10 Longest PPV Events In WCW History
Wrestling events and programming have ranged in television airtime for several decades. WWE Raw for example started out as a 1-hour program which eventually became 2 hours and now 3. WWE is not the only promotion to have fluctuating run times as WCW experimented as well.
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PPVs are typically longer in runtime than TV programming; this should be the case for the extra premium that has to be paid in order to view the event. WCW ran some events that ran short on time but also had lengthy shows and in one disastrous case, too long.
10 Hog Wild (2:51:38)
The 10th longest PPV in WCW history went down on August 10, 1996, and started a unique chronicle for World Championship Wrestling. Hog Wild took place at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in Sturgis, South Dakota, and was the first in the series of PPVs held at the public motorcycle rally which happened in part to a personal interest in motorcycles that various WCW personnel had including Eric Bischoff.
5000 fans attended the Hog Wild event that had the tagline "Ain't No Easy Riders Here." Rey Misteiro Jr. retained the Cruiserweight Championship against Ultimate Dragon. Harlem Heat defended the World Tag Team Championship. Ric Flair defeated Eddie Guerrero to retain the United States Heavyweight Championship and in the main event Hollywood Hulk Hogan defeated The Giant to win the World Heavyweight Championship and subsequently spray-painted "nWo" on it.
9 Halloween Havoc 1997 (2:51:38)
The 9th annual Halloween Havoc event also ranks as the 9th longest WCW PPV. There was underwhelming booking that reflected in the show's quality but there still was one legendary match that came from it. 12,457 filled the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 26, 1997, to "Snap Into The Madness!"
Randy Savage defeated DDP in the co-main event in a Las Vegas Sudden Death match. In the show's closing match. "Rowdy" Roddy Piper defeated Hollywood Hulk Hogan in a Steel Cage match that fans felt should have been a world title match. The night's best contest was the (Cruiserweight) Title vs. Mask match between Eddy Guerrero and Rey Misterio Jr. which received a spotlight feature in the video game WWE 2K22.
8 Greed (2:52:22)
Unbeknown at the time, the Greed PPV from the Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum in Jacksonville, Florida on March 18, 2001, would be the final PPV in WCW history. A small accolade the event has is being the final PPV of The Monday Night Wars as WCW would be purchased by Vince McMahon shortly after Greed, days before WrestleMania 17.
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The tagline "It's All Or Nothin' Baby" was fitting for a last hoorah for the 5,030 fans in attendance. The inaugural Cruiserweight Tag Team Champions were crowned in Elix Skipper and Kid Romeo. Booker T defeated Rick Steiner to win the United States Heavyweight Championship. Dusty and Dustin Rhodes teamed up and won their tag match, and Scott Steiner retained the World Heavyweight Championship in a Falls Count Anywhere match against DDP.
7 SuperBrawl IX (2:52:42)
The 7th longest PPV in WCW history took place on February 21, 1999, at the Oakland Arena in Oakland California. SuperBrawl IX was attended by 15,880 fans and had the tagline, "He Who Wins The Belt Has The Power." In the main event, it was Hollywood Hulk Hogan who won, defending the World Heavyweight Championship over Ric Flair.
Also on the show, Scott Hall won the United States Heavyweight Championship from "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, Goldberg defeated Bam Bam Bigelow but most notably, Rey Misterio Jr. unmasked after losing a Hair vs. Mask tag team match.
6 Mayhem 1999 (2:53:06)
The inaugural Mayhem PPV was significant for two reasons. The event was named after a WCW video game that was released earlier in the year, and it was the first WCW PPV to occur in Canada. Taking place from the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario, the first Mayhem event occurred on November 21, 1999, in front of 13,839 fans.
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"The Night of Champions" as it was dubbed featured 12 matches which included a tournament for the vacant World Heavyweight Championship which would be won by Bret Hart over Chris Benoit in the finals but not before "The Hitman" defeated Sting.
Fun fact: a clip of Bret Hart applying the Sharpshooter to Benoit on this night was used in the opening for the TV show Malcolm In The Middle.
5 Sin (2:53:08)
Being one of the last PPVs in WCW history, Sin took place on January 14, 2001, in Indianapolis, Indiana at the Conseco Fieldhouse with 6,617 fans present. Sin had some memorable moments with one being gruesomely imprinted in the minds of many fans. Chavo Guerrero Jr. retained the Cruiserweight Championship over Shane Helms in the opener.
Meng would win the Hardcore Championship but would be so upset with WCW that he left the company and entered in the 2001 WWE Royal Rumble match. Goldberg was forced to leave WCW after losing in the co-main event and in the night's closing contest, Scott Steiner won a Four Corners match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship in the match where Sid Vicious horrifyingly broke his leg.
4 Mayhem 2000 (2:53:18)
On November 26, 2000, "The Genetic Freak of Sports Entertainment UNLEASHED" at the U.S. Cellular Arena in Milwaukee, Wisconsin at Mayhem. The 4th longest PPV in WCW history was reviewed as one of the worst events in company history. Several titles changed hands in the night with Gen. Rection winning the United States Championship from Lance Storm.
Another title change saw DDP and Kevin Nash win the World Tag Team Championship over Chuck Palumbo and Shawn Stasiak. Goldberg defeated Lex Luger in the co-main event and in the night's main event, Scott Steiner defeated Booker T to win the World Heavyweight Championship in a Straight Jacket Steel Cage match in front of 3,800 fans.
3 Souled Out 1999 (2:54:49)
Despite questionable booking including gimmick matches and a single title match on the card that was not even for the World Heavyweight Championship, Souled Out received mediocre reviews for an event that on paper could have been worse. There was "No Turning Back" on January 17, 1999, at the Charleston Civic Center in Charleston, West Virginia.
10,833 live fans saw Chris Jericho defeat Perry Saturn with the stipulation being that the loser had to wear a dress. Billy Kidman retained the Cruiserweight Championship in a Fatal 4-Way match and in the main event, Goldberg defeated Scott in a Stun Gun Ladder match.
2 Halloween Havoc 1996 (2:58:05)
The first of a string of 5 consecutive annual events to be held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, the 1996 Halloween Havoc event took place on October 27 with 10,000 fans in attendance for "A Night Of Terror And Suspense!" Getting into the champion's head pre-match by stealing his mask, Dean Malenko defeated Rey Misterio Jr. in the opening contest to win the Cruiserweight Championship.
The next match saw DDP defeat Eddie Guerrero for the Battlebowl ring. Later in the night, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall won the World Tag Team Championship by defeating Harlem Heat, and in a throwback match to 8 years prior, the night's main event saw Hollywood Hulk Hogan defend the World Heavyweight Championship over Randy Savage with Miss Elizabeth involved.
1 Halloween Havoc 1998 (3:15:47)
The distinguished but disgraced honor of being the longest PPV in WCW history goes to the 10th annual Halloween Havoc event on October 25, 1998, "The Night When Good Battles Evil" in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Late in the show, Bret Hart retained the United States Heavyweight Championship over Sting, and in a disappointing WWE WrestleMania 6 rematch from 8.5 years prior, Hollywood Hulk Hogan defeated The Ultimate Warrior. The nightmare for WCW came at the night's main event for the World Heavyweight Championship between Diamond Dallas Page and Goldberg.
WCW had purchased a 3-hour slot on PPV and the show ran long, with the main event starting right at the 3-hour mark. As a result, the PPV feed immediately cutoff and ended for home viewers seconds after the bell rang to start the world title match; only the 10,663 fans in attendance saw Goldberg retain the title live. WCW subsequently aired the match the following night on Nitro and with the PPV providers, issued many refunds that created a financial catastrophe.
