WWE was on top of the wrestling world at the turn of the century. Beyond that, they worked their way deep into mainstream pop culture. Many of the PPVs during the year 2000 stand on the merit of their incredibly stacked star power and excellent match quality. The same can't be said for that year's King Of The Ring event.
Despite having a loaded roster, the tournament itself was very underwhelming. The main event for the WWE Championship couldn't have been booked more lazily. The remainder of the PPV was riddled with cringe-worthy moments. How is it possible that WWE could put together such a terrible show at the height of their popularity?
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A Missed Opportunity For The King Of The Ring Tournament
The year 2000 stands as the largest King Of The Ring bracket in WWE history, with an impressive thirty-two superstars. At the start of the PPV, the bracket was down to eight wrestlers. Those eight featured some of the best in-ring performers of all time; Kurt Angle, Chris Jericho, Eddie Guerrero, Rikishi, and Chris Benoit.
For some inexplicable reason, Benoit and Guerrero were eliminated in the very first two matches of the night. Why WWE opted to drop two of the best workers in the tournament while advancing the likes of Crash Holly and Val Venis is anybody's guess. What's not a guess: they messed up.
In the end, Kurt Angle was victorious, a more than worthy King of the Ring. The win helped cement his monumental career start. However, considering the talent that was involved, the massive tournament under-delivered. Not one match sniffed the 4-star match territory.
The Rock Wins The Championship In A Bizarre Main Event
Defending a singles championship in a tag team match has never worked. This PPV was no exception. Triple H defended his WWE Championship in a six-man tag, teaming with Vince and Shane McMahon to take on The Rock, The Undertaker, and Kane. (Does anybody else think the babyfaces have an unfair advantage?)
They built the match throughout the show in multiple backstage segments. Vince explained over and over again that the challengers wouldn't be able "to co-exist" (Yes, twenty-two years later, we're still getting weekly "can they co-exist?" matches). This was an obvious analysis by McMahon but one that he chose to drive home multiple times an hour.
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The match itself left much to be desired. Shane McMahon spent an obscene amount of time in the ring. So if you do plan to revisit this match, prepare yourself for a lot of sweat, punches, and awful white boy dance moves.
On the bright side, WWE sent the fans home happy with a Rock victory after he hit the Rock Bottom on Vince McMahon for the pinfall. Unfortunately, the massive pop was not enough to salvage the odd match.
King Of The Cringe
Sprinkled throughout the PPV are several examples of how brutally misogynistic WWE was during the Attitude Era. The qualms are well-documented, and while this was par for the course in the year 2000, it can still be tough to watch. Multiple male superstars forced themselves onto female superstars.
Tori got the brunt of the disrespect on this night. When Jim Ross wasn't calling her a "jezebel" or saying "she's gonna get some serious wood," she was physically embarrassed. At one point, D-Von Dudley buried his face in her crotch for an uncomfortably long amount of time. The match between the Dudley Boyz and D-Generation X was an elongated build-up to Bubba Ray putting Tori through a table. The rabid fans cheered as Tori was manhandled. While this was happening, it was apparent that Tori's shoulder is legitimately hurt. All in all, this portion of the PPV was difficult to stomach.
Equally difficult to stomach was the Lingerie Match for the Hardcore Championship between Pat Patterson and Gerald Briscoe. WWE besmirched these two legendary wrestlers by forcing them to give the fans something they didn't ask for. The match received raucous jeers and "boring" chants. The bout was mercifully short but not short enough. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter awarded the contest The Worst Match Of The Year, deservedly so. A horrible blemish on the remarkable career of Pat Patterson.
Thankfully, WWE would answer back with great PPVs shortly after this one. Both their Fully Loaded and Summerslam events that year were very well-received. While it makes sense that not every PPV can be a banger, this one really sucked. It's true! It's true!
