American Wrestling Association

American Wrestling Association was a professional wrestling organization, based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The AWA operated mainly in the midwestern United States and central Canada. Wrestling bouts were promoted in Minneapolis, St. Paul, Bloomington (Minnesota), Winnipeg, Chicago, Omaha, Milwaukee, Denver, Las Vegas, and San Francisco. From 1957 to 1991 it was owned by Verne Gagne.

History

Until the 1980s, the AWA was considered one of the top wrestling companies in the world. Verne Gagne had been its biggest star even before he took control of the company, and his position at the top only solidified with him as owner. Feuding against Gene Kiniski, Dr. Bill Miller, Fritz Von Erich, Dr. X (Dick Beyer under a mask), The Crusher, Ray Stevens and Nick Bockwinkel, he won the AWA World Heavyweight Championship 10 times before retiring from in-ring competition in 1981. Gagne was a former amateur-wrestling champion who had earned a spot on the U.S. team at the 1948 Summer Olympics, and he ran the AWA with a traditionalist sensibility, firmly believing that good wrestling, not flashy entertainment, should be the basis of a pro-wrestling company. When his career wound down, he turned the company's focus to Bockwinkel, also a skilled mat technician.

Related Topics:
Gene Kiniski - Fritz Von Erich - The Crusher - Ray Stevens - Nick Bockwinkel - AWA World Heavyweight Championship - 1948 Summer Olympics

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But as Vince McMahon and the northeastern-based World Wrestling Federation attempted to end pro wrestling's regional era and establish the WWF as the dominant national promotion, Gagne made several decisions that caused the AWA to lose momentum in the emerging wrestling war. Among them was overemphasizing his son Greg in AWA storylines, but his biggest misstep was his failure to make Hulk Hogan the focus of his company. Starting in 1982, Hogan rapidly caught on as a babyface with AWA fans, but even as his popularity grew to unprecedented levels, Gagne refused to give him the AWA championship. He recognized Hogan's showmanship and charisma but believed a wrestling company should be built around the best wrestler in the company, such as himself and Bockwinkel. Gagne did not respect Hogan as a pure wrestler, and in an interview years later, rated his wrestling ability as "a one or a zero" on a scale of one to 10. On two occasions, the AWA went so far as to tease title wins for Hogan only to strip him of the championship.

Related Topics:
Vince McMahon - World Wrestling Federation - Greg - Hulk Hogan - Babyface

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Frustrated, Hogan accepted McMahon's offer to go to the WWF. Within months, he had become the focus of the company and its dominant world champion. He and the WWF soon became mainstream media phenomena and virtually synonymous with professional wrestling in much of the country, leaving the AWA a second-tier promotion. As the situation worsened, much of the AWA's other top talent, including announcer "Mean" Gene Okerlund, manager Bobby "The Brain" Heenan, and wrestlers Curt Hennig, Rick Martel and Shawn Michaels, also left for the WWF.

Related Topics:
Gene Okerlund - Bobby "The Brain" Heenan - Curt Hennig - Rick Martel - Shawn Michaels

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The AWA was influential in Pro Wrestling USA, an attempt to co-promote with the NWA and establish a national presence to compete against the WWF, in 1985. Abroad it had working agreements with Japan-based promotions International Pro-Wrestling (1969 to 1980), then All Japan Pro Wrestling (1980 to 1988), and, near its end, New Japan Pro Wrestling.

Related Topics:
Pro Wrestling USA - NWA - WWF - 1985 - International Pro-Wrestling - All Japan Pro Wrestling - New Japan Pro Wrestling

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Currently, all copyrights and footage for the AWA are owned by the former WWF, now known as World Wrestling Entertainment.

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AWA Superstars of Wrestling

The AWA was restarted in 1996 under the ownership of Dale Gagner with new owners as an independent promotion called AWA Superstars of Wrestling. On April 4, 2005, the owners changed its history books and named Hulk Hogan a two time AWA World Heavyweight Champion.

Related Topics:
1996 - April 4 - 2005

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