Written by: Bob Colling
Extreme Championship Wrestling presents Hardcore TV
Date: 2/4/1998
From: Philadelphia, PA
Matches:
1.)ECW Television Champion Taz & Bam-Bam Bigelow fought ECW World Champion Shane Douglas, ECW World Tag Team Champions Chris Candido & Lance Storm to a no contest
2.)Justin Credible defeated Gran Hamada
Angle Developments/Notes:
1. The fans are heavily anti the WWF tonight as there are a few people holding a sign that says NY Sucks and a chant is censored. Joey promotes the handicap match between the Triple Threat and the team of Taz and Bam-Bam Bigelow. The match is starting off the show this week, it looks like.
2. Taz wants a piece of Douglas but Bigelow starts the match with Storm. Bigelow backdrops Storm rather dangerously but follows up with a quick clothesline and a powerbomb. Storm is tossed out of the corner and the prospect wants to tag out and he does to Douglas. Taz wants a tag and Bigelow gives it to Taz. Taz hits a t-bone suplex and clotheslines Candido. Storm enters but is met with an overhead suplex. Bigelow clotheslines the prospect to the floor. Taz prevents Douglas from using a chair on Bigelow and manages to suplex Douglas over the top onto Storm on the floor! Taz grabs him championship and puts it on the ground. Bigelow picks it up and nails Taz with it! Bigelow has turned on Taz! Bigelow stomps away on Taz and the Triple Threat is laughing. It was a plan all along! Storm puts the three fingers up finally but Candido hits him with the tag title and turns on Storm! Candido proceeds to piledriver Storm on the title! Taz tries to fight back but the numbers are too big for Taz to really do anything. Taz is held by the Triple Threat as Bigelow nails Taz with the ECW Television Championship. The Triple Threat has left Lance Storm and Taz laid out in the ring. The real Triple Threat has reunited!
3. Hamada slams Jason early on and drives Credible face first into the mat with a running bulldog. They head to the floor where Hamada crotches Credible on the guard railing. Hamada hits a top rope flying clothesline but Credible won’t stay down for three. Gran goes to the top again and hits a missile dropkick for a near fall. Hamada gets another two count after a top rope hurricanrana. Hamada plants Credible with a tornado DDT but still can’t get a three count. Justin is sent to the floor following a clothesline but Hamada misses a slingshot crossbody. It looks like Hamada hurt his right knee so Justin begins to work over the injured leg. Credible whacks the leg with a steel chair! Credible gets a Great Sasuke mask and taunts Hamada. Justin plants Hamada with the That’s Incredible and wins the match. (**. A decent match involving ECW’s newest heel. Credible continues to get some decent heat from the crowd. All he needs is an interesting feud to really make an impact in the promotion.
4. We hear from the Triple Threat to close the show. Douglas talks about Taz getting his ass kicked tonight and calls him a sucker for trusting Bigelow. Shane takes credit for making the ECW Television Championship so important. Douglas calls Taz a second rate mark and says that Bigelow is tougher than Taz. Chris Candido chimes in and says that Lance Storm only cared about stealing Chris’s glory. He thinks that Storm was trying to steal his girl too! They are calling Storm a mark too. That laugh while holding up the three fingers.
Final Thoughts:
A solid edition of Hardcore TV this week. The swerve involving Bigelow and the Triple Threat was nicely done. It was actually a double turn with Lance Storm probably turning face as well. I think we will see if that’s really the case in the coming weeks. Justin Credible continues to rack up the wins and should be a force in ECW rather soon. I’m interested in the Taz/Bigelow feud for sure, though.
Thanks for reading.