It appears the WWE doesn't intend to have Roman Reigns drop the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship soon.
According to separate reports from
and
of the Wrestling Observer, the WWE wants to "update its history books" by replacing the older title reigns with new names. Valley reveals that Reigns' championship run could go on much longer than Hulk Hogan's 1474-day stranglehold on the WWF Championship that spanned the better part of the 1980s.
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WWE plans to extend Roman Reigns' WWE Universal Championship reign, potentially surpassing Hulk Hogan's 1474-day record. This strategy is part of WWE's goal to update its history books with new names and longer title reigns, as seen with other recent championship records.
This would mean Roman Reigns might not lose the unified title belt until September 2024.
Reigns initially became the WWE Universal Champion in August 2020, hitting the 1,000-day mark on May 27, the same day that the WWE will crown the
at the Night of Champions in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Audiences assumed Roman Reigns would lose to Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 39. Unfortunately, interference from Solo Sikoa
, extending his streak.
Reigns has successfully transformed from babyface for years to become the top heel of the WWE. It isn't easy becoming the promotion's most "hated" and most popular character but that's what Reigns has done. His ability to thrive in WWE's ever-changing landscape justifies why Triple H and the rest of the WWE Creative team
.
It isn't clear yet if the WWE is looking to modernize its record books but it's looking like it's the case.
Aside from Reigns, the WWE has set several new records in recent years. For example, The New Day reigned as the Raw Tag Team Champions from August 23, 2015, to December 18, 2016, for 483 days, beating the 333-day record set by Brian Kendrick and Paul London in the mid-2000s.
Another example is The Usos holding the SmackDown Tag Team Championships from July 18, 2021, to April 2, 2023, when they were beaten by the current unified tag team title champions, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn in Night 1 of WrestleMania 39.
Finally, Gunther's 324-day Intercontinental Championship run
the current 453-day record set by the Honky Tonk Man in the late 1980s.
As of the time of writing, Austin Theory is on his 159th day as the WWE United States Champion after he won the belt last November 26. He's roughly a year away from Lex Luger's 523-day record set in the late 1980s. The WWE might as well try to beat the said record if Theory continues to prove popular among fans.
It's unclear why the WWE is in such a rush to replace the older champions when nostalgia is such a driving factor within the company. To this day, fans can still be seen rocking tees from WWE Hall of Famers like Shawn Michaels and Hulk Hogan to live events even though they've been out of action for years if not decades.
But, maybe, Triple H has a grander vision for things. By emphasizing the stars of today and putting them over the legendary wrestlers of yesteryears, the WWE is hoping to create a passing of the torch sort of moment.
If nothing else, the planned longer title reigns for all championships help bring more prestige to each title belt so everyone isn't just gunning for a single crown. This, in turn, has a positive impact on the quality of the entertainment product that the WWE pushes out.
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