WWE crowned the inaugural Universal Champion at SummerSlam in 2016. After the draft, Raw needed a top prize for the show, so it unveiled the red strap at the event. Who knows how things would have turned out if Finn Balor hadn't gotten injured the night he won the belt?
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After notable reigns by Kevin Owens and Goldberg, Brock Lesnar got his hands on the gold. Since then, only The Beast and Seth Rollins have had the opportunity to have multiple extended runs with the belt, but who was better as the champion?
10 Brock Lesnar: Great Matches
Brock Lesnar was widely criticized by fans and critics alike because he spent large chunks of time off programming altogether. But when he was on TV and working consistently, he put on a string of great matches as the Universal Champion.
Whether it was multi-man matches or singles bouts, Lesnar almost always delivered as the Universal Champion. While his feud with Roman Reigns for the belt was underwhelming, that was more about WWE's booking choices than Lesnar's performances in the ring. When allowed to do his own thing, there were few who outperformed Lesnar.
9 Seth Rollins: Consistency
Even if Seth Rollins was victim to some bad booking during his run as the Universal Champion, he was always appreciated for one thing by fans; consistency. Seth Rollins was there on Raw, week-in, week-out, working fun matches with members of the roster and regularly defending his championship.
This was a far cry from Lesnar's reign, which saw him disappear from programming for months on end. It got so bad that fans couldn't even be blamed for forgetting that the Universal Championship existed. When Lesnar returned, sections of fans were just happy to see the belt on programming.
8 Brock Lesnar: Variety Of Opponents
Over the course of his three Universal Championship reigns, spanning almost 700 days, Brock Lesnar defended his championship against pretty much every star in the main event or on the cusp of breaking into the main event.
He worked matches against guys like Braun Strowman, Samoa Joe, AJ Styles, Finn Balor, and Daniel Bryan. In contrast, Seth Rollins' reign was typified by an overlong feud against Baron Corbin and a couple of matches against 'The Fiend' Bray Wyatt. The sheer variety of opponents during Lesnar's reign as champion elevated his reigns above Rollins'.
7 Seth Rollins: Fan Favorite
When Seth Rollins won the 2019 Royal Rumble and set a date with Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 35, he did so as the guy who wanted to bring the Universal Championship back for the fans. Viewers were firmly behind Rollins, as he beat Lesnar to become the new champion in the opening match.
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He was a fan favorite, unlike Lesnar who was mostly treated with apathy and disdain due to his extended absences from programming. While that love from the fans did turn sour towards the end of his second reign, Rollins was the perfect babyface champion for the promotion and the fans.
6 Brock Lesnar: Ratings Draw
From the moment Brock Lesnar returned to programming, it became abundantly obvious that his appearances would boost ratings for WWE. Like him or not, viewers tuned in to see Lesnar.
Lesnar's ability to draw in ratings every time he made an appearance made up for his absences to an extent. When he was on programming, the product and the championship received a lot more exposure than it would have around the waist of pretty much anyone else on the roster, including Seth Rollins, who was one of WWE's worst drawing champions ever.
5 Seth Rollins: Strong Brand Ambassador
In the past, Seth Rollins has gotten in trouble for his outspoken nature on social media, especially when he has been defending WWE and the product overall. While fans may not have liked that very much, being a company man through and through ultimately made him a strong brand ambassador as champion.
Regular matches, promos, and interviews meant that he made a much stronger impression all around as champion than Brock Lesnar ever did. Lesnar may have been champion for far longer overall, but Rollins' work as champion did more for the promotion and the belt itself.
4 Brock Lesnar: Character Presentation
For all the good Seth Rollins did as champion, he was mostly a bland babyface that fans eventually turned on. Brock Lesnar on the other hand, has been accused of being a number of things over the years, but no fan would accuse his character of being bland.
Lesnar's Universal Championship reigns presented him as a prizefighter who barely spoke and let Paul Heyman and his actions do the talking for him. His character presentation was far more compelling than Rollins' ever was; an unbeatable, indomitable champion the likes of which the promotion had never seen before.
3 Seth Rollins: Passionate About The Gold
Brock Lesnar never really looked like he cared about what the championship itself represented, he cared about being the top guy in WWE, holding the promotion hostage. Seth Rollins's entire journey to the Universal Championship was all about him doing what's right for the fans and showcasing what he believed to be the top prize in the company.
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Rollins swinging the championship over his head after beating Lesnar is a classic WrestleMania moment, that proved it meant the world to him. For Lesnar though, it was just another trinket to keep him satisfied.
2 Brock Lesnar: Helped Build Other Stars
Brock Lesnar's championship reigns may have led to problems for Raw, as it scrambled to keep the main event interesting in his absence, but his reigns as the Universal Champion were instrumental in helping build new stars.
He has been putting over Roman Reigns for years, and he also went out of his way to establish Seth Rollins as the biggest star in the promotion in 2019. His feuds with Braun Strowman and Samoa Joe also made them look like main event stars, even if they ultimately came up short and WWE's booking failed them later. Lesnar has consistently given back to the promotion, something that is often overlooked in his runs as champion.
1 Seth Rollins: The Face Of The Promotion
Brock Lesnar simply wasn't around enough to ever be the face of WWE. But when Roman Reigns stepped away from programming, WWE turned to Seth Rollins to pick up the slack, and he did a good job of it.
As the Universal Champion, Rollins was the face of the promotion. He opened and closed out shows, was involved in the biggest storylines on Raw, and was regularly featured alongside Becky Lynch as WWE tried to establish them as the newest power couple. The fact that he was around to follow through week-in, week-out meant that he was the undoubted face of the promotion. A face worthy of holding the biggest prize in the WWE.
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