[3][4] Many French Canadian professional wrestlers of the 1980s wrestling boom came to the U.S. from Lutte Internationale including, most notably, Dino Bravo, Rick Martel, Ronnie Garvin and The Rougeaus.

Brito was eager to bring pro wrestling back to Montreal and persuaded fellow Grand Prix alumni André the Giant and manager Frank Valois to join in the venture.

[10][13] The promotion's flagship show "Les Étoiles de la Lutte" (The Stars of Wrestling), hosted by Édouard Carpentier and Guy Hauray,[14] became one of the highest-rated French-language television programs in the province.

[15] Their first major show was held on August 25, 1980, at the sold-out Paul Sauve Centre where Andre the Giant battled Hulk Hogan in the main event.

[8] Dino Bravo, who ran a local wrestling school with Brito, ultimately emerged as Varoussac's top "babyface"[7][10] after winning the Canadian International Heavyweight Championship from Lefebvre that same year.

They occasionally visited Verdun Auditorium, the arena for rival Grand Prix Wrestling, when the Paul Sauvé Centre was booked for an annual Occult Sciences show.

[10] Nick Bockwinkel defended the AWA World Heavyweight Championship against Tony Parisi at the Paul Sauvé Arena a year later; At the height of its popularity, the promotion held events that sometimes drew over 10,000 fans in attendance.

Brito and Valois also produced a new television series, "Lutte Internationale" (International Wrestling), when Carpentier and Hauray signed with WWF at the end of the year.

[26] The Canadian International Television Championship was also introduced on "Les Étoiles de la Lutte" as a secondary title that undercard wrestlers could compete for.

Lutte decided to revive Eddie Quinn's popular "Le Merveille Masquee" (Masked Marvel) gimmick as a vehicle to introduce Poirier to the fans.

[32] Their first encounter took place on June 24, 1985, at the Montreal Forum where thousands in attendance witnessed the Garvins deliver a ferocious beating to the tag team champions.

Before the match got started, Jimmy Garvin's valet Precious blinded Jacques Rougeau with her perfume leaving Raymond at the mercy of their American opponents.

Having recovered from his injuries, Jacques, Sr. accompanied his sons to the ring and congratulated them during the post-match celebration for both avenging their loss and protecting the reputation of the Rougeau wrestling family.

This bout was held outside Lutte Internationale's home territory as Quebec's Athletic Commission prohibited chain and steel cage matches at wrestling events.

[19] Though his time as a manager was brief, among his "clients" included Pierre Lefebvre, Richard Charland, Sailor White, Rick Valentine, Masked Superstar and Jos Leduc.

[34] In late 1985, Tyler joined forces with Abdullah the Butcher, Jos Leduc, and manager Eddie "The Brain" Creatchman to take control of Lutte Internationale from the promotion's "babyfaces".

[35] The feud was cut short after Tyler, the group's leader, was killed in a car accident with fellow wrestler Pierre "Mad Dog" Lefebvre and referee Adrien Desbois, near the Laurentides Wildlife Reserve on Christmas Day.

[33] Though Lutte Internationale was enjoying unprecedented success in Quebec, WWF promoter Vince McMahon began pushing into Canada as part of its national expansion efforts in the early 1980s.

Lutte Internationale no longer needed the WWF due to its own popularity but Brito decided to negotiate a talent exchange with Verne Gagne and the American Wrestling Association based in Minneapolis.

This allowed the promotion to later benefit from the AWA's association with Pro Wrestling USA and bring in top U.S. stars such as Butch Reed, Jimmy Garvin, Tom Zenk, The Tonga Kid, and The Road Warriors.

[10] Lutte also returned to the English-language station, with the help CFCF-12 program director Bill Merrill, and featured Milt Avruskin as the play-by-play man and Gino Brito doing color commentary.

In exchange for giving the WWF exclusive rights to Le Colisée in Quebec City, McMahon agreed to a co-promotional deal with Lutte Internationale for a series of interpromotional shows at the Montreal Forum.

[1] No longer able to acquire top level talent from the U.S., Lutte appeared to be a "minor league" outfit operating from the much smaller Paul Sauvé Centre.

Other notable WWC stars to appear in Lutte Internationale included Kendo Nagasaki, Jason the Terrible, Sweet Daddy Siki and David Shultz.

He not only took on his father's role as the area's top heel manager[19] but also hosted an interview segment called "Creatchman’s Corner" on Lutte's weekly television show.

[24][45] Floyd Creatchman later joined CFCF sports staffer Ron Francis as the announcing team for "Lutte Internationale" during its last year on the air.

This was done without the approval of WCW President Eric Bischoff, as Hogan enjoyed full creative control over his in-ring character, and a return bout was teased entitled the "Battle for Quebec".

[8] The shows featured both students of his wrestling school, such as LuFisto,[47] Max Boyer,[48] and Pauly Platinum,[49] as well as King Kong Bundy, Pierre Carl Ouellet, Richard Charland,[27] and Raymond Rougeau.

[52] The shows received mixed reviews as many Quebec's "modern" wrestling fans, long accustomed to the WWF's "sports entertainment",[12] were not used to Rougeau's traditional style of booking which was more "family friendly" than hardcore.

Because the regional promotions like Grand Prix and Lutte Internationale were the foundation of the industry for most of its history, and the training ground of so many of the greats, watching it gets you involved in the big angles, the development of those stars and the vast difference in approach between today and yesteryear.