WCW World Heavyweight Championship
Encyclopedia
The World Championship Wrestling (WCW) World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling
world heavyweight championship in World Championship Wrestling
(WCW) and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). It existed within WCW between 1991 and 2001. Following the acquisition of WCW by World Wrestling Federation Entertainment, Inc. in March 2001, it became one of two world titles in the WWF, with its name being immediately abbreviated to the WCW Championship and finally, the World Championship. It complemented the WWF Championship
until December 2001, when both titles were unified
into the Undisputed WWF Championship. Though the title was decommissioned, its physical belt design, known historically as the Big Gold Belt
, was restored by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE—formerly WWF) without the "WCW" reference in 2002, and renamed simply as the World Heavyweight Championship
. The championship was generally contested in professional wrestling matches
, in which participants execute scripted
finishes rather than contend in direct competition.
purchased Jim Crockett Promotions
, which had promoted under the name "NWA World Championship Wrestling". While the promotion remained a member of the National Wrestling Alliance
(NWA), the use of the NWA name was gradually reduced on televised programming, in favor of the name "World Championship Wrestling", or "WCW". On January 11, 1991, Ric Flair
defeated Sting
to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship
and was recognized as the WCW World Heavyweight Champion. The new championship was not initially represented by its own title belt, and WCW continued to use the NWA World Heavyweight Championship title belt. Because of this, WCW regularly claimed the NWA World Championship lineage for its own championship.
led to Flair leaving WCW for Vince McMahon
's World Wrestling Federation
. When Herd refused to return Flair's $
25,000 deposit (that was left with the NWA), Flair kept the "Big Gold Belt" that had represented the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. WCW was forced to create its own title belt (a belt owned by Dusty Rhodes
from the then-defunct Florida Championship Wrestling
used as the PWF Heavyweight Championship with a gold plate tacked on its faceplate with the words "WCW World Heavyweight Champion"), which was awarded to Lex Luger
after he defeated Barry Windham
in a cage match for the vacant championship at 1991's Great American Bash. Shortly after the Bash, an original WCW World Heavyweight Championship belt was created.
In late 1991, The Big Gold Belt was used for the revived NWA World Heavyweight Championship, a co-promotional gimmick between WCW and New Japan Pro Wrestling
. However, the original remained with Flair through the remainder of WCW's time in operation. In the 2008 WWE Nature Boy Ric Flair - The Definitive Collection video release, Flair noted that his $25,000 deposit was never returned and that he ended up giving the belt to Triple H
as a gift.
In September 1993, WCW left the NWA over a dispute regarding the other NWA members demanding that NWA world champion be available for booking, and due to the use of the NWA World Heavyweight Championship on syndicated programming recorded months in advance. By fall 1993, Rick Rude was appearing at the "Disney Tapings
" as the NWA World Heavyweight Champion, despite the fact that in regards to the storyline, Flair was still champion. After leaving the NWA, WCW kept the Big Gold Belt, and it was re-named the WCW International World Heavyweight Championship
.
At Starrcade '93
, Flair won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship, by defeating Vader. WCW decided to unify the WCW World Heavyweight Championship (represented by the new belt) and International Championship (represented by the "Big Gold Belt"), by having Flair wrestle Sting in June 1994. Flair won and the WCW International Heavyweight belt replaced the old WCW World Heavyweight Championship while the International Heavyweight Championship itself was dropped. When Hulk Hogan
entered WCW and won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship (now represented by the "Big Gold Belt") from Flair, Hogan helped WCW become the top wrestling company in the United States
. By 2001, however, WCW had suffered a succession of failures.
During Hogan's 1996–1997 run as champion, the title was spray painted with the NWO initials and referred to by New World Order
members as the "nWo" World Heavyweight Championship. When Hogan regained the title in January 1999, the belt was sprayed with nWo again, only this time with red letters to show the unification of nWo Hollywood and nWo Wolfpac.
purchased World Championship Wrestling. Soon after, "The Invasion" took place in which the WCW/ECW Alliance was ultimately dismantled. During the "Invasion", only four WCW titles remained active, including the WCW World Heavyweight Championship, which was referred to simply as the "WCW Championship".
After the "Invasion" concluded at Survivor Series
in 2001, the title was unbranded as the "World Championship". The title was then unified
with the WWF Championship
at Vengeance
where Chris Jericho
defeated The Rock and Steve Austin
to win the unbranded World Championship and the WWF Championship respectively. As a result, Chris Jericho was recognized as the last WCW World Champion, and he became the first Undisputed Champion in the World Wrestling Federation.
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
world heavyweight championship in World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
(WCW) and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). It existed within WCW between 1991 and 2001. Following the acquisition of WCW by World Wrestling Federation Entertainment, Inc. in March 2001, it became one of two world titles in the WWF, with its name being immediately abbreviated to the WCW Championship and finally, the World Championship. It complemented the WWF Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
until December 2001, when both titles were unified
Championship unification
Championship unification is the act of combining two or more separate professional wrestling championships into a single title.-History:In professional wrestling, championships may be unified to consolidate the number of championships in a given promotion, or to add legitimacy and prestige to a...
into the Undisputed WWF Championship. Though the title was decommissioned, its physical belt design, known historically as the Big Gold Belt
Big Gold Belt
The Big Gold Belt is a historic professional wrestling championship belt that has represented multiple world championships throughout its history. It was originally designed in 1985 by silversmith Charles Crumrine and commissioned by Jim Crockett Promotions for NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric...
, was restored by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE—formerly WWF) without the "WCW" reference in 2002, and renamed simply as the World Heavyweight Championship
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
. The championship was generally contested in professional wrestling matches
Professional wrestling match types
Many types of matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, can be found in the form of performing art that is professional wrestling....
, in which participants execute scripted
Screenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
finishes rather than contend in direct competition.
Formation
In December 1988, Ted TurnerTed Turner
Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III is an American media mogul and philanthropist. As a businessman, he is known as founder of the cable news network CNN, the first dedicated 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he founded WTBS, which pioneered the superstation concept in cable television...
purchased Jim Crockett Promotions
Jim Crockett Promotions
Jim Crockett Promotions was a professional wrestling promotion owned by Jim Crockett, Jr. until the late 1980s. It was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance and was the forerunner to World Championship Wrestling .-Early history:...
, which had promoted under the name "NWA World Championship Wrestling". While the promotion remained a member of the National Wrestling Alliance
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
(NWA), the use of the NWA name was gradually reduced on televised programming, in favor of the name "World Championship Wrestling", or "WCW". On January 11, 1991, Ric Flair
Ric Flair
Richard Morgan Fliehr is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Ric Flair. Also known as "The Nature Boy", Flair is one of the most well-known professional wrestlers in the world....
defeated Sting
Sting (wrestler)
Steven James "Steve" Borden , better known by his ring name Sting, is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship
NWA World Heavyweight Championship
The National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the National Wrestling Alliance. Its lineage has been traced from the first World Heavyweight Championship, which traces its lineage to Georg Hackenschmidt's 1905 title and...
and was recognized as the WCW World Heavyweight Champion. The new championship was not initially represented by its own title belt, and WCW continued to use the NWA World Heavyweight Championship title belt. Because of this, WCW regularly claimed the NWA World Championship lineage for its own championship.
Big Gold Belt
On July 1, 1991, a creative disagreement with WCW Executive Vice President Jim HerdJim Herd
Jim Herd is a former professional wrestling executive. Herd was the Executive Vice President of World Championship Wrestling from 1988 to 1992, following Turner Broadcasting's acquisition of the NWA-affiliated Jim Crockett Promotions in 1988. His tenure however received much criticism from...
led to Flair leaving WCW for Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
's World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
. When Herd refused to return Flair's $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
25,000 deposit (that was left with the NWA), Flair kept the "Big Gold Belt" that had represented the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. WCW was forced to create its own title belt (a belt owned by Dusty Rhodes
Dusty Rhodes (wrestler)
Virgil Riley Runnels, Jr. , better known as "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler currently working for WWE...
from the then-defunct Florida Championship Wrestling
Florida Championship Wrestling
Championship Wrestling from Florida was the corporate and brand name of the Tampa, Florida wrestling office existing from 1961, when Eddie Graham first bought into the promotion, until 1987, when it closed down. It is also referred to as Florida Championship Wrestling...
used as the PWF Heavyweight Championship with a gold plate tacked on its faceplate with the words "WCW World Heavyweight Champion"), which was awarded to Lex Luger
Lex Luger
Lawrence Wendell "Larry" Pfohl , better known by his ring name Lex Luger, is an American former professional wrestler and football player currently working with WWE on their wellness policy...
after he defeated Barry Windham
Barry Windham
Barry Clinton Windham is an American semi-retired professional wrestler and the son of wrestler Blackjack Mulligan. He is best known for his appearances with the National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling ....
in a cage match for the vacant championship at 1991's Great American Bash. Shortly after the Bash, an original WCW World Heavyweight Championship belt was created.
In late 1991, The Big Gold Belt was used for the revived NWA World Heavyweight Championship, a co-promotional gimmick between WCW and New Japan Pro Wrestling
New Japan Pro Wrestling
is a major professional wrestling promotion in Japan, founded by Antonio Inoki in June 1972 and owned by Yuke's since 2005, when Inoki sold the promotion. Naoki Sugabayashi is the current President of the promotion and has held that position from 2007. Owing to its TV program aired on TV Asahi, it...
. However, the original remained with Flair through the remainder of WCW's time in operation. In the 2008 WWE Nature Boy Ric Flair - The Definitive Collection video release, Flair noted that his $25,000 deposit was never returned and that he ended up giving the belt to Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
as a gift.
In September 1993, WCW left the NWA over a dispute regarding the other NWA members demanding that NWA world champion be available for booking, and due to the use of the NWA World Heavyweight Championship on syndicated programming recorded months in advance. By fall 1993, Rick Rude was appearing at the "Disney Tapings
WCW Disney tapings
The WCW Disney tapings were a series of television tapings of professional wrestling matches conducted by World Championship Wrestling at the Disney-MGM Studios in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.-History:...
" as the NWA World Heavyweight Champion, despite the fact that in regards to the storyline, Flair was still champion. After leaving the NWA, WCW kept the Big Gold Belt, and it was re-named the WCW International World Heavyweight Championship
WCW International World Heavyweight Championship
The World Championship Wrestling International World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in World Championship Wrestling . "WCW International" referred to a fictional international subsidiary of World Championship Wrestling...
.
Unification
Starrcade (1993)
Starrcade '93: 10th Anniversary was the eleventh annual Starrcade professional wrestling pay-per-view event. It was the sixth Starrcade event produced by World Championship Wrestling , and it took place on December 27, 1993 from the Independence Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina...
, Flair won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship, by defeating Vader. WCW decided to unify the WCW World Heavyweight Championship (represented by the new belt) and International Championship (represented by the "Big Gold Belt"), by having Flair wrestle Sting in June 1994. Flair won and the WCW International Heavyweight belt replaced the old WCW World Heavyweight Championship while the International Heavyweight Championship itself was dropped. When Hulk Hogan
Hulk Hogan
Terrance Gene "Terry" Bollea , better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American Semi-retired professional wrestler, actor, television personality, and musician currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
entered WCW and won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship (now represented by the "Big Gold Belt") from Flair, Hogan helped WCW become the top wrestling company in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. By 2001, however, WCW had suffered a succession of failures.
During Hogan's 1996–1997 run as champion, the title was spray painted with the NWO initials and referred to by New World Order
New World Order (professional wrestling)
The New World Order was a professional wrestling stable that originally wrestled for World Championship Wrestling . The group later appeared in the World Wrestling Federation after the purchase of WCW by the WWF...
members as the "nWo" World Heavyweight Championship. When Hogan regained the title in January 1999, the belt was sprayed with nWo again, only this time with red letters to show the unification of nWo Hollywood and nWo Wolfpac.
Acquisition by the WWF
In March 2001, the World Wrestling FederationWorld Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
purchased World Championship Wrestling. Soon after, "The Invasion" took place in which the WCW/ECW Alliance was ultimately dismantled. During the "Invasion", only four WCW titles remained active, including the WCW World Heavyweight Championship, which was referred to simply as the "WCW Championship".
After the "Invasion" concluded at Survivor Series
Survivor Series (2001)
Survivor Series was the fifteenth annual Survivor Series pay-per-view professional wrestling event produced by the World Wrestling Federation...
in 2001, the title was unbranded as the "World Championship". The title was then unified
Championship unification
Championship unification is the act of combining two or more separate professional wrestling championships into a single title.-History:In professional wrestling, championships may be unified to consolidate the number of championships in a given promotion, or to add legitimacy and prestige to a...
with the WWF Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
at Vengeance
Vengeance (2001)
Vengeance was the first annual Vengeance professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on December 9, 2001 at the San Diego Sports Arena in San Diego, California....
where Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho
Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...
defeated The Rock and Steve Austin
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
to win the unbranded World Championship and the WWF Championship respectively. As a result, Chris Jericho was recognized as the last WCW World Champion, and he became the first Undisputed Champion in the World Wrestling Federation.
See also
- List of WCW World Heavyweight Champions
- NWA World Heavyweight ChampionshipNWA World Heavyweight ChampionshipThe National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the National Wrestling Alliance. Its lineage has been traced from the first World Heavyweight Championship, which traces its lineage to Georg Hackenschmidt's 1905 title and...
- WWE ChampionshipWWE ChampionshipThe WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
- WWE World Heavyweight Championship