| Date: 03/25 | 9:35 PM |
| Views: 2,271 | |
Sorry for the late start folks, I was putting finishing touches on a new podcast. Hit F5 or refresh throughout and I bet by the time ECW goes off air I'll be caught up with the live show! (DVR technology is vunderbar.)
"Don't question my heart! Don't question the fire that burns inside." Don't worry, I won't. The pyros go off and we're coming to you from Fayetteville, North Carolina. Joey Styles and Tazz are at ringside as always. Hardcore Holly's music hits and he and tag team partner Cody Rhodes come out to the ring, and there are already a ton of other men inside it, so apparently the 24-man tag match is going to kickstart the show! Kofi Kingston comes out next. Kane's pyro goes off and he's the next man out. I have no idea who the 12 men are on each side and I'm not even going to try to explain, but suffice it to say the match is underway!
* ECW 24 Man Tag Match
No sign of Matt Hardy anywhere. Damn. Cody Rhodes and SPANKY DAWG start the match with a series of reversals and near falls. Rhodes takes the left arm but Jamie Noble tags in and drops a leg on Kendrick. Blind tag and in comes Palumbo to hit Noble with a fall away slam. Noble tags out to Yang. Palumbo cleans his clock and gives him a bearhug overhead suplex, but Yang gives him a head scissor and dropkicks him out of the ring before catapulting himself out to the floor. Kendrick nails him, Shannon Moore nails him, and then Trevor Murdoch piles on top of all of them before screaming "THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKIN' ABOUT!" Noble gets him some too right as we go to the commercial break.
It's a crazy clusterfuck in the ring as we call back, with most of the 24 men going into business for themselves in the ring, with the ref simply throwing his hands up in the air at the insanity. Deuce & Domino try to dominate but Kofi Kingston goes airborne and crossbodies them. Burke takes out Kingston but Holly gives him an Alabama Slam then starts chopping the crap out of Miz. Holly is pulled out to the floor so Festus gives Miz a big splash, but Khali takes over with chops. Kane comes in and fights off a series of men, including a big boot to Henry, but Snitsky gives him one in return. Snitsky tries to splash Dreamer in the corner, Dreamer ducks, but Henry picks him up, throws him into the corner, then throws him into the waiting boot of Snitsky. SNITSKY PICKS UP THE WIN FOR THE 12 HEELS ON HIS TEAM. All 24 men hit the ring to argue with each other as we throw to a video package of boxing commentators and fighters (Tommy Hearns and Ricky Hatton are among them) discussing Floyd Mayweather putting his career on the line at WrestleMania 24. Commercial.
Promo reminds us 'Mania is just five days away. I can't wait to get to Orlando! Chavo is mouthing off to Tommy Dreamer backstage, and Dreamer says that on Sunday there may be 23 other guys gunning for the title and the odds aren't in his favor, so he wants a match with him tonight. Chavo says it would be non-title, and Dreamer says he doesn't care, because he'd take a win over the champion any day of the week title or not. Chavo says he has no reason, Dreamer says the reason is that I don't like you, and Chavo laughs that off and says GET IN LINE. Delaney starts to respond, Chavo tells him to shut up, and Dreamer says Chavo is the one who should SHUT IT because Delaney has only been around two months and has more wrestling passion in his little finger than Chavo has in his whole body. Chavo says okay, FINE, you've got your match tonight!
* Carlito v. Shelton Benjamin (Money in the Bank Preview)
Yes, they've actually hung a briefcase above the ring, but more importantly they've changed Shelton Benjamin's entrance video - the phrase "GOLD STANDARD" is now officially part of his character. Shelton points at the briefcase and mouths off to Carlito, so Carlito shoves him down and starts stomping a mudhole in him before the ref pushes him off. Carlito tries to monkeyflip Shelton but Benjamin lands on his feet and goes on offense. Carlito fights back with punches but Benjamin knees him and takes a side headlock, then knocks him down with a shoulder tackle. Carlito finally evens things up with a dropkick and I'm hearing a noticeable LACK of reaction from the live crowd. Benjamin skins the cat but ends up getting beaten down by Carlito for his trouble, and when he tries to come back in Carlito snaps his head off the ropes. Benjamin gets to an eight count before he gets to the apron, at which point Carlito leaps over the ropes and smashes his head into the edge, then grounds Benjamin with a rear naked choke.
Even though Benjamin is usually the heel the crowd starts to pop for him anyway because Carlito is working heel so hard. Styles & Tazz remind us Carlito won't be able to exert this kind of one-on-one control on Sunday with five other men in the ring. The Shelton chant died as quickly as it started and the crowd's back to not giving a crap again - there are even some scattered "BOR-ING" chants. Tazz & Styles argue about whether you say "touche" in chess or fencing and it's more interesting than the match. Carlito and Benjamin start throwing blows in the corner but Carlito gets the advantage and snaps off a suplex for two. Carlito tries to wrench the neck, and a very light Shel-ton chant breaks out again. Shelton stands up with Carlito on his neck and hits an electric chair, which pops the crowd. They start counting along with the ref as neither man gets up before six, then Benjamin crawls on top for a two count. Carlito hits a springboard dropkick for 2.8 and yells at the ref. Ground and pound on Benjamin gets a light round of boos from the crowd. Neckbreaker for two.
Carlito cranks on the neck and I can't believe this match has gone this long, but at least the crowd is solidly behind Benjamin making his comeback now, clapping him to his feet and popping when he hits the enzuguiri. Maybe they should try turning Benjamin face again. Carlito gets up and Benjamin gives him a backbreaker for two. Exploder T-bone suplex by Benjamin for 2.5. Spinning backkick blocked, Carlito hooks the head, Benjamin floats over on the suplex, Carlito blocks and kicks him in the gut, Carlito hits a neckbreaker but Carlito gets a shoulder up at 2.99999 and the crowd is stunned. Benjamin blocks the backstabber, throws Carlito into the corner, charges in for the running bulldog but Carlito blocks and gives him a knee and a cover for ... no he kicks out again! This has actually turned out to be a pretty good match just by them giving it this much time. Benjamin runs all the way up the ropes to bulldog Carlito before he can jump off, hooks the leg, and gets the three count - the crowd is actually excited about Benjamin getting a pin! Holy shit! WINNER: SHELTON BENJAMIN! Promo package for Cena, Orton and Hunter (same as from last night's Raw) as we go to commercial.
Styles & Tazz run down the entire WrestleMania card as we come back from the break before throwing to a video package for the final inductee for the 2008 Hall of Fame class. You no doubt know by now it's GORDON SOLIE, the legendary wrestling announcer who was known as "the voice of wrestling" who was synonymous with Championship Wrestling from Florida. Ric Flair: "He made everything sound so good!" Gerald Brisco: "The wrestling fans of his era trusted Gordon Solie." He was the voice of three different NWA territories, and called many of the greatest Ric Flair matches of his career during his tenure. Jim Ross: "No one had a bigger impact on my announcing career than Gordon Solie." Kelly Kelly and Steven Richards are getting ready backstage for a match NEXT after these commercial messages.
Edge and MVP cut promos on behalf of the new Triple H DVD that came out today when we come back from break. YUCK. It's a two-disc set too. DOUBLE YUCK. Thank Cthulhu it's time for another match!
* Layla & Mike Knox v. Kelly Kelly & Steven Richards (Mixed Tag)
Kelly and Layla start things off with some slapping and hair pulling. Layla takes the left arm but Kelly reverses it. Layla throws wild elbows to get out but Kelly hits the ropes and clotheslines her for a two count. Tazz: "Usually people compete against each other because they don't like each other." Thanks for the insight bro. Knox yanks Kelly down and gets a chorus of boos. It's enough to put Layla in the dominant position on Kelly, and no I don't mean in your favorite sexual fantasy. She drops an atomic butt and misses, and Kelly responds with an enzuguiri before crawling over to Richards for the tag. Knox tags in too. Richards kicks him in the cranium and covers for two before Layla breaks it up. Kelly tackles her all the way out of the ring, Richards tries to jump on Knox, but Knox corkscrews him into the canvas for the three count. WINNERS: LAYLA & MIKE KNOX. We get a video package of Mayweather training and getting ready for 'Mania before commercial, and an Undertaker package promoting his 15-0 streak going into 'Mania against Edge after it.
* Chavo Guerrero {C} v. Tommy Dreamer (Non-Title Lumberjack Match)
I must have missed the announcement during one of my DVR fast forwards, but sure as shit all 24 men from the tag match earlier have surrounded the ring and are watching Chavo when he comes out. Dreamer makes his way down to the ring as Chavo is taking off the belt and we've only got a couple of minutes of TV time left. Bell rings and we're underway! Tie-up, knee to the gut, shove to the corner, Dreamer punches his way out of it as Jim Duggan cheers him on. Dreamer throws him over the apron, punches him to the floor, the face lumberjacks beat him up and throw him back in. Chavo throws Dreamer's face into the turnbuckle then starts choking him with a boot. "Get him back ref, get him back!" Duggan couldn't BE any louder. The crowd starts chanting "CHAVO SUCKS" and it's as loud as THEY have been all night. Chavo pounds on his back, but Dreamer slams him to the canvas. Tree of woe and the running E-C-DUBYA dropkick follow! Chavo grabs the ropes to block Dreamer, does a shoulder shimmy a la Eddie, sizes his man up, kicks him in the gut but Dreamer counters with a neckbreaker before going up top. Chavo runs over to make Dreamer crotch himself, goes up top himself, hits the frogsplash and gets the three count. WINNER: CHAVO GUERRERO. All 24 men look on as Chavo goes from one corner to the next, climbing up to pose with the belt, and finally they've had enough and ALL OF THEM RUN IN TO GET A PIECE OF HIM. It's total chaos in the ring as ECW goes off the air!