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105-541: Represented by the historic Big Gold Belt , the championship originated as the world heavyweight title of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), an umbrella organization of wrestling promotions from which WCW withdrew in 1993. At that time, WCW was responsible for deciding which of their wrestlers would hold the NWA championship. When the NWA withdrew WCW's control of the booking of their championship,

210-508: A Championship Wrestling from Florida card called "Battle of the Belts II", where NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair defended the title against Barry Windham . In 1988, the assets of JCP were purchased by media mogul Ted Turner , whose cable network TBS broadcast JCP programming. He launched the promotion World Championship Wrestling (WCW), which took its name from JCP's flagship television show, and inherited its membership in

315-455: A chokeslam and a Tombstone Piledriver before Kane subsequently attacked him with a large steel wrench, resulting in Vader being taken away on a stretcher and was kept off of television for a while. Two months later, at Unforgiven: In Your House , Vader returned during Kane's inferno match against The Undertaker; as Kane was attempting to leave the match, Vader appeared and fought him back to

420-503: A No Holds Barred match. He lost to Edge on the October 11, 1998, episode of Sunday Night Heat in his final televised WWF match. In a shoot interview, Jim Cornette said part of the reason that Vader's WWF run was not as successful as what was hoped was due to the failure to properly book him. After leaving the WWF, Vader returned to Japan. He returned to All Japan Pro Wrestling forming

525-527: A Vader Bomb for his efforts. As a result, Vader was suspended for his actions, though in reality, he needed time off for shoulder surgery. Jim Cornette campaigned for Vader's reinstatement, and by the time Vader returned, Yokozuna had left Cornette's management. At February's In Your House 6 , Vader appeared during Yokozuna's match against The British Bulldog , and as Yokozuna was about to pin The Bulldog, Vader attacked him, handcuffed him, and delivered

630-704: A World Wrestling Coalition charity show. The match was held at the Kingston Armory in Kingston, Pennsylvania . After wrestling his last match in 2007, White began working as a high school football coach and retired from the sport. On April 29, 2010, White made a return to wrestling under his Vader ring name at the event Vader Time 5 Return of the Emperor. At the event, he teamed with his son Jesse and former tag team partner 2 Cold Scorpio to successfully defeat Makoto Hashi , Tamon Honda and Tatsumi Fujinami in

735-556: A brawl with Hart. This turned Vader's face and served to bring Vader into the USA vs. Canada feud , which culminated at Survivor Series , where Vader was the leader of Team USA, with Goldust , Marc Mero , and Steve Blackman (replacing the injured Patriot) as they faced Team Canada, composed of the British Bulldog, Jim Neidhart , Doug Furnas , and Phil LaFon ; during the match, Goldust walked out on his team and Team USA lost

840-586: A center by the Los Angeles Rams with the 24th pick of the 3rd Round (80th overall). White's second season saw the Rams go to the Super Bowl and earned White an NFC championship ring . White spent the season on the injured reserve list due to knee problems. He did not play a single down and registered no statistics. White was forced into retirement by a ruptured patella . While working out at

945-416: A distinctive name plate onto which the champion's name was etched. While not the first wrestling championship belt to incorporate a name plate, it popularized the concept. The original championship belt design was known for being unbranded as it only read "World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion" and bore no initials or trademark of its owning promotion. The Big Gold Belt was first introduced in 1986 to replace

1050-399: A fictitious alternative was created to promote the use of the title belt. Over the title's history, eight title reigns were shared between four wrestlers. Rick Rude 's three title reigns comprise the longest total time as champion with 202 cumulative days. Hiroshi Hase is the champion with the shortest reign of eight days; Rude holds the longest individual reign of 178 days. Ric Flair was

1155-496: A fictitious promotion named WCW International. Rude engaged in a promotional tour in Japan with the championship; WCW held a partnership with Japanese promotion New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). Rude lost the championship briefly to NJPW wrestler Hiroshi Hase as part of this arrangement, regaining it after eight days to set up a loss to Sting . An angle in which Rude defeated Sting for the championship in another NJPW-organized bout

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1260-492: A gym, White was spotted by a man who remembered him from his college football days who suggested he look into professional wrestling. Trained by Brad Rheingans , White got his first national exposure in the American Wrestling Association (AWA). He went by the moniker Baby Bull , which was later changed to Bull Power. White honed his skills during this time, and his ring work improved significantly to

1365-707: A legitimate knee injury. This injury was a factor in him and Bigelow losing the title to the WCW World Tag Team Champions , The Steiner Brothers after a nearly four-month reign. This also marked a decrease in his NJPW appearances, as Vader began to focus almost entirely on WCW and the WCW World Heavyweight Championship . In November 1989, White, as Big Van Vader, made his debut in Mexico for Universal Wrestling Association . On November 12, he defeated El Canek to win

1470-664: A little over two minutes. Seven months later, he returned for WrestleWar , where he battled Stan Hansen to a double disqualification. Eight months later, he returned to Halloween Havoc and took part in the Chamber of Horrors match, in which Vader's team lost due to Abdullah the Butcher being electrocuted by their partner, Cactus Jack . Two months later, he took part in Starrcade 's Lethal Lottery, where he teamed with Mr. Hughes and defeated Rick Steiner and The Nightstalker (who

1575-756: A monstrous wrestler, and he was capable of aerial maneuvers: his diving moonsault was voted the " Best Wrestling Maneuver " of 1993 by Wrestling Observer Newsletter ( WON ) readers. Among other accolades in WCW, Mexico and Japan, he won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and the WCW World Heavyweight Championship three times each, the UWA World Heavyweight Championship once, the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship twice,

1680-709: A one-night appearance at the 2016 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony to induct Stan Hansen into the WWE Hall of Fame . On March 7, 2022, it was announced that he would be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. Vader returned to Japan, wrestling at a NJPW Wrestle Land show. He also worked in the independent circuit as Big Van Vader, including a tag match with Mike Awesome against Samoa Joe and Dan Maff in Jersey All Pro Wrestling on June 5, 2004. On May 12, 2007, Vader faced Brutus Beefcake at Spartan Slamfest,

1785-621: A one-off return to TNA on the June 24, 2015, episode of Impact! for a singles match against Bram . Vader won the match via disqualification after Bram used a ring wrench to hit Vader in the head. Matt Morgan then entered the ring to save Vader and take out Bram. This was his final appearance for the company. Vader returned to the WWF, now World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), on the October 31, 2005, episode of Raw when Jonathan Coachman announced that Vader and Goldust would be in his corner for his street fight against Stone Cold Steve Austin

1890-642: A participant in the Royal Rumble match, as he entered at number 13 and eliminated Jake Roberts , Doug Gilbert , one member of the Squat Team , and Savio Vega ; he also fought with his ally Yokozuna , but Vader was eliminated by Shawn Michaels before he re-entered the ring and started assaulting everyone, including Michaels. Vader defeated Vega on the following Monday Night Raw , before assaulting WWF officials and eventually, WWF President Gorilla Monsoon demanded that Vader cease his attacks and received

1995-606: A playable character in the WCW video games WCW Wrestling , WCW: The Main Event , and WCW SuperBrawl Wrestling , the WWE video game WWF In Your House , and as a downloadable or unlockable legend in WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 , WWE '12 , WWE '13 , WWE 2K16 , WWE 2K17 , WWE 2K18 , and WWE 2K19 . He has also been featured, both officially and unofficially, in numerous Japanese wrestling games, such as

2100-478: A prop in the film (as the original was needed for the actual company). These copies saw use as substitute belts at WCW events afterwards. In March 2001, after the long and bitter rivalry of the Monday Night War , World Wrestling Federation Entertainment, Inc. bought out WCW. The Big Gold Belt became property of the WWF and continued to represent the abbreviated WCW Championship within the promotion during

2205-496: A real-life automobile crash. Vader confronted World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan , and informed him that he could not avoid the monster. The two met at SuperBrawl V , with Vader managing to kick out of Hogan's leg drop after a count of one. The referee was knocked out before Vader hit the Vader Bomb on Hogan. Ric Flair ran to the ring, made the three count, and attacked Hogan, resulting in Vader's disqualification. A rematch

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2310-648: A rematch with Sting on July 12 at The Great American Bash , which he won to become the new WCW World Heavyweight Champion. His reign was short-lived, as he re-injured his knee, forcing him to lose the title three weeks later to Ron Simmons , who substituted for Sting after he was attacked by Jake Roberts earlier that night. Vader was out of action after Clash of the Champions in September as he underwent knee surgery. Upon his return at Halloween Havoc , Vader sent Nikita Koloff into retirement and legitimately sprained

2415-538: A result, Vader began feuding with The Boss, whom he defeated at Spring Stampede . He also faced Sting at Slamboree for the vacant International World Heavyweight Championship . Sting requested the match rather than be awarded the title after an injury to his original opponent, Rick Rude , and defeated Vader. At Bash at the Beach , he defeated the former Boss, now known as The Guardian Angel by disqualification. Two months later at Fall Brawl , he defeated Angel and Sting in

2520-836: A second title reign. The title last changed hands at the Clash of the Champions XXVII event in 1994. The angle matched Sting against Flair, who was now the WCW World Heavyweight Champion, in a championship unification match as a way of eliminate the WCW International title. Flair would win the match, unifying both championships and ending the existence of the WCW International World Heavyweight Championship. The unified title would be represented by

2625-444: A severe beating. This led to what was supposed to be a one-on-one encounter between Vader and Yokozuna at WrestleMania XII . However, the match became a six-man tag team match pitting Vader, Owen Hart , and The British Bulldog against Yokozuna, Ahmed Johnson , and Jake Roberts, with the stipulation that if Yokozuna's team won the match, he would have five minutes alone with Cornette in the ring; this never occurred as Vader's team won

2730-477: A singles match at the Royal Rumble , and during the match, The Undertaker's former manager, Paul Bearer , attacked him and helped Vader win; Bearer then became Vader's manager. Both Vader and Undertaker went on to compete in the Royal Rumble match , during which Stone Cold Steve Austin was eliminated by Bret Hart ; however, the referees did not see this, as they were attending to Terry Funk and Mankind on

2835-553: A strong dominance in the tag team division with 2 Cold Scorpio , where they had a great number of victories on television and pay-per-views. Vader earned many singles victories as well against several of the roster's Japanese wrestlers. He often had matches against Jun Akiyama as part of a grudge feud that was carried over from their times facing each other in AJPW. While teaming together, Vader and Scorpio often found themselves fighting against Akiyama and whatever Japanese partner he had at

2940-463: A team with his old foe Stan Hansen , with whom he made it to the finals of the 1998 World's Strongest Tag Determination League , where they were defeated by Kenta Kobashi and Jun Akiyama . At the beginning of 1999, he became the number one contender to the Triple Crown by defeating Kobashi. He then won the (vacant) Triple Crown Title on March 6, 1999, by defeating Akira Taue . He then won

3045-619: A tentative working agreement. This benefited Vader, as he could now have his schedule coordinated far more easily. This helped alleviate his difficulty in gaining notoriety in WCW, as his previously infrequent appearances did not allow the audience to see him very often. On March 1, 1992, he and Bam Bam Bigelow began teaming up as "Big, Bad, and Dangerous". The duo went on to win the IWGP Tag Team Championship from Hiroshi Hase and Keiji Mutoh . In May, Vader faced Mutoh, now known as The Great Muta, one on one and suffered

3150-778: A triangle match to determine the number one contender for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship , now held by Hulk Hogan . A month later at Halloween Havoc , he defeated the Guardian Angel in a rematch. At Clash of the Champions XXIX , Vader defeated Dustin Rhodes and earned the opportunity to face the United States Heavyweight Champion Jim Duggan , whom he defeated for the title at Starrcade . In January 1995, Vader had to end his alliance with Harley Race, who left WCW after

3255-484: A two-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion. On February 10, 1990, Vader faced Stan Hansen at an AJPW versus NJPW supercard show called Super Fight in Tokyo Dome . Before Vader entered the ring, Hansen accidentally broke Vader's nose with the bull rope Hansen carried to the ring for his matches. During an exchange of stiff punches, Hansen unintentionally poked Vader's left eye with his thumb during their brawl, which caused

WCW International World Heavyweight Championship - Misplaced Pages Continue

3360-786: Is not considered to be a return of the Big Gold Belt. Shortly after, a new belt for the renamed Women's World Championship was also unveiled using the same design except the strap is white and the belt is an overall smaller size. In 2024, a new belt for the renamed World Tag Team Championship was unveiled, with the design was based on the World Heavyweight Championship and the Women's World Championship. General Specific Big Van Vader Leon Allen White (May 14, 1955 – June 18, 2018), better known by his ring names Big Van Vader or simply Vader ,

3465-442: Is over. I'm nothing but a big piece of shit. A big fat piece of shit". Subsequently, Vader had a series of losses and was reduced to the status of a jobber to the stars , having a feud with Mark Henry which Vader lost. After considering retirement, Vader instead negotiated his own release from the WWF so he could once again wrestle in Japan. His final WWF pay-per-view match was a loss to Bradshaw at Breakdown: In Your House in

3570-463: Is usually performed by much smaller wrestlers. The Fatal Fury character Raiden , also known as "Big Bear", is based on Vader's appearance in Japan. The character Alexander the Grater from Saturday Night Slam Masters bears a resemblance to Vader. Alexander also wears a mask very similar to the mastodon mask Vader wore during ring entrances in the 1980s and early 1990s. Vader himself appears as

3675-652: The Fire Pro Wrestling series, Virtual Pro Wrestling , King of Colosseum (he is a preset model in King of Colosseum II ' s EDIT mode), the latter two editions of the All Star Pro-Wrestling series, and Wrestle Kingdom 2 , where he is also featured in the cover art. White and his wife Grace Connelly, married in 1979. Together they have a son, Jesse White , who was born on April 19, 1986. In July 2009, Jesse began training to become

3780-526: The NWA World Heavyweight Championship belt that had been used since 1973, historically known as the "domed globe", and nicknamed by both wrestlers and fans the "Ten Pounds of Gold". Jim Crockett Jr. , of Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP), commissioned Charles Crumrine, a Reno, Nevada , silversmith specializing in rodeo-style belt buckles, to produce the new championship belt. The championship belt debuted on February 14, 1986, at

3885-611: The National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), continuing to promote the NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair. In January 1991, WCW officially recognized Ric Flair as their world champion in conjunction with the NWA's recognition. During this time, the Big Gold Belt represented the NWA World Heavyweight Championship as well as the newly established WCW World Heavyweight Championship . An exception to this arose in

3990-558: The UWA World Heavyweight Championship . Five days later, he made a couple of shows for Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre in trios matches, teaming with Fabuloso Blondy . He kept the UWA World title for over a year, before losing it back to Canek on December 9. Vader was originally signed with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in 1990 but was only used sparingly until 1991. Vader's first match in WCW took place on July 7, 1990, at The Great American Bash , where he defeated Tom Zenk in

4095-716: The Union of Wrestling Forces International (UWFi), where he competed as Super Vader due to legal issues concerning the Big Van Vader name. By September 1993, he was simply known as Vader in the United States. He worked with UWFi for over two years, winning the Best of the World Tournament, which started on April 3 and ended on August 18, 1994. Vader first defeated Salman Hashimikov and then Masahito Kakihara in

4200-730: The WCW United States Heavyweight Championship once , and won the battle royal main event of the 1993 Battlebowl pay-per-view (PPV). He headlined multiple PPV events for the WWF and WCW . Vader was inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 1996 and the WWE Hall of Fame in 2022. Leon Allen White was born in Lynwood, California , on May 14, 1955, and grew up in Compton, California . He

4305-600: The XWA Wrestling (XWA) promotion, defeating "Savvy" Sid Scala. On April 20, 2017, Vader made an appearance in Japan at Korakuen Hall as part of the Dradition show to celebrate the 45th anniversary of the debut of Tatsumi Fujinami . Following a six-man tag team match, Vader collapsed due to being dropped on his head during the match, but he was able to walk backstage under his own power and he remained in Japan as he

WCW International World Heavyweight Championship - Misplaced Pages Continue

4410-575: The 1999 Champion Carnival . Vader lost the Triple Crown to Misawa on May 2, 1999, at the Giant Baba Memorial Show, and he regained it from Misawa on October 30. While defending the Triple Crown, Vader won the World Tag Team Championship with a recently returned "Dr. Death" Steve Williams on February 20, 2000. However, the week after on February 27, Vader lost the Triple Crown to Kenta Kobashi. Upon losing

4515-484: The 2008 DVD release of Nature Boy Ric Flair: The Definitive Collection that the $ 25,000 he initially deposited with additional interest totalling $ 38,000 was never paid back to him, and as a result, Flair kept the Big Gold Belt until a settlement was finally reached with WCW. With its return to WCW, the Big Gold Belt represented the NWA World Heavyweight Championship once again, being awarded to Masa Chono after his August 1992 tournament final victory over Rick Rude for

4620-515: The April 17 episode of Saturday Night . During the match, Jack suffered a broken nose and needed 27 stitches on his face. The match was heavily edited for broadcast, as WCW did not wish to show severe bleeding. In a rematch on April 24, Vader powerbombed Jack onto the concrete floor outside the ring, resulting in Jack suffering a concussion and temporary loss of feeling in his left hand and leg. In

4725-498: The Big Gold Belt there, proclaiming himself "The Real World's Heavyweight Champion" until WCW sued, upon which Flair instead used a WWF World Tag Team title belt, digitized out on television, on the (kayfabe) orders of WWF President Jack Tunney until Flair won the World Wrestling Federation Championship at the 1992 Royal Rumble , thereby unifying it with his own claim. Flair stated on

4830-421: The Big Gold Belt. Big Gold Belt The Big Gold Belt is a historic professional wrestling championship belt that has represented titles in multiple promotions throughout its history. Originally designed in 1985 by silversmith Charles Crumrine and commissioned by Jim Crockett Promotions for NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair , the championship belt has three large gold plates with

4935-815: The Bremen Catch Cup, in Germany. He defeated Rambo in the finals, to win his first tournament. In 1989, Bull Power returned to the CWA, to challenge Otto Wanz for the CWA World Heavyweight Championship. On August 21 in Vienna, Austria, he defeated Wanz to win his second CWA World title. He held onto the title for a little over four months before losing it back to Wanz in Bremen, Germany, on December 22. A year later, Otto Wanz retired and

5040-731: The CWA World title was held up. Bull Power defeated Rambo to win the vacant title for the third and final time. He held to the title for over six months, before losing it to Rambo in Graz, Austria on July 6, 1991. Five months later, he defeated Tatsumi Fujinami to become the inaugural CWA Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion . He vacated the title in 1992 after signing with World Championship Wrestling . Although originally signed to All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), AJPW owner Giant Baba traded White's contract over to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) in 1987 after consideration. Upon joining NJPW, White

5145-565: The Champions XXXI , Vader defeated Flair and Arn Anderson in a 2-on-1 handicap match. Following the event, Hogan grew interested in Vader and asked for his assistance in his developing feud with the Dungeon of Doom by asking him to join him, Randy Savage , and Sting for WarGames. Vader complied but the storyline never developed as, shortly after, Vader was fired from WCW after a locker room brawl with Paul Orndorff . The title video for

5250-597: The IWGP Heavyweight Champion and an active competitor in NJPW. He also beat Antonio Inokis streak on his debut. In January 1991, Vader defeated Tatsumi Fujinami to earn himself a third IWGP Heavyweight Title reign. During this match, Vader began bleeding from his eye, which required surgery when he returned to the United States. This reign was short-lived, however, as Vader lost the title back to Fujinami on March 4. At this point, WCW and NJPW were reaching

5355-684: The NWA World Heavyweight Championship in July was recognized by WCW as holding the WCW International World Heavyweight Championship , the world championship of a kayfabe subsidiary of WCW called "WCW International". The WCW International World Heavyweight Championship was represented by the Big Gold Belt until June 19 1994, when it was unified with the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. The Big Gold Belt then represented

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5460-438: The NWA and the title change went ahead, but with no mention of the NWA. For a brief time following WCW's withdrawal, the championship was not officially named; it was referred to as the " Big Gold Belt " until WCW management renamed it the WCW International World Heavyweight Championship. This was not intended to be the "International World Heavyweight Championship" contested by WCW, but rather the "World Heavyweight Championship" of

5565-411: The September 4 debut edition of Monday Nitro featured multiple shots of Vader (along with Hogan, Sting and Savage). Absent from the first episode, he had been scheduled to face Hogan for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship on the September 11 episode but was replaced by Lex Luger , who issued a challenge to Hogan on the debut show. In late February 1993, White signed an eight-date agreement with

5670-534: The Vader Bomb, which is a corner slingshot splash , when he would bounce off the middle rope and land on a prone opponent. He was also noted for his impressive agility, as he can perform a simple dropkick despite his 450 lb (200 kg) frame. One of his signature moves was the Vader Sault , a moonsault or a backward somersault jump off the top rope , a move that requires significant agility and

5775-417: The WCW World Heavyweight Championship again, remaining the top title in WCW until the end of the promotion in 2001. Upon winning the title for the second time in 1996, Hollywood Hogan spray-painted the belt with the nWo logo and afterwards wore the Big Gold Belt in that defaced condition. During the filming of the movie Ready to Rumble in 1999, bronze cast copies of the original belt were made for use as

5880-469: The WWE Undisputed Championship was thus disputed, and he awarded the World Heavyweight Championship , in the form of the Big Gold Belt, to Triple H. A new version of the belt, incorporating a WWE logo for copyright purposes, was introduced in March 2003. On December 15, 2013 at the TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs pay-per-view, the title was unified with the WWE Championship when WWE Champion Randy Orton defeated World Heavyweight Champion John Cena , and

5985-426: The WWF Championship). After Jericho was defeated by Triple H at WrestleMania X8 , the two title belts were replaced by a single Undisputed WWF Championship belt (later WWE), which was first awarded to Triple H on April 1, 2002. By 2002, the WWF had been divided in what became known as the brand extension and the promotion along with its parent company were renamed to World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). The roster

6090-438: The World Heavyweight Championship from Hogan at Bash at the Beach in a Steel Cage match . He conspired with Kevin Sullivan and the Dungeon of Doom to gain a psychological edge before the encounter, which Vader lost when Hogan escaped the cage. He then restarted his feud with Flair, based on his frustration at Flair's constant interference in his title matches and Flair's annoyance at his inability to defeat Hogan. At Clash of

6195-618: The aftermath of the 2011 natural disasters in Japan , Vader and his son Jesse wrestled on special tribute cards for All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) and Pro Wrestling Zero1 . On December 7, 2012, Vader returned to AJPW once again, teaming with Keiji Mutoh and Kenso to defeat Bambi Killer , Franz Dynamite and Mazada in a six-man tag team match. White is considered one of the greatest super-heavyweight professional wrestlers of all time. He used his size and weight as part of his moves making them look much more painful than when performed by someone half his size. For example, his finishing move, called

6300-497: The back of jobber Joe Thurman, sending him to the hospital. At Starrcade , Vader lost to Sting in the finals of the King of Cable tournament. Two days later, Vader defeated Simmons by taking advantage of a shoulder injury of Simmons's to regain the World Heavyweight Championship. On March 11, 1993, Vader lost the WCW World Heavyweight Championship to Sting but regained it six days later. Upon returning to WCW, Mick Foley , then wrestling as Cactus Jack, defeated Vader via count out on

6405-417: The championship belt and it only represented the WCW World Heavyweight Champion. In July 1991, Flair and WCW parted ways while Flair was still champion. The Big Gold Belt left with Flair due to a dispute with WCW Vice President Jim Herd in which Herd refused to return Flair's $ 25,000 deposit, a deposit per regulations that was required of reigning NWA World Heavyweight Champions and was to be returned after

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6510-481: The company), where it culminated in a much hyped pay-per-view main event on December 9, 2001. Vader lost the match by submitting to Akiyama, and right after the event he took a break from wrestling for two months. Vader returned to NOAH's television programs in March 2002. He and Scorpio continued teaming, and despite them not winning the titles again, they continued having many victories in the tag team and singles division throughout 2002. Vader's last appearance in NOAH

6615-428: The conclusion of their reigns. WCW was forced to strip Flair of their recognition of world champion and introduced a new title belt design to continue to represent the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. On September 8, two days before Flair's WWF debut, the NWA followed suit and also stripped Flair of their recognition as world champion. Flair soon signed with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE ) and exhibited

6720-437: The eye to pop out of its socket. After removing his mask, pushing the eye back into its socket and holding it in place with his eyelid, Vader continued wrestling Hansen until the match was rendered a no contest. As a result of the injury, Vader required a metal plate to be surgically placed under his eye. Vader's success garnered the attention of World Championship Wrestling (WCW), who convinced him to work for them while still

6825-472: The final match of an eight-man tournament against Shinya Hashimoto at Battle Satellite in Tokyo Dome , Vader was declared the new IWGP Heavyweight Champion . He was the first gaijin (non-Japanese) wrestler to hold the title. On May 25, one month after being crowned champion, Vader lost the title to Russian suplex master Salman Hashimikov . Hashimikov dropped the title to Vader's old rival, Riki Choshu, on July 12. On August 10, Vader defeated Choshu to become

6930-428: The finals, before losing to Klaus Wallas . On March 22, 1987, he won his first championship, the CWA World Heavyweight Championship , defeating Otto Wanz in Denver, Colorado, ending Wanz's reign of nearly nine years in its only title change in the United States. He held onto the title for nearly four months, before losing back to Wanz on July 11 in Graz, Austria. In December 1987, he participated in his second tournament,

7035-418: The first and last titleholder. The WCW International World Heavyweight Championship has its origins in the NWA World Heavyweight Championship , the principal championship of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). The NWA was a syndicate of wrestling promotions who would book an overall champion. In 1991, the NWA World Heavyweight Champion was Ric Flair , who held the title when he wrestled for WCW. Flair

7140-445: The floor, allowing Austin to sneak back into the ring and eliminate both Vader and Undertaker, then Bret Hart, who was busy eliminating Fake Diesel , and win the Royal Rumble. As a result of this, Vader and the other men eliminated by Austin, Bret Hart and The Undertaker, were put into the four-way main event of February's In Your House 13: Final Four for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship, in which Vader, after bleeding profusely,

7245-400: The following night's Raw is War , Vader wrestled The Patriot , who won the match and then went after Bret Hart, who came to ringside during the match; Vader attacked The Patriot and then brought him back into the ring, where he went for the Vader Bomb, but Hart came into the ring and laid the Canadian flag over The Patriot, so Vader got down, picked up the Canadian flag, broke it, and started

7350-429: The line against Vader's title. Vader dominated the match, but Flair capitalized on failed interference by Race and Vader's weakened knees to win the match with a rollup and end Vader's third World Heavyweight Championship reign. Big Van Vader continued to feud with Flair until SuperBrawl IV , when Flair once again defeated him, this time in a " Thundercage " match, with the help of the special guest referee The Boss . As

7455-405: The main event. Vader made his in-ring return to the United States on January 28, 2012. He defeated Arik Royal and Adam Page in a handicap match at WrestleReunion: Los Angeles . On May 11, 2012, at Resistance Pro 's event A Small Deadly Space, Vader defeated Jay Bradley . In May 2016, Will Ospreay and Ricochet faced each other during the NJPW tournament Best of the Super Juniors. During

7560-497: The man whose four-year winning streak Vader had ended over eight years prior, Antonio Inoki. Inoki was over 50 years old at the time, but the match lasted nearly fourteen minutes before Inoki won the match. In the weeks leading up to the 1996 Royal Rumble , Vader's debut was heavily hyped on television as he was billed as "The Man They Call Vader" (though Vince McMahon had originally wanted to rename him "The Mastodon"). He made his first World Wrestling Federation (WWF) appearance as

7665-449: The match after The Bulldog pinned Vader after hitting him with the ring bell. Goldust and Vader feuded throughout the fall and finally faced off at the Royal Rumble , in a match that Vader won. Goldust eliminated Vader from the Royal Rumble match later that night (Vader entered at number 30). Following his feud with Goldust, Vader began feuding with Kane, and both faced off for the first time at No Way Out of Texas , where Vader lost after

7770-660: The match when Vader pinned Roberts. Vader then attacked the WWF World Heavyweight Champion Shawn Michaels after one of Michaels' matches, which earned him a spot in a six-man tag team match at In Your House 9: International Incident , where Vader, Owen Hart, and The British Bulldog teamed up against Michaels, Ahmed Johnson, and Sycho Sid ; Vader pinned Michaels to win the match for his team. Vader faced Michaels again at SummerSlam , where Michaels won by pinfall. Following his feud with Michaels, Vader faced off against The Undertaker in

7875-617: The match, both wrestlers performed a high flying, fast-paced sequence. When Vader saw the sequence, he complained on social media about the current direction of pro wrestling, specifically about matches being too scripted and overly choreographed. During the following weeks, Vader and Ospreay feuded on Twitter, which led to England-based promotion Revolution Pro Wrestling (RevPro) booking a match between them. The match took place on August 12, 2016, with Vader defeating Ospreay. Two days later, Vader made an appearance in Colchester, England for

7980-579: The meantime, Vader began to feud with a new arrival to WCW, Davey Boy Smith . They met at Slamboree in May for the World Heavyweight Championship. Vader lost by disqualification when he hit Smith with a chair, though he retained the title. Vader and Sid Vicious then formed a partnership and called themselves The Masters of the Powerbomb. They were defeated by Smith and his new partner, Sting, at Beach Blast in July. Following this, Vader and Cactus Jack's feud

8085-421: The moment. Vader and Scorpio won the grudge feud by defeating Jun Akiyama and Akitoshi Saito on an October 19, 2001, pay-per-view, where they became the inaugural GHC Tag Team Champions . They lost the titles to Mitsuharu Misawa and Yoshinari Ogawa on November 30. Having lost the tag team titles, Vader tried to reprioritize himself and pursue Jun Akiyama's GHC Heavyweight Championship (the top title of

8190-460: The nature of Rude's win (and in reality because of his injury) WCW Commissioner Nick Bockwinkel declared Rude's win void and returned the title to Sting. However, Sting immediately vacated the title, claiming that the fans had come to the event to see him win the title in the ring and they deserved to see a championship match. Therefore, a match for the then-vacant championship was held later that night, in which Sting defeated Big Van Vader to begin

8295-421: The next holder of the NWA championship. As a result of WCW withdrawing its membership of the NWA in September 1993, the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, now once again held by Flair, no longer carried the NWA name, but WCW retained the physical belt they had used to represent the title. This belt became the WCW International World Heavyweight Championship. The NWA then appointed Eastern Championship Wrestling as

8400-490: The next night at Taboo Tuesday . When Austin decided not to participate, he was replaced by Batista . Vader and Goldust interfered in the match on Coachman's behalf and received spinebusters for their efforts. On the June 11, 2012, episode of Raw , Vader defeated Heath Slater in a singles match. On July 23 on the 1000th episode of Raw , Vader and several other legends prevented Slater from leaving in his match against Lita , which she won. In April 2016, Vader made

8505-845: The period of the WCW/ECW " Invasion ". After the conclusion of Invasion at the Survivor Series in November 2001, the WCW Championship being held by The Rock became known simply as the World Championship for the month that followed as the WCW name was phased out. The title was unified with the WWF Championship at Vengeance in December 2001. Chris Jericho became the final recognized titleholder and

8610-621: The point that he was booked in a match with Stan Hansen for the AWA World Heavyweight Championship , in which he was defeated. In May 1986, White went to Europe to compete for Otto Wanz and his promotion, Catch Wrestling Association , touring Austria and Germany, using the name Bull Power . That summer, he took part in the three-day tournament for the Vienna Catch Cup, in Austria. He made it to

8715-431: The promotion in charge of booking a new NWA champion. Ric Flair was the first WCW International World Heavyweight Champion; he had defeated Barry Windham for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship in July 1993 and held it at the point when WCW withdrew from the NWA two months later. Flair was booked by WCW to lose the championship to Rick Rude in the 1993 Fall Brawl event. After the NWA objected to this, WCW withdrew from

8820-516: The quarterfinals. In the semifinals, Vader defeated Kiyoshi Tamura , and beat Nobuhiko Takada in the finals to win the tournament and the UWFi Pro-Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship. He would hold onto the title for over eight months, before losing the title to Takada on April 20, 1995. He left shortly thereafter. At Wrestling World on January 4, Vader had his first post-WCW match, facing

8925-464: The ring to continue the match, which Kane lost. Vader and Kane had a rematch at Over the Edge in a mask vs. mask match , in which Vader attempted to use a wrench on Kane like the one used on him months before, but Kane managed to recover and defeat Vader, costing him his mask in the process. In a post-match interview with Michael Cole , Vader said, "I made the biggest mistake of my life. Maybe Vader time

9030-525: The spring of 1991. On March 21, 1991, Tatsumi Fujinami defeated Flair at the WCW/New Japan Supershow . Following this match, the NWA recognized Fujinami as their new champion. However, WCW did not recognize this title change. While Flair would defeat Fujinami at SuperBrawl I on May 19, 1991 to reunify the NWA and WCW world titles, during Fujinami's approximately two-month reign as NWA World Heavyweight Champion, Flair retained possession of

9135-548: The subsequent undisputed champion in the WWF and professional wrestling. Following the unification of the World Championship (formerly WCW Championship) and WWF Championship in December 2001, the Big Gold Belt and the WWF Championship belt were collectively used to represent the Undisputed WWF Championship (those who held the championship belts after Jericho are credited as having held only

9240-583: The title was officially retired. Afterwards, the Big Gold Belt was used in conjunction with the existing WWE Championship belt to represent the unified championship known as the WWE World Heavyweight Championship (the name has since reverted to the WWE Championship). However, much like how Chris Jericho carried both physical title belts as Undisputed WWF Champion, the title history for the World Heavyweight Championship

9345-448: The title, Vader continued defending his tag team titles with Williams before Vader took some time off, disappearing from TV in April 2000 after a singles loss to Misawa. The Tag Team titles were vacated that month, and Williams went on to feud with Mike Barton to set up their Brawl For All revenge angle. Upon returning from his hiatus, Vader joined Mitsuharu Misawa's newly created Pro Wrestling Noah promotion in October 2000. He had

9450-522: The track and field team, wrestled, and played football. White was a nationally ranked center that was recruited by forty colleges. He played offensive line at the University of Colorado , where he was named a second-team All-American at guard by United Press International for the Buffaloes in 1977. He earned a business administration degree. In the 1978 NFL draft , White was drafted as

9555-484: The vacant title in New Japan Pro-Wrestling . Meanwhile the new WCW World Heavyweight Championship belt design that had been commissioned after Flair's departure also continued to be used. In September 1993, WCW formally seceded from the NWA, and the promotional rights to the NWA World Heavyweight Championship were returned to the NWA. With the Big Gold Belt remaining property of WCW, Ric Flair who won

9660-521: Was an American professional wrestler and professional football player. Throughout his career, he performed for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), World Championship Wrestling (WCW), the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), and Pro Wrestling Noah (NOAH) during the 1990s and 2000s. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest super-heavyweight professional wrestlers of all time. White performed as

9765-508: Was divided into two franchises or "WWE brands", split between Raw and SmackDown! . The WWE Undisputed Champion appeared on both shows and defended against challengers from both brands. After SummerSlam in August 2002, WWE Undisputed Champion Brock Lesnar announced that he had signed an exclusive contract with SmackDown, ignoring the claim to the title's number-one contendership by Raw's Triple H . Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff said that

9870-508: Was eliminated by The Undertaker. Bearer then persuaded his two proteges, Vader and Mankind, to go after the WWF Tag Team Championship , despite the fact that the two men often brawled between themselves. They failed in their bid to win the tag team gold at WrestleMania 13 . Vader again received an opportunity to face The Undertaker, this time for the WWF Championship at In Your House 16: Canadian Stampede , but lost. On

9975-747: Was given the ring name Big Van Vader and began to wear a black wrestling mask . His new identity was based on a strong warrior of the same name from Japanese folklore . He was introduced as the crown jewel of the Takeshi Puroresu Gundan stable which was managed by Takeshi Kitano . Vader challenged Antonio Inoki , who had already defeated Riki Choshu , and defeated the worn-down Inoki. The pro-Inoki audience rioted, resulting in NJPW being banned from Sumo Hall, its home arena. The ban remained in effect until 1989, when NJPW did its first show back in Sumo Hall on February 22. After winning

10080-598: Was in January 2003. On February 19, 2003, Vader appeared in NWA Total Nonstop Action (NWA-TNA) to defend Dusty Rhodes , who was fighting with The Harris Brothers . He and Dusty won a tag team match the next week against the Harris Brothers via disqualification. He then began a feud with Nikita Koloff , whose career Vader ended long ago. However, TNA and Vader soon parted ways. Vader made

10185-541: Was originally scheduled to face Sid Vicious at Starrcade . The real-life dismissal of Vicious after his stabbing incident with Arn Anderson in England, however, forced WCW to find a quick replacement. Executive producer Eric Bischoff placed Ric Flair in the match, which was scheduled in Flair's hometown of Charlotte, North Carolina . In the storyline, Vader did not take Flair seriously until he agreed to put his career on

10290-536: Was raised with his sister in a rough area of Los Angeles known as South Central , where the siblings experienced a home break-in. His father was a US Marine . His father also was an underwater welder for the US Navy and invented an automobile hoist , which made the family wealthier and let them move to a safer neighborhood in Bell , where White attended Bell High School . In high school, he competed in shot put on

10395-462: Was restarted as Jack was cleared to return for Halloween Havoc to face Vader in a Texas Death match . Vader won when Harley Race stunned Jack with a cattle prod that kept him down for a ten count. On March 16, 1994, Foley lost his right ear in a match with Vader in Munich , Germany ; Foley's head became trapped in the ropes, which were under excessive tension, causing his ear to be torn off. Vader

10500-403: Was retired as this lineage follows that of WWE's original world title. On the August 18, 2014, episode of Raw , a single, redesigned WWE Championship belt was presented to then-champion Brock Lesnar, and the Big Gold Belt was permanently retired. In 2023, WWE unveiled a new World Heavyweight Championship which pays homage to the Big Gold Belt and other previous world championship designs, but

10605-506: Was scheduled to work two more shows in Fukuoka and Osaka . On April 22, Vader, Takuma Sano , and Yoshiaki Fujiwara lost a six-man tag team match to Koji Kanemoto , Shiro Koshinaka and Tatsumi Fujinami. On April 23, Vader, Riki Choshu , and Tatsumi Fujinami defeated Shiro Koshinaka, Takuma Sano, and Yoshiaki Fujiwara. The final match of his career took place August 26, 2017, for Top Rope Promotions with Vader coming out victorious. In

10710-524: Was signed, a strap match for the inaugural Uncensored pay-per-view. Flair once again intervened (this time in drag to avoid revealing his presence) and managed to cost Vader the match by getting himself carried by Hogan as he touched all four turnbuckle pads. Vader was stripped of the United States Heavyweight Championship on April 23, 1995, for multiple violent offenses. However, Vader gained another opportunity to win

10815-511: Was simultaneously considered the WCW World Heavyweight Champion ; he was stripped of both titles because he left to work for rival company World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). Lex Luger won the vacant WCW World Heavyweight Championship, which would remain the promotion's primary title throughout WCW's existence until the company's assets were bought by the WWF; Masahiro Chono won a tournament designed to crown

10920-565: Was subbing for an injured Diamond Studd ) to advance to the Battlebowl battle royal, in which he was eliminated. When he began working for WCW full-time, Vader was paired with a manager, Harley Race , and received a shot at Sting 's World Heavyweight Championship on April 12, 1992, and was disqualified. Sting suffered a pair of cracked ribs and a ruptured spleen in the match after taking a Vader Bomb from Vader, though he continued to compete infrequently while recuperating. Vader received

11025-426: Was then set up. The finish was arranged to involve Rude illegally using the title belt as a weapon to score the victory, causing officials to declare the win null and void. Sting refused to accept the title without "winning" it back. This match caused a back injury to Rude, which ended his in-ring career. At the 1994 Slamboree event, Rude had been scheduled to defend against Sting in a return match. However, due to

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