| IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 The IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship belt | |||||||||||||||||||
| Details | |||||||||||||||||||
| Promotion | New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Date established | December 11, 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Current champion(s) | David Finlay | ||||||||||||||||||
| Date won | May 4, 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Other name(s) | |||||||||||||||||||
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The IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship (IWGP GLOBALヘビー級王座, IWGP GLOBAL hebī-kyū ōza) is a professional wrestling championship owned and promoted by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. "IWGP" are the initials of NJPW's governing body, the International Wrestling Grand Prix (インターナショナル・レスリング・グラン・プリ, intānashonaru resuringu guran puri). The title was created when the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship was retired. The current champion is David Finlay, who is in his record-setting second and longest reign. He defeated Nic Nemeth at Wrestling Dontaku: Night 2 on May 4, 2024 in Fukuoka, Japan.
History
Background
At 2023's Power Struggle, after Will Ospreay had defended the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship against Shota Umino in the main event, Bullet Club leader David Finlay destroyed both the U.S. belt and Ospreay's custom IWGP United Kingdom Heavyweight Championship belt with a mallet after attacking Ospreay and Umino's former mentor, AEW's Jon Moxley, and a three-way match was scheduled for three men at Wrestle Kingdom 18.
While the match was initially listed as for the United States title, NJPW chairman Naoki Sugabayashi announced at a press conference on November 6, 2023 that the title would be retired and the match would be for a brand new championship. On December 11, at another press conference, he announced the name of the new championship, the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship.
Belt design
The new championship belt was revealed on January 3, 2024. It is set on a white strap, similar to the now-retired IWGP Intercontinental Championship, and features five plates: one center and two set of side plates. The center plate features depictions of lions on each side, the "IWGP" letters in the center, and the words (all in capital letters) "Global" and "Champion" on the top and bottom, respectively; the New Japan logo is also featured on the top. Four gold circles with a ruby in the center are vertically set, two on each side, next to the center plate. The two sets of side plates each feature different parts of the world globe.
Reigns
As of December 22, 2024, there have been three reigns shared among two wrestlers. David Finlay was the inaugural champion, has the most reigns at two, and was the youngest champion, winning it at 30 years old. Nic Nemeth was the oldest champion when he won it at 43 years old.
David Finlay is the current champion in his record-setting second reign. He defeated Nic Nemeth at Wrestling Dontaku: Night 2 in Fukuoka, Japan on May 4, 2024.
| No. | Overall reign number |
|---|---|
| Reign | Reign number for the specific champion |
| Days | Number of days held |
| Defenses | Number of successful defenses |
| + | Current reign is changing daily |
| No. | Champion | Championship change | Reign statistics | Notes | Ref. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Event | Location | Reign | Days | Defenses | ||||
| 1 | David Finlay | January 4, 2024 | Wrestle Kingdom 18 | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 50 | 0 | Defeated Will Ospreay and Jon Moxley in a three-way match to become the inaugural champion. | |
| 2 | Nic Nemeth | February 23, 2024 | The New Beginning in Sapporo: Night 1 | Sapporo, Japan | 1 | 71 | 1 | ||
| 3 | David Finlay | May 4, 2024 | Wrestling Dontaku: Night 2 | Fukuoka, Japan | 2 | 232+ | 4 | ||
Combined reigns
As of December 22, 2024.
| † | Indicates the current champion |
|---|
| Rank | Wrestler | No. of reigns |
Combinded defenses |
Combined days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | David Finlay † | 2 | 4 | 282+ |
| 2 | Nic Nemeth | 1 | 1 | 71 |
References
- ^ Renner, Ethan (December 11, 2023). "NJPW introducing IWGP Global Championship at Wrestle Kingdom 18". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
- Fiorvanti, Tim (January 2, 2017). "What to watch for at New Japan Pro Wrestling's Wrestle Kingdom 11". ESPN. Archived from the original on January 3, 2017. Retrieved May 12, 2017.
- "David Finlay Smashes Both IWGP UK And US Championships, Attacks Ospreay And Moxley At NJPW Power Struggle | Fightful News". www.fightful.com.
- Brennan, Corey (November 4, 2023). "NJPW Creating New Title To Replace IWGP US And UK Championship". Fightful. Retrieved November 11, 2023.
- "菅林会長が、"IWGP US ヘビー級王座に変わる新王座"に言及。1.4東京ドーム大会のオスプレイvsモクスリーvsフィンレー 3WAYマッチは、「IWGP GLOBAL ヘビー級選手権 初代王者決定戦」に正式変更へ【WK18】". www.njpw.co.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 2023-12-11.
- Thompson, Andrew (January 3, 2024). "NJPW unveils IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship".
- Powell, Jason (January 4, 2024). "NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 18 results: Powell's live review of Sanada vs. Tetsuya Naito for the IWGP World Hvt. Championship, Kazuchika Okada vs. Bryan Danielson, Will Ospreay vs. Jon Moxley vs. David Finlay for the IWGP Global Title". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
- "2024.02.23 THE NEW BEGINNING in SAPPORO | NEW JAPAN PRO-WRESTLING". NJPW. Archived from the original on 2024-02-04. Retrieved 2024-02-05.
- Fritts, Chick (May 4, 2024). "NJPW Wrestling Dontaku night two live results: Moxley vs. Narita IWGP title match". Wrestling Observer Figure Four Online. Retrieved May 4, 2024.
External links
- Championship history on official website (in Japanese)
- Championship history on official website (in English)
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded byIWGP Intercontinental Championship IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship |
New Japan Pro-Wrestling's secondary heavyweight championship 2023–present |
Succeeded byCurrent |
| IWGP Global Heavyweight Champions | |
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