SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
The following report originally published 20 years ago this week here at PWTorch.com.
WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW REPORT
JANUARY 24, 2005
LIVE FROM OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLA.
REPORT BY WADE KELLER, EDITOR
-Shawn Michaels came to the ring as Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler introduced the show. Clips aired of the Michaels-Edge feud. The rest of the wrestlers for the opening six-man match came out.
1 — CHRIS JERICHO & CHRIS BENOIT & SHAWN MICHAELS vs. EDGE & TYSON TOMKO & CHRISTIAN
The babyfaces threw Christian onto Edge and Tomko at ringside at 2:30 after which they went to a commercial break. I think they need to take a break from the obvious pattern of cutting away for commercials after a wrestler ends up at ringside. It’s just so contrived at this point to do it every single time without exception. Good, high-energy opening few minutes.
[Commercial Break]
The next six minutes saw Michaels get beat up by the heels, with Edge only tagging in when he knew Michaels was down. They went into high gear at 12:00 with Benoit hot tag leading to him hitting the three unreleased German suplexes on Christian, then hitting the top rope headbutt. After applying the Sharpshooter, Edge intervened. Michaels punched away at Edge. Tomko then went after Benoit with a big boot attempt. Benoit ducked and Michaels quickly hit an unsuspecting Tomko with a superkick and Benoit rolled up Tomko for the three count. Michaels stared at a retreating Edge after the match.
WINNERS: Benoit & Michaels & Jericho at 13:25.
STAR RATING: **1/2
[Commercial Break]
-Smackdown Rebound aired early.
-They showed Stacy backstage on her way to the ring. Lawler told Ross she had a big surprise in store for him.
[Commercial Break]
-Stacy walked to the ring and announced that the governor of Oklahoma declared it “Jim Ross Day” in the state. Then she introduced Danny Hodge, a wrestler Ross has often referred to over the years. Hodge leaped over the top rope on his entrance, impressive agility for someone his age. Ross was then introduced and he made his way to the ring to his Oklahoma fight song. Ross accepted the cheers from the fans, then hugged Hodge. A video then aired of the governor declaring Jan. 24 “Jim Ross Day.” Ross signed autographs for fans. Stacy then kissed Ross. Lawler said, “I want it to be King’s day!” Ross asked if there were any Sooners in the house. “I love my Sooners with all my heart. I love being from Oklahoma.” He said he wished his mother and father could be there to see him. “I love them and I miss them,” he said. Then Triple H’s music interrupted and Hunter walked out with Ric Flair. Hunter mocked wiping tears away from his eyes.
Hunter said Oklahoma honoring Jim Ross “is like crap telling puke it smells good.” Good line. Flair and Hunter then mocked the score of the national championship game that Oklahoma lost to Southern Cal. A fan held up a sign that said: “They don’t teach Evolution in Oklahoma.” I’m not sure what to say about that other than it’s clever, but something I’d exactly brag about. Hunter ripped on Hodge and told him and Ross to leave the ring. When Hunter grabbed Stacy by the arm, Ross intervened. Hunter said, “Maybe you didn’t hear me.” Ross said he knows Hunter is a wrestler “and you can beat my butt,” but he is a man and isn’t going to leave him alone in the ring with Stacy. Hunter continued to mock Ross. “What is that saying you said? Sooner born, Sooner bred. You keep going J.R. and sooner than later you’re going to be dead,” Hunter said. Flair then gave Ross a low blow from behind. Hodge ran in for the save. Hunter and Flair beat him down. Hunter then grabbed Stacy and dragged her back to center ring. Hunter said to Stacy, “This is Triple H day and seems like you want to kiss J.R. and last week you kissed Randy Orton. Maybe this week you give Triple H some of that action.” He grabbed her by the hair and said he wasn’t asking, he was telling. He moved in for a kiss, but then said, “On second thought, I’ve got a better idea for you.” He then bent her over and set up a Pedigree. Orton ran to the ring. Hunter shoved her toward Orton and bailed out of the ring with a smile on his face. Nice segment putting over Ross as a stand-up good guy and Hunter as a ruthless heel. It was nice to see Hodge show up to be part of the angle.
[Commercial Break]
-Hunter and Flair were giddy with themselves. They went backstage and bragged to Batista about what they did. Batista didn’t seem impressed that they picked on an announcer, a retired old wrestler, and a woman. Batista then told Hunter that he has decided to accept the Royal Rumble Qualifying Match. Hunter asked him why he would do that. Batista said on the off chance that Orton beat Hunter for the title at the Rumble, then he will win the Rumble and go on to beat Orton at WrestleMania “and keep the title in Evolution.” Batista said he had to rush off to talk to G.M. Eric Bischoff. Hunter and Flair didn’t like Batista’s logic.
-Elsewhere backstage William Regal asked Bischoff for a spot in the Rumble. Bischoff said he didn’t show him loyalty last year when he asked him to care for his nephew Eugene, so he was going to reward Coach instead with a Rumble spot.
Coach said he wouldn’t regret it. He said he was taking care of that other request of his, too. La Resistance then walked up to Bischoff and asked about their spot in the Rumble. Batista then interrupted. When La Resistance were upset with Batista, he looked at them like they had to be kidding. Sylvain Grenier suggested he and Robert Conway face Batista for a chance at the Rumble. Batista said he liked the idea. Conway vowed to shove the flag shove it down his throat. Batista said, “I tell you what, after I beat both of you, I’ll take that flag and shove it somewhere else.” Batista continues to play his character pitch-perfect. So Coach is given a Rumble spot, while Batista has to earn it against the tag champs? I’m not crazy about the tag champs being treated as jobber fodder for Batista no matter how convenient the angle is in putting Batista over as a monster. If they didn’t have the belts, it’d be bad enough that as former champs they get destroyed by Batista, but as title holders, it’s going to be tough not to do great damage to the tag titles.
[Commercial Break]
-Lawler welcomed Ross back to the announcing desk.
-Coach introduced Tajiri and said his opponent is Viscera and rather than a singles match, it would be an “over the top rope” challenge. Ross said that wasn’t fair for Tajiri because of the size difference.
2 — TAJIRI vs. VISCERA
Tajiri gained brief early advantage with a spray of mist, but Viscera seconds later tossed Tajiri over the top rope. Gee, on one show they damage the credibility of one of the top cruiserweights (to promote Viscera of all people, as if anyone believes he’s going to win the Rumble and headline WrestleMania) and possibly the tag titles.
WINNER: Viscera at 0:27.
STAR RATING: n/a
-Highlights aired of the Kane-Trish-Gene Snitsky angle last week.
[Commercial Break]
-A whatsername diva asked Tajiri, while stumbling over her only line, how he felt about not qualifying for the Royal Rumble. William Regal walked up to Tajiri, who laughed about something. Regal asked if she had a question for her. When she didn’t, he was offended and called her some British insult. Regal and Tajiri left together. I’m sure that was funny for those involved, but it didn’t belong on TV.
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3 — BATISTA vs. LA RESISTANCE — Royal Rumble Qualifying Match
Ross said Batista’s confidence going into the match almost bordered on cockiness. Batista quickly broke up the attempt to sing “Oh Canada.” After a flurry of some offense, La Resistance took control with a double-team. Batista made a comeback at 1:30. They showed Hunter and Flair backstage and they didn’t make clear who they were cheering for. Batista slammed Conway onto Grenier and scored the pin. Hunter looked concerned backstage.
WINNER: Batista at 2:04.
STAR RATING: 1/4* — Dominant squash which did more to kill off the credibility of the tag team titles (and the credibility of any babyface team that can’t easily beat them in the future) than it did building up Batista as a monster – and that’s saying something because it definitely further built up Batista as a monster. Batista then held the Canadian flag and planted it between Conway’s legs near the split. “Batista is a man of his word,” said Ross. Batista let out a big smile as the flag stood in place.
-Flair said Batista’s win was impressive. Hunter, less-than-excited, said he had something impressive to take care of. He walked away. Flair wondered where he was going.
[Coimmercial Break]
4 — MUHAMMAD HASSAN (w/Khosrow Daivari) vs. VAL VENIS – Royal Rumble Qualifying Match
Daivari yelled on the mic the entire time Hassan beat down Val. At 3:15 Val made his comeback. Val gave him a powerbomb for a convincing near fall. After a chokeslam, he signalled for the Money Shot. Hassan moved, though, and then finished off Val with his finisher for the win. Hassan put the Camel Clutch on Val afterward as Daivari continued to yell at him. Daivari screamed that Hassan would win the Royal Rumble. Ross and Lawler dreaded the possibility. “What would happen to the course of this company if that man won the Royal Rumble this Sunday,” Ross asked. “A late draw, and that man could be there in the end.”
WINNER: Hassan at 4:41.
STAR RATING: *
-Hunter told Batista backstage that he was right earlier in his logic about Evolution covering all of its bases. He said he went to Bischoff and there was one spot left at the Rumble. He said he convinced Bischoff that the final had to go to a legend, a man who doesn’t need to qualify because, like Michaels, he’s an icon. He said that last spot was going to Ric Flair. Flair reacted with surprise to Hunter saying his name despite the obvious build-up. Hunter told Batista, “Just on the off chance that you get eliminated from the Royal Rumble, it would be the Nature Boy carrying the torch for Evolution.” (You gotta love those subliminal plugs Hunter slips in for this website.) Flair then recognized Hunter’s plan and said Hunter is brilliant. All three hugged.
[Commercial Break]
-Maven stood center-ring and said Bischoff gave him a chance to earn a spot in the Rumble, but someone who already qualified had to volunteer to wrestle him and put their spot on the line. Kane walked out. Maven said he meant anyone but him. Snitsky came out. It was turned into a three-way match. Both Kane and Snitsky looked and walked like they had been in a car accident. Maven’s mic work as a heel continues to be really strong. Now that’s paying his dues the hard way and swallowing his medicine without complaining, he should be in line for a real, actual push in about a year.
5 — MAVEN vs. KANE vs. GENE SNITSKY
After taking advantage of their physical condition and desire to beat on each other, Maven got in some opportunistic offense. Kane, though, eventually finished off Maven with a chokeslam as Snitsky retreated to the back. “Lords only know what Kane has in store for Snitsky at the Royal Rumble,” said Ross.
WINNER: Kane at 2:00.
STAR RATING: 1/4*
[Commercial Break]
-Ross introduced the video of the Steve Austin press conference, which was billed as a Raw exclusive, but it had been on the WWE.com website for days. McMahon praised the Austin character and said he had broken every box office record. A clip also aired of Austin and McMahon on the “Best Damn Sports Show.” Austin talked about “The Condemned,” the first of the three movies he signed on to do. McMahon said the timing is great because WWE is going to Hollywood for WrestleMania 21 and now Steve Austin is going to Hollywood.
-They went to Michael Cole and Tazz hyping the Smackdown-brand matches for Royal Rumble. In a nice exchange, when Tazz and Cole bragged about Smackdown wrestlers winning the last two Rumble, Lawler shot back that last year Benoit did win, but he then jumped to Raw.
-Todd Grisham interviewed Edge who said he missed the last two WrestleManias with a broken neck, but now nothing would stop him from beating Michaels and getting a shot at the World Title at WrestleMania. Edge said Michaels knows nothing about pain and sacrifice. I can’t help but imagine “thought bubbles” above Grisham’s head, wondering things like, “Was Edge’s broken neck real; I thought wrestling was fake.”
[Commercial Break]
6 — RANDY ORTON vs. RIC FLAIR (w/Batista, Triple H)
When Triple H tripped Orton, giving Flair a chance to knock Orton to ringside, Hunter stepped back and practically whistled as the ref scolded Batista and ordered him to the back. The crowd popped for Batista being ordered to the back, which is strange considering how they were cheering him earlier against La Resistance. Batista glared at Hunter for not stepping up and admitting who the guilty party really was.
[Commercial Break]
Flair stopped an Orton comeback with a low blow, which Ross said he knows all about. Late in the match, after a ref bump, Hunter nailed Orton’s knee with the title belt. Flair then applied the figure-four. Orton, though, managed to reverse it. Hunter jumped into the ring and dropped an elbow on the back of Orton’s head and then dropped another elbow across his knee. Orton, who was bleeding from the forehead, stomped away at Orton’s knee for several minutes. Ross said this was their strategy – to destroy Orton’s knee before the Royal Rumble. They’re doing almost too convincing a job to the point of turning off Orton fans from thinking he even has a chance at the Rumble. When Hunter leaped off the top rope with the belt, Orton lifted his boot and kicked the belt into Hunter’s face. Orton then struggled to his feet and gave Flair an RKO for the win. Ross was great in cheerleading the groggy ref to count faster, as if it meant something to him personally to see Flair get pinned given what Flair did to him earlier. Orton held Hunter’s belt in the ring, taunting him to enter the ring and get it. Hunter teased entering the ring, but ultimately didn’t.
WINNER: Orton at 14:05.
STAR RATING: **1/2 — Good TV match. It told the story it needed to tell well. Who would have imagined ten years ago that Ric Flair would still be headlining in a singles match the top pro wrestling show?
RECOMMENDED NEXT: 20 YRS AGO – Keller’s WWE Raw Report (1/10/2005): Batista vs. Orton, plus Ric Flair, Triple H, Bischoff, Benjamin, Jericho, Maven, Hurricane, Edge
OR CHECK THIS OUT AT PROWRESTLING.NET: Baron Corbin on his new ring name “The Nomad” Bishop Dyer, being released by WWE and whether he’s open to returning, his desire to work for NJPW
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