KOPW Championship

The KOPW belt (2023-Present)

The **KOPW** or **King of Pro-Wrestling Championship** (キング・オブ・プロレスリング王座, *Kingu obu Puroresuringu Ōza*) is an professional wrestling championship owned by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. The title was officially announced on July 28, 2020, and the inaugural champion was crowned on December 23, 2020, during NJPW's Road to Tokyo Dome tour.

## Concept

Instead of a conventional professional wrestling championship, the KOPW Championship is represented by a belt having previously been represented by trophy with only one wrestler per year being recognized as the champion. At the beginning of a new year, the title is inactive, with a provisional champion being determined. During the year, a provisional champion is determined following a tournament; if he loses it, a new provisional champion is crowned, and must similarly defend the title. At the end of the year, the winner of a final title defense is officially recognized at that year's KOPW champion, and being awarded a trophy, which was later replaced by a championship title belt.

While NJPW has historically been focused heavily on traditional matches, the KOPW Championship matches focuses exclusively on non-regular stipulations such as matches with more than two individual competitors at the same time, two out of three falls matches, ladder matches, or steel cage matches, with each of the wrestlers involved in a title match, proposing a stipulation, with the fans voting the stipulation of the match.

Despite its concept, the title is recognized as an actual championship, and the name of the title changes based on the year, with the 2020 version of the title being named *KOPW 2020* and It restarts every year.

## History

### Championship tournament

On July 25, 2020, at Sengoku Lord in Nagoya on July 25, 2020, during a post-match interview, Kazuchika Okada teased a "controversial announcement". Three days later, during a press conference, NJPW chairman Naoki Sugabayashi alongside Kazuchika Okada announced the creation of a new title, the KOPW Championship. Afterwards, Okada introduced the title and its concept, as well as another edition of the tournament to crown a new champion. The tournament to crown the inaugural champion, which would begin on August 26, with four first-round singles matches facing each other in a four-way match to determine the provisional champion on August 29 during the 2020 Summer Struggle tour. On August 6, Okada and Yujiro Takahashi were announced as the first participants for the tournament. The following day, Okada and Takahashi announced their match stipulations for their match. The rest of the participants for the tournament were announced on August 10. On August 17, NJPW announced a fan vote on *Twitter* to decide the stipulations of the first round matches, while Sho and SANADA both agreed to face each other in a submission match. On August 24, the stipulations were decided after a fan vote for each first-round match. On August 26, Desperado, Yano, SANADA and Okada won their respective matches, leading on August 29, Yano defeating them in a four-way match to become the provisional champion.

1 **^**  This was a no finishers' match.
2 **^**  This was a 2-count pinfall match.
3 **^**  This was a submission match.
4 **^**  This was a 3-on-1 handicap match.

### Establishment

In December, during the 2020 World Tag League, Bullet Club members Bad Luck Fale and Tanga Loa destroyed the KOPW 2020 trophy, leading on December 23 at *Road to Tokyo Dome* tour, Yano defeating Fale in a Bodyslam or No Corner Pads match to become the official KOPW 2020 champion, being awarded a new trophy.

On July 25, 2021, at Wrestle Grand Slam in Tokyo Dome, Chase Owens last eliminated Yano in the *New Japan Rambo* with handcuffs match, following the help from his Bullet Club stablemates to win the provisional KOPW 2021 trophy, becoming the first wrestler other than Yano to provisionally held the title. Following his loss, Yano, who was frustrated with his loss, challenged Owens to a rematch for the trophy. Over the following weeks, following their matches. On September 4 at Wrestle Grand Slam in MetLife Dome, Yano defeated Owens in a No Disqualification I Quit match to regain the trophy, becoming the first wrestler to win KOPW trophy on two different occasions.

On April 9, 2022 at Hyper Battle, Yano lost the provisional trophy to Taichi in a No Rope Ringout match on April 9 at Hyper Battle. In the aftermath of Taichi winning the KOPW trohpy, Taichi promise to raise the KOPW 2022 trophy to ‘the main event level’ and afterwards nominated Takagi to be his first challenger, leading Taichi to lose the trophy to him in a 30 Count match to become the provisional KOPW 2022 champion. On October 28 at Rumble on 44th Street, Takagi made his first title defense outside of Japan at New York, United States, succesfully defending the trophy against El Phantasmo. On December 22, it was announced that the KOPW trophy would be being replaced with a title belt, with the first holder being crowned on January 4, 2023 at Wrestle Kingdom 17 in Tokyo Dome.

## Gallery

* Gallery
* Winners
* Trophy Holders
* Belt Holders

The KOPW trophyThe KOPW trophy (left) and Shingo Takagi's repaired trophy (right)NJPW presenting the KOPW belt

Toru YanoShingo TakagiTaichi

Toru YanoChase OwensMinoru SuzukiTaichiShingo Takagi

Shingo TakagiTaichiShoTaiji Ishimori