[1998-06-11-WCW-Thunder] Chris Benoit vs Booker T

[Loss]

Talk about it here.

[Loss]

Before the match starts, Bret Hart comes to recruit Chris Benoit into the NWO. Funny that no one has noticed that Bret still isn't in the group. That could have been the beginning of something cool to move Benoit up a notch if WCW wasn't WCW.

 

Match 7 of 7. This picks up where Match 6 left off, with Benoit going after Booker's knee which was injured at the very end of the last match. It's interesting how they have worked these matches to babyface Booker, but Benoit has been the most over guy almost every time out. Benoit does an incredible Indian deathlock-cattle mutilation combo. This is just cranking up when they go to the crap finish. Bret comes out with a chair and waylays Booker. Benoit stops the countout and tells the ref that Bret hit Booker with the chair, so Booker wins by DQ.

 

I realize they were just looking for a way to get one final big match between them at the Great American Bash, so I won't complain too much about that. I'm more distraught that the match was cut short when it was about to get great.

[soup23]

I didn't like they way they tried to artificially make this match more epic by inserting two commercial breaks into this. I will sound like a broke record but this was humming along nicely and again played off past spots with this time Booker kicking out of the German trio in succession. Hart runs down and hits Booker with a chair but Benoit is too much of a gentleman to take the win that way and he ends up getting himself DQ'd. Good way to set up the final match at the PPV in my opinion. (**1/2)

[Childs]

This was actually a smart way to build a bigger match for the PPV, shockingly smart for WCW. Even Bret's motivation made sense this time, given the Canadian connection. The match was good too, especially at setting up important elements for their finale.

[PeteF3]

Bret gets to speak! He makes an overture to Chris Benoit to join the NWO--well, of course this is going to lead to nothing but it's refreshing to see some of the strong mid-card stuff get some interaction with the main eventers, at a time when the glass ceiling has never been more apparent.

 

They're 7 for 7 on decent-to-good matches in this series, and this was pretty psychologically strong with good focus on Booker's knee. I don't know if he'll ever be a complete worker but at the very least he's a strong underneath babyface with great comebacks, and that can go a long way with a pro like Benoit. The finish is eh but it actually makes you want to see where this story is going next, which is no small feat after watching these guys wrestle each other 7 times in a few weeks.

[TravJ1979]

nWo couldn't even let this best of 7 get over in the least without some sort of tie in.