The Invasion
Encyclopedia
The Invasion was a professional wrestling
storyline in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now known as WWE) that began shortly after the WWF's purchase of World Championship Wrestling
(WCW). It involved the WCW wrestlers "invading" WWF television
in an attempt to "take over" the WWF.
The idea of a supercard featuring the two top promotions
of the Monday Night Wars
was considered to be a dream match scenario in the eyes of many fans, as it would allow the fans to see which promotion would be kayfabe
superior. The angle began when Vince McMahon
's son, Shane McMahon
, announced on Raw
that he (kayfabe) bought WCW from under his father's nose. This led to several run-in appearances of WCW wrestlers during Raw and SmackDown! over the months after WrestleMania X-Seven
.
In June 2001, the angle grew in intensity as the WWF storylines somewhat abated to make room for the central Invasion storyline. WCW and Extreme Championship Wrestling
(ECW) merged to form The Alliance and challenged the WWF's control over the wrestling industry. An Inaugural Brawl took place at the WWF Invasion
pay-per-view, where Stone Cold Steve Austin
defected and joined the Alliance. Many inter-promotional matches occurred after the Invasion between The Alliance and the WWF, leading up to the climax of the angle at Survivor Series
, when Team WWF (The Rock, Chris Jericho
, Big Show
, The Undertaker, and Kane) defeated Team Alliance (Austin, Kurt Angle
, Rob Van Dam
, Booker T
, and Shane McMahon) in a Winner-Take-All match.
A very large and long storyline that spanned eight months from May 2001 to November 2001, the Invasion has been met with some heavy criticism from wrestling fans due to many factors.
n wrestling promotions, competed for ratings
. Through developments such as the creation of the New World Order
(nWo) and the Montreal Screwjob
, fans continually compared the two promotions, and the Internet wrestling community was full of debate as to which of the two was superior.
Among other factors, however, mismanagement within WCW (such as allowing wrestlers themselves to book matches) eventually led WCW to a downward spiral from which it never recovered. The Monday Night Wars came to an end on March 23, 2001, when the WWF bought WCW for what was considered to be a bargain price.
The final night of the Monday Night Wars occurred on March 26, 2001: Raw primarily focused on the major storylines heading into WrestleMania X-Seven, while Nitro
held their final episode with a "Night of Champions". Vince McMahon opened up Nitro and announced a simulcast later that night to address the future of WCW. Throughout Raw, McMahon publicly named several WCW wrestlers who would not be retained. After Sting defeated Ric Flair
in WCW's final match, the simulcast began. McMahon talked about the buyout of WCW and toyed with the idea of making WCW into a huge media conglomerate, much like the WWF. He asked the crowd who he should keep under his belt by mentioning names of WCW wrestlers and asking for a reaction. Lex Luger
received a negative reaction from fans, and Hulk Hogan
, Buff Bagwell
, Booker T
, Scott Steiner
, Sting, and Goldberg
received positive reactions. Vince then proceeded to fire them all, however, to the cheers of the RAW crowd and the jeers of the Nitro crowd. McMahon then announced that he would sign the contract and make the purchase official at WrestleMania. Shane McMahon, however, appeared on Nitro and announced in kayfabe that he had signed the contract and purchased WCW out from under his father's nose, planting the seed for what was considered a lucrative future storyline opportunity. The Invasion did not begin immediately afterwards, as the WWF was preparing for WrestleMania X-Seven, the year's largest show, which was mere days away.
, effectively reviving WCW under its own auspices and running two separate promotions, each with one of the WWF's two existing televised shows, Raw and SmackDown!.
As part of its plans, Lance Storm
became the first WCW wrestler to appear on WWF programming, by making a run-in during a match on the May 28 episode of Raw. Hugh Morrus
made his WWF debut on the June 4, 2001 episode of Raw attacking Edge
. At King of the Ring on June 24, then-WCW wrestler Booker T interfered during the Triple Threat Main Event match for the WWF Championship
and almost cost Stone Cold Steve Austin the title. Additionally, Austin suffered fractured bones in his hand from the side slam he took from Booker into an announce table. The next night, a confrontation occurred between WCW owner Shane McMahon and WWF owner Vince McMahon. While Vince was in the ring, Booker T came from behind to deliver a scissor kick
to Vince. The WWF roster ran to the ring to the aid of Vince, but Booker T and Shane McMahon escaped through the crowd. This incident marked the official start of the Invasion storyline, to which Raw announcer Jim Ross
announced, "The battle lines have been drawn!"
The WWF eventually began to recognize WCW and tested the idea of a brand extension by giving WCW the final twenty minutes of Raw with Scott Hudson and Arn Anderson
doing announcing duties in place of Jim Ross and Paul Heyman
. During a match between Buff Bagwell and Booker T for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship
, WWF wrestlers Kurt Angle and WWF Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin interfered in retaliation by beating Booker T up, with Bagwell joining Angle and Austin by attacking Booker T. This match did not go over well at all with the audience in attendance at the Tacomadome. One source cites that the match should have showcased the best of WCW but instead featured too many restholds and not enough action. The audience jeered at the wrestlers with chants of "This match sucks!" and "Boring!" A WWF source close to Vince McMahon said that Vince had "absolutely hated" the segment.
Up until this point, the WCW contingent were being built up to being malcontent faces rising up against the heel
Vince McMahon, because of Vince's bluster during the final Nitro broadcast and Shane's usurping of the WCW ownership. Originally, WCW talents were meant to attack strictly heel WWF wrestlers. The strongly negative reaction of the core WWF viewership to the WCW product and talent, however, coupled with the reality that a WCW wrestling program to appeal to WWF fans would not come to fruition, led to the entire WCW contingent to abruptly turn heel. One example was the heel gimmick of then WCW Alliance Member, Diamond Dallas Page
, who's first appearence in the WWE was built up over several weeks in a storyline in which he was portrayed as an anonymous stalker sending invasive videotapes to the babyface
The Undertaker.
and Lance Storm in a handicap match. Chris Jericho came out and offered to be Kane's partner, thus turning it into a tag team match. Near the end of the match, Jericho applied the Walls of Jericho on Lance Storm. As the move was being applied, however, Rob Van Dam and Tommy Dreamer
ran through the audience and into the ring and started to beat on Kane and Jericho. In response, WWF wrestlers consisting of The Dudley Boyz
, Tazz
, Justin Credible
, Rhyno
, and Raven
(all former ECW wrestlers) ran to the ring. After a brief stand-off, the WWF cavalry turned around and attacked Kane and Jericho. This prompted Paul Heyman to leave the announce table and enter the ring. After high-fiving the wrestlers, he announced that ECW
has been brought into the Invasion. Heyman talked about how tired he was sitting beside Jim Ross and discussing WCW vs. WWF, stating that he felt that everyone had forgotten about ECW and announced, "This Invasion just got taken to the extreme."
Later during the night, Shane and Vince McMahon bumped into each other backstage. Shane told his father that ECW needed to be taken care of and pointed out that there were 10 ECW wrestlers under Heyman's belt. He suggested that he would take five of his WCW wrestlers and have them team up with five of Vince McMahon's WWF wrestler's later that night to take out ECW. Vince agreed but stubbornly insisted that WCW would eventually meet its demise when all was said and done.
At the end of the night, the WCW wrestlers came into the ring, accompanied by Shane McMahon. The WWF wrestlers then came into the ring and, before ECW entered, the WCW and WWF wrestlers started to brawl. The WWF wrestlers cleared the ring but then were stormed by the ECW wrestlers and taken out. After this, WCW's men came into the ring and high-fived the ECW men. Paul Heyman and Shane McMahon then hugged and started to dismantle the WWF wrestlers. Vince McMahon, stunned, came out and asked what was going on. Shane McMahon responded that he was responsible for all the events that just transpired and announced that ECW and WCW merged to form The Alliance. He then announced that the new owner of ECW was Stephanie McMahon.
Stone Cold, who had turned heel at WrestleMania and formed an alliance with McMahon when he helped Stone Cold win the WWF Championship, took a change in character during this time. Instead of being a beer-drinking redneck, he was more emotional and tried to cheer-up Vince McMahon, who was clearly stressed from the threat of The Alliance, by doing something generous like giving Vince a cowboy hat as a present. During a July 12 SmackDown!, Stone Cold played "Kumbaya
" and "We Are the Champions
" for McMahon, to which Vince was unresponsive. Later that night, Vince McMahon came out and asked Stone Cold to come to the ring, announcing him as the man that would lead Team WWF into the pay-per-view and into victory. Upon entering, Vince McMahon told Stone Cold that he had changed quite a bit since WrestleMania, and when the WWF goes up against The Alliance at the upcoming pay-per-view, he did not need a Stone Cold that gave him hugs and gifts and baked him cookies. He needed the "old" Stone Cold who was a "beer-swilling, foul-mouthed SOB" and the "old" Stone Cold that "didn't take shit from anyone." He asked Stone Cold to knock him down, even yelling to the crowd, "If you want Stone Cold to beat the living hell out of Vince McMahon, give me a hell yeah!" to which the crowd responded enthusiastically. Stone Cold, however, shook his head and proceeded to leave the ring, turning his back on Vince McMahon. Later that night when Diamond Dallas Page and Shane McMahon went up against the Undertaker and Kurt Angle, many members of the Alliance interfered. Kane and Jericho came to help their team, but the Alliance's numbers were too many, and without Stone Cold to back up his teammates, Team WWF was overwhelmed.
On the July 16 edition of Raw, Stone Cold was shown drinking and playing pool at a bar downtown. During the night, Vince McMahon held a WWF meeting backstage. Undertaker and the APA
gave a motivational speech on how they should not tolerate the Alliance any longer. After they were finished, Brooklyn Brawler
wheeled Freddie Blassie into the room so he could address the wrestlers and pump them up for the night. As the WWF wrestlers united, Stone Cold could be seen watching the events on the television at the bar. He proceeded to slam his cue stick on the pool table and left.
Later that night, DDP and Rhyno faced Kane and the Undertaker. During the match, there was interference from the Alliance. In response, The Hardy Boyz
, the APA, Jericho, and Kurt Angle came to help their WWF allies, but more Alliance members came in and overwhelmed the WWF wrestlers. Backstage, many WWF and Alliance wrestlers were fighting each other, and the WWF seemed to be on the losing end of things. A truck was seen driving up to the arena, however, and Stone Cold came out with his cue stick and proceeded to beat down any WCW and ECW wrestlers in his path. He then came to the ring, trash-talking on the way down, and beat down the Alliance wrestlers, giving Stunners
to most of the men in the ring. The WWF wrestlers had cleaned house and were standing tall. The WWF seemed to be in good shape for the upcoming pay-per-view with Stone Cold's return.
, the Inaugural Brawl took place between Team WCW/ECW and Team WWF. Team WWF consisted of Stone Cold Steve Austin, Kurt Angle, Chris Jericho, Kane, and the Undertaker, who all squared off against the team of DDP, Booker T, Rhyno, and the Dudley Boys. Near the end of the match, all of the wrestlers were outside of the ring except Booker T and Angle. Kurt Angle applied the ankle lock on Booker T, who tapped out, but no referee was there to witness it. Stone Cold then dragged a referee into the ring, but in a swerve, kicked Kurt Angle in the stomach, hit him with a Stunner, and placed Booker T on top of Kurt Angle and told the referee to count. Team WCW/ECW won the match due to Stone Cold's betrayal of the WWF.
The next night, Austin claimed he joined the Alliance because they appreciated him. He cited Vince's hugging of Angle and calling The Rock on the phone as signs that Vince did not appreciate Austin and accused McMahon of grooming Angle to be the next WWF Champion.
On that same Raw at the First Union Center in Philadelphia, The Rock returned for the first time since his kayfabe suspension on the April 2 edition of Raw. Shane, Stephanie, and Vince McMahon were in the ring that night, and each tried to convince The Rock to join their respective side. Shane McMahon took the liberty of reminding The Rock of how Vince screwed him out of the WWF Championship earlier that year at WrestleMania and also in a steel cage match the day after WrestleMania. Vince McMahon replied that Shane was somewhat accurate in his accusations but ceded that it was wrong for him to back Stone Cold, as he was a rattlesnake that he should have known would eventually bite him. He promised to The Rock that he had no intention of screwing him if he returned to the WWF but also ceded that he could not promise that he never would; if it was good for business, he said, then he just might do it. He told The Rock that he was at least being honest with him and pleaded for The Rock to trust himself, stating that his future was with the fans and the WWF. The Rock, however, gave Vince a Rock Bottom after some bickering between Shane and Vince, and proceeded to stare down Shane before cheekily smiling and shaking Shane's hand, faking a defection to the Alliance and a heel
turn but he then proceeded to Rock Bottom him as well and give him a People's Elbow. He picked up the microphone and emphatically asserted, "Finally, the Rock has come back... to the WWF." The Rock had chosen a side, and that side was the World Wrestling Federation.
His return led to a WCW Title match between The Rock and Booker T at SummerSlam 2001
, which The Rock won, marking the second time the WCW Championship belt changed sides to the WWF. At that same pay-per-view, Austin retained his WWF Championship
against Angle after Angle won by disqualification.
The following Raw and SmackDown! showings featured primarily interpromotional matches between the two companies. Austin stole Kurt Angle's medals during one of the shows, and on the August 30 edition of SmackDown!, tied them to a cinder block and threw them in a river. The following Raw, Debra
and Stephanie bought a new truck for Stone Cold, but Angle came up from behind and nailed Austin in the back of the head with a pipe. He put a cinder block and rope in the truck, put Austin in it, and drove away on the truck. He blindfolded Stone Cold and threatened to throw him into a river if he did not get a title shot. Austin, fearful for his life, "broke down in tears" and agreed to give Angle a title shot at the upcoming pay-per-view, Unforgiven. Angle said, however, that Austin was "still going into the water", but instead simply embarrassed Austin by throwing him into a kiddie pool.
The WWF gained even more momentum at Unforgiven, as The Rock retained the WCW Championship in a handicap match against Booker T and Shane McMahon, and Kurt Angle made Austin submit to the ankle lock, winning the WWF Championship from Stone Cold, putting both belts into the hands of the WWF.
Almost every other championship had changed hands during this period of time, being exchanged between WWF Superstars and Alliance members. For example, The Undertaker and Kane beat Diamond Dallas Page
and Chris Kanyon
in a Steel Cage Match at Summerslam to become co-holders of both the WWF and WCW Tag Team Titles. Also, X-Pac
beat Billy Kidman to become double champion of WWF Light Heavyweight Champion as well as WCW Cruiserweight Champion.
There were several interpromotional matches after Unforgiven. Furthermore, a crucial plot point formed when, on the October 8 airing of Raw, Jericho and The Rock teamed up against Shane McMahon and Rob Van Dam. During the match, Jericho mistakenly struck The Rock with a steel chair, costing them the match. The Rock confronted Jericho backstage after the match, leading to a brawl between the two. The two of them began a feud, although they often tagged together, had similar gimmicks of hurling comedic insults at Stephanie McMahon, and at one point won the WWF Tag Team Championship
.
Also that night, Stone Cold and Kurt Angle faced off for the WWF Championship, and then-WWF Commissioner William Regal
, who sat at ringside to ensure a fair match would take place, hit Kurt Angle with the championship, thereby backstabbing the WWF and costing Angle the title. On the following SmackDown!, Linda McMahon
promptly fired Regal from his position as WWF Commissioner, and named Mick Foley as his replacement. Regal was then declared the Commissioner of the Alliance by Shane and Stephanie.
The feud between Jericho and The Rock built up to a match at No Mercy on October 21, where Jericho beat the Rock to win the WCW Championship (Jericho's first world title), and Stone Cold Steve Austin defeated Angle and Rob Van Dam to retain his WWF Championship.
On the October 29 edition of Raw, Shane McMahon told his father, Vince McMahon, that a member of the WWF would jump ship to the Alliance that night. Later that same night, Kurt Angle backstabbed the WWF by hitting Jericho, The Rock, Undertaker, and Kane with steel chairs. On the November 1 edition of SmackDown!, Angle, who originally led the WWF wrestlers, explained that he represented what is great about America—he was a winner, and his defection came from his decision to fight along the winning side. That side included Stone Cold, a man Angle claimed knew how to win.
. Stone Cold came out to confront Vince about it, and Vince stated that Stone Cold would be the one to defect. Because of this announcement, many Alliance members began to distrust Austin, who vehemently denied the charges and called Vince a liar. Stone Cold went on to interrogate members of Team Alliance, questioning Booker T and sitting Rob Van Dam down in a room with a light shining on him. That same night The Rock won the WCW World Title from Chris Jericho, but Jericho assaulted The Rock in the ring following the match.
All of this led to a "Winner Take All" match at Survivor Series 2001, which pitted Team WWF (The Rock, Chris Jericho, The Undertaker, Kane, and The Big Show) against Team Alliance (Stone Cold, Kurt Angle, Booker T, Rob Van Dam, and Shane McMahon). The final three men in the match were The Rock and Jericho vs. Austin. Jericho was eliminated and, to continue the feud between the two men, attacked The Rock, even though Jericho's future was on the line if The Rock lost. The Rock and Austin continued to battle it out, and the referee was knocked down in the match. Austin stunned the Rock and pinned him, but there was no referee to count it. Austin approached the downed referee to try to revive him. As this was occurring, Angle ran to the ring, picked up the WWF championship belt, and nailed Austin with it, revealing himself to be the defector to which McMahon was referring the entire time. The Rock followed this with a Rock Bottom and a pin on Austin, to which the referee woke up and counted the three count. Team WWF prevailed, thus ending the storyline.
It was also on this night that several titles were unified; Edge defeated Test to unify the WCW United States Championship and the Intercontinental Championship, while The Dudley Boyz beat The Hardy Boyz in a Steel Cage match to unify the WCW Tag Team Titles with the WWF Tag Team Titles. The final ECW member, Jazz, made her debut during a Six Pack Challenge for the vacant Women's Championship, which was won by Trish Stratus
.
to form the WWF Undisputed Championship.
At Survivor Series 2001
, two championships were merged with two other championships: Edge
, the WCW United States Champion
at the time, defeated Test to become the WWF Intercontinental Champion
, while the US Title was retired. Meanwhile, The Dudley Boyz
defeated The Hardy Boyz
to win the WWF Tag Team Championships while retiring the WCW World Tag Team Championship
s.
Another WCW championship, the WCW Cruiserweight Championship
, was rebranded as a WWF title and replaced the WWF Light Heavyweight Championship
as the WWF Cruiserweight Championship
. Additionally, the WCW United States Championship
was revived in 2003 as a SmackDown!-exclusive title, thus becoming the WWE United States Championship
.
The Undisputed Championship was originally represented with both the original WWF and WCW title belts, as the champion would carry both belts around, until being replaced with a single belt. At the beginning of the WWE Brand Extension, the champion would appear on both Raw and SmackDown! until then champion Brock Lesnar
took the title to SmackDown!. Eric Bischoff
introduced the World Heavyweight Championship
represented by the former WCW Championship belt and awarded it to Triple H. The Undisputed Championship would be renamed the WWE Championship, as having two world titles contradicted the term "undisputed."
, held on June 12, 2005. The build-up to this one-shot event featured former ECW talent putting over the virtues of the brand versus the WWE product and appearances by several former ECW wrestlers not under contract to WWE. In 2006, it was announced that WWE would be reviving ECW as its third brand (to complement Raw and SmackDown!). The second One Night Stand
, held on June 11, 2006, led to the official debut of the new ECW the following Tuesday. WWE Champion Rob Van Dam was awarded the ECW World Heavyweight Championship
for his victory over John Cena, thus officially reviving the title for the ECW brand. The brand would continue to operate until February 2010.
The immunity was also extended to any Alliance member who held a championship at the conclusion of Survivor Series. The Dudley Boyz, who held the tag team championships; Rob Van Dam, who was the Hardcore Champion; and Christian
, who was European Champion, saw that extended to them. Of these wrestlers, everyone except RVD (who was already cheered by fans despite being in the Alliance) remained a heel after the Alliance.
On the first Raw after Survivor Series, WWF Commissioner Mick Foley resigned. Vince McMahon celebrated his (assumed) complete and sole ownership of the WWF and his final victory over the Alliance. He then fired the Alliance's Paul Heyman from his broadcasting position and replaced him with a returning Jerry Lawler
. He later had his daughter escorted from the building by security, and made Alliance commissioner William Regal become the inaugural member of the infamous "Kiss My Ass Club" in order to retain his job.
McMahon also announced that he would strip Alliance leader Stone Cold Steve Austin of his WWF Championship and award it to Kurt Angle, who had portrayed himself as the hero of Survivor Series the entire night and bragged about his actions to other face wrestlers. In doing so, McMahon completed a slow heel turn he had begun at the beginning of the night.
Before McMahon could announce his new champion, Ric Flair (who returned to the WWF for the first time in over eight years) announced that he "bet on a winner" at Survivor Series. When pressed, Flair revealed to McMahon that he was not in fact the sole owner of the WWF as he had originally thought. When Shane McMahon and Stephanie McMahon had bought WCW and ECW earlier in the year they had sold their shares in the WWF to "a consortium
", and that Flair was the man who had bought them, making him half-owner of the WWF.
Immediately after making the declaration Austin made his return and attacked Angle for costing him the win at Survivor Series and McMahon for attempting to strip him of his title, ending the heel run he had begun at WrestleMania. He turned face by aligning himself with Flair and reclaiming his belt.
One particular example of this was during the Inaugural Brawl at the InVasion pay-per-view. Besides Austin's turn in the match that was needed to secure a WCW/ECW win over the WWF, SLAM! Wrestling alleged that the Alliance wrestled poorly in comparison to the WWF wrestlers:
It has been speculated that the reason for this was because Vince McMahon did not want the WWF to look weak while fighting the Alliance, as he worked very hard to put down his competition, especially WCW. Smash Wrestling alleges that WWF wrestlers needed to defect to make the Alliance appear to be a credible threat.
The storyline also allegedly centered too much on the McMahons, who were getting more airtime than the wrestlers.
It has been argued that the Invasion angle may have been more successful if Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff were perceived as controlling ECW and WCW, respectively, instead of Stephanie and Shane McMahon.
It is important to note that some of the WCW wrestlers' absences were out of the WWF's control. Many of WCW's top wrestlers had contracts with AOL
Time Warner
, WCW's parent company, and were willing to sit at home rather than wrestle for less money. McMahon had the option of taking on any contract he wanted with his purchase, but chose to let AOL Time Warner continue to pay out what were considered bad deals. Ric Flair and Rey Mysterio were not signed until the end of the Invasion because they were tied to their contracts, and therefore their absence was out of the WWF's control. In addition, Scott Steiner was recovering from an injury. Others, such as Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash
, Scott Hall
, and Goldberg, were not signed until well after the storyline finished. WCW's other top superstars like Sting, who for many years had avoided joining the WWF and was still under contract AOL Time Warner; while Lex Luger and Macho Man Randy Savage would never reappear in the company. Fans were confused by McMahon's decisions seeing as WWF would make more than enough to cover all these wrestlers contracts in 2001. Because of this, the WWF's opponent allegedly lacked the strong identity of WCW. In correlation with WCW, ECW was also missing most of their key superstars such as The Sandman
, Sabu, Balls Mahoney
, Little Guido
and Tony Mamaluke (all of whom would later join WWE's relaunched ECW). Other wrestlers such as Shane Douglas
, Masato Tanaka
, Terry Funk
, New Jack
, 2 Cold Scorpio
and Mikey Whipwreck
would also be missing from the storyline.
To bolster the ranks of WCW (in lieu of big WCW names), some WWF wrestlers (such as Stone Cold) defected and joined the Alliance and were pushed as the leaders of the Alliance. Austin, who had worked as a mid-carder in WCW and ECW but had found his greatest success in the WWF and was seen primarily as a WWF wrestler, was pushed as the leader of the Alliance and a more important player during the Invasion than the bona fide WCW or ECW members of the Alliance. Several top WCW and ECW talents who were top superstars in their previous companies, such as Diamond Dallas Page, Booker T., Rob Van Dam, The Dudley Boyz, Justin Credible, Raven and Tazz, were put down into low-mid card matches, while lesser-ranked WWF wrestlers who defected to the Alliance, such as Test, were given a greater push.
In the final Survivor Series main event between the WWF and the Alliance, the Alliance was represented by three WWF wrestlers. Two of three wrestlers, Shane McMahon and Kurt Angle had never wrestled a match for WCW or ECW prior to the Invasion. Only two bona fide WCW or ECW wrestlers, Booker T and Rob Van Dam, were in the match. McMahon, Booker T and Rob Van Dam were the first wrestlers eliminated on the Alliance's team, resulting in the last survivors representing the ostensible WCW/ECW entity being two WWF wrestlers.
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
storyline in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now known as WWE) that began shortly after the WWF's purchase of World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
(WCW). It involved the WCW wrestlers "invading" WWF television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
in an attempt to "take over" the WWF.
The idea of a supercard featuring the two top promotions
Professional wrestling promotion
A professional wrestling promotion is a company or business that regularly performs shows involving professional wrestling. Promotion also describes a role which entails management, advertising and logistics of running a wrestling event...
of the Monday Night Wars
Monday Night Wars
Monday Night Wars is the common term describing the period of mainstream televised American professional wrestling from September 4, 1995, to March 26, 2001. During this time, the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw went head-to-head with World Championship Wrestling's Monday Nitro in a...
was considered to be a dream match scenario in the eyes of many fans, as it would allow the fans to see which promotion would be kayfabe
Kayfabe
In professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of events within the industry as "real" or "true". Specifically, the portrayal of professional wrestling, in particular the competition and rivalries between participants, as being genuine or not of a worked nature...
superior. The angle began when Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
's son, Shane McMahon
Shane McMahon
Shane Brandon McMahon is an American executive, currently serving as the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of YOU On Demand. A former executive and professional wrestler for World Wrestling Entertainment , he is the son of WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon and former US Senate candidate Linda...
, announced on Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
that he (kayfabe) bought WCW from under his father's nose. This led to several run-in appearances of WCW wrestlers during Raw and SmackDown! over the months after WrestleMania X-Seven
WrestleMania X-Seven
WrestleMania X-Seven was the seventeenth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on April 1, 2001 at the Reliant Astrodome in Houston, Texas. The event was the first WrestleMania held in the state of Texas...
.
In June 2001, the angle grew in intensity as the WWF storylines somewhat abated to make room for the central Invasion storyline. WCW and Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1992 by Tod Gordon and closed when his successor, Paul Heyman, declared bankruptcy in April 2001...
(ECW) merged to form The Alliance and challenged the WWF's control over the wrestling industry. An Inaugural Brawl took place at the WWF Invasion
WWF InVasion
Invasion was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on July 22, 2001 at the Gund Arena in Cleveland, Ohio...
pay-per-view, where Stone Cold Steve Austin
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
defected and joined the Alliance. Many inter-promotional matches occurred after the Invasion between The Alliance and the WWF, leading up to the climax of the angle at Survivor Series
Survivor Series (2001)
Survivor Series was the fifteenth annual Survivor Series pay-per-view professional wrestling event produced by the World Wrestling Federation...
, when Team WWF (The Rock, Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho
Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...
, Big Show
Paul Wight
Paul Donald Wight, Jr. , better known by his ring name, Big Show, is an American professional wrestler and actor, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand....
, The Undertaker, and Kane) defeated Team Alliance (Austin, Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
, Rob Van Dam
Rob Van Dam
Robert Alexander "Rob" Szatkowski , better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam , is an American professional wrestler and actor who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
, Booker T
Booker Huffman
Robert Booker Tio Huffman , better known by his ring name Booker T, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler and currently signed to WWE, on its SmackDown brand, as part of the announcing team. Booker is best known for his time in both the World Wrestling Entertainment and World...
, and Shane McMahon) in a Winner-Take-All match.
A very large and long storyline that spanned eight months from May 2001 to November 2001, the Invasion has been met with some heavy criticism from wrestling fans due to many factors.
Monday Night Wars
During the Monday Night Wars, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW), the two top North AmericaNorth America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
n wrestling promotions, competed for ratings
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
. Through developments such as the creation of the New World Order
New World Order (professional wrestling)
The New World Order was a professional wrestling stable that originally wrestled for World Championship Wrestling . The group later appeared in the World Wrestling Federation after the purchase of WCW by the WWF...
(nWo) and the Montreal Screwjob
Montreal Screwjob
The Montreal Screwjob was a controversial, purportedly real life professional wrestling event in which the owner of the World Wrestling Federation, Vince McMahon, double-crossed the defending WWF Champion, Bret Hart, during the main event match of the professional wrestling pay-per-view event...
, fans continually compared the two promotions, and the Internet wrestling community was full of debate as to which of the two was superior.
Among other factors, however, mismanagement within WCW (such as allowing wrestlers themselves to book matches) eventually led WCW to a downward spiral from which it never recovered. The Monday Night Wars came to an end on March 23, 2001, when the WWF bought WCW for what was considered to be a bargain price.
The final night of the Monday Night Wars occurred on March 26, 2001: Raw primarily focused on the major storylines heading into WrestleMania X-Seven, while Nitro
WCW Monday Nitro
WCW Monday Nitro was a weekly professional wrestling telecast produced by World Championship Wrestling, created by Ted Turner and Eric Bischoff. The show aired Monday nights on TNT, going head-to-head with the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw from September 4, 1995 to March 26, 2001...
held their final episode with a "Night of Champions". Vince McMahon opened up Nitro and announced a simulcast later that night to address the future of WCW. Throughout Raw, McMahon publicly named several WCW wrestlers who would not be retained. After Sting defeated Ric Flair
Ric Flair
Richard Morgan Fliehr is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Ric Flair. Also known as "The Nature Boy", Flair is one of the most well-known professional wrestlers in the world....
in WCW's final match, the simulcast began. McMahon talked about the buyout of WCW and toyed with the idea of making WCW into a huge media conglomerate, much like the WWF. He asked the crowd who he should keep under his belt by mentioning names of WCW wrestlers and asking for a reaction. Lex Luger
Lex Luger
Lawrence Wendell "Larry" Pfohl , better known by his ring name Lex Luger, is an American former professional wrestler and football player currently working with WWE on their wellness policy...
received a negative reaction from fans, and Hulk Hogan
Hulk Hogan
Terrance Gene "Terry" Bollea , better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American Semi-retired professional wrestler, actor, television personality, and musician currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
, Buff Bagwell
Buff Bagwell
Marcus Alexander Bagwell is an American professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring name, Buff Bagwell. He is best known for his tenure with World Championship Wrestling between 1991 and 2001, where he was a five time World Tag Team Champion.-Professional wrestling career: Bagwell...
, Booker T
Booker Huffman
Robert Booker Tio Huffman , better known by his ring name Booker T, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler and currently signed to WWE, on its SmackDown brand, as part of the announcing team. Booker is best known for his time in both the World Wrestling Entertainment and World...
, Scott Steiner
Scott Steiner
Scott Carl Rechsteiner is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Scott Steiner. Steiner is perhaps best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling alongside his older brother Rick as the Steiner Brothers and as a member of the New World Order...
, Sting, and Goldberg
Bill Goldberg
Goldberg earned a scholarship to play for the University of Georgia Bulldogs football team where he served as a defensive tackle. He was taken in the 11th round, with the 302nd overall selection, in the 1990 NFL Draft....
received positive reactions. Vince then proceeded to fire them all, however, to the cheers of the RAW crowd and the jeers of the Nitro crowd. McMahon then announced that he would sign the contract and make the purchase official at WrestleMania. Shane McMahon, however, appeared on Nitro and announced in kayfabe that he had signed the contract and purchased WCW out from under his father's nose, planting the seed for what was considered a lucrative future storyline opportunity. The Invasion did not begin immediately afterwards, as the WWF was preparing for WrestleMania X-Seven, the year's largest show, which was mere days away.
The Invasion
The WWF had effectively doubled the size of its roster through its acquisition of WCW, and as a result, there was not enough screen time for everyone. The original plan was to find a time slot on TNN to continue running WCW as a separate entity. Polls were even put up on WWF.com and WCW.com to decide the name of the new show. These plans fell through when no TV station would touch WCW because of its reputation for losing money. The WWF eventually carried out a brand extensionWWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
, effectively reviving WCW under its own auspices and running two separate promotions, each with one of the WWF's two existing televised shows, Raw and SmackDown!.
As part of its plans, Lance Storm
Lance Storm
Lance Timothy Evers known professionally by his ring name Lance Storm, is a semi-retired Canadian professional wrestler. He is best known for his work in World Wrestling Entertainment, Extreme Championship Wrestling, and World Championship Wrestling...
became the first WCW wrestler to appear on WWF programming, by making a run-in during a match on the May 28 episode of Raw. Hugh Morrus
Bill DeMott
William Charles "Bill" DeMott II is an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment as Hugh Morrus and Bill DeMott respectively and as Crash The Terminator in Extreme Championship Wrestling and Japan...
made his WWF debut on the June 4, 2001 episode of Raw attacking Edge
Adam Copeland
Adam Joseph Copeland is a retired Canadian professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring name Edge. He is currently signed to WWE under a Legends contract....
. At King of the Ring on June 24, then-WCW wrestler Booker T interfered during the Triple Threat Main Event match for the WWF Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
and almost cost Stone Cold Steve Austin the title. Additionally, Austin suffered fractured bones in his hand from the side slam he took from Booker into an announce table. The next night, a confrontation occurred between WCW owner Shane McMahon and WWF owner Vince McMahon. While Vince was in the ring, Booker T came from behind to deliver a scissor kick
Scissor kick (strike)
A scissor kick in martial arts is used to describe certain kicking or grabbing techniques that resemble a pair of scissors.-In The Asian Martial Arts:...
to Vince. The WWF roster ran to the ring to the aid of Vince, but Booker T and Shane McMahon escaped through the crowd. This incident marked the official start of the Invasion storyline, to which Raw announcer Jim Ross
Jim Ross
James William "Jim" Ross is a professional wrestling commentator, former professional wrestling referee, restaurateur, occasional wrestler, and former company executive of WWE, where he currently works as a commentator on the WWE Raw brand...
announced, "The battle lines have been drawn!"
The WWF eventually began to recognize WCW and tested the idea of a brand extension by giving WCW the final twenty minutes of Raw with Scott Hudson and Arn Anderson
Arn Anderson
Martin Anthony Lunde better known by his ring name Arn Anderson, is a former American professional wrestler and author. His career has been highlighted by his alliances with Ric Flair and various members of the wrestling stable, The Four Horsemen, in the NWA/WCW...
doing announcing duties in place of Jim Ross and Paul Heyman
Paul Heyman
Paul Heyman is an American entertainment producer, best known for his career in professional wrestling as a promoter, manager, commentator and journalist. He is also an occasional actor in film....
. During a match between Buff Bagwell and Booker T for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship
WCW World Heavyweight Championship
The World Championship Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation . It existed within WCW between 1991 and 2001. Following the acquisition of WCW by World Wrestling...
, WWF wrestlers Kurt Angle and WWF Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin interfered in retaliation by beating Booker T up, with Bagwell joining Angle and Austin by attacking Booker T. This match did not go over well at all with the audience in attendance at the Tacomadome. One source cites that the match should have showcased the best of WCW but instead featured too many restholds and not enough action. The audience jeered at the wrestlers with chants of "This match sucks!" and "Boring!" A WWF source close to Vince McMahon said that Vince had "absolutely hated" the segment.
Up until this point, the WCW contingent were being built up to being malcontent faces rising up against the heel
Heel (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a heel is a villain character. In non-wrestling jargon, heels are the "bad guys" in professional wrestling; the term heel coming from the term take to you heels, which means to run away which heel champions tend to do to avoid losing their titles.storylines...
Vince McMahon, because of Vince's bluster during the final Nitro broadcast and Shane's usurping of the WCW ownership. Originally, WCW talents were meant to attack strictly heel WWF wrestlers. The strongly negative reaction of the core WWF viewership to the WCW product and talent, however, coupled with the reality that a WCW wrestling program to appeal to WWF fans would not come to fruition, led to the entire WCW contingent to abruptly turn heel. One example was the heel gimmick of then WCW Alliance Member, Diamond Dallas Page
Diamond Dallas Page
Dallas Page , better known by his ring name "Diamond" Dallas Page , is an American retired professional wrestler, fitness instructor and actor...
, who's first appearence in the WWE was built up over several weeks in a storyline in which he was portrayed as an anonymous stalker sending invasive videotapes to the babyface
Face (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a babyface or face or in simple words, a fan favorite is a character who is portrayed as a heroic relative to the heel wrestlers, who are analogous to villains...
The Undertaker.
Addition of ECW
On July 9 on Raw, Kane was scheduled to face Mike AwesomeMike Awesome
Michael Lee Alfonso , better known by his ring name Mike Awesome, was an American professional wrestler best known in America for his work in Extreme Championship Wrestling, World Championship Wrestling, and in World Wrestling Federation and also in Japan for his work with Frontier Martial-Arts...
and Lance Storm in a handicap match. Chris Jericho came out and offered to be Kane's partner, thus turning it into a tag team match. Near the end of the match, Jericho applied the Walls of Jericho on Lance Storm. As the move was being applied, however, Rob Van Dam and Tommy Dreamer
Tommy Dreamer
Thomas James "Tom" Laughlin is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Tommy Dreamer. He is currently working for various promotions on the independent circuit. He is best known for his time spent with Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment...
ran through the audience and into the ring and started to beat on Kane and Jericho. In response, WWF wrestlers consisting of The Dudley Boyz
Dudley Boyz
Team 3D was a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Brother Ray and Brother Devon, formerly sporadically joined into a stable by Brother Runt on several intervals...
, Tazz
Tazz
Peter Senerchia is a retired American professional wrestler and current color commentator best known by his ring name Tazz, originally Tazmaniac and later shortened to simply Taz...
, Justin Credible
Peter Polaco
Peter Joseph Polaco is an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation under the ring name Justin Credible. He is also known for his earlier stint with the WWF under the ringname Aldo Montoya...
, Rhyno
Terry Gerin
Terrance "Terry" Gerin is an American professional wrestler and actor, better known by the ring name Rhino . He is best known for his career in Extreme Championship Wrestling, World Wrestling Federation / Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
, and Raven
Scott Levy
Scott Anthony Levy , better known by his ring name Raven, is an American professional wrestler, wrestling producer, wrestling writer, and occasional author and actor currently working for Juggalo Championship Wrestling , where he is co-holder of the JCW Tag Team Championship, as well as other...
(all former ECW wrestlers) ran to the ring. After a brief stand-off, the WWF cavalry turned around and attacked Kane and Jericho. This prompted Paul Heyman to leave the announce table and enter the ring. After high-fiving the wrestlers, he announced that ECW
Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1992 by Tod Gordon and closed when his successor, Paul Heyman, declared bankruptcy in April 2001...
has been brought into the Invasion. Heyman talked about how tired he was sitting beside Jim Ross and discussing WCW vs. WWF, stating that he felt that everyone had forgotten about ECW and announced, "This Invasion just got taken to the extreme."
Later during the night, Shane and Vince McMahon bumped into each other backstage. Shane told his father that ECW needed to be taken care of and pointed out that there were 10 ECW wrestlers under Heyman's belt. He suggested that he would take five of his WCW wrestlers and have them team up with five of Vince McMahon's WWF wrestler's later that night to take out ECW. Vince agreed but stubbornly insisted that WCW would eventually meet its demise when all was said and done.
At the end of the night, the WCW wrestlers came into the ring, accompanied by Shane McMahon. The WWF wrestlers then came into the ring and, before ECW entered, the WCW and WWF wrestlers started to brawl. The WWF wrestlers cleared the ring but then were stormed by the ECW wrestlers and taken out. After this, WCW's men came into the ring and high-fived the ECW men. Paul Heyman and Shane McMahon then hugged and started to dismantle the WWF wrestlers. Vince McMahon, stunned, came out and asked what was going on. Shane McMahon responded that he was responsible for all the events that just transpired and announced that ECW and WCW merged to form The Alliance. He then announced that the new owner of ECW was Stephanie McMahon.
Stone Cold's leave and return
Kumbaya
"Kumbaya" or "Kumbayah" — is an African-American spiritual song from the 1930s. It enjoyed newfound popularity during the folk revival of the 1960s and became a standard campfire song in Scouting and nature-oriented organizations...
" and "We Are the Champions
We Are the Champions
"We Are the Champions" is a power ballad written by Freddie Mercury, recorded and performed by British rock band Queen for their 1977 album News of the World. One of their most famous and popular songs, it remains among rock's most recognisable anthems...
" for McMahon, to which Vince was unresponsive. Later that night, Vince McMahon came out and asked Stone Cold to come to the ring, announcing him as the man that would lead Team WWF into the pay-per-view and into victory. Upon entering, Vince McMahon told Stone Cold that he had changed quite a bit since WrestleMania, and when the WWF goes up against The Alliance at the upcoming pay-per-view, he did not need a Stone Cold that gave him hugs and gifts and baked him cookies. He needed the "old" Stone Cold who was a "beer-swilling, foul-mouthed SOB" and the "old" Stone Cold that "didn't take shit from anyone." He asked Stone Cold to knock him down, even yelling to the crowd, "If you want Stone Cold to beat the living hell out of Vince McMahon, give me a hell yeah!" to which the crowd responded enthusiastically. Stone Cold, however, shook his head and proceeded to leave the ring, turning his back on Vince McMahon. Later that night when Diamond Dallas Page and Shane McMahon went up against the Undertaker and Kurt Angle, many members of the Alliance interfered. Kane and Jericho came to help their team, but the Alliance's numbers were too many, and without Stone Cold to back up his teammates, Team WWF was overwhelmed.
On the July 16 edition of Raw, Stone Cold was shown drinking and playing pool at a bar downtown. During the night, Vince McMahon held a WWF meeting backstage. Undertaker and the APA
Acolytes Protection Agency
The Acolytes Protection Agency , was a professional wrestling tag team that consisted of Bradshaw and Faarooq. They wrestled for the American promotion World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment between October 1998 and March 2004....
gave a motivational speech on how they should not tolerate the Alliance any longer. After they were finished, Brooklyn Brawler
Steve Lombardi
Steve Lombardi is an Italian American professional wrestler, and road agent. He is also known by his ring name Brooklyn Brawler...
wheeled Freddie Blassie into the room so he could address the wrestlers and pump them up for the night. As the WWF wrestlers united, Stone Cold could be seen watching the events on the television at the bar. He proceeded to slam his cue stick on the pool table and left.
Later that night, DDP and Rhyno faced Kane and the Undertaker. During the match, there was interference from the Alliance. In response, The Hardy Boyz
Hardy Boyz
The Hardy Boyz are a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of real-life brothers Matt and Jeff Hardy...
, the APA, Jericho, and Kurt Angle came to help their WWF allies, but more Alliance members came in and overwhelmed the WWF wrestlers. Backstage, many WWF and Alliance wrestlers were fighting each other, and the WWF seemed to be on the losing end of things. A truck was seen driving up to the arena, however, and Stone Cold came out with his cue stick and proceeded to beat down any WCW and ECW wrestlers in his path. He then came to the ring, trash-talking on the way down, and beat down the Alliance wrestlers, giving Stunners
Stunner (professional wrestling)
A stunner is a common term in professional wrestling referring to the seated three-quarter facelock jawbreaker maneuver, predominantly used by Stone Cold Steve Austin and named for his Stone Cold Stunner finisher...
to most of the men in the ring. The WWF wrestlers had cleaned house and were standing tall. The WWF seemed to be in good shape for the upcoming pay-per-view with Stone Cold's return.
WWF InVasion
At InVasionWWF InVasion
Invasion was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on July 22, 2001 at the Gund Arena in Cleveland, Ohio...
, the Inaugural Brawl took place between Team WCW/ECW and Team WWF. Team WWF consisted of Stone Cold Steve Austin, Kurt Angle, Chris Jericho, Kane, and the Undertaker, who all squared off against the team of DDP, Booker T, Rhyno, and the Dudley Boys. Near the end of the match, all of the wrestlers were outside of the ring except Booker T and Angle. Kurt Angle applied the ankle lock on Booker T, who tapped out, but no referee was there to witness it. Stone Cold then dragged a referee into the ring, but in a swerve, kicked Kurt Angle in the stomach, hit him with a Stunner, and placed Booker T on top of Kurt Angle and told the referee to count. Team WCW/ECW won the match due to Stone Cold's betrayal of the WWF.
The next night, Austin claimed he joined the Alliance because they appreciated him. He cited Vince's hugging of Angle and calling The Rock on the phone as signs that Vince did not appreciate Austin and accused McMahon of grooming Angle to be the next WWF Champion.
The WWF gains momentum
Shane McMahon, on the July 26 edition of SmackDown!, extended an invitation to The Rock, who had not been seen since the Raw following WrestleMania X-Seven, to the Alliance. Also that night, Kurt Angle challenged Booker T to a WCW World Heavyweight Championship match, which Booker T accepted. The WWF gained momentum when Angle made Booker T submit with an ankle lock, taking the WCW Championship away from the Alliance. Angle's title run proved to be short-lived, as Booker T won it back on the July 30 episode of RAW.On that same Raw at the First Union Center in Philadelphia, The Rock returned for the first time since his kayfabe suspension on the April 2 edition of Raw. Shane, Stephanie, and Vince McMahon were in the ring that night, and each tried to convince The Rock to join their respective side. Shane McMahon took the liberty of reminding The Rock of how Vince screwed him out of the WWF Championship earlier that year at WrestleMania and also in a steel cage match the day after WrestleMania. Vince McMahon replied that Shane was somewhat accurate in his accusations but ceded that it was wrong for him to back Stone Cold, as he was a rattlesnake that he should have known would eventually bite him. He promised to The Rock that he had no intention of screwing him if he returned to the WWF but also ceded that he could not promise that he never would; if it was good for business, he said, then he just might do it. He told The Rock that he was at least being honest with him and pleaded for The Rock to trust himself, stating that his future was with the fans and the WWF. The Rock, however, gave Vince a Rock Bottom after some bickering between Shane and Vince, and proceeded to stare down Shane before cheekily smiling and shaking Shane's hand, faking a defection to the Alliance and a heel
Heel
In human anatomy, the heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower leg.- Human anatomy :...
turn but he then proceeded to Rock Bottom him as well and give him a People's Elbow. He picked up the microphone and emphatically asserted, "Finally, the Rock has come back... to the WWF." The Rock had chosen a side, and that side was the World Wrestling Federation.
His return led to a WCW Title match between The Rock and Booker T at SummerSlam 2001
SummerSlam (2001)
SummerSlam was the fourteenth annual SummerSlam professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on August 19, 2001 at the Compaq Center in San Jose, California...
, which The Rock won, marking the second time the WCW Championship belt changed sides to the WWF. At that same pay-per-view, Austin retained his WWF Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
against Angle after Angle won by disqualification.
The following Raw and SmackDown! showings featured primarily interpromotional matches between the two companies. Austin stole Kurt Angle's medals during one of the shows, and on the August 30 edition of SmackDown!, tied them to a cinder block and threw them in a river. The following Raw, Debra
Debra Marshall
Debra Gale Marshall is an American actress and former professional wrestling manager and WWE Diva. Arguably best known by her ring name, Debra, she gained recognition for her appearances with the World Wrestling Federation between 1998 and 2002.She began her career in professional wrestling in...
and Stephanie bought a new truck for Stone Cold, but Angle came up from behind and nailed Austin in the back of the head with a pipe. He put a cinder block and rope in the truck, put Austin in it, and drove away on the truck. He blindfolded Stone Cold and threatened to throw him into a river if he did not get a title shot. Austin, fearful for his life, "broke down in tears" and agreed to give Angle a title shot at the upcoming pay-per-view, Unforgiven. Angle said, however, that Austin was "still going into the water", but instead simply embarrassed Austin by throwing him into a kiddie pool.
The WWF gained even more momentum at Unforgiven, as The Rock retained the WCW Championship in a handicap match against Booker T and Shane McMahon, and Kurt Angle made Austin submit to the ankle lock, winning the WWF Championship from Stone Cold, putting both belts into the hands of the WWF.
Almost every other championship had changed hands during this period of time, being exchanged between WWF Superstars and Alliance members. For example, The Undertaker and Kane beat Diamond Dallas Page
Diamond Dallas Page
Dallas Page , better known by his ring name "Diamond" Dallas Page , is an American retired professional wrestler, fitness instructor and actor...
and Chris Kanyon
Chris Kanyon
Christopher Klucsarits was an American professional wrestler, best known for his work in World Championship Wrestling and the World Wrestling Federation, under the ring names Chris Kanyon and Mortis.-Early career:After college, he began training under Pete McKay Gonzalez, Ismael Gerena and Bobby...
in a Steel Cage Match at Summerslam to become co-holders of both the WWF and WCW Tag Team Titles. Also, X-Pac
Sean Waltman
Sean Michael Waltman is an American professional wrestler currently signed with WWE in their developmental program. He wrestled there under the ring names 1–2–3 Kid and X-Pac off and on from 1993–2002, World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Syxx, and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ...
beat Billy Kidman to become double champion of WWF Light Heavyweight Champion as well as WCW Cruiserweight Champion.
Jericho and The Rock Feud/The Alliance mounts a comeback
World Tag Team Championship
The World Tag Team Championship was the original professional wrestling world tag team championship contested for in World Wrestling Entertainment . It served as the premier title for tag teams in WWE from 1971 until 2002 when a second WWE Tag Team Championship was established...
.
Also that night, Stone Cold and Kurt Angle faced off for the WWF Championship, and then-WWF Commissioner William Regal
Darren Matthews
Darren Kenneth Matthews , is an English professional wrestler, author and color commentator currently signed to WWE and competing on the SmackDown brand under the ring name William Regal. He is also known for his time in World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Steven Regal...
, who sat at ringside to ensure a fair match would take place, hit Kurt Angle with the championship, thereby backstabbing the WWF and costing Angle the title. On the following SmackDown!, Linda McMahon
Linda McMahon
Linda Marie McMahon is an American professional wrestling magnate and politician. She is notable for her career developing WWE with her husband Vince McMahon. She was in the company from 1980 to 2009. During this time, WWE grew from a small regional business in New York to a large multinational...
promptly fired Regal from his position as WWF Commissioner, and named Mick Foley as his replacement. Regal was then declared the Commissioner of the Alliance by Shane and Stephanie.
The feud between Jericho and The Rock built up to a match at No Mercy on October 21, where Jericho beat the Rock to win the WCW Championship (Jericho's first world title), and Stone Cold Steve Austin defeated Angle and Rob Van Dam to retain his WWF Championship.
On the October 29 edition of Raw, Shane McMahon told his father, Vince McMahon, that a member of the WWF would jump ship to the Alliance that night. Later that same night, Kurt Angle backstabbed the WWF by hitting Jericho, The Rock, Undertaker, and Kane with steel chairs. On the November 1 edition of SmackDown!, Angle, who originally led the WWF wrestlers, explained that he represented what is great about America—he was a winner, and his defection came from his decision to fight along the winning side. That side included Stone Cold, a man Angle claimed knew how to win.
The end of the Invasion
On the November 5 airing of Raw, Vince McMahon countered Kurt Angle's defection by stating that a member of Team Alliance would defect during a match at the upcoming Survivor SeriesSurvivor Series (2001)
Survivor Series was the fifteenth annual Survivor Series pay-per-view professional wrestling event produced by the World Wrestling Federation...
. Stone Cold came out to confront Vince about it, and Vince stated that Stone Cold would be the one to defect. Because of this announcement, many Alliance members began to distrust Austin, who vehemently denied the charges and called Vince a liar. Stone Cold went on to interrogate members of Team Alliance, questioning Booker T and sitting Rob Van Dam down in a room with a light shining on him. That same night The Rock won the WCW World Title from Chris Jericho, but Jericho assaulted The Rock in the ring following the match.
All of this led to a "Winner Take All" match at Survivor Series 2001, which pitted Team WWF (The Rock, Chris Jericho, The Undertaker, Kane, and The Big Show) against Team Alliance (Stone Cold, Kurt Angle, Booker T, Rob Van Dam, and Shane McMahon). The final three men in the match were The Rock and Jericho vs. Austin. Jericho was eliminated and, to continue the feud between the two men, attacked The Rock, even though Jericho's future was on the line if The Rock lost. The Rock and Austin continued to battle it out, and the referee was knocked down in the match. Austin stunned the Rock and pinned him, but there was no referee to count it. Austin approached the downed referee to try to revive him. As this was occurring, Angle ran to the ring, picked up the WWF championship belt, and nailed Austin with it, revealing himself to be the defector to which McMahon was referring the entire time. The Rock followed this with a Rock Bottom and a pin on Austin, to which the referee woke up and counted the three count. Team WWF prevailed, thus ending the storyline.
It was also on this night that several titles were unified; Edge defeated Test to unify the WCW United States Championship and the Intercontinental Championship, while The Dudley Boyz beat The Hardy Boyz in a Steel Cage match to unify the WCW Tag Team Titles with the WWF Tag Team Titles. The final ECW member, Jazz, made her debut during a Six Pack Challenge for the vacant Women's Championship, which was won by Trish Stratus
Trish Stratus
Patricia Anne Stratigias , better known by her ring name Trish Stratus, is a Canadian professional wrestler, actress and television personality currently signed with WWE. She is also a former fitness model....
.
Aftermath
WCW
After The Alliance was disbanded, the WWF was faced with a title crisis; that is, they had so many championships (due to them acquiring all of WCW's championships), each individual title became devalued. To combat this, the WWF began to unify many championships. First, the WCW World Heavyweight Championship (simply renamed the World Championship) was unified with the WWF ChampionshipWWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
to form the WWF Undisputed Championship.
At Survivor Series 2001
Survivor Series (2001)
Survivor Series was the fifteenth annual Survivor Series pay-per-view professional wrestling event produced by the World Wrestling Federation...
, two championships were merged with two other championships: Edge
Adam Copeland
Adam Joseph Copeland is a retired Canadian professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring name Edge. He is currently signed to WWE under a Legends contract....
, the WCW United States Champion
WWE United States Championship
The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
at the time, defeated Test to become the WWF Intercontinental Champion
WWE Intercontinental Championship
The WWE Intercontinental Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It is the original secondary title of the promotion. Currently, it is the secondary championship exclusive to the SmackDown brand...
, while the US Title was retired. Meanwhile, The Dudley Boyz
Dudley Boyz
Team 3D was a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Brother Ray and Brother Devon, formerly sporadically joined into a stable by Brother Runt on several intervals...
defeated The Hardy Boyz
Hardy Boyz
The Hardy Boyz are a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of real-life brothers Matt and Jeff Hardy...
to win the WWF Tag Team Championships while retiring the WCW World Tag Team Championship
WCW World Tag Team Championship
The World Championship Wrestling Tag Team Championship was a professional wrestling world tag team championship in World Championship Wrestling...
s.
Another WCW championship, the WCW Cruiserweight Championship
WWE Cruiserweight Championship
The World Wrestling Entertainment Cruiserweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and was originally a World Championship Wrestling title. It was challenged by cruiserweights at a maximum weight of 215 lbs...
, was rebranded as a WWF title and replaced the WWF Light Heavyweight Championship
WWF Light Heavyweight Championship
The World Wrestling Federation Light Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship. The title was challenged by light heavyweights at a maximum weight of 220 lbs.- History :...
as the WWF Cruiserweight Championship
WWE Cruiserweight Championship
The World Wrestling Entertainment Cruiserweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment and was originally a World Championship Wrestling title. It was challenged by cruiserweights at a maximum weight of 215 lbs...
. Additionally, the WCW United States Championship
WWE United States Championship
The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
was revived in 2003 as a SmackDown!-exclusive title, thus becoming the WWE United States Championship
WWE United States Championship
The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
.
The Undisputed Championship was originally represented with both the original WWF and WCW title belts, as the champion would carry both belts around, until being replaced with a single belt. At the beginning of the WWE Brand Extension, the champion would appear on both Raw and SmackDown! until then champion Brock Lesnar
Brock Lesnar
Brock Edward Lesnar is an American mixed martial artist, actor and a former professional and amateur wrestler. He is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion and is ranked the No.5 Heavyweight in the world by Sherdog...
took the title to SmackDown!. Eric Bischoff
Eric Bischoff
Eric Aaron Bischoff is an American entrepreneur, and professional wrestling booker and on-screen personality currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
introduced the World Heavyweight Championship
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
represented by the former WCW Championship belt and awarded it to Triple H. The Undisputed Championship would be renamed the WWE Championship, as having two world titles contradicted the term "undisputed."
ECW
Although the WCW brand effectively died once and for all following the end of this storyline, ECW was temporarily revived by WWE in 2005 for the purposes of a special reunion show, ECW One Night StandECW One Night Stand (2005)
ECW One Night Stand was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It was held on June 12, 2005 at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York, New York. The main event was a tag team match between The Dudley Boyz and the team of Tommy Dreamer and The Sandman...
, held on June 12, 2005. The build-up to this one-shot event featured former ECW talent putting over the virtues of the brand versus the WWE product and appearances by several former ECW wrestlers not under contract to WWE. In 2006, it was announced that WWE would be reviving ECW as its third brand (to complement Raw and SmackDown!). The second One Night Stand
ECW One Night Stand (2006)
ECW One Night Stand was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It was held on June 11, 2006 at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York, New York....
, held on June 11, 2006, led to the official debut of the new ECW the following Tuesday. WWE Champion Rob Van Dam was awarded the ECW World Heavyweight Championship
ECW World Heavyweight Championship
The Extreme Championship Wrestling World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment...
for his victory over John Cena, thus officially reviving the title for the ECW brand. The brand would continue to operate until February 2010.
Fallout after Survivor Series
Alliance member Test won a battle royal at Survivor Series that featured both Alliance and WWF wrestlers battling for the right to be immune from termination for a year. Over the next several weeks Test began using that immunity to his advantage, attacking and bullying other wrestlers for no reason. Whenever he would be called on it, he would bring up his immunity from being fired. Shortly after Survivor Series, however, this was eventually forgotten.The immunity was also extended to any Alliance member who held a championship at the conclusion of Survivor Series. The Dudley Boyz, who held the tag team championships; Rob Van Dam, who was the Hardcore Champion; and Christian
Jason Reso
William Jason Reso is a Canadian professional wrestler and actor, better known by his ring names Christian and Christian Cage...
, who was European Champion, saw that extended to them. Of these wrestlers, everyone except RVD (who was already cheered by fans despite being in the Alliance) remained a heel after the Alliance.
On the first Raw after Survivor Series, WWF Commissioner Mick Foley resigned. Vince McMahon celebrated his (assumed) complete and sole ownership of the WWF and his final victory over the Alliance. He then fired the Alliance's Paul Heyman from his broadcasting position and replaced him with a returning Jerry Lawler
Jerry Lawler
Jerry O'Neil Lawler is an American professional wrestler, wrestling commentator, musician, businessman, commercial artist and film actor, known throughout the wrestling world as Jerry "The King" Lawler. He is currently signed to WWE, working on its Raw brand as the color commentator and occasional...
. He later had his daughter escorted from the building by security, and made Alliance commissioner William Regal become the inaugural member of the infamous "Kiss My Ass Club" in order to retain his job.
McMahon also announced that he would strip Alliance leader Stone Cold Steve Austin of his WWF Championship and award it to Kurt Angle, who had portrayed himself as the hero of Survivor Series the entire night and bragged about his actions to other face wrestlers. In doing so, McMahon completed a slow heel turn he had begun at the beginning of the night.
Before McMahon could announce his new champion, Ric Flair (who returned to the WWF for the first time in over eight years) announced that he "bet on a winner" at Survivor Series. When pressed, Flair revealed to McMahon that he was not in fact the sole owner of the WWF as he had originally thought. When Shane McMahon and Stephanie McMahon had bought WCW and ECW earlier in the year they had sold their shares in the WWF to "a consortium
Consortium
A consortium is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for achieving a common goal....
", and that Flair was the man who had bought them, making him half-owner of the WWF.
Immediately after making the declaration Austin made his return and attacked Angle for costing him the win at Survivor Series and McMahon for attempting to strip him of his title, ending the heel run he had begun at WrestleMania. He turned face by aligning himself with Flair and reclaiming his belt.
Reception
The Invasion angle was a large storyline that spanned for almost half of 2001 and brought about financial success for the WWF, such as the InVasion pay-per-view being one of the highest non-major event buyrates in the history of pay-per-views. The Invasion storyline has come under criticism by wrestling fans and wrestling media, however, with the storyline being called a flop. Other media refer to the storyline as "one of the most poorly handled, ego-filled story lines in wrestling history."The weakness of the Alliance
Throughout the storyline, many interpromotional matches had WWF wrestlers winning over WCW/ECW wrestlers, usually cleanly. In contrast, most of the Alliance's wins were controversial due to interference or disqualification. For example, it took Tazz assisting Raven at InVasion to beat William Regal. The Rock, however, won cleanly at SummerSlam, despite Shane McMahon's assistance to Booker T.One particular example of this was during the Inaugural Brawl at the InVasion pay-per-view. Besides Austin's turn in the match that was needed to secure a WCW/ECW win over the WWF, SLAM! Wrestling alleged that the Alliance wrestled poorly in comparison to the WWF wrestlers:
"Portrayed as disorganized and inferior grapplers, the ECW-WCW Team had more than its fair share of mistimed moves which hurt their own team members while the "WWF squad" of course wrestled like a well-oiled machines. The weakening of the ECW-WCW dubbed superstars didn't stop there either. The WWF faction battered their enemy tag partners off the ring apron over and over again making them appear weak and more times than not, the ECW-WCW grapplers gained an advantage only by double-teaming or employing underhanded tactics. The message sent was loud and clear. The best of ECW-WCW is not good enough to hang with the WWF."
It has been speculated that the reason for this was because Vince McMahon did not want the WWF to look weak while fighting the Alliance, as he worked very hard to put down his competition, especially WCW. Smash Wrestling alleges that WWF wrestlers needed to defect to make the Alliance appear to be a credible threat.
Overemphasis on the McMahons
The Invasion storyline was presented with a backdrop of a McMahon feud. In the storyline, the WWF was owned by Vince McMahon, WCW was owned by Shane McMahon, and ECW was owned by Stephanie McMahon. Although the feud did not center completely around the McMahons, the family feud storyline had been done many times before. In addition to this, the Stone Cold versus Vince McMahon feud was to start again when Vince McMahon hit Austin in the back of the head with a chair at No Mercy. As stated by a SLAM! Wrestling synopsis of No Mercy:For fans who didn't catch it the fifth, tenth or twentieth time they've run the angle, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and Vince McMahon are about to feud once again... First up was Vincent McMahon labeling Austin with a steel chair as he was waiting to put a dazed RVD away... Three minutes later, it was Shane McMahon's turn to hurl Kurt Angle out of the ring and into a steel ring post. Vince tackled Shane over the announce table and the two began pummeling one another. Back in the ring, Austin laid a "Stone Cold" Stunner on to retain the belt as a disgruntled Vince scowled. Gee, how many times have we seen that scenario play itself out before? Austin wins. Vince fumes. Fans snore. Whatever.
The storyline also allegedly centered too much on the McMahons, who were getting more airtime than the wrestlers.
It has been argued that the Invasion angle may have been more successful if Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff were perceived as controlling ECW and WCW, respectively, instead of Stephanie and Shane McMahon.
Lack of big-name WCW talent/Overemphasis on WWF defectors
Many fans had dreamed of a day where they could pit WWF and WCW wrestlers against each other, but the storyline's final match ended with four WWF wrestlers brawling it out. As a column in Online World of Wrestling stated:"While it was good TV, it wasn't what everyone thought the WCW vs WWF would have been all about... When the fans of WWF and WCW reminisced about a WCW vs WWF match back in the glory days of Monday Night Wars of around 1997, their match would have probably gone like this: WCW would probably have a team of Hollywood Hulk Hogan, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, Goldberg, and Ric Flair against... maybe the WWF team of Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, the Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, and Mick Foley. Something like that anyway, obviously, even if Vince had done this thing right and signed some good WCW talent we would have had a match a little different due to... factors such as retirement or injuries or something, but still similar to that."
It is important to note that some of the WCW wrestlers' absences were out of the WWF's control. Many of WCW's top wrestlers had contracts with AOL
AOL
AOL Inc. is an American global Internet services and media company. AOL is headquartered at 770 Broadway in New York. Founded in 1983 as Control Video Corporation, it has franchised its services to companies in several nations around the world or set up international versions of its services...
Time Warner
Time Warner
Time Warner is one of the world's largest media companies, headquartered in the Time Warner Center in New York City. Formerly two separate companies, Warner Communications, Inc...
, WCW's parent company, and were willing to sit at home rather than wrestle for less money. McMahon had the option of taking on any contract he wanted with his purchase, but chose to let AOL Time Warner continue to pay out what were considered bad deals. Ric Flair and Rey Mysterio were not signed until the end of the Invasion because they were tied to their contracts, and therefore their absence was out of the WWF's control. In addition, Scott Steiner was recovering from an injury. Others, such as Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash
Kevin Nash
Kevin Scott Nash is an American professional wrestler and actor. As of 2011, Nash is signed to a five year contract with WWE under their WWE Legends program and appears as part of their Raw brand roster...
, Scott Hall
Scott Hall
Scott Hall is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure with the World Wrestling Federation in the early and mid 1990s under the ring name Razor Ramon, as well as for his period in the mid 1990s and early 2000s with World Championship Wrestling under his real name...
, and Goldberg, were not signed until well after the storyline finished. WCW's other top superstars like Sting, who for many years had avoided joining the WWF and was still under contract AOL Time Warner; while Lex Luger and Macho Man Randy Savage would never reappear in the company. Fans were confused by McMahon's decisions seeing as WWF would make more than enough to cover all these wrestlers contracts in 2001. Because of this, the WWF's opponent allegedly lacked the strong identity of WCW. In correlation with WCW, ECW was also missing most of their key superstars such as The Sandman
Jim Fullington
James "Jim" Fullington better known by his ring name Sandman, is an American professional wrestler, best known for his career with Extreme Championship Wrestling , where he developed into a "Hardcore Icon"...
, Sabu, Balls Mahoney
Balls Mahoney
Jonathan Rechner better known by his ring name Balls Mahoney , is an American professional wrestler...
, Little Guido
James Maritato
James Maritato is an American professional wrestler, of Italian origin, currently working on the independent circuit. He is best known for his work in World Wrestling Entertainment and Extreme Championship Wrestling under the ring names Little Guido Maritato and Nunzio.-Starting out:While...
and Tony Mamaluke (all of whom would later join WWE's relaunched ECW). Other wrestlers such as Shane Douglas
Shane Douglas
Troy Alan Martin is an American professional wrestler and promoter, better known by his ring name "The Franchise" Shane Douglas. In the course of his career, which has spanned nearly three decades, Douglas has wrestled in Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Championship Wrestling and briefly...
, Masato Tanaka
Masato Tanaka
Masato Tanaka is a Japanese professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with Frontier Martial Arts Wrestling in Japan and in Extreme Championship Wrestling in the United States where he was a one-time world champion, having won the ECW World Heavyweight Championship once...
, Terry Funk
Terry Funk
Terrence "Terry" Funk is an American professional wrestler and actor known chiefly for the hardcore wrestling style he adopted in the latter part of his career that inspired many younger wrestlers, including Mick Foley...
, New Jack
Jerome Young
Jerome Young in Clarendon, Jamaica, attended high school in Hartford, Connecticut at Prince Technical, is a sprint athlete. He was caught doping in 1999, which cast suspicious shadows over his entire track & field career....
, 2 Cold Scorpio
2 Cold Scorpio
Charles Scaggs is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name 2 Cold Scorpio . Scaggs has competed in Extreme Championship Wrestling, World Championship Wrestling, World Wrestling Entertainment and Pro Wrestling Noah...
and Mikey Whipwreck
Mikey Whipwreck
John Watson , better known by his ring name Mikey Whipwreck, is a retired American professional wrestler best known for his career with Extreme Championship Wrestling where he became the third ECW Triple Crown Champion....
would also be missing from the storyline.
To bolster the ranks of WCW (in lieu of big WCW names), some WWF wrestlers (such as Stone Cold) defected and joined the Alliance and were pushed as the leaders of the Alliance. Austin, who had worked as a mid-carder in WCW and ECW but had found his greatest success in the WWF and was seen primarily as a WWF wrestler, was pushed as the leader of the Alliance and a more important player during the Invasion than the bona fide WCW or ECW members of the Alliance. Several top WCW and ECW talents who were top superstars in their previous companies, such as Diamond Dallas Page, Booker T., Rob Van Dam, The Dudley Boyz, Justin Credible, Raven and Tazz, were put down into low-mid card matches, while lesser-ranked WWF wrestlers who defected to the Alliance, such as Test, were given a greater push.
In the final Survivor Series main event between the WWF and the Alliance, the Alliance was represented by three WWF wrestlers. Two of three wrestlers, Shane McMahon and Kurt Angle had never wrestled a match for WCW or ECW prior to the Invasion. Only two bona fide WCW or ECW wrestlers, Booker T and Rob Van Dam, were in the match. McMahon, Booker T and Rob Van Dam were the first wrestlers eliminated on the Alliance's team, resulting in the last survivors representing the ostensible WCW/ECW entity being two WWF wrestlers.
See also
- The Alliance (professional wrestling)
- WWF InvasionWWF InVasionInvasion was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation . It took place on July 22, 2001 at the Gund Arena in Cleveland, Ohio...