Every Major Wrestling World Title - Ranked From Least To Most Prestigious
8. WWE Universal Championship
A prize held elevated in the most literal, purposeless and irritating manner imaginable, the Universal Championship is also very ironically-named. The so-called WWE Universe rarely sees it, wrapped around the waist of the rarely-sighted 'Beast', Brock Lesnar.
Theoretically, this should furnish the belt with a special aura and create a sense of expectation and occasion surrounding the rare times in which it is defended. In reality, Lesnar's matches are now something to dread; he ambles through bare minimum performances against opponents inconvenient (Braun Strowman, No Mercy '17) or complete filler (Kane, Royal Rumble '18) purely to waste time ahead of Roman Reigns' coronation... a coronation that is only forthcoming upon fan acceptance. Since this isn't happening, the title is something we don't see defended, and don't want to see defended. Lost, but then, not won.
Purgatory is the word.
It might as well not exist, but it needs to exist to provide Monday Night RAW with a narrative focal point and its attendant stakes. It's less a wrestling achievement, more cholera, only with an unimaginative design and colour scheme. Even prior to this current Reign of Terror II, the Universal Championship suffered from a curious lack of prestige.
Finn Bálor's relinquishment of it begat what essentially was a comedy reign amassed by Kevin Owens, with virtually all of his successful defences ending via TV-style carny chicanery, disassociating the belt from the big-time PPV feel it is meant to generate.