The world of MLW certainly never stopped changing over the course of the last year, but one man that has been a constant is none other than Alexander Hammerstone.
It’s been a full calendar year since “Your Boy Hammer” became the first ever National Openweight Champion and matters have stayed that way since.The Champ celebrated his one-year anniversary this past Monday and not only does that make him the current longest-reigning title holder in the league, but the longest reigning title holder in league history.
Hammerstone took on Brian Pillman Jr. on June 1, 2019 at Fury Road to determine the inaugural Openweight Champion and it actually ended up being a bout that didn’t get to go down due to the wild flight situation Hammer had to power through. His flight from Phoenix to Milwaukee just kept getting delayed and delayed until the final witching hour hit. The delays cut it so close to bell time that he even had his gear on while soaring through the sky to Wisconsin.
“I didn’t even get to do a jumping jack,” said Hammer who immediately went right through the ropes when he arrived. “It was a wild night. It’s funny cause after I won, people were like, ‘Oh, you’re here? When are you up?’ And I’m like, I just wrestled! So yeah, it was quite the experience but you know, in retrospect, you know I am glad because it’s just one of those cool moments where you gotta go like, ‘Man, everything was against me, but I still had one helluva of a match. I had one helluva night and it just makes the story that much more fun.”
Since then, this title reign has been no cakewalk for Hammerstone as he’s had his fair share of diverse talent and adversaries gunning for the belt that is open to all. Hammer does make note of when he really felt like he hit his stride as champion.
“I think really Japan was that catalyst. It was just such a shift of worlds, a shift of style, a real jump in competition level. When I came home from that trip, I was like, ‘Alright, bring on the world,” he said. “After I came back from that, I really felt I was ready to go with anybody.”
And that he did. From MLW stalwarts like Davey Boy Smith Jr. to hard-hitting up-and-comers, to competitors literally from all around the globe came hard and fast at The Meat Castle to begin their very own run as Champion. Hammer, however, has made sure Muscle Mountain has been way too steep to climb for any challenger no matter which fighting style they bring to the ring. He’s vanquished the likes of OWE’s T-Hawk, NOAH’s Naomichi Marafuji & AAA’s Laredo Kid in successful title defenses and isn’t aiming to lose the belt anytime soon.
Another constant for MLW has been Hammerstone’s presence in the World Title rankings almost always at the very top and that belt around Jacob Fatu’s waist hasn’t escaped his mind whatsoever.
“I still have a lot of goals. If you haven’t noticed someone has that World Heavyweight Championship and it ain’t me and that just don’t sit right.”
