OK, I am going from the thought that WCW had to leave TBS/TNT and Bischoff bought it. So (the fantasy starts) I am Bischoff's new "right hand man" WWE leaves USA Network, we find home there. Hogan, Nash, Stiener, Jarrett are no longer with the company at first (may come in later, we need to save money) Company is built around Sting, Flair, DDP, Booker T, and Goldberg (all faces, for now) to take on Mike Sanders and the Natural Born Thrillers, Reno and Vito (heels) We have guys like the Filthy Animals, the Misfits in Action, Raven's new Flock, Jimmy Yang, Kaz Hyashi, Jamie Noble, Helms, Moore, Evan Korgaous (sp), Chris Daniels, AJ Styles, and guys that help start TNA. I would forget "competing" with WWE, try to get a Tuesday night slot, and worry about building "our" WCW.
What would you have done to save WCW?
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whoopin' ass
Championship Contender
There was no quick fix for wcw - the company was in trouble. Assuming I still had a tv deal in place, start phasing out older stars. Everyone says the contracts were the problem and they are right but not because of the cost. With creative control, guys like Hogan maybe couldn't demand the title but they sure could say who they would lose it to and when. You can't run a company that way. I would have started using them a lot less and make them more "big event" matches try to use whatever name value they had. I would then use champs like DDP and Booker T to develop newer talent and champs. Wcw had the same problem that wwe has now - the top spots haven't really changed a lot over the last few years so until that happened, wcw was doomed.
JoeyJoeJoe
Championship Contender
By 1998, WCW had about a 90 to 100 man roster. That roster was also packed with stars who were making enormous salaries. WCW's biggest PPV was Starrcade 1997 which did about 650,000 buys (biggest buy number for them ever).
Contrast that with WWF, which had about a 60 to 70 man roster, and did about 730,000 buys with WrestleMania 14 (took place a few months after Starrcade).
Not a huge difference it seems on the surface, but take into account that the WWF was getting there with a about 20 to 30 less guys on the roster. However, from there WWF's ppv buy numbers started climbing throughout the year, averaging higher than the previous two years. WCW, on the other hand, started slinking downwards.
Again, it comes down to the quality of the product, combined with plain ol dollars and cents. Huge roster size = high costs (and that's before figuring in some of the supposedly jumbo size paydays many were getting) combined with declining PPV buys.
The only thing that could really be done was improve the quality of the cards and stories so that the drop never occurs, AND start hacking down the size of the roster including some of the top line salaries.
1998 should have been a phenomenal year for WCW - Sting was back on the roster full time
rolleyes: Don't even get me started on that), Bret Hart had jumped ship, Goldberg was getting hugely popular, and you had one of the most talented undercards imaginable in Jericho, Benoit, Guerrero, Booker T, Raven, Page and Mysterio.
Instead we got a steady stream of Hogan, Nash, Hall (sometimes), Savage, Flair and Luger. Where the nWo should've wound down, we ended up with nWo Hollywood and nWo Wolfpac. We got Dennis Rodman and Karl Malone. We got Jay Leno. We got Warrior. And almost universally, no one from the mid card ever moved up to the main event with the exception of Goldberg.
1998 was just a completely stagnant year for WCW unless your name was Bill Goldberg.
Contrast that with WWF, which had about a 60 to 70 man roster, and did about 730,000 buys with WrestleMania 14 (took place a few months after Starrcade).
Not a huge difference it seems on the surface, but take into account that the WWF was getting there with a about 20 to 30 less guys on the roster. However, from there WWF's ppv buy numbers started climbing throughout the year, averaging higher than the previous two years. WCW, on the other hand, started slinking downwards.
Again, it comes down to the quality of the product, combined with plain ol dollars and cents. Huge roster size = high costs (and that's before figuring in some of the supposedly jumbo size paydays many were getting) combined with declining PPV buys.
The only thing that could really be done was improve the quality of the cards and stories so that the drop never occurs, AND start hacking down the size of the roster including some of the top line salaries.
1998 should have been a phenomenal year for WCW - Sting was back on the roster full time
rolleyes: Don't even get me started on that), Bret Hart had jumped ship, Goldberg was getting hugely popular, and you had one of the most talented undercards imaginable in Jericho, Benoit, Guerrero, Booker T, Raven, Page and Mysterio.Instead we got a steady stream of Hogan, Nash, Hall (sometimes), Savage, Flair and Luger. Where the nWo should've wound down, we ended up with nWo Hollywood and nWo Wolfpac. We got Dennis Rodman and Karl Malone. We got Jay Leno. We got Warrior. And almost universally, no one from the mid card ever moved up to the main event with the exception of Goldberg.
1998 was just a completely stagnant year for WCW unless your name was Bill Goldberg.
I like the idea of Flair putting over Benoit for the title and breaking up the Horsemen. That'd be an awesome way to start turning the tide and investing in the future.
I also like the idea of Macho and Eddie. I think those two could put on a Mania 3 type match (Mach vs Steamboat)...probably one of the only wrestlers out there who could give that to Mach again besides HBK. They both have a nice mean streak in them and could be an entertaining fued for sure.
Jericho vs Sting is solid but I think Jericho vs Bret would be a lot better and the ideal way to catapult Y2J into superstardom.
The only thing that could have saved them was if someone other than Vince had bought them.
Another person may not have been able to sustain but at least they would have tried , all Vince wanted to do was buy it and kill it. Even though WCW had become ashell of its former self it was still in my opinion better than WWE , started watching wrestling in the early to mid 70's and grew up with NWA , i always preferd them ,AWA and all the small regional promotions over the WWF/E . In the 70's they were not so bad but in the 80's they got a little cartoonish for my taste , sad thing is TNA has now adopted this style , ROH is the only wrestling ive seen in years that is more like the old school wrestling i grew up with.
Another person may not have been able to sustain but at least they would have tried , all Vince wanted to do was buy it and kill it. Even though WCW had become ashell of its former self it was still in my opinion better than WWE , started watching wrestling in the early to mid 70's and grew up with NWA , i always preferd them ,AWA and all the small regional promotions over the WWF/E . In the 70's they were not so bad but in the 80's they got a little cartoonish for my taste , sad thing is TNA has now adopted this style , ROH is the only wrestling ive seen in years that is more like the old school wrestling i grew up with.
RedRegan1005
Leading A Revolution
Before i go into my answer I just want to throw out the fact that to me WCW was never a success. It was one big Failure. I may get alot of hate for that but just look at it. With all the talent, money, and fans they had at one point they should still be around today but poor booking, and backstage crap killed it. The fact that they failed is ridiculous.
Anyways. saving them would have been tough but if you could have jumped in at any point in would have been possible. Starting with starrcade 97'. Sting should have beat Hogan clean and without the Bret Hart crap. After that have NWO break up which could give you solid storytelling for about four months as the group broke apart and began feuding against one another, and then after that its done, gone, finished, and wiped away. NO MORE NWO. I would have probably started shifting focus to newer guys like Jericho, and Goldberg. And started cutting older names loose if they didn't want to take a smaller role. Big names like Hogan and Flair would be great to have and would help you draw numbers, but they would have to take more of a Legends role and just take part in marquee match ups, but never for the title. Sting I would have ran with as the Face of the company till about 199/00 before he too would have to step back for younger guys. Then I would have made Goldberg, what he was to many fans, the Austin of WCW. He would have been the guy for a good while. Also, I would've not done a lot of the celebrity crap they did. The Rodman and Malone thing once would have been good but besides that no celebrities in the ring, unless it was a one off appearence at Starrcade like what the WWE does sometimes at Mania.
Those are just a few ideas. If i really sat down and though about it, I probably could right a book on how I would have ran WCW.
Anyways. saving them would have been tough but if you could have jumped in at any point in would have been possible. Starting with starrcade 97'. Sting should have beat Hogan clean and without the Bret Hart crap. After that have NWO break up which could give you solid storytelling for about four months as the group broke apart and began feuding against one another, and then after that its done, gone, finished, and wiped away. NO MORE NWO. I would have probably started shifting focus to newer guys like Jericho, and Goldberg. And started cutting older names loose if they didn't want to take a smaller role. Big names like Hogan and Flair would be great to have and would help you draw numbers, but they would have to take more of a Legends role and just take part in marquee match ups, but never for the title. Sting I would have ran with as the Face of the company till about 199/00 before he too would have to step back for younger guys. Then I would have made Goldberg, what he was to many fans, the Austin of WCW. He would have been the guy for a good while. Also, I would've not done a lot of the celebrity crap they did. The Rodman and Malone thing once would have been good but besides that no celebrities in the ring, unless it was a one off appearence at Starrcade like what the WWE does sometimes at Mania.
Those are just a few ideas. If i really sat down and though about it, I probably could right a book on how I would have ran WCW.
Ubermensch
Pre-Show Stalwart
All you saying "well AOL/Time Warner said they didn't want a wrestling program." Yes that was their official statement. Not that "WCW is unprofitable, Ted Turner wasted a ton of money and it was mismanaged." No one ever comes out and says that in the business world officially. It's all about money, if WCW was still a viable business and profitable they would have been interested.
Ubermensch
Pre-Show Stalwart
Agreed. Jericho and Hart would have worked well together.
In the end though, WCW was extremely top heavy. Every wrestler has an interest in seeing their career preserved no matter how old, so it's difficult to say how it would have all panned out.
Mustang Sally
Sells seashells by the seashore
As one example of this, I'd like to talk about Bret Hart's WCW contract.
(Admittedly, I don't have exact figures for the money he received as opposed to the money he was leaving behind at WWE. Back then, I read many sources take on this and tried to surmise the rest).
As far as I could ascertain, the salary Vince McMahon had signed Bret Hart for, and then determined it was too high to maintain, was $1 million/year. When Bret was given permission to negotiate a deal with WCW, my understanding was that he was given $3 million/year.
$3 million?
Were they insane? If WCW's only true competitor (WWE) was taken out of the bidding (by themselves), it left Bret with no practical alternative but WCW, right? (Yes, he might have gone to Japan to get big money, but at that late date in his career, I doubt he was considering Japan).
Couldn't WCW have said to Bret?: "You have nowhere else to go. We'll give you the same $1 million you're already getting."
Or, couldn't they have gotten him for $2 million? Or $1.5 million? Why in hell did they have to triple his salary? To make Bret "happy?" He apparently was happy with the $1 million he had been getting from WWE.
But, they did triple his salary.....and this is indicative of the type of financial mess WCW was operating; throwing around money on salaries and production costs without regard to how it effected the bottom line?
....and people don't understand why Time/Warner pulled the plug?
bitesthedust
Dark Match Jobber
If WCW had offered Bret Hart $1M, or even stuck at $1.5M he would have likely stayed with the WWF - he says this in his autobiography.
Anyway. How to save WCW?
The first thing I would have done, and it's not original - but as a starting point, have Sting win at Starrcade 97 clean. The NWO then splits over the next few months, never to return.
At some point Hulk Hogan's contract would have expired and I would have let him go. Preferably before mid-1998 as to avoid Ultimate Warrior joining just to return the favour. With Hogan leaving so does his creative control clause, and whilst he apparently wasn't the only wrestler with such booking power, it would make WCW look to push new stars and not just Goldberg. Would Nash and Hall stayed once the NWO had disbanded?
That's a starting point, at least.
If WCW was profitable at the time of AOL-Time Warner merger then WCW would have been saved. Because it wasn't, they didn't want it.
Anyway. How to save WCW?
The first thing I would have done, and it's not original - but as a starting point, have Sting win at Starrcade 97 clean. The NWO then splits over the next few months, never to return.
At some point Hulk Hogan's contract would have expired and I would have let him go. Preferably before mid-1998 as to avoid Ultimate Warrior joining just to return the favour. With Hogan leaving so does his creative control clause, and whilst he apparently wasn't the only wrestler with such booking power, it would make WCW look to push new stars and not just Goldberg. Would Nash and Hall stayed once the NWO had disbanded?
That's a starting point, at least.
If WCW was profitable at the time of AOL-Time Warner merger then WCW would have been saved. Because it wasn't, they didn't want it.
THTRobtaylor
Once & Future Wrestlezone Columnist
The damage was done with those first contracts, Hogan, Savage, Nash and Hall, particularly the latter two.
Offering them "Safe Harbour" clauses as well as creative control was simply a terrible move on someone's part. Was it Bischoff for offering it or the higher ups for allowing them to be offered.
For those who don't know "Safe Harbour" meant no one who signed after, be they new to the company or resigning a deal could earn more than Nash and Hall... so Bret comes in at 3mil a year, they instantly get 3mil a year...AND they can book their own characters... total suicide.
Why suicide? Because soon mid level talents had to get similar deals within their part of the food chain. Scott Steiner couldn't earn less than a DDP or a Buff Bagwell.. midcarders leveraged themselves against Nash and Hall's money. Some like DDP, Booker etc perhaps deserved better deals...others like Bagwell, Jarrett and even later on guys like Kronik were getting ridiculous deals for their level.
The only way to save WCW was not to offer that exact deal to Nash and Hall, offer enough that they would jump, but minus creative and safe harbour and in 3 years WCW wouldn't be bleeding red ink, people would have been paid less and the slump would not have been terminal.
The term ATM Eric is used and it's unfair, but It's realy ATM Ted for allowing him such free reign with contracts that had no place in any business, much less wrestling. It's the equivalent of letting your 10 year old loose with your shotgun... after 2 shots they think they are a sharpshooter...but the damage is irreparable.
Offering them "Safe Harbour" clauses as well as creative control was simply a terrible move on someone's part. Was it Bischoff for offering it or the higher ups for allowing them to be offered.
For those who don't know "Safe Harbour" meant no one who signed after, be they new to the company or resigning a deal could earn more than Nash and Hall... so Bret comes in at 3mil a year, they instantly get 3mil a year...AND they can book their own characters... total suicide.
Why suicide? Because soon mid level talents had to get similar deals within their part of the food chain. Scott Steiner couldn't earn less than a DDP or a Buff Bagwell.. midcarders leveraged themselves against Nash and Hall's money. Some like DDP, Booker etc perhaps deserved better deals...others like Bagwell, Jarrett and even later on guys like Kronik were getting ridiculous deals for their level.
The only way to save WCW was not to offer that exact deal to Nash and Hall, offer enough that they would jump, but minus creative and safe harbour and in 3 years WCW wouldn't be bleeding red ink, people would have been paid less and the slump would not have been terminal.
The term ATM Eric is used and it's unfair, but It's realy ATM Ted for allowing him such free reign with contracts that had no place in any business, much less wrestling. It's the equivalent of letting your 10 year old loose with your shotgun... after 2 shots they think they are a sharpshooter...but the damage is irreparable.
My starting point is Bash At The Beach 2000. They run the "work/shoot" angle and Hogan leaves. Booker T becomes the new World Champion after beating Jarrett. Booker has a good run with the belt, then around Halloween Havoc Hogan returns stating that he's the real World Champion, they build it up leading to Booker T vs Hulk Hogan at Halloween Havoc. Booker goes over and cements his place as a legit player.
At this point I'd begin to phase out all the big contract guys and let their contracts expire. I'd build around Booker, Steiner, Sting, Jarrett, Goldberg, DDP, Bagwell. With guys like Lance Storm, Shane Douglas, Mike Awesome, and later RVD rising in the mid card scene. Flair, Luger, Hogan, Nash would be used to put over younger worthy talent to main eventers.
At this point I'd begin to phase out all the big contract guys and let their contracts expire. I'd build around Booker, Steiner, Sting, Jarrett, Goldberg, DDP, Bagwell. With guys like Lance Storm, Shane Douglas, Mike Awesome, and later RVD rising in the mid card scene. Flair, Luger, Hogan, Nash would be used to put over younger worthy talent to main eventers.
They'll do it if it somehow benefits them. See Hogan losing to Goldberg on Nitro.
FlairFan2003
Mid-Card Championship Winner
Like many posters, it depends on when you come in to "Save" it. There is no doubt that WCW dropped the ball after the infamous Jan 1999 "Finger Poke Of Doom". The move itself was absolutely brilliant, the NWO was a shadow of itself, WCW had no real dominant heel group, we had survived the whole NWO Black & White vs Wolf Pac nonsense, Kevin Nash face turn was over and convincing with fans without much change in his character presentation or wrestling style, and no one, no one, expected The Finger Poke and title change. Just the idea of Nash (who IWC fans knew was now booking the company) giving up the title so fast was a complete shock. The fact the Nitro twice topped 5.0 ratings despite airing directly against Raw after this happened proves the terrific shock value of the event.
Now WCW in 1999 was like a wrestling Who's Who of Injured stars...Sting, Brett Hart, and Lex Luger were all MIA with injuries. Goldberg was red hot and so was Flair. What they needed was a real enemy, and the Finger Poke storyline, which returned Hogan after his self imposed absence (seen by many as political to see if WCW could still draw strong ratings with Goldberg, Nash, and Flair in primary roles without him, which they did) and the reformation of a real, heel group, not the bloated NWO of 1998 filled with second teamers who's main purpose was to job out to WCW fan favs so the top stars would not have to. Getting rid of the oft injured Henning who was unreliable with a drinking problem, Horace Hogan, and Virgil along with Disco Inferno was a good move, it refocused the group, now basically a much leaner unit with the original 3 members alongside Steiner & Bagwell (his Buff Character had potential and he had charisma, at least in that role, he was worth keeping).
What kept the new storyline interesting was that for the first time since 1996 the group was on the offensive. Flair was WCW President and bent on destroying them, Goldberg was clearly cheated at Starrcade and looking for revenge. They had the World Title, but they clearly did not have control of the company.
WCW at this point had two major money matches and feuds waiting to happen, Goldberg's inevitable re-match with Nash who ended his streak, stole his title, and re formed the most dangerous heel group in the company since the heyday of The Horsemen ten years earlier, and Goldberg vs Hogan, Hogan once again had the belt but he had never avenged his loss vs Goldberg which made him champ in the first place.
Whether it was political or just plain stupid what WCW gave us was Goldberg effectively removed from the World Title picture and stuck in secondary feuds vs Scott Hall, who by this time was probably the weakest member of the NWO, his numerous bouts and absences due to drugs making him totally unreliable, he was back in the group due almost totally to his original connection and friendship with Nash, he wasn't a top tier performer at this point, Steiner was clearly more over than him. Now WCW did make money and draw a big buyyrate for Hogan-Flair at SuperBrawl, but the booking leading into that match made it look like Flair was finally getting over on Hogan which is what the audience had wanted to see for years. When they screw jobbed Flair again in ridiculous fashion with the David Flair interference and Torrie Wilson seduction storyline, fans finally started tuning out. This combo of de emphasizing Goldberg and screw jobbing Flair is when WCW really started losing fans, both casual fans and die hards.
Want to keep WCW's momentum....Have the NWO send Steiner after Goldberg with the clear intent to injure him and keep him away from Hogan & Nash. Put them in a specialty match like a Cage or No Holds Barred at Souled Out, with Goldberg winning. With the NWO still stalling, have Flair push Goldberg-Nash at SuperBrawl, with the winner getting a title shot. Eliminate the David Flair storyline altogether after Souled Out, no son turns on Father stuff, have Flair beat Hogan at SuperBrawl.
This creates much tension between the NWO as by now, heading into March, they've lost the World Title and Goldberg is in the title picture. Lots of in fighting, etc, teasing a break up. Have Hogan interfere to stop Goldberg from beating Flair maybe on a Nitro, leading to an all out Hogan-Goldberg feud. Have Goldberg win the money match between them, with Nash interference backfiring and causing Hogan to lose when it clearly looks like he is going to win. After a Nash-Hogan dust up have Hogan try to oust Nash but Bishcoff & Nash combine and the NWO dumps Hogan, who can disappear for a month or two offscreen.
After this, leading into the summer, I'd have Nash and the NWO beat Flair and get the title back. Flair is still WCW Pres and keeps much heat on the NWO, trying to keep an even playing field. Goldberg can feud with other members of the group as Nash tries to avoid him, plus by now you have Sting, Luger, & Hart back in the ring, plus DDP, lots of potential here with this group. By Fall Brawl I'd have Hogan make his surprise return, in the red & yellow, as the last member of team WCW vs NWO War Games Match, with caveat that a member of Team WCW gets the title shot at SuperBrawl if they win, which they do. On Nitro, a four way elimination match would make Hogan the winner, and we'd get a full out Hogan-Nash war through November, with Hogan winning the title at Havoc. This would set up Hogan-Goldberg at Starrcade, Goldberg with the only clean win in their brief, two match series, with much made of Goldberg's year long battle to get back in the title picture. Starrcade ends with Goldberg winning the title in a face vs face match with a teased Hogan heel turn that never happens.
As for the undercard, there is so much you can do with Steiner, Flair, Sting, Hart, & DDP, plus the Eddie Guerrero was still here, as was Benoit, and Misterio. As it was Hart pretty much did nothing most of 99, really not being involved in much of anything till the end of the year. Same with Luger. Sting was used a lot from the Spring On (better than Goldberg), Steiner, Flair, and a returning Randy Savage had brief spurts of good use with long stretches of futility. It's easy to see how you could improve on any of their use going forward.
So Id eliminate pushing Goldberg into the mid card, eliminate the SuperBrawl screw job of Flair, keep the NWO intact but eventually push Hogan out allowing for his face turn (which was the backstage reason the NWO folded in the first place, Hogan suddenly decided he wanted to be hero again), no Flair heel turn, the Sting heel turn later in the year wouldn't happen, and Goldberg -Nash would be a real, fully invested fued with Goldberg winning. The World title would fairly stable switching between three guys (Hogan, Flair, Nash) with Goldberg winning it in the end. Heading into 2000 Goldberg could start feuding more with guys like Sting & Hart & Savage, stars he rarely faced but main event caliber players capable of keeping of selling tickets. You could also have a full on Hogan vs NWO feud pitting him against Steiner, et all after his run vs Nash concludes, basically have the NWO decide after Starrcade that Hogan has to be destroyed once and for all. I would also invest heavily in the tag team scene, something that was lacking in WCW post 1997.
Now WCW in 1999 was like a wrestling Who's Who of Injured stars...Sting, Brett Hart, and Lex Luger were all MIA with injuries. Goldberg was red hot and so was Flair. What they needed was a real enemy, and the Finger Poke storyline, which returned Hogan after his self imposed absence (seen by many as political to see if WCW could still draw strong ratings with Goldberg, Nash, and Flair in primary roles without him, which they did) and the reformation of a real, heel group, not the bloated NWO of 1998 filled with second teamers who's main purpose was to job out to WCW fan favs so the top stars would not have to. Getting rid of the oft injured Henning who was unreliable with a drinking problem, Horace Hogan, and Virgil along with Disco Inferno was a good move, it refocused the group, now basically a much leaner unit with the original 3 members alongside Steiner & Bagwell (his Buff Character had potential and he had charisma, at least in that role, he was worth keeping).
What kept the new storyline interesting was that for the first time since 1996 the group was on the offensive. Flair was WCW President and bent on destroying them, Goldberg was clearly cheated at Starrcade and looking for revenge. They had the World Title, but they clearly did not have control of the company.
WCW at this point had two major money matches and feuds waiting to happen, Goldberg's inevitable re-match with Nash who ended his streak, stole his title, and re formed the most dangerous heel group in the company since the heyday of The Horsemen ten years earlier, and Goldberg vs Hogan, Hogan once again had the belt but he had never avenged his loss vs Goldberg which made him champ in the first place.
Whether it was political or just plain stupid what WCW gave us was Goldberg effectively removed from the World Title picture and stuck in secondary feuds vs Scott Hall, who by this time was probably the weakest member of the NWO, his numerous bouts and absences due to drugs making him totally unreliable, he was back in the group due almost totally to his original connection and friendship with Nash, he wasn't a top tier performer at this point, Steiner was clearly more over than him. Now WCW did make money and draw a big buyyrate for Hogan-Flair at SuperBrawl, but the booking leading into that match made it look like Flair was finally getting over on Hogan which is what the audience had wanted to see for years. When they screw jobbed Flair again in ridiculous fashion with the David Flair interference and Torrie Wilson seduction storyline, fans finally started tuning out. This combo of de emphasizing Goldberg and screw jobbing Flair is when WCW really started losing fans, both casual fans and die hards.
Want to keep WCW's momentum....Have the NWO send Steiner after Goldberg with the clear intent to injure him and keep him away from Hogan & Nash. Put them in a specialty match like a Cage or No Holds Barred at Souled Out, with Goldberg winning. With the NWO still stalling, have Flair push Goldberg-Nash at SuperBrawl, with the winner getting a title shot. Eliminate the David Flair storyline altogether after Souled Out, no son turns on Father stuff, have Flair beat Hogan at SuperBrawl.
This creates much tension between the NWO as by now, heading into March, they've lost the World Title and Goldberg is in the title picture. Lots of in fighting, etc, teasing a break up. Have Hogan interfere to stop Goldberg from beating Flair maybe on a Nitro, leading to an all out Hogan-Goldberg feud. Have Goldberg win the money match between them, with Nash interference backfiring and causing Hogan to lose when it clearly looks like he is going to win. After a Nash-Hogan dust up have Hogan try to oust Nash but Bishcoff & Nash combine and the NWO dumps Hogan, who can disappear for a month or two offscreen.
After this, leading into the summer, I'd have Nash and the NWO beat Flair and get the title back. Flair is still WCW Pres and keeps much heat on the NWO, trying to keep an even playing field. Goldberg can feud with other members of the group as Nash tries to avoid him, plus by now you have Sting, Luger, & Hart back in the ring, plus DDP, lots of potential here with this group. By Fall Brawl I'd have Hogan make his surprise return, in the red & yellow, as the last member of team WCW vs NWO War Games Match, with caveat that a member of Team WCW gets the title shot at SuperBrawl if they win, which they do. On Nitro, a four way elimination match would make Hogan the winner, and we'd get a full out Hogan-Nash war through November, with Hogan winning the title at Havoc. This would set up Hogan-Goldberg at Starrcade, Goldberg with the only clean win in their brief, two match series, with much made of Goldberg's year long battle to get back in the title picture. Starrcade ends with Goldberg winning the title in a face vs face match with a teased Hogan heel turn that never happens.
As for the undercard, there is so much you can do with Steiner, Flair, Sting, Hart, & DDP, plus the Eddie Guerrero was still here, as was Benoit, and Misterio. As it was Hart pretty much did nothing most of 99, really not being involved in much of anything till the end of the year. Same with Luger. Sting was used a lot from the Spring On (better than Goldberg), Steiner, Flair, and a returning Randy Savage had brief spurts of good use with long stretches of futility. It's easy to see how you could improve on any of their use going forward.
So Id eliminate pushing Goldberg into the mid card, eliminate the SuperBrawl screw job of Flair, keep the NWO intact but eventually push Hogan out allowing for his face turn (which was the backstage reason the NWO folded in the first place, Hogan suddenly decided he wanted to be hero again), no Flair heel turn, the Sting heel turn later in the year wouldn't happen, and Goldberg -Nash would be a real, fully invested fued with Goldberg winning. The World title would fairly stable switching between three guys (Hogan, Flair, Nash) with Goldberg winning it in the end. Heading into 2000 Goldberg could start feuding more with guys like Sting & Hart & Savage, stars he rarely faced but main event caliber players capable of keeping of selling tickets. You could also have a full on Hogan vs NWO feud pitting him against Steiner, et all after his run vs Nash concludes, basically have the NWO decide after Starrcade that Hogan has to be destroyed once and for all. I would also invest heavily in the tag team scene, something that was lacking in WCW post 1997.
CrucifiedRaven
The Evenflow Effect
Exactly this.
I think we could all come up with some pretty interesting ideas or angles for WCW, considering all of the talent they had at the time, both young and established talent. But a lot of it would involve older guys putting younger guys over, and some of these guys taking some time off to get them off TV for a while. However, in reality, it simply couldn't happen.
Whatever your thoughts on Vince Russo (and he was no saint), he had to deal with all of this mess. And it all came to a head during that Russo/Hogan/Jarrett worked shoot shitshow. In fact, the only break the midcarders ever really got (DDP, Booker T, Benoit) were due to injuries or that shoot screwjob nonsense.
Kevin Nash and Hogan hung around the championship scene for far too long. Scott Hall was barely there, but when he was he was winning titles that should have gone to the younger guys. There's really nothing you can do other than go back to 1994 and 1996 and re-negotiate the contracts these guys signed. But then what? Risk never having Hogan/Nash/Hall in the first place? Maybe WCW would have been better off not signing those guys at all, who knows.
It also doesn't help that the WCW World title was vacated 8 times in a one year period.
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