WWE RAW
Salt Lake City, Utah
June 16, 2008
Results thanks to wwe.com
SALT LAKE CITY – In a rare champion vs. champion
encounter, WWE Champion Triple H and Intercontinental Champion Chris Jericho
went head-to-head on Raw in a non-title match that ended with Lance Cade’s
unexpected interference. Despite the emergence of John Cena, who came to aid his
Night of Champions opponent, it was Y2J’s alliance with the hostile former World
Tag Team Champion that stood tall.
The Game and Y2J’s confrontation grew out of Jericho’s behavior last week, when
he brutalized Shawn Michaels, smashing his head into the Jeri-Tron 6000. Jericho
was initially confronted on Raw by Ric Flair in the “Nature Boy’s” return to WWE
for the first time since retiring. As the Intercontinental Champion headed out
to fight Flair in the parking lot, he was confronted by an angry Triple H,
spoiling for a fight. While Y2J’s encounter with Flair never happened as a
result of Mr. McMahon having The Dirtiest Player in the Game escorted out of the
arena, the WWE Chairman set up Triple H vs. Chris Jericho for that very night.
The match came to a finish not with a Pedigree or Walls of Jericho, but with the
surprise involvement of Lance Cade, who rushed in to attack Triple H while both
The Game and Chris Jericho were outside the ring. As Y2J and Cade brutalized
Triple H, John Cena entered the ring and dropped both of The Cerebral Assassin’s
attackers, only to be assaulted by Triple H himself. While their opponents were
distracted with each other, the unusual alliance of Jericho and Cade took
advantage of the situation and put them both down.
Dismantling The Samoan Bulldozer
Cena barely had time to recover from his match earlier that night, a Street
Fight against Umaga. The two men fought as relentlessly and brutally as that
match stipulation requires, but in the end, it was John Cena who came out on
top, pinning Umaga and showing The Cerebral Assassin exactly what he’ll have to
compete against at Night of Champions in just two short weeks.
Getting Back on Track
Another Night of Champions match will feature World Tag Team Champions Hardcore
Holly & Cody Rhodes defending their titles against Ted DiBiase and a partner of
his choice, who has yet to be revealed. Though past weeks have seen the
champions struggling in the ring, Monday night was a return to form as they
defeated Cryme Tyme in a non-title match. DiBiase continued to be a regular face
around the ring however, entering the arena and standing by during his future
opponents’ bout.
Burchill Beatdown
The night’s second tag match was an intergender confrontation between Mr.
Kennedy & WWE Women’s Champion Mickie James and the team of Paul & Katie Lea
Burchill. Since defeating their friend and former GM William Regal, Mr. Kennedy
has been on the Burchills’ bad side. The British siblings were victorious in
this match-up, continuing their rivalry with Kennedy and making things look a
little more dismal for Mickie at Night of Champions in her championship match
against Katie Lea.
Carlito Crashes
Raw also saw a confrontation between former Intercontinental Champions Jeff
Hardy and Carlito. Hardy has been making a tremendous showing lately on Raw,
just narrowly missing out on No. 1 contender status for the WWE Championship two
weeks ago, but managing to take out both Triple H and John Cena last week. He
continued to give the audience what they wanted by pinning Carlito for the win.
Divas Show Off
In what was surely the hottest competition of the night, the WWE Divas
participated in a Summertime Beach Bikini Blowout, including Maria, Eve,
Jillian, Layla, Lena Yada, Maryse and Melina. In spite of Jillian trying to
serenade the audience, it was a beautiful contest, with special host Charlie
Haas announcing the winner as the lovely Maria.
Million Dollar Mania Marches On
Though WWE fans are always delighted by explosive matches and beautiful women,
for the second week in a row what had them all jumping out of their seats was
Mr. McMahon’s Million Dollar Mania. Over the course of the night, the WWE
Chairman gave away $1 million of his own money to Raw fans viewing at home,
going on to announce that even with the 2008 WWE Draft next week, there’s
nothing stopping him from doing it all again. While all Superstars, Divas and
even announcers will be eligible for the Draft, you are still eligible to win
your share of $1 million. Make sure to sign up today, and be sure to read all
about this week’s winners.
Matches
John Cena def. Umaga in a Street Fight
Jeff Hardy def. Carlito
World Tag Team Champions Hardcore Holly & Cody Rhodes def. Cryme Tyme
Paul & Katie Lea Burchill def. Mr. Kennedy & Mickie James
WWE Champion Triple H vs. Intercontinental
Champion Chris Jericho was a no contest due to outside interference