- 6 weeks ago
Here is part 2: https://dai.ly/x9p7wc2 Check Out More Classic WCW Monday Nitro Episodes Here: 1995-1998: https://dailymotion.com/playlist/x8g7i8 and 1999-2001: https://dailymotion.com/playlist/xa1m0o
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00:00:00Fans have been asking the question what will the year 2000 bring for World Championship Wrestling?
00:00:18Well, we don't know.
00:00:20But what we do know is the decade of the 90s will go down as the greatest in the history of WCW.
00:00:26So we invite you to stay with us for the next three hours because we will bring you the best of Monday Nitro.
00:00:32You know, I hope they show the Goldberg match when he fought Hogan.
00:00:34I hope they show the Nitro girls.
00:00:36Yeah, I hope they show the Nitro girls.
00:00:56Hi everyone, I'm Tony Schiavone backstage at the studios of World Championship Wrestling hoping everyone had a great Christmas holiday and are ready for the brand new millennium.
00:01:19We are here bringing you the greatest moments in the history of WCW Monday Nitro and I'm joined by the Nitro broadcast team.
00:01:28The one and only Bobby the Brain Heenan.
00:01:30The professor Iron Mike today newest member of our broadcast team the man without a nickname Scott Hudson and the one and only mean Gene Oakland for the next three hours.
00:01:42The greatest moments from Monday Nitro, you've been on every broadcast, so I know you have some great memories.
00:01:47Boy, there are some great memories and we've been all over the United States.
00:01:50We've been from border to border, coast to coast, there's some great wrestling action.
00:01:54But since he has no nickname, would it be customary if I referred to him as?
00:01:58No, that's what they call you.
00:02:01Wow.
00:02:02You know, I can't wait to see all those classic cruiserweight matches and how about the landmark Goldberg bouts over the past couple of years?
00:02:09There have been many Goldberg bouts that we can't wait to relive again, but I want to see the evolution of the program.
00:02:14See the differences between the early editions and what is taking us into the year 2000.
00:02:19Well guys, I spent 30 years in this business, a little different for me.
00:02:22High school gyms, Smoky National Guard armories, now the Staples Center in Los Angeles, the United Center in Chicago, and the brand new Phillips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia.
00:02:32There is a new era that we're looking at and I'm looking forward to it.
00:02:36Let's go back and take a look at some of the very special moments from the last four years on WCW Monday Nitro.
00:02:43I want to see the one with Hogan and Goldberg.
00:02:45That's the one I want to see.
00:02:46The one that was a bad day!
00:02:47But you know, if you think about what-
00:02:48But, you know, if you think about when-
00:05:28Just a wild guess.
00:05:29As we look back at Monday Nitro after this timeout.
00:05:32But don't get me wrong.
00:05:35It's the very first Nitro ever from the Mall of America.
00:05:47I'm here like you said.
00:05:48Thanks for inviting me.
00:05:49I'm in a tux just like you wanted.
00:05:50What do you want me to do?
00:05:51It's an honor to be here with you guys.
00:05:53The greatest broadcast talent in the world.
00:05:55I'll handle this.
00:05:56I'll introduce you.
00:05:57Penzer.
00:05:58David Penzer, our announcer.
00:05:59Did the limo come for you?
00:06:00No.
00:06:01Well, probably couldn't find your house.
00:06:02Hey, we got catering here.
00:06:04Great.
00:06:05Great.
00:06:06Good food?
00:06:07Oh, it's the best you'll ever have.
00:06:08Five star.
00:06:09Right down the hall.
00:06:10Last door on the left.
00:06:11Go down there right now.
00:06:12They're waiting for you.
00:06:13Very important.
00:06:14A little something special for you.
00:06:15Thanks.
00:06:16Thanks, Bob.
00:06:17Yeah, take a hike.
00:06:18Thanks a lot, David.
00:06:19All right.
00:06:20Let's go back once again and take a look at WCW Monday Nitro.
00:06:24The very first Monday Nitro was held in the Mall of America, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
00:06:30Mike Tenet, the very first match ever, had Jushin, Thunder, Liger, and the late Brian
00:06:35Pillman go one-on-one.
00:06:36What a great way to start off a brand new program.
00:06:39And Tony, if you really think back about that first match between Liger and Pillman,
00:06:42and Scott, I'm sure you'll agree, that match set the tone for Monday Nitro.
00:06:46All action and over what evolved over the next four years.
00:06:49From New Japan Pro Wrestling, Jushin, Thunder, Liger, we had read so much about him,
00:06:53seen him off and on in the United States.
00:06:55What a debut he made at the very first Nitro in Minneapolis, Gene.
00:06:59And of course, as a lot of wrestling fans know, Minneapolis, St. Paul is my hometown.
00:07:04The Mall of America, brand new facility with millions of people going through there every year.
00:07:09And the wrestling fans came out in droves.
00:07:12The electricity, I guess so thick you could cut it with an eye.
00:07:16I hate to use an old cliche, but it was the truth.
00:07:19And a lot of surprises on that very first show, Tony.
00:07:21The very first broadcast team was comprised of Eric Bischoff, Steve Mongo McMichael, and the man to my right here, Bobby the Brain Heaney.
00:07:29What do you remember about that very first match, very first broadcast?
00:07:32Well, I remember, I couldn't imagine how it would be at a Mall of America instead of like an arena.
00:07:36I didn't know if there would be any electricity.
00:07:38I didn't know how the fans would be.
00:07:39You know, a bunch of people standing around with shopping bags and a lot of shopwifters
00:07:42and a lot of people just walking through there, a lot of pickpockets and stuff.
00:07:45But they were responsive.
00:07:47They really got with it.
00:07:48And four of the guys on the card only lost their watches.
00:07:51So it wasn't bad.
00:07:53Don't get me wrong, though.
00:07:55We never do.
00:07:56Let's take you back to Labor Day, 1995, the Mall of America.
00:08:00Jushin, Thunder, Liger, and the late Brian Pillman.
00:08:03The very first match ever on WCW Monday Night's Row.
00:08:07It's a brown one.
00:08:08It's my brown one.
00:08:09Attack himself.
00:08:10But let's keep in mind, Bobby the Brain Heaney, this man has come off a severe injury.
00:08:13He's only been back in action for about four weeks, coming off a broken leg.
00:08:16He was out for almost a year, Bobby.
00:08:18Well, those high-flying moves he does, he'll break a leg doing that, or a bat.
00:08:21I wouldn't be surprised if he comes off one of the escalators here.
00:08:24If he goes up the down escalator, the man's a tremendous athlete.
00:08:27And if you want to stay on the mat and wrestle him, that's fine.
00:08:30If you want to stand toe-to-toe with this man, that's fine.
00:08:32You want to go upstairs?
00:08:33Look at this.
00:08:34Look at the move.
00:08:35Did you see that cartwheel kick?
00:08:36Right to the earlobe.
00:08:37He hit him right below the ear, Steve.
00:08:39That's what I've been talking about.
00:08:41These magnificent athletes with these magnificent moves is why people should be watching the WCW, baby.
00:08:48It doesn't get any better than this.
00:08:49And let me tell you, we've got a lot of action coming your way.
00:08:52Some great surprises and a whole lot of fun.
00:08:55WCW with the big boys playing.
00:08:56Look at that move.
00:08:57One, two.
00:08:59My goodness.
00:09:01He can fly.
00:09:03Jushin Thunder Liger.
00:09:04And he looks like he is at the top of his game.
00:09:07Even Bobby the Stain over there has to be impressed with those kind of moves.
00:09:12Bobby the Brain, Enid of course, here with us.
00:09:16So many fans hear a lot of talk around Minneapolis-St. Paul about this tremendous broadcast coming your way.
00:09:22And we've got a whole lot of information for you.
00:09:24We'll be bringing it to you throughout the hour.
00:09:26Brian Pillman now.
00:09:28Defensive move.
00:09:29Takeover.
00:09:30And he takes Liger down.
00:09:31Boy, he whipped him from Bloomingdale's to Macy's and back.
00:09:35Jushin Liger in trouble.
00:09:37He's in the corner flying Brian Pillman.
00:09:39Reverse knife hand attacks to the top of the chest.
00:09:42Irish weapon in a reversal by Jushin Liger.
00:09:44Oh, man.
00:09:45I hope he don't make him swallow that mask and might stick in his throat on the way down.
00:09:50Well, he didn't get him good on that move.
00:09:52Not as good as he would have liked to.
00:09:53Covered by Brian Pillman.
00:09:55One, two.
00:09:56The referee in position.
00:09:57And what a way to kick off the hottest hour of wrestling action anywhere.
00:10:01Every Monday it'll be like this.
00:10:03Every Monday coming your way live.
00:10:07Is a Bronco going to be with us every Monday?
00:10:10I'm sorry?
00:10:11You want to repeat that?
00:10:12The football.
00:10:13I mean, Mr. McMichael.
00:10:14McMichael.
00:10:15Yes, he will be.
00:10:16Hold it.
00:10:17One, two.
00:10:18Pillman, that was close.
00:10:19Oh, I was a Chicago Bear over there, Bobby Hernia.
00:10:22Oh, we're going to start this now.
00:10:25Name calling.
00:10:26We're going to resort to that now.
00:10:27Okay.
00:10:28Ryan Pillman with an Irish rip.
00:10:30Then it was reversed by Jushin Liger.
00:10:31Jushin Liger drops down.
00:10:32Nice drop to a hole takedown.
00:10:34Liger now.
00:10:35And this is something that you would have expected to see out of Pillman.
00:10:38Jushin Thunder Liger going for the reverse surfboard.
00:10:40This is a submission hold.
00:10:42Jushin Liger does it better than anybody else in the world.
00:10:44He has got his man right where he wants him.
00:10:46This could be a devastating loss for Brian Pillman.
00:10:49Oh, my.
00:10:50Pillman in trouble as his crowd erupts.
00:10:52How will he get out of that move?
00:10:54Give up.
00:10:55That's the best way.
00:10:56Referee's in position.
00:10:57Checking for the submission.
00:10:59And now, Jushin Liger working over Brian Pillman.
00:11:01So much pressure on the back.
00:11:03The lower back.
00:11:04And now he's got the reverse face lock on.
00:11:06Compounding the pressure and the pain.
00:11:08Bobby, you've got to admit, you've never seen better surfing at the beach.
00:11:11Back when you didn't have that 40 pounds of extra weight around your belt.
00:11:15I don't surf.
00:11:16I have someone do it for me.
00:11:17Oh, good one, Bobby.
00:11:19Irish.
00:11:20Now Liger on the offense.
00:11:23Another head scissors takeover.
00:11:25And I think that Pillman's having a hard time with that head scissors takeover tonight.
00:11:28Oh.
00:11:29Good defensive maneuver.
00:11:30Pillman's in trouble.
00:11:31Pillman down on the mat.
00:11:33Oh, and another kick right to the head.
00:11:38You notice he's still favoring that leg, though.
00:11:40He's not as crisp with those moves as he usually is.
00:11:43Yeah, I noticed that when he fell 10 feet to the concrete.
00:11:47Yeah, hard to tell a guy that just probably about 30 miles an hour hit the concrete that he wasn't very crisp.
00:11:54I don't think I'm going to tell him that.
00:11:56Well, I'll tell him then.
00:11:57There's no trouble with that.
00:11:59Jushin Thunder Liger, one of the many great Japanese athletes that are going to be making their way here to WCW.
00:12:04So much new exciting competition coming to WCW.
00:12:08Make no mistake about it.
00:12:09This is where the best live.
00:12:12And each and every week you're going to have the chance to see it right here on TNT.
00:12:17And Brian Pillman launches an aerial attack of his own.
00:12:21That's it, kid.
00:12:22That's it, kid.
00:12:23Give it to him.
00:12:24Give it to him the way he wants it.
00:12:26You're used to sitting on the bench cheering, aren't you?
00:12:29I mean, you like it, don't you?
00:12:30I'm not knocking you, but you know what I mean.
00:12:32You know what I mean?
00:12:33As long as the offense is on the field, I've got no problems with it.
00:12:36Bobby the stain.
00:12:38Oh!
00:12:39Nice counter move by Jushin Liger.
00:12:41Liger using his head.
00:12:44Now both men up.
00:12:45Both men looking for a tactical advantage here.
00:12:48But it is indeed Jushin Liger off the top rope.
00:12:52And Pillman's in trouble.
00:12:53Pillman is in serious trouble.
00:12:54He's not getting out of this.
00:12:56Wow!
00:12:57They don't get any closer.
00:12:59Wow!
00:13:00That was about a 2.95.
00:13:02How many athletes is Bobby going to underestimate tonight, fans?
00:13:07We'll see.
00:13:08Well, I don't underestimate people.
00:13:10I just, I'm a broadcast journalist.
00:13:12I just call the action.
00:13:13Oh!
00:13:14Oh!
00:13:15And again, we see this out of Pillman.
00:13:18He hooks a leg.
00:13:19He's got him.
00:13:20Two.
00:13:21Kick out.
00:13:22Two.
00:13:23We've seen that out of Pillman before.
00:13:25And I'll tell you what, it's very unique.
00:13:26A drop kick, a jump drop kick like that is generally an offensive maneuver.
00:13:30Brian Pillman executing it as a defensive move.
00:13:33Very high risk, but equally effective.
00:13:35And he dropped kicked him with his leg shooting up as the man was coming down.
00:13:39Very hard to do.
00:13:40Hard to do.
00:13:41Timing is critical in that move.
00:13:42And we've got the power bomb.
00:13:43Oh!
00:13:44And Jushin Liger has Pillman.
00:13:45Has Pillman won?
00:13:46He got no.
00:13:47He got no.
00:13:50These are some superb athletes, I'm telling you.
00:13:54And you're going to see a lot more of it later on.
00:13:56You're going to see The Nature Boy, Ric Flair, and Sting.
00:13:59And as we announce, the WCW World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan will face Big Bubba in the main event.
00:14:05Look at that!
00:14:06Oh my gosh!
00:14:07Oh my gosh!
00:14:08He's out.
00:14:09He's out.
00:14:10He can't kick out of that.
00:14:11He did!
00:14:12Whoa!
00:14:13And that's without pads or a helmet, McMichaels.
00:14:16You would know a lot about that, wouldn't you, Bobby?
00:14:21I never cared to play football.
00:14:23I'd rather own the team.
00:14:26I'll tell you what.
00:14:27This is incredible action.
00:14:29Liger hit the deck so hard himself, I thought he was going to knock himself out.
00:14:33But it was Pillman who took the brunt of the force.
00:14:35And now Brian Pillman trying to fight his way off that top turnbuckle.
00:14:38He looks for some offense.
00:14:40Tremendous, tremendous move by Brian Pillman.
00:14:43What a match!
00:14:44Hooks the leg.
00:14:45One, two.
00:14:46He just DDT'd that man off the second rope.
00:14:49And the man kicked out.
00:14:51Both of these athletes so equally matched.
00:14:53Their styles complimentary.
00:14:55I think that man's got some pads in that mask.
00:14:58Standing switch.
00:14:59He got him.
00:15:00He's got him!
00:15:01He did!
00:15:02There we go!
00:15:03A tremendous victory!
00:15:08For Fly and Brian, a tremendous, tremendous matchup between two skilled athletes.
00:15:21And here you see Brian Pillman.
00:15:22There you go.
00:15:23There you go.
00:15:24Oh, isn't that nice?
00:15:25That's the kind of sportsmanship we all need to see.
00:15:30Me?
00:15:31I go wherever I want, whenever I want.
00:15:37Listen.
00:15:38Can you name which city has hosted the most WCW Monday Nitro?
00:15:44The answer to come later on in this program.
00:15:47Back on TNT looking back at WCW Monday Nitro.
00:15:57WCW Monday Nitro was perking right along for nine months.
00:16:02I don't know what it is about a holiday, but we go back to Memorial Day 1996 when really
00:16:08the direction, Scott Hudson, of Monday Nitro changed forever.
00:16:11The Monday Night Wars were on.
00:16:13Everything looked good for Nitro.
00:16:15Everybody wanted to come to WCW and be on the new leader in Monday Night Wrestling.
00:16:20And we got some new talent that caused a lot of controversy, Gene.
00:16:24And one of those big names was Scott Hall.
00:16:27Here's a young man that had proven himself earlier on in the AWA, in the World Wrestling
00:16:32Federation.
00:16:33And finally, he arrived on WCW Monday Nitro, and he wanted to show us his very best side.
00:16:38And he did.
00:16:39And Bobby Heenan, I was doing that broadcast at that time, our number one with Larry Zabisco.
00:16:44And that stunned everybody when Scott Hall walked on completely unannounced.
00:16:48Well, I think that was his springboard.
00:16:49I mean, the guy was famous before he ever walked on.
00:16:52But from that time on and the way the viewers all over the world were watching Nitro, he
00:16:56realized he could get away with anything.
00:16:57He could do what he wanted to do.
00:16:59And that's what I think went into a lot of wrestlers mind showing up at WCW.
00:17:02They think they can do whatever they want to do.
00:17:04And it looks like they can.
00:17:05And Bobby, if you think about it, from the time that Scott Hall arrived in World Championship
00:17:09Wrestling, that sort of set the pace for wrestlers from all over the world.
00:17:13They wanted to come to World Championship Wrestling and prove that they belonged.
00:17:17It did set the pace and it was the springboard for the new world order.
00:17:22The match was Steve Dahl against Mike Enos on WCW Monday Nitro and Scott Hall arrives.
00:17:27Take a look.
00:17:28Welcome back live to the first hour of this edition of WCW Monday Nitro on TNT.
00:17:37Tony Schiavone and Larry Zabisco.
00:17:39And we are taking a look at the Mauler completely mauled his opponent Steve Dahl.
00:17:45Well, you know, Steve Dahl was trying to get an offensive going.
00:17:48Wait a minute.
00:17:49What the hell is going on here?
00:17:51But the Mauler, well, he just got reversed right there.
00:17:54The Mauler runs him down.
00:17:56What are you talking about?
00:17:57Look, look here.
00:17:58Well, what the hell?
00:18:01Wait a minute.
00:18:02Somebody give me a mic.
00:18:03Somebody give me a mic.
00:18:04What's with this?
00:18:05Wait a minute.
00:18:06Wait, we need security here.
00:18:09I have no idea.
00:18:11Hey.
00:18:12Wait a minute.
00:18:13I can't believe, I can't believe what I'm saying.
00:18:18You people.
00:18:19What's with him?
00:18:20You know who I am.
00:18:22But you don't know why I'm here.
00:18:29Are we gonna get security here?
00:18:31Where is Billionaire Ted?
00:18:35Okay.
00:18:36Where is the Nacho Man?
00:18:41That punk can't even get in the building.
00:18:46Me, I go wherever I want, whenever I want.
00:18:54Listen.
00:18:58And where, oh, where is Scheme Gene?
00:19:04Cuz I got a scoop for you.
00:19:09When that Ken doll lookalike, when that weatherman wannabe comes out here later tonight, I got a challenge for him, for Billionaire Ted, for the Nacho Man.
00:19:33And for anybody else in WCW, hey, you wanna go to war, you wanna war, you're gonna get one.
00:19:51Fans, what about the match?
00:19:58I don't know what to say.
00:19:59Randy Anderson's coming.
00:20:00Randy?
00:20:02Randy, what's going on here?
00:20:08What about the match, Randy?
00:20:09What, what, what's going?
00:20:11The match is, fans, we gotta go to a break.
00:20:15The match left.
00:20:16I have no idea what to say.
00:20:17Stay with us.
00:20:18Hey, wait a minute.
00:20:19Everybody's left the ring here, and there's Rey Mysterio.
00:20:22Hey!
00:20:23He dove off.
00:20:24That's Rey, there's the Cruiserweight Champion Rey Mysterio.
00:20:27Oh no!
00:20:28Oh!
00:20:29Head first, into the trailer in the back.
00:20:32He threw a much.
00:20:36And the win is really low.
00:20:39You didn't get the job done, Macho Man.
00:20:41and the wind is really blowing you just get the job done macho man fans welcome back last segment
00:20:49we saw scott hall's incredible walk unannounced onto wcw money nitro that began the new world
00:20:56order the official beginning of course was bash at the beach later that summer in daytona beach
00:21:02july 1996 the very next night wcw money nitro was held at the disney mgm studios outside and
00:21:08mean gene i will never forget the chaos that night backstage i've never seen anything like it when
00:21:14the nwo first arrived to wcw money nitro uh neither have i tony as a matter of fact the new world order
00:21:20the nwo would be on the lips of virtually every wrestling fan in the entire world not only in
00:21:26this country but in japan and europe all over the world and the one thing i think that really kind
00:21:30of impressed me about this group they abandoned the rule book altogether and they terrorized the
00:21:36ranks of wcw for the next three years you like the new world order you were behind them all along
00:21:42well i wasn't behind them i don't kiss up to people it just happened like that that i happened to be
00:21:47where they were and i mean just i admired what they i tell them scott is an employee of world
00:21:52championship wrestling we learned one important lesson that night never fail to look over your
00:21:57shoulder because you never knew where how or when the nwo would strike that started all every week we
00:22:03wondered who would be next to join the new world order they were just the outsiders until bash at
00:22:09the beach then they became the nwo with the addition of the now hollywood hogan but we would never forget
00:22:16that very first attack that very first night on wcw monday you what what do you keep looking at your
00:22:21watch for where could pinzer be that imbecile where could he be we sent him to the commissary to catering
00:22:26and gene would you run down there and see if you can find pinzer get him back out here so we can start
00:22:31the celebration forget about you go down there me go down cover here you go ahead i'll go then
00:22:35hey wait a minute on second thought i'll go i've got my coat out in the lobby i don't want you running
00:22:41through my pockets or anybody i'll be right back all right gene while you go fans let's go back and
00:22:47take a look the unforgettable first appearance of the nwo on wcw monday nitro it's not fingers heenan
00:22:53it's the brain somebody in the back what is he talking about need somebody he's trying to get a
00:22:59cameraman the outsiders are in the back please i don't know he's taking a cameraman out of the back
00:23:04craig leathers can hear us craig are you going to send a cameraman back there or not
00:23:07okay he said the outsiders were back there who was where he said the cameraman is going to the
00:23:13back apparently the outsiders are back there and jimmy hart's up on the apron of the ring
00:23:17jimmy hart is up on the apron of the ring and this is not a dungeon of doom ploy yeah this is not
00:23:23the place for a dungeon of doom this is serious business here look at him what's he doing he's
00:23:28going berserk he's trying to stop this match he's trying to get anybody he can to help and he's got
00:23:34the attention of lex luger he's going to get out of there they're going to nail him get out of there
00:23:38jimmy he said we need help where are they going they're going luger stink wait a minute we go to the
00:23:48back on anderson down there they are they got baseball bats the coward jerks that's marcus bagwell
00:23:59wait a minute everybody's left the ring here and there's ray mysterio he dove off that's ray
00:24:12there's the cruiserweight champion ray mysterio oh no head first into the trailer in the back
00:24:19threw him like he was a dart on anderson the first man we saw down all six wrestlers have left the ring
00:24:27this match is going to be a double count out what match the macho man
00:24:34he's on the the macho man is on the limousine trying to get the sunroof oh my god
00:24:39i don't know if we can the macho man is grabbing through the limousine
00:24:46i told you he's nuts and people are standing here i don't know this is too much where's all
00:24:51the security we had here all right let's listen in let's just there's mysterio there's
00:24:56the american males are getting oh my god
00:25:03i can't believe it
00:25:09these guys can just come in here and do whatever they want
00:25:13come on
00:25:17the very first attack by the new world order but certainly not the last and they attempted to take
00:25:43over wcw had their own pay-per-view of the beginning of 1997 in effect they did for quite a while
00:25:47oh they did take over and a lot of wrestlers wanted to join the nwo they were hiring guys
00:25:51they were firing guys they were beating up guys they had two different areas of the nwo they had
00:25:56a higher level lower level i mean it was it was confusing as could be and everybody in the whole
00:26:01wrestling world everybody all over the world was talking about the nwo and where they were going and
00:26:05they weren't only breaking rules they were making their own it really was an exciting time scott and
00:26:09if you think back that's when the nwo started recruiting they started adding big names almost on a weekly
00:26:14basis but i got to tell you something absolute power corrupts absolutely and like every organization
00:26:20based strictly on ego and physical abuse of the underlings they disintegrated right before our
00:26:26very eyes tony hopefully when we come back as we take a look back at wcw monday nitro we will find
00:26:31david yeah david fencer fans stay with us as our recap continues no him and free food
00:26:38when we come back celebrities from all around the world come to wcw monday nitro
00:26:43and now the big question everybody's been asking me they said hacksaw are you going to come back to
00:26:52the ring are you gonna wrestle fans welcome back to tnt and the special edition of wcw monday nitro
00:27:00along with bobby the brain heenan scott hudson mike today mean gene oakland out looking somewhere
00:27:06i'm sure for all this time panzer get in here are you kidding me what find this wasn't exactly what
00:27:14i thought you guys invited me here for oh you mean you feel insulted having to wait on us and you should
00:27:22us four wanted you here as a guest it was okerman that suggested you be the waiter it was okerman that
00:27:26suggested all this go get the champagne kid as long as you're headed that way yeah clean glasses
00:27:32thanks one of the big parts of wcw monday nitro scott hudson has always been the please
00:27:41sorry has always been the cruiserweights no question about it tony talk about revolutionizing
00:27:48professional wrestling television nitro among many other revolutions put the cruiserweights on the map
00:27:54and two of the best hooked up when ultimo dragon did battle with kidman you know really when the
00:27:59cruiserweights arrived in world championship wrestling scott it gave something for everyone
00:28:03we had the legends we had the luchadores and the cruiserweights with their non-stop action
00:28:10what is that okay whoa
00:28:16good thing you know the heimlich i was just enjoying it oh we have a television show here
00:28:22okay let's take a look at the footage from cruiserweight action
00:28:28can i have a piece of that shrimp he seemed to have lost all his motivation
00:28:33since becoming a member of raven's flock it looks like a zombie like his soul is not there like
00:28:38like he just waits for some kind of control from raven or something
00:28:42it starts off quickly here kicking away at the ultimo dragon in this match we arrive on nitro where
00:28:48sting macho man randy savage will collide later on tonight as well as the steiners against kevin
00:28:54nash and buff bagwell in a non-title tag bat up on top here's this balancing maneuver by the dragon
00:29:00it always seems to throw opponents one step off mike well incredible agility by the dragon with that
00:29:05headstand on the top and then caught kidman with the drop kick and then a series of the most lethal
00:29:10kicks and wrestling now that's combinations one after the other and ultimo dragon's good with
00:29:16combinations follows him up stays on his man gotta keep his eyes off the flock though yeah don't
00:29:22worry about lody the sign guy down there at ringside stay focused on kidman you know we've
00:29:27always known that the dragon has been one focused individual and the dragon a good move by kidman
00:29:33dragon got him into the dragon sleeper he's got him in the sleeper and randy anderson
00:29:37it was saturn on the opposite side of the ring with the interference as lody had randy anderson's
00:29:43attention he had the match won right there but once again the numbers outnumber the opponent and
00:29:50the opponent this time ultimo dragon could have won the match well they got him from the flank right
00:29:54there peewee anderson unfortunately does not have eyes in the back of his head kidman took advantage of
00:30:01it yeah it's really a tough spot for referees there's no question about that larry you were
00:30:06one uh last year for one match you know how tough it is especially when you have more than one man
00:30:12around ringside here's a cover like you have when you have raven slot it's extremely hard when you try
00:30:17to be fair but you just can't see everything to the attack once again goes kidman kidman is a fine
00:30:23athlete make no mistake about that a roll up one two and the dragon almost beat him with a sunset flip
00:30:28out of the ropes kidman the first man to get the blow in out of the break really is a fine athlete
00:30:33tony but really what happened to kidman ever since he joined the flock when he started off here in wcw
00:30:40one of the most promising rookies promising youngsters to come along in a long time master of the shooting
00:30:45star press very impressive top rope move but now since he's joined the flock career has gone downhill
00:30:52and the young and useless guy just couldn't take the pressure people don't realize how much pressure
00:30:58is on an up and coming guy who wants to be a star you know on nitro it's unbelievable the pressure
00:31:06fans we've heard now that because of the package we've seen in the talk uh the discussion we've made
00:31:11about the triple fine here's a press by kidman but only a two count that we are going to hear from
00:31:16kevin nash he's going to come out and have something to say i guess in response maybe to this
00:31:20triple fine that we've talked about we'll be seeing and hearing from him a little bit later
00:31:24on plus goldberg is here bill goldberg will be with us uh that's an event in itself a cover one
00:31:29two and the british bulldog davy boy smith will be with us as well tonight live here on wcw monday
00:31:36nitro i tell you i like goldberg too here's the guy i think can take on a bigger twister than pecos bill
00:31:42and there's a forearm shot by kidman but the dragon fires back competitive matchup we're having for you
00:31:48here on wcw monday nitro and kidman has not backed down at all from the dragon he's had some help on
00:31:53the outside but most of this has been on his own accord mike well dragon had that one opportunity with
00:31:58the dragon sleeper applied before the numbers game of raven's flock came back to help kidman
00:32:05turn up some attitude back into you running full bore right into a the sole of a boot from the ultimo
00:32:12dragon dragon now possible vertical snap suplex that's what it is does it tell you a nice extension
00:32:17on that kick a nice snap there this is sitting low on it he's sitting low single leg crag but kidman way
00:32:23too close to the rope crab crab yes both legs the crab single is a crag snapmare over and look at this
00:32:34head scissor submission hold right here he's looking for the arms he wants to pull those wrists forward
00:32:39that hurts brother oh good camera work that time guys and i mean you've seen the pain on the face of
00:32:44kidman i don't think i've ever seen this move mike a small package submission type hold chance for
00:32:49kidman now to reverse this if he hooks the arms kidman has one shoulder down here almost had two
00:32:56and give kidman a lot of credit for escaping that maneuver it was tough if kidman wasn't as small as
00:33:01he was he wouldn't be able to squirm out of that anything that locks the neck backwards like that look
00:33:06at the balance and a standing switch by kidman into a full nelson oh a back kick in the back of the
00:33:12head up on top set him down one two yeah nothing over the shoulders double leg takedown for a two count
00:33:22that time by kidman kidman on the rope oh springing off the ropes and planted him with the ddt gets two
00:33:32kick out by dragon come on let's go come on to the attack again kidman into the neutral corner to
00:33:41the other side kidman almost pending by that time the dragon hooked the bottom rope and kidman getting
00:33:49a little frustrated now fans until randy anderson hey that was three but the match continues well
00:33:55kidman's not thinking he's going through a lot of moves but not watching his ring positioning and took
00:34:00too long there took too long and a simple kick by the dragon ended that offensive attempt by kidman
00:34:06dragon up on top could be the frankensteiner fans start to erupt here and down he goes
00:34:15gonna try the dragon sliver once again got it hooked on in the middle of the ring and nowhere for him to go
00:34:22the ultimo dragon gets the win here comes loady loady comes in here comes sick boy sick boy he ducks
00:34:30into dragon's just too quick for the flock and now oh now they got him too many oh my goodness
00:34:37saturn over the top as saturn and riggs came in the numbers game that you talked about earlier iron
00:34:45might just too much for anyone this time it's the ultimo dragon what a german suplex that time by
00:34:51saturn with authority and they continue the attack on dragon easy to do with him staring at you know
00:34:57riggs in the face look at look at the guys in here he goes kidman to the top there's that shooting star
00:35:02press we talked about earlier and it's just for punny well what was that lody was dumped out by his
00:35:10his teammates there riggs dumped lody over the top this is what a bizarre group of guys i mean
00:35:19where in the world are they coming from what are their motives here they get wackier by the week
00:35:24where's raven and all this i don't we're not looking for him next the debut of the nitro girls as we
00:35:31continue on tnt who will ever forget the mysterious return of dustin rogues to wcw monday nitro
00:35:47continue to recap the years of wcw monday nitro right here on tnt it was in the summertime of 1997
00:35:55and we decided to add a little fire and spice to our program and the nitro girls were born we're
00:36:01very happy to have with us in our studios one of the nitro girls fire it's great to have you with us
00:36:06great to be here what do you remember about the first night you walked out it was an unbelievable
00:36:12experience i'm one of the original nitro girls the very first professional dance team to be
00:36:17introduced to the world of wrestling so it was quite an experience and never having been to a wrestling
00:36:22show i had no idea what to expect from the fans and they were unbelievable you know looking back in
00:36:27retrospect i almost think that the nitro girls were the final piece of the puzzle that made monday
00:36:31nitro that total broadcasting package well of course i agree with that but it had to be tough on you fire
00:36:36to go out and and learn the moves stay in shape with that travel schedule yeah the traveling was the
00:36:42biggest adjustment of all um trying to eat right trying to diet um all of that was it was a big change and
00:36:49you know i think the most important thing people should know and i think you should know is spice
00:36:53and the other girls never liked you well that's no secret you were a better dancer than them you
00:36:57got prettier eyes i mean they were jealous of everything you did out there i mean you just shined
00:37:01and they they couldn't stand you could tell the jealousy by the way uh what are you doing later
00:37:05i don't have any plans you don't have any plans and i won't either here's the first look at the
00:37:13nitro girls ever on wcw monday nitro are you ready for the world premiere of the nitro girls ladies and
00:37:27gentlemen let's get ready to rumble
00:37:57oh
00:38:11I was gonna go in and hit it
00:38:13Yo, yo!
00:38:14Yo, whoo!
00:38:15Yo, yo!
00:38:18Hey, man!
00:38:23Oh, my child
00:38:26Can't fight!
00:38:29Thank god!
00:38:32Hey!
00:38:36Hey !
00:38:40Let's go.
00:39:10Let's go.
00:39:40Let's go.
00:40:10Let's go.
00:40:40Let's go.
00:41:10Let's go.
00:41:11Let's go.
00:41:12Let's go.
00:41:13Let's go.
00:41:14Let's go.
00:41:15Let's go.
00:41:16Let's go.
00:41:17Let's go.
00:41:18Let's go.
00:41:19Let's go.
00:41:20Let's go.
00:41:21Let's go.
00:41:22Let's go.
00:41:23Let's go.
00:41:24Let's go.
00:41:25Let's go.
00:41:26Let's go.
00:41:27Let's go.
00:41:28Let's go.
00:41:29Let's go.
00:41:30Let's go.
00:41:31Let's go.
00:41:32Let's go.
00:41:33Let's go.
00:41:34Let's go.
00:41:35Let's go.
00:41:36Let's go.
00:41:37Let's go.
00:41:38Let's go.
00:41:39Let's go.
00:41:40Let's go.
00:41:41Let's go.
00:41:42Let's go.
00:41:43Let's go.
00:41:44Let's go.
00:41:45Let's go.
00:41:47Let's go.
00:41:48Let's go.
00:41:49Let's go.
00:41:50We enjoyed the food fight.
00:41:51Actually, to be honest with you.
00:41:52We enjoyed watching.
00:41:53Why is that?
00:41:54Why do you think?
00:41:55I don't know.
00:41:56Just something about you walking through the tables there with ravioli in your hair.
00:41:59I don't know.
00:42:00I just did something in Parmesan on your shoulder, you know, and a little garlic bread here, and
00:42:04that day we were having fish.
00:42:06Wrap her up, pal.
00:42:10Can I have all night?
00:42:11I'm sure you do.
00:42:12Needless to say, the Nitro Growers are going to continue to be a big part of WCW Money Nitro.
00:42:18to fire when we come back fans a look at the luchadors and their impact on Monday Nitro
00:42:22as we continue on TNT.
00:42:26I mean a little wine.
00:42:30At the WCW, I quit.
00:42:34Welcome back.
00:42:44Our special look at WCW Monday Nitro and David Penzer is here with us once again.
00:42:49Just like the Nitro girls, just like the cruiserweights, just like the New World Order, the luchadors.
00:42:56The wrestlers from Mexico gave Nitro its very special identity.
00:43:00You know, I love the luchadors.
00:43:00You know, I think I probably appreciate the luchadors more than anybody.
00:43:03You talk about the top rope, high-risk moves that Rey Mysterio Jr., Psychosis, and La Parca brought to WCW.
00:43:09And now you even see so many of the heavyweights in World Championship Wrestling using those same high-risk moves.
00:43:15They really raised the bar.
00:43:17And now, believe it or not, we even have a luchador, Juventud Guerrera, as one of our broadcasters on Thunder.
00:43:22Well, Juventud Guerrera is no Tony Schiavone, Bobby Heenan, or Mike Tenet.
00:43:25I don't mind telling you that.
00:43:26But the history of the lucha libre south of the border.
00:43:29Men like Santo and Mil Mascaras built that organization, and they came to World Championship Wrestling.
00:43:35Rey Mysterio Jr., Juventud Guerrera, Psychosis lit up the night on Nitro.
00:43:40You know, I'm there at ringside every week.
00:43:41You know, David, hold a stick at for a minute.
00:43:42You know, if you really think back, we also have some great wrestlers here from Japan, too.
00:43:46I mean, talent from all over the world.
00:43:49And Berlin, from Germany.
00:43:50Great international talent.
00:43:50And look at Fit Finley.
00:43:52And we've got talent from all over the world.
00:43:54And by the way, David, why don't you go back to catering and ask for Chris and Jessica.
00:43:58They're the people that are running the whole show back there.
00:43:59And get some more bubbly out here while you're up and have a cracker.
00:44:02What do you want, Tony?
00:44:03I want to go to this footage from luchador action as it happened on WCW Monday Nitro.
00:44:08Roll it.
00:44:09You know, you should try the shrimp.
00:44:10I said to get some bubbly.
00:44:12And here we go.
00:44:13Leparca, a little bit different look here, Mike, today.
00:44:15Yeah, new mask, new color.
00:44:16And, of course, Leparca has the familiar chair in his hand.
00:44:19He is the chairman of world championship wrestling.
00:44:21Well, he's wearing the colors of the new world order.
00:44:23Yellow.
00:44:25That's a great point there, living legend.
00:44:28Exemplified, I must add, by Eric Bischoff.
00:44:32Why would he demand more stipulations of WCW for the impending doom that he's going to feel on December 28th?
00:44:41How about this?
00:44:42There's not a country far enough that would take Bischoff.
00:44:45Up on the top.
00:44:47And caught.
00:44:48Head scissor takeover by Juventud Guerrera.
00:44:52Guerrera's going to hit the ropes.
00:44:53And Guerrera up on top.
00:44:56Oh, boy.
00:44:56Great maneuver.
00:44:58Snapped him over with that Frankensteiner-type move.
00:45:01Just nailing Psychosis.
00:45:02But Leparca interferes from outside.
00:45:04And that allows Psychosis to lay him out with the clothesline.
00:45:08Now, is this the luchador rules where they don't have to tag?
00:45:14What is this, Exne?
00:45:15Well, if this is being wrestled under Lucha Libre rules, if their tag partner goes out to the floor, you're right, Larry.
00:45:23They don't have to tag in.
00:45:24They can just replace him in the ring.
00:45:25So if you hit the floor, that counts as a tag.
00:45:28If your partner would like to get in at that point, yes.
00:45:31If he doesn't want to get in, it doesn't count.
00:45:32I would suggest if you hit the floor to look under the ring to see if Sting is there.
00:45:40And if he's there, don't tell the NWO.
00:45:44Sensational guillotine.
00:45:45Leg drop by Psychosis.
00:45:46Valley to valley by Leparca for a two.
00:45:48Only two.
00:45:49Yeah, Uventud Guerrera.
00:45:51I mean, small guy.
00:45:52But sometimes that helps trying to squirm out of those predicaments.
00:45:56And he wiggled his way out of that one in the nick of time.
00:45:59Into the midsection.
00:46:00Leparca sending Uventud in.
00:46:02Picking the man up and power-bombing the man down.
00:46:05So much competition.
00:46:06Cover!
00:46:08Charles Robinson says no.
00:46:09Only two that time.
00:46:10Good quick tags by Psychosis and Leparca.
00:46:12Have them in control.
00:46:14Uventud Guerrera has been in the ring for his team the entire time.
00:46:18He desperately needs to get the freshman Ray Mysterio Jr. in against Psychosis and Leparca.
00:46:24And now up on top.
00:46:25Psychosis dropkick caught his own man with the missile dropkick.
00:46:29Uventud gets the man.
00:46:30Rolls through.
00:46:31One, two.
00:46:31And a great seeded dropkick that time by Leparca.
00:46:34Fans also tonight.
00:46:36Scott Hall.
00:46:38One half of the outsiders.
00:46:39One half of the team claiming they are the world tag team champions will be here against
00:46:45Chris Jericho as well as the macho man Randy Savage in singles competition.
00:46:49And as we said, three solid hours.
00:46:52Three solid hours.
00:46:54WCW action live tonight.
00:46:57Everyone here on Tins and Needles.
00:46:59We've seen the signs that Bret the Hitman Hart is here tonight.
00:47:03You know, it seems to be human nature.
00:47:05People always like to root for the underdogs or the smaller guys.
00:47:08But in this case, you know, Ruben Cood and Ray Mysterio Jr.
00:47:13But I can't think of one person that's going to be rooting and hoping that the underdog Eric Bischoff wins.
00:47:21What a joke.
00:47:22I can't think of one person either.
00:47:24You wouldn't be rooting for him, would you, Mike?
00:47:26You're looking at me like that.
00:47:28I don't even think the New World Order cares.
00:47:30As far as I'm concerned, I think Scott Hall and Hollywood, Hulk Hogan, they all fed this ego a bunch of hot air.
00:47:39And they're throwing Bischoff to the Lions.
00:47:42I agree with that, Larry.
00:47:43They've used up his political core.
00:47:48Up.
00:47:49Down he goes.
00:47:50What a move by Ray Mysterio Jr.
00:47:52Now we have the fresh man in, but a little tough with a two-on-one situation.
00:47:58Into the ropes, ducking low, up on top.
00:48:02Caught him.
00:48:03They caught him.
00:48:03Who would do it?
00:48:04But Ray Mysterio Jr.
00:48:07Puts all men down with that spectacular move, Mike, today.
00:48:10Springboard move by Mysterio.
00:48:13All three went down as he connected.
00:48:15Now all four men in the ring.
00:48:18Throwing them in together.
00:48:20Down they go.
00:48:20See, right here, these guys taking advantage of their size.
00:48:25Leparka, probably one of the biggest of them all.
00:48:28Uh-oh.
00:48:29He dared him in that time.
00:48:30A little misdirection play.
00:48:31Hooventude cuts Psychosis down.
00:48:36Oh, my.
00:48:37Who's next?
00:48:38Coming out of the sky.
00:48:40Great elevation that time.
00:48:42And now have the two.
00:48:43And Ray Mysterio, Shin Leparka, and Psychosis on the outside.
00:48:47One spin kick, one drop kick.
00:48:49And now, one somersault flip over the top.
00:48:55Incredible double dive that time.
00:48:58Back up.
00:49:02Stereo.
00:49:03There's two amazing things about what happens in the ring.
00:49:06Their moves, number one, and the fact they get up, number two.
00:49:10How they leave the ring is pretty impressive.
00:49:12Look at this.
00:49:13Using the man.
00:49:14As a springboard.
00:49:15As a pedestal.
00:49:17A cover.
00:49:17One.
00:49:18Two.
00:49:19Didn't get it.
00:49:20Resiliency, that's the word here.
00:49:23Oh, boy.
00:49:23You can feel, you can see how crisp the competition is.
00:49:28Whole recollection of this matchup has changed after Leparka and Psychosis were in control in the early going.
00:49:34Now it's Mysterio and Hooventude in the driver's seat.
00:49:36Well, the smaller guys are starting to use their movement here.
00:49:39And this is what's going to have them beat the bigger guys.
00:49:41Use that movement.
00:49:43With elevation from Hooventude.
00:49:45Who's going to cover?
00:49:46Oh, that time pulled out.
00:49:47That time, Psychosis saved his man by pulling the feet of Rey Mysterio out.
00:49:55That's a Rick Rude move is what that is.
00:49:57We saw this weekend on WCW Saturday Night.
00:50:00It's Rick Rude's only move.
00:50:02Pull a man out when he's getting pinned.
00:50:04They have some of their own medicine.
00:50:05Mysterio caught him from outside.
00:50:07And now Hooventude and Psychosis mount the top rope.
00:50:11What's going to happen here?
00:50:13Can he superplex him off?
00:50:16Blocked.
00:50:16Oh!
00:50:17He turned the slam in mid-air.
00:50:19How'd he do that?
00:50:20I don't know.
00:50:21And he didn't get the pin because La Parca made this.
00:50:25I've never seen that.
00:50:26Just when you think you've seen it all.
00:50:27That's one for the highlight reel.
00:50:29Oh, La Parca was dancing.
00:50:31Rey nailed him.
00:50:32Shouldn't have celebrated at that point.
00:50:34It's going to be the last man left standing in this one, guys.
00:50:37Yeah, the Fiesta came too quick.
00:50:39It really did.
00:50:40And now Mysterio has Psychosis.
00:50:43Psychosis nowhere to go for Hooventude.
00:50:45But La Parca ends him.
00:50:47Face first goes Psychosis.
00:50:50It's almost impossible to focus on two men who are paired off here.
00:50:55That's the second time La Parca got caught dancing.
00:50:57And now Rey Mysterio up on top.
00:51:00How about that?
00:51:01Screen board into a previous one.
00:51:03There's the 450 Splash.
00:51:05He got it.
00:51:08What a match.
00:51:10Spectacular is all we can see.
00:51:12Yes.
00:51:12The 450.
00:51:13We made it.
00:51:14It goes.
00:51:15Didn't you say it?
00:51:16I saw it.
00:51:16I hope we get to see a replay.
00:51:18You saw it.
00:51:20Yes.
00:51:21Wow.
00:51:21Let me show a replay.
00:51:24Well, a 450 is a 360 plus a 90, right?
00:51:27Well, let me figure that out.
00:51:29Okay.
00:51:29Where's my accountant?
00:51:32Next, the 100th edition of Monday Nitro.
00:51:35And the world title is on the line.
00:51:43For over 30,000 fans are dead in the Georgia Dome.
00:51:47And what will go down as the biggest night in the history of this grand sport
00:51:53in the center of the ring of the Nitro girls.
00:51:56A look back at Nitro on TNT continues.
00:51:59And we welcome to our very special party from WCW.com.
00:52:03And the hotline, of course, Jeremy Borash.
00:52:05Hello, Jeremy.
00:52:06Hi, Tony.
00:52:06Happy holidays.
00:52:07Thanks.
00:52:07And Chad Namiani.
00:52:08Good to see you, Chad.
00:52:08Hey, Tony.
00:52:09Big parts of world championship wrestling that you not necessarily see on our Nitro telecast.
00:52:14Tell us what's going on, Jeremy, at WCW.com.
00:52:17Every night, a brand new program on WCW.com for WCW Live.
00:52:21It's our live internet audio show, myself and Bob Ryder.
00:52:24And, of course, all the news, all the inside information you want is available at WCW.com.
00:52:28Some great photo galleries of the top stars.
00:52:31All kinds of stuff to be found at WCW.com.
00:52:34And each and every night, WCW Live, like you said, on WCW.com.
00:52:37I guess we've all been on that program.
00:52:39It's a great program.
00:52:40The hotline is up and running, Chad, as well.
00:52:42And you, fans who have had DirecTV, know that you've been a part of the Backstage Blast as well.
00:52:47Yeah, we offer a lot of services, both through the internet and DirecTV.
00:52:52That was Backstage Blast.
00:52:53It was an occasion, actually, Scott and I got to work together a few months
00:52:56where we took you aside during commercial breaks
00:52:58and got the opportunity to give you some backstage news and reports,
00:53:02really trying to use what we do basically on the hotline,
00:53:04which is talk about things that aren't quite proper for network television.
00:53:08I understand.
00:53:09And I guess none of us will ever forget the 100th Nitro, Scott,
00:53:13when Lex Luger became the World Heavyweight Champion.
00:53:15When you think about webcast on WCW.com, Backstage Blast, what Nitro has grown into,
00:53:21it started off as just a wrestling show on Monday night.
00:53:24They said it wouldn't last, and it lasted at least 100 episodes.
00:53:28That was a big one, Luger and Hogan.
00:53:30You know, I remember that when Luger won the title.
00:53:32There was that big celebration backstage, and they had the champagne, just like we do right now.
00:53:36I think this stuff's still from that time.
00:53:37No, no, that's just good stuff, isn't it?
00:53:39It was Lex Luger and Hulk Hogan, the 100th Nitro,
00:53:43and one of the biggest upsets in the history of Monday night television.
00:53:46What year is that?
00:53:46Somebody has a cat here.
00:53:48Like him, Haiti, the man commands attention like no other athlete has ever been a record.
00:53:56You talked about it earlier.
00:53:57Who has a better one-loss record than Hollywood Hulk Hogan?
00:54:01Who has been in more pressure-packed situations than Hogan?
00:54:04And who has been in more World Heavyweight Title showdowns than Hollywood?
00:54:10So confident.
00:54:11And one of the reasons he's confident is something that Luger has to be very wary of here, fans.
00:54:16And that is, we have seen Savage.
00:54:19We have seen Six.
00:54:20We have seen Vincent.
00:54:22We have seen Hall.
00:54:23And we have seen Nash.
00:54:24We have seen Eric Bischoff.
00:54:26So we know that they are all here, and they will do anything to protect the backs of Hollywood Hulk Hogan.
00:54:33And that means preventing Luger from winning the title here tonight.
00:54:37Luger must stay focused.
00:54:39He must try to get not only a win, but get a quick win.
00:54:44And when I'm saying quick, I don't mean early in the match.
00:54:46I mean something quick to where maybe a small package or something to where it would surprise them
00:54:52to the point to where they could not counterattack.
00:54:55So, the biggest title in sports.
00:54:57The biggest title in our sport on the biggest television program in the third hour.
00:55:03Live on Nitro is here.
00:55:04Here we go.
00:55:05And there's a man with the world's biggest ego in there, Hollywood Hulk Hogan.
00:55:09And the world's most prestigious title as well.
00:55:12Yes, sir.
00:55:13And on the 100th program of Nitro.
00:55:17And you know, Brain, you're right about the biggest ego.
00:55:19But, you know, you've got to have that.
00:55:21Sure.
00:55:21You've got to have an ego to the point to where you really feel that no one can ever beat you.
00:55:25And, of course, if you've got Hall and Nash, you've got the Wolfpack behind you, that usually comes to pass.
00:55:31You know, like Mike says, Hogan's been down this road.
00:55:33He's had some battles.
00:55:35I've been part of him.
00:55:36And I know what he can do.
00:55:37And I know what he can't do.
00:55:39Pressure never bothered this man.
00:55:42Luger cambers with his own hammerlock.
00:55:44And Hogan quickly seeks refuse to the ropes.
00:55:47And who has more confidence and momentum on their side than the total package, Lex Luger, who has racked the world in the past few months on Nitro.
00:55:56The world, including Hollywood Hogan.
00:56:03See, Hogan's going right into this, guys.
00:56:05Yep.
00:56:06You know, he's locked up with him now a couple of times.
00:56:09How many times have we seen Hogan go outside and really stall for time?
00:56:12But this time he hooked right up with him and Luger shrugged him off.
00:56:16You know, when he got in the ring, I thought he'd be a little more standoffish.
00:56:18I thought he'd take longer making it to the ring.
00:56:21I thought he'd make Luger wait his game.
00:56:23But, no, he got right in that ring.
00:56:24He's playing his belt.
00:56:26Got right in the ring one, right up to Luger's face.
00:56:29He's got some confidence where he knows something.
00:56:31Well, there comes a time when you talk about ego when you're so cocky and so confident in your abilities that you feel that, yeah, I can do it on my own.
00:56:38I can wrestle with the guy.
00:56:40Maybe this is the moment.
00:56:41And a little shove from Hogan back in the corner.
00:56:45And that's a good move by Luger.
00:56:46Walked to the center of the ring and stopped.
00:56:49Feeling out process in the early going.
00:56:53Who has the best game plan, the best strategy?
00:56:57That's going to determine who walks away from Auburn Hills, Michigan with the World's Heavyweight Championship.
00:57:02Got to clear your head.
00:57:03And Hogan now with a gut shot with foot.
00:57:05And now here goes Hollywood Hogan, pounding away.
00:57:08And people will tell you who've been in the ring against him that he is truly one of the hardest hitters this sport has ever seen.
00:57:14There's no doubt about it.
00:57:15I've been hit by him.
00:57:16I've been picked up by him.
00:57:17I've had his hands around my neck.
00:57:19I know how powerful this man is.
00:57:21And with the mean streak he has in him, he's not going to be easy to beat.
00:57:24But Luger, you know, he's got that determination that won't stop.
00:57:38Elbow now, a point that Larry Zabitzko brought up earlier.
00:57:45Hogan does not have to beat Luger.
00:57:48That's right.
00:57:49Luger has to beat Hogan.
00:57:50So Hogan will do everything, break every rule, stretch every rule possible in this matchup.
00:57:55But don't forget, Luger, a former World's Champion, he realizes that.
00:58:00Because he knew when he was a champion, everybody was gunning for him.
00:58:04Fans think of the attributes it takes to become a champion.
00:58:07Two men, both of them have it right there.
00:58:11One of them is Hart, pulling yourself back up.
00:58:14Early in the match here, Luger trying to do just that.
00:58:18Got to his knees.
00:58:19Hogan will help him up the rest of the way.
00:58:21And that was a gut shot, almost a low blow.
00:58:26Oh, what impact the running clothesline in the corner.
00:58:31He's the man that invented that.
00:58:33Yes, he did.
00:58:34I've seen him follow many people in.
00:58:36And I've seen the sweat fly.
00:58:38And he nails you.
00:58:40Certain air of Hulk Hogan, as you know.
00:58:43Certain way he walks.
00:58:44But even more so when he's in command of the match.
00:58:47Almost as if he's demanding the man.
00:58:49He has not attempted to pin here.
00:58:51And it goes back to the old point.
00:58:53He does not have to pin Luger.
00:58:54Luger has had his shoulders down various amounts of times here.
00:58:58And he has gone with chokeholds.
00:59:00Illegal moves.
00:59:01No lateral press yet from the world champ.
00:59:04Stop it first.
00:59:05Well, I think he knows when he's in there with Luger.
00:59:07You know how powerful Luger is.
00:59:08He can tell how much Luger has left.
00:59:10He knows if he's over to Luger.
00:59:12Luger probably pushes the way out of it.
00:59:14Luger's in tremendous, tremendous physical shape.
00:59:17You know, we've said before, when Luger and the Giant were the team,
00:59:21the Giant was the biggest, Luger the strongest.
00:59:23And you're seeing the power coming back.
00:59:26Luger sending Hogan to the top turnbuckle.
00:59:30Maybe a little indecisive maneuver that time.
00:59:32But he's going to the midsection.
00:59:33And Lex Luger has unleashed a fury here.
00:59:37Well, he knows if he wants it, this is the time to go get it.
00:59:40He's gonna have to go after him.
00:59:41Randy Anderson moved him away.
00:59:43And Hogan took advantage.
00:59:45The veteran.
00:59:46Yes.
00:59:47Well, another attribute of being a champ, take advantage of the situation.
00:59:51And you saw it.
00:59:52We have to step out for a commercial break.
00:59:55If the match ends during the break, we'll show you what happened.
00:59:57Come on back with us.
01:00:00He's not going to cover him.
01:00:02You're right about that, Shivani.
01:00:03Yeah, you're right.
01:00:04Fans, welcome back.
01:00:05And the match still continues here as Hogan and Luger are really going at it.
01:00:10And I mean, this is a big-time confrontation for wrestling's most coveted prize.
01:00:16And right now, the world champ, Mike, today is in charge.
01:00:19Well, Hogan has been in control during the break, including taking the shortcut of using
01:00:24a steel chair over the head of Luger.
01:00:27Shortcut is right.
01:00:29Synonymous with NWO.
01:00:30Come on!
01:00:31He got a two that time.
01:00:33And there was his first attempt to pin.
01:00:37And Luger down.
01:00:39But I think Hogan even looked at Randy Anderson saying, I need to pin him now.
01:00:43I think Hogan realizes that if he's gonna pin Luger, he needs to pin him right here.
01:00:48After being bashed by the chair, he picks him up.
01:00:50And a belly to belly, center of the ring.
01:00:53Let's see if he goes to the cover.
01:00:54Big leg in Montreal.
01:00:58No.
01:00:59Leg on the rope.
01:01:00Smart move by Luger.
01:01:02He didn't use any energy.
01:01:03He knew where he was.
01:01:04He knew they'd break it.
01:01:05He put his leg over.
01:01:06Very smart.
01:01:07Hogan thought momentarily it was a three, but no.
01:01:09Foot was on the rope.
01:01:11So positioning, a big part here.
01:01:15Listen to Hogan give him the bad mouth.
01:01:18Referring to him as a Hollywood wannabe.
01:01:19That's what the bad mouth brought.
01:01:22Oh!
01:01:23He knocked him down, and the sweat was trying out the picks that time.
01:01:27One, two.
01:01:28Well, two count.
01:01:29Yeah.
01:01:30What's your time about two?
01:01:31You better get some out of your head.
01:01:32Now starting to intimidate Randy Anderson.
01:01:35I think Hogan's getting frustrated.
01:01:36I think so, too.
01:01:37But Randy Anderson's been down the road.
01:01:38You know as well as I do.
01:01:40He will not be intimidated.
01:01:42Hogan hitting as hard as we've ever seen in this matchup.
01:01:47Again.
01:01:48One, two, make it a little, make it a little.
01:01:50One, two, three.
01:01:51How much more reserve does Lex Luger have?
01:01:57Remember this began when Luger was in the corner with Hogan, and Randy Anderson pulled him out.
01:02:03He's already beat.
01:02:04Remember that?
01:02:04Hogan on the attack, choking Luger, throttling him in the corner, taking his wind away.
01:02:11Well, he realizes he's got to do it now, because if Luger gets a second win, I don't know if he can be stopped.
01:02:19One thing he doesn't want to do is throw him out on that floor.
01:02:21He's got to keep him in that ring.
01:02:23One, foot to the face.
01:02:26Two.
01:02:29Hogan again, upset at the count of referee Randy Anderson and not staying focused.
01:02:35He's getting frustrated.
01:02:38It's getting to him.
01:02:38But remember, and we look at Luger when Hogan stands up, and Luger not being up at all.
01:02:47So, doesn't seem to be much left.
01:02:50There's his leg drop.
01:02:51That's it.
01:02:52That's it.
01:02:53Cover one, two, and he kicked out.
01:02:57Kicked out of Hulk Hogan.
01:02:58Hollywood Hogan's finishing maneuver.
01:03:01That's won him the title.
01:03:02That's beating him.
01:03:03Do it again?
01:03:04How many people he's beating with that maneuver?
01:03:06Superhuman effort on the part of Luger to kick out.
01:03:08Now, here comes Luger.
01:03:11He feels it.
01:03:12He hears it.
01:03:14Got him down.
01:03:16Scott Hall is in.
01:03:18Scott Hall goes down.
01:03:22There they are.
01:03:23Outsiders are down.
01:03:25The Macho Man is up.
01:03:27He's down.
01:03:28And the match continues.
01:03:33Luger caught him.
01:03:34He caught him with that forearm.
01:03:36Macho Man.
01:03:37There goes Savage.
01:03:39There goes Wolves.
01:03:40He's standing on the floor with him.
01:03:42He smells it.
01:03:44He's gonna wreck it.
01:03:47They're standing in Detroit.
01:03:49Yes.
01:03:51He's got him in the rack.
01:03:53He's got him in the rack.
01:03:54Focus.
01:03:54Focus on the chance.
01:03:55Focus on the chance.
01:03:56Look at him tamp out.
01:03:57Luger won the title.
01:03:59Luger won the title.
01:04:01Luger won the title.
01:04:03Luger, Luger's the champion, Luger's the champion, Luger defeats Hogan.
01:04:09Incredibly, Lex Luger is the heavyweight champion of the world.
01:04:18It is celebration time in the Motor City.
01:04:21It was the rack, guys.
01:04:26It was that one move that we had talked about for so long.
01:04:30But Luger not only won it with the rack, he fought off Hall, Nash, Savage.
01:04:37They did not touch him, Randy Anderson allowed the match to continue.
01:04:42Good call, Randy Anderson, and Lex Luger, once again in his wonderful career,
01:04:49is the heavyweight champion of the world.
01:04:53Next, Chris Benoit, Booker T, in the best of seven for the world television title.
01:04:59We are back with Jeremy, Chad, Scott, and the Keystone Cops behind us.
01:05:17We're talking about some of the great moments on WCW Monday Nitro throughout the years.
01:05:22Talking about you two guys, all right?
01:05:24Straighten up back there.
01:05:26You're like Dick Clark with Chad and Jeremy on here, huh?
01:05:29Mike Tenet, I expect it from him, not from you.
01:05:33Let's talk about the best of seven series that was held not only on WCW Monday Nitro, Jeremy,
01:05:39but also on WCW Saturday night between two of the greats, Chris Benoit and Booker T.
01:05:44It was for the world television title.
01:05:46It certainly was.
01:05:46In seven great matches, these two gave it their all in this.
01:05:49And I think one thing, too, to remember, Tony, when you look at these two athletes,
01:05:52they really brought out the best of each other in this best of seven series.
01:05:55I think that's true, Jim.
01:05:56I think you look from an internet perspective, too.
01:05:58There's a lot of wrestlers with a fervent fan base.
01:06:00But no one has gotten that kind of support like Chris Benoit.
01:06:03Fans have always wanted to see him elevate to the next level.
01:06:06And this best of seven series, let him do what he does best, get in the ring and fight for the gold.
01:06:11Tony, it's a cliche when you get to the NFL draft day.
01:06:14They talk about taking the best athlete available.
01:06:16And when you look at Booker T. and Chris Benoit, there may not be two better, purer athletes in world championship wrestling.
01:06:22It was a classic best of seven.
01:06:24It was two great athletes.
01:06:25They had a stage, and they really did shine in that best of seven series.
01:06:29You know, Brayne, I'd like to try that.
01:06:31Well, first of all, we need two glasses and a paper bag.
01:06:34Wait a minute.
01:06:34There's nothing left in the bottle.
01:06:36It evaporates real quick.
01:06:38That happens with this cheap stuff.
01:06:39You know, you put it on a stove sometimes.
01:06:40Here we go.
01:06:41The footage was Chris Benoit, Booker T, and the best of seven for the world television title.
01:06:47I didn't have a sip.
01:06:48Nothing left.
01:06:48Excuse me.
01:06:49That led to mutual respect.
01:06:51That then led to a little bit of a heated battle.
01:06:55And it's turned into much of a heated feud now between the two men.
01:06:59But you can see now, even though there's a little bit more heat and friction between the two,
01:07:03they're both approaching this match very tentative, not wanting to make a mistake here early on.
01:07:09Almost as if that respect aspect has taken a back seat to the competitive nature of these two great athletes,
01:07:16especially with that eventual shot at the world's TV title upcoming at the Great American Bash.
01:07:21You know, if Benoit is smart, he's got to think of a way to make Booker T make a mistake.
01:07:27He's got to make Booker T make a mistake and beat himself.
01:07:30And it'll take away all his confidence and it'll put him up three to one.
01:07:35I think all great wrestlers try to do that, but some guys just do not make mistakes.
01:07:41I mean, some days everyone will, but great wrestlers sometimes are completely mistake-less.
01:07:47And they're putting their Smith Finley out once again.
01:07:50Booker T, they're not ready for me, they know each other, they don't know for me, they don't know it.
01:07:59I'll tell you, Fitz Finley's gonna, it's not gonna be easy for him by any stretch of the imagination,
01:08:04but he's gonna have the benefit of not having to be in a grueling series.
01:08:08Once the Great American Bash kicks off on the 14-2.
01:08:11Here's Abram, a slam and a great move by Booker T.
01:08:14And a cover, one, two, no, didn't get him there.
01:08:17And guys, what an event the Great American Bash is shaping up to be.
01:08:21It has set the standard in summertime events for professional wrestling for many, many years.
01:08:27Actually, ever since 1988, it has set the standard for professional wrestling.
01:08:31And the Great American Bash, this year, will have Hogan and Bret Hart teaming together
01:08:37against Roddy Piper and the Macho Man, Randy Savage.
01:08:41And you heard what they said after their tag team match.
01:08:44They've agreed to go at it one-on-one the same night.
01:08:47Is that suicide or no?
01:08:50Up on top, Booker T showing that great leg strength,
01:08:53getting great height on that spring over the top,
01:08:57and sending Benoit on the outside.
01:08:59Tony, one has to question all that's gone down
01:09:02between Roddy Roddy Piper and Randy Savage through the years.
01:09:05If they can set aside those differences for that tag team matchup first,
01:09:09and then the eventual one-on-one bout between the two of them,
01:09:12we'll find out in less than two weeks now at the Great American Bash.
01:09:16I think it'll be very interesting to see how Hogan and Hart work as a team.
01:09:20I don't think they've ever been as a team together,
01:09:22and I don't think they've ever wrestled each other.
01:09:23This is very interesting, man.
01:09:25Right, history is going to be made in Baltimore.
01:09:27And here tonight as well, one would think, one would hope,
01:09:30that we will finally settle this issue with Sting.
01:09:33Meanwhile, Booker T in no shape right now
01:09:36as he is stomped down all the way down to the mat
01:09:39by Chris Benoit.
01:09:43The Crippler is so focused.
01:09:46One match, one, and match three.
01:09:48And now here in the fourth match.
01:09:50You know, when Booker T walked to the ring this evening,
01:09:53he didn't have that confidence.
01:09:56I've seen him before in him when he had the title,
01:09:58or when he was going after Benoit.
01:10:00He came out tonight, and he looked like something was on his mind.
01:10:04Well, maybe he's second-guessing himself down 2-1 in this series.
01:10:09I don't know.
01:10:10Good move again by Benoit, and Chris Benoit.
01:10:16One thing Benoit is great at, and that is once he has you down,
01:10:19with a great move like that, he'll stomp you a couple times,
01:10:22drive a knee in, maybe an elbow drop to make sure that you stay down.
01:10:25They know each other.
01:10:27They don't know me.
01:10:28They don't know what they're in for.
01:10:30I'm cruising.
01:10:31They're going full speed.
01:10:33Benoit goes down hard.
01:10:36That's one way to stop that relentless Wolverine-like attack
01:10:40of the Canadian Crippler.
01:10:42Here's a cover, hooking a far leg, and got a two count.
01:10:50And a rear chin lock applied here by Booker T.
01:10:53Booker T has been content here, guys, with his driving the man down.
01:10:56He's finally had a chance, Tony, to turn the tide
01:11:00and get the momentum swung in his favor.
01:11:03Going to try and slow down that offensive onslaught of Chris Benoit.
01:11:09Benoit's got to get back on his feet, and that's what he's doing right now.
01:11:11He can't do anything on that mat.
01:11:14With Booker T behind him, he wants to get on his feet,
01:11:16and that's where he's at right now.
01:11:17Big sledge.
01:11:18Oh, boy, that one took a lot of steam out of him that time.
01:11:21He came across from the near side and took his head right off.
01:11:26That's what did Booker T.
01:11:28And he knows it, too.
01:11:32But if you can beat that man, go do it.
01:11:34Don't waste any time.
01:11:36Very good advice from the brain here.
01:11:40A kick into the midsection and a forearm shiver.
01:11:44Boy, Benoit just bounces back every time.
01:11:47So tough.
01:11:49Almost seemingly sometimes impossible to stop is Chris Benoit.
01:11:54He ducks low.
01:11:55Booker T connects.
01:11:57One, two, no, sir.
01:11:59No.
01:12:00And the fans, it brings out, hey, it said, hey, that was a three count.
01:12:05Yeah, but they're not in the ring counting, so they don't matter.
01:12:08It's the guy with the bow tie.
01:12:09And a rear chin lock is applied.
01:12:19Yeah, quite a weekend it was in sports.
01:12:21And I think on behalf of all of us here in World Championship Wrestling, a special congratulations
01:12:25goes out to Michael Jordan and the NWO's own Dennis Rodman, that best-of-seven series against the Indiana Pacers, and they survived that.
01:12:35You know, I think when the Bulls want to win, they're going to win.
01:12:39Yeah, survived is a great way to describe it.
01:12:41And you know that Hollywood Hogan was certainly celebrating last night's Big Bulls victory, his close relationship with Dennis Rodman.
01:12:48And we also got to congratulate a team that's kind of been on the back burner.
01:12:53They've been waiting since they swept the Lakers in four games.
01:12:55We're talking about the Utah Jazz and the mailman Carl Malone, who watches our program, a big WCW fan.
01:13:02Congratulations to you, Carl.
01:13:04We look forward to a great NBA Finals against the Bulls once again.
01:13:08You mean this guy works for the post office?
01:13:10Stop it, would you?
01:13:10Oh, pick him!
01:13:11Oh!
01:13:12Here's the German suplex that beat Booker T on Saturday night, but that time he didn't try a cover.
01:13:17As a matter of fact, I think Benoit hit very hard as well.
01:13:20That time, the released German suplex, instead of applying it with a bridge, unable to make the pinfall attempt.
01:13:28Benoit's slow and getting up.
01:13:29You know, we're going to go back to Salt Lake City in the month of July, and I hope we see Carl Malone there, and I hope he has something to say to you.
01:13:37You know who he is, and stop acting dumb.
01:13:41Well, forget it, don't stop doing that.
01:13:44Don't talk down to me, I don't care who Carl Malone is.
01:13:47Here we go.
01:13:48I know his brother's Sam from Cheers, big deal.
01:13:50Stop it, two count.
01:13:54Carl Malone, baldy.
01:13:59Back up is Chris Benoit.
01:14:03And Booker T very slow.
01:14:04You can see, you know what we're seeing here, Mike?
01:14:07We're seeing not only this match take a lot out of these guys, but the three previous matches as well.
01:14:11Well, it's survival of the fittest between these two.
01:14:14Match up number four in the best of seven.
01:14:16Who's going to make that critical air, and who's going to take advantage?
01:14:19There's the axe kick, delivered with impact and authority to the back of the head of Benoit.
01:14:24He's got him now.
01:14:25If he goes to the pin, he's got him, because Benoit's not moving.
01:14:29Benoit doesn't know where he's at, whether he's in Washington State or Washington, D.C.
01:14:32But he needs to do it right now to the action of the pick-up.
01:14:36And it's going to the back.
01:14:36Coming in.
01:14:37Look how high up in the air Booker T got him.
01:14:43And Booker T, a lot of times, will do that little break dance up, but he didn't have enough there to do it at that time.
01:14:50He's going to go back for him once again.
01:14:53He may need to conserve that energy.
01:14:55You're right.
01:14:55A pick-up, Benoit.
01:14:59He's going for it.
01:15:00Drives him down.
01:15:01And he's got him.
01:15:01Is he tapping?
01:15:02Krippler crossface.
01:15:04Not yet.
01:15:04He's going to the ropes.
01:15:05He's six inches away.
01:15:07Look out.
01:15:07If that, if that.
01:15:08Look how close he is.
01:15:09Now he tapped.
01:15:10Three to one.
01:15:10Before he can get to the ropes.
01:15:12Three to one, Benoit.
01:15:14Wow.
01:15:15Out of nowhere, Benoit puts on that Krippler crossface, and that's what makes that move so great, so spectacular.
01:15:24It's almost, in many ways, like the diamond cutter.
01:15:28You never know when it's coming, but you know when you're in it, there's no escape.
01:15:35Chris Benoit is up, as you said, brain.
01:15:39In September of 97, an unknown appears on Nitro.
01:15:43His name, Bill Gobert.
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