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THIS DAY IN HISTORY: SUPERSTARS AND STRIPES FOREVER AT WRESTLEMANIA VII, WCW'S TOWER OF DOOM AND MORE

March 24th

On this day in history in ....

1884 - Duncan C. Ross defeats James McLaughlin in a best-of-three falls, three-style match in Cleveland, Ohio for the American Collar-and-Elbow Title, ending McLaughlin's third reign and beginning Ross' second. Ross won two of the falls, Greco-Roman and catch-as-catch-can, with McLaughlin actually winning the Collar-and-Elbow fall, but Ross won the title for winning more falls.

1932 - Blacksmith Pedigo defeats Bill Romanoff to win the World Junior Middleweight Title in Fairfield, Alabama.

1947 - Ray Steele defeats Marshall Estep for the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title in Des Moines, Iowa, ending Estep's second reign.

1952 - Emil and Ernie Dusek defeat Mr. X (Jack Moore) and Mr. XX (Frank Taylor) to become the first Nebraska Tag Team Champions in Omaha, Nebraska.

1954 - Buddy Knox wins the NWA Pacific Coast Heavyweight Title for the second time, defeating Carl Engstrom in Vancouver, British Columbia.

1958 - Ivan and Karol Kalmikoff to win the Calgary NWA Canadian Tag Team Title in Edmonton, Alberta, by defeating Guy and Joe Brunetti.

1959 - Tony Barbetta defeats Luigi Macera for the NWA Texas Junior Heavyweight Title in Dallas, Texas.

1960 - Barry Horowitz is born in St. Petersburg, Florida.

1961 - Karloff Lagarde defeats El Santo to win the Mexican National Middleweight Title, ending Santo's third reign.

1964 - George and Sandy Scott win their second American Wrestling Alliance World Tag Team Title from Doc and Mike Gallagher.

1965 - The Undertaker is born in Houston, Texas.

1973 - Harley Race defeats Dory Funk, Jr. for the NWA World Heavyweight Title in Kansas City, Missouri. This began the first of eight NWA title reigns for Race.

1974 - Jumbo Tsuruta makes his wrestling debut.

1975 - Oki Shikina and Yasu Fuji defeat Mike George and Jerry Oates to win the Central States NWA World Tag Team Title in Topeka, Kansas.

1976 - Invader I and Don Muraco defeat Pedro Morales and Pat Patterson for the San Francisco NWA World Tag Team Title in Sacramento, California.

1977 - Solitario defeats Rey Mendoza to win the UWA World Light Heavyweight Title in Juarez, Mexico, ending Mendoza's second reign.

1978 - Dale Valentine defeats Al Madril to win the NWA Texas Heavyweight Title in Houston, Texas, ending Madril's third reign.

1979 - Charlie Cook defeats Ron Bass for the NWA Arkansas Heavyweight Title in Little Rock, Arkansas.

1980 - The Dynamite Kid defeats Keith Hart in a tournament final to win the vacant Stampede British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Title in Red Deer, Alberta.

1981 - Mike Graham and Barry Windham defeat The Assassins to become the first Florida NWA North American Tag Team Champions in Tampa, Florida.

1984 - King Tonga defeats Bob Sweetan for the WWC Puerto Rico Heavyweight Title in Bayamón, Puerto Rico, to begin his second reign.

1986 - Lance Von Erich defeats Buddy Roberts to win the World Class Television Title in Fort Worth, Texas.

1986 - The MOD Squad (Basher and Spike) defeat The Fantastics (Bobby Fulton and Tommy Rogers) to win the AWA Southern Tag Team Title in Memphis, Tennessee. At the same event, Billy Travis defeats Abdul Khadafi (Danny Miller) for the AWA International Heavyweight Title.

1989 - The Nasty Boys (Brian Knobbs and Jerry Sags) defeat Johnny Ace and The Terminator for the NWA Florida Tag Team Title in St. Petersburg, Florida, ending and beginning both teams' second reigns.

1989 - Davey Boy Smith wins his second Stampede North American Heavyweight Title in Calgary, Alberta, by defeating Don Muraco.

1990 - Abdullah the Butcher defeats TNT (Savio Vega) for the WWC Universal Heavyweight Title in San Juan, Puerto Rico, beginning his second reign. At the same event, Leo Burke defeats Carlos Colón to win the WWC Television Title, which was vacated when TNT won the Universal Heavyweight Title on February 9.

1991 - The WWF presented a monster 15-match WrestleMania VII before 16,158 fans at the Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California. The event got a 2.8 buyrate. WrestleMania VII was originally scheduled to be held at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, however, it was decided to move the event to the arena next door. The WWF stated that a threat had been issued towards the company due to Sgt. Slaughter's Iraqi sympathizer character, as this was just weeks after Operation Desert Storm. It has also been said that this was due to low ticket sales for the 92,000-seat (with thousands more having been seated on the field) stadium. The results of WrestleMania VII were:
- In a dark match, Koko B. Ware pinned The Brooklyn Brawler.
- The Rockers (Marty Jannetty and Shawn Michaels) defeated The Faces of Fear (The Barbarian and Haku), when Michaels pinned Haku with a flying crossbody.
- Kerry Von Erich pinned Dino Bravo (with Jimmy Hart) after a discus punch.
- The British Bulldog pinned The Warlord (with Slick) after a running powerslam.
- The Nasty Boys (Brian Knobbs and Jerry Sags (with Jimmy Hart)) defeated WWF Tag Team Champions The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart), when Knobbs pinned Neidhart after Neidhart was hit with Jimmy Hart's motorcycle helmet, to win the title. This ended the Hart Foundation's second reign.
- Jake Roberts pinned Rick Martel in a Blindfold match after a DDT.
- The Undertaker (with Paul Bearer) pinned Jimmy Snuka after a Tombstone piledriver.
- The Ultimate Warrior pinned Randy Savage (with Sensational Queen Sherri) after several shoulder blocks, in a retirement match. After the match, Sherri berated Savage for losing, with Miss Elizabeth running to the ring from the crowd and taking out Sherri. Savage then reunited with Elizabeth.
- Kitao and Tenryu defeated Demolition (Crush and Smash (with Mr. Fuji)), when Tenryu pinned Smash after a powerbomb.
- The Big Bossman (with André the Giant) defeated WWF Intercontinental Champion Mr. Perfect (with Bobby Heenan) by disqualification after The Faces of Fear interfered. Perfect retained the title.
- Earthquake (with Jimmy Hart) pinned Greg Valentine after an Earthquake Splash.
- The Legion of Doom (Animal and Hawk) defeated Power and Glory (Hercules and Paul Roma (with Slick)), after Animal pinned Roma following a Doomsday Device.
- Virgil (with Roddy Piper) defeated Ted DiBiase by countout after DiBiase attacked Piper outside the ring.
- The Mountie (with Jimmy Hart) defeated Tito Santana after stunning him with his shock stick.
- Hulk Hogan pinned WWF Champion Sgt. Slaughter (with Gen. Adnan) after the legdrop, to win the title, beginning his third reign. Hogan proudly waved the American flag after his win to close out the show.

1992 - ECW held its second-ever event, at the Original Sports Bar in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The results:
- King Kaluha defeated Max Thrasher.
- C.N. Redd defeated Rick Perez.
- Cry Baby Waldo defeated Mr. Anthony.
- D.C. Drake and J.T. Smith defeated Johnny Hotbody and Larry Winters.
- Glenn Osbourne defeated Jimmy Jannetty.
- Derrick Domino and Stevie Richards defeated The Super Destroyers by forfeit.
- Ivan Koloff defeated Tony Stetson in a Russian Chain match.

1992 - Ron Harris wins the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Title from Steve Doll in Vancouver, Washington, ending Doll's third reign and beginning Harris' second.

1994 - Rick Rude defeats Hiroshi Hase for the WCW International World Heavyweight Title in Kyoto, Japan, beginning his second reign.

1995 - CMLL held the Salvador Lutteroth Trios Tournament at Arena Mexico in Mexico City, Mexico, in honor of CMLL promoter Salvador Lutteroth. Eight teams participated in the one-night tournament. The results were:
First round:
- Los Brazos (El Brazo, Brazo de Oro and Brazo de Plata) defeated Los Guerreros (Damian el Guerrero, Guerrero del Futuro and Guerrero Maya).
- Team Atlantis (Atlantis, Apolo Dantes and Rayo de Jalisco, Jr.) defeated Los Espectros de Ultratumba (Cadaver de Ultratumba, Espectro, Jr. and Kahoz).
- Los Chacales (Bestia Salvaje, Emilio Charles, Jr. and Sangre Chicana) defeated La Ola Blanca (El Hijo de Gladiador, Gran Markus, Jr. and Dr. Wagner, Jr.).
- Los Tecnicos (Dos Caras, El Dandy and Hector Garza) defeated Los Infernales (MS-1, Pirata Morgan and Satanico).
Semifinals:
- Los Brazos defeated Team Atlantis.
- Los Chacales defeated Los Tecnicos
Finals:
- Los Brazos defeated Los Chacales.

1996 - WCW held the second-annual Uncensored pay-per-view at the Tupelo Coliseum in Tupelo, Mississippi. The results were:
WCW Main Event matches:
- Mr. JL pinned Dean Malenko. This was a first round match in the tournament to crown the first WCW Cruiserweight Champion.
- Jim Duggan pinned Big Bubba Rogers.
- Dick Slater pinned Alex Wright.
- The Steiner Brothers (Rick and Scott) fought The Nasty Boys (Brian Knobbs and Jerry Sags) to a no-contest.
Pay-per-view matches:
- WCW United States Heavyweight Champion Konnan pinned Eddie Guerrero after an accidental headbutt low blow to Guerrero after he missed a leapfrog to retain the title.
- The Belfast Bruiser defeated Lord Steven Regal by disqualification after the other two Blue Bloods interfered.
- Col. Robert Parker pinned Madusa after Dick Slater came out and tripped Madusa while she was attempting a German suplex and Parker rolled on top.
- The Booty Man pinned Diamond Dallas Page after a high knee, after Kimberly slapped Page for kissing her in the ring. Page was originally set to face Johnny B. Badd, but he left the company for the WWF.
- The Giant pinned Loch Ness after a big boot and legdrop, to earn a shot at Ric Flair's WCW World Heavyweight Title the following night on Monday Nitro.
- Booker T and WCW World Tag Team Champion Sting defeated The Road Warriors (Animal and Hawk) in a street fight, when Booker pinned Hawk after Stevie Ray hit him with a chair. With the win, Harlem Heat earned a shot at Sting and Lex Luger's WCW World Tag Team Title.
- Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage defeated The Alliance to End Hulkamania (Arn Anderson, The Barbarian, WCW World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair, WCW World Tag Team and Television Champion Lex Luger, Kevin Sullivan, The Ultimate Solution and Z-Gangsta) in a Tower of Doom Steel Cage match. The rules of the match were for Hogan and Savage to start in the top level of the three floor cage and work their way down and escape the bottom level to win, but these rules went out the window. Hogan, Savage, Luger and Sullivan fought outside of the cage and had to be led back inside the cage by Z-Gangsta, The Ultimate Solution and Jimmy Hart. Flair and Anderson had been pinned and eliminated but returned later, and Savage pinned Flair to win the match, after again leaving the cage, and Lex Luger turned on his team by hitting Flair with a loaded glove.

1996 - The Great Sasuke defeats Aero Flash to win the WWF World Light Heavyweight Title in Shirakawa, Japan.

1997 - Dr. Bill Miller died at age 69 of a heart attack, on his way out of the gym after a workout. Miller held the AWA World Heavyweight Title once and the WWWF United States Tag Team Title with Dan Miller.

1997 - The Monday Night War continued, with WCW Monday Nitro's 3.0 rating beating WWF RAW is WAR's 2.5 rating.

The 202nd episode of WWF RAW is WAR was live from the MetroCenter in Rockford, Illinois. The 8th edition of Shotgun Saturday Night was taped as well. The results:
Shotgun:
- Mankind defeated Aldo Montoya by submission with the Mandible Claw.
- Crush pinned Barry Horowitz after a heart punch.
- Histeria pinned Venum after a shooting star press.
- "Double J" Jesse James pinned Sonny Rogers after a pumphandle slam.
RAW is WAR:
- The Headbangers (Mosh and Thrasher) defeated WWF Tag Team Champions - WWF European Champion The British Bulldog and Owen Hart by disqualification after Bulldog shoved the referee.
- Hunter Hearst Helmsley (with Chyna) pinned Bart Gunn after the Pedigree.
- Discovery, Super Nova and Venum defeated Abismo Negro, Histeria and Maniaco, when Nova pinned Negro after a top-rope hurricanrana.
- Flash Funk pinned The Brooklyn Brawler with a 450° splash.
- WWF Intercontinental Champion Rocky Maivia pinned Leif Cassidy with a top-rope crossbody.
- Ahmed Johnson defeated Savio Vega by disqualification.

WCW Monday Nitro's 80th episode was live from the Convention Center in Duluth, Minnesota. The results were:
- WCW United States Heavyweight Dean Malenko defeated Konnan by submission with the Texas Cloverleaf to retain the title.
- Mortis defeated Jerry Flynn.
- La Parka defeated Juventud Guerrera.
- High Voltage (Kaos and Rage) defeated Public Enemy (Johnny Grunge and Rocco Rock), when Grunge was pinned after Jeff Jarrett hit Grunge with his steel briefcase.
- Psychosis defeated Super Calo.
- Hugh Morrus defeated Chris Benoit.
- Harlem Heat (Booker T and Stevie Ray) defeated The Faces of Fear (The Barbarian and Meng).
- The Steiner Brothers (Rick and Scott) defeated The Amazing French-Canadians (Jacques Rougeau and Carl Oullette).
- Madusa defeated Malia Hosaka.
- Jim Duggan defeated The Renegade.
- WCW World Television Champion Prince Iaukea fought Randy Savage to a no-contest to retain the title.

2000 - The New Breed (Ashe and Curve) defeat Jorge Castano and Scottie Rock in a tournament final in Barking, England to become the first Frontier Wrestling Alliance British Tag Team Champions.

2000 - Naughty by Nature (Rude and Tully) defeat The Rebellion (Kurt Reigns and Tejas) for the NWA Texas Tag Team Title in North Richland Hills, Texas.

2000 - Cody Hawk defeats Shark Boy in North Versailles, Pennsylvania to win the Pro Wrestling eXpress Television Title.

2001 - Miracle Man wins an 11-man battle royal in Osaka, Japan, last eliminating Ebessan, to become the first Osaka Pro Wrestling Battle Royal Champion.

2001 - Flash Flanagan defeats Randy Orton to win the OVW Hardcore Title in Jeffersonville, Indiana.

2001 - Mr. Showtime defeats Dustin Starr for the NWA Southern Junior Heavyweight Title in Dyersburg, Tennessee, beginning his third reign.

2001 - Romeo Bliss and David Flair defeat Keith and Kent Kohl to win the NWA Wildside Tag Team Title in Cornelia, Georgia. At the same show, J.C. Dazz wins the NWA Wildside Junior Heavyweight Title from Caprice Coleman.

2002 - Masahiro Chono and Hiroyoshi Tenzan win their fourth IWGP Tag Team Title in Kobe, Japan, defeating Yuji Nagata and Manabu Nakanishi in a tournament final. The title was vacated on February 1 when Keiji Muto left New Japan. He held the title with Taiyo Kea.

2003 - At a live RAW in Sacramento, California, Chief Morley (Val Venis) strips William Regal of his half of the World Tag Team Title, which he had won with Lance Storm on January 20. This was due to what was then thought to be a stomach virus, later found to be a serious heart problem. Morley declared himself the other half of the champions with Storm.

2003 - Former WCW World Heavyweight Champion Bill Goldberg officially signed with WWE, and would debut the following week.

2003 - Steve Gray defeats Mal Sanders for the British Middleweight Title in Southampton, England.

2007 - MsChif defeats Josie in Streamwood, Illinois to win her second NWA Midwest Women's Title.

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