Original Airdate: June 1, 1998
From Washington, D.C.; Your Hosts are Tony Schiavone and Mike Tenay, with Larry Zbyszko (first half) and Bobby Heenan (second half)
A limousine arrives, carrying WCW United States Champion Bill Goldberg, Diamond Dallas Page, Booker T, and JJ Dillon
Nitro Girls
Ernest Miller v Jerry Flynn: Flynn attacks before the bell, but Miller fights him off, and gets an armbar on. Flynn escapes, and strikes Miller down for a kneedrop, followed by a kick. Miller blocks another kick and sweeps the leg to set up some mounted punches, so Flynn goes to a cross-armbreaker, but Miller makes the ropes. Flynn with more kicks in the corner, so Miller tries a sunset flip, but they’re in the ropes. Flynn with a spinkick, and he bootchokes Miller in the corner. Flynn with a hiptoss to set up a legdrop for two, but Miller makes a comeback, and delivers a front-powerslam, before putting Jerry away with a roundhouse kick at 4:03. Not a great choice for an opener. ¼*
Another limo arrives, this one containing the nWo Wolfpac
The Wolfpac hit the ring, trying to exert a little peer pressure to convince Sting to join the group. They also throw out a challenge to nWo Hollywood to put up two of theirs against Kevin Nash and Lex Luger tonight
Public Enemy v Raven and Saturn: Johnny Grunge starts with Saturn, and Saturn slugs him into the corner for some abuse. Saturn with a snap suplex before passing to Raven, and they work Grunge over with quick tags, but start arguing, and Grunge recovers. He nails Saturn with a backelbow before passing to Rocco Rock for a little double teaming, and the Enemy work Saturn over. Raven catches a tag, but accidentally hits Saturn while they’re trying a double team. That allows Grunge to hit them with a double clothesline, so they bail, but Rock dives onto both with a somersault plancha. Inside, Grunge hits Saturn with a swinging neckbreaker, and Rock tags in for the Drive By. They put Raven through a table instead of going for the pin, however, and Saturn catches Grunge with a death valley driver at 6:43. This was really long for what it was and for the point it was trying to make. ½*
Nitro Girls
Nitro Party video. From Arkansas
Alex Wright v Chavo Guerrero Jr: They measure each other a little to start, until Wright drops him on his head with a side suplex. Wright with a cross corner whip and a backbreaker, so Chavo snaps on him, and tries to choke a bitch out. Wright bails, so Chavo dives after him, and whips Alex into the guardrail. Again, but Wright reverses, so Chavo flips out again. I like psycho Guerrero. Inside, Chavo misses a charge, allowing Wright a stepover toehold, and the bell quickly sounds at 3:08. Even Wright is surprised at how quickly Chavo tapped out there, but Guerrero immediately pops up and goes crazy on him again. That draws Eddie Guerrero out to cool him down, and he tells Chavo that grandma is proud of him now, so he can calm down. And they don’t even have to wrestle at the Great American Bash, they can just forget about that. But Chavo won’t hear it - he wants it. ¾*
Tony brings Randy Savage and Roddy Piper out, and Macho wants a piece of Hot Rod after they get done with Hollywood Hogan and Bret Hart at the Bash. Roddy’s cool with that, but tries to explain to Randy that Bret is messing with his head. And then Roddy does some messing back: openly wondering why Bret never wears an nWo shirt
Tony brings JJ Dillon out, and while JJ can’t offer Sting money and fame like the nWo factions can… he can offer him… anyway, he hopes Sting accepts
Another limo pulls up with nWo Hollywood, and they march right out to the ring for Hogan to ‘prove’ that Bret is completely loyal to him, which Hart proves by wearing a Hogan shirt. Bret looks so out of place here
Lenny Lane v Konnan: They trade wristlocks to start, and Konnan gets the first takedown. They do a pinfall reversal sequence, also won by Konnan, and he hits Lane with a sitout facebuster. Konnan with a pendulum crab, and he goes to an STF from there. Lane fights him off in the corner, and a cross corner whip rebounds Konnan into a bulldog. Lane puts the boots to him, but Konnan catches him with a few cradles for two counts. Lane cuts him off with a drop-toehold ahead of a magistral cradle for two, but he gets caught with a whiplash coming out of the corner. That allows Konnan a cradle DDT, and the tequila sunrise puts it away at 3:05. Lane’s poor-mans-Chris-Jericho act is a miss. It’s not bad, but it doesn’t work when the real Jericho - at the height of his powers - is in the same promotion. ½*
Curt Hennig and Rick Rude are out, and they think it’s pretty silly that Goldberg is going around bragging about his sub-100 match winning streak, considering Curt was undefeated for years.
WCW Television Title Match: Fit Finlay v Eddie Guerrero: They measure each other to start, with Finlay dominating. Fit uses a snapmare into a chinlock, but Eddie quickly counters to a hammerlock. Fit gets into the ropes and throws an elbow on the break, then drops Guerrero with an uppercut. Fit with a bodyslam, so Eddie goes to the eyes, and snapmares him over for a bootrake. Eddie with a turnbuckle smash, but Fit blocks a rana off the top, and alley-oops him into the turnbuckle. Finlay with a side suplex for two, and an elbowdrop allows him to go to another chinlock. Eddie fights free, and unloads in the corner, before dropping the champ with a side suplex of his own. Eddie puts the boots to him from there, but here’s Chavo, and the referee disqualifies Eddie at 4:59, despite Chavo not actually putting his hands on anyone. A terrible ending to a pretty uninteresting match. ¾*
Nitro Girls
Chris Jericho visits various government buildings around D.C., trying to find the right person to talk to in order to overrule JJ Dillon, and get his WCW Cruiserweight title back, but luckily gets blocked by security before he can properly storm the capitol. Well, he’d be back
Chris Jericho v Juventud Guerrera: Guerrera with chops, and a matslam allows him a flying headscissors, though Juventud bangs his own head into the mat on the landing. That allows Jericho to come back with a butterfly backbreaker for two, but Guerrera counters a pop-up with a rana into a cradle for two. Guerrera with a sloppy DDT for two, and a scoop sitout brainbuster sets up a dive, but he takes too long, and Chris crotches him. Chris tries a superplex, but Guerrera blocks. Guerrera dives with a flying bodypress, but gets caught, and Jericho looks for the Liontamer, but Guerrera is in the ropes. Jericho responds by charging, but Guerrera sidesteps, and Chris takes a spill to the outside. Guerrera is on him with a headscissor plancha, but Reese shows up to thump Juventud, and Jericho hooks the leg at 5:01. A weak, sloppy match with a bad finish. ½*
Best of Seven Series Match: Chris Benoit (2) v Booker T (1): Booker with a bodyslam out the gate, and he tags Chris with a nice backelbow for two, as Fit Finlay comes out to observe. Booker with a corner whip and a powerslam for two, so he holds Chris in an armbar to keep him grounded. Booker with a sidewalk slam and a flying twisting bodypress, but Benoit bails before a cover can be made. Booker is on him with an axehandle from the apron, but Chris throws kicks at him as they head back inside, and Benoit stomps a mudhole in the corner. Chris unloads with chops, and a snap suplex finds the mark, but Booker fights back with a spinkick for two. Booker goes to a chinlock, but Benoit fights free, so Booker blasts him with a clothesline. Benoit tries triggering a slugfest, but Booker cuts him off, and delivers a jumping forearm for two. Back to the chinlock, but Chris fights free, and manages a German suplex to buy some time. Chris with a backelbow for two, but Booker blocks a backdrop, and clips him with the axekick. Booker adds a side suplex, and he tries a vertical version, but Benoit counters to the crippler crossface at 8:19, going up 3-1. This was alright, a little flat. * ½
Video package on Sting’s history in WCW. Seriously, this is what JJ is offering to counter money and fame?
Diamond Dallas Page v Riggs: Riggs tries to take control, but gets slapped around, and Page stomps him down in the corner. Page with a tilt-a-whirl slam, so Sick Boy tries diving in, but misses. Page stays focused with a gutwrench stomachbreaker, and a firemans cutter finishes at 1:53. Someone order the squash? DUD
WCW United States Title Match: Bill Goldberg v La Parka: Goldberg gives him a free shot with the chair, immediately no-sells it, and spears Parka dead. The jackhammer finishes the burial at 0:32. This is the most involved the crowd has been all night - they came unglued for Goldberg, just a sustained pop for several minutes. DUD
Hollywood Hulk Hogan and Giant v Lex Luger and Kevin Nash: After a lot of posturing, we get Hogan and Luger to start. And then they do a bunch of posturing then, too. Lex dominates, and passes to Nash, as Tenay calls Hogan and Giant the ‘old guard’ of the nWo, with Nash and Luger as the ‘new kids on the block.’ No matter how you slice that - by tenure, by age - it doesn’t make sense. Hogan/Nash goes nowhere, so Giant tags in, and delivers a big boot. Thank God we have Giant to bring the workrate. Giant tries an elbowdrop, but Kevin dodges, and tags out. Giant clotheslines Luger down, and he passes to Hulk, but Nash just comes in and starts throwing. Hulk responds by whacking Nash with the title belt, and that’s a DQ at 6:39. This was a farce. Afterwards, Hogan and Giant deliver a beatdown, but Sting rappels down, and reveals an nWo Hollywood shirt. Hogan and Giant celebrate, but Sting promptly turns on them, and reveals a Wolfpac shirt underneath. I found this whole thing - and all the multi-episode drama surrounding it - underwhelming. -¼*
BUExperience: RAW was a very entertaining show, despite not having any good matches. Nitro didn’t have any good matches either, but was not nearly as entertaining. Or even plain ‘entertaining’ a lot of the time. RAW was the clear winner this week.
Monday Night Wars Rating Chart
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