Even when social media wasn’t a thing, WWE fans have let the company, wrestlers and audience watching at home know what they like and dislike about everything in WWE. WWE World Champions, whether face or heel, are the most scrutinized aspect of wrestling by fans. Many stars who are loved worldwide have held the titles, but there are some fighters whom WWE fans didn’t want to see holding the title and they never liked their reign. Let’s have a look at those fighters who were hated as champions.
#10 Edge
Edge was one of the best heels of the Ruthless Aggression era and also one of the most hated champions. He captured the World Heavyweight title seven times on different occasions and was hated throughout all of his championship reigns universally. Edge was one of the evilest characters to appear on television. He had a few morals as a champion but always delivered a high level performance in the ring. Although most of the fans hated him, Edge was so good at being bad that some people couldn’t help but cheer on his antics.
#9 The Miz
The Miz can be called one of the most annoying wrestlers in WWE because he always gets on fans’ nerves. WWE fans never wanted him to become a champion. But unfortunately, they had to see him become a two-time WWE Champion and in fact, he also main evented WrestleMania 27 as champion. He is a heel with some redeeming factors. His whole gimmick leads to one question: how did this man become so successful in WWE? Whenever he enters the ring, Miz forces fans to “boo” him and this is one of the reasons fans hate him.
#8 The Great Khali
The Great Khali will always be remembered as one of the most shocking and surprising World Heavyweight champions. At a time when wrestling had some better athletes than before, Khali became a champion who didn’t have those great skills and abilities. Several people assume this was an attempt for WWE to expand their international reach. Fans started hating him ever since he won the title via battle royal.
#7 John “Bradshaw” Layfield
JBL spent a long time in WWE before becoming champion, but even after winning one, he got no favors from the crowd. He was one of the most hated champions of the entire Ruthless Aggression Era and was rarely cheered by the fans. His first and only WWE title reign was filled with terrible “Southern Rich Man” acts and fans hated every second of it. JBL was racist, classist and downright vile, so fans booed him at every opportunity. He had big feuds with faces like Eddie Guerrero and Shawn Michaels, but no one liked him being a champion.
#6 Triple H
Triple H was a fan favorite in the past, especially with D-Generation X, but fans hated him the most during his WWE World Title reign. He was particularly hated for associating himself with McMahon during his four reigns as WWE Champion in 1999 and 2000. He married Stephanie McMahon, and fans consider him a suit similar to them, which has made fans hate him throughout his career. “The Game” was also hated during his title reign with Evolution.
#5 Randy Orton
The Viper has been a heel for most of his career. His rise to fame came after joining the heel stable Evolution with Triple H, Ric Flair and Batista. Although there were moments when he became a fan favorite, as a champion, he was almost always hated. He is the epitome of a great heel. Orton is the one who has RKO’d not only men but women as well. He is a 14-time WWE World Champion, but it is hard to like a guy who said things like “Eddie is down there in hell”, and “I’d RKO my own grandmother if it meant keeping the title”.
#4 Jinder Mahal
Mahal becoming WWE Champion was very disappointing for many WWE fans. His push to rise to the top was futile and his upset victory over Randy Orton to clinch the title didn’t help him. Most fans considered Mahal a wrestler who jumped the line to attract a wider audience. He spent six months as champion and fans hated him every second of his reign. Mahal has since fallen into midcarf and his chances of winning another title are extremely slim.
#3 Brock Lesnar
Lesner’s first run in WWE was highly appreciated by the fans. But his return and subsequent championship run have been heavily scrutinized by fans, especially his first Universal title run in 2017. He held the championship for over 500 days, but he only defended it a few times and never wrestled on Raw or SmackDown while being a champion. The beast got a ton of heat from the fans for it.
#2 John Cena
You might be surprised to see this name on the list, as fans would have a hard time saying Cena is a bad guy or brat. He has all the qualities of a superstar and has arguably carried the whole WWE for over a decade. But there is a section of WWE fans who despise him. Cena has won several titles and matches, but what annoyed the people was that he was nice and did everything right. There was a time when he was criticized for being a champion despite being a movie star.
#1 Roman Reigns
Definitely the most hated champion of all time, Roman Reigns was hated by the fans for many years. Even when Roman was fighting leukemia, he could not get sympathy from many of his critics. His first few title reigns included some of the most bizarre bookings of all time. Since his heel turn, The Tribal Chief has become a little respected, but the majority of the fans still hate his title reign. When he defeated The Undertaker at WrestleMania 33, the biggest display of fan hatred was seen.
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