8. Bam Bam Bigelow
When Bam Bam Bigelow made his Extreme Championship Wrestling debut in 1996, he was fresh off a disappointing and frustrating run in Vince McMahon's WWE. After doing the job for Lawrence Taylor at WrestleMania XI, he expected to enjoy a major push but saw his prospects at the top of the card evaporate amid a backstage power struggle with Shawn Michaels, Kevin Nash and The Kliq. What should have been the greatest point in his career became one of its most miserable. Then Bigelow debuted in ECW and wasted little time proving just how valuable an asset he was to his employer. Joining Shane Douglas and Chris Candido to makeup the Triple Threat, Bigelow was the enforcer of the group. Like Arn Anderson was to the Four Horsemen, Bigelow was a bruiser but also brought experience and unmatched athleticism for a worker of his size. He was the complete package and Heyman knew it. Eventually, Bigelow became tired of taking orders from Douglas and stepped up to the plate, challenging--and defeating--him for the ECW Championship. His reign was short-lived, lasting just under a month, but what it did for ECW was further legitimize its top prize. To that point, outside of Terry Funk, only homegrown talents had held the championship. Bigelow added an elite name to the lineage of the strap.