| FTW Championship | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Details | |||||||||||||||||||
| Promotion | Extreme Championship Wrestling (1998–1999) All Elite Wrestling (2020–present) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Date established | May 14, 1998 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Current champion(s) | Hook | ||||||||||||||||||
| Date won | August 27, 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Other name(s) | |||||||||||||||||||
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The FTW ("Fuck the World") Championship is a men's professional wrestling world heavyweight championship currently utilized in the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW). It is presented as an "outlaw" or "renegade" title that is unsanctioned by officials in-storyline. The current champion is Hook, who is in his record-tying second reign. He won the title by defeating Jack Perry in an FTW Rules match during the All In Zero Hour pre-show on August 27, 2023.
The title was originally created by its inaugural holder Taz in the former Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) promotion in 1998, and it was abandoned in 1999 after being unified with the ECW World Heavyweight Championship. It remained inactive for 21 years until being re-established by Taz in AEW in 2020. In both ECW and AEW, the FTW Championship was introduced under similar circumstances: each company's respective world champions were unable to defend their respective titles due to injury/illness; in ECW, it was against Taz himself, while in AEW, it was against Taz's client Brian Cage.
History
Extreme Championship Wrestling (1998–1999)
"And, hey, everybody knows that there's no way a fuck from Pittsburgh can beat up a man from Brooklyn. So what I got right here, I am the world champion, and I have the proof. You can call it the Brooklyn Title or the Fuck The World Belt!"
— Taz unveiling the FTW Heavyweight Championship at It Ain't Seinfeld
The FTW World Heavyweight Championship was designed, created, and conceived by Taz, who also owns the rights to the design of the title.[1] The title was used to compensate for storylines that had to be dropped due to injuries. ECW World Heavyweight Champion Shane Douglas had a serious sinus infection and an elbow injury. Taz and Al Snow also missed their matches at Wrestlepalooza 1998 due to health problems.[2] ECW Owner Paul Heyman said the title suited Taz's "bad-ass, no-nonsense" attitude."[2]
Taz announced the creation of the FTW Heavyweight Championship (also referred to as the Brooklyn World Championship) on May 14, 1998, at It Ain't Seinfeld. In the storyline, he was frustrated by his inability to challenge for the ECW World Heavyweight Championship due to Champion Shane Douglas' injury and refusal to face him. Taz created and defended his own world title, billing himself as the "real" World Champion. He stated that fans appreciated the message conveyed by the belt, which represented contempt for bosses and society, and said that he believed it was more appreciated than the company's top title.[3] The belt was billed as "unrecognized" by ECW.[3][4]
Taz lost the title only once, in a singles match against Sabu. This was an intentional loss, when he pulled an unconscious Sabu over himself on December 19, 1998 (he was confident that he would defeat Shane Douglas in an upcoming title bout, and thus no longer needed the FTW Heavyweight Championship).[5] Taz regained the title at Living Dangerously on March 21, 1999, where he unified the FTW Heavyweight Championship with the ECW World Heavyweight Championship (which he then held) by defeating Sabu in a title versus title match.[6][7] Taz then began using only the ECW World Heavyweight Championship, being the sole World Heavyweight Championship in the promotion, in turn retiring the FTW Heavyweight Championship.
All Elite Wrestling (2020–present)
Taz began appearing in All Elite Wrestling (AEW) in late 2019 and officially signed with the company in January 2020 as a commentator. He then began managing Brian Cage. On Night 2 of Fyter Fest on July 2 that year (aired on July 8), Cage was scheduled to face Jon Moxley for the AEW World Championship; however, the match was postponed as Moxley had to self-quarantine after his wife Renee Paquette had tested positive for COVID-19. In turn, Taz reinstated the FTW Championship that night and awarded it to Cage, mirroring the circumstances behind the title's original inception in ECW. Just like in ECW, the FTW Championship is not an officially sanctioned title in AEW.[8]
Belt designs
(introduced on May 14, 1998)
When the title was first created, the FTW belt was a custom ECW Television Championship belt with a leather strap painted orange, stickers partially covering the belt,[3] and a "TAZ" logo at the top. "FTW" stickers were strategically placed over the word "Television" in the middle of the belt as well as the United States and United Kingdom flags on the side plates. A few months later, in an attempt to persuade Taz to team with Sabu and Rob Van Dam against Shane Douglas and The Triple Threat, Bill Alfonso presented Taz with an original FTW belt featuring a black leather strap and orange-accented bronze plates, with a "TAZ" logo engraved in the belt's centerplate. This second design would also be used for the belt after its reintroduction in AEW. Taz stated that the concept and attitude have been replicated by other companies.[3]
According to Taz on The Rise and Fall of ECW DVD documentary, when Sabu won the title, he was legitimately upset backstage over Taz's name being permanently displayed on the belt. From then on, whenever Sabu had the belt with him, he would cover the Taz logo with athletic tape and write "SABU" on it in magic marker.[9]
Reigns
Hook is the current champion in his record-tying second reign. He defeated Jack Perry in an FTW Rules match on August 27, 2023 in London, England during the All In Zero Hour pre-show to win the title.
Names
| Name | Years |
|---|---|
| FTW Heavyweight Championship | May 14, 1998 – March 21, 1999 |
| FTW Championship | July 2, 2020 – present |
| No. | Overall reign number |
|---|---|
| Reign | Reign number for the specific champion |
| Days | Number of days held |
| <1 | Reign lasted less than a day |
| + | Current reign is changing daily |
| No. | Champion | Championship change | Reign statistics | Notes | Ref. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Event | Location | Reign | Days | ||||||
| Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) | ||||||||||
| 1 | Taz | May 14, 1998 | It Ain't Seinfeld | Queens, NY | 1 | 219 | Taz introduced the championship during a storyline. | [10] | ||
| 2 | Sabu | December 19, 1998 | Hardcore TV | Philadelphia, PA | 1 | 92 | This was a triple threat match, also involving Justin Credible. Aired on tape delay on December 23, 1998. |
[5] | ||
| 3 | Taz | March 21, 1999 | Living Dangerously | Ashbury Park, NJ | 2 | <1 | This was an Extreme Death match which was also for Taz's ECW World Heavyweight Championship. | [6][7] | ||
| — | Unified | March 21, 1999 | Living Dangerously | Ashbury Park, NJ | — | — | Taz unified the title with the ECW World Heavyweight Championship. | |||
| All Elite Wrestling (AEW) | ||||||||||
| 4 | Brian Cage | July 2, 2020 | Fyter Fest Night 2 |
Jacksonville, FL | 1 | 377 | Taz reintroduced the title, and awarded it to Cage, whom he was managing. Aired on tape delay on July 8, 2020 |
[11][8] | ||
| 5 | Ricky Starks | July 14, 2021 | Fyter Fest Night 1 |
Cedar Park, TX | 1 | 378 | [12] | |||
| 6 | Hook | July 27, 2022 | Dynamite: Fight for the Fallen |
Worcester, MA | 1 | 357 | [13] | |||
| 7 | Jack Perry | July 19, 2023 | Dynamite: Blood & Guts |
Boston, MA | 1 | 39 | [14] | |||
| 8 | Hook | August 27, 2023 | All In: Zero Hour |
London, England | 2 | 141+ | This was an FTW Rules match. | [15] | ||
Combined reigns
As of January 15, 2024.
| † | Indicates the current champion |
|---|
| Rank | Wrestler | No. of reigns |
Combined days |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hook † | 2 | 498+ |
| 2 | Ricky Starks | 1 | 378 |
| 3 | Brian Cage | 1 | 377 |
| 4 | Taz | 2 | 219 |
| 5 | Sabu | 1 | 92 |
| 6 | Jack Perry | 1 | 39 |
References
- ↑ Johnson, Mike. "HOW TAZ WAS ABLE TO RESURRECT THE FTW CHAMPIONSHIP IN ALL ELITE WRESTLING". PWInsider. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
- 1 2 Fritz, Brian (2006). Between the Ropes: Wrestling's Greatest Triumphs and Failures. ECW Press. p. 99. ISBN 1554902681.
- 1 2 3 4 Loverro, Thom (2007). The Rise & Fall of ECW: Extreme Championship Wrestling. Simon and Schuster. p. 223. ISBN 978-1416513124.
- ↑ Siciliano, Mike (2006-02-10). "Pro's from the Palace (#78) - DVD Review Today: ECW Blood Sport". WrestleView. Retrieved 2015-11-28.
- 1 2 Woodward, Buck (2006-12-19). "This Day in History: Sabu Defeats Taz for the FTW Title". PWInsider.com. Retrieved 2015-11-28.
- 1 2 Whaley, Mike. "ECW delivers at Living Dangerously". SLAM! Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved 2015-11-28.
- 1 2 Gramlich, Chris. "ECW rises to the occasion". SLAM! Wrestling. Canadian Online Explorer.
- 1 2 Barnett, Jake (July 8, 2020). "7/8 AEW Dynamite results: Barnett's live review of Fyter Fest night two with Kenny Omega and Hangman Page vs. Private Party for the AEW Tag Titles, Chris Jericho vs. Orange Cassidy, FTR and The Young Bucks vs. Pentagon Jr., Rey Fenix, The Butcher, and The Blade, Lance Archer vs. Joey Janela". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved July 8, 2020.
- ↑ The Rise and Fall of ECW (DVD). WWE Home Video. 2004.
- ↑ Keller, Wade (2003-05-26). "ECW TV: Fans mock Bigelow for tapping to Taz - 5 Yrs Ago". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved 2015-11-28.
- ↑ HIGHLIGHTS | TAZ REVEALS THE FTW CHAMPIONSHIP | FYTER FEST NIGHT 2, 7/8/20. All Elite Wrestling. July 8, 2020. Archived from the original on 2021-12-13. Retrieved July 8, 2020.
- ↑ Barnett, Jake (July 14, 2021). "7/14 AEW Dynamite results: Barnett's live review of Fyter Fest Night One with Ethan Page vs. Darby Allin in a Coffin Match, Jon Moxley vs. Karl Anderson for the IWGP U.S. Title, Brian Cage vs. Ricky Starks for the FTW Title, Matt Hardy vs. Christian". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
- ↑ Barnett, Jake (July 27, 2022). "7/27 AEW Dynamite results: Barnett's live review of Jon Moxley vs. Rush for the Interim AEW World Championship, Thunder Rosa vs. Miyu Yamashita for the AEW Women's Championship, Ricky Starks vs. Danhausen for the FTW Title, Bryan Danielson vs. Daniel Garcia, Sammy Guevara vs. Dante Martin". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved July 28, 2022.
- ↑ Powell, Jason (July 19, 2023). "AEW Dynamite results (7/19): Powell's live review of Golden Elite vs. Blackpool Combat Club in a Blood & Guts match, MJF and Adam Cole vs. Daniel Garcia and Sammy Guevara in the Blind Eliminator tourney finals". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
- ↑ Powell, Jason (August 27, 2023). "AEW All In pre-show results: Powell's live review of MJF and Adam Cole challenging Aussie Open for the AEW Tag Titles, Jack Perry vs. Hook for the FTW Title". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved August 27, 2023.