Mick Foley Sure Classic Hell In A Cell Moment Could Never Happen In WWE Today
As the wrestling world celebrates the 25th anniversary of the iconic Hell in a Cell match at King of the Ring in 1998, Mick Foley's legendary fall from atop the structure remains an iconic moment in wrestling history. But his return appearance that night — just one match later on the card — often goes unmentioned.
Appearing on "Busted Open Radio," Foley recounted the highs and lows of the infamous encounter but wondered how his often-forgotten interference in the main event — a First Blood match for the WWF Championship between "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and Kane — was able to take place in the first place.
"What kind of a sell job did I do on someone backstage to convince them that I could come back out there?" Foley asked.
In the title match's waning moments, a battered and bloodied Foley, as Mankind, hobbled his way to the ring carrying a steel chair. He managed to interrupt an Austin assault on Kane but eventually took a Stunner for his troubles. The Undertaker ultimately reappeared as well and, along with one more right hand to Foley for good measure, delivered a chairshot to Austin which drew blood to secure the win for "The Big Red Machine."
A History-Making Stumble-In
Kane is a 3-time world champion in WWE canon, reflecting this win, which his only WWF Championship, alongside runs as World Heavyweight Champion and ECW Champion. To get to that first title win, however, required interruption, which Foley looks back upon with mixed feelings.
"I can't even call it a run-in," Foley said of the encore. "It's a stumble-in and the funny thing about it is that I'm changing the course of wrestling history through my interference."
Austin's momentum would only be temporarily thwarted, as he'd go on to regain the title one night later on "Raw." Still, Foley, who noted a multitude of reactions to the historic event, recognized the magnitude of the moment. "There's no way to overstate how incredibly over Steve was so this is a major deal," he said of the run-in. "I should have a ton of heat being that guy and instead, I come out and you can just feel the audience like, 'Ohhhh, haven't you had enough?'"
Underappreciated though it may be, Foley's involvement in the championship match goes down in history with all of the other epic moments from that night, if only because it would likely never happen in today's landscape.
"In the current day, none of that would happen," explained Foley, "because A.) they would never allow something like [the fall from the cell] to take place and B.) if an injury of that magnitude occurred, the match would be stopped, which is [how] it should be."
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Busted Open Radio with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.