Raw

San Antonio, Texas
July 26, 2010

results thanks to pwtorch.com

[Q1]

-A video package aired on the Nexus attacking various Raw wrestlers and then last week's show-closing angle with John Cena revealing "Team Cena" to battle Nexus at Summerslam.

-Cena came out to his ring entrance, so disappointingly no Raw opening this week, which always sets the mood nicely. They saved a bundle on pyro, though. Cena entered the ring to a mix of cheers and boos. "Certainly everything is bigger in Texas," he said. He talked about the Nexus, without warning, taking over Raw and destroying everything in its path. No specific mentioned of Rick Steamboat, of course. He said when Nexus wanted you hurt, you got hurt, until last Monday. He didn't pass enough blame to the mystery G.M., because Nexus wouldn't be around had the G.M. not given then official roster spots. He said at Summerslam fans will see they are not invincible. He said this match can't come soon enough because the more they terrorize Raw, the more power they get. And the more power they get, the more influence they get, to the point that they could take over Raw. "And if they do, that may be the very end of Monday Night Raw," he said in his signature gulp-sympathy mode. He said he's not Superman. He went into joke mode. He said he's more like Aquaman. He said Chris Jericho and Edge are Batman & Robin. He said he even photoshopped Great Khali in a Wonder Woman outfit and its disturbing.

He picked up the intensity to conclude when Jericho's music interrupted. Jericho confronted Cena in the ring, saying it was just a matter of time before he said "his team." Jericho said he's not on Cena's team, Cena is on his team. He said he is the leader. He cited his credentials, being that he knows more about Wade Barrett than anyone since he mentored him on NXT. He said he didn't get involved in this to pander to parasites and bask in the glory of a hero. Jericho went on and on, so Cena said, "Fine! The team is yours at a bargain price." He said he can call it the Alabaster Soft Shoes or Jumbo and the Tugboats or Chris Jericho & The Mudville Six or the Lion Tamers or the Fozzy-a-Thon. He said it's his because he doesn't care, he just wants to beat Nexus.

Jericho told Cena not to patronize him or denegrate him with is sarcasm. He said the team will live or die on his whims and he tells them what to do. Cena slapped his mic out of his hand. There was a moment of tense silence before Cena got serious and told him it's not about either of them. "It's about this damn business," he said. "Don't you get it?" He said Nexus took over the company and they're getting to whomever they want, whenever they want. He said he "loves the damn business" and that's why he keeps coming out week after week. He asked him if he understands him. He said it's the fourth quarter and they've got to do things they don't normally do. Cena admitted that Jericho knows Barrett well and is essential to the team.

Jericho picked up his mic and told Cena, "First of all, don't ever knock this microphone out of my hand again." He said he knows how essential he is to the team and the only chance they have to beat Nexus is if he has the best in the world standing beside him. He said he sees the big picture, and Nexus isn't the only threat to the company. He said the other threat is him, John Cena. He said he's more like Nexus than he wants to admit. He said he does what he wants and says what he wants, just like Nexus. The difference is he does it with the support of the drones. He said he dances like a puppet on their strings. Jericho said as soon as the threat of Nexus has been abolished, he's going to take the next logical step and turn his sights on the other threat in WWE by getting rid of him. He said he's either going to do it with the help of his team or by himself. Cena said, "I'm standing right here; take your best shot." He dropped his mic. The mystery G.M. interrupted.

[Q2]

Cole announced that their tag match at Summerslam will now be an elimination match. He said in a preview of Summerslam, the Nexus will face seven Raw Superstars in an elimination match tonight. Cole said their match at Summerslam is all about teamwork. He said Cena and Jericho will have to function as a team tonight against opponents of his choosing, "and if you're not down with that, I've got two words for you." Cole, by the way, was obviously reading from a sheet of paper on the keyboard of the laptop, not the laptop screen, which either is sloppy camerawork showing that he's reading a script and not an email, or it's a clue that we're supposed to pick up on, which is that Cole is not getting emails but instead has prepared statements that he pretends are impromptu emails. If it's not part of the storyline, then WWE should choose a different camera angle or, even better, just put the announcements Cole reads on the computer screen for him to read. [c]

-Sheamus walked out to ringside with his WWE Title over his shoulder at ringside. Then Randy Orton's ring entrance took place. The two stared each other down.

1 -- RANDY ORTON vs. JEY USO (w/Jimmy Uso, Tamina)

Cole said the G.M. sent an email during the break that he wanted Orton in competition three weeks before Summerslam. Orton won clean with an RKO.

WINNER: Orton in 2:00. It's so nice to see a squash match back on Raw giving Orton a chance to simply show off his finisher and get a decisive win without the distraction of being in there against an equal opponent and having to get a soft win or soft loss.

-Afterward, Jimmy attacked Orton. Sheamus entered and tried to give Orton his thrust kick, but Orton ducked and he kicked Jimmy. Orton then gave Sheamus his RKO. The Miz's music played and he ran out with his briefcase and decided to cash it in because Sheamus was knocked out. The ref held Miz back as he checked on Sheamus. Miz was as excited as a dog on a leash just out of reach of a bowl of food. Orton came up behind Miz and gave him an RKO. The bell never rang, so Miz retains his briefcase, but didn't get the title win. Orton apparently would rather face Sheamus than Miz? Orton soaked up cheers as his song played all the way through.

[Q3]

-Edge backstage told Ted DiBiase on one hand he can't wait until Summerslam to pay back Nexus, but on the other hand he'd rather have DiBiase on his team than the Great Khali. He said Khali is clumsy, uncoordinated, and not that bright. Maryse said, "Plus, we don't understand him when he talks." She then slipped into French in a clever touch of irony. DiBiase said perhaps Cena will still the error of his ways and realize neither John Morrison nor Khali deserve to be on the team. Edge said otherwise he'll take Khali out himself. Khali's handler (or brother or whatever), Ranjin Singh, was shown overhearing the conversation. [c]

-Back in the ring Miz and Sheamus argued. The G.M. chimed in. Cole said, "I received another manager... I receive another email from the general manager." He then announced his Raw team to face Cena & Jericho later - a team of champions, Miz and Sheamus.

-At ringside, Cole and Jerry Lawler threw to a Summerslam Recall segment from 1988 featuring Honky Tonk Man being squashed by Ultimate Warrior. Oh those chessy Chroma-Key bluescreen background logos from that area. HTM said since Brutus Beefcake was injured and couldn't challenge HTM, HTM said he would face anyone and he didn't care whom it was.

-Edge was on the cell phone when Khali and Singh interrupted. Khali yelled at Edge, having been informed of his plan. Edge denied to them he said any of those things about Khali being clumsy and dumb. Khali didn't buy it. Singh said Khali says he's obnoxious, you're delusional, and you're a complete nincompoop. He challenged Edge to a match right now. Edge said that was fine, but if he lost, he's off the team. [c]

-WWE Fact: Almost four times as many viewers watched Raw last week as compared to Major League Baseball on ESPN. (The words "compared to" weren't needed in that sentence. Just sayin'.)

-Cole said the Raw G.M. sent another email saying that Lawler will be part of the Team Raw vs. Team Nexus match later on the show. Lawler's seat at ringside was empty.

[Q4]

2 -- EDGE vs. THE GREAT KHALI

Khali overpowered Edge and slapped him hard in the chest. A lug aired on the bottom of the screen for the NBC one-hour special featuring highlights of WrestleMania 26. Khali missed a legdrop when Edge rolled out of the way. A minute into the match Wade Barrett led the Nexus to the ring. Edge bailed out of the ring and escaped into the crowd. Nexus jumped on the ring apron and surrounded Khali. Cole said: "This is not going to be pretty. Khali is going to be decimated by the seven members of the Nexus." They closed in on Khali. The crowd chanted Khali's name for the first time in his career. The Nexus stepped out of his way and Khali left the ring. Cole said he's never seen that out of the Nexus before. They stared at him as he backed up the ramp. Not sure what to make out of that.

WINNER: No finish announced. Annoying when they do that. Sorta like starting a sentence without a subject. [c]

3 -- EVAN BOURNE & MARK HENRY & JERRY LAWLER & GOLDBERG & TYSON KIDD & DAVID HART SMITH & YOSHI TATSU vs. THE NEXUS (Wade Barrett & Heath Slater & Sheffield & Justin Gabriel & Michael Tarver & David Otunga & Darren Young)

Tarver pinned Tatsu at 1:00 after a reverse-momentum powerslam. Bourne entered next and Tarver tagged in Gabriel. Lawler tagged in and punched Gabriel. He hit his signature fistdrop. They cut away at the point of impact to hide any light that showed. Barrett pulled Gabriel out of the ring to regroup. They cut to a break. This match shouldn't have been interrupted by a commercial. Almost no matches be, but that's another story. [c]

Back from the break, Kidd had Slater in an obligatory commercial-break-headlock. They showed that Lawler missed another fistdrop and then Slater pinned him after hitting his finisher. Smith tagged in against Slater. Slater caught a distracted Smith from behind for a pin. Goldust tagged in for a very rare Raw in-ring appearance. He usually makes cameos backstage at most. Otunga eliminated Goldust a minute later. Henry tagged in against Otunga. Henry pressed Otunga and dropped him behind his head. Slater tagged back in. Henry met him with a clothesline.

[Q5]

Young finally tagged in and got punched and kicked in the head. He tagged in Sheffield, who entered for the for the first time. They huffed and puffed at each other. Henry bodyslammed Sheffield twice. Henry tossed Gabriel into the ring. He splashed him in the corner, but Sheffield charged at Henry and nailed him as soon as he turned around with a clothesline. That made it seven-on-two. Cole said Nexus was "steamrolling" Team Raw. Sheffield caught Kidd in mid-air with his one move apparently, the clothesline. He could have gone for the cover, but instead tagged in Young who finished Kidd with his full nelson turning face-first slam and scored the pin. Then it came down to Bourne vs. all seven Nexus members. Bourne went after everyone on the apron with a barrage of punches. The crowd popped. Barrett then gave Bourne his finisher to complete the clean sweep.

WINNERS: The Nexus in 12:00. A caller to today's PWTorch Livecast (at www.Blogtalkradio.com/pro-wrestling-torch) asked how fans are supposed to take Nexus seriously against Team Raw since Nexus is all rookies and most of them aren't established as in-ring threats. So far on this show WWE has addressed that well by creating a sense of dissension within the Raw team while giving Nexus a defining clean sweep win over the Raw B-Team, but done in a way that put them over as a real threat.

-Afterward the Nexus punished Bourne more. Then Barrett addressed the crowd. He said that while they displayed an act of total domination because they're united with one purpose, the Raw team is showing signs of breaking apart. He said those cracks are caused by their own individual egos and agendas. He said come Summerslam, those cracks are going to destroy the very foundation of the Raw team. Sheffield said Cena has a team of individuals who don't have a singular focus. He dropped over his first sentence and drew the mic away from his mouth before his sentence finishes, showing he's green on the mic in this situation or nervous. He said Nexus is unbeatable. Tarver said they will eliminate each member of Team Raw until there's just one man left, and he hopes it's Cena. Tarver said they can then take their time and treat him like a piece of meat. He said they'll sink their teeth deep into his flesh and rip him apart until everyone has had their fill. He said they will pounce and put him out of his misery and it will be over for him in more ways than one. I like giving three of them a chance to talk, but stopping there and not overstaying their welcome and viewers' attention span by giving everyone a turn.

-Backstage Sheamus approached Miz backstage. Miz was rubbing his temple, clearly frustrated that his attempts to cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase has been foiled. Sheamus told him it's never going to happen. He said there's no chance he can beat him. Sheamus told him to name the time and the place and he promises he'll leave him black and blue. Miz said, "How about tonight? How about immediately after we face Cena and Jericho?" He said when he's screaming for mercy after Cena gives him an Attitude Adjustment and Jericho puts him in the Walls of Jericho, he'll give him the Skull Crushing Finale and win his title. Sheamus punched the briefcase out of Miz's hands and said if he keeps pushing his buttons, he'll regret it. Sheamus stormed away.

[Q6] [c]

4 -- ALICIA FOX (w/Jillian Hall) vs. BRI BELLA (w/Nikki Bella)

Lawler rejoined Cole at ringside. He said if Cena's team doesn't get the numbers advantage on Nexus they're in trouble. Cole said whatever their agenda is, they clearly all bought into it. The Bellas tried to switch places, but Jillian Hall stopped them. Fox then easily scored the pin after her finisher.

WINNER: Fox in 1:00.

-Afterward Jillian said she would celebrate with a song. Fox couldn't stand the singing so she kicked Jillian and legdropped her on the back of her neck. [c]

5 -- TED DIBIASE (w/Maryse) vs. JOHN MORRISON

R-Truth joined Cole and Lawler at ringside. Truth said everyone has to calm down and unite to beat Nexus. DiBiase controlled early, then Morrison made a comeback. When he charged DiBiase in the corner, DiBiase lifted his boot. Morrison surprised DiBiase with the kick to the face. As he set up Starship Pain, Maryse distracted him. DiBiase schoolboyed a distracted Morrison and put his feet on middle rope for leverage. Truth knocked his legs off the rope. DiBiase pie-faced Truth through the ropes. DiBiase sent Morrison into the ropes with a drop toe hold. He bumped into Truth and fell back where DiBiase scored the pin.

WINNER: DiBiase in 2:00.

-Afterward, Morrison yelled at Truth for being on the ring apron. Truth tried to talk him down, but Morrison stormed out of the ring. Lawler said Truth saved Morrison earlier by pushing DiBiase's legs off the ropes. As they argued in the aisle, they showed Cena backstage with his face in his hands, wondering how much further his all-star team can disintegrate in a two hour span. [c]

-A video package aired on the Nexus vs. Team Cena angle last week.

-They went to Lawler and Cole at ringside. Lawler distressed by the breakdown of Team Cena.

-Josh Matthews interviewed Orton backstage. He asked him if he'd rather face Sheamus than Miz because he stopped Miz from beating Sheamus for the title. Orton said he RKO'd both Sheamus and Miz. His message is clear - it doesn't matter whom he faces because whomever it will be given an RKO. Short and sweet.

-The Miz's ring intro for the man event took place. [c]

-They replayed Orton giving both Sheamus and Miz RKO's earlier.

[Q8]

6 -- THE MIZ & SHEAMUS vs. CHRIS JERICHO & JOHN CENA

Sheamus came out next. He and Miz glared at each other. Jericho came out next followed by Cena. Cena and Jericho argued over who would start the match. So were Miz and Sheamus. The ref who shall not be named (Charles Robinson) told them to start the match. Cena finally began and chose to fight Miz to start the match. Miz rolled to the floor after taking a few early shots. Cole said he thinks it's just a matter of time before Miz becomes WWE Champion. He listed the stats working in his favor. Miz tagged in Sheamus. At 4:00 when Jericho out-maneuvered Sheamus and ducked, sending Sheamus to the floor, Miz approached Sheamus at ringside and yapped in his face. [c]

Jericho battled Miz after the break and went for a Walls of Jericho. Sheamus intervened. Miz caught a distracted Jericho with a kick to the face. Lawler reflected on the G.M.'s line earlier that is a DX catch phrase. He noted they're in San Antonio, Tex. He asked Cole who is from San Antonio. Cole didn't say Shawn Michaels's name but turned back to the match.

[Q5]

Sheamus isolated Jericho for a while. Cole noted how strange it was to see Cena cheering Jericho. Miz tagged in and went for a corner dive at Jericho. Jericho moved and Miz crotched himself in the corner. Cena called for Jericho to hot-tag him. Both Miz and Cena got hot-tags in at the same time. Cena went to work on Sheamus and quickly went into the You Can't See Me routine. He landed the Five Knuckle Shuffle. Miz distracted the ref with some complaints. jericho entered and gave Cena the Code Breaker. Miz tagged himself in and made the cover and got the pin. Sheamus didn't know what just happened, but he wasn't happy that Miz got the pin instead of him. Miz grabbed his U.S. Title belt and briefcase and walked to the back.

WINNERS: Sheamus & Miz in 14:00.

STAR RATING: **1/2 -- Pretty unremarkable match in terms of athleticism or drama, but it told the story it wanted to tell effectively otherwise.

-Jericho entered and put Cena in the Walls of Jericho. Cole didn't get Jericho injuring the captain of his team before Summerslam. Cena escaped and applied the STF. Jericho tapped. Khali entered the ring and tried to play peacemaker. Edge entered the ring and speared Khali. "What's happening!" exclaimed Lawler. Morrison and Truth entered the ring. Every began arguing and shoving each other. Where's Bret Hart? Khali had enough and chopped Morrison in the head. Cena yelled for everyone to stop. THe show went off the air with everyone arguing.