IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship
Prince Devitt with the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship belt in a wrestling ring
Prince Devitt with the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship belt
Details
Promotion New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW)
Date established February 6, 1986
Current champion(s) Kushida
Date won October 8, 2018

The IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling junior heavyweight 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.

Title reigns

Overall, there have been 80 reigns shared among 37 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, Kushida's first and fourth reigns, Bushi's only reign, Will Ospreay's first reign and Marty Scurll's only reign are all tied for least successful defenses. Hiromu Takahashi suffered a neck injury during his match with Dragon Lee at the G1 Special in San Francisco, and the injury forced NJPW to vacate the title. Kushida defeated Marty Scurll at King of Pro-Wrestling (2018) to become the new champion.

Title history

Key
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 DaysDefenses
1 Shiro Koshinaka February 6, 1986 Live event Tokyo, Japan 1 1021 Koshinaka defeated The Cobra in a tournament final to become the first champion. [3]
2 Nobuhiko Takada May 19, 1986 Live event Tokyo, Japan 1 1236
3 Shiro Koshinaka September 19, 1986 Live event Fukuoka, Japan 2 3172
— Vacated August 2, 1987 — — — —— Koshinaka vacated the championship due to injuring his right ankle.
4 Kuniaki Kobayashi August 20, 1987 Live event Tokyo, Japan 1 1291 Kuniaki Kobayashi defeated Nobuhiko Takada to win the vacant championship. [4]
5 Hiroshi Hase December 27, 1987 Live event Tokyo, Japan 1 1523
6 Owen Hart May 27, 1988 Live event Sendai, Japan 1 281
7 Shiro Koshinaka June 24, 1988 Live event Osaka, Japan 3 2656
8 Hiroshi Hase March 16, 1989 Live event Yokohama, Japan 2 700
9 Jushin Liger May 25, 1989 Live event Osaka, Japan 1 772 [5]
10 Naoki Sano August 10, 1989 Live event Tokyo, Japan 1 1742
11 Jushin Thunder Liger January 31, 1990 Live event Osaka, Japan 2 2001 Previously known as Jushin Liger.
12 Pegasus Kid August 19, 1990 Live event Tokyo, Japan 1 740 [6]
13 Jushin Thunder Liger November 1, 1990 Live event Tokyo, Japan 3 1652
— Vacated April 15, 1991 — — — —— Liger vacated the championship so a new champion could be decided in the Top of the Super Juniors tournament.
14 Norio Honaga April 30, 1991 Live event Tokyo, Japan 1 432 Honaga defeated Jushin Thunder Liger in the finals of the Top of the Super Juniors tournament.
15 Jushin Thunder Liger June 12, 1991 Live event Tokyo, Japan 4 580
16 Akira Nogami August 9, 1991 Live event Tokyo, Japan 1 881
17 Norio Honaga November 5, 1991 Live event Tokyo, Japan 2 951
18 Jushin Thunder Liger February 8, 1992 Live event Sapporo, Japan 5 1393
19 El Samurai June 26, 1992 Live event Tokyo, Japan 1 1493
20 Último Dragón November 22, 1992 Live event Tokyo, Japan 1 431 [7]
21 Jushin Thunder Liger January 4, 1993 Fantastic Story in Tokyo Dome Tokyo, Japan 6 6285
— Vacated September 24, 1994 — — — —— Liger vacated the championship due to fracturing his left ankle.
22 Norio Honaga September 27, 1994 Live event Osaka, Japan 3 1456 Honaga defeated Wild Pegasus in a tournament final to win the vacant championship.
23 Koji Kanemoto February 19, 1995 Live event Tokyo, Japan 1 732 [8]
24 Sabu May 3, 1995 Wrestling Dontaku 1995 Fukuoka, Japan 1 421
25 Koji Kanemoto June 14, 1995 Live event Tokyo, Japan 2 2042 This match was also for Kanemoto's UWA World Welterweight Championship.
26 Jushin Thunder Liger January 4, 1996 Wrestling World 1996 Tokyo, Japan 7 1162
27 The Great Sasuke April 29, 1996 Battle Formation Tokyo, Japan 1 1655 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 October 11, 1996 Live event Osaka, Japan 2 857
29 Jushin Thunder Liger January 4, 1997 Wrestling World 1997 Tokyo, Japan 8 1834 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 July 6, 1997 Live event Sapporo, Japan 2 350
31 Shinjiro Otani August 10, 1997 The Four Heaven in Nagoya Dome Nagoya, Japan 1 1815 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 February 7, 1998 Live event Sapporo, Japan 9 4038 [9]
33 Koji Kanemoto March 17, 1999 Live event Hiroshima, Japan 3 1643
34 Kendo Kashin August 28, 1999 Jingu Climax Tokyo, Japan 1 441
35 Jushin Thunder Liger October 11, 1999 Final Dome Tokyo, Japan 10 491
36 Juventud Guerrera November 29, 1999 Nitro Denver, Colorado 1 70
37 Jushin Thunder Liger December 6, 1999 Nitro Milwaukee, Wisconsin 11 2273 Psychosis replaced Guerrera in the match due to Guerrera suffering a fractured right arm.
38 Tatsuhito Takaiwa July 20, 2000 Summer Struggle 2000 Sapporo, Japan 1 1012 [10][11]
39 Minoru Tanaka October 29, 2000 Get a Right!! Kobe, Japan 1 2642 [10]
40 Masayuki Naruse July 20, 2001 Dome Quake Sapporo, Japan 1 801
41 Tokimitsu Ishizawa/Kendo Kashin October 8, 2001 Indicate of Next Tokyo, Japan 2 1162 Won the title under the name Tokimitsu Ishizawa, but defended it under the name Kendo Kashin. [12]
— Vacated February 1, 2002 — — — —— Kashin left NJPW and returned the title to the IWGP Executive Committee. [13]
42 Minoru Tanaka February 16, 2002 Fighting Spirit 2002 Tokyo, Japan 2 1533 Defeated Masahito Kakihara to win the championship. [14]
43 Koji Kanemoto July 19, 2002 Summer Fight Series 2002 Sapporo, Japan 4 2786 [14]
44 Tiger Mask April 23, 2003 Strong Energy 2003 Hiroshima, Japan 1 1534 [15][16]
— Vacated September 23, 2003 — — — —— The championship was vacated so it could be contested for in a battle royal.
45 Jado October 13, 2003 Ultimate Crush Tokyo, Japan 1 621 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. [16]
46 Heat December 14, 2003 Battle Final 2003 Nagoya, Japan 3 38711 Previously known as Minoru Tanaka. [16][17]
47 Tiger Mask January 4, 2005 Toukon Festival: Wrestling World Tokyo, Japan 2 2773
48 Black Tiger October 8, 2005 Toukon Souzou New Chapter Tokyo, Japan 1 1341 This match was also for Black Tiger's NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship.
49 Tiger Mask February 19, 2006 Acceleration Tokyo, Japan 3 731 This match was also for Black Tiger's NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship. [18]
50 Koji Kanemoto May 3, 2006 New Japan Cup 2006 Special Fukuoka, Japan 5 2351 [18][19]
51 Minoru December 24, 2006 Battle Xmas! Catch the Victory Tokyo, Japan 4 1944 Previously known as Minoru Tanaka/Heat.
52 Ryusuke Taguchi July 6, 2007 New Japan Soul C.T.U Farewell Tour Tokyo, Japan 1 1554 [20]
53 Wataru Inoue December 8, 2007 New Japan Alive Osaka, Japan 1 1913 [21]
— Vacated June 16, 2008 — — — —— The championship was vacated when Inoue moved to the heavyweight division.
54 Tiger Mask July 8, 2008 New Japan Trill Tokyo, Japan 4 750 Tiger Mask defeated Prince Devitt in a tournament final to win the vacant championship. [22]
55 Low Ki September 21, 2008 New Japan Generation Kobe, Japan 1 1051 [23]
56 Tiger Mask January 4, 2009 Wrestle Kingdom III in Tokyo Dome Tokyo, Japan 5 2234 [24]
[25]
57 Místico August 15, 2009 G1 Climax 2009: New Lords, New Laws Tokyo, Japan 1 852 [26]
[27]
58 Tiger Mask November 8, 2009 Destruction '09 Tokyo, Japan 6 570 [28]
59 Naomichi Marufuji January 4, 2010 Wrestle Kingdom IV in Tokyo Dome Tokyo, Japan 1 1665 [29]
60 Prince Devitt June 19, 2010 Dominion 6.19 Osaka, Japan 1 3647
61 Kota Ibushi June 18, 2011 Dominion 6.18 Osaka, Japan 1 852
— Vacated September 12, 2011 — — — —— The championship was vacated after Ibushi was sidelined with a shoulder injury. [30]
62 Prince Devitt September 19, 2011 Kantaro Hoshino Memorial Show Kobe, Japan 2 2274 Devitt defeated Kushida to win the vacant championship.
63 Low Ki May 3, 2012 Wrestling Dontaku 2012 Fukuoka, Japan 2 871 [19]
64 Kota Ibushi July 29, 2012 Last Rebellion Tokyo, Japan 2 712
65 Low Ki October 8, 2012 King of Pro-Wrestling Tokyo, Japan 3 340
66 Prince Devitt November 11, 2012 Power Struggle Osaka, Japan 3 4194
67 Kota Ibushi January 4, 2014 Wrestle Kingdom 8 in Tokyo Dome Tokyo, Japan 3 1814
68 Kushida July 4, 2014 Kizuna Road 2014 Tokyo, Japan 1 790
69 Ryusuke Taguchi September 21, 2014 Destruction in Kobe Kobe, Japan 2 1052
70 Kenny Omega January 4, 2015 Wrestle Kingdom 9 in Tokyo Dome Tokyo, Japan 1 1823
71 Kushida July 5, 2015 Dominion 7.5 in Osaka-jo Hall Osaka, Japan 2 801
72 Kenny Omega September 23, 2015 Destruction in Okayama Okayama, Japan 2 1031
73 Kushida January 4, 2016 Wrestle Kingdom 10 in Tokyo Dome Tokyo, Japan 3 2575
74 Bushi September 17, 2016 Destruction in Tokyo Tokyo, Japan 1 490
75 Kushida November 5, 2016 Power Struggle Osaka, Japan 4 600
76 Hiromu Takahashi January 4, 2017 Wrestle Kingdom 11 in Tokyo Dome Tokyo, Japan 1 1584
77 Kushida June 11, 2017 Dominion 6.11 in Osaka-jo Hall Osaka, Japan 5 1202
78 Will Ospreay October 9, 2017 King of Pro-Wrestling Tokyo, Japan 1 270
79 Marty Scurll November 5, 2017 Power Struggle Osaka, Japan 1 600
80 Will Ospreay January 4, 2018 Wrestle Kingdom 12 in Tokyo Dome Tokyo, Japan 2 1563 This was a four-way match, also involving Hiromu Takahashi and Kushida.
81 Hiromu Takahashi June 9, 2018 Dominion 6.9 in Osaka-jo Hall Osaka, Japan 2 722
— Vacated August 20, 2018 — — — —— The championship was vacated after Takahashi suffered a neck injury.
82 Kushida October 8, 2018 King of Pro-Wrestling Tokyo, Japan 6 8+0 Kushida won the vacant title in a match against Marty Scurll.

Combined reigns

Jushin Thunder Liger in a wrestling ring
Jushin Thunder Liger holds the record for most reigns as champion with 11

As of October 16, 2018.

† Indicates the current champion
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 Kushida † 6 8 604+
8 Kota Ibushi 3 8 337
9 Kenny Omega 2 4 285
10 Norio Honaga 3 9 283
11 Ryusuke Taguchi 2 6 260
12 Hiromu Takahashi 2 6 230
13 Low Ki 3 2 226
14 Hiroshi Hase 2 3 195
15 Wataru Inoue 1 3 191
16 El Samurai 2 3 184
17 Will Ospreay 2 3 183
18 Shinjiro Otani 1 5 181
19 Naoki Sano 1 2 174
20 Naomichi Marufuji 1 5 166
21 The Great Sasuke 1 5 165
22 Tokimitsu Ishizawa/Kendo Kashin 2 3 160
23 Black Tiger 1 1 134
24 Kuniaki Kobayashi 1 1 129
25 Último Dragón 2 8 128
26 Nobuhiko Takada 1 6 123
27 Tatsuhito Takaiwa 1 2 101
28 Akira Nogami 1 1 88
29 Místico 1 2 85
30 Masayuki Naruse 1 1 80
31 Pegasus Kid 1 0 74
32 Jado 1 1 62
33 Marty Scurll 1 0 60
34 Bushi 1 0 49
35 Sabu 1 1 42
36 Owen Hart 1 1 28
37 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
  • Benaka, Matt; Westcott, Brian; Zadarnowski, Andrew. "IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title History". Wrestling Title Histories by Gary Will and Royal Duncan. Solie.org. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  • Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2006). "Japan & Korea: New Japan IWGP Tag Team Title". Wrestling Title Histories. Archeus Communications. p. 373. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.
  • "IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship history". New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). NJPW.co.jp. Retrieved 2016-11-10.
Specific
  1. ↑ "No Limit、またしてもIWGP Jr.タッグ奪還ならず！/4月19日TNA「Lock Down」試合結果(1)". NJPW.co.jp (in Japanese). New Japan Pro-Wrestling. 2009-04-20. Archived from the original on 2009-04-21. Retrieved 2015-08-30. 「Lock Down」は全試合が「シックスサイドスチール」と呼ばれる金網マッチで行われる大会。なれない試合形式に加えて3Wayタッグ。さらに、もう一組の挑戦者チームであるLAXのホミサイドはともかく、ヘルナンデスはどう見ても新日本のJr.規定である100Kgを超えている。数々のハンディを抱えての再挑戦となった。
  2. ↑ Clevett, Jason (2004-11-04). "The legend of Jushin "Thunder" Liger". Slam! Sports: Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  3. ↑ "PWI: Wrestling History". Pro Wrestling Illustrated. PWI-Online.com. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  4. ↑ Hoops, Brian (2015-08-20). "On this day in pro wrestling history (August 20): June Byers wins NWA Women's belt, Michael Shane wins TNA X-Division title". Wrestling Observer/Figure Four Online. Retrieved 2017-02-11.
  5. ↑ Hoops, Brian (2015-05-25). "On this day in pro wrestling history (May 25): Rockers last match in AWA, Tiger Mask wins NWA Jr. Heavyweight gold, Russian amateur wrestler beats Vader". Wrestling Observer/Figure Four Online. Retrieved 2017-02-19.
  6. ↑ Milner, John (2005-03-22). "Chris Benoit". Slam! Sports: Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  7. ↑ Molinaro, John F. (1999-10-28). "Chris Benoit". Slam! Sports: Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  8. ↑ Hoops, Brian (2017-02-19). "Daily Pro Wrestling History (02/19): Kurt Angle vs. Undertaker at No Way Out 2006". Wrestling Observer/Figure Four Online. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
  9. ↑ Hoops, Brian (2017-02-07). "On this day in pro wrestling history (Feb 7): Bobby Roode & Austin Aries wins tag gold". Wrestling Observer/Figure Four Online. Retrieved 2017-02-16.
  10. 1 2 "試合結果 2000年". So-net.ne.jp (in Japanese). New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Archived from the original on 2003-12-11. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  11. ↑ Hoops, Brian (2015-07-20). "On this day in pro wrestling history: Brisco beats Race for NWA title, Gagne beats Crusher for AWA title, Robinson vs. Gagen". Wrestling Observer/Figure Four Online. Retrieved 2017-01-13.
  12. ↑ "試合結果 　10月8日（月）東京ドーム". So-net.ne.jp (in Japanese). New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Archived from the original on 2002-12-21. Retrieved 2016-08-24.
  13. ↑ "2月5日　新日本プロレスリング・5階会議室　PM2：00〜". So-net.ne.jp (in Japanese). New Japan Pro-Wrestling. 2002-02-05. Archived from the original on 2002-12-14. Retrieved 2016-08-24.
  14. 1 2 "試合結果 2002年". So-net.ne.jp (in Japanese). New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Archived from the original on 2002-12-16. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  15. ↑ Power Slam Staff (August 2003). "We are the Champions (as of July 8)". Power Slam Magazine. Lancaster, Lancashire, England: SW Publishing LTD. p. 15. 109.
  16. 1 2 3 "試合結果 インデックス 2003年". NJP-W.jp (in Japanese). New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Archived from the original on 2005-12-18. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  17. ↑ Power Slam Magazine Staff (March 2005). "We are the champions (as of February 11)". Power Slam Magazine. Lancaster, Lancashire, England: SW Publishing LTD. p. 15. 116.
  18. 1 2 "試合結果". NJPW.co.jp (in Japanese). New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Archived from the original on 2006-06-03. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  19. 1 2 F4W Staff (2015-05-03). "On this day in pro wrestling history: Low Ki Vs. Dewitt, Punk wins OVW title, Mutoh wins IWGP belt, Bret wins NA title, Dibiase & Dr. Death, Sheik, Watts, Fargos". Wrestling Observer/Figure Four Online. Retrieved 2017-02-11.
  20. ↑ "新日本プロレス創立35周年Tour Circuit 2007 New Japan Soul C.T.U Farewell Tour". NJPW.co.jp (in Japanese). New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  21. ↑ "新日本プロレス創立35周年Tour Circuit2007 New Japan Alive". NJPW.co.jp (in Japanese). New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  22. ↑ "New Japan Trill". NJPW.co.jp (in Japanese). New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  23. ↑ "Circuit2008 New Japan Generation". NJPW.co.jp (in Japanese). New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  24. ↑ Martin, Andrew (2009-01-04). "1/4 NJPW Wrestle Kingdom III results: Tokyo, Japan". Wrestleview. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  25. ↑ Golden, Hunter (2009-01-07). "Rising Sun Soliloquy Newsletter #7: Colossal Tokyo Dome Edition!". Wrestleview. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  26. ↑ Golden, Hunter (2009-08-20). "Rising Sun Soliloquy Newsletter #36". Wrestleview. Archived from the original on 2009-08-24. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  27. ↑ "フィールズ Presents G1 Climax 2009 ～New Lords，New Laws～". NJPW.co.jp (in Japanese). New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  28. ↑ "Resultados NJPW Destruction – Tiger Mask vence a Místico – Team 3D y Nakamura retienen". SuperLuchas (in Spanish). 2009-11-08. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  29. ↑ "January 4 New Japan Tokyo Dome report – legends, promotional wars". Wrestling Observer. 2010-01-04. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  30. ↑ "9.19神戸大会全カード決定!　飯伏が負傷欠場、デヴィvsKushidaで"新王者"決定戦！金本vs魔界28号は星野勘太郎メモリアルマッチ!!". New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). 2011-09-12. Retrieved 2015-08-30.

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