10 Biggest Turning Points For WWE In 1997
How WWE was positioned for the Attitude Era ahead.
No year did more to set the stage for the modern WWE product than 1997.
Even in the anodyne PG days that would follow, there have always been elements of that show that remind the viewer of those magical broadcasts from the late-nineties, from interminable opening promos, to babyfaces engaging in acts of serious property damage, to faces vs. evil authority figures. Many of the tropes persist.
The year 1997 was the staging area for the times ahead, as Raw is War developed into the untamed beast that would redefine professional wrestling forever. Throughout the year, changes would be made, both drastic and subtle, that would position WWE as the imposing challenger that WCW most feared (when WCW wasn't busy shooting themselves in the foot, that is).
Looking back upon the year as I recently have, it's incredible what had to happen for WWE to get to where it needed to be. Sometimes, making the best of a bad situation led to WWE finding a silver bullet somewhere. Other times, an honest reconsideration of what they were already doing sparked necessary changes that would improve their odds of overall success.
Surely you'll agree by the end of this list that WWE made many smart moves in 1997, sometimes as a follow-up to other more questionable moves.
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10. Shawn Michaels Loses His Smile
EFFECT: Instead of Michaels, Bret Hart would now face Stone Cold Steve Austin at WrestleMania 13
Imagine a WWE world (or Universe, if you like buzzwords) where we don't get Hart vs. Austin at WrestleMania, a world without perhaps the greatest WWE match of all time? Does Austin become the megastar that he does without heroically passing out in a pool of his own blood?
Austin's performance in that match went a long way in proving his viability as a future main eventer.
Certainly a Hart/Michaels match would have been really good, and probably more exciting without the restriction of having to fill an Iron Man match's length, but the smart money was on Austin long term. Michaels bowing out with the questionable knee injury only opened up Austin's highway to heaven.