On the eve of cultural beacon Wrestlemania 28, something alike in dignity: the conclusion to the main event of All Japan Women's Pro Wrestling (AJW)'s main event of August 28th, 1985. Here, portly punk gargantua Dump Matsumoto, triumphant over her bloodied opponent, Chigusa Nagayo, has earned the reward of shaving Nagayo's head in the time honored wrasslin' tradition of the “hair vs. hair” match (origin: Mexican bouts in which one's locks or decorative mask is at stake in luchas de apuestas”, trans: “gambling fights”). Dump's victory and the shearing of Chigusa's mop top results in riotous sobbing from an arena packed with several thousand distraught teenage girls. To give context: in addition to being one of Japan's most popular female athletes of the day, Nagayo and her tag team partner Lioness Asuka were simultaneously chart-topping Tokyo pop stars under the Spector-ready moniker of The Crush Gals. Whether this crowd of teeny-boppers were initially hooked by the Gals' jams or slams, they are a fan base merged by music and athletics in a manner that is rare if not singular.
Imagine a scenario in which Kim Deal and Madonna are still themselves, but also somehow end up as the dueling quarterbacks of 1989's Super Bowl XXIII. And that after throwing a suspicious Hail Mary fourth quarter bomb and hoisting the Lombardi trophy, Kim gets to buzz Madge into Sinead O'Connor. That's pretty much where we're at here.
This night would also represent a peak in notoriety for both ladies: after a lucrative rematch the following year, Matsumoto and Nagayo rode into the sunset, retiring in 1988 and '89 respectively, when each faced AJW's mandatory retirement age of 26.