The WWE United States Championship, is a professional wrestling championship contested for in and owned by the American promotion WWE. In July 2003, the title was commissioned to be a secondary championship on the SmackDown! brand. Currently it is the secondary championship on Raw.
The championship is generally contested in professional wrestling matches, in which participants execute scripted finishes rather than contend in direct competition. Some reigns were held by champions using a ring name, while others used their real name. The first champion was Eddie Guerrero, who won the championship in 2003. John Cena holds the record for most reigns at five. Dean Ambrose holds the longest reign at 351 days.
Reigns
As of April 19, 2024.
# | Wrestler | Reign | Date | Days held | Defences: | Location | Event | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
|
Eddie Guerrero | 1 | July 27, 2003
|
84 | 2 | Denver, CO | Vengeance 2003 | Defeated Chris Benoit in a tournament final to determine the first champion. |
2
|
The Big Show | 1 | October 19, 2003
|
147 | 1 | Baltimore, MD | No Mercy 2003 | N/A |
3
|
John Cena | 1 | March 14, 2004
|
114 | 0 | New York, NY | WrestleMania XX | N/A |
-
|
Vacated | -
|
July 6, 2004
|
0 | N/A | Winnipeg, MB | SmackDown! | Cena was stripped of the title after attacking SmackDown! general manager Kurt Angle. Aired July 8, 2004. |
4
|
Booker T | 1 | July 27, 2004
|
68 | 0 | Cincinnati, OH | SmackDown! | This was an 8-way elimination match, also involving John Cena, René Duprée, Kenzo Suzuki, Rob Van Dam, Billy Gunn, Charlie Haas and Luther Reigns. Aired July 29, 2004. |
5
|
John Cena | 2 | October 3, 2004
|
2 | 0 | East Rutherford, NJ | No Mercy 2004 | This was the fifth match of a Best of Five series. |
6
|
Carlito Caribbean Cool | 1 | October 5, 2004
|
42 | 1 | Boston, MA | SmackDown! | Aired October 7, 2004. |
7
|
John Cena | 3 | November 16, 2004
|
105 | 0 | Dayton, OH | SmackDown! | Aired November 18, 2004. |
8
|
Orlando Jordan | 1 | March 1, 2005
|
173 | 1 | Albany, NY | SmackDown! | Aired March 3, 2005. |
9
|
Chris Benoit | 1 | August 21, 2005
|
58 | 2 | Washington, D.C. | SummerSlam 2005 | Famously won the match in 25 seconds |
10
|
Booker T | 2 | October 18, 2005
|
35 | 0 | Reno, NV | Friday Night SmackDown! | Aired October 21, 2005. |
-
|
Vacated | -
|
November 22, 2005
|
0 | N/A | Sheffield, England | Friday Night SmackDown! | Vacated when a title defense against Chris Benoit ended in a double pinfall. Aired November 25, 2005. |
11
|
Booker T | 3 | January 10, 2006
|
40 | 0 | Philadelphia, PA | Friday Night SmackDown! | Booker faced Benoit in a Best of Seven series, winning the first three matches; Randy Orton substituted for Booker after that due to injury, losing the next three matches but winning the final. Aired January 13, 2006. |
12
|
Chris Benoit | 2 | February 19, 2006
|
42 | 0 | Baltimore, MD | No Way Out 2006 | N/A |
13
|
John "Bradshaw" Layfield | 1 | April 2, 2006
|
51 | 0 | Chicago, IL | WrestleMania 22 | N/A |
14
|
Bobby Lashley | 1 | May 23, 2006
|
49 | 0 | Bakersfield, CA | SmackDown! | Aired May 26, 2006. |
15
|
Finlay | 1 | July 11, 2006
|
49 | 0 | Minneapolis, MN | SmackDown! | Aired July 14, 2006. |
16
|
Ken Kennedy | 1 | August 29, 2006
|
42 | 0 | Reading, PA | SmackDown! | This was a triple threat match also involving Bobby Lashley, which aired September 1, 2006. |
17
|
Chris Benoit | 3 | October 10, 2006
|
222 | 0 | Jacksonville, FL | SmackDown! | Aired October 13, 2006. |
18
|
Montel Vontavious Porter | 1 | May 20, 2007
|
343 | 1 | St. Louis, MO | Judgment Day 2007 | This was a two out of three falls match, which MVP won 2–0. |
19
|
Matt Hardy | 1 | April 27, 2008
|
84 | 2 | Baltimore, MD | Backlash 2008 | The title became an ECW exclusive title when Hardy was drafted to ECW on June 23, 2008. |
20
|
Shelton Benjamin | 1 | July 20, 2008
|
240 | 2 | Uniondale, NY | The Great American Bash (2008) | The title was returned to SmackDown due to Benjamin's status as a SmackDown superstar. |
21
|
Montel Vontavious Porter | 2 | March 17, 2009
|
76 | 0 | Corpus Christi, TX | SmackDown! | Aired March 20, 2009. The title became a Raw exclusive title when MVP was drafted to Raw on April 13. |
22
|
Kofi Kingston | 1 | June 1, 2009
|
126 | 4 | Birmingham, AL | Raw | N/A |
23
|
The Miz | 1 | October 5, 2009
|
224 | 1 | Wilkes-Barre, PA | Raw | N/A |
24
|
Bret Hart | 1 | May 17, 2010
|
7 | 0 | Toronto, ON | Raw | This was a no disqualification, no count out match. |
-
|
Vacated | -
|
May 24, 2010
|
0 | N/A | Toledo, OH | Raw | Vacated when Bret Hart became General Manager of Raw. |
25
|
R-Truth | 1 | May 24, 2010
|
21 | 0 | Toledo, OH | Raw | Defeated The Miz to win the vacant title. |
26
|
The Miz | 2 | June 14, 2010
|
97 | 1 | Charlotte, NC | Raw | This was a Fatal Four Way match also involving John Morrison and Zack Ryder. |
27
|
Daniel Bryan | 1 | September 19, 2010
|
176 | 2 | Rosemont, IL | Night of Champions 2010 | N/A |
28
|
Sheamus | 1 | March 14, 2011
|
48 | 1 | St. Louis, MO | Monday Night Raw | If Sheamus lost he would've quit the WWE. |
29
|
Kofi Kingston | 2 | May 1, 2011
|
49 | 1 | Tampa, FL | Extreme Rules 2011 | This was a Tables Match |
30
|
Dolph Ziggler | 1 | June 19, 2011
|
182 | 4 | Washington, D.C. | Capitol Punishment 2011 | N/A |
31
|
Zack Ryder | 1 | December 18, 2011
|
29 | 0 | Baltimore, Maryland | TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs 2011 | N/A |
32
|
Jack Swagger | 1 | January 16, 2012
|
49 | 1 | Anaheim, California | Monday Night Raw | N/A |
33
|
Santino Marella | 1 | March 5, 2012
|
167 | 4 | Boston, Massachusetts | Monday Night Raw | N/A |
34 | Antonio Cesaro | 1 | August 19, 2012 | 239 | 14 | Los Angeles, California | SummerSlam 2012 | Match aired live on YouTube and WWE.com as part of the SummerSlam pre-show. |
35 | Kofi Kingston | 3 | April 15, 2013 | 34 | 2 | Greenville, South Carolina | Monday Night Raw | |
36 | Dean Ambrose | 1 | May 19, 2013 | 351 | 15 | St. Louis, Missouri | Extreme Rules 2013 | On April 28, 2014, Ambrose broke Montel Vontavious Porter's previous record of 343 days and became the longest reigning United States Champion under the WWE banner. |
37 | Sheamus | 2 | May 5, 2014 | 182 | 7 | Albany, New York | Monday Night RAW | This was a 20-Man Over-the-top rope Battle Royal. Sheamus lastly eliminated Ambrose to win the match and the title. |
38 | Rusev | 1 | November 3, 2014 | 146 | 6 | Buffalo, New York | Monday Night RAW | This was a bonus match that aired on Raw backstage pass on the WWE Network. |
39 | John Cena | 4 | March 29, 2015 | 147 | 15 | Santa Clara, California | WrestleMania XXXI | Lana giving Cena a Rematch at WrestleMania when Cena put Rusev in the STF for a long time but able to get a victory for USA and bring home the title |
40 | Seth Rollins | 1 | August 23, 2015 | 28 | 1 | Brooklyn, New York | SummerSlam | This was also for Rollins' WWE World Heavyweight Championship. |
41 | John Cena | 5 | September 20, 2015 | 35 | 5 | Houston, Texas | Night of Champions | By getting a rematch by Seth Rollins to prove that Seth can beat Cena once again but losses to Cena and loss the Untied States Championship |
42 | Alberto Del Rio | 1 | October 25, 2015 | 78 | 2 | Los Angeles, California | Hell in a Cell | This was an open challenge match. The title was unofficially renamed the MexAmerica Championship. |
43 | Kalisto | 1 | January 11, 2016 | 1 | 1 | New Orleans, Louisiana | Raw | Kalisto step up to the challenge and prove on his singled debut action not only to defeat Alberto Del Rio but to become the lucha United States champion |
44 | Alberto Del Rio | 2 | January 12, 2016 | 12 | 1 | Lafayette, Louisiana | SmackDown | WWE recognizes Del Rio's reign as lasting 10 days, beginning on January 14, 2016, when the episode aired on tape delay. |
45 | Kalisto | 2 | January 24, 2016 | 119 | 5 | Orlando, Florida | Royal Rumble | |
46 | Rusev | 2 | May 22, 2016 | 126 | 1 | Orlando, Florida | Extreme Rules | The brand extension returned and the title became exclusive to the Raw brand following the 2016 WWE draft.
WWE recognizes Rusev's reign as lasting 127 days. |
47 | Roman Reigns | 1 | September 25, 2016 | 106 | 2 | Indianapolis, Indiana | Clash of Champions 2016 | WWE recognizes Reigns' reign as lasting 107 days |
48 | Chris Jericho | 1 | January 9, 2017 | 83 | New Orleans, Louisiana | Raw | This was a 2–on–1 handicap match, also involving Kevin Owens, who teamed with Jericho. Jericho pinned Roman Reigns to win the title. | |
49 | Kevin Owens | 1 | April 2, 2017 | 28 | Orlando, Florida | WrestleMania 33 | ||
50 | Chris Jericho | 2 | April 30, 2017 | 2 | San Jose, California | Payback 2017 | ||
51 | Kevin Owens | 2 | May 2, 2017 | 66 | Fresno, California | Smackdown | ||
52 | A.J. Styles | 1 | July 7, 2017 | 16 | New York City, New York | House show | ||
53 | Kevin Owens | 3 | July 23, 2017 | 2 | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Battleground 2017 | ||
54 | A.J. Styles | 2 | July 25, 2017 | 75 | Richmond, Virginia | Smackdown | This was a Triple Threat match also involving Chris Jericho. | |
55 | Baron Corbin | 1 | October 8, 2017 | 70 | Detroit, Michigan | Hell in a Cell 2017 | This was a Triple Threat match also involving Tye Dillinger. | |
56 | Dolph Ziggler | 2 | December 17, 2017 | 9 | Boston, Massachusetts | Clash of Champions 2017 | This was a Triple Threat match also involving Bobby Roode. | |
-
|
Vacated | -
|
December 26, 2017 | 0 | N/A | Rosemont, Illinois | Smackdown | Vacated by the decision of General Manager of SmackDown Daniel Bryan after Dolph Ziggler abandoned the title. |
57 | Bobby Roode | 1 | January 16, 2018 | 54 | Laredo, Texas | Smackdown | Defeated Jinder Mahal to win the vacant title. | |
58 | Randy Orton | 1 | March 11, 2018 | 28 | Columbus, Ohio | Fastlane | Defeated Bobby Roode | |
59 | Jinder Mahal | 1 | April 8, 2018 | 8 | New Orleans, Louisiana | WrestleMania 34 | Defeated Randy Orton, Bobby Roode & Rusev | |
60 | Jeff Hardy | 1 | April 16, 2018 | 90 | Hartford, Connecticut | Monday Night Raw | Defeated Jinder Mahal | |
61 | Shinsuke Nakamura | 1 | July 15, 2018 | 156 | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | Extreme Rules | Defeated Jeff Hardy | |
62 | Rusev | 3 | December 18, 2018 | 40 | Fresno, California | SmackDown Live | Aired on December 25, 2018. | |
63 | Shinsuke Nakamura | 2 | January 27, 2019 | 2 | Phoenix, Arizona | Royal Rumble | Defeated Rusev | |
64 | R-Truth | 2 | January 29, 2019 | 35 | Phoenix, Arizona | SmackDown Live | Defeated Shinsuke Nakamura | |
65 | Samoa Joe | 1 | March 5, 2019 | 75 | Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania | SmackDown Live | Defeated R-Truth, Rey Mysterio & Andrade | |
66 | Rey Mysterio | 1 | May 19, 2019 | 15 | Hartford, Connecticut | Money in the Bank (PPV) | Defeated Samoa Joe | |
67 | Samoa Joe | 2 | June 3, 2019 | 20 | Austin, Texas | Raw | Previous champion Rey Mysterio relinquished championship to Samoa Joe due to injury. | |
68 | Ricochet | 1 | June 23, 2019 | 21 | Tacoma, Washington | Stomping Grounds | ||
69 | A.J. Styles | 3 | July 14, 2019 | 1741+ | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Extreme Rules |
List of reign lengths
- As of April 19, 2024.
Wrestler | Days Held | Date Won | Date Lost |
---|---|---|---|
Dean Ambrose | 351 | May 19, 2013 | May 5, 2014 |
Montel Vontavious Porter | 343 | May 20, 2007 | April 27, 2008 |
Shelton Benjamin | 240 | July 20, 2008 | March 17, 2009 |
Antonio Cesaro | 239 | August 19, 2012 | April 15, 2013 |
The Miz | 224 | October 5, 2009 | May 17, 2010 |
Chris Benoit (3) | 222 | October 10, 2006 | May 20, 2007 |
Dolph Ziggler | 182 | June 19, 2011 | December 18, 2011 |
Sheamus (2) | 182 | May 5, 2014 | November 3, 2014 |
Daniel Bryan | 176 | September 19, 2010 | March 14, 2011 |
Orlando Jordan | 173 | March 1, 2005 | August 21, 2005 |
Santino Marella | 167 | March 5, 2012 | August 19, 2012 |
Shinsuke Nakamura | 156 | July 15, 2018 | December 18, 2018 |
The Big Show | 147 | October 19, 2003 | March 14, 2004 |
John Cena (4) | 147 | March 29, 2015 | August 23, 2015 |
Rusev | 146 | November 3, 2014 | March 29, 2015 |
Rusev (2) | 126 | May 22, 2016 | September 25, 2016 |
Kofi Kingston | 126 | June 1, 2009 | October 5, 2009 |
Kalisto (2) | 119 | January 24, 2016 | May 22, 2016 |
John Cena | 114 | March 14, 2004 | July 6, 2004 |
Roman Reigns | 106 | September 25, 2016 | January 9, 2017 |
John Cena (3) | 105 | November 16, 2004 | March 1, 2005 |
The Miz (2) | 97 | June 14, 2010 | September 19, 2010 |
Jeff Hardy | 90 | April 16, 2018 | July 15, 2018 |
Eddie Guerrero | 84 | July 27, 2003 | October 19, 2003 |
Matt Hardy | 84 | April 27, 2008 | July 20, 2008 |
Chris Jericho | 83 | January 9, 2017 | April 2, 2017 |
Alberto Del Rio | 78 | October 25, 2015 | January 11, 2016 |
Montel Vontavious Porter (2) | 76 | March 17, 2009 | June 1, 2009 |
A.J. Styles (2) | 75 | July 25, 2017 | October 8, 2017 |
Samoa Joe | 75 | March 5, 2019 | May 19, 2019 |
Baron Corbin | 70 | October 8, 2017 | December 17, 2017 |
Booker T | 68 | July 27, 2004 | October 3, 2004 |
Kevin Owens (2) | 66 | May 2, 2017 | July 7, 2017 |
A.J. Styles (3) | 1741+ | July 14, 2019 | Current Champion |
Chris Benoit | 58 | August 21, 2005 | October 18, 2005 |
Bobby Roode | 54 | January 16, 2018 | March 11, 2018 |
John "Bradshaw" Layfield | 51 | April 2, 2006 | May 23, 2006 |
Bobby Lashley | 49 | May 23, 2006 | July 11, 2006 |
Finlay | 49 | July 11, 2006 | August 29, 2006 |
Kofi Kingston (2) | 49 | May 1, 2011 | June 19, 2011 |
Jack Swagger | 49 | January 16, 2012 | March 5, 2012 |
Sheamus | 48 | March 14, 2011 | May 1, 2011 |
Mr. Kennedy | 42 | August 29, 2006 | October 10, 2006 |
Carlito Caribbean Cool | 42 | October 5, 2004 | November 16, 2004 |
Chris Benoit (2) | 42 | February 19, 2006 | April 2, 2006 |
Booker T (3) | 40 | January 10, 2006 | February 19, 2006 |
Rusev (3) | 40 | December 18, 2018 | January 27, 2019 |
Booker T (2) | 35 | October 18, 2005 | November 22, 2005 |
John Cena (5) | 35 | September 20, 2015 | October 25, 2015 |
R-Truth (2) | 35 | January 29, 2019 | March 5, 2019 |
Kofi Kingston (3) | 34 | April 15, 2013 | May 19, 2013 |
Zack Ryder | 29 | December 18, 2011 | January 16, 2012 |
Randy Orton | 28 | March 11, 2018 | April 8, 2018 |
Seth Rollins | 28 | August 23, 2015 | September 20, 2015 |
Kevin Owens | 28 | April 2, 2017 | April 30, 2017 |
Ricochet | 21 | June 23, 2019 | July 14, 2019 |
R-Truth | 21 | May 24, 2010 | June 14, 2010 |
Samoa Joe (2) | 20 | June 3, 2019 | June 23, 2019 |
A.J. Styles | 16 | July 7, 2017 | July 23, 2017 |
Rey Mysterio | 15 | May 19, 2019 | June 3, 2019 |
Alberto Del Rio (2) | 12 | January 12, 2016 | January 24, 2016 |
Dolph Ziggler (2) | 9 | December 17, 2017 | December 26, 2017 |
Jinder Mahal | 8 | April 8, 2018 | April 16, 2018 |
Bret Hart | 7 | May 17, 2010 | May 24, 2010 |
Shinsuke Nakamura (2) | 2 | January 27, 2019 | January 29, 2019 |
Kevin Owens (3) | 2 | July 23, 2017 | July 25, 2017 |
Chris Jericho (2) | 2 | April 30, 2017 | May 2, 2017 |
Kalisto | 1 | January 11, 2016 | January 12, 2016 |
External links
- WWE United States Championship at Wrestling-Titles.com
- WWE United States Championship at WWE.com
- WWE United States Championship at CAGEMATCH.net