WCW Thunder, February 7th 2001.
By Bill Johnson of WCW.COM

After Rey Mysterio Jr. embarrassed Chavo Guerrero Jr. on Nitro as the masked man, El Níno, Chavo sent The Wall to do some damage to his nemesis. What Chavo and Wall didn't know, however, was that Hugh Morrus overheard their plan. The former MIA leader was instrumental in helping Rey get the last laugh -- a pinfall upset over his massive opponent.

Kaz Hayashi d. Sugar Shane Helms
Shane locked on a headlock to start the high stakes match, in which the winner would advance to a six man four corners match at SuperBrawl for a shot at the cruiserweight title. Hayashi exploded with a barrage of kicks, taking Helms' knee out from under him. Sugar reversed a DDT attempt and sent Kaz to the floor, following up with a big bodypress from inside. Hayashi delivered a guillotine leg drop as Helms hung off the ring under the bottom rope. Almost as soon as the two returned to the ring, Shane was outside again, this time taking the brunt of a dive from the ring. Helms was distracted when Chavo Guerrero Jr. came ringside, allowing Kaz to roll Shane up for a near fall. Hayashi hit a front kick to the face and brought Shane over with a German suplex for the win.

Backstage, Norman Smiley told Glacier to show up earlier to the ring to help him win his match. Moments after Smiley walked away, Sean O'Haire and Chuck Palumbo entered the room and beat Glacier down.

Interview: The Magnificent Seven
CEO Ric Flair dubbed his group the "Magnificent Seven" and said they were wrestling's most dominant force. Rick Steiner said he and his brother were the best in the world and told anyone who didn't agree to bite them. Kevin Nash, DDP, The Cat and Brian Adams appeared in the crowd, much to the delight of the fans. Adams challenged Luger to a match for later in the show; Nash and Page called out the Steiners. Flair told Big Poppa he had the night off, but after DDP said they would take Rick Steiner and Jeff Jarrett, the CEO agreed and booked the bout. The Nature Boy also told The Cat that Lance Storm would choose his opponent for a match on Thunder.

Backstage, Flair told Scott Steiner he was the champ and deserved to take the night off.

Sean O'Haire d. Screamin' Norman Smiley
Smiley took the tag team champion down with an arm lock, but O'Haire used his power to battle back. As Norman looked for his friend, O'Haire flattened him with a huge clothesline and finished the job with the Seanton Bomb. After the match, Mark Jindrak and Shawn Stasiak attacked the tag team champion in a two-on-one until Palumbo ran in for the save.

Backstage, Mike Sanders went to the CEO's dressing room, bringing him a suit from the dry cleaners. The Nature Boy told his "pet project" he would face Konnan later in the broadcast.

Team Canada's leader Lance Storm came to the stage and insisted on being serious for a minute. Storm predicted he would defeat The Cat at SuperBrawl and become the new commissioner. Lance called teammate Elix Skipper out to face off against Miller.

The Cat with Ms. Jones d. Primetime Elix Skipper
The Cat used his karate early to catch Primetime off guard, before Skipper resorted to a low blow. On the outside, Elix sent Miller into the steel guardrail, slowing the action down. Elix landed a huge leg drop from the top rope onto The Cat, but only got a two-count. Miller fought back, dropping his patented elbow drop before setting for the Feliner. Skipper did the matrix bridge to avoid the move, but after another brief exchange, the commissioner connected with the Feliner for the 1-2-3. As Cat and Ms. Jones danced, Storm came back out, asking Miller if he was man enough to take on one more. With this distraction, Mike Awesome jumped in from the other side, leaving the commissioner out on the canvas.

Mean Gene Interview: Totally Buff
Luger and Bagwell disputed Gene's claim that Brian Adams had Buff beat when the time ran out in their match on Nitro. Totally Buff told KroniK they were going down at SuperBrawl.

Backstage, Chavo Guerrero Jr. asked The Wall to take out Rey Mysterio before their PPV match. As the two walked away, Hugh Morrus could be heard laughing in the background.

Backstage, Kwee-Wee challenged a rookie standing in the back to a match on Thunder.

Backstage, Ric Flair wished Lex Luger good luck and reminded Scott Steiner to stay focused on the PPV.

Brian Adams d. Lex Luger
Adams pummeled Luger right away, using the commentator's table and the ring apron as weapons in his assault. Once inside, it was more of the same, as Adams tried to exact revenge for the attacks on him and his partner Bryan Clark. The Total Package turned things around, using the guardrail as his weapon of choice. Lex focused his offensive attack on Brian Adams' lower back, trying to soften him up for the Torture Rack. After getting his second wind, Adams blocked and countered Luger's attempt at a bear hug with a vertical suplex. Buff ran out, but was not able to get in before Adams scored the pin on Lex after the full nelson slam. Bagwell and Bryan Clark entered the fray after the bell, with KroniK getting the better of the exchange.

Rey Mysterio Jr. d. The Wall with Chavo Guerrero Jr.
Rey was at a severe disadvantage as he squared off against The Wall. Mysterio attempted a springboard from the top, but The Wall caught him in the air, pressed him over his head and dropped him to the mat. Rey jumped on with a sleeper hold, but Wall drove him back into the turnbuckle. After Wall tossed Mysterio to the floor, Chavo got his shots in, throwing his SuperBrawl opponent over the rail and into the crowd. The Wall stood atop the announcer's table and held Rey by the throat with one arm, choking the life out of the youngster. The former bodyguard continued to destroy Mysterio with huge power moves. After Wall missed a leg drop off the top, Rey dove over the ropes onto Guerrero. With the referee trying to get Mysterio into the ring, Hugh Morrus slid in and delivered the No Laughing Matter moonsault on The Wall, setting Rey for a moonsault of his own and an upset pinfall.

Kwee-Wee d. Johnny Dotson
Kwee-Wee argued with a ringside fan, before pulling him into the ring and demanding the referee count a pinfall. Rookie Johnny Dotson ran in from the back and took Kwee-Wee off guard momentarily with a dropkick from the top. "Angry Alan" recovered immediately and tore into Dotson, finally ending the massacre with a piledriver.

Konnan d. Above Average Mike Sanders
Both men used some nice mat wrestling at the start, but Sanders quickly changed that as he attacked Konnan on the ropes, laying in stiff shots to Konnan's back. Sanders was cocky in his assault, bragging to the fans as he kicked Konnan around the ring. K-Dogg fought back on the former commissioner and, after Rolling Thunder and the face jam, the Filthy Animal raised his hand in victory following the Tequila Sunrise submission.

Mean Gene Interview: The Harris Brothers
Heavy D threatened Gene with a lawsuit if he was accused of faking his neck injury. After announcing Don's manager's license coming in the mail, Big Ron challenged anyone in WCW to a singles match.

Backstage, Flair told Big Poppa not to do anything until the final bell rings.

Big Sexy Kevin Nash and Diamond Dallas Page d. Rick Steiner and Jeff Jarrett
Nash and DDP went after Steiner and Jarrett before the bell could even sound, running Flair's men from the ring. Page split Jarrett's legs around the ringpost, making a wish as the fans cheered on in approval. The Dog Faced Gremlin tagged in and took control, pounding Page into the corner. Jarrett and Steiner doubled on DDP as Nash desperately tried to tag in. Big Sexy finally got the hot tag and cleaned house on Rick and The Chosen One. After the Jackknife powerbomb, Nash scored the decisive pin over his former friend, Rick Steiner.

Thunder Archives

•January 31st
For the past two weeks, The Harris Brothers, Big Ron and Heavy D, have been pulling the "switcharoo" on several WCW wrestlers to gain victory. This week on Thunder was no exception, as Ron and Don snuck around the referee's clever plan to tell them apart, and Big Ron chalked up another win -- with a little help from his "injured" brother.

•January 24th
After weeks of promos and buildup, Glacier finally returned to WCW, joining forces with one of his true admirers, Norman Smiley. But Glacier -- caught up in the fan adulation -- made his appearance while Smiley was in trouble and Norman went down in defeat.

•January 17th
On the heels of Monday's recruiting mission, the "elite" WCW superstars, led by CEO Ric Flair, played prominent roles on Thunder. When Jeff Jarrett ran in on KroniK after their match with Totally Buff, DDP saved the day and earned himself a match against The Chosen One in the show's main event.

•January 10th
Over the past couple weeks, Lex Luger and Buff Bagwell have been spending their money wisely, handing it over to KroniK to do their bidding for them. This past Monday on Nitro, however, Totally Buff set KroniK up, prompting Adams and Clark to take the night off - to beat up Luger and Bagwell for free.

•January 3rd
After taking a holiday break, WCW started off the new year with a bang, going full speed ahead toward WCW Sin, only 11 days away. With everyone still in the dark as to who the mystery man is, it was a shock when a masked man arrived at Thunder and interfered in the main event... adding real intrigue until he revealed himself to be WCW champion Scott Steiner.

•December 20th
Many have said Mike Awesome's '70s gimmick has been more of a detriment to his career, than it has helped. When That '70s Guy endeared himself to Hacksaw Duggan after Jim's heartfelt speech, Awesome showed his true colors... red and white -- the colors of his new running buddies, Team Canada.