10 Most Successful Outsiders In WWE History
1. Chris Jericho
Here is the ultimate example of how to come into the WWE machine and break the walls down, so to speak. Chris Jericho, a fledgling mid-carder in WCW with an extensive following, had gotten over with his whiny crybaby heel persona. Nobody could pull that off quite like Jericho, who had to toil through that same mid-card as a debased goody-two-shoes for years before being allowed to embrace the Dark Side and come up with a cavalcade of excuses as to why he wasnt rising to the top of the company - including conspiracy theories within WCW. He was the most charismatic and entertaining portion of every Nitro, but he was going nowhere due to how the company was run.
When rumor had it that Jericho had jumped ship from WCW to the WWE, smart fans everywhere were losing their minds. A gigantic countdown timer was displayed on Monday Night RAW, and fans everywhere wanted to know what was going to happen. As the Rock was delivering a promo in the ring, the timer hit zero, and Y2J, the Ayatollah of Rock n Rollah himself, appeared, before verbally sparring with the #1 mic guy in the business. He made an immediate impact. He was the superstar we all knew he could be from WCWkind of.
You see, Jericho hit more valleys than peaks in his initial run. We all remember the debut, but according to Triple H he had nuclear heat backstage amongst the boys for defecting from the enemy and taking one of the top spots in the company on his first night in. Many Sunday Night Heats later, and Jericho found himself in good programs with two of the top females in the company: the belated Chyna, and Stephanie McMahon. These programs helped Jericho get over that stigma.
Given a brief and eventually negated WWF Championship victory on Monday Night RAW was a taste of what was to come, a reactionary move that unintentionally gauged interest in Jericho as the top performer in the WWF. A groundswell of fans supported Y2J, who kept his WCW persona, and he was anointed as the first Undisputed WWF and WCW Champion. He has since gone on to win numerous championships, becoming a Grand Slam Champion, and cemented himself as one of the all-time greats in the history of wrestling.