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Arcademan:
WWE NXT Results: 3-14-12

Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to James's complete report). Condensed here to in-ring results only.

Matt Striker and William Regal start the show in the ring. This week, Regal is the "official match coordinator." Regal says that the theme of NXT is "tag teams." Regal explains why tag team wrestling is so special. Love it. He introduces "the most dynamic tag team I've seen in years, The Usos." That is high praise coming from Regal. Titus O'Neil and Darren Young then hit the ramp, mocking The Uso's entrance war dance.

1 - THE USOS vs. TITUS O'NEIL & DARREN YOUNG - Tag Team Match

Jimmy and O'Neil start the match, and Jimmy brings O'Neil to his corner and tags in Jey. Some boots in the corner and Jimmy tags back in. Quick cover for one. O'Neil turns the momentum with a knee lift, but Jimmy no sells two headbutts and responds with one of his own. Jey comes back in. O'Neil is able to tag out, but Young eats an elbow, then a headbutt. Jey whips Young right over the turnbuckle, then knocks O'Neil off the apron, tags in Jimmy, and Jimmy hits Young with a crossbody on the outside.

Out of the break, Jimmy and Young are trading blows with Young getting the upper hand. O'Neil tags in, but Jimmy is able to get Jey into the match and O'Neil in their corner. O'Neil powers up, and brings Young in again. Young settles into the first hold of the match - it may be a WWE record for time without a hold. O'Neil's back in and works Jey over in the corner, then Young comes back in as the crowd chants for The Usos. Young puts Jey on the turnbuckle, but Jey hits a side kick to the throat area to knock Young down. The ref starts a double count and hot tags are made. Jimmy goes wild on O'Neil. Cross-ring stinkface for a nearfall, but Young breaks up the pin. Jey gets involved and clears Young out. Jimmy lands a Samoan Drop on O'Neil, then tags in Jey, who gets the win with the Superfly Splash.

WINNERS: The Usos in 10:00. Decent match at the end. I was impressed that everyone stayed away from the rest hold formula for the match, despite it being relatively long for O'Neil and Young.

2 - ALEX RILEY & PERCY WATSON vs. CURTIS HAWKINS & TYLER REKS - Tag Team Match

Percy Watson and Curt Hawkins start things off. Hawkins hides in the corner to avoid an aggressive Watson. Hawkins runs to his corner and tags in Reks, who looks annoyed. Watson and Reks trade heavy blows and make it a power game. Big dropkick from Watson gets one. Reks sends Watson into the corner, but Reks can't tag out. Riley tries to get involved, but this allows Hawkins to get in some cheap shots. Reks goes wild on Watson with axe handles and the crowd cheers for Watson. Reks clears Riley from the ring, but when Riley reacts, the ref deals with him letting Hawkins get involved.

Hawkins tags in and slows it down with a side chinlock. Reks comes in again, but Watson uses an overhead throw to get a double tag out. Riley runs over Hawkins, then nails a spinebuster to take it up a notch. Riley heads to the turnbuckle, but Reks tries to get involved. Watson takes Reks out, but Hawkins is able to throw Riley to the floor and hit the Heatseeking Elbow for the three count.

WINNER: Hawkins & Reks in 5:30. Very enjoyable match with sound pacing and ring psychology.

3 - DERRICK BATEMAN & KAITLYN vs. JOHNNY CURTIS & MAXINE - Mixed Tag Team Match

Kaitlyn and Mazine to start things off. Kaitlyn takes Maxine's legs out from underneath her twice, then Maxine slaps Bateman. Bateman and Curtis come into the ring to calm down the Divas.

Bateman is dominating Curtis out of the break with power, but Curtis dodges a high knee in the corner, then works Bateman's knee. Kaitlyn encourages Bateman, but Curtis gives her a goofy look and sexual innuendo. He body slams Bateman, then gives more dirty looks to Kaitlyn. Bateman capitalizes with a schoolboy for a two count. Curtis puts him back down for two, then goes back to the leg work. As he does it, he tries to disgust Kaitlyn. Bateman kicks out of the leg hold, and lands the Sweet Meat Sizzler for the win.

WINNERS: Bateman & Kaitlyn in 3:45. This match needed more time to properly develop given that the folks involved are all pretty good wrestlers.

Arcademan:
WWE Superstars Results: 3-15-12

Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to James's complete report). Condensed here to in-ring results only.

1 - JUSTIN GABRIEL vs. HUNICO (w/Camacho)

Pre-match, Hunico cut a promo in Spanish.

Hunico with an arm drag and a kip-up to start, then they go through some back-and-forth chain wrestling. There's some nice work here. Gabriel with a backslide for two and Hunico rolls outside the ring in frustration. They pick up the pace a little and they trade some fancy moves. Gabriel ends up on the turnbuckle and jumps off with a snap huracarana, sending Hunico to the outside. Gabriel tries to dive through the ropes, but Hunico kicks him on the way through.

Hunico with a side chinlock out of the break. Hunico sends Gabriel to the outside and distracts the ref so Camacho can get in a cheap shot. Hunico rolls Gabriel in and puts boots to him. Hunico with a sit-out slam, but the ref sees that Gabriel's shoulders aren't down and won't count. Hunico continues to control.

Gabriel comes back with a jawbreaker and kicks. A dropkick sends Hunico outside the ring. Gabriel with a springboard splash on Hunico and Camacho outside. He rolls Hunico in and lands springboard double knees to the back of Hunico's head for a nearfall. Hunico comes back with a Saito suplex for two. Gabriel slips out of a second suplex and tries a Tornado DDT, but Hunico reverses into a German suplex with a bridge for two. Great sequence. Hunico gets a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two. Gabriel counters a carry position with a Tornado DDT. Gabriel wants to go to the top, but Camacho deliberately stands in the way. By the time Gabriel clears Camacho out of the way and gets up top, Hunico has recovered enough to crotch Gabriel. Hunico meets him up top for a suplerplex for the win.

WINNER: Hunico in 11:30. This was an excellent match. Great back-and-forth with a mix of technical wrestling, brawling, and high-flying. Catch the match if you get a chance.

2 - KOFI KINGSTON & R-TRUTH vs. CURT HAWKINS & TYLER REKS - Tag Team Match

Kingston and Hawkins start off. Hawkins tries to yank Kingston into the corner, but Kingston gets free and Hawkins bumps Reks from the apron, drawing Reks's ire. This is the second time this week WWE has teased dissension between Reks and Hawkins. Kingston with a drop toehold and Hawkins and Kingston trade holds. Kingston somehow with an axe handle from the mat for one. R-Truth tags in and goes to work. Hawkins is able to get to the corner, but Truth overpowers Reks for a bit and brings Kingston back in to the match. They continue to isolate Reks. Reks gets a boot up in the corner to get Hawkins in. Hawkins with a suplex for two. They isolate Truth for a moment, but Truth sends them both outside and Kingston leaps off Truth to land a big flip dive over the ropes.

Back from break, Reks is stuck in the corner with Truth and Kingston working him over. Reks makes a comeback against Kingston, but walks into a pendulum kick and eats a top-rope crossbody. Hawkins distracts Kingston, allowing Reks dump him out. Hawkins tags in and rolls Kingston in. More isolation work from Reks and Hawkins. Reks puts Kingston in the Tree of Woe and brings Hawkins in. Kingston almost tags out, but Hawkins stops him, then cheap shots Truth. Truth tries to come in, which distracts the ref, so Reks and Hawkins land a high/low on Kingston getting a very close nearfall. Reks comes back in and keeps Kingston away from Truth. Kingston counters a bodyslam with a DDT and they both tag out.

Truth quickly hits the Lie Detector, then a big front suplex, but Reks breaks up the pin. Kingston sends Reks to the outside and, while the ref is distracted, Kingston hits the Trouble in Paradise from the apron. Hawkins then stumbles into the Little Jimmy for the loss.

WINNERS: Kingston & Truth in 10:30. Good match, but too much of it was spent with Kingston at the losing end of a beat down. This feels too much like the old Air Boom formula, but this time with R-Truth being the closer and Kingston being the victim.

3 -- Divas champion BETH PHOENIX vs. KELLY KELLY -- non-title match

Phoenix and Kelly show off at each other and Phoenix sends Kelly to the mat to abuse her. Kelly shoves Phoenix into the corner, then lands the cheerleader backspring splash, then the stinkface. Kelly chokes Phoenix in the ropes, and lands a Thesz Press from the top rope. Phoenix recovers for a moment, but Kelly gets a huracarana-like moved to settle into a cover for two. Phoenix hotshots Kelly on the ropes to turn it around.

Phoenix with the power for a number of two counts. Kelly dodges a corner charge and schoolgirls Phoenix for two. Phoenix with a clothesline for two, and another cover for two. Dragon Sleeper on the mat from Phoenix, but Kelly doesn't tap. Kelly punches out and sends Phoenix into the corner with her head scissors move, then lands a bulldog for two. Phoenix sends Kelly into the ropes, then goes for the Glam Slam, but Kelly rolls through and leverages a two count. Phoenix comes out of the cover and puts Kelly down. Phoenix calls for the Glam Slam again, lands it, and the match is over.

WINNER: Phoenix at 5:45. Kelly is simply too limited to make her matches enjoyable to watch. What I don't get is the booking of the Divas Champion (who is also a very good wrestler) to be on Superstars two weeks in a row, while the Eve Torres mess dominates Raw and Natayla is stuck with a farting gimmick on Smackdown. Perhaps things will change with the announcement of Beth in a tag match at WrestleMania.

Arcademan:
TNA Impact Wrestling Results: 3-15-12

Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Turner's complete report). Condensed here to in-ring results only.

1 -- MADISON RAYNE vs. VELVET SKY

Before she could “let the pigeons loose,” Sky dove through the ropes and tackled Rayne. Taz said that sometimes he didn’t like even saying his catchphrase, funny. Sky slammed Rayne’s head into turnbuckle for a two count. Rayne mounted a come back and did a number on Sky’s head while it rested on the middle rope for her first two count. Rayne threw Sky out of the ring and proceeded to hang Sky on the middle rope to hit a neckbreaker for another two count. Sky went for a roll-up that Rayne reversed into a roll-up of her own, with a handful of tights, for the win.

WINNER: Madison Rayne via pinfall at 3:58.

2 -- CRIMSON (w/Matt Morgan) vs. TNA Tag Team champion SAMOA JOE (w/TNA Tag Team champion Magnus)

As the match started, the crowd started chanting, “Let's go Crimson.” Joe dominated early with some awesome offense in the corners of the ring followed by a knee drop onto the head of Crimson for a two count. Crimson got the offensive edge after Morgan interfered on Crimson’s behalf. Crimson threw some knees into the face of Joe followed by a neckbreaker for a two count.

Joe came back with a boot to the face of Crimson followed by a senton splash for another two count. Joe tried to set up Crimson for a muscle buster, but an altercation between Morgan and Magnus at ringside distracted him long enough from Crimson to regain his bearings and hit Joe with a spear for the pin.

WINNER: Crimson via pinfall at 4:29. I expected Crimson to win this given his “undefeated streak,” but I was okay with that. TNA has gotten this far billing him as undefeated, and it wouldn’t really make sense to have him lose with no hype. A fun, albeit short, match that could have benefitted from a few more minutes. That being said, it was weird seeing Morgan use some heelish tactics during the match.

3 -- MICKIE JAMES vs. TNA Knockouts champion GAIL KIM -- non-title match

Both Knockouts exchanged holds until James caught Kim with a running boot for a two count. Kim instantly went for her belt, but was stopped before she could use it by James. She started systematically attacking James’s right knee.

James tried fighting out, but Kim consistently kept taking advantage her bad knee. Eventually, James was able to get a pin attempt in followed by a neckbreaker. James hit a Thesz Press for a two count on Kim, and then proceeded to hit a baseball slide to send Kim to the outside. As James tried to pull Kim back into the ring, Kim was able to hit James with the Knockout Title behind the referee's back and scored the pin.

WINNER: TNA Knockouts champion Gail Kim via pinfall at 5:16. That was much better than the match between Rayne and Sky earlier in the night. Not to take anything from the homegrown Knockouts, but these put together a much more believable match.

4 -- MR. ANDERSON vs. DANIELS

As soon as Anderson stepped foot into the ring, Daniels was on the attack. It didn’t last long, as Anderson quickly regained the offensive edge, causing Daniels to bow out to ringside. Daniels, with an apparent cut on his face, was met outside by Anderson and thrown back into the ring. Back in the ring Daniels was able to regain his offensive bearings and put the boots to Anderson in one of the corners of the ring, followed by a knee to Anderson's gut for a two count.

Anderson and Daniels exchanged blows, with Anderson getting the best of the exchange with a neckbreaker followed by another two count. Anderson hit a spin kick and a Pittsburgh Plunge on Daniels as Kazarian made his way to the ring. A.J. came out and Kazarian came off, allowing Anderson to hit the Mic Check on Daniels for the win.

WINNER: Mr. Anderson via pin at 5:47. That was an all right match. Anderson looked like he was motivated, and Daniels always makes his opponents look like a million bucks. I thought Daniels was holding something over Kazarian’s head to make him follow orders? The idea of Kazarian suffering from Stockholm Syndrome is silly.

5 -- KURT ANGLE vs. GARETT BISCHOFF -- five minute-challenge

Angle quickly started laying into Bischoff as a timer counted down in the corner of the screen. The announcers played up the idea that Bischoff was in survival mode. Angle feigned a pin attempt by pulling Bischoff up by his hair as soon as the referee started to make the count. Angle dominated Bischoff and eventually threw him outside of the ring. At ringside, Angle hit Bischoff with a suplex and threw back into the ring for a two count. Angle gave Bischoff an overhead belly-to-belly suplex and feigned another pin attempt, pulling Bischoff up by his hair.

The Olympic Gold medalist went for an Angle Slam, but it was reversed by Bischoff, who threw him outside the ring. Angle quickly made his way back into the ring and hit another Angle Slam, but by the time he went for a pin attempt the allotted five minutes had passed. An enraged Angle knocked the referee out and put Bischoff into an anklelock until Hardy made the save.

WINNER: Time Expired at 5:00. I wonder if Eric caught word of the criticism floating around about his son not taking a single bump last week before hitting three offensive moves to set up Hardy for the win...Bischoff was Angle’s ragdoll this week, and even though it gave me sick pleasure watching him take bumps, I still want Garett Bischoff off my television.

6 -- GUNNER vs. JAMES STORM

Storm was quick to attack Gunner, but was met with a thumb to the eye. This only angered Storm, who continued to beat on Gunner who made his way outside to avoid further punishment. Storm threw Gunner back into the ring and as he made his way back in Gunner was there to meet him with some offense. Gunner went for a few crossface attempts, but only got a two count. Ray was shown at ringside cheering Gunner on, but Storm came back with a clothesline to buy himself some recovery time. Strom got some offense in with a back body drop, followed by a codebreaker. Storm won the match with a superkick.

WINNER: James Storm via pinfall at 3:52. I guess Gunner is only a menacing wrestler when he’s in the ring with Garett Bischoff...

Arcademan:
WWE Smackdown Results: 3-16-12

Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Parks' complete report). Condensed here to mostly in-ring results.

- Christian is back and on 'The Peep Show, he had both GMs bickering at each other. Christian wanted them to present their best offer to be on their team in WM but we already knew what the answer was going to be as he joined Team Laurinaitis.

1 - DAVID OTUNGA vs. KOFI KINGSTON

Match was joined in progress out of break. Otunga was still wearing dress pants. As strange as it looks, I like that better than when wrestlers just happen to wear their gear to the ring and then just happen to be put in a match. Long and Laurinaitis were on commentary. Laurinaitis said Christian’s injury this week was an ingrown toenail. Otunga had the advantage and did some posing while sitting on Kingston’s back. Cole spent most of the match antagonizing Long. Kofi kicked Otunga in the chest, but dove into Otunga’s arms, only for Otunga to slam him. He looked a little out-of-control with that move. Otunga’s pants were ripped right down the crack of his butt. Otunga attempted a third corner clothesline, but Kofi fought it off and hit a springboard cross-body for two. He made his comeback, which included a high dropkick. Kofi hit the ropes, but Christian tripped him. The ref didn’t see it but clearly suspected something. Long talked to the ref, who then sent Christian back to the locker room. Laurinaitis and Long argued at ringside, and the ref was involved in the argument as well. Otunga tried to use his belt, but Santino grabbed it. Santino was knocked off the apron by Otunga, who turned around into Trouble in Paradise for the win.

WINNER: Kingston, 5:03 shown. Otunga is still clearly raw, but Kingston is a guy who can help make him look better than he is.

2 - NIKKI BELLA vs. AJ

After AJ made her entrance, Bryan made a separate entrance to cheer on his girlfriend at ringside. She looked less-than-thrilled when he came out. Nikki got down on her knees to fight AJ, making fun of her opponent’s size. AJ responded with a running dropkick to the face. Nikki regrouped to hit a neckbreaker. She then stood on AJ’s hair and pulled on her arms. With Bryan shouting encouragement at ringside, Nikki kept AJ down with a chinlock, hooking the arm with her leg as well. AJ fought out and hit a spinning back kick on Nikki. To the top she went for a diving splash. Nikki switched with Brie, and Bryan alerted the ref. Nikki then ran over to yell at Bryan for ratting her out. Brie grabbed AJ by the hair and pulled her down with Bryan still on the ref’s case. Nikki went for the finish, but AJ rolled her up for the win.

WINNER: AJ, at 2:49. AJ predictably looked good in there, and Nikki actually didn’t look terrible either.

3 – THE GREAT KHALI vs. CODY RHODES

Did I just see two women in the crowd with powder blue long-sleeved shirts that had the old-school WCW logo on it? Khali caught a kick attempt by Rhodes, putting him on his back. Rhodes chopped Khali in the chest, and Khali responded with a chop to the head. In the corner, hard chop to the chest. Rhodes ran the ropes, but Khali hit him in the head. Another corner chop. Rhodes went after the legs and did a single-arm DDT (I think – tough to tell with Khali selling). Rhodes worked the arm of Khali. After Khali shoved him off, Rhodes went after the leg. Khali kicked Rhodes off of him, but Rhodes went to the top. Khali caught him on the way down with a chop to the chest. Clotheslines from Khali, but he missed an overhand chop. Rhodes brought Khali throat-first over the top rope, then dropkicked the leg. Disaster kick to the head finished Khali.

WINNER: Rhodes, at 3:14. Credibility booster for Rhodes heading into Wrestlemania against another giant, Big Show. Almost surprised they didn’t do this match on the go-home show.

- Orton confronts Kane. Kane used his match against Orton in July of last year for motivation. Orton defeated Kane and after the match, shook his hand. Kane said that's a side of him you'll never see again. Yep, here's another WM match set.

4 – DREW MCINTYRE vs. THE BIG SHOW

Show almost ran over referee Rod Zapata in running McIntyre into the corners. McIntyre tried to comeback, but got speared. Chokeslam, followed by the WMD. The referee checked on McIntyre, then called the match.

WINNER: Show, via ref stoppage, at 1:49. So will Long punish McIntyre for the next year now, until his contract runs out?

5 – MARK HENRY vs. YOSHI TATSU

Tatsu was already in the ring. At the sound of the bell, Tatsu attacked with a dropkick. It got Henry off-balance, but that’s all. Chops had no effect, but a headbutt from Henry did. Hard forearm to the chest by Henry in the corner. Running powerslam, then some trash talk from the World’s Strongest Man. Henry waited for Tatsu to get to his feet, then gave him the World’s Strongest Slam for the win.

WINNER: Henry, at 1:38. So disappointed that Henry’s resurgence the past week on Raw and Smackdown (including last week’s show) will probably just lead to him being fed to Cena on Raw.

6 – CHRIS JERICHO vs. SHEAMUS

Cole recalled these two men being the final two men in the Royal Rumble match in January. Sheamus, still showing the bruise on his back from Monday night, gave Jericho a few knees to the mid-section. When he was on the apron, Jericho ran at him, but Sheamus propelled himself over the top and shoulder tackled Jericho. Jericho missed a corner dive and ended up outside the ring. Hard forearms to the chest by Sheamus. He suplexed Jericho back into the ring, but kept Jericho in the air for a spell during the vertical suplex. Jericho dodged a Sheamus attack, leading to the Rumble winner being sent to ringside. He kicked Sheamus to keep him outside the ring. Daniel Bryan and AJ walked to the ring as the show went to break, 3:26 into the match.

Back at 6:52 of the match. Jericho propelled Sheamus throat-first into the bottom rope as Bryan was shown sitting at ringside with AJ standing behind him. That’s a nice subtle visual there, Bryan taking the chair and making AJ stand. Sheamus attempted to get some momentum going, but Jericho stopped it with a knee-lift. Back suplex for only one at 8:34. Jericho slowed the match down with a rest-hold, but Sheamus stood up with Jericho on his back and backed him into the corner. Jericho went for a running bulldog, but Sheamus shoved him into the buckle. Sheamus went on the offensive and landed his Irish Curse back-breaker for two at 10:49. Mathews noted that Sheamus hasn’t seemed to notice Bryan’s presence at ringside. Forward roll by Sheamus for two. Jericho thumbed the eye of Sheamus without the ref seeing. Brogue Kick missed, catching Sheamus on the top rope. Springboard dropkick, then Lionsault for two at 11:56. Sheamus went to the top, but Jericho crotched him. “Y2J” chant from some of the males in the crowd. Sheamus fought off Jericho’s attempts at offense on the top rope and Sheamus took Jericho out with a diving shoulder tackle. Celtic Cross countered into the Walls of Jericho. Sheamus made the ropes at 13:54. Sheamus got back to his feet and went for the Cross, but Jericho got out and was clotheslined over the top and to the floor, in front of the announce table (and Bryan and AJ). Jericho was thrown in Bryan’s direction by Sheamus, but Bryan and AJ moved. Sheamus got on the apron and stared down Bryan, allowing Jericho to dropkick him back outside. Behind the ref’s back, Bryan dropkicked Sheamus as well. He couldn’t quite make it back before the 10-count.

WINNER: Jericho, via count-out, at 15:19.

Sheamus chased Bryan and AJ around ringside, but stopped when the heels reached the top of the stage. Sheamus stared at them from ringside as they replayed the finish of the match. Sheamus snuck back into the ring and gave an unsuspecting Jericho the Brogue Kick. Sheamus intensely stared at Bryan from the ring as the show finished.

Arcademan:
WWE RAW Results: 3-25-12

Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Caldwell's complete report). Condensed here to mostly in-ring results with my usual commentary thown in for good measure.

- First off...the Cena-Rock special that aired before RAW...good stuff. Nice to see some of the behind-the-scene personal life stuff of both guys.

1 -- RANDY ORTON & SHEAMUS vs. World Hvt. champion DANIEL BRYAN (w/A.J.) & KANE

The bell sounded and Bryan shared a good luck kiss with A.J. before locking up with Orton. Production started off with the WrestleMania Hard Camera Shot - a low-level, widescreen angle - to make the setting seem grander leading to Mania. Eventually, the shot returned to the standard Raw TV angle. The participants went back-and-forth, exchanging control, before Bryan blasted Sheamus with a flying knee on the floor. Bryan laughed to himself as Sheamus sold on the outside leading to break.

Back live, Sheamus and Bryan were struggling in the ring before Bryan ripped off a series of kick strikes to the mid-section. Bryan then missed with a flying attack and ate the top turnbuckle. This gave Sheamus an opening to tag in Orton, who ran over Bryan with clotheslines, followed by a powerslam. Orton then wanted his second-rope DDT and connected. Orton was ready to Enter That Place, but Kane yanked Bryan out of the ring, setting off a Kane-Orton brawl on the outside. Kane ate the ringpost before Bryan dropkicked Orton through the ropes to cut off Orton's momentum. Orton sold on the outside before Bryan blasted away with strikes to the mid-section.

Back in the ring, Bryan tagged in Kane to resume control of this extended-length tag match. Kane went for a corner attack, but Orton blocked, only to eat a sidewalk slam from Kane for a two count. Kane tried going up top for a flying clothesline...and he connected. He then wanted the Welder's Mask chokeslam, but Orton countered with a flying dropkick before Kane could grab him. Tags were made to Sheamus and Bryan, who was taken apart by Sheamus. All four men found themselves in the ring, then the faces clotheslined Kane over the top rope to the floor. On the outside, Orton teased an RKO, but Kane shoved him into the turnbuckle.

Back in the ring, A.J. suddenly stepped into the ring to stand in front of Bryan before Sheamus could deliver the Brogue Kick. The distraction allowed Kane to re-enter the picture and chokeslam Bryan behind the ref's back. Bryan then covered Sheamus for the win. "Yes! Yes! Yes!" Bryan declared before pointing to the WM28 sign hanging in the arena. Ringside, A.J. smiled and applauded.

WINNER: Bryan & Kane at 11:34. Solid tag match to open the show. The booking says that Bryan getting the win here means Sheamus gets the win at Mania.

2 -- U.S. champion SANTINO vs. DAVID OTUNGA (w/John Laurinaitis and Vickie Guerrero) -- non-title match

No mock posing before the initial lock-up for this repeat match. Otunga took control, then grabbed the Team Johnny flag to pose and wave. Hornswoggle tried to one-up Otunga, then an agitated Otunga accidentally knocked himself out with Teddy's flag. Santino followed with the Cobra to Otunga for the win.

Post-match: Laurinaitis entered the ring to protest the decision. Long and Hornswoggle did the old high/low routine to trip up Laurinaitis, then Santino was ready to pop Laurinaitis with the Cobra, but The Miz stormed the ring and dropped Santino with the Skullcrushing Finale. Laurinaitis botched the next line, welcoming Miz to Team Teddy...I mean, Team Johnny. Miz celebrated as Cole declared Miz the difference-maker to help Team Johnny win at WrestleMania. After a replay of the finish, Cole recapped Team Johnny's six-man tag team as Miz stood in the ring with a few pieces of the team.

WINNER: Santino at 1:29. It seemed a little anticlimactic for Miz to finally be added to a WrestleMania match with a quick announcement (and botched announcement, at that).

3 -- EVE (w/Divas champion Beth Phoenix) vs. KELLY KELLY

Back from break, Kelly Kelly came to the ring to face Eve ahead of their WrestleMania tag match, also involving Maria Menonous as Kelly's partner. Eve dominated early on, then Kelly scored a surprise win. Beth tried to grab Kelly on the way out of the ring, but Kelly avoided the champ to take momentum into WrestleMania.

WINNER: Kelly at 2:26. Standard, WWE formula Divas match.

In-ring: Justin Roberts gave an interesting formal introduction for Christian, who came out sporting a different haircut a la referee Charles Robinson, and a Team Johnny t-shirt. Christian made his way into the ring before Cult of Personality played to bring out WWE champion C.M. Punk. Before the match started, Chris Jericho appeared on the Titantron to address Punk. Jericho said he's going to beat Punk at WrestleMania and become new WWE champion, then expose Punk as a fraud. He said he's already exposed Jericho's dysfunctional family, and now has found out some new information. Next is Punk's mother. Jericho said Punk's mom is actually a kind, decent woman. But, he did find out some interesting information about Punk's parents getting married after his birthday, making him a bastard. In the ring, Punk sold fighting anger and tears, then Christian blasted him from behind.

The bell didn't sound as Christian continued to beat up Punk before throwing him to the outside. Punk recovered on the floor and smashed Christian head-first into the announce table over and over. Punk then went old-school Bryan Danielson with multiple elbow strikes to the neck. Punk continued to use Christian as a punching bag before flinging Christian onto the ring steps. He followed with his submission finisher and refused to let go, screaming, "This is you, Jericho!" Refs stormed ringside to separate Punk from Christian before Punk stood tall ringside. Punk then jumped the ring steps and splashed Christian, continuing to tear apart Christian. Cult of Personality played and a WWE doctor checked on Christian before they replayed Punk's assault on Christian. Back live, Punk was shown standing tall in the ring, ready for WrestleMania.

4 -- WWE champion C.M. PUNK vs. CHRISTIAN -- non-title match

WINNER: Match Did Not Happen. Nice use of Christian as a surrogate for Jericho to demonstrate that Punk is ready for WrestleMania.

4 -- BRODUS CLAY vs. CURT HAWKINS

Clay started with some shaking and jiggling before Hawkins knocked Clay down to one knee. Hawkins then took Clay off his feet and onto his back before running into a headbutt from Clay. Clay followed with a high knee lift, then a t-bone suplex. Next was the big running splash for the pin and the win.

WINNER: Clay at 1:05. Apparently WWE doesn't have plans to invest in Clay, as they just threw money out the window with Clay being taken off his feet in a match with Curt Hawkins again after Smackdown. He's officially a bit player.

5 -- BIG SHOW vs. WWE tag champion PRIMO (w/Epico and Rosa Mendes)

The announcers made light of Primo in this match-up, then Cole announced Christian is officially out of WrestleMania. He said one more slot is available for Team Johnny now. Show made short work of Primo with a chokeslam to win in under one minute.

Post-match: Rosa tried to scream at Show, then IC champion Cody Rhodes came out on-stage to taunt Big Show some more. Rhodes threw some philosophy toward Show before turning Show's name into a verb. He said students are going to pray they don't "Big Show" on their finals, guys at the bar are going to hope they don't "Big Show" with the ladies, and he hopes he doesn't have to take a Big Show. The announcers chuckled, then Rhodes noted Show will be the biggest fool of all on April 1 at WrestleMania. Cole said he hopes Rhodes knows what he's doing trying to anger Big Show.

WINNER: Show at 0:47.

6 -- MARK HENRY (w/John Laurinaitis) vs. GREAT KHALI (w/Teddy Long)

Khali dominated with clumsy blows early on, taking Henry off his feet. Henry suddenly came back with the World's Strongest Slam in a feat of strength. Henry with the pin for the win.

WINNER: Henry at 0:48.

Post-match: Teddy gave his props to Henry, then Laurinaitis threw Teddy into the ring. Teddy then found himself face-to-face with Henry before Laurinaitis waved out his team to come join the team. They stood ringside, ready to fend off Team Teddy, and some members hit ringside to zero heat. A red on blue brawl broke out as Henry continued to stalk Teddy in the ring. Suddenly, R-Truth came out late and jumped into the pile. Kofi Kingston was out last and he ate a World's Strongest Slam in the ring. Henry then hoisted up Long for a World's Strongest, but Booker hit the ring and saved Teddy. Booker then cleared Henry, leading to the heels retreating up the ramp.

Once the dust settled, Team Teddy members assembled in the ring along with Booker. Teddy asked Booker if he would join Team Teddy, and Booker accepted. Booker celebrated by dropping down and doing a Spin-a-roonie before hugging the other members. Cole said it's Booker and the Oddities. Booker then put on a blue t-shirt to make his membership official.

- Last 20 minutes of the show was Rock and Cena's last verbal confrontation face-to-face before WM XXVIII. Nothing really new that you haven't heard already however I do like the intensity level of Cena. Rock...there's a reason why he's an actor now. To me, he didn't have the same intensity level.

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