An Alternate History of WCW - 1998 and Beyond
Apr 12, 2022 3:43:39 GMT 1
Asaemon, dhk1989, and 2 more like this
Post by dxvsnwo1994 on Apr 12, 2022 3:43:39 GMT 1
Part XXXVI: WCW Starrcade 2000
Well, the time has finally arrived!! It's Starrcade 2000, and instead of taking place in Washington, D.C. like it usually did during the late 90's (both in this alternate reality and in OTL), this edition of WCW's biggest show of the year is taking place in the Georgia Dome. A true home game for the promotion, and the card itself certainly lives up to the hype that Starrcade brings, with a number of huge matches to close out 2000.
At the top of the card, I put together two title bouts that are guaranteed to generate a ton of interest. In the main event slot, the WCW World Heavyweight Title is on the line, as Bret Hart defends against Chris Benoit, Rob Van Dam, and Booker T in a Four-Way Elimination Match. Now The Hitman had already gotten a couple of title defenses under his belt since November To Remember 2000 (retaining against Lex Luger on the December 9th Saturday Night and against Yoshihiro Tajiri on the December 13th Thunder), but this would easily be the toughest in his very young title reign. Of course, Chris Benoit was the man that Hart beat for the title the month prior, so he's looking to regain the gold. You have another former World Champion in Rob Van Dam, who's also looking to get back to the top. Then there's Booker T. He's held pretty much every title there is to hold in WCW....except for the WCW World Heavyweight Title. In that regard, he's the outlier in this one. However, he's also the hungriest of the bunch, as he's looking to finally reach the top of the mountain. The buildup to the match (only three weeks between PPV's, so a pretty quick turnaround) mainly involved Hart, Van Dam, and Booker T all facing The Radicalz in some form or another, aside from Bret's title defense against Luger. Which one of these four will emerge victorious inside the Georgia Dome a week before Christmas?
The semi-main event is, of course, a very famous match that took place in OTL. In this universe, however, it's taking place in a different promotion, and about eight months later. It's The Dudley Boyz. It's The Hardy Boyz. It's Edge and Christian. A Triangle Ladder Match for the WCW World Tag Team Titles. Need I say more?
In terms of other title bouts, the next one that's the most prominent is Kurt Angle defending the WCW United States Title against Owen Hart. After Mike Awesome won the title from Angle in a 2/3 Falls Match at November To Remember, Angle demanded a rematch the following night on Nitro. He would get his wish, but it would be a Last Man Standing Match, and it would be the concluding match in the rivalry between Awesome and Angle. In the end, Angle emerged victorious, and regained the title. However, shortly thereafter, Owen Hart would emerge as the next challenger. On paper, it's a true dream match, and at Starrcade, the two would face off (in this universe) for the first time ever. Meanwhile, the ECW World Tag Team Titles would also be on the line. Those titles have seen some movement in the last month. Eddie Guerrero and Dean Malenko managed to retain the titles at November To Remember, but the following night on Nitro was a different story. They lost the titles to Konnan & Ron "The Truth" Killings in a Four-Way Tag Team Elimination Match that also involved The Mamalukes as well as Billy Kidman and Rey Mysterio Jr. from The Filthy Animals. However, their reign was short lived, as Chris Jericho and Lance Storm won the titles a few nights later on Thunder. This meant that Jericho was now a double champion, as he was one-half of the ECW World Tag Team Champions along with being the current NWA World Heavyweight Champion, which he won from Sting on the November 20th Nitro. That was really the kickoff of a feud between Jericho and Sting, so a Thrillseekers vs. Ric Flair and Sting bout just serves as a natural extension of that.
Another title is on the line in the opener, as Shane Helms defending his WCW Cruiserweight Title against Evan Karagias and Shannon Moore. Yes....after months of cracks and dissension and losses (including on the December 2nd Saturday Night, where Team Canada beat 3 Count and their bodyguard Boss Man Traylor), the trio finally broke up on the December 4th Nitro. I say broke up, but it was really Karagias and Moore turning on Helms. Obviously, with Helms being the WCW Cruiserweight Champion, the natural thing to do was to set up a title match for the PPV, and well, that's what we got.
In terms of other matches on the card, I'd say the biggest one not involving a title is Goldberg vs. Scott Steiner inside a Steel Cage. Basic setup here. Steiner beat Goldberg back at November To Remember thanks to some involvement from The Magnificent Eight, and now, Goldberg has the chance to get revenge on Big Poppa Pump in a match where his cronies can't get involved. In fact, Steiner's entire crew is barred from ringside, so even if they wanted to try to get involved, they're not even allowed near the ring. Then, in another bout that involves a stipulation, we've got Rhino teaming up with Steve Corino to take on Tommy Dreamer and The American Dream himself, Dusty Rhodes. This is actually a reference to a match that actually took place in ECW in 2000. So the story here is that (in another callback to ECW from OTL) Dreamer's big crowning moment was short-lived. After winning the ECW World Heavyweight Title from The Sandman in a High Incident Scaffold Match at November To Remember, Mick Foley really threw the book at Dreamer, metaphorically speaking. He had Rhino attack Dreamer the next night on Nitro, and forced him to defend the ECW World Heavyweight Title against Rhino later that night. After the attack, the injured Dreamer was not able to overcome Rhino, who beat him decisively to win the title. Meanwhile, just a few days later, Steve Corino (a member of The Radicalz and a close ally of Rhino) won the ECW World TV Title from Jerry Lynn on the December 2nd Saturday Night. The two sides would meet in a tag on the December 11th Nitro, and after the team of Dreamer and Lynn came up short, Dusty Rhodes saves the duo from a post-match beatdown. Thus, the match was set for the PPV, as The American Dream would make his in-ring return.
Elsewhere on the card, I decided to shake things up a bit for this year's Starrcade. Instead of doing the Starrcade Battle Royal, I went with a different concept....The Starrcade Cup. On the episodes of Thunder and Saturday Night before the PPV, two Battle Royals were held, and the winners of those two Battle Royals would face off in a singles mach to determine the inaugural winner of the Starrcade Cup. Devon Storm won the first Battle Royal, while Rey Mysterio Jr. won the second Battle Royal. That's pretty much it in terms of the buildup. The final bout on the card was a Ten-Man Tag, which just serves as a further extension of the general feud between The Radicalz and WCW.
In terms of other title changes that I haven't mentioned already, the only one I need to go over is the WCW Hardcore Title. The episode of Thunder on December 7th saw Terry Funk successfully defend the title against Johnny The Bull. However, Mick Foley (once again throwing his power around) would confront his longtime friend, and forced him to defend the title again later that night against Sabu. Two defenses in one night proved to be too much for Funk, as Sabu emerged as the new WCW Hardcore Champion.
With all of that out of the way, let's dive into the results from the PPV!!
WCW Starrcade 2000
December 17th, 2000 - Georgia Dome - Atlanta, Georgia
1.) WCW Cruiserweight Title - Triple Threat Match - Shane Helms (c) def. Evan Karagias & Shannon Moore
2.) Atlanta Street Fight - Dusty Rhodes & Tommy Dreamer def. ECW World Champion Rhino & ECW World TV Champion Steve Corino
3.) Starrcade Cup - Finals - Rey Mysterio Jr. (with Billy Kidman & Torrie Wilson) def. Devon Storm (with David Flair & Daffney)
4.) ECW World Tag Team Titles - Ric Flair & Sting (with Arn Anderson) def. The Thrillseekers (Chris Jericho & Lance Storm with Don Callis) (c)
5.) WCW United States Title - Owen Hart def. Kurt Angle (with Rick Rude) (c)
6.) Ten-Man Tag - The Radicalz (WCW World TV Champion Andrew Martin, Eddie Guerrero, Perry Saturn, Raven, & Taz) def. Diamond Dallas Page, Mike Awesome, Konnan, & The Outsiders (Kevin Nash & Scott Hall)
7.) Steel Cage Match - Goldberg def. Scott Steiner
8.) WCW World Tag Team Titles - Triangle Ladder Match - Edge & Christian def. The Dudley Boyz (c) & The Hardy Boyz
9.) WCW World Heavyweight Title - Four-Way Elimination Match - Booker T def. Bret Hart (c), Chris Benoit, & Rob Van Dam
For Starrcade 2000, I got an overall score of 91%, which ties the record that I set with Halloween Havoc 2000. I really liked how this card came together, so it's good to see that it produced strong results in terms of the ratings. Unsurprisingly, Match Of The Night honors went to the Triangle Ladder Match for the WCW World Tag Team Titles, as the bout earned an incredible score of 99% (with a 100% crowd reaction). Not too far behind was The Thrillseekers vs. Ric Flair and Sting for the ECW World Tag Team Titles, which got an overall score of 96% (again....with a 100% crowd reaction). So the tag teams definitely took center stage on this card. Two other matches scored above 90%. Those were Kurt Angle vs. Owen Hart for the WCW United States Title, which finished with a 94% score, and the main event, which wound up at 90%. The remaining five matches were all in the 80% range. Goldberg vs. Scott Steiner in a Steel Cage earned an 89% score, while (perhaps a little surprisingly) the Atlanta Street Fight and the Ten-Man Tag both wound up at 86%. To close things out, the Triple Threat Match for the WCW Cruiserweight Title and the Starrcade Cup Final both ended up with a score of 83%.
As I've said already, I thought this PPV turned out incredibly well, which is exactly what you want when it comes to Starrcade. For those curious, the main event saw Bret Hart actually get eliminated first, followed a few minutes later by Rob Van Dam. It came down to Booker T and Chris Benoit (longtime rivals in WCW), and in the end, Booker T managed to put Benoit away to finally capture the WCW World Heavyweight Title. This is meant to be a big crowning moment for Booker T, and the post-match would reflect that. Stevie Ray being the first one to congratulate Booker T, the entire babyface roster coming out to hoist him up and celebrate with him as confetti flies everywhere, and even Bret Hart coming out to acknowledge the new champion. I would really push this as being a huge deal. As for something like the Triangle Ladder Match, it pretty much goes exactly the same as the original from OTL's WrestleMania 2000, move for move.
That's all for Starrcade 2000, and thus, that's officially the last PPV for the year 2000!! Of course, like previous years, I'll be spending the next dozen or so posts going over title histories for 2000, PPV ratings, and so on and so forth. Stay tuned!
At the top of the card, I put together two title bouts that are guaranteed to generate a ton of interest. In the main event slot, the WCW World Heavyweight Title is on the line, as Bret Hart defends against Chris Benoit, Rob Van Dam, and Booker T in a Four-Way Elimination Match. Now The Hitman had already gotten a couple of title defenses under his belt since November To Remember 2000 (retaining against Lex Luger on the December 9th Saturday Night and against Yoshihiro Tajiri on the December 13th Thunder), but this would easily be the toughest in his very young title reign. Of course, Chris Benoit was the man that Hart beat for the title the month prior, so he's looking to regain the gold. You have another former World Champion in Rob Van Dam, who's also looking to get back to the top. Then there's Booker T. He's held pretty much every title there is to hold in WCW....except for the WCW World Heavyweight Title. In that regard, he's the outlier in this one. However, he's also the hungriest of the bunch, as he's looking to finally reach the top of the mountain. The buildup to the match (only three weeks between PPV's, so a pretty quick turnaround) mainly involved Hart, Van Dam, and Booker T all facing The Radicalz in some form or another, aside from Bret's title defense against Luger. Which one of these four will emerge victorious inside the Georgia Dome a week before Christmas?
The semi-main event is, of course, a very famous match that took place in OTL. In this universe, however, it's taking place in a different promotion, and about eight months later. It's The Dudley Boyz. It's The Hardy Boyz. It's Edge and Christian. A Triangle Ladder Match for the WCW World Tag Team Titles. Need I say more?
In terms of other title bouts, the next one that's the most prominent is Kurt Angle defending the WCW United States Title against Owen Hart. After Mike Awesome won the title from Angle in a 2/3 Falls Match at November To Remember, Angle demanded a rematch the following night on Nitro. He would get his wish, but it would be a Last Man Standing Match, and it would be the concluding match in the rivalry between Awesome and Angle. In the end, Angle emerged victorious, and regained the title. However, shortly thereafter, Owen Hart would emerge as the next challenger. On paper, it's a true dream match, and at Starrcade, the two would face off (in this universe) for the first time ever. Meanwhile, the ECW World Tag Team Titles would also be on the line. Those titles have seen some movement in the last month. Eddie Guerrero and Dean Malenko managed to retain the titles at November To Remember, but the following night on Nitro was a different story. They lost the titles to Konnan & Ron "The Truth" Killings in a Four-Way Tag Team Elimination Match that also involved The Mamalukes as well as Billy Kidman and Rey Mysterio Jr. from The Filthy Animals. However, their reign was short lived, as Chris Jericho and Lance Storm won the titles a few nights later on Thunder. This meant that Jericho was now a double champion, as he was one-half of the ECW World Tag Team Champions along with being the current NWA World Heavyweight Champion, which he won from Sting on the November 20th Nitro. That was really the kickoff of a feud between Jericho and Sting, so a Thrillseekers vs. Ric Flair and Sting bout just serves as a natural extension of that.
Another title is on the line in the opener, as Shane Helms defending his WCW Cruiserweight Title against Evan Karagias and Shannon Moore. Yes....after months of cracks and dissension and losses (including on the December 2nd Saturday Night, where Team Canada beat 3 Count and their bodyguard Boss Man Traylor), the trio finally broke up on the December 4th Nitro. I say broke up, but it was really Karagias and Moore turning on Helms. Obviously, with Helms being the WCW Cruiserweight Champion, the natural thing to do was to set up a title match for the PPV, and well, that's what we got.
In terms of other matches on the card, I'd say the biggest one not involving a title is Goldberg vs. Scott Steiner inside a Steel Cage. Basic setup here. Steiner beat Goldberg back at November To Remember thanks to some involvement from The Magnificent Eight, and now, Goldberg has the chance to get revenge on Big Poppa Pump in a match where his cronies can't get involved. In fact, Steiner's entire crew is barred from ringside, so even if they wanted to try to get involved, they're not even allowed near the ring. Then, in another bout that involves a stipulation, we've got Rhino teaming up with Steve Corino to take on Tommy Dreamer and The American Dream himself, Dusty Rhodes. This is actually a reference to a match that actually took place in ECW in 2000. So the story here is that (in another callback to ECW from OTL) Dreamer's big crowning moment was short-lived. After winning the ECW World Heavyweight Title from The Sandman in a High Incident Scaffold Match at November To Remember, Mick Foley really threw the book at Dreamer, metaphorically speaking. He had Rhino attack Dreamer the next night on Nitro, and forced him to defend the ECW World Heavyweight Title against Rhino later that night. After the attack, the injured Dreamer was not able to overcome Rhino, who beat him decisively to win the title. Meanwhile, just a few days later, Steve Corino (a member of The Radicalz and a close ally of Rhino) won the ECW World TV Title from Jerry Lynn on the December 2nd Saturday Night. The two sides would meet in a tag on the December 11th Nitro, and after the team of Dreamer and Lynn came up short, Dusty Rhodes saves the duo from a post-match beatdown. Thus, the match was set for the PPV, as The American Dream would make his in-ring return.
Elsewhere on the card, I decided to shake things up a bit for this year's Starrcade. Instead of doing the Starrcade Battle Royal, I went with a different concept....The Starrcade Cup. On the episodes of Thunder and Saturday Night before the PPV, two Battle Royals were held, and the winners of those two Battle Royals would face off in a singles mach to determine the inaugural winner of the Starrcade Cup. Devon Storm won the first Battle Royal, while Rey Mysterio Jr. won the second Battle Royal. That's pretty much it in terms of the buildup. The final bout on the card was a Ten-Man Tag, which just serves as a further extension of the general feud between The Radicalz and WCW.
In terms of other title changes that I haven't mentioned already, the only one I need to go over is the WCW Hardcore Title. The episode of Thunder on December 7th saw Terry Funk successfully defend the title against Johnny The Bull. However, Mick Foley (once again throwing his power around) would confront his longtime friend, and forced him to defend the title again later that night against Sabu. Two defenses in one night proved to be too much for Funk, as Sabu emerged as the new WCW Hardcore Champion.
With all of that out of the way, let's dive into the results from the PPV!!
WCW Starrcade 2000
December 17th, 2000 - Georgia Dome - Atlanta, Georgia
1.) WCW Cruiserweight Title - Triple Threat Match - Shane Helms (c) def. Evan Karagias & Shannon Moore
2.) Atlanta Street Fight - Dusty Rhodes & Tommy Dreamer def. ECW World Champion Rhino & ECW World TV Champion Steve Corino
3.) Starrcade Cup - Finals - Rey Mysterio Jr. (with Billy Kidman & Torrie Wilson) def. Devon Storm (with David Flair & Daffney)
4.) ECW World Tag Team Titles - Ric Flair & Sting (with Arn Anderson) def. The Thrillseekers (Chris Jericho & Lance Storm with Don Callis) (c)
5.) WCW United States Title - Owen Hart def. Kurt Angle (with Rick Rude) (c)
6.) Ten-Man Tag - The Radicalz (WCW World TV Champion Andrew Martin, Eddie Guerrero, Perry Saturn, Raven, & Taz) def. Diamond Dallas Page, Mike Awesome, Konnan, & The Outsiders (Kevin Nash & Scott Hall)
7.) Steel Cage Match - Goldberg def. Scott Steiner
8.) WCW World Tag Team Titles - Triangle Ladder Match - Edge & Christian def. The Dudley Boyz (c) & The Hardy Boyz
9.) WCW World Heavyweight Title - Four-Way Elimination Match - Booker T def. Bret Hart (c), Chris Benoit, & Rob Van Dam
For Starrcade 2000, I got an overall score of 91%, which ties the record that I set with Halloween Havoc 2000. I really liked how this card came together, so it's good to see that it produced strong results in terms of the ratings. Unsurprisingly, Match Of The Night honors went to the Triangle Ladder Match for the WCW World Tag Team Titles, as the bout earned an incredible score of 99% (with a 100% crowd reaction). Not too far behind was The Thrillseekers vs. Ric Flair and Sting for the ECW World Tag Team Titles, which got an overall score of 96% (again....with a 100% crowd reaction). So the tag teams definitely took center stage on this card. Two other matches scored above 90%. Those were Kurt Angle vs. Owen Hart for the WCW United States Title, which finished with a 94% score, and the main event, which wound up at 90%. The remaining five matches were all in the 80% range. Goldberg vs. Scott Steiner in a Steel Cage earned an 89% score, while (perhaps a little surprisingly) the Atlanta Street Fight and the Ten-Man Tag both wound up at 86%. To close things out, the Triple Threat Match for the WCW Cruiserweight Title and the Starrcade Cup Final both ended up with a score of 83%.
As I've said already, I thought this PPV turned out incredibly well, which is exactly what you want when it comes to Starrcade. For those curious, the main event saw Bret Hart actually get eliminated first, followed a few minutes later by Rob Van Dam. It came down to Booker T and Chris Benoit (longtime rivals in WCW), and in the end, Booker T managed to put Benoit away to finally capture the WCW World Heavyweight Title. This is meant to be a big crowning moment for Booker T, and the post-match would reflect that. Stevie Ray being the first one to congratulate Booker T, the entire babyface roster coming out to hoist him up and celebrate with him as confetti flies everywhere, and even Bret Hart coming out to acknowledge the new champion. I would really push this as being a huge deal. As for something like the Triangle Ladder Match, it pretty much goes exactly the same as the original from OTL's WrestleMania 2000, move for move.
That's all for Starrcade 2000, and thus, that's officially the last PPV for the year 2000!! Of course, like previous years, I'll be spending the next dozen or so posts going over title histories for 2000, PPV ratings, and so on and so forth. Stay tuned!
