10 Oldest First-Time WWE World Champions
5. Iron Sheik - 41 Years, 9 Months, 11 Days
WWE has always had a reputation as a "babyface territory," a promotion where the business model revolves around having a good guy as world champion, fighting off a slew of evil challengers. That was even more true during the early decades of the company's existence, but sometimes, the bad guys got their due.
In 1983, Bob Backlund - who had reigned as WWE World Champion for nearly six years - was reaching the end of his reign, and it was The Iron Sheik who got the call to take the title from him. The Iron Sheik - formerly Greco-Roman wrestling standout Hossein Khosrow Ali Vaziri - had broken into wrestling more than a decade earlier after a successful amateur career, initially working for Verne Gagne's AWA.
Playing a stereotypical heel, Sheik made a name for himself in Minnesota and elsewhere. When he got to WWE in 1983, he immediately attacked Backlund, injuring his neck. Days later, the two men had a match, and Sheik managed to incapacitate the WWE World Champion and lock him in the Camel Clutch. Though Backlund didn't submit, his manager, Arnold Skaaland, threw in the towel when the risk of serious injury appeared imminent. That controversial finish made the experienced Iron Sheik the WWE World Champion.