Today In Pro Wrestling History: June 7th

Well, even I’m intrigued by what popped up for today. There’s quite a bit of unique flavor, a little bit of something for everyone and the events range from the 80s all the way to last year. So we’re not stuck in too much of a time capsule! Let’s see what made the list!

• NJPW IWGP & WWF Champion Series: Andre the Giant vs Tatsumi Fujinami (1985)

In a similar vein to the 1983 Hulk Hogan victory, this tournament is the precursor to the G1 and the belt awarded was a ceremonial, tournament belt, not the official IWGP Heavyweight Championship. During the cross promotional dealings, NJPW ran their IWGP Tournament with WWF and UWA wrestlers. This was the finals of the tournament, with a very obvious David vs Goliath story telling. The crowd was solidly behind their home countryman, Fujinami’s near falls earned very notable reactions from the crowd. But Andre was just too much to overcome, and he became the winner of the 1985 International Wrestling Grand Prix.

• AAA Triplemania VI (1998)

To me, there were two big moments here that I couldn’t choose between. The generational father and son tag team of Perro Aguayo & Perro Aguayo Jr defeated Fuerza Guerrera & Mosco de la Merced for the Mexican National Tag Team Championship. We also saw a proxy war in the Lucha de Apuestas Hair vs Hair match. Heavy Metal faced Kick Boxer, but not for their own hair. Kick Boxer being the heel wrestled on behalf of El Tirantes and Heavy Metal fought on behalf of his actual father, Pepe Casas. After massive cheating, Kick Boxer ended up defeating Heavy Metal, forcing Pepe Casas, his father, to suffer the embarrassment of having his head shaved. This fueled the blood feud that went all the way Triplemania VII.

• NWA 60th Anniversary Show: Rock ‘n’ Roll Express vs Midnight Express w/Jim Cornette  (2008)

This entire show was a nostalgia walk, with Sid Vicious, Abdullah the Butcher and Blue Demon Jr. But one more classic run between the two Express teams, was a major selling point. Even though both teams were well past their primes, their classic psychology mixed with the fact this was the last time they’d square off two on two with Jim Cornette in the Midnight’s corner, it added that classic 80s feel. Even with Cornette’s interference, the Rock ‘n’ Roll fought back, hit their Double Dropkick, and came out victorious. A happy ending, for one of the classic wrestling rivalries.

• WWE Extreme Rules (2009)

Regardless of how we look back on some aspects now, Tommy Dreamer winning the WWECW Championship at this event was seen as something pivotal since Dreamer became the only person to ever hold the original ECW Heavyweight Championship and this WWE version. Chris Jericho defeated Rey Mysterio in a grueling No Holds Barred match for the Intercontinental Championship, but that’s not the highlight reel moment from this event. After a great ladder match against Edge, Jeff Hardy feel victim to a Cash In. CM Punk came out to pick the bones, and easily became a villain at the time. With this, Punk became the first person in WWE history to successfully cash in twice.

• AAA Verano de Escandalo (2014)

Another show with two big moments that I couldn’t choose between. This show was the debut of Myzteziz, the AAA incarnation of Mistico/Sin Cara. Since CMLL was playing trademark games, they didn’t want the original back when they already moved on with a new Mistico. So out of a little spite and opportunity, Myzteziz returned to Mexico to a huge reaction. Even though Sin Cara was a complete joke, Mexico remembered when he was the most lucrative luchador in recent memory. The second event was the main event. Psycho Clown challenged El Texano Jr for the Mega Championship. This match had deep family ties where a few years prior, El Terrible and Texano defeated Super Porky and Maximo in a Lucha de Apuestas match, Psycho Clown’s father and brother respectively. Texano continued his rudo ways, and cheated to win the match against Psycho. This lead to their Triplemania XXII  Mask vs Hair match, the feud ran deeper than the title, Psycho wanted Texano’s pride, not the belt.

• DDT Wrestle Peter Pan: KO-D Openweight Championship: Masato Tanaka (c) vs Tetsuya Endo (2020)

DDT is always a crapshoot when it comes to if the match is going to be interesting or moronic comedy. But this had some fun wrinkles. Tanaka is representing Zero1 at this time, but his veteran edge, ECW experience and overall badass persona are nearly unrivaled in the Japanese scene in modern times. Tanaka was beating DDT’s top talent with ease for the past 6 months. Tetsuya Endo had a roller coaster year already. He won the “Right to Challenge Anytime, Anywhere” sword. Much like most cash in items, this was an item that could be wagered. He lost it in the previous month to Kazusada Higuchi and had to utilize a different opportunity to reclaim it before this match. Given his tumultuous year, he wasn’t expected to be able to put down the dominant hardened veteran. In a tremendous match, Endo barely survived the Sliding D and managed to finish Tanaka off with Back to Back Shooting Star Presses. A great match at the height of the pandemic, with great in-ring psychology and general storytelling.

• WWE Money In The Bank: Ladder Match: Seth Rollins vs Solo Sikoa vs Andrade vs OG El Grande Americano vs Penta vs LA Knight (2025)

While some people may think this will be about Seth becoming only the second person to win the Money in the Bank Ladder match, I think we all know what the real big moment here was. “I Hate You Solo”, stole the momentum of any finish. What could’ve been a crowning achievement for Solo’s Bloodline, turned into the coming out party for the Werewolf we’ve all grown to love. Jacob Fatu made a huge impression on the crowd as soon as he debuted and everyone was chomping at the bit for when he’d finally break away. The crowd pop was insane for Jacob turning on Solo, and has given everyone a new savage Samoan to rally behind since Umaga.

Family matters, Cash In…and Cash In adjacent threads, and even some classic Andre being Andre. This was definitely a day I enjoyed more than many others, since this presented options and moments with weight. Gotta love when days are kind to articles like this.

How tight were the nostalgia goggles? Am I ignoring companies that you’re passionate about? Make your thoughts known and Always Use Your Head!