The Raw Report (02/05/07): Taker Decides his Wrestlemania 23 Opponent
Submitted by Chad Matthews on Monday, February 5, 2007 at 9:17 PM EST





The Raw Report (02/05/07)

A recap video of Taker winning the Rumble, showing up on Raw and ECW, and Batista demanding a decision on SD was shown…


The show opened with the Undertaker making his first complete Raw entrance in nearly five years. Once he reached the ring, he removed his jacket and hat. He then paced around the ring until WWE Champion John Cena made his entrance. ECW Champion Bobby Lashley was out next. World Heavyweight Champion Batista completed the champion’s triumvirate. With all three World Champions in the ring, the attention turned toward who the Deadman would face at Mania. Taker looked at all three of them, individually. Some of the crowd chanted for Cena. The Deadman eventually signaled, via cut throat gesture, that he’d be facing Batista. HBK then quickly rushed to the ring with a microphone. He said it was obvious that Taker had made his decision, leaving WWE Champ John Cena without an opponent. Randy Orton came out and said that he’d be challenging Cena for the title at Mania. He said he wasn’t asking for it, he was demanding it. Edge followed suit, met Orton at the ramp, and said that he takes precedent over everyone else because he is undefeated at Wrestlemania. The crowd chanted “You Suck” at Edge, who said it was his God-given right to challenge for the title whether anyone liked it or not. At that point, Vince McMahon came to the top of the ramp and talked trash about the state of Iowa. Vince noted how no one was challenging Bobby Lashley. He said that maybe that’s because Lashley was the best champion. Vince went on to announce that Lashley would defend his title tonight on Raw. As for the WWE title, Cena’s opponent would be determined tonight. Tonight, it’ll be Orton vs. Edge vs. HBK for the right to face Cena at Wrestlemania 23. Vince said he wasn’t going to drop money from the ceiling, but the triple threat #1 contender match was definitely giving away quite a bit of value. After all the Raw guys exited, Batista and Taker were still in the ring. Batista started to leave the ring, but pivoted around and met Taker in the center of the ring for a stare down. The WHC raised his belt in the air, but Taker chokeslammed and left him lying in the ring. (CMV1 note- Solid opening segment with some great Wrestlemania implications. We’ll have two matches signed after tonight. Taker and Bats got their program started simply enough and the triple threat main-event should be quite good)


Match 1: Carlito (w/ Torrie) and Cryme Tyme vs. The World’s Greatest Tag Team and Chris Masters
-Carlito and Masters, TWGTT and Cryme Tyme darted toward each other to kick off the wrestling action for the night. Shelton and JTG ended up paired off in the ring. JTG caught him with a Lou Thesz press, but Shelton came back with a series of knee lifts. Charlie Haas tagged in, fought off a few back elbows from JTG, and tossed the Cryme Tymer across the ring with a belly-to-belly suplex. Masters came in and used his power for a moment, and then tagged Haas back into the match. Haas knocked Shad off the apron and tried for a vertical suplex on JTG. JTG countered, though, and tagged Carlito. CCC connected on a double springboard back elbow on TWGTT. Masters tried to put him in the Masterlock, but Carlito countered. Shad came in and clotheslined Masters over the top rope. Carlito proceeded to take down Haas with a hurricanrana. He tried to follow with a roll-up, but Masters distracted the ref. The distraction allowed Shelton to drop Carlito with a running somersault into a neckbreaker. Haas capitalized and made the pin. TWGTT and Masters won the 6-man tag at 3:03. (CMV1 rating- ¾ *) (CMV1 note- very entertaining, but painfully short…nonetheless, if you are going to show a 3-minute match, it should always be that fast-paced)


A recap of last week’s “Mr. McMahon Fan Appreciation Night” and Donald Trump’s Titantron appearance (complete w/ money being dropped from the arena’s ceiling) was shown…


Backstage, Vince told Coach that last week’s cash storm was the cheapest thing a billionaire could do. Kenny came in and asked McMahon if he could face Lashley. Dykstra got his title match. Coach handed Vince a letter from Trump. McMahon read the letter out loud. Donald Trump will be on Raw next week and will present McMahon with a business proposal that will change Vince’s life forever. VKM teased that Trump might be joining the Kiss My Ass Club.


Further backstage, Maria interviewed Ric Flair. Flair hyped Batista-Taker, the triple threat #1 contender match, and talked of his passion for Mania. The Nature Boy told Jeff Hardy to be ready for their match tonight…


Even further backstage, Candice told Melina she’d be the next Women’s Champion…Johnny Nitro walked over and told her that she didn’t need to worry about Super Crazy. He kissed her for good luck in her Women’s title match…


Match 2: Balls Mahoney vs. Umaga (w/ Armando Alejandro Estrada)
-(CMV1 note- Balls Mahoney was waiting in the ring after a commercial break. Coach said that Vince had been having problems with ECW Originals). Balls tried to get his offense going, but Umaga took control and dominated the ECW Extremist. Umaga dropped him with a Samoan Drop and then rammed his head with a running rear splash. The finish came when Umaga connected with the Samoan Spike for the win. Umaga defeated Balls at 1:52. (CMV1 rating- ¼ *). (CMV1 note- interesting little feud they’ve started b/t McMahon and the ECW Originals. Could that be what they have in store for the ECW guys at Mania? Meaning, will McMahon put some WWE/ECW stars in his mold against the old guard?)


Match 3: Johnny Nitro (w/ Melina) vs. Super Crazy (w/ Mickie James)
-Nitro scored first strike points and connected with a European uppercut. He mounted Crazy for several punches and followed with a falling neckbreaker. Crazy came back with a roll-up out of a leapfrog in the corner, but Nitro regained momentum with an STO-backbreaker combo and a side Russian leg sweep. Nitro applied a neck vice soon after, but Crazy escaped and scored with a low dropkick. Melina grabbed Crazy’s foot and allowed Nitro to score a near fall with a roll-up. Mickie returned the favor and tripped up Nitro, allowing Crazy to take control with a series of dropkicks, a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker, and a bodyslam to set-up the moonsault from the top rope. Nitro recovered and met Crazy at the top turnbuckle. However, Crazy pushed him off and connected on the moonsault for the win. Crazy defeated Nitro at 3:00. (CMV1 rating- ½ *) (CMV1 note- solid, fast-paced action…does this mean a push for Crazy or a de-push for Nitro?).


Match 4: Women’s Champion Mickie James (w/ Super Crazy) vs. Melina (w/ Johnny Nitro)
-Mickie took Melina down to the mat. They rolled around the ring. Mickie took control with a series of forearm shots. Melina grabbed Mickie’s hair. The crowd chanted for Mickie, who grabbed a hammerlock. Melina countered with a spinning toe hold. Mickie came back with a nifty monkey flip. Melina tried to retreat to the outside, but Mickie followed. The challenger took advantage and hung up Mickie’s neck on the top rope. Melina used a short side kick to score a near fall. Mickie came back with an armdrag and a semi-botched hair pull throw. The ladies then traded blows in the middle of the ring until Mickie regained control with a series of hair pull drops. A sloppy sequence ensued, with Mickie scoring with her head scissor maneuver. Meanwhile, Crazy took out Nitro. Melina grabbed Mickie and tossed her out of the ring. Mickie fought back and climbed to the top rope. She came off into a sunset flip pinning combo, but Melina countered into a pinning combo of her own. She tried to use the ropes for leverage, but the ref caught her. Mickie surprised her with a quick pin. Mickie retained at 4:43. After the match, the paparazzi tried to take Melina’s picture, but Nitro shooed them away. (CMV1 rating- ½ *) (CMV1 note- sloppy, but it had good heat and they put forth commendable effort. In my opinion, it’s going to be awhile before these two can rise to the level of Trish and Lita, but this could be the next great Women’s title feud)


Backstage, Cena approached HBK backstage. Michaels said he knew that Cena wanted to wish him luck since it was apparent that HBK-Cena would be a classic Mania match. Cena said that wasn’t the reason and said he wanted Edge to win tonight because he knows he can kick Edge’s ass. Rather, he wanted to wish HBK good health since they were the World Tag Champions together…


Raw is on Thursday night next week…(CMV1 note- damn dog show)…


Match 5: Intercontinental Champion Jeff Hardy vs. Ric Flair
-(CMV1 note- this was a non-title match, but if Flair wins, then he gets a title shot at Wrestlemania). The crowd chanted for Hardy as the match got underway. Hardy took Flair down with a shoulder tackle. Flair retaliated with a tiger spin, but Jeff slapped him. Naitch backed him into the corner and scored with a few knife edge chops. Jeff leapfrogged out of the opposite corner and hurt his knee in the process. Flair, like a shark smelling blood in the water, went right after Hardy’s newly injured limb. The 16-time champion went after Hardy’s left leg relentlessly. The crowd again chanted for Hardy. Flair kept Hardy grounded with a series of leg submissions, but his celebratory nature allowed Hardy to catch him with an enziguiri. Jeff followed with a jawbreaker and a back drop. He then barely connected with the Whisper in the Wind. The Twist of Fate followed, but when Hardy went for the Swanton Bomb, Flair moved out of the way. The crowd chanted for Flair. Naitch went back to work on Jeff’s injured leg and went for the Figure Four. However, Hardy countered into an inside cradle for the win. Hardy defeated Flair at 5:43. Flair and Hardy shook hands after the match. (CMV1 rating- * ¼) (CMV1 note- good match…it speaks a lot for how over Hardy is when he gets that kind of reaction against Flair)


Wrestlemania 23 is 55 days away!!!


Backstage, Todd Grisham interviewed Batista. The World Heavyweight Champ said he had no problem with Taker giving him a chokeslam or teaming with him at No Way Out, because payback is a bitch and he’d successfully retain his title at Wrestlemania.


Match 6: ECW Champion Bobby Lashley vs. Kenny Dykstra
-(CMV1 note- they gave them the pre-match, championship fight style intros). Lashley tried for a single leg take down, but Kenny backed up into the ropes. Bobby pushed Kenny into the turnbuckle, but Kenny used a series of counters to bob and weave his way out of contact. Lashley eventually tossed Dykstra over the top rope. Back in the ring, Bobby tossed Kenny across the ring and into the corner. The ECW champ went on to toss Kenny back out of the ring. On the outside, Kenny scored with a quick and low dropkick to the knee that sent Lashley crashing face-first into the steel ramp. Back in the ring, Kenny maintained momentum with basic offense. Dykstra scored with a jumping back elbow and then synched on a rear chinlock. Lashley battled to his feet, but Kenny applied a sleeper hold. Bobby tried for a back drop, but Kenny countered and landed on his feet. Lashley then took his head off with a hard clothesline. He followed with an exploder suplex, but Kenny came back with a dropkick that sent Bobby out of the ring. We then got a surprising mid-match commercial break, and I must admit that wasn’t expected. Back from the break, Kenny had Lashley in a modified front facelock. During the break, Lashley ran shoulder-first into the ring post. Back to live action, Lashley fought back to his feet, but Kenny hammered him right back down and re-applied the modified facelock. Lashley again battled to his feet, picked Kenny up and threw him across the ring. He threw him across the ring again and connected with a stalling vertical suplex. The champ then geared up for a spear, but Kenny countered with a big boot. Lashley came back, Goldberg-style, with a military press into a powerslam. 1…2…3! Lashley retained at 10:12. (CMV1 rating- **) (CMV1 note- the fact that it lasted that long was surprising. The match was more competitive than I expected)


Backstage, Edge said he needed to talk to Orton. Orton said not to even bother, for tonight’s goal was to win and get some personal success. Edge said he didn’t need to hear that. He said they should just make sure it wasn’t HBK who walked out the winner.


Further backstage, Carlito and Torrie were headed out on the town when they bumped into Flair. Flair chastised Carlito for being lazy and underachieving. He said guys like Carlito walk around wanting the money and glory, but they don’t want to pay the price and work their ass off to get it. As Carlito stood there looking stunned, Flair continued by saying that he was walking around trying to figure out who he was so he could prove to Vince that he was worthy of staying with the WWE, while guys like Carlito lose a match and then go out on the town with women like Torrie like nothing happened. He said Carlito should be watching the main-event tonight, not leaving. Flair stormed off and left Carlito and Torrie speechless. (CMV1 note- that was an excellent promo from Flair…especially since the internet rap on Carlito is that he’s lazy and is content making his money without having to go that extra mile. It almost seemed like a shoot promo…and in a way I’m guessing it was intended to motivate Carlito).


Match 7: Shawn Michaels vs. Randy Orton vs. Edge
-(CMV1 note- the winner faces Cena at Wrestlemania for the WWE title). Edge and Orton ganged up on HBK as the opening bell sounded. They took turns stomping him. The crowd erupted in a big “HBK” chant. Orton whipped Michaels hard into the turnbuckle. Edge posed for the crowd. HBK came back with a double clothesline, a pair of inverted atomic drops, and a flying forearm on Edge. He threw Orton out of the ring and went to the top rope for the flying elbow on Edge. Randy got up to the apron and pushed HBK off the top rope, though. Orton and Edge disposed of Michaels. As Edge taunted HBK, Orton poised for the RKO. Edge turned around and noticed before Orton could attempt his finisher. We then got a dreaded mid-match commercial break, but that was to be expected. Back from the break, Edge had Michaels in a sleeper hold. Orton charged them, but Edge and HBK gave him a back drop over the top rope. HBK then countered out of the sleeper into a back drop on Edge. Michaels followed with a baseball slide on Orton and a Lou Thesz press on Edge. Edge came back with a big boot to HBK’s face. The Rated-R Superstar wailed on HBK with a series of hard right hands. He scored with a backbreaker and a body slam before heading to the top turnbuckle. HBK got to his feet and met Edge at the top. Orton came back into the ring. Edge knocked Michaels off the top, but HBK got back to his feet and knocked Edge off the top rope and to the outside. Orton snuck up behind Michaels and gave him his patented backbreaker. Randy followed with a jumping knee drop. The crowd chanted for HBK again. Orton scored with a dropkick for a near fall. The Legend Killer continued his assault with a pair of European uppercuts. When Orton went for a third, though, HBK countered into a backslide for a near fall. As HBK reached his feet, Orton recovered and nailed him with the RKO. 1…2…No! Edge pulled him off the cover! Orton and Edge then came to blows. After trading punches, Orton went for the RKO. Edge countered and set-up for the spear, but Orton jumped over it. They eventually collided in the middle of the ring with simultaneous cross body blocks. With his opponents down, HBK climbed to the top rope and drilled Edge with the flying elbow drop. Michaels got back to his feet and tuned up the band for Sweet Chin Music. The finish came when Edge ducked the superkick. Orton was right behind Edge, but he caught HBK’s foot and spun him around just in time for Edge’s oncoming spear. However, HBK moved out of the way and sent Edge into Orton. Michaels followed with the superkick on Edge and then pinned Orton. HBK became #1 contender to the WWE title at 12:25. After the match, Cena joined HBK in the ring. They stared a hole thru each other until Batista’s music hit and the WHC came to the ramp. HBK and Cena stared at Batista, at which point Undertaker came up thru the side ramp. The Deadman met up with Batista for a face-to-face stare down, but their gazes quickly turned to their No Way Out opponents. (CMV1 rating- ** ¾) (CMV1 note- damn good match that set-up two matches…Orton-Edge and Cena-HBK. Orton and Edge got a nice reaction to their confrontation, so that’s a good sign. HBK-Cena is now signed and sealed)




All in all…Well, February brought the first really good Raw of the year. We got two matches signed for Wrestlemania, a nice main-event, and a lot of solid wrestling. The ECW title match and Flair-Hardy matches complimented the main-event nicely. The wrestling was just, in general, better paced than usual. We had some short matches, as usual, but they were faster paced tonight. My usual problem with the short matches is that they are slow and boring. Anyhow, the Wrestlemania build was nice, McMahon didn’t spend too much time blabbing about Donald Trump, and everything seemed to have a purpose. Not to be underscored was the solid opening segment and the passionate Flair promo prior to the main-event. I’d say this Raw rated a rock solid 6.5/10 …





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