WWE WAR ZONE - The Tombstone

On March 23, 1997 Wrestlemania 13 came to us from Chicago, Illinois. Wrestlemania 13 proved to be the turning point in many ways for the then World Wrestling Federation. It was Bret Hart’s last Wrestlemania. It was the Rock’s first. “WWF Attitude” was beginning to take full effect, as could be seen by Stone Cold Steve Austin and Bret Hart’s “double turn” that took place that night during their submission match.

The main event of Wrestlemania 13 saw The Undertaker capture his second WWF Championship when he defeated Sid for the strap. While the Undertaker’s victory was important and did set up many future storylines (including Kane’s eventual debut), it was not the story of the night.

The story of the night was Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Bret Hart in a submission match. The match was perhaps a precursor to the hardcore matches we would soon see. They fought through the crowd, used the ring bell, chairs, even electrical cords to bring harm to one another. Austin, who was bleeding profusely, got trapped in the Sharpshooter. In one of the cooler visuals that has ever come out of the WWE, as Austin gave one last gasp of energy to try and break the hold, he raised up, literally squirting blood from his forehead, and gave one more screaming effort to break the Sharpshooter before passing out from the pain, giving Hart the win. Although Bret won the match, Austin had now officially won over the fans by refusing to quit.

Elsewhere on the card, Mankind and Vader were defeated by the tag team champions the British Bulldog and Owen Hart, the Legion of Doom and Ahmed Johnson defeated the Nation of Domination, and the Rock, then known as Rocky Maivia, retained the Intercontinental Championship against the Sultan.

Stay tuned for Wrestlemania XIV…

Until next time… 1