Raw Thoughts - Feb 17

· Practical explanation to the Edge as champ issue, and nice to see that he and John Cena have the chemistry they had previously. Loved Edge’s arrogant promo which riled the crowd in attendance, and I always like it when Cena plays humble, and does the opposite of the thing he was bemoaning –is courteous and deferential, then says “I’ll beat you next time”. I think that makes the man all the better babyface. If he just gets in the ring, shouts at Edge and hits him with a Fattitude Udjustment (not a typo) he is no better than the heels.
· Shane challeneges Randy to an ‘unsanctioned fight’? Ugh. Please say it ain’t so.
· Not sure I like the quick naming of Cryme Tyme and CM Punk as “CTP”. Highly unlikely Cole and Lawler would come up with that so quickly without being told to. And is it the right kind of link-up? Cole even mentioned Punk as Straightedge during the match, so should the allegedly clean cut fella be linking up with the petty criminals?
· I don’t like the fact that they only ever use the weaker of Roddy Piper’s theme music s – they must have the other one because they don’t cut it out of old DVDs – but very happy to see the Rowdy one back.
· There you go, what did I just say about Cena? That’s why Cena was nice to Edge and played the sensible babyface, because Jericho was going to cut the rug from under Piper. From Lawler’s comments I expect him t get involved at some point too.
· Piper’s promo was tremendous. It will be well-received online, although might not go over brilliantly with the targeted younger audience who won’t know who Mr T and Adrian Adonis were.
· I typically watch Raw on my Sky+ (That’s like TiVo to those in the States) and type while I watch. Sometimes these thoughts and sometimes other work I do. Right now, as I type, I’ve paused it, because I just sat open mouthed watching Piper. I was captivated by it. Beautifully pitched, and it made me realise something else.
· Although he obviously did a dastardly thing in kicking Piper’s leg out from under him and so forth, there is a prospect of turning Jericho babyface with this. I’m not recommending this, because it’s basically Orton, Edge and Jericho as major heels in the company (with JBL not far behind but not able to back it up with interesting wrestling) and that’s it. Jericho would be a babyface too many unless one or two men were to make the opposite transition. However, it they wanted to bring Jericho back as a face, the set up is there for Jericho to lose to a legend or narrowly beat one at Mania, and then realise his ills.
· Let’s book Noble v Santino for Mania. Winner leaves town.
· If JBL is going to arrive in the main arena in a limo, wouldn’t it be best if they don’t show him WALKING backstage?
· Nice to see HBK back and a nice little set-up for Wrestlemania. Taker v JBL made sense until Shawn’s music played. I’m not saying I want to see it, but I know that they are real-life friends, so it isn’t completely unlikely. The only thing I’d say from a business point of view is that I don’t see anyone buying the show for Taker v JBL, whereas I do with Shawn v Taker. I also don’t see anyone buying JBL as being able to beat Undertaker. It’s slightly more likely that Shawn could beat him. And what a great match that could be.
· Rey is out next, and I feel I ought to say something about him that I didn’t really say enough at No Way Out. I thought Rey was amazing in the chamber match. Regulars will know that I’m not really a big Mysterio fan, that much of his work is too contrived. But he was superb in the chamber, and he deserves huge credit for that. I suspect he will be the star of the Money in the Bank, too.
· Ugh, horrible ending to the Divas title match. The three-diva run-in was awkward, and then the cameras basically missed the finish. Weak, weak ending, and I feel really sorry for Beth and Melina, who were doing fine, and have had a bunch of really good matches before now.
· Wow, what to say about that final segment? So much by way of good stuff, so much also ruined. Some things ruined by poor acting, some by poor execution.
· Firstly, the fight, I suppose, did it’s job. It was basically a set up for Orton to punt Shane, but I’m not sure he should have had Legacy’s help to take Shane out, but we’ll allow it for now.
· I’m not crazy about the neck brace and screaming family member thing, because it is a bit uncomfortable, but it is a reasonably accepted part of wrestling, so again let’s allow it. Steph’s acting is so poor, I’m afraid. All her facials are too forced and exaggerated. (And by the way, this is not part of the usual Internet bashing of Steph. All those who hide behind a forum avatar and slag her off for her writing or what she is like don’t know the ins and outs of how backstage works – neither do I, for that matter. Also, most people I’ve spoken to who actually KNOW Stephanie generally comment about how nice she is. They hint that she is pretty ruthless, but most like her.)
· The RKO? Perfect. That was unexpected, to me, and Stephanie took it very well indeed. It might well have ended the show, I think. Going off air on that would have been a good hook. Will Orton get punished next week? For dramatic effect you could even have had Steph coming to and whispering to those coming to her aid “he never made it”. Speculation would then be about who “he” is. Of course we’d all know it was The Game, but we can play along sometimes.
· So I wouldn’t have had Triple H come running down to send Legacy scattering. I certainly wouldn’t have had him shaking his head like he was have an epileptic fit. More ridiculous over-acting, and frankly I expect better from Triple H. It just made it all really cartoony. Less is more in those situations.
· I just feel that you could have got two weeks of endings out of this situation. End Raw on Orton smashing Steph and doing his IED reaction. Triple H could then do his gallant hero bit the following week, giving a huge babyface moment to send the evil heel cowering. Much better Trips makes Orton recoil than Shane.
· One final point – proof that Steph cannot be an effective babyface. If you have the footage, go and watch the RKO again. Tell me that isn’t a huge cheer.

No Way Out - Live Blog

00.59am
Good morning, good evening, good afternoon, wherever you are in the world, and welcome to my No Way Out ongoing blog.

Comments during my last effort, the Royal Rumble live notes, asked for a little more detail on who won matches and how, so I'll endeavour to do that. If you have any suggestions, questions, predictions, joke, observations or anything, feel free to contribute - robthegreen(@)hotmail.com is the email address to use.


01.02am
Decent opening video, as it usually is. encapsulated what we needed to know - although if you didn't know and you are watching the show, whats up with you??

By the way, this will be the last live blog for about two months, because (whisper it) I'M GOING TO WRESTLEMANIA. Not really a whisper, that, was it? Anyway, yes, there will be no Mania live blog because I will be in Houston, Texas on that day. Sorry about that.

Actually, I'm not really sorry. I'm going to Mania, baby!


01.04am
I was expecting 'diddly-dee' style Irish fiddles and pennywhistles to open this show. Not an ominous BONG! The only person who would have expected this night to start with a bong would have been RVD.

Chamber to start, then, and the match I had pegged for main event is on first. So, will this point to the Raw chamber having a shocking twist and not be Cena emerging victorious? Or maybe Orton and Shane on last with something major happening there?

Don't forget at this event last year Floyd Mayweather turned up and clocked Big Show. No-one expected that at all.


01.08am
Speaking of Big Show, here he comes, and my attention turns to whether my fantasy booking of this one works out. I'm bound to get something wrong,because I said Taker and Trips would start, I think. Oh well.

No time for an attack on Jeff before this match, either. Maybe Matt will show up during it?


01.12am
Jeff and Edge to start then. Hardy survives the opening pyro, which is a bonus. Interesting to see that Jeff starts, so perhaps can use the excuse that he got punished throughout, where others didn't wrestle as long, if he doesn't win the match.

Also interesting to see that Edge, who you might feel (I certainly did) might be set to enter late and play up using his stroke with the GM.

Presumably they've asked the two more mobile workers to last the duration and have the rest make impacts in snatches. I don't expect Koslov to last long.


01.20am
Damn! Do you think Edge has failed a wellness policy test or something? A fast start, including an early Twist of Fate and failed Swanton by Jeff set Edge for a spear. Hardy countered it into a cool looking small package and pinned him. Edge is gone.

Some might call this short-sighted. Right now I call it shocking, and a moment I genuinely gasped at. We're going to have a new champion.

Koslov is next.


01.23am
I make it another minute or so before a new guys comes in. Koslov has dominated this section. Crowd are chanting for Undertaker.


01.26am
Show comes in next with both Koslov and Hardy down. Show dominates Hardy, then Koslov is up, but the big guys work together. Pace has slowed to a walk from a blistering start. Triple H and Undertaker major, major favourites now.


01.31am
Triple H is in. Just a small point about commentary. JR called the Harley Race Knee as he often does, but then went with the "Double A Spinebuster" when Hunter levelled The Big Show.

Not only did the move look awful because Show jumped into the Game's arms, but the whole point of the "Double A" reference in the spinebuster is that Arn Anderson used to turn through 180 degrees to hit the move. Triple H didn't. I know that's really picky, but I hate calls like that. JR is still the best, but I wish he a) wouldn't be so predictable and b) if he is going to be predictable, at least be accurate.

More action going on now, although the pace still isn't that quick. Perhaps because of Show. He does not look in good shape.


01.35am
Taker in, and wow, what an entrance. Bursting to get out of his pod, straight into Big Show, and then a stiff kick for Koslov after the big Russian didn't go high enough for Snake Eyes. All Taker right now. I still think Trips will win, though.


01.38am
And there goes Koslov, pinned by Undertaker. Sorry to be picky again, but I am often a critic of Undertaker's matches (not necessarily the man himself) because they are so formulaeic. When are his foes going to learn to not mount the ropes for the ten-punch in the corner, since it always ends in the last ride.

Show on top as I type, after stiff looking bumps by Triple H and Jeff Hardy on the steel outside the ring.


01.43am
And there goes Big Show. Undertaker with a great superplex from the corner/pod, then a pedigree sets up Show in position for a Swanton by Jeff from the top of a pod, after he had logically ended up there. The second great spot of the match, and Triple H covers to eliminate Show.

Down to the three most likely contenders, really. Triple H is taking a beating, by the way.


01.45am
I seem to remember this happening last year, actually, in the Smackdown chamber. It started real slow and plodding (ignore the Edge elimination for a second) before ending really well. We've just seen a great combination which got rid of Jeff Hardy.

Taker got crotched on the ropes trying an old school, with Jeff in the ring and Trips on the outside. Taker on all fours meant a springboard for Jeff to hit the od poetry in motion to the outside on The Game, but Jeff leaning back on the ropes meant Taker could flip him over and pedigree him. Awesome looking spot, and they've done well with Jeff, because he hasn't looked weak.

Anyway think he'll beat Matt at Mania then go to Raw? Hardy v Cena, Hardy v Orton, Hardy v HBK. All appetising contests and feuds. .


01.50am
I was about to lessen the mark for this match (not that I grade them) for basically stealing last year's finish of Batista and Taker with UT using the ropes to roll into a Tombstone, but Trips got a foot on the ropes. Taker now kicks out of a Pedigree, and we are still going here. Crowd are very pro-Taker - first boos for Hunter in months.


01.52am
It's over. Triple H wins and is champion once again. Step one of the plan to take Randy to Smackdown goes in, if you believe that particular theory. Triple H, the cerebral assassin, went with the aforementioned punches-in-the-corner-into-last-ride combo, but evaded the powerbomb and hit a second pedigree with Taker sold terrifically. Match over.

Nearly an hour for the segment of the first match, 35-40 mins being the bout itself. If the Raw chamber goes that long then the 5-match card is a great decision.


01.54am
Correspondance to bring to you - Colin in Fife writes.....

Rob, how's it going mate? You're doing well already I see! Trips kicks out of a chokeslam, gets the leg up on a tombstone and Taker has just kicked out of a pedigree! Anyone would think you had inside info.....

Anyway, I'm wondering if I'll get to the end of this email before HHH gets the win??!!

Answer, Colin, not quite. Or at least it hit my inbox AFTER the bell.

No inside info, but I'd defer any praise since my 'crystal ball' booking took in the end of the match, but very little else.


01.58am
Decent match. Not as good as I remember the ones last year, but then time can sometimes make things feel better. I enjoyed the end of that, and it was booked as logically as could be really. Some really nice spots and a shock elimination of Edge kept things lively.

Orton v Shane is next, so Raw will surely provide the main event with their Chamber. Big swerve? Mike Knox for champ? Rourke as guest ref?


02.07am
KillaB365 writes

Rob, seriously, only 'decent'?? That was so good chamber match. What more could you ask for? Shock early champ elimination, kicking out of tombstones, swanton from the cell, sick bumping? That was an excellent match.

Ok, I'll upgrade 'decent' to 'good'. Maybe 'very good'. It was not 'excellent' to my mind, mainly because it had ten minutes of Koslov and Show plodding. If you break it into sections, the first was terrific. The second and third very boring, the four, after Trips entered, it picked up. The after Taker came in it was very, very good. The down periods brought it down, but I'm certainly not having a go at the match. I enjoyed it and am praising it.

Meanwhile, are you Brunzell or Blair? I gotta know......


02.14am
Woah. Orton is busted open, and that's got to be hardway because the camera was on Orton the whole time as he got smashed in the head with a monitor while Shane was clearing the announce table.

However, Shane is withstanding a three man attack, in essence, because Cody and Ted have interjected. They stopped Shane going for the big elbow to the table he is famous for, but he fights them off by spinning a Cody chair shot intended for him into Ted, then hitting a DDT onto said chair and a coast to coast to Cody.

Missed the big elbow attempted now, though. A heavily bloody Orton avoids contact and goes to check on Cody. Tells Ted get Cody checked out. Which is odd considering the left side of his face looks like someone has tattooed a red forked lightning effect on it.

Match goes on.....


02.27am
Ok, you've got two schools of thought here, and you can tell me at robthegreen(@)hotmail.com which one you belong too.

On one hand, the most dominant heel in the business, as of three weeks ago, needed help and about half an hour to beat a part time 38 year old greying son of the boss. Shane has nothing to lose, isn't going to be built for a title shot and become a future megastar. Orton could have beaten on him, alone, for 15 minutes straight then pinned him, and it simply makes him a bigger star. Shane can afford to be brushed aside whereas other babyfaces on the roster can't.

He didn't need to kick out of so many nearfalls, Orton didn't need to have help assist him, Shane didn't need to get so much offense in. A wasted opportunity.

OR..........

What a great match. Forget the build to anywhere else, forget logical booking and enjoy the match for what it was, which was an incident packed, hard-hitting back and forth contest which ultimately had the right ending. And the spots - The monitor, the coast-to-coast, the missed elbow, several chair shots, the suplex through the table and a phenomenal looking RKO to round things off. If you replace Shane with, say, HBK, and watch it as a one-off, people would be talking about a match of the year candidate.


Which side do you fall on?


02.34am
Grisham and Striker just reference Jack Swagger as the 'second youngest ECW champion' - anyone care to venture the youngest. I can't think of one.


02.39am
Lots of mat wrestling in this one. Crowd are not heavily into it, but perhaps they need a break after two quite emotional and high octane matches. And they may have two to come.

Meanwhile, although I've suggestions of Lashley and John Morrison, I'm thinking maybe it'll be in the old ECW, so maybe Mikey Whipwreck?


02.42am
Swagger takes it reasonably clean. The champion pushed Finlay into the ropes as Hornswoggle jumped onto the apron, knockng the leprechaun off. Swagger soon grabbed Finlay and hit his gutwrench powerbomb. Straight 3-count and the win. No sign of Christian. Very little mention of him, either, save from an early call from Striker and a "we want Christian" chant near the opening bell.


HBK v JBL next.


02.50am
The bell rings and this "all or nothing" match is underway. Rebecca, Shawn's wife, is at ringside.

I have a way for Shawn to start saving money - stop your missus using fake tan. Rebecca is a shiny orange hue which is not natural, not for a human being. An oompa-loompa, maybe. Not a person.

Still, Rebecca took the best punch of the year in 2008 from Chris Jericho, so I'll let her off.

Meanwhile, nice early touch in the match, as JBL offers Shawn a chair and tries to induce the DQ. Remember if he wins, Shawn is his bitch for life. They didn't say that in these PG days, but that's what they mean.


02.56am
Too late to change a prediction. I've a feeling JBL may win. I can see this going a couple of ways.

JBL said to Shawn "One mistake" hinting that he thinks HBK will try to hard, make an error, and get beat. That's one possibility.

Or what about Rebecca herself running in to stop it. She has been on camera and mentioned so much by the commnentators it seems like they are building something up. How about JBL beating on Michaels so bad she hops the rail and hits Bradshaw, or covers up her husband?


03.05am
I actually thought of a third reason for JBL to win during the match, but before I got to it, Shawn won. I should have shut up about changing predictions. Rebecca did get involved, though - should it have been stopped? Perhaps JBL will argue that her intervention should have meant a DQ was called for.


OK match without being sensational. JBL matches are never that amazing, so this was perhaps a better one. Fair enough ending (if it is so) to the saga, allowing Michaels to go to.........face Taker?


03.08am
Jericho did a promo in which he sort of challenged Ric Flair to a match at Wrestlemania. He then took it back, so lets hope that's not true. We don't need to see that.

Meanwhile, Cole just said that the frequency of champions losing the belt in the chamber is 67%. I'm not sayin he is wrong, because I may have my numbers wrong, but I was under the impression that figure was 2 in 4 and therefore 50% before the first chamber match tonight. Edge lost, so that would mean 3 in 5. I'd make that 60%, then. What have I, or Cole, got wrong?

Cena and Knox are podded, so far.


03.15am
Quite the night for surprises, then. It seems Rey and Jericho will start this one, but the story is that EDGE struck Kofi down, and gave him a conchairto against the steel steps. He then places himself in a pod and for some reason the refs allow it. Edge is in the match. Wow.


03.21am
Great looking spot as Mysterio missed the shoulder charge in the corner and ends up headbutting Kane's pod. Whether head or hand that hit first, the sound was great.

Ever better spot as Rey ascends the chamber's chain link wall and leaps off onto Jericho, hitting a huracanrana.

Meanwhile, the commentators continually refer to Edge. Getting this much attention.......can he afford to lose this? I'd suggest he could very well win now.


03.23am
Loads of you (well, two) have asked what my other JBL theory was. Well, I wondered if maybe someone would appear out of nowhere and attack JBL, seemingly feeling sorry for Michaels. This would mean JBL winning by DQ and getting Shawn's services. You could then play this for a week or two before revealing that the guy who did the run in was paid off by JBL. Shawn cries foul, and it sets up another all or nothing match, perhaps in a cage.

Still, it's irrelevant now, isn't it?

Kane's in by the way.......and now out 619 by Rey then Codebreaker by Jericho. It looked like they'd left Kane to survive, but Rey ascended a pod and hit Kane with a......."seated senton". That isn't the right description, but you know what I mean.

Now here comes Mike Knox.


03.30am
Domination by Knox for several minutes, but Jericho comes up with a Codebreaker and Knox is history. I may have had Knox attack Rey again before he left, just for the hell of it.

Penultimate entry.......and it's Edge. Instantly attacked by Rey. That's why Knox didn't attack Rey.


03.37am
Some cool interaction with Rey, Edge and Jericho, and now Cena is in. And there is not much love for him. This match has a much bigger feel to it with Edge in. His presence throws the seemingly obvious Cena victory into doubt.


03.38am
Oh I say. 'pon me word, Cena is history. What did he last, two minutes? After a few unanswered moves, he had Edge set for an FU/Attutude adjustment, but fell foul to a Codebreaker, then 619 and then spear. 1-2-3 and he's out.

03.40am
The hits keep coming. Tremendous sequence as Rey goes for a double 619. He only gets Jericho. Edge misses a charge on Rey and hits the turnbuckles on the outside. Rey springboards in 'seated senton' position but Jericho into a Walls. Reversal into a cradle by Rey and Jericho is gone.

While I was typing that Rey has had two really nearfalls. Oh my, this is quite some match now.


03.50am
So Edge is the champion.......but on Raw. I've got to give WWE credit. That was compelling storytelling, and it was a terrific match. Some crazy action, including another phenomenal Rey bump into a pod after my last update, propelled by Edge over his own head. One spear later and this one is over.

Good stuff on commentary too. Asking questions like "Is Edge really champion?" "Does Raw have a world title?" and so forth ought to create a bit of intrigue for tomorrow's broadcast.

Mega thumbs up from me. Five matches, of which only Finlay and Swagger really disappointed, but that was likely only because the two matches before it were so good. HBK/JBL was good enough, with a satisfactory ending. Orton/Shane, if you remove the emotion that the booking of Shane is ludicrous, was a very good standalone match and spectacle. The first chamber exploded into life for a superb ending, and only fell short of a better rating from me because it dragged for too long.

And what can you say about the last match? As soon as Edge entered you fancied him to win, but until Cena was eliminated you couldn't say it with any conviction. Even afterwards Rey had sufficient nearfalls to raise the heartrate. Even if you are sitting there and saying "I knew Edge would win" when it was just he and Rey, I put to you that you are in a minority, judging by the live crowd, who were oohaing and aahing for every Rey nearfall.

Killab365 - that was Excellent, my friend. That match right there.

Fantastic main event to end a great show. WWE keeps it going with these awesome PPVs.

No Way Out preview

I, like most wrestling fans, love this time of year. The Royal Rumble is my favourite PPV there is, and who can’t emotionally involved in the build to Wrestlemania, positioned at the biggest show of the year?

It used to be great that there was nothing between the Rumble and Mania, but since the calendar was flooded with PPVs, that is no longer possible.

Until a few years ago, No Way Out was a pain-in-the-backside, somewhat redundant, show which actually trod on the toes of the other two. The Elimination Chamber was used at this event last year in two matches, and apart from the obvious synergy with the title of the Pay Per View being an expression apropos for the situation, it was a good fit.

The John Cena comeback storyline dominated the Rumble and the subsequent show, so the Chambers determining the number one contenders was a reasonable decision.

Having the matches as title encounters is an interesting call, but a plausible one and not one which I have a problem with. Some say that the Smackdown line-up is stronger than Raw, which is a statement I would tend to agree with, but I’d put to you that a match which involved Big Daddy V, Khali, Finlay, MVP, Taker and Batista last year was a belter. No reason that the Raw chamber match won’t be as exciting as that was, even though we probably know the destination of the belt.

There are only five matches on the card, so before I get to those, I’ll try to pinpoint where any other matches or segments can be added.

There is an obvious Raw bias to the card. Aside from it’s chamber match, they also have the high stakes JBL v Shawn Michaels bout and high profile Shane McMahon v Randy Orton encounter. ECW has Swagger v Finlay, while Smackdown isn’t represented other than their main event.

Smackdown is the logical destination for more activity. Neither the US Champion Shelton Benjamin nor Primo and Carlito, the tag champs, are involved at the moment, so perhaps they could find themselves in action.

This is where TNA have a strong suit in their X division, because if they want to add a spectacle to the shoe, they can put a bunch of guys out there and let them have fun. Because the Cruiserweight division is no more, it doesn’t really work for WWE to stick a bunch of guys together. Plus, they have the Money in the Bank, so they may feel they are watering down the concept.

Other potential matches may involve wrestlers who are in line for a certain push. Umaga is not in the chamber, so could potentially be given a chance to beat someone, although obvious contenders are at a premium. Khali, perhaps? It wouldn’t be pretty, but the message of Umaga being a monster would be reinforced.

Mr Kennedy is on his way back, so he may get involved somewhere, and other notable matchless individuals are (in no particular order) Matt Hardy, Christian, CM Punk, William Regal, R-Truth, Mark Henry and Mizorrison.

Here’s a bold suggestion, since I was on the money with them last time – I’ll take a backstage attack by....someone, with the suggestion it’s Matt Hardy, on Jeff Hardy. This would either mean Jeff can’t compete, or more likely that he competes injured, putting paid to another title effort. Another step towards the logical Matt v Jeff match at Wrestlemania.


Jack Swagger v Finlay – ECW Title match
This has to be a strong contender for opening match, and you’d think will feature Christian (just Christian. It’s hard not to write Christian ‘Cage’) in some respect. I think they’d be well served to sit him on commentary if the idea is to have him face the winner. It would allow him to re-ingratiate himself with the audience, give an opportunity to explain the kayfabe reasoning for the return and build some foundation to a feud with either man.

You’d think Swagger wins here. It’s hard to see why they’d give him the belt to have him drop it, and if Christian’s destiny is the ECW title, winning it from Swagger makes more sense. Not that I wouldn’t like to see Christian v Finlay, mind you.

My big problem with Finlay, which I’ve probably stated before, is that as great a wrestler he is, he hasn’t won a match cleanly for about three years. He always has to use the bloody shillelagh, and I really dislike heel tactics being used for a babyface as a regular habit, because it waters down the heat for the heels. Imagine if, for example, Regal started to use brass knuckles again. The commentators would moan about the nefarious tactics, but fans would be thinking about Finlay getting away with using foreign objects too.

Anyway, that aside, I think Swagger will win, and win clean.

Prediction.....err, what I just said.


Shawn Michaels v JBL – “All or nothing”

This has been one of the oddest feuds in recent history. A weak setup and now quite a flimsy, possible blow-off match, but has been punctuated by tremendous promos filled with well-conveyed emotions.

I don’t anticipate a fantastic match here, because watching JBL wrestle isn’t nearly as interesting as listening to him talk. However, expect a well told story with umpteen false finishes. They can afford to play with the ending more because the other three main matches involve different setups, so this the biggest straight up one-on-one wrestling match on the agenda, if you see what I mean.

WWE have a luxury with these guys, because they can take it wherever they want the storyline to go, and not worry about either guy losing momentum. JBL is a gifted orator, and can get his heat back at the drop of a hat. He could lose every week and still get the right reaction. Michaels, meanwhile, is so loved because of his history, he will likely be cheered forever, so could afford to lose also.

I tend to think HBK will triumph, here. I don’t see them having JBL beat him straight up, so unless they have something up their sleeve whereby Bradshaw has an accomplice who can help him win and set up Michaels v Accomplice at Mania, you’d think the babyface has to prevail.

Prediction: Shawn wins, and by this time next week has had an incident with another superstar, building to a big Mania match.


Randy Orton v Shane McMahon – No Holds Barred, Hardcore, Street Fight, No DQ match

Shane only competes in matches where the rules are flung out of the window, so this’ll be however they are currently defining a match in which they can do what they like.

Logically Randy would go over here in a nasty one, but logically Shane wouldn’t be so dominant in the last couple of weeks, either.

I still think Orton will win, but I have an unsettling feeling that he’ll rely on Cody and Ted to help him out. I’m going to be quite non-committal on the details of the match, but I’ll say that after Orton gets his hand raised he contrives to kick Shane in the head....sorry, SKULL, and put him out of commission.

The setup is then there for it to go a couple of ways. One theory that I’ve seen doing the round is that Randy will brag to have rid the WWE of two McMahons, and that Steph’s response will be to unleash her husband, Triple H, as the man to stop Orton. This is logical in a couple of ways. One in the sense that it would recognise the relationship and have Trips stand up for his wife, and also in that Randy has the main event slot at Wrestlemania, and could choose to head to Smackdown and challenge The Game.

I have an alternative one, in the spirit of trying to come up with extra ideas. Try this one.

Orton wins and destroys Shane, then does the aforementioned menacing speech to Steph. He is interrupted by champion John Cena, who defends the honour of the Raw GM. We build to Mania with Orton v Cena, and have Cena beaten down a couple of times by Legacy. Maybe a couple of Raw superstars try to stand aside Cena, like Kofi or Rey, and Legacy take them out.

Randy them threatens Cena on the last Raw before Wrestlemania, and says that he’ll win the belt, and that his backup will help him. “You’re three on one, John, the odds are against you,” Randy will say.

Cena refutes this suggestion, and says that he indeed will have someone in his corner at Wrestlemania. Cue Vinny Mac to return, and the last raw ends with Vince and Cena aligned.

At Mania, a give and take match has the obligatory ref bump, and Mr McMahon steps in to try to revive the official. As he is bent over, Orton gets ready for a big punt. He doesn’t get a chance to, and Vince stands up and gets in Orton’s face. As the two men face off, Cena staggers to his feet. Vince grabs a weapon, and levels the Champ. Ref recovers, Orton covers, and we have a new champion.

Vince’s reasoning for helping Orton could be that when Orton slapped him and realised that Orton had that characteristic that Vince likes: Ruthless Aggression. Leaves things open for a Cena chase of the belt and Vince trying to hold him back. I know it’s been done, but most other stuff isn’t working right now.

Plausible, no?

Anyway.....

Prediction: Orton to win, probably not as convincingly as he should do


Raw Elimination Chamber – John Cena (c), Chris Jericho, Kane, Kofi Kingston, Mike Knox, Rey Mysterio.

I’ve not really hidden who I think will win this, but then I don’t think I’m being revolutionary in picking John Cena to retain. I’d go so far as to say the only people who are predicting anyone else are doing so out of either boredom or simply taking a chance that if a shocking swerve happens that they can claim they predicted it.

I’d break out the patented, much sought after McNichol Eliminator, but I don’t want to overuse it. I may use it on the next match. Tell you what, I’ll use the travel version.

Knox, Kofi and Kane won’t win. No-one beginning with K. Outside chance of Mysterio, but frankly very, very unlikely.

Chris Jericho is the only real candidate, but with his Wrestlemania future looking like it will have something to do with Flair, or Mickey Rourke, or some such escapade, he doesn’t need the WWE title for this. Cena, meanwhile, has nothing obvious lined up, and makes more sense as a headliner.

As for the match composition, I’d go with two of John Cena, Rey Mysterio and Kofi Kingston to start the match. Add Jericho at three, and have five minutes of these guys bumping around and having fun. Kane or Knox enter next, and do the monster thing of dominating the smaller three. This takes up most of the time until Cena is next, destroying all and eliminating Kane/Knox. The final monster is introduced last and gets rid of Kofi, evening the babyface and heel quotas. Rey then falls, leaving two heels to beat on Cena. Jericho sneakily rolls up Kane/Knox, and leaving him and Cena. We all know what happens then.

Prediction – Hmm, seems I jumped the gun again. I’m enjoying the fantasy booking, though


Smackdown Elimination Chamber – Edge (c), Big Show, Triple H, Undertaker, Vladimir Koslov, Jeff Hardy.

What’s that? No waffle this time, just get into how you’d book it? Ok, you’re the boss.

We start with Triple H and Koslov. Standard action for five minutes, before Jeff comes in next. Jeff has been selling injuries from an earlier beating, but seems to overcome this to be the star of the match to this point. Show is next, and Jeff takes one chance too many, missing a move and running into a Big Show KO punch. Jeff is history. Big Show dominates, and Taker enters next. The Deadman stands tall, eliminating Koslov as he goes. Triple H, Taker and Show battle while Edge lies in wait. Perhaps accusations of favouritism from JR as Edge has the best draw.

The three in the ring hit big moves on one another, so when Edge enters they are vulnerable. Spear on Show, and the big guy is history. Edge doesn’t leave it there, mocking Show, who forces his way back into the cell with a steel chair. He smashes Edge with it, sending the Rated R Superstar into Takers waiting clutches. A Tombstone later, and Edge is gone.

We are left with Triple H and Undertaker, with the former kicking out of a chokeslam/or reversing a Hells Gate, while Taker survives a Pedigree. Gotta make both look good, haven’t we? Eventually Triple H gets hold of the chair Show left in, and cracks Taker. A cover, but Taker still kicks out. Taker gets back in charge, but somehow Trips engineers a Pedigree on the chair, and finally wins it.

Prediction – Triple H. I don’t see two champions retaining in the Cells, and it strikes me that Cena must do, and therefore this one is the most open for the title to switch. Edge and Show seem to be building something, and it strikes me that they are likely to tangle in some manner at Wrestlemania. I can’t see Koslov winning, and Jeff, as previously discussed, has his issue with Matt. That only leaves Taker or Triple, both with great records in the Cell. The only problem with Triple H winning is where that leaves Undertaker for mania, and vice versa.

Maybe Triple H v Taker at Mania? I’d like to see that, although not for the belt, since Taker’s streak v someone’s title has been the theme of the last two years.

Anyway, we’ll soon see. I’m really looking forward to this show, and hope you are too.

Don’t forget, live coverage will take place on this here blog, with my continuing updates keeping you posted on the action, as well as offering my opinions and predictions. Those that followed live last month will recall that I called the Matt Hardy turn during the show, down to very close detail. Maybe I’ll be equally prescient tonight.

Hope to see you during the show – you can join in the blog by emailing me at robthegreen at hotmail dot com.

Enjoy No Way Out

Rob

Raw Thoughts - February 9th

· Jericho and Flair kick off Raw. Ironically, having not met for months, they’ll meet again next week in their traffic anger management class. If this was WCW they would book some sort of Road Rage in Cage match or a gearstick on a pole match.
· I’m not sure what the segment achieved, though. Jericho doesn’t need any more character development to get himself over as a smart ass arrogant heel, and very little was accomplished. I’ll reserve judgement mostly because this could be leading somewhere, but if that was a one-off excuse to have Flair back, it was weak.
· Standard built to a title match with Beth and Melina. Have the challenger win to make it look like she is favourite to win it back. I don’t like the treatment of Melina on commentary, though, with them acting surprised when she was on offense. She is the champion, and supposedly on merit, not by fluke. If you sound shocked when she is doing well, it is pointless having the belt on her.
· Good, strong win for Cody and Ted. I’d suggest that if Miz and Morrison were not doing so well and were not heels then Priceless would be prime candidates for the belts, to do a similar thing as they did with Evolution, showing the stable’s dominance by having lots of gold. Would have like this match with Cryme Tyme to have gone a bit longer, mind you.
· What a terrific finish to the six man tag. Very innovative twist into the Codebreaker, great decision to have Jericho make the fall as he is the most likely contender to Cena’s title.
· I really like that idea – to have HBK lose via DQ in seconds. Why would he want to have a long match against a big guy? Makes no odds if he wins or not, really. Cut to the chase and let JBL do what he does best.
· JBL wants Shawn to bring his wife to No Way Out? I thought he was going to say Joey Styles.
· Good, hard-hitting action between Punk and Regal, but again way, way too short. This was treated as such an afterthought, and far from a big deal. It wasn’t promoted throughout the show, even when Cole mentioned Regal as a passing reference, he never pointed out that Regal would challenge for gold late that night.
· Right, the main event. I’ll bet there are plenty of you out there who are unhappy about a bullshit finish, but every now and again it has to be done, and this is one such occasion. It’s slightly worrying that they have to bring in Taker and Flair one on night to try to spark a rating (perhaps due to the dog show? Don’t forget they used to get shifted for that, so maybe they are looking for a big number to show USA how valuable they still are) and I was expecting Taker to perhaps get involved with Shawn again, hinting towards a Mania programme. The thing to look at in the booking of this is that Orton is the Raw top heel and Taker is......well, Taker. Neither man could really lose clean, so having Legacy join together and briefly beat down Taker made sense as an ending, and they managed to work Shane’s appearance in such a way that Taker didn’t look like he was being saved. Also, Shane’s “Coast to Coast” was a big moment to end a show, helping to build the show.
· One other point I wanted to make – to sell the PPV as a Shane v Randy spectacle is a risk given that they have not done a lot to build Shane up. It shouldn’t be forgotten that this guy has had two or three excellent matches in his life. Well, maybe not excellent MATCHES, but very entertaining spectacles, at the least. I’m thinking tangles with Kurt Angle and Steve Blackman, and to a lesser extent X-Pac, Test and Big Show. But nothing of late has really had Shane showing what he can do, so I think I would have had a video package with some of his major moments remembered. Don’t forget some of the audience won’t know who he is, at least wouldn’t know what he can do. A few rubbish punches and one, badly filmed, coast-to-coast would not excite someone who doesn’t know what Shane O Mac is all about.

Raw Thoughts - Feb 2

· Two things to note from the opening two minutes of Raw. It’s in St Louis, and Shane is out first. How babyface will Shane try to be? Orton is in his hometown.
· There’s intrigue and teasing, but Orton took an age to get to the ring. That was outright boring.
· Shane having the Kendo stick was a nice touch. That was fine, he needs to put over the fact that he can use his smarts to outgun Orton.
· The fact that the match No Holds Barred throws one major question up at me. Will Cody and Ted interfere? Because if it is no DQ, then why shouldn’t they just attack Shane throughout? I wonder if maybe Randy will make an agreement with them, or with Shane, that it maintains 1 v 1.
· Standard booking to allow Regal to get his heat back and make you think he has a shot at taking the IC title back.
· Pathetic ending to a match in the tag contest. Why can’t Priceless just beat Cryme Tyme. They are the ones receiving a huge push, and Cryme just need two weeks of singing to their fans to get back their place in their hearts.
· Booking finishes to matches like this and then having a spot after the match is educating the audience (even more than previous) that the match outcome is irrelevant and the matches don’t matter in the slightest. That’s not a good route to go down.
· Interesting to and fro with Jericho and Cena. I would have preferred that Cena hadn’t called Jericho an “idiot” but aside from that it was ok. Interesting that Jericho talked hardly at all about Mickey Rourke but loads about Ric Flair. And is all this just a big ploy to plug the “Legend of Wrestlemania” video game?
· Really, really good tag match with Rey and Kofi against Kane and Knox. Brilliantly paced, and with the old school set up of the two menacing big men as heels, against the high-flying, brightly coloured babyfaces.
· I really liked the backstage attack too. Well executed, including the sneaky backstage camera shot which caught The Legacy plotting, then a stiff-looking attack on Shane which took out Steph too. I really like the get out clause they’ve given themselves about why Orton stops and looks at what he has done. Making him seem more unhinged makes him a more credible threat.
· Oh, and by they way, when agents broke it up why was Mike Rotunda dressed like a supply teacher? Bring back the business threads, Irwin! We want red suspenders!
· “The Harts had a match for the ages, but it was Shawn Michaels who stole the show” Ouch. Take that Bret
· Standard Beth fare. It makes sense to make her look nice and dominant in her quest for the belt back. However, I question having her look so good and to feature Mickie and Layla at some point, but to not see Melina at all, even for a 30 second backstage promo.
· More good Michaels and JBL stuff to a point. Michaels doing the “teeth down the throat” line was daft because Cena had already done it. But to me the match and the stip is a daft one.
· If JBL and HBK square off, who the hell else goes into the Chamber?
· Oh, there we go, that was quick. It’s Kane. Sound logic I guess, since it shows Steph trading off to get Taker to Raw, and sets up a stacked Raw next week. More on that in a moment.
· I’m not crazy about Kane being allowed in after Kofi beat him, because it makes Kingston’s achievement mean a bit less. However, he was the only man left who could fit it.
· That being said, it’s a poor line-up for the match. Jericho is the only credible challenger really. Although maybe the thought is that Cena will win and everybody knows it, setting up Orton v Cena at Mania. Make Orton v Shane and JBL v Shawn, in addition to the Smackdown Chamber which looks more interesting, and it’s the basis of a decent card.
· Decent main event. Decent to good. It was standard fare until near the end, but a really terrific sequence to end it. You often get that with Jericho, he is the master of the exciting finish.
· Decent Raw, and it’s built for next week. Undertaker v Orton and Flair to appear should bring people in.

And another thing...........

As an addendum to the previous points about John Cena being part of the Big Show and Floyd Mayweather programme,:

John Cena's upcoming WWE film project is called.............12 Rounds.

I'm just saying.

Floyd Mayweather in WWE. Pretty exciting, and boy will that mean Money!

For those of you that didn't see No Way Out, I expect you know by now that Floyd Mayweather got involved in the Big Show's return.

As Show hoisted the injured Rey Mysterio in the air for a chokeslame, Floyd ran to the ring, hopped over the ropes and got in Show's face.

After some typical jostling of entourages etc, Big Show went onto his knees to give Mayweather a free shot. And the man known as Pretty Boy, the WBC Welterweight Champion, landed at least two clean blows to Big Show's face. Show chased Floyd & co away as Shane McMahon appeared to try to placate Big Show.

The above is not a wrestling commentary. It is genuine account fo what happened. Mayweather hit Show legit, and while I don't think for a second it wasn't planned, I do think that when Show appeared in front of the camera with a bloody nose and mouth that it was a hardway piece of juicing.

So what now? Perhaps this was a one shot event, although I doubt it. Mayweather is a huge deal, and possibly the biggest name in World Boxing right now.

This is not Pacman Jones. This is much bigger, and is, like, so totally Wrestlemania, dude.

Initial thoughts were a boxing match between the two. Boxing has been done before at Wrestlemania. One with Roddy Piper v Mr T (work) and once with Butterbean v Bart Gunn (shoot, and an embarassing one at that). We have also seen Sumo at Mania, with Big Show taking on Japanese Sumo star Akebono (work). Also, don't forget the involvement of a huge sports star in a main event at Mania - see Lawrence Taylor at Wrestlemania 11.

WWE may choose to go down the Pacman route, and make Mayweather's contest a tag match. This is a traditional method of involving celebrities, from Jay Leno to Dennis Rodman in WCW, and has been reported as the most likely method seeing Mayweather in the ring, sans big red gloves.

So how would the match pan out? Well, with Show on one side, his partner could very likely be Shane O Mac himself. For the purposes of making the bout look even, if Show's partner was Umaga or someone pretty tough, it would make Mayweather's involvement seem less plausible.

Especially since Floyd's partner might be lined up as Rey Mysterio. This, of course, may be in jeopardy, thanks for Rey's bicep tear. So if we have Big Show and Shane McMahon on one side, and assume that Mysterio cannot join up with Money Mayweather, who is going to step up? I have the perfect answer.

John Cena.

Its perfect. Cena didn't win the title last night, and although the rumoured Mania main event of Triple H v Cena v Orton could still be in the works, its not an essential component. You can take Cena out and still have a reasonably intriguing contest, no matter what the Hunter-haters may think.

If Cena is not in the title match, then I fail to see how any other match can be big enough for him at Wrestlemania if it is not something like this. Cena is by far and away WWE's biggest and most marketable star, no matter what people think of his in-ring ability. He would be able to carry the feud vocally, he always steps up for big matches, and this would give him the extra mainstream publcity, alongside Mayweather, that he would surely crave.

Rey might be semi-fit and try to gut this one out, as he did last night, but a biceps tear will not heal in 42 days, and I can't see Mayweather being able to carry this one alone if Mysterio does not make it.

If he cannot, then there would be no better replacement than John Cena.

No Way Out live notes and instant reaction

If the Road to Wrestlemania starts at the Royal Rumble, I guess this is the late night car park which we got lock into, just off that road. What with it being called No Way Out and all. We just have to sit back, watch the cars bound for Glory Orlando to drive by, and wait for the attendant to unlock the car park in the morning.

So, since we are going nowhere for a bit, we may as well watch a bit of telly.

01.03am

As usual, we have had the video introduction. And as usual, when the Chamber is involved, it is the most evil structure eve conceived, and nothing could be worse.

That is, of course, until we get to Vengeance, or something, and we have a Hell in a Cell, and the same adjectives are rolled out again. Also, we need to keep an ear out for Michael Cole doing a reference to the chamber being a wild animal or a carnivore or something.

To start with, we are going with the ECW title match. Yeah, that’s an equal brand. Of course it is.

01.10am

Joey Styles does the usual countries run down. That means King won’t do it. Which might mean no Liechtenstein reference tonight. Boo.

Match is ok, by the way.

01.14am

A surprisingly over Chavo wins this one clean, which I’m a little surprised about. I thought that Chavito would be the man to keep the belt here, but I’m surprised at Punk being cleanly pinned, without at least getting a false finish in.

I’m sure the whole world will now say this is because Punk is in the doghouse. That guy should invest in a kennel if those rumours are true every time

01.19am

Backstage, Rey Mysterio is interviewed by Mike A-dumb-guy, who asked Rey about his injury. Rey says it is torn by he will still win. Interesting to see that they have addressed Rey’s injury, and I suspect that may mean that Edge beats him due to the arm breaking down.

Mysterio is interrupted by boxer Floyd Mayweather Jnr, who talks to Rey. Except he didn’t, because both men simply said things at one another, which did not answer the other’s questions. Hard to know the point of the current WBC Welterweight champion turning up. He did shake Rey by the hand. Which ripped his bicep a little more.

01.30am

Khali and Big Daddy V just about fit into the pods, and do so along with MVP and Finlay. It will be Batista and Undertaker to start this off.

Finlay’s music is now the same as Hornswoggle’s.

01.37am

Generic battling by Undertaker and Big Dave, before the countdown starts and the spotlights flicker.
Big Daddy V is next into the match. Despite the spotlight falling on Great Khali. Hmm. Someone will get hell for that.

01.39am

Big Daddy pushes Taker towards the wall of the chamber........and the Deadman falls through the door, falling awkwardly on his arm. I’m fairly sure that was unintentional. This match was always going to be a bit slow anyway, but that’s two (I think) mistakes not halfway through it.

01.43am

Big Daddy V is pinned by Batista before Great Khali’s light shines, and this time the big man is in to a big “You can’t wrestle” chant.

He is soon eliminated thanks to the undead zombie knowing shoot fighting submission holds.

01.46am
Finlay is in now, and this match is far from a classic, but at least they had the good sense to get the two big lumps out the way. But why book them in it in the first place?

01.50am

Coach and Cole describe the glass comprising the cell as ‘bullet-proof’. But not Taker proof, as within 90 seconds of them saying this, Finlay throws Undie straight through it.

01.52am

After a neat spot where Taker was waiting for MVP to enter, so Porter tried not to come out, MVP has completed the line up, and four men remain.

01.57am

We are down to the two who started it, Batista and Undertaker, but two cool spots to eliminate MVP and Finlay have livened the match.

First, Taker did a modified chokeslam from the top of a pod on MVP, getting rid of him, then after Hornswoggle appeared to give Finlay a shillelagh to pound the others, Taker managed to chokeslam him over the rope and onto the grate.

Both men are bleeding, and the crowd are eating up the action. Reactions just for punches right now.

02.04am

Predictable outcome, as Taker wins, but with an amazing counter into the tombstone which description cannot do justice.

That actually turned into quite a nice match, although I found to hard to get emotionally into the match, as I was so sure that Taker would win.

Backstage, Teddy Long bans The Edgeheads from ringside. Next up is Kennedy v Flair.

02.20am

For what it was, a great little match. I would have liked to have seen it go longer, but what there was of it was extremely good. Save for two moments. Firstly, Flair’s ass. Possibly the only man as proud of his ass as Vince McMahon, Ric managed to air his rear to the world on PPV yet again. Secondly, there was a very obviously spot where Kennedy pulled Flair into an inside cradle while the Nature Boy was trying to put on a Figure 4.

But I’m picking. Kennedy broke out the figure 4 round the post, as JR brilliantly called it having been not sued since Bret Hart. And it was fitting that there was a man wearing black tights, who is excellent on the mic, with bleached blonde hair, playing the heel role to the hilt. And that man was Ken Kennedy, not Ric Flair.

I enjoyed this, but I would have liked to have seen Kennedy be the one to end it for Flair at Mania.

02.37am

Edge v Rey was next, and to be fair it was quite poor, but that is understandable. The pace was very slow, considering the combatants, and it seemed that they were simply going through the motions to set up a few spots. Rey looked in genuine discomfort.

02.48am

Well, it’s the Big Show. Paul Wight is here, and he is smiling. I thought for a moment that he was here to annihilate Rey Mysterio, who was still at ringside recovering when Show’s music hit.

And I’d be right. After some generic waffle about winning titles and losing weight, Show grabbed Mysterio and threw him in the ring. He taunted Mayweather, at ringside, and as Show lifted Mysterio in the ring for a chokeslam, Pretty Boy Floyd, brother of Freddie Joe (not really) hit the ring.

It wasn’t quite Austin/Tyson, as the two faced off, but eventually Mayweather landed one on Show, who had bend down to challenge the Welterweight champ, who then scarpered with his entourage. Show gave chase, and was stopped by Shane McMahon. Show was bleeding a ton from his nose. Cool visual

Mayweather v Show at Mania? Surely not...........

Amazing segment, providing it leads somewhere. If Mayweather is involved with Mania, it’s going to draw a ton of publicity. Seriously, if you did not see this, is was played magnificently. Think a combination of Lawrence Taylor and Mike Tyson’s build to Mania.

Interesting that the commentators said nothing after Show began talking. Straight after the segment there was a Wrestlemania vignette, a shot of Jeff Hardy backstage, then it was thrown to the WEF’s Mike Adamle – that’s what he said instead of WWE. My God he is hopeless –who built up Orton v Cena. The Floyd/Show encounter was not mentioned.

02.56am

King did a countries run down. Still no Liechtenstein. L

Oh, and Orton and Cena are in the ring. WWE title match is now. Raw chamber last it seems.

03.17am

Terrific match. Slightly lame ending, but once again totally understandable taking into account where they are trying to take this. Also, this probably explains why it was not on last.

Basically, Orton played his heel role marvellously, although Cena got his usual mix of cheers and boos. (Not to be confused with Ron Simmons, Jake Roberts or Scott Hall. They said “Cheers” too much. And drunk too much booze. And our PPV money is helping [ay for their recovery.)

A very good ‘Cena’ match, if you know what I mean, with the story being that Orton tried to get out of the match but getting Cena counted out, then himself, then Cena again. When he didn’t think he could win it, he slapped the ref who had to throw the match out.

The build of tension was great in this match. In fact, it’s been very good all night. Orton is a terrific heel. They call Batista an animal, but Orton’s actions remind me of a Lioness in a nature documentary, stalking prey and acting the carnivore.

If you are going to book finishes that are not clean, this is basically the way to do it. It made total sense, storyline-wise.

03.28am

The chamber match will begin with Michaels and Jericho. For some reason Lillian introduced some men with weights and some without. Ross said that the Chamber “has been called Satan’s Structure”. Yes, but only by you Jim. The rest of us say “Elimination Chamber” – because that’s its name.

03.35am

Great start to this contest with one blip. Umaga is in as the third man, after a terrific exchange between HBK and Y2J for the opening sequence. Umaga predictably dominates, hitting an amazing double Samoan Drop.

However, he did try to do a modified Bansai Drop on HBK using the steel, but missed by a few inches. Unfortunately for him, the camera was in close up. I think the live audience missed it though.

03.38am

JBL is in, and bizarrely breaks up a double submission that Y2J and HBK have on the man they (Regal) call Yoomanga.

Michaels is bleeding bucketloads, but no-one knows why. They keep showing replays of people beating on Michaels, but its hard to tell when he bladed. But man is he juicing.

03.42am

Triple H in next an on fire from the outset. Jericho and Michaels are bumping like crazy in this one.

JBL is the first one out. Trips was about to pedigree Y2J when JBL hit the clothesline from hell on the game. Jericho interrupts with the Codebreaker. JBL brings a chair in to clean up on everyone in anger at his loss. Hmmm. I thought he might have just done Jericho, to avenge the pin and lead to a Mania date, but he landed everyone, even Umaga. Actually, he didn’t hit Hunter, who was already down. Jericho and Michaels got their hands up, Umaga took an unprotected one. Jericho has now bladed too.

03.44am

Jeff is in last, with only Umaga standing.

03.48am

Umaga in gone. And how. After an ass crash to Jericho through a pod, he sets up Y2J for a spike, but gets hit with Chin music. Y2J hits the Codebreaker, the Triple H with a pedigree. Just to ram it home, Jeff hits a Swanton from the top of a pod. Can’t see him winning now. If he was going to win, he’d have ended with that.

Bodies fall quickly now. Chin music to Jericho and a pin by Hardy gets rid of Chris, and after a twist of fate to Michaels, Hunter throws Hardy away but then pedigrees and pins his DX colleague.

Hardy and Triple H left, and the crowd are pro-Jeff.

03.51am

Oh my. A bloody Hunter is shocked in the ring because Hardy kicked out of a pedigree. Who does he think he is, Ultimate f’n Warrior? Could he do it?

03.53am


Err, no. Its over, and Triple H wins. The chair that was brought in earlier was placed centre of the ring, and Jeff tried the twist of fate on it. Trips countered, sending Jeff back first onto the chair. Pedigree on the steel next, and its over.

Fabulous match. Amazingly booked. And Hardy still looks a million dollars. He has to win the belt after Mania. Has to.

03.55am

End show, and it was an absolute belter. Terrific Pay Per View event, with only really Edge v Rey a letdown, and that was more than understandable.

Two outstandingly good Chambers, booked almost impeccably considering the talent inside, a quality WWE title match with a forgivable DQ ending, and two serviceable matches with Flair/Kennedy and Punk/Chavo.

Two out of two for WWE in 2008 so far. 42 days to Mania............

No Way Out - Preview

Tonight is No Way Out, this year the only Pay Per View between the annual curtain jerker of the Royal Rumble and the main event Wrestlemania. We shall have to see whether No Way Out will prove to be a perennial mid-carder, or a surprise show stealer.

I thought the Rumble was a superb event. Although some of the undercard could have better, it was probably only a slight letdown because the quality of talent was so high, huge things, possibly too huge things, were expected.

I wrote in Fighting Spirit Magazine a couple of months ago about how Pay Per Views are far to frequent now, and I stand by this theory, despite the quality of the Rumble in Madison Square Garden. Three weeks is a very short build up, and when the next event after this is Mania, this seems like even more a lame duck Pay Per View.

The card is stacked though. Another Flair career decider, Orton v Cena and two Elimination chambers set up a decent looking show, despite doubt over Rey Mysterio’s participation in another contest. But with the rumoured Wrestlemania card taking shape, it seems possible to predict the outcomes of most contests..............or is it?

The main reason why I so loved the Rumble was that they sprung a major surprise with John Cena. There was not even a hint of a whisper about his sudden return, and it made it seem very special indeed. It was virtually set in stone, in many experts’ eyes, that Triple H or the Undertaker were nailed on to win the Rumble. But neither man did. Once again, The Game and the Deadman are tipped to end the night victorious. Will this be the case?

Let take a look at each match individually.

ECW World Title – CM Punk v Chavo Guerrero.
Not only does this title mean increasingly little – it is the only one defended on TV, Chavo was in the Rumble – but these guys have clashed loads of times already. It hardly sets pulses racing. Punk has hit a flat point in his development right now, but is still very over. I’d say that his destination is more likely to be the Money in the Bank ladder match for Mania, assuming they have one, and would be a very real candidate for winning it.

I see Chavo winning this, possibly with interference from somewhere within the Guerrero/Edgeheads faction.

In fact, throwing it out there, Punk is the only man with any current, or recent, issue with Edge apart from Mysterio and Undertaker. Perhaps Punk could be involved in the picture for Edge’s title? Just a thought.

Prediction: Chavo Guerrero.

Mr Kennedy v Ric Flair – Career threatening match.
I’ll go back to what I said for the Rumble, when I was looking at the booking of that. Then, Flair took on MVP, and I suggested (not predicted) a storyline for Flair.

It seems to me that you could do a great angle by having Kennedy win the match in controversial fashion. It pulls a swerve on those thinking that Flair will keep winning until Wrestlemania. You then have a Ric Flair Tribute on Raw looking back on his great career and highlights. You have Shawn and Hunter console Ric and plead with Vince not to make Ric retire. Vince then says he will close the show by openly firing Flair, but during his doing so, he is interrupted. Last time I said by Linda, but I’d now have Hornswaggle do it, with Finlay. Using Horny’s power as a McMahon, somehow, the decision is overturned because Flair’s leg was under the ropes or something. Vince goes nuts and we’d end the show with Flair putting Vince in the Figure 4.

However, the likelihood of WWE creative channelling my thoughts or reading my blog is pretty slim, so I’d say that, for now, Ric will win in very much the same fashion he beat MVP.

I’m a little worried about the rumours that Ric Flair will face HBK in his final match. I’d really like for Flair to put over an up and coming star in his last encounter, so unless they have Ric go over at Mania and retire somewhere down the line, I’m a bit disappointed that it might be Shawn to retire Flair. It doesn’t seem to lead anywhere, and Michaels doesn’t need the rub.
Prediction – Ric Flair

Smackdown/ECW Elimination Chamber – Undertaker, Big Daddy V, MVP, Batista, Finlay, Great Khali.
This looks anything but a classic, and hopefully will not be too torturous. I would guess that Khali, Big Daddy V, Batista and Undertaker will start in the pods, allowing the two WRESTLERS to open the match. I’d expect a big heel to be out next, followed by a face, then heel then face, to allow the reaction for the big cleaning of house.

Expect Finlay to have a strong showing, since he is involved with Vince at the moment, but not to win. They won’t headline Wrestlemania with Khali or V, and MVP is simply not at that level yet – although Money in the Bank could well beckon for him, depending on Matt Hardy’s progress. Its down to Taker and Batista, and you really do have to side with the Deadman here.

Prediction – Undertaker

Raw Elimination Chamber – Triple H, Jeff Hardy, Shawn Michaels, JBL, Chris Jericho, Umaga
The line-up in this chamber is far more appetising, and things could happen in any order really. I’d expect this to be a decent encounter, with only JBL really not in my mind a great worker, and it will be interesting to see where in the card they place this one.

Rumours continue that Jericho will face JBL at Mania, but with Jericho beating his rival on Raw last week, cleanly, I’m not so sure. It will be interesting to keep an eye on these two, and whether they affect each other’s progress in the match.

We can dust off the old McNichol Eliminator 2.0 (one more than Matt Hardy) here to get rid of Umaga, who will not be in a position to headline Wrestlemania. Jericho v Cena makes no sense, and we have just seen Orton v Jericho, so you can scratch Y2J off. JBL is nowhere near being ready for a match of that magnitude, so he’s out too.

That leaves Jeff Hardy, Shawn Michaels and Triple H. I’d say given that HBK v Cena was the programme last year, and that he was had a long run not long ago with Orton, that it won’t be the Showstopper.

Just Hardy and The Game left.

Common sense says it will be Hunter, doesn’t it? Triple H v Orton v Cena is the rumour, but The Game taking on either man in a singles would also make sense. As much as I would like to see Jeff Hardy given he nod, I just can’t see it. If they were going to go with him, big-time, they would have done it at the Royal Rumble.

I’d love for a big surprise. But I can’t see it. Hardy the most likely apart from the obvious, but as much as I’ve analysed this looking for another answer, I have to write the following..........

Prediction – Triple H

World Heavyweight Title – Edge v Rey Mysterio..............maybe
This match is in danger because of a possible bicep tear for Rey. I’m not sure whether it is a good thing for him to wrestle here or not.

On the pro side, this match has the potential to be good, and will be the match a lot of people have bought the PPV to see. Rey has a big following.

However, if he is not 100%, three things could happen. One is that he wrestles half-tilt, meaning the match is sub-standard. The second is that he wrestles too hard, making the tear worse. The third is that he breaks down mid-match, forcing a quick and untimely end to it.

Obviously it all depends on the severity of the injury, but if it is not right, I’d say that it is best he doesn’t wrestle at all. The WWE came up with a genius storyline when Triple H and Orton wrestled twice against each other after Cena’s injury. I don’t see why they couldn’t come up with another clever story for Edge to have an alternate opponent or something.

Knowing Rey, I’d say he’ll try to work through the pain, and since he isn’t going over anyway, they’ll likely cut the match a bit short and let Edge take the win he is scheduled for in any case.

Prediction – Edge

WWE Title – Randy Orton v John Cena

I’d say that they’d go with this as the main event, and although many are saying that a bullshit finish will take place, I’d be more inclined to guess that we will see a clean ending. And a new champion.

Logic dictates to me that if Triple H wins the Chamber, then he is due to face the champion at Wrestlemania. If Orton were to win, in whatever manner, there is no real sense in having Cena added to the match at a later stage. You lost, you had your chance, now skedaddle.

Orton losing, on the other hand, allows the use of the ole’ rematch clause, one which Orton’s character has effectively used before. I’d expect Cena to will this one clean, and for Orton to try to invoke his rematch clause for Wrestlemania, antagonising Triple H, and thus making for the triple threat that is expected.

Prediction - John Cena, cleanly.

Enjoy No Way Out, guys, I’ll be back in the minutes following the PPV with my live notes.