Five for Eight! Victory! Sure, I wasn't perfect with my predictions (ultimately, I don't know if I'd ever want to predict a Pay Per View perfectly, I like to be surprised too) but after a two for eight record for Judgment Day, I feel fairly vindicated. Of the three matches I called wrong, two were pick-em matches (Jericho v. RVD and Hurricane v. Noble) and the outcome of the third, the most important match, Undertaker v. Triple H was affected by a previous injury suffered by Helmsley. Maybe my idea was valid, and might have been the original plan, but now that he'll be out of the ring for at least two months, giving him the title was obviously not going to happen. All in all, it was a pretty fun PPV. Not a classic by any stretch of the imagination, but an entertaining few hours nonetheless.

       The show kicked off with a bang, with what might have been the best matchup of the night. I had a tough time deciding who would win this match, since RVD really needs the push more than Jericho, but I ultimately chose Jericho because I felt he'd be the better man to fight for a second time later that night. Regardless of how this match made me worry that I was in for a long night, it was an entertaining affair featuring a good amount of false finishes that really ratched up the intensity for the evening, but dammit, why'd RVD have to win?

Winner: Rob Van Dam via pinfall

       You know, I might have to stop making fun of Test's ability as a wrestler, because after matches like this, I'm actually starting to respect the guy. Especially when I learned that he gave such a performance despite suffering from the flu. Flu or no flu, this was a helluva match, probably the best I've seen from Brock Lesnar, and I attribute that to the way Test manhandled him in the ring. Credit to Lesnar for finally selling for someone, and the result was a dynamic match full of high-impact moves that had the crowd jumping. I really liked this one, maybe this rushed push for Lesnar won't be such a bad thing. In the meantime, what the hell, WWE should push Test.

Winner: Brock Lesnar via pinfall

       Well, I didn't get the final I predicted, but one prediction that did go through was added heat for Lance Storm's anti-American rant. Actually, Jericho not making the final helped this angle, since every Canadian on the card lost their only matches (in fact, Storm's rant would have been more effective if it followed Trish Stratus' match, where another Canadian lost due to a blown call by an American ref). I'm really hoping something comes from this, like another Canada vs. America angle. Then we can see clever "Blame Canada" signs, those are always original.

       Sure, I got this one wrong, but, really, who cares? I don't think even WWE cares about who's Cruiserweight Champion. This title goes through two phases: either it changes hands every other week, or it stays around the waist of someone forever, only because that champion never fights on TV, if at all (a la X-Pac, Dean Malenko and Gillberg). Right now the title is a hot potato, as WWE mistakenly believes that making someone champion is an easy push that will strengthen the division. It doesn't though, it only weakens it. Hurricane gains the title from Tajiri (who was previously trading the title with Billy Kidman) just to drop to a newcomer, Jamie Noble. The worst to come out of this follow-the-bouncing-champion routine is poor matches like this one at King of the Ring. First off, few cared because it was a little early for Noble to be at PPV, secondly, despite their history in WCW, the two had little chemistry in the match. As a result, I had the strange feeling of being bored during a Cruiserweight match. I can understand being disinterested in a Cruiserweight match, but bored? The simple truth is that these two waiting too long to turn it on, and even when they did, it only resulted in a few cool spots (such as the swinging neckbreaker from the top rope, as shown on the right). Unfortunately, a few cool spots does not a good match make.

Winner: New WWE Cruiserweight Champion Jamie Noble via pinfall

       Some people might have thought I was nuts when I predicted that Flair would win this match, well, to quote Hardcore Holly, "How do you like me now?" (Okay, okay, I also predicted Flair would beat Austin last time, so I'll get off my high horse. Still, you'd think I'd be nervous to go back to Flair after that one, wouldn't you?). To my surprise, this was a great match. Not that I'm surprised that these two could do it, they're two of the best in-ring performers WWE has, I just felt that they'd have a hard time getting the fans into it. That'll teach me to doubt the old Flair magic. Despite all the hard chest-slaps, the run-in twists, and the finish, the highlight for me (besides the sign in the crowd that said "Eddie Guerrero: The Dirtiest Mullet in the Game") was the way Guerrero sold Ric Flair's kick to the groin (see right). That was the most authentic sell I've ever seen. Oh sure, other guys make it look painful, but usually in a tough-guy way (or an overly comedic way). Not Eddie, he was dancing around in a way that any guy who wronged the wrong girl in third grade could understand. One problem with the match, I don't really understand Bubba's motivation for interfering in this particular match. I get that he wants to make an impact, but does interfering in a match between two non-title holders really make that much of an impact?

Winner: Ric Flair via pinfall

       I got the Women's Title Match right! I got the Women's Title Match right! Whup-dee-doo. I was a little worried about my prediction when Molly's new-found friend William Regal was shown in The World in New York with Regal's new-found friend Chris Nowitski prior to the match. How would Molly cheat to win now? Not to worry, there's always the old pull-the-tights-while-your-opponent-is-in-a-roll-up trick (although, I gotta say that it's a lot less effective when your opponent is wearing a one-piece outfit as it appeared Trish was). This was an alright match, as far as chick fights go.

Winner: New WWE Women's Champion Molly Holly via pinfall

       To read my review of the rest of the King of the Ring, including Kurt Angle versus Hollywood Hulk Hogan, the King of the Ring final, the WWE Championship Match and the return of The Rock, click HERE.

For more WWE content on this site, click on any of the following:

THE YEAR 2001- YEAR IN REVIEW- See how the superstars of the WWF stacked up using my rankings system for the entire year of 2001. Who was number 1, Stone Cold or Kurt Angle? Who were the top tag team, The Dudley Boyz or The Hardy Boyz? Along with my usual brand of commentary is new photos and stats for the year 2001, including title reigns and PPV information.

THE YEAR 2000- YEAR IN REVIEW- See how the superstars of the WWF stacked up using my rankings system for the entire year 2000. Who was number 1, The Rock or Triple H? Who were the top tag teams? Also, the title pictures for each belt from the WWF Championship all the way down to the Light Heavyweight Title, with my own commentary on each reign.

LITA- ONE MAN'S OBSESSION- I admit, I was in love with Lita. I also admit that this behaviour did become a bit of an obsession. I have since conquered this insanity, but you can still see pictures of the Team Extreme Diva, biographical info and random career facts, all presented while I was attempting to come to terms with the fact that I was in love with someone I saw on TV.

PREVIOUS RANKINGS- Ranking archives dating back to November 2000. Missed a posting? Want to track my biases? Find all past information here.

READER RESPONSES- Got an opinion? Share it with me by e-mailing me, and see your opinion posted, along with my response, here.

SITE AWARDS- Here I list the multitude of awards (who knows? Maybe one day there will be a multitude of awards) that WWE Rants and Raves has received.