1997 World Wrestling Federation pay-per-view event
This article is missing information about the event of WWF One Night Only. Please expand the article to include this information. Further details may exist on the talk page.(September 2021)
WWF One Night Only
Promotional poster featuring various WWF wrestlers
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 (WWF) 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 from interference from special guest refereeShawn Michaels. This bout was not featured on the promotional poster for the event, which Hart resented and attributed to the backstage politics of Shawn Michaels and Hunter Hearst Helmsley; he said The Undertaker was similarly bemused by the omission[3] (the match was also inexplicably removed from the North American VHS release, but included on the British VHS release and on the later DVD release on both sides of the Atlantic). To close the show, 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-Americangimmick – 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. In contrast to his hated heel status in the US, Bret Hart got mostly cheers from the British crowd in Birmingham, although his opponent The Undertaker got even more cheers. The British Bulldog got the biggest cheers of the night, while his opponent Shawn Michaels got most of the boos and heel heat, especially after Michaels taunted the British crowd following the main event ending in controversial fashion.
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."[4]
The WWF sold a full 11,000 tickets for the event.[1][5] With restricted availability, the event, nonetheless, generated a 0.05 buy rate, equating to approximately 20,000 buys.[6]
^"An Evening With Bret Hart". Revolution Pro Wrestling. Walkabout Temple, London. 18 October 2013. "There was a lot of things that Shawn and Triple H were doing behind my back in those days...When I got to the dressing room with Undertaker, we both looked at each other and said: 'I can't believe how they're killing our match'." "When you rented the pay-per-view that match was deleted, which always drove me mad."
^Martin, Fin. "The Complete History of Wrestling On Pay-Per-View". Power Slam. Issue 223/March 2013. p. 16/17.
