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#1 Survivor Series 1996
Date: November 17th, 1996
Location: New York City, New York
Matches/moments to watch: Bret "The Hitman" Hart vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin in a Number One Contenders Match; Shawn Michaels vs. Psycho Sid for the WWF Championship; The Rock's debut
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Survivor Series 1996 was the first to take place at Madison Square Garden in New York City. With a rowdy crowd and a lineup sprinkled with all-time greats, this would become an extraordinary major show to be remembered for years to come. This pay-per-view was headlined by Shawn Michaels defending the WWF Championship against Psycho Sid.
The MSG crowd turned on Michaels on this evening, favoring the challenger over the squeaky clean babyface champ. Sid would defeat HBK to win the WWF Championship, thus ending the eight-month reign. Survivor Series 1996 would also feature the earliest encounter between two era-defining rivals.
On this night, Bret 'The Hitman' Hart overcame Stone Cold Steve Austin in an excellent #1 Contender's match that left every fan on the edge of their seat until the end. The realism in this classic was spectacular and delivered an unforgettable start to a feud that would kickstart the Attitude Era.
With this superb one-two punch of top-notch contests, Survivor Series 1996 would rank among the best ever pay-per-views in the event's history. However, this evening would also be remembered for the debut of the third-generation star, Rocky Maivia. The future Rock would be the sole survivor in his elimination bout and show the world how much potential he had.
There was also decent to good action sprinkled through this card with a bruising Undertaker vs. Mankind brawl and a well-paced technical wrestling showcase with the debuting Doug Furnas and Phil Lafon. With a balanced lineup with two great matches and a momentous debut, Survivor Series 1996 is the greatest event in its history.
