As our first pay-per-view ever to come to us from overseas gets closer and closer, we had a great night of action from Greenville, South Carolina for Monday Night Explosion! On tonight�s show, Shawn Michaels is in the house as he will answer Chris Benoit�s challenge! Also, Gregory Helms goes up against Shad Gaspard in a non-title match, Tommy Dreamer & Lance Cade take on MNM, Rob Van Dam is back in action taking on Rhyno, and in a huge main event, World champion Brock Lesnar & Kurt Angle take on Abyss & Umaga in a streetfight!
The show started with Paul Burchill standing in the ring talking about how at Summer Sizzler in his home country, he would take care of Monty Brown once and for all. He had other business tonight though, as he was out here to challenge Booker T to a match here tonight. �Cash is nice, but gold is worth a whole lot more,� referencing how Booker cost Burchill the Intercontinental Title last week. Booker T came out, flanked by Elix Skipper & Sharmell, and none of them looked happy. Sharmell had to be physically restrained by Skipper as Sharmell was calling Burchill �ungrateful.� Burchill turned his attentions to Sharmell, which allowed Booker to hit him with a cheap shot and the match was on.
The match started in a hurry with Booker having the advantage from the get-go, but Burchill fought back. Say what you want about Burchill, but the guy knows how to fight. The match went back and forth until Burchill had Booker set up for the Curb Stomp. Sharmell jumped up on the apron and got the attention of referee Charles Robinson. Burchill would let go of Booker, only to be caught by surprise by Elix Skipper who hit him with the Play of the Day. Skipper was out of the ring in a hurry, leaving Burchill prone for the Axe Kick and suffering a defeat.
Booker T pinned Paul Burchill with the Axe Kick in 0:04:54.
Rating: ***
Burchill may have gotten Blackout�s money, but he couldn�t pick up a win. I don�t think this is a situation that has reached it�s climax though.
Last week, Shelton Benjamin promised that he�d be making a big impact soon, but didn�t let anyone in on what that impact might be. All he was concerned about this week was continuing his winning ways, and that�s what he did this week against Lance Hoyt. We haven�t seen much of Hoyt recently, and he looked decent by getting some good power offense in. But when all was said and done, just like many have before him, he fell to Shelton Benjamin and the Paydirt.
Shelton Benjamin pinned Lance Hoyt with the Paydirt in 0:04:57.
Rating: *** �
Back in the locker room of Must See TV, the whole gang is there (Brothel and all) are talking before Rhyno goes to the ring to take on the returning Rob Van Dam. They wished the Manbeast luck and sent him on his way before Christian stopped him, grabbing the plate of ribs from the War Machine (man, this guy loves ribs!). After a tense awkward moment, Captain Charisma promises Rhyno ribs if he can win his match. Rhyno leaves happy. After Rhyno is gone and they share a laugh at his expense, Edge tells Christian he is upset that nothing has been done about RVD�s attack on them last week, costing them the World Tag Team Titles in the process. �I don�t even know what RVD�s problem is,� Edge said. �Isn�t that wacky tobacky supposed to make you all mellow?� Edge said it didn�t matter to him though, because as far as he is concerned, RVD is a non-issue, citing how he & Captain Charisma are focusing on the World Tag Team Titles. At this point, STEVIE RICHARDS (dressed like Mick Foley again), came in and informed Edge that Foley has set him up in a match for Summer Sizzler � Edge vs. Rob Van Dam� in a STEEL CAGE! Must See TV was livid and started to destroy the locker room, prompting Richards to escape before he became a victim. Edge vs. Rob Van Dam at Summer Sizzler in a cage match!
Rob Van Dam has been gone for a few weeks for �undisclosed reasons,� but he looked like he hadn�t missed a beat as he took on Rhyno. And as strange as it might seem, ever since Rhyno has found this unexplained love for ribs, he has turned up the aggression in the ring. RVD looked good, but he took quite a beating (Rhyno really wanted those ribs). But in the end, the Rolling Thunder/Five Star Frog Splash combo put this one in the books.
Rob Van Dam pinned Rhyno with the Five Star Frog Splash in 0:08:18.
Rating: ***
After the match, RVD grabbed the microphone and simply said, �EDGE! You are� MINE!� I wouldn�t want to be Edge right about now (well, unless he�s with the Brothel. Otherwise�)
World Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar & Kurt Angle were in the back discussing strategy for the main event, a streetfight against Abyss & the undefeated Samoan Bulldozer Umaga. Both men acknowledged the dangers of this match with Lesnar defending the World Title at Summer Sizzler against Abyss and Angle wrestling Umaga in a number-one-contenders match. Lesnar & Angle ended the segment by agreeing to watch each other�s backs in hopes that we�ll see another epic Lesnar/Angle encounter.
This tag match between Tommy Dreamer & Lance Cade & MNM had all the makings to be a good one. Dreamer has brought Cade along nicely and they are making a formidable team, and Johnny Nitro & Shannon Moore are the former World Tag Team champions. This match didn�t have long to get out of the gate though before JOEY MATTHEWS, as he has been doing for weeks now, attacked MNM, leading to a quick disqualification.
MNM (Shannon Moore and Johnny Nitro) defeated Tommy Dreamer and Lance Cade when S. Moore defeated Cade by disqualification in 0:01:38.
Rating: **
�The Outkast� as he is referring to himself as now was all over Nitro & Moore, and though they tried to fight back, he seemed impervious to their blows. Matthews is running on pure hatred and intensity, and isn�t feeling pain when he gets in these zones. One thing he did feel though was being blindsided with a chair to the spine, dropping him like a bag of hammers. The man wielding the chair was KENNY DYKSTRA, who then grabbed the mic and declared himself third partner for the six-man tag match at Summer Sizzler (much to the relief of Melina). MNM & Dykstra looked to inflict more damage to the Outkast, but CM PUNK & CHRISTOPHER DANIELS ran down to make sure that couldn�t happen.
The Intercontinental champion Rey Mysterio Jr. was backstage talking to Maria when MONTY BROWN joined them. Brown greeted both and shook Mysterio�s hand. The Alpha Male said he had a request of Mysterio. Brown didn�t pull any punches saying that he was the longest reigning Intercontinental champion (then referred to as the North American Title) and that he wanted a chance to get that championship back. Mysterio said he had all the respect in the world for Brown and that he wanted to prove to everything he was more than just a fluke champion. �You name the time and the place and you got your shot, Monty.� The Alpha Male responded with, �How about tonight?� Mysterio smiled before telling Brown, �You got it.� The two shook hands, and it looks like we have an Intercontinental Title match here tonight!
Since they came to GCW, Shad Gaspard & JTG have been a thorn in the side of X champion Gregory Helms. JTG had not once, but TWICE stole the X Title from Helms, only giving it back after Helms agreed to give him a title shot at Summer Sizzler (and receiving a beating from Cryme Tyme in the process). Tonight Helms (with his X Title) took on Shad Gaspard in a non-title match. JTG was on commentary and offered his insight, speaking of how new he is in GCW but that makes him all the more dangerous as Helms won�t know what to expect. JTG took every chance he could to distract Helms as fair play isn�t exactly what Cryme Tyme�s MO is. Late in the match, Helms would grab the X Title and attempt to use it on Gaspard, but referee Chad Patton grabbed it from him before he could. While Patton was eliminating the title from the ring, Helms caught Shad with a low blow and rolled him up. With a handful of tights, the count was made and Helms was the victor.
Gregory Helms pinned Shad Gaspard after a roll up in 0:08:34.
Rating: *
JTG jumped in the ring after the bell, but Helms got out of the ring having outsmarted Cryme Tyme tonight. He�s going to need that kind of luck if he wants to keep the X Title in his possession.
Greenville, South Carolina nearly blew the roof off the building when �The Heartbreak Kid� Shawn Michaels was live and in the ring. HBK thanked all of the fans before turning his attention to the subject at hand � �The Crippler� Chris Benoit. Michaels said that when he came to confront Benoit a couple of weeks ago, it was meant to be a one-time deal. �But Chris� you made it personal.� HBK said that he has had a great career and he was more than happy to live out the rest of his days with his wife and his kids, but he still has the urge to compete. �And what you did, Chris, was just dead wrong.� HBK said that London is one of his prot�g�s and a great kid who didn�t deserve what the Rabid Wolverine did to him. �So yes, Chris, I do accept your challenge to a match at Summer Sizzler!� The place exploded as we are sure to see a great match. Michaels concluded by telling Benoit he should be careful what he wishes for.
Throughout his career, Rey Mysterio Jr. has rarely been taken seriously given his small stature. Even now as the Intercontinental champion, most pundits are talking about not if Mysterio will drop the title, but when. Monty Brown was looking to be the man to take it from Mysterio. Brown is a former champion and held the gold for nearly a year and would love to win the title back, not only to prove Paul Burchill wrong, but prove it to himself as well. There may be respect between these two, but they both are fiery competitors and wanted to walk out of Greenville as IC champion. Brown is one of the top wrestlers in GCW, but if you could point out a weakness, it�s that he is sometimes too aggressive. After a good competitive match, Brown made one tragic mistake by charging Mysterio in the corner. Mysterio jumped out of the way and the Alpha Male�s skull cracked against the ring post. Brown was knocked loopy and stumbled to the floor. Brown tried to get his bearings back but he couldn�t do so in time, being counted out.
Rey Mysterio Jr. defeated Monty Brown by countout in 0:07:11.
Rating: ***
(Rey Mysterio Jr. retained the GCW Intercontinental Title.)
Brown rolled back into the ring but he didn�t seem to realize that he had been counted out. Referee Mike Chioda tried to explain what happened to Brown, but he didn�t seem to get it. When Mysterio went over to Brown to check on him, instead the Alpha Male leveled him with a clothesline and followed it up with the Pounce. Brown made a cover, but again Chioda was explaining that the match was already over. Brown snapped and hit Chioda with the Pounce as well, which is sure to levy a fine. Now the Alpha Male thinks he lost by disqualification, not countout.
There are certain matches that we love to see, but you often have to wonder about whether or not it was a good idea for the competitors to agree to the match. Brock Lesnar & Kurt Angle are two of the top wrestlers in all the world and would never back down from a match, but going against Abyss & Umaga in a streetfight can universally be considered a terrible idea. Lesnar & Angle were up for the fight though, and that�s what you had to call this �match� � a knockdown, drag out, bare knuckle fight. As you would expect, Abyss & Umaga were in their element administering beatings, and with Paul Heyman & Armando Alejandro Estrada pulling the strings, their madness had method. If it was a pure wrestling match, Lesnar & Angle would win hands down. But this wasn�t, and they grabbed every weapon they could get their hands on, successfully leveling the playing field. After a long and brutal battle, Lesnar had Abyss up on his shoulder for the F-5 while Angle and Umaga were going at it on the other side of the ring. Before Lesnar could connect, Paul Heyman jumped up on the apron. Lesnar dropped Abyss and got a hold of Heyman by the shirt, but Abyss nailed Lesnar from behind and clotheslined him over the top to the floor. Meanwhile, Angle almost had Umaga up for the Angle Slam, but he was too beat up from the match to execute it and couldn�t lift the Samoan Bulldozer up. After that, the Samoan Spike followed and you�re just not getting up from that.
No-Countout-No-DQ-Match:
Abyss and Umaga defeated Kurt Angle and Brock Lesnar when Umaga pinned K. Angle with the Samoan Spike in 0:18:52.
Rating: *** �
A valiant effort, but Abyss & Umaga were just too much for Lesnar & Angle to handle. It wasn�t over for Lesnar either as he fought back with a couple hard right hands, but when he went in for a clothesline, Abyss countered with the Black Hole Slam on the floor! Lesnar was said to be shaken up after the night, but he will be okay to go for Summer Sizzler. Going up against Abyss is a lofty enough task when you�re 100%, let alone after being hit with the Black Hole Slam on the concrete.
Updated card for Summer Sizzler, August 27th, from London, England:
World Heavyweight Title Match � Special Referee Randy Orton - Brock Lesnar � vs. Abyss
Intercontinental Title Match - Rey Mysterio Jr. � vs. Booker T
X Title Match - Gregory Helms � vs. JTG
Number-One-Contenders Match - Kurt Angle vs. Umaga
Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Benoit
Cage Match - Rob Van Dam vs. Edge
Monty Brown vs. Paul Burchill
Christopher Daniels/CM Punk/Joey Matthews vs. MNM/Kenny Dykstra