Coming to you Live (via 16 years) from Charlotte, South Carolina its the #1 wrestling program in the world. Main event tonight is the announced Savage/Hogan vs Flair/Anderson tag match. Also tonight, Eddie Guerrero vs Steven Regal. Let's get it on.
The show kicks off with The Canadian Crippler Chris Benoit, accompanied by Brian Pillman, vs Das Wunderkind Alex Wright. Benoit, in true Horseman fashion, jumps Wright before the bell and begins to just suplex him into oblivion. He dumps him out the ring and lets Pillman choke Wright behind the ref's back. Alex Wright clambers back into the ring and starts putting on offense of his own. He tosses Benoit out to the floor this time and hits a top rope crossbody successfully. Wright and Benoit get back into the ring and the momentum stays with Wright, landing strike after strike, throw after throw. Wright eventually puts Benoit into a full Boston Crab while Pillman tries to get in the ring and break the submission up. Benoit refuses to tap so Wright transitions really seamlessly into an STF. Benoit powers out but Wright is still firmly in control. Wandering too close to Pillman's corner, Wright gets taken down and proceeds to leap over the top rope to take out Pillman. This allows Benoit the chance to recover. Following a series of reversals, Benoit decks Wright with a full nelson suplex. He picks up the pin and the win. I was definitely expecting a squash out of this match and I did not get one.
Eddie Guerrero then faces Lord Steven Regal, accompanied to the ring by the Earl of Eaton. They start out mat wrestling at a slower pace than in Regal's match with Benoit last week. Regal is getting crazy heat. Every time he stops beating on Eddie to check his wrist tape, he gets booed out the building. Regal keeps the advantage, outwrestling Eddie at every turn but also cheating a lot. A lot of thumbs to the eye and a lot of hair pulls. Eddie reverses a power bomb into a huge armdrag. He hits a sequence of dragon screw to standing dropkick to pinning combination. Regal gets out and thumbs Eddie's eye to reset the momentum. Eddie starts pulling reversals into more pinning combinations. Regal pulls out a half-nelson suplex to the sound of resounding "Eddie" chants. There are so many great pins and reversals in this match. Eddie catches a haymaker and turns it into a backslide to pick up the win. What an incredible match.
Mean Gene is down on the stage now, interviewing Sting and Luger. Sting says he's got some questions about the triangle match at Starrcade. Gene says he has some stills from that match and he rolls that beautiful bean footage. It clearly shows Luger grabbing Sting's leg and preventing him from getting in the ring, causing Flair to win the #1 Contendership via countout. Sting wants to know what Luger's reasons were. Luger says that he was injured and wanted Sting to help him to his feet. He also proposes that they form a permanent tag team. Sting agrees and they are scheduled to wrestle the Bluebloods at Clash of the Champions later this month.
Sting goes to the back, only to come back out again minutes later as its Diamond Dallas Page vs Sting for the United States title next. As they square off in the ring, DDP makes the ref check Sting's tights for weapons. As the ref has his back to DDP, he jumps Sting, rubbing his cigar in his face. They exchange some strikes, but then Sting deflects a double axe-handle from DDP and sends him careening into the ropes where he gets hung up sideways. A standing dropkick rockets him off the ropes and down to the floor. Sting then launches a crossbody that finds its mark. They get back in the ring and start running the ropes, dodging each other's attacks. Sting tries to leapfrog DDP and manages to sac himself on DDP's head. DDP hauls Sting up, nails him with a swinging neckbreaker then puts him in a headlock. This headlock goes on forever. They do that great "ref lifts a dude's arm up three times" spot, Sting obviously doesnt tap. Eventually the power of the fans cheering for Sting helps him overpower DDP. He lands a series of strikes, an atomic drop, a dropkick into the corner, a Stinger Splash, a legsweep. He goes in for the Scorpion Deathlock but DDP makes it to the ropes. Sting then reverses DDP's side suplex with a backflip, reverses a kick into a leg drag takedown, cinches the Scorpion Deathlock on in the middle of the ring and DDP has no choice but to tap, using both hands even.
Finally, the main event of the evening, the tag match between the team of the Macho Man Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan and the two elder Horsemen, Ric Flair and The Enforcer Arn Anderson. The match starts off as Savage vs AA, but Arn tags in Flair and Savage tags in Hogan. Hogan immediately whips Flair into the corner and calls him gay. Not kidding. Flair and Hogan then begin mat wrestling. This is almost surreal. They get sick of that and start brawling, which Hogan no-sells. AA runs in to stop Hulk from hulking up and Hogan is forced to single-handedly clear the ring of both Horsemen. Savage tags in and puts Flair in the Figure 4 Leglock. Anderson runs in to try to break it up, but Hogan intercepts and puts the Figure 4 on him! A thumb to the eye by both heels stops the submission attempts, and the Horsemen start working over Savage for the hot tag. This goes on forever. Nothing happens for five minutes plus a commercial break. Eventually Savage makes the hot tag and Hogan makes it in. He hulks up, he does his finisher sequence on the Enforcer. The ref starts counting the pin as Horsemen and guys from the Dungeon of Doom fill the ringside area and start brawling. Hogan wins and unceremoniously dumps Anderson out of the ring as Savage comes in to celebrate and the Giant comes in to demolish. He chokeslams both Savage and Hogan. He goes to attack them more but the Zodiac stops him again as Nitro goes off the air.
Official Brother Count: Zero, probably since neither Hogan nor Savage had promo time.
Did Hogan Go Over? Yes. He pins Anderson despite the schmozz, although he does eat a chokeslam.
The Pepe Award for Pepe's Costume: A little bomber jacket, because Pepe is "waiting for the flak to fly."
Move of the Show: Guerrero's power bomb reversal was really slick, as was the armdrag he transitioned into.
American Males Memorial Buff Bagwell Sighting: No Buff nor any Stuff this week.
American Males Memorial Mike Ditka Sighting: Mike Ditka interview PART TWO will be aired on this week's Saturday Night's Main Event.
The VK Wallstreet Award for The Boys Up North: Bischoff starts ranting during the Benoit match about "Titanic Sports" raising their PPV prices and charging people to take pictures of their belt, while WCW is giving away pay per views for free with Clash of the Champions.
The I Love the 90s Award for Relevancy: Tonight's episode of Nitro was brought to you by Karate Fighters by Milton-Bradley, Stetson Cologne, and Lawnmower Man 2: Beyond Cyberspace. God made him simple, Science made him a god.
Mongo Sucks: Mongo refers to Sting's bathing suit area as "the nether regions where you don't want anyone playing." Mongo calls the Four Horsemen "Scallywags."
Next Week: Meng vs Ric Flair, Lex Luger vs Randy Savage.
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