Match of the Day - Curt Hennig saves Chris Jericho's life... basically

Curt Henning vs. Chris Jericho - WCW Monday Nitro (1997)

It might seem like a dream match now, but back in '97 a Hennig/Jericho match on Monday Nitro was just an excuse to talk about anything other than a Hennig/Jericho match. A shame really, but this was WCW at the height of the nWo days, remember.

While this match may forever be lost in the mix of other forgettable Nitro matches used to talk about the nWo, it does include a mishap on Chris Jericho's behalf that may not seem that big of a deal in hindsight, but it could have ended Jericho's career if it got any worse. What I'm talking about is Jericho's Lionsault (middle rope springboard moonsault) towards the end of the match that he botches by not rotating enough - the same exact move and mishap that paralyzed Hayabusa a few years later. Luckily in this instance, Curt Hennig, either on instinct or following out the spot, put his knees up at just the right time that Jericho ends up landing on Henning's knees with his back rather than on his head and, well, pretty much saving his neck:

phew.

Match of the Day - Elimination Chamber #1

Shawn Michaels vs. Rob Van Dam Vs. Kane vs. Booker T vs. Chris Jericho vs. Triple H - Elimination Chamber match for the World Heavyweight Championship - Survivor Series (2002)

Whether or not you are watching Elimination Chamber, or No Escape as it's called in Germany, here is look back at the very first Elimination Chamber match from 2002.

The match includes HBK's hella god awful "returning after four years" ring gear, RVD destroying Triple H's throat from the first "top of the pod" shot ever performed, and an overall good first Elimination Chamber.

Match of the Day - Mr. Monday Night returns to Raw for the first time in 6 years

Rob Van Dam vs. Chris Jericho - Raw (2013)

After returning to WWE at Money in the Bank, Rob Van Dam looked to impress the "Universe" by doing more than going through the motions as he did for most of his TNA run. So, for his return match to Raw he stepped his game up tremendously against some nobody from Calgary... err, wait, I mean Winnipeg, Chris Jericho.

While this match looked a bit sloppy to me at first, I had to keep coming back to because I knew I was missing something. After my fourth or so watch I take back the sloppy comment and replace it with yeah, this might just be my favorite match of Raw 2013. Mind you, even with that god awful "Download the WWE APP", "everything we say is trending", "Isn't social media great?" commentary.

Match of the Day - That other unification match that happened that one time

Chris Jericho vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin - Match to unify the WWF Championship with WCW's World Heavyweight Championship and to crown the new Undisputed Champion - WWF Vengeance (2001)

WWE may be labeling Randy Orton and John Cena's TLC match to unify the WWE title and the World Heavyweight title as the first unification match of its kind, but as someone who watched WWF buy out WCW, the eventually Invasion angle, and the final unification match with both companies top titles, I would have to beg the differ on that. Yes, I am aware that Jericho and Austin were wrestling to unify the WWE and WCW titles, but that same WCW title is being considered the same title still used today (or was, we'll see what happens) as the World Heavyweight title when it was reintroduced in 2002. Saying that this title here is not the same as the one John Cena held before TLC, yet saying that the title that Booker T won in WCW is the same, is completely ridiculous. By the way, if you go back and watch Jericho's entrance from the previous match you can clearly see Jericho is labeled as the "World Heavyweight" Champion; not just the WCW Champion.

Clearly someone just wants to make this Orton/Cena showdown huge by calling it the first of its kind.

The context behind this Austin/Jericho unification match is that there was a mini-tournament of sorts to crown the first undisputed champion by combining the WWE title with WCW's World heavyweight title. The first match was Kurt Angle taking on the WWF champ, Steve Austin, then The Rock (unsuccessfully) defended the World Heavyweight title against Chris Jericho. Jericho, just hot of winning the WHC had to take on Austin in the match above to crown the very first Undisputed Champion. The rest is history.

Match of the Debut - Bryan Danielson becomes Daniel Bryan

Daniel Bryan vs. The World Heavyweight champion Chris Jericho - NXT debut show (2010)

In good fashion like the other Mondays following a new champion crowning, here is Daniel Bryan's debut match in WWE.

Despite Bryan being no stranger to the WWE ring as seen just last month in the callback to the Danielson/Cena match on Velocity in 2003, this was Bryan's first match on WWE not only after becoming an indie sensation but also as "Daniel Bryan", the NXT contestant and rookie. He wouldn't be a rookie very long though, that's for sure.

This match was also the first main event on the very first NXT episode. Double debut.

Also, check out that bump Bryan takes on the side of the announce table after Jericho "catches" him in mid-air after the suicide dive.

Match of the Day - Chris Jericho vs Fandango of the 90's, Disco Inferno

Chris Jericho vs. Disco Inferno - WCW World Television Championship match - Monday Night Nitro (1998)

Fifteen years before Chris Jericho lost to Fandango in the ball-room dancer-turned-professional wrestler's debut match (at WrestleMania, no less), Chris Jericho had no trouble putting away the "disco never died" enthusiast, Disco Inferno here in this match on Nitro for the TV title.

Looking into it, I checked to see if there was ever a time that Disco upset Jericho just as Johnny "Fandango" Curtis had at WrestleMania this year. I was unsuccessful at finding such match, so I decided that this match above was the closest that Disco ever got to defeating the brash and arrogant World TV champ.

The video above also features the Nitro Girls, a high school gym teacher throwing a Nitro Party for his students, Mike Tenay unaware of what was going on and unable to answer The Brains simple question of who his (Tenay's) role model growing up was, and Jericho speaking in German for a split second.

Remember: Disco Inferno vs. Fandango WMXXX. I got a lot of money riding on it. It's going to happen.

Other WrestleMania XXX prodictions: Antonio Cesaro vs. Bork Lesnar vs. Steel Steps.

Match of the Day - Jericho steals Flair's Thunder

Chris Jericho vs. Ric Flair - WCW First Thunder (1998)

Much like a match I soon wish to share with you all (Hart/123Kid on RAW), this match features the well respected, crazy - yes crazy - but seasoned veteran and multi-time champion, Ric Flair taking on the young, brash, but highly gifted semi-rookie, Chris Jericho. And what's right about this situation rather than, say, the Lawler/Helms match in '06 is that Flair (along with Bret Hart) not only had a knack for putting younger talent over but also making it look as if he could actually be beaten by his opponents even with all the experience and big names/fights under his belt. Lawler all the while, didn't do so much for Gregory Helms and their small feud which just ends with The King of Memphis jumping off the top rope and seemingly squashing the young talent.

Another key difference to Jericho/Flair's situation and the Lawler/Helms is that Chris Jericho was bond for greatness and it should have come sooner with the resume that Jericho already had before WCW and right up until 1998 when he finally started to receive a push (in the form of bigger gold i.e. the TV title). I'm not saying that this match put Jericho over completely, no Jericho had to do that on his own, but this is just another one of those great new vs. old matches that actually works. Stuff like Kidman vs. Hulk Hogan where we are expected to root for the guy still trying to stay on the top of mountain even though he passed the torch onto another guy in 1990, just rattles my bones.

Anyways here's a match from the very first Thunder - WCW's Smackdown before Smackdown came along and stole their ratings. The original Thunder program had some sort of Legend of the Hidden Temple/aggro crag theme with a big rock-made titantron with flash-y lights and fog. At least, that's how I remember it...

Also enjoy the classic WCW commentating of this time.

Those were the days