The NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship is a world heavyweight championship owned and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). It is the promotion's premier title.
NWA currently recognizes 101 individual World Heavyweight Championship reigns.[1][2] The inaugural champion was Orville Brown. The longest reigning champion is Lou Thesz, who held the title from November 27, 1949 to March 15, 1956, for a total of 2,300 days (6 years, 3 months, and 16 days); Thesz also holds the record for longest combined reigns at 3,749 days. Shane Douglas is the shortest reign as champion for less than 1 day. Ric Flair holds the record for most reigns with 10. The youngest champion is Chris Candido who won the title at the age of 22, while the oldest champion is Tim Storm, who won it at the age of 51.
Tyrus is the current champion in his first reign. He defeated previous champion Trevor Murdoch and Matt Cardona in a three-way match at Hard Times 3 on November 12, 2022, in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Name | Years |
---|---|
NWA World Heavyweight Championship | July 14, 1948 – October 21, 2016 |
NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship | October 21, 2016 – present |
No. | Overall reign number |
---|---|
Reign | Reign number for the specific champion |
Days | Number of days held |
Days recog. | Number of days held recognized by the promotion |
N/A | Unknown information |
† | Championship change is unrecognized by the promotion |
<1 | Reign lasted less than a day |
No. | Champion | Championship change | Reign statistics | Notes | Ref. | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Date | Event | Location | Reign | Days | Days recog. | |||||
National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) | ||||||||||
1 | Orville Brown | July 14, 1948 | House show | Des Moines, IA | 1 | 501 | 501 | In July 1948, the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) was founded and Brown was recognized as the first official NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion. His reign length is calculated from the date he defeated Sonny Myers to first claim the world championship. | [a][3] | |
2 | Lou Thesz | November 27, 1949 | N/A | N/A | 1 | 2,300 | 2,300 | Awarded when Orville Brown suffered career-ending injuries in an automobile accident on November 1, 1949. Thesz had earlier won the National Wrestling Association's World Heavyweight Championship on July 20, 1948 from Wild Bill Longson. Thesz became the undisputed champion of all of wrestling by winning the Los Angeles Olympic Auditorium World Heavyweight Championship, the remaining major world championship at the time other than the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship, defeating Baron Michele Leone on May 21, 1952. The first design of the championship belt would become known as the "Lou Thesz Belt" because of Thesz's long reign. | [b] | |
† | Leo Nomellini | March 22, 1955 | House show | San Francisco, CA | 1 | 115 | — | Nomellini defeated Lou Thesz by countout in the second fall and disqualification in the third fall. California Athletic Commission recognized the title change by disqualification, but both wrestlers continued to claim the title. | ||
† | Lou Thesz | July 15, 1955 | House show | St. Louis, MO | 2 | 244 | — | Thesz defeated Leo Nomellini in a rematch. | ||
3 | Whipper Billy Watson | March 15, 1956 | House show | Toronto, ON | 1 | 239 | 239 | Watson won the match and the championship by count out. | [c] | |
4 | Lou Thesz | November 9, 1956 | House show | St. Louis, MO | 2(3) | 217 | 370 | Thesz won the match and the championship by count out. | [d] | |
† | Édouard Carpentier | June 14, 1957 | House show | Chicago, IL | 1 | 40 | — | Carpentier was awarded the title when Lou Thesz could not continue the match due to a back injury. In some territories, Thesz continued to be recognized as NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion, while in others Carpentier was billed as the champion. | [e] | |
† | Lou Thesz | July 24, 1957 | House show | Montreal, Quebec | 4 | 113 | — | Thesz won a rematch against Édouard Carpentier by disqualification. The NWA initially continued to recognize Carpentier as the champion, but voided any recognition of Carpentier as champion when he withdrew the claim for the title when Montreal promoter Eddie Quinn quit the NWA in August 1958. Some territories such as Boston (AAC), Nebraska and Los Angeles (NAWA/WWA) continued to recognize Carpentier as NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion. The AAC recognized Killer Kowalski as world champion when he defeated Carpentier in Boston. Nebraska later recognized Verne Gagne as world champion when he defeated Carpentier in Omaha. The NAWA/WWA recognized Freddie Blassie as world champion when he defeated Carpentier in 1961. | [f] | |
5 | Dick Hutton | November 14, 1957 | House show | Toronto, ON | 1 | 421 | 421 | [g] | ||
6 | Pat O'Connor | January 9, 1959 | House show | St. Louis, MO | 1 | 903 | 903 | The "Crown Belt" version of the championship debuted in 1959. | [h] | |
7 | Buddy Rogers | June 30, 1961 | House show | Chicago, IL | 1 | 145 | 573 | |||
† | Killer Kowalski | November 22, 1961 | House show | Montreal, Quebec | 1 | 425 | — | Kowalski defeated Buddy Rogers on November 21 after Rogers broke his ankle in the first fall. He was only recognized as champion in some states such as Texas until January 21, 1963 when he lost a rematch to Rogers in New York City. | ||
† | Bruno Sammartino | August 2, 1962 | House show | Toronto, ON | 1 | <1 | — | On August 2, 1962, Bruno Sammartino defeated Buddy Rogers in Toronto, but refused to accept the title because Rogers had wrestled with an injury. The NWA considers Rogers' reign to last until Thesz. | [4] | |
† | Bobo Brazil | August 18, 1962 | House show | Newark, NJ | 1 | 73 | — | Brazil refused the title because of a groin injury that Buddy Rogers had claimed to have. However, on September 6, 1962, Brazil was declared champion because a doctor had determined that Rogers had not suffered an injury. This title change was not recognized by the NWA. | ||
† | Buddy Rogers | October 30, 1962 (defeat of Brazil) |
House show | Toledo, OH | 2 | 86 | — | Rogers was widely, though not universally, considered champion again after his wins over Bobo Brazil and Kowalski. Killer Kowalski disputed that Rogers had won the title, arguing that the match had not been for the title. As the NWA had recognized none of Rogers's losses, no second title reign was counted for Rogers. | ||
† | Buddy Rogers | January 21, 1963 (defeat of Kowalski) |
House show | New York City, NY | 2 | 3 | — | |||
8 | Lou Thesz | January 24, 1963 | House show | Toronto, ON | 3(5) | 1,079 | 1,079 | [i] | ||
† | Buddy Rogers | January 24, 1963 | — | — | — | 77 | — | Promoters in the northeast United States refused to recognize Buddy Rogers' one-fall loss to Thesz, thus breaking away from the NWA to form the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF). Rogers continued to defend the championship in WWWF until he was declared the first WWWF World Heavyweight Champion on April 11. | ||
9 | Gene Kiniski | January 7, 1966 | House show | St. Louis, MO | 1 | 1,131 | 1,131 | [j] | ||
10 | Dory Funk Jr. | February 11, 1969 | House show | Tampa, FL | 1 | 1,563 | 1,563 | [5] | ||
11 | Harley Race | May 24, 1973 | House show | Kansas City, KS | 1 | 57 | 57 | The "Ten Pounds of Gold" version of the championship belt debuted on July 20, 1973, having been first presented to Harley Race by then-NWA President Sam Muchnick. | [6] | |
12 | Jack Brisco | July 20, 1973 | House show | Houston, TX | 1 | 500 | 500 | [7] | ||
13 | Giant Baba | December 2, 1974 | House show | Kagoshima, Japan | 1 | 7 | 7 | This was a two-out-of-three-falls match. | [8] | |
14 | Jack Brisco | December 9, 1974 | House show | Toyohashi, Japan | 2 | 366 | 366 | |||
15 | Terry Funk | December 10, 1975 | House show | Miami Beach, FL | 1 | 424 | 424 | |||
16 | Harley Race | February 6, 1977 | House show | Toronto, ON | 2 | 926 | 926 | |||
17 | Dusty Rhodes | August 21, 1979 | House show | Tampa, FL | 1 | 5 | 5 | |||
18 | Harley Race | August 26, 1979 | House show | Orlando, FL | 3 | 66 | 66 | |||
19 | Giant Baba | October 31, 1979 | House show | Nagoya, Japan | 2 | 7 | 7 | |||
20 | Harley Race | November 7, 1979 | House show | Amagasaki, Japan | 4 | 302 | 302 | |||
21 | Giant Baba | September 4, 1980 | House show | Saga, Japan | 3 | 5 | 5 | |||
22 | Harley Race | September 9, 1980 | House show | Ōtsu, Japan | 5 | 230 | 230 | |||
23 | Tommy Rich | April 27, 1981 | House show | Augusta, GA | 1 | 4 | 4 | |||
24 | Harley Race | May 1, 1981 | House show | Gainesville, GA | 6 | 51 | 51 | |||
25 | Dusty Rhodes | June 21, 1981 | House show | Atlanta, GA | 2 | 88 | 88 | |||
26 | Ric Flair | September 17, 1981 | House show | Kansas City, KS | 1 | 145 | 631 | Former champion Lou Thesz was the special referee. | ||
† | The Midnight Rider | February 9, 1982 | House show | Miami, FL | 3 | <1 | — | On February 9, 1982 in Miami, The Midnight Rider (Dusty Rhodes under a mask due to being under suspension in Florida) defeated Flair for the title, but he returned it when NWA President Bob Geigel asked Rider to unmask or return the championship belt as NWA rules then forbade masked wrestlers from holding it. | [9] | |
† | Ric Flair | February 9, 1982 | House show | Miami, FL | 2 | 150 | — | The championship returned to Flair. This is considered a continuation of Flair's previous reign. | ||
† | Jack Veneno | September 7, 1982 | House show | Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic | 1 | <1 | — | Jack Veneno defeated Ric Flair in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. As Veneno refused to defend the title outside his native country, the title was returned to Flair on the same day. | [k] | |
† | Ric Flair | September 7, 1982 | House show | Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic | 3 | 121 | — | The title returned to Flair later on due to the nature of the championship match. This is considered a continuation of Flair's previous reign. | [k] | |
† | Carlos Colón | January 6, 1983 | House show | San Juan, Puerto Rico | 1 | 4 | — | This title change is not recognized by the NWA. Colon's WWC World Heavyweight Championship was also on the line. | [l] | |
† | Ric Flair | January 10, 1983 | House show | Miami, FL | 4 | 29 | — | This was a fictional match. This title change is not recognized by the NWA. | ||
† | Victor Jovica | February 8, 1983 | House show | Couva, Trinidad | 1 | 3 | — | This title change is not recognized by the NWA. Victor Jovica defeated Ric Flair on February 8, 1983 in Couva, Trinidad, but the decision was reversed three days later because Jovica's feet were on the rope during the pin. | [m][n] | |
† | Ric Flair | February 11, 1983 | House show | Couva, Trinidad | 5 | 119 | — | The championship returned to Flair three days later. This is considered a continuation of Flair's previous reign. | ||
27 | Harley Race | June 10, 1983 | House show | St. Louis, MO | 7 | 167 | 167 | |||
28 | Ric Flair | November 24, 1983 | Starrcade | Greensboro, NC | 2(6) | 117 | 117 | This was a steel cage match. Former champion Gene Kiniski was the special referee. | ||
29 | Harley Race | March 20, 1984 | House show | Wellington, New Zealand | 8 | 3 | 3 | This title change was recognized by World Championship Wrestling (WCW) since 1998, and also by the NWA at least since 2015. | [10][11][12][13][14][2] | |
30 | Ric Flair | March 23, 1984 | House show | Kallang, Singapore | 3(7) | 44 | 44 | This title change was recognized by World Championship Wrestling (WCW) since 1998, and also by the NWA at least since 2015. | [10][11][12][14][2] | |
31 | Kerry Von Erich | May 6, 1984 | 1st Von Erich Memorial Parade of Champions | Irving, TX | 1 | 18 | 18 | This match had no time limit and the title could change hands on a disqualification. Kerry pinned Flair to win the title. | ||
Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP) | ||||||||||
32 | Ric Flair | May 24, 1984 | House show | Yokosuka, Japan | 4(8) | 793 | 793 | By early 1985, Jim Crockett Promotions controlled many National Wrestling Alliance territories and attempted going national, thus limiting championship matches to performers under contract with JCP. The "Big Gold Belt" version of the championship belt debuted on February 14, 1986. | [6] | |
33 | Dusty Rhodes | July 26, 1986 | The Great American Bash | Greensboro, NC | 3(4) | 14 | 14 | |||
34 | Ric Flair | August 9, 1986 | House show | St. Louis, MO | 5(9) | 412 | 412 | |||
35 | Ron Garvin | September 25, 1987 | NWA World Wide Wrestling | Detroit, MI | 1 | 62 | 62 | |||
World Championship Wrestling (WCW) | ||||||||||
36 | Ric Flair | November 26, 1987 | Starrcade | Chicago, IL | 6(10) | 452 | 452 | On November 21, 1988 the National Wrestling Alliance's flagship promotion Jim Crockett Promotions was purchased by Ted Turner and renamed World Championship Wrestling (WCW). | ||
37 | Ricky Steamboat | February 20, 1989 | Chi-Town Rumble | Chicago, IL | 1 | 76 | 76 | |||
38 | Ric Flair | May 7, 1989 | WrestleWar | Nashville, TN | 7(11) | 426 | 426 | |||
39 | Sting | July 7, 1990 | The Great American Bash | Baltimore, MD | 1 | 188 | 188 | |||
40 | Ric Flair | January 11, 1991 | House show | East Rutherford, NJ | 8(12) | 69 | 69 | After this title win, Ric Flair was recognized as the first WCW World Heavyweight Champion.[15] | ||
41 | Tatsumi Fujinami | March 21, 1991 | Starrcade in Tokyo Dome | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 59 | 59 | Briefly defended along with the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. | [11][16][17] | |
42 | Ric Flair | May 19, 1991 | SuperBrawl I | St. Petersburg, FL | 9(13) | 112 | 112 | This title change was originally ignored in the United States, presenting Flair's reign as one continuous reign. This title change was briefly recognized by WCW. | [11] | |
— | Vacated | September 8, 1991 | — | — | — | — | — | Ric Flair was stripped of the NWA title upon signing with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). | [11] | |
43 | Masahiro Chono | August 12, 1992 | G1 Climax 1992 – Day 5 | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 145 | 145 | Chono defeated Rick Rude in the final of the G1 Climax tournament. | ||
44 | The Great Muta | January 4, 1993 | Fantastic Story in Tokyo Dome | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 48 | 48 | Muta's IWGP Heavyweight Championship was also on the line. | ||
45 | Barry Windham | February 21, 1993 | SuperBrawl III | Asheville, NC | 1 | 147 | 147 | [18] | ||
46 | Ric Flair | July 18, 1993 | Beach Blast | Biloxi, MS | 10(14) | 59 | 59 | [19][20] | ||
— | Vacated | September 15, 1993 | — | — | — | — | — | WCW withdrew from the NWA on September 1, 1993 but the NWA continued to recognize Ric Flair as NWA Champion and tried to reach a deal with WCW for the title to be dropped to a wrestler of NWA's choosing before the end of the year. By September 15, communications broke down and the NWA attempted to obtain a temporary restraining order against WCW to stop them from advertising the scheduled Rick Rude vs. Ric Flair match at Fall Brawl as a world title match and have the belt returned to them. Though WCW managed to keep the belt, they dropped any mentions of the NWA name from that point forward and the title was vacated by the NWA while WCW continued to recognize Flair as their WCW International World Heavyweight Champion. | [21][22] | |
National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) | ||||||||||
47 | Shane Douglas | August 27, 1994 | NWA World Title Tournament | Philadelphia, PA | 1 | <1 | <1 | The "Ten Pounds of Gold" version of the championship belt returned on August 27, 1994. Shane Douglas defeated 2 Cold Scorpio in tournament final. | [23] | |
— | Vacated | August 27, 1994 | NWA World Title Tournament | Philadelphia, PA | — | — | — | Shane Douglas threw the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship belt down immediately after winning it and declared that he did not want to be the organization's champion; Douglas then declared the NWA-ECW Heavyweight Championship, of which he was already in possession, to be a world championship. Eastern Championship Wrestling then withdraws from the NWA and becomes Extreme Championship Wrestling. | [23] | |
48 | Chris Candido | November 19, 1994 | NWA World Heavyweight Title Tournament | Cherry Hill, NJ | 1 | 97 | 97 | Candido defeated Tracy Smothers in tournament final. | [o] | |
49 | Dan Severn | February 24, 1995 | House show | Erlanger, KY | 1 | 1,479 | 1,479 | Severn had a customized NWA championship belt during this reign. | [24][25] | |
50 | Naoya Ogawa | March 14, 1999 | House show | Yokohama, Japan | 1 | 195 | 195 | |||
51 | Gary Steele | September 25, 1999 | NWA 51st Anniversary Show | Charlotte, NC | 1 | 7 | 7 | Gary Steele pinned Ogawa in a three-way match, also involving Brian Anthony. | ||
52 | Naoya Ogawa | October 2, 1999 | House show | Thomaston, CT | 2 | 274 | 274 | |||
— | Vacated | July 2, 2000 | — | — | — | — | — | Naoya Ogawa vacated the championship. | ||
53 | Mike Rapada | September 19, 2000 | House show | Tampa, FL | 1 | 56 | 56 | Rapada defeated Jerry Flynn in tournament final. | ||
54 | Sabu | November 14, 2000 | House show | Tampa, FL | 1 | 38 | 38 | |||
55 | Mike Rapada | December 22, 2000 | House show | Nashville, TN | 2 | 123 | 123 | |||
56 | Steve Corino | April 24, 2001 | House show | Tampa, FL | 1 | 172 | 172 | |||
— | Vacated | October 13, 2001 | NWA 53rd Anniversary Show | St. Petersburg, FL | — | — | — | The championship was held up when Steve Corino lost a title match against Shinya Hashimoto when he became unable to compete due to head injury sustained in the match. | ||
57 | Shinya Hashimoto | December 15, 2001 | Clash of the Champions | McKeesport, PA | 1 | 84 | 84 | This was three matches round robin style; Gary Steele vs. Steve Corino, Gary Steele vs. Shinya Hashimoto, and Steve Corino vs. Shinya Hashimoto. Hashimoto won. | [26] | |
58 | Dan Severn | March 9, 2002 | Vast Energy | Tokyo, Japan | 2 | 80 | 80 | Match ended in controversy, as the referee gave a fast count. | [26] | |
— | Vacated | May 28, 2002 | — | — | — | — | — | Dan Severn was stripped of the title after "refusing to make a defense" of the championship on the inaugural NWA: Total Nonstop Action (NWA:TNA) PPV. | ||
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) | ||||||||||
59 | Ken Shamrock | June 19, 2002 | NWA-TNA Weekly pay-per-view event #1 | Huntsville, AL | 1 | 49 | 49 | In June 2002, Jeff and Jerry Jarrett formed NWA: Total Nonstop Action (NWA:TNA) and worked out a licensing deal with NWA to control and feature the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship and the NWA World Tag Team Championship as their championships. Ken Shamrock defeated Malice to win the title. | ||
60 | Ron Killings | August 7, 2002 | NWA-TNA Weekly pay-per-view event #8 | Nashville, TN | 1 | 105 | 105 | |||
61 | Jeff Jarrett | November 20, 2002 | NWA-TNA Weekly pay-per-view event #22 | Nashville, TN | 1 | 203 | 203 | Jeff Jarrett unified the title with the WWA World Heavyweight Championship. | [27][28] | |
62 | A.J. Styles | June 11, 2003 | NWA-TNA Weekly pay-per-view event #49 | Nashville, TN | 1 | 133 | 133 | This was a three-way match, also involving Raven. | ||
63 | Jeff Jarrett | October 22, 2003 | NWA-TNA Weekly pay-per-view event #68 | Nashville, TN | 2 | 182 | 182 | |||
64 | A.J. Styles | April 21, 2004 | NWA-TNA Weekly pay-per-view event #94 | Nashville, TN | 2 | 28 | 28 | This was a steel cage match. | ||
65 | Ron Killings | May 19, 2004 | NWA-TNA Weekly pay-per-view event #98 | Nashville, TN | 2 | 14 | 14 | This was a four-way match, also involving Chris Harris and Raven. | ||
66 | Jeff Jarrett | June 2, 2004 | NWA-TNA Weekly pay-per-view event #100 | Nashville, TN | 3 | 305 | 305 | This was a King of the Mountain match, also involving A.J. Styles, Chris Harris and Raven. Ron Killings defeated Jarrett on the June 23 NWA-TNA Weekly PPV for the title, but due to issues surrounding the title change, the title was held up, before Vince Russo gave Jarrett the title back.[29] | ||
67 | Ray González | April 3, 2005 | Juicio Final 2005 | San Juan, Puerto Rico | 1 | <1 | <1 | González was stripped of the title later in the evening due to the fall having been counted by the wrong referee. This reign was initially ignored by the NWA and TNA, with Jarrett continuing to be recognized as champion. González was retroactively recognized by the NWA beginning February 16, 2015. | [30] | |
† | Jeff Jarrett | April 3, 2005 | Juicio Final 2005 | San Juan, Puerto Rico | 4 | 42 | — | The title returned to Jarrett later on due to the nature of the championship match. This is considered a continuation of Jarrett's previous reign. | ||
68 | A.J. Styles | May 15, 2005 | Hard Justice | Orlando, FL | 3 | 35 | 35 | Styles defeated Jeff Jarrett for the championship. Tito Ortiz was the special guest referee. | [31] | |
69 | Raven | June 19, 2005 | Slammiversary | Orlando, FL | 1 | 88 | 88 | This was a King of the Mountain match, also involving Abyss, Monty Brown, and Sean Waltman. | [32] | |
70 | Jeff Jarrett | September 15, 2005 | International Incident | Windsor, ON | 4(5) | 38 | 38 | [33] | ||
71 | Rhino | October 23, 2005 | Bound for Glory | Orlando, FL | 1 | 2 | 2 | Rhino won the right to face Jeff Jarrett in a Gauntlet for the Gold match after designated challenger Kevin Nash fell ill and withdrew. | [34] | |
72 | Jeff Jarrett | October 25, 2005 | Impact! | Orlando, FL | 5(6) | 110 | 110 | Aired November 3, 2005 on tape delay. | ||
73 | Christian Cage | February 12, 2006 | Against All Odds | Orlando, FL | 1 | 126 | 126 | [35] | ||
74 | Jeff Jarrett | June 18, 2006 | Slammiversary | Orlando, FL | 6(7) | 126 | 126 | This was a King of the Mountain match, also involving Abyss, Ron Killings, and Sting. | [36] | |
75 | Sting | October 22, 2006 | Bound for Glory | Plymouth, MI | 2 | 28 | 28 | Kurt Angle was the special outside enforcer. This was a Title vs. Career match where Sting put his career on the line. | [37] | |
76 | Abyss | November 19, 2006 | Genesis | Orlando, FL | 1 | 56 | 56 | Abyss defeated Sting by disqualification after Sting pushed the official. | [38] | |
77 | Christian Cage | January 14, 2007 | Final Resolution | Orlando, FL | 2 | 119 | 119 | This was a three-way elimination match, also involving Sting. | [39] | |
— | Vacated | May 13, 2007 | — | — | — | — | — | Christian Cage was stripped of the championship when the NWA ended its business agreement with TNA. | ||
† | Kurt Angle | May 13, 2007 | Sacrifice | Orlando, FL | 1 | <1 | — | TNA didn't initially recognize the vacancy and had Angle defeat champion Christian Cage and Sting in a three-way match to win the championship. Angle was declared the first TNA World Heavyweight Champion because of his victory and the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship ceased being used by TNA. | [40] | |
National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) | ||||||||||
78 | Adam Pearce | September 1, 2007 | House show | Bayamón, Puerto Rico | 1 | 336 | 336 | Pearce defeated Brent Albright in the finals of the Reclaiming the Glory tournament. Pearce competed as a substitute for Bryan Danielson, who defeated Pearce in the semifinals but withdrew from the tournament due to a detached retina. Danielson was the special referee. | [41] | |
79 | Brent Albright | August 2, 2008 | Death Before Dishonor VI | New York City, NY | 1 | 49 | 49 | [42] | ||
80 | Adam Pearce | September 20, 2008 | Glory By Honor VII | Philadelphia, PA | 2 | 35 | 35 | [43][44] | ||
81 | Blue Demon Jr. | October 25, 2008 | House show | Mexico City, Mexico | 1 | 505 | 505 | [45] | ||
82 | Adam Pearce | March 14, 2010 | House show | Charlotte, NC | 3 | 357 | 357 | This was a three-way elimination match, also featuring Phill Shatter. | [46] | |
83 | Colt Cabana | March 6, 2011 | NWA Championship Wrestling from Hollywood | West Hollywood, CA | 1 | 48 | 48 | [47] | ||
84 | The Sheik | April 23, 2011 | Subtle Hustle | Jacksonville, FL | 1 | 79 | 79 | [48] | ||
— | Vacated | July 11, 2011 | — | — | — | — | — | The Sheik was stripped of the championship for refusing to defend against Adam Pearce on July 31, 2011. | [49] | |
85 | Adam Pearce | July 31, 2011 | NWA at the Ohio State Fair | Columbus, OH | 4 | 252 | 252 | Pearce defeated Chance Prophet, Jimmy Rave and Shaun Tempers in a four-way match to win the vacant championship. | [50] | |
86 | Colt Cabana | April 8, 2012 | NWA Championship Wrestling from Hollywood | Glendale, CA | 2 | 104 | 104 | [51] | ||
National Wrestling Alliance/International Wrestling Corp. | ||||||||||
87 | Adam Pearce | July 21, 2012 | Metro Pro Wrestling | Kansas City, KS | 5 | 98 | 98 | This was a two-out-of-three falls match. It was match four of a seven-match series between Cabana and Pearce. On August 30, 2012, a court settlement transferred NWA ownership to International Wrestling Corp. NWA no longer had memberships but instead began licensing the NWA brand to wrestling promotions. | [52] | |
— | Vacated | October 27, 2012 | NWA Warzone Wrestling 14 | Berwick, Victoria, Australia | — | — | — | Adam Pearce left the NWA and resigned as champion after the organization refused to allow him to defend the title in the concluding match of the best-of-seven series against Cabana. The match did take place with Cabana winning, but both wrestlers refused the title in the aftermath. | [53] | |
88 | Kahagas | November 2, 2012 | Wrath of Champions | Clayton, NJ | 1 | 134 | 134 | Kahagas won an elimination match for the vacant title by last eliminating Damien Wayne. Match also featured Chance Prophet, Jason Kincaid, Lance Erikson, Anthony Nese, Papadon, Biggie Biggs, and Lance Anoa'i. Kahagas was the reigning NWA National Heavyweight Champion at the time of his victory. | [54] | |
89 | Rob Conway | March 16, 2013 | A Monster's Ball | San Antonio, TX | 1 | 294 | 294 | Conway replaced an injured Jax Dane and defeated Kahagas for the championship. | [55] | |
90 | Satoshi Kojima | January 4, 2014 | Wrestle Kingdom 8 in Tokyo Dome | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 149 | 149 | [56] | ||
91 | Rob Conway | June 2, 2014 | Cauliflower Alley Club Reunion Show | Las Vegas, NV | 2 | 257 | 257 | [57] | ||
92 | Hiroyoshi Tenzan | February 14, 2015 | The New Beginning in Sendai | Sendai, Japan | 1 | 196 | 196 | [58] | ||
93 | Jax Dane | August 29, 2015 | World War Gold | San Antonio, TX | 1 | 419 | 419 | |||
National Wrestling Alliance/Lightning One Inc. | ||||||||||
94 | Tim Storm | October 21, 2016 | House show | Sherman, TX | 1 | 414 | 414 | On October 1, 2017, Billy Corgan's company Lightning One, Inc. purchased the National Wrestling Alliance and gradually transformed it into a singular wrestling promotion. | [59][60] | |
95 | Nick Aldis | December 9, 2017 | Cage of Death 19 | Sewell, NJ | 1 | 266 | 266 | [61] | ||
96 | Cody | September 1, 2018 | All In | Hoffman Estates, IL | 1 | 50 | 50 | [62] | ||
97 | Nick Aldis | October 21, 2018 | NWA 70th Anniversary Show | Nashville, TN | 2 | 1,043 | 1,043 | This was a two-out-of-three falls match. | [63] | |
98 | Trevor Murdoch | August 29, 2021 | NWA 73rd Anniversary Show | St. Louis, MO | 1 | 167 | 167 | This was a title vs. career match. | [64] | |
99 | Matt Cardona | February 12, 2022 | PowerrrTrip | Oak Grove, KY | 1 | 119 | 119 | Aired on tape delay on the March 8, 2022 episode of NWA Powerrr. | [65] | |
— | Vacated | June 11, 2022 | Alwayz Ready | Knoxville, TN | — | — | — | Cardona vacated the title due to an injury. | ||
100 | Trevor Murdoch | June 11, 2022 | Alwayz Ready | Knoxville, TN | 2 | 154 | 154 | Defeated Nick Aldis, Thom Latimer, and Sam Shaw in a fatal four-way match for the vacant title. | [66] | |
101 | Tyrus | November 12, 2022 | Hard Times 3 | Chalmette, LA | 1 | 84+ | 84+ | This was a three-way match, also involving Matt Cardona. | [67] |
† | Indicates the current champion |
---|---|
<1 | The reign is shorter than one day. |