25 Best Chris Jericho Moments

In the year 2000, the McMahon-Helmsley Era was in full force as Stephanie McMahon had taken over the on-screen authority role from her father and was ruling Raw with an iron fist alongside her husband, WWF world champion Triple H. Steph and Hunter had been making life on Raw a living hell for a number of babyfaces, most notably Chris Jericho.

You see, Jericho had a bad habit of ripping on Stephanie McMahon and mocking her, much to the chagrin of the WWF champion. Triple H finally had enough and challenged Jericho to a match for the world title on Raw.

Unfortunately for Hunter, he had made the mistake of also making Earl Hebner's life miserable for the past few weeks and, as Bret Hart would tell you, you don't want to mess with Earl Hebner while a title is on the line.

Hunter seemed to have the match well in hand but made the mistake of bullying and shoving Hebner during the match. Jericho used the distraction to his his Lionsault finisher and make the cover. Hebner made a fast count and suddenly the crowd exploded as Jericho won his first ever WWF title.

Or so we thought.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMFyeoVmqcg

Jericho was forced to surrender the title later in the night after Hebner admitted he counted fast. However, it would not be the last time that Jericho held wrestling's biggest prize.