Florida Championship Wrestling

Florida Championship Wrestling

Acronym	FCW
Founded	June 26, 2007
Defunct	August 14, 2012
Style	Professional wrestling
Headquarters	Tampa, Florida
Founder(s)	Steve Keirn, WWE
Owner(s)	Steve Keirn
Parent	WWE
Website	FCWwrestling.com (inactive) : "FCW Entrance". Archived from the original on December 5, 1998. FCWwrestling.info (inactive) : "Florida Championship Wrestling". Archived from the original on June 28, 2009.

Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) was a professional wrestling promotion based on the former independent Championship Wrestling from Florida promotion, which operated from 1961 until 1987.^[1] From October 2007^[2][3] to August 2012,^[4] the promotion served as the official developmental territory for WWE. In August 2012, WWE re-branded Florida Championship Wrestling into NXT for their developmental territory, with storylines and championships being discontinued.^[5]

History

The promotion was started by Steve Keirn in 2007^[6] and became WWE's second developmental territory when they ended their relationship with the Georgia-based Deep South Wrestling in April 2007.^[7] It became their sole developmental territory in early 2008 when they ceased affiliation with Ohio Valley Wrestling.^[3]

FCW's first logo (2007–2008)

FCW's debut show was on June 26, 2007 at Tampa, Florida's Dallas Bull. A 21-man Battle Royal was held during the show, to crown the first ever FCW Southern Heavyweight Champion.^[8] The next year the Florida Heavyweight Championship was introduced,^[9] with Jake Hager becoming the first champion at a February 15 show after surviving a Battle Royal and defeating Ted DiBiase, Jr..^[10] The Florida Tag Team Championship was also introduced in February, with the Puerto Rican Nightmares (Eddie Colón and Eric Pérez) beating Steven Lewington and Heath Miller to win it in the finals of a one night tournament.^[11] The singles titles were later unified, keeping the "Florida Heavyweight" name and championship.^[12]

FCW's second logo (2008–2012)

On July 7, 2008, WWE confirmed that FCW was based on the original independent Championship Wrestling from Florida promotion, which operated from 1961 until 1987.^[1] The program's ending consisted of various clips from the ending of CWF's programs, featuring Gordon Solie's classic sign-off line "So long from the Sunshine State", accompanied by Solie winking one of his eyes and waving two fingers upward.

On March 20, 2012, it was reported that WWE would cease operation at Florida Championship Wrestling, however this statement was later refuted after Steve Keirn as well as WWE wrestler and Executive Vice President of Talent and Live Events, Triple H, denied the claim.^[13]

In August 2012, WWE dropped the FCW name, deactivated the titles, and began running all of its developmental events and operations under the "NXT Wrestling" banner. WWE had been using the NXT name for a television program featuring rookies from FCW competing to become WWE main roster wrestlers, though the "reality television" aspects of the show had been dropped earlier in 2012; WWE NXT now serves as the primary television program for the NXT Wrestling promotion.^[5]

Championships and accomplishments

Queen of FCW

The Queen of FCW title was a professional wrestling women's title contested for in the divas division of Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW). A crown was held by the title holder, rather than a championship belt that is primarily used in professional wrestling.

Florida Heavyweight Championship

The Florida Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling heavyweight championship contested for in their heavyweight division of Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW). It has since been retired in favor for the NXT Championship.

Florida Tag Team Championship

The Florida Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling tag team championship contested for in the tag team division of Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW). It has since been retired.

FCW Divas Championship

The FCW Divas Championship was a professional wrestling women's championship contested for in the divas division of Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW). It has since been retired.

FCW 15 Championship

FCW 15 Championship
Details
Promotion	Florida Championship Wrestling
Date established	January 13, 2011
Date retired	August 14, 2012
Statistics First champion(s) Seth Rollins Final champion(s) Brad Maddox Longest reign Seth Rollins (252 days) Shortest reign Brad Maddox (54 days) Oldest winner Damien Sandow (29 years, 50 days) Youngest winner Seth Rollins (24 years, 229 days) Heaviest champion Damien Sandow (252 lb (114 kg)) Lightest champion Seth Rollins (205 lb (93 kg))

The FCW Jack Brisco 15 Championship was a professional wrestling championship contested in 15 minute ironman matches. A medal was held by the title holder, rather than a championship belt that is primarily used in professional wrestling. It has since been retired.

No.	Champion	Reign	Date	Days held	Location	Event	Notes	Ref.
1	Seth Rollins	1	January 13, 2011	252	Tampa, Florida	FCW TV Tapings	Defeated Hunico in the finals of the 'FCW 15' Jack Brisco Classic Tournament.	[14]
2	Damien Sandow	1	September 22, 2011	113	Tampa, Florida	FCW TV Tapings		[15]
3	Richie Steamboat	1	January 13, 2012	160	Tampa, Florida	FCW TV Tapings	Richie Steamboat defeated Damien Sandow, winning the bout 2 falls to 1.
4	Brad Maddox	1	June 21, 2012	54	Tampa, Florida	Live event		[16]
—	Deactivated	—	August 14, 2012	—			Retired immediately when Florida Championship Wrestling was disbanded.

FCW Southern Heavyweight Championship

FCW Southern Heavyweight Championship
Details
Promotion	Florida Championship Wrestling
Date established	June 26, 2007
Date retired	March 22, 2008
Statistics First champion(s) Harry Smith Final champion(s) Jake Hager Most reigns All Champions (1 reign) Longest reign Harry Smith (112 days) Shortest reign Jake Hager (unification) Oldest winner TJ Wilson Youngest winner Harry Smith

The FCW Southern Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling heavyweight championship contested for in the heavyweight division of Florida Championship Wrestling. It has since been retired after being unified with the Florida Heavyweight Championship.

No.	Champion	Reigns	Date	Days held	Location	Event	Notes	Ref.
1	Harry Smith	1	June 26, 2007	112	Tampa, Florida	Live event	Won a 21-man battle royal to become the inaugural champion.	[17]
2	Afa Jr.	1	October 16, 2007	46	New Port Richey, FL	Live event	Declared winner when Smith could not make referee's ten count.	[17]
3	TJ Wilson	1	December 1, 2007	17	New Port Richey, FL	Live event	This was a ladder match.	[17]
4	Ted DiBiase Jr.	1	December 18, 2007	32	New Port Richey, FL	Live event		[17]
5	Heath Miller	1	January 19, 2008	63	New Port Richey, FL	Live event	Awarded title when partner Ted DiBiase, Jr. was unable to defend it due to injury.	[18]
6	Jake Hager	1	March 22, 2008	0	New Port Richey, FL	Live event	Florida Heavyweight Champion Jack Hager defeated Heath Miller in a unification match to unify the two championships.	[19]
—	Deactivated	—	March 22, 2008	—	New Port Richey, FL	Live event	Retired immediately after being unified with Florida Heavyweight Championship.	[19]

Notable FCW alumni

Alberto Del Rio

Dean Ambrose

Kofi Kingston

Sheamus

Wade Barrett

The following is a list of notable FCW alumni that have gone on to accomplished a name for themselves on the main roster of WWE. Wrestlers with a * at the end of their names are no longer with WWE.

Ring name	Real name
AJ Lee* (retired)	Brooks, AprilApril Brooks[20]
Aksana* (retired)	Raudonienė, ŽivilėŽivilė Raudonienė[21]
Alberto Del Rio*	Rodríguez, AlbertoAlberto Rodríguez[22]
Alex Riley*	Kiley Jr., KevinKevin Kiley Jr.[23]
Rusev (Raw)	Barnyashev, MiroslavMiroslav Barnyashev
Alicia Fox (Raw)	Crawford, VictoriaVictoria Crawford[24]
Cesaro (Raw)	Castagnoli, ClaudioClaudio Castagnoli[25]
Brad Maddox*	Klutzz, TylerTyler Klutzz[26]
Brie Bella (semi-retired)	Danielson, BriannaBrianna Danielson[27]
Brodus Clay*	Murdoch, GeorgeGeorge Murdoch[28]
Big E (Raw)	Ewen, EttoreEttore Ewen[29]
Camacho*	Fifita, TevitaTevita Fifita[30]
Cameron* (Raw)	Andrew, ArianeAriane Andrew[31]
Curt Hawkins (SmackDown)	Myers, BrianBrian Myers[32]
Curtis Axel (Raw)	Hennig, JosephJoseph Hennig[33]
Damien Sandow*	Haddad, AaronAaron Haddad[34]
Daniel Bryan (retired) (SmackDown)	Danielson, BryanBryan Danielson[35]
Darren Young (Raw)	Rosser III, FrederickFrederick Rosser III[36]
David Otunga (retired) (SmackDown)	Otunga Sr., DavidDavid Otunga Sr.[37]
Dean Ambrose (SmackDown)	Good, JonathanJonathan Good[38]
Dolph Ziggler (SmackDown)	Nemeth, NicholasNicholas Nemeth[39]
Drew McIntyre*	Galloway, AndrewAndrew Galloway[40]
Epico	Colón, OrlandoOrlando Colón[41]
Evan Bourne*	Korklan, MatthewMatthew Korklan[42]
Ezekiel Jackson*	Stephens, RycklonRycklon Stephens[43]
Eli Cottonwood*	Kipp Christianson
Fandango (SmackDown)	Hussey, CurtisCurtis Hussey[44]
Heath Slater (Smackdown)	Miller, HeathHeath Miller[45]
Hunico (Raw)	Arias, JorgeJorge Arias[46]
Jack Swagger (Smackdown)	Hager Jr., DonaldDonald Hager Jr.[47]
Jacob Novak*	NovakAndrew Molzhon
Jason Jordan (Smackdown)	Everhart, NathanNathan Everhart
Jey Uso (SmackDown)	Fatu, JoshuaJoshua Fatu[48]
Jimmy Uso (SmackDown)	Fatu, JonathanJonathan Fatu[49]
Jinder Mahal (Raw)	Dhesi, YuvrajYuvraj Dhesi[50]
Justin Gabriel*	Lloyd Jr., PaulPaul Lloyd Jr.[51]
Kaitlyn* (retired)	Bonin, CelesteCeleste Bonin[52]
Kofi Kingston (Raw)	Sarkodie-Mensah, KofiKofi Sarkodie-Mensah[53]
Michael Tarver*	Evans, TyroneTyrone Evans
Naomi (SmackDown)	Fatu, TrinityTrinity Fatu[54]
Natalya (SmackDown)	Neidhart, NatalieNatalie Neidhart[55]
Nikki Bella (SmackDown)	Garcia-Colace, StephanieStephanie Garcia-Colace[56]
Paige (Raw)	Jade-Bevis, SarayaSaraya Jade-Bevis[57]
Primo (Raw)	Colón, EdwinEdwin Colón[58]
Ricardo Rodriguez*	Rodríguez, JesúsJesús Rodríguez[59]
Richie Steamboat* (retired)	Blood Jr., RichardRichard Blood Jr.[60]
Roman Reigns (Raw)	Anoaʻi, LeatiLeati Anoaʻi[61]
Rosa Mendes	Roucka, MilenaMilena Roucka[62]
Ryback*	Reeves, RyanRyan Reeves[63]
Serena* (retired)	Serena Deeb
Seth Rollins (Raw)	Lopez, ColbyColby Lopez[64]
Sheamus (Raw)	Farrelly, StephenStephen Farrelly[65]
Summer Rae (Raw)	Danielle, MoinetMoinet Danielle
Tamina Snuka	Snuka-Polamalu, SaronaSarona Snuka-Polamalu[66]
Ted DiBiase* (retired)	Theodore DiBiase Jr., Theodore DiBiase Jr.[67]
Titus O'Neil (Raw)	Bullard Sr., ThaddeusThaddeus Bullard Sr.[68]
Tiffany* (retired)	Terrell, TarynTaryn Terrell
Tyler Reks*	Tuft, GabrielGabriel Tuft[69]
Tyler Breeze (SmackDown)	Clement, MattiasMattias Clement
Tyson Kidd	Wilson, TheodoreTheodore Wilson[70]
Wade Barrett*	Bennett, StuartStuart Bennett[71]
Yoshi Tatsu*	Yamamoto, NaofumiNaofumi Yamamoto[72]

See also

• WWE, parent company.
• WWE NXT, the developmental promotion that replaced Florida Championship Wrestling; now currently a developmental branch within WWE called NXT.

References

1. "Florida Championship Wrestling unveils new arena in Tampa, Fla.". WWE. July 7, 2008. Retrieved July 8, 2008. From the birth of the promotion in the 1960s, until 1987, "Florida Championship Wrestling" was regarded as one of the premier wrestling territories in the country...Florida Championship Wrestling is now an official developmental territory of World Wrestling Entertainment. FCW and the WWE are proud to bring back Florida Championship Wrestling.
2. "About page". Florida Championship Wrestling. Archived from the original on October 13, 2007. Retrieved October 24, 2007.
3. "WWE Ceases affiliation with Ohio Valley Wrestling". WWE. February 6, 2008. Retrieved February 6, 2008.
4. "About Us". Florida Championship Wrestling. Archived from the original on August 5, 2012. Retrieved April 11, 2011.
5. "WWE News: FCW name being phased out". Wrestling Observer. Retrieved August 14, 2012.
6. Fox, Geoff (September 8, 2007). "Area Wrestling Will Continue Under A New State Banner". The Tampa Tribune. Retrieved October 24, 2007.
7. "WWE ends relationship with DSW". WWE. Retrieved October 24, 2007.
8. "FCW 2007 results". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved October 24, 2007.
9. Wojcik, Alan J. "Results from Florida on 2/5". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved April 6, 2008.
10. Wojcik, Alan J. "Results from Tampa on 2/15". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved April 6, 2008.
11. Wojcik, Alan J. "Results from Florida on 2/23". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved April 6, 2008.
12. "FCW Southern Heavyweight Title". Wrestling-Titles. Retrieved April 6, 2008.
13. Gray, Richard. "Breaking News – Steve Keirn Says There Is "No Truth" To FCW Shutting Down Rumor". Wrestling World News. Retrieved March 20, 2012.
14. "Superstar of the Week: Seth Rollins". fcwwrestling.com. Archived from the original on February 6, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
15. Alvarez, Bryan (September 23, 2011). "Fri update: WWE survey on moving Mania to WWE Network, another wacky WWE show, Jones vs. Rampage odds, win a call from Jay Briscoe, new TNA girl identified, ROH affiliate list for this weekend's TV, full weekend schedule, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved September 23, 2011.
16. Maddox is the new FCW 15 Champion
17. "FCW 2007 results". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved October 24, 2007.
18. "FCW 2008 results". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved February 17, 2008.
19. "March 22, 2008 FCW results". fcwwrestling.com. Retrieved March 24, 2008.
20. "April Jeanette". IMDB. Retrieved 2011-03-21.
21. "Živilė Raudonienė". Genickbruch.com. Retrieved 2010-03-21.
22. "Alberto Rodríguez". Gerweck.net. Retrieved 2010-10-04.
23. "Kevin Kiley". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
24. "Victoria Crawford". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
25. "Antonio Cesaro". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
26. "Brad Maddox". Gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
27. "Brie Bella". Gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
28. "George Murdoch". Gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
29. "Big E. Langston". Gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
30. "Camacho". Gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
31. "Ariane Andrew". Genickbruch.com. Retrieved 2012-05-07.
32. "Bryan Myers". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
33. "Joseph Hennig". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
34. "Aaron Haddad". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
35. "Bryan Danielson". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
36. "Darren Young". Gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
37. "David Otunga". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
38. "Jon Moxley". Gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
39. "Nicholas Nemeth". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
40. "Drew Galloway". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
41. "Orlando Colón". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
42. "Matthew Korklan". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
43. "Ryklon Stephens". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
44. "Fandango". Gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
45. "Heath Miller". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
46. "Jorge Arias". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
47. "Jacob Hager". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
48. "Joshua Fatu". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
49. "Jonathon Fatu". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
50. "Yuvraj Dhesi". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
51. "Paul Lloyd, Jr.". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
52. "Celeste Bonin". Gerweck.net. Retrieved 2010-09-09.
53. "Kofi Sarkodie-Mensah". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
54. "Trinity McCray". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2010-03-21.
55. "Natalie Neidhart". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
56. "Nikki Bella". Gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
57. {{cite web|url=http://www.gerweck.net/2014/19/4/paige-colon/|title=Saraya|Jade-Bevis| publisher=gerweck.net|accessdate=2014-04-21}}
58. "Edwin Colón". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
59. "Jesús Rodríguez". Genickbruch.com. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
60. "Richard Blood Jr". Onlineworldofwrestling.com. Retrieved 2015-03-16.
61. "Leati Anoa'i". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
62. "Milena Roucka". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
63. "Ryan Reeves". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
64. "Tyler Black". Gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
65. "Stephen Farrelly". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
66. "Sarona Reiher". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
67. "Theodore DiBiase, Jr.". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
68. "Thaddeus Bullard". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
69. "Gabriel Tuft". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
70. "Theodore Wilson". Gerweck.net. Retrieved 2012-04-27.
71. "Stuart Bennett". Gerweck.net. Retrieved 2012-03-21.
72. "Naofumi Yamamoto". gerweck.net. Retrieved 2013-06-26.

External links

• NXT subpage on WWE.com