IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship
IWGP United States Championship.PNG
The IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship belt
Details
PromotionNew Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW)
Date establishedMay 12, 2017[1]
Current champion(s)Hiroshi Tanahashi
Date wonAugust 14, 2021
Other name(s)
IWGP United States Championship

The IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship (IWGP USヘビー級王座, IWGP US hebī-kyū ōza) is a professional wrestling championship owned and promoted by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. "IWGP" is the acronym of NJPW's governing body, the International Wrestling Grand Prix (インターナショナル・レスリング・グラン・プリ, intānashonaru resuringu guran puri).[3] The title was officially announced on May 12, 2017, and the inaugural champion was crowned on the weekend of July 1 and 2, 2017, during NJPW's G1 Special in USA shows in Long Beach, California. The current champion is Hiroshi Tanahashi, who is in his first reign.

History[]

Background[]

On May 12, 2017, during the third night of the War of the Worlds tour, co-produced by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and Ring of Honor (ROH), NJPW United States Ambassador George Carroll announced the creation of the IWGP United States Championship.[1][4] The following day, NJPW revealed the title's official name as the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship.[5] The title is part of an American expansion plan which NJPW had made public in the months prior to the announcement. Plans had been made to run extended tours in the United States with California as the base, starting in 2018.[6] The plan was a direct response to WWE taking four wrestlers from NJPW in January 2016.[7] Tetsuya Naito noted how the new title had exactly the same concept as the IWGP Intercontinental Championship,[8] which had been established during NJPW's May 2011 United States tour, promoted in conjunction with Jersey All Pro Wrestling (JAPW).[9] NJPW chairman Naoki Sugabayashi stated that he wanted the title to be defended at future NJPW events in the United States as well as events held by ROH.[10] The title belt was made red to distinguish it from the black IWGP Heavyweight Championship belt and the white IWGP Intercontinental Championship belt.[10]

Inaugural tournament[]

Inaugural champion Kenny Omega

The first champion would be crowned in a single-elimination tournament on the weekend of July 1 and 2, 2017, during NJPW's G1 Special in USA shows in Long Beach, California.[1][4] Jay Lethal was the first participant announced for the tournament on May 12.[1][4] On May 18, Hangman Page was officially added to the tournament.[11] The other six participants as well as the bracket of the tournament, confirmed as a single-elimination tournament, were revealed on June 12.[12][13] Kenny Omega went on to defeat Tomohiro Ishii in the final to become the inaugural champion.[14]

First round
(July 1) 		Semifinals
(July 2) 		Final
(July 2)
         
Michael Elgin Pin
Kenny Omega 22:31[15]
Kenny Omega Pin
Jay Lethal 12:56[2]
Jay Lethal Pin
Hangman Page 08:30[15]
Kenny Omega Pin
Tomohiro Ishii 31:20[2]
Juice Robinson Sub
Zack Sabre Jr. 10:04[15]
Zack Sabre Jr. Pin
Tomohiro Ishii 11:42[2]
Tomohiro Ishii Pin
Tetsuya Naito 15:51[15]

Establishment[]

Since its creation, the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship has been defended in both Japan and the United States with the first Japanese defense taking place on September 24, 2017, at Destruction in Kobe and the first stateside defense taking place on October 15, 2017, at Global Wars: Chicago.[16][17] After it had been announced in November 2017 that former WWE wrestler Chris Jericho would be challenging for the title at Wrestle Kingdom 12 in Tokyo Dome, Omega stated that the title had already surpassed the IWGP Intercontinental Championship as the number two championship in NJPW.[18] However, the promotion ranks the title in the second tier, behind both the IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental Championships and alongside the NEVER Openweight Championship.[19]

Throughout 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic prevented the champion Jon Moxley from travelling to Japan for NJPW events while keeping his commitments with All Elite Wrestling (AEW), with whom he is also contracted. His AEW contract also prevented him from appearing on NJPW's American events. This resulted in the championship not being defended from February 2020 to February 2021, when an arrangement was made between the two promotions to allow Moxley to appear on NJPW's American television show Strong in a title defense.[20]

With AEW and New Japan having formed a working relationship, Jon Moxley was permitted to defend the title on AEW's flagship television program: AEW Dynamite. In May 2021, the title was defended in AEW for the first time, with Moxley defeating Yuji Nagata in his fourth defense of the title. In July 2021 at AEW Fyter Fest Night 1, Moxley retained the championship for his record-setting fifth defense against Impact Wrestling's Karl Anderson. The following week on Night 2 of the event, Lance Archer defeated Jon Moxley for the championship in a Texas Death Match for his second reign.

Reigns[]

Current champion Hiroshi Tanahashi

As of September 21, 2021, there have been ten reigns shared among seven wrestlers with one vacancy. Kenny Omega was the inaugural champion. Jon Moxley holds three records: he shares the record for most reigns with Juice Robinson and Lance Archer at two, his second reign is the longest reign at 564 days, and he is the only wrestler to have held the title for a consecutive year. Lance Archer's second reign of 24 days is the shortest in the title's history.

Hiroshi Tanahashi is the current champion, who is in his first reign, and is the first ever Japanese wrestler to win the title. He won the title by defeating previous champion Lance Archer in Los Angeles, California at NJPW Resurgence on August 15, 2021.

Key
No. Overall reign number
Reign Reign number for the specific champion
Days Number of days held
Defenses Number of successful defenses
+ Current reign is changing daily
No. Champion Championship change Reign statistics Notes Ref.
Date Event Location Reign Days Defenses
1 Kenny Omega July 2, 2017 G1 Special in USA
Night 2 		Long Beach, California, U.S. 1 210 4 Defeated Tomohiro Ishii in the final of an eight-man tournament to become the inaugural champion. [2]
2 Jay White January 28, 2018 The New Beginning in Sapporo Sapporo, Japan 1 160 3 [21]
3 Juice Robinson July 7, 2018 G1 Special in San Francisco Daly City, California, U.S. 1 85 0 [22]
4 Cody September 30, 2018 Fighting Spirit Unleashed Long Beach, California, U.S. 1 96 0 [23]
5 Juice Robinson January 4, 2019 Wrestle Kingdom 13 in Tokyo Dome Tokyo, Japan 2 152 3 [24]
6 Jon Moxley June 5, 2019 Best of the Super Juniors 26 Final Tokyo, Japan 1 130 0 [25]
— Vacated October 14, 2019 — — — — — Vacated after Moxley was unable to wrestle in a scheduled championship defense at King of Pro-Wrestling due to travel issues arising from Typhoon Hagibis. [26]
7 Lance Archer October 14, 2019 King of Pro-Wrestling Tokyo, Japan 1 82 1 Defeated Juice Robinson in a No Disqualification match to win the vacant title. [27]
8 Jon Moxley January 4, 2020 Wrestle Kingdom 14 in Tokyo Dome
Night 1 		Tokyo, Japan 2 564 5 This was a Texas Death Match. [28]
9 Lance Archer July 21, 2021 AEW Fyter Fest
Night 2 		Garland, Texas, U.S. 2 24 1 This was a Texas Death Match. This was the first time the title has changed hands outside of a NJPW-hosted event. [29]
10 Hiroshi Tanahashi August 14, 2021 Resurgence Los Angeles, California, U.S. 1 38+ 1 Tanahashi became the first Japanese wrestler to hold the title. [30]

Combined reigns[]

Record-tying two-time champion Jon Moxley; he has the longest singular reign for the title at 564 days, and he also has the longest combined reign at 694 days

As of September 21, 2021.

† Indicates the current champion
Rank Wrestler No. of
reigns 		Combined
defenses 		Combined
days
1 Jon Moxley 2 5 694
2 Juice Robinson 2 3 237
3 Kenny Omega 1 4 210
4 Jay White 1 3 160
5 Lance Archer 2 2 106
6 Cody 1 0 96
7 Hiroshi Tanahashi † 1 1 38+

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Currier, Joseph (May 12, 2017). "NJPW to crown first IWGP United States Champion in Long Beach". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved May 12, 2017.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e "G1 Special in USA". New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved July 2, 2017.
  3. ^ Fiorvanti, Tim (January 2, 2017). "What to watch for at New Japan Pro Wrestling's Wrestle Kingdom 11". ESPN. Archived from the original on January 3, 2017. Retrieved May 12, 2017.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c Johnson, Mike (May 12, 2017). "New Japan announces new championship, unveils belt". Pro Wrestling Insider. Retrieved May 12, 2017.
  5. ^ 7月のロサンゼルス大会を前に“IWGP USヘビー級王座”の新設がアナウンス！ ROHのリング上でベルトがお披露目!!. New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). May 13, 2017. Archived from the original on May 13, 2017. Retrieved May 13, 2017.
  6. ^ Meltzer, Dave (April 10, 2017). "April 10, 2017 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Wrestlemania 33 review, WWE financials, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Campbell, California. pp. 29–31. ISSN 1083-9593.
  7. ^ 新日本、７月のロス興行はＷＷＥへ「反撃ののろし」. Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). January 5, 2017. Retrieved May 12, 2017.
  8. ^ 【新日本】内藤ＩＣベルト破壊！ ＵＳ王座新設に怒り爆発. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). May 19, 2017. Retrieved May 19, 2017.
  9. ^ Johnson, Mike (January 5, 2011). "New Japan to institute new belt in United States, NYC location and more NJPW in the States news". Pro Wrestling Insider. Retrieved May 19, 2017.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b Fiorvanti, Tim (July 2, 2017). "The ultimate guide to New Japan Pro Wrestling's 'G1 Special in USA' shows". ESPN. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  11. ^ 『G1 Special in USA』ロス大会“初日”を、現地時間・7月1日（土）、アメリカ国内でAXS TV で生中継！ 4大タイトル戦、USヘビー級王座決定トーナメントも正式決定！. New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). May 19, 2017. Archived from the original on May 19, 2017. Retrieved May 19, 2017.
  12. ^ 【ロス2連戦の“USヘビー級王座決定トーナメント”詳細が決定！】 1回戦でケニーvsエルガン！ 内藤vs石井！ ジュースvsザック！ リーサルvsペイジ！. New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). June 12, 2017. Archived from the original on June 12, 2017. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
  13. ^ Meltzer, Dave; Rose, Bryan (June 12, 2017). "NJPW announces matches for Long Beach shows". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
  14. ^ Fontaine, Paul; Currier, Joseph (July 2, 2017). "NJPW G1 Special live results: The first IWGP US Champion is crowned". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved July 2, 2017.
  15. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "G1 Special in USA". New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved July 1, 2017.
  16. ^ Rose, Bryan (September 23, 2017). "NJPW Destruction in Kobe live results: Kenny Omega vs. Juice Robinson". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
  17. ^ Meltzer, Dave; Currier, Joseph (October 15, 2017). "ROH Global Wars Chicago live results: Kenny Omega vs. Yoshi-Hashi". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
  18. ^ 【新日本】ケニーが主張 １・４東京ドームのＵＳ王座戦をＷメーンに！. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). November 11, 2017. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
  19. ^ "History -Champions-". New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). Retrieved November 11, 2017.
  20. ^ Renner, Ethan (March 26, 2021). "NJPW New Japan Cup USA 2021 tournament bracket set". WON/F4W. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
  21. ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip (January 28, 2018). "NJPW The New Beginning In Sapporo 2018 - Day 2". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
  22. ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip (July 7, 2018). "NJPW G1 Special In San Francisco". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
  23. ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip (September 30, 2018). "NJPW Fighting Spirit Unleashed". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
  24. ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip (January 4, 2019). "NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 13 In Tokyo Dome". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
  25. ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip (June 5, 2019). "NJPW Best Of The Super Junior XXVI - Day 15". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
  26. ^ Rose, Bryan (October 14, 2019). "Moxley, Sabre off NJPW KOPW due to travel issues, US title now vacant". F4WOnline.com. Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  27. ^ Renner, Ethan (October 14, 2019). "NJPW King of Pro Wrestling live results: Kazuchika Okada vs. SANADA". F4WOnline.com. Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  28. ^ "2020.01.04 WRESTLE KINGDOM in TOKYO DOME". New Japan Pro-Wrestling. January 4, 2020. Retrieved January 4, 2020.
  29. ^ Barnett, Jake (July 21, 2021). "7/21 AEW Dynamite results: Barnett's live review of Fyter Fest Night Two with Jon Moxley vs. Lance Archer in a Texas DeathMatch for the IWGP U.S. Championship, Britt Baker vs. Nyla Rose for the AEW Women's Championship, Chris Jericho vs. Shawn Spears, Orange Cassidy vs. The Blade, Darby Allin vs. Wheeler Yuta". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  30. ^ Powell, Jason (August 14, 2021). "8/14 NJPW Resurgence results: Lance Archer vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi for the IWGP U.S. Championship, Jay White vs. David Finlay for the Never Openweight Championship, Jon Moxley and a mystery partner vs. Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson, Tomihiro Ishii vs. Moose". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved August 15, 2021.

External links[]

Retrieved from ""