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This article deals with the achievement as understood in professional wrestling in the United States. For the Japanese championship, which is counted as a single title, see AJPW Triple Crown Championship.

In professional wrestling, a Triple Crown Champion is a term describing a wrestler who has won the three most prestigious belts of their promotion - typically a heavyweight belt, a tag team belt, and a second-tier belt. It is considered a great accomplishment to have won a triple crown. A "multiple triple crown" distinction also exists, with having won the three constituent titles at least a specified number of times.

WWE Triple Crown

In World Wrestling Entertainment, the term Triple Crown Champion has traditionally been used to describe a wrestler who has won the WWE Championship, the Intercontinental Championship, and the Tag Team Championship within one year. For a span of nearly 18 years, from 1979 up through 1997, these were the three championships of the WWF, and a wrestler who had won all three championships (not necessarily concurrently) was considered a "triple crown champion."

In 1997, a fourth title, the European Championship was introduced. The European Championship, a singles title beneath the world and intercontinental titles, did not count for the purposes of designating triple crown champions, although a wrestler who had won all three primary titles and the European Championship would be recognized as a grand slam champion.

Following the brand extension in 2002 and the introduction of the duals to each of the three titles (the World Heavyweight Championship, WWE Tag Team Championship, and the WWE-era WWE United States Championship), the WWE Triple Crown was expanded to include these new titles, due to the fact that they have achieved Grand Slam status.

Because of the new belts, many other distinct Triple Crown variations can be made: The Raw Triple Crown and SmackDown! Triple Crown for the three belts representing each show at the time the third belt is won (as the titles have changed shows). There are also variations for strictly the three older belts or the three newer belts. Likewise, the inclusion of the defunct European Championship (along with any Triple Crown Combination) can lead to various Grand Slam combinations.

List of WWE Triple Crown Champions

The following is a list of WWE Triple Crown Champions, in the most general form. Only the WWE-era World and United States Championship reigns are considered as part of the WWE Triple Crown. Only the date in which the wrestler's first title was won is indicated. Dates in bold indicate the title that was used to complete the Triple Crown. Championships in italics indicate that they are alternate titles, not part of the original definition. Dates in italics indicate that the wrestler has won the title, but does not contribute to their Triple Crown, because they had already won a title at that level. Names in bold are also Grand Slam Champions.

 --won Triple Crown under the original definition

 --won Triple Crown with an alternate title

 --Won title as a member of the RAW brand.

 --Won title as a member of the SmackDown! brand.

 --Won title as a member of the ECW brand.

• Note-- Chris Benoit is the only wrestler who has won all 3 of WWE's Brand Extension-era Championships.

Potential Champions

As of November 13, 2006, the following active (or semi-active) wrestlers are potential Triple Crown Champions:

Wrestlers currently working for or making appearances in WWE:

• Shelton Benjamin, Test, Johnny Nitro, Val Venis, Jeff Hardy, Roddy Piper, William Regal, and Marty Jannetty all need a world title reign.
• The Undertaker, Batista, Hulk Hogan, Mick Foley, and Rey Mysterio need a secondary title reign.
• John Cena needs a tag team title reign.

WCW Triple Crown

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World Championship Wrestling did not have their own Triple Crown. This is an unofficial list consisting of the WCW World Heavyweight Championship, the WCW World Tag Team Championship, and the WCW United States Championship. As the WCW International World Heavyweight Championship is also considered to be a major wrestling championship, it is included for completeness.

List of WCW Triple Crown Champions

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The following is a list of WCW Triple Crown Champions. Only the WCW-era versions of the championships are included. Only the date in which the wrestler's first title was won is indicated. Dates in bold indicate the title that was used to complete the Triple Crown, and dates in italics indicate that the wrestler has won the title, but does not contribute to their Triple Crown. Names in bold are also Grand Slam Champions, meaning they have also held the WCW World Television Championship.

In July of 2000, Lance Storm held three singles titles at the same time- the WCW United States Championship, WCW Hardcore Championship and WCW Cruiserweight Championship. He was referred to as a "Triple Crown Champion", although he never held the World Championship or the Tag Team Championships. Storm was the only person to ever hold three different titles at the same time in the history of World Championship Wrestling.

• Note-- Bret Hart, Chris Benoit, and Booker T are the only wrestlers to have won both a WCW Triple Crown and a WWE Triple Crown.

ECW Triple Crown

The Extreme Championship Wrestling version of the Triple Crown consists of the ECW World Heavyweight Championship, ECW Tag Team Championship, and the ECW World Television Championship.

List of ECW Triple Crown Champions

The following is a list of ECW Triple Crown Champions. Only the date in which the wrestler's first title was won is indicated. Dates in bold indicate the title that was used to complete the Triple Crown. Note that the ECW World Heavyweight Championship is the only ECW title currently active.

• Tommy Dreamer, Justin Credible, and The Sandman need to win the Television title.
• 2 Cold Scorpio needs to win a Heavyweight title.

• Note-- Rob Van Dam is the only wrestler to have won both an ECW Triple Crown and a WWE Triple Crown.

TNA Triple Crown

It has been suggested that TNA Triple Crown be merged into this article. (Discuss) Proposed since October 2006.

Although Total Nonstop Action Wrestling does not have its own heavyweight or tag team championship, TNA recognizes and has the exclusive rights to the NWA World Heavyweight Championship and NWA World Tag Team Championship belts (despite not being a National Wrestling Alliance territory) to form two-thirds of its Triple Crown. The third belt is the TNA X Division Championship. The X-Division championship is unique among major Triple Crowns in that it draws parallels with cruiserweight championships, as opposed to second-tier championships in other promotions, even though there is no weight limit (Samoa Joe or Sonny Siaki are examples of this).

List of TNA Triple Crown Champions

The following is a list of TNA Triple Crown Champions. Only the date in which the wrestler's first title was won is indicated. Dates in bold indicate the title that was used to complete the Triple Crown. Currently, only one wrestler, A.J. Styles has achieved this.

• In TNA Wrestling, it is possible to be a multi-time Triple Crown Champion (in different years), as noted by Mike Tenay and Don West alluding to Styles as a 2-Time, then a 3-time Triple Crown Champion. Styles is credited for winning the Triple Crown once in 2003, once in 2004, and once in 2006. Styles currently holds the X-Division Championship in his sixth reign after winning the title form Chris Sabin on the November 2, 2006 (taped October 24) edition of iMPACT. Styles could become a 4-time Triple Crown Champion if he were to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship again.

Potential Champions

As of April 2006, the following wrestlers are potential Triple Crown Champions:

• Christopher Daniels, Amazing Red, Kid Kash, Senshi, A.J. Styles and Jerry Lynn each need an NWA World Heavyweight Title reign.
• Ron Killings needs an X Division Title reign.
• Ric Flair needs to win the TNA X Division Championship, but is currently under long term contract with World Wrestling Entertainment.

Ohio Valley Wrestling

Ohio Valley Wrestling has a hierarchy similar to WWE, with a Heavyweight, Television, and Tag Team titles. This is a less notable triple crown, because it is technically on the independent circuit, but is possible to make an impressive resume for a wrestler.

List of OVW Triple Crown Champions

The following is a list of individuals who have won the OVW Heavyweight, Television, and Tag Team titles.

• Articles to be merged from October 2006
• Professional wrestling slang
• World Wrestling Entertainment championships
• World Championship Wrestling championships
• Extreme Championship Wrestling championships
• Total Nonstop Action Wrestling championships
• Ohio Valley Wrestling championships