#1.) Ivan Koloff
While his win may have been forgotten in time, Ivan Koloff’s rise to the WWE Championship remains the most unexpected one to this day. That was because Bruno Sammartino, seemingly an immortal legend, had held the WWE title (then called the WWWF World Heavyweight Championship) for nearly 8 full years.
Koloff’s victory over Sammartino sent Madison Square Garden into pindrop silence, with fans in complete disbelief over what they witnessed. While Koloff was just a transitional champion who held it for 21 days, there was no WWE title win throughout history that was more unexpected than this one.
