Text By Neil Cathan

What if...Hulk Hogan didn't turn heel at Bash At The Beach '96?

Part III

After The Giant was hit by a car in the parking lot, a title tournament was held. Scott Hall had an easy ride to his WCW World Title. First Ric Flair was taken out during their match by a man who may or may not have been Sting, for which retribution was laid on Sting by The Four Horsemen. Second, Konnan didn't show up to face him, supposedly paid off. Finally, after a conversation suggested that Hogan was a conspirator with them, Lex Luger, who has been at Hogan's throat recently took Hogan out in rage during the finals. Amongst all this in-fighting, the identity of the third man remains unknown...

September 16^th, 1996: WCW Monday Nitro

Nitro opens with a sterling display of lucha libre from Eddy Guerrero and Rey Misterio Jr.. After putting his opponent away by catching a headscissors into a powerbomb, Eddy shakes his hand, before asking for a microphone.

"Now that was what lucha style is all about! I tell you, I grew up on this stuff. This is my life since I was a kid." The proud tone of his voice is replaced by anger "Which is why you sicken me so much, Konnan! You were always a hero in Mexican wrestling! You're practically worshipped in Mexico! People look up to you! And what do you do? You take a pay-off rather than fight. You're a lie. You don't deserve to be a wrestler."

He drops the microphone and leaves the ring, and is met halfway up the ramp by Konnan, who smashes him to the ground and lays the boots in.

Later in the show, Mean Gene is looking tremendously nervous, and with good cause. His last interview with the man to his left had him physically abused. What's more, Hogan doesn't look too happy tonight either.

 "You see my waist, Mean Gene? Tell me what's around it."

"Nothing."

"That's right, brother! No title around this waist! All because of Lex Luger! People want to accuse me of being a traitor, of being disloyal to this company, of just about everything you can name, and Luger's the reason those Outsiders have the world title right now! And that's not right, brother! Luger needs to be taught a lesson, brother! And the Hulkster and his twentyfour inch pythons are coming for you, Lex! So just ask yourself this, whatcha gonna do? Whatcha gonna do, Lex, when Hulkamania runs wild on you!?"

The closing segment on Nitro sees Kevin Nash and WCW World Heavyweight Champion Scott Hall saunter their way arrogantly to the ring, Hall making sure to show off his new prize. The two enter the ring to a chorus of boos. Hall takes up the microphone, a look of mock affront on his face "Hey, is that any way to greet your champion? The man who single handedly" Bischoff snorts derisively at this "defeated Ric Flair and Hulk Hogan? Now I hear that those two are the biggest and best in the business. So if I beat them both, and I'm the champion, then I reckon you hicks owe me a lot more respect than that." Kevin Nash raises the microphone to gloat some more, but turns around to the ramp as the music of The Four Horsemen suddenly blares across the arena, to the cheers of the fans. The Four Horsemen arrive in force, and don't bother to pose or even to talk. Instead they rush the ring, causing the previously cocky Hall and Nash to bail from the ring quickly. The Horsemen each climb a turnbuckle, displaying the Horsemen salute to the crowd, and soaking in the cheers of the fans, who raise a cacophony of cheers for the conquering heroes. Hall and Nash slink up the ramp, defeated this time, and Nitro closes on the triumphant image of the Horsemen celebrating in the ring to the adoration of the crowd.

September 23^rd, 1996: WCW Monday Nitro

Nitro opens with the Horsemen arriving at the main entrance to the arena. Suddenly, from behind appear Hall and Nash, wielding baseball bats. They put them to quick use, taking first Flair and Arn by surprise, and then catching Benoit and Malenko as they turn around. The Horsemen take a few more shots to their backs as they lie down from the ambush, and Hall laughs at the camera.

"This what Flair calls giving us a war? They didn't even give us a fight."

After the opening match, we cut backstage, where Schiavone informs us there is an altercation taking place between Konnan and Eddy Guerrero. Sure enough, we see the two standing tensely nose-to-nose with each other, each looking furious, as security and referees watch nervously in case the two of them will need holding apart.

Konnan tells Eddy "You owe me respect, and you owe me an apology for running your stupid mouth last week. Don't make me take that respect and apology from your skin, homes."

Eddy puts his hands up in the air and steps back, half laughing

"Hey, I don't want trouble. Look -" he digs into his wallet, producing a five dollar note. "You're cool with forgetting your self-respect for cash, right? Five should cover any you have left." Konnan slaps the note out of his hand, and Eddy responds by slapping the taste from Konnan's mouth, causing him to take a step back. The security on hand rush to fill the gap between them as Konnan hurls threats that "I ain't done with you!" at Eddy.

Fresh from a victory over The Nasty Boys, Harlem Heat remain in the ring, while Booker T grabs a microphone.

"Hall, Nash! You Outsiders have been stomping this company down for a long damn time! But I think you're forgetting what the third letter of WCW stands for: Wrestling. See, you two want to act like the biggest two badasses, well that's fine. But you ain't worth a damn as a tag team unless you can hang with us in the ring. We'll see you there next week, suckas!"

The main event rolls around, and The Barbarian makes his way to the ring for his match, before 'American Made' heralds the arrival of Hulk Hogan, his opponent for the night. Barbarian attempts his usual bullying tactics, but it isn't long before a finger is wagging in his face, a boot is placed in it, a leg is dropped on it, and the eyes in it count the lights on the roof. Hogan uses the tough wrestler as a kind of punching bag for his recent frustrations at Luger, and still doesn't look satisfied after the match, continuing to pace restlessly. Lex Luger's face suddenly flashes onto the large video screen at the top of the ramp, before the camera zooms out to show him in front of a huge house and grounds. Luger begins talking in his pre-taped promo, with the manner of a tour guide. "Hello there, fans of WCW Nitro! I'm here in lovely Tampa, Florida, outside the home of wrestling legend Hulk Hogan! As you can see, this is simply a lovely house, you can really understand why Hulk Hogan decided he just wanted to sit around it while his company fell apart! Let's see if we can get inside, shall we?"

The tape cuts to static before we return to Luger's image. This time he is sat in a darkened room, with Hulk Hogan memorabilia in a glass display case behind him. His voice is deathly serious and cold as steel on a winter's night now.

"Hulk. I can get at you whenever I want, wherever I want. Meet me in the ring next week on Nitro, one-on-one, or I will make this bad blood between us serious."

September 30^th, 1996: WCW Monday Nitro

Harlem Heat are impatiently pacing the ring as Nitro opens, awaiting the arrival of The Outsiders. They don't have to wait long before Hall and Nash saunter down to the ring. While Harlem Heat stand at the ropes closest to the entrance, and talk trash over the top rope, Hall and Nash don't look as interested, preferring to look at each other and crack jokes as they stroll down the ramp. Heat lose their temper and drop outside, Stevie Ray pairing off with Kevin Nash while Booker T and Scott Hall brawl. The two pairs fight their way around the ringside area, and the intensity of Harlem Heat grants them the advantage at the start, until Hall is able to use his WCW World Title belt to down Booker T. Stevie Ray is then tossed into the ring, and the match starts officially. Hall and Nash lay the boots into him brutally on the ground, before referee Nick Patrick makes one of them stand on the apron. Hall volunteers to take the breather, and poses proudly with his title on the apron. Meanwhile, Kevin Nash applies a chinlock, keeping Stevie Ray from getting up. Ray powers to his feet eventually, elbowing Nash in the gut and Irish-whipping him. Nash turns the whip around however, sending Ray towards Hall's corner, and stumbling in the way of Nick Patrick's view while Hall raises the title to catch the charging Stevie Ray between the eyes with. Nash drags him back to the centre of the ring, and continues to deliver a beating. Booker regains his feet on the outside, and wraps his arm around one of Hall's legs, dragging him off the apron, and resuming their brawl outside. The Outsiders receive an ironic punishment for their own foul play when Stevie Ray uses Nick Patrick's distraction to low blow Kevin Nash. From here, he unleashes his pent up aggression and gets his revenge, beating Nash into the corner, until a thumb to the eye sends him stumbling out. Hall is tossed in by Booker T, who has got the better of their fight outside. Booker follows him in, but is cut off with a running big boot from Nash.

The match quickly breaks down into a brawl further than it already has, and amidst all the confusion and violence, neither of The Outsiders notice the four men making their way down the ramp. Nick Patrick is forced to ring the bell and rule this match a no contest thanks to the chaos as The Four Horsemen make their way into the ring, and quickly take Hall and Nash down, and brutally lay the boots into them as they lay on the ground, Arn stopping to high-five Booker T before Booker and Ray leave, their part in this played.

Flair grabs a microphone and begins to rail at Hall "Not putting up much of a fight yourself, are you? The war hasn't even begun yet, and you think you achieved anything but making us angrier with your little ambush last week? You call that a beatdown? This is how you do a beatdown, Horsemen style! Woooo!"

He throws down the microphone, and applies the Figure Four to Hall, who Arn keeps held down with a boot across the throat. Nash meanwhile, is the victim of Benoit and Malenko's repeated kicks. Eventually, The Outsiders are left in unfamiliar territory, down and out in the middle of the ring. The Horsemen stop at the top of the ramp to flash the Horsemen salute to the crowd before leaving.

Later in the show, another beating is taking place, as the cameras cut to the parking lot, where Eddy Guerrero is an all fours, gasping for breath as Konnan stands over him.

"Not so proud now, huh? Not so funny? Come on, make another joke about Konnan, esse!"

Konnan dashes forwards, planting his boot sharply into Eddy's ribs, toppling him over, and causing him to cough heavily, making Konnan laugh.

 "Oh man, that's my favourite joke of yours. Cracks me up every time. Let's hear it again."

He strikes Eddy's forehead with the sole of his boot, and Eddy rolls in pain on the ground, as Konnan laughs again.

"That's right. You got nothing to say about me any more, do you? Remember this lesson, kid." Konnan turns his back to Edy as he walks away. Eddy struggles to his feet, using a stone pillar to pull himself to his feet.

"I can't believe I looked up to that man. He's the biggest joke of this whole place."

He spits blood onto the carpark floor, and turns to the camera.

"Don't worry, this ain't how things between me and him end. He'll get his."

The cold, calculated measure of Lex Luger's demeanour as he heads to the ring is matched only by the fiery heat of Hogan's rage as he charges the ring to face him. Hogan's fury carries him through the early stages of the match, as Luger is subjected to slams, boots, closed fist strikes and Irish-whips. Hogan eventually makes an error however, and when Luger is able to dodge a charge in the corner, he gets his due revenge for the beating he suffered at the start, matching Hogan in the power and intensity of his offence.  He eventually makes the critical error of punching Hulk Hogan three times in the face however. Hogan catches the third punch, and wags his finger at Lex. The predictable follows, and Luger is on his back, while Hogan bounces against the ropes for his legdrop. Luger seems to have been playing possum, however, as he springs to his feet and charges at Hogan midsection as he comes back from the ropes, sending both men between the middle and top rope to the outside. Luger atop Hogan, he rains down the punches before Hogan is able to shift weight and get atop his opponent, returning the favour. Nick Patrick's count reaches 10 as the two each reach their feet, continuing to throw haymakers at each other as Nitro ends.

October 7^th, 1996: WCW Monday Nitro

Nitro's opening match sees Konnan use size, strength and experience to overpower Rey Misterio Jr..  After the match, Eddy Guerrero rushes the ring, and charges towards Konnan, who lifts his arm, trying for a clothesline. Eddy ducks the clothesline, and has now run behind Konnan, their backs to each other. They both turn, but Eddy is faster, and catches Konnan with an enzuiguri. Konnan staggers back, and Eddy dropkicks him, sending him over the top rope. Eddy grabs a microphone "See, I don't care none about car parks! I'm gonna beat you in the ring, where wrestlers settle business! See if you can remember how to do that, because either way, this business gets settled at Halloween Havoc!"

Later in the show, Scott Hall and Kevin Nash have apprehended Mean Gene for an interview.

Scott is the first to speak "The Four Horsemen! The conquering heroes! The champions of WCW who heroically" there's a pause "tricked two men into a four on two beating."

Nash interjects "That's some real hero stuff, Ric. It's also stuff we just don't see us getting used to. So here it is. We'll face two, and just two, of your Horsemen at Halloween Havoc. You guys win, you find out who man number three is. We win, well, then that's the end of The Four Horsemen as a group. Do some thinking on that, heroes. Give us your answer next week."

October 14^th, 1996: WCW Monday Nitro

Lucha libre has proved a popular way to start Nitro in the past, and this week follows the pattern, as Rey Misterio Jr. is booked in a three way with Eddy Guerrero and Konnan.

Rey is the first to hit the ring, and the only one in it for some time, as Konnan attacks Eddy from behind during his entrance, beating him down on the ramp. As Konnan hoists Eddy up for a suplex, Eddy is able to float over, and throw punches of his own. The two fight towards the ring, where Rey takes a running leap into a ¾ senton onto the brawling pair. All three reach their feet at roughly the same time, and trade shots in a triangle. Rey is by far the smallest, and staggers away, returning to throw a dropkick that catches each with a foot to the face. As feet are once again reached, Rey continues his tactic and springs off the apron for a moonsault on both standing opponents. He is too ambitious in this however, and Konnan is able to catch him, tossing him over his head with a fallaway slam. Eddy DDTs him on the ramp with a sickening crunch, before picking Rey up and hurling him into the ring. Following him in, he applies an armbar, but Rey is able to twist himself to a standing position, and monkeyflip him.

The two cautiously pace each other before engaging in a flurry of exciting high impact lucha libre which pumps the crowd up. Konnan makes his return when Eddy has Rey set up for a superplex, hooking Eddy's legs and powerbombing him, bringing Rey along for the ride. Konnan crouches in the corner predatorialy, and once Eddy is in position to receive it, he cuts him down with a vicious lariat. Konnan pulls Eddy up for a piledriver, but Rey has the presence of mind to roll him up, only securing a two. In a seated position from the roll-up, Rey is perfectly positioned for a dropkick from Eddy Guerrero, which he obligingly delivers, before belly-to-belly suplexing Rey over the rope to the outside, leaving him free to focus on Konnan, who receives a brutal kick of one kind or another every time he stands up. Once he learns the lesson and stops standing up, he rolls outside, where Eddy follows. Eddy keeps his advantage, throwing Konnan into the ringpost and savouring his revenge. Konnan is tossed back into the ring and hoisted up for a trifecta of vertical suplexes. The third one is switched at an early point into a neckbreaker by Konnan, however. Rey has recovered in this time, unbeknownst to Konnan, and has placed himself on the apron. When Konnan staggers to a vertical position, Rey leaps from apron to top rope to Konnan, pulling him into a slick springboard DDT. Rey bounces back to his feet, but Eddy is able to take quick advantage, rolling him up from behind for three. His celebration is short lived, however, as Konnan lunges at him, drawing him into another brawl which must be pulled apart.

The Four Horsemen are the next to take to the ring. Flair addresses the challenge made last week by The Outsiders.

"Hall! Nash! We've got an answer for you. Come on out here." Hall and Nash strut onto the ramp, and watch with interest. Flair motions them to come closer, but Hall throws up his hands, one of them holding a microphone, and laughs.

"We'll stay right here, thanks. We learnt from last week. See, we ain't senile like you yet, Ric." "Well, as for your little deal you proposed last week, here's how it is. I didn't care one bit for it"

The crowd boos, voicing their disappointment, and Nash laughs.

"Scared are we, Ric? Tell you what, we'll let you retire quietly if you don't want to face us like the man you claim to be."

"I didn't care one bit for it, but this man here" clapping an arm on Arn's shoulder "this man here, well, his eyes light up with some unholy fire. See he's been after your third man since he played his part at Bash At The Beach. Which is why at Halloween Havoc, you two will get your match, against myself and my enforcer, Arn Anderson!"

The crowd cheers loudly, but Benoit grabs the mic from Ric, frustration in his voice.

"Hold it just a minute. Now I get that this is personal, but I seem to recall that the only time Arn got into a fight with those two, it wasn't a fight, he just got beaten down."

Arn shoves him roughly, grabbing the mic for himself and growling "You wanna make something of it?" 

"Yeah, I do. I should be in that match, not you."

The two go nose to nose, and look ready to come to blows as they trash talk each other, until Flair pushes them apart, takes the mic and faces Benoit.

"Chris, you're way out of line. Arn's earned this one. You know that. He's in there with me at Halloween Havoc. It's that simple."

Arn puts a hand on Ric's shoulder as the other one reaches for the mic, which for the first time is given over willingly, rather than torn away.

"Look, Ric, I appreciate it, but it's this way. Me and Chris are both wrestlers. You and Dean clear from the ring, we can settle this easy." He turns to Benoit "How about it? You beat me, you've got my place."

The mic is handed to Benoit, who gives response by tossing it aside and throwing a chop at Arn's chest, causing Charles Robinson to ring the bell to start the match.

Benoit continues to pepper Arn with chops, sending him reeling back into a turnbuckle, as Flair and Malenko vacate the ring. Once in the turnbuckle, Arn is whipped across towards the other one, only for Arn to turn the whip around and send Benoit there instead, following him with a lariat that crushes him into it. Benoit is then snap suplexed, but as Arn lifts him by the head, he's able to hook Arn's legs behind the knees, and pull them out from under him, dropping him onto his back. Keeping hold of the knees, Benoit turns Arn around into a boston crab. Arn is able to crawl to the ropes, and pulls himself up to be hammered once again with strikes. He responds in like, and the two engage in a whirling melee of chops and forearms, until Arn drops Benoit with a sudden lariat, which earns him a two count. He draws Benoit up in a front facelock for his trademark DDT, but Benoit is able to shove him away and put him down with an enzuiguri. Arn crawls into the bottom rung of a nearby turnbuckle, a decision Benoit rewards with a running dropkick which leaves Arn's head hanging limply across the bottom rope. Benoit catapults himself over the top rope to land on the other side, dropping a leg across Arn's head. Arn sprawled before him, Benoit scales the turnbuckle from the apron. Arn interrupts whatever he was planning by stumbling on his knees towards the turnbuckle, doubling Benoit over with a punch to the gut as he rises. From here he hooks Benoit's head and delivers a super DDT. He covers Benoit, but proximity to the ropes allows Benoit's foot to reach the bottom one. Arn picks Benoit up and bounces him against the ropes, looking for the Spinebuster. Benoit is able to manoeuvre behind Arn's attempt, and applies a sleeper hold. Arn's body seems to grow heavier, and he sinks slowly to one knee.

He thinks of vengeance on Hall and Nash, giving him a surge of strength with which he pushes himself to his feet as Robinson prepares to lift the arm a third time. He hooks one of Benoit's legs as he does so, and hoists Benoit atop his shoulders, bringing him crashing down with a death valley driver, which, by superhuman effort, Benoit kicks out of. Arn pulls him back up to be dropped on his head again, with a DDT this time. Not giving Benoit time to draw breath by going for a pin, Arn instead drags him to his feet and hurls him forcefully against the ropes, scoring the Spinebuster and earning the victory. Sweating, out of breath and with a chest turned red by Benoit's chops, Arn offers Benoit a handshake once Benoit regains his composure. Benoit stares at the hand briefly, before turning on his heel and leaving, Arn left in the ring with a frustrated look on his face. Hall and Nash, still watching from the ramp, are grinning from ear to ear at the sight as they too make their exit.

Later in the show, and Hulk Hogan has Mean Gene's attention backstage.

"You know something,  Mean Gene? Last week, I was looking for Lex Luger, to finish business! This week, I've been looking for Lex Luger, to finish business! But he ain't here, brother! I figure he's hiding away at home, so I'll send him this message: We ain't done, brother! You can hide like the coward you are all you like, some donnybrook ain't enough. I'm not satisfied until I've held your shoulders down for three, and every single one of the Hulkamaniacs out there know I'm the better man, brother! So quit being a coward, and face me at Havoc, brother, where Hulk Hogan and his twentyfour inch pythons will run wild all over your cowardly body!"

October 21^st, 1996: WCW Monday Nitro

The first man to come to the ring on tonight's Nitro is Lex Luger, who strides to the ring clutching a microphone. The reaction to him is as mixed as ever, the crowd as unsure whether to trust him as they are anyone else these days. He paces up and down, and begins to speak.

"Hogan! You want to know where I've been these last two weeks? Well, here it is. I've been training. I've been training to fight Hall, Nash, and whoever their third man is, whether it's been you all along, or some other dirtbag. As far as I was concerned, unless you're man three, I was done with you, and I'd never have to have anything to do with you again. I was ready to move onto better things than you, Hulk. To things that matter. But no. You had to drag yourself right back into this mess, didn't you? Well, okay, since you're so hot to get your ass kicked again, let's go. You and me at Havoc. And since that last one ended outside the ring, let's make this a cage match. I'll see you there, Hulk."

Luger drops the mic and leaves as the fans cheer the big match announcement.

After a few fast paced matches typical of Nitro's first hour, a middle aged Hispanic man, familiar to hardcore fans, but not immediately familiar to most makes his way to the ring, dressed in a sharp suit and holding a microphone. Bischoff identifies him from the announce desk as Hector Guerrero, Eddy's older brother, and the man who trained him. He talks in a slow, deliberate tone.

"I'm here for you, Konnan. Make your way down to the ring."

Konnan, dressed in a checked shirt over a baggy t-shirt and a pair of jeans cockily comes to the ring, and talks into his own microphone.

"What do you want, gramps?"

"Do you know who you're talking to?"

"Yeah. I'm talking to Hector Guerrero, a washed up wrestler who hasn't been heard from for years. Didn't know you were still alive, but why should I care?"

"I've been watching the last few weeks, and you're an absolute disgrace to lucha libre!"

Konnan pretends to be taken aback, and asks Hector Guerrero to repeat that. He does.

"Wait, homes, I'm a disgrace? I got the man who never even worked in Mexico, and was last seen in a chicken suit square dancing with Mean Gene telling me I'm a disgrace? Get out, or get knocked out, you ain't nothing to me, you ain't nothing to lucha libre, you ain't nothing to no-one."

Enraged, Hector lifts the mic as if to speak into it, but plants Konnan between the eyes with it instead. Konnan staggers backwards, and Hector moves forward to strike again. Konnan grabs his wrist, and twists it to force Hector to drop the microphone. Konnan kicks Hector in the gut, before dropping him with a punch. He begins to lay the boots in, before Eddy Guerrero charges down the ramp, chair in hand, driving Konnan from the ring. Eddy stoops over his older brother, checking on him, and gives a murderous glare to Konnan, who is backing cockily up the ramp.

The final segment on the final Nitro before Halloween Havoc sees The Four Horsemen backstage with Mean Gene Okerlund, Chris Benoit notable by his absence.

Malenko is the first to speak.

"Hall, Nash, I just want you two good for nothings, you two Outsiders, as you're so proud to proclaim, to know that I'm at ringside at Havoc, so there's not going to be any help coming for you that don't come through me."

He passes the microphone to Arn, who gives a low, gravelly chuckle before speaking.

"It's been a long time. I've been looking for the third man, looking for revenge, looking for a chance to beat on you for too damn long. And at Halloween Havoc, I find all of that. You better pray me and the Nature Boy end your suffering quickly."

He passes the microphone to Flair.

"Woooo! Halloween Havoc, this Sunday, baby! Hall, Nash, you two have been running around, running your mouths, causing trouble and looking for more! Well, you found trouble, boys! You found The Horsemen, baby. And this Sunday, we go to war! This has been going on too long, and this Sunday we end this feud, we end this mystery about the third man, and we end you. See you at Halloween Havoc."

October 27^th, 1996: Halloween Havoc

Once the usual corny Halloween shtick opening video has ended, Halloween Havoc starts properly with the arrival of Konnan to the ring, for his match against Eddy Guerrero. Eddy heads to the ring accompanied by Hector Guerrero, and gets a decent response from the crowd.

Eddy wastes no time once in the ring, immediately charging Konnan and overwhelming him with lightning fast lucha offence. Konnan catches his break when he's able to duck a leg lariat, and takes advantage, laying the boots to the prone Guerrero. After being told to stop by the official, Konnan switches to grounding Eddy legally, applying a chinlock. From here, a beatdown ensues, Konnan eschewing any lucha style and simply beating on Eddy, adding insult to injury by further abandoning the style that Eddy so firmly defends. As Hector looks concernedly on Eddy's prone form slumped in the turnbuckle, Konnan stops to taunt Hector, mocking the middle aged wrestler.

This gives Eddy the chance to regain his feet, however, and he turns Konnan around to plant a forearm firmly in his jaw.  Another follows, and Konnan sways back into the ropes. Eddy bounces him from them to their twins across the ring, catching him with a leg lariat on his return. Eddy puts the match firmly back into his hands, once again using lucha offence to outmatch Konnan, until Konnan surprises him with a leg lariat of his own. From here, Eddy is placed on the top turnbuckle, and Konnan hurrcaranas him from the top rope, drawing a loud response from the live crowd. Konnan covers for two, and pulls Eddy up for a powerbomb. At the last moment, however, Eddy is able to twist the powerbomb into a tornado DDT, which drops Konnan with a satisfying thud. He covers for two, before scaling the top rope to deliver a thunderous frog splash, earning him the victory.

Ric Flair is confronted in a locker-room backstage by Chris Benoit.

"Ric, I can just tell something's going to go down. Dean on his own won't be enough. Let me back in, let me have your back tonight."

Ric's voice is as hard as his attitude to Benoit's request.

"No single Horseman is more important than the unit as a whole, Chris. Not even you. You forgot that. What's more, you dishonoured Arn. You didn't deserve his forgiveness, I wouldn't have forgiven you for that insolence, but you had his. And you may as well have spit in his face, for the disrespect you showed him. Which is like spitting in my face, Chris. And I don't like having my face spat on. So no, you're not at ringside for this match, or any other match. You don't ride with us no more."

Benoit has been growing increasingly angry looking during Ric's speech, and he responds by furiously pushing the locker between them down. It crashes with a violent bang to the ground,  and Benoit storms away from Flair.

Luger and Hogan's semi-main event match resembles less a wrestling contest, and more a brawl. Fists are thrown, each hurls the other repeatedly against the cold steel of the cage, blood is drawn, and each man seeks to destroy the other, all to the delight of the crowd. Finally, bloody and exhausted, Hogan is able to drop a leg across Luger, and clamber over the cage, making his escape.

Hall and Nash receive a venomous response from the crowd as they strut to the ring, Hall drawing even greater ire once in the ring by imitating Flair's strut, before posing with the WCW World Title. The camera switches its focus to Flair and Arn standing behind the curtain, ready to go out for their match, Malenko at their side, when Randy Savage approaches the group, and wishes them luck. Arn growls some vague words of gratitude, and offers his hand to his former foe, which Savage refuses. "Now, this don't mean I like you. It means I like them less. What you did to Sting makes me sick! You had no proof, you didn't listen to his defence, and he hasn't been seen since you lot did your little number on him. You're almost as bad as those two punks in the ring, and the almost's the only reason I'm rooting for you thugs."

Savage turns on his heel and leaves angrily. Arn looks like he would love to go after him and reignite their war, but has more pressing things to deal with, and pushes through the curtain with the other two. Now that they're gone, we can see Chris Benoit lurking menacingly in the background.

Arn Anderson and Ric Flair get a deafening response as they stride towards the ring, holding both hands up in the Horseman salute. Dean Malenko hangs behind a little, watching the ring. What he should have been watching was the ramp, because as Arn and Flair reach the end of it, Malenko still lingering behind, Benoit emerges suddenly, and begins to take out his rage on his former stable mate in the Horsemen, rushing Malenko with a hail of punches that take him completely by surprise. Flair and Arn turn around to defend their ally, another mistake, as Hall and Nash are able to use this distraction to get the jump on them. Hall takes Flair one way around the ring, and Nash takes Arn the other. The two are beaten brutally using the guardrail, ringpost, ringsteps, and other areas outside the ring. Eventually the route each takes their victim around the ring brings them to meet each other. The duo then make use of the fact that, since the match hasn't officially begun, they need not fear a disqualification. As such, both Arn and Flair receive chairshots before being tossed into the ring. Hall and Nash follow, and are laying the boots in as Charles Robinson rings the bell to start the match.

Order of some semblance is restored, as he demands that they stop, and that only two men be in the ring, or he'll throw this match out. Flair is dragged by Nash onto the apron, while Hall steps outside of the ring cockily, theatrically wiping his brow, as though exhausted by the effort of his ambush. Nash tosses Arn with casual violence around the ring, until Arn summons up the strength to stagger Nash with a fierce lariat. Nash is then sent reeling with a storm of strikes, rallying the crowd behind Arn, until Hall blind tags himself in. Arn is too busy enacting his vengeance on Nash to notice the tag, or that Hall is behind him. A belly to back suplex quickly makes Arn aware of Hall's presence, and he is soon in the familiar position of being dominated, The Outsiders utilising quick tags to ensure he doesn't build momentum. Flair grows increasingly agitated on the apron, until Arn is whipped against the ropes by both of them, to return with a desperate shoulderblock which downs Hall, and staggers Nash. Arn kicks Nash in the gut, doubling him over, and drops him with a snap DDT, before powering to Flair, and making the hot tag.

Flair is given now an opportunity to vent his agitation, and vent it he does, much to the detriment of Hall, the legal man from The Outsiders, who is chopped, chop blocked, suplexed, clotheslined, subjected to various submission holds and generally beaten all over the ring, much to the delight of the fans. He catches pockets of offence, but none of them seem to faze the vengeance hungry Horseman. Nash eventually steps in, blindsiding the Nature Boy with a running big boot. Not wanting to see this become a two on one, recovered, rested, and looking for his own revenge, Arn charges into the ring, and it is mere seconds before any order in this match breaks down into a wild melee in the ring. Charles Robinson attempts to return order, but is downed in the chaos. Shortly after this, the lights go out, and Bischoff from the announce desk nervously recalls the last time this happened, at Bash At The Beach, when the third man made his first move.

And the lights come back on, and all four men stop their brawling to stare at the same sight that the fans are all staring at: in the middle of the ring, chair clasped firmly in his hands, stands Sting. He turns to Flair, the nearest man, blasting with with the chair. The fans are shocked into silence. Arn charges him, only to suffer the same fate. Nash approaches Sting, but fares no better, nor does Hall's attempt to wrest the chair from Sting. The only man standing in the ring, Sting angrily tosses the chair from the ring, and storms up the ramp.

Nash and Arn are the first two to their feet, and trade punches, the crowd, unsure of what to make of Sting, know what to make of this, cheering each one of Arn's shots, and booing each of Nash's. Nash begins to lose the exchange, and manages to throw a big boot to draw things back in his favour. Arn staggers from it, but is somehow able to keep his footing, staggering away. He uses the distance he staggered as a run up, and hurls himself shoulder first into Nash's midsection with all his might, toppling the imposing wrestler. Hall, meanwhile, has recovered, and has dropped Flair with a low blow. He charges at Arn as Arn turns to face him, only to be caught with a Spinebuster that earns The Enforcer the three count, and the victory for his team.

As Flair and Arn beaten, bloody and exhausted celebrate in the ring, Bischoff excitedly mentions that tomorrow night's Nitro won't be one to miss, with Hall and Nash forced to reveal their third man. Halloween Havoc draws to its close, Arn and Flair continuing to enjoy the rapturous adoration of the crowd.

To be concluded...