I just got back from the Raw house show in Hershey and thought I’d let you know what went down.
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William Regal started the show, running down the card before heading to the back.
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The Highlanders def. Shelton Benjamin & Charlie Haas- Very good opening tag match. Both teams surprisingly seem to have a chemistry with one another. Nice pop for Shelton’s entrance into the match. End saw Rory McAllister pin Haas for the win. **3/4
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Snitsky def. Val Venis- Short, inoffensive squash. DUD
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Cody Rhodes def. Davairi- WWE definitely did the right thing introducing Cody through Dusty because the people are behind him and genuinely want him to win. Pretty good match with Rhodes looking very crisp and clean on the majority of his moves, including a nice snap bodyslam on Davairi. Finish came with a DDT courtesy of Rhodes.
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William Regal def. Johnny Jeter- Jeter has completely changed his looks from his Spirit Squad days, going for a more long blonde hair look. Regal and Jeter worked well together and, if I’m WWE, I schedule Regal with the OVW guys every weekend so he can teach them on the job. A few unfounded “boring” chants towards the end kind of made for a quick finish, which saw Regal take Jeter out with the running knee to the head. **1/2
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Women’s Champion Candice Michelle def. Beth Phoenix– There’s no words that can describe how much Candice has improved in the last six months. The crowd was extremely hot for Candice. Solid, competitive match that saw Beth work over the back for the majority before Candice made her comeback and ended with the Candie Wrapper. Another nice surprise on a pre-PPV house show. **1/2
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After a very brief intermission, Maria came to the ring and threw t-shirts to the crowd.
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Cryme Tyme def. World Tag Team Champions Lance Cade & Trevor Murdoch by disqualification- Cryme Tyme got a huge pop from the crowd while Murdoch and Cade received a nice amount of heat. Murdoch tried to convey how “fairly” he and Cade had won the tag titles and how the two cowboys were sportsman but it didn’t work. Decent tag match that didn’t have as much time as the earlier match with the Highlanders vs. TWGTT but still good for what it was. Murdoch was caught as he was about to use a chair on JTG and, thus, disqualified. Cryme Tyme took Murdoch out with the Drive By to win the crowd back. *1/2
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Intercontinental Champion Umaga def. Carlito and Mr. Kennedy- All three men received a surprisingly huge pop. Kennedy tried his normal intro with the mic from the ceiling but there was none so Justin Roberts placed the normal microphone in his hand during a second try. Carlito and Kennedy worked to try and take Umaga out but it didn’t work out all that well. End saw Carlito take out Kennedy with the Back Stabber before Umaga landed the Samoan Spike on Carlito for the win. **1/2
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WWE Champion John Cena def. Randy Orton– Words cannot express the experience of seeing John Cena live. I was at Wrestlemania 22 and almost forgot what the reaction is like. I was reminded pretty quickly. A huge pop, turning into a somewhat mixed reaction. Easily more pro than against, however. And if there is ever a time when people ask why WWE keeps the belt on Cena, go see the Raw brand live and wait for the main event. You’ll understand the minute Cena’s music hits. The match itself was pay-per-view quality and, if we get the same match at tommorrow night at SummerSlam, it’ll easily be worthy of the main event slot. Very sound technical work from Orton, who seems to be really motivated. Closing moments saw Orton try for the running kick to the head, only for Cena to roll out of the way and catch Orton with the FU. ***1/2, easily.
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Final Thoughts: Very, very good show. I was expecting a sub-par show because of SummerSlam being tomorrow night but the show easily surpassed my expectations. Top to bottom, it was a solid night of WRESTLING, a concept that seems to be missing.
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Top Pops:
1. John Cena2. Mr. Kennedy
3. Umaga
4. Cody Rhodes
5. Candice Michelle
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Top Heat:
1. William Regal
2. Lance Cade & Trevor Murdoch
3. John Cena4. Mr. Kennedy
5. Davairi
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–By Erik Beaston