9. Mankind vs. Steve Austin vs. Triple H (1999)
The WWF was red-hot in 1999, but looking back on the 'Attitude Era' can often provide some fascinating insight. Current stars, including Dean Ambrose and WWE Hall Of Fame inductee Edge have been fairly critical of the period, feeling it may not have been as great as everyone claims. Whilst Edge notes that creativity was at an all-time high, he says actual wrestling fell by the wayside. Looking at the main event of SummerSlam 1999, it's clear that the promotion were starting to just throw ideas at the wall to see what might stick. Due to the event taking place in Minnesota, former wrestler-turned-announcer, Jesse 'The Body' Ventura was installed as the Special Guest Referee. That may have been a fine idea on paper, but Ventura detracted from the Triple Threat headliner, and things didn't feel as focused as they perhaps should have been. The previous year, Steve Austin and The Undertaker put together a tight contest. It was free of the convoluted feel which plagued the 1999 main event, pitting Austin against Mankind and Triple H. Mankind would come out on top to win the title, but it would have been better to see him do so in a bout with a better flow. The story was far too busy going into this one, and the addition of Ventura as referee was unnecessary.
Jamie Kennedy
Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.
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