Top Fifteen Stables in Wrestling: Number Eight

As we continue counting down the top fifteen stables of all time, we come upon Number Eight.  By the end of this faction, they would have merged with another stable on our list but was focused mainly on protecting the interests of its leader, WWF Chairman Vince McMahon.

The group was formed and led by Vince McMahon in an attempt to secure his control of the WWF and eliminate the more rebellious wrestlers, such as Stone Cold Steve Austin.  He first began by surrounding himself with an entourage that was made up of the Corporate Stooges, Gerald Brisco and Pat Patterson, Commissioner Slaughter, and his enforcer Big Boss Man to help him quell the actions of Austin.  On November 16, 1998, the Corporation was officially formed when Shane and Vince McMahon and his entourage joined forces to help The Rock win the WWF Championship at Survivor Series-- McMahon order the bell rang when The Rock placed Mankind in a Shaprshooter (rehashing the Montreal Screwjob from a year earlier).  The McMahons proclaimed The Rock the stables Crown Jewel and would end up holding the WWF title three times during the faction's run.

The Corporation became known for their use of political stroke to gain advantages for themselves.  After helping The Rock win his first WWF title, he changed his moniker from "The People's Champion" to "The Corporate Champion."  Other than facing off against Stone Cold, the stable also had a feud with D-Generation X-- mainly DX leader Triple H who faced The Rock for the WWF title on several occasions.  Because Mankind was used as the pawn to set up The Rock's title victory, Mankind was also a target of the Corporation.  By the end of 1998, the Corporation's superstars all held gold; The Rock had the WWF title, Ken Shamrock held the Intercontinental Championship, and Big Boss Man owned the Hardcore title.  During a time, Shamrock and Boss Man were double champions as they also held the Tag Team titles.

Though they remained on top of WWF heading into 1999, the faction began to see a dwindling of their numbers.  Then-commissioner Shawn Michaels, who had replaced Sgt. Slaughter in the position, was attacked and ousted when the stable felt his decision were not in the best interests of the Corporation.  Kane's membership was unsteady at best; as he had only joined to keep himself out of the mental asylum.

When they entered a feud with the Ministry of Darkness, Mr. McMahon was ousted by Shane because Shane believed Vince no longer cared about the Corporation and only care about Stephanie McMahon-- whom the Undertaker was targeting.  Brisco and Patterson were removed and replaced by the Mean Street Posse, with Shane claiming there was no room in the stable for the old and retired.  Shamrock was removed when he seemed more worried for his sister Ryan-- also being targeted by the Undertaker.  Test left, stating he felt the Corporation wasn't using him to his fullest abilities.  After The Rock failed to retake the WWF title from Austin, he was attacked and removed from the faction.

With their dwindling numbers, the Corporation would make the decision to merge with the Ministry of Darkness and became the Corporate Ministry.  With the merger, it was revealed that they were only removing the most troublesome members to keep the loyal ones in the fold.  The Corporate Ministry would then feud with The Union.  Formed by former Corporation members just four days after the Corporate Ministry was formed, the Union was led by Mankind and had loose alliances with Austin, The Rock, WWF Commissioner Shawn Michaels, and even Vince McMahon for a small time.  The Union-- made up of Mankind, Shamrock, Test, and the Big Show-- would defeat the Corporate Ministry team of the Acolytes, Viscera, and Big Boss Man in an Elimination match at Over the Edge.

On May 31, Mankind was hit with a sledgehammer on his knee several times by Triple H in a hardcore match.  This was done to write Mick Foley off, who needed knee surgery at the time and would be out until August.  A week later it was revealed that Mr. McMahon was in fact the "Higher Power" the Undertaker answered to.  After Undertaker lost to Austin in First Blood Match, the Corporate Ministry crumbled and officially brought an end to the Corporation-- as well as the Ministry of Darkness.  In 2000, members of the Corporation (Shane, Vince, and the Stooges) joined forces with remnants of DX to form the McMahon-Helmsley faction.  Though a different group, their goals of political dominance in the WWF remained the same.