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NWA North American Heavyweight Championship (Amarillo Version)
The Amarillo version of the NWA North American Heavyweight Championship was a top singles title in the National Wrestling Alliance's Amarillo, Texas territory, Western States Sports. It lasted from 1957 until 1969, when it was replaced with the NWA Western States Heavyweight Championship. Title history * written after a date indicates the title change occurred no later than that date. See also *National Wrestling Alliance The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling promotion and former professional wrestling governing body operated by its parent company Lightning One, Inc. Founded in 1948, the NWA began as a governing body for a ... References External linksWrestling-Titles.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Nwa North American Heavyweight Championship (Amarillo Version) National Wrestling Alliance championships Heavyweight wrestling championships North American professional wrestling championships Professional wrestling in Texas Western States Spor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Western States Sports
Western States Sports (also known as the Amarillo Territory) was a professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Amarillo, Texas in the United States. Founded by Dory Detton in 1946, the promotion enjoyed its greatest success in the 1960s and 1970s under the management of Dory Funk and, later, his sons Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk, with its top performers including the Funks themselves and Ricky Romero. Western States Sports promoted professional wrestling events in multiple cities across West Texas including Amarillo, Abilene, El Paso, Lubbock, Odessa, and San Angelo, along with Albuquerque in New Mexico, Colorado Springs and Pueblo in Colorado, and the Oklahoma Panhandle. Sold by the Funks in 1980, the promotion closed in 1981. History Western States Sports was founded by Dory Detton in 1946. Detton staged his first show in the Tri-State Fairgrounds on March 14, 1946, marking the first professional wrestling show to be held in Amarillo in over five years. In October 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gene LeBell
Ivan “Judo” Gene LeBell (October 9, 1932 – August 9, 2022) was an American martial artist, stunt performer, actor, and professional wrestler. Nicknamed "The Godfather of Grappling", he popularized grappling in professional fighting circles, serving as a precursor to modern mixed martial arts. He worked on over 1,000 films and TV shows and authored 12 books. In 2000, the United States Ju-Jitsu Federation (USJJF) promoted LeBell to 9th dan in jujitsu and taihojutsu. On August 7, 2004, the World Martial Arts Masters Association promoted him to 10th degree. In February 2005, the USJJF made him 9th dan in judo. LeBell has been reported as the inspiration for the character of Cliff Booth ( Brad Pitt) in Quentin Tarantino's '' Once Upon a Time in Hollywood''. However, Tarantino disputes this claim. Early life Ivan Gene LeBell was born in Los Angeles, California. He started training in catch wrestling and boxing from his early childhood, influenced by his mother, "Red He ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
North American Professional Wrestling Championships
North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north'' is related to the Old High German ''nord'', both descending from the Proto-Indo-European unit *''ner-'', meaning "left; below" as north is to left when facing the rising sun. Similarly, the other cardinal directions are also related to the sun's position. The Latin word ''borealis'' comes from the Greek '' boreas'' "north wind, north", which, according to Ovid, was personified as the wind-god Boreas, the father of Calais and Zetes. ''Septentrionalis'' is from ''septentriones'', "the seven plow oxen", a name of ''Ursa Major''. The Greek ἀρκτικός (''arktikós'') is named for the same constellation, and is the source of the English word ''Arctic''. Other languages have other derivations. For example, in Lezgian, ''kefer'' can mean b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heavyweight Wrestling Championships
Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the World Boxing Association, and the World Boxing Organization. In 2020, the World Boxing Council increased their heavyweight classification to 224 pounds (102 kg; 16 st) to allow for their creation of the bridgerweight division. Historical development Because this division had no weight limit, it has been historically vaguely defined. In the 19th century, for example, many heavyweight champions weighed or less (although others weighed 200 pounds). In 1920, the light heavyweight division was formed, with a maximum weight of . Any fighter weighing more than 175 pounds was a heavyweight. The cruiserweight division (first for boxers in the 175–190 pound range) was established in 1979 and recognized by the various boxing organizations i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Wrestling Alliance Championships
National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) is an American professional wrestling promotion operating via its parent company Lightning One, Inc. The following is a list of its active and inactive/unofficial/defunct championships. The professional wrestling championships are not won through legitimate athletic competition; they are instead won via scripted endings to a match or on occasion awarded to a wrestler because of a storyline. Active championships * NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship *NWA World Women's Championship * NWA World Television Championship * NWA World Tag Team Championship *NWA World Women's Tag Team Championship * NWA National Championship * NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship *NWA United States Tag Team Championship Inactive/unofficial/defunct championships World championships * NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship * NWA World Middleweight Championship * NWA World Welterweight Championship * NWA World Historic Light Heavyweight Championship * NWA World His ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ricky Romero (wrestler)
Henry Romero (May 24, 1931 – January 15, 2006) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, "Rapid" Ricky Romero. Romero was best known for his appearances in Texas during the 1970s. Professional wrestling career He wrestled in every major market between 1955 into the 1980s. Ricky tagged with the likes of Pedro Morales in the World Wrestling Association (WWA), Terry Funk and Nick Bockwinkel in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), and Rito Romero in the WWF. He got his huge break, when Dory Funk Sr. brought him into the Amarillo, Texas area during a time of segregation between races. Ricky Romero was the first Hispanic wrestler in the area and gained a fan given nickname "SuperMex". In 1972 he beat Terry Funk in a most popular wrestler contest in Amarillo, was a top draw for Gory Guerrero in El Paso, Texas as well as for Fritz Von Erich in Dallas, Texas, and Paul Boesch in Houston, Texas. He was such a top draw in the Rocky Mountain area Colorad ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pat O'Connor (wrestler)
Patrick John O'Connor (22 August 1924 – 16 August 1990), was a New Zealand amateur and professional wrestler. Regarded as one of the premier workers of his era, O'Connor held the AWA World Heavyweight Championship and NWA World Heavyweight Championship simultaneously, the latter of which he held for approximately two years. He was also the inaugural AWA World Heavyweight Champion. He is an overall two-time world champion. Early life Patrick John O'Connor was born on 22 August 1924 in Raetihi, New Zealand, to parents John Frederick and Isabella. While he attended high school at Feilding Agricultural High School, he also helped tend to the sheep and cattle on his parents' farm. He later attended Massey Agricultural College, and later served for six months in the New Zealand Royal Air Force in 1945. Amateur wrestling career Before entering the world of professional wrestling, O'Connor was an amateur wrestler. He trained under Dave Scarrow, and later Don Anderson, while w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pat Patterson (wrestler)
Pat Patterson (born Pierre Clermont, January 19, 1941 – December 2, 2020) was a Canadian–American professional wrestler and producer, widely known for his long tenure in the professional wrestling promotion WWE, first as a wrestler, then as a creative consultant and producer ("booker"). He is recognized by the company as their first Intercontinental Champion and creator of the Royal Rumble match. He was inducted into the WWF Hall of Fame as part of the class of 1996. In 2019, Patterson became the oldest person to win a title in WWE history, after winning the WWE 24/7 Championship at age 78. He was described by journalist Dave Meltzer as "Vince McMahon's right-hand man" and "one of the chief architects of the WWE, playing an integral role in helping it become a global phenomenon". Early life Patterson was born into an impoverished French-speaking family in the Ville-Marie borough of Montreal, Quebec, Canada on January 19, 1941. He began training to wrestle at the age ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kinji Shibuya
Robert "Kinji" Shibuya (May 16, 1921 – May 3, 2010) was an American professional wrestler and actor. Professional wrestling career In 1952, promoter Al Karasick suggested Shibuya try professional wrestling. He was originally given a villainous gimmick of a Japanese bad guy after World War II. He wrestled in the United States and Canada's Stampede Wrestling and All-Star Wrestling. Shibuya credited Verne Gagne for first making him popular as a villain in 1955. Shibuya was the frequent tag team partner of Mitsu Arakawa, who was billed as his cousin. In 1957, they held the Minneapolis version of the NWA World Tag Team Championship. Personal life Shibuya was born in Utah and raised in California with his four brothers. He attended Belmont High School in Los Angeles. He played football for the Los Angeles City football team, and he also played football at the University of Hawaii. After college, Shibuya played semi-professionally for the Honolulu Polar Bears and Honolulu Warriors ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dory Funk, Jr
Dorrance Earnest Funk (born February 3, 1941), known professionally as Dory Funk Jr., is an American retired professional wrestler and wrestling trainer. The son of Dory Funk (Dorrance Wilhelm Funk) and brother of Terry Funk, he was the promoter of the Amarillo, Texas-based Western States Sports promotion. Funk held the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship once. He is the second-longest reigning NWA World Heavyweight Champion of all time, holding it for over four years. Only Lou Thesz held it longer. He held the WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship once and the CWA World Heavyweight Championship once. He is a 2009 WWE Hall of Fame inductee. He is working for All Japan Pro Wrestling as the Pacific Wrestling Federation (PWF) chairman and runs the Funking Conservatory, a professional wrestling school. Overall in major professional wrestling promotions, he is a one-time world champion consisting of the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship which is widely recognized as a counterpart ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gene Kiniski
Eugene Nicholas Kiniski (November 23, 1928 – April 14, 2010) was a Canadian athlete who played football for the Edmonton Eskimos and then became a three-time professional wrestling world heavyweight champion. "Canada's Greatest Athlete", as he billed himself for promotional purposes, was born in Edmonton, Alberta.National Wrestling Alliance, The Untold Story of the Monopoly that Strangled Pro Wrestling, p. 211, Tim Hornbaker, ECW Press, 2007, Like Bronko Nagurski before him, Kiniski was one of the first world champions in professional wrestling to have a previous background in football. He is the father of professional wrestler Kelly Kiniski and international amateur and professional wrestler Nick Kiniski. Early life One of six children of local politician Julia Kiniski (and her husband Nicholas), Gene Kiniski grew up in Edmonton. At the age of seventeen, he was over six feet tall. Kiniski wrestled and played football at St. Joseph's High School. In March 1947, he entered ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lubbock, Texas
Lubbock ( ) is the 10th-most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of government of Lubbock County. With a population of 260,993 in 2021, the city is also the 85th-most populous in the United States. The city is in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically and geographically as the Llano Estacado, and ecologically is part of the southern end of the High Plains, lying at the economic center of the Lubbock metropolitan area, which has an estimated population of 325,245 in 2021. Lubbock's nickname, "Hub City," derives from it being the economic, educational, and health-care hub of the multicounty region, north of the Permian Basin and south of the Texas Panhandle, commonly called the South Plains. The area is the largest contiguous cotton-growing region in the world and is heavily dependent on water from the Ogallala Aquifer for irrigation. Lubbock is home to Texas Tech University, the sixth-largest college by enrollment in the sta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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