10 Things You Didn't Know About The NWA World Heavyweight Championship
7. Ron 'R-Truth' Killings Was The First African American Champion
54 years.
It took 54 years for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship to land in the lap of an African American, and the atypically progressive early-days TNA to make an unpleasantly difficult dream a reality.
The National Wrestling Alliance could have covered themselves in a little more glory half a decade earlier but elected not to. Bobo Brazil had defeated Buddy Rogers, but the committee refused to acknowledge the change. Rogers had allegedly sustained an injury in the match that voided Bobo's victory, but in a nation still rapt in segregation was reflected on the NWA's top table too. Doctors judged Rogers to be fighting fit after the fact, but by then the damage to Brazil's credibility was done and any further attempts at the title were vetoed.
Ron 'The Truth' Killings' two reigns with the title weren't ever particularly promoted as a huge step forward, but TNA were missing a trick. Somewhat in spite of themselves, they were gradually righting some of wrestling's racist wrongs.