World Boxing Organization (as they did with several established champions in the lower weight divisions), the WBO sanctioned a fight between two relatively unknown fighters, Francesco Damiani (winner of the super heavyweight silver medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics) and Johnny DuPlooy, to determine the inaugural holder of its own heavyweight title in 1989. All other sanctioning bodies of boxing recognized the then-undefeated Mike Tyson as the undisputed heavyweight champion. Damiani, meanwhile, went on to become the first WBO heavyweight champion. At heavyweight, especially in the United States, the organization initially struggled to gain credibility as a major sanctioning body, with WBO heavyweight
NWA World Heavyweight Championship and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA, now Impact Wrestling). With many territorial promotions appearing across the United States, the NWA was formed in 1948 as an overall governing wrestling body. Like franchises, these territories had the option of NWA membership. The promotion owners had to recognize the NWA Heavyweight, Junior Heavyweight, and Light Heavyweight Champions as world champions while retaining their own ownership and top champion. Ric Flair holds the record for the most reigns with nine. The current champion is Nick Aldis, who is in his second reign. Every year, the NWA World Heavyweight Champion would travel to each