WWE: The '05 Draft And Beyond

[Steve Corino]

WWE Title

John Cena © vs. Booker T

As much as I like him, I can't see Booker getting the win here.

Tag Team Match

Triple H and Ric Flair vs. The Cabinet (JBL and Hassan)

This has to drag on until Summerslam and singles matches, or else. OR ELSE, I SAY!

Singles Match

The Big Show vs. Matt Morgan

This, on the other hand, should be ended as quickly as possible.

WWE Tag Team Titles: ECW Rules

MNM © vs. The Dudley Boyz

The Great American Tournament

Semi Finals (No DQ, Falls Count Anywhere)

-Eddie Guerrero vs. Paul London

-Carlito Caribbean Cool vs. Rey Mysterio

Has to be this way.

Finals (Ladder Match, winner gets WWE Title shot at Summerslam!)

Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio

Special Attraction Cruiserweight Six Man Tag

Billy Kidman, Akio and The Punk vs. Super Crazy, Funaki, and Scotty 2 Hotty

[thecageeffect]

WWE Title

John Cena © vs. Booker T

Tag Team Match

Triple H and Ric Flair vs. The Cabinet (JBL and Hassan)

Singles Match

The Big Show vs. Matt Morgan

WWE Tag Team Titles: ECW Rules

MNM © vs. The Dudley Boyz

The Great American Tournament

Semi Finals (No DQ, Falls Count Anywhere)

-Eddie Guerrero vs. Paul London

-Carlito Caribbean Cool vs. Rey Mysterio

Finals (Ladder Match, winner gets WWE Title shot at Summerslam!)

-Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio

Special Attraction Cruiserweight Six Man Tag

Billy Kidman (w/ Chris Nowinski), Akio, and The Punk vs. Super Crazy, Funaki, and Scotty 2 Hotty

[Guest ADDavis]

WWE SmackDown Presents The Great American Bash!!

Live from Buffalo, NY!

July 17th, 2005

Rene Dupree vs. Hardcore Holly

The show started with The French Phenom coming out and challenging Holly to a rematch from two weeks ago, as Dupree seemed to feel that Holly gave him bad luck heading into his Great American Tournament quarter final match! Holly was quick to answer and didn’t waste any time in coming out and attacking the cocky French superstar! While this match once again looked to be in Holly’s favor, Dupree seemed to have a trick up his sleeve. Dupree was set up in the Alabama Slam, but was able to hit a low blow while upside down that the ref did not see! Dupree then rolled up Holly and grabbed the ropes to get the surprise three count!

WINNER: Rene Dupree via pinfall

(75 Overall – 70 Crowd, 80 Match)

ANALYSIS: A last minute addition to give these two something to do. And since they put on a decent match before, I figured the same thing would happen this time. Seems I was right.

Super Crazy, Scotty Too Hotty, and Funaki vs. Billy Kidman, Akio, and The Punk (w/ Chris Nowinski)

Nowinski led out both Kidman and Akio, as it seems Akio might now also be under the managerial services of Nowinski. That makes sense, considering Akio and Kidman have been teaming together recently. The Punk made his own entrance separately, making his WWE debut. The team of Crazy, Scotty, and Funaki then came out, and the crowd showed a bit of enthusiasm for these three. The match began, and the chaos ensued!

Akio and Kidman showed some good teamwork, using their prior experience to get the upperhand. Scotty and Funaki, while not having ever teamed with each other, had many years of tag team experience as well, so they were not to be outdone. Nowinski tried several times to interfere, but after he cheapshotted Funaki and cost him a moonsault attempt, Nowinski was kicked out! Unfortunately, the ref turning his attention to Nowinski was all that The Punk needed, and he made his first big impact in the WWE by hitting Funaki with a chair! Kidman and Akio kept Crazy and Scotty busy, which allowed Punk to then hit a top rope legdrop and got the pinfall, picking up the victory for his team!

WINNER: Kidman, Akio, and Punk via Pinfall

(73 Overall – 64 Crowd, 83 Match)

ANALYSIS: Good way to get some cruiser action on the card, and also debut Punk.

The Great American Tournament: Carlito Caribbean Cool vs. Rey Mysterio

Carlito had the size advantage, which helped him get some dominating offense on the smaller Mysterio. But Rey, having faced many opponents much bigger than he, was not afraid of Carlito. He had the speed advantage and used it many times to get some exciting near falls. Carlito’s temper got the best of him, and he slowly began to make many mistakes. Eventually he made his biggest mistake – underestimating Rey Mysterio, which led to Mysterio countering a reverse impact DDT attempt with a hurricaranna into the ropes, hitting the 619 and getting the huge upset victory!

After the match, Mysterio celebrated making it into the finals of the Great American Tournament, but Carlito attacked him from behind! Then, Carlito called out his “Cult of Cool”, Rhyno and Matt Morgan! The two monsters ran out and began pummeling the defenseless Mysterio until...

#WELLLLLL... it’s the Big Show!

The Big Show made the save! Carlito bailed as Rhyno was dispatched by Show, and Show had a staredown with Morgan...well, the ref wasted no time and called for their match to begin right here, and right now!

WINNER: Rey Mysterio via Pinfall

(79 Overall – 80 Crowd, 78 Match)

ANALYSIS: Good match, despite, the difference in styles – though Carlito meshes will with the smaller guys than he does big guys right now. And it was a nice quick segue into the next match...

Matt Morgan vs. The Big Show

The road agents made sure that Carlito, Rhyno and Mysterio were cleared from ringside before the Big Show and Morgan began to trade blows. Morgan held his own in this battle, and but Show was too powerful. Luckily, Show had only rested two days after Morgan and Rhyno’s attack from SmackDown, so Morgan was able to target Show’s hurt arm. Show made several comebacks but could not put Morgan away with the Showstopper due to his hurt arm! Morgan capitalized on this and made sure that Show would not be able to dominate with that move. Morgan then tried to lift up Show with an F5, but Show shifted the momentum with his weight and nailed Morgan with a DDT! The ring shook as the wind was knocked out of Morgan! Show turned Morgan over and pinned him, which picked up the very surprising three count!

Show got up but had little time to celebrate...because he was GORED!

Rhyno was back and made sure he got his shots in, as he helped Matt Morgan to his feet. The two attacked Show, making sure to attack his arm especially, before officials came in to break things up.

WINNER: The Big Show via pinfall

(74 Overall – 70 Crowd, 78 Match)

ANALYSIS: Psychology in a Big Show match? Crazy. But still, Show got the big win to end this feud, though it seems he’s not done with the Cult of Cool just yet.

Great American Tournament: Eddie Guerrero vs. Paul London

Eddie Guerrero was calm and collected as he made his entrance, but it was the Cruiserweight Champion Paul London who was the angry one, running out and attacking Guerrero in no time! Guerrero was caught off guard by London’s fury, and it seemed as if Paul was going to give his all in this match. Guerrero resorted to his cheating tactics in order to save himself from London’s crazed, high flying style, and grounded the Cruiserweight Champion with some submissions. Guerrero worked on the leg, wanting to make sure London didn’t take to the air any more! This strategy helped Guerrero, but London wouldn’t give up. London gained a HUGE following in this match, as the fans were going wild by the end of the match, wanting London to pull out the victory! London nearly had the victory, and if he had nailed the 450 Splash, it would’ve been over...unfortunately, Eddie played possum and moved before he could get hit with the finisher, allowing him to buy some time and then lock on the Lasso From El Paso to make London tap out! He then proceeded to keep the move locked in, in order to show Rey Mysterio what the finals would be like, before releasing London and exiting the ring to some major crowd heat. London was assisted up, but got a major standing ovation for his efforts!

WINNER: Eddie Guerrero via Submission

(86 Overall – 84 Crowd, 88 Match)

ANALYSIS: This was not a squash match by any means, and if anything, Guerrero’s work with London put him over in a major way. The crowd got behind London and many times thought he could win...in the end, Guerrero took the advantage of London’s leg and got the win. Very exciting bout.

WWE Tag Team Title Hardcore Match: MNM © vs. The Dudley Boyz

The WWE Tag Team champions were definetly not ready for this bout, and while Melina was quite confident, it seemed as if Nitro and Mercury were a little worried about the hardcore nature of the Dudleys! D-Von and Bubba Ray came out with a table in hand, which shook the tag champs up even more! They entered the ring and attacked Nitro and Mercury, and the brawl was on! This was a tornado-rules tag match, meaning there weren’t any tags required. This allowed for some unique double team situations, though there were some one-on-one instances as both partners would rest up or fight each other on the outside. The hardcore element started playing in when the Dudleys started bringing in various weapons, like stop signs and kendo sticks and such.

The Dudleys had the clear-cut advantage once the weapons came out. Bubba let D-Von know what the crowd wanted – the tables! D-Von attempted to go get the table, but Melina started smacking him on the outside! D-Von grabbed her by the hair and threw her in the ring for Bubba, and they shifted their attention to putting her through the table next! As they set things up, Nitro and Mercury were out so they couldn’t save Melina from what awaited her. The crowd knew it was coming, and they wanted to see the 3D!

Then, the unexpected happened...D-Von caught a boot to the face from out of nowhere! Bubba Ray turned around, and got one as well! Melina was saved, and the crowd finally could catch a glimpse of the man who saved her- Tyson Tomko! The problem solver took Melina out of the ring, and Mercury and Nitro reappeared, picking up Bubba Ray and Snapshotting him through the table! Nitro got the cover as the WWE Tag Champions retained! They celebrated with their new “Problem Solver” and Melina, and D-Von helped his brother out as we cut to a commercial for some random Rob Zombie movie.

WINNERS: MNM via Pinfall

(80 Overall – 74 Crowd, 86 Match)

(MNM and the WWE Tag Titles gained overness and prestige, respectively.)

ANALYSIS: I never said ECW rules meant typical WWE hardcore fare – that’s WWE for you! This was a fine match to help put over MNM though, and Tomko becoming their new ‘muscle’ gives him something to while also furthering the whole ‘big star’ gimmick of MNM.

John Bradshaw Layfield and Muhammed Hassan vs. Triple H and Ric Flair

One of the most awaiting confrontations of the night was about to happen, as the Cabinet would face two newcomers to SmackDown – Ric Flair and Triple H, Evolution! Flair and Triple H came down together, and Triple H sported his own robe that looked like Flairs! The crowd went wild for the two, putting aside the hatred that usually was reserved for Triple H while he was on Raw. JBL and Hassan made their way down accompanied by the other two members of the Cabinet, Khosrow Daivari and Orlando Jordan. The four on two atmosphere didn’t worry Flair and Triple H, though. Flair started out with Hassan, who was hungry to take down the Nature Boy. Hassan tried his own dirty tactics, but they didn’t match up to the Dirtiest Player in the Game! Daivari yelling at Flair began to get on the Nature Boy’s nerves though, and Hassan used this lack of attention to make his move and throw Flair out of the ring. Hassan tagged in JBL, who jumped down from the apron and began to go to work on Flair on the outside.

Flair continued to get double teamed throughout the match, as the Cabinet clearly did not want Triple H to get tagged in. Jordan and Daivari got their shots in every once and a while without getting caught, as well. It was Jordan who made the first mistake, though, as he tripped Flair right in front of the ref! The ref kicked Jordan out, which allowed Flair to nail JBL right in the jewels! The crowd went crazy as both men went down and both headed for their respective partners. Hassan was tagged in, but Flair made it to Triple H as well! The crowd went crazy for the Game, who entered the ring and cleaned house! Hassan went down, and Daivari tried to enter the ring as well but was thwarted by Triple H. JBL was up and Triple H immediately went after him, though JBL managed to bail and Hassan attacked Triple H from behind. Hassan tried to hit his reverse STO, but Triple H countered out of it and hit a boot to the gut. Before the “Chief of Foreign Affairs” knew it, he was set up for the most devastating finisher of them all – the Pedigree! Triple H hit it and the crowd went nuts as the game hooked the leg for the 1, 2, 3! JBL helped carry Hassan to the back as Triple H and Flair celebrated their victory at the Bash!

WINNERS: Triple H and Ric Flair

(81 Overall – 86 Crowd, 72 Match)

ANALYSIS: The match was decent at best, due to the fact that it was Flair bumping like crazy for JBL and Hassan. It was shorter than it could’ve been, but it served its purpose. The crowd was still very hot for it, though, and the JBL/HHH issue doesn’t seem to be completely over.

Ladder Match: Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio

The most intense finals match you could imagine...a ladder match between two hated rivals! It didn’t take long for these two to start going at it, as the briefcase with the Summerslam WWE Title Shot contract stood suspended over the ring! The two former friends wanted the title shot, but this hatred of each other seemed to extend past any reward they could be offered – they just wanted to rip each other apart!

Mysterio, despite lacking in the size department yet again, was more full of rage than ever. He used every move he could think of to try to inflict as much pain on Eddie as he could, and Guerrero was even surprised that Mysterio could be so powerful! Eddie started resorting to his cheap tactics once more, finally making it to the ladder and gaining a weapon in the process. The two did some unbelievable spots using the ladder, including Eddie’s classic sunset flip off the ladder onto Rey! Rey had some innovative moves of his own, including an amazing hurricaranna that took Eddie off the ladder!

Eddie was the first one to climb the ladder, but Rey caught him and sent him down to the mat. Rey tried himself, but Eddie took him down as well! It was furious action back and forth, but Eddie got the upper hand after sending Mysterio out of the ring with a powerbomb off the apron. Eddie then looked to have it won, and slowly made it up the ladder. He was not as quick as his first attempt, though, and Rey managed to get up in time to dropkick the ladder, sending Eddie crashing to the outside! Rey then looked to have the chance to win the bout and the tournament, and headed to the top of the ladder! After reaching the top, he saw Eddie getting up, and made an impulsive decision – instead of grabbing the briefcase, he decided to dive to the outside to finish off Eddie! This was the move that cost him the tournament. Rey flew out to attack Rey, but what he DIDN’T see was Eddie picking up a chair from under the ring! As Rey went to make contact, Guerrero swung the chair and hit Mysterio mid air! Mysterio crash landed on the outside, allowing Guerrero time to recover and climb the ladder! Rey tried and struggled to get up, but he just couldn’t do it...Guerrero made it to the top and grabbed the briefcase, ending the match and crowning Eddie Guerrero as the winner of the first annual Great American Tournament! Guerrero celebrated as he watched Mysterio get helped out by the EMTs, and he held his briefcase with the title shot in the air as a taunt towards Rey – Guerrero now would be facing either Booker T or John Cena at SummerSlam!

WINNER: Eddie Guerrero

(87 Overall – 90 Crowd, 82 Match)

ANALYSIS: You’ll wonder why the match quality was only 82. Well, that’s due to something I’ll get to in a bit. Either way, a match the crowd was VERY much into, and a solid way to end the first Great American Tournament.

WWE Title Match: John Cena © vs. Booker T

The night ended with a bout featuring two men who have faced each other countless times, and know each other quite well. The respect is there, but once the bell rung, there was nothing but competitive spirit filling that ring. The two men were in each other’s face from the get go, with the crowd clearly behind Cena. Booker T wasn’t exactly seen as a heel, but he definetly got some boos whenever he went on the offense. Thus, he began to play the role of the heel as the match went on.

Booker T used his power and experience early on to gain the advantage, and his kick-based offense kept Cena grounded for most of the match. Cena’s stamina and energy helped him prevail, though, and he made a fiery comeback, launching an assault with his own brawling offense!

As he looked to hit the five knuckle shuffle, he looked up toward the entry ramp and saw someone watching on – the new number one contender, Eddie Guerrero! Guerrero began to clap for the WWE Champ, who started yelling at Guerrero. This gave Booker T the opportunity to recover and as Cena turned around, Cena got a boot to the gut and the scissor kick from Booker! Booker made the cover and the ref counted as the fans watched on!

1...

2...

2.5....

2.75....

2.9...

2.999999.....

KICKOUT!

Everyone, including Booker and Guerrero, was stunned! The fans went wild, but Booker wasn’t done yet! He was going to put Cena away with one more scissor kick! One more kick to the gut, and Booker went off the ropes, but Cena moved as Booker jumped! Cena then hit a boot of his own and lifted up Booker... F-U!!!!!! He made the cover and the fans counted along!

1...

2...

3!!!!!

Cena had retained his title in a very hard fought match, and he looked back at Guerrero who still watched on from the entry ramp, not saying a word. Cena and Guerrero had a staredown, and the fans went wild for the champ. Cena then helped out Booker, who was angry about his loss. He backed away and seemed like he might attack Cena...Cena simply stood with his hand out. Booker then looked to the people, who were watching on to see what would happen...and Booker accepted the handshake! Cena and Booker then shared a moment of respect after a great WWE Title match.

WINNER: John Cena via Pinfall

(82 Overall – 85 Crowd, 78 Match)

ANALYSIS: The match itself wasn’t amazing, but the crowd was very hot for it. Now, Summerslam’s WWE Title match is set, with Cena defending against Guerrero. Should make for an interesting month heading to the big summer pay per view!

SHOW RATING: 82

High Points: Guerrero/Mysterio finals match, Guerrero/London semi finals

Low Points: Show/Morgan, the six man tag

ANALYSIS: A couple of solid matches definetly made this a hot SmackDown showing. Guerrero was the MVP of the night, having two great matches with the likes of London and Mysterio. Even Morgan/Show didn’t slow down the night. So, I’d say this show was a good success for the brand. And it seems there will be some strong SmackDown matches heading into Summerslam.

Now, the news I was talking about. Well, I didn’t go without a casuality...

Rey Mysterio Injured In Ladder Match (Via WWE.Com)

Last night at the Great American Bash, Rey Mysterio tore a muscle in his leg. He will be out for approximately three months.

[Guest ADDavis]

Raw Preview (Via WWE.Com)

Raw comes to Philadelphia with a huge main event - Kurt Angle's first ever Raw match! Angle will make his Raw debut against the Big Red Machine, Kane! Kane lost his match with Edge last week, and is not happy whatsoever. So when he steps in the ring with the Olympic Gold Medalist, there will be hell to pay! Will Angle have a successful first night on Raw?

The World Heavyweight Champion knows that at Summerslam, he will be facing Edge with the title on the line. Both men will be in Philly and both men will no doubt have a lot on their mind!

Last week, Chris Benoit earned his right to face Chris Jericho by beating Jericho's "ninjas", who turned out to be Doug and Danny Basham - the traded Basham Brothers! Jericho and his new posse will be in Philly to address this issue, but Jericho has another plan as well. His guest on the Highlight Reel is someone who also turned his back on a friend - Charlie Haas! We know SHelton Benjamin and Chris Benoit will be in Philly, so who knows what fireworks can erupt?!

Plus, the World Tag Team Titles will be on the line as the Heart Throbs will defend against the team of William Regal and Tajiri, and Christian will be in action against Perry Saturn! All this plus MORE on what should be an amazing edition of Monday Night RAW!

[JStarr]

lol, america