WWE began its Wrestlemania Revenge Tour in Milan earlier tonight in front of a nearly sold out at the Mediolanum Forum. Here are the results:
-Cesaro b. Stardust with the Swing/Sharpshooter combo in about 11 minutes
Big pop for Cesaro who is kind of a homegrown talent here since he spent a lot of time early in his career wrestling here. Usual house show opener, good match.
-Erick Rowan b. Jack Swagger
Needless to say, not as good as the previous match. For whatever reason the “Real American” Swagger entered baring an Italian flag. Finish came when Swagger applied the ankle lock, Rowan reached the ropes with the referee calling for a break. Swagger then tried to bring Rowan back to the middle of the ring. Rowan held the apron and the referee went to put it back into place. With the ref distracted, Rowan poked Swagger in the eyes and pinned him with a full Nelson slam.
-Sin Cara b. Tyler Breeze in 7 minutes via Swanton Bomb
Short match, which is a shame. A bit of.comedy at the start but good action.
-Kane b. Braun Strowman by DQ in 6 minutes
Loud reaction for Kane, stili very beloved. Horrendous match, Strowman hit Kane with a chair for the disqualification and was then finished with a chokeslam.
-WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day b. Sheamus and Rusev to retain in 13 minutes
Not much different from the matches we saw on Raw and Wrestlemania with these teams. The New Day, needless to say, is OVER. Finish came after Woods, who was knocked earlier from the apron by Rusev, hit Rusev back with the referee distracted, allowing Kingston and Big E. to hit the Big Ending/Splash combo for the pin.
-WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte b. Becky Lynch and Sasha Hanks in a triple threat match to retain
As easily predictable this was by leaps and bounds the best match.of the show.
-The Usos b. The Dudley Boyz in 11 minutes
Dudleyz very over, almost 50/50 crowd reaction to the point that Bubba, the true highlight of the match, at a certain point started loudly complaining in Italian and running down local teams. Usos won with a double superkick.
-WWE Champion Roman Reigns fought Bray Wyatt to a no contest in 2 minutes
The match was immediately halted due to what looked like an ankle injury. It was bad enough that they immediately called for the best after the doc took a look at it. To cover for it they went to a LONG post match beatdown which involved Rowan, Strowman, the Usos and the Dudleyz.
When the dust settled, Sheamus came out trying to get a title match. He tried to Brogue Kick Reigns who avoided it and speared him. Reigns took the mic and said that while he had his issues with Wyatt, he never wishes an injury to anybody (which helped turn the crowd in his favour, it was 50/50 at best earlier) and then ended the show thanking the fans.
Notes: since this is the first show of the tour the merchandising stands had a pretty decent variety of items: shirts for Roman Reigns, John Cena, The Usos, Dean Ambrose, and AJ Styles.
Lilian Garcia was introduced as the announcer for the show.
Cesaro beat Stardust
People loved Cesaro and they went nuts for his comeback, especially for the uppercuts. He won with a sharpshooter follwing the giant swing. Good contest.
Sin Cara beat Tyler Breeze
Quick match with a couple of high flying spots by Sin Cara. He won with his senton from the top rope. After the match, Breeze took a mic and said that he didn’t come to Italy to lose and he asked for an other opponent. Out came Swagger with an Italian flag on his shoulders.
Jack Swagger beat Tyler Breeze
Nothing to say here. They went for the ankle lock as soon as the bell rang and Breeze tapped out.
WWE Tag Team Champions New Day beat Braun Strowman and Erick Rowan
People LOVED the New Day. The match was very good. I’ll go as far as saying that this was the biggest surprise of the night. Xavier and Big E worked the match for the New Day. The heat was on Xavier at the beginning. Great hot tag for Big E who began to throw Rowan around. Then Strowman came in and he got a big “holy s**t, he’s big!” reaction. Couple of near falls. New Day won after a little help from Kofi.
WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte beat Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch
Ric Flair was ringside. This was the match of the night. Sasha and Becky put out Charlotte and went at it at the beginning. Then the champ came back and they did a good amount of “3 way” spots. People chanted “NXT” and “Women’s Wrestling” and booed the hell out of Charlotte. At the end, Sasha went for the Bank Statement on Becky, but Ric pulled her out of the ring and Charlotte pinned Becky using the ropes. Very good match.
Usos beat the Dudleys
Man, is Bubba great. People cheered the Dudleys at the beginning, but Bubba turned that around in a second. He had the crowd going from cheering them to HATE them. He even went as far as swearing at people in italian. As far as the match goes, a solid contest but nothing great. Usos won with a splash.
WWE Champion Roman Reigns beat Sheamus
Very good match, the second best after the women’s. Roman Reigns was over HUGE. Biggest reaction of the night by far. He won with a spear after a couple of near finishes.
Overall, a good show. Crowd was into everything and they cheered the faces and booed the heels. Again, women stole the show.
Los Angeles, California: – Ed “Strangler” Lewis defeated Ed Don George to win the World Heavyweight Title
1959
Dallas, Texas: – Ben and and Mike Sharpe defeated Chief Big Heart and Little Eagle to win the NWA Texas Tag Team Titles
1961
St. Joseph, Missouri: – NWA World Heavyweight Champion Pat O’Connor beat The Brute 2 out of 3 falls – Buddy Austin and Lee Henning beat Ronnie Etchison and Don McClarity 2 out of 3 falls – Happy Humphrey beat The Masked Medics – Hogan Wharton beat Tommy O’Toole
1966
Kansas City, Kansas: – Sonny Myers defeated The Viking via DQ – Pat O’Connor fought Ron Reed to a draw – The Butcher defeated Jerry Kozak – Ernie Ladd defeated Bulldog Plechas – The Mongolian Stomper & Bob Ellis defeated Tor Kamata & Oki Shikina in two straight falls
1971
Miami, Florida: – Terry Funk defeated The Grappler (Johnny Walker) for the Florida NWA Southern Heavyweight Title
1976
Charlotte, North Carolina: – Angelo Mosca defeated Tim Woods in the finals of a two-month-long tournament to win the NWA Mid-Atlantic Television Title
Miami Beach, Florida: – Goeff Portz defeated Abe Jacobs – Hiro Matsuda defeated Mr. Hayashi – Darling Dagmar defeated Marie LeBeaux – Bob Orton, Sr. defeated Bill Dromo – Eddie Graham defeated Ali Pasha – NWA Florida Tag Team Champion Bob Orton, Jr. defeated Steve Keirn by disqualification – NWA Florida Southern Heavyweight Champion The Assassin and The Missouri Mauler defeated Mike Graham and Billy Robinson – Dusty Rhodes defeated NWA Florida Heavyweight Champion Pak Song by disqualification, Song retained the title
1980
– Bulldog Brower and Luke Graham are awarded the WWC North American Tag Team Title after Gorgeous George, Jr. and Luke Graham left the promotion
1984
Nagoya, Japan: – AWA Champion Jumbo Tsuruta no contest Bruiser Brody – Shohei Giant Baba & Dory Funk Jr & Kerry Von Erich beat Stan Hansen & Jos Leduc & Bulldog Bob Brown – Greg Gagne & Jim Brunzell beat Genichiro Tenryu & Magic Dragon – Mighty Inoue & Ashara Hara beat David Sammartino & Goro Tsurumi – Takahashi Ishikawa dcor Rocky Hata – Motoshi Okuma & Great Kojika beat Masanobu Fuchi & Nobuyoshi Sugawara – Ultra Seven beat Tarzan Goto – Yoshihiro Momota beat Hiromichi Fuyuki – Mitsu Momota beat Toshiaki Kawada
1985
– Ray Steele defeated Tony St. Clair for the British Heavyweight Title
1989
Memphis, Tennessee: – Jerry Lawler defeated Kerry Von Erich to win the WCWA World Heavyweight Title (Lawler unified the WCWA title with his AWA title to become the Unified World Heavyweight Champion, the top title in the USWA)
1993
New York City, New York: – Johnny B. Badd defeated Tex Slazenger – Maxx Payne defeated Steven Regal – Chris Benoit and Ron Simmons fought to a double-countout – Van Hammer defeated Vinnie Vegas – NWA and WCW World Tag Team Champions The Hollywood Blonds (Steve Austin and Brian Pillman) defeated Marcus Alexander Bagwell and 2 Cold Scorpio to retain the titles – Rick Rude defeated Cactus Jack – WCW United States Heavyweight Champion Dustin Rhodes defeated WCW World Television Champion Paul Orndorff by disqualification to retain his title – NWA World Heavyweight Champion Barry Windham defeated Ricky Steamboat to retain the title – Sting defeated WCW World Heavyweight Champion Big Van Vader by disqualification, Vader retained the title
1994
Acapulco, Mexico: – Villanos IV and V defeated Emilio Charles, Jr. and Scorpio, Jr. for the UWA World Tag Team Titles
1996
Mexico City, Mexico: – Rayo de Jalisco, Jr. defeated Apolo Dantés to win the CMLL World Heavyweight Title
2000
Belvidere, New Jersey: – Samu defeated Ace Darling to win the Independent Superstars of Pro Wrestling Heavyweight Title
2004
Nashville, Tennessee: – NWA World Heavyweight Champion Jeff Jarrett pinned James Storm – TNA X Division Champion Frankie Kazarian pinned Sonjay Dutt to retain the title – Simon Diamond pinned Johnny Swinger – Monty Brown pinned Sabu in a falls count anywhere match – Apolo and D’Lo Brown defeated NWA World Tag Team Champions Kid Kash and Dallas by disqualification to win the title – Chris Harris pinned Raven to become #1 contender for the NWA World Heavyweight Title
2007
Graysville, Alabama: – Dennis Condrey defeated Brad Armstrong to become the first NWA Wrestle Birmingham Television Champion
Honolulu, Hawaii: – Hard Boiled Haggerty and Butcher Vachon defeated Lord James Blears and Herb Freeman to win the NWA Hawaii Tag Team Titles
1963
St. Paul, Minnesota: – Hercules Cortez beat Bulldog Lee Henning – Crusher beat Larry Hennig – Bearcat Wright beat Texas Bob Geigel – Kay Noble beat Kathy Starr to win the womans world title (vacated by June Byers) – Jessica Rogers beat Mars Monroe
Omaha, Nebraska: – Non Title Texas Death Cage Match: Waldo Von Erich beat AWA Champion Verne Gagne – Doug Gilbert beat Fritz Von Erich dq – Duke Hoffman drew Ernie Dusek – Rocky Hamilton beat Guy Mitchell
1964
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada: – Enrique Torres and Bearcat Wright defeated Don Leo Jonathan and Kinji Shibuya for the Vancouver NWA Canadian Tag Team Titles
1965
Nashville, Tennessee: – Karl and Kurt Von Brauner defeated Jackie Fargo and Mario Milano for the Mid-America NWA World Tag Team Titles
1970
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canadad: – Gene Kiniski defeated Mark Lewin to win the Vancouver NWA Pacific Coast Heavyweight Title
St. Joseph, Missouri: – Bob Geigel and The Stomper defeated Killer and K.O. Kox for the Central States NWA North American Tag Team Titles
1971
Tampa, Florida: – Jack and Jerry Brisco defeated Dory Funk, Jr. and Terry Funk to win the NWA Florida Tag Team Titles
1974
Portland, Oregon: – Ripper Collins defeated Jimmy Snuka to win the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Title
Minneapolis, Minnesota: – Indian Strap Match: Wahoo McDaniel beat Larry Heiniemi – Nick Bockwinkel & Superstar Billy Graham beat Ken Patera & Dusty Rhodes – Buddy Wolff beat Ric Flair – Handicap Match: Ivan Putski beat Raoul Guzman & Pancho Vazquez – Greg Gagne beat Rocky Montero – Paul Perschmann (Buddy Rose) beat Tom DeMarco
1977
Portland, Oregon: – Roddy Piper defeated Chavo Guerrero to win the NWA World Light Heavyweight Title
1980
Knoxville, Tennessee: – Ole Anderson defeated Killer Karl Kox for the NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Title
Minneapolis, Minnesota: – AWA Tag Team Champions Verne Gagne & Mad Dog Vachon beat Adrian Adonis & Jesse Ventura – Jerry Blackwell no contest Dino Bravo – Greg Gagne beat Super Destroyer Mark II – Bobby Heenan beat Super Destroyer Mark III COR – Steve Olsonoski beat Chris Markoff – Buddy Wolff beat Ricky Hunter
1983
Miami, Florida: – Terry Allen and Brad Armstrong defeated The Fabulous Kangaroos (Johnny Heffernan anad Don Kent) to win the NWA Florida Global Tag Team Titles – NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair fought Barry Windham to a draw to retain his title
Shreveport, Louisiana: – Ted DiBiase and Mr. Olympia defeated Tiger Conway, Jr. and Mr. Wrestling II for the Mid-South Tag Team Titles
1984
St. Louis, Missouri: – NWA Champion Ric Flair beat Harley Race – Chris Adams beat Jimmy Garvin – Blackjack Lanza no contest Ken Patera – The Grapplers beat Jim Brunzell & Steve Olsonoski – Dick the Bruiser beat Luke Graham – Ron Ritchie beat Roger Kirby – Jerry & Ted Oates beat Scott Farris & TG Stone
1985
Cloverdale, British Columbia: – Mike Dupree and Sonny Myers defeated Rick Davis and Tim Patterson to win the Vancouver NWA Canadian Tag Team Titles
Portland, Oregon: – Mega Maharishi (Ed Wiskoski) and Kendo Nagasaki defeated Don Running Bear and Billy Two Eagles for the NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Titles
1994
Rochester, New York: – Diesel defeated Razor Ramon to win the WWF Intercontinental Title
1997
ECW Barely Legal: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: – Louie Spicolli pinned Balls Mahoney – Chris Chetti and J.T. Smith defeated The F.B.I. (Little Guido and Tommy Rich) – The Eliminators (John Kronus and Perry Saturn) defeated ECW World Tag Team Champions The Dudley Boyz (Buh Buh Ray and D-Von) to win the title – Rob Van Dam (subbing for the injured Chris Candido) pinned Lance Storm – Gran Hamada, The Great Sasuke and Masato Yakushiji (subbing for the injured Gran Naniwa) defeated bWo Japan (Taka Michinoku, Terry Boy, and Dick Togo) – ECW World Television Champion Shane Douglas pinned Pitbull #2 to retain the title. – Taz defeated Sabu – Terry Funk defeated The Sandman and Stevie Richards (with The bWo) in a three-way dance to earn an immediate ECW World Heavyweight Title match – Terry Funk pinned ECW World Heavyweight Champion Raven to win the title
1999
Tokyo, Japan: – Ghost Face (Tarzan Goto) defeated Doug Gilbert for the IWA Japan World Heavyweight Title
2000
Indianaoplis, Indiana: – Taz defeated Mike Awesome to win the ECW World Heavyweight Title (Taz was under contract for WWE and Mike Awesome was working for WCW)
2001
Calgary, Alberta, Canada: – Bruce Hart defeated Principal Richard Pound for the Stampede North American Heavyweight Title
North Richland Hills, Texas: – Steve Corino defeated Rodney Begnaud (Rodney Mack) for the vacant NWA North American Heavyweight Title
2002
Melbourne, Australia: – A.J. Styles pinned Jerry Lynn to win the vacant WWA International Cruiserweight Title – Scott Steiner defeated WWA World Heavyweight Champion Nathan Jones by submission to win the title
Tokyo, Japan: – Genichiro Tenryu won the AJPW Triple Crown Title by defeating Toshiaki Kawada
Fajardo, Puerto Rico: – Carly Colón defeated Vampiro to win the WWC Universal Heavyweight Title
Bayamón, Puerto Rico: – Nuevo Gran Apolo defeated Savio Vega for the IWA World Heavyweight Title – The Starr Corporation (Chicky Starr and Victor the Bodyguard) defeated Ricky Banderas and Shane the Glamour Boy to win the IWA World Tag Team Titles – Super Crazy won the IWA Intercontinental Heavyweight Title by forfeit from El Lobo
2005
Louisville, Kentucky: – Matt Morgan defeated Elijah Burke to win the OVW Heavyweight Title
2007
Osaka, Japan: – Yuji Nagata defeated IWGP Heavyweight Champion Hiroshi Tanahashi to win the title – El Samurai and Yujiro defeated Mitsuhide Hirasawa and Taichi Ishikari – BxB Hulk, Jushin Liger and Milano Collection A.T. defeated Wataru Inoue, Koji Kanemoto and Tetsuya Naito – Riki Choshu and Takashi Iizuka defeated Tomoaki Honma and Toru Yano – Manabu Nakanishi defeated Orlando Jordan – Black Strong Machine and Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Tomohiro Ishii and Togi Makabe – Dragon Gate I-J Heavyweight Tag Team Champions Gedo and Jado defeated Yasushi Kanda and Masaaki Mochizuki to retain the title – IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Minoru defeated Ryusuke Taguchi to retain the title – IWGP Tag Team Champions Giant Bernard and Travis Tomko defeated Shiro Koshinaka and Hiroyoshi Tenzan to retain the title
2008
TNA Lockdown: Lowell, Massachusettes: – Samoa Joe defeated Kurt Angle to capture the TNA World title – Jay Lethal won an X Division Escape Match for the TNA X Division Title – Team Cage (Rhino, Kevin Nash, Sting, Matt Morgan, and Captain Christian Cage) defeated Team Tomko (A.J. Styles, Team 3D, James Storm, and Captain Tomko) in the Lethal Lockdown Match
Mexico City, Mexico: – Tarzan López defeated Black Guzmán to win the Mexican National Light Heavyweight Title
1948
Mexico City, Mexico: – Mike Kelly defeated Gory Guerrero for the NWA World Middleweight Title
1950
Des Moines, Iowa: – Leo Nomellini beat Earl Wampler – Verne Gagne beat K.O. Hall – Joe Savoldi beat “Cowboy” Orville Carlson
1955
Minneapolis, Minnesota: – Verne Gagne drew Pat O’Connor – Paul Baillargeon beat Dick the Bruiser (as Bruiser Afflis) – Joe Pazandak beat Red Bastien
1958
Chicago, Illinois: – Verne Gagne defeated Dick the Bruiser to win the Chicago/Detroit NWA United States Heavyweight Title
1961
Mobile, Alabama: – The Mysterious Medics defeated Bobby and Don Fields for the Gulf Coast NWA Southern Tag Team Titles
1963
Calgary, Alberta, Canada: – Karl Von Schober and Ricky Waldo defeated The Masked Destroyer and Jim Wright for the Stampede International Tag Team Titles
1967
Los Angeles, California: – Ricky Romero defeated Stan Pulaski to win the California Heavyweight Title
1968
Atlanta, Georgia: – Mr. Wrestling defeated El Mongol to win the NWA Georgia Heavyweight Title
1969
Portland, Oregon: – Moondog Mayne defeated Luther Lindsay for the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Title
1970
Tulsa, Oklahoma: – Bill Watts defeated The Spoiler to win the Tri-State NWA North American Heavyweight Title
1972
Mobile, Alabama: – Bob Kelly defeated Don Fargo for the NWA Gulf Coast Heavyweight Title – Gorgeous George, Jr. defeated Bill White for the City of Mobile Heavyweight Title
1973
Hattiesburg, Mississippi: – The Wrestling Pro defeated Bob Kelly to win the NWA Mississippi Heavyweight Title
Kansas City, Kansas: – Abe Jacobs fought Mike George to a draw – L.D. Lewis defeated Jim Dalton via DQ – Danny Little Bear defeated The Viking – Togo the Great & Tokyo Joe defeated Argentina Zuma & Omar Atlas – Bob Brown fought Rufus R. Jones to a draw – Central States Heavyweight Champion Roger Kirby defeated Terry Funk
1975
St. Paul, Minnesota: – Superstar Billy Graham & Dusty Rhodes & Andre the Giant beat Baron Von Raschke & Horst Hoffman & Boris Breznikoff 2 out of 3 falls – Nick Bockwinkel beat Billy Robinson dq – Chris Taylor beat Geoff Portz – Greg Gagne & Jim Brunzell beat Kenny Jay & George Gadaski – Khosrow Vaziri beat Rock Riddle
1976
Vancouver, British Columbia: – Don Leo Jonathan and Jimmy Snuka defeated Gene Kiniski and Siegfried Steinke to win the Vancouver NWA Canadian Tag Team Titles
1977
Dallas, Texas: – Fritz Von Erich defeated Bruiser Brody to win the NWA American Heavyweight Title
1980 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: – The Wild Samoans (Afa and Sika) defeated Ivan Putski and Tito Santana for the WWF World Tag Team Titles
Knoxville, Tennessee: – Bob Orton, Jr. and Tony Peters defeated Terry Gibbs and Bob Roop to win the International Championship Wrestling Southeastern Tag Team Titles
1982
Memphis, Tennessee: – Bill Dundee and Steve Keirn won the AWA Southern Tag Team Titles from Bobby Eaton and Sweet Brown Sugar
1983
Matsuyama, Japan: – Ron Bass and Stan Hansen defeated Giant Baba and Jumbo Tsuruta for the NWA International Tag Team Titles
1984
Wheeling, West Virginia: – The Spoiler defeated Brad Armstrong to win the NWA National Heavyweight Title
Kansas City, Kansas: – The Grapplers (Len Denton and Tony Anthony) defeated Jerry and Ted Oates to win the NWA Central States Tag Team Titles
1985
Mexico City, Mexico: – Cien Caras and Sangre Chicana defeated Cachorro and Ringo Mendoza for the Mexican National Tag Team Titles
1986
Portland, Oregon: – Billy Jack Haynes defeated Bobby Jaggers to win the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Title
1987
Atlanta, Georgia: – Rick Steiner and Sting defeated Chris Adams and Terry Taylor to win the UWF World Tag Team Titles
1988
San Juan, Puerto Rico: – Kendo Nagasaki and Mr. Pogo defeated Chris and Mark Youngblood for the WWC World Tag Team Titles
1990
Tampa, Florida: – Robert Fuller and Kendall Windham defeated Brian Knobbs and Hurricane Walker (subbing for Jerry Sags) to win the NWA Florida Tag Team Titles
Fridley, Minnesota: – The Lightning Kid (Sean Waltman) defeated Matt Derringer to win the Pro Wrestling America Light Heavyweight Title
1991
Dallas, Texas: – Eric Embry defeated Bill Dundee for the USWA Texas Heavyweight Title – Jeff Jarrett defeated Tom Prichard to win the USWA Southern Heavyweight Title
1993
Memphis, Tennessee: – Simply Devine (Steve Doll and Rex King) won the USWA Tag Team Titles from the Moondogs
1997
New Japan Battle Formation: Tokyo, Japan: – Riki Choshu and Kensuke Sasaki defeated IWGP Tag Team Champions Tatsumi Fujinami and Kengo Kimura to win the titles – Hiroyoshi Tenzan defeated Manabu Nakanishi – El Samurai pinned Shinjiro Otani – Chris Benoit pinned Kevin Sullivan – Junji Hirata and Satoshi Kojima defeated Osamu Kido and Kazuo Yamazaki – Shiro Koshinaka pinned Takashi Ishikawa – J-Crown Champion Jushin Liger pinned The Great Sasuke to retain the titles – Antonio Inoki defeated Tiger King – Keiji Muto pinned Masahiro Chono – Naoya Ogawa defeated IWGP Heavyweight Champion Shinya Hashimoto by TKO
NWA New Jersey Eddie Gilbert Memorial Brawl: Cherry Hill, New Jersey: – The Beach Bullies (The Inferno Kid and Ray Odyssey) defeated NWA United States Tag Team Champions Downward Spiral (Adrian Hall and Twiggy Ramirez) to win the title – Mr. Puerto Rico defeated Steve Corino – Tommy Gilbert defeated Ian Rotten. – King Kong Bundy defeated Don Montoya – Lance Diamond defeats Cheetah Master and NWA North American Heavyweight Champion Reckless Youth in a triangle match to win the title – Marty Jannetty defeated Harley Lewis – NWA World Heavyweight Champion Dan Severn fought Dory Funk, Jr. to a double-countout to retain the title – Doug Gilbert defeated Buddy Landell – Flash Funk defeated Ace Darling – Goldust defeated Derrick Domino
Memphis, Tennessee: – The Shooting Stars (Jerry Faith and Troy Haste) defeated Flash Flanagan and Billy Travis for the USWA Tag Team Titles – King Reginald (Reggie B. Fine) defeated Jerry Lawler
2000
Waegwan, South Korea: – The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express (Robert Gibson and Ricky Morton) defeated Steven Dunn and Jackie Fulton (subbing for Reno Riggins) for the NWA World Tag Team Titles
Jeffersonville, Indiana: – Chris Michaels defeated Sean Casey to win the OVW Light Heavyweight Title
2003
All Japan Pro Wrestling Champion’s Carnival tour: Tokyo, Japan: – Gran Hamada pinned Gran Naniwa – Gigantes and George Hines beat Hiroshi Hase and Masayuki Kono – Kaz Hayashi and Jimmy Yang beat Omega Griffon and NWA International Junior Heavyweight Champion Low Ki – AJPW World Junior Heavyweight Champion Kendo Kashin defeated Carl Contini by submission to retain the title – Shinjiro Otani and Masato Tanaka defeated Hideki Hosaka and Shigeo Okumura – AJPW All Asia Tag Team Champion Nobutaka Araya, Nobukazu Hirai and Genichiro Tenryu defeated Tomohiko Hashimoto, Tomoaki Honma and Kazushi Miyamoto – Keiji Muto and AJPW Unified World Tag Team Champion Satoshi Kojima defeated Masa Fuchi and Toshiaki Kawada – AJPW Triple Crown Champion Shinya Hashimoto defeated AJPW All Asia Tag Team Champion Arashi by TKO to retain his title
Kansas City, Kansas: – MWA World Heavyweight Champion John Pesek and Everette Marshall drew 1 -1 – Wladek Zbyszko beat Sol Slagel
1934
St. Louis, Missouri: – World Heavyweight Champion Jim Londos beat Dick Shikat – Ray Steele beat Pete Schuh – Orville Brown beat George Zaharias – Charley Strack beat Milo Steinborn
1945
San Jose, California: – Earl McCready defeated Dean Detton for the San Francisco Pacific Coast Heavyweight Title
1955
Tulsa, Oklahoma: – Ed Francis defeated Baron Michele Leone to win the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title
1956
Regina, Saskatchewan: – George Gordienko defeated Lou Newman to win the Calgary NWA Canadian Heavyweight Title
1957
Amarillo, Texas: – Don Curtis and Dizzy Davis defeated Great Bolo and Kurt Von Poppenheim for the Amarillo NWA North American Tag Team Title
1963
Washington, D.C.: – Buddy Rogers is officially presented the WWWF World Heavyweight Title belt
1967
Baton Rouge, Louisiana: – Frank and Jack Dalton defeated Danny Little Bear and Bobby Fields to win the Gulf Coast NWA United States Tag Team Titles
Savannah, Georgia: – Enrique and Ramon Torres defeated Gene and Lars Anderson for the Georgia NWA Southern Tag Team Title
1969
Los Angeles, California: – Alfonso Dantés and Mil Máscaras defeated The Black Angels for the NWA Americas Tag Team Titles
Mexico City, Mexico: – Raul Mata defeated Dr. Wagner to win the vacant Mexican National Light Heavyweight Title
1970
Jacksonville, Florida: – Dale Lewis defeated Bob Orton for the Florida NWA Southern Heavyweight Title
1973
Knoxville, Tennessee: – Don and Ron Wright defeated The Fabulous Kangaroos (Al Costello and Don Kent) to win the Mid-America NWA World Tag Team Titles
1974
Kansas City, Missouri: – Tokyo Joe defeated Frank Valois – The Interns (w/ Dr. Ken Ramey) defeated Bull Bullinski & Mike George – Don Fargo defeated The Viking – Chris Taylor & Pat O’Connor defeated Bob Brown & Karl Steiger – Terry Funk defeated Bob Orton – Andre the Giant & Reggie Parks defeated Lord Alfred Hayes & Roger Kirby – Omar Atlas & Bobby Whitlock defeated Billy Howard & Percy Pringle – Chris Taylor and Bob Brown were co-winners of a 22-man Battle Royal
1976
Guadalajara, Mexico: – Dr. Wagner defeated Alfonso Dantés for the Mexican National Light Heavyweight Title
1977
Memphis, Tennessee: – Jerry Lawler defeated Rocky Johnson to win the Mid-America NWA Southern Heavyweight Title
Hiroshima, Japan: – Shinobu Aso and Yumi Ikeshita defeated The Beauty Pair (Jackie Sato and Maki Ueda) to win the WWWA World Tag Team Titles
1979
Mexico City, Mexico: – Perro Aguayo defeated Gran Hamada for the UWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Title
1981
– Jay Youngblood won the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Title
1982
Guadalajara, Mexico: – Sangre Chicana defeated Atsushi Onita for the NWA International Junior Heavyweight Title
Orlando, Florida: – Bruce Reed and Sweet Brown Sugar defeated Dory Funk, Jr. and David Von Erich to win the Florida NWA North American Tag Team Titles
Dallas, Texas: – King Kong Bundy and Bugsy McGraw defeated Kerry Von Erich and Al Madril for the World Class American Tag Team Titles
1983
Birmingham, Alabama: – Bob Armstrong defeated Ken Lucas for the NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Title
Memphis, Tennessee: – No Referee in the Ring: Jerry Lawler beat AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel dq – Southern Tag Team Champions The Moondogs beat Fabulous Ones dq – Southern Champion Bill Dundee dcor Dutch Mantel – Handicap Match, Hair vs Hair: Stagger Lee & Terry Taylor beat Plowboy Frazier & Jimmy Hart & Bobby Eaton (Frazier lost his hair) – Masks at Stake, Texas Tornado Match: The Galaxians beat Rock & Roll Express – Duke Myers beat Bobby Fulton – Bruise Brothers beat Steve O & Carl Fergie
1987
Kansas City, Kansas – AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel beat Bulldog Bob Brown – Pork Chop Cash & Ken Timbs beat Rick McCord & Bart Batten to win Central States tag title – Lumberjack match: Warlord beat Earthquake Ferris – Rip Rogers beat Joe Lightfoot – Stoney Burke beat Karl Kovac – Debbie Combs beat Penny Mitchell
1995
Dallas, Texas: – The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express defeated Dick Murdoch and Randy Rhodes to win the vacant NWA World Tag Team Title in a tournament final
1999
WCW Spring Stampede: Tacoma, Washington: – Scott Steiner pinned Booker T to win the vacant WCW United States Heavyweight Title in the finals of a tournament – Diamond Dallas Page defeated WCW World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan and Sting in a Fatal Four-Way match, to win the title – Goldberg pinned Kevin Nash – Chris Benoit and Dean Malenko (with Arn Anderson) defeated Raven and Saturn
2003
OVW Spring Breakout: Louisville, Kentucky: – Chris Cage and Mark Jindrak defeated Orlando Jordan and Mark Magnus – Nova pinned Christopher Nowinski – OVW Southern Tag Team Champions A.P.A. (Bradshaw and Ron Simmons) defeated Lance Cade and René Duprée to retain the title – WWE World Tag Team Champion Kane pinned Matt Morgan – Chris Benoit, Nick Dinsmore and Johnny Jeter defeated Rob Conway, The Damaja and OVW Heavyweight Champion Doug Basham in a 30-minute Iron Man match, 2 falls to 1
2013
– Chavo Guerrero & Hernandez defeated Austin Aires and Bobby Roode in a 2 out of 3 falls match for the TNA World Tag Team Titles – Taryn Terrell defeated Gail Kim – TNA World Title/Full Metal Mayhem Match: Bully Ray defeated Jeff Hardy
Kansas City, Kansas: – Tarzan Kowalski beat Jim Henry 2 out of 3 falls – Sonny Myers and Bob Orton Sr. drew in 45-minutes (no falls)
1956
Topeka, Kansas: – Richard Brown defeated Iron Mike DiBiase for the Central States Title
1958
Kansas City, Kansas: – Otto Von Krupp beat Don Curtis – Bobby Bruns, Thor Hagen and Sonny Myers beat Bob Geigel, Lee Henning and Bull Montana – Rip Hawk beat Joe Hamilton – Thor Hagen drew Lee Henning (20:00)
1962
Minneapolis, Minnesota: – AWA Champion Mr. M beat Doug Gilbert – AWA Tag Team Champions Bob Geigel & Stan Kowalski beat Dale Lewis & Joe Scarpello – Tiny Mills beat Roy Collins – Ricky Lopez beat Blackjack Daniels
1975
Omaha, Nebraska: – Andre the Giant & Ivan Putski beat Baron Von Raschke & Horst Hoffman 2 out of 3 falls – Superstar Graham beat Nick Bockwinkel – Billy Robinson beat Buddy Wolff – Greg Gagne beat Bobby Heenan – Khosrow Vaziri beat Paul Perschmann
1976
Minneapolis, Minnesota: – AWA Champion Nick Bockwinkel beat Chris Taylor dq – Mad Dog Vachon beat Pampero Firpo – Bobby Duncum & Bobby Heenan beat Greg Gagne & Jim Brunzell – Baron Von Raschke beat Billy Red Cloud – Russ Francis drew Kim Duk – Blackjack Lanza beat Dick Blood
1978
Toronto, Ontario, Canada: – Andre the Giant beat Ken Patera by countout – Peter Maivia & Billy Robinson beat Angelo Mosca & Super Destroyer dq – Verne Gagne beat Zimba Khan – The Crusher beat Gary McLaughlin – Gorilla Monsoon beat Tarzan Tyler – Dewey Robertson beat Kim Chang – Lord Alfred Hayes beat Steve Bolus – Dominic Denucci beat Terry Yorkston – Chris Tolos drew The Wildman
1981
Denver, Colorado: – AWA Champion Verne Gagne beat Nick Bockwinkel – Greg Gagne & Jim Brunzell beat Jerry Blackwell & John Studd – Baron Von Raschke beat Adrian Adonis – Jesse Ventura beat Buck Zumhofe – George Gadaski beat Billy Howard – Tito Santana beat Bobby Heenan
1987
Calgary, Alberta, Canada: – Owen Hart defeated Makhan Signh to win the Stampede North American Title
1999 Tokyo, Japan: – Jushin Liger & The Great Sasuke defeated Dr Wagner Jr & Kendo Kashin to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team belts
2001
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: – Jeff Hardy defeated Triple H for the WWF Intercontinental Title
I took in the opening show of the Champion Carnival for All Japan. It was a really hot show, and even though I’m a big supporter of current AJPW even I was surprised by the attendance they did. Korakuen was not far off being packed. Had to be the best crowd they’ve drawn there in a while.
The undercard was fun with the stand-out actually ending up being The Bodyguard vs young Naoya Nomura. The rookie stepped up huge and gave a great performance en route to getting a big upset win. He looked alot more ready for the spot than Jake Lee who faced Atsushi Aoki in the opener. Jun Akiyama vs Super Tiger was on it’s way to being fantastic match when it ended abruptly at the 8 minute mark after Akiyama was KO’d and referee Kohei Wada called for the doctor and the bell rang. Can’t say for sure that it was a work but my instinct tells me it was Akiyama trying to get the outsider over for the tour. It was really well played by Wada and Jun especially. Felt very legit.
The novelty match of the undercard was an 8 man legends tag with a combined age of 436 and 10 months! It was amazingly my second time seeing Dory Funk Jr. wrestle this week. The star of the match was Masanobu Fuchi.
This show was all about the main event though. An absolute classic 30 minute draw between Triple Crown champ Kento Miyahara and Kengo Mashimo. This may have been the best performance of both men’s careers. Miyahara is stepping up in a big way since the departure of Go Shiozaki and Akebono, and the injury of Suwama. The company has been put on his back and he’s carrying it. He looked every bit the ace they need here.
Mashimo was off the charts good. New Japan really missed the boat on him in 2013. He has such a command over the situation when he’s in the ring. His facial expressions are perfect for a greasy heel with a chip on his shoulder trying to knock off a pretty boy ace. This performance he had with Miyahara would have been perfect for a title match with Okada.
The story of the match was Mashimo going at Miyahara’s arm like a pitbull, but the champ firing back with knee strikes and kicks to get a reprieve. It built and built to the point around the 25 minute mark when you realised they were fighting the clock as well as each other. The final few minutes were frantic as a result and the crowd was losing its mind.
Post match, Mashimo glared at the title, and he deserves a shot after this match. A rematch after the tournament could easily do a great crowd because everyone in Korakuen tonight lived and died with this match.
– There was a crazy amount of Naito support. We were seeing Los Ingobernables de Japón shirts from the station by our hotel all the way to Sumo Hall and then at the venue, it was covered in them.
– The line was wrapping around the building which regulars noted was not a normal occurrence.
– The merch was flying off the tables in the building. The scene down by the LIJ section was crazy, and really came across like a super hot product.
– The crowd was insane live, and was really heated the whole way through the show.
– Not many in the crowd knew Will Ospreay going in, but he was a star by the time he left. Many people were asking me about him after his match. In our section, a bunch of the Japanese fans were trying to chant for him, although they found the name a bit tricky!
-All of the confrontations to set up future matches got big reactions, particularly Omega vs. Elgin.
-The atmosphere for the main event was off the charts. The crowd was firmly behind Naito but they were never disrespectful to Okada. Naito’s post-match promo got over big.
Simple match with Jose pinning Moss clean for the victory
Elias Sampson vs. Corey Hollis
Hollis being from Charleston got a huge pop! Crowd chanted “Play Freebird” at Sampson so he started playing it and made the lyrics heelish by taunting the crowd. Sampson pins Hollis clean for the victory.
Carmella vs. Eva Marie
Pre-match, Carmella walked around ring with a fans sign “Eva sucks”. Eva pins Carmella with the help of putting her feet on the ropes. Post match, Carmella punishes Eva Marie until she rolls out of the ring.
Blake vs. Alex Riley
Nothing special. Riley pinned Blake clean for the victory.
NXT Tag Team Champions American Alpha vs. The Revival
Great storytelling match. This match drew my non-wrestling fan wife in and she loved it. Alpha retains belts over Revival via pinfall.
Intermission for 20 minutes. Crowd pops loud for a picture of Bayley on the screen.
Austin Aries vs. Manny Andrade
Manny won the crowd over big time. He moonsaulted off the middle rope, landed on his feet and flipped into a backflip on Aries. Maybe the biggest pop of the night for that move. Aries pinned Manny for the victory and post-match, the contenders shook hands. Aries gets on the mic and puts over Manny although Manny has already won the crowd over during the match.
NXT Women’s Champion Asuka vs. Peyton Royce
Royce controlled most of the match but Asuka wins in the end via submission with the Asuka lock.
Tye Dillinger and Baron Corbin vs. Nakamura and NXT Champion Finn Balor
Crowd chants “take your shirt off” at Corbin because he is wrestling in a shirt. Match stops and he finally takes shirt off to reveal a second shirt under that. Crowd pops. Balor’s offense was Flair chop heavy and he did the Flair strut a few times during the match. Of course crowd loves it. Balor pins Dillinger for the victory. Balor and Nakamura get on the mic post match and thank the fans and NXT universe for the support.
Omaha, Nebraska: – Earl Caddock defeated Joe Stecher by forfeit to win the World Heavyweight Title (Stecher lost the first fall and refused to wrestle the second fall)
1943
St. Joseph, Missouri: – World Champion Wild Bill Longson beat Ronnie Etchison – Vic Holbrook beat Jack Hader – Sailor Fred Blassie beat Carlos Rodriquez – Cowboy Luttrall drew Jack Nasworthy
1953
Cleveland, Ohio: – Buddy Rogers defeated Antonino Rocca to win the Ohio version of the Boston AWA World Heavyweight Title
1960
Indianapolis, Indiana: – Ray and Roy Shire defeated Dick Afflis and Gene Kiniski to win the Chicago/Indianapolis NWA World Tag Team Titles
1963
Nashville, Tennessee: – Gino and Tony Calza defeated The Medics (Tony Gonzales and Donald Lortie) to win the Mid-America NWA Southern Tag Team Titles
1965
Denver, Colorado: – AWA Tag Team Champions Larry Hennig & Harley Race beat The Crusher & Verne Gagne
1966
Minneapolis: – Verne Gagne beat Larry Hennig – Crusher beat Chris Tolos dq – Harley Race beat Dale Lewis – Ernie Ladd beat Moose Cholak – Reggie Parks drew Chris Markoff – The Alaskan beat Bob Morgan
1969
Los Angeles, California: – Black Gordman defeated Alfonso Dantés for the vacant NWA Beat the Champ TV Title
1976
Mexico, City, Mexico: – Fishman defeated Blue Demon to win the NWA World Welterweight Title
1978
Charlotte, North Carolina: – Ric Flair defeated Mr. Wrestling to win the NWA United States Heavyweight Title
Mexico City, Mexico: – Perro Aguayo defeated Ringo Mendoza for the NWA World Middleweight Title
1981
Kansas City, Kansas: – Bob Brown and Terry Taylor defeated The Kelly Twins (Mike and Pat) for the NWA Central States Tag Team Titles
Portland, Oregon: – Buddy Rose defeated Jay Youngblood to win the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Title
1984
Lexington, Kentucky: – Jerry Lawler defeated Randy Savage to win the NWA Mid-America Heavyweight Title
1987
– Jim Crockett Promotions purchased Bill Watts’ Universal Wrestling Federation
1988
Caguas, Puerto Rico: – Carlos Colón won the WWC Universal Heavyweight Title by defeating Hercules Ayala
1990
Okayama, Japan: – Kenta Kobashi and Tiger Mask (Mitsuharu Misawa) defeated The Can-Am Express (Doug Furnas and Dan Kroffat (Philip LaFon)) for the AJPW All Asia Tag Team Titles
1995
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: – T. Rantula defeated Cactus Jack for the Steel City Wrestling Heavyweight Title
2003
Louisville, Kentucky: – Doug Basham won the OVW Heavyweight Title by defeating Nick Dinsmore
2004
Quarryville, Pennsylvania: – Minoru Fujita and Ikuto Hidaka defeated Josh Daniels and Matt Striker to win the Premier Wrestling Federation Universal Tag Team Titles
Milwaukee, Wisconsin: – Zach Gowen and Silas Young defeated Jason Dukes and Skull Krusher for the Mid-America Wrestling Tag Team Titles – Justin Kage defeated Austin Aries to win the NWA Midwest X Division Title
IWA April Bloodshowers: Oolitic, Indiana: In a 30-minute Iron Man match, B.J. Whitmer (with Jim Fannin) defeated IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Champion Jerry Lynn, 2-1, to win the title
2005
Newark, Delaware: – Petey Williams defeated Puma to win the Super 8 Tournament
2009
ROH Collision: Chicago, Illinois: – Claudio Castagnoli defeated Kevin Steen – Necro Butcher & Jerry Lynn defeated The Age of the Fall’s Delirious and Brodie Lee – Tyler Black defeated Jimmy Jacobs, Austin Aries and Bryan Danielson – ROH champ Nigel McGuinness defeated El Generico
2011
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: – Adam Cole won the Combat Zone Wrestling Best of 2011 tournament
