4/3 THIS DAY IN HISTORY: CHRISTOPHER DANIELS WINS SECOND ECWA SUPER 8, GOTCH BEATS HACKENSCHMIDT, AJ LEE RETIRES & MORE
By Mike Johnson on 2023-04-03 08:00:00
April 3rd
This Day In....
1903 - Tom Jenkins wins his second American Heavyweight Title, ending Dan McLeod's third reign in Buffalo, New York.
1908 - Frank Gotch defeats Georg Hackenschmidt in Chicago, Illinois to win the World Heavyweight Title, ending Hackenschmidt's near-three-year-long reign. Gotch's American Heavyweight Title, which he had won on December 17, 1906 from Fred Beell, was vacated. Gotch held the title until retiring in August 1912.
1933 - Steve Strelich defeats P.A. Mullikan to win the California Light Heavyweight Title in Pasadena, California.
1954 - Mr. X (Percy Hall) defeats Willie Liebenberg in Johannesburg, South Africa for the South African Heavyweight Title.
1961 - Don Leo Jonathan defeats Dr. X (Bill Miller) for the Omaha World Heavyweight Title in Omaha, Nebraska. This began and ended both's second reigns.
1964 - The Destroyer and Art Michalik defeat Nick Bockwinkel and Nick Kozak to win the NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Title in Salem, Oregon, beginning their third reign.
1964 - Don Duffy defeats Dick Dunn to win the NWA Gulf Coast Heavyweight Title in Dothan, Alabama, ending Dunn's second reign.
1965 - Huracán Ramírez defeats Rizado Ruiz to win the Mexican National Welterweight Title in Mexico City, Mexico.
1965 - Red McKin defeats Treach Phillips to become the first NWA Missouri Junior Heavyweight Champion in St. Joseph, Missouri.
1967 - Rocky Johnson and Don Leo Jonathan defeat Chris and John Tolos for the Vancouver NWA Canadian Tag Team Title in Vancouver, British Columbia.
1967 - Rocket and Sputnik Monroe defeat Don Curtis and José Lothario to win the Florida NWA Southern Tag Team Title in Orlando, Florida.
1968 - Mario Galento defeats Eduardo Pérez for the NWA Gulf Coast Heavyweight Title in Mobile, Alabama. This began Galento's sixth reign and ended Pérez's third.
1969 - Lance Storm is born in Sarnia, Ontario.
1969 - The Gladiator (Rick Hunter) defeats Boris Malenko to win the NWA Florida Brass Knuckles Title in Jacksonville, Florida.
1969 - The Love Brothers (Hartford and Reginald) defeat Moose Cholak and Johnny Powers for the Buffalo NWA World Tag Team Title in Cleveland, Ohio. The Buffalo/Cleveland office left the NWA in 1970 and the National Wrestling Federation was founded.
1970 - Roger Kirby defeats Danny Little Bear to win the NWA Central States Heavyweight Title in St. Joseph, Missouri, beginning his second reign.
1971 - Kinji Shibuya defeats Suni War Cloud for the NWA Beat the Champ Television Title.
1975 - Lola Garcia and Rena Manani defeat Mariko Akagi and Jumbo Miyamoto to win the WWWA World Tag Team Title in Fukui, Japan, ending Akagi and Miyamoto's ninth reign.
1976 - Dutch Savage defeats Jesse Ventura to win the NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Title in Portland, Oregon, to begin his sixth reign.
1979 - Adrian Adonis and Ron Starr defeat Killer Tim Brooks and Roddy Piper for the NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Title.
1980 - Antonio Inoki defeats Stan Hansen for the NWF Heavyweight Title in Tokyo, Japan, to begin his third reign.
1981 - At an EMLL event in Mexico City, Mexico, Tony Salazar wins the NWA World Light Heavyweight Title from Alfonso Dantés, ending Dantés' third reign. Also, Ringo Mendoza wins his fifth NWA World Middleweight Title, defeating Sangre Chicana, ending his second reign.
1982 - The Canadian Wrecking Crew (Terry Adonis and Bruiser Costa) defeat Dean Ho and Sonny Myers for the Vancouver NWA International Tag Team Title in Cloverdale, British Columbia.
1983 - Dick Slater wins his second NWA Television Title in Greensboro, North Carolina, ending Roddy Piper's second reign.
1983 - Riki Choshu defeats Tatsumi Fujinami in Tokyo, Japan to win the WWF International Heavyweight Title.
1992 - Villano V defeats El Signo for the UWA World Light Heavyweight Title in Netzahualcoyótl, Mexico, ending Signo's second reign.
1992 - Sam Houston wins a 15-man battle royal to win the vacant Global Wrestling Federation Television Title in Dallas, Texas. The title was stripped from Eddie Gilbert on March 20 after he attacked a referee. At the same event, Danny Davis won the GWF Light Heavyweight Title from Barry Horowitz, ending his second reign.
1993 - ECW held an television taping at Cabrini College in Radnor, Pennsylvania. The results:
- Eddie Gilbert and ECW Television Champion Jimmy Snuka defeated J.T. Smith and Max Thrasher to retain the title.
- ECW Tag Team Champions Tony Stetson and Larry Winters defeated The Suicide Blondes (Chris Candido and Johnny Hotbody).
- Don Muraco defeated Glenn Osbourne.
- The Suicide Blondes (Chris Candido and Johnny Hotbody) defeated ECW Tag Team Champions Tony Stetson and Larry Winters to win the title.
- ECW Heavyweight Champion The Sandman and Rockin' Rebel fought to a double-disqualification to retain the title.
- Super Destroyer III (Salvatore Bellomo) defeated The Death Rider.
- Don Muraco defeated Ernesto Benifica.
- Tommy Cairo and J.T. Smith defeated The Canadian Wolfman and Max Thrasher, when Smith pinned Wolfman.
- ECW Television Champion Jimmy Snuka defeated Glenn Osbourne to retain the title.
- Salvatore Bellomo defeated Super Destroyer I by disqualification.
- Eddie Gilbert and ECW Television Champion Jimmy Snuka defeated Tommy Cairo and Glenn Osbourne, when Gilbert pinned Cairo.
- J.T. Smith defeated Max Thrasher.
- Don Muraco defeated ECW Heavyweight Champion The Sandman to win the title, beginning his second reign.
1993 - Miss Texas (Jacqueline) ends Lauren Davenport's fourth USWA Women's Title reign in Memphis, Tennessee, and begins her own sixth reign.
1993 - Yukihiro Kanemura and Mitsuhiro Matsunaga defeat Freddy Kreuger and Leatherface to win the W*ING World Tag Team Title in Kagoshima, Japan.
1995 - The WWF held the 104th, 105th and 106th Monday Night RAWs, one airing live and two taped, at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center in Poughkeepsie, New York, on the heels of WrestleMania XI. The results were:
Dark matches:
- Bret Hart defeated WWF Intercontinental Champion Jeff Jarrett.
- The Allied Powers (The British Bulldog and Lex Luger) defeated King Kong Bundy and Tatanka.
- The Undertaker (with Paul Bearer) defeated Jean-Pierre LaFitte.
- WWF Champion Diesel defeated Bam Bam Bigelow.
April 3:
- Hakushi (with Shinja) pinned Bob Holly (with The 1-2-3 Kid) with a running senton, after Yokozuna tripped Holly.
- The Allied Powers (The British Bulldog and Lex Luger) defeated Well Dunn (Steven Dunn and Timothy Well (with Harvey Whippleman)), when Luger got the pin after a diving forearm.
- Alundra Blayze pinned WWF Women's Champion Bull Nakano with a bridging German suplex to win the title after Nakano missed a moonsault. This began Blayze's second reign. During that match, Jim Cornette announced that on the following week's show there would be a six-man tag match with The 1-2-3 Kid, Bret Hart and Bob Holly facing Hakushi, Owen Hart and Yokozuna. After the match an unknown woman attacked the new champion and broke her nose, causing her to have to get plastic surgery to repair the damage. This was the debut of Bertha Faye.
- Men on a Mission (Mabel and Mo) defeated Ben Jordan and Tony Roy.
- The show closed with
April 10:
- Adam Bomb fought Tatanka (with Ted DiBiase) to a double-countout.
- The Headshrinkers (Fatu and Sione) defeated Mike Bell and Tony DeVito.
- Kama (with Ted DiBiase) pinned Scott Taylor. Before the match, Kama debuted his new gold chain, which was made from The Undertaker's melted urn, which he stole at WrestleMania.
- The 1-2-3 Kid, Bret Hart and Bob Holly defeated Hakushi and WWF Tag Team Champions Owen Hart and Yokozuna, when Holly pinned Owen with a roll-up after a dropkick from Bret, after Bret blind-tagged holly.
April 17:
- Jean-Pierre LaFitte pinned Duke Droese after the Cannonball.
- Doink the Clown (Steve Lombardi) (with Dink the Clown) pinned Raymond Roy after Whoopie Cushions from both clowns.
- WWF Tag Team Champions Owen Hart and Yokozuna (with Jim Cornette and Mr. Fuji) defeated The 1-2-3 Kid and Bob Holly to retain the title, when Yokozuna pinned The Kid after he caught the Kid coming off the top rope and delivered a belly-to-belly suplex.
- Henry Godwinn pinned Rich Myers after the Slop Drop.
1995 - Razor Ramon defeats Bill Dundee to win the USWA Unified World Heavyweight Title in Memphis, Tennessee. At the same event, Brian Lee ends Brian Christopher's 14th reign as USWA Heavyweight Champion.
1996 - Vance Nevada wins his third Canadian Junior Heavyweight Title, defeating Bobby Collins in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba.
1997 - Tower of Doom defeated Ox Harley and Bull Pain in a three-way tournament final to become the first IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Champion in Louisville, Kentucky.
1998 - The Brooklyn Brawler defeats Bobby Clancy for the vacant Border City Wrestling Television Title in LaSalle, Ontario. The title was stripped from Gene Miller on June 21.
1998 - Tarek the Great wins his 10th IWA Mid-South Light Heavyweight Title in Scottsburg, Indiana, defeating The Suicide Kid.
1999 - ECW held the fourth-annual Cyberslam event at the ECW Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The results:
- Jerry Lynn pinned Yoshihiro Tajiri.
- Nova and Chris Chetti defeated Rod Price and Skull Von Krush, when Nova pinned Price.
- Super Crazy pinned Mosco de la Merced.
- Taka Michinoku pinned Papi Chulo.
- ECW World Tag Team and Television Champion Rob Van Dam pinned 2 Cold Scorpio to retain the Television title.
- ECW World Heavyweight Champion Taz defeated Chris Candido by submission to retain the title.
- Shane Douglas pinned Justin Credible.
- The Dudley Boyz (Buh-Buh Ray and D-Von) and Mustapha Saed defeated The Hardcore Chair Swingin' Freaks (Balls Mahoney and Axl Rotten) and New Jack in an Ultimate Jeopardy Steel Cage (WarGames) match, when Mahoney was pinned.
1999 - Ray Gonzalez defeats Pierroth, Jr. to win the vacant WWC Universal Heavyweight Title in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, beginning his eighth reign. The title was held up after their March 27 match, also in Guaynabo.
1999 - Jay Jaillet defeat Luis Ortiz for the NWA New England Junior Heavyweight Title in Milford, Connecticut.
1999 - Kid Wikkid and Derrick King defeat Vic Grimes and Erin O'Grady (Crash Holly) to win the Power Pro Wrestling Tag Team Title in Jonesboro, Arkansas, beginning his second reign.
1999 - The Ringlords (Speedy Gonzales and Dan Slagel) defeat The Border Patrol (Chris and Mike Cannon) to win the NWA Northern Continental Tag Team Title in Joliet, Illinois.
2000 - Basically unopposed by WCW's 1.8-rated "History of Nitro" show, the WWF held the post-WrestleMania RAW is WAR at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Also taped beforehand was the weekend's WWF Jakked. The results:
Dark matches:
- D'Lo Brown defeated Scott Vick.
- The Headbangers (Mosh and Thrasher) defeated The Dupps (Bo and Jack).
Jakked:
- Al Snow pinned Viscera after two Head shots while Steve Blackman had the referee distracted.
- Bull Buchanan (with the Big Bossman) defeated Bradshaw (with Faarooq) by disqualification after Faarooq interfered. All four brawled after the match.
- D'Lo Brown and The Godfather defeated The Mean Street Posse (Joey Abs and Rodney (with Pete Gas)), when D'Lo pinned Rodney after the Lo Down following Godfather's Ho Train.
- Val Venis pinned WWF Hardcore Champion Hardcore Holly with a fisherman suplex.
RAW is WAR:
- Eddie Guerrero pinned WWF European Champion Chris Jericho (with Chyna) to win the title after Chyna interfered, turned on Jericho and DDT'd him.
- Road Dogg and X-Pac (with Tori) defeated T&A (Test and Albert (with Trish Stratus)), when X-Pac pinned Albert after the X-Factor after Road Dogg gave Albert a low blow.
- WWF Intercontinental Champion Chris Benoit pinned Tazz with a bridging German suplex to retain the title.
- The Big Show defeated Rikishi (with Too Cool (Grandmaster Sexay and Scotty 2 Hotty)) by disqualification when Too Cool interfered.
- Crash Holly pinned WWF Hardcore Champion Hardcore Holly, after the Acolytes, whom Crash paid off before the match, gave the champion a double spinebuster, to win the title. This ended Hardcore's third reign and beginning Crash's fourth.
- Kurt Angle defeated Val Venis by submission with the crossface chickenwing.
- Kane (with Paul Bearer) pinned Bull Buchanan (with the Big Bossman) after a chokeslam.
- The Rock defeated Shane McMahon (with Vince McMahon) by pinning WWF Champion Triple H, who interfered, after the Rock Bottom.