12 Misconceptions About WCW You Probably Believe

You'll have heard this to the point of exhaustion since 2001. Many fans like to point to certain key moments as bonafide company killers and leave it at that. The “Finger Poke Of Doom” from the 4 January 1999 Nitro, David Arquette getting the belt etc etc. Sure, they all sucked, and contributed to WCW’s demise, but the promotion was neutered in the board room rather than on telly.

Corporate suits shut down Ted Turner’s pet project and that was very much that. WCW would’ve trundled on for much, much longer had an exec called Jamie Kellner not pulled the plug on weekly TV. Without Nitro, Thunder, Saturday Night or even Worldwide, WCW wasn't really worth following. Major pro wrestling outfits needed weekly television on a big time network in 2001. There was no getting away from that.

Crap creative decisions act as easy targets, but it's unrealistic to think that Hulk Hogan prodding Kevin Nash in the chest ended WCW for good. The company lasted for just over another 2 years after that, and ratings (whilst sliding) were still strong in 1999 alone. Honestly, the TV scores weren't even that bad for Nitro right at the end - certainly not compared to what's considered passable in today's world.

Things have changed, to be fair. People consume media differently, but still; WCW's audience dwindled without falling off the cliff some point to. It did have a fanbase right up until the bitter death. Good on those peeps for stomaching some of the content shoved in front of their eyeballs though, eh?

Hardcore wrestling fans can survive anything and come back for more.