–Footage of Vader and Ric Flair beating up Dave Sullivan on last week’s show is aired. The video package also hypes tonight’s Randy Savage-Avalanche main event and Sergeant Craig Pittman.
–Tony Schiavone and Bobby Heenan are doing commentary and they are taped from Atlanta, Georgia. This show occurred on March 8 and, according to the historyofwwe.com, it attracted 785 fans.
–Commissioner Nick Bockwinkel meets with the announcers. He says that he had a meeting with Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage, with footage to come later. Bockwinkel strips Vader of his United States title because of the beatdown on Dave Sullivan last week. This decision is justified on the grounds that Vader does not care about fines. He may not care about the U.S. title either because he has not defended it all year. No immediate plans are announced for what will be done with the vacated championship.
–Opening Contest: Sergeant Craig Pittman (4-0) defeats Mike Davis via submission to the Code Red at 3:03:
Pittman debuts an unusual move in this squash, doing pushups over Davis’ body and that is somehow supposed to be doing damage to Davis’ ribs. After a few good looking headbutts to the midsection, Pittman submits Davis with the usual. Since he had a more hard hitting offense, this was Pittman’s best match to date.
–Stars & Stripes (10-4) defeat the Southern Posse when Marcus Bagwell pins Sonny Trout after a flying body press/suplex combination at 5:16:
The Southern Posse is composed of jobbers Rick Thames and Sonny Trout. Schiavone pays them no mind as he hypes the WCW Power Plant, which has recently been profiled in Life Magazine. Heenan tries to argue that the former WCW Tag Team Champions should have more wins, but they struggle against the jobbers, with Bagwell placed into peril until the Patriot can turn the momentum for his team.
–Big Bubba Rogers (7-0) pins Mark Starr after a Bossman slam at 4:10:
Any hope that Starr has of winning this match ends a minute in when Rogers plants him with a devastating powerbomb. Sadly, the squash goes on far longer than it needs to as Rogers picks Starr off the canvas to continue inflicting punishment. The most notable part of the contest is that Schiavone calls Rogers finisher a “piledriver.”
–Gene Okerlund interviews Rogers, who calls Sting an “All-American punk” and gloats about his victory at Uncensored. He says he will keep doing whatever he wants to do and no one will be able to stop him.
–Schiavone urges fans to call 1-900-909-9900 to hear what three news superstars could be coming to WCW. If they come it could forever change the landscape of the company!
–Brian Pillman (6-0) beats the Terrorist with a flying body press at 3:29:
The Terrorist is a big wrestler in a camouflage mask. Names like the Terrorist never made sense because why would the federal government allow a self-declared terrorist to wrestle, much less on national television? Schiavone laments that the Renegade will not give him an interview as Pillman gives this squash everything he has, flying off the ropes, the top of the entranceway, and the top rope to remain undefeated, giving some fans high-fives along the way.
–Pillman tells Okerlund that his theme song is not necessarily about how blondes are the best but that life is too short to dwell on the negative. He promises to fight fiercely for the fans in the future. This was a good babyface promo that makes one wonder why WCW had nothing for Pillman to do at this time. It is just a waste to sideline him in squash matches.
–Footage of Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, and Jimmy Hart meeting with Nick Bockwinkel in his office is shown. The Monster Maniacs say that Ric Flair is out of control and they want him reinstated so they can beat him up in the ring. Bockwinkel promises a vote by the Executive Board on next week’s show.
–Meng (w/Colonel Robert Parker) (4-0) pins Mike Khoury after a thrust kick in 21 seconds:
Like his previous squashes, it only takes Meng one move to checkmate Khoury.
–Okerlund interviews Meng and Parker, with Parker warning WCW Champion Hulk Hogan that Meng is coming for him.
–Lord Steven Regal takes Bobby Eaton to dinner in London, with Eaton complaining about the cold and Regal wishing he had a better suit for dinner. Regal is also not a big fan of Eaton’s table manners.
–Steve Austin (5-0) beats Ken Kendall with a senton bomb off the top rope at 3:42:
As a consequence of the taping schedule, Colonel Robert Parker is not with Austin despite the two men reuniting on last week’s Main Event episode. The announcers tell fans that Sting and the Butcher will face off in tomorrow night’s Main Event feature match. Some fans give Austin hell on the way to the ring and he channels that as motivation, countering a Kendall crucifix effort and talking trash to the camera. Schiavone does a hard sell for Austin, putting him over to such a degree that the average viewer would think he was a favorite to become the next United States champion now that the title has been vacated. The finish of this squash is awkward as Austin comes off the top rope with an apparent senton bomb, although he lands well beyond where Kendall is placed.
–Austin tells Schiavone that he is the number one wrestling talent in the world and he will prove it each week. He says that the U.S. title is just a stepping stone to the world title.
–Sting (6-1) defeats Lieutenant James Earl (0-2) via submission to the Scorpion Deathlock at 3:00:
Schiavone notes that fans should tune in next week to see how Sting paints his face for matches. Heenan quips in response that Sting only paints his face because he is ugly. As expected, Sting cuts through Earl like a hot knife through butter as the announce crew hints that he might be in the running for the U.S. title. If so, I do not like Austin’s chances.
–Schiavone interviews Sting, who calls out Big Bubba Rogers cockiness. He says Rogers might mow him down but when Rogers turns around he will back right back up to get in his face.
–The ending of the six man tag between Hacksaw Jim Duggan & Stars & Stripes against the Three Faces of Fear on WCW Pro is shown, along with the post-match shoving match between the Butcher, Kevin Sullivan, and Avalanche.
–Kevin Sullivan & the Butcher (3-1) beat Kip Abee & Leroy Howard when the Butcher makes Abee submit to the sleeper hold at 4:28:
Abee is decimated by the heels as they work his arm for a prolonged length of time before using both of their finishers. The match was too long but it was a way to get fans chanting for Hulk Hogan and showing off his merchandise.
–Okerlund interviews Sullivan and the Butcher. Sullivan says that he woke up the Butcher to the problems with Hogan and he blames the media for causing dissension in the Three Faces of Fear.
–A replay of last week’s Dave Sullivan beatdown is aired for a second time. Schiavone informs fans that he suffered a mild concussion from last week’s attack.
–Television Championship Match: Arn Anderson (Champion w/Colonel Robert Parker) (8-7-1) pins John Crystal after a DDT at 2:02:
Anderson needs to get back to his winning ways after losing to Johnny B. Badd at Uncensored and he does that easily in tonight’s Television Championship defense, pinning Crystal with one foot.
–Schiavone interviews Anderson and Parker. Parker shows off his jar of gold coins as Anderson puts himself over as a fighting champion, issuing a challenge to Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, and Sting.
–Randy Savage (4-0) defeats Avalanche (1-3) after the flying elbow smash to the back to the head at 10:47:
In a nice piece of continuity, Savage charges the ring to immediately attacks Avalanche, with whom he has unfinished issues with going back to last week’s Uncensored. After a hot and promising start, this becomes too methodical as Avalanche pounds away. In spite of that, the match does tell a subtle story of Savage having Avalanche punch himself out to the point that he cannot recover when a big fat splash off the second rope misses. The Faces of Fear try to interfere after that, but Savage knocks the Butcher off the apron and Kevin Sullivan fails to pull Avalanche out of the ring, allowing Savage to hit his finisher and possibly end this feud for good. Rating: **
–After the bell, the Three Faces of Fear try to corner Savage but Sting comes out to lend a hand and the heels think better of fighting and retreat to the locker room.
–Savage and Sting talk with Schiavone, with Savage telling Sting that he is cool and Sting echoing Savage’s “dig it” catchphrase. Savage warns Ric Flair that he is his first priority.
The Last Word: This was a fun, action packed episode of Saturday Night. It appears that Slamboree is headed for a tag team match, likely Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage teaming to face Ric Flair and Vader. The vacating of the United States title is a good move as well because Vader was not defending it and that belt can be used to give someone a better push in the upper midcard, assuming that title picture is booked correctly.
Up Next: WCW Main Event for March 26!