The Intercontinental Championship has been viewed as the “work rate title” for decades in WWE. Names like Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Steve Austin, Chris Jericho and Randy Orton used it as a steppingstone to get to the top of the company. The best formula sees a talent having great matches with the Intercontinental Title before moving into a main event spot.WWE has witnessed some of the best matches in company history coming with that belt on the line. There is still a sense of pride attached to the wrestler holding the valued mid-card title to add to its history and hopefully improve their careers. The following classic matches received the highest Cagematch ratings with the Intercontinental Championship on the line.
10 John Morrison Vs Rey Mysterio (SmackDown: September 4, 2009): 8.86
An unexpected classic match for the Intercontinental Championship took place on SmackDown back in 2009. Rey Mysterio was the titleholder when getting suspended for violating the wellness policy, so WWE needed to make a quick change.
John Morrison was gaining huge momentum in the mid-card picture as a face around this time and defeated Mysterio in a great match to become the new Intercontinental Champion. Cagematch rated the title bout an impressive 8.86 as one of the better SmackDown TV matches.
9 Shawn Michaels Vs Razor Ramon (SummerSlam 1995): 8.98
WWE had two classic matches between Shawn Michaels and Razor Ramon to help add to the importance of the Intercontinental Championship. The second of the two took place at SummerSlam 1995 and was a huge hit.
Many fans felt that the IC title deserves to main event this night over the woeful show closer of Diesel vs Mabel for the WWE Championship. Michaels won this one in a remarkable performance that received an 8.98 on the Cagematch site.
8 Ricky Steamboat Vs Randy Savage (WrestleMania 3): 9.07
The first major classic match for the Intercontinental Championship took place all the way back at WrestleMania 3. Randy Savage and Ricky Steamboat stole the show during a historic night in WWE history.
This was the first time WWE had fans talking about a classic match based on work rate rather than the star power of Hulk Hogan in the main event. Cagematch gave this bout a 9.07 rating, and it likely would have been higher if fans of that era could have rated it.
7 The Miz Vs Cesaro Vs Kevin Owens Vs Sami Zayn (Extreme Rules 2016): 9.08
An underrated all-time great Intercontinental Championship match came at Extreme Rules 2016. The Miz was tasked with defending the belt against incredible talents Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn and Cesaro in a fatal four-way match.
WWE paired together two singles feuds in one bout, and it worked to perfection. Miz retained throughout the chaos in a match that helped show the Intercontinental Championship was still valued. The Cagematch rating of 9.08 makes it one of the greatest matches ever for that title.
6 AJ Styles Vs Daniel Bryan (SmackDown: June 12, 2020): 9.10
The most recent match on this list for the Intercontinental Championship came during the pandemic era of empty arena shows. AJ Styles and Daniel Bryan faced off in a SmackDown match for the vacant Intercontinental Championship.
The twenty-six-minute match featured two of the greatest in-ring workers going back and forth. Styles ended up wining to become the new Intercontinental Champion. The tremendous rating of 9.10 showed the Cagematch readers loved the bout as a huge success.
5 The British Bulldog Vs Bret Hart (SummerSlam 1992): 9.19
One of the first instances of the Intercontinental Championship getting a main event slot on PPV came back at SummerSlam 1992. The British Bulldog represented the United Kingdom crowd at Wembley Stadium when challenging his brother-in-law Bret Hart.
Their chemistry led to an outstanding match that perfectly summarized what the Intercontinental Championship meant at the time. British Bulldog defeating Hart provided a feel-good ending to help boost the 9.19 Cagematch rating.
4 Rey Mysterio Vs Chris Jericho (The Bash 2009): 9.31
An underrated rivalry for the Intercontinental Championship showed Chris Jericho and Rey Mysterio doing some of their best work. Jericho’s heel character remained over and got back to a must-watch scenario when obsessed with unmasking Mysterio.
The Bash 2009 paid off the feud taking place over the course of a few months with a title vs mask match. Jericho lost the Intercontinental Championship to Mysterio with fans getting the happy ending with a classic match. Cagematch rated their bout a 9.31 as one of the best to feature the title on the line.
3 Chris Jericho Vs Chris Benoit (Royal Rumble 2001): 9.33
WWE made Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit two of the fixtures to compete for the Intercontinental Championship in the early 2000s. A ladder match may have given us their best overall match together at the Royal Rumble 2001 event.
The visual of Jericho putting Benoit in the Walls of Jericho on top of the ladder is one fans will always remember from that match. Jericho winning the classic saw them getting a 9.33 Cagematch rating as a high mark for the Intercontinental Championship.
2 Randy Orton Vs Cactus Jack (Backlash 2004): 9.35
Randy Orton recently thanked Mick Foley for helping him get to the next level during his 20th year anniversary celebration. Foley worked a long program with Orton that paid off with him using the Cactus Jack moniker to challenge Orton for the Intercontinental Championship.
The hardcore match took place at Backlash 2004 and helped make Orton a bigger star from the victory.
Orton proved that he could hang with a legend like Foley, and it kick-started his first World Championship win months later. Cagematch rated this classic a 9.35 for one of the better Intercontinental Championship matches fans forget the title was on the line for.
1 Razor Ramon Vs Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania 10): 9.41
WWE witnessed their greatest Intercontinental Championship come in the first televised ladder match. Razor Ramon and Shawn Michaels both had claims to the title when facing off with their belts hanging above the ring at WrestleMania 10.
The match was a magical introduction to the new stipulation and convinced WWE to keep using it. Scott Hall recently passing away led to many wrestlers talking about the impact this match had on their careers. Cagematch still has it as the highest ranked match for the title with a 9.41 rating.