25 Greatest Nitro Moments
In honor of a quarter century since Nitro premiered, here are the greatest moments in the history of WCW’s flagship show.
In honor of a quarter century since Nitro premiered, here are the 25 greatest moments in the history of WCW’s flagship show.
25. Coach Heenan (June 3, 1996)
As Ric Flair and Arn Anderson prepare to face Steve “That’s Our Mongo” McMichael and Kevin Greene at the Great American Bash, rumors are swirling that Bobby Heenan will manage the Horsemen for one night only. After all, The Brain and Mongo have trading verbal jabs at the commentary booth since Nitro began about eight months earlier. Heenan informs the world that he won’t be managing; instead, after being named a coach for the All-Madden Team, he’ll coach the Horsemen to victory. The fun swerve prompted a trademark Nature Boy celebration with champagne and the lovely ladies.
24. The Giant Joins NWO (September 2, 1996)
Here’s a swerve that wasn’t fun. After losing the World Heavyweight Championship to Hulk Hogan just three weeks prior, The Giant stunned the world by becoming the fifth member of the New World Order. Sure, the crowd was hot for it, but it made no sense! Supposedly, Davey Boy Smith was going to be the next member, but when contract negotiations fell through, Giant was inserted into the fold. Thus, beginning his legacy of the most face/heel turns in wrestling history.
23. “My Spot” Parody (September 1, 1997)
Sorry WCW loyalists, but this was hilarious. Yes, the Four Horsemen should have ran out at the end – it wouldn’t have taken away from the heat. Oh well, the Horsemen were robbed of justice and Kevin Nash was robbed of an Emmy.
22. Hold #712: Armbar (March 30, 1998)
Perhaps Chris Jericho’s most memorable WCW moment. Arguing that Dean Malenko only knows about 60 of his alleged 1,000 holds, Jericho claims to be the “Man of 1,004 Holds,” which he reads from a never-ending scroll.
21. Rodzilla (June 8, 1998)
As documented in The Last Dance, Dennis Rodman made headlines by blowing off practice during the NBA Finals to appear on Nitro. Naturally, the most colorful, controversial character in all of sports was schmoozing with Hollywood Hogan. At the end of the night, Rodzilla and the Hulkster attacked DDP with a couple of steel chairs.
20. Simply Ravishing (November 17, 1997)
Before the Raw/Nitro simulcast, Rick Rude was the only man to appear on both shows in the same night. Pissed off about the Montreal Screwjob, Rude followed Bret Hart to WCW, but only after filming a future episode of Raw. From DX to the NWO, oh, what a difference a day makes.
19. “We are the bad guys.” (December 11, 1995)
Brian Pillman was born to be a Four Horseman. Incredibly talented in the ring and on the mic, he ushered the greatest stable into the ‘90s. Look no further than what he caused to happen to Paul Orndorff. Pillman chastised Mr. Wonderful for softening over the years, prompting Orndorff to remind Pillman that he was only a Horseman because Orndorff declined. Pillman slapped the veteran and a brawl was on. Even though there was mutual respect between Anderson, Flair and Orndorff, the latter learned the hard way that if you lay your hands on a Horseman, you incur the wrath of all them. They pounded away before spike piledriving him on the concrete, ending Orndorff’s career.
18. NWO Run-In (August 26, 1996)
The New World Order was too much of a good thing. For years, every Nitro ended seemingly the same way – babyface about to beat an NWO member until the rest of the group hit the ring for the disqualification. It got old, but the first time it happened, it was glorious lunacy. Hogan, Nash and Hall laid out the Horsemen, spray painting everyone and chasing away the announcers as fans pelted the ring with garbage.
17. Sting’s Army (October 13, 1997)
NWO’s favorite trick was having somebody dress up as Sting, only to attack somebody else (usually a babyface) and pull the mask off Scooby Doo-style. Well, Sting gave the NWO a dose of its own medicine by sending an army of Sting impostors to the ring. One by one they were beaten down by powerhouse stable until Buff Bagwell punched a Sting that wouldn’t go down.
16. Spoiler Alert (September 11, 1995)
The opening salvo in the Monday Night War was Lex Luger walking out on the first episode of Nitro. The second shot was fired in the second episode of Nitro, as Eric Bischoff gave away the results of taped Raw with that trademark Easy E snark. “Shawn Michaels beats the big guy with a superkick that wouldn’t win a green belt at the local YMCA.”
15. Madusa (December 18, 1995)
This is what she’ll always be known for. The former Alundra Blayze shows up to Nitro as the WWF Women’s Champion and dumps the belt in the trash can. It was the third shot in the Monday Night War and the reason why Vince McMahon screwed Bret Hart in Montreal.
14. Goldberg’s Fatal Spear (March 29, 1999)
Although WCW dropped the ball with Bret Hart, he still had some classic moments during his two-year run. When Nitro came to Toronto in March 1999, Hart cut an amped up promo that had the Canadian crowd eating out of the palm of his hand. He challenged Goldberg to bring it on, and when Da Man entered the ring, he speared Hart. Of course, that was all part of the Hitman’s plan…
13. Bogus Sting (September 9, 1996)
Sting’s transformation was ignited by the NWO fooling everyone by hiring a fake Sting to join their crew. Ted DiBiase was shown talking to someone in a limo that sounded like Sting, so Lex Luger ran to the parking lot to confront DiBiase. A man dressed as Sting emerged from the limo and attacked his best friend, as the other NWO members joined the assault. For the next hour, the commentators and wrestlers were all in disbelief that WCW’s golden boy would sell out to the nefarious group. It was later revealed that it was NWO Sting using a tape recorder to hoodwink the Total Package. Sting wouldn’t forgive WCW for many months, hiding in the rafters and picking his spots.
12. Lawn Dart (July 29, 1996)
This angle revolutionized pro wrestling, breaking the fourth wall to present “real” moments during a universally-accepted “show.” A six-man tag team match between the Four Horsemen and the team of Randy Savage, Lex Luger and Sting is interrupted by Jimmy Hart, pleading with everyone to come to the parking lot. That’s where Arn Anderson and Marcus Alexander Bagwell have been laid out with baseball bats by Hall and Nash. Scotty Riggs checks on his partner, only to get whacked with a light by Hall. Rey Mysterio jumps off the railing of a trailer into Nash’s arms, getting thrown like a lawn dart into the truck. Cameras focused on the aftermath of this attack for like 20 minutes, emphasizing the carnage and how the NWO tore up the format of the show. Plus, Mysterio (with his mask off) revealed that there were four NWO members.
11. Kevin Nash Jumps Ship (June 10, 1996)
“Look at the adjective: play!” Forgive Big Sexy for sleeping through English class. After all, he helped changed the business by joining Hall as the Outsiders began the war against WCW.
10. President Flair (December 28, 1998)
Starrcade’s loss was Nitro’s gain as Ric Flair met Eric Bischoff in the ring one more time for control of WCW. Bischoff’s reign of terror finally came to an end as the Nature Boy whipped him from pillar to post. The Four Horsemen are ahead of the game at every step, hiding in Bischoff’s car to prevent him from escaping the arena and then cutting off the NWO before they can interfere. When The Giant gets past them and is about to attack Flair, Randy Savage makes a surprising return and low blows Giant, exacting revenge on Bischoff and the NWO for sidelining him months prior. Flair then locks in the Figure Four and Bischoff taps to surrender control and give fans the happy ending we’ve always wanted. Hail the chief, Wooooo!
9. DDP Turns Down NWO (January 13, 1997)
Nobody rejected the New World Order, except for Diamond Dallas Page. After spending 1996 getting over the Diamond Cutter and naturally winning over the crowd, DDP was recruited by Hall and Nash. However, he didn’t appreciate being asked to join after so many others. So, when the Outsiders gave him an NWO shirt and welcomed him with open arms, DDP responded…with a BANG! In one fell swoop, he was propelled to the top of the card as a main adversary along with The Giant and Lex Luger.
8. “The Following Announcement…” (July 29, 1996)
The vignette that redefined promos. Shot in black and white with frantic editing, camera cuts, sound bites and constant music underneath, this innovative production instantly made the NWO cooler than anything in wrestling. Hell, anything in pop culture. “What do ya bench, Lex?!”
7. Scott Hall Jumps Ship (May 27, 1996)
Answer: Steve Doll vs. The Mauler. Question: What match did Scott Hall interrupt when he changed pro wrestling forever? Decked out in denim and emerging from the crowd, Hall simply took the mic and promised that WCW was getting the war it always wanted. The WWF was finally invading (or so it seemed) and business was about to explode.
6. La Parka (July 7, 1997)
Randy Savage vs. La Parka seemed like your usual random match of contrasting styles that became synonymous with Nitro. But it was really a genius ploy by Diamond Dallas Page to not only trick the Macho Man, but to pin him cleanly and leave him laying without the NWO getting their hands on him. This is right up there with Eric Bischoff as the minister for greatest surprises in wrestling.
5. Arn Anderson Retires (August 25, 1997)
Has there ever been a better promo?
4. Luger Wins The Title (August 4, 1997)
The match was nothing special, but the finish was thrilling. After pounding on Lex Luger forever, Hollywood Hulk Hogan slammed him and hit the leg drop to get the pin, but Luger kicked out. Befuddled, Hogan went for another leg drop, but Luger rolled away. Hall, Nash and Savage dashed to the ring as we’d seen so many times before, but instead of a disqualification being called, Luger knocked them all out. He closelined Hogan and locked him in the Torture Rack, forcing the Immortal One to submit. Finally, Hogan and the NWO had been defeated! It’s one of the biggest pops in WCW history as a new champion is crowned and the locker room fills the ring to celebrates its hero.
3. Horsemen Reunion
After sitting home for months due to a legal battle with Eric Bischoff, Ric Flair returned to WCW in the heart of Flair Country (Greenville, SC) to one of the loudest ovations in wrestling history. Arn Anderson promised a Four Horsemen reunion, and after praising Dean Malenko, Chris Benoit, J.J. Dillon and That’s Our Mongo – all dressed to the nines as Horsemen are expected to do – he introduced the Nature Boy. Tears were in Naitch’s eyes as he strutted down the ramp and embraced his buddy in the ring. Blending reality into storyline as only Flair can do, he gave an impassioned promo that was interrupted by Bischoff. That’s when Flair went nuts, screaming “Fire me, I’m already fired!”
2. Lex Luger Jumps Ship (September 4, 1995)
The opening salvo in the Monday Night War. After wrestling at a WWF house show the previous night, Lex Luger returned to WCW for the inaugural episode of Nitro, immediately creating the show’s aura of unpredictability. You just had to watch Nitro because you never know what could happen! Walking out into the Mall of America, Luger’s appearance was subdued, but by the end of the night, he was challenging Hulk Hogan for their first match together.
1. Goldberg Dethrones Hogan (July 6, 1998)
Similar to Mick Foley winning the WWE Championship being the greatest moment in Raw history, Goldberg dethroning Hollywood Hulk Hogan is the greatest moment in Nitro history. Over 40,000 fans packed the Georgia Dome (30,000 tickets were sold before the match was announced) to witness the former Bulldogs defensive tackle beat the top dog of WCW and win his first World Heavyweight Championship. I still get goosebumps listened to the roar of the crowd as Goldberg hoists Hogan up for the Jackhammer as Heenan captures the moment “you’re career is on the line!” People still argue that WCW should have never given away this match on free TV, and judging by the company being out of business less than three years later, those people are right.
But that was the magic of Nitro – anything could happen on Monday nights.
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