Alternative History


WWF King of the Ring was a 1998 professional wrestling event put on by the World Wrestling Federation. It was the 14th annual King of the Ring event, the 6th event of 1998 and the 102nd event overall in the alternate WWF timeline. Hailing from the Gund Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, the main event was a WWF Title match between Stone Cold Steve Austin and Kane. However, this match was overshadowed by the Hell in a Cell match between the Undertaker and Mankind, which would go on to be considered the most famous match in WWF history. Other matches on the card were largely centered around the King of the Ring tournament, with Jeff Jarrett facing Triple H and Intercontinental Champion The Rock facing Ken Shamrock in the semifinals.

Prelude[]

Following Austin's victory at the previous month's In Your House pay per view, Vince McMahon was desperate to find someone who could take the WWF title off of the Texas Rattlesnake. The new #1 contender was decided in a Triple Threat match on Raw, with Kane being the surprise entrant against the Undertaker and Jeff Jarrett (both of whom were being punished by fighting each other for either helping or failing against Austin the night before.) After Kane's victory, the Big Red Machine targeted Austin, leaving him lying on three separate occasions, giving the impression that he had the Rattlesnake's number.

The Undertaker might have become the #1 contender, if not for the return of Mick Foley in the guise of Mankind. Foley had been kayfabe fired by McMahon in his Cactus Jack persona the night after Wrestlemania, and now sought to ingratiate himself to the owner by taking out his old rival The Undertaker. McMahon "humored" Foley, hiring him back and setting him into a Hell in a Cell match against the Phenom, hoping to take both of the problems out in one fell swoop. The match was promoted as a "final encounter" given the history between the two that stretched back more than two years, with announcers quick to point out that no one had been as successful against the Undertaker as Mankind had been.

For his part, Jeff Jarrett had fallen out of favor with McMahon, and was now seeking to redeem himself by winning the King of the Ring tournament (he would do so without Jim Cornette as his manager, as he in real life had taken a position running the WWF's new developmental territory.) Standing in his way was D-Generation X leader Triple H. In the other side of the bracket, Intercontinental Champion The Rock considered it a forgone conclusion that he would win the King of the Ring tournament, despite having to face a longtime rival in the World's Most Dangerous Man, Ken Shamrock.

Also recently, former WWF start Al Snow (formerly known as Leif Cassidy) had made appearances under his real name and with the gimmick of having gone crazy, talking to a mannequin head (simply referred to as Head) for career advice. He had appealed to get his job back, but had annoyed WWF stooges Pat Patterson and Gerald Brisco in the process. The two retired wrestlers were put up by the boss as an opportunity for Snow to get his job back, by beating them in a handicap match.

Event[]

Coming Soon...

Results[]

No. Results Stipulations Time
FFA D'Lo Brown & Edge wrestled to a Time Limit Draw Singles Match for the WWF Television Title 15:00
1 The Rock d. "The World's Most Dangerous Man" Ken Shamrock by Pinfall King of the Ring Semifinal Match 12:22
2 Triple H w/Chyna d. Jeff Jarrett by Pinfall King of the Ring Semifinal Match 11:00
3 Juventud Guerrera d. Chris Jericho (c) by Pinfall Singles Match for the WWF Light Heavyweight Title 9:37
4 Al Snow d. Pat Patterson & Gerald Brisco by Pinfall 2 on 1 Handicap Match 8:13
5 The New Age Outlaws [Road Dogg & Bad Ass Billy Gunn] (c) d. Too Much [Brian Christopher & Scott "Too Hot" Taylor] by Pinfall Tag Team Match for the WWF Tag Team Championship 6:39
6 Triple H w/Chyna d. The Rock by Pinfall King of the Ring Finals 14:23
7 The Undertaker d. Mankind by Pinfall Hell in a Cell Match 17:38
8 Stone Cold Steve Austin (c) d. Kane w/Paul Bearer by Pinfall Singles Match for the WWF Championship 15:44

Aftermath[]

The Undertaker's interference in the main event having nearly cost Steve Austin the WWF title, the two uneasy allies were pitted against each other by Vince McMahon, placed into a tag match against Kane and Mankind the following In Your House event. Jeff Jarrett would form a team with Dustin Rhodes and enter a feud for the tag titles with the New Age Outlaws. The King of the Ring final would be the first of three encounters between Triple H and The Rock, their second being a title match at the next month's pay per view. Ken Shamrock would enter a feud with Dr. Death, based on their confrontation at this event.