WCW Nitro 8/2/1999

Written by: Kevin Kindelberger

WCW Monday Nitro 8/2/99

It is like beating a dead horse….WCW has gotten worse since Hogan returned. The Hummer angle has been dropped, they are clearly not sure of what to do with Goldberg. I wonder if he would have been in title hunt had Hogan not returned. Savage relegated to near midcard status. Nash flipped, Sid left Savage. Buff and friends got their push aborted. Not a lot of good lately. Vampiro is entertaining! I am enjoying the Triad and their feud. So far Shane Douglas has been decent. Other than that….Not much to get ecstatic about. Hogan is the McMahons and just runs the shows. Long ass video packages telling the world how great he is. Sting as president? Why? This is the last full month Bischoff will work in any capacity for WCW until next April. The failure of the upcoming two concerts and the implosion leading into Fall Brawl with the departure of both Savage and Raven and the fact that nothing at the PPV will be advertised. It will be interesting to see what happens. The brief ratings pop the last two weeks ends as Nitro falls to a 3.1 off of a 3.6 but the first head to head fell dramatically to a 2.4 while rising up to a 3.2. RAW’s first hour was not huge for them: 5.8 and its second rose to a 5.9.

Match 1: Kanyon and DDP (c) v. Harlem Heat

DDP mocks the crowd and Kanyon asks them who is better than Kanyon. We will never forget DDP because he is the greatest two time champ. Kanyon states that no one care that Harlem Heat is back together. They are going to beat them tonight. They make fun of Benoit’s mother and how ugly she is. He believes that David Flair makes a champ than Benoit ever could and that is why he helped him out last week.

Here comes HH. Kanyon and Booker lock up and Booker works over the arm. Non-title match. Booker runs him over and then strikes with a dropkick. Stevie Ray is in and he thrust kicks Kanyon to the floor. Bigelow gets the tag and he clobbers Ray with some big blows but runs right into a lariat and Ray peppers him with blow after blow. Bigelow drops him though and drops the head for good measure. Bigelow goes for a suplex but it is blocked and Ray counters with one of his own. Ray is choked out on the ropes and here comes Kanyon, Ray could not recover from the suplex. Ray fends off Kanyon and here comes Booker T and he unloads on Kanyon. Bigelow distracts him and Kanyon pokes the eye. He suplexes Booker and then slingshots the elbow drop. After the two count he is bodyslammed and Bigelow drops the head from the top rope. Ray makes the save. Bigelow drops the head again, not from the top. But Booker rights back and both are down. Both are able to make the tag and Ray mauls both men and they eat big boots. Kanyon is slammed and covered. Bigelow breaks that up and here comes Booker and all four are in the ring. Kanyon is left wallowing in the corner and Ray and Booker knock Bigelow to the floor. Harlem Kick from Booker and he goes up top for the missilekick. DDP tries to interfere but Benoit cuts him off and challenges DDP tonight saying it is his time and that DDP shoulld not have brought in his mother.

*** Good opener….DDP was adverised on the entrance but obviously he did not wrestle.

Lenny and Lodi talking about shopping and shit.

Sting comes down and he is back in black and in the house. There are some wrestlers in the back that he needs to see such as Sid and Rick. Hogan stepped up to the plate last week. Now it is Sting’s turn to need a partner. He asks the crowd who it should be, some chant Hogan but Goldberg’s chants echo and Sting actually acknowledges that and asks Goldberg to be his partner tonight and will get his answer at the top of the hour.

Cat is in the ring and does not like Buff’s shenanigans. There were two girls that wanted to know where he got his pink shoes. He calls them down and they have lollipops. Cat stops them and he will tell them where he got his slippers.

Match 2: Cat v. Lenny Lane

Cat cracks skulls and tosses Lodi to the floor. Lenny gets stomped on over and over. He kicks him right in the skull dropping him. Sonny was in the ring and Lodi runs in but gets kicked in the face. Lenny runs into a kick to the face and it is over.

*1/2 Like I said, I like the Cat.

Cat knocks the ref to the floor.

Gene calls out Hogan. Hogan rips off the shirt and calls to the crowd. Gene talks about Sturgis. Hogan talks about being split open last week and how the cameras panned away. He is glad they did as it was really bad. Gene is happy Hogan is back this week. Hogan talks about women swooning over his freshly shaved face. He and Nash have played games for two years. Nash has wanted his spot as the top wrestler in the business but will not get it. He is not going anywhere tonight, or nothing to do that is, and he challenges Nash tonight for the belt.

Sting is back and calls out Goldberg who stands and looks at the clock. Rick lures him into a room and Sid wallops him with a snow shovel a couple of times. They lock the door. Sting runs to the back and gets decleated. He is pummeled by the snow shovel. Rick and Sid drag him back into the ring but pose for too long and Sting hammers back on both men. Sting Splash time on both. But he leaps into the waiting hand of Sid and is chokeslammed! Goldberg kicks the door and almost gets lost but makes his way to the ring and scares off the heels. Goldberg helps Sting up and then yells at Sid and Rick he wants them right now and they leave. Man the fans are fucking hot!

Match 3: Evan Karagias v. Disco Inferno

They exchange hammerlocks and Evan puts Disco in a side headlock but is run over. Evan though strikes back with a trifecta of dropkicks. Disco comes back and works over the arm and connects with an atomic drop. He clotheslines him and follows up with a bodyslams. He goes up to the middle of the rope and drills Eavn with his forearm getting two. Evan mounts a comeback and gets two after a powerslam but he lowers his head and is kicked and dropped via a swinging neckbreaker. He gets two, Evan ducks off the whip and hits a running elbow, and after a snap suplex he gets two. Disco fends him off and then hits the Chart Buster.

**1/2 Not bad for a four minute match.

Torrie is with David. David has beaten everyone and needs to give his body a rest….um they are so fucking awkward.

Match 4: Hugh Morrus and Jerry Flynn v. Dean Malenko and Shane Douglas

Malenko and Flynn go back and forth. Now Morrus and Shane are in. Shane knocks him down and then dropkicks him. Dean is in and sandwiches him in the corner but Morrus just glares at him but Dean escapes and rolls him up for two. Shane is in now and he runs right into a gorilla slam. They brawl for a bit and both make a tag. Malenko runs Flynn from pillar to post and dropkicks him but he misses the boot and is clotheslined. Flynn drops him with a chop and is Dean is shoved into the corner where he is doubleteamed. Morrus drops the legs and gets two. Flynn is in and he hammers Dean but is caught and sunset flipped up for two. Flynn takes objection to that and stomps and kicks him. He opens up on him in the corner and uses his foot to choke him out. Malenko escapes and tags in Douglas who connects with a backdrop, dropkick and clothesline. Now a powerslam but Hugh makes the save. All four are in the ring. Jimmy is knocked off the apron and Flynn leaps into his own partner and now Flynn is finished with the Pittsburgh Plunge!

**1/2 Not bad. Nice win for both and I am liking Douglas.

Dean takes the Hardcore Trophy!

Rick Steiner comes down and Heenan flees as he grabs Scott Hudson and gives him a belly to belly suplex and beats him! Security charges in, pulls him off and yells at him. He brushes them aside and beats up Hudson some more before being led to the back. Security checks on a dead Hudson. Please God do not replace him with Shitvone.

After the break is carted off on a gurney. Damn Bischoff is at the announce table. Bring in Tenay.

Match 6: Bobby Duncum Jr. v. Saturn

Curt has come down and brags about being at the top with his video. He makes fun of Chad Brock and does not appreciate him coming out and using WCW to sell his records. He is short and fat and ugly. Warner signed him to a record deal and he calls the W Brothers dumb and dumber. He makse fun of Saturn for wearing a dress and he may be called Saturn but he things he is from Uranus!!

Saturn goes after him and Bobby cuts him off only to get suplexed. Saturn calls Curt a redneck and to bring it. Curt obliges and is run over and given a clothesline. Saturn mounts and pounds him in the corner. Bobby is still down. Curt kicks Saturn and stomps on him, now he gives him a stiff chop. Curt chokes him out and works him over. Saturn is shoved into the corner where he fires back and knocks him around but Curt back kicks him in the nads. After a delay he covers him and barely gets two. He smacks the ref in anger! Saturn chops him a few times but Curt returns the favor and now they exchange shots with Saturn coming out on top and he tosses him over with a release suplex. DVD time! The Rednecks run in and dismantle Saturn.

**1/2 I liked the segment. Gave Saturn some air time. Finally Malenko and Shane run down and make the save.

Match 7: DDP v. Chris Benoit

Benoit and DDP are nose to nose jawing. They spit on each other and slap each other. They smack each other until DDP knees him in the gut and back suplexes him. They lock up and DDP is down and put in the Crossface! He is right by the ropes. The hold is broken and he rolls to the floor but Benoit strikes with a baseball slide. Back in the ring, they exchange chops and DDP misses a couple of blows and is chopped to pieces and then snap suplexed. DDP takes command and knocks Benoit down. He slams him and stomps on him. He takes his time and then stands on Benoit’s throat and drills him in the neck with an elbow. Benoit elbows to his fight but walks into a spinebuster and barely gets his shoulder up. Benoit is slammed and DDP drops the elbow getting two. DDP goes up top but Benoit shakes the ropes crotching him. Benoit goes up after him and superplexes him across the ring. Benoit rolls over on him getting two (Robinson is the ref) and now the two box it out and Benoit gets two straight two counts with bridged German’s. He goes for a third but is back kicked in the nuts and DDP gets two after a one handed slam. Benoit counters with a slam of his own and staggers to his feet. He calls for his finisher and it is flying headbutt time! David gets on the apron and is knocked off. Page rolls up Benoit who rolls through and is on top and he gets the win!!

***1/2 Great stuff. Nice put over match for Benoit. Now to follow up.

DDP assaults him after the match and gives him two Diamond Cutters! David comes in and whips him with his belt.

Gene calls out Savage and GG, but no George. Savage assures us that she is locked up. Savage is going to take out the trash and he has a hit list, so he his suspending his campaign for president. Hogan, Nash and Rodman are dead. Savage is excited for Sturgis, and he is calling Rodman out right now so they can get it on. Instead of Rodman Mona comes out and begs for her job back. Savage screams if she is loyal to the Macho Man and forces her to her knees and wants her to beg. He tells Gene to beat it and then yells at Mona telling her that she is still fired! He wants Rodman’s ass out here right now. He comes out with some Soldiers. Rodman wants to know why he is so mad, just because he had his girl! Savage tells him to get his punk ass down here so they can rock this place. Rodman comes part way down and once you go black you do not go back. Savage talks about Rodman taking other people’s girls but should not his. Mona uppercuts Macho in the nuts and Rodman clotheslines him from behind and then drops an elbow….Macho’s last phrase was all bleeped out so I did my best. Bischoff was screaming for their audio to be cut.

Match 7: Vampiro v. Eddie Guerrero

Vampiro starts strong and hammer Eddie. He suplexes him and after choking him out dumps him to the floor where ICP stomp on him. Eddie is thrust into the railing and Vampiro shoves him into the steel steps as Raven and ICP look on. Eddie is rolled into the ring and whipped into the corner where he is sandwiched and tossed over Vamp’s back. Vampiro gets two. Eddie tries to fight back but is slammed hard and nearly pinned again. Vampiro goes up top and Eddie greets him there and tosses him off. Eddie tosses him to the floor and he leaps onto Vampiro and ICP. Eddie goes up top but Raven shoves him off and Vamp finishes him off.

**1/2 Really? Fun but short and Eddie is already getting buried after a brief six week push. Sums it up.

Rey and Konnan run down and clear the heels.

Here comes Hogan. He comes to the announce table and wants to shake Heenan’s hand who decides to leave. Hogan does what he does best and that is talk about himself. How he has changed and the response he as received. Bischoff is starstruck.

Match 8: Sid Vicious and Rick Steiner v. Sting and Goldberg

Rick and Sid who had retreated to the floor charge into the ring and the fight is on. Both heels are sent packing to the floor. Sid is suplexed back into the ring and Goldberg comes in and decleats Rick Steiner. Sting leaps out but hits all rail. The camera missed it. Goldberg is hammering Steiner. Sid and Sting are in and Sid does his offense: Stomps and chokeholds. Sting is up and bulldogs Sid and he chokes him out. But Sid stops that flurry with a chokeslam. Goldberg makes the save. Rick is in and pulls back on the arms. Rick lets him up so he and Sid can slowly and I means slowly work him over. Sting counters with a bodyslam but eats all boots on the splash attempt. Rick chokes out Sting as the ref is distracted. Sid bodyslams Sting but misses the legdrop! Deathlock but Rick makes the save and here comes Goldberg who knocks him to the floor. Sid is sitting on Sting. Rick goes for a chair and Hogan takes it from him and wacks him with it. He hits Sid too and the match is tossed. Goldberg is just standing in his corner! Nash blindsides Hogan and powerbombs him inot the table!

** Jesus these main events are getting slower and slower. Sid is fucking slow. Hogan even more so….Hogan kept gushing about how great Sting and Goldberg are, at least he did not talk about himself.

*** A better show. It was well paced. There were two good matches and some decent ones. Eddie losing so quickly after coming back is confounding but Vampiro is getting a push. Savage’s promo was a bit long but solid. Not too much focus on Hogan and that makes it a better show. They set up the Goldberg angle well and the main event, while fairly lame ended on a cliffhanger. I liked the Saturn segment and HH had a good match. Benoit got a great win, so there was a lot of positive. The direction is what I do not really care for. I am not sold on it, but they took a step in the right direction.