IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship | |||||||||||
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Prince Devitt with the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship belt in a wrestling ring
Prince Devitt with the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship belt
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Details | |||||||||||
Current champion(s) | Kushida | ||||||||||
Date won | January 4, 2016 | ||||||||||
Date established | February 6, 1986 | ||||||||||
Promotion | New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) | ||||||||||
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The IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling junior heavweight championship owned by the New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. "IWGP" is the acronym of NJPW's governing body, the International Wrestling Grand Prix. The title was introduced on February 6, 1986, at a NJPW show. Only wrestlers under the junior heavyweight weight-limit may hold the championship. NJPW currently controls two junior heavyweight championships: the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship and the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship. The weight-limit for the tag team title is 100 kg (220 lb); it is assumed that this title has the same weight-limit.[1] From August 5, 1996, until November 5, 1997, the title was part of the J-Crown, or J-Crown Octuple Unified Championship. The J-Crown was an assembly of eight different championships from several different promotions. It was created on August 5, 1996, when The Great Sasuke won an eight-man tournament. The IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, the British Commonwealth Junior Heavyweight Championship, the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship, the NWA World Welterweight Championship, the UWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Championship, the WAR International Junior Heavyweight Championship, the WWA World Junior Light Heavyweight Championship, and the WWF Light Heavyweight Championship were the eight championships that were involved.[2] On November 5, 1997, then-champion Shinjiro Otani vacated all J-Crown belts but the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship after the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) retook control of its Light Heavyweight title, effectively ending the J-Crown. Being a professional wrestling championship, the title is won as a result of a predetermined outcome.
Overall, there have been 73 reigns shared among 33 wrestlers. Title changes happen mostly at NJPW-promoted events, as it has only changed hands at non-NJPW events twice. Reigns 36 and 37 occurred on World Championship Wrestling's Nitro television program, when Juventud Guerrera defeated Jushin Thunder Liger on November 29, 1999, and on December 6, 1999, when Liger retrieved the championship by defeating Guerrera's stand-in Psychosis. The inaugural champion was Shiro Koshinaka, who defeated The Cobra on February 6, 1986, in the finals of a tournament. Liger holds the record of most reigns, with 11. At 628 days, Liger's sixth reign is the longest in the title's history. Liger, with a combined 11 reigns, holds the record for most days as champion at 2,245. Guerrera's only reigns holds the record for shortest reign at one week. With 11 successful defenses, Minoru Tanaka's reign under the ring name "Heat" had the most during a single reign. Over his 11 reigns, Liger successfully defended the title 31 times, the most of any champion. With zero, El Samurai's second reign, Hiroshi Hase's second reign, Tiger Mask's fourth and sixth reigns, Liger's fourth reign, Guerrera's only reign, Pegasus Kid's only reign, Low Ki's third reign and Kushida's first reign are all tied for least successful defenses. Kushida is the current champion in his third reign, after defeating Kenny Omega on January 4, 2016, at NJPW's Wrestle Kingdom 10 in Tokyo Dome event to win the title.
Title history
# | Order in reign history |
Reign | The reign number for the specific set of wrestlers listed |
Event | The event promoted by the respective promotion in which the title was won |
Successful defenses | The number of successful defenses the champion had during his reign |
— | Used for vacated reigns so as not to count it as an official reign |
N/A | The information is not available or is unknown |
+ | Indicates the current reign is changing daily |
# | Wrestlers | Reign | Date | Days held |
Location | Event | Successful defenses | Notes | Ref(s). |
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1 | Shiro Koshinaka | 1 | February 6, 1986 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 1 | Koshinaka defeated The Cobra in a tournament final to become the first champion. | [3] |
2 | Nobuhiko Takada | 1 | May 19, 1986 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 6 | ||
3 | Shiro Koshinaka | 2 | September 19, 1986 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Fukuoka, Japan | Live event | 2 | ||
— | Vacated | — | August 2, 1987 | — | N/A | N/A | — | Koshinaka vacated the championship due to injuring his right ankle. | |
4 | Kuniaki Kobayashi | 1 | August 20, 1987 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 1 | Kuniaki Kobayashi defeated Nobuhiko Takada to win the vacant championship. | |
5 | Hiroshi Hase | 1 | December 27, 1987 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 3 | ||
6 | Owen Hart | 1 | May 27, 1988 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Sendai, Japan | Live event | 1 | ||
7 | Shiro Koshinaka | 3 | June 24, 1988 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Osaka, Japan | Live event | 6 | ||
8 | Hiroshi Hase | 2 | March 16, 1989 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Yokohama, Japan | Live event | 0 | ||
9 | Jushin Liger | 1 | May 25, 1989 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Osaka, Japan | Live event | 2 | ||
10 | Naoki Sano | 1 | August 10, 1989 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 2 | ||
11 | Jushin Thunder Liger | 2 | January 31, 1990 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Osaka, Japan | Live event | 1 | ||
12 | Pegasus Kid | 1 | August 19, 1990 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 0 | [4] | |
13 | Jushin Thunder Liger | 3 | November 1, 1990 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 2 | ||
— | Vacated | — | April 15, 1991 | — | N/A | N/A | — | Liger vacated the championship so a new champion could be decided in the Top of the Super Juniors tournament. | |
14 | Norio Honaga | 1 | April 30, 1991 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 2 | Honaga defeated Jushin Thunder Liger in the finals of the Top of the Super Juniors tournament. | |
15 | Jushin Thunder Liger | 4 | June 12, 1991 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 0 | ||
16 | Akira Nogami | 1 | August 9, 1991 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 1 | ||
17 | Norio Honaga | 2 | November 5, 1991 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 1 | ||
18 | Jushin Thunder Liger | 5 | February 8, 1992 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Sapporo, Japan | Live event | 3 | ||
19 | El Samurai | 1 | June 26, 1992 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 3 | ||
20 | Último Dragón | 1 | November 22, 1992 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 1 | [5] | |
21 | Jushin Thunder Liger | 6 | January 4, 1993 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Fantastic Story in Tokyo Dome | 5 | ||
— | Vacated | — | September 24, 1994 | — | N/A | N/A | — | Liger vacated the championship due to fracturing his left ankle. | |
22 | Norio Honaga | 3 | September 27, 1994 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Osaka, Japan | Live event | 6 | Honaga defeated Wild Pegasus in a tournament final to win the vacant championship. | |
23 | Koji Kanemoto | 1 | February 19, 1995 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 2 | ||
24 | Sabu | 1 | May 3, 1995 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Fukuoka, Japan | Wrestling Dontaku 1995 | 1 | ||
25 | Koji Kanemoto | 2 | June 14, 1995 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Live event | 2 | This match was also for Kanemoto's UWA World Welterweight Championship. | |
26 | Jushin Thunder Liger | 7 | January 4, 1996 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Wrestling World 1996 | 2 | ||
27 | The Great Sasuke | 1 | April 29, 1996 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Battle Formation | 5 | On August 5, 1996, Sasuke won an 8-man tournament to form the J-Crown, an octuple-belt championship that includes the IWGP Junior Heavyweight title; these titles were still considered separate, but were defended together. | |
28 | Último Dragón | 2 | October 11, 1996 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Osaka, Japan | Live event | 7 | ||
29 | Jushin Thunder Liger | 8 | January 4, 1997 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Wrestling World 1997 | 4 | Liger lost the WAR International Junior Heavyweight Championship from the J-Crown on June 6, 1997, but continued to defend the other 7 belts. | |
30 | El Samurai | 2 | July 6, 1997 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Sapporo, Japan | Live event | 0 | ||
31 | Shinjiro Otani | 1 | August 10, 1997 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Nagoya, Japan | The Four Heaven in Nagoya Dome | 5 | On November 5, 1997, Otani vacated all J-Crown belts but the IWGP Junior Heavyweight title after the WWF retook control of its Light Heavyweight title, effectively ending the J-Crown. | |
32 | Jushin Thunder Liger | 9 | February 7, 1998 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Sapporo, Japan | Live event | 8 | ||
33 | Koji Kanemoto | 3 | March 17, 1999 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Hiroshima, Japan | Live event | 3 | ||
34 | Kendo Kashin | 1 | August 28, 1999 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Jingu Climax | 1 | ||
35 | Jushin Thunder Liger | 10 | October 11, 1999 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Final Dome | 1 | ||
36 | Juventud Guerrera | 1 | November 29, 1999 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Denver, United States | Nitro | 0 | ||
37 | Jushin Thunder Liger | 11 | December 6, 1999 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Milwaukee, United States | Nitro | 3 | Psychosis replaced Guerrera in the match due to Guerrera suffering a fractured right arm. | |
38 | Tatsuhito Takaiwa | 1 | July 20, 2000 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Sapporo, Japan | Summer Struggle 2000 | 2 | [6] | |
39 | Minoru Tanaka | 1 | October 29, 2000 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Kobe, Japan | Get a Right!! | 2 | [6] | |
40 | Masayuki Naruse | 1 | July 20, 2001 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Sapporo, Japan | Dome Quake | 1 | ||
41 | Kendo Kashin | 2 | October 8, 2001 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Indicate of Next | 2 | ||
42 | Minoru Tanaka | 2 | February 16, 2002 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Fighting Spirit 2002 | 3 | [7] | |
43 | Koji Kanemoto | 4 | July 19, 2002 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Sapporo, Japan | Summer Fight Series 2002 | 6 | [7] | |
44 | Tiger Mask | 1 | April 23, 2003 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Hiroshima, Japan | Strong Energy 2003 | 4 | [8][9] | |
— | Vacated | — | September 23, 2003 | — | N/A | N/A | — | The championship was vacated so it could be contested for in a battle royal. | |
45 | Jado | 1 | October 13, 2003 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Ultimate Crush | 1 | Jado defeated Dick Togo, El Samurai, Gedo, Heat, Jushin Thunder Liger, Katsushi Takemura, Koji Kanemoto, Masahito Kakihara, Masayuki Naruse and Tiger Mask in a battle royal to win the vacant championship. | [9] |
46 | Heat | 3 | December 14, 2003 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Nagoya, Japan | Battle Final 2003 | 11 | Previously known as Minoru Tanaka. | [9][10] |
47 | Tiger Mask | 2 | January 4, 2005 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Toukon Festival: Wrestling World | 3 | ||
48 | Black Tiger | 1 | October 8, 2005 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Toukon Souzou New Chapter | 1 | This match was also for Black Tiger's NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship. | |
49 | Tiger Mask | 3 | February 19, 2006 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Acceleration | 1 | This match was also for Black Tiger's NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship. | [11] |
50 | Koji Kanemoto | 5 | May 3, 2006 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Fukuoka, Japan | New Japan Cup 2006 Special | 1 | [11] | |
51 | Minoru | 4 | December 24, 2006 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Battle Xmas! Catch the Victory | 4 | Previously known as Minoru Tanaka/Heat. | |
52 | Ryusuke Taguchi | 1 | July 6, 2007 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | New Japan Soul C.T.U Farewell Tour | 4 | [12] | |
53 | Wataru Inoue | 1 | December 8, 2007 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Osaka, Japan | New Japan Alive | 3 | [13] | |
— | Vacated | — | June 16, 2008 | — | N/A | N/A | — | The championship was vacated when Inoue moved to the heavyweight division. | |
54 | Tiger Mask | 4 | July 8, 2008 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | New Japan Trill | 0 | Tiger Mask defeated Prince Devitt in a tournament final to win the vacant championship. | [14] |
55 | Low Ki | 1 | September 21, 2008 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Kobe, Japan | New Japan Generation | 1 | [15] | |
56 | Tiger Mask | 5 | January 4, 2009 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Wrestle Kingdom III in Tokyo Dome | 4 | [16] [17] |
|
57 | Místico | 1 | August 15, 2009 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | G1 Climax 2009: New Lords, New Laws | 2 | [18] [19] |
|
58 | Tiger Mask | 6 | November 8, 2009 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Destruction '09 | 0 | [20] | |
59 | Naomichi Marufuji | 1 | January 4, 2010 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Wrestle Kingdom IV in Tokyo Dome | 5 | [21] | |
60 | Prince Devitt | 1 | June 19, 2010 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Osaka, Japan | Dominion 6.19 | 7 | ||
61 | Kota Ibushi | 1 | June 18, 2011 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Osaka, Japan | Dominion 6.18 | 2 | ||
— | Vacated | — | September 12, 2011 | — | N/A | N/A | — | The championship was vacated after Ibushi was sidelined with a shoulder injury. | [22] |
62 | Prince Devitt | 2 | September 19, 2011 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Kobe, Japan | Kantaro Hoshino Memorial Show | 4 | Devitt defeated Kushida to win the vacant championship. | |
63 | Low Ki | 2 | May 3, 2012 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Fukuoka, Japan | Wrestling Dontaku 2012 | 1 | ||
64 | Kota Ibushi | 2 | July 29, 2012 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Last Rebellion | 2 | ||
65 | Low Ki | 3 | October 8, 2012 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | King of Pro-Wrestling (2012) | 0 | ||
66 | Prince Devitt | 3 | November 11, 2012 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Osaka, Japan | Power Struggle | 4 | ||
67 | Kota Ibushi | 3 | January 4, 2014 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Wrestle Kingdom 8 in Tokyo Dome | 4 | ||
68 | Kushida | 1 | July 4, 2014 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Kizuna Road 2014 | 0 | ||
69 | Ryusuke Taguchi | 2 | September 21, 2014 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Kobe, Japan | Destruction in Kobe | 2 | ||
70 | Kenny Omega | 1 | January 4, 2015 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Tokyo, Japan | Wrestle Kingdom 9 in Tokyo Dome | 3 | ||
71 | Kushida | 2 | July 5, 2015 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Osaka, Japan | Dominion 7.5 in Osaka-jo Hall | 1 | ||
72 | Kenny Omega | 2 | September 23, 2015 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | Okayama, Japan | Destruction in Okayama | 1 | ||
73 | Kushida | 3 | January 4, 2016 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist.+ | Tokyo, Japan | Wrestle Kingdom 10 in Tokyo Dome | 0 |
Combined reigns
As of July 2, 2024.
+ | Indicates the current champion(s) |
Rank[A] | Wrestler | No. of reigns |
Combined defenses |
Combined days |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Jushin Liger/Jushin Thunder Liger | 11 | 31 | 2,245 |
2 | Prince Devitt | 3 | 15 | 1,010 |
3 | Heat/Minoru/Minoru Tanaka | 4 | 20 | 998 |
4 | Koji Kanemoto | 5 | 14 | 954 |
5 | Tiger Mask | 6 | 12 | 858 |
6 | Shiro Koshinaka | 3 | 9 | 702 |
7 | Kota Ibushi | 3 | 8 | 337 |
8 | Kenny Omega | 2 | 4 | 285 |
9 | Norio Honaga | 3 | 9 | 283 |
10 | Ryusuke Taguchi | 2 | 6 | 260 |
11 | Low Ki | 3 | 2 | 226 |
12 | Hiroshi Hase | 2 | 3 | 195 |
13 | Wataru Inoue | 1 | 2 | 191 |
14 | El Samurai | 2 | 3 | 184 |
15 | Shinjiro Otani | 1 | 5 | 181 |
16 | Kendo Kashin | 2 | 3 | 175 |
17 | Naoki Sano | 1 | 2 | 174 |
18 | Kushida | 3 | 1 | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist.+ |
19 | Naomichi Marufuji | 1 | 5 | 166 |
20 | The Great Sasuke | 1 | 5 | 165 |
21 | Black Tiger | 1 | 1 | 134 |
22 | Kuniaki Kobayashi | 1 | 1 | 129 |
23 | Último Dragón | 2 | 8 | 128 |
24 | Nobuhiko Takada | 1 | 6 | 123 |
25 | Tatsuhito Takaiwa | 1 | 1 | 101 |
26 | Akira Nogami | 1 | 1 | 88 |
27 | Místico | 1 | 2 | 85 |
28 | Masayuki Naruse | 1 | 1 | 80 |
29 | Pegasus Kid | 1 | 0 | 74 |
30 | Jado | 1 | 1 | 62 |
31 | Sabu | 1 | 1 | 42 |
32 | Owen Hart | 1 | 1 | 28 |
33 | Juventud Guerrera | 1 | 0 | 7 |
Footnotes
- A. ^ Each wrestler's total number of days as champion is ranked highest to lowest; wrestlers with the same number are tied for that certain rank.
References
- General
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- Specific
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