A Triple Crown is a distinction that surpasses a world title reign. Earning the honor of being a Triple Crown Champion requires a wrestler to hold three major titles (usually a world title, one of the mid-card titles, and the tag team titles) at one wrestling company. For perspective, neither Hulk Hogan nor John Cena are Triple Crown champs, despite being major WWE stars.
Although it is a feat that few wrestlers have achieved, there are plenty of Triple Crown champions that many fans would be shocked to learn or be reminded about. This list will examine ten wrestlers who achieved Triple Crown status even though most fans might have forgotten about their triumph.
10 Mikey Whipwreck - ECW
The third ECW Champion was also one of the least likely champions. Mikey Whipwreck defeated The Sandman at just 22 years old to earn the ECW World Title. He went from a member of the ECW crew to a Triple Crown champion at the company.
Whipwreck won the ECW World Television Championship twice and the ECW World Tag Team Championship three different times. He achieved a Triple Crown honor in less than two years making his success even more unlikely.
9 Austin Aries - Impact Wrestling
Although Austin Aries had a forgettable career in the WWE, even he admitted he wasn't a great fit for the company. His career in Impact was far different. His first run with the company that ended in 2007 was nothing special, but his return to Impact was fantastic.
In 2011, he returned to the company and became X Division Champion. Less than a year later he was Impact World Champion and in 2013 he won the Impact Tag Team Titles with Bobby Roode. Most would be shocked to learn that Aries is a Triple Crown champ at Impact and Bobby Roode isn't.
8 Johnny Mundo - Lucha Underground
Although he started his career in the WWE as Johnny Nitro, he's also known as John Morrison at the company and Johnny Mundo at Lucha Underground. After his first run in the WWE, Nitro left the company and began wrestling for Lucha Underground in 2014.
He was massively successful at the company and won the Lucha Underground Championship, the trios titles (with Jack Evans and PJ Black), and the Gift of the Gods Championship. He was so dominant that Johnny won all three major titles within four months.
7 Roderick Strong - ROH
Roderick Strong has had a great career in NXT. His future with the company remains uncertain, but it's hard to argue he didn't deserve a shot on the WWE's main roster due to his high marks at NXT.
Years before he was one of the most well-known faces at NXT, Strong had a ton of success at ROH. He won the Tag Team Titles (with Austin Aries) in 2005. The ROH World Title in 2010 and became a Triple Crown wrestler at the company when he won the ROH World Television Championship in 2012.
6 CM Punk - OVW
In 1999, Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) became a developmental territory for the WWE. Many future main event WWE stars got their start at OVW including Randy Orton, Brock Lesnar, and John Cena. None of them became Triple Crown champs at OVW. Another future WWE star did, CM Punk.
After having a ton of success at ROH, CM Punk began wrestling at OVW. During his first year at the company, Punk won the OVW Television Champion, the OVW Southern Tag Team Champion (with Seth Skyfire), and the OVW Heavyweight Championship. He is still the only wrestler to ever be a Triple Crown champion at OVW and WWE.
5 Christian Cage - WWE
Christian Cage and Edge created one of the greatest tag team units of all time. Edge and Christian are a future WWE Hall of Fame tag team that held the World Tag Team Championships seven times.
His time with Edge often overshadows his solo career that featured 4 Intercontinental Championship reigns and 2 World Heavyweight Championships. Christian Cage achieved Triple Crown status four years after Edge. WWE requires wrestlers to win the Intercontinental Championship, not the US Championship to achieve Triple Crown status.
4 Eric Young - Impact Wrestling
Eric Young spent most of his career as one of the biggest underdogs in the history of Impact. His career with the company is on par with many greats, though he often flies under the radar.
He won the Impact World Tag Team Championships five years after his Impact Wrestling debut. Young won the X Division title for less than one day in 2008 and won the Impact World Championship in 2014.
3 Big E - WWE
Big E's rise to the top of the WWE was one of the greatest "feel-good stories" in the history of the WWE. His WWE Championship reign was way too short, but fans loved every second of it. As a member of the New Day, he was an eight-time WWE Tag Team Champion.
Although most fans can quickly recall Big E's WWE Championship and Tag Team Title runs, he also held the Intercontinental Championship twice. Once in 2014 and again in 2021 for a run that was not promoted at the level of his stardom.
2 Elijah Burke - OVW
Elijah Burke is a forgotten WWE wrestler. He spent 3 years in the WWE but was unable to hold a single title in the WWE. He once scored a win over Punk in WWE's ECW reboot, which is one of his bigger accomplishments.
Before landing on the WWE main roster, Elijah Burke competed at the WWE developmental territory OVW. It took 11 years, but Elijah Burke became a Triple Crown Champion at the company. He won the OVW Heavyweight Championship in 2004. Almost a decade later, he won the Television Title in 2013, and in 2015 Burke won the OVW Tag Team Titles.
1 Chris Sabin - Impact Wrestling
Chris Sabin has wrestled most of his career at Impact. He's one half of one of the greatest tag teams in Impact history, The Motor City Machine Guns. He and Alex Shelley were even voted PWI Tag Team of the Year in 2010.
His time with the tag team division sometimes overshadows his solo career. Along with his two tag title runs with Shelley, Sabin also won the X Division Championship 8 different times and held the Impact World Championship for 28 days in 2013.