World Heavyweight Championship (Zero1)
| World Heavyweight Championship | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hayato Tamura with the current belt design in September 2020 | |||||||||||||||
| Details | |||||||||||||||
| Promotion | Pro Wrestling Zero1 (2007–present) Pro Wrestling Noah (2021–present) | ||||||||||||||
| Date established | October 26, 2007 | ||||||||||||||
| Current champion | Junya Matsunaga | ||||||||||||||
| Date won | April 3, 2026 | ||||||||||||||
| Other names | |||||||||||||||
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The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the Japanese promotion Pro Wrestling Zero1. It is Zero1's top singles title. It was first introduced on December 15, 2007 when Zero1 ended their relationship with the AWA Superstars of Wrestling. The AWA Superstars of Wrestling Champion at the time, Masato Tanaka, was then recognized as the first Zero1 World Heavyweight Champion.[1] To this day, Zero1 continues to use the AWA title belt, which reads "AWA World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion", to represent their world heavyweight championship.[2]
There have been a total of 22 recognized champions who have had a combined 36 official reigns. Junya Matsunaga is the current champion in his seventh reign. He defeated Masato Tanaka to win the title at the ZERO1 25th Anniversary Show on April 3, 2026. This is his first title reign, and at the time was the Co-Holder of the Intercontinental_Tag_Team_Championship_(Zero1) with Tsugutaka Sato, becoming a Double Champion.
Title history
[edit ]| 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 | |||||
| Pro Wrestling Zero1 | ||||||||||
| 1 | Masato Tanaka | October 26, 2007 | Innovation | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 353 | 6 | Tanaka defeated Takao Omori on October 26, 2007 to win the World Heavyweight Championship of AWA Superstars of Wrestling; Zero1 ended their business relationship with AWA Superstars of Wrestling on December 15, 2007 and the AWA championship was replaced with the Zero1-Max World Heavyweight Championship.[1] In 2008, the promotion shortened its name to Pro Wrestling Zero1 and the championship's name changed to the "Zero1 World Heavyweight Championship". |
||
| 2 | Yuji Nagata | October 13, 2008 | New Japan Pro-Wrestling's Destruction '08 | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 137 | 3 | |||
| 3 | Shinjiro Otani | February 27, 2009 | Wrestler's Belief | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 30 | 2 | |||
| 4 | Ryouji Sai | March 29, 2009 | Wrestler's Belief | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 94 | 1 | |||
| 5 | Masato Tanaka | July 1, 2009 | Wrestler's 4 | Tokyo, Japan | 2 | 115 | 0 | |||
| 6 | Toshiaki Kawada | October 24, 2009 | Wrestler's 6: Never Gonna Stop! | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 169 | 3 | |||
| 7 | Kohei Sato | April 11, 2010 | Celebration from the Yasukuni Shrine "Yamato Shinshu Chikara Matsuri" | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 91 | 2 | |||
| 8 | Bambikiller | July 11, 2010 | ZERO ONE Knight STAND | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 60 | 0 | [3] | ||
| 9 | Daisuke Sekimoto | September 9, 2010 | Euro Vintage Action | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 178 | 4 | [4] | ||
| 10 | Ryouji Sai | March 6, 2011 | 10th Anniversary | Tokyo, Japan | 2 | 119 | 2 | The championship is renamed to the "AWA World Heavyweight Championship" during this reign. | ||
| 11 | The Sheik | July 3, 2011 | Destructive King 7th Anniversary of Death Commemoration | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 126 | 2 | This match was also for The Sheik's NWA World Heavyweight Championship. | ||
| 12 | Kohei Sato | November 6, 2011 | Yarisugi Forever I | Tokyo, Japan | 2 | 87 | 2 | The championship's name reverts back to the "Zero1 World Heavyweight Championship" during this reign. | ||
| 13 | Kamikaze | February 1, 2012 | ZERO1 Action 2012 | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 30 | 0 | |||
| 14 | Akebono | March 2, 2012 | 11th Anniversary Show | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 193 | 2 | [5] | ||
| — | Vacated | September 11, 2012 | — | — | — | — | — | [1] | ||
| 15 | James Raideen | August 4, 2013 | Fire Festival 2013: Final Day | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 238 | 4 | Defeated Masato Tanaka in the finals of the 2013 Fire Festival to win the vacant title. | ||
| 16 | Kohei Sato | March 30, 2014 | 11th Yamato Shinshu Chikara Matsuri | Tokyo, Japan | 3 | 98 | 1 | |||
| 17 | Masakatsu Funaki | July 6, 2014 | Wrestle-1's Shōgeki: Impact | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 75 | 1 | |||
| 18 | Kohei Sato | September 19, 2014 | Tenkaichi Special | Tokyo, Japan | 4 | 408 | 4 | |||
| 19 | Hideki Suzuki | November 1, 2015 | Live event | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 147 | 2 | |||
| 20 | Kohei Sato | March 27, 2016 | Live event | Tokyo, Japan | 5 | 364 | 3 | |||
| 21 | Masato Tanaka | March 26, 2017 | 14th Yamato Shinshu Chikara Matsuri | Tokyo, Japan | 3 | 281 | 4 | |||
| 22 | Yusaku Obata | January 1, 2018 | Kinga Shinnen | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 153 | 4 | |||
| 23 | Masato Tanaka | June 3, 2018 | Shinsei Zero1 Sapporo First Landing ~ No Gravity Warrior Sugi Sapporo First Visit | Sapporo, Japan | 4 | 174 | 0 | [6] | ||
| 24 | Daisuke Sekimoto | November 24, 2018 | ZERO1 Dream Series ~ Nenotsuki No Jin ~ Tenka-Ichi Junior Tournament 2018 | Tokyo, Japan | 2 | 294 | 6 | |||
| 25 | Yuji Hino | September 14, 2019 | 16th ZERO1 Tenka-Ichi Championship Decision 2019 | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 169 | 4 | [7] | ||
| 26 | Kohei Sato | March 1, 2020 | 19th Anniversary Show | Tokyo, Japan | 6 | 63 | 0 | [8] | ||
| 27 | Chris Vice | May 3, 2020 | Chojin Matsuri In Samurai! TV | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 116 | 2 | [9] | ||
| 28 | Hayato Tamura | August 27, 2020 | New ZERO1 | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 127 | 2 | [10] | ||
| 29 | Masato Tanaka | January 1, 2021 | ZERO1 Happy New Year 2021 | Tokyo, Japan | 5 | 226 | 1 | [11] | ||
| Pro Wrestling Noah | ||||||||||
| 30 | Takashi Sugiura | August 15, 2021 | Pro Wrestling Noah's Kawasaki GO! | Kawasaki, Japan | 1 | 293 | 3 | This was a Winner Takes All match, in which Sugiura also defended the GHC National Championship. | [12] | |
| 31 | Masato Tanaka | June 4, 2022 | Osu Premium One Team ZERO1 Shinjiro Otani Aid! Get Up As Many Times As You Want | Tokyo, Japan | 6 | 356 | 3 | [13] | ||
| 32 | Chris Vice | May 26, 2023 | ZERO1 Fibromyalgia Charity Show | Tokyo, Japan | 2 | 310 | 2 | [14] | ||
| 33 | Akitoshi Saito | March 31, 2024 | ZERO1 Noto Peninsula Earthquake Charity Pro Wrestling | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 104 | 3 | [15] | ||
| 34 | Go Shiozaki | July 13, 2024 | Noah Destination 2024 | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 457 | 3 | [16] | ||
| — | Vacated | October 13, 2025 | — | — | — | — | — | Vacated due to Go Shiozaki's departure from Pro Wrestling Noah | ||
| 35 | Masato Tanaka | November 10, 2025 | First Advance To The Holy Land | Tokyo, Japan | 7 | 144 | 1 | Defeated Atsushi Kotoge to win the vacant title | ||
| 36 | Junya Matsunaga | April 3, 2026 | ZERO1 25th Anniversary | Tokyo, Japan | 1 | 67+ | 0 | [17] | ||
Combined reigns
[edit ]As of June 9, 2026.
| † | Indicates the current champion |
|---|
| Rank | Wrestler | No. of reigns |
Combined defenses |
Combined days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Masato Tanaka | 7 | 15 | 1,649 |
| 2 | Kohei Sato | 6 | 12 | 1,111 |
| 3 | Daisuke Sekimoto | 2 | 10 | 472 |
| 4 | Go Shiozaki | 1 | 3 | 457 |
| 5 | Chris Vice | 2 | 4 | 426 |
| 6 | Takashi Sugiura | 1 | 3 | 293 |
| 7 | James Raideen | 1 | 4 | 238 |
| 8 | Ryouji Sai | 2 | 3 | 213 |
| 9 | Akebono | 1 | 2 | 193 |
| 10 | Toshiaki Kawada | 1 | 3 | 169 |
| Yuji Hino | 1 | 4 | 169 | |
| 12 | Yusaku Obata | 1 | 4 | 153 |
| 13 | Hideki Suzuki | 1 | 2 | 147 |
| 14 | Yuji Nagata | 1 | 3 | 137 |
| 15 | Hayato Tamura | 1 | 2 | 127 |
| 16 | The Sheik | 1 | 2 | 126 |
| 17 | Akitoshi Saito | 1 | 3 | 104 |
| 18 | Masakatsu Funaki | 1 | 1 | 75 |
| 19 | Bambikiller | 1 | 0 | 60 |
| 20 | Junya Matsunaga † | 1 | 0 | 67+ |
| 21 | Kamikaze | 1 | 0 | 30 |
| Shinjiro Otani | 1 | 2 | 30 |
Belt design
[edit ]The standard Championship belt has three plates on a black leather strap.
See also
[edit ]- GHC Heavyweight Championship
- IWGP World Heavyweight Championship
- Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship
- NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship
References
[edit ]- ^ a b c "ZERO1-MAX World Heavyweight Championship title history". TitleHistories.com. Retrieved 2008年01月10日.
- ^ "船木の「世界ヘビー級王座をW-1王座と統一する」発言を受け、大谷「ベルトを奪い返すためにW-1に乗り込みます!」". Battle News (in Japanese). 2014年08月14日. Retrieved 2014年08月14日.
- ^ Cagematch : ZERO1 ZERO-ONE KNIGHT STAND ~ Wasshoi!! (in German)
- ^ "Risultati ZERO1 09/09 (Sekimoto campione WHW) - Puroresu Mission R Newsboard". Archived from the original on 2011年09月30日. Retrieved 2010年09月10日.
- ^ "ZERO1, NOAH, Osaka & 19pro Results for March 2, 2012". Archived from the original on 2015年09月24日. Retrieved 2012年03月02日.
- ^ Dark Angelita (June 6, 2018). "Zero1:"Shinsei Zero1 Sapporo First Landing" Masato Tanaka se corona". superluchas.com (in Spanish). Retrieved May 26, 2023.
- ^ Daly, Wayne (September 14, 2019). "ZERO-1 Results: 16th Tenka Ichi Junior Championship Decision – Tokyo, Japan (9/14)". wrestling-news.net. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
- ^ Daly, Wayne (March 9, 2020). "ZERO1 Results: 19th Anniversary Show Part 2 – Tokyo, Japan (3/8)". wrestling-news.net. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
- ^ Daly, Wayne (May 3, 2020). "ZERO1 Results: Choujin Festival In Samurai! TV – Chiba, Japan (5/3)". wrestling-news.net. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
- ^ Pro Wrestling Zero1 (August 27, 2020). 新生ZERO1 2020年08月27日(木) 試合開始19時00分(18時30開場). z-1.co.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved September 19, 2021.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "NAITO TALKS, ZERO1 KICKS OFF THE YEAR, ALL JAPAN, FREEDOMS, NOAH AND MORE FROM JAPAN". PWInsider.com. 2021年01月01日. Retrieved 2021年11月26日.
- ^ Pro Wrestling Noah (August 15, 2021). 2021年08月15日 (日) KAWASAKI,GO! 2021. noah.co.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved August 15, 2021.
- ^ "ZERO1 Osu Premium One Team ZERO1 Shinjiro Otani Aid! Get Up As Many Times As You Want" . Retrieved 2023年09月24日.
- ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip (May 26, 2023). "ZERO1 Fibromyalgia Charity Show". cagematch.net. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
- ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip (March 31, 2024). "ZERO1 Noto Peninsula Earthquake Charity Pro Wrestling". cagematch.net. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
- ^ Brennan, Corey (July 14, 2024). "NOAH Destination 2024 Results (7/13): AJ Styles Faces Naomichi Marufuji". fightful.com. Retrieved July 14, 2024.
- ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip (April 3, 2026). "ZERO1 25th Anniversary". cagematch.net. Retrieved April 3, 2026.
External links
[edit ]- ZEROONEUSA.com official championship page Archived 2007年12月30日 at the Wayback Machine
- Wrestling-Titles.com title history
- TitleHistories.com title history Archived 2008年07月20日 at the Wayback Machine
- World Heavyweight Championship (Zero1)
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Pro Wrestling Zero1's top heavyweight championship 2007–present |
Succeeded by Current
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