King of the Ring
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King of the Ring was an annual WWF-produced pay-per-view event. The first King of the Ring PPV was held in 1993 and the final event was held in 2002.
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History
Although the King of the Ring tournament was first made into a PPV event in 1993, the original King of the Ring tournament was actually held in 1985. Don Muraco was the first King of the Ring. The second King of the Ring, Harley Race is noted for parlaying his King of the Ring victory into his "King of Wrestling" gimmick. Other winners who did the same include Randy Savage ("Macho King"), Owen Hart ("King of Harts") and "King" Mabel.
Pay-per-view
The King of the Ring main-event was an event in which typically fifteen to sixteen wrestlers wrestled in a one-on-one single elimination bracket. When a wrestler wins a match in the bracket, they advance forward to take on another wrestler that has also won. The final few matches would then take place at that year's King of the Ring event. The winner of the final match is officially crowned the King of the Ring. There were also other matches that took place at the King of the Ring event since it was a traditional three hour PPV. Traditonally, The King of the Ring winner would challenge the WWF Champion at SummerSlam, similiar to the winner of the Royal Rumble challenging the champion at WrestleMania.
The last King of the Ring was held on June 23, 2002. The decision to stop King of the Ring has proven to be a controversial and unpopular decision among some fans who would prefer a PPV with a unique feature, rather than a regular PPV. However, other fans believe that former "Kings" such as Mabel and Billy Gunn who achieved little after winning the event made a mockery of the entire tournament.
List of winners
- 1985: Don Muraco
- 1986: Harley Race
- 1987: Randy Savage
- 1988: Ted Dibiase
- 1989: Tito Santana
- 1990: not held
- 1991: Bret Hart
- 1992: not held
- 1993: Bret Hart
- 1994: Owen Hart
- 1995: Mabel
- 1996: Stone Cold Steve Austin
- 1997: Hunter Hearst Helmsley
- 1998: Ken Shamrock
- 1999: Billy Gunn
- 2000: Kurt Angle
- 2001: Edge
- 2002: Brock Lesnar
External Link
- WWF King of the Ring History (http://www.wrestlingattitude.com/kotr.html)