Joint Venture
Jerry Lawler, Jerry Jarrett (later one of the promoters behind Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ), Verne Gagne of the AWA, the Continental Wrestling Association (CWA), Ole Anderson of GCW, Jim Crockett Promotions, and other NWA promoters got together to co-promote wrestling shows nationally. This joint venture became known as Pro Wrestling USA.
This loose alliance of promoters from across America was to serve as a national federation. Pro Wrestling USA shows could boast, for example, an AWA and NWA World Title match on the same card.
While, at the behest of Jerry Lawler and Jerry Jarrett, the first show took place in Memphis, Tennessee, Pro Wrestling USA shows were promoted across the member's territories. Further, many Pro Wrestling USA shows were taped in East Rutherford, New Jersey, in the heart of the former WWF territory. This was a serious attempt to undermine the WWF, in its home turf, at a moment of financial weakness.
The peak of Pro Wrestling USA came at SuperClash, in Chicago. Over 21,000 people filed into Comiskey Park on September 28, 1985. The card for the show was headlined by Ric Flair vs. Magnum T.A. for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, and Rick Martel vs. Stan Hansen for the AWA World Heavyweight Championship.
The arrangement, however, would only remain in existence for a few more months, as arguments between promoters, primarily Gagne and Crockett, severed the ties. Crockett opted to leave the group, and within months, the Pro Wrestling USA shows were simply repackaged AWA programs.
Read more about this topic: Pro Wrestling USA
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