Intercontinental Championship: Top Ten Superstars Who Defined The Title

credt: wwe.com

4. Randy Savage

The “Macho Man” maybe only had one title reign, but his ranking is as high as it is due to just how good his championship run was and also just how important it was to not only himself, but the WWE as a whole. Savage was signed to the WWE in June of 1985. Billed as “the top free agent in pro wrestling”, he captured the Intercontinental title from Tito Santana after striking Santana with a former object that he took from his trunks within eight months of his debut. This touched off a run that lasted 414 days, the third longest in company’s history. His 43 televised title defenses remains a record to this day.

Savage’s one reign was in a word, dominant. In the course of nearly 14 months, Savage not only defended his title, but successfully pinned challengers likes George Steele, Pedro Morales, Tony Garea, Billy Jack Haynes, and Jake Roberts. Although a top notch heel, “Mach” very rarely bailed out of a title defense. The pinnacle of his reign was the same day he lost the belt as he and Ricky Steamboat dazzled the Pontiac Silverdome at Wrestlemania III in what has become known as one of the best matches in the history of that event.

But the importance of his run as IC champ proved strong as shortly after he lost to Steamboat, Savage was paired into an alliance with the top baby face in the company, Hulk Hogan. One year year after losing the belt, he captured the biggest one of his career, as he won four matches and the tournament to crown the new WWE Champion at Wrestlemania IV. He would go on to win another WWE Championship as well as four in the WCW. To this day, the Intercontinental championship may have never played a more important role turning someone into a massive star than it did for Savage.