WCW Monday Nitro, Fargo, ND
ON THIS DAY! This is recognized as one of the last great Nitro matches ever. The match comes about because Commissioner Rodney Piper forces it after first suggesting it and being turned down by DDP, who is the WCW world heavyweight champion. And they set it up to start toward the end of the first hour, for ratings! (Raw destroyed Nitro again anyway. Also Piper got fired by the time this match actually went on. This was a good show.)
I reckon it wouldn’t be a DDP match without someone’s something all wrapped up in athletic tape. Page’s ribs are fine here, so instead it’s Sting’s…boots. What are those
Page had won the world title 15 days before this at Spring Stampede, winning a four-way that also had Flair (the previous champ), Hogan, and Sting, and was in the early stages of a crowd-mandated heel turn after fans started turning on him pretty noticeably. It was actually decently executed and came with a change in his demeanor, him acknowledging the fans who were booing him more and more, and then going through with the turn fully the week before this in a match with Goldberg on Nitro
Page jaws at Sting and takes a little cheapshot, then asks Sting to hit him back, dares him really, and Sting does, and then they trade shots and that ends up with Page taking a powder. The North Dakota fans are firmly behind Sting here, chanting “white trash” at Page and cheering Sting heavily.
They fight on the floor a moment, and back in after Sting just stays a step ahead of Page. Stinger Splash hits! Scorpion Deathlock — but Page scrambles to the ropes, still too fresh and strong, not worn down enough. Page wanders around over to the commentary desk ringside and takes a swing from a water bottle, then spits all over. Paul “Triple H” Levesque would turn this into a famous entrance routine somehow.
This crowd is really rocking. Compare a ’99 Nitro crowd to a modern Raw crowd and you tell me what sucks.
Page goes for a Diamond Cutter early but gets shoved away and back to the outside, where he argues with fans some more and starts to bail on the match, going up the aisle. Sting slowly follows him and eventually grabs his head and slams it off the guardrail. They’re heading deep into the building now, and Page takes drop on the guardrail. Referee Mickey Jay out there with them to just, uh, let this all happen instead of counting both guys out.
Page gets slammed out in the entrance aisle. Tony and Mike yammer about this being a “best of both worlds” version of Sting, as he’s still dressed like The Crow in orthopedic boots but sometimes he also goes “woo.”
They finally head back in and Page counters a 10-punch with a low blow. Mickey Jay just lets that go, too. Mickey Jay is useless. Sting gets accidental revenge a few moments later, falling into a headbutt to Page’s groin and balls.
Page keeps the advantage anyway, grinding into Sting’s back with a knee and then into his eyes with, you know, fingers. Sting gets the adrenaline going but makes the cardinal mistake and falls victim to a swinging neckbreaker for two.
Page goes for the Diamond Cutter again, but Sting holds on to the top rope to block and Page goes down, but Sting does not. Sting hits a jawbreaker and starts firing up. Inverted atomic drop, another, faceslam off the ropes. Sting up top and hits the big splash for two.
A desperate DDP takes it back outside and shoves Sting into the rail, then to the apron, then back to the rail, and he gets the advantage back again. Then Sting hits another jawbreaker, whip to the corner, Sting strolls over for a punch. Bounces Page’s head off every turnbuckle pad a couple times each.
Page comes back again with the sit-out power bomb for two, and both are down. Rumbling in the crowd, which has been hot throughout. When you occasionally get a live TV show in a place like Fargo, which doesn’t get a ton of live events (this was their only Nitro, they’d had a couple Thunders already), you can get a really great crowd that’s excited to see anything, and then if something is good, all the better. (And as best I can tell, the WWF hadn’t been to town since 1990 and wouldn’t return until 2003, and they’ve never done TV there.)
Sting gets Page up for a piledriver, then Page lets his right hand go from Sting’s knee and Sting drops down tombstone style. It goes OK, but fuck, Sting did some of the most awkward, terrifying piledrivers I’ve ever seen.
After a two count they fight over a proper tombstone, with Sting hitting it. Jesus CHRIST, are Page and Sting screaming their spots in this match. Full Cena. I’ve been trying to ignore it but it’s constant throughout the match.
Page counters a hiptoss with a DDT. Kind of an awkward spot and then more shouting in the pinfall.
The finish is one of those finishes I’ve always remembered. Went wild for it live. Page goes for the Diamond Cutter out of the corner, but Sting holds on to the ropes again and this time counters with the Scorpion Deathdrop, putting an end to Page’s first world title reign 15 days after it began. Page’s second world title reign would begin later on this show when he beat Sting, Nash, and Goldberg in a 4-way.
Being honest, this wasn’t as good as I remembered it being. Times change and all, some things are better live. But this match’s quality is largely carried by a hot crowd, as Sting and Page largely go through the motions here with a couple clever spots overcome by a couple really clunky ones, and the constant spot screaming is really bad, albeit in a way that makes me chortle right out loud to myself, I’m not mad about it. But it’s a good TV match largely thanks to the Fargo faithful, and a nice moment that ultimately meant dick within two hours.
Tape Machines Are Rolling 
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