For those of you who do not know, today marks the 37th anniversary of the inauguration of the Intercontinental Championship. The title was originally held by WWE Hall of Famer Pat Patterson in 1979, and since then has been held by some of the best wrestlers WWE has had to offer. When one thinks of the Intercontinental Champion, one thinks of the work-horse. The reliable steed in the locker room that is capable of bringing prestige to the title while showcasing a diversity of charisma and mat ability. There have been many intense matches over this belt, and I’d like to share with you some of my personal favorites. Here are my 10 favorite matches in WWE history with this prestigious belt on the line.
10. Vengeance 2004: Randy Orton (C) vs. Edge
Randy Orton and Edge were two of the more prominent faces of the Ruthless Aggression Era. However, their history goes back before they became established main eventers. Edge was drafted to RAW in 2004 and sought the implosion of the faction that had been running through RAW for the past two years, Evolution. Randy Orton at that time was undergoing a lengthy reign as Intercontinental Champion that he won at Armageddon the previous year. Edge stepped up to the challenge to be the one to end The Legend Killer’s Reign. Orton and Edge were two of WWE’s most reliable workers at the time, and they had tremendous chemistry in the ring with each other. If you don’t believe me, watch their match on RAW in 2007. This match started off a little slow with basic back and forth, but they had tremendous storytelling towards the end of the match as it featured tremendous near-falls as the crowd showed appreciation for both men. Edge was able to overcome Orton’s heel tactics to spear him and win his fifth Intercontinental Championship.
9. Extreme Rules 2016: The Miz (C) vs. Sami Zayn vs. Cesaro vs. Kevin Owens
In case you were vacationing on Jupiter for the past week, The Miz cut a passionate promo in response to Daniel Bryan putting into question The Miz’s skill and wrestling style. If there is one thing that’s certain, however, it’s that The Miz has been arguably the most underrated star on the roster WWE has had for the past 3 years. He’s able to work a variety of roles and does his job well. However, his work as Intercontinental Champion has been fabulous this year, and I believe this match was the highlight of his run this year. This match really had two stories combined into one as The Miz came off a successful title defense against Cesaro at Payback. However, it came off a distraction from Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens. This match featured the hatred Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens had for each other, and how The Miz sought to take advantage of any opportunity presented to him. He consistently tried to steal pins throughout the match, and when Zayn and Owens couldn’t contain each other any longer, The Miz took his chance and retained. This match was tremendous, featuring big spots from all four men who have great talent in the ring, and the chemistry in here was amazing, as this match was a great match on a PPV which also featured Roman Reigns and AJ Styles.
8. Royal Rumble 2016: Dean Ambrose (C) vs. Kevin Owens – Last Man Standing
Dean Ambrose and Kevin Owens have had quote the 2016 as one is the Universal Champion and the other is the WWE Champion. However, the rivalry that these two had earlier this year reached its apex with a great match at one of WWE’s top PPV’s, the Royal Rumble. There’s a lot that sees a LMS match as just a glorified spot-fest that can’t tell much of a story, but Ambrose and Owens were able to do that to a tee. They told a great tee, utilizing chairs and tables as weapons to destroy their opponent. It was really a matter of how much each man was able to endure. Which ever man could have withstood the most pain was surely going to walk out as champion. These two went to every corner of the ring, outside and inside, and I believed they played up a lot of great near victories. I also appreciated how Ambrose and Owens (who took some crazy bumps in this match) modified their normal moves to create more impact with the weapons. Eventually Ambrose won when he desperately threw Owens diving into a table on the outside. Both men made the title feel important, and I think the story that they told with their bodies perpetuated that theory. There was never a dull moment in the match, the crowd was unhinged, and was splendid all around.
7. Summerslam 1998: The Rock (C) vs. Triple H – Ladder Match
What I admired about Triple H and The Rock’s rivalry in the late 90s/early 00’s, they visibly pushed each other to become better and have better matches than they did before. It was sort of like Goku/Vegeta or Naruto/Sasuke to make an anime analogy. The two just kept working hard and found ways to top themselves. This match, however, I believe was the match that helped facilitate each men’s career, and more importantly their rivalry. In this ladder match, we saw The Rock hit some brutal outside moves while integrating the ladder in effective ways. He also showed a little psychology by targeting Triple H’s knees throughout the duration of the match. Triple H was essentially the face in peril for the majority of the match until the finish came. Normally, I don’t like interference in abundance, but I think Mark Henry and Chyna worked it out in a way to show which side would have better teamwork to help their leader win, and ultimately, Chyna got the advantage, low-blowing The Rock as he was about to make the climb, enabling Triple H to grab the belt. This match, again, I believe was the start of something special between these two icons.
6. The Bash 2009: Chris Jericho (C) vs. Rey Mysterio
Chris Jericho had many memorable rivalries in his career, but I think the one with Rey Mysterio has to rank as one of his best ones because of the chemistry that these two had in the ring. Chris Jericho had Rey Mysterio pegged as the personal proxy of the fans who were delusional. His pre-match speeches always used to be some of the best heel work I’ve seen. However, this match had great stakes, because not only was the championship on the line, but Rey Mysterio had to unmask forever had he lost, so you knew it was a huge deal for Rey as well. Jericho had removed Mysterio’s mask in his previous match against Rey at Extreme Rules, so of course Jericho, in all of his heel wisdom, played up that as well and looked to remove his mask throughout the match. I just liked the near-falls that happened towards the end, the shocking kick-outs (especially Rey kicking out of Jericho’s Codebreaker in mid-air) and the story that these two former WCW talents told in the ring. Jericho and Rey Mysterio’s rivalry spanned over three PPV’s (Judgement Day, Extreme Rules, The Bash) and I recommend that you watch all of them. Do yourself a favor.
5. Summerslam 1992: Bret Hart (C) vs. The British Bulldogg
Many peg this as the greatest Summerslam match of all time. I can see why from some perspective, but I dock it a little bit for a few reasons. Before I get to that though, seriously, I don’t think you would ever have 80,000 gather to see a match for the Intercontinental Championship. Who could forget the boy before the match who said that Davey Boy Smith was winning the belt whether he wants to or not? Now, watching this match I couldn’t help but appreciate what a ring general Bret Hart is, and that’s the reason why it may be lower than what other may have on this list. It looked like Bret carried the majority of the match and Davey Boy Smith looked visibly confused sometimes at the spots or when to do a certain move. Despite that though, it’s still an incredible one on one affair with an amazing crowd looking. It sort of had the atmosphere that CM Punk had against John Cena at Money In The Bank 2011. This isn’t meant to degrade Davey Boy, because he had some awesome moments in this match as well. I think if it was more balanced between the two guys, it would have ranked a bit higher, but that doesn’t take away from the quality of the match. It was all that and more.
4. Backlash 2004: Randy Orton (C) vs. Cactus Jack – No Holds Barred Match
Randy Orton had a great run as Intercontinental Champion back in 2004, but the highlight of his run came when he was feuding against established wrestling legend Mick Foley. He disrespected him, spat upon him and jumped him at every turn. Foley then challenged Orton to put his money where his mouth his and challenge him to a match that was a staple of Mick Foley’s career. A No Holds Barred Match (Or Extreme Rules, Street Fight, No Disqualification, whatever you want to call it.) Now, I’m a huge Orton mark, so of course you knew I was going to have this match up here, but I think this match was able to get over Orton as a great threat, because he didn’t have Evolution to come out and help him. Jack destroyed Orton and his young physique. Torturing him with barbed wire, throwing him off the stage, and perhaps the most memorable moment of the match, Jack reversing Orton’s RKO onto a pile of thumb tacks and Orton letting out a wail of agony with his bloodied face. I think that captured the brutality that this match had to offer and was sone of Orton’s better performances in his career. Cactus Jack used his experience in high-torture matches to put it over as something of a war, and Orton’s cockiness and sliminess had been justified as this win helped facilitate his career, and especially to Summerslam later that year, when he would win the World Heavyweight Championship from Vacant, er, Chris Benoit.
3. Royal Rumble 2001: Chris Benoit (C) vs. Chris Jericho – Ladder Match
Benoit and Jericho were some of the standout WCW talents that WWE garnered back in 1999-2000. Sooner or later, they were bound to cross paths and eventually they did back in 2000, where they would have a series of old-school technical classics over the Intercontinental Championship. However, they couldn’t get over their hatred over each other and their rivalry came to a head at the Royal Rumble over the Intercontinental Championship in a ladder match. Now, Jericho is no stranger to ladder matches. He’s been involved in TLC matches, and other great ladder against the likes of Shawn Michaels, the innovator of the Ladder match. However, this Royal Rumble classic between these two talents is one of the best ladder matches of all time. I can still hear the sound of Chris Jericho striking Chris Benoit with a chair mid-suicide dive. They utilized the ladders greatly, and Jericho’s Walls of Jericho on the ladder was always a great visual. This match really displayed some of the risks that WWE superstars take, as there were many moments where the match could have been stopped, but these endured a match that seemed like it could have gone forever.
2. Summerslam 1995: Razor Ramon (C) vs. Shawn Michaels – Ladder Match
Toss-up between their match at WrestleMania 10 and this one, and I don’t know why, but for somer reason, I liked this match a little better. Shawn Michaels and Razor Ramon had an iconic Ladder Match at WrestleMania 10, and thankfully we were graced with a rematch in this match. HBK and Razor Ramon understood the psychology of what a ladder match is supposed to be about, and I believed that they showcased why here. Razor Ramon attacked Shawn Michaels’ legs, which was very wise, because it not only took away his finisher, but it made it hard for him to climb. SO HBK had to find a way to overcome that, and he did so by using the ladder to consistently attack Ramon. The funny thing is that Shawn Michaels was supposed to grab the title the first time when Ramon and Michaels had two separate ladders set up, and he failed not only once but twice to grab the belt, and finally the third time was the charm as he was finally able to grab it and claim the IC Championship. The match wore out both men, they both gave it everything they had, and still stands to me as one of, if not the best ladder match in WWE history.
1. WrestleMania 3: Randy Savage (C) vs. Ricky Steamboat
Surely, we can’t have the list of the greatest Intercontinental Championship matches in WWE history without this instant throwback. These two told a fantastic story in the ring as two of the icons of this legend showed what a true wrestling match is on wrestling’s biggest stage. I don’t think the match requires much commentary, because it really speaks for itself. It was basic, it was fun and it felt important. Nothing more needs to be said.
Agree? Disagree? Let me know! Until next time.
