5 Greatest WWE Women’s Title Reigns
In the old days of wrestling, anyone that won a championship would likely hang on to that title for years at a time. After all, the Fabulous Moolah had a women’s championship for more than 3,650…on two different occasions. In the more modern days, long reigns are harder to come by, but there have still been a few women to have incredible runs with a belt.
We want to focus on the post-Divas era, today, and look at the five greatest WWE Women’s Championship reigns. Before we start the list, here are some of the memorable title reigns that just missed the cut: Alexa Bliss (223 days between 2017 and 2018), Charlotte Flair 198 days between 2021 and 2022), and Sasha Banks (167 days between 2020 and 2021).
Asuka
There were no fans in attendance at the 2020 SummerSlam event, but those who watched the event were treated to the start of one of the greatest WWE Women’s Championship reigns. Coming into the match, Sasha Banks had held the Raw Women’s title for over a month after winning it from Asuka on Monday Night Raw.
Asuka would get her revenge, though, and it came at the second-biggest pay-per-view of the year. Asuka made Banks tap out, beginning her reign which would last until the next year’s WrestleMania. At 231 days, Asuka had one of the longest reigns before dropping the title to Rhea Ripley during the second night of WrestleMania 37.
Ronda Rousey
In the summer of 2018, Alexa Bliss won the women’s Money in the Bank ladder match, and later that night cashed in the briefcase to take home the WWE Raw Women’s Championship. Bliss held on to the title for more than two months, and just like the first title change on the list, this one would come at SummerSlam. Bliss seemed like the massive underdog despite being the champion, taking on former UFC champion Ronda Rousey.
In front of a sold-out crowd in Brooklyn, New York, Rousey easily handled the undersized Bliss to begin her first title reign as Raw Women’s Champion. Rousey held the belt for 232 days, and like Asuka, she retained the title all the way up until the following year’s WrestleMania. Instead of Ripley, though, Rousey lost her belt to Becky Lynch (more on that later).
Bianca Belair
While she was in the developmental process with the WWE, those who were higher up knew that Bianca Belair was destined to be a star. With a unique look thanks to her hair that could be used like a bullwhip and an overall amazing skillset, Belair was entered into the main event scene early on in her career. Belair would get her chance to win the WWE Raw Women’s Championship, taking on Becky Lynch at WrestleMania 38.
In front of nearly 80,000 people at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, Belair and Lynch put on a classic match that lasted for almost 20 minutes. She would come out on top via pinfall and saw her title reign start to climb the list of the longest in the title’s history. Even in marquee matches at major pay-per-view events, Belair was able to retain her title and keep the reign going.
Becky Lynch
Whether you call her “The Man” or “Big Time Becks”, Becky Lynch has been perhaps the top women’s wrestler of her generation, and has the title history to prove it. Lynch has had several impressive reigns as champion, but the one that started in April 2019 was her best. It was then that WrestleMania 35 took place, and the main event was a triple-threat match between Lynch, Ronda Rousey, and Charlotte Flair, with both the Raw and Smackdown women’s titles on the line.
Lynch would overcome the odds and pin Rousey in the triple threat, spawning the “Becky 2 Belts” era. Lynch held on to the title without ever losing it in a match. The only reason the title changed hands was that Lynch left due to pregnancy and started Asuka’s first championship reign.
Bayley
While the other title reigns on the list started and ended at major pay-per-views, that wasn’t the case for the longest one in the modern era. On a Friday Night Smackdown in October 2019 in Las Vegas, Bayley took out Charlotte Flair in the main event to secure the Smackdown Women’s Championship.
Bayley had just lost the title earlier that week, which broke what would have been a 520+ day title reign. Still, Bayley was able to hold the title for 380 days, and it wasn’t until the Hell in the Cell pay-per-view the following year that she finally lost it to Sasha Banks.