This Week In WWE: August 23, 2009- August 29, 2009

Welcome to the sixty-ninth edition of This Week In WWE. Feel free to contact me on TWO or Wrestling 101 anytime with comments, questions, and anything in between. I have added a new section at the end of the article highlighting a different WWE Superstar or Diva every week. Please contact me if you have a request for a Superstar or Diva you would like to see highlighted in an upcoming edition.

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Before "The Biggest Event of the Summer" officially got underway, the fans in Los Angeles were treated to a 15-Diva Battle Royal featuring Divas from all three brands! Chavo Guerrero would serve as the Special Referee for the match that featured Diva’s Champion Mickie James, Beth Phoenix, Gail Kim, Natalya, Kelly Kelly, Layla, The Bella Twins, Katie Lea Burchill, Maria, Jillian, Eve Torres, Rosa Mendes, Alicia Fox, & Melina. The match even featured the two most powerful Divas in the WWE square off as RAW & SmackDown’s resident strongwomen, Beth Phoenix & Natalya, did battle. In the end, it was a big assist by the Special Referee Chavo Guerrero that allowed "The Glamazon" Beth Phoenix to win the match! However, after the match, the Divas got their revenge on Chavo as several of the Divas held the Special Referee down and allowed Hornswoggle to deliver the Tadpole Splash to Chavo!

In what would promise to be a memorable SummerSlam, the 22nd annual "Biggest Event of the Summer" kicked off with Rey Mysterio defending the Intercontinental Championship against Dolph Ziggler. Despite his impressive performance in the contest, Dolph Ziggler once again fell to the veteran Rey Mysterio as "The Ultimate Underdog" narrowly retained the Intercontinental Championship. Will Dolph Ziggler continue to pursue the Intercontinental Championship or will a second defeat to Rey Mysterio make Ziggler rethink challenging Rey a third time?

In a match many would describe as a "culture clash", MVP squared off with Jack Swagger and, in the end, it was "The Franchise Player" MVP who hit the Playmaker on "The All-American American" Jack Swagger for the win. Have we seen the last battle between these two?

Then it was time for Big Show & Chris Jericho to defend the Unified Tag Team Titles against Cryme Tyme, but before the match, Jericho had a few things to say. Jericho proclaimed that Big Show and himself are "bigger than celebrities" and that their greatness has been cemented in the WWE. Jericho then hands the microphone to his behemoth backup, Big Show, but before "The World’s Largest Athlete" could get a sentence out, the #1 Contenders, Cryme Tyme, interrupted the duo.

Taking a step towards proving that they are what they say they are, "the most dominant tag team in WWE history" Big Show & Chris Jericho, were able to defeat Cryme Tyme and hang on to the Unified Tag Team Titles! Who will be the next tag team to try and take the titles from Big Show & Chris Jericho? Can any one team beat the duo?

In a match pitting a "monster" against a "giant", Kane squared off with The Great Khali. The end of the brutal match came when Kane pulled Ranjin Singh into the ring and threw Singh into his brother, Khali, to distract "The Punjabi Nightmare" long enough for Kane to plant the big man with an earth-shaking DDT to pick up the win! After all that Kane has done to Khali and his brother, has Kane seen the last of "The Punjabi Nightmare"?

"The Biggest Event of the Summer" marked the pay-per-view return of one of the most controversial tag teams in WWE history, D-Generation X. The green-clad duo of Triple H & Shawn Michaels made an "explosive" return to pay-per-view with tons of various explosions, as well as a group of soldiers firing rifles into the air! After such a grand entrance, DX had to get their game faces on as "The Game" & "The Showstopper" would face off with Legacy. After the unreal beat down that Legacy put on DX this past Monday night, Triple H & Shawn Michaels were ready to fight. However, much of the match actually saw Legacy getting the better of the historic team, but things got really interesting towards the end of the match when Cody Rhodes laid Shawn Michaels out with the Cross Rhodes and Triple H, in turn, laid out Rhodes with the Pedigree! Triple H then turned to Ted DiBiase and took the third-generation star over the SmackDown announce table, taking DiBiase out of the equation. Back in the ring, Shawn Michaels & Cody Rhodes barely beat the ten-count of the referee. Then, out of nowhere, the always resilient Shawn Michaels blasted Cody Rhodes with Sweet Chin Music to pick up the win for DX! Does this end Legacy’s quest to rid themselves of D-Generation X or will this rivalry continue between these two teams?

In a match that could prove to be his last stand as ECW Champion, Christian defended the ECW Title against William Regal. However, Regal brought his large back up; Vladimir Kozlov & Ezekiel Jackson. It looked as though victory might be impossible for "Captain Charisma", but in a lightning quick delivery of the Killswitch, Christian made sure that Kozlov & "Big Zeke" would not even get the opportunity to interfere as Christian pinned William Regal to retain the ECW Championship in just eight seconds! After the embarrassing loss, Regal put his large cohorts to good use as Ezekiel Jackson & Vladimir Kozlov decimated the ECW Champion before Regal made Christian suffer by locking in the Regal Stretch. It looks as though Regal is far from being done with Christian. What will Christian do to try and combat such a vicious trio?

In what would prove to be one of the most bizarre, confusing, and controversial title defenses in the history of the WWE Championship, Randy Orton defended the prestigious championship against the five time World Champion, John Cena. During the course of the match, it looked as though Cena was closing in on winning the WWE Title for a fourth time, however, the always conniving Randy Orton laid his plan into place as Orton intentionally shoved the assigned referee in the match, causing a disqualification and a title retention for Orton! However, WWE Chairman Mr. McMahon was watching the proceedings closely as RAW Ring Announcer Lilian Garcia was informed by the Chairman that the match would be restarted by the order of Mr. McMahon! Furthermore, if Orton got disqualified again, he would lose the WWE Championship. The match then restarted, but shortly after the match got underway again, Orton took the WWE Title belt and walked out of the match, taking the count-out loss and managing to slither his way out of the contest with the WWE Championship still in his possession! However, Mr. McMahon once again informed Lilian Garcia that the match would be restarted again! Now if Orton got counted out or disqualified, he would lose the WWE Championship! The match started again and Cena locked in his STF on Orton, but when it looked like Orton might be close to tapping out to the maneuver, a rambunctious WWE fan jumped the barricade and attacked the referee! Amongst the confusion, Cena released his STF and Orton slid out of the ring. After the fan was forcefully shown the exit, the match was restarted for a third time! Once again, the match restarted and Orton was quick to take advantage as the WWE Champion quickly rolled up John Cena and used the ropes to his advantage to get the victory and retain his championship! However, a second referee came to the ring and explained to the assigned referee that Orton had his feet on the ropes. With this new information, the original referee restarted the match for a fourth time! In the mean time, Orton again slid to the outside and "The Viper" baited Cena towards the ropes and used a modified RKO to hang Cena up on the middle rope. Orton then followed up with his traditional RKO and, after the match was restarted four times, Orton finally got the victory over John Cena and truly retained his WWE Championship. Through all of the confusion and controversy, the bottom line is that Randy Orton is still the WWE Champion. Has Orton seen the last of John Cena or will Cena be looking for a rematch?

Then it was time for, what would promise to be, an unforgettable match as Jeff Hardy defended the World Heavyweight Championship against CM Punk in Jeff’s specialty- a TLC Match. The grueling and career-shortening match saw both men go through tables and even saw CM Punk utilize a superplex onto a ladder! During the match, Jeff Hardy may have taken his biggest risk to date as "The Extreme Enigma" climbed a monumentally huge ladder and jumped from the ladder and delivered the Swanton Bomb on CM Punk, putting the #1 Contender through the announce table! With both champion and challenger laid out on the floor, EMT’s came to the aid of Jeff Hardy, trying to get the champion on a stretcher to take him out of the arena. However, the never-say-die attitude fueled Jeff Hardy to refuse any medical attention and get back into the match to try and retain the World Heavyweight Title. Both Jeff Hardy & CM Punk fought on top of the ladder set up underneath the World Heavyweight Title belt, but CM Punk was able to shove Jeff off of the ladder and gain possession of the title belt to become the new World Heavyweight Champion! However, CM Punk’s championship celebration was cut short by the lights going out in the Staples Center and the familiar sound of a gong rang through the arena. Then, he appeared, "The Deadman" himself, The Undertaker returned to the WWE with authority as "The Phenom" delivered a huge chokeslam to the new World Heavyweight Champion! The Undertaker has returned to the WWE and has his sights set on CM Punk and the World Heavyweight Championship. What will be Undertaker’s next move and how will CM Punk respond to this attack by the legendary Undertaker?

The 848th edition of Monday Night RAW came to you, live, from the Thomas & Mack Center at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) in "Sin City"- Las Vegas, NV. Las Vegas’ own Floyd "Money" Mayweather would serve as the RAW Guest Host!

The show kicked off with the still WWE Champion, Randy Orton, and his multi-generational cohorts, Legacy. "The Viper" claimed that he beat John Cena at SummerSlam. Legacy’s Ted DiBiase then revealed that the fan that attacked the referee during the title match at SummerSlam was not just any fan, it was Ted’s brother, Brett DiBiase! Orton & Legacy stated that they did not know that Brett would interfere in the championship match. Orton vowed that Brett DiBiase would not interfere in one of Orton’s matches again. "The Viper" then proclaims that he will remain champion for a very long time.

Following this stern message from Randy Orton, WWE Chairman Mr. McMahon made a special appearance on RAW! After declaring that the referee’s decision in the WWE Championship Match at SummerSlam is final, Mr. McMahon made a huge announcement regarding the inaugral edition of WWE Breaking Point; Randy Orton will once again defend the WWE Championship against John Cena, but this time it will be an "I Quit" Match! With his big announcement out of the way, the Chairman started to exit the ring when D-Generation X came out! DX made their way to the ring, making Mr. McMahon a bit uneasy. Triple H tells his father-in-law that he does not like "nice Mr. McMahon" and Shawn Michaels adds that he knows why Mr. McMahon is so happy; because it’s his birthday! After Triple H said that McMahon was 84 years old, then 74 years old, the WWE Chairman blurted out that he is actually 64 years old! Not trusting the intentions of his longtime rivals, Mr. McMahon demanded that DX leave the ring. The always controversial duo ignored the "request" by the Chairman and Shawn Michaels said that he supports McMahon not wanting a "happy birthday" and reveals a Mr. McMahon "Tribute Video". The "tribute" started out nice enough with some footage in the storied career of Mr. McMahon. However, the video quickly turned against the Chairman, showing some of McMahon’s most embarassing moments; most of them caused by DX! After his "tribute" was over, Mr. McMahon uttered that he would "not forget this". DX then started rolling out the presents for the Chairman, starting with a giant birthday cake for McMahon. Triple H & Shawn Michaels then felt the need to add some Las Vegas flavor to the celebration and introduced some Las Vegas Showgirls! The Showgirls came down to the ring and gave the birthday boy some birthday kisses. The surprises just kept on coming from DX as they introduced a couple of performs from Cirque de Soleil to do a routine for the Chairman! After bringing out an Elvis impersonator and having everyone sing "happy birthday" to Mr. McMahon, DX then introduced a "special surprise" hiding in the big birthday cake; everybody’s favorite male stripper- Big Dick Johnson! The oversized male stripper danced and squirted baby oil for the Chairman before McMahon had enough of the "entertainment" by Big Dick and threw the partier out of the ring! After the WWE Chairman tells DX that he is getting sick of the birthday surprises, the duo says that they have one more present for Mr. McMahon, but before they could show the present, the party was crashed by Legacy, who assaulted DX before escaping the ring! Triple H then challenges Randy Orton & Legacy to a 6-Man Tag Match against D-Generation X and the Chairman himself, Mr. McMahon! The 64 year old Chairman readily accepts being put into the match, even making it a No Disqualification Match! What will happen when Mr. McMahon teams with his former rivals D-Generation X to combat WWE Champion Randy Orton & Legacy?

The opening match of the night saw the self-proclaimed "awesome" Miz pick up a win over Santino Marella in The Miz’s continued quest to claim the United States Championship. Was United States Champion Kofi Kingston watching his next potential challenger?

Though he had not arrived at the arena, RAW Guest Host Floyd Mayweather made a special 6-Diva Tag Match as all six Divas would be dressed as boxers in a "Mayweather Melee"! The match saw the team of "The Glamazon" Beth Phoenix, Rosa Mendes, & Alicia Fox defeating Diva’s Champion Mickie James, Gail Kim, & Kelly Kelly by Alicia Fox pinning the Diva’s Champion! Will Alicia Fox be Mickie’s next challenger for the gold?

With former rival, Floyd "Money" Mayweather, arriving at any moment, Unified Tag Team Champion Big Show was ready for the boxer’s arrival as he and partner Chris Jericho made their way to the ring. Not forgetting what happened to him a year ago at WrestleMania, "The World’s Largest Athlete" claimed that Mayweather is "hiding" from him. The large Unified Tag Team Champion then stated that the two of them have unfinished business and that he and Jericho would not leave the ring until Mayweather came to the ring! It did not take long for the former boxing champion to make his way to the ring, flanked by his entourage. The always confident Mayweather proclaimed that he would knock Big Show out again, but he has a "more important" fight on September 19. Chris Jericho then gets in the face of "Money" and tells the former champion that he does not think Mayweather is a "good boxer" and that Show & Jericho would be glad to wipe Mayweather off the face of the earth. MVP then interrups the face-off and makes no bones about his thoughts on Big Show, calling Show a "dummy" and a "sasquatch". MVP then asks Guest Host Floyd Mayweather for a shot at Big Show & Chris Jericho where, if MVP and his partner won, they would get a shot at the Unified Tag Team Titles in three weeks at Breaking Point. "Money" agreed to make the match happen and then MVP revealed his partner- "The World’s Strongest Man" Mark Henry!

With a shot at the Unified Tag Team Titles up for grabs, MVP & Mark Henry did battle with Unified Tag Team Champions Big Show & Chris Jericho. It looked as though the dominant champions would avoid defending the titles at Breaking Point, but Floyd Mayweather slipped a pair of brass knuckles to MVP and "The Ballin’ Superstar" used the assist to knock Chris Jericho out and pick up the win for himself and Mark Henry! By defeating the Unified Tag Team Champions, MVP & Mark Henry will challenge Big Show & Chris Jericho for those very titles at Breaking Point! Will Big Show & Chris Jericho continue to solidify their name as "the most dominant tag team in WWE history" or will the new team of MVP & Mark Henry dethrone the confident duo?

Guest Host Floyd Mayweather also sanctioned a special Boxing Exhibition Match between Hornswoggle & Chavo Guerrero! In the end, it was Hornswoggle getting a disqualification victory over his larger adversary after Chavo used an illegal suplex in the match. After the match, Chavo was setting up for a Frog Splash on Hornswoggle, but Evan Bourne came to the rescue and hit Chavo with Air Bourne! How will Chavo respond to Bourne making the save for Hornswoggle?

Then it was time for the main event as WWE Chairman Mr. McMahon teamed with D-Generation X to face the dasterdly trio of WWE Champion Randy Orton & Legacy in a 6-Man Tag Match with no disqualifications! The end of the match came after Randy Orton tried to walk away from the contest only to have his #1 Contender, John Cena, make an appearance and throw "The Viper" back into the ring. As Orton got to his feet, he was met with Sweet Chin Music by Shawn Michaels followed by the Attitude Adjustment by John Cena! Then, the birthday boy himself, Mr. McMahon, pinned the WWE Champion to pick up the win! How will Randy Orton respond to being pinned by the 64 year old Chairman? What will happen between Orton & Cena as Breaking Point draws closer?

The 168th edition of ECW on Syfy came to you, live, from the U.S. Airways Center in the "Valley of the Sun" Phoenix, AZ. Two nights after successfully defending his ECW Title against William Regal in a record eight second match at SummerSlam, still ECW Champion Christian would make an appearance.

After having a not-so-great night at SummerSlam two nights prior, William Regal opened the show flanked by his large backup of Vladmir Kozlov & Ezekiel Jackson. "The British Brute" proclaimed that ECW will never be the same again now that he has formed the Regal Regime of himself, Vladimir Kozlov, & Ezekiel Jackson. Regal then stated that Christian’s days as ECW Champion are numbered. This brought the ECW Champion out, who reminded Regal that he already defeated Regal in eight seconds at SummerSlam. A determined Regal then demands that "Captain Charisma" grant him a rematch for the ECW Title or he will have to send the Regime to take care of Christian. "The Proprietor of the Peepulation" stated that he already beat Regal once and he wants to move on to new challengers. ECW General Manager Tiffany comes out and announces that the ECW Champion, Christian, will go one-on-one with William Regal in a non-title match in the main event and if Regal wins, then he gets another shot at Christian and the ECW Championship! Can Regal capitalize on this opportunity or will Christian thwart "The British Brute" once again and move on to "new challengers"? What will the Regal Regime have to do with the result?

The opening match of the night saw another match in the rivalry between "The Bizarre One" Goldust and "The Celtic Warrior" Sheamus. Unfortunately for both proud combatants, the match got a little too intense on the outside and both men ended up getting counted out in the contest. When will we see these two rivals collide again?

Speaking of rivals, two bitter rivals were forced to team up as "The Gold Standard" Shelton Benjamin teamed up with "The Long Island Loudmouth" Zack Ryder to face the team of "The So-Cal Surfer" Tyler Reks & "The Japanese Buzzsaw" Yoshi Tatsu. The end of the match came when Benjamin & Ryder’s temporary partnership exploded and resulted with Benjamin being knocked out of the ring and Ryder getting blasted with a Buzzsaw Kick courtesy of Yoshi Tatsu to earn the win for Yoshi Tatsu & Tyler Reks. After the match was over, a furious Shelton Benjamin laid Zack Ryder out with Pay Dirt! How will Ryder respond to Benjamin’s actions?

Then it was for the main event as William Regal would try and earn another shot at the ECW Championship as he faced the champion himself, Christian. The end of the match came when Christian was on the outside of the ring and "Captain Charisma" slapped "The Moscow Mauler" Vladimir Kozlov. Whatever the intent was of the wily ECW Champion, it backfired for Christian as, with the referee distracted by Ezekiel Jackson, Kozlov reciprocated the attack and it allowed Regal to hit his patented Regal Knee and pin the ECW Champion to earn another title opportunity in the future! When will William Regal get his rematch for the ECW Championship? How will Christian respond to the actions of Regal’s large cohorts?

WWE.com announced on Thursday, August 27 that Intercontinental Champion Rey Mysterio has violated the WWE Wellness Policy and will be suspended for 30 Days, starting on Wednesday, September 2. Rey Mysterio will be allowed to return on or after October 1. Rey is expected to appear on next week’s SmackDown (taped the day before Rey’s suspension begins), but will be unable to compete in his scheduled match at Breaking Point on September 13.

The 20th edition of WWE Superstars came to you from the Thomas & Mack Center at the UNLV in Las Vegas, NV and from the U.S. Airways Center in Phoenix, AZ. A new #1 Contender for the Intercontinental Championship would be determined in a Triple Threat Match as Dolph Ziggler, Finlay, & Phoenix’s own Mike Knox would do battle for the title shot. In a rematch from last week’s ECW, The Hurricane would make his WWE Superstars debut as he faced his "arch nemesis" Paul Burchill one-on-one. Following a loss to MVP at SummerSlam, "The All-American American" Jack Swagger would look to bounce back as he squared off with Primo.

The opening match of the night was from RAW and it saw "The All-American American" Jack Swagger recover from his loss to MVP at SummerSlam by defeating the high-flying Caribbean sensation known as Primo. After the match, Swagger revealed that he is in the hunt for the United States Championship; joining The Miz in that proclamation. How will the United States Champion, Kofi Kingston, respond to this piling list of challengers for his title?

In ECW’s representation on WWE Superstars, "The Ripper" Paul Burchill was able to utilize the valuable assistance of his sister, Katie Lea Burchill, to roll up The Hurricane and defeat the masked man.

Then it was time to determine the #1 Contender for the Intercontinental Championship as three SmackDown Superstars squared off for the prestigious opportunity. The ending of the match saw Mike Knox pick up the trademark shillelagh of Finlay and try to use it against the Irishman, but the veteran Finlay was able to counter Knox and lay the big man out with the Celtic Cross. When it looked like Finlay would be crowned the new #1 Contender, an opportunistic Dolph Ziggler came back into the ring and temporarily disposed of Finlay and took advantage of Finlay’s hard work by pinning Mike Knox to earn his third shot at the Intercontinental Championship! When will Dolph get this title shot and will the third time be the charm for "The Name Dropper"?

The 523rd edition of WWE SmackDown came to you from the U.S. Airways Center from the home of WrestleMania XXVI- Phoenix, AZ. Just five days after clashing in a brutal TLC Match for the World Heavyweight Title, CM Punk and Jeff Hardy would go one-on-one once again as the new champion, CM Punk, defended the gold against the former champion Jeff Hardy in a Steel Cage Match!

The show opened with the new World Heavyweight Champion, CM Punk, who proclaimed that he told everyone that he would win the World Heavyweight Title at SummerSlam and he did. "The Straightedge Champion" then stated that he could never feel more "alive" then he does at that moment and that "pain makes him feel alive". Punk said that his championship celebration at SummerSlam was ruined by the return of The Undertaker and now he is being "forced" to defend his newly won championship in a Steel Cage Match, which Punk called "unfair" and a "conspiracy". The new champion then proclaimed that he is the "role model that the world needs". The former champion, Jeff Hardy, interrupted and gingerly made his way to the ring, still hurting as Punk was, from the TLC Match just five days prior. "The Extreme Enigma" told Punk that his reign would end inside the Steel Cage in the main event. The confident World Heavyweight Champion then accuses Jeff of being "intoxicated" and proclaimed that he is sick of the boos that he hears from the fans and that he’s also sick of hearing the fans cheer Jeff Hardy. Punk then made a bold statement by telling Jeff that one of them "doesn’t belong here". Desperate to get "The Charismatic Enigma" out of his life, CM Punk proposed a stipulation to their Steel Cage Match for the World Heavyweight Title; the champion proposed that, whoever loses in the main event, must leave the WWE! Following the challenge, Jeff Hardy wasted no time in accepting the stipulation! This brought out SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long, who made it official. Not only did Long sanction this new stipulation, but he made a blockbuster announcement regarding Breaking Point; the GM announced that, whoever leaves the Steel Cage as the World Heavyweight Champion, will face The Undertaker with the title on the line in a Submission Match at the event! Who will emerge from the Steel Cage Match as the World Heavyweight Champion and who will be left lying with their WWE career lying right beside them?

The opening match of the night saw two tag team specialists team up as seven-time tag team champion Matt Hardy teamed with five-time tag team champion John Morrison to face The Hart Dynasty. In the end, it was some concrete tag team work and Morrison’s Starship Pain that got the win for Matt & Morrison. Will Matt Hardy & John Morrison continue to team together? Could we see this team as possible contenders for the Unified Tag Team Titles?

The always electric R-Truth was set to square off with the returning Drew McIntyre, but as Truth started to step through the ropes, the vicious McIntyre blasted Truth with a sadistic kick to the head. McIntyre then brutally assaulted R-Truth before laying him out with a devastating double-arm DDT! After this heinous attack, Drew McIntyre proclaimed that the "party is over". How will R-Truth respond to this attack by McIntyre? What will we see next from the proud Scotsman?

Women’s Champion Michelle McCool made an appearance on SmackDown, using crutches to hold herself up! McCool revealed that the attack by Melina last week caused McCool to suffer a knee injury! The Women’s Champion then introduced her replacement to face Melina- Layla.

The former Women’s Champion made fairly quick work of Layla, picking up the win. After the match, Melina once again shoved Michelle McCool to the floor! What is the status of Michelle McCool and how does it affect the Women’s Championship?

The malicious Mike Knox made an appearance on the show in his hometown of Phoenix; Knox discussed his recent assaults on "The Belfast Brawler" Finlay. However, Finlay seized the opportunity and got a measure of revenge for the attacks and assaulted the big man with the shillelagh! What will happen next in this escalating rivalry between "The Belfast Brawler" Finlay and "The Evil Genius" Mike Knox?

Intercontinental Champion Rey Mysterio was also in action as he squared off in a non-title match with "The Big Red Machine" Kane. "The Ultimate Underdog" tried on several occasions to get the upper hand over Kane, but "The Big Red Monster" was able to overpower his smaller adversary. Intent on dishing out punishment on Mysterio, Kane rammed Rey into the steel ring post and, despite the referee’s warning, did it a second time! The referee had no choice but to disqualify Kane. After the match, Kane threw the helpless Intercontinental Champion into the ring and was about to continue his assault when The Great Khali came out! The two behemoths continued where they left off at SummerSlam as both men teed off on the other. Khali then went for the Punjabi Plunge on Kane, but "The Big Red Machine" thought better of it and narrowly escaped the maneuver by exiting the ring. On the outside, Ranjin Singh blasted Kane in the back with a kendo stick! Unfortunately, it was to no effect on Kane. However, it did have a big effect when Khali swung the stick at Kane! Khali chased Kane all the way backstage with the kendo stick. Back in the ring, with Rey Mysterio recovering, Dolph Ziggler entered the ring and laid out the Intercontinental Champion! After such an opportunistic attack, how will Mysterio respond to the new #1 Contender’s actions? When will see the third match between these two combatants and who will emerge as the Intercontinental Champion?

After having a less than stellar night on RAW, Unified Tag Team Champions Big Show & Chris Jericho appeared on SmackDown as Chris Jericho would go one-on-one with Cryme Tyme’s big man, Shad. Before the match, Jericho had a few things to say; never lacking in confidence, the Unified Tag Team Champion vowed to beat MVP & Mark Henry at Breaking Point and retain the Unified Tag Team Titles. Jericho then proclaimed that himself and Big Show are men of "honesty" and "integrity", but most of all, they are "champions".

Though the match started as a one-on-one match between Chris Jericho and Shad, it ended as a tag team bout as, in the middle of the one-on-one match, Big Show & JTG got involved and a brawl ensued on the outside of the ring. This prompted General Manager Theodore Long to make another appearance and make the match into a tag team match; Big Show & Chris Jericho Vs. Cryme Tyme in a non-title SummerSlam rematch! Just like at SummerSlam, Big Show used his devastating right hand to knock his opponent out and win the match for himself and Jericho. How will the Unified Tag Team Champions fare when they face MVP & Mark Henry with the titles on the line at Breaking Point? Is the team of MVP & Mark Henry the right combination to dethrone Big Show & Chris Jericho?

Then it was time for the much-anticipated Steel Cage Match for the World Heavyweight Championship as CM Punk was set to defend his newly won championship against former champion Jeff Hardy, with the loser being forced to leave the WWE. Ever the opportunist, CM Punk got a jump on the match by blind-siding Jeff during his entrance. Before the match even began, Punk pounded on Jeff on the outside, delivering a suplex on the floor before finally throwing Jeff into the Steel Cage and allowing the match to begin. Despite their battered and bruised bodies, both men fought valiantly; both for the World Heavyweight Title and their WWE careers. After several close calls for both competitors, it was CM Punk who, just like at SummerSlam, knocked Jeff Hardy off of his perch to the unforgiving mat below to leave Jeff lying and allow Punk to exit the cage and retain the World Heavyweight Title. While CM Punk took another step up in solidifying his spot atop SmackDown, Jeff Hardy fell from the heavens to come crashing down to reality; the decade-long WWE career of Jeff Hardy was over. As CM Punk exited with his World Heavyweight Title, Jeff Hardy lay a broken man on the ring mat he has come to know so well. After managing to get to his feet, Jeff had some parting words for his fans around the world; the three-time World Champion apologized to his loyal fan base for losing the match and thanks the fans for supporting him in the highs and lows of his career. An emotional Jeff then said that "it’s only goodbye for now". Jeff then vowed that, if the time is right, he will return. Jeff then proclaimed that there is still a Hardy on SmackDown; his brother, Matt. Jeff then takes a much-deserved bow in the middle of the ring before taking his leave. Jeff stood on the stage and gave his emotional fans one last salute before his departure. However, CM Punk was not satisfied with ending the storied career of Jeff Hardy as Punk returned and blasted Jeff in the back of the head with the World Heavyweight Title belt; effectively ruining Jeff’s final moment in the spotlight.

Regardless of how he did it, CM Punk has put his personal rivalry with Jeff Hardy to rest and now the World Heavyweight Champion moves on to his next challenge and what a challenge it is as CM Punk will defend the World Heavyweight Title against The Undertaker at Breaking Point in a Submission Match! How will CM Punk combat the legendary "Deadman"? What will happen when The Undertaker makes his return to SmackDown next week?

Superstar of the Week: CM Punk