List of Women's World Champions (WWE)
The Women's World Championship[1] is a women's professional wrestling world championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE, defended on the Raw brand. Established as the SmackDown Women's Championship on the August 23, 2016, episode of SmackDown, it was created to be the counterpart to the WWE Women's Championship, which became exclusive to Raw as a result of the 2016 WWE draft and renamed as the Raw Women's Championship.[2] As a result of the 2023 WWE Draft, the Raw and SmackDown women's championships switched brands. In June 2023, the SmackDown Women's Championship was renamed as Women's World Championship while the Raw Women's Championship reverted to its original name of WWE Women's Championship.
The championship is generally contested in professional wrestling matches, in which participants execute scripted finishes rather than contend in direct competition. Rhea Ripley was the current champion in her first reign. But she had to vacant the title due to injury. She won the title as the SmackDown Women's Championship by defeating Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania 39 Night 1 on April 1, 2023, in Inglewood, California.
As of November 5, 2024, there have been 26 reigns between 13 champions. The inaugural champion was Becky Lynch, who won the title at Backlash on September 11, 2016. Rhea Ripley and Bayley share the longest reign at 380 days while Bayley has the longest combined reign at 520 days (519 days as recognized by WWE). Charlotte Flair has the most reigns at seven. Only two women in history have held the championship for a continuous reign of one year (365 days) or more: Bayley and Rhea Ripley.
Title history
Names
Name | Years |
---|---|
WWE SmackDown Women's Championship | August 23, 2016 – June 12, 2023 |
Women's World Championship | June 12, 2023 – present |
Reigns
No. | Overall reign number |
---|---|
Reign | Reign number for the specific champion |
Days | Number of days held |
Days recog. | Number of days held recognized by the promotion |
<1 | Reign lasted less than a day |
+ | Current reign is changing daily |
No. | Champion | Championship change | Reign statistics | Notes | Ref. | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Date | Event | Location | Reign | Days | Days recog. | |||||
WWE: SmackDown | ||||||||||
1 | Becky Lynch | September 11, 2016 | Backlash | Richmond, VA | 1 | 84 | 84 | As a result of the 2016 WWE draft, the WWE Women's Championship became exclusive to Raw. In response, SmackDown established the SmackDown Women's Championship and Raw's title was subsequently renamed. Lynch defeated Alexa Bliss, Carmella, Naomi, Natalya, and Nikki Bella in a six-pack elimination challenge to become the inaugural champion. | [3] | |
2 | Alexa Bliss | December 4, 2016 | TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs | Dallas, TX | 1 | 70 | 69 | This was a tables match. | [4] | |
3 | Naomi | February 12, 2017 | Elimination Chamber | Phoenix, AZ | 1 | 9 | 8 | [5] | ||
— | Vacated | February 21, 2017 | SmackDown | Ontario, CA | — | — | — | The championship was vacated when Naomi suffered a knee injury and was unable to defend the title within 30 days. | [6] | |
4 | Alexa Bliss | February 21, 2017 | SmackDown | Ontario, CA | 2 | 40 | 40 | Defeated Becky Lynch to win the vacant title. | [6] | |
5 | Naomi | April 2, 2017 | WrestleMania 33 | Orlando, FL | 2 | 140 | 139 | This was a six-pack challenge, also involving Becky Lynch, Carmella, Mickie James, and Natalya. | [7] | |
6 | Natalya | August 20, 2017 | SummerSlam | Brooklyn, NY | 1 | 86 | 86 | [8] | ||
7 | Charlotte Flair | November 14, 2017 | SmackDown | Charlotte, NC | 1 | 147 | 146 | [9] | ||
8 | Carmella | April 10, 2018 | SmackDown | New Orleans, LA | 1 | 131 | 130 | This was Carmella's Money in the Bank cash-in match. This was the first time a women's title changed hands after a Money in the Bank contract cash-in. |
[10] | |
9 | Charlotte Flair | August 19, 2018 | SummerSlam | Brooklyn, NY | 2 | 28 | 27 | This was a triple threat match, also involving Becky Lynch, who Flair pinned. | [11] | |
10 | Becky Lynch | September 16, 2018 | Hell in a Cell | San Antonio, TX | 2 | 91 | 91 | [12] | ||
11 | Asuka | December 16, 2018 | TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs | San Jose, CA | 1 | 100 | 99 | This was a triple threat Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match, also involving Charlotte Flair. | [13] | |
12 | Charlotte Flair | March 26, 2019 | SmackDown | Uncasville, CT | 3 | 13 | 12 | [14] | ||
13 | Becky Lynch | April 8, 2019 | WrestleMania 35 | East Rutherford, NJ | 3 | 41 | 41 | This was a winner takes all triple threat match for both the Raw Women's Championship and SmackDown Women's Championship, also involving Ronda Rousey, who defended the Raw Women's Championship. Lynch pinned Rousey to win both titles. | [15] | |
14 | Charlotte Flair | May 19, 2019 | Money in the Bank | Hartford, CT | 4 | <1 | <1 | [16] | ||
15 | Bayley | May 19, 2019 | Money in the Bank | Hartford, CT | 1 | 140 | 140 | This was Bayley's Money in the Bank cash-in match. | [16] | |
16 | Charlotte Flair | October 6, 2019 | Hell in a Cell | Sacramento, CA | 5 | 5 | 4 | [17] | ||
17 | Bayley | October 11, 2019 | SmackDown | Paradise, NV | 2 | 380 | 379 | [18] | ||
18 | Sasha Banks | October 25, 2020 | Hell in a Cell | Orlando, FL | 1 | 167 | 167 | This was a Hell in a Cell match. | [19] | |
19 | Bianca Belair | April 10, 2021 | WrestleMania 37 Night 1 |
Tampa, FL | 1 | 133 | 132 | [20] | ||
20 | Becky Lynch | August 21, 2021 | SummerSlam | Paradise, NV | 4 | 62 | 62 | Bianca Belair was originally scheduled to defend the title against Sasha Banks; however, before the match began, it was announced that Banks was unable to compete for undisclosed reasons. Carmella was then announced as her new opponent, but Lynch made a surprise return from maternity leave, took out Carmella, and challenged Belair to an impromptu match that Belair accepted. | [21] | |
21 | Charlotte Flair | October 22, 2021 | SmackDown | Wichita, KS | 6 | 198 | 197 | As a result of the 2021 WWE Draft, then Raw Women's Champion, Charlotte Flair was drafted to SmackDown while Becky Lynch was drafted to Raw. To keep the titles to their respective brands, WWE official Sonya Deville had the two women exchange championships. | [22] | |
22 | Ronda Rousey | May 8, 2022 | WrestleMania Backlash | Providence, RI | 1 | 55 | 55 | This was an "I Quit" match. | [23] | |
23 | Liv Morgan | July 2, 2022 | Money in the Bank | Paradise, NV | 1 | 98 | 97 | This was Morgan's Money in the Bank cash-in match. Morgan was a member of the Raw roster prior to the cash-in. She was transferred to the SmackDown brand after winning the championship. | [24] | |
24 | Ronda Rousey | October 8, 2022 | Extreme Rules | Philadelphia, PA | 2 | 83 | 83 | This was an Extreme Rules match. | [25] | |
25 | Charlotte Flair | December 30, 2022 | SmackDown | Tampa, FL | 7 | 92 | 92 | [26] | ||
26 | Rhea Ripley | April 1, 2023 | WrestleMania 39 Night 1 |
Inglewood, CA | 1 | 584 | 584 | Ripley won the championship as a member of the Raw brand, but the title did not officially switch to Raw until the 2023 WWE Draft. It was subsequently renamed as the Women's World Championship on the June 12, 2023, episode of Raw. | [27] | |
WWE: Raw |
Combined reigns
As of November 5, 2024.
† | Indicates the current champion |
---|
Rank | Wrestler | No. of reigns |
Combined days |
Combined days rec. by WWE |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Bayley | 2 | 520 | 519 |
2 | Charlotte Flair | 7 | 483 | 479 |
3 | Rhea Ripley † | 1 | 584+ | |
4 | Becky Lynch | 4 | 278 | |
5 | Sasha Banks | 1 | 167 | |
6 | Naomi | 2 | 149 | 147 |
7 | Ronda Rousey | 2 | 138 | |
8 | Bianca Belair | 1 | 133 | 132 |
9 | Carmella | 1 | 131 | 130 |
10 | Alexa Bliss | 2 | 110 | 109 |
11 | Asuka | 1 | 100 | 99 |
12 | Liv Morgan | 1 | 98 | 97 |
13 | Natalya | 1 | 86 |
See also
References
- ^ "SmackDown Women's Championship". WWE. Archived from the original on September 29, 2017. Retrieved December 24, 2017.
- ^ Martin, Adam (23 August 2016). "Daniel Bryan to reveal two new championships exclusive to Smackdown Live tonight from Connecticut". wrestleview.com. Archived from the original on 28 July 2017. Retrieved August 23, 2016.
- ^ Caldwell, James (September 11, 2016). "9/11 WWE Backlash Results – CALDWELL'S Complete PPV Report". Pro Wrestling Torch. Archived from the original on August 18, 2020. Retrieved September 11, 2016.
- ^ Powell, Jason (December 4, 2016). "Powell's WWE TLC 2016 live review: AJ Styles vs. Dean Ambrose in a TLC match for the WWE Championship, The Miz vs. Dolph Ziggler in a ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on August 3, 2020. Retrieved December 4, 2016.
- ^ Powell, Jason (February 12, 2017). "2/12 Powell's WWE Elimination Chamber 2017 live review: John Cena vs. AJ Styles vs. Dean Ambrose vs. The Miz vs. Baron Corbin vs. Bray Wyatt in an Elimination Chamber match for the WWE Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on February 13, 2017. Retrieved February 12, 2017.
- ^ a b Keller, Wade (February 21, 2017). "KELLER'S WWE SMACKDOWN REPORT 2/21: Results of Battle Royal to determine a new no. 1 contender for WWE Championship at WrestleMania". Pro Wrestling Torch. Archived from the original on February 24, 2017. Retrieved February 21, 2017.
- ^ Powell, Jason (April 2, 2017). "Powell's WrestleMania 33 live review: Undertaker vs. Roman Reigns, Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar for the WWE Universal Championship, AJ Styles vs. Shane McMahon, Seth Rollins vs. Triple H in an unsanctioned match". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on April 3, 2017. Retrieved April 2, 2017.
- ^ Powell, Jason (August 20, 2017). "Powell's WWE SummerSlam 2017 live review: Brock Lesnar vs. Braun Strowman vs. Samoa Joe vs. Roman Reigns for the WWE Universal Championship, Jinder Mahal vs. Shinsuke Nakamura for the WWE Championship, Sheamus and Cesaro vs. Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins for the Raw Tag Titles". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on August 21, 2017. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
- ^ Barnett, Jake (November 14, 2017). "11/14 Barnett's WWE Smackdown Live TV Review: Natalya vs. Charlotte for the Smackdown Women's Championship, Baron Corbin vs. Sin Cara for the U.S. Title, New Day vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn, final hype for Survivor Series". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on November 15, 2017. Retrieved November 15, 2017.
- ^ Powell, Jason (April 10, 2018). "4/10 Powell's WWE Smackdown Live TV Review: AJ Styles vs. Daniel Bryan, Paige named new general manager, New Day vs. The Usos for a Smackdown Tag Title shot at the Greatest Royal Rumble". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on April 11, 2018. Retrieved April 9, 2018.
- ^ Powell, Jason (August 19, 2018). "Powell's WWE SummerSlam 2018 live review: Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns for the WWE Universal Championship, AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe for the WWE Championship, Alexa Bliss vs. Ronda Rousey for the Raw Women's Championship, Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on August 20, 2018. Retrieved August 19, 2018.
- ^ Powell, Jason (September 16, 2018). "Powell's WWE Hell in a Cell 2018 live review: Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman in an HIAC for the WWE Universal Championship with Mick Foley as referee, AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe for the WWE Title, Jeff Hardy vs. Randy Orton in an HIAC match". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on September 17, 2018. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
- ^ Powell, Jason (December 16, 2018). "Powell's WWE TLC live review: Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair vs Asuka in a TLC match for the Smackdown Women's Championship, Daniel Bryan vs. AJ Styles for the WWE Championship, Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose for the IC Title". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on March 22, 2019. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
- ^ Barnett, Jake (March 26, 2019). "3/26 Barnett's WWE Smackdown Live TV Review: New Day respond to Vince McMahon sabotaging Kofi Kingston, Asuka vs. Charlotte for the Smackdown Women's Championship, Kurt Angle vs. AJ Styles". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on March 27, 2019. Retrieved March 27, 2019.
- ^ Powell, Jason (April 7, 2019). "WrestleMania 35 results: Powell's live review of Ronda Rousey vs. Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair for the Raw and Smackdown Women's Titles, Daniel Bryan vs. Kofi Kingston for the WWE Championship, Brock Lesnar vs. Seth Rollins for the WWE Universal Championship, Batista vs. Triple H, AJ Styles vs. Randy Orton". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on April 16, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
- ^ a b Powell, Jason (May 19, 2019). "WWE Money in the Bank results: Powell's live review of Seth Rollins vs. AJ Styles for the WWE Universal Championship, Kofi Kingston vs. Kevin Owens for the WWE Championship, Becky Lynch defends the Raw and Smackdown Women's Titles, two Money in the Bank ladder matches". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on May 24, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
- ^ Powell, Jason (October 6, 2019). "WWE Hell in a Cell results: Powell's live review of Seth Rollins vs. "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt in an HIAC match for the WWE Universal Championship, Becky Lynch vs. Sasha Banks in an HIAC match for the Raw Women's Championship, Bayley vs. Charlotte Flair for the Smackdown Women's Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on April 14, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2019.
- ^ Powell, Jason (October 11, 2019). "10/11 WWE Friday Night Smackdown results: Powell's review of night one of the WWE Draft, Seth Rollins vs. Roman Reigns to determine which brand picks first, Charlotte Flair vs. Bayley for the Smackdown Women's Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on October 12, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
- ^ Powell, Jason (October 25, 2020). "WWE Hell in a Cell results: Powell's review of Drew McIntyre vs. Randy Orton in a Hell in a Cell match for the WWE Championship, Roman Reigns vs. Jey Uso in an I Quit Hell in a Cell match for the WWE Universal Championship, Bayley vs. Sasha Banks in a Hell in a Cell match for the Smackdown Women's Title". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
- ^ Powell, Jason (April 10, 2021). "WrestleMania 37 results: Powell's live review of night one featuring Sasha Banks vs. Bianca Belair for the Smackdown Women's Championship, Bobby Lashley vs. Drew McIntyre for the WWE Championship, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods vs. AJ Styles and Omos for the Raw Tag Titles, Bad Bunny and Damian Priest vs The Miz and John Morrison". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on April 11, 2021. Retrieved April 10, 2021.
- ^ Powell, Jason (August 21, 2021). "WWE SummerSlam results: Powell's review of Roman Reigns vs. John Cena for the WWE Universal Championship, Bianca Belair vs. Sasha Banks for the Smackdown Women's Championship, Bobby Lashley vs. Goldberg for the WWE Championship, Edge vs. Seth Rollins, Nikki ASH vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Rhea Ripley for the Raw Women's Championship". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on August 22, 2021. Retrieved August 22, 2021.
- ^ Powell, Jason (October 22, 2021). "10/22 WWE Friday Night Smackdown results: Powell's review of Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair swapping title belts, the coronation of Xavier Woods as King of the Ring". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on April 10, 2021. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
- ^ Powell, Jason (May 8, 2022). "WWE WrestleMania Backlash results: Powell's live review of Roman Reigns and The Usos vs. Drew McIntyre and RK-Bro, Charlotte Flair vs. Ronda Rousey in an I Quit match for the Smackdown Women's Title, Cody Rhodes vs. Seth Rollins, Edge vs. AJ Styles, Bobby Lashley vs. Omos, Happy Corbin vs. Madcap Moss". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on May 12, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
- ^ Powell, Jason (July 2, 2022). "WWE Money in the Bank results: Powell's review of the MITB ladder matches, The Usos vs. The Street Profits for the Undisputed WWE Tag Titles, Ronda Rousey vs. Natalya for the Smackdown Women's Title, Bianca Belair vs. Natalya for the Raw Women's Title, Theory vs. Bobby Lashley for the U.S. Title". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on July 5, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
- ^ Powell, Jason (October 8, 2022). "WWE Extreme Rules results: Powell's review of Matt Riddle vs. Seth Rollins in a Fight Pit match with Daniel Cormier as special referee, Bianca Belair vs. Bayley in a ladder match for the Raw Women's Title, Liv Morgan vs. Ronda Rousey in an Extreme Rules match for the Smackdown Women's Title, Drew McIntyre vs. Karrion Kross in a strap match". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on October 10, 2022. Retrieved October 8, 2022.
- ^ Keller, Wade (December 30, 2022). "12/30 WWE SmackDown results: Keller's report on Cena & Owens vs. Reigns & Sami, Rousey vs. Rodriguez, Sikoa vs. Sheamus". Pro Wrestling Torch. Archived from the original on December 31, 2022. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
- ^ Powell, Jason (April 1, 2023). "WrestleMania 39 results: Powell's live review of night one with Jimmy Uso and Jey Uso vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Titles, Charlotte Flair vs. Rhea Ripley for the Smackdown Women's Title, Austin Theory vs. John Cena for the U.S. Title, Rey Mysterio vs. Dominik Mysterio, Seth Rollins vs. Logan Paul". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Archived from the original on April 2, 2023. Retrieved April 1, 2023.