WWE Heat

Last updated
WWE Heat
WWF, WWE Heat logo (2000).png
Heat logo used from October 1, 2000 – May 30, 2008
Created by Vince McMahon
Starring Raw Brand
SmackDown brand
(Before Smackdown PPVs)
Country of originUnited States
No. of episodes513
Production
Running time
  • 45 minutes (television)
  • 35 minutes (webcast)
Original release
Network USA Network
ReleaseAugust 2, 1998 (1998-08-02) 
September 24, 2000 (2000-09-24)
Network MTV
ReleaseOctober 1, 2000 (2000-10-01) 
March 30, 2003 (2003-03-30)
Network The New TNN/Spike TV
ReleaseFebruary 23, 2003 (2003-02-23) 
September 25, 2005 (2005-09-25)
Network Webcast on WWE.com
ReleaseSeptember 30, 2005 (2005-09-30) 
May 30, 2008 (2008-05-30)
Related

WWE Heat (formerly known as Sunday Night Heat and also known as Heat) is an American professional wrestling television program that was produced by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and aired from August 2, 1998 to May 30, 2008. Originally produced under the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) banner, it aired on USA Network (1998–2000), MTV (2000–2003), and TNN/Spike TV (2003–2005) in the United States, CTV Sportsnet in Canada, and Channel 4, Sky1, and Sky Sports in the United Kingdom. From 2002, due to the WWE brand extension, Heat served as a supplementary show to the Raw brand, focusing more exclusively on its mid-card performers and matches, and was recorded before the week's television taping of Raw .

Contents

Heat was most recently streamed on WWE.com on Friday afternoons for North American viewers from 2005 to 2008. However, the show was still televised internationally and showed in the United Kingdom on Channel 4 and then later on Sky Sports 3, Australia on Fox8, India on TEN Sports, Germany on Premiere Sport Portal, France on Action, Spain on Sportmania and C+ Deportes -both channels from Digital+, the Middle East on ShowSports4, the Philippines on Jack TV, and Japan on J Sports. The final episode was uploaded to WWE.com. [1] The show was replaced internationally with WWE Vintage Collection , a program featuring classic matches. [2]

On May 7, 2018, the first 52 episodes of WWE Heat were made available to stream on the WWE Network. [3]

History

Early format

Sunday Night Heat logo used from August 2, 1998 to September 24, 2000 Wwfsundaynightheat.jpg
Sunday Night Heat logo used from August 2, 1998 to September 24, 2000

The show was originally introduced on the USA Network on August 2, 1998 in the United States. The one-hour show would be broadcast on Sunday nights, being taped earlier in the week after Raw. It was the second primary program of the WWF's weekly television show line-up, serving as a supplement to the Monday Night Raw program. Heat would feature a format similar to that of Monday Night Raw, in that continuing feuds from the previous week would progress during the show, and the following day's Monday Night Raw would be heavily promoted. On scheduled WWF pay-per-view event nights, Heat would also serve as a preview show to the events. The show was initially signed for only 6 episodes, but proved to be very popular and was continued.

1999–2002

Heat used the set as shown on SmackDown! until 2001 1999 WWF Smackdown (WWE).jpg
Heat used the set as shown on SmackDown! until 2001

With the premiere of SmackDown! in August 1999, coverage of Heat was significantly reduced in favor of the newer show. The debut of SmackDown! also led to Heat being taped before SmackDown! with matches for WWF syndication programs like Jakked/Metal being taped before Raw broadcasts. When SmackDown! premiered, Heat briefly became a complete weekly summary show, featuring occasional interviews and music videos. After only a few weeks following the format change, Heat began airing exclusive matches again.

Occasionally, special editions of the show aired heavily promoted. For Super Bowl XXXIII in 1999, Heat aired as Halftime Heat on the USA Network during halftime of the Super Bowl. These specials ended following the show's move to MTV in 2000. When the show started airing on MTV in late 2000, it was broadcast live from WWF New York. WWF personalities and performers would appear at the restaurant as special guests while Michael Cole and Tazz provided commentary to matches.

United Kingdom (2000–2001)

The United Kingdom's coverage Heat began in January 2000, when Channel 4 started broadcasting the show at 4pm on Sundays, as a part of T4 – which also included broadcasting four WWF PPVs a year. These one-hour shows were a magazine-type show, usually featuring three or four brief matches as well as highlights from Raw and SmackDown!. As with the North American airing, exclusive matches taped before SmackDown! were aired on this version of the show.

A separate commentary team was used on airings in the United Kingdom, with references aimed more at that specific audience. During commentary, Raw and SmackDown! were referred to as taking place on Friday and Saturday respectively, which were the days they were broadcast in the United Kingdom on Sky Sports – as opposed to the manner in which the two programs were often referred to by the North American broadcast dates of Monday and Thursday. The two-person announce team was a mix of individuals including Kevin Kelly, Michael Cole, Michael Hayes and Jonathan Coachman. During the middle of 2000, Heat started to get moved around the Channel 4 schedule, usually between the afternoon and midnight. Towards the end of 2000, the show was permanently moved to being broadcast in the early-hours of Monday mornings. The show stayed in the time-slot until December 2001 when Channel 4's deal with the WWF expired in the United Kingdom.

2002–2005

In April 2002, the show returned to its original filming schedule, again before Raw . Eventually, the live from WWF New York format was retired, and was replaced as being the Raw brand's second show. Ratings were still moderate for Heat, although the show lost some popularity once SmackDown! began to air. This version also featured highlights from that week's Raw, and the name change was introduced to the show in May 2002, when it became known as WWE Sunday Night Heat (the May 5, 2002 episode, along with the Insurrextion United Kingdom-exclusive pay-per-view held the same day, were the last broadcasts of any kind under the WWF name). Heat returned to the United Kingdom and Ireland in January 2003 on Sky One (with repeats on Sky Sports), though the coverage became Sky Sports exclusive in January 2005 along with most of WWE's programming. In the United States, Heat stayed with MTV until March 2003 when it was transferred over to The New TNN (later rebranded to Spike TV). It stayed in that timeslot until the contract with Viacom expired.

2005–2008

The Heat version of the universal WWE entrance set introduced in January 2008 for WWE's high-def broadcasting WWEHeatHD.jpg
The Heat version of the universal WWE entrance set introduced in January 2008 for WWE's high-def broadcasting

Heat and Velocity were not picked up by the USA Network when WWE moved its programming over to that network in October 2005, leaving Americans no way to watch WWE weekend shows on television. To solve this problem, WWE decided to stream the shows on their website exclusively for the U.S. audience, with new editions posted every Friday afternoon. Additionally, prior to every PPV event, WWE would continue to air a live bonus 30-minute Heat pre-show on the PPV channel. Backlash 2006 would be the final PPV event to feature a live Heat pre-show before that particular version of Heat was discontinued. [4] Sunday Night Heat was soon renamed to WWE Heat, as it no longer aired on Sundays.

Heat was still shown internationally to fulfill international programming commitments. When WWE went high definition in January 2008, Heat began using the same HD set as Raw, SmackDown, and ECW . After 10 years of programming and 513 episodes, the final episode of WWE Heat was uploaded to WWE.com on May 30, 2008. It was the most watched episode of Heat since it debuted on WWE.com. The show was replaced internationally with a new show featuring classic matches, called WWE Vintage Collection .

Legacy

At the 2019 Royal Rumble it was announced that WWE would be bringing back Halftime Heat featuring superstars from NXT during the Super Bowl LIII halftime show. [5] [6]

Notable championship matches

Though the majority of title changes would take place on Raw, SmackDown!, or pay-per-view events, the WWF Championship changed hands on a special Halftime Heat that aired during the half-time of Super Bowl XXXIII on January 31, 1999 when Mankind defeated The Rock in an empty arena match to win the title. This special episode received the highest rating of Sunday Night Heat with a rating of 6.6. [7]

Additionally, the Light Heavyweight Championship changed hands on Heat on three occasions. [8] [9] The first took place on the February 13, 2000 airing when Essa Rios (in his first appearance under that name and with the debuting Lita) defeated Gillberg. The second change saw Crash Holly defeat Dean Malenko on the March 18, 2001 episode. In the final change, the debuting Jerry Lynn defeated Crash Holly on a live edition before the Backlash pay-per-view on April 29, 2001.

Commentators and hosts

There have been many commentators in the history of Heat. Industry veterans and Raw broadcasters Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler have done commentary on the show. The show was also the launchpad for Shane McMahon's on-camera career in WWE, originally placed in the role of a commentator for the program. In October 2000, the show was hosted by Rebecca Budig and MTV VJ/Rapper DJ Skribble when it moved from USA Network to MTV.

Often wrestlers would take the role of color commentators on the show with Al Snow, Tommy Dreamer, Raven, and D'Lo Brown all holding this position mostly as a replacement for an announcer who was unavailable. During the show's run on MTV, Diva Lita also served as a commentator following her major neck injury.

Before the WWE-produced Extreme Championship Wrestling reunion pay-per-view One Night Stand 2005 took place, a special Extreme Heat episode was broadcast and hosted by Jonathan Coachman and Michael Cole.

During one episode when Jonathan Coachman was unavailable, former ECW announcer (and then-lead Raw announcer) Joey Styles took part in the show. Styles then quit in storyline, however, on the following Monday's' Raw, meaning Grisham ran the show alone.

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>WWE SmackDown</i> Professional wrestling television program

WWE SmackDown, also known as Friday Night SmackDown or simply SmackDown, is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE. It airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on USA. SmackDown is the most viewed television show on Friday nights in the United States of America. Fox Deportes simulcasts the program with Spanish-language commentary. The show features characters from the SmackDown brand, to which WWE employees are assigned to work and perform. It is considered to be one of WWE's two flagship programs, along with Monday Night Raw.

<i>WWE Raw</i> Professional wrestling television program

WWE Raw, also known as Monday Night Raw or simply Raw, is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE. It currently airs live every Monday at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the USA Network. The show features characters from the Raw brand, to which WWE employees are assigned to work and perform. It debuted on January 11, 1993, and is considered to be one of WWE's two flagship programs, along with Friday Night SmackDown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King of the Ring</span> WWE pay-per-view and livestreaming event series

King and Queen of the Ring, formerly and still commonly known as King of the Ring, is a professional wrestling event produced by WWE, a Connecticut-based professional wrestling promotion. The event was established in 1993 and centers on the men's King of the Ring tournament, which had been established in 1985, and beginning in 2024, the women's Queen of the Ring tournament, which was established in 2021 and originally known as the Queen's Crown tournament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WWE No Mercy</span> WWE pay-per-view and livestreaming event series

WWE No Mercy, also known as NXT No Mercy since 2023, is a professional wrestling event produced by WWE, a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut. The first No Mercy was held on May 16, 1999, in Manchester, England, and was the only No Mercy event produced in the United Kingdom. A second No Mercy was then held in October that year in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. Beginning with this second event, No Mercy became the annual October pay-per-view (PPV) until 2008. The event was then discontinued and replaced by Hell in a Cell in 2009. After eight years, No Mercy was reinstated in October 2016. However, No Mercy was again discontinued after the September 2017 event, as WWE reduced the amount of yearly PPVs held after they had ended the production of brand-exclusive PPVs following WrestleMania 34 in 2018. In 2023, WWE again revived the event, this time for its developmental brand, NXT, in September.

<i>WWE Superstars</i> Professional wrestling television series

WWE Superstars, or simply Superstars, is an American professional wrestling television program that was produced by WWE that originally aired on WGN America in the United States and later broadcast on the WWE Network. It debuted on April 16, 2009 and ended its domestic broadcasting on April 7, 2011. After the final domestic television broadcast, the show moved to an Internet broadcast format while maintaining a traditional television broadcast in international markets. The show featured mid-to-low card WWE Superstars in a format similar to the former shows Heat and Velocity which served the same purpose. "Enhancement talent" bouts also happened often. Big names such as John Cena, Randy Orton, The Undertaker, and Triple H appeared on the show at its beginning.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Cole (wrestling)</span> American professional wrestling commentator

Sean Michael Coulthard, better known by his ring name Michael Cole, is an American professional wrestling commentator and journalist. Since 1997, he is signed to WWE, where he serves as the play-by-play commentator for the SmackDown brand and as the vice president of announcing since 2020.

<i>WWF Superstars of Wrestling</i> 1986 American TV series or program

WWF Superstars of Wrestling, also referred to as Maple Leaf Wrestling in Canada, was an American professional wrestling television program that was produced by the World Wrestling Federation. It debuted on September 6, 1986, as the flagship program of the WWF's syndicated programming.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WWE Insurrextion</span> World Wrestling Entertainment pay-per-view event series

WWE Insurrextion was an annual professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event that was produced by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), an American professional wrestling promotion. Established in 2000, the events were held and broadcast exclusively in the United Kingdom. The first three events were held when the promotion was still called the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) with the 2002 event being the promotion's very last PPV held under the WWF name. Insurrextion also aired on Viewers Choice pay-per-view in Canada, while the 2002 and 2003 editions also aired in the United States on tape delay as part of the WWE Fanatic Series, a pay-per-view "best of" program.

In broadcast programming, counterprogramming is the practice of offering television programs to attract an audience from another television station or cable channel airing a major event. It is also referred when programmers offer something different from the rival's program as an alternative to increase the audience size.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Over the Edge (1999)</span> World Wrestling Federation pay-per-view event

The 1999 Over the Edge was the second annual and final Over the Edge professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation. It was held on May 23, 1999, at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Missouri, United States. The first Over the Edge event was held under the In Your House series in May 1998, but following the discontinuation of the In Your House shows, a second Over the Edge event was scheduled as its own PPV, thus being the first former In Your House event to do so.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King of the Ring (2000)</span> World Wrestling Federation pay-per-view event

The 2000 King of the Ring was the eighth annual King of the Ring professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWE) that featured the 14th annual King of the Ring tournament. It took place on June 25, 2000, at the Fleet Center in Boston, Massachusetts. The main event was a six-man tag team match between the McMahon-Helmsley Faction and the team of The Rock and The Brothers of Destruction. Triple H's WWF Championship was defended in the match. Rock pinned Vince to win the title. The undercard featured the 2000 King of the Ring tournament, which was won by Kurt Angle. The 2000 edition was the largest King of the Ring tournament, with 32 competitors taking part.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monday Night War</span> Era of professional wrestling (1995–2001)

The Monday Night War or the Monday Night Wars, was an era of mainstream televised American professional wrestling, from September 4, 1995 to March 26, 2001, in which the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw and World Championship Wrestling's (WCW) Monday Nitro were broadcast opposite each other in a battle for Nielsen ratings each week. It largely overlapped with the Attitude Era, a period in which the WWF used the term "WWF Attitude" to describe its programming from November 9, 1997 to May 6, 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WWE Network</span> WWE produced subscription network

WWE Network is a subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and digital television network owned by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE, a division of TKO Group Holdings.

History of <i>WWE Raw</i> History of the WWE professional wrestling television show Raw

The history of WWE Raw began as WWF's Monday Night Raw on January 11, 1993. Over the next two decades, Raw would become the promotion's flagship show, achieving numerous milestones along the way.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of WWE SmackDown</span> History of the WWE professional wrestling television show SmackDown

The history of WWF/E SmackDown!, began with the show's debut on August 26, 1999, in Kansas City, Missouri. The show was originally broadcast on Thursday nights but moved to Friday on September 9, 2005, before returning to Thursdays on January 15, 2015. On July 19, 2016, it was moved to Tuesday Nights. SmackDown! debuted in the United States on the UPN television network on April 29, 1999, but after the merger of UPN and the WB, SmackDown! began airing on The CW in September 2006. The show was moved to MyNetworkTV in October 2008, to Syfy on October 1, 2010 and to USA Network on January 7, 2016.

WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Stamford, Connecticut in the United States, owned by Endeavor. It has been promoting events in the United Kingdom (UK) since 1989. From 1989 to 2001, WWE was promoted under concert promoter's, brothers Harvey and Martin Goldsmith, for UK and European shows.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WWE Raw Homecoming</span> Professional wrestling event

Raw Homecoming was a television special that was broadcast live on October 3, 2005 on the USA Network. It was named as such because it was the first edition of WWE's flagship show Monday Night Raw to air on the USA Network since 2000, after airing on Spike TV for the previous five years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King of the Ring tournament</span> Recurring professional wrestling tournament by WWE

The King of the Ring tournament is a men's professional wrestling single-elimination tournament held periodically by WWE, a Connecticut-based professional wrestling promotion. Established in 1985, the winner of the inaugural tournament was Don Muraco. The prize for winning the tournament is being crowned the "King of the Ring"; some wrestlers have incorporated this into their character, such as adorning king's attire and acting and speaking with a regal attitude. On two occasions, the tournament has awarded an additional reward, that being for a world championship match. The tournament is also notable for beginning "Stone Cold" Steve Austin's rise to stardom after he won the 1996 tournament. The most recent 2024 tournament was won by Gunther.

References

  1. "Josh Mathews blog confirming final episode of Heat". Archived from the original on 2008-06-02. Retrieved 2008-05-31.
  2. "WWE.com UK television schedule". Archived from the original on 2014-05-30. Retrieved 2008-07-20.
  3. Potter, Jon (May 7, 2018). "WWE Network Adds More Than 50 Episodes of Sunday Night Heat; Links Included". WWE Network. Archived from the original on January 15, 2020. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  4. "2006". thehistoryofwwe.com. Archived from the original on 2020-10-06. Retrieved 2015-11-08.
  5. "WWE Halftime Heat to stream live during The Big Game on Sunday, Feb. 3; HBK to call the match". WWE. Archived from the original on 29 January 2019. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
  6. Decker, Kyle (27 January 2019). "WWE announces the return of Halftime Heat with an NXT 6-man tag match". Cagesideseats. Archived from the original on 28 January 2019. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
  7. "Title history details". Archived from the original on 2012-02-07. Retrieved 2008-06-02.
  8. "2000 WWF results". Archived from the original on 2015-09-11. Retrieved 2015-05-04.
  9. "2001 WWF results". Archived from the original on 2021-08-28. Retrieved 2015-05-04.