WWE Vengeance: Night of Champions (June 2007)

Original Airdate: June 24, 2007

From Houston, Texas; Your Hosts are Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield, Joey Styles, and Tazz

Opening World Tag Team Title Match: Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch v The Hardy Boyz: Cade and Matt Hardy start, and Lance stalls. Criss cross ends in Matt hitting a bodypress, and he passes to Jeff Hardy for a double team. Murdoch gets a tag, and hits Jeff with a swinging neckbreaker for two, but telegraphs a backdrop, and ends up eating a leg-feed corkscrew kick. Tag back to Matt for a 2^nd rope flying axehandle, and the challengers hit the Poetry in Motion. That brings Lance in without a tag, but the Boyz clean house, and the champs regroup on the outside. The Hardy's don't give them much breathing room, however, dragging them back in to continue the fight. Unfortunately for Matt, he chases Murdoch right into the wrong part of town, and runs into a cheap shot when Cade clips his leg. The champs target the leg as they go to work on Matt, but he manages to escape a half-crab from Murdoch for the tag! Jeff comes in hot, and a sling blade on Cade gets two. Whisper in the Wind gets two, and a gourdbuster sets up the Swanton Bomb, but Trevor shoves him off the top rope to protect his partner. That allows Cade a sitout spinebuster, and the champs retain at 8:53. I've seen worse. *

WWE Cruiserweight Title Match: Chavo Guerrero v Jimmy Wang Yang: Yang gets a quick schoolboy at the bell for two, and a reversal sequence allows him another schoolboy for two. Chavo fires back with a pair of uppercuts, but a turnbuckle smash gets blocked, and Yang throws a dropkick, followed by a vertical suplex for two. He grounds Guerrero in a hammerlock, but Chavo fights free, and tosses his challenger to the outside. Guerrero is on him with a baseball slide, and a big uppercut follows before they head back in. Chavo goes up, but Yang throws an enzuigiri to knock him all the way down to the floor, and Jimmy dives after him with a flying bodypress out there! Back in, Yang hooks the leg for two, but a charge goes badly when Chavo hiptosses him into the turnbuckles. Saito suplex gets him two, and a bodyslam sets up a bow-and-arrow. Yang escapes with chops, so Chavo puts him down for a somersault senton splash, then whips Jimmy into the corner. Snapmare sets up a crossface, but Yang escapes with a side suplex, and he starts mounting a comeback. Flying bodypress gets two, but he runs into a three-alarm no-release vertical suplex - only to counter the third alarm with a spinheel kick for two. Flying moonsault, but Guerrero rolls out of the way. He slaps on the gory special, but Yang escapes with a sunset cradle for a close two - only to get crotched on the top rope. That allows Guerrero a flying frogsplash, and he retains at 9:17. Good outing. ***

ECW World Title Match: CM Punk v Johnny Nitro: This is a tournament final for the vacant title, with Nitro subbing for Chris Benoit here, who no-showed the event. And, yes, that is all I am going to say about that situation. Punk is able to knock him to the outside with strikes in the early going, so Nitro tries to sucker him into a chase, but it backfires when CM sweeps him from the outside, and hits a slingshot splash on the way back in. Johnny responds with a springboard enzuigiri for two, and he slaps on a cobra clutch. Punk escapes, so Nitro uses a short-clothesline to put him back down for two, and he grabs an overhead wristlock, then back into the cobra clutch. Punk escapes again, so Nitro tries another short-clothesline, but gets countered with an enzuigiri this time. Punk mounts a comeback with a leg lariat for two, but a charge in the corner hits boot, and Nitro tries a leveraged pin - getting caught at two. That allows Punk a hammerlock-clothesline for two, but Nitro blocks the GTS. CM stays on him with a bulldog, but a springboard dive misses, and Johnny hits a rope-hung corkscrew neckbreaker to snag the gold at 8:03. Kind of weird that Nitro got the title when he wasn't even supposed to be in the match, but there you go. Not the best, but decent enough considering the last minute substitution. * ½

WWE Intercontinental Title Match: Santino Marella v Umaga: Umaga misses a charge at the bell, so Santino tries a schoolboy, but he can't get the big man down. He tries diving on his back instead, but Umaga drops back onto him to block - only to have the champ lift his knees to try blocking the follow-up splash. Umaga shrugs it off and superkicks him to set up a nervehold, but Santino won't quit, so Umaga tosses him into the corner. He unloads, and after a fairly short and tame beating, the referee decides to disqualify Umaga at 2:34. It was two and a half minutes long, and the bulk of it was a nervehold. And then the stupid finish on top of it. It wasn't like some crazy extended beating, where Santino was left a broken and bloody mess, or anything. It was like Steve Austin's 'stomping a mud hole' spot in length and severity, and somehow it's a DQ here? DUD

WWE United States Title Match: Montel Vontavious Porter v Ric Flair: MVP gets cocky at the bell, so Flair knocks him down a peg with a flurry of chops that leaves the champion on the outside. Back in, Ric takes him down for a toehold, but Porter blocks a kneebreaker, and uses a big boot to knock Ric to the outside. Back in, it gets the champion a few two counts, so he grounds Flair in a chinlock. Looks like Ric got busted open a little bit on the big boot spot, probably hardway. Given how little it takes to make him bleed (as evidenced by his recent 30 for 30 episode), that would be my bet. MVP with a backdrop, and a fireman's carry drop gets two. Back to the chinlock, but Flair uses a chincrusher to escape, and he unloads with chops. Porter tries to cut him off with a sleeper, but Ric is ready with a side suplex, and he mounts a comeback. MVP escapes a ten-punch in the corner by dropping Flair onto the top turnbuckle, but a running big boot misses, and Ric clips the knee. Figure Four, but MVP has the ropes, so Flair resorts to throwing punches. Unfortunately for him, he runs into an eye poke, and the Playmaker finishes at 8:41. About as paint-by-numbers as you can get. *

WWE Tag Team Title Match: Deuce 'n Domino v Sgt. Slaughter and Jimmy Snuka: The champions make an open challenge, which is answered by Slaughter and Snuka to set this up. Domino starts with Snuka, and Superfly is so old and broken down that he can't even get a criss cross right - botching two leapfrogs in a row. And he wasn't even the guy doing the leaping! Like, simply bending over and running proved to be too challenging. Over to Slaughter, who dominates Domino with the basics, and slaps on a cobra clutch, but the champ has the ropes. Slaughter stays on him with a backelbow and a short-clothesline, then goes back to the cobra clutch, but Domino forces him into the heel corner. Over to Deuce for a double team, and they cut the ring in half on Sarge, but Deuce misses a flying splash to allow the tag to Jimmy. Snuka dominates Deuce, and he goes up for a flying bodypress, but Deuce rolls through to retain at 6:32. The champs looked like complete goofs here, getting dominated by retirees. It's one thing if they were in good shape, but Snuka was barely even mobile. DUD

World Heavyweight Title Last Chance Match: Edge v Batista: The idea here is that if Batista can't win the title tonight, he won't get another shot while Edge is champion. Batista knocks him around to start, and hits a shoulderblock for two. He grounds the champion in a wristlock, but Edge escapes in the corner, so Batista uses a sidewalk slam for two. A charge misses, however, and the big man takes a bump over the top to the outside. Edge dives after him with a flying axehandle from off the apron, but he gets caught. That allows Batista to try and ram him into the post, but Edge reverses, and Batista has to fight to beat the count in - Edge doing everything he can to keep him out of the ring. Batista manages to fight his way in, so Edge welcomes him with an armbar, but Batista armdrags his way out of that. Unfortunately for him, he misses a charge in the corner, and gets grounded again in a hammerlock. Batista powers to a vertical base and tries a Samoan drop, but Edge holds on into a crucifix, which he keeps applied as a submission on the mat. Have never seen that particular counter before. It was neat. Batista powers out and manages a clothesline, followed by a backdrop as he mounts a comeback. Spinning scrapbuster gets two, but Edge counters the Batista Bomb with an implant DDT for two. He decides to go out and grab the title belt to use as a weapon, but the referee stops him - allowing Batista to recover with a schoolboy for two. Edge with his own schoolboy for two, and the Edge-o-Matic follows, but the spear gets reversed! Batista Bomb, but Edge counters with a low blow, and the referee DQs him at 12:47. Man, we're not even back to TV-PG yet, but the rulings have been super strict tonight. Unfortunately for Edge, Teddy Long comes out and decides to restart the match, and notes that if Edge gets himself disqualified a second time, he'll lose the title as well. Edge goes right at him, and this time manages to successfully execute the spear - but it only gets two! Frustrated, Edge grabs a chair, but remembers Long's ruling, and quickly abandons it. That allows Batista to recover enough for a small package for two, but the champ slips out of the Bomb. Batista clotheslines him over the top instead, but ends up taking a trip into the steps while chasing after him. That allows Edge the spear, but Batista blocks, and hits a powerbomb on the floor! He muscles Edge back in to finish, but ends up getting himself counted out in the process at 14:52. Dumb finish there. Like, 'dumb' because they booked a lame countout, and 'dumb' because Batista rolling Edge in should have broken the count. I mean, I get that in wrestling you adjust things to suit your booking, but I hate it when they completely alter known and defined rules - especially when they do it to make bad finishes work. * ¾

WWE Women's Title Match: Melina v Candice Michelle: Candice dominates her in the early going, but takes a spill out of the ring, and Melina pounds her. Melina with a double-high knee in the corner, followed by a headscissors against the turnbuckles. Candice tries fighting with a victory cradle for two, but eats mat, and the champ applies a Mexican surfboard. Candice manages to topple her on the escape for two, so Melina tries a charge, but ends up taking a spill over the top. Candice snaps her throat across the top rope on the way back in, and a powerslam sets up an elbowdrop for two. Two-handed bulldog gets two, so Melina goes to the eyes, and hits a neckbreaker for two. Candice fires back with a super sloppy spinheel kick, however, and she gets the pin at 4:21. That was so sloppy I thought it was a jumping backelbow at first. The finish felt totally out of nowhere too, regardless of execution. ¼*

Main Event: WWE Title Five-Pack Challenge Match: John Cena v Booker T v Randy Orton v Bobby Lashley v Mick Foley: First fall wins it. Booker decides to hang out on the floor as the bell sounds, but the others don't seem to mind - focusing their attentions on ganging up on Orton. Everyone hits him with signature moves to clean house, but Booker sneaks up to take Cena out. He goes for Bobby next, but ends up getting dumped to the outside, and Lashley dives with a tope suicida onto the other four guys. He rolls Booker in for a torture rack drop for two, but Cena is back, and we get a big slugfest between the champ and Lashley. Bobby wins with a spinebuster, and they spill to the outside, where John takes a trip into the steps. Lashley preps an announce table, but Orton jumps him before he can use it, and everyone slugs it out at ringside. Orton tries an RKO on Lashley, but it gets blocked, and Bobby turns right into an FU through a table from Cena. Booker baseball slides into Cena, and back inside, a savate kick is worth two. Cross corner whip and the axekick get two, and Cena starts mounting his comeback. Five Knuckle Shuffle, but Orton cuts him off with the RKO - the count broken up at two by Foley. Mick with a running kneesmash on Orton, and the double-arm DDT follows! He pulls out Socko, but Booker superkicks him before he can use it, so Mick goes out and gets himself a chair. He ends up missing Booker and hitting Lashley by accident, but hey, the more the merrier. Booker takes his hit, and Cena takes his, but Orton manages to attack Foley from behind before suffering the same fate. Randy with a running punt on Foley, but Lashley attacks before any cover can be made. That allows Cena to hit Foley with the FU, and he retains at 10:09. This felt really underwhelming, like something you'd see as the dark match after RAW, with everyone rushing through basic stuff. ¾*

BUExperience: Move along. Nothing to see here.

DUD