WWF Monday Night RAW 9/1/2003
Immediately after the opening sequence, we see The Rock and Brock Lesnar face-to-face in the locker room. The dominant World Heavyweight Champion (for the last 371 days) reinforces the announcement made last week. The Rock's request for a rematch has been granted by the McMahon family. Brock's caveat to agreeing to the match was that he picked the circumstances of the match. The match will happen. At the Royal Rumble. In four months.
After he faces literally everyone else on the roster. Rock talks some trash. Brock wishes him luck. His Road To Redemption starts now.
The Rock makes his way to the ring. He paces, awaiting his first opponent. Jim Ross and "Stone Cold" Steve Austin are on commentary, talking about how Rock doesn't need to win all, or even
any of his R2R matches. He just has to have them. Lesnar is softening up Rock so that when January comes around, Lesnar can pick up the pieces. Rock's opponent is introduced, and it's... Christopher Nowinski. The Smartest Man In Wrestling enters the ring, the bell sounds, he attempts a clothesline, gets stuck with a Rock Bottom, and The Rock is one match down on his Road To Redemption!
The enigmatic Raven is backstage with his associates Stevie Richards and Tazz. Raven talks up the fact that there's a title match tonight and two #1 contender matches, but no room on the card for him. What about me? What about Raven? Stevie mentions that one of the contender matches is for the Women's Title. Tazz chokes Stevie out. Raven thanks him.
Chris Jericho is backstage being interviewed. Pretty typical Jericho stuff, which means it's
awesome. Unfortunately, it amounts to little more than self-promotion. He talks a little about his stablemate Kurt Angle's opportunity to be #1 contender tonight, but he mostly talks about himself.
The Divas are out next in a triple-threat tag team match. The winning duo will face Molly Holly in a triple threat for the Women's Title this Thursday on SmackDown! All six women get in their signature spots leading to a series at the end where Ivory hits a facebuster on Gail Kim, only to eat a Mick Kick from Mickie James, who then takes the Widow's Peak from Victoria, who gets hit with Stratusfaction by Trish Stratus, who gets flattened by a moonsault from Lita. Lita and Ivory win the match and will face Molly in three days for the gold!
Back from commercial, "Latino Heat" Eddie Guerrero is in the ring. He talks a bit about his ongoing issues with Triple H. He challenges The Game to a match at Unforgiven. HHH steps out onto the ramp and accepts the challenge!
Tonight's title match is for the Intercontinental Championship! The unlikely champion Bubba Ray Dudley comes to the ring, flanked by his half-brother D-Von and their Dudleyville Protection Agency partners Bradshaw and Faarooq. He knows he needs numbers on his side, because when his music stops, the arena sound is drowned out by the revving of twelve huge motorcycles, the introduction of The Dirty Dozen! Of course Undertaker leads the way for his gang, followed by his remaining partners. X-Pac dismounts and enters the ring. He'll face Bubba for the belt, but it looks like a lumberjack match with the fourteen combined stablemates at ringside.
Bubba uses his strength advantage throughout the match while X-Pac tries to stick and move as best he can. Finally, the brutal biker gang begins assaulting the DPA at ringside, distracting the referee long enough for Hardcore Holly to enter the ring and hit Bubba with an Alabama Slam. He turns around in time to see Pac cover Bubba for the win and the title change!
The beatdown complete, The Dirty Dozen enter the ring to celebrate with Pac. Undertaker talks about how this is just the beginning. Tonight, he'll win the fatal fourway to become #1 contender for the World Title. Soon, the Dozen will control all the WWF gold! Taker, Pac, Holly, Big Show, Kane, the New Age Outlaws, Val Venis, K-Kwik, Maven, Al Snow, and Chyna all pose as we go back to commercial.
Taker remains in the ring, but the rest of the Dozen has been banned from ringside for tonight's main event. He is joined by Shawn Michaels, Kurt Angle, and the upstart John Cena. The winner of tonight's Fatal Fourway will face Brock Lesnar at Unforgiven for the World Heavyweight Championship! The main event is also the match of the night as all four men give it their all in a battle for supremacy. Cena looks like he has the match won when he picks Undertaker up for the F-U, but he's blasted by Sweet Chin Music by Michaels! Taker takes a nasty tumble to the floor, Cena is out cold, and Michaels has his back turned too long, allowing Angle to sneak up behind him and hit the Angle Slam for the victory!
WWF Chairman Vince McMahon appears on the TitanTron to a massive pop! He makes the match official: At Unforgiven it will be Brock Lesnar defending the World Heavyweight Title against the Olympic Hero Kurt Angle!
Angle celebrates for a bit, but the cameras quickly cut backstage where John Cena and Shawn Michaels have to be pulled apart, each blaming the other for his loss. This does not look like the last time the Heartbreak Kid and the Doctor of Thuganomics will cross paths!
Quick Results (Final Rating 5.16)
- Rock/Lesnar confrontation backstage, Lesnar talks about Rock's "Road To Redemption"
- ROAD TO REDEMPTION, MATCH #1 - The Rock over Chris Nowinski
- Raven promo, what about me?
- Chris Jericho cuts a promo
- WOMEN'S TITLE #1 CONTENDERS - Ivory and Lita over Mickie James/Trish Stratus and Gail Kim/Victoria
- Eddie Guerrero challenges Triple H for Unforgiven
- INTERCONTINENTAL TITLE - X-Pac over Bubba Ray Dudley to win the title
- Dirty Dozen promo, soon we'll have all the gold
- #1 CONTENDER FATAL FOURWAY - Kurt Angle over John Cena, Shawn Michaels, and Undertaker
- Vince McMahon announces Lesnar vs. Angle for the World Title at Unforgiven
- Cena/Michaels backstage confrontation
Unforgiven 2003 Card so far (9/28)
- WWF World Heavyweight Title: Brock Lesnar (c) vs. Kurt Angle
- Road To Redemption: The Rock vs. ???
- Eddie Guerrero vs. Triple H