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KELLER'S WWE RAW REPORT 2/8: Bret Hart appears again after John Cena reveals to McMahon that Bret wants him one-on-one at WrestleMania
Feb 8, 2010 - 11:00:50 PM |
By Wade Keller, PWTorch editor
KELLER'S WWE RAW REPORT
FEBRUARY 8, 2010
LIVE FROM
AIRED ON USA NETWORK
[Q1]
-A video package aired recapping the Vince McMahon-Bret Hart angle last week, including Batista's attack at the end.
-After the Raw opening aired, and as pyro blasted, Michael Cole said, "As if the Saints Super Bowl win wasn't enough, tonight Louisiana braces for Monday Night Raw!"
-Tonight's guest host sped a customized Ford Fusion outside the arena. When it drove in, Hornswoggle popped out of the roof and hopped onto the hood while crotch chopping.
-Kelly Kelly then introduced Carl Edwards. He played to the crowd like a veteran wrestler, then backflipped off the top rope and landed on his feet. Lawler was impressed. He said he's always wanted to do that. Boy did WWE time this Raw location well, because as soon as Edwards mentioned the Saints, the crowd went crazy. He then plugged the Super Bowl of NASCAR, the WrestleMania of NASCAR, coming up next Sunday afternoon. Then as he began talking about John Cena being his supporter, Sheamus interrupted.
Sheamus entered the ring and asked to be the final entrant in the Elimination Chamber. Wasn't that a given? Apparently not. He told Edwards not to do favors for Cena, either. He said he's a guest on his show and he'll do exactly what he tells him. He said if he doesn't do what he tells him, he won't make it to Daytona next Sunday. Christian's music interrupted. The ECW Champion walked out. Lawler and Cole reacted with surprise to his appearance.
Christian shook Edwards's hand. He told him NASCAR is getting huge up in Canada. He said it's almost made him happy that they got denied that WNBA franchise. That joke flopped, in part because he stumbled over his words. Sheamus complained about him interrupting him. He said he was offended that when Edge came out on Raw last week, he said he was going to face either Sheamus or Undertaker at WrestleMania without mentioning ECW. He said later that week Mr. McMahon came out and announced that in two weeks ECW would be going off the air. Some fans booed. Christian said it'd be replaced by the next evolution of WWE programming. Sheamus said that makes him a lame duck champion. Christian replied, "Actually, Snagletooth, you're the one that's lame." He mocked how much Sheamus spends on hair jell and manscaping his beard, and asked if he runs out of money before he gets to the tanning salon. A little too easy. Sheamus said the only thing funny is that he's going to be unemployed in two weeks. Christian said in two weeks, every Superstar in ECW will become a free agent, which means he can sign to whatever show he wants. A large chant of "Impact! Impact!" broke out. Okay, not really. Christian said he was on Raw to dip his toe in the waters and challenge him to a match tonight. He asked Edwards to help him make history by having an ECW Champion vs. WWE Champion match. "We're both here, we're both champions, we were both born without last names; it makes perfect sense to me," he said. Edwards said it makes sense to hi. He called for a referee and said let's start it right now.
[Q2]
1 -- SHEAMUS vs. CHRISTIAN
Sheamus hip-tossed Christian at the start. Christian dove at Sheamus off the second rope. Sheamus caught him and slammed him overhead, then clotheslined him over the top rope to the floor. They cut to an early break. [c] Christian took over briefly after the break, but then Sheamus took over again with a mat hold. Christian made a comeback at 7:00. He snapped Sheamus's back over the top rope. Christian then hit a flying uppercut elbow off the second rope. Sheamus ducked another leap off the rope. He followed with his front thrust kick to the face, then finished Christian with his running released Razor's Edge finisher.
WINNER: Sheamus in 9:00.
STAR RATING: *3/4 -- Good solid match. No surprise they gave Sheamus a clean win to further establish him as a deserving championship level fighter. It does seem to indicate that Christian won't be built up for any PPV main event title matches after ECW, but rather work on the second tier as a gate keeper of sorts.
-They showed Triple H watching backstage on a monitor, grimmacing. Shawn Michaels walked up to him and said he knows that he's been distracted with the whole Undertaker-WrestleMania thing. He said he's had time to think about it, and there's always a silver lining, and he said DX has never been WrestleMania as a team. He said maybe that'll be the first time that happens. Triple H said that sounds good, but he did qualify for the Elimination Chamber, so he hopes he's defending the WWE Title at WrestleMania. Shawn had the look of a puppy dog locked in a cage. "So, it's all about you now," Michaels said.
-Cole said that after Raw went off the air last week, Batista attacked John Cena. He said they'd have "exclusive footage" (what a coup!) of what happened after Raw last week. [c]
[Q3]
-A clip aired of the Vince-Bret angle from last week. They showed Jerry Lawler and Michael Cole at ringside. Lawler said he usually hates the world closure, but he thinks McMahon may have gotten closure after Bret spit in his face 12 years ago. Cole threw to a video package of what happened after Raw last week. Great musical accompaniment. They showed Batista attacking Cena from behind after Raw and powerbombing him onto the ringside steps in slo-mo.
-Backstage Cody Rhodes approached Ted DiBiase and said he must be really proud of himself for qualifying for the Elimination Chamber match. Cody said he had a much tougher opponent. He said he had beaten Mark Henry because and would have again. DiBiase said if he had what it took to beat Cena, he would have. Cody asked DiBiase if he would have beat Cena. DiBiase changed the subject and said now, after everyone saying how alike they are, it's obvious that he's better than him. Cody asked if it was the movie that made him better. Orton walked up and said it's interesting. Orton asked DiBiase if he thinks he's better than him. DiBiase said they'd find out at the Chamber. Orton said he just got word from the guest host that DiBiase will be facing Cena tonight, putting Cody's theory to the test. When Cody smiled, Orton told him he shouldn't be smiling because he cost him his chance at the title at the Royal Rumble. Orton said he knows he meant well and his heart is in the right place. "I appreciate the effort," he said. "I really do." Orton said he'll be facing him later tonight.
-C.M. Punk, Luke Gallos, and Sarina were walking toward the entrance tunnel backstage. [c]
-As Punk, Gallos, and Sarina made their ring entrance, Cole announced that Undertaker, Batista, Edge, Chris Jericho, and Rey Mysterio will be in Baton Rouge, La. tomorrow night instead of tonight. Lawler said the TV cameras and TitanTron would be there too. They showed Smackdown G.M. Teddy Long sitting at ringside. Punk said it's no secret that this part of the country likes to turn to drugs and alcohol when times get tough, and they do the same around Mardi Gras and after Super Bowl wins. He said it's because they're weak and do not know any other way. He said while the rest of the country considers this part of the country un-save-able, they are about to show them "why Straight Edge means I'm better than you." He then pointed out Jared in the crowd. He said he's been good spreading propaganda for Subway, so he'd make a great spokesman for the Straight Edge Society. Jared said no. Punk said he had a feeling he'd say no, so he sent Gallos out to get him and make an example of him. DX's music played just in time.
[Q4]
2 -- TRIPLE H & SHAWN MICHAELS vs. C.M. PUNK & LUKE GALLOS vs. THE BIG SHOW & MIZ
A six-way brawl broke out leading to DX clearing the ring and throwing Miz over the top rope onto everyone else on the floor. They cut to a commercial. [c] The match was in progress after the break. big Show worked over Gallos early in the match. Then he turned and headbutted Triple H. There were three in the ring at once. Show backdropped Triple H and cut to yet another break. That was two breaks as close together as you'll see on Raw. [c] At 8:00 Hunter finally came back against Miz. Cole explained that if one wrestler got pinned, both team members would have to return to the back. Serina yanked Miz off the ring apron. As Miz chased her, Triple H gave him a spinebuster. Triple H crawled over to try to hot-tag Michaels. Punk tried to stop him, but Hunter made the hot-tag at 9:00. He went to work on Punk with rapid-fire offense including a top rope flying elbow.
[Q5]
Cole reset the show at the top of the hour as Michaels stomped the mat to set up his Sweet Chin Music. Gallos attacked Michaels first. Hunter clotheslined Gallos over the top rope. Michaels gave Punk a superkick for the pin. That left DX vs. Show & Miz. Show clotheslined both Michaels and Hunter, then worked over Michaels one-on-one. At 15:00 Michaels hot-tagged Triple H just as Miz also tagged in. After a flurry by Hunter, Michaels tagged himself in. Hunter took exception to it. As they argued, Miz rolled up Michaels from behind for the win.
WINNERS: The Big Show & Miz in 16:00 to capture the Unified Tag Team Titles.
STAR RATING: **3/4 -- Good action most of the time, with effective builds to the hot-tags. The right finish, too, as it frees up Hunter and Shawn for singles matches at WrestleMania, but puts the tag titles in the hands of two people who can benefit (especially The Miz). Plus, of course, it adds to the dissension between Michaels and Hunter.
-Afterward, Lawler said it was "just a bad decision on the part of Shawn Michaels." Michaels jumped out of the ring and told Hunter, "Don't tell me what I did!" He stormed to the back. Is that the end of DX?
-Cole plugged Cena vs. DiBiase. Lawler plugged Orton vs. Rhodes.
-A commercial aired for WWE NXT. Interestingly, the language being used is: "The new season begins in two weeks." So it's being pushed as a series with a season, which could mean it's a concept with a beginning and an end, which if successful would then begin again, but the door may be open to shift to something else if it flops after it's initial run of some kind. [c]
-Josh Matthews interviewed Big Show & Miz backstage. Show said unlike he and Jericho, he and Miz beat DX. He said Miz, unlike Jericho, treats him as his equal and his friend. "There's nothing we can't do," said Show. Miz said they're going to run both Raw and Smackdown and get all the gold. Miz said, "We're MizShow and we are awesome!" Show said he liked ShowMiz better. He explained that it was a takeoff on ShowBiz. Miz conceded that made sense. So ShowMiz is officially born.
-They showed Cole and Lawler at ringside who hyped the announced matches for Elimination Chamber.
[Q6]
-Michaels yelled backstage that he was looking for Teddy Long. Carlito made his cameo, saying he didn't know where he was. Michaels found Long and demanded that he trade him to Smackdown. He said he wants Long to replace one of the guys in the Chamber and let him be in there. He said he'll win the title and give Taker his rematch at WrestleMania. Then he'll retain his title and finally end Taker's streak. He said he can make it happen. Long said he'd love to have him, but the Chamber competitors already earned their spot. He told Long to take a deep breath. Michaels grabbed Long and said he just doesn't understand. Triple H walked up to him and asked Michaels if his obsession has gone so far that he's willing to throw DX away and his career. Michaels stared at Triple from four inches away and said, "My career is over." He then superkicked Long in the face. In a cool camera shot, they showed Michaels walking down a long corridor after kicking Long. [c]
-They replayed Michaels kicking Long. Lawler wondered what he meant by "my career is over." Cole said Michaels is in a place he's never been before.
3 -- GAIL KIM vs. JILLIAN
Maryse joined Cole and Lawler at ringside. Maryse called Cole a "vintage nerd." Maryse said what happens over on Smackdown with Michelle McCool calling Mickie James fat gives WWE Divas a bad name.
WINNER: Kim in 1:00.
-Afterward, Maryse walked into the ring and talked to Kim in French. Then she laughed at her own comments and wished Kim luck. Lawler said French is a sexy and beautiful language. Maryse said, "May the best Diva win."
-A video announced that "Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase was the first inductee into the 2010 Hall of Fame. We get to see clips of some of those classic introductory videos with DiBiase mocking the poor and bullying with his money. Kicking the ball when that kid was dribbling was one of the all-time great heel moves. Too bad DiBiase's laugh got so cartoonish as time went on. Clips aired of DiBiase squashing jobbers on WWF Superstars.
-Cole plugged Cena vs. DiBiase. Lawler plugged Orton vs. Rhodes. [c]
[Q7]
-The MIA guest host was chatting with the Subway guy backstage. Both are Subway sponsors. Santino walked in and butchered the Subway jingle. Jared gave him a gift card. Santino said Jack Swagger took him out of his Royal Rumble opportunity, so he must pay. Edwards booked Santino against Swagger on Superstars on Thursday. In walked Kofi Kingston. He asked Edwards to book all six members of the Elimination Chamber in random singles matches. Edwards asked if he should make those matches now or save it for next week's guest host. Santino suggested they leave it to next week's guest host, who is surely someone associated with class and civility. Then they went to a clip of Jerry Springer, next week's guest host, announcing he'd guest host Raw next week. Clips aired of the Jerry Springer Show on-stage fights.
4 -- CODY RHODES vs. RANDY ORTON
Cody and Orton yapped at each other before the match. Orton shoved Cody in the chest. Cody slapped Orton back. Orton kicked Cody in the gut. Cody dropkicked Orton and scored a quick one count. Orton fumed and dropped Cody with a couple punches. Cody came right back with a leg sweep. Orton dropped Cody over the top rope. Cody went for a top rope crossbody block, but Orton ducked. Orton then signaled for his punt kick. Sheamus distracted Orton. Cody gave Orton the Crossroads from behind and scored a pin.
WINNER: Cody Rhodes in 2:00.
-Afterward, Sheamus gave Orton his front thrust kick to the head. As he set up another move, Cody entered the ring with a chair. Sheamus bailed out to ringside.
-They went back to Cole and Lawler, who threw to footage of the Batista attack on Cena after Raw last week again. [c]
[Q8]
-Backstage, Edwards announced to Josh Matthews that he's going to leave his mark on Raw. He said next week all six members of the Elimination Chamber will be having singles matches: Sheamus vs. Randy Orton, Ted DiBiase vs. Kofi Kingston, and Triple H vs. John Cena. Cole and Lawler said that news is unbelievable.
5 -- TED DIBIASE vs. JOHN CENA
Cena attacked DiBiase as soon as he got to the ring. He tossed him over the top rope, ripped off his shirt, and then went after DiBiase on the floor. Cole said the anger has been building up in Cena since last week. He threw DiBiase into the ringside barrier. Then he put DiBiase in the STF. DiBiase tapped frantically even though the match never actually officially began.
Cena, going into his preacher-style cadence, entered the ring and said he didn't come to Raw to wrestle a match. He called out Batista, saying he can't change what happened last week, but now he just wants to fight him. They cut to a break. [c] Cena continued to talk to the crowd about Batista after the break. He said he must either be scared for his life, "and you should be," or maybe his attack was a business decision as a result of a deal with Vince McMahon. He said two weeks ago he called Vince McMahon pathetic. He said McMahon doesn't like to be embarrassed and then a week later he's attacked by Batista. He said if Batista won't come out, maybe Mr. McMahon will. "Mr. Chairman?" said Cena. And promptly, McMahon's music played. He walked out with ten security guards. Cena mocked that, as if that was enough to stop him. "Here's a tip. Next time come out with a tank." He told him he either enter the ring alone so they can talk like two men or else send his ten henchmen into the ring and he will dispatch them all, but he'll be much more angry. McMahon entered the ring alone. He admitted last week he brought out Batista, and some compensation was involved. "The reason was, I screwed Bret again!" he said. "Did you see the look on Bret's face when Batista had him down and I hauled off and spit right in his face." He said he had nothing to do with Batista attacking Cena, though. McMahon said maybe Batista just doens't like him. He said he doesn't like him, his garish orange, his G.I. Joe jaw, or his Louisiana hayseed fans. He said he doesn't like him personally, but he's good for business. Cena yelled that it's always about money with him. He said he has a ton of money and all he wants is more and spending what he's got to get an advantage. He said he took a good guy and paid him off and now all he cares about is cashing checks. He said everyone has to make a living, and he gets that. "But you do this for money," he said. "I do this because I love it." The crowd popped, especially those with high-pitched voices. He brought up the Super Bowl and got a bigger pop and said he loves to feel the energy of the crowd.
[Q9]
He talked about loving competing in matches like the Elimination Chamber and at WrestleMania. He said those will produce big moments, and that's why people watch - for big moments. He talked about Hall of Famers like Ted DiBiase and Bret Hart doing things for the moment. Cena said he talked to Bret last week, "and apparently he wants another moment." Vince shook his head no. Cena said he heard Bret say something last week he never thought he'd say again. "He said that he would like to wrestle another match," said Cena. McMahon closed his eyes with worry. Cena said he'd like to wrestle McMahon at WrestleMania and he wants his opponent to be Vince McMahon. The crowd popped. McMahon said that's the one thing Bret doesn't want. Cena said: "Yes, he does."
Cena said this is his chance, with the spotlight on him, to have a WrestleMania Moment. He asked him if it's yes or no. "Are you about the money or are you about the moment," Cena said, pointing to the WrestleMania 26 sign as he walked out of the ring. Vince said he doesn't think Bret wants a piece of him. The crowd laughed. Cena asked if it was yes or no. Cena asked if McMahon is hiding behind his stacks of money or if the answer is yes. McMahon lost it and shouted, "Yes! Yes! The answer is yes! I'll tell you to your face, the answer is yes!" Cena thanked him for telling him to his face. He said Louisiana and the WWE Universe thank him. He said he has one more person left to tell. Cena turned and walked away. Vince said he knows Bret is in some igloo in Canada. He said he wants him to know that he shouldn't put himself in a position to be embarrassed once again. He threw to the video package of last week's attack yet again. McMahon smiled. Bret charged into the ring and tackled McMahon and punched away at his head. Security pulled Bret off of Vince. Vince scooted out of the ring. Bret kicked security out of the ring. Security escorted McMahon away to the back. Vince said, "Yeah, attack me from behind!" He told Bret that if he wants him at WrestleMania, he's changed his mind and the answer is no. "You deserved to be screwed!" Bret charged after him with a chair as Vince retreated to the back. Bret then began throwing down equipment off to the side of the stage, causing sparks. He threw the monitors off of the announce table at ringside. Then he re-entered the ring and the fans cheered. His music played as the show ended.
QUOTEBOOK
Jerry Lawler: "I have seen Hornswoggle's driver's license photo. You can actually see his feet in his drivers license photo."
Vince McMahon: "I am the ultimate supreme alpha male. You see, when God created the Heavens and the Earth, it wasn't Adam he had in mind, it was me."
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