The Deep South Heavyweight Championship was the primary championship in Deep South Wrestling, a former developmental territory of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). When the title was first introduced, it was awarded to Mike Mizanin, who won a tournament to become the initial champion. The title was vacated on April 18, 2007 when WWE ceased using DSW as a developmental territory. On July 12, 2007, a tournament was held to crown a new champion, which was won by Austin Creed.
Creation
The title was first awarded to the winner of an 8-Man Single Elimination Tournament, held over a 2-week period with the first round matches being held November 23, 2005, and the semi-final and final matches on December 1.
| First Round | Semifinals | Final | |||||||||||
| Mike Mizanin | |||||||||||||
| Eric Perez | |||||||||||||
| Mike Mizanin | |||||||||||||
| Kid Kash† | |||||||||||||
| Mac Daddy Johnson | |||||||||||||
| "Silverback" Ryan Reeves | |||||||||||||
| Mike Mizanin | |||||||||||||
| Mike Knox | |||||||||||||
| Mike Knox | |||||||||||||
| Mike Taylor | |||||||||||||
| Mike Knox | |||||||||||||
| Tony Santorelli | |||||||||||||
| Tony Santorelli | |||||||||||||
| Palmer Cannon | |||||||||||||
After WWE
The title was "held-up" after the agreement between WWE and DSW ended in March 2007, and another tournament was held in on July 12 to crown the new champion.
| First Round | Semifinals | Final | |||||||||||
| Austin Creed | |||||||||||||
| Simon Sermon | |||||||||||||
| Austin Creed | |||||||||||||
| Alexander the Great | |||||||||||||
| Alexander the Great | |||||||||||||
| Salvatore Rinauro† | |||||||||||||
| Austin Creed | |||||||||||||
| Murder One | |||||||||||||
| Murder One | |||||||||||||
| J-Rod | |||||||||||||
| Murder One | |||||||||||||
| Rick Michaels | |||||||||||||
| Rick Michaels | |||||||||||||
| Pretty Boy Floyd | |||||||||||||
↑Alexander the Great defeated Salvatore Rinauro by Coin Toss
Title history
| Wrestler: | Times: | Date: | Location: | Notes: |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deep South Heavyweight Championship | ||||
| Tommy Rich | 1 | February 12, 1986 | Marietta, Georgia | Wins tournament to become the first champion |
| Flame | 1 | July 4, 1986 | Albany, Georgia | |
| Mr. Wrestling II | 1 | September 25, 1986 | Carrollton, Georgia | |
| Flame | 2 | November 9, 1986 | Athens, Georgia | |
| Ranger Ross | 1 | January 25, 1987 | Athens, Georgia | |
| Botswana Beast | 1 | March 1, 1987 | Rome, Georgia | |
| Tommy Rich | 2 | May 27, 1987 | Marietta, Georgia | |
| Randy Rose | 1 | July 1, 1987 | Columbia County, Georgia | |
| Assassin #1 (formerly Flame) | 1(3) | June 6, 1988 | Atlanta, Georgia | The final champion |
| Title vacated when the promotion closed Oct. 1988 | ||||
| DSW Heavyweight Championship | ||||
| Mike Mizanin | 1 | December 1, 2005 | McDonough, Georgia | Defeated Mike Knox in a tournament final when the promotion reopens as a talent developmental league of WWE |
| Derek Neikirk | 1 | December 22, 2005 | McDonough, Georgia | |
| Roughhouse O'Reilly | 1 | June 22, 2006 | McDonough, Georgia | |
| Bradley Jay | 1 | September 7, 2006 | McDonough, Georgia | |
| Vito | 1 | January 25, 2007 | McDonough, Georgia | Defeated Bradley Jay and Roughhouse O'Reilly in a three-way round robin match |
| Bradley Jay | 2 | February 22, 2007 | McDonough, Georgia | |
| Roughhouse O'Reilly | 2 | March 1, 2007 | McDonough, Georgia | |
| Bradley Jay | 3 | March 8, 2007 | McDonough, Georgia | Title held-up after a match with Roughhouse O'Reilly when the agreement between WWE and DSW ends |
| Austin Creed | 1 | July 12, 2007 | Locust Grove, Georgia | Defeated Murder One in tournament final; final champion when DSW closes down |
References