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Leighty’s Retro Review: WCW Starrcade 1997

December 29, 2022 | Posted by Robert Leighty Jr.
WCW Starrcade 1997, Sting vs. Hulk Hogan Image Credit: WWE
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Leighty’s Retro Review: WCW Starrcade 1997  

-My quest to tackle every PPV and Clash of The Champions comes to a conclusion with the biggest show of the year and the biggest show ever by WCW. I plan to countdown each PPV from this year next and then I am not sure what I will do as far as Retro Reviews going forward. Thanks to everyone who checked out these reviews. Let’s get to it!

-Commentary: Tony Schiavone, Dusty Rhodes, and Mike Tenay (where’s Heenan?)
-Date: Dec 28, 1997 
-MCI Center, Washington DC 
-Attendance: 17,500
-PPV Buys: 750,000 (most in company history by quite a bit)

-The commentary team sets the stage for tonight as Tony is in full hype mode noting this is the grandest and biggest night in the history of the sport.  We are told the nWo wants say in who is the ref for Hogan/Sting, so all the refs will have their names in a hat and one will be picked.  Also we see various WCW stars sitting in the crowd as everyone wants to see Sting/Hogan.  Finally, something is up with Kevin Nash in regards to his scheduled match with The Giant as word is Nash won’t be here. There’s a lot of that with this show tonight and we will discuss as we get there.  Also, Tony is claiming 24.000 fans and I am not sure if the building even holds that many. 

WCW Cruiserweight Championship: Eddie Guerrero (c) vs. Dean Malenko

-Eddie hides behind the ref and then pie-faces Malenko.  That backfires as Dean unloads with right hands to a pop from the crowd.  Eddie goes to the eyes in the corner, but walks into a boot from Dean.  Leg lariat from Dean gets two.  Malenko gets a vertical suplex and then starts unloading with right hands again.  They trade standing switches and Eddie tries a springboard into a head scissors, but gets powerbombed hard on the mat.  Damn!  Powerslam from Dean gets two as the crowd is popping for everything.  Eddie, on his knees, tells Dean to bring it on and then runs on his knees and bails to the floor.  Eddie is great!  Back in the ring Eddie backs Dean against the ropes and fires off some chops.  Dean punches back, but Eddie goes back to the eyes and then rubs his boot across Malenko’s face.  Suplex is blocked as Dean lands some knees and then he hits a front suplex that leaves Eddie hanging on the top rope.  Clothesline gets a two count.  Dean gets a reverse chinlock and transfers into a body scissors.  The announce team continues on about Hogan/Sting which I can understand, but at this point the fans are in the building and people have paid for the show.  They aren’t going to bail early.  Dean tosses Eddie in the air and lets him drop.  Eddie begs off and even kisses Dean’s boot, but Dean is in no mood tonight as he hits a dropkick.  Eddie to the floor to slow things down some more.  Knuckle lock and Dean wins that battle, but gets caught in the corner where Eddie gets in some shoulder blocks.  He tries a Tornado DDT, but Dean shoves him off and then alley-oops Eddie onto the top rope.  Belly to back suplex gets two as Dean got lazy with the cover.  They fight over a suplex and Eddie ends up on the apron where he snaps Dean’s neck backwards over the top rope.  Nice!  He slingshots back in with a boot and then back out with a double axe to the knee.  Eddie wraps Dean’s knee around the post and then dropkicks the steps into the bad knee.  Back in the ring Eddie goes to the knee and hits a stiff powerbomb to pay Dean back for the one he received earlier.  It’s only fair!  Eddie tries to get a roll, but Dean is able to counter with a slam.  Dean follows with a backbreaker for two.  Eddie avoids a charge in the corner and heads up top, but Dean cuts him off with right hands.  They fight up there and Eddie looks for a rana, but Dean shoves off in what is usually a gutbuster, but they just both crash to the mat.  Dean seems annoyed so he just powerbombs the piss out of Eddie.  He tries to follow, but Eddie avoids and comes off the top with a dropkick to the knee.  He heads back up and hits a Frog Splash onto Dean’s knee to get the pin at 14:57. 

Winner and Still WCW Cruiserweight Champion: Eddie Guerrero via pin at 14:57
-This one was kind of weird and didn’t really come close to matching what they did at Uncensored earlier in the year.  I’m not sure if something went wrong with whatever they were trying off the top rope and they couldn’t put it back together.  Perhaps nerves or pressure to steal the show in front of the biggest audience in company history got to them as well.  ***

-Scott Hall is out for Survey Time and the crowd is rather split.  Hall informs us that Nash is not here and The Giant can come out and let everyone know he “won.”  Hall tries to attack, but The Giant destroys him complete with a powerbomb and then leaves.  Weird!  The crowd loved it, but no match.  Nash/Giant would finally meet the next month!  I believe the word was that Nash had a mild heart attack and/or indigestion that was mistaken for a heart attack.  His family has a history of heart disease.  Some think he was trying to find a way out of doing the JOB to The Giant.  The crazy stuff with this show is something else. 

Scott Norton, Vincent, and Randy Savage (w/ Miss Elizabeth) vs. The Steiner Brothers (w/ Ted Dibiase) and Ray Traylor

-Konnan was supposed to be in this match, but he’s not here (I think his girlfriend just gave birth to a child is the rumor), so the nWo announce Savage as their mystery partner.  That begs that question as to why RANDY SAVAGE wasn’t booked for the biggest show in company history?  Savage and Scott start and it’s a stalemate.  Steiner backs Savage into the corner as they grapple for position.  Savage misses a wild swing as the camera shows us Liz.  I approve!  Savage stalls as he messes with Rick on the apron and then backs into his corner.  Steiner shoves off a side headlock and mows Savage down with a shoulder.  Savage slaps Scott in the face and Scott responds.  Scott gets sent into the ropes and Norton lands a knee from the apron.  Savage drops Scott throat first over the top rope and makes the tag to Vincent.  Dusty notes that Vincent is the lesser of the athletes in the match.  No kidding!  Norton in and he catches Scott with a Samoan Drop.  Backbreaker follows and a tag back to Savage.  He comes off the top with a double axe.  Savage sets too early on a backdrop and gets dropped with a double underhook suplex.  Press slam and then everyone starts hitting everyone else.  Team WCW clears the ring and The Steiners hit their pose.  Scott goes after Savage and moves Liz out of the way to toss him back in the ring.  Tag to Norton and that brings in Rick Steiner.  Weak powerslam from Rick followed by a Steiner-line.  A second power slam gets two and that one was a bit better.  Traylor gets the tag and lands strikes and headbutts but gets backed into the wrong corner.  The nWo triple team and Vincent gets tagged in.  He gets caught with a spinebuster and then a release belly to back suplex. Scott Steiner back in and he gets a belly to belly suplex and then slaps Vincent around a bit.  Ray back with with a slam and then a tag to Scott Steiner.  He grinds Vincent down with a chinlock and bites at the forehead as well.  Tag back to Traylor and he misses a splash.  Vincent makes the tag to Scott Norton and he delivers a clothesline.  He chokes away on the top rope and Savage manages to get in a kick from the apron.  Cheat to win!  Vincent back in to screw things up and sure enough he and Ray collide to leave both men down.  Tag made to Rick and he takes on everyone with slams and suplexes.  Vincent gets set-up for the top rope DDT, but Norton makes the save on the pin attempt.  Scott puts Vincent up top and connects with a rana to bring him down.  Savage makes the save and gets dumped on his head for his troubles.  Scott puts Savage on top and fights with him up there, but gets caught and dropped by Norton with an Electric Chair.  That leaves Steiner in prime position for Savage to hit The Flying Elbow for the pin at 11:06. 

Winner: Team nWo via pin at 11:06
-Just a basic six man tag, but the final minute of so with everyone fighting was good stuff.  I dug the ending and Savage winning makes sense as he was the biggest star in the match.  There is also a rumor that Savage only agreed to do the match if he could beat Scott with his finisher and Scott took that as well as you would expect.  Internet rumors are fun!  This was decent as long as Savage was in the match.  *1/2

-Mean Gene Okerlund plugs the Hotline and brings in JJ Dillon to clear the air about who will be the ref for Hogan/Sting.  Nick Patrick is the name picked and Gene points out that will raise a lot of eyebrows.  Dillon mentions that since being reinstated, Patrick has not had any issues and he feels he will do a great job. 

Goldberg vs. Steve “Mongo” McMichael

-Very weird hearing Goldberg’s music and not hearing a “Goldberg” chant.  They were close to finally figuring everything out with Bill and he took off from there.  These two were supposed to face off several times including the previous month at WW3.  Goldberg meets Mongo in the aisle and they start unloading on each other.  Goldberg carries Mongo to the ringside and fires him into the ring.  The bell finally sounds and Mongo catches Goldberg coming into the ring.  He backs him into the corner and lands strikes as a Goldberg chant breaks out, but it’s not the cadence we are all used to.  Flying shoulder tackle from Goldberg gets two.  He goes for the pin again and again, only two.  They fight near a table Goldberg propped up against the ring post, but Mongo blocks being tossed into it.  Tenay brings up Goldberg’s college football background at Georgia which lets Dusty mention Texas is where they play real football.  Back in the ring Goldberg gets a roll through into a knee-bar.  Ugly clothesline or shoulder or shove or whatever from Goldberg.  The announcers are even noting this match is longer than Goldberg is used to.  Spear from Goldberg, but either Mongo kicks out or Goldberg lets him up.  Goldberg sets the table up on the floor and tries to throw Mongo over the top and through the table, but Anderson blocks.  Goldberg hits a dropkick that sends Mongo to the floor.  This is kind of a train wreck as Mongo no-sells.  Mongo walks around the ring and makes sure to stand on the apron where the table is below him. I wonder what’s going to happen? They battle on the apron just so Mongo can fall off and crash through the table.  The crowd starts an ECW chant lol.  Mongo no sells the table back in the ring and drops Goldberg trying for a Tombstone, which is his way of selling I guess.  Jackhammer finishes to a strong pop for Goldberg at 5:59. 

Winner: Goldberg via pin at 5:59
-Ugly match as Mongo wasn’t the man to get six minutes out of Goldberg or Goldberg wasn’t the man to get six minutes out of Mongo depending on your view.  As mentioned, WCW kind of reset with Goldberg after this and unleashed him on the roster.  You could see the promise though as the crowd popped huge for the Jackhammer.  Funny that this show was all about crowning Sting (as it should) and it was Goldberg on the undercard that ended up the massive star that got to crush Hogan for the World Title.  DUD

-Raven is out as he has a match with Chris Benoit, but this is Starrcade 97 where the card changes during the show.  Raven tells us he is not wrestling tonight and Saturn will take his place.  I believe Raven wasn’t medically clear for the show.  I believe the word was pancreatitis or something along those lines as to why Raven wasn’t cleared.  They would deliver Raven/Benoit the following month. 

Raven’s Rules: Saturn vs. Chris Benoit

-THE RADICALZ EXPLODE!  Benoit cuts a promo on Raven, who tries to distract Benoit, but it doesn’t work.  Benoit beats the piss out of Saturn in the opening moments and breaks a sleeper with a jawbreaker.  Benoit stomps and fires off chops in the corner.  He begs Raven to get in the ring and then spits on him as Raven just stands there. Saturn gets a suplex out of the corner as Tony goes back to hyping Sting/Hogan and talking about Nick Patrick being the ref.  Benoit targets the knee with a Dragon Screw Leg Whip followed by a dropkick to the knee.  Kidman tries to get involved and gets knocked off the apron.  Sick Boy lands a shot and Kidman hits a Shooting Star Press of the apron.  Sweet!  Raven stands over top of Benoit before Saturn takes things back into the ring.  Saturn hooks a sleeper and turns it into a neckbreaker for two.  Saturn springs off the middle ropes to the top and hits a moonsault for two.  Nice!  Saturn buries a knee to the ribs and drops a leg to the back of the head.  Benoit gets his foot on the ropes to prevent a count.  He goes to deliver a knee again, but Benoit gets a roll-up for two.  Saturn mows him down with a clothesline for two and locks in a camel clutch.  He releases and gets a brainbuster for two and goes to a chinlock.  Benoit escapes and gets a sunset flip for two and hits a clothesline before collapsing which leaves both men down.  Benoit kicks away, but gets a thumb in the eyes which stops the momentum.  Michinoku Driver from Saturn!  He mocks Benoit with the throat slash and heads up top.  Benoit meets him up there with a right hand and shoves Saturn to the floor.  Baseball slide is missed, but Benoit ducks a clothesline and hooks the Crippler Crossface.  The entire Flock attacks, but Benoit avoids an Asai moonsault as Saturn takes out The Flock.  Back in the ring Benoit lands a back elbow and gets a snap suplex.  Benoit heads up for the diving headbutt and connects 3/4 way across the ring.  The Flock are in and Benoit fights them all off, but Raven takes advantage and hits the Evenflow DDT and The Rings of Saturn finish at 10:50. 

Winner: Saturn via ref stoppage at 10:50
-Lot of heels winning at this biggest show in the history of the world.  Replacements are 2-0 on this card as well.  This was solid, but probably should have been better.  Benoit fighting off The Flock, but losing thanks to Raven is an okay way to continue the feud and they would deliver a hell of a match the following month.  Too bad it couldn’t happen here!  **1/2

Buff Bagwell vs. Lex Luger

-A lot of stalling from Bagwell on the floor before the bell can even ring.  Finally we have a bell and they lock up.  They jockey for position all around the ring and the ref has to separate the as Bagwell gets into the ropes.  Luger spits on Bagwell and he falls over on his ass.  Bagwell back with clubbing blows to the back and he pounds away on Luger in the corner.  Lex reverses the tide and gets a hip-toss out of the corner.  Press slam from Luger followed by a clothesline that sends Bagwell over the top to the floor.  Bagwell heads up the aisle and Vincent comes down to meet him.  Now he will be in the corner of Buff.  Bagwell back in and he sends Luger to the floor.  They fight out there and Luger sends Bagwell into the ring post and then into the security railing.  Back in the ring Bagwell gets sent from corner to corner and then Vincent gets on the apron and eats a right hand.  That distraction gives Bagwell an opening and he chokes Luger on the middle rope.  Vincent chokes Luger as well and then to the corner for more choking.  Tony mentions because the nWo won at War Games in 96 they are allowed to do whatever they want and that’s why Vincent is allowed out here.  More choking and trash talking from Bagwell as the fans chant for something totally unrelated to the match.  I am pretty sure they are chanting for Duggan who is one of the many wrestlers sitting in the crowd.  Luger gets a boot up to block a charge in the corner and comes out with a clothesline, but not follow up and instead Bagwell gets a two count.  That was weird!  Bagwell hooks a chinlock as we see Harlem Heat in the crowd.  It’s kind of crazy the talent sitting in the crowd that didn’t get a match at the biggest show of the year.  Luger is able to escape and gets another clothesline, but eats a double axe as he set too early on a backdrop attempt.  Bagwell gets another two count and then gets rolled up for two while arguing with the ref.  Clothesline from Bagwell gets two and back to the chinlock.  Luger fights to his feet and breaks the hold, but gets cut off with a knee to the stomach.  Luger fights out of the corner, but gets caught with a sleeper.  This is the match that gets the most amount of time?  Luger breaks with a belly to back suplex and it doesn’t get much of a reaction which is sad.  Bagwell up to his feet first, but a splash catches the knees of Luger.  Now Lex starts his comeback with right hands followed by a backdrop.  A series of running clotheslines as the crowd is starting to wake up.  Inverted Atomic Drop and another.  Vincent back on the apron and he gets decked again.  Luger hits the running forearm and the place erupts as they want to see The Torture Rack.  Suplex from Luger as Vincent heads up top and Luger tosses him across the ring and onto Bagwell.  A clothesline sends Vincent to the floor.  Luger stomps Bagwell down in the corner and the ref tries to get Luger to break, but ends up getting bumped out of the match.  Luger gets The Rack, but there is no ref and here comes Randy Savage.  He breaks up The Rack, but gets press slammed.  Savage gets put in The Rack and now Scott Norton is out.  He decks Luger with Rick Steiner’s dog collar and puts Bagwell on top for the pin at 16:36. 

Winner: Buff Bagwell via pin at 16:36
-No clue why these two were given seventeen minutes.  This was boring until Luger’s comeback and then we had the parade of run ins as WCW looked stupid once again for not having anyone help Luger.  I mean, WCW wrestlers were sitting ringside and all of them aren’t heels.  I am guessing the idea was let all the heels win so it will mean more when the babyface wins, but man.  As noted the match was nothing until Luger started running wild.  1/2*

WCW United States Championship: Curt Hennig vs. Diamond Dallas Page

-This was supposed to be Flair/Hennig III, but Flair is injured (I think) and Page was given the spot.  Page immediately goes for a roll-up as he is focused on winning the Title.  Page works the arm and shoulder, so Curt bails to the floor to regroup.  Back in the ring Curt goes to the eyes and puts the boots to Page.  Headlock from Page, but DDP reverses into a hammerlock and then gets a side headlock on the mat.  Curt gets up and backs Page into the corner where he fires off some chops.  Page goes back to the side headlock as he takes things to the mat again.  Hennig sets too early on a backdrop and Page snaps him back to the mat by his hair.  They seem to be off a little bit as Hennig backs off the floor to regroup.  Cut drops DDP throat first on the middle rope and then goes after the ribs.  Page gets dumped to the floor and kicks a camera on the way down.  Cut follows and gets in another chop and then sends Page into the ring steps.  Curt tears the padding away from Page’s ribs and goes to work on the back/ribs.  The crowd starts another USA chant to get Duggan’s attention again.  Curt gets a two count off a clothesline and then hooks a headlock.  He also makes sure to use the ropes for added leverage.  We get another shot of the wrestlers as Mortis and Vanbenberg are sitting next to Alex Wright which has Tenay and Schiavone wondering what’s going on there.  Page gets a jawbreaker to escape as Hennig bounces all over the ring to sell it.  They start trading blows and Page wins this round as a right cross sends Cut over the top and to the floor.  Page gets a slingshot crossbody and takes Curt into the crowd.  He drops an double axe off the railing and then fires Curt back into the ring just ahead of the ten count.  Curt gets pulled by his legs, balls first into the ring post.  The Diamond Cutter is blocked as Curt held on to the top rope.  Page gets a roll-up for two as Curt was arguing with the ref.  A small package gets two for Page, but he gets up late and Curt drops him with a clothesline.  Hennig-plex blocked and Page takes Curt down with an armbar.  Both men up and they swing on each other and fall back down.  Page gets a Diamond Cutter out of nowhere for the win at 10:53. 

Winner and New WCW United States Champion: Diamond Dallas Page via pin at 10:53
-The work was decent, but again another boring match.  Miles better than the previous match thankfully and finally the fans get something to cheer about on this show.  **

-Eddie Guerrero is backstage talking to Mark Madden and Jeff Katz on wcwwrestling.com. 

Larry Zbyszko vs. Eric Bischoff (w/ Scott Hall)

-Bret Hart is the special ref and gets a strong reaction.  The question though is why he isn’t wrestling on this show?  They needed to capitalize on him coming out of Survivor Series and not having him wrestle for two months was a mistake.  I assume the idea was to use his first match as a way to boost PPV sales of Souled Out.  This match is for control of Nitro I believe.  Again I will note Bischoff as the evil authority figure drunk on power came a year before Mr. McMahon.  Schiavone wants Larry to beat Bischoff so bad that they can all lineup and slap Eric in the mouth.  Bret in a WCW ring is still weird to see!  It’s like a fever dream, but it lasted for over 2 years.  The crowd is jacked for this one and again, I have no issue with this being on the card as a special attraction match.  Eric is dressed sporting what are basically MMA gloves as Tenay talks about the history of MMA fights.  In this case it’s wrestler vs. karate expert and that usually goes poorly for those limited in karate.  Hall cracks up the front row as he does the Karate Kid pose to give Bischoff some instructions.  Too funny!  Larry gets an open hand slap and Bret tells him it’s legal.  Eric lands a head kick and celebrates like he just won The Super Bowl.  Larry charges and throws Eric down by his hair.  He rubs Eric’s face in the mat and Bret forces a break as Larry won’t let go at the count of five.  Larry with a sleeper that looks like a choke, so Bret forces a break.  A head scissors and again, Bret forces the break as it’s a choke.  Larry gets a slam and a standing figure four, but Eric gets to the bottom rope.  Eric screams a lot as he escapes to the floor.  Larry gives chase and he weakly sends Eric into the ring post.  Larry heads back out and sends Eric into the steps in a nice bump.  Back in the ring Bret gets in Larry’s face as they continue to tease that Bret is nWo.  Bret keeps Larry from landing a right hand in the corner which lets Eric land a head kick.  Bischoff delivers a series of kicks with some connecting and some missing.  This has gone on longer than needed at this point!  Larry covers up in the corner as Bischoff fires off punches and kicks.  Eric lands a decent knee and the strategy becomes apparently as Eric has punched himself out.  Larry comes alive now with a vertical suplex followed by a swinging neckbreaker.  Bischoff gets tied into The Tree of Woe and Hall eats a shot from the apron.  Hall loads Bischoff’s boot with a steel plate and Eric lands the kick which sees the piece of steel go flying out of the ring.  Eric celebrates and reminds Bret about the $7.5 million dollars he is paying him and Bret just decks Eric.  Hall in and Bret destroys him as well to a thunderous pop.  Sharpshooter for Hall and again, why would you not have this man wrestle on this show?  Hell, run Hall vs. Hart as they could have a match against each other in their sleep.  Larry chokes out Bischoff and we don’t get a bell, but Bret raises Larry hand.  I guess that ends this one at 11:16 or so. 

Winner: Larry Zbyszko via DQ at 11:16
-The replay showed that Bret noticed the steel plate so that is what caused the DQ.  Match was not good obviously and went longer than needed.  The fans got something else to cheer about at least.  Even a tag match with this four would have been better than what we got.  1/2*

WCW World Heavyweight Title: “Hollywood” Hogan vs. Sting

-Well, here it is!  The biggest match in WCW History and the match that was 18 months in the making.  Hogan is out first and the tan looks great!  For a guy that had been running for over a year from Sting, he looks rather confident here.  The crowd is jacked for Sting’s entrance and sadly, it’s nothing special as all we get is the little kids repeating what they said at Clash of The Champions and a laser show.  Sting then just walks out instead of dropping from the rafters or popping up from under the ring or coming through the crowd.  Even the pyro is underwhelming.  This is Sting’s first match since WarGames in Sept of 1996!  The bell sounds and Hogan shoves Sting away.  Sting responds with a slap as Tony notes that Sting looks good as he compliments his arms.  Hogan backs Sting into the corner, but gets caught with a right hand.  The crowd starts a loud “Hogan Sucks” chant as nothing of note happens.  Hogan wants a test of strength and just uses it to sucker Sting in as he kicks him in the gut.  Hogan works over Sting on the corner as he gives his son, Nick, a shout-out.  He is in full Thunder Lips mode as he tells Sting he is nothing.  Hogan gets a slam, but misses an elbow and another and another.  Sting gets a dropkick that sends Hogan to the floor to pop the crowd and then nothing as he lets Hogan regroup on the floor.  Hogan gives a fan in the front two a 2 Sweet and then heads back into the ring.  Hogan gets a side headlock as again, he is showing no fear of a guy that has stalked him for a year and a half.  Dropkick from Sting and another that sends Hogan over the top and to the floor.  Hogan argues with some fans as Sting just stands in the ring waiting.  So weird!  Dusty credits Sting for being patient, but that’s not what this needed.  It needed a pissed off Sting just going crazy on Hogan.  I won’t say it needed to be a SQUASH like others, but this isn’t the match we needed.  Hogan lands a clothesline, which gets a smattering of applause from the nWo fans in the crowd.  I was cheering at home as a 16-year-old as I was team nWo.  Sting no sells a suplex and finally shows emotion as he unleashes on Hogan in the corner and guess what, the fans eat it up.  Sadly, Hogan lands a thumb to the eye and the crowd drops again.  Hogan sends Sting to the floor and into the time keeper’s table.  Hogan uses the bat and really that’s kind of Sting’s fault for bringing it to the ring.  Sting gets sent into the ring post and Hogan pounds away with right hands.  Sting reverses a whip and Hogan gets sent into the security rail.  Sting tries a splash, but Hogan moves and Sting splats on the railing.  Sting gets dropped balls first on the railing like he’s Tommy Dreamer.  Inverted atomic drop by Hogan as they get back into the ring.  Hogan hits the big boot and drops the leg to get the clean win at 11:17. 

-Bret Hart came down at some point and stops the FUCKING BELL FROM RINGING.  He says this won’t happen again and he decks Nick Patrick.  Bret tosses Hogan into the ring and this match continues. 

-The crowd is losing it now as Sting shows some fire and hits a Stinger Splash.  The nWo B Team hit the ring and they are taken care of easily.  Another Stinger Splash and The Scorpion Deathlock ends it as Hogan submits at 12:53 to a big pop. 

Winner and New WCW World Heavyweight Champion: Sting via pin at 12:53
-As I mentioned I was Team nWo and I was legit pissed because if you were a fan of Hogan, it looked like he was screwed as Patrick’s count was normal.  Of course there are rumors that Hogan legit paid off Patrick to make a normal count and others say that Patrick just messed up or the agent for the match screwed things up.  I get the idea of using Bret to stop someone else from getting screwed, but it just looked awful as Hogan won clean with the legdrop.  The match was actually better than 3 matches on this show which isn’t saying much.  Sting, for whatever reason, had no fire and Hogan just mauled him for most of the match.  Again, this didn’t need to be a SQUASH, but what Hogan did for Goldberg 7 months later was a perfect template for how this match could have gone.  3/4*

-WCW stars head down and celebrate with Sting as Tony talks about the importance of the night and how they have taken it back from the nWo.

-Thanks for reading! 

3.0
The final score: review Bad
The 411
Where do start with this show? I guess with The Main Event because that's really all this show needed to get right and it didn't happen. Even with the weird finish the crowd popped for Sting winning, but the damage was done with Hogan being cheated out of his clean win by Bret Hart. It also didn't help that they held the title up before Sting finally got the win in February, but that was too late. The rest of the card was screwed up to injuries/sickness and no shows for various reasons and that includes Heenan not being here to take joy in Hogan losing on commentary. The opener was the best match and was a disappointment due to who was involved. Everything else was pretty awful and was a parade of depressing finishes until DDP woke up the crowd. This should have been so much better and would have been if Nash/Giant and Raven/Benoit had happened. No matter what happened in the undercard though this show as going to be judged on the Main Event and again, it didn't need to be a great match, but it had to deliver a satisfying conclusion like Hogan/Andre at Mania III and that didn't happen.
legend

article topics :

WCW Starrcade, Robert Leighty Jr.