SummerSlam (2000)

The 2000 SummerSlam was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It was the 13th annual SummerSlam, and took place on August 27, 2000, at the Raleigh Entertainment and Sports Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. Ten matches were contested at the event.

The main event was a triple threat match for the WWF Championship involving champion The Rock, Triple H, and Kurt Angle. The Rock won the match and retained the title after pinning Triple H following a People's Elbow. One of the predominant matches on the undercard was Kane versus The Undertaker, which ended in a no contest after Undertaker ripped Kane's mask off which caused Kane to flee. Another featured match on the undercard was the first Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match for the Tag Team Championship involving champions Edge and Christian, The Hardy Boyz (Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy), and The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray Dudley and D-Von Dudley). Edge and Christian won the match by retrieving the belts suspended above the ring.

SummerSlam is an annual pay-per-view (PPV) produced every August by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) since 1988. Dubbed "The Biggest Party of the Summer", it is one of the promotion's original four pay-per-views, along with WrestleMania, Royal Rumble, and Survivor Series, and was considered one of the "Big Five" PPVs, along with King of the Ring. It has since become considered WWF's second biggest event of the year behind WrestleMania. The 2000 event was the 13th event in the SummerSlam chronology, and was scheduled to be held on August 27, 2000, at the Raleigh Entertainment and Sports Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina.

The professional wrestling matches at SummerSlam featured professional wrestlers performing as characters in scripted events pre-determined by the hosting promotion, World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Storylines between the characters played out on WWF's primary television programs, Raw Is War, and SmackDown!.

On the August 3 episode of SmackDown!, Triple H, and his wife, Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley, along with Kurt Angle, were booked in a six-man tag team match by Commissioner Mick Foley, against the Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray Dudley and D-Von Dudley), and Lita; which Triple H, McMahon, and Angle won. After the match, as Triple H left the ring, Angle, and McMahon hugged in a victory celebration, frustrating Triple H, and marking the beginning of a Triple H-Angle feud. On the August 7 edition of Raw is War, Angle, and Triple H were booked in a triple threat match, along with Chris Jericho, to determine the number one contender for a WWF Championship match against the defending champion, The Rock. Both Angle, and Triple H simultaneously pinned Jericho, which made both Angle, and Triple H co-number one contenders; in frustration, The Rock delivered a Rock Bottom on Triple H, Angle, and McMahon, who was at ringside during the match. Later that week on SmackDown!, the match was made official for SummerSlam by Commissioner Foley. He also booked a tag team match, where Angle, and Triple H would team up against The Rock and The Undertaker. During the match, Angle accidentally attacked Triple H, causing Triple H to walk out on the match, and a loss for Angle. The following week on Raw is War, Angle, Triple H, and Shane McMahon were booked in a six-man tag team match against the Dudley Boyz and The Rock, with the stipulation that if Angle or Triple H walked away from the match, they would lose their number one contender status. During the match, Edge and Christian interfered by attacking the Dudley Boyz, which resulted in Angle, Triple H, and McMahon winning the match when Triple H pinned The Rock; as a result of neither Triple H nor Angle walking out on the match, they both were able to keep their number one contender status.

On the August 14 edition of Raw is War, Kane interfered in a match between The Undertaker, and Chris Benoit, and chokeslammed The Undertaker. After the interference, Kane rode out of the arena with The Undertaker's motorcycle, which was at ringside, signaling the start of a feud between The Undertaker, and Kane, which was the second main feud heading into SummerSlam. On the August 17 edition of Smackdown, the feud intensified during a segment in which Kane attacked The Undertaker with a steel chair, bloodying The Undertaker. On the August 20 edition of Sunday Night Heat, it was made official that The Undertaker would face Kane at SummerSlam.

On the August 10 episode of SmackDown!, the Hardy Boyz (Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy) attacked the WWF Tag Team Champions, Edge and Christian, after their championship match against the Dudley Boyz. As the Hardy Boyz attacked Edge with a ladder, the Dudley Boyz powerbombed Christian through a table; this began a three-way feud, the third main rivalry heading into SummerSlam. The feud intensified on the August 14 edition of Raw is War, when Edge, and Christian attacked Matt Hardy with steel chairs after the Hardy Boyz' match against Right to Censor. Later that night, Commissioner Mick Foley announced the first ever Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match between the three teams in a WrestleMania 2000 rematch for the WWF Tag Team Championship. On that week's edition of SmackDown!, Jeff teamed up with D-Von to face Edge, and Christian. During the match, Jeff accidentally delivered a Swanton Bomb to D-Von, which resulted in Edge pinning D-Von for the win. After the match, Matt, and Bubba came down to the ring, and the Hardys, and the Dudleys brawled until they were pulled apart by WWF officials. Due to the events that occurred that past week, the Hardy Boyz were booked in a match against the Dudley Boyz the following week on Raw is War, which the Hardys won. On the final episode of SmackDown! prior to SummerSlam, the Dudley Boyz interfered in a six-man tag team match between the team of the Hardy Boyz, and Chris Jericho, and the team of Edge, Christian, and Chris Benoit, which resulted in another brawl between the three teams. The interference allowed Jericho to pin Edge for the win.

On the July 27 episode of SmackDown!, Chris Jericho, and Lita defeated Chris Benoit, and Trish Stratus in a mixed tag team match when Jericho pinned Benoit. Backstage after the match, Jericho in an interview mocked Benoit's claim of being the best "technical wrestler in the world" when Benoit viciously attacked Jericho from behind, and threw him under a steel door before slamming it on his injured ribs. As Jericho coughed up blood, Benoit hit him with a steel chair. On the August 7 episode of Raw is War, Benoit challenged The Rock for the WWF Championship in a no disqualification match. As Benoit was putting the Crippler Crossface on Rock, Jericho interfered in the match, and attacked Benoit before running off Shane McMahon, who attempted to interfere in the match on Benoit's behalf. Rock retained the title after a Rock Bottom. When Benoit and Shane complained to Commissioner Foley about Jericho's interference, Foley put Jericho in the number one contender's match with Triple H and Kurt Angle which Jericho would lose when both men pinned him simultaneously. On the August 10 episode of SmackDown!, Benoit and Intercontinental Champion Val Venis defeated Jericho and Eddie Guerrero when Benoit pinned Guerrero after a Diving Headbutt. After the match, Jericho attacked Benoit and put him in the Walls of Jericho. When Shane tried to make the save, Jericho put him in the same maneuver. Later that night, Jericho demanded a match against Benoit which Foley made for SummerSlam. The weeks leading up to the match would see Benoit and Jericho attacking each other and interfering in title matches by one costing the other. The match was later announced to be a Two-out-of-three falls match.