Big E's single WWE Championship reign began in September 2021 when he cashed in his Money in the Bank contract against Bobby Lashley. His reign concluded 110 days later at WWE Day 1 on January 1, 2022, where he was pinned by Brock Lesnar in a five-way match that also featured Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, and Bobby Lashley.

In a recent interview with Sam Roberts, Big E explained that the initial plan was for him to drop the title at Day 1 in a singles match against Seth Rollins, with the intention of winning it back from Rollins at WrestleMania 38.

“Actually the plan was, what we were moving towards initially, it was supposed to me and Seth in a singles [match] at Day 1. I was supposed to drop the title to Seth. We come back at Mania, we do it again, I regain the title. That was originally [planned]. Things change all the time, so who knows what was meant.”

By December 2021, these plans evolved to feature Brock Lesnar winning the championship. Big E acknowledged that Lesnar should have pinned someone else to win the title but felt he had no recourse.

“I too was of the same mindset, but ultimately, I have never pitched to not lose. If anything, we have, at times because of the story, we have pitched to lose. But look, this is Brock Lesnar. What am I gonna go in there and say actually, no, I think I need to retain? No, of course not. So more than anything it’s like, okay this is what we’re handed, this is the direction, so we’ll make the best of it.”

Following his loss of the WWE Championship to Lesnar, Big E was moved back into the tag team division. This shift occurred shortly before he suffered a broken neck in a tag team match on SmackDown, an injury that has sidelined him and impacted his in-ring career. He did not receive a WWE Championship rematch at WrestleMania 38 as originally planned.