Real World Tag Champion Tournament, 1986 "Our first night (November 22, 1986), Baba booked us to job to the Funks.... But that night and for the next three weeks we realized how truly good Rick and I worked as a team. The Japanese went for it right away, both the look and our work.

Right after the first match, Baba’s agent Lord James Blears came into the dressing room. ...Blears called Rick out into the hallway. Stan Hansen followed to see what he could hear. Despite all his Texas bumpkin ways, Stan never missed a trick. He acted like he had a bum ear but his hearing was perfect. A few minutes later Rick came back. He pulled me out of Stan’s earshot - “Goddamn, Tom,” he said, “they want to pput us over in the tournament. They want to make us tag champs over Hansen and DiBiase......”