WWE may not run Madison Square Garden the way it used to before the Golden Era, but there’s something about MSG that changes the energy of a championship match to this day. In this article, we’ll be taking a look back at five WWE stars who walked into the historic venue wearing the prestigious WWE Intercontinental Championship… and walked out empty-handed!<\/p>\n
Becky Lynch<\/h2>\n\n- Beginning Of Her Reign: <\/strong>June 7, 2025 (Money In The Bank)<\/li>\n
- End Of Her Reign: <\/strong>November 17, 2025 (Raw)<\/li>\n
- Days Held: <\/strong>163<\/li>\n
- Number Of Televised Title Defenses: <\/strong>8<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Becky Lynch shockingly lost the WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship to Maxxine Dupri in one of the hottest episodes of Monday Night Raw in recent memory,<\/a> thanks to a distraction from the returning AJ Lee. Lynch had held the title since Money in the Bank, where ‘The Man’ saw off the inaugural champion, Lyra Valkyria.<\/p>\nBecky was involved in a notable program with her husband, Seth Rollins, CM Punk, and AJ Lee during her 163-day title reign. She also managed to successfully defend her strap against the likes of Valkyria, Bayley, Nikki Bella, and Natalya before putting Maxxine Dupri over in November.<\/p>\n
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Kane<\/h2>\n\n- Beginning Of His Reign: <\/strong>May 20, 2001 (Judgment Day)<\/li>\n
- End Of His Reign: <\/strong>June 26, 2001 (SmackDown Taping)<\/li>\n
- Days Held: <\/strong>37<\/li>\n
- Number Of Televised Title Defenses: <\/strong>7<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
You have to go all the way back to June 2001 to find the last time the men’s Intercontinental Championship changed hands in MSG – back when the company was still known as the World Wrestling Federation! It happened when Kane lost the IC Championship to Albert, of all people, in a No DQ Match on an episode of SmackDown.<\/p>\n
The Big Red Machine had been the champion for about a month, having bested Triple H in a unique Chain Match at Judgment Day. Albert’s title reign ended up being even shorter than Kane’s, with the future A-Train\/Tensai dropping the gold to The Alliance’s Lance Storm on the July 23 edition of Raw Is War.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/11\/Kane2003-225x300.jpg\")
Photo Credit: By Mshake3<\/a> at English Wikipedia, CC BY 2.5,<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n
The Rock<\/h2>\n\n- Beginning Of His Reign: <\/strong>December 8, 1997 (Raw Is War)<\/li>\n
- End Of His Reign: <\/strong>August 30, 1998 (SummerSlam)<\/li>\n
- Days Held: <\/strong>265<\/li>\n
- Number Of Televised Title Defenses: <\/strong>9<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The Rock was one of the best Intercontinental Champions of the Attitude Era<\/a>. The Great One’s second reign in particular proved Rocky was more than ready for the spotlight. After a fantastic feud with Ken Shamrock that elevated both men, Rock, as a member of The Nation of Domination, moved on to a program with D-Generation X.<\/p>\nAs the Nation’s de facto leader, Rock found himself defending the Intercontinental Championship against DX’s leader, Triple H, many times throughout the summer of 1998. The future main eventers stole the show in MSG at that year’s SummerSlam, exceeding all expectations and delivering a Ladder Match for the ages. In the end, Triple H captured his second Intercontinental Championship.<\/p>\n
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Mr. Perfect<\/h2>\n\n- Beginning Of His Reign: <\/strong>November 19, 1990 (Superstars Taping)<\/li>\n
- End Of His Reign: <\/strong>August 26, 1991 (SummerSlam)<\/li>\n
- Days Held: <\/strong>280<\/li>\n
- Number Of Televised Title Defenses: <\/strong>7<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
If Triple H and The Rock stole the show at SummerSlam 1998, there are no words to describe what Mr. Perfect and Bret Hart did in the same venue seven years earlier at The Biggest Party Of The Summer. The two legends put on a wrestling clinic that is still regarded as one of the greatest Intercontinental Championship matches of all time to this day.<\/p>\n
Perfect wrestled with a broken back and would miss more than a year of action following this event, but he still went out there and put The Hitman over like a true pro<\/a>. Not only is this one of the greatest bouts in SummerSlam history, it is also one of the most memorable title changes that has ever happened in Madison Square Garden.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The Honky Tonk Man<\/h2>\n
Becky Lynch shockingly lost the WWE Women’s Intercontinental Championship to Maxxine Dupri in one of the hottest episodes of Monday Night Raw in recent memory,<\/a> thanks to a distraction from the returning AJ Lee. Lynch had held the title since Money in the Bank, where ‘The Man’ saw off the inaugural champion, Lyra Valkyria.<\/p>\n Becky was involved in a notable program with her husband, Seth Rollins, CM Punk, and AJ Lee during her 163-day title reign. She also managed to successfully defend her strap against the likes of Valkyria, Bayley, Nikki Bella, and Natalya before putting Maxxine Dupri over in November.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n You have to go all the way back to June 2001 to find the last time the men’s Intercontinental Championship changed hands in MSG – back when the company was still known as the World Wrestling Federation! It happened when Kane lost the IC Championship to Albert, of all people, in a No DQ Match on an episode of SmackDown.<\/p>\n The Big Red Machine had been the champion for about a month, having bested Triple H in a unique Chain Match at Judgment Day. Albert’s title reign ended up being even shorter than Kane’s, with the future A-Train\/Tensai dropping the gold to The Alliance’s Lance Storm on the July 23 edition of Raw Is War.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Rock was one of the best Intercontinental Champions of the Attitude Era<\/a>. The Great One’s second reign in particular proved Rocky was more than ready for the spotlight. After a fantastic feud with Ken Shamrock that elevated both men, Rock, as a member of The Nation of Domination, moved on to a program with D-Generation X.<\/p>\n As the Nation’s de facto leader, Rock found himself defending the Intercontinental Championship against DX’s leader, Triple H, many times throughout the summer of 1998. The future main eventers stole the show in MSG at that year’s SummerSlam, exceeding all expectations and delivering a Ladder Match for the ages. In the end, Triple H captured his second Intercontinental Championship.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n If Triple H and The Rock stole the show at SummerSlam 1998, there are no words to describe what Mr. Perfect and Bret Hart did in the same venue seven years earlier at The Biggest Party Of The Summer. The two legends put on a wrestling clinic that is still regarded as one of the greatest Intercontinental Championship matches of all time to this day.<\/p>\n Perfect wrestled with a broken back and would miss more than a year of action following this event, but he still went out there and put The Hitman over like a true pro<\/a>. Not only is this one of the greatest bouts in SummerSlam history, it is also one of the most memorable title changes that has ever happened in Madison Square Garden.<\/p>\n <\/p>\nKane<\/h2>\n
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The Rock<\/h2>\n
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Mr. Perfect<\/h2>\n
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The Honky Tonk Man<\/h2>\n