NWA National Tag Team Championship
The NWA National Tag Team Championship was the major tag team title in the NWA-affiliated Georgia Championship Wrestling from 1980 until 1986.
The championship was introduced in November 1980 when Georgia Tag Team Champions The Fabulous Freebirds (Michael Hayes, Buddy Roberts, and Terry Gordy) won a tournament to determine the first champions, defeating Stan Frazier and Robert Fuller in the final. They were introduced as the Georgia and National Tag Team Champions and carried a trophy to the ring representing the National title as they wore belts which represented the Georgia title.
The National Tag Team Championship continued to be represented by a trophy until Thanksgiving Night in 1981, when the promotion awarded newly made belts (modeled after the old Georgia tag team belts, which the National title replaced) to the winners of its annual turkey night tag team tournament. The father and son duo of Bob and Brad Armstrong defeated Mr. Fuji and Mr. Saito in the final to win the vacant NWA National Tag Team Championship.
When Vince McMahon bought Georgia Championship Wrestling, Inc., the champions at that time were Ron Garvin & Jerry Oates. Since Oates and Garvin did not sign with McMahon's WWF, and McMahon chose not to continue recognizing the National Tag Team Championship, that version of the title basically ended on the day known as Black Saturday.
However, a new startup group called Championship Wrestling from Georgia decided to recognize the NWA National Tag Team Championship. They put the belts on Garvin and Oates, carrying on the lineage started with Georgia Championship Wrestling.
When Jim Crockett Promotions bought the TBS slot from the WWF in 1985, it essentially merged with Championship Wrestling from Georgia (getting CWG's Saturday morning timeslot as well) and continued on with CWG's National Tag Team Championship. The National Tag Team Championships were stripped from the Andersons and renamed the United States Tag Team Championship and re-established in a tournament. [1]
Title history
| Wrestler: | Times: | Date: | Location: | Notes: |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Fabulous Freebirds (Michael Hayes & Terry Gordy) | 1 | November 27, 1980 | Atlanta, GA | Defeat Stan Frazier & Robert Fuller in tournament final |
| Ted DiBiase & Stan Frazier | 1 | January 26, 1981 | Augusta, GA | |
| Fabulous Freebirds | 2 | January 31, 1981 | Atlanta, GA | |
| Ted DiBiase & Steve Olsonoski | 1 | June 10, 1981 | Marietta, GA | |
| Terry Gordy & Jimmy Snuka | 1 | July 6, 1981 | Augusta, GA | Tommy Rich & Ted DiBiase defeat Gordy & Snuka but the belts are returned after the NWA finds out that Michael Hayes counted the pinfall |
| Michael Hayes & Otis Sistrunk | 1 | September 27, 1981 | Atlanta, GA | |
| Vacant | 1981 | Sistrunk quits | ||
| Bob & Brad Armstrong | 1 | November 25, 1981 | Atlanta, GA | Defeat Mr. Fuji & Mr. Saito in tournament final |
| Super Destroyer & Masked Superstar | 1 | January 22, 1982 | Columbus, GA | |
| Super Destroyer & Big John Studd | 1 | March 1982 | Masked Superstar gives his half of title to Studd | |
| Fabulous Freebirds | 3 | July 2, 1982 | Chattanooga, TN | |
| The Wild Samoans (Afa & Sika) | 1 | August 29, 1982 | Atlanta, GA | |
| Vacant | January 1983 | Samoans leave Georgia | ||
| The Road Warriors (Animal & Hawk) | 1 | June 11, 1983 | Atlanta, GA | Win tournament |
| Buzz & Brett Sawyer | 1 | November 27, 1983 | Cincinnati, OH | |
| The Road Warriors | 2 | November 1983 | ? | |
| Buzz & Brett Sawyer | 2 | December 27, 1983 | Canton, OH | |
| The Road Warriors | 3 | January 28, 1984 | Awarded titles when Buzz Sawyer is fired | |
| King Kong Bundy & Masked Superstar | 1 | May 6, 1984 | Atlanta, GA | |
| Vacant | May 1984 | Superstar is "injured" (went to Japan) | ||
| The Road Warriors | 4 | May 20, 1984 | Atlanta, GA | Defeat Junkyard Dog & Sweet Brown Sugar in tournament final |
| Ron Garvin & Jerry Oates | 1 | July 4, 1984 | Columbus, GA | |
| The Hollywood Blonds (Rip Rogers & Ted Oates) | 1 | September 20, 1984 | ? | |
| The Lightning Express (Brad Armstrong & Tim Horner) | 1 | November 1, 1984 | ? | |
| Vacant | November 1984 | Horner is injured | ||
| The Long Riders (Bill & Scott Irwin) | 1 | November 18, 1984 | Atlanta, GA | Won in a tournament final, along with a $100,000 cash prize. |
| Ole Anderson & Thunderbolt Patterson (and later Arn Anderson) | 1 | January 11, 1985 | Cleveland, OH | Ole turns on Patterson on April 6, 1985. The Andersons defeat Patterson & Manny Fernandez on April 28, 1985 in a match where both Ole and Patterson's half of the titles were at stake, with Arn becoming the new titleholder. |
| Abandoned | February 1986 | Ole is injured by the Road Warriors & Dusty Rhodes in a match on January 1, 1986, in the Omni in Atlanta, Georgia; replaced with NWA United States Tag Team Championship. | ||
| Title revived in 1997 | ||||
| Death & Destruction (Frank Parker & Roger Anderson) | 1 | May 17, 1997 | ? | |
See also
References
- ↑ Royal Duncan & Gary Will (2006). Wrestling Title Histories (4th ed.). Archeus Communications. ISBN 0-9698161-5-4.