Here’s the final card –
1. WWE Champion John Cena vs. CM Punk
2. World Heavyweight Champion Randy Orton vs. Christian
3. Raw Money in the Bank Ladder Match (Alberto Del Rio, R-Truth, Jack Swagger, The Miz, Evan Bourne, Rey Mysterio, Alex Riley, and Kofi Kingston)
4. SmackDown Money in the Bank Match (Justin Gabriel, Heath Slater, Sheamus, Cody Rhodes, Kane, Sin Cara, Daniel Bryan, and Wade Barrett)
5. Big Show vs. Mark Henry
6. Divas Champion Kelly Kelly vs. Brie Bella
The video package for tonight’s main event is pretty awesome and indicative of what a compelling storyline it has been. Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, and Booker T are calling the action tonight from Chicago.
MATCH #1: SmackDown Money in the Bank Ladder Match – Sin Cara vs. Wade Barrett vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Heath Slater vs. Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Kane
I don’t expect to do much play-by-play here. Kane, who won last year’s SmackDown Money in the Bank Ladder Match and cashed it in to beat Rey Mysterio for the World Heavyweight Title, clears the ring early. Gabriel and Slater try working together despite their recent differences but that doesn’t last long. Cara and Bryan get to show off their high flying maneuvers. Sheamus seemingly ends Cara’s night with a powerbomb off the apron and right onto a ladder. That might be a legit injury. Moments later Gabriel and Slater appear to be helping Barrett climb the ladder but then they turn on him. Slater and Gabriel then both climb the ladder and try to grab the case but Rhodes pushes the ladder over. Rhodes hits Slater with the Crossroads and climbs up but Barrett pulls him down only to be greeted with Crossroads as well. Sheamus stops him this time and hits the Irish Curse. Kane makes his way back to the ring and cleans house. Bryan comes back in and joins him on the ladder. He tries a cross body block but Kane catches him, so Bryan counters with a DDT! Bryan tries to climb but Slater grabs him and delivers a neckbreaker. I appreciate Lawler making the effort to keep the other two idiots on track. Sheamus cleans house and makes his way up the ladder, only to be thwarted by Kane, who Chokeslams him down through a ladder! Bryan, Rhodes, and Barrett work together to attack the Big Red Monster. Rhodes hits the Beautiful Disaster and Barrett follows up with Wasteland. Gabriel then hits Kane with a 450 Splash! Barrett grabs Gabriel and delivers Wasteland to the floor onto Slater. He takes Bryan out and nails Rhodes with a pumphandle slam. Rhodes is able to recover to stop Barrett from grabbing the case and he clotheslines him to the floor. Bryan climbs up the ladder and Rhodes joins him, but Bryan locks him in a guillotine choke! Barrett comes up there as well and goes for Wasteland but Bryan delivers a series of elbows and a knockout kick! Bryan is all alone on top and he pulls down the ladder for the upset win!!
WINNER – DANIEL BRYAN!! (****)
MATCH #2: Divas Champion Kelly Kelly (w/ Eve) vs. Brie Bella (w/ Nikki Bella)
Brie dominates in the early going. Kelly makes some comeback attempts but Brie continually cuts her off. After a few minutes Kelly hits the K2 and gets the pin out of nowhere.
WINNER – Kelly Kelly (*)
SummerSlam comes to pay-per-view on August 14!
MATCH #3: Big Show vs. Mark Henry
I appreciate how they’ve spent time building up a feud between them, even if it is a match I wouldn’t particularly care to see. They both show off their power in the early going, and Henry gets the first advantage. Henry keeps Show down and works on the leg. He is able to hit the World’s Strongest Slam but Show kicks out at two! Moments later he picks him for another one and this time it’s enough to keep Show down for a three-count.
WINNER – Mark Henry
Backstage Josh Mathews catches up with Vince McMahon, who is in a foul mood. He says that if CM Punk walks out with the title, may God have mercy on John Cena.
MATCH #4: Raw Money in the Bank Ladder Match – Alberto Del Rio vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Jack Swagger vs. Evan Bourne vs. R-Truth vs. Alex Riley vs. The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio
Everybody uses ladders as weapons right from the get-go, and Del Rio gets trapped underneath a handful of them. Bodies are flying all over the place and the crowd loves it. Riley drops Truth crotch first on a ladder and tries to climb a short one for some reason but Miz stops him. Truth takes everyone out with a dive, and then Mysterio and Kingston follow with stereo dives of their own. Bourne climbs a ladder in the aisle and takes out all seven guys with the Shooting Star Press! Back in the ring Bourne goes up a ladder and Miz meets him up there. Miz gets knocked off the ladder and may have legitimately injured his knee. Kofi goes up the ladder and Swagger pulls him down with the Ankle Lock. Riley tries to sneak in but Truth knocks them both off the ladder. The action is nonstop. Mysterio and Riley battle on top of a ladder. Bourne and Del Rio each grab a ladder and join them. Everybody joins them up there now and the briefcase is getting tossed around. Del Rio gets knocked down first, and then Swagger, Miz, and Bourne follow. Riley is the next to go. Mysterio knocks Truth off and Kingston knocks Mysterio down. Kingston planks across the top two ladders and almost gets the case but Swagger blocks it! They knock each other down and Miz hobbles out from the back and tries to climb the ladder but Mysterio stops him! Mysterio goes up and Del Rio joins him up there and pulls Mysterio’s mask off! The crowd is anti-Mysterio here. Del Rio’s ladder awkwardly falls over and he has to set it up again but he does and is able to pull the case down and win Money in the Bank!
WINNER – Alberto Del Rio (****)
MATCH #5: World Heavyweight Champion Randy Orton vs. Christian
Christian tries to goad Orton into using a chair right away but the champion resists. The fight spills to the floor and Orton takes control. Back in the ring Christian comes back and hits a diving elbow off the second rope for two. Christian keeps Orton down on the mat now, wearing the champion down. Orton comes back with a quick rollup for two, but Christian cuts him right off with a spinebuster for his own two-count. These two know each other well and are able to counter many of each other’s attacks. Orton dropkicks Christian out of the air and goes for a superplex like his old man, but Christian knocks him down and hits a diving headbutt for two. Booker calls Orton “cackalating.†Christian flips the Killswitch but Orton is able to kick out at two! He goes for the Spear but Orton avoids it and hits the awesome elevated neckbreaker for two! Orton hits the Powerslam and the Orton DDT. He signals for the RKO but Christian begs off and then spits in the champion’s face! Orton unloads on the challenger with punches, almost getting himself disqualified, and then he blatantly kicks Christian in the balls to get himself disqualified! Orton just cost himself the title! Not the greatest finish but at least in some regard Christian outsmarted the champion. The crowd popped for it.
WINNER – Christian (by disqualification), New World Heavyweight Champion (***¾)
Orton goes nuts and attacks Christian after the bell, hitting an RKO on the Announce Table, which does not break. Then he goes back and does it again.
MATCH #6: WWE Championship Match – John Cena vs. CM Punk
This is huge. The crowd is hugely pro-Punk and anti-Cena. This is like One Night Stand but even better. They take it slow in the early going, exchanging holds and counters. Both men take a shot at their finisher but can’t connect with it. Punk takes control and beats Cena down in the corner. Cena comes back with his modified bulldog for two. Punk cuts him off and goes back to work, but it’s not long before Cena catches him with a boot to the midsection and the fisherman’s suplex. Cena goes for the AA but Punk counters with a DDT. Punk continues working the champion’s previously injured neck. He goes to suplex Cena from the outside of the ring back in, but Cena reverses it and suplexes Punk to the floor! Back in the ring Cena fires up but can’t keep Punk down. Cena goes for the Attitude Adjustment but hits it from the side so it only gets two. He unloads with punches so Punk fights back with kicks and punches of his own. Cena counters that with the abdominal stretch. Punk escapes it with a hiptoss and then both men clothesline each other. UP on their feet Punk knocks Cena to the floor and wipes him out with a suicide dive. Back in the ring Cena avoids the springboard cross body block. Cena hits the Five Knuckle Shuffle and goes for the Attitude Adjustment but Punk lands on his feet (allegedly) and sweeps the legs for a two-count. Punk goes for the Go 2 Sleep but Cena counters with a gutwrench powerbomb for two. Cena goes for the AA but Punk avoids it again and hits two hard knees to the jaw and the bulldog. Punk goes to the apron and hits the springboard lariat for two! He hits some kicks but Cena grabs the STF from out of nowhere! Punk is not very close to the ropes but he’s able to make it to break the hold. Now Punk lands a knockout kick but it only gets two. Punk goes up top for a cross body but Cena rolls through and powers Punk up for the AA but Punk slips out again and tries the Go 2 Sleep but Cena counters to the STF again! Cena pulls Punk back to the middle of the ring but Punk refuses to give up! Punk counters it into the Anaconda Vise! From out of nowhere Cena grabs Punk and hits the AA but Punk kicks out at two! Cena goes up top for the Cena Slice but Punk catches him with a powerbomb for two. Punk goes for the GTS but Cena escapes and clotheslines his neck off the top rope. Cena goes up top again and this time connects with the Cena Slice but Punk kicks out again! The champion hits the AA again and Punk kicks out at two!! The crowd is going banana. Cena takes Punk up to the top rope for a super AA but Punk elbows his way out of it and hits a super hurricanrana. Punk hits an exposed knee to the face and then the Go 2 Sleep, but Cena rolls to the floor! Vince McMahon and Johnny Ace make their way out as Punk throws Cena back in the ring. That distracts Punk long enough for Cena to recover and lock him in the STF! McMahon calls for the bell a la Montreal and Cena knocks Johnny Ace out! Punk then nails Cena with the Go 2 Sleep and wins the title!!!!!!
WINNER – CM Punk!!! NEW WWE CHAMPION!, ****3/4
McMahon calls for Alberto Del Rio to come out and cash in his Money in the Bank title shot right now, and Del Rio obliges!
MATCH #7: WWE Championship Match – CM Punk vs. Alberto Del Rio
Punk catches Del Rio with a hard right hand as soon as he enters the ring! Punk then escapes through the crowd with the title belt in tow! The crowd is going NUTS and the show is over!
