7 surprise replacement opponents in Championship matches in WWE

#6. The Ultimate Warrior replaces Brutus Beefcake to dethrone The Honky Tonk Man at WWE SummerSlam 1988

Iconic

The Honky Tonk Man was a big heel in the late 1980s for WWE, and he maintained his heat while holding the Intercontinental Championship for a whopping 454 days. - the longest reign in the title's history.

He was originally scheduled to defend it against Brutus The Barber Beefcake, but WWE replaced Beefcake at the last minute as a part of their plan to help get The Ultimate Warrior over.

After Beefcake was written out of the match, The Honky Tonk man, as arrogant as ever, refused to even find out who the replacement would be. Out came The Ultimate Warrior, who rushed in and finished the Champion in just 31 seconds.

Today, it's hard to imagine fans reacting well to a 454-day title reign ending in half a minute, but at the time, The Warrior got the loudest reaction of the night. It marked the first of three Championships that The Ultimate Warrior would hold for WWE, and it kickstarted his ascent to the top - one that would culminate with a WrestleMania main event victory over Hulk Hogan in 1990.