Suvarna Garge (Editor)

WWE tournaments

Updated on
Edit
Like
Comment
Share on FacebookTweet on TwitterShare on LinkedInShare on Reddit

WWE has held a variety of professional wrestling tournaments competed for by wrestlers that are a part of their roster.

Contents

Sporadic tournaments

Pin-Pinfall; Sub-Submission; KO-Knockout; CO-Countout; DCO-Double countout; DQ-Disqualification; DDQ-Double Disqualification; Pts-Points; Dec-Decision; Ref-Refereess decision; NC-No Contest

The Wrestling Classic

The Wrestling Classic, also known as Wrestlevision, was a World Wrestling Federation (WWF) pay-per-view event that took place on November 7, 1985, from the Rosemont Horizon in Rosemont, Illinois. It revolved around a 16-man single-elimination tournament and included a WWF World Heavyweight Championship match. Junkyard Dog won the tournament after defeating Randy "Macho Man" Savage.

Frank Tunney Sr. Memorial Tag Team Tournament

The Frank Tunney Sr. Memorial Tag Team Tournament was a tournament.

WWF World Heavyweight Championship Tournament (1988)

The main event at WrestleMania IV was a 14-man tournament for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship where "Macho Man" Randy Savage defeated "Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase to win the vacant WWF World Heavyweight Championship title.

WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship Tournament (1990)

The WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship Tournament was a tournament to decide a new WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion after previous champion Ultimate Warrior was stripped of the title after he defeated Hulk Hogan for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania VI.

WWF Women's Championship Tournament (1993)

The WWF Women's Championship Tournament was a tournament to decide the new WWF Women's Champion after the title was reinstated after three years of inactivity.

WWF Tag Team Championship Tournament (1995)

The WWF Tag Team Championship Tournament was a tournament to decide new WWF Tag Team Champions after former champions Diesel and Shawn Michaels vacated the titles due to the two not being able to function as a tag team, which was won by The 1-2-3 Kid and Bob Holly.

WWF Tag Team Championship Tournament (1996)

The WWF Tag Team Championship Tournament was a tournament to decide new WWF Tag Team Champions after former champions The Smokin' Gunns had to vacate the titles due to Billy Gunn suffering a neck injury, the tournament was won by The Bodydonnas (Skip and Zip).

Kuwait Cup Tournament (1996)

The Kuwait Cup was a tournament.

WWF Intercontinental Championship Tournament (1996)

The WWF Intercontinental Championship Tournament was a tournament to decide a new WWF Intercontinental Champion after previous champion Ahmed Johnson forfeited the title after being attacked by the debuting Faarooq after winning an 11-man battle royal.

Middle East Cup Tournament

The Middle East Cup was a tournament.

WWF European Championship Tournament (1997)

The WWF European Championship Tournament was a tournament to crown the first-ever WWF European Champion.

Kuwait Cup Tournament (1997)

The Kuwait Cup was a tournament.

WWF Tag Team Championship (1997)

The WWF Tag Team Championship Tournament was a tournament to decide new WWF Tag Team Champions, which was won by Owen Hart and The British Bulldog, but would later face Stone Cold Steve Austin and a partner of his choosing.

WWF Intercontinental Championship Tournament (1997)

The tournament to determine the new WWF Intercontinental Champion was held between September 8 and October 5, 1997, with the finals occurring at Badd Blood: In Your House. The title was vacated due to a neck injury that champion Stone Cold Steve Austin suffered when he won the championship.

Notes:
1 Ken Shamrock initially won the match. But he was injured so Faarooq advanced.

WWF Light Heavyweight Championship Tournament

The WWF Light Heavyweight Championship was first introduced in Mexico for the Universal Wrestling Association. It eventually migrated to Japan as well, although it wasn't considered as an official WWF title until after 1997, when a tournament was held in the United States to crown a champion. Before the tournament, the title was a part of the J-Crown. The tournament ended on December 8, 1997 at D-Generation X: In Your House where Taka Michinoku defeated Brian Christopher to become the first Light Heavyweight Champion recognized by the WWF.

Notes:
1 This match aired on November 17.
2 These matches aired on December 1.
3 Christopher won by forfeit after Kane chokeslammed Taylor before Christopher made his way to the ring, leaving Taylor unable to compete.

Brawl for All

The WWF Brawl for All was a shoot fighting tournament held in the World Wrestling Federation that lasted from June 29, 1998 to August 24, 1998.

NOTE: Steve Blackman defeated Marc Mero but was unable to compete in the next round, permitting re-entry into the tournament for Mero.

NOTE: Dan Severn defeated The Godfather but withdrew from the tournament, citing he had nothing to prove and permitting re-entry for The Godfather.

NOTE: Quote from Dan Severn off of Sherdog radio says he and Ken Shamrock were not allowed to participate, but then Dan Severn was asked to participate. After defeating The Godfather he was told he was no longer allowed to continue.

WWF Intercontinental Championship Tournament (1998)

The WWF Intercontinental Championship Tournament was a tournament to decide a new WWF Intercontinental Champion after previous champion Triple H vacated the title due to injury.

†Triple H was originally in the bracket set to face The Rock in the first round. But his injury prevented him to compete, and thus was replaced by Big Boss Man

  • Mankind's opponent in the first round was billed as a "mystery opponent" it was not announced until match time that Duane Gill was the opponent.
  • Mankind never actually submitted but Vince McMahon and the referee called for the bell moments after the Rock put him in the sharpshooter (a reference to the Montreal Screwjob that occurred one year prior.)

    • Undisputed WWF Championship Tournament (2001)

    The Undisputed WWF Championship Tournament was a four-man tournament held at Vengeance on December 9, 2001. The tournament was created to unify the WWF and World Championships.

    Undisputed WWF Championship #1 Contender's Tournament (2002)

    The Undisputed WWF Championship #1 Contendership Tournament was a tournament to face Chris Jericho for the Undisputed WWF Championship at No Way Out.

    WWE Tag Team Championship Tournament

    The WWE Tag Team Championship Tournament was a tournament held at No Mercy (2002) to crown inaugural WWE Tag Team Champions, which were Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle.

    WWE Championship #1 Contender's Tournament (2003)

    This was a tournament. The winner would face Brock Lesnar for his WWE Championship at Backlash.

    WWE United States Championship Tournament

    The WWE United States Championship Tournament was a tournament to decide the inaugural WWE United States Champion as then-Smackdown General Manager Stephanie McMahon revived the title after two years of inactivity.

    The tournament was held between June 19 and July 27, 2003. The tournament brackets were:

    WWE Championship #1 Contender's Tournament (February 2005)

    The tournament to determine the number one contender for the WWE Championship match at WrestleMania 21 was held between February 1 and February 20, 2005. At WrestleMania 21, John Cena defeated John "Bradshaw" Layfield to become new champion. The tournament brackets were:

    WWE Championship #1 Contender's Tournament (April 2005)

    The WWE Championship #1 contenders Tournament was a tournament. The winner to face John Cena at Judgment Day

    Gold Rush Tournament (2005)

    The Gold Rush Tournament was tournament to determine the new number one contender for World Heavyweight Champion Batista, which was won by Edge.

    Road to WrestleMania Tournament

    The Road to WrestleMania Tournament was a tournament to crown a #1 contender for John Cena's WWE Championship at WrestleMania 22.

    WWE Women's Championship Tournament (2006)

    The WWE Women's Championship Tournament was a tournament to crown a new WWE Women's Champion after champion Trish Stratus retired from her wrestling career. The first round started on September 25, 2006 and ended at Cyber Sunday when Lita, who Stratus defeated in her retirement match, defeated Mickie James.

  • Melina defeated Wilson in a Lumberjill match.
  • Maria defeated Candice, Victoria and Wilson in Bra and Panties Match.
  • The final match between Lita and James was a Lumberjill match.

    • ECW World Championship Tournament

    The ECW World Championship Tournament was a tournament created to determine a new ECW World Champion after Bobby Lashley vacated his championship due to being drafted to Raw on June 11, 2007. The finals took place at Vengeance: Night of Champions.

  • – Chris Benoit was a no-show.

    • Championship Competition Tournament

    The Championship Competition Tournament was a tournament held on SmackDown! in 2007 to determine the #1 contender for the World Heavyweight Championship at Unforgiven.

    Championship Chase Tournament

    The Championship Chase Tournament was a tournament held on the May 9, 2008 episode of SmackDown to determine The Undertaker's opponent for the vacant World Heavyweight Championship at Judgment Day.

    WWE Intercontinental Championship #1 Contender's Tournament (2008)

    A tournament was announced to crown a new #1 Contender to go against WWE Intercontinental Champion William Regal, which was won by CM Punk.

    Race To The Rumble Tournament

    The Race To The Rumble Tournament was a tournament held in 2009 to determine a #1 contender for John Cena's World Heavyweight Championship.

    ECW Homecoming Tournament

    The ECW Homecoming Tournament was a tournament to crown a #1 contender for the ECW Championship.

    WWE Divas Championship Tournament

    A tournament was announced to crown a new WWE Divas Champion after former champion Melina was stripped of the title due to injury. The first round started on January 4, 2010.

  • The final tournament was originally scheduled at Elimination Chamber, but when official consultant to the SmackDown General Manager, Vickie Guerrero interrupted, she was changing the match to an interbrand Divas tag team match, facing LayCool (Michelle McCool and Layla) from SmackDown. The final was held at the following night of Raw.

    • WWE Intercontinental Championship Tournament (2010)

    The WWE Intercontinental Championship Tournament was a tournament to crown a new Intercontinental Champion. On May 7, 2010, after failed attempts of getting Intercontinental Champion Drew McIntyre to stop attacking Matt Hardy, Smackdown General Manager Theodore Long fired McIntyre and vacated the title. The following week, Kofi Kingston won a tournament to become the new champion, but Mr. McMahon reverted Long's decision. Due to the decision by Mr. McMahon, the vacancy of the title and Kingston's championship win are not recognized as WWE continued to recognize McIntyre as champion during that period. At Over the Limit, Kingston defeated McIntyre to win his second official Intercontinental Championship

    WWE Championship Tournament (2011)

    On the July 18, 2011, edition of WWE Raw, the WWE Championship was vacated, after champion CM Punk left WWE. The title was put up in a tournament featuring the top Eight wrestlers. The finals of the tournament would take place at WWE RAW on July 25, which was won by Rey Mysterio.

  • However, Mysterio lost the title to John Cena the same night.

    • Gold Rush Tournament (2012)

    On the August 1, 2012 edition of NXT, NXT Commissioner Dusty Rhodes announced a "Gold Rush" tournament, featuring 4 developmental roster NXT Superstars and 4 main roster WWE Superstars to determine the inaugural NXT Champion in a knockout system format. The first NXT Champion was crowned on July 26, 2012, with Seth Rollins defeating Jinder Mahal in the tournament finals.

    WWE Tag Team Championship #1 Contender's Tournament (2012)

    The WWE Tag Team Championship Tournament was a #1 contender's tag team tournament, where the winning team faced Team Hell No (Kane and Daniel Bryan) for the WWE Tag Team Championship.

    (*)-The final was originally scheduled for October 15 but was postponed due to Mysterio's illness.

    NXT Tag Team Championship Tournament

    The NXT Tag Team Championship was introduced on the January 23, 2013 edition of NXT where it was announced by special guest Shawn Michaels that there would be a tournament to crown the first new champions.

    Royal Rumble Entry Tournament

    The Royal Rumble Entry Tournament was a tournament where the winner entered the 2013 Royal Rumble Match.

    NXT Women's Championship Tournament (2013)

    The championship was first introduced on April 5, 2013 at WrestleMania Axxess. It was announced at the May 30, 2013 tapings (broadcast on the June 5 episode) of WWE NXT (TV series), by Stephanie McMahon that there would be a tournament, featuring four developmental female talents and four female talents from the main roster competing to be crowned as the inaugural NXT Women's Champion in a knockout system format. The first NXT Women's Champion was crowned on June 20, 2013, with Paige defeating Emma in the tournament finals.

    WWE Intercontinental Championship #1 Contender's Tournament (2014)

    In April 2014, the WWE held the Intercontinental Championship Tournament to determine the #1 contenders to face Big E for the WWE Intercontinental Championship at Extreme Rules 2014. Bad News Barrett defeated Rob Van Dam in the final and defeated Big E to win the title.

    NXT Women's Championship Tournament (2014)

    On April 24, 2014, Paige was stripped of the NXT Women's Championship, by NXT's commissioner John Bradshaw Layfield, because she couldn't defend both the NXT Women's and WWE Divas Championship, ending her reign at 308 days. Right after, during the tapings for the May shows, a tournament was announced to take place to determine the next champion. Charlotte defeated Natalya at NXT Takeover on May 29, 2014 to become the new champion.

    NXT Tag Team Championship #1 Contender's Tournament

    The championship tournament started on August 7, 2014 and there would be new #1 contenders for the titles. The tournament final was held on September 4, 2014. Lucha Dragons (Kalisto and Sin Cara) won the tournament and defeated The Ascension (Konnor and Viktor) at NXT TakeOver: Fatal 4-Way on September 11, 2014 to win the titles.

    NXT Championship #1 Contender's Tournament (2015)

    The NXT Championship Tournament started on January 21, 2015 and there would be a new #1 Contender's for the title. The tournament final was held on February 11, 2015 at NXT TakeOver: Rival. Finn Bálor went on to win the tournament defeated Adrian Neville in the final.

    Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal Qualifying Tournament

    The Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal Qualifying Tournament was a tournament at WrestleMania Axxess for the André the Giant Battle Royal.

    WWE World Heavyweight Championship Tournament (2015)

    On November 5, 2015, the WWE World Heavyweight Championship was vacated, after champion Seth Rollins suffered a knee injury.

  • Immediately after the final match, Sheamus cashed in his Money in the Bank contract and pinned Reigns. Therefore, Reigns' championship reign lasted only five minutes and fifteen seconds (later used to antagonize Reigns).

    • WWE Tag Team Championship #1 Contender's Tournament (2016)

    This tournament was to determine the new #1 Contenders to The New Day's WWE Tag Team Championships.

  • The final match ended in a no contest after Enzo Amore suffered a legitimate concussion. Not far into the match, Amore was thrown into the ropes by Simon Gotch. Amore attempted to slide under the ropes, but instead hit his head on the middle rope and the mat, before falling on the floor, appearing to be unconscious. With the ending of the match, the Vaudevillains were given a WWE Tag Team Championship match, but they were defeated by The New Day.

    • WWE Cruiserweight Classic

    The inaugural WWE Cruiserweight Classic saw thirty-two of the world's best cruiserweights battle it out to be crowned WWE's first WWE Cruiserweight Classic winner. The tournament was filmed at Full Sail University, Florida from June 20–24, and was broadcast on the WWE Network from July 13. It ran for ten episodes, with the finale being broadcast on September 14.

    WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship Tournament

    Following the reintroduction of the WWE brand extension and subsequent draft on July 19, 2016, WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day were drafted to Raw, leaving SmackDown without a tag team championship. Over the course of the following month, SmackDown General Manager Daniel Bryan stated that he wanted to build up the tag team division before introducing a championship. Immediately following SummerSlam on the August 23, 2016 episode of SmackDown Live, Bryan and SmackDown Commissioner Shane McMahon unveiled the WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship and announced a tournament, which will culminate in a tag team match at Backlash to determine the inaugural champions. The tournament and the titles were won by Heath Slater and Rhyno after they defeated The Usos at Backlash.

    † When Chad Gable suffered a kayfabe injury after defeating The Usos, American Alpha were removed from the final. The Usos then defeated The Hype Bros at Backlash in a second chance tag team match to replace American Alpha in the final.

    Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic (2016)

    † Scott Dawson faked an injury, pulling the Revival out of the tournament and therefore advancing DIY to the semifinals by way of forfeit.

    King of the Ring

    King of the Ring is a professional wrestling single-elimination tournament held by WWE. The tournament was held annually from 1985 to 2002, with the exception of 1990 and 1992, and from 1993 to 2002 the tournament was produced as a pay-per-view event.

    References

    WWE tournaments Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA