Monday Night Raw
April 11, 2011
Bridgeport, CT
Report by: Mike Tedesco of Wrestleview.com
“Yes, sir, we promised you a great main event…” The WWE video leads us into the show.
No, you’re not seeing things. This is Mike Tedesco, Smackdown recapper, filling in for Dave Stephens. In honor of my buddy I’ll start this recap off with his signature line: Are you ready? Then stop questioning your heart and join me because it is time for Monday Night Raw!!!
Justin Roberts asks us to welcome the award winning broadcast journalist and the only undefeated superstar in WWE, Michael Cole! Cole comes out with his Slammy Award to a chorus of boos. Jerry “The King” Lawler does not look too happy. Cole taunts Lawler and gets into the Cole Mine. It looks like Lawler is dressed to compete tonight.
John Cena’s music hits and he makes his way out to the ring. The crowd is totally into Cena tonight. Never mind – the boo birds are in the house. Cena talks about what a great time it is to be in the WWE Universe. It’s chaos, excitement, and energy because last week an announcement was made that turned the WWE upside down. For the first time in history an announcement was made that was so big it will take one year for the WWE Universe to digest. A match was made for WrestleMania XXVIII. A match was made that will put icon against icon and be the biggest spectacle in all of sports entertainment. April 1, 2012 – WrestleMania XXVIII – John Cena goes one-on-one with The Rock!
The crowd chants for The Rock. A match of this magnitude that can electrify a crowd like tonight can’t just be about bragging rights. The main event of WrestleMania XXVIII will be for the WWE Championship. If it’s going to be the biggest thing that we’ve ever seen then it will have to be for the richest prize in all of sports entertainment. That leads him to tonight. If the match will be for the title then the guy who fights every week will have to capture the WWE Championship. John Cena is issuing a challenging The Miz to a WrestleMania rematch right now!
Randy Orton’s music hits and he makes his way to the ring looking perplexed. Orton says, with all due respect, he thinks any business he had at WrestleMania has already been settled. He can blame The Rock all he wants but it doesn’t change the fact that he lost. Orton thinks he should step aside and give someone else an opportunity… perhaps someone who won their match at WrestleMania.
John Morrison’s music hits and he makes his way to the ring smiling. Morrison barely got a pop from the crowd so that’s quite indicative of how much the crowd believes in him. Morrison says we’ve seen this show before but it’s just not as good as it’s going to be now that John Morrison is involved. If there is going to be a discussion about who will face The Miz for the WWE Title then that discussion needs to include John Morrison.
EXCUSE ME! Vickie Guerrero comes to the ring with Dolph Ziggler. She says someone new should have an opportunity at the title. Vickie reminds Morrison that she pinned him a few weeks ago. Vickie says she should have a shot at the WWE Title but if not her then Dolph Ziggler. Ziggler says he didn’t come to Raw to waste his time with Snooki. He’s obviously the most talented superstar in the ring right now. More importantly, he’s never faced The Miz for the WWE Title so until then the line starts here. Once he’s champion then they’ll all get their chance to face him.
R-Truth’s music hits and he makes his way to the ring. I guess everyone and their mothers think they deserve an opportunity at the title now. R-Truth knows what town he’s in tonight and asks them what’s up. R-Truth says the truth is he has never gotten a one-on-one WWE Championship match on any show. That’s the truth and that’s WHAT’S UP! What a compelling promo.
The lights flicker and the anonymous Raw General Manager has sent another e-mail. Cole gets up to read it from his iPad. “And I quote… ‘You all make compelling arguments as to who should receive the next WWE Championship match against The Miz. So, to end all arguments, I am going to give all of you a chance to earn that opportunity. I have come up with a new concept in the form of a five-man gauntlet match. Two superstars, chosen in random, will start this match. The winner will face the next random superstar. This continues until all five superstars have been in the match. The man who goes the distance becomes the number one contender to the WWE Championship and faces The Miz at Extreme Rules.’”
Tonight Jerry “The King” Lawler will face Jack Swagger in a Pick Your Poison Match. If Swagger wins then Cole won’t have to face Lawler again. If Lawler wins then Cole gets to beat him again. Jim Ross will be out with Lawler tonight. Also, Edge will make an announcement. His career may be over.
-Commercial Break-
An Awesome Kong vignette airs. She flicks the head off a doll and laughs evilly. That was awesome.
WWE Diva’s Championship Match
Brie Bella w/ Nikki Bella vs. Eve Torres (c)
Eve is holding a Sharpie marker in the air. She requests that the referee put a mark on Brie’s arm to prevent her from switching with her sister. Why haven’t they thought of that before? Brie kicks her down and sends her to the corner. Brie hits a bulldog and kicks her in the corner. Brie hits a snapmare and smashes Eve’s face off the mat. Brie applies a chin lock but Eve fights up and punches out. Eve hits a bulldog and a dropkick. Eve hits a bicycle kick to the face and a clothesline. Eve hits a standing moonsault for a near fall. Brie runs to the corner and sidesteps a splash. Eve blocks a punch and puts her in the tree of woe. Eve dropkicks her and kicks away.
Nikki switches with her sister so Eve dropkicks her down and shows the referee that it’s not the right Bella. The referee kicks her out and Brie hits an X-Factor for the win! We have a new Diva’s Champion!
Winner & NEW Diva’s Champion: Brie Bella
Match Rating: *
We’ll see a #1 Contender’s 5-Man Gauntlet Match tonight. We’ll also see Sin Cara’s first match next. We see him walking backstage.
-Commercial Break-
Eve is sitting in the locker room looking sad. Gail Kim walks up to her and says she’s sorry she lost tonight. Eve says she knows how the locker room works – no one cares about anyone else. Eve walks away and cuts Natalya off as well. Natalya and Gail are insulted.
JOBBER ALERT: Primo is in the ring with no TV entrance.
Primo vs. Sin Cara
Primo jumps around the ring and then they lock up. Primo gets a hammerlock applied but Sin Cara elbows and hits a high angle snapmare, sending Primo to the apron. Primo pushes him so Sin Cara kicks him. Primo punches him down and clubs his back. Primo sends him to the ropes but Sin Cara flips off him. Sin Cara hits a nice monkey flip and a nice dropkick that sends Primo out of the ring. Sin Cara hits an over the top rope hurricanrana on the outside!
Sin Cara puts him back into the ring and gets dropkicked off the apron by Primo! That was a rough landing. Primo punches away and hits a dropkick for a one count. Primo applies a chin lock but Sin Cara fights up. Primo quickly slams him down and puts him in the corner. Primo chops the chest and sends him to the opposite corner. Sin Cara avoids a splash and hits a few chops of his own. Primo reverses a whip but Sin Cara hits a springboard hurricanrana and then a beautiful head-scissors takeover! Primo head-butts the chest and goes for a powerbomb but Sin Cara rolls him up quickly for a near fall! Sin Cara sends him to the corner but runs into the boots.
Sin Cara hits an enzuigiri on the top rope and goes up there but they both fall. Sin Cara falls out of the ring. That’s a Botchamania clip right there. Sin Cara then goes in, repeats the spot, and hits a BEAUTIFUL flipping Sambo Suplex for the win!
Winner by Pinfall: Sin Cara
Match Rating: **
We’ll see Jerry “The King” Lawler take on Jack Swagger later tonight. If Lawler wins then he’ll get a return match against Michael Cole at Extreme Rules. If he loses then he’ll never get another match with Cole. Also the Edge retirement rumors will be addressed.
-Commercial Break-
A video is shown of The Corre attacking The Rock and John Cena last week on Raw. The Rock and Cena quickly turned the tables on them and beat them up quickly.
The Corre is in the ring. Wade Barrett says last week John Cena and The Rock made WWE history when they agreed to a match at WrestleMania XXVIII. They decided that they would go down and attack Cena and The Rock to no avail. Barrett says that was through no fault of his own. Barrett used to see them as equals but if they’re not capable of holding up their end of the bargain then there is no reason to continue.
Justin Gabriel says his 450 Splash has taken out more people than anyone else. Gabriel says he’s the most talented performer in the ring right now and he’s a three-time tag team champion. Heath Slater steals the microphone and says THEY are three-time tag team champions. Slater says no one will take that success from them. Not Barrett, the Nexus, The Corre, or anyone else. Ezekiel Jackson grabs the microphone and says he made the group credible by slamming a 500-pound giant!
Santino Marella’s music hits and he comes out to the stage with Mark Henry, Daniel Bryan, and Evan Bourne. Marella says if their group name is The Corre then they’ll be The Apple. Apple stands for Allied People Powered by Loathing Everything that you stand for. Their team implosion will continue at the hands of Apple. Unlike the Apple, this fight will not keep the doctor away. APPLE POWERS UNITE! This is hilarious!
-Commercial Break-
The Corre vs. The Apple (Santino Marella, Daniel Bryan, Mark Henry & Evan Bourne)
We join the match in progress. Slater is beating Bryan down before tagging in Gabriel. Gabriel hits a snapmare and dropkicks him in the head for a two count. Jackson is tagged in and he punches Bryan. Jackson hits a nasty body slam and drops an elbow for a two count. Barrett tags in and he kicks away at Bryan. Slater tags and he kicks Bryan. Slater hits a body slam and tags Gabriel in, who hits a slingshot senton for a two count. Slater is tagged back in and he applies a chin lock. Bryan eventually fights up and elbows out. Slater quickly elbows him down and bounces him off the turnbuckle. Slater sends him to the other corner and runs into the boots. Bryan explodes out with a running elbow to the throat and both men are down.
Santino is tagged in and he punches away at Slater. Santino hits an inverted atomic drop and knocks Gabriel off the apron. Santino splits under a clothesline, hits a hip toss, and a falling head-butt. The Corre breaks it up so the rest of The Apple clears the ring. Bryan takes Barrett out with a suicide dive. Santino takes the Cobra out but Gabriel hits an enzuigiri. Slater then this a snap reverse DDT for the win!
Winners by Pinfall: The Corre
Match Rating: * 1/4
Jim Ross’s music hits and he makes his way to the ring to be in Jerry “The King” Lawler’s corner. Cole says he’s like a cross between Barney The Dinosaur and Porky The Pig. Cole makes some fat jokes. Cole says business is about to pick up but it’s too bad he can’t bend over to pick it up. Cole taunts him about the BBQ sauce and JR has had enough. JR shakes at the Cole Mine. Jack Swagger runs down to attack but Lawler cuts him off! The referees pull all the men apart as we go to commercial!
-Commercial Break-
Jerry “The King” Lawler w/ JR vs. Jack Swagger w/ Michael Cole
The bell rings and they circle the ring. They lock up and Swagger pushes him against the ropes. Swagger punches and sends him to the ropes. Swagger hits a back body drop and does a victory lap around the ring. Cole and JR yelling at ringside is hilarious. Lawler comes back with a punch and imitates the victory lap. That angers Cole and Swagger. Swagger punches away at Lawler in the corner and takes him down with a front face lock. Lawler fights up and hits a big back suplex. Swagger goes for the ankle and applies the Ankle Lock but King gets to the bottom rope. Cole taunts Lawler’s mother. That’s not right.
Swagger stomps on the ankle and bangs it off the mat. Swagger covers for a near fall. Cole is calling JR a loser and an Oklahoma cheerleader. JR yells back that Swagger is applying a wristlock after just working on the ankle so his guy is stupid. That’s so true and hilarious! King fights up and gets to the corner. Swagger hits a shoulder thrust and a back elbow. Swagger bounces him in the turnbuckle a few times and he seems to be Hulking Up.
King pulls the singlet down and viciously punches away at Swagger! King goes into the ropes and runs into a kick. Swagger goes for a running powerslam but King slides off and dropkicks him into the corner! Cole gets on the apron and Lawler looks at him. Swagger attacks from behind and hits a clothesline. JR has seen enough and he pulls him off the apron! Swagger grabs JR so King rolls him up for the win!
Winner by Pinfall: Jerry “The King” Lawler
Match Rating: * 1/2
Swagger and Cole are shocked. Cole can’t believe it because he now has to step back into the ring with the King of Memphis. Cole walks off on Swagger as King celebrates at ringside. Cole gets into the ring, yells at Swagger, pokes him a few times, slaps him in the face, and runs off! Swagger is pissed off.
Lawler gets on the microphone and says it’s time to talk about Extreme Rules. He gets to decide the match and stipulation. First of all he has a really good idea for the match. It’s going to be a tag team match. Jerry Lawler and JR taking on Michael Cole and Jack Swagger! Cole is teaming with the guy who he just slapped in the face. There is some dissention in Team Cole.
A video highlights the Triple H vs. Undertaker match at WrestleMania. They have comments from WWE Superstars throughout. What a tremendous video this was.
Edge and John Cena shake hands backstage. Edge walks to the ring with tears in his eyes. We’ll hear from him next.
-Commercial Break-
Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, and Josh Mathews are on commentary.
Edge comes out to a tremendous response and it seems he has a lot of energy. Edge raises the championship up and leaves it on the top turnbuckle. Since this is a very important announcement, I’m just going to do a complete transcription of what Edge said.
“You may have to bear with me a little bit. I’m probably going to ramble and not make much sense but just please just bear with me. A lot of people think that the WWE doesn’t hurt; that what we do is maybe with smoke and mirrors. I wish that were true but anybody in that locker room, anybody who has ever stepped in here and laced up a pair of boots knows that is not the case, which brings me to what I’m about to tell you.
“Eight years ago I broke my neck. I had spinal fusion surgery, which means they move your throat over, put a plate in there, screws – it’s really in depth surgery. But because of that surgery I knew that I was wrestling on borrowed time from that point on. So fast forward and for the last little while I’ve been in a lot of pain. I’ve been losing feeling in my arms so I passed strength tests and all those things. I made it through WrestleMania but the WWE wanted me to go get more tests. Thankfully I did because the MRIs show that I have to retire. Trust me, it’s not my choice but the doctors have told me I have no choice. Thankfully they found out because I’m not going to end up in a wheelchair now.”
The crowd applauds Edge and he begins to choke back tears. This is a big moment right now.
“This is a little bit tougher than I thought it was going to be. So, you know – thank you guys.”
The crowd is chanting “Thank you Edge!” This is an amazing moment.
“This has been an emotional rollercoaster of a week and I’m not going to lie – I’ve been feeling sorry for myself. Until I talked to Christian – and for those of you who don’t know, Christian has been my best friend for 27 years. You see, I was angry at myself and my body because I felt like there’s a lot of people in this company that depend on me and I felt like I was letting them down. I felt like I was letting you guys down. But then, I was upset, too, because I felt like I wasn’t ending this on my terms but he reminded me I competed my whole career on my own terms.
“You know, I’m still like all of you – I am a huge fan of the WWE. Every month, Christian and I would go to Maple Leaf Gardens and watch all of our favorites. We’d watch Legion of Doom, Demolition, Hulk Hogan, we’d watch all of them and just be enthralled. Then I went to WrestleMania VI and I watched Hulk Hogan against the Ultimate Warrior and I said, ‘I’m doing this one day.’ And you know what? Fast forward a whole bunch of years and I’m main eventing WrestleMania against the Undertaker. There’s no way I ever would have dreamed of that. There’s no way if you told me when I was eleven years old that I would win more championships than anyone in the history of this company I never would have believed you.
“And if you had told me my last match would be at WrestleMania in one of the main events defending the World Heavyweight Championship and I’d be retiring as the World Heavyweight Champion, man, I couldn’t dream of a better way to go out. I really couldn’t.
“I started in the WWE when I was 23. I’ve been doing this for 19 years, 14 of them with the WWE. My first match was May 10, 1996 in Hamilton Scott’s Coliseum. I was 23 years old and I feel like I’ve grown up in front of all of you. I feel like I’ve made a whole lot of mistakes in front of you. I’ve learned from them and I’ve become a man in front of you. I’ve gone from being the silent guy running around the streets of New York with a trench coat that was way too small for him, to a pseudo vampire in the Brood, to one of the funny, goofy guys along with Christian, posing for those with the benefit of flash photography. I became one of the most despised guys in WWE history. In fact I got thrown into the Long Island Sound. I’ve had a Live Sex Celebration – thankfully with Lita and not Vickie Guerrero.
“And I would hope that through it all I’ve earned the respect of everyone in that locker room and I hope that I’ve earned all of your respect because no matter what, no matter what, I came out here and I tried to give you guys as much as I had every single night, and in turn you guys gave it right back to me. So I’m going to miss all of this. All of it. I’m going to miss that reaction when I hear my music and I come out on the ramp. It’s like a shot of adrenaline straight to the heart from you guys and it’s amazing – I can’t describe it. But, that being said, I don’t have to wear tights tomorrow and I am going to eat a whole lot of ice cream tonight.
“But if you asked if I would do all of this again, all the way back to getting hired by JR, if you asked if I’d travel all the roads, log all the miles, hop on all the flights, all the sleepless nights, the surgeries, the injuries, the sleepless nights, the metal rods in my teeth, all of it – if you asked me if I’d do it again – in a heartbeat. So thank you. Thank you very much.”
Edge puts the microphone down and the audience showers him with cheers and thanks. Edge does his pose at the top of the ramp and leaves to the back. I’m legitimately choked up over here. This is a Raw moment if there ever was one and one of the very few real, genuine moments you see on WWE Television. Thank you Edge for all that you’ve given us.
-Commercial Break-
The 5-Man Number One Contender’s Gauntlet Match is coming up next. The winner will meet the WWE Champion at Extreme Rules.
They recap Edge walking backstage. The curtain is brought down as heels and faces are clapping for him. Edge hugs all of his friends and it was a really touching moment. The announcers talk about the shock of Edge retiring.
The Miz’s music hits and the WWE Champion makes his way to the ring with Alex Riley. The Miz will do commentary during the gauntlet match.
5-Man Gauntlet Match
Randy Orton vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. R-Truth vs. John Morrison vs. John Cena
Randy Orton vs. Dolph Ziggler will start the gauntlet out. They circle the ring and lock up. Ziggler takes him down with a fireman’s carry and Orton quickly gets up. Orton hits an uppercut for a two count. Ziggler dropkicks him in the knee and hits a leg drop bulldog for a two count. Ziggler punches away at Orton for a one count. Ziggler jumps on the back and applies a sleeper hold. Orton fights up to a knee but Orton quickly fades away again. Orton eventually rolls Ziggler off. Orton hits a pair of clothesline and a powerslam. Orton grabs Ziggler on the apron and hits his draping DDT off the second rope. Orton drops to the mat and signals for the RKO. All of a sudden the New Nexus runs down and distracts him! Ziggler rolls him up and grabs the tights for the win!
Orton fights off David Otunga and Michael McGillicutty but Mason Ryan takes him out. They scream at him about kicking them in the head. Ryan then scoops him up and powerbombs him down. The New Nexus yells at him as we go to commercial. Dolph Ziggler will face the next random superstar next.
-Commercial Break-
R-Truth is out next. Ziggler kicks him in the corner and beats him down. Ziggler punches and sends him to the turnbuckle hard for a near fall. Ziggler hits a big elbow drop for another two count. Ziggler applies an arm bar but R-Truth fights up. Ziggler quickly takes him down by the hair and gets another two count. Ziggler hits a back suplex for another near fall. Ziggler applies a chin lock but R-Truth fights up again. Ziggler sends him to the corner but misses a splash.
R-Truth hits a few punches and a sit-out front suplex for a near fall. Ziggler pulls him into the corner face first and hits a neckbreaker for a near fall. Ziggler picks him up and R-Truth hits Pay Dirt out of nowhere for the win!
John Morrison makes his way to the ring now. He’ll face off against R-Truth next.
-Commercial Break-
R-Truth clubs Morrison down and goes for a sunset flip but Morrison kicks out and rolls him up for a two count. They trade pins for a bunch of two counts. The crowd applauds the technicality. Morrison rolls him up for a two count. R-Truth has a whip reversed and Morrison hits a flapjack. Morrison hits a breakdance leg drop for a near fall. Morrison applies a chin lock but R-Truth fights up. Morrison hits a Russian Leg Sweep for a near fall. R-Truth hits a jawbreaker and Morrison clotheslines him over the top rope out of nowhere.
Morrison goes for a plancha but R-Truth sweeps the feet. They then hit a double clothesline on the outside. The referee begins counting them out but they get in at nine. R-Truth punches away and goes for a Scissors Kick but Morrison clotheslines him a few times. Morrison hits a jumping calf kick for a near fall. R-Truth hits a form of a stunner for a near fall. Morrison goes into the ropes and hits a back elbow. Morrison hits the Flying Chuck and sets him up. Morrison goes for Starship Pain but R-Truth moves. R-Truth hits Pay Dirt for the win!
John Cena is the last man out. John Cena goes through his entire entrance as R-Truth recovers in the corner.
-Commercial Break-
They take some time before approaching the center. Cena quickly hits a Gutwrench suplex for a near fall. Cena hits a dropkick for a near fall. Cena can’t believe it. Cena hits a fisherman’s suplex for another near fall. Cena hits a back suplex for yet another near fall. Cena hits a variation of a powerslam for another near fall. That was almost an emerald fusion-type move. Cena hits a snap suplex for, once again, another near fall. Cena goes to the top rope and hits that leg drop thing for ANOTHER near fall. Cena is laughing at R-Truth’s resiliency. Cena picks him up and R-Truth levels Cena with a right hand.
R-Truth hits a pair of clotheslines and a hip toss. R-Truth whiffs the Lie Detector for a near fall. Cena pushes R-Truth off and hits a pair of shoulder blocks. Cena hits his spinning powerbomb and hits the 5-Knuckle Shuffle. Cena points at The Miz and says, “You Can’t See Me”. Cena goes for the AA but The Miz and Alex Riley assault both Cena and R-Truth.
Double Disqualification
Match Rating: ** 1/2
The Miz and Riley assault both men and stand tall in the ring. The Miz says both of them are losers due to the double disqualification. That means the both of them can go to the back of the line because there is no number one contender.
The anonymous Raw General Manager chimes in so Jerry Lawler goes to read it. “You’re right, Miz. There is no number one contender for the WWE Title. That’s because there are now TWO number one contenders. The WWE Championship Match at Extreme Rules will be a Triple Threat Match between The Miz, R-Truth, and John Cena!”
Cena and R-Truth beat on The Miz and Alex Riley. Miz gets out of the ring and Cena hits Riley with the Attitude Adjustment. Cena then goes face to face with R-Truth. They shake hands an hug. They slap each other’s backs hard. Cena then pushes R-Truth and R-Truth smiles. R-Truth leaves the ring and his music plays.
Quick Match Results
Brie Bella def. Eve Torres to win the Diva’s Championship
Sin Cara def. Primo
The Corre def. The Apple
Jerry “The King” Lawler def. Jack Swagger
The 5-man Gauntlet Match ends in a Double DQ between John Cena & R-Truth
Bump of the Night: Sin Cara’s nasty finisher!
Match of the Night: The 5-man Gauntlet Match ** 1/2
Mike’s Thoughts
This was a crazy-good, crazy-emotional Raw. I never thought that when I was racing home from the last Nets home game of the season (after watching them lose yet another game) to recap Raw at Dave Stephens’s request, that this would be one of the most emotional episodes of Raw this year. I’m honored to have recapped this show tonight.
I have to start out talking about the sudden and completely shocking retirement of Edge. That came out of nowhere. He seemed just fine to me last week but I guess that’s a testament to his strength and character that he was able to persevere despite this brutal injury. This was one of the very few times we get to see true, genuine emotion on WWE Television. This sudden announcement by Edge should remind us all of the sacrifices these men and women make on a daily basis for our entertainment. These sacrifices are real and this is something Edge will have to live with for the rest of his life. Next time you watch one of the shows just take a second to really appreciate what they do for us. Thank you Edge for all the great years of entertainment you’ve provided for me and wrestling fans like me. I truly appreciate everything.
Raw started out pretty strong with John Cena announcing that his match against The Rock next year will be for the WWE Championship. That’s a bold statement and, in my opinion, a bit of a slap in the face for The Miz. He’s still the champion, you know. Then a bevy of WWE Superstars came out to the ring, all looking for a shot at The Miz at Extreme Rules. That translated into a 5-man gauntlet match being made for the main event. They gave the match a decent amount of time and let it build. I thought the ending was a little bit lame with the Double DQ. They made it a Triple Threat Match for Extreme Rules between Cena, Miz, and R-Truth. Personally I’d have liked to have just seen Cena take on The Miz one-on-one and get the full WrestleMania match we didn’t get at WrestleMania but I guess they wanted to go a different route. R-Truth is definitely an interesting choice and certainly not one I saw coming. I thought he was buried for a while but he’s risen from the ashes yet again. I’m interested to see how he plays into the match.
I’m excited to see Jerry Lawler gets hits hands on Michael Cole again. This time it’ll be at Extreme Rules and JR will be fighting along side him. This is going to be the brutal beat down of Cole that we saw at WrestleMania. Hopefully this will be a quicker match than Mania and we’ll also get to see the Piledriver. Now that Jack Swagger isn’t truly in Cole’s corner anymore that should be able to happen. Hopefully this will lead to Jerry Lawler and JR being full time announcers on Raw again. The images that they create together can’t be described. Just hearing JR talking after Edge’s retirement was so much more emotional than anything I believe Cole could deliver. I’m not hating on Michael Cole – that’s just fact. WWE doesn’t have any announcer on their roster that can fill Jim Ross’s chair on Raw and he keeps proving it in every little segment he does.
Sin Cara made a decent debut despite the botched ending. They saved it but it was still a glaring embarrassment. I liked his finisher but, in the long run, it’s totally impractical. It can’t be performed on guys much bigger than Primo so that immediately limits Sin Cara. I’d like to see how Sin Cara interacts in a real match with the bigger men in WWE. It’s coming soon and I’m interested to see how he steps up to the test.
The Apple thing with Santino Marella had me laughing hysterically. It was so stupid but so funny. I absolutely loved it. The Corre seems to already be breaking up, which is a shame because I think there’s a lot of potential there that isn’t being reached. Now that Edge is off the Smackdown roster we definitely need some people to step up. The Corre could be some of those people.
Awesome Kong is coming and I can’t wait. That vignette was so creepy. They then followed it up with Brie Bella winning the Diva’s Championship out of nowhere. It looks like Eve Torres is turning heel too from the way she was in the locker room afterwards. I guess they’ll have Awesome Kong come in as a face and destroy Eve? Who knows?
Given that this was a highly emotional Raw following the shocking retirement of Edge and I was legitimately entertained at other points of the show, I’m giving this a perfect rating. My star scale is out of four (that’s just how I do it) so I’m giving it a perfect rating.
Final Rating: ****
E-Mail – MikeTedesco@wrestleview.com
Be sure to check out the Win-Loss Record of your favorite WWE Superstar on the main page! Also be sure to check out my Smackdown recap this Friday!
Thanks for reading!