WWE Undisputed Championship
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The WWE Undisputed Championship was the name of the top championship of World Wrestling Entertainment, a unification of the WWE Championship and the WCW World Heavyweight Championship from December 9, 2001 until September 3, 2002.
History
Chris Jericho first won what was then called the World Championship from The Rock and then immediately thereafter won the WWE championship from Stone Cold Steve Austin, thereby holding both championships, unifying them. Upon Jericho's victory, it was then called the WWF Undisputed Championship.
He lost both belts to Triple H on March 17, 2002 and on April 1, 2002, the belts were replaced by one single one, presented by Ric Flair to Triple H, who had still held the championship. The new belt's design was hevily infulenced by the old WCW World Heavyweight Championship, it was almost entirely gold, and had a name plate for the wrestler who currently held the belt. After Triple H the belt was then won by Hulk Hogan, The Undertaker, The Rock and finally Brock Lesnar, who on August 26, 2002 signed an exclusive contract to appear on the SmackDown! brand only. This led to RAW general manager Eric Bischoff present to Triple H, the newly created, World Heavyweight Championship.
During Hulk Hogan's reign as Undisputed Champion, legal problems caused the company to change its name entirely to World Wrestling Entertainment or WWE, so the championship was renamed to the WWE Undisputed Championship.
The WWE Championship lineage carried straight through from Austin to Lesnar and beyond, but the WCW World Heavyweight Championship lineage stops with Jericho.
List of Undisputed Champions
- Chris Jericho (considered his second World Heavyweight Championship reign and first WWE Championship reigns)
- Triple H (considered his fifth WWE Championship reign)
- Hulk Hogan (considered his sixth WWE Championship reign)
- The Undertaker (considered his fourth WWE Championship reign)
- The Rock (considered his seventh WWE Championship reign)
- Brock Lesnar (considered his first WWE Championship reign, remained as WWE Champion upon the brand extension)