WWE Wrestlers With The Most Midcard Championship Reigns

Winning a championship in WWE is a big deal, as not every wrestler is fortunate to win a championship. Some wrestlers don’t get to hold a world championship and settle for carrying a midcard championship. Winning a midcard championship is a major honor as it’s seen as the stepping stone to attaining the goal of becoming a world champion. The likes of Shawn Michaels, The Rock, Bret Hart, and Gunther benefitted from having successful runs as the Intercontinental Champion and went on to hold a world championship in WWE.

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The WWE Intercontinental Championship and the WWE United States Championship are two male mid-card championships in WWE with a rich history. Several wrestlers held both championships and had multiple runs with them. The WWE European Championship was another title introduced in the New Generation Era and lasted for five years. The European Championship was another welcomed addition as wrestlers who clinched the title could on to become Grand Slam Champions.

11

William Regal

WWE Midcard Championships Held: 6

William Regal never won a world championship in his WWE career, but he settled for six reigns as a midcard champion. Regal is a joint-record breaking four-time WWE European Champion. The European Championship was the first title that Regal won in his WWE career when he defeated Al Snow for the gold in October 2000.

Regal defeated Crash Holly, DDP, and Spike Dudley for his other three European Championships. However, Regal became a two-time WWE Intercontinental Champion. Regal defeated Edge for the title at the 2002 Royal Rumble, dropping it to Rob Van Dam in the curtain-raiser at WrestleMania 18. His second Intercontinental Championship reign began six years after his first, and he beat Santino Marella for the title in Manchester, England. Regal was the reigning 2008 King of the Ring at the time.

10

Edge

WWE Midcard Championships Held: 6

The Intercontinental Championship was the first championship that Edge won in his legendary WWE Hall of Fame career. He defeated Jeff Jarrett for the title in front of his hometown fans in Toronto, Canada, at a house show in July 1999. However, his joy was short-lived as he dropped the title back to Double J just 24 hours later at Fully Loaded. Edge won the Intercontinental Championship three times in 2001, with victories over Lance Storm, Christian, and Test.

His victory over Test was significant as Edge was the reigning WCW United States Champion, and the title was unified with the Intercontinental Championship at Survivor Series. Edge’s fifth and final Intercontinental Championship reign came at the expense of Randy Orton, with Edge triumphant at Vengeance 2004. This title reign was the catalyst for his heel turn as he was booed by his hometown fans in Toronto at SummerSlam 2004.

9

Chris Benoit

WWE Midcard Championships Held: 7

Chris Benoit joined WWE on the January 31, 2000, edition of Raw as a member of the Radicalz alongside Eddie Guerrero, Perry Saturn, and Dean Malenko. Benoit won the WWE Intercontinental Championship four times, with his first reign as Intercontinental Champion beginning at WrestleMania 16 when he defeated Kurt Angle and Chris Jericho in a two-fall match for the title.

Benoit infamously defeated Orlando Jordan in 25 seconds for his first United States Championship reign under the WWE banner at SummerSlam 2005, and third overall. Benoit added a couple more United States Championship reigns to his resume by defeating Booker T at No Way Out 2006 and Mr. Kennedy in the fall of 2006.

8

Kofi Kingston

WWE Midcard Championships Held: 7

Before Kofi Kingston became the WWE Champion and a tag team specialist, he had a knack for racking up midcard championship reigns. The former WWE Champion clinched the WWE Intercontinental Championship four times. Defeating record Intercontinental titlist Chris Jericho for his first Intercontinental Championship reign at Night of Champions 2008 was a big deal.

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Kingston’s fourth and most recent Intercontinental Championship reign was historic as Kingston defeated The Miz on Main Event on October 17, 2012 which was the only time the title changed hands on that show. Furthermore, Kingston held the United States Championship thrice registering victories over MVP, Sheamus, and Cesaro to get his hands on the championship with stars and stripes.

7

Triple H

WWE Midcard Championships Held: 7

Triple H isn’t remembered for his midcard championship reigns but more for his world championship reigns. The 14-time WWE World Champion’s first taste of gold in his illustrious career was the Intercontinental Championship. The Game defeated Marc Mero for the title on the October 21, 1996, edition of Raw.

Triple H is a five-time Intercontinental Champion. His win over rival The Rock at SummerSlam 1998 in a ladder match was unquestionably his best win for the title. Nevertheless, he became a Grand Slam Champion in his fourth Intercontinental Championship reign as he won the WWE Tag Team Championship alongside Steve Austin at Backlash 2001. The Game is a two-time European Champion, defeating Shawn Michaels for his first European Championship reign with a hilarious finish.

6

Jeff Hardy

WWE Midcard Championships Held: 7

Jeff Hardy’s resume is impressive as he’s won 11 different championships in his WWE career. His most treasured championships are his three WWE world championship reigns and nine Tag Team Championship runs with his brother Matt. Nevertheless, the Charismatic Enigma captured the Intercontinental Championship five times, and he was unquestionably one of the best Intercontinental Champions in the 2000s.

Hardy beating Triple H for the title in April 2001 was one of the biggest upsets in WWE history. Hardy added the European Championship to his collection in 2002, and he was the penultimate champion with RVD beating him in a title unification ladder match for the gold. In 2018, Hardy captured the WWE United States Championship for the first time which was his first midcard championship reign in WWE in a decade.

5

Rob Van Dam

WWE Midcard Championships Held: 7

The addition of Rob Van Dam in the Invasion storyline was a welcomed one. RVD quickly won the WWE Hardcore Championship three times, but Van Dam finally won the Intercontinental Championship from William Regal at WrestleMania 18. RVD was a popular Intercontinental Champion engaging in intriguing feuds with the likes of Eddie Guerrero, Chris Jericho, and Christian.

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Van Dam won the Intercontinental Championship six times, and his final Intercontinental Championship reign was as Mr. Money in the Bank. RVD also won the WWE European Championship once when he unified the gold with his Intercontinental Championship.

4

Jeff Jarrett

WWE Midcard Championships Held: 7

Jeff Jarrett is a history-maker as he became the first man in WWE history to win the WWE Intercontinental Championship six times. Double J dethroned Razor Ramon for his first Intercontinental Championship reign at the 1995 Royal Rumble. He defended the title against the Bad Guy in a rematch at WrestleMania 11.

Jarrett won the Intercontinental Championship three times in 1995, and after he returned to WWE from WCW, Jarrett won the Intercontinental Championship another three times in 1999. Jarrett defeated D’Lo Brown at SummerSlam to become the new Intercontinental and European Champion. Jarrett only held the European Championship for one day as he gifted the title to Mark Henry for helping him win the titles.

3

Dolph Ziggler

WWE Midcard Championships Held: 8

Dolph Ziggler is a two-time World Heavyweight Champion, but unfortunately, the Showoff never got a fair chance to prove himself as a world champion in WWE. His first World Heavyweight Championship reign was curtailed the same day he was awarded it, dropping the title back to Edge, and his second reign in 2013 he sustained a concussion forcing him to lose the title back to Alberto del Rio.

Ziggler found huge success in the mid-card scene as he won the WWE Intercontinental Championship six times. His rivalry with The Miz over the Intercontinental Championship in 2016 brought some prestige back to the title. Ziggler has a couple of reigns as the United States Champion, with his second reign ending bizarrely as he left the belt in the ring in December 2017 leaving the title vacant.

2

The Miz

WWE Midcard Championships Held: 10

The Miz is the first two-time Grand Slam Champion in WWE history. He won the WWE Championship for the second time at Elimination Chamber 2021, almost a decade after his first reign as champion. Miz’s WWE career has been littered with championships, and the WWE United States Championship was the first singles title that he won in October 2009. Miz was technically a triple champion during his first US Championship reign as he held the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship alongside Big Show.

The Awesome One is an eight-time Intercontinental Champion, and he’s been stuck on that number since 2018. Miz is closing in on Chris Jericho’s record of nine Intercontinental Championship reigns, but the ship looks to have sailed for Miz to win the Intercontinental Championship again. Nevertheless, Miz had a knack for winning the title on landmark shows, as he won it on Raw 1000 for the first time, the 900th episode of SmackDown, and the 25th anniversary edition of Raw. Miz brought prestige back to the Intercontinental Championship in 2016 during his six-month run with the gold.

1

Chris Jericho

WWE Midcard Championships Held: 12

Chris Jericho is one of the most decorated champions to grace a WWE ring. Jericho has won every major championship that was available in the Attitude Era. Jericho is a record-setting nine-time Intercontinental Champion with his first Intercontinental Championship reign starting at Armageddon 1999 when he dethroned “The Ninth Wonder of the World” Chyna for the gold.

Jericho captured the WWE European Championship at WrestleMania 16, edging him one step closer to becoming a Grand Slam Champion. However, his title reign lasted just one night as Jericho dropped the title to Eddie Guerrero, all thanks to Chyna betraying him. Despite Jericho competing in WCW, he never won the United States Championship, but he won the title twice in the later stages of his WWE career in 2017.