got caught up and missed this
I've watched this match a couple times after the original air date, and it was decent because it was HBK and Bret, but really just a bunch of outside brawling...
When it first happened my friend and I thought it was some kind of DQ, but then we were like how did HBK win the title then. We had no idea Bret was leaving WWF. Then in the shows after the PPV, that's when it was clear something "real" had happened and they had to explain it away in storyline.
It's sad that going into 1998 you would see the death of both Bret and HBK's careers in their prime. (and no I don't think his return run was better than the era here)