Okay, so this one might be a controversial addition to the list, but hear me out. When the original New World Order dusted off their trademark black and whites in 2002, wrestling fans across the globe could barely believe their eyes. The inconceivable had happened and the prodigal sons Hogan, Hall and Nash had returned to the land that made them famous. Not only that but they had done so under the very spray-painted banner that had threatened to put Vince McMahon out of business five years earlier. They immediately made an impact on their debut at the No Way Out PPV, costing Steve Austin the WWF title and ruffling the feathers of The Rock, immediately setting up the iconic encounter between Hogan and The Great One at WrestleMania X8 and ultimately creating a truly immortal moment in sports entertainment between arguably its two biggest stars in history. Not a bad way to start out, right? While its hard to argue with the direction the initial nWo angle took with Hogan/Rock, it didnt take long for Vinces version of the nWo to quickly lose its steam once the dust had settled on the Show of Shows and the WrestleMania hangover kicked in. Hogan quickly left the group to return to his red and yellow roots and World Title glory, leaving The Outsiders Hall and Nash to recruit former members of the 96 incarnation, X-Pac and Big Show. Soon after, the injury-prone Nash would suffer a serious biceps tear, taking him out of action for several months and essentially leaving the group without a leader. Meanwhile, typical wrestling luck would have it that Scott Hall had fallen off the wagon and was quickly handed his marching orders; leaving the nWo without its three founding members. Even the addition of Hall of Famers Ric Flair, Booker T and Shawn Michaels couldnt salvage the group at this point and another injury to the returning Nash this time a quadriceps tear would call last orders on the nWo until 2014, where the core members of Hogan, Hall and Nash (with the occasional addition of X-Pac) have made sporadic one-night returns here and there since. Looking back, theres no denying that the pairing of Hogan and Rock in Toronto was a thing of beauty for any long-time wrestling fan. However, the possibilities of dream matches that never materialised due to bad timing, injury or otherwise has got to leave the WWFs version of the nWo under the missed opportunity banner. No nWo vs. DX; no Hogan vs. Austin; no Outsiders vs. The Dudley Boyz the list could go on. All in all, despite a spectacular arrival, a memorable build towards Mania and their huge contribution to one of the greatest WrestleMania moments of all time, the New World Orders run under Vince McMahon was a mixed bag of genius booking and poor decision-making in equal measures, with a little bad luck thrown in. Which, when looking at the bigger picture, was exactly the same formula applied to the group back in their WCW heyday.
Occasional wrestler, full-time gym rat and lifelong lover of the grapple game. Would probably buy you a shot of Jack at the bar in exchange for witty banter...and preferably more Jack.
@MartynGrant88 for more wrestling-related musings and weight room wisecracks!
