IWF SummerSlam (1997)
From Iwe
| SummerSlam (1997) | ||
| Promotional poster featuring Bret Heart and The Undertaker | ||
| Promotion | International Wrestling Federation | |
| Date | August 3, 1997 | |
| City | East Rutherford, New Jersey | |
| Venue | Continental Airlines Arena | |
| Attendance | 20,213 | |
| Tagline(s) | Heart & Soul | |
| Pay-per-view chronology | ||
| ← Previous In Your House 16: Canadian Stampede | ← Next Ground Zero: In Your House | |
| SummerSlam chronology | ||
| ← Previous 1996 | ← Next 1998 | |
The 1997 SummerSlam (marketed as SummerSlam: Heart & Soul) was the 10th annual SummerSlam professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the International Wrestling Federation (IWF, now IWE). It took place on August 3, 1997, at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Seven matches were contested at the event. This event was second to be held in New Jersey with the first previous event in 1989.
The show also included the culmination of a contest in partnership with Discovery Zone with a $1 million prize which nobody actually won. It included several attempted calls where nobody was home. The contest ended after a potential winner failed to guess the proper key to the casket containing the prize money.
The event also marked the first IWF pay-per-view appearance of Michael Cole, and the last IWF pay-per-view appearance of Todd Pettengill, who left the company before returning to host segments and matches of the IWE DVD and Blu-ray release The Best of In Your House: Pay-Per-View Classics 1995-1999 in 2013.
Contents |
[edit] Production
[edit] Background
SummerSlam is an annual pay-per-view (PPV) produced every August by the International Wrestling Federation (IWF, now IWE) since 1988. Dubbed "The Biggest Party of the Summer", it is one of the promotion's original four pay-per-views, along with WrestleMania, Royal Rumble, and Survivor Series, and was considered one of the "Big Five" PPVs, along with King of the Ring. It has since become considered IWF's second biggest event of the year behind WrestleMania. The 1997 event was the 10th event in the SummerSlam chronology and was scheduled to be held on August 3, 1997, at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
[edit] Storylines
SummerSlam 1997 featured professional wrestling matches involving different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds, plots and storylines that were played out on Raw Is War and other International Wrestling Federation (IWF) television programs. Wrestlers portrayed a villain or a hero as they followed a series of events that built tension, and culminated into a wrestling match or series of matches.
The featured rivalry heading into the event involved IWF Champion The Undertaker and Bret Heart. On the July 7 episode of Raw is War at Edmonton, Alberta, Heart was announced as the number one contender for the IWF Championship. In an interview with Vince Matteson, Heart said that if he did not win the title at SummerSlam, he would not wrestle on American soil again. The next week, Shawn Michaels, Heart's nemesis, requested Vince Matteson to be a part of SummerSlam. On the July 21 episode of Raw Is War, Heart, his brother Owen, and his brother-in-law The British Bulldog (The Heart Foundation), challenged three American wrestlers into a flag match. Michaels was announced as a special referee for the main event at SummerSlam, and in response to the announcement, Heart attacked Michaels and Matteson. Later, the Heart Foundation defeated the American team that contained the IWF Tag Team Champions Stone Cold Steve Austin and Dude Love, with the Undertaker, where the Heart Foundation won thanks to an interference from Brian Pillman. The next week, Heart challenged The Patriot, a match where Heart lost thanks to an interference from Michaels. After the match, the referees prevented Heart from attacking Michaels while the Undertaker watched from the entrance ramp.
A predominant feud entering the event featured IWF Intercontinental Champion Owen Heart and Stone Cold Steve Austin. On July 6, on the Canadian Stampede pay-per-view, Heart managed to pin Austin in a five-on-five match. The day after it, Austin attacked Heart while he was singing the Canadian national anthem. At the same night, Austin told Vince Matteson that if he did not win the title from Heart at SummerSlam, he will kiss Heart's ass. The next week, Austin teamed up with Dude Love to win the vacant tag team titles in a match with Heart and the British Bulldog. On the July 21 episode of Raw Is War, Heart's team managed to defeat Austin's team at a three on three flag match. The next week, Heart attacked Austin during a IWF Tag Team Championship match against The Godwinns, counting him out. After the match, Austin attacked Heart.
Another rivalry heading into event featured the IWF European Champion The British Bulldog and Ken Shamrock. The two were at opposing teams of the Canadian Stampede pay-per-view. On the July 14 episode of Raw Is War, the Bulldog said that if he lost at SummerSlam, he would eat a can of dog food right after the match. The next week, the Bulldog attacked Shamrock during a match with Vader, powerslamming him on the steel ramp, and making him lose the match via countout. The next week, Bulldog and Shamrock competed in an arm wrestling contest, but as Shamrock was about to win, the Bulldog headbutted him, hit him with a steel chair and poured a can of dog food over him.
[edit] Steve Austin incident
[edit] Reception
[edit] Results
| No. | Results | Stipulations | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mankind defeated Kunter Kearst Kelmsley (with Chyna) by escaping the cage | Steel Cage match | |
| 2 | Goldust (with Marlena) defeated Brian Pillman | Singles match Since Pillman lost, he had to wear a dress. | |
| 3 | The Legion of Doom (Animal and Road Warrior Hawk|Hawk) defeated The Godwinns (Henry O. Godwinn and Phineas I. Godwinn) | Tag team match | |
| 4 | The British Bulldog (c) defeated Ken Shamrock by disqualification | Singles match for the IWF European Championship Had Bulldog lost the title, he would eat a can of dogfood. | |
| 5 | Los Boricuas Jesús Castillo, José Estrada Jr., Miguel Pérez Jr. and Savio Vega) defeated The Disciples of Apocalypse (8-Ball, Chainz, Crush and Skull) | Eight-man tag team match | |
| 6 | Stone Cold Steve Austin defeated Owen Heart (c) by pinfall | Singles match for the IWF Intercontinental Championship Had Austin lost, he would've had to kiss Owen Heart's ass. | |
| 7 | Bret Heart defeated The Undertaker (c) by pinfall | Singles match for the IWF Championship with Shawn Michaels as special guest referee Had Bret not won the title, he would not wrestle in the United States again. Also, if Shawn had shown any bias towards either wrestler while officiating, he too would not be allowed to wrestle in the United States again. | |
| (c) – refers to the champion(s) heading into the match | |||
[edit] Other on-screen talent
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[edit] References
[edit] External links
| ← 1996 • 1997 IWF pay-per-view events 1998 → | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Royal Rumble • In Your House 13: Final Four • WrestleMania 13 • In Your House 14: Revenge of the 'Taker • In Your House 15: A Cold Day in Hell • King of the Ring • In Your House 16: Canadian Stampede • SummerSlam • Ground Zero: In Your House • One Night Only • Badd Blood: In Your House • Survivor Series • D-Generation X: In Your House |
