Posted on by bdamage1
Rob Faint
Some feel that title belts should be cherished and protected. Others feel they should be destroyed and trashed. Here are 5 instances when title belts were used and abused.
WWF title- The year was 1982 and Bob Backlund was the heavyweight champion. Superstar Graham, the man Backlund defeated for the title, returns looking for revenge. During a TV match featuring Backlund vs Swede Hanson Graham decided that if he could not hold the title no one should. He attempted to destroy the title, hilariously failing to do much damage. Graham admitted in his biography that he didn’t realize how hard it would be to damage the belt. People often point to this moment where Backlund lost his audience. His screams and cries turned many fans off. His event also ushered the commission of one of the ugliest belts in history, covered in a previous column.
Intercontinental Title – “Stone Cold” Steve Austin forfeited the Intercontinental Championship to The Rock on Raw as an act of defiance to Vince so he could focus on the WWF Championship. Austin had already defeated The Rock one evening earlier. He promised Vince McMahon he would do something to the belt. And what he did was toss the championship belt into the Piscataqua River. A year later the Rock would return the favor, flinging Austin, then the smoking skull title into the Detroit River.
Intercontinental Title- Looking to overhaul the IC belt, Valentine loses to Tito Santana and then after the match he slams the belt several times against the cage, ruining it. Santana is awarded a new title, one used for many years. Funny story: When Valentine asked Tito where the belt is today, he told Valentine that his wife threw it out!
WWF title- “Mr. Perfect ” Curt Hennig was a top performer for the WWF in 1989. His manager, “The Genius” Lanny Poffo has just upset world champion Hulk Hogan by countout (due to Hennig interference) on an episode to Saturday Night’s Main Event. After the match Hennig and Poffo stole the WWF title and smashed it with a hammer. FACT: disgraced ring announcer Mel Phillips once owned the remains of the title. Rumor killer: This belt was not used as the Hardcore title.
US title- In 1991 Lex Luger was the US champion. Nikita Koloff returned to WCW to resume his feud with Luger and after one attack he took the US title and slammed it against the ringspot, destroying it. Luger had to go without a title for a spell until a new one was fashioned.