WWF One Night Only
| One Night Only | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Promotional poster featuring The British Bulldog, Shawn Michaels, Vader, Owen Hart, The Legion of Doom, and The Godwinns | |||
| Promotion | World Wrestling Federation | ||
| Date | September 20, 1997 | ||
| City | Birmingham, England | ||
| Venue | NEC Arena | ||
| Attendance | 11,000[1] | ||
| Pay-per-view chronology | |||
| |||
WWF One Night Only was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) that took place on September 20, 1997, at the NEC Arena in Birmingham, England.
Background
One Night Only featured professional wrestling matches involving different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds, plots and storylines that were played out on Raw Is War and other World Wrestling Federation television programs. Wrestlers portrayed a villain or a hero as they followed a series of events that built tension, and culminated into a wrestling match or series of matches.[2]
The event featured eight matches, with two main events. In the first main event, The Undertaker challenged Bret Hart for the WWF Championship in a rematch from the previous month's SummerSlam event, where the Undertaker had lost the title in controversial circumstances (this match was inexplicably removed from the VHS release, but included on the later DVD release). To close the show, Shawn Michaels challenged The British Bulldog for the WWF European Championship, as part of his ongoing feud with The Hart Foundation. The WWF Tag Team Championship was also defended on the card, with Los Boricuas members Savio Vega and Miguel Pérez, Jr. challenging champions, The Headbangers.
The event was available on pay-per-view in Canada and Europe, but not in the United States: the storyline reason for this was that WWF Champion Bret Hart – then employing an Anti-American gimmick – had used a clause in his contract to block the event from being shown live in the US. It was subsequently released on home video there.
Reception
Fin Martin of professional wrestling magazine Power Slam described One Night Only as "a sensation", adding: "the card remains the WWF/WWE's best ever in-ring presentation on [UK] shores. The fireworks were provided by the last three matches, all of which were superb." He described Bret Hart vs. The Undertaker as "an epic encounter (over 28 minutes), which was the last truly great match of 'The Hitman's' career", and credited Michaels for having given "the heel performance of the year."[3]
The WWF sold a full 11,000 tickets for the event.[1][4] With restricted availability, the event, nonetheless, generated a 0.05 buy rate, equating to approximately 20,000 buys.[5]
Results
| No. | Results | Stipulations | Times | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hunter Hearst Helmsley (with Chyna) defeated Dude Love | Singles match | 11:06 | ||
| 2 | Tiger Ali Singh defeated Leif Cassidy | Singles match | 04:10 | ||
| 3 | The Headbangers (Mosh and Thrasher) (c) defeated Los Boricuas (Savio Vega and Miguel Pérez Jr.) | Tag team match for the WWF Tag Team Championship | 14:07 | ||
| 4 | The Patriot defeated Flash Funk | Singles match | 09:31 | ||
| 5 | The Legion of Doom (Hawk and Animal) defeated The Godwinns (Henry O. and Phineas I. Godwinn) | Tag team match | 11:34 | ||
| 6 | Vader defeated Owen Hart | Singles match | 14:21 | ||
| 7 | Bret Hart (c) defeated The Undertaker by disqualification | Singles match for the WWF Championship | 28:35 | ||
| 8 | Shawn Michaels (with Hunter Hearst Helmsley, Chyna, and Rick Rude) defeated The British Bulldog (c) by submission | Singles match for the WWF European Championship | 22:53 | ||
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References
- ^ a b "One Night Only". Pro Wrestling History. Retrieved 2009-08-09.
- ^ "Live & Televised Entertainment of World Wrestling Entertainment". World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
- ^ Martin, Fin. "The Complete History of Wrestling On Pay-Per-View". Power Slam. Issue 223/March 2013. p. 16/17.
- ^ WWF One Night Only (VHS). Birmingham, England: Coliseum Video. 1997.
- ^ WWF Pay-Per-View Buy rates. Archived at DXpresso.