The Complete History of the WWE Championship - Part 14

Edge (January 25, 2009 - February 15, 2009)

Edge: Profited from brotherly discord at Royal Rumble 2009

Edge challenged Jeff Hardy for the WWE Championship in a No DQ battle at the 2009 Royal Rumble.

Hardy, who had only won the belt one month earlier had been in receipt of a series of sneak attacks in the run-up to the main show. He had blamed these on Edge, but the "Rated R Superstar" denied any wrongdoing.

During the title match itself, Hardy's brother Matt interfered, apparently to assist his brother but instead turned on Jeff, smashing him with a steel chair to cost his sibling the WWE Championship. It turned

This, understandably, caught fans off guard. That's because the original plan called for the returning Christian to be the mystery assailant instead. However, news leaked out regarding Christian's return to the company after a three-year absence and his involvement in the storyline with Hardy.

So much so, that WWE felt compelled to insert Matt into the spot instead. Christian had to wait a few more months for his WWE return and the Hardy brothers competed in a WrestleMania grudge match instead.

This was to be Hardy's only reign as WWE Champion although he would win the World Heavyweight Championship twice in 2009, before leaving the company and joining rivals TNA.