Vengeance 2007
Date: June 24, 2007
Location: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
Attendance: 15,000
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole, Joey Styles, Tazz, John Layfield

It’s time for a Night of Champions (that has a ring to it) as this whole show is about title matches. We have nine title matches and that is almost a guarantee for a couple of changes. One of which will be the ECW World Title, which is vacant coming into the show. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at how everything is about the titles, with all of the titles on the line. As usual, the biggest matches get their own focuses.

Before the first match, Barry Windham and Mike Rotundo are presented at ringside, complete with some clips of their US Express days. That would be a nice touch throughout the night.

Raw Tag Team Titles: Lance Cade/Trevor Murdoch vs. Hardys

The Hardys are challenging and Cade starts with Matt. Cade powers Matt into the corner to start but Matt isn’t falling for the offer of a handshake this time around. They run the ropes until Matt hits a crossbody for an early two. Jeff comes in but Murdoch makes a blind tag and grabs a swinging neckbreaker. Back up and the Hardys start taking over on Murdoch’s arm, allowing Jeff to hit the slingshot dropkick in the corner.

The champs are cleared out to the floor but the Hardys aren’t about to let them walk out. Matt chases Murdoch but Cade makes a blind tag and takes out Matt’s knee. Cade and Murdoch start taking turns on said knee (which was banged up pretty badly on Smackdown), including Murdoch’s half crab. That’s finally broken up and Matt gets over to Jeff to pick the pace way up. The sitout gordbuster plants Cade but Murdoch breaks up the Swanton. With the referee getting Matt out of the ring, Cade hits the sitout Rock Bottom spinebuster to retain.

Rating: C. They didn’t exactly tear the house down here as this was more of a house show style match to warm the crowd up. That’s all it needed to be too as you don’t want to wear the crowd out at the start of a show. This is a feud that probably needs to wrap up already, as Cade and Murdoch have beaten them pretty definitively more than once.

King Booker tells Queen Sharmell that this is his night.

Jackass is coming to Summerslam. Do they really have to?

We look at Eddie Guerrero winning the WWE Title, with JBL declaring him the greatest Latino champion ever.

Cruiserweight Title: Jimmy Wang Yang vs. Chavo Guerrero

Chavo is defending and we get a video on Dean Malenko, who is in the back instead of ringside, during his entrance. Yang grabs a quick rollup for one as JBL runs down the history of the Guerrero family. The armbar doesn’t last long for Yang as Chavo sends him outside for a crash.

Back in and Yang kicks Chavo off the top but he’s right back up with a hiptoss into the corner. Chavo starts cranking on both arms but Yang fights up and hits a middle rope dropkick. The high crossbody gets two, only to have Chavo come back with the Three Amigos. Yang shrugs that off and hits a spinwheel kick but misses the moonsault, allowing Chavo to load up the Gory Bomb. That’s countered into a sunset flip for two so Chavo crotches him on top and hits the frog splash to retain.

Rating: C. The match was fairly good as you probably expected but the title is so worthless these days that it doesn’t matter. Yang was a good choice for a challenger as his gimmick makes him stand out, but the build was the usual lame, back and forth stuff that doesn’t make the champion or challenger look good. Again: find a better use for the title or get rid of it.

Commentary talks about Vince McMahon’s limo exploding with JR and King trying to figure out Vince’s mindset, including how he had a bad feeling something was going to happen to him.

Bobby Lashley wishes Vince was here to see him win the WWE Title.

We see some clips of Tazz in the original ECW.

ECW World Title: CM Punk vs. Johnny Nitro

The title is vacant coming in and Nitro is replacing Chris Benoit, who is missing the show due to personal reasons. The Peacock version changes the intro from “CM Punk’s opponent, the man who will be replacing Chris Benoit” to “CM Punk’s opponent” and commentary is muted during Nitro’s entrance. What isn’t edited out is the WE WANT BENOIT chants as they circle each other to start. Punk wastes no time in kicking him out to the floor and it’s time for a chase on the floor.

Back in and Nitro hits the Flying Chuck to take over and some right hands are rained down. We hit the armbar as the fans still want Benoit. A flying armbar takes Punk down again and Nitro grabs a cobra clutch to keep him in trouble. Punk fights up and hits an enziguri, setting up the slugout. Nitro gets up an elbow in the corner and puts his feet on the ropes for two, with the referee catching him. Back up and Punk hits the running knee in the corner into the bulldog for two. Nitro avoids the springboard clothesline though, setting up the hanging flip neckbreaker for the pin and the title.

Rating: C+. Nitro has come a long way and is actually feeling like a serious threat to win some fairly big matches. That being said, this was still an upset and Nitro looking surprised was a nice touch. It came out of nowhere and this wasn’t quite the original match, but at least they did rather well with what they had.

We look at Shawn Michaels beating Bret Hart in the Iron Man match to win the WWF Title.

Randy Orton comes up to Mick Foley and threatens to end his career with another concussion. Foley says he had that look on his face and remembers the same look on Orton’s face the last time they fought. Orton points out that he won that match and glaring ensues.

Ricky Steamboat is the feature former Intercontinental Champion.

Intercontinental Title: Umaga vs. Santino Marella

Marella is defending and avoids a charge in the corner to hammer away. That earns him a hard toss down but Umaga misses a headbutt. It doesn’t seem to bother him that much as he kicks Marella’s head off, setting up the nerve hold. Umaga unloads in the corner…and that’s a DQ to retain Santino’s title.

Umaga wrecks Marella, likely setting up a rematch to win the title.

Jackass is coming to Summerslam.

We look at the Vince McMahon investigator saying there was DNA from another well known personality. Possibly more no this tomorrow.

Magnum TA is the special former US Champion.

US Title: Ric Flair vs. MVP

MVP is defending and gets in TA’s face like a true heel should. Flair tries to go over to Magnum but MVP gets in his face. Cole says there’s no respect, but JBL asks if Flair wouldn’t have done the same thing. Point, JBL. They talk trash to start, or at least MVP does, while Flair goes with the WOO. A chop sends MVP outside and Flair gets to strut a bit. Back in and Flair takes him down by the leg and cranks away, setting up some knees to the leg.

MVP’s leg is fine enough to drape Flair over the top and a big boot knocks him outside. Flair gets back in and we hit the chinlock to keep him in trouble. MVP: “GO TO SLEEP! TAKE A NAP!” The rope gets Flair out of trouble and he chops his way out of trouble. Cole talks about great wrestlers who won the US Title and then moved on to become World Champion. JBL is incensed that he is not mentioned on that list, though the fact that he won the World Title first might have something to do with the omission.

Flair chops him so hard that MVP has to look at his chest as Cole (incorrectly) corrects himself by saying JBL belongs on the list as well. MVP takes him down into another chinlock before a fireman’s carry faceplant drops Flair again. Now it’s a reverse chinlock to keep Flair in trouble but he fights up for more chops. The comeback includes a backdrop and right hands in the corner before it’s time to go after the knee. The Figure Four goes on but MVP grabs the rope. Back up and MVP distracts the referee, allowing him to get in a thumb to the eye. That’s enough to set up the Playmaker to retain the title.

Rating: C+. Flair’s formula was on full display here and that’s what it needed to be. Flair can make anything work and he had someone talented in MVP here. While the title change would have been a stretch, Flair is in just the right spot to make it seem like a long shot chance. MVP was rather good here as well, with the trash talk and antics before the match making it better.

Edge interrupts a John Cena promo and says Cena is in trouble tonight. They accuse each other of wanting to take out Vince McMahon. Cue the investigator with some questions for Edge.

Tony Garea and Rick Martel of all people are here as former champions, despite having nothing to do with the titles about to be defended.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: Deuce N Domino vs. Sgt. Slaughter/Jimmy Snuka

Slaughter and Snuka are challenging because WWE’s tag divisions really are that weak. Snuka pounds on Domino’s head to start and hands it off to Slaughter for some elbows to the head. A snapmare gets two and a backdrop is good for the same as it’s all old guys to start. The Cobra Clutch goes on until Domino makes the rope so it’s the Slaughter Cannon to drop Domino again.

Slaughter grabs another Cobra Clutch but Deuce gets in a cheap shot to break it up. Deuce comes in and points at Snuka (his dad, not mentioned) before missing a Superfly Splash. Snuka comes in and gets to clean house, including a high crossbody….which Deuce rolls through to retain.

Rating: D+. All things considered, this wasn’t too bad. You’re only going to get so much out of two retired wrestlers in a short match with no heat and they got about as much as they could out of it here. It was a bizarre match, but the Deuce vs. Snuka stuff was at least a cool enough moment.

We recap Edge vs. Batista, in Batista’s last chance to win the World Title. Edge has cheated to beat him twice so now Batista is getting his final shot.

Harley Race is here. I don’t think that needs any further explanation.

Smackdown World Title: Edge vs. Batista

Edge is defending. Batista takes him into the corner to start and hammers away, setting up a shoulder for two. A front facelock slows Edge down until Batista switches to an armbar. Edge fights up with right hands but walks into a powerslam for two. That’s enough to make Edge bail to the floor but he catches Batista with some kicks to the floor on the way back in.

Batista gets sent shoulder first into the post and there’s a baseball slide to put him on the floor again. Back up again and Batista misses a charge to go shoulder first into the post again so Edge grabs the armbar. That’s not enough so Edge turns it into a crucifix to work on both arms at once. Batista fights up but charges into a boot in the corner, only to come back with a heck of a clothesline.

Edge slips out of the Batista Bomb and hits the Impaler for two of his own. A powerslam is countered into the Edge-O-Matic and they’re both down. Back up and Batista cuts off the spear with one of his own…but Edge hits him low for the DQ. Hold on though as here is Teddy Long to say restart the match, and if Edge gets himself disqualified again, he loses the title. Edge hammers away and hits a quick spear for two but Batista clotheslines him outside. Batista follows and hits the Batista Bomb on the floor but takes too long throwing Edge back inside for the countout.

Rating: B-. This felt like a big match and that is how it should have been, though they had a weird ending as they didn’t want Batista to get pinned again so this was about all they could have done. Edge retaining the title is the right call as Batista doesn’t need to get it back anytime soon. Probably the best match on the show so far, but that’s not the biggest accomplishment.

Batista is furious post match and Batista Bombs Edge again.

We look at the Fabulous Moolah, as the Spider Lady, taking the Women’s Title from Wendi Richter in the Original Screwjob.

Women’s Title: Melina vs. Candice Michelle

Candice is challenging and gets kneed in the face for trying a test of strength to start. Melina breaks up a triangle choke over the ropes and sends her outside for the big crash. Back in and Melina rakes the face in the corner, setting up a running knee to the ribs. There’s a faceplant to rock Candice again and we hit the bow and arrow.

Candice fights up and drops her ribs first across the top, setting up a powerslam. A running hair takedown gets two but Melina grabs a neckbreaker for two of her own. Back up and Candice hits a spinning….body attack we’ll say, though I think it was supposed to be a kick, for the pin and the title out of nowhere.

Rating: D+. It was pretty sloppy, but at least they finally had a title change on the show. Candice has been built up for months and while this wasn’t a great match, it was well built up over time. WWE has needed a new singles star in the division and Candice is about as good of a choice as they have.

JBL is recognized, and yes he has his own prepared statement about his greatness, both in and out of the ring.

We recap the Raw World Title match, which is John Cena vs. any former World Champion on the Raw roster. That’s about as easy of an idea as you can get and that’s not a bad thing.

Raw World Title: John Cena vs. Mick Foley vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Randy Orton vs. King Booker

Cena is defending and it’s one fall to a finish with no countouts/DQ’s. Booker heads to the floor to start for a shoulder rub from Queen Sharmell so Foley hits the Cactus Clothesline to Orton, leaving us with Lashley vs. Cena. That’s broken up by Booker but everyone winds up on the floor, leaving Lashley to hit a big dive (that was scary). Back in and Lashley hits a Rack Attack on Booker but Cena makes the save, setting up the big showdown.

A spinebuster drops Cena and Lashley sends him outside for a ram into the steps. Everyone brawls on the floor, with Booker whipping Foley knees first into the steps. An FU puts Lashley through the announcers’ table (which exploded) but Booker kicks Cena in the face for two. The ax kick gets the same but Cena quickly dispatches an invading Orton and beats up Booker.

Cena loads up the FU, which is cut off by an RKO out of nowhere. Foley is back in to go after Orton, including the double arm DDT for no cover. Instead Foley busts out Mr. Socko, only to get kicked down by Booker. Foley grabs a chair but hits Lashley by mistake, followed by more shots to Cena and Booker. Orton jumps Foley from behind and Punts Foley but gets speared by Lashley. Everyone else fights to the floor and it’s the FU to Foley to retain Cena’s title.

Rating: C. This wasn’t designed to be a classic or anything, but rather having five people out there flying through everything they could to get us to the ending. Cena retaining works of course, as his title reign has gone on so long now that you don’t have him lose in a spot like this. Lashley vs. Cena was set up here too so we might already have a title match for the Great American Bash.

Cena poses to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. It wasn’t the worst show or anything close to it, but this was also one of the most middle of the road and mediocre collections of matches I’ve seen in a long time. There was one title change (not counting a vacant title win) and almost nothing felt like it was going to matter beyond the next show each. Certainly not a bad show, but nothing is necessary viewing either. At least they have a concept with the Night of Champions though and that’s an easy way to go in the future.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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What in the world happened to this show? Fans have not exactly seemed thrilled with the Battle For Brand Supremacy for a long time now, but this year even the wrestlers have been complaining about how worthless the show really is. There is nothing of value here as the show is all about bragging rights, without even as much as a title on the line. Maybe the action can make up for the lack of…well everything else. Let’s get to it.

Shinsuke Nakamura (SmackDown) vs. Damian Priest (Monday Night Raw)

We’ll start it off with a battle of the midcard champions in a match that is kind of appealing. Nakamura has come a very long way since winning the King’s Crown and then the Intercontinental Title. At the same time, Priest is one of the few people to be called up from NXT and then actually do something good on the main roster. The fact that these are two of the exceptions tells you a lot about WWE, but that’s for another time.

I think I’ll go with Priest here, but I had to keep myself from writing Nakamura. You can’t go wrong with either choice here and that is always a good situation to be in. These two are going to hit each other rather hard, though I’m still not sure what is next for either of them after this. Priest has been gone from TV a bit as of late so it would be nice to have him get a win here to re-energize him a bit.

Usos (SmackDown) vs. RKBro (Monday Night Raw)

This is a great illustration of the usual different kinds of tag teams in WWE. You have the regular team vs. the odd couple team who happens to be great together. It’s the kind of thing that could be interesting if there was something on the line, but the quick deal they did on Monday Night Raw isn’t enough to carry it over the line. That leaves us with little more than a match with big names, which is where Orton tends to shine.

Maybe it’s the purist in me but I’ll take the traditional team and go with the Usos here. They’re a better team and one of the most successful teams of all time. RKBro is great and you can’t ignore the RKO, but I’m hoping that this winds up with a Superfly Splash to Riddle. The Usos need to win here to keep Roman Reigns happy, and that’s about as important as you can get these days. We’ll go with the twins.

Battle Royal

They were going to have to add in one more match for the sake of giving us an odd number and this works as well as anything else. The match will have twenty five people included to tie in with the Rock’s debut from 25 years ago, so at least they added a tiny bit of flavor. A Rock video wouldn’t surprise me here, and that’s about the extent of excitement I can muster.

For a winner I’ll go with….Otis for a random surprise. It’s not like this is going to be anything more than one match on the scorecard so why not have a little fun. Otis has been treated as a bigger deal as of late so give him a win that they can brag about for a bit. There isn’t much of a chance of him winning but it’s not like this is the Royal Rumble or anything huge.

Monday Night Raw Women vs. SmackDown Women

I’m not sure I could remember the lineups for this match if I had to and that’s a good illustration of what is wrong with the match. These women were thrown together and there is no real reason to get excited over what we’re seeing. Odds are it’s a bunch of fast falls with no one getting much of a showcase, which would be the norm around here. At least Toni Storm is getting a shot on a bigger stage for once.

I think I’ll take the SmackDown women here, as their lineup is just a bit stronger. We should be in for some good action, at least while it lasts, but you’re only going to get so far with little drama and a bunch of women trying to get their stuff in. The women’s matches have been decent in recent years, but things have changed so much that it is hard to get my hopes up here.

Monday Night Raw Men vs. SmackDown Men

Here we have the show’s other namesake match and another match where the teams might as well have been drawn out of a hat. There is little connecting these people other than their matching shirts and I don’t know how much drama they will be able to produce under these conditions. Then again you can always get SOMETHING out of one of these matches so maybe they have some hope.

I’ll go with the red ones here as that is a pretty awesome group. Then again that is assuming Kevin Owens doesn’t turn on the rest of the team, which certainly wouldn’t be out of the question. The match should work out well due to who is in there, but it’s another one that doesn’t quite excite me. Maybe if the teams hadn’t been added to their new shows about a month ago.

Becky Lynch (Monday Night Raw) vs. Charlotte (SmackDown)

I could actually see this headlining the show. This is the match that is built off of the backstage altercation the two of them had which hasn’t actually been mentioned on TV, but WWE is assuming that we all know what they’re talking about. While it would be nice to have something fresh in this spot for a change, I can get the special feeling they’re going for with these two.

The match is basically a coin toss but I’ll take Charlotte due to reasons of her being Charlotte. Lynch is still the biggest star in the Monday Night Raw women’s division but Charlotte winning sounds about right. I’m almost scared about how they’re going to end the match though, as this could be a prime target for some kind of a screwy finish to protect them both.

Roman Reigns (SmackDown) vs. Big E. (Monday Night Raw)

This one got a lot more personal this week and that’s a good thing. Anything involving serious Big E. feels like a boost and that is what we are getting now that Reigns has attacked King Woods. I’m not sure how much doubt there is about the winner here, but this is actually feeling like a clash of two guys who could do some serious damage to each other if they get the chance.

With that said, of course Reigns wins, likely thanks to an Usos distraction. Things seem to be setting up for Woods vs. Reigns at Day One in Atlanta so having Big E. win here wouldn’t make a ton of sense. It also isn’t likely that Reigns is going to lose a match that doesn’t have any meaning, as WWE has built him up far too strong. Reigns wins here, but only after he takes a beating.

Overall Thoughts

I think you get the idea of how Survivor Series isn’t what it used to be. Ultimately there is nothing on the line here and everyone but WWE seems to know that is a problem. I have no reason to believe that will change next year, but for at least this time we’re stuck with another show that feels like two TNA One Night Only specials got melted into each other. Maybe it will be good, though don’t expect much that happens here to matter, even in the short term.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Monday Night Raw
Date: June 18, 2007
Location: Richmond Coliseum, Richmond, Virginia
Attendance: 7,242
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

We’re a week removed from Vince McMahon being blown up and that means it is time to ramp up the investigation. At the same time, it is time for the first Raw with the new roster following both the Draft and the Supplemental Draft. At the same time too, it’s the go home show for Vengeance. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of the explosion, now with statements from eyewitnesses and the lead investigator. Said investigator says we’re looking into it.

Here is Mick Foley to get things going, saying if he had known what would happen to Vince, he might have been nicer to him last week. Sure Vince told him he had no skills and looked horrible, but maybe he should apologize. Cue Randy Orton to interrupt to say a simple insincere apology isn’t going to make everything better. Orton thinks Foley had all of the motivation in the world to take Vince out, but here is King Booker to interrupt. Booker thinks Bobby Lashley is quite the suspect, but here is Lashley to shove him out of the ring.

Orton bails too and here is John Cena to interrupt. Cena doesn’t think much of these investigations and says there is more to this than just pointing a finger at someone and saying he did it. How many friends did Vince really have in the first place? Cena lists off all kinds of people, including anyone associated with the XFL, who could be involved. Cue Coach he is in charge of Raw, so tonight it’s Cena/Lashley vs. Orton/Booker. As for Foley, he can face Umaga.

Next week: a three hour special on the investigation into Vince McMahon, featuring stars from all three shows.

Brian Kendrick/Paul London vs. World’s Greatest Tag Team

Haas takes London down by the arm to start and Benjamin adds a kick to the ribs to make it worse. Benjamin knocks London into the corner but gets kicked away, allowing the hot tag off to Kendrick. Everything breaks down and Kendrick flips out of Haas’ release German suplex, setting up Sliced Bread for the sudden pin.

Rating: C-. No time to go anywhere but what made a difference was the fact that it was actually something fresh. That was lacking last week on Smackdown as there was no reason to put out the same matches that we have seen for weeks (if not months) on end. Not exactly a great match here, but at least it felt different.

Coach answers some questions about Vince McMahon’s murder.

Here is Carlito for a chat. He misses Mr. McMahon but wants to talk about the Draft. The big winners were Ric Flair and Torrie Wilson, who got to leave Raw last week and get away from him. Cue the Sandman to chase Carlito off.

Cryme Tyme miss Vince because he was a capitalist…so let’s sell a bunch of his stuff! Like his last meal and his trash can! The investigator comes in to ask them some questions.

Daivari vs. Jeff Hardy

Big pop for Hardy and Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch are at ringside. Hardy hammers away to start but gets crotched on top to slow him down. The armbar goes on for a bit, with Hardy fighting up to hit a quick Whisper in the Wind. Daivari slams him down and hits a quick running legdrop, only to walk into the Twist of Fate. The Swanton finishes for Hardy in a hurry.

Rating: C-. This was a good way to give Hardy a quick boost and it’s not like Daivari has any kind of value in the first place. Hardy is someone who always seems ready to break out on his own, which might be the case given that Matt is over on Smackdown. Now just get done with the Cade/Murdoch feud and we could be on to something.

Post match Cade and Murdoch accuse Jeff of disrespecting them so Jeff takes them out with a dive.

Coach doesn’t like being questioned about Vince but needs to meet with someone from Sheik Production. Cue the Iron Sheik, to think he should have his own show here on Raw. Coach walks off so here is Ron Simmons to say his catchphrase.

William Regal introduces himself to Maria but Santino Marella comes in to flatter her in Italian.

Vince’s limo driver doesn’t know anything about what happened last week.

Here’s the same video that opened the show.

Mick Foley vs. Umaga

What a weird culture clash. It’s a brawl on the floor before the bell (duh) until Foley hammers away inside. A running clothesline drops Foley and he gets punched outside. Foley chairs Umaga in the head but the chair is superkicked back into his face. Umaga crushes him against the steps and the referee calls for the medics. The bell never rang so no match.

A white limo backs into the parking lot.

Mick Foley is being checked on by the doctor, who tells the investigator that Foley can’t answer any questions at the moment. The investigator needs to learn timing.

Here is Mr. Kennedy for a chat. He’s upset about what happened to Vince but he’s here on Raw. Kennedy yells at the fans for the WHAT chants before talking about how he isn’t someone who just talks about what he wants. That’s why he’s in here and they’re out there. From now on, he is dedicating his career to the memory of Mr. McMahon. Thaty’s why he changed his name to Kennedy in OVW.

Melina/Jillian Hall vs. Candice Michelle/Mickie James

Mickie is the hometown girl and interrupts Jillian’s rendition of Amazing Grace in tribute to Vince. Candice and Jillian start things off with Candice getting two off an Oklahoma roll. Jillian goes with the hair toss, setting up the handspring elbow in the corner. Melina comes in with the choking on the ropes as the villains start alternating.

It’s back to Jillian for some loud choking as her offense isn’t the most varied. Said non-varied offense is broken up by a kick to Melina, allowing the hot tag to Mickie. House is cleaned in a hurry and a neckbreaker gets two on Melina. Everything breaks down and Candice takes Jillian outside, leaving Melina to hit her standing legdrop to finish Mickie.

Rating: C-. Candice is getting a lot better in a hurry while Jillian doesn’t exactly seem to have the best offense in the world. What matters here is setting up Melina vs. Candice, which should be a good showdown after so many weeks of setting it up. The title match could work, though it’s going to be a test for both of them.

JR and King talk about the explosion and how much they miss Vince.

We look at the explosion again, this time with shows of the charred limo.

The white limo is still in the parking lot but no one has gotten out.

Randy Orton/King Booker vs. John Cena/Bobby Lashley

Queen Sharmell is here with Booker. Lashley and Booker get things going with Booker slugging his way out of the corner. That earns him a shove right back into the corner so Lashley can slug away instead. A powerslam gives Lashley two and it’s off to Cena, who runs straight over to Orton for the tag. Everything breaks down and Cena clears the ring as we take a break. Back with Cena fighting out of a chinlock and running Orton over.

Orton grabs the leg though, allowing Booker to come in and kick Cena in the head. Booker grabs his own chinlock before handing it back to Orton for his assortment of stomping. We’re on the third chinlock in less than five minutes, meaning Cena has to fight out again. This time that means a double clothesline, allowing the double tag to Lashley and Booker so the pace can pick up. Lashley suplexes Booker down but he’s back up to superkick Cena. Booker walks into Lashley’s spinebuster but Orton is back up with the RKO for the pin.

Rating: C. Totally standard main event tag match here, albeit with a very high concentration of chinlocks. Orton getting the pin over Lashley keeps him looking strong, as what is likely a Summerslam showdown with Cena continues to loom. Booker will be a fine addition to the roster, though I’m not sure what exactly he is going to be doing at the moment.

We go back to the while limo and Stephanie McMahon gets out.

Snitsky is coming next week.

Stephanie McMahon meets with Coach and says she has to do this on her own.

We run down the Vengeance card.

Here is Stephanie McMahon for a chat. She invites us to a celebration of Vince McMahon’s life next week, featuring all three brands over three hours. Stephanie starts crying and talks about how she has lost the only person she has ever known as her father before dropping the mic and walking out in a hurry to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. This was quite the slow show, which is understandable but not exactly the most interesting week. The problem is that almost everything is focusing on the big Vince story and that seems to be the plan for next week as well. At least they aren’t wasting time getting to the point, though I’m almost worried about where all of this is going.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Monday Night Raw
Date: November 15, 2021
Location: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana
Commentators: Jimmy Smith, Byron Saxton, Corey Graves

It’s the go home show for Survivor Series and that means we should be in for some build to the show. Granted that has been the case for a few weeks now and the focus has been on whatever comes after the show instead. Maybe we can talk about the show a bit more this week, as they don’t have much time left before the pay per view. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of Kevin Owens trying to make people believe he had changed last week. Then he lost to Seth Rollins and beat up Big E. anyway.

Here is Big E. for a chat. He thanks the fans for their attention before moving on to Roman Reigns. The Usos attacked his friends and now it is time to beat Reigns like he stole something. There better be some empty beds in those Brooklyn hospitals for them because he is taking a piece of Reigns that can never come back. That’s for Sunday but this is Monday Night Raw, so he needs to talk to Kevin Owens.

Big E. wants Kevin Owens out here right now so here he is. Owens talks about how last week was his third loss in a row and of course he snapped. He talks about how he was pushed too far and now he is going to break bad on everyone in the locker room, including Big E. That’s enough for Big E., who wants to fight right now. Owens heads to the back and for once, Big E. actually follows his….with the Usos popping up to jump him from behind.

The beatdown is on, with the Usos promising that Reigns is taking him out at Survivor Series. Oh and RKBro? The Usos run Raw too. Cue Riddle to jump the Usos with Big E. getting up to help clear the ring. Sonya Deville comes out to match the tag match. Hold on though because here is Seth Rollins to join us. I could go for a lot more of it, but this was exactly what it needed to be: Big E. acknowledging Roman Reigns and making their match seem personal. I’m not sure why it took so long to do so, but it’s better than nothing.

Riddle/Big E. vs. Usos

Non-title and Seth Rollins is on commentary. Big E. takes Jey into the corner to start and hands it off to Riddle for some kicks to the ribs. It’s back to Big E. as Riddle is sent outside, leaving Big E. to beat up the Usos on his own. That’s enough for Rollins, who jumps Owens for the DQ at 2:57.

Post match the beatdown is on but here is Randy Orton for the save. So where was he five minutes ago? An RKO drops Jimmy and we take a break, unfortunately without the big neon sign saying the six man is next.

Usos/Seth Rollins vs. Big E./RKBro

Joined in progress with Rollins’ arm getting cranked so it’s off to Riddle. It’s off to Jimmy, who kicks Riddle down and grabs a chinlock. Jey gets kicked off the apron but the distraction lets Riddle kick Jey down. It’s off to Big E. to pick up the pace, including the Warrior Splash to Jimmy.

A kick to Big E. doesn’t do much good as he takes Jimmy to the apron for a bunch of forearms to the chest. The apron splash connects as we take a break. Back with Orton having to fight out of a nerve hold and getting over to Riddle to pick up the pace. House is cleaned with forearms, suplexes, knees and backsplashes before everything breaks down. We settle down to Rollins elbowing Riddle in the front and back of the head, setting up a rollup for the pin at 11:10.

Rating: C. Slightly tired formula for setting the match up aside, this worked well enough to set up a pair of matches at the same time. Rollins getting the pin is a bit odd as he is the one who is the least associated with everyone else, but at least he has something going on of his own. Now can we get someone to work on Orton’s run-in schedule? He needs to be a more thoughtful partner.

Post match the Usos go after Riddle but Orton makes the save with the RKO. Everyone else leaves and Big E. grabs Jimmy, telling him to tell daddy Roman that the message is received. He has a return message, and that’s a Big Ending.

We recap Doudrop costing Bianca Belair her shot at becoming #1 contender last week.

Bianca Belair isn’t happy with Doudrop but Tamina interrupts. Tamina says she’s Belair’s business tonight, which works for Belair.

Kevin Owens doesn’t appreciate being called a liar, but he was in fact lying because that’s what a bad guy does. Therefore, by saying he is a liar and then lying, he was telling the truth. Finn Balor pops up to say he doesn’t trust Owens but since he was supposed to face Seth Rollins, he’ll face Owens instead. Owens seems down.

Bianca Belair vs. Tamina

Tamina runs her over to start and we hit the chinlock as Doudrop is watching in the back. A running elbow drops Belair again but she’s back up with a dropkick into the corner. Belair hits a spinebuster for two but Tamina scores with a superkick. The Superfly Splash is broken up with a slam off the top so Belair tries a handspring moonsault. Tamina gets the knees up but Belair hits her in the face and grabs the KOD for the pin at 4:40.

Rating: D+. So that’s what happens when Belair faces Tamina, in case you were actually wondering how that would have gone. I’m not sure why you would have, but it was nice to see Belair get a win. It’s designed to set up Belair vs. Doudrop though, and that might not be the most interesting choice.

Post match here is Doudrop to say she is coming for Belair after Survivor Series.

Here is Becky Lynch for a chat and the fans didn’t seem to get the memo about needing to boo her. We see a clip of Charlotte talking about Becky on Smackdown and asking who Lynch even is. Becky says she used to be Charlotte’s best friend and the person who was always there for her. She was the person who was always there to offer Charlotte a shoulder to cry on, but the condition was Becky always had to be in the background. Then she dropped Charlotte and jumped into the stratosphere. Her success has made Charlotte so bitter and now she is going to make Charlotte face all of her demons.

Cue Liv Morgan to interrupt and say Becky just left her last week. Becky was expecting this and has a video ready, showing Morgan promising to become champion four months ago. Back in the arena, Becky says she has been back and won the title in 26 seconds, but Morgan has still done nothing. Morgan thinks Big Time Becks is a Big Time B**** and since that is the ONLY INSULT WOMEN IN WWE KNOW, the fight is on. The threat of the Manhandle Slam is countered into an armdrag and Becky leaves, allowing Morgan to hold up the title. Morgan was stepping up here, though it’s hard to imagine her having a real chance.

Randy Orton yells at Riddle for getting involved but Riddle just gets confused about being the enemy of your friend. Orton: “NOBODY SAYS THAT!” Orton only cares about this team and storms off, with the Street Profits popping up to say they like what Riddle did earlier. Riddle likes them too and they share a catchphrase.

Street Profits vs. Alpha Academy

Yeah they feuded on Smackdown over the summer but this is on Raw so it’s new and exciting. Dawkins flips over Gable to start and takes him down, allowing Ford to work on the arm. Ford’s dropkick drops Gable (with a kick) but Otis comes in to run Dawkins over. Dawkins avoids a charge in the corner though and Ford hits a big flip dive to take Gable down on the floor. Otis runs over both Profits and we take a break.

Back with Otis splashing Dawkins’ knee and handing it off to Gable for a dragon screw legwhip. The moonsault misses though and Dawkins hits the Silencer. That’s enough for the hot tag back to Ford, who strikes away at Otis. The kicks just seem to annoy Otis though, as he hits a pop up World’s Strongest Slam. Everything breaks down and Otis misses a charge into the barricade. Gable dives off the top onto Ford, who rolls through for the pin at 11:07.

Rating: C+. It’s no surprise that these teams worked well together because they have done it so often now. The Profits are a good team and the Academy has found their footing, so it would be nice to see them shifted towards the title picture. It’s not like RKBro is overflowing with challengers at the moment, so let’s see what these two could do.

We look back at Bobby Lashley beating Dominik Mysterio to take Dominik’s spot on the Survivor Series team.

Rey Mysterio comes in to see Adam Pearce about what happened with Dominik last week. Pearce doesn’t like Rey’s tone and gives him a match with Lashley tonight.

Nikki Ash vs. Queen Zelina

Rhea Ripley and Carmella are at ringside too. Nikki grabs a headlock to start before hitting a running crossbody. That earns her a toss to the apron so Nikki comes back in with a rollup for two. Vega gets caught in a fireman’s carry but fights out for a knee to the face. The chinlock goes on until Nikki fights up and kicks the knee out. A Carmella distraction lets Vega catch her on top though and Code Red gives Vega the pin at 2:45.

Post match Carmella yells at Rhea and a match seems ready.

Rhea Ripley vs. Carmella

Joined in progress with Ripley hitting a delayed vertical suplex and then tossing Carmella without much trouble. Carmella gets in a kick to the face for two and we hit the chinlock. Ripley fights up and grabs a northern lights suplex, earning herself a kick to the face. Back up and Ripley hits a headbutt into the Riptide for the pin at 4:10.

Rating: C-. This was quick enough and they didn’t do anything nuts like having Ripley lose. I’m not sure what the point is in having the Survivor Series team fight each other, but it’s not like the Women’s Tag Team Champions could do anything like defend their titles. That would suggest WWE cares about them and I think even they’re smart enough to know otherwise.

Post match, Vega says it doesn’t matter because Carmella is still going to lead the Raw women to victory at Survivor Series.

Big E. comes in to see Adam Pearce, who threatens to suspend him if he doesn’t play nice tonight.

Seth Rollins promises to lead Raw to the mountaintop, both before and after Survivor Series.

Finn Balor vs. Kevin Owens

Owens runs him over to start and hits an early backsplash for two. Balor rolls through a powerbomb though and scores with a basement dropkick. They head outside where the running apron kick is countered, allowing Owens to hit a swinging leg trap belly to back suplex for two. We hit the chinlock but Balor fights back and knocks Owens into the corner. Owens gets sent outside and that means the big flip dive to the floor as we take a break.

Back with Owens hitting a super Regal Roll for two and yelling at the fans a lot. A spinning side slam gives Owens two more and Balor charges into a superkick for the same. Balor rolls to the floor and hits the shotgun dropkick into the barricade. Back in and Owens hits the pop up sitout powerbomb for two but the Swanton hits knees. Balor gets caught going up top though and it’s a Stunner to give Owens the pin at 12:16.

Rating: B-. These two work well together and Owens needed the win to establish himself a bit better. Owens seems likely for a big Raw title match before his contract expires, though I can’t really picture him sticking around at this point. I’m not sure what is next for Balor, but dang I can’t remember the last time he won something important.

Here’s what happened at the Wrestlemania ticket on-sale party.

AJ Styles and Omos aren’t happy with Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler. Styles isn’t worried though, because he has his own Omos.

Dolph Ziggler and Roberts Roode aren’t worried either and think Styles and Omos are like the movie Twins, with AJ being Danny DeVito.

Video on Damian Priest.

AJ Styles/Omos vs. Robert Roode/Dolph Ziggler

AJ allows Omos to start with Roode, who thinks twice about things. Roode gets thrown into the corner and clotheslined, meaning it’s off to Ziggler instead. Omos fireman’s carries Ziggler into a faceplant and it’s the Phenomenal Forearm to give AJ the pin at 3:16.

Rating: D+. So that was a total squash and I’m not quite sure why. Styles and Omos are established as a team so it’s not like they needed the boost. It was one of the more dominant looking performances from Omos though, who will work well as a monster if he can start getting a bit better in the ring.

Bobby Lashley is ready to run through Rey Mysterio tonight, just like he’ll do to Team Smackdown on Sunday.

Smackdown Rebound.

Survivor Series rundown.

Rey Mysterio vs. Bobby Lashley

Dominik Mysterio is here with Rey. Lashley starts with the power but Rey slips out to the apron for a top rope seated senton. Some right hands put Rey down so Dominik offers a distraction, allowing Rey to knock Lashley outside. Rey’s sliding armdrag is countered but he manages to send Lashley into the post. Something like the 619 grazes Lashley and the sliding splash to the floor hits him again. Back up and Lashley throws him into the barricade as we take a break.

We come back with Rey being powered into the corner as Adam Pearce watches backstage. Rey avoids a running clothesline but his springboard moonsault is countered into a spinning Big Ending. Lashley sends him outside for a loud posting, followed by the running shoulder to the ribs back inside. There’s a one armed delayed suplex to taunt Dominik a bit but Rey fights up again. This time it’s a 619 into the ribs, setting up the regular version to the face. The top rope splash connects but Lashley picks him up and grabs the Hurt Lock for the tap at 11:11.

Rating: C. If I never see another Rey Mysterio/Dominik match again, it’s going to be too soon. I’ve been a big Rey fan for a long time but this stuff is just not interesting and it’s dragging down almost everything they do. It would be nice to just get to the split already so they can stop this family stuff, as it stopped being interesting a good while ago. For now though, it was fun to see Lashley maul him like a bear being let loose in an aquarium.

Post match Lashley keeps the hold on but glares at Dominik, who is too scared to get in. Lashley lets go and we cut to Adam Pearce, who heads into the arena with a microphone. It is his job to give us the best competition at Survivor Series, so Rey is off the team for a replacement to be named later. Cue Austin Theory to take out Dominik and get a quick selfie. Pearce likes that, so Theory is on the team in Rey’s spot. So yeah, we now have two evil authority figures, as that’s an idea that was begging to be rehashed.

Overall Rating: C. This show was certainly a rushed build to Survivor Series, but it was nice to have a focus for once. That’s something Raw has been lacking, as it feels like they have been building to multiple things at once. They were doing it again here, though it was nowhere near as bad as in previous weeks, when Survivor Series felt like a total afterthought. Survivor Series still doesn’t feel important, but at least it feels like WWE remembers it’s happening.

Results
Riddle/Big E. b. Usos via DQ when Seth Rollins interfered
Seth Rollins/Usos b. RKBro/Big E. – Rollup to Riddle
Bianca Belair b. Tamina – KOD
Street Profits b. Alpha Academy – Rollup to Gable
Queen Zelina b. Nikki Ash – Code Red
Rhea Ripley b. Carmella – Riptide
Kevin Owens b. Finn Balor – Stunner
AJ Styles/Omos b. Robert Roode/Dolph Ziggler – Phenomenal Forearm to Ziggler
Bobby Lashley b. Rey Mysterio – Hurt Lock

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Monday Night Raw
Date: June 11, 2007
Location: Wachovia Arena, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole, Tazz, John Bradshaw Layfield, Joey Styles

It’s time for a special three hour edition (like that has a future) as we have the annual Draft. This show will include all three brands, including ECW for a change. They have really hyped up the idea that ANYONE can be drafted to any show and that seems like they are primed for something interesting. These things can have quite the batch of surprises so maybe we can get that again this time. It’s also Mr. McMahon Appreciation Night, which I’m sure won’t go anywhere. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Vince McMahon reads us a prepared statement, saying that he is in full control of his mental faculties and tonight, you will hear uncensored comments on him from various people. Tonight will be the defining moment of his life.

Opening sequence.

All of the commentators welcome us to the show, saying that there will be interpromotional matches tonight, with the winning brand getting a Draft pick. I’ve heard worse ideas.

John Cena (Raw) vs. Edge (Smackdown)

Non-title. They lock up to start with Cena whipping him hard into the corner and getting one off a suplex. Edge is right back with a running forearm to the back of the head, followed by some shots to the jaw. A kick to the chest puts Cena on the apron and there’s a baseball slide to put him outside. Back in and Edge scores with a clothesline (JR: “Slobberknocker style.”) and a spinwheel kick gets two more.

Cena tries a quick FU but gets kicked in the face instead, setting up a chinlock as they’re certainly at a pretty fast pace early on. After powering up, Cena tries the STFU but Edge is straight into the ropes for another break. The Throwback has some more effect for Cena and now the real comeback is on. Edge misses what looked to be a spear and crashes out to the floor, where Cena loads up the super FU. Since that would cause quite the amount of damage, Edge rakes his eyes and dives in to beat the count for the win.

Rating: C. This was a televised version of a post show dark match they probably did about a hundred times, albeit with a countout instead of a DQ. They didn’t have much time to do anything here but there is nothing wrong with flying through a match when you have this kind of experience and chemistry with someone. It might not have been a classic, but it did what it needed to.

The Draft pick sends….Great Khali to Smackdown, meaning he has now been on all three brands since the beginning of the year. Cena smiles and Edge realizes he’s in trouble. Khali (with interpreter) comes to the stage and Edge panics.

We get a video on Vince McMahon’s introduction into wrestling (from the McMahon DVD, as will be the case with all of his clips tonight) and how he didn’t want people to know he owned the company for a long time. Other than a few quick notes, it wasn’t acknowledged very often on WWF TV until the late 90s.

Jesse Ventura says Vince hasn’t earned the title of Mr. just yet. This company is a dictatorship and Vince isn’t a benevolent dictator. Like the rest of them, Vince will fall one day.

Coach informs us that Vengeance will now be a Night Of Champions (we knew that already) and any former World Champion on the Raw roster at the end of the night can challenge for the WWE Title in the main event. Even if the WWE Title isn’t on Raw? Isn’t that kind of missing the point of the show?

CM Punk (ECW) vs. Carlito (Raw)

Punk knocks him down to start but Carlito manages to dropkick Punk out of the air to take over. A suplex and elbow stay on Punk’s bad ribs and it’s time to grab a bodyscissors. That’s broken up in a hurry and Punk grabs a bodyscissors to put him in trouble instead. The corner bulldog is broken up though and Carlito scores with the Backstabber to send Punk outside. Back in and Punk hits the GTS for the pin out of nowhere (it’s as sudden as it sounds).

Rating: C-. This came and went without much trouble as you can only get so far with a five minute match without that much drama. Punk isn’t going to lose to Carlito, as Carlito has fallen down pretty far in recent months. At the same time, Punk is rising up through the ranks and there was no reason to suggest he was in trouble here.

The Draft pick sends….the Boogeyman to ECW. That makes all the sense in the world actually. Joey: “Just what ECW needed: more freaks.”

Snoop Dogg likes Vince McMahon bringing in great wrestlers…who can beat Vince up.

Another McMahon clip looks at Vince tormenting various people over the years because he is a rather evil man.

Here is Mick Foley for a surprise chat. Normally he doesn’t like listening to Jonathan Coachman, but he heard something mentioned about former WWE Champions being allowed to take part in an open challenge match. Since he was rehired last year, he’s technically part of the Raw roster so he’ll be at Vengeance, assuming he isn’t drafted. As for Vince, he’s an arrogant, misogynistic and horrible person.

Sure Vince has money, but does he have any friends? Of course not! Foley reads off a list of people who won’t be participating tonight despite being asked: Hulk Hogan, HHH, Eric Bischoff, The Rock, Dick Ebersole, Shawn Michaels, Trish Stratus (Foley: “My unofficial fifth child.”) and Ted Turner, all because Vince isn’t worth their time. They don’t appreciate Vince, so should anyone else? The fans say no and Foley agrees, so have a nice day! My biggest take out of that: it’s weird to hear Foley talking about Hulk Hogan.

Umaga (Raw) vs. Balls Mahoney (ECW)

Samoan Spike in less than forty seconds.

The Draft pick sends…..King Booker to Raw. I had forgotten he was a thing. Booker, with Queen Sharmell, comes back to pose for a bit.

Steve-O from Jackass rhymes about Vince McMahon and seems to be a fan.

Bobby Lashley (Raw) vs. Chris Benoit (Smackdown)

Non-title. Lashley tries a spinebuster to start but Benoit grabs the arm and ties it up on the mat. The power can’t quite get Lashley out of trouble so Benoit gets up and chops away. That’s reversed so Lashley can kick away, which the fans don’t quite appreciate. A front facelock slows Benoit down but he is right back to strike away in the corner.

The snap suplex gets two on Lashley and an attempt at a Crossface gets quite the positive reaction. Lashley powers out of that and tries a gorilla press, which is countered into a Crossface (that’s good for a reaction). The rope is grabbed so Benoit takes him down again and grabs the Sharpshooter, which is broken up with straight power. Back up and Lashley tilt-a-whirls Benoit up into a running powerslam for the fast pin.

Rating: C. This is a match that could have been much better with more time and a better story, though what we got was a nice tease. Power vs. technical is a style that has worked for years and it worked well enough here. Not enough time to make it work here, but what we got worked out well enough.

The Draft pick sends….Chris Benoit to ECW. They could use someone like him.

Lashley and Benoit shake hands.

We recap the Draft picks so far.

Donald Trump doesn’t think much of Vince McMahon and talks about how awesome Wrestlemania was. Maybe he should have his own appreciation night.

Ashley Massaro joins us via satellite and thanks Vince for inventing the Diva Search. She does however bring up making Trish Stratus bark like a dog….so here are Fabulous Moolah and Mae Young to disrobe, get on all fours, and bark like dogs (complete with a dog house and food bowl). That’s one of those things that has been forgotten for all the right reasons.

Jimmy Snuka and Iron Sheik join us to thank Vince McMahon for everything he did, though Sheik goes into a rant about Donald Trump and racket ball.

MVP vs. Santino Marella

Non-title. MVP gutwrench suplexes him to start and a clothesline gets two. We hit the cravate to hold Santino in place for a bit, followed by an exchange of kicks to the ribs. Santino gets the worse of things and gets caught in the chinlock, only to fight up with the variety of offense you would expect from someone who has had about five minutes. A fireman’s carry face first drop gives MVP two and a running boot in the corner connects. The Playmaker finishes Santino in a hurry.

Rating: D+. This was little more than a squash, which might not be the best way to present the Intercontinental Title. Then again it does kind of make sense for Marella, who isn’t supposed to be the most polished star in the world. MVP is starting to come into his own and a win like this helps push him a bit further, though I’m not sure how much value Santino had in the first place.

The Draft pick sends….Torrie Wilson to Smackdown.

Bret Hart wants to punch Vince McMahon in the jaw. There’s a name you wouldn’t expect to see on the show and I can go with the surprise.

Miz (Smackdown) vs. Snitsky (ECW)

Snitsky throws him into the corner for the Tree of Woe to start as commentary wonders if Snitsky gets the concept of the Draft. A big boot finishes Miz in a hurry.

The Draft pick….actually goes to Smackdown, as Snitsky keeps stomping away and the decision is reversed.

The Draft pick sends…..Chris Masters to Smackdown. Dang that show is getting wrecked in this thing.

Bobby Heenan talks about everyone Vince has fired and tries to figure out what is up with that walk.

Here is Roddy Piper to introduce a bunch of embarrassing Vince McMahon clips. That’s what you bring in Roddy Piper to do?

Mark Cuban calls Vince McMahon a winner who is living the American dream.

Candice Michelle vs. Kristal

Kristal takes her down and kicks away at the legs but Candice snaps off a backbreaker. The Go Daddy dance gets two and there’s a triangle choke over the ropes to make things worse for Kristal. The spinwheel kick finishes Kristal in a hurry.

The Draft pick sends….Bobby Lashley to Raw. That’s a big one and you had to know Lashley was getting off of ECW one way or another.

Lashley comes out to pose but here is Coach to cut him off. Since Lashley is no longer on ECW, he can’t be the ECW World Champion. Lashley isn’t happy, but promises to be a champion again.

Bob Costas says he wanted to be a WWE broadcaster but Vince McMahon said no. We hear about their infamous interview together and Costas was glad to have a calmer person like Bobby Knight on next.

Jeff Hardy (Raw) vs. Elijah Burke (ECW) vs. Batista (Smackdown)

Burke bails straight to the floor to start but Hardy jumps him from behind. Back in and Batista fires off the shoulders to Hardy’s ribs in the corner, only to have Hardy slip out of the Batista Bomb. Hardy takes him down and hits the Swanton for a very early two with Burke making the save. Batista gets sent outside, leaving Hardy to hit Burke with the slingshot dropkick. Back in and Batista runs Hardy over, setting up the Batista Bomb to finish Burke.

Rating: C. This was more interesting than I would have expected and it was cool to see some people going at it that you wouldn’t usually see get together. If nothing else, it made me want to see Hardy vs. Batista, which somehow never happened in a singles match. You would think their paths would have crossed at some point somewhere over the years.

The Draft pick sends….Ric Flair to Smackdown. Flair could use the change of scenery.

John Cena was at a car race.

Captain Lou Albano talks about how great he is. Vince McMahon is ok too.

Here’s a recap of the Draft picks. There will also be a supplemental Draft on Wednesday.

Here is Dusty Rhodes to talk about Vince McMahon loving to say “perception is reality”. Dusty says that you might not like Vince, but look at the reality of what he has done. You have to respect him.

Gene Okerlund talks about Vince McMahon letting him become the new host of Tuesday Night Titans….while knowing it would be canceled. We also hear about a bunch of horrible things Vince has done, as Gene doesn’t seem to be a fan.

Battle Royal

Smackdown: Matt Hardy, William Regal, Chavo Guerrero, Mark Henry, Chris Masters,

ECW: Kevin Thorn, Matt Striker, Marcus Cor Von, Sandman, Tommy Dreamer

Raw: Johnny Nitro, Eugene, Kenny Dykstra, Randy Orton, Johnny Nitro

The winning brand gets two picks. It’s a brawl to start (as battle royals tend to do) and Striker is gone in a hurry. Sandman, Regal and Chavo are out as well, with Dreamer following them as the ring is clearing in a hurry. Thorn gets knocked out too and it’s time for Viscera and Henry to have the big showdown.

Henry can’t get him out but he can clothesline Viscera down, followed by the big elimination. We take a break and come back with Eugene and Dykstra gone to leave us with Henry, Cor Von, Orton, Nitro, Masters and Hardy. The Pounce is loaded up but Hardy low bridges Cor Von out to get rid of ECW.

Masters throws Nitro out but Hardy gets rid of him as well, leaving us with Henry, Hardy and Orton. Matt can’t get rid of Henry but it’s enough for Orton to come over and toss Henry out, leaving us with two. A Side Effect drops Orton but the backbreaker cuts Hardy down as well. Hardy is back with the middle rope elbow to the head but Orton tosses him out to give Raw the win anyway.

Rating: C-. You can only get so far with a battle royal where there are brands instead of individual winners, though they did a good job of having Orton get the win. It’s pretty clear that he is on his way to a huge showdown with John Cena so having him get a win here was a nice little boost. The rest of the match was your usual battle royal stuff, so it wasn’t quite the most thrilling part of the show.

The Draft picks send….Snitsky and Mr. Kennedy to Raw. One of those things is a little better than the others. I mean Snitsky for having no hair of course.

Here are the final Draft picks:

To Raw
King Booker w/Queen Sharmell
Bobby Lashley
Snitsky
Mr. Kennedy

To Smackdown
Great Khali
Torrie Wilson
Chris Masters
Ric Flair

To ECW
Boogeyman
Chris Benoit

Vince McMahon is in his office and seems a bit nuts.

Steve Austin laughs off the idea of Vince McMahon Appreciation Night and goes over some great moments of their rivalry. He doesn’t appreciate anything about Vince at all. Swearing ensues.

Since the rosters are now set (as we are already ignoring the supplemental draft), the main event of Vengeance will see Mick Foley, Bobby Lashley (still with the ECW World Title in the graphic), Randy Orton and King Booker challenging John Cena. That is some serious star power.

Here is Vince McMahon for the big closing. Vince, with his hand shaking, picks up the microphone and then drops it back down. Without saying anything, Vince slowly walks to the back, passing by the wrestlers (who are all standing in line for no logical reason). Coach pops in to say the limo is the other way so Vince turns around, passes more wrestlers, plus Pat Patterson and Gerald Brisco, before heading outside.

Vince hesitates to get into the limo, gets inside….and it blows up as the door closes. The limo burns to end the show. And now we have a rather big/hot top story. I remember watching this live and thinking it would blow up as he looked at it like that. No idea why, but it’s the kind of thing that WWE would do.

Overall Rating: C+. It certainly wasn’t a boring show and a lot of things did happen, but it also wasn’t exactly great. This wasn’t the kind of show where you should have expected anything great in the way of wrestling, but what we got was good enough to carry the night. The shakeups needed to happen, though Smackdown is looking more and more like the dumping ground for wrestlers with nothing else to do on Raw.

Then there is the Vince stuff, and again the story feels rushed. The testimonials from the people might not have been great, but some people did say nice things about Vince. That being said, it does make sense that he would be crushed when he wasn’t in his right mind to begin with. The whodunit story is on though, and I’m sure it will reach a satisfying conclusion.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Monday Night Raw
Date: November 8, 2021
Location: KFC Yum Center, Louisville, Kentucky
Commentators: Jimmy Smith, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton

We’re less than two weeks away from Survivor Series and now we have the men’s and women’s Survivor Series teams set up. That means we don’t get a month of qualifying matches, but we are likely to get two weeks of I AM THE CAPTAIN and arguing about their love of a brand they have been on for less than a month. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of last week’s issues with Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens and Big E., as Big E. isn’t sure he can trust Owens.

Big E. and Kevin Owens are in the back, with Owens talking about how he cares about what Big E. thinks of him and wants people to know he turned over a new leaf. Big E. doesn’t really care though and has a match tonight. Owens says he cares what Big E. thinks.

Here is Seth Rollins, in some weird red and blue number, to welcome us to Monday Night Rollins. He is the face of Monday Night Raw and therefore he will lead the team to victory over those Smackdown bums at Survivor Series. The fans think Rollins looks stupid but what would they know about fashion.

Rollins talks about Kevin Owens, wondering if he is a hero or a snake. He has known Owens for a long time and there is one thing you can count on with Owens: he will stab you in the back at any chance he has. Owens is as low as he gets and cannot be trusted as far as he can be thrown, which isn’t far at all. Rollins is ready to turn Owens into the biggest loser in the world but here is a ticked off Owens to interrupt. The fight is on and Rollins has to escape the apron powerbomb. I’m kind of intrigued by this one.

We look back at Omos wrecking the tag team division last week.

RKBro is in the back, with Riddle worrying about turning into a robot and Orton worrying about the Street Profits. Cue the Street Profits, with Orton saying they’re on their own.

Omos/AJ Styles vs. Robert Roode/Dolph Ziggler vs. RKBro/Street Profits

Good to see AJ back. Ford dropkicks Roode down to start and mocks some dog poses. Dawkins comes in with a shoulder and suplexes Ford onto Roode for two. Ziggler comes in and gets punched down as well, allowing Orton to stomp away. The assisted Floating Bro gets two on Ziggler so it’s off to AJ, who gets kicked in the chest.

The Styles Clash is broken up and a triangle choke has Styles in more trouble. They fall over the top for the big crash to set up a huge staredown as we take a break. Back with Riddle fighting out of trouble and kicking Ziggler down. That’s enough for the hot tag to Orton but Roode has to save Ziggler from an RKO. Roode is sent into Omos to knock him off the apron, but he is able to catch a flying Styles.

We take a very sudden break and come back with Omos working on Ford before Ziggler comes back in for a boot rake to the eyes. A sunset flip gives Ziggler two but Ford is back up with an enziguri, which did not seem to come close to making contact. Either way, it’s enough for the hot tag off to Dawkins and house is cleaned in a hurry.

It’s back to Omos though and the wrecking is on in a hurry. Both Profits are taken down but Riddle’s knees to the chest do some damage. Granted it isn’t enough damage to avoid a double chokeslam to plant Riddle hard. Orton still teases getting in but blames Riddle for screwing up. Roode and Ziggler cut Orton off from getting in but Roode and Styles get in a fight on the floor. Omos deals with Roode, leaving Ziggler to pin Riddle at 22:51.

Rating: C. I was stunned when I looked at the clock as that was one of the fastest 20+ minute matches I can remember. The wrestling itself was fine, as everyone did their thing, though Riddle being down for so long off a single chokeslam was a bit much. Not bad though, and it’s certainly nice to see AJ back after whatever was wrong with him.

Post match it’s an RKO to leave Ziggler laying. Orton tells Riddle that he has to listen if they want to keep the titles.

Kevin Owens tries to convince Rey Mysterio to believe him but Rey has to do something.

Veer Mahaan is coming.

Here is Adam Pearce for a chat with the Mysterios. Pearce talks about Survivor Series, which has had some great debuts over the years and is the ONLY NIGHT OF THE YEAR where the two shows face off (there is something hilarious about them pushing this idea every year). That means this year’s Raw needs to live up to last year’s as Raw swept the night. It makes him think that he might have made a mistake by putting Dominik on the team, because every other member is a former WWE Champion. Dominik can keep his spot if he wins the following match.

Dominik Mysterio vs. Bobby Lashley

MVP is back and in Lashley’s corner and the winner is on the Raw Survivor Series team. Lashley starts fast with a suplex but Dominik knees his way out of trouble. A high crossbody doesn’t work for Dominik but he low bridges Lashley to the floor. Another dive is pulled out of the air though and Lashley drives him into the post.

Back in and a Downward Spiral drops Dominik again. The Hurt Lock goes on but Lashley won’t let Dominik tap, instead throwing him outside. Rey Mysterio tries to intervene and gets kicked in the chest, allowing Lashley to post Dominik again. An awesome spear sets up the Hurt Lock to end Dominik at 5:11.

Rating: C-. Total squash here, as it should have been. It makes me wonder why they had Dominik on the team in the first place, but it also has me worried that Pearce is going to be the latest evil authority figure. WWE has gotten away from that lame trope for a long time now and I really don’t need to see it happen again. Though he did get rid of Dominik so how evil can he be?

We look back at the Alpha Academy failing to recruit Big E. last week.

Seth Rollins comes up to the Alpha Academy to ask about Kevin Owens. Chad Gable talks about his recent graduation and says Owens is a horrible liar, just like Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rogers. Tonight, he’ll prove that Big E. can’t be the face of Raw.

Big E. vs. Chad Gable

Non-title and Otis is in Gable’s corner. Big E. takes him down by the arm to start and uses the power to run Gable over. The apron splash connects but Gable is back with some knee cranking. That’s enough to set up a belly to belly into a moonsault for two, followed by rolling Chaos Theory. Big E. is back with a Rock Bottom out of the corner and the Big Ending finishes Gable at 4:55.

Rating: C+. They packed a good amount into that short amount of time as WWE has been on a roll with these shorter matches as of late. I’m glad to see Gable getting in the ring more often in recent weeks as he really is that good. At the same time, it’s not like losing to Big E. is going to hurt him at this point.

Post match, Big E. and Otis have a staredown.

Kevin Owens tries to get R-Truth to believe in him. R-Truth believes in him, but he also believes in Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, that the Earth is flat (“But it’s round in certain places.”) and the Thanksgiving Man, among other things. Owens walks off.

Sonya Deville and Adam Pearce are with the Raw women’s Survivor Series team to announce a fatal five way tonight for a shot at Becky Lynch. Doudrop isn’t sure why Bianca Belair is getting another chance at another shot. Dana Brooke wants some respect, including from Liv Morgan. An argument breaks out.

We look at Wrestlemania XXXII to get us ready for tickets going on sale this Friday. I’m not sure how much I’d brag about that show.

We look at Bobby Lashley taking Dominik Mysterio’s spot.

Rey Mysterio says Dominik has a neck strain and goes on a rant against Adam Pearce. Austin Theory pops in for an unnoticed selfie as Rey holds ice on Dominik’s neck.

24/7 Title: Drake Maverick vs. Reggie

Reggie is defending and takes Maverick down in a hurry to start and it’s a running flip clothesline to take Maverick down in the corner. Cue R-Truth with a referee but the Hurt Business jumps him from behind. The distraction lets Maverick steal the pin and the title at 1:28 (ending Reggie’s record long reign).

Then Akira Tozawa wins the title.

Then Corey Graves wins the title.

Then Byron Saxton wins the title.

Then Maverick wins the title (with a handful of pants).

Then Reggie wins the title back and runs off. Graves: “SAXTON YOU RUIN EVERYTHING!!!”

Bianca Belair vs. Carmella vs. Liv Morgan vs. Rhea Ripley vs. Queen Zelina

One fall to a finish and the winner gets a title shot against Becky Lynch, who is on commentary. In the back, Doudrop still isn’t happy with Belair getting the chance. Bianca gets in an argument with Lynch and it’s a big brawl on the floor with everyone getting involved. We take a break before the bell and come back with the match officially beginning, as Belair and Ripley are left alone. That’s broken up before anything can happen but the two of them are right back in for the showdown again.

They grapple around a bit with neither being able to get anywhere. Belair flips over Ripley but gets pulled outside so Carmella and Vega send her into the barricade. Back in and Ripley takes down Vega and Carmella without much effort. The numbers game gets the better of Ripley though and a low superkick gives Carmella two, with Vega breaking it up. Morgan gets knocked off the apron but Carmella has to break up Vega’s cover.

Ripley is back up and gets taken down by Carmella, setting up the stomping/choking in the corner. Morgan gets back in and cleans house but gets sent outside by Vega. Now it’s Ripley tossing Vega around as Becky declares herself as Becky From The Block. Vega tornado DDTs Ripley for two but Belair throws Vega onto everyone and we take a break. Back with Belair powerbombing Vega and Morgan down but getting missile dropkicked by Ripley.

Carmella superkicks Ripley and covers everyone else for two each. Belair sends Vega into the announcers’ table before heading back in for a showdown with Ripley. Both escape finishers until Ripley kicks Belair out of the air. Riptide connects but Morgan makes the save. Oblivion hits Ripley but Vega makes the save this time. Back up and Belair hits the KOD, drawing in Doudrop to pull Belair out. Morgan rolls Carmella up for the pin and the title shot at 16:28.

Rating: C-. I don’t think this was exactly a big surprise as Morgan vs. Lynch was teased last week. They could have an interesting match and it does open the door for a possible (though unlikely) change before we get to Survivor Series. There was a lot of action in the match, though it didn’t need that much time. At least we’re getting a more appealing title match, which isn’t WWE’s strong suit.

Seth Rollins asks Big E. about Kevin Owens but Big E. doesn’t trust either of them. He’ll be at ringside though.

Smackdown Rebound.

Seth Rollins vs. Kevin Owens

Big E. is on commentary but here is Austin Theory before the match to take some pictures. The phone is swatted away by Big E. though and Theory skedaddles. Also before the match, Seth grabs the mic to say that he and Owens had a plan to jump Big E. last week and it went badly. Cue Owens to cut him off though and the chase sends Rollins into the crowd as we take a break.

Back (after a This Week In WWE History, looking at the Montreal Screwjob) with the bell ringing and Owens hammering away on Rollins, who bails out to the floor in a hurry. Owens gives chase and hits a backsplash on the floor to crush Rollins. The Cannonball against the barricade does it again, followed by a stomping inside. Rollins gets knocked outside again so Owens hits another splash. That earns him a whip into the announcers’ table though and we take a break.

Back with Rollins stomping away at the ribs but getting pulled down so Owens can hammer away. Rollins goes right back to the ribs with a bunch of stomps to keep Owens in trouble. A snap suplex gives Rollins two but he misses the frog splash. Owens’ frog splash connects for two though and we take a break.

Back with Rollins charging into a superkick in the corner, followed by Owens hitting a heck of a running clothesline. Owens goes up but gets caught by Rollins, who gets planted with the spinning fisherman’s superplex. Rollins is right back with a Pedigree for two but Owens catches him with a Pop Up sitout Powerbomb for two. A shot to the bad ribs breaks up Owens’ Stunner and knocks him outside. Rollins tries to send Owens into Big E. but he dodges out of the way. The delay is enough to keep Owens from beating the count at 24:09.

Rating: B-. This was a long match which saw both guys looking good, though the ending left something to be desired. I know it’s the right way to go to keep the story going as Owens is going to be frustrated, but there isn’t much to be had from a countout after such a long match. It might make sense, but it doesn’t mean it’s satisfying.

Post match Rollins leaves but Owens snaps, beating the fire out of Big E. Referees try to break it up but Owens comes back over for another stomp to the head. Owens screams a lot to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. I’m going to assume that a lot of this show was due to the UK tour, as you never see so many long matches on a show. What we got wasn’t great, but it’s kind of hard to build to a show like Survivor Series anymore. What you’re seeing is a bunch of stuff being set up that won’t be taking place at the next pay per view, so why should I get interested so soon? I’m sure some of this stuff will be blown off either in December or at Day One in January, but that makes for some fairly weak television the way there. There was some ok stuff on here, but a lot of it felt like filler and that makes for a dull night.

Results
Omos/AJ Styles/Dolph Ziggler/Robert Roode b. RKBro/Street Profits – Chokeslam to Riddle
Bobby Lashley b. Dominik Mysterio – Hurt Lock
Big E. b. Chad Gable – Big Ending
Drake Maverick b. Reggie – Rollup
Liv Morgan b. Carmella, Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley and Queen Zelina – Crucifix to Carmella
Seth Rollins b. Kevin Owens via countout

WWE, 2021, Monday Night Raw, Omos, AJ Styles, Dolph Ziggler, Robert Roode, RKBro, Street Profits, Bobby Lashley, Rey Mysterio, Adam Pearce, Dominik Mysterio, Big E., Chad Gable, Drake Maverick, Otis, Liv Morgan, Carmella, Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley, Queen Zelina, Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, Austin Theory

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

ECW On Sci Fi
Date: June 5, 2007
Location: Amway Arena, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz

We’re done with One Night Stand and some ECW things actually took place on the show. First and foremost, Bobby Lashley got the ECW World Title back from Vince McMahon, which should wrap their feud up for good. Other than that, Rob Van Dam seems to be out of action for the time being after Randy Orton beat the living daylights out of him. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of Lashley winning the handicap match to get the title back.

Opening sequence.

Here is Vince McMahon, sitting in a rocking chair on a platform, with a rather annoyed glare on his face. Bobby Lashley comes out as Vince keeps rocking back and forth without doing much of anything.

Bobby Lashley vs. Tommy Dreamer/Sandman/Balls Mahoney

Non-title hardcore match. The trio grabs their weapons and start swinging to put Lashley on the floor. Back in and they do it again, followed by a third time for good measure. For some reason Dreamer thinks a suplex is a good idea and gets suplexed down for his efforts. Sandman and Mahoney drape Lashley over the top with Sandman dropping a leg to the back of the neck. Dreamer is back in for the baseball slide to the chair in the Tree of Woe. It’s table time (because of course) but Mahoney chairs Dreamer by mistake. That’s enough for Lashley to put Sandman through the table and spear Mahoney down for the pin.

Rating: C-. You can only get so much out of something like this as Lashley isn’t going to lose to three people so low on the totem pole. I guess this is the best punishment Vince can muster at the moment and while it wasn’t awful, it was spending a few minutes waiting around for Lashley to beat them up. Just find something better for Lashley to do already.

Post match, Lashley poses in front of Vince, who doesn’t move.

Kevin Thorn vs. Stevie Richards

Richards forearms away to start and sends Thorn outside. The dive off the apron is pulled out of the air though, allowing Thorn to drive him into the apron. Back in and the chinlock goes on until Richards fights up, only to be dropped face first onto the turnbuckle instead. Richards strikes away and sends Thorn throat first into the middle rope fir a change. A spinebuster cuts Richards off though and Original Sin is good for pin.

Rating: D. This was another boring one as Thorn isn’t all that interesting once he gets in the ring. The vampire deal is a cool idea but other than the finisher, he’s just another low level power guy. Richards was trying as always, but there wasn’t much anyone could do in these circumstances.

Extreme Expose, who mix it up this week by adding some dancing on the announcers’ table.

We look at Randy Orton injuring Rob Van Dam at One Night Stand, putting Van Dam on the shelf.

Elijah Burke/Marcus Cor Von vs. Major Brothers

Cor Von charges at them to start and the beating is on in a hurry. Brett starts working on the arm though and Brian comes in with a top rope ax handle. That doesn’t work so well so it’s off to Burke, who gets double hiptossed right back down. Cor Von isn’t having this though and comes back in to run both of them over.

A slam in the corner sets up Burke’s seated abdominal stretch, followed by Cor Von’s waistlock. Cor Von knees Brett in the ribs to cut off the comeback and Burke puts on a standing abdominal stretch. For some reason he lets that go though and knees Brett in the back, sending him over to the corner for the tag to Brian. The comeback doesn’t please Cor Von so he tags himself back in to hit the Pounce for the pin.

Rating: C-. You can definitely see something in the Major Brothers, as they feel like a team who know each other well. It also helps that they have gotten some TV time now and have a bit of familiarity with the fans. The New Breed is all but done at this point, but a win over the Majors isn’t going to hurt anyone at the moment.

We recap the opening match, including Vince McMahon almost looking like he was in a trance.

CM Punk vs. Matt Striker

Before the match, Striker promises to teach Punk a lesson to educate these people cheering for him. Punk leg lariats him down to start and a pair of kicks gets two more. Striker comes back with some suplexes and a slam, setting up the half crab. With that broken up, Striker hits a hanging swinging neckbreaker before going right back to the same hold. Punk escapes again and starts striking away, including the running knee in the corner. The bulldog sets up the GTS to give Punk the pin.

Rating: C-. There’s only so much you can get out of Striker, who much like Thorn, is a far better character that he is a wrestler. It also doesn’t help that Punk is one of the biggest stars on this show and isn’t losing to anyone but another big star. Striker put in the effort here, but it was only going to get him so far.

Overall Rating: D+. This was quite the lame duck show as we are less than a week away from the Draft so none of this really mattered all that much. Vince still being broken was the highlight, as he is still one of the best performers in the world. Things need to be shaken up around here so the Draft is coming at the right time, but it didn’t exactly make for a good show this week.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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One Night Stand 2007
Date: June 3, 2007
Location: Jacksonville Veterans Memorial, Jacksonville, Florida
Attendance: 7,000
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Joey Styles, Tazz, Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield

It’s what almost has to be the final cycle of Wrestlemania rematches and early summer stories. The build for this has not been great, which probably has a lot to do with it being a mere two weeks after Backlash. The card isn’t looking the best either, but maybe they can surprise me. Let’s get to it.

The opening video talks about how everything is extreme rules for one night only, though in this case it means everything has its own stipulations. There’s a better name for the show in there somewhere.

Randy Orton vs. Rob Van Dam

This is a stretcher match and fallout from Orton attacking Van Dam and giving him a concussion, which was fallout from Orton attacking Shawn Michaels and giving him a concussion. Van Dam does the finger pointing and then kicks Orton in the face to start fast. Some more strikes keep Orton rocked early, including a running clothesline in the corner. A kick to the face sets up the spinning legdrop but Orton gets in a shot to the face to put Van Dam down, complete with bugged out eyes.

Van Dam is fine enough to kick Orton in the face but the jump to the top means a crash out to the floor. Orton slowly brings him back inside for the dropkick before slowly knocking Van Dam down a few times. The over the shoulder neckbreaker drops Van Dam but he falls off the stretcher. For some reason that wakes Van Dam up and he posts Orton down.

Now it’s Orton being laid on the stretcher for the spinning kick to the back. They head back inside with Van Dam hitting a clothesline but Rolling Thunder is reversed into the powerslam in a slick counter. Van Dam manages to toss him onto the stretcher again, but a big running flip dive over the top only hits floor in a nasty landing. Orton drops him onto the stretcher but Van Dam fights up and puts Orton on for the surprise win.

Rating: C. This was a bit of a weird match as Orton beat Van Dam up for a good while and then lost in the end, despite Van Dam looking destroyed more than once. Van Dam deserves some attention for his facials alone and there was a nice story being told. Maybe not a great match and I’m not sure on Orton winning, but they did something different enough here.

Post match Orton is right back up and beats Van Dam back to ringside. The Punt off the apron sets up the hanging DDT from the barricade, which ends Van Dam’s full time WWE career for the time being. Aside from some cameos, Van Dam would not be back until 2013.

Vince McMahon is worried about the street fight with Bobby Lashley but Shane McMahon says Umaga will take care of things. That helps, but Vince has a premonition of something bad happening to him.

Sandman/Tommy Dreamer/CM Punk vs. New Breed

Tables match, meaning we have tags. Dreamer and Cor Von go technical to start, including a butterfly suplex to put Dreamer down. Burke comes in but misses a charge in the corner, allowing the tag off to Sandman. That means a hiptoss before Punk comes in to a big reaction for some knees to Striker. Punk and Dreamer want some tables but Punk has to dive on Cor Von first.

Back in and Striker runs from Sandman and the kendo stick before Cor Von has to save him from the table. Burke hits a quick elbow to Punk’s bad ribs and it’s everyone inside to brawl again. We hit the parade of secondary finishers, including Cor Von Alpha Bombing Punk. Dreamer piledrives Burke and Punk superplexes Striker through Burke and the table for the win.

Rating: C-. This could have been any ECW On Sci Fi main event and that isn’t the worst place to be. The problem here was the time and the lack of any real story to the whole thing, as they just wildly brawled for the most part. Granted that’s what this probably should have been and now it is time to wrap up the New Breed as Punk can move on to something bigger.

Randy Orton comes up to see Edge and suggests that he’s coming for the World Heavyweight Title, if Edge beats Batista tonight and if he gets moved to Smackdown in the Draft. That’s quite the hypothetical and Edge doesn’t seem scared.

Raw Tag Team Titles: World’s Greatest Tag Team Team vs. Hardys

The Hardys are defending in a ladder match. It’s a fight to start with the Hardys knocking both of them down in a row. Since that doesn’t mean much in a ladder match, all four head outside and pick up a ladder of their own. The dueling is on until Haas gets crushed by ladders in the corner, setting up Poetry In Motion to Shelton to smash Haas again.

Haas is fine enough to get out and pull Jeff off the ladder but Matt is there to make the save. The Hardys go up at the same time (which is stupid), allowing Shelton to throw a ladder at them to bring them back down (I knew it was stupid). Jeff is sent face first into the ladder in the corner and Haas and Benjamin, apparently not learning, go up at the same time as well.

Matt breaks that up in a hurry but it’s time to set up ladder contraptions. That takes too long though and the Hardys send both of them back first into a ladder. Now it’s time to bring in the bigger ladders, because the ladder match checklist must be completed. One such ladder is bridged between the ring and the apron, with Benjamin being backdropped onto it in a hurry.

That’s not good enough so Jeff loads up something off the top but Haas belly to back superplexes him down. Haas leans Matt up against a ladder on the floor and Jeff gets t-boned. That doesn’t seem to bother Matt though as he shoves Haas and Benjamin down, the latter onto a ladder, setting up a Swanton to keep them down. Matt pulls the titles down to retain.

Rating: B. Like this wasn’t going to work. It’s a match I didn’t care to see but knew it was going to be good, which was absolutely what happened here. Sometimes you need to let people who are good at this kind of thing do their stuff and that was the case here. It was nothing that hadn’t been done before, but it was done well.

Great Khali promises to win.

Mark Henry vs. Kane

Lumberjack match and the lumberjacks get their own individual entrances. Henry powers him to the floor to start but Kane is back in to kick Henry in the face. That doesn’t bother Henry much either so Kane slugs him out to the floor and follows him out. This time Henry rams him into the post to start working on the back and hammers away in it inside. A test of strength doesn’t work well for Henry as Kane headbutts his way to freedom, only to get shouldered down.

Kane can’t pick Henry up and we hit the bearhug, with Henry eventually throwing him down. Henry gets tossed outside so Kane dives onto a bunch of people for the big crash. Back in and Kane hits the top rope clothesline to set up the chokeslam but the lumberjacks come in to beat him down. Since it’s No DQ, Henry grabs the bearhug again and Kane is out for the win.

Rating: D. The gimmick didn’t do the match any favors here and it felt rather forced in. I get that they had to do something to make this an extreme match but it was basically Henry hurting Kane’s back, some interference, and then Henry wins. That could have been done without the lumberjacks and that is never a good sign for any match.

The Hardys and the World’s Greatest Tag Team get in a fight backstage.

We recap Bobby Lashley vs. Vince McMahon for the ECW World Title. Lashley helped shave McMahon’s head at Wrestlemania so Vince swore revenge and eventually took the title with some help from Shane McMahon and Umaga. After screwing Lashley over a time or two, it is time for the final showdown in a street fight.

ECW World Title: Vince McMahon vs. Bobby Lashley

Lashley is challenging in a street fight and Shane McMahon/Umaga are here with Vince. Lashley wastes no time in diving over the top onto Umaga, who he grazes with his feet at best. Now it’s Shane getting beaten up and tossed onto Umaga at ringside, leaving Lashley to unload on Vince in the corner.

Umaga comes back in to miss a splash in the corner but Shane is back in with a DDT onto a chair. Vince clotheslines Lashley down and chokes in the corner before they head outside. More triple teaming ensues before heading back inside where Vince can hit a spear for two. Lashley pulls Vince in the way of Umaga’s splash though and the comeback is on.

Shane and Umaga are sent outside and Lashley unloads on Vince with a chair. The Dominator gets two with Umaga making the save, setting up a splash from the apron. Shane adds the top rope elbow through the announcers’ table and everyone is down again. That only gives Vince two back inside so Umaga hits the running hip attack in the corner. Shane misses Coast To Coast though and Lashley is back up with the spear to Vince to get the title back.

Rating: C. This was the fairly obvious way to go and there is nothing wrong with that. Sometimes you need to go in the logical way and this time around that meant Lashley running through the odds and getting the title back. Lashley is a monster, but now he needs something else to do, which unfortunately won’t involve Vince as the amazing ECW heel. Not a great match or a great brawl, but it did what it was supposed to do.

Post match Lashley hits another spear on Vince for a bonus.

Maria likes Santino Marella speaking Italian to her but she has to answer a question about the upcoming pudding match between Melina and Candice Michelle. As you might guess, her response features a lot of big words and scientific explanations about pudding. Candice pops up and asks for a kiss for luck. Maria obliges, so Santino says he loves America. Ron Simmons comes in for the catchphrase.

Melina vs. Candice Michelle

Non-title and they’re fighting in pudding. Candice shoves her down and they grapple around a lot, as you can probably guess how this is going. They fight on the floor a bit and Lawler can’t tell which is which, though he doesn’t seem to care. Melina licks some pudding off of her thumb and hits a DDT. Trash talking ensues, but Candice pulls her into a reverse chinlock for the tap (on pudding). Exactly what you would have expected.

Post match Maria comes in for an interview but gets pulled into the pudding. The referee is pulled in as well and Lawler is jealous.

We recap Edge vs. Batista for the Smackdown World Title. Edge cashed in Money in the Bank to take the title from Undertaker, then cheated to beat Batista at Judgment Day. Now it’s time for Batista to get his rematch inside a cage.

Smackdown World Title: Batista vs. Edge

Edge is defending in a cage. Batista starts fast by taking him down and going up but it’s way too early for that. Edge tries to go up but gets pulled back down, earning himself a heck of a clothesline for two. A few shots to the face aren’t enough for Edge to get out as Lashley suplexes him down for two more.

Now it’s Batista going up, only to have his leg kicked out for the save. That’s enough to weaken Batista’s already damaged leg but he’s fine enough to catch Edge trying for the door. A superplex gives Batista two and they collide in the middle off a spear vs. running shoulder for the double knockdown. It’s Batista up first with a running clothesline and a swinging Boss Man Slam gets two.

A catapult sends Edge face first into the cage and Batista launches him face first in again. Somehow Edge manages a quick spear for two but Batista pulls him off the top for the same. The Batista Bomb is countered (with Edge’s thong sticking out) as Edge winds up on top. Batista follows him up but gets low blowed back down. Batista goes for the door but Edge climbs out to escape and retain.

Rating: C. That’s it? That felt like the setup for another false finish and then they just finished the match. It wasn’t terrible, but it seemed like they were missing the last five or so minutes. This should put Batista out of the title picture for the time being, though I’m not sure what that leaves for him to do at the moment. Edge can find someone new though, and he can do so after beating Batista pretty clean.

We recap John Cena vs. Great Khali. Cena retained the title at Judgment Day but Khali’s leg was underneath the ropes. That’s why tonight it’s a falls count anywhere match for the title, meaning the ropes can’t save Cena. The idea here is that Cena knows he’s facing a monster and might be in way over his head.

Raw World Title: John Cena vs. Great Khali

Cena is defending in a falls count anywhere match. Cena goes right after him to start but is quickly knocked down, including a bunch of stomping in the corner. There’s a slam to plant Cena but he gets in a shot of his own for a breather. Khali is right back up with a chop to the head to put Cena on the floor though and the foot on the chest gets two. A hard ram sends Cena head first through a monitor but another big chop is blocked.

Instead, Cena is tossed over the barricade but he manages a monitor shot of his own. The FU attempt is swatted away though and Khali punches him around. A missed charge (work with me here) misses for Khali and Cena hits him in the face with a boom camera for two. Cena gets him off the ground for the FU but some elbows to the face get Khali out of trouble again. They fight onto a crane, where Cena finally manages the FU off of said crane to retain the title.

Rating: C+. While certainly not a classic, they did this as well as they could have. What mattered here was they found the right way to hide Khali’s limitations and let Cena do the rest. The idea of setting up the FU for the whole match and then blowing it off in the end was the right call too and it was a well set up match. I’m not sure how much better they could have done this and the stipulation made the match better rather than just being tacked on.

Overall Rating: C. This was a show that focused almost entirely on the gimmicks and that was not a bad thing. The stories were either mostly done or not exactly exciting, so putting the emphasis on everything else they were doing was the right idea. It made for an easy show to watch, even if it didn’t feel all that important. We need to move on in a big way, but at least they had a fine enough show to wrap up this cycle.

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Saturday Night’s Main Event #34
Date: June 2, 2007
Location: Air Canada Center, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Attendance: 16,176
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler

It’s the night before One Night Stand 2007 and this is a show that WWE is required to do while showing a bare minimum of interest. There has been almost no mention of this show on WWE TV and that is rarely a good sign for what we have coming. The show is only an hour and a half though so maybe we can get a little break this time around. Let’s get to it.

We have a theme this time: Biggest, Smallest, Strongest, Strangest. This is going to be a rough sit.

John Cena vs. Great Khali

Non-title and a preview of tomorrow night’s title match. After a video on Khali being big and scary, we’re ready to go. Cena goes right at him to start but the FU attempt is blocked with a forearm to the back. Khali punches him into the corner without much effort and we hit the choking. An attempt at a takedown for the STFU is shrugged off and Khali runs him over with a clothesline. The fans tell Khali that he sucks as he pounds Cena down again and again. Another FU attempt manages to get Khali off of his feet but he elbows his way to freedom. The chokeslam finishes Cena, with Khali putting his foot on the chest for the pin.

Rating: D+. I’ve never cared for this one as we are a day away from One Night Stand and I don’t really care to see the match again. It wasn’t that good here and the original match was only so much better. I get the idea that it’s now a trilogy and Cena needs to overcome incredible odds, but it isn’t working for me here.

Post match Khali rants, which is translated to Khali saying he can beat Cena anywhere.

Here is Vince McMahon for some arm wrestling with Bobby Lashley, so we see a long history package recapping their feud. Lashley comes out and since this is WWE arm wrestling, we spend a good time on Vince getting ready to go. Actually hold on, because here is Mark Henry to take Vince’s place. Lawler: “Mr. McMahon always has something up his sleeves, even when he’s not wearing sleeves!” Henry takes over to start but Lashley makes the comeback, causing Henry to jump him to start the brawl. Lashley hits a spear to drop Henry but Vince smashes Lashley with a chair to leave him laying.

Maria asks Edge if he is the smallest or the strangest. Edge says none, and explains how he won the World Heavyweight Title. That’s why he isn’t the biggest, strongest, smallest or strangest, because he is the greatest. Good line.

Batista/Chris Benoit vs. MVP/Edge

Batista has a taped up leg coming in. Joined in progress with MVP hammering on Benoit in the corner and then dragging him over to Edge (who gets the hometown pop). Benoit is fine enough to snap off a suplex for two on Edge and then runs him over for a bonus. Batista comes in so Edge bails immediately, leaving Batista to beat up MVP instead. A boot to the face gives Batista two and it’s back to Benoit for the chops.

The rolling German suplexes plant MVP but Edge offers a distraction, meaning the Swan Dive misses. The villains take over on Benoit as Lawler accuses him of taking the coward’s way out. Some shots to the ribs set up a waistlock to keep Benoit in trouble, allowing commentary to list off Edge’s resume. MVP comes in to drop an elbow to the ribs but Benoit kicks him away. There’s the hot tag to Batista to pick up the pace as Edge walks out. The spinebuster into a Swan Dive finishes MVP.

Rating: C. This was pretty much any main event level tag match and it makes sense that Edge would walk out of a match that doesn’t mean anything to him. At the same time, it makes Edge appear to be afraid of Batista to make their cage match a little more interesting. I would think MVP vs. Benoit would be over, but why let it go so soon?

Finlay/Hornswoggle vs. Boogeyman/Little Boogeyman

The big guys start with Boogeyman shoving Finlay down despite having a mouth full of worms. A running shoulder in the corner sets up an atomic drop to keep Finlay in trouble so it’s off to Little Boogeyman for a running seated senton. Little Boogeyman punches away at Finlay, setting up a short (you know the jokes) DDT. Hornswoggle comes in for the brawl but Finlay dropkicks Little Boogeyman in the face. That means a jig from Finlay and Hornswoggle but Boogeyman chases Hornswoggle to the back. Finlay uses the distraction to kick Little Boogeyman in the head for the pin.

Rating: D. We’ll file this under “well what else were you expecting”. The wrestling wasn’t anything to see here but that also wasn’t exactly the point. This was about getting the wacky characters in the ring to continue their feud which likely doesn’t have much of a major endgame in mind. At least they kept (about half of it) short.

Extreme Expose, but we cut to the back where Little Boogeyman is chasing Hornswoggle. That leads into the regular Boogeyman but Finlay makes the save with the Shillelagh. We cut back to the dancing…and here is Hornswoggle, still running from Little Boogeyman. Naturally, this turns into a chicken fight between Brooke and Layla until everyone falls down. Little Boogeyman chases Hornswoggle away as WWE is somehow managing to make EXTREME EXPOSE too complicated.

Kane/Eugene/Doink the Clown vs. Kevin Thorn/Umaga/Viscera

This was originally Kane/Goldust/Shannon Moore/Kamala vs. Umaga/Viscera/Doink/Thorn but Goldust backed out and we get this instead. That’s not fair to Kamala, but nothing ever was. As a bonus, Eugene is now a superhero. Doink and Thorn start things off and the YAY/BOO chants begin. They circle each other for a good bit until Doink grabs a boot to the ribs. That finally earns him a push into the corner and the beating is on. Back up and it’s off to Eugene….who gets to face Umaga.

Eugene gets hammered down and Viscera comes in to send Eugene outside. Gyrations send us to a break and we come back with Umaga coming back in to stomp away. The nerve hold goes on to keep Eugene in trouble and Thorn’s chinlock does the same. Eugene finally manages to escape and brings in Kane to clean house. Everything breaks down and Kane hits the top rope clothesline on Thorn but Umaga makes the save. Viscera misses a charge at Kane in the corner and gets chokeslammed for the pin.

Rating: D. That’s about all you could have hoped for it to be. This was as exciting as a match where they sat around for nine minutes waiting on the hot tag to Kane was going to be. The original lineup wouldn’t have made this any better as it was going to be Kane and a bunch of goofs vs. Umaga and his slightly more effective goofs, so how good could this have been?

A two minute highlight package wraps us up.

Overall Rating: D-. Oh yeah this was terrible, as they managed to have one ok match, a bunch of bad ones, and then somehow found a way to turn Extreme Expose into a joke. I’m sure this was a required show from NBC but it would have been nice to see the slightest bit of effort. The EST theme was something, but egads they managed to waste an hour and a half of everyone’s time with this mess.

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ECW On Sci Fi
Date: May 29, 2007
Location: John Labatt Centre, London, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz

It’s the go home show for One Night Stand and this time around, the pay per view features a big ECW match as Bobby Lashley is challenging ECW World Champion Vince McMahon in a street fight. Other than that, Randy Orton has damaged Rob Van Dam so it might be time for some extreme gloating. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here is Randy Orton to say he knows he isn’t making a lot of friends around here. We see a clip of Orton taking out Rob Van Dam and giving him a concussion (with a heck of a sell job from Van Dam). Back in the arena, Orton says he doesn’t feel a bit wrong about any of that because it was in a sanctioned match.

Just like Shawn Michaels, Van Dam is coming back too soon and it’s going to be a stretcher match. Orton finds that as very appropriate but here is Tommy Dreamer to interrupt. Dreamer isn’t going to let Orton come out here and gloat because this is Dreamer’s house and Orton isn’t welcome. The challenge is on for tonight with Orton saying it’s on and promising to kill the legend of ECW tonight.

CM Punk vs. Elijah Burke

No DQ. Punk grabs a headlock to start and they go to the mat with Burke’s arm in trouble. The fans want tables but have to settle for Burke striking away in the corner. Back up and Punk kicks him in the face, followed by more kicks for two. A clothesline puts Burke on the floor and we take a break. Back with Burke working on a waistlock and then choking underneath the ropes.

Burke hits a slingshot elbow to the ribs in the corner, setting up a flapjack to stay on the bad ribs. A table is set up in the corner but Punk uses the delay to score with an enziguri for two. Punk hits the running knee in the corner but the bulldog is broken up. Back up and Punk kicks him in the head and the GTS is loaded up, only to have Marcus Cor Von come in for the save. The Pounce puts Punk through the table and Burke gets the pin.

Rating: C+. I know it’s a basic move, but my goodness there is something cool about watching Cor Von hit that Pounce. This was a lot of logical rib work until the ending, which played into the (or what is left of the) New Breed’s numbers game. Punk is protected and the New Breed looks like more of a threat for the pay per view tables match.

Vince McMahon joins us to mock Joey Styles’ and Tazz’s names, thinking they sound like a 12 year old boy and a gargoyle respectively. That’s not as bad as the name Loser though, which is enough for Vince to bring in Bobby Lashley. Vince thinks Lashley is awfully calm before Sunday, but Lashley says it’s because he has an easy match coming up. Lashley stays calm no matter how insulting Vince gets and eventually says Vince has never had to work for anything in his life.

THAT sets Vince off so he threatens Lashley some more, with Lashley not really worrying about anything. Granted Vince getting the show’s name wrong (“Last Night Stand”) probably doesn’t help. Lashley finally starts promising to win and calls Vince old as this is REALLY not Lashley’s strong suit. It’s an all time kind of not being intimidating and this kind of killed the interest I had in the match.

We look at Randy Orton injuring Rob Van Dam again.

Extreme Expose.

Kevin Thorn vs. Balls Mahoney

Thorn hammers away to start and fishhooks Mahoney to make it worst. A whip sends Mahoney shoulder first into the post, setting up Original Sin for the easy pin.

Matt Striker comes up to the Major Brothers in the back and, after suggesting that Rob Van Dam is….a tuskless elephant, brings up the Draft. It can change careers, but the Brothers talk about beating Striker in their first match. That’s enough for Striker, who issues the challenge for next week.

Randy Orton vs. Tommy Dreamer

Believe it or not, Dreamer is fighting for someone he cares about. Feeling out process to start, with Orton taking him down into a headlock. A dropkick puts Dreamer on the floor so Orton goes up top, only to get superplexed back down. Dreamer slugs away and gets two off a jackknife cover. There’s a sitout spinebuster for two on Orton, who is tied in the Tree of Woe for the running basement dropkick. Not that it matters as the RKO (Joey: “Out of nowhere! Out of nowhere!”) finishes Dreamer in a hurry.

Rating: C-. This was more angle advancement than a match, as Dreamer was there to get beaten up as they continue his path of destruction. That is not a bad thing as Dreamer can take some great beatings, but there is only so much you are going to get out of something like this. Granted they did it the right way by having the match stay short, so it could have been a lot worse.

Post match Orton hits another RKO, followed by the Punt. Cue Rob Van Dam in street clothes but Orton knocks him down again, giving us more concussed Van Dam to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. It’s kind of weird to see ECW playing such a prominent role in a pay per view, even if it is the ECW pay per view (or at least it used to be). This built up three matches on the way to the pay per view and did a nice enough job, though the stories are kind of played out at this point. Passable show though and that’s what it needed to be for Sunday.

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