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
FEBRUARY 5, 1996
PHOENIX, ARIZ.
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE PRO WRESTLING TORCH NEWSLETTER (ISSUE #373)
Live in Lakeland, Fla.
-Eric Bischoff, along with Steve McMichael and Bobby Heenan, introduced the show once again (accurately) as “the most watched wrestling show each and every week”…
(1) Randy Savage (w/Woman and Elizabeth) pinned Chris Benoit to retain the WCW Hvt. Title. Benoit looked great dominating offense early. Savage later threw Benoit out of the ring, but at ringside Benoit reversed Savage into the ringpost. Savage made a comeback in the ring with a quick clothesline. Benoit backdropped Savage over the top rope and then did a diving plancha through the second and third ropes, but when Savage moved, Benoit hit the ground with a thud.
Savage then capitalized with a top rope elbow onto the back of Benoit’s neck in mid-ring. Ric Flair then came to ringside and grabbed Elizabeth. Savage left the ring to go after Flair. Woman then choked Savage from behind and Flair attacked Savage. Arn Anderson joined in with a two-on-one attack on Savage. The referee called for the bell at 8:00 as Hulk Hogan made the save with a chair.
Flair then came up from behind Hogan and opened up a cut on his forehead with a series of punches. The Giant then entered and rammed Hogan across the back with a pretty solid chairshot. Zodiac got in Giant’s way. Savage then made the save, grabbing the chair from Giant and clearing the ring. Savage confronted Elizabeth about not warning Hogan of Flair’s attack. Savage then called for paramedics.
(2) Kevin Sullivan & Hugh Morris fought Brian Pillman & Arn Anderson to a DDQ at 7:15. They brawled from the start with Pillman playing the usual crazed maniac heel. When Sullivan and Anderson brawled toward the locker room, someone behind a curtain bashed Anderson with a broom handle. Morris then hit a moonsault headbutt on Pillman. Morris then held Pillman as Sullivan whipped him. Pillman, making a miraculous comeback, rolled out of the ring and returned to the dressing room. Anderson walked back to ringside, but didn’t get in the ring. Really intense in spots, especially the shoot-like flurry between Sullivan and Pillman…
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)
(3) Ric Flair (w/Woman) beat Marcus Bagwell. During Flair’s ring intro, Paul Orndorff came to the announcing desk and said, “There’s a funny thing about payback. You never know when it’s gonna happen,” revealing he hit Arn with the broom. Bagwell dominated from the start. Bischoff said he doubted whether Pillman will still be in WCW come SuperBrawl. Bagwell caught Flair’s knees on a slingshot splash. At 6:41 Flair locked on the figure-four for the submission. Bagwell’s chest was red from chops. Flair refused to let go of the figure-four. Savage made the save…
(4) Sting & Lex Luger defeated The Road Warriors at 11:15 to retain the WCW Tag Titles. McMichael went on a tangent about how everybody watches races to see car wrecks and every week WCW provides viewers car crashes (or something). Luger hit a piledriver which obviously didn’t connect. He gloated and Hawk clotheslined him. At 3:00 Animal saved Hawk from a Sting scorpion. At 5:20 the signal went out. At 8:05 the power came back. Bischoff said the entire building lost power. “I wonder how that happened…
-Desperate people do desperate things. they say it’s lonely at the top. I think we have a lot of company.” McMichael chimed in, “I like the competition taking jabs at us. It means we’re on top. and they’re just trying to catch up.” Bischoff then said TNT master control was staying with the action because of the importance of the match. Bischoff later said, “Some people say you never know what’s going to happen. At Nitro you really never know what’s going to happen.” At 10:40 Sting and Hawk brawled at ringside getting a rise from the crowd. Animal meanwhile powerslammed Luger in the ring. Jimmy Hart gave Luger a huge piece of metal which he used to K.O. Animal for the pin… Hawk vowed revenge and said things were getting “extreme’…
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