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The Official Wrestling Thread (now with more news and stuff)
Arcademan:
WWE Superstars Results: 5-20-10
Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Caldwell's complete report). Condensed here to in-ring results only.
1 -- SANTINO MARELLA vs. KOZLOV
Santino playfully put his hand on Kozlov's chest, then Kozlov grappled him. Santino closed his eyes waiting for Kozlov's response, then Kozlov landed multiple headbutts as Santino shrieked. Kozlov hit the Iron Curtain and Santino folded up like a cheap suit on the mat. Kozlov with the pin for the win.
WINNER: Kozlov in 0:30. Good start to the show. Only 30 seconds of Kozlov in the ring, they got over his offense in a unique way, and Santino was able to do the comedy routine in front of an appreciative audience. (n/a)
2 -- GOLDUST vs. WILLIAM REGAL
The match started with a standing exchange as Cole listed Regal's accolades, including a former Raw GM. Regal then grounded Goldust and started working over Goldust's left shoulder. Goldust recovered in the corner as ref Jack Doane started putting on medical gloves to examine Goldust. A medic then attended to Goldust, who received a cut around his check and ear region. Lawler said the doctor makes the decision on whether a wrestler can continue in the match. Regal played to the crowd while the medical examination continued for a few minutes.
The medic cleared Goldust to continue, then Regal went on the offensive, but Goldust made a brief comeback. Goldust teased a DDT, but Regal countered with an exploding suplex. Regal then went for a running knee trembler, but Goldust ducked and hit the Curtain Call for the pin and the win. Post-match: Goldust recovered in the corner and stared down Regal after picking up the win. Good reaction for Goldust from the crowd before they replayed the high points from the match. Back in the ring, Goldust played to the crowd and acted fired up.
WINNER: Goldust in 4:00. Nice little TV match. Goldust continues to impress every time they give him an opportunity. (*1/4)
3 -- CODY RHODES vs. CHRIS MASTERS
Cody started with a lock-up, but Masters shoved him to the mat and did the pec dance. Cody tried to overpower Masters, but he couldn't, so he rolled to the floor to recover. Apparently he had Masters "scouted," as Masters tried to follow up on the outside, but Cody lured Masters into a trap by yanking his shoulder-first into the ringpost. Masters writhed in pain on the floor as they cut to break with a ten count being applied.
Cody was working over Masters in the ring back from break. Cody kept Masters on the mat working over his shoulder before Masters came to his feet and landed a short-arm clothesline. Masters landed a series of clotheslines before making a cover for a two count. Masters pumped up the crowd before attempting a one-arm Masterlock. Cody reached the ropes for a break, though. After Masters let up, Cody took advantage with a quick single arm DDT center ring. Cody then followed right up with Cross Rhodes for the pin and the win.
WINNER: Rhodes in 9:00. Very good execution of basic ring psychology by Cody. Target the shoulder, take away one of Masters's arms for the Masterlock, get a slight advantage to re-target the shoulder, and hit the finisher for the win. Cody is on the right track getting over as a smart heel just looking to win matches. It's not main-event level, but it's effective and marketable if WWE gets Cody on a nice winning streak. (*1/2)
4 -- CHRISTIAN vs. DOLPH ZIGGLER
The crowd was hot for Christian early on as he took early control. The action moved to the floor where Christian yanked Ziggler nose-first across the ring apron. Christian then hit a baseball slide kick through the ropes that knocked Ziggler to the floor. Christian rolled Ziggler back into the ring, where Ziggler caught him with a hard knee to the gut. Ziggler then flung Christian over the top rope and Christian ate the floor stomach-first. Christian sold as they cut to break.
Back from break, Ziggler was working on Christian with stomps and kicks and punches. Ziggler then missed with a corner attack and Christian hit the pendulum kick. Christian made his comeback while selling the mid-section and scored a nearfall following a missile dropkick. Christian then went all the way up top and hit a cross-body block, but Ziggler rolled through into a nearfall. Ziggler tried to follow with the Sleeper, but Christian slipped underneath and hit an inverted DDT for a two count.
Christian then tried a turnaround sunset flip, but Ziggler blocked and trapped Christian's shoulders to the mat for a two count. Ziggler immediately tried to follow with the Zig-Zag, but Christian held the ropes to block. Christian then hit the Killswitch moments later and scored the pin for the win. Post-match: They recapped highlights of the match before Christian was shown smiling and pumping his fist in victory to get his shine as they wrapped up the show.
WINNER: Christian in 10:00. Nice ten-minute TV main event. They had a good back-and-forth exchange at the end heightening the anticipation for the finish, which looked a bit "forced" with Ziggler kind of walking into Christian for the Unprettier. That aside, a solid bout between two solid wrestlers. It wasn't a blow-away match, as it fit Christian's basic wrestling style, but it told a good story and ended the show on a high note. (**1/4)
Arcademan:
TNA Impact! Results: 5-20-10
Resutls courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Keller's complete report). Condensed to in-ring results and top 10 segment.
Bischoff announced Samoa Joe was no. 10. His music played and Joe walked out onto the stage. A short vignette aired touting his strengths. Up next was Global Champion Rob Terry. He walked out to his music. Another vignette aired. Next was Desmond Wolfe at no. 8. Then "The Pope" D'Angelo Dinero at no. 7, who is out with an injury so yeah, give him a title shot. No. 6 was Abyss, no. 5 was Mr. Anderson, no. 4 was Jeff Hardy, no. 3 was A.J. Styles, no. 2 Kurt Angle, and no. 1 was Sting. Angle didn't come out when he was announced. The crowd chanted "We want Angle! We want Angle!" Sting did walk out when announced.
1 -- ROXXI vs. MADISON RAYNE
Tenay said they were still awaiting the return of Angle. Taz speculated that Roxxi was concerned about her cardio since she went for three quick covers in the opening seconds. Tenay noted that Sting vs. Hardy tonight is the first time those two ever meet. Nice to see it get all of an hour and a half of time for fans to anticipate it and TNA to build it up. Roxxi only needed a couple minutes, though, to finish Rayne with a Voo Doo Drop. "This is humongous!" Who said it? Taz, of course. Tenay and Taz made a big deal out of this being a big upset. It would seem that way if Rayne had been built up for months in a logical manner as a rising Knockout with an impressive winning streak against tough competition. Instead, she won out of nowhere on a whim and thus beating her really doesn't mean much even if the announcers say so. The announcers are right to make the best of the lousy situation the bookers created for them, although injuries did force the booking team's hand.
WINNER: Roxxi in 3:00.
2 -- ROB TERRY vs. ORLANDO JORDAN
Jeremy Borash is such a better ring announcer than Dave Penzer (sorry Dave). He also vocally is much less associated with so many of those terrible WCW years. Jordan was lowered to the ring by that hot pink piece of cloth under his shoulders. Terry limped to the ring. Jordan focused on Terry's knee early in the match. Jordan pulled off Terry's knee wrap and then applied a cranking knee lock. The ref stopped the match even though Terry didn't tap. How about establishing what the rules actually are? These rep stoppages without a tapout or verbal submission are so flat because it just screams "copout finish" because "we didn't want either wrestler to do to the job." Jordan wouldn't let go of the hold afterward for a minute despite several referees yelling at him. Tenay said he's heartless.
WINNER: Jordan in 3:00.
3 -- BEER MONEY INC. vs. ROB VAN DAM & JAY LETHAL
No Black Machismo get-up for Lethal. Just orange and white trunks and boots. Taz said it was good to see Lethal being himself and not in some other persona. Storm shoved Lethal off the top rope at 4:00. Beer Money double-teamed Lethal with stomps in the corner. Taz said he doesn't like the chances of RVD & Lethal considering that Beer Money have teamed so much longer and have had so much success. Tenay said he just received word that the Championship Committee just received word of Angle's withdrawal from the no. 2 ranking. He said that opens up no. 10 because everybody is moving up a slot. He said TNA has added an eight-man X Division battle royal to determine the no. 10 position. "Talk about a high stakes match!" Tenay said. Why is it a high-stakes match? What does being no. 10 mean? And this seems rather arbitrary. What about career titles history and won-loss record? What about fan voting? Why an X Division wrestle? Isn't this top ten list supposed to be for the heavyweight title? So with no X Division wrestlers in the announced top ten, we're supposed to now accept that a battle royal will determine the lone X Division wrestler in the top ten? What about the X Division Champion and other X Division contender? They were all bypassed and none made the cut? Why would an X Division wrestler want to be in the top ten for the Heavyweight Title anyway? Putting one X Division wrestler in the top ten at no. 10 after all were bypassed previously just says none of the X Division wrestlers were good enough to make the cut. Instead, they should have a separate Top Contenders list. This is low-IQ booking on display here. Everything just seems so arbitrary or contradictory you just stop caring.
At 3:00 RVD tagged in. After a kick off the second rope, RVD went for a pin on Roode, but Storm broke it up. RVD fended off a double-team attempt. Lethal hit a top rope dropkick on Storm, then he gave Roode the Lethal Combination, then RVD hit Rolling Thunder on Roode, and then Lethal put Roode in the figure-four for the tapout.
WINNERS: RVD & Lethal in 4:00.
STAR RATING: * -- Way too short for a tag match with this level of wrestlers involved. It cheapens the whole concept of a big-name tag match to go just four minutes. How does anyone get excited about a PPV of six to eight matches when TNA establishes on TV intriguing matches between evenly matched wrestlers such as this is over in around four minutes. It's totally arbitrary that PPV matches go much longer than TV matches. At least in WWE, TV main events tend to be PPV length, although they're often guilty of going very short with evenly matched wrestlers otherwise on the show.
4 -- SHANNON MOORE (w/Jesse Neal) vs. ERIC YOUNG (w/Scott Hall, Kevin Nash)
Okay, I'm going to ask. Why does Tenay always call Eric Young "Eli"? Or is it "Ely" because his full name is "Eric Leslie Young" or something like that? And shouldn't that be explained now and then, or is it that obvious? [Edit: I've been informed he calls him simply "E.Y." That makes sense. I wonder if I've been alone in the world wondering from time to time why his nickname is Eli. I never cared enough to ask before; glad I did now. Scratch that off my list of things I need to figure out an answer to in life.] Moore punched his way out of a loosely applied armbar by young at 2:00. Ray walked to ringside a minute later. Neal tackled Ray. With the ref distracted, although awkwardly executed, Hall hit Moore in the back with a tag strap. Young then finished Moore with the leaping piledriver.
WINNER: Young in 3:00.
5 -- 8-MAN BATTLE ROYAL
Homicide, Chris Sabin, Alex Shelley, Kaz, Amazing Red, Generation Me #1, Generation Me #2, Brian Kendrick. Hilariously, with 14 minutes left in the show, Tenay said Spike TV will stay with this even if it goes past 11 o'clock. Oh, he was including Sting vs. Hardy in that comment; that makes more sense. Flair walked out. Taz said Kaz got new energy when he saw Flair, indicating he wanted to impress him. Kaz played to Flair. Kendrick snuck onto the match late and battled Kaz. Tenay said this could be a "career-changing win" for whoever is the last standing. Taz said it would put them on the radar. Flair looked impressed. Kaz seemed excited to have impressed Flair.
WINNER: Kaz in 4:00
5 -- STING vs. JEFF HARDY
As Sting made his ring entrance, Taz said RVD may have a few cracked ribs for Sting hitting him in the head with a chair. Hardy came out second. With five minutes left in the show, this epic never-before-seen dream match began. The poor saps in the crowd had no idea how much time was left in the taping, so they thought they might actually be on the verge of seeing something special instead of yet another devaluing of the whole concept of a star vs. star match-up. Had Sting and Hardy's careers taken a slightly different course the last six months, this could have been a co-headliner at WrestleMania 26. And it would have boosted the WrestleMania buyrate had it been promoted right. And here it is, a five minute throwaway match on Impact given away with zero weeks' notice. This is why TNA deserves what they get (or, I should say, don't get). There's very little difference between Sting's in-ring style in 2010 and Kevin Sullivan's in the late-1990s. Both styles incorporate standing up during their methodical kick-punch office, raking eyes, and avoiding taking any bumps.
At 4:00, after Sting controlled the entire beginning of the match, he missed a Stinger splash in the corner when Hardy moved. Hardy missed with a top rope flip dive when Sting side-stepped him. Sting then moved Hardy nearer the bottom rope so Hardy could grab it after applying the Scorpion Deathlock to force a break. Hardy crawled toward the bottom rope and forced a break. The ref tumbled out of the ring when Sting yanked Hardy back into the ring. The ref had to create all of his own motion. Mr. Anderson entered and gave Sting a Scorpion Death Drop just as Sting was about to give it to Hardy. Anderson rolled to ringside and hid as Hardy scored the three count. Anderson then entered the ring and raised Hardy's arm.
WINNER: Hardy in 6:00.
STAR RATING: *
-Afterward, Hardy shoved Anderson. Anderson talked to him and tried to convince him he wasn't his enemy. Some vocal fans chanted, "Anderson! Anderson!" Sting entered the ring and hit both Hardy and Anderson from behind with a bat. Some fans chanted, "Hogan! Hogan!"
Arcademan:
WWE Smackdown Results: 5-21-10
Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Park's complete report). Condensed here to in-ring results only.
1 - LAY-COOL vs. TIFFANY & KELLY KELLY
They've officially got the Lay-Cool chyron, so I figured it's their official team name. Tony Chimel announced them as co-Women's Champions. Tiffany and Kelly Kelly have to be the least intimidating tag team of all time. But if you're counting Divas, they may have competition. Layla went for a quick cover, dodging a hip-toss. Kelly used the ropes to flip out of a wrist-lock, then knocked Layla off the apron and to the floor. Michelle McCool received the same treatment. Kelly landed a cross-body onto McCool, and Tiffany took out Layla. Tiffany tagged in and monkey-flipped Layla out of the corner. Layla took over soon after, and tagged her partner. She went for a monkey flip on McCool, but Michelle turned it into a Faith Breaker for the win.
WINNERS: Lay-Cool, at 2:01. Not as bad as I expected.
2 - JTG vs. CAYLEN CROFT
The Dudebusters did an inset interview during their entrance. They didn't have much to say, other than that they bust dudes up. For sure. Croft went down expecting JTG to hop over him, but JTG stopped short and kicked him. Neck snap by JTG for a one-count. Croft stopped JTG's momentum and got a neck-breaker for two. Knee to the neck by Croft, who went back to a neck vice. How many times can I type "neck" during this match? JTG made his comeback, including a flip clothesline and a dropkick. Mugshot out of the corner that looked ugly. Trent Baretta tried to distract JTG, but he hit his finisher on Croft (also ugly) to get the victory.
WINNER: JTG, at 2:33. Pretty nondescript action, with a poor finishing sequence. JTG and MVP got the win last week, why not give Croft the win here?
3 - CURT HAWKINS & VANCE ARCHER vs. JEREMY BARNER & BRENT ROBERTS
Grisham talked about the contracts Archer and Hawkins discussed on Superstars last week. Hawkins tripped up one jobber while Archer booted him in the face. Archer slammed the guy right on his face in an impressive move, unfortunately, they were showing a replay at the same time. Archer brought the other guy in and gave him the reverse DDT, then Hawkins landed an elbowdrop off the top for the win.
WINNERS: Hawkins and Archer, at 1:16. Impressive squash. I'm in favor of anything that helps build the tag division.
4 - JACK SWAGGER vs. KOFI KINGSTON
During Kofi's entrance, they showed what happened when Kofi was screwed out of the Intercontinental Title last week. Swagger seemed confident to start, but Kofi's kicks took him off his game. He found himself at ringside, let out a primal scream, and headed back in. The two men traded rights, with Kofi getting the advantage. Springboard right hand by Kofi, who then clotheslined Swagger out of the ring. They went to break at that point.
Kingston had Swagger in an arm-bar out of break. Kingston low-bridged an overaggressive Swagger, sending the champ to the outside. But Swagger put Kofi on his shoulders and threw him into the ring post. Swagger continued the assault in the ring, catching Kingston with a kick as Kofi came off the turnbuckle. Quick near-fall for Kofi, but Swagger countered with a belly-to-belly. Kingston got set on the top rope, but he came away with a tornado DDT, leaving both men gasping for air on the mat. Kingston pounded on Swagger's head, sitting on his shoulders in the corner. SOS by Kofi for two. He missed Trouble in Paradise, but landed a side-Russian leg-sweep. Big boot by Swagger, but Big Show walked out with a mic, trying to get Swagger's attention. He said he had something important to say, but that distraction allowed Kofi to hit a springboard cross-body for the three count.
WINNER: Kingston, at 11:41.
5 - REY MYSTERIO & MVP vs. C.M. PUNK & LUKE GALLOWS
MVP had the straps down on his outfit. MVP and Rey used some teamwork to keep Gallows at bay. Serena got on the apron and Gallows pulled MVP off the second rope by his leg. They went to break about 2:00 in.
Punk had MVP down out of break, and tagged Gallows in. Gallows prevented MVP from making the tag. Good tag team execution (Striker agrees with me) but the heels. Gallows settled into a rear waist-lock with MVP seated on the mat. Mysterio finally made the tag at about 9:00, flying all over the ring and onto Gallows. Mysterio was about to hit the 619, but Punk flew off the top rope and landed a clothesline to stop him. Nice move. He got Rey up for the GTS, but Rey rolled through for two. Gallows broke it up, but MVP neutralized him. The hooded stranger got on the apron to distract Rey, but Mysterio threw him into the ring post. Punk couldn't capitalize, and Rey hit a hurricanrana with a roll-up for three.
WINNERS: MVP & Mysterio, at 10:33. Good little match, and now I really think Punk is winning Sunday.
6 - THE BIG SHOW vs. DREW MCINTYRE
McIntyre tried to take a walk early, and dominated back in the ring with his hard slap to the chest. Show stepped on McIntyre's chest and the fans chanted, "one more time." So he tried another slap to the chest, but Mac countered with an eye gouge. Show clotheslined McIntyre back down and took some more time to recover. Headbutt sent McIntyre to the mat. McIntyre tried to hook in his DDT, but couldn't. Show made his comeback, but Swagger interfered to draw the DQ.
WINNER: Show, at 3:50.
Swagger went after Show's hand, to presumably prevent a knockout punch on Sunday. He went to get a chair, but Swagger ended up getting hold of it before Swagger could use it. And Show was not happy. Swagger escaped the ring and headed up the ramp as he kept his eyes on Show in the ring. Show's music played as he screamed in fury. The show went off the air at that point.
Arcademan:
WWE RAW Results: 5-24-10
Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Caldwell's complete report). Condensed here to in-ring results only.
RAW started with Batista quitting the WWE and Bret Hart being announced as the new GM of RAW...
1 -- MARK HENRY vs. SHEAMUS -- Fatal Four-Way PPV qualifying match
Cole again referenced Sheamus taking out Triple H at Extreme Rules to keep Hunter's name on the air and in the minds of viewers. Sheamus tried to over-power Henry early on, but Henry out-muscled Sheamus and cleared him to the floor. Cole then cut his heel promo on Bret Hart wanting to know how Mr. McMahon allowed this to happen with Hart the new Raw GM. Lawler said they hope to get an explanation eventually. Back in the ring, Sheamus cut down Henry at the knees to begin working him over on the mat. Henry made a comeback from his feet before running over Sheamus with a brick-wall block. Henry then wanted a big splash and he connected. Sheamus kicked out of a pin attempt, though. He tried a running splash in the corner, but Sheamus moved. Sheamus then tried a top rope move, but Henry caught him in mid-air. He attempted a press slam, but Henry sold shoulder pain and dropped Sheamus on his feet. Sheamus then followed with an emphatic pump kick to the face that took out Henry. Nice sequence. Sheamus with the pin for the win.
WINNER: Sheamus at 4:05. Nice four-minute TV match with something on the line and a sense of urgency to the match. So, it's Cena vs. Orton vs. Sheamus vs. ??? at the next PPV. (*1/4)
2 -- Divas champion EVE & GAIL KIM vs. MARYSE & ALICIA FOX
Eve acted like she wanted another piece of Maryse after the PPV last night, but Maryse blew her off and fixed her hair while standing on the apron. Tremendous charisma. Gail and Alicia started things off, then Maryse cut off Gail and went to work on Eve's partner. Eve then took a hot tag and cleaned house on Maryse. Eve hit Tara's standing moonsault, but Fox broke up a pin. In the confusion, Alicia blasted Eve with a kick to the face behind the ref's back. Maryse then hit the French Kiss DDT on Eve for the pin and the win. The heels then celebrated the victory on the way out.
WINNERS: Maryse & Gail at 2:11. And the Eve vs. Maryse feud must continue. It's fine, as they have a nice program going. (*)
3 -- THE MIZ vs. R-TRUTH -- U.S. Title match
Cole reset the deal that Bret Hart is the new Raw GM and this match is for the vacated title after Hart won the belt last week. Lawler checked Cole on his anti-Hart comments recently and Cole tried to backtrack that he didn't quite mean what he said about wanting Hart to go away. Truth knocked Miz to the floor early on and Miz regrouped as they cut to break.
Back from break, Miz was standing over Truth on the outside. Miz rammed Truth into the ring apron focusing on Truth's left shoulder before they recapped what happened during the break when Truth nearly broke his neck attempting a dive to the outside. Cole put over the heritage of the U.S. Title while Miz worked over Truth back in the ring. Cole: "I tell you, Miz looks a bit naked (awkward pause) without championship gold." It was as awkward as Cole excitedly saying he's dreamed of picturing C.M. Punk bald for a long time. Miz continued to work over Truth as they reached the top of the hour.
Miz hung Truth upside down in the corner and the ref reprimanded him, causing Miz to be distracted. Truth then suddenly did a sit-up into an overhead suplex toss. That was impressive. Truth then made a full comeback with a pancake followed by a missile dropkick from the second rope for a two count. Truth followed with a modified STO and scored a two count. Truth looked to the crowd, then went up top as Miz recovered to his feet. Truth hit a cross- body, but Miz rolled through into a pin attempt for a close two count. The crowd gasped as Truth nearly lost.
Miz then wanted the Reality Check, but Truth countered into a backslide for another close two. The crowd rallied with an "R-Truth" chant as Truth tried a small package, but scored a two count only. Truth then wanted a scissors kick, but Miz ducked. Truth then ducked a clothesline and smashed Miz off the ropes with the Lie Detector. Pin and the win. Truth is your new U.S. champion. They recapped the highlights as Truth got his shine celebrating with the title, although he was more casual than Kofi Kingston celebrating the IC Title victory last night.
WINNER: Truth at 10:05 to capture the U.S. Title. WWE obviously sees a lot in Truth as a featured babyface on Raw. The title victory explains why they had Truth go over DiBiase at the PPV last night. This was a strong TV match with some good nearfalls at the end and another sense of urgency to a match on Raw. (**1/2)
4 -- Unified tag champions HART DYNASTY (TYSON KIDD & D.H. SMITH w/Natalya) vs. WILLIAM REGAL & KOZLOV -- non-title match
The bell sounded and Regal blasted Kidd in the head to jumpstart the match. Kozlov then tagged in to work over Kidd. Kidd came back with a kick to the head before Smith tagged in and ran into a headbutt from Kozlov. Regal then tagged in and airballed with his Knee Trembler. Kidd then tagged in and they hit a double-team Hart Attack. Kidd made the pin as Smith knocked Kozlov off the ring apron.
Post-match: Suddenly, a new team and female valet hit the ring. It's the Uso Brothers, Jimmy and Jules. All three members of Hart Dynasty were KO'ed in the ring, then the Usos and their manager went up top and paused before hitting a triple simultaneous flying splash. They stood tall in the ring over the tag champs to close the segment without being named by name.
WINNERS: Hart Dynasty at 1:20. The story was obviously the post-match with the Usos getting a call up to the big leagues from FCW. Very interesting with WWE's apparent renewed emphasis on tag team wrestling. (n/a)
5 -- WWE champion JOHN CENA vs. CHRIS JERICHO vs. EDGE -- Jericho or Edge wins PPV title match spot with a win
The bell sounded and Cena quickly cleared the ring. Cena stood his ground waiting for the heels to regroup. Cut to break with Cena in control.
Back from break, Cena was on the defensive, then he charged out of the corner with a clothesline on Edge. Jericho cut off Cena, then Edge tried to sneak up behind Jericho with a small package, but Jericho kicked out. Cole reset what's at stake here before Cena cleared Edge to the outside. Cena then missed a flying shoulder tackle when Jericho ducked. Jericho attempted a stomp, but completely missed as the camera zoomed in tight. At least Cena didn't sell, which would have looked horrible. Jericho landed a stomp, then went to work on Cena's back to take advantage of Batista's work on the PPV last night. Jericho landed a DDT before missing with a corner attack and Cena started his trademark comeback routine. Cena dropped Jericho center ring and teased the Five Knuckle Shuffle with Edge on the outside. No sign of Edge as Cena hit the Shuffle. Cena then wanted the Attitude Adjustment as Edge entered the ring. They had an awkward exchange where Cena side-stepped Edge, who kinda speared Jericho in the corner.
Cena slapped on the STF on Edge, but Jericho slapped on the Walls of Jericho on Cena. Jericho then dropped the hold and slapped the Walls of Jericho on Edge. Cena then re-entered the picture and dropped Jericho with a neckbreaker before knocking Edge to the outside. Cena then countered a cross-body attempt by Jericho and rolled to his feet into AA position. Edge speared Cena, though, and all three men collapsed to the mat as they hit the top of the hour.
The action reset with close nearfalls by Edge and Jericho on each other as Cole reset the news on the show. Cena came to his feet and teased the AA on Edge, but Edge shoved him off to Jericho, who hit the codebreaker. Edge then dropped Jericho with the spear center ring. Edge made the cover on Jericho and scored the pinfall. He's going to Fatal Four-Way. Cole started the immediate stacking of the deck saying Cena could lose the title at the PPV if the same thing happens as what happened here.
Post-match: Sheamus came out on stage and stood on top of the ramp with Edge at the base of the ramp and Cena in the ring. Randy Orton's music suddenly hit and Orton came out on stage. There were no signs of an injury to Orton, who had a stoic look on his face. No cast or bandage or anything drawing attention to an injury. They went to a straight-on camera shot showing Cena in the ring, Edge on the floor, Sheamus half-way up the ramp, and Orton on the stage staring each other down to close the show.
WINNER: Edge at 10:22 to earn a Fatal Four-Way slot. Strong TV main event with the action moving at a quick pace to keep the live audience engaged despite some sloppy spots. Cena vs. Sheamus vs. Orton vs. Edge is an interesting match-up with the deck already being stacked against Cena. (**1/4)
Arcademan:
WWE NXT Results: 5-25-10
Ring results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Caldwell's complete report)
1 -- CHRISTIAN & HEATH SLATER vs. U.S. champion R-TRUTH & DAVID OTUNGA
Truth and Slater started things off with Truth landing early offense on the Rookie opposition. Otunga then tagged in and Slater took control working over Otunga's shoulder. Christian then tagged in and landed an axehandle smash to continue working the shoulder. Michael Cole put over Otunga's charisma as Christian slapped Otunga across the face and landed a dropkick for a two count. Cole said perhaps Otunga's in-ring ability is lacking, while Mathews said he's impressed the Pros with his "mic skills." It's just plain pandering to the audience at this point.
Otunga cut off Christian and worked him over as Cole put over Otunga having the "it factor." He said Otunga is "flashy" and he sees him on the cover of magazines all the time. In the ring, Christian started slapping Otunga around before landing a flying European Uppercut. He then made a tag to Slater, who came in hot on Otunga. Slater landed a flying forearm, then a dropkick on Otunga for a two count. Mathews and Cole discussed the Daniel Bryan bit and Cole said he's going to call him out next. Back in the ring, Slater went up top and landed a cross-body, but Otunga rolled through and scored a three count for the win. Post-match: Otunga's nose was noticeably bright red, apparently from taking a blow earlier in the match. Otunga celebrated his victory as Truth stood behind him not really approving or excited.
WINNERS: Truth & Otunga in 6:00. Okay, basic match. Exactly what you would expect from a match on NXT looking like a basic run-through-the-motions type of exhibition. (*)
2 -- JUSTIN GABRIEL (w/Matt Hardy) vs. WADE BARRETT (w/Chris Jericho)
Barrett started on the offensive as Jericho shouted at the announcers to talk up Barrett. Gabriel then made a comeback with a spin kick that showed light before hitting a corner elbow smash. Gabriel then hit a sunset flip powerbomb. He started climbing up top and Hardy encouraged him to keep climbing. Gabriel then hit the 450 splash on Barrett for the pin and the win. Jericho had a great post-match reaction nibbling on the side of his mouth selling discontent. The Pros were shown evaluating the happenings as the announcers sold the match outcome as Gabriel possibly making it to the finals with that victory. They replayed the finish with Striker doing a good job pointing out flaws in what Barrett did in the ring that cost him the match. That was good.
WINNER: Gabriel in 4:00. Decent match with a rare sense of purpose to what was happening in the ring on NXT, as the storyline was the match had potential to influence who goes home, especially with Gabriel just missing the cut last week. (*1/4)
During the middle of the show, Daniel Bryan confronted Michael Cole and once again made him look like a fool. Also got into it with The Miz.
The pro's poll:
#1 is Wade Barrett still.
#2 is David Otunga still.
Striker then asked Gabriel to step forward, followed by Slater. Striker said they've come so close and one of them will be going home while the other one will make it to the season finale next week.
#3 is Justin Gabriel. That means Heath Slater is #4 and he's gone.
Next week has been billed as the season finale so we'll see who's the winner of NXT.
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