WCW Nitro (Week 1, June 2001)
Tony Shiavonne and Mike Tenay are at ringside and they welcome the latest addition to the WCW broadcast team... Jerry "The King" Lawler!
WCW World Champion Booker T makes his entrance next to a huge ovation. He talks about winning the title just over a month ago and how many of the more selfish guys in the company have left to sit out their old contract but he assures everyone that he is here because he has a passion for wrestling and a passion for WCW. And it's that passion that has lead him to do the right thing. After talking with the new owners, he has decided it's best for the company for him to give up the United States title. He has been assured that the new President, when appointed, will make sure it is awarded fairly to someone who can one day challenge Booker himself for the World Title.
The Jung Dragons (Yun Yang and Kaz Hayashi) w/ Kimona vs Air Raid (Air Styles and Air Paris)
Quick paced back-and-forth match that ends with Kimona getting on the apron and almost getting knocked down by Yang. The distraction is enough for Air Paris to roll Yang up for the 3. Air Raid runs out of the ring and The Jung Dragons do not look happy.
Winners: Air Raid in 9:12
We come back from commercial with Stacy Keibler introducing her man Shawn Stasiak. Stasiak comes out handing out 8x10s of himself to the audience before he gets in the ring and out comes his opponent...
Shawn Stasiak w/ Stacy Keibler vs Dustin Rhodes
A short match that ends when Jeff Jarrett comes out and smashes a guitar over Rhodes' head, causing a DQ. Stasiak and Keibler duck out of the mayhem while Jarrett takes the mic and tells Dustin that even though there's a new WCW, old grudges haven't died and he's not done with him or his daddy.
Winner by DQ: Dustin Rhodes in 3:42
Lance Storm and Mike Awesome of Team Canada come out to plead their case for why either of them should be the new US Champion. Storm says that a good Canadian representative is exactly what the title needs and this brings out Jim Duggan waving the American flag to defend his country. Awesome asks Duggan why there is no Team USA in WCW. He says it's because of shame. This brings out Rick Steiner who tells Team Canada that he was an All-American amateur at Michigan and he'd be proud to join Jim Duggan in taking them down.
"Mean" Gene Okerlund is backstage with WCW World Tag Team Champions The Natural Born Thrillers, Sean O'Haire and Chuck Palumbo, where they discuss their title defense tonight against Totally Buffed, Lex Luger and Buff Bagwell.
"Sugar" Shane Helms vs Kid Romeo
Shane Helms makes his entrance with the WCW Cruiserweight Title for this non-title match. It goes back and forth for a bit but Helms takes control and wins it in the end with a vertebreaker.
Winner: "Sugar" Shane Helms in 6:13
Shane Douglas enters the ring as Kid Romeo is exiting and tells officials to hurry up and get him out of the ring. He gets the mic and makes it clear that he wants the World Title. And if there's a tournament or a battle royal for the US Title, he is going to do exactly what Booker T did but he's keeping everything.
KroniK vs Mike Sanders and Disqo
KroniK makes short work of their opponents after Disqo walks out on Sanders.
Winners: KroniK in 5:07
"Mean" Gene stands on the stage and questions Disqo on why he walked out. Disqo said he spent entirely too long in the old WCW being a loser and he's not gonna be part of another throwaway tag team. He puts his name in the running for the US Title and vows to live up to the potential he always showed.
When we come back, we see a pre-taped promo from Kanyon where he stands in front of a wall scattered with pictures of Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Sting and Ric Flair. He sarcastically weeps over the fallen legends of WCW, doing bad impressions of them all before looking in the camera and excitedly saying it's his time to shine.
Konnan vs Big Vito
In a somewhat competetive match, Konnan locks Vito in the Tequila Sunrise and forces a tapout. Reno runs into the ring to beat down Konnan but out come Rey Misterio Jr. and Billy Kidman for the save, sending The Mamalukes retreating.
Winner: Konnan in 6:05
Totally Buffed come out for the main event but Buff Bagwell gets on the mic before the match starts and announces he has a surprise for Lex Luger. He brings out Midajah and says she's their new manager. Lex looks puzzled but quickly warms up to the idea when Midajah does a little showing off in front of him.
WCW World Tag Team Title Match: Natural Born Thrillers (Chuck Palumbo and Sean O'Haire) vs Totally Buffed (Lex Luger and Buff Bagwell) w/ Midajah
Long, back and forth main event with many near-falls. The finish comes when Bagwell tries to distract the ref and Midajah throws a pair of brass knuckles in but overthrows Luger, leading to Palumbo grabbing them and hitting Luger. O'Haire pulls Bagwell off the apron in time for the ref to turn around and count the three while Buff slides in and checks on Luger as the show goes off the air.
Winners and STILL WCW World Tag Team Champions: Natural Born Thrillers in 15:30