On April 15, 1989 Warner and Hunt received a tryout with World Championship Wrestling, defeating The Tokyo Bullets in Chicago, IL.
Storm defeated Brett Holliday in his debut at the taping for World Championship Wrestling in Macon, GA.[3] Storm began a win streak, defeating Allen Iron Eagle and Tommy Rich before sustaining his first pinfall loss to Brad Armstrong, losing to him at Halloween Havoc '90 in a victory that announcer Jim Ross considered an "upset".
This began a losing streak for Storm, who would sustain losses to Tom Zenk, Brad Armstrong, and fellow Portland wrestler The Juicer.
[4] Of the three new teams that were brought into WCW for the September Clash of the Champions XII, neither the Nasty Boys nor Maximum Overdrive appeared to have been on long-term deals.
On December 11, 1990 the Nasty Boys made their World Wrestling Federation debut at a WWF Superstars taping in Tampa, Florida; at the same show J.W.
Storm would gain several victories, pinning Steve Lombardi, Doug Summers, Jim Brunzell, and Kato of The Orient Express during the early part of 1992.
Storm gained the services of Jimmy Hart at a Wrestling Challenge TV taping in Portland, Maine on July 21 as he faced the Dublin Destroyer, but this would be his final match of the year.