This Day In Wrestling History – February 19th

Happy birthday to ‘The Perfect 10!!’

1978 – Stan Frazier & Terry Sawyer defeat The Bicentennial Kings (Dennis Condrey & Phil Hickerson), to win the NWA Mid-Southern Tag Team Championship.

1994 – In Smoky Mountain Wrestling, The Heavenly Bodies (Jimmy Del Ray & Tom Prichard) defeat The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express (Robert Gibson & Ricky Morton), to win the SMW Tag Team Championship.  The Express had just defeated The Heavenly Bodies the night before, to win the tag team titles.

1995 – WCW SuperBrawl V is held in Baltimore in front of 13,390 fans.

Airing on WCW Main Event:
– Paul Orndorff defeats Brad Armstrong.
– Stars & Stripes (Marcus Bagwell & The Patriot) defeat Romeo Valentino & Dino Casanova.
– In a Lumberjack Match, Arn Anderson defeats Johnny B Badd, to retain the WCW World Television Championship.
SuperBrawl PPV:
– Alex Wright defeats Paul Roma.
– ‘Hacksaw’ Jim Duggan defeats Bunkhouse Buck.
– Kevin Sullivan defeats Dave Sullivan.
– WCW World Tag Champs Harlem Heat (Booker T & Stevie Ray) defeat The Nasty Boys (Brian Knobbs & Jerry Sags), disqualification. Harlem Heat retain their titles.
– The Blacktop Bully defeats Dustin Rhodes.
– Sting & Randy Savage defeat Big Bubba Rogers & Avalanche.
– World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan defeats Vader via disqualification, to retain the title.

1995 – Koji Kanemoto defeats Norio Honaga, to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship.

1996 – In the Monday Night Wars, WWF Monday Night RAW (3.1 TV rating) beats WCW Monday Nitro (2.9 rating).

1999 – In a Four-Way Match, Xochitl Hamada defeats Miss Janeth, Rossy Moreno, and Esther Moreno, to become the inaugural AAA Reina de Reinas Champion.

2000 – On this evening’s WCW Saturday Night, ‘Hacksaw’ Jim Duggan pulls the discarded WCW World Television Championship out of a trash bag.  Duggan had found the title in a dumpster while working as a WCW janitor. Scott Hall had won the title at the Mayhem pay-per-view on November 21, 1999 and threw it into a trash can, during the November 29th Monday Nitro.  Duggan names himself the new Television Champion.

Duggan would retain the title up until WCW’s “reboot,” on the April 10th Nitro.  While the other championship belts were vacated and handed over to Eric Bischoff and Vince Russo, the Television Title would be retired.

2001 – In the Monday Night Wars, WWF RAW IS WAR (4.8 TV rating) beats WCW Monday Nitro (2.0 rating).

2005 – At Ring of Honor’s Third Anniversary Celebration: Part 1, B.J. Whitmer & Dan Maff defeat Ricky Reyes & Rocky Romero, to win the ROH World Tag Team Championship.

2006 – WWE No Way Out, a SmackDown-branded pay-per-view, is held in Baltimore in front of 11,000 fans.

Sunday Night Heat:
– The Boogeyman defeats Simon Dean.
No Way Out PPV:
– In the nine-man Cruiserweight Open, Gregory Helms defeats Brian Kendrick, Kid Kash, Funaki, Nunzio, Paul London, Psicosis, Scotty 2 Hotty, and Super Crazy, to retain the WWE Cruiserweight Championship.
– JBL defeats Bobby Lashley.
– Matt Hardy & Tatanka defeat MNM (Joey Mercury & Johnny Nitro).
– Chris Benoit defeats Booker T, via submission, to win the WWE United States Championship.
– Randy Orton defeats Rey Mysterio, to become the #1 contender for the World Heavyweight Championship, at WrestleMania 22.
– Kurt Angle defeats The Undertaker, to retain the World Heavyweight Championship.

2006 – El Samurai & Ryusuke Taguchi defeat Hirooki Goto & Minoru, to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship.  In a Title vs Title Match, Tiger Mask IV defeats Black Tiger IV, to retain the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship AND win Black Tiger’s IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship.

2007 – WWE announces that ‘Mr. Perfect’ Curt Hennig will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.

2007 – Two title changes occur on this evening’s Monday Night RAW. Umaga defeats Jeff Hardy, to win the WWE Intercontinental Championship.  And Melina defeats Mickie James, to win the WWE Women’s Championship. Melina, who competed on Tough Enough III in 2002, is the first Tough Enough contestant to hold the Women’s Championship.

2010 – Shannon Moore signs a contract with TNA Wrestling.

2012 – On FCW TV, The Rotundos (Bo Rotundo & Husky Harris) defeat Brad Maddox & Eli Cottonwood, to win the FCW Florida Tag Team Championship.

2012 – WWE Elimination Chamber is held in Milwaukee in front of 15,306 fans.

Dark Match:
– Hunico defeats Alex Riley.
Elimination Chamber PPV:
– In the first Elimination Chamber Match, CM Punk defeats Dolph Ziggler, Chris Jericho, The Miz, Kofi Kingston, and R-Truth, to retain the WWE Championship.
– Beth Phoenix defeats Tamina Snuka, to retain the Divas Championship.
– In the second Elimination Chamber Match, Daniel Bryan defeats Big Show, Cody Rhodes, Santino Marella, Wade Barrett, and The Great Khali, to retain the World Heavyweight Championship.
– Jack Swagger defeats Justin Gabriel, via submission, to retain the United States Championship.
– John Cena defeats Kane, in an Ambulance Match.

2012 – WWE developmental wrestler Taylor Rotunda (now known as Bo Dallas on RAW) is arrested by Temple Terrace, FL police at 2:36am for drunk driving.  He was given two breathalyzer tests and blew a .166 & a .178.  Both are more than double the legal limit in Florida.

2013 – Due to her pregnancy, Sexy Star vacates the AAA Reina de Reinas Championship.

2016 – The AAA World Mixed Tag Team Championship is vacated by Pentagon Jr.  This comes two weeks after his partner, Sexy Star, had announced she was relinquishing her half of the title.

2016 – Day One of Honor Rising: Japan 2016 is held in Tokyo, Japan in front of 1,367 fans. This was a two-day supershow co-produced by New Japan Pro Wrestling and Ring of Honor. In the main event of day one, NJPW’s Tomohiro Ishii would defeat ROH’s Roderick Stong, to win Strong’s ROH World Television Championship.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO:  former ECW wrestler Tommy Cairo (60 years old); former ECW World Tag Team Champion Danny Doring (44 years old); SmackDown’s Tye Dillinger (37 years old); WWE Cruiserweight ‘Gentleman’ Jack Gallagher (age unknown);  former ECW manager Francine (46 years old); former CZW & WSU Tag Team Champion, David Starr (27 years old);  and former CHIKARA Doubles Champion & former WXW Women’s Champion, Solo Darling (31 years old).

Today would’ve been the 70th birthday for WWE Hall of Famer, Big John Studd.