The Heartland Wrestling Association (HWA) was a Midwestern independent professional wrestling promotion based in Cincinnati, Ohio. A former developmental territory for World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation during the 1990s and 2000s, it was listed as one of the top independent promotions in the United States by The Professional Wrestlers' Workout & Instructional Guide by Harley Race, Ricky Steamboat, and Les Thatcher in 2005.[1]
History
The Heartland Wrestling Association was started in 1996 by Les Thatcher and Brady Laber, in association with his wrestling school Main Event Pro Wrestling Camp, and held the first annual Brian Pillman Memorial Show in 1998.[2]
The promotion served as the developmental territory for both World Championship Wrestling (WCW) (during the 1990s) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) (from 2001–2002), with alumni including wrestlers such as