NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship

NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship
Details
Current champion(s) Tiger Mask IV
Date won September 23, 2015
Date established 1945
Promotion National Wrestling Alliance

The NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world championship and secondary title in the National Wrestling Alliance that was for the lighter wrestlers. It started in 1945 and still exists today.[1] The title was unified with the National Boxing/Wrestling Association's World Junior Heavyweight Championship in 1949. To qualify to win this championship, wrestlers must weigh 220 lb or under.

Title history

# Wrestler Times Date Days held Location Notes
1 Ken Fenelon 1 May 1945 N/A N/A Fenelon was awarded the title by Pinkie George, founder of the NWA.
2 Marshall Esteppe 1 May 30, 1945216 Toronto, IA
3 Larry Tillman 1 January 1, 1946 69 Des Moines, IA
4 Ken Fenelon 2 March 11, 1946 301 Des Moines, IA
5 Marshall Esteppe 2 January 6, 1947 216 Des Moines, IA
6 Ray Steele 1 March 24, 194735 Des Moines, IA
7 Marshall Esteppe 3 April 28, 194777 Des Moines, IA
8 Billy Goelz 1 March 16, 1948 652 Des Moines, IA
9 Leroy McGuirk 1 December 28, 194941 Des Moines, IA Unified National Boxing/Wrestling Association's World Junior Heavyweight Championship into National Wrestling Alliance title.
— Vacated — February 7, 1950 — — Vacated when McGuirk was blinded in a car accident.
10 Verne Gagne 1 November 13, 1950 371 Tulsa, OK Defeated Sonny Myers in a tournament final.
11 Danny McShain 1 November 19, 1951N/A Memphis, TN
12 Baron Michele Leone 1 August 1953N/A Los Angeles, CA
13 Ed Francis 1 April 11, 1955364 Tulsa, OK
14 Mike Clancy 1 April 10, 1956350 Oklahoma City, OK
15 Fred Blassie 1 March 26, 1957 <1 Nashville, TN
— Vacated — March 26, 1957 — — Immediately held up due to a controversial finish.
16 Mike Clancy 2 April 9, 1957217 Nashville, TN Defeated Fred Blassie.
— Vacated — November 12, 1957 — — Held up; Clancy defeated Jackie Fargo by DQ at November 15.
17 Mike Clancy 3 November 19, 1957N/A Nashville, TN Defeated Fred Blassie.
18 Angelo Savoldi 1 February 1958N/A Oklahoma City, OK
19 Dory Funk 1 June 5, 195836 Amarillo, TX
20 Angelo Savoldi 2 July 11, 1958224 Oklahoma City, OK
21 Ivan the Terrible 1 February 20, 195914 Oklahoma City, OK
22 Angelo Savoldi 3 March 6, 1959 84 Oklahoma City, OK
23 Mike DiBiase 1 May 29, 1959 84 Oklahoma City, OK
24 Angelo Savoldi 4 August 21, 1959 336 Oklahoma City, OK
25 Danny Hodge 1 July 22, 1960 1,450 Oklahoma City, OK
26 Hiro Matsuda 1 July 11, 1964 1,450 Tampa, FL
27 Angelo Savoldi 5 November 13, 1964 1,450 Oklahoma City, OK
28 Danny Hodge 2 April 23, 1965214 Tulsa, OK
29 Lorenzo Parente 1 November 23, 196542 Little Rock, AR
30 Danny Hodge 3 January 4, 196610 Little Rock, AR
31 Lorenzo Parente 2 January 14, 196629 Tulsa, OK
32 Joe McCarthy 1 February 12, 196680 Oklahoma City, OK
33 Danny Hodge 4 May 3, 19661,361 Little Rock, AR
34 Sputnik Monroe 1 July 13, 197028 Shreveport, LA
35 Danny Hodge 5 August 10, 1970283 Shreveport, LA
36 Roger Kirby 1 May 20, 1971113 New Orleans, LA
37 Ramon Torres 1 September 10, 197184 Monroe, LA
38 Dr. X 1 December 3, 1971108 Oklahoma City, OK
39 Danny Hodge 6 March 20, 1972 639 Shreveport, LA
40 Ken Mantell 1 December 19, 1973 542 Jackson, MS On September 17, 1974, Mantell lost a title match to Wrestling Pro via a disputed decision; this title change is only recognized in the Gulf Coast territory. Mantell defeated Pro on November 5, 1974 to become the undisputed champion.
41 Hiro Matsuda 2 June 14, 1975262 St. Petersburg, FL
42 Danny Hodge 7 March 2, 197613 Shreveport, LA
— Vacated — February 15, 1976 — — Vacated when Hodge retired after suffering a broken neck in a car accident.
43 Pat Barret 1 September 28, 197665 New Orleans, LA Defeated Nelson Royal in a tournament final.
44 Ron Starr 1 December 2, 19764 New Orleans, LA
45 Nelson Royal 1 December 6, 1976 566 New Orleans, LA Royal lost a title match to Chavo Guerrero, Sr. in April 1978 and regained it later that year; whether these changes are official is disputed.
46 Chavo Guerrero, Sr. 1 After 24 February 1978 list by NWA
47 Nelson Royal 2 1978 N/A
48 Al Madril 1 25 June 1978 398 Houston, TX
49 Nelson Royal 3 July 28, 1979 N/A Unknown Royal won via forfeit when Madril was too sick to attend a rematch.
— Vacated — December 1979 — — Vacated when Royal retired; Steve Keirn defeated Chavo Guerrero, Sr. in Los Angeles, CA on December 10 to seemingly win the vacant title, but NWA did not recognize the win as being for the title, though it was recognized by New Japan Pro Wrestling as well as Los Angeles and Florida; this version was later renamed the NWA International Junior Heavyweight Championship.
50 Ron Starr 2 February 11, 1980N/A Tulsa, OK Defeated Les Thornton in a tournament final.
51 Les Thornton 1 March 1980 N/A Unknown Thornton won via forfeit.
52 Jerry Stubbs 1 January 26, 1981 5 Mobile, AL
53 Les Thornton 2 January 31, 1981127 Dothan, AL
54 Terry Taylor 1 June 7, 1981 13 Roanoke, VA
55 Les Thornton 3 June 20, 198188 Roanoke, VA
56 Gerald Brisco 1 September 16, 198130 Miami, FL
57 Les Thornton 4 October 16, 1981221 Knoxville, TN During a tour of Puerto Rico's World Wrestling Council, Thornton lost to and then defeated Joe Lightfoot on November 7 and 14; whether these matches were for the NWA or WWC junior heavyweight title is disputed.
58 Tiger Mask 1 May 25, 1982313 Shizuoka, Japan In 1982, some North American promoters declared the title vacant due to Tiger Mask wrestling for the WWF; however, during an annual meeting between the NWA and New Japan Pro Wrestling, it's announced that Tiger Mask is still recognized as the official champion.
— Vacated — April 3, 1983 — — Vacated when Tiger Mask was injured two days prior.
59 Tiger Mask 2 June 2, 1983 71 Tokyo, Japan Defeated Kuniaki Kobayashi in a decision match.
— Vacated — 1983|8|12|} — — Vacated after Tiger Mask retired.
60 The Cobra 1 November 3, 1983 633 Tokyo, Japan Defeated Davey Boy Smith in a decision match. Around this time, Les Thornton is recognized by promoters in the US as champion.
61 Hiro Saito 1 July 28, 19850 Osaka, Japan
62 The Cobra 2 July 28, 19854 Osaka, Japan
— Vacated — August 1, 1985 — —
63 Denny Brown 1 August 1985 N/A Won disputed version of title at Starrcade 1984 by defeating Mike Davis; recognized as champion by NWA vice president Shohei Baba, promoter of All Japan Pro Wrestling, after rival promotion New Japan Pro Wrestling withdraws from the NWA.
64 Gary Royal 1 August 15, 198531 St. Louis, MO
65 Denny Brown 2 September 15, 1985321 Atlanta, GA
66 Steve Regal 1 August 2, 198630 Atlanta, GA
67 Denny Brown 3 September 1, 1986187 Greenville, SC
68 Lazor Tron 1 March 7, 1987N/A Atlanta, GA
— Vacated — 1987 — — Vacated when Tron left World Championship Wrestling.
69 Nelson Royal 4 October 16, 1987N/A N/A Royal was awarded the title. Royal left WCW in 1988, at which point Masanobu Fuchi, the reigning (AJPW) World Junior Heavyweight Champion, was disputably recognized as the new champion; however, Royal continued defending the title across the country until 1989, when it was abandoned.
— Vacated — 1989 — — Abandoned in 1989.
70 Masayoshi Motegi 1 August 30, 1995338 Tokyo, Japan Defeated El Hijo del Santo in a tournament final when the NWA revives the title.
71 The Great Sasuke 1 August 2, 199670 Tokyo, Japan Wins an 8-man tournament to decide the first J-Crown holder, a combination of eight junior heavyweight titles. These titles were still technically considered separate, as opposed to one unified championship, and continued to be defended.
72 Último Dragón 1 October 11, 199685 Osaka, Japan
73 Jushin Thunder Liger 1 January 4, 1997183 Tokyo, Japan Defeated Dragón at Wrestling World.
74 El Samurai 1 July 6, 199735 Sapporo, Japan
75 Shinjiro Otani 1 August 10, 1997 87 Nagoya, Japan
— Vacated — November 5, 1997 — — Vacated when the J-Crown was dematerialized.
76 Logan Caine 1 March 5, 1999 237 Parkersburg, WV Defeated Viper in a tournament final.
— Vacated — October 28, 1999 — — Stripped due to no-showing a title defense against Vince Kaplack.
77 Vince Kaplack 1 October 28, 199978 Pittsburgh, PA Defeated Chris Hero as a replacement for Logan Caine.
78 Tony Kozina 1 January 14, 2000190 North Versailles, PA
79 Rockford 2000 1 July 22, 200035 Surrey, BC
80 Tony Kozina 2 August 30, 200039 N/A Awarded when NWA officials review the tape of a title match between Rockford and Kozina on August 26.
81 Vince Kaplack 2 October 14, 2000175 Nashville, TN Won the title at the NWA 52nd Anniversary Show.
82 Rocky Reynolds 1 April 7, 200127 Pennsboro, WV
83 Mike Thunder 1 May 4, 2001109 North Richland Hills, TX
84 Lex Lovett 1 August 21, 200153 Tampa, FL
85 Jason Rumble 1 October 13, 2001112 Saint Petersburg, FL Defeated Lovett, Jimmy Rave, Brandon K & BJ Turner in a five-way match at the NWA 53rd Anniversary Show.
86 Rocky Reynolds 2 February 2, 200214 Titusville, PA
87 Jason Rumble 2 February 16, 200249 Malden, MA
88 Rocky Reynolds 3 April 6, 200256 Parkersburg, WV
89 Jimmy Rave 1 June 29, 200242 Cornelia, GA Defeated Reynolds and Jeremy Lopez in a three-way match.
90 Star 1 August 10, 20027 Columbia, TN
91 Jimmy Rave 2 August 17, 2002154 Columbia, TN
92 Brother Love 1 January 18, 2003140 Greenville, MS
93 Rocky Reynolds 4 June 7, 200356 Parkersburg, WV
94 Chris Draven 1 August 2, 2003161 Parkersburg, WV
95 Jerrelle Clark 1 January 10, 2004 281 Saint Petersburg, FL
96 Jason Rumble 3 October 17, 2004312 Winnipeg, MB Defeated Clark and Vance Desmond in a three-way match at the NWA 56th Anniversary Show.
97 Black Tiger IV 1 August 25, 2005 178 Columbia, TN
98 Tiger Mask IV 1 February 19, 2006446 Tokyo, Japan
99 Mike Quackenbush 1 May 11, 2007 1,275 Portage, IN
100 Craig Classic 1 November 6, 2010 247 Fort Pierce, FL
— Vacated — July 11, 2011 — — Classic relinquished the title in protest of The Sheik being stripped of the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. Classic brought his own version of the title to Pro Wrestling Zero1 as the New Wrestling Alliance championship.
101 Kevin Douglas 1 October 7, 2011373 Charlotte, NC Defeated Chase Owens in a tournament final.
— Vacated — October 14, 2012 — — Douglas was stripped of the title for no-showing a scheduled title defense on October 13, 2012 against Chase Owens. A one-night tournament was held in Kingsport, TN in lieu of the Douglas-Owens match.
102 Chase Owens 1 October 13, 2012 302 Kingsport, TN Defeated Matt Conard and Zac Vincent in a tournament final.
103 Jason Kincaid 1 August 10, 2013 69 Kingsport, TN
104 Chase Owens 2 October 18, 2013 78 Houston, TX
105 Ricky Morton 1 January 4, 2014 62 Kingsport, TN
106 Chase Owens 3 March 7, 2014 246 Church Hill, TN
107 Jushin Thunder Liger 2 November 8, 2014 156 Osaka, Japan
108 Steve Anthony 1 April 13, 2015 163 Las Vegas, NV
109 Tiger Mask IV 2 September 23, 2015 146+ Okayama, Japan

List of top combined reigns

As of February 16, 2016.

† Indicates the current champion
<1 Indicates that the combined total is less than one day.
Rank Wrestler No. of
reigns		 Combined days
1 Danny Hodge 8 4,134
2 Mike Quackenbush 1 1,275
3 Angelo Savoldi 2 728
4 The Cobra 2 637
5 Chase Owens 3 626
6 Tiger Mask IV † 2 592+
7 Nelson Royal 1 566
8 Hiro Matsuda 2 548
9 Ken Mantell 1 542
10 Denny Brown 2 508
11 Jason Rumble 3 473
12 Les Thornton 3 436
13 Al Madril 1 398
14 Tiger Mask 2 384
15 Kevin Douglas 1 373
16 Verne Gagne 1 371
17 Jushin Thunder Liger 2 339
18 Masayoshi Motegi 1 338
19 Ken Fenelon 2 301
20 Marshall Esteppe 3 293
21 Jerrelle Clark 1 281
22 Vince Kaplack 2 253
23 Craig Classic 1 247
24 Logan Caine 1 237
25 Tony Kozina 2 229
26 Jimmy Rave 2 196
27 Rocky Reynolds 4 181
28 Black Tiger IV 1 178
29 Steve Anthony 1 163
30 Chris Draven 1 161
31 Brother Love 1 140
32 Roger Kirby 1 113
33 Mike Thunder 1 109
34 Dr. X 1 108

See also

References

  1. ↑ Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2006). Wrestling Title Histories (4th ed.). Archeus Communications. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.

External links

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