WWE Hardcore Championship
| WWE Hardcore Championship | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Date established | November 2, 1998 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Date retired | August 26, 2002 | ||||||||||||||||||
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The WWF Hardcore Championship, later known as the WWE Hardcore Championship, is a former championship for World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment (WWE). The first champion was crowned when the championship was awarded to Mankind by Vince McMahon. It was defended always in some sort of Hardcore match due to its name. When Crash Holly won the title however, he started what became known as the 24/7 rule, which meant the title was being defended at all times. Anyone could surprise the title holder and pin him to become the new champion anywhere, as long as a Referee was present. The last official champion was Rob Van Dam when he won the title from Tommy Dreamer to unify the title with the WWF Intercontinental Championship.
History
[change | change source]24/7 rules
[change | change source]
When Crash Holly won the belt, he introduced the 24/7 rule which said the belt was to be defended at all times, as long as a referee was present. This allowed for many comic relief moments, such as the belt changing hands while the champion was asleep, and The Headbangers chasing Crash Holly around an amusement park in Brooklyn (Holly eventually escaped from a ball pit and ran from the building, still the champion).
Unification and retirement
[change | change source]The title was unified with the Intercontinental Championship on August 26, 2002, when Intercontinental Champion Rob Van Dam defeated Hardcore Champion Tommy Dreamer. This was one month after Van Dam defeated Jeff Hardy in a Ladder match to unify the Intercontinental and European Championships.