Several weeks back, we pointed out that Brock Lesnar’s Universal Championship reign was likely going to last longer than CM Punk’s 2011 - 2013 run with the WWE Title. Punk’s 434 day reign has been recognized by WWE as the longest of the modern era, which made us wonder if the company would treat the Universal and WWE belts as equal for the purposes of that record, as they do for their current “Grand Slam” criteria. That prompted debate about the two Championships’ status, and just how petty WWE might be in regards to their former Superstar.
Fans will continue to debate the worth of Raw and SmackDown’s top men’s prizes, but we might find out the answer to the questions about The ‘E soon, as Lesnar’s time with the red strap has now exceeded Punk’s with the old spinning scratch W one. June 11 is 435 days since WrestleMania 33, where Brock pinned Goldberg to become the fourth ever Universal Champ.
Thus far, WWE hasn’t said anything about how long The Beast Incarnate’s had the Title. Possibly that’s because to do so might draw more attention to how little he’s around, especially seeing as he hasn’t appeared since Greatest Royal Rumble and his next defense still isn’t on the horizon. Or they could decide to keep the record books separate in this regard for other reasons, such as a stricter adherance to the brand split since Raw and SmackDown will be moving to separate networks in 2019.
But would anyone really be surprised if they decided to take the opportunity to remove Punk’s name from their record books? Or choose to do so shortly after he defeated their alleged proxy in court and then suffered another one-sided defeat in UFC?
We’ll find out how WWE decides to frame their ‘reality’ soon enough. In the meantime, enjoy the trivia and let the debate continue!