"Thank you" title reigns

[Venti]

I've seen this phrase get used a bunch online over the years, but I'm curious is there any real life examples of a "thank you" title reign?

Also, how exactly would you define it compared to a regular title reign(be it a long-haul kinda reign or a transitional one, etc)

[Deleted]

Zack Ryder getting a IC win at WM and a one day reign as champ. Apparently plan was for Miz to win it at mania but the other wrestlers came up with the idea of giving Ryder a moment in the sun as he’d been a workhouse for the past year and was well liked by all and it got signed off on.

[tirtefaa]

I hate them.

If you must give someone a reign to "thank them", then it should be a transitional reign that isn't there to build to big matches, but moreso to get the belt from A to C.

[Mozenrath]

A thank you reign is very often a transitional one, though not exclusively, given sometimes they lose it back to who they won it from.

Still, a good example would be Daniels winning the Ring of Honor world title. It was done to pay respect to him, but the plan was almost certainly always going to be Cody Rhodes defeating him for it in short order.

Foley also tends to think of himself winning the title as being something of a "Thank you", but that's also sort of a more complicated situation since it isn't like he wasn't a main eventer, anyway, and he was being used very heavily to legitimize the Rock to prepare him for Austin, and Triple H to in turn prepare him for The Rock.