User:Paulley/FWA World Heavyweight Championship
[[:Image:DwilliamsFWA.jpg|thumb|Former FWA Champion, Doug Williams wearing the FWA British Heavyweight Championship belt]] The FWA World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling championship created and contested for in the Frontier Wrestling Alliance (FWA).
Originally a British Heavyweight title, the championship earned the right to be classed a world title when it was unsuccessfully defended by American wrestler Christopher Daniels in Philadelphia in 2003. Yet it would take another 6 years and the relaunching of the FWA brand before the promotion would reclassify the the title.[1] Before the relaunch however, the FWA promotion became briefly defunct and the British Heavyweight Championship, along with its lineage were used by another promotion known as XWA; which still continues to use the British title.
The championship have been known as:
- FWA British Heavyweight Championship (1999 – 2007)
- British Heavyweight Championship (2007 – current)
- FWA World Heavyweight Championship (2009 – current)
History
[edit]The first FWA British Heavyweight Champion was Mark Sloan, who defeated Paul Glory in a tournament final on the 11 July 1999.[2] Jody Fleisch was the first person to win the belt twice after being stripped of it, while American wrestler Christopher Daniels was the first non-British person to win the belt[3] and go on to defend it on foreign soil.[4]
Originally the belt was mostly defended under two out of three falls match rules, as was the tradition in British wrestling. This changed on 12 April 2005, when champion Alex Shane signed a cast-iron contract to make new FWA British Title rules official and permanent making all future championship matches simply one fall.
On 13 May, 2006 the FWA British Heavyweight Title belt was stolen from the Morecambe Dome immediately following the FWA event at the venue during an FWA versus All-Star Wrestling show. The FWA offered a reward of £100 for information leading to the safe return of the championship belt.
On April 11 2009 at XWA War on the Shore V, former FWA owner 'The Showstealer' Alex Shane made his return to the Morecambe Dome after a three and a half year absence. In an angle, British Heavyweight Champion Sam Slam handed Alex the old FWA Heavyweight Title belt which the XWA had continued to use as its main title belt ever since the XWA was formed. In exchange, Shane handed Sam the brand new XWA Title belt. This angle was conceived so Alex Shane could once again take possession of the FWA Title belt ahead of the reformation of the FWA, which was announced a week afterwards, and also to 'pass the torch' to Sam Slam.[citation needed]
Title history
[edit]# | Wrestler | Reigns | Date | Days held | Location | Event | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
|
Mark Sloan | 1
|
July 11, 1999 | 231 | Portsmouth, Hampshire | No Surprises | Defeated Paul Glory in a tournament final | [2] |
2
|
Alex Shane | 1
|
February 27, 2000 | 129 | Birmingham, West Midlands | Black Country Chaos | Two out of three falls match | [3] |
3
|
Guy Thunder | 1
|
July 5, 2000 | 8 | Hertford, Hertfordshire | Live event | Two out of three falls match | [3] |
-
|
Vacant | 1
|
July 13, 2000 | 0 | N/A | |||
4
|
Justin Richards | 1
|
August 5, 2000 | 259 | Halifax, West Yorkshire | Evil Intentions | Defeated Scottie Rock, Guy Thunder & Jorge Castano in a four-way match | [3] |
-
|
Vacant | 2
|
April 21, 2001 | 28 | Bolton, Lancashire | When Thunder Strikes | ||
5
|
Doug Williams | 1
|
May 19, 2001 | 307 | Portsmouth, Hampshire | High Potential | Defeated Scott Parker in a tournament final | [5] |
6
|
Flash Barker | 1
|
March 22, 2002 | 128 | Walthamstow, London | Urban Legends | Two out of three falls match | [6] |
7
|
Jody Fleisch | 1
|
July 28, 2002 | 6 | Portsmouth, Hampshire | No Surprises | Two out of three falls match | [6] |
-
|
Vacant | 3
|
August 3, 2002 | 71 | N/A | |||
8
|
Jody Fleisch | 2
|
October 13, 2002 | 12 | Bethnal Green, London | British Uprising | Defeated Flash Barker in a ladder match | [6] |
9
|
Christopher Daniels | 1
|
October 25, 2002 | 148 | Walthamstow, London | London Calling | Defeated Jody Fleish & Doug Williams in a three-way match | [6] |
10
|
Doug Williams | 2
|
March 22, 2003 | 602 | Philadelphia, PA | Night of Champions | [4] | |
11
|
Alex Shane | 2
|
November 13, 2004 | 449 | Coventry, West Midlands | British Uprising 3 | [7] | |
12
|
Hade Vansen | 1
|
February 5, 2006 | 160 | Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire | New Frontiers | Defeated Alex Shane, Joe Legend, Jody Fleisch and Jonny Storm in The Champion Series five-way match | [8] |
13
|
Robbie Brookside | 1
|
July 15, 2006 | 266 | Morecambe, Lancashire | Summer Classic | Defeated Hade Vansen & Jonny Storm in a no-disqualification three-way match. | [8] |
-
|
Continued as a XWA title | |||||||
14
|
Championship reclassified as FWA World Heavyweight Championship |
XWA
[edit]# | Wrestler | Reigns | Date | Days held | Location | Event | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
14
|
Jonny Storm | 1
|
April 7, 2007 | 455 | Morecambe, Lancashire | War On The Shore 3 | Defeated Robbie Brookside at the first XWA show | [9] |
15
|
Stevie Knight | 1
|
July 5, 2008 | 63 | Morecambe, Lancashire | Vendetta 2008 | Defeated Jonny Storm, Sam Slam, and Johnny Phere in a Final Four match | [10] |
16
|
Sam Slam | 1
|
September 6, 2008 | 5940+ | Morecambe, Lancashire | Last Fight at the Prom 2008 | [11] |
References
[edit]- ^ "Historic Open Tournament to Name First FWA WORLD Heavyweight Champion". Frontier Wrestling Alliance. Retrieved 2009-07-19.
- ^ a b "FWA Results - 1999". Frontier Wrestling Alliance. Retrieved 2009-07-17.
- ^ a b c d "FWA Results 2000". Frontier Wrestling Alliance. Retrieved 2009-07-17.
- ^ a b "Ring of Honor Past Results". Ring of Honor. Retrieved 2009-07-17.
- ^ "FWA Results 2001". Frontier Wrestling Alliance. Retrieved 2009-07-17.
- ^ a b c d "FWA Results 2002". Frontier Wrestling Alliance. Retrieved 2009-07-17.
- ^ "FWA Results 2004". Frontier Wrestling Alliance. Retrieved 2009-07-17.
- ^ a b "FWA Results 2006". Frontier Wrestling Alliance. Retrieved 2009-07-17.
- ^ "XWA War on the Shore 3". XWA. Retrieved 2009-07-17.
- ^ "XWA Vendetta 2008". XWA. Retrieved 2009-07-18.
- ^ "XWA Last Fight at the Prom 2008". XWA. Retrieved 2009-07-17.
See also
[edit]