News

Top 5 Longest-Reigning WWE Champs: From Hulk Hogan To Pedro Morales (Photo Credit – Instagram)

Ever wonder who’s left their mark by holding the WWE World Heavyweight Championship for ages? It’s one thing to grab the gold, but holding onto it while hungry challengers circle is a different game altogether. These legends didn’t just win; they dominated, turning their reigns into epic sagas. From the Hulkamania days to the unforgettable dominance of Bruno Sammartino, these champs turned their title runs into iconic chapters of WWE history. Imagine becoming unbeatable by even the fiercest competitors.

So buckle up as we look at five wrestlers who won and held the WWE title for what seemed like forever. The longest-reigning champions showed that staying on top is more challenging than getting there.

1. Bruno Sammartino: 2,803 days

Bruno Sammartino’s name is the ultimate gold when you think of top-notch WWE champs who’ve...

Netflix released a six-part docuseries on WWE co-founder Vince McMahon this week. The series tracks his life and role within the wrestling promotion, including his successes, failures and scandals — including the lawsuit he currently faces alleging sexual harassment, abuse and trafficking.

The series has been in the works since 2019 and was close to completion in 2022, but it had to pivot and expand when the Wall Street Journal reported that McMahon had paid out $12 million in settlements to four women. That led to two more episodes being added to what had been planned as a four-part series.

McMahon and his longtime ally Ari Emanuel of Endeavor attempted to purchase the documentary after getting worried about some of the footage, Puck’s Matt Belloni reported this week, but Netflix declined to sell them the project. While some of these stories were known to wrestling fans, there were still new reveals in the...

Muhammad Ali will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2024, Variety has learned exclusively.

Ali will be inducted during the Hall of Fame ceremony taking place on April 5 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He will be inducted by his widow, Lonnie Ali. The ceremony will be livestreamed on Peacock beginning at 10 p.m. Et/9 p.m. Ct.

Ali dabbled in professional wrestling at different times in his career. He famously fought an exhibition match against Japanese pro wrestling legend Antonio Inoki in Tokyo in 1976. In the leadup to that matchup, he appeared at a Wwwf (now WWE) show, where he entered the ring and challenged Gorilla Monsoon. Ali would go on to appear as a special guest referee for the main event of WrestleMania I in 1985, which saw Hulk Hogan and Mr. T face off against Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff. Ali also appeared...

Superstar Billy Graham, the professional wrestler whose larger-than-life ring persona and charismatic style was hugely influential on the likes of Hulk Hogan, Steve Austin, Jesse Ventura and Ric Flair, has died. He was 79.

In a tweet, Flair confirmed that Graham had died. “The Superstar Billy Graham just left us. Thank you for all your influence on my career!” Flair tweeted. No cause of death was provided but Graham had been suffering poor health for a number of years and was hospitalized in February.

Born Eldridge Wayne Coleman in Phoenix, Arizona in 1943, Graham began bodybuilding at an early age. After dabbling in boxing and pro football, he had his first taste of notoriety when he was featured in a Muscle and Fitness magazine spread with then-fellow bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger.

In 1969, he decided to enter the world of professional wrestling, and adopted the ring name Billy Graham, as a tribute to the...

Pat Patterson, a WWE and WWF legend and the first openly gay pro-wrestling superstar, has died. He was 79.

Patterson, who was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 1996 by Bret “Hitman” Hart, was the first-ever Intercontinental Champion. Later, Patterson created the popular Royal Rumble Match.

“WWE is saddened to learn that Pat Patterson has passed away at the age of 79,” the organization said in a statement. “WWE extends its condolences to Patterson’s family and friends.”

Patterson was a cast member on 2014 reality TV series “WWE Legends’ House.”

Patterson, born Pierre Clermont in 1941, published a memoir in 2016 titled “Accepted: How the First Gay Superstar Changed WWE.” And boy did he change WWE.

After effectively retiring from actually wrestling, Patterson provided commentary for the WWE/WWF and produced matches for other wrestlers. Patterson could often be found manning the all-important “Gorilla Position” backstage. “Gorilla,” named after WWF legend Gorilla Monsoon,...

To condense the career of Jim Ross into a single article isn’t easy. The man has been the voice of pro-wrestling for so many of us for such a long time, it’s hard to truly highlight how much he means on an emotional level, but also… he’s done so much in the business too, as an announcer at ringside, but also behind the scenes, working with talent and even assembling one of the most stacked and incredible pro-wrestling rosters in history. Still, I’m a glutton for punishment, so I’ll at least try to talk about his career, highlighting some of the, well… highlights, whilst also urging you to check out Jim Ross’s books, Slobberknocker and Under the Black Hat, for an in-depth and entertaining glimpse into the life and career of the man himself.

Jim Ross started his life in Fort Bragg, California, but...

Vince McMahon has a lot of negative qualities to him. He’s an egomaniacal, out-of-touch, petty sociopath who will chase people around the workplace with soiled underwear on a stick. Despite being an eccentric psycho, Vince still has his positives. One of them is how whenever WrestleMania comes by, he tends to treat the roster like Ebenezer Scrooge treats people on Christmas Day. WrestleMania is the biggest payday of the year and it’s a show where they try to get as many people on as possible so that even some of the lowest-ranking folks can earn some big money.

It can take many forms, from ten-man tag matches, Fatal 4-Ways, Money in the Bank, or even just tossing in a bunch of pointless singles matches featuring guys who aren’t even feuding. The most tried and true way to get a bunch of wrestlers on the show with little effort is a battle royal.

Gavin Jasper Apr 4, 2019

Since the second WrestleMania, the show has been home to many over-the-top-rope free-for-alls featuring giants and football players.

Vince McMahon has a lot of negative qualities to him. He’s an egomaniacal, out-of-touch, petty sociopath who will chase people around the workplace with soiled underwear on a stick. Despite being an eccentric psycho, Vince still has his positives. One of them is how whenever WrestleMania comes by, he tends to treat the roster like Ebenezer Scrooge treats people on Christmas Day. WrestleMania is the biggest payday of the year and it’s a show where they try to get as many people on as possible so that even some of the lowest-ranking folks can earn some big money.

It can take many forms, from ten-man tag matches, Fatal 4-Ways, Money in the Bank, or even just tossing in a bunch of pointless singles matches featuring guys who aren’t even feuding.

It’s that time of year again. Wrestlemania is soon upon us. This event has become the most important event in professional wrestling, showcasing the best of the best of the sport putting on the show of their lives. With Wrestlemania appearing this Sunday on the WWE Network, I thought I’d take the time to discuss my ten favorite Wrestlemania matches, matches that to me epitomize everything that is great about the event. Like any list, it is purely subjective so if you disagree with anything or feel I left something out, let’s discuss it in the comments below.

Hulk Hogan vs Andre the Giant- Wrestlemania 3

“The irresistible force meeting the immovable object!”

Without Wrestlemania 3, it’s possible that Wrestlemania could have gone the way of Starrcade. The first two Wrestlemania’s, while star studded and showing some glimpses of what the event eventually became, were more events of their time.

While he’s no Mean Gene Okerlund or Gorilla Monsoon, had The Rock not gone on to Hollywood superstardom he might have had a rewarding career as a WWE ring announcer. Dwayne Johnson demonstrated that on his new YouTube channel for a new bit called “The Rock Reacts,” and for the inaugural video his team dug up his […]...

WWE.com

Since the past is always destined to repeat itself (especially in WWE), maybe the annals of history can rescue the show from the slump its labouring through? It’s got to be worth a try, anyway.

You can almost set your watch by WWE at this time of year: with a long, slow build to the Royal Rumble we get TLC, the Slammys and the pre-recorded silliness of Tribute To The Troops. And a hastily cobbled-together Best Of Raw show if you’re in the UK. So maybe this isn’t the best week for learning any lessons: but at least it represents an opportunity to celebrate the odd festive spirit that overcomes WWE every year.

Like children high on too much festive candy, Christmas usually brings out the stupidest in WWE creatives. So maybe expect there to be a lot of Santa getting beaten up mixed in...

WWE.com

The art of the pro wrestling announcer has changed incredibly over the years. Previously, commentators were there solely to call the action, much like those announcing on real-life sports do. As things progressed, the people behind the microphone had a responsibility to sell stories to the viewing public, enabling them to to emotionally invest in the matches and characters they were supposed to.

Now, wrestling announcers often have to multi-task like crazy. It’s not uncommon for a pro wrestling commentary team to go from shilling a sponsor’s product, then quickly follow that up with some social media updates, all before finally focusing on the match people are about to see presented. It’s a job which requires supreme sharpness, and an uncanny ability to think on one’s feet.

Throughout history, there have been many excellent announcers. From the more obvious choices, such as Gorilla Monsoon,...

WWE.com

It only makes perfect sense that pro wrestling would take influence from the real world. The grappling industry has been aping subjects outside of the entertainment bubble since forever. Going as far back as the 1950’s, foreign characters were treated like sneaky, evil menaces, for example.

Even into the 1980’s, this was still the attitude, and there’s an argument to be made for it still being the case today. That phrase Gorilla Monsoon used to utter, ‘He Pearl Harboured him!’, was evidence wrestling still thought that was the way to sell bad guys. Of course, Monsoon was referencing the events of 1941, when Japanese armed forces launched a surprise attack on the Us Naval Base, and using it to sell a heel wrestler attacking a baby face from behind.

It doesn’t stop there, numerous wrestling characters have been greatly inspired by the real world. That’s the...

WWE.com

Over the years, many an in-ring performer has made the transition to becoming a wrestling commentator or analyst.

To name a few; Gorilla Monsoon, Lord Alfred Hayes, Jesse Ventura, Jerry Lawler, Tazz, Booker T and Jbl are just some of the names to have had prolonged spells behind the desk after their in-ring days came to an end. Then there’s others such as Roddy Piper, Dusty Rhodes, Mr. Perfect and Ted Dibiase who have had shorter runs calling the action.

The use of such names to talk viewers through the action playing out on their screens has always brought a certain sense of credibility and legitimacy to the action. After all, these guys have supposedly been there and done it themselves, so who better to comment on what’s playing out in the squared circle?

To be a great, memorable commentator one needs to obviously be good on the mic,...

WWE.com

For years, President Jack Tunney ruled over WWE storylines with an iron fist, not always making decisions that were met with open arms by fans, but decisions that were made in the best interest of the promotion. When Gorilla Monsoon replaced Tunney, he became the first real authority figure to experience increased television exposure. He stood up in the face of defiant villains such as Jim Cornette and Vader and even found himself on the receiving end of a vicious assault at the hands of the massive Coloradan.

It was not until Roddy Piper was named interim president and waged war with Goldust at WrestleMania 12 that the authority figure became an integral part of WWE television. Sgt. Slaughter followed suit, becoming commissioner in the summer of 1997 and engaging a relatively young Hunter Hearst Helmsley in a war that quickly became personal. Their Boot Camp match at the December pay-per-view,...

WWE.com

Jim Ross is one of the most beloved people in the history of World Wrestling Entertainment. It’s why you can go on the internet, type his name in and find some crazy videos of people inserting Jr’s announcing calls over ridiculous clips that have nothing to do with wrestling. Of course, he had plenty of great moments in wrestling. He had a voice that WWE fans from 1993 until the late 2000s are going to remember forever.

To a lot of wrestling fans, Ross is the best play by play announcer in the history of the business. While other names come up like Gordon Solie, Lance Russell or Gorilla Monsoon, it’s Ross that most fans love the most. From moments like yelling “Stone Cold” at the top of his lungs to saying “Good God almighty he’s broken in half” when Mankind fell off the cage,...

It’s typical that coming off one of the greatest WrestleMania finales in history, the wrestling world would have to deal with a sharp comedown — and a jolting dose of heartbreak. Jim Hellwig, the man known to wrestling fans the world over as the Ultimate Warrior (and who legally changed his name to Warrior at one point) passed away last night while traveling in Arizona. He was 54 years old.

Though the Ultimate Warrior didn’t have a very long run at the top in professional wrestling, his performances left an indelible mark on fans. As explained by Bobby “The Brain...

Copyright: WWE WrestleMania Xiv Blu-ray

WrestleMania is fast approaching and superstars will be making plans to impress on the big stage. Everyone that makes it to the Superbowl of wrestling enters with the mission of stealing the show and leaving an impression on the viewer.

Some have made a career of it, whether it be ‘Mr WrestleMania’ Shawn Michaels and his tendency to have the best match of the night or making audiences believe in The Undertaker’s undefeated streak coming to an end or someone trying to steal the spotlight in a multiman match (such as this year’s Battle Royal), there isn’t a single performer who isn’t trying to demand attention.

There is no better way to grab the audiences attention than to do so from the moment a superstar steps through the curtain. This list takes a look back at the best WrestleMania entrances in its 29 year history.

WWE.com

Throughout the thirty year history of WrestleMania, no Superstar has encapsulated the importance and spectacle of the event more than The Undertaker.

Debuting at WrestleMania VII in March of 1991, the man the late Gorilla Monsoon referred to as “the Phenom” has taken on major Superstars from three generations en route to amassing an unheard of 21-0 undefeated streak. Former champions, icons of the squared circle, make up the Dead Man’s unblemished resume at the Showcase of the Immortals. Every year a new Superstar steps up to the plate, promising to do what no one else has and every year, they fall just short on the grandest stage the sports-entertainment industry has to offer.

Some of the matches Undertaker has competed in at the biggest show of the year have gone down as some of the best in WrestleMania. Others suffered from poor opposition, weak chemistry or injuries.

Gavin Jasper Jan 10, 2020

Some wrestlers only get one shot at the big time. Here are the Royal Rumble competitors who made the best of it...and those who didn't.

There’s something truly special about the Royal Rumble. It’s creative and filled with so many possibilities. Well, not always possibilities. There are certain years where the winner is so set in stone that even a child can find it obvious a month in advance. Yet they still rule because once every year, WWE puts on a wrestling party. A bunch of the roster will take part in one match and we get to see a snapshot of the company.

Older Royal Rumbles are like a class photo or a time capsule that best represent the year or even era and one thing that really magnifies what the Royal Rumble is all about is the one-timer. The kind of wrestler...

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Booker_t.jpg

“Be not afraid of greatness,” the Bard tells us. “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon ‘em.” It’s a maxim as true in professional wrestling as it was on Shakespeare’s stage. Not everyone gets to be the main attraction, though.

Sung or unsung, the wrestlers on this list had just as much charisma and in-ring ability as their more well-known counterparts, and often put many main eventers to shame. Some were held back by the tastes of fans and promoters. Others caved to their own excesses. All played a critical role in making wrestling the modern spectacle it is today.

15. Marty Jannetty

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Rockers_-_Michaels_and_Jannetty.jpg

As the Midnight Rockers, Marty Jannetty and Shawn Michaels were a two-man wrestling machine. By the time they hit the WWF in 1988, the team,...

When many people think of the great WrestleManias, a select number of events tend to pop up in the mind of most fans. WrestleMania X7 is probably the best WrestleMania of all time and a candidate for the best American wrestling PPV of all time. WrestleMania III is up there thanks to the spectacle of the Silverdome and a rather great event overall. That’s fine and dandy, but I’m going to throw a different WrestleMania into the mix. WrestleMania VII may be the best WrestleMania that nobody talks about.

First, let’s address the elephant in the room and one of the main reasons that most fans tend to shy away from WrestleMania: Gulfsploitation. I don’t even know if that is a word, but that is probably the best name for it. Taking Sgt. Slaughter who at that point had been portrayed as an American hero...

Michael Cole. The hatred I possess for this man knows no bounds and continues to grow with every week he is on air. May the powers that be prevent me from taking control of a nuclear arsenal in the near future. Because at that rate, I should be just about ready to nuke the entire planet and commit mass genocide of the human race just to get his nasal, whiny little voice off the airwaves for good.

As a child, teen and a man in his 20s I have grown up with the ever changing face of the WWE broadcast team and enjoyed wonderful, entertaining and riveting banter from the likes of Jesse “the Body” Ventura, Lord Alfred Hayes (a personal favourite), Bobby “the Brain” Heenan, Gorilla Monsoon, the “Macho Man” Randy Savage, “Mean” Gene Okerlund, Jim Ross, Jerry “the King” Lawler, Paul Heyman, Joey Styles and even the man himself,...

Over the SummerSlam weekend I was in La for the pay per view event along with SummerSlam Axxess where 2K Games officially announced the roster for the 30 Years of WrestleMania mode. The storyline mode will take players through many of the greatest matches, rivalries and WrestleMania moments from history. As part of the weekend there was a special presentation from 2KGames which highlighted the game and allowed members of the press to give the game a test drive in anticipation of its release.

Undoubtedly the highlight of the game is the chance to relive some of the most iconic wrestling matches in history, and whilst a complete list of available matches available in the mode has yet to be revealed a good selection of classics has already been shown off to be in the game. At the presentation we were shown in depth footage of matches including Hulk Hogan against...

Sometimes in life good and bad things come in threes. Luckily for us this week, WWE has been on the good side of things with programming and the trend continued into the Main Event and Nxt. Let’s begin with the Main Event from my old stomping ground of Dayton, Ohio and the Nutter Center.

The number three is quite prevalent at the beginning of the show. Not only is our opening the featured contest a six tag but we have the return of the three-man booth. Let me discuss that for a minute, I thought the pairing of Cody Rhodes, the Miz and in Matthews worked well together. This trio had great chemistry and gave great insight to the matches. Further showing that commentary so is important to the overall aesthetic to the product and how it’s sometimes a detriment in the wrong context.

Action begins as the...

We can say what many from Bruno Sammartino’s era, whether it be fans or performers, can not – we were there when Bruno Sammartino was finally inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, and one of the most charred bridges in WWE history began its recovery. The night before WrestleMania, we will witness history.

It is a war that waged on for literally decades. Bruno Sammartino and Vince McMahon have traded insults in several formats, through radio interviews, television appearances, books, journalistic editorials, you name it Bruno and McMahon played it. Bruno was commonly on the attack, with McMahon reserving criticism and attempting to keep the peace.

Throughout the late nineties Sammartino, the longest reigning WWE Champion of all-time, heavily criticized the organization, its officials and the product for “selling out,” and abandoning what had made it so great during his era. He has repeatedly called the WWE product vulgar,...

It’s November 1990 at the WWF’s marquee event Survivor Series. During a traditional Survivor Series match, Million Dollar Man Ted Dibiase introduces us to his mystery partner for the bout. A bell of foreboding tolls in the arena, the crowd goes eerily quite. Out walks a man, wearing all black with an all black morticians hat hiding his grim features. Slowly removing his long brimmed hat, a face of pure hatred and anger greets the camera. The camera seemed nervous to linger on him too long, as we saw glimpses of crowd members worried faces. Gorilla Monsoon couldn’t help shouting about how big and scary this monster was, taken aback by the sheer terror emanating form this beast hailing from Death Valley. Everyone was in awe of him. In the first minutes of the match he destroyed Koko B Ware and Dusty Rhodes like a giant would crush children.

Remember when the late great WWF commentator Gorilla Monsoon used to comment on a wrestler’s haircut by saying “It’s a great haircut if you’e going to the electric chair”? It used to make us laugh as a kid but when you actually look back over the years the wrestling industry really has had some of the worst hair styles and cuts you’ve ever seen, and no one except a pro wrestler could ever really get away with it.

Sadly, one of the biggest news stories of the day is that WWE COO and former World Champion Triple H has cut off his mighty main. Rather than waste our readers time on such a trivial news piece we decided to instead bring you 5 of the worst decisions in the history of hair.

That’s right, this is the What Culture list of the 5 Worst Haircuts In Wrestling History.

Tonight is something of a television milestone, as WWE Raw will celebrate episode number 1,000. How do you celebrate such an incredible feat? By inviting basically everybody who has ever been on the program and cram in nearly 20 years of wrestling history, of course.

The guest list this evening includes former champions and crossover stars like Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Mick Foley, and Brock Lesnar, as well as pro wresting legends from previous generations (Roddy Piper, Bret Hart, Mae Young, Sgt. Slaughter, Vader, Bob Backlund, and Road Warrior Animal among them). There’s also a ton of other stuff planned, like...

As you may have noticed recently, the WWE and Owf have joined forces to create a heavy-weight tag-team the likes of which hasn’t been seen since The Natural Disasters burst onto the professional brawling scene in 1991.

The latest title we have the pleasure of reviewing is WWE – Top 50 Superstars of All Time, which is available to buy from today on DVD. And by the beard of Macho Man Randy Savage it’s a good ‘un.

The format is as simple as it is familiar in these list compilations: teaming up archive footage with talking head evaluations of each of the top fifty superstars, with an extended dedication to each of the top five choices, WWE Top 50 Superstars of All Time may not be the definitive list- as it is necessarily as subjective as all of these list features will always be- but it is certainly a well put together,...