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WWE's reintroduction of the World Heavyweight Championship has divided fans across the globe. Some are happy to see the iconic title return, while others are seemingly horrified by the new belt design. AEW personality Mark Henry recently shared his thoughts about the promotion's new top prize.
The World's Strongest Man is a former World Heavyweight Champion in his own right. Henry won the Big Gold belt in 2011 during his legendary "Hall of Pain" run.
On a recent episode of the Busted Open Radio podcast, Henry said that he loves the new belt design and commented on how he would like to see the title presented on television:
“It just brought back a lot of fond memories, and I'm glad to see it back. I don't want it to become an incarnation of the 24/7 title (...) If you challenge [for] that belt, I want it to be defended. You can make it a TV spectacle. Every week, we could have a championship entrance [and] a championship match. It would be awesome." [H/T Wrestling Inc.]
It was announced on RAW that a new World Heavyweight Champion would be determined at the Night Of Champions event. Meanwhile, Roman Reigns will continue to hold the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship on whichever brand he ends up on after the upcoming Draft.
The history of WWE's 24/7 Championship
Mark Henry's worries about the new top prize in WWE being treated like the 24/7 Championship are definitely warranted. For the most part, the belt, now synonymous with the likes of R-Truth and Drake Maverick, was treated as nothing more than a comedic prop.
The 24/7 Championship was unveiled in 2019 by Mick Foley. Two things immediately stood out about this prize — its unique design and the fact that it could be defended anywhere and anytime.
The promotion officially recognizes 202 separate championship reigns for the title between 57 performers. R-Truth held the belt on over 50 occasions for a total combined time of 400+ days.
The belt was retired in November 2022, with Nikki Cross as its last champion.
