UWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship
| UWA Junior Heavyweight Championship | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Details | |||||||||||
| Promotion |
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| Date established | 1982 | ||||||||||
| Current champion(s) | The Wolf | ||||||||||
| Date won | April 14, 2024 | ||||||||||
| Other name(s) | |||||||||||
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The UWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship (Japanese: UWA世界ジュニアヘビー級王座, Hepburn: UWA Sekai Junia Hebī-kyū Ōza) is a title that was originally promoted by the Mexican lucha libre promotion Universal Wrestling Association.[1] After the UWA closed in 1995 the title was defended on the Mexican independent circuit and in the Puerto Rican promotion World Wrestling Council. In 2014, the title was revived by Japanese promotion Tenryu Project.[2] In 2016, the title moved to the Pro Wrestling Freedoms promotion. The weight range for this championship was 97 kg (214 lb) to 107 kg (236 lb).[3]
As it is a professional wrestling championship, the championship is not won not by actual competition, but by a scripted ending to a match determined by the bookers and match makers.[a] On occasion the promotion declares a championship vacant, which means there is no champion at that point in time. This can either be due to a storyline,[b] or real life issues such as a champion suffering an injury being unable to defend the championship,[c] or leaving the company.[d]
There have been a total of 47 reigns and five vacancies shared between 31 different champions. The title is currently held by The Wolf.
Title history
[edit]| No. | Overall reign number |
|---|---|
| Reign | Reign number for the specific champion |
| Days | Number of days held |
| N/A | Unknown information |
| (NLT) | Championship change took place "no later than" the date listed |
| † | Championship change is unrecognized by the promotion |
| + | Current reign is changing daily |
| No. | Champion | Championship change | Reign statistics | Notes | Ref. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Event | Location | Reign | Days | ||||||
| Universal Wrestling Association | ||||||||||
| 1 | El Solitario | 1982 (NLT) | N/A | N/A | 1 | [e] | [f] | |||
| Championship history is unrecorded from 1982 to 1983. | ||||||||||
| 2 | Enrique Vera | 1983 (NLT) | N/A | N/A | 1 | [e] | [f] | |||
| Championship history is unrecorded from 1983 to August 14, 1988. | ||||||||||
| 3 | The Killer | August 14, 1988 | Live event | Mexico City, Distrito Federal | 1 | 31 | [f] | |||
| 4 | Enrique Vera | September 14, 1988 | Live event | Mexico City, Distrito Federal | 2 | 312 | [f] | |||
| 5 | The Killer | July 23, 1989 | Live event | Mexico City, Distrito Federal | 2 | 217 | [f] | |||
| 6 | Astro de Oro | February 25, 1990 | Live event | Guatemala | 1 | 84 | [f] | |||
| 7 | Dr. Wagner Jr. | May 20, 1990 | Live event | Guatemala | 1 | 56 | [f] | |||
| 8 | Astro de Oro | July 15, 1990 | Live event | Mexico City, Distrito Federal | 2 | 7 | [f] | |||
| 9 | Dr. Wagner Jr. | July 22, 1990 | Live event | Naucalpan, Mexico | 2 | 218 | [f] | |||
| 10 | Enrique Vera | February 25, 1991 | Live event | Puebla, Mexico | 3 | 349 | [f] | |||
| 11 | The Killer | February 9, 1992 | Live event | Naucalpan, Mexico | 3 | 133 | [f] | |||
| 12 | Villano III | June 21, 1992 | Live event | Naucalpan, Mexico | 1 | 47 | [f] | |||
| 13 | Shu El Guerrero | August 7, 1992 | Live event | Nezahualcóyotl, Mexico | 1 | 507 | [f] | |||
| 14 | Negro Navarro | December 27, 1993 | Live event | Puebla, Mexico | 1 | [g] | [f] | |||
| — | Vacated | 1995 (NLT) | — | — | — | — | Title vacated when Navarro left the promotion to join PROMELL. | [f] | ||
| 15 | Mr. Jack | June 30, 1995 | Live event | Nezahualcóyotl, Mexico | 1 | [e] | [f] | |||
| Championship history is unrecorded from June 30, 1995 to September 1995. | ||||||||||
| 16 | Aero Flash | September 1995 (NLT) | Live event | N/A | 1 | [e] | [f] | |||
| Championship history is unrecorded from September 1995 to 1997. | ||||||||||
| Mexican indies / World Wrestling Council | ||||||||||
| 17 | Blue Demon Jr. | 1997 (NLT) | Live event | Panama | 1 | [e] | Defeated Black Demon, unclear if it was a title defense or if Black Demon was the champion. | [f] | ||
| 18 | Pablo Márquez | N/A | N/A | N/A | 1 | [e] | [f] | |||
| Championship history is unrecorded from 1997 to October 1999. | ||||||||||
| 19 | El Alebrije | October 1999 (NLT) | Live event | N/A | 1 | [e] | [f] | |||
| Championship history is unrecorded from October 1999 to February 9, 2001. | ||||||||||
| International Wrestling Association (Puerto Rico) | ||||||||||
| 20 | Pablo Márquez | February 9, 2001 | Live event | N/A | 2 | 15 | [2] | |||
| 21 | Super Crazy | February 24, 2001 | Live event | Bayamón, Puerto Rico | 1 | 287 | This was a title vs. title match for Super Crazy's IWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship. | |||
| 22 | Lobo | April 21, 2001 | N/A | Carolina, Puerto Rico | 1 | 63 | This title change is not recognized by Freedoms. | |||
| 23 | Super Crazy | June 23, 2001 | N/A | Bayamón, Puerto Rico | 2 | 34 | This title change is not recognized by Freedoms. | |||
| 24 | Crash Holly | July 27, 2001 | N/A | Bayamón, Puerto Rico | 1 | 1 | This title change is not recognized by Freedoms. | |||
| 25 | Super Crazy | July 28, 2001 | N/A | Carolina, Puerto Rico | 3 | 126 | This was a 3-way match for the IWA Hardcore and the IWA/UWA Unified World Junior Heavyweight titles also involving Lobo. This title change is not recognized by Freedoms. | [2] | ||
| — | Vacated | December 1, 2001 | — | — | — | — | The IWA general manager Savio Vega stripped Super Crazy of the IWA/UWA Unified World Junior Heavyweight Titles. | |||
| 25 | Lobo | December 8, 2001 | Live event | Orocovis, Puerto Rico | 2 | 29 | Defeated Minoru Fujita to win the vacant IWA/UWA Unified World Junior Heavyweight titles. | [2] | ||
| 27 | Minoru Fujita | January 6, 2002 | Live event | Bayamón, Puerto Rico | 1 | 27 | [2] | |||
| 28 | Lobo | February 6, 2002 | Live event | Bayamón, Puerto Rico | 3 | 20 | This title change is not recognized by Freedoms. | [2] | ||
| — | Vacated | February 26, 2002 | — | — | — | — | Title stripped by the IWA general manager Savio Vega. | [9] | ||
| — | Deactivated | July 16, 2002 (NLT) | — | — | — | — | Title deactivated. Meanwhile, the IWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship is unified with the IWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship. | [9] | ||
| Japanese indies | ||||||||||
| 29 | Nagase Kancho | April 4, 2013 | Live event | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 301 | Defeated Black Tiger V to revive the title. | [2] | ||
| — | Vacated | January 30, 2014 | — | — | — | — | Title vacated due to Kancho being unable to defend it. | [2] | ||
| Tenryu Project | ||||||||||
| 30 | Kengo | March 4, 2014 | Live event | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 510 | Defeated Dragon Joker to win the vacant title. | [2] | ||
| — | Vacated | July 27, 2015 | — | — | — | — | Title vacated due to Kengo suffering an injury. | [2] | ||
| 31 | Kotaro Nasu | September 2, 2015 | Genichiro Tenryu Retirement | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 252 | Defeated Dragon Joker to win the vacant title. | [2] | ||
| Pro Wrestling Freedoms | ||||||||||
| 32 | The Winger | May 11, 2016 | Live event | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 92 | ||||
| 33 | Gentaro | August 11, 2016 | Unchain Night! | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 98 | [10] | |||
| 34 | Miedo Extremo | November 17, 2016 | The Winger Pro-Wrestling 25th Anniversary | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 20 | [11] | |||
| 35 | Gentaro | December 7, 2016 | Road To Blood X'Mas 2016 | Tokyo, Japan | 2 | 146 | [12] | |||
| 36 | Yuya Susumu | May 2, 2017 | We Love Freedoms! We Are Freedoms! 2017 | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 365 | [13] | |||
| 37 | "brother" Yasshi | May 2, 2018 | We Love Freedoms! We Are Freedoms! 2018 | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 138 | [14] | |||
| 38 | Yuya Susumu | September 17, 2018 | Pro-Wrestling Freedoms 9th Anniversary Memorial Conference | Tokyo, Japan | 2 | 108 | [15] | |||
| 39 | Kenichiro Arai | January 3, 2019 | Happy New Freedom 2019 | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 271 | [16] | |||
| 40 | Yuya Susumu | October 1, 2019 | Freedoms 10th Anniversary Celebration | Tokyo, Japan | 3 | 335 | [17] | |||
| 41 | Kamui | August 31, 2020 | Tokyo Death Match Carnival 2020 Vol. 2 | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 204 | ||||
| 42 | Brahman Kei | March 23, 2021 | The Gekokujo 2021 | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 12 | [18] | |||
| 43 | Kamui | April 4, 2021 | Freedoms | Osaka, Japan | 2 | 31 | ||||
| 44 | Tatsuhito Takaiwa | May 5, 2021 | Yokohama Pro-Wrestling Festival 2021 | Yokohama, Japan | 1 | 363 | [19] | |||
| 45 | Kengo | May 3, 2022 | Hot Free People 2022 | Yokohama, Japan | 2 | 60 | [20] | |||
| — | Vacated | July 2, 2022 | — | — | — | — | Title vacated due to Kengo suffering an injury. | [2] | ||
| Fight of the Ring | ||||||||||
| 46 | Hiroshi Yamato | January 22, 2023 | Fight Of The Ring | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 448 | Defeated The Wolf in the final of a four-man tournament to win the vacant title. | [21][22] | ||
| 47 | The Wolf | April 14, 2024 | Fight Of The Ring | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 212+ | This was also for The Wolf's Latin American Championship. | [23] | ||
Combined reigns
[edit]As of November 12, 2024.
| † | Indicates the current champion |
|---|---|
| ¤ | The exact length of the title reign is uncertain. |
| Rank | Wrestler | No. of reigns |
Combined days |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yuya Susumu | 3 | 808 |
| 2 | Enrique Vera | 3 | 661¤ |
| 3 | Kengo | 2 | 570 |
| 4 | Shu El Guerrero | 1 | 507 |
| 5 | Hiroshi Yamato | 1 | 448 |
| 6 | Super Crazy | 3 | 447 |
| 7 | The Killer | 3 | 381 |
| 8 | Tatsuhito Takaiwa | 1 | 363 |
| 9 | Nagase Kancho | 1 | 301 |
| 10 | Dr. Wagner Jr. | 2 | 274 |
| 11 | Kenichiro Arai | 1 | 271 |
| 12 | Kotaro Nasu | 1 | 252 |
| 13 | Gentaro | 2 | 244 |
| 14 | Kamui | 2 | 235 |
| 15 | The Wolf † | 1 | 212+ |
| 16 | "brother" Yasshi | 1 | 138 |
| 17 | Lobo | 3 | 112 |
| 18 | The Winger | 1 | 94 |
| 19 | Astro de Oro | 2 | 91 |
| 20 | Villano III | 1 | 47 |
| 21 | Minoru Fujita | 1 | 27 |
| 22 | Miedo Extremo | 1 | 20 |
| 23 | Pablo Marquez | 2 | 15¤ |
| 24 | Brahman Kei | 1 | 12 |
| 25 | Crash Holly | 1 | 1 |
| 26 | Aero Flash | 1 | N/A¤ |
| Blue Demon Jr. | 1 | N/A¤ | |
| El Alebrije | 1 | N/A¤ | |
| El Solitario | 1 | N/A¤ | |
| Mr. Jack | 1 | N/A¤ | |
| Negro Navarro | 1 | N/A¤ |
Footnotes
[edit]- ^ Hornbaker (2016) p. 550: "Professional wrestling is a sport in which match finishes are predetermined. Thus, win–loss records are not indicative of a wrestler's genuine success based on their legitimate abilities – but on now much, or how little they were pushed by promoters"[4]
- ^ Duncan & Will (2000) p. 271, Chapter: Texas: NWA American Tag Team Title [World Class, Adkisson] "Championship held up and rematch ordered because of the interference of manager Gary Hart"[5]
- ^ Duncan & Will (2000) p. 20, Chapter: (United States: 19th Century & widely defended titles – NWA, WWF, AWA, IW, ECW, NWA) NWA/WCW TV Title "Rhodes stripped on 85/10/19 for not defending the belt after having his leg broken by Ric Flair and Ole & Arn Anderson"[6]
- ^ Duncan & Will (2000) p. 201, Chapter: (Memphis, Nashville) Memphis: USWA Tag Team Title "Vacant on 93/01/18 when Spike leaves the USWA."[7]
- ^ a b c d e f g Due to sparse record keeping in Mexico at the time, no documentation of the date the championship changed hands is found and is too uncertain to calculate.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Duncan & Will (2000) p. 397, Chapter: MEXICO: UWA World Junior Heavyweight Title [Flores, Mora] [8]
References
[edit]- Hornbaker, Tim (2016). "Statistical notes". Legends of Pro Wrestling - 150 years of headlocks, body slams, and piledrivers (Revised ed.). New York, New York: Sports Publishing. ISBN 978-1-61321-808-2.
- Duncan, Royal; Will, Gary (2000). Wrestling title histories: professional wrestling champions around the world from the 19th century to the present. Waterloo, ON: Archeus Communications. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
- ^ Saalbach, Axel. "Champions and Championships/UWA World Junior Heavyweight Title". wrestlingdata.com. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Universal Wrestling Association World Light Heavyweight Title". Wrestling-Titles.com. Retrieved 2009-02-28.
- ^ "Weight Divisions in Professional Wrestling". wrestlingtitles.com. Retrieved 2009-03-05.
- ^ Hornbaker 2016, p. 550.
- ^ Duncan & Will 2000, p. 271.
- ^ Duncan & Will 2000, p. 20.
- ^ Duncan & Will 2000, p. 201.
- ^ Duncan & Will 2000, p. 397.
- ^ a b Clásicos De IWA (December 27, 2013). "IWA:Chicano Vs. El Lobo Andy Anderson". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-15. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
- ^ "H28.8.11 新木場1stRing大会". Pro Wrestling Freedoms (in Japanese). 2016-08-11. Retrieved 2016-12-18.
- ^ "H28.11.17 ジ・ウインガープロレスデビュー25周年記念大会 後楽園ホール". Pro Wrestling Freedoms (in Japanese). 2016-11-17. Retrieved 2016-12-18.
- ^ "H28.12.7 新木場1stRing大会". Pro Wrestling Freedoms (in Japanese). 2016-12-07. Retrieved 2016-12-18.
- ^ "H29.5.2 後楽園ホール大会". Pro Wrestling Freedoms (in Japanese). May 2, 2017. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
- ^ "H30.5.2 東京・後楽園ホール大会". Pro Wrestling Freedoms (in Japanese). May 2, 2018. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- ^ "H30.9.17 東京・後楽園ホール大会「プロレスリングFREEDOMS旗揚げ9周年記念大会 ～Road to 10th anniversary～」". Pro Wrestling Freedoms (in Japanese). September 17, 2018. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- ^ "H31.1.3 新木場1stRING大会". Pro Wrestling Freedoms (in Japanese). January 3, 2019. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- ^ "2019.10.1 東京・後楽園ホール". Pro Wrestling Freedoms (in Japanese). October 1, 2019. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- ^ Dark Angel (March 29, 2021). "Freedoms: «The Gekokujo 2021» The domain of Toru Sugiura". Súper Luchas. Archived from the original on May 9, 2021. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
- ^ Daly, Wayne (May 5, 2021). "FREEDOMS Results: Yokohama Pro Wrestling Festival 2021 – Yokohama, Japan (5/5)". wrestling-news.net. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
- ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip (May 3, 2022). "FREEDOMS Hot Free People 2022". cagematch.net. Retrieved May 3, 2022.
- ^ 【ファイトオブザリング】1.22王子ベースメントモンスター大会の対戦カードを発表. proresu-today.com (in Japanese). December 14, 2022. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
- ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "Fight Of The Ring". cagematch.net. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
- ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "Fight Of The Ring". cagematch.net. Retrieved April 14, 2024.