Heat Wave (1997) was the fourth
Heat Wave
A heat wave, or heatwave, is a period of excessively hot weather, which may be accompanied by high humidity, especially in oceanic climate countries. While definitions vary, a heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual climate in the ...
professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...
live event
A house show or live event is a professional wrestling event produced by a major promotion that is not televised, though they can be recorded. Promotions use house shows mainly to cash in on the exposure that they and their wrestlers receive du ...
produced by
Extreme Championship Wrestling
HHG Corporation, doing business as Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), was a professional wrestling promotion and media company that was based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The promotion was founded in 1992 by Tod Gordon as National Wrest ...
(ECW). The event took place on July 19, 1997 in the
ECW Arena
2300 Arena is a multipurpose indoor arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania used primarily for professional wrestling, boxing, mixed martial arts, and concert events. Originally known as Viking Hall, the venue has since been named Alhambra Arena, The ...
in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
,
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
in the United States.
Excerpts from Heat Wave appeared on episode #222 of ''
ECW Hardcore TV
''ECW Hardcore TV'' is an American professional wrestling television program that was produced by the Philadelphia based promotion Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) composed of footage from live shows and recorded interviews. It ran in syndi ...
'', which was broadcast on July 22, 1997.
Background
The event featured wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds and
storylines. Wrestlers portrayed
villains
A villain (also known as a "black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character a ...
,
heroes
Heroes or Héroes may refer to:
* Hero, one who displays courage and self-sacrifice for the greater good
Film
* ''Heroes'' (1977 film), an American drama
* ''Heroes'' (2008 film), an Indian Hindi film
Gaming
* ''Heroes of Might and Magic'' ...
, or
less distinguishable characters in the scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches played out on ECW's television program ''
Hardcore TV''.
Rob Van Dam
Robert Alexander Szatkowski (born December 18, 1970) is an American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam (frequently abbreviated to RVD). He is best known for his tenures in Extreme Championship Wrestling ...
and
Sabu shockingly
turned heels at
Barely Legal by attacking
Taz after Taz had beaten Sabu in a match and Taz's manager
Bill Alfonso
William Matthew "Bill" Sierra (born August 11, 1957) is an American former professional wrestling referee and manager better known by his ring name Bill Alfonso. He achieved his greatest success in Extreme Championship Wrestling in the mid-to-late ...
also turned on him and sided with RVD and Sabu. RVD would betray ECW for
World Wrestling Federation
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and var ...
(WWF), where he formed an alliance with WWF's color commentator
Jerry Lawler
Jerry O'Neil Lawler (born November 29, 1949), better known as Jerry "The King" Lawler, is an American color commentator and professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, although he has not performed as a full-time commentator since Ap ...
, who had been at odds against ECW since the February 24, 1997 episode of ''
Monday Night Raw
''WWE Raw'', also known as ''Monday Night Raw'' or simply ''Raw'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that currently airs live every Monday at 8 p.m. ET on the USA Network in the United States. The show fe ...
'', where ECW wrestlers got involved and competed in several matches and Lawler berated and insulted ECW and got into an argument with
Paul Heyman
Paul Heyman (born September 11, 1965) is an American professional wrestling manager, former promoter, photographer, and executive. He is currently signed to WWE, appearing on the SmackDown brand as manager for Undisputed WWE Universal Heavyweig ...
. At
Wrestlepalooza
Wrestlepalooza was a professional wrestling event produced by Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW). It took place in 1995, 1997, 1998 and 2000. The 1998 iteration aired on pay-per-view
Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast ...
,
Tommy Dreamer
Thomas James Laughlin (born February 13, 1971), is an American professional wrestler and promoter better known by the ring name Tommy Dreamer. He is signed to Impact Wrestling and is the owner and promoter of the House of Hardcore (HOH) prom ...
defeated
Raven in a
Loser Leaves Town match and then RVD, Sabu and Lawler attacked Dreamer and several ECW wrestlers after the match.
Lawler then made appearances on ''Hardcore TV'', where he berated ECW in his derogatory
promo
Promo or promos may refer to:
Promotions and advertising
*Promo (media), a form of commercial advertising used to promote television or radio programs
*Promo (professional wrestling), a televised interview in which a wrestler's on-screen personali ...
s and Sabu and RVD became traitors who betrayed ECW by siding with WWF. Dreamer formed an alliance with
The Sandman, leading to the two facing RVD and Sabu in a losing effort at
Orgy of Violence
Orgy of Violence was a professional wrestling live event produced by Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) on June 28, 1997. The event was held in the ECW Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States. Excerpts from Orgy of Violence aire ...
.
ECW color commentator
Rick Rude
Richard Erwin Rood (December 7, 1958 – April 20, 1999), better known by his ring name "Ravishing" Rick Rude, was an American professional wrestler who performed for many promotions, including World Championship Wrestling (WCW), World Wrestling ...
also got involved by speaking against Lawler's actions and insulting him in his promos. This led to a match between both sides at Heat Wave.
At Wrestlepalooza,
The Eliminators
The Eliminators were a professional wrestling tag team that consisted of Perry Saturn and John Kronus who were best known for their time in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) between 1995 and 1997.
History
Formation
While working as the m ...
(
Saturn and
Kronus) managed to retain the
World Tag Team Championship
The world tag team championship is the name usually given to the primary tag team championship (professional wrestling), championships in professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotions, promotions.
Nomenclature
The name of the promo ...
against
The Dudley Boyz
The Dudley Boyz (also known as Team 3D) are an American professional wrestling tag team that consisted of kayfabe half-brothers Bubba Ray Dudley (Mark LoMonaco) and D-Von Dudley (Devon Hughes). The team was also joined by various Dudley family me ...
(
Buh Buh Ray Dudley
Mark LoMonaco (born July 14, 1971) is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and Impact Wrestling under the ring name Bully Ray. He was previously known as one-half of The Dudley Boyz tag t ...
and
D-Von Dudley
Devon Hughes (born August 1, 1972) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he works backstage as a producer. Hughes wrestled for Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) from 1995 to 1999 and for the WWF/E ...
), despite Saturn's injury.
Kronus would then defend the title in
handicap matches as he ultimately lost the title to Dudley Boyz in a handicap match on the June 26 episode of ''Hardcore TV''.
The Gangstas
The Gangstas was a professional wrestling tag team and stable, consisting of New Jack and Mustafa Saed in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW). The group originally started as a three-man group with D'Lo Brown in Smoky Mountain Wrestling (SMW), ...
(
New Jack
Jerome Young (January 3, 1963 – May 14, 2021) was an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name New Jack. He was best known for his time with Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), where he became notorious for his willingnes ...
and
Mustafa
Mustafa ( ar, مصطفى
, Muṣṭafā) is one of the names of Prophet Muhammad, and the name means "chosen, selected, appointed, preferred", used as an Arabic given name and surname. Mustafa is a common name in the Muslim world.
Given name Mou ...
) would then become the contenders for the World Tag Team Championship as they received a title shot against Dudley Boyz at
Orgy of Violence
Orgy of Violence was a professional wrestling live event produced by Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) on June 28, 1997. The event was held in the ECW Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States. Excerpts from Orgy of Violence aire ...
, where they failed to win the titles.
On the July 17 episode of ''Hardcore TV'', it was announced that Gangstas would receive another rematch against Dudleys at Heat Wave.
Event
Preliminary matches
The opening match of the event was a 3-on-2
handicap match
Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...
, in which the team of
Mikey Whipwreck
John Michael Watson (born June 4, 1973), better known by his ring name Mikey Whipwreck, is an American semi-retired professional wrestler working for All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a trainer, and global ambassador. He is best known for his career ...
and
Spike Dudley
Matthew Jonathan Hyson (born August 13, 1970) is an American retired professional wrestler best known for his tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) as Spike Dudley. Prior to WWE, Hyson began performing as Spike Dudley in the 1990s with E ...
defeated
PG-13
The Motion Picture Association film rating system is used in the United States and its territories to rate a motion picture's suitability for certain audiences based on its content. The system and the ratings applied to individual motion pictures ...
(
J. C. Ice and
Wolfie D
Kelly Warren Wolfe (born December 7, 1973) is an American professional wrestler. Wolfe is perhaps best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) under the ring name Wolfie D (as o ...
) and
Jason
Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Medea. He ...
.
In the next match,
Axl Rotten
Brian Knighton (April 21, 1971 – February 4, 2016), better known by the ring name Axl Rotten, was an American professional wrestler. In the early 1990s, he was a part of the tag team The Bad Breed with Ian Rotten. He had a short stint with Wor ...
defeated
Tracey Smothers.
Next,
John Kronus
George B. Caiazzo (January 13, 1969 – July 18, 2007) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, John Kronus, and later simply Kronus. Caiazzo worked for Extreme Championship Wrestling, the United States Wrestling Asso ...
took on
Pablo Marquez. Kronus executed a
450° splash from the top rope to win the match.
Later,
Chris Chetti
Christopher Chetti (born July 16, 1974) is an American retired professional wrestler, best known for his appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) between 1996 and 2001.
Professional wrestling career
Extreme Championship Wrestling ...
and
Balls Mahoney
Jonathan Rechner (April 11, 1972 – April 12, 2016), better known by his ring name Balls Mahoney, was an American professional wrestler. He is perhaps best known for his appearances with Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) during the late 199 ...
competed against
The Triple Threat
The Triple Threat was a professional wrestling villainous stable that existed in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) from 1995 to 1998. It was Shane Douglas's answer to Ric Flair's Four Horsemen. Douglas disliked Flair since he felt that Flair ...
members
Chris Candido
Christopher Barrett Candito (March 21, 1972 – April 28, 2005) was an American professional wrestler. Candito is best remembered for his tenures with promotions such as World Championship Wrestling, Extreme Championship Wrestling, New Japan Pro-W ...
and
Bam Bam Bigelow
Scott Charles Bigelow (September 1, 1961 – January 19, 2007) was an American professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Bam Bam Bigelow. Recognizable by his close to 400-pound frame and the distinctive flame tattoo that spanned most ...
in a tag team match. Candido pinned Chetti for the victory.
Next,
Taz defended the
World Television Championship against
Lance Storm. Taz made Storm submit to a ''
Tazmission
Professional wrestling holds include a number of set moves and pins used by performers to immobilize their opponents or lead to a submission. This article covers the various pins, stretches and transition holds used in the ring. Some wrestlers use ...
'' to retain the title.
In the following match,
Terry Funk
Terrence Funk (born June 30, 1944) is an American retired professional wrestler, rapper, disc jockey and actor. Funk is known for the longevity of his career – which spanned more than 50 years and included multiple short-lived retirements – ...
defended the
World Heavyweight Championship against
Shane Douglas
Troy Allan Martin (born November 21, 1964) is an American professional wrestler and promoter, better known by his ring name Shane Douglas. He is best known for his tenures in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), World Championship Wrestling (W ...
. Chris Candido and
Francine interfered in the match as Francine bit Funk's ears. The referees checked onto Funk but he attacked them and Francine continued to bite it, forcing the referee to disqualify Douglas. As a result, Funk retained the title.
The Dudley Boyz
The Dudley Boyz (also known as Team 3D) are an American professional wrestling tag team that consisted of kayfabe half-brothers Bubba Ray Dudley (Mark LoMonaco) and D-Von Dudley (Devon Hughes). The team was also joined by various Dudley family me ...
(
Buh Buh Ray Dudley
Mark LoMonaco (born July 14, 1971) is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and Impact Wrestling under the ring name Bully Ray. He was previously known as one-half of The Dudley Boyz tag t ...
and
D-Von Dudley
Devon Hughes (born August 1, 1972) is an American retired professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he works backstage as a producer. Hughes wrestled for Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) from 1995 to 1999 and for the WWF/E ...
) defended the
World Tag Team Championship
The world tag team championship is the name usually given to the primary tag team championship (professional wrestling), championships in professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotions, promotions.
Nomenclature
The name of the promo ...
against
The Gangstas
The Gangstas was a professional wrestling tag team and stable, consisting of New Jack and Mustafa Saed in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW). The group originally started as a three-man group with D'Lo Brown in Smoky Mountain Wrestling (SMW), ...
(
New Jack
Jerome Young (January 3, 1963 – May 14, 2021) was an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name New Jack. He was best known for his time with Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW), where he became notorious for his willingnes ...
and
Mustafa
Mustafa ( ar, مصطفى
, Muṣṭafā) is one of the names of Prophet Muhammad, and the name means "chosen, selected, appointed, preferred", used as an Arabic given name and surname. Mustafa is a common name in the Muslim world.
Given name Mou ...
) in a
steel cage match
Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...
. Buh Buh injured his legs by hitting a ''
Bubba Cutter'' to New Jack
from the top rope and Saed pinned him to win the title. After the match,
Big Dick Dudley
Alexander Rizzo (January 12, 1968 – May 16, 2002) was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Big Dick Dudley. Rizzo was best known for his appearances with the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based professional wrestling pr ...
hit both members of Gangstas with a
steel chair.
Main event match
The ECW representative team of
Tommy Dreamer
Thomas James Laughlin (born February 13, 1971), is an American professional wrestler and promoter better known by the ring name Tommy Dreamer. He is signed to Impact Wrestling and is the owner and promoter of the House of Hardcore (HOH) prom ...
and
The Sandman took on
Rob Van Dam
Robert Alexander Szatkowski (born December 18, 1970) is an American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam (frequently abbreviated to RVD). He is best known for his tenures in Extreme Championship Wrestling ...
,
Sabu and
Jerry Lawler
Jerry O'Neil Lawler (born November 29, 1949), better known as Jerry "The King" Lawler, is an American color commentator and professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, although he has not performed as a full-time commentator since Ap ...
in a steel cage match.
Rick Rude
Richard Erwin Rood (December 7, 1958 – April 20, 1999), better known by his ring name "Ravishing" Rick Rude, was an American professional wrestler who performed for many promotions, including World Championship Wrestling (WCW), World Wrestling ...
came out to compete as Dreamer and Sandman's third partner but he quickly turned on his team by hitting a
clothesline
A clothes line or washing line is any type of rope, cord, or twine that has been stretched between two points (e.g. two sticks), outside or indoors, above the level of the ground. Clothing that has recently been washed is hung along the line t ...
to Dreamer which led to
Beulah McGillicutty
Trisa Laughlin ( née Hayes; born March 14, 1969) is an American author and retired professional wrestling valet, better known by her ring name, Beulah McGillicutty. She is best known for her appearances in Extreme Championship Wrestling from 19 ...
slapping him and Rude tossed her into the cage wall. Rude threw chairs into the cage and then locked the cage with RVD, Sabu and Lawler attacking Dreamer and Sandman inside the cage with the chairs until Taz made the save. RVD and Sabu escaped the cage but Lawler was trapped inside the cage and Taz knocked him out with a ''Tazmission'' until Rick Rude and
The Triple Threat
The Triple Threat was a professional wrestling villainous stable that existed in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) from 1995 to 1998. It was Shane Douglas's answer to Ric Flair's Four Horsemen. Douglas disliked Flair since he felt that Flair ...
attacked him and knocked him out and Chris Candido applied Taz's own ''Tazmission'' on him.
Aftermath
Four matches of the event aired with
syndication
Syndication may refer to:
* Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system
* Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips
* Web syndication, ...
on the July 24, 1997 episode of ''Hardcore TV''.
Terry Funk and Shane Douglas continued their feud after Heat Wave over the World Heavyweight Championship. A match had been made between the two for the title at Hardcore Heaven. However, before the event, Funk lost the title to Sabu in a
barbed wire match at
Born to be Wired.
As a result, Sabu defended the title against Funk and Douglas in a
three-way dance
Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...
at Hardcore Heaven.
This marked Mustafa's final appearance in ECW until 1999 as he quietly left the promotion after winning the World Tag Team Championship at Heat Wave. At the
Hardcore Heaven
Hardcore Heaven was a professional wrestling event produced by Eastern/Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW). It took place annually from 1994 to 2000, with the exception of 1998. The 1997, 1999 and 2000 iterations aired on pay-per-view
Pay-per-v ...
pay-per-view event in August, the former champions Dudley Boyz were awarded the titles by default.
Tommy Dreamer continued his feud with Jerry Lawler, resulting in Dreamer wrestling Lawler in a match to settle the score at Hardcore Heaven.
Chris Candido's application of ''Tazmission'' on Taz at Heat Wave evolved into a rivalry between the two, leading to Candido receiving a shot against Taz for the World Television Championship at Hardcore Heaven.
Results
References
External links
*
{{ECWPPV, Heat Wave
1997 in professional wrestling
1997 in Pennsylvania
Events in Philadelphia
Heat Wave
July 1997 events in the United States
Professional wrestling in Philadelphia