NWA World Middleweight Championship

The NWA World Middleweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) between 1939 and 2010. For most of its existence, it was defended in the Mexican lucha libre promotion Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL), who called it the Campeonato Mundial Peso Medio de NWA. As it is a professional wrestling championship, its holders were determined by promoters or promotions, not by athletic competition. The official middleweight limits in lucha libre are 82 kg (181 lb) to 87 kg (192 lb), but this rule is broken when convenient.[Note 3][3]

NWA World Middleweight Championship
The championship belt
Details
PromotionEmpresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre
(1939–1990)
Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre
(1990–1994, 2003–2010)
Various
(1994–2003)
Date established1939[G]
Date retiredAugust 12, 2010[1]
Other name(s)
World Middleweight Championship (1939–1952)[G]
Statistics
First champion(s)Gus Kallio[G]
Final champion(s)Averno[1]
Most reignsRené Guajardo (6 reigns)[G]
Longest reignThe Great Sasuke (1,487)
Shortest reignEl Satánico (Less than 1 day)
Heaviest championEl Satánico (97 kilograms (214 lb))[Note 1]
Lightest championAverno (79 kilograms (174 lb))[Note 2][2]

The championship was created as the "World Middleweight Championship" in early 1939, by Salvador Lutteroth, owner of Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre (EMLL).[G] He awarded it to Gus Kallio, a five-time National Wrestling Association World Middleweight Champion, nicknamed "The King of the Middleweights" in the United States.[G][4] When Octavio Gaona defeated Kallio on March 29, 1939, he won both middleweight championships. The National Wrestling Association title was retired in 1940, to give prominence to Lutteroth's creation.[5] When EMLL joined the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) in 1952, the belt was prefixed with "NWA".[6]

In the late 1980s, EMLL withdrew from the NWA and in the early 1990s changed its name to Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL).[7] CMLL retained ownership of three NWA-branded championships which originated in the promotion.[G] The other two were the NWA World Welterweight Championship and the NWA World Light Heavyweight Championship. All continued to be billed as "Campeonatos de NWA". In 1994, Último Dragón bought the NWA World Middleweight Championship and its booking rights from CMLL.[G] He chose to make himself first champion, and won it in a match with Corazón de León at a Wrestle and Romance (WAR) show on November 8, 1994, in Korakuen Hall. At that point he began promoting the title exclusively in Japan, holding it himself until vacating it in 1998. During his run with the championship Último Dragón also won the J-Crown championships, eight unified lightweight championships, but the NWA World Middleweight Championship was never integrated into the J-Crown. In 2003, after ending The Great Sasuke's long reign, Dragón signed with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and returned the championship to CMLL who he worked with off and on until that point. Averno defeated Zumbido to win the vacant title in its first CMLL match since 1994.[8]

In March 2010, Blue Demon Jr., the president of NWA Mexico the local representative of the National Wrestling Alliance, demanded that CMLL (a non-member of NWA Mexico) cease promoting the NWA-branded championships, declaring that all three championships had been vacated as far as the NWA was concerned.[9] NWA Mexico had already tried to reclaim CMLL's three NWA-branded titles on a previous occasion. CMLL ignored both requests; the NWA Welterweight Champion, Mephisto, commented instead that "the titles belong to CMLL", thus the NWA could not vacate them.[10] On August 12, 2010, CMLL unveiled the new NWA World Historic Middleweight Championship to replace the original championship, which it conceded to NWA Mexico.[11]

Since 1939 45 wrestlers have shared 84 NWA Middleweight Championship reigns. René Guajardo held the championship a record six times. Tarzán López' four reigns totalled 2,948 days, the longest of any champion. The Great Sasuke had the longest single reign, at 1,548 days. Emilio Charles, Jr. had the shortest reign at 11 days.

Title history
Key
No. Overall reign number
Reign Reign number for the specific champion
Days Number of days held
N/A Unknown information
(NLT) Championship change took place "no later than" the date listed
† Championship change is unrecognized by the promotion
No. Champion Championship change Reign statistics Notes Ref.
Date Event Location Reign Days
Empresa Mexicana de la Lucha Libre (EMLL)
1 Gus Kallio N/A Live event N/A 1 [Note 4] Gus Kallio was awarded the championship in late 1938 or early 1939 due to the fact that he already held the World Middleweight Championship in the United States. [G]
2 Octavio Gaona February 19, 1939 Live event Mexico City 1 350 Octavio Gaona won the championship to permanently establish it as an EMLL title. He also won Kallio's other World Middleweight Championship. [G]
3 Tarzán López February 4, 1940 Live event Mexico City 1 681 López won both versions of the World Middleweight Championship. After this title change only the Mexican version remained active. [G]
4 Black Guzmán December 16, 1941 Live event Mexico City 1 57   [G]
5 Tarzán López February 11, 1942 Live event Mexico City 2 1,473   [G][12]
6 Gory Guerrero February 23, 1946 Live event Mexico City 1 782   [G]
7 Mike Kelly April 12, 1948 Live event Mexico City 1 411   [G]
8 Tarzán López May 28, 1949 Live event N/A 3 481   [G]
9 Sugi Sito September 21, 1950 EMLL 17th Anniversary Show Mexico City 1 368   [G][13]
10 Enrique Llanes September 24, 1951 EMLL 18th Anniversary Show Mexico City 1 132   [G][13]
— Vacated February 3, 1952 — — — — EMLL vacated the championship for undocumented reasons. [G]
11 Tarzán López July 13, 1952 Live event Mexico City 4 342 Tarzán López won a tournament to win the vacant title. [G]
National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) / Empresa Mexicana de la Lucha Libre (EMLL)
12 Sugi Sito June 20, 1953 Live event Mexico City 2 195   [G]
13 Santo January 1, 1954 Live event Mexico City 1 1,021   [G]
14 Rolando Vera October 19, 1956 Live event Monterrey, Nuevo León 1 1,455   [G]
15 René Guajardo October 13, 1960 Live event Monterrey, Nuevo León 1 415   [G]
16 Antonio Posa December 2, 1961 Live event Mexico City 1 140   [G]
17 René Guajardo April 18, 1962 Live event Mexico City 2 190   [G]
18 Rayo de Jalisco October 25, 1962 Live event Mexico City 1 583   [G]
19 Benny Galant May 30, 1964 Live event Mexico City 1 118   [G][14]
20 Rayo de Jalisco September 25, 1964 EMLL 31st Anniversary Show Mexico City 2 196   [G][13]
21 René Guajardo April 9, 1965 Live event Mexico City 3 400   [G]
22 Jerry London May 14, 1966 Live event Mexico City 1 48   [G]
23 René Guajardo July 1, 1966 Live event Monterrey, Nuevo León 4 253   [G][15]
24 Ray Mendoza March 10, 1967 Live event Mexico City 1 [Note 5]   [G][16]
— Vacated May 1967 — — — — EMLL vacated the championship for undocumented reasons. [G]
25 René Guajardo July 29, 1967 Live event N/A 5 629 Guajardo won a decision match for the vacant title. [G]
26 El Santo December 13, 1968 Super Viernes Mexico City 2 133   [G][17]
26 Rayo de Jalisco April 18, 1969 13. Aniversario de Arena México Mexico City 3 119   [G]
27 El Solitario August 15, 1969 EMLL 36th Anniversary Show Mexico City 1 378   [G][13]
28 Mashio Koma June 28, 1970 Live event Mexico City 1 161   [G]
29 Aníbal December 6, 1970 Live event Mexico City 1 845   [G]
30 René Guajardo March 30, 1973 Live event Mexico City 6 [Note 6]   [G]
— Vacated 1974 — — — — EMLL vacated the championship for undocumented reasons. [G]
31 Aníbal September 20, 1974 EMLL 41st Anniversary Show Mexico City 2 [Note 7] Aníbal defeated El Cobarde in a decision match to win the title. [G][13]
— Vacated May 1975 — — — — The championship was vacated when Aníbal left EMLL to work for the Universal Wrestling Association. [G]
32 Perro Aguayo July 4, 1975 Live event Mexico City 1 476 Perro Aguayo won a tournament to claim the vacant championship. [G]
33 El Faraón October 22, 1976 Live event Mexico City 1 140   [G]
34 Perro Aguayo March 11, 1977 Live event Mexico City 2 114   [G]
35 Ringo Mendoza July 3, 1977 Live event Guadalajara, Jalisco 1 101   [G]
36 Joe Plardy October 12, 1977 Live event Acapulco, Guerrero 1 44   [G]
37 El Faraón November 25, 1977 Live event Mexico City 2 84   [G]
38 Ringo Mendoza February 17, 1978 Live event Los Angeles, California 2 51   [G]
39 Perro Aguayo April 9, 1978 Live event Guadalajara, Jalisco 3 75   [G]
40 Ringo Mendoza June 23, 1978 Live event Mexico City 3 51   [G]
41 Tony Salazar August 13, 1978 Live event Mexico City 1 174   [G]
42 Ringo Mendoza February 3, 1979 Live event Acapulco, Guerrero 4 218   [G]
43 Satoru Sayama September 9, 1979 Live event Guadalajara, Jalisco 1 201   [G]
44 El Satánico March 28, 1980 Live event Mexico City 1 20   [G]
45 Cachorro Mendoza April 17, 1980 Live event Monterrey, Nuevo León 1 59   [G]
46 Sangre Chicana June 15, 1980 Live event Monterrey, Nuevo León 1 217   [G]
47 Tony Salazar January 18, 1981 Live event Monterrey, Nuevo León 1 54   [G][18][19]
48 Sangre Chicana March 13, 1981 Live event Mexico City 2 21   [G][18]
49 Ringo Mendoza April 3, 1981 Live event Mexico City 5 240   [G][18]
50 El Faraón November 29, 1981 Live event Guadalajara, Jalisco 3 124   [G][18]
51 César Curiel April 2, 1982 Live event Mexico City 1 206   [G]
52 El Satánico October 25, 1982 Live event Mexico City 2 0   [G]
53 El Jalisco October 25, 1982 Live event Guadalajara, Jalisco 1 139   [G]
54 El Satánico March 13, 1983 Live event N/A 3 82   [G]
55 Lizmark June 3, 1983 Live event Mexico City 1 182   [G]
56 El Satánico December 2, 1983 Live event Mexico City 4 250   [G]
57 Gran Cochisse August 8, 1984 Live event Mexico City 1 37   [G][20]
58 El Satánico September 14, 1984 Live event Mexico City 5 16   [G][20]
59 Gran Cochisse September 30, 1984 Live event Guadalajara, Jalisco 2 49   [G][20]
60 Gran Hamada November 18, 1984 Live event Mexico City 1 138   [G][20]
61 La Fiera April 5, 1985 Live event Mexico City 1 106   [G]
62 Chamaco Valaguez July 20, 1985 Live event Puebla, Puebla 1 302   [G]
63 Gran Cochisse May 18, 1986 Live event N/A 3 152   [G]
64 Kung Fu October 17, 1986 Live event Mexico City 1 273   [G]
Empresa Mexicana de la Lucha Libre (EMLL)
65 El Dandy July 17, 1987 Live event Mexico City 1 81   [G][21]
66 Kung Fu October 6, 1987 Live event Mexico City 2 248   [G][21]
67 Atlantis June 10, 1988 Live event Mexico City 1 37   [G][22]
68 Emilio Charles Jr. July 17, 1988 Live event Mexico City[23] 1 11   [G]
69 Atlantis July 28, 1988 Live event Mexico City[24] 2 15   [G]
70 Emilio Charles Jr. August 12, 1988 Live event Mexico City 2 259   [G]
71 Ángel Azteca April 28, 1989 Live event Mexico City[25] 1 399   [G][26]
72 El Dandy June 1, 1990 Live event Mexico City 2 61   [G][27]
73 Atlantis August 1, 1990 Live event Acapulco, Guerrero 3 945   [G]
Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL)
74 Mano Negra March 3, 1993 Live event Acapulco, Guerrero 1 81   [G][28]
75 Oro May 23, 1993 Live event N/A 1 41   [G][28]
76 Mano Negra July 3, 1993 Live event Puebla, Puebla 2 155   [G][28]
77 Corazón de León December 4, 1993 Live event Mexico City 1 339   [G][28]
78 Último Dragón November 8, 1994 WAR WAR-ISM 1994 Tokyo, Japan 1 [Note 8] Match promoted by WAR. Último Dragón stops defending the title around 1997. [G]
— Vacated 1998 — — — — Último Dragón was forced to vacate the championship due to an arm injury. [G]
79 The Great Sasuke February 7, 1999 Toryumon King of Dragon 1999 Yokohama, Japan 1 1,546 Great Sasuke defeated Tokyo Magnum in tournament final to win the championship. [G]
80 Último Dragón May 3, 2003 Live event Sendai, Miyagi, Japan 2 [Note 9]   [29]
— Vacated May 2003 — — — — The championship was vacated when Último Dragon began to work for World Wrestling Entertainment.[29] [G]
81 Averno September 3, 2004 Live event Mexico City 1 120 Averno defeated Zumbido in a decision match for the vacant championship. [8]
82 Místico January 1, 2005 Super Viernes Mexico City 1 496   [30][31]
83 Black Warrior May 12, 2006 Super Viernes Mexico City 1 474   [32]
84 Místico April 29, 2007 N/A Mexico City 2 215   [33]
85 Averno November 30, 2007 Super Viernes Mexico City 2 986 CMLL replaced the championship with the NWA World Historic Middleweight Championship on August 12, 2010. [33]
— Deactivated August 12, 2010 — — — — The championship was retired when CMLL returned it to NWA. [1]

Reigns by combined length
A color photograph of a Japanese man in a black mask with a white front and red and blue markings pointing at the camera
The Great Sasuke, who had the longest individual reign of any NWA World Middleweight Champion.
A color photograph of a Japanese wrestler wearing a light blue mask, cape and trunks posing on a turnbuckle with his hands in the air
Último Dragón, brought the championship to Japan
A color photograph of a Caucasian wrestler smiling as he leans back against the ropes.
Chris Jericho, as Corazón de León, lost the championship in Japan to signal the transition from CMLL's control.
Key
Symbol Meaning
¤ The exact length of at least one title reign is uncertain, so the shortest possible length is used.
Rank Wrestler No. of reigns Combined
days		 Ref(s).
1 Tarzán López42,977[G]
2 René Guajardo61,937¤ [Note 6][G]
3 Great Sasuke11,487[G][29]
4 Rolando Vera11,455[G]
5 Último Dragón21,177¤ [Note 8][Note 9][G] [29]
6 Aníbal21,122¤ [Note 7][G]
7 Averno21,106[1][8][30][33]
8 El Santo21,021[G]
9 Atlantis3997[G]
10 Rayo de Jalisco3898[G]
11 Gory Guerrero1782[G]
12 Místico2711[30][32][33]
13 Perro Aguayo3665[G]
14 Ringo Mendoza5662[G]
15 Sugi Sito2564[G]
16 Kung Fu2521[G]
17 Black Warrior1474[32][33]
18 Mike Kelly1411[G]
19 Ángel Azteca1400[G]
20 El Satánico5388[G]
21 El Solitario1378[G]
22 Octavio Gaona1350[G]
23 El Faraón3348[G]
24 Corazón de León1339[G]
25 Chamaco Valaguez1302[G]
26 Emilio Charles Jr.2270[G]
27 Gran Cochisse3238[G]
28 Sangre Chicana2237[G]
29 Mano Negra2236[G]
30 Tony Salazar2228[G]
31 César Curiel1206[G]
32 Satoru Sayama1201[G]
33 Lizmark1182[G]
34 Mashio Koma1161[G]
35 El Dandy2141[G]
36 Antonio Posa1140[G]
37 El Jalisco1139[G]
38 Gran Hamada1138[G]
39 Enrique Llanes1132[G]
40 Benny Galant1118[G]
41 La Fiera1106[G]
42 Cachorro Mendoza159[G]
43 Black Guzmán157[G]
44 Ray Mendoza151¤ [Note 5][G]
45 Jerry London148[G]
46 Joe Plardy144[G]
47 Oro141[G]
48 Gus Kallio1¤ [Note 4][G]

Footnotes
  1. The official weight of some of the champions have not been documented, making it possible that there was a heavier champion
  2. The official weight of some of the champions have not been documented, making it possible that there was a lighter champion
  3. One example of the weight limits being ignored was El Satánico holding the title, despite weighing 97 kg (214 lb).
  4. The length of Gus Kallio's title reign is too uncertain to calculate.
  5. The exact date on which Ray Mendoza vacated the championship is unknown, which means the title reign lasted between 51 and 81 days.
  6. The exact date on which René Guajardo vacated the championship during his sixth reign is unknown, which means the title reign lasted between 277 and 538 days.
  7. The exact date on which Aníbal vacated the championship during his second reign is unknown, which means the title reign lasted between 223 and 253 days.
  8. The exact date on which Último Dragon vacated the championship during his first reign is unknown, which means the title reign lasted between 1,150 and 1,514 days.
  9. The exact date on which Último Dragon vacated the championship during his second reign is unknown, which means the title reign lasted between 1 and 28 days.

See also

References
General source

[G] – Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2006). "Mexico: EMLL NWA World Middlweight Title". Wrestling Title Histories (4th ed.). Archeus Communications. pp. 389–390. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.

Specific
  1. "Número Especial – Lo mejor de la lucha libre mexicana durante el 2004". Súper Luchas (in Spanish). January 12, 2011. 399.
  2. "Rudos – Averno". Fuego en el ring (in Spanish). Archived from the original on July 11, 2011. Retrieved October 17, 2009.
  3. Arturo Montiel Rojas (2001-08-30). "Reglamento de Box y Lucha Libre Professional del Estado de Mexico" (PDF) (in Spanish). Comisión de Box y Lucha Libre Mexico D.F. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 30, 2006. Retrieved 2009-04-03. Articulo 242: "Super welter 82 kilos / Medio 87 kilos"
  4. "Londos Rated Champ By National Association". Reading Eagle. September 20, 1933. Archived from the original on September 27, 2015. Retrieved February 20, 2010.
  5. Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2006). "United States: 19th Century & widely defended titles – NWA, WWF, AWA, IWA, ECW, NWA: World Middleweight Title". Wrestling Title Histories (4th ed.). Archeus Communications. p. 14. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
  6. Hornbaker, Tim (2007). "International Expansion". National Wrestling Alliance: the untold story of the monopoly that strangled pro wrestling. ECW Press. pp. 24–25. ISBN 978-1-55022-741-3.
  7. Madigan, Dan (2007). Mondo Lucha a Go-Go: the bizarre & honorable world of wild Mexican wrestling. HarperCollins Publishers. p. 32. ISBN 978-0-06-085583-3. in the late 1980s EMLL withdrew from the National Wrestling Alliance
  8. "Número Especial – Lo mejor de la lucha libre mexicana durante el 2004". Súper Luchas (in Spanish). January 24, 2005. 91.
  9. Ruiz, Alex (March 4, 2010). "Blue Demon Jr. no reconoce los títulos de NWA que están en el CMLL- Realizará eliminatorias para sacar a los nuevos campeones". Súper Luchas (in Spanish). Archived from the original on June 26, 2015. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
  10. Ruiz Glez, Alex (March 12, 2010). "Mephisto responde a Blue Demon Jr.: "No tengo que entrar a ninguna eliminatoria porque yo soy el campeón..."". Súper Luchas (in Spanish). Archived from the original on June 26, 2015. Retrieved March 14, 2010.
  11. "Campeones" (in Spanish). Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre. Archived from the original on September 22, 2020. Retrieved June 24, 2015.
  12. Hoops, Brian (February 11, 2017). "On this day in pro wrestling history (Feb 11): AJ Styles wins the IWGP Title". Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Archived from the original on February 14, 2017. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
  13. Ruiz Glez, Alex (September 7, 2010). "CMLL: 79 historias, 79 Aniversario, las 79 luchas estelares". Súper Luchas (in Spanish). Archived from the original on July 1, 2015. Retrieved October 20, 2012.
  14. Hoops, Brian (May 30, 2015). "On this day in pro wrestling history (May 30): Inoki beats Andre to win MSG league, Garea & calhoun win WWWF Tag titles, Gagne vs. Funk Jr., UFC booker wins title". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Archived from the original on March 21, 2020. Retrieved March 21, 2020.
  15. Hoops, Brian (July 1, 2015). "On this day in pro wrestling history (July 1): Ric Flair stripped of WCW title, Von Erich win WCCW Tag titles". Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Archived from the original on February 13, 2017. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  16. Centinela, Teddy (March 10, 2015). "En un día como hoy… 1967: Ray Mendoza vence a René Guajardo y conquista el Campeonato Mundial de Peso Medio NWA". Súper Luchas (in Spanish). Archived from the original on July 8, 2015. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  17. "NWA World Middleweight Championship « Titles Database « CAGEMATCH - the Internet Wrestling Database". Archived from the original on 2020-10-31. Retrieved 2020-10-28.
  18. "1981 Especial". Box y Lucha Magazine (in Spanish). January 7, 1982. pp. 2–28. issue 1501.
  19. Hoops, Brian (January 18, 2019). "Pro wrestling history (01/18): Ivan Koloff defeats Bruno Sammartino for WWWF title". Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Archived from the original on July 26, 2020. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
  20. "1984 Especial". Box y Lucha Magazine (in Spanish). January 10, 1985. pp. 2–28. issue 1656.
  21. "1986 Especial". Box y Lucha Magazine (in Spanish). January 8, 1987. pp. 2–28. issue 1760.
  22. F4W Staff (June 10, 2015). "ON THIS DAY IN PRO WRESTLING HISTORY (JUNE 10): HARLEY RACE BEATS RIC FLAIR FOR NWA TITLE, JERRY BLACKWELL TURNS BABYFACE". Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Archived from the original on February 12, 2017. Retrieved February 10, 2017.
  23. "EMLL Super Viernes". Cagematch. July 17, 1988. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  24. "EMLL Super Viernes". Cagematch. July 28, 1988. Archived from the original on September 29, 2015. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  25. "EMLL Super Viernes". Cagematch. April 28, 1989. Archived from the original on October 9, 2015. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  26. "1988 Especial". Box y Lucha Magazine (in Spanish). January 10, 1989. pp. 2–28. issue 1864.
  27. Hoops, Brian (June 1, 2015). "On this day in pro wrestling history (June 1): Rogers beats Gomez, Gordman & Goliath, Baba loses PWF Title, Flair Vs. KVE, Lawler Vs. Son, Undertaker Vs. Edge". Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Archived from the original on February 13, 2017. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  28. "1992 Especial". Box y Lucha Magazine (in Spanish). January 10, 1993. pp. 2–28. issue 2072.
  29. "Número Especial – Lo mejor de la lucha libre mexicana durante el 2003". Súper Luchas (in Spanish). January 5, 2004. 40.
  30. Centela, Teddy (January 1, 2015). "En un día como hoy… Funciones de Año Nuevo… En 1935, Palillo vs. Pompín Iglesias". Súper Luchas (in Spanish). Archived from the original on August 2, 2015. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
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  32. "Lo Mejor de la Lucha Libre Mexicana duranted el 2006". Súper Luchas (in Spanish). December 23, 2006. 192. Archived from the original on November 11, 2017. Retrieved July 11, 2009.
  33. "2007 Lo Mejor de la Lucha Mexicana". Súper Luchas (in Spanish). December 26, 2007. 244. Archived from the original on July 2, 2018. Retrieved July 11, 2009.
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