List of professional wrestling memorial shows

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This is a list of professional wrestling memorial shows from the 1980s until the present day. Memorial shows have been historically important in the history of professional wrestling, usually held in memory of a recently deceased wrestler, promoter or other well-known personality, and used to pay tribute to a particular individual's accomplishments and contributions to the industry. The proceeds are generally donated to family members or charitable organizations.

These shows were often held as a form of supercard, a major wrestling event not aired on pay-per-view, and sometimes resulted interpromotional shows. These types of shows were rarely seen in the United States, the earliest being the Von Erich Memorial Parade of Champions held in memory of David Von Erich from 1984–1988, but have been common in Japan since the late 1980s. In North America, memorial shows are most often held by independent wrestling promotions although mainstream organizations like WWE have occasionally dedicated specific episodes of WWE Raw or WWE SmackDown to then current WWE wrestlers such as Owen Hart (1999), Eddie Guerrero (2005), Chris Benoit (2007), and Bray Wyatt (2023), and All Elite Wrestling on AEW Dynamite to then current AEW wrestler Brodie Lee (2020).

List[edit]

1980s[edit]

Name Promotion Organizer(s) Years active Notes
Mike Marino Memorial Shield Dale Martin Promotions Dale Martin 1981
Von Erich Memorial Parade of Champions World Class Championship Wrestling Fritz Von Erich 1984-1988 [1]
Johnny Rougeau Memorial Show 1984
Jim Crockett, Sr. Memorial Cup Jim Crockett Promotions Jim Crockett, Jr. 1986-1988 [2]
Eddie Graham Memorial Show Championship Wrestling from Florida Hiro Matsuda
Duke Keomuka 		1987-1988 Each show was held under different banners,[3] the second being promoted by Mike Graham and Florida Championship Wrestling.[4]
Frank Tunney, Sr. Memorial Tag Team Tournament World Wrestling Federation Vince McMahon 1987
Ikki Kajiwara Memorial Show Multiple promotions Giant Baba
Antonio Inoki 		1988 Interpromotional event including All Japan Pro Wrestling, Japan Women's Pro Wrestling and New Japan Pro-Wrestling.[5]
Bruiser Brody Memorial Show All Japan Pro Wrestling Giant Baba 1988 [6]

1990s[edit]

Name Promotion Organizer(s) Years active Notes
Pat O'Connor Memorial International Cup Tag Team Tournament World Championship Wrestling Ole Anderson 1990 Hosted at Starrcade '90.[7]
Kerry Von Erich Memorial Show Global Wrestling Federation Grey Pierson 1993 Headlined by Kevin Von Erich (with Fritz Von Erich) and a mystery wrestler managed by Skandor Akbar.[8]
Rikidozan Memorial Show Multiple promotions 1996 Interpromotional event including All Japan Pro Wrestling, Big Japan Pro Wrestling, Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling, Gaea Japan, IWA Japan, Michinoku Pro Wrestling, New Japan Pro-Wrestling, UWFi and others.[9]
Ilio DiPaolo Memorial Show World Championship Wrestling Dennis DiPaolo
Eric Bischoff 		1996-1999 [10]
Eddie Gilbert Memorial Brawl National Wrestling Alliance Dennis Coraluzzo 1996-1999 [11]
Eddie Gilbert Memorial Show IWA Mid-South Ian Rotten 1997-1998
Ikki Kajiwara Memorial Show Multiple promotions Giant Baba
Antonio Inoki 		1997 Interpromotional event including All Japan Pro Wrestling, Michinoku Pro Wrestling, New Japan Pro-Wrestling and others.[12]
Plum Mariko Memorial Show JWP Joshi Puroresu 1997-1998 [13]
Brian Pillman Memorial Show Heartland Wrestling Association Harley Race 1998-2001 [14]
Tojo Yamamoto Memorial Show Music City Wrestling Bert Prentice 1998 [15]
Junkyard Dog Memorial Show Long Island Wrestling Federation Bobby Lombardi 1998
Shane Shamrock Memorial Cup Maryland Championship Wrestling Dan McDevitt
Mark Shrader 		1999-
Curtis Comes Home Multiple promotions Cody Michaels 1999 Interpromotional event including Extreme Championship Wrestling, World Championship Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation.
Giant Baba Memorial Show All Japan Pro Wrestling Mitsuharu Misawa 1999 [16]
Raw Is Owen World Wrestling Federation Vince McMahon 1999 Hosted on the May 24 edition of WWF Monday Night Raw.[17]

2000s[edit]

Name Promotion Organizer(s) Years active Notes
Rikidozan Memorial Show Multiple promotions 2000 Interpromotional event including All Japan Pro Wrestling, Big Japan Pro Wrestling, New Japan Pro-Wrestling, Michinoku Pro Wrestling, Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling, Gaea Japan, UWFi and others.[18]
Gary Albright Memorial Show World Xtreme Wrestling Afa Anoaʻi 2000 [19]
Mark Curtis Memorial Weekend of Champions Southern States Wrestling Beau James 2000-2003 [20][21]
Todd The Bod Memorial Tournament Canadian Wrestling Federation Ernie Todd 2000
Tony Rumble Memorial Show Century Wrestling Alliance Knuckles Nelson
Jeff Katz 		2000-2007
Robert "Diceman" Hornack Memorial Show Allied Powers Wrestling Federation Chris Lash 2000
Bruiser Brody Memorial IWA Puerto Rico Víctor Quiñones 2000 First Bruiser Brody memorial show held in Puerto Rico.[22][23]
Giant Baba Memorial Spectacular All Japan Pro Wrestling 2001 Also served as retirement show for Stan Hansen.[24]
Lee Sanders Memorial Tournament Windy City Pro Wrestling Sam DeCero 2001-2010
Terry Gordy Memorial Show Legends of Pro Wrestling Linda Marx Keebles 2001 [25]
Manfred Koch Memorial Cup European Wrestling Promotion Christian Eckstein
Jörg Vespermann 		2001
Yokozuna Memorial Show World Xtreme Wrestling Afa Anoaʻi 2001 [26]
Giant Baba Memorial Cup All Japan Pro Wrestling Keiji Mutoh 2002 [27]
Russ Haas Memorial Show Jersey All Pro Wrestling Frank Iadeavia 2002
Giant Baba Memorial Six Man Tag Team Tournament All-Japan Pro Wrestling Keiji Mutoh 2002 [28]
Big Dick Dudley Memorial Show USA Pro Wrestling Frank Goodman 2002-2003 [29]
Russ Haas Memorial Tag Team Tournament Phoenix Championship Wrestling Donnie Bucci 2002
Ted Petty Memorial Inventational Tournament IWA Mid-South Ian Rotten 2002-2008 [30]
Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup Multiple promotions Howard Brody 2003- Interpromotional event including Full Impact Pro, IPW Hardcore and NWA Florida.[31]
Mike Lockwood Memorial Show Pro Wrestling Iron Donovan Morgan 2003 [32]
Johnny Weaver Memorial Tournament CWF Mid-Atlantic Jeff Rudd
Danny Wenkel 		2004- The tournament was attended by Johnny Weaver until his death in 2008 and subsequently held as a memorial event by the promotion.
Fred Ward Memorial Show Great Championship Wrestling Jerry Oates 2004-2009 [33]
Mike Lockwood Memorial Tournament New Breed Wrestling Association Mike Wallace 2005 [34]
Ray Mendez Memorial Tournament Pro Wrestling eXpress Jim Miller 2005-2006
Chris Candido Memorial J-Cup National Wrestling Superstars Joe Panzarino
Gino Moore 		2005- Hosted at the 5th annual J-Cup tournament.[35]
Mark Curtis Memorial Reunion Pam Hildebrand-Clark 2005
Chris Candido Memorial Show USA Pro Wrestling Frank Goodman 2005-2006 [36]
Victor The Bodyguard Memorial Cup IWA Puerto Rico Víctor Quiñones 2005
Bruiser Brody Memorial Cup World Wrestling Council Victor Jovica
Carlos Colón 		2005-2006 [37]
Chris Candido Memorial Tag Team Tournament Total Nonstop Action Wrestling Jerry Jarrett 2005 [38]
Chri$ Ca$h Memorial Show Combat Zone Wrestling John Zandig
D. J. Hyde 		2005-
Raw Is Eddie World Wrestling Entertainment Vince McMahon 2005 Hosted on the November 14 edition of WWE Raw.[39]
Jay Youngblood Memorial Tag Team Cup Tournament Professional Wrestling Federation 2006-2008
Great Goliath Memorial Battle Royal Empire Wrestling Federation Jesse Hernandez
Bill Anderson 		2006- [40]
Shinya Hashimoto Memorial Six-Man Tag Team Tournament HUSTLE Nobuhiko Takada 2006 [41]
Jose Miguel Perez Memorial Cup IWA Puerto Rico Savio Vega
Miguel Pérez, Jr. 		2006- [42]
Pitbull/Public Enemy Tag Team Memorial Cup Pro Wrestling Unplugged Tod Gordon
Johnny Kashmere 		2006- [43]
Eddie Graham Memorial Battle of the Belts Full Impact Pro Sal Hamaoui 2007, 2009 [44]
Steve Ranton Memorial Tournament Valley Championship Wrestling 2007
Chris Candido Cup Tag Team Tournament IWA Mid-South Ian Rotten 2007-2008 [45]
Chris Benoit Memorial Show World Wrestling Entertainment Vince McMahon 2007 Hosted on the June 25 edition of WWE Raw.[46] Due to the circumstances of Benoit’s death, this show is not available as a rerun on the WWE Network. Also, as other countries received the airing later, a highlight show of John Cena’s title wins played in its place.[47]
Tiger Khan Memorial Show Total Mayhem Pro Wrestling Evan Ginzburg 2007 [48]
Antonio Peña Memorial Show Asistencia Asesoría y Administración Dorian Roldan 2007- [49]
Sensational Sherri Memorial Cup Tournament Association de Lutte Féminine Kim Leduc 2007-2008 [50]
Dewey Robertson Memorial Tournament Stranglehold Wrestling Bill Skullion 2007
Devil Bhudakahn Memorial Show Turnbuckle Entertainment Bobby Williams 2008, 2010 [51]
Shinya Hashimoto Memorial Legacy Cup Tournament Pro Wrestling Zero1 Yoshiyuki Nakamura
Steve Corino 		2008- [52]
Danno O'Mahony Memorial Show Irish Whip Wrestling 2008-
Sean "Shocker" Evans Memorial Tournament Pro Wrestling eXpress Jim Miller 2008-
Dynamite D Memorial Show Santino Brothers Wrestling Joey Kaos
Jezabel Romo
Robby Phoenix
Rico Dynamite
Famous B 		2009-
Kerry Brown Memorial Tournament Steeltown Pro Wrestling Rob Stardom 2010-2012
Walter "Killer" Kowalski Memorial Show Multiple promotions Richard Byrne 2008 Interpromotional event including Big Time Wrestling and the United States Wrestling Federation.[53]
Mitsuharu Misawa Memorial Show Pro Wrestling Noah Akira Taue 2009 [54]
Dennis Coralluzzo Invitational NWA New Jersey Ricky Otazu 2009 Coralluzzo was posthumously inducted into the NWA Hall of Fame.[55]

2010s[edit]

Name Promotion Organizer(s) Years active Notes
Marie Ewaschuk Memorial Show Real Canadian Wrestling Steve Ewaschuk 2010-
Acid-Fest: A Tribute to Trent Acid Combat Zone Wrestling D. J. Hyde 2010-2011 Organized to both eulogize late independent professional wrestler Trent Acid, and to help pay for the funeral costs of said wrestler.
Dick Murdoch Memorial Tag Team Cup Multiple promotions 2010 Interpromotional event including NWA Southwest and the Professional Wrestling Federation.
A Nightmare To Remember LN Promotions Terry Lawler 2011-2012
Joe Williams Memorial Trophy World Association of Wrestling Ricky Knight 2011
El Bandito Memorial Tournament Britannia Wrestling Promotions Steve Saxon 2011-
Brain Damage Memorial Show Combat Zone Wrestling D. J. Hyde 2012
Samuel J. Thompson Memorial Tournament Resistance Pro Wrestling Billy Corgan 2013-2014
Brad Armstrong Memorial Cup Armstrong family 2013
Brad Armstrong Memorial Show Knoxville Wrestling Promotions Armstrong family 2013-2014
Nagaharu Imai Memorial Show Multiple promotions 2013 Interpromotional event including Big Japan Pro Wrestling, Ice Ribbon, JWP Joshi Puroresu, Ladies Legend Pro-Wrestling, OZ Academy, Pro-Wrestling Diana, Pro Wrestling Wave Sendai Girls' Pro Wrestling and STARDOM.
Roland Alexander Memorial Show All Pro Wrestling Markus Mac 2013
Rikidozan's Death 50th Anniversary Memorial Show Multiple promotions 2013 Interpromotional event including All Japan Pro Wrestling, Big Japan Pro Wrestling and others.
Jumbo Tsuruta Memorial Show Pro Wrestling NOAH Akira Taue 2014
Ryan Buckley Memorial Tournament Proving Ground Pro 2015
Takeshi Onaga Memorial Show: BJW Eternal Dream Big Japan Pro Wrestling Eiji Tosaka 2015

2020s[edit]

Name Promotion Organizer(s) Years active Notes
La Noche de Mr. Niebla Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre Salvador Lutteroth III 2020
Brodie Lee Celebration of Life All Elite Wrestling Tony Khan 2020 Hosted on the December 30 edition of AEW Dynamite.
Giant Baba Anniversary Show All Japan Pro Wrestling
New Japan Pro-Wrestling
Big Japan Pro Wrestling 		2021
Hana Kimura Memorial Show Multiple promotions Kyoko Kimura 2021–present
Jay Briscoe Celebration of Life Ring of Honor Tony Khan 2023 Hosted on ROH Honor Club and YouTube for free, on the ROH channel.
Bray Wyatt and Terry Funk Tribute Show WWE 2023 The August 25, 2023 episode of WWE SmackDown was a tribute to active wrestler Wyatt and retired wrestler Funk, both of whom had died shortly before.

References[edit]

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  2. ^ "1st Annual Jim Crockett, Sr. Memorial Tag Team Tournament Cup". Crockett Cup. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  3. ^ "Eddie Graham Memorial Show". Championship Wrestling from Florida Misc. Events. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  4. ^ "Eddie Graham Memorial Show". Florida Championship Wrestling/Professional Wrestling Federation Cards. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  5. ^ "Ikki Kajiwara Memorial 1988". Misc. Cards. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  6. ^ "Budokan Hall 8/88". All Japan Budokan Hall Shows. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  7. ^ "Pat O'Conner Memorial International Tag Team Tournament". Misc. Tournaments. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  8. ^ "Angels Offer Valera More For A Little Less." The Charlotte Observer. 23 Mar. 1993: 2B
  9. ^ "Rikidozan Memorial 1996". Misc. Cards. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  10. ^ "1st Annual Ilio DiPaolo Memorial". WCW Ilio DiPaolo Memorials. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  11. ^ "1st Annual Eddie Gilbert Memorial Brawl". National Wrestling Alliance Eddie Gilbert Memorial Shows. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  12. ^ "Ikki Kajiwara Memorial 1997". Misc. Cards. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  13. ^ "1st Annual Plum Mariko Memorial". JWP. ProWrestlingHistory.com. Archived from the original on 2002-05-27.
  14. ^ "1st Annual Pillman Memorial Show". HWA Brian Pillman Memorial Show. ProWrestlingHistory.com. Archived from the original on 2010-04-06.
  15. ^ "Music City Wrestling". Results. OnlineWorldofWrestling.com. 2009.
  16. ^ "AJPW Giant Baba Memorial Show". The Internet Wrestling Database. May 2, 1999. Archived from the original on November 27, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  17. ^ Zimmerman, Christopher Robin (May 24, 1999). "Monday Night Raw May 24, 1999". The Other Arena. Archived from the original on September 29, 2001. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  18. ^ "Rikidozan Memorial 2000". Misc. Cards. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  19. ^ Cawthon, Graham. "2000". Graham Cawthon's History of the WWE. TheHistoryofWWE.com.
  20. ^ Lane, Matthew (2001-05-10). "Wrestling Legend Arn Anderson Heads Ticket". The New WAWLI (Wrestling As We Liked It) Papers, No. 173-2001. WrestlingClassics.com.
  21. ^ "Wrestling fundraiser May 10". Daily News. May 9, 2003.
  22. ^ IWA Puerto Rico (Producer) (November 23, 2000). IWA PR Bruiser Brody Memorial 11/23/00 (DVD). Puerto Rico: WrestlingreyDVDs.com.
  23. ^ IWA Puerto Rico (Producer) (November 23, 2000). IWA PR Bruiser Brody Memorial 11/23/00 (DVD). Puerto Rico: RF Video.
  24. ^ Molinaro, John; Dan Lovranski (2001-01-28). "SLAM! Wrestling: All Japan Pro Wrestling's Giant Baba Memorial Spectacular". SLAM! Wrestling International. SLAM! Sports. Archived from the original on July 28, 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  25. ^ Martin, Calvin; Adam Pilkinton (2001-08-12). "Terry Gordy Memorial Show Results (HHH, Michael Hayes, Bull Buchanan)". LordsofPain.net. Archived from the original on 2005-04-11.
  26. ^ Martin, Calvin; Mark Clemson (2001-11-29). "Yokozuna Memorial Show Results from Allentown, PA 11-29-01". LordsofPain.net. Archived from the original on 2002-06-18.
  27. ^ "Giant Baba Cup". Misc. All Japan Events. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  28. ^ "Giant Baba Memorial Six Man Tag Tournament". Misc. All Japan Events. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  29. ^ "USA Pro Wrestling". Results. OnlineWorldofWrestling.com. 2006.
  30. ^ "Ted Petty Inventational Tournament 2002". IWA Mid-South. ProWrestlingHistory.com. Archived from the original on 2008-02-28.
  31. ^ Milner, John (2005-06-08). "SLAM! Wrestling: Peterson Cup showcases wrestling's positive side". SLAM! Sports. Archived from the original on July 29, 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  32. ^ Nason, Josh (November 11, 2003). "411 Indies Update: Mad Mikey Tribute, Killings/Brown, Canada Wrestling, More". News. 411mania.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-07.
  33. ^ "Great Championship Wrestling". Results. OnlineWorldofWrestling.com.
  34. ^ "Independent Wrestling Results - March 2005". Results. OnlineWorldofWrestling.com. March 2005.
  35. ^ "NWS Chris Candido Cup 2009 Results". OnlineWorldofWrestling.com. 2009-05-20. Archived from the original on 2012-10-18.
  36. ^ Dawgs, Matt (2005). "Chris Candido Memorial Show". GumGod.com.
  37. ^ "WWC". Mexican & Puerto Rican Results. OnlineWorldofWrestling.com. 2006.
  38. ^ "Chris Candido Memorial Cup Tag Team Tournament 2005". TNA Tag Team Tournaments. ProWrestlingHistory.com. Archived from the original on 2017-11-08.
  39. ^ Keller, Wade (November 14, 2005). "KELLER'S RAW REPORT 11/14: Ongoing "virtual time" analysis of broadcast". Pro Wrestling Torch. Archived from the original on March 8, 2023. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  40. ^ "Empire Wrestling Federation". Results. OnlineWorldofWrestling.com. 2006.
  41. ^ "Hashimoto Memorial Six-Man Tag Tournament". Hustle Tournaments. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  42. ^ North American Wrestling Federation (2009-06-21). "IWA Puerto Rico: Miguel Perez Memorial Cup results from Sat. 6/20". The Piledriver. NAWF.com.
  43. ^ Dykens, Brad (2007-04-07). "Pro Wrestling Unplugged: Pitbull/Public Enemy Memorial Cup 2006". Wrestling DVDs. OnlineWorldofWrestling.com.
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  46. ^ Caldwell, James (June 25, 2007). "CALDWELL'S WWE RAW REPORT 6/25: Ongoing virtual time coverage of Chris Benoit tribute show". Pro Wrestling Torch. Archived from the original on November 9, 2007. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
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  48. ^ "Tiger Khan Memorial Show/Movie 9/9 NJ". WrestlingFigs.com. August 13, 2007. Archived from the original on March 2, 2023. Retrieved March 2, 2023.
  49. ^ "Antonio Pena Memorial Show 2007". AAA Antonio Pena Memorial Cards. ProWrestlingHistory.com.
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  51. ^ Martin, Adam; Joe Dombrowski (2007-12-20). "'Devil Bhudakahn' Memorial Show, Ontario All Pro and African Wrestling". Wrestleview.com.
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  53. ^ Hurley, Christopher (2008-10-20). "Killer tribute: Kowalski Memorial Wrestling Show slated for Oct. 26". WickedLocal.com.
  54. ^ Arnold, Zach (2009-07-04). "Overflowing crowd attends Mitsuharu Misawa's memorial ceremony in Tokyo". FightOpinion.com.
  55. ^ National Wrestling Alliance (September 2009). "09/26/09 NWA New Jersey Results". Event Results. NWAwrestling.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-14.
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