WWE has a rich history of championships that have defined the careers of countless Superstars. Understanding the first-ever champions of these prestigious titles provides insight into the legacy of professional wrestling.
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is the most prestigious title in WWE, first awarded to Buddy Rogers on April 25, 1963. Rogers defeated Antonino Rocca in a tournament final to become the inaugural champion, which at the time was called the WWWF Championship (although the lineage continues to the modern day WWE title).
This title has been held by legends such as Bruno Sammartino, Hulk Hogan, and “Stone Cold Steve Austin, who have each left an indelible mark on wrestling history.
Intercontinental Championship
Established in 1979, the Intercontinental Championship was first worn by Pat Patterson. This title has been synonymous with excellence, often regarded as a stepping stone to the WWE Championship.
Over the years, it has been held by iconic wrestlers like The Rock, Shawn Michaels, and Bret Hart, showcasing their skills and elevating their careers.
United States Championship
The United States Championship was introduced on January 1, 1975, with Harley Race as its first champion. Originally part of Jim Crockett Promotions as the NWA United States Heavyweight Championship, this title transitioned to WWE following its acquisition of WCW in 2001.
The championship has witnessed numerous memorable reigns and is currently a key title defended on SmackDown.
World Tag Team Championship
The World Tag Team Championship, created in 1971, has seen many legendary teams compete for glory. The inaugural champions were Crazy Luke Graham and Tarzan Tyler, who defeated Dick the Bruiser and The Sheik on June 3, 1971.
This title has evolved over time, with various teams like Edge & Christian, The Hardy Boyz and The Dudley Boyz making significant impacts in tag team wrestling history.
WWE Women’s Championship (1956–2010)
The first-ever Women’s Champion in WWE history was The Fabulous Moolah, who won the title on September 18, 1956. The company claims a lineage that dates back to that date, when The Fabulous Moolah became the third NWA World Women’s Champion.
Moolah held the championship for an impressive 28 years (as WWE does not recognise certain losses she had, although the NWA does) making her reign one of the longest in professional wrestling history. She was a trailblazer for women’s wrestling, competing against various opponents and helping to elevate the status of female wrestlers in the industry.
Divas Championship
The Divas Championship was introduced on July 6, 2008, with Michelle McCool as its inaugural champion. This title represented a significant shift in women’s wrestling, with the company supposedly focusing on showcasing female talent in WWE from that point on.
The Divas Championship was retired in favor of a renewed emphasis on women’s wrestling with the reintroduction of the Women’s Championship in 2016.
SmackDown Women’s Championship
The SmackDown Women’s Championship was introduced on September 11, 2016, with Becky Lynch as its first champion. This title has allowed female Superstars on SmackDown to showcase their talents and compete for championship glory.
Raw Women’s Championship
Similarly, the Raw Women’s Championship was also introduced in 2016 alongside the SmackDown title. The inaugural champion was Charlotte Flair, who won the title at WrestleMania 32. Both titles represent WWE’s commitment to promoting women’s wrestling and providing equal opportunities for female competitors.
WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions
The inaugural WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions were Bayley and Sasha Banks, known as The Boss ‘n’ Hug Connection. They won the titles on February 17, 2019, during a tag team Elimination Chamber match at the Elimination Chamber event.
This match featured several high-profile teams at the time, including Nia Jax and Tamina, and The IIconics.
US Women’s Championship
Chelsea Green became the inaugural US Women’s Champion at Saturday Night’s Main Event on December 14th 2024, defeating Michin.
The WWE Championship belts could be getting a redesign under the new regime.
According to a new report from Dan Beltzer, the word going around is that Triple H is making “numerous” belt design changes. Mr. Beltzer is a very well-known belt maker for professional wrestling companies.
He’s also a collector with a track record of breaking stories related to titles. Some of his past clients include big names such as WWE, 2K Sports, New Japan Pro Wrestling, NWA, The New York Yankees, AEW, and many more.
The report did not specify which titles could be getting redesigned.
Rumor mill says Triple H making numerous belt design changes.
It should be noted that WWE has seemingly been attempting to restore the prestige to their secondary titles such as the Intercontinental and United States Titles in recent weeks. A redesign of the actual titles themselves could certainly be a part of that plan.
WWE United States Championship
Currently, the United States Championship on Monday Night RAW is held by “The Almighty” Bobby Lashley. Also, over on SmackDown Live, Gunther continues to reign as the Intercontinental Champion, as he continues to make waves since jumping up from NXT.
It will be interesting to see if WWE decides to completely redesign the titles yet again as we seemingly enter a new chapter of the company’s journey.
Cleveland Cavaliers player Kevin Love celebrated the Calvs’ NBA Championship win in the best possible way on Sunday night – by chugging beers while rocking the iconic Austin 3:16 t-shirt.
LeBron James took a clever dig at the Golden State Warriors by rocking an Ultimate Warrior t-shirt on the Calvs’ flight back to Cleveland to celebrate with the NBA Championship trophy:
As WWE does with most pro sports championship teams, the company has gifted the Cleveland Cavaliers a customized WWE World Heavyweight Championship belt for winning their first NBA Championship:
– The official WWE website has a new feature called “The Esteemed History of WWE Champions,” which looks at the incredible lineage of the WWE Championship. You can check that out at WWE.com.
– WWE.com also has a new feature looking at the longest reigning WWE Tag-Team Champions in history. The article looks at the top ten longest reigns and you can check it out at this link.
As we mentioned last month, WWE recently placed a big order for all new championship belts, with multiple versions of each belt (for television, live events, photo shoots, etc.).
With WWE unifying the WWE Championship and World Heavyweight Championship belts back in December and the World Heavyweight title being phased out, a lot of fans were hoping that the new WWE Championship belt would be more than just an updated version of the current belt with the new WWE logo. However, it looks like that’s exactly what we’re getting.
The following photo is circulating online featuring Triple H holding a new version of the WWE Championship belt with the new WWE logo:
The WWE’s brightest stars will attempt to cash in at this Sunday’s Money in the Bank pay-per-view. Two ladder matches will main event the program, with one being held to declare a new WWE World Heavyweight Champion. In addition, former champion Daniel Bryan will address the WWE Universe during the pre-show.
Here are my predictions for this Sunday’s event.
Summer Rae vs. Layla (Fandango Guest Referee)
I was never the biggest Fandango supporter, but I definitely thought he would be doing something bigger than referring a divas match a year ago. He has regressed over the past year and lost a lot of momentum. This will likely be the bathroom break match of the night, and Fandango will play a major role in the outcome, of course. Summer Rae will win this one by either rejoining Fandango or using him to influence the outcome of the contest before abandoning him.
Winner: Summer Rae by pinfall
Rusev vs. Big E
These guys performed well together at last month’s Payback, even though they were given less than four minutes total. They will hopefully get a little more time during this one, allowing both superstars to showcase their strengths.
I think Rusev will ultimately win this one, but Big E will also look strong during the match. Big E cut a passionate promo on last week’s Raw, so it appears the WWE wants to showcase him a bit more. Both guys will look good, but Rusev will force Big E to tap out in the end.
Winner: Rusev by submission
Stardust and Goldust vs. Ryback and Curtis Axel
The Rhodes Brothers storyline has been moving slowly over the past few months. It first looked as if the two brothers were going to feud with one another, with Cody searching for an adequate replacement because he felt Goldust deserved better.
He eventually rebranded himself as Stardust and the two have been on a winning streak ever since. They will continue to look strong on Sunday, picking up the win after Cody hits his Diamond Dust finisher on Curtis Axel.
The Yes! Movement received the worst possible news this week on Raw, as their unlikely hero announced that he will require neck surgery this Thursday and will be out of action for an indefinite amount of time.
Early reports indicate that Bryan has a broken neck and will be out for at least one to two months, with his possible returning coming at SummerSlam. This is terrible news for Bryan, who after a long journey finally captured the WWE Championship at WrestleMania.
It appears that he also will not be appearing on television in any capacity for at least a few weeks, as the attack later in the show by Kane was likely a way to write Bryan off of television while he recovers from surgery at home. This leads one to wonder about the future of the WWE Championship, and also if Bryan can maintain momentum while missing at least a month of time.
After finally overcoming the Authority at WrestleMania, Daniel Bryan will miss significant time due to injury.
As of now, it is being reported that Bryan will not be stripped of the title. This could of course change at any moment, especially if the product becomes stale during his absence. If Bryan ends up missing the maximum amount of time, that seems like a very long time to go with essentially no champion.
In my opinion, if it is determined that Bryan will miss any more than one month, the Authority should strip him of the title. This could serve a few purposes. First, it would keep momentum strong by having the Authority still trying to hold Bryan down, especially with Stephanie McMahon being the storyline reason Bryan was injured in the first place after unleashing the demon Kane.
Second, it could allow for someone else to receive a push in Bryan’s absence. Imagine if a tournament were held for the WWE Championship similar to the one just held for an Intercontinental Title match. It could allow for a fresh face to hold the championship for a while and create interesting television over the next few weeks by having qualifying matches on Raw, with the championship match being held at Money in the Bank.
This Sunday, the WWE will hold its annual Extreme Rules pay-per-view. However, upon glancing at the card, something immediately stands out: a noticeable lack of extreme.
With the card seemingly set (assuming a Tag Team Championship match between the Usos and Rybaxel isn’t added last minute), only two matches on the entire seven-match card feature stipulations that are even slightly extreme (not counting the inevitable dud between El Torito and Hornswoggle on the pre-show).
Sunday’s contest between Daniel Bryan and Kane is one of only two matches on the card featuring extreme rules.
Those matches are of course the WWE Championship match between Daniel Bryan and Kane, which will be fought under no-holds barred rules, and the cage match between John Cena and Bray Wyatt. Even the six-man tag between Evolution and the Shield has not been announced as an extreme rules match, although that could change between now and Sunday.
This Sunday’s card highlights the problem with holding themed pay-per-views. How can the company possibly market an event under the name Extreme Rules and then hold one match that is actually extreme (the WWE Title contest) and one (the cage match) that is billed as extreme, but is in fact usually tamer than the pit at a Justin Bieber concert.
It is especially difficult during the PG Era to hold an event such as this one, as most of the matches that could have been utilized (first blood match, inferno match, casket match, etc.) are now essentially banned, leaving creative with few options other than a typical no-holds barred match and TLC type matches that are already featured on other pay-per-views throughout the year. In short, the event does not offer anything unique.
At first glance, Alexander Rusev seems like a rehash of a character WWE fans have seen countless times: the monster foreign superstar who feasts on unworthy foes while being accompanied by a manager who serves as his mouthpiece.
Some have contended that the character is so unoriginal that it was completely lifted from a Rocky movie of all places, as he has drawn comparisons to Rocky IV villain Ivan Drago and his wife Ludmilla.
Despite the fact that many believe he is a recycled, cliché character, Rusev has managed to make his way through the WWE’s NXT division and to the main roster in a relatively short amount of time.
Rusev has been booked as a monster, but do fans actually view him as one?
Since making his debut on the main roster, Rusev made a brief appearance in this year’s Royal Rumble and has been feasting on jobbers ever since. Unlike some of his critics, I believe that Rusev can be successful at the main level, but only if he is booked differently from similar heels in the past.
In recent years, the WWE has chosen to rely upon the tried-and-true formula of debuting a monster heel and serving him a hearty portion of heels (see Ryback for example). They expect that if the heel is shoved down fans’ throats long enough by competing in squash matches, they will eventually realize his dominance and he will be over in no time.
It appears they are attempting to take the same course of action with Rusev, as he has competed against only jobbers and will face R-Truth and Xavier Woods in a handicap match at Extreme Rules. Hell, they even threw Rusev into the coalition of jobbers that worked to beat down the Shield during the 11-on-3 handicap match a few weeks back on Raw.
When the Shield debuted over a year ago, Roman Reigns was like the shadowy muscle of the group. He was the least featured member of the trio. He was given few lines during their promos. Yet he was always there to deliver a devastating spear or triple powerbomb when needed.
With the rich indy wrestling history of both Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose, it is no surprise that they were expected to carry most of the load during the early days of the stable. After all, Roman Reigns was a former football player and started wrestling in 2010, whereas both Ambrose and Rollins had been wrestling since the early 2000’s.
Reigns does have a rich family history though, as he is a member of the famous Anoa’i family that includes past superstars such as Yokozuna, Rikishi, and The Rock, so it is not like he was a complete stranger to the world of wrestling.
After his dominating performance at last year’s Survivor Series, it seemed obvious that there were big plans for Roman Reigns.
A little over a year ago, it appeared that Dean Ambrose was the member being groomed for a breakout solo career. He was considered the de facto of the group and is the only member of the group to win a solo title while Rollins and Reigns shared the Tag Team Championships.
Something changed last fall, however, and it appeared that Reigns was the one gaining momentum in the Shield after Ambrose seemed enter a lull. Coincidentally enough, it was as soon as Rollins and Reigns lost their championships that his push began. The first hint that he was going to be a breakout star was at last year’s Survivor Series, where he was the sole survivor and dominated the competition, eliminating four opponents during the contest.
Reigns later eliminated the most competitors in Royal Rumble history during the 2014 contest and he has not looked back since. With the Shield now entering into a program with the newly reformed Evolution, there are reports that the ultimate goal of the feud is to set up a matchup between Triple H and Roman Reigns at this year’s SummerSlam. The reports make one wonder: is Roman Reigns ready for a massive solo push?
The Big Red Monster is back, and it appears he is on a collision course with Daniel Bryan. After reclaiming his mask last week on Raw, Kane vowed to take care of the WWE Champion and send him to the depths of hell.
In true WWE storytelling fashion, they had a Kane video package queued up and ready to go about five minutes later, leading me to believe that he will be featured prominently in the storyline in the coming weeks.
With Evolution set to take on the Shield at Extreme Rules and seemingly no other contenders in line, it appears that Daniel Bryan’s first pay-per-view title defense will be against his former tag team partner.
Kane has temporarily retired his suit in favor of his signature mask in an attempt to exact revenge.
The thought of Kane headlining a pay-per-view in 2014 and competing for the WWE Championship could leave some fans scratching their heads, but I believe it could work well if planned appropriately. With other storylines, particularly the Shield/Evolution program, eating up a good portion of the main event roster, creative was left with few options for Bryan’s matchup at Extreme Rules.
Randy Orton still holds a rematch clause but is fighting with Evolution, not to mention that Orton/Bryan headlined three pay-per-views last year and most fans would like something fresh. I think Brock Lesnar is being built up to eventually challenge Bryan for the title, but it would be too soon and neither superstar could afford a loss immediately following WrestleMania. Lesnar needs to continue winning to validate his win against the Undertaker and Bryan cannot lose the title just one month after finally winning it. A no contest would also leave the crowd unsatisfied with the outcome.
Therefore, I think Bryan and Lesnar will both be built up over the coming months to set up a blockbuster showdown at SummerSlam. Bryan’s first victim will almost assuredly be Kane. It is no secret that Kane is past his prime, but he can still put on a decent match if paired with the right opponent.
At the very least, the two have been involved with one another in the storyline over the past several months and creative can rely on that to tell a decent story. It certainly works a little better than randomly choosing someone like Sheamus or Alberto Del Rio to challenge for the title.
Back on November 14th, WWE CEO & Chairman Vince McMahon said that he’d be sending replica WWE Championship belts to this year’s MLB Cy Young Award winners. He tweeted:
AL Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer and NL Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw tweeted the following photos, showing that Vince came through on his promise:
Daniel Bryan, winning three Slammy Awards competing in a match, appearing in the Championship Ascension Ceremony, was without question the star of the show. His hometown crowd chanting YES! YES! YES! and DANIEL BRYAN! throughout the beginning of the Championship Ascension Ceremony. Going back earlier in the night to his first Slammy win for Superstar Of The Year. On stage The Heartbreak Kid Shawn Michaels. He announces the Superstar of the year is Daniel Bryan. We were all expecting fireworks to occur during that interaction. HBK even exited stage right a perfect set-up for a “surprise” superkick from out of nowhere! But there was no Sweet Chin Music. Just a humble acceptance speech by Bryan for his Slammy Award which he refereed to as The “HB Swizzle” award, Michaels naming it that just before presenting the award. Bryan did mention if it wasn’t for Shawn he wouldn’t be in the WWE. Likewise if it wasn’t for his interference at Hell-In-A-Cell he would be the WWE Champion. Although there was no physical interaction here, that wouldn’t be the last time these two interacted on the show.
See this is why I can’t shake off fighting the Daniel Bryan cause, he belongs in the main event. Heck this article uses his YES! and NO! and lord help us all if Daniel Bryan ever appears in a “NO!” portion of this article. Some people might say, he was in his hometown and had an extra kick of support. There may be a bit of truth to that, but I feel that there are just some hot wrestling towns. Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, and apparently Seattle. After what transpired later in the show who knows what will happen the next few months. I’m excited! YES!
Championship Ascension Ceremony
John Cena showing why he is in fact the face of WWE.
Former World Heavyweight and WWE Champions appeared all in the ring for the Championship Ascension Ceremony. As I said earlier the crowd was going crazy for Daniel Bryan. While Triple H was talking up the match, and the championship, the Seattle crowd chanted YES and Daniel Bryan to the point where Triple H gave them what seemed like at least a minute of chanting and Yessing and clapping. This crowd was on fire for Daniel Bryan. Triple H introduced both Orton and Cena. The crowd did not want to hear what Orton had to say. There were boos and boring chants. Then Cena took the mic. More boos and cheering mix. Then Cena begins to speak and prove why he is the face of the WWE. These days with everything being very planned and scripted, Cena played to the crowd and included Daniel Bryan in the conversation, he compared Randy Orton’s rise to success to Daniel Bryan’s. The idea was Bryan didn’t have a father and grandfather to get him in to the WWE, he did it by working. Cena turned practically the entire crowd around and behind him., shouting out his past opponents, HBK, CM Punk, and putting over that the only fair shot Daniel Bryan had was the one with him. Brilliant, this is why he is where he is. The end was something I haven’t seen in the WWE in a long time. It was an awesome chain of events excuited perfectly. Cena and Orton shake hands as the World Heavyweight Championship and WWE Championship are hoisted up. Orton gets in a cheap shot, the two are down on the mat fighting. Orton and Cena get pulled apart to their corners. CM Punk gets shoved by Orton causing CM Punk to start attacking Orton. Triple H throws down CM Punk, who retaliates with a knockdown of his on on The Game. HBK Superkicks CM Punk, setting up Daniel Bryan to
The Authority and John Cena look over A fallen Randy Orton. A great segment to end raw.
WWE Reminding us what they are capable of, a Powerful and compelling end to Raw.
deliver his running Knee on HBK. Orton tries to RKO Bryan but instead gets shoved into Stephanie McMahon knocking her down. Triple H runs to Stephanie’s aid, and then gets up and pedigrees Randy. The show closes with The Authority and John Cena looking disappointed over Randy Orton on the mat. What a great segment. This is what WWE used to do on a regular basis. Twists and turns, these chain-reaction action segments. YES!
Quick Mentions
Dean Ambrose vs CM Punk – Ambrose vs CM punk was a Pay-Per-View quality match with a great dissension in the ranks tease when Dean Ambrose wanted Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins to head to the back so he could finish the job by himself. Punk gets the win shortly after that exchange, although Punk loses out to the numbers game and gets a great spear from Reigns. YES!
The Wyatts – With a chip on my shoulder because of Daniel Bryan’s demotion, I don’t think I appreciated Bray Wyatt’s amazing performances over the last few weeks. They are great, and compelling. YES!
Hit up Page 2 below for the “NO!” of this week’s WWE RAW:
Here’s the latest installment of “The YES! & The NO! of WWE RAW.” I may have a different perspective than you since I was live at Raw this week at The Nassau Colosseum! Comment below and tell us how you like the column and if you agree with this week’s picks.
Daniel Bryan & CM Punk cut a promo before facing The Wyatts
The obligatory rematch between The Wyatts and Daniel Bryan & CM Punk, took place on Raw. First a promo from “The Beard & The Best” CM Punk discussing team names, and asking questions allowing Daniel Bryan to answer them with a “Yes!”. Daniel Bryan got a chance to say more than just the three letter word that will follow him for the rest of his career.
I love Daniel Bryan, and so does the crowd. In fact you could hear Daniel Bryan chants during the opening segment, proving once again that this demotion was not “Best For Business” But more on that in the “NO!” section.
Any match can be enhanced with the crowd behind you. When you have top stars like CM Punk and Daniel Bryan, the two most over Superstars at Raw, it can add just that little more energy to the match.
CM Punk made a comment about Triple H and the authority in the opening promo, and wouldn’t know it after Daniel Bryan was “Kidnapped” by the Wyatts. CM Punk was laid out by The Shield. I wonder if that marks the end of Daniel Bryan and CM Punk together, because I was enjoying that. Time will tell.
Who would have thought Goldust would be having great matches alongside his brother in 2013!
The Shield vs The Rhodes and Rey Mysterio
I have never been a fan of Tag Teams growing up watching the WWE. I must say however, though all the missteps, and bad booking since SummerSlam, The WWE has a great tag team division. This, of course includes The Shield and The Wyatt factions. Day in and day out these teams from The Veteran Golddust, to newer WWE talent in The Shield and The USO’s, are having great matches. I am thoroughly enjoying watching these teams work.
The Kosher Butcher!
The Kosher Butcher Superstars for Sandy Relief Auction winner, ” Charlie Tebele was interviewed by Jerry “The King” Lawler. When asked if he were to be a WWE Superstar, what would his name be. Charlie was prepared, with a blue T-shirt and a great gimmick “The Kosher Butcher” He even went as far to come up with his finisher, The Circumcision! At first the crowd didn’t know what to make of this. Not sure if this was shown on TV, but The Kosher Butcher had at least a dozen of his friends and family at Raw, all wearing their Blue shirts! Great stuff. Half way during the Xavier Woods match, and some further thought, the crowd broke out into chants of both “Kosher Butcher” and “Circumcision”, add that to the list of most bizarre Raw chants.
Great Stuff.
Hit up Page 2 below for the “NO!” of this week’s WWE RAW:
-As seen on WWE RAW on Monday night, WWE COO Triple H stripped Daniel Bryan of the WWE Championship. Bryan won the title from Randy Orton via pinfall at the WWE Night Of Champions pay-per-view on Sunday night. However, due to an alleged fast count by senior official Scott Armstrong, “The Game” decided to strip Bryan of the title and hold the title up until further notice.
-One WWE Hall Of Famer who won’t be surprised to hear about the aforementioned news of the WWE Championship being stripped from Daniel Bryan is Mick Foley. Foley wrote on Twitter prior to the start of Monday’s RAW show:
“Something tells me that last night’s 3-count will be called into question tonight on #RAW.”
WWE.com has published an image gallery looking at alternate designs for the new WWE Championship Belt.
“WWE went through countless proposed designs before settling on the new WWE Championship. Take a close look at some of the unique titles that almost made it around John Cena’s waist.”
Hit up the comments below and tell us if you think any of those designs are better than what WWE settled on.
