List of NWA World Heavyweight Champions

Former NWA World Heavyweight Champion Hiroyoshi Tenzan

The NWA 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 (Catch as Catch Can version; 1905-1957), which traces its lineage to George Hackenschmidt's 1905 title which Frank Gotch won from him in 1908. This effectively makes it the oldest surviving wrestling championship in the world.

Title history

Reign	The reign number for the specific champion listed
Location	The city in which the title was won
Event	The event promoted by the respective promotion in which the title was won
†	Indicates the title changes not recognized by the NWA
+	Indicates the current reign is changing daily

#	Wrestler	Times	Date	Days held	Location	Event	Notes	Ref.
1	Orville Brown	1	January 5, 1948		Des Moines, IA	House show	In July 1948, the National Wrestling Alliance was founded and Brown was recognized as the first official NWA World Heavyweight Champion. His reign length is calculated from the date he defeated Sonny Myers to first claim the world championship.
2	Lou Thesz	1	November 27, 1949		—	—	Awarded when Brown suffered career-ending injuries in an automobile accident on November 1, 1949. Thesz had earlier won the National Wrestling Association's World Heavyweight Championship on July 10, 1948 from Wild Bill Longson. Thesz became the Undisputed Champion of all of wrestling by winning the Los Angeles Olympic Auditorium World Heavyweight title, the remaining major World Championship at the time other than the NWA World title, defeating Baron Michele Leone on May 21, 1952.
—	Leo Nomellini	1†	March 22, 1955		San Francisco, CA	House show	Defeated Thesz by countout in the second fall and disqualification in the third fall. California Athletic Commission recognized the title change by disqualification, but both wrestlers continued to claim the title.
—	Lou Thesz	2†	July 15, 1955		Toronto, ON	House show	Defeated Nomellini in a rematch.
3	Whipper Billy Watson	1	March 15, 1956		Toronto, ON	House show
4	Lou Thesz	2(3)	November 9, 1956		St. Louis, MO	House show
—	Édouard Carpentier	1†	June 14, 1957		Chicago, IL	House show	Carpentier was awarded the title when Thesz could not continue the match due to a back injury. In some territories, Thesz continued to be recognized as NWA champion while, in others, Carpentier was billed as the champion.
—	Lou Thesz	4†	July 24, 1957		Montreal, Quebec	House show	Lou Thesz won a rematch against Carpentier by disqualification. The NWA initially continued to recognize Carpentier as the champion, but voided any recognition of Carpentier as champion when he withdrew the claim for the title when Montreal promoter Eddie Quinn quit the NWA in August 1958. Some territories such as Boston (AAC), Nebraska and Los Angeles (NAWA/WWA) continued to recognize Carpentier as NWA World Champion. The AAC recognized Killer Kowalski as World Champion when he defeated Carpentier in Boston. Nebraska later recognized Verne Gagne as World Champion when he defeated Carpentier in Omaha. The NAWA/WWA recognized Freddie Blassie as World Champion when he defeated Carpentier in 1961.
5	Dick Hutton	1	November 14, 1957		Toronto, ON	House show
6	Pat O'Connor	1	January 9, 1959		St. Louis, MO	House show	The AWA, under Verne Gagne, seceded from the NWA and declared O'Connor their first World Champion in May 1960. This was considered a compromise gesture by the AWA given that Gagne held Édouard Carpentier's disputed version of the title. O'Connor was given 90 days to defend the AWA title against number one contender Gagne and when he did not, the title was awarded to Gagne.
7	Buddy Rogers	1	June 30, 1961	()†	Chicago, IL	House show	On August 2, 1962, Bruno Sammartino defeated Rogers in Toronto, but refused to accept the title because Rogers had wrestled with an injury. The NWA considers Rogers' reign to last until Thesz.
—	Killer Kowalski	1†	November 22, 1961		Montreal, Quebec, Canada	House show	Kowalski defeated Rogers on November 21 after Rogers broke his ankle in the first fall, but was only recognized as champion in some states but not by the NWA.
—	Bobo Brazil	1†	August 18, 1962		Newark, NJ	House show	Brazil refused the title because of a groin injury that Rogers had claimed to have. However, on September 6, 1962, Brazil was declared champion because a doctor had determined that Rogers hadn't suffered an injury. This title change wasn't recognized by the NWA.
—	Buddy Rogers	2†	October 30, 1962 (defeat of Brazil)	(Brazil to Thesz reign)	Toledo, OH	House show	Rogers was widely, though not universally, considered champion again after his wins over Brazil and Kowalski. Kowalski disputed that Rogers had won the title, arguing that the match had not been for the title. As the NWA had recognized none of Rogers's losses, no second title reign was counted for Rogers.
			January 21, 1963 (defeat of Kowalski)	(Kowalski to Thesz reign)	New York	House show
8	Lou Thesz	3(5)	January 24, 1963		Toronto, ON	House show	Promoters in the northeast United States refused to recognize Rogers' one-fall loss to Thesz, thus breaking away from the NWA to form the World Wide Wrestling Federation. Rogers was declared the first WWWF World Heavyweight Champion three months later, on April 25.
9	Gene Kiniski	1	January 7, 1966		St. Louis, MO	House show
10	Dory Funk, Jr.	1	February 11, 1969		Tampa, FL	House show
11	Harley Race	1	May 24, 1973		Kansas City, MO	House show
12	Jack Brisco	1	July 20, 1973		Houston, TX	House show
13	Giant Baba	1	December 2, 1974		Kagoshima, Japan	House show
14	Jack Brisco	2	December 9, 1974		Toyohashi, Japan	House show
15	Terry Funk	1	December 10, 1975		Miami, FL	House show
16	Harley Race	2	February 6, 1977		Toronto, ON	House show
17	Dusty Rhodes	1	August 21, 1979		Tampa, FL	House show
18	Harley Race	3	August 26, 1979		Orlando, FL	House show
19	Giant Baba	2	October 31, 1979		Nagoya, Japan	House show
20	Harley Race	4	November 7, 1979		Amagasaki, Japan	House show
21	Giant Baba	3	September 4, 1980		Saga, Japan	House show
22	Harley Race	5	September 9, 1980		Otsu, Japan	House show
23	Tommy Rich	1	April 27, 1981		Augusta, GA	House show
24	Harley Race	6	May 1, 1981		Gainesville, GA	House show
25	Dusty Rhodes	2	June 21, 1981		Atlanta, GA	House show
26	Ric Flair	1	September 17, 1981		Kansas City, MO	House show	On February 9, 1983 in Miami, The Midnight Rider (Dusty Rhodes under a mask due to being under suspension in Florida) defeated Flair for the title, but he returned it when NWA President Bob Geigel asked Rider to unmask or return the belt as NWA rules then forbade masked wrestlers from holding it.
—	Jack Veneno	1†	August 29, 1982	<1	Rep. Dom.	House show	Jack Veneno defeated Flair in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, but as he refused to defend the title outside his native country the title was returned to Flair on August 29, 1982.
—	Carlos Colón	1†	January 6, 1983		San Juan, PR	House show	This title change isn't recognized by the NWA. Colon's WWC World Heavyweight Championship was also on the line.
—	Ric Flair	1†	January 23, 1983		Miami, FL	House show	This title change isn't recognized by the NWA. Victor Jovica defeated Flair on February 8, 1983 in Couva, Trinidad, but the decision was reversed three days later because Jovica's feet were on the rope during the pin.
27	Harley Race	7	June 10, 1983		St. Louis, MO	House show
28	Ric Flair	2	November 24, 1983		Greensboro, NC	Starrcade (1983)	This was a Steel Cage match. Former champion Gene Kiniski (above) was special referee.
—	Harley Race	8†	March 20, 1984		Wellington, New Zealand	House show	This title change was briefly recognized by WCW, but it is currently not recognized by NWA nor WWE.
—	Ric Flair	3†	March 23, 1984		Kallang, Singapore	House show	This title change was briefly recognized by WCW, but it is currently not recognized by NWA or WWE.
29	Kerry Von Erich	1	May 6, 1984		Irving, TX	1st Von Erich Memorial Parade of Champions
30	Ric Flair	3(4)	May 24, 1984		Yokosuka, Japan	House show
31	Dusty Rhodes	3	July 26, 1986		Greensboro, NC	The Great American Bash (1986)
32	Ric Flair	4(5)	August 9, 1986		St. Louis, MO	House show
33	Ron Garvin	1	September 25, 1987		Detroit, MI	House show
34	Ric Flair	5(6)	November 26, 1987		Chicago, IL	Starrcade (1987)	On November 21, 1988 the NWA's flagship promotion Jim Crockett Promotions was purchased by ((Ted Turner)) and renamed World Championship Wrestling (WCW)
35	Ricky Steamboat	1	February 20, 1989		Chicago, IL	Chi-Town Rumble
36	Ric Flair	6(7)	May 7, 1989		Nashville, TN	WrestleWar (1989)
37	Sting	1	July 7, 1990		Baltimore, MD	The Great American Bash (1990)
38	Ric Flair	7(8)	January 11, 1991		East Rutherford, NJ	House show	After this title win, Flair was also recognized as the first WCW World Champion.
39	Tatsumi Fujinami	1	March 21, 1991		Tokyo, Japan	WCW/New Japan Supershow I	Briefly defended along with the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. This title change was originally ignored in the USA. This title change was briefly recognized by WCW, but it is currently not recognized by WWE.
40	Ric Flair	8(9)	May 19, 1991		St. Petersburg, FL	SuperBrawl I	This title change was originally ignored in the USA. This title change was briefly recognized by WCW, but it is currently not recognized by WWE.
—	Vacated	—	September 8, 1991	—	—	—	Flair was stripped of the title upon signing with the WWF. This marked the first time the NWA World Heavyweight Championship was vacant.
41	Masahiro Chono	1	August 12, 1992		Tokyo, Japan	G1 Climax 1992 - Day 5	Defeated Rick Rude in the final of the G1 Climax tournament.
42	The Great Muta	1	January 4, 1993		Tokyo, Japan	WCW/New Japan Supershow III	Muta's IWGP Heavyweight Championship was also on the line; briefly defended along with the IWGP Heavyweight Championship.
43	Barry Windham	1	February 21, 1993		Asheville, NC	SuperBrawl III
44	Ric Flair	9(10)	July 18, 1993		Biloxi, MS	Beach Blast (1993)
—	Vacated	—	September 13, 1993	—	—	—	Vacated when WCW withdrew from the NWA. WCW continued to recognize Flair as their WCW International World Heavyweight Champion.
45	Shane Douglas	1	August 27, 1994	<1	Philadelphia, PA	NWA World Title Tournament	Defeated 2 Cold Scorpio in tournament final.
—	Vacated	—	August 27, 1994	—	Philadelphia, PA	NWA World Title Tournament	Douglas threw the NWA World Heavyweight Championship belt down immediately after winning it and declared that he did not want to be the organization's champion; Douglas then declared the NWA-Eastern Championship Wrestling Heavyweight Championship, of which he was already in possession, to be a World Heavyweight Championship. Eastern Championship Wrestling then withdraws from the NWA and becomes Extreme Championship Wrestling.
46	Chris Candido	1	November 19, 1994		Cherry Hill, NJ	SMW/NWA Championship Wrestling America	Defeated Tracy Smothers in tournament final.
47	Dan Severn	1	February 24, 1995		Erlanger, KY	House show
48	Naoya Ogawa	1	March 14, 1999		Yokohama, Japan	House show
49	Gary Steele	1	September 25, 1999		Charlotte, NC	51st Anniversary Show	Gary Steele pinned Ogawa in a three-way match also involving Brian Anthony.
50	Naoya Ogawa	2	October 1, 1999		Thomaston, CT	House show
—	Vacated	—	July 2, 2000	—	—	—	Ogawa vacated the title.
51	Mike Rapada	1	September 19, 2000		Tampa, FL	House show	Defeated Jerry Flynn in tournament final.
52	Sabu	1	November 14, 2000		Tampa, FL	House show
53	Mike Rapada	2	December 22, 2000		Nashville, TN	House show
54	Steve Corino	1	April 24, 2001		Tampa, FL	House show
—	Vacated	—	October 13, 2001	—	St. Petersburg, FL	53rd Anniversary Show	Title was held up when Corino lost a title match against Shinya Hashimoto when he became unable to compete due to head injury sustained in the match.
55	Shinya Hashimoto	1	December 15, 2001		McKeesport, PA	House show	This was three matches round robin style; Gary Steele vs. Steve Corino, Gary Steele vs. Shinya Hashimoto, and Steve Corino vs. Shinya Hashimoto. Hashimoto won.
56	Dan Severn	2	March 9, 2002		Tokyo, Japan	House show	Match ended in controversy, as the referee gave a fast count.
—	Vacated	—	May 28, 2002	—	—	—	Severn was stripped of the title after failing to make a defense in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. Title made exclusive to TNA.
57	Ken Shamrock	1	June 19, 2002		Huntsville, AL	Weekly pay-per-view event #1	Defeated Malice in the finals of a Gauntlet for the Gold.
58	Ron Killings	1	August 7, 2002		Nashville, TN	Weekly pay-per-view event #8
59	Jeff Jarrett	1	November 20, 2002		Nashville, TN	Weekly pay-per-view event #22	Unified with the WWA World Heavyweight Championship by defeating Sting on May 25, 2003 in Auckland, New Zealand.
60	A.J. Styles	1	June 11, 2003		Nashville, TN	Weekly pay-per-view event #48	This was a three-way match, also involving Raven.
61	Jeff Jarrett	2	October 22, 2003		Nashville, TN	Weekly pay-per-view event #67
62	A.J. Styles	2	April 21, 2004		Nashville, TN	Weekly pay-per-view event #91	This was a Steel Cage match.
63	Ron Killings	2	May 19, 2004		Nashville, TN	Weekly pay-per-view event #95	This was a four-way match, also involving Raven and Chris Harris.
64	Jeff Jarrett	3	June 2, 2004		Nashville, TN	Weekly pay-per-view event #97	This was a King of the Mountain match, also involving A.J. Styles, Raven, and Chris Harris. Ron Killings defeated Jarrett on the June 23 TNA Weekly PPV for the title, however due to issues surrounding the title change, the title was held up, before Vince Russo gave Jarrett the title back.
65	Ray González	1	April 3, 2005	<1	San Juan, PR	IWAPR Juicio Final Live event	Retroactively recognized on February 16, 2015.
66	A.J. Styles	3	May 15, 2005		Orlando, FL	Hard Justice	Defeated Jeff Jarrett for title. Tito Ortiz was the special referee.
67	Raven	1	June 19, 2005		Orlando, FL	Slammiversary	This was a King of the Mountain match, also involving Abyss, Monty Brown, and Sean Waltman.
68	Jeff Jarrett	4	September 15, 2005		Windsor, ON	International Incident
69	Rhino	1	October 23, 2005		Orlando, FL	Bound for Glory	Rhino won the right to face Jarrett in a Gauntlet for the Gold match after designated challenger Kevin Nash fell ill and withdrew.
70	Jeff Jarrett	5	October 25, 2005		Orlando, FL	TNA Impact!	Aired November 3, 2005.
71	Christian Cage	1	February 12, 2006		Orlando, FL	Against All Odds
72	Jeff Jarrett	6	June 18, 2006		Orlando, FL	Slammiversary	This was a King of the Mountain match. Jarrett won due to interference by referee Earl Hebner. Jim Cornette stripped Jarrett of the belt later that week, then returned it to him the following week on the condition that he would have faced the winner of a #1 contender match being held at Victory Road on July 16, 2006. The period of vacancy is not recognized.
73	Sting	2	October 22, 2006		Plymouth, MI	Bound for Glory	Kurt Angle was the special outside enforcer. This was a Title vs. Career match where Sting put his career on the line.
74	Abyss	1	November 19, 2006		Orlando, FL	Genesis	Abyss defeated Sting by disqualification after Sting pushed the official.
75	Christian Cage	2	January 14, 2007		Orlando, FL	Final Resolution	This was a Three-Way Elimination match, also involving Sting.
—	Vacated	—	May 13, 2007	—	—	—	Cage was stripped of the title when the NWA and TNA Wrestling ended their business relations and title agreements.
76	Adam Pearce	1	September 1, 2007		Bayamón, Puerto Rico	House show	Defeated Brent Albright in the finals of the Reclaiming the Glory Tournament. Pearce competed as a substitute for Bryan Danielson, who defeated Pearce in the semifinals but withdrew from the tournament due to a detached retina. Danielson was the referee.
77	Brent Albright	1	August 2, 2008		New York City, NY	ROH Death Before Dishonor VI
78	Adam Pearce	2	September 20, 2008		Philadelphia, PA	Glory By Honor VII
79	Blue Demon, Jr.	1	October 25, 2008		Mexico City, Mexico	House show
80	Adam Pearce	3	March 14, 2010		Charlotte, NC	House show	Three-Way Elimination match also featuring Phill Shatter.
81	Colt Cabana	1	March 6, 2011		West Hollywood, CA	NWA Championship Wrestling from Hollywood taping
82	The Sheik	1	April 23, 2011		Jacksonville, FL	NWA Pro Wrestling Fusion "Subtle Hustle"
—	Vacated	—	July 11, 2011	—	—	—	Sheik was stripped of the title for refusing to defend against Adam Pearce on July 31, 2011.
83	Adam Pearce	4	July 31, 2011		Columbus, OH	NWA at the Ohio State Fair	Defeated Chance Prophet, Jimmy Rave and Shaun Tempers in a four-way match to win the vacant title.
84	Colt Cabana	2	April 8, 2012		Glendale, CA	NWA Championship Wrestling from Hollywood taping
85	Adam Pearce	5	July 21, 2012		Kansas City, KS	Metro Pro Wrestling event	This was a Two Out of Three Falls match. It was match four of a seven-match series between Cabana and Pearce.
—	Vacated	—	October 27, 2012	—	Berwick, Victoria Melbourne, Australia	NWA Warzone Wrestling 14	Pearce left the NWA and resigned as champion after the organization refused to allow him to defend the title in the concluding match of the best-of-seven series against Cabana. The match did take place with Cabana winning, but both wrestlers refused the title in the aftermath.
86	Kahagas	1	November 2, 2012		Clayton, NJ	NWA DAWG: Wrath of Champions	Won an elimination match for the vacant title by last eliminating Damien Wayne. Match also featured Chance Prophet, Jason Kincaid, Lance Erikson, Anthony Nese, Papadon, Biggie Biggs, and Lance Anoa'i. Kahagas was the reigning NWA National Heavyweight Champion at the time of his victory.
87	Rob Conway	1	July 4, 2013		San Antonio, TX	NWA Branded Outlaw Wrestling	Rob Conway replaced an injured Jax Dane and defeated Kahagas for the title
88	Satoshi Kojima	1	January 4, 2014		Tokyo, Japan	Wrestle Kingdom 8 in Tokyo Dome
89	Rob Conway	2	June 2, 2014		Las Vegas, NV	Cauliflower Alley Club Reunion Show
90	Hiroyoshi Tenzan	1	February 14, 2015		Sendai, Japan	The New Beginning in Sendai
91	Jax Dane	1	August 29, 2015	+	San Antonio, TX	NWA Branded Outlaw Wrestling

Combined reigns

Record 9-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair

As of August 20, 2024.

†	Indicates the current champion
<1	The reign is shorter than one day.

Rank	Wrestler	No. of reigns	Combined days
1	Lou Thesz	3	3,749
2	Ric Flair	9	3,103
3	Harley Race	7	1,799
4	Dory Funk, Jr.	1	1,563
5	Dan Severn	2	1,559
6	Gene Kiniski	1	1,131
7	Adam Pearce	5	1,078
8	Jeff Jarrett	6	1,006
9	Pat O'Connor	1	903
10	Jack Brisco	2	866
11	Orville Brown	1	692
12	Buddy Rogers	1	573
13	Rob Conway	2	551
14	Blue Demon, Jr.	1	505
15	Naoya Ogawa	2	469
16	Terry Funk	1	424
17	Dick Hutton	1	421
18	Jax Dane †	1	+
19	Christian Cage	2	245
20	Whipper Billy Watson	1	239
21	Sting	2	216
22	A.J. Styles	3	196
	Hiroyoshi Tenzan	1	196
24	Mike Rapada	2	176
25	Steve Corino	1	175
26	Colt Cabana	2	152
27	Satoshi Kojima	1	149
28	Barry Windham	1	147
29	Masahiro Chono	1	145
30	Kahagas	1	134
31	Ron Killings	2	119
32	Dusty Rhodes	3	107
33	Chris Candido	1	97
34	Raven	1	88
35	Shinya Hashimoto	1	84
36	The Sheik	1	79
37	Ricky Steamboat	1	76
38	Ron Garvin	1	62
39	Tatsumi Fujinami	1	59
40	Abyss	1	56
41	Brent Albright	1	49
	Ken Shamrock	1	49
43	The Great Muta	1	48
44	Sabu	1	38
45	Giant Baba	3	19
46	Kerry Von Erich	1	18
47	Gary Steele	1	7
48	Tommy Rich	1	4
49	Rhino	1	2
50	Ray González	1	<1
	Shane Douglas	1	<1

See also

• National Wrestling Alliance
• Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
• World Championship Wrestling
• Jim Crockett Promotions
• NWA World Heavyweight Championship

References

General

Specific

External links

• Wrestling-Titles.com - NWA World Heavyweight Title History