The WWE Championship, also known as the World Wrestling Entertainment Championship and occasionally as the WWE Championship of the World or WWE Heavyweight Championship, is one of the two top "world championships" contested in World Wrestling Entertainment. It is the WWE's original world championship and was exclusive to the SmackDown! brand between August 26, 2002 and June 6, 2005, while the World Heavyweight Championship was exclusive to the RAW brand; however, when WWE Champion John Cena was drafted to RAW during the 2005 WWE Draft Lottery, he took the belt with him to RAW. Since then, the World Heavyweight Championship has moved to SmackDown! due to the draft of then-Champion Batista on June 30, 2005.
History
The WWE Championship was originally known as the WWWF (World Wide Wrestling Federation) World Heavyweight Championship. In 1971, the WWWF rejoined the National Wrestling Alliance, and the title was downgraded in status to become simply the WWWF Heavyweight Championship. In 1979, the promotion dropped "Wide" from its name, thus renaming the title the World Wrestling Federation Heavyweight Championship (or WWF Heavyweight Championship). After the WWF left the NWA in 1983, the title was referred to as the WWF World Heavyweight Championship. Beginning in the 1990s, the title was occasionally referred to as simply the WWF Championship (also commonly lengthened to World Wrestling Federation Championship).
It was unified with another title, then called the World Championship (though more commonly known through lineage as the WCW World Heavyweight Championship), on December 9 2001 by Chris Jericho at the WWF Vengeance pay-per-view event in San Diego, California (some have argued that this unification gave the WWF title lineage to the NWA title, as the WCW title had that lineage, however, this is simply not true). Whilst unified, both championship belts were used and they were collectively defended as the WWF Undisputed Championship until April 1 2002 when Ric Flair presented then-champion Triple H with a single belt representing both titles. During the title reign of Hollywood Hulk Hogan, legal matters forced the company to change its name to WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) and the championship was likewise renamed, with the WWF logo on the belt being replaced with a new WWE logo. The belt style remained in use, and the combined title was known as the WWE Undisputed Championship until August 26 2002, when the champion at the time, Brock Lesnar, refused to defend the championship against a RAW brand wrestler following a number-one contender's match won by Triple H. Lesnar claimed he would only defend his championship against SmackDown! brand wrestlers, despite previous tradition that the Undisputed Champion would defend their championship against wrestlers from either brand.
Following Lesnar's actions, RAW's General Manager Eric Bischoff awarded the World Heavyweight Championship to Triple H on September 2 2002, to act as RAW's premier champion. This left the former Undisputed Champion Brock Lesnar as simply the WWE Champion, with no "undisputed" label. Both championships have since become exclusive to both brands.
When John Cena was drafted to RAW on June 6 2005, both belts were briefly RAW-exclusive until Batista, the World Heavyweight Champion at the time, was drafted to SmackDown! on June 30 2005.
Statistics
| Record: | Record holder: | Record number: | Notes: |
| Longest reign | Bruno Sammartino | 2803 days (c. 7 years) | N/A |
| Longest heel reign | "Superstar" Billy Graham | 296 days | N/A |
| Shortest reign | André the Giant | c. 45 seconds | André defeated Hulk Hogan and then immediately attempted to sell the title to Ted DiBiase, thus rendering the title vacant. |
| Second shortest reign | Yokozuna | c. 2 minutes, 17 seconds | Yokozuna defeated Bret Hart and then immediately defended against Hulk Hogan. |
| Oldest champion | Vince McMahon | 54 years | N/A |
| Second oldest champion | Hulk Hogan | 48 years | The title was at the time designated the WWE Undisputed Championship. |
| Youngest champion | Brock Lesnar | 25 years, 44 days | The title was at the time designated the WWE Undisputed Championship. |
| Second youngest champion | Yokozuna | 26 years, 6 months, and 2 days | N/A |
| Third youngest champion | The Rock | 26 years, 6 months, and 13 days | N/A |
| Heaviest champion | Yokozuna | c. 600 lb (272 kg) | N/A |
| Lightest champion | Eddie Guerrero | c. 228 lb (103 kg) | N/A |
| Tallest champion | The Big Show | c. 7 ft 0 in (213 cm) | N/A |
| Shortest champion | Eddie Guerrero | c. 5 ft 8 in (173 cm) | N/A |
| Longest transitory title match | 1992 Royal Rumble match | 1 hour, 2 minutes, 2 seconds | The match took place on January 19, 1992 and was won by Ric Flair |
| Shortest transitory title match | Diesel vs. Bob Backlund | c. 8 seconds | The match took place on November 26, 1994 and was won by Diesel. |
- The record for most WWE Championships held by a single person is seven, held by The Rock. Hulk Hogan and Stone Cold Steve Austin have six reigns, Bret Hart and Triple H have five, The Undertaker and Kurt Angle have four, and Shawn Michaels, Mick Foley, and Brock Lesnar have three. Due to some controversial matches, Bob Backlund can lay claim to two additional reigns on top of his two official ones, totaling four.
- The fastest ever debut-to-championship win is also Brock Lesnar, in just 160 days.
- The longest reigning WWE Champions of the respective decades are: Bruno Sammartino (1960's & 1970's), Hulk Hogan (1980's), Diesel (1990's), and John Bradshaw Layfield and John Cena (both with 280 days) (2000's).
- Seven wrestlers have won both this title and the WCW World Heavyweight Championship while WCW was still in business: Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, Ric Flair, Bret Hart, Diesel (as "Kevin Nash" in WCW), Sycho Sid (as "Sid Vicious" in WCW), and The Big Show (as "The Giant" in WCW). Kurt Angle, The Rock, and Chris Jericho, all WWE Champions, also became WCW Champions after WCW was purchased by WWE. Ric Flair is the only man to ever hold the WWF Championship, WCW World Heavyweight Championship, and NWA World Heavyweight Championship.
- Triple H, Shawn Michaels, and Kurt Angle are the only wrestlers to hold both the WWE Championship and the World Heavyweight Championship. Angle being the only one to win both titles after the Brand Extention
- Four Canadian wrestlers have held the WWE Championship: Stan Stasiak, Bret Hart, Chris Jericho, and Edge.
- Special custom belts have been created for at least four WWE champions: Billy Graham (slightly different plate art and a red strap), the Ultimate Warrior (white, blue, and purple straps), Stone Cold Steve Austin (entirely custom "smokin' skull" belt), and John Cena (entirely custom diamond-filled "bling" belt with turntable-styled spinning WWE logo). WWE also had a custom belt designed for The Rock featuring the brama bull logo, but decided against using it over fear that its use, combined with that of the Smoking Skull Belt, would result in the traditional belt being nearly abandoned. A belt with an exceptionally long strap was created for André the Giant before WrestleMania III, but he never wore it.
- Stone Cold Steve Austin is the only man ever to win the championship consecutively at WrestleMania, beating Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania XIV, and The Rock at WrestleMania XV.
- Hulk Hogan (2,III), Yokozuna (X [He would go on to lose it later in the night to Bret Hart]), Diesel (XI), Triple H (XVI) and Eddie Guerrero (XX) are the only wrestlers to have successfully defended the WWE Championship at WrestleMania.
- Four wrestlers (Hulk Hogan, Bret Hart, Kane, and Mankind) have had title reigns that lasted approximately 24 hours.
- Yokozuna was the only champion to never, at any time, physically wear the belt around his waist, as his considerable size prevented him from doing so.
- Antonio Inoki is the only Japanese wrestler to win the WWE championship (WWE has never officaly recognized Inoki's win)
- Between 1963 and 2006, thirty five wrestlers held the WWE Championship, an average of of one new champion every 1.29 years.
- Between 1963 and 2006, there were seventy nine recognised title changes, with each championship reign averaging 193.6 days.
- The Rock was the first African American to win the WWE Championship.
Current Champion
The current World Wrestling Entertainment Champion is John Cena. He won the title for the second time by forcing Edge to submit to the STF-U at the Royal Rumble on January 29, 2006. John Cena's next opponent for his title will be Triple H at WrestleMania 22.