SummerSlam is such a big event for WWE that this year, for the first time ever, the show of the summer will be a two-night affair. SummerSlam has always been important for WWE. After the highs of WrestleMania in the early spring, WWE ratings and interest usually start to fade during the summer, as families go outside and spend less time in front of the television. SummerSlam’s importance is used to bring fans back and push the company into the second half of the year. This was vastly important in the late 90s, as WWE battled WCW in the Monday Night Wars. At SummerSlam 1998, during the early months of the Attitude Era, a perfect SummerSlam, highlighted by the likes of “Stone Cold” Steve Austin vs. The Undertaker and The Rock vs. Triple H, showed that WWE was back as the top wrestling promotion in the world.
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WWE SummerSlam 1998 Had A Great Build For Its Midcard Acts
WWE Had Struggled To Get Over Smaller Acts In The Mid-90s
- SummerSlam was held in front of a loud crowd at the world-famous Madison Square Garden.
- Jeff Jarrett had his hair cut off and Edge was a rising star.
- Owen Hart took on Ken Shamrock in a Lion’s Den match.
Thanks to the rise of Hulkamania, WWE ruled wrestling throughout the 80s and early 90s. That changed in 1996 thanks to Hulk Hogan’s heel turn in WCW and the birth of the nWo. Suddenly, World Championship Wrestling was the cool promotion, while Vince McMahon’s company was seen as a relic of the past. Part of WWE’s failures at the time had to do with their abysmal midcard roster. Sure, in 1996, WWE had high-caliber main eventers like Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, and the Undertaker, but the midcard was a joke made up of cartoon characters that no longer worked.
The Attitude, however, left that behind, creating an edge where the smaller names were nearly as beloved as the faces of the company. In 1998, WWE took back control of the Monday Night Wars, and at SummerSlam, held in the iconic Madison Square Garden, they showed why in almost every match. The opening match saw D’Lo Brown defend his European Championship against Val Venis. It wasn’t a classic, but fans cared about these characters. The same went for Jeff Jarrett and X-Pac in a hair vs. hair match, a tried and true stipulation because fans wanted to see Jarrett lose his blonde locks. He did indeed lose, and had much of his hair shaved away to the fan’s delight. It was a simple but very effective angle.
Not everything in the undercard worked. The Oddities vs. Kaientai was horrible. Edge and Sable vs. Marc Mero and Jaqueline was just okay, but the fans were into it, and we saw how unique Edge was. Mankind lost a Falls Count Anywhere handicap match for the tag titles against the New Age Outlaws that barely lasted five minutes, but it at least had the chaos fans came to love during the time. Ken Shamrock vs. Owen Hart in a Lion’s Den match was MMA brutality that didn’t make for great wrestling, but it told a hell of a story at least. The undercard had its ups and downs, but it was the last two matches that changed everything for WWE.
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Triple H And The Rock Became Stars In Their Intercontinental Championship Feud
WCW Wasn’t Focused On Creating New Names For The Future
- Losing Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels forced WWE to build new names.
- This ladder match at SummerSlam became an instant classic.
- It propelled The Rock and Triple H to become top faces of the Attitude Era.
In 1997, Bret “The Hitman” Hart and Shawn Michaels ruled WWE. But then everything changed. At the end of the year, Hart left for WCW, with his last appearance being the Montreal Screwjob at Survivor Series. Two months later, in a casket match vs. The Undertaker at the Royal Rumble, HBK suffered a back injury that would force him to retire for four years. WWE now needed to create new stars. While WCW was super focused on all things nWo, WWE was building for the future. No match showed that more than The Rock vs. Triple H for the Intercontinental title in a ladder match at SummerSlam 1998.
The Rock, who was on his way to becoming a top babyface with his cool persona and hilarious catchphrases, walked in as the champion. Facing him was Triple H, complete with a badass live performance of DX’s theme song. This was by far the match of the night, as the two rising stars put on a 25-minute wrestling clinic with masterful storytelling that had the NYC crowd going nuts. After this night, The Rock and Triple H had become more than high mid-carders. They were no longer the future but the present. Very soon, The Rock would become just as big as Stone Cold, while Triple H became the top heel of the era. None of it happens without SummerSlam 1998.
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The Undertaker Gave Credibility To Steve Austin As The Face Of WWE
He Showed Stone Cold The Ultimate Act Of Respect After Losing In The Main Event
- Austin became the WWE Champion after beating HBK at WrestleMania 14.
- Stone Cold needed a rival who wasn’t Mr. McMahon.
- The Undertaker handed the title to Austin with a nod after losing.
The last hour of SummerSlam 1998 was WWE Attitude Era perfection. Triple H vs. The Rock would normally have been an impossible match to follow, but in the summer of 1998, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin was so over that he could do no wrong. His entrance at SummerSlam was so raucous that it’ll give you goosebumps even now. He had become the biggest star in all of wrestling since beating HBK for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 14, but he needed a huge name to work with that wasn’t Mr. McMahon. Enter the Undertaker, the most respected name in the company.
Taker was over almost just as much as Austin on this night, and for twenty minutes these two megastars told a highly compelling story. It ended with Austin hitting a stunner on the Deadman for the 1-2-3, firmly planting Austin as the face of WWE. To beat the Undertaker cleanly was a beyond huge moment, but what happened next was even more monumental. After losing, Taker handed the title to Stone Cold and gave him a nod. That was the ultimate sign of respect and not something Taker did often in his career. It wasn’t exactly a passing of the torch, as the Undertaker still had many years of dominance left, but those few seconds solidified the Austin era. The WWE would never be the same again.
