What’s the story?
Triple H will be sending tennis legend Serena Williams a custom championship title belt on behalf of the WWE, after the American pro defeated her sister Venus Williams to win the Australian Open for the seventh time.
In case you didn’t know...
Since changing the design of the WWE Championship in 2013, the company has made a habit of getting their brand out into the world of popular culture by sending customised belts to various sports organisations and players after major wins.
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They recently sent belts to the World Series Champions Chicago Cubs after the club ended their 108-year drought.
With this victory, Williams cements her position as the greatest champion in the history of the Open era (beginning in 1968) in tennis, both male and female. In total, she has won seven Australian Opens, seven Wimbledons, three French Opens, and six US Opens since her first win in 1999.
This was the ninth time Serena has clashed with her older sister Venus in the finals of an Open tournament, and the seventh time she has come away victorious.
The heart of the story
As seen in the photo below, WWE executive and long-time star Triple H sent 35-year-old tennis icon Serena Williams a custom WWE Championship belt to commemorate her victory in the Australian Open.
The belt features customised plates with the names of the four global Grand Slam tournaments, as well as the title of “23-Time Grand Slam Champion”.
What's next?
With WWE heading towards WrestleMania in April, this will likely not be the last time you see the championship around the waist of a non-wrestling sports champion. The next obvious choice would be the winner of Super Bowl LI on February 5, when the New England Patriots take on the Atlanta Falcons.
WWE has already capitalised on the popularity of the NFL's biggest annual event with the upcoming WWE Championship match between John Cena, a Massachusetts native, taking on AJ Styles, who is from Georgia.
Sportskeeda’s take
Serena Williams is a Tennis legend, and will definitely go down as being one of the all-time greatest in her sport.
Sending WWE titles to famous stars right at the height of their popularity, following a major win where they're generating huge mainstream media buzz, is a brilliant move for the company, as far as marketing is concerned.
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