Pro Wrestling Chronicle

Match # 139: Lance Storm vs. Mike Awesome (Nitro 7/18/00)

Finally, and shining light from the brutal death year of WCW. Lance Storm was someone I grew to enjoy from my time watching him in ECW as a Triple Threat member, his feud with Candido, and finally his run as half of the Impact players. He was the bright spot in late WCW, where as I felt Mike Awesome was exposed when he left ECW near the same time as Lance. Still, this has got to have some substance to it compared with most matches of the time – the equivalent of bad fast food. I need a meal, guys.

This is the finals the U.S. title tournament. Storm gets heat playing the Canadian national anthem. I’d forgotten that Russo’s big thing at the time was letting everyone curse and then bleeping it live. What a simpleton. The brawl in the aisle way to start. No one wrestled in 2000 WCW. The last few matches are a lot of brawling. Awesome is pretty good playing big man here, and Lance is the bumping heel. I like it more once Storm gets control and they get in the ring. They actually wrestle! Storm could have been so much more in WWE if they’d played it differently. I enjoy is control segment here, and Awesome’s power moves here are um… awesome. Storm bumps like a rag doll for the guy. They screw up a spinning DDT and Storm has the presence of mind to sell it like he was thrown off. Bonus points. Storm hits a superplex on the big guy, and Awesome kicks out at two.

The finishing sequence with the reverse out of the Awesome bomb into the half crab is really good, and Awesome taps right away in five minutes. He even taps like a sissy. He gets fat girls for his troubles – I’m serious. A good five minute match with so slight choppy parts, but in this era of WCW it was a real stand out. Unfortunately, for the history of Nitro it was nothing special. 2 ½ and 5/10.