WCW Women's Championship

The World Championship Wrestling (WCW) Women's Championship was a short-lived title for the women's division in World Championship Wrestling. It lasted from 1996 until 1997, when it was abandoned. It is not to be confused with prior women's titles recognized by the promotion.

History

Prior women's titles recognized by World Championship Wrestling

In the mid-1980s, Jim Crockett Promotions (which eventually became World Championship Wrestling) was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance and recognized the NWA World Women's Championship, which was held by Debbie Combs. The Kansas City promotion that recognized Combs as the champion withdrew from NWA in 1987 and closed in 1988. During this time, the NWA vacated Combs' title and awarded Misty Blue Simmes the reactivated NWA United States Women's Championship (a replacement of the prior NWA World Women's Championship held by Combs). Simmes defended the title from 1987-1989, when the title was no longer recognized by Jim Crockett Promotions. [ [http://www.angelfire.com/wrestling/cawthon777/wcw88-89.htm WCW 1988-1989] ]

In 1990, the organization recognized Ladies Professional Wrestling Association Champion Susan Sexton as the World Women's Champion. Sexton defended the title against Bambi at . [ [http://www.angelfire.com/wrestling/cawthon777/wcw90.htm WCW 1990] ]

WCW attempted to create a new women's division in 1991. At Wrestle War, a women's match was featured pitting Itsuki Yamazaki and Mami Kitimura against Miki Handa and Miss A. Later in the year, former United States Women's Champion Misty Blue Simmes returned to the organization and competed in matches against Linda Dallas and Kat LeRoux. During this time, the organization also featured matches involving Madusa, Bambi, and Judy Martin. By the end of the year, all of the women wrestlers were gone from the organization except Madusa (who was kept on board in a managerial position). [ [http://www.angelfire.com/wrestling/cawthon777/wcw91.htm WCW 1991] ]

WCW Women's Championship

The first official WCW Women's Champion was crowned in an 8-woman tournament that was begun on an episode of Monday Night Nitro on November 4, 1996 and concluded at Starrcade on December 29, 1996.web cite|url=http://www.steveswrestling.com/info/wcwtitletourneys.html |title=WCW Title Tournaments |accessdate=2006-06-16] cite web| url=http://www.ddtdigest.com/updates/home1996.htm |title=WCW Reports for Television and PPV for 1996 |accessdate=2007-06-16] The tournament used only seven wrestlers; five of these wrestlers were Japanese women from the GAEA promotion (Akira Hokuto, Chigusa Nagayo, KAORU, Meiko Satomura, Sonoko Kato). The other competitors were Madusa and Malia Hosaka. Akira Hokuto actually competed twice in the first round of the tournament, losing to Madusa wrestling under her masked Reina Jabuki gimmick and defeating Satomura competing as Hokuto.

The two primary competitors over the history of this title were Akira Hokuto and Madusa, as they met in the tournament finals and at subsequent PPV events. The last defense of the title occurred at The Great American Bash on June 15, 1997 when Hokuto defeated Madusa in a title vs. career match. [cite web| url=http://www.ddtdigest.com/updates/home1997.htm |title=WCW Reports for Television and PPV for 1997 |accessdate=2007-06-16] Madusa retired and Hokuto went back to Japan and the title was apparently abandoned. WCW continued to feature women's wrestling throughout 1998, but did not make any reference to the WCW Women's Championship during these matches. [ [http://www.ddtdigest.com/updates/1998053u.htm WCW {Pro} - Saturday, 05/16/98] ] [ [http://www.ddtdigest.com/updates/1998124w.htm WCW Worldwide - Saturday, 12/26/98] ]

In addition to the WCW Women's Championship, the organization also recognized the WCW Women's Cruiserweight Championship in 1997.

Title history

References