This week in WWE history: Major title change, Triple H overcomes the odds (September 23-September 29)

Big things are on the horizon for WWE. The NXT brand is set to move to The CW beginning this Tuesday. As if that isn't enough, Bad Blood will be taking place this Saturday live from Atlanta.

The company is doing record business and in other metrics is doing the best they've done for decades, if not ever. It is a good time to be a fan, a wrestler, and those working within the company. Still, it has been a long journey to reach this point.

The Sports Entertainment titan has been around since the 1950's and went through multiple generations of the McMahon family. Today, the company is owned by Endeavor and is part of TKO alongside the UFC, but there is a lot of history that led up to this point.

This article will look back at some of the major moments, matches, and events that helped shape the promotion. Specifically, we'll look back at four big events from 1999 to 2020, some of which included big title changes.

Below are major matches and moments from this week in WWE's history:

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#4. Kurt Angle and Stone Cold Steve Austin delivered at Unforgiven on September 23, 2001

The first entry on this week's list took place back on September 23, 2001. WWE held the Unforgiven pay-per-view in the middle of The Invasion angle, and it took place live from the Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Nearly 14,000 fans were in attendance for the show and WWE put on an excellent main event. Kurt Angle battled Stone Cold Steve Austin for what was then the WWF Championship. Angle won the belt in around 24 minutes.

This was big, but not just because it was a title change. Less than two weeks prior was the 9/11 terrorist attacks that shocked the United States. The belt being put on Kurt Angle was one based on patriotism and to give the man who represented the United States in the Olympics a huge win. Fans certainly loved it.

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#3. Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins headlined Clash of Champions on September 25, 2016

The next entry on the list took place on September 25, 2016. WWE held the Clash of Champions Premium Live Event on that day, and it took place at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana.

There were over 13,000 fans in attendance for what was a seven-match main card. The undercard featured Roman Reigns, Charlotte Flair, Sami Zayn, Sheamus, and the New Day in action, among others.

The main event of WWE Clash of Champions 2016 featured Kevin Owens defending his Universal Championship against Seth Rollins. Interference from Chris Jericho and chaos with Stephanie McMahon allowed The Prizefighter to hit the Pop-Up Powerbomb to retain his belt.

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#2. A Six-Pack Challenge was held at Unforgiven on September 26, 1999

Another Unforgiven event is on this week's list, with this edition of the WWE pay-per-view taking place back in 1999. More specifically, Unforgiven took place on September 26 that year in front of around 16,000 screaming wrestling fans.

The show, which was held at the Charlotte Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina, was headlined by a rare Six-Pack Challenge Match. Six of WWE's top names battled it out to determine the World Champion with Stone Cold Steve Austin serving as the special guest referee.

The six men in action were Triple H, The Big Show, The British Bulldog, Kane, The Rock, and Mankind. The Game ultimately won in about 20 minutes, but Austin got involved quite a bit and even leveled Triple H with a Stone Cold Stunner post-match.

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#1. Sami Zayn won WWE gold at Clash of Champions on September 27, 2020

The final entry this week is a rare pandemic-era show. The world shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic and it led to WWE running shows in The ThunderDome without fans in attendance. Clash of Champions 2020 happened to be one of the events without an audience in the building.

The show was held on September 27, and it featured seven main card bouts. The main event saw Roman Reigns and Jey Uso go at it, plus the card also featured Asuka wrestling twice, Drew McIntyre vs. Randy Orton, and more.

The best match of the show was the opening contest. AJ Styles, Jeff Hardy, and Sami Zayn clashed in a Triple Threat Ladder Match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship. Thanks to the use of handcuffs, a heel Sami was able to cleverly win the bout at around 26 minutes.