MLW World Heavyweight Championship

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MLW World Heavyweight Championship
The MLW World Heavyweight Championship belt
(April 2018 — present)
Details
PromotionMajor League Wrestling (MLW)
Date establishedApril 7, 2002
Current champion(s)Satoshi Kojima
Date wonFebruary 3, 2024
Other name(s)
  • MLW Championship
Statistics
First champion(s)Shane Douglas
Most reignsSatoshi Kojima (2)
Longest reignJacob Fatu (819 days)
Shortest reignMike Awesome (10 minutes)
Oldest championSatoshi Kojima (53 years)
Youngest championShane Strickland (28 years)
Heaviest championMike Awesome (292 lbs)
Lightest championLow Ki (174 lbs)

The MLW World Heavyweight Championship is a world heavyweight championship owned and promoted by Major League Wrestling (MLW). It is the promotion's principal championship.[1] The championship was established on June 15, 2002 at the Genesis and was active until February 10, 2004 after the promotion stopped hosting events.[2] The championship was reactivated in 2018.

History[edit]

Shane Douglas became the first champion when he won the title in 2002

On June 15, 2002, Major League Wrestling held an eight-man single-elimination tournament to crown the first MLW Champion at its inaugural Genesis event.[3] Jerry Lynn, Shane Douglas, Vampiro and Taiyo Kea advanced to the semifinals.[3] Douglas defeated Lynn to advance to the finals, and caused the match between Vampiro and Kea to be declared a no contest. As a result, both wrestlers advanced to the finals for a three-way dance.[3] Douglas defeated both Kea and Vampiro to become the first champion.[3] Afterwards, Douglas threw the belt down, like he did with the NWA World Heavyweight Championship belt.[4][5] Referee John Finnegan threatened that Douglas would be banned from wrestling in Philadelphia if he didn't defend the title.[6] MLW went on hiatus for three months after the match.

Upon the company's return, Satoshi Kojima defeated Jerry Lynn in New York City, New York at MLW's Reload event on September 26 for the vacant MLW World Heavyweight Championship.[7][8] MLW promoter Court Bauer would later confirm that this title lineage and belt design was a separate championship from the MLW Championship won by Shane Douglas in June 2002.[9] As such, Kojima was recognized as the first MLW World Heavyweight Champion. Kojima defended the title in his home promotion All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), with the defenses airing on both MLW Underground TV and AJPW broadcasts in Japan.[7][8] Kojima lost the title at Hybrid Hell on June 20, 2003 to Mike Awesome. Afterwards, Awesome lost the title to Steve Corino, as Corino exercised Awesome's promise for a title shot.[6] It was later reported that Kojima's employers, AJPW would not allow him to drop the title to an employee of a rival company Pro Wrestling Zero-One, which was Steve Corino.[10] Corino remained champion until the promotion closed on February 10, 2004.[2]

MLW resumed wrestling operations in July 2017. In January 2018, MLW announced its Road to the World Championship, an eight-man single-elimination tournament to crown a new champion.[11] During the tournament, A. C. H. replaced Tom Lawlor in the semi-finals, after he suffered an injury.[12][13] On April 12, Shane Strickland defeated Matt Riddle in The World Championship Finals.[14][15][16][17] Low Ki made the first international title defense since 2003 in Claremont, Australia, as he defeated Jonah Rock on November 30 in a New Horizon Pro Wrestling event.[18] Starting in July 2019, MLW would begin playing a Championship Lineage video (similar to New Japan Pro-Wrestling) highlighting all previous MLW World Heavyweight Champions before sanctioned championship matches.[19] This lineage package would once again confirm Shane Douglas' reign as not recognized as part of the MLW World Heavyweight Championship history.

Championship tournaments[edit]

Inaugural MLW World Championship Tournament (2002)[edit]

Quarterfinals Semifinals Final
         
Jerry Lynn Pin
La Parka 7:04
Jerry Lynn Pin
Shane Douglas 7:32
Shane Douglas Pin
Steve Corino 9:40
Shane Douglas Pin
Taiyo Kea
Vampiro 		1:15
Taiyo Kea Pin
The Wall 6:43
Taiyo Kea Bye
Vampiro 17:00
Vampiro Pin
Christopher Daniels 13:56

Road to the Championship Tournament (2018)[edit]

When the title was reactivated, Shane Strickland won a tournament to win the championship in 2018
First round
Road To The World Championship
(February 8)[20] 		Semifinals
Spring Break
(March 8)[21] 		Final
The World Championship Finals
(April 12)[22]
         
MVP 10:44[20]
Tom Lawlor Pin
A. C. H. [21]
Matt Riddle Pin
Matt Riddle Pin
Jeff Cobb 13:40[20]
Matt Riddle 21:45[22]
Shane Strickland Pin
Shane Strickland Pin
Brody King 10:53[20]
Shane Strickland Pin
Jimmy Havoc [21]
Jimmy Havoc Pin
Maxwell Jacob Friedman 9:36[20]

Reigns[edit]

As of February 5, 2024, there have been eleven reigns and one vacancy shared between ten different champions. Shane Douglas was the inaugural champion, defeating Taiyo Kea and Vampiro at Genesis on June 15, 2002, to become the inaugural champion. Jacob Fatu's reign is the longest at 819 days, while Mike Awesome's reign is the shortest at 10 minutes. Satoshi Kojima is the oldest champion when he won it at 53 years old, while Shane Strickland is the youngest champion at 28 years old.

Satoshi Kojima is the current champion in his second reign. He defeated Alex Kane at SuperFight on February 3, 2024, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[23] Kojima is the only champion to have held the title more than once.

Key
No. Overall reign number
Reign Reign number for the specific champion
Days Number of days held
<1 Reign lasted less than a day
+ Current reign is changing daily
No. Champion Championship change Reign statistics Notes Ref.
Date Event Location Reign Days
1 Shane Douglas June 15, 2002 Genesis Philadelphia, PA 1 90 Defeated Taiyō Kea and Vampiro in a three way dance to become inaugural champion. Douglas immediately threw down the championship after the match. This reign has only received occasional recognition from MLW. [24]
— Vacated September 13, 2002 — — — — Shane Douglas was stripped of the championship due to his controversial actions at Genesis.
2 Satoshi Kojima September 26, 2002 Reload New York City, NY 1 267 Defeated Jerry Lynn to win the vacant title. [25]
3 Mike Awesome June 20, 2003 Hybrid Hell Fort Lauderdale, FL 1 <1 [26]
4 Steve Corino June 20, 2003 Hybrid Hell Fort Lauderdale, FL 1 235 Corino challenged Mike Awesome to a match following Awesome's victory over Satoshi Kojima. Corino claimed that Awesome had promised him a title shot before his win whenever Corino wanted. [26]
— Vacated February 10, 2004 — — — — Steve Corino was no longer listed as the MLW World Heavyweight Champion after the company stopped hosting events.
— Deactivated 2004 — — — — The title became deactivated when the company stopped hosting events.
5 Shane Strickland April 12, 2018 The World Championship Finals Orlando, FL 1 91 Defeated Matt Riddle in the tournament finals to win the revived title. [22]
6 Low Ki July 12, 2018 Fusion Orlando, FL 1 205 MLW recognizes this reign as beginning on July 20, 2018, when the match aired on tape delay. [27]
7 Tom Lawlor February 2, 2019 SuperFight Philadelphia, PA 1 154 [28]
8 Jacob Fatu July 6, 2019 Kings of Colosseum Cicero, IL 1 819 [29][30]
9 Alexander Hammerstone October 2, 2021 Fightland Philadelphia, PA 1 644 This was a Winner takes all match where Hammerstone's MLW National Openweight Championship was also on the line. [31]
10 Alex Kane July 8, 2023 Never Say Never Philadelphia, PA 1 210 [23]
12 Satoshi Kojima February 3, 2024 SuperFight Philadelphia, PA 2 67+ [32]

Combined reigns[edit]

As of April 10, 2024.

Longest reigning champion at 819 days, Jacob Fatu
† Indicates the current champions
Rank Wrestler No. of
reigns 		Combined
days
1 Jacob Fatu 1 819
2 Alexander Hammerstone 1 644
3 Satoshi Kojima † 2 334+
4 Steve Corino 1 235
5 Alex Kane 1 210
6 Low Ki 1 205
7 Tom Lawlor 1 154
8 Shane Strickland 1 91
9 Shane Douglas 1 90
10 Mike Awesome 1 <1

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Current Champions List at mlw.com". Major League Wrestling. mlw.com. Retrieved 2018-09-30.
  2. ^ a b "MLW history". Cagematch. September 17, 2018. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d "MLW World title tournament". www.wrestlingdata.com.
  4. ^ Loverro, Thom (2007). The Rise & Fall of ECW: Extreme Championship Wrestling. Simon & Schuster. pp. 67–75. ISBN 978-1-4165-6156-9.
  5. ^ Linder, Zach (August 27, 2014). "Paul Heyman on Shane Douglas and the birth of Extreme". WWE. Retrieved September 4, 2018.
  6. ^ a b Martin, Fin (August 2003). "Major League Wrestling". Power Slam Magazine. Lancaster, Lancashire, England: SW Publishing LTD. pp. 22–23. 109.
  7. ^ a b "MLW Japan relationship". Cagematch. September 17, 2018. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
  8. ^ a b "MLW Japan relationship 2". Cagematch. September 17, 2018. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
  9. ^ Bauer, Court (November 21, 2019). "Different title. June 2002 tournament was for the MLW Championship. Different belt and lineage from the MLW World Heavyweight that we established in September 2002".
  10. ^ Martin, Findlay (August 2003), Power Slam, SW Publishing, p. 23, issue 109
  11. ^ "MLW: Road to the World Championship". Major League Wrestling.
  12. ^ "ACH To Replace Tom Lawlor In MLW Championship Tournament Due To Injury". Wrestling News.Net. February 28, 2018.
  13. ^ "TOM LAWLOR INJURED, ACH TO REPLACE HIM IN MLW CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT". Pro Wrestling Insider. February 28, 2018. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  14. ^ "MLW TV TAPING RESULTS: THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP FINALS". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. April 13, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
  15. ^ "MLW Results: World Championships Finals – Orlando, FL (4/12)". Wrestling News.Net. April 13, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
  16. ^ "MLW "World Championship Finals Results" from 4/12/18". The Chairshot. April 13, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
  17. ^ "MLW TV Taping Results (4/12/18): New MLW World Heavyweight Champion Crowned". Fightful. April 13, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
  18. ^ "NHPW Final Chapter IX « Events Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database". www.cagematch.net.
  19. ^ "MLW Kings Of Colosseum Recap (7/6): New Champion Crowned, Hammerstone Open Challenge, Reed Vs Horus".
  20. ^ a b c d e Kreikenbohm, Philip (February 8, 2018). "MLW Road To The World Championship - Event @ Gilt Nightclub in Orlando, Florida, USA". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved February 13, 2022.
  21. ^ a b c Kreikenbohm, Philip (March 8, 2018). "MLW Spring Break - Event @ Gilt Nightclub in Orlando, Florida, USA". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved February 13, 2022.
  22. ^ a b c Kreikenbohm, Philip (April 12, 2018). "MLW The World Championship Final - Event @ Gilt Nightclub in Orlando, Florida, USA". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved February 13, 2022.
  23. ^ a b Tessier, Colin (July 8, 2023). "MLW Never Say Never Results (7/8/23): Hammerstone vs. Kane, Open Draft Begins". wrestlezone.com. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
  24. ^ Philip Kreikenbohm (June 15, 2002). "MLW Genesis - Event @ Viking Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  25. ^ Philip Kreikenbohm (September 26, 2002). "MLW Reload - Event @ Manhattan Center in New York City, New York, USA". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  26. ^ a b Philip Kreikenbohm (June 20, 2003). "MLW Hybrid Hell - Event @ War Memorial Auditorium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  27. ^ Philip Kreikenbohm (July 12, 2018). "MLW Fusion #14 - Low Ki vs. Shane Strickland - World Title - TV-Show @ Gilt Nightclub in Orlando, Florida, USA". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  28. ^ Philip Kreikenbohm (February 2, 2019). "MLW Fusion #43 - Superfight - TV-Show @ 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  29. ^ Jeremy Lambert (July 6, 2019). "Jacob Fatu Wins MLW World Title From Tom Lawlor At Kings Of Colosseum". Fightful.com. Retrieved July 6, 2019.
  30. ^ Philip Kreikenbohm (July 6, 2019). "MLW Fusion #65 - Kings Of Colosseum - TV-Show @ Cicero Stadium in Cicero, Illinois, USA". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  31. ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip (October 2, 2021). "MLW Fightland 2021 - TV-Show @ 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA". Cagematch - The Internet Wrestling Database. Retrieved February 13, 2022.
  32. ^ Michaels, Rich (February 3, 2024). "Major League Wrestling 2/3/24 MLW Superfight 4 Results". pwponderings.com. Retrieved February 4, 2024.

External links[edit]

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