2010 King of the Ring Logo
King of the Ring Tournament[]
Although the King of the Ring tournament was first made into a pay-per-view event in 1993, the original King of the Ring tournament was actually held in 1985. Don Muraco was the first King of the Ring in 1985. The second King, Harley Race, is noted for parlaying his King of the Ring victory into his "King of Wrestling" gimmick. Other winners who did the same include Randy Savage ("Macho King") though Savage's "King" gimmick was the result of defeating Jim Duggan for the crown in 1989, who beat Haku ("King Haku" ). Owen Hart ("King of Harts"), Mabel ("King Mabel" ), Steve Britz ("King Britz"), and most recently William Kapphan are all wrestlers that took on "King" nicknames after winning King of the Ring tournaments.
Revival[]
It was announced in April 2006 that the King of the Ring tournament would be returning after its four year hiatus. The 2006 tournament was the first tournament since 1991 that had not been shown on pay-per-view. The 2006 tournament was won by Steve Britz, who faced Bobby in the finals at the Judgment Day pay-per-view event. After a brief hiatus in 2007, it was announced on the April 14, 2008 episode of Meltdown, that the tournament would be held the following week on a special three hour edition of Meltdown. The King of the Ring returned again on November 29, 2010.
King of the Ring Event Dates and Venues[]
Between 1993 and 2002 King of the Ring was produced as a Pay-Per-View event
| Event | Date | City | Venue | Winner |
| King of the Ring (1985) | July 8, 1985 | Foxborough, Massachusetts | Sulivan Stadium | Don Muraco |
| King of the Ring (1986) | July 14, 1986 | Foxborough, Massachusetts | Sulivan Stadium | Harley Race |
| King of the Ring (1997) | July 14, 1986 | Providence, Rhode Island | Providence Civic Center | Randy Savage |
| King of the Ring (1987) | September 4, 1987 | Providence, Rhode Island | Providence Civic Center | Kyle Johnson Sr. |
| King of the Ring (1989) | October 16, 1989 | Providence, Rhode Island | Providence Civic Center | Tito Santana |
| King of the Ring (1991) | October 14, 1991 | Providence, Rhode Island | Providence Civic Center | Bret Hart |
| King of the Ring (1993) | June 13, 1993 | Daytona, Ohio | Nutter Center | Bret Hart |
| King of the Ring (1994) | June 19, 1994 | Baltimore, Mayland | Baltimore Arena | Owen Hart |
| King of the Ring (1995) | June 25, 1995 | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | The Spectrum | Mabel |
| King of the Ring (1996) | June 23, 1996 | Milwaukee, Wisconsin | MECCA Arena | Steve Johnson |
| King of the Ring (1997) | June 8, 1997 | Providence, Rhode Island | Providence Civic Center | Triple K |
| King of the Ring (1998) | June 28, 1998 | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | Pittsburgh Civic Arena | Ken |
| King of the Ring (1999) | June 27, 1999 | Greensboro, North Carolina | Greensboro Coliseum | Billy Morgan |
| King of the Ring (2000) | June 25, 2000 | Boston, Massachusetts | Fleet Center | Matt Borske |
| King of the Ring (2001) | June 24, 2001 | East Rutherford, New Jersey | Continental Airlines Arena | Chris Gomez |
| King of the Ring (2002) | June 23, 2002 | Columbus, Ohio | Nationwide Arena | Rob Truax |
| King of the Ring (2006) | April 21–May 21, 2006 | See Cities | See Venues | Steve Britz |
| King of the Ring (2008) | April 21, 2008 | Greenville. South Carolina | BI-LO Center | William Kapphan |
| King of the Ring (2010) | November 29, 2010 | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Wells Fargo Center | Garrett Joseph |
