WWE: Universal Championship Is In Worst World Title Shape In History
A world championship in the WWE has almost always been considered a top title in pro wrestling no matter what the belt was.
The WWE has had tremendous success with its world championships over the years. Whether it’s been the WWE Championship, World Heavyweight Championship, or anything else, those titles were perceived to be a big deal and the most prestigious in pro wrestling at any given time.
However, that has all changed with Raw’s perceived top title, the Universal Championship. This title was introduced at SummerSlam 2016 thanks to the brand split that sent the WWE Championship to SmackDown with then-current champion Dean Ambrose.
The title got off to a hot start with the crowning of Finn Balor as champion at SummerSlam 2016 in a great match with Seth Rollins. But that title reign was seemingly over before it even started and thanks to an injury he sustained in the match with Rollins, Balor had to relinquish his title the following night on Raw and was out of action for several months.
We will never know how that title reign could have turned out, but the next reign looked to have a lot of promise when Kevin Owens won the title thanks to Triple H turning on Rollins. This was Owens’ first world title in the WWE and fans were excited to see what he could do with the belt.
But despite a few standout moments, Owens’ reign just never felt like it clicked. Maybe it was because he was being overshadowed to an extent by his friendship with Chris Jericho, who was in the midst of arguably his most entertaining WWE run. Owens held the belt for approximately six months before an unlikely opponent took the title from him.
Owens lost the Universal Championship to Goldberg at Fastlane 2017, who was set for a rematch with Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 33 after getting the better of The Beast Incarnate at Survivor Series 2016 and then in the 2017 Royal Rumble match. Many fans still believe Owens should have been Universal Champion heading into WrestleMania 33 and his match with Y2J should have been for the gold.
And predictably, Lesnar took the title from Goldberg at WrestleMania 33 in a five-minute match, albeit an entertaining one. And that’s where we are today, Lesnar still holding the Universal Championship hostage with limited appearances and matches. His reign has been subpar, to say the least.
In an era where fans often criticize how much championships actually mean, the WWE is doing the Universal Championship no favors with its current state. There’s really no other way to say it, but the Universal Championship is in probably the worst shape of any world title in at least modern WWE history.
The WWE has had countless opportunities to take the title off of Lesnar, but have missed out time after time. It seemed like a foregone conclusion that Roman Reigns would be the guy to dethrone Lesnar, but after coming up short at WrestleMania 34 and the Greatest Royal Rumble, there’s no telling if Reigns will ever get his hands on the Universal Championship.
Now it might be a wait until SummerSlam to see Lesnar defend the title again. Regardless of when he finally loses the title, the title’s credibility has been tarnished so badly up to this point that it might never be able to gain it back. The WWE tries its hardest to sell to its fans that this is a top prize in the company and it only goes to the best of the best.
But the simple fact is the Universal Championship is nothing more than a prop and it has been that way for the better part of the last year. Lesnar is a shell of what he once was in the WWE and its directly affecting the Universal Championship. But for as much criticism as Lesnar rightfully gets these days, it’s ultimately the WWE’s fault the title is in the situation it’s in right now.
If Vince McMahon truly cared about this title, he would have dethroned Lesnar months ago, or at least at WrestleMania 34. Maybe he’s prolonging the inevitable just to build more heel heat for Lesnar and make it a big deal when he finally loses, but it’s working in the opposite way so far.
Fans have become apathetic towards the Universal Championship and that’s the last thing a so-called top title in the WWE needs. Look back at any world title over the past few decades and it becomes more clear that the current state of the Universal Championship is the worst state of any world title in the WWE in maybe forever.
Even the reigns of Balor, Owens, and Goldberg weren’t the greatest, but Lesnar’s current reign is borderline embarrassing for the credibility of the Universal Championship and the WWE has to remedy this situation before the title loses every bit of its already dwindling appeal.