10 Reasons 1997 Was The Weirdest Year In Wrestling History

So how did Undertaker vs. Sid, which had no real build or intrigue, wind up headlining WrestleMania? You can thank Shawn Michaels, who completely jumbled around the plans for the show.

After Shawn regained the WWF title at the Royal Rumble, Vince had it in his mind to have him return the favor to Bret, who had put him over the year prior at WrestleMania XII. Shawn, well into his drugged-out primadonna phase, wasn’t too keen on that. So, either exaggerating or fabricating a knee injury (depends on who you ask), Shawn vacated the title in one of the most infamous promos in company history: the “lost my smile” speech.

With half of his main event out of action, Vince scrambled to find an alternate plan for Bret and the title. Sid wound up with the championship and had a heatless program with the Undertaker that lacked any substantial build. Bret, meanwhile, found himself continuing his program with Steve Austin that had been going on and off since before his return in November 1996. This ended up benefitting both men, as they would save WrestleMania 13 with their submission match, which saw the infamous double turn, catapulting Austin to the role of a top babyface.

It’s a miracle the submission match ended up benefitting the company, because just like everything else in 1997, the jumbled WrestleMania 13 card is an oddity.