Mick Foley Recalls WCW Monday Nitro Spoiling WWE Raw Results Of His World Title Win

One of the most memorable moments of wrestling's "Monday Night War" in the 1990s saw WCW announcer Tony Schiavone state, live on an episode of "WCW Nitro," that Mankind (AKA Mick Foley) was about to win the world title on a pre-taped episode of "WWE Raw" airing at the same time. While WCW officials believed they were simply poking fun at the competition, many viewers changed the channel to see the fan-favorite win the WWE Championship, serving as another blow against the ill-fated wrestling promotion.

The match, which was taped in late 1998 but aired on January 4, 1999, featured Foley beating The Rock for the title with some help from "Stone Cold" Steve Austin. Foley recently appeared on the WWE Vault YouTube channel to look back at the moment and WCW's part in it.

"They made a tactical error by giving away the results," Foley said. "I believe, within seconds, up to 500,000 homes, or fans, switched channels, and the rest is history."

According to Foley, the fact that he was a hard-working underdog is what endeared him to fans, and WCW made the mistake of advertising his victory to the audience. By that point, WCW had given up any shred of momentum they had left, but it wound up being a great time for Foley.

"It set in for me the moment I held the title," Foley continued. "I had never seen that coming for me so I never made that my goal. ... Because I'd never let it define success for me, I never felt bad when I did not have it, but I have to tell you — when they handed it to me, it felt more like a lifetime achievement award."

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit WWE Vault with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.