WWE House Show Results from Raleigh, North Carolina 6-17-07
Submitted by Calvin Martin on Monday, June 18, 2007 at 12:47 PM EST





Report sent in by Thomas Gidlow

I sat front row near the steel steps. The ring looked like it had time traveled from 2002. There was actually dust flying during the first match.

This took place at the RBC Center in Raleigh, NC. Lower bowl was mostly full.

Match 1: Cryme Time vs. World's Greatest Tag Team

Crowd was really badgering Haas and Benjamin throughout the contest. JTG was beaten up for most of the match until the hot tag to Shad. Typical tag-team stuff. The kiddies love Cryme Time. They didn't even notice my "Cryme Time Stole My Dad's Ticket" sign. Cryme Time wins via pinfall at around the 15:00 mark.

Match 2: Chuck Palumbo vs. Carlito

Chuck comes down to the ring a la bad-ass Undertaker in a Harley. Carlito gets mostly cheers and led offensively for most of the bout by taking out the bigger Palumbo's legs. Carlito attempted a figure-four leglock (to the crowd's delight) but couldn't get the hold applied. Chuck used some sort of modified running slam and gets the win via pinfall around the 15:00 mark. After the match, Chuck spun out his tires, leaving a nice smoke cloud around those of us in the front few rows. Carlito looked dazed and tried to climb over the barricade on his way to the back.

Match 3: Melina (c) vs. Mickie James -- Women's Championship
Special Referee: Val Venis

Melina entered first and did her usual entrance (I liked it better when she wore a skirt...). Mickie comes down the aisle to a nice reaction. Big Val patted down the ladies before the match. Melina played to the crowd a lot and did her trademark 'scream'. I thought this was better that most women's tilts I've seen on TV. Both were very lively and entertaining. Melina retains via rollup with her foot on the ropes at the 10:00 mark.

Match 4: Bobby Lashley vs. Umaga

Lashley is freaking huge in person. First time I'd seen him live. On his way to the ring, he nearly knocked me over when he gave me a high-five. Anyway, crowd was hot for Lashley and equally hot with their hatred of Umaga. About the same stuff you'd see in their typical match, although they went a bit longer than I thought they would. Of course, their were a few "Rosey" chants as well. Lashley wins with a spear and the pin near the 18:00 mark. After the match Umaga remained and sold his defeat. Someone said something to him and he got up and said, "It's all good". I thought that was hilarious.

INTERMISSION

Match 5: Santino Marella (c) vs. Snitsky -- Intercontinental Championship

Snitsky dominated the short match. Santino got a few kicks in, but that was about it. Big Baldy went for a big boot but got caught up in the ropes. Santino rolled him up, got the win and retained at the 4:00 mark. After the bout, Snitsky proceeded to beat up the IC champ and held the title high before dropping it to the canvas. Crowd tried to get into it, but it was just a glorified squash.

Maria came out and shot T-shirts into the crowd. She was smoking hot! She couldn't get the shooter to fire, so Eugene came down to help. After they ran out of shirts, she started to take hers off when Ron Simmons appeared. She took off the shirt and did a little dance. And of course, we got a "DAMN!"

Match 6: The Hardy's vs Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch (c) -- Tag Team Championship

The champs came down first to some huge heat. The hometown crowd went crazy when the Hardy's followed. Before the match, Murdoch got into a shouting match with someone in the front row. It turned out to be Matt and Jeff's dad! Murdoch got so upset he nearly got over the barricade before Cade escorted him back to the ring. About three minutes in, The Hardy's cleared the ring and Cade & Murdoch took their titles from the timekeeper and proceeded towards the exit. Matt and Jeff followed and dragged them back to the ring. The champs got the upper hand and made frequent tags, isolating Jeff. Matt finally got the hot tag and swung the momentum back to the challengers. Both Hardy's then got to the top ropes and the crowd went absolutely nuts. They both hit flying elbows, and then scored a near-fall seconds later. Eventually Cade and Murdoch regained control, but they got Jeff in their corner and broke the ref's 5-count. The Hardy's won via DQ at the 25:00 mark, but Cade & Murdoch retained the tag titles. After the match, the crowd went insane when the announcer announced the decision. They thought Matt and Jeff won the tag belts! Jeff hit a Swanton Bomb, and Matt hit his Twist of Fate. The champs then staggered to the back while the Hardy's remained in the ring. They brought their dad inside the ropes and wished him a happy Fathers Day. They obviously knew a lot of people in the front few rows because they stopped and hugged a few people and had brief conversations with them. Excellent match with a great reaction from the crowd.

Match 7: John Cena (c) vs. Randy Orton -- WWE Championship

I got to admit, I marked out big time for Randy Orton. First time I had ever seen him this close up. He had his middle three fingers taped up and had a lady in the front row kiss it so it would feel better! Out comes Cena to the biggest pop of the night. Randy grabs a mic and says he can't wrestle because of his fingers. I couldn't hear much of the rest of it, but he brought down Dan Rodman to take his place. Rodman had control early, but Cena took over rather quickly. Nothing special to this one. Cena retained with an FU at the 8:00 mark. Orton then ran into the ring and berated the referee into giving him another match. Cena is still on the mat from the last match. The bell rings and we have another title match! Orton controlled early and middle portions of the match. He took Cena to the outside and threw him into the steel steps right in front of me! The fans around me were telling Cena to get up, and he said "I know, I know" or something to that affect. Orton gets him back into the ring, gets Cena's legs on the ropes, and hits a DDT. Orton sets up for his "Concussion Special" and runs toward the champ, but misses. Cena starts his end-of-match routine and sets up for the FU. Orton counters and tries an RKO, but Cena pushes him out of the way. Cena gets Orton down and locks in the STFU. Orton looks like he's going to tap, but reaches the bottom rope. Cena pulls him up, and out of nowhere Orton hits the RKO! Both men lay motionless on the mat. Orton finally goes for the cover, but only gets a "2". Cena gets Randy towards the ropes and picks him up. He's going for an FU over the top rope! Randy holds the ropes and Cena lets go. They trade punches and Cena picks him up again, this time hitting the FU. Ballgame. Cena retains again, via pinfall around the 21:00 mark. Orton staggers to the back and Cena poses with the title.


All in all, I thought it was a great show. There was no mention of Vince McMahon (thank God), the fans were really into it, and most of the matches were timed pretty well. It was my first house show, and I must say I was impressed. I really enjoyed listening to the wrestlers talk to each other. Lots of codes going back and forth.

BIGGEST POPS
1a. John Cena
1b. The Hardy's
3. Bobby Lashley

BIGGEST HEAT
1. Cade and Murdoch
2. Randy Orton (for making it look like he wasn't going to compete)
3. Umaga








*NEW GALLERY* Very COOL and RARE Photos of WWE Stars and Divas OUT PARTYING!

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