Thunderstruck - Thunder recap for April 16, 1998

We see an announcement from the New World Order where Buff Bagwell admires his body in a mirror as he talks about how he goes the extra mile to be buff, and says that you're buff and the stuff, the girls just can't get enough.

Rick Steiner beats Buff Bagwell by disqualification after Scott Steiner gets involved by tripping Rick Steiner off the top rope and attacking Rick along with Bagwell. As they continue to double-team Rick, Lex Luger shows up and evens the odds for Rick Steiner, forcing Bagwell and Scott Steiner to retreat.

We hear from "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan, who says "Macho Man" Randy Savage is not smart enough to be WCW World Heavyweight Champion after "jaywalking backwards in an eight-lane highway" and getting knocked down, and tells Sting he is ready to take the World title back.

Kevin Nash shows up. He says that for two years, "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan has tried to prove to the wrestling world that he walks on water. He then says that he agrees with him, as everyone knows that "a turd floats." He says he should be standing in front of the fans with the WCW World Heavyweight Championship around his waist, and tells Hogan he could not even stand the chance that he could be World Champion. Last week, Bret "The Hit Man" Hart made the biggest mistake of his wrestling career, and he quotes Jim Croce, saying "You don't tug on Superman's cape, you don't spit in the wind, you don't pull the mask off the old Lone Ranger and you definitely don't mess with Big Sexy." Nash then tells Hogan he has one more chance to stop Armageddon in the nWo, and he has to either be his partner in the Bat Match or he will be the man that drives the stake in his heart that ends his career. He also warns The Giant and "Rowdy" Roddy Piper that he will beat them both himself whether Hogan is with him or not, and in the case of being a little redundant, he will take the bat and beat up all three men if that is what it takes. He tells Hogan to sit back and watch what a real partner does, as he and "Macho Man" Randy Savage are tagging up, and he tells Sting to put on his best face paint and to bring Bret Hart, because he, not WCW, calls the shots around here and he wants a tag team match tonight.

We hear from Bret "The Hit Man" Hart, who says that if he could give "Macho Man" Randy Savage one piece of advice, it would be to get rid of the nWo and be his own men. He says that if play with pigs, you are going to get dirty.

We see a 60-second video package of Goldberg.

Goldberg beats Barry Darsow.

We hear from "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan, who asks Kevin Nash how he dares to think that he is worthy of the WCW World Heavyweight Championship, as he is the leader of the nWo, the nWo is for life, the pecking order exists, and he made Nash and can break him too, whether he likes it or not.

We see a video package for Raven vs. Diamond Dallas Page for the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship at Spring Stampede.

Tony Schiavone interviews WCW Executive Committee Chairman J.J. Dillon, who says that while WCW has been working on the issues for the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship match at Spring Stampede, they have also been working on a match for next week's Nitro. He announces that there will be a United States title match that night, and the winner of the United States title at Spring Stampede will defend against Goldberg. Dillon says he has never seen anyone rise so quickly and create an undefeated streak like Goldberg has, and that he has earned his title shot on Monday night.

Booker T retains the WCW World Television Championship against Rick Fuller.

We hear from "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan, who says that the WCW World Heavyweight Championship belongs to him. He says that "Macho Man" Randy Savage is a joke, and that he should be wrestling Sting for the title, as he won it the first time and it should still be his.

We see a video package for the Bat Match between the team of "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan and Kevin Nash and the team of The Giant and "Rowdy" Roddy Piper at Spring Stampede.

Tony Schiavone announces that Lex Luger and Rick Steiner will face Buff Bagwell and Scott Steiner in a tag team match at Spring Stampede. Suddenly, Buff Bagwell and Scott Steiner show up, and Bagwell says the match is not happening. Scott Steiner says it is people like him, Larry Zbyszko, Lex Luger and Sting who have Rick Steiner believing that he turned his back on him instead of WCW and people like them. Scott Steiner says he is not showing up, as his and Rick's parents would not want them in the ring against each other. Bagwell then says that he is the real total package, not Lex Luger.

"The Canadian Crippler" Chris Benoit beats Scott Norton by disqualification after Vincent attacks Benoit as he has Norton in the Crippler Crossface. Vincent and Scott Norton double-team Benoit until Booker T runs into the ring. They retreat, but when Booker T helps him up, Benoit shoves him before heading back to the back.

We hear from Bret "The Hit Man" Hart, who says that Kevin Nash is scum and that "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan is worse, and that nothing could make him happier than watching them kill each other off.

This Saturday on WCW Saturday Night: Hacksaw Jim Duggan! The Barbarian! Reese! Scott Steiner!

Tony Schiavone interviews The Giant and "Rowdy" Roddy Piper in the ring. Piper says he can now get a bat from anywhere, as he has a modern-day version of David and Goliath, only instead of slingshots, there are Louisville Sluggers. He says it is time for a bat match, and he has a giant. He says that The Giant is mean, and says Kevin Nash will not look too sexy when The Giant shoves a baseball bat down his throat. He also tells "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan and Kevin Nash that they are not taking Spring Stampede seriously enough and that The Giant is the real giant of WCW, and that he is ready to chop the big vine so that Hogan will fall right into his arms before he beats him within an inch of his life. This Sunday, if Hogan and Nash want to play ball, he and The Giant will bring the bat while they bring the balls, and they will see who hits a home run.

Rick Rude guests on commentary for the next match, forcing Lee Marshall off the commentary table in the process.

Curt Hennig beats Super Calo.

We hear from "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan, who says that Diamond Dallas Page does not want a shot at the WCW World Heavyweight Championship, as he has the power, the money and the backing.

Chris Jericho retains the WCW Cruiserweight Championship against Chavo Guerrero Jr. with the Lion Tamer after Eddie actively. After the match, Prince Iaukea gets in the ring and hits Jericho in the back with a scale before he and Jericho brawl their way to the back. After the match, Chavo confronts Eddie for his actions, and Eddie tells him he cannot win against a wrestler of Jericho's caliber when Chavo says that he can. Eddie gives Chavo a chance to prove it: if Chavo beats Jericho on Sunday, the deal between him and Eddie is off. However, if Chavo loses, Chavo will be in a world of "you-know-what" because Eddie will ride him twice as hard.

Eric Bischoff, "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan, and The Disciple show up. Bischoff says that one of the first things he learned from Hogan back in July 1994 in their very first meeting in Orlando, Florida was to never, ever litter. Hogan says the whole world knows that the world is littered with bodies that challenge his power, as he has left promoters begging him to come back to save him, and left wrestlers laying for challenging his power. As far as Kevin Nash goes, he will give him one last chance to save his Armageddon from happening, for if he challenges him, he will be just another body left laying. Hogan then says he understands the jealousy and the fact that he made wrestling and makes more money that all of the fans combined, and that being the most powerful man in the wrestling business has a downside, but as his new movie was premiering last week and he was on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno, he saw the jealousy and the controversy, and he has Nash and "Macho Man" Randy Savage and everyone digging at Sting. He says that the WCW World Heavyweight Championship is his, and that the nWo has decided that he is the only man deserving of a World title shot and that he will get the title back.

We hear from Bret "The Hit Man" Hart, who says that all he really cares about is winning the WCW World Heavyweight Championship, and that all he wants is a fair shot.

Tony Schiavone interviews WCW Executive Committee Chairman J.J. Dillon, who says that there are two things that he is sure will happen next week: Goldberg earning a shot at the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship next week on Nitro and Buff Bagwell and Scott Steiner facing Rick Steiner and Lex Luger at Spring Stampede. As far as the WCW World Heavyweight Championship match this Sunday is concerned, "Macho Man" Randy Savage must have a release form from a doctor as per the WCW Executive Committee to get a shot at the World title at Spring Stampede. Savage - still wearing a cast on his right arm - shows up with Miss Elizabeth, and tells Dillon that he has no jurisdiction over the madness, and if he wants to do something constructive, he should head outside of the arena and watch out for red-and-yellow Dodge Vipers with drivers who have balding blonde heads who are running people over before they can make it into the arena. Dillon says WCW has suspicions, but no evidence, of who ran Savage over, and that he and the WCW Executive Committee Chairman want to know that he is fit for the World title match on Sunday. Savage says he is tough enough, and that Dillon is weak and makes him sick. He plans to take Sting on Sunday and become the guy who goes after the WCW World Heavyweight Championship, and that nobody, not even Dillon, can do anything about it.

The Giant beats Brian Adams by disqualification after the rest of the nWo goes after The Giant only to be completely overpowered.

We see a video package of Raven.

Perry Saturn beats Silver King with the Rings of Saturn.

We see a video package of Diamond Dallas Page.

Tony Schiavone interviews Diamond Dallas Page in the ring. DDP puts Raven to the side to address something WCW Executive Committee Chairman J.J. Dillon addressed: Goldberg getting a shot at the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship. He says the announcement makes him even more jacked up than he was already was, as he has seen Goldberg roll through WCW and he wants to see just how bad he really is. He wants to see if Goldberg can be "banged," but he is not looking through Raven to get to Goldberg as he has not forgotten everything that Raven has recently done to him as well as his "incessant whining." He calls Raven delusional as he has no idea who he is, but DDP knows who he is: the man who is coming to Spring Stampede to get what is his. Meanwhile, Raven will be the guy who gets to feel the bang.

We hear from Bret "The Hit Man" Hart, who says that there are a lot of guys whom he has come to respect since entering WCW, such as "The Canadian Crippler" Chris Benoit, The Giant, Diamond Dallas Page. However, the man he trusts the most is Sting for how he has confronted and tackled the nWo. He says that if Sting comes to a situation where he needs his help, all he has to do is call him and he will be there.

Before the next match, a fan manages to get a hold of a microphone during Kevin Nash and "Macho Man" Randy Savage and manages to yell "For life!" and Randy Savage's name very loudly.

Kevin Nash and "Macho Man" Randy Savage beat Sting and Bret "The Hit Man" Hart by disqualification after "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan and The Disciple go after Savage, tripping him off the top rope and attacking his right arm. Kevin Nash cuts this attack short, and the rest of the nWo shows up to keep both Nash and Hogan from going after each other. Nash is held back in the ring while Hogan and The Disciple are already out of the ring. On this note, the show ends.

Nitro-Glycerin - Monday Nitro recap for March 9, 1998

Ernest "The Cat" Miller beats Damian.

"Hollywood" Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff show up. Bischoff says that the more he says Hogan, the harder it is for him to believe that anyone will be half of what he has meant to the wrestling business. He then focuses on "Macho Man" Randy Savage, saying Savage knows the truth and that if it weren't for Hogan, his parents would not have a roof over their heads today, his brother would be living on the street and he wouldn't even be allowed in the building anywhere in the country, and now it's time for Savage to pay the price. Hogan says Savage is out on a limb, and when Savage talked about his family, he went over the line. Savage says it was his choice to bring Miss Elizabeth into the business, and says that Elizabeth had relationships with other men. He then says that when Savage crossed the line, he crossed over into no mans' land, and when he decided to get in his face, he became an island unto himself. He says that with the nWo behind him, he won't even have to lift a finger to take care of Savage at Uncensored and prove he's unmatched and the real macho man, and that Savage is only good enough to carry his bags and that nobody will even come close to becoming the man that he is.

"Mean" Gnee Okerlund and The Nitro Girls are at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. We then see a performance by The Nitro Girls.

A tall, musuclar man is seen in when Sick Boy shows up with Lodi and Hammer before the next match, and it is noted that this man is even bigger than Hammer.

Sick Boy beats Lenny Lane with The Cure (which is known as the Pedigree in WWF).

Mike Tenay interviews The Giant. The Giant says it's been a long time coming and that the playing field is even, as he has a bad neck and Kevin Nash has a bad back. He then says he's looking for Kevin Nash, but can't find him and accuses him of having "a long, yellow streak down his back." He tells Nash to show up at Uncensored and they can sort everything out. He then says he and a few friends heard "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan speak earlier, and says they'll give him what he wants. He then brings out his friends: Sting and "Macho Man" Randy Savage, who enter the ring. Savage tells Hogan he doesn't feel alone - and isn't - before introducing Sting and The Giant and telling Hogan that the three of them "Weey're the bomb, brotha." Sting takes his jacket off and hits the top turnbuckle in one corner with his baseball bat to fire up the crowd. Savage then puts Hogan on the spot, and tells him that if he can get two guys in the nWo who won't bury him or stab him in the back, then he, Sting and The Giant challenge them to "a six-man tag match from Hell."

Bill Goldberg beats Barry Darsow.

Back at Duke University, "Mean" Gene Okerlund plus the WCW Hotline, which features an interview with a former World champion who was forced to retire last year. Kimberly announces that the Nitro Girls' Bikini Blast is coming to WCWWrestling.com on March 14th, and fans can get the first look of what The Nitro Girls will be wearing at Spring Break-Out '98, which Kimberly says "isn't much more than a tan."

BScott Hall shows up. He says there's no time for a survey as a few problems need to be solved in the nWo. Hall says he heard "Macho Man" Randy Savage talking bad about "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan earlier and did not like it. He tells Savage he knows in his heart that Hogan is the man, and tells him to learn to deal with it. As far as Savage's challenge, he tells Hogan that he'll be one of his teammates later tonight. Hall then tells Sting that at Uncensored, he'll have to come out of the rafters, get in the ring, and prove to him that he's better than him...and he doesn't think he can.

The WCW Bruise Cruise is coming up Memorial Day weekend, May 24th through May 28th. March 24th is the last day to sign up for the Bruise Cruise.

Kevin Nash shows up with a "Hollywood Rules" tanktop. He puts it on, then takes the microphone from ring announcer David Penzer. He tells "Macho Man" Randy Savage, Sting and The Giant that if they want a war, they've got one. He then tells "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan that Hogan's enemies are his enemies and that he'll never have a friend like him. He then tells The Giant that he hasn't forgotten last week, and that he still feels the pain in his back. He then says that pain can be very cleansing, and at Uncensored (which he calls Souled Out), he will feel like he's been detailed. By challenging the nWo, Sting, The Giant and Savage have only unified them even more.

Dean Malenko beats Kidman with the Texas Cloverleaf. Chris Jericho shows up to watch from ringside during the middle of the match, and stands near Raven's Flock (Sick Boy, Hammer, Scotty Riggs, Lodi, the unnamed big man) at the front row. After the match, Jericho manages to coerce the Flock to get out of the ring, but they do not respond to him. Scotty hits Riggs, and the Flock responds by beating him up and scaring him out of the ring after Jericho comes face to face with Malenko. Pyrotechnics then signal the start of the second hour.

"Hollywood" Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff show up again. Bischoff says he knows "Macho Man" Randy Savage wasn't the smartest man in the world, but no idea he was the dumbest man on the planet. Hogan tells Savage there was a time where he would be in the very plush nWo locker room and feel the buzz of what it's like to be with a bunch of winners, but when he went back to the locker room, everyone fell over backwards to join him in the six-man tag match. Hogan says that the nWo is stronger and more powerful than it's ever been now that he has gotten rid of Savage, and if he had to pick two guys to stand by him and wage war tonight, he looked at Scott Hall and Kevin Nash and knew they could never stab him in the back because they love him like a brother. Tonight, blood will flow like wine, and Savage's sweat and tears will fall to his feet, and the last thing anyone will see is Savage begging not to be beaten anymore and taken back into the nWo fold, but Hogan says they are done with him and Miss Elizabeth for life.

Carl Torbush, head football coach at University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill is seen with his family in the front row.

Back at Duke University, we see footage from the university from earlier today, where Bill Goldberg and Disco Inferno sent some time with the fans. We then see what's going on at Duke University.

Brian Adams beats Kaos, then beats up Rage after the match.

Konnan shows up. He says it's bad enough that the WCW Executive Committee doesn't respect the Mexican talent in the company, and tells Juventud Guerrera he's got him bum-rushing him. He tells Juvi he can't just get a match against him, and tells him he's got somebody who's similar to him in height, weight and age and high-flying style. If Juvi beats this man, Juvi gets to face him. Juventud Guerrera shows up first, then we see Juvi's opponent: Scott Norton, who is nowhere close to being similar to him.

Scott Norton beats Juventud Guerrera.

We see a video package of Diamond Dallas Page, "The Crippler" Chris Benoit, Raven and their Triple Jeopardy Match for the WCW United States Heavyweight Championship at Uncensored.

Raven and Saturn beat Diamond Dallas Page and "The Crippler" Chris Benoit by count-out after Diamond Dallas Page hits the top rope Diamond Cutter on Saturn only for Saturn to land on Benoit, who has the Crippler Crossface on Raven. This is enough for DDP and Benoit to come to blows as Raven and Saturn are laid out, and the two of them brawl their way to the back.

Back at Duke University, we see footage of DIsco Inferno and Bill Goldberg spending time with the kids at Duke Children's University. We then see Domino's Pizza deliver to everyone at the Nitro party as we see another performance by The Nitro Girls.

Pyrotechnics signal the start of the third hour.

The British Bulldog beats Konnan.

Mike Tenay interviews "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair. Flair says he is here to bring Curt Hennig down the aisle, not to style and profile, but to give him the whipping of a lifetime. Sometimes, when he gets down on himself, he walks into a crowd much like the one here to let himself know that "The Nature Boy" is alive and well, and when he gets through with Hennig, Hennig will be "Carolina dreamin'."

Chris Jericho retains the WCW Cruiserweight Championship against Disco Inferno with the Lion Tamer.. Before the match, Chris Jericho shows up wearing a "WCW Monday Jericho" shirt.

Back at Duke University, we see another performance by The Nitro Girls.

Before the next match, Eddie Guerrero follows his nephew Chavo Guerrero Jr. into the ring. Eddie tells a reulctant Chavo this is his opportunity and to not screw it up.

Booker T retains the WCW World Television Championship against Chavo Guerrero Jr. Eddie Guerrero is booted from ringside by the referee during the match. After the match, Eddie picks Chavo up and hits him with a brainbuster.

Before the next match, "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair says he'll beat Curt Hennig "for Winston-Salem, [North Carolina,] for WCW and every Horseman that ever walked the aisle."

"The Nature Boy" Ric Flair beats Curt Hennig by disqualification when Rick Rude, Vincent and Konnan stop Flair from sending a steel chair into Hennig's face with a baseball flair. Hennig then prepares to do the same to Flair, but Bret "The HIt Man' Hart shows up and fights off Hennig's allies before brawling with Hennig himself and sending him out of the ring.

Rick Steiner shows up with a dog when he heads to the ring with Lex Luger and Ted DiBiase before the next match.

Scott Steiner and Scott Norton vs. Rick Steiner and Lex Luger ends in a double count-out when Luger chases Scott Steiner to the back and Rick Steiner and Scott Norton go after them.

"Hollywood" Hulk Hogan and The Outsiders (Kevin Nash and Scott Hall) beat Sting, "Macho Man" Randy Save and The Giant after The Giant - having been given a beatdown by Hogan and The Outsiders - slowly stalks Kevin Nash to the back, and the mysterious bearded nWo member takes out Savage while the referee is preoccupied with Scott Hall and Sting.