NJPW World Television Championship | |||||||||
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The NJPW World Television Championship belt | |||||||||
Details | |||||||||
Promotion | New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) | ||||||||
Date established | October 10, 2022 | ||||||||
Current champion(s) | Zack Sabre Jr. | ||||||||
Date won | January 4, 2023[1] | ||||||||
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The NJPW World Television Championship (Japanese: NJPW WORLD認定TV王座, Hepburn: Nyū Japan Wārudo-nintei Tī Vī Ōza) is a professional wrestling championship owned by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion.[2][3] The current and inaugural champion is Zack Sabre Jr..
New Japan Pro-Wrestling president and CEO Takami Ohbari and TV Asahi representative Hiroyoki Mihira announced the creation of the title at Declaration of Power on October 10, 2022.[2] The championship is seen as a celebration of both the upcoming 50-year anniversary of the partnership between the two companies, as well as the continued growth of NJPW World, New Japan Pro-Wrestling's online streaming service. Ohbari also expressed encouragement for younger wrestlers on the roster to compete for the championship.[2][4]
All matches contested for the championship will be held with a 15-minute time limit.[2] Furthermore, due to its nature as a television championship, all championship matches (including all matches in the inaugural tournament) will be available for free through the NJPW World service, as well as through New Japan Pro-Wrestling's social media platforms.[2]
The first champion was determined in a sixteen-man single-elimination tournament, which began on October 14, 2022 at Battle Autumn (Night 1) and concluded on January 4, 2023 at Wrestle Kingdom 17.[5][6] In the event of a time limit draw during the tournament, the winner (and thus, person advancing) was decided by a coin toss.[5]
The inaugural and current champion is Zack Sabre Jr., who won by defeating Ren Narita at Wrestle Kingdom 17: Night 1.
First round Battle Autumn (Nights 1-3, 9) (October 14, 15, 16 & 26, 2022) | Second round Battle Autumn (Nights 10, 12) (October 27 & 30, 2022) | Semifinals Battle Autumn (Night 16) (November 5, 2022) | Final Wrestle Kingdom 17 (Night 1) (January 4, 2023) | ||||||||||||
David Finlay | Pin | ||||||||||||||
Yoshinobu Kanemaru | 11:52[7] | ||||||||||||||
David Finlay | 13:03[11] | ||||||||||||||
Zack Sabre Jr. | Pin | ||||||||||||||
Alex Zayne | 14:55[7] | ||||||||||||||
Zack Sabre Jr. | Sub | ||||||||||||||
Zack Sabre Jr. | Pin | ||||||||||||||
Evil | 4:48[13] | ||||||||||||||
Yoshi-Hashi | Pin | ||||||||||||||
Jeff Cobb | 12:14[8] | ||||||||||||||
Yoshi-Hashi | 9:48[11] | ||||||||||||||
Evil | Pin | ||||||||||||||
Aaron Henare | 10:55[8] | ||||||||||||||
Evil | Pin | ||||||||||||||
Zack Sabre Jr. | Sub | ||||||||||||||
Ren Narita | 10:32 | ||||||||||||||
Sanada | Pin | ||||||||||||||
Taichi | 14:57[9] | ||||||||||||||
Sanada | Pin | ||||||||||||||
Kenta | 13:05[12] | ||||||||||||||
Hirooki Goto | 9:32[9] | ||||||||||||||
Kenta | Pin | ||||||||||||||
Sanada | 14:31[13] | ||||||||||||||
Ren Narita | Pin | ||||||||||||||
Ren Narita | Pin | ||||||||||||||
Tomohiro Ishii | 14:33[10] | ||||||||||||||
Ren Narita | Pin | ||||||||||||||
Toru Yano | 8:47[12] | ||||||||||||||
Toru Yano | Pin | ||||||||||||||
Great-O-Khan | 11:20[10] |
As of June 4, 2023, there has been one reign, as Zack Sabre Jr. is the current reigning and inaugural champion. He won the title by defeating Ren Narita in the finals of an 16-man single-elimination tournament during the first night of Wrestle Kingdom 17, on January 4, 2023, in Tokyo, Japan.
No. | Overall reign number |
---|---|
Reign | Reign number for the specific champion |
Days | Number of days held |
Defenses | Number of successful defenses |
+ | Current reign is changing daily |
No. | Champion | Championship change | Reign statistics | Notes | Ref. | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Date | Event | Location | Reign | Days | Defenses | ||||
1 | Zack Sabre Jr. | January 4, 2023 | Wrestle Kingdom 17 Night 1 |
Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 151+ | 10 | Defeated Ren Narita in the finals of an 16-man single-elimination tournament to become the inaugural champion. | [2][1] |