WWE Raw on the USA Network
Live from Buffalo, N.Y.

[Q1] A video recapped the Bragging Rights pay-per-view... Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler introduced the show and spoke about how stunned they were by what happened at Bragging Rights. Lawler said he spent a "long, sleepless night" on Sunday...

Powell's POV: I laughed out loud when Lawler said he spent a long, sleepless night. You can't blame him for trying, but the only way that happened is if he had a young lady with him or the people in the next room were loud.

Chris Jericho and Big Show came to the ring for a promo. Jericho was proudly showing off the Bragging Rights trophy. Show referred to himself as a proud member of the Raw roster. Jericho said Show's loyalty for him outweighed his loyalty to Raw. Show said he had something to tell Jericho, but Chris kept going on the mic about how Show did the right thing.

Show said he turned on his teammates at Bragging Rights for him. "There's one thing that's more important than this show and this tag team and that's my career," Show said. He said he reached out to Teddy Long and struck a deal. Show announced that he's Undertaker's next opponent for the World Hvt. Championship. Jericho was pissed.

Jericho and Show bickered briefly, but they were interrupted by the sound of two NASCAR cars tearing it up in the parking lot. The cars, which featured WWE-related logos, pulled into the arena. Kyle Busch and Joey Logano emerged from the card and were joined by celebrity whores The Bella Twins, whom accompanied them to the ring as a Metallica song played.

Busch said that's how you make an entrance. He said he and Joey are both huge WWE fans and were proud to host Raw. Kyle chastised Show for turning on his team. Busch said he's a man's man and he's with Show. Busch said things happen for a reason and then shook Show's hand. Show obliged and thanked him.

Logano, who looks like he's 12, took the mic and said he couldn't shake Show's hand. He said what Show did was weak. Show told Kyle to teach his friend some respect. Busch said Logano is young, dumb, and doesn't know much about championships. He said they were there to host Raw "and make this show possible."

Busch noted that they were in Logano's city. The Buffalo fans cheered. Busch noted that the Bills haven't made the playoffs since Hulkamania. He mocked them for bringing in T.O. and not accomplishing anything. "The next thing you know, they'll be singing 'Oh, Canada,'" Busch cracked. Show laughed. "There's nothing wrong with that," Jericho said. Funny.

Logano announced Big Show would be facing Triple H later in the show given what happened last night. Jericho got cocky and told them he would tell them all about how he won the Bragging Rights trophy last night. Busch announced that Jericho would face "Kofi Johnston." He quickly corrected himself and said Kofi Kingston. Kofi's music played and he came to the ring. Cole said the match was coming up next... [C]

Powell's POV: Wow, those two are terrible on the mic. The live crowd loves Logano, though. They both sounded like they were reading from the script. The live crowd seems to like them, though. By the way, I posted an update on Jim Ross on the main page just after the top of the hour. Finally, Rich Twilling has the night off. He'll be back for ECW tomorrow night.

[Q2] 1. Kofi Kingston defeated Chris Jericho in 13:20. Back and forth action with Jericho knocking Kofi to ringside just before the break. [C] Late in the match, Jericho hit the Codebreaker on Kofi, but Kingston put his foot on the bottom rope. Jericho stood up to celebrate the win. The referee informed him he didn't win. When he turned around, Kofi nailed him with the Trouble in Paradise kick and got the win...

Powell's POV: This wasn't portrayed as a huge upset by Kofi. Rather, the announcers spoke about how it would erase any bad feelings from his Bragging Rights loss. They did say it was a big win for him, but it wasn't like this was a star-making moment. Too bad. By the way, if Kofi isn't Jamaican, then maybe it's time to change his Jamaican entrance music.

After the match, Kofi was celebrating his win near the top of the stage when Randy Orton came out threw Kingston off the entrance ramp and into the side of the stage. Kofi landed on the ground next to the racing cars. Orton looked down at Kofi while referees ran out and tended to him on the floor...

The announcers hyped John Cena's first comments since winning the Iron Man match at Bragging Rights... [C]

Backstage, Josh Matthews caught up with Orton and asked him why he attacked Kofi Kingston. Randy blamed Kofi for costing him the WWE Championship at Bragging Rights. He said he's only just begun when it comes to Kingston. Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase entered the picture and told Matthews to leave.

Orton asked what Cody and Ted could possibly want. They agreed that he was robbed at the pay-per-view and they wanted to show him a token of their appreciation. They unveiled a Randy Orton race car. Orton said it was incredible and asked if they really bought it for him. Ted said he's the son of the Million Dollar Man. They also promised Randy another token of their appreciation as he stared at his car...

Powell's POV: I suppose it makes sense that the semi-delusional Orton is pissed at Kofi for costing him the match even though Kofi just ran off Cody and Ted. If I were Randy, I'd be more pissed that Cody and Ted didn't come back later in the match, but I guess that's just me.

Backstage, Eve Torres spoke to Busch and Logano. They continued to bicker (while smiling). Jack Swagger entered the picture and put over Busch as being like him. Swagger asked them for a match against John Cena for later in the show. They said they couldn't do that because Cena was in the ring for an hour the night before, but they would be naming his next opponent.

Swagger started to flirt with Eve when The Miz showed up. He pointed out that he's the only Raw wrestler to win at Bragging Rights and therefore he should face Cena at the Survivor Series pay-per-view...

A shot aired of "paparazzi" taking photos of Melina and Santino Marella as they walked backstage together... [C]

[Q4] A Sheamus video aired. A graphic hyped his Raw debut for later in the show...

2. Melina and Santino Marella beat Chavo Guerrero and Jillian Hall in 2:25. There were some technical difficulties with the entrance music after the babyface entrances, but they got it fixed quickly. The announcers acknowledged it and said it was one of those nights. Hornswoggle showed up at ringside in his DX gear. Moments later, Melinahit her finisher on Hall and got the win.

After the match, man entered the ring wearing a suit and handed Hornswoggle a neon green envelope. The man quickly left the ring. Hornswoggle opened the envelope and headed over to the broadcast table. Lawler read it and said it was a cease and desist order from DX because they don't want him to wear their gear anymore. Horny was sad... [C]

Powell's POV: Apparently, Hornswoggle can't talk or read. There's that sophisticated WWE product that Vince McMahon was bragging about. I know I'm thinking too much, but can you really force a wrestler on your own show to stop wearing gear?

Still shots aired from of the Iron Man match...

Ring announcer Justin Roberts started to introduce John Cena. However, he was interrupted by the Legacy music. Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase came to the ring. Cody took the mic and said, "The Champ... is no here." Cody said Cena would have to wait because "The Legacy is here."

Ted announced that Cody and Ted were bringing back the WWE Championship to Legacy where it belongs. Ted said they didn't ask the guest hosts for permission because they don't have to. He challenged Cena to face them in singles matches or a handicap match if he has the guts.

[Q5] Cena's music played. "He's got the guts alright," Lawler said. Cena entered the ring and said he doesn't have to brag about what happened at the pay-per-view. He went on a rant about why they did the things they did during the match. He said they did it for the fans and because they both knew the Cena vs. Orton rivalry needed to end "and it did."

Even Cena acted bored by the thought of tuning in to see him in the ring with Cody and Ted. "Neither of you are Randy Orton," Cena said. "You've got a lot to learn." He said it was close enough that the people at home would think the show is going into reruns. He said he earned the right to say enough.

Cena told them that if they want the the championship, they should lace up the boots and get in line like everybody else. He said the two of them haven't earned shots. Cena said he's a NASCAR fan and was backstage talking with the guest hosts. He introduced Mark Henry and MVP as their opponents... [C]

Powell's POV: Ted beat Orton in a tag match two weeks ago and was then involved in a hot angle on last week's show. This week he gets dressed down by Cena. Horrible followup. I'm all for the slow build to his turn, but why build him up just to have Cena tear him down this week? By the way, why did Cody and Ted just stand there like dopes? Horrible.

3. MVP and Mark Henry defeated Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBaise in 4:44. The match was joined in progress. A shot aired of the guest hosts watching the show on a backstage monitor.

It was nice to see them showing the guest hosts actually watching the show for once. That's rare. The guest hosts are usually shown trying to score with the Divas, clowning around with Hornswoggle, or doing anything other than watching the show. In the end, Henry reached in and clotheslined DiBiase into MVP's pin attempt for the win.

Powell's POV: The crowd was flat for the match. Oddly enough, having the babyface champion tell a pair of young heels that they're douche bags who aren't in his league somehow does not result in heat. Strange, huh?

The heels bickered with the referee after the match. Orton's music played and he headed to the ring. Orton said the terms of his match are that he's not allowed to challenge Cena for the title again. He said he's a former champion and he deserves a rematch. He said he'll do whatever has to do to get his title shot.

Kofi Kingston appeared on the big screen. He said Orton lost and no one cares what he has to say. Orton told Kofi to come to the ring and say it to Orton's face. Kofi said he was already doing that. The camera pulled back and revealed that he was standing on the Orton racing car.

Kofi stomped on the hood and climbed down. He said he loves how durable the cars are as he punched the side. He grabbed a crate on wheels and shoved it into the side of the car. He pulled out a pair of keys and scratched the heel out of the side of the car. He pulled out a crowbar and smashed the top of the hood, claiming he spotted a bug.

Kofi went into Michael Jackson mode (no, not that way) by climbing onto the card and smashing the windows and the hood. He pulled out a bucket and dumped orange paint onto the car. He slammed the bucket down and said Orton has never looked better...

Powell's POV: Now that was a star making moment. Great segment. Kofi carried himself well and destruction of vehicles is a guaranteed crowd pleaser. It's great to see them finally get behind Kofi. By the way, I suppose Hunter challenges Cena since he beat him on last week's show. You know, because that will feel so much more fresh and new than Cena vs. Orton. Sigh.

An ad for ECW hyped Christian vs. Yoshi Tatsu for the ECW Title... A shot aired of Buffalo Bills players pretending to beat each other up in the crowd. Yes, they brought back the fake elbow to the head... The announcers recapped the Kofi segment...

4. Evan Bourne beat The Miz via countout in 4:15. Eve was the guest ring announcer.

[Q7] During the match, Jack Swagger walked to ringside wearing street clothes. He hit turned his back to the ring, checked out Eve, and said no one was watching Miz's match. He said they were really watching Eve. Miz headed to ringside and bickered with Swagger like a dope. Bourne dove onto both men and then rolled back inside the ring to beat the count... [C]

Powell's POV: Why can't WWE creative figure out that people hate guys like Miz because they get laid, not because they swing and miss with lame Divas who just finished hanging out with Cryme Tyme?

The announcers hyped that Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne will host the show next week...

Powell's POV: I guess they couldn't come up with a tactful way of saying they didn't really need Sharon to show up. All joking aside, fun guest hosts. Plus, there's a damn good chance that Ozzy slips and swears on the air next week. The censors will be earning their check next week.

5. Sheamus beat Jamie Noble in 2:15. The guest hosts introduced Sheamus while sitting backstage. He came out and said, "Me name is Sheamus. It's me first night on Raw and I'm here to make an impression." Wow, great verbiage. Squash match win for Sheamus.

Powell's POV: The live crowd didn't give a damn about this one. Lawler actually said that if you don't have anything nice to say about someone, you don't say anything at all, so they just had to sit there and shut up when Sheamus was wrestling. I think that's code for, "I don't watch WWE on television, so I have no idea who this guy is."

A shot aired of DX walking backstage. They were trying to look serious, but it's hard to take Shawn seriously when he's wearing that corny DX band around his neck...

Powell's POV: DX hats, DX bands around the neck, and DX t-shirts. and that's just in the chest-up shot of them walking backstage. I would say they were inspired by NASCAR, but they dress like that every week. I don't know who told Shawn that band around the neck was cool, but that person is a goddamn liar!

[Q8] [C] Still shots aired of the Team Raw vs. Team Smackdown match from Bragging Rights... The announcers spoke about.... Oh, hell, who am I kidding? There were a bunch of WWE website screen shots...

6. Triple H (w/Shawn Michaels) pinned Big Show in 14:05. The bell rang and Hunter announced that he forgot to mention that it was a lumberjack match. The lumberjacks were "all the guys you screwed over last night." Jericho, who came out with show, split with his trophy. Shawn added that it was a no DQ lumberjack match. He said the lumberjacks can do anything they want to do to Big Show.

Shawn said the referee wasn't needed because they had a special guest. John Cena's music played and he came to the ring. Cole said Cena is "for all intents and purposes the leader of the Raw locker room." Show charged Hunter, who ducked, causing Show to tumble to ringside. The lumberjacks closed in as the show went to break.

[Overrun] After the break, they aired highlights of Show plowing through all the lumberjacks at ringside. Show dominated the early minutes of the match and even mocked Shawn while standing on Hunter's chest. For some reason, all the lumberjacks just stood there and took it even though it's already been established that they don't have to follow any rules.

Masters tried to interfere, but Show beat him up. Show continued to dominate Hunter. Show hit the Vader Bomb and went for a cover, but Cena pretended his wrist was hurt. Finally, the Raw wrestlers ran in at various times and attacked Show. He fought off several wrestlers, but Henry took him out with a splash in the corner. Santino took a chokeslam. Kofi ran in and hit the Trouble in Paradise kick on Show.

Hunter pulled out a Smackdown t-shirt and put it on Show. Shawn entered the ring and tuned up the band. The crowd counted along passionately. Shawn hit the kick and then Hunter hit the Pedigree on Show for the win.

After the match, DX were celebrating in the ring with Cena. Busch and Lagano walked out and said they've been thinking about who should face Cena. They said they couldn't agree until one guy put them on the same page. Hornswoggle ran out. They announced it would be a Triple Threat match with John Cena vs. Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H at Survivor Series. The wrestlers looked at each other in the ring...

Powell's POV: Well, that's a lot fresher than Hunter challenging Cena and it could make for some quality television over the next few weeks. The main event had some serious logic gaps and I hated the way they pushed Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes right back down the totem pole tonight. At least Kofi was given a standout moment. I'll have more to say about the show in the Dot Net Member exclusive audio recap coming up later tonight. Thanks for watching along with me.

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