The American Wrestling Association was the Midwest’s premier wrestling organization. Along with the WWA, the AWA offered a different brand of wrestling in comparison to the NWA, which had been around since 1948. The AWA based itself around much of the nation’ s top talent and offered some of the greatest professional wrestling of the era. Beginning in 1960, the AWA was formed after several promoters could not agree on who should be wearing the World Heavyweight Championship. An initial split actually occurred several years earlier when Edouard Carpentier beat Lou Thesz with a disputed decision in Chicago. The controversial match ended and Carpentier was awarded the NWA World Title. After the match, though, the NWA Board of Directors decided that the title could not change hands in such a manner and that Thesz would retain his recognition. Wally Karbo, Minneapolis promoter, and Max Clayton in Omaha recognized Carpentier. It seemed that the controversy was larger then immediately known and there were two World Champions in the United States and Canada. There was a problem within the NWA and politics was playing a major part. Another claim which held a large amount of animosity was the fact that Verne Gagne, who was one of wrestling’s most talented and pure athletes, deserved a run at the World Title. Many believed it was his turn to wear the World Title. By 1957, it was already five or six years past the time in which many had predicted he would win the belt. Edouard Carpentier reigned as World Champion until August 9, 1958. It was that night in Omaha, Nebraska where Gagne won his first World Title. The event was promoted by Joe Dusek and Chicago impressio Fred Kohler worked as the guest referee. More than 7,000 fans in were in attendance. The actions of Kohler as guest referee was the most intriguing, as he had been a well respected member of the National Wrestling Alliance since the organization’s inception. In 1958, Dick Hutton was recognized as the World Champion by the NWA. Three of the NWA’s biggest promoters were recognizing Gagne as the heavyweight champion of the world. Gagne dropped the title to Wilbur Snyder in November 1958. In the year following, Verne teamed with Wally Karbo to purchase the remaining shares of Tony Stecher’s promotion from the latter’s son, Dennis. Together, they formed the American Wrestling Association. In May 1960, the AWA named Pat O’Connor the initial World Champion and gave him 90-days to defend his title against Gagne. When he failed to appear by August 16th, Gagne was named champion. Despite his withdrawing from the Alliance, Gagne continued to work with several members of the group and often attended the NWA Annual Meetings. The AWA would work primarily in the Midwest, but would hold offices in Amarillo, Texas, Denver, San Francisco, Omaha, Chicago, Milwaukee and parts of Canada. AWA wrestlers often appeared in NWA territories and worked for promoters worldwide. The AWA World Champion, at different times, appeared in many NWA Cities including Houston and Toronto. Very early in the 1960s, the AWA actually had two World Championships recognized in different territories. One was the main version which Verne Gagne held. The second was the Nebraska version, which stemmed from Gagne’s victory of Edouard Carpentier in ’58. In September 1963, the two belts were finally unified by Verne Gagne in Omaha. Considering that the National Wrestling Alliance had a stranglehold on many of the United States’ biggest cities, the AWA didn’t have to fight too hard to compete. The Association was constantly drawing big names and big numbers alike, easily establishing themselves as the second most respected promotion in the country. Athletes such as Gagne, Snyder, Don Leo Jonathan, Fritz Von Erich, Crusher Lisowski, Dick the Bruiser, Harley Race, Larry Hennig, Nick Bockwinkel and Yukon Eric were drawing headlines all over the AWA. In a matter of months in 1971, the AWA lost two prominent wrestlers. First, in June 1971, Alberto Torres died in Omaha, Nebraska of internal injuries he suffered in a match several days earlier. In July, the mighty Hercules Cortez was involved in a fatal automobile accident near St. Cloud, Minnesota. Both men were champions…Torres held the AWA Midwest Tag Team Title with Bob Ellis and Cortez held the AWA World Tag Team Title with Red Bastien. Both wrestling fans and the promoters felt the loss. On July 15, 1975 in Davenport, Iowa, the AWA World Heavyweight title belt was stolen after a bout between Gagne and Nick Bockwinkel. The date has also been said to be Wednesday, July 16. The show was held at John O'Donnell Stadium and Gagne retained his belt over Bockwinkel. It was said that the two wrestlers continued to pummel each other after their encounter, and spectators rushed the ring. In the confusion, a fan stole the championship belt from the timekeeper's table. Thomas A. Fennelly was later arrested when entering the U.S. from Canada and extradited from Michigan to Iowa. He was convicted of stealing the belt in Scott County District Court of a larceny of over $20. Interestingly, the belt was not recovered during the trial, but on the day he was to be sentenced, the Davenport Police received the belt in the mail. The Des Moines Reigster, on Saturday, January 29, 1977, reported that the Iowa Appeals Court refused to grant Fennelly a new trial the day before. Fennelly wanted a new trial because the belt was "a bauble of little, if any, value." During the trial, it was noted that the belt had been made of gold and silver-plated metal and contained eight 3/4 karat diamonds - and that it was worth at least $800. It was also said that Gagne received the belt in 1952, and was of "considerable notoriety." The Waterloo Courier (1/22/1976) initially reported that the 23-year-old Thomas Fennelly was convicted by a Scott County District Court jury for stealing the belt. The belt was said to have been recovered from a postal station chute. Gagne said the belt was worth about "$10,000." Attached to the belt was a note saying, "You've got the wrong man," meaning Fennelly. Promoters held a show in Chicago on June 25, 1976 with closed circuit broadcasts of both the Andre the Giant-Chuck Wepner match from Shea Stadium and the Antonio Inoki- Muhammad Ali fight from Tokyo, Japan. AWA World Champion, Nick Bockwinkel wrestled Verne Gagne in the main event. Gagne finally did regain the AWA Title from Bockwinkel. The match took place on July 18, 1980 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. It was Gagne’s ninth title victory, a new record. A spectacular night for the leader of the organization. Gagne remained the champion until May 19th of the following year. He successfully beat Bockwinkel, who remained the number one contender, and then retired as the titleholder. A stunning, but respected move. Officials decided that rather then holding a tournament, they’d give the belt back to Bockwinkel. It was around this time that the AWA made a move to sign Hulk Hogan after he left the Northeast. Hogan was a large, powerful athlete and Gagne took it upon himself to train the up-and-comer. By 1983, Hogan was a serious threat to the belt and many speculated that he was being prepped for a run as the champion. Wally Karbo, Marty O’Neill and Gagne sponsored an AWA Event on Sunday, April 24, 1983 in St. Paul and nearly 30,000 fans were in attendance to see Hulk Hogan challenge Nick Bockwinkel for the AWA World Heavyweight Title. Bockwinkel retained by disqualification. Many were disappointed, but Hogan was one of the top draws in the region. Later in the year, Hogan returned to the WWF, leaving the possibilities behind. Many know where his career went from there. In Tokyo on February 22, 1984, Jumbo “Tommy” Tsuruta beat Bockwinkel and won the AWA Crown. Tsuruta took the belt to America and on May 13th of that year in St. Paul, he was beaten by a young wrestler named Rick Martel. Promoters matched Martel up with the NWA’s top man and champion, Ric Flair for a match in Tokyo on October 21, 1985. The bout was title vs. title, a match to settle the questions. After over thirty-minutes of active wrestling, both men were counted out. A little over then two months later, Martel was defeated by Stan Hansen for the title at the Meadowlands. The AWA signed a deal with ESPN Sports, a cable network which would give the organization a major public outlet in the Untied States. WrestleRock was held on April 20, 1986 at the MetroDome in Minneapolis. Over 22,000 fans were in attendance. Gagne, the Road Warriors, Sgt. Slaughter, Shohei Baba, Harley Race, Hansen and Bockwinkel all made appearances. Eight days later, Rage in a Cage was co- promoted by the AWA and the NWA in East Rutherford, New Jersey. On that card, Hansen defended his AWA World Title against Leon White (Big Van Vader), NWA National Champion, Tully Blanchard beat Ron Garvin by disqualification and Magnum T.A. defended his claim to the NWA United States Heavyweight Title against Baron Von Raschke. Bruiser Brody, Larry Zbyszko, Dusty Rhodes, Nick Bockwinkel and Arn Anderson were also at the Meadowlands. Bockwinkel regained the AWA World Belt on June 29, 1986 in Denver when Hansen refused to compete. The reports of the Hansen-AWA World Title situation has varied, but Hansen returned to Japan with the World Title Belt around his waist. All-Japan Promoter, Shohei Baba billed Hansen as the AWA Champion in several defenses and attempted to sign a Hansen-Bockwinkel match to clear up the disputed situation. Out of the offices in Minnesota, Bockwinkel was the World Champion from June 29th on and whether Hansen claimed a championship was not important. In 1987, the American Wrestling Association remained extremely popular with promotions throughout the world under it’s banner. No one could have predicted the future, or what was eventually the organization’s fate. Gagne was the main promoter in Minneapolis and Stanley Blackburn, out of Amarillo, Texas, was the President. Karbo continued to promote in the Minneapolis region aside Gagne. The range of territories involved in the AWA was widespread. From Leo Nomellini in California to Lou Thesz and Wilbur Snyder in the southeast. Working relationships with Jerry Jarrett’s CWA Promotion in Memphis kept the best of that organization gunning for the AWA World Title, including Bill Dundee and the “King” Jerry Lawler. The AWA Champion was also recognized in Don Owen’s Pacific Northwest and Ken Mantell’s Wild West Wrestling in Texas. Bob Geigel also recognized the AWA Champion. By this time, the NWA was controlled nearly ninety-percent by Jim Crockett Promotions, Inc. In the NWA’s attempt to compete with the WWF, it left many of the smaller territories and promoters out of the deal. In 1988, the last major NWA promotion was sold to Ted Turner. The AWA was left to pick up the slack, but without the national exposure. The AWA of the late 1980s was the NWA of the 1960s. Al DeRusha, Eric Bischoff and Bob Russen promoted throughout many smaller towns in Minnesota, Iowa and the Dakotas. Larry Lisowski promoted in Chicago, Milwaukee, and the smaller regions in Wisconsin. Nomellini, a former football star and one-time claimant to the NWA World Title, promoted throughout California from Los Angeles to San Francisco. Longtime AWA ally, Gene Reed continued to promote in Denver. Reed also branched out into Wyoming and into Salt Lake City. Lou Thesz and Wilbur Snyder, both former NWA and AWA World Champions, promoted in the southeast in Georgia and Florida. Another of the National Wrestling Alliance’s top territories, the northwest organization run by Don Owen, recognized the AWA World Champion when the titleholder made a pit stop in Portland or other cities when booked. The individual regions had nearly dissolved, paving the way for wrestling of the future. At this time, the AWA was the only organization holding a national alliance together. AWA held SuperClash II on May 2, 1987 at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, California. Curt Hennig defeated Nick Bockwinkel before nearly 3,000 fans to capture the AWA World Championship. Greg Gagne had been predicted to take the title from Curt Hennig and between him, Wahoo McDaniel and Lawler, Gagne seemed the most likely to actually accomplish the feat. Two times, once in November 1987 and once in February 1988, Gagne nearly had walked away the AWA Titleholder. After the second win, several AWA Promoters actually backed the claim. It was Stanley Blackburn who decided that if Gagne defended his claim to the AWA Title, he would forever be suspended from the promotion. On Saturday Night, April 16, 1988, the AWA held it’s second Rage in a Cage was held in Las Vegas without the presence of the NWA. Wahoo McDaniel defeated Curt Hennig in a non-title, steel cage match. Hennig remained the top man until losing the belt to the CWA’s Lawler in May 1988 at Memphis. Hennig dropped from the AWA rather then hanging around to regain the belt. Lawler ruled the AWA and the CWA and after beating Kerry Von Erich for the World Class World Title in December 1988, was billed as the Unified World Champion. In January 1989, Lawler was stripped of the AWA Title. The CWA and AWA split and promoters formed the United States Wrestling Association. There, Lawler remained the Unified World Champion. Mention of Lawler’s defeat of Kerry Von Erich in December 1988 leads to only one thing. SuperClash III. The event was held on December 13, 1988 in Chicago at the UIC Pavilion. The title vs. title match between Jerry Lawler and Von Erich headlined the 12 match card, but the amount of talent of the AWA’s card was unbelievable. The Rock and Roll Express, Sgt. Slaughter, Samoan Swat Team, Ron Garvin, Greg Gagne, Cactus Jack and the Guerreros all made appearances, in addition to more then a dozen others. Business in 1989 seemed to slow a little bit. The AWA was a normal sight on cable television and was getting a certain amount of national exposure. Many fans remember of AWA Team Challenge Series, an AWA event in which three teams competed for points. Larry Zbyszko led one time, Sgt. Slaughter led another and Baron Von Raschke led the third. Although it wasn’t as successful as one might think with such talent, it did not fully contribute to the folding of the organization. In 1991, the American Wrestling Association folded. The champion, Zbyszko signed a deal with WCW. During the late 1980s and early ’90s, many other regional promotions which had been members of the National Wrestling Alliance, began to claim bankruptcy. The bigger named wrestlers were all heading for the large contracts and taking gimmicks on national television. Professional wrestling, in a whole, took a back seat. Also, on a sad note, Mr. Wally Karbo died in March 1993, leaving a visible gap in Minnesota Promotions. Verne Gagne promoted an unauthorized event on December 18, 1994 at the Treasure Island Casino in Minneapolis billing Larry Zbyszko as the AWA World Heavyweight Champion in a match against Tito Santana. Former four-time World Champion Nick Bockwinkel was the special guest referee for the show which saw Zbyszko retain the belt. Zbyszko was an employee of World Championship Wrestling at the time. |
(AWA) American Wrestling Association History |