Unforgiven
Promotional poster featuringKane
Promotion	World Wrestling Entertainment
Brand	Raw
Date	September 21, 2003
City	Hershey, Pennsylvania
Venue	Giant Center
Attendance	10,347[1]
Buy rate	360,000[2]
Tagline	Face Your Fear
Pay-per-view chronology
← Previous SummerSlam Next → No Mercy
Unforgiven chronology
← Previous 2002 Next → 2004

The 2003Unforgiven was the sixth annualUnforgivenprofessional wrestlingpay-per-view (PPV) event produced byWorld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It was held exclusively for wrestlers from the promotion'sRawbrand division. The event took place on September 21, 2003, at theGiant Center inHershey, Pennsylvania.

Nine professional wrestling matches were contested at this event. Themain event wasTriple H versusGoldberg for theWorld Heavyweight Championship. Goldberg won the match and the World Heavyweight Championship afterpinning Triple H following aspear and aJackhammer. Two of the predominant matches on thecard were aTriple threat match for theWWE Intercontinental Championship betweenChristian,Chris Jericho andRob Van Dam, which Christian retained the title by pinning Van Dam after hitting him with the belt, and the other was aLast Man Standing match betweenShane McMahon andKane, which Kane won after Shane failed to answer the referee's ten count. Another primary match on the undercard wasRandy Orton versusShawn Michaels, which Orton won by pinfall after hitting Michaels in the head with a pair ofbrass knuckles.

Unforgiven was first held byWorld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) as the21st In Your Housepay-per-view (PPV) in April 1998. Following the discontinuation of theIn Your House series in February 1999, Unforgiven branched off as its own PPV in September that year, becoming WWE's annual September PPV.^[3] The 2003 event was the sixth event in the Unforgiven chronology and took place on September 21 atGiant Center inHershey, Pennsylvania. While the2002 event featured wrestlers from both theRaw andSmackDown!brands, the 2003 event was held exclusively for Raw, which made it the first brand-exclusive Unforgiven event.^[4]

The event comprised eight matches, including one on the pre-show, that resulted from scripted storylines, where wrestlers portrayedheroes,villains, orless distinguishable characters in scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers on the Raw brand,^[5][6] while storylines were produced on its weekly television show,Raw and its supplementary showSunday Night Heat.^[7]

The mainfeud heading into Unforgiven was betweenTriple H andGoldberg over theWorld Heavyweight Championship. One month prior atSummerSlam, Triple H won anElimination Chamber match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship by last eliminating Goldberg.^[8][9] After the match ended, Triple H, along withEvolution membersRic Flair andRandy Orton,handcuffed Goldberg to the Chamber and attacked him with asledgehammer.^[8][9] The next night onRaw, Goldberg challenged Triple H to a match later that night. Triple H declined and said that they would face off at Unforgiven instead. Triple H then added the stipulation that if he won, Goldberg would have to retire fromprofessional wrestling.^[10][11] On the September 1 episode ofRaw, Goldberg,Shawn Michaels, andMaven defeated Evolution (Triple H, Orton, and Flair). Towards the end of the match, Orton attacked Goldberg from behind as he was preparing tospear Triple H. Goldberg was able to kick out of thepinfall attempt and hit Orton with aJackhammer for the win.^[12][13] The next week onRaw, Co-General ManagerStone Cold Steve Austin added the stipulation where if Triple H got himself counted out or intentionally disqualified, he would lose the World Heavyweight Championship.^[14][15]

The other main match on the card was aLast Man Standing match betweenShane McMahon andKane. On the June 23 episode ofRaw, Kane was forced to unmask himself after he had lost aMask vs. Title match for the World Heavyweight Championship to Triple H.^[16][17] Shortly after Kane unmasked himself, Kaneturned on andchokeslammed histag team partnerRob Van Dam.^[16][17] Three weeks later on the July 14 episode ofRaw, during an interview between Kane andJim Ross, Kane set Ross on fire after he thought Ross was mocking him.^[18][19] The following week onRaw, after a match between Kane and Van Dam ended in a no-contest,Linda McMahon came out to try and stop Kane from attacking Van Dam. Kane, however, gave Linda aTombstone Piledriver on the steel ramp.^[20][21] On the July 28 episode ofRaw, Shane made a surprise appearance by attacking Kane for his actions the week before.^[22][23] The next week onRaw,Eric Bischoff defeated McMahon after Kane interfered and gave McMahon a Tombstone Piledriver on the steel ring steps.^[24][25] On August 24 at SummerSlam, Kane defeated Van Dam in aNo Holds Barred match, and McMahon defeated Bischoff in aNo DisqualificationFalls Count Anywhere match.^[8][9] The following night onRaw, during a match between McMahon andChris Jericho, Kane interfered and performed a chokeslam on McMahon. Shortly afterwards, McMahonsuperkicked Kane into adumpster that was on fire and full ofgasoline.^[26][27] On the September 8 episode ofRaw, Bischoff announced that McMahon and Kane would face each other in a Last Man Standing match at Unforgiven.^[14][15] The next week onRaw, after both men signed a contract for their match at Unforgiven, McMahon gave Kane multiplelow blows, followed by aLeap of Faith through an announce table.^[28][29]

One of the main matches on the undercard was between Randy Orton andShawn Michaels. AtBad Blood, Ric Flair defeated Michaels after Orton interfered and hit Michaels with asteel chair.^[30][31][32] One month later, on the July 21 episode ofRaw,Chris Jericho defeated Michaels in aSingles match. In the match, Orton interfered on Jericho's behalf by executing anRKO on Michaels while the referee was distracted.^[20][21] The following week onRaw, during Jericho'sHighlight Reeltalk show, Orton claimed that he was becoming a "Legend Killer" and that Michaels was going to be the next legend he would kill. Michaels came out shortly afterwards and the two started brawling.^[33][34] On the September 1 episode ofRaw, Stone Cold Steve Austin announced that Orton would face off against Michaels at Unforgiven.^[12][13] Two weeks later on the September 15 episode ofRaw, Orton told Michaels that he was going to use him as a "stepping stone towards greatness." Michaels responded by slapping Orton and telling him that if he was going to use him as a stepping stone, he had better step hard.^[28][29]

The Divas match set for Unforgiven was a tag team match pittingTrish Stratus andLita againstMolly Holly andGail Kim. Gail Kim debuted on the June 30 episode ofRaw and won theWWE Women's Championship in a battle royal.^[35] On the July 28 edition ofRaw, Kim lost her title to Molly Holly.^[36] After Stratus defeated Holly in a non-title match on the following week, she was attacked in the ring by Holly andVictoria. Kim entered and fought off both Divas; appearing to save Stratus, but she would later attack Stratus herself, turning heel.^[37] Two weeks later, Kim aligned with Holly to eliminate Stratus, and the pair continuously attacked Stratus for several weeks.^[38] On the September 15 episode of Raw, Lita returned from injury and saved Stratus from being attacked from Holly and Kim, setting up the tag team match for Unforgiven.^[39]

Before the event went live on pay-per-view,Maven defeatedStevie Richards in a match taped forWWE Heat. The first match that aired was aHandicapTables match betweenThe Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray Dudley andD-Von Dudley) andRob Conway andLa Resistance (Sylvain Grenier and Rene Dupree) for theWorld Tag Team Championship. The Dudley Boyz put Dupree though a table with a 3D to win the titles.^[4][40][41]

The next match was betweenTest andScott Steiner. After Test tried aclothesline, Steiner countered with afallaway slam for a one count. Later during the match, Test attempted a divingdouble axe handle but Steiner reversed it into asuplex. In the end, Test attempted to hit Steiner with a chair but Keibler came inside the ring and took the chair. Keibler tried to hit Test but hit Steiner, allowing Test to execute arunning big boot for the pin. Therefore, Steiner became Test's property, as per the pre-match stipulation.^[4][40][41]

The third match wasShawn Michaels versusRandy Orton. Orton countered Sweet Chin Music into an RKO on Michaels for a near-fall. Michaels executedSweet Chin Music on Orton for a pin butRic Flair put Orton's foot on the bottom rope to void the pinfall. Flair passed Orton a pair ofbrass knuckles, but Michaels executed Sweet Chin Music on Flair. Michaels attempted a back suplex but Orton hit Michaels with the brass knuckles and pinned Michaels to win the match.^[4][40][41]

Next was aDivastag team match between the team ofTrish Stratus and Lita and the team ofMolly Holly andGail Kim. When the match began, all four Divas fought each other. When the two legal Divas were inside the ring, it was between Lita and Kim. Throughout the match, Lita's team had the advantage over Kim and Holly. In the end, Stratus threw Kim out of the ring, and Lita performed amoonsault on Holly for the pin.^[4][40][41]

Next was aLast Man Standing match betweenKane andShane McMahon. Before the match began, McMahon attacked Kane, who was doing his entrance, with a steel chair. As the referee officially called to ring the bell to start the match, Kane pushed McMahon away to block another chair shot. After multiple shots with the chair, McMahon targeted Kane's knee using the ring post. Later, Kane attempted to perform a big boot on McMahon, but he accidentally hit the referee. After back and forth action, Kane attempted aTombstone Piledriver onto the steel steps on McMahon but McMahon countered into a bulldog and performed a Coast-to-Coast into the steel steps, which were positioned against Kane. In the end, McMahon attempted aLeap of Faith, from the top of the arena on the TitanTron, which was roughly 25 feet tall. but Kane moved and McMahon fell through the floor. Kane won the match when McMahon did not stand up in time to answer the referee's 10 count.^[4][40][41]

In the next match,Christian,Chris Jericho, andRob Van Dam fought in aTriple Threat match for theWWE Intercontinental Championship. At the start, Jericho and Christian teamed up on Van Dam. Van Dam reversed Jericho and Christian's offense, performing a doubledropkick. During the match, Van Dam performed a doubleDDT on the two. At the end, Van Dam went for a5-star frog splash on Christian but when the referee was distracted, Christian retrieved the belt and Van Dam fell onto it. Christian then pinned Van Dam with a roll-up to retain the title.^[4][40][41]

The seventh match wasAl Snow andJonathan Coachman taking onJim Ross andJerry Lawler for the commentator position ofRaw. Chris Jericho came out and interfered, allowing Al Snow and Coachman to get the victory.^[4][40][41]

Next was themain event, which sawTriple H defend theWorld Heavyweight Championship againstGoldberg where if Triple H got counted out or disqualified, he would lose the title, but if Goldberg lost, he would be forced to retire. In the end, Goldberg attempted aspear but Triple H countered with afacebreaker knee smash. After Triple H attempted another one, Goldberg countered, kicked Triple H in the stomach, and performed a clothesline. In the end, Goldberg executed a spear and a Jackhammer to win the title.^[4][42][41]

Following Unforgiven,Triple H offered a$100,000 bounty to anyone who could "take out"Goldberg.^[43] The first individual to act on the bounty wasSteven Richards. He was unsuccessful, as he was quickly taken out by Goldberg.^[43] Others who tried includedMark Henry,Rodney Mack andTommy Dreamer, but all three were unsuccessful.^[44][45] On the October 20 episode ofRaw, Goldberg facedShawn Michaels in a World Heavyweight title match, after Raw Co-General ManagerEric Bischoff booked the match the week before. During the match, Goldberg and Michaels were down, along with the referee.Batista made arun-in, as hekayfabe attacked Michaels and dragged him out of the ring.^[46][47] He then proceeded to attack Goldberg, which led to Batista inserting achair on Goldberg'sankle. He then jumped off the second rope onto the chair, kayfabe shattering Goldberg's ankle.^[46][47] Afterwards,Evolution gave the $100,000 bounty to Batista.^[46][47] The following week, Bischoff was set to present Triple H with the World Heavyweight title, after the events that took place the week before, but Co-General ManagerSteve Austin intervened and announced a title match atSurvivor Series between Goldberg and Triple H.^[48][49] On the November 10 episode ofRaw, Goldberg and Batista were scheduled in a match, which resulted in a disqualification, after Triple H interfered.^[50][51] Triple H tried to injure Goldberg's knee with a use of a chair andsledgehammer. Goldberg, however, speared Triple H and attacked Batista with the sledgehammer.^[50][51] At Survivor Series, Goldberg retained the title, after he hit Triple H with a spear andJackhammer for the pinfall. Goldberg would ultimately drop the World Heavyweight Championship back to Triple H at Armageddon the following month.^[52]

On the October 20 episode ofRaw, Co-General Manager Eric Bischoff proposed that he and Co-General Manager Steve Austin face off at Survivor Series in a traditional 5-on-5Survivor Series match to determine the future ofRaw. The stipulation of the match was that if Austin's team defeated Bischoff's team, Austin could no longer have to be physically provoked before assaulting a Raw Superstar; if Bischoff’s team, however, were victorious, Austin must resign his position as Co-General Manager.^[46][47] Austin promptly accepted the challenge, with Bischoff announcing the first two members of his team wereScott Steiner andChris Jericho. Later in the night,Booker T was announced as the first member of Austin's Survivor Series team.^[46][47] The following week,Rob Van Dam, andBubba RayandD-Von Dudley were named members to join Austin's team.^[53][54] For Team Bischoff,Christian andMark Henry were announced as members, as well.^[53][54] On the November 3 episode ofRaw, both Austin and Bischoff announced their final members to join their respective team;Shawn Michaels accepted Austin's invitation to join his team and Bischoff announcedRandy Orton as the last member to join his team.^[55][56] At Survivor Series, Team Bischoff (Steiner, Jericho, Christian, Henry and Orton) defeated Team Austin (Booker T, Van Dam, Bubba Ray, D-Von and Michaels). As a result of Austin's team losing, he lost his position as Co-General Manager of Raw.^[57]

On the September 22 episode ofRaw,Shane McMahon was hospitalized after the events in his match againstKane at Unforgiven.^[58][59] McMahon sent a "message" to Kane, but before he could finish, Kane appeared in McMahon's hospital room and attacked him. The attack led to McMahon bleeding from his forehead and Kane telling him to "Get Well Soon!".^[58][59] Two weeks later, McMahon interfered in a match between Kane andRosey, which angered Kane.^[44][60] After the match, Kane ran around rampant backstage looking for McMahon. Kane walked by a semi-truck and saw McMahon, who taunted Kane and jumped into a limousine. Kane broke the limousine's window and got in through the sunroof. McMahon proceeded to get out from the drivers seat and rigged the limousine to crash directly into another truck. After the crash, workers attend to the limousine with a bloody Kane inside.^[44][60] The following week onRaw, McMahon challenged Kane, who was in the hospital recovering from the car crash from the week before, to a match at Survivor Series. As the challenge was made, Kane sprang up and attacked a doctor and a nurse who were attending to him.^[45][61] On the October 27 episode ofRaw, McMahon challenged Kane to anAmbulance match, which Kane accepted.^[53][54] At Survivor Series, Kane defeated McMahon after Kane performed aTombstone Piledriver on him and then throwing McMahon into the ambulance.^[57]

This event would be the last WWE pay-per-view event to be held at the Hershey Center until 2024 when theNXT brand division would hostHalloween Havoc albeit in a live streaming form onPeacock.^[62]

• Official Unforgiven 2003 website

• WWE Unforgiven
• 2003 in Pennsylvania
• Sports in Hershey, Pennsylvania
• Professional wrestling in Pennsylvania
• 2003 WWE pay-per-view events
• September 2003 in the United States
• WWE Raw

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