8 Greatest Transitional WWE Champions Of All Time
Not every superstar is meant to be "the guy', but they can still be great champs.
When it comes to crowning a new world champion in WWE, it's important to boost the new guy's stock as much as possible from the outset. This can be difficult when you're moving the title between two of the company's most popular figures. You can't have the next top babyface beating out the previous top babyface, because it will divide the fans and suck away a lot of the momentum.
Enter the transitional champion.
These guys aren't meant to be the focal point of the company. They're simply an intermediary between two "true" champions, - both of whom are usually babyfaces - used as a buffer to make sure neither of the full-time champs' reputations are hurt.
There are three key elements necessary to qualify as a transitional champion: 1) You're winning the belt in order to drop it to a different guy later on, 2) The guy you're taking the belt had a substantial and lengthy reign, and 3) Your reign isn't meant to be substantial or lengthy.
Now, given that somewhat woeful description of what constitutes a transitional champion, you might think that this list is going to be nothing more than a Who's Who of crappy titleholders. But just because a guy wasn't necessarily meant to be a memorable champion, that doesn't mean he can't be one.
8. André The Giant
You might be questioning how someone who held the belt for less than a day could ever be considered a great champion. But André the Giant's title reign was huge because it created a swell of controversy and outrage, all the while escalating one of the most satisfying feuds of the '80s.
It should be obvious in retrospect that without André, Hulk Hogan would never have achieved the level of superstardom that he did. But André also played a key role in introducing another top tier talent into the WWE Championship race.
After four years of Hulkamania running wild with the strap around his waist, André finally ended Hogan's reign on an episode of The Main Event. To prove he was the ultimate transitional champion, André held onto the title for all of 90 seconds before promptly handing it to Ted DiBiase, who'd paid the big man an even bigger fee to fork it over.
André literally sold the company's most prestigious title in front of thousands of Hulkamaniacs who were still in total disbelief that Hogan had lost.
The title was swiftly vacated by Jack Tunney due to the shenanigans surrounding the title change, and a tournament was held at WrestleMania IV to determine the next champion. The winner was some forgotten jobber with the ridiculous moniker of 'Macho Man'...