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The WWE Championship was first introduced in 1963 when Buddy Rogers became the first-ever champion. His reign lasted a recognized 22 days before he lost to Bruno Sammartino. Sammartino then went on to reign as champion for a record-breaking 2,803 days, which to this day has never been matched.
Since the title's inception, there have been 142 reigns. John Cena holds the most reigns with thirteen WWE Championship wins, followed by Randy Orton, who has ten WWE Title reigns to his name.
But who is the youngest WWE Champion in history?
Brock Lesnar is the youngest superstar to win the WWE Championship. Lesnar won his first championship at the age of 25, defeating The Rock at the SummerSlam pay-per-view in 2002.
Paul Heyman spoke in 2018 about Brock Lesnar and was asked who is the most gifted wrestler he has ever seen:
"Brock Lesnar. And just because I’m biased in my answer doesn’t mean I’m wrong. I’m actually correct: it is Brock Lesnar. If DC and Marvel merged tomorrow and they came to you and said “draw us the ultimate professional wrestler,” that’s what you would draw. 6’ 3”! 265 to 295 pounds, depending on his mood! Can you do a vertical leap of 10’, the 100 yard dash and quarter mile in Olympic qualifying time, one of the strongest human beings on the face of the planet, and bad enough to be an NCAA Division 1 Heavyweight Champion AND a UFC Heavyweight Champion? Yo! And he looks like that!? I mean, come on. You couldn’t draw this better! You couldn’t make this s**t up. And his parents named him Brock Lesnar. The man’s name was made to be said with violence and a sense of majesty. We could have a discussion all day long about how’s number two, but the answer to the question is pretty obvious." Paul Heyman said. (h/t Paste Magazine)
There may be someone, someday, that will beat Brock Lesnar's record as being the youngest ever WWE Champion. For now, we will still marvel at the fact that The Beast Incarnate continues to hold that title.
Outside of the WWE Championship, who is the youngest champion in WWE history?
This one might surprise you, but the youngest champion ever in WWE is then 10-year-old Nicholas. Nicholas was picked from the crowd by Braun Strowman at WrestleMania 34 to be his tag team partner.
The team went on to win the RAW Tag Team Championship at the show of shows. Sadly, Nicholas had to relinquish his half of the championship as he had to return to school. His record of being the youngest titleholder in WWE history will likely never be matched.
What did you think of Brock Lesnar winning the WWE title when he was just 25? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
