Who Do You Think Of - WCW World Television Championship

[The Crock]

WCW World Television Championship​

After being gone for a while, the latest installment in this series is here! Today I'll be covering the WCW World Television Championship. The title's history begins in 1974, where it was first created as a secondary championship for Mid-Atlantic Wrestling, where it was first known as the Mid-Atlantic Television Championship. Then, as Mid-Atlantic grew and became Jim Crockett Promotions, the title became known as the NWA World Television Championship, then when WCW withdrew from NWA it was finally recognized as the WCW World Television Championship. The first ever WCW World Television Champion was Danny Miller and the last ever was Hacksaw Jim Duggan. The title was retired on April 20, 2000.

Many all-time greats have held the championship. From Arn Anderson, who holds the record for most days as champion with 870, to Booker T, who had an astounding 6 reigns with the title, this title has an illustrious history. When I first thought about the title, I had a hard time deciding who "The Man" would be when it came to this belt, but the more I thought about it the clearer it got.

Booker T​

Booker T is easily the guy that epitomizes the belt for me. This title somewhat kicked his singles career off of the ground. Had he never won the TV Title maybe he never would have become such a legend in wrestling. His first reign came after he defeated Disco Inferno on Nitro, he held the title for 49 days during his first reign eventually dropping it to Rick Martel. After that he feuded with Martel, Fit Finlay, and Chris Benoit over the championship, winning it numerous times. His final reign came after he defeated Scott Steiner for the belt at Uncensored 1999, he would drop the belt at Slamboree 1999 to Rick Steiner. Now, Booker T really made this belt legitimate. He was the one guy who it really seemed would fight tooth and nail for this title, just to pick up the win. Booker T takes this one, easily.

 

[Big Sexy]

Booker T is the obvious answer for reasons already stated but one thing I would like to mention is that when I think of the TV title I don't just think about Booker T but more specifically the feud between Booker T and Chris Benoit. From February of 1998 to May of 98 the two exchanged the title 4 times. Eventually Benoit cost Booker the title in a match against Fit Finlay which led to a best of 7 match series between the two to determine the number one contender.

It was a tremendous series between two of WCW's best workers and it produced some of the best matches of that year. Most of the series took place on Nitro, Thunder, and WCW Saturday Night. Benoit took a 3-1 lead then Booker T came back to tie the series at three. The final match took place at the Great American Bash where Booker T was victorious. The feud between the two was one of my favorites of all time and it really added a lot of prestige to the title.

 

[ExcellenceorAwesome]

My response is a tie. I think Chris Benoit and Booker T. The series of matches they had over the events surroundign their title reigns(best of 7 I believe) was awesome. They made this mid/lower card belt feel like it was HUGELY improtant, and also showed that these guys could be going to huge places in their careers. Also, at that time I had only been watching WCW for a few months and this help to cement me as a fan, though I was always a bigger WWF fan.

Also there is another guy that comes to mind when i think of the TV title, Disco Infero, but only because of his entrance theme, Disco Fever Disco Fever!!

 

[MattMoses]

Booker T doesn't really come to mind when I think of the WCW Television championship. His title reigns were, to be honest, largely lackluster. Two reigns lasted less than a day and were untelevised (Against Chris Benoit, before their best of 7 series), a pretty much forgettable feud with Rick Martel which culminated in two reigns, the time when his brother had to defend the belt on his behalf because he was injured, and...yeah, that other time.

And just to clarify, the series with Benoit were great (though overrated), but those matches were to determine a number one contender. If you take a look at Booker's reign post-best of 7, he didn't even defend the title, his brother did on his behalf.

The man you first mentioned, Arn Anderson is the only viable choice here. All you have to do is take a look at his first two title reigns and the quality of the matches he was having with The Great Muta over it. Some of the finest gems of the early 90's were Arn/Muta feuding over that belt. Factor in the matches with Dusty Rhodes, Waoo McDaniel and Bobby Eaton, and you have what I'd consider the greatest TV champion of all-time.

 

[GameOver]

Would think Arn Anderson clearly stands out, since he has the longest reign and was a master of the mat and mic
Tully Blanchard was also a great champ

So Arn ftw, but lets look at another great one

Stunning Steve Austin

he was the first i got to see in any length , given we rarely got to see WCW in Australia pre the monday night wars

Austin held the title for 431 days combined over 2 runs, was also a great character on all levels.
funny i don't remember Booker as TV Champ lol. maybe vaguely, but i certainly remember Austin battling as the TV champ and later on the US Champ.

Great matches with Ricky Steamboat for both titles
and it put him on the rocket to WWE fame.

 

[lgreene9187]

I honestly had forgotten about Booker holding the title because it was so early on in his singles career, but he did have a great feud with Benoit over the belt. The one name that comes to mind for me is Arn Anderson, above all the others.

 

[Toroc102]

I started watching WcW around 96 and to me it was always the least prestigious title in the organization. When I think of the TV Title the first two people that come to mind are Disco Inferno and Alex Wright(and of Scott Hall throwing the belt in the trash), and I'm not even sure if he ever won the belt, buts thats the tier of wrestler that I think of when it comes to this particular title.

 

[UnBEARaBULLfan]

the first person I think of when the tv. title is mentioned is the toughest s.o.b to ever hold it AA Arn Anderson the lenght of time he held it, he cant be denied as best champ in my opinion and he was tough as nails.

Tully Blanchard is another one you could mention who does't get enough credit.
Of course Booker T, Chris Benoit, Rick Stiener's another good one, Mike Rotundo, are all credible champs too.

 

[WJDwjdWJDwjd]

I KNOW I'm going to be flamed for this but it had to be one of my first times watching wrestling. I remember Disco Inferno winning the title. I liked the gimmick when I was younger and he is the first name to pop into my head when I think TV Title. I also whole heartedly agree with Booker T. He has to be one of the best to ever hold that title.

 

[MancMark]

Somewhat unfortunately, the first person I think of is Disco Inferno. He was seemingly always in contention for this title. I'm not saying he was the best person to hold the title (although he had the best music clearly) but he comes to mind straight away.

Obviously the other people I think of are Booker, Benoit and Scott Hall.

 

[DeathClutch]

The TV Championship, I remember the later stages of the championship more then the Booker T/Chris Benoit or Scott Steiner's last run, I believe it was just a championship for the undercard guys to get and hopefully shine and progress after all Benoit, Booker T, Scott Steiner all looked great when TV Champion, However I WCW got sick of pushing the title and started to play about it with it, I remember Hall winning the belt in 99 and won the US title then the next thing I remember was the belt found in the bin by Hacksaw (who kept the actual championship belt and sold it on ebay a couple of years back) and that was it the title was gone.

Problem with lower card championship belts they never stick around long enough, once they served their purpose their gone, look at WWE classic case in 2002 when they got rid of the European, Harcore AND Intercontinental Championships, luckily they brought back the latter but belts are created for a purpose and when the concept becomes boring you get rid, WCW had their version of the Hardcore title, Cruiserweight title and US title which they allowed to become them to become what the TV title was (look at the US title, after Scott Steiner dropped the belt in 2000, the belt went to Lance Storm (Good wrestler) then to Bill Demont (better suited to the hardcore division) to Shane Douglaus (again good wrestler) to Rick Stiener then to Booker (no reason for him to regained it, he was a former 3 time WCW Champion at that point) it was more to do with WCW having little TV time and to many titles to fill it up when they had better feuds without titles being involved (Triple Threat Ladder matches, number one contender matches for the cruiserweight title)

 

[wushady]

Booker T did make a great champion and did help the title become prestigious again. However the title would have never meant anything in the first place if it wasn't for guys like Arn Anderson and Tully Blanchard. Not to take anything away from Booker T but his 6 reigns for a total of 204 days. Are nowhere near as impressive a Blanchard's 3 reigns for 685 days. Or Anderson having 4 reigns for 870 days.

I personally think of Arn Anderson when thinking of that title. Growing up in the 80's and early 90's I got to see some great matches of his against guys like The Great Muta and Sting. At times he made that title look more prestigious than the US title. Especially during the height of the 4 Horseman.

 

[Calderownz]

Four people come to mind.

Obviously, the aforementioned Booker T. definitely comes to mind. He and Chris Benoit, as a matter of fact. Both made incredible television with just outright wrestling and a tremendous series of matches.

Also, strangely enough, it'd be Steven Regal and Prince Iaukea. Regal held the title for such a long time, that when the Prince beat him, I just remember it sticking out for a moment.

 

[King Patrick Star]

When I think of the WCW Television Championship, the Superstars that come to mind are Arn Anderson for being the first “World Championship Wrestling” TV Champ and for holding the Title for a combined 870 days (though I missed his first two reigns in the N.W.A.), and Booker T. for winning the Title 6 times.

 

[WCWMondayNitroOnYT]

When I read the question, the first person that came to mind for me was Lord Steven Regal. He had quite a few memorable matches and, to me, it always felt like a huge deal when somebody much smaller like Prince Iaukea, etc. beat Regal for the belt. He added a prestige to the title that not even Booker T or any of the aforementioned wrestlers could bring to the table.

 

[FitFinlay4Life]

Three names jump immediately to mind:-
Double A - he was always in the picture for this title, it's almost sad that he didn't progress to the bigger belts.
Lord Steven Regal - another 4 time belt holder who always was involved in the TV title scene.
'Beautiful' Bobby Eaton - I adored Bobby Eaton and never cared if he was a face or a heel. He might be the only wrestler since Rock N Wrestling to get over without ever uttering a word. I used to think he was mute until I noticed that he used to exclaim as part of his selling.

I don't really consider Booker, Austin or Benoit because they progressed beyond the TV Title. These guys where all about the TV belt in their singles careers.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I would have to say Booker T. This was the title belt that made Booker a singles star. He successfully made the transition from tag-team specialist to singles wrestler with ease, and his multiple title reigns, coupled with the fantastic best-of-7 series with Chris Benoit means he will forever be linked with the TV title.

He made the mid-card title a must-see part of the show, and having such a great run with the belt proved to everyone that Booker was more than capable of holding his own with the big boys in the singles division, and showed he had the potential to take it up to the next level, which he did with his eventual World Title wins.

Plus he had a fantastic moustache while holding the title, so that seals it for me.

 

[Dyno Kid]

I aslo gotta go with the "Enforcer' AA Arn Anderson ! Watching WCW on TBS back in the 80's and seeing Arn with the title, he just looked right as the champ and the title meant something when he held it !

I have to also say that I didn't even remember that Booker T held the title so he's clearly not the first name that comes to my mind !

 

[Jack-Hammer]

For me, when I think of the title, Tully Blanchard is the name that automatically pops into my mind. At 353 days, Blanchard's first reign with the then NWA Television Championship remains the longest single run in the title's history. His second run was only 69 days and his third run lasted 263 days. Blanchard was someone that just worked for me as the champ. He was fun to watch in the ring and the guy was a great talker. He really spent a lot of his promo time hyping himself and how important it was to be the champ.

I can agree with anyone thinking Arn Anderson. He was a great champion as well and has to be considered, overall, one of the strongest TV champs in the history of the title.

After the early 90s, however, the title lost a lot of prominence I think. We saw a lot of lackluster runs with the title during the 90s from Ricky Steamboat, Barry Windham, Larry Zbyszko, Scott Steiner, Johnny B. Bad, The Renegade, etc. By the late 90s, the title was a shell of its former self and it's glory days were long since behind it.

 

[byrnside]

When I saw this thread, I immediately thought of Booker T. But after I saw The Crock had already chosen it, I went to the archives and looked through the Television title's history. I always kind of saw the TV title as the stepping stone to the WCW's working man's title [the US title]. That being said, I didn't really see anyone standing out on that list as a notable Television champion. Guys like Arn Anderson, Steve Austin, Ricky Steamboat, Chris Benoit and Scott Steiner are peppered throughout the list, and while those I remember, none stood out to me like the Booker man. Chris Benoit was probably the only other name I would consider as someone who really got their start after winning the TV title. But I don't really think of him when I think of the title.

I remember, pretty vivdly, Booker winning the title. Coming from someone who is a much bigger WWE fan than was a WCW fan, that says something. I remember Booker T had just broken away from Harlem Heat and could tell he was well on the rise, fast forward a couple of years and he went on to win the WCW title 5 times and eventually was absorbed into the WWE roster and the rest is history.

 

[GoochOwnsYou]

OK, the WCW World Television Championship I felt had significance. In Mid-Atlandtic and early (NWA affiliated) WCW it was held by some of the all time greats that made the title noticed: Dusty Rhodes, Arn Anderson, Tully Blanchard, Mike Rotunda (IRS), Sting, Roddy Piper, Barry Whindam.

It also got people noticed, weather pushed in WCW or elsewhere: Steven Regal, Steve Austin, Chris Jericho, Diamond Dallas Page, Booker T.

But more importance to me, the TV title remind be of guys who I used to enjoy watching matches more than the nWo during the Monday Night Wars but not quite on par with the Cruiserweights (despite there was corssover

Some notible TV champs I enjoyed watching: Alex Wright, Jericho, Booker T, Prince Iaukea, Benoit, Konnan, Ultimo Dragon: these were guys who were great wrestlers. And of course despite not being a good wrestler: at least Disco Inferno was entertaining: think of him as a Santino of the 90's.

 

[WorldHeavyweightChampion]

When I think of the World Television Title the first name that comes to mind is always Arn Anderson. Arn was to this title what Lex Luger was to the United States Heavyweight Title, and Flair to the World Heavyweight Title.

After Arn (in no particular order) would be Tully Blanchard, Sting, Steven Regal, Steve Austin, Dusty Rhodes, The Great Muta, Bobby Eaton, Ricky Steamboat, Nikita Koloff, and Booker T.

As for the legitimacy of the title, it was treated (in the NWA/JCP) as a main event title. Some of the guys who held it are former World Heavyweight Champions. NWA/JCP treated the TV title like the National, U.S., and World Titles as so prestigious that even main-eventers held it, and it was never treated like a so-called "mid-card" title. It was just about being a CHAMPION period. Not to mention, it WAS the most defended title as well.