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Since 1963, there has been many variations on the WWE Heavyweight title. Some of them were quite drastic changes from the previous iteration such as the spinner from the winged eagle. Others were subtle such as changing either the strap or the accent colors. Let's take a look at 11 different title designs and rank them. This will look at drastic changes and not the subtle changes.
11. WWE's Logo belt
This title design ranks as the worst looking of the belts. Having the giant "W" as the center plate is the massive eyesore here. Using their logo isn't uncommon or necessarily bad, but making it the only thing on the belt is horrible. A redeeming quality of this title is that the side plates are interchangeable. This is cool and better than the name plate of older belts. Thus, allowing each champion to have their own unique touch on the title. That and WWE can make a few extra buck selling the side plates.
10. Daniel Bryan's Eco Friendly Title
This title ranks above the standard title because it is really unique. The light and dark woods provide beautiful contrast. The wood supposedly came from an oak tree that fell naturally. The actual strap rather than being made of leather is hemp. Turquoise accents on the side and center plates. A perfect customization for the Ecofriendly Heel that Daniel Bryan was at the time. The major drawback on this was the fact that it kept the ugly giant logo on the front. That didn't really fit his character at the time but just stuck with the WWE branding.
9. Brahma Bull
This belt is also a customized belt for the Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment The Rock. Not as basic a design as the one Roman Reigns sports (number 11 on the list), but still a basic design. It also feel flat like a sticker was stuck on something. The bull was based off his now covered tattoo. The front and side are essentially copies of each other brandishing the bull on both. It just doesn't seem like a great design to be held by the Great One. Maybe one redeeming feature is that the bull is giving the people's ebrow to any who dare gaze upon it's hideous design.
8. Smoking Skull
Stone Cold's special belt also suffers from a flat feeling. Rattlesnakes and skulls were added to fit Steve Austin. However, those additions on the main plate look and feel muddied. This belt also had the edgier feeling that fit the WWF at the time. The belt was only on tv for around a month. Austin would debut it on July 27, 1998 and it would be declared vacant in September. If the title would have been crisper it would rank higher on this list.
7. Original WWWF Championship
In, 1963 Capitol Wrestling, the precursor of the WWE decided to leave the NWA. Taking with them the NWA champion Buddy Rogers. Buddy Rodgers was then acknowledged as the first WWE champion. The title that would represent the first champion would be an old United States Championship that once belonged to the NWA with a plate stating World's Champion later added. One feature of the older belts like this which is very enjoyable is that the champ put their picture on it. Simplistic is a fare description of the title. It comes from an era where wrestlers were not sports entertainers but athletes.
6. WWE Spinner.
Originally introduced by and for John Cena. The center plate had the function of the logo spinning. This was a cool addition to a title belt befitting of the Doctor of Thuganomics. Additionally because of the spinning aspect, the belt needed more design features than just the WWE logo which puts it above the bottom ranked title. The top has an eagle like one of the most iconic WWE titles. Individuals like Edge and Miz put their own spin on the belt. Edge would change the spinner into his Rated R Superstar Logo. The Miz would fix the position of the "W" so as to look like a "M" fitting his branding. After the Miz lost the title the "W" would be righted and fixed in place. This belt was discontinued in 2013.
5. Winged Eagle
The title that seems to have the most nostalgia with fans of the WWE from the 1990s. This is a cool design. Beams radiate from a hidden light source behind the eagle and globe. Greco Roman wrestling images scatter the title's main plate and are prominent on the side plates as well. It does not need the gems for flash like the Big Gold Belt. The fact that the name of the title is separated into three different parts of the belt is a bit disconcerting.
4. Hogan's First Belt
Nothing says that a title represents the entire world like a globe and the flag of multiple countries. Something that isn't a bad design. However, it is more suited for an intercontinental championship rather than a world championship. The sound design makes it hard to say anything bad about it.
3. WWWF Bruno Sammartino Belt
Black and gold is a wonderful combination of colors. This belt is still very simple for a simply dressed champion. Additions of a globe and crown are nice touches. The title is also branded with the WWWF but not the sole design element. The center medallion shows that this championship is for grapplers.
2. New World Heavyweight Championship
The linage of this title is still murky. It has not been announced if it will link to the one last held by Randy Orton or not. The design is reminiscent of that one. While still sticking with the company logo it has branched out to include a globe. The filigree around the outside also gives some background noise to make the logo stand out better. This is a step in the right direction to restoring great looking belts. One things that will have to wait until Night of Champions to fid out is how will the champion have their mark on the title.
1. Big Gold Belt
This belt was last held by Randy Orton and originally just handed to HHH. It was modeled after the WCW title and a successor of that lineage.Since it was designed after and continued a previous history it also gave a nice nostalgia factor. This belt exalts the fact that it is a top title with both a crown and globe. The gold also speaks to it's majestic nature. One drawback of the design is that the filigree does mask the globe. Having a name plate on it is a nice simple elegant way to show the champion. Not a good thing for marketing.
If you have a different opinion on these title or feel one was left out leave a comment below. Regardless if you agree or disagree Thank you for reading the list and hope you enjoyed.