WWE rarely has a world championship change hands on free television. The PPVs have always been the common place for big title changes and new eras starting. However, there have been enough occasions of the rare title changes on Raw and Smackdown to compare. Raw has been around for almost three decades now with countless iconic moments. Smackdown has developed a legacy as well in two decades of action.
We will look back at the best world title changes to come from both shows in surprising fashion. Part of the appeal of such a title change is that no one expects it to come since it’s on free television. The element of surprise adds fun and creates a special wrestling moment, such as these. Let’s take a stroll down memory lane with the five best world title changes in Raw history and the five best in Smackdown history on free television.
10 Raw: Triple H defeats Mankind
Triple H's dream finally came true in the summer of 1999. The Game received a singles title shot against Mankind on Raw just one night after Mankind won the WWE Championship at Summerslam 1999 in a triple threat match.
Shane McMahon helped Triple H as the special guest referee, but that didn’t take away from the finish. Triple H won the title after his peers Steve Austin, The Rock and Mankind all did it before him. The longer journey for Triple H made his Raw title change a special moment.
9 Smackdown: Brock Lesnar defeats Kurt Angle in an Iron Man match
The Iron Man match between Brock Lesnar and Kurt Angle was one of the best matches in Smackdown history. Both competitors were at the top of their game and faced off in the match that ran for a full hour to see who scored the most pin falls.
Lesnar used a bold strategy of getting intentionally DQ’d to use a weapon and weaken Angle. It all worked out in the end with Brock winning the WWE Championship from Angle. The surprise element wasn’t there since many expected it, but the match’s greatness added to the title change.
8 Raw: The Miz defeats Randy Orton with MITB
The Money in the Bank title shot has added great excitement to WWE television. Fans have the potential of seeing a world title change on any show if the wrestler decides to cash in on a weakened champion at any point.
The Miz would have his first and only WWE Championship win on Raw shortly after winning the MITB contract. Randy Orton was weakened after a title defense against Wade Barrett. Miz arrived to take advantage by winning the WWE Championship in a shocking moment.
7 Smackdown: Daniel Bryan defeats AJ Styles
One of the more recent WWE Championship title changes on free television came when Daniel Bryan defeated AJ Styles. The go-home episode to Survivor Series 2018 would see Bryan turn heel at the end of a great match to steal the title from Styles.
WWE did this with the intent of changing the Survivor Series match to Bryan vs Brock Lesnar for the dream match factor. Bryan started a superb heel run as the Planet’s Champion completely revamping his career. The title change worked like a charm in every way imaginable.
6 Raw: Steve Austin defeats Kane
Kane’s one WWE Championship reign would only last a day after defeating Steve Austin in a First Blood match. The night after Kane’s King of the Ring title match win would see him forced to defend against Austin using his rematch clause.
Austin and Kane had a tremendous match in front of a red-hot crowd. The win for Austin would give him back the WWE Championship after losing it for 24 hours. Austin was too popular to risk going without the title and WWE treated us to a great moment for him to win it back.
5 Smackdown: Edge defeats Undertaker with MITB
An injury to Mr. Kennedy would have WWE book him losing the Money in the Bank briefcase to Edge during an episode of Raw. Edge wasted no time once winning the briefcase and cashed it in later that week on the Smackdown brand.
A brutal cage match between Batista and The Undertaker would see Undertaker barely retain the title in a close finish. Mark Henry attacked Undertaker after the match to weaken him further. To top it all off, Edge returned to Smackdown in shocking fashion to cash in and become the new World Champion.
4 Raw: CM Punk defeats Edge with MITB
The Money in the Bank title shot has both helped and harmed Edge at different points. Karma would collect on the Rated-R Superstar when he was finally the wrestler on the bad end of a cash in. CM Punk decided to use his title shot after Batista attacked Edge.
The surprising moment saw Punk winning his first world title in WWE, paving his way to becoming a main eventer. Punk would become the face of Raw for a few months following the win. Many fans feared Punk might be the first to lose a cash in, but he pulled off the win on Raw to become World Champion.
3 Smackdown: AJ Styles defeats Jinder Mahal
The WWE shows in the United Kingdom always feature a hot crowd excited about the action. WWE rewarded them during an episode of Smackdown with the main event of WWE Champion Jinder Mahal vs fan favorite challenger AJ Styles.
Fans reacted with elation when Styles scored the winning pin fall to end the lengthy heel title reign of Mahal. WWE pulled off the change earlier than expected for Styles to face Brock Lesnar at Survivor Series 2017. Mahal’s heat was perfectly used to put over Styles in a great moment on Smackdown.
2 Raw: Mankind defeats The Rock
The best title change in Raw history came in 1999, during a memorable night. WCW leaked the finish of the WWE title match between Mankind and The Rock on Nitro since Raw was taped. Fans tuned out of WCW to watch WWE for the wild finish.
Mick Foley won the WWE Championship for the first time in his career as Mankind, defeating Rock with the help of Steve Austin. The massive ovation and tremendous feel-good moment of the night played a role in making this one of the most beloved moments in Raw history.
1 Smackdown: Kurt Angle wins the battle royal for the vacated title
Batista’s lengthy reign as World Champion ended abruptly in early 2006 when he was forced to vacate the title due to an injury. Smackdown would start the show with Batista revealing the news and close it with a Battle Royal to crown a new champion.
Kurt Angle made a surprise appearance and won the match to a huge pop. The World Championship win made Angle the most popular star on Smackdown over the next few months. This surprising memorable title win was a top tier Smackdown moment to be remembered.