Text By Neil Cathan

What if...Sting Beat Hogan Clean at Starrcade '97?

Part II

WCW was finally able to make its promised rout of the nWo at Starrcade 1997. Since then, Sting has rejected the embrace of the WCW locker room, turning his back on everyone, including his former best friend, Lex Luger. Meanwhile, tensions between the nWo after their defeat came bubbling to the surface, as Scott Hall challenged Hogan's right to take another shot at Sting. The two came to blows at Souled Out, with Nash interfering on Hall's behalf, and drawing Savage into the conflict. Aside from all of this, Flair fought Bret to see who the best really was, in a match at Souled Out that Bret won with a roll-up from the figure four. It is on the Nitro two nights after Souled Out that our story continues...

 

January 26^th, 1998: WCW Monday Nitro

 

Chaos in the nWo dressing room is how Nitro starts. The B-squad look on in nervous tension as Hogan and Savage stand in the centre of the room, trading shouts with Hall and Nash. Hogan's voice booms "All this talk about doing right by your boy, Nash! What's it come to? Comes to you just cheating it for your boy! Who's that do right by, huh?"

Nash responds: "It does right by him. He won that shot, he never should have had to defend it against you, you miserable selfish old bastard."

Hogan bristles at this, and thunders towards Nash, only for Savage and several members of the B-squad to step between them. He takes a breath, and turns to Hall "And you, you know I could take you out back and beat you like a dog any day."

Hall turns his toothpick around in his mouth carelessly "Anytime you want, old orange. I'll beat you down, and when the time's right, boom! Outsider's edge. Just like Saturday night, brother."

Things look ready to kick off between the two duos when Eric Bischoff enters

"Just what the hell is going on here? What is this? You think we can get WCW beat like this? That we had them on the run for a year and half by fighting among ourselves? I'm going to go sort this out with Zybysko. You four just stay the hell away from each other until then."

Bischoff storms out, and is shortly followed by Hogan and Savage, who leave after shooting one last angry glare at the Outsiders.

 

Backstage, later on in the show, Bischoff knocks on the door of Larry Zybysko. A voice from within tells him to enter, and he does. Larry treats his former foe with mock friendliness.

"Eric! Great to see you! And how is the former President today?"

Bischoff smarms as only he can

"Hey there Larry. I gotta a proposition for you. One that'll make us, you, a lot of money on pay-per-view. One that'll make Superbrawl a can't miss prospect. Are you ready for this? Sting defends his world title against Hollywood Hogan and Scott Hall. How's that sound? Sounds pretty unmissable, right? Tell you what, I'll even let you claim the idea was yours, how's that sound?"

Larry pretends to think about it for a moment as he lounges in his chair

"Well, Eric, you know, that sounds like a good idea. But I've got a better one. We find Sting a challenger who wins their matches by being the better man, not by having the most pals in his corner, and the two of them, oh, I don't know, wrestle, while your boys sit idly by, see how it's done. Now get out of my office, you've got no power here any more, and neither do your new world order buddies."

 

After Perry Saturn bests Scott Norton in an entertaining battle of powerhouses, Raven is seen backstage, approaching the same office Bischoff recently left. He knocks on the door, and when the voice tells him to come in, he opens the door and enters, telling Zybysko "I've got something I think you need to hear", before shutting the door, leaving the cameraman outside.

 

The end of the show sees Bret Hart take to the ring, which he struts proudly around, holding a microphone. "Well, there was a lot of talking, but on Saturday night, I finally got all of that between me and Ric settled. And now that we all know that I'm the better man, I can finally focus on where I belong. See earlier, Larry Zybysko talked about people proving themselves as wrestlers for title shots at Sting. Well, look no further than the best there is -"

He is cut off by the sounds of Also Sprach Zarathustra, and the arrival of Ric Flair, who heads quickly to the ring, a microphone in his hand. He gets up close to Bret, waits for the music and the pop to die down, and gets to talking. "Bret, you beat me by luck on Saturday. That doesn't make you the best, that makes you the luckiest there is, was, etc. You come down here, calling Sting out for a title shot? You're just trying to move away. You just don't want to give me a rematch, because you know I'll embarrass you, you know that your win was nothing but a fluke!"

Bret takes a step back, and raises his own microphone "Ric, I've moving onto bigger and better things than another match with you. Another match with you would be pointless, Ric. It would just reinforce what everyone knows. You were great once, Ric. I'm great now. This is my time, and I'm not wasting it with you." Bret makes to leave, only for Flair to grab him by the arm. He turns around, and tells Ric

"Let me go."

"Not until I get my rematch."

Bret considers for a second, lowering his head. Then he throws a sucker punch at Flair, knocking him to the ground, his nose bleeding. Bret raises the microphone to his mouth, saying "It's over, Ric. Move on" before throwing the microphone to the ground, and walking away from the ring as Nitro ends.

 

February 2^nd, 1998: WCW Monday Nitro

 

Tony Schiavone is his usual excitable self as Nitro opens. He has good cause this time though, as he excitedly gushes about the night's main event: Sting defends his world title against Bret Hart. Before that though, we go backstage and see Bischoff once again knocking on Larry Zybysko's door. Once again, he's told to come in, and once again, he does, once again putting on his smarmiest voice.
"You wanted to see me?"

"Yes, Eric. Yes I did. Just wanted to let you know I've pencilled that triple threat you wanted in."

Eric looks shocked for a moment, but he quickly covers it.

"Really? Knew you'd see reason. What changed your mind?"

"Something a bird told me. We're done here now."

Bischoff leaves, a sly smirk on his face, which is nothing compared to how smug Larry Zybysko looks. Tony Schiavone wonders aloud why Larry looks so smug.

 

Bischoff later makes his way into the nWo locker room to spread the good word, which he finds surprisingly peaceful. The explanation is quickly apparent, Hall and Nash are absent. Bischoff wondered where they were.

"Where's Hall and Nash?"

"Looks like they did what they were told for once. They've been keeping away from Hogan and Savage." Bagwell replies.

"Clever move."

"Cowardly move, more like. They know Hulk here'll crush 'em if they don't, ain't that right, Hulk?"

There's a bit of laughter, interrupted by Konnan standing up angrily and shouting at Hogan

"This is bullshit, dog! Scott won that shot, and now here you are, actin' like he done something wrong by wanting it. It ain't all Hogan, dog! It ain't all about you! What if it'd been me who wanted the shot, huh? Screw all you guys, I ain't having none of this."

Konnan storms towards the door. Bischoff places a hand on his arm to calm him, but is shoved roughly aside. Bischoff sighs, then gives Hogan the news about Souled Out, before leaving to find the Outsider's.

 

Later on in the show,  he does just that. Hall, Nash and Konnan are lounging backstage, Hall with a can of beer in his hand, and Nash smoking a cigar. Konnan looks a little calmer now.

"It ain't right, yo. Just ain't right. When you take that belt, you best know I'm coming for ya, just like he shoulda known you'd be coming for it. It's the belt, man. It's the reason we all here."

Scott hands him another beer, as Bischoff turns up, and excitedly gives them the news of the match. Hall responds by simply draining his beer, and saying

"So? I still gotta share my shot with that waste of air. It's something, but don't be looking for a party just because I got what I shoulda got a month ago, but worse. Clear out, Eric."

Eric clears out.

 

The main event rolls around, and Sting's battle with Bret is even handed, swinging back and forth and exciting the fans, who keep up duelling chants through the whole of it. Both men target the legs and lower back of the other,looking to lock in their similar signature submissions, and while it starts out fast paced, within ten minutes the two are limping around the ring. After a superplex by Bret on Sting, the pain caused to Bret and Sting's backs keep them down for a seven count. The two pace each other slowly, before Bret kicks Sting in the gut and snaps him down with a quick DDT which earns him two. Sting, too dazed to do more, does manage to move his legs under the ropes, sheltering them from the sharpshooter. Bret is slowly reaching his feet when Ric Flair comes thundering down the ramp with a steel chair. His back to the ramp, he doesn't notice, however, until it's too late, as Flair stands behind him, and calls his name. He turns around, and is caught full blast in the head. Charles Robinson has the bell rung, and Flair discards the chair, standing over the prone and bleeding Hart.

"Bigger and better, huh? You don't look so big or so good down there, do you, punk?"

 

February 9^th, 1998: WCW Monday Nitro

 

With the rift in the nWo widening, the opening match is to be contested between Scott Norton and Konnan. Konnan is obviously overpowered from the start, and is hurled forcefully from the ring to the outside, where Nash and Hall stand. As he drops to the outside to follow up his attack on Konnan, Nash shoves him violently, causing him to stumble backwards, tripping over the ring steps. As he picks himself up off the ground, Hall grabs him by the head and drives his head into the ringpost, before rolling him back into the ring. Nick Patrick has no choice but to call this one a DQ by interference, and call for the bell. Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan storm down the ramp, and engage in a whirling melee around the ring, which Nash and Hall get the better of, each managing to deliver their signature powerbomb. The Outsider's stand proud with Konnan, before heading up the ramp, the divide in the nWo now gaping wide, as Sting watches enigmatically from the rafters, title over his shoulder.

 

Later in the show, Bret Hart is backstage with Mean Gene Okerlund.  "Wooo! To be the man, you've got to beat the man" he sarcastically starts "and at Souled Out, that's exactly what I did, and I was ready to move on with my career.  But some people can't move on from the past, can they, Ric? Some people can't get it through their head that they're not the best here. You see, for the longest time, Ric Flair was the best wrestler in WCW. But for the longest time, Bret Hart wasn't in WCW, and that's no coincidence. Up north, Ric, if you can remember, I got my first world title by beating you. If I have to go through you in order to move onto getting my first world title here, so be it. I'll beat you again at Superbrawl, if that's really what you want."

 

Mean Gene interjects "And what do you say to criticism that you only won the first match by luck?"

"Wrestling is a lot like a battle, Gene, and Sun Tzu's 'Art Of War' tells us that when we are strongest, we must make our opponents think we are weakest. I out thought Ric, and I out fought Ric."

"One last question, what's your game plan for Superbrawl?"

"To be the best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever will be! See you at Superbrawl, Ric."

 

February 16^th, 1998: WCW Monday Nitro

 

Mic in hand, Lex Luger makes his way to the ring at the start of Nitro, with something on his mind.

"Sting, look, I know you and me have had our little differences recently, but this is bigger than that. This is about that title of yours not slipping back into the nWo's hands. It's with a real wrestler now, we've got to keep it that way. Hall's gonna have Nash in his corner. Hogan's gonna have Savage in his corner. Let me be in your corner, Sting. Let me watch your back. You can't walk in there alone and walk out as champion, Sting. You're not that good. No-one's that good." A portion of the rafters becomes light, and we see Sting looming ominously on it, belt over his shoulder, microphone in hand. "I'm here because you wouldn't trust me. Now you ask me to trust you. The answer is no." Sting stalks away along the rafters, as Lex Luger fumes in the ring, throwing his microphone in rage, and storming back up the ramp.

 

Later on, we're backstage, and Bischoff is approaching Nash and Hall. "What the hell was that last week, huh?"

 Hall spits his toothpick out at Bischoff's feet, and looks disdainfully at him "What, you mean when Hogan and Savage came out looking for a fight, and we beat them?"

Bischoff is furious "Because you're blameless in this, right?"

Nash looks Bischoff dead in the eye, anger slowly mounting in his calm voice as he replies "Do you even know who we are? We're the Outsiders. We're the Outsiders because we don't play by anyone else's rules, we don't live by anyone else's standards, and we sure as hell don't fight under anyone else's banner. We came here for a war with WCW, and that orange goblin turned it into a personal publicity campaign, a career resurrection, because no-one cared about his orange ass any more. Now a year and a half later, we're still on the outside, and we're damn sure still at war, but it ain't with WCW any more, it's with Hogan's nWo, and anyone who stands with them. Now get out of my sight, I'm almost as sick of seeing you as I am hearing your voice."

Bischoff scurries off, leaving Hall and Nash to discuss strategy for Sunday at Superbrawl.

 

Ric Flair is backstage with Mean Gene Okerlund towards the end of Nitro.

"Woo! I gotta tell you, Gene, I'm excited about this Sunday! Because this Sunday, I get to get in the ring with the second best wrestler in the world today, the only man who can challenge me in wrestling ability, Bret Hart!" His voice changes tone suddenly "But more than that, I get to beat some respect into that little punk! See, he thinks that because he got lucky once, he can disrespect my legacy, my career, my reputation! He thinks that can step into WCW, the true home of the nature boy, and disrespect him. Well, this Sunday, I get to prove Bret wrong, with the whole world watching. I'll see you at Superbrawl, Bret."

 

February 22^nd, 1998: Superbrawl VIII

 

Flair/Hart II is the first match of the double main event to run tonight, and anticipation runs high, the WCW fans firmly in the corner of Ric Flair, hoping he will put the arrogant Hart in his place. The two stand in their corners, waiting for the bell to ring. When it does, they're out like a shot, tying up in the middle. Bret pushes Flair out of the tie-up, and lays a knife edge chop across his chest, letting out a mocking "woo!" as he does. Rage burns in Flair's eyes at the lack of respect, and he slaps Bret across the face, before lighting him up with chops, running him around all four corners as he staggers away from the chops, the arena filling with "woo"s from the crowd. His chest resembling one giant red welt, he rests against the ropes. Flair hits the ropes opposite him, charging in for a lariat, only for Bret to duck his head, backdropping Flair over the top rope, the fans popping at the spot. Bret waits for Flair to reach his feet on the outside, and slingshots himself over the ropes, catching Flair with a plancha, to pop the crowd once more. From here, he hurls Flair into the guardrail, and Flair is clutching his back in pain as Bret throws him back into the ring. Bret drops knees repeatedly into the back of Flair, softening it up for the sharpshooter, which he cockily goes for early on. Flair leans his head forward, and throws a punch to Bret which sends him stumbling backwards a few steps. Bret puts his hand to his mouth, and feels to confirm that it is in fact, bleeding, the camera catching a close up of the blood on Bret's hand. Bret is now as angry as Flair, and the two exchange high power suplexes and vicious holds, an exchange which ends with Bret superplexing Flair, and covering for two. Bret grabs Flair's legs, and goes to apply the sharpshooter a second time. Flair screams in agony as Bret locks the hold in, and crawls desperately towards the ropes, reaching the bottom one with his hand. Charles Robinson tells Bret release the hold, but Bret holds on right up until the four of his five count. Robinson starts lecturing Bret on having respect for his position as a referee, and his distraction with Bret means he misses Flair low blowing Bret. Flair rolls Bret up as he's hunched over, and manages to get a sly hand onto the bottom rope, allowing him the three count. Flair rolls out of the ring, as an irate Bret Hart shouts at Charles Robinson for missing the low blow.

 

Leaving only the main event. Hogan comes out accompanied by Savage, and air-guitaring on his belt. Hall is all swagger as he heads to the ring, accompanied by Nash. Nash and Savage stare daggers at each other from opposite sides of the ring. Sting descends alone from the rafters on his harness, and silently passes the belt to the timekeeper. Hogan and Hall stare daggers at each other, while Sting silently evaluates the pair. The bell is rung, starting the match, and Hogan and Hall make a beeline for each other, trading punches. Sting watches for a while, then marches up to the pair, turning Hall around, and dropping him with a right hand, before giving Hogan the same treatment. Each man gets a suplex in turn, and as they stand, a Sting clothesline drops them both at once. Hogan is scooped up, and sent flying into the turnbuckle opposite from the corner the three men are in. Sting follows him, delivering a Stinger Splash that pops the crowd loudly. Scott Hall, meanwhile, has pulled himself up in the opposite turnbuckle. Sting charges toward him, only for him to side-step, and Sting's splash in the corner meets only turnbuckle. Sting slumps back in the corner, and Hall works him over with punches to the gut, before placing him on the top. Hall throws a shot that catches Sting on the chin, and follows him up for a superplex, only for Hogan to pull Hall down, and start to brawl with him. Sting recovers from his beating, and gives both men a crossbody from the top rope. Tony Schiavone remarks that if Hall and Hogan can't put their differences aside, they'll lose this match. Sting pulls Hogan to his feet, and snaps him down with a DDT. He covers for two, but as he reaches his feet, he finds that Hall has got to his own first. Hall gives Sting a clothesline, and from there, proceeds to control the match for a while, keeping either man from picking up momentum, until Hogan is able to reverse an irish whip into the corner, whipping Hall hard enough to send him staggering back out of the corner into a big boot. Hogan stands over Hall, laying boots into him, which makes the mistake of ignoring Sting. Sting rewards this mistake by hooking Hogan back and delivering a Scorpion Death Drop. He notices Hall regaining his feet, and sets him on the top rope for a superplex. Hall puts a thumb in his eye, however, before hammering down on his back, bending him forwards. From this position, Hall manages to hit s top rope version of the Outsider's Edge on Sting, the crowd exploding for the spot, despite their hero being the victim of it. Hall drops down from the top, and heads over to cover Sting. Charles Robinson's hand hits the mat once, twice, Savage pulls Hall off of Sting by his leg. Nash is enraged at the interference, and storms towards Savage, the two quickly engaging in a brawl. Sting rolls himself out of the ring to safety, still dazed by the Super Outsider's Edge. Hogan reaches his feet slowly, only to eat a DDT from Scott Hall. Hall covers Hogan, who manages to get his foot on the bottom rope. Seeing that his friend and partner is in trouble on the outside, as Savage is able to get his hands on a steel chair, Hall rolls outside to blindside Savage. The duo toss Savage into the ring, and deliver a double suplex to him, before double DDTing Hogan. Scott Norton comes charging out from the back, brandishing a chair, which he uses to great effect on both Outsiders, drawing Konnan out from the back. Konnan disarms Norton after taking him out from behind with a running low blow. The ring descends into a chaotic brawl, forcing Robinson to call this match as a no-contest. Sting, having regained some of his composure on the outside, swiftly moves to the time-keeper's table, and picks up his title. He is heading back up the ramp, and fastening the title around his waist, when Lex Luger appears at the top of the ramp with a steel chair. Luger charges Sting before he has time to react, and catches him with a running chair shot which drops Sting. Luger tosses the chair aside, spits on the downed champion, and storms back up the ramp, as Superbrawl ends on the image of the champion prone, while the nWo brawl wildly in the ring.

 

To be continued...