5 long world title reigns that weren't as good as Roman Reigns' current Universal Championship run

Roman Reigns' current Universal Championship run is the best of his 9-year-long WWE career. Roman Reigns' return in 2020 and heel turn shook SmackDown in a big way, changing the landscape of the blue brand.

There's no doubt that Roman Reigns has helped elevate SmackDown and is the best part of WWE television right now. Not only is Roman Reigns' current world title run longer than his previous four combined, but he has also improved more in a year than he did in 4.

We look back at some of the great world title reigns this century and reveal why Roman Reigns' current Universal Championship run is superior.

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#5. Not as good as Roman Reigns' current run: AJ Styles (2017-2018)

AJ Styles was the face of SmackDown from 2016 to 2019

AJ Styles' WWE title reign between 2017-2018 was a history-making run. He won the WWE Championship for the second time against Jinder Mahal on November 7th, 2017 when he defeated Jinder Mahal in Manchester.

He would hold on to the title for 371 days, joining an elite list of legends to have the WWE Championship for a calendar year or more. Other names on the list include Bruno Sammartino, Pedro Morales, Bob Backlund, Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, John Cena, and CM Punk.

It's incredible company to be in, and it happened between AJ Styles' second and third year in WWE. During this title reign, he even surpassed JBL to become the longest-reigning WWE Champion in SmackDown history.

Looking back on the year-long reign, it was a good one. AJ Styles was a legitimate babyface Champion and a breath of fresh air after Jinder Mahal's somewhat controversial WWE title run in 2017.

Both of AJ Styles' WWE Championship runs have been great. The first one lasted 140 days, which doesn't seem like much, but it was. In the first reign, his main adversaries were John Cena and Dean Ambrose, while he also defended the title against other superstars like Dolph Ziggler and Baron Corbin.

That reign was as a heel, and by the end of 2017, Styles was in the midst of another babyface run. But why is Roman Reigns' current Universal title run better? He hasn't caught up to AJ Styles as of this writing, but it seems inevitable that he will surpass it.

Even if it were to end now, the impact that Roman Reigns' current title run has had is far more than what AJ Styles had, even without a crowd. In terms of character work, Roman Reigns has also been the superior World Champion.

AJ Styles undoubtedly had fantastic matches during his year-long title reign, but Roman Reigns' will be remembered as a greater one.

#4. Not as good as Roman Reigns' current run: Batista (2005)

Batista had his WrestleMania moment in 2005, more than 10 years before Roman Reigns

Batista and Roman Reigns crossed paths in 2014 when they were the two final men in the Royal Rumble match. Ironically, Roman Reigns was cheered over Batista, only to get booed out of the building a year later when he won the Royal Rumble match.

Batista's rise to superstardom in 2004-05 was incredible to witness. He was a part of the Evolution faction and his split and subsequent feud with Triple H remains an iconic moment from the WWE Ruthless Aggression Era.

At WrestleMania 21, Batista won the World Heavyweight Championship and held on to the title for the rest of the year - facing the likes of Triple H, JBL, Eddie Guerrero, etc. That was the run that also saw his incredible partnership with Eddie Guerrero.

While the list of opponents may not be as great as several other world title reigns, Batista was a key figure in WWE in 2005, similar to Roman Reigns in recent times. However, the push that Roman Reigns would get belonged to John Cena - a superstar who defied the odds to reach the top.

Batista's first World Heavyweight title reign proved that he was a top-tier star in WWE and he was extremely popular among the fans. The first part of the run took place on RAW while the second happened on Friday Night SmackDown. It ended with Batista vacating the World Heavyweight Championship due to a pectoral tear.

It was perhaps Batista's best world title reign in WWE, but Roman Reigns has had a more dominant and impressive run in 2020-2021.

#3. Not as good as Roman Reigns' current run: Brock Lesnar (2017-2018)

Brock Lesnar was dethroned by Roman Reigns in 2018

Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns have crossed paths numerous times in the past. The first time it happened was in 2015 when the main event of WrestleMania 31 was between Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns.

The second time was three years later at WrestleMania 34. Even before WrestleMania 33 in 2017, it was rumored that the following year's main event would be a rematch between Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar.

That year at WrestleMania 33, Brock Lesnar finally defeated Goldberg to win the Universal Championship, while Roman Reigns defeated The Undertaker in the main event. It would kickstart Brock Lesnar's lengthy run as the Universal Champion while WWE tried to build Roman Reigns once more to get his coronation.

Brock Lesnar was as dominant and legitimate as a World Champion can get, but his lack of appearances caused a problem. It was only once every few months that fans got to see Brock Lesnar defend the Universal title, though he did have some incredible matches in that tenure.

Perhaps the two most memorable matches in that run were his Fatal-4-Way title defense at SummerSlam and his Champion vs Champion match against AJ Styles. Shockingly, Brock Lesnar defeated Roman Reigns in the main event of WrestleMania 34 in what fans thought would be a guaranteed coronation.

Instead, they crossed paths again in Saudi Arabia and met later at SummerSlam 2018 - where Roman Reigns finally defeated Lesnar to end his 503-day Universal title reign.

Brock Lesnar's title reign could have been greater, but it felt longer than it needed to. The lack of title defenses makes Roman Reigns' current run far superior.

#2. Not as good as Roman Reigns' current run: JBL (2004-05)

How does JBL's WWE title run compare to Roman Reigns' Universal title run?

JBL's 2005 WWE title reign can be described in a way that Roman Reigns' current run can't - underrated. Perhaps because it was the only WWE title reign of his career, JBL's 2004-05 run doesn't get nearly enough credit.

Roman Reigns is the most dominant heel in WWE and for a while, JBL was the most annoying one. The circumstances of Brock Lesnar's departure and Kurt Angle's unavailability meant there was a vacant spot for the top heel of SmackDown.

The spot that Roman Reigns has now on SmackDown belonged to JBL more than 17 years ago. He dethroned the popular Eddie Guerrero to win the WWE Championship and would embark on a 280-day reign.

During that time, "The Cabinet" faction proved to be an important force for JBL as they were his insurance policy on many occasions. Roman Reigns, on the other hand, had Jey Uso do his dirty work.

Even still, JBL's run between 2004-05 saw him defend the WWE title against the likes of The Undertaker, Eddie Guerrero, Booker T, Big Show, and Kurt Angle, among others. The man he would lose the title to would be Roman Reigns' future adversary (and apparent predecessor) John Cena.

JBL's run was incredible, but it was a bit different since he was a cowardly heel Champion while Roman Reigns has been a dominant one. JBL undoubtedly benefited from the lack of top heels on SmackDown, while Roman Reigns looks like he was meant and bred for it.

#1. Not as good as Roman Reigns' current Universal title run: CM Punk (2011-13)

CM Punk praised Roman Reigns recently

This might be a bit controversial - comparing CM Punk's 434-day WWE title reign to Roman Reigns' current run. However, there is an argument to support it. CM Punk currently considers Roman Reigns to be the best part about WWE television, so it would be interesting to hear his perspective on both title reigns.

CM Punk's incredible year in 2011 culminated at Survivor Series when he defeated Alberto Del Rio to kickstart his history-making WWE title reign. It was an incredible feat to see CM Punk dominate the main event scene for so long, but there was one big problem - he was always overshadowed by John Cena.

During his entire title reign, John Cena had more pay-per-view main events than him. CM Punk was constantly relegated off the main event during his WWE Championship run. Even when he had classics with Daniel Bryan on pay-per-view, it wasn't enough to get the main event spot.

This is why Roman Reigns' current Universal title reign feels more important. CM Punk's run as WWE Champion will always be remembered, but it isn't the best lengthy World title run by any means. With Roman Reigns, there seems to be a rule - either he opens a pay-per-view or, in most cases, headlines it.

Perhaps it was CM Punk's bad luck since WWE was already building to The Rock vs John Cena at WrestleMania 28. This isn't to say that CM Punk's title reign was bad. Looking back, many would argue that it was still a big success.