The original WWE Women's Championship has a reach lineage that paved the way for future women's champions to follow. Before the Women's Evolution took off, women's wrestling had many iconic female athletes that held the Women's Championship. The WWE Women's Championship has a rich history with the title existing for 54 years between 1956-2010.
Moreover, the first 10 Women's Champions ranged from 1956-1998 which is outstanding that there were just 10 champions in a 32 year period. However, the Women's Championship was deactivated for three years from 1990-1993, and again from late 1995-1998. Some of the greatest Women's Champions are fondly remembered during this time frame, whereas some flopped as champions.
10 Velvet McIntyre
Velvet McIntyre competed in one of the worst Women's Championship matches when she lost to The Fabulous Moolah in under two minutes at WrestleMania 2. However, McIntyre finally got her hands on the Women's Championship by unseating Moolah as Women's Champion on July 3, 1986, on a live event show in Brisbane, Australia.
Unfortunately, McIntyre failed to have a memorable run with the title as she dropped the championship back to Moolah just six days later in Sydney, Australia. Whilst she did not excel as Women's Champion, she managed to win the WWE Women's Tag Team Titles twice.
9 Bertha Faye
Bertha Faye felt like a placeholder Women's Champion when she stunned Alundra Blayze at SummerSlam 1995 for her brief run as champion. Faye formed a double act with Harvey Wippleman, who led her to the Women's Championship.
Nevertheless, Faye wasn't a great in-ring competitor, but she was a monster heel that legitimately could take Blayze down. Ultimately, Faye held the Women's Title for just 56 days when Blayze regained the title from her on the October 23, 1995 edition of Raw.
8 Leilani Kai
Leilani Kai had the privilege of becoming the first woman to defend the WWE Women's Championship at the inaugural WrestleMania. Kai beat Wendi Richter for the Women's Title at The War to Settle the Score in February 1985 for her lone run with the title.
However, at WrestleMania, Kai had The Fabulous Moolah in her corner, and Richter was accompanied by pop star Cyndi Lauper. It was a huge moment for women's wrestling, but it was inevitable that she was going to drop the title back to Richter.
7 Jacqueline
The WWE Women's Championship was reactivated in September 1998 after Alundra Blayze dropped the title in the trashcan when she joined WCW in late 1995. Jacqueline made history as the first black woman to capture the WWE Women's Title when she defeated Sable.
Jacqueline was a magnificent in-ring competitor, but unfortunately, women's wrestling was not taken seriously in the Attitude Era. Jacqueline had heel heat as Marc Mero's manager, and whilst she was the right titleholder, Sable ended her run as Women's Champion at Survivor Series 1998.
6 Bull Nakano
Finally, Alundra Blayze had a meaningful rivalry when Bull Nakano joined WWE from Japan. Nakano failed to beat Blayze for the Women's Championship at SummerSlam 1994, but they saved it for a bigger moment. Nakano defeated Blayze in her hometown of Tokyo for the Women's Title in November, where she received a raucous ovation.
Nakano was an exceptional in-ring performer, and her matches with Blayze were captivating to watch. Unfortunately, she didn't defend the Women's Title against Blayze at WrestleMania XI as she lost the championship 24 hours later instead on Raw.
5 Sherri Martel
It's easy to forget that Sherri Martel won the Women's Championship as she is fondly remembered for her time as being one of the greatest managers in WWE history. She managed the likes of Randy Savage, Ted DiBiase, and Shawn Michaels to considerable success.
Martel wasn't afraid to speak her mind, and The Fabulous Moolah was the woman she beat for her sole Women's Championship run in July 1987. Martel generally defended the title on live events, but she did a good job as champion by holding the title for a whopping 441 days when she dropped the championship to Rockin' Robin.
4 Wendi Richter
Undoubtedly, Wendi Richter was the female equivalent to Hulk Hogan in the 1980s. Richter was a polarizing figure, and she clearly headed the Women's Division in that decade. More significantly, Richter was the woman who ended The Fabulous Moolah's astonishing 28-year reign as WWE Women's Champion.
Richter held the title for 209 days before she dropped the championship to Kai. Nevertheless, the first WrestleMania saw Richter recapture the Women's Championship in a career-defining moment. Sadly, her relationship with WWE soured as she was victim to the Original Screwjob when Moolah disguised as The Spider Lady ended her reign controversially.
3 Rockin' Robin
Rockin' Robin was the final WWE Women's Champion before the title was retired for the first time in 1990. Robin is the half-sister of Jake "The Snake" Roberts, and she ended Sherri's one-year reign as WWE Women's Champion.
Unfortunately, the Women's Championship did not feature prominently after Robin successfully retained the title against Judy Martin at Royal Rumble 1989. Like many previous champions, the championship was featured heavily on live events. She never lost the Women's Title and she has the distinction of having the second-longest Women's Championship reign.
2 The Fabulous Moolah
The inaugural Women's Champion was none other than the incomparable The Fabulous Moolah. Moolah set records that will never be broken as she had a stranglehold on the Women's Championship for 28 years. Technically, she did lose the title during her reign of terror but WWE does not recognize those title changes.
Collectively, Moolah held the Women's Championship four times, but three times during the first 10 Women's Title reigns. Moolah had many long runs with the Women's Championship and brought legitimacy to the title. Controversy always surrounded Moolah, and she was more than happy to end Richter's Women's Championship run as The Spider Lady.
1 Alundra Blayze
In terms of popularity and athleticism, Alundra Blayze is one of the greatest WWE Women's Champions of all time. Especially in the 1990s, Blayze was a trailblazer who captivated audiences and breathed a new lease of life into the Women's Division.
Blayze is a three-time WWE Women's Champion, and she began her love affair with the championship when she defeated Heidi Lee Morgan for the vacant title in December 1993. Blayze became the first woman to defend the Women's Championship at WrestleMania in eight years when she retained against Leilani Kai. Ultimately, Blayze's three reigns collectively lasted 543 days and her rivalry with Bull Nakano was off the charts.