Who is the greatest world champion of all-time

[That N Word]

With Michael Cole constantly referring to John Cena as the greatest WWE/WCW world champion of all-time. Who do you think is the greatest world champion in the history of WWE and WCW. Obvious names include


John Cena -15 time world champion (13 time WWE champion (most in WWE history),3 time world heavyweight champion in only 13 years.)
Ric Flair -21 time world champion (yes 21 not 16 WWE),could be argued greatest WCW champ of all-time
The Rock 8 time WWE champion,1 time world heavyweight champion
Stone Cold Most entertaining champion of all time, I believe he has between 6 or 7 WWE titles under his belt.
Hulk Hogan I don't really know the amount he's held but I do know it is a lot.
CM Punk longest reigning WWE champion in the last 26 years. 2nd most entertaining WWE champion of all-time IMO.
Sting him along with Flair could be argued greatest WCW champ of all-time
Edge arguably the greatest world heavyweight champ in WWE history
Booker T voted greatest world heavyweight champion of all-time at last years NOC. Final WCW champion in history.
Triple H13x World champion,1st (WWE) world hvt. champion
Batista 6x world champ
Randy Orton13x world champion.1st WWE hvt. champion
The Undertaker held the world hvt. title (WWE) numerous times,multiple WWE title reigns.
Chris Jericho 1st undisputed champion.
Bret Hartheld the title more times than any one in the New Generation era.
Bruno Sammartino longest title reign


I don't know if this has been done before. But my bad if it has

 

[Bruno's Sanctimony]

The greatest champ of all time is the one who sold out Madison Square Garden 211 times....and that was before all the smut and the nudity.

 

[Reality_Check14]

In my opinion the answer has to be only one name to who is the greatest World Champion of all time and that would be the biggest name in history.... Hulk Hogan. No one title reign has done more for wrestling then Hogan's title reigns especially his 4 year then WWF Title reign. That title reign from 1984-1988 did more to revolutionize the industry then any other. With this title reign wrestling went into the mainstream and out of it came the closed circuit and ppv that made WWE a global empire in the wrestling industry. It took the WWE from being a local territory to the giant global empire it is today. No one World Champion's title reign had more of an impact then Hogan's first.

 

[relentless1]

The answer is unequivocally Hulk Hogan, from 1984 when he won his first title until 2002 when he won his last (a span of 18 years), he was champ for just over 9 years of that time, hes the longest reigning WCW champion and the third longest WWE champion of all time. The guy was the face of the WWF for the most important time in the company history IMO and he's the most recognizable WRESTLER of all time. he's out in front by a wide margin, followed by Bruno.

 

[HeyYo]

Lou Thesz. Apparently, "of all time" with the exception of Bruno, is only applicable for the 80's, 90's and the 2000's.

Check out back stories of the wrestling history. Lou Thesz made a HUGE impact as a 6 time world champion.

Funniest one, John Cena! He can be a 2,438 time champ and still suck!

 

[tak161]

In my opinion, the greatest World Champion is not determined by who sold out the most arenas or who the bigger face of a company was. The greatest World Champion is the man that carried the title with the most prestige, the guy that walked, talked, looked, and acted like a champion, a man that personified what a champion is all about. And that man is............Ric Flair. No none compares to The Nature Boy as a champion. The title meant something when it was around Flair's waist, and wasn't just a prop.

 

[Magic Mark]

Really broad subject, but it's in your face and bold. LIKE A SENTENCE IN ALL CAPS.

Anyways, to me, it's gotta be Hogan. Sammartino would be second, and a tie between Stone Cold and Cena for 3rd. Hogan is one of the biggest reasons why wrestling was so popular in the 80's and 90's, from his Hulkamania days, to his reign of terror with the nWo. Wrestling wise, he isn't going to impress you. He was a lot like Cena, but even worse, which is really saying something. But his charisma, mic skills, and physique was undeniable, and he lead the WWF during a boom period of wrestling.

Sammartino was good, but during his tenure in the WWF, or whatever it was called back then, all his angles consist of "Wrestler X challenges Sammartino, Sammartino and Wrestler X rassle at MSG, Bruno wins, LOL. And repeat."

Austin was an all-around great wrestler, and was arguably the face of the Attitude Era, but his career in the WWF was kinda short due to injuries and all, but he could've wrestled another year or two. Kinda like Punk.

As for Cena, WWE wouldn't be as successful today had it none been for this goofball. Like Hogan, his in-ring skills are not impressive, as he gets hardly any offense in his matches, but he can have a great match with the right opponent. Anyways, he's the face of the WWE right now, so that's good enough to consider him in the Top 5 at the very least.

 

[Bernkastel]

I gave the OP rep because I couldn't be bothered with a proper response, but I think I'll bite. The answer is Lou Thesz for a number of reasons...

- Lou Thesz [by my count] is an 18 time world champ.

- He held both versions of the AWA title and the NWA title 3 times. At the time those were the two biggest promotions in the world.

- His longest reign lasted approximately 2300 days. Though other sources are varied. Meltzer has claimed it lasted over 10 years. Another has placed it a week shy of Bruno's historic 2803 day.

- If you added up the days of all Thesz's reigns the outcome would come to over 6,800+ days. Meaning he spent over 18 years as a world champion of some sort.

In comparison Bruno's 2 reigns total 4,040 days. Ric Flair's 22 reigns total 4,270 days. Hogan's 12 reigns total 3,362 days. John Cena's 15 reigns total l,367 days. Triple H's 13 reigns total 1,155 days. Steve Austin's 6 reigns total 529 days. The Undertaker's 7 reigns total 445 days.

- He held his last title at the age of 47. He held that title for over 1,000 days. And like all his other high profile reigns he wrestled all the top names in the world in matches that often went 60+ minutes. And he did this multiple times a week.

- During his longest title reign he went on an 800 match winning streak before he was stopped.

There were many good champions: Hogan, Bruno, Cena, Flair, Austin, Ed Lewis, Jim Londos, Bob Backlund, Harley Race... but Lou Thesz is a cut above everyone else.

EDIT: I know the OP stated WWE wrestlers only, but lets be honest... wrestling exists outside the WWE idea of kayfabe.

 

[That N Word]

Yeah I almost forgot Lou Thez

I gave the OP rep because I couldn't be bothered with a proper response, but I think I'll bite. The answer is Lou Thesz for a number of reasons...

- Lou Thesz [by my count] is an 18 time world champ.

- He held both versions of the AWA title and the NWA title 3 times. At the time those were the two biggest promotions in the world.

- His longest reign lasted approximately 2300 days. Though other sources are varied. Meltzer has claimed it lasted over 10 years. Another has placed it a week shy of Bruno's historic 2803 day.

- If you added up the days of all Thesz's reigns the outcome would come to over 6,800+ days. Meaning he spent over 18 years as a world champion of some sort.

In comparison Bruno's 2 reigns total 4,040 days. Ric Flair's 22 reigns total 4,270 days. Hogan's 12 reigns total 3,362 days. John Cena's 15 reigns total l,367 days. Triple H's 13 reigns total 1,155 days. Steve Austin's 6 reigns total 529 days. The Undertaker's 7 reigns total 445 days.

- He held his last title at the age of 47. He held that title for over 1,000 days. And like all his other high profile reigns he wrestled all the top names in the world in matches that often went 60+ minutes. And he did this multiple times a week.

- During his longest title reign he went on an 800 match winning streak before he was stopped.

There were many good champions: Hogan, Bruno, Cena, Flair, Austin, Ed Lewis, Jim Londos, Bob Backlund, Harley Race... but Lou Thesz is a cut above everyone else.

EDIT: I know the OP stated WWE wrestlers only, but lets be honest... wrestling exists outside the WWE idea of kayfabe.

 

[J.J.]

For WWE it would be Hulk Hogan. I am very surprised Bob Backlund's name was left off this list. He was a great champ - despite the length of time holding the belt he was a transitional champ in between the post-Bruno, pre-Hogan era.

In my eyes Ric Flair was the greatest number. 16 times. Rather it's 15 or 16 time. His number in pro wrestling stands out like,Babe Ruth's 714.

 

[daddyJ_t]

For WWE it would be Hulk Hogan. I am very surprised Bob Backlund's name was left off this list. He was a great champ - despite the length of time holding the belt he was a transitional champ in between the post-Bruno, pre-Hogan era.

In my eyes Ric Flair was the greatest number. 16 times. Rather it's 15 or 16 time. His number in pro wrestling stands out like,Babe Ruth's 714.

Even though he will be remembered as a crazy old man now days. bob backlund was the man. and he was not a transitional champ. how can u count this--( Bob Backlund - almost 6 years (2,138 days)
Bob Backlund beat Billy Graham in 1978 and held the belt until 1983 when he lost it to The Iron Sheik. Over a decade later, he won the title from Bret Hart at Survivor Series '94 and lost it a few days later in a matter of seconds to Diesel).
as transitional? he was the man and faced every other champion in the world in a title vs title match and wrestled them to 45 and 60 min draws. cena goes maybe 20 mins and is busted. same with a few of the other names.

 

[J.J.]

Even though he will be remembered as a crazy old man now days. bob backlund was the man. and he was not a transitional champ. how can u count this--( Bob Backlund - almost 6 years (2,138 days)
Bob Backlund beat Billy Graham in 1978 and held the belt until 1983 when he lost it to The Iron Sheik. Over a decade later, he won the title from Bret Hart at Survivor Series '94 and lost it a few days later in a matter of seconds to Diesel).
as transitional? he was the man and faced every other champion in the world in a title vs title match and wrestled them to 45 and 60 min draws. cena goes maybe 20 mins and is busted. same with a few of the other names.

I said despite the length. Backlund wasn't as popular as Bruno or Hogan. Bruno was part of the golden age era. I don't really know how to define Backlund other than the in-between guy. When Hogan won the belt I'm '84 we saw another era begun which took wrestling to main stream level. Nothing major happened during his time as champ to make him standout.

Look at Diesel in the mid 90s who ironically beat Backlund for the title and went on to hold it for roughly a year. This was during another transitional period. Post Hogan, pre-attitude. Perhaps a weak wrestler to compare Backlund to, but hopefully you get the point.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

There is no way Backlund was transitional in the 70's/80's... He was marketed as the champion and Bruno's "replacement" and more than held the New York territory up business wise. His second reign was misplaced and transitional (should have been Owen, exact same deal) but it was a classic case of Vince repaying the hard work Bob put in only to be pushed aside.

As to the OP/Question. There is no way you can discount the NWA title...

Lou Thesz has a very big claim but then so does Verne Gagne with the AWA title... Of all the names that have come and gone 4 stand out for me.

Bruno - Easy to see why, he carried the WWWF to worldwide fame, influenced pop culture icons like Ahhnold and held the title for about the same time as many careers last these days.

Bret Hart - Rightly or wrongly, Bret did an amazing job in being both a "fighting champion", helping the company move away from one defence on PPV per quarter and international recognition... The stuff about Bret being loved overseas isn't BS, he really was the first true "World" Champion in the sense that places like South Africa, India, Isreal, the UK could see him as "their" champion too... not just a US thing like Hogan was.

3:Vader - In WCW in the early 1990's Vader was something VERY special and the best big man champion in history. It's almost shameful how his career eventually turned out but in his prime when he had titles in Japan, the US... he was the most dominant force on in the business.

The Winner however is... WOOOOOO!

Yep Naitch wins it... the points above about him "being the champ" and living the lifestyle is one thing, but Flair had the entire package to be NWA champion, from overcoming his birth issues to surviving a plane crash, he had that "aura" of being meant for something special... When he held the belt it looked like it had no other home and when chasing he never looked like failing...

The reason Flair wins though is that he was able to do exactly the same in the WWF, unheard of since to the same level...sure some guys held the belt in both companies but none had the presence or impact of Flair... when he debuted with the "big gold belt" it was massive, people forget how massive cos Vince never went with the Hogan match... but for him to adapt to the WWF so quickly, win the title as he did and carry it as he did, albiet for a short reign proved he was and still is "The Man". The respect shown by Cena last week with the belt was legit... it was Cena's way of saying "I'll stay on 15...the record of Greatest is Ric's".

 

[Earth_2_Superman]

This is a tricky topic because a lot of us were too young when some of these guys were in their prime. I'm not saying that should exclude us from voting for them, but unless you've seen a lot of their matches on tape or YouTube...you shouldn't go by what you've read on Wikipedia. While Bret's my personal favorite, I will say it's a toss between Austin and Flair. The reason I say that is the fact that watching some of their matches, they were those "hard to beat" champions. Flair for the fact that he had a lot of matches that went the time-limit draw. Austin for the fact that it took more than multiple chair shots, a low blow, or any other trick you could pull in order to defeat him. Yeah, it's all predetermined, but I base it off the difficulty of beating them.

Nearly all of these champions had that, but the fact that I was exposed to those two doing it more...I went with them. But I left out the impact and all of that other stuff, so if I added them, then no doubt it was Hogan.

 

[Pedigree1]

The top champion of all-time?? Naitch wins it for me! Some could argue that he is technically a 21,22 world champion but 16 recognized by the WWE is a awesome accomplishment..

His legendary battles against the whos who of Pro Wrestling.. He survived a horrific plane crash,overcame his birth issues,and is wildly respected among the Old and New generation of fans and wrestlers.. He lived the lifestyle,the Limousine ridin,jet flying,kid stealing,wheeling dealing SOB. WOOOOOOOOOOOO!! Looking at him just screams a wrestler.. His promo work,in-ring work stuff of legends.

Remember when he debuted the Big Gold Belt? That was such a huge turning point in wrestling.. I wish the Feud with Hogan would have happened sooner like around 88 or 89 that was when it should have happened! Hell even at WM8 we could have had Flair Vs Hogan! Naitch wins it,and to me its not even close

 

[JoeyJoeJoe]

In my opinion, it's Hogan. I get the argument for Flair -- he had the charisma, he had the skill, he comported himself as "The Man", he had the legendary matches, and he was a world traveler.

My issue is that he ended up being in the smaller pond. The WWF outlasted and became way bigger than the NWA / Jim Crockett Promotions / WCW ever could've been.

At the end of the day, I don't care about how many titles a guy held because that's largely about how many times a promoter wants you to swap the belt to drum up interest. I don't really care about technical skill either -- it's wrestling. It's scripted -- nobody is going to beat someone else based on their wrestling skill. You just have to fit the role you are playing. That could mean Andre the Giant or that could mean Ric Flair.

Instead, I have to look at who had the most impact on the industry as a whole. I think Hogan stands above them all in this respect. He was the figurehead for the WWF when it was brought to the mainstream public. He was the first to truly become more than just a wrestler -- he became a merchandising phenomenon. Hulkamania was a "thing", and it lasts today even though it's been tarnished a bit with his antics in the past few years.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

In my opinion, it's Hogan. I get the argument for Flair -- he had the charisma, he had the skill, he comported himself as "The Man", he had the legendary matches, and he was a world traveler.

My issue is that he ended up being in the smaller pond. The WWF outlasted and became way bigger than the NWA / Jim Crockett Promotions / WCW ever could've been.

At the end of the day, I don't care about how many titles a guy held because that's largely about how many times a promoter wants you to swap the belt to drum up interest. I don't really care about technical skill either -- it's wrestling. It's scripted -- nobody is going to beat someone else based on their wrestling skill. You just have to fit the role you are playing. That could mean Andre the Giant or that could mean Ric Flair.

Instead, I have to look at who had the most impact on the industry as a whole. I think Hogan stands above them all in this respect. He was the figurehead for the WWF when it was brought to the mainstream public. He was the first to truly become more than just a wrestler -- he became a merchandising phenomenon. Hulkamania was a "thing", and it lasts today even though it's been tarnished a bit with his antics in the past few years.

That's strictly true... Flair went straight back to WWE after the WCW buyout pretty much and would have been there far sooner had he been allowed to be. He didn't get stuck in the smaller pond, he was just not used correctly by Bischoff and Russo... once he returned to the WWE it was like he never left for a moment.

 

[FlairFan2003]

Very subjective how someone rates this. Do you look at drawing power, if so no one was a bigger draw and lasted as long as Hogan, although he rarely wrestled a F/T schedule and was consistently criticized for it (fans in the 80s always pointed Flair was wrestling 5-6 times per week, about what Hogan did in a month).

Certainly Bruno Sammartino, the guy WWE built the entire company around was a huge draw and had staying power. His total days as champ are about the same as Flair and bit higher than Hogan.

Harley Race toured all over the country (much more than Bruno) and was considered one of the best heel champs of all time during his 7 title reigns that stretched from the early 70s till early 80s. He was a better in ring performer than Bruno or Hogan.

If you talk about in ring talent its Flair. Only Brett Hart, HBK, & HHH are in his league as an in ring performer who also had longevity and drawing power, although Flair beats them all in the last two categories (its debatable strictly on in ring ability who was best from that group). Flair is a huge star but not at Hogan's level, though he was way more active.

Its all a matter of opinion and how much weight you give certain criteria over others. Personally I go with Flair. He had longevity in terms of drawing power, in ring ability, and was a great mic guy. I can see valid arguments for others however, including Cena.

 

[daddyJ_t]

I said despite the length. Backlund wasn't as popular as Bruno or Hogan. Bruno was part of the golden age era. I don't really know how to define Backlund other than the in-between guy. When Hogan won the belt I'm '84 we saw another era begun which took wrestling to main stream level. Nothing major happened during his time as champ to make him standout.

Look at Diesel in the mid 90s who ironically beat Backlund for the title and went on to hold it for roughly a year. This was during another transitional period. Post Hogan, pre-attitude. Perhaps a weak wrestler to compare Backlund to, but hopefully you get the point.

nothing stood out? he was the all american boy at the time and was loved everywhere he went. shiek was the go between guy not backlund. backlund was traveling the world facing flair, harley race and every other champion. id hardly call that a go between guy. his second reign was a transition and he as told by kevin nash very well sold the jack knife all the way back to the locker room.

 

[RobertTheBruce]

Shane Douglas.

Unpopular choice I'm sure, but I stand behind it.

 

[New Hot Fed]

Well Lou Thiesz was The Greatest Champion of all time but he wasn't a WWE star now was he? I think OP talks as if wrestling started in the 90s. I mean what are the criterias here?

If we talk about WCW, do you mean to start in the 70s with Mid-Atlantic wrestling where Flair and Harely Race were or what? Or do you start at when Turner bought the company in the late 80s. Or when it was officialy named "WCW" in the early 90s.

It would be simpler to start from the Monday Night Wars to now and just talk about the Big Gold Belt.

 

[Mustang Sally]

As much as I disliked his self-enforced separation from pro wrestling all those years, I think Bruno Sammartino was the greatest champion of all time. Of course, he could never win a poll like this since most of today's fans have no conception of what he meant to pro wrestling......but it isn't only the sheer length of time he was the titleholder, it was the success he brought to WWWF that made his influence unparalleled at a time that wrestling was wrestling, not a show with pyrotechnics, music and other glitz & glamour. Yes, there were storylines, but the focus was on ring wrestling and guys who couldn't bring it in the ring couldn't make it in the industry.

Bruno wrestled......it was all he did, and he did it well enough for so many years that people flocked to the arena to watch him do it. He was an honest workman in a time that people went to the monthly shows because they were interested in pro wrestling, not talking on their cells phones while the matches are taking place right in front of them or directing their gazes anywhere but the ring.

For those reasons, it's virtually impossible to compare what we see in today's the Internet age to what Bruno and others were doing back then. But if you measure what a single man meant to his sport, Bruno was the greatest champ of all time.

 

[J.J.]

nothing stood out? he was the all american boy at the time and was loved everywhere he went. shiek was the go between guy not backlund. backlund was traveling the world facing flair, harley race and every other champion. id hardly call that a go between guy. his second reign was a transition and he as told by kevin nash very well sold the jack knife all the way back to the locker room.

Let me note that Backlund was an elder McMahon guy, he believed in his good guys, long championship reigns.

Again, not to discredit Backlund as I acknowledge him as a great champion, probably one of the last few true mat technicians.


He was a transitional guy. WWE couldn't of gained national success with him as champ. Which is why I say transition by era.

Years later Backlund admitted he wasn't as good as he could've been. I'd argue a lot of that is due to being distant from the inner-wrestling world during his hayday.

Sadly he is one of the least heralded champions, either the OP forgot about him or serves a vague memory.

I personally have no major memories of Backlund back in the 1980s as the company was still northeast based. I didn't see him till watching him on some old VHS in early 90s

 

[Shalashaska]

This is a topic that comes down to personal opinion in the end as it is all to do with when you were watching wrestling and who your personal favorites were.

As much as I'd love to pretend I know about wrestling several decades ago and say "well of course its this guy because blah blah blah" or "its unquestionably that guy because harumph harumph harumph" let's be honest, for most of us it probably comes down to either Hogan and Flair or Bret Hart and Stone Cold.

I'd have to go with Austin if pushed, as much as I loved the legitimacy and prestige of Bret, nothing compared to when Austin came barreling down the ramp with that WWF title, ready to open up a can.

 

[daddyJ_t]

Screw this to end it all, ladies and gentlemen, i give to you the FABULUS MOOLAH. the op never specified gender in his topic and i choose to be a smartass with this but it does hold fact to it. longest reigning world champion ever in any company and division. legitimatly holding the title for a staright 10 year period, but perhaps due to the way things were run territorially back then. 12 year reign. finally losing to wendy rictner . continued to compete even into her 80s and even won the womans title at the age of 76. womens wrestling was alot better back then and she beat competetors then and in the barbie doll divisions on this era