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On this day in history in ....
1905 - Tom Jenkins defeats Frank Gotch to retain the American Heavyweight Championship in Madison Square Garden in New York City in a bout with a total match time of two hours, fifteen minutes and thirty four seconds. The first fall was taken by Jenkins in 1:27:57. Gotch scored the second in 36:27, and Jenkins won the match in 11:10 of the third fall.
1946 - Andre Rene Rousimoff was born in Grenoble, France. He would go on to become, arguably, the most popular wrestler of all time, Andre The Giant.
1963 - The Destroyer (Dick Beyer) defeats the legendary Rikidozan in Osaka, Japan, making him an instant star in that country. It marks the last time that Rikidozan would ever lose a singles match.
1981 - It was officially announced by the American Wrestling Association that, due to Verne Gagne retiring and vacating the AWA World Heavyweight Title, Nick Bockwinkel, the former champion and current number one contender, was being awarded the belt.
1990 - The NWA held their "Capital Combat" Pay-per-view in Washington, DC at the DC Armory. Here are the results:
- The Road Warriors & Norman The Lunatic defeated Kevin Sullivan, Bam Bam Bigelow & Cactus Jack.
- Mark Callous (later to become the Undertaker) defeated Johnny Ace.
- The Samoan Swat Team (Fatu & Samoan Savage) defeated Mike Rotundo & Tommy Rich.
- Paul Ellering defeated Teddy Long in a hair vs. hair match in under two minutes.
- The Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton & Stan Lane) defeated Brian Pillman & Tom Zenk to win the U.S. Tag Team Title.
- The Rock N' Roll Express defeated The Freebirds (Michael Hayes & Jimmy Garvin) in a Corporal Punishment (strap) match.
- Doom (Ron Simmons & Butch Reed) defeated Rick & Scott Steiner to win the NWA World Tag Team Championship.
- Lex Luger defeated NWA World Champion Ric Flair via disqualification in a steel cage match. The Four Horsemen interfered, and put Sting, who was at ringside, in a smaller cage used earlier in the night to prevent Jim Cornette from interfering in the Midnight Express match. Robocop (yes, you read that right, the one from the movies) came down and "bent" the bars of the cage to free Sting.
1991 - WCW holds their Superbrawl Pay-per-view at the Bayfront Center in St. Petersburg, Florida at the Bayfront Center. Here are the results:
- The Freebirds (Michael Hayes & Jimmy Garvin) defeated Tracey Smothers & Steve Armstrong to win the vacant United States Tag Team Title.
- Danny Spivey defeated Ricky Morton.
- Nikita Koloff defeated Tommy Rich.
- Dustin Rhodes defeated Terrance Taylor.
- Big Josh defeated Black Bart.
- Oz (Kevin Nash doing a horrible gimmick based off the Wizard Of Oz) defeated Tim Parker in under thirty seconds.
- Barry Windham defeated Brian Pillman in a taped fist match.
- El Gigante defeated Sid Vicious in a Stretcher match in under three minutes without actually using the Stretcher. Gigante pinned Sid with a claw, and Sid just walked away while the One Man Gang and Kevin Sullivan attacked Gigante. This was the final match of this run in WCW for Sid, who had already agreed to go to the WWF.
- Ron Simmons defeated Butch Reed in a steel cage match.
- WCW World Tag Team Champions Rick & Scott Steiner defeated Sting & Lex Luger when Scott pinned Sting after Nikita Koloff interfered and hit Sting (he was aiming for Luger) with a chain.
- Bobby Eaton defeated Arn Anderson to win the WCW Television Title.
- WCW World Champion Ric Flair defeated Tatsumi Fujinami. As far as the NWA records go (this is during the muddy period where Flair had one title belt, but the NWA was separate from WCW), Flair regained the NWA World Title from Fujinami.
1995 - Razor Ramon defeats Jeff Jarrett in Montreal, Quebec to win the WWF Intercontinental Championship. This marks Ramon's third title reign with the title.
1996 - The Godwins defeat The Bodydonnas in New York City for the WWF World Tag Team Championship.
1996 - WCW's Slamboree PPV was held in Baton Rouge, Louisiana at the Riverside Centroplex. The show was built around the "Lord Of The Ring" concept in which tag teams were randomly formed, and had to win two matches in order to gain entrance in a battle royal.
First Round:
- Road Warrior Animal & Booker T vs. Road Warrior Hawk & Lex Luger went to a double countout.
- Public Enemy defeated Chris Benoit & Kevin Sullivan.
- Rick Steiner & The Booty Man defeated Craig Pittman & Scott Steiner.
- VK Wallstreet & Jim Duggan defeated Steve Regal & David Taylor.
- Dick Slater & Bobby Eaton defeated Disco Inferno & Alex Wright.
- Dallas Page & The Barbarian defeated Meng & Hugh Morrus.
- Scott Norton & Ice Train defeated Bubba Rogers & Stevie Ray.
- Ric Flair & Randy Savage defeated Arn Anderson & Eddie Guerrero.
Second Round:
- Dick Slater & Bobby Eaton defeated Jim Duggan & VK Wallstreet.
- Public Enemy defeated Ric Flair & Randy Savage via forfeit when the two started fighting with each other and never made it to the ring for the match.
- Dallas Page & The Barbarian defeated The Booty Man & Rick Steiner.
- Scott Norton & Ice Train received a bye.
Battle Royal:
- Dallas Page won a battle royal over Dick Slater, Bobby Eaton, Public Enemy, Barbarian, Scott Norton and Ice Train to become the Lord Of The Ring.
In other matches:
- WCW Cruiserweight Champion Dean Malenko defeated Brad Armstrong.
- WCW United States Champion Konnan defeated Jushin Liger.
- WCW World Champion The Giant defeated Sting.
2002 - WWE Judgment Day, the first Pay-per-view since the name change from WWF to WWE, was held. Here is Tim Whitehead's report on the show:
The first PPV of the WWE era aired live from the Gaylord Center in Nashville. I thought it was overall a good and enjoyable PPV, with enough good to override the bad. It may have left some bad feelings at the end, as the final two matches weren't good and included a lame WWF surprise which got over about as well as Booker T joining the NWO. In that sense, it will encourage more WCW analogies, with the show having an undercard better than the upper card, though we should remember that the WWE has had a horrendous record delivering on surprises ever since the Gobbledy Gooker's debut.
The crowd was hot for most of the matches. They did cool somewhat for the Hell in the Cell, but that came off more like they were paying attention to the match rather than being bored. The opening match was good, as was the Kurt Angle vs. Edge match. The handicap match with Steve Austin came off well for the most part. The main problem there was the booking, as Flair shouldn't be an NWO heel, and they should probably phase the NWO out completely since it's finished as a concept. They should have had a cruiserweight match on the show. Not only would it have been good, but if they plan to push that division as they claim, they need to make it important enough to appear on all PPV's as a regular matter.
Commentary from Jim Ross & Jerry Lawler was solid. They had Smackdown announcers Michael Cole & Tazz host the segments where they would review the feuds prior to the big matches.
EDDIE GUERRERO defeated ROB VAN DAM in 10:57 to retain the IC Title. Someone in the crowd had a "Mullet Heat" sign but JR & Lawler pleaded ignorance as to what it could possibly mean. They did a series of hot fast spots early, with RVD going for a bunch of pin attempts. RVD went to the top and started to go for a moonsault. Guerrero saw it coming and dropped to the mat. But RVD never went through with it and instead split-leg moonsaulted Guerrero on the mat. That was a neat spot and the crowd loved it. RVD kept getting near falls to the point that it seemed almost apparent that Guerrero was going to go over in the end. They did a surfboard spot, with RVD getting a pop for flipping Guerrero up high afterward. Guerrero finally got in some offense with fists and stomps, but when he went to the top, RVD flipped him three-fourths of the way across the ring and then dropped him throat-first across the ropes. RVD did the rolling thunder. RVD got crotched and Guerrero bodyslammed him. Guerrero went for the frog splash but stopped to pose and the end result was that RVD recovered and rolled clear. Commenting on his delay, JR said Guerrero nearly took a siesta up there. RVD then went for a frog splash on Guerrero but missed his splash as well. They did a fast criss-cross spot where RVD got another near fall after a crossbody. RVD got a two count with a backslide, but afterward Guerrero blocked an RVD kick, and did his own backslide using the ropes for leverage and scored the pin to retain. Good opener, and Guerrero has looked awesome since returning. They really should have given this match more mic time on the build-up on RAW these past few weeks.
Reverend D-Von said a prayer for Stacy Keibler's safety and victory over that no-good jezebel Trish Stratus in her upcoming match. Vince McMahon was there and worried about Bubba Ray Dudley being in Trish's corner. D-Von said Bubba knows better than to show up and, if he does, there will be hell to pay. Stacy asked Vince if he'd be watching and he said he would, but would have to miss the victory party afterward because he would be meeting with someone.
TRISH STRATUS defeated STACY KEIBLER in 2:54 to retain the WWE Women's Title. This ended the recent streak of Trish Stratus bouts that have shown consistent improvement. Stacy really isn't a wrestler. On the other hand, she's a five star babe. Lawler said, "Lead me not into temptation, I can find my way there myself". D-Von & Deacon Batista came out with Stacy. Bubba defied D-Von's threats and came out with Trish. Trish bumped for a kick from Stacy that missed by about the distance between Nashville and Knoxville. Stacy bumped out. Bubba laughed at her and she slapped him. He started getting that "I want to put a girl through a table" look but Stacy escaped. Batista sneaked in and bodyslammed Trish. Trish recovered and pinned Stacy with a bulldog after Stacy accidentally collided with Batista. After the match, D-Von and Bubba had a staredown. They ended up shaking hands, but Batista attacked Bubba on D-Von's orders. Bubba threw Batista from the ring but D-Von then laid him out. D-Von told Batista to get a table. Bubba fought back but was flattened with the money box and put through the table to start a Dudley vs. Dudley feud. This won't make much sense unless they work some form of trade to allow them to both be in the same division.
Vince visited Ric Flair and Arn Anderson. Vince shook both their hands and had an "I told you so" smirk on his face. Flair admitted that Vince had been right all along about Austin being an S.O.B. and said Austin was trying to destroy the RAW brand. However, Flair added that, unlike Vince, he'll take Austin down and put him under control. Vince and Flair hugged, but Vince had an angry look on his face about Flair's inference that he could beat Austin down while Vince couldn't.
BROCK LESNAR & PAUL HEYMAN beat THE HARDYS in 4:46. Heyman had the good sense not to wear tights. He was fully clothed, including a baseball cap. Jeff hit a plancha on Lesnar before the bell, followed by a baseball slide from Matt. They chased Heyman but Lesnar made the save. Pretty much the usual stuff for the next few minutes with the Hardys trying to take the monster down but he just shook them off. There was another "Goldberg" chant. Lesnar finally did bump out and the Hardys got to splash Heyman in the corner and his cap came off, revealing why he wears it. Lesnar returned and laid Jeff out with the Brockbuster (I can't believe the WWE still hasn't named that move). Heyman demanded that Lesnar tag out to him so that he could score the pin, which he did. Lawler said Heyman has the body of a god, and identified Buddha as the god in question. They probably should end this feud now since the Hardys are getting killed. Having Heyman score the pin was almost like a wooden stake.
Marc Lloyd interviewed Booker T about joining the NWO. Booker said business is business and Flair's the boss. He said Flair thinks he can get the job done, and he's down with that. Yeah, he got the job done against Austin on RAW all right. Booker then spotted a hot girl standing nearby. He came on to her and she encouraged his advances. She ended up giving Booker her hotel room key. He was elated. Lawler said Booker got a Magic Johnson. Booker should have asked his new boss Flair how these hotel room deals usually end.
STEVE AUSTIN beat RIC FLAIR & BIG SHOW in a handicap match in 15:35. JR said Big Show has the strength and intelligence of a government mule. In other words, he's strong as an ox, and almost as smart. The ref here was Charles Robinson, and JR mentioned Flair's influence over him in the past (Robinson was "Little Nature Boy" in WCW), but nothing came of it and Robinson called it right down the middle. Austin sent Flair up for a high backdrop. Flair took a lot of backdrops in this match. Show came in and Austin hit him with fists until he finally went down. Austin put the figure four on Show but Flair made the save. Austin then put the figure four on Flair but it got broken up as well. Austin got two separate chairs but both times the ref took it from him. Austin sat in the second chair and flipped the ref off. Austin got a beer but the ref took it as well. The crowd was into all this and it was entertaining throughout and good when Austin and Flair were working. They traded chops. The crowd shouted "whoooo" when Flair chopped and "what" when Austin chopped. Flair did his face-first bump. He begged and then raked Austin's eyes. Show managed to overpower Austin and Flair put the boots to him. Austin reversed a Flair figure four. He also did Thesz presses on both Flair and Show. Austin gave Show a stunner and was about to do a second one when X-Pac ran in. X-Pac accidentally thrust kicked Show. Austin then gave stunners to both X-Pac and Flair, pinning Flair afterward. Some might think this match ran a little too long, but remember that it took time away from the main event, so count your blessings.
EDGE beat KURT ANGLE in a hair match in 15:30. Edge dominated early with fast spots which sent Angle out. Edge pounded Angle on the floor. Angle got tied up in the ropes and Edge speared him there. Angle belly-to-bellied Edge over the top rope for a big bump. They traded chops. Lawler kept telling bald jokes on commentary and acted as if he'd never lost a hair match before. Check your Memphis tapes on that one. They went to a period of rest holds which killed the crowd heat for a few minutes. Edge started dominating Angle again and Angle sold and bumped like crazy for him. It's probably no coincidence that they've been able to elevate Edge by giving him an unselfish opponent like Angle. Edge hit a crossbody over the top and a missile kick for a near fall. Angle came back with suplexes, including one nearly across the ring for a two count. The heat went way up as they went to the great near falls. Angle dodged a spear and the ref took it. Angle hit a killer suplex and got a chair, but Edge speared him. The ref was still out. Edge hit another spear and this time the ref revived but Angle kicked out at two. Angle hit a spear and Olympic slam but also got only a two. These near falls were great. Angle hooked the ankle lock but Edge made the ropes. Edge hit an enzuigiri. Angle went for the ankle again but Edge kicked him off into the ropes and rolled him up on the rebound for the pin. Another great match between these two. For pure wrestling, this is the best feud in the WWE. Angle attacked Edge afterward but Edge gave him the Edgecutioner and dragged him over to the area where there was a barber waiting to deliver the haircut. However, Angle recovered and fled, with Edge in pursuit.
Booker arrived at the Marriott and was soon under the covers. The hot babe came out in a negligee and crawled in bed with him. She said she likes to do it in the dark, so Booker turned off the light. I guess the cameraman being there didn't bother her. I know....I know....I'm supposed to ignore that aspect of these angles. Booker asked her to talk dirty, but instead he heard Goldust's voice saying, "I want you to leave the NWO and come back to....hisssssssss....Goldust". On came the lights and Booker was furious to find Goldust in bed with them. Booker stormed out in anger, with his naked ass in full view. Goldust whined that he bought the nightgown he was wearing for nothing.
TRIPLE H defeated CHRIS JERICHO in 24:29 in the Hell in the Cell. The first couple of minutes were regular action in the ring but they soon headed out to the floor. The crowd heat wasn't all that great. To me, it came across like they were interested and were watching, rather than being bored, but I guess there are alternative interpretations. One negative of the Hell in the Cell is that the famous Mick Foley vs. Undertaker match set such dangerous standards that nothing can equal it. Now that they've bought WCW out, maybe they should try the first ever War Games in the WWE. But please, don't let the NWO be one of the teams. Anyway, both HHH and Jericho took shots into the cage. Jericho juiced from the shoulder. Jericho got a ladder and juiced HHH with it. Jericho hit HHH with the ladder a second time and then threw the ladder out of the ring onto him. HHH blocked another ladder shot attempt with a chair and then used the chair on Jericho. Jericho bulldogged HHH on the ladder. They took more shots into the cage. Referee Tim White took a major bump into the cage and juiced big. Jericho laid HHH out with a chair but there was no ref to count the pin. Other refs tried to come in but the door was chained shut and the key was in White's pocket. The refs had to use a bolt cutter to cut the chain and get inside. HHH revived and kicked a chair into Jericho's face. He then bloodied Jericho with a sledgehammer shot, but the refs were too busy helping White to count the fall. Jericho recovered and started out of the cage, with HHH getting the door slammed on his head when he followed. They brawled outside. Jericho tried to give HHH a pedigree on the Spanish table but ended up getting DDT'd through the desk by HHH. HHH retrieved a barbed wire 2x4 he had planted out there. Jericho climbed the cage, with HHH following, and ref Mike Ciotta going up as well. Jericho got the 2x4 and used it. They started doing the bumps up on top. Those always look scary with the cage sagging beneath them. I think they now have one large piece of fencing up there rather than individual panels, which makes it unlikely that they will break through but it still looks very dangerous. HHH took a backdrop and they used the 2x4 some more before HHH got the pin on the cage top with a pedigree. The ending was expected. Still, it was a very good match and both guys worked very hard.
Backstage, Edge was still chasing Angle. Angle put on a shower cap and hid in the make-up lady's area, but Edge eventually recognized him and the chase was on again.
Torrie Wilson flirted with Maven at The World (formerly WWF New York).
RIKISHI & RICO beat BILLY & CHUCK to capture the WWE World Tag Titles in 3:50. The story here was that Mr. McMahon planned to give Rikishi a weak partner to get even with him for the angle last year where his face got shoved up Rikishi's ass. I guess that should have told us the mystery man wouldn't be Goldberg or Scott Steiner. The partner ended up being Rico, with the idea he would help B & C retain the belts. They all seemed to work hard but the match didn't click and the crowd died when Rico was announced. Rico tried to kick Rikishi but accidentally kicked Chuck and Rikishi pinned him. Afterward, Rikishi took his half of the belts and left alone, stopping to dance at the ramp top. Rico made up with B & C, but as they were leaving, he quietly picked up his tag belt as if happy that he had won it, but not wanting B & C to know that.
JR announced that Gene Okerlund will return to the WWE with a new interview segment called Confidential. The first show will feature an interview with Shawn Michaels about the (what else?) Montreal screwjob. I have this great fear that a few decades from now, hardly any fans will remember Flair, Austin, Rock, or Angle, but they'll all know of the Montreal screwjob because that's the only history the WWE seems interested in keeping alive. JR said Okerlund's show will be like mixing 60 Minutes with Behind the Music, but credibility-wise it sounds more like mixing Miss Cleo and Geraldo Rivera.
Angle blindsided Edge backstage. He beat him up and dragged him out to the barber's chair, where he planned to personally cut Edge's hair. Of course, Edge revived, put Angle out with a sleeper, and shaved him bald. Angle came to and was about to cry when he saw himself in the mirror. Edge said the fans from now on will chant "you're bald" when they hear Angle's music, and they did just that. Entertaining!
UNDERTAKER defeated HULK HOGAN to capture the WWE Undisputed World Title in 11:18. Undertaker still had Hogan's weight belt. He used it on Hulk before the bell. Hulk then got the belt and used it on UT until referee Earl Hebner got it and threw it from the ring. UT took a backdrop. Hogan tore off his shirt to a big pop. There was good crowd heat, which was the otherwise weak match's only saving grace. UT took a bump into the stairs. He also got crotched. UT slowly worked on Hulk's leg to supposedly prevent him from doing the legdrop. Hogan still hit the boot to the face and went for a legdrop but UT rolled clear. UT got a busted lip. UT hooked a half crab but Hulk made the ropes. UT went for a chokeslam but Hulk didn't go up for it and it looked very bad. Hogan then did the no-sell Hulkamania comeback. He hit the boot and legdrop but UT kicked out at two. Hulk booted a chair into UT's face and hit another legdrop. This time, Vince arrived and distracted the ref. Hogan walloped Vince and gave him a legdrop. But UT clocked Hulk with a chair and hit a chokeslam, which Hulk went up for this time, and got the three count. Vince smiled. Afterward, UT vowed to make Hogan pay for destroying his motorcycle and jammed Hulk's throat into a chair, doing an apparent injury angle. A bad WWE main event but at least the live crowd got into it.
This would be the last title, to date, Hulk Hogan has held.
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