This week in WWE history: Two world champions released, new brand officially launches (June 12-June 18)
WWE continues to excel. While there was a lot of fear among fans after a disastrous RAW after WrestleMania, the company has maintained big business and fan interest, which has been on an upward trajectory since Triple H took over creative and talent relations last summer.
Vince McMahon's return to the fold hasn't seemingly slowed momentum down too much, as RAW was a fun show featuring turmoil with The Judgment Day. SmackDown keeps delivering the best story in pro wrestling. Meanwhile, NXT is making its case as the third brand with more exciting names showing up to compete from the free agency and the RAW and SmackDown rosters.
Still, as exciting as the modern product is to some, some prefer past eras. Thankfully, Sportskeeda offers a weekly installment looking back at some of the most exciting, intriguing, or shocking moments from the company's illustrious past.
This week in history saw the disappointing release of several wrestling stars, a new brand being launched, a reunion show, the premiere of a popular pay-per-view, and what is billed as The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever. What went down?
Below are five key events that happened this week in WWE history.
#5. ECW One Night Stand took place on June 12th, 2005
18 YEARS AGO TODAY…
ECW One Night Stand 2005.
The ECW we knew and loved was back after four years and you could just feel the passion in that room for those three letters.
What a show. What a night.
https://t.co/Y2KblD9xab
ECW One Night Stand took place on June 12th, 2005. The show, held under the WWE banner, was a tribute to Extreme Championship Wrestling which had gone out of business four years earlier.
The event was held at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York and featured loads of ECW Originals. Stars of RAW and SmackDown also attempted to invade the event, though it didn't work out for them once Stone Cold Steve Austin helped save the ECW stars.
The main event of the night saw Bubba Ray Dudley and D-Von Dudley battle The Sandman and Tommy Dreamer in a wild tag team match. The Dudleys won in around 11 minutes, but fans were happy to re-live their favorite promotion one last time.
#4. Several WWE Superstars, including Drew McIntyre & Jinder Mahal, were sadly released on June 12th, 2014
June 12th, 2014, was an unfortunate day for WWE fans and selected superstars. Unfortunately, World Wrestling Entertainment released several wrestling stars from their roster in a move that fans were too familiar with.
Drew McIntyre, JTG, Jinder Mahal, Aksana, Curt Hawkins, Teddy Long, Camacho, Brodus Clay, Evan Bourne, and Yoshi Tatsu were all let go by the company. While most of these talents bounced back in some way, the bulk never returned to WWE in a full-time position.
Thankfully, a few did in a big way. Most notably, Drew McIntyre and Jinder Mahal returned to the company and won world titles, proving that even the worst moments can lead to personal and professional growth with hard work and a little luck.
#3. The first-ever King of the Ring pay-per-view aired on June 13th, 1993
30 years ago today, the 1993 King of The Ring. In this semi-final match we saw Bret Hart vs Mr Perfect, in a very back & fourth close match. Bret was able to pull off the victory in a true classic. This match was my favorite of the tournament.
#KingoftheRing #WWE #BretHart https://t.co/d6y4rEcVr0
The King of the Ring was a popular tournament in WWE dating back to the 1980s. However, it wasn't until 1993 that it became a pay-per-view special. The first-ever King of the Ring pay-per-view aired on June 13th, 1993, from Dayton, Ohio.
The main card featured nine matches, including the Quarterfinals, Semifinals, and Final of the tournament. The card also featured three non-tournament bouts, which included an eight-man tag team match, Yokozuna vs. Hulk Hogan, and Shawn Michaels vs. Crush.
Bret Hart, Razor Ramon, Mr. Perfect, Mr. Hughes, Bam Bam Bigelow, Jim Duggan, Lex Luger, and Tatanka fought to earn the right to be king. Ultimately, Bret Hart defeated Razor, Perfect, and Bigelow to win the tournament and become the first King of the Ring crowned as a standalone pay-per-view.
#2. WWE ECW premiered on June 13th, 2006
We all ready to have the talk about how the ECW Zombie wasn’t that bad? https://t.co/ysc9BWmEOI
Following the success of the aforementioned ECW One Night Stand 2005 event, WWE decided to bring back Extreme Championship Wrestling as a brand. Following the second reunion show, ECW One Night Stand II, the weekly program began airing on June 13th, 2006.
The debut episode of WWE ECW was a mixed bag. It aired from Trenton, New Jersey, and featured the likes of Rob Van Dam, John Cena, Edge, Kurt Angle, The Big Show, The Sandman, Sabu, and many others.
Unfortunately, despite the star power, it didn't feel like ECW. It also featured a wacky character name The Zombie who got whacked by The Sandman due to the show airing on SyFy.
#1. The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever at Backlash on June 14th, 2020
WWE Backlash took place on June 14th, 2020. The big show was held during the Covid-19 pandemic and thus didn't take place in front of an audience—instead, the show aired from the WWE Performance Center.
The program's main event was a bout between friends turned enemies Edge and Randy Orton. Edge returned to action after nearly a decade away at the Royal Rumble, and Orton betrayed his former tag team partner in short order. This eventually led to them clashing at Backlash.
The bout was billed as The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever. The two stars fought for around 45 minutes, although the actual length of the bout is unclear due to the company being able to stop and start filming the match. It was done cinematically, and in the end, Randy Orton stood tall over Edge.