To get this out of the way first, Lenny Lane and Lodi are doing an overly accentuated “are they/aren’t they” homosexual couple gimmick. It wouldn’t fly today and when a representative from GLAAD complained, they immediately scrapped the offensive gimmick. In my opinion things need to be looked at in the context of their time, understood and learned from. This is a place for wrestling/Sports Entertainment, not personal opinions on how others lead their lives.
Back to our regular content now. Before the match, The Revolution are in the WCW.com area backstage. The interviewer asks about the chances of a clean sweep for them in their matches tonight and they guarantee it before leaving. We see a short video showing Lenny Lane winning the Cruiserweight Championship and what got us here.
Tony Schiavone, Bobby “The Brain” Heenan ,and Mike Tenay are on commentary for this match.
Kaz Hayashi makes his way out first, and you can tell before the camera catches him because he has the classic Eastern Asian chords playing for his theme tune. Lenny Lane makes his way down to the ring with Lodi, who has signs. They’re called the West Hollywood Blondes and I feel that’s a “subtle nod” to a gay community, like Jim Ross’ constant San Francisco references when Pat Patterson showed up. Lenny and Lodi are hesitant to give Charles Robinson the Cruiserweight Championship belt.
LENNY LANE © VS.
KAZ HAYASHI
(WCW Cruiserweight
Championship)
WCW Fall Brawl 1999 (12th
September 1999)
They circle, Lenny goes to confer with his (tag) partner, they do their secret handshake (on Pay-Per-View) and the crowd calls them “faggots” welcome to the 90’s folks! Lenny Lane takes Kaz Hayashi down in a waistlock and they end up in a compromising position. An uncomfortable Hayashi scrambles to the ropes forcing the break.
Kaz Hayashi ducks under Lenny and gets a waistlock, but Lenny breaks his grip and tries to wrench the arm. Hayashi sends Lenny across the ring but is knocked down with a shoulder tackle. Lenny Lane hits the ropes and starts skipping around the ring. Kaz Hayashi has already had enough but he gets put in an arm wringer. Lenny forces Hayashi down to one knee and clubs at his shoulder from above. Lenny Lane works an armbar, standing over Hayashi’s shoulder. Kaz Hayashi hammers at Lenny Lane and Lane runs to the ropes. Hayashi shakes some feeling back into his arm. Kaz Hayashi kicks at Lenny’s leg and, well, his ass, and Schiavone talks about it like he’s working an arm. Lenny Lane is backed into the ropes with right hands but he reverses an irish whip. Kaz Hayashi goes over for a sunset flip, kicking at Lenny’s ass again to bring him down into a pin for 2. Kaz Hayashi knocks Lenny down with a dropkick, Kaz Hayashi quickly gets back to his feet and takes Lenny down with a headscissors. Lenny takes a walk at ringside, by running into Lodi’s arms. Kaz Hayashi uses the ropes to pick up some speed and hits a twisting body press over the top rope onto Lenny and Lodi! Kaz Hayashi brings it back into the ring and hits a running elbow drop. He goes for another but Lodi trips him from ringside.
Kaz Hayashi rolls out of the way of Lenny’s elbow drop attempts and backs him into the ropes with right hands. Lenny Lane reverses an irish whip but Kaz ducks under the clothesline. He tries to roll Lenny up, Lenny looks like he’s sat down on the cover for a second but he lifts Hayashi up into a wheelbarrow facebuster getting Lenny a nearfall. Lenny rakes at Kaz Hayashi and snapmares him over so he can hit a double stomp. Lenny takes some time telling the crowd to shut up before covering and it could have cost him as Kaz Hayashi quickly kicks out. Although it could also be because Hayashi was getting to his feet as Lenny remembered him. Kaz Hayashi is sent into the turnbuckles but he gets his boots up to Lenny’s jaw. Lenny Lane ducks a clothesline but runs into a back elbow, Kaz Hayashi sends Lenny into the middle turnbuckle with a drop toehold and goes out to the apron. Lenny Lane uses Hyashi’s momentum against him as Hayashi slingshots back into the ring by sending Hyashi down hard to the mat. Lenny covers and it looks a lot like how Bret Hart does it, groin practically in your breathing area. Kaz Hayashi kicks out because there’s no way he can lose to that pin. Lenny starts pulling Hyashi into knee strikes to the midsection and hits a nice gutwrench sitout powerbomb for a nearfall.
Mike Tenay mentions that Kaz Hayashi has been in WCW for about a year and I thought he was more of a latecomer to WCW than that. Anyway, he sends Lenny over the top rope to the floor and dives onto him with a Swanton bomb over the top! Kaz Hayashi sends Lenny back into the ring, but Lodi cuts Kaz off before he can join Lenny. Kaz Hayashi is sent into the guard rail and then back into the ring. Lenny immediately covers but only gets a 2 count. Kaz Hayashi's head meets the turnbuckle, Lenny lays in the boots then chokes Hayashi on the mat, utilizing the referee’s count. Lenny brings Kaz Hayashi over with another snapmare, trying to keep him a step behind and not get a chance to think and swing the momentum. Lenny puts Hayashi in a chinlock on the mat. He leans into Kaz Hayashi but the fans start to get behind him, Kaz Hayashi is able to get to his feet, he connects with a back elbow, Lenny tries a german suplex but Kaz Hayashi lands on his feet. Kaz Hayashi jumps on Lenny’s shoulders, and a hurricanrana gets Kaz Hayashi a nearfall that the crowd all bit on in unison. He checks with the referee and runs at Lenny with a kick to the midsection. Lenny Lane sends Hayashi into the corner and Hayashi staggers out into a running bulldog. Lenny covers 1, 2, no! Lenny Lane sends Hayashi across the ring, Hayashi ducks the clothesline and tries to baseball slide but gets caught. Kaz Hayashi lands on his feet again from a belly-to-back suplex attempt and hits his own attempt.
Kaz Hayashi can’t capitalize before they get to their feet and they slug it out. Kaz Hayashi is sent into the corner, Lenny charges but hits the turnbuckle as Kaz Hayashi goes out to the apron. He slingshots himself back in planting Lenny with a bulldog and calls for something from the top rope as Schiavone says he should go for the pin. Kaz Hayashi perches Lenny in the corner, Lenny tries to fight Kaz off, but Kaz Hayashi brings him down to the mat with a sunset flip running Ligerbomb! Kaz Hayashi covers and Lodi puts Lenny’s foot on the bottom rope. Kaz Hayashi goes back to the top rope, Lenny cuts him off but eats Kaz Hayashi’s boot. Kaz Hayashi gets his footing before taking Lenny down with a diving headscissors! He covers but Lenny kicks out at 2! Kaz Hayashi is cut off with a jawbreaker. Lenny tells Lodi to get on the apron, and he goes to send Kaz into Lodi but the irish whip is reversed. Lenny stops the momentum and the “close friends” hug it out leaving Lenny’s back open for a Kaz Hayashi dropkick. Hayashi goes back up to Lenny’s shoulders and gets a victory roll for a 2 count. Kaz Hayashi hits one of those backbreakers that makes you land on your side and climbs to the top rope. Lodi is still on the outside, he makes his way over to Kaz, Lodi gets on the apron and eats a shot from the top rope for his troubles. Kaz Hayashi decides Lodi is where his energy should be spent for a while but gets hot-shotted across the top rope. Lenny Lane gets a really lazy roll-up, I don’t know whose fault it was but it didn’t look pretty.
Kaz Hayashi kicks out at 2 and gets to his feet, he ducks a clothesline and leapfrogs over Lenny, but he gets caught in a front Russian legsweep and that’s enough for the 3.
WINNER: LENNY LANE (STILL WCW Cruiserweight Champion)
This was a good match, they kept up a really nice pace for most of the match and except for the signs distracting me, Lodi wasn’t to bothersome at ringside. I’ve seen a few Kaz Hyashi matches and he never disappoints. Luckily he had Lenny Lane working to keep up with Hyashi’s level and the match was all the better for it. Lenny needing help to win protected Hyashi nicely and I could watch a few of these matches before getting bored of them. [**¾] 5.5/10
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