January 4th, 1998 is a night that now lives in infamy when it comes professional wrestling history. Mick Foley won his first WWE World Championship and that win also helped to turn the tide in WWE’s ratings war against WCW. The title win had been taped a week before and WCW thought it would be a good idea to spoil the win on the air. Announcer Tony Schiavone said the following during Nitro:
“Fans, as Hollywood Hogan walks away and you look at this 40,000 plus on hand, if you’re even thinking about changing the channel to our competition, fans, do not, because we understand that Mick Foley, who wrestled here one time as Cactus Jack, is going to win their world title. Ha! That’s gonna put some butts in the seats, heh.”
His announcement caused 600,000 to switch from Nitro to Raw to see the big win. It was a history making moment, one that Mick Foley reflected on today via his Facebook page. Foley, looking back on the moment posted the following:
“Yeah, that’s me, holding the WWE title aloft after defeating Dwayne The Rock Johnson, on the Raw that aired 17 years ago today. I think it’s safe to say that it was a big moment in the Monday Night Wars, and I am very thankful that so many people recall that moment fondly after all this time. Let me know if you were one of the 600.000 who changed the channel from #Nitro to #Raw after hearing the news.”
It’s hard to believe it’s been 17 years. Where were you when Mick Foley won his first WWE World Championship?
