10 Times WWE Wrestlers Went Into Business For Themselves
8. Honky Tonk Man Refuses To Drop The Intercontinental Title
Here we are, 33 years after Honky Tonk Man's one and only reign as WWE Intercontinental Champion came to an end, and Honky still holds the record for the longest ever run with that title.
By the time HTM was finally dethroned by Ultimate Warrior at SummerSlam 1988, he'd been IC Champ for a mammoth 454 days, which equates to one year, two months and 27 days.
While some of the entries here are about wrestlers physically going into business for themselves between the ropes, the case of Honky Tonk Man revolves around him behind the scenes. After WWE had decided that Randy Savage would take the Intercontinental Title from Honky at the 3 October '87 edition of Saturday Night's Main Event, the Elvis impersonator took the extremely bold move of refusing Vince McMahon's wishes.
As Honky has detailed at times - such as to WrestlingINC - he was operating on more of a handshake deal with McMahon back then, and he went into self-preservation mode by refusing to drop the IC Title on a show that was watched by millions of people. For HTM, he thought losing the belt here would damage his worth and negotiating power with other promotions.
Even though it was Honky Tonk Man who prioritised his own business here, the main beneficiary would actually end up being Savage - with him instead getting the World Championship five months down the line at WrestleMania IV.