This Day in Wrestling History (January 27 & 28)

111 years and a day ago today in Bellingham, Washington, Frank Gotch defeated Tom Jenkins to win the American Heavyweight Championship.

34 years and a day ago today in Raleigh, North Carolina, Roddy Piper defeated Ric Flair to win the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship. With the win, Piper had to vacate the NWA World Television Championship he had won from The Masked Superstar almost three months earlier.

29 years and a day ago today in New York City, Randy Savage defeated WWF Champion Hulk Hogan via countout. The two would have a much more famous battle three years later that would at the time be the most-watched wrestling event in PPV history when they met for the WWF Championship at Wrestlemania V.

25 years and a day ago today, WWF airs the 25^th episode of Saturday Night's Main Event (WWE Network link) from the UTC Arena in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The episode was taped January 3.

• Randy Savage defeated Jim Duggan.
• Hulk Hogan & The Ultimate Warrior defeated Mr. Perfect & The Genius.
• Jake Roberts defeated Greg Valentine by disqualification.
• Dusty Rhodes and Rick Rude fought to a double count-out.
• Dino Bravo defeated Ronnie Garvin.

23 years and a day ago today, WWF tapes the 30^th edition of Saturday Night's Main Event (WWE Network link) from the Municipal Coliseum in Lubbock, Texas. The show would air on February 8. This would be just one of two Saturday Night's Main Event shows to air on the FOX Network, with the other airing late in the year.

• Roddy Piper defeated The Mountie to retain the WWF Intercontinental Championship.
• Hulk Hogan and Sid Justice defeated Ric Flair and The Undertaker by disqualification.
• Sgt. Slaughter and Jim Duggan (substituting for the Legion of Doom) defeated The Beverly Brothers (Blake Beverly and Beau Beverly).
• Randy Savage defeated Jake Roberts. Post-match, Roberts was looking to hit Miss Elizabeth with a steel chair as she came through the backstage curtain, but The Undertaker prevented the attack.

22 years and a day ago today, Andre Rene Roussimoff, best known to millions as the legendary Andre the Giant, dies in his sleep of acromegaly in a hotel room in Paris, France. He was 46. Born to Bulgarian and Polish parents in Grenoble, France on May 19, 1946, Andre experienced symptoms of gigantism very early. At age 12, He was 6'3, 240 pounds; so large, he couldn't fit on the school bus. He was driven to school by neighbor and future Nobel Prize winner Samuel Beckett. Beckett bought some land in the early 1950s and built a cottage for himself with the help of Andre's father Boris. Andre himself was a good student, but he felt a high school education wasn't necessary for a farm laborer, so he dropped out after eighth grade. Though he did farm labor, woodworking, and helped manufacture engines for hay balers, it wasn't good enough for Andre.

At age 17, Andre moved to Paris and was taught the art of professional wrestling. Billed as Geant Ferre, he moonlighted as a wrestler while working as a mover to pay living expenses. He worked Paris and the surrounding areas before Canadian wrestler/promoter Frank Valos found Andre in 1966. He would be his business manager and advisor and would travel the world, making a name for himself in Europe, Australia, Africa, and Asia. It was while he was in Japan it was discovered Andre was suffering from acromegaly, a disorder where the anterior pituitary gland produces excessive growth hormone, causing severe disfigurement. The condition is often not diagnosed in its early stages. Roussimoff was a regular in Montreal, selling out the Montreal Forum regularly, but the novelty wore off as the number of credible opponents dwindled. He occasionally wrestled for the AWA as a special attraction, then under the advice of WWWF founder Vince McMahon Sr., suggested Andre be a worldwide special attraction and book him as an immovable monster. He would available to any organization anywhere, but only for a guaranteed fee.

Andre debuted for the WWWF in 1973 and quickly became one of the most beloved babyfaces in the sport. Though he was billed as undefeated prior to his Wrestlemania III match with Hulk Hogan, Andre had taken losses, though there were few and far between. He was beaten by Canek in 1984, submitted by Antonio Inoki in 1986, and went to one-hour draws with Harley Race and Nick Bockwinkel in world title bouts. Andre also had a boxer versus wrestler win over Chuck Wepner (the inspiration of the Rocky film series) in 1976.

Andre's biggest feuds came against Hulk Hogan, which spanned two continents, Killer Khan (culminating in a stretcher match in November 1981), and Big John Studd, which culminated in a $15,000 Bodyslam match at the inaugural Wrestlemania. Though Andre won the match, he never got his reward as he had the bag stolen from him as he was throwing cash to the fans. The next Wrestlemania, he won a 20-man battle royal featuring WWF wrestlers and top stars from the NFL.

Around the time of Andre's feud with King Kong Bundy, he would score a part in the film The Princess Bride. It was also around that time his acromegaly was taking a toll on his physical health. Upon his return from filming, Andre wore a mask and wrestled briefly as Giant Machine as part of "The Machines" stable. Though Bobby Heenan, Studd, and Bundy tried to prove Andre the Giant and Giant Machine were one and the same, they could not, and the indefinitely suspended Andre the Giant was reinstated.

Amazingly, it would be Heenan that managed Andre the Giant for the biggest feud of his career, Hulk Hogan. It began over jealousy that Andre received a smaller trophy for never being pinned or made to submit in a WWF ring, while Hogan received a larger trophy for his three year run as WWF Champion. Andre, at the behest of Heenan, challenged Hogan to a WWF Championship match, then proceeded to rip Hogan's T-shirt and crucifix. Andre also ripped into Hogan's skin a bit, as a fingernail scratch caused Hogan to bleed. Though Andre gained a psychological advantage by eliminating Hogan in a battle royal just weeks before Wrestlemania III (a battle royal won by Hercules), it was Hogan who would bodyslam the giant en route to Andre's first pinfall loss in a WWF ring. Famously, Andre, at 520 pounds, wore a back brace covered by his wrestling singlet. It wouldn't be the first time Hogan slammed Andre. Andre was slammed by a then-heel Hogan twice in the summer of 1980. Harley Race, El Canek, and Stan Hansen all also slammed the Giant at one point.

The Andre-Hogan feud would continue into the following year. On the first episode of The Main Event in February 1988, Andre defeated Hogan with the help of some shady refereeing to win his first and only WWF Championship...which Andre almost immediately sold to Ted DiBiase. That title change was made null and void, and the title made vacant until Wrestlemania IV. Though both Hogan and Andre eliminated each other with a double disqualification, they both had a say in the final match, as Randy Savage with Hogan's help went on to defeat DiBiase to win the WWF Championship. The feud came to an end when Hogan and Savage, known as the Mega Powers, defeated Andre the Giant and DiBiase, known as the Mega Bucks.

Andre would feud with Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Jake "The Snake" Roberts, Big John Studd, and the Ulitmate Warrior thoughout late 1988 and most of 1989. Late in the year, Andre along with Haku (known as the Colossal Connection) won the WWF Tag Team Championship from Demolition. The two would hold the titles from mid-December to Wrestlemania VI in April 1990. Post-match, Heenan berated Andre, but Andre responded with a huge slap in the face.

With his health declining, Andre's appearances became more and more sporadic until Summerslam 1991 (his final WWF television appearance). His last appearance came at a house show in his hometown of Paris, France in October. Andre's last television appearance came for WCW in a brief interview in September 1992 at Clash of the Champions XX. Andre's final in-ring appearances were for All Japan Wrestling in the early 1990s, and for Mexico's Universal Wrestling Association in April and May 1992. His final match came for All Japan in 1992.

Roussimoff has been called by those around him among the most gentle and generous people they've known (one story said Arnold Schwarzenegger try to pay for a meal, but Andre insisted so much that he carried him out of the restaurant and put him on top of his car). He was also the unofficial world's greatest drunk. Legend had it that he consumed over 100 sitting on multiple occasions.

Roussimoff died in his sleep of congestive heart failure in a hotel room in Paris (he was there to attend his father's funeral). His body was cremated and his ashes spread at his ranch in Ellerbe, North Carolina. He left a lasting legacy after his death. The year of his death, Andre the Giant was the first inductee into the then-WWF Hall of Fame. He served as the inspiration the OBEY brand and the 1998 movie My Giant, written by Billy Crystal. A biographical video was released by WWE in 2005 based on his life, a reissue of the 1985 video cassette. A graphic novel, Andre the Giant: The Life and The Legend was released last year. At Wrestlemania XXX, a battle royal was conducted, with the winner (Cesaro) getting the Andre the Giant Memorial Trophy.

Andre is also a charter member of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame class in 1996, the Professional Wrestling  Hall of Fame class of 2002, and the Stampede Wrestling Hall of Fame. He was also posthumously honored by Pro Wrestling Illustrated with the Editor's Award in 1993 and listed as the third greatest wrestler of the PWI Years in 2003.

21 years and a day ago today, WCW presented Clash of the Champions XXVI (WWE Network link) from the Centroplex in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

• Marcus Alexander Bagwell & Too Cold Scorpio defeated Pretty Wonderful (Paul Orndorff & Paul Roma).
• Ron Simmons defeated Ice Train.
• Lord Steven Regal and Dustin Rhodes went to a 15-minute time limit draw for the WCW World Television Championship.
• Cactus Jack & Maxx Payne defeated The Nasty Boys (Brian Knobbs & Jerry Sags).
• Flyin' Brian defeated Col. Robert Parker. With the loss, Parker was forced to wear a chicken suit.
• Ric Flair & Sting defeated Rick Rude & Vader in a tag team elimination match.

Sandman vs. Raven ECW Title by Stinger1981

19 years and a day ago today in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Raven defeated The Sandman to win the ECW World Heavyweight Championship.

Tough Enough III co-winners Matt Cappotelli vs... by 2kdam

12 years and a day ago today on RAW from Chicago, Illinois, Tough Enough III winners Matt Cappotelli and John Hennigan made their WWE debuts. They went to a no contest when another Tough Enough alum, Christopher Nowiski, interfered.

7 years and a day ago today, WWE makes its high-definition PPV debut with Royal Rumble (WWE Network link) from Madison Square Garden in New York City. 20,793 were in attendance, with 533,000 homes watching on PPV.

• In a dark match, Jimmy Wang Yang & Shannon Moore defeated Deuce & Domino.
• Ric Flair defeated Montel Vontavious Porter.
• John "Bradshaw" Layfield defeated Chris Jericho by disqualification.
• Edge defeated Rey Mysterio to retain the World Heavyweight Championship.
• Randy Orton defeated Jeff Hardy to retain the WWE Championship.
• John Cena last eliminated Triple H to win the Royal Rumble match. Of note, this was Cena's first match since October when he injured his pectoral muscle. Cena's return was not advertised beforehand.

2008 Royal Rumble Results

Draw	Entrant	Brand	Order	Eliminated by	Time
1	The Undertaker	SD	11	Michaels	32:33
2	Shawn Michaels	Raw	12	Kennedy	32:39
3	Santino Marella	Raw	1	Undertaker	00:25
4	The Great Khali	SD	2	Undertaker	01:09
5	Hardcore Holly	Raw	6	Umaga	13:46
6	John Morrison	ECW	14	Kane	29:23
7	Tommy Dreamer	ECW	3	Batista	02:09
8	Batista	SD	28	Triple H	37:40
9	Hornswoggle	SD	16	Never re-entered match	26:17
10	Chuck Palumbo	SD	5	Punk	04:00
11	Jamie Noble	SD	4	Palumbo	00:28
12	CM Punk	ECW	17	Guerrero	13:50
13	Cody Rhodes	Raw	18	Triple H	23:14
14	Umaga	Raw	26	Batista	26:05
15	Snitsky	Raw	10	Undertaker	12:26
16	The Miz	ECW	13	Hornswoggle	13:07
17	Shelton Benjamin	ECW	7	Michaels	00:18
18	Jimmy Snuka	Legend	9	Kane	02:43
19	Roddy Piper	Legend	8	Kane	01:00
20	Kane	SD	27	Batista & Triple H	17:58
21	Carlito	Raw	22	Cena	15:07
22	Mick Foley	Raw	20	Triple H	11:29
23	Mr. Kennedy	Raw	25	Batista	13:32
24	Big Daddy V	ECW	19	Triple H	07:49
25	Mark Henry	SD	24	Cena	09:12
26	Chavo Guerrero	SD	23	Cena	07:33
27	Finlay	SD	15	Disqualified	00:00
28	Elijah Burke	ECW	21	Triple H	02:11
29	Triple H	Raw	29	Cena	11:21
30	John Cena	Raw	-	Winner	08:27

Notes:

• Finlay was disqualified for entering the match before his number came up. He did so when Hornswoggle was attacked by Big Daddy V and Mark Henry. Hornswoggle, who was then rescued by Finlay, left through the ropes and never returned to the match.
• Cena was the second (and to date, last) man to win from #30.
• Cena's 8 minutes, 27 seconds was the shortest time spent in the ring by a Rumble winner. That mark would be broken two years later by Edge.

2 years and a day ago today, WWE presented Royal Rumble from the US Airways Center in Phoenix, Arizona. 15,103 were in attendance, with 498,000 homes watching on PPV. Though it was up from 446,000 homes for the 2012 edition, the number was seen as disappointing by the higher-ups in WWE.

• In a preshow match, Antonio Cesaro defeated The Miz to retain the United States Championship.
• Alberto Del Rio defeated Big Show in a Last Man Standing match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship.
• Team Hell No (Kane & Daniel Bryan) defeated Team Rhodes Scholars (Cody Rhodes & Damien Sandow) to retain the WWE Tag Team Championship.
• John Cena last eliminated Ryback to win the Royal Rumble match.
• The Rock defeated CM Punk to win the WWE Championship. CM Punk won the match originally with interference from The Shield, but the match was restarted. The Rock won just a minute later, ending CM Punk's world championship run at 434 days, the longest since Hulk Hogan's four-year run ended in 1988.

2013 Royal Rumble Results

Draw	Entrant	Order	Eliminated by	Time	Eliminations
1	Dolph Ziggler	27	Sheamus	49:47	2
2	Chris Jericho	25	Ziggler	47:53	2
3	Cody Rhodes	12	Cena	27:39	4
4	Kofi Kingston	9	Rhodes	22:18	2
5	Santino Marella	1	Rhodes	00:55	0
6	Drew McIntyre	2	Jericho	02:40	0
7	Titus O'Neil	3	Sheamus	07:30	0
8	Goldust	5	Rhodes	09:41	0
9	David Otunga	4	Sheamus	04:24	1
10	Heath Slater	11	Cena	15:49	1
11	Sheamus	28	Ryback	37:23	4
12	Tensai	7	Kingston	05:37	0
13	Brodus Clay	6	Jericho, Slater, Rhodes, Sheamus, Young	03:47	0
14	Rey Mysterio	13	Barrett	15:43	0
15	Darren Young	8	Kingston	02:51	1
16	Bo Dallas	21	Barrett1	21:42	1
17	The Godfather	10	Ziggler	00:05	0
18	Wade Barrett	20	Dallas	20:34	2
19	John Cena	-	Winner	26:39	4
20	Damien Sandow	22	Ryback	16:26	0
21	Daniel Bryan	16	Cesaro & Kane	07:55	2
22	Antonio Cesaro	18	Cena	08:50	1
23	The Great Khali	14	Kane & Bryan	03:08	0
24	Kane	15	Bryan	01:46	2
25	Zack Ryder	17	Orton	02:34	0
26	Randy Orton	26	Ryback	10:20	1
27	Jinder Mahal	19	Sheamus	02:10	0
28	The Miz	24	Ryback	05:08	0
29	Sin Cara	23	Ryback	03:27	0
30	Ryback	29	Cena	09:06	5

1 year and a day ago today following a meeting with Vince McMahon and Triple H prior to RAW, CM Punk left WWE. Punk would finally open up about his leaving the company on Thanksgiving as a guest on the Art of Wrestling podcast with Colt Cabana. He would announce his retirement from pro wrestling days later and sign with the UFC.

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24 years ago today, WWF taped the final edition of The Main Event, the Friday night version of the long-running Saturday night series of the same name, from the Macon Coliseum in Macon, Georgia. The show did a respectable 6.7 rating, but it was a far cry from its debut episode three years earlier, which did a 15.2 rating. Of note, when the show aired February 1, it was announced that Hulk Hogan would face Sgt. Slaughter at Wrestlemania VII for the WWF Championship. Also of note, during the same taping, William Moody (aka Paul Bearer) would make his WWF debut.

• Hulk Hogan & Tugboat defeated Dino Bravo & Earthquake.
• Jim Duggan defeated Sgt. Slaughter by disqualification in a WWF Championship match.
• The Legion Of Doom (Animal & Hawk) defeated The Orient Express (Kato & Tanaka).