The WWF entered the year 2000, Y2K or Y2J, with all the momentum on their side from their success in 1998 and 1999 and the beginning of the end of WCW and the Monday Night Wars.
Perhaps the main reason why the WWF was so successful was Stone Cold Steve Austin and he spent most of the year on "injured reserve" due to his neck injury being so bad it needed surgery. He was written off TV at the 1999 Survivor Series when he was hit by a car in the parking lot.
With the top guy out of commission, the WWF turned to The Rock and Triple H to lead the company in the first year of the 21st century. At the end of 1999, Triple H "married" Vince McMahon's daughter Stephanie and the two began their reign of terror running the WWF as "The McMahon-Helmsley Faction."
Triple H and Stephanie really abused their power as they favored the heels over the faces, especially Triple H and his cronies DX. Stephanie was beginning to be even worse than her father Mr. McMahon was. She turned on her father after he had her kidnapped by The Undertaker the previous year.
While Triple H and Stephanie were fictionally married, they soon began a real life relationship. Despite criticism from fellow wrestlers over Triple H just wanting to get into the company but it was indeed real love. Triple H and Stephanie married in 2003 and remain so this day and have three daughters.
Triple H gave himself a WWF Championship match against the Big Show on the January 3, 2000 episode of Raw is War, the first Raw of the new millennium. With help from DX, Triple H defeated Big Show to win the WWF Championship.
They "fired" Mick Foley after he lost to his former Rock 'N' Sock teammate The Rock on the last Raw of the millennium as part of his punishment for Foley daring to speak up against Triple H and McMahon's reign of terror.
The Rock said he had respect for Foley and demanded that they bring Foley back to the WWF. If they didn't then the whole entire WWF locker room would band together and walk out on Raw. Triple H and Stephanie had no choice but to reinstate Foley back into the WWF.
Foley then reverted to his more violent and hardcore Cactus Jack persona and challenged Triple H to a Street Fight at the Royal Rumble in January at Madison Square Garden. Foley was unsuccessful as he lost a violent street fight to Triple H when he was pedigree'd on thumbtacks that Foley brought into the ring.
The Rock would go on to win the Royal Rumble match for the first time when he last eliminated The Big Show as he would earn the right to take on the WWF Championship at WrestleMania 2000. The Big Show first threw Rock over the top rope, but Rock held on to the rope and pulled Big Show over the top rope to win as both went hit the floor but the officials said Big Show's feet hit the floor first.
The Big Show said he eliminated The Rock as Rock's feet touched the floor before his and he was the winner. Big Show was able to provide Triple H evidence of video tape that Rock's feet indeed hit the floor first. While Big Show should have been the winner, the referee's decision was final but Big Show would face off against The Rock with the winner to get the WrestleMania title shot at No Way Out.
Also at No Way Out, Triple H defended his title against Cactus Jack in a Hell in a Cell match with Mick Foley forced to retire once and for all if he lost. Triple H had allies in a new group called "The Radicalz" (Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Perry Saturn, and Dean Malenko).
The foursome each left WCW (despite Benoit winning the WCW World Heavyweight Championship and quitting the next day) and they debuted on the January 31, 2000 episode of Raw is War as guests of Foley. They soon turned on Foley and aligned themselves with Triple H in return for contracts in the WWF.
At the No Way Out PPV, The Big Show defeated The Rock to win the WWF Title match at WrestleMania 2000. Shane McMahon cost The Rock the match and aligned himself with Big Show. Triple H defeated Foley in a violent Hell in a Cell match when he backdropped him onto the top of the cage as Foley was about to piledrive him onto a barded-wire 2x4 on fire on top of the cage.
Foley fell through the cage all the to the ring similar to one of the wicked bumps he received against The Undertaker in their infamous Hell in a Cell match at the 1998 King of the Ring. Triple H gave him the Pedigree to win the match and end Foley's wrestling career.
Mick Foley had a brilliant career but mounting injuries as a result of numerous hardcore and violent style of matches (like the 1998 thriller against The Undertaker and even the last two against Triple H) forced Foley to retire earlier than he or anyone would have liked.
The Rock won back his WWF Title match against Triple H at WrestleMania 2000 when he defeated The Big Show on the March 13, 2000 edition of Raw is War where if he lost, he would have to leave the WWF. Vince McMahon returned on TV for the first time since the end of 1999 when he helped The Rock win.
The main event at WrestleMania would be changed to a Triple Threat match between Triple H, The Big Show, and The Rock with Shane McMahon in Big Show's corner and Vince in The Rock's corner and of course Stephanie McMahon in her husband's corner.
WWF CEO Linda McMahon then announced that it would a Fatal Four Way match with the retired Mick Foley making one last return in the match as Linda would be in his corner as all four McMahons would be in the corner of each of the contestants.
Triple H won to retain the title at WrestleMania 2000 when Vince and Shane McMahon turned on their respective competitors as Vince hit the Rock with a steel chair. Vince, Shane, and Stephanie celebrated with Triple H as Vince and Shane were now part of The McMahon-Helmsley Faction. The Rock gave each of the McMahons the Rock Bottom and Stephanie the People's Elbow after the match.
Foley would officially retire from in-ring competition following this match. He would not be seen on TV for several months until he was named as WWF Commissioner in June, replacing Shawn Michaels, who too would leave and would not be seen for nearly two years.
On the April 17, 2000 edition of Raw is War, Chris Jericho defeated Triple H to win the WWF Championship when referee Earl Hebner made a fast three-count. However, Triple H forced Hebner to reverse the decision and gave the title back to Triple H as Jericho was not the world champion, for now.
Two weeks later, Triple H defended the title against The Rock. Linda McMahon announced that Stone Cold Steve Austin would return that night for the first time since getting hit by a car at Survivor Series sixth months before and would be in Rock's corner to prevent any interference from the rest of the McMahons.
On the SmackDown episode a few days before the Backlash PPV, Austin was supposedly there and The McMahon-Helmsley Faction along with DX spent all night looking for him and attacked anyone resembling Austin thinking it was him. At the end of the night, Austin was shown sitting in a crane as he dropped a huge steel beam onto the "DX Express" bus causing it to explode.
Austin did not show up initially in the main event match as the McMahons and their cronies outnumbered The Rock. Austin then finally showed up attacking and hitting anyone not named The Rock with a steel chair allowing The Rock to defeat Triple H to win back the WWF Title. Austin would not be seen for a few months.
The next month at Judgment Day, Triple H challenged Rock to a 60-minute Iron Man match for the WWF Title. This was the second ever 60-minute Iron Man match in WWF history behind Shawn Michaels vs. Bret Hart's classic encounter at WrestleMania XII where Michaels won. Michaels, who was still the WWF Commissioner, would be the special guest referee for this match.
The match would be tied 5-5 late in the match when Michaels was knocked out. DX's Road Dogg and X-Pac along with Shane and Vince McMahon attacked The Rock when all of a sudden, The Undertaker's gong sounded but Kid Rock's "American Bad Ass" played and The Undertaker was seen for the first time since September 1999.
The Undertaker looked a whole lot different than he ever did in the WWF. Instead of the Dead Man look he's maintained since his debut a decade prior, this new Undertaker look dressed like a biker and even rode his Harley Davidson to the ring as he was dubbed "The American Bad Ass." This new Undertaker used Kid Rock's American Bad Ass as his entrance theme which would later be changed to Limp Bizkit's "Rollin."
The Undertaker rode his motorcycle to the ring and attacked Road Dogg, X-Pac, Shane, and Vince. He would then Chokeslam Triple H as well. However, Michaels saw this and disqualified The Rock, giving Triple H a 6-5 advantage and ultimately winning the title albeit controversially and unpopularly.
The Rock teamed with The Undertaker and Kane to take on Triple H and Vince and Shane at King of the Ring with whoever gains the pinfall becomes the WWF Champion. The Rock pinned Vince following the Rock Bottom to win back the WWF Championship.
The winner of the King of the Ring tournament at the PPV was the Olympic Gold Medal winner Kurt Angle. Angle won the gold medal at the 1996 Olympics and was the first and only Olympic gold medal winner to ever compete in the WWF/E or professional wrestling altogether. Angle was a great amateur wrestler as he was also a two-time NCAA Division I Heavyweight Wrestling Champion.
Angle almost signed with ECW in 1996, but refused to after Raven "crucified" Sandman on a wooden cross while Angle was in attendance that night doing commentary. He almost signed with the WWF immediately after winning the gold medal at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta but chose not to.
He eventually signed with the WWF in late 1998 and after a time in the developmental territory, Angle made his actual WWF debut at the 1999 Survivor Series PPV in November, defeating Shawn Stasiak with his Olympic Slam (later changed to Angle Slam).
Fans booed him and even chanted "boring" during his match where he addressed the fans saying they had no right to boo an Olympic hero. He would wear replicas of his gold medals around his neck. Angle proclaimed himself as your "Olympic Hero." Angle wore an amateur wrestling style singlet that was always decked out in red, white, and blue.
Angle's vignettes leading up to his debut stressed the importance of Angle's "three I's": Intensity, Integrity, and Intelligence. Angle came off as arrogant looking down his nose at the fans and thinking he was better than them since he was a gold medal winner. Angle had one of the best entrance themes in the business especially when the fans chanted "you suck!" in unison to his theme.
Angle went undefeated his first two months in the company before losing to Tazz at the Royal Rumble as Tazz was a mystery opponent making his WWF debut. Angle quickly rebounded winning both the European and Intercontinental Championships, declaring himself the "Eurocontinental" Champion.
Unfortunately for Angle, he lost both titles to Chris Benoit and Chris Jericho at WrestleMania 2000 in a match where both titles were on the line yet he was not pinned in either fall for either title. Angle then lost to Big Show at Backlash where Show dressed as Hulk Hogan as he began imitating other wrestlers. Angle would be preaching abstinence while Big Show was not.
Angle won the King of the Ring tournament by defeating Chris Jericho, Crash Holly, and Rikishi at the PPV to become the number one contender to the WWF Championship. In the finals, Angle impressively gave the 400+ lb. Rikishi an amazing Belly-to-Belly Suplex off the top rope to win the match.
Angle formed an alliance with Edge and Christian as they became known as "Team ECK" (Edge, Christian, and Kurt). The trio were definitely a comedy trio as Edge and Christian were a comedy duo before teaming with Kurt.
Edge and Christian were storyline brothers when they both debuted in the WWF in 1998 as they were real life childhood best friends who loved wrestling. They were both even in attendance at the SkyDome in Toronto at WrestleMania VI.
Edge and Christian were originally a borderline goth duo who eventually ditched that gimmick when they became a pair of cool dudes with comedy routines. Edge and Christian hilariously introduced the "Five Second Pose" where they told the fans "for the benefit of those with flash photography, we will now pose for five seconds only" where they stood still for approximately five seconds.
They would start to use the five second pose to insult fans especially something relevant to the town they were performing at. Some examples are in Boston, they mocked Bill Buckner letting the ball go through his legs, in Cleveland mocking Jose Mesa blowing Game 7 of the 1997 World Series, and in Oakland they were mocking the Raiders losing to the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship Game.
They even dressed as fat Elvises in Memphis as each wore a fat suit and dressed like Elvis with Christian being fat Elvis and Edge being really fat Elvis. They also mocked Bobby Knight in Indianapolis choking a player and getting fired for it. They would seem to get on the fans' side only to blindside them at the end.
Edge and Christian and Angle would mock the Kentucky crowd at Judgment Day by doing a five second pose of a Kentucky jug band. They would all wear straw hats with Edge playing banjo and even wearing crooked teeth while Angle played the jug and Christian the washboard.
Angle even ruined Undertaker's prized motorcycle and tried to pay him back by buying him his own set of two wheels, but it wasn't a motorcycle. Instead, Angle gave Undertaker a scooter as a peace offering but Undertaker would not accept it as he trashed the scooter.
Edge and Christian were involved in a feud with both The Hardy Boyz (Matt and Jeff Hardy) and The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray and D-Von Dudley). The Dudleys came to the WWF from ECW in September 1999 after being the most successful tag team in ECW history with eight World Tag Team Title reigns between them.
They won their first of a record eight WWF/E World Tag Team Championships by beating the New Age Outlaws at No Way Out. They adopted the similar gimmick they had in ECW by putting opponents through tables while you can hear Bubba yell to D-Von "get the tables." The Hardys were high flyers who rose from the ranks of jobbers to a successful tag team and even successful singles careers.
The three teams fought in a Triangle Ladder Match at WrestleMania 2000. The Dudleys brought their tables into the match as they soon began to be used. In what was a match that stole the show, Edge and Christian won their first of seven World Tag Team Championships when they knocked Matt Hardy off the ladder and through a table.
This match was named Pro Wrestling Illustrated's Match of the Year for 2000 but it also spawned a new type of match between the three unlike any other at SummerSlam 2000. The three would be involved in the first-ever Tables, Ladders, and Chairs (TLC) match. Edge and Christian retained the titles. They would all meet in TLC 2 the following year at WrestleMania and TLC eventually became a WWE PPV.
Kurt Angle, Triple H, and The Rock fought for Rock's WWF Championship in a Triple Threat match. Angle was injured in the match when Triple H Pedigree'd him through a table and gave Angle a concussion and was taken to the back.
Angle came back to the match where he used Triple H's sledgehammer, but Triple H got it and was about to hit Angle, only for Angle to duck and Triple H accidentally hit his wife Stephanie with it. The Rock would win the match to retain the title.
Angle was involved in a love triangle with Triple H and Stephanie where he became infatuated with Stephanie. He bought her flowers and then knocked Triple H out with his sledgehammer and then kissing Stephanie. Angle defeated The Rock at No Mercy in October to win his first WWF Championship less than a year since he debuted in the company in what is perhaps the greatest first year in WWF/E history.
Two of the top Women wrestlers and even managers ever in WWF/E history Trish Stratus and Lita made their debuts during the year. They would be involved in an off-again on-again feud until Trish retired as it was perhaps the best women's feud in WWF/E history.
Trish debuted as manager of Test and Albert (collectively known as "T&A" for tits and asses mainly because of Trish). Trish was also the manager of Val Venis guiding him to the Intercontinental Championship until he lost it. Lita was the manager of The Hardy Boyz. She would eventually have an on-air relationship with Matt Hardy which eventually turned into an out of the ring relationship.
Trish and Lita would face off against each other in singles competition or even mixed tag teams. Lita even won the WWF Women's Championship from Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley before losing it to Ivory late in the year.
Ivory was part of this group The Right to Censor, who were against the sexual nature and violence of the Attitude Era of the WWF. They were led by Stevie Richards as Bull Buchanan and Ivory joined the group and they eventually got two of the wrestlers that displayed the Attitude Era in The Godfather (renamed Goodfather) and the wannabe porn star Val Venis to join them.
They dressed super conservatively wearing a white button down dress shirt with a black tie and black pants (with Ivory wearing a long black skirt and her hair tied back into a bun to look less provocative).
To keep up with the Attitude Era trends, the "World's Strongest Man" Mark Henry was also nicknamed "Sexual Chocolate" because of his "sex addiction" which he admitted to on TV. Henry romanced women in the WWF from Chyna to the 77-year-old Mae Young.
Henry was involved in a very infamous and embarrassing storyline where Young was "pregnant" with Henry's child. Young would be squashed by the 500-lb. Viscera while carrying Henry's child. When she gave birth, all that came out was simply a "hand."
In conjunction with the Attitude Era as well as the popularity of ECW Hardcore Wrestling along with the working relationship between the WWF and ECW, the WWF introduced Hardcore Championship.
The title was first given to Mick Foley in late 1998 by Vince McMahon for cheering him up while he was in the hospital. The original title belt was an old WWF "Winged Eagle" World Heavyweight Championship belt that was originally destroyed by Mr. Perfect smashing it with a hammer and the belt was duck taped together with Hardcore written on it.
Ironically, Foley would only hold the title one time even though he was the first real hardcore style wrestler the company hired. Initially, Hardcore Championship matches were No-Holds Barred, Falls Count Anywhere matches.
Then when Crash Holly won it in 2000, he instituted the "24/7 rule" where the title could be defended at any time anywhere as long as a referee was present. This created some creative and hilarious title changes where a wrestler could be asleep and someone pins him to win the title.
This also led to a number of wrestlers, especially those you wouldn't think of as hardcore wrestlers, such as one of Godfather's Hos as example and old timers Pat Patterson and Gerald Brisco, being the Hardcore champion. Raven, who joined the WWF in 2000 after a stop in ECW, has the record number of reigns with 27. Holly
WCW would even create their own Hardcore division and championship that lasted until its demise in 2001. WCW's Hardcore Championship matches were mainly Falls Count Anywhere matches but they did not have the 24/7 rule like the WWF as they had to be defended at WCW events at WCW arenas.
Stone Cold Steve Austin returned from the car accident he suffered nine months prior at the September Unforgiven PPV looking for the person who ran him over with the car. Austin attacked anyone and everyone he suspected ran him over with the car. He gave Shane McMahon three Stone Cold Stunners. Austin also debuted a new entrance theme that night that was sung by the hit band Disturbed.
Austin spent the next several weeks on episodes of Raw and SmackDown looking for the attacker as WWF Commissioner Mick Foley was trying to help solve the mystery. Triple H and Kurt Angle comedically tried to blame each other as Austin's attacker. Evidence shockingly was pointing the way of The Rock as it was Rock's car that was used to run down Austin.
It would not be The Rock that ran down Austin. It was announced on the October 9, 2000 episode of Raw is War that Rikishi was the one who hit Austin as Rikishi admitted to doing it for his real life cousin The Rock who he felt that the Samoans were always held back by the WWF and that they always favored the white man for the WWF Championship.
Austin took on Rikishi in a No Holds Barred Match at the No Mercy PPV in what was Austin's first match in nearly a year due to the neck surgery he had. Austin viciously attacked and bloodied Rikishi and attempted to run him over in his truck before police showed up and "arrested" Austin. Rikishi later interfered and accidentally cost his cousin The Rock the WWF Championship against Kurt Angle.
Rikishi asked The Rock to forgive him but Rock refused. Rikishi would ultimately attack Rock and informed everyone that Rock knew about the accident and even gave him the keys to his car. The two squared off at Survivor Series with The Rock victorious but Rikishi viciously attacking him after the match by giving him four Banzai Drops, props to their late cousin Yokozuna.
While Rikishi was the one behind the wheel to run over Austin, he was just an accomplice as someone put him up to it and it wasn't The Rock. Austin was once hit in the back of the head with a wrench by the person behind this while he was on his way to the ring to take down Rikishi.
On the November 6, 2000 episode of Raw is War, Rock was supposed to team with Austin to take on Rikishi and Kurt Angle in the main event. However before the match, someone attacked Rock with a metal pipe and took him out of the match, leaving it a Handicap match. The odds were too great for Austin to overcome as Rikishi and Angle double-teamed him.
All of a sudden, Triple H's music played and he came to the ring carrying a sledgehammer and chased Rikishi and Angle out of the ring. Triple H then hit Austin in the head with the sledgehammer and viciously attacked Austin. He then told everyone he was behind the attack all along as he did it to keep his WWF Championship around his waist at the time and take Austin out of the title picture once and for all.
Austin attempted to get his hands on Triple H as he faced him in a No Disqualification match at Survivor Series. The fight went to the backstage area when Triple H's allies The Radicalz attacked Austin. Triple H took off in a car.
Triple H attempted to run Austin over again like he did the previous year at Survivor Series. However, Austin appeared driving a forklift as he lifted up Triple H's car and dropped it some 30 feet in the air. The car landed on its roof with Triple H "inside" and stuck in the car.
Kurt Angle defended the WWF Championship against The Undertaker at Survivor Series. Angle's Team ECK allies Edge and Christian interfered in the match. Angle went underneath the ring. Undertaker pulled him back into the ring and gave him his new finisher "The Last Ride." The referee did not count three noticing it wasn't Kurt. Instead it was his brother Eric Angle. Kurt rolled Undertaker from behind to win the match and retain the title.
At the final PPV of 2000, Armageddon in December, Mick Foley made Angle defend his title against The Undertaker, The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Triple H, and Rikishi in a six-man Hell in a Cell match. Seeing how this could destroy his top wrestlers' careers, Vince McMahon tried to get all six men to back out of the match but failed to do so. Foley said if anyone got hurt, he'd resign as commissioner.
McMahon, Pat Patterson, and Gerald Brisco tried to destroy the cell with a pickup truck. Foley ordered the police to take all three away. The match was one of the most violent matches in WWF history. The Undertaker threw Rikishi off the side of the cage and he landed onto the bed of the truck McMahon used. Austin gave The Rock the Stunner. Triple H attacked Austin as Angle snuck on top of The Rock to win the match and retain the title.
Due to the violence of the match and Rikishi suffering an injury, Foley promised to resign as Commissioner but refused to do so and kept his job from support of Austin and the fans. However, McMahon ultimately got total control of the WWF and fired Foley. McMahon replaced him as WWF Commissioner with heel wrestler William Regal, who favored the heels over the faces.
To say the WWF was successful in 2000 would be an understatement. The WWF made over $68, nearly $69 million profit. That remains a record earned in professional wrestling for one year well topping WCW's peak of 1998 and the previous year's success of the Attitude Era in what was by far the best time in professional wrestling. WWF/E has not made $60 or more million in a year since.
2001 would be the year of change in professional wrestling as Vince McMahon was about to buy out his competition as well as head over to the grid iron.
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