FACTS On, FACTS Off: Training In the Art of Useless Wrestling Facts, Stats and Trivia

Brian Damage

It’s Tiiiiiime! Yes indeed, it is time to partake in some more useless pro wrestling facts, stats and trivia. These facts are the best around! Well maybe not. In any case some of these facts you may be well aware of and some maybe not so much. Regardless, we are here to just have some fun and maybe learn a little bit about something. Let’s learn!

Masahiko Kimura formed the International Pro Wrestling Force (IPWF) in the 1950’s. His wrestling promotion based in Kumamoto, Japan was the very first Japanese company to introduce Mexican Lucha Libre in Japan.

In 1991, Kevin Von Erich received a WWF dark match tryout against ‘Primetime’ Brian Lee. Kevin was not signed.

The last time Roman Reigns was pinned in a match took place in 2019. The wrestler to do it, was ‘King’ Corbin.

Vince McMahon bought Stu Hart’s Stampede Wrestling for $750,000 in 1984. 

After John Tenta was told by WCW management that his new gimmick would be called ‘The Shark,’ Tenta spent 24 hours changing his tiger tattoo into a shark tattoo believing this would be a long term gimmick. Ironically, it was that same tiger tattoo that Tenta refused to get rid of while a Sumo wrestler in Japan.

In his 35 year career, Jushin ‘Thunder’ Liger innovated several maneuvers that are still used to this day. They include the tilt a whirl back breaker, the running power bomb and shooting star press. Liger also wrestled the very first match at the Tokyo Dome and the very first match on WCW’s Monday Nitro.

During the early TNA days, when Jeff Jarrett was in creative meetings…his next door neighbor babysat his kids. The babysitter would end up becoming a huge star in the music industry named Taylor Swift.

Sean Waltman is credited for innovating the infamous ‘Crotch Chop’ that was used in both DX and the nWo. He started using it backstage in the WWF while as the 123 Kid, years before those two factions ever existed.

Danny Hodge was the very first wrestler in either the amateur or pro ranks to grace the cover of Sports Illustrated. He did so in 1957…

Despite being in the same territories and promotions like the NWA and WCW for a number of years…the Road Warriors and the Rock N Roll Express never faced each other in a match. That all changed in January of 1998 when they finally squared off in a four minute match…in a WWF ring on Shotgun Saturday Night. It would be their one and only match against each other.

Tim White was the original referee chosen to officiate the infamous Montreal Screw Job match between Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels. He emphatically refused to do it and the responsibility was then given to Earl Hebner.

Since 2000, journeyman wrestler Rip Rogers is credited for training over 60 wrestlers who became huge names in the industry for various promotions including WWE, TNA, Ring of Honor and elsewhere. They include, John Cena, Batista, Shelton Benjamin, Brock Lesnar, Randy Orton, Cody Rhodes, Mark Henry and Ruby Soho just to name a few.

Longtime wrestling fans…comedian Andy Kaufman and singer Debbie Harry starred in a Broadway play about professional wrestling in 1983 called ‘Teaneck Tanzi: The Venus Flytrap.’ The show bombed and closed after only one performance.

3 time NWA world champion Lou Thesz wrestled in 7 different decades starting in 1932 and ending in 1990. His last match was against his protégé Masahiro Chono in Japan at the age of 75.

At just 25 years old, Tyler Bate has won a total of 5 NXT titles. He is the first and only NXT UK Triple Crown champion and the first and last wrestler to hold the NXT UK heavyweight title. Bate is also the youngest singles title holder in all of WWE history, having won the NXT UK title at 19 years old.

Alexa Bliss started out her WWE career as a ring announcer for NXT in 2013.

Randy Orton holds the record for longest time in a Royal Rumble match without an elimination at 58 minutes and 30 seconds. That was achieved at the 2021 Rumble.

Prior to signing a developmental deal with WWE and train in the Performance Center…NXT star Tiffany Stratton was trained by former WWE star Mr. Ken Anderson and former AWA star Greg Gagne.

Longtime WWE music composer Jim Johnston’s last theme song he composed for the company was for Baron Corbin entitled ‘End of Days.’

Edge and Christian only made $210 a week starting out with the WWF. Edge received a signing bonus of $40,000 to pay off his student debt from college. Once they proved that they could succeed in the company, they were given substantial raises.

The leader of the Maryland chapter of the Ku Klux Klan was kicked out of the organization after using KKK money to purchase wrestling tickets to watch his favorite wrestler Hulk Hogan.

WALTER/GUNTHER has been signed to WWE for nearly 4 years starting in January of 2019. In that time, he has only suffered two pinfall losses.

Joseph Jean Baptiste Pusie was a hockey player turned professional wrestler. He is on record as being the only pro wrestler to have his name engraved on the Stanley Cup. Pusie won while playing for the Montreal Canadiens back in 1931.

Before making custom titles for champions like Steve Austin, the Rock, Jeff Hardy and John Cena became a fad…’Exotic’ Adrian Street was the very first wrestler to do it. Here he is with his valet Miss Linda holding his custom made NWA Southeastern Championship.

Bianca Belair is the very first black woman to hold a WWE title for longer than 200 days.

Ric Flair pinned Hulk Hogan and won the WWF title in Oakland, California on October 25, 1991. Flair used a pair of brass knuckles to knockout Hogan and secure the pinfall. The call was eventually reversed when a second referee came out and reported the use of a foreign object. The match was filmed, but never televised.

John Cena has won a WWE championship (whether it be a world, United States, tag team…etc) in every month but December.

The Miz and Seth Rollins are the only two double grand slam champions in WWE history.

Maria Kanellis is the first and only woman to work for five major wrestling promotions which include WWE, Impact, Ring of Honor, AEW and New Japan Pro Wrestling.

The very first pro wrestling home video tape was produced in 1985 by Pro Wrestling Illustrated entitled ‘Lords of the Ring: Superstars and Superbouts.’

CM in CM Punk stands for ‘Chick Magnet.’

Chris Jericho got his ring name from the 1985 album by German metal band Helloween entitled ‘The Walls of Jericho.’

Akira Hokuto was the first and only WCW Women’s champion.

Ricky Steamboat won his first two championships of his career both by defeating Ric Flair. First in June of 1977, Steamboat beat Flair for the Mid Atlantic Television title. About a month later, Steamboat defeated Flair again, this time for the United States championship.

The NXT North American Title has the highest percentage of black wrestlers as champions in WWE history.

WWE’s Io Shirai has an older sister Mio Shirai who was also a wrestler now a referee in Japan.

The infamous Wrestlers Court was that was often used in the WWF/WWE for disciplining certain wrestlers, was first introduced by Dutch Mantel during the territory days. It was initially used as a joke, but the Undertaker Mark Calaway brought it to the WWF and used more seriously.

While the heel Roman Reigns has been the reigning undisputed Universal champion for well over 800 days currently….he is not the longest reigning heel to be WWWF/WWF/WWE champion. Reigns has been WWE champion for a total of 242 days (As of this writing). Superstar Billy Graham was world champion for a total of 296 days as a heel.

The largest attended event Vince McMahon Sr ever booked was ‘Showdown At Shea” on August 9, 1980. The show drew 32, 695 fans to Shea Stadium in Queens, New York.