From “Rowdy” Roddy Piper to Scott Hall, these are the best WWE Superstars who never quite took home the biggest title in the game.
Winning a world title in WWE means you have reached the top of the mountain. There is arguably no greater accomplishment in wrestling, and the title serves as proof nobody else is on your level. Household names like The Rock, John Cena and Hulk Hogan held the WWE title in the past, making it the most prestigious in wrestling.
Some legendary WWE stars, however, have never won a world title, yet are still recognized as some of the greatest wrestlers of all time. Who are those athletes and how did they reach icon status without ever being a world champion? Let’s find out.
Scott Hall
For many, Scott Hall is the first name that jumps to mind when it comes to legendary wrestlers who never won a world title. Razor Ramon was a classic bad guy. He made being mean look cool, and won four Intercontinental Titles while cementing his legacy in the industry. Despite his success in and out of the ring, he never reached the true pinnacle of WWE by raising the world title above his head.
Hall wrestled for almost every major company in the world at the time including NJPW, WWF and WCW. He was a leader of the NWO, and often found himself in title contention with the likes of Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart and Randy Savage. Although he came close many times, Hall was never able to win the big one and found himself in major roles with wrestling’s biggest tag teams and factions. To most wrestling fans, though, that doesn’t matter at all and Ramon is still widely regarded as one of the most iconic wrestlers of all time.
Cesaro
Cesaro becoming the world champion seemed like a possibility that was always on the horizon, but never came to fruition before he eventually left WWE.
Cesaro is a world-traveled performer and one of the smartest wrestlers in and out of the ring. It isn’t his brains that attract fans to him from all corners of the globe, but his incredible in-ring prowess and strength that is unmatched by anybody else. Dubbed “Pound for pound the strongest man in WWE history” by Michael Cole, Cesaro performed seemingly impossible feats of strength in the ring night after night while also showcasing his technical wrestling ability.
Cesaro did see lots of success in WWE as a Tag Team Champion and even United States Champion, but he never won the big one. He was one of the most beloved and talented WWE superstars of the modern era, and of all time for that matter, which is why he was always able to stay relevant, world title or not.
Hopefully, Cesaro can win his first world title soon and disappear from lists like these. Until then, he will continue to prove to management and fans that he is the strongest, and one of the most talented in-ring performers of all time.
“Rowdy” Roddy Piper
Roddy Piper is one of the most influential and recognizable stars in wrestling history, and he did it all without ever winning a world championship.
He established himself early in his career as one of the best in-ring technicians in the business, but his true money-maker was his ability to hold the crowd in the palm of his hand with nothing more than a microphone. Piper consistently cut the best promos in wrestling at the time, only rivaled by big personality stars like Ric Flair. He had an almost endless amount of charisma and his passion and hard work translated through television. Piper was one of the most entertaining villains of all time and one of the first to be so good that fans still cheered for him regardless of his attitude and disposition.
He didn’t need a title around his waist to navigate one of the most storied careers in all of wrestling. Piper was already a renowned performer both in the WWF.
Today, Ronda Rousey carries on Piper’s legacy with the leather jacket she wears being the exact same one Piper wore to the ring. The jacket was given to Rousey by Piper’s children — a true passing of the torch moment.
Jake “The Snake” Roberts
Despite being one of the most recognizable characters in wrestling history, Jake Roberts never won a world title in WWF. Roberts had a strong character and presence in the ring, and the real Python that he would bring out in a bag added an element of unpredictability and legitimate danger to his character that nobody else had. Even with an intimidating Python by his side, Roberts couldn’t seem to reach that next level in the ring.
If you look at Jake Roberts’ WWE accomplishments, you may think he was unsuccessful or even had a boring career, but this couldn’t be further from the truth.
Roberts was one of the first wrestlers to prove that you don’t need a title to be considered successful, or credible in wrestling. He never held any titles within WWE, but always remained relevant. He played integral roles in many storylines and worked with some of the greatest of all time like The Undertaker and The Ultimate Warrior.
For some, Roberts transcended wrestling and became a part of pop culture. Arn Anderson was quoted saying, “Jake was such a strong character, such a strong persona, he never needed to be champion, he just needed to be Jake The Snake.”
Honorable mentions
– Mr. Perfect
– Owen Hart
– Ted Dibiase
Source: usa