This Day In Wrestling History – December 16th
Happy birthday to Luke Harper! (photo credit: World Wrestling Entertainment)
1988 – Terry Gordy and Stan Hansen win All Japan Pro Wrestling’s World Strongest Tag Determination League, and are awarded the vacant AJPW World Tag Team Championship.
1990 – WCW Starrcade ’90 is held in St. Louis in front of 7,200 fans. The Steiner Brothers win the Pat O’Connor Memorial International Cup Tag Team Tournament; the Steiners defeat Mr. Saito and The Great Muta in the finals. Lex Luger becomes the new NWA United States Heavyweight Champion after defeating Stan Hansen in a Texas Bullrope Match. In the main event, Sting defeats The Black Scorpion, in a Steel Cage Match, to retain the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.
1996 – In the Monday Night Wars, WCW Monday Nitro (3.2 TV rating) beats WWF Monday Night Raw (2.3 rating).
2004 – Daniel Pruder wins Season 4 of WWE Tough Enough. Pruder wins a prize of $1,000,000 paid out over a four-year period; only the first year was guaranteed money. Pruder would be released by WWE in September 2005.
2005 – On this evening’s Friday Night SmackDown, Batista and Rey Mysterio become the new WWE Tag Team Champions, defeating MNM (Joey Mercury and Johnny Nitro).
2007 – WWE Armageddon is held in Pittsburgh in front of 12,500 fans. Jeff Hardy defeats Triple H, to become #1 contender for the WWE Championship at Royal Rumble ’08. In the main event, Edge becomes the new World Heavyweight Champion, defeating Batista and The Undertaker in a Triple Threat Match.
2009 – Christy Hemme retires from in-ring competition. Hemme had won WWE’s Diva Search 2004 and was named TNA’s “Knockout of the Year” in 2006.
2010 – On this evening’s episode of Impact!, Jay Lethal defeats Robbie E, to win the TNA X Division Championship for the 6th time.
2012 – At Ring of Honor Final Battle 2012: Doomsday, Jay and Mark Briscoe win a Three-Way Tag Team match, to become the new ROH World Tag Team Champions; the Briscoe Brothers defeat previous champions SCUM (Jimmy Jacobs and Steve Corino) and the team of Caprice Coleman and Cedric Alexander. In the main event, Kevin Steen defeats El Generico, in a Ladder Match, to retain the ROH World Championship.
2012 – WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders, & Chairs is held in Brooklyn in front of 15,748 fans. Team Rhodes Scholars (Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow) defeat Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara, in a Tables Match, to become #1 contenders for the Tag Team Championship. Big Show defeats Sheamus, in a Chairs Match, to retain the World Heavyweight Championship. In the main event, Dolph Ziggler defeats John Cena, in a Ladder Match, with Ziggler’s World Heavyweight Championship Money In the Bank contract on the line.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO: Wyatt Family member & current WWE SmackDown Tag Team Champion Luke Harper (37 years old); AAA performer Psycho Clown (31 years old); former WWF/ECW wrestler & CZW Tag Team Champion Men’s Teioh (50 years old); former CZW Junior Heavyweight Champion Jigsaw (33 years old); former WWF & NJPW wrestler The Sledgehammer (51 years old); and WWE Hall of Fame 2006 Inductee / Super Bowl Champion with the 1985 Chicago Bears William “The Refrigerator” Perry (54 years old). Perry participated in the WWF vs NFL 20-Man Battle Royal, at WrestleMania 2 (1986). Video of Perry’s WWE Hall of Fame Induction Speech is below.
