Seth Rollins on WWE’s World Heavyweight Championship Being Labeled a “Consolation Prize,” Why Roman Reigns’ Schedule Forced Its Creation

WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins was a guest on the Out of Character Podcast this week and addressed the elephant in the room regarding his title and Roman Reigns’ Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. Ever since the world title was introduced, fans have thrown around words like “secondary” and “consolation prize” as its creation was directly connected to the fact that nobody has been able to dethrone Reigns for over a thousand consecutive days. And while Rollins has already defended the title 12 times since winning it in May (compared to Reigns’ five defenses since the start of the year), he’s also under no delusion of how the title is viewed compared to the undisputed title. 

“I’m under no illusion that this title is the same as Roman’s title,” Rollins said (h/t Fightful). “That title has been around and so much equity has been put into it over the past few years. It means a lot. You saw how evident it was, even at Money in the Bank when [Roman] got pinned for the first time in three and a half years. You can’t just come in and pretend that all of a sudden this title is that important. No one is going to buy that crap. 

“The way that I always saw champions that I looked up to and that I aspire to be were the champions that took the title to every territory and every town and defended it, and then, over time, people believed that it was a big deal,” he continued. “I came in when Cena and CM Punk were the world champions. I grew up watching Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels, Triple H. These were the people that did that for the world title they were wearing. I’m trying, as I might, to fill those shoes and make this World Heavyweight Championship as big as it possibly can be for myself and the rest of the roster.”

Why Was WWE’s World Heavyweight Championship Created?

Rollins also discussed how Reigns’ part-time schedule forced WWE’s hand in creating a second world championship. Once Reigns unified the WWE and Universal Championships in 2022, Monday Night Raw‘s roster was left without a top prize for over a full year as Reigns kept most of his focus on the SmackDown brand. 

“Here’s the thing, if Roman was doing what I’m doing, there wouldn’t really be a need for a secondary championship,” Rollins said. “There wouldn’t be a need for another World Heavyweight Title on Raw because we would have somebody who was doing those things. It would give direction to the characters on the show and the show itself. Because of the route he has chosen and what he wants to do with his schedule and his title reign is not what I’m doing, somebody has to fill that void.”

“It’s hard for characters to evolve and advance if you don’t have stories and a lot of our stories are based around levels,” he later added. “I’m creating one for Monday Nights, creating a top-tier level. That was the hand we were dealt after unifying the titles, that’s where we’re at, and we’re making the best of what we can, and so far, I’d say it’s made for good matches and good stories, and we’re just getting started.”

How Does Seth Rollins Feel About the “Consolation Prize” Label?

“I wasn’t offended or annoyed,” Rollins said when asked about that label. “If you watched and followed and saw how Roman has built up the title that he has, it only makes sense to view it as a consolation prize, but for me, it didn’t feel that way. It felt like a big deal, and it felt like a big deal because there are so many guys who are able to be in the shoes that I’m in right now. The fact that it’s me makes it feel like a big deal to me. I feel a lot of responsibility to represent them and the industry as well as I can and help everything move forward. It feels, sometimes, with Roman’s title reign, because there is only one challenger at a time and often only every few months, a lot of guys were in a holding pattern. I am a firm believer that having a title available is a necessity and I feel a lot of humility and responsibility in being the champion that will be there and available for our audience. I wasn’t offended by it, and I understood where people are coming from.”