The Complete History of the WWE Championship - Part 11

The Big Show (November 17, 2002 - December 15, 2002)

Big Show: Shocked the world to win a second World title

After Big Show's transitional WWE Championship reign in 1999-2000, few expected the seven foot tall giant to ever hold the big belt again.

Since 2000, Big Show had gradually slipped down the card, due to WWE management's frustration with his ballooning weight and disinterested attitude.

As WWE tends to do with performers who do not follow instructions, they jobbed him out. In 2001-02, Big Show lost to everyone.

Therefore, eyebrows were raised when Show was booked to fight WWE Champion Brock Lesnar at the 2002 Survivor Series.

In the build up to the event, Lesnar's manager, Paul Heyman repeatedly told his charge that he could not defeat Big Show as he could not lift him up for the F-5. It seemed disingenuous to promote Big Show as superior to Lesnar, who was unbeaten and had just crushed The Rock and The Undertaker in consecutive title feuds.

However, in hindsight, it made sense. When Lesnar did hit the F-5 on the mammoth Big Show, the Madison Square Garden crowd cheered in delight and that same audience was massively miffed when Heyman cost his client the gold and assisted Show to win.

Heyman had betrayed Lesnar and aligned himself with Big Show.

Show was champion again and Lesnar was WWE's new star babyface.

Show's reign existed solely as a transition. WWE wanted to promote the first ever meeting between the Amateur Wrestling giants, Lesnar and Kurt Angle at WrestleMania XIX. In order to do so they wanted to make Angle champion and book Lesnar to win the Royal Rumble match and challenge the Olympian for the gold.

Therefore, Big Show's reign ended at Armageddon, just one month later