#166: George Hackenschmidt vs. Joe Rogers, Wrestling in London (1/30/1908).
I still can’t even believe I’m about to review a match from 116 years ago.
I’m breaking from tradition and posting a match review on a day other than Wednesday! But honestly, with something as cool as this, I wanted to get it out there as soon as possible.
The other day, I was scrolling through Reddit, checking up on all the latest wrestling news – because that’s what I do as a mark. And out of the blue, I saw someone share a post that a match from the 1900s had been unearthed and restored for public viewing in New Zealand. The man in question was George Hackenschmidt, a man widely considered to be pro wrestling’s very first World Heavyweight Champion. In fact, much of the legacy of the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship – established in 1948 – can be traced back to Hackenschmidt in the 1900s.
From what I can tell, this is the first complete footage of Hackenschmidt in action that’s ever been available for public viewing. So, this is a true piece of wrestling history that should be appreciated simply because it’s from so long ago. The video available has no sound, but is presented in crisp black and white. Upon checking out the first few minutes of this, it looks like it’s from a completely different era. Why? Because it is! It’s 1908. How often do you get to see anything from this time period in this complete of a form?
As soon as I found the video, I knew I wanted to write up a review on it. That’s what this blog was made for from the very beginning: to give insight on things fans may not be aware of. Plus, it’s to toot my own horn in saying that I’ve seen a match from 116 years ago. I was confident when I did my Rikidozan reviews a while back that those would remain the oldest wrestling matches I’d ever see, and then this gem came onto my Reddit feed. I swear, if I start seeing old carnival matches from the 1880s, I’m gonna go crazy!
I feel this will be different from the usual reviews that I do. I have no idea what to expect, nor do I know how to articulate what I’m going to see. I will do my best, though, to give you an idea of what’s going on in this match. I also have to say that I’m really excited to see this for the first time. I’m really taking great pride in how much wrestling lore I have been taking in in the last year or so, and something like this is just a cool little nugget to add to the collection.
The video starts with Joe Rogers doing some poses for the camera, and my god, the physique on this man is fucking wild. We cut from that to the...ring? It’s not a traditional wrestling ring. It honestly looks like a tarp on a wooden floor. The audience are all men wearing fancy suits. Hack and Rogers both walk to the mat, and quickly shake hands, before taking their positions to start things out. They begin with a collar and elbow tie up. Hack takes Rogers down, before quickly scrambling back to his feet.
They’re jockeying for position in the tie up. I kid you not, it looks like both men are wearing black socks and slacks. Like, dress shoes. Is that true? I don’t know, but that’s my head cannon now. Rogers attempts a takedown, and takes control of the back. Hack is able to crawl away and both are back to their feet. They lock up again, and they briefly end up in the audience. What is it, a GCW show? Back on the mat, they continue to tie up, and Hack tosses Rogers aside.
Hack takes control of the back, and looks for waist control. Rogers is wisely blocking with one of his arms. Hack takes the waist, and Rogers is trying hard to slip out. Hack is holding Rogers’ arm on the mat to prevent him from moving around. That’s smart! He’s on his back, digging his forearm into his neck. Hack almost hammerlocks the left arm of Rogers, and holds him down to the mat. Rogers is able to escape, and both are back to their feet. Hack quickly throws Rogers aside.
Rogers blocks a takedown attempt. A stale mate at this point, but Hack seems to be in control. Hack with a beautiful takedown, and he is tying Rogers up like a pretzel. He has his shoulder in an ugly position. He has one arm pinned to the mat, and he’s trying to get the other one down as well. Damn thing looks contorted from this angle. Hack is able to pin Rogers to the mat for the first fall.
The video then cuts to another match briefly between two people, and I have honestly no idea who they were. I skipped ahead to the second fall between Hack and Rogers. Hey, give them a break. We should be fortunate that this footage even exists.
Second fall begins same as the first: with a firm handshake. They tie up, and both men are looking for wrist control early. Hack seems to be almost toying with Rogers at this point. Violent takedown by Hack, and he’s got Rogers on his back. Rogers is trying his best to get back to his feet, but Hack is almost suffocating him on the mat. He takes control of the back, and holds Rogers’ arms against his sides. That’s really smart wrestling, honestly.
Hack continues his control of Rogers, as he continues to grab at the wrists to make it harder for him to move around. This is textbook ground control. Now Hack takes an arm and a leg, before flattening Rogers to his chest. Rogers attempts to fight back with a side headlock, but Hack avoids it and continues to smother Rogers. Hack holds the back and grabs a wrist, as Rogers sits and looks lost. This must be what it’s like to have a bear on your back.
Rogers looks for a headlock again, but Hack is able to escape and continues to hold him down. He hammerlocks the arm, and literally drags Rogers closer to the middle of the mat. That is heinous. Both are back to their feet, and they start back in the middle with Hack on Rogers’ back. I believe that was a decision made by the referee, ala an amateur wrestling match. Rogers attempts to tie Hack’s leg up, but the Russian Lion easily escapes and hammerlocks the arm again.
He’s got it tied up, and he’s able to hold the other arm down for the pin to win the second fall. They shake hands, and walk off. The video ends with Hack doing his own poses for the camera, and again, this man is the definition of definition. A Masterpiece, before Chris Masters. Sorry, I had to.
Man, this was super cool to sit through. In a world where this is so much wrestling to consume, it’s rare to come across a genuine piece of wrestling history like this. It’s also crazy to see what wrestling has evolved into since the days of Hackenschmidt. These two going into the audience for a moment must’ve been wild for the people attending this, while promotions today have multiple crowd spots in one single show. If you’re someone who hates how high spots are overdone in today’s wrestling, you’ll love this, because it has zero.
This is a Chess Match between two grapplers. Or really, if I’m being honest, this is Hackenschmidt playing Chess, while Rogers is playing Mouse Trap. Hack was a menace here, smothering Rogers on the mat at every turn, and controlling his limbs with ease. The arm control from Hack is great to see here, as Rogers really stood no chance of winning. He tried, but he was dominated start to finish.
Overall, this is just neat. 116 years ago! And we have a chance to see it in 2024. Technology isn’t always a shitty thing. Sometimes, it can be cool. This type of match certainly isn’t for everyone, but if you’re a historian like me – or if you like to think of yourself as a historian, like I try to – then this is worth it just to say you’ve seen a pro wrestling match from 1908.