Footage of the last two weeks and the events surrounding Sable, Stephanie, Vince and Zach Gowen was shown.
JOHN CENA def. ORLANDO JORDAN:
Cena was thrilled to finally be in MSG and he wanted to mark his one year anniversary in WWE by breaking it down old school for the crowd in the Garden. Cena called himself the SmackDown! Legend and as such, he wanted to give a rookie in the back a chance to step up to the plate. Orlando Jordan accepted the challenge and Cena, wearing a Boston Celtics jersey, tore into the youngster with a verbal tirade, saying he’d put Jordan down like Larry Bird used to do to the Knicks!
Jordan had heard enough and he laced into Cena but Cena stopped the newcomer with a back elbow to the jaw. However, an early F-U attempt was countered as Jordan flipped through, but as Jordan came from the top rope with a crossbody plancha, Cena rolled through and with the aid of a handful of tights, Cena stole the pinfall. Cena then put an exclamation point on the night with the F-U but before he could do any further damage, The Undertaker rolled to the ring and chased Cena off before patting Jordan on the stomach in the corner in a great show of respect.
THE UNDERTAKER & THE APA def. THE FULL-BLOODED ITALIANS:
Taker started the affair against Palumbo and he tore into the former WWE tag champion and although Palumbo started to fight back, Taker planted Palumbo with a thunderous DDT off of the ropes before tagging out to Ron Simmons. Simmons continued the onslaught with a spinebuster but Palumbo turned the tide and the Full-Blooded Italians made several quick tags and worked over Simmons’s lower back.
Palumbo applied a Camel Clutch with Simmons broke by bringing the knees into the umm, LOWER midsection as Palumbo went to jump on the lower back. Bradshaw got the tag and came in smoking, clotheslines all around before catching Stamboli with the Last Call fallaway slam. Nunzio was about to go for the ride as well but Palumbo caught Bradshaw with a superkick while he was holding Nunzio.
Taker caught Palumbo with a massive chokeslam as he turned around but Stamboli disposed of the Phenom with a clothesline that sent Taker over the top rope to the floor. However, as Stamboli gloated, Bradshaw was gainging momentum and as Stamboli turned around, he was greeted with the Clothesline from Hell! The impact nearly decapitated Stamboli and Bradshaw rolled into the cover and picked up the win for his team.
Jamie Noble and Nidia were trying to help a couple find the subway when they were approached by an attorney, who regretted to inform Jamie that his Aunt Lucille had passed away. Noble told the lawyer that he had the wrong guy, but his memory got a lot better when the attorney informed him that Aunt Lucille had left him over $800,000! Noble and Nidia were ecstatic and Nidia thanked the attorney with a massive liplock before Jamie told his squeeze that they were going to Applebee’s to celebrate!
WWE WRESTLEMANIA RECALL: The first ever WrestleMania, emanating from none other than MSG itself, was relived.
Sable was in the back when Vince McMahon swung by and Sable apologized for the awkward situation the two were caught in last week but Sable had to say something to Vince. The truth of the matter was that Vince was driving Sable wild, be it his shoulders, his chest, his hair, whatever, but Sable admitted that she was very attracted to Vince and she wanted him to run his fingers through her hair. Vince wasn’t in the mood, though, and he told Sable that there was something that he had todo tonight before heading off.
TERMINATOR 3 WWE REWIND: Chris Benoit and Rhyno collided in the first match of the U.S. Title Tournament. The match was a heated affair that saw Benoit emerge triumphant after trapping Rhyno in the CrossFace!
FIRST ROUND WWE U.S. TITLE MATCH
MATT HARDY Version 1 def. RIKISHI to advance into the second round of the WWE U.S. Title Tournament:
Matt got into Rikishi’s face at the onset but Rikishi quickly silenced the sensai of Mattitude with a thunderous DDT to get a nearfall. Rikishi then sandwiched Matt in the corner with a massive body avalanche in the corner but as the action spilled onto the arena floor, Matt rammed Rikishi into the ringpost twice before applying a surfboard in the middle of the ring.
Rikishi powered out and leveled Matt with a clothesline and although Rikishi fought his way out of one belly-to-belly suplex, he charged right into Rikishi, whose second effort was more successful. Rikishi countered the Twist of Fate into the Michinoku Driver but somehow Matt sucked up all of his Mattributes and kicked out at two. Rikishi dragged Matt over to the corner for the RumpShaker but Matt brought the knees up, allowing him to plaster Rikishi to the canvas with the Twist of Fate!
Rikishi kicked out at two, much to Matt’s disbelief and the former Cruiserweight Champion went over to the corner and ripped the top turnbuckle pad off. Rikishi dropped Matt with a hard savate kick to the face but a backsplash attempt missed and Rikishi barreled back first into the exposed steel bolt in the corner. Matt capitalized by drilling Rikishi with another Twist of Fate to pick up the win and advance in the tournament.
WWE REWIND: Stephanie’s emotional lambasting of her father last week on SmackDown! was shown.
Billy Kidman, who had been shown sitting at ringside earlier in the night, took a moment to talk to Josh Mathews. Billy was having a hard time dealing with sitting ringside instead of actually being in the ring and although he was happy for Rey having won the Cruiserweight Title, he couldn’t help bu think that it could’ve been him before saying that he couldn’t wait to get back into the ring.
WWE TAG TEAM TITLE MATCH
WWE Tag Team Champions EDDIE GUERRERO & YOSHIHIRO TAJIRI def. SEAN O’HAIRE & ROWDY RODDY PIPER to retain the WWE Tag Team Titles:
Guerrero started the affair with O’Haire and the current WWETag champion took over on the former WCW tag titlist, scoring with a slam to set up a somersault hilo from the outside-in. Tajiri got the tag but O’Haire quickly took over on the Japanese Buzzsaw and he and Piper isolated the former ECW tag champion in their half of the ring, making several quick tags in the process. O’Haire set Tajiri up for a powerslam attempt but Tajiri dropped behind O’Haire and dropped him with a modified One and Only before making the tag to Guerrero.
Eddie tore into both O’Haire and Piper but O’Haire sent Eddie’s teeth down his throat with a vile superkick to the face. However, Tajiri took O’Haire out of the equation and after Tajiri spewwed the green mist into Piper’s eyes and hung him out to dry across the top rope, sending the Rowdy Scot tumbling to the canvas, Eddie came from the rafters with a breathtaking frog splash, giving his squad the win and the successful title defense!
The history leading up to the six-man tag team main event tonight was shown.
INTERVIEW – WWE CEO VINCE MCMAHON:
Vince took to the mic and told the fans that he wanted to call out a pair of individuals who have had a profound effect on his life over recent weeks — Stephanie McMahon and Zach Gowen. The boss told his daughter when he got to the ring that she had always been so very precious to him and it was true that he had asked her to help him with certain business deals so as such, it was almost as though he had “personally deflowered” his daughter and he would never forgive himself.
Just as Stephanie had taught him something about himself this week, Zach too had taught Vince something about himself. What could that be? Simply put, Vince McMahon wanted to be Zach Gowen. Zach had stared death in the eye and not backed down and although Vince was a billionaire, that was one claim that Mr. McMahon could not make and as such, he wanted to be Zach Gowen.
Vince then asked Zach for one simple favor, simply to forgive him, but Zach refused so Vince instead demanded Zach accept the apology. Steph grabbed a microphone for Zach and Zach teed off on Vince, saying that he was not going to accept. Vince had been trying to make a joke out of Zach and he had heard enough and although Vince professed that he intimidated Zach, Gowen simply barked at Vince that he had been through things that would make Vince cry. As Steph looked on with a smile on her face, Zach said that he spat on Vince’s apology but he did say that there was something that Vince could offer him, that being a WWE contract.
Vince said that if that was all Zach wanted, then he could have his contract…. oh, there was a condition, though, but I’m sure you knew that already. Vince told Zach that since he didn’t enjoy not having his apologies accepted or being called an S.O.B., plus since he wasn’t that thrilled about the looks he was getting from Stephanie, he was going to give Zach his contract if he joined the Vince McMahon Kiss My….. well, you know the rest! Zach looked to Stephanie for a little backup and after Vince told Stephanie to tell Zach to kiss his derriere, Steph took a moment to talk to Zach and moments later, Zach took a knee behind Vince. However, much to Vince’s surprise, the WWE CEO dropped to the mat in a crumpled heap following a low blow by Zach and Steph and Zach got a chuckle from the ramp as Vince struggled to his feet back in the ring!
THE ULTIMO DRAGON def. SHANNON MOORE:
Rey Mysterio grabbed a seat ringside to take in the debut of the Dragon and the pair started with an excellent high-tempo series of chain wrestling topped off by a kickout by Dragon. Dragon rolled through a Monkey Flip attempt before sending Shannon out to the floor following a handspring elbow but Shannon moved as Dragon went for an Asai moonsault and Dragon flipped back into the middle of the ring and landed on his feet.
Shannon took Dragon to the mat, sending him across the second rope following a drop toehold and he applied a unique sleeperhold but Dragon scored with a spinning back heel kick before the educated feet strarted flying as Dragon scored with stiff kicks to the chest and back before dropping Shannon with a jumping back heel kick. Dragon sent Shannon out to the floor for a reprieve but Dragon gave Shannon little time to regroup as he followed Moore out with the Asai Moonsault. Back in the ring, Dragon realigned Shannon’s teeth with a second rope jawbreaker before a backslip into an inverted DDT gave the Dragon a victory in his WWE debut! After the match, Billy Kidman gave Dragon a round of applause from the floor and Rey came into the ring to shake and raise the hand of the Dragon.
THE BIG SHOW, SHELTON BENJAMIN and CHARLIE HAAS def. MR. AMERICA, KURT ANGLE and WWE Champion BROCK LESNAR:
The beginning deteriorated into a big shoving match before Angle decided to start the match with Charlie Haas. The pair locked up collar-and-elbow and Angle forced Haas back into the corner before Angle snapped Haas to the mat and applied a side headlock. Haas countered into a top wristlock but Angle snapped Haas right back over with the side headlock then after Kurt scored with a shoulderblock, Kurt sent Haas scampering following a hiptoss and an armdrag.
Benjamin walked into an armdrag as well then but after Angle elevated Haas with a backdrop and cinched in an armwringer, Haas stuck a thumb in Kurt’s eye, allowing him to pound Kurt back into Haas’s corner. Benjamin got the tag and the grapplers formerly known as Team Angle scored with a double dropkick on their former captain but Kurt took over in the corner and Mr. America got the tag and tore into all three of his adversaries before hammering away on the head of Banjamin and tagging to Brock.
Lesnar and Mr. America hooked up for a double clothesline then after Lesnar laced into Shelton in the corner, Brock caught a big boot try and the WWE Championflattened Shelton with a hard clothesline. Charlie walked right into a press slam after getting the tag and Mr. America checked back in, scoring with a clothesline in the corner and a belly-to-back suplex before tagging Brock back in.
Lesnar delivered a huge vertical suplex before popping up and mocking The Big Show and after the commercial break, Brock scored with a scintillating spinebuster on Haas. However, Benjamin stopped Brock in his tracks as he tried for the F-5 and after Haas and Benjamin teamed up for their hanging backbreaker, Show got the tag and tore into Brock in the corner. However, Brock ducked a clothesline and scored with one of his own to Show, allowing him to make the tag to Kurt.
Angle tore into both of his former charges and had Haas trapped in the AngleLock after Angle scored with a pair of release German suplexes and as Angle fought against his proteges, he injured his hamstring and made the tag to Mr. America. Show incredibly sent both Kurt and Brock to the canvas with a double ShowStopper but Mr. America tore into Show as he turned around. However, Haas and Benjamin attacked from behind and although Mr. America took care of the former tag champions, he was distracted by Vince, who had Zach Gowen by the throat as he headed out to the stage. Vince pummeled Zach as Mr. America looked on from the ring and diversion was all that Show needed to imprint Mr. America’s form into the canvas and pick up the win for his team.
After the match, Vince said he wasn’t done with Zach as he told Zach he wasn’t sure he could cut it as a wrestler while he continued to pummel the youngster. Stephanie ran out from the back and threw herself on Zach to stop her father but Vince came up with a brainstorm. Mr. McMahon decided that he was going to give Zach a shot at a contract after all, saying he was going to put Zach in a match next week, even giving him a partner! What’s the catch, you ask? Zach’s partner was Stephanie McMahon and then as SmackDown! went off of the air, Vince announced their opponent would be The Big Show, a decree which brought an evil grin to both his and Show’s faces!
