5. Title Changes 10 Out Of 12 Months In 2001
During the Attitude Era, things moved fast in pro wrestling. Fans often point to the way WCW treated their titles as one reason why interest started to dwindle in what the promotion were doing, but the fact is that titles were treated largely the same way in WWF/WWE. Ok, so the company didn't put their World Title on an actor, or change it multiple times in the same hour, but in 10 out of the 12 months in 2001, the Intercontinental Title changed hands. Hold onto your hats for this list; in '01, Chris Jericho, Jeff Hardy, Triple H, Kane, Albert, Lance Storm, Edge, Christian and Test all held the belt, with some even having multiple reigns (Edge captured the title on 3 separate occasions throughout the year). Shooting the belt from wrestler to wrestler doesn't really help the overall prestige of the belt, and doesn't allow any title to retain an aura amongst fans. The fact a supremely talented grappler like Lance Storm only had a run lasting 27 days says it all - winning the strap on Raw in July, Storm would drop it to Edge in August at Summerslam, all before he would then lose it to Christian a month later at Unforgiven.
Jamie Kennedy
Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.
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