| NWA United States Heavyweight Championship (San Francisco) | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Details | |||||||||||
| Promotion | NWA San Francisco Big Time Wrestling | ||||||||||
| Date established | November 1960 | ||||||||||
| Date retired | January 1981 | ||||||||||
| Other name(s) | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
The NWA San Francisco United States Championship was a version of the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship that was defended in NWA San Francisco and, later, Big Time Wrestling. The title, which originated as the American Wrestling Alliance United States Championship and was renamed in 1968, existed from 1960 until 1981. [1]
| Wrestler: | Times: | Date: | Location: | Notes: |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Wrestling Alliance United States Heavyweight Championship | ||||
| Ray Stevens | 1 | November 1960 | Awarded | |
| Bob Ellis | 1 | November 11, 1960 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Ray Stevens | 2 | May 1961 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Vacated | July 1962 | Stevens broke his ankle in cart racing. | ||
| Pepper Gomez | 1 | July 1962 | Windsor, ON | defeated Freddie Blassie. |
| Ray Stevens | 3 | February 23, 1963 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Wilbur Snyder | 1 | April 20, 1963 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Ray Stevens | 4 | June 29, 1963 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Dominic DeNucci | 1 | January 25, 1964 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Ray Stevens | 5 | February 29, 1964 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Kinji Shibuya | 1 | October 25, 1964 | Honolulu, HI | |
| Bobo Brazil | 1 | October 16, 1965 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Kinji Shibuya | 2 | November 13, 1965 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Bill Watts | 1 | February 19, 1966 | San Francisco, CA | [2] |
| Ray Stevens | 6 | March 11, 1967 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Bearcat Wright | 1 | December 2, 1967 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Kinji Shibuya | 3 | February 17, 1968 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Bearcat Wright | 2 | April 13, 1968 | San Francisco, CA | |
| King Curtis Iaukea | 1 | July 4, 1968 | ? | |
| Ray Stevens | 7 | September 14, 1968 | San Francisco, CA | Promotion rejoins the NWA in 1968 during Stevens' reign. |
| Renamed NWA United States Heavyweight Championship (San Francisco version) | ||||
| King Curtis Iaukea | 2 | May 10, 1969 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Ray Stevens | 8 | June 7, 1969 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Vacated | August 1969 | Stevens broke his leg while racing. | ||
| Pat Patterson | 1 | August 9, 1969 | San Francisco, CA | Defeated Pedro Morales to win vacant title. |
| Ray Stevens | 9 | July 11, 1970 | San Francisco, CA | Lost a match to Patterson in Anchorage, Alaska on September 22, with Patterson announced as the new champion to the local audience. It's unclear whether this result was announced by the promotion to its audience at large as having occurred or having been overturned. [3] |
| Paul DeMarco | 1 | June 5, 1971 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Peter Maivia | 1 | July 31, 1971 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Paul DeMarco | 2 | September 18, 1971 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Rocky Johnson | 1 | November 5, 1971 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Pat Patterson | 2 | February 12, 1972 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Held Up | December 7, 1972 | Title held up after match against Great Mephisto | ||
| Great Mephisto | 1 | February 17, 1973 | Defeated Patterson after several rematches failed to end with winner. | |
| Pat Patterson | 3 | April 28, 1973 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Moondog Mayne | 1 | December 29, 1973 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Peter Maivia | 2 | October 12, 1974 | San Francisco, CA | |
| The Brute | 1 | January 15, 1975 | San Francisco, CA | [4] |
| Pat Patterson | 4 | April 5, 1975 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Angelo Mosca | 1 | July 7, 1975 | San Jose, CA | |
| Pat Patterson | 5 | September 7, 1975 | Sacramento, CA | |
| Mr. Fuji | 1 | February 7, 1976 | San Francisco, CA | [5] |
| Vacated | February 12, 1977 | Fuji left the area. | ||
| Pat Patterson | 6 | March 12, 1977 | San Francisco, CA | Defeated Alexis Smirnoff in tournament final. |
| Alexis Smirnoff | 1 | April 16, 1977 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Dean Ho | 1 | July 16, 1977 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Bob Roop | 1 | September 17, 1977 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Vacated | December 1977 | Bob Roop fired. | ||
| Dean Ho | 2 | January 14, 1978 | Won tournament. | |
| Don Muraco | 1 | April 1, 1978 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Moondog Mayne | 2 | May 27, 1978 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Roddy Piper | 1 | June 24, 1978 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Moondog Mayne | 3 | July 14, 1978 | ? | |
| Vacated | August 13, 1978 | Mayne killed in auto accident. | ||
| Buddy Rose | 1 | September 16, 1978 | San Francisco, CA | Defeated Dean Ho in tournament final. |
| Vacated | 1979 | Rose suspended. | ||
| Ron Starr | 1 | March 3, 1979 | San Francisco, CA | Defeated Roddy Piper in tournament final. |
| Buddy Rose | 2 | May 11, 1979 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Ron Starr | 2 | June 8, 1979 | San Francisco, CA | Defeated Johnny Mantell when Rose refused to wrestle. |
| Bob Sweetan | 1 | October 23, 1979 | San Francisco, CA | |
| George Wells | 1 | December 29, 1979 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Ed Wiskoski | 1 | June 7, 1980 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Ron Starr | 3 | August 9, 1980 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Bob Sweetan | 2 | October 13, 1980 | San Francisco, CA | |
| Vacated | October 1980 | Sweetan left the area. | ||
| Dusty Rhodes | 1 | November 8, 1980 | San Francisco, CA | Defeated Dick Slater for the vacant title. |
| Title Retired | January 1981 | Promotion closed; Mid-Atlantic version becomes the undisputed NWA US Championship after this date | ||
The AWA World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship and the highest ranked championship in the defunct American Wrestling Association (AWA). All AWA trademarks, including the AWA World Heavyweight Championship, are now owned by WWE. The championship was generally contested in professional wrestling matches, in which participants execute worked finishes rather than contend in direct competition.
The American Wrestling Association (AWA) World Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling world tag team championship in the American Wrestling Association from 1960 until the promotion folded in 1991.
The NWA National Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling championship owned and promoted by the U.S.-based, National Wrestling Alliance (NWA).
The NWA Missouri Heavyweight Championship was a singles championship in the National Wrestling Alliance's St. Louis Wrestling Club and Central States Wrestling promotions in the 1970s and 1980s. It was considered a "stepping stone" to the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. A version of the Missouri Championship has been documented to exist in 1899, 1921, 1933 to 1934, 1937, 1947, 1950, and 1954 to 1955, but it was only in 1972 that a serious championship was established. Prior to the creation of the NWA the championship was not recognized outside of the region and used by regional promoters, it is even possible that competing Missouri Heavyweight Championships existed. The championship was abandoned in 1986, as the Central States promotion was being consolidated under Jim Crockett Promotions in order to counter the World Wrestling Federation's national expansion.
The Florida version of the NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship was the major singles professional wrestling championship in the National Wrestling Alliance's Florida territory, Championship Wrestling Florida. It existed from 1962 until 1987, when the title was abandoned. It was revived by NWA Florida in 1996. At various times, different NWA affiliated promotions used their own regional version of the title including promotions based in Georgia, Tennessee, and the Carolinas.
The NWA Florida Heavyweight Championship was a major title in Championship Wrestling from Florida and is now the major title in NWA Florida Wrestling Alliance. It started in 1937 and was abandoned in 1949. It was picked back up in 1966 by CWF and lasted until 1987 when the company was purchased by Jim Crockett Promotions. In 1988, the newly created Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW), soon renamed Pro Wrestling Federation (PWF), picked it back up in 1988 and it continued its lineage through NWA Florida, until they ceased operations in 2006. In 2009, Pro Wrestling Fusion revived the title until they left the NWA in 2011. For several months in 2012, a new Championship Wrestling from Florida affiliated with the NWA, briefly reviving the title until NWA Florida Underground Wrestling took over the championship.
The WCWA World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship promoted by the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex area–based World Class Wrestling Association (WCWA). The championship was originally created in June 1966 by WCWA's predecessor NWA Big Time Wrestling (BTW), billed as the local version of the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship before being renamed the NWA American Heavyweight Championship in May 1968. In 1982, Big Time Wrestling rebranded themselves as "World Class Championship Wrestling" (WCCW) and the championship was renamed the WCCW American Heavyweight Championship. In 1986 WCCW withdrew from the National Wrestling Alliance, creating the World Class Wrestling Association, replacing the WCCW American Heavyweight Championship with the WCWA Heavyweight Championship, replacing the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship as the top title recognized by the promotion. In 1989, the WCWA championship was unified with the AWA World Heavyweight Championship to become the USWA Unified World Heavyweight Championship as WCWA merged with the Continental Wrestling Association (CWA) to become the United States Wrestling Association. In 1990 WCWA split from the USWA, but the promotion folded without determining a WCWA World Heavyweight Champion. As it is a professional wrestling championship, the WCWA World Heavyweight Championship was not won by actual competition, but by a scripted ending to a match.
The NWA Detroit United States Heavyweight Championship was a version of the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship contested in Big Time Wrestling from 1959 until 1980. It was first introduced as the Chicago version of the championship and contested on shows produced by Fred Kohler Enterprises before moving to Big Time Wrestling in Detroit six years later. While the National Wrestling Alliance recognized only one World Heavyweight Champion, there were multiple "NWA United States Heavyweight Champion"s, as many NWA-affiliated promotions/"territories" across the U.S. each had its own version of an "American" or "United States" championship. For most such territories -- including Detroit -- the U.S. Title was the promotion's primary singles championship. Over its history, the title was held by stars including Bobo Brazil, The Sheik, Wilbur Snyder, Johnny Valentine, and multi-time AWA World Heavyweight Champions Verne Gagne and Dick the Bruiser.
The NWA Pacific International Heavyweight Championship was the primary singles championship of 50th State Big Time Wrestling, the NWA territory based in Hawaii. The title was originally the Hawaiian version of the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship that was defended in Hawaii. It existed from 1962 until 1968. It was renamed the NWA North American Heavyweight Championship (Hawaii version) in 1968 and renamed again as the NWA Pacific International Heavyweight Championship in 1978, which was the name it used until it was retired in 1980.
The NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling title that has existed since the 1930s. Though its exact date of creation isn't known, it is among the oldest championships used in professional wrestling today. The title has used a variety of different names over the years, which consists of initial changes to represent the various companies that have controlled the title at different times. Originally, it was simply known as the Texas Heavyweight Championship until its name was changed after the formation of the National Wrestling Alliance in 1948. For most of the title's existence, at least until the early 1990s, it was defended almost exclusively within the Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio areas of Texas. From the 1930s to the mid-1960s, these cities and the surrounding towns were within the territory operated by Ed McLemore, which was known simply as Southwest Sports, Inc. at the time. After McLemore's death, the territory came under the control of Fritz Von Erich and was renamed as Big Time Wrestling. However, the promotion would be renamed World Class Championship Wrestling in the early 1980s, which is the name the territory is best remembered under today. The championship remained an NWA affiliated title until February 1986.
The AWA Southern Heavyweight Championship was a major professional wrestling title in the Continental Wrestling Association during the 1970s and 1980s. The title is part of a long lineage that was started when the NWA Southern Junior Heavyweight Championship, in use since 1939, was renamed the NWA Southern Heavyweight Championship (Memphis version) in 1974. The title's name changed again in 1978, when it was renamed the AWA Southern Heavyweight Championship due to a partnership with the American Wrestling Association. It was also called the Mid-Southern Heavyweight Championship in Pro Wrestling Illustrated and its sister publications, in order for this title to not be confused with Championship Wrestling from Florida's version of the title.
The NWA Hawaii Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and is defended in the US state of Hawaii. The title, which is still currently defended, began in 1935. From February 1940 through 1942 the title was known as the Hawaii Junior Heavyweight Championship.
The Pacific Wrestling Federation (PWF) World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship and one of the three titles that make up the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship. It was created in 1973 by All Japan owner Giant Baba, after he won a series of ten matches against Bruno Sammartino, Terry Funk, Abdullah the Butcher, The Destroyer, Wilbur Snyder, Don Leo Jonathan, Pat O'Connor and Bobo Brazil.
The NWA Pacific Northwest Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling (PNW), which promoted shows in the U.S. states of Oregon and Washington, and occasionally other areas in the northwestern United States.
The NWA International Junior Heavyweight Championship started in 1979. It was formed by a split in lineage from the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship caused by the retirement of champion Nelson Royal the same year. The first champion, Steve Keirn, was recognized as world champion only by Florida, Los Angeles, and New Japan Pro-Wrestling. This version was eventually taken to the latter promotion by Tatsumi Fujinami, who already held the WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship.
The NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling championship sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance and defended in its member promotion Pacific Northwest Wrestling, which promoted shows in the U.S. states of Oregon and Washington.
The NWA Americas Heavyweight Championship was the top singles championship in the National Wrestling Alliance's Los Angeles territory, known officially as NWA Hollywood Wrestling, from 1968 until the promotion closed in 1982. The title was first established in 1967 as a secondary championship in NWA Hollywood's predecessor, Worldwide Wrestling Associates. Although the name of the title implies that it was defended throughout North, Central and South America, it was rarely defended outside of Southern California. As a result, the title was essentially a regional title rather than a national one. A number of NWA affiliated promoters at various points over the years have used their own regional versions or variations of "national" championships for the purpose of giving crowds the idea that the company was larger than it actually was, or that the company was the biggest or most successful within the ranks of the National Wrestling Alliance.
The NWA Americas Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling tag team title in the National Wrestling Alliance's NWA Hollywood Wrestling based out of Los Angeles, California.
The Amarillo version of the NWA North American Heavyweight Championship was a top singles title in the National Wrestling Alliance's Amarillo, Texas territory, Western States Sports. It lasted from 1957 until 1969, when it was replaced with the NWA Western States Heavyweight Championship.
The NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Championship (Southern Division) was originally the primary singles championship for Gulf Coast Championship Wrestling and was originally named the NWA Gulf Coast Heavyweight Championship. As the name indicates the title was recognized by the National Wrestling Alliance as a local title promoted in the Tennessee, Alabama, Florida and Mississippi region from 1957 until 1977 when its name was changed for the Southern Division of Southeast Championship Wrestling. In 1980 the title was abandoned and the Northern division of the NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Championship became the main title of SECW.
Patterson won the match, thus regaining the heavyweight championship belt from Stevens, but left the ring before the decision was announced. The referee, left too, to investigate a foul by Patterson alleged by the crowd, but never returned to inform the announcer of the decision.
