Since 1979, when the Intercontinental Championship was established and strapped around the inaugural champion, Pat Patterson, the title has been cemented in WWE’s legacy as one of the most historic championships in the company.
This title has made stars out of Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Bret Hart and more!
Since being defended at the first WrestleMania when Junkyard Dog faced off against Greg Valentine, the IC belt has been on the line at WWE’s biggest show, a crazy 26 times!
This year’s ‘Mania is gearing up to see Daniel Bryan challenge Sami Zayn for his Intercontinental Championship. Will it be one of the greats or will the Artist Collective interfere and ruin any possibility?
To get everyone excited for that bout, why not we take a look at 10 of the best Intercontinental Championship matches to take place at the Showcase of the Immortals:
10. WrestleMania X8 – Rob Van Dam def. William Regal (c)
You might not think the styles of these two men would mesh well together but on this night, they did. Rob Van Dam is about as cool and relaxed a WWE performer as you would find in 2002. He had become very popular following his redebut during the Invasion and his first WrestleMania match came against William Regal.
Regal had spent time as an authoritative figure and was a perfect foil to Van Dam’s cool demeanor. Their match opened the show at WrestleMania X8 and they got the crowd excited early as Van Dam captured the Intercontinental Championship.
Surprisingly, this would be Regal’s final WrestleMania match, despite performing for the company for another eleven years.
9. WrestleMania X-Seven – Chris Jericho def. William Regal (c)
WrestleMania X-Seven stands as perhaps the best WrestleMania in history and this match opened the show. While it was not terribly long, Chris Jericho and William Regal had a very solid match, resulting in Jericho regaining the Intercontinental Championship.
Regal could always be counted on to put on a good technical wrestling showcase and Jericho was one of the best works in the promotion at the time. Add all this together and you have a very fun way to start the show.
Everyone loved seeing the rebellious Jericho stick it to the snotty Regal and their story culminated here.
8. WrestleMania 2000 – Chris Benoit def. Kurt Angle (c) & Chris Jericho
This was a cracking two-fall match, but that was bound to be the case though with these three superstars.
This match was filled with inventful spots and was obviously designed to get both Chris’ over seeing as Benoit walked away IC Champ and Jericho won the European belt.
Kurt Angle knows how to make those ‘Mania moments memorable.
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