Edge, Part 3

In February 2003, Copeland suffered a (legit) neck injury that required surgery and kept him sidelined for close to a year. During his recovery he wrote a column for WWE.com. He was scheduled to return to the ring in February 2004, but suffered a (legit) broken hand just before his planned return which forced him to stay out of the ring for an additional month. He was placed on the RAW brand in the draft lottery after WrestleMania XX, and returned to in-ring action shortly after that event. On the April 19, 2004 edition of RAW he and Chris Benoit won the World Tag Team Championship. He continued to back Benoit and be there whenever Benoit needed him, even after they lost the titles. The partnership was disbanded when Edge won the Intercontinental Championship.

At Vengeance 2004, Edge defeated Randy Orton to win the Intercontinental Championship. He then began to turned heel, cheating to keep the title and getting confrontational with ally Chris Jericho. Following a (legit) groin injury in a non-televised match RAW then-General Manager Eric Bischoff stripped Edge of the Intercontinental Championship.

When Edge returned, his gimmick was portrayed as a crazed heel with severe anger management problems centered around his obsession for the World Heavyweight Championship. He, Benoit and Shawn Michaels received a chance to be voted by fans to receive a title shot at Triple H's World Heavyweight Championship for Taboo Tuesday 2004. However, Shawn Michaels won the vote, which gave the two remaining wrestlers, Edge and Benoit, a Tag Title shot. During the match Edge abandoned his partner (although Benoit managed to win the titles on his own) and instead interfered in the main event, costing Michaels the championship.

In December, both Edge and Benoit competed in a #1 contender's battle royal, eliminating each other simultaneously at the conclusion of the match, resulting in a draw. Due to this, current World Heavyweight Champion Triple H was forced to defend the title in a triple threat match. During the course of the match, Benoit locked on the Crippler Crossface, while in it Edge shifted his weight putting Benoit's shoulders on the mat for a pin. The match ended in a "Dusty finish" as Benoit made Edge submit at the same time the referee counted a pinfall for Edge. As a result of this, the World Heavyweight Title was vacated the next week on RAW.

Edge got another shot at the World Heavyweight Championship at New Year's Revolution 2005 in the Elimination Chamber. Edge and a returning Shawn Michaels, who was acting as guest referee, renewed their rivalry when Michaels hit Edge with 'Sweet Chin Music' as retaliation for an accidental Spear, causing Edge to be the first eliminated. Edge went on to defeat Michaels at the 2005 Royal Rumble later in the month.

At WrestleMania 21, Edge won the first ever "Money in the Bank ladder match", gaining him a contract that gave him a shot at the World Heavyweight Championship within one year.

It was around this time that Edge came under heavy criticism, especially from the Internet wrestling community, due to his (legit) "betrayal" of fellow wrestler and real life friend, Matt Hardy, by having an affair with Matt's girlfriend of six years Lita. Hardy had been out of action for several months with a torn anterior cruciate ligament and shortly after he recovered, Lita suffered the same injury and was put out of action. It was during this time that Edge, despite being married, began an affair with Dumas.