King of the Ring (1994)
King of the Ring | |||
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Baltimore Arena | |||
Attendance | 12,000[1] | ||
Buy rate | 185,000[2] | ||
Tagline(s) | The Perfect Father's Day Card | ||
Pay-per-view chronology | |||
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King of the Ring event chronology | |||
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King of the Ring tournament chronology | |||
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The 1994 King of the Ring was the second annual
Owen Hart won the tournament by defeating Tatanka, the 1–2–3 Kid and Razor Ramon over the course of the evening. He used his coronation ceremony to criticize his brother Bret, with whom he was feuding. The Hart brothers' feud led to a Steel Cage match for Bret's WWF Championship. Although Owen lost the title match, the feud carried on as more family members got involved.
In addition to the tournament, several other matches were held at the event. In a grudge match between two semi-retired wrestlers,
.The event is remembered among fans for featuring former National Football League player Art Donovan on commentary. Donovan seemingly had no familiarity with professional wrestling, and repeatedly asked the same questions throughout the event, notably, "How much does this guy weigh?"
Production
Background
The
Storylines
Participants in the tournament qualified in matches televised during WWF programs in the weeks prior to the event. The first qualifying match took place on May 7, 1994.
The remaining qualifying matches built up to the tournament and developed storylines that played out on the pay-per-view.
After beating Razor Ramon for the WWF Intercontinental Championship in April 1994, Diesel was in the midst of a major push.[17] He was considered the top contender to Bret Hart's WWF Championship, and a match was booked for King of the Ring in which only Hart's title would be on the line. The feud intensified on the May 30, 1994, episode of Monday Night Raw during Jerry Lawler's interview segment, The King's Court. During an interview with Hart, Lawler invited Diesel and his friend Shawn Michaels to confront Hart. After a verbal confrontation, Diesel performed his Jacknife Powerbomb on Hart, after which Diesel, Michaels and Lawler attacked Hart.[12] The following week on Monday Night Raw, Bret announced that he would have a family member, whose identity would be a secret until the pay-per-view, in his corner to help prevent Michaels from interfering on Diesel's behalf.[13]
The buildup to the main event match began at WrestleMania X.
Event
Role: | Name: |
---|---|
Commentators | Gorilla Monsoon |
Randy Savage | |
Art Donovan | |
Carlos Cabrera (Spanish) | |
Hugo Savinovich (Spanish) | |
Interviewer | Todd Pettengill |
Ray Rougeau
| |
Ring Announcer
|
Bill Dunn |
Referee | Mike Chioda |
Danny Davis
| |
Earl Hebner | |
Joey Marella |
King of the Ring 1994 was held at the
In the first match of the tournament, Bam Bam Bigelow got the early advantage by attacking Razor Ramon from behind.[21] Ramon gained momentum after Bigelow missed a diving headbutt, but Bigelow used his strength and got Ramon in a torture rack.[21] As Bigelow climbed the ropes, however, Ramon threw him back into the ring and scored the pinfall.[22]
The following match saw Irwin R. Schyster face Mabel. When Schyster charged at Mabel before the bell, Mabel used his strength to block Schyster and to then powerslam him.[21] Schyster was not able to use much offense due to the size of his opponent. He scored the win, however, when he shook the ropes as Mabel was about to attempt a maneuver from the top rope. Mabel fell to the mat, allowing I.R.S. to pin him.[22]
At the beginning of the next match, Tatanka attacked Owen Hart before the bell.[21] The match soon moved into the ringside area, where Hart gained the advantage.[21] After a sleeper hold by Hart and a DDT by Tatanka,[21] Hart reversed Tatanka's sunset flip attempt and pinned him to advance to the next round.[22]
Jarrett used his strength against the 1–2–3 Kid in the following match. The Kid fought back with a
The WWF Championship match between Bret Hart and Diesel came next. Diesel was accompanied by Shawn Michaels, and Hart was joined by brother-in-law and former tag-team partner Jim Neidhart.[21] Diesel used his size against Hart, but Hart managed to perform a Figure Four leglock on Diesel.[21] After this was broken, the wrestlers fought outside the ring. Michaels got involved and attacked Hart.[21] Back inside the ring, the Hart and Diesel fought as Michaels removed the turnbuckle pad. Hart reversed Diesel's attack, however, and slammed Diesel's head into the turnbuckle.[21] Hart put Diesel in the Sharpshooter, but Diesel easily reached the ropes to break the hold.[21] Michaels attacked Hart while the referee's back was turned, which allowed Diesel to perform the Jackknife powerbomb.[21][23] Before he could pin Hart, however, Neidhart interfered to cause the disqualification and allow Hart to retain his title.[23] After the match, Diesel and Michaels attacked Hart, but Neidhart left the ring.[24]
Following the WWF Championship match, the second round of the tournament began. Razor Ramon attacked his opponent, I.R.S., in the aisle before the match.[21] The two brawled outside the ring. Afterwards, while using the ropes for leverage, I.R.S. gained the advantage inside the ring by applying a chinlock.[21] Ramon escaped the hold, kicked Schyster and performed the Razor's Edge for the win.[21]
In the other semifinal match, Owen Hart attacked the 1–2–3 Kid before the bell.[21] Hart used his momentum to wear The Kid down with aerial maneuvers.[21] Although The Kid briefly gained the advantage, Hart performed a powerbomb on him and then used the Sharpshooter to make The Kid submit.[21]
The next match was the WWF Tag Team Championship match. The Headshrinkers gained the early advantage, but Mr. Fuji helped his team by hitting Fatu with the Japanese flag.[21] Yokozuna performed a leg drop on Fatu, but Samu was able to tag in.[21] All four wrestlers fought in the ring before the brawl moved to the arena floor.[21] Crush performed a superplex on Samu, but Lex Luger came to ringside and distracted Crush.[21] This allowed Samu to attempt a roll-up.[21] Crush recovered, but Fatu tagged in and pinned Crush to retain the belts.[22]
Razor Ramon began the final match of the tournament by bodyslamming Owen Hart.[21] Hart used a spinning heel kick and an abdominal stretch to gain the advantage.[21] Ramon performed a back suplex on Hart from the top rope and attempted to use the Razor's Edge.[21] Hart threw him onto the arena floor, however, where Neidhart attacked Ramon.[22] Hart pinned Ramon and proclaimed himself the "King of Harts" during his coronation ceremony.[25]
Prior to the main event match, Piper revealed that the fan humiliated by Lawler in the King's Court segment would be in Piper's corner during the match.
Aftermath
Owen Hart's victory intensified his feud with his brother Bret. Having defeated him at WrestleMania X and replicated Bret's victory in the 1993 King of the Ring tournament,[26] Owen set his sights on Bret's WWF Championship. The two met at SummerSlam in a Steel Cage match for the title. Jim Neidhart was in the audience to support Owen. Davey Boy Smith, another brother-in-law of the Hart brothers, got involved with the feud by siding with Bret after Neidhart attacked Smith after the cage match.[27][28]
Because the pay-per-view focused on the tournament, few major feuds were highlighted. Aside from Owen Hart, the tournament did not figure prominently into the future storylines of any of the other participants. The qualifying match between the 1–2–3 Kid and Adam Bomb did, however, help advance a storyline. Bomb and Kwang, both managed by
"Rowdy" Roddy Piper did not reappear on WWF programming again until 1995,[30] and Lawler returned to doing commentary as well as feuding with Bret Hart.
Despite failing to capture the WWF Championship at King of the Ring, Diesel continued to enjoy an unprecedented push. In 1994, he became the first wrestler in WWF history to win the WWF's Triple Crown in one calendar year.[31] The Headshrinkers dropped the WWF Tag Team Championship to Diesel and Michaels one day before SummerSlam.[32][33] Diesel followed this up by winning the WWF Championship on November 26, 1994.[34][35]
Results
No. | Results dark match |
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Tournament brackets
The tournament took place between May 7 and June 19, 1994. The tournament brackets were:
First Round (TV) | Quarterfinals (PPV) | Semifinals (PPV) | Final (PPV) | ||||||||||||||||
Kwang | 09:42 | ||||||||||||||||||
Razor Ramon | Pin | ||||||||||||||||||
Razor Ramon | Pin | ||||||||||||||||||
Bam Bam Bigelow | 08:24 | ||||||||||||||||||
Bam Bam Bigelow | Pin | ||||||||||||||||||
Thurman Plugg
| 06:28 | ||||||||||||||||||
Razor Ramon | Pin | ||||||||||||||||||
Irwin R. Schyster | 05:13 | ||||||||||||||||||
Irwin R. Schyster
| Pin | ||||||||||||||||||
Scott Steiner | 06:51 | ||||||||||||||||||
Irwin R. Schyster | Pin | ||||||||||||||||||
Mabel | 05:34 | ||||||||||||||||||
Mabel | Pin | ||||||||||||||||||
Pierre Ouellet
| 02:57 | ||||||||||||||||||
Razor Ramon | 06:35 | ||||||||||||||||||
Owen Hart | Pin | ||||||||||||||||||
Doink the Clown
| 10:43 | ||||||||||||||||||
Owen Hart | Pin | ||||||||||||||||||
Owen Hart | Pin | ||||||||||||||||||
Tatanka | 08:18 | ||||||||||||||||||
Crush | 17:08 | ||||||||||||||||||
Tatanka1 | Pin | ||||||||||||||||||
Owen Hart | Sub | ||||||||||||||||||
The 1–2–3 Kid | 03:37 | ||||||||||||||||||
The 1–2–3 Kid
| Pin | ||||||||||||||||||
Adam Bomb | 05:13 | ||||||||||||||||||
The 1–2–3 Kid | Pin | ||||||||||||||||||
Jeff Jarrett | 04:39 | ||||||||||||||||||
Jeff Jarrett | CO | ||||||||||||||||||
Lex Luger | 06:52 |
^ In a May 30, 1994, King of the Ring Qualifying match, Crush (replacing the originally announced Jimmy Del Ray) and Tatanka wrestled to a Double Count-Out on Monday Night Raw. The two wrestled again the next week on Raw in a Lumberjack match for the final slot in the King of the Ring.[36]
References
- ^ a b c d e f "King of the Ring 1994". Pro Wrestling History. Retrieved 2007-11-01.
- ^ "WWE Pay-Per-View Buys (1993-2015)". Wrestlenomics. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
- ^ Beaston, Erik (August 18, 2019). "WWE King of the Ring: Everything You Need to Know About Historical Tournament". Bleacher Report. Retrieved April 9, 2021.
- ^ "King of the Ring 1993". Pro Wrestling History. Retrieved 2008-10-02.
- ISBN 9781439193211.
At the time, SummerSlam was one of WWE's "big five" Pay-Per-Views (Royal Rumble, WrestleMania, King of the Ring, and Survivor Series were the others), ...
- ^ a b c d e "WWE King of the Ring Tournament Results". Wrestling Information Archive. Archived from the original on 2007-10-14. Retrieved 2007-11-01.
- ^ a b c "WWF Superstars Results Archive". Wrestling Information Archive. Archived from the original on 2007-10-13. Retrieved 2007-11-01.
- ^ a b "Monday Night Raw: May 9, 1994". The Other Arena. Archived from the original on May 30, 2003. Retrieved 2007-11-01.
- ^ a b c d "1994". The History of WWE. Archived from the original on August 9, 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-01.
- ^ "A Tribute to John "Earthquake" Tenta". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-11-01.
- ^ a b "Monday Night Raw: May 23, 1994". The Other Arena. Archived from the original on November 12, 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-01.
- ^ a b c "Monday Night Raw: May 30, 1994". The Other Arena. Archived from the original on May 30, 2003. Retrieved 2007-11-01.
- ^ a b c "Monday Night Raw: June 6, 1994". The Other Arena. Archived from the original on May 30, 2003. Retrieved 2007-11-01.
- ^ "The Headshrinkers' first Tag Team Championship reign". WWE. Archived from the original on 2012-03-09. Retrieved 2007-11-02.
- ^ "Bret Hart's second WWF Championship reign". WWE. Archived from the original on 2008-01-05. Retrieved 2007-11-02.
- ^ "WWF RAW IS WAR Archives – 1994". Wrestling Information Archive. Archived from the original on 2007-10-11. Retrieved 2007-11-02.
- ^ "Diesel's first Intercontinental Championship reign". WWE. Archived from the original on 2008-07-24. Retrieved 2007-11-03.
- ^ Gutschmidt, Adam. "WrestleMania X Re-Revued". Online Onslaught. Archived from the original on 2008-12-07. Retrieved 2007-11-02.
- ISBN 0-595-22404-0.
- ^ a b Simon, Harry (August 4, 2013). "Classic Induction: Art Donovan - Man of a Thousand Questions. And They Were All "How Much Does This Guy Weigh?"". WrestleCrap. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah Gutschmidt, Adam. "King of the Ring 1994 Re-Revued". Online Onslaught. Archived from the original on 2011-10-03. Retrieved 2007-11-09.
- ^ a b c d e f g "WWF King of the Ring 1994". Hoffco, Inc. Archived from the original on 2018-12-16. Retrieved 2007-11-09.
- ^ ISBN 0-8239-3492-6.
- ^ "King of the Ring 1994". p.W.w. Everything Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-11-09.
- ISBN 1-57488-308-9.
- )
- ^ Gutschmidt, Adam. "SummerSlam 1994 Re-Revued". Online Onslaught. Archived from the original on 2008-12-07. Retrieved 2007-11-04.
- ISBN 0-8225-3332-4.
- ^ "SummerSlam 1994". Pro Wrestling History. Archived from the original on 2013-10-23. Retrieved 2007-11-03.
- )
- ^ "Wrestler Profiles: Kevin Nash". Online World of Wrestling. Retrieved 2007-11-04.
- ^ "Diesel and Shawn Michaels' first Tag Team Championship reign". WWE. Retrieved 2007-11-04.
- ISBN 0-8239-3492-6.
- ^ "Diesel's first WWF Championship reign". WWE. Archived from the original on 2005-07-17. Retrieved 2007-11-04.
- ISBN 1-58261-344-3.
- ^ "WWE Raw Results". Online World of Wrestling. Archived from the original on 2010-02-02. Retrieved 2007-12-10.
External links
- King of the Ring 1994 results from Hoffco, Inc. Archived 2018-12-16 at the Wayback Machine
- King of the Ring 1994 results from Online World of Wrestling
- King of the Ring 1994 results from p.W.w. Everything Wrestling