» Reported by Jason Patton of WrestleView.com
» On Tuesday, July 13, 2004 at 3:31 AM EST

WWE RAW – July 12th, 2004
Commentators: Jim Ross & Jerry “The King” Lawler
Reported by: Jason Patton of WrestleView.com

*Note: The regular RAW recapper Nathan Fleck was unavailable for this week, so I am temporarily filling in for him. He should be back next week.

The show opens with Triple H talking to a confused Eugene, with an angry Evolution surrounding him. He said Eugene made a mistake and that they were still friends. However, Uncle Eric was apparently mad and wanted to see Eugene right away. Eugene apologized one last time before the RAW video played.

Edge vs. Batista
Non-Title Match

Batista controls the match early on by over powering a smaller Edge. He wears him down with punches, kicks and submissions. The action was relatively slow paced until Edge fought back with a roundhouse kick, followed by a dropkick which sent Batista to the outside. Randy Orton came out as the show went to commercial.

-COMMERCIAL BREAK-

The action picks up as it is learned that Randy Orton tripped Edge, which caused him to be ejected by referee Earl Hebner. Batista meanwhile hits a sidewalk slam and then a vertical suplex for just a two count. He outs Edge in a submission hold and blood is visible in Edge’s mouth. Edge fights back until he hits a modified DDT for a two count. Batista dodged a spear and then hit a spinebuster for another near fall. Edge got to the top rope and hit a missile dropkick, but came up short of three again. He went for another spear, but Batista countered it. Edge, however, slipped off Batista’s shoulders and rolled him up while holding the top rope for the win.

Winner: Edge

Eugene is seen backstage outside Eric Bischoff’s office. He goes inside and Eric says they he is mad because people are blaming Eugene for Triple H’s loss at Vengeance. Eric says that he is proud of Eugene and gives him a match later in the night against Chris Benoit for the World title.

-COMMERCIAL BREAK-

Jerry “The King” Lawler is at the top of the ramp and says that 3 diva hopefuls will join him tonight. The first diva, Candice Michelle, comes out and reveals that she will be in the Lingerie Bowl at the Super Bowl next year and ends up licking her nose.

Ric Flair is in the back with Todd Grisham and says that he wishes Eugene luck tonight. He said he is sick of Eugene though and claims that “freaks” get in his way. Hurricane comes in and asks Flair to sign his book. Flair refuses to sign it because he is insulted by people like the Hurricane. Hurricane said that Flair’s book wasn’t as good as The Rock’s, Hogan’s, or Foley’s. Flair then knocks out the Hurricane and challenges him to a match later in the night.

-COMMERCIAL BREAK-

Rhyno vs. Robert Conway

Some back and forth action early until Rhyno is sent to the outside. Sylvan Grenier hits a few cheap shots on him as the ref is occupied by Tajiri. Rhyno gets back in the ring and hits a back body drop for a near fall. He then hits a spinebuster and gets prepared for the Gore. Grenier holds the leg of Rhyno, but Tajiri takes out Grenier with a kick to the face. Rhyno then hits the Gore for the victory.

Winner: Rhyno

-COMMERCIAL BREAK-

WWE Slam of the Week is shown when Maven attacks Tyson Tomko on Sunday Night Heat to the aid of Nidia.


Tyson Tomko vs. Maven

As Maven comes down to the ring, Tomko attacks him with a cheap shot. They get in the ring and Tomko hits a military press for a near fall. Nidia trips Tomko and he comes after her in anger. Maven takes advantage of this distraction and hits a dropkick on Tomko. Trish tries to stop Maven, but Nidia attacks her. Maven then gets hit with a boot to the face by Tomko to lose the match.

Winner: Tyson Tomko


William Regal confronts Chris Benoit backstage and says he likes Eugene and doesn’t want anything bad to happen to him anymore. Benoit says he likes Eugene too, but that he will do anything it takes to retain his title.


-COMMERCIAL BREAK-

WWE Rewind is shown from Vengeance last night. Matt Hardy tells Lita to leave him alone until he gets things sorted out to Lita’s despair.

The Highlight Reel begins with Chris Jericho claiming himself the “Undisputed Musical Chairs Champion”. Kane and Lita then both make their way out and Kane tells Lita that he won’t let her get away with costing him his match, despite her being the mother of his child. Lita comes out and says Kane won’t do anything. She claimed she has suffered enough and that she is not scared anymore. Lita goes on to say she knows that Kane isn’t the father because Matt Hardy is more of a man than he will ever be. Kane gets furious as Lita leaves and destroys the set. He attacks Jericho and tosses him out of the ring. He leaves the ring furious until Jericho challenges Kane to a fight by repeatedly insulting Kane.

-COMMERCIAL BREAK-

Kane vs. Chris Jericho

Jericho gets the upper hand in the match by hitting a dropkick. He goes to the top rope and hits a crossbody for a near fall. Kane fights back and chokes Jericho. He hits a sidewalk slam, but only gets a two count. Kane locks in a bearhug, but Jericho fights out. Despite his efforts, Kane hits a boot to the face. Kane goes to the top rope, but Jericho fights back with a springboard dropkick. Both men are down until Kane gets up. Jericho hits him with a chop block and then locks in the Walls of Jericho. Kane gets to the ropes and eventually gets to his feet. Jericho hits him with an Inziguri and gets just a two count. Kane low blows Jericho for a DQ finish. After the match, Kane hit a double chokeslam on Jericho and the referee.

Winner: Chris Jericho

-COMMERCIAL BREAK-

The next diva hopeful, Nina Harden comes out. Her talent was dancing which she performed for the entire crowd.

The SmackDown! Rebound is shown with John Cena being stripped of the U.S. Championship. El Gran Luchador then confuses JBL and attacks him. El Gran says Eddie Guerrero will give him the biggest frog splash ever off the steel cage.

-COMMERCIAL BREAK-

Hurricane vs. Ric Flair

Hurricane gets the early advantage after a back body drop. Flair fights back with a few vicious chops. Flair then tosses Hurricane shoulder first into the steel pole. Flair goes to work on the aching arm of Hurricane until he is whipped into the turnbuckle, which flips him upside down and to the outside. Hurricane attacks Flair, whose ear begins to bleed. Hurricane hits another back body drop and then a top rope neckbreaker for a near three count. Flair hits a few chop blocks at the legs of Hurricane and then locks in the figure four, forcing Hurricane to tap.

Winner: Ric Flair

-COMMERCIAL BREAK-

Carmela DeCesare is the next diva hopeful that is interview by Lawler. She is the 2004 Playboy Playmate of the Year and says hello to Hugh Heffner.

Backstage, Chris Benoit confronts Eugene. He says he isn’t mad at Eugene and that he just wants to wrestle, without weapons. He also says he will do whatever it takes to retain his title before he shakes Eugene’s hand.

-COMMERCIAL BREAK-

Chris Benoit (c) vs. Eugene

WWE World Heavyweight Championship

The two men exchange chops to begin the match. Benoit hits a vertical suplex, followed by his patented triple German suplexes. Benoit goes to the top for a diving headbutt, but Eugene moves out of instinct. Eugene goes for a Pedigree, but Benoit counters it to a back body drop. Eugene hits a spinebuster and goes for the People’s Elbow, but Benoit trips him and locks in the sharpshooter. Eugene gets to the ropes as Benoit pushes him out of the ring. Eugene gets mad and attacks Benoit with 2 German suplexes. Eugene then locks in the crippler crossface until Benoit finally gets a foot on the bottom rope. Benoit tries to attack Eugene, but goes through the turnbuckles and into the steel pole. Eugene then hits a Rock Bottom and covers for a two count. Eugene think he wins though and begins to celebrate with the title until Evolution comes down to the ring. Triple H immediately knocks down Eugene.

Winner: No Contest

Evolution begins an attack on Benoit, followed by a Pedigree from Triple H. They attack Eugene until William Regal comes out. He gets hit with an RKO from Orton. Orton proceeds to hit an RKO on Eugene followed quickly by a Batista Bomb. Eugene begins to bleed as Triple H punches him. Triple H taunts Eugene and then nails a Pedigree. Triple H poses at the top of the ramp as the show ends.


Match Results:

Edge def. Batista in a non-title match via pinfall

Rhyno def. Robairre Conway via pinfall

Tyson Tomko def. Maven via pinfall

Chris Jericho def. Kane via disqualification

Ric Flair def. The Hurricane via submission

Chris Benoit vs. Eugene ended in a no contest


Food for Thought

I thought RAW was absolutely superb as far as matches went. I’ve been waiting patiently for a long time where a show was focused a lot on wrestling and the matches were great. This show went above and beyond my standards.

The opening match between Edge and Batista only added fuel to the fire involving Edge and Evolution. While somewhat slow paced, the match still was a great opener. Rhyno’s defeat against Conway helped build a tag team feud, which may be fun to watch. Ric Flair vs. The Hurricane was outstanding in my book. It was a mini-feud match set up for one night and was executed perfectly. Flair is still great in the ring and loved the match. Eugene was impressive in the ring as well.

The Highlight Reel was good. I keep thinking WWE is going to do some form of paternity test, but luckily, it hasn’t happened. Lita’s attitude in standing up to Kane is great and could help her in the long run.

The Diva Search is boring and the only thing I disliked about this show, next to the Tyson Tomko-Maven match. These girls don’t have an ounce of muscle on them and are just skinny women trying to exploit their body to the world. I bet none of them have any clue what an armbar or a DDT is.

SummerSlam had mainly commercial and ad buildup, but I would’ve liked to see more on the show. Perhaps it will come next week, but it should be interesting to see how the Eugene angle plays out in my honest opinion.

Any thoughts, comments, feedback, suggestions, questions, requests, or senseless gibberish can be sent to me by clicking here. Nathan should be back week, but it was fun while it lasted. Thanks for reading.