WWE Raw 8/8/11: Results, Review and Analysis

The Game entering the ring to kick off Raw

With just six days to go for the 24th annual Summerslam events, several incidents took place on the 8/8/11 show of Monday Night Raw, which could have serious implications on Sunday’s Summerslam. Here is an analysis of what happened during the show with my ratings and review.

Segment 1: Triple H makes a decisive statement

Triple H was the one who began this week’s Raw. He came out and made a serious announcement regarding the main event of Summerslam which involves CM Punk and John Cena to determine the undisputed WWE champion. He announced that he would be the special guest referee for that match on Sunday. He also said that there would be a contract signing later in the night. I thought that the beginning of Raw was quick, efficient, and did not waste precious minutes for the “go home show” heading into Summerslam. Triple H made his announcement and it seemed to make the match a little more interesting, if it already didn’t intrigue you. You continue to see an evolution of his new character on television, and I loved how he started the show, and Cena immediately followed. I am beginning to hate contract signings. It seems like each month there is a signing. And at the end of every contract signing there is a brawl.

Segment Rating: 3/5

Match 1: John Cena vs. Jack Swagger

Singles Match

John Cena hitting the attitude adjustment on Jack Swagger

Cena came out even before Triple H left the ring after making his announcement. There was an heated argument between the two regarding Triple H’s decision before he left the ring. The All American American Jack Swagger came out to face ‘The Champ’ in a singles match. As expected, Cena pinned Jack Swagger for the win after hitting his attitude adjustment. We got a typical Cena match. He got beat down by Swagger, who valiantly displayed that he is toned in the ring with his abilities. Cena should have showed why he is the “champion” and dominate, but it didn’t happen which bugged me. You need to see him on top of his game, not escape with a win. I still think Swagger needs another run at the top, but he is far from being on that level as a heel. Maybe a character change would help him get back there.

Winner: John Cena

Match Rating: 3/5

Backstage Segment: Alberto rips CM Punk ; R-Truth continues to Blabber:

It was announced that CM Punk will face Alberto Del Rio. Alberto Del Rio was with CM Punk, backstage and were in a heated conversation. Del Rio ridiculed CM Punk for running like a coward when he came to cash in at Money in the Bank. I wondered why they had CM Punk Vs Del Rio match. Both men are heels and are in the middle of a push, why bury one of them by having a one on one match? strange! Then R-Truth was shown still blabbering about his conspiracy theory.

Segment Rating: 2/5

Match 2: The Miz vs. Kofi Kingston

Singles match

The Miz was originally scheduled to face ‘The Master of the 619′ Rey Mysterio. But before the match could start the Miz brutally attacked Rey and incapacitated him. The reason cited by the Miz was that he deserved more spotlight than what he had received till now. He continued by saying that if not given the attention, he will try to get it by attacks such as these. Then Rey was replaced by Kofi Kingston in the match. The Miz had several good spots during the match which eventually ended with Miz as the winner. The match had a mixture of ground and pound, as well as high flying abilities. Miz showed once again that he continues to be a fan favorite because of what he accomplishes in the ring. Kingston shows that he has freakish athletic abilities, and he can carry a match with him on the offensive for more than 60 percent of the time. I feel like Kofi is stuck here for a very long time, giving us great matches with his flashy offense, but nowhere else to go with the bland character.

Winner: The Miz

Match Rating: 4/5

Match 3: Alberto Del Rio vs. CM Punk

Singles Match

Alberto was virtually Punk’s cannon fodder during this match. CM Punk finished of this match in a matter of two or three minutes to get the victory by pinfall, after hitting his Go To Sleep finishing move. This match was decent, not the best from both men. They were good, not great. CM Punk continues to gain popularity and Del Rio continues to show how good he really is in the squared circle. I think it still gave exposure to Del Rio, who, besides from being the MITB winner, hasn’t been utilized much.

Winner: CM Punk

Match Rating: 3/5

Match 4: Beth Phoenix vs. Eve

Divas Singles Match

In this match, Eve was Beth’s cannon fodder. Beth Phoenix finished off Eve with her Glam Slam finishing move. Not too bad of a divas match, but the crowd seemed so uninterested. It seems that, Beth doesn’t want the Divas division to be a mockery, so she is going to change that. Kelly Kelly came down and hit Beth in the back to tend to Eve. Kelly Kelly posed with title in her hand, which annoyed me because she didn’t do anything really besides a quick cheap shot.

Winner: Beth Phoenix

Match Rating 3/5

Match 5: Dolph Ziggler vs. Alex Riley

Singles Match

The beginning of the match saw Riley completely dominating the reigning US Champion Dolph Ziggler. But Vickie Guerrero couldn’t stand the beating that Dolph was getting which prompted her to enter the ring. Hence the match ended as a disqualification which really pissed me off. I hope to see these two young superstars battle it out in a more special stage at Summerslam.

Winner: Alex Riley

Match Rating: 1/5

Match 6: R-Truth vs. John Morrison

Singles Match

John Morrison faced R-Truth – the man who injured his neck and sent him out of action for months. I like the background for this match. I would have totally loved it if Morrison got his revenge by beating R-Truth in the match. But the exact opposite happened. John Morrison was beaten cleanly by R-Truth who got the pinfall victory after hitting his lie-detector finisher. I totally disliked the ending to this match. There is no way Morrison should have lost clean to R Truth as he was “seeking revenge” for his injury from R Truth. The match was entertaining, but I felt like it was rushed and the end did not make sense to me. Hopefully something comes out of this. Maybe a match between these two at Summerslam might settle the debate.

Winner: R-Truth

Match Rating: 4/5

Segment 2: The CM Punk – John Cena contract signing:

The Rock addressing John Cena via facebook video

Triple H and John Laurinitis beginning the proceedings of the contract signing

We had Triple H and John Laurinitis enter the ring first, followed by CM Punk and John Cena. CM Punk showed his best buddy Dwayne ‘The Rock‘ Johnson’s recorder video on facebook which expectedly had the Rock bashing John Cena and even called him a phony. After this,the verbal altercation between the four men in the ring turned into a brawl and it was Triple H who finally restored some order in the house. This was the best contract signing I have seen in quite some time. They really give C.M. Punk the freedom to say whatever he wants. It shows because they let him use Chris Masters, Vladimir Kozlov, and Harry Smith to his disposal. He always speaks truth, even though it still is somewhat scripted. It was a good surprise to see The Rock via webcam, or facebook. What did it do for us? It kept this long wait until Wrestlemania 28 more interesting, because he is not going away completely just to randomly show up at Royal Rumble, or a Pay Per View a few months before Wrestlemania. Punk, Cena, Triple H, and The Rock are all intertwined with one another very well. I cannot wait to see Summerslam because Cena and Punk will continue to carry the event, even though the mid card matches are thin and weak.

Segment Rating: 5/5

The Bottomline:

This week’s Raw had six matches and was dominated by the wrestling quotient unlike the previous Raw which was dominated by the Entertainment Quotient. The WWE Championship got very high level of attention which meant that they did not build the mid card matches to Summerslam, but had useless interactions between certain superstars. Cena and C.M. Punk finished Raw on a high note, but there is not enough build for other matches because they did not give them time to do it. Can’t wait for Summerslam to see what transpires between Punk and John Cena.

Raw Rating: 3/5