4. Title Is Unified With World Heavyweight Championship
At different times, the Intercontinental Title has been unified with the Hardcore, European and United States Titles, but by far the biggest merger took place at the 2002 No Mercy Pay-Per-View. Defeating Kane, Triple H unified the Intercontinental belt with the World Heavyweight Championship, a sad chapter in the history of the IC division. Making things even more perplexing, Kane had only held the title for a month or so before the match with HHH, so fans didn't really associate the title as being strictly his. By contrast, the World Heavyweight belt had been created for Triple H, so that was definitely his title. This match was made to do away with the Intercontinental Title, because WWE felt there were too many belts floating around the company. In May, 2003, the title was brought back in time for the Judgment Day event, where a Battle Royal was held to decide a new champion. Many fans have argued that the World Title negated the necessity for the Intercontinental Title, but it was still a sorry sight to see the belt disappear, albeit briefly.