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WWE and its superstars continuously strive to provide fans with the best entertainment. In doing so, the company continues to push boundaries and break records.
Several interesting records were broken during the last year, with Randy Orton, Natalya, and SummerSlam breaking a few records in 2021. Similarly, the first half of 2022 has also seen several records get shattered. This allowed the company to continue making headlines and entertaining fans.
With that being said, let's check out five incredible records broken by the company and its superstars in 2022.
#5 The company’s ticket preregistration record was broken in 2022
Earlier this year, it was announced that the company would return to the United Kingdom for a major Premium Live Event for the first time since SummerSlam 1992. Former WWE Champion Drew McIntyre worked hard to hype up the show before its announcement, and the fans couldn’t contain their excitement.
After the show at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff was announced, fans started pre-registering for the show. According to Alex McCarthy of TalkSport, more than 59,000 fans have already pre-registered for tickets, the most of any event in history for the company.
“WWE tell me more than 59,000 people pre-registered for tickets for WWE’s UK PPV in Cardiff in the first 24 hours. This marks a new company record for any event - even WrestleMania! The UK is gonna go off” Alex McCarthy tweeted.
A new overseas attendance record will likely be set when the show takes place at the Principality Stadium. It will give WWE all the more reasons to return to the country again.
#4 WrestleMania 38 set new social media records for WWE
WrestleMania 38 took place over two nights and hosted some huge matches. The show's biggest match saw Roman Reigns defeat Brock Lesnar to become the first-ever Undisputed WWE Universal Champion.
Apart from that, Cody Rhodes made his return to the company and defeated Seth Rollins. Bianca Belair also bagged her second consecutive championship victory at WrestleMania. Vince McMahon and “Stone Cold” Steve Austin also made their returns to the ring for matches during the show.
The show got fans talking on social media, so much that several records were broken by the end of the second night of the Premium Live Event. WWE managed to set the following records during the two-night event:
- Record 1.1 Billion Views across Facebook, Instagram, Snap, TikTok, and Twitter.
- Record 785 Million Minutes or 13 Million Hours of video consumed on social media.
- Record 2.2 Billion Impressions on social media.
That’s not all. WWE also saw the company’s two highest engaged posts in history during WrestleMania weekend. Cody Rhodes’ return generated 500,000 engagements, while Pat McAfee’s matches against Austin Theory and Mr. McMahon surpassed the 450,000 mark.
The Show of Shows helped the company surpass the social media impressions record set by Super Bowl 56. The numbers prove that the company still has a strong grip over its fans.
#3 WrestleMania 38 broke attendance and revenue records
WWE has frequently put on some of the biggest events the world has ever seen. WrestleMania Premium Live Events are usually earth-shattering and break a few records each year.
This year, WrestleMania 38 set a new attendance record for the company. The event was attended by 56,352 fans from all 50 states and 53 countries in the AT&T Stadium in Dallas over the course of two exciting nights, surpassing the previous records set by WrestleMania 32 in 2016.
The company’s new interim CEO and Chairwoman Stephanie McMahon expressed her joy at seeing the event become a huge success after it was all done.
“This event hit all my emotions. I laughed, I cried, I cheered, I yelled until my voice was gone. I loved every second of this and it’s why I’ve loved WWE for over 20 years.”
That’s not all, as this year’s Show of Shows also generated the highest amount of revenue for the company. The highest-grossing and most-attended show in WWE’s history helped the company make headlines in the first half of 2022.
The new two-night schedule of WrestleMania events will help the company break several more records in the years to come.
#2 Brock Lesnar broke two records at the 2022 Royal Rumble
Brock Lesnar had a great first half of 2022. He featured in the first Premium Live Event of the year and won the WWE Championship. The Beast Incarnate stayed on top of the RAW brand and ignited a rivalry with Bobby Lashley.
At the 2022 Royal Rumble, Lesnar lost his title to Lashley thanks to interference from Roman Reigns. Later in the night, The Beast Incarnate shocked fans by entering the Royal Rumble match at Number 30.
He quickly eliminated four superstars before taking out Drew McIntyre last to win the match. As per Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Lesnar set the following two records during the 30-man elimination match.
- The longest time between winning the match twice - 19 years
- The least time spent in the ring to win the match - 2 minutes and 32 seconds.
Not only did Lesnar get his revenge on McIntyre and get a world title match, but he also set two new records for the company. The Beast Incarnate won the championship back in the weeks that followed and went on to challenge Roman Reigns to a title unification match at WrestleMania 38.
#1 Brock Lesnar broke Hulk hogan’s long-standing record at Day 1
WWE has relied on Brock Lesnar’s star power for decades to make an impact on its fans. The Beast Incarnate returned on the June 17, 2022, episode of SmackDown to once again reignite his rivalry against Roman Reigns.
Earlier in the year, Lesnar broke another record in the company. As mentioned earlier, Lesnar won the WWE Championship at the Day 1 Premium Live Event. He was originally set to face Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship, but plans changed after the latter tested positive for COVID-19.
The Beast Incarnate took down Big E, Bobby Lashley, Seth Rollins, and Kevin Owens in a Fatal-5 Way match to win the title at the show. By doing so, he became the superstar with the longest time between his first WWE Title reign and his last.
Brock won his first title at SummerSlam in 2002 where he defeated The Rock. The gap between his two title victories is 19 years. The record was previously held by Hulk Hogan, who had an 18-year gap between his first title win in 1984 and his final one in 2002.
