Gregory Helms Longest Cruiserweight Champion in WWE History

To borrow and modify a phrase Gregory Helms used to say…stand back, there’s a record-holder coming through.

July 13, 2006 was Gregory Helms’ 165th day as Cruiserweight Champion, making him the longest reigning Cruiserweight Champion of all-time. The previous record holder, Tajiri, held the gold for 164 days from October 2001 to April 2002. And for Helms, being the longest reigning champion in the 15-year history of the championship is a special accomplishment.

“It means a lot to me because it adds credibility to what I’ve been saying ever since I won the championship: that I am the greatest Cruiserweight Champion ever,” he told WWE.com, “and this is a real staple in this fact.”

In Helms’ eyes, one of the reasons for his success is that no one wants to face him because he’s so dominant.

“When I got here (to SmackDown), the other cruiserweights parted like the Red Sea,” Helms claimed. “They’re all trying to get into tag teams, and the Mexicools would rather fight each other than fight me. It’s at a point where I’ve dominated so much that it is hard to find contenders.”

Prior to this reign, Helms had been Cruiserweight Champion twice before. So did he learn anything from his reigns in 2001 and 2002 that helped him in 2006?

“Just to stick to my game,” he said. “The first two times I was kind of doing things to please the fans, and using aerial tactics just for the adulation of the crowd. This time I’ve stuck to my game, just ground-and-pound and beat everybody at their game.”

And when Helms is on his game, he believes he is unbeatable.

“That’s my mentality and it has to be; that’s the mentality of a champion,” Helms explained. “If you go in there thinking that you’re going to lose or that there is even a possibility that you are going to lose, you will. You have to go in there thinking that you’re going to win every time.”

Helms believes that he is the greatest Cruiserweight ever…but before he came along, someone had to hold that title. But when asked who that might be, the champion offered a coy response.

“Either Sugar Shane Helms or The Hurricane,” he laughed, naming two of his previous personas as his answer.

As the self-proclaimed greatest Cruiserweight Champion ever, Helms has a short list of Cruiserweights he’d like to step into the ring with to prove that claim.

”Probably Dean Malenko or Ultimo Dragon,” he said. “I’ve never had a chance to wrestle those guys. I had never wrestled Rey Mysterio before either, but I just had the chance to wrestle him in a match that I was very proud of.”

And while he’s not done being the Cruiserweight role model, Helms does aspire to “move up the ladder” in the near future.

“The United States Championship is a definite goal, and of course everyone’s goal in this business should be to win the World Heavyweight Championship. Right now we have great champions all down the line, but I’m the longest reigning current champion in the entire industry. I like what I’ve done with the Cruiserweight Championship, but I’m the type of person that once I achieve a goal, I set a higher one.”

With that attitude coupled with tremendous skill inside the ring, it may only be a matter of time before Gregory Helms becomes the longest reigning United States or World Champion of all-time.