WCW Wednesday: Part XIX – the Amateur Daredevil Edition!

Don’t worry, folks, this article is NOT about Owen Hart in spite of his cup of coffee stint in WCW.

Instead, it’s the third rendition of WCW Uncensored from 1997. Let’s run down the card:

1. Dean Malenko won the US title from Eddie Guerrero with an assist from Syxx (Sean Waltman).
2. Ultimo Dragon beat Psicosis.
3. Glacier defeated Mortis who was making his PPV debut.
4. In a battle of the American Males, Buff Bagwell beat Scotty Riggs in a strap match.
5. Harlem Heat defeated Public Enemy with help from Mongo and Jeff Jarrett.
6. Prince Iaukea retained the World TV title by beating Rey Mysterio, Jr.
7. In an elimination triangle match involving Team WCW, Team nWo, and Team Piper, Team nWo won as Hogan defeated Luger with some spray paint assistance from Chicago Bulls forward Dennis Rodman.

For those interested, Tommy Hall reviewed this show for this site back in 2012 here.

So what does that have to do with amateur daredevils? Fear not as I explain.

While I won’t describe the LONG history of the transformation of Sting from Venice Beach surfer to Brandon Lee look-alike, I will point out that, at this point, he had yet to commit to either WCW or the nWo. However, on this night, Sting rappels from the ceiling, destroys the nWo, and points his bat at Hogan putting the fear of God and lawsuits into him.

So where did it lead: That scenario established a nine-month drawn-out story basically pitting World champion Hogan (who lost and regained the belt during this time) against our favorite amateur daredevil. The story drew millions of dollars for WCW and kept their Monday night ratings streak going throughout 1997. If there was a hotter period for WCW other than between March and December of ‘97, I dare someone to find it.

What do you think of our favorite amateur daredevil Sting’s decision to attack the nWo and set his sights on Hogan and the World title here at Uncensored ’97?

Please be sure to check out all of my reflections at rockstargary.com.