team titles from Ron & Dutch Bass. The Bass brothers had lost via disqualification to the odd team of former arch-enemies Terry Lathan & Dandy Jack Donovan. Donovan had been on the receiving end of a beating by the Basses, so he recruited Tyler to face the tough Texans. This was also a non-title match and again the Bass Boys were disqualified. This time it was Tyler who took the brunt of their punishment. Tyler was in a predicament. With he and Sullivan not on the best of terms, and with Donovan leaving the territory, he was left without a partner to face Ron & Dutch. He needed someone that he could count on to be every bit as rugged as the Basses. After much thought he sent for the toughest man he could think of. He sent for Cowboy Bob Kelly!! 

In reality, Lee Fields was not happy with the job that Tyler and Rocky McGuire had been doing with the booking. The house attendance was down and he knew there was only one person that could bring things back to where they should be. That man was Bob Kelly. Kelly had left the Gulf Coast at the end of 1975 and had moved back to his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky to be near him family. He was splitting his wrestling time between the promotions of Nick Gulas in Nashville and Dick Afflis in Indianapolis. On Monday April 12^th, Lee Fields had driven from Mobile to Birmingham where Kelly was scheduled to wrestle at the Boutwell Auditorium for Nick Gulas. Fields and Kelly had a long talk and it was agreed that Kelly would return to the Gulf Coast promotion and take over the booking for the Mobile/Pensacola end once again. Bob Kelly moved his family back to Mobile and was back in the Gulf Coast. 

Tyler & Kelly's match against the Bass brothers was not a title match, but they showed to be a strong team. They defeated the champions handily. The Bass brothers retreated to the dressing room after the loss, but soon came back out to the ring. They challenged Cowboy and the Ripper to a rematch. Kelly & Tyler agreed and the match was set. Again Kelly & Tyler emerged victorious and were now demanding a title match. 

Others appearing this month were Oki Shikina, Thundercloud, the British Bulldogs, Bill Ash and Sonny Rogers. 

MAY: 

The feud between Eddie Sullivan, Gulf Coast champ, and Ken Lucas continued to rage. Lee Fields booked them against one another in a boxing match. Both were former amateur boxers and knocked each other around quite a bit. But their boxing match turned out to be as wild as their wrestling matches and things got completely out of hand. The referee stopped the match and it took a dozen wrestlers to separate the two men. They next met in a Texas Death Match. Another wild battle ensued and again the referee stopped the match when things got totally out of hand. The NWA ordered a rematch with some unusual stipulations. First, it would again be under Texas Death Match rules with the referee outside of the ring during the bout. And secondly, Sullivan's Gulf Coast title would be at stake! Again it was a furious battle, but Lucas finally edged Sullivan and became the Gulf Coast champion. Lucas was on a roll because he defeated Duke Miller and won the Alabama State title as well. The title had been given to Miller after Rick Gibson's injury, as Miller had been the champion previous to Gibson. 

Lucas faced a tough challenge immediately when he faced the famed Cowboy Bob Ellis (Bob Ellison) in a Gulf Coast title match. Ellis was a former United States Heavyweight champion and WWA World heavyweight champion. He proved to be a little to rough when he got disqualified and Lucas retained the title.  

Ron & Dutch Bass continued their battles against Cowboy Bob Kelly & Rip Tyler. Tyler & Kelly had beaten the Texans in two straight matches and were demanding a Gulf Coast tag team title match. This match proved to be as brutal as the previous meetings between the two teams, but the Bass Boys managed to get the win in a highly controversial decision. Kelly & Tyler protested the double-teaming tactics of the champions and demanded another title shot. Lee Fields agreed and added the stipulation that tag ropes would be used to prevent anyone from entering the ring until tagged. With their backs against the wall, the Bass Boys recruited their "father" "Paw" Bass to serve as their manager. The tag rope stipulation backfired on Tyler & Kelly when Kelly was disqualified for dropping the rope and entering the ring without a tag. Another match was scheduled, but the Bass Family refused to put the titles on the line again. By this point Kelly & Tyler didn't care, they just wanted to get their hands on the Basses. In the rematch, it was determined that a win could only come by way of submission. And a special referee was assigned to serve outside the ring to keep an eye on "Paw" Bass. That special referee would be Big Red. Kelly & Tyler won the match when Tyler forced Dutch Bass to submit. 

The Bass Boys weren't so lucky when they faced the team of Ken Lucas & Gorgeous George Jr. on May 21^st in Dothan. They were beaten and Lucas & George were the new Gulf Coast champions. Lucas now held all three major titles in the Gulf Coast. The Bass Boys left the area after the loss, leaving "Paw" Bass to recruit some new charges. 

Several new faces arrived in May. Among them was a new masked man called The Challenger. This man looked very familiar to the fans and rightfully so. This man was Curtis Smith, who had competed in the area under many guises over the years (The Big Blue Yankee, The Spoiler, The Mighty Yankee, 1/2 of the Infernos). Gone was the built-up shoe, but it had been replaced by an ominous black glove on his right hand. 

Another new arrival was The Jamaica Kid, Lenny Hurst. Hurst was well known throughout Canada. 

Still a third new arrival was Sweet Daddy Levi Banks. "Paw" Bass, who acted as his manager briefly, initially brought him in. 

"Paw" also brought in the brother tag team of Frank & Gene Stanley. No idea who these two were, they only stayed in the area for two weeks. 

Also appearing in Gulf Coast rings in May were Thundercloud, Sonny Rogers, Oki Shikina, Lord Jonathan Foley and Ricky Fields. 

JUNE: 

"Paw" Bass got his wish when his new team of the Challengers upended Ken Lucas & Gorgeous George Jr. to win the Gulf Coast tag team titles. The Challenger #2 was Mike McManus (also the Spoiler #2, the Mighty Yankee #3, and the Inferno #2 in the Gulf Coast). Bad luck followed "Paw", however, because Gorgeous George Jr. in a non-title match between the Challengers and George & Big Red injured him. GG slammed "Paw" twice and caused the injury that drove him from the area.. Another non-title match was set up between the masked champions and the George & Red team. This one saw GG & Red get then win when the Challengers were disqualified for their tactics. George & Red then made a challenge to the masked me to face them in a Lumberjack match. The Challengers took the win in this one and injured Gorgeous George Jr. in the process. GG left the area after this match. Left without a partner, Big Red recruited the Wrestling Pro #2 to be his partner. The Pro #2 had just returned to the Mobile end of the promotion and had come into the ring to help Red in the match in which George had been injured. The Red/Pro #2 team didn't fare any better, although they won the match over the Challengers by way of disqualification. Big Red decided that he had had enough of the masked men and decided not to wrestle them anymore, since he couldn't get a clean win over them. The Pro #2 had other ideas. He recruited the original Wrestling Pro and they challenged the Challengers to put the Gulf Coast titles on the line.  The battle of the masked teams was a wild on with the Challengers again getting disqualified to hang unto the titles. The Challengers tossed Pro #2 out of the ring after the match and double-teamed Pro #1 until Big Red charged the ring and sent them flying back to the dressing room. The Challengers also defeated the Wrestling Pros to win the City of Dothan tag team titles. 

Gulf Coast heavyweight champion Ken Lucas faced a new challenger in Sweet Daddy Banks, but defeated him soundly to retain the title. After the match Banks jumped Lucas along with his new buddy The Intern (Jim Starr). The Intern made his debut in the area by defeating the popular Apache wrestler Thundercloud. Along with the Intern came his manager, the infamous Dr. Ken Ramey. Lucas recruited his old friend and tag team partner Cowboy Bob Kelly to face the Banks/Intern team. The Lucas/Kelly team won this wild encounter when Kelly pinned Banks after applying his famed Bulldog Hold on him. 

Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan returned after a brief tour of Japan together. They patched up their differences, but were still on opposite sides of the fan favorite fence. Tyler was still being cheered while Sullivan was hearing boos of the fans. They still weren't appearing as a team in the Gulf Coast. 

Others in the area in June were Jim Cook, Lenny Hurst, Frank & Gene Stanley, Ricky Fields, Lord Jonathan Foley, Sonny Rogers, Oki Shikina, Burrhead Jones, the Phantom, Terry Thornton, Greg Peterson, Dick Dunn, Frank Dalton and Plowboy Frazier. 

JULY: 

Eddie Sullivan immediately issued a challenge to Ken Lucas for the Gulf Coast title. Sullivan had lost the title to Lucas prior to embarking on a brief tour of Japan and he wanted the title back. They met in a non-title match in Mobile and a title match in Dothan with Lucas coming out on top in both. Lucas also put the title on the line in a return match in Mobile and again Sullivan came out on the short end even though he rendered Lucas a bloody mess. Finally a match was set in Dothan that would be the last shot promoter Lee Fields was going to allow Sullivan. It was an anything goes match with the referee outside of the ring. Sullivan took advantage of the no rules stipulation and gave Lucas a severe beating to capture the Gulf Coast title. In Dothan, Sullivan faced Greg Peterson in a title match that ended in a double disqualification. Peterson and Sullivan also clashed in a couple of tag team matches in which Sullivan teamed with Sweet Daddy Banks to face Peterson and Cowboy Bob Kelly. Both teams were disqualified in the first meeting, while Kelly and Peterson came out on top in the rematch, winning two weeks pay which had been held up. 

The Challengers were hanging tight to the Gulf Coast tag team titles. They faced Big Red & the Wrestling Pro #2 in a non-title match and were disqualified. Big Red just couldn't get a clean victory over the masked men. He teamed with various partners such as Rip Tyler, Leon Ogle, and even the 7 foot, 450-pound Pascagoula Plowboy, Tiny Frazier with frustrating results. The Challengers did successfully defend the titles against Rip Tyler & Leon Ogle in Dothan. They also defeated the Medics (George & Oscar Gonzales) in a non-title match in Dothan. The only loss they suffered was to Rip Tyler & newcomer Danny Little Bear. Little Bear also formed a colorful tag team with fellow Native American, Thundercloud. The Challengers rebounded when they defeated Tyler & Little Bear in a title match. 

Rick Gibson returned to action after recovering from his shoulder injury. For some reason he was once again the Alabama State Champion, although Ken Lucas had been billed as the champion while Gibson was injured.  

The Intern made the decision that no other masked men in white would be allowed to appear in the Gulf Coast and took it upon himself to unmask any that dared. He defeated and unmasked The White Knight, though his identity was not revealed. On the same night, another newcomer The White Destroyer debuted against Rick Gibson. After suffering a loss to Gibson, the Intern and Dr. Ken Ramey attacked him and his mask was also removed. His identity was never revealed either. Another newcomer The White Tornado suffered the same fate after the Intern defeated him in a match. The Intern injured the Wrestling Pro #2, but failed to unmask him in a match in Dothan. 

The Intern made an enemy of Rick Gibson when he and his manager, Dr. Ken Ramey roughed up referee Rueben Gibson after a match in Dothan. Rueben was the younger brother of Rick and he was not happy with this turn of events. He challenged the masked man and was getting the upper hand when Ramey entered the ring and helped his man double-team Gibson. Rueben rushed to the ring and the Gibson brothers chased Ramey and the Intern to the dressing room. This led to a tag team match with the Gibson brothers defeating Ramey & the Intern. 

Others in the area in July were Bruce Langsford, Oki Shikina, Randy Oliver, Ray Valdez, Dr. X, Ricky Fields and midget lady wrestlers Marie Laveau  and Princess Little Dove. 

AUGUST: 

Danny Little Bear challenged Eddie Sullivan for the Gulf Coast title after the two got into a slugfest the week before. Little Bear proved to be a tough opponent for Sullivan and the battle was a wild one. Little Bear ended up with a bloody forehead and both men were disqualified for fighting outside the ring. Thus Sullivan retained the title. Sullivan also successfully defended the title in a rematch against Greg Peterson in Dothan. 

Peterson was now the Alabama State champion (though I can't find where or when he ever faced Rick Gibson for the title). He successfully defended the title against Sweet Daddy Banks in a pair of matches in Dothan. 

The Challengers had their troubles with Danny Little Bear as well. They faced Little Bear & Ricky Fields in a match in Dothan and lost due to disqualification. Little Bear then recruited Dickie Murdoch to face the masked men in a match in Dothan. Murdoch hadn't been seen in the Gulf Coast since 1967, when he appeared as Ron Carson younger "brother" of Don Carson. The match ended in a double disqualification as all four men battled outside of the ring. 

Little Bear's former partner Rip Tyler was also having his hands full with the Challengers. He had issued a challenge to Challenger #1 and had the upper hand until he was hit by the Challenger's infamous black glove, which seemed to have been loaded with something. Bleeding profusely, Tyler was no match for the masked man and could have easily been pinned. The Challenger was intent on permanently injuring Tyler, however, and continued to pound on him. Suddenly Eddie Sullivan rushed the ring and came to the aid of his longtime friend Tyler. This brought out Challenger #2 and all four men went at it until the Challengers retreated to the dressing room. A tag team match was set up between the two teams. Before the match, Sullivan announced that he would be wearing a glove on his right hand just like the Challenger #1 wore on his. This match was a wild one with S&T coming out on top. Now they demanded a title shot for the Challengers Gulf Coast tag team titles and were granted it. S&T were in rare form as they battered the Challengers from post to post and upended them to win the titles. Sullivan & Tyler were the Gulf Coast tag team champions for the second time. Sullivan & Tyler also teamed with the famed "American Dream" Dusty Rhodes (Virgil Runnels) to defeat the Challengers & the Intern in a six-man tag team match in Dothan. 

Rick Gibson offered a challenge to Dr. Ken Ramey for a match in Dothan. If Ramey could manage to get a fall on Gibson, Ricky would give him $100. Ramey accepted the challenge, but Gibson made short work of him and kept his money. Rick & Rueben Gibson continued to wrestle as a team in Dothan. They defeated the team of Randy Oliver & Eric Spearman and then left the area. 

Ramey's client the Intern was feeling good about the fact that he had rid the Gulf Coast of all other masked men in white. But he soon faced a challenge from a surprising source. Tony Gonzales, the original Mysterious Medic had spent the last couple of years pretty much in retirement. He was spending his time at his home in Orange Beach, Alabama tinkering with his race car and training his twin sons, Oscar & George, to carry on his tradition as the Mysterious Medics. The only public appearances he made were when he raced his stock car at the Mobile International Speedway. Gulf Coast promoter Lee Fields, who also raced there, owned the Speedway. Others who owned cars and periodically raced at the Speedway were Cowboy Bob Kelly and Mike "Hippie" Boyette. Gonzales had taken exception to the fact that the Intern and Ramey were claiming to be the only ones worthy of wearing a white mask. He decided to come out of retirement and teach them a lesson. The Intern was hesitant about facing the Medic, but was threatened with suspension by Lee Fields if he didn't show for the match. The Medic showed that he hadn't lost a thing as he pounded the Intern from pillar to post. He was about to remove the mask from the Intern when Sweet Daddy Banks hit the ring. He slugged the Medic and helped the Intern from the ring. The Medic was furious. He challenged the Intern & banks to a tag team match and brought in Mr. Ito to be his partner. Dr. Ken Ramey got involved in this match and joined the Intern and Banks in triple-teaming Ito & the Medic. This brought about their disqualification, but they continued their assault. Finally Greg Peterson rushed the ring and evened up the sides. The next week, the Medic & Peterson teamed to face the Intern & Banks. This match too ended with a disqualification as a result of Ramey's interference. The Medic and the Intern also squared off in a singles match in Dothan. It was a Texas Death Match with the loser to unmask. The match got totally out of hand with Banks and Ramey joining the Intern to triple-team the Medic. Finally Danny Little Bear came to the aid of the Medic and the match was thrown out. Little Bear & the Medic teamed the next week in Dothan to face Banks & the Intern. This match ended in a double disqualification as all four men fought in the ring at the same time. A match between the teams in Mobile resulted in the same. Finally, the Medic & Little Bear scored a win over the Banks/Intern team in Mobile when Dr. Ramey interfered and caused a disqualification. The medic and the Intern spent the entire match trying to unmask each other. After the match the Medic nearly had the mask off the Intern when Luke Brown (Carl Campbell) hit the ring. Brown was formerly one half of the famed Kentuckians tag team with Jake "Grizzly" Smith. He helped the Intern and Banks and a full scale melee ensued. Finally the dressing rooms emptied as wrestlers poured into the ring to separate the men. Little Bear wound up with a bloody head. 

Another masked man made his entrance into the Gulf Coast. He was The Super Assassin. I have felt to find out who this man was, but I believe it was Randy Colley. Super A formed an alliance with Banks & the Intern. 

Gene Lewis returned to the area and this time he was following the rules and being cheered by the fans. 

Former Gulf Coast tag team champions Cowboy Bob Kelly & Bobby Fields made a rare appearance in Dothan as they defeated the Challengers. 

Others in the Gulf Coast in August were Dan Burdick, Jerry Usher (best known as a longtime referee in Memphis), Ricky Fields, Bobby Lyons, Ray Roland, Tuffy Taylor (Charles "Tugboat" Taylor), Leon Chandler, Burrhead Jones, Lord Raven and lady wrestlers Lei Lani Kai and Vivian St. John. 

SEPTEMBER: 

After the wild melee between Danny Little Bear & the Mysterious Medic and Sweet Daddy Banks & The Intern, the Medic & Little Bear made a challenge. The Medic & Little Bear said that they would get a partner and face Banks, the Intern, Dr. Ramey and Luke Brown in a handicap match. And the partner they chose was the United States Heavyweight Champion, Dick the Bruiser (Dick Afflis). The Bruiser proved to be a great asset as he cleared the ring four times before pinning Brown to win the match for his team. 

Eddie Sullivan made successful defenses of the Gulf Coast title against the challenge of Gene Lewis and the Challenger in Dothan. He and the Challenger also met in a Texas Death Match in Mobile. Sully had the upper hand over the masked man when Sweet Daddy Banks and the Super Assassin rushed the ring. Sweet Daddy applied his suplex on Sullivan and pinned him as Super A acted as the referee and counted Sullivan out. Banks then demanded the Gulf Coast belt as he claimed he had just defeated Sullivan. A title match was set up between the two which ended in a double-disqualification and the title being held up. A rematch was set up as a best two out of three fall match in which there must be a winner. Banks showed great ability and was dominating the match. He finally caught Sullivan in the suplex and pinned him to become the Gulf Coast champion. After the match Rip Tyler entered the ring and he and Sullivan double-teamed Banks. This shocked the fans, who started booing Sullivan & Tyler and cheering Banks. Banks then asked Big Red to return to the Gulf Coast to be his tag team partner in a match against Sullivan & Tyler. This match ended in a double-disqualification as the referee couldn't maintain control. Finally Danny Little Bear came to ringside. He admonished Tyler & Sullivan for their tactics and was promptly challenged by the pair to get in the ring. He did just that and he, Banks and Red chased them to the dressing room.  

Banks tried to add the Alabama State title to his laurels but couldn't get by champion Greg Peterson. His luck was a little better when he won a nine-man battle royal and took home the $250 prize. Others participating in the match were the Super Assassin, Gene Lewis, Lord Raven, Dan Burdick, Greg Peterson, Jerry Usher, Burrhead Jones, Eric Spearman and Big Jim Williams.  

Little Bear had gotten involved in a feud with big Luke Brown that culminated in an Indian Strap match. Little Bear defeated Brown soundly and drove him from the area. Little Bear also defeated former WWWF champion Stan Stasiak (George Stipik) in Dothan in a special challenge match. 

Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan lost the Gulf Coast tag team titles in Panama City to the team of veteran Bobby Fields and his nephew Ricky Fields. In order to gain a rematch, they faced and defeated the team of Roberto Soto & Ricky Steamboat (Richard Blood) in Dothan. Unfortunately they failed to regain the titles when they lost to Bobby & Ricky Fields, also in Dothan. 

The Fields team also successfully made a title defense of the masked team of The Commodores.  

It was announced that a tournament was held on September 28^th in New Orleans, Louisiana to crown a new NWA World's Jr. Heavyweight Champion. "Irish" Pat Barrett won the tournament, and was crowned the new NWA World's Jr. Heavyweight Champion. 

Others in the area this month were Bill Howard, the Golden Hawk and John Ringo. 

OCTOBER: 

Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan faced off against Sweet Daddy Banks, the new Gulf Coast champion, & Danny Little Bear. The experience of Sullivan & Tyler won out as they defeated the Banks/Little Bear team. After the match all four men went at it again and a slugfest ensued for a full six minutes as the fans stood and screamed with excitement. Banks then went out and got Dick the Bruiser to return as his partner to face S&T. This match was won by Tyler & Sullivan when the Bruiser was disqualified for illegal tactics. Furthermore, it was stated that due to his actions, Dick the Bruiser was forever banned from wrestling in the Gulf Coast. Sweet Daddy then asked Gene Lewis to be his partner, but S&T worked Lewis over and pinned him to win this match. After this match, Banks called Cowboy Bob Kelly out to ringside and asked him to be his partner the following week against Sullivan & Tyler. Kelly agreed and the match was set. During the match, Banks and Sullivan were battling in the ring when both Kelly and Tyler jumped in. During the ensuing tussle Tyler and Banks left the ring and continued to fight on the floor. Kelly caught Sullivan in a bulldog and Banks re-entered the ring and pinned him. 

Bobby & Ricky Fields faced new challengers in the form of a team known as Raven's Raiders. This team was previously known as the Commodores, but were taken under the guidance of Lord Raven and renamed the Raiders. Raven had previously faced the Fields' in non-title matches teamed with Jimmy "Bad Boy" Hines and then with The Great Bolo. No idea on who the Bolo was, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't Al Lovelock nor Tom Renesto, both of whom had used the name. The Raiders were disqualified in their first meeting with Bobby & Ricky and failed to win the titles. The Fields team also successfully defended against former champs Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan in Dothan. 

Don Carson returned to the Gulf Coast after a lengthy absence. But this was no longer the popular wrestler the fans remembered. Carson was always a rough customer, but he was meaner than usual this go round. He was determined to win the Gulf Coast title and would do what ever it took to do so. He defeated Danny Little Bear in his first match back, but lost to Sweet Daddy Banks in a Gulf Coast title match in Dothan. 

Another returnee was the Wrestling Pro. He too was showing his mean side and quickly drew the ire of the fans. His main goal was Greg Peterson and the Alabama State title. The Pro was disqualified in the title match and allowed Peterson to hang onto the title. 

The Fabulous Moolah, Ladies' World Champion made an appearance when she teamed with Greg Peterson in Dothan to defeat the team of Eric Spearman & The Phantom Lady. 

The big news on the Gulf Coast came on Thursday October 28^th in Dothan, Alabama. NWA World's Heavyweight Champion defended his title against his arch-enemy "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes. It was a typical battle between these two with Funk winning a hard fought match to retain his title. 

Others in the area in October were the Golden Hawk, Dick Dunn and Terry Lathan. 

NOVEMBER: 

Sweet Daddy Banks started the month by successfully defeating Rip Tyler to retain his Gulf Coast title. But Don Carson still loomed on the horizon. He had come close to winning the title a couple of weeks earlier in a match with Banks and wanted another shot. He faced highly heralded newcomer Ric Drasin and defeated him. Drasin was a highly ranked Jr. heavyweight and had a second career as a television and film actor. Bobo Brazil returned to the area to face Carson only to lose win he apparently hit the referee during the heat of the battle. After the Brazil match, Banks came to ringside and challenged Carson to a 10-minute match. Carson agreed on the stipulation that if Banks couldn't defeat him within the allotted ten minutes, the Carson would win the Gulf Coast title. Banks agreed to the terms and the match was on. Even after the grueling match with Brazil, Carson had enough left to hold off Banks for ten minutes and was declared the new Gulf Coast champion. Banks had even managed to suplex the bloody Carson but couldn't get the pin before the time expired. A rematch was scheduled with Big Bad John returning to the area to serve as the special referee. John's officiating was suspect and it allowed Carson to win the match and retain the title despite the protests of Banks and the fans.  

Carson also faced a strong challenge from Cowboy Bob Kelly. It had been many years since Kelly had held the title that at one time was synonymous with his name. Kelly made a rare appearance on Dothan TV and challenged Carson to meet him. Carson agreed but only in a non-title match. The two met in Dothan but the match ended in a no contest decision as both men battled outside the ring. Carson refused to face Kelly again. 

The Wrestling Pro was awarded the Alabama State title when Greg Peterson failed to show for a scheduled match. The Pro successfully defended the title against Terry Lathan and Cowboy Bob Kelly before dropping the belt to Dynamite Dick Dunn on November 26^th in Dothan. 

Terry Funk returned to the Gulf Coast on Tuesday November 23^rd and faced Ken Lucas. Lucas had been gone for a while but returned to the Gulf Coast when the NWA named him the number one contender for Funk's title.  The two had battled for forty-five minutes when Lucas caught Funk in an abdominal stretch. It appeared Lucas would finally realize his dream and become the World's heavyweight champion. But Funk managed to reach the ropes and as Lucas was breaking the hold, Funk surprised him with a roll-up to get the win and retain his title. 

All was not lost for Lucas though. Earlier that night he had defeated Don Carson to win the Gulf Coast title. Carson had been scheduled to defend the title against the returning Mike "Hippie" Boyette. Boyette failed to show, however, and Carson won by default. Lucas came to ringside and goaded Carson into putting the title on the line against him despite the fact that he was about to face the World's champion himself. The match was fast and furious with Lucas putting Carson to sleep to win the title. Lucas defeated Carson in a rematch in Dothan three days later. He also defeated the Wrestling Pro in a title match in Mobile on the 30^th. 

Bobby & Ricky Fields were holding tight to the Gulf Coast tag team titles. They fended off the challenge of Raven's Raiders and teamed with Haystack Calhoun to defeat the Raiders and their manager, Lord Raven, in a special challenge match in Dothan. They nearly lost the title when they faced the team of Rip Tyler & the Blue Yankee (Curtis Smith). The match ended in a double-disqualification and the belts were held up. A rematch was set but the Yankee failed to show. His place was filled by the Wrestling Pro, but the Fields' defeated Tyler &the Pro to regain the titles. 

Others appearing in the Gulf Coast in November were Lynn Anthony (AKA "Dirty White Boy" Tony Anthony), Eric Spearman, Jerry Oates, The Mauler, the Inferno and midget lady wrestlers Diamond Lil and Princess Little Dove.  

The Gulf Coast wrestling year ended in Mobile on November 30^th and no wrestling was held in the Mobile/Pensacola end for the remainder of the year. The final card was held in Dothan on December 3rd. There were wrestling matches presented in Dothan on December 18^th and 25^th, but these were not Gulf Coast cards. These matches were promoted by Fred Ward out of Columbus, Georgia and featured wrestlers from the Georgia and Florida territories.  

During the time between the end of November 1976 and early February 1977, Lee Fields made a landmark decision. He decided to sell his promotion to his cousin Ron (Fuller) Welch. Lee was tired of trying to split his time between the wrestling promotion and his successful racetrack operation. Hastening his decision was the decision of Cowboy Bob Kelly to retire. Kelly had gotten his real estate license and had decided to devote time to selling real estate. Lee asked Kelly to stay, but Kelly said it would only be on the condition that he be given the Dothan end of the promotion to run as well. Lee was reluctant to do this even though Rocky McGuire was never as successful on that end as Kelly was on the Mobile end. Kelly said he respected Lee's loyalty to Rocky, but that was the only condition to which he would stay. Not able to work out a compromise, Kelly left the wrestling business. In his final match he defeated Lord Raven on November 30, 1976 in Mobile, Alabama. And although he would continue to present shows throughout 1977, Lee Fields sold his promotion to Ron Fuller. 

I would like to thank Mike Calloway, Cowboy Bob Kelly and Sweet Daddy Levi Banks for providing me with research materials for this column. 

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