Rock 'n' Roll RPMs
Encyclopedia
The Rock 'n' Roll RPMs were a professional wrestling
tag team
, consisting of Tommy Lane
and Mike Davis
, that competed in several professional wrestling
promotions throughout the Southern United States
. They were known for their bright colored tights and hanging bandanas. Allen Martin (aka Silent but Deadly) was later added as a tag team partner after Tommy Lane left. Since then, Mike Davis died in his home state of Texas. Martin continued to wrestle in Birmingham, Alabama under the name "Rock 'n' Roll RPM" until recently when he retired.
promotion, which at the time was still affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance
(NWA). They were known for their bright colored tights and hanging bandanas. The Rock 'n' Roll RPMs were glorified for their finishing move "The Spandex Splits". The move was later outlawed due to extensive neck injuries. They had feuds with several teams, including another "Rock 'n' Roll" tag team known as the Rock 'n' Roll Express
. The RPMs feuded with The Fantastics over the WCWA Tag Team Championship
, however they were unable to win the championship.
The RPMs also competed in the Continental Wrestling Association
(CWA) in Memphis
, where they won the American Wrestling Association
(AWA)'s Southern Tag Team Championship
twice. Teaming with Cactus Jack
, the Rock-n-Roll RPMs lost a match against Hector
, Chavo, and Mando Guerrero
at the only AWA pay-per-view
SuperClash III.
After the demise of World Class, Davis and Lane moved on to World Championship Wrestling
, where they were used as jobbers. Davis later entered the Global Wrestling Federation
, where in 1992, he claimed to have returned to Earth with a "Moon Rock" after he made a bungee jump following a "Bungee" match between Chaz Taylor and Steven Dane outside the Dallas Sportatorium
.
in Granbury, Texas
, at the age of 45.
Tommy Lane formed a tag team with "Big" Bobby Jones known as The NEW RPMs for Central All-Star Wrestling.
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
tag team
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
, consisting of Tommy Lane
Tommy Lee Jones (wrestler)
Tommy Lee Jones was a professional wrestler. He was best known for wrestling in southern United States wrestling promotions as Tommy Lane, one-half of the "Rock 'n' Roll RPMs" with Mike Davis.-Early career:...
and Mike Davis
Mike Davis (wrestler)
Michael Davis was an American professional wrestler best known as one half of the tag team Rock 'n' Roll RPMs with Tommy Lane which lasted several years. The RPM's were one of the most well-known heel tag teams throughout the southern United States in promotions such as World Class Championship...
, that competed in several professional wrestling
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
promotions throughout the Southern United States
Southern United States
The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive area in the southeastern and south-central United States...
. They were known for their bright colored tights and hanging bandanas. Allen Martin (aka Silent but Deadly) was later added as a tag team partner after Tommy Lane left. Since then, Mike Davis died in his home state of Texas. Martin continued to wrestle in Birmingham, Alabama under the name "Rock 'n' Roll RPM" until recently when he retired.
History
The Rock 'n' Roll RPMs started in the World ClassWorld Class Championship Wrestling
World Class Championship Wrestling ' was a regional professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter Ed McLemore, by 1966 it was run by Southwest Sports, Inc., whose president, Jack Adkisson, was better known as wrestler Fritz Von Erich...
promotion, which at the time was still affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
(NWA). They were known for their bright colored tights and hanging bandanas. The Rock 'n' Roll RPMs were glorified for their finishing move "The Spandex Splits". The move was later outlawed due to extensive neck injuries. They had feuds with several teams, including another "Rock 'n' Roll" tag team known as the Rock 'n' Roll Express
Rock 'n' Roll Express
The Rock 'n' Roll Express are a professional wrestling tag team consisting of Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson. The duo began teaming together in Memphis in the early 1980s, followed by the National Wrestling Alliance's Jim Crockett Promotions . In JCP, they held the NWA World Tag Team Championship...
. The RPMs feuded with The Fantastics over the WCWA Tag Team Championship
WCWA Tag Team Championship
The WCWA World Tag Team Championship was the major tag team title in World Class Championship Wrestling. It started out as the NWA American Tag Team Championship in 1966 when the promotion was known as NWA Big Time Wrestling...
, however they were unable to win the championship.
The RPMs also competed in the Continental Wrestling Association
Continental Wrestling Association
The Continental Wrestling Association was a wrestling promotion managed by Jerry Jarrett. The CWA was the name of the "governing body" for the Championship Wrestling, Inc. promotion which was usually referred to as Mid-Southern Wrestling...
(CWA) in Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, where they won the American Wrestling Association
American Wrestling Association
The American Wrestling Association was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 to 1991. It was owned and founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo...
(AWA)'s Southern Tag Team Championship
AWA Southern Tag Team Championship
The AWA Southern Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling tag team title in the Tennessee area from the 1940s through the late 1980s. It was originally named the NWA Southern Tag Team Championship from its inception through 1977, when it was renamed the AWA Southern...
twice. Teaming with Cactus Jack
Mick Foley
Michael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he...
, the Rock-n-Roll RPMs lost a match against Hector
Hector Guerrero
Héctor Manuel Guerrero Llanes is a Mexican-American professional wrestler, better known simply by his paternal name, Héctor Guerrero...
, Chavo, and Mando Guerrero
Mando Guerrero
Armando Guerrero Llanes , better known as Mando Guerrero, is a retired professional wrestler. He also was the trainer for the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling, an all female professional wrestling promotion.-Movie stuntman career:...
at the only AWA pay-per-view
Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
SuperClash III.
After the demise of World Class, Davis and Lane moved on to World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
, where they were used as jobbers. Davis later entered the Global Wrestling Federation
Global Wrestling Federation
Global Wrestling Federation was a professional wrestling promotion based in Dallas, Texas. It started in June 1991 and folded in September 1994. At one time its shows were presented on the ESPN television network. On many weeks, the promotion provided programming five days a week airing at 4 p.m...
, where in 1992, he claimed to have returned to Earth with a "Moon Rock" after he made a bungee jump following a "Bungee" match between Chaz Taylor and Steven Dane outside the Dallas Sportatorium
Dallas Sportatorium
The Sportatorium, located in downtown Dallas, Texas , was a barn-like arena used primarily for professional wrestling events...
.
Aftermath
Mike Davis formed another tag team with his brother Tom Davis known as the Dirty Davis Brothers. He the died on December 25, 2001 from a massive heart attackMyocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
in Granbury, Texas
Granbury, Texas
Granbury is a city in Hood County, Texas, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 5,718. It is the county seat of Hood County and the principal city of the Micropolitan Statistical Area....
, at the age of 45.
Tommy Lane formed a tag team with "Big" Bobby Jones known as The NEW RPMs for Central All-Star Wrestling.
In wrestling
- Double-team finishing moves
- The Spandex Splits (Back body drop (Davis) transitioned into a powerbomb (Lane) / neckbreaker (Davis) combination)
- ManagersManager (professional wrestling)In professional wrestling, a manager is a secondary character paired with a wrestler for a variety of reasons. The manager is often either a non-wrestler, an occasional wrestler, an older wrestler who has retired or is nearing retirement or, in some cases, a new wrestler who is breaking into the...
- Downtown Bruno
Championships and accomplishments
- American Wrestling AssociationAmerican Wrestling AssociationThe American Wrestling Association was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 to 1991. It was owned and founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo...
- AWA Southern Tag Team ChampionshipAWA Southern Tag Team ChampionshipThe AWA Southern Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling tag team title in the Tennessee area from the 1940s through the late 1980s. It was originally named the NWA Southern Tag Team Championship from its inception through 1977, when it was renamed the AWA Southern...
(5 times)
- AWA Southern Tag Team Championship
- Championship Wrestling AssociationContinental Wrestling AssociationThe Continental Wrestling Association was a wrestling promotion managed by Jerry Jarrett. The CWA was the name of the "governing body" for the Championship Wrestling, Inc. promotion which was usually referred to as Mid-Southern Wrestling...
- CWA Tag Team ChampionshipCWA Tag Team ChampionshipThe CWA Tag Team Championship was a major professional wrestling tag team title defended in the Continental Wrestling Association. It lasted from 1988 through 1990, when it was abandoned and replaced with the United States Wrestling Association Tag Team Championship.-Title history:-See...
(1 time)
- CWA Tag Team Championship
- USA Wrestling
- USA Tag Team Championship (1 time)
- World Wrestling CouncilWorld Wrestling CouncilThe World Wrestling Council is one of Puerto Rico's two main professional wrestling promotions, the other one being the International Wrestling Association....
- WWC Tag Team Championship (2 times)