Coming out of Road Wild 1999, WCW appears to be going full steam with Hulkamania running wild. Kevin Nash, currently the booker for WCW, lost a career vs. career match with Hogan at Road Wild last night and won’t be on television for the foreseeable future. It’s wrestling, so he’ll probably be back in about eight weeks.
I’ve read a couple of Observers, and apparently at one point the plan is for Hogan and Bischoff to turn heel. The fans don’t seem to fully trust Hogan, so a heel turn may be expected. If they hold off a bit to fully trick the fans, it could be a good move. However, the trend in WCW continues to be revisiting angles that worked two years ago. I’m sure if they did the heel turn they’d revert to some formation of the NWO whether it’s directly called that or not.
Sid Vicious and Randy Savage won their respective matches against Sting and Dennis Rodman. It’s actually going to be Savage’s final WCW match. Sid might be the next challenger for Hogan’s WCW World Championship. They’ve been teasing a showdown between Sid and Goldberg noting the crowd chanting for Goldberg whenever Sid comes out. I doubt Sid would lose to Hogan before a match with Goldberg, though.
Harlem Heat won the WCW Tag Team Championships from the Triad for what is likely going to be a nostalgia run. If they don’t continue a feud with the Triad, I’d imagine the Revolution would be the next team to chase the titles in a face vs. face feud.
Goldberg continued his winning ways beating WCW Television Champion Rick Steiner in a non-title match. While Sid is the next big match for Goldberg there isn’t a major heel to feed to him right now heading into Fall Brawl. While it would have been a train wreck, I would have done something between Savage and Goldberg since they’ve never squared off in the ring before.
Lets head into Nitro and see the direction WCW is headed.
AUGUST 16TH — COLORADO SPRINGS, CO — WORLD ARENA
MATCH #1: LASH LEROUX VS. JUVENTUD GUERRERA
FINISH: Sid Vicious comes out and chokeslams Juventud Guerrera followed by a powerbomb to LeRoux. Thus, the match is a no contest. Sid powerbombs LeRoux, too.
Bob’s Take: I think it is hilarious that Juventud Guerrera has a beef with the stage since he slipped on it a few months ago. I’m pretty sure every time he’s wrestled on Nitro he’s pointed at the spot that he slipped on as if to say he’s not going to fall again. I actually found myself enjoying Juvi and LeRoux, but Sid coming out to ruin it doesn’t exactly bug me. It has been announced he’s wrestling Hogan in the main event, so it’s going to add heat for the showdown tonight. So, I’m going to give this a positive feedback. Setting up for the main event in a non-typical manner. 1 for 1
SID PROMO
CONTEXT: Sid tells the fans that in the year in 2000 his name will be heard the loudest. Sid will collect more wins than anyone else in professional wrestling. Sid claims that Goldberg will be obsolete. Sid claims he doesn’t enjoy beating people up like this, but it’s something he needs to do. Sid says Hogan has the WCW World Championship, which belongs to him. Sid promises to ruin matches all night long until Hogan gives him what is his.
Bob’s Take: A solid promo by Sid. As long as Sid doesn’t ruin meaningful matches then I don’t see to big of a deal. The frustration of Sid ruining matches on the show should lead to the audience wanting Hogan to defeat Sid, so it makes total sense to me. 2 for 2
MATCH #2: STEVEN REGAL VS. SCOTTY RIGGS
FINISH: Within less than a minute, Sid comes out and chokeslams Regal causing the match to be thrown out. After the match, Sid cuts a promo into the camera saying he wants Hogan to give him what is his.
Bob’s Take: Kind of a bizarre match to be taking place on Nitro. Regal is a pompous heel and Riggs is obsessed with himself. I’m not sure who I’m suppose to cheer for here, but I’d imagine Riggs would be the babyface. By the time I finished writing that sentence, Sid came out and attacked. Considering the random nature of the match, the Sid run-in should not have been a surprise. I’d rather Sid destroy people than a random match between Regal and Riggs, I guess. I think as a kid I hated these run-ins, but they make a lot of sense over twenty-five years later watching it. 3 for 3
MATCH #3: THE CAT VS. MIKE ENOS
NOTE: Prior to the match, Cat claims he will beat Enos in under four minutes or he’ll never wrestle in the town ever again.
FINISH: Enos tries to press slam Sonny Ono, but Cat nails Enos with a kick to the back of the head to pickup the win in less than four minutes.
Bob’s Take: When Mike Enos came out to up tempo music, I thought Jimmy Hart was going to come out it was that funky sounding. Schiavone actually notes that Enos has had a winning streak on Saturday Night and Worldwide. Enos does look pretty good physically. The match isn’t anything all great, but Cat winning the match gets him back on the winning side. I’ve been enjoying Cat as a heel for the most part. 3 for 4
BERLYN VIGNETTE
CONTEXT: It’s the same video package we’ve seen over the past several weeks.
Bob’s Take: I’m not looking forward to this. 3 for 5
SID ATTACKS BACKSTAGE
CONTEXT: Backstage, Sid chokeslams Silver King onto some boxes. Sid hits La Parka and Silver King with cardboard. Sid powerbombs Parka onto a large bag of popcorn. Sid hopes Hogan will listen now and still wants what is his.
Bob’s Take: I mean, not even Schiavone could play this off as a devastating attack. Sid used cardboard and a bag of popcorn. It came across more comical than anything else. 3 for 6
MATCH #4: WCW CRUISERWEIGHT CHAMPION REY MYSTERIO JR. VS. LENNY
FINISH: Sid comes out for a third match and grabbed Mysterio in the corner after a bronco buster to chokeslam Mysterio. Lodi tried to get involved, but Sid delivered a double chokeslam to Lenny and Lodi. Sid powerbombs Mysterio. Sting runs down to the ring to attack Sid and prevent another powerbomb to Mysterio. Hulk Hogan also runs down and Sid bails to the floor. The crowd erupted for Hogan’s appearance.
Bob’s Take: It didn’t take long for Lenny to be flamboyant with Mysterio, who acted disgusted by it, but Mysterio is the man who bounces his groin on men every match usually. Lenny hit a crazy corkscrew dive off the top to the floor, which stunned the crowd. Sid’s involvement here bugs me because this is a match I wanted to see, and the crowd seemed to be quite interested in during the short time it was going on. 3 for 7
SID & HOGAN CONFRONTATION; HOGAN OFFERS A MATCH TO STING
CONTEXT: Sid yells from the floor that he knows Hogan doesn’t want him in the ring and wants the belt back. Hogan says he’s happy Sid got away from Sting because he wants Sid 100% tonight. Hogan came here to say his prayers and kick Sid’s ass. Sid claims there’s a miscommunication and suggests Hogan think about it. Hogan promises to give Sting a title shot in Las Vegas next week on Nitro after he beats Sid tonight. Sting plays to the crowd along with Hogan. Hogan is going to prove himself tonight when he beats Sid. Sting accepts the challenge for next week in Las Vegas. Hogan tells Sting he’s saying his prayers and coming to kick Sting’s ass next week, too.
Bob’s Take: Okay, this is a bit weird to me. We’re already minimizing the Sid vs. Hogan match because the bigger match would be Hogan vs. Sting next week in Vegas. So, there’s logically likely zero chance that Sid is going to win the title against Hogan. This booking kind of bugs me. I feel like they could have made the match with Sting and Hogan after the main event instead of two hours before the main event even takes place. 3 for 8
MATCH #5: THE INSANE CLOWN POSSE VS. PUBLIC ENEMY
FINISH: Late in the match, Vampiro hits the Nail In The Coffin on Grunge allowing Violent J to pickup the win.
Bob’s Take: The crowd loves ICP there’s no denying that. I don’t have much interest in Public Enemy competing in traditional tag team matches. I’ve grown accustomed to hardcore matches for Public Enemy. It’s not that they’re bad at tag matches, but I find entertainment in their hardcore brawls more so than a standard wrestling match. Public Enemy hit the Drive By through stacked tables, which got a big pop from the crowd. At least we got the Drive By spot, I guess. 3 for 9
WCW TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS HARLEM HEAT INTERVIEW
CONTEXT: Mean Gene is in the ring to conduct an interview with the new WCW Tag Team Champions Harlem Heat. Gene brings up their split, but they are reunited now. Booker says they are back together again after a long two years. Booker says they no love lost for the Triad, but thanks DDP for making them eight-time tag team champions. Gene says Stevie Ray bailed on the NWO recently. Stevie had a relationship with four fruit booties who couldn’t get the job done. Stevie says they will accept the challenge of any tag team. Booker says they are going to “turn this mother out” in Colorado Springs.
Bob’s Take: A basic interview for Harlem Heat. By the sounds of it, Harlem Heat may still have issues with the Triad, but this didn’t set anything up directly other than an open challenge. This was fine for what it was, though. 4 for 10
BERLYN VIGNETTE… AGAIN
CONTEXT: Guess what, it’s the same video package.
Bob’s Take: Tony Schiavone is trying to act like it’s a new athlete from Germany, but he’s before mentioned it’s Alex Wright. I’m not looking forward to this… even more. 4 for 11
NWO B-TEAM PROMO; CHALLENGING HARLEM HEAT FOR TONIGHT, ADAMS KICKED OUT
CONTEXT: Horace starts the promo saying they were sitting in the back and couldn’t believe what Stevie Ray had to say. Horace doesn’t care how many times Harlem Heat won the tag titles they couldn’t beat the NWO Black & White in any capacity. Horace says nothing is worse when a member goes bad. Scott Norton chimes in and says Ray is dead wrong to think he can come and go. Norton doesn’t think he’d give Stevie Ray his spot back if he begged. Brian Adams chimes in and says himself and Vincent will wrestle Harlem Heat tonight. Norton doesn’t like being bossed around and Adams is beaten down by all three members. Adams has his shirt ripped off and is left laying in the aisle.
Bob’s Take: The rumors are that Brian Adams is going to be doing the KISS gimmick when they introduce the character next week in Las Vegas since KISS is performing. Adams being clean shaven likely proves that is going to happen. 5 for 12
BILLY KIDMAN INTERVIEW; DIAMOND DALLAS PAGE CONFRONTS KIDMAN
CONTEXT: Mean Gene interviews Billy Kidman in the ring. Gene notes that Kidman is a chick magnet, prompting the women to scream. Gene has heard that a few wrestlers are forming a clique. Kidman says it’s a clique of friends of himself, Mysterio, Eddie Guerrero and Konnan. Kidman says there’s mutual respect with Eddie. Kidman says they are just filthy animals liking to party and chase the chicks. Gene mentions the Nitro Girls PPV where Gene claims he’s watched it seventeen times. Gene asks if Kidman has a favorite and says Kimberly is his favorite and says she’s drop dead gorgeous. Kidman means no disrespect by saying that.
Diamond Dallas Page makes his way down to the ring without his music playing. DDP asks Kidman what he’s talking about. Kidman has respect for Kimberly and DDP saying Kimberly is a gorgeous woman. DDP doesn’t think Kidman can spell respect and proceeds to slap Kidman and delivers a slam. DDP wants a referee for a match. 6 for 13
MATCH #6: DIAMOND DALLAS PAGE VS. BILLY KIDMAN
FINISH: Kidman counters a diamond cutter attempt and manages to rollup DDP for the clean win! After the match, DDP plants the referee with a diamond cutter and does the same to Kidman. DDP puts Kidman in a tree of woe and grabs the referees belt. DDP whips Kidman in the corner as Kimberly comes down to ringside. Kimberly is trying to reason with DDP as DDP chokes Kidman with the belt.
Bob’s Take: There are several times in the match that DDP could have pinned Kidman, but decided against taking the pin. This is a massive upset, and I love it. DDP seems to be triggered by Scott Steiner’s comments from earlier in the year because he said “it’s that Steiner crap.” I’m not big on Kimberly being involved in angles as it derailed DDP’s momentum in early 1999. Maybe now that DDP is a heel it could work better, but I’d rather they just focus on the Triad as a heel unit. This was enjoyable all around, though. 7 for 14
DISCO INFERNO PROMO
CONTEXT: Inferno lets everyone know who he is and claims he’s a superstar. Inferno believes he’s a sex symbol and says he’s a booty shaking badass. Inferno says the filthy animals have been trying to get him to join. He’ll call them so stop calling him. Inferno says he’s the present and future superstar of WCW. The others can stay on the bench. WCW United States Champion Chris Benoit comes out to confront Inferno. Benoit tells Inferno that he’s not going to be climbing up his ladder. Benoit warns Inferno he’s stepped in front of a Revolution and tells Inferno to step into the ring to find out what it’s all about. Inferno calls Benoit stupid and not brave promising a tushy kicking now.
Bob’s Take: I think Inferno is better suited in the heel role that he’s presenting right now. He failed to connect in the brief babyface. I like the approach of making makes feel spur of the moment and not pre-planned. Inferno wouldn’t fit with the Filthy Animals anyway. I found myself wanting to see Benoit beat up Inferno right now, so this was effective in making me want to see it. 8 for 15
MATCH #7: WCW UNITED STATES CHAMPION CHRIS BENOIT VS. DISCO INFERNO
FINISH: Benoit finishes Inferno off with a top rope diving headbutt to retain the title.
Bob’s Take: I didn’t realize this until after the match was over with, but Charles Robinson was the referee and it would appear that Robinson is no longer a crooked referee or acting as a heel in any capacity. I thought this was a decent match with a good clean win for Benoit. 9 for 16
MATCH #8: GOLDBERG VS. BARRY WINDHAM
FINISH: Goldberg takes care of business quickly following a spear and jackhammer.
Bob’s Take: Goldberg squash. That’s what we want. 10 for 17
MATCH #9: WCW TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS HARLEM HEAT VS. NW0 B-TEAM — HANDICAP NON-TITLE MATCH
FINISH: Late in the match, Brian Adams storms the ring and attacks the NWO. The referee completely ignores this interference. Booker missile dropkicks Horace leading to the pin by Stevie Ray.
Bob’s Take: I’d say the NWO at this point needs to be in handicap matches to even look like a threat to a team such as Harlem Heat. The best part of the match as Adams cleaning house and looking shockingly great while doing it. This was a subpar match and the new champs need a stronger challenger. 10 for 18
BRIAN ADAMS WALKING BACKSTAGE
CONTEXT: Adams walks backstage and walks up to a limo. Adams enters the limo which has a license plate “KISS”.
Bob’s Take: That confirms that Adams is going to be associated with KISS. If the character isn’t corny as hell, it could be worthwhile for Adams to do the gimmick switch. I’ll give it a chance. 11 for 19
MATCH #10: WCW TELEVISION CHAMPION RICK STEINER VS. BRIAN KNOBBS
NOTE: Rick Steiner cuts his usual promo before the match.
FINISH: Late in the match, Jimmy Hart accidentally hits Knobbs with a dog collar allowing Steiner to hit a top rope bulldog for the win.
Bob’s Take: I have zero interest in Knobbs wrestling Rick Steiner, whom I also have zero interest in seeing compete. The crowd had been rather energetic, but they voiced displeasure by chanting boring for the bout. I’m not entirely sure why they’d protect Knobbs, but whatever. 11 for 20
MATCH #11: BAM-BAM BIGELOW VS. PERRY SATURN
FINISH: Late in the match, Kanyon runs down, but is decked by Saturn. Kanyon shoves Saturn off the top and Bigelow catches Saturn. Douglas knocks Kanyon off the top into Saturn and Saturn pins Bigelow. After the match, Saturn is double teamed until Benoit and Malenko come down. The Revolution enter the ring to scare the Triad from the ring.
Bob’s Take: Bigelow is better suited being with Kanyon. I find myself not caring about Bigelow in a singles role. It almost felt like the match was there to fill time for the most part. The finish came across poorly. Looks like the Triad and Revolution will be extending into a tag feud at the very least. This match was a letdown, though. 11 for 21
MAIN EVENT: WCW WORLD CHAMPION HULK HOGAN VS. SID VICIOUS
FINISH: Late in the match, Rick Steiner attacks Hogan, but the referee doesn’t call for the bell. The fans are hurling garbage into the ring. Sting sends Sting to the floor. Hogan boots and leg drops Steiner leading to a three count despite Steiner not being in the match.
Bob’s Take: As expected there was a formula to the match that you’d expect for a Hogan match at a house show in the 1980s. Sid did the same tropes that have been done countless times and Hogan being the superhuman babyface doesn’t seem to translate well. The finish is truly stupid. The crowd seemed to be completely uninterested in Hogan pinning a guy that wasn’t legally involved in the match. The amount of trash in the ring shows that the audience wants a clean finish to an advertised main event. Don’t book a match if there can’t be a finish. 11 for 22
Clearly there is a focus on Las Vegas next week and it feels like a major Nitro for WCW. Vegas tends to be a big market for WCW and they often times have major shows there, especially Halloween Havoc in recent years. Sting vs. Hogan for the WCW World Championship is a major main event and there could be interest in it. It’s safe to say there’s not going to be a clean finish to title bout.
I think is an episode that would have been much better if it was condensed to a two hour program. Despite a bloated roster it seems as if WCW has a difficult time filling three hours of programming on Nitro to maintain entertainment on a consistent basis.
I’m far more interested in next weeks show in Las Vegas, though.
8/16 WCW Nitro TV Rating: 3.3
Thanks for reading.