Despite never quite reaching the heights of WWE or WCW, ECW is a promotion that is fondly remembered by fans to this day. The extreme version of wrestling that it introduced to the viewers certainly changed the landscape of the industry, whether for the better or worse. Originally established as Eastern Championship Wrestling in 1992, the company would be rechristened as Extreme Championship Wrestling in 1994 and eventually go on to give birth to a completely different genre of wrestling.
The Television Championship was ECW's mid-card title and would remain in existence from the company's formation to when they would close their doors in 2001. Here we will take a look at the 5 best and 5 worst ECW Television Champions in history.
10 BEST: Taz
Paul Heyman was a genius in that he had the ability to get the most out of anyone. Taz is a classic example of that. Standing at just 5' 9" and without an incredible move set, he is not the kind of guy you would see become a world champion eventually. Heyman did manage to pull that off though and booked Taz as an unstoppable monster.
Taz had an incredible run as the ECW Television Champion in 1996 when he held the title for 267 days and defended it 43 times. He did win the belt on another occasion though when he just held it for one night and could have easily gone down as one of the worst champions if not for his dominant second reign.
9 WORST: Johnny Hotbody
Johnny Hotbody is not somebody that you immediately associate with ECW but he was quite a big deal back in the initial days of the company. In fact, he was the first man to hold the Television Championship and the second ever ECW World Heavyweight Champion. On top of that, he also held the Tag Team titles on three occasions despite being with the company for less than two years.
Hotbody's run as the first ever ECW Television Champion was a complete disaster though as he had to relinquish the title just 31 days after winning it as a result of an ankle injury. Not the reign ECW would have been looking for in order to put the title on the map.
8 BEST: Shane Douglas
Shane Douglas is one of those guys who seemed to thrive in the ECW environment but never quite made it in the big leagues. Perhaps he was just more comfortable being the big fish in a small pond because talent was never the problem, as he had that in spades.
He was one of the pioneers who put ECW on the wrestling map. His incredible 329-day reign as the Television Champion would come in his second stint in the company and was instrumental in bringing his wrestling career back on track after a terrible run in the WWE as Dean Douglas.
7 WORST: Super Crazy
Another wrestler who would enjoy his best time in wrestling under Paul Heyman. Before he was a comedy wrestler in the WWE, Super Crazy was tearing down houses in ECW's famed Cruiserweight division, as he was booked as a serious competitor in the company.
His reign as the ECW Television Champion was nothing to write home about though. It all started well as he won the title by winning a tournament after it was vacated by Rob Van Dam. His mere 27-day reign at the top is not quite what fans were hoping for though and it started a short period when the company would pass around the belt.
6 BEST: Rhino
One of the select few from ECW who would go on to successful careers in wrestling even after the company folded, Rhino always looked like someone who would eventually move on to bigger things. He would stick with the company till the very end though showing incredible loyalty and was the final ECW World Heavyweight Champion as well as the final ECW Television Champion.
Rhino held the ECW Television Championship on two occasions. While his first reign lasted 126 days, it was his second reign that was legendary as he would never go on to lose the belt as a result of WWE buying out the company.
5 WORST: Tajiri
Tajiri is easily one of the best Japanese exports in the history of wrestling and has enjoyed more success than most wrestlers from Japan do in American organizations. Despite making sporadic appearances in WWE, it was in ECW that Tajiri got his big break on American television.
Another man who remained loyal to ECW till its last day, Tajiri won the Television Championship on one occasion but his reign was disappointing, to say the least. He would hold on to the belt for just 14 days before losing it to Rhino. It was his only singles championship in the company.
4 BEST: Eddie Guerrero
Eddie Guerrero is one of the most beloved competitors in wrestling history and is fondly remembered to this day. While most remember him from his time in WWE, Guerrero spent wrestling around the world for years before that and it was in ECW that he got his big break.
Guerrero won the ECW Television title on two occasions. He won it on his debut and would then go on to feud over it with Dean Malenko in a series of matches that were legendary. Though none of his reigns were very long, he did manage to elevate the title to a level of prestige it had never reached before.
3 WORST: Kid Kash
Another Television Champion from the post-Rob Van Dam era when, for a period of time, the title changed hands far too often for it to mean much. Kid Kash held the belt only once and for a period of just 14 days.
A very talented wrestler, Kash continues to wrestle to this day and has won many championships over his career. The Television Championship was the only one that he managed to win during a 5-year long run in ECW. As a result, it was very disappointing to see such a talented wrestler not get the chance to show what he could do as a champion.
2 BEST: Rob Van Dam
Rob Van Dam was just special. Out of every wrestler that fans associate with ECW, Van Dam enjoyed the most success outside of the company and even managed to win the WWE Championship. His style was so unique that only he could pull it off and it was successful anywhere he went.
His reign as the ECW Television Champion was legendary, to say the least. He held the belt for an incredible 700 days, defended it 121 times and never actually lost it as he was forced to relinquish it as a result of an injury.
1 WORST: Chris Jericho
There are very few things that Chris Jericho has ever failed at inside of a wrestling ring. His reign as the ECW Television Champion is one of those few things.
After wrestling all around the world, Jericho got his big break in ECW. A solitary Television Championship was the only title that he won during his time in the company and the fact that it lasted just 21 days is very disappointing. He could have achieved so much more with the belt but instead, he lost it to Shane Douglas weeks later and was in WCW not too long after that.