WCW Monday Nitro
May 13, 1996
Nashville, TN
Municipal Auditorium

The current WCW champs were as follows:
WCW World Champion: The Giant (4/29/1996)
WCW U.S. Champion: Konnan (1/29/1996)
WCW World Tag Team Champions: Sting & Lex Luger (1/22/1996)
WCW World Television Champion: Lex Luger (3/6/1996)
WCW World Cruiserweight Champion: Dean Malenko (5/2/1996) (yet to air)

Your hosts are Eric Bischoff, Bobby Heenan, and that Emmy-award winning Steve “Mongo” McMichael.

Lex Luger CAMPED OUT at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium so he wouldn’t miss the show. Now that’s commitment…and completely unnecessary.

• Rick & Scott Steiner vs. Public Enemy
  

Another week of Public Enemy bumping around for the Steiners. We see a cool sequence where Scott press slams Rocco Rock onto Johnny Grunge and then Rick runs in for the double Steinerline to clear out PE. Back inside, Rick powerslams Grunge as he catches him coming off the ropes. Scott tags in for the overhead belly-to-belly suplex. The match breaks down and heel miscommunication ensues. Scott hits a tilt-a-whirl side slam on Rocco Rock. Grunge helps Rocco Rock avoid a top rope move as he drives Scott to the mat with an electric chair drop. PE deliver the Quebecers finisher on Scott for 1-2-NO! Rocco misses a Senton Bomb to set up the HOT TAG TO RICK! Steinerlines al around! PE double-teams Rick to cool him off. Grunge holds Rick for a somersault plancha from Rocco Rock, but the DFG moves and Grunge gets wiped out. Rick rolls Rocco into the ring for the FRANKENSTEINER and that is all she wrote. (6:55) Harmless fun. **¼

• Chris Benoit vs. Squire David Taylor
  

Seems like Dave Taylor replaces Bobby Eaton around this point as the Blue Bloods are now just Regal and Taylor for the rest of the team’s existence – and Bobby goes back to being Bobby. Benoit catches Taylor with an enziguri, but then Taylor dishes out some European uppercuts. Taylor stomps Benoit in the face when he tries a monkey flip after a leapfrog. Taylor does the same, but Benoit sees it coming and charges at Taylor when he comes back down. Benoit catapults Taylor and chops him down. Bischoff tells us that the Belfast Bruiser went back to Ireland after the parking lot brawl, so he won’t be at Slamboree. Taylor takes Benoit to the floor with another European uppercut and follows him out with a double-sledge off the apron. Taylor continues the VIOLENCE by smashing Benoit’s head on the guardrail and posting him real good. Back in, Benoit avoids a corner charge, but gets caught with an electric chair drop. Fallaway slam into a floatover gets two. As soon as Bischoff mentions that Savage is near the building, Mongo leaves the announce table to go talk to him. Meanwhile, Taylor misses a crossbody out of the corner and gets drilled with a DRAGON SUPLEX by Benoit for 1-2-3! (4:18) That was a highly competitive match, I tell you what. ***

We take a look at Gene Okerlund standing outside apparently the only door where you can get into the Municipal Auditorium. Security is there to keep Savage out of the building because he’s been BANNED. He can’t get past security, so he throws his bag down in FRUSTRATION~! Mongo comes out the door and wants to talk to Savage. He says he can sympathize with Savage and wants to devise some sort of plan. So it appears that Ric Flair is Leon Phelps and Will Ferrell is Mongo? And I guess Randy Savage is that crazy guy from The Ladies’ Man who was obsessed with killing Leon Phelps? Yeahhhhh. Savage says he doesn’t mind dragging a dead tag team partner to the ring at Slamboree. Gene is disgusted. He doesn’t think that Savage has sought after any kind of behavioral help yet. As always, you are spot on with the obvious, Gene.

“Blood Runs Cold” promo airs. THE GLACIER COMETH!

• Ric Flair (w/Elizabeth & Woman) vs. VK Wallstreet
  

What a weird match this is. VK Wallstreet is low-card heel going up against Ric Flair who is a main event heel. Who do you think the crowd is going to cheer? Obviously Ric. Wallstreet works a headlock a little bit and a tad on the arm before Flair chops back. Wallstreet turns things around in the corner and hiptosses Flair out like he’s a lovable character. After a backdrop, Flair begs off and goes out to dance with Woman. Back inside, Wallstreet works the leg as we go to commercial. We come back and Wallstreet is still in control. Flair Flip puts him on the floor where Wallstreet punches Flair to the point he takes the flop. Back in the ring, Wallstreet slams Flair off the top and hits another backdrop to set up for the STOCK MARKET CRASH! Cover, 1-2-NO! Flair gets his foot on the bottom rope. Wallstreet gets a series of nearfalls on Flair and then clotheslines him out to the floor. On the outside, Wallstreet misses a high knee up against the ringpost. Bad idea jeans. Flair proceeds to post the knee and slaps on the FIGURE-FOUR with a handful of Woman for the submission. (6:23) So what did that really prove? Flair just beats another heel. *½

Before Flair and his ladies sit down at his VIP table, Gene Okerlund gets a word with him. Flair responds to Savage’s comments about dragging a dead man to the ring by kissing all over Liz. Does Ric look like he’s dead? Nah, bro. Gene mentions Debra, which gets a rise from Flair. He considers himself Joe Namath. While Mongo was rolling in the dirt, he was throwing touchdowns and staying up all night long. WHAT? Oh, and check out his wide receivers (Liz and Woman). WOO!

• WCW World Heavyweight Champion The Giant (w/Jimmy Hart) vs. Lex Luger
  

No entrances for either man, so we must be going short on time. Giant NO-SELLS everything Luger throws at him and tosses Lex around. Luger gets caught coming off the middle turnbuckle and driven back-first twice into the corner. They start running the ropes fairly fast to lead into Luger’s BIONIC FOREARM! Bischoff ~ “Luger knocked out Yokozuna for ten minutes with that forearm not that long ago!” It was three years ago, but who’s counting. Luger tries knocking Giant off the apron and finally does after a Bionic Forearm! He still NO-SELLS as he drags Luger out and GOOZLES him. He takes Luger over to Flair’s VIP table, clears off the appetizers from Applebee’s, and CHOKESLAMS Luger through the table! (4:05) Flair and the ladies freak the crap out. Jimmy Hart tries his hardest to get Giant off Luger. Sting jumps the rail to try and help out his buddy. Gene tries to get a word, but Sting tells him to leave. ½*

Wild ending as we head into Slamboree. And without further ado…

WE HAVE A SPECIAL BONUS MATCH!

• Shinjiro Ohtani vs. Chris Benoit – for the vacant WCW World Cruiserweight Title (New Japan, 3/20/96)
  

Ahh, my copy is not full length. That’s okay though. We JIP with Benoit locking a headscissors on Ohtani down on the mat. Ohtani escapes into a camel clutch, but whiffs on a dropkick. Benoit follows up with a front dropkick and drills Ohtani with a back suplex. Snap Suplex gets two. Benoit chops Ohtani up pretty good and drills him with a corner clothesline. Ohtani gets knocked off the apron after a Flair Flip, but comes back and flips Benoit out to the floor for a springboard plancha! Back in, Ohtani nails Benoit with a Springboard Leg Lariat for 1-2-NO! Benoit manages a Billy Robinson backbreaker and delivers the Rolling Germans for 1-2-NO! Superplex sets up a beautiful Swandive Headbutt for1-2-NO! Ohtani reverses a Dragon Suplex into one of his own, but he’s too wiped out to hold onto the bridge. FIGHTING SPIRIT~! Benoit powers out of a second Dragon Suplex and comes back with a short-arm clothesline. Benoit calls for the SNAP “You’re dead” POWERBOMB for 1-2-NO! Ohtani finds a moment of sanctuary on the apron. Benoit grabs Ohtani and looks for the SUPER POWERBOMB, but Ohtani shoves him off and hits the Missile Dropkick to the back of Benoit’s head. Benoit reverses a Dragon Suplex and Ohtani lands on the apron out of a back suplex! With Benoit staggered, Ohtani reaches down deep and delivers the SPRINGBOARD DDT for the 1-2-3! (9:21 shown | 18:09 total) Ohtani seems pretty proud to be the first-ever WCW World Cruiserweight champion. ***½

Keep in mind with the ratings, that Nitro aired at 7pm instead of its usual 9pm timeslot where it goes directly against Raw because of TNT airing the NBA Playoffs. A victory nonetheless in the Monday Night Wars for the WWF.