WWE's Attitude Era came to an end in 2002 and it transitioned into the Ruthless Aggression Era. The likes of The Rock and Steve Austin were the top stars in the Attitude Era but they left WWE in the Ruthless Aggression Era and made sporadic appearances. However, the brand split was in full effect with wrestlers on Raw and SmackDown getting opportunities to become major stars on their respective brands.
The likes of Triple H and The Undertaker remained at the top of the card in the Ruthless Aggression Era but new stars were created. The Ruthless Aggression Era was a successful period in WWE and there were a plethora of brilliant WWE Champions, but some WWE Champions were adored by the WWE fans and others were detested.
13 JBL
JBL's tag team partnership with Faarooq ended, and JBL was given an immediate push as the top heel on SmackDown in 2004. A few months into his run with his JBL gimmick, he defeated Eddie Guerrero in a Texas Bullrope match to become WWE Champion for the first time.
Layfield needed help in his title defenses from the Cabinet and he retained the title against The Undertaker, Booker T, Eddie Guerrero, Big Show, and Kurt Angle in a series of gimmick matches. His 280-day run as WWE Champion was curtailed by John Cena at WrestleMania 21, and fans were pleased to see JBL's reign of terror come to an end.
12 Big Show
Big Show moved from Raw to SmackDown in the fall of 2002, and he instantly made an impact as he ended Brock Lesnar's unbeaten streak as he defeated him at Survivor Series to become a two-time WWE Champion. Show can thank Paul Heyman who betrayed Lesnar.
Show was a transitional WWE Champion and his championship run wasn't long for this world. He dropped the title a month later to Kurt Angle at Armageddon 2002.
11 Randy Orton
Randy Orton had to wait three years for his second World Championship run and he was awarded the WWE Championship at No Mercy 2007 as John Cena sustained a pectoral injury. Orton was one of the top heels in WWE, but he dropped the WWE Championship to Triple H in the curtain-raiser.
In the main event, Orton regained the WWE Championship from the Game in a Last Man Standing match, and he went on to hold the gold for six months. One of the highlights of his World Title run was beating Triple H and John Cena in a triple threat match at WrestleMania 24 to remain as WWE Champion.
10 Brock Lesnar
At SummerSlam 2002, Brock Lesnar defeated The Rock to become the youngest WWE Champion at the age of 25. Lesnar's first WWE Championship reign was exceptional as he feuded with The Undertaker, and he beat him in a Hell in a Cell match at No Mercy 2002.
Lesnar dropped the WWE Championship to Show at Survivor Series 2002. However, Lesnar won the WWE Championship two more times at Kurt Angle's expense. Lesnar thrived as a heel and fans were delighted when he dropped the WWE Title to Eddie Guerrero at No Way Out 2004.
9 The Rock
The Rock was one of the most popular stars in the Attitude Era, but his popularity waned in the Ruthless Aggression Era as fans knew that Rock was going to be leaving WWE to embark on an acting career in Hollywood.
Rock made history as the first seven-time WWE Champion when he beat The Undertaker and Kurt Angle in a triple threat match for the WWE Championship at Vengeance 2002. A month later, Rock was booed in his WWE Title defense to Lesnar at SummerSlam with Rock losing the WWE Title and on his way to Hollywood.
8 Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle won the WWE Championship four times in his WWE career with his final two runs as WWE Champion coming in the Ruthless Aggression Era. The Olympic Gold Medalist had title runs as both a babyface and a heel.
Angle was the leader of Team Angle and he feuded with Brock Lesnar for the majority of 2003 in the WWE Championship title picture. Furthermore, Angle had solid runs as WWE Champion and his lone WrestleMania main event was at WrestleMania 19 with Lesnar getting the better of him in their WWE Championship match.
7 Edge
Edge's childhood dream was to become the WWE Champion and the Rated-R Superstar achieved that at New Year's Revolution 2006 when he cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase and saw off John Cena. Edge's WWE Title run only lasted three weeks as Cena regained the title from him at the 2006 Royal Rumble.
The Rated-R Superstar was one of the top heels in the Ruthless Aggression Era, and he became WWE Champion for the second time in the summer of 2006. Edge's rivalry with Cena was arguably the feud of the year, and having Lita by his side, Edge was hated by the WWE Universe.
6 Hulk Hogan
Hulk Hogan and The Rock stole the show at WrestleMania 18, and despite Hogan being a heel, he was cheered by the fans in Toronto, and Rock was booed. Nevertheless, Hogan's efforts rewarded him by defeating Triple H for his sixth WWE Championship run at Backlash 2002.
Hogan was the final WWE Champion under the WWF banner, but his WWE Championship reign didn't set the world alight like years gone by. His WWE Title run lasted one month with The Undertaker ending his championship run at Judgment Day 2002.
5 Triple H
Triple H had a stranglehold on the World Heavyweight Championship as a heel in the Ruthless Aggression Era, but the Game turned face in the summer of 2006. The Game had to wait five years to hold the WWE Championship again and it was for a few hours at No Mercy 2007.
The Game clinched the WWE Championship at Backlash 2008 from Randy Orton in a fatal-4-way elimination match and he was the final WWE Champion in the Ruthless Aggression Era. Triple H was popular and he moved from Raw to SmackDown in the draft lottery, and he had an underrated feud with Edge, which was short-lived.
4 The Undertaker
The Undertaker's fourth and final WWE Championship reign wasn't the best, but Undertaker was still adored by the WWE Universe. Undertaker saw off Triple H in a successful title defense at the 2002 King of the Ring.
One of the best matches in Undertaker's WWE Championship reign was the ladder match with Jeff Hardy. Hardy was close to winning the championship but Undertaker retained the title and he turned face. Ultimately, Undertaker was involved in one of the best triple threat matches in WWE history at Vengeance 2002 with The Rock and Kurt Angle and Rock ended Undertaker's title run.
3 Rob Van Dam
Rob Van Dam was one of the most over faces in the Ruthless Aggression Era, and fans patiently waited to see RVD in the World Title picture. At ECW One Night Stand 2006, Van Dam cashed in the Money in the Bank contract that he won at WrestleMania 22 on John Cena.
With some outside interference from Edge, Van Dam saw off Cena to become WWE Champion for the first time. RVD was on cloud nine but his push ended quickly as he was caught with marijuana which led to Van Dam dropping both the WWE and ECW Championships on back-to-back nights.
2 Eddie Guerrero
The WWE Universe adored Eddie Guerrero which is why his untimely passing in November 2005 hit fans hard. A year before his passing, Eddie Guerrero defeated Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship at No Way Out 2004.
Latino Heat's WWE Championship reign was successful, and his WWE Title match with Kurt Angle at WrestleMania 20 was outstanding. Guerrero entered a feud with JBL, who ultimately took the WWE Title away from Guerrero in a Texas Bullrope match at The Great American Bash 2004.
1 John Cena
John Cena became one of the most polarizing stars in WWE history in the Ruthless Aggression Era. Cena curtailed JBL's WWE Championship reign at WrestleMania 21 to kickstart his love affair with the WWE Championship.
Cena won the WWE Championship three times in the Ruthless Aggression Era with his third WWE Championship reign lasting 380 days. Cena engaged in high-profile feuds with the likes of JBL, Chris Jericho, Kurt Angle, Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Randy Orton, Umaga, and many more. Cena's popularity in the Ruthless Aggression Era was at an all-time high.
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