Collision in Korea

Collision in Korea
Poster featuring Antonio Inoki and Ric Flair
PromotionNew Japan Pro-Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
DateApril 28–29, 1995
(aired August 4, 1995)
CityPyongyang, North Korea
VenueRungrado 1st of May Stadium
AttendanceTotal: 315,000
Day One: 150,000[1]
Day Two: 165,000[1]
Tagline(s)Two Legends, One Country
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Collision in Korea, officially known as the Pyongyang International Sports and Culture Festival for Peace (平和のための平壌国際体育・文化祝典, Heiwa no tame no Pyon'yan kokusai taiiku bunka shukuten),[2][3][4] was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event jointly produced by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW). The event featured 15 matches[5] over two evenings on April 28 and 29, 1995, at May Day Stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea. It aired in North America on August 4, 1995, when WCW broadcast a selection of eight matches from the show on pay-per-view.[6] It was the first event hosted by an American professional wrestling promotion in the country.[7]

The second day of the event holds the record for the largest ever attendance for a wrestling event, with a claimed audience of 190,000. The first day holds the record for the second-largest ever attendance, with a claimed audience of 165,000.[8][9] American wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer reported different attendance numbers of 150,000 and 165,000 respectively.[1][10] Day two of the event generated a live gate of $7,500,000 (equivalent to $14,997,000 in 2023) and day two of the event generated $8,500,000 (equivalent to $16,996,000 in 2023), which were two of the biggest live gates ever in wrestling.[11]

Retired boxer Muhammad Ali was the event's guest of honor.[12] NJPW's Hidekazu Tanaka was the ring announcer for the show, while Masao Tayama and Tiger Hattori refereed the matches. Commentary for the WCW pay-per-view presentation of the event was provided by Eric Bischoff, Mike Tenay, and Kazuo Ishikawa.

As of 2023, the event is one of the few WCW PPVs not available for streaming on the WWE Network. Collision in Korea is one of the topics covered in the third season of Vice TV's Dark Side of the Ring in May 2021.[13]

  1. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Meltzer was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference TokyoSports was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Philly was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Keller2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference ProWrestlingHistory was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Peddycord was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Serafino, Jason (August 22, 2017). "When Ric Flair Traveled to North Korea for the Biggest Wrestling Show of All Time". Mental Floss. Archived from the original on March 11, 2022. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference Freedman2018 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Meltzer2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference Keller was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ "NJPW International Shows". ProWrestlingHistory.com. Retrieved January 29, 2023.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference Hall was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Martinez, Phillip (April 8, 2021). "Newsgeek: 'Dark Side of the Ring' Season 3 Release Date and More Topics Revealed". Newsweek. Retrieved April 9, 2021.