The NeelDown: WWE No Way Out 2005
– The randomness continues with this one after RR last week. This one was notable I guess for the first ever (and only, to date) barbed wire steel cage match, and would be JBL’s last successful title defense.
– From the Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh
– Hosts are Tazz & Cole
The Basham Bros v. Rey Mysterio & Eddie Guerrero -WWE Tag Team Championship
Eddie takes Danny down to start and twists the ankle but it gets reversed. Rey tagged in and he goes to work, leg drop gets two. Oh, and in case you forgot or didn’t even know, the Bashams are the current tag champs. I guess the co-secretaries of defense have been doing their job, so to speak. Doug in and Danny gets a cheap choke. Rey gets an armdrag and tags in Eddie who goes to work with a headscissors. Danny plays opossum by rolling out and comes back with a surprise attack on Eddie. That actually isn’t bad strategy, the Bashams are overlooked in that category. Doug applies a neck vice back inside, but Eddie gets out with a back suplex. Doug drags him back from the tag and covers for two, then gets a boot and scoop slam, Rey breaks up the pin. Doug misses something from the top and Eddie gets the rag. Senton on Doug, crossbody gets two. Rey gets the crazy DDT for two and the Bashams do an illegal switch. They go back and fourth with tags and beatdowns. Danny locks Rey in a full nelson, then switches to a reverse bearhug. The Bashams continue witht he boring isolations on Rey for a while until Rey gets a top rope moonsault for two, but he gets trapped again. The ref yells at Eddie for tieing the tag ropes together. Pretty funny I guess. The Bashams hit a double team inverted DDT for two, Rey gets tricky and makes the hot tag to Eddie who cleans house until the Bashams get him with a double team slam for two. Eddie grabs a belt outside but Rey stops him, as the Bashams do another switch. Eddie misses the frog splash and lays down like he’s out, then rolls Doug up after he went for the pin for two. Eddie tosses a belt to Doug, ref takes it, Rey slides Eddie in the other belt and he levels Doug with it to get the pin and win the titles. ***1/4, it was a little drawn out with the Mysterio isolation, but it was quality wrestling all around and made for a worth while opener.
Winners: Mysterio & Guerrero
– Carlito chats with Teddy in the office.
– Rookie Diva Contest #1: Evening Gown
Your hosts are Torrie Wilson and Dawn Marie. Remember when these two not all that long ago wanted to murder each other? The contestants are Joy Giovanni, Roechelle Loewan, Lauren Jones, and Michelle McCool. Personally, I think the evening gown is always a bummer competition. Crowd is dead for this.
Booker T v. Heidenreich
Heid starts with a cheesy poem, which of course gets fast forwarded over. Heid dominates to start until Booker gets the usual kicks and chops. Usually this would be the time I would refill my cup or something, but oh well. Booker runs into an elbow and rolls out. Back in Booker gets the jaw kick for two. Heid comes back with a clothseline that gets overselled. Heid locks in a rear choke which Booker gets out of but runs into a boot. Heid goes back to the rear choke, and really, with as little of a card as this show has and a cruiser match you know will take a matter of minutes to complete, they have to put in these long chokes. Booker gets a spinebuster and it’s spinaroonie time. He misses the scissor kick and book end, so he dumps him instead. Heid grabs a chair and wacks Booker with it for the DQ. Totally offending is I’ve ever seen the word. 1/2*
Winner: Booker T via DQ
Paul London v. Chavo Guerrero v. Shannon Moore v. Spike Dudley v. Akio v. Funaki – 6 man elimination match for the Cruiserweight Championship
London drew number one, Funaki number two. Spike is sporting a Tom Brady jersey playing the ultimate heel. London and Funaki go back and fourth into a stand off. How thoughtful of them to let Funaki wrestle into a standoff with London since he has the title. London gets a mule kick but misses a charge and Funaki gets the bulldog for two. Spike gives Funaki a cheap knee from the apron allowing London to get schoolboy eliminating the champ. Spike is in next who attacks but Funaki gives him a cheap superkick scoring London the pinfall and eliminating Spike. Yep, just as I predicted this would go. Moore is next who gets a ranna for two. Moore with a series of roll ups that all get two. Moore misses a corkscrew moonsault and London capitilizes with the 450 to eliminate him. Next is Akio who does a leg scissor choke over the ropes similar to the tarantula, and pins for two. Akio applies a rear choke but London gets out, Akio gets an enzigiri. Reverse armbar by Akio and he sets up a superplex London blocks it and gets a top rope neckbreaker. Akio gets eliminated via ten count after the neckbreaker. Chavo goes to work with a series of pins that all get two. London blocks a neckbreaker and pins for two. London gets a dragon suplex for two, then follows up with a back drop and hits the dropsault for two. London gets a roll up that gets reversed by Chavo who holds onto the ropes for the win giving him the title again. Talk about an ending coming out of nowhere. *1/2, the last parts with London and Chavo were good, but all the other stuff was a joke really as they continue to bury the cruisers to new lows, and a crappy ending to top it off.
Winner: Chavo Guerrero
– Rookie Diva Talent Competition #2
The competition is special talents, and Joy’s is massasing. She massages Torrie’s legs and shoulders. Um, okay. Dawn says it’s pathetic. Roechelle tells a joke which is how do you make a tissue dance, put a boogie in it. This just gets worse and worse. Lauren does a terrible dance to an 80’s song which Dawn thankfully bashes the hell out of. Michelle slams Dawn to shut her up. Time of my life i’ll never get back.
Undertaker v. Luther Reigns
This was your typical sleeper match really, with Taker dominating before the bell rings. Taker gets the Old School and Reigns fails to send Taker into the exposed turnbuckle and ends up eating it himself. Taker gets a leg drop on the apron, but gets low blowed back inside resulting in a suplex for two. Reigns locks in a modified single crab but Taker fights out. Reigns eats boot off a blind charge but manages to spear Taker for two. Taker comes back with the usual offense full of thirlling clothselines and big boots. Tombstone ends it, yawn. -*
– Rookie Diva Competition #3: Bathing Suit challenge
Joy has a Big Ben jersey on to try to steal some votes. Maybe Spike should have thought of that. Joy does an ass tease, Roechelle just strips, same with Lauren. Michelle does a back handspring in her bathing suit. The winner is Joy with 65%.
Kurt Angle v. John Cena – Number one contendership match for the WWE Championship
Angle starts with a headlock ont he mat, gets a shoulder and goes back to it. Angle blocks a hiptoss and gets a belly to belly then locks in an armbar. The arrogant hometown fans chantin that Angle sucks, but Tazz points out that he is too pompous and proud to let that get to him. Thanks, Tazz. Angle gets a drop toe hold into a front facelock. Time for Cole to chip in, sand says that Angle has the advtantage because he has been at home living and cooking for the past few days and Cena has been at a hotel. Thanks, Cole. Cena clothselines Angle to the floor and tackles him onto the announce table. Cena gets a suplex back in for two. Cena tries an early FU but Angle gets out and takes a rest outside. Angle gets a german sending Cena’s head off the turnbuckle, then a vertical for two followed by a backbreaker for another two. Angle applies a leg scissors. Cena gets out but Angle gets three germans for two as Cena got a foot on the rope. Cean gets his usuall offense but Angle stops it with an eye rake. Cena gets a spinebuster for two, but falls victum to a german. A second one is blocked and Cena tries a FU but Angle counters into a sunset flip then gets a belly to belly. Cena slips out of the Angle Slam and gets a weak DDT for two. Angle counters a third FU into a victory roll then locks in the Ankle Lock. Cena rolls out of it sending Angle to the floor. Cena goes up top and gives Angle the worst leg drop i’ve ever seen. His leg missed completey, maybe his ass touched Angle’s neck. Cena gets the FU but Angle kicks out at two. Cena oversells a kick to the knee and Angle works on it. Chop block to the knee, and Angle slams it against the pole. Ankle Lock is in but Cena gets the rope. Angle Slam connects, Ankle Lock locked in, Cena gets the rope, Angle drags him back and grounds it, but Cena gets the rope again. The ref tries forcing Angle off so he knocks him out with an elbow. Angle gets the chain but Cena attacks and gets the FU, ref magically wakes out and counts the win. ***, a pretty solid match due to Angle’s carrying but all the counters and missed finishers kind of put it off track for me. The ending kind of sucked too in my book, but still a good match.
Winner: John Cena
JBL v. The Big Show – Barbed wire steel cage – WWE Championship
Of course since it’s WWE, the only barbed wire is wrapped around the top, which probably means they won’t do much with it. Show starts by bouncing JBL’s head off the cage and big slaps. JBL ducks a clothesline and tackles Show by the legs, then gets a neckbreaker. JBL tries to escape but can’t because of the barbed wire, so instead he tries something off the top but gets caught and planted with a fallaway slam. Show goes back to the slaps but JBL pokes the eyes and climbs, but Show knocks him off and gets a shoulder. Show gets a suplex and has to stop and think if he has any more moves left he could muster. He did steal one of Layfield’s witht he fallaway earlier. He decides he doesn’t and goes back to a slap, but JBL sends him into the cage. Show is busted open and JBL gets a top rope shoulder block. JBL gives Show a taste of his own medicine with a head shot to the cage and chops, then gets an elbow drop for two. Boot to the face and another elbow drop gets two. JBL takes a tag rope and chokes Show with it. Show gets a BIG BOOT and a hard jacknife bomb. More cage shots and both men have crimson masks. Show catupluts JBL into the cage, however Michael Cole announces it as a monkey flip. On a roll tonight. The Cabinet hit the ring and the Bashams try to cut the cage open with bolt cutters. Teddy interupts and bans them from ringside, however Orlando left the bolt cutters in the ring. JBL nails Show with them and hits the Clothseline from Hell, but it only gets two. JBL runs into a Chokeslam that gets two. JBL is a bloody mess at this point and he gets a low blow and boot to the head for two. JBL goes up and tries to cut the wire with the bolt cutters but Show attacks him causing him to drop the bolt cutters outside of the cage. They slug it out on the top rope until Show chokeslams JBL through the ring. Show cautiously finds footing around the hole in the ring and of course easily breaks the chain off the door and walks out safely thinking he’s won, atlhough it is announced that JBL wins and is still champ, as we see later on replay that JBL had crawled out under the ring. I still love that finish, despite how shitty the match might have been. **1/2
Winner: JBL
– Afterwards Big Slow attacks but the Cabinet make the save until Batista comes out and kills the Cabinet. JBL stumbles up the ramp and is met by Cena who attacks on the side of the stage and spinebusters him through some equipment. I guess they had to keep the fans interest with some babyface heet.
End of show.
– A DVD exclusive sees The Cabinet guide JBL to the trainers room. Exciting stuff.
