WNC Championship

Last updated
WNC Championship
WNC Championship.jpg
The WNC Championship belt
(October 2012 — June 2014)
Details
Promotion Wrestling New Classic
Asuka Pro Wrestling
Date establishedSeptember 28, 2012 [1]
Date retiredJune 26, 2014
Statistics
First champion(s) Akira [2]
Final champion(s)Bernard VanDamme
Longest reign Tajiri (203 days)
Shortest reign StarBuck (9 days)
Oldest champion Akira (46 years, 289 days)
Youngest champion Osamu Nishimura (41 years, 214 days)
Heaviest championBernard VanDamme (120 kg (260 lb)) [3]
Lightest champion Tajiri (85 kg (187 lb)) [4]

The WNC Championship was a professional wrestling championship owned by the Wrestling New Classic (WNC) promotion. The title was a spiritual successor to the Smash Championship, the top title of WNC's predecessor, Smash. The championship was first announced at a press conference on September 28, 2012, when it was announced that a single-elimination tournament to determine the inaugural champion would take place from October 26 to December 27. [1] In storyline, the championship belt was donated to WNC by the final Smash Champion Dave Finlay, who was also named the head of the WNC Championship Committee, which decides matches for the title. [5] [6] [7]

Contents

Like most professional wrestling championships, the title is won as a result of a scripted match. There were five reigns shared among five wrestlers.

History

Championship tournament

Akira, the inaugural WNC Champion. Akira Nogami in the ring (September 2011).jpg
Akira, the inaugural WNC Champion.

On September 28, 2012, Tajiri, the founder of Wrestling New Classic (WNC), announced the creation of the WNC Championship, with an eight-man single-elimination tournament starting on October 26 in Korakuen Hall. [1] The eight participants were announced as Tajiri, Akira, Hajime Ohara, StarBuck, Carlito, Tommy Dreamer and two unnamed participants labeled only as "1st Future" and "2nd Future". [1] [7] On October 3, Tajiri and WNC president Tsutomu Takashima decided the first round matchups via random draw. [8] Three days later, another random draw picked Yusuke Kodama and Adam Angel out of a group of six younger WNC wrestlers to take the "Future" spots in the tournament. [9] The first three first round matches took place on October 26 and saw Akira defeat Adam Angel, Hajime Ohara defeat the inaugural Smash Champion StarBuck and Tajiri defeat Carlito. [10] The final first round match took place on November 26 and saw Tommy Dreamer defeat Yusuke Kodama to advance. [11] In the semifinals two days later, Akira defeated Tommy Dreamer, while Tajiri defeated Hajime Ohara, setting up a final match between the two veterans. [12] On December 27, Akira defeated Tajiri to become the inaugural WNC Champion. [2] [13] [14]

First round
(October 26
November 26)
Semifinals
(November 28)
Finals
(December 27)
         
Tajiri Pin
Carlito 18:20 [10]
TajiriPin
Hajime Ohara 13:17 [12]
Hajime Ohara Pin
StarBuck 11:29 [10]
Tajiri Pin
Akira23:45 [2]
Tommy Dreamer Pin
Yusuke Kodama N/A [11]
Tommy Dreamer Pin
Akira21:02 [12]
Akira Pin
Adam Angel 14:52 [10]

Title history

Key
No.Overall reign number
ReignReign number for the specific champion
DaysNumber of days held
DefensesNumber of successful defenses
No.ChampionChampionship changeReign statisticsNotesRef.
DateEventLocationReignDaysDefenses
1 Akira December 27, 2012Tokyo Korakuen Hall Tournament Tokyo, Japan 11191 [15] Akira defeated Tajiri in the finals of an eight-man tournament to become the inaugural champion. [2]
2 Osamu Nishimura April 25, 2013Korakuen Hall Dai Kessen Tokyo, Japan 11050 [16]
3 Tajiri August 8, 2013Kumamoto Tournament Kumamoto, Japan 12035 [17] [18] [19]
4 StarBuck February 27, 2014Shinjuku Face Tournament Tokyo, Japan 190 [20]
5Bernard VanDammeMarch 8, 2014Talvisota VIII Helsinki, Finland 11102This was an event held by Fight Club Finland. [21] [22]
6 StarBuck February 27, 2014N/A Helsinki, Finland 29N/A [23]
7Yuji KitoMarch 24, 2014Asuka Project Tokyo, Japan 1941Kito defeated Shunsuke Sayama in the finals of an eight-man tournament. This was an event held by Asuka Project. [24]
Deactivated June 26, 2014Shin-Kiba 1st Ring Tournament Tokyo, Japan The championship retired due to WNC having shut down on June 26, 2014.

See also

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References

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