Big E Wins WWE Championship

His Journey To Becoming The WWE Champion

On September 13, 2021, WWE superstar Big E cashed in his Money in the Bank contract to defeat the Almighty Bobby Lashley, becoming the new WWE Champion.

With this victory, he is now the second member of the New Day to hold world championship gold. It's been a long road for the new champion. Having been with the company for a decade, many wondered if he would ever reach the summit like his New Day brother Kofi.

NXT And The Debut On The Main Roster

He first came onto the scene in NXT, where he defeated opponents in incredible displays of power, utilizing a 5-count pinfall instead of the normal 3-count. The superstar's dominance led him to capture the NXT championship until losing it on the June 12, 2012, episode of NXT.

Following this defeat, Big E would officially make his main roster debut after attacking top star John Cena during his feud with AJ Lee and Dolph Ziggler and becoming the latter's enforcer. During this run, he had matches with multiple former world champions like Cena and Chris Jericho before turning back into a face to chase both the United States and Intercontinental Championships, holding the latter for approximately 167 days.

From here, fans wondered if the big man would get lost in the shuffle of superstars in a then dissolving brand split. However, they didn't wonder long as Big E would join with newcomer Xavier Woods and veteran Kofi Kingston in a new direction that changed the trajectory of their careers forever.

The New Day Years

After a series of motivational vignettes near the end of 2014, Big E debuted as part of the New Day, a group of babyfaces preaching the power of positivity. Unfortunately, they were booed relentlessly with each appearance until they converted into heel characters. They began insulting audiences across the country with their unique brand of humor and character work.

They feuded with every tag team in the WWE over the next year, including the Dudley Boys. During this run, their more notable matches include the first-ever tag team Elimination Chamber match and a great ladder match at the 2015 TLC pay-per-view before reverting to faces to fight the League of Nations at WrestleMania 32.

Having won the Tag Team Championship's at SummerSlam (2015), the New Day held the belts for a historic 483 days, a record that is yet to be broken. The New Day would make history again by earning 12 tag title reigns, more than any tag team in history. The record was previously held by the Dudley Boys.

This saga for tag gold included a legendary rivalry with the Usos. The two teams battled in numerous spectacular matches and traded the belts back and forth for months until their rivalry culminated in the first-ever tag team Hell in a Cell match.

Big E was ringside for Kofi Kingston at WrestleMania 35 when he won his first WWE Championship, having supported him along with the fans to receive the match he rightfully deserved. The brotherhood of this trio got the veteran to the grandest stage of them all for his defining moment after Big E and Woods stepped up to the plate to endure a grueling tag team gauntlet match to earn their brother's spot at the show of shows.

Having never forgotten Big E's generosity, Kofi supported him during the pandemic era last year by backing his single's run.

WWE RAW AND SINGLES CHAMPIONSHIP RUNS

Woods and Kofi were soon drafted to Raw, leaving Big E alone on SmackDown. Many wondered what would happen to the big man, but he grabbed the brass ring and ran with it, never forgetting who he was and bringing his overwhelming charisma back to the Intercontinental title scene to win the gold before dropping in his first WrestleMania singles match.

He would then win the Money in the Bank contract, which he then successfully cashed in two months later after declaring on Twitter that he would end Raw as champion.

WHAT IS NEXT FOR BIG E?

Now, as the WWE Champion, Big E looks to be setting his sights on Universal Champion Roman Reigns. After confronting the Tribal Chief on Smackdown, Big E rejoined his New Day brethren in tag team action against the Bloodline on the September 20 edition of Raw. However, the match was interrupted by a vengeful Lashley, leading to a triple threat match between the two champs and Lashley later in the night.

Big E will most likely continue to feud with Lashley into Extreme Rules and Reigns in the traditional champion vs. champion Survivor Series match. With the draft coming up, there's no telling where anyone will end up. But I imagine Big E will continue to feud with Lashley in the coming months. I can't believe Lashley would move on after the end of his dominant reign.

Dakota Mayes is our resident WWE expert The Pyrrhic. Be sure to keep on top of all the latest in news, previews, and reviews in the world of professional wrestling right here with Dakota at thepyrrhic.com.