10 Most Pointless World Champions In WWE History

3. Kane (1998)

Kane WWE Champion
WWE.com

It's logical to assume that Kane was only supposed to be a short-lived character; introduced as a natural enemy to The Undertaker in late-1997, it makes sense to believe that 'the Big Red Machine' was meant to ride off into the sunset after losing to his storyline sibling at WrestleMania XIV.

The success of the new character prompted those writing television to keep him around, and the ominous red and black monster would surprisingly become WWF Heavyweight Champion at the 1998 King Of The Ring show.

This was an awkward moment for Steve Austin. Red hot as champ, the anti-hero babyface shouldn't have lost the belt so soon, especially if creative only wanted to hand it back to him the next night on Raw. This was another example of a title switch doing nothing for either party involved, and it certainly didn't elevate the title.

Kane's 24 hours with the WWF Title was a poor decision. A one-day interruption of Austin's reign didn't serve any purpose at all, and the King Of The Ring win remains an anomaly due to Kane never winning the belt again.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.