21 Of The Best WWE And WCW Wrestling Segments Of All Time
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For those who are new to wrestling or who have watched it their entire lives, there are always moments from sports entertainment that are memorable and unforgettable. Whether it's one friend turning on another (which is usually the case) or something truly bizarre, professional wrestling can truly be wonderful at times. And that got the wrestling fans here at GameSpot wondering, "What are our favorite moments in wrestling?"
While there are plenty of amazing matches out there, the most memorable moments in wrestling aren't actually matches. They're what happens before and after the battles themselves. Whether it's Medusa dropping her WWF Women's Championship in the trash on WCW's Nitro or CM Punk (pictured above) airing his all-too-real grievances live on Raw in what was later called "the pipe bomb," we came up with 21 of our favorite moments throughout the years.
For more blasts from the past in the world of wrestling, check out Ridiculous Moments From WCW In The '90s, Awful Early Gimmicks Of Future WWE Superstars, and WWE/WCW's Weirdest Champions.
Here are our favorite wrestling segments and moments in chronological order. The vast majority of these moments can be seen on the WWE Network, and we'll have links to the ones that aren't there.
Shawn Michaels Turns On Marty Jannetty
(WWF Wrestling Challenge: January 12, 1992)
Back in 1992, one of the most memorable turns in all of history happened during the show WWF Wrestling Challenge. The team of The Rockers, which consisted of Marty Jannetty and Shawn Michaels, was on the verge of breaking up, and the two longtime teammates went on Brutus Beefcake's show "The Barber Shop" to hash things out. As the two talked on the show-within-a-show, it seemed like things were going well for the duo. They hugged, and then Michaels Superkicked Jannetty. The turn was followed by Michaels throwing his now former partner through the barbershop window. Michaels went on to have a stellar solo career, while Jannetty faded in the background. It is easily the most memorable and shocking heel turns in WWE's history. -- Mat Elfring
This segment is not available on the WWE Network, but you can watch it on YouTube.
NWO Forms At Bash At The Beach
(Bash at the Beach: July 7, 1996)
Who is the third man? It's the storyline and moment that catapulted WCW ahead of the WWF, kickstarting the Monday Night War. After jumping to WCW, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall claimed there was one more man involved in their takeover of the company. Nobody expected that man to be Hulk Hogan, when he made his way to the ring during the main event of Bash at the Beach. But when he dropped the big leg on Randy Savage and called the audience "crap," Hulkamania died. In its place, Hulk Hogan and the New World Order reigned supreme. -- Chris E. Hayner
The Man Of 1004 Holds
(Monday Night Nitro: March 30, 1998)
In March of 1998, Chris Jericho was feuding with Dean Malenko, a man whose nickname was "The Man of a 1000 Holds." Jericho came to the ring during an episode of Nitro, quickly beat Marty Jannetty, and read his own list of maneuvers he knew, claiming he was the man of 1004 holds. It was a literal list which was a piece of continuous printer paper from the '90s with wrestling holds supposedly written on it. Who could forgot some of Jericho's best holds like "armbar" or "armdrag" or "the moss-covered, three-handled family gradunza" or what about "armbar?" Jericho does comedy exceptionally well and knows how to get under people's skin. Because the NWO owned the airwaves on WCW, it was hard to stick out if you weren't wearing the black and white, but between this and Jericho's Washington Conspiracy segment, there's a reason his nickname is "The Greatest of All Time." -- Mat Elfring
Chris Jericho's WWE Debut
(Raw: August 9, 1999)
With Y2K on the horizon, WWE rolled a series of vignettes in 1999 consisting of a millennium countdown timer. This came to an end ahead of the actual millennium in August 1999, interrupting an in-ring promo by The Rock, who was at the peak of his powers. That set the stage for the debut of Chris Jericho, who had long been underutilized in WCW. While it was unsurprising to many that Jericho showed up (there were even signs in the crowd), his name appearing on the Titantron nonetheless resulted in a huge pop and an opportunity for him to rub shoulders with one of WWE's biggest stars. -- Chris Pereira
Ric Flair Debuts After The Invasion
(Raw: November 19, 2001)
The Invasion angle in 2001 ended with a whimper. It was poorly booked with oddly timed debuts. The WCW and ECW wrestlers were never given a real chance to dominate and make some noise. But the Monday after Survivor Series, just when it seemed that WWE was going back-to-business as usual. But then, "Sunrise" blared over the speakers, and Ric Flair walked to the ring, announcing himself as Vince McMahon's new business partner. The show took place in Flair's hometown of Charlotte, NC, and the crowd welcomed its hero with a roar. And then, to top it off, Steve Austin ran down to the ring and allied himself with Flair. It was a limousine driving, pickup truck riding, match made in heaven. -- Kevin Wong
The Rock Closes The "Vince McMahon Kiss My Ass" Club
(Smackdown: December 6, 2001)
To mark the end of the Invasion storyline, Vince McMahon started the "Kiss My Ass Club," where disgraced former employees had to kiss Vince's buttocks in order to keep their jobs. William Regal was the first entrant, which got a huge response from the audience. And so, this schtick carried on for several weeks; the Undertaker turned heel by forcing Jim Ross to kiss Vince's derrière. Finally, however, Vince got his comeuppance. In an extended segment, The Rock forced Vince to kiss Rikishi's massive bottom. It was an incredibly crass, endlessly entertaining segment, featuring Vince and Rock at the height of their comedic timing and charisma. -- Kevin Wong
Eric Bischoff Joins WWE
(Raw: July 15, 2002)
The old adage goes "never say never" when it comes to professional wrestling. Still, even the most optimistic fans had to be downright shocked when Vince McMahon introduced WWE Raw's first general manager, and it was none other than...Eric Bischoff? The former WCW boss made the jump to WWE after the end of the Monday Night War and kicked off his new gig by sharing a hug with Vince on live TV, in one of the most surreal moments of all time. Then, just in case you missed it, they hugged a second time. These two were at war for years trying to put each other out of business. Then, for the good of the business, they set it all aside to make some ridiculously memorable TV. Never say never, indeed. -- Chris E. Hayner
Hollywood Rock Has Steve Austin Ejects From His Rock Concert
(Raw: March 24, 2003)
When it comes to The Rock, there were many iterations of his character--from the People's Champion to, simply, Dwayne. It's hard to deny the magic of Hollywood Rock, though. He went from loved to hated in the blink of an eye, all because he wanted to give movies a shot. Upon embracing his new cocky heel persona, The Rock was unstoppable as a character, and used that to fuel one last Wrestlemania feud with Steve Austin. Every moment of this rivalry is practically perfect, but it gets no better than the night of the first Rock Concert, when Rocky has Austin ejected from the arena, then played the Elvis Presley classic "Jailhouse Rock" for him. The smug look on Rock's face as he strums the guitar is priceless and made waiting for Austin to pummel him worth it. -- Chris E. Hayner
Note: Portions of this segment are not available on the March 24 episode of Raw on the WWE Network, but it is available to view on YouTube.
Goldberg Debuts And Takes Out The Rock
(Raw: March 31, 2003)
Goldberg's first run with WWE was nothing special. It was a mismatch on practically every level, as WWE failed to understand how to properly book Goldberg, while the former WCW megastar didn't seem to quite understand how things worked in WWE. Still, his debut was an incredibly special moment. Hot off his win over Steve Austin at Wrestlemania 19, The Rock--still in Hollywood mode--believed he'd done it all and was ready to call it a career. That is until Goldberg marched to the ring, let him know who was next, and speared the life out of him. The Rock has always been the master of selling finishing moves in unique ways and his reaction to the spear was no different. This was both Goldberg and The Rock in peak form. -- Chris E. Hayner
Kurt Angle Hates The "You Suck" Chant
(Raw: November 07, 2005)
The unique selling point of Kurt Angle's Olympic character is that he's almost a good guy; he's the type of All-American white meat babyface that a '70s or '80s era audience would have loved. Instead, WWE and Angle did something subversive. By contrasting him against anti-heroes like The Rock and Austin, Angle appeared to be an annoying, arrogant suckup, and the fans let him know it. Angle was masterful at responding to the audience's heckles and turning it back on them. During an episode of Raw in 2005, Kurt Angle yells, lectures, and threatens the audience after his entrance, and they simply chant louder, which was the point all along. It's a great example of reverse psychology; tell someone not to do something, and watch what happens. -- Kevin Wong
Jericho Returns
(Raw: November 19, 2007)
As great as Jericho's Raw debut was in 1999, for me, his return in 2007 exceeded it. WWE teased his return in the weeks prior by airing computer code interspersed with biblically-tinged language. And when the countdown clock finally ran down in November 19, 2007, a lone command prompt appeared on the Titantron: SAVE_US.Y2J. If the audience suspected something before, they now knew for sure that Jericho, Millennium Man, would soon be on his way to the ring. The fans didn't even wait for his entrance to start clapping and cheering. -- Kevin Wong
Scott Steiner Does Math
(Impact: May 1, 2008)
Don't worry, we didn't forget about TNA. Unfortunately, the segment is infamous, much like WCW's Shockmaster. In 2008, leading up to the PPV Sacrifice, Scott Steiner was being interviewed about his upcoming match against Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe. What happened next was bonkers. Steiner went on a tirade about his chances of winning and the percentages against his two opponents. Steiner was 141 â…”% sure he'd win at Sacrifice. Sadly, Samoa Joe beat him. Was this supposed to be funny or was it Steiner's descent into madness? Either way, it's one of the more memorable moments from TNA, whether they like it or not. -- Mat Elfring
Enjoy a portion of this segment, transcribed for your pleasure.
"So Samoa Joe, you take your 33 â…“ chance, minus my 25% chance, and you got an 8 â…“ chance of winning at Sacrifice. But then you take my 75% chance of winning, if we was to go one-on-one, and then add 66 â…” percents, I got 141 â…” chance of winning at Sacrifice. See Joe, the numbers don't lie, and they spell disaster for you at Sacrifice."
Watch it on YouTube here.
CM Punk Dresses Up Like Jeff Hardy
(Smackdown: September 04, 2009)
Back in 2009, CM Punk and Jeff Hardy were involved in a feud, which was ultimately capped off with Punk pulling out a win over Hardy. This coincided with Hardy's contract ending and him leaving the company, but this well-known secret didn't stop Hardy fans from getting excited when he seemingly showed up at the start of the next episode of Smackdown. The music, the fireworks, the dancing routine--there was nothing odd at first, but the crowd slowly began realize this was, in fact, Punk dressed up in Hardy's signature attire, complete with face paint. This in turn led to a characteristically terrific promo from Punk, but the shots of angered fans in the crowd coming to terms with what they were seeing will forever remain etched in our memory. -- Chris Pereira
CM Punk's Royal Rumble Sermon
(Royal Rumble: January 31, 2010)
CM Punk is primarily known for his "Pipebomb" segment back in 2011, but one of his most underrated moments came in 2010 during the Royal Rumble match. During this time, CM Punk was in the middle of his "Straight-Edge Savior" gimmick, in which he tried to convert people to his way of life. During the actual Rumble Match, when Punk was alone in the ring, he'd grab a mic and deliver a sermon about his lifestyle and how he's better than everyone else. Strangely enough, although he was heel during this time, the crowd slowly gets behind him, as this was one of the most original and interesting things WWE has ever done during this match. Punk's 2010 Rumble sermon run lasted for 10 minutes before he was eliminated. -- Mat Elfring
Edge Retires
(Raw: April 11, 2011)
It was too soon. Edge, the reigning world heavyweight champion was forced to retire, thanks to a spinal injury that, if further aggravated by the rigors of professional wrestling, could have landed him in a wheelchair. Ther Rated-R Superstar came out to the ring, gave an incredible speech about how thankful he was to the fans. Then, with the audience's help, he performed his entrance again, so that he could feel that adrenaline rush one last time. It's heartbreaking to see these men and women, who are marketed to us as quasi-superheroes, laid so low. -- Kevin Wong
CM Punk Wins The WWE Championship And Leaves The Company
(Money in the Bank: July 17, 2011)
In the lead up to 2011's Money in the Bank PPV, CM Punk treated us to some of the best promos the company had seen in years. His self-proclaimed "pipe bombs" did a magnificent job of blending the real world and the wrestling world, taking shots at Vince McMahon and the way the company was run. Punk's contract was known to be expiring after MitB, so his loss to John Cena in the main event was all but inevitable. Instead, Punk--in his hometown of Chicago, which gave him a tremendous amount of support--pulled out the win. McMahon came out looking dazed and confused, and WWE briefly teased us by having Alberto Del Rio attempt to cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase, only for Punk to quickly dispatch him. With McMahon looking increasingly despondent, Punk made his way over the barricade, blew McMahon a kiss, and disappeared into the crowd, leaving the company with the championship. His departure wasn't carried on for as long as it could have been after the PPV, but on that night, his exit was as surreal and memorable as anything WWE has done in a long, long time. -- Chris Pereira
Chris Jericho Returns To WWE, Says Nothing
(Raw: January 09, 2012)
Following one of his sabbaticals from WWE, Chris Jericho returned with a particularly spectacular light-up jacket. He played up his return like an over-the-top face, making laps around the ring, excitedly shaking a camera, pumping up the crowd, and generally looking thrilled to be there. After getting his hand on a mic, he repeatedly teased that he was about to speak, only to stop--he acted as if he were overwhelmed by the moment, even coming to tears at one point. He did this for the better part of three minutes before making his way up the ramp, and ultimately he left without uttering a syllable. It was a memorable, unique moment, and one made better by a post-Raw WWE.com interview where he kept up the shtick, doing nothing but turning on his jacket, smiling, and walking away. -- Chris Pereira
The Miz Goes Off On Daniel Bryan
(Talking Smack: August 23, 2016)
Talking Smack was one of the greatest non-wrestling shows put together by WWE, and they canceled it. The weekly series, which aired on the WWE Network after Smackdown Live, allowed superstars to talk to Renee Young about their time in the ring and expand on their characters. On the August 23, 2016 episode of the show, Daniel Bryan--who wasn't cleared to wrestle at the time--told The Miz that he wrestled like a coward to his face. The Miz unleashed on Bryan saying that Bryan could quit and work the indies if he cared about wrestling, and that The Miz has done everything he can to make the Intercontinental Championship relevant again, which--in turn--upset Bryan and he walked off the set. It is one of the most passionate, emotional, seemingly real moments in WWE television. -- Mat Elfring
The Final Deletion
(Impact: July 6, 2016)
While WWE fans are very familiar with "Woken" Matt Hardy and the battle with Bray Wyatt at the Hardy Compound entitled "The Ultimate Deletion," TNA's original version of this "The Final Deletion," was pure brilliance. The almost 18-minute long segment was filmed at the Hardy Compound where "Broken" Matt Hardy fought his brother Jeff. The match was a departure from anything on Impact at the time. It was very DIY and put together like something a teenager would edit on the weekend with their friends. It incorporated more "Broken" mythos like a dilapidated boat, Senor Benjamin, and the lawn mower. The match was a complete dive into Matt Hardy's character. In essence, it was perfection. It brought back an element of fun and silliness to wrestling we haven't seen in years, and most importantly, it put eyes back on TNA. Because of all of this, we got The Hardys back in WWE, where Matt is doing similar version of his "Broken" character. The Final Deletion is one of the few times where a wrestling event truly captured the attention of those who haven't watched programming in years. -- Mat Elfring
Watch it on YouTube here.
Festival Of Friendship
(Raw: February 13, 2017)
Once upon a time, The Rock and Mankind's "This is Your Life" segment was the highlight of WWE's absurdity. Thanks to Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho, though, it doesn't hold a candle to the festival of friendship. Both WWE superstars had teased dissension in their best friendship. However, the festival was created by Jericho to celebrate how close they truly were--complete with a painting, a sculpture, and even dancing showgirls. Owens had other ideas, though, when he surprised Jericho with The List of KO, leading to his turning on his best friend and utterly destroying him. Owens even smashed his former friend's head through the obscenely expensive Jeri-tron 500, harkening back to Jericho doing the same to Shawn Michaels years earlier. The Festival of Friendship was, instead, a celebration of Owens' betrayal. -- Chris E. Hayner
Braun Strowman Destroys Roman Reigns After WrestleMania 33
(Raw: April 10, 2017)
Roman Reigns is a divisive figure in WWE. He is simultaneously the most detested man on the WWE roster and one of WWE's top merchandise sellers. But there was a time when everyone--even Reigns' own fans--legitimately hated him: after Wrestlemania 33, when Reigns beat and seemingly retired The Undertaker. And a week later, when Braun Strowman attacked Reigns backstage, it felt cathartic; Strowman was beating up The Big Dog for us and on our behalf. He hurled Reigns, tied to a stretcher, off a backstage ledge. He tipped over ambulance over with Reigns inside. This was truly a Monster Among Men. -- Kevin Wong