Even though Raw debuted two years before Nitro, it was WCW's Monday night flagship which really innovated the stature of episodic professional wrestling. Firstly, it was Nitro that ran with the two hour format from May 1996. Raw then copied that move in February 1997, after a cataclysmic 2.2 rating the night after the 97 Royal Rumble. Vince got the message loud and clear with that one, Nitro's unopposed hour was winning the war. Something else Raw eventually copied was Nitro's live format. Bischoff was finding tremendous success with WCW being live opposed to WWE's taped format. There was more of a feeling that "anything can happen" on Nitro, so more people tuned in. It took a while for Vince to wake up to that, and it was 1999 before Raw went fully live. Furthermore, Nitro led the way in a three hour format, which Raw would eventually copy a decade after WCW went out of business.
