{"id":135588,"date":"2025-05-22T13:13:31","date_gmt":"2025-05-22T17:13:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/?p=135588"},"modified":"2025-05-22T13:13:31","modified_gmt":"2025-05-22T17:13:31","slug":"unlikely-wwe-champions-and-why-fans-got-behind-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2025\/05\/22\/unlikely-wwe-champions-and-why-fans-got-behind-them\/","title":{"rendered":"Unlikely WWE Champions and Why Fans Got Behind Them"},"content":{"rendered":"

WWE is known to be full of surprises. The best surprises are the ones that the fans want.\u00a0<\/span>The company has had many champions who may not be what you picture as your typical champion, but these champions resonate with the fans and have gained their support.<\/span><\/p>\n

Who in WWE have we seen succeed as an unlikely champion?<\/span><\/p>\n

Unlikely WWE Champions<\/h2>\n

Dolph Ziggler (NXT Champion)<\/h3>\n

For most championships that Dolph Ziggler won in the WWE, it wasn\u2019t as surprising as he was in the prime of his WWE career from 2010 to 2016. However, it was shocking to see Ziggler win the NXT Championship<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

We haven\u2019t seen too many stars from the main roster go back down to NXT for another run, so Ziggler being another one was surprising. It was refreshing to see, though, as he worked on redeveloping his character.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Ziggler gained the respect of the fans throughout his career. He has shown his dedication to the industry over and over again through the years.<\/span><\/p>\n

It was nice to see Ziggler get recognition for his talent. Even though it was in NXT and not the main roster, it opened up a lot of new opponents for Ziggler, and many learning lessons for those in NXT.<\/span><\/p>\n

Daniel Bryan (WWE World Heavyweight Champion)<\/h3>\n

Daniel Bryan\u2019s WWE World Heavyweight Championship victory at WrestleMania 30 will go down in history. It was incredible because of how fan-driven it was. All of the fans had backed Daniel Bryan.<\/span><\/p>\n

With his popularity growing, he could have been expected to win the championship eventually. However, the buildup to the match made this moment so significant when he won. Bryan was the \u201cunderdog\u201d and arguably wasn\u2019t supposed to win the championship.<\/span><\/p>\n

The night of WrestleMania 30 was the fans rallying behind Bryan for an unforgettable night.<\/span><\/p>\n