WWF Unforgiven 1998 was a PPV that included three majors firsts. The April 26, 1998 event featured the inaugural Inferno and Evening Gown matches.
It was also the first event to feature the WWF scratch logo. Which perhaps makes it the official birth of the Attitude Era. We take a look at Unforgiven 1998 and its impact a quarter of a century on.
Unforgiven’s undercard acted as a crystal ball for the future of the wrestling business. Triple H and The Rock both shone in matches to highlight they would be the next top guys, Jim Cornette complained about modern wrestling, Sable got semi-nude to the delight of the crowd and Jeff Jarret sang a song and someone got hit by his guitar.
Build To The Inferno Match And Unforgiven 1998
In the summer of 1997, Paul Bearer revealed The Undertaker’s brother had survived the fire Taker started at the family funeral parlor. Presumed dead, Kane was very much alive and coming to seek revenge.
After months of build, Kane appeared during the first Hell in a Cell match in October. Undertaker refused to lay hands on Kane until WrestleMania XIV.
A month later, the two met in a rematch at Unforgiven. But this time the ring would be surrounded by fire.
Kane looked for ultimate retribution by setting his brother on fire and forcing him to wear the burns he had all his life.
The Inferno Match
Wrestling purists may not look back on this match fondly but it was perfect for the time. The fans in Greensboro roared with excitement as the flames burst alive around the ring.
Big moves forced the flames to explode high into the air. The suspense grew during the 15-minute match as both men attempted to set the other on fire.
Kane was launched over the top rope to the outside and headed to the back. Vader interfered and forced Kane to ringside. The Undertaker hit a swan dive over the top rope onto both men.
A brawl ensued on the outside. Eventually, Kane was knocked backward into the fire. His arm caught a blaze giving the victory to Undertaker.
Legacy of Inferno Match
Dangerous by its design, the Inferno match hasn’t been a regular feature since its inception. Nothing came close to the excitement of the first Inferno match which made perfect sense for the Undertaker and Kane storyline.
The Undertaker defeated Kane again when they met in an Inferno match on Raw Is War in February 1999. Triple H defeated Kane in a 3-minute Inferno match in September 1999.
Fans would have to wait until 2006 for the next Inferno match which Kane finally won when he torched MVP at Armageddon.
The WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 video game also featured the Inferno match for the first time.
Other Firsts Of Unforgiven 1998
Luna Vachon and Sable competed in a two-and-a-half-minute Evening Gown match. The winner would be the first lady to strip the other from their gown to their underwear. This was also the first of this match type to happen on a WWE PPV.
Unsurprisingly for an era when women were eye candy for the red-blooded wrestling fans that watch WWE, this match type really stuck around. WWE had enough Evening Gown matches to fill a very big wardrobe.
Torrie Wilson & Sable defeated Miss Jackie & Stacy Keibler in a “Playboy Evening Gown Match” at WrestleMania XX. This was the last official Evening Gown match in WWE.
The match was also adjusted slightly into the popular Bra & Panties match. This meant women could strip each other without having to first wear an evening gown.
The WWE Here Comes The Pain video game featured the Bra & Panties match for the first time. Resulting in parents across the world asking ‘what the hell are you playing?’ when entering their kids’ bedrooms.
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