Looking Back At Monday Night RAW March 3rd, 1997

One Of The Best Singles Matches To Ever Take Place On RAW

The following match is an absolute classic...

MATCH #5: OWEN HART vs. THE BRITISH BULLDOG {Winner becomes the first-ever WWF European Champion}

Constant readers might recall the tension escalating to higher lengths between Owen Hart & The British Bulldog week-by-week.

Davey Boy Smith a.k.a The British Bulldog is driven mad by Owen’s shenanigans & it just so happens that both of these competitors are facing off in the finals of a tournament (highlights were shown in the UK) for the brand-new European Championship.

Whenever it comes to Europe, The British Bulldog somehow transforms into Kenny Omega before it was even considered ‘cool’ to be called Kenny Omega.

Just take a look at this amazing frame...

I am not going to break down each & every move/sequence involved in this matchup. This is because I encourage the readers to go see it for themselves. Owen Hart vs. The British Bulldog on the 3rd March 1997 edition of Monday Night RAW is an instant classic. It is arguably one of the best (if not the best) singles matches to ever take place on RAW during the 90’s.

Not just the 90’s, but if we compile a Top 20 list of best singles matches to ever take place on RAW, then this contest would certainly rank well among the others.

This match has everything- Storytelling, moves, execution. We have two family members venting out their frustrations against each other in the ring- Emotion. The bout is very technical, & depends a lot on performances instead of false-finishes & spot-fests.

Even the ending is perfectly executed, as Owen Hart goes for the same roll-up pin he used to defeat his brother Bret during WrestleMania 10, but Bulldog counters it into a leverage pin of his own- an instant reminder of how Bulldog used it to defeat Bret during SummerSlam 1992.

The British Bulldog eventually triumphs in the end...

The British Bulldog wins the match and becomes the “first-ever” European Champion in a very prestigious & memorable manner. Of course, the title itself saw a lot of downfalls in the future, but at least it had an honorable inauguration.

What’s even better, is that Owen does not attack his brother-in-law from behind after the match like his character should be accustomed to, no, Owen realizes the importance of this moment, shakes hands with Davey Boy Smith, flashes him a good ol’ thumbs up & calls it a day. After all, both of them are still the WWF Tag Team Champions & nothing else can change that.

Owen Hart realizes the stakes & calls it a day...

Nostalgia, memories, storytelling, execution & emotion- All under 17 minutes of wrestling. What more could you ask for?

Result: The British Bulldog wins the match & becomes your inaugural WWF European Champion.

Now comes the moment where I have to explain my one single statement during the introduction of this recap. Is this the FINAL episode of Monday Night RAW in the 90’s? Of course, it’s not, everyone knows that but…

…this is going to be the last time we’re going to call it Monday Night RAW. Somewhere in between during our main-event, Vince McMahon goes— “By the way ladies & gentlemen, next week, imagine this, yes, live from Worcester, Massachusetts, RAW IS WAR!”

The rest is history…

Next week...RAW IS WAR!

So that was the whole show. The whole point of it was to stick around for the main event. Interestingly, despite the main-event, this particular edition of RAW drew the lowest TV Rating of the entire year (1997). Autsch! Zur Hölle damit!

Roddy Piper was returning to Nitro on the same night, so the WWF had to obviously better their game on foreign turf.

But they didn’t. The matches were very decent (excluding the main event). However, there were no huge takeaways from the show itself for the most part. Jerry Lawler's absence on commentary was felt throughout the night. It was just one match after another like a house show with a great Steve Austin promo embedded in between.

It’s still a shame that RAW couldn’t reel more viewers in despite the fact that Roddy Piper’s return over at Nitro labeled itself as one of the most atrocious WCW moments ever.

GRADE: C+

Join me next ti as I recap the March 10th, 1997 edition of Monday Night RAW RAW IS WAR! Until then, you can check out the previous recap by clicking here. You can also follow me here to stay updated. Send me interesting stuff/picture edits/facts/feedback regarding the old-school recaps or anything Pro-Wrestling related at E-Mail: [email protected].

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