WWE Raw Results
May 10, 2010
Live in Pittsburgh, Pa.
Aired on USA Network
Report by James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

WWE Raw opened with a video package on last week's Raw "main event segment" featuring the Cutting Edge with Randy Orton dropping Wayne Brady, then Edge with an RKO. Orton's in control going into tonight's show.

Arena: The final WWE event from the Igloo in Pittsburgh opened with Randy Orton's theme music to a big pop. He's getting a near-John Cena-level pop right now. Raw announcers Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler plugged Orton vs. Edge at Over the Limit in two weeks. After Orton's music stopped, the lights remained dimmed as the audience chanted, "Randy, Randy." Orton speaks. He said he knows Edge and he knows Edge sees him as a threat. Suddenly, some random music interrupted to bring out musician Meat Loaf. He shouted "Randy Orton" over and over before plugging his album coming out. Mr. Loaf said he has a new theme song for Orton and he started giving Orton a "This is Your Life" moment. The fans chanted for an RKO, but Orton quieted them down and asked for a sample of the new track. Loaf started singing over a very soft pre-recorded track that drew Orton's ire. Orton paced around the ring as Loaf just kept rambling and singing. Orton finally had enough and dropped the guy with an RKO. He didn't know how to take it, so it looked clumsy.

Suddenly, Edge's music hit to bring out Edge. Jerry Lawler couldn't find the words to capture the train wreck opening to the show. Edge stood on stage and said it's apparent Orton doesn't like celebrities. He ran through the guest hosts Orton has assaulted and Edge said he agrees with Orton. Edge doesn't like guest hosts, so he complained to WWE HQ and they Tweeted him back, agreeing with him. He said from here on out, celebrity guest hosts will have no authority on Raw. But, that wasn't enough for him. Edge said he needed more than that and the show needs a new permanent GM. Edge said WWE HQ agreed with him again. He said Orton will never guess who HQ picked to be the permanent GM of Raw. Without further ado...

"Excuse me!" Vickie Guerrero shouted as she walked out on stage to massive heat. Cole noted it's Edge's ex-wife. So, so, so long ago. Vickie wanted to state for the record that despite her personal relationship with Edge in the past, she is here tonight to be a true professional. "And, Randy, speaking of professionalism, you attacking celebrities is something that we at WWE do not condone." Vickie told Orton he's going to be reprimanded. Orton shifted the heat to a big babyface pop telling Vickie to come down to the ring for a face-to-face reprimand.

Edge called Orton a bully and said tonight he's going to find out what it's like to be bullied. Vickie then booked Orton vs. Edge and a partner of his choice in a two-on-one handicap match. Edge promised Orton he'll find out what it's like to be threatened. Cue up Edge's music. "I can't believe WWE put her (Vickie) in charge of anything, much less WWE Raw," Lawler said after the segment wrapped. Cole noted Vickie's previous storyline botches in an authority role before they cut to the back. PYB (3) talk time: 10:05.

Backstage: Chris Jericho and U.S. champion The Miz were shown talking backstage. Cole said Jericho is up next in a match with Unified tag title ramifications.

[Q2]

[Commercial Break]

Ringside: Pittsburgh Steelers were on the front row doing the traditional fake fighting. No sign of Ben Roethlisberger, who guest-hosted in October. Not going there with any Big Ben jokes.

Recap: Cole and Lawler confirmed that Vickie Guerrero is the new Raw GM. ... In-ring: Justin Roberts announced that if Chris Jericho wins the following match, he and The Miz will receive a Unified tag title match at Over the Limit. Jericho came out first and alone, then David Hart Smith came out with Natalya. Cole and Lawler noted that Miz will face Tyson Kidd later in the show and if Kidd wins, then a HD member gets a U.S. Title shot next week in Toronto.

1 -- CHRIS JERICHO vs. Unified tag champion DAVID HART SMITH (w/Natalya)

Smith started on the offensive, but missed with a leg drop and Jericho smashed him in the face with a knee strike. Jericho went to work on Smith as the fans tried to rally behind Smith, who made a comeback with power offense. Smith then belly-to-belly tossed Jericho off the ropes before running into an elbow. Jericho tried to charge Smith, but Smith executed a powerslam for a two count. Smith then slapped on a Sharpshooter center ring and Jericho tried to crawl to the ropes to force a break. Jericho got the break, then gave Smith a thumb to the eye to temporarily blind him. Jericho then smashed Smith with the codebreaker for the win.

WINNER: Jericho at 3:05. Jericho and Miz get a Unified tag title shot at the PPV in two weeks. The match was okay. Smith is still rough around the edges working singles with the spotlight on him. He needs more time to develop. (*)

Backstage: Edge was talking to a burglar in a dark section of the arena. Check that, it was Batista sporting a dark skullcap, scraggly beard, black long-sleeve shirt, and wrestler trunks. Out of context, a completely ridiculous look. The announcers surmised Edge was trying to recruit Batista for the handicap match.

Up next: Flavor Flav appearance.

[Commercial Break]

[Q3]

Smackdown: Rey Mysterio vs. C.M. Punk one-on-one. That can't be right nine days before they have a singles match on PPV.

In-ring: R-Truth's music hit to bring out Truth and Flavor Flav rapping to the ring. You could see WWE creating this pairing. Meanwhile, William Regal was on the floor pacing around in the background. Truth asked the fans to welcome one of rap and hip-hop's legends, Flavor Flav. After smiling for the intro, Flav asked the whole house to scream at the top of their lungs, "Flavor Flav." He plugged his new show coming out, "Nite Tales," before asking for more noise. He asked for some noise for R-Truth, who shouted "What's up?" Flav wanted to keep the mic as Truth and Regal were trying to get to their match. Flav kept playing to the crowd before the random match began.

2 -- WILLIAM REGAL vs. R-TRUTH (w/Flavor Flav)

Suddenly, Carlito and Primo hit the ring to jump R-Truth to cause a DQ. The Colons set up Truth for the backstabber as Flav said on commentary they broke his man's back. He said if he weighed four more pounds, he would have done something. The Colons then bailed from the ring as Flav dropped his headset to check on Truth. Suddenly, Ted DiBiase was on stage sporting a suit. He handed Primo and Carlito an envelope with their pay-offs for the evening.

WINNER: Truth via DQ at 0:23. That was a random match, but the Colons aligning with DiBiase has some potential. We'll see where this goes. (n/a)

Still to come: Edge & a silhouetted mystery man vs. Randy Orton.

[Commercial Break]

Video package: They ran a lengthy video package on new Divas champion Eve coming back from break, including her Jiu-Jitsu background. Nice feature.

Earlier today in an empty arena: They showed Maryse working with an instructor on some martial arts moves. The instructor became frustrated with Maryse, saying she wasn't working hard enough. She tried to explain herself in French. "You're telling me to try harder?" Maryse shot back. She proceeded to slap the poor guy and drop him to the mat.

Backstage: Josh Mathews brought in Randy Orton to ask him if he's concerned about who Edge selects as his partner for the handicap match. Orton said he can't control it, so he's not worried. He invited Vickie Guerrero to come down to the ring and he'll show her a surprise. The crowd popped in the arena.

NXT tomorrow night: The first NXT elimination.

[Q4]

[Commercial Break]

Promo: Buzz Aldrin was shown in a pre-tape saying he's taking Raw "to the moon" next week. They cut to Mark Henry stepping into the shot to drop a fake astronaut with a chair shot to the back. They inserted a random groan from "Buzz" before plugging next week's commercial-free Raw.

Announcers: Cole and Lawler plugged the Igloo and WWE's final show at the building. Lawler said WWE still holds the all-time attendance record. The camera panned right to reveal Gail Kim and Alicia Fox positioned ringside again.

In-ring: Zack Ryder was in the ring trying to woo-woo the ladies. Ryder said the last great moment here in the Igloo before they blow it up is him winning his first match on Raw. He demanded an opponent, prompting Evan Bourne to come out for the Igloo challenge.

3 -- EVAN BOURNE vs. ZACK RYDER

Bourne landed early offense before taking the Rough Ryder lariat from Ryder for a two count. The Divas ringside began choosing alliances with Alicia (the heel) siding with Ryder and Gail (the babyface) siding with Bourne. Bourne ducked a corner attack before landing a running knee smash to the face. Bourne then sprung to the top-rope looking for Air Bourne as Alicia jumped on the ring apron. Gail yanked her down, though, and Bourne followed with Air Bourne on Ryder for the win. Post-match: Gail and Bourne left the ringside area locking arms. Meanwhile, Alicia tried to console Ryder after the loss. It's maybe not the smartest idea to pair Gail with Bourne with Gail taller than Bourne in heels.

WINNER: Bourne at 2:06. Another too-short singles match with WWE investing time in other segments and not having faith in a wrestling match to hold the audience's attention. Bourne and Ryder got some exposure on Raw rather than Superstars, which is the benefit to the trade-off of a short match. (*)

Recap: They showed John Cena beating Batista's time in the Beat the Clock challenge last week before Sheamus smashed Cena in the face to interrupt Cena naming the stipulation for his match vs. Batista at Over the Limit. Lawler said Cena names the stip next.

[Commercial Break]

NXT: First elimination happens tomorrow night. WWE should just say, "We're begging you to watch this show. Forget about the stupid challenges and lame skits."

In-ring: John Cena's music hit to a typically huge reaction three minutes before the top of the hour. Okay, Orton isn't at Cena's level yet in terms of crowd reaction. Cena hit the ring to survey the audience as Cole reset the show and Cena put his WWE Title belt on display. Cena's music stopped and he was greeted by the classic mixed reaction. Cena surveyed the building before beginning his promo by thanking Sheamus. He said Sheamus gave him a full week to think about the stipulation vs. Batista. He said he defeated Batista at Extreme Rules, but it was an intellectual victory and not by athleticism. Cena said he thought the duct tape was creative, but Batista and "some critics" thought it was a cheap way out and a coward's way out.

[Q5 -- second hour] Cena said he's going to prove he can beat Batista physically. He said he could force Batista to wear a blindfold, he could force him to be handcuffed, or he could make him hop on one leg, but that would be the act of a coward. Cena said there will be no easy way out at Over the Limit because it's going to be brutal. Cena said this will be his final match vs. Batista for the WWE Title. He said if Batista wins at the PPV, he's officially forfeiting his re-match clause. Therefore, there's only one match they can have.

Cena said in two weeks at Over the Limit with the WWE Title on the line, he will face Batista in an...I Quit match. He said if Batista wants to make him shut up and go away, he just has to make him say two words. Cena said he would have rushed his decision last week if Sheamus didn't kick him in the head, so he would really like to thank that "human jar of mayonnaise" in person. No sign of Sheamus initially, then his music hit and out came Sheamus with a smug look on his face. Sheamus paced the stage before asking "fella" if he wants to thank him. He said if he comes to the ring, he'll leave Sheamus in condition to beat Batista in an I Quit match. Sheamus asked Cena if he really wants him to come down there.

Cena said he thought it over and...he took off his shirt and cap to suggest he's ready to fight. Sheamus then started to walk down the stage to the ring and stopped half-way down. Batista snuck in the back door to distract Cena, who fought them off initially before taking a spear from Batista. Batista then rolled Cena to the floor and rammed him back-first into the ringpost. Back in the ring, Sheamus landed a pump kick to the face. Batista then scooped up Cena and teased the Batistabomb, but...Mark Henry hit the ring to get Cena's back. After a bit of an awkward exchange between Henry and Batista, Henry landed a big splash on Batista before knocking him out of the ring. Batista was selling a shoulder here as he retreated up the ramp. Back in the ring, Henry helped Cena to his feet. PYB (3) talk time: 7:55. Overall, good promo from Cena and the classic story of Cena fighting with his heart and not his mind before Henry made a random save. Apparently we'll get a tag match on next week's Raw.

Backstage: Vickie Guerrero was texting, then Edge barged in to try to bury the hatchet from all the mean things he said last time she was on Raw. Edge wanted Vickie ringside for the handicap match tonight, but she wanted nothing to do with it. Vickie asked for a guarantee that nothing will happen to her tonight. Edge told Vickie she could fire Orton on the spot if he raises a finger to her tonight. Edge continued to boost up Vickie's ego that she must show everyone she will not be intimidated as Raw GM. Edge walked off as Vickie smiled.

[Commercial Break]

Promo video: They rolled a trailer for Flavor Flav's new Nite Tales show. Odd-looking show.

In-ring: Tyson Kidd was in the ring with Natalya back from break. Not a good sign on a typical night. If he beats The Miz tonight, though, one of the HD members gets a U.S. Title shot next week vs. Miz. Miz then came to the ring with a full intro to get things started.

[Q6]

4 -- U.S. champion THE MIZ vs. TYSON KIDD (w/Natalya) -- non-title match

Miz started toying with Kidd early on before kicking him in the head to knock Kidd to the floor. Suddenly, Kidd caught Miz on the apron and executed an innovative flip-over-the-back into a rolling leg trap pinning combination for a quick three count and the win.

WINNER: Kidd at 0:42. Another too-short match, but the innovative finish was worth a star. (*)

Post-match: Miz sarcastically and rhetorically asked Kidd if he actually won something. He said the stipulation was he gets to decide which Hart Family member he defends the U.S. Title against next week. He said he's not facing Kidd or Smith. He looked over Natalya, saying as much as she would like to wrestle around with him, she needs to keep on dreaming. Miz said it's not any of them. "Next week, live on Monday Night Raw, commercial-free, I will defend my United States Championship against..." Pause. The crowd filled in the blank before Miz announced, "Bret the Hitman Hart." Miz smiled as HD thought this over.

Backstage: Mathews caught up to Batista in the hallway to ask him about facing Mark Henry tonight. Batista was about to eat Mathews for dinner before changing the subject to Cena at the PPV. "I'm not going to make Cena say 'I quit,' I'm going to make him scream 'I quit.' Watch what I do to Mark Henry." Batista walked off.

[Commercial Break]

NXT plug: Please watch this show. Someone's going home.

In-ring: All of the eight NXT Rookies were assembled in the ring for an eight-on-four match against some Raw "pros." Cole and Lawler were shown on-camera plugging an NXT fan poll online. John Morrison's music hit and there were some huge screams from the females in the crowd. Out came Morrison, Yoshi Tatsu, Goldust, and Santino all wearing shades. All four did a slow-motion ring intro, including Santino doing the marching band trombone dance in slow-mo.

5 -- NXT ROOKIES vs. JOHN MORRISON & GOLDUST & YOSHI TATSU & SANTINO MARELLA

Wade Barrett and Goldust started things off with Barrett trying to take it to Goldust before Goldust gained control and tagged in Yoshi. Justin Gabriel then tagged in for the Rookies and battled with Yoshi. They countered each other's moves before Gabriel landed a spin kick and discus punch. Suddenly, David Otunga tagged himself in and started working over Yoshi. Otunga then tagged in Heath Slater while John Morrison tagged in to the vocal screams from young women in the crowd. He's officially over now. Morrison started clearing Rookies before Slater tried a sunset flip, but Morrison rolled out into a knee smash to the face. Morrison then wanted the Starship Pain, but Slater got his knees up to block.

Daniel Bryan then tagged in and missed a knee strike on Morrison. Santino tagged in and tried a small package, but Bryan countered into a small package of his own to score a pin. Cole went nuts acknowledging Bryan winning a match. Bryan pumped his fist as the Rookies celebrated. Skip Sheffield and Darren Young hoisted Bryan in the air to give him shine with the victory. Meanwhile, Santino tried to collect his thoughts after the loss.

WINNER: Team NXT at 3:36. And Daniel Bryan scores his first WWE TV victory with a roll-up on Santino after ten seconds of in-ring action. There's your Trivia note. This was just a hodge-podge match with WWE desperately trying to boost interest in NXT for tomorrow night's show. (*)

WWE Classics on Demand plug: Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan were shown in an old-school clip leading to an extended video package on the Classics On-Demand feature. Pretty much everyone you would think had a cameo in some form or another.

[Q7]

[Commercial Break]

Smackdown Rebound: A Smackdown Rebound on Raw? They focused on Drew McIntyre being "fired" and stripped of the IC Title after trying to destroy Matt Hardy again. Good video package. They plugged Christian vs. Kofi Kingston for the IC Title on Smackdown.

Backstage: Flavor Flav was talking to the Bella Twins, then Kozlov and Santino interrupted. Santino wants to form a tag team with Kozlov, but Kozlov called Santino a loser. William Regal then walked in and was amazing playing his heel role. Flav then challenged Regal to dance. "Regal, do...not...just...stand...there. Bust...a...move." Regal did a rap in his English accent. It was so great. "I'll keep you grounded like volcanic ash," was one of his big lines. Everyone had a laugh at Regal's expense, then Flav mocked Regal and they walked off, leaving Regal standing there.

Announcers: Lawler and Cole were laughing it up ringside. Cole laughed at himself as he did a gangster sign to try to sell the angle. Someone is going to turn that into a YouTube video or a .gif of Cole trying to act hip. ... Over the Limit: Cole and Lawler tried to sell the PPV after that business. Jack Swagger vs. Big Show. Hart Dynasty vs. Miz & Jericho. Edge vs. Randy Orton. Rey Mysterio vs. Chris Jericho. John Cena vs. Batista in an I Quit match.

In-ring: Batista came to the ring for his match against Mark Henry. After doing his spotlight ring intro, Batista pulled up a chair in the ring and just sat down with his legs stretched out to sell he was bored. They cut to break with Batista selling boredom. So great.

[Q8]

[Commercial Break]

Raw plug: They showed the Buzz Aldrin plug for next week's commercial-free Raw with Mark Henry blasting "Buzz" with a chair to the back.

In-ring: Batista was still chilling in the chair selling boredom and staring straight ahead. So great. Mark Henry's music hit, the lights came on, and Batista was still selling boredom. Henry came out looking perplexed by this reaction. Lawler noted Vickie Guerrero has banned Sheamus and Cena from ringside for this action. Henry entered the ring and stared down Batista, who continued to no-sell Henry's presence.

Henry put one foot through the ropes, then Batista sprang out of the chair and smashed Henry across the knee. Batista then pounded Henry with multiple chair shots targeting the left shoulder. Batista then cracked the chair over Henry's back before slapping on a modified Rings of Saturn. Henry was tapping as Batista shouted, "You want to get in my business?!" Batista wouldn't let go as Henry faded out. Ref Jack Doane tried to break the hold, but Batista kept the grip and wrenched back as Henry's tongue came out of his mouth. Batista then dropped the hold and stared down at Henry. A medic hit the ring to check on Henry, but Batista scared him away. "He's all right, he'll be okay," Batista casually said before slowly walking out of the ring to big heat. Batista stared down a few kids on the front row and shot them a look. So great. Batista then turned and walked away as the announcers sold a tense situation with Batista taking out Henry. JC: Batista is doing the best character work of his career right now. He will be missed if he doesn't re-up with WWE and walks away from WWE.

Announcers: Cole and Lawler then plugged Meat Loaf's new album before they rolled footage of Randy Orton dropping Loaf with the RKO. There was no reason to re-visit that absurd opening to the show.

Backstage: They showed Orton slowly walking down the hallway in anticipation of the main event vs. Edge and a mystery partner.

[Commercial Break]

Announcers: Back from break, Cole and Lawler plugged the commercial-free Raw next week. They announced a new match of John Cena vs. Sheamus one-on-one. Also, "it has been confirmed" Bret Hart challenges The Miz for the U.S. Title.

In-ring: Randy Orton came out first for the TV main event tonight. Edge then came out with Vickie Guerrero as one-half of the heel tandem. Edge's music stopped with Edge standing on stage, then Ted DiBiase's music hit to bring out DiBiase with the Million Dollar Belt around his waist. Edge smiled as he walked to the ring with Orton's former protégé. Legacy...must...continue. Lawler inserted a storyline that DiBiase would be entitled to the Trust Fund when he turned 30 or had his first WrestleMania match. Well, that's better than nothing.

6 -- RANDY ORTON vs. EDGE (w/Vickie Guerrero) & TED DIBIASE

Orton and DiBiase started things off with Orton running over DiBiase with a hard shoulder tackle early on. DiBiase then took a clothesline, but Edge had blind-tagged into the match and he blind-sided Orton to take control of the match. Edge continued to work over Orton before tagging in DiBiase, who landed kicks and stomps on Orton. They showed Vickie casually sitting ringside observing the action as the heels continued to work over Orton.

[Q9 -- over-run] Orton teased a comeback, but Edge dropped him with a strike to the head and scored a two count. DiBiase then tagged in and grounded Orton before Orton came back with an explosive clothesline. Orton then dropped DiBiase with a big powerslam and started his babyface IED routine. Orton bumped Edge off the ring apron to the announce table, then dropped DiBiase with a fallaway backbreaker. Orton grabbed his head and started to sense it before dropping to the mat to pound his fists to set up the RKO. DiBiase blocked, of course, but Orton back dropped DiBiase over the top rope to the floor. Suddenly, R-Truth walked down the ramp and DiBiase scampered back into the ring to avoid Truth. DiBiase fell right into Orton's hands and Orton nailed an RKO center ring. Orton then made the cover for the win.

WINNER: Orton at 4:55. Decent main event action (for five minutes, which was really long on this show), they gave DiBiase a main event spotlight, and they continued the DiBiase vs. Truth program that will probably spill over to the PPV. (*1/2)

Post-match: Orton slowly turned his head to look at Vickie Guerrero sitting ringside. Orton did his viper pose on the mat staring at Vickie as Vickie started calling for Edge to wake up. Orton then slowly walked out of the ring and stared down Vickie, who took a mic and told Orton, "Don't do it." Orton was within a few feet before Vickie warned him. She freaked out before announcing, "I resign! I resign!" Edge then came to his feet and Orton dropped Edge with an RKO on the floor right as Edge came to his feet. Vickie suddenly took off running as Orton watched her disappear from ringside up the ramp and to the backstage area. Orton returned to the ring and posed in the ring before staring down at Edge, who sold being out cold on the floor. After a replay of the ending, they showed Edge sprawled out on the floor and Orton staring down at him in the ring to close the show.

Raw plug: Buzz Aldrin guest-hosts next week's commercial-free Raw. One more clip of Mark Henry smashing "Buzz" with a steel chair and the show was over.

CLOSING THOUGHT: This was certainly a newsworthy Raw with some strong character development and solid PPV build-up. The short matches were bothersome with WWE trying to pack a lot of content into one show. Hm...sounds like the promotion that runs out of Orlando. Overall, this episode made Raw feel "can't miss" again, which has been missing since WrestleMania.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for a "Raw Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. To contribute your thoughts on Raw, email to pwtorch@gmail.com using our Feedback form.

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