5 unusual reasons Superstars had to vacate their Championships

#2 Vince McMahon vacates the WWE title

Vince McMahon

In 1999, Triple H got into a rivalry with the McMahon family and offered to defend his WWE title against Vince McMahon. The match was on and Shane McMahon was made the special referee for the same. The match saw Triple H destroying Vince and Shane trying to pep-talk him into getting up. At one point, Shane was knocked out and Stone Cold came out to change the course of history. He delivered Stunners on Triple H and Chyna, helping the boss win the WWE title!

Vince appeared on Raw soon after and stated that he is prohibited from engaging in day-to-day business activities, hence he is vacating the belt.

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#1 Austin refuses to defend the IC title

Austin and The Rock

On the road to WrestleMania 14, Stone Cold Steve Austin held the Intercontinental title, but the authorities didn't want him to take the title to 'Mania. They also didn't want him to lose it. So, a storyline was created which saw Austin refusing to defend his title. This resulted in The Rattlesnake being forced to vacate the belt, and award it to The Rock.

Austin did the unthinkable and threw the belt into a river and recorded a video of the incident, in one of the most memorable moments of the Attitude Era. Austin went on to win the WWE title from Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania 14, kicking off the Austin Era.