WCW Nitro is back LIVE from the Bank of America Centre in Boise, Idaho! Halloween Havoc is looming! "Party Hard" by Andrew WK opens the show and Joey Styles & Jerry "The King" Lawler are calling the action as usual as Nitro takes over FX on Wednesday Night!
Booker T's music cuts off "Party Hard" and here comes Booker T! Booker is in the ring and quickly grabs a mic.
"Yo, hold up, cut the music! Billy Kidman, I know you’re back there hiding behind The Foundation, but you done messed up now, sucka! You didn't just step into my business, you cost me the World Heavyweight championship, again! I won't let some greasy punk slide after a stunt like that. Kidman, if you got any backbone at all, you’ll march your narrow behind down to this ring right now and take this whoopin' like a man! What’s the matter? You too busy polishing DDP’s boots? Since that coward won't show, I'm staying right here. I want a fight! I don't care who it is. Any sucka in the back looking for a beatdown, step through these ropes right now!"
There's a long pause and finally some music hits, and out comes Booker T's victim, I mean opponent, Adam Pearce.
The bell rings and Booker T and Adam Pearce lock up. Booker quickly takes control and has Pearce in a side headlock. Pearce tries to battle out, but Booker transitions into a Book End out of nowhere! 1-2-3!
30-seconds of standard lock up stuff, then one move and done. But the work was crisp and Booker T seemed fired up to elevate the short squash to okay levels!
After the match, Booker grabs a mic again and calls out Kidman again! But silence. Booker laughs and says, he knew Kidman was a coward all along. That's why he went to Shane McMahon and asked for a favour. At Halloween Havoc, Booker T can't compete for the Cruiserweight title, but, Shane McMahon has booked Billy Kidman vs. Booker T! and if Billy Kidman doesn't show, he will be stripped of the Cruiserweight title! "Now can you dig that? Sucka?"
Backstage, Scott Hudson is with Chavo Guerrero Jr. Chavo says he's dissapointed Kaz Hayashi has turned his back on him, after all he gave him. Before Chavo, Kaz was nothing, just a blob of wasted potential! But by Chavo's side, he gave Kaz purpose, keeping Chavo the WCW World Cruiserweight Champion. Kaz thinks he's so much better then that? Chavo challenges Hayashi to meet him 1-on-1 at Halloween Havoc!
Jazz and Shark Boy start things off, and it is all Jazz from the jump. She overpowers Shark Boy immediately, slamming him into the mat by his fin. Jazz lifts Shark Boy to this feet and nails a series of stiff forearms. Jazz sends Shark Boy into the ropes and hits him with a big powerslam on the rebound for a 2! Eventually, Shark Boy manages to tag in La Parka, and Corino enters for his team. The two trade strikes and La Parka gets the upper-hand and does a little strut. Corino cuts it off with a thumb to the eye, and hits a swinging neckbreaker for a 2-count. La Parka begins to fight back and gets the tag to Shark Boy! Shark Boy comes running in but straight into a super kick from Corino. Corino laughs and tags in Jazz. Jazz comes in and waits for Shark Boy to rise up before nailing a Sit-Out Facebuster Jazz Stinger and the going for the pin as Corino bashes La Parka off the apron. 1-2-3!
Well I wasn't expecting Fish Bones, but it served its purpose to try and help establish Jazz. Jazz beating Shark Boy works, and the pairing of Jazz & Corino is interesting, though I think Corino could be doing more, but I suppose being central to a feud with Laurer is something since she's probably one of the most recognizable names on the roster.
After the match, Joanie Laurer comes out. She has a mic at the top of the ramp. She says she's not going to run down there and beat anyone up, or jump anyone from behind, thats not her style. She likes to handle her business like a woman, face-to-face. Next week, she wants to face Jazz 1-on-1, and she'll even put her WCW Women's Championship on the line. Jazz screams "You're on" as we head to commercial.
Backstage, Lance Storm & Dawn Marie cut a promo on Rob Van Dam, saying he's a bingo hall refugee who was the last rat off a sinking ship, a ship Storm left long ago and solidified his spot as the best wrestler in the world. RVD has stuck his nose where it doesn't belong, so now Lance Storm is going to take his United States Championship!
The music of Sean O'Haire erupts through the Bank of America Centre sound system, and the "Psycho Killer" is marching to the ring with purpose. He grabs a mic and yells "DDP!" several times. He says he is not going to wait until Halloween Havoc and he wants to beat Diamond Dallas Page right now and take the World Heavyweight Champion, so get out here! There's a long silence and O'Haire is pacing like a caged animal in the ring when the music of Mike Sanders' hits. Here comes Sanders & Disqo! Sanders has a mic and says he is so dissapointed at what O'Haire has become. They were supposed to be the New Blood of WCW together, not he's a screaming lunatic. If O'Haire wants a fight. Disqo & Sanders are here to give it to him!
The bell rings and O’Haire doesn't even wait for a legal man, lunging at Sanders and throwing him into the corner with raw power. Disqo tries to help by jumping on O’Haire’s back, and the numbers game briefly works as they manage to double-team the big man, hitting a double dropkick that sends him to a knee. Sanders and Disqo trade quick tags, keeping O’Haire grounded with boots and forearm bashes. However, O’Haire’s rage is too much; he explodes out of the corner with a double clothesline that levels both men. He tosses Sanders over the top rope and turns his attention to Disqo, catching him with a devastating spinning roundhouse kick. With Disqo neutralized, O’Haire grabs Sanders as he tries to climb back in and drills him into the canvas with the Death Spiral. He grabs Disqo and nails a Death Spiral on him too! He stacks both men on top of each other and hooks them for the dominant pinfall.
A fine squash for O'Haire and I think he needs some extra momentum as DDP is a much bigger name them him. This helps. I can't say I'm a huge Disqo or Sanders fan, but so far in the Shane-Era WCW, I have found them oddly entertaining, so good job to them.
The big screen quickly flashes to Diamond Dallas Page. DDP reveals he is in Jersey and is taking the night off. He knew O'Haire was a crazed animal, and says learning some patience might do him well. DDP says O'Haire will have to wait until Halloween Havoc to wrestle DDP.. If he makes it to Philadelphia.
The match starts with Swinger trying to bully Hayashi with his size, but Kaz uses his agility to keep Swinger off balance. It’s an even affair for the first few minutes, with Swinger hitting a jawbreaker for a quick 2-count, but Hayashi fights back and hits a beautiful springboard dropkick for a 2 of his own. Swinger slows the pace with a chinlock, but the crowd starts a slow "Kaz" chant that gets the action moving again. Hayashi hits a series of rapid-fire strikes and a snap DDT for a 2-count. Swinger tries to fight back, but Hayashi keeps control, and plants him with a perfect Wrist-Clutch Kryptonite Krunch forthe victory!
The crowd seemed to cool on Hayashi a bit, but Swinger and Kaz had a great little match that eventually got the crowd into it. Was a good wrestling match, but the crowd just took to long to get into it.
Backstage, we see Booker T walking up-and-down the corridors looking for Billy Kidman. A random stage hand says he thinks he saw him that way. As Booker goes to look, Kidman & Diamond Dallas Page come out of nowhere and start attacking Booker! I thought DDP was in Jersey? They send Booker into a concrete wall, and Kidman looks like he is about to hit a Diamond Cutter as DDP's insistence, when Sean O'Haire comes barging onto the scene sending the Foundation members running. O'Haire helps Booker to his feet and breaths intensely!
We get a video from earlier in the day of BG James cutting a promo walking around the streets of Boise saying the quiet streets remind him of his earliest days in wrestling with his dad and brothers. He says WCW has given him new life, a life he isn't looking to waste.
The bell rings and it's RVD and Shane Helms starting things off with a fast sequence of arm drags and leapfrogs that ends in a stalemate ala RVD and Jerry Lynn, drawing a huge ovation. The tags start flying early as 3 Count uses quick-fire double teaming to keep the advantage until Mike Awesome tags himself in blindly. Awesome immediately shifts the tone, catching Evan Karagias midair and executing a tossing powerslam that sends the cruiserweight halfway across the ring. The Foundation settles into a rhythm, with Kanyon and Awesome taking turns dismantling Karagias while The Real Stuff watches from the apron, chirping at anyone who gets close.
The momentum shifts when Bagwell tags himself in, but his arrogance costs him as he stops to taunt the crowd, allowing Karagias to tag a charging Rob Van Dam. RVD works over Bagwell and hits a springback side kick and Split-Legged Moonsault for a quick 2 count that is broken up by Kanyon. Everyone pours into the ring and begins to brawl after the pinfall attempt leading to the referee losing conttrol of the match.
As the ref frantically tries to herd 3 Count back to their corner on the floor, Lance Storm suddenly hops the rail with a steel chair in hand. He levels Tommy Dreamer with a brutal shot to the skull before sliding toward the ring. RVD is perched on the top rope, looking for a Five-Star Frog Splash, but Storm blasts him across the spine with the chair. RVD crashes to the floor in a heap. While the referee is still distracted, Mike Awesome rolls the semi-conscious RVD out of the way. D'Lo Brown tries to intervene to steal the win, but Awesome sends him shoulder-first into the ring post. Seeing an opening, Karagias tries to capitalize with a desperate flying crossbody, but Kanyon catches him in mid-air and drives him into the mat with a devastating Flatliner. Kanyon hooks the leg just as the referee slides back in to count the one, two, and three.
A fine match. Nothing groundbreaking, but the tag division seems to be getting some renewed focus. Was kind of expecting The Real Deal to win, but I guess The Foundation is chasing down all the gold. Storm taking out RVD was an obvious twist, but a welcome one as I look forward to seeing two of the best wrestlers in the world tear it up soon.