‘WCW SUPERBRAWL IX’ Recap + Review – Hogan vs. Flair, Goldberg vs. Bigelow, RIP Mysterio’s Mask

DATE: February 21, 1999
VENUE: Oakland Arena (Oakland, CA)
COMMENTATORS: Tony Schiavone, Bobby “The Brain” Heenan, & “The Professor” Mike Tenay
VIEWING METHOD: Peacock

SuperBrawl IX features a very fresh and never before seen main event as Hollywood Hogan defends the World Title against Ric Flair. About time! Also on the show Rey Mysterio Jr. put his mask on the line against Miss Elizabeth’s hair (they don’t wrestle each other, don’t get excited), new World Tag Team Champions are decided, and if you love nWo interference and shenanigans YOU ARE IN FOR A GREAT NIGHT.

CHAMPIONS

• WCW WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION: Hollywood Hogan
• WCW UNITED STATES HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION: “Rowdy” Roddy Piper
• WCW WORLD TELEVISION CHAMPION: “Big Poppa Pump” Scott Steiner
• WCW CRUISERWEIGHT CHAMPION: Kidman
• WCW WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS: Vacant

LINEUP

• Booker T vs. Disco Inferno (**3/4)
• Perry Saturn vs. Chris Jericho (***)
• Kidman [c] vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr. for the WCW CRUISERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (**)
• 2 OUT OF 3 FALLS KINDA: Chris Benoit & Dean Malenko vs. Curt Hennig & Barry Windham for the vacant WCW WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP (*1/2)
• MASK VS. HAIR: Rey Mysterio Jr. & Konnan vs. Kevin Nash & ??? (*3/4)
• Scott Steiner [c] vs. Diamond Dallas Page for the WCW WORLD TELEVISION CHAMPIONSHIP (***)
• Roddy Piper [c] vs. Scott Hall for the WCW UNITED STATES HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (3/4*)
• Goldberg vs. Bam Bam Bigelow (**1/4)
• Hollywood Hogan [c] vs. Ric Flair for the WCW WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (**)

*****

–Torrie Wilson peruses the room service menu, dressed only in a towel. She teases the camera, hand extends to give her a ticket to SuperBrawl which she gets REAL excited about and runs off to figure out what to wear. K.

-Schiavone welcomes home the audience and hypes up tonight’s big Hogan/Flair main event alongside Tenay and Heenan. Schiavone takes it to a hype video for the finals of the World Tag Team Championship tournament, which will be a 2 out of 3 Falls Match between Chris Benoit & Dean Malenko and Curt Hennig & Barry Windham. 

–”Mean” Gene Okerlund is standing by on the entrance stage with the new World Tag Team Championship belts in a glass case…which he will be talking about on the WCW HOTLINE, GET YOUR PARENT’S PERMISSION BEFORE CALLING.

—

Booker T vs. Disco Inferno

Disco Inferno is now a full-fledged member of the New World Order after spending some time being Kevin Nash and Scott Hall’s flunky/gopher. He got on Booker’s bad side leading to this match, disrespecting him while he was talking with his estranged brother Stevie Ray (a member of the nWo Black & White). 

Both men play to the crowd, Booker getting the chairs and Disco getting the boos(-urns). Booker catches Inferno with a hip toss, crowd chanting “DISCO SUCKS” and raising the roof. Booker lays into Inferno with a series of forearms, Inferno catches him with a kick and a running neckbreaker. Inferno decides to showboat instead of go for the win, allowing Booker to get back to his feet and reset. Inferno escapes a hammerlock with an elbow and connects with an armdrag, continuing to frustrate his opponent while also not taking the match seriously. Booker makes him pay with a clothesline and series of rights followed by a one-shoulder back body drop. Booker cracks Inferno with a pair of chops and a corner clothesline, Inferno ducks a clothesline but doesn’t duck a flying forearm and Booker covers for the 1…2…kickout. Inferno clubs Booker with a pair of forearms and slaps on a sleeperhold, Booker escapes but misses the Harlem Sidekick and Inferno sends him to the floor with a clothesline. Inferno continues showboating but remembers to also execute a move, dropping a flying elbow for a two-count. Booker regroups and drops Inferno with a series of kicks, concluding with the AX KICK. Inferno stuns Booker with an inverted atomic drop, Booker catches a double axhandle attempt and turns it into a spinebuster. Inferno dodges another Harlem Hangover and turns Booker inside out with a lariat, Booker escapes the Chartbuster and hits a belly-to-back suplex. SPINEROONIE into the Harlem Sidekick. Inferno meets Booker on the buckles, Booker shows him off and hits the Harlem Hangover (senton legdrop) for the 1…2…3!

Booker T defeated Disco Inferno via pinfall (9:19)

• JON’S THOUGHTS: Good match to open the show and to get the crowd fired up, I forgot just how painful the Harlem Hangover used to look/probably feel. He landed FLUSH on Disco’s poor face. Disco is one of WCW’s unsung midcard heroes and while there’s a lot of bad you can say about him now, I can’t ever get mad at his body of work. I loved the character then and continue to do so now. Also WCW giving him the Stone Cold Stunner as a finisher is a hilarious slap in the face to the WWF. (**3/4)

—

Perry Saturn vs. Chris Jericho [w/ Ralphus & Scott Dickinson]

Jericho beat Saturn in a “Loser Must Wear a Dress” match last month at Souled Out, and Saturn has held up his end of the bargain (even wearing eyeliner to go along with it). If he can beat Jericho tonight, however, the stipulation will reverse and JERICHO will be the one stuck wearing a *GASP* dress, much like his bodyguard Ralphus who is dolled up tonight like a First Lady. Jericho has a plan though as disgraced referee Scott Dickinson, the man who cost Saturn the match at Souled Out, has returned from a 30 day suspension and is the referee for this bout. I don’t want to say they’re in cahoots but they did walk to the ring together so…hmmmm.

Jericho gets on the mic and tells Saturn he looks ridiculous and asks if he knows how much of a moron he is. Jericho calls him a cross-dressing freak and an embarrassment to everyone. Saturn responds with a stiff clothesline and a back body drop, sending Jericho scurrying to the floor. Saturn follows him out, sending Jericho up and over the guardrail into the front row, Saturn launches off the rail with a double axhandle and they briefly brawl in the crowd. Action moves back to ringside, Jericho reverses a whip and sends Saturn into the guardrail and the steps. Saturn grabs a full nelson, sends Jericho crashing to the canvas with a T-Bone suplex and a release Northern Lights suplex. Jericho dodges a kick and connects with a chop, Saturn dodges a dropkick and catapults him to the floor, Saturn following up with a slingshot crossbody. Saturn rolls Ralphus into the ring and strips Ralphus out of his dress to a pop from the crowd, Jericho takes advantage of the distraction and dropkicks Saturn from behind. Jericho tries a one-foot cover, Saturn grabs the ankle to trip him up and rams his head repeatedly into the canvas. Saturn rolls to the floor, Jericho connects with a missile dropkick from the top turnbuckle, landing on his feet. Jericho takes too long playing to the crowd and Saturn easily dodges a corkscrew splash and connects with a scoop slam. Saturn bounces off Jericho with a Frog Splash and signals for the Death Valley Driver, Jericho rolls him up and uses the ropes for the 1…2…Saturn kicks out! Saturn traps Jericho in the corner and wraps his head in the dress for some count along rights, Jericho sends him to the canvas and goes for the Liontamer, Saturn counters into a roll-up for the 1…2…Jericho kicks out! Jericho knocks Saturn off the buckles and connects with a crossbody, Saturn rolls through and locks Jericho in the RINGS OF SATURN. Jericho struggles but manages to get his feet on the ropes. Saturn makes him pay with a sort-of Michinoku Driver, Jericho dodges a Lionsault and hits one of his own for the 1…2…Saturn with the shoulder up! Jericho escapes the DVD, Saturn ducks a spin kick and this time hits the DEATH VALLEY DRIVER…but instead of pinning Jericho HITS DICKINSON WITH THE DEATH VALLEY DRIVER AS WELL. Saturn poses for the crowd then…walks out of the match, telling the camera “LIFE’S A DRAG”? Jericho and Dickinson wake up, Dickinson calls for the bell and raises Jericho’s arm in victory.

Chris Jericho defeated Perry Saturn via countout (11:21)

• JON’S THOUGHTS: Crowd was RED HOT for this one, goofy stipulations be damned, and they put on a damn good match. Not all of it hit, some obvious timing issues and whatnot, but I ended up getting REAL invested in this anyway. Could’ve done without the “HA HA MAN IN A DRESS” jokes and the very real animosity between Schiavone and Heenan on commentary (borderline UNCOMFORTABLE to hear Schiavone dress Heenan down like he was some rank amateur) but is what it is. Saturn walking out instead of getting his revenge via pinfall was a surprising way to end it, guess he’s cool with wearing a dress after all. And why wouldn’t he be? Them sh*ts is comfortable. (***)

—

–Rey Mysterio Jr & Konnan talk about their upcoming Mask vs. Hair match at the WCW.com Booth. Konnan says they will expose The Outsiders’ main weakness: their lack of heart. Mysterio will keep his mask, Miss Elizabeth will lose her hair.

-FEUD RECAP: Diamond Dallas Page vs. Scott Steiner. Build includes Steiner THROWING KIMBERLY PAGE OUT OF A MOVING VEHICLE. Jesus.

—

Kidman [c] vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr. for the WCW CRUISERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP

Guerrero failed to avenge the “death” of Pepe last month at Souled Out, coming up short against NOR-MAN SMY-LAY. He seems much less insane here, and a little more cocky like his uncle Eddy. Kidman retained his Cruiserweight Championship last month in a Four Corners Match that made little sense but had some flippy-doos so all is forgiven. Apparently they also gave being a tag team a go but it didn’t end up working out so now they hate each other, grrrr. The key to victory for Chavo is to not go for a power bomb.

Guerrero backs Kidman into the ropes and slaps at him, begging off to avoid repercussions. Kidman responds with a rana, armdrag, and dropkick that sends the challenger scurrying to the floor to regroup. Schiavone announces that Lex Luger won’t be able to wrestle tonight but Kevin Nash has another partner ready for his match against Mysterio & Konnan. Guerrero goads Kidman to the floor, Kidman reverses a whip and sends him into the guardrail. Guerrero begs off and asks for a handshake, Kidman pulls him into a short-arm clothesline and series of strikes. Kidman and Guerrero fight on the apron, Guerrero pulls him off and into the guardrail, a cool move I don’t think I’ve seen before. Guerrero connects with a brainbuster but only gets a two-count so he slows things down with a rear chinlock. Guerrero sends Kidman to the floor with an elbow as Heenan (possibly drunkenly) rambles as his partners completely no-sell it. Oof that was awkward. Guerrero misses a corner splash, Kidman comes off the top with a crossbody for the 1…2…not yet. Kidman charges in, Guerrero catches him with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Kidman counters a piledriver with a backdrop, Guerrero recovers quickly and connects with a belly-to-back suplex. Guerrero tries a Frog Splash, Kidman hops to his feet and catches him on the way down with a dropkick. Kidman floats over Guerrero, Guerrero sends him into the buckles with a drop toehold. Guerrero connects with a flying hurricanrana from the top for the 1…2…Kidman kicks out! Kidman flips out of a suplex and connects with a Sky High for the 1…2…Guerrero kicks out! Guerrero trips Kidman on the buckles and drills him with a hanging DDT for the 1…2…Kidman kicks out. Is this an audience or an oil painting, these f*cks aren’t even paying attention! Guerrero stupidly goes for a power bomb, KIdman counters with a faceslam to the shock of no one and hits the Shooting Star Press for the 1…2…3!

Kidman [c] defeated Chavo Guerrero Jr. via pinfall to retain the WCW CRUISERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (8:26)

• JON’S THOUGHTS: This match is…fine. By the book Cruiserweight Title match, kinda felt like they were just going through the motions which may have been brought on by a crowd that didn’t seem to give much of a damn. Perfectly Acceptable Wrestling. SuperBrawl IX has a way better undercard than Souled Out. (**)

—

-A painfully 90s highlight video plays hyping tonight’s big Goldberg/Bam Bam Bigelow match.

—

2 OUT OF 3 FALLS, KINDA
Chris Benoit & Dean Malenko vs. Curt Hennig & Barry Windham for the WCW WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP

After the initial tournament was stopped due to constant nWo interference, a new double elimination tournament was held to crown new Tag Team Champions. Windham & Hennig won the “Winner’s Bracket” and by virtue of going undefeated only need to beat their opponents, Benoit & Malenko, once to become champions. If Benoit & Malenko hope to become champs, they’ll need to beat Hennig & Windham twice in a row as they already have one loss in the tournament (to this same team). Not convoluted but very unnecessary considering the Tag Team division was weak as f*ck at that point in time (and they STILL broke up The Faces of Fear in this tournament). In addition to tag team gold Benoit & Malenko are out for revenge after Windham & Hennig joined the nWo in humiliating Horsemen leader/WCW President Ric Flair’s son David last month at Souled Out. 

Windham tries to run, Malenko chases him out and back in and they reset. Malenko brings Windham to the canvas with a drop toehold into a chancery, Windham counters into a hammerlock but Malenko escapes. This one is starting pretty slow so buckle up, we’re probably in for a long one. Benoit and Hennig tag in, Hennig chops Benoit and Benoit immediately chops back, sending him flying to the canvas. They lock knuckles, Benoit bridges up to show off his neck strength and counters into a straitjacket, Hennig makes it to the ropes but Benoit gets in a cheapshot anyway. Benoit slaps Hennig, Hennig charges in a donnybrook breaks out until Hennig gets sent to the floor with a hard knife-edged chop, Windham running interference to prevent follow-up. Windham tags in, Malenko tags as well and misses a dropkick I guess? Hennig runs in, Malenko attacks him and Windham attacks from behind, connecting with a vertical suplex for a two-count. That was…weird. Windham tosses Malenko across the ring, Hennig tags in and they drop him with a glancing blow of a double clothesline for a two-count. Malenko and Hennig do a little mat RASSLIN, Hennig distracts the ref while Windham rakes the eyes/nose of Malenko. Malenko fights out of the corner and makes the tag to Benoit who fights both men, hitting Hennig with a backbreaker for the 1…2…Windham makes the save. Horsemen work Hennig over in the corner, Malenko connects with a corner clothesline followed by a high-angle belly to back suplex for the 1…2…Windham makes the save again. Benoit drops Hennig then drops Windham to prevent a third save and comes off the top with a flying headbutt for the 1…2…Windham pushes Benoit off. Malenko gets the tag and covers but the ref is too distracted with Windham, giving Hennig time to kick out by the time the ref gets around to making the count.

Hennig catches Malenko with a low-blow IN FULL VIEW OF THE REFEREE and tags out to WIndham, who connects with a gutwrench slam for the 1…2…Benoit pulls him off to make the save. Windham works Malenko over on the floor but makes an arrogant cover that is easily kicked out of. Hennig tags in and what sounds like a “BORING” chant breaks out in the crowd. Oof. Benoit gets the tag and drills Hennig so hard he timbers to the ground Flair Flop-style. Hennig surprises Benoit with an inverted atomic drop, Windham tags in and connects with the Superplex, floating over into the lateral press for the 1…2…Malenko pulls him off to prevent the pin I guess? Camera didn’t catch it and it seemed messy more than anything. Hennig & Windham connect with a double suplex, Hennig covers for the 1…2…Benoit kicks out. Hennig slows things down with a head vice, wrenching on the neck of Benoit and driving a knee into the side of the head. Benoit escapes a slam and counters with a release German suplex. Malenko gets the “hot” tag and connects with dropkicks and a double noggin knocker. All four enter the ring, Malenko rolls through a sunset flip and locks in the Texas Cloverleaf but Hennig breaks it up with a double axhandle. Benoit attacks Hennig and Malenko locks in the Cloverleaf again and WINDHAM taps! CHRIS BENOIT & DEAN MALENKO WIN THE FIRST FALL

Instead of a rest period Benoit & Malenko keep the attack going. Malenko tries to put Windham back in the Cloverleaf but Windham uses his own belt to CHOKE THE LIFE OUT OF HIM for the 1…2…3! CURT HENNIG & BARRY WINDHAM WIN THE SECOND FALL AND MATCH.

Curt Hennig & Barry Windham defeated Chris Benoit & Dean Malenko via pinfall to win the WCW WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP (20:35 total)

• JON’S THOUGHTS: The first fall was a long and hard-fought (and long) match where Benoit & Malenko fought like hell (after a very long time) to get the victory…only to get duped by Windham in SECONDS. Amazing. The booking was stupid as sh*t, also that first fall/match was VERY long and mostly boring/awkward, but man I laughed out loud when Windham choked Malenko out and got that second fall win SUPER quick. Tremendous. And long. (*1/2)

—

-VIDEO: Scott Hall beats Chris Benoit to become the #1 contender to the U.S. Title thanks to the help of Kevin Nash. President Ric Flair forces then-champion Bret Hart to defend against Roddy Piper despite being “injured” and Piper gets the win thanks to…MadTV’s Will Sasso. OH MY GOD I forgot about that. Loooooord.

—

(MYSTERIO’S) MASK VS. (ELIZABETH’S) HAIR
Rey Mysterio Jr. & Konnan vs. The Outsiders (Scott Hall & “Big Sexy” Kevin Nash) [w/ “The Total Package” Lex Luger & Miss Elizabeth]

Lucha de Apuestas comes to WCW as Mysterio puts his mask on the line against Liz’s hair to settle the blood feud between him and Konnan and the nWo. Hall replaces Luger, who was slated to wrestle in the match (and was the big instigator of the feud) until tearing his bicep in a backstage attack by Mysterio on one of the WCW TV shows (probably Nitro). Hall is also set to take on Roddy Piper for the U.S. Title later tonight, and to be honest I am SHOCKED they convinced Hall to work twice on the same show. Tenay brings up the fact that Mysterio’s peer, Juventud Guerrera, lost HIS mask at last year’s SuperBrawl. WAY TO JINX HIM, TENAY. Heenan is VERY anti-mask and doesn’t understand lucha libre, which he gets RIPPED APART over but he manages to save the segment. Why is everyone such a goddamn dick?!?

Hall showcases his power advantage to start, mocking Mysterio as he throws him around off a couple of lockups. Mysterio refuses to be intimidated, escaping a slam and taking Hall to the canvas with a dropkick. Mysterio catches Hall charging with a shot to the gut, following up with a springboard legdrop to the back of the head and even takes a shot at Nash after flattening Hall with another splash. Unfortunately Mysterio’s luck runs out and Hall regains control with a fallaway slam. Nash, who the crowd still LOVES, gets the super hot tag and throws Mysterio halfway across the ring. Mysterio tries a sunset flip but Nash easily goozles out and throws him back to the canvas as the crowd goes NUTS. I…don’t think that’s the reaction they were looking for. On paper anyway I’m sure Nash didn’t give a sh*t one way or another. Hall tags back in and connects with a corner clothesline, signaling for the finish. Mysterio escapes the Outsider’s Edge and makes the tag to Konnan who lays into both Outsiders, sending Nash to the floor with a dropkick. Nash gets the last laugh, clobbering Konnan from behind, and Hall drives him to the canvas with a lariat. Outsiders work on wearing Konnan down, Nash distracting the ref so Hall can connect with a cheapshot clothesline. Konnan fights out of the Outsiders’ corner and he and Hall drop one another with a double clothesline.

Nash gets the tag but so does Mysterio, who hits both Outsiders with springboard dropkicks and a spinning heel kick to Nash. Konnan re-enters the ring and monkey flips Mysterio into Nash. Luger pulls Konnan out and rams him into the steps behind the ref’s back. Mysterio catches Nash with a springboard moonsault, Liz distracts the ref as Mysterio gets the visual pin; Hall clubs him from behind and hits the Outsider’s Edge, placing an out cold Nash on Mysterio for the 1…2…3. LOL.

The Outsiders defeated Rey Mysterio Jr. & Konnan via pinfall (11:00)

• JON’S THOUGHTS: Outsiders dominated the match, with Mysterio & Konnan getting a tiny bit of offense in before the DAMNED NUMBERS GAME and all that. They gave Mysterio a visual pin at least but it’s not enough to stem the blow of this finish. So lame. Didn’t even have the decency to make it much of a competitive match. (*3/4)

Nash comes to, and the nWo demand Mysterio to take his mask off. Konnan undoes the strings and Mysterio pulls his mask off, revealing… 12 YEAR OLD BOY? Just kidding, he’s an adult and he looks fine. What isn’t fine is ALL THE F*CKING MONEY WCW DECIDED THEY WANTED NOT TO MAKE FROM SELLING MASKS. Ugh. All-time awful decision, no wonder WWE pretended it never happened.

—

“Big Poppa Pump” Scott Steiner [c] vs. Diamond Dallas Page for the WCW WORLD TELEVISION CHAMPIONSHIP

Steiner tried to get with Page’s wife Kimberly and when that didn’t work out he threw her out of a moving car so this feud is PERSONAL or whatever. It’s 20+ years later and Steiner still looks inhuman at this stage of his career; his muscles have muscles, each with their own tiny muscles. Unreal. UNREAL. Steiner makes his entrance before his fellow Wolfpac friends leave so he Too Sweets ‘em on the way in as best friends do, then brings one of his “hooches” from ringside into the ring for a pre-match promo stating he could steal anyone’s girlfriend. Steiner tells DDP it’s not his fault that his wife digs him, AND NOW IT’S EVEN MORE PERSONAL. Page doesn’t even waste time with his usual entrance routine, marching right to the ring ready to fight.

Page chases Steiner around the ring, throwing him into the guardrail. Steiner gets tossed in and tries to leave out of the other side, but Page pulls him back in and lays into him with a series of strikes and stomps. Steiner pokes Page in the eye, Page catches him charging with a boot and they brawl back onto the floor. Steiner rakes the eyes once more and then sends Page off the apron and into the guardrail. Page stuns Steiner by dropping him throat-first across the top rope and a follow-up top rope flying clothesline. Steiner rolls to the floor and out comes his super best friend Buff Bagwell to come help his friend. Page takes them both (HE’S HARDCORE), laying them both out with a double clothesline. Page clears Bagwell off the apron, Steiner clobbers him from behind. Page gets sent to the floor, Bagwell throws him into the guardrail as this is now pretty much a handicap match. Steiner levels Page with a STEINERLINE and drops an elbow, but Page kicks out of the lateral press so Big Poppa Pump continues the attack, Bagwell getting his licks in when he can. Page tries to mount a comeback but gets caught with a boot and a belly-to-belly suplex out of the corner for the 1…2…Page kicks out, Steiner argues with the ref and Page rolls him up for the 1…2…no! Some cool kid is real excited about showing off his “Diamond Dallas Dickhead” sign on camera. Bagwell distracts the ref and Steiner cracks a chair across Page’s back but the ref doesn’t call for a DQ despite obviously hearing it. Bagwell pulls out a pair of pliers and cuts off the top and middle turnbuckles. The ref finally decides enough is enough and ejects Bagwell from ringside. 

Steiner argues with the ref then decides to pose for some reason, Page clotheslines him to the floor and follows up with a slingshot splash. Steiner refuses to sanction that buffoonery though, throwing Page with reckless abandon into the steps. Ref tries to stop things, Steiner chases him around the ring (HA) and right into a clothesline from Page! Steiner crotches Page on the top turnbuckle and hits a top rope FRANKENSTEINER for the 1…2…PAGE KICKS OUT and catches Steiner off the ropes with a Diamond Dream. Page takes forever to cover though and Steiner manages to kick out before the third slap. Steiner ends Page head-first into the exposed top turnbuckle then repeatedly rams Page back first into the two exposed buckles before throwing him to the canvas like nothing. Page tries to fight out of the Recliner, but Steiner wrenches it in and he passes out from the pain.

Scott Steiner [c] defeated Diamond Dallas Page via ref stoppage to retain the WCW WORLD TELEVISION CHAMPIONSHIP (13:53)

• JON’S THOUGHTS: Okay we’re back on track, this match kicked ass. I loved how intense it all felt, DDP’s rage felt very real and he was great at trying to overcome the odds against Steiner himself as well as the interference of Bagwell. THAT DAMNED NWO NUMBERS GAME THOUGH. Valiant effort by DDP, but he just couldn’t handle the pain of…a Steiner Recliner that wasn’t really locked in well but whatever it worked moving on I’m just glad we finally got another decent match. (***)

DDP leaves on a stretcher, courtesy of the WCW trainers and EMTs. Luckily for him this isn’t 1991 and he wasn’t wrestling Sid Vicious.

—

–Mark Madden interviews Bam Bam Bigelow for WCW.com ahead of his long-awaited match with Goldberg.

—

“Rowdy” Roddy Piper [c] vs. Scott Hall [w/ Disco Inferno] for the WCW UNITED STATES HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP

As seen in an earlier video package Piper became the United States Champion by beating Bret Hart on an episode of Monday Nitro, thanks in part to interference by MadTV’s Will Sasso. I didn’t have to recap this again but the fact that this is how the title changed hands is SO WEIRD that I had to do it for myself. Hall helped Kevin Nash claim Rey Mysterio Jr. ‘s mask and after a LONG attempt by Disco to get him to come out Hall finally makes his way to the ring. 

Hall shoves Piper, Piper slaps him back and uses his kilt to choke Hall. Piper lays into Hall with a series of jabs, Hall falls to the canvas and Piper slaps at him to get back to his feet. Hall tries to make fun of Piper, Piper surprises him with a neckbreaker for a two-count. Piper clears Disco off the apron and catches Hall with a right hand followed by atomics drops inverted and regular. Hall grabs the tights and sends Piper to the floor, Disco distracts him and Hall attacks from behind, sending him into the steps. Piper absorbs a series of jabs and connects with a low blow IN FULL VIEW OF THE REF, Hall responds with a low blow of his own and they both crumble to the canvas. Hall puts Piper in a tree of woe and distracts the ref so Disco can choke him and get his cheapshots in. Piper manages to get himself unhooked, Hall congratulates him with a right hand and abdominal stretch. Disco helps Hall with extra leverage, ref breaks it up and Piper escapes with a hip toss. Piper hops on Hall’s back and locks in a Sleeperhold. Hall almost fades and motions for Disco to run in. Kevin Nash runs in as well, Piper stops him from getting in the ring but Hall rolls him up, feet on the ropes, for the 1…2…3.

Scott Hall defeated Roddy Piper [c] via pinfall to win the WCW UNITED STATES HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (8:21)

• JON’S THOUGHTS: Roddy Piper is one of my favorite wrestlers of all-time, but man it hurts to see him forcing himself to keep wrestling despite being obviously hurt and unable to go the way he used to anymore. Piper had some fun moments of cheating both blatant and hidden but this was a rough watch. Hall did what he could but this…yeah. Oof. (3/4*)

Piper knocks Hall out of the ring and refuses to give him the United States Title, so Hall gets on the mic and tells the ref to tell him who the new champ is (he doesn’t, at least not on mic). Hall enters the ring and tells Piper to give him the title, Piper asks the ref if this is true which it is, and throws the belt at the feet of Hall. Hall picks it up and tries to hit Piper with it, but Piper ducks and clears him from the ring, taking the belt back once again. Disco Inferno grabs the other half and snatches it out of his hand, The Outsiders surround Piper. Piper tries to fight them off but can’t so he runs for it and yells something dumb in the mic before leaving.

• JON’S THOUGHTS: Lots of nonsense to make sure the fans know Piper is still a tough guy and didn’t lose for real or whatever, or at least I think that was the intent. Read to me like the actions of a sore loser.

—

Goldberg vs. “The Beast from the East” Bam Bam Bigelow

Bigelow came to WCW in late-1998, immediately going after then-World Champion Goldberg but they never ended up having a match for the title as the company switched gears and crawled back to the nWo well. Bigelow and Goldberg have crossed paths since then, with Scott Hall (the man who cost Goldberg the title) involved, but have not had a proper singles match…until now. This could’ve been a PPV main event during Goldberg’s World Title reign and I’m kind of bummed it isn’t.

Goldberg and Bigelow lock up, the former backs the latter into the corner. Ref tries to break them up, Bigelow cheapshots him and knocks him over with a shoulder tackle, but Goldberg gets right back up and slams Bigelow, sending the Beast from the East to the floor to take a powder. Bigelow reverses an Irish whip, Goldberg sends him to the canvas with a jumping shoulderblock, then follows up with a fireman’s carry into a cross armbreaker but Bigelow quickly gets to the ropes. Goldberg sends Bigelow back to the floor with a clothesline, Bigelow pulls him out to the floor and works the left knee over, continuing the focus as they re-enter the ring with a toehold of sorts. Goldberg tries to counter out with a key lock so Bigelow relinquishes the hold to remove himself from that situation and slows it back down with a chinlock. Goldberg almost escapes, Bigelow sends him crashing back to the canvas and stomps the knee before reapplying the hold. Nothing makes a chinlock more effective than a stomp to the knee, let me tell you. Goldberg powers to his feet and escapes with a belly-to-back suplex, the weight of Bigelow seemingly hurting his knee even more. Bigelow slams Goldberg and connects with a Flying Headbutt for the 1…2…Goldberg rolls Bigelow off to avoid getting pinned. Bigelow goes for a moonsault, Goldberg pulls him off the buckles and goes for the Spear but Bigelow evades and rolls to the floor. Nice. Bigelow clubs Goldberg, Goldberg ducks a clothesline and this time hits the Spear! Goldberg teases a Jackhammer but superkicks him instead followed by a second Spear and THIS TIME hits the Jackhammer for the 1…2…3.

Goldberg defeated Bam Bam Bigelow via pinfall (11:38)

• JON’S THOUGHTS: Started off hot, got a little dull in the middle, but picked up in the end with Goldberg’s last few moves. Bigelow is the perfect opponent for Goldberg, with his size being a big advantage not to mention his freakish athleticism, and I think he got a decent enough match out of him. Commentators made a BIG DEAL about this match being the only reason Bigelow came to WCW, so uh…not sure what he’s going to do now. Awkward. (**1/4)

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Hollywood Hogan [c] vs. “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair for the WCW WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP

Hogan won back the World Title at the first Monday Nitro of 1999 during the infamous “Fingerpoke of Doom, merging his nWo with the Wolfpac to create a new supergroup and creating a new reign of terror for WCW. Flair, the President of WCW by virtue of his win over Eric Bischoff at Starrcade 1998, has been combatting the New World Order the best he can but they made it personal last month, attacking his young son David Flair after their match at Souled Out while Ric was handcuffed to the ropes. 

Hogan drops Flair with a shoulder tackle, they lock up again and Hogan once again drops him with a shoulder as the crowd…goes wild? WHOSE SIDE ARE YOU ON, NERDS? Oh right the nWo. Flair traps Hogan in a hammerlock, Hogan bails to the corner and Flair tags him with a knife-edged chop. Hogan backs Flair into the corner and connects with rights of his own and a backdrop. Hogan whips Flair into the corner and follows him in with a clothesline for the 1…2…Flair gets his arm under the rope. Hogan connects with chops, Flair responds with chops and jabs of his own followed by a snapmare into a kneedrop. Hogan clotheslines Flair and sends him flying out to the floor with a corner whip. Hogan follows Flair out, cracking a chair across his “skull” (forearm) and back, busting him open. Flair tries to fight back with chops, Hogan rakes the back and bites the forehead wound to open it up even more, following up with a suplex on the outside which hurts them both. Flair surprises Hogan with a knee and climbs to the top, Hogan SHOCKINGLY slams him off and follows up with a pair of elbowdrops and right hands. Flair FIRES UP with more chops, Hogan drops him with a right and whips him with his weight belt as the crowd pops HUGE. Flair takes Hogan down with a single-leg, HOGAN WHIPS HIM IN THE FACE WITH THE WEIGHT BELT. Oof. Flair connects with more chops, Hogan sort-of Hulks up so Flair pokes him in the eye and connects with a low-blow in full view of the ref (Charles Robinson, which will matter next month). Flair gets revenge on Hogan, whipping him with his own weight belt and hitting him with the buckle, busting him open as well. UNNAMED WOMAN (Torrie Wilson, who we saw at the beginning of the show in a hotel room) comes out and hops the apron to slap Flair, but Flair easily overcomes the cheapshot attempt by Hogan and lays in some count along rights in the corner. Flair shows off some underrated strength with a delayed vertical suplex but takes too long to cover and Hogan manages to kick out, sending Flair on top of Robinson to bump him. Hogan further knocks the ref out with an elbowdrop and goes for the Big Legdrop, but Flair dodges and locks in the Figure Four. Out comes a MASKED MAN who breaks it up with a taser and holds hands with the Lady in Red as Hogan covers for the groggy 1…2…3.

Hollywood Hogan [c] defeated Ric Flair via pinfall (12:00) to retain the WCW WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP

• JON’S THOUGHTS: I expected a whole lot worse to be honest so consider me pleasantly surprised. It wasn’t great or anything, they took a ton of shortcuts and bled for absolutely no reason, but I was entertained. The California crowd DID NOT want to boo Hogan which was pretty funny. The ending didn’t shock me too much, most of the nWo wins have been due to interference that WCW apparently does not want to battle against, but also kinda lame. (**)

The Masked Man and Lady in Red enter the ring to celebrate with Hogan. Lady in Red embraces the Masked Man and takes his mask off for a kiss, revealing him to be…DAVID FLAIR. Turned on his Dad for Torrie Wilson?!? Okay fair enough I get it. Out comes nWo Assistant Regional Manager Kevin Nash to join in on the celebration.

*****

FINAL THOUGHTS

Bold of WCW to follow up the very meh Souled Out with an only slightly better PPV in SuperBrawl. The star power in the undercard was a lot better, leading to more interesting matches at least on paper, but I was glad for the show to finally be over by the end of it. Way too much nWo bullsh*t plus one of the worst Roddy Piper matches I’ve ever seen and the de-masking of what should’ve been a cash cow in Rey Mysterio Jr. Saturn vs. Jericho and Steiner vs. DDP were pretty good and the main event overdelivered compared to the basement-level expectations I had but overall this is not a great show and I can’t recommend you watch anything on it, really. If you do decide to sit through it there’s at least a few matches that’ll make it hurt less but it’s all background noise at best.

• FAVORITE MATCH: Perry Saturn vs. Chris Jericho
• FAVORITE MOMENT: Benoit/Malenko and Windham/Hennig have a 20+ minute first fall, only for Windham to quickly win the second by choking Malenko out with his belt. Not necessarily a GOOD moment but it made me laugh.