[20] Sammartino took a hiatus from the company in 1971 and 1972 working in Japan, and various territories. Bruno is way more impressive than Flair if u ask me. Matches. Pete Dunne is only the second man in company history to hold the WWE NXT United Kingdom Championship, a belt he held for an overwhelming 685 days. Pedro Morales was the champion from 1971 until 1973. Earth, receive an honored guest: Legendary WWE champion and phenomenally strong man Bruno Sammartino has been laid to reset. Sammartino continued doing commentary on Superstars of Wrestling until March 1988.[17]. Many, many years later, there was a convention one time in New York where they invited some wrestlers from yesteryear where we signed autographs and so forth. The city . [29], Sammartino's final match was at a WWF house show in Baltimore on August 29, 1987, where he teamed up with Hulk Hogan to defeat King Kong Bundy and One Man Gang in the main event. In that sense, it's easy to see why WWE fans give Reigns' run the title of historic. Soon after, Sammartino and then champion Pedro Morales teamed up for a series of tag team matches. It was there that he was spotted by local professional wrestling promoter Rudy Miller, who recruited the young man into the ring. The doctor who was at every show said to Paul Sullivan, I am checking Buddy Rogers blood pressure, and I am listening to his chest, and everything sounds okay, but he claims that he has a pain in his chest. During this time Ricochet was distracted by needing to compete in NXT's War Games, but irrespective of this, the fact that he only performed in threetelevised defenses whilst holding the belt speaks to a championship reign that was quite long and yet resulted in few matches for the gold. Sometimes, be they world champions, tag team champions, or otherwise, champions have commitments outside of their championship. Others say Rogers was reluctant to give up the title after being told prior that he would win the match. 1 Hour 35 Minutes. Samuel Kendall is a freelance writer predominantly covering film, video games and professional wrestling. I didnt get as great as I did in wrestling by not loving it. Turner plans to maintain ownership of the 1965-1971 version of the WWWF World Championship for decades to come. Indianpolis, Indiana: . Sadly, Koloffs reign was short-lived. It was dead silence as the new champion left the ring with Albano behind him. Bruno was shattered but more because his body had finally exhausted all its strength after a rugged past decade from fighting for his spot to defending it around the world than at actually losing the title. WWE Hall of Famer Bruno Sammartino, who held the championship belt for nearly eight consecutive years from 1963 to 1971, has died at age 82. . Never Forget That Donald Trump Once Shaved Vince McMahon's Head and Is a Member of the WWE Hall of Fame Unique lists featuring pop culture, entertainment and crazy facts. Answer (1 of 3): I don't think there's any actual record of how many times he defended the belt, because back then there were no RAW or Smackdown television shows, I don't think they were even doing pay-per-views at the time, wrestling back then was totally different, I wasn't born in the 60s but. title(s) WWWF MSG Show (Dec '63) Dec 16th 1963: Bruno Sammartino (c) def. There, he held the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship (WWWF Heavyweight Championship during his second reign) for more than 11 years (4,040 days) across two reigns, the first of which . #1 Bruno Sammartino - 2803 days (May 17, 1963 - January 18, 1971) Bruno Sammartino's inaugural reign as WWWF Champion is the longest World Title reign in WWE history. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. This post may contain affiliate links, which means we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. WWF House Show - House Show @ Baltimore Arena in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. A sold-out Garden. Bruno Sammartino and Buddy Rogers open up about this critical moment in professional wrestling history that all but marked the end of one legendary career and launched another, and the hatred that forever remained between the two. The toughest job in my life was climbing in that ring [after] coming out of intensive care and knowing that I could never wrestle again after that. He held the company's top title from 1963 to 1971 and again from 1973 to 1977. BREAKING NEWS: IPWHF ACQUIRES BRUNO SAMMARTINO TITLE BELT, Chants of Bruno! In New York, you go through an extensive physical to get your license, and every night before you wrestled, you had a physical in the dressing room. And a packed Madison Square Garden, who had become accustomed to wildly cheering Bruno Sammartino after each title defense, was shocked into complete silence. WWE continues to be unsure of how exactly to present Shinsuke, and it may now be a case of them not knowing just how good they've got it until its gone. Looking to talk wrestling, pro football, or any number of sports? The reason for the split was because Northeast promoters Toots Mondt and Vince McMahon, Sr. controlled Buddy Rogers bookings and wanted to keep Rogers (and the title) in the Northeast. Twitter: @JustSKendall Buddy Rogers made these claims in a couple of appearances that he made after losing the belt. [15] In his autobiography, Sammartino states that he believed McMahon set him up, by double-booking him and not informing him of his match in Baltimore, as a way of punishment. Ray Stevens 5'10 230 lbs San Francisco, CA Just 48 seconds later, Bruno Sammartino was the new champ, and a hero was born. On December 8, 1969, he teamed with Tony Marino to win the WWWF International Tag Team Championship by defeating The Rising Suns (Tanaka and Mitsu Arakawa). You dont get another penny out of that field; you dont have anything to do with that field. Rogers dropped the NWA Title to Thesz (and got back his deposit on the belt), and the Northeast promoters used the one-fall match as the reason for the split from the NWA. I worked in pain. If hes willing, then fine., It was funny because Georgiann went and got him, got me, and she stood in the middle. [17] Soon, he was in demand by other promoters in different Canadian territories. Imagine doing something all those years and loving it all of a sudden, you never do it again. [10], When the Sammartinos arrived in the U.S., Bruno spoke no English and was sickly from the privations of the war years. After Bruno defeated Rogers, just one month later, the first official WWWF (WWE) World Championship was designed. California honored the other state's suspension, leaving Sammartino out of work. "Close to working that schedule for eight years, I told Vince McMahon Sr., you better get somebody. Italian-born American professional wrestler (19352018), World Wide Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Federation (19631981), First World Heavyweight Championship reign (19631971), Second World Heavyweight Championship reign (19721977), Later career and initial retirement (19781981), Non-wrestling roles and WWE Hall of Fame (19882018), During Sammartino's second reign the title was known as WWWF Heavyweight Championship, due to the WWWF rejoining the, the longest single reign in the promotion's history, WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship, Ross Township, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum, George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame, International Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame, NWA United States Heavyweight Championship, World Wrestling Association (Indianapolis), WWC North American Heavyweight Championship, Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame, "Bruno Sammartino, Durable Champ in WWE Hall of Fame, Dies at 82", "APRIL 30, 2018 WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: THE STORY OF BRUNO SAMMARTINO CONTINUED". You could hear a pin drop, remembered veteran wrestling journalist Bill Apter in an article for WWE.com recounting his memory at ringside. [17] Sammartino worked several WCW events in a minor analysis role in the early 1990s, as well as a brief run doing color commentary with Jim Ross on Saturday Night in 1992. Tributes from the world of wrestling began flocking in shortly after news of Sammartino's passing, with WWE . Following the match, thieves smashed a window and broke into Brunos car while he was having dinner. Legend claims that promoters dragged Buddy Rogers out of his hospital bed just days before his May 17th, 1963 title bout against Bruno Sammartino, forcing him into the match after suffering a heart attack six weeks before. 10.12.1973 - 30.04.1977. . [14] He died on April 18, 2018, at the age of 82 from multiple organ failure due to heart problems[12] following a two-month hospitalization. Ivan Koloff (left) and Superstar Billy Graham (right) each drew six sellouts with Bruno and each defeated him for the WWWF Championship. That said, Sammartino's record is likely safe, as it's difficult to imagine WWE ever putting a title on someone even remotely as long as his top reign. "Afterwards, there were obviously bad feelings. I knew it was all done; I just knew I couldnt produce like I once did. Many wonder which duo will be next in line to hold these belts. Dr. Jerry Graham: WWWF World Heavyweight Title: WWWF MSG Show (Nov '63) Nov 18th 1963: . He died in 1992 at the age of 71. Bruno's belt was briefly worn by Ivan Kohloff, 3. ", "Buddy Rogers and I never liked each other. Itis due to hit theaters in 2020and features many images of Bruno and his1965-1971 version of the WWWF World Championship. RELATED: Ruthless Aggression: 10 Title Reigns (That We Completely Forgot About). Louis. But it wasnt just any new championship victory Koloff became the first man to pin Bruno Sammartino in a WWF World title match in 2,803 days, ending a reign that lasted nearly eight years. In a televised match, Professor Toru Tanaka blinded both men with salt and they were maneuvered into fighting each other. WWE Hall of Famer Bruno Sammartino revealed why his record-setting WWWF title reign ended. Any working guy could relate to Bruno the way they related to Steve Austin many years later. Bruno Sammartino is . Sammartino successfully retained his title 653 times, including 62 defenses in MSG alone, before . Legend claims that promoters dragged Buddy Rogers out of his hospital bed just days before his May 17th, 1963 title bout against Bruno Sammartino, forcing him into the match after suffering a heart attack six weeks before. Ivan Koloff was actually a pro wrestler from Montreal, Quebec in Canada, and after starting out in the Canadian indies in 1961, soon adopted a Russian gimmick, under the name Ivan Zukoff. The Sammartinos lived in Ross Township, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania near Pittsburgh from 1965 on. Although this promotion was big in its hay-day, I can't find some reliable sources that Wagner keeps defending the title. Acknowledged as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Sammartino's legacy began in 1959 and lasted until his final match in October of 1981. . [30], Sammartino's highest-profile feud during this run was with "Macho Man" Randy Savage. 2022. Sammartino also engaged in a feud with "Rowdy" Roddy Piper after Piper insulted his heritage on a segment of Piper's Pit at Madison Square Garden. FULL DESCRIPTION: This photo measures 8 inches by 10 inches.The photo is clean with no staining. 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