This Day In Wrestling History – April 12th
1958 – Verne Gagne defeated Dick the Bruiser to win the Chicago/Detroit NWA United States Heavyweight Championship. Gagne carries the physical title and splits it into the new Minneapolis Version. It would be carried over to, and renamed, the AWA United States Championship in 1960. Gagne held the title until he won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship on August 16, 1960.
1970 – Bill Watts defeats The Spoiler, to win the NWA (Tri-State) North American Heavyweight Championship.
1976 – Don Leo Jonathan & Jimmy Snuka defeat Gene Kiniski & Siegfried Steinke, to win the NWA (Vancouver) Canadian Tag Team Championship.
1977 – Fritz Von Erich defeats Bruiser Brody, to win the NWA American Heavyweight Championship.
1980 – The Wild Samoans (Afa & Sika) defeat Ivan Putski & Tito Santana, to win the WWF Tag Team Championship.
1983 – Ron Bass & Stan Hansen defeat Giant Baba & Jumbo Tsuruta, to win the NWA International Tag Team Championship.
1987 – In the Universal Wrestling Federation, Sting & Rick Steiner defeat Terry Taylor & Chris Adams, to win the UWF Tag Team Championship.
1987 – Mike Von Erich dies at the age of 23, after overdosing on alcohol and Placidyl (sleeping pills).
1990 – The Lightning Kid (Sean Waltman) defeats Matt Derringer, to win the Pro Wrestling America Light Heavyweight Championship. Over in Championship Wrestling from Florida, Robert Fuller & Kendall Windham defeat Brian Knobbs & Jerry Sags, to win the CWF Tag Team Championship.
1991 – Eric Embry defeats Bill Dundee, to win the USWA Texas Heavyweight Championship.
1997 – Kensuke Sasaki & Riki Choshu defeat Kengo Kimura & Tatsumi Fujinami, to win the IWGP Tag Team Championship.
1997 – King Reginald defeats Jerry Lawler, to win the USWA Unified World Heavyweight Championship.
1999 – In the Monday Night Wars, WWF RAW IS WAR (6.3 TV rating) beats WCW Monday Nitro (4.4 rating). On RAW, The Godfather defeats Goldust, to win the WWF Intercontinental Championship.
2001 – On this evening’s SmackDown, Jeff Hardy defeats Triple H, to win the WWF Intercontinental Championship (video below). It’s Jeff’s first singles championship in the WWF.
2002 – At a house show in Amarillo, TX, the WWF Hardcore Championship changes hands several times via the 24/7 Rule. William Regal pins Bubba Ray Dudley – Spike Dudley pins Regal – Goldust pins Spike – Bubba Ray pins Goldust. Each counts as a separate title reign.
2003 – B-Boy defeats Sonjay Dutt, to win Combat Zone Wrestling’s Best of the Best Tournament.
2008 – The Briscoe Brothers (Jay & Mark) defeat The No Remorse Corps (Rocky Romero & Davey Richards), to win the ROH World Tag Team Championship.
2009 – Minoru Suzuki wins the AJPW Champion Carnival tournament, defeating Kaz Hayashi in the finals.
2010 – David Hasselhoff is the guest host of this evening’s RAW, being held in London. One title change occurs; Eve Torres defeats Maryse, to win the WWE Divas Championship for the first time.
2014 – Drake Younger defeats Biff Busick, to win the Combat Zone Wrestling Best of the Best Tournament.
2014 – Yoshinari Ogawa & Zack Sabre, Jr. defeat Atsushi Kotege & Taiji Ishimori, to win the GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship.
2016 – One day after celebrating his 44th birthday, former ECW Tag Team Champion Balls Mahoney dies at his New Jersey home, after suffering a sudden heart attack.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO: 3-time SMW Heavyweight Champion The Dirty White Boy (57 years old); 3-time AAA Campeon des Campeones Champion Cibernetico (42 years old); 5-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion Ryusuke Taguchi (38 years old); former IWGP Heavyweight Champion Nobuhiko Takada (55 years old); 4-time AJPW All Asia Tag Team Champion Mighty Inoue (68 years old); host of WWE Experience on Sportsnet 360 Jackie Redmond (31 years old); former ROH wrestler Josh Raymond (33 years old); and former CMLL World Heavyweight Champion El Terrible (41 years old).
SOURCES: gerweck.net, The Internet Wrestling Database, wrestlingdata.com
