As Individual (3 reigns):
62-549: The NXT Tag Team Championship is a men's professional wrestling tag team championship created and promoted by the American promotion WWE . It is defended on NXT , the promotion's developmental brand . The current champions are Nathan Frazer and Axiom , who are in their second reign, both as a team and individually. They won the title by defeating previous champions Chase U ( Andre Chase and Ridge Holland ) at No Mercy on September 1, 2024. Established on January 23, 2013,
124-541: A fatal four-way tag team elimination match to unify the NXT UK Tag Team Championship into the NXT Tag Team Championship. Jensen and Briggs were recognized as the final NXT UK Tag Team Champions, while Pretty Deadly went forward as the unified NXT Tag Team Champions. The original NXT Tag Team Championship belts featured a simple design. The center plate was an irregular polygon. Prominently down
186-575: A few isolated championship matches. On rare occasions, a male wrestler will compete in championship matches for championships generally contested exclusively in the women's division. Such examples include Harvey Wippleman becoming the only male to capture the WWF Women's Championship in 2000, and Eric Young winning one half of the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Championship in 2012. Gimmick match classifications sometimes factor into
248-600: A gender specification, though Chyna defeating Jeff Jarrett to win the WWF Intercontinental Championship in 1999 and Tessa Blanchard defeating Sami Callihan to win the Impact World Championship in 2020 are notable exceptions. In promotions featuring only a single gender (such as Women of Wrestling or Shimmer Women Athletes ), gender classifications are often unnecessary as well. Titles specifically designated for women may fall into any of
310-754: A hardcore championship is the FTW Championship in All Elite Wrestling (AEW), which is primarily contested in FTW Rules matches . A past such title is WWE Hardcore Championship , which was active from 1998 to 2002. In recent years, style-based championships have centered around what is known as "scientific" or technical wrestling. Examples of this include the NXT Heritage Cup (which is specifically contested under "British Round Rules") in WWE 's NXT brand, and
372-545: A knee infection. In All Elite Wrestling , when a champion gets injured, a match is held to determine an interim champion until the lineal champion is cleared to compete, after which a match is held between the two to crown an undisputed champion. For example, Jon Moxley became interim AEW World Champion in June 2022 after then-lineal champion, CM Punk, was sidelined with a foot injury. When Punk returned in August, Moxley defeated him in
434-461: A match to become the undisputed champion. These interim reigns are not recognized as official reigns. However, if the lineal champion's injury renders them indefinitely sidelined, they can forfeit the championship and the interim champion becomes the lineal champion. An example of this happened in November 2022, when it was announced that then-lineal AEW Women's World Champion , Thunder Rosa relinquished
496-416: A measure of their performance ability and drawing power. The most accomplished or decorated wrestlers tend to be revered as legends. American wrestler Ric Flair has had multiple world heavyweight championship reigns spanning over three decades. Japanese wrestler Último Dragón once held and defended a record 10 titles simultaneously . Professional wrestling's championship belts are modeled similarly to
558-714: A severe injury and despite the championship being quite important. In 1998, Shane Douglas kept the ECW World Heavyweight Championship while sidelined. In 2005, Trish Stratus kept the WWE Women's Championship while sidelined with a herniated disk for four months. In 2012, CM Punk kept the WWE Championship while undergoing and recovering from knee surgery. In 2015, Ryback kept the WWE Intercontinental Championship while recovering from
620-480: A short, TV-friendly time limit, usually 10 or 15 minutes. These titles were originally introduced during a time when weekly TV shows were seen as a vehicle to promote the money-making live shows, where major title defenses took place. Television titles provided a championship that would be defended on the weekly television shows. Examples of a television championship include the AEW TNT Championship (named after
682-503: A stable have the most reigns at three, while individually, stable member Kyle O'Reilly has the most reigns, also at three. The inaugural champions were the British Ambition (Adrian Neville and Oliver Grey ). The team with the longest reign is The Ascension ( Conor O'Brian/Konnor and Rick Victor/Viktor ), who held the title for 364 days, while the shortest reign belongs to Moustache Mountain ( Tyler Bate and Trent Seven ), who held
SECTION 10
#1732858424212744-434: A wrestler and defended in sanctioned matches, but are not recognized as legitimate titles by the promotion. Examples of unsanctioned championships include: The Creed Brothers The Creed Brothers are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of brothers Brutus Creed (Drew Kasper; born May 13, 1996) and Julius Creed (Jacob Kasper; born October 3, 1994). As of November 2023 they are signed to
806-544: Is WWE's NXT Heritage Cup , which is represented with a trophy. The fate of a title depends on the champion's condition and the importance of the title to the promotion (e.g. Gregory Helms held the WWE Cruiserweight Championship , despite being sidelined with an injury, because the Cruiserweight Championship was not a major championship). The champion may be forced to vacate his or her title if
868-564: Is a recognition promoted by professional wrestling organizations . Championship reigns are determined by professional wrestling matches , in which competitors are involved in predetermined rivalries. These narratives create feuds between the various competitors, which cast them as villains and heroes (heels and faces respectively). The bookers in a company will place the title on the most accomplished performer, or whom they believe will generate fan interest in terms of event attendance and television viewership. Professional wrestling portrays
930-427: Is becoming increasingly rare as champions are needed to be present in regular tours even when titles are not defended. Professional wrestling championships are often split up into various different classifications, each of which designate varying levels of importance to the belts. The world heavyweight championship (also just world championship) is the name given to the championship that is typically presented as being
992-465: Is often implicitly understood. Other tag team championships include 3-on-3 and 4-on-4 formats, which are often explicitly stated within the championship name to distinguish them from the 2-on-2 championships. Some teams may invoke what is called the Freebird Rule , in which a stable of three or more wrestlers are all officially recognized as champion, allowing any pairing of the stable's members to defend
1054-542: Is scripted, there is no promotion or group of people that recognize one official world title of the industry (the closest was the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship during the territory days during the mid to late 20th century). Instead, each promotion can promote their top title as a world title, with some of them promoting title matches around the world to claim the designation. Some promotions may even recognize multiple world championships, such as
1116-481: Is the case with WWE, as due to the large size of its roster, the promotion splits its roster into what they call brands where talent exclusively perform and their two main brands ( Raw and SmackDown) each have their own world championship. The first widely recognized world heavyweight championship was the World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship , created in 1905, and the inaugural champion
1178-484: Is very common for these variations to be the second most prestigious championship in a promotion, but exceptions have existed, like the now defunct WWE European Championship , which served as the company's tertiary singles championship, and the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship , which many NWA territories created versions of and promoted as their most prestigious championship whenever
1240-530: The 2018 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships and attending a try-out that June. In February 2021, Drew Kasper was signed to a three-year contract by WWE after attending a try-out at his brother's urging. Both men were assigned to the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida for training. In June 2021, Drew and Jacob Kasper were respectively renamed "Brutus Creed" and "Julius Creed". In August 2021,
1302-1106: The Duke Blue Devils . He was a two-time National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) All-American and a three-time NCAA Academic All-American , and won the 2018 Atlantic Coast Conference heavyweight championship. He set a Blue Devils record for the most wins in a single season and ranked second for overall career wins. He participated in the 2016 Olympic trials in the Greco-Roman wrestling and freestyle wrestling categories, placing fifth. In 2017, he trained with mixed martial artist Daniel Cormier to help Cormier prepare for his bout with Jon Jones at UFC 214 . In 2018, he began working for Duke University as an assistant wrestling coach. Drew Kasper attended Otterbein University in Westerville, Ohio , where he majored in exercise science , graduating in 2020. During his time at Otterbein University he competed in collegiate wrestling for
SECTION 20
#17328584242121364-643: The Men's Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic . On June 4, 2022 at NXT In Your House they defeated Pretty Deadly to win the NXT Tag Team Championship . At Worlds Collide on September 4, 2022, the Creed Brothers lost the NXT Tag Team Championship to Pretty Deadly after Damon Kemp , a member of the Diamond Mine stable, turned on the Creed Brothers, costing them the match. In July 2023, the Creed Brothers lost to
1426-591: The Otterbein Cardinals , with an overall record of 108–13. He was a two-time NCAA Division III All-American. In his final year, Kasper had a perfect 30–0 record and was ranked number one in the United States, but did not compete in the 2020 NCAA championships due to their cancellation as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic . In October 2020, Jacob Kasper was signed by WWE after being scouted by Gerald Brisco at
1488-544: The ROH Pure Championship in Ring of Honor (which is contested under "Pure Wrestling Rules"). A variation that was prominent in the 1980s and 1990s and made a return in the 2020s is a "television championship" or "iron man championship", which involves more frequent title defenses as well as the stipulations that the belt can only change hands on television (as opposed to non-televised house shows ) with title matches having
1550-539: The TNA Digital Media Championship , which was created in 2021 to reflect TNA 's online platforms or WWE's Speed Championship which is named after the X (Twitter) exclusive streaming show WWE Speed . In 2021, AEW introduced the first TV title specifically for female wrestlers, the AEW TBS Championship , named for the network that is the home of Dynamite as of January 5, 2022, serving as
1612-509: The home network of AEW's Rampage and Collision broadcasts plus other AEW programming) and the ROH World Television Championship . A modern take on the traditional TV title are internet championships. As professional wrestling began having events on streaming and online platforms, some promotions modified their television championships to be promoted as internet championships to reflect this. Examples of this include
1674-710: The professional wrestling promotion WWE , where they perform on the Raw brand and are members of the stable American Made and its sub-group Diamond Mine . They are former one-time NXT Tag Team Champions . The Kasper brothers were born in Lexington, Ohio . They attended Lexington High School , where they both competed in amateur wrestling . Jacob Kasper attended Duke University in Durham, North Carolina , where he studied sociology , graduating in 2018. During his time at Duke University, he participated in collegiate wrestling for
1736-523: The "Comisión de Box y Lucha Libre Mexico D.F." (the Mexico City Boxing and Wrestling Commission), the main regulatory body in Mexico: Gender occasionally plays a role in the classifications of championship belts. Due to professional wrestling being a male dominated sport, only women's titles are given official gender classifications. Generally, only men are allowed to win the championships without
1798-400: The "X". At the top of the plate right above the vertical NXT logo is a banner that reads "Tag Team", while at the bottom of the plate below the logo is a banner that reads "Champions". Black, silver, and gold ornamentation fills in the rest of the plate. Unlike the previous design, the design does not differentiate between the two championships. Coming in line with WWE's other championship belts,
1860-542: The "legitimacy" of their own titles, although cross-promotion does happen. When one promotion absorbs or purchases another, the titles from the defunct promotion may continue to be defended in the new promotion or be decommissioned, usually through championship unification . Behind the scenes , the bookers in a company will place the title on the most accomplished performer, or those the bookers believe will generate fan interest in terms of event attendance and television viewership. Lower ranked titles may also be used on
1922-399: The Creed Brothers aligned themselves with Chad Gable by assisting Gable to attack Bo Dallas . The stable of Gable and the Creed Brothers was subsequently dubbed " American Made ". The Creed Brothers wrestle in a power-based style incorporating " slams , suplexes and collisions". Their finishing moves include a clothesline / sliding lariat . Their style has drawn comparisons to both
NXT Tag Team Championship - Misplaced Pages Continue
1984-417: The Creed Brothers appeared on NXT as members of Roderick Strong 's Diamond Mine stable , establishing themselves as villains in the process. They made their in-ring debut at the August 24, 2021, NXT tapings (with their match airing on September 7, 2021), defeating Chuckie Viola and Paxton Averill in a squash . On February 15, 2022, at NXT Vengeance Day , the Creed Brothers defeated MSK to win
2046-570: The Dyad in a "Loser Leaves NXT" match ; they were reinstated the following month after defeating the Dyad in a cage match . The Creed Brothers, along with fellow Diamond Mine member Ivy Nile , made their main roster debut on the October 30, 2023 episode of Raw , defeating Alpha Academy . At Halloween Havoc the following day, they defeated Angel Garza and Humberto Carrillo in a " Tables, Ladders, and Scares match " in their final match for NXT. On
2108-670: The NWA World Heavyweight Champion was not around. Another common classification of championships are by weight classes . Given the scripted nature of professional wrestling matches, weight classes are not always strictly adhered to. Typically, promotions prefer to have a heavyweight title as their top prize, with other designations, such as cruiserweight , middleweight , or light-heavyweight titles. Promotions often have one sub-heavyweight classification, while others sometimes may have more. Mountevans' committee (a governing body that instilled rules for professional wrestling in
2170-615: The NXT Tag Team Championship. In June 2012, WWE established NXT as their developmental territory , replacing Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW). The following year on the January 23 episode of NXT , special guest and WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels announced that there would be an eight-team single-elimination tournament to crown the first NXT Tag Team Champions. On the January 31 taping of NXT ( aired February 13), British Ambition ( Adrian Neville and Oliver Grey ) defeated The Wyatt Family ( Luke Harper and Erick Rowan ) in
2232-455: The November 6, 2023 episode of Raw , the Creed Brothers (and Ivy Nile) formally joined the Raw brand . On the November 27 episode of Raw , the Creed Brothers won a tag team turmoil match for an Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship title shot; however, they failed to defeat The Judgment Day ( Finn Bálor and Damian Priest ) for the titles on the December 18 episode of Raw . In July 2024,
2294-482: The UK) created seven formal weight divisions: Classifying championships into weight classes is also common practice in the lucha libre promotions of Mexico . Lucha libre has a detailed weight class system patterned after boxing. Each weight class has an official upper limit, but examples of wrestlers who are technically too heavy to hold their title can be found. The following weight classes exist in lucha libre, as defined by
2356-455: The center of the plate was a vertical NXT logo in gold; to the left center side of the logo read "Tag" while the right center side read "Team". The two side plates contained the WWE logo. The plates were on a black leather strap. A unique feature of this original design was that the two belts were slightly different. On one belt, the left side of the center plate was black with "Tag" written in gold while
2418-458: The championship belts in boxing , and other combat sports such as mixed martial arts . They are made of elaborately designed plates of gold or other precious metals , usually bearing the name of the title and the wrestling promotion, and is on a leather strap. The color and designs vary with each title and promotion. A wrestler may win a sanctioned championship and redesign the belt itself. Some (such as John Cena 's Spinner Belt) later became
2480-411: The championship. This rule is most commonly applied to the standard 2-on-2 tag team championship, though it has also been applied to the other variants. Tag team championships are also often combined with regional modifiers, gimmick modifiers, gender modifiers, and weight class modifiers to further distinguish them. In such cases, the primary title is usually called the world tag team championship , with
2542-487: The counterpart to the male TNT Championship. Sister promotion ROH introduced a similar title for their women's division, ROH Women's World Television Championship . Tag team championships are yet another different form of wrestling title. Some consider it to be a style championship, but tag team championships are unique in their ability to include multiple wrestlers on teams competing for multiple belts. The most common form of tag team championships are in 2-on-2 format, which
NXT Tag Team Championship - Misplaced Pages Continue
2604-520: The creation of title belts. In these classifications, special skills in a certain type of match or a certain style of wrestling is the signature of the division, and the champion is considered to be the most skilled wrestler at that specific style. Gimmick championships often take very differing forms. A common variation is the "hardcore championship", a title often defended in weapons-filled and bloody competitions with fewer rules (count outs and disqualifications are not usually allowed). An active example of
2666-533: The first team to hold the championship on more than one occasion when they defeated American Alpha ( Chad Gable and Jason Jordan ) at TakeOver: The End . Although NXT had been established as WWE's developmental territory, over the years it grew to establish itself as WWE's third major brand. This would become official in September 2019 when NXT was moved to the USA Network , thus making the NXT Tag Team Championship
2728-513: The inaugural championship team was British Ambition ( Adrian Neville and Oliver Grey ). In September 2019, the company began promoting NXT as its " third brand " when the NXT television program was moved to the USA Network . Two years later, however, NXT reverted to its original function as WWE's developmental brand. In September 2022, the NXT UK Tag Team Championship was unified into
2790-496: The injury becomes too severe and the championship is too important. In May 2015, Daniel Bryan vacated the WWE Intercontinental Championship due to a major concussion and a year before, he had to vacate the world title due to neck surgery. In November 2015, Seth Rollins vacated the WWE World Heavyweight Championship due to a knee injury that required surgery. However, a champion may keep their title despite
2852-556: The most prestigious of those contested within a promotion. The wrestler holding a championship with this name is most commonly referred to as the "world heavyweight champion" or "world champion" (though some promotions may use synonymous/alternate terms, such as the AAA Mega Championship of Lucha Libre AAA World Wide or the Undisputed WWE Championship , the premier title of WWE ). Since professional wrestling
2914-432: The official belt design. Others (such as Stone Cold Steve Austin 's Smoking Skull Belt, Edge 's Rated-R Spinner, Daniel Bryan 's eco-friendly belt, and The Fiend Bray Wyatt 's Universal title with his face on it) were not used after their respective title reign. While rare, there are cases of championships being represented with items other than belts, such as championship trophies, medals, crowns, etc. An example of this
2976-548: The other categories listed here (e.g. women's world titles or women's tag team titles). Andy Kaufman once used gender classifications to his advantage, turning inter-gender competitions into a unique wrestling side-show. Kaufman declared himself the "Inter-Gender Champion of the World", and offered $ 1,000 to any woman who could pin him. None were successful during the run of the gimmick; though in other promotions such as WCW and WWE , women have successfully pinned men, most notably in
3038-413: The other championships seen as secondary titles. Examples of 2-on-2 tag team championships: Examples of 3-on-3 tag team championships: Examples of 4-on-4 tag team championships: Examples of 5-on-5 tag team championships: The concept of championships, and their central role in wrestling, allows for the potential for angles . One such angle is an unsanctioned championship title. These are claimed by
3100-465: The performers who show potential, thus allowing them greater exposure to the audience. However, other circumstances may also determine the use of a championship. A combination of a championship's lineage, the caliber of performers as champion, and the frequency and manner of title changes, dictates the audience's perception of the title's quality, significance, and reputation. A wrestler's championship accomplishments can be central to their career, becoming
3162-749: The promotion is based, an example being WWE's United States Championship . Sometimes it may specify a specific state or territory, such as the NWA Georgia Heavyweight Championship . It is also common to be a smaller division of the world, an example being the WWE Intercontinental Championship , the AEW International Championship (previously known as the All-Atlantic Championship), or the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship . It
SECTION 50
#17328584242123224-458: The right side of the center plate was gold with "Team" written in black; the other belt was the opposite. The side plates also reflected this coloring; the side plate on the black side was dominated by a black background behind the WWE logo while the side plate on the gold side had a dominant gold background behind the WWE logo. When first introduced, the side plates had the WWE scratch logo but in August 2014, all of WWE's pre-existing championships at
3286-555: The structure of title match combat sports . Participants compete for a championship, and must defend it after winning it. These titles are represented physically by a championship belt that is worn or carried by the champion(s). In the case of team wrestling, there is a belt for each member of the team. Almost all professional wrestling promotions have one major title, and some have more. Championships are designated by divisions of weight, height, gender, wrestling style, and other qualifications. Typically, each promotion only recognizes
3348-891: The third major tag team title for men in WWE, along with the WWE World Tag Team Championship and WWE Tag Team Championship . However, WWE revamped NXT in September 2021 and returned the brand to its original function as a developmental territory. In August 2022, WWE announced that the NXT UK brand would go on hiatus and would relaunch as NXT Europe at a later time. As such, NXT UK's championship's were unified into their respective NXT championship counterparts. On September 4, 2022, at Worlds Collide , Pretty Deadly (Elton Prince and Kit Wilson) defeated Gallus ( Mark Coffey and Wolfgang ), reigning NXT Tag Team Champions The Creed Brothers (Brutus Creed and Julius Creed), and NXT UK Tag Team Champions Brooks Jensen and Josh Briggs in
3410-554: The time received a minor update, changing the scratch logo to WWE's current logo that was originally used for the WWE Network that launched earlier that year in February. On April 1, 2017, at WrestleMania Axxess , NXT General Manager William Regal announced that all of the NXT title belts would be redesigned. The new title belts were unveiled at TakeOver: Orlando that same night and given to
3472-506: The title due to a back injury she suffered in August. As a result, then-interim champion, Jamie Hayter , became the official champion. Before the 1980s when title matches were rare, some champions could keep their titles even when injured; Bruno Sammartino kept his WWWF World Heavyweight Championship from April to June 1976 despite being injured by a botched body slam from Stan Hansen . In Mexico , this situation still occurs, but in Japan , it
3534-405: The title for 2 days. However, due to tape delay , which are the air dates that WWE recognizes for the NXT Tag Team Championship's history, The Ascension's reign is regarded as lasting 343 days (still the longest) and that Moustache Mountain's reign was 22 days; as a result, MSK 's ( Nash Carter and Wes Lee ) second reign of 6 days (5 days according to WWE) is recognized as the shortest. Tyler Bate
3596-476: The tournament final to become the inaugural champions. In the first title defense, however, Neville and Bo Dallas defended the title against The Wyatt Family due to Grey being injured, where they lost; Dallas was not recognized as champion. On the June 20 taping of NXT (aired July 17), Neville and Corey Graves defeated The Wyatt Family for the title, making Neville the first two-time champion. On June 8, 2016, The Revival ( Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder ) became
3658-425: The updated design features side plates with a removable center section that can be customized with the champion's logo; the default side plates feature the WWE logo. As a result, the championship was the first WWE tag team championship to feature customizable side plates. As of November 29, 2024, there have been 38 reigns between 29 teams composed of 60 individual champions, and three vacancies. The Undisputed Era as
3720-401: The winners of their respective matches. Both the center plate and side plates of the new NXT Tag Team Championship belts are the same shape as the previous design and are again on black leather straps. The differences are the design on the plates themselves. The center plate maintains the vertical NXT logo prominently in the center, but now in silver with the WWE logo affixed at the very center of
3782-613: Was George Hackenschmidt . The lineage of many prominent contemporary world championships can be traced back to the World Heavyweight Wrestling Championship, with the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship considered its direct successor , with many world championships having been spun of from the NWA's title. A very common championship variation. The championship usually specifies the location on where
SECTION 60
#17328584242123844-596: Was the youngest champion at 21, while Bobby Fish was the oldest at 42. Nathan Frazer and Axiom are the current champions in their second reign, both as a team and individually. They won the title by defeating previous champions Chase U ( Andre Chase and Ridge Holland ) at No Mercy on September 1, 2024, in Denver, Colorado . Professional wrestling championship Mid 20th Century 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s A championship or title in professional wrestling
#211788