The road to Fall Brawl continues as WCW Nitro is back from the Grand Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles! the familiar "Party Hard" by Andrew WK opens the show. Joey Styles & Jerry "The King" Lawler hype tonights action as the music of WCW World Heavyweight Champion Lance Storm blares through the arena.
Storm is on his way to the ring with the Big Gold Belt and Dawn Marie and he has something to say. Storm is on the mic and talks about how he has been a fighting champion for months, he has defeated everyone who dares step in the ring with him and has not only proven himself the best wrestler in the world, but has cemented his legacy in the pages of history as the greatest WCW Champion of all time. Storm says he is sick of disrespect, he has earned more, and all he hears about is people talking about Shane McMahon, Booker T & The Foundation. The truth is, none of that matters as WCW would crumble without him at its center.
And here comes Diamond Dallas Page! DDP walks to the ring and grabs a mic to address the champion. DDP says Storm deserves credit, he has raked up some impressive victories, and last week, he finally defeated BG James in the middle of the ring fair and square. So Diamond Dallas Page wants to thank Storm, thank him for keeping the championship warm while DDP waited for the right moment to claim it for himself. DDP also reminds Storm that The Foundation are the ones who helped Storm gain that title in the first place, and so its only fitting Storm do the "right thing" and hand him the title right now in the middle of the ring. Storm is beside himself and tells DDP that The Foundation got in his business without him asking, and he would have won the title with or without anyone sticking their noses in his business and that he had Booker T beat anyway.
Thats enough for Booker T's music to hit and the former Champion is on his way out now too. He joins Storm & DDP in the ring with a microphone of his own. Booker says he's sick of hearing people talk about the title and being the top of the company, because the truth is, Booker T has been the top of the WCW mountain for a long time, and he had to take a quick little detour to deal with some "suckas" but now he's back to utilize his rematch clause he never used before to challenge Storm to regain his title and tells DDP to step aside. The three bicker a bit more back and forth when Shane McMahon's music hits the loud speakers.
Shane McMahon is out and says he has to give all three men in the ring credit, because as he sees it, all three do have claims of being the true top dog of WCW, but there is one championship that actually determines that and its on Lance Storm's waist right now. So Shane has a simple solution. At WCW Fall Brawl, Lance Storm will defend his World Heavyweight championship against Booker T and Diamond Dallas Page! The winner will not only be the World Heavyweight champion, but be the pinnacle of WCW! But he's not done. Shane says The Foundation has been a thorn in his side for too long, and last week they said they will run WCW from now on. Well they must have forgotten that Shane McMahon is still here despite his loss to DDP at Crowd Contorl. So tonight, the Foundation will face its biggest challenge yet in a big 6-man tag team match, against Booker T... BG James... and LANCE STORM!
Bagwell started things off with his usual "Buff Daddy" posturing, but Chetti had the guts to mock the trademark strut right back. That bit of bravado backfired fast, as an enraged Bagwell blindsided him to take brutal control. While Chetti spent most of the match playing the punching bag, D’Lo kept the pressure on, grounding him with a heavy back suplex. The momentum finally shifted when Jason Jett got the hot tag; Jett looked like a total star, exploding into the ring with a handspring elbow and a dropkick that sent D'Lo sprawling to the floor. Jett seemed to have the veterans on their heels until Bagwell shut him down with a blatant thumb to the eye. Chetti managed to tag back in but ran right into a Sky High from D'Lo! Bagwell then ran in and drilled Jett off hte opposite apron, giving D'Lo a chance to climb o the top and nail Chetti with a Lo Down and the 3.
Fine little match to establish Buff & D'Lo, but I feel like it cold have been more. I'm interested in what WCW does with D'Lo as he's shown in WWF he has some skills, but he's never really had a true breakout moment which I feel he may actually get a shot in WCW to be more then a midcarder. The alliance with Bagwell seems a bit forced and out of nowhere.
Backstage in Arn's Office, we have Arn talking to Rob Van Dam as they watch Bagwell & Brown celebrate. Arn Anderson asks Rob Van Dam if he's sure he wants to defend his title against D'Lo Brown at Fall Brawl, which RVD confirms and says he always is looking for an opportunity to amaze the fans, and D'Lo put his nose in his business. As RVD & Arn shake hands on it, Shawn Stasiak & Stacy Keibler barge in. Stacy wants to file a complaint with HR about a dangerous work environment and says Joanie Laurer is not human. Anderson tells her she's a champion and champions need to defend their titles or lose them. Stasiak begins eyeing Rob Van Dam and asks him why doesn't he defend his title right now! RVD agrees, but Arn Anderson stops both men. He says all of Nitro's time is spoken for, so if the two want to wrestle so bad, they can, on WCW's new show Velocity! The first ever main event will be Shawn Stasiak vs. Rob Van Dam for RVD's United States Championship!
Sanders relied heavily on his mouth early on, but Kidman quickly silenced him with a series of armdrags and a stiff dropkick. As Kidman built momentum, Disqo hopped onto the apron, allowing Sanders to hit a low blow behind the referee's back. Sanders controlled the middle portion of the match with a series of chinlocks and a hanging neckbreaker. Kidman eventually mounted a rally, hitting a hurricanrana and a diving back elbow. When Disqo tried to interfere again, Kidman didn't hesitate, he launched himself over the top rope with a massive plancha, wiping out Disqo on the floor. Kidman rolled back in, caught a lunging Sanders with a powerbomb, and ascended the turnbuckle to nail a beautiful Shooting Star Press for the three count.
Cruiserweights come through again, even with Sanders as one of them! Kidman looked hungry and like he had something to prove. Seems like a guy most people thought WCW should be leaning on more during this rebuilding period its been in, but for whatever reason they really haven't.
Backstage WCW World Cruiserweight Champion, Chavo Guerrero Jr. is standing with Kaz Hayashi. Chavo says he just heard that due to the result of last weeks match between Hayashi and Karagias, Arn Anderson has said Chavo will have to defend his title against Evan Karagias and Kaz Hayashi at Fall Brawl in a 3-way. Chavo complains how unfair everything is as Kaz simply stares at him, starting to smile slowly.
This was a clinic in "Perfect" wrestling. Reno attempted to use his Roll of the Dice early, but Hennig scouted it perfectly and sent Reno into the turnbuckle. Hennig dismantled Reno with his signature snapmares and a rolling neckbreaker. Reno tried to fight back with some raw power, but he was simply outclassed by the veteran. Hennig ended the short contest by locking in a perfect bridge on the Hennigplex for the dominant win.
Hennig looked good as always and is getting some time to shine. Another squash.
Scott Hudson is backstage with Joanie Laurer. Hudson interviews Joanie asking what's next for her in WCW. Joanie said she has one goal and one goal only, to win championship gold. And Stacy Keibler, she's coming for yours. Joanie tells Stacy if she wants to continue to hide behind men, she doesn't need any help, but has some, as Sean O'Haire walks into frame.
A chaotic brawl from start to finish. Rection and Stamboli traded heavy blows in the ring while their respective factions jawed at each other on the floor. Stamboli used his freakish strength to military press Rection at one point, but the momentum was short-lived as Guido tried to trip Rection up. This sparked a full-blown melee on the outside between Cajun and Palumbo. Amidst the distraction, Stamboli went for a Diving Legdrop, but Rection moved causing Stamboli to crash into the mat. Reciton then hit a thunderous clothesline, and headed to the top. The General connected with the No Laughing Matter moonsault to get the win for the MIA.
It was fine. I feel like the tag division really has not got the attention it deserves under Shane McMahon's ownership. As much as everyone is doing their part, I'm ready to be done with this feud.
In the ring, its set up with a big red carpet and a throne with a crown on it. Steve Corino makes his way out and has a mic. Corino says he has proven to be the undisputed King of WCW, and no one is on his level. He takes time to make fun of Lawler at ringside. He goes to the throne and grabs the crown and demands Jerry Lawler come into the ring and put it on his head. Lawler is reluctant, but Corino starts taunting him more. Lawler eventually slowly gets into the ring and Corino holds the crown out to him which Lawler slowly takes. Corino sits on a throne and tells Lawler to put the crown on his head and then take a knee in front of the King of WCW. Lawler hesitates and Corino is getting frustrated. Corino rises up and says he beat Lawler's ass once, and he'll do it again, so coronate him now! Lawler drops the crown on the ground and Corino starts to go ballistic but Curt Hennig's music hits. Hennig runs down to the ring and gets in Corino's face. Corino stands toe to toe with Hennig for a second, before quickly sliding out of the ring and backing his way up the entrance ramp with a disgusted look on his face. Hennig and Lawler exchange a look in the ring as Hennig picks up the crown and places it on Lawler's head.
The main event started with a electric atmosphere. Storm ignored BG James’ attempt at a pre-match strategy meeting and steppd into the center of the ring declaring himself the starting man for his team. Storm and Kanyon kicked things off with a high-speed technical exchange, trading wristlocks and arm-drags until they hit a stalemate, bringing the Los Angeles crowd to their feet. The tension spiked when Mike Awesome tagged in. The former partners stood nose-to-nose in a tense standoff, but just as they looked ready to trade blows, Storm smirked and tagged out to a reluctant BG James. The Foundation quickly isolated James, grounding him with DDP’s rotating neckbreaker and a series of tandem strikes from Kanyon and Awesome. James eventually created some space with a desperation leaping clothesline, finally lunging to his corner for the hot tag. Booker T exploded into the ring, taking out Awesome with a flying forearm and planting Kanyon with a big spinebuster. He caught a charging DDP with a powerslam, and followed up by nailing Kanyon with a thunderous Scissor Kick. As Booker hooked the leg for what looked like the certain win, Storm stepped into the ring to complain to the official. Storm physically grabbed the referee to argue about an imaginary illegal tag, cutting off the count at two. When a frustrated Booker T stood up to confront him, Storm ignored his partner entirely, stepping onto and off the apron. After a few seconds of heated shouting, Storm simply shrugged and signaled for Dawn Marie. He turned his back on the match and walked up the ramp, leaving his team in a 3-on-2 disadvantage. In the chaos, Awesome and Kanyon dumped Booker over the top rope, leaving BG James alone to turn right into a Diamond Cutter from DDP. Page secured the three-count while Storm watched from the stage, looking completely unimpressed.
Great main event for Nitro! The dynamic between Storm and everyone else in the match was great to see as he really looked like the center of the universe with everyone seemingly having some form of dynamic with him. I thought the face turn was coming, but it didnt. Really curious where this is all going.
After the match, The Foundation celebrate as Booker T helps James from the ring and Lance Storm stares everyone down from the top of the ramp.