WWE Fatal 4-Way (June 2010)

Original Airdate: June 20, 2010

 

From Uniondale, New York; Your Hosts are Michael Cole, Matt Striker, and Jerry Lawler

 

Opening WWE Intercontinental Title Match: Kofi Kingston v Drew McIntyre: Kofi comes at him with kicks to start, and he uses a monkeyflip followed by a dropkick. Clothesline sends the challenger over the top, and Kingston dives after him with a tope. Another dive, but he gets clobbered this time, and McIntyre hooks the leg for two. McIntyre busts his arm into the post for two, and Drew stays on the part with an armbar. For a long ass time. Short-clothesline, but Kofi counters by floating over into a DDT, and he starts making a comeback. Sunset cradle gets him two, and a springboard bodypress is worth two. Drew fires back with a neckbreaker for two, but Kofi counters the follow-up with a Russian legsweep to set up the Boom Drop. Trouble in Paradise, but McIntyre dodges, and backdrops Kofi to the apron to bash into the turnbuckles. Side suplex, but Kofi topples him for two, so McIntyre blasts him with a big boot. Future Shock DDT, but Kingston blocks, and uses a springboard tornado DDT for two. Ten-punch in the corner, but McIntyre counters with a powerbomb for two, since apparently Kofi has never watched an Undertaker match post 2001. Kofi comes back with an SOS for two, but the referee gets bumped as he tries a headscissors, and McIntyre sends him into the post. Future Shock connects, but there's no one to count. McIntyre responds by dragging Teddy Long in and demanding that he take over as referee, but Teddy stops his count at two. That earns him some grade-A threatening from McIntyre, but Matt Hardy shows up to make the save, and Teddy shuts his eyes to the obvious DQ. That allows Kingston to recover with the Trouble in Paradise to retain at 16:28. **

 

WWE Divas Title Fatal Four-Way Match: Eve Torres v Maryse v Alicia Fox v Gail Kim: First fall wins it. Everyone slugs it out to start, and Fox dodges a charge from Kim that allows her a bridging suplex for two. Eve breaks it up, and does her own suplex, but Maryse saves. Fox goes back to Kim with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker, but Eve starts running wild on everyone, so Fox takes her down with a handful of hair. Fox teams up with Maryse to abuse the champion, but Kim saves, as the crowd ignores the match. Everyone tries for submissions, but that goes nowhere, and Maryse dumps Eve and Gail to the outside. She does a big stare down with Alicia, as a hush grows over the crowd. Or, nope, they're just ignoring the match still. My bad. Eve comes back and hits Maryse with a neckbreaker to set up a flying moonsault, but Fox breaks up the pin, and steals it for herself at 5:40. This was junk. DUD

 

Chris Jericho v Evan Bourne: Why are they dressed like tag team partners? Jericho knocks him around to start, but Bourne manages a well executed headscissors takedown to set up a dropkick for two. Jericho blocks a charge with a clothesline for two, and he unloads in the corner, but a corner splash misses, sending Chris over the top. Evan dives after him with a flying bodypress on the floor, but Jericho manages a springboard dropkick on the way back in. Another dropkick gets him two, so he works a chinlock, but Bourne blocks a side suplex attempt. That allows Even to throw some kicks, and a spinheel version leaves Chris down in the corner. Bourne with a seated corner dropkick for two, but another kick misses, allowing Jericho a bridging German suplex for two. Chris goes to the middle for a dive, but Bourne brings him off with a headscissors for two. Pop-up, but Chris counters to the Walls. Bourne makes the ropes, so Jericho dumps him to the outside. He follows, but Bourne is ready with a drop-toehold into the steps, and Evan lands a flying kneesmash for two on the way back in. More kicks, but Jericho fights back with a butterfly backbreaker for two, only to miss the Lionsault. That allows Bourne to get to the top with a flying shooting star press, but Chris dodges that, and busts him with the Codebreaker for two. Corner charge misses, allowing Bourne a schoolboy for two, so Jericho tries for the Walls again, but Evan counters with a tornado DDT. That allows Evan to get back to the top for the flying shooting star press, and that's enough at 12:02. This was consistently good, with lots of back-and-forth, and strong execution. Bourne looked like a real star here. *** ½

 

World Heavyweight Title Fatal Four-Way Match: Jack Swagger v Big Show v Rey Mysterio v CM Punk: First fall wins it. Punk is wearing a mask as well, I assume selling the haircut from Rey, but also being a... well... punk... about it. Jack and Punk try ganging up on Rey to start, but Show doesn't like that, and saves. They gang up on Show instead, but that goes poorly for them, and both guys get dumped over the top. That leaves Rey and Show alone, and Mysterio tries coming at him with rights, but Show just absorbs everything, so Rey wisely decides to take a walk. Show doesn't like that either, however, and he drags him back in with one hand while still standing in the ring! That was pretty nuts! Show sets up a front-powerslam, so Swagger and Punk try attacking, but Show swats them away. That does buy Rey enough time to counter with a DDT, however, and everyone takes turns trying to cover Show off of it. Swagger with a pump-splash on Show for two, but that pisses Rey and Punk off, and they team up on him... before remembering that, oh yeah, we hate each other. Jack recovers and rattles the ring with a corner whip on Rey, and a belly-to-belly suplex is worth two. Swagger works a bow-and-arrow, but Rey escapes, only to have a 619 cut off when Punk dives with a springboard flying bodypress for two. Punk adds a backbreaker for two, and Show has literally been selling that DDT for, like, four minutes now. Rey tries a 619 on Punk, but Show wakes up to block it, and he slams Mysterio onto the announce table. He gangs up on Jack and Punk, but both manage to bail before he can chokeslam them. Show tries dragging Punk back in, but Rey dropkicks the steps at his knee to stop the effort, and he nails Show with a 619 on the outside. Rey follows up by springboarding at Swagger, but he eats a boot. That allows Punk to sneak in with a GTS on Swagger, but he's battered, and can't cover. With everyone down, suddenly the lights turn red, and Kane shows up with a casket - and drags Punk out of the match to try and put in the box. Luke Gallows makes the save, but Punk is terrified, and runs out on the match. Meanwhile, Mysterio recovers enough to nail Jack with the 619, and a springboard flying splash wins the title at 10:27. This wasn't a bad match, but it dragged pretty noticeably even at only ten minutes long, and the stuff with Kane was really annoying. *

 

WWE United States Title Match: Miz v R-Truth: Truth, genius that he is, addresses the crowd as 'Rhode Island, New York.' Uh. Truth knocks him around until Miz bails, but Truth chases, barreling into him with a shoulderblock on the floor. Back in, that gets the challenger two, but Miz fights him off, and works a clutch. Truth escapes with a hiptoss, but he wastes time literally walking around on the apron, and Miz knocks him to the outside. That was a really bad transition. Truth beats the count, so Miz pounds him into the corner, and takes him down in a bodyscissors. Truth escapes with mounted punches, but Miz puts him down again with a knee, and he bootchokes his challenger. Armbar, but Truth side suplexes out of it for two, so Miz goes back to stomping him. Vertical suplex connects, but he wastes time, and Truth manages a gourdbuster for two. Miz drops him into the buckles to buy time, and he tries a superplex, but Truth fights him off. Truth dives with a 2^nd rope dropkick, and he starts getting fired up. Reverse STO gets two, and a suplex-stunner is worth two. That's a neat spot, one I haven't really seen before. Miz fights him off with a hotshot and a neckbreaker for two, but a corner clothesline misses, and Truth dropkicks him for two. Flying bodypress misses, so Miz runs over to finish, but Truth is ready with a cradle for two. Schoolboy gets two, but Miz reverses a victory cradle to retain at 13:16. This felt really long for what it was, but it was mostly watchable. *

 

Six-Person Mixed Tag Team Match: Natalya, Tyson Kidd, and David Hart Smith v Tamina, Jimmy Uso, and Jey Uso: Natalya and Tamina start, and they feel each other out. Natalya dominates that, so Jey tags in, and he's matched up with Smith. Smith works the arm to control, and a somersault cradle gets him two. Belly-to-belly suplex is worth two, and he hangs Uso in a tree of woe for Kidd to dropkick for two. Kid works a cravat, but Jey is able to power into his home corner, and pass to Jimmy. Jimmy has better luck working a wristlock, but Kidd uses speed to escape, so Jimmy clobbers him with a backelbow, and tosses him over the top. Tope, but Tyson blocks with a kick for two, so Jimmy tries a suplex, but Kidd escapes to the apron. He dumps Jimmy to the floor for a dive, but Uso catches him with a Samoan drop into the barricade to block. That's enough to turn the tide, and the heels go to work cutting the ring in half on Kidd. He shakes them off long enough to get a hot tag off to Natalya, and she comes in running wild with suplexes. Michinoku driver gets two when the Uso's save, and Roseanne Barr the door! Kidd does a big dive on the outside to take the Usos out of it, but Natalya walks into a Samoan drop. Tamina goes up with a Superfly Splash, but Natalya dodges, and a discus punch finishes at 9:26. * ¼

 

Main Event: WWE Title Fatal Four-Way Match: John Cena v Randy Orton v Sheamus v Edge: First fall wins it. Sheamus and Edge get dumped right away, leaving the real main eventers to show down. Cena goes for the Attitude Adjustment, but Edge and Sheamus save, and they work together to beat the champ down. Edge turns on Sheamus with a schoolboy for two, but that annoys Sheamus, and he unloads with uppercuts in the corner. Edge blocks a corner charge and dives with a 2nd rope clothesline for two, then to the top with a flying bodypress for two. Orton clotheslines him over the top before he can keep things going, and he adds a vertical suplex on Cena. Orton puts the hurt on Cena with a Garvin stomp, but he gets distracted by the crowd’s various Cena chants, and misses a kneedrop. That allows Sheamus to come back in on Cena, but John fights him off, and delivers a suplex. AA, but Sheamus counters with a scrap-backbreaker for two. He tries a crucifix powerbomb, but has to abandon it to dodge an incoming Edge, and Cena capitalizes with a schoolboy for two. Orton returns with a rope-hung DDT on both John and Sheamus, and he hooks Sheamus’s leg for two. Edge big boots Orton the moment he gets vertical again, however, and he tries a spear on Cena, but the champ dodges. John makes does his comeback routine on Edge to set up the Five Knuckle Shuffle, but Orton cuts off an AA attempt, and he powerslams Edge himself. RKO, but Sheamus is back to cut it off. Cena gets rid of him with a backdrop over the top, however, and he takes Edge to the mat in the STF! Sheamus saves and clotheslines a battered Edge himself for two, but Edge counters a front-powerslam attempt on him with the Edge-o-Matic. Cena runs in to try and grab a still woozy Edge in the AA, but Orton cuts him off with an RKO, and Sheamus has to dive in to save at two. Orton dumps Sheamus, but fails to see a recovering Edge charging him with a spear! Unfortunately for Edge, that allows Sheamus to recover, and he blasts Edge with a Brogue Kick. To the outside, Orton sends Sheamus into the announce table, and tries an RKO on Edge on the floor, but gets speared into the barricade for his efforts. But before anything else can happen, the Nexus hits the ring, and starts attacking everyone (with the announcers bailing out to add to the chaos), and Sheamus manages to pin a knocked out Cena in the mess at 17:25. This was well paced, and they did a good job of making it seem like an actual match instead of a ‘two guys work while two play dead’ thing, though yet another overbooked finish on this show was a bit much. **

 

BUExperience: Jericho/Bourne is a really good match, but it’s a pretty meaningless one in the grand scheme of things. The rest is solid enough, but mostly forgettable. It doesn’t drag, but it doesn’t really go anywhere either. This couldn’t possibly be a more ‘meh’ show.

 

 

*