NEVER Openweight Championship

NEVER Openweight Championship
The NEVER Openweight Championship belt
Details
PromotionNew Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW)
Date establishedNovember 19, 2012[1][2]
Current champion(s)Shingo Takagi
Date wonSeptember 29, 2024
Statistics
First champion(s)Masato Tanaka[3]
Most reignsTomohiro Ishii (6 reigns)
Longest reignMasato Tanaka (314 days)
Shortest reignMichael Elgin (8 days)
Oldest championMinoru Suzuki (52 years, 2 months and 12 days)[4]
Youngest championWill Ospreay (25 years, 7 months and 28 days)[5]
Heaviest championJeff Cobb (120 kg (260 lb))[6]
Lightest championKenta (85 kg (187 lb))[7]

The NEVER Openweight Championship (NEVER無差別級王座, NEVER musabetsu-kyū ōza) is a professional wrestling championship owned by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. NEVER is an acronym of the terms "New Blood", "Evolution", "Valiantly", "Eternal", and "Radical" and was an NJPW-promoted series of events, which featured younger up-and-coming talent and outside wrestlers not signed to the promotion.[1][8] The project was officially announced on July 12, 2010,[8] and held its first event on August 24, 2010.[9] On October 5, 2012, NJPW announced that NEVER was going to get its own championship, the NEVER Openweight Championship.[1][2] The current champion is Shingo Takagi, who is in his fifth reign. He defeated Henare at Destruction in Kobe on September 29 in Kobe, Japan.

The title was originally scheduled to be defended exclusively at NEVER events, but this plan was quickly changed and since its foundation, the title has been defended on the undercards of NJPW events.[2][10] The original concept of having younger workers wrestle for the title has also not been realized with the first seven holders of the title having been in their thirties or forties.[11][12] Instead, through the likes of Katsuyori Shibata, Togi Makabe, and Tomohiro Ishii, the NEVER Openweight Championship became known for its "gritty" title matches and "hard hitting" style.[13][14] Though named an "openweight" championship, NJPW has also categorized the title as a heavyweight title.[15][16] The title forms what has unofficially been called the "New Japan Triple Crown" (新日本トリプルクラウン, Shin Nihon Toripuru Kuraun) along with the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and the IWGP Intercontinental Championship.[17] The title's openweight nature means that both heavyweight and junior heavyweight wrestlers are eligible to challenge for it.[18]

  1. ^ a b c Caldwell, James (October 5, 2012). "News items: Velvet Sky launches clothing line, Details on Nash's next int'l tour, NJPW introducing new title". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
  2. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference ChampionshipAnnounced was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ 東京・Shibuya-AX ～初代NEVER無差別級王座決定トーナメント Final～. New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). Archived from the original on November 22, 2012. Retrieved November 19, 2012.
  4. ^ 鈴木 みのる. New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). Archived from the original on December 26, 2016. Retrieved April 27, 2017.
  5. ^ 渡辺 高章. New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). Archived from the original on October 16, 2015. Retrieved November 5, 2016.
  6. ^ 真壁 刀義. New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). Archived from the original on January 6, 2015. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
  7. ^ 田中 将斗. New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). Archived from the original on July 25, 2019. Retrieved February 3, 2013.
  8. ^ a b Nextジェネレーション育成 新プロジェクト「NEVER」シリーズがスタート!!. New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). July 12, 2010. Archived from the original on December 28, 2010. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
  9. ^ "NEVER．1". New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). Archived from the original on December 28, 2010. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference NaitoNEVER was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ 石井の野望「ＮＥＶＥＲ王座のブランド化」. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). February 28, 2014. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  12. ^ Ｖ２柴田がＮＥＶＥＲ王座の改名を予告. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). March 20, 2016. Retrieved March 20, 2016.
  13. ^ "New NEVER 6-Man Tag Champions to be crowned in Korakuen tournament | NEW JAPAN PRO-WRESTLING".
  14. ^ Andrews, R.W. (January 27, 2017). "New Japan Feud Focus: Tracking the key matches in the Tomohiro Ishii vs. Togi Makable rivalry from Wrestle Kingdom 9 to". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved April 29, 2017.
  15. ^ "Kizuna Road 2014". New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). Archived from the original on June 29, 2014. Retrieved June 29, 2014.
  16. ^ 裕二郎がＮＥＶＥＲ王座強奪！バレットクラブが新日のヘビー級全王座独占. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). June 30, 2014. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
  17. ^ 真壁 ＩＣ王座に照準の真意. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). February 29, 2016. Retrieved February 29, 2016.
  18. ^ 飯伏が狙う新日ジュニア版“３冠戦”. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). May 15, 2014. Retrieved November 27, 2016.