10 Major WWE Matches That Changed At The Last Second

10. Steve Austin vs Triple H €“ SummerSlam 1999

When Triple H defeated The Rock in a strap match at Fully Loaded 1999, he officially earned a WWE Championship match at SummerSlam. However, his path to the belt would be anything but direct. Commissioner Shawn Michaels forced Triple H to defend his number one contender's slot against Chyna, and he lost it. Michaels then forced Chyna to defend it against Mankind, and she lost it. Finally, Michaels (at Shane McMahon's behest) made Mankind defend against Triple H, and following a double pin, a Triple Threat match was set. In the Championship match, which was refereed by then-Governor Jesse Ventura, Mankind pinned Austin to win the title. The following night, Triple H beat him to become WWE Champion. If the end plan was putting the belt on Triple H, then why all the changes? Rumors flying at the time suggested that Steve Austin didn't want to put HHH over, but was more willing to do a job for Mankind. More likely, though, WWE simply wanted to end the Pay-Per-View with a babyface victory, given Ventura's involvement. A knee injury to Austin meant he needed to miss a few weeks after SummerSlam, so a one-day transition to Mankind was the solution that made everyone happy.