9 Wrestlers Who Could Have Been WWE Champion In The 1990s

This one might seem out of left field, but desperate times might have called for desperate measures.

In 1992, the WWF had the federal government and media breathing down their neck about the apparent proliferation of steroids. Wanting to change their image, the company scooted out offending mainstays such as The Ultimate Warrior and Davey Boy Smith. With the apparent plan of Warrior winning the World Title from Ric Flair now thrown in the garbage, Vince McMahon needed a new guy to give the strap company alike a new image.

According to legend, there was a shortlist of guys the company contemplated giving the belt in lieu of Warrior. Among them were Bret Hart, Bob Backlund, Mr. Perfect - and Brian "Crush" Adams.

You may know Crush by many gimmicks, be it in Demolition, Kronik, The NWO, or, as he was in 1992, a neon-colored big-bodied Hawaiian. Crush was always one of those guys who would get opportunity after opportunity thanks to his size and backstage connections, but he never set the world on fire in the ring.

Ultimately, Vince made the right call going with Bret in 1992, although given what else the company did in the New Generation era, making Crush the champ would have hardly been their dumbest decision.