SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
The following report originally published 30 years ago this week in the Pro Wrestling Torch Newsletter paper copy…
KELLER’S WCW NITRO REPORT
SEPTEMBER 11, 1995
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE PRO WRESTLING TORCH NEWSLETTER (ISSUE #353)
Hogan vs. Luger ends with a stale run-in
First edition of Nitro scores strong ratings, thus prompting brash comments by Bischoff
By Wade Keller, Torch editor
It would have taken more guts than taking shots at the competition and it would have been more risky than plugging the competition’s main event. Hulk Hogan losing his title to Lex Luger would have put Monday Nitro on the map as the show where anything can happen, the show that makes news, and a show a fan can’t afford to miss. Instead, Hogan got his ego stroked and Nitro was “just another show” with better gift wrapping and more hype than the rest.
Had Lex Luger pinned Hulk Hogan on the second edition of Monday Nitro on Sept. 11, the following would have been the obvious benefits:
-Every wrestling fan who watched Nitro would be talking about it all week to their friends.
-Everyone who missed Nitro and watched Raw instead would be kicking themselves for missing a major newsworthy event.
-Lex Luger would immediately be established as a superstar, rather than just another musclehead Hulk Hogan wannabe to fall prey to Hogan’s superman comeback and legdrop. Maybe Luger would then be able to live up to his contract.
-A rematch on pay-per-view down the line would probably draw the best buyrate of the year.
Instead, WCW is left with the following:
-Nitro viewers have a bad taste in their mouths because the show ended with a disqualification and there is still no answer to whether Luger or Hogan is the better wrestler.
-If a viewer looks at wrestling from more of an insider’s perspective, they have a bitter taste because the booking obviously was designed primarily to feed Hogan’s ever fragile ego.
-Whenever a big match is announced for Nitro, as opposed to anticipating shocking pinfalls, viewers can assume copout finishes instead, thus not go out of their way to see the show.
(It should be noted that had Hogan done a job all of the previous times it seemed best for business, losing to Luger tonight couldn’t have had as much impact. That said, Hogan still should do a job if for no other reason to add a sense of vulnerability to his matches that is now missing.)
Instead, after Hogan executed his legdrop but before pinning Luger, the Dungeon of Doom interfered to end the match (see “Weekly TV Review,” pg. 3). After the finish, WCW tried to turn the copout finish into a money-making angle and made the best of the bad situation. Eric Bischoff announced early in the show that Vader had gone AWOL from WCW and hadn’t filed the proper paperwork to participate in WarGames (where’s Harley Race when you need him?) and said that Hogan’s team would thus be short a man at Fall Brawl
After the main event, Okerlund interviewed Hogan, Randy Savage, Sting, and Luger. Hogan said Luger gave him the match of his career, but then wondered aloud why the Dungeon of Doom attacked him and not Luger. Sting interrupted Hogan and suggested Luger could fill Vader’s slot at WarGames. Savage disagreed and said he’d rather fight three on four than wonder during the entire match whether Luger would turn on them. Jimmy Hart told Hogan he has the final vote, adding, “This is America and everyone’s innocent until proven guilty.” Hogan finally asked Luger to team with him. Luger said yes, but asked for a title shot down the line. As Savage paced in disgust, Hogan yelled, “See, he has an ulterior motive!” The show then ended.
The WCW staff was riding a high coming into this second program after the ratings came in for last week’s Nitro debut. It scored an impressive 2.9 rating (just a notch below Raw’s average this year) with a 4.5 share plus a 1.2 rating and 3.3 share for its replay three hours later. That was a great sign for WCW that viewers found them on the week Raw wasn’t on the air, not just because it was a new timeslot for WCW, but also because it was the first time wrestling was on TNT.
WCW rode that wave of confidence into this program as Bischoff took a number of shots at the WWF, which is characteristic for an underdog to do in these circumstances. Showing his brashness, he said before the V.K. Wallstreet (the new name being a shot at Vincent K. McMahon) bout: “By the way, in case you’re tempted to grab the remote control and check out the competition, don’t bother. It’s two or three weeks old. Shawn Michaels beats the big guy with a superkick he couldn’t earn a green belt for at a local YMCA. Stay right here. It’s live. This is where the action is.” McMichael then said: “Forget about that. They named it after a bunch of uncooked eggs? This show is sizzling, period.” Heenan did not participate in any shots at the WWF.
Before the main event, Bischoff said regarding Luger: “Only nine days ago he was wrestling for the WWF. He decided he didn’t want to play with kids anymore, so he decided to come to where the big boys play.” When Luger was on the defense in the match, Bischoff said, “Let’s face it, Luger is just not used to this caliber of competition. The WWF World Champion is a guy who barely made it past mid-card status here in WCW.”
In two weeks, Monday Night Raw will be live again. That will be the time, if not sooner via voiceovers this weekend, when Vince McMahon, Shawn Michaels, Diesel, and the collective WWF crew will have a chance to answer back if they choose, or stay above the fray, deciding to let Bischoff say whatever he wants and do their talking through their product. The form of the WWF’s response may depend on how Raw’s ratings fared this week.
FULL SHOW RUNDOWN
-The show opened with the usual high-tech opening followed by aerial shots of Miami from a distance over the ocean and right over downtown. Awesome footage…
-Eric Bischoff, Bobby Heenan, and Steve McMichael then intro’d the program from the new, sharp Nitro set. Footage aired of last week’s Lex Luger-Hulk Hogan confrontation. Bischoff then announced that Vader has gone AWOL and hadn’t filed the proper papers for the pay-per-view so it was now three-on-four for WarGames barring further word…
(1) Alex Wright beat Sabu via DQ in 6:08 on a reversed decision. On his first move, Sabu appeared to seriously aggravate his already injured tailbone. Sabu then hit Wright with a barrage of flying moves over the ropes to the floor and propelled off a chair and into the railing. Sabu missed some of his moves when Wright moved, also. Wright kept up with him, but when Wright went to the top rope, Sabu frankensteinered him off the top to the mat for the three count. After the match, Sabu grabbed a table and shoulder tackled Wright from the top rope through the table causing the reversed decision…
-After the first commercial, Gene Okerlund interviewed Ric Flair. After talking about his feud with Arn Anderson, Luger came to the ring. Flair then bragged about Luger. Luger just laughed and ambiguously said, “Naitch, you’re too much.” Flair laughed, as if that was a compliment, and said he’d continue to be too much. Luger then left the ring and they went to another commercial…
(2) Sting pinned V.K. (formerly Michael) Wallstreet at 4:00. Bischoff acknowledged and wondered aloud why Wallstreet changed his name. Bischoff revealed the results of the Michaels-Sid match upcoming on Raw and told fans not to switch channels. Sting won the match clean with a top rope shoulder tackle. Fast-paced, but nothing special…
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
Check out the latest episode of “PWTorch ’90s Pastcast” with Patrick Moynahan and Alex McDonald, part of the PWTorch Dailycast line-up: CLICK HERE to stream (or search “wade keller” on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other iOS or Android app to subscribe free)
-Bischoff plugged next week’s WCW Saturday Night packed with marquee matches…
(3) Randy Savage pinned Scott Norton at 5:35. Norton began with a bearhug. Savage responded by hitting Norton with an axe handle off the apron into the railing. When Norton returned to the ring, Savage came off the top rope but Norton caught him in a bearhug and threw him to the mat. The announcers immediately began selling Savage as having just injured his back. As Norton continued working over Savage’s back,
Bischoff suggested that WarGames might be four on two if Savage is too injured to participate next Sunday. When Norton dove off the top rope with a shoulder tackle, Savage moved and shoved him to the mat. Savage then made his comeback. The Shark (Bischoff called him Avalanche) followed by Kamala, Kevin Sullivan, Meng, and Zodiac ran to the ring. Avalanche got KO’d and covered Norton’s shoulders as Savage hit him with the top rope elbow and pinned him. Norton shoved the Dungeon members afterward, but nothing further came of it…
(4) Hulk Hogan fought Lex Luger to a no-contest at 5:04. After a few minutes of spots designed to get Hogan over by one-upping Lex, Luger applied the torture rack. Luger dropped the hold when he thought he won. When Luger went back to attack Hogan, Hogan began the superman comeback. Hogan gave Luger a boot to the face and a legdrop, but then the Dungeon of Doom ran in and interfered. They only beat on Hogan, not Luger. Sting and Randy Savage made the save.
-After a commercial, Okerlund interviewed the babyfaces…
-The show closed with Bischoff, McMichael, and Heenan. Bischoff gave a final plug to Fall Brawl and next week’s Nitro, mentioning only Johnny B. Badd vs. Paul Orndorff and The Blue Bloods vs. either The American Males or The Nasty Boys…
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