WWE Raw TV Main Events in 2004

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

Separated by month...

 

January

 

World Tag Team Champions Ric Flair & Batista defeated Bubba Ray & D-Von Dudley.

Intercontinental Champion Randy Orton pinned Rob Van Dam.

Goldberg won a battle royal to become the #30 entrant in the 2004 Royal Rumble, last eliminating Randy Orton.

Goldberg pinned Jonathon Coachman.

 

February

 

Shawn Michaels pinned Intercontinental Champion Randy Orton in a non-title match.

Intercontinental Champion Randy Orton defeated Rob Van Dam and Booker T in a three-way match.

Shawn Michaels pinned Chris Benoit.

Vince McMahon fought Eric Bischoff to a no-contest when Brock Lesnar interfered and attacked special referee Steve Austin.

 

March

 

World Tag Team Champions Rob Van Dam & Booker T defeated Test & Matt Hardy.

Steven Richards pinned Chris Jericho.

World Champion Chris Benoit & Shawn Michaels defeated Intercontinental Champion Randy Orton, Batista, & Ric Flair.

WWE Champion Eddie Guerrero defeated Triple H by disqualification when Christian interfered.

Shelton Benjamin pinned Triple H.

 

April

 

Kane pinned Rhyno.

World Champion Chris Benoit, Shawn Michaels, Shelton Benjamin, & Mick Foley defeated Triple H, Intercontinental Champion Randy Orton, and World Tag Team Champions Batista & Ric Flair.

World Champion Chris Benoit & Edge defeated World Tag Team Champions Batista & Ric Flair to win the titles.

World Tag Team Champions Chris Benoit & Edge defeated Ric Flair & Batista.

 

May

 

World Champion Chris Benoit pinned Shawn Michaels.

Chris Jericho defeated Christian via submission in a steel cage match.

Kane won a battle royal to become the World Title challenger at Bad Blood 2004, when Triple H was last eliminated by the interfering Shawn Michaels.

Eugene & World Champion Chris Benoit defeated Garrison Cade & Jonathon Coachman.

Eugene defeated Kane by disqualification.

 

June

 

Shawn Michaels defeated Intercontinental Champion Randy Orton by disqualification in a non-title match.

World Champion Chris Benoit, Edge, & Chris Jericho defeated Intercontinental Champion Randy Orton, Batista, & Ric Flair in an elimination match.

Eugene fought Triple H to a no-contest.

World Champion Chris Benoit defeated Kane via submission in a match where Benoit could win only by submission, and Kane could win the title via pinfall, submission, count out, or disqualification.

 

July

 

Eugene, Triple H, & Ric Flair defeated World Champion Chris Benoit & Edge in a handicap match.

World Champion Chris Benoit fought Eugene to a no-contest when Evolution interfered and brutalized both men.

Intercontinental Champion Edge pinned Randy Orton by using the ropes for leverage.

World Champion Chris Benoit defeated Triple H in a 60-Minute Iron Man Match, 4 falls to 3.

 

August

 

Randy Orton, Ric Flair, & Batista defeated World Champion Chris Benoit, Edge, & Chris Jericho.

World Champion Chris Benoit & Eugene defeated Randy Orton & Triple H by disqualification.

World Champion Randy Orton pinned Chris Benoit.

William Regal pinned Ric Flair.

Eugene pinned Triple H.

 

September

 

World Champion Randy Orton defeated Kane in a steel cage match by escaping through the door.

Randy Orton defeated World Champion Triple H, Batista, & Ric Flair by disqualification in a handicap match.

Randy Orton, Shelton Benjamin, & Chris Benoit defeated World Champion Triple H, Batista, & Ric Flair.

Batista pinned Randy Orton. Due to the pre-match stipulations, Orton's loss eliminated him from being on the ballot for a World Title match at Taboo Tuesday.

 

October

 

World Champion Triple H pinned Intercontinental Champion Chris Jericho in a Lumberjack Match.

Shawn Michaels, Chris Benoit, & Edge defeated World Champion Triple H, Batista, & Ric Flair.

Edge defeated Chris Benoit and Shawn Michaels in a three-way match.

Ric Flair pinned Randy Orton. Due to the pre-match stipulations, Randy Orton can never challenge for the World Title as long as Triple H is the champion.

 

November

 

Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho, & Maven defeated Batista & Ric Flair in a handicap match.

Chris Benoit defeated Edge by disqualification.

World Champion Triple H pinned Maven.

Chris Benoit defeated Edge in a steel cage match by escaping through the door.

World Champion Triple H Vs. Edge Vs. Chris Benoit (OFFICIAL DECISION PENDING)

 

* BONUS STATISTICS *

 

Most Main Event Wrestling Appearences on Raw:

 

Chris Benoit - 21

Randy Orton - 18

Ric Flair - 15

Triple H - 15

Batista - 13

[SamoaRowe 0]

Wow, I think I saw most of those matches. My favorites were the tag matches that Chris Benoit/Shawn Michaels/Shelton Benjamin/Edge had against Evolution. They were really exciting at the time and was the first time anything on Raw was "can't miss" in ages.

[Guest Phenom]

My favorite was Benoit/Helmsley in July. ****, easyly.

[SuperJerk 0]

Wow...Raw was actually pretty good this year. Who'd have thunk?

[Guest dreamer420]

Ironman baby. I still can't believe Benoit went over in that match.

[Guest ian.]

Benoit-Michaels from May was my favorite. Had a goodrhythm going until the end.

[Guest dreamer420]

Steven Richards pinned Chris Jericho.

 

It was pretty sweet to see Stevie go over in the main event of Raw. Even if the match was shit.

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

Look back at March. Considering a lot of the final quarter hours were spent hyping the Evolution Vs. Rock/Foley WM 20 match, as well as the "Draft" and new stars, we got the following guys in the final main event match on Raw:

 

Steven Richards?

Eddie Guerrero?

Shelton Benjamin?

Test?

Matt Hardy?

 

Weiiiird.

 

I recall Edge Vs. Orton IC Rematch being pretty sweet, the night after Vengeance. They had a crappy match on Raw before, when Orton was champ.

[BHK 0]

Ironman, because it was good and because I was there.

[CanadianChick 0]

Steven Richards pinned Chris Jericho.

 

It was pretty sweet to see Stevie go over in the main event of Raw. Even if the match was shit.

I'm not sure I'd call it a main event match. Sure, it was the last match of the night, but there was a main event interview if I'm not mistaken.

 

But yeah, Richards winning, never mind winning on Raw, is always a shock.

[Guest wildpegasus]

Benoit vs Michaels -- Showdown in the desert was my favourite for the year with Benoit vs Orton from Raw 2nd.

[AndrewTS 0]

Wow...Raw was actually pretty good this year.  Who'd have thunk?

Raw's main events this year were actually pretty good.

 

There was a LOT of shit on the rest of most of those shows.

 

(See: this past month)

 

I'd say Benoit/Michaels myself, a lot of these I don't quite remember...

[Guest LooneyTune]

Pretty much ANYTHING involving Benoit from February-Night after Summerslam.

 

The match with Michaels in May (which was the RAW with the awesome Eugene/Regal training Video), the Iron-Man vs. HHH in June, carrying a slug like Kane to as good of a TV match as possible, making Mark Henry his bitch, the return match with Orton after SSlam... I can go on really.

 

2004 > 2003 when it comes to free T.V. matches. I can't even remember 5 RAW main events last year. Only stuff that stands out are Benoit v. Brock, Brock vs. Angle, the 6-Man from June 26th (trio of Hogan, Angle, and Brock bitches) for Smackdown, and on RAW only HHH vs. HBK ending the year, and the lame-ass HBK/Jericho WM Rematch.

[Guest Real F'n Show]

Showdown in the Desert easily. It's the best TV match this year so far, even with the shitty finish.

[Tawren 0]

My favorite was Benoit/Helmsley in July. ****, easyly.

Ugh. The Iron-Man was an absolutely shitty match. Like, * tops. Directionless shit with a terrible run-in ending. Don't forget the slow-as-fuck pacing and bored crowd. Let's toss in pointless repetition (blind charges? check! wasteful brawling? CHECK!).

 

I can't believe _ANYBODY_ liked that.

[BUTT 0]

Goldberg pinned Jonathon Coachman.

WE HAVE A WINNER!

 

 

Seriously, though, Benoit-Michaels in May was awesome, except for the HHH run-in.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

It is absolutely mind boggling how many times Benoit had to face Batista and Flair.

 

World Champion Chris Benoit & Shawn Michaels defeated Intercontinental Champion Randy Orton, Batista, & Ric Flair.

 

World Champion Chris Benoit, Shawn Michaels, Shelton Benjamin, & Mick Foley defeated Triple H, Intercontinental Champion Randy Orton, and World Tag Team Champions Batista & Ric Flair.

 

World Champion Chris Benoit & Edge defeated World Tag Team Champions Batista & Ric Flair to win the titles.

 

World Tag Team Champions Chris Benoit & Edge defeated Ric Flair & Batista.

 

World Champion Chris Benoit, Edge, & Chris Jericho defeated Intercontinental Champion Randy Orton, Batista, & Ric Flair in an elimination match.

 

Randy Orton, Ric Flair, & Batista defeated World Champion Chris Benoit, Edge, & Chris Jericho.

 

Randy Orton, Shelton Benjamin, & Chris Benoit defeated World Champion Triple H, Batista, & Ric Flair.

 

Shawn Michaels, Chris Benoit, & Edge defeated World Champion Triple H, Batista, & Ric Flair.

 

Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho, & Maven defeated Batista & Ric Flair in a handicap match

 

And this is for *both* Flair and Batista - so it doesn't take into consideration the singles matches Benoit has had with both of them - AND it's only the last match on the card/main event. It is also not counting everyone in Evolution, which the HHH/Flair, Orton/Batista combinations. But boy-oh-boy, that HHH sure did put Benoit over. I mean, how could he NOT be a successful champion constantly competing against a 50+ year old and a jacked up hoss.

[LoRisk 0]

The three that I remember liking the most (can't pick just one out) are:

 

Benoit-Michaels from February

Edge-Benoit-Michaels from the night before Taboo Tuesday

Edge-Benoit-HHH from this past week

[Mole 0]

Wow...Raw was actually pretty good this year. Who'd have thunk?

Yeah, until WM ended and it went down hill.

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

There's a bunch of Benoit matches missing that weren't the last match on the card, including a tag title defense w/ Edge over Batista and Orton, and some mid-card stuff (ironically, World Title defenses).

[Guest hhheld_down]

Wow...Raw was actually pretty good this year.  Who'd have thunk?

Yeah, until WM ended and it went down hill.

i disagree, id say it started getting worse around july or shortly after bad blood

[SuperJerk 0]

Wow...Raw was actually pretty good this year.  Who'd have thunk?

Yeah, until WM ended and it went down hill.

I was referring to the TV matches from the rest of the year, too.

 

The year didn't end in March.

[Spaceman Spiff 0]

Vince McMahon fought Eric Bischoff to a no-contest when Brock Lesnar interfered and attacked special referee Steve Austin.

While the actual "match" was a joke, the ending (Lesnar appearing on Raw and F5'ing Austin) was fantastic. The camera cutting to the ring to catch Lesnar already standing behind Austin was so much better than if they showed Lesnar jumping out of the crowd to get in the ring. One of the few true "holy shit!" moments of the year.

 

Man, I miss Brock.

[ChrisMWaters 0]

I just wonder...

 

Why do I have this strange feeling in my gut that there's going to be a re-match in the very near future between McMahon and Bischoff.

 

...say, at Wrestlemania, perhaps.

[megaadvice 0]

Benoit vs HBK, showdown in the desert one. Most underrated match of the year, prehapes the last 2 or 3 years. If it had a a clean finish it would have been match of the year but still even with the finish I have it down as ****1/4.

 

I garentee if you watch it again you will be amazed in how good it was. Other good ones, the 8 man tag match before Backlash, the tags with Benoit+partner vs evolution and the first HHH vs Shelton match (all about ***-***1/2) I would rate the iron man match about **1/2-***.

[Matt Young 0]

I thought that Benoit-Michaels was overrated and the Iron Man match didn't have the same impact for me since I saw it on tape the next day. Both matches were good, though.

 

My favorite that I saw on TV may have been HHH vs. Shelton Part 1, but my overall favorite was definitely...

 

Chris Jericho, Randy Orton, and Maven vs. Batista and Ric Fliar

November 1st, Peoria, Illinois

 

That was my first ever Raw TV taping after years of house shows.

[Lord of The Curry 0]

Dudleyz vs Storm/Venis from Heat before WrestleMania was better then almost every single one of those matches listed. Holy crap RAW main events have sucked.

[The Mandarin 0]

World Champion Chris Benoit, Shawn Michaels, Shelton Benjamin, & Mick Foley defeated Triple H, Intercontinental Champion Randy Orton, and World Tag Team Champions Batista & Ric Flair.

World Champion Chris Benoit & Edge defeated World Tag Team Champions Batista & Ric Flair to win the titles.

World Tag Team Champions Chris Benoit & Edge defeated Ric Flair & Batista.

 

May

 

World Champion Chris Benoit pinned Shawn Michaels.

Chris Jericho defeated Christian via submission in a steel cage match.

Kane won a battle royal to become the World Title challenger at Bad Blood 2004, when Triple H was last eliminated by the interfering Shawn Michaels.

 

I'd say that was when Raw was at its peak. I would have included June's 40-minute Elimination Match, but the week before had the Michaels/Orton match the night of the Stanley Cup which was absolutely awful.

[Dark Age 0]

Dudleyz vs Storm/Venis from Heat before WrestleMania was better then almost every single one of those matches listed. Holy crap RAW main events have sucked.

Both Orton/Venis matches, as well as Booker/Hardy, are as good as most of these matches as well.

[Lord of The Curry 0]

World Champion Chris Benoit, Shawn Michaels, Shelton Benjamin, & Mick Foley defeated Triple H, Intercontinental Champion Randy Orton, and World Tag Team Champions Batista & Ric Flair.

World Champion Chris Benoit & Edge defeated World Tag Team Champions Batista & Ric Flair to win the titles.

World Tag Team Champions Chris Benoit & Edge defeated Ric Flair & Batista.

 

May

 

World Champion Chris Benoit pinned Shawn Michaels.

Chris Jericho defeated Christian via submission in a steel cage match.

Kane won a battle royal to become the World Title challenger at Bad Blood 2004, when Triple H was last eliminated by the interfering Shawn Michaels.

 

I'd say that was when Raw was at its peak. I would have included June's 40-minute Elimination Match, but the week before had the Michaels/Orton match the night of the Stanley Cup which was absolutely awful.

That 40 minute match was 20 minutes longer then it needed to be considering how formulaic it was. Flair probably reached his backdrop peak in that one.