WCW: Heart and Soul

Satyr24 · February 4, 2017

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="The Final Countdown" data-cite="The Final Countdown" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div> The Stu Hart Classic comes down to RVD vs. Booker. That seemed to be what most of our fans expected, but little do they know that this wasn't my intended direction and we went this way due to things beyond my control. Should be a great match though.</div></blockquote> Hope you explain more later World Heavyweight Championship: Sting vs. "Big Poppa Pump" Scott Steiner {©} Stu Hart Classic Finals: Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T United States Heavyweight Championship: Rick Steiner vs. Rey Misterio Jr. {©} World Tag Team Championship: Doomsday vs. Natural Born Thrillers {©} Cruiserweight Championship: Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Jushin Thunder Liger {©} Dustin Rhodes vs. Vampiro Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. "King of Old School" Steve Corino Alex Wright and Ernest "The Cat" Miller vs. True Heroes Jamie Knoble vs. Fit Finlay What will be match of the night? Sting / Steiner How many championships will change hands? (the tournament does not count) 0 Will we find out who attacked Ric Flair? No Who attacked Flair? (Answer this even if you answer no to the above question; you'll get credit for correctly naming the identity whenever it is revealed.) Eddie

LordofGustav · February 4, 2017

World Heavyweight Championship: Sting vs. "Big Poppa Pump" Scott Steiner {©}

Stu Hart Classic Finals: Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T

United States Heavyweight Championship: Rick Steiner vs. Rey Misterio Jr. {©}

World Tag Team Championship: Doomsday vs. Natural Born Thrillers {©}

Cruiserweight Championship: Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Jushin Thunder Liger {©}

Dustin Rhodes vs. Vampiro

Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. "King of Old School" Steve Corino

Alex Wright and Ernest "The Cat" Miller vs. True Heroes

Jamie Knoble vs. Fit Finlay

What will be match of the night?

How many championships will change hands? 1

Will we find out who attacked Ric Flair? No

Who attacked Flair? (Answer this even if you answer no to the above question; you'll get credit for correctly naming the identity whenever it is revealed.) DDP

chrismday · February 4, 2017

World Heavyweight Championship: Sting vs. "Big Poppa Pump" Scott Steiner {©}

Stu Hart Classic Finals: Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T

United States Heavyweight Championship: Rick Steiner vs. Rey Misterio Jr. {©}

World Tag Team Championship: Doomsday vs. Natural Born Thrillers {©}

Cruiserweight Championship: Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Jushin Thunder Liger {©}

Dustin Rhodes vs. Vampiro

Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. "King of Old School" Steve Corino

Alex Wright and Ernest "The Cat" Miller vs. True Heroes

Jamie Knoble vs. Fit Finlay

What will be match of the night?

Sting vs Scott

How many championships will change hands?

1

Will we find out who attacked Ric Flair?

Yes

Who attacked Flair? (Answer this even if you answer no to the above question; you'll get credit for correctly naming the identity whenever it is revealed.)

Sting

rjhabeeb · February 4, 2017

Fan Scorecard:

World Heavyweight Championship: Sting vs. "Big Poppa Pump" Scott Steiner {©}

I think Sting has one more run on top left in him but it doesn't seem to be here

Stu Hart Classic Finals: Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T

my guess is that Booker refused to job which is how he got here so i think the plan may be for RVD but im not sure

United States Heavyweight Championship: Rick Steiner vs. Rey Misterio Jr. {©}

throw away challenger, Rey was supposed to be in the final!

World Tag Team Championship: Doomsday vs. Natural Born Thrillers {©}

I was actually a mark for both these teams for some bizarre reason

Cruiserweight Championship: Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Jushin Thunder Liger {©}

Going to keep picking against Liger with him seemingly splitting his time between you and NJPW

Dustin Rhodes vs. Vampiro

be careful what you wish for Dustin and just accept your salvation

Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. "King of Old School" Steve Corino

Alex Wright and Ernest "The Cat" Miller vs. True Heroes

Jamie Knoble vs. Fit Finlay

What will be match of the night?

Im not sure if Sting can deliver tonight so im going with Booker T-RVD

How many championships will change hands? (the tournament does not count)

1

Will we find out who attacked Ric Flair?

No

Who attacked Flair? (Answer this even if you answer no to the above question; you'll get credit for correctly naming the identity whenever it is revealed.)

Booker T, maybe Flair interferes in the tournament final?

franticloser · February 4, 2017

World Heavyweight Championship: Sting vs. "Big Poppa Pump" Scott Steiner {©}

Stu Hart Classic Finals: Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T

United States Heavyweight Championship: Rick Steiner vs. Rey Misterio Jr. {©}

World Tag Team Championship: Doomsday vs. Natural Born Thrillers {©}

Cruiserweight Championship: Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Jushin Thunder Liger {©}

Dustin Rhodes vs. Vampiro

Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. "King of Old School" Steve Corino

Alex Wright and Ernest "The Cat" Miller vs. True Heroes

Jamie Knoble vs. Fit Finlay

What will be match of the night? Booker T vs RVD

How many championships will change hands? (the tournament does not count) 0

Will we find out who attacked Ric Flair? No

Who attacked Flair? (Answer this even if you answer no to the above question; you'll get credit for correctly naming the identity whenever it is revealed.) Terry Funk

The Final Countdown · February 4, 2017

November 2001: Pre-Calgary Stampede News and Notes <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div><div style="text-align:center;">November 12th, 2001 4:15 pm--approx. 2 hours before the start of Nitro:</div> "Bret, we've got a sitcha-ation ovah in catering. I could use your help, daddy." "Sure, Dusty. I'll be right there," I said into my cell phone. Dusty is sort of my de facto lieutenant, handling a lot of the smaller issues that pop up backstage. If he thinks something is serious enough to require my attention, I'm going to drop whatever I'm doing and take care of it. I arrived to see that the catering table had been knocked over, and food was splattered on the floor. It was easy enough to figure out who'd been responsible for the mess. Bryan Clark was standing to one side of the hallway with a hand to his eye. A bunch of the boys were clustered in between him and the guy on the other side of the hallway, the one who'd obviously given Clark a good shot to the eye. That guy? Clark's regular tag team partner, Brian Adams. Wonderful. "So what happened?" I asked, looking back and forth between the members of the team formerly known as Kronik, now known as Doomsday. "He started something with me. I finished it," Adams said. I could see a lot of the boys nodding or muttering their agreement, so apparently this was more or less the truth. "We're supposed to be a team, but you didn't even stop to check on me when I was down on the floor in New York!" Clark shouted. "Palumbo checked on me, and I barely even know the kid!" "I had a job to do," Adams said calmly. "Besides, you're fine." Clark looked like he had an angry response to that, but I jumped in first. Best to try and cut this thing off before it gets any worse. "Dusty, is it true that Clark started the fight?" The Dream nodded, which was good enough for me. "Okay then. Clark, you're going to pay a fine, and that's the end of it." Clark didn't look very happy with that, but Adams nodded in approval of my decision. "Is this going to be a problem going forward? Are we going to have to split you up? Because I can tell you right now, you two aren't anywhere near as valuable to us as singles as you are as a team. If you can't stand to be in the ring with each other and we have to break the team up, I can promise that neither of you's gonna like the outcome." "You won't get any problems from me," Adams assured me. "I've got nothing against Bryan." Clark still looked upset, but he nodded. "We'll be fine," he said. I had them shake hands before we had everybody go and cool off. They always got along fine as far as I can remember back in the WWF days, and even if they aren't necessarily friends, there have never been any real issues between them. Hopefully this'll be a one time thing and there won't be any lingering dislike. Our tag division is thin enough as it is, and I wasn't kidding when I said neither of them would like how their careers went if we had to split the team up.</div></blockquote> The WWF taped this week's Raw and Smackdown shows in Japan, and our friends in NJPW apparently didn't appreciate it. They weren't exactly allies as it was but this was the last straw, especially after the WWF deliberately mocked the "second rate" local wrestling in their advertising for the shows. The two companies are now openly hostile towards each other. Fight the power, Inoki! Let's take the monopoly down! Vince took things a step further in his quest to dominate Japan, as reliable sources told me he wants to drive Michinoku Pro out of business. Why he'd put such focus on them when they're only the fifth biggest group in the country I have no idea. Maybe he thinks Taka is the owner and is trying to get payback on him for "jumping" to WCW. Or on a more serious note, he might smell blood in the water since Great Sasuke, who both owns the company and is far and away the biggest star, just came down with a nasty staph infection that will apparently keep him out of the ring for months. Summerslam in Yankee Stadium was such a success that Vince went right back there for No Mercy. It was another strong show, with Steve delivering his typical great main event with Kane. "Company leader" Rocky actually got a match this time around, as he beat Raven in another great match in the semi main. Also of note was Matt Hardy dropping the European title to Spike Dudley. Matt's relationship with the Fed must be toxic if they had him lose the title to the least credible guy on the entire roster. I think most people can see that I'm pretty high on Chris Candido. That made it all the more disappointing when he failed a test for hard drugs (the only thing we actually test for.) I gave him a fine, and he seemed genuinely grateful that I was giving him a second chance rather than firing him. He promised that it would never happen again. Billy Kidman was still on vacation, but he called me a couple of days later to say he was happy I'd punished Candido rather than trying to sweep his failure under the rug. I guess there's still some bad feelings between those two stemming from that minor injury Candido got working with Kidman back before Bash at the Beach. New Japan ran a big show called Comparison of Greatness. Fujinami retained the IWGP title over Masahiro Chono, but the semi main event where Kensuke Sasaki beat Keiji Mutoh stole the show. I've signed young Canadian Bobby Roode to a developmental deal. He's a solid all-rounder: decent look, passable worker, okay on promos. Maybe he won't ever excel at anything, but if he can improve further down there and be adequate at everything he could be a solid member of the main roster. His stay down there will probably be shorter than most, because I'm not sure how much more he'll improve down in Wildside. Another signing for Wildside was Tony Mamaluke. An ex-ECW guy, I brought him in a month ago for what was supposed to be a one night enhancement talent appearance, but during that show I was very impressed with how well he and Johnny Swinger worked as a team. After a few weeks of thought, I went ahead and signed Mamaluke. He and Swinger will be working together at Wildside to get some more seasoning as a team, and eventually I'll bring them up onto the main roster together. With how high my creative team are on Swinger, and with Sting obviously seeing potential in him too since he took him under his wing, I wanted to find something for him to do. I've sent a group of our lower card guys down to Wildside to work on their skills. Among that list is Kid Romeo, Chris Harris, James Storm and Reno. That should be good for them, but I'll need to sign a couple more guys to fill the void on the main roster as regular jobbers. During their "warm-up" match on Nitro, Alex Wright and Ernest Miller wound up working pretty well together. That gives me a long-term option to bolster the tag division, but I think we found an even better one for Alex on a house show loop a couple months back. It'll be awhile before I'll be able to pull the trigger on that one in the story though. I gave Flair, Kidman and Torrie some time off after Halloween Havoc. Flair's vacation obviously is part of the storyline. I didn't have anything lined up for Kidman and didn't want him to become a glorified jobber to the stars, so I figured a month off with his girlfriend would be appreciated. The two of them are already back. Konnan's upset about all the losses he's been taking lately. I understand where he's coming from, but there are only so many featured spots to go around. I do think he's a valuable member of the roster, so hopefully I can give him a few wins and make him happy. I expected some resistance from Disco Inferno when I asked him to lose to the unknown American Dragon, but I didn't hear a word out of him. I was later told by someone else that Disco was complaining about it to others but shut up when he saw Dragon, aka Bryan Danielson, staring him down. That's kind of funny considering Bryan isn't someone that most people would call intimidating. Some of my friends in the WWF told me that Eddie Guerrero seems to have cleaned up his act and gotten his life back together. That's great news if true; he was always a hell of a worker, but he was a mess by the time I got to WCW. Shane Douglas strained his calf, but worked through it and is now fully healthy again. Of course he's not actually in a match at Calgary Stampede, so it doesn't really matter right now. AJ Styles took a bad bump in his match against Air Paris and broke his nose. It was nobody's fault so there's no bad blood between the former partners, and AJ's fine now. After further consideration, the WWF also signed Taylor Matheney from the Tough Enough Show. Another girl from that show, Nidia, recently made her debut with FMW in Japan. Talk about an odd fit. Missy Hyatt has found Jesus. Not the religious figure, the dude from Los Boricuas. They both work for IWA Puerto Rico, and I guess they're now dating. A couple of our females in developmental have also found love. My staff down there informed me that Daffney is dating Cassidy O'Riley, and Cheerleader Melissa and Jason Cross are also together. Neither of the males are actually under developmental contract though, so unless I sign them as jobbers or something, the girls will be on their own once I bring them to the main roster. American Dragon and Chris Candido both came into my office to request raises. I was kind of surprised by both requests, because Danielson's still new and Candido is fresh off of his failed drug test, but I agreed to give them both 75% of their requested raises. Chavo Guerrero Jr. does a spot-on impression of his uncle Eddie, and he entertained some of the boys backstage with it at a recent show. Hugh Morrus thinks Johnny the Bull "can't sell to save his life". Alan Funk recently started using a new spot that showcases his selling ability and should help improve his ring psychology. <hr noshade size=3> <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Stu Hart Classic prediction scores (maximum possible points: 15) Dead_Jester: 14 Uncrewed: 14 crackerjack: 14 Beejus: 13 jscotty: 13 Rateddc: 13 Nobby_McDonald: 13 Cro Cop Rules: 13 HRTVAndrew: 13 AMarc9-8: 12 Satyr24: 12 evileddie10: 12 K-Nection: 12 chrismday: 12 rjhabeeb: 11 2Sweet: 11 michgcs: 11 BHK6: 11 GingeyOne: 11 smw88: 10 deanohbk: 10 Happy0wns: 10 LordofGustav: 10 Anderz: 10 KnowYourEnemy: 9 Superkickparty: 9 franticloser: 9 Briskout: 9 DGenerationMC: 9 The Lariat: 9 sportsfanmas: 6 </div></blockquote> <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Updated standings in prediction contest (two shows remaining): K-Nection: 48 jscotty: 47 Uncrewed: 47 Beejus: 46 Satyr24: 45 Dead_Jester: 45 crackerjack: 44 smw88: 42 evileddie10: 42 deanohbk: 41 franticloser: 40 michgcs: 40 BHK6: 39 Nobby_McDonald: 38 Cro Cop Rules: 38 Happy0wns: 37 KnowYourEnemy: 36 GingeyOne: 33 DGenerationMC: 32 chrismday: 30 Superkickparty: 28 SomeLazyMagic: 27 rjhabeeb: 25 Rainmaker: 22 The Lariat: 21 Rateddc: 21 Warhawk8492: 19 2Sweet: 19 AMarc9-8: 18 LordofGustav: 17 Briskout: 17 Wolfman84: 16 Anderz: 16 StarshipAwsome: 14 HRTVAndrew: 13 Armando Payne: 7 Texasrangers13: 7 sportsfanmas: 6 PopeBrandonBrownson: 5 </div></blockquote> I caught several errors that I was making as I was adding in the points from the tournament predictions, but there's a decent chance I could have missed a couple others. So you may want to compare your current point totals with what you had after the last show to make sure you didn't wind up getting short-changed out of points. Obviously the 3 point bonuses for those who correctly picked the tournament winner will be factored in after the PPV. Extremely predictable tournament considering a few people got every match correct and only missed out on the mystery entrant, and probably half of you were only one or two points further back. But as I hinted at in the Road to Calgary Stampede post, the entire tournament would've played out very differently if not for me having to veer away from my original plans. <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Briskout" data-cite="Briskout" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div> BONUS: Davey Boy SHOULD be close."</div></blockquote> He'll still be in rehab for about six months. <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="K-Nection" data-cite="K-Nection" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Would somebody tell Scott that Canada does play baseball and did he forget about the Toronto Bluejays and the Montreal Expos? The Bluejays even won the world series in 1992 and 93! How crazy is this guy?</div></blockquote> You go tell him. I'm certainly not going to. <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="crackerjack" data-cite="crackerjack" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div> World Tag Team Championship: Doomsday vs. Natural Born Thrillers {©} Hopefully no injury this time.</div></blockquote> Hopefully Doomsday doesn't get into a fight backstage. <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="KnowYourEnemy" data-cite="KnowYourEnemy" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div> Alex Wright and Ernest "The Cat" Miller vs. True Heroes Looks like the Tag Division needs some work there, Bret</div></blockquote> Bret agrees, trust me. I've been testing chemistry for all sorts of different potential tag team combinations, looking for something positive to build on. The division will hopefully get deeper as we progress throughout 2002, but it looks like it'll be a work in progress. <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="michgcs" data-cite="michgcs" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div> Cruiserweight Championship: Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Jushin Thunder Liger {©} Chavo's always gonna be the loser Guerrero</div></blockquote> Clearly the loser Guerrero is the one who played the Gobbledygooker. <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Briskout" data-cite="Briskout" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>I hope Lawler does good work for you. He's had bad chemistry with everyone I've tried to put him up with, which has left me out of three potential storylines for Starrcade.</div></blockquote> I already know what Lawler will be doing at Starrcade. <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Stu Hart Classic Finals: Rob Van Dam - Booker might complain, but it'll boost RVD up and finalize the Booker turn, although a Booker win would do the same.</div></blockquote> It's a lock that Booker will complain if I ask him to put RVD over. He complained about losing to Sting last month, and RVD isn't close to that level. <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Satyr24" data-cite="Satyr24" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Hope you explain more later</div></blockquote> I'm not sure if I'm going to cover it in detail because it could spoil certain things in the future. I did allude to something in a previous post that, if you can go back and find it, will clue you in to what the general issue was.

K-Nection · February 4, 2017

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Missy Hyatt has found Jesus. Not the religious figure, the dude from Los Boricuas. They both work for IWA Puerto Rico, and I guess they're now dating. </div></blockquote> There is not a lot of men that Missy Hyatt has missed lol

KnowYourEnemy · February 4, 2017

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="The Final Countdown" data-cite="The Final Countdown" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div> "Bret, we've got a sitcha-ation ovah in catering. I could use your help, daddy." "Sure, Dusty. I'll be right there," I said into my cell phone. Dusty is sort of my de facto lieutenant, handling a lot of the smaller issues that pop up backstage. If he thinks something is serious enough to require my attention, I'm going to drop whatever I'm doing and take care of it. I arrived to see that the catering table had been knocked over, and food was splattered on the floor. It was easy enough to figure out who'd been responsible for the mess. Bryan Clark was standing to one side of the hallway with a hand to his eye. A bunch of the boys were clustered in between him and the guy on the other side of the hallway, the one who'd obviously given Clark a good shot to the eye. That guy? Clark's regular tag team partner, Brian Adams. Wonderful. "So what happened?" I asked, looking back and forth between the members of the team formerly known as Kronik, now known as Doomsday. "He started something with me. I finished it," Adams said. I could see a lot of the boys nodding or muttering their agreement, so apparently this was more or less the truth. "We're supposed to be a team, but you didn't even stop to check on me when I was down on the floor in New York!" Clark shouted. "Palumbo checked on me, and I barely even know the kid!" "I had a job to do," Adams said calmly. "Besides, you're fine." Clark looked like he had an angry response to that, but I jumped in first. Best to try and cut this thing off before it gets any worse. "Dusty, is it true that Clark started the fight?" The Dream nodded, which was good enough for me. "Okay then. Clark, you're going to pay a fine, and that's the end of it." Clark didn't look very happy with that, but Adams nodded in approval of my decision. "Is this going to be a problem going forward? Are we going to have to split you up? Because I can tell you right now, you two aren't anywhere near as valuable to us as singles as you are as a team. If you can't stand to be in the ring with each other and we have to break the team up, I can promise that neither of you's gonna like the outcome." "You won't get any problems from me," Adams assured me. "I've got nothing against Bryan." Clark still looked upset, but he nodded. "We'll be fine," he said. I had them shake hands before we had everybody go and cool off. They always got along fine as far as I can remember back in the WWF days, and even if they aren't necessarily friends, there have never been any real issues between them. Hopefully this'll be a one time thing and there won't be any lingering dislike. Our tag division is thin enough as it is, and I wasn't kidding when I said neither of them would like how their careers went if we had to split the team up. </div></blockquote> Just ditch Adams and bring back the DOA -- Crush and Chains that is. It'll be primetime television! http://facethemusicstl.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/wwe1.jpg

Beejus · February 4, 2017

Scott Steiner - Sting, on the downside of his viability as a main eventer, as much as I love me some Sting, isn't the man to start carrying the World title.

Rob Van Dam - As neat as it is for Booker to be a heel now, RVD is the man I said is your next champion, so I'm sticking with him.

Rey Misterio - Your Steiner Brothers aren't a team, so I don't see them both carrying gold. Rey retains the belt he - in hindsight - probably shouldn't have lost.

NBT - Holding the belts warm for our heroes.

Jushin Liger - I keep going against him, so this time I'll go for him and probably be wrong.

Vampiro - This story has a lot more legs until it's all said and done.

Jerry Lawler - Jerry gets a flukey win and drives the narrative until Starrcade.

True Heroes - If these true heroes join with Elix Skipper, Leia Meow, and Sonjay Dutt, can they form Captain Planet?

Jamie Knoble - Big win for the guy you keep wanting to push.

MOTN: RVD vs. Booker

No title changes

Yes

Chavo Guerrero

tg01 · February 5, 2017

Well I finally finished reading TGAAB, brilliantly done loved the ending...loved the whole dynasty in fact, and have completely got caught up on this one. Love what you're doing with this WCW, my very first dynasty was set in this time as well if you remember, and I like the twist with Bret Hart and getting to see some insight into what is happening behind the scenes:

Fan Scorecard:

World Heavyweight Championship: Sting vs. "Big Poppa Pump" Scott Steiner {©}

Stu Hart Classic Finals: Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T

I think things would have been different if it wasn't for that dastardly thing known as science, if you willll, but Sting gets one final "thank you" reign and the feud with Booker T is already in place so even though Booker T was not happy putting Sting over, he better get ready to reconsider before Starrcade!

United States Heavyweight Championship: Rick Steiner vs. Rey Misterio Jr. {©}

World Tag Team Championship: Doomsday vs. Natural Born Thrillers {©}

Doomsday is not the team to beat the NBT....for that you will need a couple of....Heroes....

Cruiserweight Championship: Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Jushin Thunder Liger {©}

Dustin Rhodes vs. Vampiro

Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. "King of Old School" Steve Corino...got to build Corino up because....well....we'll get there.

Alex Wright and Ernest "The Cat" Miller vs. True Heroes Oh how the WCW World Tag Team Championship's are going to look good around the all natural waist's of two superior, drug free athlete's!

Jamie Knoble vs. Fit Finlay

What will be match of the night? Lots of good options, but I'll go with RVD vs. Booker T since you won't need to do anything to appease Booker T

How many championships will change hands? (the tournament does not count) 0

Will we find out who attacked Ric Flair? Yes

Who attacked Flair? "The King of Old School" Steve Corino....to set up the leader of the Original Horsemen vs. the Leader of the Extreme Horsemen!

Wolfman84 · February 5, 2017

World Heavyweight Championship: Sting vs. "Big Poppa Pump" Scott Steiner {©}

Stu Hart Classic Finals: Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T

United States Heavyweight Championship: Rick Steiner vs. Rey Misterio Jr. {©}

World Tag Team Championship: Doomsday vs. Natural Born Thrillers {©}

Cruiserweight Championship: Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Jushin Thunder Liger {©}

Dustin Rhodes vs. Vampiro

Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. "King of Old School" Steve Corino

Alex Wright and Ernest "The Cat" Miller vs. True Heroes

Jamie Knoble vs. Fit Finlay

What will be match of the night? Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T

How many championships will change hands? (the tournament does not count) 0

Will we find out who attacked Ric Flair? No

Who attacked Flair? (Answer this even if you answer no to the above question; you'll get credit for correctly naming the identity whenever it is revealed.) Shane Douglas

BHK6 · February 5, 2017

World Heavyweight Championship: "Big Poppa Pump" Scott Steiner {©}

Stu Hart Classic Finals: Rob Van Dam

United States Heavyweight Championship: Rey Misterio Jr. {©}

World Tag Team Championship: Natural Born Thrillers {©}

Cruiserweight Championship: Jushin Thunder Liger {©}

Vampiro

"King of Old School" Steve Corino

True Heroes

Jamie Knoble

What will be match of the night? Steiner / Sting

How many championships will change hands? (the tournament does not count) 0

Will we find out who attacked Ric Flair? Yes

Who attacked Flair? (Answer this even if you answer no to the above question; you'll get credit for correctly naming the identity whenever it is revealed.) Booker T

The Lariat · February 5, 2017

World Heavyweight Championship: Sting vs. "Big Poppa Pump" Scott Steiner {©}

Stu Hart Classic Finals: Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T

United States Heavyweight Championship: Rick Steiner vs. Rey Misterio Jr. {©}

World Tag Team Championship: Doomsday vs. Natural Born Thrillers {©}

Cruiserweight Championship: Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Jushin Thunder Liger {©}

I've bet against Liger since he won the belt. Time to switch things up.

Dustin Rhodes vs. Vampiro

Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. "King of Old School" Steve Corino

Alex Wright and Ernest "The Cat" Miller vs. True Heroes

Jamie Knoble vs. Fit Finlay

What will be match of the night? Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T

How many championships will change hands? (the tournament does not count) 0

Will we find out who attacked Ric Flair? Yes

Who attacked Flair? (Answer this even if you answer no to the above question; you'll get credit for correctly naming the identity whenever it is revealed.) Booker T

Theheel · February 6, 2017

Well I just caught up to this story so I start picking even though I can't gain a top spot for this half season.

Fan Scorecard:

World Heavyweight Championship: Sting vs. "Big Poppa Pump" Scott Steiner {©}. I'm calling for the upset and new champion so you have Sting and Booker at The granddaddy of them all.

Stu Hart Classic Finals: Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T

Like I said above I think this is the money match

United States Heavyweight Championship: Rick Steiner vs. Rey Misterio Jr. {©}. Just don't see Rick winning a singles title right now unless you bring back the TV championship.

World Tag Team Championship: Doomsday vs. Natural Born Thrillers {©}

I would have said Doomsday before the frakus backstage, so I'm going with the champs to retain.

Cruiserweight Championship: Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Jushin Thunder Liger {©}

Ligers running all over the place and while he is a solid champion, he lack of availability holds the title back a bit. So Chavo becomes the new champ

Dustin Rhodes vs. Vampiro

I agree be careful what you wish for Dustin. I see Dustin losing himself after this loss and looking for Salvation. Will he become his "Black Reign" type persona with Father Issac in his head?

Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. "King of Old School" Steve Corino

Love the King, but he is past his prime here, but can still help elevate young Mr Corino.

Alex Wright and Ernest "The Cat" Miller vs. True Heroes

I never liked Wright and his choice of the cat.....laughable against your future tag champs

Jamie Knoble vs. Fit Finlay

I think Jamie is going to get into a CW program with whoever the champ is. Finlay is great at making people look good

What will be match of the night? Sting vs Steiner

How many championships will change hands? (the tournament does not count) 2

Will we find out who attacked Ric Flair? Yeah I think so

Who attacked Flair? (Answer this even if you answer no to the above question; you'll get credit for correctly naming the identity whenever it is revealed.). Gonna say it was Booker T

HRTVAndrew · February 6, 2017

Stu Hart Classic Finals: Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T

Dustin Rhodes vs. Vampiro

Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. "King of Old School" Steve Corino

Alex Wright and Ernest "The Cat" Miller vs. True Heroes

Jamie Knoble vs. Fit Finlay

What will be match of the night?

Sting vs. Scott Steiner

How many championships will change hands?

1

Will we find out who attacked Ric Flair?

Yes

Who attacked Flair? (Answer this even if you answer no to the above question; you'll get credit for correctly naming the identity whenever it is revealed.)

Shane Douglas (going with the real-life animosity angle here)

The Final Countdown · February 7, 2017

November 18th, 2001: Calgary Stampede

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November 18th, 2001

From Max Bell Centre in Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Attendance: 2,121

Announce Team: "The Professor" Mike Tenay and Bret "The Hitman" Hart

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Jamie Knoble vs. Fit Finlay
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We haven't had an opener yet that failed to get a PPV off to a good start, and this month wasn't the one to break that trend. I considered telling Knoble and Finlay to focus on delivering a true mat wrestling clinic, but decided against it for a couple of reasons. I couldn't allot them quite enough time to do a match of that type justice for one thing, and I also wasn't sure if that would be the best way to open a show. It was still a match with plenty of good technical wrestling on display of course, but Finlay also did some brawling and Knoble mixed in a couple of aerial spots.

I thought our finish was a good one. Finlay had him up in the air for his tombstone, but Knoble landed on his feet behind him and seamlessly put on a dragon sleeper for the submission. This was exactly what I wanted from this match. It got our show off to a good start, gave Knoble a win on PPV that should boost his credibility, and Finlay showed his selflessness in helping the younger guy get over without complaint.

Grade: B-

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Sting cut a backstage promo on his match with Scott Steiner. He did a good job at playing to the Canadian crowd by reminding Scott that not only do Canadians play baseball, the Toronto Blue Jays have won two World Series, and did so a lot more recently than Scotty's Detroit Tigers won their most recent championship. He said that he hoped to beat Scotty in a fair fight, but if "Big Poppa Loudmouth" decided to play dirty, he wouldn't be afraid to pull out the big black bat and hit a walk-off home run that'd make Joe Carter proud. (Carter hit a home run to win the World Series for Toronto in 1993.)

This promo didn't introduce any new wrinkles into the storyline, but Sting did a nice job entertaining the fans while still hyping the match, which made for a tremendous segment.

Grade: A*

Alex Wright and Ernest "The Cat" Miller (w/Miss Jones) vs. True Heroes
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As we learned not too long ago on Nitro, Wright and Miller actually work pretty well together. When combined with the documented chemistry between the True Heroes, it didn't come as a huge surprise that this was a very good match. I'd still say that the Heroes have had better matches with Sting/Booker T and the Jung Dragons, but it was a nice performance nevertheless. A lot of that was due to hometown boy Storm, because as good as Punk is even this early in his career, Lance is pretty clearly the better worker on the team at this point and one of the best technicians anywhere in the business today. His flawless technique made him the clear-cut standout of the match, and Miller looked all the worse in comparison. "The Cat" looked very out of place sharing the ring with these three guys, so it's probably a good thing he was the one to submit to the Heroic Finish. Even though Miller and Wright made for a surprisingly good duo, I think I'll be going in a different direction for Alex's tag title match.

Grade: B

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We got a brief shot of Ric Flair making his return. He returned in typical grand Nature Boy fashion, stepping out of a fancy car and flanked by attractive women. The women were played by Alexis Laree, Allison Danger and Cheerleader Melissa from Wildside, though we didn't actually identify them since this was just a one-shot cameo. Nothing much to this; just a couple of minutes to establish that Flair's back.

Grade: C

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Bobby Heenan interviewed the American Dragon backstage. Bobby was his usual entertaining self as he expressed his shock about Dragon beating Disco Inferno, but Dragon was the real surprise of the segment. The kid looked perfectly comfortable on the microphone, clearly and concisely stating that Heenan, Disco and a lot of others might have been surprised, but he wasn't. He might be young and inexperienced, but he was very confident in his ability and believed he was good enough to compete with anyone in WCW.

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Disco walked into the camera shot, but he wasn't smiling or dancing or doing any of his generally silly stuff. He was supposed to talk about how his loss to Dragon had him so upset that he couldn't muster the enthusiasm to give the people what they wanted (what they wanted was to watch him dance of course, at least in his own mind.) I say SUPPOSED to because he was a mess here, stumbling over his words and rambling on nonsensically. As good as Danielson and Heenan were, Disco was equally bad. Whatever; the point is that Disco's mad about the loss and this story isn't over.

Grade: D+

Dustin Rhodes vs. Vampiro
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Yes, this match actually happened this time. But even though the bell did ring and the match did occur, we weren't too concerned with trying to put on a quality match here. This was several minutes shorter than anything else on the card, and all of the focus was on advancing the story we're telling. It wound up being a good thing that I wasn't relying on this match to deliver, because Dustin and Vampiro did not work well together at all during the seven or eight minutes this thing actually ran. After narrowly avoiding a bulldog from Dustin, Vampiro rolled out to the floor and motioned to the back.

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Father Isaac came out, but he wasn't alone. Yes, that's Mike Awesome wearing a mask very similar to the one Kanyon used when he was Mortis. Isaac led Awesome to the ring, and he made his presence felt immediately by grabbing Dustin and launching him with an Awesome Bomb. That resulted in a dq finish, but it was pretty obvious that Vampiro and Isaac didn't care.

Grade: C-

Vampiro and Isaac went back into the ring, and Isaac told Awesome that Dustin had not felt enough pain yet. Awesome renewed his assault on Dustin, and Vampiro grabbed the microphone from the announcer's hands. He congratulated Dustin for "winning" the match, but said that he probably wasn't feeling like much of a winner at the moment. Vampiro was great on the microphone tonight, getting across the sinister tone I was wanting as he talked about how meaningless Dustin's career had always been and would always continue to be as long as he rejected salvation. Then he handed the microphone to Isaac.

"Dustin, your stubbornness left us with only one option. In order to save you, first we have to break you. And that's where my newest reclamation project comes in. Until now you've known him as Mike Awesome, and he's adopted any number of different identities over the years as he struggled to find his calling. We have given him that calling. No longer will he answer to the name 'Mike Awesome', because he is now the blunt instrument with which we will destroy those foolish enough to resist us. He is...The Destroyer!"

The newly-dubbed Destroyer gave Dustin a final Awesome Bomb (henceforth the Destruction Bomb), and the trio walked off to the back to end the segment. We switched Awesome to an enforcer gimmick here, and based on the crowd reaction I think this new character is off to an above average start. Isaac joined Vampiro in doing a great job on the mic, but some goofy, overly exaggerated facial expressions dragged his overall performance down.

Grade: C+

Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. "King of Old School" Steve Corino
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It was no secret when we brought him in that Jerry's on his last legs as an active wrestler. I knew ahead of time that asking for anything special between the ropes wouldn't be very wise, but that's not what this was about. I told Jerry and Steve to focus on telling a story in hopes that their intelligence could help to mask Lawler's physical limitations. I thought the story was just fine, with the wizened veteran trying to outsmart his much younger opponent just as he had during their tournament match on Nitro. But the story mirrored reality here. Lawler couldn't keep up with a man 23 years his junior, as he faded towards the end and Corino delivered the Old School Expulsion to redeem his previous loss.

Grade: C+

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Ric came out to the ring, and the girls weren't with him this time because now it was time to get serious. This wasn't the limousine-riding, "Space Mountain" Nature Boy side of Flair; this was the intense, screaming, get out here so I can kick your ass side. He talked about how whoever had attacked him at Halloween Havoc had made a major mistake: they hadn't finished the job. Now he was back and there was going to be hell to pay. He didn't know who attacked him from behind, but whoever it was obviously wanted to make a name for themselves by trying to take out the Nature Boy. Well now he was going to give them a chance to do just that, because he was standing in the ring ready and waiting to kick some--we bleeped him at that point. Keep it kid-friendly, Ric! He was great here though. A lot of people associate Ric with the cocky promos, but I think he's at least as good when he works himself up into a rage like this.

After about 20 seconds of waiting, someone stepped out into the aisle and answered the challenge.

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Based on the surprised reaction from the crowd, I don't think too many people were expecting this. Candido freely admitted that it had been him who attacked Flair at Halloween Havoc. He claimed it was nothing personal.

"I don't like you, Ric, but even though you disrespected my queen a few months ago, I don't hate you either. I attacked you for one reason: headlines. Your best days are long behind you, but the name Ric Flair still carries a lot of weight behind it. The CEO of our budding enterprise drew up the blueprint for our success, and the first major step was to announce our arrival as a force to be reckoned with by killing the legacy of the "Nature Boy" once and for all."

Candido's verbal delivery was solid here, but he was nervous at being involved in such a high-profile angle and you could see it in his face as he spoke. Flair sold it perfectly; he took his suit jacket off, threw it on the mat and dropped an elbow on it, which popped the crowd big.

"Look again, kid, because I'm still standing! You wanna kill the Nature Boy? Well come and take your best shot, punk, and after I take both of you to school I'll show your woman how a real man gets things done!"

Candido smirked at the challenge and said that they were way ahead of Ric. "The CEO" had drawn up a plan in case Flair showed up tonight. He didn't want them to finish Ric off tonight, but they were going to "send a message." With that Candido and TAKA walked the rest of the way to the ring. Flair took his Rolex off (great touch) and stood his ground, even holding his enemies at bay briefly, but eventually TAKA put him down with a springboard dropkick from behind as he was battling Candido. The two men put the boots to Ric from there as Sytch smiled from the floor, and Candido put the exclamation point on the angle by going to the top rope and dropping the New Jersey Jam.

Grade: B

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Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Jushin Thunder Liger {©}
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For the second straight month I told Liger and his opponent to go out and try to steal the show. Learning from the mistakes of last month, I gave them over twenty minutes so they could keep the crowd at a fever pitch rather than having to wrap up before they hit the crescendo. We all know how great Liger is but Chavo proved that he could absolutely hang with one of the best in the world. The two men pulled out all the stops, beautifully blending scientific wrestling, striking and aerial maneuvers. You could see that they were both lagging and fatigued by the time we got into the home stretch, but they delivered exactly what I had envisioned. This was hands-down the best cruiserweight match we've had, and one of the best matches we've had period.

The fans were definitely rocking as both men went back and forth in the closing minutes, each racking up multiple near-falls. Everyone thought it was over when Liger hit the koppou kick and the fisherman buster, and then again when Chavo paid tribute to his grandfather with the Gory Special, but the narrow kick outs continued to prolong the match. Chavo attempted to dip into uncle Eddie's playbook with a frog splash, but there was no water in the pool after Liger rolled out of the way. That miss allowed the champion to hit the running Liger Bomb and retain his title, but nobody really loses in a match this great.

Grade: B+

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Arn had a brief interview with Heenan where they discussed the return of the original wrestling supercard, Starrcade, which this year will emanate from Japan on December 30th. I made the call to hold Starrcade in Japan this year the moment we agreed to terms with tv asahi to air Nitro and our PPVs. I know it's breaking from tradition and everything, but our television exposure there is just on a totally different level than what FX gives us in the US.

Grade: C+

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AJ Styles was being interviewed about his future when Stacy Keibler interrupted. She said that his long-term goals, to pursue the cruiserweight title in addition to eventually using his UFS tag team title shot with Sting, were meaningless. He could've achieved all that and more with her there to lead him, but he decided to terminate their business arrangement.

"That's a decision you're going to regret, AJ. Together we could have gone all the way to the top of WCW, but you didn't want my help. That's your mistake, but not everyone in WCW is as stupid as you."

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To the surprise of everyone, Kaz Hayashi attacked AJ from behind. Heenan fled as Hayasahi knocked AJ to the ground and put the boots to him. He delivered about a half dozen hard kicks to the ribs before Keibler led him away, pausing to laugh as she looked back over her shoulder at where AJ lay. Kaz didn't look too convincing during his sneak attack, but I have high hopes for his new run as a heel after hearing some of the boos he and Keibler got from the fans watching the video screen.

Grade: C

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Rick Steiner vs. Rey Misterio Jr. {©}
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There wasn't any story building this match up, but there was still a decent amount of crowd heat when Steiner jumped Rey from behind as he was handing the US title to the referee. Rick had the opportunity to really launch his much smaller opponent around the ring with some suplexes and slams, and he spent a lot of time working Rey's back over. It wasn't really one-sided, but the match was set up where Rick would control things with a slow and methodical pace, but Rey would have sequences where he was able to pull off a dizzying series of aerial moves. Rick looked for his Steiner Driver several times throughout but Rey was always able to avoid it. Rick was less fortunate when it came to avoiding a springboard hurricanrana from Rey which ended a solid match.

Grade: B

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You never know what you're going to get when you hand Scott Steiner a live mic. Sometimes he's shockingly coherent and sticks to the message, and sometimes he doesn't just go off the rails, but flies over them and into the clouds as he follows some train of thought that probably doesn't even make sense in his own mind. Tonight was the latter.

"Sting, you wanna step into the ring with the genetic freak? Well that just shows how stupid you are, just like all these damn Canadians! You have about as much of a chance as beating me as these Canadians would at beatin' the United States in a war! The only reason we ain't annexed this stupid country and made it another state is that there ain't nothing here worth taking! Canada, you can take your hockey and your Celine Dion and your maple syrup and shove it! And Sting, tonight I'm gonna take that baseball bat and use it to beat that makeup right off your oldass face so all these Canadians can see all your wrinkles! Holler if ya hear me! But not you, Canadians, because you ain't worth my time!"

Yeah. So that happened. It didn't make a bit of sense, but you have to say this much: when Scotty talks, people react.

Grade: A

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Doomsday vs. The Natural Born Thrillers {©}
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I had a few things to worry about here. One, I had to hope my medical staff hadn't made a mistake by clearing Bryan Clark to return this quickly. Two, I had to hope there wasn't another injury sustained in another brawl between four guys who aren't exactly the smoothest workers in the world. Third, and maybe most importantly, I had to hope Adams and Clark wouldn't break out into an unplanned fight of their own.

I guess luck was on my side tonight, because all three of those concerns had a positive outcome. Clark looked fully fit during the match, all four guys came out of this wild brawl unscathed, and whatever issues Adams and Clark had on Monday didn't seem to be lingering. This match was kept relatively short, but that couldn't hide a lack of solid match layout, nor was it any less obvious that even a healthy Clark isn't very good in comparison to the other three. All of that said, it was actually a better match than last month. Maybe part of that was that we had a conclusive finish this time, as Clark was finished off with an impressive springboard clothesline from O'Haire.

Grade: B-

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DDP joined Roddy in the Pit, and the two had a bit of entertaining banter before getting into the heart of the matter. Dallas said that he'd heard a lot of people say that that cage match with Scott Steiner was his last big shot at glory, and he'll never become champion again. But he was here to promise every single one of those doubters that he was going to prove them wrong, just like he'd proven them wrong when they said he was too old to leave managing behind and become a wrestler in the first place. It was only going to be a matter of time before someone else felt the BANG and DDP was champion again!

That would seem to be the end of the segment...right?

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Wrong! Shane Douglas crashed the party, walking out and standing at the top of the aisle. He glared at both DDP and Piper and told them this lovefest was making him sick to his stomach.

"I am so beyond tired of listening to this garbage from you, Diamond Dallas Page! You always like to pretend that you're some great underdog that defied the odds and fought tooth and nail for everything you've got, but we all know that's a load of crap! You were given every opportunity under the sun. You decide you want to become a wrestler? No problem; Dusty Rhodes takes a liking to you for God only knows what reason, and with the support of the American Dream you get a job even though you don't know a damn thing about wrestling! Looking to catch your big break? No problem; your next door neighbor is the guy making the matches! The fans don't care about you? No problem; your wife can come out to the ring with you to make sure people don't leave to buy hot dogs or use the bathroom during your matches!

"You were handed everything, Page. And me? I had to fight for every single scrap I could get. When I came to WCW in the early 90's they forced me to carry a skateboard to the ring like a damn moron! When I went to WWF, Michaels and his cronies used their influence to make sure I never had a chance to succeed! So I carved out a niche for myself in the underground. People may credit Paul Heyman as some mad scientist genius, but the truth is that ECW succeeded because of ME! But wrestling in bingo halls and getting paid in checks that bounced half the time was something I should have never had to do. I should have been here all along, Page. I should have become the Franchise of WCW years ago, and I should have millions of dollars sitting in my bank account right now! But that didn't happen, and it's because of undeserving trash like YOU, Page, who became rich and successful not through skill, but through nepotism! I won't stand for it anymore! You say you're going to be a champion again? I say I'm going to send your talentless butt straight out of this company so I can take my rightful spot at the top, where I should've been for the last decade!"

Piper, DDP, Douglas: everybody was on fire here. Fantastic segment.

Grade: A*

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Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T
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This may not have been my original plan for the tournament final, but I couldn't complain too much about having this matchup close out the tournament. Mike and I talked about my dad at various points throughout the match, and I suggested that he would favor RVD here because even though Stu was known as a grappler, young athletic guys like Dynamite, Pillman and Owen were all big stars in Stampede. RVD used that athleticism here with kicks and flying moves, including a running somersault dive over the top rope that popped the crowd.

Booker was all about trying to attack the leg that had initially been injured by Mike Awesome and had continued to be a focal point in his matches since then. That was the idea behind the match at least, but I don't think they did the best job at telling that story. Booker did do a few leg spots, but it never really went anywhere. It was still a pretty good match, but I think it could've been a great one if they'd effectively told the story.

RVD hit a standing spin kick and a split-legged moonsault for a near-fall, but Booker got the knees up to block a Rolling Thunder attempt. He opportunistically hit the Book End and made the cover for the one...

two...

...RVD gets a foot on the bottom rope to save himself! Booker complained of a slow count, then dragged RVD over near the corner and ascended the buckles for the Harlem Hangover. He took a moment too long up there, and he paid the price when Van Dam got up and caught him with a flying side kick. While standing on the top rope Van Dam gave Booker a roundhouse kick to the head that sent him tumbling down to the mat, and then he struck with the Five Star Frog Splash! Charles Robinson got into position and counted once...

twice...

...three times! RVD wins the first Stu Hart Classic!

Grade: B

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My nephew Teddy, niece Nattie and I brought the trophy into the ring to present it to RVD. I didn't think Nattie or Teddy were ready to cut a live promo on this stage, so they stood in the background while I did all the talking. I got a little choked up and emotional when talking about the legacy of Stu Hart and I'm sure it hurt the promo, but I doubt anybody will hold it against me given the circumstances. Anyway, I told RVD that Stu would no doubt be proud to have seen this tournament in his honor, and to see a one of a kind athlete like him become the first man to hold the trophy. With that Nattie held the trophy out, and RVD accepted it with a smile.

Rob cut a brief promo, talking about how he never met Stu but he knew his reputation, and he called it an honor to win this tournament named in his honor in front of the fans he'd spent years of his life entertaining here in Calgary. Well that was the gist of it, though obviously it didn't sound quite like that coming out of RVD's mouth. He also talked about how this win guarantees him a world title match in the main event of Starrcade, the biggest show of the year. He promised that whether it was Sting or Scott Steiner as champion, he was going to use his one of a kind talent to put on a show like nobody else can, and then he was going to lead WCW into a new era as the world heavyweight champion.

Grade: B

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Sting vs. "Big Poppa Pump" Scott Steiner (w/Midajah) {©}
http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/Sting.jpghttp://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/vs.jpghttp://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/SSteiner.jpghttp://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/SMidajah.jpg

As this was Steiner's second straight program with an opponent in their 40's, many of the same concerns from the DDP title matches also applied here. Sting's declining physical skills hurt this match sure enough, and both of these guys were pretty low on stamina by the time the match was through. I anticipated both of those things, but a much bigger problem reared its head in this match: these guys don't work well together at all. The promos were great, but their in-ring timing was all over the place. Probably the only thing that saved this match was how popular and charismatic these guys are.

After Steiner used his power to dominate the middle part of the match, Sting came roaring back. He had Scott dazed with a bunch of punches, gave him several slams, clotheslines and a dropkick, and whipped him into the corner. After a trademark howl to the fans, he followed up with the Stinger Splash--but Steiner pulled referee Nick Patrick into the way for usage as a human shield. It was only minimally successful because Sting stayed on the attack, knocking Steiner to the mat and locking on the Scorpion Deathlock! Steiner tapped! But there was no referee of course. Sting kept the Scorpion Deathlock on, but that just made it all the easier for...

http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/Booker.jpg

...Booker T to hit him in the back of the head with the world championship belt! He didn't stop there either, giving him a Book End onto the belt as well. He glared down at Sting before leaving the ringside area. Scott was surprised by Booker's interference, but was more than happy to pick the bones. He simply covered Sting and hooked the leg, and after Midajah did her part by slapping Nick Patrick across the face to wake him up, Steiner got the pin and retained the world title.

Grade: B

Show Overall Grade: B+

Mattywood · February 8, 2017

Man, oh man, oh man, do I ever have some catching up to do!

I just now discovered this diary, and recently read your WrestleMania VI & VII write-ups and epilogues in TGAAB. I'll definitely have to take the time to pour into this diary, but I have a feeling it will be well worth it.

K-Nection · February 8, 2017

That Shane Douglas promo was epic! (That is a line I never thought would come out of my mouth) I never dreamed he would be pulling A* promos but your writing went hand in hand with that rant. It was like his own pipebomb!

The Final Countdown · February 9, 2017

November 2001: Calgary Stampede Wrap-up <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>"How 'bout a round of applause for the king, boys?" The assembled roster, many of whom had grown up watching Jerry Lawler (either as the king of Memphis or the color guy on Raw, depending on their age) followed my lead in clapping for the legend. Jerry looked emotional for a second, but as usual he turned to humor. "If I had a nickel for every time I got a standing ovation in Canada, I'd be broke," he said, making several of the boys laugh. He got a back slap from Sting and a handshake from Corino before I could make my way through the crowd. "Thanks, Jerry," I said, shaking his hand. "You had one hell of a career." It was true. I wasn't the biggest fan of his style personally, but you can't argue with his longevity. "Thanks for giving me one last hurrah," he said with a smile. "As retirement matches go, I can't complain." I just nodded. I could vouch for that from personal experience. My own program with Jerry wasn't a personal highlight for me, but I have no personal issues with the guy. When I got word that he was planning on hanging up the boots soon, I called him up and offered to let him wrap up his in-ring career with us. It gave him a bigger spotlight than he'd have been able to get otherwise since WWF wasn't interested in bringing him back for a farewell run, and retiring him should give Corino a nice rub. We'll be running Nitro in Memphis soon and will do an official retirement announcement there, but tonight was the last match of his 33 year career.</div></blockquote> Even with the Hart name attached to it, we still have some work to do at building the WCW brand name in Canada. We booked a smaller venue because we knew we wouldn't be able to draw the kinds of crowds we can in the US, Japan, Australia--really anywhere we run or plan to run in the near future. Even if we don't go to Canada regularly until we can build our popularity there, I still intend to make the Calgary Stampede and Stu Hart Classic an annual thing. It was a great, emotional night. One guy who wasn't as happy with the night was Booker T. He was furious about being asked to lose to RVD, claiming that Rob "wasn't in his league" and was a "minor leaguer" that didn't belong anywhere near the main event of Starrcade. He didn't want to lose to "Mr. WCW" Sting last month, now he complains about putting over a guy we're trying to build up as a top face. I made no attempt to protect him in the layout of the match like we did last month. The match was about getting RVD ready for the main event of our biggest show of the year, and I was in no mood to accommodate Booker for the second month in a row. He can just go sulk in the corner like a five year old for all I care. Rick Steiner wasn't too happy about putting Rey Misterio over either, though he wasn't as vocal about it as Booker. He's not going to be a top heel, so he's probably going to spend a lot of his time putting over faces we're trying to elevate. If he's going to have problems with that, he's going to become pretty unhappy. In addition to leading the applause for Lawler, I also spent some time in the post-show meeting talking about how amazing the cruiserweight title match had been. Liger and Chavo truly stole the show, and I wanted to make sure they got their due praise for one hell of a match. Mike Awesome failed a drug test. I didn't think it would make much sense to suspend him the same night we debuted his new masked gimmick, so I gave him a fine and made it clear that if it happened again, the punishment would be more severe regardless of storyline. He wasn't angry at me or anything, but I'm not sure if the message sunk in. We'll see what happens. We debuted two new wrestler/manager pairings tonight, with Kaz Hayashi turning heel and attacking AJ Styles on behalf of Stacy Keibler, and Awesome debuting his aforementioned new gimmick as the "blunt instrument" of Father Isaac. I put both of these pairings together after I was impressed with their chemistry on previous house show loops. We do a lot of mixing and matching of potential new tag teams and wrestler/client pairings on our house shows, looking for positive results that we can then work into our TV programs. Pretty much everybody is high on Jamie Knoble, who got a big win over Fit Finlay tonight. Scott Steiner is a rare exception, because he told me that Knoble "ain't a star" and I'm wasting everyone's time by trying to push him. Booker T doesn't think Alan Funk has what it takes to become a big time player. I don't disagree, but I'm tempted to try and push him just to spite Booker for being a crybaby. Mike Sanders complained to me again tonight. I guess wrestling in and not winning a pre-show battle royal isn't where he hoped his career would head in my WCW, but at least he's got a job. I kind of doubt Vince would've kept him if he'd bought WCW. Lash Leroux is the latest young worker to be sent down to Wildside so he can focus on improving his overall game. To replace some of the guys we'd been using as jobbers who are now down in Wildside, I've signed Chance Beckett and Flash Flanagan exclusively to work as full-time enhancement talent. Maybe being both the owner and champion of Pro Wrestling ZERO-ONE is too much of a drain on Shinya Hashimoto, because he passed one of those responsibilities on to Masato Tanaka on a big show in Japan tonight. (It was the title, not the company. Just for the record.) <hr noshade size=3> <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Prediction scores (maximum possible points: 13) (+3 = correctly predicted RVD to win the Stu Hart Classic) Cro Cop Rules: 10 (+3) Wolfman84: 10 BHK6: 10 (+3) The Lariat: 10 (+3) AMarc9-8: 9 (+3) smw88: 9 (+3) crackerjack: 9 K-Nection: 9 (+3) Uncrewed: 9 Beejus: 9 (+3) evileddie10: 8 Nobby_McDonald: 8 2Sweet: 8 Dead_Jester: 8 (+3) Rateddc: 8 jscotty: 8 Satyr24: 8 tg01: 8 HRTVAndrew: 8 (+3) Happy0wns: 7 Superkickparty: 7 KnowYourEnemy: 7 michgcs: 7 (+3) Anderz: 7 LordofGustav: 7 (+3) chrismday: 7 rjhabeeb: 7 franticloser: 7 DGenerationMC: 6 (+3) deanohbk: 6 Briskout: 6 Theheel: 6 </div></blockquote> <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Standings in prediction contest after five shows (one show remaining): K-Nection: 60 Beejus: 58 Dead_Jester: 56 Uncrewed: 56 jscotty: 55 smw88: 54 Satyr24: 53 crackerjack: 53 BHK6: 52 Cro Cop Rules: 51 evileddie10: 50 michgcs: 50 deanohbk: 47 franticloser: 47 Nobby_McDonald: 46 Happy0wns: 44 KnowYourEnemy: 43 DGenerationMC: 41 chrismday: 37 Superkickparty: 35 The Lariat: 34 GingeyOne: 33 rjhabeeb: 32 AMarc9-8: 30 Rateddc: 29 SomeLazyMagic: 27 2Sweet: 27 LordofGustav: 27 Wolfman84: 26 HRTVAndrew: 24 Anderz: 23 Briskout: 23 Rainmaker: 22 Warhawk8492: 19 StarshipAwsome: 14 tg01: 8 Armando Payne: 7 Texasrangers13: 7 sportsfanmas: 6 Theheel: 6 PopeBrandonBrownson: 5 </div></blockquote> <hr noshade size=3> <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="tg01" data-cite="tg01" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Well I finally finished reading TGAAB, brilliantly done loved the ending...loved the whole dynasty in fact, and have completely got caught up on this one. Love what you're doing with this WCW, my very first dynasty was set in this time as well if you remember, and I like the twist with Bret Hart and getting to see some insight into what is happening behind the scenes:</div></blockquote> I honestly don't remember that. I instantly thought of that awesome WCW '91 dynasty when I saw your name, so that is obviously what I associate you with. I saw you've got something new up, and I'll be sure to check that out very soon. Welcome back! <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Matt Shannon" data-cite="Matt Shannon" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Man, oh man, oh man, do I ever have some catching up to do! <img alt=":D" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/biggrin.png.929299b4c121f473b0026f3d6e74d189.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /> I just now discovered this diary, and recently read your WrestleMania VI & VII write-ups and epilogues in TGAAB. I'll definitely have to take the time to pour into this diary, but I have a feeling it will be well worth it. <img alt=":)" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/smile.png.142cfa0a1cd2925c0463c1d00f499df2.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></div></blockquote> Don't get your hopes up. It might suck for all you know! <img alt=":D" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/biggrin.png.929299b4c121f473b0026f3d6e74d189.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /> <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="K-Nection" data-cite="K-Nection" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>That Shane Douglas promo was epic! (That is a line I never thought would come out of my mouth) I never dreamed he would be pulling A* promos but your writing went hand in hand with that rant. It was like his own pipebomb!</div></blockquote> Glad you enjoyed it, because I had fun writing that up. Shane was a pretty dang good promo in his ECW days. I was trying to capture some of that spirit here.

Happy0wns · February 10, 2017

I got some catching up to do... shoot..

The Lariat · February 10, 2017

If Booker's gonna keep complaining, I see someone stepping up to take his spot soon.

KnowYourEnemy · February 10, 2017

Observing Wrestling November 2001: World Championship Wrestling

Road to the Grandaddy of Them All

Who is "Rob Van Dam"? Is he the "Whole ****** show"? Rob just won the inaugural Stu Hart Invitational. In Calgary, in front of a modest crowd. He will be in the Main Event at Starrcade. He has momentum. He has "the push".

But... who is he really? Is Rob a man with limited television time working a midcard feud against Shane "Dog Food" Douglas? Is he the man who barely got a word in on the Piper's Pit? We learned he "innovated offense" and was "cool".... but little else concrete at Halloween Havoc.

I'm sure Rob Van Dam will walk away one thing at Starrcade 2001... WCW World Heavyweight Champion. Barring a major surprise addition to the Main Event.

When Scott Steiner won the WCW World Championship, he made the defending champion pass out. A statement win. However, his run as champion has been the weakest in a major company for a long time -- he almost never has gone over his challengers clean, and many of his challengers aren't built up as dominate threats. These are challengers he should go over clean, but right now, he can't even win on his own merit.

Has Bret soured on the World Champion? Scott has been booked very week -- he hasn't won clean in the past two defenses. He's relying heavily on Midijah, his manager, to help him win matches. If not for Booker T's turn, he wouldn't be holding the belt right now. Plus, his performances against Sting and DDP have been disappointing. Him losing the title at Starrcade? A forgone conclusion.

On the topic of "mystery men", the "mystery benefactor" supporting The Power Couple has caught many a fans eye in the last few months. With Candido revealed as the man who attacked Ric Flair, his stable rose to the forefront on PPV -- setting up a Starrcade encounter. But who is "the CEO"?

While many have thrown names into the ring, like former NWO benefactor "Trillionaire Ted" DiBiase, Bret "The Hitman" in a swerve and even rumors suggesting Dusty "The American Dream" Rhodes, the real possibility arises that WCW hasn't decided on an answer. In perhaps the most brilliant move yet, Bret Hart could be holding out until a suitable talent comes available. But who could jump ship from WWF to manage this faction?

Sources say WCW have contacted WWF Talent Terri Runnels. Many think she may reprise her "Alexandria York" character.

"The Granddaddy of Them All" will be the capstone in the WCW vault. Despite a lukewarm November offering, WCW's December event has many eagerly awaiting the season finale. Fans are excited for Booker T against Sting, Candido against Flair and R-V-D against Booker, and those are just the headliners -- many can't wait to see The Destroyer face Dustin Rhodes and Shane Douglas face DDP.

Even if The Calgary Stampede disappointed in the ring, it succeeded at setting up the Biggest Show of the Year, Starrcade 2001. In that, in may be Bret's biggest triumph yet -- the "Hitman" has all eyes glued on WCW Starrcade 2001.

Match of the Year (So Far): Scott Steiner d. Keiji Mutoh to retain the WCW Championship, WCW Presents WCW vs. The World, A

Dud of the Year (So Far): Scott Stiener d. Sting to retain the WCW World Heavyweight Championship, WCW Presents Calgary Stampede, B

Observing Wrestling "Impact Player" for WCW [Fall 2001]: Dustin Rhodes. How PG-13 will Bret go? This storyline will demonstrate if the new WCW will have "the edge" WWF provides or embrace a "kid-friendly" product. James Mitchell has been playing "mind games" with Dustin for months now, and with "The Destroyer" in the ring, will the Grandson of The Plumber break? Or, will Dustin overcome Mitchell, and thrust himself into the main event. Just one question: Will there be blood? Or, only "the red" liquid?

K-Nection · February 11, 2017

I'm loving these Wrestling Observer articles to go along with this!

The Final Countdown · February 14, 2017

December 2001: Road to Starrcade, Part I <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div><div style="text-align:center;">http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/Nitro.jpg November 19th, 2001 From Valley Ice Garden in Bozeman, Montana Attendance: 3,500 Announce Team: "The Professor" Mike Tenay and Bret "The Hitman" Hart Spotlight Segment: http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/RVD.jpg We began the show with the triumphant arrival of the winner of the first Stu Hart Classic, Rob Van Dam, who got a respectable ovation from the fans in Montana. RVD cut a promo where, in his own laid-back way, he promised to deliver like only he can. "Starrcade is the biggest wrestling show of all time. It's the original, dude. Way back in 1983, Ric Flair, Harley Race and Jim Crockett Promotions changed the entire game forever. They revolutionized pro wrestling, and that's exactly what I'm going to do at Starrcade eighteen years later! You people, you've seen a lot of big stars as the WCW World champion, everyone from Hogan to Flair to Sting to Savage to Goldberg. But you've NEVER seen a WCW champion like me! I do things in this ring those other dudes could never even dream of. You've seen some of it in my first six months here in WCW, but at Starrcade the whole world will find out what those who supported the Hardcore Revolution have known for years: when it comes to pay-per-view performances, no one in the world does it better than Rob-Van-Dam!" I'm sure some old timers would pull their hair out at how RVD portrays himself, but this character just works for him. He was fantastic here, and this would've been a good enough segment if we'd just ended it there. But we weren't done yet. http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/SSteiner.jpg Scott Steiner stepped out into the aisle, and he was none too impressed with his Starrcade challenger. "This has gotta be some kinda joke. Did somebody slip some drugs into my protein shake or somethin', because I gotta be hallucinogating right now! Is this nobody really the best WCW can bring me for Starrcade, the so-called biggest show of the year? At least Booker T coulda made it interestin' for a few minutes, though of course I woulda beaten him in the end just like I always do! But YOU? You're just some minor league chump! You ain't in my league, boy, and all the crazy flips in the world ain't gonna make a difference when you step in the ring with me! Enjoy that little trophy you got, because that's the only gold you're gettin' here in WCW!" This was an "on" night for Scotty. He perfectly sold the disrespect I wanted him to show for RVD as a "minor league" guy from ECW. All in all, I don't think we could've asked for anything better to get this build started. Grade: A*</div> With new manager Stacy Keibler in his corner, Kaz Hayashi disposed of Jim Duggan. (C+) Keibler post-match interview: "I could've taken AJ Styles to the top, but he blew it. With me by his side, Kaz Hayashi will be a champion!" (C-) With Disco Inferno watching from the aisle, American Dragon made Flash Flanagan submit to his Arms Across America hold. (C+) Bobby Heenan asks Booker T why he attacked Sting and cost him the world title last night. "Why? Why NOT, sucka?! That shoulda been my title shot in the first place, but Sting stole it from me! Sting's got no business winnin' MY belt, and all I did was make sure he didn't steal what belongs to me, ya dig?" (B-) Unseen footage from Calgary Stampede: Jushin Liger is cooling down after his title defense when he's suddenly attacked in his locker room by TAKA! © The US title was not on the line tonight, but Rey Misterio Jr. still brought his best effort and defeated Shannon Moore. (B) WCW cameras catch up to Ric Flair backstage after Calgary Stampede: "Candido, I don't give a damn who's running the show! You wanna make a name for yourself at MY expense?! People have been trying to break the Nature Boy for almost thirty years, and I'm still standing!" (B-) Candido and Tammy Sytch, having just watched Flair's comments, are on the phone with the "CEO." Candido nods and says everything's working out perfectly. "We've got Flair worked up, and Liger's going to be itching for a fight with TAKA now. It's all going just like you said it would." (C+) They may have doubts about the long-term viability of their team, but Hugh Morrus and Konnan looked good tonight as they got a win over Mark Jindrak and Shawn Stasiak. (C+) Dustin Rhodes is interviewed; though his focus tonight is on his main event match against Booker T, he knows Father Isaac and his men won't be far behind. "If you choose to get involved tonight, know that I'll be ready, and I'm not going down without a fight!" (C+) True Heroes continued their hot streak with a win against The Mamalukes, but the real story was the announcement by the commentators that Punk and Storm will challenge the Natural Born Thrillers for the tag team titles at Starrcade. (B-) In a vignette, a smiling Kanyon reveals that he's found the answer to his recent woes, and he'll share it with the world next week. (B-) DDP in-ring promo; he's not impressed by Shane Douglas. "Last night I listened to the so-called "Franchise" whine and complain because his career didn't turn out the way he wanted. Well you can complain all you want to, because while you were spending your career complaining about not getting opportunities handed to you, I was working my butt off, defying the odds and making my own breaks! I earned everything I've got, and I'll prove it to you any time, any place, if you got the guts to stop talking and start fighting!" (A) Dustin Rhodes and Booker T had a lengthy, back-and-forth battle in the main event. As expected, there was some outside chicanery. Dustin was ready to knock Vampiro off the apron, but it was merely a diversion so The Destroyer could lay him out with the Destruction Bomb while Isaac had the referee occupied. Booker T happily accepted the help and finished Dustin with the Book End. (B) Booker's celebration is interrupted by Sting, who chases him out of the ring with the bat! Sting grabs the microphone: "Booker, you just can't let it go, can you? You're obsessed with that world heavyweight championship, and you've let it poison your mind! Well I'm going to take it upon myself to do you a favor and knock some sense into you!" (A) <div style="text-align:center;">Show Grade: B+ http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/Saturday.jpg Taped immediately after Nitro Announce Team: Tony Schiavone and Don West </div> While we don't know Yang's thoughts on his Jung Dragons partner Kaz Hayashi throwing his lot in with Stacy Keibler, he executed Yang Time to record a singles win over Cash. (C+) American Dragon interview; he doesn't care about Disco Inferno's wounded pride, and invites Disco to wrestle him again if he can't accept his first defeat. (D+) Vampiro and The Destroyer overwhelmed the hapless duo of Chance Beckett and Jason Jett. (C-) Norman Smiley pre-taped promo; he'll be back soon after being out for months with a broken leg. (D+) Perhaps motivated by the chip on his shoulder, Shane Douglas negated Ernest Miller's kicks and beat him with the Franchiser. (C+) Arn Anderson announces a blockbuster tag team main event for Nitro: Rob Van Dam and Sting against Scott Steiner and Booker T! (B-) <div style="text-align:center;">Show Grade: C+ </div> </div></blockquote> <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div><div style="text-align:center;">http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/Nitro.jpg November 26th, 2001 From Memphis, Tennessee Attendance: 4,600 Announce Team: "The Professor" Mike Tenay and Bret "The Hitman" Hart </div> In the opening match, AJ Styles soared to victory over talented unsigned cruiserweight Blitzkrieg. (B) Styles post-match interview in which he shrugs off Stacy Keibler's new alliance with Kaz Hayashi, but says if Keibler wants to prove her new client is better than him, he'll have no problem taking him on. Out step Keibler and Kaz, with Keibler telling AJ he'll regret those words, just like he'll regret ending their business partnership. © RVD and Sting backstage promo; both men are on the same page as they look forward to taking out Scott Steiner and Booker T in the main event. (B+) The Natural Born Thrillers didn't have any trouble dispatching Alan Funk and Flash Flanagan in non-title action. (C+) True Heroes out in aisle for post-match promo. Punk: "Congratulations on taking out a couple of nobodies tonight, but at Starrcade you'll have to defend those titles against the hottest tag team in the world today. The name True Heroes isn't just us bragging. It's the truth, and come December 30th we will rescue the tag team division from your control like the heroes we are!" (C+) Ric Flair and Chris Candido are welcomed to Piper's Pit. Piper asks Candido if he really knows what he's gotten himself into by picking a fight with the legendary Ric Flair, but Candido is unconcerned. "With the CEO there to guide the way and draw up the plans, I have nothing to fear from anyone in WCW!" Flair begged to differ. "Your 'CEO' is going to lead you nowhere but to the unemployment line, bud! When people come at Ric Flair, they come back a shell of a man! WOOO!" (B+) DDP, Hugh Morrus and Konnan took care of Totally Buffed and Mike Sanders in six man tag team competition. (B-) Shane Douglas appears on video screen: "I'll be more than happy to prove just how undeserving you are, Page, and prove that I've been better than you for a decade. But we'll do it on my terms. We'll do it at Starrcade so the whole world can see it!" (B) With Fit Finlay watching on a monitor backstage (C-) , Jamie Knoble teamed with Alex Wright to defeat 3 Count. (B) Dustin Rhodes confronts Vampiro and Father Isaac; says he's been looking for The Destroyer all day, and won't leave until he's gotten a piece of him. They laugh and inform him that the Destroyer has been sent away on "other business" and won't be seen for weeks, which frustrates Dustin to no end. He says that if that's the way it is, maybe he'll just have to take THEM out before the "blunt instrument" returns! © Scott Steiner and Booker T cut an uneasy promo. The bad blood between the two is still present, and each warn the other not to get in their way tonight. (B+) Disco Inferno had The Wall come out to the ring with him, and said Wall attacked Rey Misterio Jr. during Disco's match against Rey. American Dragon came out to even the odds, which allowed Rey to fight his way back into the match and pin Disco with a swinging hurricanrana. (B-) Kanyon comes out, reveals he realizes why he's been feeling so lost; it's because Rey is walking around with HIS title! He's going to prove there truly ISN'T anyone better than Kanyon by taking the United States title back at Starrcade! Rey accepts the challenge and says he's looking forward to it. (C+) <div style="text-align:center;">Spotlight Segment: http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/Lawler.jpg The fans in Memphis roared as Jerry "The King" Lawler came to the ring. Jerry took some time to stand there and soak it in, and you could see he was genuinely touched by the reaction. He covered it up with some humor, then reminisced for a bit about all of the fond memories he'd made in Memphis. All the titles he'd won, the opponents he'd vanquished, all the years he'd spent being "The King of Memphis"--and all of it only possible because of these great people in Memphis! Jerry did a good job here, as he knew just how to use his words to bring these fans back in time with him. "We've had a lifetime together, guys. I may wear a crown and call myself a king, but everything that I have is because of you guys. Everybody knows I like to joke around a lot, but know that I'm being deadly serious when I tell you that being your hero for all these years has been the greatest honor of my life. But...all good things must come to an end. I've been thinking about this for a long time, and the moment I took off my boots following Calgary Stampede eight days ago, I knew it was time. While the memories will live forever, I can no longer be that guy I once was. I can no longer be the guy who piledrove Andy Kaufman, the guy who beat Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage, the guy who beat anybody who dared to try and become the new face of Memphis. That's why, tonight, here in front of the very fans who made me "The King", I'm letting the world know that I'm taking off my crown. I'm announcing, effective immediately, my retirement as a professional wrestler." None of this was news to those who follow the dirt sheets, but those in the arena who don't keep up with those things were shocked by the announcement, and marks and smarks alike were emotional at having to say goodbye to the king. http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/Corino.jpg The sadness turned to outrage when Steve Corino walked to the ring, smirking. "Oh, what a heartfelt speech! I swear I was tearing up listening to it in the back! But how about you stop lying to these people, Jerry? Stop trying to convince them this is some kind of noble decision you're making! You aren't 'taking off your crown'; I ripped it from your head in Calgary! You're retiring because you know that not only do you not belong here anymore, and not only are you unable to keep up with me anymore, you were never good enough to keep up with me! Even in your heyday, even at your absolute best, you were never as good as Steve Corino, and knowing that has broken your spirit! So go ahead and fade away into obscurity, Jerry, because there's a new king of Memphis! In fact, I don't think the 'King of Old School' name fits me anymore. I will henceforth be known as King Corino--and you, pretender to the throne, are standing on my territory!" Corino blasted Lawler in the face with a superkick and posed as the fans booed. A few even showed their anger by throwing trash into the ring. Steve was tremendous here; his speech pissed these fans off in a big way. Grade: B</div> In a blockbuster main event, the promos from earlier proved to be prophetic. RVD and Sting had no issues working together, but Steiner and Booker still hated each other and it showed in everything they did. Eventually Steiner's temper led to him hopping off the apron and leaving Booker high and dry, which left him easy pickings for a Five Star Frog Splash from Van Dam. (B) <div style="text-align:center;">Show Grade: B http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/Saturday.jpg Taped immediately after Nitro Announce Team: Tony Schiavone and Don West </div> The high flying of Blitzkrieg could not overcome the technical skills of the American Dragon, who won the battle of the masked men via submission. © Disco and The Wall come out after the match, Disco says Dragon won't be able to stop his disco fever now that "the wall is up." Dragon says he'll chop down the wall one on one on Nitro! (D+) You could've counted to three hundred rather than just three once Shane Helms used his Vertebreaker on Chance Beckett. © Ric Flair and Chavo Guerrero Jr. chat in the locker room; Chavo says he has no problem with Ric taking care of business with Chris Candido before they focus on their future tag title match. (B+) Dustin Rhodes didn't let Father Isaac's presence as a guest commentator throw him off his game as he dominated Flash Flanagan. © Schiavone and West promote the official RVD vs. Steiner contract signing this Monday on Nitro. © <div style="text-align:center;">Show Grade: C+ </div> </div></blockquote> <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div><div style="text-align:center;">http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/Nitro.jpg December 3rd, 2001 From the Hugh S. Greer Fieldhouse in Storrs, Connecticut Attendance: 4,562 Announce Team: "The Professor" Mike Tenay and Bret "The Hitman" Hart </div> Kaz Hayashi was too much for inexperienced local high flyer Amazing Red. (B-) Stacy Keibler post-match promo interrupted by AJ Styles; after a back-and-forth argument, they agree to a Styles/Hayashi match at Starrcade! (C-) Big Vito was ready to fight, but Fit Finlay's superior skill allowed him to come out on top. (C-) Sting pays a visit to Arn Anderson, who agrees to give him a one-on-one match against Booker T. Sting wants it as soon as possible, even tonight, but Arn tells him Booker has been given the night off and the match won't take place until Starrcade. (A) Local tag team Divine Storm were being given the opportunity of a lifetime to wrestle on Nitro, but they had no luck against Totally Buffed in what was a completely one-sided match. (C-) Alex Wright and Jamie Knoble interview; Wright says he enjoyed teaming with Knoble last week and is strongly considering making him his partner in his tag title shot. Chavo Guerrero Jr. interrupts, tells Wright it doesn't matter who he chooses as his partner because the titles will belong to he and Ric Flair as soon as Ric settles up with Chris Candido. © RVD and Scott Steiner are shown in different backstage areas in a brief shot to let Mike and I quickly hype the contract signing later in the night. (B) Disco Inferno accompanied The Wall to the ring and had the best seat in the house for his match against the American Dragon. It was an obvious physical mismatch, but Dragon defied the odds and submitted his gigantic opponent with Arms Across America! © Shane Douglas comes to the ring to "tell the truth" about DDP. According to Douglas, the only reason Dallas ever reached the main event level was because his wife took off her clothes in Playboy and Randy Savage thought it'd be funny to mock them both! DDP comes running out from the back and tackles him to the ma, where they begin pummeling each other. Wrestlers and officials hurry out from the back to pull them apart! (A*) Ernest Miller did connect with some kicks early on, but Vampiro delivered the Nail in the Coffin to put him down for the count. (C+) With Vampiro out in the ring and The Destroyer still MIA, there was no one to protect Father Isaac as Dustin Rhodes corners him backstage! Isaac tells him that beating him up physically will accomplish nothing in the grand scheme of things. "You're right," Dustin agrees, "but I'll sure as heck enjoy it!" He punches Isaac's lights out! © Candido and TAKA interview; Candido says that tonight's tag match against Ric Flair and Jushin Liger is simply the next phase of the grand plan. (C+) Chuck Palumbo took on Lance Storm in what was ostensibly a singles match, but Sean O'Haire and CM Punk both got involved frequently. A cheap shot from Punk directly led to Storm winning via superkick. (C+) "King" Corino comes out to the ring and boasts about sending "deposed monarch" Jerry Lawler to the old folk's home, but he's interrupted by TERRY FUNK! He says he and Lawler spent years fighting each other with everything they had, and you have to at least respect a man who fights you tooth-and-nail, who takes your best shot and just keeps coming. "But you, Corino, I have no respect for! You wanna humiliate Jerry Lawler, a man who gave everything he had to professional wrestling, right when he announces his retirement? You need to learn to respect the men who paved the path for you, and I'm just the man to teach it to you, you dirty egg-suckin' dog!" (C+) Ric Flair and Jushin Liger would seem to be a very odd team, but the Nature Boy and the prolific Japanese cruiserweight joined forces against common enemies in Chris Candido and TAKA. With about 45 years of combined experience, Flair and Liger made for quite a formidable duo and it showed throughout this match. One thing they didn't have was a wildcard like Tammy Sytch, who distracted Flair and gave Candido enough time to pin Liger with the New Jersey Jam. As stated by Mike and I during the match, his team winning earned TAKA a cruiserweight title shot at Starrcade. (B) Just as Arn Anderson is about to go to the ring for the contract signing, Kanyon pulls him aside to ask for his match against Rey Misterio to be made a best 2/3 falls match "so there'll be no doubt that he ain't betta than Kanyon!" Arn tracks down Rey for his opinion, and after he agrees Arn makes it official. (B-) <div style="text-align:center;">Spotlight Segment: http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/SSteiner.jpghttp://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/RVD.jpghttp://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/Anderson.jpg A table was set up in the ring, and Arn oversaw the proceedings. Arn started the segment off by introducing the participants and talking about the importance of competing for the WCW title, especially in the main event of Starrcade. I thought he did a decent job as far as getting over the magnitude of the match and the credentials of both guys. RVD got to speak first, and he cut a promo pretty similar to the one from the night after Calgary Stampede: he's a one of a kind athlete, he can do things no one else can, etc. He did focus more on Scott Steiner specifically this time, as he said he respects everything Scott has accomplished both as an amateur wrestler and since turning pro. RVD did a good job here. "I take nothing away from you, dude: you're one of the best around. But you aren't THE best. You might have your suplexes, your amateur skills, your freakish strength and...well, your freaks. But the one thing you DON'T have is the athleticism of R-V-D. But don't feel bad about it, dude, because NOBODY can do the things that I can! You may be the champion right now, but everybody who's been watching knows that nobody steals the show like Rob Van Dam! And how appropriate it'll be when at Starrcade, the biggest star in WCW becomes the world champion! After I'm done showing the fans live in Japan and watching on PPV all over the world just who the best in the world is, there'll be a new name engraved on that belt you're holding: ROB-VAN-DAM!" After RVD signed the contract, it was Steiner's turn to talk. He was angry about what he saw as a lack of respect from Van Dam. Scott is always best when he gets worked up about something, so it was no surprise that he was the star of the segment. He told RVD he should've stayed down in the bingo halls where he could pretend he was a huge star in front of fifty people. Now he was in the big time, and no one is more big time than Scott Steiner. "Starrcade's gonna be the worst night of your whole life, boy. That's when you're gonna realize that you ain't half as good as that fat walrus Paul Heyman convinced the other fat slobs and nerds you are. You ain't steppin' into the ring at Starrcade with some drunk or some fat slob who can't do nothin' but swing steel chairs. You're steppin' into the ring with the genetic freak, the man with the largest arms in the world...you're steppin' into the ring with the CHAMP! And after I'm through with you, ain't nobody gonna talk about ROB-VAN-DAM no more, cept as some wannabe who got embarrassed by Scott Steiner." Steiner signed his name on the contract, and just as Arn was starting to wrap the segment up, the champion ambushed RVD with a clothesline to the back of the head! After some stomps and punches, he launched RVD through the table with a German suplex! RVD laying amongst the broken wood while Steiner stood and flexed with the title around his waist was a great visual to close the show, but I didn't think Arn looked sufficiently appalled or concerned as he ordered Steiner to the back. A great segment regardless. Grade: A Show Grade: B+ http://i588.photobucket.com/albums/ss322/FCDiary/WCW/Saturday.jpg Taped immediately after Nitro Announce Team: Tony Schiavone and Don West </div> 3 Count recorded a win over Divine Storm. (C-) King Corino interview; he doesn't know who Terry Funk thinks he is, but he'll be happy to send him into retirement right behind Lawler. © Now Wall-less, Disco Inferno emerged with his hand raised in a match against Amazing Red. (D+) Disco promo about The Wall being worthless, says he'll have to deal with the American Dragon on his own. He challenges him to a match for Nitro, and Dragon comes out to accept. (D+) Arn Anderson announces gimmick over next two weeks where RVD and Steiner will choose an opponent for each other to wrestle on Nitro. Steiner's match is up first, and prior to the contract signing RVD let him know that Scott's opponent will be...Rick Steiner! (B-) Billy Kidman looked to be slightly off on some of his timing tonight, but he was still able to hit the shooting star press to defeat Elix Skipper. (C+) <div style="text-align:center;">Show Grade: C+ </div> </div></blockquote> <hr noshade size=3> Between the six week build between PPVs and the addition of the Spotlight Segment, I figured it'd be better to split the Road to Starrcade into two posts so it didn't get too long. The final three weeks + the prediction key will be up later in the week. What do you think of the Spotlight Segment? Is it a good addition, or should I just go back to doing what I was doing after Starrcade? <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="The Lariat" data-cite="The Lariat" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>If Booker's gonna keep complaining, I see someone stepping up to take his spot soon.</div></blockquote> The situation with Booker has only gotten worse, as you'll see once we get to the pre-Starrcade notes. <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Sources say WCW have contacted WWF Talent Terri Runnels. Many think she may reprise her "Alexandria York" character.</div></blockquote> Great, now I've gotta switch up my plans! Dang dirtsheets spoiling everything... (BTW, the Steiner/Mutoh match was at WCW vs. The World, not Halloween Havoc.) <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="K-Nection" data-cite="K-Nection" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>I'm loving these Wrestling Observer articles to go along with this!</div></blockquote> Me too! KYE's posts are really fun for me to read too, and I think they provide another layer to the game world. Even if I totally imagine Bret reading them and grumbling to himself anytime his decisions are criticized! <img alt=":D" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/biggrin.png.929299b4c121f473b0026f3d6e74d189.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" />

KnowYourEnemy · February 14, 2017

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="The Final Countdown" data-cite="The Final Countdown" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="43035" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div> What do you think of the Spotlight Segment? Is it a good addition, or should I just go back to doing what I was doing after Starrcade? </div></blockquote> Love this feature -- really emphasizes the key storylines!

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