5 WWE title reigns of 2025 that should've lasted longer

As we welcome 2026, the WWE Universe is looking back at what seems to be a rollercoaster of a year.

While 2025 gave fans some historic moments, most notably John Cena’s emotional Farewell Tour, it also left them scratching their heads over some surprisingly short championship runs.

Whether it was a victim of timing or questionable booking, here are five WWE title reigns from 2025 that should have lasted longer:

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#5. Street Profits - WWE Tag Team Championship

After a grueling 1,616-day drought, Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins finally reclaimed the WWE Tag Team Championship by defeating DIY in Barcelona on the March 14, 2025, episode of SmackDown. The pop was massive, and it felt like the duo was set for a dominant summer run.

However, the reign was surprisingly brief and ended in only 119 days. Instead of a long-term redemption arc, the Street Profits were caught in the crossfire of the rapidly shifting tag division and ended up dropping the gold to Dexter Lumis and Joe Gacy of The Wyatt Sicks, who are still the reigning title holders and have already held it for 174+ days.

Given Ford’s undeniable superstar potential, many believe that a lengthy, era-defining run would have been the perfect way to solidify them as one of the great tag teams of the modern era before any potential singles breakout.

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#4. Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss - Women’s Tag Team Championship

This was the super-team nobody saw coming. The pairing of The Queen and The Goddess of WWE initially felt like a temporary alliance, but their chemistry was undeniable.

They surprisingly overthrew Raquel Rodriguez and Roxanne Perez of The Judgment Day on Night One of SummerSlam and then successfully defended the Women's Tag Team Championship five times, bringing much-needed prestige and main event feel to the women’s tag team division and the title.

They were dethroned by The Kabuki Warriors in November on RAW, just as their reign hit the 100-day mark. Although Asuka and Kairi Sane are the current title holders, fans believe the Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss experiment had so much more narrative meat on the bone left to pick.

A longer run could have led to a spectacular 'fall from grace' or some such storyline heading into WrestleMania 42.

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#3. Jacob Fatu - United States Championship

The Samoan Werewolf winning the WWE United States Title at WrestleMania 41 was one of the weekend's biggest highlights.

Jacob Fatu brought a terrifying, unhinged intensity to the championship, and no one would have thought it would end quite as soon as it did. However, his reign ended in only 69 days. At WWE Night of Champions in Saudi Arabia, internal politics within the group saw Solo Sikoa take the title from his own cousin with the help of a debuting Hikuleo.

While it advanced the war between the cousins, many believe Fatu was a breath of fresh air and could have been a very dominant champion. He should have held the gold at least until the end of the summer to truly establish his stake in the title's legacy.

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#2. Ilja Dragunov - US Championship

Speaking of The Mad Dragon, his reign was equally short-lived. After dethroning Sami Zayn in an instant classic, Ilja Dragunov brought a level of intensity to the US Title that felt reminiscent of Gunther’s legendary 666-day Intercontinental Title run.

Unfortunately, Dragunov’s time at the top lasted only 70 days, ending at the hands of Carmelo Hayes in late December last year. Fans believe that for a performer as physical as The Mad Dragon, a reign of terror where he dismantled opponents for six months would have established him as an unstoppable force on the main roster.

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#1. John Cena - Intercontinental Championship

The most bittersweet entry on this list is John Cena. In November 2025, The Greatest of All Time finally captured the one title that had eluded him for over two decades: the WWE Intercontinental Championship. By defeating Dominik Mysterio on RAW, Cena officially became a Grand Slam Champion in the promotion.

However, in hindsight, the reign was purely ceremonial. Many fans had hoped that The Franchise Player would defend the gold in his final match at Saturday Night’s Main Event in December, perhaps putting it on the line against Gunther. Instead, Cena dropped the title in under three weeks back to Mysterio and turned his focus on facing the winner of The Last Time Is Now Tournament in his last ever dance in the ring.

Seeing the GOAT walk into his sunset match as a fighting champion would have been the ultimate hustle, loyalty, and respect finale, but it was far from that.

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Edited by Sayantan Niyogi