History Of WWE's Attitude Era In 10 Matches

1. Steve Austin Vs. The Rock (WrestleMania X-Seven)

Steve Austin The Big Show Vince McMahon
WWE.com

In late-2000, Steve Austin made his in-ring comeback from a serious neck surgery. At first, he looked like a more limited performer, but he had found his mojo in time for WrestleMania X-Seven. There, Austin was to collide with The Rock on the grand stage once more, this time in his home state of Texas.

Going in, Austin was by far the fan favourite. The partisan Texas audience were then left shocked when Stone Cold unthinkably turned heel, aligning himself with Mr. McMahon. Using McMahon's help to defeat The Rock and become WWF Heavyweight Champ again, Austin then shook hands with the "devil himself" (according to Jim Ross on commentary).

Austin's resultant heel run was memorable more for comedy, and it would become a regret of sorts for the man. Without doubt, it was a pivotal moment in the 'Attitude Era', and with the WCW/ECW Invasion angle set to hit, many actually feel like it was the end of that particular era.

Whether people agree or not, things did seem to change after 'Mania X-Seven. By May 2002 the company rebranded to WWE and decided to promote 'Ruthless Aggression' instead of 'Attitude'.

What other huge 'Attitude Era' matches do you feel deserved to be on this list? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments section below!

Contributor

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.