World Heavyweight Title (original) (raw)

× date The format is either YYYY-MM-DD or YY-MM-DD. [ ] Following the name of the champion(s): Indicates the number of times the wrestler has held that title at that point. [...] Indicates a gap in the listing where title changes are not known.* If used next to the names of the wrestlers, they may, in fact, not have held the title in the period indicated. If used next to the dates or places, either they are possibly wrong or the title changes are fictitious. < Title was held or changed hands no later than this. In these cases, it is known that a wrestler held the title at a certain time but not when he/she won it. + Broadcast date; the actual recording date is unknown. @ Order uncertain. Different titleholders may be known for the same year, for example, but it is not known who held the title before whom. # Unofficial or disputable claims. These are usually matches that certainly took place, but where there is doubt that the wrestler shown should be recognized as a true title holder. These listings are also italicized in HTML files × Code Country AFGAfghanistan ALBAlbania ALGAlgeria ANDAndorra ANGAngola ANTAntigua and Barbuda ARGArgentina ARMArmenia ARUAruba ASAAmerican Samoa AUSAustralia AUTAustria AZEAzerbaijan BAHBahamas BANBangladesh BARBarbados BDIBurundi BELBelgium BENBenin BERBermuda BHUBhutan BIHBosnia and Herzegovina BIZBelize BLRBelarus BOLBolivia BOTBotswana BRABrazil BRNBahrain BRUBrunei BULBulgaria BURBurkina Faso CAFCentral African Republic CAMCambodia CANCanada CAYCayman Islands CGORepublic of the Congo CHAChad CHIChile CHNChina CIVIvory Coast CMRCameroon CODDemocratic Republic of the Congo COKCook Islands COLColombia COMComoros CPVCape Verde CRCCosta Rica CROCroatia CUBCuba CYPCyprus CZECzech Republic DENDenmark DJIDjibouti DMADominica DOMDominican Republic ECUEcuador EGYEgypt ERIEritrea ESAEl Salvador ESPSpain ESTEstonia ETHEthiopia FIJFiji FINFinland FRAFrance FSMFederated States of Micronesia GABGabon GAMThe Gambia GBRGreat Britain GBSGuinea-Bissau GEOGeorgia GEQEquatorial Guinea GERGermany GGYGuernsey GHAGhana GREGreece GRNGrenada GUAGuatemala GUIGuinea GUMGuam GUYGuyana HAIHaiti HKGHong Kong, China HONHonduras HUNHungary INAIndonesia INDIndia IRIIran IRLIreland IRQIraq ISLIceland ISRIsrael ISVVirgin Islands ITAItaly IVBBritish Virgin Islands JAMJamaica JORJordan JPNJapan KAZKazakhstan KENKenya KGZKyrgyzstan KIRKiribati KORKorea, South KOSKosovo KSASaudi Arabia KUWKuwait LAOLaos LATLatvia LBALibya LBNLebanon LBRLiberia LCASaint Lucia LESLesotho LIELiechtenstein LTULithuania LUXLuxembourg MADMadagascar MARMorocco MASMalaysia MAWMalawi MDAMoldova MDVMaldives MEXMexico MGLMongolia MHLMarshall Islands MKDNorth Macedonia MLIMali MLTMalta MNEMontenegro MONMonaco MOZMozambique MRIMauritius MTNMauritania MYAMyanmar NAMNamibia NCANicaragua NEDNetherlands NEPNepal NGRNigeria NIGNiger NORNorway NRUNauru NZLNew Zealand OMAOman PAKPakistan PANPanama PARParaguay PERPeru PHIPhilippines PLEPalestine PLWPalau PNGPapua New Guinea POLPoland PORPortugal PRKKorea, North (DPR of Korea) PURPuerto Rico QATQatar ROURomania RSASouth Africa RUSRussia RWARwanda SAMSamoa SENSenegal SEYSeychelles SGPSingapore SKNSaint Kitts and Nevis SLESierra Leone SLOSlovenia SMRSan Marino SOLSolomon Islands SOMSomalia SRBSerbia SRISri Lanka SSDSouth Sudan STPSão Tomé and Príncipe SUDSudan SUISwitzerland SURSuriname SVKSlovakia SWESweden SWZSwaziland SYRSyria TANTanzania TGATonga THAThailand TJKTajikistan TKMTurkmenistan TLSEast Timor TOGTogo TPETaiwan (Republic of China) TTOTrinidad and Tobago TUNTunisia TURTurkey TUVTuvalu UAEUnited Arab Emirates UGAUganda UKRUkraine URUUruguay USAUnited States UZBUzbekistan VANVanuatu VENVenezuela VIEVietnam VINSaint Vincent and the Grenadines YEMYemen ZAMZambia ZIMZimbabwe Last updated on 2022-07-26 [ 日本語 ]


Georg Hackenschmidt vs. Frank Gotch 1908-04-03 Chicago, Illinois

Georg Hackenschmidt 1905-05-04 New York, NY, USA
Has won the World Graeco-Roman Championship tournaments in Vienna, AUT and Paris, FRA in 1901; wins World Graeco-Roman Title from Tom Cannon on 02-09-13 in Liverpool, Merseyside, ENG, GBR (Lancashire Evening Post, plus several other papers, 02-09-15); wins recognition as the world Graeco-Roman champion on 04-01-30 in London, ENG, GBR, defeating title claimant Ahmed Madrali (Lloyd's Weekly Newspaper, London, 04-01-31); defeats Tom Jenkins, recognized as world and American champion in North America, in a catch-as-catch-can style match on 05-05-04 in New York, NY to be recognized as champion in North America.
Frank Gotch 1908-04-03 Chicago, IL, USA
Immediately announces his retirement of the following winter but continues to return; in 14-01, Gotch states that Americus and Fred Beell should wrestle for the vacant world title (The Brooklyn Citizen, 14-01-29, etc.).
Americus (Gus Schoenlein) 1914-03-13 Kansas City, MO, USA
Defeats Fred Beell; loses to Pat Connolly in Vancouver, BC, CAN on 14-04-22 and again on 14-06-12 but continues to be recognized as the champion in USA.
Stanislaus Zbyszko 1914-05-07 Kansas City, MO, USA
Leaves the U.S. in 14-10< and does not return until 20; again wins the title claim, defeating Ed "Strangler" Lewis on 21-05-06 in New York, NY (see below).
Charlie Cutler 1915-01-08
Defeats American champion Dr. B.F. Roller and starts claiming Frank Gotch's title after 15-02-21; recognized at least in Omaha, Des Moines, Chicago, and New York.
Joe Stecher 1915-07-05 Omaha, NE, USA
Defeats Cutler with Frank Gotch in attendance; also defeats Pat Connolly, who has defeated Americus on 14-04-22 in Vancouver, BC, CAN to claim the title, on 16-03-03 in Butte, MT, USA. John Olin # 1916-12-11 Springfield, MA, USA Given the decision by the referee when Stecher leaves the ring because Olin continues to stall throughout the match.
Earl Caddock 1917-04-09 Omaha, NE, USA
Defeats Stecher. Ed "Strangler" Lewis # 1917-05-02 Chicago, IL, USA Defeats John Olin; billed as a title match with Frank Gotch as a special referee. Wladek Zbyszko # 1917-06-05 San Francisco, CA, USA Not billed as title match; Zbyszko claims title after winning the only fall in a 2-3-fall match. Ed "Strangler" Lewis [2] # 1917-07-04 Boston, MA, USA Wladek Zbyszko pins Lewis in an international tournament final on 17-12-22 in New York, NY and claims title; Lewis also continues to claim the title. Caddock also defeats Wladek Zbyszko on 18-02-08 in Des Moines, IA; Zbyszko continues to claim title but loses to Ed "Strangler" Lewis on 18-05-19 in New York, NY; Caddock defeats Lewis on 18-06-21 in Des Moines, IA. Wladek Zbyszko [2] # 1919-03-21 New York, NY, USA Defeats Lewis for the John Olin line of the title. Joe Stecher # 1919-05-09 Louisville, KY, USA Later defeats Caddock to end the dispute (see below). Joe Malcewicz claims that he defeats Caddock around 19-12 in Utica, NY, but the match actually takes place on 21-01-14 (after Caddock loses the title); Marin Plestina also claims the world title at least between 18-07 and 20-03.
Joe Stecher [2] 1920-01-30 New York, NY, USA
Defeats Caddock and ends the dispute.
Ed "Strangler" Lewis [3] 1920-12-13 New York, NY, USA
Stanislaus Zbyszko [2] 1921-05-06 New York, NY, USA
Ed "Strangler" Lewis [4] 1922-03-03 Wichita, KS, USA
Wayne Munn 1925-01-08 Kansas City, MO, USA
Lewis continues to be recognized as champion by promoter Ed White.
Stanislaus Zbyszko [3] 1925-04-15 Philadelphia, PA, USA
Munn continues to be recognized as champion in Michigan and Illinois.
Joe Stecher [3] 1925-05-30 St. Louis, MO, USA
Refuses to wrestle Joe Malcewicz, the last minute replacement of the scheduled opponent Jake Brissler, on 26-03-11 in Boston, MA; Malcewicz is awarded the title by the Boston promoter Paul Bowser; Stecher continues to be recognized by the New York promoter Jack Curley.
Ed "Strangler" Lewis [5] 1928-02-20 St. Louis, MO, USA
Has defeated Wayne Munn on 25-05-30 in Michigan City, IN and Joe Malcewicz on 26-08-02 in Tulsa, OK for the respective versions; defeats Stecher on 28-02-20 to end the dispute.
Gus Sonnenberg 1929-01-04 Boston, MA, USA
Recognition withdrawn by more than 20 athletic commissions including New York, Pennsylvania, and Illinois in 29-07 for failing to meet "real" contenders; declines the invitation from the wrestling department of National Boxins Association to enter a tournament to crown the heavyweight champion in 30.
Ed Don George 1930-12-10 Los Angeles, CA, USA
Defeats Sonneberg.
Ed "Strangler" Lewis [6] 1931-04-13 Los Angeles, CA, USA
Loses American Wrestling Association World title to Henri Deglane by DQ on 31-05-04 in Montreal, QC but is still recognized as champion in California; recognized in Illinois by defeating Wladek Zbyszko on 31-11-02 in Chicago, IL; wins New York State Athelitc Commission World title defeating Jack Sherry on 32-10-10.
DISPUTED BRANCHES New York State Athletic Commission National Boxing/Wrestling Association American Wrestling Association (Boston)
Danno O'Mahoney 1935-06-27 Boston, MA, USA
Defeats Jim Londos to win NYSAC and National Wrestling Association World titles; wins AWA World Title, defeating Ed Don George on 35-07-30 in Boston, MA to become the unified champion.
Dick Shikat 1936-03-02 New York, NY, USA
Boston AWA continues to recognize O'Mahoney as champion.
Ali Baba (Arteen Ekizian) 1936-04-24 Detroit, MI, USA
Dave Levin 1936-06-12 Newark, NJ, USA
Wins by disqualification; recognized by The Ring magazine as the true world champion; Baba continues to claim the title but loses to Everette Marshall on 36-06-26 in Columbus, OH; Levin also wins Los Angeles version, defeating Vincent Lopez on 36-08-19 in Los Angeles, CA.
Dean Detton 1936-09-28 Philadelphia, PA, USA
Recognized by The Ring magazine as the true world champion; has also defeated Ed Strangler Lewis in a title tournament final earlier in the year in Philadelphia, PA; Levin continues to be recognized in California by claiming to be "robbed" of the title (Daily News, Los Angeles, CA, 36-10-01) but loses to Vincent Lopez on 36-09-30 in Los Angeles, CA.
Bronko Nagurski 1937-06-29 Minneapolis, MN, USA
Recognized by The Ring magazine as the true world champion; also wins Los Angeles version, defeating Vincent Lopez on 37-08-11 in Los Angeles, CA.
Jim Londos 1938-11-18 Philadelphia, PA, USA
Recognized by The Ring magazine as the true world champion; recognition withdrawn in California by the end of 46-09; tours in AUS as the champion from 46-10 to 46-11; generally considered as retired in many US states by 47 but occiasionally wrestles in the western states including Arizona where he still claims the title as late as 50-01; also defeats The Demon (Jack O'Brien), world champion recognized by Jack Pfefer, on 50-04-17 in Cleveland, OH and is billed as the champion in Green Bay, WI until 50-06; announces his retirement on 52-11-27.
DISPUTED BRANCHES National Wrestling Association American Wrestling Association (Boston) Midwest Wrestling Association (Ohio) Midwest Wrestling Association (Kansas City) Los Angeles Maryland National Wrestling Alliance
Lou Thesz
Wins the following titles to become the unified world champion: National Wrestling Association World Heavyweight title, defeating Bill Longson on 48-07-20 in Indianapolis, IN National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight title, awarded on 49-11-27 when champion Orville Brown is injured in an automobile accident on 49-11-01 before a unification match scheduled on 49-11-25 in St. Louis, MO Los Angeles version of the world title, defeating Baron Michele Leone on 52-05-21 in Los Angeles, CA.
Leo Nomellini # 1955-03-22 San Francisco, CA, USA
Defeats Thesz by countout in the second round and disqualification in the third round; California Athletic Commission recognizes the title change by disqualification, but both Thesz and Nomellini continue to claim the title.
Lou Thesz # 1955-07-15? St. Louis, MO, USA
Defeats Nomelini in rematch.
Whipper Billy Watson 1956-03-15 Toronto, ON, CAN
Wins by count out.
Lou Thesz [2] 1956-11-09 St. Louis, MO, USA
Loses to Edouard Carpentier by disqualification on 57-06-14 in Chicago, IL when Thesz cannot continue due to a back injury; Thesz defeats Carpentier in rematch by disqualification on 57-07-24 in Montreal, QC; however, NWA continues to recognize Carpentier as the champion; Carpentier withdraws his claim to the title when his manager and Montreal promoter Eddie Quinn leaves NWA; NWA voids all recognition of Carpentier as champion and returns the title to Thesz on 57-08-25; Carpentier continues to be recognized as World champion in Omaha and Boston and later by Worldwide Wrestling Associates to legitimate the lineages of their world titles.
DISPUTED BRANCHES National Wrestling Alliance All-Star Wrestling (Omaha) Big Time Wrestling (Boston) North American Wrestling Alliance (Los Angeles)

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