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- Tim Bland Prof. Toru Tanaka and Mr. Fuji's second reign as WWWF tag team champions ended on 11/14/73 in Hamburg, PA when they were defeated by the team of Tony Garea and Dean Ho. Captain Lou Albano brought Jimmy and Johnny Valiant into the territory. The Valiant brothers became the number one contenders and won the belts from Garea and Dean on 5/8/74, also in Hamburg, PA. Albano and the Valiant's dominated the WWWF tag team scene for over a year, finally losing the belts to Dominic Denucci and Victor Rivera in Philadelphia, exactly one year & five days after they won them. Pat Barrett was awarded half of the belts when Rivera jumped to the IWA on 6/1/75. Lou Albano did not wait long bringing in another team to challenge for the belts. On 8/26/75, in Philadelphia, Blackjack's Mulligan and Lanza took the straps from Denucci and Barrett. Surprisingly, they did not hold the belts long, as Tony Parisi and Louis Cerdan aka Gino Brito defeated the Blackjack's in Philadelphia on 11/18/75. Not to be undaunted, the Captain came back with the Executioners, who were "Big" John Studd and Killer Kowalski. On 5/11/76, in Philadelphia, Albano's masked team beat Parisi and Cerdan for the WWWF tag team belts. The popular team of Chief Jay Strongbow and Billy Whitewolf became a thorn in Albano and the Executioners sides, almost winning the belts on many occasions. Boxing champion, Muhammed Ali and Japanese wrestling legend, Antonio Inoki signed for a 15 round boxer vs. wrestler match in Japan. The bout was shown on closed circuit TV in front of a crowd of 32,000 at Shea Stadium in Flushing, NY on 6/25/76. Andre the Giant beat boxer Chuck Wepner by count out in a live boxer vs. wrestler match on the card. WWWF champion Bruno Sammartino defended the belt by beating Stan Hansen. The Ali/Inoki farce went to a 15 round draw. On 10/26/76, the Executioners were stripped of the tag team titles for using a third Executioner in a match against Strongbow and Whitewolf. The WWWF held a three team tournament for the vacated tag team belts. Strongbow and Whitewolf outlasted the Executioners & the other team involved, Nikolai Volkoff and Tor Kamata, on 12/7/76 in Philadelphia and were awarded the belts. Bruno Sammartino's second reign as WWWF champion ended in Baltimore, MD on 4/30/77. "Superstar" Billy Graham pinned him with his feet on the ropes. Managed by the Grand Wizard, Graham came off as a cocky, arrogant heel. Even though he mostly faced fan favorites, he had a cult following of his own. The night he defeated Bruno for the strap in Baltimore, there were a number of fans in attendance rooting for the Superstar. Graham faced many challengers in the time he held the belt. He set attendance records at Madison Square Garden during his epic battles with Bruno, Dusty Rhodes and Bob Backlund. Many times at house shows, there would be a battle royal with the winner facing the champion in the main event. He defended the belt against Strongbow, Peter Maivia, Ivan Putski, Gorilla Monsoon, Larry Zybyzko, Tony Garea, Mil Mascaras and other WWWF fan favorites of the time. Chief Jay Strongbow and Billy Whitewolf were forced to vacate the WWWF tag team belts when Whitewolf was injured by Ken Patera in August of 1977. Strongbow went on to feud with Patera for injuring his partner. The Freddie Blassie managed team of Prof. Toru Tanaka and Mr. Fuji defeated Larry Zybyszko and Tony Garea to win the vacant straps on 9/27/77 in Philadelphia. Strongbow formed a team with High Chief Peter Maivia and together, this popular combination gave the Japanese duo their toughest challenge for the belts. Many times on TV, Tanaka and Fuji defended the belts against Strongbow and Maivia. With Blassie's timely interference & some salt throwing, they were able to hold onto the belts for over six months. More... |
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