WWE Raw house show
St. Paul, Minn. at Xcel Energy Center
Report by Dot Net reader Mark Christie

Just got back from the first Wwe show at the Xcel Center in 5 years. Good crowd on hand as the lower bowl was full, as well as the ringside area. Probably 8,000-9,000 in attendance. Show started right on time at 7:30. Justin Roberts was your ring announcer.

1. Evan Bourne defeated Chavo Guerrero in 12:23. The match started with Chavo doing a good amount of stalling, which got him some pretty good heat. Chavo dominated early, but Bourne hit a sweet head scissors, sending Chavo to the outside. Good back and forth action. Chavo went for the Three Amigos, but on the third try, Hornswoggle came from underneath the ring and distracted Chavo. Bourne hit a reverse kick, and nailed the Shooting Star Press for the win. Just incredible to see that move live. Post match, Hornswoggle carried Bourne around on his shoulders. Good opener.

2. Chris Masters over Alex Reilly in 10:06. The bathroom break match comes this early? Very little heat for Masters, and nobody knew Reilly. Masters worked over Reilly early with an armbar; the only boring chant of the night broke out. Reilly hit a flying clothesline, and a powerslam for a nearfall. He went for a cross body off the top turnbuckle, but missed badly. Masters locked in the Masterlock, and Reilly tapped quickly. The crowd cheered that the match was over. These two do not work well together.

3. Sheamus pinned Santino Morella in 7:54. Santino got on the mic, and caleds Sheamus a ghost. Funny. Lots of comedy from Santino, and rest holds from Sheamus, including a bearhug which he held for three minutes. Santino tried, but the finish was never in doubt. Sheamus hits his Rock Bottom across the knee finisher, and the match was over. Nice round of applause for Santino as he made his way to the back.

Kelly Kelly asked a family what the name of the next pay-per-view is, and they correctly answered Breaking Point. They were moved to front row ringside for guessing correctly.

4. Gail Kim and Mickie James defeated Beth Phoenix and Rosa Mendes in 10:56. Very good reaction for Kim and James. Really good ladies match as they gave them time. Kim worked over Mendes early, hitting several sunset flip attempts, followed by a high springboard cross body. Beth tagged in and punished Kim's back with a suplex, and a gorilla press slam. I can't get over how strong Phoenix looks! Mickie gets the hot tag, and cleans house, tossing Beth to the outside. Gail nails Rosa with a great missile dropkick. Mickie comes off the top with a flying Thez Press, and pins Rosa. Nice to them get 10 minutes to put together a good match.

5. Kofi Kingston defeated MVP and The Miz in a three-way to retain the U.S. Title in 15:11. The Miz is a heat magnet. He grabbed the mic, and pointed out he was a former Tag Team Champ, Slammy Award winner, and the reason we all watch Raw. He ripped on Brett Farve, and the audience hated him. Lots of fast paced action, with the usual two men in the ring at one time, while the other rested on the floor. The crowd was definitely behind Kingston, and he hit Trouble In Paradise on The Miz to get the win.

Next came intermission, and they brought two kids into the ring to throw shirts to the crowd.

6. Mark Henry over Jack Swagger in 9:23. Test Of Strength early with Swagger kicking Henry low, and receiving good heat in the process. Very slow plodding match, with Henry no-selling a lot of Swagger's offense. Henry missed a splash in the corner, and Swagger worked on Henry's right knee. The end came with Henry catching Swagger on a missed cross body attempt, and Henry finishing him with the World's Strongest Slam.

7. HHH defeated Legacy (Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase) in a handicap match in 18:46. Cody said they would destroy DX in the submissions count anywhere match at Breaking Point, which generated a lot of boos from the crowd. HHH got the biggest pop to this point in the evening. The audience ate it up. HHH gets on the mic, and told Legacy this is his first time with two guys, and when the crowd yelled "Suck It." They really don't want them to do that.

HHH got the early advantage, as he worked over both members. Nice spot, as Hunter had Cody up in a vertical suplex for a good 30 seconds, and then hit a swinging neckbreaker. Legacy took over, and dominated Hunter, with DiBiase hitting a perfect powerslam. Hunter hit the High Knee followed by a Spinebuster. Cody got tossed, and HHH hits the Pedigree on DiBiase for the 1-2-3. Post match saw Legacy leave HHH laying.

8. John Cena defeated Randy Orton by DQ in 23:18 in a WWE Championship match. Orton was out first with a mostly negative reaction, but some cheers. Incredible monster Pop for Cena. If there were any boos, you couldn't hear them. Orton had the early edge. Cena hit a fishermen's suplex, but Orton locked in the "Chinlock Of Doom" and held it for over four minutes. Randy hit a Superplex for a good near fall.

Good sequence as Randy nailed the RKO, only to have Cena kick out. Cena hit the Attitude Adjustment, with Orton kicking out this time. Cena used the 5 Knuckle Shuffle, went for the Attitude Adjustment again, only to have Orton counter with a wicked DDT. Orton missed a knee drop, and Cena locked in the STF. Legacy came out to get Orton DQ'ed, but Hunter came in for the save. Orton retreated to the back, as Cena and Hunter hit their finishers on Rhodes and DiBiase to send the crowd home happy. Hunter and Cena high-fived the fans, and Hunter spent at least 10 minutes mingling with the crowd. Class act.

Biggest Pops:
1. Cena (not even close.)
2. HHH
3. Kingston

Most Heat:
1. The Miz
2. Legacy (after the post match beatdown on HHH.)
3. Randy Orton

All in all a fun night, and enjoyable card. Here's hoping WWE comes back sooner than the five years it took to get this show.

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