5 wrestlers who deserve a run with the Intercontinental Championship
The WWE Intercontinental Championship might be considered as a secondary championship, but it has always been considered as a stepping stone for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The title has a prestigious history, with the legendary Pat Patterson being the first holder of the belt way back in 1979. He won it in a tournament in Rio de Janeiro when he unified the WWF North American Championship and the South American Championship ro create the championship.
Over the years, there have been 76 different Intercontinental Champions with Chris Jericho holding the title for a record 9 times and the longest uninterrupted title reign going to The Honky Tonk man for his 454 day run.
Over the last few years, WWE’s 50/50 booking of Intercontinental Champions has really hurt the standing of the belt in the eyes of fans. Especially when you compare it to the NJPW’s Intercontinental Championship which is held in regard to almost the same level as their Heavyweight Championship, which has even been in the main events of Wrestle Kingdom – NJPW’s version of WrestleMania.
Currently, The Miz is the WWE Intercontinental Champion, a belt he’s held since the Raw after WrestleMania. With his wife Maryse at his side, their act although entertaining is doing nothing to help raise the prestige of the belt. At a point last year, Daniel Bryan was the Intercontinental Champion at the same time when John Cena was US Champion. That on the other hand, helped.
In this article I look at 5 wrestlers who deserve a shot at The Miz’s Intercontinental Championship. I looked at wrestlers who could help take the belt to a new level as champion.
Note: I haven’t considered Kevin Owens for this as he’s clearly already destined to jump to the next level.
5: Neville
Anyone remember the WWE World Heavyweight Championship open challenge match between Neville and Seth Rollins? Probably not. It was in the middle of a really dull Raw. But, the that match itself was spectacular. Neville took Rollins to the limit and showed that he could hang with the best.
Before Neville’s injury, he was chiseled in as a part of the ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship with his spot going to eventual winner Zack Ryder. When Neville finally makes his comeback, he definitely deserves the shot at the championship that he unfortunately missed.
The Man That Gravity Forgot is a very talented performer and definitely deserves a run with the belt. His run as NXT Champion was really good. He had a string of great matches and helped elevate that championship to newer heights. Let’s hope he can do the same with the Intercontinental Championship.