10 Things WWE Wants You To Forget About Backlash

8. The Big Show's Downward Spiral Continued (1999)

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WWE Network

Believe it or not, when WWE signed The Big Show in early 1999, he was considered a major acquisition. The former WCW star making the jump showed that WWE was the place to be, and many insiders believed that unlike WCW, WWE would use him to his full potential.

That didn't happen. Show was beaten by Steve Austin in his first match with the promotion (reportedly because Austin was worried about the new star taking his spot), then lost to Mankind at WrestleMania by DQ. That set up a Boiler Room Brawl between the two stars at Backlash.

The match, only the second Boiler Room Brawl in WWE history, saw both men fight backstage in an attempt to escape the titular room. While the first bout of the kind - a wild brawl between Mankind and The Undertaker - was quite good, this one paled in comparison. Foley even put the match down in his second book, revealing that it was the only time in his career that he used fake blood.

Worst of all, The Big Show racked up another loss. He then immediately helped Mankind fight off an attack from Test and The Big Boss Man, establishing a precedent for blown opportunities and constant turns.

Contributor
Contributor

Scott Fried is a Slammy Award-winning* writer living and working in New York City. He has been following/writing about professional wrestling for many years and is a graduate of Lance Storm's Storm Wrestling Academy. Follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/scottfried. *Best Crowd of the Year, 2013