10 Fascinating WWE King Of The Ring 1997 Facts

6. Vader's Injuries Took Him Out Of The Tournament

Triple H King Of The Ring 1997 Resized
WWE

Vader's participation in the 1997 King of the Ring tournament would have come four weeks after a high-profile pay-per-view loss to Ken Shamrock at In Your House: A Cold Day in Hell. The bout was contested as a "No Holds Barred" match, a showcase for Shamrock's mixed martial artistry. Naturally, two workers who aren't known for pulling punches unloaded on each other during the course of the 13-minute brawl, with Vader getting the worst of it.

Along with assorted leg injuries, Vader's nose was broken in four places, to go along with a broken septum. The breathing difficulties sidelined "The Mastadon", and necessitated re-inserting Triple H into the tournament, despite losing by disqualification to Ahmed Johnson in round one.

The far-fetched storyline explanation: Helmsley didn't know that a DQ could knock him out of the tournament, and threatened to sue WWE, so they put him back in. Yeah.

Contributor
Contributor

Justin has been a wrestling fan since 1989, and has been writing about it since 2009. Since 2014, Justin has been a features writer and interviewer for Fighting Spirit Magazine. Justin also writes for History of Wrestling, and is a contributing author to James Dixon's Titan series.