Today In Pro Wrestling History: April 29th

As April winds down, we get a pretty historically significant day. Two moments that will go down in pro wrestling history for as long as its a fandom and some fun events sandwiched between. Time to get to the good stuff!

• AJW Tokyo Show (1991)

I like to find the classic All Japan Women’s Joshi matches that many have probably overlooked. This was during Bull Nakano’s 1,057 day title reign as the WWWA Women’s Champion. Her match with Monster Ripper (aka Bertha Faye) is a classic that cemented Bull as the Ace of the bridge generation from Beauty Pair, Lioness Asuka, Jaguar Yokota and Dump Matsumoto. We also saw Akira Hokuto win the All Pacific Championship in a tremendous match that positioned her right behind Bull in the grand scheme of Joshi. Manami Toyota and Aja Kong were also on the undercard given the fact they were still fairly new into their careers and only starting to show signs of taking the flag for the next generation. A wonderfully pivotal show.

• WCW/NJPW Collision In Korea (1995)

This is the second day, and the wrestling show with the highest recorded attendance in all of pro wrestling history at 190,000. This had great political influence for Antonio Inoki when it came to strengthening Japanese and North Korean tensions, as well as showing filial piety since Inoki paid his respects to Rikidozan’s birthplace during the tour. Ric Flair versus Antonio Inoki is the match that had the most attention, but everything about this was unprecedented. Shinya Hashimoto, the Steiner Brothers and even Muhammad Ali showed up for the spectacle. History is undeniable when it comes to this event.

• WWF Backlash (2001)

Well, where to begin with this show. This was the first show where WWF officially had no domestic competition, we got Shane McMahon’s giant leap into the Big Show for their Last Man Standing Match, and a grueling Ultimate Submission Iron Man Match between Benoit and Kurt Angle. That’s also not to bury the main event which was a winner takes all match between the Two-Man Power Trip and Brothers of Destruction. Power Trip won becoming only the second duo since Diesel and Shawn Michaels to hold the Intercontinental, WWF and Tag Team titles simultaneously. A lot of history packed into a normal monthly PPV.

• WWE Backlash (2007)

Another Backlash with surprising amounts of relevance. Undertaker and Batista had their infamous “pyrotechnics” spot which caused the match to effectively end in a draw to extend the feud. The Fatal 4 Way where Shawn hits Sweet Chin Music for Cena to fall limp onto Randy Orton and retain, was a clever and unique finish at the time. But here comes the real reason this show is here, this was Vince McMahon’s ECW World Championship win. The 3 on 1 Handicap match against Bobby Lashley gave Vince his only…I guess, semi-legit run as a champion. Sure he won the WWF Title in 1999, but he vacated it a few days later. This reign lasted about a month and he defended it. While people don’t look fondly upon WWECW, remember, this is memorable and historic things…not solely “good” things.

• WWE Extreme Rules (2012)

Primarily on here for being the return of Brock Lesnar after 8 years, the show in general is often cited as one of the best WWE PPVs historically. A lot of really good action, including a Chicago Street fight between Chris Jericho and CM Punk, about half way through his fan lauded 434 day reign. While not an earthquake of historical events, still memorable to many fans.

• Sendai Girls Meiko Satomura The Final (2025)

This had to make the list because thanks to her NXT UK run, more western fans were exposed to the brilliance of the original “Final Boss”. Meiko getting to retire in the company she founded 20 years prior, is a big deal. The retirement match was a tag match, Meiko teamed with her 20 year old student Manami against Chihiro Hashimoto (current powerhouse Ace of Sendai Girls) and Aja Kong (long time rival). There was a clash of past, present and future, so the symbolism ran deep with this match. After the match, Aja and Meiko joined forces for a 5 minute exhibition Gauntlet, where the legends fought the new generation to an auspicious draw. Good symbolism and great history involved in this event.

Bookending the article with Joshi as well as Aja Kong toward the beginning of her career and nearing the end, is a cute thread. I am also very surprised at how many B Level WWE events have had some major things happen this month. Wrestling certainly is an interesting little sub culture when it comes down to things of significance.

Which significant events did I miss? Which one is your favorite? Let us know in the comments. And if you don’t do anything else today, remember, Always Use Your Head!