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This is a list of various things that took place in 1988.

Significant events[]

Unknown date

  • David Woods buys Continental Championship Wrestling from Ron Fuller and renames the promotion as the Continental Wrestling Federation. Under Woods' ownership, the CWF later lands a national TV deal with cable sports network SCORE

January

February

  • Following his sale of Continental Championship Wrestling and his retirement as an active competitor, Ron Fuller establishes USA Championship Wrestling in Knoxville
  • 5 - The WWF debuts The Main Event on NBC as a spinoff of Saturday Night's Main Event, marking the return of wrestling to prime-time network TV for the first time since 1955 (when the DuMont Network cancelled Wrestling from Marigold Arena). The main event sees André the Giant defeat Hulk Hogan to win the WWF Heavyweight Championship in controversial fashion (a referee had counted the pinfall, even though Hogan's shoulder was clearly up), then sell the belt to Ted DiBiase (as part of a storyline focusing on DiBiase's efforts to become champion, by hook or by crook). More than 33 million viewers tune in to watch the match, and the broadcast's success led to future prime-time specials

March

  • 7 - During a match against Hulk Hogan that would air that weekend on Saturday Night's Main Event, Harley Race seriously injures himself when an attempted stunt -- Race laying Hogan across a (non-gimmicked) table outside the ring and attempting a diving headbutt, but Hogan rolling out of the way to cause Race to crash through the table -- went wrong, and the metal trim around the table's edge pierced Race's abdomen. Race continued the match to its intended conclusion (Hogan scoring a pinfall victory) without any apparent ill-effects, and would compete in a battle royal at WrestleMania IV three weeks later as scheduled, but fell ill shortly after WrestleMania and underwent surgery. With Race forced to take a hiatus, the WWF began an angle where Race's manager, Bobby Heenan, blamed Hogan for deliberately taking out Race and vowed revenge. Race returns late in 1988 as a tweener, competing on an André the Giant-captained team at the Survivor Series but then going on-camera at an event at Philadelphia Spectrum (aired on PRISM), calling Heenan a "weasel" (and slapping his face) before demanding a match against Haku
  • 27 - Jim Crockett Promotions presents the inaugural edition of Clash of the Champions on TBS in Greensboro, North Carolina. Ric Flair retains his NWA World title by battling Sting to a 45-minute draw in the main event

April

  • 22-23 - The third (and what would be final, until 2019) NWA Crockett Cup Memorial Tag Team Tournament is held in Greenville, South Carolina (Night One) and Greensboro, North Carolina (Night Two). On Night Two, Lex Luger and Sting win the Crockett Cup tournament by beating Tully Blanchard and Arn Anderson in the final, while Ric Flair retains his NWA World title via DQ loss to Nikita Koloff in a non-tournament match prior to the final

May

June

July

  • 16 - Bruiser Brody is stabbed to death in the shower area by Jose Gonzales (aka Invader I) during a World Wrestling Council event in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Gonzales, who later claimed self-defence in the incident, is subsequently charged with first-degree murder (later reduced to involuntary homicide)
  • 27 - Riki Chōshū pins Antonio Inoki at a New Japan Pro Wrestling event in Sapporo, Japan, scoring his first-ever singles win over the New Japan legend

August

September

  • Learning the Ropes, a Canadian-produced situation comedy starring NFL football star Lyle Alzado as a high school teacher who moonlights as a professional wrestler, debuts on CTV in Canada and in United States in syndication. The program features stars from the National Wrestling Alliance, and will have a one-year, 26-episode run

November

  • Jim Crockett Promotions is purchased by TBS owner Ted Turner and renamed World Championship Wrestling
  • 7 - WWF parent Titan Sports holds its first-ever non-wrestling pay-per-view as it presents a boxing match between Sugar Ray Leonard and Donny Lalonde
  • 24 - The Survivor Series is held for the second year in a row in Richfield, Ohio. The most notable storyline development would be the beginning of a slowly evolving angle where WWF Heavyweight Champion Randy Savage was growing increasingly irritated over getting second-billing to Hulk Hogan (despite not being champion) and Hogan's increasingly overly friendly relationship with Miss Elizabeth. Heel commentator Jesse Ventura picks up on this and interviews Savage backstage after the event, at which time Savage insists things are fine. For the rest of 1988 and going into 1989, the storyline has it that the two are still friends, although subtle hints continue to be dropped that all is not well between the two

December

Births[]

Unknown

January

February

March

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Deaths[]

May

June

July

  • 4 - Pat Kelly (Car accident)
  • 4 - Adrian Adonis 34 (Car accident)
  • 4 - Dave McKigney 56 (Car accident)
  • 17 - Bruiser Brody 42 (Murdered)

August

September

Debuts[]

Unknown date

September

Retirements[]

Unknown date

Events[]

January

February

March

April

  • 16 - AWA Rage In A Cage II

May

June

August

  • 29 - AJPW Bruiser Brody Memorial Show

September

October

December

Pay-Per-View events[]

January

  • 24 - NWA Bunkhouse Stampede

March

July

August

November

December

Title changes[]

March

April

May

August

September

October

November

December

See also[]

Years
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