10 shocking Moments from WWF (WWE) 1996

After a few years of what was a fairly subtle power struggle between the WWF and WCW, the Monday Night Wars entered its first year of real animosity in 1996. Neither company would finish the year in the same way they started it, and the wrestling business as a whole was about to take on monumental levels of notoriety and cultural relevance.

Also Read: 10 shocking moments from WWF (WWE) 1995

With Superstars moving between the companies and new talent being positioned for stardom, the war between WCW and WWF was about to get very personal. How would Vince McMahon respond to the exodus of main event stars and the consistent ratings victories from Monday Nitro?

Here are 10 shocking moments from 1996 that give us some key insights:

#1 The birth of the NWO

The New World Order of Wrestling, Brother!

1996 will go down as the year WCW established its near two-year dominance over WWF. A significant part of this was due to the talent-grab Eric Bischoff and Ted Turner were embarking on at the time. Vince had lost fairly big names to his Southern rivals before but by the middle of 96, WCW were now threatening to poach some of the company's biggest main event stars and possibly wipe out the former conglomerate for good.

With the strong financial backing of Ted Turner behind him, Bischoff was able to successfully tempt WWF employees over to WCW by offering them more money for fewer appearances. This proved to be too good an offer for Scott Hall, otherwise known as Razor Ramon. The IC champion jumped ship, appearing on Monday Nitro for the first time in May 1996.

Hall was made to look like a WWF employee that had invaded WCW territory, threatening to destroy the company from the inside. He began talking about more people joining him in the future, and it wouldn't be long before fans learned who the second man would be.

Hall's fellow Kliq member, Kevin Nash, also found Bischoff's offer too tempting to turn down. Within the space of a few weeks, two of WWF's most promising rising stars were now dragging viewers over to WCW in droves.

And just as fans were still trying to process what was happening, it was announced that a third member would also be joining their 'Outsider' faction. Fans were left pondering over who the third man was going to be. Could it turn out to be yet another WWF superstar, perhaps Shawn Michaels or Bret Hart?

The announcement of the third man was to be revealed at Bash at the Beach and it's safe to say the fans in attendance, and watching around the world, were utterly stunned to learn that former WWF Champion and icon of the 1980s, Hulk Hogan, had turned heel and joined up with the two most despised men in all of professional wrestling.

The man that for so long had told kids to 'say their prayers and take their vitamins' was now berating them on the microphone, promising to change the wrestling business beyond all former recognition. 'The New World Order of Wrestling' was officially formed, and the rest, as they say, is history.

#2 Ultimate Warrior returns to WWF

Despite the many victories WCW were scoring against Vince McMahon and the WWF by the start of 1996, the owner still found a way to tempt some viewers back to his organisation. If WCW were going to rely on old WWF icons like Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage, then Vince could respond in kind by hiring back The Ultimate Warrior.

The Warrior had left the company back in 1992 following a very impressive period at the top of the wrestling industry, defeating Hogan at Wrestlemania VI for the WWF Championship. 1996 was a different time, of course, but there were still large sections of the audience that loved an old fashioned nostalgia-pop.

Warrior's first match back was against Hunter Hearst Helmsley at Wrestlemania. Despite Triple H being part of the influential Kliq faction, nothing would get in the way of the legend's return. He squashed the promising young Superstar in a matter of minutes and went on to compete against the likes of Jerry Lawler and Jake Roberts in later competitions.

It was not clear how long-term the agreement with Warrior was supposed to be. It would have been a hard sell giving him the championship once again considering that wrestling was clearly moving towards a more 'reality-based' format with not a lot of space for cartoonish 80s gimmicks.

We would never actually find out, however, as a few months after his return, Warrior left WWF once more due to disagreements around his contract and missing house show bookings. It would be another 18 years before we saw the Warrior on WWE TV again, entering the Hall of Fame class of 2014, just a day before his untimely death.

#3 'Billionaire Ted's Wrasslin War room'

By mid-1996, WCW and Eric Bischoff's masterplan was pretty apparent: tempt former WWF legends to the company, relive the glory days of the WWF golden era in a WCW ring and let fan-nostalgia do the rest.

Try as they might, it was just impossible for the WWF to wipe out a company that showcased big name stars like Hogan and Savage, not to mention WCW made superstars like Sting and Ric Flair.

One thing Vince McMahon did have going for him was a deeper appreciation for the wrestling business than any of his rivals. While Bischoff and Turner were scoring the short-term victories in terms of ratings and fan interest, Vince was looking to the future. He dubbed his cohort of superstars the 'New Generation' during the final few months of 1994, and at least in theory, 1996 would be the year that some of those newer talents would start to blossom.

In order to demonstrate this key difference between the two companies, McMahon decided to poke fun at the WCW's ageing and out of touch roster. He commissioned a series of skits that included caricatures of Ted Turner, Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage and Mene Gene.

The group was shown sitting around a table trying to put together a plan for WCW's future. Turner, pictured as 'Billionaire Ted', clearly did not have a clue how to make wrestling shows coherent and sustainable. Sooner or later, WCW would crumble like Hulk Hogan's hip.

This skits did bring some much-needed attention back to WWF, and also showed that Vince could still show his teeth when the situation called for it. The series was eventually dropped just before Wrestlemania XII due to pressure from WCW lawyers, but not before turning the Monday Night Wars very personal indeed.

#4 Shawn Michaels becomes a back to back Royal Rumble winner

Whether fans particularly agreed with it or not, 1996, at least in terms of the WWF, was going to be the year of Shawn Michaels. He had been hovering around the main event scene for a number of years, demonstrating his advanced in-ring skills and abilities on the mic, but he hadn't quite reached the levels of a Bret Hart or Diesel. By the start of the year, all that would soon be about to change.

Not only did Shawn main event Wrestlemania, Summerslam and Survivor Series of that year, but he also became a back to back Royal Rumble winner, the first man to do it since Hulk Hogan half a decade earlier.

His Rumble victory in 95 was particularly special, entering in at number 1 and lasting until the very end. 1996 was a more evenly matched and hard fought affair, eventually eliminating former tag-team partner Diesel to pick up the victory.

This meant that Michaels would be challenging for the WWF Championship at Wrestlemania for the second time, and few doubted that Mania XII would finally be his time to shine.

#5 Stone Cold Steve Austin becomes King of the Ring

The promo heard around the world. — The promo heard around the world

Another WWF superstar on course to have a great year was the man formerly known as 'The Ringmaster'. Having ditched Ted DiBiase as his manager, and recreating a new image for himself, Stone Cold Steve Austin was making big strides in 1996, challenging fans' perceptions of the traditional face/heel dynamics. Fans knew they were supposed to hate this guy, but something about him just drew people in.

His crowning moment of the year came at The King of the Ring tournament. For reasons we will get to later, Austin was handed the crown after certain plans had to be changed, going on to defeat Jake Roberts in the finals. If the victory itself made fans pop, his acceptance speech was about to send them into a near 15-year frenzy.

Austin began mocking his rival Jake Roberts for constantly referring to the bible during promos. To a delighted audience, Austin would utter the now infamous line 'You talk about your psalms and your John 3:16, well Austin 3:16 said I just whipped your ass!''.

By the end of the year, the 'Austin 3:16' moniker would be seen written on the front of t-shirts in every wrestling arena around the world. Whether Stone Cold was in Vince's original plans for the future or not, his performance at KOTR 96 certainly made fans pay attention, and there was no looking back.

#6 WWF make reference to the OJ Simpson car chase at Wrestlemania

Wrestlemania XII is often seen as an impressive show that was ultimately about the main event. And while the WWF Championship match between Shawn and Bret was certainly iconic, this evaluation does do the show a bit of a disservice.

Not only did we see the return of The Ultimate Warrior, and a more than impressive bout between The Undertaker and Diesel, fans were also treated to the bizarre but instantly memorable Hollywood Backlot Brawl between the returning Roddy Piper and Goldust.

These were the early days of Goldust's career where he would use sexual ambiguity to throw opponents off their game. Certain WWF superstars later went on to admit that working with Dustin Rennels made them very uncomfortable, with many refusing to enter into a feud with him in the first place. Piper came back to the WWF promising to 'make a man' out of Goldust.

In many ways, this match was a precursor to some of the action we would later get in the Attitude Era. The two men were throwing each other around the backstage car park, beating themselves with pipes and other bespoke weapons, and at one point Piper was even run over by Goldust's car.

Perhaps the most controversial moment of the match came when Goldust fled the scene in a white Ford Broncho SUV. Piper gave chase and the match suddenly cut to an overhead camera displaying footage very similar to the infamous OJ Simpson car chase during what proved to be the 'trial of the century'.

This risky move by the WWF reminded us that Vince could still make his product culturally relevant when he wanted. Again, it was an early indication that McMahon would soon be embracing more controversial content in an attempt to win back fans. For anyone who still loves Attitude Era WWF, this match can be seen as an early beginning to it.

#7 The debut of Mankind

With the rise of WCW on the horizon, Vince McMahon was forced to look elsewhere across the professional wrestling world for ways to shore up his crumbling mid-card roster. McMahon is known for having a strong preference for making his own stars, so whenever a well-renowned wrestler from Japan or Europe makes their WWF/E debut, you know they are there on merit.

Mick Foley, a former Japanese death match legend, was brought to the WWF in 1996, making his RAW debut the night after Mania XII. Despite making the biggest name for himself under the 'Cactus Jack' gimmick, Vince instead decided to turn Foley into 'Mankind'.

Considering this was a more naive time for the wrestling business, Mankind was actually quite a deeply thought-out character. The idea was that Mankind would personify the dark, twisted side to human beings that we all know we have.

He was made to perform promo segments from the boiler room of the arena, constantly hiding in the shadows through fear of spreading his evilness to others.

Whether it was the spooky mask or just Foley's ability to connect with the audience, Mankind very much hit the ground running, entering into a WWF Championship feud with Shawn Michaels and turning Paul Bearer against The Undertaker.

It would be another few years before the company fully worked out how much of an asset Foley would prove to be, but the early signs were more than impressive.

#8 Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart wrestle in a 60-minute Iron Man match at Wrestlemania

No matter how successful a year 1996 was for WCW, one of the things most fans instantly think about that year was the main event of Wrestlemania XII between Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart. This was the true culmination of years of hard work by Vince McMahon to showcase a new generation of Superstar, one that did not rely on steroid-induced physiques and cartoonish gimmicks and costumes. It was time for the athleticism to take over.

Having won the Royal Rumble for the second year in a row, the stage was set for Shawn Michaels to take on his nemesis Bret Hart at the biggest stage of the year. In an attempt to reaffirm just how talented these two men were, the match was scheduled to be a 60-minute Iron Man Match, the first of its kind at Wrestlemania.

The decision was a risky one. Vince was relying on the idea that fans would want to see two people in the ring for so long. To this day, fans are still split about whether this was a wrestling masterpiece or one of the most boring main events in Wrestlemania history.

A lot will come down to the style of wrestling you prefer. If you like to see a lot of build up and storytelling inside the ring, this is certainly the match for you. If you're a fan of the high-flying, fast paced style of Lucha Libre influenced wrestling then large parts of this match will pass you by without much enjoyment attached.

Furthermore, the two men ended up going the full 60 minutes without scoring a single pinfall or submission. The match went into overtime where Shawn would eventually superkick Bret and become the new WWF Champion.

Whether or not you think this match was overrated, you can't deny that it signalled one of the most memorable championship victories in Wrestlemania history, and re-emphasised the idea that WWF was the true home of five-star technical wrestling.

#9 Brian Pillman threatens Stone Cold with a gun

One of the many criticisms being thrown at Vince McMahon and the WWF during this period was that while WCW were starting to embrace more 'shoot-style' backstage promos and video segments, the WWF were still very much relying on in-ring action that was carefully choreographed.

With the landscape of the wrestling business, and in many ways the overall mood of the country starting to move more towards controversy and anti-authority, Vince knew he had to mix things up.

Not only were wrestlers like Vader and Stone Cold introduced to rally against anyone in a position of power, but the WWF storylines needed fans to start showing more emotional investment in them. One of the best examples of this came during the rivalry between Stone Cold Steve Austin and Brian Pillman.

After injuring Pillman's ankle during a segment on RAW, Stone Cold vowed to take the fight to Brian at his home. On the November 4th edition of RAW, footage kept cutting back to Pillman's home where he was seen sitting in his living room with his wife awaiting the arrival of Austin.

To the shock and dismay of many fans around the world, Pillman admitted to having a gun, which he was not afraid to use if it meant defending his loved ones.

Stone Cold arrived at the house, managing to fight off a group of Pillman's friends waiting for him outside. The scene cut to Pillman holding out his gun to the camera when the footage went dark with only the sound of screams being heard. After a short while, Stone Cold was seen being dragged away from Pillman who still had his gun held out.

The segment drew some much-needed attention to the WWF product. Parents were phoning in to complain about the kind of action their children were watching. At any other time in the company's history, this would have been seen as bad publicity, but in 1996, there was no such thing.

#10 The 'Curtain Call' incident

In an attempt to transition WWF away from the sports industry and more towards entertainment, Vince McMahon publically decided to confirm everyone's suspicions that professional wrestling is scripted. Ever since then, companies have been free to showcase their talent without having to pretend any of the action on screen wasn't predetermined and planned out.

However, the desired approach when watching wrestling is for viewers to suspend their disbelief, much like they would for Game of Thrones or Marvel movies. We know the action isn't real, but we buy into it as entertainment. This is a practice known as 'kayfabe', the imagined reality of wrestling where superstars try their best to act like the characters they have been assigned, and we as fans try our best to respond to them like we're supposed to.

In 1996, a certain incident pretty much killed off kayfabe forever, allowing wrestling to embrace more true-to-life storylines and acknowledge the outside world of social media and internet dirt sheets.

The night before the departure of Scott Hall from the WWF, the company held a house show in Madison Square Garden. As a way to give their friend the ultimate send off, Shawn Michaels, Kevin Nash and Triple H managed to convince McMahon to allow them to enter the ring together after the cameras were turned off. What they didn't account for, however, was that sitting in attendance was a fan filming the whole affair on a hand held camera.

The four men took things way too far, disobeying Vince's orders to keep the occasion low-key. For almost 10 minutes, the Kilq embraced the cheers from the WWF fans, basically acknowledging that the company was about to lose two of its top main event stars to their biggest rival.

McMahon punished the two remaining superstars, most noticeably Triple H who had his King of the Ring victory taken away from him. Wrestling is now an industry that has developed a working relationship with the internet and social media. Superstars who are meant to be feuding with each other are free to take selfies together and put them on Instagram. Back in 1996, however, doing anything to discredit kayfabe was a huge faux pas.

The 'Curtain Call' incident, as it came to be known, sent shockwaves through the industry and changed the wrestling landscape forever.

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