On this day in history in ....
1868 - Homer Lane defeats James H. McLaughlin for the American Collar-and-Elbow Title in Utica, New York.
1923 - Clarence Weber defeats Billy Meeske in Melbourne, Australia to win the Australian Heavyweight Title for the second time.
1941 - Wild Red Berry defeats Danny McShain for the World Light Heavyweight Title in Hollywood, California, ending McShain's third reign and beginning Berry's third.
1946 - George Becker defeats Babe Sharkey in Portland, Oregon to win the Pacific Northwest (later Los Angeles) World Heavyweight Title.
1953 - Ted Petty is born in Woodbridge Township, New Jersey.
1958 - Eddie and Jerry Graham defeat Don Curtis and Mark Lewin in Washington, DC to win the Northeast NWA United States Tag Team Title.
1961 - Bam Bam Bigelow is born in Asbury Park, New Jersey.
1965 - KC Thunder is born in Asheville, North Carolina.
1967 - Killer Kowalski defeats Bearcat Wright in Melbourne, Australia for the International Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Title. This began Kowalski's fifth reign and ended Wright's second.
1968 - Kyoko Okada and Miyuki Yanagi defeat Lucille Duprée and Mary Jane for the American Girls' Wrestling Association International Tag Team Title in Tokyo, Japan.
1971 - Former WWE star Deuce is born in Laie, Hawaii.
1972 - Doug Williams is born in Reading, Berkshire, England.
1972 - The AWA held an event at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois. The results:
- René Goulet and Don Muraco fought to a 10-minute time-limit draw.
- Ramón Torres defeated Angelo Poffo.
- Art Thomas defeated Hans Harmann.
- Bobo Johnson defeated Little Bruiser.
- Baron Von Raschke defeated Billy Red Cloud.
- André Rousimoff (André the Giant) defeated Larry Hennig and Butcher Vachon in a Handicap match.
- Dusty Rhodes defeated Wahoo McDaniel by disqualification.
- AWA World Tag Team Champions Nick Bockwinkel and Ray Stevens defeated Billy Robinson and Wilbur Snyder in a Best-of-Three Falls match to retain the title.
- AWA World Heavyweight Champion Verne Gagne defeated Ivan Koloff in a Best-of-Three Falls match to retain the title.
- Dick the Bruiser and The Crusher defeated The Blackjacks (Lanza and Mulligan) in a Steel Cage match.
1972 - Johnny Valentine defeats Johnny Powers to win the National Wrestling Federation North American Heavyweight Title in Cleveland, Ohio, ending Powers' third reign.
1973 - WWWF ran Scranton, PA at the CYC with the following results:
-Little Louie & Farmer Jerome defeated Little Brutus & Pee Wee Adams
-Manuel Soto defeated Joe Turco
-Tony Garea fought Mr. Fuji to a draw
-Haystacks Calhoun defeated Mike McCord via disqualification
-Chief Jay Strongbow defeated George Steele in a steel cage match
1977 - Don Leo Jonathan defeats Otto Wanz for the Catch Wrestling Association World Heavyweight Title in Johannesburg, South Africa.
1977 - Dory Funk, Jr. defeats Ciclón Negro in Amarillo, Texas to win the Amarillo NWA International Heavyweight Title, ending Negro's third reign and beginning Funk's second.
1977 - Yumi Ikeshita defeats Jane O'Brien in Honolulu, Hawaii for the All Pacific Title.
1978 - Pak Choo and Roddy Piper defeat Ryuma Go and Black Gordman to win the NWA Americas Tag Team Title.
1978 - Paddy Ryan defeats Mr. Sakurada for the Stampede North American Heavyweight Title in Calgary, Alberta.
1979 - The WWWF Intercontinental championship is officially introduced with Pat Patterson as the first champion, having won a fictional tournament in Rio De Janeiro. In actuality, he had defeated Ted DiBiase for the WWWF North American title and the promotion decided to replace that title with the IC championship.
1979 - Jim Crockett Promotions held a 12-man tournament in Charlotte, North Carolina for the Mid-Atlantic NWA United States Heavyweight Title. The title had been vacated by Ric Flair after he won the NWA World Tag Team Title with Blackjack Mulligan on August 8. The results were:
First round:
- Bruiser Brody defeated Johnny Weaver.
- Jimmy Snuka defeated Tim Woods.
- Buddy Rogers defeated Bob Marcus.
- Wahoo McDaniel and Big John Studd fought to a double-countout, putting Buddy Rogers through to the semifinals.
- Ken Patera defeated Rufus R. Jones.
Quarterfinals:
- Jim Brunzell defeated Bruiser Brody.
- Ricky Steamboat defeated Ken Patera.
Semifinals:
- Jimmy Snuka defeated Jim Brunzell.
- Ricky Steamboat defeated Buddy Rogers.
Final:
- Jimmy Snuka defeated Ricky Steamboat to win vacant Mid-Atlantic NWA United States Heavyweight Title.
1980 - Tommy Rich defeats Jimmy Valiant for the AWA Southern Heavyweight Title in Memphis, Tennessee. This began Rich's third reign and ended Valiant's fourth.
1982 - Paul Jones defeats Jack Brisco to win the NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Title in Charlotte, North Carolina, to end Brisco'e second reign.
1984 - The WWF held an event at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The results were:
- Iron Mike Sharpe pinned Steve Lombardi after a clothesline.
- David Schultz pinned A.J. Petrucci after a dropkick.
- WWF Women's Tag Team Champions Velvet McIntyre and Princess Victoria defeated Leilani Kai and Despina Mantagus to retain the title, when Victoria pinned Mantagus with a reverse crossbody and McIntyre pinned Kai with a sunset flip.
- Jesse Ventura pinned Ivan Putski after hitting him with a foreign object.
- Rocky Johnson and Greg Valentine fought to a time-limit draw.
- André the Giant defeated Roddy Piper by countout when Piper walked out after a big boot knocked him to the floor.
- Nikolai Volkoff pinned Rick McGraw after a gorilla press gutbuster.
- The Wild Samoans (Afa and Sika) defeated WWF Tag Team Champions Adrian Adonis and Dick Murdoch by disqualification after Murdoch threw the referee out of the ring. Adonis and Murdoch retained the title.
1985 - The WWF held an event at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto, Ontario. The results:
- Randy Savage defeated Dennis Goulet.
- Lanny Poffo defeated Iron Mike Sharpe.
- King Tonga defeated Moondog Spot.
- King Kong Bundy defeated Rick McGraw and George Wells in a Handicap match.
- The Hart Foundation (Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart) defeated The British Bulldogs (The Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy Smith) by disqualification.
- Cousin Junior defeated Johnny Valiant.
- Don Muraco and Ricky Steamboat fought to a double-countout.
1985 - American Force (Paul Diamond and Shawn Michaels) are awarded the TASW Texas Tag Team TItle in San Antonio, Texas.
1985 - El Hijo del Santo defeats Aristóteles in Naucalpan, Mexico for the UWA World Lightweight Title, to begin his second reign.
1985 - El Dandy defeats Américo Rocca to win the Mexican National Welterweight Title in Guadalajara, Mexico, ending Rocca's third reign.
1986 - Championship Wrestling from Florida hosted the NWA's "Battle of the Belts III" at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Florida. The results were:
- Jimmy Backlund defeated Bob Cook.
- Tyree Pride defeated The Cuban Assassin.
- NWA Florida United States Tag Team Champions The Fabulous Ones (Steve Keirn and Stan Lane) defeated The Sheepherders (Butch and Luke) to retain the title.
- The White Ninja (Keiji Muto) defeated NWA United States Junior Heavyweight Champion Tim Horner to win the title.
- AWA World Heavyweight Champion Nick Bockwinkel defeated Kendo Nagasaki by disqualification to retain the title.
- Ed Gantner and Kareem Muhammad fought The Road Warriors (Animal and Hawk) to a double-disqualification.
- Kendall Windham defeated NWA Bahamas Heavyweight Champion Chris Champion by disqualification. Champion retained the title.
- NWA World Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair fought NWA Florida Southern Heavyweight Champion Lex Luger to a 45-minute time-limit draw to retain the title.
- Barry Windham defeated NWA Florida Heavyweight Champion Ron Bass to win the title, beginning his fourth reign.
1986 - The World Class Wrestling Association held its fourth-annual "Labor Day Star Wars" event at the Tarrant County Convention Center in Fort Worth, Texas. The show featured an 11-team tournament to crown the first WCWA World Tag Team Champions, following World Class' departure from the NWA, when the company's title was the NWA American Tag Team Title. The results were:
First round:
- Mark Lewin and Kevin Sullivan defeated The Batten Twins (Bart and Brad).
- Matt Borne and WCWA Texas Heavyweight Champion Buzz Sawyer defeated WCWA World Six-Man Tag Team Champions Kevin and Mike Von Erich by countout.
- Chris and Mark Youngblood defeated Jos LeDuc and Rick Rude by disqualification.
- The Dingo Warrior and Socko defeated Killer Tim Brooks and The Grappler.
Quarterfinals:
- Matt Borne and WCWA Texas Heavyweight Champion Buzz Sawyer defeated Mark Lewin and Kevin Sullivan.
- Chris and Mark Youngblood defeated Jerry and Ted Oates.
- The Dingo Warrior and Socko defeated Brian Adias and Scott Casey.
Semifinals:
- WCWA World Heavyweight Champion Chris Adams and WCWA World Six-Man Tag Team Champion Lance Von Erich defeated The Dingo Warrior and Socko.
- Matt Borne and WCWA Texas Heavyweight Champion Buzz Sawyer defeated Chris and Mark Youngblood.
Finals:
- Matt Borne and WCWA Texas Heavyweight Champion Buzz Sawyer defeated WCWA World Heavyweight Champion Chris Adams and WCWA World Six-Man Tag Team Champion Lance Von Erich to become the first WCWA World Tag Team Champions.
Non-tournament:
- WCWA World Heavyweight Champion Chris Adams defeated Rick Rude by disqualification to retain the title.
- Abdullah the Butcher defeated Bruiser Brody by disqualification.
1986 - Tarzan Goto and Akio Sato defeat Jeff Jarrett and Pat Tanaka for the CWA International Tag Team Title in Memphis, Tennessee, beginning their second reign. At the same show, Don Bass and Dirty Rhodes (Roger Smith) defeat Cousin Junior and Giant Hillbilly Elmer to win the AWA Southern Tag Team Title.
1986 - Denny Brown defeats Steve Regal to win the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title in Greenville, South Carolina, beginning his third reign.
1987 - WWE talent Solomon Crowe, who first made his name in CZW and DGUSA as Sani Callihan, is born.
1987 - Yoshiaki Fujiwara and Kazuo Yamazaki defeat Akira Maeda and Nobuhiko Takada for the IWGP Tag Team Title in Fukuoka, Japan.
1990 - Fit Finlay defeats Steve Wright in Vienna, Austria to win the CWA World Middleweight Title, to end Wright's second reign.
1990 - One of the most memorable angles in Memphis wrestling took place during a live Saturday morning wrestling broadcast on WMC-TV in Memphis, Tennessee, as Eddie Gilbert attempted to run down Jerry Lawler with his brother Doug's car in the parking lot outside the studio. The car hit Lawler, who rolled over the hood and fell to the ground, suffering a bruised hip. Fans watching the show on television actually called the police to the WMC studios to report what had happened.
1990 - New Japan Pro Wrestling ran their first ever show in Halpin, China, drawing 4,000 fans. Here are the results:
- Kensuke Sasaki defeated Michiyoshi Ohara.
- Kantaro Hoshino defeated Black Cat.
- Masahiro Chono defeated Takayuki Iizuka.
- Jushin Liger defeated Osamu Matsuda.
- Riki Choshu defeated Hiro Saito.
- Antonio Inoki defeated Tatsutoshi Goto.
1991 - WCW ran the Norfolk Scope in Norfolk, VA, with the following results:
-PN News pinned Joey Maggs
-Oz (Kevin Nash) pinned the Iceman
-El Gigante pinned the One Man Gang
-Terrance Taylor defeated Big Josh
-Ron Simmons defeated Tommy Rich
-Rick Steiner & Bill Kazmaier defeated The Hardliners, Dick Murdoch & Dick Slater
-Tom Zenk pinned the Diamond Studd
-WCW World TV Champion Steve Austin defeated Johnny B. Badd
-Dustin Rhodes pinned Richard Morton
-WCW U.S. Champion Sting pinned Cactus Jack
-WCW World Champion Lex Luger pinned Barry Windham
1991 - The Grappler and Don Harris defeat Demolition Crush and Steve Doll for the NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Title in Seaside, Oregon.
1993 - Los Cowboys (Silver King and El Texano) become the first two-time WWA World Tag Team Champions in Tlanepantla, Mexico, by defeating Corazón de León (Chris Jericho) and El Dandy.
1994 - Hiromichi Fuyuki, Gedo and Jado defeat Bob Backlund, Scott Putski and Warlord to win their second WAR World Six-Man Tag Team Title in Saku, Japan.
1995 - CMLL held its "Second Generation Tag Team Tournament" at Arena Mexico in Mexico City, Mexico, an eight-team one-night tournament featuring second generation wrestlers, whether in name or by blood.
Quarterfinals:
- Apolo Dantés and Emilio Charles, Jr. defeated Brazo de Oro and Brazo de Plata
- Blue Demon, Jr. defeated Tinieblas, Jr. defeated Espectro, Jr. and Pierroth, Jr.
- Negro Casas and El Hijo del Solitario defeated Karloff Lagarde, Jr. and Scorpio, Jr.
- El Hijo del Santo and Rayo de Jalisco, Jr. defeated Gran Markus, Jr. and Dr. Wagner, Jr.
Semifinals:
- Apolo Dantés and Emilio Charles, Jr. defeated Blue Demon, Jr. defeated Tinieblas, Jr.
- El Hijo del Santo and Rayo de Jalisco, Jr. defeated Negro Casas and El Hijo del Solitario.
Final:
- Apolo Dantés and Emilio Charles, Jr. defeated El Hijo del Santo and Rayo de Jalisco, Jr. to win the Second Generation Tag Team Tournament.
1996 - Tomoko Miyaguchi defeats Yoshiko Tamura in Tokyo, Japan for the AJW Junior Title. At the same event, Chikayo Nagashima and Sugar Sato defeat Yumi Fukawa and Rie Tamada to win the AJW Tag Team Title.
1997 - WCW held its 103rd episode of "Monday Nitro" live from the Civic Center in Pensacola, Florida. The show aired unopposed for a second straight week, due to USA covering U.S. Open tennis, and got a 4.74 rating on hours of 4.51, 4.82 and 4.90. The results were:
- Chris Benoit and WCW United States Heavyweight Champion Steve McMichael defeated Eddie Guerrero and Jeff Jarrett (with Debra), when McMichael pinned Guerrero after Dean Malenko interfered.
- Mortis (with James Vandenburg and Wrath) pinned Silver King after the Dead on Arrival.
- Yuji Nagata pinned Dean Malenko after Jeff Jarrett came out and dropped Malenko throat-first on the ropes.
- Ultimo Dragon pinned La Parka (with Sonny Onoo) after dropkicking a chair into Parka's face.
- Buff Bagwell (with Vincent) pinned Glacier after the Blockbuster.
- Lizmark, Jr. pinned Villano IV with a springboard moonsault.
- WCW World Television Champion Alex Wright pinned Hugh Morrus after a spinning heel kick to retain the title.
- Stevie Richards pinned Damien after Raven attacked Damien on his way to the ring.
- Ray Traylor pinned Prince Iaukea after the Traylor Trash.
- Randy Savage and WCW World Tag Team Champion Scott Hall (with Elizabeth) defeated Diamond Dallas Page and Lex Luger, when Hall pinned Page after Luger forearmed Page after Hall ducked.
1998 - Pirata Morgan loses his hair to Vampiro in Houston, Texas.
2000 - The American Dragon (Bryan Danielson) defeats Pokerface to win the NWA Southern Junior Heavyweight Title in Dyersburg, Tennessee, ending Pokerface's second reign.
2000 - Archangel Vincent and Reverend Axl Future defeat Barfly Mike and Corporal Robinson for the Mid American Wrestling Tag Team Title in West Allis, Wisconsin.
2000 - Kevin Duncan defeats Samir in North Richland Hills, Texas to win the NWA Texas Junior Heavyweight Title.
2001 - Tannie Mouse and Yuki Miyazaki defeat Chiaki Nishi and Acute Sae in Tokyo, Japan for the NEO Kitazawa Tag Team Title, beginning their second reign. At the same event, Lioness Asuka defeats Misae Genki to win the NEO/NWA Pacific Women's Title.
2001 - Scott Wrenn defeats Prince Justice (Abyss) to win the NWA Wildside Heavyweight Title in Cornelia, Georgia.
2001 - Daron Smythe defeats Dash Bennett in Parkersburg, West Virginia to become the first NWA West Virginia/Ohio Television Champion.
2001 - Agente Bruno and Zaruxx defeat Huracán Castillo, Jr. and Miguel Pérez, Jr. to win the IWA World Tag Team Title in Bayamón, Puerto Rico, ending Castillo and Perez's second reign. Also at that event, Big Ross McCollough wins the IWA World Hardcore Title from Glamour Boy Shane, ending his third reign, before losing it to Zaruxx, beginning his third reign.
2001 - Two titles change hands at the Frontier Wrestling Alliance's "Back 2 School" in London, England. The New Breed (Ashe and Curve) defeated La Familia (Alex and Jorgé Castano) to become the first FWA British Tag Team Champions, and Paul Travell defeats champion Ahmed Chaer and Scottie Rock in a three-way match to win the FWA All-England Title.
2002 - Jason Dukes and The Skull Crusher defeat The Furies for the MAW Tag Team Title in Big Bend, Wisconsin.
2002 - It was announced in Japan that former International sensation Ultimo Dragon will return to the ring for the first time in several years for his Toryumon promotion's 9/8/02 event at the Ariake Coliseum in Japan. Dragon, the creator of the Asai Moonsault and a top high flying performer in Japan and Mexico before joining World Championship Wrestling (being incorrectly billed as "Ultimate Dragon" at first.) At one point in his career, Dragon held no less than nine Junior Heavyweight/Cruiserweight championships at the same time. Suffering an injury to his arm while performing for WCW, Dragon underwent a surgical procedure to remove bone chips from his elbow. During the surgery, Dragon suffered nerve damage to his arm, forcing him out of the ring. He would return to the ring on 9/8 and as of 2022, still performs in the ring.
2002 - WWE broadcast Heat. John Keane filed the following TV report:
Heat Report for 9/1/2002.
Matches taped on 8/26 in New York City.
Your Announcers are Jonathan Coachman and D’Lo Brown.
Pyros explode, Coach and D’Lo welcome us in and we go straight to work…
1st Match: Goldust vs. Johnny Stamboli.
Before the bell, Johnny offers marital tips in a pre-taped bit.
Good pop for Goldust, mild heat for Johnny. Lockup, Johnny forces Goldust to corner, ref calls for break. Johnny does so, then quickly scores a cheap elbow to the face, followed by boots to the gut. Johnny brings Goldust out of corner, scores sharp suplex, Goldust down, Johnny off ropes, drops the elbow, Goldust rolls clear and gets to feet, Johnny to canvas. Goldust scores kick, forearm, whips Johnny off ropes, hits the butt-bump, Johnny down. Up, Goldust works an armdrag takedown into an armbar, Johnny gets to feet, scores trio of forearms, whips Goldust off ropes, Johnny takes a forearm to the face. Goldust sets for the Curtain Call, Johnny elbows out, scores a boot to the gut, brings Goldust up, drops him kidney first on top rope (looked nasty). Goldust down, Johnnny lays in the boots, goes for a choke until warned off by ref. Goldust up, Johnny gets in a forearm, whips Goldust off ropes, brings him up on the rebound, drops him gut-first on knee, Goldust down, Johnny covers for 2. Up, Goldust gets in some forearm shots, whips Johnny off ropes, gets in boot to gut, sets for snap suplex, scores, Johnny down. Goldust off ropes, drops the elbow, Johnny rolls clear, Goldust to canvas. Johnny up, lays in more kicks, drops the elbow, once more, covers for 2. Up, Johnny gets in a pair of forearm shots, scores a snapmare, Goldust down, Johnny lays in a sleeper. Goldust gets to feet, fires off punches to gut, tries for whip, reversed, Goldust to corner, Johnny clotheslines him to canvas, covers for 2. Up, Johnny connects with a forearm, whips Goldust to ropes, goes for a dropkick, Goldust evades by holding ropes, Johnny to canvas, Goldust goes for a Victory Roll, just gets 2. Up, Goldust scores what looks like version of One and Only, both men down. Both to feet at count of 5, they exchange forearms, Johnny goes off ropes, Goldust scores with a pair of clothesline knockdowns, follows up with an inverted Atomic Drop and another clothesline, Johnny down for 2. Goldust brings Johnny up, attempts whip, reversed, Johnny sets for back body drop, Goldust drops to mat as he goes off ropes, gets in a shot to the face, Johnny staggered, Goldust scores the Curtain Call, gets the 1-2-3.
Winner: Goldust.
We cut to video documenting the D’Lo/Raven feud that’s been unfolding on the last few weeks of Heat. Later on they’ll be going one on one during our Main Event. Break.
WWE Rewind: Last week, The Un-Americans plot to burn an American flag was foiled by Kane, making his return to Raw.
Straight back to the ring…
2nd Match: Steven Richards vs. Crash Holly.
Big heat for Steven, decent pop for Crash. Lockup, Steven forces Crash to corner, ref calls for break, Steven gets in the obligatory forearm to the face before complying. The 2 trade words, crisscross routine follows, Crash ends it with a clothesline sending Steven down. Up, Crash gets in a dropkick, Steven down and up quickly, misses with a clothesline, Crash connects with a forearm, Steven down again, retreats to corner. Up, Steven charges, Crash scores with a hiptoss, follows up by wringing the arm, Steven pushes him to corner, ref calls for break, Steven goes for the cheap shot again, Crash blocks, fires off forearms, whips Steven back into corner, charges, Steven gets the boots up, Crash staggered. Steven sends Crash down with a back elbow, brings him up, tosses Crash into corner, lays in knees and shoulders to midsection. Forearm shot sends Crash down, Steven brings him up, lays in a chop, follows up by sending Crash face first into top turnbuckle. Steven whips Crash to opposite corner, scores another chop, Crash staggers to knees in center of ring, Steven gets in a clubbing forearm to the back. Steven locks in a body scissors to the seated Crash, Steven takes an elbow to the face, responds by locking in a full nelson. Crash breaks nelson, fires off elbows to face, Steven down, Crash to feet, drops the elbow, Steven rolls clear, Crash to canvas. Steven ascends top turnbuckle, Crash to feet, scores forearm to lower abdomen, tosses Steven to land on back in ring center. Up, Crash gets in a series of forearms, goes off ropes, scores with a forearm, Steven down. Up, Crash scores another forearm for a knockdown, Steven up at ropes, Crash whips him off opposite, scores back body drop, Steven down. Crash brings him up, scores textbook slam, ascends top turnbuckle, Steven gets to feet, Crash flies, missile dropkick sends Steven down, Crash covers, Steven gets his foot on the ropes at the count of 2, ref calls for break. Up, Crash whips Steven into corner, tries for version of Dudley Dog, Steven evades, throws Crash over shoulder. Crash rolls to feet, Steven charges, Crash ducks a clothesline, Steven puts on brakes, scores StevenKick, Crash down for the 1-2-3.
Winner: Steven Richards.
More hype for D’Lo/Raven sends us to break.
Back for Raw recap. Early on last weeks show, Raw GM Eric Bischoff announced we’d be seeing a title unification match, Hardcore Champion Tommy Dreamer vs. Intercontinental Champion Rob Van Dam. Eric specified this to be the last match on Raw ever to be fought under ‘hardcore rules’, with the winner being declared the ‘Undisputed’ Intercontinental Champion and the HC title being sent to retirement. Tommy and RVD sent the HC belt out with class in a great match, Rob ended up retaining the IC strap after hitting Tommy with his new version of the Van Terminator and the 5-Star Frog Splash. Post-match Rob raised Tommy’s arm in a show of respect. Break.
Boot of the Week: Last week on Raw, WWE Hall of Famer Jimmy ‘Superfly’ Snuka got the ‘3-minute’ treatment courtesy of Bischoff’s henchmen Rosie and Jamal.
Back to work…
3rd Match: Bradshaw vs. Justin Credible.
Bradshaw still getting decent pop, usual hatefest for Justin. Lockup, Bradshaw quickly forces Justin to corner, throws on a side headlock, Justin tries to forearm his way out, manages to shoot Bradshaw to ropes only to take a shoulder charge, Justin down. Bradshaw off ropes, over Justin, off opposite ropes, Justin tries a hiptoss, blocked, Bradshaw counters with an armdrag, Justin down. Bradshaw brings him up, slams him right back down, goes off ropes, drops the elbow, Justin rolls clear, Bradshaw to canvas. Justin gets in a boot, forearm, attempts whip, reversed, Justin off ropes, Bradshaw scores boot to face, Justin down. Bradshaw brings him up, scores a snapmare, Bradshaw off ropes, gets in a shoulder to the back of the seated Justin. Justin attempts to beg off, Bradshaw will have none of it, lays in forearms, Justin retreats to corner, Bradshaw brings him out, whips Justin off ropes, sets for back body drop, Justin scouts it, counters with swinging neckbreaker, Bradshaw down. Justin gets in a forearm to the face as Bradshaw gets to feet, attempts whip, reversed, Justin off ropes, ducks a clothesline, goes off opposite ropes into Bradshaws arms, fallaway slam sends Justin to canvas. Up, Bradshaw sets for powerbomb, Justin counters with a backdrop, tries to bridge, just gets 1. Up, Bradshaw again tries to set for powerbomb, Justin evades by holding a leg, Bradshaw opts for clubbing forearms to the back, follows up with a suplex, Justin to canvas. Bradshaw brings him up, whips Justin off ropes, misses with a clothesline, Justin off opposite ropes, low dropkick to leg sends Bradshaw down. Justin gets in a pair of kicks as Bradshaw gets to feet, Justin takes a series of forearms sending him to ropes, Bradshaw whips him to opposite, Justin ducks a clothesline, scores a low superkick, Bradshaw down for 2. Justin brings him up, gets in a forearm, tries for whip, reversed, Justin off ropes, Bradshaw sets for back body drop, Justin scouts it, gets in a kick to the face that annoys Bradshaw slightly, Clothesline from Hell follows, Justin down for the 1-2-3.
Winner: Bradshaw.
Footage shot at last Mondays ‘WWE Pledge to Participate’ rally, held in beautiful downtown NYC, sends us to break.
More Raw recap next. The show opened with Paul Heyman introducing his client and new Undisputed Champion Brock Lesnar to the Madison Square Garden crowd. HHH and The Undertaker soon came out to steal the spotlight and squabble over who’d get the first shot at Brock’s title. Bischoff set up a ‘#1 contender’ match between the two as the nights Main Event. HHH got the win with help from Brock to get the #1 contendership. Didn’t last long, Raw ended with a visit from Smackdown GM Stephanie McMahon, who informed Bischoff that she was paying Brock quite well to be an exclusive talent on her show, and that last Monday was the last time we’d be seeing him on Raw.
Coach reminds us that later in the week ‘Taker jumped to Smackdown. Break.
On to our main event…
4th Match: Raven vs. D’Lo Brown.
Raven makes his way down through a sea of hostility, D’Lo leaves the announcers table and runs to the ring getting a good pop. Raven immediately bails as D’Lo enters, giving him a chance to pose for the crowd. Raven re-enters, lockup is teased, Raven gets in a quick knee to the gut, tosses D’Lo into corner, lays in forearms, tries for whip, reversed, Raven to ropes, again bails from ring. D’Lo gets in a low dropkick while Raven attempts re-entry, sending him down outside. Raven up slowly, D’Lo scores with a pescado, both men down outside. Up, D’Lo rolls Raven in, follows, gets in a 10 (looked like 11 to me, crowd thought otherwise) count of mounted punches. Ref warns D’Lo off, Raven to feet in corner, D’Lo charges, Raven sidesteps, D’Lo goes shoulder first into ring post. Raven brings him out, sends him back into ring post, D’Lo goes down outside. Raven joins him, scores trademark leg sweep into guard barrier. Raven rolls D’Lo in, follows, sets D’Lo’s left arm on ropes, lays in boots (same arm that went into ring post, for you psychology fans), follows with a knee lift, D’Lo down for 2. Raven brings D’Lo to corner, ascends second turnbuckle, sets knee on injured shoulder, drops to canvas, D’Lo again goes down for 2. Raven brings D’Lo up, whips him off ropes, misses with a clothesline, D’Lo counters with same using injured left arm, Raven down and up quickly. Raven back to work on arm, whips it around sending D’Lo down. Raven gets in a quick kick as D’Lo attempts to get to feet using ropes for help, Raven wrings the bad arm, D’Lo counters with forearm shots, attempts whip, Raven puts on brakes, boot to gut precedes DDT attempt, D’Lo evades by holding ropes, Raven’s own momentum sends him down. D’Lo ascends second turnbuckle, drops the elbow, Raven rolls clear, D’Lo to canvas, Raven covers for 2. Raven brings D’Lo up, whips him into corner, Raven off ropes, D’Lo ducks a clothesline, scores with a dropkick, both men down for a count of 6. D’Lo fires off forearms to face, attempts whip, reversed, D’Lo off ropes, sends Raven down with an elbow. Up, D’Lo sends Raven back down with a clothesline, follows up with a textbook slam and the Famous Legdrop, Raven down for 2. Up, Raven gets in a thumb to the eye, tries for whip, D’Lo puts on brakes, scores what Coach refers to the Side Effect (was referred to as Sudden Impact when D’Lo was using it as a finisher a few months ago, looks very little like Matt Hardy’s trademark move), Raven again down for 2. Raven to feet in corner, D’Lo ascends second turnbuckle, gets in 9 mounted punches as Raven goes down, attempts to haul him up for #10, Raven counters with powerbomb variation, D’Lo down, Raven goes for the cover with feet ropes, ref doesn’t see it, D’Lo kicks out at 2 regardless. Raven brings D’Lo up, goes for whip, reversed, Raven off ropes, D’Lo sets for back body drop, Raven scouts it, scores boot to face. D’Lo doubled over, Raven follows up with boot to gut, sets for Raven Effect, D’Lo reverses into the Sky High out of nowhere, Raven down for the 1-2-3.
Winner: D’Lo Brown.
Coach wonders how Bischoff and HHH will respond to Steph’s proclamation tomorrow night on Raw. End of show.
Not a bad show this week, but I think Raven should have gotten a chance to cut a pre-match promo. Bradshaw/Credible seemed rather perfunctory, rest of matches were all pretty good. Will be interesting to see what Bischoff has to say tomorrow night-I’m thinking it’ll be something big.
2002 - WWE's Smackdown brand ran Dallas, Texas. Brian Cannaday filed the following live report:
Mark Henry def. Albert
- As boring as it sounds
Dawn Marie def. Stacy Keilber in a bra and panties match
- Special guest referee Nidia attacked and stripped Dawn Marie after the bout, then Dawn Marie stripped Nidia.
Billy and Chuck w/Rico def. Hardcore Holly and Randy Orton
- very entertaining match... as much as people hate B&C, they are fun to watch.
Batista def. D-Von
- Batista is HUGE and received a fairly decent pop for his win.
Kane def. Bull Buchanan
- Not a bad match at all. Kane received a monster pop! After the match, Eric Bischoff came down and talked smack about the Smackdown wrestlers. Stephanie
then came out and started talking smack to Eric. Eric kissed Stephanie, to which Steph replied by smacking Bischoff. He then ordered Kane to chokeslam Steph, but he chokeslammed Eric instead. Most entertaining moment of the night!!!
Kidman, Hurricane, Moore def. Noble, Tajiri, Chavo
- Good opener, lots of high spots, including a shooting star press from Kidman!
Matt Hardy def. John Cena
- Second most boring match of the night, although Hardy received a big pop!
Mysterio def. Eddie Guerrero
- Second best match of the night! Great work by both wrestlers to entertain throughout the match.
Angle def. Rikishi
- This was the best match of the night. It should have been the main event, but instead was the match right before intermission. It was a kiss my ass match. Angle hiked up is trunks and said it was time for Rikishi to kiss his ass. Rikishi fought back and gave Angle the stink face.
Edge def. Chris Benoit
- Decent match, but for the most part pretty boring. Should NOT have been the main event!
Loudest Pops:
1. Kane
2. Edge
3. Rey Rey
4. Rikishi
5. Stephanie McMahon/Matt Hardy/Batista
Most Heat:
1. Kurt Angle (he is still my hero)
2. Matt Hardy (after he got on the mic)
3. Eddie Guerrero
4. Eric Bischoff
5. Rico/D-Von
There were at the most, 3000 fans at the American Airlines Arena. The floor was about 80% full, and the actual arena was only about 10% full. May be good since there was hardly any advertising for it, but very bad as far as the WWE standards are concerned. No return date was announced. The crowd stayed hot for most of the night.
2003 - WWE's Raw brand ran Chicago. Chad Zelenovic filed the following live report:
- I had always been at RAW or SmackDown!'s or Pay-per-Views, and got use to the Superstar Entrances, but tonight it was just a curtain and instead of the WWE's speakers, they used the Allstate Arena speakers and they sucked, but it was a decent show. Now to the results.
- Tommy Dreamer defeated Steven Richards when Richards went for the Stevenkick but Dreamer caught his foot, turned him around and delivered the Dreamer DDT for the pinfall.
- Justin Credible and Shawn Stasiak defeated Crash and Shelton Benjamin when Credible hit the Superkick for the three.
- D'Lo Brown defeated Raven when he went for the Raven-Effect but D'Lo countered and hit the Sky-High to pick u the victory. Huge pop for the hometown boy, D'Lo Brown.
- Brock Lesnar defeated The Undertaker to retain his WWE Undisputed Championship when the referee caught Undertaker chairing Lesnar to the head. But before that, the referee got knocked out twice and Lesnar hit Taker with a chair when the ref was down. After the bout, Ric Flair brought Heyman into the ring and put the Figure Four Leglock on him.
( Intermission For About 10 minutes )
- Trish Stratus and Jacqueline defeated Molly Holly and Victoria when Trish hit The Complete Stratusfaction on Victoria for the three. Also, Jerry The King Lawler was special referee for the bout. But before the bout began, Jerry took the microphone and said that he and all these great people of Chicago have seen wrestlers hide foreign objects before to use in the match, he then said he just wants to check them for any of the foreign objects. He checked Trish and Jacqueline but Molly and Victoria said no and they promised they didn't have anything. So Jerry let them go but just this once.
- Chris Jericho defeated Bubba Ray Dudley with The Walls of Jericho for the tap-put on his second attempt after a low-blow. After the bout, Jericho went under the ring and grabbed a table and set it up in the ring when Spike Dudley came out. Jericho went to put Spike through the table but Spike flipped over and pushed Jericho into Bubba, and Bubba put Jericho through the table with a Release Back Drop.
- Next-Up was a 2 out of 3 Falls Match between The Un-Americans, Booker T, and Goldust. The Un-Americans got the first win over Goldust when Lance Storm hit a Superkick to him. Booker T snatched a victory over The Un-Americans when he pinned Lance Storm following an Axe-Kick. The Un-Americans retained their Tag Team Championships when Booker was trying to suplex Christian from the apron into the ring but Lance Storm held Booker's foot down while Christian fell on top of Booker and pinned him while he had no way to kick out. After the bout, Booker was about to leave but Goldust told him to comeback and satisfy this crowed with The Spinaroonie. After Booker did his 'Roonie, Booker then grabbed the microphone and said well Goldust, why don't you also satisfy this crowed by doing The Ultimate Gold-a-roonie. It looked kind of better than Booker's actually.
- Rob Van Dam defeated The Big Show when Show went to use the chair but Rob Van-Daminated back into his face, went up top and hit the 5-Star Frog Splash for the victory.
Pops of the night:
1. Undertaker
2. Trish Stratus and Jacqueline
3. D'Lo Brown
4. Booker T and Goldust
5. Rob Van Dam
Most Heat of the Night:
1. Chris Jericho
2. The Un-Americans
3. Brock Lesnar
4. Raven
5. Steven Richards
Notes: The floor level and middle deck were full, all four sides, but they closed down the whole entire upper deck/balcony. Crowed was good for a live event. I would say about 7,000 people attended the show tonight. Pretty good for a live event. Also some people were upset that Kane or Triple H weren't there and they had a Mid-Carder Main-Event.
2003 - WWE held its 536th edition of "RAW" live from the Cajundome in Lafayette, Louisiana. The show got a 4.3 rating on USA. The results:
- Jonathan Coachman defeated Jerry Lawler.
- WWE Intercontinental Champion Christian defeated Chris Jericho to retain the title.
- Molly Holly and Gail Kim defeated Ivory and Trish Stratus.
- World Tag Team Champions La Résistance (René Duprée and Sylvain Grenier) defeated The Hurricane and Rosey.
- Stacy Keibler and Test defeated Steven Richards and Victoria in a No Disqualification match.
- Goldberg, Maven and Shawn Michaels defeated Evolution (Ric Flair, Randy Orton and Triple H).
2004 - TNA held its 113th weekly pay-per-view event at the TNA Asylum in Nashville, Tennessee. The results:
Xplosion:
- D-Ray 3000 and Shark Boy defeated C.W. Anderson and Chaz Taylor.
- Monty Brown defeated Eddie Venom and Nate Webb in a Handicap match.
Pay-per-view:
- NWA World Tag Team Champions The Naturals (Andy Douglas and Chase Stevens) defeated America's Most Wanted (Chris Harris and James Storm) and Triple X (Christopher Daniels and Elix Skipper) in a three-way match to retain the title.
- Kazarian and Michael Shane (with Traci) defeated The Amazing Red and Chris Sabin.
- TNA X Division Champion Petey Williams (with Coach D'Amore) defeated Sonjay Dutt to retain the title.
- The 3 Live Kru (B.G. James and Konnan) and The Midnight Rider (Dusty Rhodes) defeated Team Canada (Johnny Devine, Bobby Roode and Eric Young).
- Sonny Siaki and Erik Watts (with Desire) defeated Alex Shelley and Abyss (with Goldylocks).
- Ron Killings and A.J. Styles defeated Kid Kash and Dallas in a Street Fight.
2005 - The final Thursday night edition of WWE Smackdown airs, ending a six-year run in the 8-10pm slot on UPN. The episode, headlined by Randy Orton vs. Rey Mysterio, earns a 3.0 rating.
2006 - Brent Dail defeats Hammett and champion José Rivera, Jr. in a three-way match in Caguas, Puerto Rico to win the WWC Junior Heavyweight Title.
2006 - ChickFight held "ChickFight VI" at Kezar Pavilion in San Francisco, California. The results:
- MsChif defeated Hailey Hatred in a ChickFight VI Tournament quarterfinal match.
- KAORU defeated Tiana Ringer by referee stoppage in a ChickFight VI Tournament quarterfinal match.
- Allison Danger defeated Frankie in a ChickFight VI Tournament quarterfinal match.
- Cheerleader Melissa and Daizee Haze fought to a 35-minute time-limit draw in a ChickFight VI Tournament quarterfinal match. As a result of the draw, both women advanced to the semifinals.
- Vennis DeMarco (with Chris Colione) defeated Scotty Aboot.
- Mr. Primetime defeated Chris Hero and J.J. Perez in a three-way match.
- KAORU defeated MsChif in a ChickFight VI Tournament semifinal match.
- Daizee Haze defeated Cheerleader Melissa and Allison Danger in a three-way ChickFight VI Tournament semifinal match.
- KAORU defeated Daizee Haze to win the ChickFight VI Tournament.
2006 - PWG held the first of three events of its second-annual "Battle of Los Angeles" weekend at the American Legion in Reseda, California. The show featured the first half of the first round of the 24-man Battle of Los Angeles Tournament. The results were:
First round:
- Chris Sabin defeated Colt Cabana.
- El Generico defeated Delirious.
- CIMA defeated M-Dogg 20.
- Kevin Steen defeated Matt Sydal.
- Dragon Kid defeated Quicksilver.
- PWG World Tag Team Champion Roderick Strong defeated Rocky Romero.
Non-tournament:
- B-Boy, Excalibur, Homicide and Human Tornado (with Candice LeRae) defeated The Dynasty (Chris Bosh, Scott Lost and PWG World Champion Joey Ryan (with Jade Chung)) and Petey Williams.
2006 - Mike Bennett defeats Spike Dudley in a Street Fight in Fall River, Massachussetts for the NRG Heavyweight Title.
2006 - The Ruthless Bastards (Heresy and Mark Kodiak) defeated The Remarkables (Bubblegum and Dr. Dirk Feelgood) in a tournament final at "Shockwave III" in Poeldijk, Netherlands to become the first Dutch Championship Wrestling Tag Team Champions.
2007 - WWE taped the 65th edition of "ECW" and the 420th episode "Friday Night SmackDown!" at the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio. "ECW" got a 1.6 rating on August 4 on SciFi "SmackDown!" got a 2.3 rating on August 7 on The CW. This was a Saturday night taping, due to the Labor Day holiday. The results were:
- In a dark match, The Daltons (Jesse and Festus) defeated Los Locos (Ramón and Raúl).
ECW:
- The Boogeyman defeated Matt Striker (with Big Daddy V) by disqualification, when Big Daddy V clotheslined on Boogeyman as he chased Striker around the ring.
- The Miz (with Brooke, Kelly Kelly and Layla) pinned Balls Mahoney after the Reality Check.
- Elijah Burke and Kevin Thorn defeated Tommy Dreamer and Stevie Richards, when Burke pinned Richards after the Elijah Express.
- CM Punk pinned ECW Champion John Morrison after the GTS to win the title.
SmackDown!:
- WWE Tag Team Champion Matt Hardy (with WWE Tag Team and United States Champion MVP) pinned Deuce (with Cherry and Domino) after the Twist of Fate after MVP tripped Deuce.
- Chuck Palumbo (with Michelle McCool) pinned Kenny Dykstra (with Victoria) after the Full Throttle.
- Batista and Kane defeated Finlay and World Heavyweight Champion The Great Khali (with Runjin Singh), when Kane pinned Finlay after a chokeslam.
- WWE Cruiserweight Champion Hornswoggle defeated Jamie Noble by countout to retain the title, after he didn't make it out to the ring in time.
- Rey Mysterio defeated Chavo Guerrero, Jr. in an I Quit match after hitting Chavo, hung over the top turnbuckle, in the knee repeatedly with a chair until Chavo gave up.