The Complete History of the WWE Championship - Part 2

Macho Man Randy Savage (March 27, 1988 - April 2 1989)

Macho Man wins the gold at Wrestlemania IV

Following the Hulk Hogan/Andre the Giant/Ted DiBiase title debacle, WWE President, Jack Tunney stripped DiBiase of the WWE Championship and struck his reign from the record and vacated the strap. Which is why he doesn't have an entry here.

The vacated WWE Championship was put up for grabs in a one night tournament at Wrestlemania IV on March 27,1988. Pre-tournament favorites Hogan and Andre were pitted against each other in the Quarter Finals, where they also eliminated each other via Double Disqualification.

That cleared a path for former Intercontinental Champion, Macho Man Randy Savage, to take the gold.

Savage was a major star and had gotten over huge as a babyface in the run up to the super-card.

Savage bested Butch Reed, Greg Valentine, One Man Gang and lastly Ted DiBiase to claim the title.

A superlative worker, Savage was the most talented wrestler to hold the title at that point. He had sterling defenses versus the likes of DiBiase, Haku, One Man Gang and Big Boss Man.

He was a smash at the box office too. However, despite his success, his title reign was never going to last longer than one year. His friendship and tag team with Hogan was about to implode in spectacular fashion and set up the richest main event in wrestling history.

There's plenty more to come! Who was your favorite WWE Champion of the 1970s and 80s? Give us your picks in the comments section below!