Nitro Report

Monday night played witness to one of the most important nights of wrestling in the history of the sport. Besides hosting the return of both Buff Bagwell (in a teary speech that moved the crowd), Nitro promised its fans one final thrill: a championship match between Hollywood Hogan and Goldberg. According to Hogans stipulations, Goldberg had to fight and defeat one other wrestler before getting his shot. A man named Scott Hall.



MATCH RESULTS

Booker T d. Dean Malenko
TV Title Match
The biggest Nitro in history started with two of the hardest workers in the business. Malenko struggled to keep Booker T on the mat with drop toe holds and pinning maneuvers; the Harlem Heater utilized his powerful slams and high-kicking expertise. Both men eventually fell to the arena floor. Enter Chris Jericho. The Cruiserweight Champ distracted the Iceman, allowing Booker T to deliver a well-timed ax kick while an out-of-sorts Malenko was trying to enter the ring. The reigning TV Champ grabbed the pin.

Raven with Lodi d. Kanyon
Kanyon attacked Raven in the walkway and dominated the Flock leader for the opening minutes. The star formerly known as Mortis connected with a few innovative maneuvers before Lodi knocked him off the top rope. The interference helped Raven connect with a superplex onto a steel chair. Before Raven could continue, Saturn charged the ring and beat up his former friend, then Lodi and Kanyon (it is impossible to tell if Saturn meant to attack Kanyon or just reacted). Saturn sprawled Raven across a table on the arena floor and delivered a splash. Kanyon, regaining his wits, Flatlined Saturn.

Scott Putski d. Riggs
A vision of the future of our sport, talented warriors Putski and Riggs exhibited great amounts of speed, agility, strength and ring savvy. The son of the legend Ivan, Putski gained a solid advantage after connecting with the Polish Hammer. Riggs tried to rebound, but got in a Putski Bomb -- a spinebuster/power bomb.

Chris Jericho d. Ultimo Dragon
Cruiserweight Title Match
Pre-match, JJ Dillon told Jericho and Malenko that, if they touched each other before the bout, that man would be disqualified. Jericho made several disparaging remarks that caused the Iceman to snap. The beating made the Cruiserweight Champ a little groggy for this match, but it didn't matter. Although Dragon was dominating Jericho, the Japanese star was disqualified when Malenko ran to the ring and attacked the Lyin' Heart once again.

Chavo Guerrero, Jr. d. Johnny Swinger
During the beginning of the bout, Chavo insisted on covering his missing chunk of hair with his hand. Swinger beat the tar out of him. Chavo eventually removed his hand and whacked Swinger with the hurricane DDT. Post-match, Chavo cut his opponents' hair, grabbed the microphone and challenged his Uncle Eddie to a hair vs. hair match.

Public Enemy d. Disco Inferno and Alex Wright
Pre-match, an uninvited Tokyo Magnum--Japan's contribution to WCW's collection of dancing oddities-- followed Wright and Disco to the ring and danced between them. After a back-and-forth bout, Grunge attempted to set Wright onto a table for a suicide senton. Wright was removed by Magnum, spurring Public Enemy to drill the Japanese superstar through two stacked tables. While Rock and Grunge devastated Magnum, Disco and Wright grabbed steel trash cans. The dancing duo was disqualified, but floored Public Enemy in the process.

Goldberg d. Scott Hall
US Title Match
Earlier in the broadcast, Hogan told the world that Goldberg would have to beat another NWO member during Nitro if he wished to fight Hogan. The surprise challenger was none other than Scott Hall. Hall was immediately rocked by Goldberg's power and intensity, but also showed what a true superstar can accomplish against the undefeated phenom. Still, the Outsider's efforts werent enough. Hall called down the rest of the NWO to help, but DDP and Carl Malone berated the black-and-white thugs with steel chairs. Hall made one last attempt to crush his opponent with the Outsider's Edge, but Goldberg countered with a powerful back body-drop. The move set-up the Headspear, Jackhammer and pin.

Juventud Guerrera d. Psicosis
This match ran on three speeds: fast, faster and 'are you kidding me?'. Juvy came out explosively, hitting a wicked suicide dive minutes into the bout. Psicosis came back by sling-shotting his opponent out of the ring and hitting a suicide senton. But Guerrera refused to surrender. After another lightning exchange, Guerrera struck with the Juvy Driver and the 450 Splash. Post-match, The Flock swarmed Juventud and beat him senseless.

The Giant d. Hacksaw Jim Duggan
One of the toughest veterans in the sport, Duggan fought with pure heart in this fight. The old patriot even managed to knock down the NWO behemoth once or twice. But the Giant was just too strong. After countering Hacksaw's knee drop with a fist, the Giant chokeslammed Duggan for the pin. Post-match, the Giant challenged Kevin Greene to come ringside. Greene accommodated the request and knocked the black-and-white bruiser out of the ring.

Diamond Dallas Page with Carl Malone d. Jim Neidhart
If you wanna toughen up for the biggest match of your life, what better way than to beat on than an Anvil? Page met with solid competition -- and a few low blows -- from the veteran, but DDP has never looked better. After delivering a below-the-belt shot of his own, Page struck backwith the Diamond Cutter and took the pin.

Sting and Lex Luger with Kevin Nash and Konnan d. Sick Boy and Kidman
After revving up the crowd, Sting and Luger ran through the Flock team with embarrassing ease. Sting worked both youngsters with dropkicks and Stinger splashes before the Total Package locked and loaded the Torture Rack for the submission.

Goldberg d. Hollywood Hogan
World Heavyweight Title Match
Both men approached the ring alone and with something enormous to prove. Initially, Hogan showed the intelligence and savvy that has made him unquestionably the greatest and most recognizable champion in the sport. Hogan controlled the pace. Hogan made Goldberg fight his style of match. But the US Champion, the undefeated rookie, took everything Hollywood could muster -- including three chair shots and not one, but two trademark leg drops. Hennig ran to the ring to help Hollywood, but ended up on the business end of Diamond Cutter... delivered by Karl Malone. The distraction set Hogan up for the Headspear. The crowd erupted as Goldberg delivered the Jackhammer for the win, then celebrated as Goldberg raised his U.S. Championship and Heavyweight belts high above his head. Goldberg remains undefeated. Goldberg is the new WCW World Champion.