We have a starting video for WCW Slamboree: The Road to Glory. Tonight, we gonna have the very first winner of The Road to Glory, who’ll get the WCW World Heavyweight Championship shot anytime in the next 12 months. Plus a lot of other great matches.
The show starts.
Match 1, The Path of Legacy Final: Eddie Guerrero vs Steve Corino vs Shawn Michaels vs Jeff Jarrett. Corino hits Eddie with a low blow and prepares for Old School Expulsion, but Jarrett intercepts with a guitar shot to Corino’s back! The guitar explodes, and Corino is out of commission for a while. HBK with a Sweet Chin Music to Jarrett out of nowhere! 1…2….NO! Eddie breaks it. We have a high-flying exchange between HBK and Eddie - and it looks like a dream match. Eddie slams HBK down and goes for a Frog Splash… Jarrett shoves him off the turnbuckle, causing him to crash hard to the mat. With Corino still on the outside and Eddie down, Jarrett and Michaels brawl in the center of the ring. Michaels goes for another Sweet Chin Music, but Jarrett ducks and rolls him up with a handful of tights—1…2… Michaels kicks out! Furious, Jarrett goes for the Stroke, but Michaels reverses it into a Sweet Chin Music! But HBK is too exhausted to make a pin. Eddie seizes the opening. He climbs to the top rope and nails the Frog Splash on Jarrett. 1…2… HBK tries to stop him… 3! (8:52, 81)
CM Punk backstage interview. “3 days ago I pinned the WCW North American Champion. I also won #1 contendership for it a couple of weeks ago and still didn’t get my shot. But you know what? Nevermind. Because after winning WCW Path to Glory tonight, I’ll get back to it and I’ll get my shot for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. It’s CM Punk’s era when he’ll become WCW Grand Slam Champion!” (73)
Backstage, Samoa Joe explains to Low Ki why he attacked him and cost him WCW Cruiserweight Championship on the last Nitro. It was a lesson, so Low Ki would remember what it means to be a team and to watch each other back. It was a tough love by Joe. Joe hopes Low Ki will put this lesson in life tonight.
Match 2, The Path of Ambition Final: Rob Van Dam vs Chris Hero vs Rey Mysterio vs CM Punk. In the end, all four were down. Rey Mysterio is the first to recover, goes to the top rope. Hero cuts him off and prepares for a superplex… springboards off the ropes, hitting a flying kick to Hero. RVD and Rey now stand off. The crowd is electric. Rey ducks under a kick. Punk, now recovered, charges at Rey, only to get hit with a drop-toe hold that sends him crashing into the ropes. 6-1-9 on Punk! Hero grabs Rey, Rey ducks under an elbow… Springboard seated senton on Hero! Punk tries to crawl back into the match, but Rey nails a springboard leg drop on Punk. 1….2…3. It looks like Rey Mysterio steals the victory from more massive and dangerous opponents, but he’s definitely deserved it. (9:24, 80)
The announcers hype the final for the Road to Glory: Eddie Guerrero vs Rey Mysterio! Rey can get his revenge now!
Match 3: AJ Styles and Kaz Hayashi vs Samoa Joe and Low Ki. WCW US title shot is on the line here. Samoa Joe naturally distrusted Low Ki, preferring to do everything himself. But Styles and Hayashi were too serious opponents for Joe to defeat them on his own. Eventually he needed to trust Low Ki. And Low Ki proved his loyalty at every turn. He followed Joe's orders. He was demonstrating that he is a team player. And with time he deserved more and more trust from Joe.... right up to the end. In the end Kaz Hayashi attempts to re-enter the match but gets caught by Joe with a Muscle Buster! Joe and AJ brawl intensely, trading heavy strikes, with Joe hitting a huge powerslam that lays AJ out. As Joe looks to lock in the Koji Clutch to finish the match, Low Ki takes one final glance at Joe, as if evaluating the situation, and suddenly—BOOM! He hits both AJ and Joe with a springboard kick to the back of the head! It was a really brutal kick. Both are down. Low Ki stares at lying Joe and screams “I’m in control NOW!”. Low Ki puts Joe’s arm over Styles and leaves! 1…2…and…3! (9:30, 80)
Match 4, Street Fight: Raven vs Abyss vs Fit Finlay vs Perry Saturn. We’re up for a potentially very intense and brutal match. And it was a total anarchy. There was a lot of weapons, a lot of broken tables and a lot of brutal moves. Raven and Abyss brawl up the entrance ramp, where Raven sets up a table covered in barbed wire. Abyss fights back and looks for a Chokeslam through that table… Finlay intervenes! Double suplex by Raven and Finlay for Abyss through the barbed wire table! Finlay and Raven now brawl. Saturn dives into the fight! The brawl spills into the backstage area, where all four men use whatever they can find—garbage cans, crates, steel pipes—to brutalize each other. The referees and officials are now desperately trying to regain control, but it's no use. The fight escalates to the point where security floods the backstage area, trying to separate all four men, but they just won’t stop. Raven gets in a few more cheap shots on Finlay with a pipe, while Saturn and Abyss are literally throwing each other through anything in their path—doors, equipment boxes, you name it. The crowd is roaring as the cameras struggle to follow the chaos. It went totally out of the way. Announcers talk about how backstage workers and the crowd are in danger. Finally, the officials manage to drag the competitors apart, but not before Abyss grabs a piece of shattered table and hurls it at Raven, narrowly missing him. The commentators emphasize that no one has proven themselves the toughest tonight—this is far from over. But it was too dangerous to continue that way. (8:45, 82)
Match 5, WCW RAGE Tag Team Championship: Brian Kendrick and Paul London vs The British Invasion. It was a clash of styles. The dynamic, fast-paced, high-flying champions versus the gritty, technical challengers who look to slow down the pace, targeting the limbs and breaking down the champions with precision. In the end all four are in the ring. Kendrick and London hit a series of double-team moves, taking out Williams temporarily. The ref checks on Williams at ringside. Wait, who’s that with a cane?... It’s… NORMAN SMILEY! No stupid attire, he looks serious. Smiley pulls Kendrick off the apron and delivers a brutal cane shot to him on the outside. Nigel nails London with a Jawbreaker Lariat. Doug is back and follows up with a devastating Chaos Theory! 1…2… and… 3! We have the NEW WCW RAGE Tag Team Champions! (10:27, 79)
Post-match, Norman Smiley celebrates with the new champions. Kendrick and London are looking for revenge. The ref tries to calm them down. It looks like the brawl would continue any minute, but the music hits… Camera is on the ramp. And there are two guys… Matt and Jeff…. THE HARDY BOYZ! The crowd is ecstatic. Matt and Jeff look at the ring, and both teams in the ring are speechless. What a debut. (75)
Mike Awesome makes his way to the ring and waits for his opponent to show up. Who’s the new RAGE Head of Security?... The music hits, and Awesome is shocked. Because it’s… TAZ!
Match 6: Mike Awesome vs Taz. Awesome used a lot of his power. Taz did everything to catch Mike in a Tazmission. Awesome regains control with a huge counter—he catches Taz mid-suplex attempt and drives him into the mat with a spinebuster! Awesome climbs to the top rope, signaling for his devastating Awesome Splash. He leaps off the top, but Taz rolls out of the way at the last second, and Awesome crashes hard onto the mat! Another Tazmission attempt… Awesome fights back. Awesome sets up a table in the corner. Awesome lifts Taz for a running Awesome Bomb, aiming to drive him through the table, but Taz slides out of it at the last second and hits Awesome with a release German suplex, sending Awesome crashing onto the mat! 1…2… Awesome kicks out and hits a flying forearm! The ref goes to take out the table… and in this time Taz hits Mike Awesome with a stun gun! Tazmission! Now Mike Awesome can’t fight back. And he taps out! (10:45, 73)
Match 7, WCW Nitro Tag Team Championship: CW Anderson and Claudio Castagnoli vs Jerry Lynn and Jamie Noble. Jamie Noble gets a hot tag in the end. He attacks Claudio with rapid-fire leg kicks and a spinning back elbow. Noble hits the ropes and goes for a suicide dive on Anderson, who’s on the outside, but Anderson sidesteps him, sending Noble crashing into the barricade! Back in the ring, Lynn tries to roll up Claudio, but Claudio kicks out and nails Lynn with a pop-up European uppercut that floors him. Tag to Anderson. Lynn ducks from a superkick and hits a reverse DDT. Lynn crawls toward the corner to tag in Noble, but Claudio pulls Noble off the apron, slamming him hard into the ring steps! With Noble incapacitated, Anderson sees the opportunity. He hits Lynn with a superkick, followed by Claudio delivering a devastating Ricola Bomb. Anderson covers Lynn—1… 2… 3! (11:26, 76)
Backstage, Nitro GM Dusty Rhodes and RAGE GM Randy Savage are going to watch the next match together. It's an important one, because it will determine whether the WCW Cruiserweight Championship stays on Nitro or returns to RAGE. They taunt each other’s show. Savage brags about signing the new top tag team. 76
Match 8, WCW Cruiserweight Championship: Shannon Moore vs Shane Helms. Last two PPVs we had a match of the night in the cruiserweight division. So I’m slowly starting to trust them more and more, giving them more time and moving them towards the main event from the opener's spot. Spoiler: it wasn’t a match of the night. But it was great again. Great cruiserweight action that left both competitors totally exhausted in the end. Especially Shannon Moore who has kinda changed his style to more daredevil. Maybe that decided the match results. The two trade blows on the apron, with Moore setting up for a suplex onto the floor—but Helms counters. Helms drops down, pulling Moore neck-first across the top rope. Moore stumbles back into the ring, dazed. Shining Wizard to Moore’s temple! The impact knocks Moore out cold! Helms finishes him with a Vertabreaker. (15:21, 82)
Match 9: Booker T vs Sting. It’s hard to say, but Sting is getting old. Booker T carried that match. He looked strong, but Sting showed his resilience and heart. In the end both were exhausted. Booker T throwed every move to Sting, but Sting just refused to lose. Booker tries to keep control, hitting Sting with a superkick, but Sting refuses to stay down. He powers through the pain, getting back to his feet and roaring to the crowd, signaling for the Scorpion Deathlock. He grabs Booker’s legs and starts to turn him over, but Booker fights out, shoving Sting into the ropes. Booker catches him with a Book End out of nowhere! 1…2…NO! Frustrated, Booker climbs to the top rope… Harlem Hangover, but Sting rolls out of the way just in time. Scorpion Death Drop! 1…2…NO! Sting charges with a Stinger Splash,, but Booker catches him with a last-ditch elbow to the face, stunning Sting. AXE KICK! Instead of going for the pin, Booker pulls Sting up, setting him up for another Book End. But before he can deliver the move, Sting counters with a series of elbows to Booker’s head. Sting grabs Booker’s legs and finally locks in the Scorpion Deathlock, wrenching Booker’s back as he desperately claws for the ropes! Just as it looks like Booker might tap, he manages to pull himself to the ropes, but Sting refuses to let go of the hold! The referee tries to intervene, but Sting keeps the hold locked in, dragging Booker back to the center of the ring. Booker, in a panic, rakes Sting’s eyes to escape, causing Sting to break the hold. Blinded, Sting stumbles to the outside, and Booker, still hurting from the Deathlock, follows him. The fight spills out into the ringside area once again. This time, Booker grabs a steel chair, ready to finish Sting off. The referee warns Booker, but Booker swings it anyway—Sting dodges, and the chair bounces off the ring post, stunning Booker. With both men on the outside, they brawl furiously, neither man willing to let the other gain the upper hand. The referee counts to 10, but they’re so consumed with their hatred for each other that neither man returns to the ring. Double count-out. (13:55, 79)
Post-match, the fight isn’t over. Sting and Booker continue to brawl up the ramp and into the backstage area, exchanging stiff punches, throwing each other into equipment crates and backstage officials. Booker T hits Sting with a BookEnd through the table. Sting is down. But Booker T has a problem staying on his feet too.
Match 10: Goldberg vs Chris Kanyon. Kanyon knew he couldn’t overpower Goldberg, so tried to stay out of his offense. Kanyon was trying to outsmart and find weak spots in Goldberg’s defense. After a while he starts focusing on Goldberg’s legs, trying to ground him. Goldberg catches Kanyon mid-air after a flying forearm with a huge spinebuster. Now he has a comeback! Clotheslines, knees to the gut, and a press slam that sends Kanyon crashing to the mat. Spear! 1…2…NO! Goldberg goes for a Jackhammer… Kanyon escapes by raking Goldberg’s eyes! Kanyon, desperate, charges at Goldberg, but Goldberg catches him with another massive spear out of nowhere! 1…2… still NO! Goldberg, shocked but not deterred, grabs Kanyon by the throat, lifting him for a military press, but Kanyon slips out and lands behind him. FLATLINER! 1…2…NO! Kanyon climbs the top rope… Moonsault… Goldberg rolls out of the way, and Kanyon crashes hard onto the mat. Goldberg goes for another Spear, waiting for Kanyon to get up… Paul Heyman comes into the arena. Goldberg sees him. But he doesn’t see that behind him someone is standing now… It’s… RHINO! GORE! GORE GORE! Kanyon gets back on his feet. And eats GORE too! The referee stops the match. (11:49, 82)
Post-match, Paul Heyman is ecstatic. But Rhino didn’t finish. He beats down both Goldberg and Kanyon. Heyman gives him a chair. Rhino destroys Goldberg with a chair, but that’s not enough. He beats him down to the ramp… and hits Gore through the stoplight! We have an explosion here. It was horrible. Goldberg needs serious medical help if he’s alive at all. Paul Heyman is shocked… but happy with Rhino. (79)
Match 11, WCW Path To Glory Final for the Guaranteed Shot for WCW World Heavyweight Championship Anytime: Eddie Guerrero vs Rey Mysterio. It was an ABSOLUTE ALL-TIME GREAT MATCH! And the best since the beginning of this diary… by far! Rey Mysterio is determined to get his revenge, because it’s Eddie that caused Rey to leave Nitro. The match begins with an intense staredown and quick offense by Rey that caught Eddie off guard. Eddie is visibly frustrated as he tries to regroup, but Rey is all over him, determined not to give him a moment to breathe. Eddie finds an opening when Rey goes for a springboard moonsault—Eddie moves out of the way, and Rey crashes hard to the mat. Eddie, seizing the moment, immediately targets Rey’s back, stomping viciously and locking in a surfboard stretch, wrenching Rey’s body to wear him down.E ddie’s offense becomes methodical, as he targets Rey’s legs with a series of leg drops and sharp kicks, trying to ground the high-flyer. A couple of nearfalls later - and Eddie gets even more aggressive….
…. Rey comes back with a spinning DDT. 1…2. Rey follows up with a springboard hurricanrana, sending Eddie sprawling into the corner. Sensing an opportunity, Rey hits a running dropkick to Eddie’s face, followed by a springboard leg drop. 1…2…NO! Rey climbs the top rope… Frog Splash! Missed. Eddie immediately locks Rey into a cross-armbreaker. Rey grabs the ropes. Both are exhausted. Springboard tornado DDT by Rey! 1…2…NO! Rey goes for another high-risk move, attempting a springboard moonsault, but Eddie catches him mid-air and counters into a backbreaker. 1…2…NO! Eddie is desperate… and he goes for a Frog Splash… MISS! 6-1-9 by Mysterio! Rey prepares for the follow-up springboard, but Eddie is one step ahead—he grabs the referee and pulls him in front of Rey, causing Rey to hit the official instead!...
…. With the referee down, Eddie grabs the chair. Rey kicks the chair out of his hands. They trade punches, and Rey knocks Guerrero down. He goes to the top rope again… Eddie throws a chair into him, Rey falls down with a chair in his hands… and Eddie drops to the mat, acting as if Rey hit him with the chair! The ref is up. He sees that both are down, and Rey has a chair in his hands. Both are slowly getting up. The ref blames Rey for using the chair and is about to call for a DQ. Rey pleads his case, trying to explain what happened. This gives Eddie enough time to roll Rey up from behind, grabbing the tights for leverage. 1…2…3! (15:11, 97)
Match 12, WCW World Heavyweight Championship: Lance Storm (w/ Bret Hart) vs Ric Flair. I wanted to see a technical masterclass from these guys, but it backfired. The match was too long and not exactly PPV main event caliber. It doesn’t look good for Storm’s first title defense. Anyway… There was a lot of tension between Flair and Hart. While Storm was focused on his opponent, Flair once in a while was distracted by Hart. Flair was better in the beginning. Storm quickly rolls to the outside, where Bret Hart is waiting to give him advice. Flair leans over the ropes, yelling at Bret to stay out of his business, but Bret smirks, cool and collected, getting under Flair’s skin. Back in the ring, Storm uses Flair’s frustration to his advantage, catching him with a drop toe hold and immediately transitioning into a Maple Leaf. Too soon, as Flair kicks out of it. Eye rake by Flair! He has some tricks of his own… Flair methodically works over Storm’s legs. And he might win it here, but Bret Hart kept interfering. Flair begins taunting Bret more openly, yelling insults and gesturing for Bret to get involved. Bret remains stoic but clenches his fists, clearly irritated by Flair’s goading. Flair steps to the ropes and yells, “Come on, Hart, you want a piece of me?” This momentary distraction gives Storm enough time to recover….
… As Flair turns around, Storm explodes with a superkick. 1…2. Now Storm tries to weaken Flair’s knee. Maple Leaf! Flair screams in pain, desperately clawing his way to the ropes. Just as he’s about to grab it, Bret Hart slaps Flair’s hand away. The ref goes crazy and he goes to reprimand Hart. Hart is talking his way out of being sent away to the locker room. In the meantime, Flair hits Storm with a low blow! Figure-Four Leglock! Bret Hart can’t stand seeing it and tries to get involved, but the ref - now more conscious - keeps him at distance. Ric Flair is close to becoming WCW World Heavyweight Champion one more time! Storm uses his core strength to roll the hold over, reversing the pressure onto Flair! Flair breaks the hold…
… Both men are exhausted. Flair chops Storm. Storm fires back with a standing dropkick, knocking Flair into the corner. Sensing victory, Storm charges at Flair for a corner splash, but Flair moves out of the way, and Storm crashes into the turnbuckle! Roll up by Flair! 1…2… Bret Hart twitches Flair’s leg, breaking the pin. Flair is furious and leans through the ropes to yell at Bret, but Bret responds with a cold, mocking smirk. Flair, incensed, grabs Bret by the collar, but the distraction allows Storm to recover. Devastating superkick to the back of the head! Flair is out cold. Maple Leaf in the center of the ring! Flair has no choice, but to tap out. (17:21, 76)
Post-match, Lance Storm takes the championship belt. Exhausted Flair glares at Bret, knowing that Hart’s presence might cost him a change for the title. Maybe the last chance… Anyway, that’s it for tonight. See you tomorrow at Nitro!