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NWA WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
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Current Champion:
Brent Albright
(Defeated Adam Pearce, 08/02/2008)
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| TITLE HISTORY | | Won By | Date | Location | Length of Reign | | Orville Brown | 01/05/1948 | Des Moines, IA | 1 year, 10 months, 22 days | | Brown also wins the Midwest Wrestling Association World title from Bobby Burns on 05/04/48 in Kansas City, KS. In July 1948, Pinkie George founds the current version of the NWA, based in Waterloo, IA with five other promoters, recognizing Brown as the first NWA World heavyweight champion. | | Lou Thesz | 11/27/1949 | N/A | 6 years, 4 months, 3 days | | Thesz is awarded the title when Orville Brown is injured in an automobile accident on 11/01/1949 before a scheduled unification match between Brown and Thesz (who was National Wrestling Association World heavyweight champion). | | Billy Watson | 03/25/1956 | Toronto, ON | 7 months, 14 days | | Watson defeats Thesz by countout; due to NWA rules, the championship changes hands. | | Lou Thesz [2] | 11/09/1956 | St. Louis, MO | 7 months, 10 days | | Edouard Carpentier | 06/14/1957 | Chicago, IL | 1 month, 10 days | | Carpentier defeats Thesz when Thesz cannot continue due to a back injury and is recognized as World champion in Omaha and by WWA in Los Angeles. | | Lou Thesz [3] | 07/24/1957 | Montreal, QC | 3 months, 20 days | | Thesz defeats Carpentier by disqualification. The NWA initially continues to recognize Carpentier as World champion until Carpentier withdraws his claim to the title when Montreal promoter Eddie Quinn leaves the NWA. As a result, the NWA voids all recognition of Carpentier as champion and recognizes Thesz as World champion. | | Dick Hutton | 11/14/1957 | Toronto, ON | 1 year, 2 months | | Pat O'Connor | 01/09/1959 | St. Louis, MO | 2 years, 5 months, 21 days | | Buddy Rogers | 06/30/1961 | Chicago, IL | 1 year, 1 month, 18 days | | Bobo Brazil | 08/18/1962 | Newark, NJ | 2 months, 12 days | | Brazil defeats Rogers when Rogers claims a groin injury, but refuses the victory. However, Brazil is announced as World champion on 09/06/1962 when nothing has been found wrong with Rogers by the doctor. | | Buddy Rogers [2] | 10/30/1962 | Toledo, OH | 2 months, 29 days | | Killer Kowalski defeats Rogers on 11/21/1962 in Montreal, QC after Rogers suffers a broken ankle in the first fall of the match. Kowalski is recognized as champion in some territories, including Texas. Rogers defeats Kowalski on 01/21/1963 in New York, NY, but Kowalski claims the match is non-title. | | Lou Thesz [4] | 01/24/1963 | Toronto, ON | 2 years, 11 months, 18 days | | Northeastern US promoters refuse to recognize Thesz's one-fall victory and split from the NWA, forming the WWWF and recognizing Rogers as their first World champion. Thesz defeats Rogers in a two-out-of-three-falls rematch on 02/07/63 in Toronto, ON, and defeats Killer Kowalski on 02/01/1963 in Houston, TX to end disputes over the championship. | | Gene Kiniski | 01/07/1966 | St. Louis, MO | 3 years, 1 month, 4 days | | Dory Funk Jr. | 02/11/1969 | Tampa, FL | 4 years, 1 month, 13 days | | Harley Race | 03/24/1973 | Kansas City, MO | 3 months, 26 days | | Jack Brisco | 07/20/1973 | Houston, TX | 1 year, 4 months, 12 days | | Giant Baba | 12/02/1974 | Kagoshima, Japan | 7 days | | Jack Brisco [2] | 12/09/1974 | Toyohashi, Japan | 1 year, 1 day | | Terry Funk | 12/10/1975 | Miami, FL | 1 year, 2 months, 1 day | | Harley Race [2] | 02/06/1977 | Toronto, ON | 2 years, 6 months, 15 days | | Dusty Rhodes | 08/21/1979 | Tampa, FL | 5 days | | Harley Race [3] | 08/26/1979 | Orlando, FL | 2 months, 5 days | | Giant Baba [2] | 10/31/1979 | Nagoya, Japan | 6 days | | Harley Race [4] | 11/07/1979 | Amagasaki, Japan | 10 months, 2 days | | Giant Baba [3] | 09/04/1980 | Saga, Japan | 5 days | | Harley Race [5] | 09/09/1980 | Ohtsu, Japan | 7 months, 23 days | | Tommy Rich | 04/27/1981 | Augusta, GA | 4 days | | Harley Race [6] | 05/01/1981 | Gainsville, GA | 1 month, 20 days | | Dusty Rhodes [2] | 06/21/1981 | Atlanta, GA | 2 months, 26 days | | Ric Flair | 09/17/1981 | Kansas City, MO | 1 year, 8 months, 28 days | | In 1982 in the Dominican Republic, Flair allows himself to be pinned by Jack Veneno to avoid an audience riot, but the title is returned to Flair upon leaving. The Midnight Rider (Dusty Rhodes under a mask) defeats Flair on 02/09/1983 in Miami, FL, but returns the title when NWA president Bob Geigel orders him to unmask or forfeit the title. | | Harley Race [7] | 06/10/1983 | St. Louis, MO | 5 months, 14 days | | Ric Flair [2] | 11/24/1983 | Greensboro, NC | 4 months, 2 days | | Harley Race [8] | 03/21/1984 | Wellington, New Zealand | 2 days | | Ric Flair [3] | 03/23/1984 | Kallang, Singapore | 1 month, 13 days | | Kerry Von Erich | 05/06/1984 | Irving, TX | 18 days | | Ric Flair [4] | 05/24/1984 | Yokosuka, Japan | 2 years, 2 months, 2 days | | Dusty Rhodes [3] | 07/26/1986 | Greensboro, NC | 11 days | | Ric Flair [5] | 08/07/1986 | St. Louis, MO | 1 year, 1 month, 18 days | | Ronnie Garvin | 09/25/1987 | Detroit, MI | 2 months, 1 day | | Ric Flair [6] | 11/26/1987 | Chicago, IL | 1 year, 2 months, 29 days | | Ricky Steamboat | 02/20/1989 | Chicago, IL | 2 months, 17 days | | Ric Flair [7] | 05/07/1989 | Nashville, TN | 1 year, 2 months | | Sting | 07/07/1990 | Baltimore, MD | 6 months, 9 days | | Ric Flair [8] | 01/11/1991 | East Rutherford, NJ | 2 months, 10 days | | Tatsumi Fujinami | 03/21/1991 | Tokyo, Japan | 1 month, 28 days | | Ric Flair [9] | 05/19/1991 | St. Petersburg, FL | 3 months, 19 days | | Flair is stripped of the title on 09/08/1991 when he signs with the WWF. | | Masahiro Chono | 08/12/1992 | Tokyo, Japan | 4 months, 27 days | | Chono defeats Rick Rude in the final of a tournament to determine a new champion. | | The Great Muta | 01/04/1993 | Tokyo, Japan | 1 month, 17 days | | Barry Windham | 02/21/1993 | Asheville, NC | 4 months, 27 days | | Ric Flair [10] | 07/18/1993 | Biloxi, MS | 1 month, 13 days | | Recognition of Flair as champion is dropped by the NWA in September 1993 after WCW withdraws from the NWA. Shane Douglas defeats 2 Cold Scorpio in the final of a tournament on 08/27/1994 in Philadelphia, PA to determine a new champion, but refuses the championship. Subsequent, ECW withdraws from the NWA and recognition of Douglas as champion is revoked. | | Chris Candido | 11/19/1994 | Cherry Hill, NJ | 3 months, 10 days | | Candido defeats Tracey Smothers in the final of a tournament to determine a new champion. | | Dan Severn | 02/24/1995 | Erlanger, KY | 4 years, 20 days | | Naoya Ogawa | 03/14/1999 | Yokohama, Japan | 6 months, 11 days | | Gary Steele | 09/25/1999 | Charlotte, NC | 7 days | | Steele defeats Ogawa and Brian Anthony in a three-way dance. | | Naoya Ogawa [2] | 10/02/1999 | Thomaston, CT | 9 months, 5 days | | Ogawa vacates the title on 07/02/2000. | | Mike Rapada | 09/19/2000 | Tampa, FL | 1 month, 25 days | | Rapada defeats Jerry Flynn in the final of a tournament to determine a new champion. | | Sabu | 11/14/2000 | Tampa, FL | 1 month, 8 days | | Mike Rapada [2] | 12/22/2000 | Nashville, TN | 4 months, 7 days | | Steve Corino | 04/24/2001 | Tampa, FL | 5 months, 19 days | | The title is held up following a match between Corino and Shinya Hashimoto on 10/13/2001 in St. Petersburg, FL when Corino is unable to continue due to injury. | | Shinya Hashimoto | 12/15/2001 | McKeesport, PA | 2 months, 29 days | | Hashimoto defeats Steve Corino and Gary Steele in a round-robin triangle match. | | Dan Severn [2] | 03/09/2002 | Tokyo, Japan | 2 months, 19 days | | Severn is stripped of the title on 05/28/2002 by unanimous vote of the NWA Board of Directors for not being able to schedule a title defense on 06/19/2002 in Huntsville, AL. | | Ken Shamrock | 06/19/2002 | Huntsville, AL | 1 month, 18 days | | Shamrock defeats Malice to win the vacant championship after the two are finalists in a battle royal. | | Ron Killings | 08/07/2002 | Nashville, TN | 3 months, 13 days | | Jeff Jarrett | 11/20/2002 | Nashville, TN | 6 months, 26 days | | A.J. Styles | 06/11/2003 | Nashville, TN | 4 months, 11 days | | Jeff Jarrett [2] | 10/22/2003 | Nashville, TN | 6 months, 4 days | | A.J. Styles [2] | 04/21/2004 | Nashville, TN | 28 days | | Ron Killings [2] | 05/19/2004 | Nashville, TN | 13 days | | Killings defeats Styles, Chris Harris and Raven in a four-way match. | | Jeff Jarrett [3] | 06/02/2004 | Nashville, TN | 11 months, 18 days | | A.J. Styles [3] | 05/15/2005 | Orlando, FL | 1 month, 4 days | | Raven | 06/19/2005 | Orlando, FL | 2 months, 26 days | | Raven defeats Styles, Monty Brown, Abyss and Sean Waltman in a "King Of The Mountain" match. | | Jeff Jarrett [4] | 09/15/2005 | Windsor, ON | 1 month, 8 days | | Rhino | 10/23/2005 | Orlando, FL | 2 days | | Jeff Jarrett [5] | 10/25/2005 | Orlando, FL | 3 months, 22 days | | Christian Cage | 02/12/2006 | Orlando, FL | 4 months, 6 days | | Jeff Jarrett [6] | 06/18/2006 | Orlando, FL | 4 months, 4 days | | Sting [2] | 10/22/2006 | Detroit, MI | 27 days | | Abyss | 11/19/2006 | Orlando, FL | 2 months | | Abyss defeats Sting by disqualification; due to TNA rules, the championship changes hands. | | Christian Cage [2] | 01/14/2007 | Orlando, FL | 3 months, 29 days | | Cage defeats Abyss and Sting in a three-way match. Cage is stripped of the title on 05/13/2007 when the NWA severs ties with TNA. | | Adam Pearce | 09/01/2007 | San Juan, Puerto Rico | 11 months, 6 days | | Pearce defeats Brent Albright in the finals of a sixteen-man tournament to crown a new champion. | | Brent Albright | 08/02/2008 | New York, NY | 26 days | |
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