WWF Survivor Series was a 1997 professional wrestling event put on by the World Wrestling Federation. It was the 11th Survivor Series event, the 11th event of 1997 and the 95th event overall in the alternate WWF timeline. Emanating from the Molson Centre in Motreal, Quebec, Canada, the main event was a WWF Title Match between Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels. Controversy surrounded the match, as the two had been at odds backstage throughout the year, and Bret Hart was set to leave the WWF following this event for rival company WCW. This led to the infamous Montreal Screwjob, which saw Hart "screwed" out of the WWF title, instead of a planned DQ finish to his match with Michaels.
Other matches on the card included Steve Austin's return to the ring in an Intercontinental Title Match against Owen Hart, Kane making his in-ring debut against the deranged Mankind, and a 4 on 4 Survivor Series match with The British Bulldog, Jim Neidhart, The Quebecers and Chris Jericho against Vader, Ken Shamrock, Goldust, Jeff Jarrett & Ahmed Johnson.
Prelude[]
After his victory (tainted though it was) at In Your House: Badd Blood, Shawn Michaels was named #1 contender to Bret Hart's WWF Title, setting the stage for a rematch from their Wrestlemania encounter the year previously. However, backstage the story was far more contentious than it was on screen. Hart was set to leave the WWF for WCW, but refused to drop the title to Michaels due to their off-screen feud (stemming from several incidents over the previous few years). As such, the WWF was seemingly booked into a corner, although this was not acknowledged on camera at the time. On screen, the battle was continuing between the Hart Foundation and Michaels new faction D-Generation X, with Michaels and running buddy Hunter Hearst Helmsley continuously taunting Bret at every turn. Compounding things was that the event would be in Montreal, which meant that Hart (who was portrayed as an Anti-American heel on camera) would instead be a de facto babyface.
The US vs. Canada storyline was more overt though in the traditional Survivor Series match. The Pro-Canada side was led by Hart Foundation members The British Bulldog and Jim Neidhart, who teamed with the returning Quebecers and newly turned heel Chris Jericho (who was also returning from injury.) The pro-US side was led by Vader & Ken Shamrock, teaming with Goldust, Ahmed Johnson and the newly returned Jeff Jarrett. The last inclusion was at the insistence of Vader's manager Jim Cornette, who had brought Jarrett back to the WWF to bring "tradition" back to wrestling, despite the fact that Vader and Jarrett were at odds with one another. This tension made the US contingent underdogs going into the heavily pro-Canadian crowd.
The other major storyline entering the event was the ongoing saga of Stone Cold Steve Austin, who had been attempting to get even with Owen Hart (and regain the Intercontinental Title in the process) since nearly being paralyzed at Summerslam. Austin had finally gotten his title rematch by way of signing a legal waiver, clearing Vince McMahon and the WWF of any liability if he hurt his neck again. For his part, Owen had begun bragging about the fact that he had nearly ended Austin's career, breaking out a T-shirt that read "Owen 3:16" to taunt the challenger. The IC Champion had promised to finish what he started, and had managed to avoid Austin whenever Stone Cold was nearby over the previous month, causing Stone Cold to stew for revenge even more.
At Badd Blood, the monstrous Kane had finally debuted and confronted his brother, The Undertaker, costing him the Hell in a Cell match in the process. Through his manager, Paul Bearer, Kane made clear that he had come to the WWF for one thing alone, a match against his brother. The Undertaker, however, refused to fight his own flesh and blood. This had the effect of sending Kane on a warpath through the WWF roster, taking out everyone put in front of him. The one person who tried to stand up to Kane was Mankind, Paul Bearer's former protege, setting up Kane's first ever official match at Survivor Series.
In addition, The Great Sasuke had been stripped of the WWF Lightheavyweight Title due to his refusal to defend the title outside of Japan. This led to a short tournament, with the two finalists being Taka Michinoku and Brian Christopher, set to face off for the vacant title.
Event[]
Coming Soon...
Results[]
| No. | Results | Stipulations | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| FFA | "The Lethal Weapon" Steve Blackman d. Bob Holly by Pinfall | Singles Match | 7:55 |
| 1 | The New Age Outlaws [Roadogg & Bad Ass Billy Gunn] & The Eliminators [Saturn & Kronus] d. The Road Warriors [Hawk & Animal] & The Headbangers [Mosh & Thrasher] | Survivor Series Match | 9:02 |
| 2 | Kane w/Paul Bearer d. Mankind by Pinfall | Singles Match | 10:09 |
| 3 | Taka Michinoku d. Brian Christopher by Pinfall | Singles Match for the WWF Light Heavyweight Title | 13:00 |
| 4 | The Nation of Domination [Faarooq, The Rock, D'Lo Brown & Kama] d. Los Boricuas [Savio Vega, Jose Estrada, Jesus Castillo & Miguel Perez] | Survivor Series Match | 15:42 |
| 5 | Stone Cold Steve Austin d. Owen Hart (c) by Pinfall | Singles Match for the WWF Intercontinental Title | 15:43 |
| 6 | Team Canada [The British Bulldog, Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart, Jacques Rougeau, Carl Ouelette & Chris Jericho] d. Team USA [Vader, Ken Shamrock, Jeff Jarrett, Goldust & Ahmed Johnson] w/Jim Cornette | Survivor Series Match | 18:39 |
| 7 | "The Heartbreak Kid" Shawn Michaels d. Bret "The Hitman" Hart (c) by "submission"* | Singles Match for the WWF Championship | 20:07 |
*=Michaels placed Hart into the Sharpshooter, setting up a spot for a planned DQ finish. But before it could begin referee Earl Hebner was instructed to call for the bell as if Hart had submitted, thus "screwing" him out of the title.
Aftermath[]
The effects of the so-called Montreal Screwjob would have far reach. In addition to Bret Hart leaving the company, both Jim Neidhart and The British Bulldog would leave as well, with others also not pleased with the outcome (though the only one who left in addition was Lance Storm, who was healing a neck injury at the time.) Owen Hart also requested his release, but was denied, and would instead turn face and partake in a short continuation feud with Michaels throughout the winter of 1997 and 98. Jeff Jarrett abandoning Vader during the Survivor Series match would also lead to a match between the two, while new IC Champion Steve Austin entered a feud with the Nation of Domination, specifically The Rock.