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THIS DAY IN HISTORY: THE MATCH THAT LED TO THE END OF BRET HART'S CAREER, BRITISH BULLDOG IN ECW, EDGE AND CHRISTIAN TIE A RECORD AND MORE

On this day in history in ....

1938 - Cy Williams defeats Yvon Robért for the Montreal World Heavyweight Title in Montreal, Quebec, ending Robért's third reign.

1939 - Bily Weidner wins a tournament in Dayton, Ohio to become the first Midwest Wrestling Association World Junior Heavyweight Champion.

1947 - Tug Carlson defeats Orville Brown in St. Joseph, Missouri to win the Midwest Wrestling Association World Heavyweight Title, ending Brown's ninth reign.

1957 - Dory Funk wins the Amarillo NWA North American Heavyweight Title for the third time by defeating Danny Plechas in Amarillo, Texas.

1962 - The Destroyer and Dan Moukian defeat Haystack Calhoun and Abe Jacobs to win the NWA International Television Tag Team Title in Los Angeles, California.

1963 - Sonny Myers and Pat O'Connor defeat The Mongolian Stomper and Mike Sharpe in a tournament final in Kansas City, Kansas to become the first Central States NWA North American Tag Team Champions.

1968 - Billy Robinson defeats Toyonobori in Okiyama, Japan to win the first IWE (International Pro Wrestling) World Series tournament, and become the first IWE World Heavyweight Champion.

1969 - Erik Watts is born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

1969 - Villano IV is born in Tijuana, Mexico.

1969 - The Assassins (Jody Hamilton and Tom Renesto) defeat Buddy Fuller and Ray Gunkel for the NWA Georgia Tag Team Title in Atlanta, Georgia. This began the Assassins' fifth reign.

1969 - Carlos Elio Colisetti defeats Ray Mendoza to win the NWA World Light Heavyweight Title in Mexico City, Mexico, ending Mendoza's third reign.

1969 - The Great Kojika defeats Mil Máscaras for the NWA Americas Heavyweight Title in Los Angeles, California, to end Máscaras' third reign.

1969 - King Curtis Iaukea defeats Billy Robinson for the International Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Title in Sydney, Australia, to begin his second reign. Also at that event, Spiros Arion and Mario Milano defeat Brute Bernard and Skull Murphy to end their fifth IWA World Tag Team Title reign.

1970 - Giant Baba wins his third NWA International Heavyweight Title from Gene Kiniski in Los Angeles, California.

1970 - Luke Graham defeats Bobby Shane for the NWA Georgia Television Title in Atlanta, Georgia.

1973 - Ken Mantell ends Danny Hodge's seventh NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title reign in Jackson, Mississippi.

1977 - The WWWF held an event before 22,085 fans at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York, which was televised on the MSG Network. The results:
- S.D. Jones and Baron Mikel Scicluna fought to a 15-minute time-limit draw.
- The Golden Terror and Dominic DeNucci fought to a double-countout. This match did not air on MSG, with a match from Australia between NWA World Heavyweight Champion Harley Race and Rick Martel showing instead.
- Butcher Vachon defeated Johnny Rivera (subbing for Victor Rivera).
- Arnold Skaaland defeated Lou Albano by countout.
- Bob Backlund defeated Mr. Fuji (with Freddie Blassie).
- Mil Máscaras (with Bob Backlund) defeated WWWF Heavyweight Champion Superstar Billy Graham by referee stoppage.
- Dusty Rhodes defeated Stan Stasiak.
- Chief Jay Strongbow defeated WWWF Tag Team Champion Prof. Toru Tanaka by disqualification.
- Tony Garea and Larry Zbyszko defeated Jack Evans and Larry Sharpe, 2-1, in a Best-of-Three Falls match.

1978 - Ann Brookstone is born in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

1978 - Jos LeDuc defeats Mr. Uganda (Ciclón Negro) in Tampa, Florida to win the NWA Florida Heavyweight Title.

1979 - Wayne Bridges defeats Spiros Arion for the United Kingdom World Heavyweight Title in London, England.

1983 - Sean Dahmer is born in Mineral Ridge, Ohio.

1984 - Ricky and Rocky Johnson defeat Super Fly Tui and Super Samoan Sakalia to win the NWA Polynesian Pacific Tag Team Title in Honolulu, Hawaii. This ended Sakalia and Tui's second reign.

1985 - Dusty Rhodes defeats Buddy Landel in Albuquerque, New Mexico for the NWA National Heavyweight Title. This was a fictitious match made up by Rhodes, who was booking Georgia Championship Wrestling at the time, after firing Landel due to his drug problems.

1986 - Marko Parezy defeats Rody Steiner in Joliette, Quebec to win the Northern Championship Wrestling Inter-Paroissial Title.

1992 - ECW held an event at Morrisville High School in Morrisville, Pennsylvania. The results were:
- Max Thrasher defeated J.T. Smith.
- Chris Michaels and Damian Stone defeated Tony Stetson and Larry Winters by countout.
- Tommy Cairo defeated The Samoan Warrior.
- ECW Heavyweight Champion Mr. Sandman defeated The Rockin' Rebel by disqualification to retain the title.
- ECW Television Champion Glenn Osbourne defeated The Canadian Wolfman to retain the title.
- The Hell Riders defeated ECW Tag Team Champions The Super Destroyers by disqualification. The Destroyers retained the title.
- J.T. Smith won an 11-man battle royal.
- Davey Boy Smith defeated Jimmy Snuka.

1992 - The Catch Wrestling Association held its "Euro Catch Festival" in Bremen, Germany at the Stadthalle.
- Dave Taylor defeated Giant Haystacks in round four.
- CWA World Tag Team Champions Larry Cameron and Mad Bull Buster defeated Derrick Dukes and Steve Regal to retain the title.
- Bruiser Mastino defeated Cannonball Grizzly in round three of a Bodyslam match.
- David Finlay defeated Eddie Gilbert in round seven to win the vacant CWA World Middleweight Title. This began Finlay's third reign.
- Buffalo Patterson defeated The Warlord in round five to win the vacant CWA Intercontinental Heavyweight Title.
- Jushin Liger defeated Franz Schumann in round nine.
- Road Warrior Hawk defeated CWA World Heavyweight Champion Rambo in round six to win the title.

1993 - Canek defeats The Canadian Vampire Casanova (Vampiro) in Naucalpan, Mexico to win his 12th UWA World Heavyweight Title.

1993 - The Love Brothers (Chad and Eric) defeat The Waveriders (The Beach Bum and Waverider Craig) for the Mid American Wrestling Tag Team Title.

1994 - Tommy Rich defeats Brian Christopher in a Loser Leaves Town match to win the USWA Heavyweight Title. This ended Christopher's 15th reign and began Rich's third reign.

1998 - ECW held an event at the ECW Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The results:
- Nova defeated Steve Corino.
- Yoshihiro Tajiri defeated Antifaz del Norte.
- The FBI (Little Guido Maritato and Tracy Smothers) defeated Danny Doring and Roadkill.
- Lance Storm defeated Rex King and Wolfie D in a Three-Way Dance.
- Spike Dudley defeated Skull Von Krush.
- ECW World Tag Team and Television Champion Rob Van Dam defeated Balls Mahoney to retain the TV title.
- The Dudleys (Big Dick, Buh-Buh Ray and D-Von) defeated Mike Lozansky, The One Man Gang and Rod Price.
- ECW World Tag Team Champion Sabu defeated Justin Credible and FTW Champion Taz in a Three-Way Dance to win the title. Taz pinned Credible and Sabu pinned Taz.
- ECW World Heavyweight Champion Shane Douglas defeated Lance Storm to retain the title.

1998 - Eddie Golden defeats champion Shane Austin and David Jericho in a three-way in Cornelia, Georgia to win the National Championship Wrestling United States Heavyweight Title. NCW was the predecessor to NWA Wildside.

1998 - Two Catch Wrestling Association titles switch in Bremen, Germany as Karsten Kretschmar wins his second CWA World Junior Heavyweight Title from El Loco and Tony St. Clair defeats Robbie Brookside for the CWA Intercontinental Heavyweight Title.

1999 - WCW held its 17th-annual "Starrcade" pay-per-view at the MCI Center in Washington, DC. The show had 8,582 fans in attendance and earned a 0.32 buyrate. The results:
- The Mamalukes (Big Vito and Johnny the Bull (with Tony Marinara)) defeated Disco Inferno and Lash LeRoux, when Vito pinned LeRoux after the Code of Silence.
- Madusa pinned WCW Cruiserweight Champion Evan Karagias (with Spice) with a bridging German suplex, after Spice turned on Karagias, to win the title.
- WCW Hardcore Champion Norman Smiley pinned Meng after Fit Finlay hit Meng with a lead pipe, to retain the title.
- The Revolution (Shane Douglas, Dean Malenko, Perry Saturn and Asya) defeated Jim Duggan and The Varsity Club (Mike Rotunda, Rick Steiner and Kevin Sullivan (with Leia Meow)), when Douglas pinned Duggan after The Varsity Club all turned on Duggan. As a result of losing, Duggan had to renounce his United States citizenship.
- Vampiro (with The Misfits) defeated Steve Williams by disqualification after Williams ignored the referee. As a result, Vampiro earned a match against Oklahoma.
- Vampiro (with The Misfits) pinned Oklahoma after a Nail in the Coffin.
- Creative Control (Gerald and Patrick) and Curt Hennig (with Shane) defeated Harlem Heat (Booker T and Stevie Ray) and Midnight, when Creative Control pinned Booker T after Hennig hit Booker with brass knuckles.
- Jeff Jarrett pinned Dustin Rhodes in a Bunkhouse Brawl after hitting him over the head with his guitar.
- Diamond Dallas Page pinned David Flair in a Crowbar on a Pole match after the Diamond Cutter.
- Sting (with Miss Elizabeth) defeated Lex Luger by disqualification after Elizabeth hit Sting with Sting's baseball bat as Sting was trying to put the Scorpion Deathlock on Luger.
- Kevin Nash defeated Sid Vicious in a Powerbomb match. Nash had been knocked into the referee by Sid, who then hit Nash with a powerbomb, which would have won the match if the referee wasn't knocked out. Jeff Jarrett then came out and hit Sid with a guitar. Nash tried to powerbomb Sid, but couldn't pull it off. Nash noticed the referee coming to, pushed the unconscious Sid down and told the referee that he had powerbombed Sid. The referee believed him and awarded Nash the victory.
- Chris Benoit defeated Jeff Jarrett in a Ladder match to win the vacant WCW United States Heavyweight Title. The title was stripped from Scott Hall due to injury. This began Benoit's second reign.
- WCW World Heavyweight Champion Bret Hart defeated Goldberg by "submission" in a No Disqualification match to retain the title. Many referees were taken out during the match. Roddy Piper ended up taking over officiating duties, and called for the bell while Goldberg was locked in the Sharpshooter without Goldberg submitting, in Montreal Screwjob fashion. Hart's win ended a four-year losing streak for WCW World Heavyweight Champions at "Starrcade". Bret Hart suffered a severe concussion during the match, due to a mule kick by Goldberg. Unaware of the severity of the injury, Hart continued to wrestle, but was soon diagnosed with post-concussion syndrome. The injury would prove to be career-ending, as Hart retired from wrestling soon after.

1999 - Juggalo Championship Wrestling's first champions are crowned at "Volume 1" in Detroit, Michigan. Evil Dead outlasted 19 other men in a weapons battle royal to become the first JCW Heavyweight Champion. Others in the match were: Cash Flo, Jaimy Coxxx, The Death Dealer (Tommy Starr), Tom Dub, Fat F*** Barrel Boy (Mitch Page), Robert Gibson, Incidious, Truth Martini, Mr. Meaner, Mojo, Ricky Morton, Pebble, The Redneck Devil Without a Cause (Nicky Ice), Gavin Starr, The Suburban Gangsta, Tarek the Great, Twiztid and Breyer Wellington. In the main event of the show, The Insane Clown Posse (Shaggy 2 Dope and Violent J) became JCW's first Tag Team Champions by defeating Doink the Clown (Tarek the Great) and Doink the Clown (Truth Martini).

1999 - WWWA World Tag Team Champions Etusko Mita and Mima Shimoda defeat Yumi Fukawa and Michiko Omukai to win the second-annual Twin Stars of ARSION League.

2000 - The WWF taped the xxth episode of "Sunday Night Heat" and the xxth episode of "SmackDown!" at the Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina. The results were:
Heat:
- WWF Light Heavyweight Champion Dean Malenko (with Perry Saturn and Terri) pinned Matt Hardy (with Jeff Hardy and Lita) with a roll-up grabbing the ropes to retain the title.
- Val Venis pinned K-Kwik with a fisherman's suplex.
- Faarooq (with Bradshaw) pinned Albert (with Trish Stratus and Test) after a DDT on a chair.
SmackDown!:
- The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray and D-Von) defeated Lo-Down (D'Lo Brown and Chaz (with Tiger Ali Singh)) after Chaz was pinned after the 3D.
- WWF Women's Champion Ivory (with the Right to Censor) pinned Jacqueline with a roll-up to retain the title.
- WWF European Champion William Regal fought Hardcore Holly to a no-contest to retain the title, after guest referee Steve Austin gave both men Stunners and counted them both down until Kane came to the ring and chokeslammed Austin.
- WWF Hardcore Champion Steve Blackman pinned Raven to retain the title, after a DDT from the middle turnbuckle on a trash can.
- Billy Gunn pinned Steven Richards after the One and Only.
- Edge and Christian defeated WWF Tag Team Champions The Rock and The Undertaker to win the title, when Edge pinned The Rock after guest referee Kurt Angle gave Rock an Olympic Slam and put Edge on top. This began Edge and Christian's fifth reign, tying them with the New Age Outlaws for the most reigns by a team.

2003 - IWA Mid-South held "Winter Wars" at the National Guard Armory in Lafayette, Indiana. The results were:
- Jimmy Jacobs (with Becky Bayless) defeated Westside Xtreme Wrestling World Heavyweight Champion Alex Shelley in a Submission match to win the title. Shelley now lead their best-of-seven series 2-1.
- B.J. Whitmer (with Jim Fannin) defeated Matt Sydal.
- Mickie Knuckles defeated Daizee Haze.
- Arik Cannon (with Weird Cookie) defeated Delirious.
- Alex Shelley defeated wXw World Heavyweight Champion Jimmy Jacobs (with Becky Bayless) in a Lumberjack match to win the title and pad his lead in the series to 3-1. This began Shelley's second reign.
- IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Champion Danny Daniels (with Jim Fannin) defeated Steve Stone to retain the title.
- B-Boy defeated Ian Rotten.
- Brad Bradley and Ryan Boz (with Jim Fannin) defeated J.C. Bailey and Mad Man Pondo.
- Jimmy Jacobs (with Becky Bayless) defeated wXw World Heavyweight Champion Alex Shelley in a Texas Death match to win the title and make the series 3-2 in favor of Shelley. This began Jacobs' second reign.
- Michael Shane defeated Nate Webb.
- Chris Hero defeated A.J. Styles.

2003 - Badboy Hido and Ryuji Ito defeat Benkei Daikokubo and Abdullah Kobayashi in Tokyo, Japan to win the BJW Tag Team Title.

2004 - Black Buffalo and Daio QUALLT defeat Billy Ken Kid and Tigers Mask for the Osaka Pro Wrestling Tag Team Title in Osaka, Japan.

2004 - BAM defeated Johnny Dynamo, Jayson Quick and champion Jack Thriller in a Four Corners match at "Merry Massacre" in Coldwater, Michigan to win the Midwest Wrestling Alliance Grand Title. The MWA became Price of Glory Wrestling in 2005, with this title becoming the PoG Heavyweight Title.

2005 - WWE's third-annual "Holiday with the Troops" show airs on USA. The show, taped December 9 at Bagram Air Base in Bagram, Afghanistan, earned a 3.7 rating. The results were:
- World Tag Team Champion The Big Show pinned Carlito after a chokeslam.
- Mick Foley pinned JBL in a No Holds Barred match with the Mandible Claw.
- Snitsky pinned Shelton Benjamin after a big boot.
- WWE Champion John Cena pinned Chris Masters after the FU.
- WWE Intercontinental Champion Ric Flair defeated Jonathan Coachman by submission with the figure-four leglock to retain the title.
- Candice Michelle and Maria defeated WWE Women's Champion Trish Stratus and Ashley, when Candice pinned Ashley with a roll-up.
- Shawn Michaels pinned Triple H in a Boot Camp match, after the Sweet Chin Music.

2005 - Society's Rejects (Mark Anarchy and Rocko Shinoda) defeat DDB and The Rage in Waipahu, Hawaii for the Action Zone Wrestling Tag Team Title.

2006 - WWE taped the 384th episode of "Friday Night SmackDown!" and aired the 28th edition of "ECW" live from the Coliseum in Hampton, Virginia. "ECW" got a 1.54 rating on SciFi and "SmackDown!" earned a 2.9 rating on The CW on December 22. The results were:
- In a dark match, Jimmy Wang Yang pinned Jamie Noble.
SmackDown!:
- World Heavyweight Champion Batista defeated Santa Claus (Sylvan).
- WWE United States Champion Chris Benoit defeated Chavo Guerrero (with Vickie Guerrero) by disqualification to retain the title.
- Johnny Nitro (with Joey Mercury and Melina) defeated Matt Hardy.
- Ashley and Layla defeated Jillian Hall and Kristal.
- Kane and The Undertaker defeated King Booker and Finlay.
ECW:
- ECW World Champion Bobby Lashley pinned René Duprée after the Dominator.
- Matt Striker pinned Balls Mahoney after the Golden Rule.
- Hardcore Holly and CM Punk fought to a three-minute time-limit draw. Holly had challenged Punk and said Punk could not make him tap out in three minutes. Punk had the Anaconda Vise locked on as time ran out, but Holly did not tap.
- The Great Khali (with Daivari) pinned Shannon Moore after a tree slam.
- Test defeated Sabu and Rob Van Damn in a Triple Threat match by pinning Sabu after Test threw RVD out of the ring just after RVD had hit the Five-Star Frog Splash. After the match it was announced that Rob Van Dam had won an ECW World Title match with Bobby Lashley to take place on January 2, by winning 45% of a WWE.com vote between the three.

2006 - Ganger defeats Scottie Murray in Cincinnati, Ohio to win the vacant Heartland Wrestling Association Television Title.

2007 - Colt Cabana defeats Shawn Spears in Louisville, Kentucky for control of their OVW Southern Tag Team Title, and chose Charles Evans as his new partner.

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