WWF 2002

therockbox · August 18, 2004

WWF 2002

Brought to you by...

The Rock Box

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Royal Rumble
January 20th, 2002

- In the opener, Tazz and Spike Dudley retained the WWF Tag Team Titles by defeating the Dudley Boyz. Things started badly for the champs, as the Duds managed to isolate Spike (who was wearing a neck brace, selling the parking lot attack from earlier in the week). For several minutes, Spike was beaten like the proverbial red-headed mule (or is that government step-child?) until making a hot tag to Tazz. It looked like a return of the Human Suplex Machine, as Tazz cleaned house on the Duds. In the chaos, Spike recovered enough to take Bubba Ray out with a Dudley Dog, while Tazz locked in the Tazzmission on D-Von to secure the submission victory. A bit on the short side (which is noticeable anytime you try to force the whole "babyface in peril" thing), but pretty effective and fun while it lasted.

- William Regal took the IC Title, defeating Edge. Referee Nick Patrick found a pair of brass knuckles on Regal's person before the match and confiscated them, meaning that Edge and Regal worked the majority of this match without any possibility of foreign objects getting involved. Unfortunately, the match never quite seemed to get on track the way it did between these two last month. Making up for it, however, were some really cool spots (including a wicked DDT on the ring apron by Edge) that kept the crowd involved leading up to the finish. The climax came following a ref bump; with the official momentarily out of it, Regal slipped on a back-up pair of brass knucks and KO'ed Edge. Nick Patrick then came around and made the three count for Regal.

- Trish Stratus retained the Women's Title with a win over Jazz. Not unsurprisingly, the emphasis here was on actual displays of wrestling, and not on the T&A factor. An early match bit of chain wrestling was quite effective (and not just as an excuse for Jerry Lawler to make some ham-handed attempt at passing it off as a lesbian encounter), for instance... Jazz dominated the start of the match, but things turned around when Trish hit her "Stratus-faction" bulldog. After that, it was back-and-forth until Trish could hit another bulldog to get the win. Special ref Jacqueline did get into one minor shoving match with Jazz, but was otherwise a non-factor.

- Ric Flair defeated Vince McMahon in their street fight. Early part of this match had Vince establish his physical dominance over Flair; despite Flair's obvious in-ring experience advantage, Vince was physically stronger and more impressive. Just minutes into the match, Flair was bleeding profusely. Vince's main target was Flair's left leg, as he wanted to both set Flair up for a Figure Four while eliminating that hold from Flair's arsenal. Vince was going for the knock-out blow with a lead pipe, but that's when Flair started his rally: after a low blow to Vince, he took the fight to the outside, where he pummeled Vince with a monitor from the Spanish Announce Table (after which Vince was bleeding from the head, too). Once the action returned to the ring, Flair clocked Vince with the lead pipe, and then cinched in the Figure Four to get the submission win over his business partner. Certainly far from the ***** classics we've seen out of Flair over the years, but still about as entertaining and involving a match as you'll ever see out of two guys in their 50's.

- Chris Jericho once again managed to hold on to his Undisputed Title with another shady win over the Rock. After a pre-match bit of smacktalking, the Rock kicked things into high gear by assaulting Jericho. Jericho had moments of offense during this part of the match, but everything was leading up to the Rock putting Jericho in a Sharpshooter. Y2J actually began tapping out, but the ref was distracted by the arrival of Lance Storm and Christian; Rock released Jericho and managed to beat on both interlopers, but the damage was done, as Jericho's tap-out went undetected and he got some time to recover. The match spilled outside, eventually, allowing for the Rock to deliver the match's biggest highspot: leaping from the Spanish Announce Table, he Rock Bottomed Jericho through the English Language table. After a ref bump back in the ring, Jericho used one of his title belts to KO the Rock; evil ref Nick Patrick came running out to make the count, but could only get to 2. Then the Rock rallied, and actually rolled Jericho up into a pinning combination... but Patrick refused to count. Rock took it upon himself to lay out Patrick, and then turned his attention to reviving original ref, Earl Hebner. While he was doing so, Jericho attacked from behind, nailing a low blow and then using his feet on the ropes to gain an unfair leverage advantage that was enough to keep the Rock's shoulders down on the mat for the three count. Typically good stuff from these two.

- Triple H won the 30-man Royal Rumble match, last eliminating Kurt Angle. The match was heavily "back-loaded" it seemed, with most of the top stars entering in the final third of the match... but there were still some early match highlights, too. When the Undertaker entered at #8, he immediately began cleaning house, tossing all four of the wrestlers still in the ring at that point. After that, the Hardys were the next two wrestlers out, and made it clear through their actions that they were back on the same page together, teaming up to pound on Taker (a few times, they also got help from Lita). However, Taker was more than a match for them, and managed to eliminate both Hardys after a few minutes; but when Taker was distracted with the departing Hardys, he himself was eliminated from behind by Maven, who had just entered the Rumble match. Maven got a huge pop out of the crowd, but didn't get a whole lot of time to enjoy it; Taker got back in the ring and started beating the living hell out of Maven. When that grew tiresome, Taker dragged Maven all over the arena, eventually leaving him for dead near a concession stand after putting his head through the glass side of a popcorn machine.

Phase 2 of the Rumble match saw the ring fill-up again with mostly mid-card talent so that there would be a nice-sized group in the ring for Steve Austin, who entered at #18, and immediately began eliminating people. Austin tossed a bunch of them, and was alone in the ring when HHH entered at #21; due to the length of HHH's entrance, they two barely had time to lock horns before the Hurricane tried (feebly) to interject himself to the mix. Hurricane wound up being the first of HHH and Austin's joint eliminations. Kurt Angle and Mr. Perfect also entered late, and were alongside Austin and HHH in the Rumble's Final Four. Austin, while brawling with Perfect, was eliminated from behind by Angle. HHH then took out Perfect with a clothesline, leaving HHH and Angle (the two men who fought in a WWF Title match at last year's Rumble PPV) as the last two men standing. Angle though he had the match won after tossing HHH over the top, but HHH skinned the cat in true HBK fashion, and quickly tossed the surprised Angle out of the ring.

Edited November 26, 2004 by The Rock Box

sheff · August 18, 2004

whew, another Agent Sm1th diary!

The sig looks great. IMO from Royal Rumble to Wrestlemania X8 things were a bit stale and unevenful (besides the NWO). It'll be interesting how this takes shape

RPS · August 18, 2004

I love retro diaries. It always gives me a sense of nostalgia, so of course, I will be reading this diary.

For even more incentive, Chris Jericho is Undisputed Champion.

therockbox · August 19, 2004

WWF RAW Preview

21st January, 2002

We’re just one night removed from the Royal Rumble, and WWF RAW comes to you LIVE from the Conseco Fieldhouse, Indiana!

Three huge matches have already been signed for tonight’s show, as Rob Van Dam teams up with the tag team champions Spike Dudley and Tazz, to take on The Dudleyz and Booker T! Also, Edge gets his Intercontinental Title rematch against William Regal, who won the belt off Edge last night at the Royal Rumble!

The RAW Main Event will see the Undisputed Champion Chris Jericho teaming up with the Olympic Hero Kurt Angle, to take on The Rock and the man that Y2J will take on at Wrestlemania – “The Game” Triple H.

All this and more, on WWF RAW.

Twist · August 19, 2004

Looking good so far. I'm interested to see how long you will keep the title on Jericho, or if you will off load it to Triple H at WrestleMania, or even another guy at No Way Out.

therockbox · August 19, 2004

WWF RAW

Announcers: Jim Ross and Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler

Date: January 21st, 2002

Location: Conseco Fieldhouse, Indiana

The RAW theme music booms throughout the arena, and a video montage plays recapping last nights HUGE Royal Rumble Pay-Per View! We see clips of Triple H winning the Royal Rumble, as well as all the other matches that took place. The package comes to an end with a shot of Triple H posing on the turnbuckle, moments after eliminating Kurt Angle.

As the pyrotechnics display goes off the camera begins its panning motion around the arena, showing all the screaming fans in attendance. We then cut to our hosts Jim Ross and Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler at ringside!

Jim Ross: “Hello everybody and welcome to Monday Night RAW! We’re just 24 hours removed from the spectacular WWF Royal Rumble, where we saw The Game become the #1 Contender to Chris Jericho’s Undisputed Title!”

The King: “And we also saw Chris Jericho do exactly what he said he would do – retain the Undisputed Title against The Rock!”

Jim Ross: “Only because that damned Nick Patrick refused to count the three!”

The King: “It wasn’t his fault JR, he wasn’t the official referee in the match!”

A Sneak Preview...

Ross and Lawler are interrupted, as the Titantron flickers to life with the Y2J countdown, which hits zero and a loud ‘BANG’ is heard, as fireworks go off and Chris Jericho appears at the top of the ramp! Jericho has the Undisputed Title slung over his shoulder, and a huge, cocky smile across his face. The fans waste no time in starting up an “Asshole!” chant as Jericho struts down the ramp, sliding into the ring and trash talking the fans. He snatches the microphone from Lillian Garcia, and ushers her out of the ring.

Chris Jericho: “Good evening everybody and welcome to RAW... is... JERICHO!”

Y2J smiles and nods as the fans begin to boo and jeer.

Chris Jericho: “You jerk-offs can boo all you want, it doesn’t change the fact that I am STILL the Undisputed Champion of the World! I beat The Rock in the middle of the ring, 1... 2... 3!”

Jericho lowers the mic as the fans begin to boo even louder, as Jericho mentions beating The Rock.

Chris Jericho: “Everyone thought that The Rock would beat me. Everyone thought that The Rock would be heading to Wrestlemania, and that Chris Jericho would crack at the Rumble. Well JUNIORS, it looks like it’s The Rock that cracked. It looks like Rocky Mamma-Mia couldn’t get the job done!”

Jericho takes another pause, and this time the announcers give their thoughts on what Jericho has to say.

The King: “That’s right, JR. You thought that The Rock would beat Jericho.”

Jim Ross: “And I sill think he would’ve done had Nick Patrick done his job properly!”

Chris Jericho: “Just like I said I would, I showed all you assclowns why I am the Living Legend... The King of the World, and the Undisputed Champion! To coin a phrase... that’s DAMN true!”

The fans jeer as Jericho mentions Kurt Angle’s catchphrase, when suddenly...

TIME TO PLAY THE GAME!

Motorhead’s “The Game” blasts over the P.A System, and the fans erupt in cheers as the winner of the 2002 Royal Rumble makes his way to the ring! The fans’ cheers get even louder as Triple H appears, causing Jericho to go mad in the ring – kicking the ropes and yelling “This is MY time!” Hunter climbs into the ring and gets face-to-face with Jericho, before pulling the mike out of his hand.

Triple H: “Chris, to coin another phrase... Would you please, SHUT... THE HELL... UP!”

The fans cheer as Hunter steals Y2J’s phrase, as Jericho looks as if he’s about to cry.

Triple H: “Jericho, in case you’d forgotten, I beat 29 other men last night. I booked my place at Wrestlemania Eighteen, to face YOU... for YOUR title. And Chris, you may have gotten one over on The Rock, but I’m tha’ Game – and I’m THAT DAMN GOOD!”

By now, Hunter has forced Jericho back into a corner, and is staring into the champs eyes. Suddenly, out of nowhere, Triple H gets spun around by none other than Kurt Angle, who begins laying into him with right hands! Jericho joins in and the two begin to knocks HHH back and forth, before Jericho boots Hunter in the stomach and drills him with a Pedigree!

Jim Ross: “Quick! We need some help out here now! Kurt Angle and Jericho are like a pack of Wolves!”

Kurt Angle pulls down his straps and grabs HHH’s leg, before applying the Ankle Lock! The fans begin to chant “Rocky, Rocky!” as Hunter screams in agony, whilst Jericho holds the title up to his face, whilst shouting “This title is mine!” Jericho gets back to his feet and delivers a stiff kick to the side of The Game’s head just as the fans begin to cheer, as The Rock sprints down the ramp! Jericho alerts Angle and the two slide out either side of the ring, as The Rock – still in his street clothes – circles the ring, keeping Angle and Jericho at bay. As RAW goes to a commercial break, Rocky checks on Triple H, who seems to be out.

OR: 87

Commercial Break

We come back from the break, with JR and The King discussing what just happened, as a ‘Moments Ago’ video plays on the Tron.

The King: “Wow JR, Chris Jericho just showed us why he’s the Undisputed Champion, leaving Triple H in a heap in the middle of the ring!”

Jim Ross: “Thank God for The Rock, god knows what those two SOB’s would’ve done to Triple H if Rocky wasn’t here!”

Rob Van Dam, Spike Dudley & Tazz vs. The Dudley Boyz & Booker T

Before JR or The King can continue, “Can You Dig It, Sucka?!” plays, and Booker T makes his way down to ringside for our opening matchup! Out next are the Dudley Boyz – accompanied by The Dutchess of Dudleyville Stacy Keibler - who spend ample time mouthing off to the Indiana Crowd, who respond with a lot of middle fingers. The boos quickly turn to cheers however, as Rob Van Dam makes his entrance, high-fiving the fans are ringside. Finally, the Tag Team Champions make their way out, and the match can get underway. Van Dam starts off with Bubba Dudley, who backs RVD into a corner before striking him with a vicious front-handed chop, which is met with a “Whoo!” from the crowd. Bubba strikes Rob a couple more times before tagging in D-Von, and the two double-team RVD with kicks to the ribs. D-Von goes to whip Van Dam into the ropes but it’s reversed, and he gets nailed with a Spin-Kick from RVD! Rob makes the tag to Spike Dudley who climbs to the top rope, and jumps off with a stomp on D-Von! The runt of the Dudley Litter covers, but only gets a two count. Spike pulls D-Von up and hits with a couple of forearms, bounces off the ropes but gets caught with a reverse Atomic Drop from D-Von, followed up by a Suplex. Cover only gets a two-count, and D-Von tags in Booker T. Booker pulls Spike up and sends him into the ropes with a couple of nasty-sounding chops, before whipping him into the corner with such velocity, poor Spike goes up onto the top rope in a sitting position, before falling backwards into the tree of woe! Booker quickly takes advantage of Spike’s misfortune and begins choking him out with his boot, using the ropes for leverage. Eventually, the referee pulls Booker away and Spike falls back down into the ring. Booker goes for the lateral press but Spike kicks out at two. Booker complains to the ref that it was a three, but the referee holds up two fingers. Booker shoots a dirty look at the ref before turning back towards Spike, and gets a shot the gut! Spike begins to fight back with forearms to the Book Man, before whipping him off the ropes! Spike hits a back body drop on Booker, and quickly gets to his corner to bring in Tazz! Tazz quickly delivers a kick to Booker, as Bubba tries to get involved. He’s caught with a Belly-to-Belly Suplex however, and he rolls out of the ring! As D-Von gets into the ring so does RVD, and he quickly knocks D-Von to the outside with a clothesline before following him to the outside. Back in the ring, the two legal men are in the middle of a good old fashioned brawl, exchanging punches and chops. Booker eventually gets the upper-hand with a thumb to the eye before setting Tazz up for the Scissor Kick, but as he bounces off the rope Spike blocks him and goes for the Dudley Dogg, but Booker throws him all the way to the outside! Booker laughs sadistically at Spike whilst the referee goes to the outside to try and break up the fight between RVD and D-Von. Booker walks backwards, still laughing at Spike, but gets locked in a Tazmission! Booker flaps around but can’t escape the hold, and begins to tap but there’s no referee! Tazz however keeps the hold locked in, but only for a few more seconds as Bubba Dudley slides in the ring – chair in hand, and sends it crashing into Tazz’s back! Tazz immediately releases the hold and keels over, and Bubba nails Tazz with a Bubba Cutter!! He drags Booker on top of Tazz and gets the referees attention who quickly slides into the ring, and counts the 1... 2... 3!

Winners: Booker T and the Dudley Boyz

OR: 73

Booker slowly crawls to his feet as Stacy Keibler and D-Von slide into the ring, and the 4 celebrate whilst the referee checks on Tazz.

The King: “HAHA! Look at Spike JR, he hasn’t moved!”

Jim Ross: “Booker T and the Dudley Boyz pick up a cheap win over RVD and the tag team champions, but folks right now we’ve got Kevin Kelly in the back with the Intercontinental Champion, William Regal!”

The Goodwill Ambassador Speaks

We cut to the back where Kevin Kelly is standing next to William Regal, who has a smug look on his face whilst brushes some dust off the Intercontinental Title.

Kevin Kelly: “William Regal, you’re just moments away from the rematch with Edge from last night’s Royal Rumble, where you cheated Edge...”

William Regal: “Where I cheated Edge? Just who in the bloody hell do you think you are, sunshine?”

Kevin Kelly: “Well, with all due respect, you did use the brass knuckles before pinning Edge.”

William Regal: “Listen here you little troglodyte, the referee confiscated my brass knuckles at the beginning of the match – even though I had no plans on using them. What you saw was simply an example of the Power of my Punch, which is enough to put even the strongest of foes down.”

Regal raises his clenched fist and looks at it proudly, whilst Kelly raises an eyebrow. Regal then walks off, leaving a bemused Kevin Kelly looking on.

OR: 72

Jim Ross: “William Regal makes me sick, King. Anyone could see he cheated his way to the Intercontinental Title.”

The King: “I didn’t see any brass knuckles, JR. Anyway, William’s a man of honour and class, he doesn’t need to cheat in order to win!”

Jim Ross: “Well you know a different William Regal than me.”

William Regal © vs. Edge: Intercontinental Title Match

The challenger Edge is out first to a loud pop from the crowd, but Edge is serious tonight as he quickly gets into the ring, and awaits his opponent. William Regal comes out with the title attached around his waist, and doesn’t look to happy about taking it off, either. The referee checks Regal for weapons, but doesn’t find anything. The bell rings and Edge charges at Regal, taking him back into the corner with a shoulder to the midsection. Edge rams his shoulder into Regal three more times before sending him into the opposite corner with an Irish Whip, and following up with a Clothesline. Edge uses a Side Russian Leg Sweep to take Regal down to the mat, and covers for a two count. The challenger applies a headlock to Regal, but William quickly gets his feet on the ropes causing Edge to break the hold. Edge allows Regal some time to get to his feet but then goes straight back to work, bouncing him off the ropes and hitting a back body drop! Regal rolls to the outside to re-gather himself, but Edge allows him no breathing space and slides to the outside, ramming Regal’s head down into the ring apron! The crowd “Oooh’s!” as Edge repeats the move, before throwing Regal backwards into the guardrail! We see that a slight cut has opened up above the champions’ eye, as Edge puts the boots to Regal. He goes to whip him into the Steel Steps, but Regal reverses and sends Edge back-first into the Steel! Regal slides into the ring and back out again breaking the 10-count, before slowly making his way over to Edge. Regal pushes Edge to the floor and then goes over the announcers table, ripping the top off. JR tells us that he doesn’t like the looks of this, as Regal pushes Edge’s head down in front of JR and The King. He begins punching Edge in the head repeatedly, and doesn’t stop until the referee gets out of the ring and pulls him away from Edge! Reluctantly, William slides back into the ring as the referee checks on Edge, who manages to pull himself up and slide into the ring. Regal goes for the Regal Stretch but Edge manages to grab a hold of the bottom rope, ensuring Regal doesn’t have a chance to apply the hold. The referee goes to check on Edge once more, who is now bleeding profusely from the head, as Regal reaches into his trunks. He pulls out a pair of brass knuckles and slides them onto his hand, and then conceals the hand with the knucks on behind the other. Edge eventually gets to his feet, and as he turns around gets nailed by the brass knuckles! He goes to ground like a sack of potatoes as Regal covers; 1... 2... 3!

Winner and Still Intercontinental Champion: William Regal

OR: 78

Once Regal has disappeared backstage, a couple of extra referees come to the ring to help Edge to the back.

Jim Ross: “Now don’t tell me that he didn’t use any knucks THAT time, King.”

The King: “He used his initiative, JR! The man’s a genius!”

Jim Ross: “I don’t know if that’s the word I’d use, but anyway folks we’ll be back right after this commercial break!”

Commercial Break

Paranoia

We come back to WWF RAW, and on the screen we see Edge walking backstage. A “during the break” sign appears at the bottom of the screen, as Edge holds the back of his head. He walks around a corner and then sees a couple of crewmen laughing, and thinking they were laughing at him, jumps the one closest to him! He throws the crew member into the wall and begins pounding away at his head, until he is restrained by WWF Officials and some WWF superstars! A couple of referees check on the crew member as Edge begins to walk away, a sick smile on his face.

OR: 74

Jim Ross: “It looks like Edge has finally snapped, King.”

The King: “Come on JR, those idiots shouldn’t have been laughing at Edge!”

Jim Ross: “I don’t think they were laughing at him, King. Well folks up next, The WWF Hardcore Champion The Undertaker takes on Tajiri, with the title on the line!”

The King: “I’m glad I’m not Tajiri JR! Can you imagine what The Undertaker’s gonna’ do to him?”

The Undertaker © vs. Tajiri: Hardcore Title Match

Tajiri comes down the ringside accompanied by Torrie Wilson, who poses for the crowd whilst Tajiri climbs into the ring. The Deadman is out next to a huge chorus of jeers from the RAW crowd, as he circles the ring on his bike. He gets into the ring and walks up to Tajiri, showing just how much Tajiri is giving up in height.

The bell rings, and Tajiri begins to kick away at the Deadmans leg, but the kicks have little effect on the Hardcore Champion, who grabs Tajiri into a military press position and throws him to the outside! Undertaker steps over the ropes and follows, reaching under the ring and emerging with a trash can. He throws it into the ring and then does the same with a steel chair, before pulling Tajiri up by the hair. ‘Taker lifts the Japanese Buzzsaw up onto his shoulders, and drops him nose-first onto the guardrail! Tajiri bounces backwards as JR points out that Tajiri could have a broken nose. Undertaker pulls the challenger up and holds his face up to his own, telling Tajiri “you will respect me.” He immediately throws Tajiri into the ring, and yells at a group of fans before following. He climbs up onto the apron and leans through the ropes, but gets caught with Green Mist to the face! ‘Taker falls back down to the outside wiping the green muck from his eyes, as Tajiri launches himself over the top rope with a Cross Body – but gets caught! ‘Taker spins him round into a vertical position, and nails him with a Tombstone Piledriver! Torrie screams as Tajiri’s body begins to spasm, whilst The Undertaker runs his thumb across his throat. He drags the lifeless Tajiri up and rolls him into the ring, this time following all the way, and picks him up once more. The Undertaker places Tajiri’s head between his legs and lifts him up, before bringing him down with a Thunderous Last Ride onto the trash can! ‘Taker covers and gets the academic three count, and he exits the ring with his Hardcore Title.

Winner and Still Hardcore Champion: The Undertaker

OR: 61

The referee is joined by Torrie and the two check on Tajiri, whilst The Deadman gets on his bike. However, instead of going back up the ramp he stands back up and gets into the ring, staring straight at Torrie Wilson. As soon as she notices she begins to scurry out of the ring, but Taker grabs her and pulls her up. He slowly wraps his hand around her throat as she begins to plead with him, but he ignores her and lifts her up for what seems like an age, before Chokeslamming her all the way to hell! This time, he goes to the outside and gets on his bike, heading up the ramp. He turns round once more and smiles at the carnage he’s caused inside the ring, before disappearing to the back.

Jim Ross: “Well King, this is just... this is just sick. The Undertaker has just destroyed both Torrie and Tajiri, for no reason whatsoever.”

The King: “I agree with you JR, The Undertaker did go to far this time. But who’s gonna stop him?”

Jim Ross: “I don’t know King, but I hope there’s someone. We can’t have someone going round doing as he pleases – it’s just not right.”

A Shattered Dreams Production...

On the Titantron we see some long blond hair facing the camera, but it turns out to be none other than Goldust! The crowd begin to cheer as Goldust looks into the camera, looking as crazy as ever.

Goldust: “I’ve been out of the business for a while, waiting on the sidelines, and preparing the make the biggest and most spectacular comeback ever seen! It’s time for my star to shine, but, alas, as bright as my star shines, there will always be one that shines brighter. Every night I burn, and every night I scream your name. But rest assured, I AM coming for you. And when the final curtain falls... when the end credits roll, you will never forget my name. You will never forget... Ssss, Mmmm, Goldussssst!”

The screen fades and the fans begin to cheer, although they have no real idea what Goldust is talking about.

OR: 79

The King: “What the hell is he talking about JR?! He’s a freak!”

Jim Ross: “Well he certainly is a bit ‘different’, King.”

The King: “He’s more than a bit different JR! Who’s he coming for?!”

Jim Ross: “I wish I could tell you.”

Stylin’ Profilin’

As JR finishes, a loud “Whoo!” is heard, and Ric Flair comes down to the ring, to a huge reaction! Ric gets into the ring and takes a mike, and waits for the crowd to quieten down. They don’t at first, but eventually do after Flair begins to speak.

Ric Flair: “To be the man, you’ve gotta’ beat Vince McMahon. Ya’ know, for weeks that phrase has bothered me. But then this mornin’, when I woke up, did I think about it? NO! On my way to the arena, did I think about it? NO! Because last night, at tha’ Royal Rumble, I BEAT Vince McMahon! WHOO!”

The fans let out a loud “Whoo!” as well, which brings a huge smile to Flair’s face.

Ric Flair: “For 25 years, I’ve spilt blood and tears for this business. I’ve paid the price for livin’ tha’ wrestlin’ lifestyle. I’ve missed my kids growin’ up, but last night, everything seemed worth it. WHY? Because I beat Vince McMahon One-ah... Two... Three in tha’ middle of the ring! WHOO! Last night, tha’ stylin’ profilin’, Limousine Ridin’, wheelin’, dealin’ son of a gun became tha’ man! WHOO!”

OR: 100

Poison

Suddenly, the Titantron comes on and we see Vince McMahon sitting at a desk. The camera is slightly grainy and is in black and white, as Vince plays with a large kitchen knife in his hand. Slowly, he begins to chuckle. The chuckle turns into a laugh, which becomes more and more maniacal every second. Suddenly, he brings the knife straight down through the table and stops laughing. A look of sadness comes across his face, and his voice is sombre.

Vince McMahon: “Some may say that I lost at the Royal Rumble...”

The fans cheer.

Vince McMahon: “... I don’t, oh no. WE lost. Vince McMahon, Ric Flair, Chris Jericho, the fans... everybody. We ALL lost at the Royal Rumble. You see Ric, I can’t let you control the company that I made. Ric, you made me do this. You MADE me KILL MY COMPANY RIC! I have injected poison right into the veins of the WWF, Flair. The WWF is on it’s deathbed, and no-one can save it. You drove me to it, Ric.”

The camera zooms in as the scene fades out, and the last thing we see is an image of the WWF logo, with a knife straight through the middle of it.

OR: 97

Ric stands looking confused in the ring, but eventually heads backstage.

Jim Ross: “I don’t like the sound of that, King.”

The King: “Me neither JR, but Vince said that no-one can stop it. Stop what?”

Jim Ross: “Well I’m sure you’ll agree that Mr. McMahon didn’t seem... well, sane at all there. I just hope he hasn’t done something stupid.”

Two Partners Ready

We cut to the back where Kurt Angle and Chris Jericho are in their lockeroom, just minutes away from their match with Triple H and The Rock.

Kurt Angle: “I still don’t see why everyone cheers Triple H. He came back from a torn quad... after 10 months. Did I take 10 months off when I broke my neck? No, I’ll tell you what I did. I won the freakin’ Olympics. Tearing a quad would be like a papercut to me. In fact I tore it this morning, but I’m here, hopping around.”

Chris Jericho: “Kurt, relax. What could The Rock and Triple H possibly have on us? An Olympic Gold Medallist and a larger than life, Livin’ Legend! Besides, you really think Triple H will be able to compete after what we did to him earlier?”

Kurt shakes his hand and the two leave the lockeroom, as we go to our final Commercial Break!

OR: 88

Commercial Break

Kurt Angle & Chris Jericho vs. The Rock & Triple H

The Rock, Kurt Angle and Chris Jericho all make their separate entrances, which takes up quite a while. Kurt and Y2J stand in the ring looking supremely confident, as The Game’s music hits! The Rock smiles as The Game makes his way down the ramp, sliding into the ring. The Rock and Hunter go straight at their opponents, dropping both of them with multiple clotheslines. The Rock sends Kurt Angle to the outside with his spit-punch combo, whilst Hunter clotheslines Jericho over the top rope! The fans are going nuts as HHH and The Rock trash talk Jericho and Angle, who regroup on the outside. The two only agree to get back in the ring once the referee has got both Rocky and HHH in their corner, allowing Jericho and Angle to get in. Once everything gets going, it’s Angle and The Rock who start things off. The two lock up un the centre of the ring and Kurt goes behind with a waistlock, but Rocky is quick to counter with elbows to the head.

The two exchange punches and Rock blocks one of Angle’s, allowing him to unload with another spit-punch combo, knocking Angle down! The Rock tags in Hunter who pulls Kurt up and whips him into the ropes, applying a sleeper hold on the rebound. Kurt uses his ring awareness to shake HHH off, ramming himself – and Triple H’s back into the corner, causing The Game to release the hold. Kurt staggers into the center of the ring and HHH charges at him, but gets caught with a belly-to-belly suplex from the American Hero! Kurt makes the cover, but only gets a two count. Angle makes the tag to the Undisputed Champion, who quickly locks Hunter in a rear chinlock, but Rocky is quickly in the ring before any damage can be done to his partner. However, this distracts the referee which allows Angle and Jericho to double-team Hunter, and the two hit a double Suplex before stomping away on HHH.

Jim Ross: “Look at these two, using all the cheap tactics they can.”

The King: “Well The Rock should’ve kept his nose out of this JR, he distracted the referee!”

Finally, the referee turns back to the action and quickly chases Angle into his corner, whilst Jericho lays into Hunter with stiff chops in the corner, Ric Flair style. Hunter tries to mount a quick comeback but he’s stopped by a rake of the eyes from Jericho who sends him into the ropes, and then catches him with a stungun on the rebound! With HHH’s body slumped over the top rope, Jericho climbs to the top turnbuckle and goes for a leg drop on The Game, sending them both crashing down to the outside! The referee administers the ten-count, but is stopped as both Rocky and Angle go to the outside, to help their respective partners. The two slide both men in to the ring and then go back to their corners, stretching their hands out for the tag. Jericho makes it to his corner first and brings in Angle, but Triple H musters up the energy to make the hot tag to The Rock! Rocky nails Angle with a Clothesline, and then another, followed up by a deep armdrag to the Olympian. Angle comes back again but this time gets put down with a DDT, as Rocky nips back up and begins to stalk Angle! The crowd begin to stir in anticipation as Angle gets to his feet, and turns straight into a Rock Bottom, no! Jericho attacks The Rock from behind mid-move, saving Kurt Angle! Y2J goes for a Spinning Heel Kick, but Rocky ducks sending Jericho’s boot into the referee’s face! The Rock and Y2J both get back up at the same time and turn to face each other, with Jericho shoving his boot straight into the Rock’s groin!

The King: “HAHA! Straight into the People’s Groin JR!”

Jericho, looking mighty pleased with himself turns... PEDIGREE! The fans erupt as Triple H nails Jericho with a Pedigree and goes for the cover, but there’s no referee! Hunter looks over at the ref and slowly crawls over, shaking and slapping him to try and revive him. However, it doesn’t work as he’s completely out of it, so HHH gets back to his feet, and gets nailed with a vicious chairshot to the head from Kurt Angle! Angle pulls Jericho on top of HHH and motions to the back, as Nick Patrick comes running down the aisle and slides into the ring, making the three count!

Winners: Chris Jericho & Kurt Angle

OR: 91

Jim Ross: “Damn that Nick Patrick! He was in cahoots with them the whole time!”

The King: “What are you talking about JR? He’s a referee – it’s his job!”

Back in the ring, Chris Jericho slowly gets to his feet whilst Kurt Angle congratulates Nick Patrick. As the RAW copyright logo flashes at the bottom of the screen, Jericho and Angle begin stomping away on Triple H and The Rock, and RAW fade off the air.

-------

Overall Rating: 82

Best Segment: Stylin’ Profilin’

Worst Segment: The Undertaker vs. Tajiri

Edited August 21, 2004 by Agent_Sm1th

Blitz · August 19, 2004

Hm. I wonder if your still planning on bringing in the nWo. I read the part about the knife through the WWF logo, but you never mentioned about the nWo.

Great show nonetheless.

Edited August 19, 2004 by Blitz

therockbox · August 20, 2004

- RAWsome.com

RAW Rating and Analysis
This week’s RAW drew a 7.12 rating overall, which is up from last week’s 7.10. The opening segment with Chris Jericho, Kurt Angle, The Rock and Triple H got the show off to a strong start, but there was a slight fall during the Undertaker/Tajiri match, and got down to about 7.5 at one point. However, it was a strong showing for the WWF who had been losing viewers in the months preceding the Royal Rumble.

After the Royal Rumble customers watching the event via satellite (mainly bars and clubs) were shown an additional promo from Goldust, in which he essentially cut the same promo that he did on RAW. It seems as if the problems that caused Rhodes to leave the company 3 years a go have cleared up. The same can be said for his problems with Terri Runnels, who was in fact one of the main supporters of bringing Rhodes back into the WWF.

Curt “Mr. Perfect” Hennig was given a strong run in the Royal Rumble, which shows that the WWF are serious about bringing him back full time. Hennig wasn’t on RAW due to a minor injury suffered in the Rumble match on Sunday; however he is expected to be on this week’s Smackdown!

Backstage reports indicate that The Undertaker was extremely unhappy with the crowd’s reaction during and after his match with Tajiri on Monday. However, many wrestlers weren’t surprised at the crowds less-than-stellar reaction, due to the match being extremely predictable from the get-go.

Vince McMahon was said to be ecstatic at the two segments in which he announced the ‘poison’ being injected into the WWF’s veins. Ric Flair’s promo could barely be heard over the screaming crowd, whereas Vince’s speech drew a huge amount of boos from the crowd.

WWF Signings, RVD Unhappy and More...
The WWF has completed the signings of Jody Fleisch, American Dragon and Alexis Laree. All three will head down to Ohio Valley Wrestling for at least a couple of months each, after which time the WWF will evaluate them to see if they’re sound long-term investments. American Dragon had been widely tipped to be the next breakout star on the Independent Scene, after strong showings for Ring of Honor, and Jimmy Hart’s X-Wrestling Federation.

Wrestling-Heat.com reported this week that WWF superstar Rob Van Dam has been extremely unhappy with his position in the WWE, and is on the brink of walking out of his contract. However, OnlineOnslaught.com recently reported that the WWF was about to push Rob Van Dam, so it looks like someone is playing make believe.

It looks like the WWF is close to calling up one of Ohio Valley Wrestling’s brighter talents. Jerry Lynn has spent considerable time in OVW, despite many believing he didn’t need. However, whether he’ll be used properly once joining the main roster remains to be seen.

Vince’s Poison = nWo??

therockbox · August 20, 2004

WWF Smackdown!

24th January, 2002

We’re coming off the back of an eventfully RAW, where we witness Chris Jericho and Kurt Angle defeat Triple H and The Rock in the main event! This week, WWF co-owner Ric Flair has signed both Angle and Y2J in separate matches, to try and teach the duo a lesson or two. Kurt Angle will go head to head against “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, whilst Chris Jericho takes on the 500lb monster – The Big Show in a non-title match!

Meanwhile, Rob Van Dam will challenge The Undertaker with the WWF Hardcore Title on the line, just 3 days after the Deadman destroyed Tajiri and Torrie Wilson on RAW. Can RVD stop ‘Taker, or will he suffer the same fate as Tajiri?

Tazz and Spike Dudley’s Tag Team Titles will also be on the line, as they take on the flamboyant pairing of Billy Gunn and Chuck Palumbo! Will the underdogs ‘come out on top’ again in this one, or can Billy and Chuck take the gold?

Confirmed Matches:

Kurt Angle vs. “Stone Cold” Steve Austin

Chris Jericho vs. The Big Show

Rob Van Dam vs. The Undertaker – Hardcore Title

Tazz and Spike Dudley vs. Billy and Chuck – Tag Team Titles

ALSO: Will we hear more on Vince McMahon’s injection of ‘poison’ into the WWF, which he promises will kill the company? The only way to find out is to turn up or tune in!

Blitz · August 21, 2004

Pretty awesome so far Agent. I think 2002 was where WWF spun out of control into suckage, so hopefully you can turn that around. Don't put the belt on Hogan for Christ's sake.

Edited November 28, 2004 by Blitz

therockbox · August 27, 2004

WWF Smackdown!

Commentators: Michael Cole and Jerry “The King” Lawler

Date: January 24th, 2002

Location: United Centre, Chicago, Illinois

Smackdown! opens up with video footage from the last Monday Night RAW. We see Chris Jericho and Kurt Angle destroying Triple H at the head of the show, and The Rock making the save – albeit a late one. We then go on to see clips of the Main Event, where Y2J and Angle defeated HHH and Rocky thanks to Nick Patrick.

Once the video finishes we see graphics for tonight’s double main event, where Chris Jericho takes on The Big Show in a non-title match, and Kurt Angle goes head to head with “Stone Cold” Steve Austin. We go straight to the announcers table, with Michael Cole and Jerry “The King” Lawler.

Michael Cole: “Welcome to Smackdown!, I’m Michael Cole and sitting beside me is Jerry “The King” Lawler. Well King this past RAW we saw Chris Jericho and Kurt Angle get one up on Triple H and The Rock, but they could well get their comeuppance at the hands of Steve Austin and The Big Show later tonight!”

The King: “C’mon Michael Cole, Chris and Kurt are two athletes on top of their game – there’s no way that they’re gonna be beaten tonight!”

Michael Cole: “We’ll see later on tonight, King. Anyway folks coming up first we have the WWF Tag Team Champions defending their titles against Billy Gunn and Chuck Palumbo!”

Tazz & Spike © vs. Billy & Chuck: Tag Team Titles Match

The challengers make their way out first, getting some decent heel heat from the crowd. Once they’re in the ring, Spike Dudley and Tazz make their entrances, high-fiving the fans on the way down the aisle. They get into the ring and hand the titles to the referee, and the match gets underway. The match begins with Spike and Billy, with the latter using his power to take control. He tags Chuck in following a Powerslam, and the two double-team Spike before Palumbo makes the cover, getting a two-count. Chuck pulls Spike up and whips him off the ropes, knocking him down with an elbow to the head. Chuck makes another tag to Billy who puts the boots to Spike, forcing him into the corner.

He chokes him out with his boot before pounding away on Spike’s head, as the referee eventually steps in and breaks it up. However, as Billy distracts the referee Chuck drops down to the mat and begins getting in cheap shot after cheap shot on Spike, before heading back to his corner as the referee turns round. Billy pulls Spike into the centre of the ring and goes for a lateral press, but barely gets a two. Billy pulls Spike up and sends him into the corner with an Irish Whip, but gets a boot to the face from Spike on the follow up, followed by a Tornado DDT out of the corner! Tazz leads a “Spike” chant as he stretches out his hand, whilst the two legal men slowly crawl to their corners.

Eventually, they both make the tag as Tazz and Chuck both charge each other, with Tazz getting a clothesline in on Palumbo. Chuck takes two more Clotheslines from the Human Suplex Machine, followed up by a T-Bone Suplex! Tazz pounces on Chuck for the cover, but Billy breaks up the count on two.

Billy clubs down on Tazz’s back with a couple of hard forearms, before setting Tazz up for the Fame-Ass-Er. However, Tazz manages to stand up flipping Billy over, before applying the Tazzmission!

Billy flaps helplessly as the referee watches for the tap, and as Chuck moves in to try and break up the move, Spike kicks him in the stomach and nails the Dudley Dogg! Billy, realizing that he has no way out taps, and the referee calls for the bell! Tazz’s music hits as the referee hands him and Spike the belts, before raising their hands in the air. Tazz and Spike then begin to make their way back up the ramp, as we head over to Michael Cole and The King.

OR: 71

Michael Cole: “The tag team champions successfully defend their tag team titles, as Billy taps out to the Tazzmission!”

The King: “I just hope Billy’s OK!”

Their Night Isn’t over yet...

Just as King finishes, we cut to Tazz and Spike at the top of the ramp as they raise their hands, when suddenly, they’re attacked from behind by Bubba Ray and D-Von! The cheers of the fans quickly turn to boos, as the Dudleyz – with Stacy Keibler cheering them on – brutalize the champions! D-Von takes Spike down with a stiff Lariat almost turning him inside out, whilst a groggy Tazz slowly turns, straight into a Bubba Cutter on the steel! The two look over at Stacy who looks less than impressed, so Bubba and D-Von turn their attention back to Spike. They drag Spike to the edge of the ramp and Bubba hoists Spike onto his shoulders, before sending Spike down off the ramp with a Powerbomb! This time, Stacy smiles and claps as the Dudleyz take the tag team titles and raise them up in the air, before heading backstage with the gold!

OR: 68

Michael Cole: “I don’t believe it King – The Dudley Boys just stole the tag team titles...!”

The King: “... forget about that Cole, did you see Stacy!? She looked so hot tonight!”

Michael Cole: “Well I think the condition of Spike and Tazz is more important than Stacy right now.”

The King: “Maybe for you.”

What?

We head backstage where Kurt Angle is standing by with Sharmell Sullivan, ready to talk about his match with Stone Cold later on tonight.

Sharmell Sullivan: “Kurt, as a result of your actions this past week on RAW, the co-owner Ric Flair has forced you into this match with ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin- the man you eliminated from the Royal Rumble. Your thoughts?”

Kurt Angle: “My thoughts? I’ll tell you my thoughts. If it wasn’t for Steve Austin, then it would be ME going to Wrestlemania, and NOT Triple H. You see, after I eliminated that no-good redneck from the Royal Rumble, he took it upon himself to grab a Steel Chair, and nail me in the head with it!”

The fans in the arena begin to cheer.

Kurt Angle: “I know that this is an attempt by Ric Flair to punish me, but I see it as a chance to embarrass Stone Cold, when I make him tap out in the middle of the ring. Oh, It’s True.”

The fans, who are now chanting ‘What’ every time Kurt pauses, begin to boo.

Kurt Angle: “I’m an Olympic Gold Medallist, Stone Cold has nothing on me.”

The fans chant “What!?” again, which seems to rile Kurt up.

Kurt Angle: “What the hell was that? Just who do these people think they are? I’m a true American Hero, and they disrespect me with that? Well we’ll see how they like this; if you say what one more time, then this interview is over!”

The fans give out the loudest “WHAT” of the night, causing Kurt to storm off. Sharmell can’t help but laugh, as we go elsewhere.

OR: 95

Deadman Walking

We see the current Hardcore Champion The Undertaker walking down the hallway, punching the air as he warms up for his match with RVD which is coming up next, right after these commercials!

OR: 71

Commercial Break

The Undertaker © vs. Rob Van Dam: Hardcore Title Match

Van Dam comes out doing his usual thumbs taunt, and awaits the arrival of the Deadman, who’s music hits but the champ is nowhere to be found. Suddenly, the lights go out and when they come back on, The Undertaker is in the ring standing behind Van Dam! The fans begin to boo as RVD turns, and gets levelled with a Big Boot to the face! The Undertaker waits for Rob to get back up before striking him again, this time with an uppercut. ‘Taker pulls a bike chain from around his neck and slowly wraps it around his wrist as RVD gets to his feet, before pulling him around. The Deadman takes a swing at Rob that could put him down for good, but Mr. Monday Night ducks and quickly sends Undertaker back into the ropes with a Spinning Heel Kick! Rob with a couple of elbows to the head before sending Undertaker into the ropes, going to knock ‘Taker down with a Clothesline but the Deadman stays on his feet! Rob bounces off the ropes and attempts a running lariat, but gets caught round the throat by the Undertaker! He gets lifted up into a Military Press, and then thrown OVER the top rope to the outside!

As Van Dam rolls around on the floor, Undertaker rolls out onto the floor and walks over to the timekeeper, throwing him aside and grabbing his chair! The fans begin to stir as the Deadman pulls Rob up and takes a step backwards whilst raising the chair, only to get it sent straight into his face with a Van Daminator! Rob falls back down again as the desperation move manages to buy him some time to recover, whilst the referee checks on the Undertaker.

Eventually, the two get to their feet. They exchange a couple of punches before Undertaker grabs Rob around the back of the head, throwing him against the ring apron. Taker hits a couple of jabs to the jaw of RVD before rolling him back into the ring, and grabbing a table from underneath the ring. He slides it under the bottom rope and then follows it, setting the table up roughly in the centre of the ring. Rob is back on his feet but doesn’t have much time to recover, as Undertaker backs him into the corner and rams a couple of elbows into RVD’s temples, before dragging him back into the centre of the ring.

Taker grabs him around the throat and lifts him up looking for a Chokeslam, but Van Dam counters with a kick to the throat of the Deadman! Undertaker drops Rob and staggers back, allowing Van Dam to springboard off the middle rope and knock Undertaker down with a kick to the head! Rob does the thumb taunt before sending himself into the ropes, before rolling forward and attempting the Rolling Thunder, but Undertaker raises his knees into the back of RVD! Rob folds up like an Accordion before unfolding again, with both his hands clutching his lower back. The Undertaker takes a brief moment to catch his breath before pulling himself up, bringing Van Dam with him. ‘Taker positions Rob between his legs and raises a clenched fist in the air, before lifting him up into a sitting position on his shoulders. However, Rob fights back with punches to the head of Undertaker, and manages to slide back down to a vertical base on the mat. The Deadman takes a swing at RVD but misses by a mile, as Rob goes for a kick to the gut but gets his foot caught, and then Undertaker ducks the following Enziguiri only to get booted in the chops by the athletic RVD! Undertaker stumbles back and falls on the table, as Rob clubs down on Taker’s gut a couple of times before hopping to the top turnbuckle! The fans are all up on their feet and chant in unison “Rob – Van – Dam” as RVD does his taunt, before hitting a Five Star Frog Splash sending The Undertaker through the table! Rob rolls around selling the impact before covering The Undertaker, and getting the three count!

Winner and NEW Hardcore Champion: Rob Van Dam

OR: 70

Rob manages to climb to his feet despite being winded, and raises his newly won Hardcore Title in the air, as the fans begin to cheer! Rob begins to head backstage and the camera goes to another Commercial Break, as the referee calls for help for Undertaker.

Commercial Break

Michael Cole: “Welcome back to Smackdown! everybody, and if you’ve just joined us you missed ONE HELL of a Hardcore Match, in which we saw Rob Van Dam crowned the new WWF Hardcore Champion!”

The King: “I’ve never seen someone beat The Undertaker so convincingly Cole.”

Michael Cole: “Me neither King, and perhaps this is Taker’s just deserts after what he did to Tajiri and Torrie on RAW.”

Sss, Mmm, Goldussst!

On the Titantron we see Goldust, sitting in a dark room much like he was on RAW this past week. Michael Cole and The King enquire as to what Goldust was talking about on that night, and whether we’ll learn more now.

Goldust: “OH YES, OH YES! I can feel it now, can’t you? I’d like to congratulate you on your monumental success tonight, but enjoy it... because come February 17 2002, you WILL have no way out. Once you leave Milwaukee, you will never be able to forget the name, Sssss... Mmmmm, G-G-G-Goldusssst-ah!”

Goldust lets out a maniacal laugh before the screen fades, and we go back to Michael Cole and Jerry “The King” Lawler, who both look very confused.

OR: 77

The King: “I’ve said it before and I’ll see it again – Goldust is a freak Michael Cole!”

Michael Cole: “But don’t you find it odd that he talks about success, right after the match we just saw?”

The King: “Everything about Goldust is odd.”

Trish Stratus © vs. Jazz: Women’s Title Match

In a Royal Rumble rematch (minus Jacqueline), Trish Stratus defends her title against Jazz, who has made quite an impact since arriving in the WWF. The match starts off with a collar and elbow tie-up, as Jazz takes the initiative with a kick to Trish’s stomach. She takes Trish down with a snap suplex followed up by a quick cover, but Trish quickly gets her shoulder up. Jazz pulls Trish up but gets a slap to the face, but retaliates in kind. The two exchange slaps and chops, but the crowd seem pretty uninterested as Trish manages to gain the upper hand. Stratus forces Jazz into the corner and connects with a couple of chops, before Jazz reverses and hits a couple of chops of her own!

Jazz takes a couple of steps backwards and then charges into the Women’s Champion with a Clothesline, before bringing her out of the corner with a Bulldog. Jazz covers but only gets a two-count, before stomping away on the back of Trish’s head. She allows Stratus to pull herself up and then makes a move towards her, but gets caught with an Inside Cradle; 1... 2... 3!

Winner and Still Women’s Champion: Trish Stratus

OR: 65

Trish quickly rolls out of the ring holding the back of her head, as Jazz looks shocked back in the ring. As the referee hands Trish the title and she raises it in the air Jazz begins to pound the mat with her fists, whilst Michael Cole and King discuss the outcome.

Michael Cole: “Trish pulls a victory out of nowhere to retain her title there King, as Jazz seemed to be in complete control of the match!”

The King: “And just like the Royal Rumble, Trish defeats Jazz to keep the belt!”

Some Advice for Y2J

We head backstage and end up in the lockeroom of Y2J Chris Jericho, where the Undisputed Champion is lacing up his boots, preparing for his match with The Big Show. A hand taps Jericho on his shoulder and he turns whilst the camera pans backwards, revealing Vince McMahon! The fans boo as Jericho looks at Vinnie Mac with a suspicious look on his face, whereas Vince stares back with a smug smile.

Vince McMahon: “Well if it isn’t Chris Jericho, the Undisputed Champion of MY company.”

Jericho smiles, nods and pulls his belt off the bench, hoisting it over his shoulder.

Vince McMahon: “Chris, I hope you realize just how lucky you are to be the Undisputed Champion. Ya’ see, you are going to go down in history as being the only man to hold that title, EVER!”

Chris Jericho: “Damn right, no-one can beat the larger than life Living Legend; Chris Jericho!”

Y2J raises his hand looking for a high-five, but Vince shakes his head and laughs.

Vince McMahon: “No, no, Chris, you don’t understand. Like I said on RAW, I’m going to kill the World Wrestling Federation, Chris. That means EVERYTHING. So if I were you Jericho, I’d get out while you can. Because soon, a new world order will be established. You, just like everyone else in this sorry federation, will have No... Way... Out!”

Vince begins to laugh again before exiting the lockeroom as Jericho looks on confused, but perhaps a little nervous at the same time.

OR: 94

Chris Jericho vs. The Big Show: Non-Title Match

“Well, well it’s the Big Show!” booms over the speaker system in a deep voice, marking the arrival of the biggest athlete in the world today – the big friendly giant, The Big Show! Show comes out to a massive pop from the crowd, before the Y2J countdown begins on the Titantron, a the Undisputed Champ makes his way out to a massive chorus of boos. Jericho spends a lot of his time pointing and trash-talking the front row fans, before the bell rings and the match gets underway. Jericho charges the Big Show and launches an all out attack, but is quickly thrown off by the giant. Jericho comes back for more but is once again shrugged off by the Big Show, who lets out a loud scream before going to grab Y2J. Jericho manages to duck Show’s attack at bounces off the ropes, going for a Clothesline on Big Show that doesn’t knock the big man down! Jericho goes for another clothesline which this time sends Show backwards but still doesn’t knock him down, followed by a third only to be caught by Show! The behemoth pulls Y2J up into a Powerslam position, before dropping his ribs down onto his knees! However, he keeps hold of Jericho and repeats the move a further 3 times, before allowing Jericho to roll onto the mat. Michael Cole points out that Chris Jericho’s ribs could well be broken, whilst Big Show goes for the cover only to get a two-count. The action will continue, right after this commercial break!

Commercial Break

We're back, and just as The Big Show pulls Jericho up and backs him into the ropes, before bringing his huge, bear-like hand down across the chest of Jericho, which echoes throughout the arena! Big Show grabs Jericho around the back of the head and begins to head over to the other side of the ring, and throws Jericho over the top rope and all the way to the floor! Show poses in the ring before climbing over the top rope and dropping down to the outside, pulling Y2J up and wrapping his hands around his throat, before throwing him against the ring apron! Jericho screams in pain much to the delight of the fans, who egg Big Show on to do it again. He obliges, before rolling Y2J back into the ring. A cover from Show gets a two-count, and Michael Cole points out that it’s going to take a lot more than that to put the champ away. For once King agrees with him.

Big Show spends some time playing to the fans as Jericho gets to his feet, and it proves to be a mistake as Y2J cuts his knee out from behind him with a flying shoulderblock! Jericho, who has seemingly caught his second wind quickly springs up and delivers a couple of elbows to the heard of The Big Show, before making the cover. Show powers out on he count of one, and Y2J goes straight back to work with a couple of stiff kicks. However, Show manages to get to his feet and goes for a Clothesline on the champ, but Jericho ducks and Show hits the referee! Jericho, ever the opportunist, hits a low blow on his opponent before sliding to the outside, and grabbing his Undisputed Title! He slides back into the ring and lines up the Big Show, before delivering a brutal shot to the head – but Show stays on his feet! Reminiscent of the clotheslines earlier on in the match, Jericho bounces off the ropes and hits another shot to the head, but still Show stays on his feet! Jericho, now a little desperate climbs to the second rope and dives off looking for a third shot to the skull, but gets caught around the throat by Big Show’s massive hand! Jericho drops the title as Show raises him in the air, and then brings him back down to earth with the Showstopper! Big Show covers Y2J, and the referee comes round, slowly making the three count!

Winner: The Big Show

OR: 75

Michael Cole: “What an impressive win from the Big Show there King! He withstood a low blow AND two shots with the Undisputed Title, before putting Jericho away with the Showstopper!”

The King: “This is a disgrace Michael Cole, our Undisputed Champion shouldn’t have been forced into this match!”

Michael Cole: “Regardless of that King, you have to wonder where this victory puts Show in the Undisputed Title Rankings. He beat the champion in a non-title match!”

D.T.A

Cole and King continue arguing, as we get a shot of “Stone Cold” Steve Austin walking down the hallway, with a six-pack in his hand. However, he rounds a corner and then stops, as Curt “Mr. Perfect” Hennig steps into view!

Mr. Perfect: “Hey Steve! Listen, I’ve gotta question to ask ya’. Last Sunday at the Royal Rumble...”

The smile disappears of Curt’s face, and turns into a frown.

Mr. Perfect: “... Why the hell did you hit me across the head with a Steel Chair?”

Austin smiles, whilst Perfect gets a loud “WHAT!?” from the crowd.

Stone Cold: “Listen son, don’t take it personally, it was just business. Like I always say – don’t trust anyone!”

Austin laughs and gives Perfect a sarcastic double-tap on the cheek, before heading off. The camera gets a shot of Perfect, who stops a crew-member who just happened to be walking by, and says;

Mr. Perfect: “I don’t know who Austin thinks he is, but he certainly isn’t perfect, and he needs to be careful of who he messes with.”

Hennig then walks off, leaving the crewman to go back to whatever it was he was doing.

OR: 80

Kurt Angle vs. Steve Austin

As the two make their entrances, Michael Cole points out that it was Angle who eliminated Austin from the Royal Rumble. The King interjects himself, saying that Kurt would’ve won if it wasn’t for Austin getting involved after he’d been eliminated. Back in the ring, the match is underway and Angle has Steve in a side headlock, but that doesn’t last for long as Austin shoots him off into the ropes and drops him with a shoulderblock. Austin comes off the ropes and Angle rolls over as Austin jumps over him, before Angle gets back to his feet and quickly leap-frogs Austin, who stops in his tracks and spins Angle round, before going for the Stunner! However, Angle manages to push Stone Cold away into the ropes and then follow up with a quick Clothesline, sending Austin to the outside. Angle let out a loud “Whoo!” in the ring before dropping down and rolling under the bottom rope, pulling Austin up to his feet. He gets a quick boot to the mid-section in before slamming his head down onto the announcers table, and then sending him into the ring apron with an Irish Whip! Kurt stomps a Mudhole in Austin using the bottom rope to support himself, before pulling Austin up and rolling him into the ring. Kurt covers; but barely gets a two-count.

Kurt gets in the face of the referee telling him that it should’ve been a three count, before waving the referee away with a look of disgust on his face. Angle turns back to Austin to see him get to his feet, but isn’t able to stop him from taking Angle down with a Spear! Austin pounds away on Angle’s head before rolling off, and stomping away on him over and over! Angle tries to stop the assault by rolling over to the corner, but it doesn’t stop Austin one iota as he simply uses the ropes to add more velocity to each stomp. Eventually the referee steps in a pulls Austin off of Angle, who pulls himself up using the ropes. Austin charges at him again, but this time sidesteps the attack Austin chest-first into the corner, and then backwards into a German Suplex from Angle! Angle keeps his arms locked tightly around Austin and brings him up for a second German, before rinsing and repeating, completing the trio!

Angle goes for a cover, but, much to his disbelief, only gets a two count! Kurt looks as if he’s about to cry, but manages to pull himself up and bring his straps down, before grabbing Stone Cold’s leg! However, Steve manages to reverse it and kicks Angle away, but inadvertently squashes the referee in the corner! Angle looks down at the ref for a second and then turns, KICK BAM STUNNER! The crowd goes ballistic as Austin jumps on Angle for the cover; 1... 2... 3... 4... but, of course, there’s no referee! Austin gets up and makes his way over to the fallen official and shakes him. The ref begins to stir, but doesn’t show any signs of getting up. Suddenly, the fans begin to boo and the camera moves back, as Mr. Perfect slides into the ring! Austin turns, completely unaware of the interference, and gets hit with a Perfect Plex! He drags Angle on top of Stone Cold and then grabs the referee, making the count with the referee’s hand! The bell rings and, as the announcer is reluctant to announce Angle as the victor, Mr. Perfect does it himself!

Winner: Kurt Angle

OR: 87

Angle gets to his feet and sees Mr. Perfect standing in front of him. He realizes what happens, and offers his hand to Hennig who quickly accepts!

Michael Cole: “Mr. Perfect is despicable, King! He had no right interfering here...”

Jerry Lawler interrupts,

The King: “Oh, I disagree Cole. He had every right to interfere, Stone Cold brought this upon himself after attacking Mr. Perfect at the Royal Rumble!”

Michael Cole: “Well that’s all we have time for this week folks, we’ll see you next week on Smackdown!”

The copyright info appears at the bottom of the screen, as Perfect and Angle head up the ramp. Back in the ring, Austin looks at the pair clearly unhappy with what just transpired, as Smackdown fades off the air.

Overall Rating: 75

Best Segment: What?

Worst Segment: Trish Stratus vs. Jazz

therockbox · August 28, 2004

SmackDown! Rating & Analysis
Smackdown! drew a 5.09 rating overall this week, which is extremely disappointing after a strong showing from RAW. Many feel that announcing all the matches before hand was a bad idea, as it took part of the ‘surprise’ element out of the show.

The general consensus amongst workers backstage is that the Women’s division, at least for the moment, needs to be dropped down the card. The Trish/Jazz match acted as a pre-main event, after the double main event featuring Chris Jericho and The Big Show, as well as Kurt Angle and Steve Austin.

The reason both Spike and Tazz were assaulted in such a heavy way was to allow both time off to recover. Both have both been suffering from some niggling injuries as of late, and are expected to rest for about 3 weeks. However, they should return in time for No Way Out.

Management was very happy with the two confrontations involving Mr. Perfect and Steve Austin. Whether this will lead to a lengthy feud or simply filler until after No Way Out remains to be seen, but as we reported last week, Hennig’s strong showing in the Royal Rumble shows that the WWF are serious about bringing him back.

One match we expect to see take place at No Way Out is Chris Jericho defending his title against The Big Show, possibly in some sort of gimmick match. Show’s victory over Y2J only serves as backup for this, and Michael Cole’s post-match comments don’t hurt either.

Angle Taking Time Off, Buchanan Released
Bull Buchanan was released from his WWE contract early this morning. Bull, who had been down in OVW lately was seen as surplus to requirements by many backstage WWF staff.

In a recent interview with online radio station talkWRESTLE, Kurt Angle mentioned that he is strongly considering heading to the 2004 Olympics. Angle (who won Gold at the 1996 Olympic Games) said that if he was to compete, the he would need to take substantial time off from the WWE, leaving at some point during mid-2003. Given the amount of notice Kurt has given, the WWF should have no problem finding a short-term replacement for Angle, in terms of his placement in the Main Event scene.

Angle competing in 2004 could do only good for the wrestling industry, and help promote it as a legitimate sport. Kurt said that all he’d need to do was to stay fit and healthy, making sure any minor injuries don’t get the better of him.

nWo all but Confirmed
As you are all undoubtedly aware, Vince McMahon has been talking about injecting a ‘poison’ into the WWF. This week on Smackdown, Vince said that “a new world order will be established”.

Obvious connotations aside, other news adding fuel to the nWo/WWF fire is that Kevin Nash and “Hollywood” Hulk Hogan were both seen heading to the Smackdown arena this past Thursday night.

-RAWsome.com

Stone Cold · August 28, 2004

Great first 2 shows really enjoying this diary. Hopefully you'll stick to it.

kaplanir · August 28, 2004

Well, it's obvious you're bringing the nwo in, just one request: Bring Vincent Back! Please! I miss him. So quiet in the end, no one noticing him, not bothering anybody. Just quiet old Vincent...Please? No? Damn...

ePw1 · August 29, 2004

Nice, The only thing is Big Show getting a title shot that worries me. Apart that the makings of a very good diary, good luck.

therockbox · August 29, 2004

WWF Heat

Commentating Team: Jonathan Coachman & D’Lo Brown

Date: Sunday 27th January 2002

Location: Taped at the United Centre, Chicago, Illinois

The opening Heat pyro’s go off, and a small video package airing clips of some of Heat’s matches from 2003 and early 2004 airs, whilst Jonathan Coachman and special-guest Colour Commentator D’Lo Brown welcome us to the show!

The Coach: “Hello everybody and welcome to Heat! I’m The Coach...”

D’Lo Brown: “Whoa, I announce my own name, fool. I’m D’Lo Brown, here to add some star power to this show.”

The Coach: “Up first tonight we have Hardcore Holly taking off the young tough enough winner Maven!”

D’Lo Brown: “Holly’s gonna’ win, no doubts about it.”

Hardcore Holly vs. Maven

Holly comes out to little reaction, whilst Maven gets a nice little pop from the crowd. The first couple of minutes are a total squash as Holly throws Maven around the ring, and hits a series of power moves on the youngster. Maven fights back a little towards the end with his trademark dropkick before heading to the top rope, going for a Cross Body on Holly. However, Hardcore catches Maven and throws him into the corner, before following up with a Falcon Arrow, before applying the cover for the one-two-three.

Winner: Hardcore Holly

OR: 62

The referee brushes off the referees’ attempts to raise his arm and storms off backstage, but not before delivering a couple of stomps to Maven.

D’Lo Brown: “I told you Coach, I TOLD YOU!”

The Coach: “You certainly did, D’Lo and I have a feeling that we’ll be seeing a lot more of Hardcore Holly, especially if he can produce more displays like that! But anyway now we’re gonna’ show you highlights of what happened this past week on Smackdown, when the tag team champions Tazz and Spike Dudley were brutally assaulted by The Dudley Boyz...”

Smackdown! Recap

... Eventually, they both make the tag as Tazz and Chuck both charge each other, with Tazz getting a clothesline in on Palumbo. Chuck takes two more Clotheslines from the Human Suplex Machine, followed up by a T-Bone Suplex! Tazz pounces on Chuck for the cover, but Billy breaks up the count on two.

Billy clubs down on Tazz’s back with a couple of hard forearms, before setting Tazz up for the Fame-Ass-Er. However, Tazz manages to stand up flipping Billy over, before applying the Tazzmission!

Billy flaps helplessly as the referee watches for the tap, and as Chuck moves in to try and break up the move, Spike kicks him in the stomach and nails the Dudley Dogg! Billy, realizing that he has no way out taps, and the referee calls for the bell! Tazz’s music hits as the referee hands him and Spike the belts, before raising their hands in the air. Tazz and Spike then begin to make their way back up the ramp, as we head over to Michael Cole and The King.

Michael Cole: “The tag team champions successfully defend their tag team titles, as Billy taps out to the Tazzmission!”

The King: “I just hope Billy’s OK!”

Their Night Isn’t over yet...

Just as King finishes, we cut to Tazz and Spike at the top of the ramp as they raise their hands, when suddenly, they’re attacked from behind by Bubba Ray and D-Von! The cheers of the fans quickly turn to boos, as the Dudleyz – with Stacy Keibler cheering them on – brutalize the champions! D-Von takes Spike down with a stiff Lariat almost turning him inside out, whilst a groggy Tazz slowly turns, straight into a Bubba Cutter on the steel! The two look over at Stacy who looks less than impressed, so Bubba and D-Von turn their attention back to Spike. They drag Spike to the edge of the ramp and Bubba hoists Spike onto his shoulders, before sending Spike down off the ramp with a Powerbomb! This time, Stacy smiles and claps as the Dudleyz take the tag team titles and raise them up in the air, before heading backstage with the gold!

OR: 71

The Coach: “As you can see, it wasn’t pretty and was completely over the line by Bubba and D-Von. There was no need to go that far.”

D’Lo Brown: “Well I don’t know what your problem was, but I loved how The Dudleyz proved to us all why THEY should be the tag team champions.”

Tommy Dreamer vs. The Hurricane

Hurricane’s music hits and he gets a pretty large pop from the crowd, followed by Tommy Dreamer who gets jeered as he walks down the ramp. D’Lo once again sides with the heel in this match, whilst Coach thinks Hurricane can pull off the win. The match starts and it’s pretty even, with both men getting their fair share of shots in on the other. Dreamer takes control after countering his way out of a Hurri-Slam attempt with a kick to the mid-section, followed up by a double-arm DDT! Tommy then went for the Spicolli Driver but Hurricane managed to wriggle his way free and go for another Hurri-Slam, but Dreamer again kicked his way out and nailed a Dreamer DDT on The Hurricane! Dreamer covered and got the academic three count for the win.

Winner: Tommy Dreamer

OR: 71

D’Lo Brown: “That’s 2-nil to me Coach!”

Before Coach can respond however, a large “BOOO!” begins to emanate from the crowd as Dreamer, now equipped with a Singapore Cain, clambers into the ring and brings it down across the back of The Hurricane! Dreamer nails Hurricane another 11 times all over the Hurricane, before finally dropping the weapon. However, the assault doesn’t stop as Dreamer pulls Hurricane up to his feet, and drops him with another Dreamer DDT! Tommy finally backs off out of the ring and up the ramp, trash-talking as he goes.

The Coach: “Now THAT was uncalled for D’Lo, and you know it.”

D’Lo Brown: “Go tell that to Tommy Dreamer.”

The Coach: “I think I’ll stay here for now.”

Perfect/Austin