10 Times Title Belts Were Horribly Disrespected
2. European Union
Returning to the building where he'd forfeited the WWE Title less than a year earlier, Shawn Michaels was pinned for a title for the first time in over twelve months, and only the third time in his five years as a solo champion.
But it's 1997, so of course the story isn't that straightforward.
Shawn had cruelly politicked to dethrone Davey Boy Smith in Birmingham, England for the novelty title, then proceeded to do nothing with the belt whilst also claiming his third WWE Title.
Locked in a feud with D-Generation-X, Commissioner Slaughter looked to create a divide by insisting Shawn defend the gold against Triple H as the main event of a Christmas edition of Monday Night Raw.
First feigning a real fight, the pair revealed a ruse as Michaels hit the deck whilst Hunter comically ran the ropes and hit a featherlight splash for the win.
It was an insult to the emotionally charged Bulldog battle earlier in the year, and to a roster in general who had been told on screen and off by Shawn himself that he would not lay down for anybody. Not least in a comedy non-match with his best friend.
Already on life support, the title was now officially dead.