{"id":141797,"date":"2025-09-12T07:00:43","date_gmt":"2025-09-12T11:00:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/?p=141797"},"modified":"2025-09-12T02:45:17","modified_gmt":"2025-09-12T06:45:17","slug":"history-myth-and-realities-of-the-pro-wrestling-belt-collector-trope","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2025\/09\/12\/history-myth-and-realities-of-the-pro-wrestling-belt-collector-trope\/","title":{"rendered":"History, Myth, and Realities of The Pro Wrestling Belt Collector Trope"},"content":{"rendered":"

Whether it’s Mercedes Mone, Kenny Omega, Kurt Angle, or the credited originator of the belt-collecting trope, Ultimo Dragon, recent discord around the belt-collecting trope reveals all that glistens is not gold. However, some of the trope\u2019s flaws are tricks of the light.<\/p>\n

Being a belt collector is a trope rather than a gimmick. A plot device with an inherent story. It aids characterization, adding another wrinkle to a wrestler\u2019s persona. To suggest it\u2019s a gimmick could imply the champion has no persona, just props. Continually, the trope enhances the champion.<\/p>\n

Shiny! <\/strong><\/h2>\n

At first sight, seeing a champion surrounded by gold demands attention. Like them or hate them, the image tells an obvious story. This champion triumphed and succeeded multiple times. In combat-oriented sports like boxing and MMA, where titles are defended continuously, there\u2019s the added implication of momentum and power\u2014being undefeatable.<\/p>\n

The image can be emotive and inspirational at best. The champion appears elite, generational, and maybe even the greatest of all time (GOAT). However, some of us cynically question: why so many? It\u2019s a problem with \u201creal\u201d sports like boxing with undisputed championships.<\/p>\n

When former WCW belt collector, Lance Storm, commented on Mercedes Mone\u2019s title run, his words resonated with some fans.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cBelts are supposed to be prestigious, and an AEW championship or a Ring of Honor championship has a degree of prestige, but if you’ve never heard of the promotion, never heard of the belt, never heard of the woman she defeated, then it just starts delving into comedy\u2026 Or at least the lesser belts bring down the ones that are supposed to be important, because when you come out with 10 belts, if you think they’re all equal, chances are the two or three important ones get brought down to the six or seven less important ones rather than the other way around. If you can’t actually name the championships, it’s like, what do they mean?\u201d <\/em>Lance Storm, Wrestling Observer Live, transcript from WrestleTalk<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Although Storm\u2019s comments reveal more than an idealism, but an irony I\u2019ve already discussed with Mercedes Mone\u2019s championships, politics, and hate<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Ideal Meets Reality <\/strong><\/h2>\n

Titles should matter. They are supposed to be prestigious and vital to the promotions and wrestlers. In theory, yes. In their promotions\u2019 narrative and marketing, yes. Logically, more results in a dilution of value.<\/p>\n

Besides Mercedes Mone, there are two more active female belt collections. Both are based in the UK. Millie McKenzie holds six titles; Nina Samuels has ten. In theory and thought, three women pursuing the same path simultaneously undermines them, their championships, and the trope. But most fans won\u2019t know about McKenzie or Samuels, two stand-outs here on the UK indie scene.<\/p>\n

If they did, humans are comparative beings. Naturally, we evaluate, distinguish, and rank wrestlers, promotions, and their championships. Therefore, does anyone, as Storm asserts, think each promotion\u2019s top championships are equal? For years, wrestlers and fans prized the WWE Intercontinental Championship over whichever version of a world championship\/s was active.<\/p>\n

In practice, a championship\u2019s values fluctuate based on booking and other factors ranging from the wrestler\u2019s abilities to real-world events. Even with partnership promotions, politics, and presentation, we\u2019re shown that titles are unequal. Think about the discord of TNA World Champion Joe Hendry at WrestleMania 41.<\/p>\n

Championship inequity is the trope\u2019s foundation.<\/p>\n

Ultimo Dragon: A Misleading Picture <\/strong><\/h2>\n

The infamous photograph of Ultimo Dragon holding ten belts is misleading. What\u2019s missing is Dragon\u2019s eleventh, the WAR six-man tag team championship. Dragon held all those titles for six days.<\/p>\n

Seven of the right belts that formed the J-Crown were valueless until unified. With messy and unofficial lineages to their namesake (UWA was defunct), promotions. Together, they were greater than the sum of their parts. These seven belts cemented the J-Crown\u2019s legacy. The additional championships were window dressing to emphasize the crown\u2019s jewel, the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship. The ninth, the NWA World Middleweight Championship, Dragon owned this belt.<\/p>\n

The belts lower in the hierarchy can be diminished in value when the creative looks to use the belt as a prop. This can be temporary or, due to booking, become devalued. Kurt Angle defeated Samoa Joe in 2007 for the IWGP World Heavyweight, TNA World Heavyweight, X-Division, and World Tag Team championships. Tag titles changed hands in a singles contest. Those latter mid-card belts suffered creatively from the disruption.<\/p>\n

Austin Aries coined the moniker belt collector in 2017. Since then, others like Matt Cardona on the indies and Kenny Omega in AEW have used the trope to establish new heel personas and create storylines across promotions. AEW is running its second and more extensive belt collector run with Mone, a polarizing figure. It would be fair to question how much criticism is tribalistic.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s Not Generation, It’s Promotional<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The belt collector trope has valid flaws. Yet narratively, for Storm or others to claim, \u201ca younger generation\u2026 just thinks, ‘More belts, more belts, more belts, everything’s great,\u201d<\/em> twists kayfabe.<\/p>\n

Wrestlers don\u2019t book themselves to be champions. Promoters\/bookers\/those in charge of the promotion do. Yes, wrestlers might pitch the ideas, but many people across promotions must agree to share. Why do it if it can damage your championship prestige?<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a promotional tool. Currently, there are nine unified world champions across weight classes in boxing. Big multi-title contests are spectacles. To a lesser extent, WWE has used a more reserved version of the trope\u2014the Two-Man Power Trip. Three times, WWE unified its men\u2019s world championship. Becky Two Belts. The short-term attempt to create excitement, catch eyeballs, and generate buzz and money is the same, just insular.<\/p>\n

It’s a narrative tool with an inherent story of trying to achieve GOATdom that heel champions since Aries continue to mine in different ways. Critics like to ignore context and story. If those other championship Mone’s holds are valueless, from supposedly \u201ceasy\u201d unknown opponents, doesn\u2019t that, in kayfabe? For a superficial, egotistical, and \u201cfake\u201d character who wants to take the easy option to cement her greatness?<\/p>\n

BestYa created a Women’s Championship for Mone, making many of us aware of the promotion’s existence.\u00a0 Although the championship might have some perceived long-term value, it’s got more value than a championship you never knew existed. Clearly, other promotions have and are continuing to benefit, even if we can\u2019t see the full data.<\/p>\n

\"A
Photo Credit: WikiMedia Creative Commons<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Future of Belt Collecting<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The frequency and range of belt collectors may increase as more companies work closely together. Some will continue to protest on business grounds or principles, ignoring that some companies seem happy to be \u201csecondary\u201d and take the publicity and PR they want. If AAA were concerned about being secondary to AEW and their world championship, why book Omega to hold AAA\u2019s Mega Championship for then record 765 days?<\/p>\n

TNA\u2019s former President, Scott D\u2019Amore, admitted that despite conflicting visions, Omega\u2019s presence boasted ratings and PPV buys, as desired. Some might excuse WWE NXT wrestlers holding their top men’s and women\u2019s championships as an exception because it’s WWE. Tribalism aside, the trope has evolved significantly since Ultimo Dragon. Title unification matches and wrestlers winning multiple belts have storyline potential that has seen title reigns go from 6 days to months and possibly years. Discord aside, there\u2019s more gold to mine.<\/p>\n

More LWOS Pro Wrestling<\/h3>\n

Header photo – WikiMedia Creative Commons<\/a> – Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling<\/a>\u00a0for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Whether it’s Mercedes Mone, Kenny Omega, Kurt Angle, or the credited originator of the belt-collecting trope, Ultimo Dragon, recent discord around the belt-collecting trope reveals all that glistens is not gold. However, some of the trope\u2019s flaws are tricks of the light. Being a belt collector is a trope rather than a gimmick. A plot […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4960,"featured_media":141811,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4677,6975,6,2192,8959,3],"tags":[5258,215,386,1142,6346,8521,693,2540],"class_list":["post-141797","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-aew","category-international-wrestling","category-north-america","category-wrestling","category-tna-wrestling","category-wwe-universe","tag-aew-world-championship","tag-austin-aries","tag-kenny-omega","tag-lance-storm","tag-matt-cardona","tag-mercedes-mone","tag-tna-world-heavyweight-champion","tag-ultimo-dragon"],"modified_by":"Michael Joseph Sugue, Manager","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141797","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4960"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=141797"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141797\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":141812,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141797\/revisions\/141812"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/141811"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=141797"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=141797"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=141797"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}