Professional wrestling has been a popular live event in Virginia and the Carolinas since the mid-1900s.
The company known for promoting wrestling in Richmond and across Virginia and the Carolinas for decades was Jim Crockett Promotions.
Jim Crockett, Sr. started promoting wrestling in the area when he bought an old warehouse in Greensboro, NC, in December of 1933, named it the “Sportrena”, and held his first matches there.
Crockett established his base of operations in Charlotte a year later in 1934, moving in on a chaotic promotional scene at that time.
In 1939 he and successful Richmond promoter Bill Lewis bought out the interests of promoter Pete Moore who had been in partnership with Crockett for nearly 10 years going back to their days headquartered out of Bristol, VA.
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Moore’s promotional interests spanned the width and breadth of the area that we think of now as the Mid-Atlantic territory.
After buying Moore out, Lewis based his operations out of Richmond, and Crockett based his out of Charlotte.
Over the years, Jim Crockett had many local promoters working for him within the various regions of the main territory including such men as Henry Marcus, Paul Winkhaus, and Pete Apostolou.
These promoters coordinated the local promotion of Crockett’s wrestling events.
However, it was Joe Murnick who became Crockett’s largest partner and, along with his sons Elliot and Carl, were the men on the ground in Raleigh, eastern North Carolina and eastern Virginia.
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Logo of Jim Crockett Promotions
In April of 1973, Jim Crockett, Sr. passed away.
The territory was always known within the business as the “Charlotte territory” because that is where the Crocketts were based.
Fans simply knew it as “All-Star Wrestling” or “Championship Wrestling”.
Around the time of Jim Sr.’s passing, the promotion began to brand its wrestling business as “Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling”, which also became the name of their television program.
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Prior to this time, television wrestling had been taped out of multiple locations each week including Charlotte, High Point, Roanoke, and Raleigh.
In 1973, the company consolidated its weekly television production to one location - the studios of WRAL in Raleigh, NC.
It was from that studio that the magic we saw unfold each week on our TV screens took place.
In 1975, Crockett Promotions added a second program eventually known as “World Wide Wrestling” which was at one point hosted by Richmond’s own Rich Landrum, who also served as ring announcer for the live events in the Richmond area in the 1970s and early 1980s.
Richmond was thought of as one of the linchpins in the territory’s business.
Friday night wrestling became a tradition there.
NWA Eastern Heavyweight Championship
On October 13, 1970, the championship was introduced as the NWA Eastern Heavyweight Championship during a taping of Championship Wrestling.
It was announced that the Missouri Mauler had defeated the defending champion Pat O'Connor in New York City to win the title; this title change was fictitious and a storyline to introduce the championship to the promotion; nevertheless, O'Connor's reign is denoted as the first official reign.
Transition to Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship
On the September 6, 1973 taping of Championship Wrestling, JCP owner Jim Crockett, Jr. announced the retirement of the NWA Eastern Heavyweight Championship and the establishment of the NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship.
At the time of this change, Jerry Brisco was in his fourth reign as the NWA Eastern Heavyweight Champion, and as a result of never losing the title, he was recognized as the first NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Champion.
Ron Garvin and the Vacated Title
On December 26, 1986, Ron Garvin, after winning JCP's version of the NWA United States Tag Team Championship with Barry Windham, vacated the NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship and handed the belt to Crockett, Jr. on a taping of World Championship Wrestling.
In the late 1990s, NWA gave a group of promoters permission to establish a territory called "Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling"; however, this territory has not claimed any connection to the original JCP/MACW.
Overall, there were 63 reigns among 29 wrestlers.
Fifteen of those reigns occurred while the title was called the "NWA Eastern Heavyweight Championship" while 46 reigns occurred under the "NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship" name.
Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling
Johnny Valentine ranks first in combined reigns by the length of 504 days with 2 reigns total.
Wahoo McDaniel had the most reigns with seven.
Ken Patera's second reign was the longest in the title's history at 334 days.
NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship: Title Reigns and Champions
Jim Crockett Promotions: The Rise and Fall of a Wrestling Empire WWE Families, Flocks & Factions E02
Here is a table summarizing key statistics about the NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship:
| Statistic | Details |
|---|---|
| Total Reigns | 63 |
| Number of Wrestlers | 29 |
| NWA Eastern Heavyweight Championship Reigns | 15 |
| NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Championship Reigns | 46 |
| Longest Combined Reigns | Johnny Valentine (504 days) |
| Most Reigns | Wahoo McDaniel (7) |
| Longest Single Reign | Ken Patera (334 days) |
South Atlantic Pro Wrestling (SAPW)
South Atlantic Pro Wrestling (SAPW), formerly known as the North American Wrestling Association, was a professional wrestling promotion founded by George Scott, John Ringley and Mike Lamberth in Charlotte, North Carolina in 1990, and later taken over by Paul Jones and Frank Dusek.
The North American Wrestling Association was founded by George Scott, John Ringley and Mike Lamberth in January 1990.
The first event and TV taping was held in Sumter, South Carolina on February 8, 1990.
The first North American Heavyweight Champion, Robert Fuller, won the championship in an 18-man tournament by defeating Ricky Steamboat in the finals on June 30, 1990, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Scott and Ringley, as former Jim Crockett Promotions employees, recognized the importance of television exposure.
The group purchased all the old JCP market stations in the Carolinas along with the original timeslots.
George Scott and his partners hoped to revive the National Wrestling Alliance's old Mid-Atlantic wrestling territory which traditionally covered Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina.
After securing key television markets in the Carolinas, the promotion signed contracts with all the old Jim Crockett Promotions arenas to hold pro wrestling shows on a regular basis.
Within the first year of operation, house shows and TV tapings were held at the Columbia Township Auditorium, Grady Cole Center, Greenwood Civic Center, Limestone College Gym, and the Winston-Salem Memorial Coliseum.
SAPW tours also included high school gyms, rec centers, and fairs in cities throughout Georgia, Mississippi, Virginia, and the Carolinas.
SAPW featured many Mid-Atlantic veterans such as Big John Studd, Bob Orton Jr., Ivan Koloff, Junkyard Dog, Manny Fernandez, Matt Bourne, Paul Jones, Randy Colley, Ricky Steamboat, Robert Fuller, Ron Garvin, Tommy Rich, Wahoo McDaniel, and The Fantastics.
Other legends such as Lou Thesz, Johnny Weaver, and Tim Woods appeared alongside SAPW announcer Ted Webb as special guest commentators for "South Atlantic Pro Wrestling".
Bob Caudle also joined the promotion in late 1991.
The promotion also showcased younger talent, including Baron Samdi, Curtis Thompson, Dean Malenko, Nelson Frazier, The Patriot, P. N. News, Ric Savage, Rob Van Dam, Vince Torelli, The American Pit Bulldogs and The Nasty Boys.
Chris Chavis, who had trained under Larry Sharpe at the Monster Factory prior to his SAPW debut, was its first breakout star.
During his first year in SAPW, he was voted 3rd runner up for Rookie of the Year in Pro Wrestling Illustrated.