The Intercontinental Title

[tommo1898]

I am not a regular on here so apologies if this has been covered loads of times, but does anyone remember how much the intercontinental championship used to mean? The guy with that belt was more or less guaranteed to be a future main event star and guys like Brett Hart built their popularity with ic title runs. I remember caring as much about storylines involving the ic title as I did the world title.

My question is - What would you do to get it back to having that kind of prestige? I would have a situation a bit like 'option c' in tna where the ic champ always gets a shot at the world title at, say, Summerslam. I would have at least the first 2 ic champs to do this win the belt. All of a sudden, having that belt makes you a big deal. It would be a good way to build guys like reigns and Cesaro who can have a run with a meaningful title as a practice run for the world title as well as putting mid card guys in meaningful programmes that people actually give a damn about

 

[TheICChampion]

Not necessarily a bad idea, but Vinnie Mac isn't a big fan of ideas that came from other promotions (Hence why we STILL haven't seen a War Games match) so it's not likely. Besides, the TNA 'option C' is more or less similar to MITB, with some big differences. If you're holding that briefcase, or title, in TNA's case, you can "cash in" to get a World title shot. I kind of like the idea, but I think it would just give people the impression that the IC title isn't worth a whole lot, considering most anyone would say "Screw it, I want the World title." And why wouldn't they? The IC title definitely is a stepping stone to the World title, but you shouldn't have the option of giving it up just for a shot at the World title. It should be you get over, hold the IC title, and when you LOSE it, not give it up, then if you're over enough and you and everyone else feels you're ready for it, THEN you get a chance to go for the World title.

 

[zomigosh]

But it would also draw a clear line between the World Title and the IC Title. In theory, the IC Title in its current form can be considered more important than the World Title. But if the main reason for having the IC Title in the first place was to cash it in for the World Title, doesn't that just devalue it?

Why not just give the title to upper-mid card/Main Event guys and have good storylines? NJPW does it just fine, in fact their IC Title is considered pretty much onpar with the World Title. And that's without the gimmicky stipulation.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

The guy with that belt was more or less guaranteed to be a future main event star and guys like Brett Hart built their popularity with ic title runs. I remember caring as much about storylines involving the ic title as I did the world title.

Not really. The thing about the IC title is that people talk about the handful who've become stars while being champion. Practically all the time, the names that get mentioned are Savage, Hennig, Warrior and Hart. Some other obvious ones include Diesel, HBK, Triple H, The Rock & Stone Cold Steve Austin A lot of those guys were either big stars prior to being champ, became big stars as champ or being champ only heightened their popularity. However, what people don't mention are the numerous other IC champs who didn't move onto bigger & better things like Pat Patterson, Ken Patera, Don Muraco, Greg Valentine, Tito Santana, British Bulldog, Marty Jannetty, Owen Hart, Goldust, Ahmed Johnson, Ken Shamrock, Val Venis, D'Lo Brown, The Godfather, Rikishi, etc. Sometimes, the IC title can be a huge boon to a wrestler's career, but the reverse is true as well. Sometimes it's due to management losing interest in the wrestler and poorly booking him, sometimes the wrestler genuinely doesn't have the ability and/or isn't able to deliver at the level that management believed. Being IC champ was never a guarantee that you were moving up the ladder, it certainly helped sometimes, but the guys it obviously helped the most were also guys who had something special going on and everybody simply can't be special.

 

[Pedigree1]

The IC Title back in the day used to mean a whole lot.. It was the 2nd most important title in the company,hell sometimes it was the most important,a lot of brilliant matches happened and a boatload of greats held the belt..

When Cody Rhodes held the belt,that to me started to help the Prestige of the title again. Before Codys Reign,it was hot Potato for along time.. That completely devalued the title,it was like a game of Tag.. Give it time,I feel that BNB and others can help,bring back the IC title to glory once again.. But they need to unify the US Title along with the IC strap IMO! That would help a lot

 

[Catacomb]

what the wwe needs to do id involve the ic belt in meaningful stories and feuds. the previous ic holder big e had no feuds, it was just like heres the opponent and thats it. if they have the wrestlers treat the belt like its worth something the fans will too

 

[HBK_EDGE]

I would like to see it unified with the US Title and featured prominently on Smackdown. Now that the Brand Split has pretty much been undone and there is one World Title there has somewhat been a hole on Smackdown. Instead of just rehashing matches we have already seen on Raw or having every new match we see on Smackdown later be featured on Raw, why not build the story on SD around the IC and really feature it heavily on SD much more then the World Title. You can still have it some what used on Raw and have defenses on Raw, but make it like the SD title. I think it helps the title and helps Smackdown.

 

[J.J.]

Bret Hart built his popularity in the tag division. The IC title was just a mere stepping stone for him - he was headed to the main event. I don't think the prestige is gone, I just think with the US title there as well that it takes away what is supposed to be the company's second best championship. Meaningful feud that involves the title at stake would be beneficial.

 

[HeenanGorilla]

It amazes me how many people just don't acknowledge Hulkamania's positive effect on the interest in the IC belt. A lot of you are bringing up points that have been stated a million times, but still don't bother to consider WHY things happened.

Too many people say that the IC belt was such a big deal in the old days. (And to the guy who says it was bigger than the world title, you are a fool and the reason I hate you fans who just believe what other idiots say and take it as fact. It was NEVER a bigger deal than the World title. It may have had more interest to people who were sick of Hogan, yours truly included, but it was never bigger. Get real!) The IC belt was much more important from the mid-80s to early 90s. That is in no way a coincidence that it is also the timeline of Hulk's dominance.

I am no Hulk "mark", as is the overused term here, but he had the WWF Heavyweight Championship LOCKED UP. Even when he wasn't champ, he was right there beside Champion Savage and co-main eventing with Champion Warrior. He was never far away from a title reign and THAT is why the IC belt "meant so much more" back then.

It didn't mean the world to title holders like Muraco, Valentine and Santana and it didn't mean shit during modern runs. It was a HUGE deal from Savage's reign through maaaayyyybe HBK's win over Bulldog. And that is stretching it. I would say SummerSlam 92 ended its importance. Edge, Jericho, HHH, Rock, Austin...all legends, none of whose IC titles runs meant as much as those in the previous era. During Hulkamania, people wanted a CHANCE to see a title change, and with Hogan locking up the World title, the IC belt and Tag Team belts were HUGE. Once the World title started this meaningless merry-go-round of constant change, the lesser titles were devalued.

You can blame storylines and creative for a lot, but not the value of the titles. We are in a front-running, win now, impatient society. THAT ties creative's hands from writing long storylines with big payoffs--those that flourished in the same era I mentioned above, I might add.

Wrestling--the wrestling where storylines matured and all titles mattered-- is boned because of today's culture. This product may improve as entertainment someday, but the age of many titles and many levels of interest throughout the roster is over!

Argue it all you want, but when you're done defending your religion that I blasphemed, think about it in private...you'll see the truth.

 

[tommo1898]

Not sure about the ic title completely dying in 92. I remember going nuts when HHH beat the rock for it and seeing angle go at it with the likes of Jericho and benoit in ppv matches that people were genuinely excited about.

It's a shame really it can be such a good way to get someone over and it's just a prop for people to hold instead

 

[HeenanGorilla]

Not sure about the ic title completely dying in 92. I remember going nuts when HHH beat the rock for it and seeing angle go at it with the likes of Jericho and benoit in ppv matches that people were genuinely excited about.

It's a shame really it can be such a good way to get someone over and it's just a prop for people to hold instead

There were good angles around it, you're right. I just thought the belt didn't add as much to the angle at that point. It meant more to the angle beforehand. Your examples, in my opinion, could have been as good without the IC strap involved. But, there was relevance after 92, that's fair. Just sporadic, not consistent.

 

[daddyJ_t]

William regal upsetting santino was one of the last big ic moments for me. the very night he was taking pride and debuted the new honk-a-perfect mountie he lost the title to regal. corny gimmick but it showed pride in being a ic champ

 

[J.J.]

I was kinda hoping they'd send Reigns the IC title route before totally throwing him to the wolves. I am hoping once his feud with Triple H and the authority in general ends, he could have a run for the second tier prize. Not even necessarily saying have him win it but a main event with the title on the line doesn't hurt.

 

[capnwillie]

The problem with the IC title is actually the US title, at least logistically speaking. Intercontinental represents North amd South America, The US is part of that. If anything, the US Title should be a lower level belt, but normally it seems like they are held by guys at or around the same level. Essentially, they're splitting the prestige of one midcard-level belt when there should really be some separation. Therefore, neither title really seems to matter as much as they used to before WWE bought WCW. With the network, I'd rather just see the US title retired and replaced with a WWE Network championship that could be used as a lower-level "warm up" title just like a TV title.

In the 80's and 90's, I often remember commentators referring to the IC champ as the default #1 contender for the World title, at least in the case od Hogan vs. Warrior, though that was the first time that the IC and World champs had a match with both belts at stake. At any rate, the IC has often been used as a last test for guys on their way to the World belt. Just not so much in the last 10 years.

 

[Skinsley]

WWE needs to go back to the times where if the former WWE champion had to go to the back of the line, and was defeated too often. Then they should go after the IC title.

John Cena was beaten by Orton for the WWEWHW title a few times, and then it was time for Batista/Daniel Bryan/HHH to try and put themselves in the picture.

Instead of having a feud with Bray Wyatt....who had other options for big feuds. He should have gone after the IC title. The prestige the title would be given if top guys occasionally went after it would be huge. The Intercontinental championship is a bigger deal than any character building WWE could do. Because if it had prestige the story-lines and feuds would seem meaningful and would build stars on its own.

The Tag division is on its way up, but its going up slowly. Look at how the Divas championship and Tag Team championships mean on NXT ? The women are brawling for it! The tag division is being dominated by the Ascension, but teams are still trying, and new teams are being created for it! Take a leaf out of NXT's book.

Vaudevillians for the win by the way!

 

[Dagger Dias]

My question is - What would you do to get it back to having that kind of prestige? I would have a situation a bit like 'option c' in tna where the ic champ always gets a shot at the world title at, say, Summerslam.

Your suggestion of using a WWE counterpart of TNA's Option C is an idea that sounds good on paper, but I can see a lot of potential problems with it. Say WWE begin doing that. What's to stop them from crowning a new champion annually at Battleground (or Money In the Bank, or whatever show they have in July that year) for the sole purpose of giving them a World Heavyweight Championship shot when they could get more creative with their stories, then the belt fades into obscurity through lazy booking through the rest of the year? I fear something like that would happen. I'd rather see a midcard Money In the Bank briefcase if they are going to try out something new for the Intercontinental Championship or add some type of stipulation if they go the TNA Option C route, so that it's not obvious someone is getting the secondary belt for a world title push rather than to improve the IC title itself.

What they need to do is something I have been bringing up in previous topics. With the big gold belt now being merged with the WWE Championship, they need to simply treat the Intercontinental Championship identically to how the World Heavyweight Championship was before the unification of the world titles. Make the fans know that it is a huge deal to win this title, give it to former World Champions as well as potential future World Champions. Let it be what it was always supposed to be, an upper midcard title that only legitimate stars should hold. Give your champion a great storyline, a strong challenger, and book a good feud with it. It needs to be held to a higher standard than the filler, and a slightly lower standard to the world title. The US Championship can then be the true midcarder's belt. The rest takes care of itself. I still hope WWE go this route long term.

 

[L@RISANO]

WWE needs to go back to the times where if the former WWE champion had to go to the back of the line, and was defeated too often. Then they should go after the IC title.

John Cena was beaten by Orton for the WWEWHW title a few times, and then it was time for Batista/Daniel Bryan/HHH to try and put themselves in the picture.

Instead of having a feud with Bray Wyatt....who had other options for big feuds. He should have gone after the IC title. The prestige the title would be given if top guys occasionally went after it would be huge. The Intercontinental championship is a bigger deal than any character building WWE could do. Because if it had prestige the story-lines and feuds would seem meaningful and would build stars on its own.

I like this idea, and it would be a good way for someone like Orton, post-Authority, to get himself back up the card(as he has been pretty meaningless and overshadowed during the Authority storyline,tbh, even when he was champ).

Guys like Cena and Orton have been built in such a way that their reps mean that they can enhance any storyline just by being a part of them. Thus, putting either of them into an IC Storyline would generate even more interest in the title.

 

[Shark Boy]

It amazes me how many people just don't acknowledge Hulkamania's positive effect on the interest in the IC belt. A lot of you are bringing up points that have been stated a million times, but still don't bother to consider WHY things happened.

Too many people say that the IC belt was such a big deal in the old days. (And to the guy who says it was bigger than the world title, you are a fool and the reason I hate you fans who just believe what other idiots say and take it as fact. It was NEVER a bigger deal than the World title. It may have had more interest to people who were sick of Hogan, yours truly included, but it was never bigger. Get real!) The IC belt was much more important from the mid-80s to early 90s. That is in no way a coincidence that it is also the timeline of Hulk's dominance.

I am no Hulk "mark", as is the overused term here, but he had the WWF Heavyweight Championship LOCKED UP. Even when he wasn't champ, he was right there beside Champion Savage and co-main eventing with Champion Warrior. He was never far away from a title reign and THAT is why the IC belt "meant so much more" back then.

It didn't mean the world to title holders like Muraco, Valentine and Santana and it didn't mean shit during modern runs. It was a HUGE deal from Savage's reign through maaaayyyybe HBK's win over Bulldog. And that is stretching it. I would say SummerSlam 92 ended its importance. Edge, Jericho, HHH, Rock, Austin...all legends, none of whose IC titles runs meant as much as those in the previous era. During Hulkamania, people wanted a CHANCE to see a title change, and with Hogan locking up the World title, the IC belt and Tag Team belts were HUGE. Once the World title started this meaningless merry-go-round of constant change, the lesser titles were devalued.

You can blame storylines and creative for a lot, but not the value of the titles. We are in a front-running, win now, impatient society. THAT ties creative's hands from writing long storylines with big payoffs--those that flourished in the same era I mentioned above, I might add.

Wrestling--the wrestling where storylines matured and all titles mattered-- is boned because of today's culture. This product may improve as entertainment someday, but the age of many titles and many levels of interest throughout the roster is over!

Argue it all you want, but when you're done defending your religion that I blasphemed, think about it in private...you'll see the truth.

I swear I was thinking about the exact same thing as I was reading the OP.

The IC title had several story archs during Hogans reign. Most (if not all) of the "greatest" IC champs ever held that title during his dominating run. coincidence? I think not.

You want to make the IC title mean something again? Retire it.

Less titles=better