Summer Slam 2013 is from Los Angeles
(Dark: KOW d. Pac/Generico)
Joey/Regal is your announce team.
In the owner's box, with whatever celebrity can be gotten - US Senator Linda McMahon, looking to add to her legislative record by passing the Equal Rights Amendment; for the first time, there is real talk that perhaps she will run for President in '16.
Also appearing - as promised, the Championship Committee - and the show opens with, via satellite - the big reveal of the three men comprising it.
From his home in, wherever it is he's living now. Calgary? Tampa? Hawaii? - Bret Hart
From his Texas ranch - Steve Austin
And, coming to the ring - Shawn Michaels.
Michaels, along with getting himself over, hits a couple of bullet points - as promised, the Championship Committee isn't on TV much, they're old men, even if they are old men with millions of dollars and triple crowns, and wrestling should be about wrestling. In November, appearing at Survivor Series from Boston, Steve Austin. Tonight, all the matches will have a 30 minute time limit, and that will be true going forward except for special occasions. Tomorrow on RAW - the theme for Wrestlemania 30 will be announced.
Paul Heyman then enters.
Heyman says everyone already knows the theme for XXX - the greatest fighter in the world, the WWF Champion, Brock Lesnar, beats whomever they put in front of him.
"Even if - especially if - who they put in front of Brock Lesnar...is Shawn Michaels."
Just 'cause I like the chatter.
HBK hits a vaguely threatening go home line to end the segment - and we're off.
1. Parejas Increibles: CM Punk/Christian d. Nick Nemeth/Damien Sandow
-This accomplishes a couple of things. One, we get Punk and Christian together again, that was a dynamic I thought worked particularly well and I wanted to go back to it - even though here, Christian is a newly turned heel and Punk is a fully flourishing babyface - they both have a glint in their eye indicating that wherever they are today isn't necessarily all they are and that allows them to be useful in any spot.
Two, Christian pins Nemeth. Christian's story is never having won a WWF singles belt - he's maybe nearing the end of his career, and having him pin Nemeth makes him as close as he could possibly be to getting that belt.
Three, the fall was set up by Punk hitting the Savage elbow drop and then, as opposed to pinning Nemeth, even though, recall, Nemeth took his WWF Title, he makes a quick tag to Christian who gets the fall.
2. RVD d. Kane
3. RVD d. Damien Sandow
We have the return of Van Dam in his last stop with this longtime incarnation. He goes over both Kane and Sandow - and then Swagger, with Heyman behind, comes down the ramp and kills him. Suplexes him into the canvas. Heyman comes into the ring, gives RVD the bad mouth - then pulls an electric razor out of his suit jacket and clips off Van Dam's ponytail.
4. Bray Wyatt (w/Family) d. John Cena
Speaking of coming gimmick changes - Wyatt goes over Cena, the WWF t-shirt wearing, fluorescent light tube swinging "conscience" of the WWF - and the Family carries him from the ring postmatch.
5. CM Punk d. Dos Caras, Jr. (w/Vickie/Ricardo)
Punk redemption tour sweeps on - he goes over Caras hard; this is a big babyface win - really designed to get as much babyface "we love Punk" reaction as possible - the finish comes on the Savage elbow, he twirls the finger beforehand and then points to the sky in an effort to wring out as much cheering as we can get.
6. Tags: No DQ: The Shield (Ambrose/Langston with Black) d. Defiance (Rhodes/Orton with Bernard)
The announce credits The Championship Committee with continuing Foley's initiative making the tag title matches No DQ as its really made for exciting multi-man matches both inside and outside of the ring. Ambrose gets the fall here, pinning Orton - The Shield hits their post match pose and their "we take all the turns" catchphrase.
7. IC: Nick Nemeth d. Christian
-A heartbreaker for Christian; it may have been his last, best chance at getting a WWF singles title. Nemeth's too young, too athletic, at the very top of his game - and he's just not going to get pinned twice in one night. He goes over in the best back and forth match they can have. Once it hits 20 minutes, the announce makes sure to remind us of the 30 minute time limit.
But wait....
....The Shield make their way back to the ring. In the build, Nemeth, who won his WWF Title in a briefcase cash in, told the Shield he'd put his belt up anytime.
And right now - Dean Ambrose is coming to collect that promise. After a very minimal back and forth - we do it.
8. IC: Dean Ambrose (w/Shield) d. Nick Nemeth
-It's never happened in the Wrestlemania era - but Dean Ambrose has both a singles belt and a tag belt at the same time.
The Shield cheat here; using their 3 on 1 advantage to go over - Nemeth's combination of being a babyface (willing to take on all comers) and being really cocky leads him to wrestle for the third time the same night, and he can't pull it off. He gets pinned by Ambrose - and the Shield, with 3 belts, are taking all the turns.
9. WWF Title: Cage: Bryan Danielson d. Brock Lesnar (w/Heyman/Swagger)
Danielson regains the WWF Title in what is probably the match of the year; Lesnar can give you a good brawl and Danielson is as good as anyone in the world at taking one. Lesnar's killed everyone in this run, including Danielson at Mania - but locked here in the cage, somehow, someway, the Best Wrestler in the World is able to fight from underneath and pull out the bloody pinfall win. It might be the high water mark of his Hall of Fame career.
Swagger attempts to unlock the door and enter postmatch, but before he can get into the cage Punk races back to ringside and slams him into the now opened door.
Punk then goes into the cage.
This is obviously a long time coming - Punk's a 3 time WWF Champion, but really moved into a secondary role in his own stable, GDI, once Danielson arrived - the resentment grew during their respective matches against Lesnar and the different ways they were treated by Steamboat and the WWF as a whole.
All of that's a day from being said by Punk, along with words like "selfish" and "insufferable."
But for now - what matters is that glint in Punk's eye as he pauses when he enters the cage, Danielson, even though victorious, beaten up really badly in the process is going to be in no position to defend himself.
That's obvious to us - obvious to Punk, the pause allows Punk to share this moment with the fans, some of whom are probably dying for him to finally do this - others want to relish the last few seconds of babyface Punk - others still are specifically recalling Punk entering the cage after Matt/Edge to kill both of them, or Edge entering the cage to kill Maria while Punk helplessly looked on - and all recognize the circle is about to be complete -
--as Punk pulls from his streetclothes the WWF fork - used last by Matt and Edge on each other - introduced by Randy Savage against Owen - and Punk charges Danielson - stabs him repeatedly (Fork! Fork! Fork! then goes to the top rope and very clearly hits the Savage elbow drop to kill Danielson dead.
The rest of GDI charges the ring - Punk escapes the cage and stands on the announce table, letting out a primal scream as the show ends.
I'll be back in a month with the build for Survivor Series. In October, Slamiversary as the clock nears midnight for TNA.
Then in November - Survivor Series 2013 - with the main event still a few weeks from being announced, but here's the spoiler: Bryan Danielson vs. CM Punk for the WWF Championship.
