This Day In Wrestling History – August 17th

Happy birthday to Cheerleader Melissa!!

1968 – Dr. X defeats Verne Gagne, to win the AWA World Heavyweight Championship.  Also, Mike DiBiase defeats Bob Ellis, to win the AWA Midwest Heavyweight Championship.

1985 – Eric Embry defeats Super Medico I, to win the WWC Puerto Rico Heavyweight Championship.

1986 – Nikita Koloff defeats Magnum T.A. 4-falls-to-3, in a Best-of-Seven series, to win the vacant NWA United States Championship.

1987 – Nikita Koloff defeats Tully Blanchard, to win the NWA World Television Championship.  Elsewhere, George Barnes defeats Bill Dundee, to win the AWA International Heavyweight Championship.

1992 – Jerry Lawler & Jeff Jarrett defeat The Moondogs (Cujo & Spot), to win the USWA World Tag Team Championship.

1997 – ECW’s Hardcore Heaven is held in Fort Lauderdale, FL in front of 1,800 fans.  This was the third Hardcore Heaven event, but the first to air on PPV.  It was ECW’s second-ever pay-per-view overall.

– Taz defeats Chris Candido, to retain the ECW World Television Championship.
– Bam Bam Bigelow defeats Spike Dudley.
– Rob Van Dam (with Bill Alfonso) defeats Al Snow.
– The Dudley Boyz (Buh Buh Ray & D-Von) are awarded the ECW World Tag Team Championship, as The Gangstas (Mustapha Saed & New Jack) forfeit the titles due to Mustapha leaving ECW prior to the pay-per-view.
– The Dudley Boyz (Buh Buh Ray & D-Von) defeat PG-13 (JC Ice & Wolfie D), to retain the ECW World Tag Team Championship.
– Tommy Dreamer (with Beulah McGillicutty) defeats Jerry Lawler.
– In a Three-Way Dance, Shane Douglas defeats Sabu and Terry Funk, to win the ECW World Heavyweight Championship.

1997 – Trailer Park Trash defeats Vic The Bruiser, to become the inaugural NWA-OVW Heavyweight Champion.

1998 – In the Monday Night Wars, WCW Monday Nitro (4.9 TV rating) beats WWF RAW IS WAR (4.2 rating).  This episode of Nitro featured the debut of The Warrior.

1999 – Rob Conway defeats Damaja, to win the NWA-OVW Heavyweight Championship.  Also, Sean Casey defeats Johnny Spade, to win the OVW Light Heavyweight Championship.

2002 – At a house show in Terre Haute, IN, the WWE Hardcore Championship gets passed from Tommy Dreamer, to Raven, to Shawn Stasiak, and back to Dreamer (via the 24/7 Rule).

2003 – Hiroyoshi Tenzan defeats Jun Akiyama, via submission, to win the NJPW G1 Climax Tournament.

2008 – Hirooki Goto defeats Togi Makabe, to win the the G1 Climax Tournament.

2008 – WWE’s 21st annual SummerSlam is held in Indianapolis, in front of 15,997 fans.  To date this is the last SummerSlam held somewhere other than Los Angeles or Brooklyn.

Dark Match:
– Big Show defeats Bam Neely.
Summerslam:
– MVP defeats Jeff Hardy.
– In a Winners Take All Mixed Tag Team Match, Glamarella (Santino Marella & Beth Phoenix) defeat Kofi Kingston & Mickie James, to win the WWE Intercontinental Championship for Marella and the WWE Womens Championship for Phoenix
– Matt Hardy defeats Mark Henry (with Tony Atlas) via disqualification;  Henry retains the ECW Championship.
– CM Punk defeats John Bradshaw Layfield, to retain the World Heavyweight Championship.
– Triple H defeats The Great Khali (with Ranjin Singh), to retain the WWE Championship.
– Batista defeated John Cena, in the first-ever one-one-one match between the two.
– The Undertaker defeats Edge, in a Hell In A Cell Match.

2009 – Hiroshi Tanahashi vacates the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, after suffering a fractured eye socket.

2009 – Freddie Prinze, Jr. guest-hosts Monday Night RAW from St. Louis.

2013 – At Ring of Honor’s Manhattan Mayhem V event, reDRagon (Bobby Fish & Kyle O’Reilly) defeat The American Wolves (Davey Richards & Eddie Edwards) to win the ROH World Tag Team Championship.

2014 – WWE’s 27th annual SummerSlam is held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, in front of 17,357 fans.

Pre-Show:
– Rob Van Dam defeats Cesaro.
SummerSlam:
– Dolph Ziggler defeats The Miz, to win the WWE Intercontinental Championship.
– On her 22nd birthday, Paige defeats AJ Lee, to win the WWE Divas Championship.
– In a Flag Match, Rusev (with Lana) defeats Jack Swagger (with Zeb Colter), via technical submission.
– Seth Rollins defeats Dean Ambrose, in a Lumberjack Match
– Bray Wyatt defeats Chris Jericho;  Erick Rowan & Luke Harper were banned from ringside.
– Stephanie McMahon defeats Brie Bella.
– Roman Reigns defeats Randy Orton.
– Brock Lesnar (with Paul Heyman) defeats John Cena easily, to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.  Lesnar performed 16 German Suplexes and two F-5’s on Cena.

2016 – Both Paige and her boyfriend Alberto Del Rio each receive 30-day suspensions from WWE, for their first violations of the company’s Wellness Policy.  Del Rio would not return to WWE, deciding to opt out of his contract a couple weeks later.  His final WWE television appearance was one night earlier on SmackDown Live, losing to John Cena.  Paige is still with WWE, though she has not performed since June 2016, due to neck surgery and a second suspension for violating WWE’s Wellness Policy.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO:  Inaugural NXT Women’s Champion & 2-time WWE Divas Champion Paige (25 years old);  2-time SHIMMER Champion Cheerleader Melissa (35 years old);  current Tokyo Intercontinental Tag Team Champion Dick Togo (48 years old);  7-time ‘Open the Triangle Gate’ Champion & 6-time ‘Open the Twin Gate’ Champion Susumu Yokosuka (39 years old);  former ROH, TNA, & NXT wrestler Magno (33 years old);  Ring of Honor’s Jenny Rose (26 years old);  Mexico indy wrestler Eduard Punk (23 years old);  Australian wrestler Casey Hanson (31 years old);  WrestleMania X guest ring announcer Donnie Wahlberg (48 years old);  and current USWA (United States Wrestling Alliance) Heavyweight Champion Jon Davis (38 years old).

Today would’ve been the 56th birthday for 2-time AWA Southern Heavyweight Champion Buddy Landel.