WWE RAW
Tucson, Arizona
October 27, 2008
Results thanks to pwtorch.com
The show started with an "In Memory of" for S.D.
Jones. ... A recap video package took us back to the main event of Cyber Sunday
to see how Batista took the World Title from Chris Jericho. They gave away a lot
of information here instead of teasing for the PPV replays.
Four minutes into the broadcast, Michael Cole welcomed us to the show with a
long-winded description of Raw's greatness in episodic entertainment TV
universes. Without any music, Chris Jericho stormed the ring in his heel suit to
a chorus of boos. Lillian Garcia announced him as the former World Hvt.
champion, which Jericho took offense to. Jericho instantly proclaimed last night
as the biggest screwjob in WWE history. He said Mike Adamle wanted Batista as
champion and he did everything possible to make it happen. Jericho said Steve
Austin changed the rules in the middle of the match, bullied him, and didn't
count a three for him when he was supposed to. As a result, Batista is new
champ. Fans cheered, then chanted that he sucks.
Jericho said that Batista should be ashamed to call himself World champ because
it took an entire army of hypocrites to beat him last night. And now Adamle
wants to make a tag match main event, which is fine with him, because he's dying
to get his hands on Michaels and Batista tonight. But, he needs more! Jericho
said he will use his championship re-match clause next week to regain his World
Title.
The Raw theme music interrupted, then Adamle strutted out to the ring like a
happy peacock. Adamle told him to hold on a sec because he wants to make sure
there is no outside interference in that World Title match. Therefore, it'll be
a steel...cage...match. Crowd liked that. Jericho thought it over, then he
nodded his head several times before storming past Adamle, including a little
bump on the shoulder on the way out of the ring.
Randy Orton's music then hit, and Orton walked out past Jericho on the way to
the ring to have a chat with Adamle. Orton asked him if he's satisfied with
himself after sending him out last night as an emergency referee because it's
inexcusable that he took a Stone Cold Stunner from Austin last night. He said he
is not fully recovered and he could not properly defend himself. Orton vowed to
make sure Adamle does not get away with this. He then walked to the edge of the
ring and addressed the hard camera. Orton told Stephanie and Shane to show up
next week on Raw to fire Adamle. He said if they don't, then he's going to walk.
Fans loved that. Orton said he's going to quit and the WWE needs him a heck of a
lot more than he needs WWE. Intense.
Orton started to leave, then he spotted Adamle staring at him. Orton stormed
over to Adamle and got in his face to cut him down to size. He called him an
utter failure - as a commentator, as an announcer, and as a GM. Orton said he
could probably go home to Chicago and find out from his wife and kids that he's
a failure as a husband. Adamle became hotter and hotter as his face turned red,
then he slapped Orton across the face. Adamle stood tall as Orton got back in
his face, but Orton didn't do anything. He then slipped out of the ring huffing
and puffing while Adamle breathed a strange sigh of relief. Intense opening
segment! A little more fire than the drab, predictable Raws we've seen the last
few weeks.
Video package: They showed a clip from Unforgiven when Priceless and Randy Orton
took out C.M. Punk, causing him to lose the World Title. Up next, Punk and Kofi
get the tag champs for the belts.
[Commercial Break]
[Q2]
In-ring: C.M. Punk came out first for the tag title match to kick off the show.
Kofi Kingston then followed out as his partner.
1 -- World tag team champions PRICELESS (TED DIBIASE, JR. & CODY RHODES w/Manu)
vs. C.M. PUNK & KOFI KINGSTON -- World tag title match
Gotta love the dudes dressed up as WWE referees standing in the front row facing
the hard camera. Well, depends on your perspective. Punk, in his
Halloween-themed trunks, landed a running jawbreaker on Cody to start things
off. Cody then came back with a jawbreaker of his own to bring in Teddy, who
suddenly accepted a drop toe hold into a submission hold from Punk. Kofi and
Punk then cleared the heels to the outside before Kofi launched Punk over the
top rope onto Cody and Ted. Nice camera shot of Manu staring back into the ring
at the challengers before checking on his buddies as they cut to a break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from breaker, Punk teased the Go 2 Sleep on Cody, but Cody slipped out.
Kofi then took a hot tag and flew onto Cody with a leaping dive. Kofi knocked
Ted off the apron with a flying smash, but then Ted recovered and yanked Kofi
off the top rope when he tried a high-flying move. Cody rammed Kofi into the
guardrail before tossing him back into the ring to begin a focused attack on
Kofi. Crowd came to life as Kofi fired back on Cody, but Cody ducked a
clothesline and landed a drop toe hold to keep Kofi in the heel corner. Nice.
[Q3]
At 11:00, Punk rallied the crowd for another Kofi comeback attempt. Suddenly,
Kofi caught Cody by surprise with a head scissors from the mat and he hot-tagged
to Punk, who cleaned house on DiBiase with roundhouse slaps and kicks. He then
nailed the high knee in the corner before kicking Manu off the ring apron.
Action broke down, then Kofi jumped over Punk to take Cody over the top rope
with a huracanrana in amazing display of athleticism. Ted then tried to surprise
Punk with a punch and Russian legsweep, but Punk grabbed the top rope to block.
Ted then fell into Punk's grasp for a G2S in center ring. Punk made the cover
and we have new tag champs. Arena exploded, then Kofi re-entered the ring to
celebrate with Punk. They stayed with this for a good minute, with shots of
Priceless arguing about what happened on stage.
WINNERS: Punk & Kofi in 13:00 to capture the World Tag Titles. Nice tag match.
Great action and athleticism with a hot crowd to help things out. Punk & Kofi
looked inspired in the ring, obviously since they were winning the belts.
Interesting to see where Priceless goes from here. (**1/2)
- A John Cena video aired.
[Commercial Break]
Ringside: Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler talked about WrestleMania coming to
Houston soon, then Lawler talked excitedly about Randy Orton in the opening
segment and the tag title change. Lawler said it's been like a train wreck! I
think he meant that in a positive way.
In-ring: Lillian Garcia introduced Roddy Piper, way-out-of-shape Goldust, and
Honky Tonk Man as guest commentators for the next contest. Everyone gets two
paydays. Santino Marella and Beth Phoenix then came to the ring. Santino has a
few things to ay. First, the Honk-a-Meter. Honky pointed his finger at Santino
as he called out the 64 weeks vs. 11 weeks race. Santino said that when he
catches Honky, he's going to be the greatest of all the times. He then looked at
all three sitting at the announce table and told all the pregnant women to take
a good look at them. That's what happens when you do drugs... when you're
pregnant. He could have just stopped short there.
Santino turned his attention to Beth to talk her up in glowing terms. This
a-woman redefines grace and dignity. Suddenly, Beth's music hit and out walked
Charlie Haas dressed as Beth. Cleavage was in all the right spots. Piper
suggested that Goldust might be able to help us out here. Beth was not pleased,
then Haas did the Beth intro of holding a replica Women's Title over his head
and doing the back flip into the ring. So awesome.
Santino was incensed and he flung Haas over the top rope. He blasted Haas in
front of the announce table before sucker-punching Honky. Piper and Goldust
surrounded the ring as Santino tried to leave, then Santino turned around and
accepted a guitar shot to the head from Honky. Michael Cole with a Guitar Hero
reference. Oh my. The legends pointed down at Santino and had a good time before
Beth checked on Santino in the ring to close the segment. Bell never rang, so a
match was not official here.
Plugs: Six-divas tag match and Rey Bourne vs. Evan Mysterio. OK, I slipped
there. It's Rey Mysterio vs. Evan Bourne for the first time tonight. ... Another
random Mike Knox video package aired to plug... Raw. Was there a draft that we
missed? Oh wait, the brand split is extinct.
[Q4]
[Commercial Break]
Did You Know: WWE's website has more hits than NFL.com, UFC.com, Maxim.com,
FHM.com, and NASCAR.com. Wow, a UFC reference on Raw. Takes you back to the Ken
Shamrock days about ten years ago.
In-ring: Michael Cole announced Batista as the new World Hvt. champion. Batista
came out dressed for a night at the club and he posed in the ring to a strong
reaction. Batista said he's had to scratch and claw to get back to this position
as new champ. Batista thanked the fans, then said this belt isn't going anywhere
for a long time. Cole brought up Jericho's re-match clause and the steel cage
match next week. Is he concerned that the title reign might be short-lived?
Batista laughed and said he has no concern. He said a steel cage is his home,
his playground, and his comfort zone. That way, Jericho has nowhere to run or
hide. No more excuses and he will still be World Heavyweight champion. Batista's
music hit to cap off an emphatic, short-and-sweet promo from Big Dave.
Backstage: They showed Candice, Mickie, and Kelly holding hands and bouncing
their way to the ring for the six divas tag match.
Smackdown plug: On the Halloween edition of Smackdown, they're bringing back the
casket match. Obviously, Undertaker is involved. Opponent TBA.
FIRST HOUR EVALUATION: A much, much more inspired effort all-round in an attempt
to counter a potential World Series clinching game and Monday Night Football
featuring the All-American American Jack Swagger Peyton Manning.
[Commercial Break]
ECW plug: Tune in for The Miz, then Scare Tactics.
WWE 24/7 plug: They showed a video package on Shea Stadium, which hosted its
last New York Mets game this year. After showing clips of various stars who
played and performed at Shea, they went to an extended package on the Showdown
at Shea in August 1980 where they claimed 50,000 fans. Wow, not even close. They
focused on the stars in the match and named Pat Patterson, Ivan Putski, Tony
Atlas, the Wild Samoans, and Bruno Sammartino. Plenty of clips of Sammartino vs.
Zbyszko in the cage. Of course, they focused on the Andre the Giant vs. Hulk
Hogan match. It was an undercard match since Hogan wasn't nearly Hulkamania at
the time, but it's been played up like a huge match for historical purposes to
build up the mythological status of WrestleMania III.
[Q5 -- second hour]
In-ring: Kelly Kelly, then Candice, then Mickie James came to the ring for a
six-divas tag match. Jillian Hall's music hit to bring out Jillian, Layla, and
Katie Lea. No singing from Jillian, fortunately.
3 -- CANDICE MICHELLE & MICKIE JAMES & KELLY KELLY vs. JILLIAN HALL & LAYLA &
KATIE LEA
By the way, a three-hour special next week, according to a randomly placed
graphic. Suddenly, the whole thing broke down at 3:00 with divas flying on the
outside. Kelly and Katie were left in the ring where Kelly nailed the K2 rocker
dropper on Katie for the pin and the win. The babyface divas hugged it out in
the ring, then Jillian dragged Katie to the outside to recover.
WINNERS: Team Kelly in 3:00. Fine action. Candice was at least serviceable and
Kelly delivered her usual dose of high energy. Felt like a waste of Layla,
though, as her storyline with Regal against Noble seems to have disappeared.
(1/2*)
Backstage: JBL looked into the camera at the interview set and said Shawn
Michaels ruined a good business deal for him. He said he would have had the next
title shot at Jericho if he helped Jericho retain the belt last night. JBL
described the money that comes with holding the gold, so now Michaels will pay
tonight for costing him a lot of money.
Raw 800 plug: Next week, the main event will be Batista vs. Jericho in a steel
cage. Three hours of Raw. Hey, some classic WWF Raw clips with the siren blaring
and Vince McMahon screaming. Ah, good times.
[Commercial Break]
In-ring: Rey Mysterio came to the ring for the match against Bourne. ... Earlier
today: Grisham asked Rey Mysterio about facing Kane last night. Rey said
wrestling Kane will change you. Some men are destroyed while others push
through. He said he has no limitations because he is a Latin Warrior. Suddenly,
Evan Bourne stepped in and said he'll be the underdog tonight. He gladly accepts
that tonight and he looks forward to beating him tonight. They shook hands. ...
Evan Bourne then came to the ring representing ECW.
[Q6]
4 -- REY MYSTERIO vs. EVAN BOURNE
They get their own quarter hour here, so it will be interesting to see how this
rates. Match started off with a headlock exchange, then they busted out some
rapid-fire counters that ended with Bourne nailing a head scissors takeover. Rey
got up and stared back at Bourne, then Rey snapped off a sick head scissors
takeover after a few revolutions. Bourne then recovered against the ropes while
catching Rey's eye for a look of mutual respect. Awesome to start. Bourne came
back with an arm drag that took Rey to the floor, then Bourne teased a baseball
slide kick, but Rey moved. They ran back into the ring together and had another
stare down. Rey smiled while Bourne had a great intense look. Let's grab a
break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, Bourne was in control. They showed some clips of during the
break when things became physical, including a majestic springboard moonsault by
Bourne onto Rey on the floor. Back live, Rey and Bourne exchanged slaps before
Rey turned the tables on Bourne and slingshot him through the ropes to the
outside. Rey then ran off the apron with a nice leaping dive onto Bourne right
in front of the camera for a tight shot. Back in the ring, Bourne came back with
a tilt-o-whirl backbreaker for a two count. Rey then tried a springboard move,
but his knee gave out and he crashed to the mat. Bourne recovered nicely and
tried a pinfall for a nearfall. He then tried to work over the knee, but Rey
escaped and fired off a dropkick.
Rey followed with a springboard dive, then he wanted a running move, but Bourne
popped up and nailed an enziguiri kick. What a counter. Bourne with a cover at
10:00 for a nearfall. Bourne followed with a sick standing moonsault for a two
count, then he wanted to go up top for the SSP, but Rey threw him down. Rey then
flung Bourne onto the middle rope and nailed the 619. Rey wanted to end it with
his springboard sentaun, but Bourne sat up and ducked. He then tried a Jack
Evans reverse huracanrana, only to have Rey counter into a victory roll and trap
Bourne for a three count. Beautiful. Afterward, Rey looked down at Bourne with
respect, then they shook hands.
WINNER: Rey in 12:00. What a match. That was special. Bourne is unbelievably
gifted with the "it" factor and he continues to take advantage every time WWE
hands him the ball to make a run. Rey was in his element and delivered a great
performance. (***)
Post-match: As Rey and Bourne shook hands, Kane's music hit and he stormed the
ring. Rey told Bourne he's got this, as it's his business. Rey tried to charge
Kane, but Kane kicked him in the face. Kane beat on Rey, then Bourne tried to
make the save. They doubled up on Kane as the crowd cheered them on, but Mark
Henry showed up. Bourne kicked him away, then tried a springboard splash, but
Henry caught him in mid-air. Meanwhile, Kane delivered a chokeslam on Rey as the
crowd gasped. Henry rolled Bourne back into the ring and delivered the World's
Strongest Slam. Rey and Bourne were laid out as the monsters stood tall to close
the segment. Great heat segment to build up the monsters and build sympathy for
the babyface comeback. Nicely done.
[Q7]
[Commercial Break]
Announcers: Cole and Lawler plugged Survivor Series and said John Cena returns
at the PPV in Boston. They showed a video package on John Cena growing up in
Massachusetts wanting to be a wrestler and be part of the action. Clips of him
bodybuilding, then playing football blowing people off the line as center. Some
early clips of Cena as a wrestler with a crazy California surfer haircut. June
27, 2002 - Cena debuted on Smackdown against Kurt Angle. A graphic then covered
Angle that read: "John Cena Returns."
On-stage: The Miz & John Morrison walked out on stage in street/club clothes.
Miz said some people think they crossed the line referring to DX as geriatric-X
last week. Morrison said their sophisticated sense of humor might be too much
for their taste. Miz said the fans are intimidated by them. Morrison said
they've evolved and they will prove it next week when they face Shawn Michaels &
Triple H. Oh snap. Miz told us to join them on ECW tomorrow night for a very
special edition of the Dirt Sheet. He waited through the "You suck" chant before
saying they will examine the rise and imminent fall of this pre-historic pair.
Morrison said that after they beat Michaels and Hunter, they will have two
words: Be Jealous.
Backstage: Goldberg...er...Batista was shown pumping himself up with the title
belt glimmering around his waist. Main event tag match is next.
[Commercial Break]
Earlier tonight: A confrontation between Orton and Adamle. What will Shane and
Stephanie do next week?
[Q8]
In-ring: Chris Jericho came to the ring first for the tag team main event.
Suddenly, they cut backstage where JBL was beating the crap out of Shawn
Michaels. JBL put him on a traveling case and tried to toss him into the wall,
but Michaels's head banged into a fluorescent light on the ceiling. JBL
continued the beating, then he tossed him through a side door and walked off.
Back in the ring, Jericho was all-smiles watching the beating. JBL's music hit,
then JBL walked out sans limo. Jericho gave a slow clap for JBL, who smirked on
the way to the ring. Cole and Lawler debated whether Batista will have to go at
it alone, then Batista came out to face the smug heels. Oh man, he has tape on
the left knee. Cue up the extended work on the knee during the match. Lawler
said he's getting word that Michaels is not going to be part of this match.
Batista was not pleased, while JBL smiled at Batista. Ref Mike Kiota explained
the situation to Batista, who just shrugged his shoulders and said let's go.
5 -- World Hvt. champion BATISTA vs. JBL & CHRIS JERICHO
Batista shoved Jericho down, then Jericho tagged out to JBL. The big men battled
in the ring with Batista nailing a clothesline and a big suplex. Batista with a
suplex? The heels tried to double-team Batista, but Batista fought them off and
sent JBL to the floor. He then flung Jericho onto the apron and ran from the
opposite side of the ring to bounce Jericho off the apron with a clothesline
into the announce table. JBL stared back at Batista in disbelief while Batista
screamed at them to come on. Cut to break.
[Commercial Break]
Back from break, JBL and Jericho were taking turns working over Batista in their
corner. Batista then rolled to the floor to recover, but Jericho landed a
baseball slide dropkick that sent Batista flying into the guardrail. Back in the
ring, Batista fired back on Jericho with a clothesline as they reached the top
of the hour.
[Q9 - over-run]
Batista landed a Black Hole Slam on Jericho, then he knocked JBL off the apron.
Batista tried to finish off Jericho with the Batistabomb, but Jericho slipped
out and nailed the codebreaker. Jericho couldn't make a cover, though, as he
sold an injury, so Batista kicked out of the eventual cover. JBL then tagged in
and wanted the Clothesline from Hell, but Batista ducked and nailed a spear.
Suddenly, Shawn Michaels emerged 12 minutes into the match. He hobbled down to
the ring clutching his ribs, then Michaels went to the babyface corner. Michaels
took the tag, but the ref didn't see it, as Jericho had the ref occupied. Ref
disallowed it, then Jericho tried to use the belt on Batista, but Batista
ducked. JBL was supposed to take the accidental shot, but Jericho missed him.
Michaels then feigned a superkick on Jericho, but Jericho moved and bailed to
the floor. Awkward sequence, but they recovered with Michaels scaring Jericho
away. Batista then finished off JBL with a Batistabomb and made the cover for
the win. Afterward, Jericho bailed to the stage while Michaels helped Batista
up. Batista and Jericho stared back at each other from a distance while they
plugged next week's three-hour show to close the show.
WINNER: Batista in 13:00. Fine main event match. Hectic ending that looked
sloppy, but the professionals covered for any perceived mistakes and took it
home to get the point across for Batista vs. Jericho in the cage next week. Cole
had some good points throughout the match to add an extra layer of intrigue to
the match. (**)