Shortly after King of the Ring, the whole co-owner storyline had ended which opened the door to a new one. Vince would pretty much take himself off TV in favor of two "general managers" one for Raw and one for Smackdown. Smackdown's new general manager was Stephanie McMahon (big surprise...) but the real story was Raw's new general manager....ERIC BISCHOFF. Yes, the man who had kicked Vince's ass in the ratings for two years behind the desk of WCW was now working for Vince McMahon. In what was one of the dumbest moves in the history of professional wrestling, they had Vince and Eric hug as Eric took over as general manager. RD Reynolds over at Wrestlecrap.com (cheap plug) said the hug was pretty much the same as taking a barrel full of money and setting it on fire, and I agree. For all the incompetence over the Invasion storyline, who better to lead a second wave then Bischoff himself, the embodiment of WCW? The storyline writes itself....Bischoff declares war on the McMahons, stocks Raw with guys like Goldberg, Sting, Flair and of course guys like Benoit, Guerrero and Booker T to take on Vince and Stephanie's Smackdown squadron of HHH, The Rock, Angle, Hogan, along with Jericho, Lesnar and Cena. Imagine how much money that could have drawn...oh well. The storylines heading into Vengeance was The Rock's return to main event status, Jamie Noble vs Kidman in a cruiserweight title match, the general manager situation and a tables match on the Raw side.
JULY 21, 2002
JOE LOUIS ARENA
Detroit, Michigan
Match 1
Bubba Ray and Spike Dudley vs Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero (Elimination Tables Match)
Commentators: Michael Cole and Tazz
This tables match stems from a feud on Raw which developed over the course of the month. Benoit starts out kicking the crap out of Spike Dudley with clotheslines and a back suplex. Michael Cole says this is the first ppv match for Benoit since last year's King of the Ring. Benoit and Guerrero double team Spike in the corner before Spike reverses a hiptoss and tags in Bubba. Guerrero tags in and works over Bubba in the corner then he and Chris double team him. Chris and Eddie make frequent tags and display some beautiful offense before Eddie hits a dropkick to the knee. Benoit tags in and continues to wear down Bubba before Dudley nails Guerrero off the apron with a clothesline intended for Benoit. Chris hits the german suplex and puts the boots to Bubba, then tags in Eddie once again. More double teaming ensues and Eddie hops over the rope and hotshots Bubba on the second rope. Eddie goes to the eyes and then he and Benoit double team some more before Spike gets in to break it up. Benoit hits a huge back bodydrop and Benoit continues to work him over in the corner. Bubba finally rallies but Benoit stops the momentum with a hard irish whip into the corner. Benoit hits another one then knocks Spike off the apron as Eddie gets in the ring to put the boots to Bubba. Remember this is a tables match so I dunno why Eddie doesn't just stay in the ring since there are no DQ's. Benoit orders Eddie to get a table and when Guerrero sets it up, Benoit drops a mean elbow on Bubba. Out of nowhere Spike ducks under a Benoit clothesline, hops over Bubba and hits a sommersault plancha on Guerrero outside the ring. Benoit goes outside and works over Spike before throwing him into the steel steps. Bubba rallies but Eddie trips him up when bouncing off the ropes, allowing Benoit to drop another elbow. Eddie slides another table in the ring then fires away at Bubba with right hands as Benoit sets the table up. They prop Bubba on the second rope but Spike moves the table at the last second. After the suplex Spike works over both Benoit and Guerrero until Benoit chops Spike down. Eddie goes outside and slides yet another table into the ring. Benoit hits a gutwrench stomach breaker on Spike then sets the table up in the corner. Guerrero and Benoit pound Spike in the corner and whip him into the table but Bubba tackles Spike at the last second preventing him from going through it. The Dudleys rally and Bubba backdrops both Radicalz then Spike jumps off the top rope onto Benoit. Bubba hits the Dusty Rhodes combo on Eddie as Spike goes upstairs......then does the wazzzzzup headbutt. Bubba tells Spike to get the tables but he's intercepted by Benoit who locks him in the crossface. Spike taps but since there's no submissions it means nothing. Bubba hits a samoan drop on Chris then sets up the corner table then rams Benoit's head into it. Bubba sets Chris up but Benoit moves and Bubba crashes into the table....but referee Jack Doane hits the ring and says that Bubba's still in the match because neither Radical put him through it. Guerrero goes back to work on Spike but Dudley hits a head scissors to counter that, then Benoit misses a charge and takes Guerrero with him over the top rope to the floor. Spike tries to revive Bubba to no avail then Guerrero catches him and goes to suplex him from the ring to the table on the floor....but Spike gets out of it and hits the Acid Drop through the table, eliminating Guerrero. Benoit rolls Spike in then rolls a table into the ring, then counters an acid drop attempt and press slams Spike over the top rope through the table below eliminating him. We're down to Bubba and Benoit and Chris sets up another table in the middle of the ring. Bubba counters a german suplex and hits the bubba bomb on Chris through the table to win the match. Both Chris and Eddie look like they've been run over by a freight train as the Dudleys catch their breath inside the ring. Bad match by wrestling standards but ok for a tables match, welcome back Benoit.
Time of Match: 14:59
Winners: Bubba Ray and Spike Dudley
The next segment shows Jonathan Coachman interviewing a smiling Eric Bischoff....good grief. The purpose of this was to hype the upcoming free agent signing of HHH, then Bischoff conveniently spots him then runs up to get a word in. Eric tries to butter up to him but scoffs at HHH for negotiating with Stephanie for a Smackdown deal. Coach says he's gonna stick around with Eric to see what HHH does as we head back to ringside.
Match 2
Billy Kidman vs Jamie Noble (with Nidia) for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship
Commentators: Michael Cole and Tazz
Kidman had beaten Tajiri in a number one contenders match the week prior and after the match, Noble, Nidia and Tajiri put the boots to Billy to set up this match. Right off the bat they roll around before Jamie opens up with boots to the midsection. Kidman counters with a roll up, backslide and victory roll all for near falls before Jamie goes outside and screams. Nidia calms him down and back inside Jamie goes on offense before Kidman stops that with a flying head scissors. Noble heads onto the ring apron and hits a shoulder block, but Kidman counters the second attempt with a leg drop. Noble crumples to the floor and Kidman goes for a plancha then stops himself on the floor. Noble ducks under a clothesline and throws Nida into Billy distracting Kidman long enough for Jamie to hit a one-arm ddt on the floor. Noble then lawndarts Kidman into the ringpost before rolling Billy back inside. Noble hits a nothern lights suplex for a near fall and locks in a resthold. Kidman powers out of it and goes for a Sky High but his now injured shoulder prevents him from hitting it, so Noble throws him into the ringpost. Jamie tees off with an arm bar before Kidman counters with a clothesline and right hands, before finishing with a frankensteiner. Kidman goes on offense and hits a samoan neckbreaker for a near fall as Nidia gets nervous on the outside. Kidman whips Noble into the corner as Michael Cole hypes the WWE debut of REY.,...MYSTERIOOOOOO...JR! Yup, one of the most popular stars in WCW finally signed a WWE contract and will bring a lot of credentials to the cruiserweight division. Noble hits a jumping arm-breaker and a fujiwara armbar before Kidman makes it to the bottom rope. Kidman counters the powerbomb attempt with an x-factor for 1...2...noooo, Noble kicks out at 2. Kidman hits an enziguiri that catches Jamie in the lower back rather than the head and Tazz calls him on it. Kidman rolls Noble in the corner then goes upstairs but Noble scampers away before Kidman can hit the shooting star press. Noble goes upstairs and Kidman hits the sky high from the top rope and covers for 1....2..NOOOOO, wow. Nidia goes crazy outside as Kidman wonders how Noble kicked out. Kidman goes for a tornado ddt but Jamie stops him and places Billy on the ring apron, where Billy snaps him throat first off the top rope, Kidman goes upstairs but misses the shooting star press, Noble pounces and covers for 1..2..nope, near fall. Noble and Kidman exchange switches and counters before Jamie locks in the tiger driver and hits it for the 1....2.....3 to win the match and retain the title. Nida gets in the ring and pounces on Jamie just like last month as Cole shills Kidman's never-say-die attitude. The blown enziguiri irked me but the rest of the match was fine, better than a Bushwhackers match any day of the week.
Time of match: 7:34
Winner: Jamie Noble by pinfall (Still Cruiserweight champion)
The next segment is Dorkus Malorkus interviewing Kurt Angle about his upcoming triple threat match for the WWE Championship. Kurt Angle says he's gonna make either The Rock or Undertaker tap....then he's cut off by Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar. Brock and Kurt stare each other down and this would be the start of what would become one of the best feuds in the modern era...well for a year anyway. Kurt and Brock shake hands as Kurt says he'd love to face Brock at Summerslam for the title but he better not screw him out of the match that night or else. Brock walks off and we head to the next match
Match 3
William Regal vs Jeff Hardy for the WWE European Championship
Commentators: Michael Cole and Tazz
Since Insurrexion, William Regal had regained the European title only to lose it to Jeff Hardy two weeks earlier on Raw. Highlights show after William lost the match he then cried as Michael Cole scoffs. They lock up but Regal gets the early advantage with counter moves and shoulderblocks. Regal counters a sunset flip attempt with a shot to the back of the neck, Jeff charges but eats boot but Regal misses the knee-drop attempt. Jeff goes to work on the knee then takes William down with a chinbreaker but the cover only gets 2. Jeff slingshots William from the ring over the top rope to the floor. Jeff then turns a baseball slide into frankensteiner. Jeff hops up on the barricade and dives off but Regal wisely ducks as Hardy crashes to the floor. Regal rolls him inside and covers but only gets a deuce as Michael Cole brings up the surprisingly good ladder match between Hardy and Undertaker on Raw for the WWE title. Jeff then hits whisper in the wind as referee Nick Patrick makes a funny face. Jeff rolls under William and hits a spin kick followed by his spread-eagle legdrop. Jeff goes upstairs but Regal gets the knees up to block the swanton bomb attempt, then hits a half-nelson backdrop. Regal hits a backbreaker and punts him in the back of the neck. Jeff rolls through an armbar and rolls up Regal for 1...2...three?? Yes, Jeff Hardy wins the match and Cole/Tazz can't believe it. Regal cries again as I'm shocked they ended the match this way, short and sweet I guess.
Time of Match: 4:16
Winner: Jeff Hardy by pinfall (Still European champion)
The next segment is Ric Flair and Hulk Hogan congratulating Jeff Hardy then talk about how the "young guys" like Jeff and Edge are going to get caught up in the power struggle between Stephanie McMahon and Eric Bischoff. Talk about the pots calling the kettle black, but Flair says that Bischoff would run Stephanie out of business.....sometimes I wish that was happened, on to the next match
Match 4
Chris Jericho vs John Cena
Commentators: Michael Cole and Tazz
It is the ppv debut of OVW star "Prototype"......now known as John Cena. Cena makes his entrance as Jericho grabs a steel chair and swings at Cena but misses. Cena picks up the chair and waffles Jericho with it as Cole says since the bell hasn't rung, its legal. Cena rolls him in the ring and the bell rings as John pounds away at a fallen Jericho. Cena hits 2 corner whips and a clothesline before Jericho slides out of the ring to re-group. Jericho gets back in as John does rookie offense before hitting a spinebuster for a 2 count. Cena swings and misses then Jericho hot-shots him on the top rope. Jericho puts the boots to Cena and hits a back suplex to slow the momentum. Referee Mike Chioda admonishes Jericho for choking Cena on the second rope, then Y2J attempts to expose the steel turnbuckle before Mike stops him. Jericho says "I'm king of the world" as Cena rolls him up for 1--2-noooo. Jericho hits a spinning heel kick then taunts Cena in between hitting right hands and chops in the corner. Jericho hits Break Down (facebuster that pinned RVD at last year's Survivor Series) but doesn't cover. Jericho goes upstairs and again says "I'm the king of the world" but Cena makes Jericho pay for his cockiness with a superplex. The cover..1....2 and..no, kicks out at 2. Cole says if Cena gets a pin it would be a major upset as John hits a tilt-a-whirl slam the covers for a near fall. Jericho climbs the second rope and counters Cena's stinger splash attempt with a dropkick then covers for 1...2..nooooo, Cena kicked out as Jericho chops away. Cena counters a frankensteiner and slingshots Chris into the corner but Jericho is able to catch himself on the second rope. Jericho goes for a bodypress but Cena catches him and hits a BtB suplex then covers for 1,,,2,,,,nope, Y2J kicked out. Cena misses a dropkick but then Jericho misses the lionsault. Cena goes for the oklahoma roll but Jericho hooks the leg for the 1..2..NOOOO, wow I remember thinking that was the finish when I first saw the match. Jericho hits the headlock takedown and uses the ropes for leverage but Cena still kicks out. Jericho hits the one armed bulldog and the lionsault, but Jericho doesn't cover. He then goes for the Walls of Jericho but Cena turns it into a small package for 1...2..THREE that's it, Cena wins it! Cena quickly runs out of the ring and to the back as Jericho can't believe it. That was shockingly a great match with no rest-holds or blown spots, most of the credit goes to Jericho but Cena held is own. After the match Jericho grabs a chair and whacks the ring-post with it a bunch of times, shades of his WCW days.
Time of Match: 6:21
Winner: John Cena by pinfall
The next segment is Eric Bischoff and Jonathan Coachman waiting outside Stephanie's office waiting for HHH to make his decision. Then Steph's lawyer shows up and says he has documents for the couple as Bischoff gets nervous. Back at ringside Michael Cole and Tazz turn things over to JR and King.. This would be the start of several ideas of how to work the commentating teams together. We then go backstage to see Lesnar and Van Dam training in the back to hype their upcoming showdown. Lesnar had won KOTR and during the coronation the next night on Raw, Van Dam proceeded to hit the van terminator on Heyman, which was hilarious to see.
Match 5
Brock Lesnar (with Paul Heyman) vs Rob Van Dam for the WWE Intercontinental Championship
Commentators: Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler
The rematch of the King of the Ring finals will be for Van Dam's IC title, which doesn't make any sense at all since Lesnar had a WWE title match the next month at Summerslam. JR says a lot of people are afraid of Brock by Rob isn't one of them. Lesnar throws the belt at Van Dam as if to say, "I got better things in my future" Van Dam starts off with right hands before Lesnar counters with a Spicolli Driver...which Rob doesn't sell at all. Brock throws him into the corner, but Rob comes back with karate kicks to stagger the big man. Lesnar chargers but Van Dam flips over and hits a drop toe hold in the adjacent corner. Lesnar regroups with Heyman outside the ring and he kicks the steps over in the process. Lesnar hits a shoulder block on the apron but back inside Rob goes to the leg kicks to take the big man off his feet. Van Dam hits 2 well placed dropkicks to knock Lesnar down but Brock counters a bulldog by heaving Rob halfway across the ring. Brock whips Rob into the rope but Van Dam ducks a charge sending Lesnar flying over the top rope to the floor. Rob tries a plancha but Brock catches him mid air, but Rob slides out of his grip and throws Brock into the ringpost. Rob hops up to the ring apron and moonsaults but Lesnar catches him and and hits a running powerslam on the floor. Heyman laughs as Lesnar puts the boots to him and tosses him inside. Lesnar hits a backbreaker and continues to put the boots to Rob as JR says RVD is in his home-state. Brock hits another backbreaker as JR brings up his dominance of the NCAA (but fails to mention how he lost to Patriots O-Lineman Stephen Neal). Brock hits a BtB but Rob counters later on with a step-over heel kick. Paul "That hadda hurt!" Rob kicks Brock in the head as Paul says "Oh my God!" like Joey Styles. Brock whips Rob into the corner, the charge eats boot, Brock ducks under a moonsault but when Rob goes for the monkey flip, Brock throws him over his head to the floor, landing on the steel steps in the process....ouch. Brock rams Rob backfirst into the side of the ring before tossing him into the steel steps. Brock locks in a bearhug and drives him into the corner. Brock rams Rob spine first into the turnbuckle and locks in an abdominal stretch. Brock misses a charge in the corner so Rob does his shoulderblocks before hitting a second rope dropkick. Rob hits a dropkick to the temple then does a springboard legdrop while Brock was on the apron. Van Dam goes upstairs and hits a dropkick and rolling thunder, but the cover only gets 2. Rob scores with a superkick and goes upstairs but Brock catches him in midair and goes for the F-5, which Van Dam counters with a ddt. Rob goes back upstairs and hits the 5 star frog splash and covers for 1...2...noooo Paul Heyman pulls the ref out as JR calls him a "bald headed bastard" Referee Charles Robinson calls for the bell and this one's over. Robinson shoves Heyman on the outside and Van Dam hits a baseball slide knocking Heyman to the ground. Charles Robinson then beats on Heyman as the crowd and JR are loving it. Lesnar knocks Rob to the ground inside then goes outside and heaves Robinson off of Paul. Rob goes upstairs and hits a sommersault off the top rope and rolls Brock inside. Rob hits another superkick, goes outside and gets a chair....signalling for the Van Terminator. Rob goes up top but Heyman grabs the leg at the last second. Lesnar hits a suplex on the chair and then F-5's him on it. Rob wins the battle but Lesnar wins the war, awesome match and Robinson beating up Heyman was HILARIOUS. Brock moves on to Summerslam to face the champion.
Time of match: 9:38
Winner: Rob Van Dam by disqualification (still IC champion)
The next segment is Bischoff and Coachman still waiting until Stephanie finally comes out. Bischoff gloats until Stephanie says "He signed" then his jaw drops. She walks away as HHH comes out and Bischoff says "What in the hell did you just do?" HHH "Listen you ass, those papers I signed, they were my divorce papers!" Bischoff says quietly after Hunter leaves, "He's mine, just watch."
Match 6
Big Show vs Booker T in a Street Fight
Commentators: Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler
This match stems from a match on Raw where Big Show hit Booker with a chair and chokeslamed him through a table. Booker starts off on offense but Big Show catches the axe-kick attempt and slams him down. Show works him over in the corner and tosses Booker halfway across the ring. Booker rallies but Show headbutts him down then walks across the back. Booker goes back to the kicks then hits an enziguiri but Show clotheslines him down. Show openhanded chops Booker in the corner then clotheslines him over the top rope to the floor. Booker grabs a chair but Show punches it away and headbutts Booker. Show shoves the steel steps out of the way and rams Booker into the ring post. Show chargers and splashes Booker into the post but Booker moves out of the way of the second charge. Booker rams Show's head into the ring post a bunch of times so show throws him into the cameraman. Booker grabs a camera wire and strangles Show and they brawl into the spanish announce table causing Carlos Cabrera and Hugo Sevenivich to head for the hills. King "Undle guys, undle!" Booker grabs one of the tv monitors and waffles Show with it as Cabrera hides behind Lawler. Booker then jumps from the american announce table and hits the axe kick through the spanish announce table on Big Show...BRILLIANT! After about a minute Booker crawls away as the crowd starts a Booker T chant going. T rolls inside as Big Show finally stands up and rolls in the ring. Cabrera and Hugo sit back down as Booker unloads with fists and boots and a low blow. Booker hits the scissors kick then goes up top and hits the Harlem Hangover and covers for 1...2...3 to win the match. That was awesome, didn't go too long and it featured some great spots. Booker does the spinnaroonie after the match and celebrates.
Time of match: 6:12
Winner: Booker T by pinfall
The next sgement is over at The World where Dawn Marie and Torrie Wilson take shots at each other and Dawn Marie is jealous over losing to Torrie in the Golden Thong contest.....now back to ringside where HHH comes out to make his decision to join Raw or Smackdown. Eric Bischoff makes his way out and apologizes for the intrusion earlier and saying that if he stays on Smackdown he'd have to put up with Stephanie and The Rock stealing his thunder, and that on Raw his star would shine alone. Stephanie then makes her way out to ringside and says that when they were together they were unstoppable and as Stephanie goes for a sob story, Bischoff cuts her off (Thank christ). Stephanie then shoots saying that when HHH was first in WCW, Bischoff said he had no charisma (which is a true story, Eric thought HHH would be nothing more than a tag teamer). HHH finally gets on the mic and says he's stuck in the middle between an arrogant prick (Bischoff) and a cold hearted bitch (Stephanie). HHH says "I could say screw you to you Eric, but I'm sure you wouldn't like it and I could say screw you to Stephanie and I damn know she likes it". HHH then says he's about to sign with Stephanie when THE HEARTBREAK KID.......SHAWWWWWN MICHAELS hits the ring to input his 2 cents. The nWo storyline was over so Shawn needed someone else to manage so I guess HHH coming back to Raw made sense to team these two. Shawn gets on the mic and says he said he'd come to Vengeance and bring HHH home to Raw. The crowd starts a small DX chant going as Shawn brings up the old days and says HHH and he should get back together to make Bischoff's life a living hell. King "What a sales pitch!" HHH says "Sorry Steph" then hugs Shawn.....meaning HHH has jumped to Raw. Bischoff then gloats in Stephanie's face and says the difference between them is that he has balls and she doesn't, so she slaps him down. We then go to the Dorkus Malorkus interviewing Rikishi about the drawbacks to HHH leaving Smackdown and Rikishi says its a great loss. We then go to the Raw locker room where Booker T and Goldust celebrate when Terri runs in causing Goldust to clam up. Terri was the real life wife of Goldust until they were divorced so that's hilarious just to see Goldust go :-O. Booker says he's gonna take on HBK and HHH then Goldust says he'll help out.
Match 7
The Un-Americans (Lance Storm and Christian) vs Hulk Hogan and Edge for the WWE Tag Team Championship
Commentators: Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler
The Un-Americans storyline was that Storm, Christian and a now heel Test were your typical anti-American gimmicks except with 9/11 less than a year earlier, it kind of hit home with the crowd. I was never in favor of the whole God Bless America crap after 9/11 and I was never a Hogan fan so back during this time period I was actualy rooting for these guys to win the titles. Lance get on the mic and says Hogan was past his prime and past his glory....can't argue logic. JR "My hero John Wayne is spinning in his grave". Apparently Billy and Chuck found a way to beat Rico and Rikishi for the tag titles, only to lose them to Hogan and Edge. Playing hot potato with the world title was bad enough, but now they were demeaning the tag titles as well. JR makes a historical error saying Edge saw Hogan at Wrestlemania 3 live in Skydome 15 years earlier....he probably was referring to Hogan/Andre at Wrestlemania 3 but was actually talking about Hogan/Warrior at Wrestlemania 6, but then he corrects himself and all is right with the world. Christian starts out with Hogan and Hulk heaves him out of the ring instantly. Back inside Chistian and Lance double team Hogan and hit a double suplex. Hogan doesn't sell it and hits a double clothesline and a noggin knocker. Hulk hits a clothesline on Storm then he and Edge fire away. Hogan slugs Lance in the corner and hits another one off an irish whip. Edge tags in and hits a pancake on Storm then tries the 10 punch in the corner until Christian knocks him off. Lance hits a jumping spin kick then tags in Christian, who puts the boots to his "brother". Christian hits a side back-breaker as JR reveal neither Hogan nor Edge are from their ring announced locations but are both residing in Tampa, Florida. Christian locks in a resthold as referee Brian Hebner trips over himself. Christian hits an inverted backbreaker then goes up to the second rope, but misses the elbow drop attempt. Christian grabs the leg to make sure Edge doesn't tag in Hogan so Edge hits an enziguiri. Storm interferes so Edge drops him down on Christian as JR brings up the 10 time Stanley Cup champion Toronto Maple Leafs.....who haven't won a Cup since 1967. Edge tags in Hogan who fends off both Lance and Christian and hits Storm with the big boot. Christian ducks under a big boot and hits a reverse ddt but the cover only gets 2. Hogan hulks up a little early but still gets a giant YOUUUU from the crowd. Storm comes back in but Hogan fends him off and hits the big boot to Christian followed by the legdrop of doom. Its all over 1....2....noooo Lance pulls Hogan off at the last second. Hogan knocks Lance out of the ring but Christian hits an eye rake staggering Hogan into Lance, who snaps him off the top rope. Christian throws Hogan outside where Lance hits the superkick. Christian rolls Hogan in and mounted punches before tagging in Lance. Lance and Christian make frequent tags and isolate Hogan for a while with offensive moves, but eventually Hogan nails Christian and double clotheslines with Lance. Hogan tags in Edge who cleans house and hits a back bodydrop on both of them. Edge hits a spear into the corner to both of them and hits the Edge-O-Matic on Lance for 1--2--nope, Christian breaks up the count. Hogan comes in and cleans out Christian as Edge calls for the spear......and proceeds to spear Brian Hebner as Lance jumped over the attempt. Edge counters the superkick with Edgecution but Hebner's out of it. All of a sudden Test hits ringside and wipes out Hogan, then hits Edge with the big boot. Lance crawls over and covers for 1...2....NOOOO Edge kicks out. Test can't believe it and then RIKISHI hits ringside and clocks Test to the ground. Rikishi and Test brawl to the back as Edge counters Storm's suplex attempt with a spear. Christian climbs up to the apron where Edge and Hogan both knock him off. All of a sudden Chris Jericho appears out of nowhere and clocks Edge in the head with a tag title belt and Storm covers for the 1.....2....3 to win the match and the titles. The anti-americans are now the tag champs thanks to Jericho, but it should be pointed out Jericho never actually joined the group while helping them out all the time much like Bret Hart didn't join the nWo in WCW from 97-99. JR scoffs but we got new tag champions...maybe they'll hold on to them for a while. Ok match but dumbed down with all the run ins and cheating.
Time of match: 10:00
Winners: The Un-Americans by pinfall (new Tag Team Champions)
The next segment is Eric Bischoff trying to recruit Kurt Angle then we cut to Stephanie's office being interviewed by Dorkus Malorkus and Stephanie says that Bischoff won the battle but she'll win the war and she'll steal their biggest star when the time is right. Back at ringside we go to JR and King who shows the highlight package for the main event.
Match 8
The Rock vs Kurt Angle vs The Undertaker for the WWE Championship
It was supposed to be The Rock vs Undertaker before Kurt Angle had a controversial draw in a title shot, so they threw Angle into the main event. The winner of this match would face Brock Lesnar in the main event at Summerslam. Rock and Undertaker stare each other down as Kurt waves his arms to get attention then shoves them both. Rock and Taker look at each other then slug Angle at the same time. They put the boots to Kurt as Taker hits a big boot. Rock clotheslines Angle out of the ring and Taker attacks Rock in the corner. Taker puts his head down so Rock rams it into the mat. Undertaker hits a flying clothesline then runs into Angle by accident, then is clotheslined over the top to the floor by Rock. Angle throws Undertaker knee first into the steps but Rock tosses Kurt inside. Angle hits a german suplex as JR shoots on the Steiner Brothers saying Kurt's the master of the suplex. Angle stomps away at The Rock in the corner and chops him as Taker is slow to rise. Rock eventually reverses Kurt and chops him in the corner, but Kurt hits an overhead BtB to quell that uprising. Kurt hits the same suplex but Rock hits his patented ddt and covers for a deuce. Rock rams Kurt's head onto the steel steps but Angle hits a clothesline but runs straight into an Undertaker clothesline. Taker looks over who he's going to attack and chooses The Rock, delivering a beatdown before tossing him in the ring. Taker works over The Rock in the corner with big right hands before Rock rallies with punches of his own before running into a sidewalk slam. A cover gets 2 and Taker knocks Angle off the ring apron and turns into a chokeslam...yes, you read it right a CHOKESLAM by The Rock. Kurt breaks up the count as King says "FINALLY Kurt is back in the match." Angle hits un-Olympic like right hands into the corner but Rock runs him over with a clothesline then applies the anklelock. Angle rolls out of it and hits the rock bottom on The Rock. Kurt covers but Taker drops a leg on him to break up the count...damn, I was hoping to see Taker do the people's elbow to break up the count. Then right on cue Taker hits the angle-slam on Angle as JR says "what the hell is this?" Taker covers but Rock breaks it up. Taker clotheslines Rock down but Rock nips up and hits his own clothesline. Kurt charges but Rock heaves him over the top rope to the floor. Rock hits a spinebuster on Taker and calls for the people's elbow and hits it, but Kurt pulls Rock out and dumps him sternum first onto the American announce table. Angle quickly rushes inside to get the pinfall but Taker kicks out at 2. Angle backs Taker in the corner with right hands before Taker counters with blows of his own and ends it with a headbutt. Taker delivers a clothesline in the corner but Kurt whips him across the ring.....then misses a charge and goes through the ropes to the outside. Taker rams Angle's head into the ringpost as Rock comes over and spits water in his eyes. Taker blocks a head-ram and throws The Rock face first onto the announce table. Taker busts Angle open and drops a leg on him on the ring apron. You can see the blood drip off Angle's head so you know it was a good blade job, and then Taker headbutts him for his troubles. Taker goes for old school and hits it then covers for 1..2...nooo The Rock breaks up the count. Rock hits a series of punches but Taker counters with a flying ddt, but the cover only gets 2. Taker calls for a chokeslam as Angle grabs a chair. Taker punches Kurt to knock the chair away and he and The Rock take turns beating up Angle. Taker blocks the rock bottom as Rock boots him in the gonads and falls on Earl Hebner. With the ref down Angle whallops Taker with the chair and hits the angle-slam on The Rock. Kurt slowly crawls and covers Taker for 1....2....NOOOOOO, Taker kicks out at 2. JR and King start shouting as Kurt covers Rock for 1..2...nope, Rock also gets the shoulder up in time. Kurt waits for Rock to get up but Rock hits his single-leg takedown followed by a sharpshooter. Before Angle can tap The Undertaker clocks Rock with a big boot. Taker hits the last ride on Rock and covers for 1...2.......nooooo, Kurt Angle applies the ankle lock on Taker and drags him off The Rock. The crowd goes nuts as Taker rolls through the ankle-lock. Undertaker goes for the last ride but Angle applies the triangle choke which is the reason the last match ended in a draw. This time however Taker picks Angle up and powerbombs him, which allows Kurt to apply it more profusely. The arm drops once.....twice....noooo, The Rock breaks it up as the arm fell. Rock sets up but Angle rolls through the rock bottom and applies the ankle-lock on The Rock. Rock rolls through it into a victory roll for a 2 count. Kurt charges but Rock ducks and Taker catches him and hits the chokeslam. Taker turns around into a rock bottom and covers for 1....2..noooo, Taker got the shoulder up as King can't believe it. Kurt rolls up Rock for a deuce and Rock runs straight into a big boot by Undertaker, then Kurt pounces and hits the angle-slam on Taker. Kurt pulls the singlet straps down but runs into the rock bottom and the cover gets 1.....2...THREEEEEE WE GOT A NEW CHAMPION! The Rock becomes the 5th new champion since Wrestlemania and moves on to face Brock Lesnar at Summerslam. A valiant effort by Undertaker and Angle plus Taker didn't get pinned to lose the title. For historical purposes, this was the 7th time The Rock won the WWE title and as it turned out, it would be the last title he'd win for over 10 years. Least the match was damn good.
Time of match: 19:35
Winner: The Rock by pinfall (new WWE Champion)
From an in ring and historical event standpoints it was a great ppv, but for whatever reason it didn't do so well on the open market. The return of Chris Benoit to active competition, HHH joining Raw, John Cena's ppv debut and The Rock's last title win in his original run were the highlights of what was a vanilla ppv. This was just pretty much a set up for Summerslam with Lesnar vs Rock, and Summerslam would pretty much be the REAL start of the modern era with debuting superstars, returning superstars and the whole General Manager storyline. They're still playing hot potato with the world title and The Rock's pinfall was the 5th title change since Wrestlemania only 4 months earlier. All in all the ring action was great for the most part but dumbing down the world title would come back to haunt them in the end. The in-ring action and the historical events were great so I give it 3 1/2 stars and recommend buying it, but good luck finding it since its not available anywhere since its been taken out of print.
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