This Week In WWE: Edition LXXIX
November 1, 2009- November 7, 2009
Welcome to the seventy-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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The 858th edition of WWE Monday Night RAW came to you, live, from the DCU Center in “The City of the Seven Hills”- Worcester, MA. Legendary rocker and Black Sabbath member Ozzy Osbourne would serve as Guest Host of RAW with his wife, Sharon Osbourne, who is an author, reality television star, and a judge for “America’s Got Talent”.
Monday Night RAW
Good Week For: Chris Jericho (pinned the WWE Champion in the Triple Threat main event)
Bad Week For: Jamie Noble (was brutally decimated by Sheamus)
And In Other News…
The husband and wife co-hosts of RAW kicked off the show as Ozzy Osbourne & Sharon Osbourne got things underway as Ozzy proclaimed that it was “all aboard” for Monday Night RAW and Sharon vows it will be a “crazy night” on RAW! The introductions were just about all The Osbournes got to say before the United States Champion, The Miz, interrupts Ozzy & Sharon. The self-proclaimed “awesome” Superstar claimed that he is a “bigger star” than the Guest Hosts and that he wants his count-out loss to Evan Bourne from last week “struck” from the record! Another couple of confident young Superstars interrupted Miz as Legacy made their way to the ring and calls Miz’s request “petty” and that they have a “real problem”; stating that their gift of a customized stock car to Randy Orton was defaced by Kofi Kingston last week. Legacy then requests a 2-on-1 Handicap Match against Kofi Kingston, but before Ozzy or Sharon can respond, Big Show comes out! “The World’s Largest Athlete” demands an “apology” from the entire RAW Roster for what happened to him on last week’s RAW and threatens to knock out the entire roster if The Osbournes don’t comply! D-Generation X then comes out and makes jokes at the expense of the four Superstars in the ring, calling them “ratings killers” before saying that they will give everyone “what they want”! Triple H then convinces Ozzy to make a match for the United States Championship between The Miz & Evan Bourne! Shawn Michaels then convinces Sharon to make a one-on-one match between Randy Orton & Kofi Kingston on RAW! Before getting to Big Show, the Unified WWE Tag Team Champion steps in and states that he sees what DX has planned and suggests a non-title Triple Threat Match between WWE Champion John Cena and DX in a “Survivor Series warm-up”! While Big Show convinced Ozzy to make one-third of that Triple Threat Match, Triple H quickly stepped in and had Ozzy put Big Show & Chris Jericho in as the other two competitors in the match! In just a few short weeks, Big Show & Chris Jericho will be in a Triple Threat Match against The Undertaker for the World Heavyweight Title at Survivor Series. Will Jeri-Show benefit from having a Triple Threat Match with the WWE Champion? Speaking of the WWE Champion, how will John Cena fare in a match against the Unified WWE Tag Team Champions?
The opening match of the night saw The Miz make his first successful defense of the United States Title with a win over Evan Bourne! Who will be the next challenger to face Miz for the gold?
Before his rematch with Jamie Noble, “The Celtic Warrior” Sheamus proclaimed that he would “end the career” of Jamie Noble! Unfortunately for Noble, that looks to be very likely after the events on RAW. With the intent to destroy on his mind, “The Celtic Warrior” dominated Jamie Noble throughtout their match to the point that the referee had to stop the match to protect Noble! However, Sheamus defied the orders of the referee and continued the assault on Noble, concluding it with a vicious powerbomb on the outside of the ring; a powerbomb that left Noble destroyed. Medics and referees came out to tend to Noble and load him on a stretcher. It would later be revealed that Noble suffered “severe back and neck injuries”, but that his specific status is unknown. Has Sheamus truly ended the career of Jamie Noble? What ramifications will “The Celtic Warrior” receive for his ruthless attack?
Moments before his match with Randy Orton, Kofi Kingston calls Orton a “bully” and proclaims that he will not be bullied by Randy Orton. Kofi then states that Orton needs to take a look at himself to see who truly cost Orton the WWE Title. A proud Kofi then said that he does not “regret” his actions last week!
Still reeling from Kofi’s actions last week, it appeared as Randy Orton had a devious plan in mind for Kingston as Legacy came out in the middle of the contest. Seeing that his fate was about to be sealed at the hands of Randy Orton & Legacy, Kofi launched himself onto the diabolical trio, taking them down on the outside! Kofi then rushed back into the ring as Orton & Legacy surrounded Kofi. Guest Hosts Ozzy & Sharon Osbourne then appeared and announced that the planned match will now be a 6-Man Tag with Randy Orton & Legacy going up against Kofi Kingston and, the team that beat Legacy last week, MVP & Mark Henry!
The sheer chaos of the 6-Man Tag paved the way for Mark Henry to plant Cody Rhodes with the World’s Strongest Slam and pick up the win for himself, MVP, & Kofi Kingston! How will Randy Orton & Legacy respond to this loss? Has Kofi found the perfect team to serve as the “equalizer” to help him combat Randy Orton & Legacy?
Being in charge of RAW as the Guest Hosts, The Osbournes decided to present the first ever “RAW’s Got Talent” and even brought The Great Khali back to be a third judge! After Santino Marella bit the head off of “a Batman” and Chris Masters impressed Sharon with his pectorial gifts, Chavo Guerrero & Jillian came out to present a duet to the judges! “The Mexican Warrior” and “The Sour Songstress” did not impress the judges, but Chavo & Jillian did not respond well to the disapproval and said they are not fans of The Osbournes! The duo then make their way into the ring and Jillian got in the face of Sharon Osbourne, who slapped Jillian! Chavo then got in the face of Mrs. Osbourne, but “The Punjabi Playboy” stood up and delivered a chop to the head of Chavo! Things just got worse for Chavo as Hornswoggle came out and delivered the Tadpole Splash to “The Mexican Warrior”!
Professional boxing’s “Hitman” will serve as next week’s Guest Host as British boxing great, Ricky “The Hitman” Hatton, will be in charge when Monday Night RAW come to Sheffield, England! What will Ricky Hatton have in store for the fans in his home country?
RAW would see the naming of a new #1 Contender for the Divas Title as Eve Torres, Gail Kim, Alicia Fox, & The Bella Twins took part in a 6-Diva Battle Royal to determine the next challenger for the Divas Title held by Melina! After Gail Kim and both Bella Twins were eliminated from contention, Jack Swagger came to ringside to “observe” Eve Torres. However, Swagger’s observation contributed to Eve getting eliminated from the match! After overpowering and eliminating Kelly Kelly, Alicia Fox got back on the horse as she is once again the #1 Contender for the Divas Title! With a new champion to challenge, can Alicia Fox finally win the Divas Championship?
Then it was time for a main event with major Survivor Series implications as, with DX providing their unique guest commentary at ringside, WWE Champion John Cena battled the Unified WWE Tag Team Champions, Big Show & Chris Jericho, in a non-title Triple Threat Match! The end of the every man for himself bout came when Cena hoisted Jericho up for the Attitude Adjustment. When it looked like “The Champ” was on the fast track to winning the match, Big Show used his devastating knockout punch to leave Cena laying; allowing Chris Jericho to steal the pin from his partner and win the match! However, Jeri-Show was not finished with the WWE Champion as they locked Cena in an agonizing combination of the Colossal Clutch and the Walls of Jericho! DX then rushed to the aid of John Cena, but Shawn Michaels was quickly left laying by the same knockout punch that had just left John Cena out of it! With his partner knocked out, Triple H was victim to the numbers game and ended up getting laid out by the Codebreaker! The Unified WWE Tag Team Champions were just that, “unified”, as they stood over the destruction of John Cena & D-Generation X. How will Cena & DX respond to Jeri-Show’s actions? What will happen to Jeri-Show when only one man can emerge as the World Heavyweight Champion at Survivor Series?
The 178th edition of ECW on Syfy came to you from the Dunkin’ Donuts Center in the state capital of Rhode Island- Providence. After being assaulted by William Regal’s henchmen Ezekiel Jackson & Vladimir Kozlov last week, ECW Champion Christian would team with the man he defeated last week, Yoshi Tatsu, to face the “ruthless roundtable” in tag team action. Also, Paul Burchill would present his “proposition” to The Hurricane to end their feud.
ECW on Syfy
Good Week For: William Regal (got his title match, defeated Goldust, and left Christian in a heap)
Bad Week For: Zack Ryder (his infatuation with Rosa Mendes led to a loss against Shelton Benjamin)
And In Other News…
Still reeling from the attack perpetrated last week by William Regal and company, ECW Champion Christian opened the show and made his way down to the ring with a purpose. Christian stated that there is only “one thing left to say”; that he wants to face William Regal, one-on-one! After William Regal did not come down to the ring, Christian threatened to find Regal! However, ECW General Manager Tiffany did come out and tells the ECW Champion to let her “handle” it. A fired-up Christian explained that he is “done” with Regal’s disrespect of everyone, including him. With Ezekiel Jackson & Vladimir Kozlov by his side, Regal comes out and asks Christian if “Captain Charisma” wants a match against him bad enough to put the ECW Championship on the line, to which Christian accepts! Tiffany steps in and reminds Regal & Christian that they both are scheduled to compete. Christian tells the GM to reschedule the matches before William Regal actually refuses the immediate title match! Regal explained that he has the “upper hand” and he will accept the match on “his terms”. Regal then gave “his terms” by saying that he wanted his title match to take place on the next edition of ECW when the show comes to Sheffield, England; his home country! Christian accepts the counter challenge and Tiffany makes it official, but not before adding the stipulation that Ezekiel Jackson & Vladimir Kozlov will be banned from ringside!
Once again the #1 Contender for the ECW Championship, William Regal was set to compete in the opening match, but as he made his way to the ring, Christian caught Regal with a baseball slide! The actions of Regal and company have incited the wrath of Christian, but is Christian falling for William Regal’s plan to become ECW Champion? Who will walk out of England next week as the ECW Champion?
Despite his “run in” with Christian, William Regal was still able to pick up an impressive victory over Goldust. Will Regal get the same result next week?
The newest ECW Diva, Rosa Mendes, served as the Guest Ring Announcer for a match between Zack Ryder and Shelton Benjamin; a match that Shelton Benjamin won thanks to Zack Ryder’s obsession with Rosa Mendes!
Paul Burchill made an appearance, with his sister Katie Lea Burchill, to issue a “proposition” to The Hurricane that would end their rivalry. After The Hurricane came into the ring and came face-to-face with The Burchill Siblings, “The Ripper” calls Hurricane a “fraud” and challenges The Hurricane to one last match between the two of them with some career-altering stipulations. If The Hurricane loses to Paul Burchill, then The Hurricane must unmask, but if Hurricane wins, then Paul Burchill and his sister, Katie Lea Burchill, will leave ECW! Not one to back down from a challenge, Hurricane accepted the proposition! When will this match take place? What will be the result of the contest? Will Hurricane be forced to unmask or will The Burchills leave ECW?
An intense monster of a man by the name of Vance Archer made his WWE debut as a part of the ECW New Superstar Initiative! This hard-hitting Texan decimated Providence’s own Logan Jones in a dominating fashion! Is the newest Superstar in ECW the biggest threat in ECW?
Then it was time for the tag team main event as ECW Champion Christian teamed up with Yoshi Tatsu to defeat the monstrous team of Ezekiel Jackson & Vladmir Kozlov! However, things took a bad turn for the ECW Champion after the match as William Regal came to the ring and got into a brawl with Christian before Ezekiel Jackson blindsided Christian! Regal and company decimated the ECW Champion before Regal locked in the punishing Regal Stretch on Christian on the outside of the ring! What kind of condition will Christian be in for his title defense against Regal next week? Will the advantage of being in his home country be the only advantage Regal has or has this attack won Regal the title a week early?
The 30th edition of WWE Superstars came to you from the DCU Center in Worcester, MA and from the Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence, RI. One of the challengers for the World Heavyweight Championship at Survivor Series, and Unified WWE Tag Team Champion, Chris Jericho would go one-on-one with Finlay. “The Ripper” Paul Burchill would face off with Tyler Reks and “The Latin Warrior” Chavo Guerrero would be in action against Santino Marella.
WWE Superstars
Good Week For: Chris Jericho (followed up pinning the WWE Champion on RAW with a win over Finlay)
Bad Week For: Tyler Reks (left bloody, broken, and defeated by Paul Burchill)
And In Other News…
The opening match of the night was from RAW and it saw Santino Marella pick up a victory over “The Latin Warrior” Chavo Guerrero.
RAW also hosted a rematch from last week’s WWE Superstars as “The All-American American” Jack Swagger defeated Primo and kept his undefeated streak intact!
ECW was also represented as “The Ripper” Paul Burchill “ripped” the head of opponent Tyler Reks with a vicious headbutt during their match; leaving Reks bloodied! This would be a turning point in the contest for “The Ripper” as Burchill would get the win! With his and his sister’s ECW career on the line against The Hurricane, can Paul Burchill defeat “The Emerald Knight” and force Hurricane to unmask?
The main event of the evening was from SmackDown and it saw one-half of the Unified WWE Tag Team Champions, Chris Jericho, pick up an impressive win over “The Fighting Irishman” Finlay. After pinning the WWE Champion on RAW and defeating Finlay on Superstars, Jericho is picking up some needed momentum heading into the Triple Threat Match for the World Heavyweight Championship at Survivor Series. Can Jericho continue to win? Will it carry over into Survivor Series and allow Jericho to become a six time World Champion?
The 533rd edition of WWE Friday Night SmackDown came to you from the Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Rhode Island’s state capital of Providence. After trying to help Batista and getting attacked by “The Altered Animal” for his troubles, Matt Hardy would seek retribution as he faced Batista one-on-one.
Friday Night SmackDown
Good Week For: R-Truth (with the help of a fast count, picked up a big win over CM Punk)
Bad Week For: Matt Hardy (was assaulted and left laying by Batista for the second week in a row)
And In Other News…
The show kicked off with the World Heavyweight Champion as The Undertaker made his way to the ring and stated that the “dark birth” of The Undertaker took place at Survivor Series and after years of dominance at the event, men still challenge him to try and obtain the “holy grail” of SmackDown; the World Heavyweight Title. “The Phenom” said that Big Show’s desperation for a shot at the title led to the betrayal of Team RAW at Bragging Rights and that Big Show “won an opportunity to be terminated by the hand of The Deadman”! Undertaker then turned his attention to Chris Jericho by saying that few things give him “joy” in life and one of them is fighting alongside his brother, Kane, and another is fighting against his brother, Kane, and that Jericho took that away from him by defeating Kane last week. The champion then said that Jericho’s “fate, health, and soul” would be his come Survivor Series! Chris Jericho then came out and proclaimed that he is the “true phenom” of the WWE and that Undertaker has been “brainwashing” the fans into supporting him. Jericho then tells the champion that Undertaker is not “The Deadman”; that he is just a “man” and that he can beat anyone he chooses and he will do so at Survivor Series to reclaim the World Heavyweight Title! The Unified WWE Tag Team Champion then stated that he fears “no man”, including The Undertaker! “The Phenom” responds by grabbing the throat of Jericho! Jericho fights back against The Undertaker, but the power of The Undertaker overcomes Jericho and “The Deadman” knocks Jericho down with a big boot before Jericho rolls out of the ring!
Later on in the show, it was announced that, on next week’s SmackDown, for the first time ever, World Heavyweight Champion The Undertaker will go one-on-one with Chris Jericho in a non-title match! Just nine days before they join Big Show in a Triple Threat Match for the World Heavyweight Championship, who will emerge victorious?
One week after defeating the Intercontinental Champion John Morrison via count-out, Dolph Ziggler was again victorious! This time in a 6-Man Tag match as he teamed with The Hart Dynasty to defeat Morrison & Cryme Tyme!
It would later be announced that, on next week’s SmackDown, Dolph Ziggler will get another shot at the Intercontinental Title as he challenges John Morrison for the gold! Can Dolph Ziggler finally grab the “brass ring” and become the Intercontinental Champion?
Backstage, Rey Mysterio is asked about Batista’s actions and words both at Bragging Rights and on last week’s SmackDown. Mysterio says that he would be lying if he said he was not upset, but that he will show Batista a side of him that Batista “never thought existed”!
At Survivor Series, Rey Mysterio will get his chance at redemption as he faces his former best friend, Batista, one-on-one! Will “The Ultimate Underdog” show this never-before-seen side he talks about or will “The Altered Animal” crush his best friend once again?
“The Glamazon” Beth Phoenix was in action as she picked up a dominate win over Brittany Carter. Can any one Diva stop the rampage of “The Glamazon”?
Drew McIntyre was set to go one-on-one with Jimmy Wang Yang, but when Yang got on the second turnbuckle during his entrance, McIntyre viciously shoved “The Asian Redneck” to the outside of the ring! McIntyre then proclaimed that he wants “competition” that is “worthy” of a future World Heavyweight Champion! McIntyre then exits the ring, but as he is doing so, Jimmy Wang Yang crawls back into the ring and orders the referee to start the match! The referee complies and rings the bell and, while Yang got some brief offense against McIntyre, the remorseless Scotsman quickly and decisively picked up the win! First, it was R-Truth, then Finlay, and now Jimmy Wang Yang. Whom will McIntyre target next?
Backstage, Batista comments on Rey Mysterio by saying that he is not there to “make friends”; he is there to be the World Heavyweight Champion and he will “hurt” anyone in his path to obtain that goal!
After learning he would be facing Batista at Survivor Series, Rey Mysterio was in action against “Monstrous” Mike Knox. Rey was able to pull off a hard-fought victory over Knox in the contest! Will Mysterio be able to achieve the same result when he faces Batista at Survivor Series?
One week after being assaulted and humiliated by CM Punk, referee Scott Armstrong was back to his refereeing duties. Unfortunately, for Armstrong, he was the referee for CM Punk’s match against R-Truth! After a near fall against the charismatic R-Truth, Punk blamed Armstrong and ordered Armstrong to “count faster”. While Punk was arguing with Scott Armstrong, Truth recovered and rolled up Punk. Doing as he was just told by Punk, Armstrong gave a lightning quick three count that resulted in R-Truth getting the win! Armstrong then quickly left the ring where CM Punk was absolutely shocked and enraged by what had just occurred! What will the repercussions be for this quick count?
Then it was time for the main event as Matt Hardy was out for revenge against Batista following an attack by “The Altered Animal” last week. After Matt Hardy rolled to the outside of the ring, the match broke down as Batista relentlessly attacked Matt and blasted Matt in the spine with a television monitor! This resulted in a disqualification win for Matt Hardy, but Batista continued the assault by throwing Matt into the steel steps! Batista then rolled Matt back into the ring before making his exit, proud of his actions against Matt Hardy. Will Rey Mysterio suffer a similar fate come Survivor Series or will Mysterio truly unleash a new side of himself against his former best friend?
Superstar of the Week: Unified WWE Tag Team Champion Chris Jericho
Superstar Profile of the Week
Name: Finlay
Born On: October 20, 1958 in Greenisland, County Antrim, Northern Ireland
Age: 51
Resides: Atlanta, GA
Billed From: Dublin, Ireland
Wrestler Since: 1974
Trained By: Ted Betley
Accomplishments
One Time WWE United States Champion
One Time WCW World Television Champion
One Time WCW Hardcore Champion
Third-Generation Wrestler
Next Week’s WWE Television Schedule
Monday, November 9: RAW, LIVE from the Sheffield Arena in Sheffield, England
Tuesday, November 10: ECW on Syfy from the Shefflied Arena in Sheffield, England
Thursday, November 12: WWE Superstars from the Sheffield Arena in Sheffield, England
Friday, November 13: The Sheffield Arena in Sheffield, England Hosts SmackDown