10 Real Life Events That Forced Wrestling World Title Changes
9. WCW Makes Chris Benoit World Champ To Stop Him Leaving For WWF
By the time of 2000's Souled Out PPV, the wheels were well and truly coming off for Ted Turner's once-dominant WCW.
Away from the nonsensical angles and twists, Chris Benoit was one of an increasing number of talents who had finally had their fill of seeing the same old names being the featured players of the company. As such, Benoit was one of those eyeing the WCW exit door, frustrated with how he'd been overlooked time and time again.
With Bret Hart having vacated the World Heavyweight Championship due to the concussion issues that would ultimately force the Hitman to retire, management decided that Benoit would be the ideal choice to replace Hart against Sid Vicious in the Souled Out main event for the vacant title.
Not just that, but Benoit actually became the new WCW Champion on that January 2000 night, tapping Sid out with his patented Crippler Crossface.
In the years since then, it's been confirmed by multiple sources that the reason Benoit was given the World Heavyweight Championship here was part of a last-gasp attempt to stop him from leaving WCW.
That tactic didn't work, and Benoit - along with Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko and Perry Saturn - would leave WCW the very next day. By the end of the month, the four would land in the then-WWF as The Radicalz.
As for the WCW Title, that would be made vacant, then won by Sid, then stripped from Sid, then won again by Sid... because WCW.