The Monday Night Wars are still talked about for a reason, and This Day in Wrestling History, June 28, 1999, was the epitome of how great a time it was for fans.
The match that set this night apart and became the most watched match and segment in history with a 9.5 rating, or about 10% of homes with cable were watching it, had some history to it as well.
When Steve Austin defeated the Undertaker to with the WWE Championship, he became the third man to win the title four times. He joined the exclusive company of Hulk Hogan and Bret Hart.
To be fair, it may not sound like a lot compared to today’s double digit totals, but this was around the time when the top championships started to be used as props instead of holding them as prestigious.
Setting the standard
At this point in time, the WWE had figured things out and rearmed themselves to take the lead in the Monday Night Wars.
This surpassed the previous high they scored on the RAW is WAR May 10 main event where Vince McMahon, Austin, the Rock beat the Undertaker, Triple H and Shane McMahon of the Corporate Ministry.
This would also garner them a victory over WCW in their head to head, which soon became the norm as the WWE closed out the Monday Night Wars in the next couple of years.
Vindication comes
Moments like these are also a large part of the reason so many fans have grown tired of the WWE and have gone looking elsewhere for their wrestling fix.
Vince Russo may be a lot of things, but he cared about creating new stars and building characters and this period is great vindication that he knew what he was doing and just needed some guidance.
It was a great time and we didn’t know what was going to happen from one minute to the next and we hope to experience something close to it again, and with so many companies growing now it’s always possible.
In a business where ratings determine whether a company will survive or thrive, This Day in Wrestling History established a benchmark to aim for.
While it’s doubtful we’ll ever see a bonanza like this with wrestling going main stream, there’s always the hope to catch lightning in a bottle. But if not, it was an awesome ride.
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