After 3 weeks, I return with Part 6 of my series, this one being on one of, if not the most coveted prize in the WWE: the World Heavyweight Championship.
There isn't a long list of winners, as the former WCW Heavyweight belt was introduced as WWE's Heavyweight title in 2002. There have been only 12 men that have held the title in the 6-year history, and so my top 10 will be listed, with the other 2 as Honorable Mentions.
Here we go...
10. The Great Khali (1 time)
One of the biggest men in pro wrestling, Khali was destined to win the belt at some point, and he made his mark on the industry’s history book by entering the 20-man Championship Battle Royal when Edge vacated the title. He survived an onslaught from the other hopefuls to earn his only Heavyweight Championship, and as expected, he would wreak havoc on anyone who stood in his way.
9. King Booker (1 time)
While definitely not the crowd favorite, the former King of the Ring won the tournament to face Rey Mysterio for the World Title. As fate would have it, the King would win the belt, securing his spot on Smackdown’s throne.
8. Rey Mysterio (1 time)
Of course, the biggest underdog story in wrestling history. After his best friend, Eddie Guerrero, passed away, Mysterio dedicated his Royal Rumble performance to his memory, and strangely enough, he overcame insurmountable odds to win the match, securing a title spot at Wrestlemania 22. But when Randy Orton managed to take his shot by beating him at No Way Out, GM Theodore Long decided to keep Rey in the match, making it a Triple Threat. Mysterio, after sending Kurt Angle out of the ring, hit a 619 and a West Coast Pop on Orton, allowing him to take the match and the World Heavyweight Championship in what was definitely a big Wrestlemania moment.
7. Kurt Angle (1 time)
Definitely one of the most decorated wrestlers in history, Kurt Angle surprised the wrestling world when he returned to Smackdown on January 10, 2006, in his hometown of Philadelphia, to be revealed as the final entrant in a 20-man battle royal for the vacant World title. As a RAW superstar, he had a huge target on his singlet, but he was able to win his only World title when he eliminated Mark Henry.
6. Shawn Michaels (1 time)
The reason I rank HBK so high is because he won his only Heavyweight title in near-impossible circumstances. The Showstopper was able to outlast Triple H, RVD, Booker T, Kane, and Chris Jericho in the most unforgiving structure known to the sports-entertainment world: the Elimination Chamber.
5. Chris Benoit (1 time)
Say what you want about what happened last year, but the Rabid Wolverine can not be made an Honorable Mention or left off my top 10 this time. The Canadian Crippler had been wrestling for years to obtain a World Heavyweight title, and at Wrestlemania XX, he defeated Triple H and Shawn Michaels to finally accomplish his dream. After the match, he stood side by side with his best friend, WWE Champion, the late great Eddie Guerrero. He even managed to overcome the odds again, defeated Helmsley and HBK in a rematch at Backlash.
4. Undertaker (2 times)
Although he only won it twice, he won it when it counted for him: Wrestlemania. By winning the 2007 Royal Rumble (entering in at #30), he had a choice to make: Cena, or Batista? He decided to go for the Animal, and continued his Wrestlemania undefeated streak. He would then have another chance to accomplish the same feat by challenging Edge for the title at WM 24. While Edge put up a good fight, he was no match for the Deadman.
3. Batista (3 times)
Definitely a fan-favorite, the Animal won his way into Wrestlemania 21's main event by winning the 2005 Royal Rumble, defeating John Cena in "overtime". With fellow Evolution member Triple H holding the belt, he had a choice: go to Smackdown and challenge for the WWE title, or stay on RAW, and go after his buddy's belt?
He chose the latter, separating himself from Triple H and Flair, and ultimately, beating the Game for his first World Championship. After a nine-month reign, he was forced to surrender the belt due to injury in early 2006.
He would come bouncing back though, defeating King Booker in November for his second title. He would then lose it at Wrestlemania 22, becoming another victim to Undertaker's streak. But the Animal wouldn't stop. He defeated The Great Khali to win title number three, and would lose it to Edge. His main feuds were with Edge and Undertaker.
2. Edge (3 times, current World Heavyweight Champion)
The Ultimate Opportunist ranks above Batista because of the fact that he uses everything in his arsenal to win. He won his first title by pulling an old stunt. After winning Mr. Kennedy's "Money in the Bank" title shot, he used it in the same fashion that he won his first WWE Championship. After Undertaker managed to win a brutal Steel Cage Match with Batista, as well as a beating from Mark Henry, Edge cashed in his title shot right then, as a Spear took out a very tired Deadman, and just like that, Edge was once again on top. A three-time World Champ, he has feuded with Batista and Undertaker over the title.
1. Triple H (5 times)
The Cerebral Assassin, already a 7-time WWE Champion, was the first WWE Heavyweight Champ after it was awarded to him by then-RAW GM Eric Bischoff after WWE Champ Brock Lesnar decided to wrestle only on Smackdown. Triple H would defend it that very night, and would beat Ric Flair. He has feuded with Chris Benoit, Goldberg, Shawn Michaels, and most notably, former Evolution buddies Batista and Randy Orton.
HONORABLE MENTIONS: Randy Orton, Goldberg
I welcome all feedback as always.
Next time, the WWE Championship.
comments (26) write a comment »
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3 months ago
I agree exactly with your choices. Triple H should defintley be first on the World Heavyweight Championship list, because he was the best.
3 months ago
No Jericho? He was the 1st person to wear bith championships at the same time. And he had to beat The Rock and Austin in the same night.
from 3 months ago
It was considerd WCW Champion back then
from 3 months ago
No Jericho? He was the 1st person to wear bith championships at the same time. And he had to beat The Rock and Austin in the same night.
im sick of hearing bout this from him i dont need to hear it from u
from 3 months ago
Except that, again, it wasn't the World Heavyweight title..it was the WCW Championship.
from 3 months ago
Jericho also was not the first undisputed heavyweight champion ever...that would be Ric Flair! Nature boy won it in a royal rumble in which he was NWA and WWF heavyweight champion so he was considered the Undisputed Heavyweight Champion of the world which is similar to what Y2-Jerk did with the WCW & WWE titles!
3 months ago
when is undertaker coming back? I know he lost a match to edge which was a screw job. where are the board of directors, the chairman anybody to fire or deal with vickie guerro GM for smackdown. she is using the show for her playground. to put it likely she is destroying smackdown and she need to be fired or deal with.
3 months ago
My choice wud definitely include THE ROCK as well....... he cud laugh off at undertakers mickey mouse tatoos and dig the sucka bucka with the rock bottom for the title. taunt Austin while ur bangin him... well only one guy cud pull it all off.. tell the cops to eat pie....
3 months ago
HI
3 months ago
what about Bret "The Hitman" Hart??? or did he wrestle when it was still WWF before the name change, and therefore does not count???
from 3 months ago
It doesn't count because that's the WWE Title. The World Heavyweight title didn't come until 2003.
3 months ago
Guys, I'm pretty sure this list is solely referring to the WWE Version of the World Heavyweight Championship. Any title reign occurred during the InVasion is not eligible for this list, it begins when Bischoff took the old WCW title belt out of the briefcase and handed it to HHH. Therefore no Rock, no Austin and no Jericho.
3 months ago
I don't really see the point in doing this one as there haven't been that many World Champions to choose from....HHH, Goldberg, Benoit, Orton, Batista, Edge, Taker, Khali, Angle, Mysterio, Michaels & Booker. Not a ton of lineage.
3 months ago
What about John Cena?
from 3 months ago
Cena has never won the World Championship .He's won the WWE Title, and turned it into that nauseating Spinner Belt.
3 months ago
hello
3 months ago
It's really sad to see the Great Khali on here. But what is even worse is seeing Rey Mysterio on here. Before you argue let me state I enjoy Mysterio's work... But he was probably one of the worst World Champions in recent memory he always got squashed. Then again look at his size, yes he showed that someone his size can be a champion but they will get squahed if they wrestle against someone twice their size (ex. Great Khali).
from 3 months ago
i see your point, but with only 12 champions in its history, I had to put the ones I felt deserved to be recognized as my top 10. true, mysterio always got squashed, but he also held the title for 3 months and only lost because chavo interfered. and as for khali, i put him on here simply because as much as i and a lot of people dont like him, he dominated Smackdown until Batista finally came....the WWE Title top 10 will be a better list.
from 3 months ago
I would hope the WWE Title Top 10 would be better--a ton of legends to choose from.
from 3 months ago
definitely a lot to choose from. wish i could say the same for the heavyweight belt, but triple h has pretty much dominated the division since its inception
3 months ago
i love it i want it i want undertaker have it i like heam can undertaker can come to be with me i want to be like you undertaker i love you i like to see kane to be in ga i can see tham gmail me cill me it thes 678 699 3159 love ya sequoyah magroski
from 3 months ago
Um...what?
3 months ago
What about Stone Cold Steve Austin?
from 3 months ago
Austin was technically a WWE Champ...the World Heavyweight Title started in 2002 when Bischoff wanted a World Title on RAW and awarded it to HHH
3 months ago
I don't think there should have been a top 10 list-- a top five would've sufficed and in this instance .
I would agree with your five, but Edge should be No. 1. Triple H is obviously the better wrestler, but as far as that belt goes, Edge, and Batista for that matter, have done more the title than Triple H has.
3 months ago
the great khali holding the title is a joke. these big guys can barely wrestle, but the industry builds them up so they are "unstoppable". the only reason khali held the belt was because edge was injured, and so was undertaker. why they didnt give it to batista is beyond me
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