WWE: Top 10 greatest Intercontinental Champions of all-time

1. Randy Savage

It’s shocking to realize that “Macho Man” Randy Savage only held three singles titles during his illustrious WWE career. He was twice the WWE Champion, famously wrestling two men who are on a vast majority of American wrestling fans’ Mount Rushmore for said title: Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair.

Both of those matches were held at WrestleMania, thus establishing how big of a star Macho Man truly was.

Savage was also responsible for elevating the King of the Ring tournament by becoming The Macho King in a storyline that culminated in one of the greatest matches and moments in wrestling history against The Ultimate Warrior at WrestleMania WrestleMania 7.

Simply put: Savage is one of the all-time greats.

For as great of a WWE Champion as he was, Savage rose to prominence as arguably the greatest Intercontinental Champion of all time—and this writer would argue that he was. Macho Man held the title for 414 consecutive days. He wrestled a number of tremendous matches along the way.

Most noteworthy of all was the match that many fans and analysts regard as the best in WWE history: Randy Savage vs. Ricky Steamboat at WrestleMania III.

A landscape-altering match that was for the vaunted WWE Intercontinental Championship.

That match has since influenced generations of professional wrestlers. Even today, companies around the country aspire to emulate the pace and story of that historic bout.

More pertinent to this conversation is that said match has come to define the WWE Intercontinental Championship as one that will steal the show. It headlines weekly televised events and brings fans to their feet at Pay-Per-Views.

Whether or not you believe that Savage is the greatest, he most certainly brought a rare combination of prestige, showmanship, and wrestling ability to a title that now defines every champion and challenger.

In just one reign, Savage indisputably earned his place on this list.