July 4, 2010- July 10, 2010
Welcome to the one-hundred fourteenth edition of the WWE Week in Review. Feel free to contact me on TWO or Wrestling 101 anytime with comments, questions, and anything in between. Make sure to check out the section at the end of the article highlighting a different WWE Superstar, Diva, or Alumni every week. I have also added a section that lists where WWE will be hosting their weekly television shows and monthly pay-per-views.
The 893rd edition of WWE Monday Night RAW came to you, live, from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, TN. After weeks of brutal and relentless attacks on a wide array of WWE employees, including John Cena, CM Punk, & Luke Gallows, as well as WWE Legends Bret “The Hitman” Hart, Michael Hayes, Dean Malenko, Mike Rotunda, Arn Anderson, Jerry “The King” Lawler, & Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, and even assaulting the Chairman of World Wrestling Entertainment himself, Mr. McMahon, the seemingly unstoppable group known as The Nexus will learn their fates as the anonymous General Manager of RAW will issue the verdict of The Nexus as soon as soon as RAW gets underway!
Monday Night RAW (July 5, 2010)
Good Week For: John Cena (got a measure of revenge on The Nexus by brutalizing Darren Young)
Bad Week For: Darren Young (was viciously assaulted by an enraged John Cena)
Moments before they learn their fates, the ex-Rookie group known as The Nexus open the show as Wade Barrett, David Otunga, Heath Slater, Justin Gabriel, Darren Young, Skip Sheffield, & Michael Tarver all stand in the ring! The leader and spokesperson for The Nexus, Wade Barrett, states that, last week, he was ordered by the anonymous General Manager of RAW to line The Nexus up in the ring to face the “appropriate consequences” for their actions! Barrett then states that they can not reveal why they did what they did to WWE Chairman Mr. McMahon, but says that it is part of a “much bigger picture”! Barrett then says that Mr. McMahon never had control over them and the Chairman had “no idea” what their true intentions were! Wade Barrett then hands the microphone off to Skip Sheffield, who comments on their attack last week on Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat and the WWE Legends by saying that they perpetrated the attack on the WWE Legends “for fun”! Sheffield continues that they found a “loophole” in the GM’s ruling and they “exploited” it and says that, despite what they may say, the fans “loved every second” of their attack on the WWE Legends! Sheffield then states that Ricky Steamboat’s new DVD set is more interesting to the fans now than it was before their attack and says that Steamboat should be “thanking” them! The anonymous RAW General Manager then interrupts with an email, which commentator Michael Cole reads, that states that the anonymous GM has decided on the punishment for The Nexus’ attack on WWE Chairman Mr. McMahon two weeks ago! The anonymous GM then announces, through Michael Cole, that the members of The Nexus will not be able to challenge for any championship in the WWE “until further notice” and, not only that, but the ban on The Nexus making contact with RAW Superstars, and vice versa, has been lifted! After this ruling by the anonymous GM was made, it did not take long for The Nexus’ first and frequent victim, John Cena, to come out! A serious and revenge-driven Cena took his stance on the stage as the seven members of The Nexus ready themselves in the ring! Cena then states that, while they have done a lot, there is one thing that The Nexus has not done since their abrupt arrival on RAW and that is have a “fair fight”! With this, Cena is joined by Randy Orton, R-Truth, John Morrison, Evan Bourne, & The Hart Dynasty as the seven RAW Superstars make their way to the ring! However, when the RAW Superstars get closer to the ring, The Nexus flee the ring and the seven Superstars are blindsided by Sheamus, Edge, Chris Jericho, The Miz, Ted DiBiase, & The Usos! As The Nexus makes a clean getaway, the fourteen RAW Superstars engage in a brawl in the ring with John Cena, Randy Orton, R-Truth, John Morrison, Evan Bourne, & The Hart Dynasty sending the other Superstars packing! On the stage, Sheamus explains that, they do not know the agenda of The Nexus, but they “support” their actions against John Cena! Randy Orton then reminds Edge of what The Nexus did to them at WWE Fatal 4-Way! Randy Orton then says that, since they can not get their hands on The Nexus, they will finish what they started with the other Superstars on the stage! The anonymous GM then interrupts and announces, via an email read by Michael Cole, that the eight participants of the RAW Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match will be in action on RAW and that John Cena will meet Wade Barrett in the ring, but not to have a match, as the GM wants Cena and Barrett to “shake hands” and call a “truce”! After John Cena says that he will not shake Barrett’s hand, but will knock Barrett’s teeth out, the General Manager threatens that Cena shake the hand of Wade Barrett or be met with the “appropriate consequences” and also proclaims that “that’s the bottom line, because the GM says so”! Can this anonymous General Manager be who he seems to be?
The opening match of the night saw two of the eight participants in the RAW Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match in action as “The Monday Night Delight” John Morrison would go one-on-one with “The Fortunate Son” Ted DiBiase! During the match, Ted DiBiase’s “companion”, Maryse, puts on the fur coat of John Morrison, which distracts Morrison and the referee long enough for Ted DiBiase to deliver a thumb to the eye of Morrison and hit Dream Street en route to picking up the win! Could Ted DiBiase add more “money” to his collection by winning the Money-in-the-Bank title opportunity at WWE Money-in-the-Bank?
After weeks of recruitment, Santino Marella would finally get his wish as he would team with Vladimir Kozlov to face the team of William Regal & The Great Khali! Without Khali even having to step in the ring, Kozlov was able to plant William Regal with the Iron Curtain en route to picking up the win for himself and Santino! After the match, The Great Khali enters the ring and lays Regal out with an overhead chop to Regal’s head before the three unique RAW Superstars celebrate! Has Santino Marella, Vladimir Kozlov, & The Great Khali formed some sort of international union?
Following the attack by The Nexus on Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat and other WWE Legends on last week’s RAW, one of the WWE Legends who were attacked last week, Arn Anderson, speaks on the attack by The Nexus and the health status of Ricky Steamboat by saying that he does not know how badly hurt Steamboat is, but that the doctors are saying that it is “serious”. Arn Anderson is then confronted by WWE Champion Sheamus, who says that Arn used to be “The Enforcer”, but now he is a “pathetic old man”! Arn Anderson responds by saying that he has been a lot of things, but he has not been “blind and stupid” and warns Sheamus that, even though Sheamus is the WWE Champion, he is not “safe” and guys like him need to put their “egos” out of their way because that will prove to be their “weakness” and if the Superstars do not get on the same page, the WWE will go “up in smoke”! Sheamus says that he has “no weaknesses” and that The Nexus is “smarter” than The Four Horsemen! Arn Anderson then warns Sheamus by saying that if Sheamus and the others don’t “stop the bleeding”, then Sheamus will become a “great white shark swimming in an empty mud hole”! Sheamus then says that he does not need anyone else, because he is the WWE Champion! After trying his best to warm the cocky WWE Champion, a frustrated Arn Anderson says that Sheamus just doesn’t “get it” before walking away! Did any of Arn Anderson’s words sink in to Sheamus?
Two more of the competitors in the RAW Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match were set to be in action on RAW as United States Champion The Miz would go one-on-one with the former United States Champion R-Truth, but before the match could begin, Miz blasts R-Truth in the head with a microphone before initiating a heinous assault on R-Truth’s left arm that ended with Miz snapping R-Truth’s arm over backwards over the bottom rope! As trainers help R-Truth to the backstage area, The Miz proclaims that, regardless of his opponent, he will “make it hurt”! What is the status of R-Truth following this heinous attack? What has motivated The Miz to perpetrate such a vicious attack?
“The Rated-R Superstar” Edge makes an appearance on RAW to present a special edition of The Cutting Edge with his guests, fellow Money-in-the-Bank competitors Chris Jericho & Evan Bourne! Before he brings out his guests, Edge states that The Nexus needs a “leader” and, by winning the Money-in-the-Bank contract, he can become WWE Champion again with The Nexus as his allies! Edge then introduces one of his guests, Evan Bourne, but Chris Jericho comes out and states that he does not take a “back seat” to anyone and accuses Edge of “pandering” to The Nexus before stating that, as the WWE Pro to Wade Barrett, he instilled the viciousness and determination in Barrett! Jericho then says that Edge has always “idolized” him and has tried to mimic his career and that he can not be “replaced”! Jericho then vows to win the Money-in-the-Bank contract and become champion, which sparks a fight between Edge & Chris Jericho with Jericho locking in the Walls of Jericho on Edge before Evan Bourne comes in and gets the better of the two former World Champions before exiting the ring! The anonymous GM then rings in with an email that asks the WWE fans that, if they want to see some action, give him a “hell yeah” before the anonymous GM announces that Edge & Chris Jericho will team together to face the team of Evan Bourne and his partner, “The Viper” Randy Orton!
Four of the eight competitors in the RAW Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match were in tag team action as the team of “The Viper” Randy Orton & Evan Bourne would face the team of Edge & Chris Jericho! In the end, it was Edge turning on Chris Jericho and delivering the Spear to his tag team partner before leaving the ring, which allowed Evan Bourne to hit Air Bourne en route to pinning Jericho to win the match for his team! After the match, Randy Orton delivered a solid reminder of the every man for himself structure of the Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match to the high-flyer by laying Evan Bourne out with the RKO! Could Randy Orton be crowned “Mr. Money-in-the-Bank” in two weeks’ time at WWE Money-in-the-Bank?
Backstage, Randy Orton is confronted by Nexus members David Otunga, Heath Slater, & Michael Tarver who try to bring Randy Orton to their side and offer to beat down the WWE Champion for the winner of the RAW Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match, but Orton responds by telling the three Nexus members to get out of his face!
It was announced on RAW, that in two weeks’ time at WWE Money-in-the-Bank, the Unified WWE Tag Team Titles will be defended as Unified WWE Tag Team Champions, The Hart Dynasty, will defend the titles against The Usos! Who will walk out of WWE Money-in-the-Bank as the Unified WWE Tag Team Champions?
For the first time since winning the title at WWE Fatal 4-Way, Divas Champion Alicia Fox would defend her title against the former Divas Champion Eve Torres! After luring Eve Torres in by feigning an ankle injury, Alicia Fox was able to take advantage and hit the Fox Kick on Eve en route to pinning Eve and retaining the Divas Title!
It was announced on RAW that, as a result of the vicious attack by The Miz earlier in the night, R-Truth will be unable to compete in the RAW Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match, leaving an open spot in the match! Who will fill the spot in the RAW Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match?
Then it was time for, as ordered by the anonymous General Manager of RAW, for John Cena, the most frequent victim of the attacks by The Nexus, to stand in the ring with the leader and spokesperson of The Nexus, Wade Barrett, and shake the hand of Barrett and declare a “truce” with The Nexus spokesperson! Wade Barrett comes out first and states that everything The Nexus has done has had a “purpose” and that it is “unfortunate” that John Cena got caught up in all of it and he wants Cena to come out and shake hands with him “like men”! Being careful to keep his eye out for the other members of The Nexus, John Cena comes to the ring and gets in the ring as Wade Barrett tells John Cena that Cena is not in the “future plans” of The Nexus and says that he want to shake hands with Cena and put everything behind them because The Nexus will be there for a long time to come! Wade Barrett then states that The Nexus can make Cena’s life “very easy” or “make it a lot harder” than it already is and tells Cena that “the choice” is his! John Cena then clarifies that, if he shakes Barrett’s hand, then the attacks will stop and he needs Barrett’s “word” that the attacks will stop! Cena then extends his hand to Barrett, but retracts it when Barrett goes to shake his hand! Cena then tells Barrett that the “future” is that he takes every single member of The Nexus down and, whether he has help or not, he will “get to” every member of The Nexus and they have his “word” on it! Wade Barrett responds by saying that, what they have done to Cena in the “past” is nothing compared to what they will do to Cena in the “future” and tells Cena to either shake his hand or face “severe consequences”! Reluctantly, it looked like Cena would shake the hand of Wade Barrett, but Cena pulls Barrett in and is set to deliver the Attitude Adjustment to Barrett when the rest of The Nexus come in and attacks John Cena! As the seven members of The Nexus start to beat Cena down, Evan Bourne comes out, followed by John Morrison, and then, Mark Henry, who brings a plethora of RAW Superstars to fight off The Nexus as the Superstars of RAW send The Nexus packing! The anonymous General Manager then chimes in with an email that states that, if there is not “peace” among The Nexus and the RAW Superstars, then there will be “consequences”! After this email, John Cena locks in his STF on The Nexus member who was left behind, Darren Young! The anonymous RAW GM then chimes in again and announces that, due to Cena’s actions, Cena will face all seven members of The Nexus next week in a seven-on-one Handicap Match! After this announcement, John Cena goes off the rails as Cena beats down Darren Young before sending The Nexus member shoulder-first into the steel ring post! Cena then heads to the outside of the ring, where he takes the top half of the steel ring steps and hurls them into the head of Darren Young before sending Young careening over the announce table and turning the entire table over on The Nexus member! After proving that he can take out The Nexus one member at a time, how will The Nexus respond to John Cena’s assault on Darren Young? How will the anonymous General Manager respond to Cena’s actions?
The fifth week of WWE NXT Season Two came to you from the Philips Arena in Atlanta, GA. One week after the first NXT Poll saw Titus O’Neil eliminated from the NXT competition, the seven remaining NXT Rookies would be looking to step it up to avoid eventual elimination.
WWE NXT (July 6, 2010)
Good Week For: “Showtime” Percy Watson (won the Talk The Talk Challenge to host his own talk show segment next week)
Bad Week For: Lucky Cannon (was pinned in the tag team main event)
One week after the first NXT Poll saw the first NXT elimination as Titus O’Neil was sent home, the show kicks off with NXT Co-Host, Matt Striker, who brings out the eight WWE Pros as “The Monday Night Delight” John Morrison, “Dashing” Cody Rhodes, “The World’s Strongest Man” Mark Henry, “The Long Island Iced Z” Zack Ryder, “The Ballin’ Superstar” MVP, United States Champion The Miz, the self-proclaimed “Co-Women’s Champions” LayCool, & Intercontinental Champion Kofi Kingston take their seats on the stage! Zack Ryder comments on his NXT Rookie, Titus O’Neil, being eliminated last week by saying that Titus O’Neil “had it all” and that Titus was “robbed”! NXT Co-Host Matt Striker then brings out the remaining seven NXT Rookies as the number four Rookie Alex Riley, the number five Rookie Lucky Cannon, number seven Husky Harris, number three Michael McGillicutty, number six Eli Cottonwood, the top NXT Rookie Kaval, and the number two Rookie “Showtime” Percy Watson take their place in the ring! Matt Striker then presents the Talk The Talk Challenge where the seven Rookies will be given a topic to discuss in thirty seconds with the winner earning their own talk show segment on next week’s show! Up first was “Showtime” Percy Watson with his topic being “glasses” and Percy says that he wears his glasses because has the “vision” to see what he “wants in life”! Up next was “The World Warrior” Kaval, who gets the topic of “chicken” and Kaval states that a chicken “can not exist” in the WWE and that he is not a chicken and, along with the WWE fans, he will rise to be the winner of NXT Season Two! Eli Cottonwood was up next with the topic of “mustaches” and Eli says that a mustache is for a “real man” and that his will be the best of all the Rookies! Michael McGillicutty is next up with the topic of “breath” and McGillicutty proclaims that he will take the fans “breath away”! Husky Harris is up next with the topic of “doorknob” and Husky says that he used a doorknob to get into the building, but that the fans don’t “deserve” to hear him talk! Lucky Cannon is up next with the topic of “deodorant” who says that he is the deodorant and the WWE is the “smelly guy” and that he needs WWE and WWE needs him! Alex Riley is up next with the topic of “pigeon” and Riley proclaims that he is “the rooster of the henhouse” and refers to the other Rookies as “pigeons”! It was then time for the WWE fans to select the winner of the Talk The Talk Challenge as the fans roared their approval of “Showtime” Percy Watson, meaning that Percy will get his very own talk show segment on next week’s NXT! What will Percy Watson have in store for his talk show segment next week?
The opening match of the night saw the NXT Rookies in action as the number two Rookie who had just won the Talk The Talk Challenge, “Showtime” Percy Watson went one-on-one with the number three Rookie Michael McGillicutty! In the end, it was McGillicutty catching Percy with a sunset flip roll-up to pick up the win!
United States Champion The Miz was in action on NXT as the WWE Pro would go one-on-one with the number one NXT Rookie, “The World Warrior” Kaval! Despite a very impressive showing by Kaval, The Miz was able to hit the Skull Crushing Finale en route to picking up the win over the top NXT Rookie! How will Kaval bounce back from this loss to The Miz?
It was announced on NXT that, on next week’s show, the original NXT Rookies would return home as the seven members of The Nexus will return to wear it all began for the unstoppable and unpredictable group! What does The Nexus have in store for next week’s NXT?
Then it was time for the tag team main event as “The World’s Strongest Man” Mark Henry would team with his NXT Rookie, Lucky Cannon, to face the team of “Dashing” Cody Rhodes and his NXT Rookie Husky Harris! In the end, it was Cody Rhodes hitting the Cross Rhodes on Lucky Cannon en route to picking up the win for himself and Husky Harris!
The 64th edition of WWE Superstars came to you from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, TN and from the Philips Arena in Atlanta, GA. WWE Superstars would see the return of the Masterlock Challenge as one-half of The Dude Busters, Caylen Croft, would be looking to break the Masterlock of Chris Masters! After defeating both of the self-proclaimed “co-Women’s Champions” Michelle McCool & Layla in recent weeks, Kelly Kelly would team with her friend, Tiffany, as the duo known as Blonderage would face LayCool in Divas tag team action! “The Bizarre Lonestar” Goldust would also be in action on WWE Superstars as Goldust would go one-on-one with “The Long Island Iced Z” Zack Ryder. Also, in Mixed Tag action, Yoshi Tatsu would team with Gail Kim to face the team of Primo & Jillian.
WWE Superstars (July 8, 2010)
Good Week For: Zack Ryder (picked up a win over Goldust)
Bad Week For: Chris Masters (was attacked by The Dude Busters after winning the Masterlock Challenge)
The opening match of the night was a Mixed Tag Match as the team of Yoshi Tatsu & Gail Kim would face the team of Primo & Jillian with the Divas that have pulled the switch on Jillian for the last two weeks in charge as The Bella Twins, Brie & Nikki, would serve as the Special Guest Referees for the match! During the match, Jillian took issue with both of The Bella Twins as she leveled both of the Special Referees and The Bellas fired back as, when Gail Kim managed to roll Jillian up, the in-ring Bella fast-counted the pinfall to give Gail Kim & Yoshi Tatsu the win!
“The Long Island Iced Z” Zack Ryder was in action on WWE Superstars as the WWE Pro on NXT would go one-on-one with “The Bizarre Lonestar” Goldust. In the end, it was Zack Ryder managing to hit the Rough Ryder Leg Lariat and pinning Goldust en route to picking up the win over the veteran Superstar!
WWE Superstars also featured the return of the Masterlock Challenge as one-half of The Dude Busters, Caylen Croft, would try and escape the devastating submission hold of Chris Masters! The Masterlock Challenge got underway, but Caylen Croft was no match for Chris Masters’ strength as Croft quickly tapped out to the maneuver! After the Masterlock Challenge was done with, Caylen Croft’s tag team partner, Trent Barretta, looked like he wanted to try and take on the Masterlock Challenge, but when Chris Masters started to lock in the submission on Barretta, Caylen Croft blasted “The Masterpiece” from behind as The Dude Busters commenced a beat down of Chris Masters, leaving Masters laid out! How will Chris Masters respond to this attack by The Dude Busters?
Then it was time for the tag team main event as Kelly Kelly & Tiffany, Blonderage, would take on the self-proclaimed “co-Women’s Champions” Layla & Michelle McCool, LayCool! In the end, it was Michelle McCool taking advantage of the referee being distracted with Tiffany and hitting a big boot on Kelly Kelly to allow Layla to pin Kelly Kelly en route to picking up the win for LayCool!
The 568th edition of WWE Friday Night SmackDown came to you from the Philips Arena at the site of WrestleMania XXVII in Atlanta, GA. Nine nights before he challenges new champion Rey Mysterio for the World Championship, “The All-American American” Jack Swagger would go one-on-one with the Superstar whose ankle he tried to break two weeks ago as Swagger would square off with “The World’s Largest Athlete” Big Show!
Friday Night SmackDown (July 9, 2010)
Good Week For: Drew McIntyre & Dolph Ziggler (both filled the final two open spots in the SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match)
Bad Week For: Rey Mysterio (had his ankle brutally assaulted by Jack Swagger)
Detailed Results Follow…
Two weeks after being deported back to Scotland due to an expired work visa, the show kicks off with “The Chosen One” Drew McIntyre, but before McIntyre cane even speak, SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long comes out! McIntyre assures the GM that his “citizenship issues” have been resolved, but states the issues between them are not resolved and states that, during his time away, he has realized that he has “wronged” Theodore Long and that it is “never too late” for him to say he is “sorry”! The GM responds by telling McIntyre that it is “never too early” to say that McIntyre is a “liar” and that he sees that, without the backing of WWE Chairman Mr. McMahon, that McIntyre will no longer be getting any “special privelages” and that McIntyre will be on the “same playing field” as everyone else on the roster! Drew McIntyre then announces that, not only did he come out there to “apologize”, but he came out there to “personally nominate” Theodore Long for the 2011 WWE Hall of Fame on the weekend of WrestleMania XXVII in Long’s hometown of Atlanta and proclaims that, while Long will have his Hall of Fame ring, he will headline WrestleMania XXVII as the World Heavyweight Champion! The General Manager then says that the only way McIntyre would be the World Heavyweight Champion come WrestleMania next year would be if McIntyre won the SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match! Theodore Long then tells Drew McIntyre that if he wants to be entered into the SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match, he will have to get on his knees and beg for it like McIntyre forced Long to do three weeks ago! Drew McIntyre then reluctantly gets on his knees as the GM forces “The Chosen One” to call Long “handsome” and state that McIntyre is honored to have Long as his boss! Theodore Long then reveals that Drew McIntyre is still not in the SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match before announcing that, to qualify, Drew McIntyre will have to defeat a very familiar rival in Intercontinental Champion Kofi Kingston! Can Drew McIntyre defeat Kofi Kingston to gain admittance into the SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match?
With two spots open in the SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match, three Superstars would be looking to land one of those coveted spots as “The Ballin’ Superstar” MVP, “The Latin Warrior” Chavo Guerrero, & “The Platinum Superstar” Dolph Ziggler would compete in a Triple Threat Match with the winner earning a spot in the SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match! Despite SmackDown Consultant Vickie Guerrero instructing Chavo Guerrero to help Dolph Ziggler win the match, Chavo decided to go into business for himself to try and earn the prestigious opportunity as the partnership between Dolph Ziggler & Chavo Guerrero! In the end, MVP was able to hit the Play of the Day on Chavo Guerrero, but when MVP pinned Chavo, Vickie Guerrero pulled the referee out of the ring, which distracted MVP long enough for Dolph Ziggler to lock on the sleeper hold and put MVP to sleep to earn admittance into the SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match! Can Dolph Ziggler win the Money-in-the-Bank title opportunity in nine nights at WWE Money-in-the-Bank?
Backstage, the resident WWE physician is checking on the ankle of World Champion Rey Mysterio as Rey is asked about the condition of his ankle and if he will be able to successfully defend his World Title against Jack Swagger in nine nights at WWE Money-in-the-Bank, but Jack Swagger barges into the trainer’s room and orders everyone out before Jack Swagger attacks the ankle of Rey and locks Rey back in the ankle lock, which Swagger keeps hold of as Swagger drags the World Champion through the backstage area! The ruthless Swagger then slams Rey’s already injured ankle into a piece of steel backstage before taking Rey and swinging Rey so that his head smacks into a wall! The heinous attack of Jack Swagger was not over as Swagger reapplied the ankle lock and dragged a barely conscious Rey Mysterio out into the main part of the arena where everyone could see his devastation as Swagger continued to wrench the injured ankle of Mysterio! Finally, Big Show emerged and ran Jack Swagger off, bringing an end to the heinous assault! What is the condition of Rey Mysterio following this assault? What is the future of Rey Mysterio and the World Championship?
Nine nights before they are two of the eight competitors in the SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match and one week after they engaged in a brawl on The Peep Show last week, “Captain Charisma” Christian would team with Matt Hardy to face Curt Hawkins & Vance Archer! In the middle of the match, Matt Hardy looks to tag in Christian, but Christian grabs the arm of Matt and pulls Matt over the top rope to the outside before leaving Matt high and dry! Vance Archer then takes advantage of the dysfunction between Christian & Matt Hardy as Archer hits the Archer’s Arrow on Matt, which sets up the Heat Seeking Elbow Drop of Curt Hawkins en route to Hawkins pinning Matt to win the match! What else will go down between the eight SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match participants as WWE Money-in-the-Bank rapidly approaches?
After being forced to beg for his spot in the SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match only to be denied by SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long earlier in the night, “The Chosen One” Drew McIntyre would go one-on-one with Intercontinental Champion Kofi Kingston and, if McIntyre wins, then he gains entry into the SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match! At the end of a hard-fought match, it was Drew McIntyre taking advantage of an exposed steel connector on the ring to hook Kofi Kingston up and deliver the Future Shock DDT to pin Kofi and earn the final spot in the SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match! Can Drew McIntyre come one step closer to achieving his vision of headlining next year’s WrestleMania as the World Heavyweight Champion by winning the Money-in-the-Bank title opportunity in nine nights at WWE Money-in-the-Bank?
A week after showing video evidence of her consuming alcoholic beverages in order to prove CM Punk’s innocence, Serena would have to stand judgment in front of The Straightedge Society as “The Straightedge Savior” CM Punk & “The Straightedge Disciple” Luke Gallows made an appearance on SmackDown to address the issue! Punk & Gallows call Serena to the ring and Serena comes out and states that CM Punk is her “world” and that she made a big “mistake” by consuming alcohol and begs for the forgiveness of CM Punk! Luke Gallows calls Serena “pathetic” and states that it makes him “sick” that he ever considered Serena his “sister” in The Straightedge Society and reveals that he wanted to kick Serena out of The Straightedge Society, but that the decision lies with CM Punk and that Punk made him see the “bigger picture” of Serena setting a good example for women all over the world, but that if Serena was really sorry then she would leave The Straightedge Society! CM Punk then states that the only “good thing” that was said was that the decision is his before telling Luke Gallows that he “forgives” Serena! This decision prompts Luke Gallows to angrily leave the ring as Serena vows to never disobey Punk or The Straightedge Society again, to which Punk responds by telling Serena that he had “better not”! As Luke Gallows disapprovingly watches from the stage, CM Punk & Serena embrace in the middle of the ring! Even though the rift between CM Punk & Serena seems to be gone, what will become of this new rift between CM Punk & Luke Gallows?
Nine nights before he is one of eight competitors in the SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match, “Dashing” Cody Rhodes would go one-on-one with “The Brooklyn Baller” JTG. In the end, it was Cody Rhodes hitting the Cross Rhodes en route to picking up the win! How will Cody Rhodes fare in the SmackDown Money-in-the-Bank Ladder Match?
Backstage, it was revealed that Kelly Kelly will challenge Layla for the Women’s Title in nine nights at WWE Money-in-the-Bank! Following this announcement, Women’s Champion Layla confronts Kelly Kelly and gets ready to spray Kelly with deodorant again, but Kelly Kelly slaps the deodorant out of the Women’s Champion’s hands, but Michelle McCool blindsides Kelly Kelly as LayCool assaults and leaves Kelly Kelly laid out! How will this affect the Women’s Title match at WWE Money-in-the-Bank?
After witnessing Jack Swagger’s heinous assault on World Champion Rey Mysterio earlier in the night and two weeks after suffering at the hands of Jack Swagger’s ankle lock, “The World’s Largest Athlete” Big Show would be looking for revenge as he would go one-on-one with Jack Swagger! The match broke down when both competitors found themselves on the outside of the ring as both Superstars end up getting counted out, but the revenge-driven Big Show backs Jack Swagger up to the edge of the stage before Swagger strikes the ankle of Big Show and delivers a DDT to the foot of Big Show; jarring the ankle of Big Show on the steel stage! Proud of his actions against Big Show, Jack Swagger heads backstage, but Swagger is grabbed by Kane, who takes Jack Swagger to a secluded room as “The Big Red Machine” accuses Swagger of attacking The Undertaker because he states he likes to make people “suffer”! Jack Swagger continues to deny attacking The Undertaker as Kane interrogates Jack Swagger; telling Swagger that he knows all about “pain and suffering” and Swagger tells Kane that, like CM Punk, he has an “alibi” and says he will prove it next week! Kane then tells Swagger that his alibi had better be a good one, because if there is the “slightest bit of doubt” in Kane’s mind, then Jack Swagger will be “condemned to hell to live in eternal suffering”! Can Jack Swagger prove his innocence next week or is Jack Swagger truly the one responsible for the attack on The Undertaker?
Superstar of the Week: John Cena
Alumni Profile of the Week
Name: Stone Cold Steve Austin
Born On: December 18, 1964 in Austin, TX
Age: 45
Trained By: Chris Adams
WWE Run: 1995- April 17, 2004
Accomplishments
2009 WWE Hall of Famer
Six Time WWE Champion
Three Time Royal Rumble Winner (1997, 1998, & 2001)
1996 King of the Ring Winner
Two Time WWE Intercontinental Champion
Two Time WCW United States Champion
One Time WWE Million Dollar Champion
Two Time WCW World Television Champion
Four Time WWE World Tag Team Champion (1x w/ Shawn Michaels, 1x w/ Dude Love, 1x w/ The Undertaker, & 1x w/ Triple H)
One Time WCW Tag Team Champion (w/ Brian Pillman)
Fifth WWE Triple Crown Champion
One Time WWE Slammy Award Winner (1997)
Did You Know?
Stone Cold Steve Austin is the first and only Superstar in WWE history to have won three Royal Rumble Matches as the Hall of Famer won the 1997, 1998, & 2001 Royal Rumble Matches.
Next Week’s WWE Television Schedule
Monday, July 12: RAW, LIVE from the Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY
Tuesday, July 13: WWE NXT from Freedom Hall in Louisville, KY
Thursday, July 15: WWE Superstars from Lexington, KY & Louisville, KY
Friday, July 16: Freedom Hall in Louisville, KY Hosts SmackDown