The Least Likely World Champion....

[asiatic7]

Wrestling is full of them. You might have looked at him, watched him for a few years and said, "This guy Will never be a World Champion..." or maybe there is a guy who you never expected to win the big one it never dawned on you that he just might.

I remember watching Bret Hart as a 12yr old back in 1992. I NEVER imagined he would be a World Champ. Not because Bret wasn't good, it just didn't seem like it could be a reality with the Hogan's, Savages, Warriors and Flairs. He didn't seem blockbuster enough back then.....

I never figured Miz would be a Champion, nor Edge, Guerrero or Mysterio, Punk and a few others. I thought these guys would just be good mid-card guys for the majority of their careers. I'm not knocking ANY of these guys. They are all great performers...(except Miz) and deserved to be "The Man"...(except Miz).

The point of the thread is...In your mind and for what ever reason, who is the most unlikely World Champion? Maybe you have a list of guys. Maybe someone undeserving or a guy who did deserved it but never got it?

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[It's...Baylariat!]

I have two that come to mind.

1. Jeff Jarrett

To say his run with the WCW World title and being NWA and TNA champion surprised me would be a major understatement. Jarrett's background was that he was booked in the USWA in Memphis because his dad, Jerry Jarrett was a promoter. Jarrett had the look, but wasn't too polished in the ring and didn't have very much in the way of charisma when he first started. During his runs in WCW and in TNA, the only difference in Jarrett is more personality. His wrestling still suffered and he couldn't draw money. Yet he was given numerous World title reigns.

2. Rey Mysterio

Someone who was known as a Luchador being a HEAVYWEIGHT champion? It's crazy. Mysterio's run with the WHC came from Eddie Guererro passing away. If that doesn't happen, it's possible Rey may have never been a major title holder. And it was a total shock to see him be a World champion. I figured him to be a mid-card title holder somewhere down the line, but him being the WHC was just a shock. Doesn't mean he didn't deserve it, but for Vince to put a major belt on someone that was so short and tiny was very shocking.

Others qualify. Like Miz, Sheamus, and DDP. But those two stand out.

 

[Fire Marshall Bill]

I think the truly obvious answer here is David Arquette. The only reason I'm even going to bother explaining this is because it's a non-spam thread, but feel free to not read the rest. I mean the guy was a small, skinny, actor who had no business making into the wrestling business in the movie they were promoting (the only reason he won the belt in the first place), let alone in real life. I remember watching that episode of Nitro when I was younger. As someone who was much younger and knew nothing about the business side of wrestling, at the time I was like "holy shit that just happened." Looking back on it, it's really stupid. Undeserving doesn't even begin to cover that one. Plus like any other actor promoting some kind of wrestling movie, you know they're going to be gone as soon as it dies down. So giving them any sort of major angle (like winning the WHC ) is dumb. Let them promote their movie, have one quick spot or minor angle, and send them on their way.

 

[HBsam31]

Rey Mysterio is one that I followed even as a kid when he was just starting in WCW. It never occured to me at all that someday he would be a World champion in the WWE. He always had great skill, but he just never seemed like a guy that would hold the big title. My favorite wrestler all time is HBK and when he was in the Rockers or even battling for the IC title I never dreamed he would be as big as a star as he turned out to be. I kind of looked at him as someone who would always carry the IC title division. You have to remember I grew up in the era of big men so when the smaller guys started to take center stage it took a while to adjust to that.

 

[MINISTRYrising]

RAY MYSTERIO The First time I ever rembember seeing Mysterio was on a episode of Nitro shortly after the Giant had joined the NWO. Mysterio and a group of other WCW wrestler were being beat down by the NWO, when Ray gets completely flattened by the Giant and I remember thinking to myself is this a man or a 14 year old boy. Mysterio had to be one of the smallest wrestlers I had ever seen and did not look like he would amount to anything other then a mid carder at best and even when he went to the WWE I never thought he would amount to anything more the IC Champion. He just never had the look Vince went for when it came to the WWE championship.

CHRISTIANWhen Edge and Christian split up and went there seperate ways I always new that Edge would go on to be world Champion someday buy I never for a moment though Christian would too. To me Christian had always been the marty Jannetty of the the group and would end up Jobbing to the up and coming superstar for a couple of years before finally being realeased.

 

[#IndyRules]

Jeff Hardy : Let's be honest here. Did you ever think that Hardy would be a world champion. He's cut from the same cloth as Bubba Dudley and Edge who have now both went on to become world champions respectively with TNA and WWE. All great tag-team wrestlers that were never thought of being the type to go on and be successful singles competitors. Sure Jeff has charisma but that's not all that wins you a title. He's not the most gifted wrestler. He's very reckless and that's why he got where he got in the business.

 

[thatotherguy]

Daniel Bryan, at least as far as WWE is concerned, comes to mind. I mean, people pretty much assumed when he was signed that he would be buried by everyone under the sun. He was small, an independent wrestler, and not very young. And his early booking on NXT seemed to almost confirm that.

Mr. Kennedy/Anderson as well. Not so much because didn't check a lot the main event boxes (charismatic, decent enough worker, good gimmick) but because it seemed for a while like the universe had it out for him. He won Money in the Bank, which would have probably assured him of a world title run…only to get injured and drop the briefcase to Edge, another candidate for this list. He was eventually booted from WWE – after he seemed to be getting a main event push, largely for being an unsafe worker. When he joined TNA, I was almost waiting for something to happen that would stop him from getting a world title.

 

[SacredMesa]

Bubba Dudley, if anyone tell you they looked at either of the Dudley boys and thought "they will be a heavyweight champion" they are lieing. I never in my wildest dreams thought I would see it happen, Edge and Christian I could believe and hell at one point I even thought Matt and Jeff could because of their fan backing, but the Dudley's I just didn't buy seperated from one another.

All that said Bully Ray has completely earned the right to be a champ. He's gotten himself into the best shape of his life, his mic skills are amazing and he is even having some rather good matches that are a lot of fun to watch. Never thought I would say it but Bully Ray you are the man.

 

[The Butcher]

There was a time when I thought the idea of Mark Henry as a world champion was laughable. Feels like forever ago, however. Rey Mysterio, Bret Hart, Jeff Hardy, and of course Arquette are all good examples. Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit would be on my list as well. When they were in WCW I never saw world champion material in either one. Great technical hands and entertaining enough, but I wouldn't have guessed they'd co-main event WrestleMania.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Daniel Bryan & Rey Mysterio

The guy with great wrestling ability will always be seen as believable in the role of champion, but he should have a physique and body size that's impressive enough to bring us to the point we can get behind him. I'll take Daniel Bryan as a world champion, but only because his amazing repertoire of technical moves makes us think he could chop down the bigger opponents. We've seen him kick the legs out from guys like Big Show, forcing us to accept the notion he could hold the title for awhile, despite that slight, flabby body of his.

With Rey Mysterio, I can't buy it. He's my choice for "least likely."

He's too small to be slamming the hell out of larger opponents.....and not just a bit larger; we've watched him tangle with guys like Big Show and Kevin Nash. We've watched him pin Batista (and given Big Dave's apparent dissatisfaction with how he was booked, one would wonder why he would agree to that).

Having Rey as world champ just doesn't look believable.....and above all, even as we are well aware the product is scripted, it has to look as if everything you see in front of you could really happen. When I watched Drew McIntyre clothesline Rey from his knees(!) because Drew was too tall to do a standing clothesline on the little guy......and then, to have Rey send McIntyre into smashing defeat......just doesn't make sense.

If you want to have Rey work on the undercard and deliver his ridiculous 619s to guys like Evan Bourne and Yoshi Tatsu, that's fine.....but when you install Rey as a world champion and expect us to believe what we're seeing, you're going too far.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

There are a few that spring to mind.

David Arquette - David Arquette winning the WCW World Heavyweight Championship may very well have been the lowest point in pro wrestling to ever air on television. It's a prime example of the flat out chaotic & nonsensical booking that made WCW unwatchable for the last few years of its existence. Celebrities participating in wrestling matches is nothing new, but WCW went overboard at one point and they crossed the point of no return when an extremely limited actor who was best known for the fact that he was married to Courtney Cox became WCW World Heavyweight Champion.

Rey Mysterio - I don't think very many people expected Rey Mysterio to be a singles World Champion. It's obvious that Mysterio's size is something that causes people to not take him as seriously. When you consider Mysterio's size coupled with his style of wrestling, which often includes a lot of high flying offense, it can be a little tough to get over. Mysterio's about 5'6" and about 170 pounds. He's put on more muscle mass over the past several years. In WCW, he weighed about 140 or so. Not that Mysterio isn't entertaining to watch but with his size coupled with his style, it's hard not to sort of look at him and say "okay, this is a joke right?" when he's in there with someone like Big Show or Great Khali. Had Eddie Guerrero not passed away suddenly, I don't know that Mysterio would have ever really gotten to be World Champion in WWE. Rey's size, his look and his in-ring style, in my opinion, simply doesn't work as a World Champion outside of the various Lucha Libre promotions of Mexico.

Jeff Jarrett - From the moment I first laid eyes on Jeff Jarrett, everything about the guy screamed that he was & should always be a mid-carder. He was a major star in Memphis, in large part, because of his father, Jerry Jarrett, and the connections that came with being the son of the territorial legend. That's not to say that he couldn't wrestle or didn't have talent, because he did, but Jarrett's lack of main event ability, in my eyes, became obvious when he got out of the small bubble that was Memphis. As Double J in WWF in the 90s, he was firmly a mid-card & tag team wrestler. While the character wasn't meant to be taken seriously, I thought it suited Jarrett to a far, far greater degree than his later heel personas. His time in WCW was kinda laughable and he may well have been the worst member of the Four Horsemen in the group's history if not for Paul Roma. Jarrett just didn't have the personality or charisma to be a major, main event player. Winning the WCW World Heavyweight Championship is another example of the lousy booking that helped obliterate the WCW product. It didn't help that the title meant less than nothing by the time Jarrett got hold of it. As far as winning the NWA World Heavyweight Championship when he started TNA, it just put me in mind of how many of the old school promoters often booked themselves as the top stars of the companies they owned. The NWA WHC really no longer meant much of anything and, again, Jarrett's just not someone who has what it takes to be the ultimate face of a major pro wrestling organization.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Jeff Jarrett....That's not to say that he couldn't wrestle or didn't have talent, because he did, but Jarrett's lack of main event ability, in my eyes, became obvious when he got out of the small bubble that was Memphis.

Agreed, and his tenure (which included his apparently high opinion of himself) surely accented how limited the job opportunities were if your chosen field was pro wrestling, at least at the highest level. Back then, Jarrett kept scooting back and forth between WCW and WWE, not liking the way he was used by either company. Makes him seem sort of like a prehistoric C.M. Punk....or at least the character Punk has been portraying.

If he wanted major exposure and dollars, I suppose he could have plied his trade in Japan, but I think he was smart enough to realize his flamboyant style might not have been received well there.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

Mick Foley.

If you had watched this out of shape guy blow himself up in Japan, lose his ear in Germany, be sliced open by barbed wire too many times to mention and abuse his body in a way that most people couldn't handle....would you have thought that he would end up as the World Wrestling Federation Champion a few years later?

Not a chance. It is a testement to Mick Foley that he managed to achieve what he did. While never having a good body, or much wrestling skill at all he was able to make 3 characters loved by fans all over the world, become one of the best talkers in the business and give us so many memories from his crazy matches, ending up a well-deserved hall of famer.

 

[hatehabsforever]

The clear choice here would have to be Dolph Ziggler wouldn't it? Did anyone look at this guy when he was a caddy, or a member of a male cheer leading squad and think wow, that guy just screams world heavyweight champion!

Even once he was reinvented as Dolph Ziggler, shaking everyone's hand and introducing himself, hardly seemed to be the stuff of legends. Hell, even the name Dolph Ziggler does not sound like main event material. And even after he asserted himself and became a bonafide regular member of the roster, I never thought he would progress beyond the upper mid card, possibly teetering on the edge of the main event, but never quite getting there. Frankly, I thought he was going to be unsuccessful with his briefcase, simply because I never expected him to reach the top.

For me, Dolph Ziggler is the guy least likely to have become a world champion. Should be interesting to see how he fares now that he is there.

 

[dman1373]

easily jack swagger. He was never over and he somehow won the money in the bank. Then he turned the world title into a midcard title, and its been there ever since.

 

[The Boss]

Sadly in this day and age fans (and the newer wrestlers) expect EVERYONE to be World champion. It's gone from being an achievement and an honor that few attain to being an entitlement that everyone is supposed to have a "turn" with.

It's gone from representing the best in the World, to being a cheep push for someone who's not getting over (that's just said).

Worst of all you don't even have to beat the champion anymore (at least not in WWE). More and more guys are becoming "champion" by turning in briefcases and covering unconscious champions. It makes all involved look week and the titles look about as important as a free pair of shoe strings.

Ric Flair used to say, "To be the man, you have to beat the man". Now everyone get's to be the man and most don't even have to wrestle for it. So sad.