8 WWE Records Broken This Year

2018 has been quite an exciting year for WWE so far. The WWE Universe has witnessed some Big Moments this year. On the positive side, we have seen ex-WWE Superstars returning to WWE, retired Superstars coming out of retirement and various injured Superstars returning to in-ring action. On the negative side, we may have seen the last of some amazingly talented superstars in the ring i.e. Matt Hardy and Jason Jordan.

WWE may have its highs and lows but one thing you can always expect from WWE is that anything can happen in WWE. This unpredictable nature of WWE creates excitement among members of the WWE Universe. Letting Superstars of today break historic records is one of the many ways WWE uses to create excitement. For example, in 2014, WWE had Roman Reigns break Kane's 13-year old Royal Rumble record of most eliminations in a Royal Rumble match (11) after Reigns successfully tossed 12 competitors over the top rope.

2018 has already been a historic year in this regard. Although there are still over 2 months to go, we have already seen many records get broken. The WWE Universe, however, had mixed feelings towards some of the records being broken and that's alright. It's impossible to satisfy everyone at the same time. WWE, on the other hand, continues to make history this year as we are finally getting the first ever All-Women's PPV, the first ever WWE World Cup and a first time ever clash between D-Generation X and The Brothers of Destruction.

So, without wasting any time, let us take a look at 8 WWE records broken so far this year.

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#8 Most Eliminations in a Royal Rumble Match

Kane made history in the 2001 Royal Rumble match when he set a new record of most eliminations in a Royal Rumble match. He eliminated 11 Superstars in that match. His record was broken 13 years later when Roman Reigns eliminated 12 Superstars. However, Roman Reigns' record didn't last as long as Kane's.

This year at The Greatest Royal Rumble event in Saudi Arabia, Braun Strowman entered the first ever 50-man Royal Rumble match and emerged as the winner. Strowman managed to break Reigns' record of most eliminations by eliminating 13 Superstars. Now, many people would argue that it shouldn't count as Strowman didn't break this record in a standard 30-man Royal Rumble match but as it's mentioned on WWE's website, who would argue with the Monster Among Men?

#7 Longest time in a Royal Rumble match

After Eddie Guerrero's death in November 2005, Rey Mysterio was pushed hard by WWE. He even went on to win the following year's Royal Rumble match. However, Mysterio didn't just win the Royal Rumble match in 2006, he also set a record for spending the longest time in a Royal Rumble match. Mysterio entered at #2 and won the match by lasting over 62 minutes.

However, records are made to be broken. At the end of the first ever 50-man Royal Rumble match, not only was the record for most eliminations broken, but also the longevity record was smashed. Daniel Bryan, who entered the match at #1, lasted over 76 minutes. Daniel Bryan didn't end up winning the match, however, as he was eliminated by Big Cass. Bryan's performance was heavily praised as he managed to pull off such an incredible performance just months after being cleared to return to in-ring action.

#6 Longest time spent by a Superstar in a match on Raw:

Ever since arriving in WWE, Seth Rollins has been a part of some exciting feuds and matches. Seth Rollins became the first Superstar to Successfully cash-in his Money in the Bank Contract at Wrestlemania. At Wrestlemania 34, he became a Grand Slam Champion. At Summerslam 2018, Seth Rollins became one of the few Superstars to win the WWE title twice, Tag Titles twice and the Intercontinental title twice.

However, among the many amazing feats achieved by the Kingslayer, one stands out. On the February 19, 2018th edition of Monday Night Raw, Seth Rollins was a part of a 7-man Gauntlet match. Rollins eliminated Roman Reigns in the first bout and Cena in the second bout before being eliminated by Elias in the third bout. Seth Rollins' amazing performance was talked about for days as not only did Rollins put on three amazing matches, but he also managed to make history. Seth Rollins was a part of the Gauntlet match for over 65 minutes, making his performance in the gauntlet match the longest amount of time any Superstar has spent in a match in the history of Raw.

#5 Longest reigning World Champion of the modern era

Brock Lesnar held on to the Universal Championship for over 500 days.

After CM Punk defeated Alberto Del Rio for the WWE title at Survivor Series 2011, he went on to become the longest reigning World Champion of the modern era. CM Punk opened and closed 2012 as the WWE Champion. CM Punk's Championship reign lasted 434 days. During his reign, Punk feuded with Superstars of the past and present like Chris Jericho, The Rock, John Cena, Daniel Bryan etc. After The Rock dethroned CM Punk, it looked like Punk's record wouldn't be broken for a long time.

That wasn't the case, however, as just 5 years later, in 2018, Lesnar broke CM Punk's record. Brock Lesnar won the Universal title at Wrestlemania 33 (2017) and his Championship reign managed to cross the 500-day mark in August 2018. Lesnar reigned as The Universal Champion for 504 days before dropping the Title to Roman Reigns at Summerslam 2018. However, Lesnar's record-breaking reign has been met with mostly negative reactions as Lesnar is a part-timer and didn't have to defend the title as frequently as Punk had to.

#4 Longest reigning World Champion in Smackdown's History

John Bradshaw Layfield defeated Eddie Guerrero at The Great American Bash 2004 to win his first and only WWE Championship. JBL's reign lasted 280 days, making him the longest reigning World Champion exclusive to Smackdown. John Cena's reign in 2005 also lasted 280 days but he was drafted to Raw in June 2005. After the brand split ended in 2011, it looked like JBL's record would never be broken.

However, the brand split was once again announced in 2016. AJ Styles was chosen as Smackdown's second pick and has remained with the Blue Brand since then. Over a year later on 7th November 2017, AJ Styles defeated Jinder Mahal to win his 2nd WWE Championship. In August 2018, AJ Styles' reign crossed the 280-day mark and Styles broke JBL's 14-year old record and became the longest reigning World Champion exclusive to Smackdown. As of October 7th, Styles' reign is in its 334th day and if AJ manages to hold on to the title for a few more months, he might be able to cross Punk's reign too.

#3 Longest match in the History of Raw

There have been some incredible and long matches in the history of Monday Night Raw. You must have seen or at least heard of the 60-minute Iron Man Match in 2004 between Chris Benoit and Triple H or the Stellar match between Shawn Michaels and John Cena in 2007 which lasted over 50 minutes. However, as many other WWE records were broken this year, the record of the longest Raw match was also broken.

The 7-man Gauntlet match on the February 19, 2018th edition of Raw went on to become the longest match in the history of Raw. The match lasted over 1 hour and 46 minutes. Braun Strowman emerged as the winner of the match while Seth Rollins lasted over 65 minutes. Other participants involved were John Cena, Roman Reigns, The Miz, Elias, and Finn Balor.

#2 Longest combined reign as Tag Team Champion

There have been Several Tag Team Champions throughout the history of WWF/WWE. The Tag Team Championships have been held by many teams. Sometimes, a Superstar wins the Tag titles multiple times with different Tag Team Partners. For Example, Seth Rollins has held the Tag Team Championships with Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose and Jason Jordan, making Rollins' reign as a Tag Team Champion longer than his partners'. There are several such Superstars like The Miz, Chris Jericho, Batista etc.

One such Superstar is Kofi Kingston. Kofi Kingston has been a part of WWE for over 10 years. Throughout his career, Kofi has won multiple titles, including multiple tag titles. Kofi has won the Tag titles with CM Punk, Evan Bourne, R-Truth and his New Day team members, Xavier Woods and Big E. Kingston has won the Tag titles 8 times and has recently become the longest reigning Tag Team Champion in the history of WWE. In September 2018, Kofi Kingston's combined reign crossed the 954-day mark, surpassing Billy Gunn's 953 days' reign.

#1 Most Eliminations in an Elimination Chamber Match

As it has been discussed, 2018 has been a historic year so far. This year, we have gotten the first ever 50-man Royal Rumble match, the first-ever All-women's Elimination Chamber etc. Earlier this year, after both Seth Rollins and Finn Balor pinned Bray Wyatt in a last chance Elimination Chamber qualifying match, it was announced that both Rollins and Balor would be entering the match. This decision would result in the first ever 7-man Elimination Chamber taking place.

Although Roman Reigns emerged as the winner, Braun Strowman ended up stealing the show. Braun Strowman eliminated 5 Superstars (Finn Balor, The Miz, Seth Rollins, Elias, and John Cena) and broke the record for most eliminations in an Elimination Chamber match. It's likely that the Elimination Chamber matches from next year would once again start featuring 6 participants, making this record of Braun Strowman almost unbreakable for many years to come.