The ROH World Championship or Ring of Honor World Championship is the biggest prize for a male superstar on the ROH roster. The belt was created in 2002. After AEW purchased ROH, the title has also been defended on AEW programs since 2022. The current ROH World Champion is Mark Briscoe, who is in his first reign with the title.
Who is the current ROH World Champion
Mark Briscoe is the current ROH World Champion in his first reign with the title. Born on January 18, 1985, Briscoe is known for his hardcore wrestling style. Besides AEW and ROH, Briscoe made a name for himself working for promotions such as Combat Zone Wrestling, Jersey All-Pro Wrestling, Ring of Honor, and New Japan Pro-Wrestling. He competed against the former ROH World Titleholder Eddie Kingston and defeated him by a Jay Driller to win the ROH World Championship for the first time in his career.
ROH World Championship Belt Design
ROH World Championship has gone through various belt modifications over the two decades of its history. While it has been gold-centered and gold-plated for many years, its current design is very similar to that of its original design. It is silver in color, with ROH World Wrestling Champion embedded in the middle of it.
The side plates of the belt depict a wrestler performing the Jay Driller maneuver. It pays respect to the late Jay Briscoe. Briscoe passed away in January 2023 and the title pays homage to his unmatched legacy.
ROH World Championship Trivia
| Youngest ROH World Champion | Low Ki (23 years and 324 days old) |
| First ROH World Champion | Low Ki (2002) |
| Most Reigns | Adam Cole - 3 |
| Most Title Defenses | Jay Lethal - 41 |
| Least Title Defenses | Kyle O’Reilly - 0 |
| Longest Title Reign | Samoa Joe - 645 Days |
| Shortest Title Reign | Kyle O’Reilly - 33 Days |
| Longest Combined Reigns | Jay Lethal - 707 Days (2 Reigns) |
| Heaviest Champion | Takeshi Morishima - 320 lbs |
| Lightest Champion | Low Ki - 174 lbs |
| Longer than a year reigns | 5 - Samoa Joe (645), Nigel McGuiness (545), Rush (498), Bryan Danielson (462), Jay Lethal (427). |
ROH World Championship History
Ring of Honor is a pro-wrestling promotion formed on February 23, 2002. It, alongside, Impact Wrestling became a rival to WWE which had just purchased WCW and seemingly created a monopoly in pro wrestling. In June 2002, ROH created a tournament to crown the inaugural ROH World Champion, the final of which took place next month in July. Spanky, Christopher Daniels, Low Ki, and Doug Williams competed in a sixty-minute Iron Man match which Low Ki won.
The next year, Samoa Joe won the ROH World Championship for the first time and went on to hold it for 645 days, a record that still persists. Over the next years, stars like Bryan Danielson, CM Punk, Tyler Black (Seth Rollins), Kevin Steen (Kevin Owens), Adam Cole, Cody Rhodes, and others went on to win the prestigious title.
List of all ROH World Champions
| Champion | Event | Date | Reign | Days |
| Low Ki | Crowning a Champion | 27-Jul-02 | 1 | 56 |
| Xavier | Unscripted | 21-Sep-02 | 1 | 182 |
| Samoa Joe | Night of Champions | 22-Mar-03 | 1 | 645 |
| Austin Aries | Final Battle | 26-Dec-04 | 1 | 174 |
| CM Punk | Death Before Dishonor III | 18-Jun-05 | 1 | 55 |
| James Gibson | Redemption | 12-Aug-05 | 1 | 36 |
| Bryan Danielson | Glory by Honor IV | 17-Sep-05 | 1 | 462 |
| Homicide | Final Battle | 23-Dec-06 | 1 | 56 |
| Takeshi Morishima | The Fifth Year Festival: Philadelphia | 17-Feb-07 | 1 | 231 |
| Nigel McGuinness | Undeniable | 6-Oct-07 | 1 | 545 |
| Jerry Lynn | Supercard of Honor IV | 3-Apr-09 | 1 | 71 |
| Austin Aries | Manhattan Mayhem III | 13-Jun-09 | 2 | 245 |
| Tyler Black | ROH 8th Anniversary Show | 13-Feb-10 | 1 | 210 |
| Roderick Strong | Glory By Honor IX | 11-Sep-10 | 1 | 189 |
| Eddie Edwards | Manhattan Mayhem IV | 19-Mar-11 | 1 | 99 |
| Davey Richards | Best in the World | 26-Jun-11 | 1 | 321 |
| Kevin Steen | Border Wars | 12-May-12 | 1 | 328 |
| Jay Briscoe | Supercard of Honor VII | 5-Apr-13 | 1 | 89 |
| Vacated | — | 3-Jul-13 | — | — |
| Adam Cole | Death Before Dishonor XI | 20-Sep-13 | 1 | 275 |
| Michael Elgin | Best in the World | 22-Jun-14 | 1 | 76 |
| Jay Briscoe | All Star Extravaganza VI | 6-Sep-14 | 2 | 286 |
| Jay Lethal | Best in the World | 19-Jun-15 | 1 | 427 |
| Adam Cole | Death Before Dishonor XIV | 19-Aug-16 | 2 | 105 |
| Kyle O'Reilly | Final Battle | 2-Dec-16 | 1 | 33 |
| Adam Cole | Wrestle Kingdom 11 | 4-Jan-17 | 3 | 65 |
| Christopher Daniels | ROH 15th Anniversary Show | 10-Mar-17 | 1 | 105 |
| Cody | Best in the World | 23-Jun-17 | 1 | 175 |
| Dalton Castle | Final Battle | 15-Dec-17 | 1 | 197 |
| Jay Lethal | Ring of Honor Wrestling | 30-Jun-18 | 2 | 280 |
| Matt Taven | G1 Supercard | 6-Apr-19 | 1 | 174 |
| Rush | Death Before Dishonor XVII | 27-Sep-19 | 1 | 77 |
| PCO | Final Battle | 13-Dec-19 | 1 | 78 |
| Rush | Gateway to Honor | 29-Feb-20 | 2 | 498 |
| Bandido | Best in the World | 11-Jul-21 | 1 | 152 |
| Vacated | — | 10-Dec-21 | — | — |
| Jonathan Gresham | Final Battle | 11-Dec-21 | 1 | 224 |
| Claudio Castagnoli | Death Before Dishonor | 23-Jul-22 | 1 | 60 |
| Chris Jericho | Dynamite: Grand Slam | 21-Sep-22 | 1 | 80 |
| Claudio Castagnoli | Final Battle | 10-Dec-22 | 2 | 284 |
| Eddie Kingston | Dynamite: Grand Slam | 20-Sep-23 | 1 | 198 |
| Mark Briscoe | ROH Supercard of Honor | 05-Apr-2024 | 1 | Current |
FAQs
A. Mark Briscoe is the current ROH World Champion in his first reign with the title.
A. Low Ki was the first-ever ROH World Champion who won the title in a Sixty-Minute Iron Match in 2002.
A. Pakistani-American Billionaire Tony Khan is the current owner of Ring of Honor. He also owns All Elite Wrestling, alongside his father Shahid Khan.
A. Samoa Joe won the ROH World Championship in 2003 and held it for 645 days, which is the most by any wrestler.
A. Tony Khan bought the Ring of Honor in March 2022.
A. The ROH has six titles - the ROH World Championship, ROH Pure Championship, ROH World Television Championship, ROH World Tag Team Championship, ROH Six-Men Tag Team Championship, and the ROH Women’s World Championship.
