An undisputed championship is a professional wrestling term for a world title that is the unquestioned top championship in a promotion, often formed from two world titles being unified or held by the same individual.
136-649: The reported first undisputed champion was George Hackenschmidt , who won a series of tournaments in Europe , including a world championship tournament to win the original World Heavyweight Championship . Amongst the other tournaments he won were the annual major tournaments in Paris , France ; Hamburg , Germany ; St. Petersburg , Russia ; and Berlin , Germany. Hackenschmidt also defeated European Greco-Roman Champion Tom Cannon on September 4, 1902, in Liverpool , England to become
272-736: A TLC match and unified the titles. Subsequently, the World Heavyweight Championship was retired and the WWE Championship was renamed the WWE World Heavyweight Championship and retained its lineage. Like the WWE Undisputed Championship, the WWE World Heavyweight Championship was represented by the belts of its two predecessors until a singular belt design was commissioned in August 2014. In June 2016,
408-456: A blacksmith 's apprentice. He joined the city's Athletic and Cycling Club, becoming an ardent cyclist and winning prizes, but also developed a keen interest in wrestling and weight lifting. The turning point in his life came in 1896 when another Estonian, Georg Lurich , a Greco-Roman wrestler and strongman, toured in Tallinn with a small troupe, challenging any and all comers. Hackenschmidt took up
544-522: A green screen with footage of fans at sports bars who were supposedly watching the matches live inserted on the screen using Chroma-Key. The pilot can be viewed in the "WWE Hidden Gems" section of the "Vault" menu on WWE Network . In 1996, Dale Gagner, a former AWA employee but no relation to Verne despite the similar surname, removed the "r" from his name and formed an organization in Minnesota known as AWA Superstars of Wrestling . In April 2007, WWE filed
680-500: A half nelson . Ten minutes later, the second bout began, which Hackenschmidt successfully finished in 11 minutes, 11 seconds. For the next 6 months, Hackenschmidt performed in music halls, after which he agreed to a rematch with "Terrible Turk" Madrali by catch wrestling rules to show the English public that the first victory was no accident. He took extra catch lessons from Jack Gromley at Shepherd's Bush . Hackenschmidt defeated Madrali at
816-575: A lawsuit against Gagner, citing trademark infringement, as WWE owned all AWA properties due to their purchase after the AWA's closure. In a move to sidestep WWE, former AWA wrestler Jonnie Stewart trademarked the name "American Wrestling Alliance" but the United States Patent and Trademark Office later indicated that the request was abandoned in February 2008. In October 2008, the lawsuit against Gagner
952-583: A 50/50 split instead. Gagne refused, and kept the belt from him. However, Hogan did admit in his autobiography My Life Outside the Ring that he still intended to stay with AWA and that Gagne had planned to book him in steel cage matches with Bockwinkel in an effort to expand the AWA to the New York market, but he decided to leave when Vincent K. McMahon of the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) offered him
1088-454: A champion; The only title I have desired to be known by is simply my name – George Hackenschmidt". However, it was his matches with Gotch that ensured the growing popularity of catch-as-catch-can wrestling over the more laborious Greco-Roman that had previously dominated, and this is the style that enjoys popularity at all scholastic levels, private clubs and the Olympics to this day. Hackenschmidt
1224-561: A couple of years later, and production was transferred to Minneapolis station KMSP-TV . During the AWA's existence, it produced or had a hand in production of several TV programs: In 1985, Gagne began airing weekly programming on ESPN , hoping to help the promotion compete with the national exposure already enjoyed by the WWF on USA Network and the NWA member Jim Crockett Promotions on TBS . However, weekly AWA shows were not treated with any priority by
1360-529: A desire to further expand, the promotion was essentially divided in what became known as the WWE Brand Extension . This resulted in WWE's two main programs, Raw and SmackDown , becoming distinct brands, acting as complementing promotions under WWE. The WWE Undisputed Championship was then consequently shared between both brands and soon conflict began brewing over the title. In late August 2002, after becoming
1496-489: A first-class opponent, of whom he faced extremely few, he could be slow to adapt. Gotch reported after their first match that "every move the Russian made he telegraphed me in advance, which shows that he thinks too slowly". Hackenschmidt was also given to depression and irascibility. When he came to Chicago to train for his first match with Gotch, promoter Jack Curley had arranged for Hackenschmidt to work out every day before
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#17328558500881632-411: A foe fully capable of defeating him. Finally, and worst of all, in both matches with Gotch, Hackenschmidt was accused of lack of heart. Referee Ed Smith, following the 1908 match, said that "deep down in my own mind, I decided that George Hackenschmidt had quit – quit quite cold, as a matter of fact – because there was nothing about Gotch's treatment of him in that first encounter that could by a stretch of
1768-410: A legendary bodybuilder as well as health addict, and a world champion wrestler central to a movement that was now increasingly popular. He spoke and published widely on a wide range of subjects, but most notably on health and fitness. His most popular book was the classic The Way To Live , the last words of which read, "Throughout my whole career I have never bothered as to whether I was a champion or not
1904-526: A match, which he usually never did. When Hackenschmidt took the stage, Lurich ran backstage. The next morning Lurich left Chemnitz. In March 1901, Hackenschmidt suffered the death of his mentor Krajewski, whom he considered his second father. On November 30, 1901, the World Championship of Wrestling opened at the Casino de Paris with 130 wrestlers. Hackenschmidt won first place, received two gold medals (for
2040-546: A naturalized French citizen in 1939, and then became a British subject in 1946. He lived with his French wife Rachel in South Norwood, London. He was a friend of the magician Harry Houdini and playwright George Bernard Shaw . As he aged, Hackenschmidt also expressed a high regard for his old opponent, Tom Jenkins, by then the wrestling coach at the US Military Academy at West Point . Hack visited Jenkins in 1939 and
2176-424: A new title belt of similar design. In February 1989, Larry Zbyszko , a one-time employee and Verne's son-in-law, returned to the AWA and won the vacated World Title in an 18-man Battle Royal, eliminating Tom Zenk to end the match. It was also during this time that Joe Blanchard replaced Blackburn as AWA President. Zbyszko's first title reign would last for a little over one year. During this time, he would defend
2312-470: A noted author, speaker and philosopher. United States President Theodore Roosevelt , himself a proponent of physical culture and exercise, proclaimed, "If I wasn't president of the United States, I would like to be George Hackenschmidt". Hackenschmidt continued touring England and defeated the local favorites Tom Cannon , Tom Connors, Tom MacInerney, Jack Baldwin and Tom Clayton. However, when he defeated
2448-463: A one-third interest in the promotion to his son Dennis and Wally Karbo . Stecher died on October 9, 1954, and control of the promotion passed to Karbo and Dennis. Verne Gagne, an amateur wrestling champion, had become a well-known and popular wrestler nationally in the 1950s as a result of his appearances on the DuMont Network . He aspired to become NWA World Champion , but political sentiment within
2584-404: A paying public, which Hackenschmidt refused to do. Barred from the athletic club, he spent his time before the match either exercising in his room or taking morning and evening walks along Lake Michigan, but no serious workouts. The more depressed he got, the more difficult he was to work with, and this all worked against him because, for the first time in his professional career, Hackenschmidt faced
2720-447: A porterhouse-steak, and a whole Camembert cheese". Journalist Maurice Richardson commented that Hackenschmidt was a considerable meat eater during the height of his wrestling career and would eat steak and half a dozen eggs as a snack but did not eat tinned foods. Hackenschmidt is alleged to have written that he consumed eleven pints of milk a day for training. However, this was later disputed. Hackenschmidt told Atholl Oakeley that
2856-535: A professional wrestler in Russia. He competed for two prizes, and won both, becoming champion of Moscow and Saint Petersburg. During the tournament he competed almost daily against 3-5 opponents. At the Chemnitz tournament, Hackenschmidt met Lurich for the first time in his professional career. According to Hackenschmidt's memories, Lurich bragged widely about his former victories over him. This led Georg to challenge Lurich to
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#17328558500882992-564: A relationship with Memphis-based promoter Jerry Jarrett and the CWA and even allowed Mid-Southern territory legend Jerry "The King" Lawler to win the AWA World Title from Hennig in May 1988. This was after the AWA flirted for months with the idea of giving Greg the belt, even awarding the belt to Gagne at a couple of house shows, only to return it to Hennig on a technicality. It was widely speculated that
3128-400: A result, he lost the financial resource he was using to keep the AWA up and running and had no choice but to shut down the promotion. In an interview during the late 1990s with Minneapolis television station KARE , Gagne spoke of the devoted fan base in Minnesota and joked about how he may promote again some day, but nothing ever materialized. In 2003, World Wrestling Entertainment purchased
3264-583: A role in the hit film Rocky III , Hogan rapidly caught on as a babyface with AWA fans, and became the AWA's top draw. But even as his popularity grew to unprecedented levels, Gagne refused to make him the AWA World Heavyweight Champion, as Hogan was a powerhouse wrestler. He recognized Hogan's showmanship and charisma and was well aware of his potential drawing power, but still believed a wrestling company should be built around one of its best technical wrestlers (e.g., himself and Bockwinkel). On
3400-406: A roll of dimes. After further review by on-air AWA President Blackburn, and following weeks of speculation by AWA fans, the decision was upheld and Hennig was the new champion. Gagne pushed Hennig and The Midnight Rockers throughout 1987 and into 1988, but the WWF came calling and all three of his top stars would soon be gone. During 1987, in an attempt to remain relevant and survive, Gagne renewed
3536-555: A series of AWA-related pay-per-views were produced. Titled AWA Classic Wrestling , they featured compilations of old AWA footage, hosted by Greg Gagne and Todd Okerlund (son of Gene Okerlund), with occasional appearances by Verne Gagne. The pay-per-views ceased following the acquisition of the AWA tape library by World Wrestling Entertainment . The AWA World Tag Team Tournament was a one-night single elimination tag team tournament held in Saint Paul, Minnesota , on January 15, 1962, for
3672-427: A show, which in turn ensured more bookings and sold-out shows. This did not mean the matches were fake, as excluding exhibitions, his matches were all on the level, but he might allow a local wrestler to last ten minutes and collect his £25 prize, and set up a highly publicized match for later in the week, where he would defeat his foe handily. Unlike many other professional wrestlers, including Frank Gotch, Hackenschmidt
3808-462: A six-week notice upon leaving the company for booking and syndication -based reasons, most of the talent reportedly told Gagne that McMahon offered them more money to not work out their notices and previously-scheduled appearance dates, which has been disputed by McMahon. Of the talent to leave AWA for the WWF in this time, only Heenan worked out his notice in good faith to the Gagne family. The sting of
3944-427: A small horse off the ground and lift 276 pounds overhead one handed. In a wrestler's bridge, he could pull a 335-pound barbell from the floor to his chest and press it overhead, bridging on his neck. He set several records in weight lifting and was considered both the strongest and the best-developed man in the world. Graduating from school in 1895, he started working at a large engineering factory in Tallinn (Reval) as
4080-560: A tour of Japan and left with the championship belt. Hansen argued that he was booked as AWA Champion in Japan and was therefore fulfilling his commitment. Gagne disagreed and awarded the AWA Championship to Bockwinkel, using one of the tag team title belts on a temporary basis. Gagne threatened legal action if Hansen continued to keep the belt and it was returned to the AWA as a result (although according to Bockwinkel on The Spectacular Legacy of
4216-472: A winner out of him and put him into the ring in the best possible condition, but ... gameness is something you can not put into a man". The years spanning Hackenschmidt's professional career are called the Golden Age of professional wrestling. Not only were professional wrestling matches more widely believed to be honestly contested , but wrestling was the most popular sport on every continent. However, it
Undisputed championship (professional wrestling) - Misplaced Pages Continue
4352-509: A world championship. When the AWA folded in 1991 with Larry Zbyszko as their final champion, one of the last major world titles was gone. Meanwhile, the NWA became less prevalent during the Monday night television ratings war that engrossed the WWF and WCW during the 1990s. ECW shut down in 2001 with Rhino as their last champion, seemingly leaving the group of prominent world championships down to two, and with WCW's subsequent fall and purchase by
4488-561: A world record at the London tournament in July 1961, George Hackenschmidt gave him the medal and presented Vlasov his picture with a dedicatory inscription. Throughout his life, Hackenschmidt paid considerable attention to his diet. In 1925, Charles B. Cochran recounted that he once invited Hackenschmidt to dine at his flat in Piccadilly . Cochran noted that Hackenschmidt ate "eight or nine eggs,
4624-401: Is believed to be the creator of the professional wrestling version of the bear hug as well as the person who popularised the hack squat ; additionally, Hackenschmidt is also attributed as the creator of the bench press . He was known for his impressive strength, fitness, and flexibility. Later in life, he wrote many books on physical culture , training and philosophy . Georg Hackenschmidt
4760-410: Is not mentioned in any account of Hackenschmidt's training by either Hackenschmidt or Roller, both of whom offered their insights and accounts. Whatever the case may be, Dr. Roller did not consider the injury to be serious, and referee Ed Smith dismissed it as inconsequential. Hackenschmidt himself ignored it completely in declaring, the day before the match, that he was "fit to wrestle for my life" and
4896-526: The Spectacular Legacy of the AWA DVD, Bischoff revealed that one of the main reasons the AWA shut down was that Gagne was leveraging money against a valuable property he owned along Lake Minnetonka . Local officials wanted to turn the property into a park. Gagne fought the decision for several years, but eventually lost the eminent domain case, leading to the creation of Lake Minnetonka Regional Park . As
5032-593: The National Wrestling Association's World Heavyweight Championship on July 10, 1948, from Wild Bill Longson . In light of having unified three of the major world heavyweight championships of his time (as well as numerous other lesser-prestige titles) and defeating the reigning AWA World Heavyweight Champion in a non-title match (a major title that was abandoned soon after), Thesz became the Undisputed Champion for some time. From that point onward,
5168-601: The Royal Albert Hall , Hackenschmidt faced the American heavyweight champion Tom Jenkins , a wrestler who would prove to be Hackenschmidt's toughest opponent to date, under Greco-Roman rules. Nevertheless, he pinned Jenkins in two straight falls. Hackenschmidt left Cochran's management to tour Australia where he defeated the Australian Cornish wrestling champion Deli Nelson in 1905, amongst others. He then sailed to
5304-619: The SmackDown Tag Team Championship held by The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso) and the Raw Tag Team Championship held by RK-Bro ( Randy Orton and Riddle ) were unified. The winners of the match, The Usos, were then referred to as the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions . Although WWE billed the match as a championship unification, both titles have maintained their individual lineages. They lost
5440-556: The Spectacular Legacy of the AWA DVD , Gagne denied bias against Hogan and defended his actions by reasoning that he believed that Hogan's pursuit of the title was the draw for the audience and that "we really didn't need him to be champion". On two occasions, Gagne went so far as to tease AWA title wins for Hogan, only to return the title to Bockwinkel via technicalities. The first was on April 18, 1982. Hogan defeated Bockwinkel with
5576-492: The WWF World Heavyweight Championship . As McMahon and his Connecticut -based WWF attempted to end pro wrestling's regional era in the mid-1980s (by establishing the WWF as a national promotion), Gagne made several decisions that caused his AWA to lose momentum in the emerging wrestling promotion war, including overemphasizing his son Greg Gagne in AWA storylines (which led to charges of nepotism within
Undisputed championship (professional wrestling) - Misplaced Pages Continue
5712-584: The 1937 book Fall Guys – The Barnums of Bounce by famed writer Marcus Griffen. To this day, the Chicago Public Library receives requests to view the newspaper accounts and files on the bouts." As Mark Palmer pointed out, "For starters, George Hackenschmidt and Frank Gotch were major sports superstars of the early 20th century. Fans of all ages collected cabinet cards and postcards with their images, read their books, and devoured articles about them in newspapers. Their epic matches were front-page news around
5848-455: The 1990s. The AWA would become inactive in the fall of 1990 (the last television taping occurred on August 11). As a result, Zbyszko signed with WCW. As his last official act, Gagne stripped the already-departed Zbyszko of the AWA World Title in December 1990. In 1991, Gagne and his inactive promotion officially filed for bankruptcy. Gagne did promote two cards in Minnesota in May 1991, featuring
5984-641: The 20th and 21st centuries trace their roots back to this match. He then wrestled in Canada and returned to England for a long list of music hall engagements. On October 28, 1905, Hackenschmidt faced Scottish champion Alexander Munro at the Ibrox Stadium in Glasgow with an audience of 16,000. Munro was 7 cm taller and 5.5 kg heavier. Heavy rain throughout the performance hindered both wrestlers. The first fall ended after 40 minutes and 22 seconds when Munro surrendered from
6120-499: The AWA , Hansen had run over the belt with his truck before returning it ). The AWA also had a brief relationship with the European promotion Catch Wrestling Association , through which its promoter, wrestler Otto Wanz , was given a brief AWA World Title reign in 1982. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, AWA television production was headquartered at Minneapolis independent station WTCN-TV , then owned by Metromedia . The ring announcer
6256-458: The AWA and CWA, and Lawler would challenge WCCW Heavyweight champion Kerry Von Erich to a title unification match at SuperClash III in December. Super Clash III was the AWA's first venture into the Pay-Per-View market and wrestling's first collaborative PPV between several promotions. However, after months of hype, the end results were somewhat contentious and relatively unsuccessful. Following
6392-559: The AWA began to lose audiences, as the WWF was gaining wrestling superiority due to the success of WrestleMania I . Later in the year, as this struggle against the WWF progressed, Karbo also sold all his stock to Gagne as well. In September 1985, Pro Wrestling USA would respond to McMahon's rising success by promoting the first SuperClash . Despite this success, the Pro Wrestling USA collaboration did not last, as Gagne accused David Crockett of trying to sign away AWA talent over to
6528-547: The AWA forged an alliance with several NWA promoters, including Jim Crockett Promotions , Mid-South Wrestling , Pacific Northwest Wrestling , World Class Championship Wrestling , and the Continental Wrestling Association . This new promotion was known as Pro Wrestling USA and came about in an attempt to establish a national presence to compete against the WWF. The AWA was also able to sign top wrestlers like Sgt. Slaughter and Bob Backlund . By 1985, however,
6664-509: The AWA had working agreements with Japanese promotions International Wrestling Enterprise (1969 to 1980), then All Japan Pro Wrestling (1980 to 1988, although the relationship was strained in 1986 by the AWA Title debacle surrounding Stan Hansen ), and, near the end, New Japan Pro-Wrestling . On June 29, 1986, in Denver, Colorado , Hansen refused to lose the AWA World Title to Bockwinkel prior to
6800-478: The AWA title against Gagne. The NWA ignored the challenge. O'Connor was stripped of the AWA title and it was awarded to Gagne on August 16, 1960. While O'Connor was considered the first AWA Champion, he didn't wrestle in the AWA until later in the 1960s (when he teamed with Wilbur Snyder to win the AWA World Tag Team Championship ). Gagne was an amateur wrestling champion who had earned a spot on
6936-473: The AWA to return to the World Wrestling Federation shortly after WrestleMania VI , and Colonel DeBeers took over as the team captain for the Snipers (the team name was changed to "DeBeers' Diamondcutters" and Slaughter was said on air to have "gone AWOL " to explain his departure). Babyfaces and heels alike were assigned to teams, forcing bitter rivals to work together, and due to main talent losses many of
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#17328558500887072-770: The Day 2 of WrestleMania XL, Cody Rhodes won the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against Roman Reigns therefore being referred and reverted simply as Undisputed WWE Championship without the name “Universal” ending Reigns’ 4-year reign as champion. However, the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship lineage continues. George Hackenschmidt Mid 20th Century 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s Georg Karl Julius Hackenschmidt (1 August [ O.S. ] 1877 – 19 February 1968)
7208-601: The Greco-Roman style, with Hackenschmidt winning the championship. In January 1899, he had to serve in the army: he was assigned to the Preobrazhensky Regiment. Demobilized five months later, on May 16 of that year Hackenschmidt defeated Alexander von Schmelling in a fight for the title of Russian champion of 1899. On 19 May he defeated von Schmelling again and was crowned Russian champion of 1899. In September, despite an arm injury, Hackenschmidt travelled to Paris for
7344-554: The House of Lords and served as a judge at the 1948 Mr. Universe show in London won by John Grimek. His book Man and Cosmic Antagonism to Mind and Spirit was the personal philosophy he developed while interned as a prisoner-of-war in Germany. Hackenschmidt was already hospitalized at St. Francis Hospital in Dulwich, a suburb of London, when he died on 19 February 1968. He was 89 years old. He
7480-737: The Italian Antonio Pieri twice, Pieri sought revenge by trying to find a wrestler who could beat him. He thought he had found such a man in Ahmed Madrali, called the "Terrible Turk", who faced Hackenschmidt at the Olympia London on 30 January 1904. Because of all the ballyhoo, the Olympia was packed and traffic was jammed from the Olympia back to Piccadilly. Hackenschmidt picked up Madrali and threw him down onto his arm, dislocating his shoulder. The contest had lasted about two minutes. On 2 July at
7616-535: The Midwest region. Relationships were also developed with existing promotions in Houston , Memphis and San Antonio . Gagne's westward expansion into traditional NWA territories was made possible due to relationships and business partnerships he had forged for decades—more the result of other promoters struggling to survive rather than by purchase or hostile takeover by Gagne. The AWA would also benefit from, among other things,
7752-464: The NWA and becoming an independent territory in 1960. Mid 20th Century 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s Anton Stecher , brother and manager of former World Heavyweight Champion Joe Stecher , was a founding member of the NWA in 1948 and had promoted wrestling in Minneapolis since 1933 through his Minneapolis Boxing and Wrestling Club. In 1952, he sold
7888-496: The NWA and declared their primary singles title a world title in 1960. The World Wide Wrestling Federation , owned by Vince McMahon, Sr. followed suit in 1963 and declared their major singles title a world championship. Many other NWA affiliated promotions would split from the NWA over the years with Ted Turner 's World Championship Wrestling in 1993, and Tod Gordon 's Eastern Championship Wrestling in 1994. Each of these promotions declared their primary singles championship to be
8024-820: The NWA backstage at numerous Pro Wrestling USA shows. The AWA released an AWA Remco Action Figure line with the toy company Remco and a series of 30 minute videos entitled "Wrestling Classics", primarily featuring wrestlers such as Sgt. Slaughter, the Road Warriors, Jimmy Garvin and Steve Regal , and World Champion Martel. Despite falling behind the WWF and NWA as a major promotion throughout 1986 and 1987, Gagne still managed to find and/or develop legitimate young talent like Scott Hall (later known as Razor Ramon ), The Midnight Rockers ( Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty ), "Bull Power" Leon White (later known as Big Van Vader ), The Nasty Boys ( Brian Knobs and Jerry Sags ), and Madusa Miceli during that timeframe. With
8160-610: The NWA prevented it. In 1959, Dennis sold his majority stake in the Minneapolis Boxing and Wrestling Club to Karbo and Gagne. They then became co-owners of the promotion. In 1960, after unsuccessfully lobbying the NWA for a title match between Gagne and the NWA World Champion Pat O'Connor , Gagne and Karbo led certain territories out of the NWA forming the AWA. The AWA unilaterally recognized NWA World Champion Pat O'Connor as AWA World Champion and gave him 90 days to defend
8296-526: The National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Championship (the championship belt that Thesz opted to keep as the designation of all the championships he had won) became the undisputed world heavyweight title for all contenders to seek. This, however, would change over the years and decades to come as professional wrestling grew and evolved. The American Wrestling Association , owned by Verne Gagne split off from
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#17328558500888432-516: The Olympia London in just four minutes, but noted that the Turk was one of the toughest men he had ever faced. He then sailed to the United States to fulfill his obligation to meet a new challenger from Iowa by the name of Frank Gotch . Wrestling historian Mike Chapman wrote "In all of athletic history, there are a mere handful of rivalries between individual stars that have become almost as large as
8568-710: The U.S. team at the 1948 Summer Olympics ; he ran the AWA with a conservative sensibility, firmly believing that sound technical wrestling should be the basis of a pro-wrestling company. Starting in the 1970s, Gagne trained his newcomer wrestlers from his farm in Chanhassen, Minnesota . Under Gagne and Karbo, the AWA became one of the most successful and expansive single territories in North America, promoting shows in such major cities as Minneapolis, St. Paul, Milwaukee , Chicago , Omaha , Winnipeg , Denver , Salt Lake City , Las Vegas , San Francisco , Phoenix and throughout
8704-522: The United States for an extended tour and a rematch with Jenkins at the Madison Square Garden under catch-as-catch-can rules, which Hackenschmidt by now preferred. Jenkins put up a hard battle, but Hackenschmidt again won in two straight falls, the first in 31 minutes, 14 seconds, and the second in 22 minutes, 4 seconds. He was declared the inaugural World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion and subsequently most major league US versions of this title in
8840-540: The Universal Championship held by Roman Reigns from SmackDown and the WWE Championship held by Brock Lesnar from Raw were unified. The winner of the match, Roman Reigns, was then referred to as the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion . Although WWE billed the match as a championship unification, both titles have maintained their individual lineages. On the May 20, 2022, episode of SmackDown ,
8976-545: The WWE World Heavyweight Championship reverted to being called the WWE Championship before WWE reintroduced the brand extension the following month. The WWE Champion was drafted to SmackDown and it was renamed the WWE World Championship though reverted to WWE Championship in December 2016. In response, Raw created their own world championship, the WWE Universal Championship . At WrestleMania 38 in 2022,
9112-603: The WWF during the same year, the World Wrestling Federation Championship remained. WWF took full advantage of their situation, unifying the unbranded " World Championship " (formerly the WCW World Heavyweight Championship) and WWF Championship at Vengeance in 2001 , with Chris Jericho becoming the first Undisputed WWF Champion (and the first undisputed champion in over 50 years in professional wrestling in general). The championship
9248-464: The WWF expansion was not shouldered by the AWA alone. The Mid-Atlantic , Georgia , and Florida territories of the NWA also lost top stars such as "Rowdy" Roddy Piper , Greg "The Hammer" Valentine , Jack Brisco , Jerry Brisco , Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat , "Cowboy" Bob Orton , Barry Windham , and Mike Rotunda to the WWF during that same time. Despite this talent raid, the AWA went on to have another successful year in 1984, mainly because of
9384-410: The World Championship in the 1930s and 1940s, as well. After Gotch's retirement, several other men proceeded to hold the then World Heavyweight Championship, including periods of time where the National Wrestling Association formed a second World Heavyweight Championship to contend with the formerly undisputed belt. From that point onward, there was no undisputed champion, as multiple men laid claim to
9520-405: The World Wrestling Championships. There he received his moniker, "The Russian Lion". After a few matches, he aggravated the injury and went home. Doctors treated him electrically for six months, but it did more harm than good. In May 1900 Hackenschmidt returned to weight training. In July 1900, Hackenschmidt took part in a forty-day wrestling tournament in Moscow , making his first appearance as
9656-467: The arena as the new AWA World champion. Six days later on AWA television, AWA President Stanley Blackburn stripped Hogan of the title and returned it to Bockwinkel. The second such occasion was on a "Super Sunday" card in St. Paul, Minnesota, in 1983. Hogan again pinned Bockwinkel, was awarded the belt and announced as the new champion. This time, Blackburn came to the ring moments after the match and tried to have Hogan retroactively disqualified for throwing
9792-535: The arrival of The Road Warriors and an angle uniting longtime heel Jerry Blackwell with Greg and feuding with former manager Sheik Adnan El-Kaissey . Although aging, most of the AWA's longtime core talent still remained. Stars like Bockwinkel, Ray "The Crippler" Stevens , The Crusher , Dick the Bruiser , Baron von Raschke , Mad Dog Vachon , and Larry Hennig were all still active at this time despite all being in their 40s or 50s. In response to McMahon's expansion,
9928-551: The assets of the AWA from the Gagnes. All footage of the AWA is owned by WWE. WWE released The Spectacular Legacy of the AWA on November 21, 2006. The DVD includes a documentary on the amateur and professional career of Verne Gagne, the rise and fall of the AWA over its 30-year history, along with numerous interviews and features with Gagne, Hulk Hogan, Jim Brunzell , Michael Hayes , Baron von Raschke , Greg Gagne, Eric Bischoff, Bobby Heenan , Gene Okerlund and Nick Bockwinkel. Abroad,
10064-441: The athlete's physique and invited him to Saint Petersburg and offered to stay with him, as he saw in him the potential to become a professional wrestler . Krajewski trained Georg Lurich for some time and told Hackenschmidt that he had the potential to become the strongest man in the world. Despite his parents' objections, Hackenschmidt left for Saint Petersburg in the spring of 1898. In 1898, Hackenschmidt trained at Krajewski's and
10200-624: The brand extension officially ended, meaning that both the WWE Champion and the World Heavyweight Champion could appear on both Raw and SmackDown . In November 2013, then World Heavyweight Champion John Cena made a challenge to then WWE Champion Randy Orton to determine WWE's undisputed world champion; the match would take place at the TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs pay-per-view the following month. Randy Orton defeated John Cena in
10336-405: The cable network, sometimes being delayed, preempted by live programming, or suffering from occasional changes in time slot, making it difficult for fans to tune in on a regular basis. On February 26, 2008, ESPN Classic began reairing AWA Championship Wrestling episodes, circa 1986-1990. The AWA ran only one pay-per-view card, SuperClash III, during its 30-year run. However, From 1999 to 2002,
10472-591: The challenge and was beaten. German wrestler Fritz Konietzko came to Tallinn in 1897, and Hackenschmidt fared better. In late 1897-early 1898, Hackenschmidt suffered a minor hand injury at the factory and consulted a doctor who was acquainted with Dr. Vladislav Krajewski, who was in the service of Emperor Nicholas II of Russia. Krajewski was the founder of the Saint Petersburg Athletic and Cycling Club, with Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich as president. While observing Hackenschmidt's arm, Krajewski noticed
10608-399: The champion over the top rope a few minutes before the pinfall occurred. However, this match had been booked as a no disqualification match, which prevented this, so Blackburn simply stripped Hogan of the title and once again handed it back to Bockwinkel. The crowd (which had exploded in cheers when Hogan appeared to have won) almost rioted when learning that Hogan was once again cheated out of
10744-489: The company) and failing to make Hogan the top star of his company when he had the chance. Frustrated by Gagne's business decisions, Hogan accepted an offer from rival promoter McMahon to wrestle for the WWF, in December 1983. One month later, Hogan became the WWF World Heavyweight Champion . He and the WWF soon became a mainstream media phenomenon and virtually synonymous with professional wrestling in much of
10880-454: The country's best wrestlers in the catch-as-catch-can style which was regaining popularity. They created a music hall boom in professional wrestling, and Hackenschmidt became a major superstar and drawing card . He wrestled in opera halls, music halls and theaters. As the wrestling boom took hold in England and wrestlers came in from all around the world for the grand tournaments that had become
11016-611: The effort took his last remaining strength. Hackenschmidt quit the fall. "I surrender the championship of the world to Mr. Gotch", he said, and stood up and shook Gotch's hand. The wrestlers then retired to their dressing rooms before coming out for the second fall, but Hackenschmidt refused to return to the ring, telling the referee to declare Gotch the winner, thereby relinquishing his title to him. Although he at first called Gotch "the greatest man by far I ever met", and explained how his muscles had become stale and his feet had given out, and that he knew he could not win and therefore conceded
11152-425: The emergence of four strong wrestlers: Constant Le Marin, Stanislaus Zbyszko , Ivan Poddubny and Joe Rogers. All four challenged Hackenschmidt, and he agreed to compete against the strongest of them, which should determine the tournament. In England, Hackenschmidt attended a match between Zbyszko and Poddubny, which Zbyszko won. Rogers was unable to compete due to sepsis and demanded a rematch from Hackenschmidt for
11288-508: The event, the collaborative effort was over and Lawler was stripped of the title in January 1989. Lawler kept the AWA Title belt and continued promoting himself in Tennessee, Texas, and on the independent circuit as the unified World Heavyweight Champion. Lawler did this in an attempt to leverage PPV revenue from Gagne that was allegedly owed to him, but Gagne never paid him and eventually commissioned
11424-982: The exercise known as the hack squat , whose name is a reference to his own. Hackenschmidt also helped to popularize many other types of lifts common within the modern training regimen, such as the bench press . During his career, he established numerous weightlifting records, which were improved upon by others in ensuing decades. Hackenschmidt was an educated man who spoke seven languages. He went on to write books, including Complete Science of Wrestling (1909), Man and Cosmic Antagonism to Mind and Spirit (1935), Fitness and Your Self (1937), Consciousness and Character: True Definitions of Entity, Individuality, Personality, Nonentity (1937), The Way to Live in Health and Physical Fitness (1941), and The Three Memories and Forgetfulness: What They Are and What Their True Significance Is in Human Life . He also taught physical education to members of
11560-701: The first undisputed World Heavyweight Champion. The only other reigning champion with claim to the belt at the time was Tom Jenkins the American Heavyweight Championship , which unified the American Greco-Roman Championship with the American Catch-As-Catch Can Championship. Jenkins was eventually defeated by Frank Gotch , who took over as the only man with a potentially legitimate claim to being "the true champion". Hackenschmidt and Gotch finally met in
11696-547: The governing style of wrestling was the slower, more ponderous Greco-Roman style that emphasized muscle power over speed, agility and ring generalship, and involved holds only above the waist. Being bulkier of build than his leaner opponents, Hackenschmidt's style and temperament were not geared as much to the catch-as-catch-can style. Hackenschmidt was a natural showman, he was honest, straightforward and serious, and he would finish off his opponents quickly. His manager C. B. Cochran had to convince him to extend his matches and put on
11832-474: The help of a foreign object that Bockwinkel's manager Bobby "the Brain" Heenan had interjected into the match. After the three count, the belt was awarded to Hogan and he was announced as the new champion. Heenan informed the referee of the object and the referee questioned Hogan about this, but the blood on Hogan's face was evidence that the object had also been used on him. The ref stood by his decision and Hogan left
11968-425: The idea of the younger Gagne as heavyweight champion did not play well with AWA fans, who seemed more interested in the involvement of Verne and Larry Hennig in the feud than they did with Greg actually winning the title, so Verne decided to go with Lawler instead. Michaels and Jannetty would drop the titles to Badd Company around that same time. Facing financial trouble of their own, WCCW then allied themselves with
12104-470: The imagination call for a disqualification. There was some face-mauling, just as there always is ... but at no time did the vaunted Hackenschmidt ever make a serious move toward slapping down his opponent, never showed much in the wrestling line during the entire two hours... Again, I say, that as the referee of that match, I thought that the 'Russian Lion' quit". Following the 1911 rematch, one newspaper described Gotch's easy victory and then added that "in
12240-641: The late 1920s, and remained that way for over 20 years, when several major World Heavyweight Championships split from the primary title (namely, Boston 's American Wrestling Association World Heavyweight Championship, the National Boxing Association (later, National Wrestling Association ) World Championship of Wrestling, and the New York State Athletic Commission World Heavyweight Championship). Other governing bodies would create their own version of
12376-429: The lightweight tournament and the heavyweight tournament) and 3000 francs . After that Georg went to the town of Alsleben to the trainer Siebert, who helped him to gain weight, which dropped due to the heavy schedule. During this time, he jumped 100 times over a table with his feet tied together. He won tournaments everywhere he wrestled, and toured England in 1903 managed by the flamboyant C. B. Cochran to confront
12512-446: The loss in USA. The contest was held on February 6, 1908, at Oxford Music Hall , where Hackenschmidt defeated Rogers in a short bout. Hackenschmidt was then scheduled to face Zbyszko, but the match was canceled due to knee problems. The wrestler went to Aachen , where he underwent knee surgery, followed by a long recovery. During his rehabilitation, Hackenschmidt wrote that the only opponent he
12648-419: The major surge in the popularity of professional wrestling in England, and he was considered unbeatable. However, Hackenschmidt probably would not be so well remembered today were it not for two things: 1) his enormous standing in the world of physical culture, and 2) his two defeats at the hands of Frank Gotch. Hackenschmidt remained in the public eye because he had become an icon in the world of physical culture,
12784-537: The match, Hackenschmidt later reversed his opinion of Gotch and Americans in general, claiming to have been fouled by Gotch and victimized in America, and calling for a rematch in Europe. In August 1907, Hackenschmidt suffered pain in his knee and returned to Russia for rehabilitation. Hackenschmidt failed to heal his knee and was sent back to England. By 1907 the situation in the wrestling world had changed, Hackenschmidt noticed
12920-421: The national consciousness, vaulting past the AWA and NWA as the premier promotion in wrestling. Hogan wasn't alone in leaving the AWA. Some of the AWA's other top talent, including announcer "Mean Gene" Okerlund , manager Heenan, and wrestlers Adrian Adonis , Ken Patera , Tito Santana , Jim Brunzell , David Schultz , Wendi Richter and Jesse Ventura also jumped to the WWF. As the AWA required talent to place
13056-559: The nose. Hackenschmidt complained to the referee of Gotch's foul tactics and asked that Gotch be forced to take a hot shower to rid his body of an abundance of oil, but the referee ignored the complaints and told Hackenschmidt he should have noticed the oil before the match began. The match continued until the two-hour mark, when Hackenschmidt was forced against the ropes. Gotch tore him off the ropes, threw him down and rode him hard for three minutes, working for his dreaded toe hold. Hackenschmidt had trained to avoid this hold, which he did, but
13192-520: The parlance of the sporting world, Hackenschmidt is yellow ... He quit when his position became dangerous". Perhaps the most frustrated was Hackenschmidt's second, Dr. Benjamin Roller , who himself had lost several times to Gotch, but had displayed the utmost gameness and courage. "Hack did not get started", Roller explained. "That's largely a matter of gameness". Hackenschmidt's injuries had not been serious enough, Roller felt. "I have tried my best to make
13328-426: The participants were jobbers , such as Jake Milliman , Tom Stone , etc. The winners of Team Challenge matches would earn points for their team; at some unspecified point the highest scoring team would share one million dollars , within the story line. Some of the earlier TCS matches took place in a TV studio without an audience; the announcers claimed it was part of an effort to stop wrestlers from interfering, but it
13464-547: The profits which was made from matches that occurred in 1973 and 1974 between Superstar Billy Graham and Wahoo McDaniel. The promotion was briefly affiliated with International Championship Wrestling (ICW), which had broken away from NWA Tri-State in 1977, and recognized then AWA World Heavyweight Champion Nick Bockwinkel as the "real" world champion . Bockwinkel, accompanied by then manager Bobby "The Brain" Heenan , traveled to Mississippi several times to defend his title. After Gagne's retirement in 1981, he focused
13600-449: The promotion on Nick Bockwinkel , a loyal employee of several years who was a mat-wrestling technician like Gagne had been. Bockwinkel faced numerous challengers for the title during the early 1980s including eventual champions Rick Martel and Otto Wanz , champion Mad Dog Vachon , and perennial contenders Wahoo McDaniel , and Brad Rheingans , but perhaps his most famous opponent would be Hulk Hogan . Starting in 1982 and accelerated by
13736-777: The quantity of milk prescribed had been a misprint. After retiring from the ring, Hackenschmidt reportedly became a vegetarian . He remained physically fit well into old age, and at 56 he could jump over a 4-foot, 6-inch high board ten times. Even through his mid-80s, he would jump fifty times over a chair once a week, bench press 150 pounds and run seven miles in 45 minutes. In his entire professional wrestling career, Hackenschmidt engaged in about 3,000 matches, losing only two. Powerfully built, Hackenschmidt's measurements for his 1905 match with Alexander Munro were: age – 28; weight – 204 pounds; height – 5′, 9½″; reach – 75″; biceps – 19″; forearm – 15½″; neck – 22″; chest – 52″; waist – 34″; thigh – 26¾″; calf – 18″. He also rose to prominence when
13872-422: The rage, he remained the dominant grappler, defeating every man he met. Cochran polished his act until Hackenschmidt was a major attraction. He might take on five wrestlers in the same evening, defeating them all. Handsome as well as powerfully built, Hackenschmidt was adored by women and admired by men. Personally a soft-spoken, cultured and intellectual young man, he could speak seven languages fluently and became
14008-401: The retirement of Bockwinkel, Gagne tapped Curt Hennig (later known as Mr. Perfect ) as his next champion and future of the company. Hennig, a talented and popular second generation wrestler, defeated Bockwinkel at Super Clash 2 . The overall card was relatively weak, but the title match was a critical success, although the title change was not without controversy, involving Larry Zbyszko and
14144-447: The return of Greg Gagne and Wahoo McDaniel and other stars such as Baron von Raschke , Buck Zumhofe , and The Destruction Crew ( Mike Enos & Wayne Bloom ), but he was unable to revive the promotion. Despite this, the AWA continued re-running matches in their weekly ESPN time slot, and on their syndicated All-Star Wrestling show. The company also managed to release a commercial tape ( Hulk Hogan's Highlights ) during 1991. On
14280-670: The ring on April 3, 1908, in Chicago , Illinois . Gotch defeated Hackenschmidt to win the World Heavyweight Championship, then abandoned the American Heavyweight Championship in a process similar to today's championship unification . Gotch wrestled for several years before retiring as undisputed champion Other wrestlers who were recognized as the only major World Champion following Gotch's retirement were Earl Caddock , Joe Stecher , Ed "Strangler" Lewis , Stanislaus Zbyszko , and Wayne Munn . The championship became disputed in
14416-607: The sport itself. In boxing, such matchups as Sullivan – Corbett , Dempsey – Tunney , Louis – Conn and Ali – Frazier are a part of boxing folklore. In wrestling, there is only one: Gotch –Hackenschmidt". After defeating Jenkins in 1905, Hackenschmidt held the world title and remained undefeated until he and Frank Gotch finally squared off on 3 April 1908, at the Dexter Park Pavilion in Chicago. Showing his contempt for Gotch and for American wrestling in general, Hackenschmidt
14552-819: The summer of 1898, Hackenschmidt travelled to Vienna to compete at the World Weightlifting Championships and European Wrestling Championships , which were held together. The weightlifting championships were a decathlon (ten events consisting of: one-hand snatch , simultaneous press of two dumbbells , simultaneous jerk of two dumbbells, one-hand press in military style , one-hand press in straddling style, one-hand press continuously in military style with 50.2 kg, one hand press continuously in straddling style with 50.2 kg, two-hand press, two-hand jerk, and two-hand press continuously in military style with 100 kg), with Hackenschmidt taking third place overall. The wrestling championships were an openweight competition in
14688-580: The title against Zenk, Greg, Wahoo McDaniel , Ken Patera , Nikita Koloff , Brad Rheingans , The Trooper Del Wilkes , and Masa Saito . Zbyszko would eventually lose the title to Saito in February 1990 in front of 65,000 fans at the Tokyo Dome at the NJPW/AJPW Supershow. Zbyszko would regain the title in April 1990 at SuperClash IV . During 1989 and 1990, the AWA also pushed Mike Enos and Wayne Bloom as
14824-565: The title without ever backing it up by defeating multiple other contenders. This all changed in July 1948, when the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) was formed by multiple promotions and awarded the NWA World Heavyweight Championship to Orville Brown . After Brown suffered career-ending injuries in an automobile accident on November 1, 1949, the NWA recognised Lou Thesz as the champion. Thesz had earlier won
14960-678: The title, and Bockwinkel later had to do damage control with the rabid crowd, telling the audience to calm down afterwards as well. Hogan attacked Bockwinkel and his manager Heenan. On the DVD The Spectacular Legacy of the AWA , it was revealed that Gagne planned to have Hogan win the belt that night, but only if he would give Gagne the bulk of the revenues that Hogan was earning from merchandise and his periodic main-event performances in New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Outraged at being strongarmed, Hogan refused, but nonetheless offered
15096-793: The titles to Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn at WrestleMania 39 in 2023, with Owens and Zayn becoming the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions. On Day 1 of WrestleMania XL , the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship was defended in a ladder match. After the match, Awesome Truth won the Raw Tag Team Championship and A-Town Down Under won the Smackdown Tag Team Championship officially the 2 Tag Team titles are split and no longer “undisputed”. On
15232-421: The top tag team. In early 1989, Eric Bischoff , who was performing office work for the AWA at the time, mostly in sales and syndication, was placed in front of the camera to replace Larry Nelson as interviewer and occasional commentator. The AWA was Bischoff's first exposure to the world of pro wrestling. He would later become a dominant force in the industry, leading World Championship Wrestling to prominence in
15368-467: The two got along splendidly, with Jenkins accommodating Hackenschmidt in his home and giving him a tour of the West Point training facilities. In their mutual admiration society, they never publicly expressed any credit to Frank Gotch, and Hackenschmidt spent the rest of his life complaining about Gotch's foul tactics and his knee injury in explaining his "inexplicable" losses. After Yury Vlasov won and set
15504-617: The vacant AWA World Tag Team Championship . The AWA World Tag Team Tournament was a one-night single elimination tag team tournament held in Rochester, Minnesota , on October 1, 1989, for the vacant AWA World Tag Team Championship . The AWA held a "Team Challenge Series" from October 1, 1989, through August 11, 1990. All of the available wrestlers were divided into three teams: "Larry's Legends", headed by Larry Zbyszko , "Sarge's Snipers", originally headed by Sgt. Slaughter , and "Baron's Blitzers", headed by Baron von Raschke . Slaughter left
15640-406: The win by eliminating DeBeers at the end, winning the series and the supposed one-million-dollar check for Larry's Legends. An unsold pilot for a weekly syndicated "Team Challenge Series" television show was taped in 1989 with hosts Ralph Strangis and Greg Gagne at "Satellite Base" calling matches recorded in an empty TV studio with no ring announcer. All wrestler entrances were done in front of
15776-476: The world – akin to today's World Cup in terms of garnering global attention – and helped to launch organized amateur wrestling in the United States in the early part of the 20th century. In fact, a large number of high school and college wrestling programs can trace their roots back to the 1910s and 1920s – the era when Hackenschmidt and Gotch were still household names, and highly respected athletes". Having already made his mark in bodybuilding, Hackenschmidt caused
15912-528: The youngest WWE world champion at the time by winning the WWE Undisputed Championship, Brock Lesnar and his title were made exclusive to SmackDown . To remedy this, the Big Gold Belt was brought back the following month to represent the new World Heavyweight Championship and became Raw 's top championship, thus making the WWE Championship no longer undisputed. In 2011, the WWE Championship
16048-457: Was "satisfied with my condition and confident of the outcome". However, Gotch, tearing into Hackenschmidt with a vengeance, discovered the weakness quickly and took advantage of it. Hackenschmidt was easy prey for Gotch, losing in straight falls in only 20 minutes. Gotch clinched the match with his signature toe hold , which forced Hackenschmidt to concede. Following his second defeat at the hands of Gotch, upon returning to England, Hackenschmidt
16184-497: Was Hackenschmidt's showmanship that made professional wrestling arguably the most popular sport in the United Kingdom at the time, and it was he and Gotch together who brought it to entirely new heights around the world. "The Hackenschmidt-Gotch matches were the pinnacle of professional wrestling during the time period and received much attention from media, fans, and celebrities", Andrew Malnoske observed. "They were even described in
16320-644: Was a major reason for this. The H. J. Lutcher Stark Center for Physical Culture and Sports at the Todd-McLean Library and Special Collections in Austin, Texas, has a digitized version of a nearly 600-page scrapbook owned for decades by Hackenschmidt and bequeathed by his widow Rachel. The international Georg Hackenschmidt Memorial in Greco-Roman wrestling has been held in Tartu since 1969. American Wrestling Association The American Wrestling Association ( AWA )
16456-668: Was actually due to poor ticket sales for arena shows. The remainder of the matches took place at the Rochester Civic Center , where the AWA taped live matches for its television program from 1989-1990. The final match in the TCS was a Royal Rumble -style battle royal featuring Brad Rheingans , The Destruction Crew , Colonel DeBeers, the Texas Hangmen, the Trooper Del Wilkes , and several others. Jake Milliman again came away with
16592-624: Was an Estonian strongman , professional wrestler , writer , and sports philosopher who is recognized as professional wrestling's first world heavyweight champion . Hackenschmidt began his professional career in Tallinn (Reval), Estonia (then part of the Russian Empire ), and after a 1899 tournament in Paris was often referred in the media by the moniker "The Russian Lion". He lived most of his middle age and later life in London, England. He
16728-510: Was an American professional wrestling promotion based in Minneapolis, Minnesota that ran from 1960 until 1991. It was founded by Verne Gagne and Wally Karbo . The promotion was born out of the Minneapolis Boxing & Wrestling Club, originally founded in 1933, which served as the Minnesota -based territory of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) from 1948 onward, before breaking away from
16864-484: Was born in Tartu (Dorpat), Estonia, on 1 August 1877, where he lived with his parents, Baltic German Georg Friedrich Heinrich Hackenschmidt (born 1847 ) and Ida Louise Johansson, who was of Estonian and Swedish descent. He had a younger brother, Bruno, and sister Alice. He later said that neither of his parents were particularly robust in stature or had any unusual physical characteristics, though his maternal grandfather
17000-529: Was cremated at West Norwood Cemetery , where his memorial plaque records him as George Hackenschmidt. During World War I , Hackenschmidt was interned by the German Empire authorities in Berlin with his wife. His brother Bruno, who was also a wrestler, was also captured in Germany and died in captivity. During World War II , he lived with his wife in the family home in the south of France. Hackenschmidt became
17136-498: Was in peak condition, it would be decisive. Gotch used his speed, defense and rough tactics to wear the champion down and then assume the attack. The wrestlers stood on their feet for two full hours before Gotch was able to get behind Hackenschmidt and take him down. While on their feet, Gotch made sure to lean on Hackenschmidt to wear him down. He bullied him around the ring, and his thumbing and butting left Hackenschmidt covered in blood. At one time, Gotch also punched Hackenschmidt on
17272-488: Was interested in was Frank Gotch. Hackenschmidt and Gotch met again on 4 September 1911, at the newly opened Comiskey Park in Chicago, which drew a crowd of nearly 30,000 spectators and a record gate of $ 87,000. The rematch is one of the most controversial and talked about matches in professional wrestling history, as Hackenschmidt claimed to have injured his knee against Roller, his chief training partner. Years later, professional wrestler Ad Santel told Lou Thesz that he
17408-527: Was longtime Minneapolis - Saint Paul sports broadcaster Marty O'Neill, who also conducted the post-match interviews. O'Neill announced the matches for the local WTCN audience. But fans watching the syndicated version of the show heard commentary provided by Rodger Kent. In the mid-1970s, during a prolonged illness, O'Neill was occasionally replaced as ring announcer by program producer Al DeRusha and interviews were conducted by both Kent and Gene Okerlund . By 1979, Okerlund had permanently replaced O'Neill, who died
17544-521: Was never mean, vindictive or unnecessarily rough in the ring, "contrasting his physical prowess and fighting skills with a quietness of spirit", David Gentle explained. "George Hackenschmidt was the epitome of calm, self-assurance and inner peace, with full awareness of his own capabilities and thus like all masters of combat found no need for machoism or outward aggression. His tactic to win was skill and speed, born of confidence in his own ability and fighting prowess". However, he had three weaknesses. Against
17680-502: Was not in the best condition. Refusing to train publicly at the Chicago Athletic Club in spite of arrangements having been made for him to do so, he was barred from the club and spent his time either in his hotel room or taking long morning and evening walks along Lake Michigan. By neglecting his training, he lost his endurance, which had never been a factor in his previous matches because he ended them so quickly. Against Gotch, who
17816-625: Was paid $ 5,000 by Gotch's backers to cripple Hackenschmidt in training, and make it look like an accident. However, according to Hackenschmidt himself, the injury was accidentally inflicted by his sparring partner, Roller, when trying to hold Hackenschmidt down onto his knees in the down position. Roller's right foot struck Hackenschmidt's right knee, which in 1904 had developed " Housemaid's Knee ", requiring treatment, and had acted up again in 1907. Furthermore, according to Hackenschmidt, his sparring partners for this match were Americus (Gus Schoenlein), Jacobus Koch, Wladek Zbyszko and Dr. Roller. Ad Santel
17952-412: Was preparing for a match with Stanislaus Zbyszko to take place the following June, but when he began working out he felt such pain in his right knee that it was painful even to walk. It necessitated surgery, but Hackenschmidt decided at that point to retire and pursue his other interests in philosophy, physical culture and gardening. Hackenschmidt was a pioneer in the field of weightlifting. He invented
18088-548: Was said to have been a huge and powerful man. His paternal grandfather, Christian Philipp Hackenschmidt, a Prussian dyer, accepted Russian citizenship with his wife in 1845; he died about 1881–1882. From his earliest years, Hackenschmidt devoted himself to physical development, particularly at the local Real school ( Dorpater Realschule ), where he took advantage of the gym. He excelled in gorodki , cycling, gymnastics, swimming, running, jumping and weightlifting . His feats of strength astounded his teachers, as he could lift
18224-653: Was supported by Count Georges de Ribeaupierre. In April, the club organized a competition in weightllifting for the title of Russian champion, which Hackenschmidt won. In late April, in Saint Petersburg he defeated the French wrestler Paul Pons in 45 minutes. In preparation to performing in front of an audience, Krajewski sent Hackenschmidt to Riga , where he performed under an assumed name as a weightlifter and wrestler. During this period Hackenschmidt still noted his lack of wrestling technique, which he made up for with strength. In
18360-405: Was temporarily referred to as "undisputed" again. After a storyline in which John Cena and CM Punk both claimed the WWE Championship, the two faced off at the 2011 SummerSlam , resulting in a single title holder. This was not, however, the same as the undisputed title that existed between 2001 and 2002, as the World Heavyweight Championship was unaffected. Immediately following SummerSlam 2011,
18496-477: Was then represented by the belts of its two predecessors until a singular belt design was commissioned. By May 2002, the WWF had been renamed to World Wrestling Entertainment and the Undisputed WWE Championship, as it was now called, became the top championship of the promotion. With the purchase of WCW during the previous year, WWE's roster had doubled in size and with newly obtained properties and
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