Fans are always excited at the prospect of a tournament. The unpredictability, suspense, upsets and swerves which tournaments create entices fans. The majority of World Championship tournaments have been held due to the title being vacant.
The champion relinquishes the gold because of a legitimate injury or being stripped of the title in a storyline, therefore, a tournament is most definitely needed. Many of the greatest tourneys in WWE history have pitted the very best against each other and it has shaped up the future of many top superstar's careers.
8 ECW Championship Tournament - 2007
The ECW Championship tournament in June 2007 will forever be tarnished. The weekend of the tournament finals held at Vengeance: Night of Champions, Chris Benoit no-showed the event. Details were unknown for his absence but 24 hours later, it was announced that Benoit was dead, and more news came out that he killed his wife and son and he committed suicide. Furthermore, the tournament was held due to reigning ECW Champion Bobby Lashley getting drafted to Raw. Benoit was the marquee draft pick for ECW as he moved over from Smackdown and was the firm favorite to win the vacant title.
The Rabid Wolverine defeated Elijah Burke and CM Punk beat Marcus Cor Von on the June 19th episode of ECW to set up a blockbuster clash. Unfortunately, that match never happened and Johnny Nitro was Benoit's last-minute replacement. In fairness, the encounter was not the best between the two but Nitro defeated Punk to be crowned the new ECW Champion. The two would go on to have better matches for the remainder of the year.
7 NXT Championship Tournament - 2012
WWE's developmental territory NXT was finally getting its own championship. The late Dusty Rhodes announced a Gold Rush tournament would be held between eight superstars to crown the first-ever NXT Champion in the summer of 2012. Future WWE Champions Seth Rollins, Jinder Mahal, and Drew McIntyre all competed in this tourney. Rollins defeated McIntyre in the quarterfinals and Michael McGillicutty aka Curtis Axel to reach the final.
Mahal also booked his place in the final as he defeated Bo Dallas and Richie Steamboat, the son of Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat. Both Rollins and Mahal had great success once they joined the main roster. However, Rollins had the privilege of becoming the first-ever NXT Champion on August 29th when he defeated Mahal in the final.
6 WWE Championship Tournament - Raw, July 2011
After CM Punk won the WWE Championship at Money in the Bank 2011, he "left" the WWE. Therefore, the title was "vacated" and a tournament was born on the July 18th episode of Monday Night Raw. Former world champions Rey Mysterio, Dolph Ziggler, Jack Swagger, and The Miz were all looking to win the top prize once more. Mysterio dispatched Ziggler in the quarterfinals and R-Truth in the final four to book his place in the final.
Miz came through unscathed in the bottom half of the draw. Miz sent his former ally Alex Riley packing in the quarterfinals and Kofi Kingston in an outstanding match in the semifinals. The final was on the following week of Raw with Mysterio overcoming Miz to clinch his third World Championship. Unfortunately, Mysterio's celebrations were short-lived as John Cena invoked his rematch clause. He won the WWE Championship but CM Punk returned and both men were recognized as WWE Champions.
5 WWE World Heavyweight Championship Tournament - Survivor Series 2015
Seth Rollins was in the midst of a successful eight-month reign as WWE World Heavyweight Champion in 2015. Unfortunately, he suffered a knee injury at a live event in Europe, which forced him to relinquish the championship. A 16-man tournament was created on the November 9th edition of Monday Night Raw. The semifinals and final concluded the tourney at the Survivor Series. Roman Reigns, United States Champion Alberto Del Rio, Kevin Owens, and Dean Ambrose all safely made it through to the PPV.
Reigns defeated two-time WWE Champion Del Rio in the semifinals, thus guaranteeing a first-time WWE World Heavyweight Champion. Ambrose dispatched Owens in the other semis with the dream final taking place. The two former Shield members battled back and forth but it was Reigns who was victorious by a Spear on the Lunatic Fringe to clinch his first World Championship. The Big Dog suffered another setback as Sheamus cashed in Money in the Bank, dethroning Reigns instantly.
4 WWF Championship Tournament - WrestleMania IV (1988)
WrestleMania IV is the only WrestleMania to date where a tournament has been held for the vacant WWF Championship. Andre The Giant controversially ended Hogan's four-year reign as champion in February 1988. However, his reign was cut short as Ted DiBiase purchased the title from him. Moreover, President Jack Tunney vacated the title and announced a 14-man tournament at WrestleMania IV. Andre and Hogan received byes as the only former WWF Champions in the quarterfinals. It was their second successive meeting at WrestleMania but it ended as a double disqualification due to outside interference.
The tournament definitely hurt WrestleMania IV as it was too long and many of the matches were incredibly short. However, Macho Man Randy Savage was the star of the show. He defeated Butch Reed, Greg Valentine, and One Man Gang to reach the championship match. The Million Dollar Man benefitted from Hogan and Andre's draw and had a bye to the final. Savage overcame DiBiase to clinch his first WWF Championship in the main event which saved the show. It was a heartwarming moment as he celebrated with his wife Ms. Elizabeth and Hogan.
3 Universal Championship Tournament - 2016
In 2016, WWE reintroduced the brand split with WWE Champion Dean Ambrose drafted to Smackdown. Therefore, Raw was without a World Champion, thus on the July 25th episode of Raw, General Manager Mick Foley and Commissioner Stephanie McMahon announced the Universal Championship. The final was at SummerSlam with Seth Rollins, the first draft pick for Raw, penciled in.
However, Finn Balor won a Fatal-4-Way match and Roman Reigns won one as well. It seemed that it was destined to be a Rollins-Reigns final. However, Balor defeated Reigns to book his place at SummerSlam to face Rollins. It was a good match between The Demon and Rollins, and Balor became the first-ever Universal Champion which was a shock. Unfortunately, he vacated the title a night later on Raw as he sustained an injury in his victory over Rollins.
2 Undisputed WWF Championship Tournament - Vengeance 2001
After the conclusion of the Invasion angle at Survivor Series 2001, the WWE had two World Championships. Steve Austin held the WWF Championship and The Rock was the World Champion, formerly the WCW Championship. A four-man tournament was created to unify the two World titles, and thus the Undisputed WWF Championship was born.
Vengeance saw Austin retain the WWF Championship over Kurt Angle, and Jericho became a two-time World champion by defeating The Rock. Y2J had no chance to rest as he shifted his attention to Austin straight after. Despite outside interference from Booker T, Jericho had his crowning moment as he defeated Austin to become the first-ever Undisputed WWF Champion.
1 Deadly Game Tournament - Survivor Series 1998
For the first time in a decade, a WWF Championship tournament was held at the 1998 Survivor Series. The tournament was subtitled "Deadly Game" with the title being vacant for two months since Breakdown: In Your House. The 14-man tournament featured Steve Austin, The Undertaker, and Kane as the only former champions in the draw. The Rock and Mankind also participated with Mankind as the odds-on favorite to win the title as he sided with The McMahons.
Mankind defeated Duane Gill, Al Snow, and Austin with some assistance to reach the final. Undertaker and Rock battled in the other semifinals. The final between Rock and Mankind would feature a double turn. The Rock locked Mankind in a sharpshooter with Mr. McMahon calling for the bell. Thus Rock captured his first WWF Championship, two years after his debut.