1997

January 6, 1997 – WCW Monday Nitro #69

January 7, 1997 – ECW TV #194
Raven calls out The Sandman in hopes of reclaiming the ECW World Title belt that Sandman had stolen. The two brawl all over the building before ending up in the bWo locker room, where Raven pushes down Big Stevie Cool. Sandman emerges from the locker room wearing a bWo t-shirt and fights off Raven, leaving once again with Raven’s title belt. Members of the bWo also compete on the show from Webster, Massachusetts, with Stevie defeating Axl Rotten and Hollywood Nova losing in seconds to Brian Lee.

January 14, 1997 – ECW TV #195
Raven once again calls out The Sandman for a brawl, but just as Raven appears ready to reclaim his title belt the bWo interrupts. Big Stevie Cool finally stands up to Raven and superkicks his former boss, then gives a bWo shirt to Sandman. The battle ends with Raven being tied in the ropes and hit with Sandman’s cane, allowing Sandman to again leave the ring with Raven’s title belt. Tommy Rich and Ricky Morton make their ECW debut, losing to The Gangstas and then coming to blows with each other in a bloody impromptu match that is won by Rich.

January 21, 1997 – WCW Clash of the Champions XXXIV
Lex Luger defeats Scott Hall in the main event by disqualification when Kevin Nash and Syxx attack Luger. The Steiner Brothers, who earlier in the night beat The Amazing French Canadians, run in to help Luger even the odds against the nWo. In other matches, WCW U.S. Champion Eddie Guerrero pins Scott Norton, Dean Malenko regains the WCW Cruiserweight Title from Ultimo Dragon, and Chris Benoit beats Kevin Sullivan in a falls-count-anywhere match.

January 25, 1997 – nWo Souled Out
The nWo hosts its first pay-per-view event, hosted by Eric Bischoff and Ted DiBiase, with all of the matches pitting the nWo against WCW. nWo referee Nick Patrick, who officiates all the matches on the card, refuses to count the pin in the main event when The Giant covers Hollywood Hogan after a chokeslam. The match then ends in a no contest when Giant chokeslams Patrick, but is laid out by the nWo. The Steiners appear to win the WCW Tag Team Title from The Outsiders when Nick Patrick is knocked out and WCW referee Randy Anderson runs in to count the pin. WCW also gets a victory in a ladder match, as WCW U.S. Champion Eddie Guerrero retains his title–and regains possession of his belt–by defeating Syxx.

February 16, 1997 – WWF In Your House: Final Four
A four-way elimination match for the vacant WWF World Title includes Bret Hart, Steve Austin, The Undertaker, and Vader. Hart eliminates Austin first by tossing him over the top rope, and Undertaker throws Vader out of the match soon after. Austin continues to interfere in the match but Hart still manages to survive and eliminate Undertaker to win his fourth WWF Championship. In other title matches, Doug Furnas & Philip LaFon defeat WWF Tag Team Champions Owen Hart & Davey Boy Smith by disqualification and new WWF Intercontinental Champion Rocky Maivia scores his second straight win over former champion Hunter Hearst Helmsley.

March 23, 1997 – WWF Wrestlemania 13
The rivalry between Bret Hart and Steve Austin comes to a head in a bloody submission match with Ken Shamrock as the special referee. The battle rages all over the arena before Hart traps Austin in the sharpshooter and forces him to pass out for the victory, even though Austin never submits. Hart continues to attack Austin after the match, drawing boos from the crowd while Austin is cheered for his performance. Hart returns later in the night and attempts to interfere in the main event, where The Undertaker pins Sycho Sid to capture the WWF Championship for a second time. In other matches, WWF Intercontinental Champion Rocky Maivia pins The Sultan, The Legion of Doom & Ahmed Johnson beat The Nation of Domination in a Chicago Street Fight, and WWF Tag Team Champions Owen Hart & Davey Boy Smith retain their title in a double countout against Mankind & Vader.

July 13, 1997 – WCW Bash at the Beach ’97

August 3, 1997 – WWF SummerSlam ’97
After special referee Shawn Michaels accidentally hits The Undertaker with a chair, Bret Hart capitalizes by pinning Undertaker to win the WWF Title for a fifth time. Steve Austin is nearly paralyzed by a piledriver at the hands of Owen Hart, but Austin manages to cradle Owen for the pin to win the match and the WWF Intercontinental Title. In a moment reminiscent of his hero Jimmy Snuka, Mankind delivers an elbow drop from the top of a steel cage to defeat Hunter Hearst Helmsley. WWF European Champion Davey Boy Smith retains his title by disqualification over Ken Shamrock, while Brian Pillman suffers an embarrassing defeat at the hands of Goldust, forcing Pillman to have to wrestle wearing a dress as a result of the loss.

August 9, 1997 – ECW Born To Be Wired
In a brutal barbed wire match that sees both men tangled in the wire, Sabu pins Terry Funk to capture the ECW World Title. Sabu also gets involved in a showdown between Tommy Dreamer and Rob Van Dam, helping Van Dam gain the victory. In other matches, ECW TV Champion Taz retains his title against the returning Al Snow, Spike Dudley upsets Bam Bam Bigelow, and Hack Myers makes a surprise return to team with Balls Mahoney and Axl Rotten in a loss to Buh Buh Ray, D-Von & Big Dick Dudley.

August 17, 1997 – ECW Hardcore Heaven ’97
In a rematch from 1994’s The Night the Line was Crossed, Sabu, Terry Funk, and Shane Douglas meet in a three-way dance for the ECW World Title. ECW Champion Sabu is the first to be eliminated after The Sandman interferes. Douglas then goes on to pin Funk after a series of belly-to-belly suplexes to win the match and regain the ECW World Title. The war between the WWF and ECW comes to a head as Tommy Dreamer overcomes interference from Rick Rude, Jake Roberts, and Sunny to defeat Jerry Lawler in a bloody brawl. The Dudleys are declared the new ECW Tag Team Champions by forfeit when The Gangstas are unable to appear to defend their title, and the new champions make a successful title defense with a win over PG-13. Taz also successfully defends his ECW TV Title by choking out Chris Candido.

August 21, 1997 – WCW Clash of the Champions XXXV

September 14, 1997 – WCW Fall Brawl ’97
In War Games, Curt Hennig shockingly turns on his new partners in the Four Horsemen and reveals himself to be a member of the nWo. After handcuffing Steve McMichael and Chris Benoit to the cage, Hennig slams the cage door on Ric Flair’s head, leading to McMichael calling for the match to end and giving the win to the nWo team of Kevin Nash, Syxx, Konnan and Buff Bagwell. WCW does get two wins over the nWo, with Larry Zbyszko helping the team of Lex Luger & Diamond Dallas Page to defeat Scott Hall & Randy Savage and The Giant pinning Scott Norton. Eddie Guerrero defeats Chris Jericho to capture the WCW Cruiserweight Title and WCW TV Champion Alex Wright retains his title with a victory over former champion Ultimo Dragon.

September 13, 1997 – USWA Championship Wrestling

September 15, 1997 – WCW Monday Nitro #105
With Ric Flair and Chris Benoit both out of action with injuries suffered in War Games, Steve McMichael defends the honor of the Four Horsemen against new nWo member Curt Hennig. After injuring the knee of McMichael, Hennig scores a pin with the fisherman suplex and captures the WCW United States Title. The Outsiders successfully defend their WCW Tag Team Title with a win over Wrath & Mortis. In other title bouts, WCW TV Champion Alex Wright pins Steve Regal and new WCW Cruiserweight Champion Eddie Guerrero defeats Ultimo Dragon. Diamond Dallas Page beats Stevie Richards and issues a challenge to Randy Savage for one final match at Halloween Havoc, which Savage accepts.

September 20, 1997 – ECW As Good As It Gets

October 26, 1997 – WCW Halloween Havoc ’97
In a battle of legends, Rowdy Roddy Piper defeats longtime rival Hollywood Hogan in a steel cage match, although Hogan’s WCW World Title is not on the line. In the final battle of another feud, Randy Savage scores a win over Diamond Dallas Page in a Las Vegas Sudden Death Match. Ric Flair comes for revenge on WCW U.S. Champion Curt Hennig for turning on him at Fall Brawl, but Flair is disqualified and fails to capture the title. The most talked about match of the night, however, is a title vs. mask match that sees Rey Mysterio Jr. keep his mask and capture the WCW Cruiserweight Title with a victory over Eddie Guerrero in a classic, action-packed battle.

November 9, 1997 – WWF Survivor Series ’97
In one of the most infamous matches of all-time, Shawn Michaels regains the WWF Title from Bret Hart when Vince McMahon orders the bell to ring while Michaels has Hart in the Sharpshooter, despite Hart never submitting. It would later be revealed that McMahon plotted the move to take the title from Hart, who was scheduled to leave the company for WCW soon after, and the match would end Hart’s lengthy tenure in the WWF. The show also features the in-ring return of Steve Austin, who makes quick work of Owen Hart to regain the WWF Intercontinental Title and gain revenge for the injury Owen caused in their prior match at SummerSlam. Also in action is Kane, who scores an impressive win over Mankind.

November 10, 1997 – WWF Monday Night Raw #233

November 17, 1997 – WWF Monday Night Raw #234

November 23, 1997 – WCW World War 3 ’97
The annual 60-man battle royal for a shot at the WCW World Title comes down to The Giant, Diamond Dallas Page, and Scott Hall before WCW Champion Hollywood Hogan reveals himself to be a surprise entrant in the match to prevent anyone else from earning a shot at his title. Hogan fails to win, but just as The Giant seems to have the match won he is attacked by Kevin Nash, who interferes disguised as Sting. Hall eliminates the Giant to win the match and the future title shot. In other bouts, WCW U.S. Champion Curt Hennig beats Ric Flair in a No DQ match, WCW Tag Team Champions The Steiners defeat The Blue Bloods, and Eddie Guerrero retains the WCW Cruiserweight Championship in a rematch with former champion Rey Mysterio Jr.

December 28, 1997 – WCW Starrcade ’97
Sting steps into the ring for the first time in more than a year to finally challenge Hollywood Hogan for the WCW World Title in one of the most highly anticipated showdowns in WCW history. Hogan surprisingly dominates the match and gets a pinfall win, but WCW newcomer Bret Hart intervenes and accuses referee Nick Patrick of making a fast count. Hart restarts the match, which ends with Sting getting a submission win to capture the title. Hart also appears earlier in the night to referee a match between Larry Zbyszko and Eric Bischoff with Monday Nitro on the line, awarding the match to Zbyszko by disqualification. The nWo suffers another big loss when Diamond Dallas Page defeats nWo member Curt Hennig to capture the WCW U.S. Title.