World Championships

[Al]

Just thought I'd throw this one out there. What titles attained world title status? Did the ECW title ever deserve world title status? What other U.S. titles deserved recognition outside of the WWF, WCW and AWA. Did any titles in Japan such as the Triple Crown deserve recognition as a world championship?

[Guest Some Guy]

The NWA title deserved the reconition prior to 1994.

 

ECW was only a "world title" because of the deal with Shane Douglas throwing the NWA title (which was worthless by that point) down in the ring.

 

TNA's title isn't worth shit.

 

ROH is worth slightly more is for no other reason than, as HTQ told me a company in Japan paid to get one of their guys a run with it.

 

The Japanese titles were never really defended outside of Japan to the best of my knoweldge, I was corrected on that mistake in a similar thread at TSM by HTQ.

 

It's really a semantic game anyway.

[Guest Hunter's Torn Quad]

The only World Title that could credibly be considered a World Title was the NWA World Title up until around 1987, when it became pretty much the JCP Title.

 

Apart from that, no 'World' Title was ever really promoted like a World Title, with defences all over the world against wrestlers from different groups. While the NWA World Title was governed over by a board of directors, in much the same way a booking committee might decide any other promotions champion, at least it was defended in other promotions against their wrestlers, so it gave the title an air of legitimacy that no other title had, and no title has today.

 

Every other so-called World Title was just a promotions own title, and they'd almost never be defended against someone from outside the promotion, so that aura of being a true World Title was never able to be established.

[Al]

So perhaps a strict adherance to the "World Title" phrase is inadequate.

 

Let me rephrase the question. What titles held status among the most prestigous in wrestling?

[Loss]

I know Bob Backlund and Hulk Hogan both defended the WWF title on various tours of NJPW, but I don't think it was ever anything long-term. The AWA belt was also defended in All Japan from time to time.

 

But yeah, the NWA World title has really been the only title at that level for any length of time.

[Guest Some Guy]

So perhaps a strict adherance to the "World Title" phrase is inadequate.

 

Let me rephrase the question.  What titles held status among the most prestigous in wrestling?

Prior to 84 the NWA title was the most prestigious. After Hogan took off, the fame he brought to the WWF title gave it the edge that it maintained until 95, it took back it's postition in 98 with Austin's win and WCW's downfall.

 

EDIT: In 95, it wasn't so much Hogan holding the WCW as Nash holding the WWF title that caused the switchover in prestige.

[Guest Hunter's Torn Quad]

Let me rephrase the question.  What titles held status among the most prestigous in wrestling?

Until Misawa and co left All Japan, the Triple Crown was generally considered the most credible major title in wrestling. All challengers were built up, the title was treated with respect, and all title matches ended with a clean winner, or a time limit draw on rare occasions.

 

The GHC Title in NOAH has pretty much taking that mantle, at least until Rikioh's current reign, because in his case, it was used to try and make him a star by having him beat the guy, Kenta Kobashi, who had held it for two years.

 

The ROH Title was treated in a similar manner to the Triple Crown during Samoa Joe's reign, until it got Rikioh'd, but it's getting back to being Kobashied.

 

The TNA Title is Jeff Jarrett's belt buckle.

 

The Raw Title is Triple H's belt buckle, while the WWE Title is just a glorified IC Title.

 

The IWGP Title had prestige until around 2000, when it became Inoki's tool in his MMA fixation, Nagata's reign not withstanding.

[Al]

Not quite what I meant. I mean in KAYFABE terms, what were the top belts?

[sek69]

Well the TNA title is still the NWA title, and the NWA has member groups all over the world. Before the board gave TNA exclusivity to the World titles, they were defended all over the world. Any NWA member fed can still request a world title match in their territory, but the ones overseas tend to not get title matches anymore since they want to keep the belt in the member fed that has weekly TV and PPV.

[Guest Hunter's Torn Quad]

The TNA Title is the NWA Title in name only. It has a minute amount of the prestige and credibility that the NWA Title has.

[Loss]

Not quite what I meant.  I mean in KAYFABE terms, what were the top belts?

The top titles, of course. Wouldn't that always be the answer? Whatever the company's top heavyweight title is is the one that's most respected. Before Hogan, it was the NWA World Title. Since Hogan, the man makes the belt, but not so much the other way around.

[sek69]

Jeff Jarrett still defends the title in other NWA member feds, just because the NWA doesn't have the pull it did in 1983 doesn't mean it's not still the NWA title.

 

If fact, the only title that's exclusive to TNA is the X title.

[Guest Hunter's Torn Quad]

Jeff Jarrett still defends the title in other NWA member feds, just because the NWA doesn't have the pull it did in 1983 doesn't mean it's not still the NWA title.

 

If fact, the only title that's exclusive to TNA is the X title.

It still has nowhere near the prestige of the NWA Title. It's just another promotional singles title.

[Al]

Not quite what I meant.  I mean in KAYFABE terms, what were the top belts?

The top titles, of course. Wouldn't that always be the answer? Whatever the company's top heavyweight title is is the one that's most respected. Before Hogan, it was the NWA World Title. Since Hogan, the man makes the belt, but not so much the other way around.

Yes, but what I am looking for is this. Do we consider the WWA championship a world belt. Was the Triple Crown equal to the WWF title in the 1990s? Do we consider say, Mitsuharu Misawa a former World Champion? That sort of thing.

[sek69]

You could say the same of the WWE titles too. No titles in wrestling have the same prestige they used to anymore.

[Guest Hunter's Torn Quad]

You could say the same of the WWE titles too. No titles in wrestling have the same prestige they used to anymore.

No title has lost as much prestige in the last 15 years as the NWA Title.

[Guest Some Guy]

Not quite what I meant.? I mean in KAYFABE terms, what were the top belts?

The top titles, of course. Wouldn't that always be the answer? Whatever the company's top heavyweight title is is the one that's most respected. Before Hogan, it was the NWA World Title. Since Hogan, the man makes the belt, but not so much the other way around.

Yes, but what I am looking for is this. Do we consider the WWA championship a world belt.

No, I don;t care that JJ won it or defended in Australia. ANy blet that Nathan Jones held is not a world title nor prestigious. It is an embarrassment.

 

Was the Triple Crown equal to the WWF title in the 1990s?

 

Maybe, I think AJPW was probably more popular in Japan than WWF or WCW were in America in the first half of the 90s. The former may have been more prestigious in its country than the latter were in their's.

 

Do we consider say, Mitsuharu Misawa a former World Champion?  That sort of thing.

I suppose it depends on how oyu define "world title."

 

Did Misawa ever defend the title in another country? Was the Triple Crown recognized as a major title outside of Japan?

 

I really don't know.

[Al]

No, I don;t care that JJ won it or defended in Australia. ANy blet that Nathan Jones held is not a world title nor prestigious. It is an embarrassment.

That's a different belt. This one was from LA in the 1960s, held by Fred Blassie, Rikidozan, and others.

[Guest Hunter's Torn Quad]

The Triple Crown was never defended outside of Japan, and it was never really recognized as a major title outside of Japan either. The same can be said of the GHC Title, but there have been rumblings for a while now of a planned GHC Title defence overseas, and the GHC Jr Title was defended in the US a couple of times in Pro Wrestling Iron.

[Guest Some Guy]

No, I don;t care that JJ won it or defended in Australia. ANy blet that Nathan Jones held is not a world title nor prestigious. It is an embarrassment.

That's a different belt. This one was from LA in the 1960s, held by Fred Blassie, Rikidozan, and others.

My bad. Blassie defended the belt in Japan several times and dropped it to Rikidozan, so I supose it would be a "World Title."

[sek69]

You could say the same of the WWE titles too. No titles in wrestling have the same prestige they used to anymore.

No title has lost as much prestige in the last 15 years as the NWA Title.

Actually, you could make the argument that the IC belt has lost more than any belt.

 

I may be a NWA mark, but just because it's not 1986 anymore doesn't mean the NWA belt is totally worthless. It's the only non-WWE title being defended on national televison in the US, which puts it above any other indy fed right now.

[Guest Hunter's Torn Quad]

Actually, you could make the argument that the IC belt has lost more than any belt.

 

I may be a NWA mark, but just because it's not 1986 anymore doesn't mean the NWA belt is totally worthless. It's the only non-WWE title being defended on national televison in the US, which puts it above any other indy fed right now.

Actually, you could make the argument that the IC belt has lost more than any belt.

Not really, because the IC belt, even at its peak, was nowhere close to being as prestigous as the NWA Title, so the NWA belt had farther to fall, and has done just that.

 

I may be a NWA mark, but just because it's not 1986 anymore doesn't mean the NWA belt is totally worthless.

I was a huge NWA fan too, but let's not kid ourselves; the current version of the NWA Title has very little value, even if it is defended on national television, which almost nobody watches anyway. Yes, it also gets defended on PPV from time to time as well, but those PPV's are lucky to top 50,000 buys.

 

It's the only non-WWE title being defended on national televison in the US, which puts it above any other indy fed right now.

Talk about damning with faint praise.