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Savage began his
wrestling career in the lower ranks of the US wrestling system, along
with his brother. The two brothers won the Southeastern Tag Team Titles
together, and then moved on to different organizations, sometimes
wrestling as a team, sometimes being against each other. In each organization
Savage went to, he proved his worth. He won the ICW Title in a match
against his brother; defeated Jerry "the King" Lawler for
the Southern Heavyweight Championship; then made his move towards
the WWF, where his fame would truly begin.
When Savage joined the WWF, he began his long association with his
then wife, the lovely Elizabeth. Savage continued his title run when
he won the WWF Intercontinental Title from a bloody Tito
Santana in 1986. Savage held the I-C belt for more than a year
before Ricky
"The Dragon" Steamboat managed to defeat him in one
of the great feuds of the 80s.
While Hulk Hogan became the cornerstone of the WWF, Savage became
one of the background fan favorites. From his triumphant winning of
the tournament for the WWF World Title, defeating "Million
Dollar Man" Ted DeBiase, to his war with Hogan, who he eventually
lost the title to, Savage helped improve the WWF in many ways. He
became a "heel" as the "Macho King," taking on
the Sensational Sherrie as his manager. His feuds were numerous, as
he faced such greats as Brutus
Beefcake, Dusty
Rhodes, and the Ultimate
Warrior. It was against the Warrior that Savage lost a retirement
match, in a bout that many thought stole the show at Wrestlemania
VII. Also there, he and Elizabeth reunited, and they were "married"
on a future WWF PPV.
Savage was reinstated to the WWF soon after, and had feuds with Jake
"The Snake" Roberts and Ric Flair, who he managed to
defeat to earn the WWF World Title for the second time. After losing
the belt to Flair 5 months later, Savage briefly left the WWF to be
a wrestler in the USWA, where he won the USWA Heavyweight Title from
Lawler. He came back into the WWF for a short time to have a few additional
feuds, including one with Lex
Luger, before a contract dispute caused him to depart from the
WWF.
Title Summary:
NWA Southeastern
Tag Champion w/ Lanny Poffo
ICW World Heavyweight Champion (3)
NWA Mid-America Heavyweight Champion (3)
AWA Southern Heavyweight Title (2)
WWF Intercontinental Champion
WWF World Heavyweight Champion (2)
USWA Unified World Heavyweight Champion
WCW World Heavyweight Champion (3)
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