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The following report was originally published on PWTorch.com five years ago this week…
KELLER’S WWE RAW REPORT
SEPTEMBER 9, 2013
TORONTO, ONT. AT AIR CANADA CENTRE
LIVE ON USA NETWORK
[Q1]
-Edge’s full ring entrance opened Raw. Michael Cole introduced the show and Edge as he walked to the ring. They threw to Cole, Jerry Lawler, and JBL at ringside. They hyped Edge’s TV show on Friday on SyFy. Edge soaked up a crowd reaction that was top star worthy. Of course he’s from Canada, and that helps. He said every time he comes to the ring again in Toronto, the fans remind him why this is home. Edge then said, “Welcome to the Cutting Edge.” He said he is there because he was requested by the new COO of WWE, Triple H.
He said Triple H said it was best for business if he came back to Raw and had a reunion with his old Rated RKO partner, Randy Orton. He said he’s known Randy a long time and he has nothing to say. “It’s like watching paint dry,” he said. He said he wrote the blueprint on Money in the Bank. He said his issue with Orton is that he’s a hand-picked puppet and Triple H’s lackey who has the Shield fight his battles for him. He said he was overruling Triple H and would not have Orton on the show as his guest. The crowd loudly chanted “Yes! Yes! Yes!” He then asked the crowd to do exactly what they just did (apparently sticking to script and not improvising, given that the crowd didn’t need his prompt) and “say Yes! if they agree with him” that this guest is better for business – Daniel Bryan.
Out came Bryan to his full entrance. A replay aired of Big Show punching D-Bry last week with Lawler saying it was like blackmail the way they made Show punch him. The crowd loudly chanted “Daniel Bryan!” over and over. Edge told him he appreciated him coming out there after all he’s been through. Bryan said it helps with so many people chanting his name. Then came the loud “Yes! Yes!” chant. Bryan said last week Triple H told him that if he didn’t give up his title opportunity, he was going to get hurt. He said he has been hurt, including Orton hitting him from behind with the championship belt. Bryan said there is “satisfaction in the struggle.” He said no matter how many times Orton, the Shield, and Big Show beat him down, I will beat Orton and regain the WWE Title.
(WK Reax: This was a chance for him to say “Sunday at Night of Champions,” but it seems they’ve mentioned the PPV by name and date very little in recent weeks.)
Edge said Bryan is doing what he wanted to do since he was a little kid, just like him. Edge said he doesn’t know if he can beat Orton, but he deserves a fair shot in trying. He asked Bryan if he thinks he can beat Orton.
(WK Reax: Wouldn’t now be a good time to mention his previous big wins, including pinning John Cena clean at SummerSlam? That seems to have been erased from WWE Official History.)
As Edge asked him if he could beat Orton and as Bryan shouted “Yes!”, Orton’s music interrupted. Orton walked onto the stage and said it’s such a shame that when he decides to come back from time to time, the only place that gives a crap is a place like Canada. Orton said it’s a shame Edge’s body let him down so young. Edge fired back by saying that Triple H might say he’s the face of WWE, but when he sees him he thinks of a different body part. He said he may have a problem with his spine, but at least he has one.
Edge said Orton has become Triple H’s puppet. He said he has a good mind for the business, but in terms of picking out talent, he just plain sucks. Triple H’s music interrupted and he walked onto the stage. Triple H said he wanted to give Edge a chance to say something to his face. Edge said he doesn’t have to bite his tongue like everyone else in the locker room. “I’m not an employee here,” Edge said.
(WK Reax: Uh, none of the wrestlers are classified as employees, either.)
Edge said Triple H didn’t think he could make it, Chris Jericho could make it, or even John Cena could make it. He said Triple H called him “Vanilla Ice.” Edge said, “And now you say Daniel Bryant can’t make it. I know your nose is huge, but sometimes you have to look past it.”
(WK Reax: I love that inhale Triple H does before he lets loose with his retorts. There’s a huge inhale of self-satisfaction with the comeback he has planned.)
[Q2]
Triple H brushed off the insults and plugged the Edge TV series. He said that was good for business. He said he has been wrong about talent at times, but he has been right a lot. He said he didn’t think Jericho would amount to much, but he proved him wrong. He said he certainly was wrong about Cena. He said Bryan has yet to prove himself. He said one guy he was right about when he predicted he’d be a failure. “That’s you, Edge.” He said being in Canada might mask that he was an abject failure. He said, “You never drew a dime, buddy.” He said when he says those things, all he has to do is prove him wrong, which is what Jericho and Cena did, and now he’ll give Bryan a chance to prove him wrong.
(WK Reax: I continue to strongly question whether discussing whether “someone drew” should be talked about on a pro wrestling show. Talk about a tactic that never has drawn a dime. The point isn’t whether a wrestler draws, the point – in the context of a TV show – is whether they won titles, and Edge won a ton of those titles. By that measure, he’s in the top tier of success of all wrestlers of the last 15 years.)
Triple H announced Bryan vs. Dean Ambrose. He said he’ll put The Shield in Ambrose’s corner and Bryan can have someone in his corner. Triple H said because Edge’s ability to fight like a ,an is long past, it won’t be him. He said he’ll let Bryan have Show in his corner. Bryan didn’t seem thrilled. Triple H said it would be so much easier if everyone would learn to get along with him because he’s not really a bad guy. He said contrary to popular belief he is not a dictator. The crowd chanted “asshole” at him.
Edge said, “I didn’t have to marry into my success, I earned this Hall of Fame ring.” Edge said Triple H isn’t a dictator, he’s just a dick. Triple H cut him off mid-dick. Triple H brought up that Edge has “a stack of dimes for a neck” and he’s retired so he knows no one can hurt him. He said if he can’t hurt him, maybe he can hurt the ones he loves. The Shield dragged Christian onto the stage. Edge ran to the stage as The Shield, Orton, and Triple H walked off the stage. Edge bent over to check on Christian and then yelled for “help, damn help!” [c]
-A Night of Champions PPV ad aired hyping that it can be ordered on Samsung Smart TVs and phone and mobile apps. WWE continues to try to inch away from relying on the cable companies to distribute their big events.
-Backstage Edge walked up to Triple H, who had The Shield standing in front of him. Edge said he wishes his doctors would clear him so he could get at him. Triple H said doctors will never clear him because his stack of dimes neck is forever damaged. He told him to lower his base and not run his mouth in “my town.” He said Toronto is now his town. “Get out of our town, get out of our city, get out of our building, get off of my show,” Triple H ordered. He said if Edge won’t do it, he can have him escorted out. Edge just stared down Triple H, shook his head, and said he couldn’t believe it.
-The announcers talked about Kingston beating Curtis Axel on Friday at Smackdown. He said Heyman took that loss hard because if Axel loses at NOC, then C.M. Punk gets to get his hands on Heyman afterward.
(1) KOFI KINGSTON vs. CURTIS AXEL (w/Paul Heyman)
Cole brought up that Kofi stood up for himself on Smackdown during Triple H’s Town Hall Meeting. Kingston hit an S.O.S. very early, indicating this was probably going to be a short match. Axel grabbed the bottom rope to stop the third count. Heyman looked worried at ringside. Cole observed that Heyman hadn’t shaved in a while. JBL said he looks like he hasn’t been sleeping well, either, because he’s worried about Punk getting his hands on him. Axel beat on Kofi in the corner with a series of knees to his head. Axel didn’t break before five, so the ref DQ’d him.
WINNER: Kingston in 3:00 via DQ.
-Afterward Heyman chewed out Axel because if he does that on Sunday, losing his cool and getting DQ’d, “everything we’ve built is gone.” Axel vowed it wouldn’t happen that way on Sunday. Heyman said, “I know it’s not.” Axel went back at Kofi, but Kofi came back with a Trouble in Paradise. Cole said the wheels are coming off the Heyman train. JBL said Heyman is screwed because if this happens on Sunday, Heyman gets annihilated. JBL said Heyman won’t sleep between now and then.
(WK Reax: This was played very well. Not that people thought Punk would have any trouble beating Axel, but Axel not being able to keep his cool when he gets in trouble in the ring just adds to the odds being in Punk’s favor that he’ll get his hands on Heyman on Sunday. Heyman sold the situation tremendously.)
[Q3]
-They went to the announcers who hyped that Goldust would face Randy Orton later to avenge what happened to his brother, Cody Rhodes. Lawler said if Goldust wins, Cody gets his job back. Cole then threw to a vignette on Goldust. [c]
-WWE Fact: The WWF App has been downloaded over seven million times.
-They cut to backstage where Heyman was having trouble walking. He apparently slipped and was selling a knee injury. When the WWE trainer checked on him, Heyman said he has his own doctor and didn’t want anyone else looking at him. Heyman put a bag of ice on his knee. Axel asked who put the water in the hallway that caused Heyman to slip and fall.
-They went to the announcers at ringside. Lawler said Heyman may be so nervous he wet himself and slipped on the puddle. Cole threw to a video package on last week’s Big Show vs. Bryan main event including Stephanie McMahon’s berating and humiliating Show before the match.
-They cut to a sad looking Big Show backstage. Booker T walked up to him and told him suspects he’s going to take out his frustrations in the ring tonight. Booker said even though they haven’t always seen eye-to-eye, he was there when he first started. He said Cody Rhodes got himself fired by speaking his mind (no, losing in the ring, actually), but now people are saying Show is a sellout. He said those people aren’t walking in his shoes. He said if he was in Show’s position, he would have done the same thing. He said the people are going to want Show to be a hero, but he has to think about one thing – his daughter. He told him not to let his pride make him a make a mistake he can’t take back. Show stood up and said, “Pride’s all about all I’ve got left.” Booker told him to be a professional out there.
(WK Reax: Um, no, that was pretty much stripped from him last week.)
-A Wyatt Family vignette aired. [c]
[Q4]
(2) DOLPH ZIGGER vs. BRAY WYATT (w/Rowan, Harper)
They came back from the break with Ziggler standing in the ring. That’s not a good sign that he’s not even getting his full ring entrance on TV these days. Nor was his body language, which said he was losing. The announcers said Ziggler said on that app that he has to prove himself to the WWE Universe yet again tonight. Cole noted that they haven’t seen or heard from Kane since he dragged from the ring at SummerSlam. Bray dominated from the start. Ziggler made a comeback, but had to knock Rowan off the ring apron. That gave Wyatt an opening to duck Ziggler and take him down with a hard body block mid-ring. He yelled, “Is this not what you asked for?” They cut an abrupt break. [c]
Cole said Bray had been dominating Ziggler throughout the break. Ziggler broke free from a headlock after the break, but Bray took control right away again. At 7:00 Ziggler rallied and scored a two count. Rowan and Harper again distracted Ziggler long enough for Bray to recover and take control again. Bray then gave Ziggler his Sister Abbigail finisher for the win.
WINNER: Wyatt in 8:00. [c]
-An ad hyped that for one night only Edge is back on Smackdown.
-Cole hyped the Goldust vs. Orton match. Lawler said if you don’t think much of his chances, well, over the years he’s been “one of the most entertaining and humorous Superstars we’ve ever seen.”
(WK Reax: Okay, so he still has no chance to win, but he’ll be funny when he loses?)
-Another vignette aired of Goldust’s “funny” moments including his interactions with Lance Storm, Booker T, Steve Austin, The Rock, Santino, and others.
[Q5]
-Heyman limped to the ring on a crutch with Axel helping him. He hobbled up the steps into the ring. A third man was with them. Cole said he assumed it was Heyman’s personal doctor. Lawler said, “I’m trying to figure out which ankle he’s not supposed to put weight on.” JBL astutely said, “It’s his knee, King.”
Heyman said he is not an advocate for socialized medicine. “In other words, I don’t believe in the Canadian health care system.” He said fortunate for him, when he travels to Canada on behalf of Axel, he brings along with him his own personal physician from New York City. He said his doctor has confirmed that because of his accident, he has torn either his meniscus or ACL. He said a proper MRI in the U.S. will provide evidence. He said it is a result of that, with great regret, he withdraws himself from competition this Sunday at Night of Champions. “Believe me, if you’ve never believed me before, no one is as upset as Paul Heyman.” He said he looked forward to teaming with his client and finally putting out of his mystery his prodigal son, C.M. Punk. He said, though, he’s an injured man, as his doctor will attest to. He said he will now return to his home in New York to receive proper medical care. He said he will be back when he can.
G.M. Brad Maddox walked out and said they have a fully licensed medical staff on the WWE payroll at his disposal, and all of them are more than qualified to provide him with an evaluation of his injury. He said if he is truly injured, the only way to be officially removed from the match is to be evaluated by WWE doctors.
The WWE doc asked Heyman to sit on a chair right there mid-ring for an evaluation. Heyman hesitated, but surrendered his crutches and sat. The doc raised Heymans pants leg. JBL said, “It’s a family show.” The doc asked Heyman where he was hurting the most. Heyman told them. The doc offered to straighten his leg. The crowd chanted, “This is awkward!” Heyman stared at him intensely and said, “I’m the son of a personal injury attorney and I’m asking you to be careful.” Heyman yelled, “Owww!” The doc prodded and twisted his leg. The doctor said he doesn’t an effusion, edema, or ligamental edacity, which should have happened 30 minutes ago, so he deemed him fine. Heyman stood up and asked what kind of a quack he is. Heyman told Maddox he has a long memory and he’s making a very big mistake. Punk’s music interrupted.
Punk ran to the ring. Heyman shoved his doctor into Punk’s cane as Punk swung it. Heyman ran from the ring and through the crowd at full sprint, minus a limp. The crowd erupted. Punk bashed the Heyman doctor over and over with his cane. His music played, Punk smiled wide, and the announcers talked about how screwed Heyman was on Sunday.
(WK Reax: It’s so fascinating watching Wrestling 101, minus insider references, talk of “what’s good for business and “who drew a dime,” and without executives abusing power, and see how effective and refreshing a cowardly heel and a heroic babyface can be. Heyman again was just brilliant here, learning from the best managers over the years. His sprint from the ring got a laugh out loud from me, and it’s not like I didn’t see it coming because it’s been dozens of times before by other heels faking injures. This is what pro wrestling is like at it’s best – simple formula with excellent players executing the angle.)
-A commercial aired for “Total Divas.” [c]
[Q6]
-A.J. Lee skipped to the ring. The Divas scheduled to wrestle next were already in the ring.
(3) BRIE BELLA & NAOMI & NATALYA vs. AKSANA & ALICIA FOX & LAYLA
A.J. said the rest of the Divas know she’s right and that’s why they’re yelling and screaming and complaining about her anywhere they can be heard, “because I am getting to them.” She said evidence of how much the Divas Title means to her is that the date of her title victory is tattooed on the back of her neck. Lawler asked if she has any other tattoos. A.J. said she’s 26 years old, so she’s too young for him. Zing! Natalya got a tapout win over Alicia Fox.
WINNERS: Brie & Naomi & Natalya in 3:00
(WK Reax: Why are Brie, Naomi, and Natalya teaming together? For two-thirds of the Raw audience who don’t watch Total Divas, that’s a bigger mystery than those who do watch it, but it’s not like those three get along on Total Divas. The A.J. vs. Reality TV Divas storyline is a mess with nothing to latch onto in terms of rooting for one side or the other with any logic. Bad idea.) [c]
(4) ALBERTO DEL RIO vs. R-TRUTH
They came back from the break near the end of R-Truth’s rap. Then Del Rio got a full ring entrance. During the entrance, a soundbite aired with Rob Van Dam who vowed that on Sunday, RVD instead of ADR will walk out with the World Title. The crowd started to get riled up including chanting JBL’s name. That prompted Bizzaroland references. JBL said they’re a smart crowd. After a few other random chants that didn’t gain a ton of leverage including “Michael Cole” and “Jerry Lawler,” an “RVD!” chant stuck for about eight repetitions. A rather random “Un-der-ta-ker” chant broke out. ADR, who threw his name into the hat as wanting a match against Taker at a WrestleMania (who wouldn’t want that spot and payday?), he had to like that, as random and meaningless as it ultimately is. ADR won clean with the Cross Armbreaker.
WINNER: Del Rio in 5:00.
[Q7] [c]
-Zeb Colter stood mid-ring and described his impression of Canadians. He said he can’t remember the last time Canada helped out the U.S. on anything. “You’re kinda like the lazy, directionless, maple syrup chugging, prince (?) loving, moose hunting boring cousins.” He asked them to show passion for something other than a hockey game. He asked them to put their hands over their hearts and recite: “We the People.” Santino interrupted and he got a nice pop.
(5) SANTINO vs. ANTONIO CESARO (w/Zeb Coulter)
Santino did his power skip/walk/prance around ringside slapping hands with the fans and announcers. Cesaro did a 25 revolution giant swing. Lawler said he hadn’t seen that in years. Lawler, obviously not watching Cesaro matches in his free time. The crowd stopped their “Maple Sryup” chant and switched to chanting “Holy sh–!” Santino went for the Cobra, but fell flat on his face out of dizziness. He did come back a minute later with a full cobra attempt, but Cesaro took him out first with kick and an uppercut. Cesaro scored a near fall, but not a three count. He threw the Cobra armband into the crowd and continued to work over Santino. A loud “Santino” chant broke out. Santino surprised a cocky Cesaro with a judo side throw into a cradle for an upset three count.
WINNER: Santino in 4:00.
(WK Reax: That felt longer than four minutes, but in a good way. The crowd decided to try to take over the show, but did so in a way that ended up helping the match because they were into Cesaro and Santino as wrestlers and what they were doing in the match. A big contrast to the tame crowd in Minneapolis for Smackdown TV last week.) [c…]
[Q8] […c]
(6) DAMIEN SANDOW vs. THE MIZ
Sandow did some pre-match mic work. Miz interrupted. They found the happiest kid in Canada wearing a Miz t-shirt and jumping up and down excitedly. The rest of the crowd would have rather had a Santino encore. The crowd actually booed a Miz comeback a couple minutes in. In the end, Fandango and Summer Rae danced onto the stage, distracting Miz, who then was pinned by Sandow with a roll-up.
WINNER: Sandow in 4:00.
-Renee Young interviewed Goldust backstage. He said he’s been the family screwup, but Cody has been a model citizen. He said it’s up to him to now screw up and win for his younger brother. He said Hunter abusing his power is not okay with him. Hunter interrupted and really put the pressure on Goldust to win for his brother and not let him down. [c]
[Q9]
(7) GOLDUST vs. RANDY ORTON
Orton got his full ring entrance, during which the announcers hyped Night of Champions. Goldust’s entrance then took place. The crowd loved it. The announcers talked about the Rhodes-McMahon family disputes dating back to 1977. JBL referenced Dusty Rhodes in the WWF with Saphire and said more people know him from that than do from his days wrestling for Crockett. He said nobody knows who Crockett is anymore. Well, now they do. After Goldust got in some offense at 5:00, Orton bailed out to ringside and they cut to a break. [c]
Back from the break, Goldust began a comeback, so Orton went to ringside for a breather again. At 12:00 Goldust rallied and the crowd was totally into it.
[Q10]
Cole wondered if Goldust has enough left. Goldust pounded Orton in the corner with ten punches. The crowd counted along. Goldust scored a very near fall on a cradle from behind after Orton almost ran into the ref in the corner. Orton came back quickly with DDT off the middle rope. Cole said that “could be the death blow.” Orton mocked the crowd with “Yes! Yes! Yes!” and then pounded the mat to signal the RKO. Goldust stood and Orton went for the RKO, but Goldust gave him Crossroads for a very, very near fall. The crowd popped big for that near fall. Orton came back with a roll up for a near fall, then an RO for the win.
WINNER: Orton in 15:00.
(WK Reax: Very good match. Goldust seemed winded near the end, but not enough to take away from the match. He really kept a good pace with one of the very best workers of the last few years in this country. Both share credit for this, as Orton obviously carried the match, but Dustin showed what a pro he is and why he’s so respected by his peers despite his self-referenced screw-ups over the years that stunted his potential to break out in WWE a few times.)
-Afterward, Orton stood over Goldust’s body and said, “Goldust, looks like your dream of saving your baby brother Cody’s brother has been shattered, just like Daniel Bryan’s dream of taking [WWE Title belt] away from me will be shattered at Night of the Champions.” [c]
-A Los Matadores vignette aired.
-They showed Dustin Rhodes backstage crying, his make-up wiped from his face. Stephanie McMahon walked up to him and said he must be so disappointed. She said she knows Cody and his wife are so disappointed. “And that’s all because of you,” she said. “You let your brother down, you let your father down, you let your whole family down, you let the WWE Universe down. How does that feel? How does it feel to be a loser, just like your brother?” She went into a snarl there. She told him to go join his little brother in the unemployment line. “Oh, Dustin, tell your dad I said hi,” she said, with that aura of being a family that won a long-fought war.
-They went to the announcers at ringside who acted with disgust. Even JBL said he felt bad.
-After Ricardo Rodrigues introduced RVD and as RVD’s ring entrance took place, clip aired of Orton beating RVD on Smackdown last week followed by Del Rio attacking him with the Cross Armbreaker.
[Q11] [c]
-As Ryback walked out, Cole said Ryback complained at the Town Hall meeting at Smackdown last week that he’s tired of being called a bully. JBL said he’s not sure what that had to do with the issue that prompted the Town Hall meeting. Del Rio walked out and said Ricardo and RVD belong with each other just like he and the World Title belong together. He said at Night of Champions the fans won’t be chanting RVD, they’ll be chanting ADR.
(8) ROB VAN DAM (w/Ricardo Rodrigues) vs. RYBACK
Ryback got a Goldberg chant right away from the rowdy crowd. It didn’t last, though. At 3:00 RVD hit Rolling Thunder and continued on a stretch of offense with several two counts. RVD dove at Ryback at ringside when Ryback bailed out, but Ryback moved and RVD hit the security barrier. JBL said it’s feast or famine with RVD. Ryback shoved RVD crotch-first into the ringpost. The first attempt didn’t land, but the second attempt looked better. The ref DQ’d Ryback. You didn’t think they’d give a pinball or submission finish in this one, did you? Afterward Ryback gave RVD the Shellshock. Lawler said it was hard to watch the replay of the crotch into the ringpost. Nobody sold a ruptured testicle angle in pro wrestling history better than Lawler did back in the 1980s.
WINNER: RVD in 4:00 via DQ.
-Stephanie told Big Show backstage that he can’t lay a finger on The Shield tonight. She said she has a special seat for him at ringside and she can’t have mass chaos. She said if he touches The Shield, he’ll be terminated. “It’s what’s best for business,” she said. Show was seething mad when he got that edict. He threw a CRT television on the floor. Good riddance. Where’d they find that relic, anyway?
-A video package aired on the Heyman-Punk feud. [c]
-A commercial hyped Edge’s return to Smackdown.
[Q12]
-The Shield walked through the bleachers to ringside as their music played.
(WK Reax: You’d think now that they’re “establishment” as hired bodyguards for Hunter that they could walk out through the stage now.)
-Big Show’s ring entrance was next. He didn’t get much of a pop.
(WK Reax: Shouldn’t TV exposure get you more over, not less over? Compare Goldust and Santino to Big Show and Dolph Ziggler tonight when it comes to crowd reaction.)
(9) DANIEL BRYAN (w/The Big Show) vs. DEAN AMBROSE (w/Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns)
The bell rang with 13 minutes in the third hour. Show cheered on Bryan from a chair at ringside. Ambrose bailed out at 1:00 to regroup with the rest of the Shield. When JBL mentioned “Land of the Lost,” Cole said, “There’s a timely reference.” At 4:00 a Rollins distraction gave Ambrose an opening to knock Bryan off the ring apron with a forearm. [c]
At 10:00 Bryan made a comeback and hit his series of round kicks. He took Ambrose down with a Yes Lock, but then missed a dive in the corner. Ambrose scored a near fall with a schoolboy and a yank of the trunks. Bryan hung Ambrose upside down and gave him a running basement dropkick at 12:00. He followed with a top rope back suplex for a near fall. The crowd chanted “This is awesome!”
[Q13]
After a series of roundhouse kicks, Ambrose sidestepped a charging Bryan and threw him to ringside. Reigns charged him at ringside, but Bryan stepped aside and threw him shoulder-first into the ringpost. He then Rollins leaped at him off the ring apron, but Bryan shoved him into the ringside tablet. Ambrose, though, hit Bryan from behind and DDT’d him on the floor. The crowd began chanting “Big Show! Big Show!” Show stood up at ringside, but resisted interfering. Ambrose rolled Bryan into the rng and scored a two count. Ambrose yelled over and over at him, “Stay down!” Bryan surprised him with a small package and scored the three count.
WINNER: Bryan in 13:00.
-Afterward, as Bryan celebrated, Show stood and applauded. The director missed Ambrose diving at Bryan and Bryan launching him over the top rope onto The Shield at ringside. Bryan led the crowd in a “yes! Yes!” chant.
Orton walked to the ring with the WWE Title belt. Bryan dove through the ropes and tackled him at ringside. He stomped on him. The Shield, though, cut off Bryan’s attack quickly. Cole said things could get ugly fast. He reminded viewers that Big Show couldn’t do anything. Show walked over to them. Cole said this was the biggest decision of his life.
(WK Reax: At this point I was wondering where the rest of the locker room was. Steph didn’t threaten to fire them this week.)
Orton isolated Bryan inside the ring. He taunted Show and then hit the RKO. Show just walked away as Lawler said he looked disgusted. Triple H and Steph walked onto the stage and told Show it was time for him to be a professional and set aside his personal feelings about what’s right and wrong. He ordered him to walk back to the ring and give Bryan a KO punch. Show walked back to the ring, stood on the ring apron, paused, and then entered the ring. Cole said this is point of embarrassment and humiliation for Show and Bryan. Show turned his back and said he would not do it. Orton spun him around and reminded him of the ramifications.
Orton lifted Bryan so he could punch him. Show refused. Orton threw Bryan down and ordered Show to turn around. Show told him to leave him alone. Orton got heated and said he has the authority via Triple H to tell him what to do. “Pick him up and knock him back down!” he said. During that time, Bryan recovered and he got up and took Orton down with a flying knee to the face. They cut to the crowd cheering. Bryan led the crowd in chanting “Yes! Yes!” Show grinned and walked to the back as Bryan’s music played. Cole painted the mental image of that possibly being the scene at Night of Champions as Bryan held the WWE Title belt in the air over the fallen body of Orton.
(WK Reax: No collateral damage or further damage this week. The focus at the end was on Orton being a jerk and Bryan taking him out with a flying knee. Show resisted caving in to Triple H’s orders, yet he stalled long enough to perhaps save his job. It was good that Orton did most of the talking at the end, not Triple H, too. Bryan got a big win and also KO’d the champ with his new finisher, so they did what made sense to gives a fans a sense of momentum for Bryan headed into Sunday.)
NOW CHECK OUT THIS RECENT FLASHBACK: 5 YRS AGO – KELLER’S WWE RAW REPORT (8-26-13): Triple H orders wrestlers to stand and watch as heels beatdown Bryan, A.J. Lee cuts a promo on Bellas and gets cheered, Bryan vs. Seth, Cody, Miz, Punk, RVD, Heyman
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