11 Wrestlers Who Waited The Longest To Win A World Title

André the Giant is one of the biggest people in wrestling history—both figuratively and literally. So, in some ways, it’s perfectly fitting that he also endured the biggest wait between making his first appearance for the company and being crowned the champion of the world.

André’s debut for the then-WWWF came on 23 March 1976 at a live event at Madison Square Garden. There, he defeated Buddy Wolfe, before embarking on what was eventually touted as a near-15-year undefeated streak in which he was never pinned or submitted.

That run was halted at WrestleMania III, when he lost to Hulk Hogan in one of the most famous pro wrestling matches of all time. But while the streak was over, there was to be a consolation prize, as the resultant feud saw André capture his one-and-only WWF Title in February of the following year.

At The Main Event I on 5 February 1988, André got some revenge on Hogan by beating him for the title, ending a staggering five-and-a-half thousand day wait to finally get his hands on the gold.

Of course, immediately after winning the belt, André gifted it to his manager, Ted DiBiase, prompting President Jack Tunney to rule this as vacating the title. Just like that, a 15-year wait was over in a matter of minutes, making this not only one of the most long-overdue wins in company history, but also one of the most short-lived reigns of all time.