Vader def. Shawn Michaels (c) to win the WWF World Heavyweight Championship
Ken Shamrock won the Royal Rumble match
2 Cold Scorpio def. The Undertaker to retain the WWF Intercontinental Championship
D’Lo Brown & Kama Mustafa def. Stone Cold & Dude Love (c) to win the WWF World Tag Team Titles
The Legion of Doom def. The New Age Outlaws
The Rock def. Ken Shamrock
NOTES
Undertaker got some measure of revenge by elminating 2 Cold Scorpio from the Rumble Match
Scorpio’s title reign sits at 336 days. The record is Ultimate Warrior’s 375 day reign from WM VII to WM VIII
The final 4 of the Rumble consisted of Chainsaw Charlie, Jeff Jarrett, and Mankind with Jarrett being eliminated last
The Rumble also saw the return of John Tenta, in his Earthquake gimmick
Shawn Michaels now has the 4th most total days in the WrestleMania era as WWF Champion with 600 days even. He only trails Magnum T.A. (660), Paul Orndorff (665) and Hulk Hogan (858)
Dude Love & Steve Austin split their tag team immediately following the title loss
There are those backstage who feel the Shawn Michaels title loss is a bit of a ‘make right’ by Vince after the Screwjob, returning the belt to the man who had it before Bret seems to be a course correction away from Shawn who is wearing the majority of the blame as Vince has been awfully quiet about the move.
WORLD WRESTLING FEDERATION World Heavyweight Champion: ‘Vader (3) - 0 days Intercontinental Champion: 2 Cold Scorpio - 336 days Tag Team Champions: The Nation of Domination (Kama & D’Lo) - 0 days
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING World Heavyweight Champion: Kevin Nash - 21 days United States Champion: Diamond Dallas Page (2) - 84 days Tag Team Champions: The Four Horsemen (Arn & Benoit) - 329 days
WCW WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
Kevin Nash (c) vs. Larry Zbyszko
WHO IS ‘THE BEST THERE IS’?
Bret Hart vs. Ric Flair
Konnan vs. Disco Inferno
Randy Savage vs. The Giant
Scott Hall vs. Ted DiBiase
Vicious & Delicious vs. The Public Enemy
WCW WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
The Four Horsemen (c) vs. The Faces of Fear
Rowdy Roddy Piper vs. Lex Luger
NOTES
Randy Savage was overheard by Hogan telling Nash that the nWo have been successful. DiBiase won a world title, Piper won a world title and now he’s won a world title. The only loser in the group seems to be Hogan. He may be a star but it doesn’t make him the better man than most other men, it would seem. In comparison, Nash is holding his cards closer to the vest.
WORLD WRESTLING FEDERATION World Heavyweight Champion: ‘Vader - 6 days Intercontinental Champion: 2 Cold Scorpio - 342 days Tag Team Champions: The - 6 days
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING World Heavyweight Champion: Kevin Nash - 27 days United States Champion: Diamond Dallas Page (2) - 90 days Tag Team Champions: The Four Horsemen (Arn & Benoit) - 335 days
Nikita Koloff has made the jump back to WCW after being somewhat lost in the shuffle in Stamford Connecticut. If he was lost on WWF’s undersized roster, you have to wonder what’s going to happen in WCW’s more bloated shuffle (although Thunder should help)
Magnum T.A. (yes, he’s still out there) has been tagging with Henry Godwin under the name ‘Southern Justice’. There are rumours this gimmick was meant for Phineas who still remains on hiatus
It seems the WWF braintrust are happy with Vader vs. Ken Shamrock at WrestleMania and have no intention of defending the belt at the upcoming PPV. In fact, it’s said that all 3 of the primary titles are set in stone for the Mania defences so the buyrate for No Way Out of Texas will likely reflect the lack of stakes
Larry Zybyszko def. Kevin Nash to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship
Bret Hart def. Ric Flair via submission in a phenomenal match
Disco Inferno def. Konnan
Randy Savage def. The Giant
Ted DiBiase def. Scott Hall
The Public Enemy def. Vicious & Delicious via countout when V&D simply walked to the back
The Four Horsemen (c) def. The Faces of Fear to retain the WCW World Tag Team Titles
Rowdy Roddy Piper def. Lex Luger in a really strong match
NOTES
Meng attacked Barbarian following their most recent tag team loss. The Faces of Fear are no more
Arn Anderson is approaching 1000 days as an overall tag champion over his 6 reigns
The Four Horsemen’s tag title reign is currently the 5th longest in the WrestleMania era, behind only The Russian Team (341 days), The Blue Bloods (357 days), The Varsity Club (475 days), and the Road Warriors (514 days). They should be in 3rd place by SuperBrawl VIII
WORLD WRESTLING FEDERATION World Heavyweight Champion: ‘Vader - 6 days Intercontinental Champion: 2 Cold Scorpio - 342 days Tag Team Champions: The - 6 days
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING World Heavyweight Champion: Larry Zbyszko - 0 days United States Champion: Diamond Dallas Page (2) - 90 days Tag Team Champions: The Four Horsemen (Arn & Benoit) - 335 days
WWF NO WAY OUT OF TEXAS PREVIEW - FEBRUARY 15, 1998
8 MAN TAG MAIN EVENT
Ken Shamrock, Steve Austin, Cactus Jack & Chainsaw Charlie vs. Shawn Michaels, Triple H, and the New Age Outlaws
JARRETT’S RULES MATCH
Jeff Jarrett vs. ‘The Stalker’ Barry Windham
Kane vs. Jerry Lawler
The Undertaker vs. Bart Gunn
THE WAR OF ATTRITION
Ahmed Johnson, Owen Hart, Brian Pillman, & Ricky Steamboat vs. The Nation of Domination (Faarooq, Rock, Kama, D’Lo)
Southern Justice vs. Los Boricuas
The Headbangers vs. Goldust & Marc Mero
NOTES
Despite some hiccoughs in big matches, The Undertaker is among the hottest things in wrestling right now
Jarrett is referring to himself as the king of the street fight since his return to the WWF. He hasn’t dropped his cowboy gimmick or his chicken-shit heel ways but he is pulling out wins
WORLD WRESTLING FEDERATION World Heavyweight Champion: ‘Vader - 28 days Intercontinental Champion: 2 Cold Scorpio - 364 days Tag Team Champions: The Nation of Domination - 28 days
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING World Heavyweight Champion: Larry Zbyszko - 22 days United States Champion: Diamond Dallas Page (2) - 112 days Tag Team Champions: The Four Horsemen (Arn & Benoit) - 357 days
WWF NO WAY OUT OF TEXAS RESULTS - FEBRUARY 15, 1998
Ken Shamrock, Steve Austin, Cactus Jack & Chainsaw Charlie def. Shawn Michaels, Triple H, and the New Age Outlaws when Shamrock submitted Billy Gunn
Jeff Jarrett def. ‘The Stalker’ Barry Windham in a Jarrett’s Rules Match
Jerry Lawler def. Kane thanks to interference from The Undertaker
Bart Gunn def. The Undertaker thanks to interference from Kane
The Nation of Domination def. Ahmed Johnson, Owen Hart, Brian Pillman, & Ricky Steamboat in the War of Attrition Match
Los Boricuas def. Southern Justice
The Headbangers def. Goldust & Marc Mero
NOTES
Jeff Jarrett might be the most over pure heel in wrestling right now
WORLD WRESTLING FEDERATION World Heavyweight Champion: ‘Vader - 28 days Intercontinental Champion: 2 Cold Scorpio - 364 days Tag Team Champions: The Nation of Domination - 28 days
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING World Heavyweight Champion: Larry Zbyszko - 22 days United States Champion: Diamond Dallas Page (2) - 112 days Tag Team Champions: The Four Horsemen (Arn & Benoit) - 357 days
I’m getting darkest timeline stuff going on with WCW these days. I thought the Main Event scene was set for 6 months with Hogan / Luger / Sting / Piper / Nash but the Larry Zybsyzko thing is nuts and then the follow-up is equally mystifying.
TRIPLE THREAT MATCH FOR THE WCW WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Larry Zbyszko (c) vs. Meng vs. Bret Hart
STARRCADE REMATCH
Sting vs. Hollywood Hogan
WCW TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
The Four Horsemen (c) vs. The Outsiders
Rowdy Roddy Piper vs Lex Luger
Booker T vs. Hammer
Vicious & Delicious vs. The Public Enemy
Hugh Morris vs Prince Iaukea
Chris Jericho vs. Juventud Guerrera
WCW UNITED STATES CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
Diamond Dallas Page (c) vs. Bobby Eaton
Disco Inferno vs. Konnan
NOTES
Hogan arranged for The Outsiders to go after the tag gold “stick with your gimmick” was how he delivered the news. Hall seemed ok with it but Nash was clearly unimpressed.
WORLD WRESTLING FEDERATION World Heavyweight Champion: ‘Vader - 28 days Intercontinental Champion: 2 Cold Scorpio - 364 days Tag Team Champions: The Nation of Domination - 28 days
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING World Heavyweight Champion: Larry Zbyszko - 22 days United States Champion: Diamond Dallas Page (2) - 112 days Tag Team Champions: The Four Horsemen (Arn & Benoit) - 357 days
Bret Hart def. Larry Zybyszko (c) & Meng to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship by pinning Meng
Hulk Hogan def. Sting in a rematch from Starrcade in a Match of the Year candidate
The Four Horsemen (c) vs. The Outsiders
Lex Luger def. Rowdy Roddy Piper
Booker T def. Hammer
The Public Enemy once again def. Vicious & Delicious via Countout
Prince Iaukea def. Hugh Morris
Juventud Guerrera def. Chris Jericho
Diamond Dallas Page (c) def. Bobby Eaton to retain the WCW United States Championship
Disco Inferno def. Konnan
NOTES
Savage was seen to stop The Outsiders from going ringside during the Hogan/Sting match. All of the nWo came out post-match and it turned into a shoving match between Hogan and Savage before Nash got in the middle and Hogan shoved him too. Cooler heads prevailed in the end but the nWo is on tense terms
WORLD WRESTLING FEDERATION World Heavyweight Champion: ‘Vader - 28 days Intercontinental Champion: 2 Cold Scorpio - 364 days Tag Team Champions: The Nation of Domination - 28 days
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING World Heavyweight Champion: Bret Hart - 0 days United States Champion: Diamond Dallas Page (2) - 112 days Tag Team Champions: The Four Horsemen (Arn & Benoit) - 357 days
WCW WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
Bret ‘Hitman’ Hart (c) vs. ‘The Total Package’ Lex Luger
Sting vs Scott Hall
STEEL CAGE MATCH
Hollywood Hogan vs. Macho Man Randy Savage
FALLS COUNT ANYWHERE
Curt Hennig vs. Stevie Ray
WCW TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
The Four Horsemen (c) vs. The Giant & Meng
Booker T vs. Hammer
STREET FIGHT - NO COUNTOUTS
Vicious & Delicious vs. The Public Enemy
WCW UNITED STATES CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
Diamond Dallas Page (c) vs. Glacier
Kevin Nash vs. Larry Zybyszko
NOTES
Hogan arranged for The Outsiders to go after the tag gold “stick with your gimmick” was how he delivered the news. Hall seemed ok with it but Nash was clearly unimpressed.
2 Cold Scorpio has passed The Ultimate Warrior for the longest single Intercontinental Championship reign
WORLD WRESTLING FEDERATION World Heavyweight Champion: ‘Vader - 49 days Intercontinental Champion: 2 Cold Scorpio - 385 days Tag Team Champions: The Nation of Domination - 49 days
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING World Heavyweight Champion: Bret Hart - 21 days United States Champion: Diamond Dallas Page (2) - 133 days Tag Team Champions: The Four Horsemen (Arn & Benoit) - 378 days
Bret ‘Hitman’ Hart (c) def. ‘The Total Package’ Lex Luger to retain the WCW World Title
Scott Hall def. Sting with a massive assist from Hollywood Hogan
Randy Savage def. Hollywood Hogan in a Steel Cage Match with a small assist from Sting
Stevie Ray def. Curt Hennig in a Falls Count Anywhere Match
The Four Horsemen (c) def. The Giant & Meng to retain the WCW World Tag Team Titles
Hammer def. Booker T in the biggest win of his career
The Public Enemy def. Vicious & Delicious in a Street Fight
Glacier def. Diamond Dallas Page (c) to win the WCW United States Championship
Larry Zbyszko def. Kevin Nash when Nash was distracted by nWo infighting at ringside
NOTES
Match of the night isn’t conclusive but more fans were talking about how Hammer def. Booker overdelivered than any other match although the Public Enemy/Vicious & Delicious match had its fair share of support
WORLD WRESTLING FEDERATION World Heavyweight Champion: ‘Vader - 49 days Intercontinental Champion: 2 Cold Scorpio - 385 days Tag Team Champions: The Nation of Domination - 49 days
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING World Heavyweight Champion: Bret Hart - 21 days United States Champion: Glacier - 0 days Tag Team Champions: The Four Horsemen (Arn & Benoit) - 378 days
WWF WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
Vader (c) vs. ‘The World’s Most Dangerous Man’ Ken Shamrock
The Headbangers (Mosh & Thrasher) vs. Los Boricuas (Savio & Tito)
WWF INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
‘The Greatest Of All Time’ 2 Cold Scorpio vs. The Undertaker
WILL THE NATION IMPLODE?
Southern Justice vs. The Rock & Faarooq
MIKE TYSON IS THE SPECIAL ENFORCER
Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. ‘The Heartbreak Kid’ Shawn Michaels
NO HOLDS BARRED
Kane vs. Triple H
STANDARD WRESTLING MATCH
Barry Windham vs. Jeff Jarrett
DUMPSTER MATCH FOR THE WWF WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS
The Nation of Domination (D’Lo & Kama) vs. Cactus Jack & Chainsaw Charlie
The Legion of Doom vs. The New Age Outlaws
Owen Hart vs. Goldust
STREET FIGHT
Marvellous Marc Mero vs. ‘The Mad King’ Brian Pillman
FIGHT FOREVER
Ricky Steamboat vs. Ravishing Rick Rude
NOTES
Initially Vince McMahon tried to put Mike Tyson as the special enforcer in the Main Event but in a backstage segment, Ken Shamrock warned Vince not to do that. He said that Tyson might be the ‘baddest man on the planet’ but he’s the ‘world’s most dangerous man’. Shamrock then walked off. McMahon told Patterson & Briscoe that he’s got a plan B
Vince then brought Tyson down to the ring and announced that Mike Tyson would be the special enforcer in the match that will showcase the next decade of the WWF. Shawn Michaels vs Steve Austin. Austin called himself the toughest SOB alive and shoved Tyson with Vince telling Austin that he’s ruined everything.
Undertaker is still refusing to fight his brother. Kane is still hellbent on fighting Undertaker but they have different dance partners at WrestleMania
The Rock & Faarooq have been told by the rest of the Nation to figure their issues out in the ring. ‘Either live together or die alone’ were the words said by Kama Mustafa. Both Faarooq and Rock looked warily at Kama - is he claiming leadership of The Nation?
WORLD WRESTLING FEDERATION World Heavyweight Champion: ‘Vader - 63 days Intercontinental Champion: 2 Cold Scorpio - 399 days Tag Team Champions: The Nation of Domination - 63 days
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING World Heavyweight Champion: Bret Hart - 35 days United States Champion: Glacier - 14 days Tag Team Champions: The Four Horsemen (Arn & Benoit) - 392 days
1998 HEADLINER - KERRY VON ERICH Von Erich, a perennial babyface eclipsed all expectations after arriving in the WWF in 1990. Perhaps a slow start but the foot hit the pedal after winning the 1993 King of the Ring tournament and using that as a springboard towards success in the WWF. A 2 time world champion, including a run as WWF World Champion that began at SummerSlam 1995, Von Erich was also part of a very selective group that have won all 3 major championships in the WWF, the ‘Triple Crown Club’ Von Erich went 2-0 at WrestleMania defeating Lex Luger & Ted DiBiase respectively. Von Erich left the WWF in 1996 and retired in December of 1997.
1998 INDUCTEE - JAKE ‘THE SNAKE’ ROBERTS Jake Roberts debuted in the WWF in 1986 and was a fan favourite for those in the golden era of the WWF and the harbinger of nightmares for the New Generation audience. Jake didn’t win any titles in the WWF but that didn’t stop him from being perpetually relevant. Jake appeared on 5 WrestleMania cards against some of the biggest names in the industry (Hulk Hogan, Andre The Giant, Undertaker, Rick Martel, The Honky Tonk Man) and walked away with a 3-2 record including a win against a rookie Undertaker that showed the young gravedigger, there were no free gifts in the World Wrestling Federation. Jake left the WWF in 1992 but returned in 1996 and once again showed rookies there were no easy walks in the WWF with a victory over Steve Austin at the KOTR before ultimately becoming the target of the iconic Austin 3:16 promo. Jake would retire in 1996.
1998 INDUCTEE - NIKOLAI VOLKOFF Nikolai Volkoff is among the most talented tag team wrestlers the WWF has ever seen, winning the tag titles on 3 different occasions - twice with The Iron Sheik, once with Boris Zhukov - with reigns that total 354 days as champion However, fans might remember most the Cinderella run Volkoff went on at WrestleMania IV where he advanced all the way to the Main Event in the World Championship tournament by beating Hillbilly Jim, Hulk Hogan, and Andre The Giant in the same night before losing to Ravishing Rick Rude. Overall, Volkoff went 3-2 over 2 WrestleManias (I & IV). Volkoff also had a deep run in the WWF’s first PPV, The Wrestling Classic, besting Dynamite Kid and Corporal Kirchner before losing in the semi-finals to Randy Savage. Many may also remember Volkoff & The Iron Sheik winning the tag titles from The British Bulldogs on Saturday Night’s Main Event when Volkoff won both falls by submitting each member of the Bulldogs with his feared bearhug. Volkoff had incredible longevity and retired from the WWF in January of 1995.
1998 INDUCTEE - COWBOY BOB ORTON The man who kept the title from Hulk Hogan at the height of Hulkamania. Orton was a cornerman for the losing team in the very first WrestleMania and then lost his only WrestleMania appearance to former ally Paul Orndorff at WrestleMania 2. However, Orton shocked the world when he defeated Hulk Hogan to win the title on Saturday Night’s Main Event in a defence just 2 weeks after WrestleMania. Orton would go on to hold the title for 164 days. Orton was surprisingly out of the WWF in 1986 and was retired by 1989. In the modern landscape, you’d have to think he’d have had a more proflic career.
1998 INDUCTEE - THE GENIUS The Genius was a former Intercontinental Champion and Tag Champion (with The Barbarian as the aptly named ‘The Brains & The Brawn’). Originally billed as Leaping Lanny Poffo, it wasn’t until Poffo matriculated from higher facilities of learning and began boasting his academic superiority that people really began to take notice. Short though it was, people remember The Genius’ 25 day IC title reign between James Duggan and Brutus Beefcake in the middle of the Beefcake/Perfect feud - it would take Mr. Perfect 5 more years to reach that title. Genius’ tag reign went considerably longer with The Barbarian lasting 147 days after winning them from The Allied Powers before dropping them to Yokozuna and Owen Hart. The Genius only appeared at one WrestleMania, WM VI in Toronto where a jam-packed SkyDome saw Brutus Beefcake win the gold and then give The Genius a haircut in the middle of the ring to the delight of the Canadian crowd.
Fortunately with Bret winning the title and being a credible champion allows the simulation to get “back on track” with the WCW vs NWO feud with title defenses against Hogan, Nash, Savage, etc.
While at the same time the sim seems to be setting up NWO Wolfpack nicely to form soon against Hogan.
Funny @RedRaider07 mentioned what he did. I was about to do a bit of a pre-WrestleMania commentary.
WWF
I feel like they’re starting to get on track. Stone Cold and Rock are both climbing nicely. Stone Cold will hit the Main Event scene in 1998 while The Rock is knocking on the door of IC relevancy.
On that note, The Undertaker is finally getting properly over and will pay off the long-term investment with a title run shortly.
Jeff Jarrett is likely to have a title run in the WWF in 1998 so he’s an overachiever for sure.
There’s definitely some legacy hiccoughs - Yokozuna might be here for a while and Brian Pillman could easily go another decade while Ricky Steamboat and Rick Rude are doing a great job as a gatekeeper to the Main Event. There are some hangovers from past eras (Doink, Adrian Adonis) and Magnum T.A. feels like a holdover from 2 bygone eras. That being said, we’re going to see Edge & Christian join the fed this year and Main Event Ken Shamrock could totally have been a thing - add in what happens post WM XIV with DX and there’s lots of possibilities
WCW
It just feels loaded. Sting has been sacrificed at the expence of making Bret ‘the guy’ and you can argue that’s precisely the quandry that Eric Bischoff was facing in late 1997. You could pull the trigger on one of those guys, and only one. So he went with the year’s investment and hoped Bret could pay off down the line. In this timeline, the choice has been made for Bret but in this timeline Sting never was what Sting was prior to going into the rafters. He’s a perennial upper midcarded who’s never really had a taste of the Main Event - that’s very different to what it was in the timeline we’re familiar with
The WCW younger generation feels like they’re going to be held down even more than they were previously. Rey, Jericho, and Eddie are behind where they ought to be while Goldberg is little more than a footnote.
DDP, however, is miles ahead of schedule and Luger (another guy who’s never closed the deal) is also right on the cusp on the Main Event
The Main Event scene arguably features Bret, Hogan, Sting, Luger, Hall, Nash, Raven, Hennig, DDP, Savage, and DiBiase (plus Arn and Benoit) whenever they drop the tag straps
Ric Flair’s momentum was definitely hurt by the year long injury but he’s just a good strong run away from Main Event status again
The real thing for WCW is going to be if there’s room on the cards for the young guys to push through without needing some good luck/shenanigans to push people out of the way
I’d give the edge considerably to WCW but would argue that the WWF is in a far better place this year than they were last year.
I love it when you provide some insight into how you think each company is doing. This is especially good timing considering that 1998 was perhaps the biggest year in wrestling ever.
I forgot to comment on that. Goldberg losing at Starcade 1997 and never having his 100+ win streak is as big a change as Undertaker being 1-4 at WrestleMania. Does Goldberg even become a main eventer without that initial push? It certainly doesn’t seem like it.
This is a pretty strange decision by Vince in the Sim. I understand how the story of Undertaker being resistant to fight Kane would work. Similar to Rey and Dominik in 2023. But I would have thought the payoff to that kind of storyline would have been an Undertaker vs Kane match at WrestleMania. Instead of having two matches that aren’t as hot.
I wrestled with overriding the call as well and maybe I made a mistake on this one. WrestleMania is the logical place for storylines like this to end but I think maybe I got caught up with Taker being #1 contender on my sheet as well as in the game’s internal logic.
