The future status of the Intercontinental Championship in light of Dominik Mysterio’s recent injury update remains unknown.
However, if he were to end up vacating the title — there are a host of worthy potential next champions who could seize the big opportunity.
Here are seven new WWE Intercontinental Champions that could replace Dominik Mysterio if he is forced to vacate the title.
7. LA Knight
An exciting potential new Intercontinental Champion could be the ‘Megastar’ LA Knight.
While LA Knight had a stellar run on SmackDown with the United States Championship, he has so far failed in his attempts to capture a title on WWE Raw.
Potentially able to take the opportunity to take over the vacated IC title, Knight could utilize Dirty Dom’s injury to stake his claim on Netflix.
Able to feud with any of the top heels on the brand, it could end up becoming a vicious fight out between The Vision and LA Knight over maintaining control over the title.
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6. GUNTHER
Potentially picking back up the Intercontinental Championship for another landmark run, GUNTHER could end up doing more damage on the WWE roster.
Having a historic first reign that was ended by Sami Zayn at WrestleMania 40, he would go on to capture the World Heavyweight Championship as well.
Since becoming an even more hated heel given his smug attitude since retiring John Cena, perhaps another title reign would be perfectly timed.
Able to evade the vortex of the growing WrestleMania 42 main event plans featuring Roman Reigns et. al, GUNTHER could end up elevating the Intercontinental Championship to new technical heights.
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5. Rusev
Since making his return to WWE in 2025, Rusev has been presented as a heel but is at times received by the crowd like a babyface.
Potentially using the momentum from recent bouts against Dominik Mysterio to fight for the IC title again, Rusev could be the ideal winner if the title has to be vacated.
Setting up a future showdown with a returning Dirty Dom or even Sheamus, who is also out of action at the minute due to injury, there could end up being a happy ending for the latter sometime in the future.
With the IC title remaining the last in WWE to evade him and thereby preventing him from reaching a WWE Grand Slam, it could be that Sheamus is poised to go the way of John Cena and put the accolade off until near the end of his career.
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4. PENTA
Potentially a solid choice to take up the mantle of the Intercontinental Championship on WWE Raw could be PENTA.
After becoming a fan favorite since his arrival, it would make complete sense to see PENTA win a championship in WWE in 2026.
With his sights set on the Intercontinental Championship in the past, now could be the the perfect time to see him bring Zero Miedo to the title picture.
Setting up exciting potential feuds with Logan Paul or even a returning Chad Gable — there could certainly be something memorable made out of a unfortunate circumstance.
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3. Austin Theory
Since making his return to WWE, Austin Theory has made a big impact on the landscape of Raw.
After interfering in the Survivor Series WarGames match, he went on to strike out at other veterans of the roster as well including Rey Mysterio.
Potentially setting up a showdown in the future (which could lead to Mysterio vs. Mysterio for WrestleMania 42), it might be the perfect time to have Theory claim gold.
Particularly if he was to win a WWE Championship before Bron Breakker got his hands back on gold — the tension could really kick off in 2026.
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2. Rey Mysterio
A potential replacement for a vacated IC title on WWE Raw that could end up setting up a variety of future stories might be WWE Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio.
Either hanging on to the Intercontinental Championship until Dirty Dom returns or dropping it, the elder Mysterio could certainly spend some time in the near future feuding with The Vision.
Having taken up against the dastardly group in recent weeks, it could end up being not on a viable storyline to give Dom time off but also, see some more legendary moments from Rey Mysterio.
With demonstrated in-ring chemistry with Logan Paul, it could also be Austin Theory or Bronson Reed who ends up having a rivalry against Mysterio in the new year.
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1. Trick Williams
Potentially finding himself launched onto the WWE Raw roster in a big way, Trick Williams could seize the valuable opportunity at hand should Mysterio have to vacate the IC title.
Bringing his Trick-N-A heel character from NXT and TNA Wrestling to WWE Raw on Netflix, Trick Williams could make an immediate impact by adding new life to the brand.
Kicking off future feuds with babyfaces like AJ Styles, PENTA and LA Knight, there could be some major matches in the first few months of Williams’ time on the main roster.
Other potential shock entries from NXT that could end up immediately capturing the title could be Oba Femi, Ricky Saints or Myles Borne — there are plenty of stellar options at the Performance Center for Triple H to choose from.
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