WWE's First 10 Intercontinental Champions: Where Are They Now?

by Jamie Kennedy

1. The Ultimate Warrior

The Ultimate Warrior
WWE.com

With the weight of the WWF machine behind him, The Ultimate Warrior almost became Hulk Hogan's full-time successor in the early-90s. A win at WrestleMania VI came when Warrior was in his second reign as Intercontinental Champion, but he vacated the belt after winning Hulk's WWF Heavyweight Title.

Warrior would never return to the secondary title hunt after that. His relationship with Vince McMahon and WWE soured terribly in the mid-90s, so much so that Warrior wasn't seen on WWE programming until he accepted an offer for induction into the Hall of Fame in 2014. That would be the man's last hurrah, because he passed away suddenly the day after appearing on Raw.

In total, Warrior held the Intercontinental Title for 432 days across two different reigns. The 10th unique champion to hold the belt, Warrior is remembered as one of the first babyfaces to use the title as a stepping stone towards the Heavyweight Championship.

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Who were your favourite early Intercontinental Champions? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments section below!

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Contributor

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.