NWA Texas Brass Knuckles Championship
Encyclopedia
The NWA Texas Hardcore Championship was a professional wrestling
championship
sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance
. For most of its existence, however, the title served as the Texas territorial version of the NWA Brass Knuckles Championship and was used in matches in which brass knuckles
were worn by the combatants.
The title was known by its original name from its inception in 1953 through 1999, and was defended primarily in the Dallas, Texas
as part of Southwest Sports, Inc.
. It continued to be used after the promotion changed its name to Big Time Wrestling
and, finally, World Class Championship Wrestling
as were the NWA Texas Heavyweight
and Texas Tag Team Championships. In 1987, a year after WCCW left the NWA and became the World Class Wrestling Association, the title was abandoned.
The Texas Brass Knuckles Championship was revived by the NWA in June 1998, and was renamed the NWA Texas Hardcore Championship on April 1, 1999. Finally, the title was abandoned on April 15, 2001.
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
championship
Championship (professional wrestling)
A Championship or "title" in professional wrestling is a recognition promoted by professional wrestling organizations.Championship reigns are determined by professional wrestling matches, in which competitors are involved in scripted rivalries...
sanctioned by the National Wrestling Alliance
National Wrestling Alliance
The National Wrestling Alliance is a wrestling promotion company and sanctions various NWA championships in the United States. The NWA has been in operation since 1948...
. For most of its existence, however, the title served as the Texas territorial version of the NWA Brass Knuckles Championship and was used in matches in which brass knuckles
Brass knuckles
Brass knuckles, also sometimes called knuckles, knucks, brass knucks, or knuckledusters, are weapons used in hand-to-hand combat. Brass knuckles are pieces of metal, usually steel despite their name, shaped to fit around the knuckles...
were worn by the combatants.
The title was known by its original name from its inception in 1953 through 1999, and was defended primarily in the Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
as part of Southwest Sports, Inc.
World Class Championship Wrestling
World Class Championship Wrestling ' was a regional professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter Ed McLemore, by 1966 it was run by Southwest Sports, Inc., whose president, Jack Adkisson, was better known as wrestler Fritz Von Erich...
. It continued to be used after the promotion changed its name to Big Time Wrestling
World Class Championship Wrestling
World Class Championship Wrestling ' was a regional professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter Ed McLemore, by 1966 it was run by Southwest Sports, Inc., whose president, Jack Adkisson, was better known as wrestler Fritz Von Erich...
and, finally, World Class Championship Wrestling
World Class Championship Wrestling
World Class Championship Wrestling ' was a regional professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter Ed McLemore, by 1966 it was run by Southwest Sports, Inc., whose president, Jack Adkisson, was better known as wrestler Fritz Von Erich...
as were the NWA Texas Heavyweight
NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship
The NWA Texas Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling title that has existed since the 1930s. Though its exact date of creation isn't known, it is among the oldest championships used in professional wrestling today...
and Texas Tag Team Championships. In 1987, a year after WCCW left the NWA and became the World Class Wrestling Association, the title was abandoned.
The Texas Brass Knuckles Championship was revived by the NWA in June 1998, and was renamed the NWA Texas Hardcore Championship on April 1, 1999. Finally, the title was abandoned on April 15, 2001.
Title history
Silver areas in the history indicate periods of unknown lineage.| Wrestler: | Times: | Date: | Location: | Notes: |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NWA Brass Knuckles Championship (Texas version) | ||||
| Bull Curry Bull Curry Fred Thomas Koury, Sr. was an American of Lebanese decent who was best known as a professional wrestler under the name ”Wild Bull” Curry. Bull Curry is recognized as one of the originators of the hardcore style predating even legends such as The Sheik and Abdullah the Butcher... |
1 | March 6, 1953 | Houston, Texas Houston, Texas Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ... |
Defeated Danny McShain to become the first champions. |
| Danny Savich | 1 | October 1953 | ||
| Rito Romero Rito Romero Rito Romero Loza was a successful luchador who wrestled in Mexico and in the NWA territories of Texas and Los Angeles. He appeared in several films in his native country along with a number of other luchadors... |
1 | 1954 | ||
| Joe Christie | 1 | September 1954 | ||
| Johnny Valentine Johnny Valentine Johnny Valentine was a professional wrestler with a career spanning almost three decades. He has been inducted into four halls of fame for his achievements in wrestling... |
1 | 1954 | ||
| Joe Christie | 2 | October 15, 1954 | Houston, Texas | |
| Bull Curry | 2 | |||
| Danny McShain Danny McShain Danny McShain was an American professional wrestler who competed in the Southern United States from the 1930s to the 1960s.-Early life:... |
1 | February 10, 1956 | Houston, Texas | |
| Bull Curry | 3 | 1956 | ||
| Don Evans | 1 | March 19, 1956 | Fort Worth, Texas Fort Worth, Texas Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and... |
|
| Bull Curry | 4 | March 26, 1956 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| El Medíco | 1 | November 23, 1956 | Houston, Texas | |
| Don Leo Jonathan Don Leo Jonathan Don Heaton , also known as Don Leo Jonathan, is an American former professional wrestler.-Professional wrestling career:... |
1 | April 19, 1957 | Houston, Texas | Defeated Pepper Gomez. |
| Bull Curry | 5 | March 1958 | ||
| Fritz Von Erich Fritz Von Erich Jack Barton Adkisson was an American professional wrestler under the ring name Fritz Von Erich, better known today as a wrestling promoter and the patriarch of the Von Erich family... |
1 | April 15, 1958 | Dallas, Texas Dallas, Texas Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States... |
|
| Bull Curry | 6 | 1958 | ||
| Stu Gibson | 1 | July 14, 1958 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Bill Longson Bill Longson William Longson was a professional wrestler, who spent most of his career in St. Louis, Missouri under the ring name "Wild Bill" Longson... |
1 | August 5, 1958 | Dallas, Texas | Defeated Fritz Von Erich. |
| Vacated | 1958 | |||
| Joe Christie | 3 | January 6, 1959 | Dallas, Texas | Defeated Danny McShain, Tosh Togo Harold Sakata Toshiyuki "Harold" Sakata was a Japanese American professional wrestler and film actor most famous for his role as the villain "Oddjob" in the James Bond film Goldfinger.-Career:... and Al Costello in a tournament to win the vacant title. |
| Bull Curry | 7 | April 7, 1959 | Dallas, Texas | |
| Golden Giant | 1 | June 9, 1959 | Dallas, Texas | |
| The Zebra Kid The Zebra Kid The Zebra Kid is a ring name used by several professional wrestlers, who would often wear zebra print tights and sometimes masks to the ring.Users of the ring name and gimmick include:... |
1 | June 16, 1959 | Dallas, Texas | |
| Danny McShain | 2 | October 1959 | ||
| Mike DiBiase Michael DiBiase "Iron" Mike DiBiase was an Italian professional wrestler and the adoptive father of professional wrestler "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase. He married Ted's mother Helen Hild , and legally adopted and raised Ted... |
1 | 1959 | ||
| Vacated | December 1959 | |||
| Danny McShain | 3 | December 11, 1959 | Houston, Texas | Defeated Mr. Moto |
| Tony Borne | 1 | June 13, 1960 | Fort Worth, Texas | Defeated Bull Curry |
| Bull Curry | 8 | January 1961 | ||
| Stu Gibson | 2 | 1961 | ||
| Waldo Von Erich Waldo Von Erich Walter Paul Sieber was a Canadian professional wrestler under the ring name Waldo Von Erich. He was billed as the brother of Fritz Von Erich, but was not actually related to Fritz or the rest of the Von Erich family.... |
1 | August 1961 | ||
| Bull Curry | 9 | March 1962 | ||
| Jack Dalton | 1 | March 12, 1962 | Dallas, Texas | |
| Bull Curry | 10 | March 20, 1962 | Dallas, Texas | |
| Tony Borne | 2 | December 10, 1962 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Bull Curry | 11 | January 21, 1963 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Rock Hunter | 1 | 1963 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Bull Curry | 12 | February 25, 1963 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Louie Tillet | 1 | March 18, 1963 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Bull Curry | 13 | May 16, 1963 | Houston, Texas | Defeated Jack Dalton |
| Bill Miller | 1 | September 1963 | ||
| Bull Curry | 14 | November 15, 1963 | Dallas, Texas | Defeated Louie Tillet |
| Bull Curry | 15 | 1964 | ||
| Killer Karl Kox Herb Gerwig Herb Gerwig was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name of Killer Karl Kox, who competed in the National Wrestling Alliance as well as international promotions such as All Japan Pro Wrestling, the International Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling during the... |
1 | July 31, 1964 | Houston, Texas | |
| Bull Curry | 16 | August 1964 | ||
| Killer Karl Kox | 2 | 1964 | ||
| Tony Borne | 3 | October 26, 1964 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Bull Curry | 17 | November 30, 1964 | Fort Worth, Texas | Defeated The Wrecker (Frank Shields) |
| Killer Karl Kox | 3 | February 21, 1965 | ||
| Bull Curry | 18 | May 17, 1965 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Louie Tillet | 2 | July 12, 1966 | Dallas, Texas | |
| Tony Borne | 4 | July 25, 1966 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Waldo Von Erich | 2 | August 8, 1966 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Bull Curry | 19 | 1967 | ||
| Brute Bernard | 1 | August 1967 | ||
| Bull Curry | 20 | September 1967 | ||
| Brute Bernard | 2 | September 18, 1967 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Louie Tillet | 3 | October 1967 | Tillet defended the title in Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in... |
|
| Spoiler #1 Don Jardine Don Jardine was a Canadian professional wrestler best known for his masked gimmick as "The Spoiler".-Career:Jardine began wrestling in the mid-1950s,making his wrestling debut in 1955 at the age of 15... |
1 | |||
| Chris Markoff | 1 | April 1968 | Dallas, Texas | |
| Fritz Von Erich Fritz Von Erich Jack Barton Adkisson was an American professional wrestler under the ring name Fritz Von Erich, better known today as a wrestling promoter and the patriarch of the Von Erich family... |
2 | July 8, 1968 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Title vacated | 1968 | Title vacated and becomes a World Class Championship Wrestling World Class Championship Wrestling World Class Championship Wrestling ' was a regional professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Originally owned by promoter Ed McLemore, by 1966 it was run by Southwest Sports, Inc., whose president, Jack Adkisson, was better known as wrestler Fritz Von Erich... title. |
||
| Kurt Von Hess | 1 | August 6, 1968 | Defeated Duke Keomuka Hisao Tanaka Hisao "Martin" Tanaka was a professional wrestler. He is the father of wrestler Pat Tanaka and referee Jimmy Tanaka.-Career:In the 1950s, Duke Keomuka formed a very successful tag team with Hiro Matsuda... in a tournament final to win the vacant title. |
|
| Title vacated | ||||
| Baron Von Raschke James Raschke James Donald Raschke is a retired professional wrestler best known as Baron von Raschke.-Career:... |
1 | June 3, 1969 | Dallas, Texas | Defeated Wahoo McDaniel Wahoo McDaniel Edward "Wahoo" McDaniel was a Choctaw-Chickasaw Native American who achieved fame as a professional American football player and later as a professional wrestler.-Early life:... in a tournament final to win the vacant title. |
| Killer Kowalski | 1 | November 1970 | ||
| Johnny Valentine | 2 | July 1971 | ||
| Jose Lothario Jose Lothario Guadalupe Robledo is an American professional wrestler, best known by the ring name of Jose Lothario.-Career:Lothario competed in the National Wrestling Alliance for most of his career... |
1 | March 1972 | ||
| Stan Stasiak Stan Stasiak George Stipich , better known by his ring name Stan Stasiak, was a Canadian professional wrestler and fifth World Wide Wrestling Federation Champion. He is the father of professional wrestler Shawn Stasiak.-Career:... |
1 | July 14, 1972 | ||
| Blackjack Lanza Jack Lanza John "Jack" Lanza is a retired professional wrestler. He was one half of The Blackjacks with Blackjack Mulligan in the American Wrestling Association and World Wide Wrestling Federation . He is currently a producer in WWE. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2006.-Career:Lanza started... |
1 | December 1972 | ||
| Blackjack Lanza | 2 | October 1974 | Defeated Jose Lothario. | |
| Mad Dog Vachon Maurice Vachon Maurice Vachon is a retired Canadian professional wrestler, best known by his ring name "Mad Dog" Vachon. He is the brother of wrestlers Paul and Vivian Vachon, and the uncle of wrestler Luna Vachon... |
1 | July 1975 | ||
| Billy Graham | 1 | August 5, 1975 | Dallas, Texas | |
| Jose Lothario | 2 | September 23, 1975 | Dallas, Texas | |
| Davey O'Hannon | 1 | 1976 | ||
| Fritz Von Erich | 3 | |||
| Killer Karl Krupp Killer Karl Krupp George Momberg , better known by the ring name Killer Karl Krupp, was a Dutch-born professional wrestler famous during the 1970s and early 1980s.-Early life:... |
1 | February 3, 1978 | Houston, Texas | |
| Mark Lewin Mark Lewin -Career:Mark Lewin broke into wrestling in the early '50s and had great early success in a matinee-idol babyface tag team with Don Curtis, headlining in major territories like New York and Chicago. The team's brief heel turn was a shock to its many fans... |
1 | 1978 | ||
| Billy Graham | 2 | 1978 | ||
| Killer Karl Krupp | 2 | August 23, 1978 | Abilene, Texas Abilene, Texas Abilene is a city in Taylor and Jones counties in west central Texas. The population was 117,063 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Abilene Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had a 2006 estimated population of 158,063. It is the county seat of Taylor County... |
Defeated The Lawman. |
| Bruiser Brody Frank Goodish Frank Donald Goodish was an American professional wrestler who earned his greatest fame under the name Bruiser Brody. Goodish was an All-State football and basketball player at Warren High School, Michigan, and played football at West Texas A&M University... |
1 | August 25, 1979 | Houston, Texas | |
| Rocky Johnson Rocky Johnson Rocky Johnson is a retired Canadian professional wrestler. Quite popular in his own right in the 1970s and 1980s, he is also known for being the father of actor and professional wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson... |
1 | October 1978 | ||
| Dusty Rhodes Dusty Rhodes (wrestler) Virgil Riley Runnels, Jr. , better known as "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler currently working for WWE... |
1 | January 1979 | ||
| Mark Lewin | 2 | January 28, 1979 | Houston, Texas | |
| Bruiser Brody | 2 | June 10, 1979 | Dallas, Texas | |
| Mark Lewin | 3 | July 22, 1979 | Dallas, Texas | |
| Bruiser Brody | 3 | July 29, 1979 | Dallas, Texas | |
| Toru Tanaka | 1 | 1979 | ||
| Bruiser Brody | 4 | 1979 | ||
| Title vacated | 1979 | |||
| Dusty Rhodes | 2 | December 21, 1979 | Houston, Texas | Defeated Mark Lewin. |
| Mark Lewin | 4 | January 1980 | ||
| Billy Graham | 3 | January 18, 1980 | Houston, Texas | |
| Mark Lewin | 5 | 1980 | ||
| Bruiser Brody | 5 | March 14, 1980 | Houston, Texas | |
| Toru Tanaka | 2 | April 14, 1980 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Title vacated | 1980 | |||
| Stan Stasiak | 2 | July 1980 | ||
| Bruiser Brody | 6 | November 14, 1980 | Houston, Texas | |
| Bugsy McGraw | 1 | December 12, 1980 | Houston, Texas | |
| Title vacated | August 1981 | |||
| Ernie Ladd Ernie Ladd Ernest "Ernie" Ladd , nicknamed "The Big Cat" was an American collegiate and professional football player and a professional wrestler.-Pro Football career:... |
1 | November 1981 | Defeated Jose Lothario. | |
| Jose Lothario | 3 | December 25, 1981 | Dallas, Texas | |
| Bugsy McGraw | 2 | March 29, 1982 | Fort Worth, Texas | |
| Bugsy McGraw | 3 | September 1982 | Defeated Superfly. | |
| The Great Kabuki Akihisa Mera Akihisa Yone Yoshi Mera , better known as The Great Kabuki, is a Japanese professional wrestler. He was famous for being the first to blow "Asian mist" in his opponents' faces.-Professional wrestling career:... |
1 | January 14, 1983 | Dallas, Texas | |
| Terry Gordy Terry Gordy Terry Ray 'Bam Bam' Gordy, Sr. was a professional wrestler who was best known in North America for being a member of the Fabulous Freebirds.-Career:... |
1 | March 25, 1983 | Dallas, Texas | |
| Chris Adams | 1 | August 1983 | ||
| Gino Hernandez Gino Hernandez Charles Eugene Wolfe, Jr. was a professional wrestler better known by his ring name Gino Hernandez. His in-ring nickname was "The Handsome Half-Breed" -Career:... |
1 | October 1984 | ||
| Title vacated | 1985 | |||
| The Great Kabuki | 2 | July 1985 | Won a tournament to win the vacant title. | |
| WCWA Brass Knuckles Championship | ||||
| Abdullah the Butcher Abdullah the Butcher Lawrence Robert "Larry" Shreve best known as Abdullah the Butcher, and also at times The Madman from the Sudan, is a semi-retired Canadian professional wrestler known as one of the most brutal or "hardcore" professional wrestlers of all-time... |
1 | July 4, 1986 | Dallas, Texas | World Class Championship Wrestling leaves the NWA in February 1986. |
| Tony Atlas Tony Atlas Anthony White better known by his ring name "Tony Atlas" is an American bodybuilder, powerlifter, and professional wrestler who has held multiple titles and championships in each sport. He is also known by his bodybuilding title, "Mr... |
1 | August 1987 | Montreal, Quebec, Canada Montreal Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America... |
|
| Title abandoned | 1987 | |||
| NWA Brass Knuckles Championship | ||||
| Khrusher Kong | 1 | June 2, 1998 | Denton, Texas Denton, Texas The city of Denton is the county seat of Denton County, Texas in the United States. Its population was 119,454 according to the 2010 U.S. Census, making it the eleventh largest city in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex... |
Defeated Perry Jackson in a tournament final to win the title after it is revived by the NWA. |
| Eclipse | 1 | August 14, 1998 | North Richland Hills, Texas North Richland Hills, Texas North Richland Hills is a city in Tarrant County, Texas, United States, and a suburb of Fort Worth. The population was 63,343 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth largest city in Tarrant County. In 2006, North Richland Hills was selected as one of the "Top 100 Best Places to live in America"... |
Defeated Awesome Kong to win the title. |
| Nitetrain C. Crane | October 1998 | North Richland Hills | Title awarded to Nitetrain C. Crane when Eclipse fails to appear for a title defense. | |
| Super T | 1 | October 9, 1998 | North Richland Hills | Defeated Nitetrain C. Crane to win the title. |
| Cedric of Hollywood | 1 | January 22, 1999 | North Richland Hills, Texas | |
| Jimmy James | 1 | February 26, 1999 | North Richland Hills, Texas | Title renamed NWA Texas Hardcore Championship on April 1, 1999. |
| NWA Texas Hardcore Championship | ||||
| Canyon | 1 | April 9, 1999 | North Richland Hills, Texas | |
| Jimmy James | 2 | June 10, 1999 | North Richland Hills, Texas | |
| The New Dr. X | 1 | October 1, 1999 | North Richland Hills, Texas | |
| Canyon | 2 | November 26, 1999 | North Richland Hills, Texas | |
| Necro Butcher Necro Butcher Dylan Keith Summers is an American professional wrestler best known by his ring name Necro Butcher. Throughout the years he has worked for various promotions, including Beyond Wrestling, Firestormpro, Ring of Honor, Full Impact Pro, IWA-Mid South, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, Big Japan Pro Wrestling,... |
1 | February 18, 2000 | North Richland Hills, Texas | |
| Convict 00187 | 1 | March 3, 2000 | North Richland Hills, Texas | |
| Necro Butcher | 2 | April 1, 2000 | Blue Mound, Texas Blue Mound, Texas Blue Mound is a city in Tarrant County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,394 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Blue Mound is located at... |
|
| Abdullah the Butcher | 2 | April 14, 2000 | North Richland Hills, Texas | |
| Title vacated | May 2000 | Abdullah was stripped of the title. | ||
| Necro Butcher | 3 | May 26, 2000 | North Richland Hills, Texas | Defeated Canyon to win the vacant title. |
| Mr. Mayhem | 1 | October 15, 2000 | Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home... |
|
| Necro Butcher | 4 | November 24, 2000 | North Richland Hills, Texas | |
| Beast | 1 | February 23, 2001 | North Richland Hills, Texas | |
| Convict 00187 | 2 | March 16, 2001 | North Richland Hills, Texas | Defeated Beast and Necro Butcher in a three-way match. |
| Title abandoned | April 15, 2001 | Title abandoned when the NWA Texas hardcore division is discontinued. | ||