COLUMNS!!!!

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August 15th

On this day in history in ....

1942 - Steve Casey defeats French Angel for the AWA (Boston version) World Heavyweight Title in Boston, Massachusetts.

1994 - Dante & The Great Mephisto defeats PG-13 for the USWA Tag Team Title in Memphis, Tennessee. The belts had been held up following a match between the two on August 8th.

1995 - Keiji Mutoh defeats Shinya Hashimoto to win New Japan Pro Wrestling's 5th Annual G1-Climax Tournament. This would be the only time Mutoh would win the tournament.

1996 - WCW held the Clash of the Champions XXXIII in Denver, Colorado at the Denver Coliseum. The show earned a 3.5 rating for TBS. Here are the results:
- In a dark match, Mike Enos & Dick Slater defeated Jim Powers & Mark Starr.
- In a dark match, The Nasty Boys defeated Mr. JL (Jerry Lynn) & Bobby Walker.
- WCW Cruiserweight Champion Rey Mysterio defeated Dean Malenko. Malenko got a three count after a top rope gutbuster, but Rey's foot was on the bottom rope. The match was restarted, and Rey pinned Malenko with a rana.
- VK Wallstreet (Mike Rotundo) defeated Hacksaw Jim Duggan. Duggan was attempting to tape up his fist when the referee stopped him, and Wallstreet cradled him from behind for the pin.
- Konnan defeated Ultimo Dragon, pulling the tights for the pin
- Meng defeated Randy Savage via forfeit when an injured Savage was unable to wrestle.
- Madusa defeated Bull Nakano.
- Eddie Guerrero defeated Diamond Dallas Page.
- The Giant (now the Big Show) defeated Chris Benoit in thirty seconds when Benoit got his arm caught in his ring vest as the bell rang, and The Giant took advantage of the situation by chokeslamming Benoit for the quick win.
- WCW Tag Team Champions Harlem Heat vs. Rick & Scott Steiner vs. Sting & Lex Luger ended in a no-contest.
- Ric Flair defeated WCW World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan via countout.

2004 - WWE held Summerslam at the Air Canada Center in Toronto. Here is Tim Whitehead's original report on the show:

WWE's SummerSlam (8/15 Toronto) was a thumbs-in-the-middle show to me. It featured two very good matches and a strong opener. It wasn't a bad show by any means but it didn't really rise to major show levels. Much of the broadcast featured typical TV type matches which were competent, but basically were no different than what we might see weekly on RAW. Commentary was okay. The live crowd hurt the show with some of their reactions. Not so much for cheering for the heels, but for doings waves, chanting for table spots at bad times, etc. The show could end up as memorable if Randy Orton's World Title reign becomes a success.

THE DUDLEY BOYS (Bubba & D-Von & Spike) beat REY MYSTERIO JR. & BILLY KIDMAN & PAUL LONDON in 8:06. Spike was hilarious posing as the Dudley boss. Kidman started off against D-Von, dominating with kicks. London came in and was great, scoring some twos on D-Von. Bubba delivered a cheap shot that put D-Von in charge. Spike did the double foot stomp on London. Bubba & D-Von pounded London with double team spots. When Bubba accidentally hit D-Von, London nailed Bubba with an enzugiri and hot tagged Mysterio. Mysterio laid Spike out and springboard legdropped him for a near fall. Mysterio hit a huracanrana off the top on Spike and then flattened both Bubba & D-Von when they ran in. Kidman tagged in and a brawl soon broke out with all six guys in the ring. Bubba bumped out and London, who was the star of this match, did a high somersault plancha off Kidman's back out onto Bubba. Spike ended up on the ropes and Mysterio caught him with the 619. Kidman hit the shooting star press on Spike, but D-Von broke the pin up. Bubba & D-Von then 3D'ed Kidman and Spike pinned him. Strong opener.

KANE defeated MATT HARDY in the "Till Death Do Us Part" match in 6:08. Lita should have come out eating pickles and ice cream. Even though she teased being angry at Matt on RAW last week, she was fully supporting him here. One more confusing issue in a confusing angle. Matt attacked Kane with fists and kicks and scored some quick twos. Matt hit a DDT. Kane came back with a lariat. He taunted Lita. Kane bumped out. Matt hit a plancha and nailed Kane with the twist of fate on the floor. Kane was almost counted out but made it back in at the nine count. Lita tossed the ring bell to Matt and then distracted the ref so he could wallop Kane with it. Kane got his foot up on the rope to stop the count at two. Matt evaded one chokeslam attempt, but Kane hit a boot to the face and then chokeslammed Matt off the top for the pin. Just a standard TV type match without much heat. Afterward, Kane wanted hugs & kisses from his future "wife" but she fled in disgust. I assume we'll see the wedding soon on RAW.

Randy Orton did a promo bragging about his good looks and promising to win the RAW World Title. John Cena interrupted him in a tease for a possible future inter-divisional feud or switch. Orton didn't appreciate being upstaged by Cena.

JOHN CENA defeated BOOKER T in 6:25. This was the first of a five match series for Booker's U.S. Title. This isn't a bad idea, but the title really needs to be vacant for something like this to be most effective. Cena hit a lariat for an early pin attempt. Booker threw some chops. Cena hit a neckbreaker for another near fall. Booker used brawling tactics and hit a jumping leg lariat. He also hit a spinebuster. Cena scored a near fall with an inside cradle. Booker missed on an axe kick attempt. Cena hit a lariat and an elbow. Booker caught Cena with a face-first slam but when he stopped to do a spinaroonie, Cena caught him with a surprise FU and scored the pin to take the lead 1-0 in the series. Kind of disappointing, as it was just sort of a short, average match.

Eric Bischoff had a verbal showdown with Theodore Long backstage. Basically, Bischoff ridiculed the fact that Smackdown has had so many general managers (Stephanie, Paul Heyman, Kurt Angle), and predicted that Long will be gone by Survivor Series. I like Long as GM and I'm glad he's being pushed as a babyface because the heel GM routine has been overdone to the point it's become a cliche.

EDGE defeated CHRIS JERICHO and BATISTA in a three-way match in 8:25 to retain the IC Title. Batista attacked Edge before he could take off his robe. Edge bumped out, leaving Jericho and Batista to brawl. The crowd got into this match by siding with Jericho big time. Batista overpowered Jericho and was tossing him around until Edge returned with a chop block on Batista. Edge dropkicked Batista, who was supposed to bump out, but didn't. So Edge lariated him out. The crowd booed Edge out of the arena, and he reacted with heel smirks and sneers, though on RAW last Monday it was Jericho who was pushed as more heelish. Edge sent Batista into the stairs. Jericho then dropkicked Batista and he took another bump into the stairs. With Batista down for a while, Edge and Jericho went at it. Jericho hit a crossbody, with Edge rolling through and trying to use the ropes for the pin. Jericho hooked the walls hold to a big pop, but Batista broke it up. Batista posted Jericho. Edge, getting booed again, DDT'd Jericho. Jericho blocked an Edge spear attempt on Batista. Batista hit a spinebuster on Jericho. Batista crashed out to the floor as the "Y2J" chants started up. Jericho bulldogged Edge. He started to do a lionsault but converted it into a springboard kick on Batista when Batista suddenly popped up on the apron. This gave Edge some recovery time and he caught Jericho with a spear out of nowhere and scored the pin. The match was all action but again it wasn't really above the level of a standard RAW TV bout.

KURT ANGLE defeated EDDIE GUERRERO in 13:36. Angle got a ton of cheers, and there were also "Let's Go Angle" chants. Eddie wasn't unpopular, it was just that Angle was over as if he was a babyface. They did a ton of mat wrestling for the first few minutes, locking holds and then reversing. Angle hit a German suplex, which Eddie countered into an ankle lock. Angle escaped from the hold by maneuvering into position to rake Eddie's eyes. Angle then hit the Angle Slam and hooked the ankle lock himself. Eddie made the ropes after a struggle. Luther Reigns took a cheap shot at Eddie is Angle distracted the ref. Angle hooked the ankle lock again. Eddie once again made the ropes. Angle continued to work on the ankle, ramming it against the ring post. Eddie rallied with a series of chops. Angle went back after the ankle some more, this time loosening the laces on Eddie's boot. The idea was to remove the boot and apply the ankle lock, which presumably would be more devastating without the boot's protection. I'm not sure if that's true or not. Eddie surprised Angle with an Angle Slam. Eddie brawled with Angle and hit him with three vertical suplexes. Eddie went to the top, but Angle caught him and superplexed him. Eddie hit a DDT but Angle rolled clear when Eddie went for a frog splash. Angle scored two with an Angle Slam. Angle successfully removed Eddie's boot and went for another ankle lock. The ref got bumped as they struggled with one another. With the ref out, Eddie hit both Angle and Reigns with his boot and then frog splashed Angle. By the time the ref came to, Angle was able to kick out. Angle then hooked the ankle lock out of nowhere and Eddie eventually tapped, giving Angle a clean win for a babyface pop. A very good match, though not in the same league as their WrestleMania bout.

TRIPLE H defeated EUGENE in 14:05. They immediately brawled out to the floor. HHH used Lilian Garcia as a shield, infuriating Jim Ross. HHH got the drop on Eugene and beat him up on the floor. HHH set Eugene up for a suplex off the apron through the Spanish broadcast desk, but Eugene blocked it and suplexed HHH back into the ring. Big mistake, because the fans wanted to see someone go through that desk for the rest of the show. The fans were cheering HHH and booing Eugene. HHH faked a knee injury to get Eugene to let his guard down. They cheered HHH wildly when he suckered Eugene. A "Eugene sucks" chant started. Eugene brawled back and hit a Rock Bottom, but HHH cut him off when he went for a people's elbow. HHH hit a spinebuster. HHH sent Eugene crashing into the stairs, where he got a small cut on his shoulder. HHH slowly dominated for a while until Eugene blocked a pedigree. Eugene flipped HHH off and gave him a stunner. The fans popped for Eugene's stunner, even though they'd otherwise been booing him. HHH bumped out to the floor. Ric Flair came out, taunting Eugene to give HHH time to recover. HHH went back in the ring, where Eugene began doing the Hogan routine of not selling and getting stronger every time he took a punch. Eugene gave HHH a weak Hogan-style boot to the face and legdrop for a near fall. Eugene slugged Flair off the apron and hit a pedigree on HHH. HHH was nearly beaten with his own move, but Flair put his foot over the ropes to save him. Flair then grabbed Eugene, prompting the ref to eject Flair. Flair used the "F" word when arguing with the ref. William Regal arrived and KO'ed Flair on the ramp with brass knux. In a weird ending, Eugene was distracted by Regal's arrival, allowing HHH to pedigree Eugene and get the pin. HHH fled to escape Regal, dragging the dazed Flair off as he went. Just an average match, and it may be that fans are burning out on Eugene as a top spot guy.

TEAM DREAM (Diva contenders Joy, Amy, Maria, Tracie, Michelle, and Christy) beat TEAM DIVA (Stacy Keibler, Nidia, Victoria, Molly Holly, Jazz, and Gail Kim) in a dodgeball match. Carmella no-showed on the Diva contender side, so to even up the teams Trish Stratus acted as coach. This was almost a total waste of time, other than the fact that some of the babes looked hot (Gail, Joy, Amy....). The Diva contenders destroyed the Divas to win easily in the brief match. I have no idea whether this was real or not. Afterward, Trish and Victoria argued and had a pull-apart catfight.

JOHN BRADSHAW LAYFIELD defeated UNDERTAKER by DQ to retain the WWE World Title in 17:35. They brawled early, with JBL going for several quick pins. Undertaker went after JBL's left arm. Orlando Jordon accidentally took a kick from JBL. JBL attacked UT's knee, wrapping it around a post and hitting it with a chairshot. JBL rammed UT's knee into the stairs. The crowd was behaving strangely, and at one point even started a wave. On another occasion, they cheered for something happening off screen, apparently a fan who had climbed onto JBL's limousine. UT started a slow, methodical comeback. The crowd didn't like it, and chanted for someone to be put through the Spanish table. UT scored a series of twos with moves such as a superplex, a spinebuster, a lariat, and a chokeslam. Jordan came in but got punched by UT. JBL hit the lariat from hell, and there was a weak ref bump. Both UT and JBL went down after each kicked the other at the same time. JBL recovered first. Jordan tossed him the title belt, which he used to wallop UT. The ref was still out, so Jordan used the ref's hand to count, but UT kicked out at two. UT threw Jordan out and hit the last ride on JBL. By the time the ref revived and started to count, JBK kicked out. Jordan ran in again. Frustrated, UT hit JBL with the title belt right in front of the ref for the weak DQ ending. Both guys worked hard, and there were some decent spots, but overall it didn't click, even though Michael Cole & Tazz went overboard trying to make it out to be a classic match. The live crowd hurt things a lot here. There was a post match angle as UT continued beating on JBL, who juiced heavily from the belt shot. UT slammed JBL on the hood of his limo, breaking the windshield. JBL's blood was all over the white car hood. UT then chokeslammed JBL through the limo's roof. It was a nice visual but it was also obvious the roof was rigged, as if anyone could believe it would be possible to chokeslam someone through a car roof. JBL did a stretcher job.

RANDY ORTON defeated CHRIS BENOIT to capture the RAW World Title in 20:07. There were no recap videos prior to this match, or prior to the JBL vs. UT match. I guess they were running short on time. They should have cut the JBL vs. UT match to ten minutes, or eliminated the dodgeball. Orton and Benoit traded mat spots. Benoit won a test of strength. Orton got a lot of cheers, though they didn't hate Benoit the way they did Eugene. Orton took a bump after missing a dropkick. Benoit went for the sharpshooter, but Orton blocked it and hooked the hold himself. Benoit escaped and went for the crossface. As they struggled, they both bumped out and Orton sent Benoit crashing into the post. The crowd chanted for someone to be put through the Spanish table again. They brawled on the apron, with Orton taking a DDT. Benoit hit Orton with a baseball slide and then went for a tope. Orton moved and in a great spot Benoit went head first into the ring barrier. That is, he flew right between the second rope and the top rope and sailed head first right into the barrier. Scary looking spot! Benoit sold it as a neck injury, and Orton went right after the neck. Orton scored two after a cool looking neckbreaker. Orton dominated until both went down after a collision. Benoit hit a northern lights suplex. Orton hit a high crossbody. They traded a few near falls. Benoit hooked the sharpshooter, with Orton escaping to the ropes. Benoit hit six German suplexes. Yes, six of them. Benoit came off the top for the diving headbutt. Orton got his legs up and Benoit landed hard on Orton's boots. Orton went for a pin, which Benoit maneuvered into the crossface. Orton, however, rolled his way out and hit an RKO out of nowhere for the surprise clean pin. Orton got a babyface pop for becoming the youngest World Heavyweight Champion ever in WWE at age 24. The match was very good, though how well it will be remembered will likely depend on how Orton comes off as champ. He won clean and had no help from his Evolution allies. This will set up some turmoil in Evolution ranks, as there will no doubt be some HHH conflict over this. Orton came off as a total babyface here, with Benoit (who I hope remains on top after this) shaking his hand and saying "be a man" to him afterward, referring to his status as champ. Orton was practically in tears over the win.

 

[nbpsfc]

August 16th
On this day in history in ....

1946 - Ted Cox defeats Dave Levin in Houston to win the NWA Texas Heavyweight Title. It marked the end of Levin's second title reign and the beginning of Cox's second run with the belt.

1960 - Verne Gagne becomes the AWA World Heavyweight Champion for the first of a record ten times. Pat O'Connor, the defending NWA World Heavyweight Champion, had been recognized as the first AWA World Champion in May of 1960, but was given 90 days to defend against number one contender Gagne, or be stripped of the title. The match never happened, and Gagne was given the title.

1973 - The Great Mephisto defeats Paul Jones in Jacksonville, Florida to win the NWA Florida Television Title, ending Jones' second reign.

1974 - Antonio Inoki & Seiji Sakaguchi defeats Kurt Von Hess & Karl Von Schotz in Los Angeles, California to win the National Wrestling Federation North American Tag Team Title.

1992 - The Great Muta (Keiji Mutoh) defeats Riki Choshu in Fukuoka, Japan to win the IWGP Heavyweight Title. This marked the end of Choshu's third and final reign as New Japan Pro Wrestling's top champion.

1993 - Jimmy Del Ray defeats Ricky Morton to win the vacant Smokey Mountain Wrestling "Beat The Champ" Television Title. The belt, which was only defended on TV tapings, would be surrendered by the champion if they won five consecutive title defenses. However, on this occasion the belt had been vacated because a suspended Tony Anthony had won the title under a mask as the "Mighty Yankee" two months earlier.

2002 - John Walters defeats Aaron Stevens to win the Chaotic Wrestling Heavyweight Title in Methuen, Massachusetts.

2003 - Justin Credible defeats Terry Funk for the 3PW World Heavyweight Title in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at the Electric Factory.

 

[nbpsfc]

DISAPPOINTING BUILD TO SUMMERSLAM BY WWE, BUT IT DOESN'T MATTER
by Buck Woodward @ 11:57:00 AM on 8/16/2006

To say that the build to Summerslam has been somewhat disappointing is an understatement. Looking at the "go home" week of hype on Raw, everything seems somewhat underwhelming. Edge vs. Cena got a two minute brawl after Edge showed the world that his Mommy and Daddy hang spinner belts on the wall. Hulk Hogan and Randy Orton did the same old bit we've seen a dozen times before, just with a much quieter crowd. DX and the McMahons, after weeks of attacks and arrests, stood in front of the fans and yelled at each other for a while ... then left. About the only match from the Raw brand that built up some heat was Mick Foley vs. Ric Flair, and they actually did a better job of it on ECW, with Flair hanging Foley with his belt.

Smackdown isn't fairing much better. The two matches (yes, that's right, only two) are Batista vs. Booker T and Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Guerrero (the latter of which has yet to be announced on a Smackdown episode). Without going into spoilers, let's just say that Batista and Booker T don't exactly have an epic showdown this week to build their match. Rey and Chavo? Unless something gets inserted in post-production, they're not even going to be appearing on Smackdown this week!

That leaves us with ECW. There is actually a storyline behind their Summerslam contribution, as they have been building up the fact that Paul Heyman didn't want Big Show wrestling Sabu. However, because the match was only determined at the end of last night's show, there is no chance for additional hype. No promo from Paul Heyman about how it won't be "Extreme Rules" in order to put Sabu at a disadvantage. No last ditch attempt to injure or weaken Sabu by having him wrestle a handicap match. The storyline is there, but like other matches on this card, there is no final thrust to get you to order the show to see it.

So the hype during this "go home" week isn't there, and to be honest, I don't think WWE cares. Call it complacency, call it laziness, but I get the impression that WWE looked at Summerslam and said "We don't need to sell this show, it sells itself". First, you have the 200,000 (give or take) that tend to order every WWE PPV, regardless of what is on the lineup. Second, factor in that it is one of the "Big Four" and you have more orders, since there are fans that order Summerslam (and Survivor Series, Royal Rumble and Wrestlemania) no matter what state the WWE product is in.

Finally, the show is loaded with "name value". You've got Hulk Hogan, Mick Foley and Vince McMahon on the show, in addition to Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Ric Flair, Edge, John Cena, Batista and Rey Mysterio. There's even Sabu to appeal to those hardcore fans. With those names on the show, does it really matter how much hype is behind the matches?

WWE apparently feels it doesn't matter, and they may very well be right. They're just coasting into Summerslam creatively, and most fans will go along for the ride and order the show anyway.

You can write me at [email protected].

 

[nbpsfc]

August 17th

On this day in history in ....

1968 - Dr. X (Dick Beyer, aka The Destroyer) defeats Verne Gagne for the AWA World Heavyweight Title in Bloomington, Minnesota, ending Verne's eighth reign with the title.

1986 - Nikita Koloff defeats Magnum T.A. in the final match of a Best Of Seven Series for the NWA United States Heavyweight Title in Charlotte, North Carolina. Magnum had been stripped of the title on May 29th for hitting NWA President Bob Geigel, who was reprimanding Magnum for attacking Nikita when he insulted Magnum's mother during a contract signing. The title was put up for grabs in a Best Of Seven Series between the two, with Nikita having a 3-0 lead before Magnum came back and tied it up, leading to this final match, which saw Nikita hit Magnum with a chain as Ivan Koloff distracted the referee in order to get the win.

1986 - The UWF World Tag Team Title is held-up following a double pin in a match between champions Sting & Eddie Gilbert and challengers The Fantastics in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Sting & Gilbert would win back the belts in a rematch two weeks later.

1987 - Nikita Koloff defeats Tully Blanchard in Fayetteville, North Carolina to win the NWA World Television Title.

1992 - Jerry Lawler & Jeff Jarrett defeat The Moondogs (Spot & Cujo) for the USWA Tag Team Title in Memphis, Tennessee. This was the fifth title change between the two teams in a span of less than two months.

1997 - ECW held their second Pay-per-view, Hardcore Heaven, in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida at the War Memorial. Here are the results:
- In a dark match, Balls Mahoney & Axl Rotten defeated The FBI (Little Guido & Tracey Smothers).
- Prior to the PPV, Sabu & Rob Van Dam beat up the Insane Clown Posse. Sandman tried to make the save, and was injured by Sabu & RVD. This was taped and shown during the PPV broadcast, leading to the less-than-memorable storyline where Sandman "stole an ambulance" and was driving back to the building while announcer Lance Wright followed him in the "Extreme Chopper" helicopter.
- ECW World Television Champion Taz defeated Chris Candido via submission with the Tazmission.
- Bam Bam Bigelow defeated Spike Dudley with a moonsault.
- Rob Van Dam defeated Al Snow with a VanDaminator.
- Buh Buh Ray & D-Von Dudley were awarded the ECW World Tag Team Championship due to the Gangstas (New Jack & Mustafa) being injured and unable to defend the belt. The Dudleys then defeated PG-13 when Buh Buh pinned Wolfie D after 3D.
- Tommy Dreamer defeated Jerry Lawler with a DDT in a match that saw interference from Rick Rude, Jake Roberts and Sunny on Lawler's behalf.
- Shane Douglas defeated Sabu and Terry Funk in a Three Way Dance to win the ECW World Heavyweight Title. Douglas & Funk pinned defending champion Sabu first, after interference from the Sandman, and Douglas pinned Funk with a belly to belly suplex. Post match, a huge brawl breaks out with The Dudleys, New Jack, The Eliminators, Axl Rotten, Balls Mahoney and others getting involved.

1998 - Wrestler Terry Garvin, who later worked as an agent for WWF, died of stomach cancer at age 60. Garvin, real name Terry Joyal, had a successful tag team in the 70's with Ronnie Garvin (not his real brother) and later Jimmy Garvin (who was Ronnie's real-life stepson, also not a real brother) joined them to form a trio.

1998 - Maryland Championship Wrestling Light Heavyweight Champion Shane Shamrock (real name Brian Hauser) dies after being shot by a police officer during a domestic dispute with his former girlfriend. He was 23.


2004 - Ultimo Guerrero defeats Atlantis in Mexico City, Mexico to win the CMLL World Light Heavyweight Title.

 

[nbpsfc]

August 18th

On this day in history in ....

1989 - Eric Embry defeats P.Y. Chu-Hi (Phil Hickerson doing a Japanese gimmick) to win the World Class Championship Wrestling Texas Heavyweight Title in Dallas, Texas. This marked the beginning of Embry's third reign with the belt, which would soon become the USWA Texas Title.

1993 - WCW held the Clash of the Champions XXIV in Daytona Beach, Florida at the Ocean Center. Here are the results:
- Arn Anderson & Paul Roma defeated Steve Austin & Steven Regal (subbing for Brian Pillman) to win the WCW World Tag Team Title when Anderson pinned Austin after Sir William (Bill Dundee, Regal's manager) accidentally hit Anderson with an umbrella. Interesting to note, they had to have this title change take place, despite Pillman being injured, because they had already taped syndicated TV episodes with Anderson & Roma wearing the belts.
- 2 Cold Scorpio defeated Bobby Eaton (subbing for Steven Regal, who worked the opener) with a 450 splash.
- Johnny B. Badd defeated Maxx Payne. Maxx Payne put his guitar on the line against the mask of Johnny B. Badd (Badd was wearing a mask to hide the scars from when Payne blasted him in the face with Badd's confetti gun). Payne missed a top rope splash, allowing Badd to get the win.
- Sting & Davey Boy Smith announced their mystery partner for Fall Brawl ... The Shockmaster. Fred "Typhoon/Tugboat" Ottman, wearing a silver and glitter painted Star Wars Stormtrooper helmet and a sleeveless fur robe with no shirt and blue jeans, burst through the wall of the interview set, tripping and falling down as he made his entrance. After getting his helmet back on, he then did a promo (which was actually Ole Anderson's voice, electronically modified) where he tried to make threats to Sid Vicious and Vader. It is universally recognized as one of the dumbest moments in professional wrestling.
- Ricky Steamboat defeated Paul Orndorff to win the WCW World Television Title when he reversed a bodyslam attempt into a small package.
- Sting & Ric Flair defeated Awesome Kong & King Kong when Sting pinned Awesome after a top rope splash in less than a minute.
- Dustin Rhodes & mystery partner Road Warrior Hawk defeated The Equalizer & Rick Rude when Rhodes pinned The Equalizer.
- WCW World Champion Big Van Vader defeated Davey Boy Smith when manager Harley Race clipped Smith's leg as he attempted a suplex, allowing Vader to get the pin. Post-match, Cactus Jack attacked Vader as the show ended.

1996 - WWF held their Summerslam Pay-per-view at the Gund Arena in Cleveland,Ohio. Here are the results:
- In a match shown on the Free-For-All, Steve Austin defeated Yokozuna in under two minutes when the top rope snapped as Yokozuna prepared for a Banzai Drop. Yokozuna fell to the mat, and Austin got the pin.
- Owen Hart defeated Savio Vega via knockout when he hit Savio with his cast when the referee was distracted, then applied the Sharpshooter. Post-match, Justin Hawk Bradshaw attacked Savio.
- WWF World Tag Team Champins The Smoking Gunns defeated The New Rockers, The Godwinns and The Bodydonnas in a Four Corners match.
* Billy Gunn pinned Zip with a forearm.
* Henry Godwinn pinned Leif Cassidy with a Slop Drop.
* Billy pinned Phineas after Bart hit him with a top rope double axe handle.
- Sid Vicious defeated Davey Boy Smith with a powerbomb.
- Goldust defeated Marc Mero with the Curtain Call.
- Jerry Lawler defeated Jake Roberts after hitting him with a liquor bottle. Lawler taunted Roberts with the bottle throughout the match, making fun of Roberts' drinking problems.
- Mankind defeated The Undertaker in a Boiler Room Brawl match. The rules of the match stated that they would start in the boiler room of the building (this segment was actually pre-taped) and battle into the arena and the ring, where Paul Bearer waited with the urn. The first person to get the urn was the winner. Undertaker made it to the ring, but Bearer hit him with the urn, turning on him, and gave the urn to Mankind, making him the winner.
- WWF World Champion Shawn Michaels defeated Vader with a moonsault, following Vader missing a moonsault.

2001 - Race Steele defeats Nick (Eugene) Dinsmore in Dayton, Ohio to win the Heartland Wrestling Association Heavyweight Title for the fourth time.

2002 - Daisuke Sekimoto defeats Daikokubo Benkei in Kanagawa, Japan to win the Big Japan Pro Wrestling Heavyweight Title.

 

[nbpsfc]

August 19th

On this day in history in ....

1990 - Riki Choshu defeats Big Van Vader for the IWGP Heavyweight Title in Tokyo, Japan. This ended Vader's second run with New Japan Pro Wrestling's top title, and started Choshu's second reign with the strap.

1991 - Bill Dundee defeats Danny Davis in Memphis, Tennessee to win the USWA Junior Heavyweight Title for the second time, ending Davis' fourth reign as champion.

1999 - Lenny Lane defeats Rey Mysterio Jr. for the WCW Cruiserweight Title in Lubbock, Texas, ending Mysterio's fifth title reign. Two months later, Lane would be quietly stripped of the title due to WCW getting pressure from Time Warner over Lane's flamboyant gimmick, which was based around homosexual innuendo. WCW would create a "phantom" title switch and give the belt to Psicosis.

2000 - The Memphis Championship Wrestling Southern Heavyweight Title changes hands twice in one night in Memphis, Tennessee, as Joey Abs defeats Lord Steven (William) Regal for the title, then loses it to K. Krush (Ron Killings).

2001 - WWE held Summerslam in San Jose, California, at the Compaq Center. Here are the results:
- In a Heat match, Jacqueline, Molly Holly & Lita defeated Stacy Keibler, Torrie Wilson & Ivory when Jacqueline pinned Ivory.
- Edge defeated Lance Storm with the Downward Spiral to win the Intercontinental Title.
- Test & The Dudley Boyz defeated Spike Dudley & The APA when Shane McMahon interfered, allowing Test to pin Bradshaw.
- WCW Cruiserweight Champion X-Pac defeated Yoshihiro Tajiri to win the WWF Light Heavyweight Title with an X-Factor.
- Chris Jericho defeated Rhyno with the Walls Of Jericho.
- Rob Van Dam defeated Jeff Hardy to win the WWF Hardcore Title in a Ladder Match.
- WCW World Tag Team Champions The Undertaker & Kane defeated Diamond Dallas Page & Kanyon in a steel cage match to win the WWF World Tag Team Championship when Undertaker pinned Page with the Last Ride powerbomb.
- Kurt Angle defeated WWF World Heavyweight Champion Steve Austin via disqualification when WCW referee Nick Patrick refused to count Angle's pin of Austin and instead disqualified Austin for intentionally hitting referees earlier. Patrick was intentionally making sure Austin wouldn't lose the title, and Angle snapped, putting Patrick in an ankle lock.
- The Rock defeated Booker T with the Rock Bottom to win the WCW World Heavyweight Title.

2001 - Trent Acid defeats Jun Kasai in Yokohama, Japan to win the Combat Zone Wrestling World Junior Heavyweight Title for a second time.

 

[nbpsfc]

August 20th

On this day in history in ....



1951 - Terry McGinnis defeats Ted Travis to win the Hawaii Heavyweight Title in Honolulu. This marks the start of McGinnis' second title reign.

1954 - June Byers defeats Mildred Burke for the NWA World Women's Title in Atlanta, Georgia. The win was controversial, as the match was scheduled for three falls, but after Byers won the first fall, the one hour time limit expired, and Byers was awarded the title.

1963 - Crusher & Dick the Bruiser defeat Ivan & Karol Kalmikoff for the AWA World Tag Team Title in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the first of five AWA Tag Title wins for the legendary duo.

1986 - Alfonso Dantes defeats Cien Caras for the Mexican Heavyweight Title in Acapulco, Mexico, ending Caras' second title reign.

1987 - Kuniaki Kobayashi defeats Nobuhiko Takada in the finals of the IWGP World Junior Heavyweight Title tournament in Sumo Hall in Tokyo, Japan.

1988 - Carlos Colon defeats Ron Starr in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico to win the WWC Television Title, ending Starr's second run with the belt.

1996 - Lord Steven (William) Regal defeats Lex Luger for the WCW Television Title in Dalton, Georgia, ending Luger's second run with the belt and beginning Regal's third.

1998 - ECW ran an event at the Elk's Lodge in Queens, New York, with the following results:
- Jerry Lynn defeated Mikey Whipwreck.
- Spike Dudley defeated Sal E. Graziano.
- The Sandman defeated Tracy Smothers.
- Masato Tanaka defeated Balls Mahoney.
- Justin Credible defeated Chris Chetti.
- Tommy Dreamer defeated Jack Victory.
- ECW World Tag Team Champions Sabu & Rob Van Dam defeated The Dudleys and Bam Bam Bigelow & Chris Candido in a Three Way Dance.

2003 - Michael Shane defeats defending champion Chris Sabin and Frankie Kazarian in the first ever "Ultimate X" match to win the TNA X Division Title in Nashville, Tennessee. The match involved hanging the title belt at the center of an "X" that was formed by two steel cables strung above the ring, and the wrestlers had to climb across the cables to get to the belt and win the match.

 

[nbpsfc]

August 21st

On this day in history in ....

1962 - Verne Gagne defeats Mr. M (Bill Miller) for the AWA World Heavyweight Title in Minneapolis, Minnesota, starting Gagne's third title reign.

1965 - The Crusher defeats Mad Dog Vachon for the AWA World Heavyweight Title in St. Paul, Minnesota, ending Vachon's second title reign, and starting Crusher's third, and final, run with the belt.

1979 - Dusty Rhodes defeats Harley Race for the NWA World Heavyweight Wrestling Title in Tampa, Florida, ending Race's second title reign, and starting the first NWA World Title run for the "American Dream", albeit a short one, as Rhodes lost the title back to Race five days later.

1997 - WCW held the Clash of the Champions XXXV, the final Clash ever, at the Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. Here are the results:
- Steve McMichael defeated Jeff Jarrett to win the WCW United States Title when Eddie Guerrero, while trying to hit McMichael with the U.S. Title belt, accidentally hit Jarrett, allowing McMichael to get the pin.
- Raven defeated Stevie Richards in a No Disqualification match with an Evenflow DDT.
- Alex Wright defeated Ultimo Dragon to win the WCW Television Title with a German suplex and bridge.
- WCW Cruiserweight Champion Chris Jericho defeated Eddie Guerrero after coming out on top of a series of pinfall reversals.
- Psicosis, Silver King, Villano IV & Villano V defeated Juventud Guerrera, Super Calo, Hector Garza & Lizmark Jr. when Psicosis pinned Calo with a top rope legdrop.
- Ric Flair & Curt Hennig defeated Konnan & Syxx when Hennig pinned Konnan with a Perfectplex.
- WCW Tag Team Champions Scott Hall & Randy Savage (subbing for Kevin Nash) defeated Diamond Dallas Page & Lex Luger when Hall pinned Luger after Page (who had been blinded by a Savage thumb to the eye) accidentally gave Luger the Diamond Cutter.

2002 - Jerry Lynn defeats defending champion Low Ki and AJ Styles in a ladder match to win the TNA X Division Title in Nashville, Tennessee.

 

[nbpsfc]

August 22nd
On this day in history in ....

1894 - Tom Cannon defeats Tom McInerney for the European Greco-Roman Heavyweight Title in Liverpool, England. This belt, later held by George Hackenschmidt, was unified with others to create the first recognized World Heavyweight Title.

1977 - Ricky Steamboat & Paul Jones defeat Ric Flair & Greg Valentine to win the NWA Mid-Atlantic Tag Team Title.

1982 - Wahoo McDaniel defeats Sgt. Slaughter for the NWA United States Heavyweight Title in Charlotte, North Caroline, starting his third reign as champion. Slaughter had been awarded the title two months earlier when he injured McDaniel, leaving him unable to defend the title against Slaughter.

1985 - In a highly anticipated match in front of 13,000 fans at Budokan Hall, WWWA World Champion Jaguar Yokota defeats Lioness Asuka in the main event of an All Japan Women's show that also sees AJW Pacific Champion Devil Masami defeat Chigusa Nagayo and Bull Nakano & Dump Matsumoto defeat The Jumping Bomb Angels.

1992 - Mitsuharu Misawa defeats Stan Hansen in Tokyo, Japan to win the All Japan Triple Crown (PWF World, NWA United National, NWA International) for the first time. This also marked the end of Hansen's third run with the belts. To date, Misawa has held the Triple Crown five times, tying him with Toshiaki Kawada for the most reigns with the belts.

1993 - Atsushi Onita defeats Mr. Pogo in Nishinomiya, Japan to win the FMW Brass Knuckles Title.

1997 - Manukea Mossman (now known at Taiyo Kea) defeats Yoshinari Ogawa to win the All Japan World Junior Heavyweight Title in Tokyo, Japan. Mossman would later vacate the title and move up in weight class.

1999 - WWF Summerslam was held in Minneapolis, Minnesota at the Target Center. Here are the results:
- Jeff Jarrett defeated D'Lo Brown to win the WWF Intercontinental and European Title.
- The APA won a tag team elimination match:
* Edge & Christian defeated Matt & Jeff Hardy when Christian pinned Matt.
* Edge & Christian defeated Mideon & Viscera when Edge pinned Mideon.
* Edge & Christian defeated Droz & Prince Albert when Edge pinned Albert.
* Faarooq & Bradshaw defeated Edge & Christian when Bradshaw pinned Christian.
* Faarooq & Bradshaw defeated Hardcore & Crash Holly when Faarooq pinned Hardcore to win the match.
- Al Snow defeated Big Boss Man to win the WWF Hardcore Title.
- WWF Women's Champion Ivory defeated Tori.
- Ken Shamrock defeated Steve Blackman via knockout in a Lion's Den match.
- Test defeated Shane McMahon.
- The Undertaker & Big Show defeated Kane & X-Pac to win the WWF World Tag Team Title when Undertaker pinned X-Pac.
- The Rock defeated Billy Gunn in a Kiss My Ass match.
- Mankind defeated Steve Austin and Hunter Hearst Helmsley in a Triangle match to win the WWF World Title when he pinned Austin. This marked Mankind's final World Title win. Jesse Ventura was the special referee. Prior to the match, Ventura, the Governor of Minnesota who had been heavily criticized in the media for participating in the event, took the mic and told the crowd and PPV audience that he has always been proud of being a professional wrestler, and he was proud to be a part of the event.



2000 - In Lafayette, Louisiana, one McMahon lost a title, and one gained a title, as Lita defeated Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley for the WWF Women's Title, while Shane McMahon defeated Steve Blackman for the WWF Hardcore Title.

2003 - Major League Wrestling held their "Summer Apocalypse" event in St. Petersburg, Florida, with the following results:
- The SAT (Jose & Joel Maximo) defeated Nosawa & B-Boy.
- Mana defeated Richard Criado.
- Jimmy Yang defeated Sonjay Dutt.
- Mikey Whipwreck defeated Tony Mamaluke.
- The Samoan Island Tribe defeated Monsta Mack & B-Boy in a Falls Count Anywhere match.
- CM Punk defeated Raven in a Straight Edge rules match.
- Michael Shane & Francine defeated Norman Smiley & G.I. Ho.
- Homicide defeated Jerry Lynn.
- MLW Tag Team Champions C.W. Anderson & Simon Diamond defeated Steve Williams & The Sandman.
- Sabu defeated Christopher Daniels in a Spike match.
- Jerry Lawler defeated Terry Funk in a Bounty match.

SUMMERSLAM 1999
by Matt Shalk - [email protected].

Date: Sunday, August 22, 1999

Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota
Arena: Target Center

Attendance: 17,370

RESULTS:

► Jeff Jarrett pinned WWF Intercontinental Champion & WWF European Champion D-Lo Brown to win both championships. Debra accompanied Jarrett to ringside, but he immediately sent her to the back because she was dressed too provocatively. D-Lo brought Debra back to ringside, much to the delight of the crowd. The match ended when Jarrett grabbed his guitar and was apparently going to hit Debra, until D-Lo's friend and tag team partner, Mark Henry, ran to the ring and grabbed the guitar away from Jarrett. It was all a set-up though, and Henry hit D-Lo with the guitar while Jarrett and Debra distracted the referee. Jarrett covered D-Lo to win the match and the championships. The next night on RAW, Jarrett awarded Mark Henry the WWF European Championship as payment for his services.

► The Acolytes (Bradshaw & Faarooq) won a six-team "Tag Team Turmoil" match to earn a shot at the WWF Tag Team Championship the next night on RAW. Edge & Christian were crowd favorites here, and advanced three times in the match, beating The Hardy Boyz, Mideon & Viscera, and Droz & Prince Albert, before being eliminated themselves by The Acolytes. Hardcore & Crash Holly were the last team to enter the match, and Faarooq pinned Hardcore Holly following a spinebuster to win the match and earn the title shot for his team.

► The Road Dogg came to the ring to challenge the winner of the upcoming WWF Hardcore Championship match, but Chris Jericho, making his WWF pay-per-view debut, interrupted him, and insulted The Road Dogg and the WWF, calling the company "boring" and the pay-per-view "Summersham." The Road Dogg, of course, had two words for Jericho.

► Al Snow pinned WWF Hardcore Champion The Big Bossman to win the WWF Hardcore Championship. The Road Dogg joined the commentary team for the match, carrying a microphone and following Snow and The Big Bossman as they fought throughout the Target Center and onto the streets of downtown Minneapolis. The Road Dogg ended up getting involved in the match, hitting The Big Bossman with his own nightstick. Snow covered The Big Bossman on top of a pool table at a local bar to earn the win and championship.

► WWF Women's Champion Ivory pinned Tori to retain the championship. Following the match, Ivory tried to tear off Tori's top, but Luna Vachon ran to the ring and chased Ivory back to the locker room.

► Ken Shamrock defeated "Lethal Weapon" Steve Blackman in a "Lion's Den" weapons match when Shamrock knocked Blackman unconscious with a kendo stick. The "Lion's Den" was a stand alone structure, similar to the UFC octagon, and weapons were placed on a platform at the top of the structure for this match.

► Test defeated Shane McMahon in a "Greenwich Street Fight." Shane was angry that Test was dating his sister, Stephanie McMahon, leading to a feud between Test and Shane. Shane had brought his friends from Connecticut - Rodney, Pete Gas, and Joey Abs, collectively known as The Mean Street Posse - to the WWF to help him fight Test, but Test had beaten them all en route to getting his hands on Shane himself. Test agreed to stop dating Stephanie if Shane could beat him in the match, and Shane agreed to leave Test and Stephanie alone if Test won. The street fight stipulation was just added the morning of the event. The Mean Street Posse were seated at ringside during the match, and continued to interfere on Shane's behalf, until Gerald Brisco and Pat Patterson came out from the back to even the sides. This was a fun match, and Shane looked impressive, especially considering he is not a . Test ended the match with a pump handle slam and an elbow from the top rope, covering Shane to earn the victory. Following the match, Stephanie, who was watching on a monitor in the back, ran to the ring and hugged Test.

► The Undertaker & The Big Show defeated WWF Tag Team Champions X-Pac & Kane to win championship. The Big Show looked absolutely svelte here, especially compared to today. The Undertaker was something of a mentor to The Big Show at this point. The Big Show chokeslammed X-Pac, then made an arrogant cover, standing in the ring and putting only his foot on X-Pac. He only got a two count. The Undertaker tagged himself in, and used the tombstone piledriver on X-Pac to win the match for his team. The Undertaker and The Big Show argued about the finish on the way back to the locker room.

► The Rock pinned "Badd Ass" Billy Gunn to win a "Kiss My Ass" match. The loser of the match was supposed to kiss the backside of the winner, but Gunn brought a rather large women to the ring with him, and said that when he won the match The Rock would need to kiss her ass instead. Gunn had recently won the King of the Ring tournament, and this was yet another failed singles push for Mr. Ass. The Rock shoved Gunn's face into the ladies backside, then hit the Rock Bottom and the People's Elbow to set up the pin.

► Mankind defeated Triple H and WWF Champion "Stone Cold" Steve Austin in a "Triple Threat" match to win his third and final WWF Championship. Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura was the special referee for the match. Chyna accompanied Triple H to ringside, and ended up getting ejected by Ventura for interfering in the match. Triple H hit Mankind with a chair and covered him, but Ventura refused to count the pin. Shane McMahon came out to the ring and argued with Ventura, but ended up getting a Stone Cold Stunner from Austin before being tossed out of the ring by Ventura. That was the extent of Ventura's physical involvement in the match. Triple H hit Austin with the Pedigree, but Mankind kept him from making the cover. Mankind then hit Austin with a double arm DDT, and covered Austin himself to win the match.

NOTES: Jim Ross & Jerry "The King" Lawler did commentary for the event. Carlos Cabrera and Hugo Savinovich did Spanish commentary. Michael Cole and Kevin Kelly handled backstage interviews. Howard Finkel was the ring announcer... Promotional materials for the event featured a headshot of "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and a smoking skull. The subtitle for the show was "An Out of Body Experience."

 

[nbpsfc]

August 24th

On this day in history in ....

1960 - Al Costello & Roy Heffernan defeat Red & Lou Bastien for the United States Tag Team Title (precursor to the WWE World Tag Team Title) in Bridgeport, Connecticut, ending the third and final reign for the Bastiens and beginning the third (and also final) reign for the Fabulous Kangaroos.

1982 - Bruiser Brody is stripped of the Florida State Heavyweight Title he had won the night before from B. Brian Blair for illegal tactics.

1985 - The Dream Team, Brutus Beefcake & Greg Valentine, defeat The U.S. Express, Barry Windham & Mike Rotundo, for the WWF World Tag Team Title at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania when Beefcake rubs the lit cigar of manager Johnny Valiant in the eye of Windham before getting the pin. This marked the end of the second title WWF tag title reign for Windham & Rotundo.

1994 - WCW Clash of the Champions XXVIII was held at the Five Seasons Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and broadcast on TBS, earning a 4.5 rating. Here are the results:
- The Nasty Boys defeated Paul Roma & Paul Orndorff when Saggs hit Orndorff with a top rope elbowdrop at the same time that Roma hit Knobbs with a top rope splash. The referee counted Saggs' cover, giving the Nasties the win.
- During an interview, Hulk Hogan was attacked from behind by a masked man and hit in the leg with a steel pipe. Hogan was taken to the hospital, and for the rest of the show, the announcers speculated whether he would be able to return for his title defense.
- Ricky Steamboat defeated Steve Austin to win the WCW United States Title with a small package. This highly praised match would be the last title victory of Steamboat's career.
- Dusty & Dustin Rhodes defeated Terry Funk & Bunkhouse Buck via disqualification when Arn Anderson and Meng interfere. Dusty breaks a wooden chair over Meng's head, but Meng absorbs the shot and takes Dusty down with the Tongan Death Grip.
- Antonio Inoki defeated Steven Regal with a rear naked choke/sleeper.
- Ric Flair defeated WCW World Champion Hulk Hogan via countout after Sherri Martel interfered. During the post-match beatdown, Sting makes the save, having "just flown in from Chicago when he heard about Hogan's injury". This show featured one of the biggest announcing mistakes ever, as Ring Announcer Michael Buffer announced Ric Flair as the new champion, then in an attempt to correct himself, got back on the mic and said that "Titles do not change hand on a disqualification" even though the match had ended in a countout!

1999 - Big Bossman defeats Al Snow for the WWF Hardcore Title in Kansas City, Missouri, ending Snow's second run with the title, and beginning the Bossman's third reign.

2003 - WWE held their Summerslam PPV in Phoenix, Arizona. Here is Tim Whitehead's original report on the show. Matt Shalk's recap of the event is on Page 2!

WWE's SummerSlam aired live from Phoenix. I've already heard from people who didn't like the show, but I can't give a thumbs down to a show with three strong matches. The show certainly had weak points as well, particularly the Shane McMahon vs. Eric Bischoff match. If two of the weak matches had been replaced by a cruiserweight match (I'm not counting the brief Rey Mysterio Jr. vs. Shannon Moore match on the pre-show) and a tag match featuring Charlie Haas & Shelton Benjamin, it would have been a great show, but they had to have a requisite number of RAW matches on the show, so that nixed that (Yeah, I know they could also have dropped the Undertaker vs. A-Train match). One scheduled match, Matt Hardy vs. Zach Gowen, was cancelled due to an angle (Gowen's broken leg), and they did a skit during the pre-show where Matt was declared winner via forfeit. The three good matches were enough for me to put the show in the thumbs up column. Commentary was mostly strong, and the crowd heat was good.

Lilian Garcia sang the National Anthem as the U.S. Marine Corps Color Guard stood at attention. Good way to open the show!

LA RESISTANCE defeated THE DUDLEYS in 7:50 to retain the RAW World Tag Titles. They were smart to put this one on right after the National Anthem, as the crowd was hot. The Dudleys attacked La Resistance on the floor before the bell. D-Von choked Rene Dupre with his robe. They did some standard brawling. The Frenchmen tied D-Von up for a while. Bubba hit the Bubba Bomb on Sylvan Grenier. D-Von nearly pinned Dupre after he weakly collided with Grenier. There was a huge pop when D-Von kicked out of a pin attempt after a double team move. The Dudleys did the wazzup on Grenier and then hit Dupre with a 3D, but Grenier pulled the ref out to stop the count. As the ref argued with Grenier, a photographer from ringside ran in and busted his camera over D-Von's head, rolling Dupre on top of him to score the pin when the ref returned to the ring. The photographer pulled off his long hair wig to reveal Rob Conway, the OVW wrestler who was also the fake serviceman on RAW last week. He still doesn't have a name, so I guess we can call him Le Rob Conway. The match was just a standard TV type match but the crowd was into it. Spike Dudley ran in afterwards to help his brothers but all three Dudleys got beat down. As the Dudleys were leaving, Jonathan Coachman tried to interview them and, in a signal of his impending heel turn, Coach acted impressed with La Resistance. Bubba accused him of being un-American.

Christian approached Eric Bischoff, who was warming up for his match against Shane. Christian was upset that he wasn't booked to wrestle on the important SummerSlam PPV. Bischoff blamed it on Steve Austin. Christian offered to help Bischoff later in his match but Bischoff said he already had a back-up plan. Bischoff also promised to tell us all what happened after the cameras stopped rolling when he visited Linda McMahon last week.

UNDERTAKER defeated A-TRAIN in 9:20. Sable came out with A-Train. They did a lot of slow power stuff. Undertaker hit a Russian leg sweep. He also hit a DDT and scored some twos. UT's ribs were taped and he sold them as injured. A-Train caused UT to bump out to the floor, and he then posted UT's ribs. A-Train hit a suplex and scored two. UT brawled back and went for the snake eyes but A-Train blocked it. Both went down after a lariat spot. UT hit a Hogan boot and legdrop for a near fall. A-Train scored two with his old Albert Bomb move. The ref took a major spin bump. A-Train then gave UT a big boot to the face, which missed, but UT still sold it. A-Train brought a chair in, which UT kicked into his face for a near pin as the ref revived. UT then won with the chokeslam. Too long and not good, though not terrible, either. After the match, UT was about to nail A-Train with the Last Ride, but Sable got in the ring and started flirting with UT. He let A-Train go and grabbed Sable, holding her as Stephanie charged the ring. Steph pounded on Sable until A-Train pulled her from the ring and the two fled.

SHANE McMAHON defeated ERIC BISCHOFF in 10:35. Bischoff came out and claimed to have done it with Linda numerous times this past Monday night. He acted like she was a wild woman in bed, and said he wonders why Vince runs all over the country eating hamburger when he has such a hot, juicy, delicious filet mignon at home. I won't bother commenting on how stupid this angle is (I'll save it for the RAW Report). Shane charged in and began beating and stomping Bischoff. This went on for like three minutes, with Shane destroying Bischoff in the ring, around the ring, and up the aisle with fists, kicks, and stomps. Then, out of nowhere, Coach walloped Shane with two chairshots, turning heel. The crowd at first was surprised by the turn, but then they didn't care. The ref was about to signal for a DQ when Bischoff staggered up and announced that he was making this a no-DQ, falls count anywhere match. Bischoff told Coach to introduce "that piece of s**t" to the stairs, so Coach lamely rammed Shane into the stairs. They dragged Shane into the ring. Bischoff ordered that Jim Ross & Jerry Lawler's mics be cut off. He then had Coach do commentary from in the ring as they beat on Shane. Coach made fun of JR, using all his catch phrases like government mule and slobberknocker, and yelling things over and over ("Shane's down! Shane's Down! Shane's Down!"). This came off very weak and the crowd died, as Coach isn't exactly intimidating as a heel. Shane fought back against Bischoff but Coach gave him a low blow. Austin came out, which did get a big pop. Coach got in his face and reminded him that he can't touch the contracted talent unless provoked (not that that stopped Austin from making himself an enforcer last week on RAW). Shane shoved Coach into Austin, which Austin "interpreted" as a provocation from Coach. So Austin & Shane beat Coach up. Austin had JR & Lawler's mics turned back on. Shane then put Bischoff in a full nelson and used Bischoff's hand to smack Austin, which was "interpreted" as a provocation from Bischoff, so Austin gave Bischoff a stunner. Shane covered Bischoff for a pin but lifted his head at the two count. Shane finished Bischoff off by laying him out on the Spanish broadcast table and giving him an elbow from off the top, with both crashing through the desk, so Shane still does the daredevil spots. Bischoff juiced, and was pinned on the floor thanks to his own falls count anywhere edict. Austin & Shane celebrated afterward with beer. Pretty much a waste of time.

Triple H & Ric Flair reminded Randy Orton that his job in the Elimination Chamber would be to protect HHH's Title. Orton started to ask "what if...", but HHH & Flair said there would be no what ifs.

EDDIE GUERRERO defeated CHRIS BENOIT, TAJIRI, and RHYNO in a Fatal Four-Way match in 10:49 to retain the U.S. Title. All four were in the ring at the same time under the rules here. There were naturally a ton of moves, and I can't list them all, so I'll go for the highlights. Guerrero avoided action at first, but kept breaking up pin or submission attempts by the others. Tajiri and Rhyno went at it with some real stiff blows. Guerrero got caught with some hard kicks from Tajiri and chops from Benoit. Benoit suplexed Rhyno and Tajiri. Guerrero suplexed Benoit out to the floor. Guerrero and Tajiri traded some hot spots. There were a ton of pin attempts, always broken up by someone else. Rhyno superplexed Guerrero. Tajiri kicked the hell out of Rhyno. He then did a great handspring elbow on Benoit. Guerrero caught Rhyno with the spinning headscissors, and nailed Benoit with a huracanrana. Guerrero hooked Tajiri in the old Lasso from El Paso as Benoit simultaneously hooked the crossface on Rhyno. Tajiri made the ropes, and Guerrero immediately dropped the hold and broke up Benoit's crossface. Benoit then crossfaced Guerrero but Rhyno and Tajiri broke it up. Benoit hit the multiple German suplexes on Tajiri, but Tajiri surprised Benoit with a German suplex into a bridge for a near fall. Tajiri caught Benoit in the tarantula. Rhyno went to gore Guerrero, but smashed into the title belt, which Guerrero had sneaked into the ring. Guerrero went up for a frog splash but Tajiri knocked him off. Benoit then hit Rhyno with the diving headbutt. Benoit sent Tajiri out for a scary bump before getting bumped out himself. This cleared the ring enough for Guerrero to frog splash Rhyno and score the pin. Very good match!

KURT ANGLE defeated BROCK LESNAR in 21:17 to retain the WWE World Title. They started off with some good mat wrestling. Lesnar used his power to throw Angle across the ring. Angle came back with arm drags that frustrated Lesnar, who bailed out and smashed a monitor. Lesnar acted like he was going to leave with the belt but Angle attacked him in the aisle and fought him back to the ring. Angle scored two with a suplex. Lesnar literally hurled Angle over the top and then smashed him into the stairs. Back in the ring, Lesnar scored twos with a suplex and a spinning backbreaker. Lesnar hooked a bodyscissors and began squeezing the life out of Angle. Lesnar scored more twos after a backbreaker and a lariat. Lesnar squashed Angle into the corner several times, but on his final charge Angle moved and Lesnar's shoulder hit the post. Angle went to work on the wounded shoulder. Angle hit some German suplexes. Lesnar hit a scary released German suplex on Angle. Lesnar blocked the Olympic slam and hit a spinebuster for a near fall. Lesnar took Angle up for the F5. At this point, Angle was supposed to block the F5 and hit a DDT but they botched the spot somehow and both just sort of went down. On the mic, Tazz & Michael Cole did a good job covering by simply explaining that Angle blocked the F5. Lesnar took Angle up again and this time Angle converted the F5 into a DDT and scored a near fall. Angle hit the Olympic slam for a two count. Angle hooked the ankle lock but Lesnar made the ropes. The ref took a bump (and ref bumps are really getting to be too common to mean anything). Lesnar tried to backdrop Angle, but in a great spot, Angle wrapped his legs around Lesnar's neck as he went over and "choked" him down to his knees, where Angle then hooked the ankle lock. Lesnar held on for a while but eventually tapped, though the ref was still out. Vince McMahon (this was his birthday, by the way) ran in and chairshotted Angle. Lesnar got up limping to sell the ankle lock and hit the F5. The revived ref counted but, to Lesnar's amazement, Angle kicked out. Angle blocked another F5 attempt and hooked the ankle lock again. Lesnar twice made the ropes but Angle pulled him back to the center, which the ref allowed though technically he shouldn't have. Lesnar ended up tapping. I guess it's okay for Lesnar to lose on two PPVs in a row since it's to Angle, but he'll need a series of wins after this. Despite some quirks, this was an excellent match. Vince tried to hit Angle with a chair afterward, but Angle blocked it and Olympic slammed Vince on the chair.

They showed the local Diva search winner, a girl named Jamie Koeppe. She had two very good qualifications to be a Diva.

KANE beat ROB VAN DAM in 12:50 in a No Holds Barred match. JR said Kane has been behaving like the by-product of an inbred mongrel dog. Kane lariated RVD and dumped him out to the floor. RVD hit Kane with a moonsault off the rail. Kane posted RVD and got a ladder from under the ring, which he had some problems with. RVD ended up teeter-tottering the ladder into Kane's face. RVD thrust kicked Kane. Both bumped back out after an RVD crossbody. Kane sent RVD into the stairs. RVD hit a kick which looked like it potatoed Kane. RVD went to the top, but Kane shoved him off and he hit the stairs. Kane hit RVD with the ladder. Kane pounded and stomped RVD. Kane went to the top but slipped and fell and got tangled in the ropes. He tried it again, and this time successfully came off the top but hit the rail when RVD moved. RVD used the ladder on Kane and kicked him. Kane bumped over the rail into the crowd. RVD seemed in command. Back in the ring, he hit Kane with a rolling thunder on a chair. He caught Kane with the Van Daminator. RVD went for the Van Terminator but Kane moved and avoided the flying chair. Kane then surprised RVD with a tombstone piledriver on the stairs and scored the pin. Kind of mediocre, and far slower paced than a typical RVD match except for his rally at the end.

Terri tried to interview Bischoff, who was holding an ice bag to his face. He ran her off. Linda McMahon walked in and slapped Bischoff in the face. Well, she really slapped the ice bag, but he sold it as a slap to the face anyway. That angle is so lame.

TRIPLE H retained the RAW World Title in the Elimination Chamber over GOLDBERG, SHAWN MICHAELS, CHRIS JERICHO, KEVIN NASH, and RANDY ORTON in 19:14. The rules were that two wrestlers selected by random draw would start off, and every three minutes another wrestler, also selected by random draw, would be released from his glass chamber within the massive steel structure. Jericho and "Heartbreak Kid" Shawn Michaels started off, as the other four were locked in their chambers. They traded some really good spots. HBK blocked a walls attempt and scored two with an inside cradle. Jericho hit a bulldog and a lariat. Orton was released from his chamber at the three minute mark. By the way, the wrestlers came to the ring in the same order in which they were released, but JR & Lawler pretended not to notice that. Orton hit a crossbody on HBK. HBK took a bump over the ropes and landed on the cold steel. Orton brawled with Jericho. Jericho hit an enzuigiri on HBK. Orton dropkicked Jericho. Nash was then released. He sent Jericho crashing out onto the steel and then juiced him by ramming his head into the chains enclosing the structure. Orton and HBK brawled, and Nash laid both of them out. Jericho charged Nash, but Nash caught him with a boot to the face. HBK then surprised Nash with the sweet chin music out of nowhere. Nash went down and was pinned by Jericho and eliminated at 8:06. HHH was released at the nine minute mark, but as he was exiting his chamber, HBK caught him with the chin music and he fell back into the chamber and stayed down. This allowed him to avoid action since he's still legit injured. Nash was being escorted out by the ref, but he was so furious at being pinned that he went on a brief rampage and jackknifed both Jericho and Orton, and also flattened HBK, before leaving. HBK juiced. Meanwhile, HHH stayed down in his chamber, biding his time. HBK, Orton, and Jericho all revived and began brawling. When Goldberg was released at the twelve minute mark, the crowd exploded (they'd been chanting Goldberg's name since the beginning) and Goldberg cleaned house. He was excellent here, getting incredible heat. He speared Orton and pinned him at 13:01. He hurled Jericho into the chain and sent HBK crashing upside down into the corner. Goldberg speared Jericho through one of the glass chambers. HBK went after Goldberg, but Goldberg blocked the chin music, and hit HBK with the spear and jackhammer for a pin at 15:20. He then speared and jackhammered Jericho for another pin at 16:05. This left HHH, who was still hiding in his glass chamber and looking very scared. Ric Flair reached through the chains and helped HHH hold the door to his chamber shut. Goldberg simply kicked the glass out and dragged HHH out to the middle of the ring. The crowd heat was awesome for all this. Goldberg punched HHH out and bloodied him on the chains. HHH took a bump on the steel encasement. Goldberg backed off to set up the spear, but Flair slipped the sledgehammer to HHH. Goldberg ended up spearing the sledgehammer and knocking himself out. HHH scored the pin to retain the title. Flair and Orton went in afterwards and they handcuffed Goldberg to the cage and beat the hell out of him, with HHH further bloodying him with the sledgehammer. The show ended with HHH shoving the title belt into Goldberg's face and vowing that Goldberg would never win it. This was a very good main event. The big question revolves around the finish. If this leads to Goldberg winning clean in a straight singles match over HHH at the next PPV, it'll be alright. Otherwise, it won't.

 

[nbpsfc]

LOOKING AT THE BEST UNDER-PUSHED TALENT IN WWE
by John Morlan @ 12:19:00 AM on 8/24/2006

As I sit in my cubicle exhausting all my effort into avoiding work, I often find myself pondering the world's most deeply rooted problems. During these times it isn't uncommon to fall into a deep depression as I reflect on 25 years without making a significant contribution to society. Yesterday, in the midst of one of these depressions, I had an epiphany regarding how I could leave a mark on my community, my culture and the entire world...I shall submit a freelance article to PWInsider.com critiquing the efforts of WWE's creative department. Not only will I offer a truly unique piece on a seldom discussed topic, but the sound of keystrokes emanating from my cubicle will give the appearance of hard work and dedication to my employer. The title of the article shall be "The Top 5 Under-Pushed Talents in WWE".
To determine the most under-pushed talents, I examined the difference between the potential a wrestler has displayed and that wrestler's current place on the depth chart. I began by sifting through my handy-dandy list of every wrestler on the WWE roster. I doodled small pictures of snapping turtles dressed as samurai warriors next to each talent I felt was one level (or more) below where they should be. This narrowed the list to 14 superstars (extremists and divas weren't included as ECW is too new to determine who is under-pushed and Divas are stupid). From there I facilitated a round robin tournament to thin the field to eight. I drew pictures of falcons dressed as lumberjacks next to these eight, seeded them according to their tenure with the company, and held a single elimination tournament to determine the top five. Short of tracking down Alexandra York's laptop, I believe this was the most scientific means of drawing a logical conclusion. The results are purely subjective, but since I consider my opinion more important than anyone else's, I believe this to be the foremost article that could ever be published on the subject.

Number Five: Val Venis

When I facilitated the tournaments yesterday Matt Striker was in the number three position and Val Venis had barely missed the top five. Obviously, Paul Heyman saw much of the same promise in Striker that I did. Hopefully his new role as Extremist will jump start a career with limitless potential. As for this article, the roster change knocked Striker out of eligibility and moved everyone else up a slot. Val Venis, who had originally finished sixth in the tournament, was the primary beneficiary of these adjustments. Venis is a great talent who has been under-pushed for years. If I would have written on this topic a few years ago Venis may have even contended for the number one slot, but at this point number five is fitting. While he still deserves more than he receives, Venis is past his prime and injury prone. Val might still have an IC or Tag Title run in him, but it would be unwise for WWE to push him too hard at this point in his career.

Number Four: Sylvan

Sylvan has a classic look, a lot of ability on the mic, and is actually quite fun to watch in the ring. His ability to garner large reactions from crowds simply by inviting them to spend their vacation in his homeland proves that he has potential to become a human heat machine in the right scenario. Sylvan likely would have ranked closer to the top of the list a few months ago, but recently he has at least been given weekly air-time and a couple of mini-angles due to Smackdown's depleted roster. While it still isn't close to where he needs to be, Sylvan's semi-push as Quebec's Ambassador-at-Large has been an effort in moving him to his rightful position. Je me souviens!

Number Three: Rob Conway

Okay, if La Resistance were the American Males Rob Conway was probably Scotty Riggs. However, Conway has displayed enough potential to at least earn some non-internet air time. A solid work rate, a good look and above average ability on the stick certainly should have propelled him beyond the role of jobber on Heat. Like Sylvan, Conway is probably a worker that the majority of internet fans aren't drawn to, but internet fans have a tendency to overlook all around talent in favor of guys who are just great in the ring. I'm not saying Conway would end up being the next Rock or Steve Austin, but he needs to be given a chance. He could surely become more than a modern day Iron Mike Sharpe.

Number Two: Matt Hardy

This is probably the only top fiver that readers won't want to throw me in a WCW Chamber of Horror for choosing. Hardy doesn't have the on-air personality usually required for me to get behind someone, but taking a proven commodity with a solid fan base and relegating him to jobber on a brand in dire need of talent was pure stupidity. I don't personally see Hardy as someone who can hang in the main event picture long term, but he could have easily been used to round out the top of the card on a Smackdown brand that needed main event spots filled so badly. At very least, Hardy should be steadily involved in angles big enough to garner him pay-per-view slots.

Number One: Trevor Murdoch

He's great in the ring and even better on the mic. He has one of the most unique looks in recent memory and possesses an undeniable it factor on camera. Is this the description of a main event wrestler? Nope. How about an up and comer tarrying in the mid-card? Uh uh. Maybe a tag-team star on the verge of a break-out singles career? Not really. This is the description of a virtually unused employee who flops back and fourth between getting squashed by Kane as a singles wrestler and getting squashed by Kane with a tag team partner. This is the description of a man who, if he retired today, would rank somewhere below Alex "The Pug" Porteau on the all time greats list. Murdoch probably shouldn't begin headlining right away, but he should be playing some sort of role on Raw. Whether it's a mid-card singles push or a revitalized tag title run, Trevor Murdoch needs something to do besides review movies for WWE.com. With a little time and the right build, Murdoch could someday make a major impact on the industry.

So there it is...the scientifically proven top 5 under-pushed talents in WWE. If you don't agree then draw your own snapping turtles dressed as samurai warriors, run your own round robin tournament and write your own article. For those of you who I know won't be able to stop yourself from sending nasty emails, I'll also give honorable mentions to Shelton Benjamin, Charlie Haas and Eugene in the under-pushed department. Please be content with an honorable mention and leave me alone. Benjamin is very near where he should be as a major contender for the IC strap, Haas makes John Kerry look charismatic and Eugene is retarded; he's lucky to be on the roster at all. Besides, giving opinions on the most under-pushed talent is as futile as arguing over Mike Shaw's best gimmick...I already know the answer so don't bother! Friar Furgeson is without a doubt Mike Shaw's best and these are obviously the top 5 under-pushed talents in WWE. You'd be crazier than an escaped mental patient to disagree on either count.

 

[nbpsfc]

August 29th
On this day in history in ....

1982 - Otto Wanz defeats Nick Bockwinkel for the AWA World Heavyweight Title in St. Paul. Minnesota, ending Bockwinkel's second run with the belt.

1982 - Super Destroyer (Scott Irwin) wins a tournament for the Georgia National Heavyweight Title. The title had been vacated by Paul Orndorff so he could "train" for an NWA World Title match with Ric Flair (which he lost).

1988 - WWF holds their first Summerslam Pay-per-view at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Here are the results:
- The British Bulldogs vs. Jacques & Raymond Rougeau ended in a twenty minute draw.
- Bad News Brown defeated Ken Patera.
- Rick Rude defeated The Junkyard Dog via DQ when Jake Roberts ran in and attacked Rude, who was wearing tights with a picture of Roberts' wife on them.
- The Powers Of Pain defeated Nikolai Volkoff & Boris Zuhkov.
- The Ultimate Warrior defeated The Honky Tonk Man in 31 seconds, the fastest Intercontinental Title win ever, to end the longest Intercontinental Title reign of all time.
- Dino Bravo defeated Don Muraco.
- WWF World Tag Team Champions Demolition defeated The Hart Foundation.
- Big Bossman defeated Koko B. Ware.
- Jake Roberts defeated Hercules.
- Hulk Hogan & Randy Savage defeated Andre The Giant & Ted DiBiase when Savage pinned DiBiase after Miss Elizabeth distracted him by taking off her skirt. Jesse Ventura was the special referee, and wouldn't count the pin until he was forced to.

1992 - WWF Summerslam is held in London, England at Wembley Stadium in front of almost 80,000 fans. This is the first (and so far, only) major WWF Pay-per-view event to be held outside of North America. Because of the time difference, WWF decided to air the Pay-per-view on a tape delay, so it wasn't shown in the U.S. until August 31st. Here are the results:
In matches not shown on the PPV broadcast:
- Papa Shango defeated Tito Santana.
- Tatanka defeated The Bezerker.
- The Bushwackers & Hacksaw Duggan defeated The Nasty Boys & The Mountie.
In matches shown on the PPV broadcast:
- The Legion Of Doom defeated Ted DiBiase & Irwin R. Schyster.
- Nailz defeated Virgil.
- Shawn Michaels vs. Rick Martel ended in a double countout.
- WWF World Tag Team Champions The Natural Disasters defeated The Beverly Brothers.
- Crush defeated Repo Man.
- The Ultimate Warrior defeated WWF World Champion Randy Savage via countout after interference from Ric Flair.
- The Undertaker defeated Kamala via DQ.
- Davey Boy Smith defeated Bret Hart to win the WWF Intercontinental Title.

1994 - WWF Summerslam is held at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. Here are the results:
- In a dark match, Adam Bomb defeated Kwang.
- Bam Bam Bigelow & Irwin R. Schyster defeated The Headshrinkers via DQ.
- WWF Women's Champion Alundra Blayze defeated Bull Nakano.
- Razor Ramon defeated Diesel to win the WWF Intercontinental Title. Ramon was accompanied to the ring by Chicago Bears legend Walter Payton.
- Tatanka defeated Lex Luger.
- Jeff Jarrett defeated Mabel.
- WWF World Heavyweight Champion Bret Hart defeated Owen Hart in a steel cage match.
- The Undertaker defeated Ted DiBiase's Undertaker (Brian Lee).

2000 - Al Snow defeats Perry Saturn for the WWF European Heavyweight Title in Fayetteville, North Carolina

 

[nbpsfc]

August 30th

On this day in history in ....

1969 - Mad Dog & Butcher Vachon defeat Crusher & Dick the Bruiser for the AWA World Tag Team Title in Chicago, Illinois, ending Crusher & Bruiser's fourth title reign.

1993 - WWF held their Summerslam Pay-per-view at the Palace in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Here are the results:
- In a dark match, Owen Hart defeated Barry Horowitz.
- Razor Ramon defeated Ted DiBiase with the Razor's Edge. This was DiBiase's last U.S. PPV match as a wrestler.
- WWF Tag Team Champions Rick & Scott Steiner defeated The Heavenly Bodies (Jimmy Del Ray & Tom Pritchard) when Rick pinned Del Rey after Del Rey accidentally moonsaulted Pritchard, and Scott gave Del Rey the Frankensteiner.
- WWF Intercontinental Champion Shawn Michaels defeated Mr. Perfect Curt Hennig via countout after Diesel pulled Hennig from the ring and rammed him into the ringpost.
- Irwin R. Schyster defeated The 1-2-3 Kid with a clothesline.
- Bret Hart defeated Doink The Clown via submission. Doink was replacing Jerry Lawler, who claimed to have a broken leg. However, as Doink was submitting, Lawler ran into the ring and hit Bret Hart with his crutch. WWF President Jack Tunney ordered Lawler to then wrestle his scheduled match.
- Jerry Lawler defeated Bret Hart via disqualification. Bret won the match via submission with the Sharpshooter, but refused to release the hold, so the decision was reversed, and Bret was disqualified. As a result, Lawler was able to proclaim himself the "Undisputed King Of Wrestling" (Bret had won the King Of The Ring tournament that year, and Lawler attacked him).
- Ludwig Borga defeated Marty Jannetty via submission with a torture rack.
- The Undertaker defeated Giant Gonzalez in a Rest In Peace (No DQ, no countout) match with a top rope clothesline.
- The Smoking Gunns & Tatanka defeated Bam Bam Bigelow & The Headshrinkers when Tatanka pinned Samu after all three members of the Headshrinkers/Bigelow team missed top rope headbutts.
- Lex Luger defeated WWF World Heavyweight Champion Yokozuna via countout after hitting him with a forearm that sent him from the ring (Luger has a steel plate in his forearm). Post-match, there was a huge celebration, as this was the culmination of the "Lex Express" summer bus tour of Luger traveling all over the U.S. that was designed to get Luger over as a patriotic babyface. However, the celebration made no sense, as Luger didn't win the belt, and it had been made clear that he was not going to get another title match after Summerslam (he would eventually, at Wrestlemania X). The whole push of Luger was a disaster, as he never got over the way WWF wanted him to, and stars like Undertaker and Bret Hart were obviously much more popular.

1993 - Dustin Rhodes defeats Rick Rude to reclaim the WCW United States Heavyweight Title in Atlanta, Georgia. The title had been vacated since May, following a bout between the two, and several rematches were held before a clean win took place here.

1996 - Sid Vicious defeats Jerry Lawler for the USWA Unified Heavyweight Title in Memphis, Tennessee, starting his second reign with the gold, and ending Lawler's 23rd run with the belt.

1998 - WWF held their Summerslam Pay-per-view at a sold-out Madison Square Garden in New York City. Here are the results:
- In matches shown on Sunday Night Heat:
- Too Cool defeated LOD 2000.
- Gangrel defeated Dustin Runnels.
- DOA defeated Bradshaw & Vader.
In matches from the PPV:
- WWF European Champion D'Lo Brown defeated Val Venis via disqualification when Venis hit the referee.
- The Oddities (Kurrgan, Golga, & Silva) defeated Kaientai (TAKA Michinoku, Men's Teioh, Sho Funaki & Dick Togo) in a handicap match when Golga splashed all of Kaientai for the pin. The Insane Clown Posse performed The Oddities theme song live.
- X-Pac defeated Jeff Jarrett in a Hair vs. Hair match after X-Pac hit Jarrett with his own guitar. Post match, Jarrett had his head shaved while the Headbangers and DX held him down.
- Sable & Edge defeated Marc Mero & Jacquelyn when Edge hit Mero with the Downward Spiral and tossed Sable on top for the pin.
- Ken Shamrock defeated Owen Hart via submission in a "Lion's Den" match with an anklelock. This match was held in a UFC style cage that was set up at The Theater, a smaller venue within the Madison Square Garden complex. Several thousand fans bought tickets to see the Lion's Den match live, and watch the rest of the PPV on a giant screen.
- The New Age Outlaws defeated Mankind in a Falls Count Anywhere match to win the WWF World Tag Team Title after a spike piledriver. Kane, Mankind's partner, abandoned him and the belts before the match, then showed up with a sledgehammer afterwards to attack Mankind.
- Triple H defeated Rocky Maivia in a Ladder match for the WWF Intercontinental Title after Chyna gave Rock a low blow to allow Triple H to climb the ladder and get the belt.
- WWF World Heavyweight Champion Steve Austin defeated The Undertaker with a stunner after blocking the Undertaker ropewalk.

 

[nbpsfc]

August 31st
On this day in history in ....

1945 - Ted Cox defeats Buddy Rogers in Houston, Texas to win the NWA Texas Heavyweight Title.

1968 - Verne Gagne defeats Dr. X (Dick "Destroyer" Beyer) for the AWA World Heavyweight Title in Minneapolis, Minnesota, starting his ninth reign as champion.

1981 - Eddie Gilbert & Ricky Morton defeat Masa Fuchi & Atsushi Onita in Memphis, Tennessee to win the AWA Southern Tag Team Title.

1985 - Tiger Mask (Mitsuharu Misawa) defeats Kuniaki Kobayashi in Tokyo, Japan to win the NWA International Heavyweight Title.

1986 - Eddie Gilbert & Sting defeat The Fantastics in Tulsa, Oklahoma to reclaim the UWF World Tag Team Championship. The belts had been held up following a match between the two teams two weeks earlier.

1987 - Ted Arcidi, who held the world benchpress record with a lift of 705.5 lbs., wins the World Class Championship Wrestling Texas Heavyweight Title in a battle royal. The belt had been vacated when the previous champion, Al Perez, won the WCCW World Heavyweight Title on August 21st.

1991 - Katsuji Ueda defeats Mark Starr in Chiba, Japan to win the AWA World Light Heavyweight Title for the second time.

1997 - Kensuke Sasaki defeats Shinya Hashimoto for the IWGP Heavyweight Title in Yokohama, Japan. This would end Hashimoto's third, and final, reign as New Japan's top champion, and would mark the first of four reigns with the belt for Sasaki.

1997 - PG-13 defeat Steven Dunn & Flash Flanagan for the USWA Tag Team Title in Memphis, Tennessee. This ended the third title reign for Dunn & Flanagan and began the fifteenth reign for PG-13. It would also be their last title reign, as USWA would shut down operations in November of 1997.

1997 - Hayabusa, Masato Tanaka & Koji Nakagawa defeat Mike Awesome, Hisakatsu Oya & Mr. Gannosuke to win the FMW World Streetfight Six-Man Tag Team Title in Yokohama, Japan.

 

[nbpsfc]

September 5th

On this day in history in ....

1968 - Bob Geigel & Bob Brown defeat Ron Etchison & Sonny Myers in Kansas City, Kansas to win the NWA North American Tag Team Title.

1973 - Terry & Ron Garvin defeat Tojo Yamamoto & Johnny Marlin in Nashville, Tennessee to win the NWA Mid-America Tag Team Title.

1979 - Mike George defeats Mr. Wrestling II in Shreveport, Louisiana to win the Mid-South Wrestling Association North American Heavyweight Title.

1983 - World Class Championship Wrestling holds their first Labor Day Weekend 'Star Wars' event in Ft. Worth, Texas. Here are the results:
- Iceman Parsons defeated Buddy Roberts.
- Bruiser Brody defeated Kamala via disqualification in a Lumberjack match.
- Kerry Von Erich defeated Michael Hayes in a Country Whipping match.
- Kevin Von Erich defeated World Class American Champion Jimmy Garvin via disqualification.
- World Class Texas Champion David Von Erich defeated Terry Gordy in a two-out-of-three falls match.
- World Class Six-Man Tag team Champions The Fabulous Freebirds (Hayes, Gordy & Roberts) defeated David, Kerry & Kevin Von Erich when Hayes pinned Kerry.

1990 - Clash of the Champions XII took place in Ashville, North Carolina at the Civic Center, and aired live on TBS. Here are the results of the show, which was nicknamed "Fall Brawl - Mountain Madness":
- Steve Armstrong & Tracey Smothers defeated The Freebirds (Michael Hayes & Jimmy Garvin).
- Mike Rotundo defeated Buddy Landell.
- The Master Blasters (Iron & Steel) defeated Brad Armstrong & Tim Horner.
- The Nasty Boys defeated Jackie Fulton & Terry Taylor.
- Tommy Rich defeated Bill Irwin.
- LPWA Champion Susan Sexton defeated Bambi.
- Rick & Scott Steiner defeated Tim Hunt & Jeff Warner.
- Stan Hansen defeated Tom Zenk.
- United States Champion Lex Luger defeated Ric Flair via disqualification.
- NWA World Heavyweight Champion Sting defeated The Black Scorpion (Al Perez under a mask). After the match, a second (and much larger) Scorpion appeared on the stage, claiming to be the "real" Scorpion. The angle would drag on until Starrcade in December, when the "Scorpion" would finally be revealed as Ric Flair.

1991 - Clash of the Champions XVI took place in Augusta, Georgia at the Civic Center, and aired live on TBS. Here are the results of the show, which was nicknamed "Fall Brawl":
- In a dark match, Tommy Rich defeated Joey Maggs.
- El Gigante won a 15-man battle royal.
- Brian Pillman defeated Badstreet.
- United States Champion Sting defeated Johnny B. Badd.
- Ricky Morton defeated Mike Graham.
- The Freebirds (Michael Hayes & Jimmy Garvin) defeated Todd Champion & Firebreaker Chip.
- Ron Simmons defeated The Diamond Stud (Scott Hall).
- Van Hammer defeated Terrance Taylor.
- Television Champion Steve Austin defeated Tom Zenk.
- Arn Anderson & Larry Zbyszko, later nicknamed 'The Enforcers, defeated Rick Steiner & Bill Kazmier in the finals of a tournament to crown new WCW World Tag Team Champions. Previous champions the Steiner brothers had vacated the belts when Scott was sidelined with an injury.

1997 - Donovan Morgan defeats Michael Modest in Hayward, California to win the All-Pro Wrestling Universal Heavyweight Title.

 

[nbpsfc]

September 6th

On this day in history in ....

1972 - The Sheik defeats Seiji Sakaguchi in Tokyo, Japan to win the NWA United National Heavyweight Title. That belt is now part of the All Japan Triple Crown.

1975 - WWWF World Champion Bruno Sammartino defeats Bugsy McGraw & Lou Albano in a handicap match at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

1981 - Ron Bass defeats Greg Valentine to win the NWA Television Title in Ashville, North Carolina, ending Valentine's fourth, and final, run with the belt.

1993 - The Moondogs (Spike& Cujo) defeat The Dogcatchers for the USWA Tag Team Title in Memphis, Tennessee, starting their second reign.

1996 - During a Friday night edition of Raw (due to U.S. Open Tennis) Jim Ross shocks and confuses fans by saying that Razor Ramon and Diesel were in talks to return to the WWF. Kevin Nash and Scott Hall, working for WCW, deny Ross' claim. Ross would repeat the statement again on WWF shows, and would later introduce the "new" Diesel (Glen Jacobs, aka Kane) and "new" Razor Ramon (Rick Bogner, aka Big Titan). Since WWF did own the names and characters of Diesel and Razor Ramon, they were within their rights to have new wrestlers portray the roles. However, the idea was not warmly accepted by the fans.

1997 - Steven Dunn defeats Doomsday (Kane) for the USWA Southern Heavyweight Title in Memphis, Tennessee. He would be the last man to hold the title, as the company would close down two months later.

2002 - At a non-televised event in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, WWE Champion Brock Lesnar defeats World Champion Triple H in a rare bout between the Smackdown and Raw champions. Before the match, it was announced that only Lesnar's title was on the line.

2003 - Toshiaki Kawada defeats Shinjiro Ohtani in a tournament final to win the Triple Crown in Tokyo, Japan. This would begin Kawada's fifth reign as champion, tying for the record of most Triple Crown wins with Mitsuharu Misawa.

2003 - Nigel McGuiness defeats Chad Collyer for the Heartland Wrestling Association Title in Batavia, Ohio.

2005 - WWE tapes the first edition of Friday Night Smackdown in Atlanta, Georgia, with Eddie Guerrero defeating Rey Mysterio in a steel cage match, U.S. Champion Chris Benoit defeating Orlando Jordan with the Crippler Crossface in 22.5 seconds, and World Champion Batista defeated JBL in a bullrope match. Unfortunately, due to a benefit concert pre-empting the show in many markets, WWE's loaded lineup would not be a ratings success.

 

[nbpsfc]

KURT ANGLE'S HALL OF FAME CAREER
by Eric Jenkins @ 11:20:00 AM on 9/5/2006

Gale Sayers played for the Chicago Bears in the NFL for seven seasons, from 1965 through 1971. He led the league in running yards twice, but he didn’t lead the Bears to any championships. He retired after the 1971 season due to injuries and in 1977 was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. On the other hand, Terrell Davis played for the Denver Broncos for seven seasons, from 1995 through 2001. He led the league in rushing once, and he also led the Broncos to two NFL Championships. He retired after the 2001 season due to injuries, but there are some NFL “experts” who feel that Terrell Davis does not belong in the Pro football Hall of Fame because of his abbreviated career, even though he was one of the best at his position during the time that he played.
I mention this because of the situation that currently surrounds Kurt Angle. Kurt Angle debuted in 1998 and has so far had a career that has spanned eight years as of the fall of 2006. During those eight years, Angle has won a total of six World Heavyweight Championships and is currently “released” from his WWE contract so that he can recuperate from his many injuries and put and end to his necessity for pain medication. There has been no indication, from Kurt or anyone else, that Kurt is considering retirement, but if he does, the debates will begin over whether Kurt is Gale Sayers or Terrell Davis.

Gale Sayers was without peers when he played football. Jim Brown had recently retired and Gale Sayers redefined the running back position in the NFL. Terrell Davis had the misfortune of playing in the league during the Barry Sanders era. Barry Sanders was the best back in the league and Terrell Davis was generally considered the next best. The difference between the two is the fact that Davis has championships and Sanders does not.

Kurt Angle is widely regarded as the best all-around performer in professional wrestling today. His interview skills are the equal to anyone else in the business and I have often said that Kurt Angle is the one guy who can get a good match out of anyone. In my “Wrestling’s Starting Lineup” column, I referred to Kurt Angle as “the biggest bat in the lineup”. That is how much I admire the man’s abilities and there are many other wrestling journalists who feel the same. The question is whether or not, if his career is in fact over, he has done enough to gain induction into a Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame.

In the early years of the WWE Hall of Fame, the inductees (except for the members of the celebrity wing) were honored nearly 30 years or more after they made their wrestling debuts. Lately, the most recent inductees are being honored some 20 years after their debut, and if not for injury or death, would still be wrestling. It has been less than 10 years since Angle debuted and, even if WWE waits five years after he leaves the business, it would only be 13 years from his debut date, and this might not be viewed as a long enough career to merit Hall of Fame consideration.

The Hall of Fame is (supposed to be) for the best of the best, and there is no doubt that Kurt Angle is among the best of the best. However, he has not put in the years that most people who have the power to induct nominees generally consider. Eddie Guerrero has the shortest career of any of the WWE Hall-of-Famers, but he was inducted 19 years after his debut.

On the other hand, which wrestlers have done more in their first six years than Kurt Angle? Triple H didn’t win his first world title until year seven and HBK didn’t win his first until year 12. Even the 22-time world champion Ric Flair took ten years to win his first world title. The only person whose credentials could rival Angle’s is The Rock, who also won six world titles in his first six years, but he took three years to win the first while Angle won his first during his rookie year. In addition to this, Angle has the distinction of being the only wrestler to win both the Raw & Smack Down brand World Titles, The United States Title, the Intercontinental Title, The European Title and the Hardcore Title, and all within his first six years. If the Rock, with his two IC titles, his five tag titles with three different partners and his seven world titles is an automatic Hall-of-Famer, then so is Kurt.

I have no doubt that Kurt Angle belongs in the WWE Hall of Fame, but I also feel that Terrell Davis belongs in the NFL Hall of Fame. His style has changed the business and forced the other wrestlers to step their games up if they are in the main event of a show where Angle also has a match, just as Gale Sayers’ style of running changed the NFL. Kurt Angle is often a cut above the rest of the business, and no matter if he did it in six years of twenty, what he has done has never and will never be matched and for these reasons, He would belong in any Hall of Fame that exists…provided that Kurt retires, which I hope (as a selfish fan) that he doesn’t.

 

[nbpsfc]

September 7th

On this day in history in ....

1945 - Buddy Rogers defeats Ted Cox in Houston, Texas to win the NWA Texas Heavyweight Title for the second time.

1956 - Pepper Gomez defeats Gene Kelly (better known as Gene Kiniski) to win the NWA Texas Heavyweight Title in Houston, Texas.

1972 - Seiji Sakaguchi defeats The Sheik in Osaka, Japan to win back the NWA United National Heavyweight Title, which he had lost to The Sheik the night before.

1988 - Clash of the Champions III was held in Albany, Georgia at the Civic Center, and aired live on TBS. Here are the results of the show, nicknamed "Fall Brawl":
- NWA Television Champion Mike Rotundo vs. Brad Armstrong went to a twenty minute draw.
- Steve Williams & Nikita Koloff defeated The Sheepherders.
- Dusty Rhodes defeated Kevin Sullivan when Rhodes pinned manager Gary Hart who interfered, and the referee counted the pin.
- Ricky Morton defeated Ivan Koloff in a Russian Chain match.
- Sting defeated United States Champion Barry Windham via disqualification.

1991 - WWF held their 1991 King Of The Ring tournament at the Civic Center in Providence, Rhodes Island. This would be the final King Of The Ring tournament until 1993, when WWF would bring it back as a PPV event. Outside of local advertising, this tournament wasn't mentioned on WWF television. Interesting to note, this was a matinee event, and all of the wrestlers would work again that night at a house show in Springfield, Massachusetts, so IRS (who lost to Hart in the finals) ended up wrestling five matches that day. Here are the results from the show:
First Round:
- Jerry Saggs defeated Road Warrior Hawk via DQ.
- Ricky Steamboat vs. Ted DiBiase ended in a 15-minute draw.
- Hacksaw Duggan defeated Brian Knobbs.
- IRS defeated The Bezerker via countout.
- Bret Hart defeated Pete Dougherty (subbing for Kerry Von Erich).
- Skinner defeated Virgil.
- Sid Justice defeated The Warlord.
- The Undertaker defeated Road Warrior Animal.
Quarterfinals:
- Jerry Saggs received a bye.
- IRS defeated Hacksaw Duggan.
- Bret Hart defeated Skinner.
- Undertaker vs. Sid Justice ended in a double-DQ.
Semifinals
- Bret Hart received a bye.
- IRS defeated Jerry Saggs.
Finals:
- Bret Hart defeated IRS to become the 1991 King Of The Ring.
Non-tournament match:
- The Beverly Brothers defeated The Bushwhackers.

1994 - Atsushi Onita defeats Mr. Pogo in Sapporo, Japan to win the FMW World Brass Knuckles Heavyweight Title for the third time.

1996 - Reckless Youth defeats Derek Domino to win the NWA North American Heavyweight Title in Yardville, New Jersey when champion Tommy Cairo no-shows his scheduled title defense.

1997 - WWF held their "Ground Zero" Pay-per-view at the Louisville Gardens in Louisville, Kentucky. This was the first "In Your House" event to be presented as a three-hour, rather than discounted two hour, PPV. Here are the results:
- Brian Pillman defeated Goldust to win Marlena for 30 days. If Goldust had won, Pillman would have had to retire. Marlena tried to hit Pillman with her loaded purse, but Pillman blocked it and hit Goldust with the purse to set up the pin. This would be Brian Pillman's final PPV match.
- Brian Christopher defeated Scott Putski via countout. A few minutes into the match, Christopher tossed Putski to the floor and hit a plancha. Putski's leg twisted as he fell down, and he suffered a knee injury. Putski could not get up, so the referee counted him out while Jerry Lawler, at ringside doing commentary, improvised by insulting the injured Putski on the house microphone. Putski would return to the ring, but WWF would never give him a push again.
- Savio Vega defeated Crush and Faarooq in a triangle match. Crush hit Faarooq with a heart punch, but Savio immediately hit Crush with a spin kick and pinned him.
- Max Mini defeated El Torito.
- The Headbangers defeated The Legion of Doom, The Godwinns, and Owen Hart & Davey Boy Smith in a Fatal Four Way to win the vacant WWF World Tag Team Title. The Legion Of Doom were disqualified for using the Godwinn's slop bucket, and The Headbangers defeated The Godwinns, leaving the Headbangers and Hart & Smith as the final two teams. Towards the end, Smith and Thrasher were fighting on the floor, distracting the referee, while Owen was putting Mosh in a Sharpshooter in the ring. Steve Austin ran in, gave Owen a stunner, and Mosh got the pin to win the match and the belts.
- WWF World Heavyweight Champion Bret Hart defeated The Patriot via submission with the Sharpshooter following interference from Davey Boy Smith and Vader.
- Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker ended in a no contest when both men were disqualified for brawling all over the arena. Post-match, as most of the locker room came out and started to brawl, Undertaker did a no-hands dive over the top rope and down the aisle, landing on the pile of wrestlers.

1999 - Two title changes took place at the Smackdown taping in Albany, New York. Davey Boy Smith, making his return to the WWF after several years, defeats Big Bossman for the WWF Hardcore Title, ending his third title reign. After the match, Smith gives the title to Al Snow, starting his third reign, and infuriating Bossman, who was feuding with Snow at the time. In the main event of the show, The Undertaker & Big Show defeat Mankind & The Rock to win the WWF World Tag Team Title in a Buried Alive match when Mankind was buried in the grave.

2004 - At a Smackdown taping in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Rene Dupree & Kenzo Suzuki defeat Paul London & Billy Kidman to win the WWE Tag Team Championship. Here's my original report on the match: London started off with Dupree, hitting a rana and tagging in Kidman for a slingshot legdrop. Suzuki ran in, and was given a double dropkick. Kidman went at it with Dupree, but Dupree caught him in a Kenzo-assisted Hot Shot. Suzuki tagged in and applied an armbar. Kidman came back with a bulldog off the second rope, but Hiroko and Dupree distracted the referee so he wouldn't see Kidman make the tag. London ran in anyway, but Dupree targeted his injured shoulder. Kidman backdropped Dupree to the floor. London hit Suzuki with an enzugiri and Kidman followed with a dropkick. London went to the floor to go after Dupree, and Kidman went for a Shooting Star Press on Suzuki. Kidman got cold feet before doing the move (he had injured Chavo Guerrero with it previously), and climbed down from the top rope. Kidman tagged London, and walked halfway up the aisle. London hit Suzuki with a dropsault, and called for Kidman to come back. Kidman started to head towards the ring, then turned around and walked out of the arena as they went to break. Back from commercial, London was wrestling alone, and Dupree was working on his injured arm (which had been hurt by Heidenreich the previous week after Kidman had walked out of a match). London rallied with a superkick, but Kenzo broke up the cover at two. London gave Suzuki a jawbreaker and kicked him from the ring. Dupree reversed a whip, and Suzuki pulled down the top rope so London would fall to the floor. Suzuki mauled his shoulder, ramming it into the steel ringpost. Dupree hit a Michinoku Driver on London and tagged in Suzuki. Kenzo hit the claw/legsweep combo and got the pin at the ten minute mark.

 

[nbpsfc]

September 11th

On this day in history in ....

1959 - Rey Mendoza (father of Los Villanos) defeats Dory Dixon for the EMLL NWA Light Heavyweight Title in Guadalajara, Mexico.

1967 - Fritz & Waldo Von Erich defeat Brute Bernard & Mike Paidousis to win the NWA American Tag Team Title in Fort Worth, Texas.

1973 - Professor Toru Tanaka & Mr. Fuji defeaed Tony Garea & Haystacks Calhoun for the WWWF World Tag Team Title in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, starting their second reign as champions.

1976 - Wahoo McDaniel defeats Ric Flair in Greenville, North Carolina to win the NWA Mid Atlantic Heavyweight Title, ending Flair's second reign with the belt and starting Wahoo's third run as champion.

1995 - Brian Christopher defeats Billy Jack Haynes for the USWA Southern Heavyweight Title in Memphis, Tennessee, ending Haynes' second reign and starting Christopher's 18th run with the belt.

1995 - The Monday Night Wars officially begin, as WWF Monday Night Raw on USA Network and WCW Monday Nitro on TNT air on the same night for the first time (Nitro debuted the previous week, when Raw was preempted). Nitro scored the first win in the ratings, with a 2.5 to Raw's 2.2. Nitro featured the debut of Sabu (who lost to Alex Wright on a reverse decision when he put him through a table after beating him), Sting defeating V.K. Wallstreet, Randy Savage defeating Scott Norton, and World Champion Hulk Hogan defeating Lex Luger (who jumped from WWF the previous week) via disqualification. Raw offered up Davey Boy Smith defeating Razor Ramon via disqualification, The Smoking Gunns defeating Brooklyn Brawler & Rad Radford (Louie Spicolli), Isaac Yankem (Kane) defeating Scott Taylor (Scotty 2 Hotty), and a main event of Shawn Michaels defeating Sid Vicious.

1997 - Tracey Smothers defeats Bull Pain in Louisville, Kentucky for the IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Title.

1997 - Wrestlefest - 50 Years Of Funk, a card put together by Terry Funk in Amarillo, Texas to celebrate fifty years of the Funk family wrestling in Texas, was held at the Amarillo Fairgrounds Coliseum, drawing almost 4,000 fans to see a show that combined ECW, WWF, Independent and Japanese talent. Here are the results of the show:
- Wing Kanemura defeated Roadkill.
- ECW World Television Champion Taz defeated Chris Candido.
- Shark Tsuchiya defeated Cooga.
- Mark & Chris Youngblood defeated The Bushwackers.
- Balls Mahoney defeated Bubba Ray Dudley.
- ECW World Heavyweight Champion Shane Douglas defeated Tommy Dreamer.
- Dory Funk Jr. defeated Rob Van Dam.
- Mankind defeated Sabu via disqualification.
- Hayabusa, Masato Tanaka & Hakushi defeated Jake Roberts & The Headhunters.
- WWF World Heavyweight Champion Bret Hart defeated Terry Funk. The special referee for the match was Dennis Stamp, who was the opponent in Bret Hart's debut match, which took place in the Funk's old Amarillo territory. Prior to the main event, Terry was presented with a title belt, proclaiming him "lifetime" ECW World Champion.

 

[nbpsfc]

September 12th

On this day in history in ....

1970 - WWWF World Champion Bruno Sammartino defeats Crusher Verdu in a Texas Death match at the Boston Garden in Massachusetts.

1982 - Sgt. Slaughter & Don Kernodle defeated Giant Baba & Antonio Inoki in a tournament final for the NWA World Tag Team Title. Well, not really. This was totally fictitious, as Baba & Inoki weren't even a tag team at the time. This was simply the NWA's way of putting the title on Slaughter & Kernodle after previous tag team champions Ole Anderson & Stan Hansen split up.

1988 - The Samoan Swat Team (Fatu & Samu) defeat John Tatum & Jimmy Jack Funk (Jesse Barr) to win the World Class Championship Wrestling Texas Tag Team Title.

1989 - Clash of the Champions VIII was held in Columbia, South Carolina at the USC Carolina Coliseum. Here are the results:
- The Road Warriors defeated The Samoan Swat Team when Hawk pinned Fatu after a Doomsday Device.
- Tom Zenk defeated The Cuban Assassin via sleeperhold.
- Sid Vicious defeated Ranger Ross.
- NWA World Tag Team Champions The Freebirds (Jimmy Garvin & Michael Hayes) defeated Rick & Scott Steiner.
- Brian Pillman defeated Norman the Lunatic.
- Steve Williams defeated Mike Rotundo.
- United States Champion Lex Luger defeated Tommy Rich.
- Sting & Ric Flair defeated Dick Slater & The Great Muta via disqualification when Terry Funk interfered and tried to choke Ric Flair by putting a plastic bag on his head.

1999 - WCW Fall Brawl was held in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Here are the results:
- Rey Mysterio Jr., Eddie Guerrero & Billy Kidman defeated Vampiro & The Insane Clown Posse when Kidman pinned Vampiro after a Guerrero hit a missile dropkick and Kidman followed with the shooting star press.
- WCW Cruiserweight Champion Lenny Lane defeated Kaz Hayashi with a full nelson into a forward legsweep.
- Hugh Morrus & Brian Knobbs defeated Dean Malenko & Shane Douglas in a no disqualifications match when Morrus pinned Malenko with a moonsault.
- WCW Television Champion Rick Steiner defeated Perry Saturn with a top rope bulldog.
- Berlyn defeated Hacksaw Jim Duggan with a neckbreaker.
- Harlem Heat defeated Barry & Kendall Windham to win the WCW World Tag Team Title when Booker pinned Kendall with a missile dropkick. With this victory, Harlem Heat became the first ever nine-time WCW World Tag Team Champions.
- Sid Vicious defeated Chris Benoit to win the United States Title with a powerbomb after Benoit missed a top rope dropkick.
- Bill Goldberg defeated Diamond Dallas Page with a spear and jackhammer.
- Sting defeated Hulk Hogan to win the WCW World Heavyweight Title with the Scorpion Deathlock after hitting Hogan with a baseball bat. The match saw interference from Bret Hart, Lex Luger, Sid Vicious, and Diamond Dallas Page. This match made Sting a six-time WCW World Champion.

2003 - Takashi Sugiara defeats Michael Modest in Tokyo, Japan to win the Pro Wrestling Noah Junior Heavyweight Title.

2004 - WWE held their Unforgiven PPV. Here is Tim Whitehead's original report on the show:

WWE's Unforgiven (9/12 from Portland, OR) proved to be a thumb's in the middle show from my perspective. There was one real good match and one that was horrible. Everything else was average-to-decent TV type action, including the main event. It was once again clear that they rushed way too fast into the Triple H vs. Randy Orton deal. It was basically standard stuff other than the ladder match. The live crowd was strange. It got hot on occasion but at other times was very cool. Commentary from Jim Ross & Jerry Lawler was fine.

CHRIS BENOIT & WILLIAM REGAL defeated RIC FLAIR & BATISTA in 15:05. Really strange seeing Benoit in an opening match after being RAW World Champion for five months. He went for a crossface early, but Batista made the ropes. Regal tagged in against Batista and they had a major style clash. Flair came in and traded hard chops with Benoit. The live crowd, as always, was into that. Flair took a backdrop. He also took his face-first bump after a series of shots from Benoit. Regal returned, but Flair raked his eyes and chop blocked him. Benoit managed to tag back in and he sent Flair into another face-first bump with an enzuigiri. Benoit tried for the sharpshooter on Batista but he powered out. Flair & Batista cornered Regal and put a beating on him. Flair hooked the figure four. Benoit made the save. Benoit chopped Flair some more and backdropped him again. He did the triple Germans on Flair, and also did one on Batista when he ran in. Benoit put the crossface on Flair, with Batista breaking it up. Batista gave Regal a spinebuster. Regal suffered a busted lip. Batista and Regal ended up fighting out on the floor as Flair laid Benoit out and went for the figure four. Benoit countered it and hooked the crossface. Flair, always the fall guy, submitted. Average opener with decent heat.

Backstage, Christian and Trish Stratus were arguing. Trish wanted Tyson Tomko to accompany her to the ring for her women's title defense, but Christian wanted Tomko to stay backstage with him in case Chris Jericho attacked. Trish said Tomko needed to be out there with her in case she was attacked from behind. Christian said it wouldn't be the first time she's taken it from behind. Tomko didn't know which side to take, but then Trish came on to him and promised some favors to him in the locker room later. Tomko looked at Christian and said, "good luck", as he left with Trish. Christian compained that Trish really is a slut.

TRISH STRATUS defeated VICTORIA in 8:20 to retain the women's title. Victoria did a hip toss. Trish hit some kicks. Victoria dropped Trish across her knee and kicked her out to the floor. Victoria tried to go out after Trish but Tomko protected her. Trish posted Victoria and kicked her hard. Trish scored some twos. Victoria scored twos of her own with a sideslam and a standing moonsault. Victoria headbutted Trish and then made the mistake of doing a plancha onto Tomko out on the floor. Tomko tossed her right back in, where Trish nailed her with the stratusfaction for the pin. An okay women's match, but it had little heat. Afterward, Tomko was planning to slam Victoria but the "mystery woman" ran in and DDT'd him for the save.

TYSON TOMKO beat STEVEN RICHARDS in 6:25. Tomko got on the mic and demanded that the "mystery woman" come out and fight him. To prove he wasn't a complete idiot, he called "her" a cross-dressing hermaphrodite. Poor JR & Lawler had to walk the thin line between pretending not to know the obvious and breaking kayfabe. The "mystery woman" returned and the impromptu match began. Tomko quickly stripped off the dress to reveal a bra & unsexy panty clad Richards. Lawler noted the, uh, bulge in the panties to indicate that the "mystery woman" was a male. The crowd hated this match, and I mean they really hated it. And they were right, because it sucked. Tomko tossed Richards around, seemingly forever, calling him a punk and a big sissy. Richards put a claw hold on Tomko's crotch and rallied briefly. Then, for reasons no one knows, Richards went to pick up his bra (which had fallen off) and Tomko gave him a swinging neckbreaker for the pin. Horrible match.

CHRIS JERICHO defeated CHRISTIAN in a ladder match in 22:28 to win the vacant IC Title. It was announced that no one would be allowed at ringside for this match, to explain Trish & Tomko's absence. They brawled at first. Jericho hit two suplexes. Jericho vaulted Christian high over the top and out to the floor. Jericho threw a ladder at him but the post got in the way and that spot sort of looked bad. Jericho hit an enzuigiri on Christian and successfully hit him with the ladder. They brawled over the rail and into the crowd. Jericho used a cable to choke Christian, which was legal since this match was no-DQ. Christian hit an umprettier on Jericho on the floor, and took the opening to try and climb to retrieve the belt. Jericho pulled him down. Each took turns ramming the other into the ladder. They took some stiff blows here. Christian tried to climb again but Jericho stopped him and then threw the ladder on him. Jericho climbed to the top rope and rode the ladder down onto Christian. That looked scary. Christian recovered and used the ladder on Jericho. Christian started to climb, but came back down when Jericho flipped him off. That spot didn't look all that sensible. Jericho dropkicked the ladder into Christian. He then bulldogged Christian on the ladder and sandwiched him using the ladder. Jericho went for the lionsault and landed on the ladder. He sold his knee big time, and really there's no way to protect yourself on a spot like that. Christian climbed and grabbed the belt but couldn't get it loose. Jericho pulled the ladder away, leaving Christian hanging from the belt. He then used the ladder to knock Christian off for a killer bump. The crowd, which had been amazingly cool for most of this match, erupted into a Y2J chant. Jericho tried to climb. Christian turned the ladder over. Christian went up, and Jericho caught him and put a form of the walls hold on him on the ladder before both bumped off. Jericho went up again and almost got the belt, but he took a seriously dangerous bump when Christian knocked the ladder over. Jericho just missed serious injury when he landed partly on the ladder. Next, both went up separate ladders, and both bumped off hard. Jericho recovered first and climbed to successfully retrieve the belt for the win. Great match and great effort by both guys. Clearly the show's highlight.

Todd Grisham went to Kane's locker room to interview him. Lita came out and ran Kane down, expressing hope that Shawn Michaels would hospitalize him. Kane arrived and informed Lita that Eric Bischoff had made the match a no-DQ bout. He forced a kiss on her and dragged her off to the ring. This begged the eternal question: Why do male wrestlers who are having troubles with their valets, wives, girlfriends, or whatever, take them to the ring with them?

Jonathan Coachman interviewed Jericho, who was clearly in legit pain from his match. He put over being the first ever seven time IC champ. Edge arrived and said Jericho's win was hollow since he didn't beat the champ to get the belt. He promised to take the title back once he heals up. Jericho said he'll be ready.

SHAWN MICHAELS defeated KANE in the no-DQ match in 18:01. Kane started with brawling. The Heartbreak Kid hit a Thesz press and pounded Kane with fists. HBK kicked Kane out to the floor, where Kane went for a lariat but ended up hitting the post. Back in the ring, HBK came off the top but was caught with a fist. Kane hit a lariat, and then went out to argue with Lita, who was cheering for HBK. HBK hit him with a plancha. Kane used Lita as a shield to block further HBK aggression. Kane slammed HBK on the Spanish broadcast desk. The desk didn't break, so Kane slammed him again and this time it did break. Returning to the ring, Kane did his methodical offense, pounding HBK with legdrops and slams, and whipping him into the corner to hurt his bad back. Kane scored some twos. Kane hit a neckbreaker and a lariat. HBK came back with a DDT and a flying forearm. Kane hurled HBK into the corner and he took the Flair flip bump out to the floor. Kane rammed HBK into the stairs and he juiced. Kane got a chair but HBK blocked the shot. Kane hit a big elbow to HBK's face. HBK posted Kane and hit an elbow off the top. The crowd finally started getting into the match, as their pattern seemed to be to wait for the closing minutes to get hot. HBK went for the sweet chin music, but Kane outmaneuvered him and caught him with a boot to the face for a two count. Kane hit a lariat off the top. HBK used a low blow to block a chokeslam. HBK hit Kane with a hard chairshot, but then went down himself, I guess from exhaustion. Kane revived first and got the chair. Lita struggled with him over it, allowing HBK to recover and hit the chin music for the pin. Overall a decent match, especially the closing couple of minutes.

Grisham interviewed HHH, who took full credit for making Randy Orton into a star. It was the standard HHH bragging promo. He said he'll spit in everyone's face the way Orton spat in his.

LA RESISTANCE defeated RHYNO & TAJIRI to retain the RAW World Tag Titles in 9:40. Tajiri and Sylvan Grenier started off with mat action. Rhyno backdropped Rob Conway. Conway evaded the gore. Rhyno got tied up for a while in the heel corner. Tajiri tagged in and kicked Conway hard. Tajiri got doubled on, and the crowd chanted "USA" for him. Rhyno hot tagged and cleaned house. He put Grenier down with a spinebuster, with Conway making the save. The match sort of got lost for the closing minutes. Tajiri hit Grenier in the balls with the Quebec flagpole. Rhyno gored Grenier, but Conway put Grenier's boot on the rope to stop the count. Grenier then hit Rhyno with the flagpole and scored the pin, even though the ref should have seen Grenier tossing the flag away after the blow. Basically, a standard match.

TRIPLE H defeated RANDY ORTON to capture the RAW World Title in 24:43. HHH shoved Orton. Orton slapped him twice. They brawled with fists. Orton hit a backdrop and sent HHH crashing out to the floor. HHH returned and was caught with some uppercuts. HHH hit a chop block, posted Orton, and went after Orton's left knee. HHH worked the knee over for a few minutes in the methodical, old school style. Orton rallied but HHH put him down with a facebuster for a near fall. HHH hooked the figure four. He held it for a long time, with the idea being to put over Orton's toughness, as he didn't submit despite his injured knee. HHH was eventually caught using the ropes for leverage and forced to break the hold. Orton blocked a second attempt by HHH to hook the figure four and sent him careening into the post. HHH juiced. Orton scored twos with a dropkick and a DDT. They traded sleepers. Orton, despite his knee pain, went to the top and hit a high crossbody for a near fall. On the floor, Orton sent HHH into the stairs. Back in the ring, Orton scored a near fall with a neckbreaker. Orton went for the RKO. HHH blocked it and referee Earl Hebner took a bump. HHH went for the pedigree. Orton blocked it and hit the RKO, but of course there was no ref. Flair ran in, with Orton disposing of him. Ditto for Batista. HHH caught Orton with a low blow and Coach ran in wearing a ref shirt to make the count, but Orton kicked out at two. Orton punched Coach. Batista gave Orton a spinebuster. HHH covered him and Coach counted but again it was only two. Orton backdropped HHH and gave Coach an RKO. Flair came in with a chair but Orton RKO'd him. Orton then gave Batista a low blow. HHH, however, caught Orton with a chairshot and then pedigreed him on the chair. Batista revived Hebner and rolled him in to make the count for the title change. I thought this match was okay. It was solid, but slow paced and had little heat until the end, when there was way too much interference. They really rushed into this entire HHH-Orton deal, and this match seemed to take some of the steam out of what strength it had. An okay match, but disappointing as a main event.