SamoaRowe

I saw the match live as it was happening and I was shocked at how into the match I got. However, the match has a few dead points, which I would say is Bradshaw being a bit frazzled that he is main eventing a pay-per-view. The match does have a remarkable drama to it and the DQ finish did not hurt the match at all. I would give it a good ***3/4 (which is higher than I originally gave it). Still, I would call their GAB match ****. It had more innovative action, less slow spots, and I felt like JBL carried his load in that match and was not just Eddie carrying him.

I liked their GAB match a lot better.

Best of 2006: Year End Awards! Top 30 Wrestlers of the Year! 30) Charlie Haas Haas and Benjamin continued to be a dominating team on Smackdown, winning another tag title at Wrestlemania XXII. Since then, Haas has competed against the best teams in the business, including the Basham Brothers, Mattitude 2.0, Shamrock and Diamon, Kae En Tai, Rave and Nova, and even picked up a pinfall victory over Chad Collyer. The highlight of Haas's year was being in the main event of Survivor Series. 29) Simon Diamond Diamond has long been considered to be one of the greatest tag team wrestlers in history, but this summer he became very close to being a World Champion. At Summerslam, Diamond competed in a triple threat match with Randy Orton and Chris Benoit for the World Heavyweight Championship. While Simon didn't win the match, he caught the attention of a lot of long-time fans simply for having made it there. Since then, Diamond and Ken Shamrock moved to Smackdown and have continued their tradition of tag team excellence by picking up the WWF Tag Team Championship. 28) Johnny Stamboli The big Bull picked up some momentum in 2006. He acquired the managerial services of Erik Watts and scored a huge victory over Sean O'Haire at No Mercy. Stamboli is considered one of the toughest competitors on Smackdown and has a reputation for being a good "go to" guy when other stars are in a tough spot. 27) Kurt Angle Angle returned to the WWF after a lengthy absense. Angle's first match back was in the main event of Survivor Series, in a huge 10 man tag match against a team put together by Mike Sanders. While Angle's team was unsuccessful, Angle did manage to pick up some decisive victories over his former protege, Charlie Haas, and is now looking to win the big tag team tournament on Smackdown, wtih Low Ki. 26) Sean O'Haire O'Haire finally split from his long-time partner, Chris Kanyon, and suddenly found himself as a part of Trent Acid's Cult. He is the strength of the group and lead the team to a huge victory at Survivor Series, when the Cult defeated Johnny Stamboli, Frankie Kazarian, Ultimo Dragon, and Jamie Noble. 25) Frankie Kazarian Frankie was called up from OVW in the late spring and became a mainstay on Smackdown! Kazarian won the Cruiserweight Championship from Kid Kash at Fully Loaded in July and held the belt until a fateful collision with Jamie Noble right before No Mercy in October. Since then, Kazarian has mounted a strong offense against Trent Acid's Cult. 24) Julio Dinero Julio kept a lower profile throughout most of 2006, but had many memorable tag team matches with his former partner, CM Punk, against worthy opponents including The New Rainbow Express, the Beautiful People, and Ken Shamrock and Simon Diamond. Julio even challenged Chris Benoit for the World Championship in July. More recently, Julio has shown more a more aggressive side after the attack on Alexis Laree by CM Punk. 23) Jamie Noble Noble spent a big part of the year chasing tag team gold with his former partner, Scoot Andrews. When that didn't work out, Noble went after Cruiserweight gold and that paid off as he won the belt from Kazarian in October. Noble then went through an attitude change and finally gave the fans a reason to cheer for him. Even though he just recently lost his Cruiserweight belt to JC Ice, Noble will surely be back in the title hunt before long. 22) Shelton Benjamin The former WWF Champion once again was hunting tag team gold more than anything else. Along with Charlie Haas, Benjamin won the WWF Tag Team Championship at Wrestlemania XXII, ending the a four month reign by the Basham Brothers. Recently, Benjamin has stepped his game up, aggressively going after the returning Kurt Angle and competed in the main event at Survivor Series. 21) Brian Kendrick This ambitious young superstar successfully made the jump from Smackdown to Raw this summer and became a vital part of the show. Reuniting with his mentor, Shawn Michaels, Kendrick has become a dominating tag team champion and has his sights on bigger things in 2007. 20) Lance Storm Storm has become a true veteran of Raw, having battled with the best that Raw has to offer. Storm started the year as one half of the World Tag Team Champions (with Justin Credible) and competed in the high profile War Games match at Wrestlemania XXII. Storm proved he was a world class athlete by holding his own against Masato Tanaka in the late spring and even defeating Triple H on a couple of occasions. Storm challenged Chris Benoit for the World title at Unforgiven and almost took the title away from Benoit in a thirty minute classic. 19) Victoria Victoria proved that she was still a dominating women's competitor in 2006, even if she needed some help from Stevie Richards along the way. Not only was Victoria the first (and only) female member of Evolution, but she was able to take the Women's Championship away from Trish Stratus at Unforgiven and has been able to retain the title over some tough challengers, including Stratus, Taylor Matheny, and Daffney Unger. Victoria is looking to continue this dominance in 2007. 18) J.R. Ryder 2005 was Ryder's break-out year, but an injury kept Ryder from following it up in 2006. However, even though Ryder was out from March until September, Ryder made a huge impact in the time he was around. Ryder became the first Smackdown superstar to defy authority and compete on Raw while under a Smackdown contract. He won the World Tag Team Championship with Brian Kendrick and because of this title reign, he will remain on Raw until he loses the title. The duo are entering their fourth month as champions, so some people are starting to wonder if Ryder has any intentions of going back to Smackdown. 17) Frank Shamrock 2006 was the year that Shamrock finally proved to the world what a tough competitor he can be. Shamrock became a truly intimidating Hardcore Champion, until falling to a chair shot from Jeff Jarrett in September. From there, Shamrock teamed up with different superstars, seeminly trying to find a good partner to pursue the tag titles with. When that did not work out, Shamrock actively looked for a shot at the Intercontinental Championship. At Vengeance, Shamrock picked up a decisive victory over Matt Stryker to win the title. 16) Triple H The Game was over in 2006. Even though he had been having a great year, having started the year with the World Heavyweight Championship around his waist, Triple H's ego finally caught up to him. At Unforgiven, Triple H stepped into the ring with Randy Orton in a "Loser Leaves Town" match in the main event. Things did not go HHH's way, as Evolution turned their backs on their leader and cost him the match. After the match, the crowd gave Triple H a standing ovation, showing their respect for him, even though he had done nothing but earn their hatred for the majority of his ten years with the WWF. 15) Orlando Jordan Jordan had a big year in 2006. First, he was one of the final competitors in the Royal Rumble and the last to be eliminated. He competed in a classic Texas Death Match with Matt Hardy at Wrestlemania XXII. Jordan then feuded with AJ Styles and then found himself in a blood feud with Nunzio. Jordan was able to ultimately beat Nunzio, after setting him on fire in an Inferno match at Survivor Series. Now Jordan is set to team with his old nemesis, Styles, in a tag team tournament that will eventually lead to a #1 Contender being named for the WWF Championship at the Royal Rumble. 14) Low Ki The self proclaimed "most honorable man on Smackdown" made a huge debut in the early winter and became a top talent on Smackdown! Low Ki won the United States Championship twice this year, first at Wrestlemania XXII and again at Summerslam! To win a major title at the two biggest shows of the year is no easy feat, but Low Ki made it look good. Low Ki also had the honor of competing in the main event of Survivor Series, on the winning team. 13) Rob Van Dam RVD came back from his serious leg injury after Wrestlemania XXII but he was not the same RVD as before. He could no longer fly around the ring like he could before his injury... but the fans loved him regardless. RVD proved he could still hold his own against the top talents in the world and picked up victories over Low Ki, Matt Hardy, and even beat his long-time nemesis AJ Styles in a special retirement match at Summerslam! Now RVD is happily retired and enjoying his time running a comic book store. 12) Rodney Mack Mack became a big part of Smackdown in 2006, becoming the enforcer in Mike Sander's SARS faction. Mack also enjoyed two reigns as the United States Champion, winning the title from the amazing Paul London at Fully Loaded and again from Chad Collyer in October. Sanders named Mack the #1 Contender for the WWF Championship in December and Rodney Mack gave Rhyno a run for his money as the two put on a brutal display of raw power. Rhyno might have won the match, but Rodney earned a lot of respect from the fans. 11) Bryan Danielson Had Danielson come along earlier in the year, he surely would have ranked higher. On his first night on Raw, the American Dragon started a fight with the reigning World Champion, Chris Benoit, and immediately made an impression. Since then, Danielson has been practically undefeated and even made Benoit tap out to his Cattle Mutilation hold at Survivor Series, winning the match for his team. Danielson also had the World title right in his grasp at Vengeance, basically beating Benoit before Steve Corino moved in and stole the victory. 10) Paul London London is considered to be one of the greatest high-fliers in the world and he showed why in 2006. London enjoyed two reigns as United States champion and picked up a couple of pinfall victories over WWF Champion Rhyno. London came close to winning the title at Summerslam before taking himself out with a missed shooting star press. Even with the loss, London has established himself as a top player on Smackdown and 2007 looks like it could be his biggest year yet. 9) Matt Hardy Hardy started the year out strongly, performing well in the Royal Rumble and beating Orlando Jordan in a hard fought match at Wrestlemania XXII. But the biggest night of Hardy's career came at Judgment Day, when he pinned Chad Collyer to win the WWF Championship. Hardy was immortalized by the title victory, but he fell short against Collyer two weeks later on an edition of Smackdown. However, Hardy will always be known as a former WWF Champion for the rest of history. 8) Steve Corino This veteran of the indy scene came crashing onto Raw in the late Spring and made an impact from the get-go, colliding with Lance Storm and Tommy Dreamer. Corino was unsuccessful to win the Intercontinental Championship from Dreamer in the summer, but made up for it by winning the World Heavyweight Championship from Chris Benoit at Vengeance. Corino is looking to enter 2007 as a World Champion in the biggest wrestling company in the world! 7) Tommy Dreamer When Dreamer first arrived on Raw, he was overjoyed to be there. It was a dream come true to be competing on Raw, he had enjoyed more success than he had ever imagined. With that in mind, he probably could not have expected what would happen in 2006. In February, Dreamer won his second Intercontinental Championship from Batista and went on to hold the title for nine months! This marked the longest IC title reign in almost a decade. During this time, Dreamer proudly defended the title against many great competitors before losing the title in a shocking upset to Matt Stryker on an edition of Raw. 6) Randy Orton Orton started the year as a Smackdown superstar and came very close to winning the WWF Championship from AJ Styles at the Royal Rumble and then again at No Way Out. Orton then became the special guest referee of the AJ Styles vs Chad Collyer main event at Wrestlemania XXII and was an impartial ref, though he did attack Styles after the match. From there, Orton returned to Raw and drove Triple H from the WWF by defeating him at Unforgiven. Afterwards, Orton's attitude changed for the worse and while he is still a young superstar, feels that other young stars should not advance higher up the Raw ladder before him. 5) CM Punk Punk had another outstanding year before showing his true colors in December by turning on the Gathering and brutalizing Alexis Laree and Julio Dinero. Punk won the World title again at the Royal Rumble and defended it proudly until Bad Blood where he lost to Chris Benoit. Before that, CM Punk had a bloody Hell in a Cell match with Rhyno at Wrestlemania XXII and retained his World title. Punk is looking to return to his dominating ways in 2007, only this side he will be on the side of evil. 4) AJ Styles Styles continued to show why he is called "phenomenal." Styles successfully defended his WWF Championship at the Royal Rumble and No Way Out before dropping the title to Chad Collyer in the main event of WrestleMania XXII. Styles had reigned for an entire year, having won the belt at WrestleMania XXI. Since then, Styles has participated in memorable battles against Orlando Jordan, Paul London, and Rob Van Dam. Styles was willing to sit back and let Rhyno hold the WWF title, but it seems that Styles is starting to get antsy again... 3) Chad Collyer Collyer spent 2005 looking like he was the next big thing on Smackdown... and in 2006, he lived up to that potential. He won the WWF Championship at Wrestlemania XXII and then briefly dropped the title to Matt Hardy at Judgment Day before winning it back two weeks later. Though Collyer lost the title again to Rhyno at Fully Loaded, Collyer has remained a part of the top tier on Smackdown! Collyer fought Rhyno in a classic "I Quit" match at No Mercy, and lost the bout despite not ever saying "I Quit." After Survivor Series, Sanders forbid Collyer from ever competing against Rhyno for the title again, but now with the tag team tournament starting, Collyer may once again get his shot at revenge. 2) Chris Benoit Benoit returned to the WWF in January, after having been gone for a couple of years. Benoit started off terrorizing both Raw and Smackdown, angrily attacking superstars at random... until Shawn Michaels stepped in to stop him. This resulted in the two having an epic match at Wrestlemania XXII, which Benoit barely managed to win. From there, Benoit made Raw his home and won the World title at Bad Blood. From there, Benoit reigned for six months and succeessfully defended his title against all competitors, in lengthy matches that had the fans on the edge of their seats! Although Benoit has lost his title at Vengeance, it can be assured that he will not take this loss sitting down. 1) Rhyno Was there any doubt? Rhyno became one of the most dominating heels in the history of the WWF. He won the Royal Rumble in January and bloodied up CM Punk in a Hell in a Cell match at WrestleMania XXII. Soon after, Rhyno jumped over to Smackdown where he immediately won the WWF Championship from Chad Collyer. Alligned with Mike Sanders, Rhyno lead a fearsome group of competitors, which included Rodney Mack, Chuck Palumbo, Bill DeMott, and Reno. Rhyno has chosen to defend his belt only once a month, and has retained against Paul London, Alex Arion, Chad Collyer, the Blue Meanie, and Rodney Mack. Now Rhyno is awaiting his next challenger at the Royal Rumble and as his title reign enters it's sixth month. Although Rhyno has been a protected champion, he has delivered in the ring and proven to be a world class athlete, worthy of being a WWF Champion. Match of the Year: AJ Styles vs Chad Collyer at WrestleMania XXII! Feud of the Year: Rhyno vs Chad Collyer Pay-Per-View of the Year: WrestleMania XXII Top Five Tag Teams of the Year: 1) Brian Kendrick and J.R. Ryder 2) Doug and Danny Basham 3) Ken Shamrock and Simon Diamond 4) Jimmy Rave and Nova 5) Shelton Benjamin and Charlie Haas

That was tremendous. Sort of makes WWE seem "minor league" in comparison.

I was right about everything except for Lita winning.

Noooooooooo!!!!! That sucks so badly, she was perfectly fine before.

Thanks for the tip.

It is unorganized and more likely to get lost in the shuffle. That's why. General Wrestling nothing more than a giant clusterfuck now. There was nothing wrong with how it was before.

Is it just me or are an awful lot of people buying Unforgiven 2003 these days? It's a truly dreadful show, but I guess if the price is right...

I laughed so hard at the first thread... and still chuckle about it to this day.

I'm quite sore about the removal of the fantasy folder too. I like how organized it was and it was much better off being seperate from this new clusterfuck of a folder. And about the game... Benoit will ride again... sooner or later

Just what TNA needed, more good news

The mergings suck. I, for one, would like to protest the removal of the fantasy folder.

RIP: Fantasy Folder

I am shocked at that buyrate. Isn't that better than last year's? And I wouldn't be surprised if JBL has become a draw, at the house show i went to on monday he was so over it caught me off guard.

Wow, that ECW ppv is going to be a real success, alright.

VENGEANCE December 17th 2006 Heat Jonathan Coachman and Ivory welcome us to Sunday Night Heat! The show covers: •Build to Benoit/Danielson/Corino •Replays the night Bryan Danielson debuted. •Shows highlights of Frank Shamrock beating Rico and Ozzy Benton to earn an IC title shot for tonight. •Music video for Vengeance featuring the hot new single from Crossfade. •Matt Hardy storms through the Raw locker-room daring superstars to challenge him tonight. He gets in the faces of Christian, Bubba Ray Dudley, Tommy Dreamer, Test, Billy Kidman, Ozzy Benton, and Johnny C. Lance Storm vs Chris Chetti Match Background: This is the bonus Heat match before the Pay-Per-View, which is meant to encourage fans to make last-minute orders. Mike Tenay and Al Snow are at ringside. Before the match begins, they become puzzled when Justin Credible comes out to be the referee. The Match: Storm is distracted by Justin Credible’s presence in the match. Storm and Chetti put on a good pop-corn match, full of reversals and false finishes (all within a couple of minutes). Whenever Chetti goes for a cover, Credible does a fast count, but Storm keeps making it up anyway. Storm nails a super kick on Chetti, but when he goes for the cover, Credible yawns and holds his head as if he needs a nap. Storm gets into his face, but Chetti rolls up Storm! 1,2,3! Credible does a fast-count and Chetti wins the match! My Opinion: Good bout. In my estimation, it's about **3/4. Credible high-tails it before Storm can gain any revenge. He points at Credible and warns him that it is only a matter of time before he gets his hands on him. Winner at 4:07: Chris Chetti. The music video for Vengeance plays yet again, hyping all of the matches on the card (except for Hardy’s challenge). The video ends with the end of the last Raw, where Benoit made Corino tap out cleanly. VEANGEANCE 2006 BEGINS! World Tag Team Championship: The R & S Connection © vs Sexy Beasts Match Background: This match is for the World Tag Team titles. R & S Connection have been World Tag Team champions since 25 September 2006. The R&S Connection consist of a Raw superstar (Brian Kendrick) and a Smackdown superstar (J.R. Ryder), and if they lose the championships, Ryder must return to Smackdown where he has an angry Mike Sanders waiting for him. The Sexy Beasts consist of Disco Inferno and BJ Whitmer and they just debuted on Raw this past week. The Match: J.R. Ryder and BJ Whitmer star the match, mostly because Ryder is so excited to be wrestling Whitmer again. Ryder connects with a flying elbow onto Whitmer, followed by a power drive elbow. Whitmer is not to be taken lightly, as he comes back with a series of stiff kicks onto Ryder. BJ tags out to Disco Inferno. Disco takes advantage of Ryder’s weakened state and tries to overpower him with some sloppy punches. Ryder connects with a mule kick out of no where and sends Disco crashing and burning.. Dropkick connects to the BUTT of the jaw and Disco goes down. Ryder tags out to Brian Kendrick. R & S Connection hook up Disco, then hit a double suplex. Lightning kick by Kendrick on Disco. Back heel kick off the second rope, Disco goes down. Kendrick tags out to J.R. Ryder. Disco Inferno is all alone...Raw Smack!! 1....2....3! My Opinion: I'll give it a **1\2 rating, but that's because I didn't mark out once...but nothing was too bad. Tenay: Our great Tag Team Champions put Disco and Whitmer in their place tonight with a successful title defense! Snow: Yes, I’m starting to wonder if Kendrick and Ryder will EVER lose the tag titles. It is easy to forget that Ryder is really a Smackdown superstar! Winners at 7:19 and STILL World Tag Team Champions: The R&S Connection Shawn Michaels vs Adam Hastey Match Background: This is a “clean match.” Basically, if Adam Hastey can wrestle the match without cheating, his tag partner, Austin Lee will return from suspension. If Hastey pulls out any dirty tricks, Michaels will never bring Lee back and he will have to sit out the rest of his contract at home. The Match: Shawn Michaels gets a huge pop and dances around the ring. Hastey comes out to some disappointing heat. Michaels has Lillian Garcia restate the stipulations of the match, just to remind Hastey of what happens if he tries anything foolish. Hastey is impatient to begin, and once the bell rings he gets into Michael’s face. HBK simply slaps the taste out of Hastey’s mouth, which enrages him. Hastey goes for a right hand, but HBK blocks it and returns the favor. Hastey, being the slow learner that he is, goes for another right hand and is once again blocked. HBK lands some hard lefts of his own and suplexes Hastey. Hastey rolls out of the ring and grabs a steel chair. HBK, seeing the chair, points to the titantron. On the screen is Ryder, Kendrick, and Bryan Danielson. They are holding up what appears to be Austin Lee’s contract. Hastey angrily throws the chair to the ground and reenters the ring. HBK goes for a flying elbow, but Hastey moves and manages to comeback with some punches of his own, establishing a mini-comeback. With HBK down, Adam Hastey goes to the top rope for his sky high legdrop! Unfortunately, HBK moves out of the way and locks on the figure four! Hastey is in agony, but surprisingly is able to reverse the move onto HBK. Rather than break the hold, HBK holds on and flips Hastey over to put the pressure back on him. Hastey is in complete torture and taps out, giving the victory to HBK! HBK begins dancing about the ring, when suddenly Austin Lee jumps over the barricade with a baseball bat! Lee connects with the bat over the head of HBK and lands another shot at his ribs. Kendrick, Ryder, and Danielson rush out to make the save, but Lee just flees. He embraces with Hastey outside the ring and the evil duo triumphantly make their way up the ramp. Danielson checks on HBK as Ryder and Kendrick threaten Hastey and Lee. My Opinion: This match gets two stars from me. Nothing more, nothing less. ** Tenay: Austin Lee gets his suspension dropped and attacks our General Manager seconds later! This is despicable behavior from those two degenerates! Snow: I wouldn’t be surprised if HBK just goes and fires both of them on the spot! Winner at 5:10: Shawn Michaels Women’s Championship: Victoria © vs Taylor Matheny Match Background: This match is for the WWF Womens title. Victoria has been WWF Womens champion since 25 September 2006. Stevie Richards has been barred from ringside due to his constant interference in Victoria’s matches, and to assumably heal from a low blow delivered by Taylor on the last episode of Raw. The Match: Victoria and Taylor lock eyes and glare at each other. Victoria makes a comment that Taylor does not deserve a shot at her title, so this will be an easy victory. The two women collide and spend the first few minutes of the match trying to out grapple each other. Victoria mostly concentrates her attacks on Taylor’s left arm until it is too weak for Taylor to successfully grapple with Victoria anymore. Taylor instead choose to brawl with her right arm. Several stiff shots later has Victoria on the defense. Taylor goes for patented Complex Math finisher, but she is too injured from Victoria’s offense from earlier that Victoria escapes the move relatively easily. Victoria goes for a vertical suplex and lands it perfectly. She goes for a cover and only gets a 2. Taylor gets back up and kicks Victoria a few times, this leads to them spilling out of the ring. The two women are fighting up the ramp until they are right at the entrance to the arena. Suddenly, Stevie Richards appears out of no where and lifts clotheslines Taylor! The referee is disqualifying Victoria! She does not care though, as she retains her title. The bizarre couple exit, while an EMT checks on Taylor. My Opinion: All it gets is a *** rating from me. Deal with it. Tenay: That sick Stevie Richards helped Victoria save her championship yet again! Snow: Well, he was barred from ringside, but when the action left the ringside area he was ready to strike! Winner by DQ at 9:58: Taylor Matheny Randy Orton vs John Jeter (with Trish Stratus) Match Background: Orton and Jeter teamed up at Survivor Series to face the Beautiful People. After losing that match, blame was exchanged between the two good guys and HBK signed them for a match at Vengeance to settle their differences. The anticipation of this match did more harm than good, as Orton went from not helping Jeter while he was under attack to attacking Jeter himself. The Match: The crowd downright does not like Orton now. Jeter gets a good pop, since he has Trish Stratus with him. Mike Tenay puts over both men as still being young and having the potential to do big things in 2007. Both guys are still in their 20’s, so it could happen! Orton starts the action off with a side-headlock, which Jeter reverses and locks in one of his own. The two men go through a series of fast-paced exchanges, which really sucks the audience into the action. Trish is at ringside, cheering on Jeter, but is a bit worried when The Beautiful People show up on the stage. Christian, Test, and Chris Chetti are watching the match very attentively, as Mike Tenay brings up how several weeks ago they came to Orton about him joining the group. At that point in time, Orton decisively turned down the offer, but a lot has changed since then. Meanwhile, Orton has slowed the match down to his trademark rest hold fest. He’s locked himself to Jeter’s head and both men are laying in the ring. The crowd actually claps on Jeter to escape, but dies down when they see that he is not showing any signs of life. The referee begins to raise Jeter’s arm to see if he will respond, and he does on the third try! Jeter then “hulks up” and escapes from the hold. Christian and Test seem to be taking down notes from the entrance ramp now and Tenay wishes they would go away. Meanwhile in the ring, Jeter lands his patented flying spin kick and down goes Orton. Jeter covers Orton for a 2, which totally discredits a move that Jeter is trying to establish as his finisher. It’s Orton’s turn to “hulk up” and both men are trading blows once again. Randy Orton unleashes an RKO out of now where and goes for the cover. 1….2…… NO! That was really a 2.999999, and Orton is outraged. He is so outraged that he lifts Jeter up again and delivers yet another RKO! Orton covers Jeter again and gets the pinfall. Orton has defeated Jeter. My Opinion: Some blown spots really drag this match down a notch, so its ***1\2 for you. Orton makes his way up the ramp, where the Beautiful People are waiting. Christian extends his hand, as he invites Orton to join their group again. It looks as if Orton is going to accept the invite until he tosses Christian off the stage and onto a table nearby. Test and Chris Chetti simply back off rather than attack him, so Orton just arrogantly walks by them. Winner at 16:21: Randy Orton Intercontinental Championship: Matt Stryker © vs Frank Shamrock Match Background: This match is for the WWF Intercontinental title. Matt Stryker has been WWF Intercontinental champion since 30 October 2006. Frank Shamrock earned this shot by winning a small tournament on Heat. He pinned Ozzy Benton and Rico to make here tonight. Shamrock was also victim to a 3 on 1 beat-down on Raw this past week when Matt Stryker, Matt Hardy, and Randy Orton participated in beating him down. The Match: Matt Stryker is out by himself. He has the IC belt over his shoulder and looks reluctant to hand it over to the referee. Tenay mentions that Stryker has hardly defended the belt since winning it back in October, so this is a big thing for him tonight. Just like in the tag match on Raw, Shamrock begins by destroying Stryker. There is nothing Stryker can seemingly do to reverse the flow of the match as Shamrock uses his ultimate fighting experience to floor Stryker and immediately go for an armbar. Shamrock is threatening to break Stryker’s arm if he does not tap out, but Stryker somehow escapes the hold. Shamrock’s temper is building up too much and it makes him vulnerable, as he walks right into a Stryker Driver! Stryker goes for a cover and it’s 1…..2….. NO! Matt Stryker nearly pinned Shamrock within a few minutes! With the advantage finally in his favor, Stryker goes to work on the arms of Shamrock, to try and limit the submission holds that Shamrock can go for. Stryker twists Shamrock’s arms behind him and uses such a ferocity that it’s amazing Shamrock doesn’t suffer any broken bones. But in the end, Shamrock is a former ultimate fighter and he comes back and flattens Stryker with a sickening belly to belly suplex. Stryker is knocked loopy and Shamrock, hurt arm and all, locks in a cross armlock! Stryker is doing everything he can to avoid tapping out, but he makes it to the ropes once again. Shamrock is enraged now and pulls Stryker out to the middle of the ring and locks in a guillotine choke! Stryker is fading and fading until finally it is established that Stryker is too weak to tap. Shamrock covers Stryker and 1….2…..3! Frank Shamrock wins the match! My Opinion: Consider yourself lucky, a ****1\4 is hard to get and it was earned every step of the way. Let's see if you can do better now. Tenay: Frank Shamrock decisively won this match! Snow: Matt Stryker put up a hell of a fight though, I would not be surprised to see Stryker regain the belt in the future. Shamrock proudly poses with his new belt and exits the arena. Winner at 14:56 and NEW Intercontinental Champion: Frank Shamrock The Open Challenge Matt Hardy makes his way to the ring, and he looks very pleased with himself. Hardy: As you all know, I have made an open challenge tonight! Any one guy in that locker-room who is not scheduled to wrestle may come out right now and challenge me! If no one comes, I will be the winner by default and this referee will award me the match and I shall have an official victory. So anyone care to respond? Billy Kidman’s music plays and out comes the master of the shooting star press. Hardy: Kidman! I didn’t even know you still worked here! I see you’ve been having some tough times, buddy. However, I would like to thank you for coming out here tonight. You are a former tag team champion and a former Cruiserweight champion! Beating you tonight will not only make me look good, but will be a pleasure as well. Matt Hardy Version 1.0 vs Billy Kidman Match Background: Kidman has responded to Hardy’s open challenge. The Match: Kidman strikes Hardy, which quickly changes Hardy’s mood from festive, to all about business. The former WWF Champion comes back with a strike of his own. It’s on now, Kidman and Hardy grapple and try to establish dominance. Hardy wins this exchange and slams Kidman to the mat. The next few minutes is all Hardy beating up Kidman, which includes shoving Kidman’s leg into the turnbuckle. Kidman regroups and pulls an enziguri out of no where! Hardy is in a stupor and falls out of the ring. While stumbling about, he looks up to see Kidman doing a shooting star press off the top rope! Kidman flies right onto Hardy and they land right at the bottom of the entrance ramp. Kidman gets up before Hardy and whips him into a ring post. Kidman goes to do this a second time, and Hardy reverses and Kidman hits a post with a sickening thud. Hardy rolls Kidman back into the ring and waits for him to stand up. Kidman does and Hardy goes for a Twist of Fate. Kidman reverses it and DDT’s Hardy onto the mat. Kidman goes up to the top rope once more and delivers another shooting star press! Kidman covers Hardy and 1….2…3! Matt Hardy has lost his open challenge match! My Opinion: Nothing offensive, but nothing too special either. **1\2 rating. Tenay: Once again, Matt Hardy’s overwhelming arrogance has caught up with him! Snow: It’s back to the drawing board for Matt Hardy. Winner at 13:45: Billy Kidman CM Punk vs Julio Dinero (with Raven) Match Background: In 2003, CM Punk, Raven, Julio Dinero, and Alexis Laree arrived on Raw. They stood united against Evolution, which at the time consisted of Triple H, Randy Orton, and Ric Flair. From there, all three members found success, particularly CM Punk. Punk won the World Heavyweight Championship from Chris Jericho right after Summerslam 2004 and became a staple in the main event scene on Raw. Meanwhile, Julio Dinero enjoyed a reign as Intercontinental Champion, Alexis won the Women’s title, and Raven also enjoyed a brief reign as World Champion. In recent months, the Gathering had been helping Raven win his battles, especially against Christian at Summerslam 2006 and against Jeff Jarrett in September. This took CM Punk further and further away from the World Championship, which after losing it to Chris Benoit in June, Punk has been in a funk. The frustrations came to a front two weeks ago on Raw, when Punk snapped and destroyed his three former friends. This included taking a steel chair to Alexis Laree, who has been Julio’s long-term girlfriend. After that, Punk claimed that the Gathering was holding him back, and that Raven was a poor role model, having been heavily involved in drugs and a promoter of graphic violence. CM Punk enters to a chorus of boos and Mike Tenay claims those boos are justified. Punk shrugs it off and gets into the ring. He takes a microphone. Punk: So, what’s this? You all suddenly hate me now? You stupid sheep just spent the last three years chanting my name?! Now just because I have decided I don’t want to be a loser any more, suddenly I’m some sort of bad guy?! Everywhere I go all I hear is “Why, Punk, why?” I mean “Alexis was your friend too, Punk!” Yeah, Alexis was SOME FRIEND! I remember when I first met Alexis, she was so friggin’ beautiful I could have cried. She had this grace, this magic, this mystery behind her… I wanted her so badly! But there was a problem, you see, she didn’t like me… she liked Julio! So I let Julio have her, because believe me, he really really needed to get some. I figured they would have their stupid puppy love and I could have my turn with her. Things didn’t work out though, because they have been together for four fucking years now! So if you all need to know why I beat Alexis the way I did, it was because I am SICK of living my life as if I don’t mind that she and Julio became so happy together! Furthermore, I am sick of Julio and his lack of motivation! And I am sick of Raven! That’s right, Raven. You are nothing but a washed up, former alcoholic! Sure, you kicked the habit, but what about those kids you partied with? You remember them, right? After shows you would bring teenagers back with you to your locker-room, that was where you would intoxicate them! How many kids have you corrupted, Raven?!? I don’t care if this was years and year ago, you have ruined lives! I should know, because you ruined mine! The Gathering’s music plays and Julio and Raven come rushing out! The Match: This is supposed to be a one on one “no disqualifications” match between Punk and Dinero, but it quickly turns into an unofficial handicap match. Raven unleashes a barrage of hatred onto Punk, landing an evenflow DDT on Raven right in front of the referee! The ref cannot disqualify Julio, but he wants this to be a one on one match at the same time! The referee tosses Raven from the arena, which pisses the crowd off big time! However, the damage may have been done. Julio goes for a cover on CM Punk, and gets a 2 count! Punk is trying to recover from the damage that Raven left him in, as Julio is unleashing punch after punch after punch onto him. Julio kicks Punk in the stomach and lifts him up for a death valley driver. Punk slides off and lands behind Julio. Punk goes for a variation of the “unprettier” but Julio reverses that and lands a DDT of his own. Julio goes for another cover and gets another 2 count. Julio is frustrated. He leaves the ring and goes for the ring bell. He reenters the ring and tries to nail Punk with it. He misses and Punk kicks him in the gut. Punk gets the bell for himself and nails Julio with it. Punk goes for a cover, but Julio kicks out. Punk lifts Julio back up and Julio pushes him and they fall out of the ring. Now at ringside, Punk grabs the back of Julio’s head and throws him over the barricade into the audience. He follows after Julio and the two start brawling through the crowd. They go up several steps and brawl their way into the lobby. They come by a Shopzone stand and Julio throws Punk over onto the temporary counter. CM Punk goes to piledrive Julio on the counter, but Julio counters it. Julio hits Punk with the Theater of Dreams and the table snaps from the impact! Punk is out cold, but Julio needs him to be in the ring to pin him. He calls out for some EMT’s and they put CM Punk onto a stretcher. However, Julio starts to fight off the EMT’s and steals the stretcher for himself. He wheels Punk back into the arena and stops by the steps. He puts Julio over his shoulder and carries him back to the ringside area. This is exhausting for Julio, who has taken a lot of punishment himself. Punk is starting to come to as Julio drops him over the barricade. Punk faintly gets to his feet and slides into the ring willingly. Julio, now wielding a chair, begins to nail CM Punk with it in a similar fashion to how Punk beat Alexis on Raw two weeks ago. Mike Tenay cannot believe the mean streak that Julio is displaying tonight. The referee is pleading with Julio to just end the match, saying he has Punk beaten. Instead, Julio starts waving towards the entrance ramp, and out comes Raven. Snow is a bit troubled that Raven and Julio are now going to beat down a defenseless man, but his worries are put to rest when Raven takes the chair and HITS JULIO OVER THE HEAD WITH IT! The entire arena goes ballistic as Raven nails Julio with the chair over and over again, bloodying Julio in the process. Raven sets the chair up on the mat and delivers a fierce evenflow DDT to Julio on top of it! Raven drags CM Punk over Julio and 1…..2…..3! Punk wins the match. My Opinion: A ***3/4 rating! Yay! Tenay: What a war we just witnessed! And what a shocking turn of events! I would like to know what motivated Raven to do this to Julio Dinero! Raven and CM Punk are now embracing in the ring, as Raven helps Punk to his feet. Punk can hardly stand, but Raven helps him exit the ring. A different group of EMT’s come out for Julio, as Punk and Raven can be heard laughing about what they’ve done. Winner at 25:12: CM Punk World Heavyweight Championship: Chris Benoit © vs Steve Corino vs Bryan Danielson Match Background: This will be a triangle bout. This match is for the World Heavyweight title. Chris Benoit has been World Heavyweight champion since 27 June 2006. The build for this match started all the way back into September, when Bryan Danielson made his surprise debut and attacked Chris Benoit. Around this time, animosity between Corino and Benoit began to brew as their attempts at teaming up failed miserably. This lead into Survivor Series where Corino was made a temporary part of Evolution, by the requests of Benoit’s teammates Adam Hastey and Austin Lee. The four men teamed up against Bryan Danielson, Shawn Michaels, J.R. Ryder, and Brian Kendrick, with the stipulation that if Evolution lost then they would have to disband. The end came when it was down to just Danielson vs Benoit and Corino. Corino ended up walking out on Benoit, who then had to tap out to Danielson’s Cattle Mutilation technique. From there, Corino refused to reenter the ring and was counted out, thus forcing the Benoit-led Evolution to disband. From there, Danielson became the #1 Contender by winning a triple threat match against Ryder and Kendrick, while Corino earned his spot by not attacking Benoit during a tag match. However, since HBK stipulated that Corino would not get his shot if he attacked Benoit at all, Benoit took advantage of this and brutalized Corino. On the last Raw, the three competitors chose guest tag partners for a triple threat match that ended when Benoit forced Corino to tap out. The Match: This match has been building up for so long that there is a hush in the arena. Benoit, Danielson, and Corino all make their entrance and stand in separate corners of the ring. Neither of them knows who to attack first. Benoit has the World Heavyweight Championship belt around his waist, but lets the referee take it away. The bell rings and the match is underway! The three men circle each other, looking for an opening, when finally Benoit connects with a chop across the chest of Danielson. The American Dragon laughs it off and returns the favor with a vicious chop across Benoit’s. Corino, feeling left out, lands a double clothesline and both of his opponents go down. Corino lifts up Benoit’s right leg and starts kicking at it. Danielson trips Corino and locks on an armbar. Corino reaches out for the ropes and gets it. Danielson, in a surprising display of poor sportsman ship waits to the referee’s count of 4 before he releases the armbar. Benoit is now up and lands a German suplex on Danielson as soon as he is up. Benoit lets go of Danielson and lands a German on Corino as well. Benoit is feeling it as he takes turns stomping on both men until Danielson is up. Danielson grabs Benoit’s head and starts kicking away at his right leg, just as Corino had done earlier, only standing up this time. Benoit is developing a noticeable limp. Corino comes running in, but Benoit ducks and Danielson takes the clothesline. Benoit goes for another German on Corino, but Corino counters it and gives Benoit a suplex of his own. Corino goes for a sleeper and Benoit begins to fade a bit before Danielson gets back up and reverses it. Corino and Danielson lock arms and go for a test of strength, which Danielson wins and knees Corino in the gut. On belly to belly suplex later, and Danielson goes for the first cover of the match! 1…2., NO! Only a two count, as Corino gets a shoulder up. With Corino still down, Benoit locks onto the back of Danielson and does a triple German suplex spot. During this time, Corino rolls out of the ring. Benoit, once having complete the damage on Danielson, signals for the flying headbutt! Benoit goes to the top rope, but Corino jumps up and pushes him down. Corino goes to the top himself as Danielson stands up. Corino delivers a vicious double ax-handle and knocks Danielson to the floor. Corino then sets up Danielson for the Old-School Explulsion and hits the move flawlessly! Corino goes for the cover and 1…2… NO! Benoit interrupts the cover and begins to chop away at Corino again. Benoit actually attempts a sharp-shooter at one point during this exchange, but Danielson interrupts again. The three men then take a few minutes to slug away at each other. Finally the get Benoit into the corner turnbuckle. Danielson chops the life out of Benoit. Corino then visibly brags that he can do better and he chops Benoit himself, making a sound even louder than Danielson’s! Not one to be upstaged, Danielson chops Benoit again, making an even louder sound! Benoit is pissed now and he throw Danielson into the corner where he just was. Benoit then chops Danielson three times in a row which unleashes a sound that would put both Danielson’s and Corino’s to shame. Then in a moment of pure hatred, Benoit lands a brutal headbutt onto Corino which sends a loud moan across the arena (Benoit legitimately headbutted Corino). Corino blades and the action gets tense. Corino lands a second Old-School Expulsion on Benoit and goes for a cover. This one gets a 2.999999 before Benoit kicks out! Corino slams Benoit into the corner turnbuckle again and lifts Benoit to the top. He is going to do a huge back suplex to Benoit, when Danielson runs up behind him. What we’re left with is a super triple suplex as Danielson sends both Corino and Benoit to the mat with a sickening thud. The American Dragon locks the Cattle Mutilation onto Benoit and Benoit is in big trouble! Unable to get to the ropes, Benoit refuses to tap out. It has become apparent that Benoit is on the verge of passing out and has very little left in him. Danielson is in a good spot, he lets go of the hold and goes for a cover. He gets a 2.999999 before Corino interrupts it. Corino, in a bloody rage, sends Danielson over the top rope and hits another Old-School Expulsion on Benoit! Corino goes for the cover and 1…..2……3!!! Steve Corino has pinned Chris Benoit! Danielson makes it up too late and just collapses outside the ring, disbelieved that he let Corino win! My Opinion: I really shouldn't drink when I'm reviewing matches. Especially with Scotsman, I can't drink nearly as much, so I try too hard. It was either ** or ****, but I guess I'll have to compromise and say ***. Tenay: What the hell?!? This has got to be one of the biggest upsets of all time! Snow: I am truly shocked, Mike! Chris Beniot’s six month title reign has just ended! Steve Corino, covered in his own blood, is handed the World Heavyweight Championship. He then wraps the belt around his waist and spits on Benoit, who is still down on the mat. Tenay: What a display of disrespect! Steve Corino is a miserable human being and he completely let Bryan Danielson do the dirty work in this match! If you ask me, Bryan Danielson should have won the World title tonight! Snow: We’ll have to wait and see at a later date. Tonight was Steve Corino’s night. Winner at 28:30 and NEW World Heavyweight Champion: Steve Corino The show ends with Corino stumbling up the ramp, covered in blood and gold.

Smackdown! December 14th 2006 The show opens with a pre-taped segment showing a bizarre meeting in process. The event is being held in a gothic church, and Trent Acid, Sean O’Haire, JC Ice, and Scoot Andrews are all dressed up in black robes and holding the festivities. The room is filled with followers. Acid: Friends of the Acid Cult, we are entering times of great success, but heavy setbacks have cost us! Right now we need you more than ever to write to the General Manager of Smackdown, Mike Sanders, and voice your disapproval with how he has treated our members on the air! Sanders has angered our master and unless we can stop Sanders, he will take his anger out on each and every one of us! Now go forth and write to him, and demand that Trent Acid gains the respect and power he so rightfully has been given by our master! The Smackdown! theme song plays, the pyro explodes, and the fans in attendance are giddy to be there. Michael Cole and Tazz welcome us to the program and go over tonight’s card. The WWF Champion, Rhyno, will defend his title against his enforcer, Rodney Mack. Also, upstart Rob Conway will challenge the United States Champion, Paul London, in a non-title match and JC Ice, of Acid’s Cult, will challenge Jamie Noble for the Cruiserweight Championship! Paul London (with Chad Collyer) vs Rob Conway (with Simon Diamond and Ken Shamrock) Match Background: Paul London is the reigning WWF United States champion, and has been since 16 November 2006. London and his partner, Chad Collyer, have been chasing after Diamond and Shamrock’s WWF Tag Team titles for the past couple of weeks. The Match: London and Conway, to put it quite literally, tear the house down! Cole and Tazz are surprised at the in-ring gifts Conway has and he manages to have a competitive match against London. Cole reminds us that Collyer more or less squashed Conway in his debut, but it looks as if Conway is much more focused for this match. The finish comes when Ken Shamrock tries to interfere, but Collyer makes the save. One London Calling later and Conway is finished! My Opinion: Great match. I would love to see what these two could do on a pay-per-view! ****! Collyer joins London in the ring for a celebration, as Simon helps Conway to his feet. While the two of them taunt Collyer and London, Ken Shamrock sneaks up behind them and jumps Collyer. Diamond and Conway go to work on beating up London as Shamrock locks on to Collyer’s ankle and twists it back! With the damage done, Shamrock and Diamond raise their tag titles over their heads and leave the arena while Conway jumps around as if he’d won the match. Winner at 13:48: Paul London The Tag Tournament Participants Named! Mike Sanders comes out to the ring and promptly takes a microphone. Sanders: Starting next week, Smackdown will be taking on a new format! Not only will the tournament begin, but there will be changes as well! There will be a brand new set, stage, theme music, and graphics as I want to start 2007 with a newer and better Smackdown! Now if you’ll give your attention to the titantron, I will unveil the teams I have assembled for the tournament! Kurt Angle and Low Ki Ultimo Dragon and Men’s Teioh Jay and Mark Briscoe Nunzio and Kid Kash Sean O’Haire and Trent Acid Doug and Danny Basham Jimmy Rave and Nova AJ Styles and Orlando Jordan Chad Collyer and Paul London Bill DeMott and Reno Blue Meanie and Alex Arion JC Ice and Scoot Andrews Shelton Benjamin and Charlie Haas Sonjay Dutt and Funaki Simon Diamond and Ken Shamrock Frankie Kazarian and Jamie Noble With the teams being named, the music of AJ Styles plays immediately and Styles, along with Low Ki and Don Callis, comes out and joins Sanders in the ring. Styles: What the hell is wrong with you! You are teaming me with Orlando Jordan?!? Have you gone mad! I should be teamed with Low Ki! Sanders: Maybe you would be if you had not gone and annoyed me last week! Low Ki: Excuse me for interrupting, but why am I being forced to team with Kurt Angle? Couldn’t I be teamed with someone with honor? Sanders: The teams are final, you two are just going to have to deal with it. Put your personal problems on the side and just do the best you can in the tournament. Besides, remember if you win the tournament you will face your tag partner for the #1 Contendership! Callis: This is an outrage, Sanders. My clients and I will not forget this insult the next time you come to us looking for some help for your babied WWF Champion! Callis, Styles, and Low Ki leave the ring, not looking so happy. Sanders: Hold on, guys. Since you have annoyed me even more tonight, I’m going to make a tag match for later on! It will be AJ Styles and Low Ki vs Kurt Angle and Orlando Jordan! That should make things all the more pleasant when the tournament starts next week! Cole: You know something, Sanders is turning out to be a half-decent general manager! Sean O'Haire (with Trent Acid) vs Blue Meanie Match Background: O’Haire just took out Johnny Stamboli and Erik Watts over the past couple of weeks, so he is feeling pretty good about himself. The Match: This match was pretty brutal to watch, but short. The Blue Meanie could not mount much of an offense and was put away by a huge chokeslam by O’Haire. Acid did not even have to interfere. After the match, O’Haire collapsed, with the only explanation being that the “master” is done with him for now. My Opinion: Not good enough to earn an entire star. 3/4* for you. Tazz: Acid’s Cult is getting stranger by the week. Cole: They are gaining momentum though. Tonight JC Ice gets his shot at Jamie Noble, and all four members of the Cult are going to be in the tournament Sanders announced. Winner at 3:45: Sean O’Haire He Came to Play After the commercial break, Acid has Scoot Andrews out in the ring with him as they are trying to get Sean O’Haire to wake up. Suddenly some unfamiliar music plays and the arena goes dark. When the lights come up, O’Haire is suddenly bleeding from the forehead and Shashka Corbett is standing above him! Cole: That’s Shashka Corbett! He’s a young monster, and what’s he doing now? Corbett goes right to work on Andrews and Acid. He takes down Acid with a big boot and grabs Andrews. He does a brutal sit-down powerbomb (which unlike in the real WWE, has not been seen much here). Acid gets back up to his feet and walks into a brutal spine-buster from the young monster. Corbett roars and the crowd pops! Tazz: I don’t know how smart this was of Shashka Corbett! When O’Haire wakes up, he is not going to be pleased with what just went down! Kurt Angle and Orlando Jordan vs AJ Styles and Low Ki Match Background: A tournament is starting next week, in which Jordan and Styles, and Low Ki and Angle, will be forced to team up. Angle has been feuding with Shelton Benjamin since he came back to the WWF. The Match: As the match begins, Shelton Benjamin and Charlie Haas come out to do commentary. Tazz is happy to see the duo but Cole is more than disgusted. Meanwhile in the ring, Low Ki and Angle start off the match to some sensational grappling. Angle uses his amateur background to take down Low Ki, but Low Ki is so tough and durable that he fights out of all of Angle’s offense. The two of them share a brief handshake as Cole believes there could be some mutual respect between the two men. Shelton Benjamin claims that Angle respects no one and Haas just agrees with everything Shelton says. The match goes for a good 20 minutes and even involves a commercial break. Styles and Jordan clearly don’t like each other as they battle more viciously than Low Ki and Angle were. The finish comes when AJ Styles hits a Styles Clash on Jordan, but Angle rushes the ring and delivers an Angle Slam onto Styles. Jordan weakly gets an arm over Styles and 1….2…..3! Jordan pinned Styles! My Opinion: A **** rating is well deserved for the competitors in this match. This was the moment that Haas and Benjamin were waiting for, as they rush the ring and start to beat up Jordan and Angle. Low Ki looks torn on whether or not he should help, since he does not want to help someone who his friend, AJ Styles, hates, but he wants Angle to be healthy for the tournament. Low Ki’s inner turmoil ends when Jimmy Rave and Nova rush into the ring to make the save. Haas and Benjamin stroll up the ramp, happy with the statement they’ve made. Winners at 21:17: Kurt Angle and Orlando Jordan Set for Victory! Josh Matthews is standing by with Chad Collyer and Paul London. He asks them how they feel about the tournament and about the event from earlier in the evening. London: I gotta hand it to Rob Conway, he’s a hell of a wrestler. He gave me a good challenge tonight, I just think it’s a damn shame he is associated with those two goons. Collyer: Yes, it would seem that London and I did underrate Diamond and Shamrock. We set out to win the WWF Tag Team Championship to prepare for our future encounters with Rhyno, but now it would seem we could do both. We’d like to open up a challenge to Diamond and Shamrock that if we meet them in the tournament, our match will also be for the WWF Tag Team Championship! (Mike Sanders walks in). Sanders: That’s a great idea, Chad. Really, I’m with you on that one. I think it would be more interesting though, if every tournament match that Diamond and Shamrock participate in will also be for the WWF Tag Team titles! London: Let’s hope they last long enough to fight us then. Cole: What is up with Mike Sanders? More and more I find he is making good decisions! Cruiserweight Championship: Jamie Noble © vs JC Ice Match Background: This match is for the WWF Cruiserweight title. Jamie Noble has been WWF Cruiserweight champion since 28 September 2006. JC Ice and Noble have had issues ever since Survivor Series, when Ice pinned Noble in an eight-man tag match. Since then, the two have traded victories left and right, and it has brought them to tonight. The Match: JC Ice is alone tonight, since his fellow Acid Cult members were laid out by Shashka Corbett (and Sean O’Haire is still on the shelf thanks to the “master.”) Michael Cole is really excited to see this match and he is not let down. Jamie Noble and JC Ice put on a great, old-school styled cruiserweight match (and by “old-school” I mean mid-90’s WCW). The two are so evenly matched that even Tazz has to put over how impressed he is! It’s all going well until JC Ice tears the top off of a turnbuckle. Jamie Noble appears to have an advantage but JC Ice grabs him by the tights and uses the leverage to slingshot Jamie Noble face first into the exposed steel turnbuckle! JC Ice rolls up the stunned Jamie Noble: 1....2...3! How did the referee not see that? JC Ice leaves the ring and heads off down the aisle at speed. JC Ice has the victory, and isn't hanging around for Jamie Noble to look for revenge. My Opinion: Great match, it deserves every snowflake its getting. ***1\2 Cole: What a coward! JC Ice was having the match of his life until he went and cheated to win the title! Now he’s running off like a thief in the night! Tazz: What do you mean “he was having the match of his life?” JC Ice just won the Cruiserweight title, I would say this indeed WAS the match of his career! Winner at 8:50 and NEW Cruiserweight Champion: JC Ice Preparing for the Tournament Don Callis, AJ Styles, and Low Ki are in their dressing room. The mood of the room is tense. Styles (to Low Ki): I cannot believe you were actually considering helping out Kurt Angle earlier. Low Ki: Well, he IS my partner for the tournament. I would be a foolish if I wanted to enter that tournament with an injured partner. Styles: Not that it matters though, I have to ensure Jordan and I win the tournament so you might as well just quit anyways. Low Ki: What’s that? I know you want to be the WWF Champion again, but you will not look past me, my friend. Callis: Calm down, you two. I promise that everything is going to work out and hopefully you won’t have to face each other at all in the tournament. Styles: Come on, Don. You have to want me to win the title back! Callis: To be honest, I don’t care which one of you wins the title, as long as one of you does! Now leave me alone, I’m trying to read. Low Ki: AJ, you are my friend. But if we cross paths in this tournament I am going to treat you as if you are my enemy. I have too much honor to do anything else. Styles: Understood. Just remember, the feeling is mutual. Let’s not let this ruin our glorious friendship though, as this is all Mike Sander’s fault. WWF Championship: Rhyno © vs Rodney Mack Match Background: This match is for the WWF World title. Rhyno has been WWF World champion since 16 July 2006. Mike Sanders gave Rodney Mack this title shot to thank him for all the help he has given Rhyno over the past several months. In the weeks leading up to this match, the tension between Rodney and Rhyno built up to an explosion last week, after losing a match to the Basham Brothers. The Match: Rhyno proudly holds his WWF Championship over his head. He hands it the referee in a confident manner, trying to intimidate Rodney Mack. The two men are both technically heels, but the crowd is interested to see whether or not Rodney will “do the right thing.” Rhyno starts off with a series of left hands, which Rodney manages to block. Rodney unleashes with some rights and sends Rhyno to the mat. Rhyno cannot believe that Rodney Mack has picked up the advantage in the early going, so he slides out of the ring. Rodney, feeling aggressive, follows after him. Rodney begins to slam Rhyno’s head into the barricade. Rhyno counters with some stiff shots to Rodney’s ribs. Rhyno lifts Rodney up and drops him on the barricade, much to the delight of fans sitting at ringside. Rhyno briefly reenters the ring to stop the referee from counting them out, which surprises Michael Cole as he figured Rhyno would take a count-out loss, if it meant he would retain the WWF Championship. Rhyno goes to Irish Whip Rodney into the steel steps, but Rodney counters it and Rhyno collides with the steps to a sickening sound. Rhyno is now on the floor by the commentator’s desk and Rodney is in control. Rodney lifts up the steps and charges, which alarms Cole because the referee will DQ Rodney if he connects with the shot! Rhyno, sensing his peril, counters with a drop toe and Rodney falls forward, his forehead bouncing off the steps! Cole and Tazz wonder how far these two can go before the referee calls for a disqualification! Pretty far, apparently, as Rhyno begins to clear the announcer’s desk off. He shoves Rodney onto the desk and prepares to suplex him on top of it. Rodney counters the hold, but only briefly, as Rhyno tries a second time and puts Rodney Mack through the table! Amazingly, the referee still doesn’t call for the DQ, even though a table was involved. The move takes a lot out of Rhyno as well, so he has trouble getting Rodney back into the ring. Rhyno goes for a cover but only gets 2. Rhyno gets to his feet and prepares to gore Rodney whenever he stands up. Rodney is in a daze, but he narrowly steps out of the way and Rhyno ends up goring the turnbuckles! With Rhyno now in a daze, Rodney locks on the black-out and the crowd pops as it looks as if Rodney is going to win the WWF Championship! Even though he is a heel, most were assuming Rodney would lay down for Rhyno and this is a real shock to them! Rhyno is fading fast in the black-out, but Rodney loses patience too fast and turns it into a suplex. Rodney goes for a cover and gets a 2.999999 but Rhyno kicks out! No one can believe it! Rodney is beside himself, so he lifts Rhyno up, but Rhyno, out of desperation, whips Rodney off the ropes and lands a GORE!!! Rhyno goes for the cover and 1….2…..3! Rhyno retains the title! My Opinion: A brutal brawl says this match gets a ****1/4! Rhyno is excited about retaining his title. He helps Rodney Mack to his feet and offers him a hand shake. There are apparently no hard feelings here as all the animosity between them seems to have been worked off in their violent match. Rodney accepts the handshake and Mike Sanders comes out for a celebration. The crowd boos the group not breaking up, but are satisfied with the match they saw at the same time. Cole and Tazz thank us for watching and further promote the tag tournament starting next week! Winner at 17:30 and STILL WWF Champion: Rhyno

Final Vengeance Card! World Heavyweight Championship: Chris Benoit © vs Bryan Danielson vs Steve Corino Intercontinental Championship: Matt Stryker © vs Frank Shamrock No Disqualifications: CM Punk vs Julio Dinero (with Raven) "Clean Match" Shawn Michaels vs Adam Hastey Women's Championship: Victoria © vs Taylor Matheny Grudge Match: Randy Orton vs John Jeter World Tag Team Championship: The R&S Connection © vs The Sexy Beasts Open Challenge: Matt Hardy vs ???

Monday Night Raw December 11th 2006 This is the last Raw before Vengeance! Tensions are rising and there is no telling what will happen next! The pyro explodes and the fans are overjoyed to be there as Mike Tenay and Jonathan Coachman welcome us to another exciting episode of Monday Night Raw! They run down the Vengeance card, putting a great emphasis on CM Punk vs Julio Dinero, Frank Shamrock vs Matt Stryker, and Chris Benoit vs Steve Corino vs Bryan Danielson. Tenay makes a big deal out of tonight’s main event, as it will be a triple threat tag team match, with Benoit, Corino, and Danielson on different teams. Each man will name a special tag team partner, and HBK made a new stipulation last week: the partners cannot be from the active Raw roster! This means that tonight’s main event will feature three special guest stars! CM Punk vs Shannon Moore Match Background: Last week CM Punk lost his temper and turned on his long-time friends Julio Dinero, Raven, and Alexis Laree. He snapped and took out the entire group, most notably beating Alexis with a steel chair. Shannon Moore hasn’t been doing much lately, he was last seen competing in a mini-tournament on Heat for a shot at the Intercontinental title. The Match: Tenay mentions that “CM Punk has a lot of explaining to do.” Moore and Punk grapple and put on a series of reversals as they try to pick up an advantage. Punk manages to floor Moore and goes for the Devil Lock. Moore makes it to the ropes and they battle it out. Moore eventually goes for a flying crossbody, but he misses and Punk rolls him up for the cover and the win. My Opinion: All it gets is a ***1\2 rating from me. Deal with it. Coach: You know, I think I like CM Punk now. He really impressed me last week when he finally lost his patience with those losers from the Gathering. Tenay: CM Punk was absolutely sickening last week. I hope to Alexis is recovering well, and wait! Raven and Julio are here! Winner at 6:31: CM Punk The Angry Gathering Julio and Raven are still on the stage. Raven has a mic. Raven: Punk! Remember all those conversations we had about trust and loyalty? What the hell happened to you! For three years we all had each other’s backs! Yes, we had a few hard times but at the end of the day we always knew that no matter what happened that we could at least count on each other! Punk: Those are touching words, “friend.” That almost makes me forget what a fool I was to ever associate with you in the first place! Let’s face it, you do not exactly have a track record for looking out for others! Every where you have ever gone you have been about yourself and no one else! And you know what else, how could I allow myself to associate with someone who is such a bad role model! Raven, you thrive on barbaric violence and substance abuse and you have modeled this behavior for children around the world! Just think of all the lives that you have destroyed! Raven: That is crap, you asshole. I have been clean for years and yes, I treated others badly in the past, but did I ever treat you, or Julio, or Alexis like inferior? Did I ever get in your way of becoming a three time World Champion? Punk: Yeah, you helped me for a long time, but look what had become of us recently! I should be main eventing every single pay-per-view and episode of Raw! I should not be opening up the shows with you and Julio fighting your battles for you! It seems like all we do now is take out your problems, whether they be Christian, Test, Jeff Jarrett, or Mattitude 2.0! Julio: THAT DID NOT GIVE YOU THE GODDAMN RIGHT TO PUT ALEXIS IN THE HOSPITAL! Punk: Oh, pooooor Alexis. That bitch had no right being out here and she has whipped both of you. (This is the final straw, Julio and Raven charge the ring). Punk is ready for the double team, as he fights both Julio and Raven off for a few seconds until they get an advantage. Julio holds on to Punk as Raven goes for a steel chair. Raven charges with the chair, but Punk moves out of the way and Raven nails Julio with it on accident. Punk slides out of the ring, pleased with himself. Coach: CM Punk is a genius! I can’t believe it took him this long to back away from the Gathering! Tenay: I am shocked and disappointed with CM Punk! Since he came to Raw he had been a model superstar and a noble World Champion. I don’t even know what to believe anymore. All I can say is that at Vengeance, I hope Julio and Raven take full advantage of the “no disqualifications” stipulation of Julio’s match against Punk. R & S Connection vs Sexy Beasts Brian Kendrick and J.R. Ryder make their way to the ring. They are about to have a non-title match against the “Sexy Beasts” whom Coach and Tenay speculate over who it might be. Suddenly “Staying Alive” by the Bee Gees plays and Tenay is horrified at who comes out next. Tenay: Dammit, no! That’s DISCO INFERNO! Coach: And who is that with him? Tenay: Wait a moment… The other man with Disco is announced to be “BJ Whitmer.” Ryder and Kendrick look really confused. Match Background: Disco is making his debut at this show. BJ and Disco are teaming up as Sexy Beasts for the first time tonight. R & S Connection are the reigning World Tag Team champions, and have been since 25 September 2006. This is a non-title match-up. The Match: Disco is still dancing around the ring, long after his music has stopped playing. He starts the match against Ryder and Disco unloads his not so impressive arsenal of punching and kicking. Ryder out-wrestles Disco, much to the glee of the audience. Mike Tenay mentions that he had hoped he would never see Disco Inferno ever again. Disco tags in Whitmer as Ryder tags in Kendrick. The two begin to put on a great hybrid of grappling and highflying moves. The crowd begins to really get into Whitmer as he plays to them in between shots at Kendrick. Tag in to Disco, who Kendrick immediately begins to overpower. Disco low-blows Kendrick, right in front of the referee so he calls for the bell! My Opinion: **1/4 rating for this one. Scott Keith may say that it's 'Perfectly Acceptable Wrestling', but not for me, buddy. Got to work harder to impress me. Winners by DQ at 7:12: The R&S Connection The Social GM Shawn Michaels is walking through the back when he comes across CM Punk. The two men get right into each other’s face. HBK: Get out of my arena. Punk: Gladly. I’m not too happy about that match you made for me at Vengeance. I am not going to forget an insult like that. HBK: Leave now. Punk exits, assumably leaving the arena for the night. HBK goes into the lockerroom of his two protégé’s, J.R. Ryder and Brian Kendrick. Kendrick: Hey, Shawn… why did you hire Disco Inferno? HBK: I really wanted to sign BJ Whitmer, but he would not come unless I hired Disco with him. I figured we could at least have a few laughs at Disco. Kendrick: I dunno, Shawn, my genitals don’t find him all that funny after that low blow. Ryder: I have to admit though, that BJ Whitmer was awesome! I had to really work to keep up with him! HBK: Well, why don’t I give you guys the chance for some payback. At Vengeance, why don’t you defend your World Tag Team Championship against the Sexy Beasts. Ryder: I’m down with that. Kendrick: Great idea, Shawn. I vow that before Vengeance is over, my foot will collide with Disco’s ass! Mattitude 2.0 vs Randy Orton and Frank Shamrock Match Background: Matt Stryker is the reigning WWF Intercontinental champion, and has been since 30 October 2006. Orton and Shamrock used to be a regular tag team but have not been active in a while. Whether or not this will lead to them teaming up permanently again is yet to be seen. Frank Shamrock will be challenging Matt Stryker for the IC Championship at Vengeance and Randy Orton will be facing John Jeter. The Match: Randy Orton gets a mixed reaction from the fans, as some are mad at him for the way he has been treating John Jeter and Trish Stratus the past few weeks. Orton starts the match against Matt Hardy and the crowd goes mild. There are even some “boring” chants here and there as the two men fighting are heels in the eyes of the fans. Hardy tags in Stryker, and Shamrock begs for a tag so he can get his hands on the champion. Orton rejects Shamrock’s plea and claims he can win the match on his own. Stryker brings a serious fight to Orton to the point where Orton makes a tag to Shamrock anyways. Shamrock begins to beat the holy hell out of Stryker. Orton is clearly unhappy with being shown up by Shamrock, so he just grabs a steel chair and inexplicably attacks Shamrock with it. This starts a 3 on 1 assault as Orton, Hardy, and Stryker are now beating up Shamrock! John Jeter comes running down the aisle to make a save, and Jeter actually manages to throw Hardy and Stryker out of the ring, leaving him alone with Orton. The two begin to brawl, with Jeter eventually managing to hit a flying spin kick on Orton! Jeter plays to the crowd and helps Shamrock up. My Opinion: Some blown spots really drag this match down a notch, so its ***1\2 for you. No contest at 9:10. The Hunger for Unger Todd Grisham is standing by with Daffney Unger. He asks her how she feels about her match against Women’s Champion Victoria tonight and instead of answering the question, she just begins to make out with him. She stops and Grisham just looks astounded (and his glasses are on crooked). Daffney just exits. Todd: Well, good luck to Daffney in her match! Victoria (with Stevie Richards) vs Daffney Match Background: Victoria is the reigning WWF Womens champion, and has been since 25 September 2006. Victoria is defending her Women’s title against Taylor Matheny at Vengeance! The Match: Victoria and Daffney put on a pretty “by the numbers” match. There is some good psychology involved as Victoria decides to target Daffney’s previously injured left knee. Daffney mounts a comeback, but Stevie Richards trips her from outside and Victoria hits the Widow’s Peak for the pinfall. My Opinion: **1/4 for a solid match. After the match, Victoria and Stevie share a kiss and taunt Daffney. Victoria climbs onto a turnbuckle to play to the crowd's heat. Stevie stands there clapping for her, when suddenly Taylor Matheny leaps through the audience. She rolls into the ring and lowblows Stevie from behind! Taylor is gone just as fast and exits through the crowd before Victoria is even aware of what happened. Winner at 5:23: Victoria As Vengeance draws near… Adam Hastey comes out to the ring, and he is not happy. Hastey: At Vengeance, I have to wrestle the Raw General Manager Shawn Michaels in what he calls a “clean match.” He will reinstate my tag partner, Austin Lee, if and only if I wrestle the match without doing anything that he considers to be cheating. Quite frankly, I find it to be insulting that he thinks that I cannot beat him on my own merits alone! I am going to destroy him! (The music of Bryan Danielson plays, and everyone is surprised to see the #1 Contender for the World Heavyweight Championship). Danielson: I do indeed hope you are ready for Vengeance, because you are over your head as you stand now. Shawn Michaels is a legend in our business. But who are you? What have you accomplished that is so great? You are most known for sneaky baseball bat attacks and being one of the most hated men in this arena. I know for a fact that HBK will beat you at Vengeance, because that is what he does. I know this because HBK trained me. He taught me everything that I know about wrestling. I am shining proof of the excellence of Shawn Michaels. This Sunday, I will get my shot at the most prestigious prize in sports entertainment. That is something I don’t expect you will ever do, Hastey. Now that I have given you this reality check, get the hell out of my ring. My match is next. Tenay: Our huge main event is next! I wonder who Danielson chose for his partner. Commercial Break. After the break, Danielson is still in the ring. He has a microphone. Danielson: For my partner tonight, I made contact with several talented wrestlers I have worked with across the world. I then found myself a perfect team mate, who will surely do circles around Corino and will blow Benoit away with his high-flying abilities. I have chosen none other than… SUPER CRAZY! Super Crazy enters to a decent pop, as he has a cult following. Crazy and Danielson share a high-five and next plays the music of Steve Corino. Corino: Awesome choice, Bryan. Unfortunately for you I have found myself a partner so tough, so brutal, and so evil that no one will stand a chance against him. My partner tonight is none other than… THE SANDMAN! The Sandman gets a huge pop from the crowd and he breaks a beer can over his head and guzzles it to the crowd’s approval. He hands one to Corino, who guzzles his in a similar fashion. Corino and Sandman make their way to ringside and they start taunting Super Crazy and Danielson. Finally, the music of Chris Benoit plays and he comes out sporting the World Heavyweight Championship over his shoulder. Benoit makes his way to the bottom of the ramp before he makes his announcement. Benoit: You two have both made great choices, but I have both of you beat. I made a phone call to an old enemy and sometimes friend of mine. He said he would be more than happy to make a one time only appearance here tonight, so without further adieu…. CHRIS JERICHO! The roof is blown off the arena as Jericho comes out to a massive pop! Chris Jericho was last seen in early 2005, having left shortly after WrestleMania XXI! Tenay: This is unbelievable! Super Crazy, Sandman, and Chris Jericho are all here and they are all in action after this commercial break! Canadian Violence vs Bryan Danielson and Super Crazy vs Steve Corino and Sandman Match Background: This will be a triangle bout. Canadian Violence used to be a regular team, but have been inactive for a while. Whether this match will lead to a reformation as an active unit remains to be seen. Chris Benoit is the reigning World Heavyweight champion, and has been since 27 June 2006. Benoit, Corino, and Danielson are all facing each other in a triple threat match at Vengeance for the World Heavyweight Championship! The Match: Sandman and Danielson start the match off. The crowd is chanting “you tapped out” at Benoit, but they are really enjoying the Sandman! Sandman pulls another beer out of his pocket and chugs it. Danielson is patiently waiting for Sandman to get down to business, but is caught off guard when Sandman spits the beer into the eyes of Danielson! Sandman begins to punch and kick away at Danielson, as the American Dragon is temporarily blind. Sandman removes the turnbuckle cover and drops Danielson’s head right onto the exposed metal. Danielson is busted open! Sandman makes a tag to Steve Corino, who goes to work on Danielson. He locks a half-Boston crab onto Danielson and drags him out to the middle of the ring. Danielson yells in pain, but refuses to tap out. Instead, Danielson counters the move and lunges towards Super Crazy. He makes the tag and rolls out of the ring for a towel to get the alcohol and blood out of his eyes. Super Crazy jumps around and plays to the crowd, while Corino just smirks. Crazy turns around and Corino takes him down with a clothesline. Super Crazy kicks right back up and lands a spinning kick onto Corino. Crazy goes to the top rope and is able to land the Dragoncarana onto Corino! This pops the crowd big time! Corino is so caught off guard by this, he rushes to tag in Sandman, but accidentally tags in Chris Jericho! Jericho and Super Crazy get right into each other’s face, but Crazy extends his hand for a handshake. Jericho accepts it, but immediately traps Crazy into a side headlock. Y2J sends Crazy off the ropes and Jericho hits a hurracanrana of his own. The next few minutes is a series of dazzling high flying offense between Jericho and Super Crazy while Corino and Danielson regain themselves. Crazy tags in Danielson and the arena goes crazy for the possibility of Jericho and Danielson locking it up. This is when we go to a commercial. After the break, we see that Danielson and Jericho did lock up but have yet to get really started. Danielson and Jericho exchange chops, each one more brutal than the last. Danielson tries to lock Jericho into the Cattle Mutilation, but Jericho is able to avoid it, but locks Danielson into the WALLS OF JERICHO! Danielson desperately tries to make it to the ropes, as Super Crazy claps for him. Finally, not wanting to lose the match, Steve Corino breaks up the hold and the referee demands that Corino exit. Jericho, while frustrated, tags in Chris Benoit. Benoit takes advantage of Danielson being down and immediately locks in the Crippler Crossface! This time Super Crazy flies off the top rope to break it up. All six men enter the ring at once and a huge brawl breaks out. Danielson and Sandman are bleeding, and the two of them fall out of the ring while battling it all out. Super Crazy and Jericho do the same, leaving Corino alone with Benoit. Since all hell broke loose, the referee accepts Corino and Benoit as the legal men while the others are fighting. Corino goes for the Old School Expulsion, but Benoit avoids it and hits the Crippler Crossface! There is no one to save Corino as he taps out! My Opinion: Oh, look out...almost ****, but not quite. ***3/4. Tenay: That was the most damned sight I’ve witnessed in years! Coach: There was blood, guts, beer, and submission holds left and right! This, my friend, is what Monday Night Raw is all about! Jericho reenters the ring and celebrates with Chris Benoit, who proudly holds up his World title. At the last stop before Vengeance, it is Benoit who picks up the advantage. Corino rolls out of the ring, angry and embarrassed. Danielson remains on the stage, still bleeding. The stage has been set, will Chris Benoit be able to retain his World title from the relentless Bryan Danielson and the crafty Steve Corino? Winners at 23:18: Chris Benoit and Chris Jericho The show goes off the air.

Edit: This post looks funny now because I put that pic into my signature. Ah well

Thanks, man. I got the idea from HCTP for PS2.

World Heavyweight Championship: Triple H wins. IC Championship: Shelton Benjamin wins. Tag Team Championship: Eugene/Regal win. Women's Championship: Lita wins. Kane will beat Snitsky. Mohammad will beat Lawler.

Meh. I'm "100 Years" by Five For Fighting.