'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
When you think of Champions in WWE over the last three or four years, which names come to mind the most? The answers will likely include any range of names from Brock Lesnar, AJ Styles, Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns, Bayley, Charlotte Flair, Alexa Bliss, and Becky Lynch. That's not surprising considering that the names mentioned above are all among the top stars in all of WWE in their respective divisions.
WWE has its deepest roster ever and thanks to NXT, the roster is full of talent across all three brands. The main difference, however, is between the divisions throughout the company and the stars that comprise each division. Stars often move up from the mid-card to challenge the top stars. By winning, some of those wrestlers, such as Kofi Kingston, become main-eventers themselves.
Unfortunately, most stars that challenge for titles often drift back into the mid-card or even lower mid-card. Not everyone can remain atop the company, but it's nice for different names to get an opportunity every once in a while. That's not usually the case, but a good deal of stars on the rosters of SmackDown and RAW have actually won titles at some point in their WWE careers. Here are seven such active WWE performers whose title wins you might have forgotten about.
#7 Zack Ryder
It's sort of crazy to think that Ryder has been with the on WWE's main roster since 2007. Like most people, he looked a lot different 10 years ago, sporting longer hair and less of a tan. When he started out, he did so as a member of Edge's stable, La Familia. The partnership with the Rated R Superstar led to a WWE Tag Team Title reign in alongside Curt Hawkins in 2008. More than 10 years later, Ryder and Hawkins would once again win titles, besting The Revival this year at WrestleMania 35 in New York. They lost the belts back to The Revival only two months later.
Unlike Hawkins, Ryder also has a few mid-card title wins under his belt. During perhaps the height of his popularity in WWE, the Broski won the US Championship from Dolph Ziggler at TLC in 2012. His reign didn't last long as he was defeated by Jack Swagger just one short month later.
His most recent singles title victory was also the most bittersweet. In a seven-person ladder match at WrestleMania 32, Ryder captured the Intercontinental Championship in one of the more surprising moments in the history of the PPV. His win was short-lived, however, as he was goaded by the Miz into defending the title the next night on RAW. Ryder would lose the belt to the A-Lister only a day after winning it.
#6 Curtis Axel
Axel has the distinction of actually winning a few titles during his career. When he was rechristened with his new name, he was paired with Paul Heyman. During that partnership, he won the the Intercontinental Championship in a 2013 triple threat match involving The Miz and Wade Barrett. It was an emotional moment for the son of Hall-of-Famer Mr. Perfect.
Like Ryder, Axel also has two Tag Team Championship reigns to his credit, which are almost eight years apart. As a new member of the Nexus, Axel won the WWE Tag Team Championship with David Otunga in 2011. His most recent title run was alongside his usual partner in crime, Bo Dallas. After a run in the Social Outcasts and in the Miztourage, Dallas and Axel formed the B-Team.
In a whirlwind summer of title changes and strange pairings, the B-Team would capture the RAW Tag Team Titles from the Deleters of Worlds, Bray Wyatt and Matt Hardy in 2018. They would lose the titles shortly thereafter to another team of singles stars, Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre. While it's good to have different people win titles every now and then, the B-Team seemed somewhat over-matched in a division that boasted Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins, The Revival, and McIntyre and Ziggler.
#5 Shelton Benjamin
Shelton Benjamin is part of the vaunted "OVW Class of 2002" that featured the likes of John Cena, Batista, Brock Lesnar, and Randy Orton. While Benjamin debuted in late December of 2002, his debut still took place during the year of the historic class of Superstars.
The former collegiate wrestling star was fast-tracked to success right away, winning tag team gold alongside Charlie Haas as part of Team Angle. The duo dethroned champions Eddie and Chavo Guerrero. The stable boasted the amateur wrestling skills of its members due to Angle's history in the Olympics and the credibility of Benjamin and Charlie Haas as collegiate stars.
Once they ended their partnership with Team Angle, the duo rechristened themselves as the World's Greatest Tag Team. It would lead to another tag team title reign for the duo in 2003. Benjamin also had some success once he broke out on his own. As a singles star, he won the Intercontinental Championship in 2004 from Chris Jericho and again in 2006 when he bested Ric Flair.
Benjamin's success continued when he won the US Championship from Matt Hardy in 2008, which saw him hold the title for over 240 days. We might not think about him as a Champion in 2019, but in previoys years in a different stint with WWE he had two mid-card title reigns which laster over 230 days each. That's not something that happens often in today's WWE with both the IC Title and the US Title.
#4 Naomi
The brand split between RAW and SmackDown offered more opportunities to more stars. One of the women who was able to cash in on an opportunity on the blue brand was former Funkadactyl Naomi.
The former dancer for the Orlando Magic won her first SmackDown Women's Championship from Alexa Bliss at the Elimination Chamber PPV in 2017. Unfortunately, Naomi had to relinquish the title two days later on SmackDown due to an injury suffered during the match.
She was able to return in time to face Bliss once more, only this time at WrestleMania 33, where she heroically won the belt in her home town. Naomi submitted the Goddess to make herself a two-time SmackDown Women's Champion. Her title reign lasted for 140 days before she was defeated by Natalya at SummerSlam in 2017.
Despite that early title success, Naomi hasn't had much of a spotlight in any championship picture over the last two years. The Four Horsewomen of NXT and Ronda Rousey have dominated the title scenes on both shows, but hopefully the likes of the former Funkadactyl and others will get more title opportunities in 2020. The possibility exists for a potential run as a Women's Tag Team Champ but Naomi is likely looking for singles gold once she returns to WWE TV.
#3 Kalisto
Think about the following statement. Of the names Elias, Braun Strowman, Sami Zayn and Kalisto, only Kalisto has held a singles title during his time in WWE. And no, the 24/7 Championship doesn't really count.
Before he was a member of the fun-loving Lucha House Party alongside Lince Dorado and Gran Metalik, Kalisto won the US Championship. He feuded with then Champ Alberto Del Rio back in the early stages of January 2016. The Diminutive Dynamo lost it back to Del Rio a few weeks later but took the belt back from Del Ruo again at the Royal Rumble later that same month.
In his second run as US Champ, Kalisto held the title for 119 days before losing it to Rusev in May of 2016. Also during his singles runs before forming the Lucha House Party, the former US Champion won the Cruiserweight Championship from Enzo Amore back in October 2017. Unfortunately for Kalisto, Amore would get his hands on the title once more a few weeks later at the TLC PPV. After those runs, the former United States and Cruiserweight Champ has primarily been used as a member of the tag team division.
It's strange he has not yet moved back to NXT since the Cruiserweight Title now resides on Wednesday nights. He's perfect for the division and would be a good challenge for the likes of Lio Rush, Angel Garza and other 205 pounders.
#2 Natalya
Much like Naomi, Natalya was also able to shine during the early days of the 2016 brand split. Since there were now two divisions for the ladies of WWE, more women had a chance to shine instead of only the top stars getting all of the limelight.
Prior to the brand split and the Women's Evolution in WWE, Natalya was one of the few credible female grapplers in the company. While the likes of Kelly Kelly and Layla El won the Divas Championship, Nattie actually trained in the Hart Dungeon and was a legitimate wrestler.
She won the Divas Championship in 2010 from LayCool (Layla and Michelle McCool), holding the title for 70 days. After that, however, the Queen of Harts would have to wait over seven years before hoisting another championship over her shoulder. Natalya became a member of SmackDown after the brand split in 2016. The division had shallow depth, which helped the veteran capture the SmackDown Women's Championship at SummerSlam in 2017 when she defeated Naomi.
Her title reign would last a few months before Charlotte Flair defeated her in November of the same year. Natalya has routinely been featured in prominent matches for WWE, including the first-ever women's match in Saudi Arabia. Her last title shot was at this year's SummerSlam where she fell to current RAW Women's Champion Becky Lynch.
#1 Heath Slater
Like Curtis Axel, Slater initially made his impact on the main roster as a member of the Nexus faction. His membership in the group led him to a tag team tilte run in October 2010 alongside Justin Gabriel. The duo of Slater and Gabriel won the championship a second time by defeating then-champions Vladimir Kozlov and Santino Marella.
After his departure from the Nexus, Slater was a member of the group 3MB alongside Drew McIntyre and Jinder Mahal. He also formed the Social Outcasts group with Curtis Axel, Bo Dallas, and Adam Rose. Since he excels at comedic wrestling, Slater has been primarily used as a comedic foil for his opponents.
As the roster was spread out between two brands during the 2016 brand split, Slater was left without a job. His storyline would then see him attempt to earn a contract on the blue brand. He would become the one-half of the inaugural SmackDown Tag Team Champions with Rhyno after winning the Tag Title tournament that gave him not only the belt, but also a job. The duo would reign for 84 days before losing the titles to Randy Orton and Bray Wyatt.
Follow Sportskeeda Wrestling and Sportskeeda MMA on Twitter for all the latest news. Don't miss out!
