10 greatest Survivor Series events of all time
With the 34th annual event this Sunday, Survivor Series has established a legacy of notable moments and memorable matches throughout its history. The event was originally created due to the success of WrestleMania III in 1987 and also invented to counter WCW's marquee show, Starrcade, which took place on the same date.
From The Undertaker's debut to the introduction of The Shield, there is no denying how iconic Survivor Series is to WWE. There have been dream matches like Brock Lesnar vs. Daniel Bryan and transformative moments such as Sting finally coming to WWE. Without this event, WWE would not be what it is today.
This historic Big Four event has been criticized in the past, but it is worthy of praise due to so many stellar events that have happened under this name. In this article, we will take a look at the top ten greatest Survivor Series events of all time.
#10 Survivor Series 1997
Date: November 9th, 1997
Location: Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Matches/moments to watch: Bret "The Hitman" Hart vs. Shawn Michaels for the WWF Championship/Montreal Screwjob
Without this night in Montreal, WWE would not have had its most lucrative period of its existence nor one of the greatest heels ever created in the business. The rivalry between Bret "The Hitman" Hart and Shawn Michaels had gotten extremely personal ahead of Survivor Series 1997. With Hart's contract set to expire, this event marked the end of his WWE run.
Due to contract disputes with Vince McMahon and previous stipulations set forth, Bret had creative control and did not want to drop his WWF Championship to Michaels. This led to McMahon conspiring and screwing Hart out of the title when Michaels locked him in his own Sharpshooter submission. The fallout from this matter is still felt to this day.
Besides the Montreal Screwjob, this was a night of action with a raucous crowd. Kane against Mankind delivered a good match in a dominant victory for the Big Red Machine. Team Shamrock vs. The Nation of Domination was decent for the time it had. Stone Cold Steve Austin's quick win of the Intercontinental Championship over Owen Hart was the payoff to The Texas Rattlesnake's long-term feud with the Hart Foundation.
With those contests, this event would not be remembered as one of the premier events of the year nor 23 years later. However, with the impact of the main event, there is no question that any list of Survivor Series events has to include this one.