This Day In Wrestling History – February 10th
Happy birthday to Lisa Marie Varon (“Tara” in TNA and “Victoria” in WWE).
1979 – Giant Baba defeats Abdullah the Butcher, to win the AJPW/PWF World Heavyweight Championship.
1984 – David Von Erich, while competing for All Japan Pro Wrestling, dies at the age of 25. Despite beliefs that David’s death was due to a drug overdose, it’s ruled a heart attack caused by ruptured intestines, resulting from acute enteritis. David would be posthumously inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2009. Among his accomplishments, he was an 8-time NWA Texas Heavyweight Champion, 2-time Texas Tag Team Champion, and 2-time Six-Man Tag Team Champion.
1990 – Mr. Saito defeats Larry Zbyszko, to win the AWA World Heavyweight Championship. Zbyszko had just won the title three days earlier.
1992 – Kamala wins the vacant USWA Unified World Heavyweight Championship, defeating Koko B. Ware.
1993 – Ric Flair makes his final WWF appearance, at a house show in Germany. Flair’s last TV appearance was on the January 25th Monday Night RAW, where he lost to Mr. Perfect in a “Loser leaves WWF” match.
1996 – Abdullah the Butcher wins the WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship, defeating Mabel.
2000 – On this evening’s SmackDown, Kurt Angle defeats Val Venis, to win the WWF European Championship. It’s Angle’s first singles title in WWF/E.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBTOKC37vhE
2001 – At a house show in St. Paul, MN, the WWF Hardcore Championship changes hands twice. Hardcore Holly pins Raven, to win the title. With the 24/7 Rule, Raven later pins Holly, to reclaim the title.
2003 – Curt Hennig, aka Mr. Perfect, is found dead in a Tampa hotel room after a cocaine overdose. Hennig, age 44 at the time of his death, was 2-time WWF Intercontinental Champion, and a WCW Tag Team & United States Champion. He would be posthumously inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2007.
2007 – On OVW TV, Mike Kruel defeats Boris Alexiev, to win the OVW Television Championship.
2008 – TNA Against All Odds is held in Greenville, SC with 3,500 fans in attendance. In a Six-Man Tag Team Street Fight, the team of Jay Lethal and The Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin) defeat the team of Team 3D (Brother Ray & Brother Devon) with Johnny Devine. The X Division Championship was on the line; Jay Lethal pinned champion Johnny Devine, to become the new X Division Champion. Kurt Angle retains the TNA World Heavyweight Championship after defeating Christian Cage; Samoa Joe served as special outside enforcer.
2009 – On a live edition of ECW on Sci Fi, Christian makes his return to WWE. Christian had not been in WWE since 2005. He would challenge ECW Champion Jack Swagger to a match, and would defeat Swagger in the main event later that night.
2010 – Petey Williams and Lance Hoyt are released by TNA.
2013 – Koji Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka win the AJPW All Asia Tag Team Championship, defeating Hikaru Sato and Hiroshi Yamato.
2014 – Betty White, age 92, guest stars this evening’s Monday Night RAW. During the show, it’s announced that Lita would be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. Lita was a 4-time WWF/E Women’s Champion.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO: 5-time TNA Knockouts Champion (as Tara) & 2-time WWE Women’s Champion (as Victoria) Lisa Marie Varon (46 years old); 2-time GHC Junior Heavyweight Champion Taiji Ishimori (34 years old); 3-time ECWA Tag Team Champion Chris Rockwell (32 years old); and current SHIMMER Tag Team Champion Vanessa Kraven (35 years old).
Today would’ve been the 62nd birthday for former WCWA World Heavyweight Champion Chris Adams. Today would’ve been the 46th birthday for WWF, WCW, & ECW wrestler Louie Spicolli.
SOURCES: WrestleView, David Von Erich on Wikipedia, wrestlingdata.com, The Internet Wrestling Database, gerweck.net
