There are few, if any, honors in the wrestling business more prestigious than holding the WWE Championship. Its lineage dates all the way back to 1963 and the original Nature Boy Buddy Rogers, who was crowned the inaugural champion. Since then, a who’s who list of the most famous personalities in the history of the sport have won the belt at some point or another. From pop culture icons like Hulk Hogan, Andre The Giant, Ric Flair, Stone Cold Steve Austin and Macho Man Randy Savage to wrestlers turned movie stars like Dwayne Johnson, Dave Bautista and John Cena to in-ring legends like Bret Hart, Roman Reigns, Kurt Angle and The Undertaker, there is not loftier company you could find yourself in.
Unfortunately, not every performer talented enough or deserving enough won the big belt at some point in their careers. In fact, there are a great number who never got the chance, either because of bad booking decisions, overlapping with several historically great performers and not being in WWE at the right point in their career. So, let’s talk about them.
One quick note before we do though. I left current wrestlers in their primes with a real shot of getting there entirely off this list. Many will have chances in the future. This is a list celebrating those guys who gave us all they could and never quite got there.
Scott Hall
The most frustrating thing about Scott Hall missing out is he had two separate runs with different characters that were popular enough to be in consideration for the big belt. His first character in WWE, Razor Ramon, is widely considered one of the greatest Intercontinental Champions ever, and his run in WCW (and later WWE) under his own name saw him co-found the nWo and help launch the Attitude Era. He would have made sense either time.
Dusty Rhodes
Dusty Rhodes got some chances against WWE Champ Superstar Billy Graham in the late '70s and early '80s, but his most famous run (at least to hardcore wrestling fans) was in the mid-'80s outside WWE in NWA/ WCW, where he was often champion and delivered his famed “Hard Times” promo. He didn’t make it back to WWE until 1989, but despite a hard initial push, he eventually fell down to the midcard.
Sting
Given his long tenure and lack of association with WWE, no one was more closely identified with WCW when Vince McMahon bought the company than Sting was. Had he agreed to sign with WWE at that point, it’s likely he would have gotten a run. Instead, he went to TNA and didn’t make it to WWE until 2014. He got a title shot but it wasn’t meant to be.
Jake The Snake Roberts
One of the most memorable characters from WWE’s boom period with Hulk Hogan, Jake The Snake Roberts was fantastic on promos and in the ring. Unfortunately, a combination of his outside the ring troubles and the abundance of other really talented and popular performers during the period meant he wasn’t ever trusted with the title.
Curt Hennig
Maybe the best in-ring performer ever, Curt Hennig’s Mr. Perfect character is widely remembered as one of the greatest Intercontinental Champions ever. Many believe he should have won the 1990 Royal Rumble and potentially had a run with the WWE Championship. WWE ultimately picked The Ultimate Warrior, however, and despite great additional work for another decade plus, it never happened for him.
Lex Luger
Lex Luger memorably beat Hulk Hogan for the title during his tenure in WCW, but his two most famous shots at The WWE Championship, SummerSlam 93 and WrestleMania 94, both ended with goofy non-finishers that kept the belt off him. He was really over, especially in ‘93, and the decision to keep the title on Yokozuna is still debated today.
Ted DiBiase
This one comes with a giant asterisk. Andre The Giant won the title off Hulk Hogan in 1988 and then gave the belt to The Million Dollar Man Ted Dibiase, who was probably the biggest heel on WWE’s roster at the time. Dibiase was originally allowed to keep it and even defended the belt, but he was later stripped of it, with his reign officially vacated. He was certainly hated enough for a quick heel run though.
Owen Hart
Owen Hart won a slew of midcard belts and tag team belts during his run in WWE, but unfortunately, he wasn’t able to capture the biggest prize prior to his tragic death at just thirty-four years old in 1999. He was both fantastic in the ring and on the microphone. The writers, however, kept the belt on his brother Bret during their feud in the mid-90s, and by the late 90s, the belt was mostly being passed back and forth between all-time greats.
Vader
Vader was a perennial champion and absolute monster in the early to mid '90s for WCW. His subsequent run in WWE should have been a slam dunk, but he was never quite pushed hard enough to get to the top. He got a title shot in the main event of SummerSlam ‘96, but he lost to Shawn Michaels and never ascended to the top of the card.
Ravishing Rick Rude
Nobody had a better physique or cooler tights in the late '80s and early '90s than Ravishing Rick Rude. With perfect hair and a swaggy attitude, he was a fantastic heel with a lot of big victories, including one over The Ultimate Warrior at WrestleMania 5 for the Intercontinental Championship. Unfortunately, his name was never called for the big belt.
The British Bulldog
The British Bulldog famously main evented SummerSlam ‘92 alongside Bret Hart and had a ton of other big moments, including an epic showdown with Shawn Michaels that lasted throughout the entirety of the 1995 Royal Rumble. Vince McMahon called his name a lot for midcard titles and tag titles but never for any WWE Championship wins.
Rowdy Roddy Piper
Hot Rod was almost always put in key spots by Vince McMahon and company, including in the main event of WrestleMania 1. He famously won The Intercontinental Championship at the ‘92 Royal Rumble, one of the greatest PPVs ever, but a two year retirement between ‘87 and ‘89 which corresponded with Hulk Hogan finally losing the title may have cost him his best chance.
Harley Race
Harley Race is probably best known to WWE fans as King Harley Race because of his later career run in his late 40s alongside Bobby Heenan, but he was a huge force in NWA for well more than a decade prior to that. In fact, he main evented the first ever Starrcade alongside Ric Flair in 1983. By the time he got to WWE, however, he wasn’t quite high enough on the card.
Bam Bam Bigelow
One of the most agile and athletic big men in the history of the business, Bam Bam Bigelow main evented seven pay-per-views, most notably WrestleMania XI. He also held the ECW Championship, but he allegedly grew frustrated with the backstage politics of WWE and negotiated an early release, which may have cost him a title run.
Wade Barrett
Wade Barrett had so many chances, especially in 2010 when he main evented three pay-per-views in which he wrestled for the WWE Championship, but the writers never decided to let him eat with the big belt. On the bright side, they did say yes to 5 Intercontinental Championship runs and a post career commentary seat.
Paul Orndorff
Mr. Wonderful was really hot, first as a heel when he main evented WrestleMania 1 and later as a face alongside Hulk Hogan in the late '80s. Had timelines worked out differently, he could have been considered a possible transitional champ instead of The Iron Sheik in the early 1980s, but it was never meant to be.
Jerry "The King" Lawler
There weren’t many wrestlers in the entire world bigger during the territory days than Jerry “The King” Lawler. He was a huge draw, but after coming to WWE, he was mostly used as a commentator, apart from a good feud with Bret Hart in the mid-'90s. He never got the WWE Championship, but being the voice of the Attitude Era was a pretty good consolation prize.
Bill Goldberg
There may not have been a more popular superstar during the rise of WCW than Bill Goldberg. His undefeated streak was the talk of the entire industry during the late '90s and eventually led him to the very top of the card. He had plenty of success with WWE post-merger, winning several big belts, but Vince McMahon never gave him the WWE Championship.
Junkyard Dog
JYD was really hot for awhile, especially during his NWA run in the early 1980s, but WWE never gave him the push he needed to get to the top of the card during his time there between ‘84 and ‘88. He scored victories over Macho Man, The Iron Sheik, Greg Valentine and more in big, high profile matches, but they were mostly by screwy finishes and never quite enough to get him to WWE Championship level.
Gorilla Monsoon
Blessed with an all-time great wrestling name, Monsoon had tremendous runs in the '60s, '70s and '80s, first as a heel and later as a face. He was so beloved late in his career, in fact, that when he was defeated by a young Hulk Hogan, the crowd was so mad they overturned the future legend’s car. Monsoon went on to be the voice of WWE during the organization’s first late '80s/ early '90s boom period.
Hacksaw Jim Duggan
Hacksaw had some big moments, most notably winning the first Royal Rumble, but throughout his career, he was mostly used in the midcard. It’s hard to think of any midcarder in the history of the business, however, that was more beloved than Duggan. With his 2x4 and loud patriotism, he was cheered everywhere he went and is still loved by fans.
Big Cat Ernie Ladd
A member of both the Chargers Hall of Fame and WWE Hall of Fame, Ernie Ladd was a tremendous football player and a tremendous heel. The Big Cat wrestled against Bob Backlund for the title quite a few times in the late 1970s, but he eventually had to retire because of knee problems, having never won the big belt.
Billy Gunn
Not many wrestlers in the history of the business have had more separate big time runs than Billy Gunn. First as a member of The Smoking Gunns, then as a member of The New Age Outlaws, then as a singles competitor for Degeneration X, then as Daddy Ass when he left for AEW, he collected belts and applause breaks everywhere. His best chance to get to the top of the card came in 1999, but a poorly received program with The Rock killed his momentum.
Jesse Ventura
Jesse “The Body” Ventura is best known for his commentary work alongside Gorilla Monsoon in the late 1980s and of course, for his work in Predator and as Governor of Minnesota, but prior to all that, he was a popular wrestler that worked with the day’s biggest stars. He was involved in an extended feud with Hulk Hogan in the mid '80s, but he never won the belt and moved to commentary for health reasons.
Big Boss Man
Big Boss Man had two separate runs in WWE that saw him working alongside some of the biggest names on the card. In the late 1980s especially, he was one of the most recognizable guys on the entire roster. He won the tag titles once and the Hardcore title numerous times during his second run, but he never got time with the WWE Championship.
Ron Simmons
The first Black world champion in wrestling history, Ron Simmons won the big belt in WCW, but his most notable time in WWE was spent in a tag team alongside JBL. They had a ton of success and are still beloved by wrestling fans. The closest he came to winning the WWE Championship came in the late '90s when he wrestled as Faarooq, but as his stablemate, The Rock, ascended in popularity, his chances slipped away.
Ricky Steamboat
A lot of people have held The Intercontinental Championship in WWE, but none have won the belt at WrestleMania in a more well-regarded match than Ricky Steamboat. The Dragon’s fast-paced showdown with Macho Man Randy Savage at WrestleMania 3 is widely considered to be one of the best PPV contests of all-time. Unfortunately, his run in WWE never matched those heights again, nor did it lead him to The WWE Championship.
Booker T
Booker won championships wherever he went and was the final WCW World Champion when the promotion was bought by Vince McMahon. He later tasted a lot of success in WWE too, winning numerous belts, but that success never included a run with the big title. He was certainly over enough with fans at the height of his career, but the stars never aligned.
William Regal
During both his WCW and WWE runs, Regal dominated the midcard and occasionally was elevated to work with the biggest stars on the roster. He won numerous titles in both promotions and was consistently put in big spots, including the opening match of WrestleMania 17 against Chris Jericho, which is widely considered the greatest ‘Mania ever. He never held The WWE Championship though.
Kerry Von Erich
In the mid 1980s, Kerry Von Erich was among the most popular wrestlers in the entire world outside WWE. 45,000 watched him wrestle Ric Flair for the NWA Championship. His arrival, absent his brothers, in WWE in 1990 was accompanied by an immediate push. Within just a few months, he beat a white hot Mr. Perfect at SummerSlam for The Intercontinental Championship, but he never quite got over with WWE fans the same way he did in other promotions and within a few years, was regularly losing midcard matches.
Arn Anderson
As a member of The Four Horsemen, Arn Anderson was one of the biggest attractions in wrestling during the 1980s. He eventually found his way to WWE in 1988, but he was consistently used as a tag team wrestler during his abbreviated run. He was back in WCW by 1990 and stayed there for the rest of his prime, never having gotten a real chance to win the WWE Title.
George "The Animal" Steele
Steele is best remembered by modern wrestling fans as a crazed heel who destroyed turnbuckles and acted like a wild man, but during his younger days, he was more of a standard heel and had many matches against longtime WWE Champion Bruno Sammartino. None resulted in wins, however.
And those are some of the popular wrestlers who never won the WWE championship during their careers.
