CONTACTABOUTFACEBOOKTWITTERPODCAST IPHONE APPANDROID APPAMAZON APPRSS
Pro Wrestling Torch
Pro Wrestling Torch Reaches The Most Wrestling Fans Every Week: #1 in iTunes • #1 on iPhone and iPad • #1 on Android • #1 on Kindle
GOT THE PWTORCH APP YET?
iPhone & iPad
Android
Amazon Kindle
Windows Phone
PWTorch Phone App
Arena Reports
3/25 WWE results Charlotte, N.C.: Arn Anderson surprise appearance & promo at show-end, Punk vs. Ziggler 2/3 Falls, Cena vs. Kane, more

Mar 25, 2012 - 10:34:41 PM
PLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO BOOKMARK US & VISIT US DAILY


WWE Raw house show results
March 25, 2012
Charlotte, N.C.
Report by Jim Hefferan, PWTorch reader


Overall, a very enjoyable show. My friends and I arrived early and they were doing the offer where the first 50 fans to buy a pink Dolph Ziggler "Show-Off" t-shirt got a meet and greet with him during intermission, so we took advantage of that. The entire upper deck was curtained off. The lower bowl was almost completely full with a few empty patches here and there. I'm not good at crowd estimates, but maybe 8,000.

Our seats were five rows from the ring. There was a very scary moment right before the show. A guy near us collapsed from an apparent heart attack. The EMTs came and were doing CPR on him. I legitimately thought he had stopped breathing, but when they eventually got him on a stretcher and wheeled him out, he seemed to be conscious and breathing. Hopefully he's okay.

(1) U.S. champion Santino beat Jack Swagger to retain the U.S. Title. Santino got a decent pop and Swagger got decent heat. The match started with some stalling and comedy bits before going into back and forth. Lots of high-pitched "Santino!" chants. Swagger eventually applied the anklelock, but Santino was able to turn over and power out. Swagger threw Santino into the ropes, but missed a clothesline and Santino hit the Cobra for the pin.

(2) Eve pinned Kelly Kelly. Eve came out first to some "Hoeski" chants. Kelly came out next and encouraged more "Hoeski" chants by getting on the mic. No promo from Eve this time. I would imagine this match was similar to what the folks in Lakeland, Fla. saw on Friday - longer and of better quality than expected. Various "Hoeski" and "Kelly" chants throughout the match. Eve won with a roll-up with her feet on the ropes.

(3) R-Truth pinned Leo Kruger. Kruger was introduced first. I was the only person in my section who knew who he is (I went to Florida for an FCW show in January). Fortunately, Kruger was kind enough to bring a mic with him and introduce himself to those who didn't know who he was. Standard foreign heel promo: Americans are arrogant and lazy and he's going to show us how good he is. Truth then came out to a large hometown pop. Good back and forth match, with Truth eventually hitting the Lie Detector for the pin.

(4) Ryback pinned Alex Riley. Again, nobody knew who Ryback was, but eventually most people became aware it was Skip Sheffield. Sheffield got most of the offense in and won with a sick-looking finisher I can't even really describe. Riley might have been legitimately hurt, as he remained in the ring for an awfully long time holding the back of his head. Ref Charles Robinson exchanged some words with ring announcer Justin Roberts, then helped Riley to the back.

(5) WWE tag champions Primo & Epico (w/Rosa Mendes) beat Zack Ryder & Mason Ryan to retain the Tag Titles. This was a surprisingly good match for the Tag Titles. Ryder started the match for his team. After a while, he tagged in Ryan. Primo and Epico did a funny comedy bit where neither one wanted any part of Ryan and kept blind-tagging the other as soon as they were tagged in. Eventually, Ryder got back in and played babyface in peril for a while. They teased a hot tag to Ryan, but the ref disallowed it because he didn't see it. Rosa earned her paycheck tonight, as she was VERY animated and engaged with numerous fans all around the ring. Eventually, Ryder was able to make a hot tag to Ryan, who hit a nice double suplex on Primo and Epico. Ryder had been disposed of on the outside, and Ryan went for his finisher, but Rosa got up on the apron and distracted him. He then fell victim to a backstabber and got pinned. I'm not even sure whether Primo or Epico got the pin - let's just say that Mason Ryan wasn't the only one who was distracted by Rosa tonight.

(6) Chris Jericho pinned Kofi Kingston. Jericho got a big reaction, largely cheers at first with some boos. He was soon able to turn the crowd against him with some ringside mic work. Lots of stalling tactics from Jericho at the beginning. This match started slow, but turned into a very good match. Jericho reversed Trouble in Paradise into the Walls of Jericho by using a very nice maneuver. Kofi eventually powered out of the Walls of Jericho and this time successfully hit Trouble in Paradise, but Jericho kicked out at two-and-a-half. Jericho then hit the Codebreaker for the pin.

[ Intermission. We went to the meet and greet with Ziggler, which was in some sort of lounge on the club level. We were allowed to have one item signed, greet him, and have a picture taken while he was signing the item, but no posing for pictures because there wasn't enough time. We were able to exchange pleasantries with him as we were getting our items signed and shake hands afterward. Very nice guy. We all thought it was well worth the efforts we had made to take advantage of this opportunity.]

(7) Brodus Clay pinned The Miz. This match was already underway by the time we made it back to our seats from the meet and greet with Ziggler. Naomi and Cameron were at ringside for Brodus. Shortly after we returned, Miz got on the mic and said this was a wrestling match not a dancing match and he had had enough and was leaving. This garnered a lot of heat. Miz headed up the ramp, but Brodus ran out and caught him and brought him back. Miz then gained the upper hand, and mocked Brodus's dance moves. He then turned to Naomi and Cameron and mocked their dance moves as well. He tried the Skullcrushing Finale, but he couldn't get his arms around Clay and was shoved back. Clay then hit a shoulder block and scored the pin with a splash.

Afterward, the Funkasaurus, Naomi, and Cameron then engaged in some post-match dancing. Definitely the longest Funkasaurus match I've seen to date, and not a squash like his matches usually are. He also high-fived the fans around ringside, which I don't think I've ever seen him do on TV.

(8) John Cena beat Kane in a Last Man Standing match. This match was surprisingly better than what I was expecting. A big pop for Cena. This crowd was VERY pro-Cena. Only a smattering of boos, and the "Let's Go Cena!" chants were much louder than the "Cena Sucks!" chants. Kane threw Cena into the ring steps, gave him some chair shots, hit him with the ring bell, and threw him through a table propped up against the turnbuckle, but Cena was able to make it back to his feet each time. Kane brought another table into the ring. He went for a chokeslam, but Cena reversed into the Attitude Adjustment through the table. Kane couldn't make it back to his feet in time, and Cena won.
PunkCMArt_130GG_42.jpg

(9) WWE champion C.M. Punk beat Dolph Ziggler in a 2-out-of-3 falls match to retain the WWE Title. Very strong reaction for Punk. He started out with some chops and struts in homage to being in the heart of Flair Country. Good mat-based wrestling. Ziggler tore the turnbuckle pad off, but the ref caught him. Ziggler then went for a chair, but the ref took it from him. While the ref was disposing of the chair, Ziggler threw Punk head-first into the exposed turnbuckle and got a pin... Ziggler 1, Punk 0.

Ziggler continued to dominate after scoring the first pin and came very close on a number of occasions to scoring a second pin. Punk was eventually caught on the top turnbuckle and Ziggler twice tried for a superplex, but Punk shoved him off both times. Ziggler tried again, and Punk shoved him back for a third time. Punk then hit the Macho Man elbow smash and put Ziggler in a Figure Four, which Ziggler tapped out to... Ziggler 1, Punk 1.

After several more nearfalls and teases of the Zig-Zag and Go To Sleep, there was a ref bump. As expected, Jericho ran down to ringside and nailed Punk. (Which, if you think about it, doesn't make much sense, because a Ziggler victory would mean that Punk-Jericho would no longer be for the WWE Title at Mania.) Ziggler scrambled over to make the cover, but Punk kicked out at two-and-a-half. Jericho remained standing on the ramp and the match continued a little longer. Jericho sprang back up on the apron, but Punk knocked him off with a boot to the face. He then hit the GTS on Ziggler and got the deciding pin. Punk 2, Ziggler 1 to win. Excellent, excellent match that probably went 20-25 minutes.

-- (This part comes second-hand from my friend Jason, because immediately after the last match, I went to the box office to buy tickets to the October 29 Raw show and missed most of the following sequence.) Punk celebrated for a while and then came back into the ring and said the best part was yet to come. He said there was someone going into the Hall of Fame who never got the credit he deserved, but deserved appreciation for all he had done. He called Arn Anderson to the ring.

Anderson came out with John Cena. He said he had Cena come with him, because he felt that the spotlight should never be on a non-wrestler. Anderson seemed genuinely touched and surprised by Punk's gesture. He complimented Cena and Punk as two of the best in the business. He gave his heartfelt thanks for all the support and said he had always given it his all over the years. He was honored to be going into the Hall of Fame and encouraged everyone to either attend Mania or watch on PPV.

The show ended with Anderson hugging Punk and Cena in the ring while the Horsemen theme played. A number of other wrestlers had gathered at the top of the ramp, including Ziggler, Miz, Kruger, and several others. They all shook hands with Anderson as he made his way to the back.

-- A Raw Supershow will be held in Charlotte on October 29. Tickets were available at the box office after the show. There is also an Internet pre-sale starting at 10:00 a.m. Monday morning with a password of WWECENA.

-- Overall, a thoroughly enjoyable show. There were no bad matches, and several excellent matches. A fun time was had by all.

Biggest Pops:

- Cena
- Punk
- Truth (hometown favorite)

Biggest Heat:

- Miz
- Jericho (lots of cheers at first, but managed to turn the crowd against him)
- Ziggler

[Torch art credit Grant Gould (c) PWTorch.com]


We suggest these recent related articles...
SHOW RESULTS - 10/9 AAW in Berwyn, Ill.: Gargano challenges for AAW Hvt. Title, more title matches, big women's tag match, more
SHOW RESULTS - 10/3 NWA Smoky Mountain in Kingsport, Tenn.: NWA Hvt. Title match, Rob Conway, Kid Kash, Ricky Morton, more
LIVE REPORT - 10/4 TNA BFG PPV in North Carolina: Live notes on technical glitches, pre-Angle match announcement, Captain America Fan, more
prowrestling.net
CLICK HERE FOR EVEN MORE PW.NET HEADLINES


CLICK TO EMAIL THIS ARTICLE
CLICK HERE TO RETURN TO MAIN LISTING

NEW! SIGN UP FOR FREE PWTORCH BREAKING NEWS EMAIL ALERTS
BECOME A PWTORCH VIP MEMBER
-FORMER MEMBERS LOGIN HERE TO RENEW
-NEW MEMBERS CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP
SELECT BY ARTICLES CATEGORY
SEARCH PWTORCH.COM



CLICK HERE FOR LIST OF UPCOMING PRO WRESTLING EVENTS
MORE HEADLINES AT AFFILIATE SITES
MMATorch
LATEST HEADLINES - CLICK TO READ CLICK HERE FOR MORE MMATORCH HEADLINES


PWTORCH POLL - VOTE NOW!
RAW POLL 10/12: Vote on Monday's show
 
pollcode.com free polls


RAW POLL 10/12: What was the Best Match on Raw?
 
pollcode.com free polls
MCNEILL LIVECAST POLL: TNA will have a 32-person tournament to determine a new Hvt. champion - your thoughts?
 
pollcode.com free polls
CENA POLL: If John Cena takes a year-end break, who should win the U.S. Title from Cena?
 
pollcode.com free polls
VOTE IN OR SEE RESULTS OF PREVIOUS POLLS



LATEST HEADLINES - CLICK TO READ CLICK HERE FOR EVEN MORE INC HEADLINES

_
LATEST FREE AUDIO SHOWS - CLICK TO LISTEN VIEW MORE PWTORCH LIVECAST EPISODES
DOWNLOAD PWTORCH LIVECAST APP
SUBSCRIBE TO PWTORCH LIVECAST IN ITUNES


ABOUT US

THE TORCH REACHES MORE COMBAT ENTERTAINMENT FANS THAN ANY OTHER SOURCE

PWTorch editor Wade Keller has covered pro wrestling full time since 1987 starting with the Pro Wrestling Torch print newsletter. PWTorch.com launched in 1999 and the PWTorch Apps launched in 2008.

He has conducted "Torch Talk" insider interviews with Hulk Hogan, The Rock, Steve Austin, Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, Eric Bischoff, Jesse Ventura, Lou Thesz, Jerry Lawler, Mick Foley, Jim Ross, Paul Heyman, Bruno Sammartino, Goldberg, more.

He has interviewed big-name players in person incluiding Vince McMahon (at WWE Headquarters), Dana White (in Las Vegas), Eric Bischoff (at the first Nitro at Mall of America), Brock Lesnar (after his first UFC win).

He hosted the weekly Pro Wrestling Focus radio show on KFAN in the early 1990s and hosted the Ultimate Insiders DVD series distributed in retail stories internationally in the mid-2000s including interviews filmed in Los Angeles with Vince Russo & Ed Ferrara and Matt & Jeff Hardy. He currently hosts the most listened to pro wrestling audio show in the world, (the PWTorch Livecast, top ranked in iTunes)


REACHING 1 MILLION+ UNIQUE USERS PER MONTH
500 MILLION CLICKS & LISTENS PER YEAR
MILLIONS OF PWTORCH NEWSLETTERS SOLD
PWTORCH STAFF

EDITORS:
Wade Keller, editor
(kellerwade@gmail.com)

James Caldwell, assistant editor
(pwtorch@gmail.com)

STAFF COLUMNISTS:
Bruce Mitchell (since 1990)
Pat McNeill (since 2001)
Greg Parks (since 2007)
Sean Radican (since 2003)

We also have a great team of
TV Reporters
and Specialists and Artists.

PWTORCH VIP MEMBERSHIP

PWTorch offers a VIP membership for $10 a month (or less with an annual sub). It includes nearly 25 years worth of archives from our coverage of pro wrestling dating back to PWTorch Newsletters from the late-'80s filled with insider secrets from every era that are available to VIPers in digital PDF format and Keller's radio show from the early 1990s.

Also, new exclusive top-shelf content every day including a new VIP-exclusive weekly 16 page digital magazine-style (PC and iPad compatible) PDF newsletter packed with exclusive articles and news.

The following features come with a VIP membership which tens of thousands of fans worldwide have enjoyed for many years...

-New Digital PWTorch Newsletter every week
-3 New Digital PDF Back Issues from 5, 10, 20 years ago
-Over 60 new VIP Audio Shows each week
-Ad-free access to all PWTorch.com free articles
-VIP Forum access with daily interaction with PWTorch staff and well-informed fellow wrestling fans
-Tons of archived audio and text articles
-Decades of Torch Talk insider interviews in transcript and audio formats with big name stars.


**SIGN UP FOR VIP ACCESS HERE**

CONTACTABOUTFACEBOOKTWITTERPODCASTIPHONE APPANDROID APPAMAZON APPRSS
VIP SIGN-UP
VIP LOGIN
THE TORCH: #1 IN COMBAT ENTERTAINMENT COVERAGE | © 1999-2013 TDH Communications Inc. • All rights reserved -- PRIVACY POLICY