JANUARY 31
1990
New Japan held a card in Osaka highlighted by Jushin Liger regaining the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship by defeating Naoki Sano in an outstanding ****3/4 match — one of the best in the history of the company — that combined the typical juniors style of New Japan with Mid South-style brawling and hatred. You can watch it on NJ World.
1992
CMLL held a card at Arena Coliseo in Mexico City, highlighted by Fuerza Guerrera facing Octagon in a ***3/4 match with a disputed finish.
1994
WWF Monday Night RAW aired live from Bushkill, PA. The featured segment saw Lex Luger and Bret Hart have a coin toss to see who would face WWF World Champion Yokozuna first at Wrestlemania X on March 20. Luger won the coin toss, which meant Bret Hart would face Owen Hart earlier in the evening, and Bret would face the winner of that match to conclude the evening. The show drew a 3.3 rating, and you can watch it on the WWE Network.
1999
Toryumon held an early show at Korakuen Hall which featured their first standout match, as Magnum Tokyo, Dragon Kid and SAITO face CIMA, SUWA and Sumo Fuji in a ****1/4 elimination match.
The WWF held a “Halftime Heat” show during the Superbowl which featured The Rock vs Mankind in quite the sports entertainment spectacle, as they brawled all over an empty arena and blended comedy and aggression in a way that was outlandish but also successful on its own terms. Mankind regained the WWF World Title from Rock in the match after trapping Rock under a crate on a forklift. The show drew a whopping 6.6 rating.
Speaking of the Superbowl, the WWF aired a commercial during that year’s game. The 30-second spot cost them approximately $1.5 million and caused a bit of controversy because of a sexual reference.
In The “To Watch” Queue:
Masa Saito & Shinya Hashimoto vs Vader & Great Kokina (NJPW 01/31/90)
Shawn Michaels vs Jimmy Snuka (WWF MSG Network 01/31/92)
Blue Panther vs Ultimo Dragon (CMLL 01/31/92)
Tsuyoshi Kikuchi vs Yoshinari Ogawa (AJPW 01/31/93)
Toshiaki Kawada & Kenta Kobashi vs Akira Taue & Masa Fuchi (AJPW 01/31/93)
Cactus Jack vs The Sandman (ECW TV 01/31/95, Falls Count Anywhere)
