10 Times WWE Actually Elevated Midcarders To Become WWE Champions

9. Sgt. Slaughter

"YOOOOOOU PUUUUUUUUKE!"

Some WWF lifers probably were puking when the company plucked Sgt. Slaughter from the declining AWA for another go-around in 1990 and turned him into an Anti-American sympathiser. This was a complete sea change for the once-patriotic army gimmick, but it did turn Slaughter into a main event star.

Here's the thing: Sarge had been in top feuds during earlier runs with the company, but most expected he'd be a token midcarder when he returned (after six years away) in the '90s. Vinnie Mac had other plans - he wanted to capitalise on real-world issues and have Slaughter turn against the USA in favour of Iraq.

This storyline was deemed so important that Vince put Sarge over The Ultimate Warrior at the 1991 Royal Rumble and gave him a short run as WWF Champ. That, for the first time in modern promotional history, made Slaughter a genuine headliner. Nobody could've predicted that one.