5 former WWE World Champions who haven't won a top title in the last 5 years

#1 Jeff Hardy (won his last World title in WWE 11 years ago)

Jeff Hardy spent a long time in WWE as a Tag Team wrestler. Jeff and Matt Hardy formed The Hardy Boyz around two decades ago, and the duo was one of the most popular tag teams in WWE back in the day. Jeff Hardy finally got a shot at the top title in the late 2000s. He has won the WWE title on one occasion, and has also had two reigns with the World title. He traded the World Championship with CM Punk during their heated rivalry on SmackDown in 2009.

Hardy won the World title at Extreme Rules by defeating Edge, but CM Punk came out with his Money In The Bank briefcase and defeated Hardy to win the belt. At the Night of Champions show, Jeff Hardy defeated Punk to win back the coveted title. This run didn't last long as well, and Hardy lost the belt to Punk at SummerSlam 2009, in a TLC match. Hardy would soon leave WWE, and move to TNA. Currently, Jeff is a mainstay on WWE SmackDown, and recently won his fifth Intercontinental title after defeating AJ Styles.

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About the author

Abhilash Mendhe is a pro wrestling journalist at Sportskeeda with nearly five years of experience. He completed his MBA from the Symbiosis Institute of Telecom Management in 2016 and worked with multiple banking institutions, including Tech Mahindra. While he started writing WWE articles for Sportskeeda in 2019 as a hobby, it eventually became a significant part of his professional journey.

Abhilash checks his articles thrice before sending them to the editing team, ensuring his work is highly accurate and reliable.

He has interviewed prominent pro wrestling personalities like Noam Dar, Angry Miz Girl, Brendan Cobbina, and Jesse Lambert. Abhilash is a big fan of AEW star Orange Cassidy, as he believes the former International Champion’s on-screen gimmick of an extremely lazy guy resonates with him.

Given the opportunity to script WWE’s next big storyline, Abhilash would treat fans to the second installment of The Bloodline Civil War. He would book Roman Reigns to re-form The Bloodline with The Usos and Sami Zayn upon his comeback. The angle would see The Tribal Chief-led group go head-to-head with The Rock, Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, and Jacob Fatu in a blockbuster family feud.

When not reporting on pro wrestling, Abhilash likes to work out, go on walks, read, and explore new eateries.

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Edited by Alan John