Original Airdate: April 6, 1998
From Miami, Florida; Your Hosts are Tony Schiavone and Mike Tenay, with Larry Zbyszko (first half) and Bobby Heenan (second half)
Outside of the building, an ambulance arrives, because Randy Savage has been found attacked out on the sidewalk
Six-Man Tag Team Match: Psychosis, La Parka, and El Dandy v Tokyo Magnum, Judo Suwa, and Nobunaga: Parka and Magnum start, and it’s a dance off! The Luchadore team gang up in short order, and Tokyo takes some dives. They Mexican team continues dominating, until Tokyo manages turning it around on Parka. Psychosis comes in to try and save, but accidentally ends up kicking Parka in the balls, and Tokyo gives Psychosis a rana off the top for two. That allows the Japanese team to control, and Magnum gets a two count on Psychosis when Psychosis misses a dive. Tokyo hits him with a flying spinheel kick for two, but an attempt at a springboard gets blocked, and Magnum wipes out. That allows Psychosis to go up with a flying legdrop, and that’s enough at 4:25. This was just a spotfest, but that’s a good way to open a show up, especially for casuals. * ¼
WCW Television Title Match: Booker T v Disco Inferno: Booker attacks before the bell in response to some disrespect, and Booker unloads on him. Jumping forearm gets the champion two, and he works an armbar from there. Disco tries reversing, so Booker throws a savate kick to shake him off, and a hiptoss dumps Disco over the top. Disco snaps his throat across the top rope on the way back in, allowing him a swinging neckbreaker for two, and Disco stomps a mudhole in the corner. Cross corner whip works, but the charge in doesn’t, and Booker blasts him with a spinkick. Disco wins a criss cross with an inverted atomic drop, however, and a clothesline gets the challenger two. Disco grounds him in a chinlock, but Booker fights him off with a schoolboy for one, so Disco clobbers him with a backelbow to cut off a comeback. Back to the chinlock, wearing Booker down for a bodyslam, but a 2nd rope fistdrop misses. Disco tries to keep control of things, but Booker is in comeback mode, and a missile dropkick finishes at 5:20. Solid action here. **
Nitro Girls have big maracas
Video package highlighting the dissent within the nWo
Kidman v Lenny Lane: Kidman lands a dropkick to start, so Lane tries a bulldog, but Kidman blocks. Kidman with a clothesline, and a bodyslam sets up a slingshot legdrop. Dive off the middle, but Lane catches him in a powerslam for two, and delivers a pop-up flapjack. He gets the bulldog on this try for two, and a flying twisting senton gets him another two. Cross corner whip, but Kidman reverses, and delivers a sitout spinebuster. That allows Kidman to get upstairs for the flying shooting star press, and Lane is done at 3:25. It felt like they couldn’t get on the same page most of the way here. ¾*
Gene Okerlund brings JJ Dillon out for an update on what happened to Randy Savage. The update: he has no update. Great use of TV time
Norman Smiley v Konnan: Konnan gets a wristlock right away, but Norman armdrags his way out of it. Konnan tries another wristlock, but Norman reverses. Konnan reverses back, so Norman takes him down, and Konnan wisely bails to regroup, as Larry makes more of his usual vaguely racist cracks. Konnan with a rolling clothesline on the way back in, and Vincent is quick to add a cheap shot to help out. Konnan with a snapmare to set up a seated dropkick, but Norman gets an abdominal stretch on, and delivers a pair of elbowdrops for two. Dropkick, but Konnan dodges, and hooks a half-crab. It goes nowhere, so Konnan drills him with a cradle DDT, and finishes with the tequila sunrise at 4:11. Really dull match here. ¼*
Outside the building, Savage is put in the ambulance. Fifty minutes later?!? What the hell were they doing, looking for autographs?
Nitro Girls shake their maracas
WCW United States Title Match: Diamond Dallas Page v Buff Bagwell: Bagwell gets an armdrag right away, and does a bunch of gloating over it. Page tries a headlock, but Bagwell turns it into a criss cross, and the champion throws a shoulderblock. Page with a wristlock into another headlock, but Bagwell forces another criss cross, and catches him with a dropkick this time. Page fights back with a clothesline and a swinging neckbreaker, but Buff blocks the Diamond Cutter. Bagwell with a low blow, and he drops Page into the top turnbuckle. Clothesline gets him two, and he works a chinlock, but Page escapes. He looks for a powerbomb, but Buff blocks, and manages his own swinging neckbreaker for two. Bagwell argues the count, allowing DDP a schoolboy for two, and an inverted atomic drop sets up a clothesline. Page with a pancake piledriver, but Raven shows up in the crowd with a distraction, and Dallas chases him into the crowd, getting counted out at 4:55. * ½
We get some found footage of what happened to Randy Savage outside of the building, where a red Dodge Viper screeches out of the parking lot, having potentially hit Macho. Well, that was kind of pointless
The nWo come out of their usual ramble on, and Hollywood Hulk Hogan hints that he may have been behind the attack on Savage
Bill Goldberg v Hammer: Hammer tries getting in his face at the bell, which goes badly for him. Firemans carry puts Hammer on his ass, and a clothesline puts him right back there when he gets up. Hammer tries a chincrusher, but a dives off the middle gets countered with a spear, and the Jackhammer finishes at a lean 1:36. Afterwards, Saturn comes in to put a beating on Hammer as punishment for losing. DUD
Nitro Girls are back to their regular clothes. Thank God, I didn’t have any maracas jokes left
Okerlund brings Roddy Piper out, likely so he can make Hogan look concise and on-point
Ultimo Dragon v Chavo Guerrero Jr: This is supposed to be Dragon against Eddie Guerrero, but Eddie makes Chavo take the match in order to make it up to their grandma for Chavo being such a loser in the past. Chavo works in street clothes (down to the shoes, in a nice touch), and a reversal sequence goes his way with a headscissors. Chavo with a side suplex for two, and he works a chinlock. Dragon fights to a vertical base, so Chavo shifts to an abdominal stretch, and delivers a suplex for two. Reversal sequence sees them trade cradles for two counts, and Dragon manages a suplex of his own. Dragon unloads a series of strikes, but Chavo reverses a vertical suplex on him for two. Another reversal sequence ends in Chavo trying a powerbomb, but he gets countered into the Dragon Sleeper at 4:13. Not the best showing here. *
Nitro Girls
Lex Luger v Barry Darsow: Darsow actually dominates early on, and he works the arm, as Luger just sells and sells and sells. He’s really gotten a lot lazier since winning (and losing) the world title the previous summer. Darsow tries a piledriver, but Lex fights him off, and makes a comeback. Torture rack finishes at 3:43. ¼*
Davey Boy Smith and Jim Neidhart v Curt Hennig and Brian Adams: Rick Rude sits in on commentary here. Brawl to start, with the babyfaces cleaning house. The dust settles on Jim and Curt, and Anvil slams him around. Tags all around, and Adams throws a cheap shot on a test-of-strength, but Bulldog reverses a suplex on him. Tag to Jim for a slingshot shoulderblock for two, and he works a chinlock from there. Adams fights to a vertical base and powers into the corner to tag Hennig, and they work a double team while they’re at it. Curt tries a bulldog, but Anvil seems to think he’s going for a kneelift, and that goes south real quick. Tag to Bulldog, but Adams drops him with a piledriver in short order, and makes a cover for two. He works a bearhug from there, and a three-pump press-slam follows for two. That was impressive, okay. They continue cutting the ring in half on Davey, until Adams telegraphs a backdrop, and gets dropped with a facebuster. That allows the tag to Anvil, and poor Jim doesn’t even get a courtesy pop from the crowd. He runs wild nonetheless, so Rude takes a cheap shot, and Hennig hooks a fisherman suplex at 9:33. This dragged. Afterwards, they go for the beatdown, but Bret Hart makes the save, yada yada yada. ½*
WCW Cruiserweight Title Match: Chris Jericho v Juventud Guerrera: Jericho dedicates the match to Dean Malenko, just to be a jerk. Guerrera charges in with an attack to kickstart the match, and a cross corner whip sends Jericho into a tree of woe. German suplex, but Jericho counters to a full nelson. Chris tries a suplex of his own, but Guerrera lands on his feet, and clobbers him with a clothesline for two. Guerrera slows it down with a chinlock, and a spinkick connects, but Jericho slugs him down. Chris with chops, and a clothesline of his own gets him two. Jericho with a three-alarm no-release backbreaker for two, but Guerrera fights back with a victory cradle for two, so Jericho throws a clothesline to buy time. That allows the champ a 2nd rope pointed elbowdrop for two, but Guerrera counters a pop-up with a dropkick, and hooks a rana into a cradle for two. Jericho tries bailing, but Guerrera keeps him inside, and uses a facebuster for two. Scoop sitout brainbuster sets up the flying 450 splash, but Jericho crotches him on the top to block. Chris follows up for a superplex, but Guerrera shoves him off. Guerrera with a dive, but Jericho catches him, and turns it into the Liontamer. Guerrera won’t quit, but the damage is being done, so Prince Iaukea shows up to throw in a towel on his behalf at 6:08. Fun, fast paced action here. ** ½
Sick Boy v Scott Steiner: This is about that point that Steiner’s body started no longer looking like a human body any longer. Scott with a takedown and a ropechoke right away, and an Oklahoma stampede leaves Boy in a tree of woe. Clothesline sets up an elbowdrop, so Boy tries a springboard, but it goes nowhere. Scott with a belly-to-belly suplex and a camel clutch at 2:58. DUD
WCW World Title Match: Sting v Kevin Nash: I genuinely hope they weren’t paying Michael Buffer by the word in those days. Nash powers him into the corner for some knees to start, and a bootchoke follows. Kevin keeps unloading in the corner, but Sting gets fired up, and puts him down with a series of clotheslines. Sting with a flying clothesline, followed by a dropkick to send Nash over the top! Kevin pulls him out, allowing Konnan to get in a few cheap shots, and Nash with more bootchoking on the way back inside. Nash with a straddling ropechoke and a clothesline for two, and a backbreaker submission wears him down for another two count. Kevin with a headvice, until Sting fights free, but Nash cuts him off with a corner clothesline, followed by another bootchoke. Nash with a cross corner whip, but the charge in misses, and Sting goes after the knee to cut the big guy down. Scorpion deathlock looks to finish, but Konnan helps the challenger into the ropes. Nash goes to the eyes to buy time, and he capitalizes with a sidewalk slam for two. Elbowdrop gets two, and he goes back to the headvice from there. Sting fights to a vertical base and escapes, and he throws a standing dropkick. Konnan comes in, but gets hit with a Stinger Splash for his trouble. Sting hits Nash with three of them as well, but a corner whip gets reversed. That allows Kevin to try for the powerbomb, but his back gives out (huh?), and then Hollywood Hogan runs in on Sting for the DQ at 10:43 anyway. Really lazy match here. Afterwards, Nash pulls Hulk off of Sting, but that doesn’t earn him any gratitude from the world champion, as Sting runs wild on both guys until the nWo run in to overwhelm him. They deliver a beatdown, but Piper and Giant show up to make the save. ½*
BUExperience: There were some solid matches peppered throughout, and it was an entertaining show, but nothing here could match RAW’s pure energy.
It’s interesting, as we’re coming to the end of Nitro’s ratings dominance streak, and quality-wise both shows were neck-and-neck at this point in the Monday Night Wars. Nitro picked up a nice lead early on, but RAW has come back with a vengeance, and while the TV ratings will remain close for a while, I have a feeling RAW will take the lead creatively soon, and I doubt Nitro will come close to bridging that gap. But finding out is part of the fun of this journey we’re on.
Monday Night Wars Rating Chart
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