WWA World Heavyweight Championship (Los Angeles)

WWA World Heavyweight Championship
Details
PromotionWorldwide Wrestling Associates
Date establishedJune 14, 1957
Date retiredDecember 18, 1968
Other name(s)
World Heavyweight Championship
Statistics
First champion(s)Édouard Carpentier
Most reignsFreddie Blassie (four)
Longest reignÉdouard Carpentier (1,459 days)
Shortest reignFreddie Blassie (two days)

The WWA World Heavyweight Championship, also known simply as the World Heavyweight Championship, was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the Los Angeles, California-based Worldwide Wrestling Associates (WWA).[1] The title was established as an offshoot of the NWA World Heavyweight Championship when Édouard Carpentier became recognized as world champion in Los Angeles, when the promotion was then known as the North American Wrestling Alliance. The championship was renamed with the promotion in 1961, and was abandoned in 1968 after WWA joined the NWA and was renamed NWA Hollywood Wrestling.

There were multiple world titles contested in Indianapolis' World Wrestling Association,[2][3] the World Wrestling Association in Mexico [4] and in the World Wrestling Association of Korea,[5][6] which are all omonime promotions of the original WWA and which all consider themselves to be the true WWA or its true heir.

Title history

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Key
No. Overall reign number
Reign Reign number for the specific champion
Days Number of days held
No. Champion Championship change Reign statistics Notes Ref.
Date Event Location Reign Days
1 Édouard Carpentier June 14, 1957 WWA show Chicago, Illinois 1 1,459 Defeated Lou Thesz by disqualification to become the National Wrestling Alliance world champion. He lost the NWA title by disqualification to Thesz on July 24, 1957. Some NWA territories (which then became Worldwide Wrestling Associates) didn't recognize the title change and thus the WWA World title was born.
2 Freddie Blassie June 12, 1961 WWA show Los Angeles, California 1 289 He won the title when Carpentier was declared unable to continue in third fall.
3 Rikidōzan March 28, 1962 WWA show Los Angeles, California 1 119
4 Freddie Blassie July 25, 1962 WWA show Los Angeles, California 2 2
5 The Destroyer July 27, 1962 WWA show San Diego, California 1 287
6 Freddie Blassie May 10, 1963 WWA show Los Angeles, California 3 105
7 Bearcat Wright August 23, 1963 WWA show Los Angeles, California 1 115 Wins by countout. First black wrestler to hold a world title in professional wrestling.
8 Édouard Carpentier December 16, 1963 WWA show Indio, California 2 45 Wins by forfeit when Wright no-shows a scheduled defense.
9 Freddie Blassie January 30, 1964 WWA show Los Angeles, California 4 83
10 Dick the Bruiser April 22, 1964 WWA show Los Angeles, California 1 91
11 The Destroyer July 22, 1964 WWA show Los Angeles, California 2 50 Dick the Bruiser didn't acknowledge his defeat against The Destroyer, claiming to be the true WWA champion and starting World Wrestling Association (Indianapolis) as the first WWA World Heavyweight Championship (Indianapolis) holder.
12 Bob Ellis September 10, 1964 WWA show Los Angeles, California 1 64
13 The Destroyer November 13, 1964 WWA show San Diego, California 3 119
† Toyonobori December 12, 1964 JWA show Tokyo, Japan 1 Toyonobori defeated The Destroyer in a JWA card, but the title change was not recognized by WWA. However Toyonobori was recognized as the legitimate champion in the JWA. To put an end to the controversy Luke Graham, the champion recognized by WWA, defeated Toyonobori, the champion recognized by the JWA, on September 20, 1965, in Los Angeles (below).
14 Pedro Morales March 12, 1965 WWA show Los Angeles, California 1 133 Defeats The Destroyer
15 Luke Graham July 23, 1965 WWA show Los Angeles, California 1 86 Recognized as legitimate champion by WWA, defeated Toyonobori, recognized by the Japanese Wrestling Association as the true champion, on September 20, 1965, in Los Angeles to put an end to the controversy on the legitimate title holder.
16 Pedro Morales October 17, 1965 WWA show Los Angeles, California 2 292
17 Buddy Austin August 5, 1966 WWA show Los Angeles, California 1 28
18 Bobo Brazil September 2, 1966 WWA show Los Angeles, California 1 14
19 Buddy Austin September 16, 1966 WWA show Los Angeles, California 2 28
20 Lou Thesz October 14, 1966 WWA show Los Angeles, California 1 14
21 Mark Lewin October 28, 1966 WWA show Los Angeles, California 1 193
22 Kim Il May 9, 1967 WWA show Seoul, South Korea 1 66
23 Mike DiBiase July 14, 1967 WWA show Los Angeles, California 1 42
24 Buddy Austin August 25, 1967 WWA show Los Angeles, California 3 140
25 Bobo Brazil January 12, 1968 WWA show Los Angeles, California 2 341 On October 1, 1968, WWA joined the National Wrestling Alliance. To determine the unified world champion Gene Kiniski, the NWA world champion, wrestled Brazil to a draw on December 18, 1968, in Los Angeles. Kiniski was therefore recognized the true champion and the WWA World title was merge with the NWA World title.
— Deactivated December 18, 1968 WWA show — — —

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "WWA World Heavyweight Title (California)". Wrestling-Titles.com.
  2. ^ "WWA World Heavyweight Title (Indiana)". Wrestling-Titles.com.
  3. ^ "Home". Archived from the original on November 28, 2009. Retrieved February 7, 2010.
  4. ^ "WWA World Heavyweight Title (Mexico)". Wrestling-Titles.com.
  5. ^ "WWA World Heavyweight Title (S. Korea)". Wrestling-Titles.com.
  6. ^ "Untitled Document". Archived from the original on 2011-07-18. Retrieved 2023-09-16.
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