This Day In Wrestling History- January 20th

Trivia

1989 – Unified World Heavyweight Champion Jerry Lawler, who held the AWA, CWA, & World Class Titles, is stripped of the AWA title when CWA & the AWA end their relationship

1997 – The Monday Night War continued with WCW Monday Nitro defeating WWF Monday Night RAW 3.7 to 2.2 in the ratings

2014 – The Animal Batista returned to the WWE on Monday Night Raw for the 1st time in nearly 4 years

Events

In 1964, The WWWF holds an event at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York:

– WWWF United States Tag Team Champions Chris & John Tolos defeated Pedro Morales & Miguel Perez in a two out of three falls match
– Roy Heffernan defeated Gino Brito
– Tony Marino defeated Al Costello
– Don McClarity defeated Klondike Bill
– Pancho Lopez & Tiny Tim defeated Fuzzy Cupid & Sky Low Low in a two out of three falls match
– Vittorio Apollo & Bobo Brazil defeated Killer Kowalski & Gorilla Monsoon. Kowalski fell on top of Monsoon, with the referee counting the 3, & awarding the match to Apollo & Brazil
– WWWF World Heavyweight Champion Bruno Sammartino defeated Dr. Jerry Graham

In 1990,  The WWF holds an event at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:
– Earthquake defeated Mark Young
– The Red Rooster defeated Conquistador #1
– Bret Hart defeated Bad News Brown via DQ
– Greg Valentine defeated Ronnie Garvin
– WWF Tag Team Champions The Colossal Connection (Andre the Giant & Haku) defeated Demolition (Ax & Smash) via countout
– Randy Savage defeated Jim Duggan in a Crown match
– WWF Intercontinental Champion the Ultimate Warrior defeated Dino Bravo

In 2002, WWF Royal Rumble was held at the Philips Arena, in Atlanta, Georgia:

– Tazz & Spike Dudley defeated The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray & D-Von) to retain the WWF Tag Team Titles
– William Regal defeated Edge to win the WWF Intercontinental Title
– Trish Stratus defeated Jazz with Jacqueline as special guest referee to retain the WWF Women’s Title
– Ric Flair defeated Vince McMahon in a Street Fight
– Chris Jericho defeated The Rock to retain the WWF Undisputed Title
– Triple H won the Royal Rumble, last eliminating Kurt Angle. Steve Austin set the record for most career eliminations with 36, a record that would stand for 8 years

Title Changes

1948 – Gypsy Joe Dorsetti defeated Billy Hickson to win the Pacific Coast Light Heavyweight Title in Eugene, Oregon

1962 – Fritz Von Goering defeated Billy White Wolf for the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Title

1978 – Carlos Jose Estrada defeated Tony Garea to win the vacant WWF Junior Heavyweight Title

1984 – Killer Khan defeated Archie Gouldie to win the Stampede North American Heavyweight Title in Calgary, Alberta

1989 – Joe Malenko ended Masanobu Fuchi’s 2-year reign as AJPW Junior Heavyweight Champion

1997 – Mitsuharu Misawa defeated Kenta Kobashi to win the AJPW Triple Crown Title

1998 – on Raw, Owen Hart defeated Goldust (dressed as Triple H) to win the WWF European Title. Commissioner Slaughter considers Goldust an official substitute for Triple H & upholds the result

2000 – Chris Michaels defeated Sean Casey to win the OVW Light Heavyweight Title in Jeffersonville, Indiana

2003 – on Raw, William Regal & Lance Storm defeated The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray & D-Von) to win the World Tag Team Titles

Birthdays

Happy birthday to 2-time NWA World Tag Team Champion Firebreaker Chip (52), one-time ROH Tag Team Champion Tony DeVito (43), & former WWE Diva Joy Giovanni (37)

In Memoriam

On this day in 1998, the wrestling world lost WWE Hall of Famer Bobo Brazil at the age of 74. Brazil made his name in the 1950′s, competing against the likes of Killer Kowalski, Ernie Ladd and The Sheik, gaining a reputation as a fluid and impressive mat grappler. By the 60′s, Brazil was regularly challenging for major titles; he came up short against the WWWF’s Bruno Sammartino, but won the NWA World Title by defeating Buddy Rogers (though the NWA currently doesn’t recognize the change). He went on to achieve success in both organizations, winning a combined total of 52 championships in his career, including 7 WWWF United States Titles. In addition to his in-ring duties, Brazil also served as a mentor to Rocky Johnson. He retired in 1994, being inducted into the-then WWF Hall of Fame later in the year. After retiring, he operated a restaurant in his hometown of Benton Harbor, Michigan. He died in hospital after suffering a series of strokes.