Today in Wrestling History – 7/3

July 3rd

On this day in history in ….

1933 – William Muldoon, who was once the Greco-Roman wrestling champion, and later became the New York State Athletic Commissioner, dies at the age of 88.

1986 – In a match that was not recognized or revealed in North America at the time, Velvet McIntyre defeats the Fabulous Moolah for the WWF Women’s Title in Brisbane, Australia, ending Moolah’s fifth run with the title.

1986 – The Great American Bash tour rolled into Washington, DC with NWA World Champion Ric Flair defeated Dusty Rhodes, The Road Warriors & Magnum T.A. defeated Ivan & Nikita Koloff & Krusher Khrushchev in a steel cage match, and Baby Doll pinning Jim Cornette in their first ever singles match.
1995 – The Rock ‘n Roll Express defeats PG-13 for the USWA Tag Team Title in Memphis, Tennessee. The belts had been held up after a match between the two teams on June 26th. This match would officially end PG-13’s seventh title run.

2001 – The long awaited “debut” of the new WCW
on Raw from Tacoma, Washington was a flop. Given the final half hour of the 7/2 Raw, Buff Bagwell and Booker T had what many fans felt was the worst main event in the history of the program. Bagwell, who had his first match in months the day before on a house show, blew up quickly, and was using long restholds in a match that should have been non-stop action to put over the quality of the WCW performers. Booker T tried, but was still shaking off the ringrust himself, and was not in a position to carry Bagwell. The match was embarrassing, and chants of “Boring” and “This Match Sucks” were clearly heard throughout. A WWF source said Vince McMahon “absolutely hated” the whole WCW segment. That same night, Billy Kidman defeated Shane Helms for the WCW Cruiserweight Title. This was the first time a “WCW title” would change hands on a WWF show.

2002 – AJ Styles & Jerry Lynn defeat the Rainbow Express in the finals of a tournament for the NWA World Tag Team Title in Nashville, Tennessee