The debut episode of WCW Monday Nitro on September 4, 1995 changed the direction of the professional wrestling industry. Airing live on TNT opposite WWF’s flagship program, Monday Night Raw, it was the opening salvo in what would be known as the Monday Night War: a ratings battle between the two promotions that challenged what fans had come to expect from weekly episodic professional wrestling.
The brainchild of Eric Bischoff, Nitro’s mantra was to expect the unexpected. Championships changed hands (sometimes multiple times on a show), legends reinvented themselves, reality-based storylines unfolded, and surprise debuts became the norm. And the fans responded. Nitro surpassed Raw in the ratings on June 10, 1996 and stayed ahead for the next 83 weeks until April 13, 1998.
WCW’s bold, unpredictable style of booking television forced WWF to adapt. The company quickly evolved from a kid-friendly show to a more risque product that pushed the boundaries of what professional wrestling could do both in and out of the ring. And with “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and The Rock leading the way, WWF would eventually win the war. Mismanagement and dysfunction would plague WCW until their demise in March 2001. But for five and a half years, Nitro provided countless memories for wrestling fans.
On the 25th anniversary of its final episode, these are the 25 Craziest WCW Monday Nitro Moments.
Scott Steiner Shoots on Ric Flair (Feb. 7, 2000)
“Oh no,” WCW play-by-play announcer Tony Schiavone groaned as soon as “Big Poppa Pump” Scott Steiner grabbed the mic.
Steiner, a former amateur standout at the University of Michigan, was in the ring surrounded by the latest iteration of the nWo and four of his “freaks”— his harem of valets. He immediately launched into an unscripted rant against Ric Flair that played off his real, personal animosity towards the Nature Boy. Steiner mocked Flair for his “crooked, yellow teeth” and for having “more loose skin than a Shar Pei puppy.” From there, it got worse. Big Poppa Pump called Flair “a jealous, old bastard” and proclaimed that “WCW sucks.”
Steiner was suspended two weeks with pay — and was then punished with a push! A few months later, Steiner won the WCW World Heavyweight Championship. He also reconciled with Flair, on screen at least, as the two became stablemates in the short-lived Magnificent Seven faction. — Thomas Golianopoulos
“Who Are You To Doubt El Dandy?” (January 25, 1999)
Bret Hart’s underwhelming run in WCW featured confused booking and weird character alignment. Regardless of who was writing the show (and in latter day WCW it seemed to change on a monthly basis), they never seemed to grasp the appeal of the Hitman character: a reality-based competitor who truly believed he was the best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever will be, and set out to prove it each time he stepped into the ring. But he was a versatile performer equally adept at playing both hero and villain.
In early 1999, WCW had positioned Hart as a cowardly heel — the United States champion ducking the competition while nursing a “groin pull the likes you’ve never seen in your whole life.” But suddenly, during a backstage interview segment with “Mean” Gene Okerlund, Hart announced he’d be defending the title against a hand-picked challenger: El Dandy, a gloriously mulleted luchador who’d been languishing in the undercard, and rarely, if ever, won a match on television.
When Okerlund pushed back on El Dandy’s credentials, Hart, sporting a smirk, delivered his now iconic line: “Who are you to doubt El Dandy?” As one YouTube commentator mentioned, a competent promotion would’ve made a mint printing “Who Are You to Doubt El Dandy?” t-shirts. — TG
Arn Anderson Reunites the Four Horsemen (Sept. 14, 1998)
Following Arn Anderson’s retirement and Curt Hennig’s betrayal, the Four Horsemen went their separate ways in September 1997. But since nothing is forever in pro wrestling the band got back together about a year later for one last ride.
The reunion took place in Greenville, South Carolina — Horsemen Country — where founding members J.J. Dillon and Arn Anderson were greeted as returning heroes. Anderson, dressed to the nines, introduced Steve McMichael, Chris Benoit, and Dean Malenko, before saving the best for last: Ric Flair. The Nature Boy promptly tore into WCW President Eric Bischoff, whom he’d been feuding with both on screen and behind the scenes. Blurring the line between fiction and reality, Bischoff then approached the ring and threatened to fire Flair. To which Flair replied, “Fire me? I’m already fired!”
Because this was WCW, the territory never took advantage of the Horsemen’s new momentum and the stable quickly lapsed into the endless nWo vortex. The Horsemen eventually dissolved in the spring of 1999. —TG
Goldberg vs. La Parka (June 1, 1998)
Behold! The most entertaining squash match in wrestling history!
WCW built Goldberg into a star over nine months using a very simple formula: a series of squash matches highlighting Goldberg’s strengths (his intensity, athleticism, and presentation), while concealing the newcomer’s weaknesses (promos and matches running longer than two minutes). He barely spoke, didn’t flinch, and never lost.
Goldberg entered the ring against La Parka sporting a 93-0 record. It would soon climb to 94-0. Goldberg made short work of the luchador even after La Parka blasted him with a chair at the bell. The rookie sensation shook it off, speared La Parka out of his boots (reportedly resulting in La Parka tearing an ACL), and then hit him with a Jackhammer. The 30-second match encapsulated everything that was great about Goldberg, who, for a moment, was the biggest star in WCW and perhaps all of professional wrestling. —TG
Sting vs. Diamond Dallas Page (April 26, 1999)
Often considered one of the best matches in Nitro history, this bout may also stand as the finest of Diamond Dallas Page’s career. Page, an organically built main-event star, faced Sting in a match that surprisingly lacked significant storyline buildup, making its television placement all the more puzzling.
But the match delivered at a high level and could have served as a stabilizing force during a chaotic period for WCW. Instead, it’s remembered as a standout performance in an otherwise lackluster year for the territory.
Remarkably, it wasn’t even the night’s main event. After winning the title earlier, Sting lost it later in a Fatal 4-Way, with Randy Savage assisting his former rival Page in regaining the championship. — Raj Prashad
Rick Rude Appears on Nitro and Raw — On the Same Night! (Nov. 17, 1997)
Bret Hart wasn’t alone in leaving the WWF after the Montreal Screwjob. “Ravishing” Rick Rude, long retired from in-ring competition but now Degeneration-X’s “insurance policy”, also walked out of the promotion following the double-cross — but not before taping an episode of Monday Night Raw on November 11 that was scheduled to air on November 17. (In his segment, Rude, in the full beard he had worn since returning to the WWF, helped D-X beat down Sgt. Slaughter.)
Rude had been working on a short-term contract (reportedly, a per-appearance basis) at the time of Survivor Series on November 9. So when his contract lapsed a few days later, he was free to travel to Cincinatti, Ohio, on November 17 and appear live on Nitro. Rude, now in his signature mustache, immediately joined the nWo, accepted a microphone from Eric Bischoff, and laid out “the rights and the wrongs in the world of professional wrestling.” He tore into Shawn Michaels, Vince McMahon, and teased an angle with his former rival Sting. It was the first and only time a wrestler appeared on both Raw and Nitro on the same night. —TG
Crow Sting Debuts (Oct. 21, 1996)
Sting’s full transformation began when he returned to confront the nWo’s imposter Sting. Ditching the bright colors, he appeared in a black trench coat with black and white face paint, visually aligning himself with the nWo’s aesthetic while remaining visibly distant from both sides.
The presence of a fake Sting within the nWo created genuine uncertainty. When confronted by the group, Sting refused to join or oppose them outright, choosing instead to silently walk away.
This moment launched Sting into the Crow-inspired persona that would define his long crusade against the nWo. —RP
Bret Hart Outsmarts Goldberg (March 29, 1999)
There are few things in wrestling realer than Bret Hart’s contempt for Bill Goldberg. At first it was part of the storyline. Before a partisan Canadian crowd, Hart called out Da Man in an attempt to prove he could “excellently execute” any wrestler he wanted. Goldberg took the bait. He marched to the ring and promptly speared Hart to the mat. But he didn’t get up. Moments later, Hart pinned an unconscious Goldberg and counted 1-2-3. He then removed his hockey jersey to reveal a steel plate covering his midsection. —TG
“La Parka” Unmasked! (July 7, 1997)
Nitro excelled at delivering unexpected moments, and this twist was a perfect example. Amid his feud with the nWo and Randy Savage, Diamond Dallas Page disguised himself as the luchador La Parka for what appeared to be a routine mid-card match.
As Savage went for his signature elbow drop, Page countered, raising his foot before delivering the Diamond Cutter. He then removed La Parka’s signature skeleton mask to reveal his identity and escaped through the crowd. The angle added another layer to Page’s underdog story and demonstrated WCW’s creativity at its peak. —RP
The “Man of 1,004 Holds” Promo (March 30, 1998)
Give Chris Jericho a microphone, and, more often than not, the results are gold.
Before his jump to WWF, Jericho’s charisma broke through during his feud with the technically gifted Dean Malenko, known as the “Man of 1,000 Holds.” Jericho elevated the rivalry with an ongoing bit that included unveiling his list of 1,004 holds. The segment stretched across commercial breaks, with Jericho continuing to list moves, often hilariously repeating basic maneuvers like “armbar.”
The brief screen time showcased Jericho’s ability to blend humor with in-ring credibility, foreshadowing the wry character work that would define his career. —RP
Ric Flair Goes Berserk on Eric Bischoff (Dec. 28, 1998)
Ric Flair’s most unhinged promo.
Fresh off his win over Eric Bischoff a night earlier at Starrcade, Flair wasn’t ready to let the feud end. He challenged him to a fight that night in Baltimore. But first he went mad on live television. Flair, alarmingly tanned and with the veins in his forehead bulging, started stripping. First, his blazer and sweater. He threw his Rolex to the mat, rifled his Gucci loafers into the crowd. He shouted lines that doubled as Instagram captions: “I’ve lived the life of a king because the people have allowed me to!” Deranged, he ripped up hundred dollar bills.
Flair would defeat Bischoff later that night to become the on-screen president of WCW and their neverending feud, unfortunately, continued into 1999. But on this night it was the hottest it would ever be thanks to a bananas performance from an all-time great. —TG
Owen Hart Tribute Match (Oct. 4, 1999)
The last great match of Bret Hart’s career and perhaps the last great moment in WCW.
Wrestling in the same arena where his brother Owen fell to his tragic death six months earlier, Bret had a simple request: He asked to go 20-30 minutes against Hart Dungeon alumni Chris Benoit. There was no build to it. He didn’t even want the announcers to reference any existing storylines. It would be a pure back-and-forth technical masterclass with zero shenanigans. There would be a clean finish. In the end, Hart reversed the Crippler Crossface into the Sharpshooter for the win. But the result was more than a match. It was a hearbreaking tribute to one of the most talented and beloved wrestlers of all time. —TG
The nWo’s Four Horsemen Parody (Sept. 1, 1997)
A week after Arn Anderson announced his retirement due to neck and back injuries, the nWo paid tribute to him and the Four Horsemen with a parody so mean and so tasteless it had Tony Schiavone saying, “We’ve reached the lowest point ever in the history of this program.” But Kevin Nash’s Arn Anderson impersonation was also hilarious; Syxx’s Ric Flair was pretty good too.
Dressed in full Arn Anderson cosplay — bald cap, combover, wire-rimmed glasses, painted on liver spots, workwear shirt, fake beer belly, and beer coolor — Nash ended up doing over five minutes of stand up and improv comedy for an arena of wrestling fans and he killed it. In the end though, it led to real tension between the two groups. —TG
Lex Luger Racks Hulk Hogan (Aug. 4, 1997)
While Sting was prowling in the rafters, stalking the nWo from afar, Lex Luger was leading the battle against them in the ring throughout most of 1997. In the process, the fans organically got behind him for the first time in his career.
Luger was the most over he’d ever been when he challenged “Hollywood” Hulk Hogan for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship in Detroit. Few fans thought he’d actually win the darn thing. After all, Hogan had an iron grip on the title since winning it a year earlier and Luger always seemed to lose the big one. But, somehow, he fought off interference from the nWo and put Hogan in the Human Torture Rack, which Hogan sold like death and quickly submitted to.
Hogan would win the title back five days later but this was one of the hottest finishes in front of one of the hottest crowds in Nitro history. —TG
“That’ll Put Some Butts in the Seats!” (January 4, 1999)
“If you’re even thinking about changing the channel to our competition, fans, do not,” WCW announcer Tony Schiavone smugly stated during the first Nitro of 1999. “Because we understand that Mick Foley, who wrestled here one time as Cactus Jack, is going to win their world title. Huh! That’ll put some butts in the seats. Ha!”
WCW had grown comfortable spoiling results from pre-taped episodes of WWF’s Raw, but this spoiler was disastrous. Instead of deterring viewers, the spoiler had the opposite effect. Reportedly, hundreds of thousands of fans changed the channel in droves to witness the title win despite Nitro airing live.
The moment is widely regarded as the turning point in the Monday Night War. From that night forward, WCW never fully recovered, as WWF surged ahead with the momentum of the Attitude Era. —RP
Kevin Nash Enters the Chat (June 10, 1996)
Two weeks after Scott Hall arrived in WCW, the former WWF Champion Kevin Nash joined him — and the big man formerly known as Diesel was looking for a fight. He demanded Eric Bischoff find three men for a six-man tag match, or else.
After a shaky start, Nash is genuinely scary in this promo, maintaining the edge Diesel wielded towards the end of his WWF run. It made the whole thing feel like, yes, an invasion from “Up North,” laying the groundwork for the defining storyline of the Nitro era. —TG
Dennis Rodman’s Victory Lap (June 16, 1997)
At its peak, the nWo was undeniably cool. Despite being booked as villains, the group’s popularity soared, with fans draped in the nWo’s iconic black and white merch.
That popularity reached new heights when NBA star Dennis Rodman aligned with “Hollywood” Hogan and joined the faction in a moment that garnered massive mainstream attention. Rodman wasn’t just a celebrity stand-in joining for a one-off appearance. He was along for the ride with the nWO, and days after winning the NBA Championship with the Chicago Bulls entered the United Center alongside the faction.
Rodman’s aura was unmatched as he and Hogan smoked cigars and “too sweeted” with the crowd, while “Voodoo Child” played across the speakers. The Chicago crowd went nuts for Rodman as he posed in the ring, and it reached new heights later in the evening when he attacked The Giant with the World Heavyweight Championship. A series of elbow drops later, and Rodman helped the nWo spray paint the backs of The Giant and Lex Luger to set up a tag team showdown at Bash at the Beach. —RP
Sting Drops From the Rafters (Jan. 20, 1997)
Gone was the bright, surfer persona. In its place stood a darker, more brooding version of Sting as WCW’s heart and soul. Clad in black and white, Sting’s transformation became central to the WCW vs. nWo storyline. As the faction continued to grow, there was a sense of uncertainty around Sting’s allegiance.
This episode of Nitro featured the first of his iconic drop-ins from the rafters, a stunt Sting later admitted was nearly fatal the first time. His slow, deliberate walk to the ring and tense standoff with Randy Savage created palpable intensity, setting the tone for the transformative year ahead. —RP
The Fingerpoke of Doom (Jan. 4, 1999)
WCW followed one of the most disastrous booking decisions in wrestling history with an ever more disastrous one. Eight days after snapping Goldberg’s undefeated streak at Starrcade ‘98, Kevin Nash put the WCW World Heavyweight Championship on the line against his former nWo stablemate Hulk Hogan. (The original nWo had become balkanized by this point.) But it all turned out to be a ruse! Shortly after the bell rang, Nash took a dive after Hogan poked him in the chest. The referee counted 1-2-3 and handed Hogan the belt. A reunited nWo then celebrated. But it was a tipping point for wrestling fans who had had enough of WCW’s illogical, shot-gun, schizophrenic booking. Compounded with a resurgent WWF (see no. 11 on the list) this night was the nail in WCW’s coffin. — TG
Madusa Trashes the WWF Women's Championship (Dec. 18, 1995)
Locked in a tight ratings battle with Raw, Eric Bischoff looked for any possible opening and he found it in late 1995. Madusa, who’d recently been released by WWF, still had the WWF Women’s Championship in her possession. Encouraged by Bischoff, the wrestler formerly known as Alundra Blayze brought the title to Nitro and literally trashed it; Madisa dumped it into a plastic garbage can while cutting a promo on her former employer.
The moment is often cited as a factor influencing the infamous Montreal Screwjob two years later. With Bret Hart preparing to leave WWF for WCW, Vince McMahon ensured history wouldn’t repeat itself, coordinating a controversial title change in Hart’s home country of Canada.
This was a defining moment in the early stages of the Monday Night War and one of the most significant blows Bischoff landed in the rivalry. —RP
Simulcast with Raw — The Final Nitro (March 26, 2001)
The official end of WCW — and the Monday Night War — came just days after Vince McMahon had purchased WCW. As usual, both shows aired simultaneously on Monday night. But this time, the final few moments were simulcast on both TNN and TNT.
The night felt like a farewell. Booker T unified the United States and World Heavyweight Championships, while Sting and Ric Flair faced off one last time in a fitting final main event for Nitro. Afterwards, McMahon appeared on WCW programming to gloat about his acquisition, only for Shane McMahon to reveal (in storyline) that he was the McMahon who’d actually purchased the company.
Despite the angle’s potential, the subsequent “Invasion” storyline failed to deliver, largely due to the absence of many top WCW stars. What could have been a defining crossover instead became a missed opportunity. —RP
Scott Hall Declares War on WCW (May 27, 1996)
The most important angle in North American pro wrestling history started during a match between Steve Doll and “The Mauler” Mike Enos. Scott Hall, wearing jeans and a matching denim vest, hair slicked back, hopped the guardrail, grabbed a microphone, and stated his intentions.
“Hey, you people, you know who I am, but you dont know why I’m here,” is how he started the promo that changed the game. “Where is Billionaire Ted? Where is the Nacho Man? That punk can’t even get in the building. Me? I go wherever I want, whenever I want. And where oh where is Scheme Gene, ‘cause I got a scoop for you. When that Ken Doll lookalike, when that weatherman wannabe comes out here later tonight, I have a challenge for him, for Billionaire Ted, for the Nacho Man, and for anybody else in uh, Dubya-Cee-Dubya uh-huh-uh-huh. Hey, you wanna go to war? You want a war? You’re gonna get one.”
And a war they’d get. For the next five years, the nWo saga would dominate WCW programming. —TG
The nWo Attacks! (July 29, 1996)
From the moment Scott Hall appeared on Nitro looking like Razor Ramon and talking like Razor Ramon, WCW began blurring the lines between reality and scripted television. The nWo’s hostile takeover had been building incrementally until an episode of Nitro at Disney-MGM Studios, when chaos erupted during a six-man tag match.
Jimmy Hart’s panicked demeanor, screaming for help on the ring apron only added to the confusion. Cameras then cut backstage, where Arn Anderson was shown writhing in pain as Scott Hall and Kevin Nash attacked him with baseball bats. The assault escalated when Rey Mysterio emerged from a trailer, climbed onto a handrail, and leapt into Nash’s hands, who launched him headfirst into the trailer like a lawn dart.
The nWo fled in a limo as “Macho Man” Randy Savage leapt onto the vehicle while it sped away. What followed was pure chaos: wrestlers shouting, officials scrambling, and an unusually subdued announce team. Cameras lingered on the backstage mayhem, even showing injured wrestlers being loaded into ambulances. It was a clear shift in how WCW portrayed its storylines, helping propel the program into its eventual 83-week ratings win streak over Monday Night Raw. —RP
Goldberg Wins the WCW Title (July 6, 1998)
With Goldberg on fire throughout 1998, WCW faced two choices: belt him up or risk thwarting his momentum. Thankfully, Hulk Hogan, who had creative control over his booking, was open to doing business with him. He recognized the moment and suggested to Eric Bischoff that he drop the title to the rookie sensation.
The match came about quickly with little build. Though announced just three days in advance, 41,000 wrestling fans still flocked to the Georgia Dome in Goldberg’s adopted home town of Atlanta. The match featured the expected nWo shenanigans that had fatigued fans by that point. But it was all worth it once Goldberg speared Hogan, lifted him for a Jackhammer, and pinned him for the title, raising his record to 108-0.
The logic of giving away a blockbuster pay-per-vew main event on free television can be debated, yet it did result in one of the most unforgettable title changes in wrestling history. —TG
Lex Luger’s Surprise Return — The First Episode (Sept. 4, 1995)
In the early-to-mid 1990’s WCW executive Eric Bischoff hatched a plan to overtake the industry leader, the WWF. The first order of business was obtaining a timeslot on one of Ted Turner’s cable networks for a prime time show to compete directly with Raw. Once that was secured, he listed how his program would differ from WWF’s flagship show. They were taped. We’re gonna air live, Bischoff thought. They appealed to kids. We’re gonna hit the underserved 18-34 demo. They were canned and predictable. We’re gonna shock you. And with that, WCW Monday Nitro was born.
The first episode aired live from the largest shopping complex in the United States, the recently opened Mall of America near Minneapolis, Minnesota, and kicked off with Jushin Thunder Liger wrestling Flyin Brian Pillman in a rematch of their classic from SuperBrawl ‘92. Ric Flair then faced Sting in the latest installment of their decade-spanning feud. But before the match started, with Sting’s music still playing, Lex Luger walked out. What?!?! A day earlier, the former WCW World Heavyweight Champion wrestled at a WWF house show. But he was working under a handshake agreement with Vince McMahon and was legally able to jump to the competition.
It remains one of the most shocking debuts in professional wrestling and would set the tone for the next five-plus years of Nitro. —TG
