Survivor Series (1991)

Template:Short description Template:Infobox Wrestling event The 1991 Survivor Series was the fifth annual Survivor Series professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation. It took place on Thanksgiving Eve on November 27, 1991, at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan. It was the first Survivor Series to feature a singles match of any kind, which served as the main event; in which The Undertaker defeated Hulk Hogan to win the WWF Championship. The undercard featured four traditional Survivor Series elimination matches.

Production

Background

Survivor Series is an annual gimmick pay-per-view (PPV), produced every November by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) since 1987. In what has become the second longest-running pay-per-view event in history (behind WWE's WrestleMania), it is one of the promotion's original four pay-per-views, along with WrestleMania, Royal Rumble, and SummerSlam, which were dubbed the "Big Four". The event is traditionally characterized by having Survivor Series matches, which are tag team elimination matches. The 1991 event was the fifth event in the Survivor Series chronology and the first to not exclusively consist of Survivor Series matches. The only non-Survivor Series match on the card was for the WWF Championship, which was the first time it was defended at a Survivor Series. The event was scheduled to be held on Thanksgiving Eve on November 27, 1991, at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan.

Storylines

Other on-screen personnel

Role:	Name:
Commentator	Gorilla Monsoon
	Bobby Heenan
Interviewer	Gene Okerlund
	Sean Mooney
Ring announcer	Howard Finkel
Referee	Earl Hebner
	Mike Chioda
	Danny Davis
	Joey Marella
	John Binella

The main event heading into the event was between World Wrestling Federation Champion Hulk Hogan, and The Undertaker for the World Wrestling Federation Championship. Hogan reclaimed the World Wrestling Federation Championship at WrestleMania 7. The Undertaker debuted in the World Wrestling Federation at the previous year’s Survivor Series. Since debuting, Undertaker had yet to be pinned in a televised match (although he did suffer several pinfall losses at untelevised arena shows). This earned him a shot at Hogan's championship, billing the match as Hogan’s “Gravest Challenge”.

Ric Flair arrived in the World Wrestling Federation on September 9, 1991, claiming to be the “Real World's Champion”. He debuted carrying the WCW World Heavyweight Championship with him, which he had not lost prior to his departure from the company. He immediately began feuding with Roddy Piper. Both men would captain their teams at Survivor Series. Piper's team would consist of Bret Hart, The British Bulldog, and Virgil, while Flair would team with Ted DiBiase, The Mountie, and The Warlord. There were multiple storylines between the two teams as DiBiase and Virgil had been feuding since January's Royal Rumble, The Mountie had begun challenging Bret Hart for the Intercontinental Championship, with the Warlord and The British Bulldog also involved in a lengthy program.

Sid Justice was originally scheduled to join the Big Bossman and the Legion of Doom while Jake Roberts was originally scheduled to join Irwin R. Schyster and The Natural Disasters. After Justice was sidelined due to an elbow injury, Randy Savage began campaigning to take Sid’s place due to Roberts and the Undertaker crashing Savage and Miss Elizabeth's wedding reception at Summerslam and attacking Savage. Savage would have to be reinstated to take part in the event due to losing a retirement match to the Ultimate Warrior at WrestleMania 7. However, at a television taping for WWF Superstars of Wrestling (which would air November 23), Roberts baited Savage into the ring where he would attack him, tying him in the ropes before allowing his King Cobra to bite Savage. Savage would not be reinstated for the match and Roberts would also not be allowed to compete in the match due to his actions.

The Hogan-Undertaker and Savage-Roberts feuds would continue to build toward the WWF's next pay-per-view event, This Tuesday in Texas.

Jim Neidhart, The Dragon, and Big Bully Busick were originally scheduled for the second Survivor Series match on the show but were pulled from the event.

Aftermath

Due to Ric Flair's involvement in the events leading to The Undertaker's WWF World Heavyweight Championship victory over Hulk Hogan, a rematch was immediately signed for the This Tuesday in Texas pay-per-view event, contested December 3 at the Freeman Coliseum in San Antonio, Texas. WWF president Jack Tunney was present at ringside to make sure there was no outside interference. During the match, Flair once again attempted to interfere on The Undertaker's behalf, but – in a chaotic series of events that saw Tunney get knocked out – Hogan was able to pin The Undertaker after throwing ash from manager Paul Bearer's urn in his eyes. The following weekend, Jack Tunney vacated the WWF Championship due to the controversial finishes of the last two matches between Hogan and Undertaker and put the title up for grabs at the 1992 Royal Rumble. Meanwhile, Hogan and Flair began wrestling in a series of matches that had been highly anticipated since the late 1980s.

Dissension had been brewing for weeks between Shawn Michaels and Marty Jannetty of the Rockers, and at their Survivor Series match the two argued after Jannetty caused Michaels to be eliminated by accidentally slamming one of The Nasty Boys into him. In a segment of Brutus "the Barber" Beefcake's "Barber Shop" talk show segment taped on December 2 and aired on January 12, the two aired their grievances before seemingly resolving to stick together and work through their difficulties. However, Michaels superkicked Jannetty and threw him through a plate-glass window that was part of Beefcake's set, cementing Michaels' heel turn. A feud was commissioned, but Jannetty was fired in January 1992, shortly before their first match was to take place; the two eventually met in a series of matches in 1993 when Jannetty returned. However, for Michaels, the "Barber Shop" segment and the superkick jumpstarted his career, which would continue to grow during the 1990s and 2000s.

Results

Survivor Series elimination matches

^1

Eliminated	Wrestler	Eliminated by	Method	Time
	The British Bulldog	Ric Flair	Pinfall	10:55
	The Warlord	Roddy Piper		17:00
	Ted DiBiase	N/A	DQ	22:48
	The Mountie
	Roddy Piper
	Bret Hart
	Virgil
	Ric Flair

^2

Eliminated	Wrestler	Eliminated by	Method	Time
	Col. Mustafa	Sgt. Slaughter	Pinfall	7:57
	Hercules	Tito Santana		12:05
	Skinner	Sgt. Slaughter		13:31
	The Berzerker	Jim Duggan		14:19
	Jim Duggan, Sgt. Slaughter, The Texas Tornado and Tito Santana (Clean Sweep)

^3

Eliminated	Wrestler	Eliminated by	Method	Time
	Bushwacker Luke	Brian Knobbs	Pinfall	5:21
	Bushwacker Butch	Beau Beverly		10:13
	Beau Beverly	Shawn Michaels		14.30
	Shawn Michaels	Brian Knobbs		19:41
	Marty Jannetty	Jerry Sags		23:06
	Brian Knobbs, Jerry Sags, and Blake Beverly

^4

Eliminated	Wrestler	Eliminated by	Method	Time
	The Big Boss Man	Irwin R. Schyster	Pinfall	6:23
	Typhoon	Hawk		9:55
	Earthquake	N/A	Countout	10:05
	Irwin R. Schyster	Animal	Pinfall	15:21
	Animal and Hawk

References

• hoffco-inc.com – Survivor Series '91 review Template:Webarchive
• Survivor Series '91 Review Template:Webarchive
• 1991 Survivor Series Results

External links

• Official 1991 Survivor Series website