10 Last-Minute WWE Champions
3. Mankind (1999)
Mankind's third and final WWE Championship came about thanks to backstage politics that threw a monkey wrench into WWE's original plans for SummerSlam '99.
Ever since forming D-Generation X, Triple H had been steadily rising up the card. By the summer of '99, Helmsley had ditched his DX cohorts, turned heel, and had made a case to be WWE's next breakout superstar. As a result, WWE booked Triple H vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin as the SummerSlam main event.
In a controversial decision that is often ignored or outright denied today, Austin refused to drop the title to Triple H. Austin did not think The Game was at the necessary level or worthy enough to dethrone him as champion at the time. This led to the advertised main event being shuffled around often before 22 August, 1999.
Austin refused to lose to The Game but agreed to drop the title to Mankind. Ultimately, WWE decided to add Mankind to the match, making it a Triple Threat, which saw Mankind pin Austin for the title. The very next night on Raw, Mankind dropped the title to Triple H.
Scrambling to find a resolution that would appease all parties, WWE had its hands full with the main event at SummerSlam '99. While Triple H gained the most, Mankind benefited from winning an unplanned third WWE Championship thanks to some last-minute adjustments.