20 Superstars Who Only Had One Championship Reign In WWE

18. Larry Zbyszko

Ricky Steamboat Intercontinental Championship
WWE

Larry Zbyszko's career was as decorated as his name is hard to spell.

In terms of championships, Zbyszko was a two-time World champion for the AWA, won various titles across the NWA, and held the TV and Tag Team Championships in WCW.

During his run in the WWE (then known as the WWWF), Zbyszko became the protégé of one of the all-time greats, Bruno Sammartino. It was under Sammartino's tutelage that Zbyszko won his one and only championship; the WWWF Tag Team Championships alongside tag team specialist, Tony Garea. They held the championships for just over 100 days before dropping them to The Valiant Brothers in March 1979.

Zbyszko was probably due more title reigns than he got in WWE. He was talented, had proven success elsewhere, and was involved with one of the company's top stars. He even went onto feud with Sammartino for the World championship in 1980.

Whilst he probably shouldn't have been the one to beat Bruno for the top prize, he could have at least had an Intercontinental Championship reign off the back of such a high-profile feud.

Maybe the belt-makers just refused to spell out his name on the front plate.

Contributor
Contributor

Jacob Simmons has a great many passions, including rock music, giving acclaimed films three-and-a-half stars, watching random clips from The Simpsons on YouTube at 3am, and writing about himself in the third person.