Playing the what if game... WCW

["IcePic" Rick Cobos]

What if Eric Bischoff & Fusient had purchases World Championship Wrestling in early 2001?

Caveats
- Kellner does NOT pull the plug on Turner-broadcasted wrestling
- Extreme Championship Wrestling still goes bankrupt

Would Ring of Honor have been created? Would Total Nonstop Action have been created (imo, extremely doubtful)?

Where would AJ Styles & Christopher Daniels be at today? Would they have become the underutilized mid-carders of WCW like the Radicalz were, or would Bischoff have learned from his past mistakes of not truly appreciating the backbone of the roster?

Since he always felt an obligation to Bischoff thanks to being paid after the car accident a few years earlier, would Eddie Guerrero have gone to WCW in late 2001/early 2002 after being fired? Would he have gone straight to WCW without doing proper rehab and being in the indies? Is it possible that maybe he would not have made the same choices in WCW that he made in his last WWE run?

Would Lance Storm have been given the chance to be one of the all-time revered upper mid-carders, like a Benoit or Raven?

Where would the likes of Low Ki, Samoa Joe, and Bryan Danielson be at today if WCW was still around? Also, how about Homicide, would he have gone to WWE to extend its more hardcore style of the time within a couple years, or would he have gone to World Championship Wrestling to become a cruiserweight mid-carder?

Perhaps a working relationship between WCW and NOAH could have been formed?

As for ROH, if still created, could it have become a major unofficial developmental promotion for WCW?

Last but not least:

How much more miserable would Ric Flair be with Bischoff OWNING World Championship Wrestling?

[thebudman2006]

Very good question, because perhaps Goldberg, Nash and DDP would have tooken Bischoffs offer and been pushed as top dogs still. Hell luger will still be on top as well.

["IcePic" Rick Cobos]

I honestly don't see Luger sticking around by now. Bischoff never cared for him, and there was no way that Sting could have still come up with a good argument to keep his lazy, unprofessional friend around.

[Johnny Danger (Godz)]

Lance Storm would NOT be pushed as Bischoff recently said Lance "doesnt have it". He'd probably still depart for WWE

Goldberg, Nash, Sting, Savage and DDP are WCW's top stars. Hogan and Flair are back in WWE.

[Ultimate Reality]

Who would win in a shoot fight between The Ultimate Warrior and Lex Luger?

["IcePic" Rick Cobos]

godz said:

Lance Storm would NOT be pushed as Bischoff recently said Lance "doesnt have it". He'd probably still depart for WWE

Goldberg, Nash, Sting, Savage and DDP are WCW's top stars. Hogan and Flair are back in WWE.

I believe Bischoff, though still a jackass, would have learned to at least push new talent. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt, as at the time, he knew a major eneme was needed for the federation in order for it to survive. Despite his recent remarks about Storm, I believe he would have given Storm a chance not to be a main-eventer, but to be at that Benoit level of the guy who is the backbone of the card and who keeps the wheels turning in terms of creating new stars.

["IcePic" Rick Cobos]

tonyschiavone said:

Who would win in a shoot fight between The Ultimate Warrior and Lex Luger?

certainly not anybody who would watch it

[nerdinitupagain]

godz said:

Lance Storm would NOT be pushed as Bischoff recently said Lance "doesnt have it". He'd probably still depart for WWE

Goldberg, Nash, Sting, Savage and DDP are WCW's top stars. Hogan and Flair are back in WWE.

I'd say Lance would've gotten a World Title push eventually. He was so over in WCW and they had a lot of faith in him as a worker, he was young enough and didn't piss anybody off really.

What Bischoff said was because Bischoff was pissed that Lance ripped his book apart. And Lance did have "it" in the same way someone like Malenko had it and Benoit had it.. the crowds loved watching them work. He didn't have "it" the way Vince McMahon sees "it" though.

[Boomaga]

Eric Bischoff found something that worked. It worked great and it put him on top of the wrestling world. Then, he worked it to death until it broke. That was the nWo, and when it broke, it broke hard and WCW never fully recovered.

I think if Bischoff got the rights to WCW, it would take a lot of time and patience from the wrestling world to slowly watching it get back on its feet. I think it almost would've become kind of what TNA is today. Sure, there's your Stings and your Goldbergs, but you've also got a great crop of upcoming talent.

Now, the problem is if Bischoff would use that talent right. Great talent was never a problem for WCW, right until the end of their run they had a very good roster. The problem is that the small portion of talent that made it into WCW main events wasn't so great. Now if there was actual roster mobility and it gave guys like Shane Helms or Lance Storm a shot at main eventing, then I think Bischoff could've really gotten things rolling again!

As for new talent, I don't know if TNA or ROH would've taken off, but I do think AJ Styles, Christopher Daniels and Samoa Joe would've made their way onto TV in WCW. Vince would keep looking for "sports entertainers" as Easy E would've grabbed up the great wrestlers of tomorrow.

Then, we come to today, five years later, and it wouldn't surprise me to see WCW back at the top of the mountain. We're all here complaining about the decline of WWE, I mean we've got the Boogeyman for God's sake! I think in the time from 2001 to 2006 where the world title declined from Chris Jericho being the first ever undisputed World Champion to John Cena being an untouchable super-babyface with a moveset of 5 moves. As for WCW, I can see Lance Storm, Mike Awesome or hey, how about Samoa Joe as their World Champ!

It's an interesting thought anyway.

[silverking]

Then there wouldn't be a need for TNA really.

[Can you afford to pay me, Gah]

Now if everything said happened. TNA wouldn't be around. Because Jarrett didn't have a problem with Bischoff like he does with Vince. Which is why TNA even came about because Jarrett knew he never be in the WWE again and knew they only way to become a Mainstream player if he does it himself.

Another reason is that Bischoff would have the money and that would stop all the big players from signing with TNA in the first place.

There would be a lot of guys in the WCW that would changed what happened in the WWE. I know that the NWO 2002 would never happened or would Hogan vs. Rock wrestlemania. Since Hogan I see in the WCW since he was so close with Eric and still is. Goldberg wouldn't be out on the ring for the two years he was. He be in the WCW still also. DDP would be there still a top player instead of Takers punching dummy.

The questions still would be remaining is Scott Steiner. He took time off for the foot but did do WWA. Then took more time off. Then went to the WWE and it looks like he wasn't ready yet.

I wonder if Steiner took time off for the foot and had the surgery he did last year before going to TNA in 2001 what would his career be like. I think he would returned to WCW and been a major player.

[Bub (BLM)]

I think WCW would have snatched up alot of ECW's more technical, smaller wrestlers (Jerry Lynn, Justin Credible, Kid Kash), while WWF still would have latched onto Rhino and Spike Dudley.

["IcePic" Rick Cobos]

I think it's safe to say that none of us would have all been hailing King Bookah!!!!

[Can you afford to pay me, Gah]

But I do think Booker T would been a headliner for WCW.

[normcoleman]

Buff Bagwell would still have a job

[hassanchop]

What would happen to Lesnar and Cena?

["IcePic" Rick Cobos]

hassanchop said:

What would happen to Lesnar and Cena?

WM 20 Main Event?

[JoshWoodrumGreaterThanHBK]

This is very interesting.

I say Bischoff would push new talent out of neccessity. We'd still have guys like Sting, DDP, Goldberg and a few other old gaurd of WCW, but there'd have to be a lot of new guys. Guys like Jarret or Lance Storm would rule the mid-card, and AJ Styles, Daniels, Low-Ki, and others would be the Cruiserweights.

Abyss as the WCW's version of Kane, with perhaps, Harley Race as his manager? Or James Mitchell, assuming ECW would still flounder.

Perhaps Samoa Joe, would end up being the biggest thing in WCW. And would headline a StarrCade against Goldberg?

Who knows but the thought is intruiging!