WWE Daily

The following is an small excerpt from Hurricane Helms Myspace:

Gregory Helms, ECW’s Nubber One Announcer! LOL So I’m getting bombarded with emails, messages, comments and tweets asking me about my new position on ECW (that’s on Tues nights on Sci-Fi for those in the Land of the Lost) and what it entails for my future. Well a wise man once said, “You don’t really have to plan for the future, cuz it’s gonna happen anyway!” But then again, there’s nothing wrong with a little preparation. Being an announcer is just another part of this business that I wanted to try and that I think I’ll be good at. I’ve always prided myself on being good no matter what roll I was in, be it a great roll or one of less-than-stellar proportions. I’ve always been underrated when people mention mic skills despite the fact that I’m almost mostly known for my promo’s, especially The Hurricane one’s! LOL Strange huh? Anyway, I think my first interview went damn good, and I think I’m only going to get better. As for what this means for any in-ring activity, honestly, only time will tell. Injuries aside, I’ve been on TV in one capacity or another for over 10 years now. That’s a career to be proud of in my opinion. Either way, I’m excited about the future and I hope my fans are as well.

-Tonight’s Monday Night raw will be taped in Buffalo, New York. Also announced tonight the main event will Shane McMahon vs. Randy Orton.

-As an reminder tonight’s ECW on Sci-FI will start tonight will an new time 10 PM. ET.

-”The View” will air MVP segment today at 11PM ET.

-”The Insider” will air a segment on WWE Divas that was filmed at last week’s Madison Square Garden Smackdown/ECW taping in New York City today.

The following is from WWE.com:

FAMILY VS. LEGACY

Shane McMahon failed to avenge his family at Backlash, allowing Randy Orton to win the WWE Title. But after attacking “The Viper” on Monday night, Shane O’Mac will have another chance to exact retribution from his nemesis on Raw.

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. - Just one night after Backlash and the entire landscape of WWE has changed, with three new World Champions, including Raw’s Randy Orton, who won the WWE Championship in a Six-Man Tag Team Match. Though Batista was on the losing end of that conflict, he earned the right to challenge The Legend Killer for the WWE Title at Judgment Day after defeating Big Show, courtesy of a distraction by John Cena.

-Two matches for Raw set by Vickie Guerrero: Batista vs. Big Show to determine the No. 1 contender for the WWE Title and WWE Champion Randy Orton vs. MVP

-Kofi Kingston def. The Brian Kendrick

-Mickie James, Kelly Kelly, Brie Bella & “Santina” Marella def. Divas Champion Maryse, Beth Phoenix, Rosa Mendes & Jillian Hall

-Matt Hardy def. Goldust

-WWE Champion Randy Orton vs. United States Champion MVP was a no-contest

-The Miz def. John Cena by forfeit -Cena was nowhere to be seen – possibly a result of the brutal Last Man Standing Match he took part in at Backlash.

-Unified WWE Tag Team Champions Carlito & Primo def. Jamie Noble & Chavo Guerrero

-Batista def. Big Show in a No. 1 Contender’s Match, Batista will take on WWE Champion Randy Orton at Judgement Day pay per view for the WWE Title.

Scheduled for tonight’s Raw is Batista vs. Big Show to determine the number one contender to Randy Orton’s WWE championship.

PWInsider reports as of this afternoon, Triple H was not scheduled to appear on Raw tonight.

Matt Hardy has posted the following on his WWE Universe blog:

Whether you like it or not, the score is Matt Hardy 3, Jeff Hardy 0. I beat Jeff in an Extreme Rules match at Wrestlemania, I beat Jeff in a Stretcher Match, and I pinned Jeff on Smackdown this week in a tag team match. At Backlash, on April 26th, I complete the clean sweep and beat Jeff in an “I Quit” match. I have already proven I am the superior Hardy-Backlash will be the exclamation point. I would suggest that Jeff not only quits the match, but he also quits professional wrestling altogether. As I’ve said before, Matt can survive without Jeff, but Jeff can’t survive without Matt. If I was a betting man, I would guess tomorrow is the last time you’ll ever see Jeff Hardy in a WWE ring.

I’m also sending out an alert to anyone who may be a World or WWE Champion after tomorrow. John Cena, Randy Orton, or Triple H, whoever finds themselves in the role of “champion” on the Raw brand-when I move past Jeff at Backlash, you’re next. The forecast is calling for several Black Clouds on Raw in 2009.

Matt Hardy

Wrestling News World reader Big G sent in the following report:

I got to hang out most of the day with the superstars and courtesy of Primo, got some great seats at the event (already had my own tickets but passed them on to other fans)
so if he’s reading once again thanks very much!!! Apparently John Cena’s party run onto 7.30 am from the night of his 32nd birthday…enough of the sidevnotes onto the show…

Kofi Kingston def. William Regal
Good opening match a lot of heat for Regal, Kofi won via pinfall after hitting TIP! Well worked match.

Kane def. Dolph Ziggler
Dolph came out attracting as much heel heat as he could from the crowd issued an open challenge only for the big red machine to come out, kane hit the usual spots and finished it up with a hellacious chokeslam, great reaction for Kane from the fans.

Beth Phoenix & Santina def. Melina & Kelly Kelly
Santina got the pin after a blind tag on beth phoenix just after she hit her finisher on Melina.
KELLY KELLY was as hot as ever!!! Poor gimmicky match Kelly Kelly almost had a bad fall from the top turnbuckle but lucked out by hanging on the ropes.

The Miz def. Goldust
Great to see goldust…he got a great reaction from the crowd and interacted alot after the match, The Miz won after hitting the reality check!

Carlito & Primo def. Haas & Knox (they did give a tag team name but i couldn’t make it out)
Carlito hit the backstabber for the win, not alot of crowd reaction to this match, didnt last that long.
Primo hit a few nice high flying spots.

John Morrison def. Jamie Noble
A decent match with little crowd reaction,(was at the gym with JM and this guy is some athlete!!!! Defo the future of the biz)
Finish came with Morrison hitting the snapshot.

CM Punk def. Chris Jericho
BEST MATCH OF THE NIGHT
im not a fan of CM Punk for my own reasons but this was a great match, Jericho came out to a huge pop and then as soon as he grabbed a mic the heat came, he stirred the crowd up and got everyone involved, he even jumped the rail into the fans in the front row…the match was a good length and both seemed to give it there all, it was back and forth with jericho locking the walls of jericho on, punk hitting a GTS …the finish came when Jericho went for a chair and Ricky Steamboat came out to stop him, steamboat got emptied then punk caught jericho off guard and hit the 2nd GTS for the pin, standing ovation for the match!!! and a great match to have before the main event.

John Cena & Rey Mysterio def. Big Show & Edge
GREAT reception for all participants, edge done some goofy stuff around the ring to draw from the crowd at the start…Solid match finished with Rey Mysterio hitting a splash from the top rope and getting the pinfall…double 619 hit during the match and simultaneous finisher at the end with Cena delivering the FU (i refuse to call it attitude adjustment or whatever its supposed to be!)

Biggest POPS
1. Chris Jericho (weird biggest pop and heat)
2. John Cena
3. Rey
4. Kane

Biggest Heat
1. CHRIS JERICHO (MAN OF THE NIGHT IMO)
2. William Regal
3. Edge

Wrestling News World Blogger Paul Smith sent the following results:

Check out photos from the event at WWE.com.

1. William Regal def. Dolph Ziggler
Regal pinned Ziggler following the running kneelift, Ziggler said before the match that afterwards everyone would remember his name and Regal said that Ziggler would remember, that he just had ‘a bloody good hiding from William Regal’ and that Regal was British. Regal thanks the fans on behalf of himself and the WWE post-match and said that we were the best fans in the world.

2. The Miz def. Goldust
Miz took a lot of abuse from the crowd and the pair worked a decent match especially considering the relative limitations of both. Miz worked very nicely as a heel and certainly looks to have come into his own as a singles wrestler.

3. Santina Marella and Beth Phoenix w/ Rosa Mendes def. Melina and Kelly Kelly
Santina very over with the crowd and Beth got annoyed that every time she was in the ring the fans chanted for Santina. Beth hit the glam slam on Melina before Santina blind tagged ‘herself’ in and took the pin ‘herself’

4. John Morrison def. Jamie Noble
Noble got a few respectful chants from myself and a few others but wasn’t really over as a face or a heel, especially compared to Morrison who had strong face and heel heat throughout and looked every bit the star I believe he will become. As mentioned Noble worked with a shaved head and after an entertaining back and forth match Morrison anticlimatically hit the the moonlight drive for the win.

5. Primo and Carlito def. The Haas-Knox Connection to retain the WWE Undisputed Tag Titles.
The team was named as such by announcer Tony Chimel, and Haas worked as a very aggressive arrogant heel, frequently flexing and telling the crowd to shut up and that he was the best wrestler in the world. Knox looked way better than I have ever seen him on TV hitting a dropkick I wouldn’t have said he was capable of. Primo and Carlito did their usual face-in-peril stuff with athletics and as the match began to break down Carlito spat apple in Haas’ face and hit the backstabber for the win.

6. Kane def. Kofi Kingston
Both guys very over with the crowd and they worked a competitive match. Kofi escaped the chokeslam several times, missed his own trouble in paradise, but did hit the boom boom legdrop. There were a lot of nearfalls from both men, but Kofi eventually got chokeslammed for Kane to take the victory.Intermission.

7. Big Show def. CM Punk
The kids went wild for CM Punk as did a lot of the more ‘emo’ teenagers. I and some of the other adult fans were a little disappointed to see Punk have to be against Big Show rather than the Jericho match we had heard about from other shows, and while Punk occasionally got some kicks in, signaled for the GTS, couldn’t lift Show and after some more back and forth Punk walked into the right hand for the win.8. Rey Mysterio def Chris Jericho to retain the Intercontinental title.Both men very over with Jericho getting heat from the younger fans and respect cheers from the older ones. Jericho got on the mic pre-match and worked his usual ‘hypocrites’ speech and when the crowd started chanting for the 619 he said, that they could chant for the 619 but they wouldn’t see one. When they chanted Jericho Sucks he responded by saying of course the crowd would say that when he was in the ring and they were only in the crowd, proceeding to call us failures. They worked a fast paced technical, athletic match and it was definitely match of the night. My only mark out moment of the entire show was a Ricky Steamboat run in, completely unexpected, he stopped Jericho from using a steel chair and Jericho turned round into a drop toe hold, 619 and splash combo for the win.

9. John Cena def. Edge to retain the World Heavyweight Championship
Both men massively over again with Edge drawing a similar reaction I described for Jericho. Before the match Edge said that he had been informed it was Cena’s birthday and that he would make it one of the worst days of his life by beating him for the title on his birthday. Decent match definitely enhanced by the live factor as it was great seeing kids enjoying themselves so much and the shock on their faces (and mine!) when Edge kicked out of the Attitude Adjustment. Not to be outdone Cena kicked out of a spear and the edgecution before locking in the STF (by name only) for the tap out win. Afterwards Cena thanked everyone for coming and for the Birthday wishes and said that only the fans can make all the guys in the back do this constantly through the year.

Enjoyable night, and the highlight was the unexpected Steamboat run in, and the lowlight was seeing CM Punk in an extended squash vs Big Show. Otherwise standard house show fare, but a good night, and I will hopefully be getting tickets for the Smackdown TV taping in Sheffield in November.

Pops:
1. John Cena
2. Rey Mysterio
3. CM Punk
4. William Regal
5. Santina Marella

Heat:
1. Chris Jericho
2. Edge
3. Big Show
4. The Miz

Wrestling News World reader Hywel Davies sent the following report:

* Cryme Tyme b Charlie Hass and Mike Knox
- The crowd in Cardiff tonight are hot from the start and this tag match is a great opener. Hass and Knox go to work on Shad’s left knee but some quick work from JTG takes Knox to the outside while Shad picks up the pin over Hass.

* The Miz b Kofi Kingston
- Before the match The Miz cuts a great promo about his move to Raw and how in life there are winners an losers, he goes on to compare the Cardiff City football team with their local rivals Swansea City drawing a great deal of heat in the process. Kofi comes out to a big pop. The match is as fast-paced as you’d imagine with Kofi hitting some great moves from the top rope. He comes close with a two count after a high angle leg drop but the Miz hits the Reality Check for the pin.

* John Morrison b Goldust
- Aside from Morrison’s ever-impressive entrance this match is slow to get started, a lot of holds and submission attempts from both men leave the crowd pretty flat. Only when Goldust lets out a “Wooo” after a knife edge chop in the corner do the crowd start to warm up. Goldust continues to evoke the spirit of hall of famer Ric Flair with a jumping knee drop off the ropes leading into a figure four leg lock. Morrison struggles to reverse it and rolls up into a small package to get the three count.

* Kelly Kelly and Melina b Layla and Beth Phoenix with Rosa Mendes
- A better than average diva match with the most impressive spot from the flexible Melina who performs an impressive series of strikes from the crab position. After knocking Mendes from the apron with a big forearm Kelly Kelly got the win with the K2 legdrop on Layla.

* Intercontinental Championship Match - Rey Mysterio b William Regal
- Rey comes out in his half mask and goes to all of the kids in the front row. However there is one kid in a mask that he leaves out, once he has finished posing with the belt in the ring he goes over to the fan and gives him his shirt.
Regal gets a lot of heat, the loudest chant of the night so far is ‘Regal Sucks’. Before the match starts he gets on the mic and says that he can’t suck because he’s not Welsh. Huge heat from the Cardiff crowd and it’s safe to say that the relationship between the Welsh and the English is sometimes frosty at best.
An even match with Regal providing the technical mat work while Mysterio hits some nice high-flying moves. Mysterio missed the 619 twice and Regal comes close to a 3 count with a nasty looking European uppercut. Rey manages to regain control after a spell outside the ring and dials up the 619 to retain the strap.

A casket is brought out and the Cardiff dates for the Undertaker’s ‘Rest in Peace’ Tour and the DX Reunion Tour are announced (November 9th and 10th respectively) This was handled a lot better tonight - last night because of the way the ring was set up and how the music hit there was a genuine feeling that DX were about to come out, leading to a lot of disappointed young fans.

* World Heavyweight Championship Match - John Cena b Chris Jericho
- A PPV quality match that was given the time it deserved. Before the match Jericho cut a promo about the crowd, saying they were failures, hypocrites and could never hope to reach the same level of success as Jericho. Cena’s music hits and the crowd go absolutely wild.

Jericho gets early control of the match after Cena misses with a flying shoulder block. Jericho sends Cena to the outside with a springboard dropkick. Cena is tossed into the steel ring steps as Jericho steps up his offence.

Back in the ring Cena finally connects with a flying shoulder block giving him time to hit the 5 Knuckle Shuffle. He sets Jericho up for the Attitude Adjustment but Jericho is able to counter with a DDT for a 2 count on Cena. Lots of near falls from both men, Cena kicks out of the Codebreaker and Jericho escapes from the STF. Jericho goes for a diving cross body on Cena but gets caught, Cena rolls him up from the mat on to his chest, then lifts him up on to his shoulders (this guy’s strength has to be seen in person to be believed) once Jericho is up there then there’s only one way that he’s coming down, Cena hits the Attitude Adjustment to win the match.

- To explain why SmackDown stars continue to appear on Raw (and why Raw stars appeared on SmackDown last Friday) despite a draft being held last week, Michael Cole explained on commentary last night that the draft moves won’t fully go into effect until after Backlash.

-WWE returns to the Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu, Hawaii on July 5th, 2009. Tickets go on sale May 2nd, 2009 at 10 AM. Keep in touch with worldwide wrestling shows go to http://prowrestlingevents.tk/

LONDON – One week after the 2009 WWE Draft its effects were still being felt as Raw took place in London. There were numerous interpromotional matches, with Superstars attempting to make their presence on Raw known one last time before heading to their new brand. The main event also showcased two ring warriors eager to make an impact: WWE Champion Triple H and his Backlash opponent, Randy Orton. The Game planned to get all the anger out of his system by decimating The Legend Killer in a No Disqualification Match, but shocking the WWE Universe, Orton pulled out a win courtesy of a lightning-quick RKO.

-Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat to face Chris Jericho at Backlash; Chris Jericho to face World Heavyweight Champion John Cena on Raw

-Batista def. Chavo Guerrero, Batista Bombing him a second time after the match

-Mr. Money in the Bank CM Punk def. Kane

-“Miss WrestleMania” Santina Marella will appear on Khali’s Kiss Cam at Backlash

-Women’s Champion Melina def. Beth Phoenix

-World Heavyweight Champion John Cena vs. Chris Jericho ended in a No Contest due to interference from Edge

-Big Show def. Intercontinental Champion Rey Mysterio

-Randy Orton def. WWE Champion Triple H in a No Disqualification Match

Taped for tonight on Raw, all matches are non-title:

- World Champion Triple H vs. Randy Orton in a No Disqualification match.

- WWE Champion John Cena vs. Chris Jericho.

- Batista vs. Chavo Guerrero.

- CM Punk vs. Kane.

- Women’s Champion Melina vs. Beth Phoenix.

- Intercontinental Champion Rey Mysterio vs. Big Show.

- Ricky Steamboat, Santino Marella, Santina Marella, Priceless and Shane McMahon will also appear on the show.

WWE taped this week’s edition of Raw at the O2 Arena in London, United Kingdom. Special thanks to Wrestling News World readers Gary Sampson, Garry Tanner, and Stephen Hegarty for sending text-message updates. If you are attending a future WWE television taping and would be interested in sending us text-message updates, please email your name, mobile number, and show date to wnwryan [at] yahoo.com.

* A WrestleMania video package is shown

* Lilian Garcia makes her way out to ringside.

Dark Match:
* William Regal b. Dolph Ziggler
- Regal gets a massive pop. The crowd starts a “you suck” chant for Ziggler. Zigglers gets out of the ring after Regal’s first kick. He gains control and gets a one-count. Regal kicks out and reverses for the win via pinfall.

WWE Raw: (Airing Tonight)
* Jerry Lawler & Michael Cole make their way out to ringside.

(more…)

The following is from WWE.com:

WRESTLEMANIA REMATCH

Last week, Raw Draftee and WWE Champion Triple H led Batista and Shane McMahon victory over Rhodes and Dibiase, earning the right to face Randy Orton on Raw. It’ll be No Disqualification when they battle, mere weeks before Backlash.