That Time Chris Jericho Was WWE Champion For 30 Minutes

In which a Dusty finish clarifies Jericho’s stardom.

by Michael Sidgwick
Chris Jericho Debut
WWE.com

April 17, 2000.

We are a less than a year removed from Chris Jericho’s WWF debut—a debut remembered as a seminal moment of the Monday Night Wars, but one that left management, even its subject, somewhat unimpressed. In his second autobiography ‘Undisputed: How To Become The World Champion In 1,372 Days’, Jericho retrospectively buried his own performance. He felt he leaned too heavily into comedy, at which the WWF trafficked—in parallel with serious, main event business.

As the countdown to the millennium counted down to 0, Jericho emerged. Watch the YouTube clip. The hairs on your neck will still stand up. It won’t matter how many times you have relived the moment: the magic still amazes. Jericho generated a monster of a pop, and delivered a promo good enough to match the Rock’s Best In The World-level stick work. It got over, and at time of writing, the top comment of WWE’s YouTube video clip reads ‘Coolest debut I have ever seen’.

1.4K likes.

Was it?

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and surefire Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!