7 surprise replacement opponents in Championship matches in WWE

#4. The Big Show becomes an unexpected WWE Champion after replacing Steve Austin at Survivor Series 1999

Interesting times

The Attitude Era was undoubtedly the most interesting period in WWE history. It's easy to forget that it only spanned 3 full years from WrestleMania 14 to 17, but the impact of it has made it WWE's most timeless era.

The original main event of Survivor Series was supposed to feature Triple H defending the WWE Championship against The Rock and 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin. Due to a legitimate injury, Austin was written out of WWE TV with an assault, and his replacement would only be announced at the last minute.

On the side, Big Show was in the midst of a heated feud with Big Boss Man, who insulted his "dead" father. He was a part of a Survivor Series elimination match, where he ran through his opponents in a 1-on-4 handicap situation.

He ended up becoming Steve Austin's replacement in the main event of Survivor Series and defeated Triple H and The Rock to capture his first WWE Championship.