Written by: Kevin Kildenberger
Still Down Under. It is Thunder Down Under! I wanted to say that…
Steiner and JJ arrive and the former is pissed. He chokes Stasiak as he demands to know where Sanders is at. Stasiak wisely tells him.
Wow great crowd! I am sure the wrestlers are loving this.
Here comes Douglas and Konnan. He is going to speak really slow for Konnan and the Aussies. He rambles. Storm comes out to a nice pop. He would like to be serious for a moment and reminds them that Australia was a prison colony. Anthem time and it is interrupted by MIA and Konnan.
Match 1: Franchise and Lance Storm(c) v. Rection and Konnan
Faces clear the ring. Now Konnan and Douglas are going at it. They are chopping each other up. Storm gets the blind tag and flies into Konnan. They doubleteam him and Douglas is back in and he clotheslines Konnan after a few chops. Storm is back in and he sandwiches Konnan in the corner, brings him over to Douglas who is back in and he snaps over Konnan and nails him. Storm again and he kicks Konnan over and over and strikes with a dropkick. Douglas is back in and they clothesline each other. The girls start fighting and now everyone is going at it. Rection powerslams Storm and goes up for the big elbow but Douglas neckbreaks him off the cover attempt. Rection is DDT’d. Kidman runs down and spikes Douglas. No Laughing Matter! Over!
**1/2 Hot crowd. Mostly for Storm and Konnan but the match was decent.
Sanders is talking to a stuffed Koala. Stasiak warns him about Steiner and how he wants Booker tonight. Booker is already booked tonight but Steiner will get him at the PPV.
Here oomes the Cat and he hypes up and then calls out Sam Grecco an Aussie MMA dude. It is Greco. He was K1 dude and was a stunt double for Austin in the Condemned. He trains now. He just signed with WCW and tries to speak but is a at a loss for words. Some fans are not happy about him with WCW it sounds like but he got some cheers. Sanders and the Thrillers come out and Cat is destroying him on the mic about his mom and his coat and a lot of bleeping. He is booking Sanders against that Fat Ass Mark Madden! Sanders is not happy and tosses Russo’s name out and Cat will get powerbombed Down Under as he is in a match against Nash. Cat claims he has more power and he is going to change the match and he will face Showtime and Sanders wonders who that is: It is not HBO bitch! It is Sting. Thrillers come down and Stasiak is sent in and gets his head kicked off by Greco! I love the Cat. Sanders begs off coming into the ring and he is going to wait until Nash arrives.
Goldberg is lacing his boots.
Match 2: Jindrak and O’Haire (c) v. Cajun and Loco for WCW Tag Titles
Cajun just pinned Jindrak after about a five minute back and forth match. Wow. Not a bad match either. I was distracted but they really went at it.
**
Uh-oh Sanders has come out. He is giving them their rematch right now. The heels attack but Loco takes one out but is kicked by Haire. Cajun leaps into Haire. Loco springs into Jindrak. They roll each other up and Cajun is hooked and slammed by both men. Loco makes the save! He is decked. Haire goes up top and it is SeanTon Time! Over!
**1/2 for the total.
A-Wall comes down and chokeslams both. Why doesn’t Cat come out?
Pamela is with Skipper and he has something to say about Kidman and this is his house and brags about being in Australia. Pam reminds him that he has never been here before tonight. He does not like being called a liar and will show up Kidman.
Booker is walking.
Sanders needs the tag champs later tonight and tells them to get rest.
Sanders tells Palumbo to end Goldberg’s Streak tonight. He is not happy.
Here comes Booker to a rousing ovation. He reminds Steiner that all he says means nothing until he beats him at Havoc but when it is all over with Don’t hate the player, hate the game! He tells Sanders that he will take care of anyone in the ring. Here comes Kronik!
Match 3: Booker T (c) v. Kronik
Booker is game but he is overwhelmed and decimated. He is pummeled on the floor and rolled back into the ring. He kicks Clark over and voer but is put in a Full Nelson and slammed. He kicks out and fights back. Axe kick! But he is clotheslined. He tries to fight back but cue Goldberg who comes in from the rear and nails Clark. Adams has him hooked but he powers out and Booker goes for a Book End but is tossed. Both Booker and Goldberg kick him and out he goes. Booker has been DQ’d.
*1/2 Angle advancement.
Palumbo is on the phone with his mom and he is asking for advice!
Nash is walking in the back and Bull informs him of his match.
Match 4: Kidman v. Elix Skipper
They are going at it. They are tossing each other around the ring both in it and out. Duggan is down lurking. Skipper hammers him on the floor and rolls him into the ring and gets two. Fans chant that Canada sucks! Kidman ducks and then stomps on Skipper. Skipper counters and drops him. He drops the elbow and pulls him up, knocking him back down with a big uppercut and gets two. They tussle and Kidman nails him with a big bulldog and gets a near fall. Skipper floats over off the whip and bridges him from a Full Nelson suplex and gets two. Kidman comes right back with a short powerbomb and he gets two! Kidman whips him into the ropes, Skipper hooks them and Kidman goes for him but is crotched on the ropes. Skipper goes up top, walks the ropes and Frankensteins him off! He gets two. Skipper goes for a suplex and is rolled up and nearly pinned. Kidman has him up and just spikes him straight back down into the mat. He goes up and Duggan belts him as Skipper distracted the ref and Skipper finishes him.
*** Great match!
Paulshock kind of makes fun of Palumbo for talking to his mom. Her advice was for him to run!
Lava Lamp time. He has them yell Aussie over and over. His guest is Kwee Wee and the very lovely Paisley. This has bad news written all over it. He asks Kiwi about how he trained with the Thrillers. Awesome is hitting on Paisley as Kiwi speaks. Kiwi goes off and talks about anger. Bull attacks Kiwi and Awesome states that is what he gets. He will take care of Paisley. Harris’ assault Awesome and tell him that is what he has in store for him later.
Goldberg is taping up.
Nash is baffled by Sanders getting ready and wonders why he was booked in a match against Sting. Well, Cat was angry because he booked him against Nash. Nash is not happy as he was going to go down there, down where…..They giggle.
Match 5: Chuck Palumbo v. Goldberg
Palumbo attacks but is fended off. Goldberg decks him and sells a hurt wrist and he is DDT’d. Palumbo celebrates and is speared and Jackhammered. Stasiak was laid out and he too is Jackhammered and pinned. He also stepped on Palumbo’s arm. Ouch.
*1/2 Squash.
Here comes the Cat. He heads down to the announce table and calls Madden fat. Madden calls Jones a Yak.
Match 6: Mike Sanders (c) v. Sting
It is Jeff Jarrett dressed as Sting. JJ says that Sting cannot wrestle anymore and he lays down a lot anyway. He lays down and wants the bell rung. Here comes Sting! He takes out JJ. Sanders waylays him with a bat and hammers him. Sanders works him over for a bit. Sting comes back and does his thing. He has Sanders hung up on the top rope and is kicking him over and over. Sting Splash on top of him and another to the back. Deathdrop. Over.
** Angle advancement. The whole thing was not bad.
Sanders is pissed and wonders where everyone was. Nash was chilling but will make it up to him later.
Match 7: Harris Brothers v. Mike Awesome and Crowbar
A back and forth match. Harris’ are not getting any sort of a push now. Awesome puts on through a table after five minutes and wins.
**
Steiner is in the back with Midajah and comes out after the break and he gets a great pop. The fans eat up his Freak comments and how he is now worldwide!
Match 8: Scott Steiner v. Rey Mysterio
A fan taunts Steiner and then sits right back down when he gets near! Fuck yeah. BTW: I would sit right the fuck down!
Steiner owns the first two plus minutes. Rey kicks him back but gets tossed into the corner and kicked. Steiner flexes and yells at the crowd. Steiner tosses him over the top rope but Rey catches himself and springs right into Steiner who is doing push ups. Steiner catches him but Rey catches him with a hurracarana! Now a he faceplants him. He does some push ups. He flies up top and is caught and T Boned! Steiner places him up top and goes up after him and has him over his shoulders and Samoan Drops him from the top rope! Recliner and match.
*1/2 Poor Rey. Not much offense but a bit.
Nash is walking in the back.
Here comes a gimpy Sanders. Well, he is holding the back of his head. He heads to the announce table.
Match 9: Cat v. Kevin Nash
Fans erupt for Nash. Sanders grabs Cat and Nash hammers him. Cat is worked over for a minute but Cat kicks him a few times. An uppercut drops him and Cat gets two. Cat is nailed and Nash drops the strap and the Cat is up. Sanders hits him with a chair and Nash is not too happy. But Sanders sets up a chair for him to powerbomb Cat into. Nash prepares and here comes Booker and know Steiner and now Sting. Sting Splashes Nash and Deathdrops him. Here comes JJ. Everyone is brawling as the fans chant for Goldberg. The heels get the upperhand and here comes Goldberg and he is destroying everyone! Kronik runs down and goes for Goldberg and the melee is on and we fade….
*1/2 Angle advancement.
***1/2 Overall a great Thunder. They stuck with wrestling and while not every match was great there were a few good ones and they did a great job preparing for the PPV. I even forgot to think about some of the inconsistencies with Sanders and Cat being the Commish. Good stuff.