@OCcrazy1 I also heard the same thing but either or he drops the strap to bruno. Buddy Rogers I hear had a bad rep with the other Wrestlers then and wasnt very well liked. I think alot of it is confused up cause bruno stays in character pretty much anytime he talks about it saying he told rogers I win one way or another. I do think He did have a heart attack say a a few months before the match and it is why this match and all his matches afterwards were very short or tag team matches
@OCcrazy1 read below first. there is some believability however its spelled to that bruno says rogers was never hurt and just didnt wanna drop the strap because when rogers wrestled lou thesz right before this he didnt wanna drop the belt so they told rogers that if he didnt he wouldnt get back his 25,00 dollars for the belt and the other was if he didnt wanna lose that thesz would just have to beat his ass for real and take it
I have a handful of films of Sammartino's 1973-1977 Championship run, but are there any existing films of his 1963-1971 run (other than the piss-poor-quality copy of his loss to Ivan Koloff that is already here)?
@blozier2006 There is a match on tape from Japan featuring Bruno vs. Shohei Baba. I would imagine by the presence of a bulkier Bruno's bald spot (which was miraculously missing during a somewhat lankier Bruno's second title reign) that this match was from the sixties.
@voluMzor probably because of over exposure of the product in general. Same guys every week gets boring. Not even in 95 or 96 did they feature the same guys every week on RAW.
@voluMzor well, remember the Attitude Era? which was widely considered the best Era in Wrestling? during that time, the longest reigns were like 5 or 6 months. I personally think if one man holds the title for years, then a lot of others are going to be held back and Wrestling might just get boring.
@jayNicks10 agreed I think that like a yrs time is a good solid run. On the other hand i dont think that cena and orton doing a title switch every month for like a yr is doing anyone any favors either like has happened in the past.
@jayNicks10 Your right about that cause Hogan was the champ in 86 and that was like i think 3 years?any how jake the snake ddt hogan on the snake pit and fans cheered for it and wanted him to do it again
Do a Youtube search for "Buddy Rogers interview 2" Buddy Rogers admits why the match was so short. He discusses for the first time what happened. Hear it from the man himself. He did have a heart attack a week earlier and came back for this match when he said he was in such poor shape that any 17 year old kid could beat him that night.
Bruno. The greatest ever. No one, and I mean no one, comes close. I love Ric Flair. But, he is second best after Bruno. Bret Hart is overrated. Hogan is a gimmick. Bruno beats them all. And I'm old enough to have seen all of these guys in their primes. There was something about Bruno that made him and still makes him special.
@rasslinfun , Bruno was good but no one comes close to being as great as Ric Flair was in his prime. Bruno could wrestle but he didn't have the charisma or mic skills of Slick Ric. Flair was just a better showman and storyteller.
@MetalheadJay78 Back then, first and foremost, you HAD to be able to wrestle. Looks and personality were very secondary. The Miz and John Cena would get eaten alive if they had to face guys like Bruno in their prime.
@TheJohnnyCotts, I agree but John Cena and The Miz suck in almost EVERY aspect. I'm talking about guys who were both great wrestlers AND entertainers like Harley Race, Ric Flair, Shawn Michaels, and Terry Funk. All those guys could hold their own against Bruno in the ring.
@MetalheadJay78 Harley Race defended his title against Bruno in the early 70's after Bruno lost his title. Those were GREAT matches with 2 of very tough guys. What happened to those days? Bruno would have mauled Michaels.
@Stugazza, those were great matches but out of all the modern guys of the last 25 years, I feel that Michaels is perhaps the one guy that could compete well against those guys. After all, he was influenced by them and has tremendous stamina. You have seen his "Ironman" matches, correct?
Ric Flair was great in his prime. Bruno told it like it was & took action on what he said. Flair was more big mouth than wrestler. Flair was a great showman, but Bruno just whooped ass as well as wrestled.
@Stugazza, Flair could back up every word he said and did so constantly. To this day, I don't think there is any athlete who had a tougher schedule than Ric Flair did in the early 80's. Bruno may not have been able to even endure that! Jack Brisco said Flair wasn't possibly human because no human could endure that schedule. Flair was/is the complete package which is why he is regarded as the greatest ever by most knowledgable fans and wrestling historians(which I happen to be, by the way).
Flair did have a tough schedule. More than a lot of wrestlers. One main reason promoters let him have the belt so long was that he made all of his dates. NWA Champs usually wrestled 365 days, that is true. Bruno had a tough schedule himself, but did have 24-26 days a year off with about 340 bookings since he had a smaller area area to cover than NWA & and about same as Gagne. Sometimes 2 a day. Flair did have more 2 a day shows. Really, I would put Flair as very flamboyant with lots of skill
@Stugazza, Dusty Rhodes said that Flair wrestled more Broadways(hour long matches) than just about anyone. And when you consider all the 5 star matches Flair had, you cannot dispute his in-ring ability. He was a phenomenal worker that could work with anyone and make them look good. The guy made stars. Flair was/is a great representative for the business and did more good for it than just about anyone. Yes, Flair was/is flamboyant. He has the balls and self confidence to be so too.
There were a lot of great workers & Flair is in the top. He did make a lot of good wrestlers look great & made stars.I never knew the NWA until we got cable. I am a Bruno man all the way since he was one of the best as well & he too made a lot of guys look good. It is how the wrestlers are presented & handled. NWA did do a great job with Flair. I am Italian & Bruno was our working man's Champ. Bruno was softspoken & that was good contrast to Flair. Lets just say that both guys were great workers
I just miss the old days of wrestling. I am old school & was there in 1963 when I was 8 years old. No one around to connect with anymore, so I quit watching. Just is not the same anymore to me.
@Stugazza, I miss it too. At least when it was a combination of both sport and entertainment. Now, the WWE(especially) is just mindless drivel for the kiddies. TNA isn't too bad though. When Flair eventually retires for good, I think I'm going to stop watching.
@MetalheadJay78 Both guys at the top of their primes would have made for great matches. They both could shoot, but never really had to. Both could wrestle well and both could brawl & could switch to either quickly. Those would have been great. I agree
@golongusa Yeah, that's Vince,Jr. He's that piece of garbage that killed pro wrestling and gave us the pathetic "sports entertainment" in its place. I hope Vince dies a slow, horrible, painful death.
They needed to get rid of Rogers right away because of his health. They knew Bruno would be a great draw for them and they had to have him win in front of all the country. I am sure they paid Buddy good to do this.
This is the match that occured a few days after Rogers suffered a heart attack. He literally arrived at the Garden from the hospital. Some say he was forced from the hospital. He retired later that year. This match lasted less than a minute.
@vividwatch47 You pretty much just saw the entire match anyway. Buddy Rogers had a heart attack the same day this match took place, and had to be taken to the gorilla position in a wheel chair. All the happened was Buddy mised a punch and Bruno caught him in a backbreaker submission for the win. Rogers went back to the hospital right after and retired a while later. The man was a real pro.
@boru25 , That is Vince JR doing the announceing.... yes that is Original Nature boy Buddy Rogers..then man Sean Waltman talked about..that Flair copyed his look and "Nick name from".
@Astraldragon1 Did you not watch the Flair Definitive Collection DVD. His whole personna was based from Buddy Rodgers. He and fellow legends have already said that. What does Waltman have do do with this.
Until Bruno, Bob Backlund and Randy Savage are inducted, the WWE "Hall Of Fame" is meaningless. If Bruno refuses a future invitation, fine then its on him, but induct him anyway. He was the standard bearer for the WWE(F)(WF) for the company's first 15 years.
@yardlet6 yeah Koko was ok, but we're talking about the hall of fame. and my point was that you can't let a hall of fame be political b/c then it is rendered meaningless. How can you have Koko in the HOF and not Bruno or Macho Man? that's ridiculous! you might as well not have a HOF if there are politics involved.
@BOOGE64 exactly they should all be inducted. if they refuse to appear or refuse to have their names used then just say so. they shouldn't have to kiss Mcmahon's ass to be inducted into the WWE HOF. what those men did in the WWF/E is unforgettable. no matter what Mcmahon and his minions say they can't erase our collective memories.
@gonzomoya420 I agree. McMahon is the biggest problem. He treats the old timers poorly & the vast majority of the fans have never seen these guys in their prime. McMahon treated Bruno very bad while Bruno was the backbone of CWC/WWWF for years. Toots Mondt co- promoted with Vince Sr. & advocated for him to build the WWWF around Bruno because he drew huge. Times change though & fans want to see this stupid shit, thus the reason why I quit watching & love the old wrestling posted here.
Bruno is just an angry old man. He was amazingly successful in his heyday but that time is over he needs to realize that all of professional wrestling has changed and wrestlers cant wrestle 60 minute draws and be champion for 5 years.
The only reason that this match ended as quick as it did, is because Buddy Rogers had had a stroke earlier that day, and still wrestled. To protect his health, they made the match end very quickly.
That is BS; he was cleared by the NYS Athletic doctor (before Don Vinnie told everyone wrestling is not a sport) and wrestled after this match--like Rogers was going to wrestle after a heart attack! Smarten up WWE marks--and pay some props to the Living Legend Bruno Sammartino.
Look it up man, Buddy had a heart attack earlier, and that's why they made the match so short. This match would have been HUGE if they could have had it go way longer. Bummer such a classic match had to be cut short.
Can someone explain to me how wrestling worked back then. I mean there is a wrestling match for the world title at Madison square garden. It's not just a wrestling card like it works today. So strange to think Madison square Garden would host a title match as though it were a boxing match. When did the WWF start just selling out arena'sfor a night of WWF instead of actual title matches??
In our house, the holy trinity was the Pope, the Kennedys & Bruno Sammartino. He was & is the working man's champion that I still idolize 46 years later. My great grandparents idolized this man as he came from the same region in Italy as they did. All of my grandparents idolized this man not only because we are Italian, but Bruno is a man of honor & integrity, and a class act as well.
Unfortunately I heard that no film exists of the match. And I heard that from a WWE magazine, so they can't really be lying :(
Incredibly rare photos by the way man, great job. The match only went for 48 seconds, so the footge couldn't have gone that much longer than your video d3
In Bruno Sammartino's book which I think he wrote in kayfabe. He wrote that right after this match a riot broke out and the fans all rushed the ring to lift him up on their shoulders.
I was there. There was no riot. No one rushed the ring. NY State didn't allow that stuff back then. In fact, there was no wrestling allowed outside the ring. I was a huge Rogers fan and this broke my heart. A few months later JFK was assassinated. 1963. A bad year.
hey, i have a question. does anyone know why there is no footage of this match...in fact the only one i can find pre superstar grahem is pedro vs ivan koloff. bruno's other title win and his title defeat to koloff are not on tape. also i have had wwe classics on demand for 4 years...the earliest footage i have seen is from 1970.
In those days the promoters had a tendency to recycle the tapes they used to shoot the wrestling shows. Hense a TON of vintage footage from all the territories prior to about 1977 is lost forever.
It's a shame, really. I've acquired an interest in this particular era of wrestling and would have loved to see some of the more talked about matches from that timeframe.
According to Bruno he faked a mild heart attack before the match. Buddy and his crew were the cliq of the 1950s wrestling. They held bruno back and forced him to work in canada when he wouldnt job to them. Then later when Bruno became a huge draw Vince Sr came begging for Bruno to come back. He did eventually but when Buddy had to put him over he faked a heart attack.
Bruno is truly on of the all time greats! i think he deserves more recognition from wwe than he gets. i have the shoot interview he did with rf video and i will tell you, he has one amazing story!
I'm pretty sure that they wheeled Rogers out of hospital for this match. Bruno approached him before the bell and told him that he was dropping the belt to him. They never did like each other.
Oh please. Hogan, simply for the timing (which obviously he didn't control but still), easily generated more interest than Bruno ever did. And before you come down on Hogan for having time on his side, remember that Bruno got over huge simply for being an immigrant.
bruno didn''t have the benefit of being in a sylvester stallone movie, or wrestlemanias, or cable television, or the national television exposure that hogan got simply because of stallone a nd mcmahon selling this steroid freak bimbo, bruno sold out madison square garden more times than anyone just on his personna, a true life rocky story unlike steroid beach bum vitamin and prayers phony.
My family has always loved Bruno Sammartino (especially my great grandfather who practically worshipped Bruno). I, myself, respect what he did in the sport and consider him a sports immortal. A first-year Professional Wrestling Hall of Famer (2002, Amsterdam, NY), and deserves the honor.
However...let's not make ourselves look like cheap, two-bit marks by dumping on another great legend, Hulk Hogan. He and Bruno are the two greatest legends wrestling has ever seen. They BOTH deserve props.
i totally agree with you on bruno, equally i totally disagree with you on hogan.hogan was a pumped up steroid freak, he was good on the mic doing interviews,that's about it. bruno came to america from italy,130 pounds, and could not speak a word of english, never took steroids, he worked hard to attain his dream.
Well definitely, Bruno worked hard. He came from a rough background, at one point having to survive by eating carrion meat and snow (heard that one on the Bruno: Strongman documentary).
Hogan may have made his mistakes early on with the steroid usage, but remember, many athletes from his generation used steroids, at a time when athletes weren't aware of the dangers of their use. Many were told steroids were safer than putting sugar into your body. They didn't do it to lie to people.
You all can thank the likes of Vince McMahon for the steroid use. He practically demanded it of his wrestlers. He said everyone wanted to see them huge and muscular. I would rather watch Sammartino and Koloff wrestle any day of the week. they were all natural wrestlers. They gave their all to the sport.
all i hear now a days is john cena this john cena that, the truth is john cena cant wrestle worth a shit, if bruno sammartino (i could care less if he hates vince mcmahon or not) went against john cena in his day john cena would actually be a better wrestler than he is right now.
so to all u john cena fans out there, john cena is not the best wrestler ever, bruno sammartino is
Yeah I agree. I can't believe they tried putting him over with an Iron Man Match. Shawn Michaels should be ashamed of himself.
Nowadays it's all a bunch of catch phrases. Everyone wants to be the t-shirt, the overrated hype machine that WWE is nowadays. Fuck John Cena and Triple H.
the only actual wrestler now is ric flair and now hes retired, almost every other wrestler takes steroids so they actual perform better, but when wrestlers used steroids back in the 60s 70s and 80s it was so they could lift 500lbs on top of their shoulders like john cena, it was mainly for when they did a photo shoot when they were in a magazine, now a days they take them for performance and they are not stopping at 1 tablet a month
bruno sammartino said on the news when benoit died he has never ever touched steroids in his whole career and damn it thats a fact, take that to heart, i could go on and on about how fucked up professional wrestling is today, but the point im trying to make is this, back in bruno sammartino's day him buddy rogers ivan koloff pedro morales iron shiek antonio rocca ric flair, untelevised matches whatever, the point is the viewers back then could not predict a matches outcome
Yes,wrestling is predetermined, but they do get hurt a lot of times for real. So is it fake? Its fake in the aspect of predetermined winners and losers and how the match goes. It IS real that their bodies take a pounding and injuries did occur
Hmmmm, well dat will explain why he did break Rogers' back, because I watched and interview with Bruno talking about the match. Now unless he is telling two different stories, he said that he broke Rogers' back and he was saying this out of his own mouth. Well I don't know which one of us is right on this one, we might need a third party to confirm this. Do anybody know what is the truth behind this match?
Bruno said he told Rogers in the ring once he had him in the finisher "If you don't give up I'll break your back". However, there are others that say that Rogers knew he was going to lose in advance and knew he would be in the backbreaker. Rogers was actually injured coming into the match, which is one of the reasons that it lasted only a short few seconds
xcuse me, you pathetic sick son of a bitch, wrestling is fake. it's called E-N-T-E-R-T-A-I-N-M-E-N-T... fuckass idiot... IDK who is a moron, but you suck some major balls...
I think the animosity between Bruno and Vince stems from Sammartino's son not getting the push his dad wanted him to get because he just didn't have that "it" factor the way his father did.
YES....HE LEFT THE HOSPITAL TO DO THIS MATCH AND RETIRED AFTREWARDS......he was done.....he made wrestling....don't forget it......BUDDY ROGERS WAS AND IS THE BEST EVER.....PERIOD.....
True he was sick, but Bruno also broke his back with that Dreaded Bearhug then he flipped it into a backbreaker which is something like the human torture rack. He nearly killed the guy
bruno sammartino is the greatest. ric flair can be the man. hulk hogan can be a real american. but bruno is a god. he is and always will be the wwe.the wwe needs to put this man in the wwe hall of fame.
This comment has received too many negative votesshow
That will never happen, cause he has big problems with Vince. Vince wanted to put him in - but Bruno said no, as it would "link him to todays product, which is not wrestling" (when Bruno himself has very little inring ability, but made up for it in mic work and charisma). Better then Hogan (yes, Hogan - Poser), but Flair (hell no), not dissing Bruno, but Flair better in the ring and on the mic, I would have loved to see Flair Vs. Bruno - Bruno would win the battle, Flair the war, woooo !
Are u kidding me, Bruno has very little in ring ability....... Bruno was the best wrestlers period along with Lou Thez at that time. Bob Backlund was the closest thing to Bruno. Hell Bruno Sammartino was one of those wrestlers who only loss when he wanted to. When Ivan Koloff beat him for the belt, Bruno let him do it to take a break from being champion. There were only a few wrestlers who only were beaten when they wanted to. Bruno, Thez,Verne, and Andre The Giant. Check your history my guy.
Any1 have the actual match?
PJohnson223 3 weeks ago
acording 2 rogers he was brought from hospital just be4 this matchs never was cleared 2 wrestle
OCcrazy1 3 months ago
@OCcrazy1 I also heard the same thing but either or he drops the strap to bruno. Buddy Rogers I hear had a bad rep with the other Wrestlers then and wasnt very well liked. I think alot of it is confused up cause bruno stays in character pretty much anytime he talks about it saying he told rogers I win one way or another. I do think He did have a heart attack say a a few months before the match and it is why this match and all his matches afterwards were very short or tag team matches
Fade2Orion 2 weeks ago
@OCcrazy1 read below first. there is some believability however its spelled to that bruno says rogers was never hurt and just didnt wanna drop the strap because when rogers wrestled lou thesz right before this he didnt wanna drop the belt so they told rogers that if he didnt he wouldnt get back his 25,00 dollars for the belt and the other was if he didnt wanna lose that thesz would just have to beat his ass for real and take it
Fade2Orion 2 weeks ago
The first wrestling screwjob.
cutmerock 4 months ago
@cutmerock
Not really. They just had to get the belt off of Rogers.
AmericanNohbuddy 4 months ago
bruno looks exaclty like the statue of king leonidas.
HeartPiece4u 4 months ago 3
@HeartPiece4u He *is* King Leonidas. He refused to job to the Persians.
KittColby 2 weeks ago
Love Bruno's belly
SuperFerndale 5 months ago
i miss those day. hahaha
jme915 5 months ago
Buddy Rogers was the NWA World's Heavyweight Champion on December 19, 1961.
mkl62 8 months ago
@mkl62
And?
AmericanNohbuddy 4 months ago
The beginning of the longest wwe title run in history 8 years
Brockthepain 10 months ago
@Brockthepain There is ABSOLUTELY NO WAY that record will even come close to being broken. especially with today's wrestling.
jayNicks10 10 months ago 5
I have a handful of films of Sammartino's 1973-1977 Championship run, but are there any existing films of his 1963-1971 run (other than the piss-poor-quality copy of his loss to Ivan Koloff that is already here)?
blozier2006 10 months ago
@blozier2006 There is a match on tape from Japan featuring Bruno vs. Shohei Baba. I would imagine by the presence of a bulkier Bruno's bald spot (which was miraculously missing during a somewhat lankier Bruno's second title reign) that this match was from the sixties.
jefam3 7 months ago
why had wwe not inducted hin in hof
sahib4552 10 months ago
why did vince say world championship wrestling
ChadTheWrestleManiac 10 months ago
@ChadTheWrestleManiac well, WCW wasn't around back then. and back then it was known as WWWF. World Wide Wrestling Federation.
jayNicks10 10 months ago
@jayNicks10 i know that but at the begining of the video he says world championship wrestling!
ChadTheWrestleManiac 10 months ago
@ChadTheWrestleManiac well I'm pretty sure he wasn't referring to WCW since WCW wasn't even around back then so people then thought nothing of it.
jayNicks10 10 months ago
Why dont WWE do long title reigns anymore?? The title used to ment everything.
voluMzor 11 months ago
@voluMzor probably because of over exposure of the product in general. Same guys every week gets boring. Not even in 95 or 96 did they feature the same guys every week on RAW.
dantheman9856 11 months ago
@voluMzor well, remember the Attitude Era? which was widely considered the best Era in Wrestling? during that time, the longest reigns were like 5 or 6 months. I personally think if one man holds the title for years, then a lot of others are going to be held back and Wrestling might just get boring.
jayNicks10 10 months ago
@jayNicks10 Yeah but title meaning is so big if one guy holds it long. And the title matches are going to be more exiting as new champions will be.
voluMzor 10 months ago
@jayNicks10 agreed I think that like a yrs time is a good solid run. On the other hand i dont think that cena and orton doing a title switch every month for like a yr is doing anyone any favors either like has happened in the past.
BURNINGHAMMER76 9 months ago
@BURNINGHAMMER76 in this day 4 months is a good reign
OCcrazy1 3 months ago
@jayNicks10 Your right about that cause Hogan was the champ in 86 and that was like i think 3 years?any how jake the snake ddt hogan on the snake pit and fans cheered for it and wanted him to do it again
Fade2Orion 2 weeks ago
So was it real in those days?
AgApE010 11 months ago
@AgApE010 No it hasnt been ever real.
voluMzor 11 months ago
Bruno Sammartino's record of 2803 days as wwe champion is a record that will never be broken.
MrJLov13 11 months ago
Do a Youtube search for "Buddy Rogers interview 2" Buddy Rogers admits why the match was so short. He discusses for the first time what happened. Hear it from the man himself. He did have a heart attack a week earlier and came back for this match when he said he was in such poor shape that any 17 year old kid could beat him that night.
AmishElvis1 11 months ago
very cool footage
wickedbuzzproduction 1 year ago
Bruno. The greatest ever. No one, and I mean no one, comes close. I love Ric Flair. But, he is second best after Bruno. Bret Hart is overrated. Hogan is a gimmick. Bruno beats them all. And I'm old enough to have seen all of these guys in their primes. There was something about Bruno that made him and still makes him special.
rasslinfun 1 year ago
@rasslinfun , Bruno was good but no one comes close to being as great as Ric Flair was in his prime. Bruno could wrestle but he didn't have the charisma or mic skills of Slick Ric. Flair was just a better showman and storyteller.
MetalheadJay78 1 year ago
@MetalheadJay78 Back then, first and foremost, you HAD to be able to wrestle. Looks and personality were very secondary. The Miz and John Cena would get eaten alive if they had to face guys like Bruno in their prime.
TheJohnnyCotts 1 year ago
@TheJohnnyCotts, I agree but John Cena and The Miz suck in almost EVERY aspect. I'm talking about guys who were both great wrestlers AND entertainers like Harley Race, Ric Flair, Shawn Michaels, and Terry Funk. All those guys could hold their own against Bruno in the ring.
MetalheadJay78 1 year ago
@MetalheadJay78 Harley Race defended his title against Bruno in the early 70's after Bruno lost his title. Those were GREAT matches with 2 of very tough guys. What happened to those days? Bruno would have mauled Michaels.
Stugazza 1 year ago
@Stugazza, those were great matches but out of all the modern guys of the last 25 years, I feel that Michaels is perhaps the one guy that could compete well against those guys. After all, he was influenced by them and has tremendous stamina. You have seen his "Ironman" matches, correct?
MetalheadJay78 1 year ago
Ric Flair was great in his prime. Bruno told it like it was & took action on what he said. Flair was more big mouth than wrestler. Flair was a great showman, but Bruno just whooped ass as well as wrestled.
Stugazza 1 year ago
@Stugazza, Flair could back up every word he said and did so constantly. To this day, I don't think there is any athlete who had a tougher schedule than Ric Flair did in the early 80's. Bruno may not have been able to even endure that! Jack Brisco said Flair wasn't possibly human because no human could endure that schedule. Flair was/is the complete package which is why he is regarded as the greatest ever by most knowledgable fans and wrestling historians(which I happen to be, by the way).
MetalheadJay78 1 year ago
Flair did have a tough schedule. More than a lot of wrestlers. One main reason promoters let him have the belt so long was that he made all of his dates. NWA Champs usually wrestled 365 days, that is true. Bruno had a tough schedule himself, but did have 24-26 days a year off with about 340 bookings since he had a smaller area area to cover than NWA & and about same as Gagne. Sometimes 2 a day. Flair did have more 2 a day shows. Really, I would put Flair as very flamboyant with lots of skill
Stugazza 1 year ago
@Stugazza, Dusty Rhodes said that Flair wrestled more Broadways(hour long matches) than just about anyone. And when you consider all the 5 star matches Flair had, you cannot dispute his in-ring ability. He was a phenomenal worker that could work with anyone and make them look good. The guy made stars. Flair was/is a great representative for the business and did more good for it than just about anyone. Yes, Flair was/is flamboyant. He has the balls and self confidence to be so too.
MetalheadJay78 1 year ago
There were a lot of great workers & Flair is in the top. He did make a lot of good wrestlers look great & made stars.I never knew the NWA until we got cable. I am a Bruno man all the way since he was one of the best as well & he too made a lot of guys look good. It is how the wrestlers are presented & handled. NWA did do a great job with Flair. I am Italian & Bruno was our working man's Champ. Bruno was softspoken & that was good contrast to Flair. Lets just say that both guys were great workers
Stugazza 1 year ago
I just miss the old days of wrestling. I am old school & was there in 1963 when I was 8 years old. No one around to connect with anymore, so I quit watching. Just is not the same anymore to me.
Stugazza 1 year ago
@Stugazza, I miss it too. At least when it was a combination of both sport and entertainment. Now, the WWE(especially) is just mindless drivel for the kiddies. TNA isn't too bad though. When Flair eventually retires for good, I think I'm going to stop watching.
MetalheadJay78 1 year ago
@Stugazza, I really wish Flair and Bruno would have wrestled one another. I think they could have had a series of some of the best matches ever.
MetalheadJay78 1 year ago
@MetalheadJay78 Both guys at the top of their primes would have made for great matches. They both could shoot, but never really had to. Both could wrestle well and both could brawl & could switch to either quickly. Those would have been great. I agree
Stugazza 1 year ago
how old am i? lol...i saw this match in nyc as a kid
bluepastry 1 year ago
nice one
krypton1 1 year ago
Buddy is still the first and greatest WWE Champion of all time.
Paul8820 1 year ago
@Paul8820 The first yes but he is certainly not the greatest
MIKETX76 1 year ago
@Paul8820 Yes he is great. But he only held it for a month.
RkoWrestlingfan228 1 year ago
buddy held the belt for 8 years or something
morinicuk 1 year ago
Bruno had the belt twice. once for 8 years & once for 4 years
Stugazza 1 year ago
is that vince sr, or vince jr narrating?
golongusa 1 year ago
@golongusa
it is Vince Jr.
LEOJRAMO8592 1 year ago 8
@golongusa Yeah, that's Vince,Jr. He's that piece of garbage that killed pro wrestling and gave us the pathetic "sports entertainment" in its place. I hope Vince dies a slow, horrible, painful death.
RevDarkehorse 1 year ago
@RevDarkehorse Sports entertainment was fun to watch in the 80's/early 90's, but it's pretty much unwatchable nowadays.
golongusa 1 year ago
@golongusa That was pro wrestling, the bull shit these days is less on the sport and more on the entertianment side.
Paul8820 1 year ago
@RevDarkehorse Vince Jr. ran wrestling to its peek in 80's and 90's, and slowly killed it.
whowantspie25 1 year ago
They needed to get rid of Rogers right away because of his health. They knew Bruno would be a great draw for them and they had to have him win in front of all the country. I am sure they paid Buddy good to do this.
RangerRob2009 1 year ago
This is the match that occured a few days after Rogers suffered a heart attack. He literally arrived at the Garden from the hospital. Some say he was forced from the hospital. He retired later that year. This match lasted less than a minute.
buzuxi 1 year ago
You're very good at reading a Wikipedia article. Then again, so am I. :\
maxpower789z 1 year ago
Does any actual film exist of this match? This is actually a collage of photographs.
vividwatch47 1 year ago
There is no footage available. I heard that there use to be footage of this match, but got destroyed over the years.
LEOJRAMO8592 1 year ago
@LEOJRAMO8592 I could've swore seeing footage when I was a kid.Maybe it was of him and Stan Stasiaks match?
81carlos 3 months ago
@vividwatch47 You pretty much just saw the entire match anyway. Buddy Rogers had a heart attack the same day this match took place, and had to be taken to the gorilla position in a wheel chair. All the happened was Buddy mised a punch and Bruno caught him in a backbreaker submission for the win. Rogers went back to the hospital right after and retired a while later. The man was a real pro.
Foamhead 1 year ago
@Foamhead Later that proved to be a rumor put out by Rogers Himself, he had a lot of bookings right after that match and never missed one.
after an heart attack no Medic of the athletic ommission would allow him to fight.
wrestlers were checked before every match back then.
TheRealAxelFury 1 year ago
So thats Buddy Rogers. The guy Scot Steiner n Sean Waltman accused Ric Falir of ripping off. Is that Vince seniour talking?
boru25 1 year ago
@boru25 , That is Vince JR doing the announceing.... yes that is Original Nature boy Buddy Rogers..then man Sean Waltman talked about..that Flair copyed his look and "Nick name from".
Astraldragon1 1 year ago
@Astraldragon1 Did you not watch the Flair Definitive Collection DVD. His whole personna was based from Buddy Rodgers. He and fellow legends have already said that. What does Waltman have do do with this.
Paul8820 1 year ago
@Paul8820 But Flair's moves were based on Ray Stevens who was Flair's favorite when he was growing up.
yardlet6 1 year ago
Until Bruno, Bob Backlund and Randy Savage are inducted, the WWE "Hall Of Fame" is meaningless. If Bruno refuses a future invitation, fine then its on him, but induct him anyway. He was the standard bearer for the WWE(F)(WF) for the company's first 15 years.
BOOGE64 1 year ago
@BOOGE64 it is already meaningless because they inducted Koko B "CurtainJerkin" Ware for Christ's sake!
gonzomoya420 1 year ago
@gonzomoya420 Koko B Ware is in the Hall of Fame? LOL
fjccommish 1 year ago
@gonzomoya420 Koko wasn't taht bad. You have to see him in Memphis when he was good.
yardlet6 1 year ago
@yardlet6 yeah Koko was ok, but we're talking about the hall of fame. and my point was that you can't let a hall of fame be political b/c then it is rendered meaningless. How can you have Koko in the HOF and not Bruno or Macho Man? that's ridiculous! you might as well not have a HOF if there are politics involved.
gonzomoya420 1 year ago
@BOOGE64 exactly they should all be inducted. if they refuse to appear or refuse to have their names used then just say so. they shouldn't have to kiss Mcmahon's ass to be inducted into the WWE HOF. what those men did in the WWF/E is unforgettable. no matter what Mcmahon and his minions say they can't erase our collective memories.
gonzomoya420 1 year ago
@gonzomoya420 I agree. McMahon is the biggest problem. He treats the old timers poorly & the vast majority of the fans have never seen these guys in their prime. McMahon treated Bruno very bad while Bruno was the backbone of CWC/WWWF for years. Toots Mondt co- promoted with Vince Sr. & advocated for him to build the WWWF around Bruno because he drew huge. Times change though & fans want to see this stupid shit, thus the reason why I quit watching & love the old wrestling posted here.
Stugazza 1 year ago
@BOOGE64 I thought Backlund was in. Bruno will not go in until after his death, and who knows about Savage.
TheJohnnyCotts 1 year ago
Bruno is just an angry old man. He was amazingly successful in his heyday but that time is over he needs to realize that all of professional wrestling has changed and wrestlers cant wrestle 60 minute draws and be champion for 5 years.
kr0n0s187 2 years ago
Bruno said in an interview he told Buddy, "Buddy, this is it. Give it up. And he gave it up."
Righton2000 2 years ago
The only reason that this match ended as quick as it did, is because Buddy Rogers had had a stroke earlier that day, and still wrestled. To protect his health, they made the match end very quickly.
TheMattLytle 2 years ago
Not a stroke but an heart attack.
lordieli 2 years ago
That is BS; he was cleared by the NYS Athletic doctor (before Don Vinnie told everyone wrestling is not a sport) and wrestled after this match--like Rogers was going to wrestle after a heart attack! Smarten up WWE marks--and pay some props to the Living Legend Bruno Sammartino.
RPenta 2 years ago
Look it up man, Buddy had a heart attack earlier, and that's why they made the match so short. This match would have been HUGE if they could have had it go way longer. Bummer such a classic match had to be cut short.
TheMattLytle 2 years ago
Can someone explain to me how wrestling worked back then. I mean there is a wrestling match for the world title at Madison square garden. It's not just a wrestling card like it works today. So strange to think Madison square Garden would host a title match as though it were a boxing match. When did the WWF start just selling out arena'sfor a night of WWF instead of actual title matches??
bpatrice49 2 years ago
In our house, the holy trinity was the Pope, the Kennedys & Bruno Sammartino. He was & is the working man's champion that I still idolize 46 years later. My great grandparents idolized this man as he came from the same region in Italy as they did. All of my grandparents idolized this man not only because we are Italian, but Bruno is a man of honor & integrity, and a class act as well.
Stugazza 2 years ago 3
hey wresling fans JR sucks as commentary i miss gorilla monsoon & jessie the body ventura and "the brain"...but anyway this match is cool.
IVoNzIpPeRI 2 years ago
@IVoNzIpPeRI Jim Ross is the man. The only one better is Gordon Solie.
yardlet6 1 year ago
@yardlet6 and Bob Caudle and Lance Russell
gonzomoya420 1 year ago
Did Big Jr say World Championship Wrestling as in WCW?!?!?!? 0:06
gtz1975 2 years ago 3
WOW, Yea he did say that.
CadillacL 2 years ago
Pretty legendary stuff, wasn't aware it only went 36 seconds though :|
dud3cor3 2 years ago
it was actually 0:48
Rockwildon 2 years ago
48 seconds to win or 55 seconds as the video says
js560000 2 years ago
Wow, this was even before Andre the Giant's time. Andre was only a teenager at the time.
chuckmanofgod 2 years ago
No film???
LazlosPlane 2 years ago
Unfortunately I heard that no film exists of the match. And I heard that from a WWE magazine, so they can't really be lying :(
Incredibly rare photos by the way man, great job. The match only went for 48 seconds, so the footge couldn't have gone that much longer than your video d3
Yeah1993WF 2 years ago
In Bruno Sammartino's book which I think he wrote in kayfabe. He wrote that right after this match a riot broke out and the fans all rushed the ring to lift him up on their shoulders.
hector17dead 2 years ago
I was there. There was no riot. No one rushed the ring. NY State didn't allow that stuff back then. In fact, there was no wrestling allowed outside the ring. I was a huge Rogers fan and this broke my heart. A few months later JFK was assassinated. 1963. A bad year.
Religionsrbogus 2 years ago
im pretty sure this was the 2nd ever WWE title match ever
RVD2267 2 years ago
Rogers had time for several defenses. He was not drawing.
Stugazza 2 years ago
he didnt win it in maderson squer garden he won it in brazil
Rubyclouding 2 years ago
No mark, he didn't win it in brazil. He was awarded the title if you knew anything about the title's true history.
AmericanNohbuddy 2 years ago 2
maybe he didnt know about the fictional title match between Rocca and Rogers
MrYankeesguy56 2 years ago
i did find koloff vs sanmartino on you tube just now...it appears to be a bootleg copy. i am wondering why wwe doesnt own pre 1970 footage.
mikelkjhg 2 years ago
hey, i have a question. does anyone know why there is no footage of this match...in fact the only one i can find pre superstar grahem is pedro vs ivan koloff. bruno's other title win and his title defeat to koloff are not on tape. also i have had wwe classics on demand for 4 years...the earliest footage i have seen is from 1970.
mikelkjhg 2 years ago
In those days the promoters had a tendency to recycle the tapes they used to shoot the wrestling shows. Hense a TON of vintage footage from all the territories prior to about 1977 is lost forever.
WatchVenusSpa 2 years ago
@WatchVenusSpa
It's a shame, really. I've acquired an interest in this particular era of wrestling and would have loved to see some of the more talked about matches from that timeframe.
KrispenWah 2 years ago
look up ivan koloff vs. sammartino. it is on here from 8mm.
foreverhulkamania 2 years ago
Is that Vince Sr. doing the voiceover?
WatchVenusSpa 2 years ago
Sounds like Vince Jr. to me.
KennethKaniffFromCT 2 years ago
Me too.
optimus57 2 years ago
Buddy Rogers had suffered a mild heart attack not too long before this bout. He retired shortly after this match. All wrestling matches are scripted.
bgdisbrow 2 years ago
According to Bruno he faked a mild heart attack before the match. Buddy and his crew were the cliq of the 1950s wrestling. They held bruno back and forced him to work in canada when he wouldnt job to them. Then later when Bruno became a huge draw Vince Sr came begging for Bruno to come back. He did eventually but when Buddy had to put him over he faked a heart attack.
optimus57 2 years ago 6
Hey buddy hw did u download this clip, I wood like 2 use it 4 a college project on the WWE
alasdair21 2 years ago
Screw Hogan, screw Austin, screw Rocky, screw Lesnar, and screw Cena.
THIS MAN is the greatest WWE Champion of all time!
Sanguiluna 2 years ago 15
@Sanguiluna its true...sammartino is the greatest who ever lived but vince mcmahon never says his name.so thats y no buddy knows about him
WWEuniverseification 1 year ago
it was fixed....lol
bluepastry 2 years ago
You're kidding!
highnrising 2 years ago
Comment removed
Stugazza 2 years ago
bruno sammartino w l'italia!
royalrumble2001 2 years ago
the 36 seconds that launched a star and change wrestling pre entertainment days
thunderbare 2 years ago 3
Bruno is truly on of the all time greats! i think he deserves more recognition from wwe than he gets. i have the shoot interview he did with rf video and i will tell you, he has one amazing story!
foreverhulkamania 2 years ago 3
he will never get the recignition he deserves from Jr
thunderbare 2 years ago
I'm pretty sure that they wheeled Rogers out of hospital for this match. Bruno approached him before the bell and told him that he was dropping the belt to him. They never did like each other.
Nik133 2 years ago
That is true. Bruno also told him that if he did not go along with it, he would break his back.
TonySpargo 2 years ago 3
Wasn't this match filmed or televised?
Bizarronumber4 2 years ago
this match was not televised or filmed. what you see were. clips from the match
dooktango 2 years ago
Still photos actually.
DotDotkins 2 years ago
was this match real?
bpatrice49 2 years ago
no its not
jblive1985 2 years ago
Comment removed
Stugazza 2 years ago
Flair, Hogan neither are in the same league that Bruno was. No one has ever come close to the fan interest or emotion that Bruno had.
bobdole1951 3 years ago 3
Oh please. Hogan, simply for the timing (which obviously he didn't control but still), easily generated more interest than Bruno ever did. And before you come down on Hogan for having time on his side, remember that Bruno got over huge simply for being an immigrant.
WillIsSoAwesome 3 years ago
bruno didn''t have the benefit of being in a sylvester stallone movie, or wrestlemanias, or cable television, or the national television exposure that hogan got simply because of stallone a nd mcmahon selling this steroid freak bimbo, bruno sold out madison square garden more times than anyone just on his personna, a true life rocky story unlike steroid beach bum vitamin and prayers phony.
mferg240 3 years ago
My family has always loved Bruno Sammartino (especially my great grandfather who practically worshipped Bruno). I, myself, respect what he did in the sport and consider him a sports immortal. A first-year Professional Wrestling Hall of Famer (2002, Amsterdam, NY), and deserves the honor.
However...let's not make ourselves look like cheap, two-bit marks by dumping on another great legend, Hulk Hogan. He and Bruno are the two greatest legends wrestling has ever seen. They BOTH deserve props.
WhoKilledDizzy 3 years ago
i totally agree with you on bruno, equally i totally disagree with you on hogan.hogan was a pumped up steroid freak, he was good on the mic doing interviews,that's about it. bruno came to america from italy,130 pounds, and could not speak a word of english, never took steroids, he worked hard to attain his dream.
mferg240 3 years ago
Well definitely, Bruno worked hard. He came from a rough background, at one point having to survive by eating carrion meat and snow (heard that one on the Bruno: Strongman documentary).
Hogan may have made his mistakes early on with the steroid usage, but remember, many athletes from his generation used steroids, at a time when athletes weren't aware of the dangers of their use. Many were told steroids were safer than putting sugar into your body. They didn't do it to lie to people.
WhoKilledDizzy 3 years ago
Comment removed
WhoKilledDizzy 3 years ago
Bruno has charisma. He wrestled all over the world & drew huge crowds. He once drew 40000 fans to a bull ring in Caracas, Venezuela
Stugazza 2 years ago
You all can thank the likes of Vince McMahon for the steroid use. He practically demanded it of his wrestlers. He said everyone wanted to see them huge and muscular. I would rather watch Sammartino and Koloff wrestle any day of the week. they were all natural wrestlers. They gave their all to the sport.
CharlieMagnante 3 years ago 5
all i hear now a days is john cena this john cena that, the truth is john cena cant wrestle worth a shit, if bruno sammartino (i could care less if he hates vince mcmahon or not) went against john cena in his day john cena would actually be a better wrestler than he is right now.
so to all u john cena fans out there, john cena is not the best wrestler ever, bruno sammartino is
sk8terboi8056 3 years ago 8
Yeah I agree. I can't believe they tried putting him over with an Iron Man Match. Shawn Michaels should be ashamed of himself.
Nowadays it's all a bunch of catch phrases. Everyone wants to be the t-shirt, the overrated hype machine that WWE is nowadays. Fuck John Cena and Triple H.
hector17dead 3 years ago
the only actual wrestler now is ric flair and now hes retired, almost every other wrestler takes steroids so they actual perform better, but when wrestlers used steroids back in the 60s 70s and 80s it was so they could lift 500lbs on top of their shoulders like john cena, it was mainly for when they did a photo shoot when they were in a magazine, now a days they take them for performance and they are not stopping at 1 tablet a month
sk8terboi8056 3 years ago
bruno sammartino said on the news when benoit died he has never ever touched steroids in his whole career and damn it thats a fact, take that to heart, i could go on and on about how fucked up professional wrestling is today, but the point im trying to make is this, back in bruno sammartino's day him buddy rogers ivan koloff pedro morales iron shiek antonio rocca ric flair, untelevised matches whatever, the point is the viewers back then could not predict a matches outcome
sk8terboi8056 3 years ago
Yes,wrestling is predetermined, but they do get hurt a lot of times for real. So is it fake? Its fake in the aspect of predetermined winners and losers and how the match goes. It IS real that their bodies take a pounding and injuries did occur
jswags 3 years ago 2
This is the day that started Andy Kaufmans act and career. He said he was at this event and idolized Buddy Rogers.
KeithMozingo 3 years ago
Hmmmm, well dat will explain why he did break Rogers' back, because I watched and interview with Bruno talking about the match. Now unless he is telling two different stories, he said that he broke Rogers' back and he was saying this out of his own mouth. Well I don't know which one of us is right on this one, we might need a third party to confirm this. Do anybody know what is the truth behind this match?
soulsectionleader 3 years ago
Bruno said he told Rogers in the ring once he had him in the finisher "If you don't give up I'll break your back". However, there are others that say that Rogers knew he was going to lose in advance and knew he would be in the backbreaker. Rogers was actually injured coming into the match, which is one of the reasons that it lasted only a short few seconds
jswags 3 years ago 3
Was wrestling fake back then?
WorldsStrongestKid 3 years ago
it isn't fake now what the hell are you talking about? asshole!
oldschool6804 3 years ago
errr, yes it is...
filazicbre 3 years ago
no it isn't fake moron when guys get hurt they get hurt!
oldschool6804 3 years ago 4
You believe it's real? WOW, whose the moron in this picture? You need to grow up a little and get a life.
robbystlace 3 years ago
xcuse me, you pathetic sick son of a bitch, wrestling is fake. it's called E-N-T-E-R-T-A-I-N-M-E-N-T... fuckass idiot... IDK who is a moron, but you suck some major balls...
filazicbre 3 years ago
you're the fucking idiot its not allfake moron go fuck yourself you misinformed liitle bitch!
oldschool6804 3 years ago
tell that to your ugly mother you pagan scum. When I find you, I'm gonna kick your ass. Popusi mi kurac majmune crko dabogda
filazicbre 3 years ago
sure you will you misinformed cretin, and don't bring my family into this asshole!
oldschool6804 3 years ago
Go blow yourself marlyn manson
sexmech27 3 years ago
even more than today...
filazicbre 3 years ago
Buddy Rogers was a drunkard.
robbystlace 3 years ago
it is predetermined not fake learn the difference!
oldschool6804 3 years ago
World Championship Wrestling????
WrestlingHeretic 3 years ago
I think the animosity between Bruno and Vince stems from Sammartino's son not getting the push his dad wanted him to get because he just didn't have that "it" factor the way his father did.
Toast960 3 years ago
Vince Sr. & Jr. treated him like shit & thought it was ok. There is a lot more to this than we see. Watch Beyond The Championship Belt.
Stugazza 2 years ago
Yes he did.
LEOJRAMO8592 3 years ago
Didn't Rogers have a minor stroke prior to this match?
VolumedMusicMan 3 years ago 2
YES....HE LEFT THE HOSPITAL TO DO THIS MATCH AND RETIRED AFTREWARDS......he was done.....he made wrestling....don't forget it......BUDDY ROGERS WAS AND IS THE BEST EVER.....PERIOD.....
bdvs720 3 years ago
True he was sick, but Bruno also broke his back with that Dreaded Bearhug then he flipped it into a backbreaker which is something like the human torture rack. He nearly killed the guy
soulsectionleader 3 years ago
its awesome that you could watch every title change on youtube except backlund vs billy graham
gypsywwf 3 years ago 3
is this from 5/15/2006 raw?
js560000 3 years ago
bruno sammartino is the greatest. ric flair can be the man. hulk hogan can be a real american. but bruno is a god. he is and always will be the wwe.the wwe needs to put this man in the wwe hall of fame.
adparkerrezk 3 years ago 8
This comment has received too many negative votes show
That will never happen, cause he has big problems with Vince. Vince wanted to put him in - but Bruno said no, as it would "link him to todays product, which is not wrestling" (when Bruno himself has very little inring ability, but made up for it in mic work and charisma). Better then Hogan (yes, Hogan - Poser), but Flair (hell no), not dissing Bruno, but Flair better in the ring and on the mic, I would have loved to see Flair Vs. Bruno - Bruno would win the battle, Flair the war, woooo !
Cyberpit2000 3 years ago
Are u kidding me, Bruno has very little in ring ability....... Bruno was the best wrestlers period along with Lou Thez at that time. Bob Backlund was the closest thing to Bruno. Hell Bruno Sammartino was one of those wrestlers who only loss when he wanted to. When Ivan Koloff beat him for the belt, Bruno let him do it to take a break from being champion. There were only a few wrestlers who only were beaten when they wanted to. Bruno, Thez,Verne, and Andre The Giant. Check your history my guy.
soulsectionleader 3 years ago 3