The official wrestling sim topic

[Evil Vito]

WWE Superstars – July 15, 2010

Big Show pinned Tyler Reks after a Knockout Punch in a very short match (seriously, it was about two lines worth of text in EWR).

Curt Hawkins & Vance Archer were victorious on Superstars this week, notching a victory over the team of Chris Masters & Heath Slater. Hawkins pinned Slater after a diving elbow drop.

Divas champion Maryse earned a victory over Gail Kim following the French Kiss. With a title match against Natalya coming up in the very near future, this win was important to generate momentum for the champion.

With a United States Title match on Sunday, R-Truth faced off against Michael Tarver, associate of champion Ted DiBiase. Truth was able to put the larger man down following a Lie Detector.

[Evil Vito]

WWE SmackDown – July 16, 2010

CM Punk geared up for his match against Rey Mysterio at Money in the Bank with a bout against his former NXT rookie Darren Young. Young continues to impress in defeat, but he still fell victim to a GTS and a 3-count.

After the match, Punk made sure to berate Young. He’s now lost to the entire Straight Edge Society. He needs to repent for the mistakes he made on NXT, and finally accept straight edge into his life. Young refused once again, and slapped Punk in the face. Young quickly jumped out of the ring and ran off before Gallows or Mercury could get their hands on him.

WWE World Cup – SmackDown Group D: Bryan Danielson (2-0) forced Cody Rhodes (1-1) to submit to the Cattle Mutilation. Bryan continues to prove week after week that he has the pure athleticism to survive in WWE. This athleticism should greatly benefit him in Money in the Bank.

WWE World Cup – SmackDown Group C: Christian (2-0) pinned MVP (0-2) after a Killswitch. Both men shook hands after the close bout. Shad Gaspard and David Otunga appeared on the Titan Tron. They bragged about their high class lifestyles and said that MVP went against everything that they were. They warned MVP that the worst was yet to come.

Vickie Guerrero booked Beth Phoenix in the same match that caused her to lose her title to begin with – a handicap match against Lay-Cool! The healthy Beth was undeterred and dominated both members of Lay-Cool. Beth retained the gold following a Glam Slam on Michelle, who landed on top of Layla. Who will be next to challenge the Glamazon?

WWE World Cup – SmackDown Group B: Kofi Kingston (2-0) pinned JTG (0-2) after the Trouble in Paradise. Kingston ensured that he will be rolling into Sunday with a full head of steam, will that catapult the Ghanian superstar to his first ever Money in the Bank victory?

WWE World Cup – SmackDown Group A: Intercontinental champion Drew McIntyre (2-0) defeated Rey Mysterio (1-1) via count out. CM Punk watched the match from the rampway and goaded Rey into a fight. Rey was counted out in the process, and then attempted to take out his frustrations on Punk. Gallows and Mercury jumped Rey, leaving him down. This nearly half-year long feud will finally culminate at Money in the Bank!

Dolph Ziggler was backstage. Although his MITB opponents all won tonight, he still had to be considered the favorite, because he is…perfection. Big Show walked in and simply stared him down, bringing Ziggler’s optimism down a peg.

In our main event, the Undertaker defeated World Heavyweight champion Jack Swagger. Swagger seemed poised to put Taker away until Kane’s flames burst out of nowhere. Swagger was caught off guard and walked right into a Tombstone. All three men have now recorded victories over one another in recent weeks. Kane came up through the ring and got into a staredown with Taker. Bah gawd, what chance does Swagger have of escaping Money in the Bank with his title?

[Evil Vito]

Finalized Money in the Bank Card

"The Rated-R Superstar" Edge defends his WWE Title against John Cena

"The All-American American" Jack Swagger defends his World Heavyweight Title against The Brothers of Destruction - Kane and The Undertaker - in a Triple Threat Match

2 Money in the Bank matches where the winner receives a title shot at any point for a full year.

-Raw MITB: Evan Bourne, John Morrison, Justin Gabriel, The Miz, Randy Orton, and Zack Ryder

-SmackDown MITB: Big Show, Bryan Danielson, Christian, Dolph Ziggler, Intercontinental champion Drew McIntyre, and Kofi Kingston

"The Game" Triple H competes in his first match back against the man who put him on the shelf, "The Celtic Warrior" Sheamus

CM Punk and Rey Mysterio will put an end to their ongoing feud and PPV match series

The Hart Dynasty put their Unified Tag Team Titles on the line against Chris Jericho and Wade Barrett

R-Truth looks to take the United States Title away from Ted DiBiase

CALL YOUR PPV PROVIDER AND ORDER MONEY IN THE BANK NOW!

[M-A-G]

*calls PPV provider and is placed on hold for 67 minutes*

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by Big Vito 22 LOL Vince, Heyman, and Bischoff all going in at once.

It would be pretty sweet in real life, no? If only to see what kind of reaction Bischoff would get in what is pretty much WWE territory at MSG.

[Evil Vito]

Yeah it would be awesome. I have a feeling Randy Savage would even go in before Bisch and Heyman, tho.

[Evil Vito]

WWE Money in the Bank
July 18, 2010

Dark Match: Matt Hardy def. Chavo Guerrero
The fan-favorite Matt Hardy gets the night started off on a high note for the fans in attendance. Hardy moves out of the way of an attempted Frog Splash and then capitalizes with a Twist of Fate for the victory.
Winner: Matt Hardy
***, 77% Overall Rating

WWE Unified Tag Team Titles: Chris Jericho & Wade Barrett vs. The Hart Dynasty (C)
Fairly standard tag team bout with the fiendish team of Jericho & Barrett isolated Tyson Kidd from his corner through most of it. David Hart Smith eventually got the hot tag and came in like a house of fire as Kidd recovered. Smith picked up Barrett and Kidd hits the ropes to set up for the Hart Attack, but Jericho thwarted his attempt and sent him out of the ring. Barrett escaped Smith’s clutch and hoisted the big man up for The Wasteland. Barrett connected with the move and three seconds later had successfully made use of his NXT-earned PPV title match.
Winners and NEW Unified Tag Team Champions: Chris Jericho and Wade Barrett
***1/4, 82% Overall Rating

Mask vs. Hair: Rey Mysterio vs. CM Punk
These two men have been at each other’s throats since before WrestleMania, and this match was to finally serve as the culmination of the months and months of animosity. Punk did all he could to expose Rey’s face to the WWE audience, including getting illegal assistance from his Straight Edge Society. Referee Charles Robinson finally ejected Mercury, Gallows, and Serena from ringside. With his cronies no longer there to protect him, Punk was dropped throat-first into the rope and ate a 6-1-9 and West Coast Pop. Rey had finally won their bitter feud, and he shaved off several chunks of Punk’s head after.
Winner: Rey Mysterio
****1/4, 90% Overall Rating

Raw Money in the Bank Ladder Match
This match featured more death-defying spots than you could shake a stick at. Ryder with a Zack Attack from the top of the ladder on Morrison. Gabriel and Bourne working in tandem as The Miz lay downed in the ring, with Gabriel hitting a 450 Splash from the top of a ladder followed by a Shooting Star Press from Bourne from the top of another ladder. But best of all, Zack Ryder grabbing hold of the briefcase but then the ladder being pulled from beneath him, forcing Ryder to hang onto the cord for dear life. Morrison connected with a ladder shot to the chest, and Ryder fell to the mat face first, right into an RKO from Orton. “The Viper” was able to withstand the punishment longer than everybody else, climbing the ladder and retrieving the briefcase.
Winner: Randy Orton
****, 87% Overall Rating

WWE United States Title: R-Truth vs. Ted DiBiase (C)
Perhaps learning from watching the CM Punk/Rey Mysterio bout, DiBiase’s associates Michael Tarver and Mark Henry were extra careful to not make their presence at ringside too obvious. DiBiase controlled the match from the early going, but Truth got a head of steam and appeared to be seconds away from winning the United States Title for the first time. Mark Henry jumped onto the apron, and referee John Cone immediately ejected him. Unfortunately, as this argument was taking place, Michael Tarver was busy knocking Truth’s teeth down his throat with a vicious right hand. DiBiase got the pinfall to retain his title.
Winner and STILL United States Champion: Ted DiBiase
***, 80% Overall Rating

Sheamus vs. Triple H
After being on the shelf for nearly three months, “The Game” was back with a vengeance. Early on in the match, Triple H may have been regretting his decision to come back – as Sheamus was controlling him. However, “The Celtic Warrior” may have seen his ego get the best of him as he refused to pin Triple H when it appeared he could. It’s never a wise move to give a guy like Triple H extra time, and he made the Irishman pay. Triple H dodged a Bicycle Kick, and then Triple H charged and connected with a series of jumping knee drops. Sheamus staggered around and walked right into the Pedigree. Bah Gawd Triple H is back!
Winner: Triple H
***1/4, 86% Overall Rating

SmackDown Money in the Bank Ladder Match
This match had quite an act to follow after Raw’s ladder match, but it certainly disappoint, and featured a crazy ending. Danielson found creative ways to incapacitate his opponents using the ladder to make some painful submission holds. Ziggler planted Christian with a Zig Zag from up top. Kingston attempted to climb the ladder but Big Show threw another ladder at him like a javelin, sending him crashing to the mat. Nobody came even close to touching the briefcase until Christian near the end. He found himself in the same position as he did at WM – with the briefcase right in his grasp – until it inexplicably raised up out of his grasp! What is the meaning of that? Christian looked shocked, and in his confusion he didn’t notice Drew McIntyre behind him. McIntyre knocked Christian off the ladder, as the briefcase lowered down to normal. The Intercontinental champion can now try to add some more gold around his waist at any time.
Winner: Drew McIntyre
****, 88% Overall Rating

WWE Title: John Cena vs. Edge (C)
Considered by many to be “The Ultimate Opportunist”, Edge has been known to win many big matches by less-than-honorable means. Many feel that Edge cannot win a big match without cheating or giving himself a huge advantage. But tonight, he proved those naysayers wrong. Cena and Edge had a back-and-forth encounter complete with dueling chants from the crowd. Many nearfalls on both ends. Cena locks in the STF but Edge gets to the ropes. Edge climbs to his feet and charges at Cena, Cena catches him for the Attitude Adjustment, but Edge lands on his feet! SPEAR! Edge retains his title in a thriller! After the match, Randy Orton jumps into the ring and nearly RKOs Edge, but Edge escapes the clutch in time. The Viper points to his briefcase as a reminder that he can cash it in on Edge at any time.
Winner and STILL WWE champion: Edge
***1/4, 92% Overall Rating

World Heavyweight Title: The Undertaker vs. Kane vs. Jack Swagger (C)
Some say that “The All-American American” pulled off a miracle at Fatal Four Way, but would lightning strike twice? All three men slugged at one another and were quick to break up each others’ pinfalls. Swagger began growing visibly frustrated as Kane and Undertaker would both sit up after landing big maneuvers on them. Swagger pounded the mat in frustration, and this rare lapse of concentration from Swagger gave Undertaker a chance to capitalize. Undertaker planted Swagger with a huge Chokeslam, sending him outside the ring. But when he turned around, Kane lifted his brother up and planted him with a Tombstone! Kane gets the pinfall and wins a World title for just the second time in his career! Bah gawd hellfire and brimstone!
Winner and NEW World Heavyweight champion: Kane
***1/4, 85% Overall Rating

83% Overall Rating for Money in the Bank

[Swiss Ultimate]

Vito, what sim do you use?

[Evil Vito]

EWR 4.2

[Swiss Ultimate]

Neat. I definitely cheated with mine, all my guys are well-behaved technical masters, maxed out stats for all my guys.

Do you know what exactly makes guys on the roster unhappy?

[Evil Vito]

Main Eventers and Upper Midcarders lose a little bit of morale each time they don't appear on television. So when you're running a company with 4 TV shows a week, the morale plummets. I get around this by turning all of my main eventers and upper midcarders into managers.

[loopydate]

NOVEMBER 26, 2004 - SMACKDOWN!

It's the last SmackDown! of November, and tonight promises to be the latest in a string of noteworthy shows. Eric Bischoff announces a huge match for Starrcade, new World Tag Team Champions are crowned, and the tournament for the vacant Intercontinental Title begins!

We kick things off with a first-round match pitting the exciting Brian Kendrick against former champion "Nature Boy" Dave Batista, the winner will advance to the quarterfinals in two weeks! Batista clearly has his fire back, and he wants the Intercontinental Title back as well. Kendrick puts up a good fight, but Batista's power is just too great, and he puts Kendrick away with a Figure-Four Leglock.

BJ Whitmer is out next for his first-round match, but he clearly got a raw deal as his opponent is a fired-up John Cena! As soon as the bell rings, Cena blasts BJ with a spear, then lands an F-U for the win! As Cena celebrates, Christian appears out of nowhere with a steel chair! Christian hits a big chair shot and walks off, leaving Cena bloodied. These two look like their burgeoning feud is going to be huge!

WWE Chairman Eric Bischoff is backstage in his office and announces that, by virtue of Rey Mysterio pinning United States Champion Chris Benoit last week in their tag match, Rey has earned a shot against Benoit at Starrcade!

Two of the most exciting young cruiserweights on SmackDown! are in action next in a first-round IC Title tournament match as John Morrison takes on Carlito! It's a very entertaining contest with both men getting in their spots. Eventually, Carlito's experience edge payss off as he reverses a submission hold into his trademark reverse figure-four for the win! Carlito advances to the quarterfinals!

Rico takes on Test in tonight's final IC tourney match. This is probably the worst of the four we've seen tonight, but there were still a couple of good nearfalls. Rico picks up the win with a spinning kick, but gets jumped after the bell by Chris Kanyon who hits I'm Betta Than You to leave his rival laying!

WWE Champion The Rock appears on the TitanTron and he cuts a promo on his upcoming defense against the Japanese buzzsaw Tajiri. He talks about how of all the challengers he's faced over the years, he never thought he'd be at this point, talking about Tajiri as the #1 contender. But it just goes to show that, given the right opportunity, if you have the right set of skills, you can climb the mountain. Tajiri's always had all the skill in the world, and now he's found his opportunity. But The Rock's got an opportunity at Starrcade, too. He's got an opportunity to get back at Tajiri for jumping him a couple of weeks ago, and he's got an opportunity to once again enter the new year as the People's Champion and still the WWE Champion! If ya smellllllll what The Rock is cookin'!

A pair of #1 contenders go head-to-head next as United States Title contender Rey Mysterio takes on Cruiserweight Title contender Matt Hardy Version 2.0! The crowd gets really into this high-flying encounter, and both men come out of it looking like a million bucks, but Rey eventually picks up the big win with the West Coast Pop!

Last week on SmackDown!, Eric Bischoff announced that Jeff Hardy had been stripped of both the Intercontinental and World Tag Team Titles. Earlier tonight, four of the eight quarterfinal slots in the IC Title tounrament were filled. And now we're going to determine new tag champions in a triple-threat match made up entirely of former champions! It's the Dudley Boyz versus Los Guerreros versus the Metro Connection! The Dudleyz take turns working over Kanyon in the early-going until Kanyon can tag in his partner Billy Gunn. From there, the tags come quickly and often between all three teams, and during one of the more chaotic moments Eddie Guerrero plants Billy Gunn with a tiger suplex to set up the frogsplash and Los Guerreros are your new champions!

Unfortunately, as Eddie is celebrating his big win, Chris Jericho hits the ring! These two will collide at Starrcade, and Jericho takes the opportunity to weaken his rival with the Walls of Jericho!

Earlier tonight, the top contenders for the US and Cruiserweight Titles went one-on-one, and now it's the champs' turns as Chris Benoit takes on Paul London! London gets off to a hot start with a back suplex (shades of his trainer, Shawn Michaels), then a big legdrop for two. Benoit fights back with punches, a back suplex of his own, a thrust kick, and a horrifying Tiger Driver 91 that nearly crushes London's neck! London somehow kicks out, but Benoit stays on the offensive with a butterfly suplex. He goes up top for his trademark headbutt, but London snaps off a super Frankensteiner for two! London continues to use the top rope to his advantage with a big DDT for two more. Dropkick to the knee and a spinning kick keeps London rolling, but when he attempts for an arm wringer, Benoit uses his technical expertise to escape, then land a dropkick and a brainbuster. Out of nowhere, Matt Hardy Version 2.0 hits the ring. Benoit distracts the official allowing Hardy to take out London with a chair. Benoit clamps on the Crippler Crossface on an unconscious London, and the ref calls for the bell! Hardy joins Benoit in a beat-down on London until Rey Mysterio hits the ring to drive them off.

And now for a tag-team main event. On one side, the #1 contenders for the World and WWE Titles, Brock Lesnar and Tajiri. On the other, World Champion Rhyno and The Hurricane! It's actually a very good match that gets all four guys good exposure. Lesnar blasts Hurricane with a tiger bomb, then puts him away with the F-5 for the win. After the match, Rock takes out Tajiri with a chairshot, and the People's Champ stands tall as SmackDown! goes off the air.

Next week, four more SmackDown! Superstars will join John Cena, Rico, Carlito, and Dave Batista in the quarterfinals of the Intercontinental Title tournament, we'll finally hear from Rico about the accusations levied against him by Chris Kanyon, plus the build-up to Starrcade continues!

[loopydate]

NOVEMBER 29, 2004 - MONDAY NIGHT RAW

A huge eight-man tag main event has been signed for the last show of November, plus the last two semifinal spots in the tournament to crown a #1 contender for Trish Stratus' Women's Title at Starrcade will be determined, and a huge contest pitting two of RAW's top stars against each other as Rob Van Dam takes on Randy Orton!

We open the show with a one-on-one match pitting the Natural Born Ministry's rookie monster Damien against former stablemate Big Show! Damien controls most of the match until Show fights back with some pretty weak offense. Damien eventually picks up the win with his chokeslam, then lays Show out with a chair afterwards.

Damien's mentors and the co-leaders of the NBM head out next as Sean O'Haire and Undertaker take on the World's Greatest Tag Team! Undertaker is in control of the match until Shelton Benjamin manages to get away and attempt a hot tag. He gets tagged, all right, but it's by a big right hand from his partner Charlie Haas! Haas hops down from the corner and walks away, leaving Shelton to get chokeslammed and pinned. Haas returns to the ring and hops up onto the second rope and signals for Undertaker and O'Haire to set up a table in the middle of the ring. Undertaker picks up Shelton for a suplex, but passes him up to Haas, who puts his best friend through the table with a superbomb! Benjamin is completely out! What has Charlie Haas done?!?

Undertaker grabs a microphone from ringside and gets down on Shelton's level. "For too long, you have been a nuisance to us. You were the first to defeat our rookie monster. We took your tag titles, but you gave us hell trying to get them back. Tonight, the rise of the Ministry begins again, and I've proven that I can get to the things and people that are closest to your heart. But at Starrcade, I'm coming for your soul! And you will not rest in peace!"

The divas tournament continues next as two of WWE's most unusual women do battle. It's Lita against Daffney for a spot in the semis! They have a pretty good brawl that Lita ends with the Litarana to move on.

EWR keeps suggesting that I put A-Train and William Regal against each other. Not sure why because they don't really mesh well. Meh. Train picks up the win with the Derailer.

Mickie James is backstage, and she cuts a promo on her match with Jazz next week in the semifinals. The elite Diva definitely has her sights set on getting her title back, but she knows that she has to get through Jazz. And Jazz has given her trouble before, but next week, Mickie is focused, and she's going to prove that she belongs in the Elite!

The last quarterfinal match in the divas tournament is up next as Victoria takes on Molly Holly. This is probably the best match of the tournament thus far, and Molly picks up the win with a big flying crossbody to advance to face Lita next week.

United States Champion Chris Benoit has a big match coming up at Starrcade against Rey Mysterio, but tonight he's got a tune-up against ECW Original Tommy Dreamer. Tommy gets in a little offense, but winds up taking a big lariat to set up for the Crippler Crossface. Tommy has no choice but to tap out, then he's helpless to defend himself from a series of stomps as Benoit is clearly sending a message to Mysterio!

Randy Orton comes to the ring for his match with Rob Van Dam and he has a proposition. Five weeks between now and Starrcade, and we both need to prove that we belong among the Elite of World Wrestling Entertainment. Best of five series, starting... now!

RVD comes out, and the match is on! It's a great one, and if this is the start of a best-of-five series, I can't wait for the rest of it! Eventually, Van Dam strikes first, hitting the Five-Star Frogsplash to go up 1-0!

Our main event pits eight members of the Elite against each other, including three Starrcade previews! It's WWE Champion The Rock, World Champion Rhyno, John Cena, and one-half of the World Tag Team Champions Eddie Guerrero against Tajiri, Brock Lesnar, Christian, and Chris Jericho! Cena takes most of the abuse from all four heels, but it lets all of them get in some high spots without them taking away momentum from the champs on the babyface side. Rhyno picks up the win for his team with the Gore to send the fans home happy.

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by DeathtotheSwiss Neat. I definitely cheated with mine, all my guys are well-behaved technical masters, maxed out stats for all my guys. Do you know what exactly makes guys on the roster unhappy?

Yeah, definitely don't do more than 3 shows especially if you have alot of people on your active roster. 25-30 guys per show with 3 shows should be fine and make sure you have a timeslot that affords you alot of segments. Your workers also need to actually compete in matches. Just sticking them in an interview or angle won't help.

[M-A-G]

And heeeeeeeeeeeere's WrestleMania 30:



So here’s the fallout of WrestleMania:

Kofi Kingston was the 10th mystery entrant for Money in the Bank.

Ted DiBiase is still the WWE U.S. Champion.

Ian Moore is the new WWE Intercontinental Champion for the second time.

CM Punk and Shawn Michaels have effectively ended their feud.

Batista and HHH had quite possibly the worst Hell in a Cell match ever just based on the match report.

John Morrison retained the WWE Title.

Jason Collins is the new World Heavyweight Champion for the third time.

Raw: 3/31/2014

Opening segment: HHH comes out to do what he does best: talk about himself and how great he is. Batista isn’t here tonight as he’s off licking his wounds from Hell in a Cell. He wants to move on but he points out that there is another superstar on the Raw roster that he has unfinished business with. And with that he calls out John Morrison. Morrison obliges and emerges from the back still the WWE Champion. Morrison gets face-to-face with HHH and asks if he really wants to talk about greatness. “Last night, I overcame all the odds and walked out of my 4th straight WrestleMania as a world champion. Now my grasp on WWE history can be as shaky as WWE.com at times but I’m pretty sure no other superstar can claim that. Now I know what you’re going to say, Hunter. You want a title shot against me. After all, I am the man that beat you for the title my first night here on Raw and all attempts for us to have a rematch were thwarted by one problem or another. So I’ll tell you what. Yes, you can….”
Bobby Lashley’s music hits and out comes the man himself to interrupt the proceedings. He hops into the ring with a mic and gets all up in HHH’s grill. “…Yes, you can get behind ME! I don’t care what anyone says; last night was highway robbery. I had John Morrison beat and everyone here knows that I should be standing here as the new WWE Champion. Besides, HHH…just looking at you right now, you’re not much in a position to challenge for anything. Batista may be licking his wounds but you didn’t walk out unscathed yourself. So why don’t you do what he did, get your ass into your car, pack up your things in your hotel, and head on home and rest up. Because you’ll want to be in the best of shape if you’re going to challenge me for the WWE Title.”
John Morrison objects to this by pointing out that Lashley doesn’t have a title match and isn’t going to get one. “You had your shot and you blew it. It’s going to take something major for you to be in any consideration for a title match. So if you don’t mind, HHH and I would like to resume our discussion. Preferably elsewhere….” Morrison turns to leave and HHH just shrugs his shoulders at Lashley. Lashley ponders over the situation and raises his mic again. “Wait,” he says to Morrison. “What if I put up something as well?” Morrison pauses and turns his attention back to Lashley. “What could you have to put up that I would want?” Lashley steps up to Morrison and defiantly declares, “My career. You put the WWE Title on the line tonight and I’ll put my career on the line as well. You win, I’m gone. I win, I’m the champ. No more, no less. What do you say?” HHH interjects by saying, “Now, now I can’t speak for you, John or for everybody here but I would have no problem seeing Lashley get his ass beat again and taking a walk out of the WWE.” “I’d zip it if I were you, Hunter seeing as you’re not 100% and I’m just mad enough to finish what Batista started last night,” Lashley fires back. “Hey, me at 40% is 39% more than what I need to kick your ass….” “Hey, hey, hey,” interrupts Morrison. “Alright, fine. Lashley, if you’re serious about doing this, then tonight, you and me…one-on-one…for the WWE Title.” Morrison drops the mic and raises the belt to cheers. Lashley smirks and HHH just nods along.

Other proceedings:
Raw GM Steve Austin announces that on Superstars this Thursday, there will be a Triple Threat match to determine who will headline Backlash and face the winner of tonight’s WWE Title match. It will be HHH vs. Edge vs. Randy Orton

AJ Styles and Christopher Daniels lose a tag team match to Mark Henry and Pete Shapiro. Daniels seems to be continuing his disgust with Styles.

R-Truth defeats William Regal and makes it clear he’s still coming for Ted DiBiase and the U.S. Title.

Kim Roderick retains the WWE Diva’s Title against Adara James. Victoria, still on the warpath, chases Kim away afterwards.

Bryan Danielson has a run-in with JBL. JBL asks if Danielson is wallowing in self-pity after failing to recapture the U.S. Title at WrestleMania. JBL tells him to buck up and points out that it’s perfectly alright because guys like Danielson aren’t meant for glory. Danielson sarcastically asks if glory is reserved for people like JBL. JBL glares at Danielson and declares that he’s a wrestling god. Glory comes with the territory.

Randy Orton and Evan Bourne defeat Edge and Ted DiBiase when Bourne pins DiBiase. Bourne picks up the U.S. Title and stares at it for a bit before dropping it at DiBiase’s body.

Main Event: John Morrison defeats Bobby Lashley to retain the WWE Title and send Lashley packing. HHH watches from the stage at the conclusion of the match.

End of the month proceedings:
Bobby Lashley retires.

Superstars: 4/3/2014
Bunch of matches with no real major implications although Daniels and Styles continue to have problems, Evan Bourne continues his winning ways, and Bryan Danielson answers JBL’s challenge of defeating one of his lackeys, Lance Cade in singles action.

Main Event: HHH defeated Edge and Randy Orton in a triple threat match to become the number contender to the WWE title at Backlash.

SmackDown!: 4/4/2014
Opening segment: The Money in the Bank winner Kofi Kingston comes out to a huge pop. He addresses his surprise return at WrestleMania and even more surprising victory. He can’t wait to challenge for the World Title….
…Interrupting is the theme of the week as Shad come out with a folder and a mic and hops in the ring. Kofi shouldn’t get ahead of himself because he’s not going to be challenging for anything anytime soon. By order of the WWE Board of Directors, Shad is demanding that the SmackDown! GM, The Rock, comes out to the ring and address what’s in the folder.
IF YOU SMELL………!!! Here comes the Rock with a perturbed look on his face. Shad hands the folder to the Rock and says that he is required to carry out what’s in there. The Rock looks over a document in the folder while Kofi stands looking puzzled and wondering what the deal is. The Rock closes the folder and turns away and shakes his head with a look of disbelief and disgust on his face. “What’s wrong, Rock?” Shad asks. “Don’t want to accept it? If you’re not to telling everyone here, I’ll do it. Basically, Kofi, you didn’t qualify for Money in the Bank like the other nine competitors did. You got forced in by our ‘illustrious General Manager’ who just loves doing favors for people who don’t deserve them. I took this matter up with the Board of Directors and they all agree that it was unfair for everyone else who actually earned their spot. Therefore, Kofi, while officially you are the winner of the match at WrestleMania, you are NOT the owner of the Money in the Bank briefcase. So Rock, do your duty. Do what you’re being paid to do. Do your job and strip Kofi Kingston of the Money in the Bank briefcase.”
The Rock takes up the mic and addresses Shad. “Now hold on because there’s something in here that you’re overlooking Shad. This document may order the Rock to strip Kofi Kingston of the briefcase but it also empowers the Rock to give Kofi an opportunity to qualify.” Shad now looks puzzled. “Qualify for what?”
The Rock continues, “You see, according to this, two weeks from now on SmackDown!, there will be a rematch of the Money in the Bank ladder match involving the nine participants who originally qualified. The tenth spot will be up for grabs in a qualifying match that Kofi Kingston will be a part of and The Rock will set up for Superstars this Thursday.” Shad is furious while Kofi pretty much says, “Bring it on” by his expression. Shad tries to clothesline Kofi but Kofi ducks and smacks him with the briefcase. He drops it in the ring and walks off to the crowd’s cheers.
Oops, wait, we’re not done as Chris Sylvain, fresh off of losing the World Heavyweight Title to Jason Collins at WrestleMania comes out and gets in the Rock’s face. He declares there will be no rejoicing or celebrating for anyone. He’s entitled to a rematch against Collins. The Rock points out that Collins hasn’t arrived yet but notes that Sylvain looks ready for action and agrees to put him in a match with a champion tonight. In fact, it’s someone Sylvain knows quite well: the new Intercontinental Champion Ian Moore.

Other proceedings:
Rhyno earns an Intercontinental Title match for Superstars by winning a four way.

Oracle retains the WWE Women’s Title against Nicole Durgan.

Shad and Jack Swagger defeat Kofi Kingston and Shelton Benjamin when Swagger pins Benjamin. Swagger declares that he’ll do what should’ve been done at WrestleMania: win Money in the Bank.

The Rock declares that the qualifying match for the tenth spot in the Money in the Back rematch will actually be a Triple Threat match pitting Kofi Kingston against Christian and Mr. Kennedy.

Chris Sylvain beats Ian Moore by countout when Cash Stevens gets involved.

Jason Collins comes out to close the show and celebrate his title win. Kane comes out and points out that he’s got another chance at Money in the Bank and when he wins it, Chris Sylvain will be the least of the champion’s worries. Chris Sylvain naturally comes out to object to this but both Collins and Kane knock him around. Sylvain runs off while Collins and Kane stare each other down.

[loopydate]

NOVEMBER 2004 RECAP


RAW

(Overall Won-Loss, Season 2 W-L) The Elite (Nov. W-L, Overness) (Matches)
(19-5, 5-2) Mickie James (4-0, 100) (W Jazz, W w/Gail vs Daffney/Jazz, W SS match, W triple threat)
(54-27, 16-6) The Rock (8-1, 99) (W Damien, W Y2J, W Tajiri, W w/Cena vs Layfield/Test, W SS match, W War Games, L Rhyno, W 6-man tag, W 8-man tag)
(53-32, 13-11) Brock Lesnar (6-4, 98) (W RVD, W Noble, L Rey, W SS match, L War Games, W battle royal, W triple threat, L 6-man tag, W w/Tajiri vs Rhyno/Hurricane, L 8-man tag)
(52-33-3, 18-8) Chris Benoit (8-3, 93) (W Shelton, W Cena, W w/Y2J vs Rhyno/RVD, W w/Y2J vs Dudleyz, W SS match, L War Games, L battle royal, L w/Y2J vs Eddie/Rey, W Cena, W London, W Tommy)
(41-28-2, 12-7) Rhyno (6-3, 87) (W Y2J, L w/RVD vs Violence, W battle royal, L SS match, W Rock, W Xian, W 6-man tag, L w/Hurricane vs Brock/Tajiri, W 8-man tag)
(48-40, 11-15) John Cena (5-6, 99) (L Tajiri, L Benoit, L Damien, W w/Rock vs Layfield/Test, W SS match, W War Games, L battle royal, L Matt, L Benoit, W BJ, W 8-man tag)
(44-41-1, 7-8) Eddie Guerrero (10-2, 99) (W UT, W Xian, L Xian, W Xian, W SS match, W War Games, W battle royal, L triple threat, W w/Rey vs Violence, W 6-man tag, W tag triple threat, W 8-man tag)
(40-42-2, 12-12) Chris Jericho (3-7, 99) (L Rhyno, L Rock, W w/Benoit vs Rhyno/RVD, W w/Benoit vs Dudleyz, W SS match, L War Games, L battle royal, L w/Benoit vs Eddie/Rey, L 6-man tag, L 8-man tag)
(36-40, 7-11) Christian (2-6, 98) (L Eddie, W Eddie, L Eddie, L SS match, W battle royal, L triple threat, L Rhyno, L 8-man tag)
(34-40-1, 8-6) Tajiri (4-7, 98) (W Cena, W Nova, L Rock, L 6-man tag, W SS match, L War Games, L battle royal, L London, L 6-man tag, W w/Brock vs Rhyno/Hurricane, L 8-man tag)

(Overall Won-Loss, Season 2 W-L) Upper Midcard (Nov. W-L, Overness) (Matches)
(27-10, 9-6) Damien (3-4, 85) (L Rock, W Cena, L battle royal, L SS match, L battle royal, W w/UT vs RVD/Shelton, W Show)
(37-37-1, 6-11) Rob Van Dam (1-6, 88) (L Brock, L w/Rhyno vs Violence, L battle royal, L SS match, L battle royal, L w/Shelton vs Damien/UT, W Orton)
(16-20, 5-10) Randy Orton (1-4, 94) (W Shelton, L battle royal, L SS match, L battle royal, L RVD)
(30-38-1, 4-7) Undertaker (2-4, 62) (L Eddie, L battle royal, L SS match, L battle royal, W w/Damien vs RVD/Shelton, W w/O'Haire vs WGTT)
(32-41, 4-13) Shelton Benjamin (2-6, 81) (L Benoit, L Orton, L battle royal, W SS match, W War Games, L battle royal, L w/RVD vs Damien/UT, L w/Haas vs O'Haire/UT)

(Overall Won-Loss, Season 2 W-L) Midcard (Nov. W-L, Overness) (Matches)
(4-2, 4-2) Payne (3-1, 55) (W 6-man tag, W SS match, L battle royal, W Regal)
(45-29-1, 5-9) Sean O'Haire (3-3, 77) (W Train, L 6-man tag, L SS match, L battle royal, W Haas, W w/UT vs WGTT)
(18-12-1, 4-0) Trish Stratus (1-0, 82) (W SS match)
(13-10, 1-2) Victoria (1-1, 71) (W SS match, L Molly)
(36-32-1, 6-4) Big Show (2-2, 67) (W 6-man tag, W SS match, L battle royal, L Damien)
(24-30, 10-6) A-Train (3-2, 80) (L O'Haire, W 6-man tag, W SS match, L battle royal, W Regal)
(13-17, 1-7) Jazz (1-3, 77) (L Mickie, L w/Daffney vs Mickie/Gail, L SS match, W Gail)
(20-29, 1-5) Chuck Palumbo (0-4, 68) (L 6-man tag, L SS match, L battle royal, L w/Stamboli vs ECW)
(8-13-1, 2-2) Gail Kim (2-1, 75) (W w/Mickie vs Daffney/Jazz, W SS match, L Jazz)
(20-32, 2-5) William Regal (1-4, 69) (W Haas, L battle royal, L battle royal, L Payne, L Train)
(16-26, 1-6) Johnny Stamboli (0-3, 70) (L 6-man tag, L SS match, L w/Palumbo vs ECW)
(9-15, 3-1) Lita (2-0, 77) (W SS match, W Daffney)
(19-34, 3-6) Tommy Dreamer (1-3, 71) (L SS match, L battle royal, W w/Storm vs Palumbo/Stamboli, L Benoit)
(22-40, 2-9) Charlie Haas (1-4, 75) (L Regal, W SS match, L battle royal, L O'Haire, L w/Shelton vs O'Haire/UT)
(16-30, 2-5) Lance Storm (1-2, 65) (L battle royal, L battle royal, W w/Tommy vs Palumbo/Stamboli)
(13-27, 4-2) Sylvan Grenier (1-1, 70) (W w/Dupree vs Fred/Tom, L battle royal)
(7-15, 1-3) Molly Holly (1-1, 74) (L SS match, W Victoria)
(15-34, 4-3) Rene Dupree (1-1, 72) (W w/Grenier vs Fred/Tom, L battle royal)
(6-29, 1-4) Rob Conway (0-2, 68) (L battle royal, L battle royal)

(Overall Won-Loss, Season 2 W-L) Lower Midcard (Nov. W-L, Overness) (Matches)
(17-13, 0-4) Mark Jindrak (0-2, 60) (L battle royal, L battle royal)
(27-29-1, 4-4) Kane (1-1, 66) (W battle royal, L battle royal)
(2-8, 0-3) Shawn Stasiak (0-2, 68) (L battle royal, L battle royal)
(2-8, 0-5) Fred Williams (0-2, 61) (L w/Tom vs La Res, L battle royal)
(1-7, 0-3) Shaniqua (0-2, 52) (L SS match, L triple threat)
(0-3, 0-3) Daffney (0-3, 61) (L w/Jazz vs Mickie/Gail, L SS match, L Lita)

(Overall Won-Loss, Season 2 W-L) Opener (Nov. W-L, Overness) (Matches)
(1-5, 0-3) Jacqueline (0-2, 60) (L SS match, L triple threat)

(Overall Won-Loss, Season 2 W-L) Injured Reserve (Nov. W-L, Overness) (Matches)
(1-8, 0-5) Tom Howard (0-2, 52) (L w/Fred vs La Res, L battle royal)

Non-Wrestlers (Overness)
Eric Bischoff (96)
Shane McMahon (86)
Al Snow (75)

Managers (Clientele)
Dawn Marie (75) (None)
Bill Alfonso (71) (Rob Van Dam, Rhyno, Lance Storm, and Tommy Dreamer)
Terri Runnels (70) (None)

RAW Title Changes
World Heavyweight - Rhyno beat Chris Jericho (11/1)
United States - None (Chris Benoit has been champ since 8/22)
Women's - None (Trish Stratus has been champ since 10/4)
WWE Tag Team - None (La Resistance have been champs since 10/18)

RAW Feuds
Rhyno vs. Brock Lesnar (100 Heat)
Eddie Guerrero vs. Chris Jericho (100 Heat)
Rob Van Dam vs. Randy Orton (95 Heat)
Shelton Benjamin vs. Undertaker (64 Heat)

[Evil Vito]

Originally Posted by M-A-G And heeeeeeeeeeeere's WrestleMania 30:

Nice edit job on the MITB.

My game isn't dead...but I'm a part of the Armchair Warfare game over on the Wrestling Forum. Once my month of booking is over with I'll get back to this.

[Evil Vito]

Hate how many long-term storylines I have despite only being in July and moving at such a snail's pace that I may never get to see them through.

I already know my planned Rumble winner and one of the WM Title matches, I have some draft moves all set, and I plan on shamelessly ripping off a real WWE storyline in January and adding my own spin to it.

[loopydate]

NOVEMBER 2004 RECAP

SmackDown!

(Overall Won-Loss, Season 2 W-L) The Elite (Nov. W-L, Overness) (Matches)
(19-5, 5-2) Mickie James (4-0, 100) (W Jazz, W w/Gail vs Daffney/Jazz, W SS match, W triple threat)
(54-27, 16-6) The Rock (8-1, 99) (W Damien, W Y2J, W Tajiri, W w/Cena vs Layfield/Test, W SS match, W War Games, L Rhyno, W 6-man tag, W 8-man tag)
(53-32, 13-11) Brock Lesnar (6-4, 98) (W RVD, W Noble, L Rey, W SS match, L War Games, W battle royal, W triple threat, L 6-man tag, W w/Tajiri vs Rhyno/Hurricane, L 8-man tag)
(52-33-3, 18-8) Chris Benoit (8-3, 93) (W Shelton, W Cena, W w/Y2J vs Rhyno/RVD, W w/Y2J vs Dudleyz, W SS match, L War Games, L battle royal, L w/Y2J vs Eddie/Rey, W Cena, W London, W Tommy)
(41-28-2, 12-7) Rhyno (6-3, 87) (W Y2J, L w/RVD vs Violence, W battle royal, L SS match, W Rock, W Xian, W 6-man tag, L w/Hurricane vs Brock/Tajiri, W 8-man tag)
(48-40, 11-15) John Cena (5-6, 99) (L Tajiri, L Benoit, L Damien, W w/Rock vs Layfield/Test, W SS match, W War Games, L battle royal, L Matt, L Benoit, W BJ, W 8-man tag)
(44-41-1, 7-8) Eddie Guerrero (10-2, 99) (W UT, W Xian, L Xian, W Xian, W SS match, W War Games, W battle royal, L triple threat, W w/Rey vs Violence, W 6-man tag, W tag triple threat, W 8-man tag)
(40-42-2, 12-12) Chris Jericho (3-7, 99) (L Rhyno, L Rock, W w/Benoit vs Rhyno/RVD, W w/Benoit vs Dudleyz, W SS match, L War Games, L battle royal, L w/Benoit vs Eddie/Rey, L 6-man tag, L 8-man tag)
(36-40, 7-11) Christian (2-6, 98) (L Eddie, W Eddie, L Eddie, L SS match, W battle royal, L triple threat, L Rhyno, L 8-man tag)
(34-40-1, 8-6) Tajiri (4-7, 98) (W Cena, W Nova, L Rock, L 6-man tag, W SS match, L War Games, L battle royal, L London, L 6-man tag, W w/Brock vs Rhyno/Hurricane, L 8-man tag)

(Overall Won-Loss, Season 2 W-L) Upper Midcard (Nov. W-L, Overness) (Matches)
(44-28, 7-8) Matt Hardy (3-4, 95) (W w/Jeff vs Chavo/Rey, L battle royal, W SS match, L War Games, L battle royal, W Cena, L Rey)
(38-35, 6-9) Rey Mysterio (3-3, 100) (L w/Chavo vs Hardyz, W Brock, L SS match, L battle royal, W w/Eddie vs Violence, W Matt)
(31-35, 10-9) Rico (2-4, 75) (L Avery, L battle royal, W SS match, L battle royal, L w/Hurricane vs Metros, W Test)
(22-35, 3-6) The Hurricane (1-5, 83) (W Bats, L battle royal, L SS match, L battle royal, L w/Rico vs Metros, L w/Rhyno vs Brock/Tajiri)
(16-29-2, 8-7-1) Paul London (3-3, 82) (L battle royal, W SS match, W War Games, L battle royal, W Tajiri, L Benoit)

(Overall Won-Loss, Season 2 W-L) Midcard (Nov. W-L, Overness) (Matches)
(35-25, 4-7) D-Von Dudley (1-4, 77) (L w/Bubba vs Violence, L SS match, L battle royal, W w/Bubba vs Acid/Test, L tag triple threat)
(37-30, 4-6) Dave Batista (2-3, 80) (L Hurricane, L 6-man tag, W SS match, L battle royal, W Kendrick)
(33-27, 4-7) Bubba Ray Dudley (1-4, 75) (L w/D-Von vs Violence, L SS match, L battle royal, W w/D-Von vs Acid/Test, L tag triple threat)
(26-23, 5-4) John Layfield (1-2, 74) (L w/Test vs Cena/Rock, W SS match, L battle royal)
(16-17, 3-6) Billy Gunn (2-2, 71) (W SS match, L battle royal, W w/Kanyon vs Rico/Hurricane, L tag triple threat)
(17-21, 4-6) Chris Kanyon (2-2, 73) (W SS match, L battle royal, W w/Gunn vs Rico/Hurricane, L tag triple threat)
(17-22, 4-5) Nova (1-3, 70) (L Tajiri, W 6-man tag, L SS match, L battle royal)
(27-38-1, 5-6) Chavo Guerrero (2-3, 77) (L w/Rey vs Hardyz, W 6-man tag, L SS match, L battle royal, W tag triple threat)
(4-6, 2-5) Christian York (1-2, 61) (W 4-way, L battle royal, L battle royal)
(2-3, 2-3) John Morrison (2-3, 69) (W Criado, W 6-man tag, L SS match, L battle royal, L Carlito)
(1-2, 1-2) Avery Thompson (1-2, 61) (W Rico, L battle royal, L battle royal)
(4-9, 3-6) Brian Kendrick (0-4, 62) (L w/Funaki vs Carlito/Nunzio, L Akio, L battle royal, L Bats)
(8-19-1, 1-2) Akio (1-2, 66) (L 4-way, W Kendrick, L battle royal)
(10-23, 1-6) Test (0-5, 72) (L w/Layfield vs Cena/Rock, L SS match, L battle royal, L w/Acid vs Dudleyz, L Rico)
(3-8, 1-6) BJ Whitmer (0-4, 63) (L 4-way, L battle royal, L battle royal, L Cena)
(3-8, 1-6) Trent Acid (0-4, 62) (L 4-way, L battle royal, L battle royal, L w/Test vs Dudleyz)
(7-29, 3-5) Carlito (2-2, 76) (W w/Nunzio vs Kendrick/Funaki, L SS match, L battle royal, W Morrison)
(7-31, 1-7) Nunzio (1-2, 72) (W w/Carlito vs Kendrick/Funaki, L SS match, L battle royal)
(2-17, 1-6) Funaki (0-3, 63) (L w/Kendrick vs Carlito/Nunzio, L battle royal, L battle royal)

(Overall Won-Loss, Season 2 W-L) Lower Midcard (Nov. W-L, Overness) (Matches)
(6-18-1, 1-3) Mark Henry (0-2, 58) (L battle royal, L battle royal)
(1-3, 0-2) Colt Cabana (0-1, 52) (L battle royal)
(2-7, 0-2) Johnny Jeter (0-1, 45) (L battle royal)
(1-4, 0-3) Jay Briscoe (0-2, 56) (L battle royal, L battle royal)
(1-4, 0-3) Matt Stryker (0-2, 56) (L battle royal, L battle royal)
(1-10, 0-4) Zach Gowan (0-2, 57) (L battle royal, L battle royal)
(0-4, 0-4) Vito Thomaselli (0-2, 56) (L battle royal, L battle royal)

(Overall Won-Loss, Season 2 W-L) Openers (Nov. W-L, Overness) (Matches)
(2-4, 0-2) Generalin Intikami (0-1, 45) (L battle royal)
(0-2, 0-2) Richard J. Criado (0-2, 40) (L Morrison, L battle royal)

(Overall Won-Loss, Season 2 W-L) Injured Reserve (Nov. W-L, Overness) (Matches)
(10-18, 2-3) Jamie Noble (0-1, 64) (L Brock)

(Overall Won-Loss, Season 2 W-L) Rehab (Nov. W-L) (Matches)
(20-13, 10-8) Jeff Hardy (2-2, 79) (W w/Matt vs Chavo/Rey, L 6-man tag, W SS match, L battle royal)

Non-Wrestlers (Overness)
Eric Bischoff (96)
Tazz (72)

Managers (Overness) (Clientele)
Paul Heyman (94) (Dudley Boyz)
Theodore Long (66) (Mark Henry and Avery Thompson)

SmackDown! Title Changes
World Tag Team - Los Guerreros won a triple threat (11/26)
Cruiserweight - Paul London beat Tajiri (11/19)
Intercontinental - Vacant since 11/19 (Jeff Hardy stripped)
WWE World - None (The Rock has been champ since 10/10)

SmackDown! Feuds
The Rock vs. Tajiri (100 Heat)
John Cena vs. Christian (100 Heat)
Rey Mysterio vs. Chris Benoit (99 Heat)
Paul London vs. Matt Hardy Version 2.0 (77 Heat)

[loopydate]

DECEMBER 3, 2004 - SMACKDOWN!

With just over three weeks to go until Starrcade, the Intercontinental Title Tournament rolls on with four more first-round matches. Plus, the four men who advanced last week will meet tonight in a tag team match previewing next week's quarterfinal matches. Plus, in a monumental main event, the WWE Champion The Rock will take on the United States Champion Chris Benoit in a non-title match, and a big Starrcade preview tag match! December kicks off with a bang!

Our opening contest is a first-round IC tournament match pitting a pair of heels against each other as Christian takes on Trent Acid. Christian dominates the match, hitting the Unprettier to pick up the win and advance to the quarterfinals in two weeks.

John Cena appears on the TitanTron and he cuts a promo on Christian. Last week, Christian laid him out with a steel chair after he advanced to the quarters. Cena's not going to stoop to his level tonight, because he wants him rested. Christian seems to have this vendetta against Cena, but Cena hopes for Christian's sake, that this is as far as he makes it in the tournament. Because if they both make it all the way to Starrcade to the tournament finals, Cena's going to show Christian what happens when you mess with the Doctor of Thuganomics. Word life!

The tournament continues next as Funaki takes on John Layfield. Pretty abysmal match that Layfield wins with the Clothesline From Hell, making him the sixth man to qualify for the quarterfinals!

Fortunately, the crowd gets right back into the show as The Hurricane and Akio put on a very exciting match. Akio continues to look like he's on the verge of greatness in the cruiserweight division, but Hurricane proves that he's already there, hitting a shining wizard to pick up the win and advance in the tournament.

Mickie James comes to the ring, presumably to cut a promo about her match Monday night against Jazz, but before she can get very far, she's interrupted by Chris Benoit's music. The U.S. Champion, the 2004 King of the Ring, and the man who still holds the Money In The Bank title shot makes his way to the ring and begins to harass Mickie, saying that Eric Bischoff created the Elite for wrestlers like him. Benoit has proven since his debut that he's the best wrestler in the world, and all Mickie has shown is that she looks good. And that's supposed to put her in the Elite? He continues to lambast her verbally until Benoit's Starrcade opponent Rey Mysterio sprints down to the ring to get between the two. Benoit cheap shots him, then clamps on the Crippler Crossface, leaving Rey facedown and hurt in the middle of the ring. He threatens to go after Mickie, but instead walks off, grinning demonically. Chris Benoit is an evil man, but he'd never hurt a woman! ...would he?

Next week on SmackDown!, John Cena will face Carlito and Rico will face "Nature Boy" Dave Batista in a pair of Intercontinental Title tournament quarterfinals, but tonight Cena and Rico team up to take on Carlito and Batista! They put on a pretty good tag match, but the ending is ruined when Chris Kanyon once again interjects in Rico's business by blasting him with a steel chair allowing Carlito to pin him with the Backcracker. After the match, the babyfaces chase off the heels to get a measure of revenge.

Rico grabs the house mic and cuts a promo about his ongoing issues with Kanyon. "Chris Kanyon has hired a lawyer, Avery Thompson, and he's alleging that I sexually harassed him. The fact of the matter is, Chris Kanyon doesn't hate me because I came onto him in the locker room. There's something much deeper at work right now, and Kanyon has fabricated this story to try and cover it up. Chris, it's not working. I've been asked not to divulge the real story behind what's going on, and I have to respect that. But I will tell you that if you continue to attack me and you continue to pursue this baseless accusation, there will be consequences, and I'm going to end this once and for all."

One spot remains in the quarterfinals of the Intercontinental Title tournament, and two ECW alumni and current cruiserweight division superstars will do battle for that spot next as Nova takes on Nunzio! It's a really exciting match that lets both men showcase their mix of technical and high-flying skills. Nova hits Kryptonite Krunch to pick up the win and the quarterfinal berth.

Brock Lesnar heads to the ring for our big Starrcade preview tag match, but first he hypes up his World Title match against Rhyno. It's basically the same promo he's been cutting for weeks about what happened last year at this time when Rhyno turned his back on Lesnar in the vain hopes that he might someday win the big one. Of course, he failed. But now the roles have reversed and Lesnar is looking forward to destroying Rhyno and taking back what should have been his all along, the World Heavyweight Championship!

Lesnar's partner tonight is the #1 contender for the Cruiserweight Title Matt Hardy Version 2.0 and their opponents are Rhyno and Paul London, their respective Starrcade opponents! Great tag match that ends when London hits London Calling on Hardy to get the clean win. After the match, the heels look for revenge, and all four men brawl up the ramp and out of sight.

And now for our main event! Two of the most charismatic superstars in WWE history go toe-to-toe as The Rock takes on Chris Jericho! This has all the makings of an all-time classic, but Rock's Starrcade opponent Tajiri gets in a cheap chair shot on the champ allowing Jericho to roll him up for the cheap win. Afterwards, Jericho and Tajiri beat on The Rock until Jericho's Starrcade opponent Eddie Guerrero makes the save. Rock and Eddie stare down their enemies as SmackDown! goes off the air.

---

We now know the "elite eight" in the Intercontinental Title tournament! The finals will occur at Starrcade, and one of the following men will walk out with the gold: Carlito, Christian, Dave Batista, The Hurricane, John Cena, John Layfield, Nova, or Rico!

Plus, we know the following matches have already been signed for Starrcade.

WORLD TITLE - Rhyno (c) vs. Brock Lesnar
WWE TITLE - The Rock (c) vs. Tajiri
UNITED STATES TITLE - Rey Mysterio vs. Chris Benoit (c)
INTERCONTINENTAL TITLE - Tournament final
CRUISERWEIGHT TITLE - Paul London (c) vs. Matt Hardy Version 2.0
WOMEN'S TITLE - Trish Stratus (c) vs. Tournament winner
Eddie Guerrero vs. Chris Jericho
Shelton Benjamin vs. Undertaker

This is looking like one of the strongest PPVs in recent history on paper, and it will certainly be exciting to see what happens over the next 23 days!

[loopydate]

DECEMBER 6, 2004 - MONDAY NIGHT RAW

Tonight's main event is a massive fatal fourway among some of the most (for lack of a better word) elite members of the Elite! Plus, a huge non-title match pitting Christian against World Champion Rhyno, a four-team elimination match to determine #1 contenders for La Resistance's WWE Tag Team Titles, a semifinal match in the #1 contender tournament for the Women's Title, the second match in the best-of-five series between Rob Van Dam and Randy Orton, and Eric Bischoff has decreed that a new member of the Elite will be determined tonight in a RAW versus SmackDown! match pitting Shelton Benjamin against Matt Hardy Version 2.0!

And it's a fucking dud show. Sigh. William Regal beat A-Train with the Power of the Punch.

The four-team elimination match for a shot at La Res pits former champions Big Show and Kane against ECW Originals Lance Storm and Tommy Dreamer against Palumbo and Stamboli against NBM co-leader Sean O'Haire and Mark Jindrak. Dreamer puts away Stamboli with a piledriver for the first elimination, only to get speared by Jindrak to set up Jindrak and O'Haire versus Show and Kane. Show pins Jindrak following the Showstopper to set up Big Show and Kane against La Resistance for the belts next week!

In a battle of rookie monsters, Payne takes on Damien. The crowd is way into it, and the match is solid, but the dud show turns what should have been about a 75 overall into a 67. I still don't understand why it hates RAW so much. Eventually, new NBM member Haas hits the ring and lays out Payne, clamping on the Haas of Pain. Damien picks up the pieces for the cheap win, then Haas pummels Payne with a steel chair after the bell.

Bill Alfonso cuts a pretty typical nonsensical promo for Rob Van Dam to hype up the second match in his best-of-five series with Randy Orton. RVD is up 1-0, and after he wins tonight, he'll be ready to put this thing away next week.

Fortunately, it's another hell of a match between the two that manages an 81 on a dud show, which is pretty impressive. Orton picks up a clean win with the RKO to even things up at one apiece.

Up next is a match for a spot in the Elite, pitting RAW's Shelton Benjamin against SmackDown!'s Matt Hardy Version 2.0. Once again, the match is so good that the dud show can't bring it down too far. Eventually, though, Shelton's chances are ruined by the interference of his Starrcade opponent the Undertaker, who makes him take the Last Ride. Hardy picks up the cheap win and a spot in the Elite, but the story of the match is the Shelton/Taker feud, as Taker picks up Shelton for another pair of Last Rides before walking off, leaving his rival laying.

The next match was supposed to pit Tajiri against Lance Storm until I realized I'd already used Lance, and so I was forced to throw poor Fred Williams at the buzzsaw. Fortunately, Tajiri shows mercy and finishes him off quickly with the Kick of Death. After the match, WWE Champion The Rock hits the ring and blasts his Starrcade challenger with the Rock Bottom!

Our first berth in the #1 contender's match for the Women's Title is going to be decided tonight as Mickie takes on Jazz. Disappointing match, but the Elite Diva hits her tornado DDT to pick up the win and advance to face the winner of next week's Lita/Molly Holly match!

Chris Benoit is backstage, and his descent into madness seems to be continuing. He cuts a promo on Rey Mysterio, taking him to task for interrupting his "business" Friday night with Mickie James. I'm a family man, Rey, I would never hurt a woman. I was trying to prove that she had no place in that ring with me, but you interrupted me before I could make my point. In 20 days, I'm going to show you the error of your ways when I rip your arm right out of its socket!

Rhyno and Christian are in the middle of a very exciting match when Rhyno's Starrcade opponent Brock Lesnar hits the ring and blasts him with the F-5, resulting in a DQ finish. After the match, John Cena's music hits, and he makes his way to the ring to make the save.

And now for our main event! It's WWE Champion The Rock versus co-World Tag Team Champion Eddie Guerrero versus John Cena versus Chris Jericho in a battle of arguably the four biggest stars in WWE! Solid match with all four guys getting in their spots, but eventually Eddie picks up some momentum going into his Starrcade match with Jericho by pinning him with the frogsplash!

[loopydate]

DECEMBER 10, 2004 - SMACKDOWN!

With just sixteen days to go until Starrcade, it's tag team-a-palooza, including a huge non-title main event has been signed pitting new World Tag Team Champions Los Guerreros versus Canadian Violence! Plus, the #1 contenders for both world titles Brock Lesnar and Tajiri team up to take on the Dudley Boyz and the quarterfinals of the Intercontinental Title Tournament kick off!

We kick things off with cruiserweight tag team action as New Generation members Christian York and BJ Whitmer take on Brian Kendrick and Funaki. It's a great match, but the show smells a little duddy. Crowd reaction brings this one down, so hopefully that's the reason for the low overall. Eventually, York gets Funaki to tap out to the Irish Cloverleaf to pick up the win.

Nope. It's a dud show. Up next, John Morrison teams with Joey Matthews (making his WWE debut) to form M'n'M to take on the other new team in the SmackDown! ranks, Acid Test! It's a pretty good match that M'n'M win with the Snapshot on Acid.

The #1 contender for the Cruiserweight Title, Matt Hardy Version 2.0 is in the ring as we come back from commercial, and he's got a microphone. He talks about his Starrcade match against Paul London, then talks about how - as a member of the Elite - he is now officially better than anyone in the Cruiserweight division. He says he'll prove it as he takes on ANYONE tonight.

The challenge is answered by a debuting Derrick King. The bell sounds and King surprises Matt with a standing leg lariat. Matt fights back and hits his trademark legdrop on King, then a tiger suplex to set up the Twist of Fate. Matt picks up the win, but Derrick King may be somebody to keep your eye on. After the match, London hits the ring, slams Hardy, then hits the London Calling before posing over him with the title.

Next week, The Hurricane will face John Layfield and Nova will take on Christian in the quarterfinals of the Intercontinental Title tournament, but tonight, it's a tag-team preview as SmackDown!'s superheroes take on the heels. Eventually, Layfield gets some momentum going into next week's match when he puts Hurricane away with the Clothesline From Hell! After the match as Layfield and Christian are walking off, John Cena blindsides Christian with a chairshot, furthering their feud.

Backstage, Rey Mysterio is watching footage of last week's run-in with Chris Benoit after Benoit interrupted Mickie James' promo. There's a knock at the door and Mickie enters. She thanks Rey for helping her last week. She knows that she can handle herself, but she's not going to lie - Benoit scares her. So she's really appreciative that Rey stood up to hiim for her like that. Rey shrugs it off, just doing what he felt was right, but Mickie gives him a thank-you kiss anyway. Mickie walks off and Rey looks thoroughly confused. My guess is his wife probably does, too.

The first spot in the Intercontinental Title Tournament semifinals will be decided next as John Cena takes on Carlito! Cena looks about ready to put Carlito away with the F-U, but as he's going for the pin, Christian comes out of the crowd and grabs Cena's leg, dragging him to the floor. The ref calls for the DQ as Christian slams Cena into the ringpost. Cena manages to overcome the odds (!!!) and fights off both Carlito and Christian to stand tall.

Cena's opponent in two weeks will be the winner of our next contest, the renewal of an old rivalry between Rico and "Nature Boy" Dave Batista. Rico puts up a great fight, but eventually he again falls victim to a sneak attack by Chris Kanyon, who lays him out allowing Batista to pick up the cheap win and advance to the semis. Kanyon again hits I'm Betta Than You after the match is over.

As the beating continues, Billy Gunn comes racing down the aisle, and things do not look good for Rico! But Gunn gets into Kanyon's face and Kanyon is not happy about it. Kanyon walks off and stares Gunn down as Gunn checks on Rico.

Time for our double tag-team main event, starting with the Dudleyz against Brock Lesnar and Tajiri. Good back-and-forth match that Lesnar eventually wins with an F5 on Bubba Ray. After the match, Rhyno and The Rock hit the ring and lay out Tajiri with a spike powerbomb before putting Lesnar through the announce table, and the champions have all the momentum!

And now for a main event that lives up to the hype as Los Guerreros take on Canadian Violence in a non-title match. Everybody gets in some big spots, and Eddie Guerrero gets the pin on Chris Jericho after Chavo hits him with a big brainbuster. After the match, Rey Mysterio hits the ring and takes Benoit out with a steel chair. Is this still about the United States Title, or has this become something deeper? Hopefully we'll get some answers next week!

[M-A-G]

Raw: 4/7/10

It’s Pick Your Poison Night for the two competitors in the Backlash main event. HHH and the WWE Champion John Morrison will each choose an opponent for each other tonight. Morrison has already made his choice earlier and the opening match will be HHH vs. William Regal. HHH comes out first to make a statement. He has no major problem with John Morrison other than the fact that he’s the WWE Champion. “The theme of my life over the last few months has been making things right. I did that with my injury. I did that with Batista at WrestleMania. And I’m going for the hat trick at Backlash. Morrison, that title is coming home.” Regal interjects with own view on the matter. “Do you ever get tired of hearing yourself? Actually, don’t answer that because it really doesn’t matter what you think. What does matter is that there is a whole locker room of superstars in the back that are quite fed up with you getting chance after chance after chance at the WWE Title. You see, Batista’s quarrel with you was just the beginning. I’ve been in this business longer than you have and I can count on one hand how many world title opportunities I’ve received and there’s plenty of others who feel the same frustration as I do. Well, that’s going to change soon. Maybe not with me, maybe not with John Morrison…but soon.” The bell rings and were off. A pretty decent contest with Regal taking HHH to the limit but fortune is not with the Englishman tonight as HHH avoids Regal’s running knee and hit’s the Pedigree for the win. ****!!!

Other proceedings:
JBL gives his henchmen the night off in order to deal with Bryan Danielson personally. He jokes about needing a good warm-up for his Money in the Bank rematch on SmackDown!. He’s able to churn out a win over Danielson after using the ropes.

Evan Bourne continues to surprise everyone with another victory this time over Mark Jindrak.

R-Truth gets a countout victory over U.S. Champion Ted DiBiase. DiBiase is less than thrilled.

Kim Roderick grants Victoria a match with the stipulation that if Victoria can pin or make the champion submit, another Diva’s title match will be awarded to Victoria. If Victoria loses, her quest for the title is over for good. The champion’s streak of luck holds out as Victoria is caught using the title as a weapon even though the champion brought it in first. Roderick bails as soon as she’s able to regain her senses.

The Miz is in the back and speaks out about his disbelief that HHH is once again the number one contender to the WWE Title. “It’s really not fair considering I’ve had Morrison’s number more times than I can count. But you know what? It’s fine. Let him parade around in his own delusion that he’s the belle of the ball here on Raw. His fantasy is going to come crumbling down.”

John Morrison is out for his match. He points out that he doesn’t have a problem with HHH but he does hope that Backlash will be the end of it. His win over HHH the first time wasn’t a fluke and it’s going to be proven once and for all. HHH comes out to announce his choice for Morrison’s opponent. HHH respects Morrison as a person and a champion and also hopes Backlash will prove who the better man is. However, he must apologize for tonight but when it comes to the WWE Title you have to try to win at all costs. “All’s fair in love and war, John.”
SOMEBODY’S GONNA GET THEIR WIG SPLIT! Mark Henry is Morrison’s opponent for tonight! The bell rings and we’re underway. They deliver a basic “big man vs. agile underdog” match before Batista of all people makes his return from wherever he’s been since WrestleMania to just destroy everyone.

Edge and Randy Orton have themselves an in-ring chat about the last few months and, of course, WrestleMania. Edge is enraged over the loss he suffered but realizes that the fault lies with himself. “I made one mistake, Randy, ONE MISTAKE and it cost me. And that mistake was I tried to be too brutal. I tried to be too aggressive. I wanted to put an exclamation point on the whole matter. You see I dug down deep and I envisioned what would be the perfect way to put you down at the biggest stage of them all. And it hit me. Poetic justice at it’s finest. I tried to punt you in the head the same way you’ve done to countless others. The same way you did to me. And it was that frame of mind that cost me the victory. That bloodlust caused me to lose to you. Well, Randy, that’s not going to happen again. You see I went to our General Manager and demanded, I PLEADED for a rematch with you at Backlash. But I wanted a match where that same rage and aggressiveness and bloodlust I felt at WrestleMania wouldn’t be a detriment but a benefit. A match that is perfect for two individuals like us, Randy.” “You know as well as I do, Edge, that I can be as twisted as they come so no matter what you’ve got in store for me at Backlash, I’ll put you down again, 1-2-3, just like that.” “No, see that’s where you’re wrong cause it’s not going to be that simple. There’s no pinfalls, no submissions or countouts or disqualifications. But I will give you one hint, Randy, so see if you can figure it out.” BAM! Edge nails Orton with the mic. He slides out and grabs a chair from ringside and crawls in motioning for Orton to get up. Orton pulls himself up but it’s for naught as Edge lets loose with a thunderous shot to the head. Orton’s busted open! Edge is back on the mic: “It looks like you can’t make a guess right now, Randy, so I’ll spill the beans and I’ll also spill your blood again at Backlash. It’s you and me, in a First Blood match.” Edge glares at Orton as we go off the air.

Superstars: 4/10/10
The big happening is the Triple Threat match between Christian, Mr. Kennedy, and Kofi Kingston where the winner will be the 10th participant in the Money in the Bank rematch next week on SmackDown!. Kofi is able to take advantage of the furious rivalry between Christian and Kennedy and snags a pinfall on Kennedy for the win.

Other proceedings: Kane and Shad each gain some momentum towards Money In the Bank with singles victories.

Ian Moore retains the Intercontinental Championship against Rhyno.

Cash Stevens pulls out a win over Alex Furious and announces he’s getting his rematch against Ian Moore next week on SmackDown!.

Some cruiserweights are getting into a verbal scuffle with Sean O’Haire and Garrett in the back over locker room space. O’Haire and Garrett point out that it’s a big man’s business. Jason Cross claims that cruiserweights have as much claim to the sport as anyone else. Garrett says they should jump to Raw then and compete with the other cruiserweights. He also points out that Rhyno beat Cross last week in that four-way match for the IC title number one contendership. Cross sarcastically asks if that’s the same Rhyno that lost tonight. Things get heated but no physicality comes out of it…yet.

The Rock announces that the Draft Lottery is scheduled to begin in one month.

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by Big Vito 22 Nice edit job on the MITB. My game isn't dead...but I'm a part of the Armchair Warfare game over on the Wrestling Forum. Once my month of booking is over with I'll get back to this.

Pshah. What edit? I got me a sweet downloadable patch for the game. It's got Money in the Bank, Elimination Chamber, Viagra on a Pole, Reverse Battle Royals, and Catch-As-Catch-Can matches. And let's not even delve into the new angles like Diva Announces Pregnancy, Diva Loses Baby, Swerve Turn That Makes No Sense, The Nitro Swerve, Wrestler "Breaks Character", and Giant Clusterf*ck. It's called the Vince Russo Package.

[Evil Vito]

Damn, that sounds much better than the patch I just downloaded. I'm not allowed to make Cena lose cleanly despite him not having creative control. Fuck this shit.

[loopydate]

DECEMBER 13, 2004 - MONDAY NIGHT RAW

Last week, Big Show and Kane won a four-team elimination match to earn a shot tonight at La Resistance's WWE Tag Team Titles, and that's our opening contest! Everybody gets their chance to take on both opponents, and the faces seem to have control right up until Rob Conway makes his presence known, hitting Big Show in the knee with a chair allowing Dupree to clamp on his figure-four leglock. Show's knee is in such agony that he has no choice but to tap out. After the match, all three members of La Res take out Kane, leaving both babyfaces laying. What a statement made by the champs!

Next week, Mickie James will face the winner of our next match for a shot at Trish Stratus' Women's Title at Starrcade. It's a battle of former champions as Lita takes on Molly Holly! Eventually, Molly hits a flying cross body to pick up the big win in a surprisingly good match. Mickie versus Molly next week in a #1 contender match!

Mickie appears on the TitanTron where she has some choice words for Molly. They've gone round and round before, and they never disappoint the WWE fans, but next week Mickie's going to once again show why she is the Elite Diva in World Wrestling Entertainment!

The best-of-five series between Rob Van Dam and Randy Orton is tied at one match apiece, and it's becoming less and less about being the best and more and more personal. Orton proves that point tonight when he grabs a handful of RVD's tights to avoid a suplex and get a cheap pinfall victory. After the match, both men brawl up the ramp and out of sight. The ends justify the means, though, and now Orton can put away this series next week on RAW!

A battle between two of RAW's most technically sound Superstars is next as Shelton Benjamin takes on Chris Jericho! Shelton's rival Undertaker gets involved, hitting him with a chair allowing Jericho to land the Lionsault to pick up the cheap win. Jericho's victory is short-lived, however, as Eddie Guerrero comes out from the back with a chair of his own to even the score.

Matt Hardy Version 2.0 appears on the TitanTron and cuts a promo on his Starrcade match with Cruiserweight Champion Paul London. It's pretty much what we've been hearing all along, about how now that Matt is on his own and Elite, he's going back to where he should have been all along, the main event. And if he's got to go through the cruiserweights to get there? So be it.

Eddie Guerrero and Tajiri were once tag team partners and champions, but tonight their far differing paths converge on Monday Night RAW. They have a spectacular match that would have been even better if Eddie was feeling it. Eventually, Eddie's earlier actions catch up to him as Chris Jericho hits the ring and jumps Eddie, resulting in a DQ. After the match, The Rock hits the ring with a chair to make the save.

Of course, we can all imagine what that's going to lead to. The Rock is up next against Christian, and they have a fantastic match right up until Tajiri blasts Rock with a chair allowing Christian to hit the Unprettier for the win. John Cena hits the ring to make the save, and the cycle continues...

United States Champion Chris Benoit appears on the TitanTron next and cuts a promo on Rey Mysterio. For his entire career, Rey has made a name for himself as being family-friendly, for being a role model for young fans to look up to. On SmackDown! last week, Rey showed his true colors. Rey Mysterio, married man, father of two... adulterer. We all saw what you did, Rey. I'm here to purify the sport of wrestling... and I'm starting with you!

World Champion Rhyno takes on Undertaker next in a WrestleMania and Summerslam rematch! This match is a bit of a letdown as the previous matches were all fantastic, but it succeeds in setting up Brock Lesnar's interference as he blasts Rhyno with an F5 for the DQ. After the match, Shelton Benjamin hits the ring to make the save and drive off the heels.

Our main event is another WrestleMania rematch as John Cena takes on Brock Lesnar! It's another very good match, but in keeping with the hteme of the night, Christian hits Cena with an Unprettier for the disqualification. It's a two-on-one beatdown until Rhyno hits the ring and he and Cena stand tall as RAW goes off the air!

[loopydate]

DECEMBER 17, 2004 - SMACKDOWN!

In just nine days at Starrcade, the finals of the month-long Intercontinental Title tournament will be held. John Cena and "Nature Boy" Dave Batista have already qualified for next week's semifinals, and the last two spots will be filled tonight. Plus, Cena and Batista each will select a partner for a tag-team preview match tonight! Plus, both Starrcade main events will be previewed tonight as WWE Champion The Rock takes on the #1 contender for the World Title Brock Lesnar and World Champion Rhyno takes on the #1 contender for the WWE Title Tajiri!

We open things up with cruiserweight action as one-half of the World Tag Team Champion Chavo Guerrero takes on Carlito! It's a good match that lets both men get in their trademark spots. Chavo picks up the win with his brainbuster.

Backstage, Rico Constantino is with Billy Gunn, the man who surprisingly saved him from an attack by Gunn's Metro Connection partner Chris Kanyon last week. Rico said that there was something deeper than what Kanyon was claiming. These sexual harassment claims were a cover up. Kanyon was trying to destroy Rico, to drive him out of WWE because he didn't want to admit the truth. Rico and Billy have history, a long history, and over the last couple of months, they've come to a realization. Their feelings run deeper than friendship. And Kanyon couldn't handle that, and tried to drive a wedge between them. It didn't work when he got Avery Thompson involved, and it's not going to work now that they're out and proud. Billy's seen the light, and maybe it's time for Chris to do the same.

The quarterfinals of the Intercontinental Title tournament roll on next as The Hurricane takes on John Layfield. Layfield starts off as the aggressor with a pair of big clotheslines for two. Hurricane manages to fight back with some high-flying offense, and it proves to be enough as he puts Layfield away with the Eye of the Hurricane to advance! After the match, Layfield blasts him with the Clothesline From Hell to regain some heat.

But who will join Hurricane, Cena, and Batista in the semifinals? We're about to find out as Nova takes on Christian! Fantastic back-and-forth match between two of the most technically-sound cruiserweights in WWE. Nova once again proves that he's on the cusp of greatness, but Christian's experience is just too much as he hits the Unprettier to win. After the match, Christian's rival John Cena hits the ring and lands a brutal F-U to leave Christian laying.

Paul London is backstage. He's got a big tag match next, but first he cuts a short-but-sweet promo on Matt Hardy Version 2.0. Matt's done everything he can to get under London's skin lately, but London worked his ass off to become Cruiserweight Champion, and he's not going to let himself get intimidated by Matt just because he's "Elite" now. Much as London would love to be hopping between shows, he doesn't need Eric Bischoff to justify him as one of WWE's elite. He knows he is, the WWE fans know he is, and at Starrcade, Matt Hardy's going to know he is, too! It's a Starrcade preview tag match next as London teams with Rey Mysterio to take on Hardy and the United States Champion Chris Benoit!

Four of WWE's most exciting superstars put on a hell of a match that previews both the U.S. and Cruiserweight Title matches at Starrcade. Rey looks to be about to win the match when he rolls Benoit up, but Benoit rolls through and grabs a handful of tights for the cheap win! After the match, the four men continue to brawl up the ramp and out of sight. The bad blood continues!

John Cena and "Nature Boy" Dave Batista will go one-on-one next week in the semifinals of the IC Title tournament, but tonight they go toe-to-toe in a tag match where each man gets to pick a partner. Cena goes with a tag specialist, co-holder of the World Tag Team Titles Eddie Guerrero! Batista goes for Eddie's arch-rival Chris Jericho! Weird mix of styles doesn't lead to the best technical match, but the fans are way into it. Eventually, Jericho picks up a rare clean win by getting Eddie to tap out to the Walls of Jericho. After the match, one of the other semifinalists Christian hits the ring and blasts Cena with an Unprettier for a measure of revenge after Cena's earlier attack!

Rhyno is backstage and he cuts a brief promo about Brock Lesnar. Paul Heyman sprained his ankle earlier this week, so Rhyno's on his own for this one, but his intensity covers up his minor charisma deficiency. Rhyno definitely sells the Starrcade World Title match.

Rhyno's opponent tonight is his former ECW "Network" stablemate Tajiri, and they put on a four-star classic. As Rhyno prepares to Gore Tajiri, Brock Lesnar hops the railing and blasts him with an F5! The ref calls for the bell, and the former Dangerous Alliance stablemates go to work on the champion. WWE Champion The Rock sprints down the aisle and slides into the ring to drive off the heels.

The Rock gives a 100% quality promo about his Starrcade match against Tajiri as the refs maintain order. The People's Champion never ceases to amaze when he can turn a seemingly off-the-cuff promo into pure gold. Can you imagine what he's going to do for Tajiri's career at Starrcade?

And now for our main event, and once again The Rock and Brock Lesnar put on a hell of a match. In a near mirror-image of its predecessor, Rock prepares to hit the Rock Bottom until Tajiri hits the ring resulting in a DQ. Rhyno returns with a chair to drive off the heels, and the champions once again end the show standing tall!

[loopydate]

DECEMBER 20, 2004 - MONDAY NIGHT RAW

Less than a week from Starrcade, and the double main-event is going to be previewed tonight as the reigning WWE and World Champions team up against their #1 contenders! Plus, Randy Orton looks to win his best-of-five series with Rob Van Dam as he brings in his 2-1 edge to tonight's show. Plus, Mickie James versus Molly Holly, the winner faces Trish Stratus for the Women's Title at Starrcade!

We kick things off with a battle of the Williams(es). Fred Williams is having a rough go of making himself out as a singles competitor since his partner Tom Howard's injury, and tonight's battle with William Regal certainly doesn't help. He succumbs to the Power of the Punch and Regal picks up another midcard win.

All eight members of the Natural Born Ministry (for those of you keeping score at home, that's Sean O'Haire, Undertaker, Damien, Chuck Palumbo, Johnny Stamboli, Mark Jindrak, Sean O'Haire, and the newest member Haas) are backstage and Undertaker leads the way, tearing into Shelton Benjamin. They proved that nothing is sacred to them when they took Shelton's oldest friend from him and at Starrcade, Undertaker is going to take Shelton's career from him, too!

Taker and Damien are in the ring when we come back from break for a tag match against A-Train and Payne. Shelton gets a measure of revenge when he hits Taker with a steel chair allowing Payne to clamp on the Payne Killer. Undertaker is unconscious from the chair shot and the ref has no choice but to call for the bell. Once Taker regains his composure, everybody brawls to the back.

Last week, Big Show and Kane's bid to become WWE Tag Team Champions was cut short by the interference of Rob Conway. Tonight, Show and Kane take on all three members of La Resistance looking for revenge. Kane eventually gets his revenge on Conway with a tombstone to pick up the win in this handicap match.

And now for the finals of the #1 contender's tournament for Trish Stratus' Women's Title. Former champions Mickie James and Molly Holly put together one of the best Divas matches in a very long time, ending with the Elite Diva putting Molly away with the Mick Kick!

Eric Bischoff appears on the TitanTron and makes the match official. At Starrcade, it's Trish Stratus defending the Women's Title against Mickie James!

United States Champion Chris Benoit teams with the #1 contender for the Cruiserweight Title Matt Hardy Version 2.0 team up for the second time in three nights after their cheap win over their Starrcade opponents Rey Mysterio and Paul London. Tonight, they take on ECW Originals Tomm Dreamer and Lance Storm. It's a solid match, but Benoit and Hardy continue their run to Starrcade with a win as Benoit gets Dreamer to tap out to the Crippler Crossface.

Another tremendous tag match follows as John Cena and Eddie Guerrero team up for the second time in a week to take on their rivals Vitamin C - Chris Jericho and Christian! Match of the night so far, but Christian has to go and spoil it by hitting Cena with brass knucks while Cena prepares to hit the F-U. Christian picks up a cheap win for his team, but the fight isn't over as they brawl backstage and out of sight.

Randy Orton leads his best-of-five series with Rob Van Dam two matches to one after his cheap victory last week. RVD hopes to force a fifth match by evening the score tonight. As is par for this series, they put on a fantastic contest tonight, right up until RVD hits the Five-Star Frogsplash to pick up the big win!

WWE Chairman Eric Bischoff once again shows up on the Tron and announces that the fifth match in the RVD/RKO series will take place... at Starrcade! What are the odds?!?

And now for our main event, and it absolutely lives up to the hype as Rhyno, Rock, Lesnar, and Tajiri tear the house down. Rock looks about to put Tajiri away, but Tajiri rolls through the pin and grabs a handful of tights for the cheap win and a huge momentum shift for the contenders! After the match, it erupts into a four-way brawl as RAW goes off the air.

[loopydate]

Originally Posted by TPWW.net Word on the street is that Jacqueline was released from her contract over the weekend after she checked herself into rehab. Not the coolest move WWE's ever done (particularly since it's almost Christmas), but that's what she gets for succumbing to personal demons, right?

[loopydate]

DECEMBER 24, 2004 - SMACKDOWN!

It's Christmas Eve, and WWE has a tremendous gift for all its fans. Just two nights away from Starrcade, the four participants in the world title matches will do battle in a fatal fourway main event to close out the show! Plus, we will determine who will battle it out inside a steel cage for the vacant Intercontinental Title at Starrcade! Plus, Paul London has a challenge for his rival Matt Hardy Version 2.0.

We kick things off with the first semifinal match in the Intercontinental Title tournament as The Hurricane goes one-on-one with Christian! It's an amazing way to kick off the show, as both men pull out all the stops. Counter after counter, aerial move after aerial move, but eventually Christian gets the edge with a stun gun, which he follows up with a brutal Norther Lights bomb to set up the Unprettier and advance to the title match!

Tazz is in the ring to conduct an interview between WWE Champion The Rock and his #1 contender Tajiri. Rock has been cutting some amazing promos on Tajiri, and Tajiri seems to want to do the same, but it degenerates into a brawl, destroying the set and leaving Tazz agape. He hasn't been on TV in months, and his talk show segment gets destroyed!

Christian's Starrcade opponent is decided next as John Cena takes on "Nature Boy" Dave Batista in our second semifinal match. These two put on a very good match (not as good as its predecessor), but the fans don't seem as into it, likely because nobody expects a Christian/Bats title match. Cena picks up the win with a big shoulder tackle setting up the F-U!

WWE Chairman Eric Bischoff appears on the TitanTron and officially announces that John Cena will face Christian inside a steel cage for the vacant Intercontinental Title at Starrcade!

The string of great matches continues as Rey Mysterio takes on Chris Jericho next! During a moment of confusion, Eddie Guerrero manages to take out Jericho with the Frogsplash, allowing Rey to pick up the win. Eddie continues the attack on his Starrcade opponent until United States Champion Chris Benoit slides into the ring with a chair driving off the babyfaces.

Cruiserweight Champion Paul London is in the ring when we come back from break, and he's tired of waiting. He's known for weeks that he'd be taking on Matt Hardy Version 2.0 at Starrcade, but he just can't wait two more days. He wants Matt... tonight!

Matt is more than happy to oblige, and they put on a hell of a preview for this Sunday's PPV. Cornette and Wilson make sure to point out that London's title is not on the line until Sunday, which sort of sets up the finish. Matt grabs a handful of London's tights for the cheap win and a ton of momentum! After the match, they brawl up the ramp and out of sight.

Brock Lesnar is backstage. He knows he has a great opportunity tonight to hurt Rhyno. In two days, he'll win the World Title for the first time in his career (he was WWE Champion before, kids), and he's looking forward to doing more than that. He's going hunting, and his prey is the Manbeast!

Co-holder of the World Tag Team Titles Eddie Guerrero takes on United States Champion Chris Benoit in our next contest, and for the first time in a while, neither man is "sluggish." Neither's all the way up to high morale yet, so it's not as great as it could have been, but at least nobody phoned it in. Rey returns the favor his best friend did for him earlier when he hits the West Coast Pop on benoit, allowing Eddie to get the three count. This time, it's Jericho's turn to show up with a chair and drive off Eddie and Rey.

Rhyno's promo skills are getting better and better as he cuts a 96% quality interview about his match with Lesnar. He knows Brock's gunning for him tonight and on Sunday. Well, he has a parental advisory for everyone. Sunday's pay-per-view is going to be rated R due to violence and Gore! GORE! GOOOOOOORE!

Our main event is everything you expect it to be as Rhyno, The Rock, Brock Lesnar, and Tajiri once again show their incredible chemistry with each other. Rhyno prepares to get Lesnar up for a big suplex, but Lesnar grabs a handful of tights and picks up the cheap win to bring all the momentum in the world into Starrcade!

[loopydate]

DECEMBER 26, 2004 - STARRCADE

Eric Bischoff's pet project kicks off with the latest battle in the war between Shelton Benjamin and Undertaker! Undertaker dealt the biggest blow so far when he brought Shelton's best friend Haas into the Natural Born Ministry, and tonight he hopes to punish Shelton physically as well as emotionally!

Shelton Benjamin vs. Undertaker

Shelton slams Undertaker. Shelton drops an elbow...but misses. Fate can be so cruel. Undertaker strikes Shelton Benjamin. We have our mandatory ref bump, as he goes down after accidentally getting caught by an elbow to the face. Undertaker scores with a poor standing spinebuster. Cover, but there's no one to count for Undertaker. Shelton counters an avalanche with a raised foot to the face. Back elbow connects, Undertaker staggers backward. Tiger bomb by Shelton Benjamin, although no mention is made of whether it originated in Pearl River. There's a two count on the pin. Tiger Driver nearly crushes the spine of Undertaker. Misawa approves i'm sure. Hooks the leg for a close fall. Shelton Benjamin gets taken down out of nowhere. Powerslam from Undertaker on Shelton. Pinfall attempt gets a 2.9999. Undertaker only gets knees on a splash. Undertaker is in trouble. Dragon Whip!!! That shook the ring. 1....2....3!! Shelton Benjamin is still in the ring celebrating. Undertaker pushes the referee away. Undertaker spins Shelton around. Undertaker hits the Last Ride! **1\2 rating for a decent contest.

Overall Rating: 69%
Crowd Reaction: 70%
Match Quality: 68%

Our first of several title matches pits Cruiserweight Champion Paul London against former WWE Champion Matt Hardy Version 2.0! These two have engaged in several battles, and Matt has the momentum after cheating to beat London two nights ago on SmackDown!

Cruiserweight Title - Paul London (c) vs. Matt Hardy Version 2.0

Paul London strikes Matt. Stiff high kick on Matt by Paul London who has evidently been watching some old AJPW tapes recently. London hits a dropkick on Matt Hardy Version 2.0. Hard back suplex on Matt. Anyone remember when that was Shawn Michaels's finisher? Paul London misses a big legdrop after stalling too long. Matt uses a basement dropkick to the knee. Super kick by Matt Hardy Version 2.0. There's a two count on the pin. Matt Hardy Version 2.0 misses a big legdrop after stalling too long. Matt takes a hurrancarana from Paul London. Hooks the leg for a two count. Springboard dropkick from Paul London. Nicely done. Pin, but Matt is out just before the three count. Matt powers out of a headlock. Standing leg lariat by Matt Hardy Version 2.0 on London. Paul London comes up with a right hand out of nowhere. Spin kick by Paul London to the face. Paul London has Matt Hardy Version 2.0 down on the canvas and is ascending the corner. Through the air, London Calling! 1....2....3. That was good. **** rating.

Overall Rating: 87%
Crowd Reaction: 84%
Match Quality: 91%

Over the last several weeks on RAW, a tournament has been held between the top contenders for Trish Stratus' Women's Title. "Elite Diva" Mickie James outlasted everyone else to earn the shot tonight!

Women's Title - Trish Stratus (c) vs. Mickie James

Trish Stratus takes a right hand to the temple from Mickie. Mickie hits an arm drag on Trish. Mickie James hits a right hand on Trish Stratus. Mickie James strikes Trish Stratus. Trish pushes out of a Mickie James hold. Mickie James takes a right hand to the temple from Trish. Weak bodyslam by Trish. Hooks the leg for a two count. Trish drops an elbow...but misses. Fate can be so cruel. Back heel kick from Mickie on Trish. There's a two count on the pin. Slingshot clothesline by Mickie, who almost messed it up by slipping on the ropes. Pin : 1 - 2 - 2.9999999. Trish blocks a punch. Mickie hits a punch, but takes one right back. CLUBBERIN', CLUBBERIN', THEY BE CLUBBERIN' TONY! Sorry, flashback moment. Trish Stratus gets taken down out of nowhere. Mickie hits a spinning back kick. Trish Stratus gets whipped into the turnbuckles by Mickie. Tornado DDT!!! 1....2....3!! It's all over. Mickie James extends her hand to Trish...and it is accepted! They shake! I'll give it a **1\2 rating.

Overall Rating: 77%
Crowd Reaction: 83%
Match Quality: 65%

For the last month, Rob Van Dam and Randy Orton have been engaged in a tremendous best-of-five series. Tonight is the culmination of that series, both men holding two wins!

Rob Van Dam vs. Randy Orton

Driven DDT by Rob Van Dam. The ring shook violently, instantly making it better at selling than some of the current roster. Lightning kick by RVD on Orton. Cover for a two count. Orton counters an arm wringer with an elbow to the side of the head. Randy Orton hits some punches. Fallaway slam by Randy Orton. There's a two count on the pin. Double Arm DDT by Orton, RVD got destroyed. Cover, but there's a last second kick-out. Bodyslam by Orton. RVD counters a sleeper hold by turning it into a jaw breaker. Beautiful spinning arm drag out of the corner by RVD. There's a two count on the pin. Diamond Dust from Rob Van Dam, Orton is out. Pin, but Orton is out just before the three count. Flying elbow from Rob Van Dam. RVD hits a massive spinning kick to the jaw. Orton kicks Rob Van Dam in the gut to reverse the momentum. Big clothesline on RVD. Death valley driver by Randy Orton, Rob Van Dam got planted. Rob Van Dam can barely stand. Here it comes - RKO. 1....2...3, it's finished. The fight has started up again! Rob Van Dam attacks Orton, and they brawl all around ringside, then into the crowd! They eventually disappear backstage, still fighting. It gets a ***1\2 rating.

Overall Rating: 89%
Crowd Reaction: 92%
Match Quality: 85%

The feud between Rhyno and Brock Lesnar dates back to over a year ago when Rhyno rejected a spot in Brock Lesnar's stable in the hopes of earning a shot at Lesnar's title. That match never came to be, but once Rhyno won the World Title, Lesnar set his sights on the Manbeast after winning World War 3 to earn a title shot. And tonight, they will go at it for Rhyno's title one last time in a Texas Death Match!

Texas Death Match for the World Title - Rhyno (c) vs. Brock Lesnar

Lesnar gets slammed. Rhyno uses a big bag of popcorn to floor Lesnar. Big backdrop on Lesnar, executed well. Fallaway slam by Rhyno. Lesnar powers out of a headlock. Lesnar chair shots Rhyno. Massive backbreaker, Rhyno got planted. Early reports indicate that the back was *not* actually broken, so the move's name should actually be backhurter. Pin : 1 - 2- 3. Lesnar defeats Rhyno. The referee gets to a five count....and Rhyno gets back up. Rhyno elbows Brock Lesnar in the face to break a hammerlock. Nice piledriver on Lesnar. Pin, three count, it's over. Rhyno pins Lesnar. The referee gets to a five count....and Brock Lesnar gets back up. Brutal powerbomb on Lesnar. Cover gets three. Rhyno pinned Lesnar. The referee counts: 6....7...8....but Lesnar stands up. Lesnar blocks a punch. Brock Lesnar uses move #193 (arm-BAR). Rhyno elbows Brock Lesnar in the face to break a hammerlock. Big clothesline on Lesnar. Brock Lesnar can barely stand. Gore! GORE! GOOOOOOOORE!!! That shook the ring. 1....2....3!! The referee counts to 10, this match is over! Rhyno goes into the crowd, where he celebrates his victory A ****1\2 rating for a great match.

Overall Rating: 97%
Crowd Reaction: 99%
Match Quality: 95%

The rivalry between United States Champion Chris Benoit and Rey Mysterio took a turn for the personal when Benoit accused Mysterio of adultery after he was kissed by Mickie James as a thank-you for Rey saving her from Benoit. Tonight, Benoit's title is on the line, but Rey is looking for revenge!

United States Title - Rey Mysterio vs. Chris Benoit (c)

Kick from Rey Mysterio to the leg. Chris Benoit comes up with a right hand out of nowhere. Double arm suplex by Chris Benoit, Rey hits hard. We have our mandatory ref bump, as he goes down after accidentally getting caught by an elbow to the face. Wicked Tiger Suplex by Chris Benoit on Rey. Hooks the leg, but the referee is still out. Chris Benoit gets taken down out of nowhere. Flying elbow from Rey Mysterio. Flying cross body off the top rope! I'll give a 0.8 on the Steamboat scale for that effort. Cover for a two count. Diamond Dust from Rey Mysterio, Benoit is out. Hooks the leg for a close fall. Rey walks into a trip. Reverse DDT into a backbreaker by Chris Benoit, great move. Hooks the leg for a close fall. Rey blocks a kick from Chris Benoit. Rey Mysterio moves in for the kill. West Coast Pop!!! That shook the ring. 1....2....3!! Chris Benoit slides to the outside and grabs a chair, then climbs back into the ring. Rey turns around...and gets planted with a huge chair shot to the head! He is left down and out on the canvas. *** rating for a good bout.

Overall Rating: 90%
Crowd Reaction: 97%
Match Quality: 74%

Two of WWE's most charismatic Superstars have been engaged in a war both verbal and physical of late, and tonight Eddie Guerrero and Chris Jericho look to put their rival away for good!

Eddie Guerrero vs. Chris Jericho

Jericho hits a wicked chop that echoes through the building. Jericho drops an elbow...but misses. Fate can be so cruel. Eddie Guerrero strikes Jericho. Chris Jericho charges, Eddie moves, and the referee is conveniently placed to get knocked out. DDT from the top rope by Eddie Guerrero. That looked brutal. Hooks the leg, but the referee is still out. Chris Jericho pulls a mule kick out of nowhere. Spin kick by Chris Jericho to the face. Spinning bulldog in the corner, Eddie is down. Cover for a two count. Slingshot senton by Jericho, crushing the chest of Eddie. Pinfall attempt gets a 2.9999. Eddie reverses a waistlock. Flying cross body off the top rope! I'll give a 0.8 on the Steamboat scale for that effort. Pin : 1 - 2 - 2.9999999. Chris Jericho elbows Eddie Guerrero in the face to break a hammerlock. Chris Jericho has Eddie Guerrero down on the canvas. Walls of Jericho!!! Eddie Guerrero taps out! I can't decide whether it's a *** or a ***1\2 match...let's go for a ***1\4 rating to make it fair.

Overall Rating: 93%
Crowd Reaction: 100%
Match Quality: 78%

Tajiri has emerged as a very unlikely contender for the WWE Title, but has more than proven his worth, taking The Rock to the limit every time they've been inside the ring together. Tonight, Tajiri gets his first actual shot at the gold, but the People's Champion has promised his people a win.

WWE Title - The Rock (c) vs. Tajiri

Flying shoulder tackle by Rock sends Tajiri to the mat. Massive backbreaker, Tajiri got planted. Early reports indicate that the back was *not* actually broken, so the move's name should actually be backhurter. There's a two count on the pin. Tajiri ducks a clothesline attempt. Tajiri strikes Rock. Rock takes a flying neckbreaker from Tajiri. Cover for a two count. Tiger suplex on Rock, right from out of the Misawa playbook. Cover, but there's a last second kick-out. Flying elbow from Tajiri. Rock blocks a punch. Massive backbreaker, Tajiri got planted. Early reports indicate that the back was *not* actually broken, so the move's name should actually be backhurter. Hooks the leg for a two count. The Rock scores with a big spinebuster. Pin, but Tajiri is out just before the three count. Big backdrop on Tajiri, executed well. Rock bodyslams Tajiri. Tajiri avoids a The Rock avalanche. Rock takes a flying neckbreaker from Tajiri. Springboard dropkick from Tajiri. Nicely done. Tajiri moves in for the kill. Here it comes - Kick Of Death. 1....2...3, it's finished. Tajiri goes into the crowd, where he celebrates his victory A ****1\4 rating, great bout.

Overall Rating: 96%
Crowd Reaction: 100%
Match Quality: 89%

Last month, Jeff Hardy was stripped of both the Intercontinental and World Tag Team Titles. Los Guerreros won the vacant tag belts, and sixteen top SmackDown! stars have battled it out in a tournament to determine a new IC champ. John Cena and Christian have torn through the brackets (as well as each other), and tonight the tournament - and their feud - will come to an end in our main event... inside a steel cage!

Steel Cage Match for the vacant Intercontinental Title - John Cena vs. Christian

Christian launches Cena into the cage wall. Cena takes a quick lariat. Cena blocks a kick from Christian. John Cena hits some punches. Back elbow connects, Christian staggers backward. John Cena throws Christian into the cage. Rude Awakening on Christian by Cena. John Cena and Christian climb the cage....but both end up crashing back to the canvas after a struggle! Cena only gets knees on a splash. Reverse DDT on Cena. Christian hits a great swinging DDT on John Cena. Bodyslam by Christian. Christian drives Cena into the cage side. John Cena takes the advantage after a i-block-your-punch-you-don't-block-mine routine. Bodyslam by Cena. Powerbomb on Christian. Christian is in trouble. F-U! John Cena and Christian climb the cage....until Christian gets knocked off by a right hand! Cena climbs over the top for the win! John Cena climbs each turnbuckle in turn, working the crowd as he celebrates his victory Almost a *** rating, but there were some bits that dragged, so **3\4 instead.

Overall Rating: 90%
Crowd Reaction: 100%
Match Quality: 68%

[loopydate]

Originally Posted by WWE.com Tonight on RAW, a new #1 contender will be named for Rhyno's World Title and we will hear from now former WWE Champion The Rock about his shocking loss to Tajiri at Starrcade. But WWE.com has an exclusive announcement. With just two weeks until the Royal Rumble, Mr. Bischoff has already come up with the names of 14 Superstars who will be participating in the Rumble match. The remaining spots will be filled over the next couple of weeks leading into the Royal Rumble pay-per-view. Already qualifying for the Rumble are - Intercontinental Champion John Cena World Tag Team Champion Eddie Guerrero United States Champion Rey Mysterio Cruiserweight Champion Paul London Christian Chris Jericho Brock Lesnar Chris Benoit Matt Hardy Version 2.0 Rob Van Dam Damien The Hurricane Shelton Benjamin Rico Constantino The Rumble match participants are also eligible to compete in matches earlier in the evening, so some of these men may be pulling double duty. The card will begin to take shape tonight on RAW. Plus, this Friday night is New Year's Eve, so after a special LIVE broadcast of SmackDown!, WWE and Spike TV will present a 2004 Year In Review special, counting down the top ten wrestlers, matches, and events of 2004!

[Evil Vito]

Tajiri as champion

You've made so many credible champs in your game. O'Haire, Rhyno, Tajiri, etc. Awesome stuff.

[loopydate]

DECEMBER 27, 2004 - MONDAY NIGHT RAW

Last night's Starrcade was the best pay-per-view of 2004, and tonight's RAW is going to set the stage for the Road to WrestleMania 21! WWE.com announced 14 participants in the Royal Rumble, and three more RAW Superstars will qualify tonight! Plus, a Starrcade rematch between Rumble participant Shelton Benjamin and Undertaker! Eric Bischoff announces a new #1 contender for the World Title! And a massive tag team main event pitting World Champion Rhyno and John Cena against Brock Lesnar and Christian! Everyone but Rhyno in that match will be in the Royal Rumble, and they may be coming after the Manbeast's title!

"If ya smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelll..." The crowd goes bonkers as the former WWE Champion The Rock makes his way to the ring. He cuts a quick promo about underestimating Tajiri last night. He joked for weeks about how Tajiri came out of nowhere, but last night he proved that he's arrived. And the People's Champion isn't going to underestimate him again. He calls out Tajiri, then tells the champion that he's invoking his rematch clause at the Royal Rumble, and he's going to take the belt from Tajiri in the champ's own match. It's going to be a Hardcore Match for the WWE Title!

Matt Hardy Version 2.0 is backstage. He hypes his appearance in the Royal Rumble and takes some potshots at his rival, the Cruiserweight Champion Paul London. He knows they're both in the Rumble match, and he can't wait to get his revenge for losing at Starrcade by personally eliminating London!

WWE.com announced 14 names in the Rumble match earlier today, and we're about to find out who is going to be the 15th participant as ECW Original Lance Storm takes on one-half of the WWE Tag Team Champions, La Resistance's Rene Dupree! It's a solid match between two technically-sound Superstars, and Dupree pulls off a bit of an upset as he gets Storm to tap out to the Figure-Four Leglock!

WWE Chairman Eric Bischoff appears on the TitanTron and says that we have one of our world title matches set for the Royal Rumble, and he's ready to announce the other. Rhyno needs a new contender for the World Title after he put away Brock Lesnar last night in their Texas Death Match, but Bischoff didn't have to look too hard to find one. Based on his impressive string of victories over Rob Van Dam, one Randy Orton has earned the title shot at the Royal Rumble!

Chris Jericho is in the ring to cut a promo about the Royal Rumble and his win last night over Eddie Guerrero, but he gets cut off by Guerrero who comes out with one of the World Tag Team Title belts. Eddie talks about how they're both in the Rumble match, but what he wants more than anything is to finish this rivalry with Jericho for good. So what he's proposing is - one last time - Guerrero versus Jericho... in a ladder match! Jericho smirks and accepts and the match is on!

Two more spots in the Rumble match are at stake next in a tag-team match as former WWE Tag Team Champions Big Show and Kane take on their former leader in the Natural Born Ministry Sean O'Haire and his newest convert, Haas! It's a decent contest that mainly showcases Haas' newfound mean streak. In the end, O'Haire hits his Seanton Bomb on Kane for the win and two spots in the Rumble for himself and Haas!

After the match, O'Haire calls the rest of the Natural Born Ministry to the ring, and Undertaker, Damien, Chuck Palumbo, Johnny Stamboli, Shawn Stasiak, and Mark Jindrak all oblige. O'Haire talks about how the Ministry was formed to be the most dominant force in World Wrestling Entertainment, but lately they've been anything but. And he and Undertaker have thought about it, and they've fought about it, and they finally came to a conclusion as to why. They're carrying around too much dead weight! If the Ministry is to take over RAW, they can't be letting just anyone ride their coattails, regardless of past history. So at this point, if you're not doing your part, we're going to make sure you rest in peace! On that cue, everyone turns their attention to Jindrak and Stasiak. The two exchange an "oh, shit" look before attempting to defend themselves, but the numbers game is too much for them, and the now six-man Ministry stands over their former colleagues as we go to commercial.

Rob Van Dam is backstage when we come back, and he cuts a promo about the Royal Rumble match. He's excited for his shot at a world title of his choice, but he's still not wild about what happened leading up to Starrcade. Yeah, Orton beat him in three out of five matches, but he only got a couple of those wins clean. So if Orton's up for it, somewhere down the line, RVD's ready to finish things!

Undertaker is still inside the ring after the Ministry beatdown, and here comes his archrival Shelton Benjamin, just one night after beating him at Starrcade. Undertaker wanted this rematch tonight, but Shelton puts him away with a superkick for his second straight win over the Deadman!

Backstage, Chris Benoit gets in Rey Mysterio's face, continuing the verbal tirade he's been throwing the new United States Champion's way for weeks. Benoit finally says that he's using his rematch clause to challenge Rey for his title, and he's going to take back his title just before throwing Rey out of the Rumble match and adding another title shot to his bank!

Our main event features three participants in the Royal Rumble and the World Champion in a tag match! It's Rhyno and Cena versus Lesnar and Christian. It's a really good tag match that showcases all of the potential challengers, but Rhyno picks up another big win by hitting the Gore on Christian. After the match, while he's celebrating, he gets blindsided by an RKO from Randy Orton, who stands tall over the champ as we fade to black.

[loopydate]

DECEMBER 31, 2004 - SMACKDOWN!

It's the last night of 2004, and tonight we have four huge hours of wrestling, starting off with the live SmackDown! broadcast, followed by the 2004 Year In Review special. Tonight's SmackDown! features a huge double main event with World Champion Rhyno taking on Christian in a non-title match and a huge non-title tag rematch between Los Guerreros and Canadian Violence! Plus, the contract signing for the huge Rock/Tajiri WWE Title match, five more slots in the Royal Rumble match will be decided, and the Royal Rumble card continues to come together.

The show kicks off with tag team action as Rico Constantino teams with a man who has his own history with Theodore Long's Metro Connection stable, The Hurricane (remember, it was members of the Playas' Club that sidelined both Aaron Stevens and The Blueprint) to take on Chris Kanyon and Mark Henry! It's an exciting match that Henry drags down a little (surprise!). Eventually Hurricane puts Henry away with the Shining Wizard, but after the bell everybody brawls out of sight.

We already know 17 of the participants in the Royal Rumble match, and we're about to fill in another slot at M'n'M's Joey Matthews takes on Acid Test's Test. Matthews manages to get in a little offense, but this match is almost all Test, as he hits the Test Drive to pick up the win and a Rumble berth.

Paul London is backstage, and he issues a challenge. He picked up probably the biggest win of his career Sunday night when he pinned Matt Hardy Version 2.0 to retain his Cruiserweight Title. But he heard what Matt said on RAW about eliminating him from the Royal Rumble, and he's going to make sure that doesn't happen. But first, he wants to prove that Sunday was no fluke. He's willing to put the Cruiserweight Title on the line one more time at the Royal Rumble, but he wants to beat Matt's ass all over the arena in a falls-count-anywhere match!

The Royal Rumble match qualifying process continues next as Funaki takes on "Nature Boy" Dave Batista. Surprise surprise, Bats controls almost the entire match. Funaki gets in some martial arts offense, but eventually he taps out to the Figure Four and Batista is going to the Royal Rumble!

Two more spots in the Royal Rumble are at stake in our following tag team match as New Generation members BJ Whitmer and Trent Acid take on one of the most decorated tag teams in history, the Dudley Boyz! Acid and Whitmer put up a hell of a fight, but eventually Whitmer falls victim to the 3-D, and the Dudleyz have punched their tickets to the Rumble!

Rey Mysterio gets some backstage interview time, which he spends hyping up his feud with Chris Benoit and their two-out-of-three falls match at the Royal Rumble. Rey's getting stronger on the mic, and hopefully that match at Royal Rumble can match up to what they did at Starrcade.

Now that Billy Gunn has freed himself from the Metro Connection, his Royal Rumble qualifying match with Avery Thompson has very personal significance. Gunn looks about ready to put Thompson away when Theodore Long hops up onto the apron. Billy turns around and gets distracted, but he manages to dodge a charging Thompson, who knocks Long down and walks right into the Fame-Ass-Er. Billy Gunn is going to the Rumble! The heels gang up on him until Rico hits the ring to save his partner.

Paul London had some big words for Matt Hardy Version 2.0 earlier tonight, and he's going to try to back things up as he teams with the new Intercontinental Champion John Cena to take on Hardy and Brock Lesnar! Four of the biggest stars in the Royal Rumble match collide! It's an exciting match that ends with London backing up his words from earlier when he hits Hardy with the London Calling for the win.

A table is set up in the ring when we come back from commercial, and the contract for the WWE Title match is on it. The Rock and Tajiri sit on opposite sides. Tajiri signs it, then hands the pen to The Rock. Rock signs his name to make their Hardcore Match official. Tajiri then gives him a taste of what's to come when he drives the table into Rock's midsection and gives him the Kick of Death! The WWE Champion buzzsaw continues to cut through World Wrestling Entertainment!

The first half of our double main event is next as the World Tag Team Champions Los Guerreros take on Canadian Violence in a non-title rematch from a couple of weeks ago (when Eddie and Chavo picked up a big win). The heels get some revenge tonight with Jericho pinning Eddie following their devastating Crossface/Walls combo. After the match, United States Champion Rey Mysterio jumps Benoit and lays him out, continuing the build to their title match at the Royal Rumble!

And in our main event, Rhyno and Christian put on a fantastic contest, a great way to wrap up 2004, and the last image of WWE this year is Rhyno hitting Xian with the Gore for the big win.

[loopydate]

Originally Posted by GrappleFanatics.net The list of the top 100 workers in the world was released at the conclusion of SmackDown! Chris Jericho (WWE) Kurt Angle (Free Agent) Tajiri (WWE) AJ Styles (NWA-TNA/RoH) Eddie Guerrero (WWE) Low Ki (FLI/RoH/XPW) Shawn Michaels (Free agent) Randy Orton (WWE) Christopher Daniels (RoH) Chris Benoit (WWE) Derrick King (WWE) Kid Kash (NWA-TNA/XPW) Christian (WWE) Brock Lesnar (WWE) Aidan Nathans (WWE/IWA-MS/WLW) Ultimo Dragon (RoH) TAKA Michinoku (XPW) Sakoda (WWE) Rob Van Dam (WWE) Super Crazy (RoH/XPW) EZ Money (RoH/XPW) Nick Dinsmore (NWA-TNA) Shark Boy (NWA-TNA) The Hurricane (WWE) Matt Hardy Version 2.0 (WWE) Other WWE stars making the list are Funaki (#26), Richard J. Criado (#28), Shelton Benjamin (#29), Chavo Guerrero (#32), Edge (#34), John Morrison (#36), Air Paris (#37), Lance Storm (#38), Paul London (#41), Rhyno (#42), Generalin Intikami (#43), Rey Mysterio (#44), Akio (#46), Haas (#50), Johnny Jeter (#51), Sean O'Haire (#52), Trent Acid (#54), Fred Williams (#55), Brian Kendrick (#58), Colt Cabana (#59), Jamie Noble (#61), Chris Hamrick (#65), Austin Lee (#67), BJ Whitmer (#68), Ruckus (#69), The Rock (#75), John Cena (#76), Brandon P (#77), Nova (#81), Doug Basham (#82), Jay Briscoe (#83), Al Snow (#86), Matt Stryker (#87), Joey Matthews (#88), Rob Conway (#89), and Mickie James (#91)! Including the OVW roster, WWE included a whopping 49 wrestlers in the top 100! Also, Lance Storm, Shawn Stasiak, The Blueprint, and Generalin Intikami as well as a number of developmental wrestlers' contracts expired at midnight and were all wished well in their future endeavors.

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by Big Vito 22 Damn, that sounds much better than the patch I just downloaded. I'm not allowed to make Cena lose cleanly despite him not having creative control. Fuck this shit.

Rep.

[M-A-G]

SmackDown!: 4/11/10
Kofi Kingston, Jack Swagger, Shelton Benjamin, and Kane all continue their momentum-building ways as they look forward to next week’s Money in the Bank ladder match. Kofi vows lightning will strike twice.

Other proceedings: Cash Inc. defeat Jason Cross and Alex Furious after Rhyno gores Cross. Apparently he didn’t take kindly to Cross calling him a loser.

Mr. Kennedy, CM Punk, and Cash Stevens defeat Christian, Shawn Michaels, and Ian Moore when Kennedy sneaks a pinfall on Christian.

The Shane Brothers, Todd and Michael, continue their feud with the Revelations, Syn and Genesis.

Chris Sylvain and Jason Collins have a heart-to-heart about their rematch. Sylvain actually wants to take his time in naming a time and place and isn’t in any major rush. Collins points out that the draft lottery is scheduled in 4 weeks and that neither man may be on SmackDown!. Collins suggests that Sylvain gets while the getting is good. Sylvain asks if Collins is in that big of a hurry to be humiliated. Collins may brag that he is one of the lucky two to actually score a win over Sylvain but no one can claim to have done it twice. Just ask Ian Moore how successful his second attempt was in trying to overcome the great Chris Sylvain. Collins had better be sleeping with the title, taking pictures with it, and kissing it every chance he gets because when they clash again, it’s coming back to Chris Sylvain. Collins wonders if Sylvain is so confident that he’s willing to put it to the test right now. Sylvain drops the mic and backs off. *BAM* Collins gets booted in the groin. Amplifier to Jason Collins! Sylvain stands over the champion as we go off the air.

Raw: 4/14/10
Edge is to be punished for his actions last week and will have to choose a partner to face John Morrison and HHH tonight.
Batista is out to complain about HHH’s status as number one contender. If anyone should be facing John Morrison, it should be him. WrestleMania was a simple case of HHH pulling a miracle out of his ass which has been the story of his entire career. Mark Henry comes out, evidently not happy about being assaulted in last week’s rampage by Batista. Henry makes it clear that he’s aware that what Batista did wasn’t personal; he just doesn’t care. He’s not on the list of people Batista can just bowl over. Batista warns Henry not to let things get out of hand here. He’s willing to forgive Henry for interrupting him if he just turns around and leaves. Henry says that Batista isn’t the alpha monster on Raw and he’s certainly not the boss. They brawl for awhile and here comes an assload of security and agents.

Other proceedings: We learn that at Backlash it will be Ted DiBiase defending his U.S. Title in a triple threat match against R-Truth and Evan Bourne. R-Truth picks up a roll-up pinfall on DiBiase.

Raw GM Steve Austin berates Batista for his actions. Batista dares him to do something about it so Austin makes Henry vs. Batista at Backlash.

The Miz confronts HHH about his long career and the fact that HHH has worn out his welcome on Raw. Heck, he’s worn out his welcome in the entire wrestling industry. He should go and make some more babies before his quads are put on the endangered species list. HHH defends himself by saying he’s earned everything he has. The Miz says he can become champion also if he had a sledgehammer and got a bajillion chances, too. HHH says that if he was champion, he’d be happy to give a shot to The Miz if only for the tremendous satisfaction of getting rid of something he thinks has worn out its welcome: the Miz’s mouth.

Edge interrupts an argument between AJ Styles and Christopher Daniels. Daniels storms off angry with Styles but Edge says to just let him go. Edge says Styles has just volunteered to be his partner for tonight. It’d be great for Styles because he can start earning some respect and it would be nice to be paired up with a winner. Styles agrees.

Kim Roderick brags about she doesn’t have to worry about Victoria anymore. Austin comes out to correct this claim and points out the stipulations of last week’s match: Victoria had to pin or make Kim Roderick submit to earn a title match. Roderick says that Victoria failed to do that so that’s the end of it. Austin points out, however, that the stipulation worked both ways. Roderick also had to pin or make Victoria submit in order to permanently ban Victoria from getting a title opportunity. Therefore Victoria will receive a Diva’s title match at Backlash if her team can beat Roderick’s team tonight. Victoria and Natalya therefore team up to face Kim Roderick and Charlotte and get the win when Victoria pins Charlotte.

HHH asks John Morrison how he’s feeling after last week. Between Henry and Batista, there’s no way the champion is 100%. Morrison says he’s good to go but he really wanted to get his hands on Batista tonight. HHH says Batista is just butt-hurt and to worry about tonight because Edge and Styles are two desperate individuals. Morrison gets in HHH’s face and asks if he’s so worried about him, why did he pick Mark Henry to demolish him last week. HHH says that was then, this is now. Besides, you can’t expect free passes when you’re the champ. Morrison thinks HHH might be a bit worried about losing at Backlash if he’s going through all this trouble.

JBL manages to defeat Bryan Danielson again in a rematch Danielson requested. Danielson still claims that it’s not over between them.

Christopher Daniels and Pete Shapiro pick up singles victories and vow to win Money in the Bank on SmackDown!.

Main Event: HHH and John Morrison defeat AJ Styles and Edge. Randy Orton chases off Edge allowing Morrison to hit Starship Pain. HHH tags himself in however and pins Styles himself. We close with Morrison and HHH in each other’s face.

The draft lottery is in three weeks!

Backlash card so far:
WWE Cruiserweight Title: Don Maiden vs. Kevin Daniels
WWE Diva’s Title: Kim Roderick vs. Victoria
Batista vs. Mark Henry
WWE U.S. Title: Ted DiBiase vs. Evan Bourne vs. R-Truth
First Blood: Edge vs. Randy Orton
WWE Title: John Morrison vs. HHH

Superstars: 4/17/10
Not a whole lot. Christopher Daniels turns face on AJ Styles, JBL cuts a promo on Bryan Danielson and vows to show him how much of a god he really is by winning Money in the Bank tomorrow night, and both Evan Bourne and Randy Orton build momentum towards Backlash with singles wins.
SmackDown!: 4/18/10
Kane wins the Money in the Bank rematch. Events during the match include AJ Styles and Christopher Daniels damn near killing each other, Bryan Danielson coming from the crowd to assault JBL, Shad doing his damndest to make sure Kofi Kingston doesn’t win, and Kane chokeslamming Jack Swagger off a ladder and through a table. Jason Collins watches on.

Other proceedings: Chris Sylvain declares that no matter who wins Money in the Bank, they’d be a fool to cash it in whenever he’s champion.

Ian Moore retained the Intercontinental Title against Cash Stevens.

Garrett and Rhyno beat down Alex Furious in the back.

Sean O’Haire gets a win over Jason Cross. Cross is able to fight off an attempted beat down.

MVP welcomes CM Punk to the VIP Lounge. MVP wants to know what everything one else is wondering: where does CM Punk go after such a devastating loss to Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania? Punk takes offense and points out that he has two wins over HBK which is two more than MVP has. In fact, a lot of what CM Punk does is newsworthy. Can MVP claim that? MVP answers that maybe not but says that Punk better get back to climbing the mountain because when someone falls off, someone else is right there ready to claim that spot.

[M-A-G]

Raw: 4/21/10
JBL is outraged over Danielson’s appearance on SmackDown!. Danielson had no right to assault him and compares it to a fan jumping the guardrail. JBL would’ve won Money in the Bank if it hadn’t been for Danielson and he demands retribution and punishment for Danielson. Austin comes out to address these concerns and informs JBL that Danielson has indeed been punished and has been suspended from Raw. JBL says it’s about time some justice is done around here. Austin isn’t done, however, and says JBL has a chance to punish Danielson some more. He can punish him in the parking lot. He can punish him at the concession stand. Hell, he can even punish him in the showers. This Sunday at Backlash, it will be JBL vs. Bryan Danielson and this time it’s going to be Falls Count Anywhere! JBL is irate.

Other proceedings:
Evan Bourne defeats Batista by DQ when Ted DiBiase attacks Bourne. Mark Henry comes in for the save.

AJ Styles cuts a promo on Christopher Daniels and his selfishness. All Daniels had to do was listen to Styles and things would’ve been different on Raw for the two of them. At Backlash, Daniels will pay.

R-Truth gets a win over Sean Casey.

Edge and Cash Inc. defeat Randy Orton and the Thug Life Soldiers.

The Miz gets in HHH’s face and tries to stir the pot between him and John Morrison.

John Morrison and HHH close the show with a face-to-face talk. John Morrison asks why HHH essentially stole his win in last week’s tag match. HHH defends himself by saying they won regardless and that should be that. Morrison says that it’s not always about HHH. He even goes as far as saying that maybe everyone else is right about HHH and is just trying to hog as much glory as possible. HHH says that he loves this business and is willing to do anything and everything to remain in it. He’s not going to be forced out just because a bunch of jealous people want to try and dictate his career. Like he told Miz, he’s earned everything he’s had and he plans on earning the WWE Title again this Sunday. Morrison declares that he’s not going to forced out of his spot either by anyone and that includes HHH. He’s even willing to prove that claim right now. They get in each other’s face and HHH shoves Morrison back. Morrison with a right hand to HHH! They brawl for a bit and Morrison gets HHH in position for Starship Pain but HHH bails. We close out the show with a staredown.

Backlash card:
WWE Cruiserweight Title: Don Maiden vs. Kevin Daniels
WWE Diva’s Title: Kim Roderick vs. Victoria
Mark Henry vs. Batista
Falls Count Anywhere: JBL vs. Bryan Danielson
AJ Styles vs. Christopher Daniels
WWE U.S. Title: Ted DiBiase vs. Evan Bourne vs. R-Truth
First Blood: Edge vs. Randy Orton
WWE Title: John Morrison vs. Triple H

Superstars: 4/24/10
Kane is out to talk about his Money in the Bank win. In one instance, Kane was able to send a shiver down the spine of anyone looking to become World Heavyweight Champion. Jason Collins in particular has most likely been spending the last few days looking over his shoulder. Nothing will stop him from taking what has eluded him for far too long. Kofi Kingston comes out and stands in the ring with Kane. He says that Kane has no reason to like him much less do anything that Kofi asks of him. Kane has no doubt seen the way Kofi was screwed out of Money in the Bank. Last week was supposed to be the moment that would vindicate Kofi; where he would get back what was taken from him. Kofi essentially begs Kane to give him a match with the briefcase on the line. Kane asks Kofi if he even heard what he had to say just right now. Nothing is going to stop Kane from cashing in Money in the Bank. As unfortunate as it’s been for Kofi, Kane happens to agree with what Shad and the Board of Directors had to say about Kofi’s involvement at WrestleMania’s Money in the Bank match. Kofi reiterates that he’s begging for a match and even goes as far as saying ‘please’. Kane asks Kofi if it’s such a good idea considering there’s no way he’s 100% and reminds Kofi that he doesn’t show his opponents any mercy. If he were to agree to this match, Kofi’s quest for the title will be over before it even begins. Kofi doesn’t care as he was willing to go through hell twice in order to secure that briefcase. Kane points out that Kofi doesn’t know the meaning of the word hell. He agrees to give Kofi the match tonight but hopes that Kofi doesn’t wind up regretting it.

Other proceedings:
Jack Swagger shows up in a neck brace, hurt and busted up after last week’s Money in the Bank match. He berates Kane for chokeslamming him through a table and declares Kane unfit and unworthy of being a world champion. The fans don’t have to worry though. Their All-American American hero will recover and vows to make Kane pay.

Garrett and Alex Furious continue the apparent heavyweights vs. cruiserweights feud with a match where Garrett manages to pick up a win.

Cash Stevens vows to earn another Intercontinental Title match against Ian Moore.

Jason Collins defeats Rhyno when Jason Cross interferes. The dance continues.

Kane defeats Kofi Kingston by DQ when Jack Swagger attacks Kane, apparently miraculously healed. Shad distracts Kofi at ringside and Swagger takes the opportunity to nail Kane and deliver a gut wrench power bomb causing the DQ. Kofi tries to attack Swagger but falls victim to Shad assaulting him from behind. The show ends with Kane and Kofi continuing to get assaulted.

[M-A-G]

SmackDown!: 4/25/10
SmackDown! General Manager The Rock welcomes us from inside the ring. He talks about how the 30 day period for mandatory World Heavyweight Title defenses is set to pass and we still don't have a number one contender for Jason Collins. He can't force Chris Sylvain to take his rematch and likewise, Kane's Money in the Bank contract must be cashed in at his own leisure. So next week on SmackDown!, the Rock will grant one individual a shot at the World Heavyweight Title; someone who has been denied one, time in and time out. Jason Collins will defend the title against....KOFI KINGSTON! Shad immediately comes out to complain about this decision and cries favoritism. Shad demands to be given the title shot. Kofi Kingston interrupts and gets in Shad's face. He has a question for Shad: Is it really that important to Shad that Kofi doesn't have a World Title opportunity? He gets that they've had their problems ever since Bragging Rights but it's gone far enough. Shad simply smiles and says that perhaps it's about time that Kofi learns the truth. True, it began with he and Kofi not seeing eye-to-eye but now it's about something else. Shad reveals that someone has paid him quite handsomely to ensure that Kofi Kingston never becomes World Heavyweight Champion. Kofi seems taken back by this but gathers himself together to demand who it is. Shad says that the person has also paid him to not reveal that. Kofi needs to learn who it is on his own. If Shad were Kofi, though, he wouldn't trust anyone. It could be anyone; someone from Raw; someone Kofi had lunch with; it could even be the World Heavyweight Champion himself, Jason Collins. Whoever it is, Shad gave them his word that he would do what he could to keep Kofi away from the World Title. The Rock says not this time because if Shad gets involved in anyway in next week's title match, Shad will be fired. Kofi vows to get to the bottom of this.

Other proceedings:
MVP welcomes Shawn Michaels this week to the VIP Lounge. MVP asks Michaels the same question he asked CM Punk last week. Where does Shawn Michaels go from here? Michaels makes no secret that he wants to hold the World Title one more time. Cody Rhodes comes out to respond to this and asks out loud why he wasn't considered for the tenth spot in last week's Money in the Bank briefcase. Instead, the opportunity was given to The Rock's pet and two other individuals who have already been world champions; Mr. Kennedy and Christian. There's no room for Cody Rhodes when guys like Mr. Kennedy and Christian keep taking the spotlight for themselves. In fact, Shawn Michaels is one of those guys. Maybe Rhodes would get opportunities if guys like Shawn Michaels just relinquished the spotlight for a bit. Really, HBK and HHH are one in the same because over on Raw, people are accusing HHH of the same thing. Michaels says that instead of Rhodes just whining and complaining until someone throws him a bone, maybe Rhodes should go out and do something spectacular, win matches, earn some respect and maybe, just maybe he can be considered for opportunities more often. Michaels isn't going to apologize for being the Showstopper and all. If Rhodes thinks he's better, by all means he's welcome to prove it. Rhodes and HBK stare each other down. CM Punk comes out without warning and glares at HBK and then....nails MVP?!?! Rhodes and Michaels look on like WTF?

Jack Swagger is in the back and informs us that his valiant attempt to stand up to Kane last night resulted in him having a setback and is still forced to wear a neckbrace. He regrets not being 100% because if he was, Kane would be in for it for sure. Kane appears behind him causing Swagger to bail.

Chris Sylvain talks about Kofi getting a title shot next week. Whoever the champion is, Chris Sylvain will be waiting. He declares he's getting his rematch at Judgment Day.

Jason Cross defeats Mark Mason. Rhyno runs in afterwards to demolish Cross while Mason looks on. It looks like he wants to help but he just walks off.

Cash Stevens defeats Chris Masters and JTG defeats Sean O'Haire in a mini-tournament to determine a contender for the IC Title. Stevens and JTG meet next week.

Jason Collins comes out to talk about the trio of challenges he's got; Kane, a sadistic, unpredictable monster with the right to try to take away his World Title anytime he wants. Chris Sylvain, an equally sadistic and egomaniacal jackass who thinks everything's about him and has only lost twice in his entire career. And then there's Kofi Kingston who apparently is willing to do whatever it takes to wear this title. So if you see a champion walking around either here on SmackDown! or over on Raw, parading around with their belt acting like their having the time of their lives, it's a crock because the life of a champion is a hard one. But he's not ready to give it up just yet. Kofi comes out and asks if he's so reluctant to give up the title, would he go so far as to hire Shad to make sure Kofi doesn't become world champion. Collins says that the truth is, no, he doesn't want Kofi to become World Champion. But he feels the same way about everyone else on the roster. No one really wants other people to get one over on them when it comes to the world title. Collins is going to fight like hell next week to keep the title but does that mean he's going to pay someone to keep one particular person out of the loop? No way. For someone to be so specific as to target Kofi, the search needs to be directed elsewhere and not towards someone who generally fights off challenges to his title. Kofi says not to worry about that because he'll make that person come to him and it will happen when he wins the World Title next week.

*BOOM* Through hellfire and brimstone! It's Kane...and he's got the briefcase!!! Is he cashing it in now? Wait, Swagger emerges from behind Kane and nails him. Kofi takes this chance and chases away Swagger. He turns around to stare at Collins and the champion responds by holding up the World Heavyweight Title. End of the show!