10 Worst SummerSlam Main Events Ever - According To Dave Meltzer

6. SummerSlam 1999 - Stone Cold Steve Austin Vs Mankind Vs Triple H (**3/4)

Brock Lesnar Randy Orton
WWE.com

Stone Cold Steve Austin was, for obvious reasons, one of the more entrusted voices in Vince McMahon's ear when it came to the interests of Stone Cold Steve Austin. Together, the two had worked magic following Vince's manifestation into the company's tyrannical owner and 'The Rattlesnake's simultaneous rise to prominence as the company's biggest babyface since Hulk Hogan.

Comparisons with 'The Hulkster' himself were perhaps justified in 1999 though, when Austin apparently informed McMahon that his plan 'didn't work for him, brother', forging a deeply unsatisfying main event for one of the company's biggest shows of the year bathed in the scorching heat of the Attitude Era.

Whether anybody particularly wanted it at the time or not (and many didn't), the company had pushed Triple H very very hard indeed after his WrestleMania 15 heel turn, and a SummerSlam ascension seemed the natural conclusion to his significant singles push, despite the slightly clunky problem of new Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura taking a role as the babyface special referee.

The solution to the parallel issues was Mick Foley, who gamely took a spot in the match to win his third and least-satisfying WWE Title to satiate both Steve Austin's reticence to lose to Triple H and Ventura's want to raise a babyface's hand.

The match died a slow death under the weight of the internal strife, and 'The Game's victory over Mankind the following night erased it's significance within 24 hours.

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Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett