Classic Nitro

Chairshot Classics: WCW Monday Nitro Episode 15

Published

6 years ago

September 3, 2018

Another big episode of WCW Nitro is on tap from December 11th at the Independence Arena in Charlotte, NC. Sting is slated to team with Hulk Hogan to face off against Ric Flair and Arn Anderson, but Bischoff, McMichael and Heenan speculate about the Stinger and Hulkster being able to coexist.

Eddie Guerrero vs JL

Guerrero jumps in control early, hitting a tilt a whirl backbreaker and slingshot senton. Eric Bischoff says that Eddie is part of the “World Cup of Wrestling” at Starrcade and that the Japanese might think he’s “a piece of cake-well rice cake.” That does not age well. JL comes back with a head scissor takedown but Eddie comes back with a top rope lucha arm drag. JL hits a dropkick to Guerrero to send him outside the ring and follows it up with a cannonball from the apron. Eddie counters a roll up attempt with one of his own to garner the pinfall. This was a good match but the crowd didn’t seem sure on how to react for most of it.

Winner: Eddie Guerrero via pinfall

Mean Gene Okerlund is on the ramp with Jimmy Hart and Lex Luger. Luger talks about how he’s had the upper hand on Randy Savage and he will take that belt from him. He acknowledges the other competitors but says that Sting and him are friends, but may the best man win. Luger stumbled and got lost here a few times, it was somewhat comical.

Disco Inferno vs “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff

Disco jumps Paul to start the match and stays in control with all sorts of strikes. Wonderful comes back with strikes of his own followed by a standing elbow drop after some mocking dance moves. Disco takes a rough looking belly to back suplex, landed high on his back. That ends the match, as Mr. Wonderful picks up the pinfall win. Scary spot and abrupt finish make me nervous about that ending.

Winner: Paul Orndorff via pinfall

Mean Gene is joined by Ric Flair, Arn Anderson and Brian Pillman on the ramp. Brian talks about how great it is to be a horseman, and how Hogan threw it all away because he couldn’t hang with the rest of the Horsemen. Pillman runs down the American Males, Dungeon of Doom and Paul Orndorff before Ric Flair starts talking but Paul Orndorff comes out to confront Pillman. Pillman slaps Paul and a brawl ensures between Orndorff and the horsemen. They beat down Mr. Wonderful and hit a spike piledriver on the concrete. After the commercial break, we see Orndorff being put on a stretcher with a neck brace.

Lex Luger vs Hacksaw Jim Duggan

Hacksaw in control early with his strikes. We leave the match to see Orndorff being carted out on a stretcher. Back in the match, Duggan hits a hip toss, clothesline and a pair of elbow drops. Again we cut away to see Orndorff being loaded into an ambulance. Back at the match, Jimmy Hart is up on the apron holding the 2×4. Duggan is distracted, and Luger pushes him into the 2×4 and locks on the torture rack. Duggan submits shortly after to eat the loss.

Winner: Lex Luger via submission

Mean Gene is talking with Randy Savage about his upcoming schedule. Savage isn’t thinking about Starrcade or the matches there. He’s thinking about next week’s match with The Giant. Macho Man is confident and says he’s walking out with the belt.

Ric Flair and Arn Anderson vs Hulk Hogan and Sting

Anderson and Sting start us off, leaving the big 2 on the apron for hot tags. Arn is in control early with some slick moves and a fireman’s carry. Sting comes back with a big military press slam and Anderson says he wants Hogan. Sting obliges, and Flair is tagged in. Flair’s chops and forearms are no sold by Hogan before giving Flair a back body drop. Flair back in control with a poke of the eyes and start the frequent tags with Arn Anderson. Hogan fights back and tags in Sting who drops Flair with a military press slam and dropkick before eating a knee to the midsection. Flair hits a reverse atomic drop and tags in Arn. Arn hits Sting with a big DDT. Luger and Jimmy Hart come out, Hart distracts the ref while Luger puts Hogan in the torture rack. Flair and Arn are tearing Sting apart while Hogan has been left laying thanks to Lex Luger. Flair and Anderson are working over the knee of Sting, but Sting tries to come back against Arn but Flair tags in and chop blocks Sting. Ric locks in the figure 4 on Sting but Sting fights back and tags in Hogan but the ref was distracted by Anderson. The ref doesn’t allow it and Sting has his knee worked over more. Sting comes back and throws Flair off the top rope but can’t make the tag to Hogan. Anderson is tagged in and Sting hits a big face buster but gets Hogan tagged in. Anderson hits a spine buster but Hulk no sells it and comes back with the three punches, big boot and leg drop for the victory. Pillman, Jimmy Hart and Luger come down and beat down Hulk and Sting but Macho Man comes down. Sting hits Savage and Hulk tries to stay between them.

Winners: Hogan and Sting via pinfall

Mean Gene talks to the three faces, they all confront Sting about his relationship with Luger. Sting says he’s on their side, Savage wants them all to chill out and stick together. They all agree and are focused on the matches ahead. After the break, Bischoff, Mongo and Heenan discuss the fallout, including the possibility of The Giant being the WCW Champion after next week. Heenan thinks The Giant is guaranteed to win next week. Mongo is concerned that Hogan, Sting and Savage don’t have their heads together but the Horsemen and Dungeon of Doom all do.

That’s another episode down! Stories are building and taking shape as we approach Starrcade 1995 and it will be interesting to see how they pan out as the face of World Championship Wrestling is going to drastically change in the next calendar year.

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

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Chairshot Classics: WCW Monday Nitro Episode 16

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Chairshot Classics: WCW Monday Nitro Episode 14

Classic Nitro

Rob: WCW 2000 – What Was It Like?

Rob Bonnette takes a stroll down memory lane to an oft-overlooked time in pro wrestling: WCW in 2000! How bad did it get? Read on and see!

Published

5 years ago

September 2, 2019

Rob Bonnette

WCW 2000 Bash At The Beach Jeff Jarrett Hulk Hogan

Rob Bonnette takes a stroll down memory lane to an oft-overlooked time in pro wrestling: WCW in 2000! How bad did it get? Read on and see!

This may seem like a weird topic, but several times this year I’ve some really hot takes comparing the WWE in 2019 to WCW in 2000. The implication is that WWE is messing up really bad and WCW 2000 is one of the shining examples of a major wrestling company doing bad so there people go. The only problems with that analogy are that if you actually look at WWE on substance this year and not on stupid Twitter takes or dopey podcasts it’s not bad at all. Perfect? Of course not, but unless you have on AEW colored glasses there’s been plenty to enjoy this year. The other problem with that analogy is that you’ve got to have no idea just how awful things were in WCW from summer of 1999 through the fall of 2000 to equate the WWE this year to that. Don’t believe me? Let’s just look at the first half of 2000 and I’ll prove it to you.

WCW in January 2000

We start the year with no WCW World Champion thanks to Goldberg shoot kicking Bret Hart in the head and concussing him into oblivion (as much as I defend Goldberg as a performer, he’s on his own for that one). No worries, they’ll just have a match between two of the top contenders, Chris Benoit and Sid Vicious, to fill the title. Benoit wins…….and leaves the company immediately afterwards, completely unexpected. Not only that, but Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko, and Perry Saturn go with him! Now last time I checked no one won either the WWE World or Universal Title on a pay per view this year and signed with AEW the next day. Imagine if whoever wins between Jericho and Hangman Page at All Out says ‘screw this title’ and shows up at RAW on Monday along with all three members of SCU. That’s what happened in WCW!

But that’s only beginning…..

WCW in April 2000

The company did a hard reboot of all storylines on camera and vacated all the titles to start over. Again, this was all done on camera and not in the booking room. Then, with a roster of guys including Hulk Hogan, Sting, Goldberg, Ric Flair, Lex Luger, Kevin Nash, and even former champions Diamond Dallas Page and Sid they decide to put the World Title on……wait for it……..Jeff Jarrett. The same Jeff Jarrett who was the poster child for unsuccessfully trying to make fetch happen in both the WWE and WCW. Imagine WWE bypassing Reigns, Rollins, Daniel Bryan, AJ Styles, Kofi, Braun, and Randy Orton and bringing back Alberto Del Rio to crown instead. Or Ring of Honor saying never mind to Marty Scurrl and crowning Matt Taven at their biggest show ever…..oh wait, that did happen.

But wait, there’s more!!!

You cannot talk about WCW in 2000 without mentioning one man in particular. This man was not just a celebrity who got in the ring for a gimmick match. No, this man was booked in a title match and walked away the WCW World Champion. That man was David Arquette. Imagine if the Fox Sports anchor who won the 24/7 title from R-Truth, Rob Stone, instead won the WWE World Title. People got mad enough at Jinder Mahal, imagine if it had been a barely trained B-list actor instead. WCW did that, and it killed most of the little credibility they had left at that point. Again you have not seen anything on WWE television as abhorrent as that was in 2000.

And finally….

WCW in July 2000

Bash at the Beach. Hulk defeats Jarrett for the WCW Title when the booker Vince Russo tells Jarrett to lay down and take the loss. Russo fires Hogan on camera, Hogan walks off with the belt, and then Russo declares Jarrett is still champion and would have a new title match with Booker T! While that did give us Booker T, WCW World Champion, the circumstances were absolutely ridiculous. Again, imagine Vince telling Brock to lay down for Seth at SummerSlam, then firing Seth and saying Brock is still champion then randomly calling out Ricochet to have a match with Brock for the title which Ricochet wins. Can you imagine the fallout across social media and on every podcast afterwards?

So no, there isn’t a thing Vince has done this year that even holds a candle to the choices made by his competition in 2000. It’s a bad analogy and not steeped in any level of verifiable facts. So why say it? Well, you and I both know that it’s been open season as far as pot shots towards WWE in 2019 so anything and everything that can be hot taked will be. So it’s good to take a look at just what these people are talking about before you run with anything they have to say. And in this case, they’re dead wrong. Again.

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

Chairshot Classics

Chairshot Classics: WCW Monday Nitro Episode 23 (5/2/1996)

Published

5 years ago

November 26, 2018

Josh Wennes

Josh Wennes is back to cover the 23rd edition of WCW Monday Nitro in this edition of Chairshot Classics!

From the Jenkins Center in Lakeland, Florida, we have episode 23 of Monday Nitro! This episode is touted to feature the Road Warriors taking on Lex Luger and Sting as well as Ric Flair battling Marcus Bagwell. Kevin Sullivan and Hugh Morrus are also set to team against Arn Anderson and Brian Pillman. As a teaser, the WWE Network also says “The rivalry between Hulk Hogan and The Four Horsemen takes a new turn.” I can’t lie, this doesn’t exactly entice me too much, but let’s see what the show brings!

WCW Heavyweight Championship
Chris Benoit vs Randy Savage (champion)

WHY NOT PUT THIS MATCH IN THE TEASER??? The two tie up and roll all the way around the ring before Benoit takes control by sending Savage outside and into the guardrail. Benoit seemingly chops the life right out of Savage’s chest with some brutal shots. Benoit works the head with a sleeper and some strikes before hitting a stunning snap suplex. Benoit delivers a scoop slam and a top rope diving headbutt that, knowing the future, makes me a little uneasy. A big belly to back suplex nets a near fall for Benoit before using a backbreaker and stretching that back across his own knee. Outisde the ring, Benoit puts Savage into the ring post, rolls him back into the ring and sends him over the top rope again. Benoit goes for a suicide dive and Savage moves, sending Benoit careening to the floor and guardrail headfirst. Savage rolls Chris inside and hits a big elbow drop on the back of Benoit. Flair comes out and approaches Elizabeth and Savage goes out to stop him. Woman then attacks Randy from behind and Flair joins the party, ending the match via DQ. Arn Anderson comes down and joins the beatdown on Savage before Hogan comes to the rescue with 2 of the weakest chair shots I’ve ever seen. Mean Gene runs down to talk to Hogan about what has happened. Hogan says they need to put a stop to Ric Flair and Flair sneaks up behind Hulk and attacks the injured eye from last week. The Giant and The Zodiac join the ring and Giant delivers a chair shot to Hogan. Savage comes back and steals the chair while the heels powder out of the ring.

Winner: Randy Savage via Disqualification

Kevin Sullivan and Hugh Morrus vs Arn Anderson and Brian Pillman

Morrus in charge early as he hits both Pillman and Anderson with military press slams before tagging in Sullivan. After a very unusual exchange, Anderson and Morrus are tagged in. Anderson hits the patented spinebuster. Morrus fights out of a reverse chin lock before Arn tags in Pillman. Morrus counters a corner attack and tags in Sullivan. Pillman rushes Sullivan and they trade what look like legit shots before it turns to a four person brawl. Anderson drags Sullivan towards the back, only to be hit by a broom. Morrus and Sullivan double team Pillman and the ref calls for the bell as the a belt is brought in to hit Pillman. This was strange and uncomfortable.

Winners: Anderson and Pillman via Disqualification

Marcus Bagwell vs Ric Flair

Paul Orndorff comes to the announce table and says you never know when payback is going to happen, insinuating he was behind the broom attack on Arn Anderson. Bagwell is in control early, tossing Flair from the ring and hitting a clothesline before Ric begs for mercy and gets a cheap shot kick in around the ref. Bagwell battles back with a bevy of strikes and Flair flops. Marcus gets a dropkick for a near fall and goes for another but no one is home. Both men run the ropes and an awkward exchange sees Bagwell go over the top rope. Flair brings him back in and hits a knee drop before laying in some chops and strikes in the corner but Bagwell fights back. Flair is whipped into the corner but gets the foot up. Flair climbs the turnbuckles and gets tossed to the mat to the shock of no one. Bagwell hits a second rope superplex and float over for a two count. Bagwell goes for his slingshot splash but Flair gets his knees up and locks in the figure four leglock for the submission victory. Not often would we see Flair win with that. Flair refuses to let go and hits the ref, but Randy Savage comes out and chases Ric to the back.

Winner: Ric Flair via submission

WCW Tag Team Championship
Road Warriors vs Sting and Lex Luger (champions)

Sting and Animal start us off and Animal powers out of a top wristlock before powering out of a front facelock as well. Sting eats a big powerslam but avoids the elbow drop before hitting a facebuster and a top rope diving clothesline for a near fall. Hawk and Luger in off the tags, and Hawk no sells a piledriver to gain momentum. He hits a shoulder block and knee drop before Sting gets the tag. Hawk goes to work with strikes but eats a Stinger Splash. Sting tries to get the Scorpion Death Lock hooked, but Animal breaks it up and gets the tag. Running the ropes, Animal goes over the top rope after Luger pulls down the ropes. Luger is tagged in and goes to work on Animal’s back. Sting is back in, but the crowd is behind the Road Warriors. Sting works a front facelock for a time, but tags in Luger who hits a big powerslam on Animal but takes too long celebrating. Animal no sells a suplex and hits a powerslam on Luger. Jimmy Hart comes out carrying something big and heavy that Luger gets and hits Animal with it for the victory. Sting is not pleased with the path to victory here at all. Mean Gene is in the ring with the Road Warriors who demand a match for the belts again.

Winners: Sting and Lex Luger via pinfall

Superbrawl is approaching, and we have 2 cage matches to look forward to. Let’s see how the landscape of WCW changes going forward!

Full Results:

Dark WCW United States Heavyweight Title Match
Konnan (c) defeats Devon Storm
Dark Tag Team Match
Bunkhouse Buck & Dick Slater defeat The Barrio Brothers (Fidel Sierra & Ricky Santana)
Dark WCW World Television Title Match
Johnny B. Badd (c) defeats Diamond Dallas Page
WCW World Heavyweight Title Match
Randy Savage (w/Miss Elizabeth & Woman) (c) defeats Chris Benoit by DQ (8:17)
The Four Horsemen (Arn Anderson & Brian Pillman) defeat The Dungeon Of Doom (Hugh Morrus & The Taskmaster) (w/Jimmy Hart) by DQ (7:17)
Ric Flair (w/Woman) defeats Marcus Alexander Bagwell (7:01)
WCW World Tag Team Title Match
Lex Luger & Sting (c) defeat The Road Warriors (Road Warrior Animal & Road Warrior Hawk) (8:37)

Results courtesy of CageMatch.net.

What do you think of this edition of WCW Monday Nitro?
Let us know on social media @theCHAIRSHOTcom and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!