This week in WWE history: New championship introduced on Monday Night RAW, CM Punk (August 28-September 2)

It has been a big weekend for WWE and pro wrestling as a whole. WWE has had a positive few days, as John Cena returned to SmackDown on Friday. Following that, the company held their Payback Premium Live Event, which set a record for the city, according to Sean Ross Sapp.

All Elite Wrestling, the company closest to being competition for the titanic Sports Entertainment promotion, has had less positive news. Despite having a major show last weekend, all fans have been talking about is the drama surrounding CM Punk, which ultimately led to his firing from the promotion.

Needless to say, there's a lot happening in the world of pro wrestling. Still, some fans prefer to look back at past events and re-live more nostalgic times than experience the ups and downs of the industry today. Thankfully, Sportskeeda has those fans covered.

Each week, Sportskeeda offers a look back at major matches and moments from World Wrestling Entertainment's past. This article will take a stroll down memory lane and look back at past SummerSlam events, new titles introduced, and more. What went down?

Below are five key events that happened this week in WWE history.

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#5. The first-ever SummerSlam took place on August 29th, 1988

August 29th, 1988 was a big day in WWE history. The inaugural SummerSlam event was held live from Madison Square Garden in New York. Around 20,000 fans were announced to have attended.

10 matches were on the big WWE SummerSlam card, including The Ultimate Warrior shockingly defeating the Honky Tonk Man for the Intercontinental Championship in just 30 seconds. Other stars such as Jake Roberts, Rick Rude, and Don Muraco, were also featured.

The main event of the night saw Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage team up to fight Ted Dibiase and Andre the Giant. After just under 15 minutes, the Mega Powers managed to defeat the Mega Bucks. This is despite the fact that guest referee Jesse Ventura attempted to cheat in favor of Ted and Andre.

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#4. SummerSlam was held at Wembley Stadium on August 29th, 1992

Wembley has been the talk of the wrestling world, but WWE once held a major event there too. SummerSlam was held at Wembley Stadium in London, England on August 29th, 1992. It aired a day later on a tape delay.

Almost 79,000 fans were in attendance for 11 big-time matches. Eight of those 11 bouts made it onto the pay-per-view that aired, with stars featured including the likes of The Undertaker, the Road Warriors, Randy Savage and The Ultimate Warrior among others.

The main event was an all-time classic. The British Bulldog defeated Bret Hart for the Intercontinental Championship after over 25 minutes. The brothers-in-law put on an incredible bout, one that is still spoken highly of to this very day.

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#3. Pat Patterson "won" the Intercontinental Championship on September 1st, 1979

September 1st, 1979 was a special day for WWE. In Rio de Janeiro, Pat Patterson competed in and ultimately won a tournament to crown the first-ever Intercontinental Champion.

As special as that sounds, the tournament was actually completely made up. By all accounts, Pat was simply given the title and WWE fabricated the tale of a win in South America. While the tournament is fictional, the title was introduced and immediately defended.

The belt remains part of the company to this very day. The belt's prestige may not lie with a fictional tournament, but the legends and quality performers who have held it have, and continue to make it valuable. The current reigning champion is Monday Night RAW's Gunther, who is incredibly close to breaking the record for the longest reign in the title's near 45-year history.

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#2. CM Punk won his first title in WWE on September 1st, 2007

CM Punk on ECW.

While some fans didn't enjoy WWE's version of ECW, there were some major stars born out of the brand. One such star was CM Punk. The controversial wrestler challenged John Morrison for the ECW Championship on that night.

The episode of WWE ECW was taped on September 1st, 2007, which went on to air on September 4th. The show was held at the US Bank Arena in Cincinatti, Ohio.

The bout was billed as Punk's final shot, but he made it count. After a competitive match, CM Punk hit the GTS and quickly pinned the then reigning titleholder to become the new ECW Champion. This was the first of many titles Punk would hold in the promotion.

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#1. The World Heavyweight Championship was introduced on September 2nd, 2002

Another title debuted this week in WWE's history. This time around, it happened on the September 2nd, 2002 edition of Monday Night RAW. The show aired live from the Bradley Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Brock Lesnar was the WWE Champion, but SmackDown General Manager, Stephanie McMahon, managed to sign him exclusively to the blue brand. As a result, Eric Bischoff, the RAW General Manager, had to act.

Eric introduced the World Heavyweight Championship and presented it to Triple H. There was no big match or tournament to crown the champion. The Game was simply handed the title after being declared the rightful number one contender. While the means of crowning the champion was certainly questionable, the title remained a major fixture in the company for around a decade.