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GHC Heavyweight Championship

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GHC Heavyweight Championship
Current championship design (2019–present)
Details
PromotionCyberFight
BrandPro Wrestling Noah
Date establishedApril 15, 2001
Current championOzawa
Date wonJanuary 1, 2025
Statistics
First championMitsuharu Misawa
Most reignsGo Shiozaki
(5 reigns)
Longest reignKenta Kobashi
(735 days)
Shortest reignYoshihiro Takayama
(16 days)
Oldest championKeiji Muto
(58 years, 51 days)
Youngest championKaito Kiyomiya
(22 years, 152 days)
Heaviest championTakeshi Morishima
(145 kg (320 lb))
Lightest championKenta
(81 kg (179 lb))

The Global Honored Crown (GHC) Heavyweight Championship (Japanese: GHCヘビー級王座, Hepburn: GHC Hebī-kyū Ōza) is the professional wrestling world heavyweight championship created and promoted by Japanese promotion Pro Wrestling Noah, which was merged with DDT Pro-Wrestling to form CyberFight in 2020.[1] It is one of CyberFight's two top men's world titles, alongside the KO-D Openweight Championship in DDT.[2] The title was also defended on Impact Wrestling which has a working relationship with Pro Wrestling Noah. Though its name implies a particular weight class, it has been periodically held by junior heavyweights, including Yoshinari Ogawa, Kenta, Naomichi Marufuji, Katsuhiko Nakajima and Kenoh. The current champion is Ozawa, who is in his first reign. He defeated Kaito Kiyomiya at The New Year 2025 on January 1, 2025, in Tokyo, Japan.

History

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The GHC Heavyweight Championship was created in 2001, when Noah held a 16-man tournament to crown the first champion over its month-long, 18-event Navigation for the Victory GHC tour. The tour ran from March 18 to April 15.[3]

 
Round 1Round 2Semi-finalsFinal
 
              
 
 March 18, Tokyo
 
 
 Mitsuharu Misawa Pin
 
 April 4, Okayama
 
 Akitoshi Saito 12:26[4]
 
 Mitsuharu Misawa Pin
 
 March 21, Sagamihara
 
 Yoshinari Ogawa 19:44[5]
 
 Masao Inoue 14:18[4]
 
 April 11, Hiroshima
 
 Yoshinari Ogawa Pin
 
 Mitsuharu Misawa Pin
 
 April 2, Beppu
 
 Jun Akiyama 1:30[a][5]
 
 Takeshi Morishima 14:33[5]
 
 April 8, Tokyo
 
 Takeshi Rikio Pin
 
 Takeshi Rikio 4:02[5]
 
 April 1, Fukuoka
 
 Jun Akiyama Sub
 
 Jun Akiyama Pin
 
 April 15, Tokyo
 
 Takao Omori 22:49[5]
 
 Mitsuharu Misawa Pin
 
 March 25, Kyoto
 
 Yoshihiro Takayama 21:12[5]
 
 Akira Taue 10:40[4]
 
 April 6, Ishikawa
 
 Vader Pin
 
 Vader Pin
 
 March 29, Kagoshima
 
 Daisuke Ikeda 7:15[5]
 
 Daisuke Ikeda Pin
 
 April 12, Osaka
 
 Tamon Honda 15:16[4]
 
 Vader 9:24[5]
 
 March 22, Tokyo
 
 Yoshihiro Takayama DQ
 
 Yoshihiro Takayama Pin
 
 April 3, Uwajima
 
 Jun Izumida 8:22[4]
 
 Yoshihiro Takayama Pin
 
 March 30, Kumamoto
 
 Kentaro Shiga 7:16[5]
 
 Scorpio 13:06[4]
 
 
 Kentaro Shiga Pin
 

Belt design

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The first version of the title was introduced in 2001, one year after the promotion's debut, and its centerpiece featured a circular main plate in gold, adorned with intricate engravings, and crowned by a large "GHC" inscription at the top. Below it, the words "Heavyweight Champion" were prominently displayed, encased in a banner-like design, andn the middle, there’s an earth-shaped globe, symbolizing NOAH's governing body, the Global Honored Crown. The main plate is flanked by two side plates on either side, each carrying additional details, including NOAH's emblematic logo.[6]

The second version was introduced in 2019, with the centerpiece of this version being broad, gold-plated main plate. At the top of the plate, bold "GHC" initials are engraved in a prominent and embossed style. Just top and bottom, “Heavyweight and Champion” were displayed in a subtle yet bold font, framing the title's gravity with elegance. The globe at the center was an enhanced feature, rendered with a three-dimensional effect that highlights the continents. The side plates, two on each side of the main plate, contribute further to the belt’s distinguished look.[6]

Reigns

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As of May 9, 2025, there have been a total of 46 reigns shared between 25 different champions.

Key
No. Overall reign number
Reign Reign number for the specific champion
Days Number of days held
Defenses Number of successful defenses
+ Current reign is changing daily
No. Champion Championship change Reign statistics Notes Ref.
Date Event Location Reign Days Defenses
1 Mitsuharu Misawa April 15, 2001 Navigation for the Victory Tokyo, Japan 1 103 1 Defeated Yoshihiro Takayama in a tournament final. [3]
2 Jun Akiyama July 27, 2001 Accomplish Our First Navigation Tokyo, Japan 1 254 3 [7]
3 Yoshinari Ogawa April 7, 2002 Encountering Navigation Final Day: Come and Watch in Ariake Tokyo, Japan 1 153 2 [8]
4 Yoshihiro Takayama September 7, 2002 Navigation Over the Date Line Osaka, Japan 1 16 0 [9]
5 Mitsuharu Misawa September 23, 2002 Great Voyage '02 Tokyo, Japan 2 159 1 [10]
6 Kenta Kobashi March 1, 2003 Navigate for Evolution '03 Final Day Tokyo, Japan 1 735 13 [11][12]
7 Takeshi Rikio March 5, 2005 Navigate for Evolution '05 Final Day Tokyo, Japan 1 245 3 [11][13]
8 Akira Taue November 5, 2005 3rd Great Voyage '05 Tokyo, Japan 1 78 1 [14]
9 Jun Akiyama January 22, 2006 The First Navigation '06 Final Day Tokyo, Japan 2 230 2 [15]
10 Naomichi Marufuji September 9, 2006 Shiny Navigation '06 Final Day Tokyo, Japan 1 92 2 [16]
11 Mitsuharu Misawa December 10, 2006 Great Voyage '06 Tokyo, Japan 3 448 7 [17]
12 Takeshi Morishima March 2, 2008 The Second Navig.'08 Final Day Tokyo, Japan 1 188 2 [18]
13 Kensuke Sasaki September 6, 2008 Shiny Navig.'08 Final Day Tokyo, Japan 1 176 2 [19]
14 Jun Akiyama March 1, 2009 The Second Navig.'09 Final Day Tokyo, Japan 3 105 1 [20]
— Vacated June 14, 2009 — — — — — Vacated due to Akiyama suffering a lumbar disc herniation. [21]
15 Go Shiozaki June 14, 2009 Southern Navig.'09 Fukuoka, Japan 1 175 1 Defeated Takeshi Rikio to win the vacant title. [22][23]
16 Takashi Sugiura December 6, 2009 Winter Navig.'09 Final Day Tokyo, Japan 1 581 14 [24]
17 Go Shiozaki July 10, 2011 Great Voyage 2011 in Tokyo Vol. 3 Tokyo, Japan 2 196 3 [25]
18 Takeshi Morishima January 22, 2012 Great Voyage 2012 in Osaka Osaka, Japan 2 371 8 [26]
19 Kenta January 27, 2013 Great Voyage 2013 in Osaka Osaka, Japan 1 343 9 [27]
20 Takeshi Morishima January 5, 2014 New Year Navig.2014 Tokyo, Japan 3 34 0 [28]
21 Yuji Nagata February 8, 2014 The Second Navig.2014 Opening Day Tokyo, Japan 1 147 4 [29]
22 Naomichi Marufuji July 5, 2014 Great Voyage 2014 in Tokyo Vol. 2 Tokyo, Japan 2 253 6 [30]
23 Minoru Suzuki March 15, 2015 Great Voyage 2015 in Tokyo Tokyo, Japan 1 283 4 On August 9, 2015, Suzuki successfully defended the title against Mio Shirai at a Pro Wrestling Wave event. The defense was not recognized by Noah, who officially only recognize four of his five defenses. [31]
24 Naomichi Marufuji December 23, 2015 Destiny 2015 Tokyo, Japan 3 39 0 [32]
25 Takashi Sugiura January 31, 2016 Great Voyage 2016 in Yokohama Yokohama, Japan 2 118 1 [33]
26 Go Shiozaki May 28, 2016 Great Voyage 2016 in Osaka Osaka, Japan 3 63 1 [34]
27 Takashi Sugiura July 30, 2016 10th NTV G+ Cup Junior Heavyweight Tag League Tokyo, Japan 3 85 2 This was a lumberjack match. [35]
28 Katsuhiko Nakajima October 23, 2016 Great Voyage 2016 in Yokohama Vol. 2 Yokohama, Japan 1 307 7 [36]
29 Eddie Edwards August 26, 2017 Summer Navig.2017 Vol. 2 Tokyo, Japan 1 118 2 [37]
30 Kenoh December 22, 2017 Winter Navig. 2017 Tokyo, Japan 1 79 2 [38]
31 Takashi Sugiura March 11, 2018 Great Voyage 2018 in Yokohama Yokohama, Japan 4 280 6 [39]
32 Kaito Kiyomiya December 16, 2018 Great Voyage in Yokohama Vol. 2 Yokohama, Japan 1 384 6 [40]
33 Go Shiozaki January 4, 2020 Korakuen Hall Day 1 New Sunrise Tokyo, Japan 4 405 6 [41]
34 Keiji Mutoh February 12, 2021 Destination 2021 Tokyo, Japan 1 114 2 [42]
35 Naomichi Marufuji June 6, 2021 CyberFight Festival 2021 Saitama, Japan 4 126 2 [43]
36 Katsuhiko Nakajima October 10, 2021 Grand Square 2021 in Osaka Osaka, Japan 2 136 4 [44]
37 Kazuyuki Fujita February 23, 2022 Gain Control 2022 in Nagoya Nagoya, Japan 1 63 1 [45]
— Vacated April 27, 2022 — — — — — Vacated due to Fujita having tested positive for COVID-19. [46]
38 Go Shiozaki April 30, 2022 Majestic 2022 Tokyo, Japan 5 43 0 Defeated Kaito Kiyomiya to win the vacant title. [47]
39 Satoshi Kojima June 12, 2022 CyberFight Festival 2022 Saitama, Japan 1 34 0 [48]
40 Kenoh July 16, 2022 Destination 2022 Tokyo, Japan 2 71 0 [49]
41 Kaito Kiyomiya September 25, 2022 Grand Ship in Nagoya 2022 Nagoya, Japan 2 175 4 [50]
42 Jake Lee March 19, 2023 Great Voyage in Yokohama 2023 Yokohama, Japan 1 223 4 [51]
43 Kenoh October 28, 2023 Demolition Stage in Fukuoka Fukuoka, Japan 3 99 2 [52]
44 Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. February 4, 2024 Cross Over in Sendai 2024 Sendai, Japan 1 90 1 [53]
45 Kaito Kiyomiya May 4, 2024 Wrestle Magic Tokyo, Japan 3 242 7 [54]
46 Ozawa January 1, 2025 The New Year 2025 Tokyo, Japan 1 128+ 4 [55]

Combined reigns

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As of May 9, 2025.

Four-time champion Takashi Sugiura holds the records for longest combined reign (1,064 days), most defenses in one reign (14), and most combined defenses (23)
Inaugural and three-time champion Mitsuharu Misawa
† Indicates the current champion
Rank Wrestler No. of
reigns 		Combined
defenses 		Combined days
1 Takashi Sugiura 4 23 1,064
2 Go Shiozaki 5 11 882
3 Kaito Kiyomiya 3 17 801
4 Kenta Kobashi 1 13 735
5 Mitsuharu Misawa 3 9 710
6 Takeshi Morishima 3 10 593
7 Jun Akiyama 3 6 589
8 Naomichi Marufuji 4 10 510
9 Katsuhiko Nakajima 2 11 443
10 Kenta 1 9 343
11 Minoru Suzuki 1 4 283
12 Kenoh 3 4 249
13 Takeshi Rikio 1 3 245
14 Jake Lee 1 4 223
15 Kensuke Sasaki 1 2 176
16 Yoshinari Ogawa 1 2 153
17 Yuji Nagata 1 4 147
18 Ozawa † 1 4 128+
19 Eddie Edwards 1 2 118
20 Keiji Mutoh 1 2 114
21 Hijo del de Dr. Wagner Jr. 1 1 90
22 Akira Taue 1 1 78
23 Kazuyuki Fujita 1 1 63
24 Satoshi Kojima 1 0 34
25 Yoshihiro Takayama 1 0 16

Notes

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  1. ^ Akiyama and Misawa were originally both counted out, but the match was restarted.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Pollock, John (July 27, 2020). "DDT and Pro Wrestling NOAH merge to form CyberFight". POST Wrestling | WWE AEW NXT NJPW Podcasts, News, Reviews. Retrieved March 4, 2024.
  2. ^ Saalbach, Axel. "Champions and Championships/GHC Heavyweight Title" (in German). Retrieved June 6, 2021.
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  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i "NOAH". Pro Wrestling Noah (in Japanese). Archived from the original on June 20, 2001.
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