Raw is War

Omaha, Nebraska
May 16, 2005

BIG RED BETRAYAL
MAY 16, 2005


Lita said she “always gets what she wants.” This past Monday was no exception. Unfortunately for Kane, however, it was Edge that she wanted.

After a turbulent and painful past together, Kane and Lita appeared to have worked out their differences — showing affection and pushing toward the common goal of winning the Gold Rush Tournament. But after betraying her husband and costing him the No. 1 Contender spot in the Finals, that affection looks to have been all a means to an end.

Deep in the Gold Rush Tournament Final Match, Edge was poised to hit Kane with his metal briefcase while the referee was knocked out of commission. Yet when he dashed across the ring, he ran straight into a big boot from the Big Red Monster. Lita appeared to be holding the briefcase for “safe-keeping” to protect her husband, but when he went to the top rope to deliver a clothesline, she quickly handed the case off to Edge, who caught Kane out of mid-air in the face.

Kane crumpled to the mat, and Lita revived the referee and helped him into position to make a slow three-count. Lita pounced on Edge in an embrace as the two celebrated Edge’s second guaranteed World Heavyweight Championship opportunity now being “money in the bank.” They headed swiftly up the ramp, and when Kane sat up, he witnessed the unthinkable as his wife passionately kissed his opponent.

As a result, next week on RAW, Batista will defend the World Heavyweight Championship against the winner of the Gold Rush Tournament: Edge. Batista will now also have to keep his eye on Lita, who has proved she can tip the balance of a match from ringside.

All this occurred in Triple H’s absence. The 10-time former world champion refused to appear on RAW, much to the dismay of Evolution ally Ric Flair. And with The Game missing, it was shockingly Batista who came to the aid of “The Nature Boy” following his questionable victory over Christian.

When Captain Charisma went for a roll-up with a hand on the ring ropes for leverage, the ref broke it up. “The Dirtiest Player in the Game” took the opportunity for a roll-up of his own, and this time the hand on the ropes went undetected as the referee counted three. “Problem Solver” Tyson Tomko was beside himself with rage, demanding the official overturn his decision. An angry Christian then attacked Flair after the bell, and the two pummeled “The Nature Boy.” Unable to watch his former mentor take such a beating, the World Heavyweight Champion emerged and cleared the ring. The former Evolution stablemates were left looking at each other, taking in what had just occurred.

Meanwhile, Chris Jericho played down his loss alongside Shelton Benjamin to Muhammad Hassan & Daivari. Y2J was caught with Hassan’s modified STO finisher and was covered for the pin, but after the match he seemed to blow it off. He told Benjamin that he had little time to worry about RAW with his TV appearances, XM Radio show and his band Fozzy was selling out shows internationally. He even handed Shelton tickets for his upcoming concert in St. Louis, Mo.

To the horror of William Regal, his tag-team partner Tajiri enthusiastically agreed to an ECW Rules Match with Chris Benoit on RAW. The two former ECW competitors wanted to bring a little “extreme” flavor to RAW in honor of the ECW pay-per-view upcoming on June 12.

And it seemed they’d get their way with General Manger Eric Bischoff distracted with other matters. They littered the ring with weapons and went at it. The Crippler promptly dropped Tajiri head-first into the ring steps, knocking him out. He then placed Tajiri atop a table and climbed atop a ladder in the ring.

Just before he could attempt an “extreme” diving headbutt, Bischoff called a halt to the match, saying that all things ECW were now banned from RAW. He even went so far as to ban all ECW alums on the RAW roster from participating in the ECW pay-per-view — with the exception of a group of RAW volunteers who would help him destroy ECW on June 12 once and for all.

The Master Lock Challenge continued successfully, but what happened afterward wasn’t at all what “The Masterpiece” expected. A healed Steven Richards attacked Masters, attempting to get revenge for breaking his nose and the bone around his eye in Masters’ RAW debut.

Richards went for a chair at first opportunity, forcing Masters to flee the ring to regroup.

In an injury update, we learned that Shawn Michaels is currently at home recuperating from the Grade 1 concussion he suffered when hit in the head with Edge’s briefcase one week ago.

And Randy Orton showed up on RAW to declare that since he’s on the injured list (shoulder), he should be exempt from the upcoming draft lottery. But none other than Mr. McMahon made a surprise appearance, saying that no one — not even those Superstars recovering from injury — are exempt from the draft. He went on to explain all the details, locking in June 6 as the official commencement date of the draft lottery.


MATCH RESULTS

Muhammad Hassan & Daivari def. Chris Jericho & Shelton Benjamin

Ric Flair def. Christian

Chris Masters def. volunteer (Master Lock Challenge)

Chris Benoit vs. Tajiri (ECW Rules Match stopped by Eric Bischoff)

Christy def. Candice (Lingerie Pillow Fight)

World Tag Team Champions The Hurricane & Rosey def. Maven & Simon Dean

Edge def. Kane (Gold Rush Tournament Finals)