WWE at Santander Arena (11/16/02)

Santander Arena

Reading, PA

November 16, 2002

We are one day away from Survivor Series but there's some unfinished business to get to first. The stars of Raw ventured to Reading, Pennsylvania for a Saturday house show. Its been established that Triple H was virtually unbeatable and nobody else but Shawn Michaels had a chance to beat him in the elimination chamber. Christian and Chris Jericho were still the World Tag Team Champions despite Jericho hitting him with a chair on Monday. Let's get to the action.

Match 1

Batista vs Steven Richards

Raw's newest star takes on poor Steven who was humiliated by Test this past Monday. Batista wins it with a spinebuster.

Winner: Batista by pinfall

Match 2

Victoria (with Molly Holly) vs Trish Stratus (with Jacqueline) for the WWE Women's Championship

Same match as the past week with the same results. Trish gets inside cradle, Molly pulls Victoria on top. Jackie rolls Trish on top for the 3 count to retain.

Winner: Trish by pinfall (still Women's champion)

Match 3

Al Snow vs Christopher Nowinsky

Mentor vs pupil again with the same result. Nowinsky gets the Flair Pin for the victory.

Winner: Nowinsky by pinfall

Match 4

Raven and Johnny Stamboli vs The Hurricane and D-Lo Brown

D-Lo and Raven's perpetual feud on Heat and house shows continues only they have partners this time. Hurricane pinned Stamboli after Eye of The Hurricane.

Winners: Hurricane and D-Lo by pinfall

Match 5

Kane vs William Regal

Talk about bottom of the barrel for Kane. Nothing against Regal but Kane went from Tag & IC Champ and legit threat to Triple H to a mid-card match with Regal. Kane takes it with the chokeslam.

Winner: Kane by pinfall

Match 6

Justin Credible vs Tommy Dreamer

The ECW guys go at it in this random match in Reading, Pennsylvania. Dreamer wins it with the Dreamer Driver.

Winner: Dreamer by pinfall

Match 7

Lance Storm vs Rob Van Dam

Just like Kane, Rob Van Dam goes from the main event of Unforgiven to a mid-card match with Lance Storm. Nothing against Lance, its just the state of Raw. Van Dam takes it with the five star frog splash.

Winner: RVD by pinfall

Match 8

The Dudley Boys (Spike and Bubba Ray) and Jeff Hardy vs 3 Minute Warning (Rosey and Jamal) and Rico

A preview of tomorrow night's tables match with all six men going at it here. Jamal pinned Bubba with the samoan drop to win the match.

Winners: Rosey, Jamal and Rico by pinfall

Match 9

Goldust and Booker T vs Christian and Chris Jericho for the World Tag Team Championship

Guess Christian forgives Jericho for hitting him with a chair because they team up to face Goldust and Booker. Jericho pinned Goldust after hitting him with a tag belt. The heels win to end the night.

Winners: Christian and Chris Jericho by pinfall (Still World Tag Team Champions)

Kind of a lame house show just one day before Survivor Series but that might be the point. No Triple H or Ric Flair...or Shawn Michaels for that matter. The problem with booking HHH over everyone is the rest of the roster is just filler. Still, the matches might have been interesting if you saw this live. On the exact same day of this show, the stars of Smackdown were in Baltimore, Maryland for their own Saturday house show. I'll see you there.

WWE at Giant Center (11/10/02)

Giant Center

Hershey, PA

November 10, 2002

The stars of Raw continue their Pennsylvania tour here in Hershey. We got the same exact matches from Friday and Saturday so let's get to the action.

Match 1

Johnny Stamboli and Sean O'Haire vs 3 Minute Warning (Rosey & Jamal)

WCW vs the Samoans for the second day in a row. Also for the second day in a row, the Samoans win the match.

Winners: 3 Minute Warning

Match 2

Justin Credible vs Batista

You know the drill, Batista was the newest Raw prospect and Credible was wrestling out his contract. Batista takes it.

Winner: Batista

Match 3

Raven vs D-Lo Brown

Third day in a row for the Sunday Night Heat mainstays. Also third day in a row D-Lo wins.

Winner: D-Lo by pinfall

Match 4

Christopher Nowinski vs Al Snow

Snow won on Friday night, Chris won on Saturday night. Who takes the rubber match? Al Snow wins this one.

Winner: Al Snow

Match 5

Booker T and Bubba Ray Dudley vs Christian and Chris Jericho for the World Tag Team Championship

Same match from yesterday with the makeshift team of Booker and Bubba against the tag champs. Same result too, the champs retain.

Winners: Christian and Jericho (still World Tag Team Champions)

Match 6

Tommy Dreamer vs Steven Richards in a Singapore Cane Match

Once again the same match from the last two days with the same result. Dreamer wins it.

Winner: Dreamer

Match 7

Goldust and Spike Dudley vs William Regal and Lance Storm

Another makeshift team with Goldust and Spike taking on Regal and Storm just like yesterday. Same result, Regal and Storm win.

Winners: Regal and Storm

Match 8

Victoria (with Molly Holly) vs Trish Stratus (with Jacqueline) for the WWE Women's Championship

Same match from the last two days with the same result. Trish retains.

Winner: Trish (still Women's Champion)

Match 9

Kane vs Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship

Same match from the last few days with the exact same result. Kane goes insane and attacks the referees, security guard, peanut vendors, camera guys and methodists to earn the DQ.

Winner: HHH by disqualification (still World Heavyweight Champion)

Another standard house show just like the last few days. Maybe this coming Raw will provide new matches for next week's house show circuit. Still, we're one week out from Survivor Series so it'll be interesting how the final Raw will play out tomorrow night. The stars of Smackdown had their own Sunday house show in Peoria, Illinois going on around this time. I'll see you there.

WWE at First Union Center (11/9/02)

First Union Center

Philadelphia, PA

November 9, 2002

The stars of Raw have invaded Philadelphia just 8 days out from Survivor Series. Victoria takes on Trish Stratus in a hardcore match and of course the elimination chamber are set, but other matches have yet to be announced. Hopefully that changes in the next few days. On with the show.

Match 1

Sean O'Haire and Johnny Stamboli vs 3 Minute Warning (Rosey & Jamal) with Rico

The ex-WCW guys take on the Samoans to open the show. Jamal pinned Stamboli after a kick from Rico and a Samoan drop.

Winners: Rosey and Jamal by pinfall

Match 2

Justin Credible vs Batista

Once again, Credible is wrestling out his contract so he gets fed to Batista here. Batista takes it with the sit-out powerbomb.

Winner: Batista by pinfall

Match 3

Al Snow vs Christopher Nowinski

Last night Al Snow beat his student with the snowplow. On this night, Nowinski gets the Flair Pin for the victory.

Winner: Nowinski by pinfall

Match 4

Raven vs D-Lo Brown

The Sunday Night Heat mainstays go at it once again with D-Lo getting the duke after the sky high.

Winner: D-Lo by pinfall

Match 5

Test vs Rob Van Dam

Days out from elimination chamber, Van Dam beats Test with the five star frog splash.

Winner: Rob Van Dam by pinfall

Match 6

Booker T and Bubba Ray Dudley vs Christian and Chris Jericho for the World Tag Team Championship

Kind of an odd pairing but you got two of the six men in the elimination chamber on opposite sides here. Jericho pinned Bubba after the lionsault to retain.

Winners: Christian and Jericho by pinfall (still World Tag Team Champions)

Match 7

Steven Richards vs Tommy Dreamer in a Singapore Cane Match

The ECW alumni put on an ECW style match beating the hell out of each other with the cane. Dreamer wins it.

Winner: Dreamer by pinfall

Match 8

Victoria (with Molly Holly) vs Trish Stratus (with Jacqueline) for the WWE Women's Championship

Just like yesterday, we got Trish and Victoria going at it with backup in their corners. The end came when Trish got an inside cradle on Victoria but Molly rolled Victoria on top. Jackie then ran in and reversed it to give Trish the victory.

Winner: Stratus by pinfall (still Women's Champion)

Match 9

Goldust and Spike Dudley vs Lance Storm and William Regal

Man the tag team division was a mess. A makeshift team of Goldust and Spike take on Lance and Regal. Wouldn't it make more sense to have Spike with Bubba against Christian/Jericho and have Booker here with Goldust? Oh well, props for at least doing something different. Regal pinned Spike to win it.

Winners: Regal and Storm by pinfall

Match 10

Kane vs Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship

Same as yesterday, HHH wins when Kane goes berserk, attacking anyone that moves including the popcorn vendor and the camera dude.

Winner: HHH by disqualification

We're sticking with this card for a while with Survivor Series looming. The state of Raw was in bad shape with no one over besides the returning Shawn Michaels and the ratings told the story. Its one thing to have a beast like Brock Lesnar as your dominating champion but having HHH be unstoppable was laughable. We got Velocity up next, so I'll see you there.

WWE at Bryce Jordan Center (11/8/02)

Bryce Jordan Center

State College, PA

November 8, 2002

The stars of Raw invade State College, Pennsylvania for a Friday night house show 9 days before Survivor Series. The house show circuit this weekend should stem from last week's Raw so let's see if there's anything new & exciting or the same old, same old.

Match 1

Rico vs Raven

Kind of an odd match to start the show since these two really have no beef, not to mention Raven hadn't been seen on Raw in a while. Raven still gets the win though.

Winner: Raven

Match 2

D-Lo Brown and Johnny Stamboli vs 3 Minute Warning (Rosey and Jamal)

Kind of a hodge podge with D-Lo and Stamboli taking on the Samoan hit squad. 3 Minute Warning win this one.

Winners: Rosey & Jamal

Match 3

Justin Credible vs Batista

Once again they're feeding Justin Credible to Batista just like this week's Raw. Only this time he's made his Raw debut so the fans should start getting into him down. Batista wins it with the sit-down powerbomb.

Winner: Batista by pinfall

Match 4

Christian vs Bubba Ray Dudley in a Tables Match

Two weeks ago Bubba Ray Dudley and Jeff Hardy had a hell of a tag match with Christian and Chris Jericho on Raw so here we have half of that match against each other in a Dudley special tables match. Bubba won it.

Winner: Bubba Ray Dudley

Match 5

Test vs Booker T

Another random match with Test not having beefed with Booker T since the dissolution of the Unamericans. Still, Booker wins it with the scissors kick.

Winner: Booker by pinfall

Match 6

Steven Richards vs Tommy Dreamer in a Singapore Cane Match

The ECW alumni go at it for old times sake in a half-ass weapons match. Dreamer got the win here.

Winner: Dreamer by pinfall

Match 7

Christopher Nowinski vs Al Snow

Teacher vs pupil as Tough Enough graduate Nowinski takes on Al Snow. Snow wins it with a snowplow.

Winner: Snow by pinfall

Match 8

Spike Dudley and Rob Van Dam vs William Regal and Lance Storm

ECW vs the old Unamericans....actually its 3/4 ECW with Storm there. RVD pinned Regal following the five star frog splash.

Winners: Van Dam & Dudley by pinfall

Match 9

Victoria (with Molly Holly) vs Trish Stratus (with Jacqueline) for the WWE Women's Championship

A Survivor Series preview with Stratus taking on the demented Victoria, only both women have backup. Trish takes it with Stratusfaction.

Winner: Trish by pinfall (still Women's Champion)

Match 10

Kane vs Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship

Now that Kane has lost the unification match, nobody cares about him anymore with Shawn Michaels returning to active duty. Triple H wins when Kane goes apeshit on the referee, other referees and security. That's one way to end the night.

Winner: HHH by disqualification

I'd say this show was more or less what we had been getting on the houses give or take a few changes. No Chris Jericho on this card, maybe he or Jeff Hardy was nursing an injury so a tag match was changed to a single between Bubba & Christian. Either way it might have been an entertaining card to see live. Shawn still wasn't wrestling on the houses yet so they were running with Kane vs HHH which was probably stale by this point. Tomorrow is a double shot as both Raw and Smackdown are running Saturday house shows. Smackdown would be in Champaign, Illinois at the Assembly Hall. I'll see you there.

WWE Sunday Night Heat (11/3/02)

 

WWE Sunday Night Heat

November 3, 2002

Joe Louis Arena

Detroit, Michigan

Commentators: Jonathan Coachman and Lita

Ring Announcer: Howard Finkel

There's a lot going on WWE Raw these days and none of it good although its time for Sunday Night Heat. As per norm, this was taped before Raw started the week before. I already covered the dark matches on the Raw show so let's get right to the action.

Match 1

3 Minute Warning (Jamal and Rosey) with Rico vs Bobby Rude and Mark Maraculi

Yes, THAT Bobby Roode....or Rude in this case. For those that don't remember, Bobby was a Canadian wrestler trained by Val Venis that made his name in TNA before coming to WWE at the end of his career. Maraculi was local talent, not much is known about him. As usual Coach and Lita babble on about that week's Raw so I'll just ignore them. Rosey starts with Rude and Rosey starts with forearms to the back. Rosey taunts Rude as the crowd erupts with a "We want Shawn" chant. Rude ducks the line but runs right into a shoulderblock. Rosey heaves Mark in the ring and makes the tag to Jamal. Jamal runs into a double drop toe hold and a double clothesline. Bobby and Mark waste too much time celebrating so Jamal double clotheslines them down before heaving Rude over the top rope. Jamal clotheslines Maraculi over the top rope as Rico gets in some kicks on Rude over by the heel corner. Rico throws Bobby in the ring as Jamal chokes him in the corner with his boot. Rosey tags in and slingshot splashes Rude in the corner. Rude walks into a kneelift by Jamal. Maraculi heads up top and goes for a flying bodypress but somehow Jamal catches him mid-air for the Samoan drop. Jamal hits the Superfly splash off the top rope but the ref tells him Rosey is legal. Rosey makes the academic cover for 1...2.....3 to win the match. Rude was destined for good things in the future but that bodypress into a Samoan drop was awesome. Rico celebrates with the Samoans as we go to the replay of Jamal's big splash. Just like his older brother, Jamal did a hell of a top rope splash. Coach hypes up the next match, Justin Credible vs Mark Jindrak....yay.

Time of match: 2:53

Winners: 3 Minute Warning by pinfall

Back from break we get our Boot Of The Week which was Kane trying to abduct HHH at the end of Raw. Then we get our recap which was the opening segment of last week's Raw featuring HHH wheeling out the casket, Hurricane making fun of him, Kane running out and causing a scrum, Bischoff  makes the main event a casket match. After this we go to break again. Back from break we get our Overdrive of the Night which is Trish Stratus retaining her title on Raw in the three way match. In real time, Lillian Garcia catches up with the demented Victoria who's hanging around in the bag gathering up weapons in a trash can. Victoria says she got hurt by Trish and had to sweep at night to make rent. She also had to haul garbage in the snow in order to pay bills. Victoria blames Trish for everything and she challenges Trish for the Women's title in a hardcore match at Survivor Series. Victoria says she's going to show her the true feeling of pain and scares Lillian with the kendo stick. We cut to Stevie Richards with Raven who asks what Raven's masterpiece is. Raven tells Stevie he and everyone else will find out next week and to be more concerned about D-Lo Brown. Never understood why Raven and Stevie didn't have a little reunion on camera, oh well. On to the next match.

Match 2

Justin Credible vs Mark Jindrak

As mentioned in the Halifax show, Credible was just wrestling out his contract while Jindrak was being considered for a big push....how big? More on that another time. Bell's gone and they lock up with Credible getting a takedown. Credible messes with Mark and attacks with a knee to the gut. Credible tries an up and over in the corner but Jindrak fakes him out and does a waistlock takedown. Jindrak messes with Justin and delivers a series of dropkicks. Justin begs off then runs into an armdrag takedown. Credible gets a thumb to the eye and chops Mark in the corner. Mark retialliates with right hands and hits a modified stinger splash in the corner. Jindrak rams Credible's head in the corner and hits a sunset flip. Credible grabs the rope and referee Jack Doane tells Credible to cut the crap. Justin chops Mark in the corner again and taunts the crowd before hitting a baseball slide. Credible gets in a chinlock as Coach brings up the Eric Bischoff and Stephanie McMahon kiss that was never mentioned again. Credible rams Mark's head in the corner and punches him down. Mark rallies with left hands but misses the dropkick. Justin covers for a deuce and locks in another chinlock. Jindrak blocks a suplex and hits a vertical one of his own. Jindrak rallies with left hands, a scoop slam and a dropkick. Jindrak runs into a boot in the corner but hits a tilt-a-whirl slam. He covers for 1...2...noooo. Mark puts his head down and eats a forearm to the back but Credible runs into an inverted atomic drop. Mark hits a springboard clothesline off the top rope and covers for 1...2...3 to win the match. Good crash style match and Jindrak looked headed for good things....then wasn't. Coach hypes up our main event next.

Time of match: 5:15

Winner: Jindrak by pinfall

We come back from break with an update from Tough Enough 3. Scott hurt his hand playing volleyball and Lisa suffered a nervous breakdown, quitting. Apparently that was a real breakdown that nearly got the show cancelled. Then we get an ad that Batista is making his Raw debut soon, no more church boxes. Our next Raw recap is the casket match between HHH and Kane where Shawn Michaels popped out of it to help Kane win the match. Also the Elimination Chamber for Survivor Series is booked and Shawn Michaels has been invited to be the sixth and final man for it. We'll get our answer on Raw. Next up is an ad for Scott Steiner to make his WWE return. For which show is yet to be determined. Finally its time for our main event.

Match 3

Steven Richards vs D-Lo Brown

Its a shame the office never really forgave D-Lo Brown for hurting Darren Drozdov as he still got a decent pop for his entrance. Bell rings and they circle to start. Richards back D-Lo in the corner and gets a cheap shot. The ref stops D-Lo from retaliating from some inane reason. D-Lo hiptosses and scoop slams Richards as Lita asks who Raw got in the trade for Big Show. D-Lo gets an armdrag and an armbar in but Steven powers out of it. D-Lo is sent off and stuns Richards with a swinging neckbreaker. D-Lo delivers a second rope elbow and covers for a deuce. D-Lo sends Steven into the opposite corner and is backdropped to the apron. Richards knocks him off with a back elbow smash then throws him back in, Richards takes over with forearms to the back then calls for a suplex. He hits it as Coach says Steven had too much coffee tonight. Lita says eventually someone will get a pinfall with a simple suplex. Steven goes for D-Lo's legdrop with the head shaking but misses completely. D-Lo hits an atomic drop to make Stevie hop around before hitting an inverted run. A clothesline and cover gets a two count but Richards kicks him in the head. Stevie chokes D-Lo on the second rope then pounds away on D-Lo's back in the corner. Steven does a back suplex and covers for a deuce then locks in a chinlock. D-Lo powers out of it, hits the rope and schoolboys Steven for 1......2...nope. Steven clubs on D-Lo's neck and locks in a full nelson before D-Lo elbows his way out of it. D-Lo drops Steven with a flying elbow smash and both men are down. Both men are down for an 8 count before Steven gets up first. D-Lo rallies with right hands to drop Steven and a backdrop. D-Lo flips over Stevie and delivers a scoop slam. Coach and Lita go nuts for the D-Lo Legdrop as he hits it. He covers for 1...2...nope. D-Lo continues to punch away on Steven and goes for Sky High but Steven counters it. Steven runs into the flying heel kick then goes upstairs. Steven kicks D-Lo causing Brown to crotch himself. Steven sets up for a superplex with chops then goes for it. D-Lo counters with SKY HIGH OFF THE TOP ROPE! D-Lo puts his hand on Steven's chest for 1..2....3 to win the match. That was pretty damn good for a one off on Sunday Night Heat. Amazing what happens when there's no bullschmidt, just good wrestling. Coach and Lita says they've never seen a top rope Sky High before. Coach hypes up Raw tomorrow night as he signs off.

Time of match: 7:46

Winner: D-Lo Brown by pinfall

For Sunday Night Heat, that was pretty good. 2 of the 3 matches were better than expected and even the squash match had a young Bobby Roode. At this point, the show was half hour of wrestling and half hour of recaps & commercials. The guys on the show may either be middling mid-carders or guys wrestling out their contracts but at least they're trying. For those that don't know, Mark Jindrak was the original choice to be in the upcoming Evolution stable with Triple H, Ric Flair and Randy Orton. He was even filmed in the vignettes but Triple H argued he didn't fit. They would eventually find a suitable replacement but that's why Jindrak was being showcased around this time. As for the next show, believe it or not its not Raw. For some stupid reason Vince had his Smackdown guys work a house show in Bangor, Maine so I'll see you there.

WWE at Moncton Coliseum (11/3/02)

Moncton Coliseum

New Brunswick, Canada

November 3, 2002

The Raw house show circuit made its way to Canada yesterday when they worked Halifax, Nova Scotia. Now the crew had to make their way to New Brunswick, Canada. If you ever wonder why so many stars died young or had to retire early, its work schedules like this that wore people down. Worse, they had to fly back to the States to be in Boston the next night for Raw. Ain't no rest for the wicked as they say. The house show circuit was pretty standard with the same matches being presented every night, just with a few changes here and there. Let's see if they stick with the theme of having the Canadians on last and or win.

Match 1

Tommy Dreamer and Johnny Stamboli vs 3 Minute Warning (Rosey and Jamal) with Rico

Same match as last night with the exact same result. The Samoans take it after Jamal hits Stamboli with the Samoan drop.

Winners: 3 Minute Warning by pinfall

Match 2

Justin Credible vs Batista.

Like I mentioned yesterday, Credible was wrestling out his contract and the company had BIG plans for Batista. Doesn't take Sherlock Holmes to figure out who wins this one. Larry Holmes could have told you Batista was going to take it with the sit down powerbomb.

Winner: Batista

Match 3

Christopher Nowinsky vs Goldust

Third match in a row which was the same as yesterday's card with the exact same result. Goldust wins it with the Curtain Call.

Winner: Goldust by pinfall

Match 4

Lance Storm and William Regal vs Spike Dudley and The Hurricane

Same match as yesterday and pretty much all week except, just like yesterday, the Canadian gets the win. Lance Storm pins Dudley after a superkick.'

Winners: Lance Storm and William Regal by pinfall

Match 5

Test vs Kane

Same match as yesterday now that Kane was free of Triple H. Kane wins it with a tombstone.

Winner: Kane by pinfall

Match 6

D-Lo Brown vs Raven

Just like Justin Credible, Raven wasn't long for WWE and was just wrestling out his contract. D-Lo Brown wins it with sky high.

Winner: D-Lo Brown by pinfall

Match 7

Victoria and Molly Holly vs Jacqueline and WWE Women's Champion Trish Status

Same match as yesterday but someone must have forgot that Trish was Canadian in Halifax. They got it right tonight as Trish gets the duke after a bulldog on Victoria.

Winners: Trish Stratus and Jacqueline by pinfall

Match 8

Rico vs Rob Van Dam in a Martial Arts Challenge

Rico did have experience in martial arts as well as Rob Van Dam. Worked shoots usually suck so I can't imagine how bad this was. Rob Van Dam wins after a five star frog splash....which you see in UFC all the time, right?

Winner: Rob Van Dam

Match 9

Bubba Ray Dudley and Spike Dudley vs Christian and Chris Jericho for the World Tag Team Championship

Like I mentioned yesterday, this match was on the house show circuit and did so well they brought it to last week's Raw where it ended up being the best match of the night. Once again the Canadians win it when Chris Jericho pinned Jeff after a lionsault.

Winners: Christian and Chris Jericho (still World Tag Team Champions)

Unlike last night in Halifax, all the Canadians won this time. Christian and Jericho were probably going to win anyway but Trish and Lance Storm got thrown bones as well as Regal and Storm were putting over Spike and Helms in the States. With Triple H and Booker T not there and Shawn Michaels not back to active duty yet, these cards look painful to sit through on paper. Raw was pretty much lackluster as it was on television, can't imagine what the house shows were like. The stars of Smackdown were in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania on this same day so I'll see yall there for the next show.

WWE at Springfield Civic Center (11/1/02)

Springfield Civic Center

Springfield, Massachusetts

November 1, 2002

The stars of Raw came to Springfield, MA for a Friday night house show four days after the return of Shawn Michaels to Raw. Tonight's card was advertised for 3 Minute Warning against Tommy Dreamer and Mark Jindrak, Justin Credible against Batista, Christopher Nowinski against Goldust, Bubba Ray Dudley and Jeff Hardy against Christian and Chris Jericho for the World Tag Team titles, D-Lo Brown vs Raven, Rob Van Dam vs Test, Trish Stratus and Jacqueline vs Molly Holly and Victoria, Spike Dudley and The Hurricane vs William Regal and Lance Storm then Kane vs Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship. Its almost the exact same card they've been running with for a week except the first couple of matches. Let's get to it.

Match 1

3 Minute Warning (Rosey & Jamal) vs Tommy Dreamer and Johnny Stamboli

This was supposed to be Dreamer and Mark Jindrak but Mark must have hurt his knee again so Stamboli took his place. Rosey pinned Stamboli after a Samoan drop.

Winners: 3 Minute Warning by pinfall

Match 2

Justin Credible vs Batista

Once again, Batista was sent to Raw for a real big push but hadn't been shown on TV yet. They were seeing how he did on the house shows first and clearly he was getting a buzz. Batista takes it with a sit-down powerbomb.

Winner: Batista by pinfall

Match 3

Christopher Nowinski vs Goldust

Nowinski has been a pain in the ass on Raw showing respect to no one including Al Snow or anyone else. Goldust would be his latest test. Unfortunately for the Harvard man, Goldust wins it with the curtain call.

Winner: Goldust by pinfall

Match 4

Bubba Ray Dudley and Jeff Hardy vs Christian and Chris Jericho for the World Tag Team Championship

These four had been tearing up the house show circuit and finally got to have a match on this past Raw, the only bright spot to an otherwise bad show. Jericho got the pin for his team after hitting Jeff Hardy with one of the belts.

Winners: Jericho and Christian by pinfall (still World Tag Team Champions)

Match 5

Test vs Rob Van Dam

These two had been going around the house show circuit with the exact same finish and tonight was no different. RVD wins with the 5 star frog splash.

Winner: Van Dam by pinfall

Match 6

Raven vs D-Lo Brown

Just like the previous match, this one has been on all the house shows leading up to this one. As usual, D-Lo takes it with Sky High.

Winner: D-Lo Brown by pinfall

Match 7

Molly Holly and Victoria vs Jacqueline and WWE Women's Champion Trish Status

Once again the exact same match that was on the mid-west trip only this time, Molly and Victoria come out on top.

Winners: Holly and Victoria

Match 8

Spike Dudley and The Hurricane vs William Regal and Lance Storm

Stop me if you've heard this, the same exact match that had been on all the house shows the past week. As always, Spike wins it with an Acid Drop on Lance Storm.

Winners: Spike and Hurricane by pinfall

Match 9

Kane vs Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship

The good news was the feud was coming to an end with Shawn Michaels returning to active duty but they still had to get through this round of house shows. As per norm, Kane went nuts with a chair on everyone and Triple H wins by disqualification.

Winner: Triple H by disqualification (still World Heavyweight Champion)

The final six matches had been on every card the past week but the first three were something new. As I mentioned, Shawn Michaels was coming back so they just had to get through this round with the exact same card before something different was coming. Still, Bubba and Jeff had a great match with Jericho and Christian on Raw so their house show matches must have been good as well. Batista is definitely in for good things in the future and eventually Kane vs HHH will end. Tomorrow is a double shot where both brands are holding shows. Smackdown's stars will be in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania while Raw will be in Halifax, Nova Scotia. I'll see ya in Halifax.

WWE at Toledo Sports Arena (10/27/02)

Toledo Sports Arena

Toledo, Ohio

October 27, 2002

It was a busy Sunday for WWE. The stars of Smackdown were still on their European tour while the stars of Raw were on their mid-west swing. Also later tonight would be Sunday Night Heat. But let's get to the Raw roster's Toledo card first. If you've been following the past few house shows, the exact same card had been used during this run only with different finishes. It would be no different tonight as the same matches are presented. Mark Jindrak and Johnny Stamboli against Justin Credible and Steven Richards. Tommy Dreamer vs Rico, Redd Dogg vs Batista, Lance Storm and William Regal against Spike Dudley and The Hurricane, Chris Jericho and Christian defending the tag straps against Jeff Hardy and Bubba Ray Dudley, Jacqueline and Trish Stratus against Molly Holly and Victoria, D-Lo Brown vs Raven, Rob Van Dam vs Test and Kane vs World Heavyweight Champion Triple H. Let's get to the show.

Match 1

Mark Jindrak and Johnny Stamboli vs Justin Credible and Steven Richards

ECW vs WCW as we got Jindrak and Johnny against Justin and Steven. Both teams split the last two house shows but Richards and Credible get the duke on this night.

Winners: Credible and Richards

Match 2

Redd Dogg vs Batista

As mentioned in previous writeups, Batista was Deacon Bautista in a repackaging that was for the better. Redd Dogg was a good hand in Ohio Valley Wrestling after working for ECW at the end of their run. Batista took it with what would eventually be called the Batista Bomb, look for Redd Dogg to be renamed somewhere down the line.

Winner: Batista by pinfall

Match 3

Tommy Dreamer vs Rico

These two split the last two house shows and in the rubber match.....Rico takes it with a spinkick. So much for Dreamer.

Winner: Rico by pinfall

Match 4

William Regal and Lance Storm vs Spike Dudley and The Hurricane

Kind of an odd pairing in Spike and Hurricane as they take on the remnants of The Unamericans. Basically after The Unamericans split, Regal and Storm still teamed together while Christian won the tag belts with unofficial member Chris Jericho while Test turned babyface on his own. Dudley got the victory with an Acid Drop on Lance Storm

Winners: Spike and Hurricane by pinfall

Match 5

Raven vs D-Lo Brown

As mentioned in the previous writeups, D-Lo was about to get a repackaging so he was getting a few wins on the house shows while Raven was wrestling out the remainder of his contract. Naturally D-Lo got the win here with Sky High.

Winner: D-Lo by pinfall

Match 6

Jacqueline and WWE Women's Champion Trish Stratus vs Molly Holly and Victoria

These four had been feuding on the house show circuit and it looked like Victoria would get the next crack at Trish on television with Molly still milling around. Apparently it was a double pin on both Molly and Victoria.

Winners: Trish and Jackie by pinfall

Match 7

Bubba Ray Dudley and Jeff Hardy vs Christian and Chris Jericho for the World Tag Team Championship

Once again the makeshift team of Bubba and Jeff team up to face the tag champs. Once again Jericho wins it for his team, pinning Jeff with the lionsault.

Winners: Jericho & Christian by pinfall (still World Tag Team Champions)

Match 8

Test vs Rob Van Dam

Test was in the middle of a face turn being paired with Stacy Keibler while Van Dam was cooling off after his World Heavyweight title chase. Still, Van Dam won it with the 5 Star Frog Splash.

Winner: Van Dam by pinfall

Match 9

Kane vs Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship

The good news was the Katie Vick garbage doesn't really carry over to house shows but the bad news was these two were still going at it at least until Survivor Series. As with the other shows, the finish was Kane going berserk with a chair and taking out the roster as Triple H made his getaway.

Winner: Triple H by disqualification (still World Heavyweight Champion)

Another house show that was exactly the same as the previous few. In the days of limited internet and no smart phones, the guys worked the same match every night because chances are those who were there in Wichita the night before wasn't going to be in Toledo the following night....unless you're Vlad The Superfan. Still, this was the fallout of No Mercy and last week's Raw, maybe Monday will bring new storylines for the crew to work with on the house show circuit. Still, Vince was insane for having two crews work every single night for so long. As mentioned in the intro, on this night the Smackdown crew was in Sheffield, England while Sunday Night Heat featuring Raw guys would be shown on American television. I'll see you in Sheffield.

WWE at Four States Arena (10/19/02)

Four States Arena

Texarkana, Arkansas

October 19, 2002

Of all the places Vince McMahon could book the night before a pay-per-view, he goes to a county fairgrounds in rural Arkansas? I know the ppv would be in Little Rock, but still. Anyway the stars of Raw made their way to Texarkana with the same card they had been running for a week now. Let's get to the action.

Match 1

Redd Dogg vs Al Snow

Once again we're in Redd Dogg's trial run before making his Raw or Smackdown debut. Al Snow gets the duke here, gotta pay your dues Dogg.

Winner: Snow

Match 2

Johnny Stamboli, Mark Jindrak and Charlie Haas vs Justin Credible, Rosey and Jamal

Stamboli, Jindrak and Haas were on their trial runs just like Redd Dogg earlier and they face 3 Minute Warning and Credible here. Credible and the Samoans get the win.

Winners: Rosey, Jamal and Credible

Match 3

Steven Richards vs Batista

Batista was on his way to Raw on television but for now he was piling up wins on the house shows. Steven was his victim here. 

Winner: Batista

Match 4

The Hurricane and Spike Dudley vs William Regal and Lance Storm.

No Kane tonight for Hurricane so he tags with Spike instead against the remnants of the Un-American. Hurricane and Spike win.

Winners: Spike & Hurricane

Match 5

Test vs Kane

Speaking of Kane, here he is in singles action against Test. Kane wins it. Needed that one going into No Mercy.

Winner: Kane

Match 6

Raven vs D-Lo Brown.

The Sunday Night Heat mainstays do battle once again in the middle of Arkansas. D-Lo wins it.

Winner: D-Lo Brown

Match 7

Molly Holly and Victoria vs Trish Stratus and Jacqueline

The same women's tag match that had been going on through the circuit comes to us again. Trish and Jackie win it.

Winners: Trish and Jacqueline

Match 8

Booker T and Goldust vs Christian and Chris Jericho for the World Tag Team Championship

This was going to be part of the No Mercy card so may as well warm up on a house show. Christian and Jericho win.

Winners: Christian and Jericho (Still World Tag Team Champions)

Match 9

"Nature Boy" Ric Flair vs Rob Van Dam

This match would also be on the No Mercy card tomorrow night. This is the main event here since HHH didn't want to work apparently. Van Dam wins it.

Winner: Rob Van Dam

The same card that had been going on the past few weeks remained the same here. Although the concluding storylines at No Mercy should give us fresh cards next week. We only have one hurdle to get through before we get to No Mercy and that is this week's Velocity. I'll see you there.

WWE Sunday Night Heat (10/13/02)

WWE Sunday Night Heat

Thomas & Mack Center

Las Vegas, Nevada

October 13, 2002

Commentators: Jonathan Coachman and Lita

Ring Announcer: Howard Finkel

So far this week's Raw, Smackdown and Velocity all sucked....can Heat be the saving grace? It doesn't look likely since Raw Roulette flopped like a dead deer. Tonight we only got two matches for Heat, Justin Credible vs Mark Jindrak and Johnny Stamboli vs Lance Storm. Apparently Raven is going to unveil his masterpiece as well. It won't be Chris Masters, he comes later. We go right to our first match.

Match 1

Mark Jindrak vs Justin Credible

Lita says this is Mark's debut on Heat as Credible makes his entrance. Lita brings up Mark Jindrak's WCW tag title run with Sean O'Haire (did Vince let her say that?) as they lock up. Coach literally does the worst segue of all time to talk about Raw Roulette as instructed by whoever is in his ear as Mark backs Justin in the corner. The crowd chants ECW as Credible bails to the outside for some heat. Credible gets a knee to the ribs and some strikes but Mark doesn't fall for the up and over. Mark hiptosses Credible and gets in some armdrags. Coach babbles on about Booker T/Big Show/Chris Jericho. Credible pounds on Jindrak's back but walks into a tilt a whirl slam. Mark covers for 1...2..nope. Credible crotches Jindrak on the top tope and Mark falls into the tree of woe. Credible taunts the crowd as Coach now babbles on about the TLC match. Credible slaps Mark but Mark rallies with left hands only to eat another boot to the ribs. Credible gets in a chinlock but Mark powers out of it. Jindrak gets superkicked in the face and Justin covers for a two count. Coach goes to plug Tough Enough 3 but Credible baseball slides nut first into the ringpost. Lita mocks the Tough Enough 3 contestants...one of them was John Morrison who would eventually be a long time WWE star and the other talented one, Matt Cappotelli would have been a star if he didn't contract what would eventually be terminal brain cancer. Mark rallies with a left hand and a scoop slam before executing a dropkick. Jindrak faceplants Credible and covers for a deuce as former ECW alumni Lita says "He's not just the coolest, he's not just the best..." She remembers. A charge by Jindrak eats boot but his springboard attempt connects and covers for 1..2....nope. Jindrak catches the superkick and hits an inverted atomic drop. Jindrak follows with a neckbreaker and covers for 1....2....3 to win the match. They were pushing Jindrak as a classic babyface but, as Randy Orton and John Cena were about to find out, classic babyfaces doesn't work in 2002. Decent match between the two.

Time of match: 4:31

Winner: Jindrak by pinfall

Coach hypes up the main event with Lance Storm taking on Johnny Stamboli before saying we got Raw Roulette highlights after break. Back from commercial we get a Tough Enough 3 plug then a vignette for Deacon....er just Batista now, coming to Raw. Then of all the things to highlight, they go through the entire Stacy Keibler/Trish Stratus segment backstage and the match. Then we cut to Victoria's interview from Raw saying she's going to hurt Trish like Trish hurt others. Before we go to break, another reminder for Stamboli/Storm coming up.

Our JVC Kaboom of the Week is the drag match between William Regal and Goldust where Regal waffles him with brass knuckles. Our next recap is for Triple H and Ric Flair at the Wheel picking a blindfold match. HHH cheats to beat D-Lo Brown to win that match. Before we go to break again we get a montage of Kane vs Triple H for No Mercy.

Back from break our Rewind of the Week is Raven defeating D-Lo Brown on Heat last week. Coach is in the ring with Raven for a chat. Coach asks about what Raven's masterpiece is. Instead, Raven whines that he's languished for two years in WWE and he's been treated like an outcast. He goes on to say he's resisted temptation to lash out and quit WWE (remember this) but didn't because he has a statement to make. He will reveal that statement in the next couple of weeks as the crowd chants "You suck!". He says the crowd has the chastity of a three dollar tramp and they look down at him for being different. Raven says he's not depraved, its the people. Raven calls off the interview and leaves. Lita mocks him by saying we've learned nothing from this interview. Yeah really, talk about a waste of time. You could have had a 3 minute match with Raven grabbing a mic after and saying those words. Lita then says the Saliva music video for "Always" will debut next week on Heat on the No Mercy pre-show.

Back from break we get a plug for the Divas Undressed magazine (porn for kids) and the recap of the HHH vs Kane feud so far. Yeah, Katie Vick is underway....great.  We do get to see highlights of the TLC match which was still good. Finally we got our main event after this last break. On to the match.

Match 2

Lance Storm vs Johnny Stamboli

Its funny how this was pre-recorded before Lance Storm's Canadian babyface run on the house shows but he actually comes out to his pre-Unamericans titantron. He still makes his entrance yapping at the fans as a heel. Bell's gone and Storm takes over with right hands and knees in the corner. Lance whips Johnny into the other clothesline and hits a another one. The crowd chants USA as Storm takes Stamboli over and drops a leg. He gets a two count but Stamboli blocks a suplex. He hits one of his own but misses an elbow drop. Lance hits an axehandle to the back as Coach and Lita babble on about Kane being a murderer and asking who Katie Vick is. Oh we're going to find out the hard way as the weeks go on. Lance sends Stamboli off the ropes and Lance drops him with an elbow smash. Lance covers for a two count and gets in a neck vice. Stamboli powers out of it and hits an overhead suplex. Stamboli hits a heel kick and a backdrop, followed by a stinger splash. He faceplants Storm and covers for a deuce as Coach plugs Tough Enough 3 again. Stamboli hits a tilt-a-whirl slam and covers for a deuce but Lance hits a jawbreaker. Coach babbles on and on about Eric Bischoff as Storm hits the fireman's carry roll and covers for 1..2....nope. Storm goes for a half crab but Stamboli cradles him up for a deuce. Stamboli goes for an overhead press slam but Storm rolls out of it. Stamboli charges in the corner but Storm counters with the superkick. He covers for 1...2....3 to win the match. Storm outwits his WCW alumni to win this one. Storm celebrates after the match and that was okay for what it was. 

Time of match: 4:09

Winner: Storm by pinfall

Surprisingly this Heat wasn't that bad. The matches were okay although this episode was CLEARLY Raw Roulette recap focus heavy. The TLC match was good for what it was worse. The Raven interview was a waste of time but oh well. Raw and Smackdown this week both were lackluster and now we're deep into the outhouse of the Katie Vick storyline. Tomorrow night Raw is coming from Montreal but Smackdown has a house show in London, Ontario. I'll see you there.

WWE at HSBC Arena (10/13/02)

HSBC Arena

Buffalo, New York

October 13, 2002

The stars of Raw continued their trek through upstate New York with a house show in Buffalo. Its funny how No Mercy was just seven days away but the only official match signed was Kane vs Triple H. Ric Flair vs Rob Van Dam looked like it would be on the card but hasn't made official yet. Kurt Angle, Billy Gunn and Chuck Palumbo were still on loan from Smackdown with Chris Jericho, Lance Storm and Christian in Canada for the Smackdown shows. Let's get started.

Match 1

Rico vs The Hurricane

Same match from yesterday with the exact same result. Hurricane pins Rico after a crossbody.

Winner: Hurricane by pinfall

Match 2

Justin Credible vs Deacon Bautista

Credible was wrestling out his contract while Bautista was about to be brought to Raw. The writing is on the wall for this one. Batista wins it with a spinebuster.

Winner: Bautista by pinfall

Match 3

Mark Jindrak, Charlie Haas and D-Lo Brown vs Raven, Steven Richards and Red Dogg

Charlie Haas and Red Dogg were getting their tryout run while Jindrak was already being featured on C shows. D-Lo pinned Raven with the sky high.

Winners: Jindrak, Haas and D-Lo by pinfall

Match 4

Booker T vs The Big Show

Not only was Booker being jobbed out on Raw for no good reason, he didn't fare any better on the houses either. Big Show wins it with the chokeslam.

Winner: Big Show by pinfall.

Match 5

Kurt Angle (With Stephanie McMahon) vs Kane for the WWE Intercontinental Championship

So not only was Kurt brought in for the New York house run but Stephanie came with him for this.  Kane wins it with the chokeslam.

Winner: Kane by pinfall (still IC champion)

Match 6

William Regal vs Jeff Hardy

Standard match until the end. Apparently Test did a run in and Hardy won with the Swanton Bomb. With The Unamericans breaking up, it was unclear who Test attacked.

Winner: Hardy by pinfall

Match 7

3 Minute Warning (Rosey and Jamal) with Rico vs Billy Gunn and Chuck Palumbo

Gunn and Palumbo had been winning these house show matches and this one was no different. Billy and Chuck win this one as well.

Winners: Billy and Chuck

Match 8

Rob Van Dam vs Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship

The rematch from Unforgiven main evented this house show in Buffalo. HHH hit Van Dam with a chair and then the pedigree to win the match.

Winner: HHH by pinfall (still WHC)

Too bad about Billy Gunn, although his injury would indirectly lead to Chuck getting a push in a few months with other people. As for the rest of the card, standard house show stuff. Kane was being built for HHH and HHH looked unstoppable as the WHC. We got seven days until No Mercy with no matches official other than HHH vs Kane. Hopefully tomorrow night on Raw will shed some light on what's coming up. While this show in Buffalo was going on, Smackdown was holding their own house show in Calgary, Alberta, home of the Hart Dungeon. I'll see you there.

WWE at Blue Cross Arena (10/12/02)

Blue Cross Arena

Rochester, New York

October 12, 2002

The stars of Raw were in Utica last night for a house show and today they're in Rochester to continue the tour. The Katie Vick stank is hanging over Raw like a dark cloud but the house shows aren't storyline related. We do have a special guest though, Kurt Angle of all people will be in the main event against Kane. Smackdown had their own show that night with Christian and Lance Storm on the card due to it being in Canada so my guess is Kurt was sent to Raw to fill out the card. Let's get to it.

Match 1

Rico vs The Hurricane

STAND BACK! The tag team champion is coming through. Hurricane had spent the last few weeks as a hilarious sidekick to Kane and here he faces the manager of 3 Minute Warning. Hurricane wins it with the chokeslam.

Winner: Hurricane by pinfall

Match 2

Raven, Justin Credible and Red Dogg vs D-Lo Brown, Deacon Bautista and Mark Jindrak

Here's an interesting hodge podge with some bit of trivia. Dogg and Jindrak were doing their trial runs while Bautista was about to jump to Raw. The sad part is, Mark Jindrak was originally going to be given a push that later went to Bautista. I'll let you guess what that means. Bautista pinned Credible after a spinebuster.

Winners: Brown, Bautista and Jindrak by pinfall

Match 3

Jeff Hardy vs William Regal

Lance Storm is in Edmonton tonight leaving Regal by himself. Then again, Matt Hardy was in Edmonton too so Jeff has a technical beef too. Regal wins by using the brass knuckles.

Winner: Regal by pinfall

Match 4

3 Minute Warning (Rosey and Jamal) with Rico vs Billy and Chuck

Why are Billy and Chuck here? Chris Jericho, Lance Storm and Christian are in Edmonton tonight. May as well continue the feud. Billy wins it with the fameasser.

Winners: Billy and Chuck by pinfall

Match 5

"Nature Boy" Ric Flair vs Rob Van Dam

Last night's main event is the fifth match on the card tonight. Rob Van Dam wins it with the five star frog splash.

Winner: RVD by pinfall

Match 6

Charlie Haas vs Steven Richards

Kind of weird to have what should be a dark match on TV to be this close to the main event but Charlie is in the middle of his trial run on the house shows. Richards gets the duke with the Stevie Kick.

Winner: Richards by pinfall

Match 7

Goldust vs The Big Show

You know the drill, Big Show has 10 minutes to beat Goldust or else he'll kiss his ass. Big Show wins with 30 seconds left.

Time of match: 9:30

Winner: Big Show by pinfall

Match 8

Test vs Booker T

Why isn't Test in Edmonton? He's Canadian too. Talk about drawing the short end of the stick. Worse, Booker wins it with a scissors kick.

Winner: Booker by pinfall

Match 9

Kurt Angle vs Kane for the WWE Intercontinental Championship

Yes you read that right, Kurt Angle makes the jump from Smackdown to face Kane for the IC strap. They had to replace Jericho, Christian and Storm so Kurt, Billy and Chuck did it. Kane wins it with the chokeslam.

Winner: Kane by pinfall (Still IC Champ)

Kind of a weird card with matches out of order but with some of the guys in Edmonton, they had to make due. Kurt making a rare Raw appearance was good even if it was just a house show. Still, imagine the surprise of the fans expecting to see Raw guys and Kurt Angle shows up. As grueling as the house show schedule was, it was stuff like that which added excitement to the cards. As mentioned a bunch of times already, the stars of Smackdown were in Edmonton for a Saturday night house show. I'll see you there.