11 Shortest WWE Title Changes In History

by Jamie Kennedy

1. CM Punk vs. Alberto Del Rio (SummerSlam 2011)

Alberto Del Rio CM Punk SummerSlam 2011
WWE.com

Time: 5 seconds

This is a slice of WWE history that CM Punk probably doesn't want.

Amidst a strange mini-feud with Kevin Nash (of all people) and embroiled at the same time in a rivalry with WWE as a corporate structure, Punk successfully defended his WWE Title against John Cena at SummerSlam 2011. Suddenly, Alberto Del Rio hit the ring, cashed in MITB and beat him in five seconds.

Yes, five. That's a record, and it's almost admirable how quickly both guys worked the title switch. One Step-Up Enziguiri was all it took for Del Rio to grab his first WWE Championship then run off back up the ramp to safety. Look behind the ring post in the pic above and you'll see that some fan called everything.

Punk would recover by Survivor Series and launch a 434-day reign as champ that wasn't topped until Brock Lesnar held the Universal prize for longer years later. Meanwhile, Del Rio won the title once more before moving onto the World Heavyweight scene.

Are you surprised that there were shorter WWE Title changes than Brock Lesnar's win over Kofi Kingston? Let us know down in the comments!

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Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.