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5.31.2009

WWE Tidbits

Despite being released from WWE, commercials for this Monday's "Raw" are advertising Mr. Kennedy as being on the show. The ads were clearly sent out before WWE decided to release him and it's too late for WWE pull them, but it's amusing nonetheless. In the meantime the following statement was posted on Kennedy's website:

"Ken is physically 100 percent healthy, and very optimistic about his future in the business. More details will follow." He also posted a new video on his website trying to prove to he isn't injured, which is simply a 20 second video of him making a bunch of goofy hand gestures.

According to PWInsider the release of Ken Kennedy did stem from Monday's main event but was not related to Kennedy getting injured again. Instead Vince McMahon made the decision to release Kennedy after he almost hurt Randy Orton with a back suplex that dropped Orton on his previously injured collarbone.

The belief is that Orton complained about Kennedy's work, and that Vince saw this as the last straw and decided to cut him loose. TNA is interested in Kennedy but have to wait until September to bring him in due to Kennedy's no compete clause. Jim Ross also had a few words on Kennedy in his latest blog.

Sorry to hear that 33 year old Mr. Kennedy was released at the end of the week by WWE. Kennedy got the old "future endeavored" send off that has happened to many. If Kennedy can remain healthy, one would like to think that he his string of injuries is behind him, and can continue with his career in the relatively near future many feel Kennedy has the skills to be a main eventer on a consistent basis.

Kennedy is a studious guy and likely won't find it difficult to secure work. Sometimes a fresh start is good for a wrestler and I hope that's the case for Kennedy or what ever his next wrestling name will be.

He also had a few thoughts on the passing of John Tolos.

Our condolences to the family and friends of former wrestling great John Tolos who passed away at the age of 78 a day or so ago and who is considered one of the best hands on the mic ever and especially in his hey day. Tolos is famous for his run in Southern California and his 70's rivalry with WWE HOF'er Classy Freddie Blassie.

Neither man was ever considered to be a fabulous in ring performer but all they did was sell tickets because what they did they did well and both could verbalize and paint vivid word pictures that enhanced the all important emotional investment from the paying customers and sold tickets. Wrestlers who can verbalize and especially those that can ad lib and be spontaneous on the mic greatly enhance their opportunities to become stars. That art form seems to be fleeting which is not a good thing.

For those interested here is the funeral service information for John Tolos.
June 3rd @ Crawford Mortuary
8717 Tampa Avenue, Northridge, CA
Get Directions
818-349-9701
Visitation from 5 to 8 PM Pray @ 7 PM

Service to be held on June 4th @ 10 AM
St. Nicolas Greek Orthodox Church
9501 Balboa Blvd, Northridge, CA 91325
St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church - Home - Northridge, California

Also if anyone would like to send John's son Chris a sympathy card, here is his address:

Chris Tolos - 23012 Bigler Street, Woodland Hills, CA. 91364

Brian Fritz has an interview for the Orlando Sentinel with Dusty Rhodes where the American Dream talks about WWE needing a youth movement.

SLAM! has an interview up with Kevin Nash where he talks about how he considered returning to WWE but opted to stay with TNA due to the quality of life and not having to be on the road.

Good ol' J.R. also had time to write a new WWE.com column.

Last but not least Jeff Hardy & Rey Mysterio vs. Edge & Chris Jericho in a Steel Cage match is being advertised as the dark main event for the July 21st "SmackDown!" taping at the Richmond Coliseum in Virginia.
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5.30.2009

Mr. Kennedy Gone From WWE

The following is from WWE.com:

Mr. Kennedy released
Written: May 29, 2009

World Wrestling Entertainment has come to terms on the release of "Raw" Superstar Mr. Kennedy (Ken Kennedy) as of today, May 29, 2009. WWE wishes Ken the best in all future endeavors.

According to Kevin Eck of the Baltimore Sun, Kennedy (er, Anderson) apparently suffered a wrist injury in the main event Monday night on "Raw" in the 10 man tag, and if so, it's safe to say that incident was the straw that broke the camel's back.


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Visionists CD Launch Party - May 31st

As mentioned on this week's episode of Tha O Show, Dan-e-o's The School of Rap hip-hop songwriting program is proudly releasing yet another album! In association with Art Starts and Montage Support Services, this Sunday, May 31st marks the official release of Visionists.

The CD Launch Party takes place between 2-4pm at 504 Oakwood Avenue (at Amherst) and is FREE to the public! Copies of Visionists will be on sale for just $5 and all proceeds will go towards future Art Starts programs in the Oakwood & Vaughan area.

FREE food will also be served!

The Visionists album features rising stars Bull3t, Chato, Mad Max, J-Tone, Lucho, MC Andy & MC A.G. who have all been participating in Dan-e-o's The School of Rap hip-hop songwriting program since March.

Visionists is a first for Dan-e-o and Art Starts as it includes work by individuals with cerebral palsy. With the assistance of Montage Support Services, this album has helped to make dreams come true that were before thought of as unrealistic.

The album encapsulates the "visions" of the multi-cultural youth of the Oakwood & Vaughan community in Toronto as it relates to their neighbourhood and life experiences. Visionists was recorded, mixed and mastered by T.J. Habibi at Secret Suburbia Studios and features production by Monolith's Dan-e-o, Charisma and Lancecape.

Come out and support the future generation of hip-hop in Toronto! And continue to help us make more dreams come true.
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5.29.2009

HGC 37: Whatever Happened To Kimbo Slice?

It's a huge day on the HANDSOME GENIUS CLUB as host ANTHONY KINGDOM JAMES brings us not one but TWO feature interviews and helps co-host TJ HABIBI celebrate his birthday.

First, KEVIN KLEINROCK, the co-creator of MTV's Wrestling Society X and former vice-president of XPW joins the show. Kevin will describe how WSX got on the air and why it didn't survive, the life and death of XPW and the upcoming XPW 10th anniversary/reunion show.

Go to HandsomeGeniusClub.com to check out the show!

Kevin will also tell us which two former world champions he will never work with again and why! Then, MMA commentator PAUL LAZENBY will talk about some recent and upcoming UFC fights, his own days as a professional wrestler and mma fighter, his acting career and his part in the fight to get MMA sanctioned in the city of Vancouver. Plus, Paul and Kingdom talk about the "greatest pro wrestling gimmick that can never actually be done".

All this plus a "WHERE'S BILL COSBY?" update, a visit from NOAH PANICO and all the week's NERD NEWS! Listen to the show now in streaming audio or right click the link to download the show as an mp3.
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5.28.2009

Tha O Show Radio Program - Episode 118

Tha O Show Radio
[DOWNLOAD MP3]
It's Episode 118 of Tha O Show and your bros Big Daddy Donnie and Dan-e-o are in the house to celebrate the birthday of their bredren and technical producer, T.J. Habibi!

And tha boys get this party started right! Big tittied and sexy ass porn star Lisa Sparxxx joins tha show for a quick chat about all things slutty!

Needless to say, today's show is FULL of O's! So crack a beer and join in the festivities. It's time for the hypeness!!

Also on today's show...

"Tha Os And NOs"

"Tha Pit Stop" with The Notorious T.I.D to discuss this last weekend's UFC 98 event.

Don and Dan go over some of pro wrestling's top catch phrases of all time, calling upon YOU, Tha O-sters, to help round out the top 5.

Tha boys are joined by nut guzzling porn star, Lisa Sparxxx for an O-worthy chat!

And host of The Handsome Genius Club, Kingdom James gets on the line for "Tha Round Table". Don't forget to check out a brand new episode of HGC Radio every Friday at HandsomeGeniusClub.com!

Taking us out this week is the BRAND NEW Dan-e-o produced cut, "Summertime" by Mad Max. Listen up for details about the new Visionists CD, and its launch party this Sunday, May 31st!

CLICK THESE LINKS AND SHOW YOUR SUPPORT:

O-SOME SPONSORS:

evo

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O-RIFFIC MERCH:

OBLIVION! Tha Indy Wrestling Album

Tha O Show T-Shirts

Tha O Show MP3s

Dan-e-o CDs

Dan-e-o DVDs

Dan-e-o MP3s

Monolith CDs

Hammerlock Video DVDs

Click HERE to buy Dan-e-o's See No Evil, Hear No Evil from HMV.

Click HERE to buy Secret Suburbia's Midi Gritty from HMV.

O-MAZING MUSIC:

Dan-e-o's Official Website

Secret Suburbia's Official Website

O-SPACE PAGES:

Tha O Show

Dan-e-o

Secret Suburbia

Monolith

The Notorious T.I.D.

O-TASTIC PROMOTIONS:

Elite Wrestling Alliance

O-FFILIATE WEBSITES:

The Handsome Genius Club

Ontario Indy Wrestling

Angry Marks

Showdown Network

Audio Wrestling

Action Radio

Online World Of Wrestling

Ontario Wrestling's Indy Elite

Lisa Sparxxx

O-TUBE VIDEOS:

Evans VS. Machida

To download the mp3 of this show:
Right Click On This Link then Choose "Save Target As" in Internet Explorer or "Save Link As" in Mozilla FireFox. If you have problems with this, please e-mail us at
help@thaoshow.com
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Today On Tha Show...

Welcome to our O-filled celebration! Coming up is Episode 118 of Tha O Show as Big Daddy Donnie and Dan-e-o host a party in honour of our technical producer T.J. Habibi's birthday!

And what a party it is! Tha boys are joined on the phone by the sexy and voluptuous, nut guzzling porn star, Lisa Sparxxx!

Also including your favourite segments like "Tha Os And NOs", "Tha Pit Stop" with The Notorious T.I.D. and "Tha Round Table" with host of The Handsome Genius Club, Kingdom James, how could today's show NOT make you O?

SUPPORT THA O SHOW! BUY ONE OR MORE OF OUR HOTTEST ITEMS!:

CDS:
1) OBLIVION! Tha Indy Wrestling Album
2) See No Evil, Hear No Evil
3) The Art of Lyricism: Dan-e-o's Finest
4) The Book of Daniel
5) Dear Hip Hop

MP3S:
1) Tha O Show Theme 2009
2) Dear Hip Hop 2007
3) Guzzlah
4) Secta De Uno
5) Buss Juice

DVDS:
1) A Shoot Interview With New Jack
2) A Shoot Interview With Kamala The Ugandan Giant
3) Dan-e-o - 10: The Music Videos
4) LLW The Iron Hour (Johnny Devine VS. "Textbook" Tyson Dux in a classic 60 minute Iron Man Match!)
5) LLW Presents TNA Mayhem (AJ Styles, Christopher Daniels & Raven!)

T-SHIRTS:
1) Tha O Show Black
2) Tha O Show White
3) T-Shirt Hell
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5.27.2009

ECW Recap

No opening video or recap of anything last week - it's straight from "The entire world is watchin'" to the DON'T QUESTION MY HEART music. Mathews and Striker welcome us to ECW where tonight we'll have a six-man tag of Swagger and the Hart Dynasty versus Finlay, Christian and Dreamer. Christian Cage's music opens the show. My opening thoughts as I watch this are just how saavy a political player he's turned out to be in the wrestling world.

He got as hot as he could in WWE, left when they wouldn't push him, and walked into TNA tailor made for a title run. He turned around and did the same thing in TNA and walked into WWE primed to take over ECW. You have to give Cage his due.

He cuts an opening show promo about people who still think they're famous when a reality show is over only to really be "a dork who won't go away" and of course he's talking about Jack Swagger. He says he's sick and tired of Swagger's crap after he screwed up the match on Superstars last week and tonight he's going to do something about it, so he demands Swagger come out RIGHT NOW.

After no-selling this for about 30 seconds Jack Swagger finally hits the top of the ramp. "My fame, is running out? You, are gonna tell ME, that my time is running out? I'm a two-time, two-time All-American. My time is just beginning. Your time as ECW Champion is running out. Since you cheated, twice, the justice I've been talking for has finally been served. I've been granted an ECW title match at Extreme Rules." Cage asks if the EXTREME stip will be an "I already beat this dork twice" match. Swagger says it will be a "I return to my rightful glory" match or something like that. While the two argue Tiffany's music interrupts.

"Before you start talking about the match, you really need to get the facts straight Jack. While you do have an opportunity at an ECW title, what you did on Superstars hasn't gone unnoticed. Therefore your match won't be one-on-one, it will be a triple thread. Allow me to introduce you both to your opponent." Tommy Dreamer's music hits. Swagger says NO WAY his contract expires the day before the PPV. Tiffany says that's fine, because I signed him to a one day extension for the match - so either he wins or he leaves.

She closes with a smirk and tells Jack the match will be under EXTREME RULES. Swagger gets pissed and charges Dreamer while he does a Hogan style pose, and Dreamer dumps him to the floor. Just to show he's playing no favorites though he dumps Cage to the floor on the opposite side! Both men stare at him as Cage's music plays. Kozlov has a match NEXT so I suggest taking a long bathroom break right about now during and AFTER these commercial messages.

* Russell Taylor & Joey Ninos v. Vladimir Kozlov (2-on-1 Handicap Match)

I guess one jobber wasn't enough to get Kozlov over this week - they had to send out two. Naturally they found tow guys who together don't look like they weight as much as him. Kozlov finishes Ninos with the Iron Curtain for the three count. WINNER: KOZLOV. At least it was over quick. Backstage Dreamer and Cage get in an argument over what happened earlier, which leads to a brawl, which Finlay has to break up, which sends us to commercial.

"Don't Try This At Home" PSA when we come back from break. Mathews and Striker reinforce this on commentary as Mark Henry's music starts to play.

* Mark Henry v. Evan Bourne

Looking at this match reminds me of last night's Dream.9 where Minowa-Man faced Bob 'The Beast' Sapp. It may have the same outcome too with the smaller man beating the larger. Early in the match Henry is pounding Bourne into the ground and quite literally walking all over him. Bourne tries to start a comeback with kicks but gets blasted right in the face with a boot and covered for 1 until Bourne gets into the ropes. When Bourne falls out to the floor Tony Atlas takes advantage of him with a cheapshot. Bourne comes back in and Henry gives him a backbreaker. Striker: "This is almost becoming uncomfortable to watch." Sub in the word "boring" for "uncomfortable" Matt and you'd be right.

There's so little going on Striker discusses the fact the SHS on Henry's outfit means "Somebody Gon' Hurt Somebody." Nice idea but there's a G missing. Personally I always thought it meant Selzby High School. Henry misses a splash in the corner, Bourne knocks him down with kicks afterwards, Henry rolls out before the Shooting Star Press, Bourne jumps off the apron to wipe him out to the floor but gets caught, Bourne reverses being caught and shoots Henry into the steel of the corner, wipes him out on the floor, then leaps off his back to dive into the ring before the ref gets to ten!

WINNER VIA COUNTOUT: EVAN BOURNE. Henry screams "you're lucky to be alive" as Striker and Mathews say Finlay got an eye injury in the pull-apart so he will miss the six-man main event later. Commercial.

Backstage Tiffany tells Christian and Dreamer that since it's their fault Finlay got injured, they can go out and compete in a 2-on-3 handicap match without him.

Tyson Kidd, David Hart Smith and Natalya come down to the ring. She cuts a promo on their behalf explaining how they are all sons or daughters of the Hart family legacy and thus their name is the Hart Dynasty. Personally I still prefer the New Hart Foundation but it's a name I can live with. After the promo we go to commercial break. When we come back from break Swagger has already made his way down to the ring to join them.

* Tommy Dreamer & Christian Cage v. Hart Dynasty (w/ Natalya) & Jack Swagger

Cage and DH start the match. Eventually Swagger and Dreamer both tag in with Dreamer getting the better of it. He tags in Christian so they can hit a double team move and get the two count.

Dreamer and Christian cut off the ring and keep working Jack over. New Harts try to run in, babyfaces clear the ring, Christian wipes Swagger out on the floor and throws him back in for 2. Swagger finally counters Cage off the ropes to leave him laying and unable to tag Dreamer, sending us to commercial.

Key highlights when we come back from break are Christian hitting a reverse DDT, Dreamer hitting the Tree of Woe in the corner, but the DDT being blocked so that DH Smith can tag in to work Dreamer over.

Eventually Christian is sent into the steel post in the corner during the overrun, Swagger follows up with a gutwrench powerbomb for three, and then Dreamer eats a Hart Attack after the pinfall just to set up the Hart Dynasty and Swagger gloating when the show goes off the air. WINNERS: THE HEELS. That's it for ECW!
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5.26.2009

Tha Raw Report

Courtesy of Killa Kev of AngryMarks.com:

Tonight's Raw and Raw Recap is dedicated to our fine men and women, past and present, who volunteer to put their lives and bodies on the line to serve and protect the people of and the values of the United States of America. Whether you are serving abroad or defending the homeland, thank you.

Happy Memorial Day everybody! We're live from the STAPES Center in Los Angeles, CA. Michael Cole introduces Jim Ross, stepping into the color commentary role for Jerry "the King" Lawler as he is actually participating in tonight's five-on-five "Lakers vs. Nuggets" main event!

Kicking things off tonight is the "Denver Debacle", which I won't go into details if you've been reading the news for the last week then you know why we're at the STAPLES Center in Los Angeles instead of the Pepsi Center in Denver, CO. And you'll also understand why there is this fake "E. Stan Kronke", "owner" of the Denver Nuggets, coming out to the middle of the ring. "Good evening," says Mr. Kroenke, "I am the owner of the soon to be NBA champion Denver Nuggets! And I cannot stand the WWE or its fans for that matter! Do you think that I care that I screwed thousands of WWE fans? I do not.

I have much more important things to do with my time instead of you people. I am a respected business man, tycoon billionaire, and over the past week or so I've been villified and made fun of by the WWE, the media, and each and every one of you! For example, take a look at this!" The WWE RawHD Tron throws up a graphic of Mr. Kroenke and Mr. McMahon. "They put a tail and horns on me! And a halo for Vince McMahon? Let me assure you I am no devil, and Vince McMahon is certainly no angel! And, by the way, my Nuggets will..."

NO CHANCE! THAT'S WHAT YA GOT! Mr. McMahon's music hits and the boss hits the ring with a mic, brushing Mr. Kroenke aside. "Tonight I'm announcing the formation of a new professional basketball league," says Vince tongue-in-cheek. "This league will rival the National Basketball Association, this league will be known as the XBA! Unfortunately this league will be a complete and utter failure, and this is because I'm going to hire you and your staff to run it," pointing to Mr. Kroenke.

Vince then bitches out Mr. Kroenke for not calling him and explaining that there was a scheduling conflict, and because of that Vince & Co. are going to have some fun at Mr. Kroenke's expense. For example, Mr. McMahon points out that the "E" in "E. Stan Kroenke" is short for "Enis", and has his laughs by drecrying, "You're an ENIS!" which elicits "You're an Enis!" chant from the fans.

Mr. McMahon continues, "I know, you thougth I was going to say that other word that rhymes with 'Enis', and that is... ... ... GENIUS! But we know you're not, you're an embicille!" Mr. McMahon tells Mr. Kroenke that the WWE Universe will not be pushed around, they will push back, and then shoves Mr. Kroenke out of the ring." Mr. McMahon starts to step out of the ring when Mike "the Miz" Mizanin's music hits, and the celeb-reality-turned-wrestler comes out with a mic.

"Hold on, with all due respect, Mr. McMahon, because I wouldn't dream of interrupting you..." says Mike Mizanin, "I have something very important to say to the WWE fans. As you all know I became a huge TV star in Los Angeles, HOME OF THE LAKERS! The team that everyone here thinks is going to become the NBA champions! Well, REALITY CHECK, because *I* am from the city where the real future NBA champions reside... CELEVELAND, OHIO!" Mizanin whips off his jacket and sports a Cavs jersey.

"Now they may be down 2 to 1, but the Cavs will overcome all odds and win it all, because Lebron James is just like the Miz, AWESOME, while John Cena is an over-rated phoney poser, kinda like Kobe Bryant! And in the five-on-five main event match tonight, I will run John Cena out of this town just like Kobe did Shaq! It will be more painful than Magic Johnson's talk show! And the Miz will become 6-0 against Cena, because the WWE is where The Miz happens!"

John Cena stomps out to the ring, no music, no mic, hearing enough. Suddenly Ted DiBiase, Jr. and Cody Rhodes ambush Cena from behind, Miz gets in on it and it's a 3-on-1 attack. Dave Batista runs out and spinebusters all three men in the center of the ring. Big Show runs out and attacks Batista from behind, clotheslines Cena and punches him in the chest. Jerry "the King" Lawler comes out and busts Big Show in his grill a dozen times before eating a headbutt from Big Show, sending him out of the ring. Big Show turns around and finds Batista and Cena right there in his face, clotheslining him out of the ring. Batista's music hits as Cena and "the Animal" hold the center of the ring.

WWE DIVAS CHAMPIONSHIP: champion Maryse Oulet vs. Kelly Kelly

We take a commercial as we see both women backstage heading towards the ring for this match. This week's WWE Rewind is last week's Diva's battle royal (which wasn't really a battle royal) where Maryse sprayed Mickie James in the eyes with some hairspray, allowing Kelly Kelly to get a cheap win and become #1 Contender for Maryse's title.

Oulet holds up the start of the match so she can pose for the fans, Kelly isn't impressed and immitates it, to a much bigger reaction from the crowd. Oulet uses the opportunity to pummell Kelly to the mat, then hit a sloppy backbreaker over the knee, goes for a non-challant cover for a two count, Oulet tries it again, simply laying backwards on Kelly, before throwing her face-first into the mat and paintbursh slapping the back of the head and pulling the hair. Oulet tells the referee to step off when he tries to break it up, and goes back to the hair pulling and taunting.

Oulet tries to whip Kelly into the corner, Kelly reverses it, connects with a clothesline, cartwheels backwards and tells Oulet to bring it! Oulet charges, Kelly whips her to the opposite corner, springboard reverse elbow into the corner, armdrag out, goes for a cover, two count, and then the two women start brawling, mounting each other and throwing punches until the referee breaks it up. Oulet rolls out of the ring for a breather, Kelly follows her out, Oulet whips her into the announcer's table, plants her on top and fires away with punches to the face. Oulet throws Kelly over the other side of the table, then rolls back into the ring to try to beat the count, but the referee disqualifies Oulet instead.

WINNER: Kelly Kelly by disqualification. BWAH??? WTF?? Ref is telling Oulet that she's DQed for shoving Kelly over the table? The guys get away with that shit ALL THE TIME and it's fair game! What bullshit! Kelly Kelly thinks it is as well, she jumps back in the ring and beats the living shit out of Maryse Oulet like she's a red-headed stepchild, referee has to break it up and allow Oulet to escape. I'd almost call that "TNAriffic", but not even TNA would do something stupid like that... wait, yeah they would. Let's take a commercial, I need a drink now.

We come back with another skit in the back, "Jack Nicholson" was sitting at ringside earlier, is walking backstage with the Bella Twins. They bump into Goldust and Hornswaggle, who want a shot in a movie and offer to show off their skills. I'm not going to cover this shit.

We flash back to last week where Ric Flair confronted Randy Orton, and got his ass laid out by Orton who didn't want to hear Flair running him down and didn't like being told he would have to defend the WWE Championship against Dave Batista at WWE "Extreme Rules" in three weeks inside a steel cage.

We then cut backstage where Dave Batista confronts Ric Flair backstage, Flair tells Batista not to talk him out of it, he's going out tonight to confront Orton. Batista says why do it this week when he can do it in three weeks after the PPV. Flair is insulted because he doesn't want to pick apart what's left of Orton after Batista creams him in the cage, he's a fighter and he's going out there tonight to take care of business.

Triple Threat Match for #1 Contender for the WWE United States Championship:
Matt Hardy vs. Kofi Kingston vs. William Regal


Winner of this match gets a shot against US Champ Montel Vontaveous Porter next week on Raw. Kingston and Hardy skirmish off the bat, Hardy bails out of the ring, holding his injured wrist. Regal attacks Kingston in the corners with knees, whips him to the opposite corner, follows up with a knee to the face, quick cover that Kingston escapes.

Regal puts Kingston in the corner with a pair of European Uppercuts, whips him out again, Kingston catches him with a boot to the face, gets whipped off the ropes but rebounds off the ropes with a reverse elbow. Kingston tries to bounce off the ropes, but Hardy grabs the legs, Regal follows up with a clothesline, Kingston hits his own clothesline, Hardy runs in and tries to pin both men at once! Hardy picks off Regal and throws him out of the ring. Hardy whips Kingston in the corner, turns around and see MVP walking down to the ring, we take a commercial.

Back to the action, Porter has joined the announcing team at ringside, during the commercial we see Kingston hitting a nice high cross-body block from the top rope on Hardy, the pin broken up by Regal. Regal now is trying to take Kingston down with a sleeper, instead opts for a wicked overhead release suplex. Hardy gets in and knocks Regal out, tries to backdrop Kingston out of the ring, Kingston holds on and slingshots himself back in on Hardy.

Regal gets in and knocks Hardy out, starts dueling with Kingston. Kingson throws Regal into the corner, Regal runs in and cheapshots Regal in the face, then Kingston. Regal grabs Hardy's injured arm, wrings it, and then drops a knee on it, Hardy powders out, Kingston whips Regal into the corner, charges, Regal drops him over the top, Kingston hangs on, forearm shot on Regal, climbs to the top turnbuckle, flies, goes for a cover, Hardy breaks it up.

Kingston lets loose with the kicks, clotheslines and the high legdrop on Hardy, covers, one... two... Hardy kicks out. Hardy backs off into a corner, Kingston leaps up on him and throws rights, Regal runs in and hits the Exploder Suplex on Kingston, Hardy hits the Side Effect on Regal, covers, two count. Hardy with a Side Effect on Kingston, cover, two count. Hardy goes for the Twist of Fate on Regal, Regal spins him around and hits the belly-to-back suplex. Regal pulls down his kneepad, sets up for Kingston and charges, Kingston counters with the Trouble in Paradise, cover, one... two... Hardy breaks it up, rolls Regal out of the ring. Hardy charges at Kingston with the cast-covered forearm shot, Kingston ducks it, turns around hits the Trouble in Paradise on Hardy, cover, 1-2-3.

WINNER: Kofi Kingston. Kingston staggers out of the ring and and gets right in MVP's face, goes "BOOM! BOOM! BOMM!" Kingston stands up and congratulates him, tells Kingston that he wanted him to win and wants him in the ring next week. Kingston walks off to celebrate, Porter finishes his babyface commentary. Backstage we see Ric Flair walking to the ring. Commercial.

The WWE "Slam of the Week" sponsored by Snickers is last Monday's three-on-two handicap match between Batista & Cena and Legacy, with interference from Ric Flair to make the difference.

Ric Flair calls out Randy Orton

"WHOO!" we hear over the PA system as Flair marches down to the ring with a mic. "Orton... Randy Orton... the world champion sucker punched me last week, and had his way with me last week. I haven't lost sight of that moment. In fact, all I could think of was what Jericho did to me, and that ain't going to happen. So I was thinking, I'm Ric Flair, the 16-time world champion, Orton is the world champion. I just want to see you do it right here tonight! Don't feel sorry for me! Feel sorry for if you DON'T beat me! Come out here, bring it, short and sweet, bring it!"

Randy Orton wastes no time coming out with a mic. "What do you actually think will happen if I get into that ring right now and we fight? I'd love to fight you, I honestly would, I should beat you down on principle alone, but I can't. Not because I have respect for you but last week I lowered myself to punching a 60 year-old!" Flair starts to argue, and Orton shuts him down.

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH! I'm not Chris Jericho! How about you listen to me when I talk to you! IT IS OVER! I'm not Chris Jericho, IT IS OVER! Six years ago back in Evolution it was over then! Triple H only kept you around because he felt sorry for you! I'm starting to feel sorry for you, Ric. Truth be told, all of these people are starting to feel sorry for you. It's OVER, Ric Flair."

Flair throws down his mic as Orton steps into the ring, still talking. "Ric... IT IS OVER!" Flair slaps Orton in the face, Orton kicks him in the midsection, Orton then jumps him and lays in punches, then bails quickly as Batista comes in to break it up. Batista has to hold Flair back by the waist to prevent him from going after Orton. Orton pics up his mic and talks more. "Smart, Batista, smart! Waste your time with him, waste your time with this washed-up pathetic excuse of a legend! because after Extreme Rules after I beat you ins a steel cage, you're going to be just like him! It's going to be all over for you too!"

"KENNEDY! KENNEDY" we hear over the PA system and Mr. Ken Kennedy, with a goatee we haven't seen since his OVW days, busts out on the stage! Kennedy looks skyward, strikes his pose, and waits for his microphone to drop. "You, ah... look kinda surprised, Randy. Oh, did you think this was over?

Did you think this was over, too, because I think it's just getting started! This is just the beginning, Randy, in fact tonight marks the official return of a man who will very shortly be among many other things DOUBLE DOUBLE EEEH CHAMPION! Oh, oh... and, uh... also.. that guy... is also gonna be... oh, I dunno, the final guy in the five-on-five main event tonight! And that man is known all around the world as... MIIISSSSTTEEERRRRRRRR KKEEENNNNNEEEEDDDYYY! "

Orton walks off, not impressed. "KENNEDY!" finishes Kennedy. Yeah, I wasn't too impressed either.

Mixed Tag Team Match: Santino Marella & Mickie James vs. Chavo Guerrero, Jr & Beth Phoenix (w/ Rosa Mendez)

The winning team gets to pick the match stipulation for Vickie Guerrero vs. Santina Marella for the Miss WrestleMania crown at Extreme Rules. HOORAH. No, not really. Meh. M-E-H MEH!

Guerrero and Marella start off first, Guerrero rushes Marella, beats him down, side suplex, cover, two count. Guerrero chokes Marella on the middle ropes, puts him in the corner and punches until the ref breaks it up. Phoenix chokes Marella in the corner, Guerrero charges for a splash, Marella ducks out of the way, Phoenix tags herself in and chases after Marella, but this is a mixed tag team match, not intergender. Mickie James stiffs her with a forearm, ummm... I got distracted, something happened, Chavo flies across the ring and tries to spear Marella on the apron, Marella side-steps it, Phoenix charges Marella, he jumps off the apron, James comes up from behind with a crucifix pin for the victory.

WINNERS: Santino Marella & Mickie James. "Excuse me! Excuse me!" proclaims WWE Raw General Manager and "Miss WrestleMania" Vickie Guerrero. "Excuse me! Congratulations on your victory, Santino, but before you pick the type of match your twin sister and me will have at Extreme Rules, I just want to say that I won't worry about it, because I will have Chavo officially in my corner."

Marella responds, "I'm supposed to be scared of that, huh? But I got-a so many matches in my head. One was-ah Leaning Tower of Pizza match! One was a Pasta-on-a-Pole match! But what I decided on was a HOG PIN MATCH! Thats-a-right! You're gonna be with the hogs!"

I have no idea what this means, but Jim Ross is ecstatic for it.

Backstage Big Show confronts Mike Mizanin. "I don't like you. No one likes you. But tonight if you want to get in the ring and mix it up a little bit with John Cena, I'm alright with that. But understand this - you don't pin John Cena. In fact, nobody pins John Cena. At Extreme Rules in three weeks, I'm going to make John Cena TAP OUT!"

Big Show walks off, and Miz sarcastically replies, "Ooh! Just like you did at Judgment Day?" Big Show walks back into the camera frame, pins Miz up against the wall and says, "Did you just say something?" Miz swallows his tongue and meekly replies, "No." "Good," says Big Show, "that's what I thought!"

Goldust & Hornswoggle vs. THE Brian Kendrick & Festus Dalton

The WWE Unified Tag Team Champions Carlito & Primo Colon are at the announcer's table for commentary. Goldust & Hornswoggle are introduced. We flash back to last week where the Colons beat Goldust & Brian Kendrick, Kendrick blamed the lost on Goldust, tried to start a fight and got put in his place. Kendrick comes out with Festus Dalton, not a bad choice at all if they'd give Festus a new gimmick!

Bell rings, Dalton fires up at hearing the bell, and Kendrick bails the ring quickly! So does Goldust, who tags out to Hornswoggle. Festus, though, doesn't seem to want to fight him, pulling his hair. Hornswoggle runs across the ring and dropkicks Kendrick in the face, after Kendrick dropped down to the floor after yelling at Dalton. Kendrick tags himself in, throws Hornswoggle around, rolls him up for a pin, Hornswoggle actually kicks out. Kendrick kicks Hornswoggle in the face, picks him up for a slam, Hornswoggle actually converts it into a DDT!

Hornswoggle escapes and tags in Goldust. Clothesline, atomic drop, clothesline, whip off the ropes, reversal, Kendrick goes for a back body drop, Goldust drops down and uppercuts Kendrick in the face. Kendrick responds with a dropkick, wants Dalton to tag in, Dalton shakes his head no, Kendrick slaps Dalton, Dalton steps into the ring and tries to attack Kendrick, referee has to hold him back. This lets Goldust hit a body slam, Hornswoggle hit the Tadpole Splash and Goldust finishes him with the Final Cut.

WINNERS: Goldust & Hornswoggle. After the bell Kendrick gets pissed off at Dalton, who is now comatose again. Kendrick grabs a chair and wants to rack him in the head, but Primo Colon rings the bell before he does it, Dalton fires back up and chases Kendrick out of the ring.

For fuck's sake, this is worthless. WWE could have done SO MUCH with this show and they did NOTHING. NOTHING. PATHETIC. HORRIBLE. WORST RAW EVER. If this is what WWE was going to give Denver then the Denver fans should be grateful that all they lost were their fucking "non-refundable" Ticketmaster charges. HEY! Don't forget, TNA Wrestling is coming to Colorado this weekend, take your tickets and get $10 off the show!

You know what is worst of all? If this show HAD been in Denver, you could be sure that some REAL celebrities showed up - the Broncos, the Rockies or the Aves players would be sitting on the front row. Instead we got FAKE celebs and Michael Clark Duncan. WTF? Take your goofy ass back to the Green Mile! This officially fucking sucks.

"Laker vs. Nuggets" Five-on-Five Challenge: Mike "the Miz" Mizanin, Big Show, Randy Orton, Cody Rhodes & Ted DiBiase, Jr. vs. Jerry "the King" Lawler, John Cena, Dave Batista, Ken Kennedy & WWE United States Champion Montel Vontaveous Porter

Oh, hoorah! We have the STAPLES Center announcer introducting everybody like they're basketball players. We start off with Lawler and Rhodes, I was too busy bitching in the chat room to see what happened, but Lawler tags in Batista, Batista tosses around Rhodes, tags in MVP, throws Rhodes around, whips him off the ropes, ducks down for a back body drop, Rhodes kicks him in the face, drives him to the corner, tags in DiBiase. DiBiase beats up on MVP, whips him into the ropese, reversal, MVP ducks down again, gets kicked in the face again. DiBiase bounces off the ropes, tags a blind tag from Orton, MVP clotheslines DiBiase but gets an inverted atomic drop from Orton and then dispatched out of the ring, where Big Show clotheslines him and we take a break.

Back from break, DiBiase has MVP in a reverse chinlock, MVP scrambling to get to his feet, does so and hits the Jawbreaker to break the hold. MVP crawls for the tag, DiBiase gets a hot tag to Mizanin, who cuts off MVP and drags him back to the middle of the ring, applies a reverse chinlock of his own. Porter gets to his feet, elbows his way out, Mizanin cuts him off with a knee to the midsection, goes to throw him into the ropes, Porter counters with a SWEET belly-to-back suplex and connects with the hot tag to Kennedy. Kennedy whips Mizanin off the ropes and hits a pair of clotheslines, whips Mizanin into the corner, reversal, Kennedy gets a pair of boots up, follows up with the roundhouse kick that connects, covers, two count!

Kennedy goads Mizanin to get up, puts Mizanin on his shoulders, Randy Orton jumps into the ring to distract the referee while RHodes and Orton pull Kennedy out of the ring and throw him into the guardrail, then throw him in the ring, Mizanin covers, two count. Mizanin tags in Orton who beats Kennedy down with hammerfists, Batista gets in the ring and the ref has to put him back in. Kennedy tries to scramble for a tag, Orton drags him back into his corner, grabs the legs and stomps him in the chest. Cena tries to encourage Kennedy, Orton turns around and stares him down, Cena sobers up. Orton with a knee to Kennedy's chest, cover, two count.

Big Show tags in, kicks Kennedy in the chest, picks him up for a headbutt, picks him up for a giant scoop slam, follows up with an elbow drop to the chest, cover and gets only two. Kennedy tries to punch his way out, Big Show chops him in the chest a few times, then punches the ribs to send Kennedy back to the mat. Rhodes tags in and stomps on the exposed ribs, then drills Kennedy in the forehea a few times before tagging out to DiBiase, who kicks Kennedy in the face as Rhodes holds him up.

DiBiase tags back out to Rhodes, the grab the arms, wind them up and deliver a pair of fists to the chest, Rhodes covers, two count. Mizanin tags in and kicks Kennedy in the ribs, legdrop, and into a reverse chinlock in the middle of the ring.

Kennedy scrambles, trying to get to his feet as the fans chant "Let's go Lakers" chant. Mizanin puts Kennedy in his team's corner, tags in DiBiase, DiBiase with some punches to the head, cover, two count. Kennedy crawls for a tag, DiBiase stands over him and taunts him, then slaps on a side headlock to cut off his advance, talking more trash. Kennedy gets to his feet, elbows and punches out, bounces off the ropes and eats a shoulder block.

DiBiase tags in Orton, DiBiase hems up Kennedy, Orton with a boot to the midsection, cover by Orton, two count. Orton again pins, hooks the legs, two count. Kennedy crawls for another tag, Orton wraps him up in a body scissor / side headlock combo, not quite a Rear Naked Choke but close. Kennedy gets to his feet again, punches Orton in the ribs, breaks loose, bounces off the ropes Orton nails him with a standing dropkick, covers, Batista runs in to break it up. Kennedy crawls for another tag, Orton recoves, puts Kennedy in another side headlock, but Kennedy gets to his feet and back suplexes Orton to break it.

Hot tags are made on both sides, Cena vs Rhodes, Cena explodes with a pair of shoulder blocks, the side slam, and then takes his time to prepare for the Five Knuckle Shuffle... NOT! He tags in Porter, and they hit the Five Knuckle Shuffle and the BALLIN~! elbow drop simultaneously! Jerry Lawler tags in and hits the fist driver! MVP finishes off Rhodes with the Playmaker! 1-2-3!

WINNERS: Cena/Batista/Lawler/Kennedy/Porter. DiBiase attacks Porter from behind and hits the Dream Street, Kennedy runs in and hits the Mic Check, Randy Orton runs in and hits the RKO, Batista runs in and tries to set up Orton for the Batista Bomb, but Big Show gets in and stops it, tries for the Choke Slam, Cena gets in and also gets set up for the Choke Slam, but Cena and Batista both kick Big Show in the gut and snap off a double-team suplex. Batista and Cena hold the middle of the ring once again as we go off the air.

Thank God this show is over. I'm done. Goodnight!
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5.25.2009

Suckrifice

Okay, so maybe that wasn't the most clever title I've ever come up with. Did I mail it in on that one? Oh yeah. Did TNA's pay-per-view offering last night deserve any more than that? No way.

I'm used to TNA not making sense. No, really. I've been covering TNA on and off on Tha O Show since 2006, and in that time span, I think I've become one of just a handful of people walking God's green earth that can actually make some sense of what's being put on TV. But last night's show was even beyond my comprehension. I can't believe I put down my beer and turned off Married With Children for that.

First match of the night, and we're already seeing a plethorical assload of high spots and fliptility. Yes, I realize that I'm beating a dead horse by bringing this up, but it's hard to avoid the subject when it's so damn prevalent on their programming. Ring psychology and good storytelling are essential to a match, and when it's all about the high spots, that goes completely out the window. Imagine someone verbally telling you a story using the same storytelling technique used by Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley. Are you cringing yet?

The one interesting thing about this match was the fact that Mike Tenay and Don West continually brought up the fact that Eric Young was never tagged into the match, and also their focus on his reaction to winning the match. I'm interested in seeing what unfolds. A heel turn, perhaps?

Taylor Wilde can work. So can Daffney. The Knockout division used to be a proud point of emphasis on TNA programming. It was hot. It was entertaining. People tuned in to watch what unfolded because it was compelling. And now it's fodder for an impending Abyss vs. Steven Richards match. Great. Talented females are being used as a vehicle for a storyline between a guy who shot his dad in the back of the head (allegedly), and the head of Right To Censor. Can't wait for that match.

Suicide and Christopher Daniels put on a tremendous match. This is what the X Division should be about. Fuck your 500 high spots, give me good technical wrestling. I can understand why Daniels wouldn't have wanted to win the title thanks to interference from wrestling's version of the Harlem Globetrotters, but why did he impose a time limit? Couldn't he have just asked for the match to be restarted? Confusing booking. I'll step off my soapbox about this one if and only if there's a rematch at Slammiversary. Otherwise, the ending of this match was as useless as the chapter on pussy eating in Dan's copy of Kama Sutra.

Angelina Love is being built as a chickenshit heel, which I'm fine with. It actually makes sense, since it's hard for one character to be both vain and a monster/badass at the same time. Plus, I would've shat upon the idea of Kong immediately winning back the championship. Thank you, TNA, for giving me something worthwhile on this card. Even if I didn't get to see my favorite version of The Big Wiggle pre-match. Oh, it's always a good article when I can throw a Norman Smiley reference in!

Most people have heard the hot rumor that Taz is coming to TNA to be Samoa Joe's new mentor, and TNA has been dropping several subtle hints as of late to further strengthen the rumors. Among these hints is the fact that Joe is wrestling a slightly different style, using more submission moves than he had in the past year or so. While I'm a huge mark for Joe, I'm worried that TNA put the wheels in motion for this too soon. Promoting something for too long can make it fall flat. Bringing in a new manager for Samoa Joe will probably be a big deal, so promoting it in a way that will make fans not care when it finally happens is worrisome news to me.

Beer Money is going to face Team 3D again for the titles. Hype. Hopefully it's as good as last time. It's nice to know that some people still appreciate the art of tag team wrestling. Although, Beer Money was a heel team, and then they turned face, so I wonder if they'll turn heel again now that they're facing Team 3D again. Ridiculous, you say? Well, it's TNA, what do you expect?

AJ Styles and Booker T...you can't go wrong there. Anticlimactic, schmoz finish? Sure, but it's an "I Quit" match, that's par for the course. Every finish in that type of match is usually some sort of schmoz, save for Bert vs. Austin at WrestleMania 13. Yes, I'm aware I made a typo in that last sentence. No, I'm not changing it, it's more entertaining to me that way.

Now, we come to the main event. I've been rather kind during my review. At least, in comparison to the venom I'm about to spew over this clusterfucktacular.

How in God's name can you have a main event, at a pay-per-view, where the champion is in the match, and where the title is up for grabs, and not have the ending of the match have anything to do with the damned title? The complete and utter lack of sense behind that is baffling. I feel as though, by watching that match, I have been mindfucked by some of the most painfully erratic booking in the history of wrestling. The Fingerpoke Of Doom thought this ending sucked!

What's worse is, TNA never once explained exactly how the rules of this "Ultimate Sacrifice" match worked. Sting wins, so he's the champion, right? Nope! Tenay explains, after the match (which is well after you could actually explain what the match was in order to promote the pay-per-view), that the title would only change hands if Foley was pinned. Why didn't TNA explain this weeks in advance?

So now, the fallout of your big main event, the finish if which didn't even involve the champion, is that Sting now controls the Main Event Mafia. Who fucking cares? Sting's already in MEM, and the big rift between Kurt and Sting was several months ago. Using this match to propel that storyline is the utmost form of beating a dead horse.

This entire pay-per-view was laughable. It made no sense and did nothing to close any storylines. If anything, it added unnecessary dimensions to overcomplexify the current storylines. Waste of my time. I can't believe I sacrificed three hours of my life to watch this.

Oh yeah, the commentary was so goddamn terrible that I muted it after the X Division match. West is getting progressively worse. He's terrible as a heel commentator, he sounds like he's talking out of his ass 24/7. I prefer the babyface, "everything in TNA is great!" Don West to this version. By a lot.

Tha Results:
- Lethal Consequences and Eric Young def. The Motor City Machinerguns and Sheik Abdul Bashir
- Taylor Wilde def. Daffney in the Knockouts Monster's Ball Match
- Suicide retained the X Championship in a time limit draw over Christopher Daniels
- Angelina Love def. Awesome Kong to retain the Knockouts Title
- Samoa Joe def. Kevin Nash
- Beer Money, Inc. def. The British Invasion to win the Team 3D Tournament
- AJ Styles def. Booker T to retain the TNA Legends Title in an I Quit match
- Sting pinned Kurt Angle to win the "Ultimate Sacrifice" main event (As a result, Sting gains control of The Main Event Mafia)
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5.24.2009

UFC 98 Recap

Courtesy of Killa Kev of AngryMarks.com:

10:00 PM - It's Time! It's Time! Bring the pain, UFC 98 live tonight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada! Mike Goldberg introduces us to the show and introduces his co-host Joe Rogan.

Rogan gives a plug for the new UFC 2009 Undisputed video game. We show highlights of some of the knockouts of Rashad Evans and Lyoto Machida, both men who are undefeated. You can vote online at UFC.com or sext your vote to 88222 to decide who is going to win! Our hosts run down the Hughes vs. Serra and Sonnen vs. Miller.

"The Muscle Shark" Sean Sherk (37-3-1, 156 lbs) vs. Frankie "the Answer" Edgar (9-1-0, 155 lbs)

Edgar is described as a "small 155", but not to be taken lightly even against the veteran Sherk. Herb Dean is our referee for the evening as Michael Buffer gives us the official introduction. Edgar starts off with a head kick and moves around the ring quickly. Sherk is looking in better physical shape than ever. 4:00 left, Sherk puts Edgar up on the cage, but Edgar quickly escapes, they trade punches in the middle of the ring. 3:00 left they're still boxing for the most part, not much connecting everybody finding their footing.

Edgar starts throwing some inside leg kicks at 2:30. Edgar gets a takedown at 1:38 left, moves into a Guillotine Choke on Sherk's head. Sherk fights it, Edgar is holding on after nearly 40 seconds, but Sherk finally shrugs it off with just a minute left in the round. 10 seconds left and Edgar throws some great kicks to end the round, I'm sure Edgar won this one 10-9.

10:20 PM - Round Two starts with Sherk throwing the first punches, but Edgar comes out fast as well. Sherk throwing more uppercuts and pushing Edgar more towards the cage. Edgar scores with a nick body kick at 3:50, followed by a takedown attempt. Rogan is surprised that Sherk hasn't tried for a takedown himself yet. Instead Sherk seems to be happy holding the center of the ring and letting Edgar move all around him. 2:25 Sherk starts throwing some kicks after setting up with the punches, but Edgar is still coming around in all directions with the punches and occsionally switching it up with the kicks.

Edgar pressing forward now with 90 seconds left, scores a nice combo of punches to the face and them moves out of the way to avoid all of Sherk's punches. Sherk finally gets in a few connecting punches with 45 seconds left. Edgar goes for a takedown at 25 seconds, Sherk punches his way out of it but Edgar is looking more fresh. Last 10 seconds Edgar with kicks to the head and jabs. I'm calling it 10-9 Edgar again.

10:27 - Round Three starts with Edgar again coming out firing off punches and doding just about everything Sherk's throwing at him. Rogan is very surprised that Sherk is not wrestling or putting Edgar up on the cage. Sherk FINALLY explodes witha double-leg takedown at 4:10, reverse waistlock, but Edgar escapes. Sherk's cut open over his left eye, but it's not bleeding. 1:55 Sherk tries for another takedown, Edgar slips right out. Sherk throws some left hooks, but Edgar is still looking strong. 10 seconds left Edgar EXPLODES and jumps on Sherk with another Guillotine Choke, it wasn't a good set-up but it still looks VERY strong to end the fight, we're goign to a decision.

YOUR WINNER BY UNANIMOUS DECISION, 30-27... FRANKIE EDGAR! Rogan with the interview tells Edgar this was his toughest opponent and best fight in his career. I'd agree, but this was more about Sherk NOT performing in my opinion. BJ Penn is in the crowd, and once his mug goes up on the video screens in the arena the boos reign down on him. LOL.

Dan Miller (11-1-1, 185 lbs.) vs. Chael Sonnen (22-10-1, 186 lbs.)

10:45 PM - Yves Levigne is the refere in charge and he is drawing TONS of boos over his bad fight stoppage on the undercard. Miller and Sonnen trade inside leg kicks, Sonnen goes for a double-leg takedown which allows Miller to immediately lock in a Guillotine Choke, wraps the legs around the body, Sonnen is turning red... but slips out! Sonnen is nw in position to drop some fists on Miller and just sits down right in the middle of his guard, having him in the corner. And that's where we stay for the next 4 minutes and 30 seconds, all Sonnen throwing bombs from above and Miller trying to block.

10:52 PM - Round Two starts with Sonnen again going for the takedown, Miller tries for the Guillotine Choke, Sonnen tries to counter with a big slam but Miller holds on and locks it in deep, but is wearig himself out. He eventually has to break it after almost a minute. Sonnen stays right on top throwing punches and elbows. Miller tries to slip in an armbar at 1:55 but Sonnen is able to easily escape. Miller looks very winded with a minute left in the round, mouth wide open gasping for air. He still tries to go for the rubber guard, fans are now starting to get restless as Sonnen grinds away on Miller, stands up with 15 seconds to throw a big left in the face.

10:57 PM - During the break you hear Miller say, "I think something is wrong with me." Round three, Miller comes out swinging and throws a high kick, throws some combinations that makes Sonnen back up. Sonnen again with the take-down, Miller tries for that Guillotine Choke again, but can't lock it in. Miller slips into rubber guard but isn't able to hold it. Sonnen has full control and Miller now looks nearly completely gassed. Lavigne warns them at 3:15 to start working more or risk getting stood up.

Rogan: "Dan Miller has got to go for broke, Mike. He's got to go for broke, I don't know what's going through his mind." Miller tries to kick Sonnen off, but to no avail. Sonnen stands up and waits it out before diving right back in and grinding his elbow into Miller's face. 1:45 left Miller is scrambling, Sonnen gets into his half guard for a moment but Miller is able to move it back to full guard... not that it matters, he's pinned up against the cage, no where to go, no way to escape. Rogan finishes, "Unless Chael Sonnen has a stroke, he's going to win this fight." We get the horn, the fans boo.

YOUR WINNER BY UNANIMOUS DECISION 30-27, CHAEL SONNEN. Rogan isn't even going to waste time with an interview, the fans wern't happy, I don't think anybody was happy with this one.

Drew "The Massacare" McFedries (7-5-0, 185 lbs.) vs. "Professor X" Xavier Foupa-Pokam (20-10-0, 185 lbs.)

Foupa-Pokam comes to the ring dancing and grooving to the beat. One, two, three and to da four, Drew McFedries is knockin' on yo muthafuckin' door! Thirty seconds into the fight McFederies witha HUGE left on Foupa-Pokam that sends him reeling into the cage, McFedries jumps right on him with bombs, Foupa-Pokam tries holding onto the legs but he's clearly rocked, Yves Levigne has to throw himself between the two men to stop the fight, McFedries is trying to swing away, unaware of the stoppage, Foupa-Pokam still clutching the leg for dear life.

YOUR WINNER AT 37 SECONDS OF ROUND ONE BY TKO, DREW MCFEDRIES! Rogan & Goldberg hyped up McFedries' striking power, saying that most of his training partners won't even spar with him because he fights heavy handed and full-power. HOLY FUCK!

Andre Gusmao (5-2-0, 205 lbs.) vs. Krzysztof "the Polish Experiment" Soszynski (18-8-1, 205 lbs.)

This was a preliminary fight earlier in the night, and thank goodness we have these fights to fill in when we have spectacularly short matches! Other than an accidental kick to the groin there's nothing happening in the first two minutes of the match, Gusamo takes an accidental kick to the groin, recovers, counters with good kicks of his own. Soszynski starts scoring with some lefts and rights at 1:50 left in the fight, but then pours it on and just DROPS Gusmao on the side of the cage.

YOUR WINNER AT 3:17 OF ROUND ONE BY KNOCKOUT, Krzysztof Soszynski! We replay the end of the fight, Soszynski hits an overhand right that catches Gusamo on the chin, Gusamo blocks a half dozen othe rpunches, but then gets caught with a left hook and a right underhook, both on the chin. Mike Tyson is shown sitting in the crowd watching the action.

Matt Hughes (43-7-0, 170 lbs.) vs. Matt "the Terror" Serra (16-5-0, 171 lbs.)

This might not be the last match of the night, but it is the co-main event and possibly be the most looked-forward to fight for the last year, both of these men talking smack to each other any chance they can get! Matt Serra comes out to the "Rocky" theme, as Joe Rogan said, "OH NO HE DIDN'T!" and gets a mix of cheers and boos.

Hughes comes out to the classic Hank Williams, Jr. song "A Country Boy Can Survive" and also gets a mix of cheers and boos. A win for Hughes tonight allows him to tie Chuck "the Iceman" Liddell for 16 consecutive wins). Referee Steve Mazzagatti is the referee in charge. Mazzagatti reads off the rules and tells them "Now hook 'em up!", both men refuse to touch gloves.

11:38 PM - Round One starts with both men trying to make each other flinch. Serra with a southpaw strike first, but doesn't come close to connecting. But 4:12 Serra connects with a right that puts Hughes down, he gets to his feet, Serra pours on more rights, but Hughes latches on to a leg, Serra with hammer fists limping around the ring, Hughes puts him up on the fence.

Goldberg says that it was a headbutt that rocked Hughes and put him down on the mat. 3:00 left in the round Hughes has the body lock and throwing knees, he looks pretty well recovered. Serra escapes with 2:30 left, back to the middle of the ring. Serra throws a left that makes Serra back up a little, but Serra is grinning.

Serra with an inside leg kick, Hughes responds with some jabs. Hughes throws a kick that misses, then rushes in and gets a body lock, throws Serra to the mat and goes right into side control, 1:30 left. Huges gets Serra's back, goes into the Rear Naked Choke, Serra fights it, Hughes throws the punches to the head and the ribs, Serra grinding his head into Hughes' chest and finds an escape, both men quickly on their feet, 30 seconds left. We end the round with a few more spars and some kicks from Serra, Serra goes for a big overhand right just as the horn sounds.

11:44 PM - Round Two starts off a little slower, Hughes throws a left jab, Serra side steps it, Serra comes back with a few punches and Hughes backs off. Serra with a left that just barely glances off Hughes. Serra tries for a few more jabs and walks into a body lock from Hughes and gets thrown into the ground, Hughes tries to go for side control, Serra is able to block it but gives Hughes the half-guard. Halfway through the round Hughes continues to dominate the ground 'n pound from the top, Serra trying to find openings to escape but doesn't appear too phased by the punches to the body.

Hughes is able to get several good, clean shots to the chin, Serra isn't appearing to fight back much at all. Referee warns them at 40 seconds left to start being more active, and stands them back up at 15 seconds. Serra goes for a big head kick, but Hughes ducks him and ties him up with another body hold until the horn. Serra's cornerman tries to convince him, "Everytime you touch him you're hurting him!" Uh, I don't think that's the case.

11:50 PM - Hughes comes out with the jabs first, Serra backs off, tries a few kicks that get blocked, followed by right hands that just whiff. Serra with a big right that drives Serra back to the cage, Hughes trying for the take down and gets it, Serra fought it all the way down though and ends up set up for the Ulmaplatta if he can finish it. Hughes re-positions himself to get free shots to the ribs, and gets back to full guard.

Serra tries again, Hughes scoots the two of them into the corner. Hughes tries to go for side control, Serra tries for a triangle or an armbar, Hughes pulls out easily. 2:00 left and the fans start booing, Serra holding on trying to tell the ref to stand them up, Hughes is throwing elbows to the side of the head and the ribs, but referee stands them up. 1:30 left in the fight, Serra throws a few rights, Hughes deflects them.

Serra is looking at the clock then back at Hughes, then sticks out his chin and dares Hughes to strike him! Hughes knows better than to fall for that. Serra with a kick to the head that misses, Hughes moves in for a thorw, but Serra reverses it with a throw of his own and Serra is now on top for the first time! 32 seconds left he doesn't have much time, Serra starts throwing some bombs, Huges goes for a takedown, Serra blocks it and throws a few more punches to the face, he's got a Kimora but we're out of time! Both men step back, hug, and then raise each other's arms.

YOUR WINNER BY UNANIMOUS DECISION, 29-28... MATT HUGHES! Rogan complements Hughes on the two of them leaving the bad blood between them right in the ring. Rogan asks about the headbutt and Hughes asking what hit him. Hughes jokes and says that Rogan wasn't supposed to hear that comment, but he just wasn't sure what hit him. Rogan asks Hughes if he's motivated to continue to fight after this. "Definitely, I am motivated to fight and I love to compete.

I'm a free agent now, but Dana and I will talk about it, but I'm not going anywhere else!" Rogan moves over to Serra for his thoughts on the fight and the first round, Serra says he wanted to keep cool and finish him but Hughes is too tough and experienced. Rogan asks if the bad blood is over now, Serra says he holds Hughes in high regard and just used this to motivate himself to train. Rogan asks him about the future plans of moving weight classes, Serra says that he wants to focus more on having fun fights.

UFC LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP: champion "Sugar" Rashad Evans vs. Lyoto "the Dragon" Machida

Neither man has ever been defeated, but Machida has never lost a round in UFC, and this is the first time two undefeated fighters have ever faced each other for a UFC title. The UFC.com/text message poll results show that 64% think Machida will win. We play video packages for the fight.

12:17 AM - We spend most of Round One with both men just circling the ring and trading small punches, I spent most of the round trying to fix my stream! Thirty seconds left Machida takes down Evans, but Evans escapes. Still it was a kick to the body followed by a straight left hand that drops Evans to the mat and allowed Machida to get on top. You really didn't miss anything through.

12:23 AM - Round Two we're back to more circling the ring, fans starting a "MA-CHI-DA! MA-CHI-DA!" chant. machida throws a knee at 4:05 that sends Evans into the cage, but Evans rebounds back easily. machida throws a kick, then throws some lefts and rights that pushes Evans back, Evans responds with a flurry of his own punches that sends Machida retreating for a moment. 3:05 left, Machida throws a few more kicks that Evans avoids.

But that's all we get for the next two minutes, more pussy-footing around for the most part. Machida finds an open shot that drops Evans, Evans is fighting back but Machida is continuing to throw punches, Evans gets to his feet, Machida backs him up to the corner, EVANS GOES DOWN IT IS ALL OVER! LYOTO MACHIDA IS THE NEW LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION!

On the replay, we see a straight right that originally dropped Evans and rocked him, followed through to Evans recovering and backing up to the cage, Machida starts getting open shots to the chin and it's a pair of right hooks that nails him, a left that hits the side of the head finishes him off. Michael Buffer wit the official announcement.

"Ladies and gentle, referee Mario Yamasaki has called for an end to this content, which came at 3 minutes and 57 seconds of round number two by way of knockout. Your winner AND NEWWWWWW Light Heavyweight Champion of the world LYYYOOOODOOOO THE DRAGON MAAAACHIDAAA!!!"

Joe Rogan with the interview, Machida says, "I have been training all of my life to be a champion, and now I have done it. I want to keep this belt for a long time!" Rogan has Machida take us through the punches and then the final thoughts for Machida. "Machida karate! Machida karate is back! If you have a dream, go for it, because anything is possible!!! Look at me!!"

Rogan interviews Rashad for his thoughts on how he feels. Evans says he still feels dizzy, it was a good fight, Machida is a difficult man to figure out. Rogan asked about Evans' strategy, Evans said that he wanted to try to make Machida strike first, but his timing is too quick and Evans wasn't sharp enough. Evans says that this is his first-ever loss and first-ever knockout, all he can do is just move forward.

Brock Larson vs. Mike Pyle

Another preliminary fight, Pyle makes his debut in the UFC. Pyle starts off with a few kicks and a few sparse punches. Larson backs Pyle into the corner at 4:00 and Pyle tries for a guillotine choke. Larson escapes and tries for a slam, Pyle grabs the leg and gets a leglock, Larson escapes and Pyle gets a toe-hold, Pyle rolls and Larson takes his back, then rolls him over to keep guard. Referee warns Pyle not to kick Larson when he's on his knees. Larson moves around for a choke, Pyle rolls in to try for a leglock, but Larson instead goes for half-guard, Larson moves his body up and gets an arm triangle, gets his leg free and Pyle taps out.

Your winner, Brock Larson at 3:06 of Round One by submission (arm triangle). Rogan asks about the win, Larson says he feels great, he just had to take his time and knew things would happen. Larson is 3-1 back in UFC, 27-2 overall with 18 submission, and that's your TapouT Submission of the Night.

Pat Barry vs. Tim Hague

Hague charges in early, Barry counters with a high kick to the head and some jabs. Hauge is fighting with his hands down, and that allows Barry to nail a big kick to the head, land some jabs, tries for another leg kick that Hague ducks and then jams at Barry, driving him to the mat. Hague's nose is bleeding, but gets Barry's back, slides around as he's trying for a guillotine choke, flips Barry over and it's tapout city!

Your winner at 1:42 of Round One by submission, Tim Hague. Hague says that his opponents will never see him quit, his opponents can "turn my face to mashed potatoes first". Hague thanks his wife, his children, and Dana White for giving him his first UFC fight.

That's our show for the night, thanks for reading the recap and thanks for joining us in the chat room!
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5.23.2009

Remembering Owen...

I found this photo while Google surfing. That's the late great Owen Hart in the midst of a mini scrum between Slam! Wrestling's John Powell, myself (with the shaggy bowl cut) and Notorious T.I.D. with the blonde caesar and specs. It was early 1998 and after having interviewed him several times before, this was the first time Owen was visibly frustrated.

He was tired of answering questions about Bret in WCW and the departure of The Bulldog and Anvil. His friend Brian Pillman passed away just a few short months previously, and the man who was the top of the once mighty Hart Foundation was now just looking to maintain a strong spot on the shows.

There was a feeling amongst the wrestling media that the WWF would either rush Owen to the Heavyweight title and convince fans he was truly greater than his big brother ever was, or push him into obscurity. Of course, neither happened.

Owen was so loved by his peers and even management, he pushed through that difficult time with grace.

I spoke to Owen Hart on the phone and by email several times after that interview, but that interview was one of the last times I saw him face to face.

Today, May 23rd marks the ten year anniversary of the day Owen Hart was taken away too soon. He was on his way to the ring, for an Intercontinental Title match (where he was apparently booked to go over) against The Godfather. O Show friend and long time referee Jim Korderas was in the ring when the tragic accident happened.

Today, I'm the same age Owen was when he died (33) and like he did, I feel like I still have lot of living left to do.

Owen Hart was a dedicated family man, underrated ring technician and a stand up human being. In the cut throat, rumor spreading, heat seeking world of pro wrestling, NOBODY ever had a bad word to say about Owen.

10 years. In the blink of an eye. Just like that. Owen lived every moment like it was special. When remembering Owen Hart today and into the future, remember that philosophy.

Take care.
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"SmackDown!" Recap

Courtesy of Nickolye of AngryMarks.com:

Jim Ross and Todd Grisham welcome us to SmackDown coming from Cincinnati, Ohio. Tonight we'll see Chris Jericho face CM Punk, but first we get a visit from the World Heavyweight Champion himself, "The Rated-R Superstar"! Edge: "If there was any doubt as to who the face of "SmackDown!", please let's end the debate now. I don't wanna hear any Superstars declaring they're the face of this show.

Judgment Day has come and gone and I am still the face of this brand. You see, Chris Jericho lost to Rey Mysterio. CM Punk lost to Umaga. And me, well, I embarrassed and defeated Jeff Hardy.

Which means, I am still your World Heavyweight Champion. You see, make no mistake about it, I am the premier superstar in the WWE today. It's true" Fans chanting for Hardy. "Jeff Hardy is not even in my league. I am a winner.

Jeff Hardy is just like all his legions of fans, just like all of you people who believe in everything that Jeff Hardy does who chant his name. He's just like all of you; he is and always has been a loser!" Here comes the GM of "SmackDown!" Teddy Long: "Well Edge, what I witnessed at Judgment Day was an atrocity. Now, I do know and I do believe the referee's decison is final. But as General Manager of this show, I cannot deny that Matt Hardy illegally interfered in the World Heavyweight Championship match.

So therefore, at Extreme Rules I am going to grant a rematch to Jeff Hardy." Edge: "No no no, I beat Jeff. You can say the reason he lost he got hit in the head with a cast. He can make excuses. You always make excuses for Jeff Hardy, I'm sick of it. The fact is he went against a man with more determination and is willing to pull out all the stop. You see, I went back into the vault and studies my moves from over the years and I pulled out my top-rope Edgecution. That's how Jeff Hardy got beat.

Jeff Hardy is not World Heavyweight Championship material. Jeff Hardy is a failure." I think Jeff Hardy begs to differ because he is on HIS way to the ring! Jeff Hardy: "No no no wait wait, Edge you're right. I am loser, a failure, a let-down, I'm pathetic, I'm somewhat wreckless at times, but you know what? Deep down Jeff Hardy is a competitor! I also know that at Extreme Rules every single match is extreme.

So why don't we get a little crazy and have a match tonight, and whoever wins will decide what kind of extreme match we will have." Edge: "No no, you can't come out here and make your own matches. Teddy, he can't do that!" Jeff: "Teddy, I remember you said this show beliongs to the WWE Universe. So why don't we hear what CINCINNATI has to say." Jeff goes out the ring into the crowd and asks numerous fans if they wanna see Edge vs. Hardy tonight. "WWE UNIVERSE YOU WANNA SEE THIS MATCH TONIGHT? Edge, I think Cincinnati has spoken. IT IS ON!" Teddy: "Well Jeff, that settles it.

Now when the WWE Universe speaks like that I'd be a fool not to listen to them. So tonight, Edge you are going to go one-on-one with Jeff Hardy. Oh, and Edge, the winner of that match will choose just how extreme that match is going to be. Now, can I get a HOLLA HOLLA HOLLA?" Jeff: "HOLLA HOLLA HOLLA!" Edge is standing in the ring dumbfounded at what just transpired before our first commercial break.

* Ricky Ortiz, Shelton Benjamin & Charlie Haas vs. John Morrison & Cryme Tyme

If Ortiz wants to pander to the fans by having them "Rally Up," teaming with a heel team is not the way to go. Also, to my knowledge, this is Cryme Tyme's first match on "SmackDown!". Morrison and Benjamin start the match, well actually he tags out to Ortiz, for their respective teams with Ricky getting the advantage in the corner. I think I heard some boos directed towards Ortiz. Oh well, that's what ya get. Morrison armdrags Ortiz and tags out to Shad. He hooks an armbar but Ricky fights his way out. Shad knocks him down then hits a back body drop.

JTG tags in and Cryme Tyme double team Ortiz and JoMo gets a tag in the process. Morrison comes in with a breakdancing legdrop. JTG back in and Ortiz takes over, headbutts him and tags in Charlie Haas. Haas throws JTG out but he's right back in. The faces chase off the heels out the ring before a commercial break.

Back from break and Benjamin kicks and hammerlock bodyslams JTG then tags in Haas. Armbar locked in now as the ref asks JTG is he wants to give up. JTG with forearm shots but Haas slams him down and tags in Ricky who comes in with a stomp and a hammerlock slam for 2. Ortiz shoves JTG in the corner and tags in Shelton Benjmain.

JTG and Shelton exchanging fists and Benjamin keeps him from making a tag by grabbing his leg. JTG kicks him off and nearly tags out... wait, apparently did tag out to Morrison. JoMo lands a kick to Haas' face. Shad breaks through a double team attempt by Benjamin and Ortiz and clotheslines Ortiz as Shelton ducks.

JTG takes care of Shelton over the top and it's Haas and Morrison left in the ring. Haas tries to German suplex Morrison but he lands on his feet! Haas is shocked so he charges and gets slung on the ropes, then Morrison connects with Starship Pain (split-legged corkscrew moonsault) for the win and for his team. WINNERS: John Morrison & Cryme Tyme.

Backstage Josh Matthews interviews Melina about the #1 Contender's Match between Gail Kim & Michelle McCool tonight. "All I have to say is I'm a cometitor, I came here to be the best. I showed my superiority to best on Raw that I'm the best, so now I'm going to do that on 'SmackDown!'."

Alicia Fox shows up and tells Melina that Michelle says the title will soon be hers. Melina responds with, "Can you give Michelle McCool a message from me? Tell her not to send a little girl to do a woman's job." Melina then slaps Fox and scowls at her. Breaktime.

After the break we recap highlights of another big feud... OUTSIDE THE RING between Vince McMahon and Stan Kroenke about the scheduling conflicts at the Pepsi Center for this Monday night, with the final result of Raw going to Los Angeles. Speaking of Raw, McMahon plans to call out Kroenke and there will be a 5-on-5 tag team main event.

* #1 Contender's Match for WWE Women's Championship: Michelle McCool (w/ Alicia Fox) vs. Gail Kim

At the start McCool attacks Kim in the corner. Kim comes back with a tilt-a-whirl armdrag and sends McCool outt he ring. McCool sends Kim's knee into the ringpost and locks a leglock in the ring.

In the corner Kim's knee is wrapped in the ropes but then pushes of McCool. Kim wraps around McCool with a submission called 'Flying Dragon' and Michelle's long legs reach the ropes. McCool kicks Kim and trips her down then drags her out the ring. Kim slings her on the ropes and fires at her with forearm shots. McCool kicks Kim's leg but Kim comes back with a high enziguiri. Neckbreaker for 2.

Kim goes up top but Fox interferes and Kim sends Fox into the post. McCool stops Kim on the top rope and as Kim is upside-down she grabs her and connects with the Facebreaker for 3. WINNER and NEW #1 Contender: Michelle McCool. Jim Ross will interview Rey Mysterio after this next commercial break.

This Monday night on "Raw", Ric Flair plans to call out WWE Champion Randy Orton to a fight. Jim Ross asks Rey's thoughts about defeating Chris Jericho at Judgment Day. Rey says that Jericho is an extremely talented competitor and says the victory was even more special when he hit the 619 even after Jericho promised it wouldn't happen.

He's moving on and is ready to face anybody else who is willing to fight to become Intercontinental Champion. He then names some former Latino IC champs (Pedro Morales, Tito Santana and Eddie Guerrero) and says he wants to be known as one of the greatest IC champs of all-time to honor them. J.R. then asks him why he wears a mask. Rey jokes that he's not a good-looking guy, then tells us that it's tradition and it pays homage to his heritage.

Rey tells us that he wears the mask with pride and honor and won't take it off because unmasking a luchador is the biggest dishonor. He says it even looks cool and gives him superpowers. He closes the interview by saying without his mask, he is not Rey Mysterio. Jericho's pyro and music blast and the conspiracy theorist is on his way out for a match before a commercial break.

* Chris Jericho vs. "Mr. Money-in-the-Bank" CM Punk

This is a rematch from last night's "Superstars" and we recap the match where CM Punk got the victory, with Jericho hitting the Codebreaker post-match. Jericho is smirking once we see him again but it fades as Punk's music blares through the speakers. Bell rings and here we go!

Punk starts out with kicks to the shin and back then slams Jericho down. Fans chanting for CM Punk as Jericho takes him down, then cups his ears to hear the fans. Punk ducks Jericho as he flies to the outside and drives him back-first to the ring apron's edge. Back in the ring Punk lifts Jericho for the GTS but he slips out.

Punches to the head, a kick to the back and a back suplex for 2. Punk gets headlocked and reverses it with an armdrag, dropkicks Jericho's knees and kicks him in the corner. Knee to the midsection for a 2-count. Punk tries for a springboard move but Jericho dropkicks the ropes and Punk is down as we go to commercial.

When we come back Jericho holds onto the ropes as Punk crashes onto the mat. Jericho drops himself on Punk with a senton for 2. Jericho yells at Punk in the corner before he whips him into the opposite. Both men up top and Punk headbutts Jericho and he falls but rolls through a crossbody for 2.

Punk ducked an enziguiri and rolls Jericho up in a mahistral cradle for 2. Big kick and Jericho is reeling, but connects with a second-rope dropkick as Punk rushes in for a near-fall. He tries for a bulldog but Punk pushes him off into a corner, then hits his big knee to the back of Jericho's head!

GTS countered twice and Jericho goes for the Walls, Punk reverses to a rollup for 2, then Jericho rolls BACK into the Walls of Jericho and locks it in tight! Good match! Punk crawls to the ropes calling for break. Go To Sleep CONNECTS but Jericho rolls out the ring.

Here comes Umaga! He whips Punk in the back with a strap from the apron and the ref calls for the bell. Umaga sidekicks CM Punk and he is down. WINNER by DQ: CM Punk. (There was no official announcement at the end of the match but it's pretty much clear.)

Umaga hangs Punk upside-down in a corner then uses the strap to actually tie him up then kicks Punk and hits the Samoan Spike. Umaga goes outside the ring... and asks for a microphone. Is Umaga gonna babble? NO, he's gonna actually speak! Umaga: "You think you're hurt now? Wait 'til Extreme Rules. Because, I'm issuing you a challenge. It will be a Samoan Strap Match!" Umaga then kicks Punk and whips him with the strap again while he's still upside-down.

Replays of the end of the match and then Umaga backs up the ramp babbling again as Punk lays fetal in the ring. We get a reminder for this Monday night on Raw where we'll see a 5-on-5 tag match as WWE Champ Randy Orton, Cody Rhodes, Ted DiBiase, The Miz & Big Show face Batista, John Cena, Jerry Lawler, U.S. Champion M.V.P. and a "mystery partner." Commercial.

* Dolph Ziggler vs. R-Truth

The WWE "Slam of the Night" is the beef with Dolph Ziggler and The Great Khali. Dolph comes down the ring first then Truth comes through the crowd rapping as usual. Dolph is in ring and he doesn't look too impressed with Truth. R-Truth: "Cininnati, Ohio... WHAT'S UP?!" (What's up!) Bell rings and Ziggler knocks Truth down and yells, "What's up, huh?" Truth leapfrogs and sends Dolph flying with a high hiptoss. Ziggler gets the advantage soon enough as he slams Truth down and locks in a headlock.

Truth dodges a charging Ziggler and knocks him with with a clothesline and a spinning sidekick. Flapjack and a bicycle kick for 2. Truth goes up top but Zigglercuts him off and hits his jumping reverse DDT for the victory. WINNER: Dolph Ziggler.

As Ziggler backs up the ramp The Great Khali's music plays! Ranjin Singh is alongside the giant as he chases Dolph down. Ziggler runs back in the ring and R-Truth takes him down with a spinning forearm shot. Once Khali gets in the ring Ziggler rolls out the ring and once Khali follows he scurries through the crowd out the arena. Breaktime.

We come back from commercial break and recap the battle of Layla and Eve Torres inlcuding the dance-off and arm wrestling contest, and also Eve attacking Layla with powder and a slap! Next week, Layla will go one-on-one with Eve. Backstage Edge is in Teddy Long's office talking about he will exterminate Jeff Hardy at Extreme Rules. Chris Jericho shows up and Edge reminds him that he's the champ and the face of "SmackDown!" then walks off.

Long wants to know what he wants to complain about and Jericho demands a rematch against Rey Mysterio at Extreme Rules after calling him a coward. Teddy Long tells Jericho that Rey had already asked for a rematch and wants a No Holds Barred Match. HUH? I thought Rey said he was moving on? Jeff Hardy comes out to the ring and the fans go wild before another commercial break.

* Jeff Hardy vs. {World Heavyweight Champion} Edge [non-title; winner determines stipulation for Extreme Rules]

Now to explain this match, the winner of this contest will get the opportunity to name the stipulation for the upcoming title match at Extreme Rules. After the break Edge comes out with the heavyweight title around his waist. The announcers are playing up the events of the title match at Judgment Day when Matt hit Jeff in the head with his cast and Edge executing a top-rope Edgecution on a woozy Jeff Hardy. Both men lock up and head to the coner and Jeff rolls up Edge early on.

Fans cheering "Let's go Har-dy" as he reverses Edge into another rollup for 2. Edge slides out the ring and as Jeff goes over he trips him up, but Jeff gets Edge in a side headlock. Jeff holds on as Edge tries to escape, then Edge punches Jeff in the head and he staggers.

Edge sent to the corner and Jeff slams him head 10 times on the turnbuckle and Edge slumps down. Hardy hits the low dropkick but is woozy again from the move. Edge looks on in astonishment, then boots Jeff in the head and he's down and out before a commercial break.

Back from break and Edge drops numerous knees onto a prone Hardy in the corner. Edge raises his arms to a chorus of boos. He hangs Jeff on the apron then kicks him in the head and he falls to the floor and Edge gets back in the ring. Apparently he doesn't want a count-out victory so he rolls Jeff back in the ring for a 2-count. Jeff hits Edge as he rushes in and connects with the Whisper in the Wind! A 2-count only, and Hardy fights back with flying clotheslines for a near-fall. Hardy slams Edge down and goes up top but Edge rolls away.

Legdrop deflected and Edge covers for a near-fall. Edge hits the neckbreaker another near-fall, then goes up to the second rope, flies and jumps right into a dropkick in mid-air. Hardy baseball slides into Edge to send him out the ring then hits a crossbody over the top. Back in the ring Jeff body slams him and hits a second rope legdrop for 2! Twist of Fate countered and Jeff flips over a spear attempt with a rollup. Twist of Fate countered AGAIN with a backslide for 2.

Hardy counters the Edgecution with the Twist of Fate but struggles to the top rope... and Edge gets up to cut him off. Edge climbs up going for a top-rope Edgecution but Jeff knocks him down, hits the Swanton, and gets the win! (Too bad these events couldn't play out this way at Judgment Day for Jeff.) WINNER: Jeff Hardy.

With this win, Jeff Hardy can now name the stipulation for the title match at Extreme Rules. Todd Grisham congratulates him and asks him what the stip will be. Jeff: "Todd, at Extreme Rules, I will not be painting. I will not be cleaning gutters. I will not be changing bulbs.

What I will be doing is climbing a LADDER to become the World Heavyweight Champion!" Todd officially announces a Ladder Match for the World title at the next PPV. We replay the Swanton and then see Edge backing up the ramp while Hardy celebrates in the ring as we go off the air!
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