Required Viewing #13: He Did It
It’s my favorite moment ever in wrestling and the loudest pop you’ll ever hear.On January 4, 1999, WCW had Kevin Nash lose the WCW World Title to Hulk Hogan via the Fingerpoke of Doom. Over on Raw, the WWF Title was changing hands as well, which WCW decided to tell their audience. Here’s what the hundreds of thousands of fans that changed the channel saw.
WWF Title: Mankind vs. The Rock
This is No DQ remember. This is the match that Tony Schiavone gave the ending away to on their show, shifting the ratings for the night because of it. DX comes out to back up Foley, because they couldn’t go to the hospital with Shawn or help defend him right? Rock of course has the Corporation with him.
Rock jumps him immediately and knocks him to the floor. He won’t let the Corporation beat them up because he wants to do it himself. How noble of our heel champion. Foley does his first sick bump of the match as he goes knee first into the steps and flies over them in a painful looking shot. These two always had mad chemistry together, which is something that could be said about most guys with Rock actually.
Rock does commentary during the match, which always cracked me up. He talks a bit too much though so Foley takes over. Foley does a promo of his own and we cut to a shot of Vince and Shane, but we hear a bell ring. Foley is down and Rock has the bell. Subtle. Rock Bottom through a table and Foley is in trouble. This has all taken less than three minutes so I’m not leaving much out at all.
To play up the spontaneous nature here Rock is in street clothes, as in the kind you would work out in. Corporate Elbow (debuted 5 minutes from my house) hits for two as this is ALL Rock. Foley with a spinning neckbreaker out of nowhere to get both guys down. Bossman throws the belt in and a shot to the head (sounded SICK) gets two as well. Double arm DDT onto the belt and Rock is in big trouble.
There’s Mr. Socko as the crowd has lost it. Mandible Claw goes on but Shamrock pops Foley with a chair. Billy Gunn takes him down and the brawl begins. Everything goes crazy and CUE GLASS SHATTER! Austin comes out and everyone loses it. He caves Rock’s head in with a chair and pulls Mick on top for the pin and the world title as the roof is blown off the arena.
Rating: A+. This was about a shocking moment and excitement and a feel good story and they NAILED it. This is very personal bias heavy, but they’re my reviews so who cares?
DX puts Foley on their shoulders as the Corporation carries Rock out. Cole gets in the famous line of “Mick Foley has achieved his dream and the dream of everyone else who has been told you can’t do it!” This is one of the best feel good moment in WWF history as Foley was considered one of the best to never be world champion as he worked as hard as anyone else but was never given a serious shot at it.
He got the shot tonight and he won the title. Road Dogg does the big announcement of Mankind being the new champion to a HUGE ovation. Foley dedicates the win to his kids and takes a lap around the ring with the belt to end the show. This is my favorite moment in wrestling history, bar none.
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They call matches way different today than back then. Both have really changed and then JBL just annoys. Not like Dusty levels but still bad
It’s my favorite moment too
That pop for Austin is mind blowing. I also agree that Cole did a great job calling it. The calls today with the God awful announce team are pathetic
Wait, didn’t Cole and Lawler call that match? And aren’t they two of the three current announcers on Raw?
And they are waaaaaaaaaaaaay worse now with Vince constantly in their headset. DMX is right, the announce team is awful now despite it being the same people
Lawler to me is the biggest problem. He just doesn’t care anymore. I really wish they would add Renee Young and drop Lawler. Or at the very least, add her for Smackdown. That Todd guy is a worse version of Cole. There is no need for him. Too generic.
I don’t hate Lawler, it is just that he adds nothing nowadays. Cole and JBL can be distracting at times but I’m fine with them.
I like him for nostalgia. He’s one of the few connections to my childhood as a wrestling fan still around.
I remember finding this out on WWF.com 5 days before it happened on TV and I made damn sure I was watching Raw that night. Such a great moment.
And look at that. It’s on youtube. You don’t even need the Network to see it!
Cole calls this moment very well in my opinion. It’s not JR level of excitement or pizzazz, but it kinda sums up the early version of Cole as the earnest young putz who liked when the faces won.