[2001-01-14-WCW-Sin] Scott Steiner vs Sid Vicious vs Jeff Jarrett vs Ric Flair's Mystery Man

[GSR]

As Michael Buffer is about to introduce the fourth mystery participant he’s interrupted by Ric Flair. ‘The Boss’ tells Scott Steiner that he said he had a mystery man for tonight but didn’t say when he would be here.  He goes on to order the timekeeper to ring the bell as he wants to see the World champion start defending that belt.  Sid’s punches are woeful, his clothesline not much better either.  Belly to belly by Steiner, Jarrett happy to just stand by as he makes the cover, remaining true to his word of helping ‘Big Poppa Pump’ retain the title.   Sid gets thrown to the outside and laughably ambles into and over the guardrail when whipped into it.  Steiner uses his title belt as a weapon.  Sid blocks having his head slammed into the turnbuckle and fights back with more shite looking punches.  The champ saves Jarrett from a powerbomb as the two go back to working together.  Sid counters the double suplex with one of his own; that looked nasty the way he spiked Jarrett on the top of his head.  His big boots miss every bit as much as his punches do.  Christ, now he’s visually calling spots on the chokeslam.  Cobra clutch slam on Steiner.  He pie faces Jarrett over the top rope to the outside and then launches him over the barricade into the front row.  At this point we cut backstage to see Ric Flair bringing out his mystery man.  Even though he’s masked and covered from head to toe, when you know who it is, you can see him anyway.  When we return Sid is lay on the mat, his leg bent at a hideous angle.  In reality Steiner should just pin him and end this, but he’s clearly buying for time waiting for the mystery man.  Eventually he makes it into the ring, a doctor already in there checking on Vicious.  The mystery man with a double axe handle to Sid, Steiner immediately covers him and that’s it.  Scott Hudson and Tony Schiavone wonder what’s going on as the mystery man unmasks to reveal Road Warrior Animal.  So the man Ric Flair bought in has double crossed him?  Or has he?

Even before the broken leg Sid looked absolutely dreadful in there; laboured, pulled punches, even worse looking clotheslines, visually calling spot, dangerously spiking Jarrett etc.  Then the big lummox has to lay there in God knows how much pain while the match continues and they wait for Animal to arrive so they can run with the planned angle of the mystery man crossing Flair (?) and aligning with Steiner.  There was one bizarre spot in there where Jarrett covered Sid and Steiner just stood by, so in theory he was happy to potentially give up his title.  That made no sense.  Bad match and that’s three bad finishes in a row to close out the PPV which had started out strong and showing the quality that WCW had in it’s undercard at this time.

[soup23]

Shit way to end the PPV. You give the tag match main event billing and this is a fun two hours of wrestling but we really limp home. SIDS injury is as graphic as it gets and Animal as the mystery man is such a wet fart. * 

[GSR]

Just now, soup23 said:

Shit way to end the PPV. You give the tag match main event billing and this is a fun two hours of wrestling but we really limp home. SIDS injury is as graphic as it gets and Animal as the mystery man is such a wet fart. * 

A warning if you're squeamish, the unedited video of the leg break gets played on TV a couple of times in the following weeks;.  We get it from multiple angles, the footage  being zoomed in and even slow mos of it.  I can't remember if Schiavone gives a disclaimer or not but I'd never seen the actual break (because I never wanted to) until now.