Original Airdate: January 25, 1999
From Phoenix, Arizona; Your Hosts are Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler
The Corporation are out to celebrate Rock’s new WWF Title and Vince McMahon’s Royal Rumble win. But, before Vince can name his successor as Rock’s handpicked opponent for WrestleMania, Steve Austin shows up on the TitanTron, live from Shawn Michaels’ house in Texas. Shawn, as Commissioner, informs Vince that the rulebook clearly states that if the winner of the Rumble can’t (or won’t) compete for the title at WrestleMania, then the runner-up automatically gets the spot. And that’s Austin. But, Stone Cold will give Vince a fighting chance… literally. He wants Vince one-on-one, in a cage, and the winner will go to WrestleMania
Outside, an armored truck arrives
DX are out, and Triple H casts doubt on the fact that Rock was able to make Mankind quit. And, he’d like to see Rock do that to him. So he challenges for an I Quit title match tonight, in a great promo
Goldust v Billy Gunn: Goldust attacks before the bell, and hits a sitout matslam. Into the corner for shattered dreams, but the referee intervenes, and Gunn recovers. Gunn with a pair of clotheslines, but a third misses. That allows Goldust to try a bodypress, but Billy ducks, and Goldust takes a spill to the outside. Goldust’s music then comes on, and Blue Meanie comes out dressed as him, which distracts Gunn, and allows Goldust to recover with a schoolboy for two. A spinebuster gets another two, but he stops to go after Meanie, and gets hit. That allows Billy a piledriver at 1:58. DUD
Mankind arrives at the building
Rock is out, and accepts Triple H’s challenge for tonight. While that’s happening, Mankind breaks into the armored truck, and steals the $100,000 that Vince promised to Rock earlier. Mankind brings the cash out to the arena, and starts throwing it out to the fans. Mankind reveals that he never actually quit last night, since he was unconscious at the time, and that the Corporation used a recording to make it appear that he had. Anyway, if Rock wants the rest of his money, he has to put the title up during halftime of the Super Bowl in an Empty Arena match
Mideon is out, and acting squirrelly
Droz v George Steele: Steele bites at him to block a collar-and-elbow lockup, and a punch puts Droz on his ass. Steele bites a turnbuckle pad off next, but that allows Droz to bash him into the exposed steele for the pin at 0:45. It was worth bringing Steele back just for that finish. I’m shocked no one ever did that in all the years before. Afterwards, Droz continues beating him up, until the Oddities make the save. DUD
Backstage, the stooges give Ken Shamrock and Big Boss Man some saltpeter ahead of their tag title defense, to try and counter the effects of Debra McMichael
Backstage, Kevin Kelly catches up with Debra, who thinks the tag champs can’t resist her, saltpeter or no saltpeter. Mark Henry then shows up to flirt with her
WWF Tag Team Title Match: Ken Shamrock and Big Boss Man v Owen Hart and Jeff Jarrett: We’re at the top of second hour here, and we’ve only had two matches thus far, totally less than three minutes. Debra rubs up on Boss Man at the bell, allowing Jeff to try a sneak attack, but the saltpeter is working overtime, so no dice. Boss Man knocks him around, and an inverted atomic drop connects. Boss Man uses a bodyslam for two, and a cross corner whip follows, but a charge in misses. That allows a tag to Owen, who quickly puts the boots to Boss Man. Sharpshooter, but Boss Man blocks, and tags. Ken comes in with a clothesline, and a kneelift follows. A roundhouse kick misses, allowing Owen a leg-feed enzuigiri for two. Ken fires back with a Russian legsweep for two, and he lands the roundhouse on the second try. Irish whip, but Owen reverses, and powerslams him for two. Hart lands a spinheel kick, and he goes up with a flying dropkick, but Shamrock sidesteps. That draws Debra onto the apron, and he opens up her top. Ken tries to hold firm, and puts Owen in the anklelock, but Jarrett saves. That draws Boss Man in, and Roseanne Barr the door! In comes Blue Blazer (a black Blue Blazer), and he blasts Shamrock with the guitar for Owen to pin at 4:13. Kevin Kelly comes out to get a word with the new champions, and Owen uses this as vindication that he isn’t - and never was - the Blazer. ¾*
Shane McMahon is out, and summons Kane down to answer for his insolence. Shane claims that Kane apologized last night at the Rumble, but Shane wants him to do it again now, for us all to hear. Kane obliges, but Shane, of course, wants to humiliate him. He keeps making him repeat it over and over, until X-Pac shows up. He offers Kane a spot in DX, but Kane chokeslams him, and continues to prostrate himself for Shane
Backstage, the Ministry of Darkness huddle up
Earlier today, Terri Runnels dragged D-lo Brown to Walgreens to get her feminine products
Val Venis v Test: Val unveils his latest film, Saving Ryan’s Privates - starring Ken Shamrock’s sister, Ryan - before the bell here. Val gets control with a pair of knees and a Russian legsweep, and he mounts Test with punches. Corner whip, but Test reverses, and gets a sleeper on. Venis quickly escapes, and wins a criss cross with a rotating spinebuster. Another criss cross allows Test to dump him over the top, and Shamrock is right there to whack him with a chair. That allows Test to hit a pumphandle-slam on the way back in, and he hooks the leg at 1:24. Afterwards, a furious Shamrock comes in to get his pound of flesh, but Billy Gunn makes the save. Once the heels are cleared, a recovering Val thinks that Billy hit him with the chair, and he attacks him. Odd shift there, as why would Billy hit him with a chair? ¼*
Hardcore Match: Jesse James and Al Snow v Gangrel and Edge: James and Snow wait by the stage with fire extinguishers to attack the Brood with during their entrance, and we’re off to the races! They brawl to the back, punch, kick, weapon, you know the drill. Blue Meanie shows up, and knocks everyone off of a ladder, with Jesse ending up on top of Gangrel for the pin at 5:56. Longest match of the night, thus far. DUD
Backstage, the Ministry promise darkness
Backstage, Kelly catches up with James and Snow, who think each other are pretty cool, but Al wants a shot at the WWF Hardcore title anyway. Jesse accepts the challenge, but the Ministry attack them as they shake on it. THAT’S what they spent the whole show huddling up about? Attack Road Dogg and Al Snow?!
WWF Title I Quit Match: Rock v Triple H: HHH wins a slugfest at the bell, so Rock bails. Back in, HHH continues to throw punches, and he corners Rocky for a ten-punch count. Another slugfest ends in HHH tossing the champ over the top, and the challenger blasts him with a baseball slide. Rock bails up the ramp, but HHH chases, and continues hammering on him. Rock manages to bash HHH into a piece of the entrance set, but Hunter fights him off with a short-clothesline. Rock refuses to quit, so HHH beats on him with the microphone, and knocks him down the ramp - the hard way. HHH chokes him with some cable, but Rock won’t quit, so HHH whips him into the steps. HHH grabs the ring bell on the way back into the ring, but Rock knocks it away from him, and delivers a DDT. Rock puts the bell over Hunter’s head, and uses the People’s elbow to ring it, but HHH doesn’t quit. Rock responds with a series of right hands, but a Samoan drop is countered with a kneeling facebuster. That allows HHH the pedigree,and he dumps the champion to the outside for another one on the floor! HHH decides to keep going with another pedigree on the announce table, but the Corporation shows up as he’s setting it up. They grab Chyna, and threaten her if he doesn’t unhand Rock, and quit. HHH immediately obliges at 9:17. This was no SummerSlam ‘98. Afterwards, HHH goes to check on Chyna, but she hits him with a low blow to turn heel. She’s then embraced by the Corporation to solidify it. ½*
BUExperience: A lot of good storyline stuff, but nothing in the way of good in-ring stuff.
Monday Night Wars Rating Chart
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.