WWF MONDAY NIGHT RAW

April 20th

Nassau, New York

Ross - Hello everybody, and welcome once again to WWF Monday Night Raw! We're live here in Nassau and what a show we have for you tonight! Our main event is gonna be for the WWF Tag Team Titles, as The New Midnight Express, who won the titles last night at In Your House, defend against The Headbangers! Plus, Shawn Michaels and Triple H will be here, what will their reaction to last night's events be? For those who don't know, Jeff Jarrett retained the WWF title last night after...

"Kee-Rash!"

Ross - Austin?!

"Stone Cold" Steve Austin marches to the ring to a huge pop from the crowd.

Austin - Everybody here in Nassau, gimme an Oh Hell Yeah!

Nassau, New York - Oh Hell Yeah!

Austin - Now before people start asking Stone Cold "What are you doing back here in the WWF", let me just say that the WWF is here only because of me, and that's the bottom line! Now when I saved this company at the end o' last month, the last thing I expected to see when I came back was Jeff Jarrett with the world title. But that's what happens I guess. Stone Cold Steve Austin turns his back for five minutes, and everything goes to hell. Jeff Jarrett? Get the hell out here you piece o' trash! Instead of Jeff Jarrett, we see Sycho Sid emerge from the curtain.

Sid - Well look who's back! You think you can just stroll back out here and put yourself in a title postition? No Austin, you and I, we've got some unfinished business to settle.

Austin - Unfinished business? If you feel you haven't felt the Stone Cold Stunner enough already, I'll gladly stunner your ass all the way to hell!

Sid - You keep talking that kind of bullshit, I'll take you there myself! You and me tonight Austin. Just you and me, in this ring tonight!

Sid leaves.

Austin - People, if you think I should kick the crap outta Sycho Sid tonight, gimme an Oh Hell Yeah!

The People - Oh Hell Yeah!

<-commercials->

Ross - Welcome back folks, and what a start to Monday Night Raw! "Stone Cold" Steve Austin returning to the WWF, and he's apparently gonna go one on one with the maniacal Sycho Sid! Unbelievable, but also tonight the tag titles are gonna be on the line, and we'll see the Intercontinental Champion Chris Benoit in action! But first off, let's go to the ring where the number one contender for the crusierweight title is ready for action!

Juventud Guerra vs Jim Powers

Jim Powers surprised a few people with his performance in last night's battle royal, and he came in confident about winning this match against the number one contender. Powers gets the first offence in as he hits Guerra with a snap suplex out of the opening lock up. He then goes to wear Juve down as he wraps on a sleeper hold. Guerra's struggle to reach the ropes doesn't last long, as he makes it after just ten seconds. Powers keeps control though, even though the hold is broken, after a hard right hand to the chest, Powers nails Guerra with an atomic drop and then a bodyslam. He goes to whip Juventud into the turnbuckle, but Guerra reverses it. Guerra charges in after him, but Powers lifts a boot which sends Guerra falling back into the middle of the ring. Powers then hits a high cross body block on Juventud for a two count.

Unfazed by Juve kicking out from what he considers a finish move, Powers keeps working over Guerra. He executes a series of suplexes before attempting a sleeper hold again. Juventud again quickly gets to the ropes. That hold is having little effect in this match. Powers then gets caught in a headlock by Juve, but Powers sends him into the ropes. Jim is taken down with a shoulderblock on the way back though, and Guerra starts to take control. Juve boots Powers in the chest, and then nails him with a flying spinning leg lariat. Guerra picks Powers up and places him on the top turnbuckle. He attempts a superplex, but Powers shoves him off the buckle and down to the mat. Up on the top, Powers then hits a second high cross body block on Guerra, and again it only gets two. For some reason, Powers then goes for the sleeper again, but Juve soon gets to his feet, and then takes him down with a chinbreaker.

This marks the beginning of the end for this match, as Guerra dominates for the next minute. He hits Powers with a hurracanrana, and a successful this time superplex, before finishing him off with the 450 splash.

Juventud Guerra defeated Jim Powers in 5-23 (**)

Ross - A good victory there for the Aztec Warrior, following up on his battle royal win last night. It was just one of the many great matches on last night's card, with the winner of said battle royal going on to eventually face the winner of the Rey Mysterio/Brian Christopher match. Let's see some shots of the Cruiserweight title match!

(Stills of Rey Mysterio Jr vs Brian Christopher are shown)

Ross - And that makes Rey Mysterio Jr the first ever two time WWF Cruiserweight Champion! Another man who's held the belt before made his return to the WWF last night, Devon Storm. He was elminated early in the match, but this week on Thunder he's gonna face Brian Christopher one on one as he attempts to climb the ladder, and get the title back. We're gonna talk more about some of the other matches last night at In Your House, but at this time we've been joined by Marc Mero in the ring.

Mero - Hey Chetti! Nobody ever sticks their nose in my business, and gets away with it. You know, that's gonna look great on your record Chris. First ever pay per view, and a loss to the Barbarian. Hahaha. You're nothing but a punk green nose little jobber, and I'd ignore you if it were possible. But it seems you got a little complex here. It seems like maybe you want to be like me. You're so desperate for a match with me? Then come out here right now you jobber!

Chris Chetti does arrive at the ring in his wrestling gear.

Chetti - You're gonna give me a match? Let's get it on!

Mero - Hold up. First off, if I beat you, like I did before, then I'm gonna make you take this microphone in front of all these Yankee idiots, and tell them *all*, that I'm the better man. That's gonna be the stipulation.

Chetti - If you beat me again Marvelous, then I'll gladly tell all these great people in my home state New York, (crowd pop) that you're the better man, but that ain't gonna happen.

Mero - It's my homestate too, but that doesn't mean it isn't full of idiots. Ring the bell!

Chris Chetti vs Marc Mero

After Chetti and Mero lock up, Mero takes the advantage by raking Chetti's eyes. He hits him with a side suplex, before whipping the Rookie into the ropes. Mero goes for a dropkick, but Chetti sidesteps it and Mero goes crashing to the mat. Chetti then immediately leaves the ring and grabs a steel chair. Chris sets the chair up and then executes a dragon suplex onto the chair on Mero. The referee lets it go and counts a two count after removing the chair from the ring. Chetti whips Mero into the ropes after pulling him up to his feet, but Chetti gets caught with an elbowsmash on the way back. Mero gets some good crowd reaction when he nails Chetti with a slingshot legdrop for a two count. Chetti soon retakes the advantage as he blocks a hiptoss and takes Mero down with a cradle suplex.

Chetti dominates for a while as he takes Mero down repeatedly with dropkicks, headscissors and clotheslines. He loses control though as Mero reverses a whip and sends Chetti hard into the turnbuckle. Marc then takes him to the mat with a flying sunset flip for a one count, before getting another two count with an inside cradle. He then takes Chetti into the middle of the ring and aims a right hand, but Chetti blocks it and starts hammering away at Mero. Marc falls to the mat after right hand #10 as the crowd cheers. Chetti stomps on the fallen Mero for a few moments, and then sets him up for a piledriver. He can't get him up though, and Mero back body drops him to the mat.

<-commercials->

We return to see Chetti nail Mero with a frog splash for a two count. We hear from JR that Chetti has apparently been dominating all through the commercial break. Chetti hits a dragon suplex, and then locks Mero in a Boston crab. Mero looks in big trouble in the hold but he eventually reaches the ropes after just over thirty seconds. Chris breaks the hold and hits a legdrop on the back of Mero's head, and then locks him in an abdominal stretch. This hold lass a while too before Marc gets to the ropes. Mero looks out of it as Chetti hits a springboard dropkick and then follows it up with a flying bulldog. Chetti covers at this point, but Mero just barely gets his shoulder up before three.

Jack-knife powerbomb by Chetti continues the onslaught, but then again only produces a two count. Chetti sends Mero into the ropes but misses his clothesline. Mero quickly turns, grabs Chetti, and then nails him with a DDT! Both men fall down to the mat and the referee begins his ten count. Mero crawls over and drapes an arm over Chetti, but he only gets a two and a half count to great crowd reaction. Marvelous Marc then gets to his feet, picks Chetti up to his, and then throws him through the ropes. Mero goes to send Chetti straight into the ringpost, but Chetti blocks, elbows Mero in the chest, and then slams Mero head first into the post. This leads to a chaotic brawl between these two on the outside, as both start hitting top moves on the concrete. Mero hits a belly to belly suplex on the floor, but then misses a tope and Chetti has a chance to regain control. He grabs a chair from the announcers desk. He sets it up, takes a running start, and then springs off, catching Mero in a flying headscissors!

The crowd pops for that, but Chetti is soon on the receiving end of some punishment, as Mero reverses a whip and sends Chetti into the guardrail hard. Mero then takes Chris over into the aisle and goes for a suplex, but Chetti blocks it. The Rookie sends Marc to the concrete with a suplex of his own, then climbs onto the apron and onto the top turnbuckle. He hits a somersault plancha to the outside onto Mero, but his celebrations at pulling the move off are cut short as the bell rings. Double Count-out.

Marc Mero fought Chris Chetti to a double countout in 11-12 (*)

Chetti may not have gotten the win but he certainly won over the New York crowd. As soon as the bell rang, Mero staggered the hell outta there.

Ross - What a match, and Chetti definitely proved a point to Mero there. But still to comre tonight, Sycho Sid going face to face with Steve Austin in this very ring! Plus the tag titles are gonna be on the line, as the champion New Midnight Express face The Headbangers! With that in mind, let's take you to footage of what took place last night!

(The finish to NME/RoadWarriors is shown, with the Headhunters costing the RoadWarriors the titles.)

Ross - And The RoadWarriors are standing by backstage. Hawk, Animal, what are your feelings about the events of last night?

Animal - Well, we don't know what to think JR! We had the Midnight's in the palm of our hands, and those tag titles were ours! Headhunters? They had no business coming out there and doing what they did, and we're gonna make 'em pay, you can count on that!

Hawk - Headhunters, you better believe you're gonna pay. You're gonna pay like a fifty year old bachelor who sees a prostitute supermodel, you're gonna pay all you got! But Midnight's? We having forgotten about you two punks, and we're telling you right now, you're not leaving the arena tonight with those tag titles!

Ross - Thank you RoadWarriors. We're gonna take another break now folks, but when we come back, we'll have the Intercontinental Champion, Chris Benoit in action!

<-commercials->

(Intercontinental Champion) Chris Benoit vs Robert Thompson

Out of the opening lock up, Benoit hits Thompson with a snap mare. He then whips him into the ropes, but Thompson takes him down with a back body drop as he bounces back. Benoit falls to the floor, and Thompson follows him out. Thompson executes an armdrag takedown on the outside, before laying into Benoit with his boot. As the referee counts two, Thompson rolls Benoit back into the ring. Back inside, Thompson hits a vertical suplex for the first two count of the match. He picks the champion up and goes for a headbutt but Benoit blocks. The Crippler chops him in the chest a few times before locking on an abdominal stretch. After Thompson eventually reaches the ropes, Benoit grabs him in a German suplex for a two. Pulling Thompson up, Benoit goes for a tiger driver but Thompson blocks and then nails Benoit with a rana.

Thompson then dips into his arsenal of submission moves, putting Benoit in a kneelock submission and a front face lock. This wearing down process lasts a good minute before Benoit breaks the lock. Benoit obviously wasn't much hurt by Thompson's offence, and he unloads on his opponent. Benoit nails him with a dropkick, a superplex, a DDT and a flying headbutt as he pummels Thompson. After a while Thompson is pretty much out on his feet, and after taking him down with a single leg takedown, Benoit locks on the Crippler Crossface for the submission.

Chris Benoit defeated Robert Thompson in 6-32 (***)

(Chris Benoit retained the Intercontinental Title)

Ross - A good win for the Intercontinental Champion there. It wasn't such a great night for him last night, as he and The Rock were counted out after just a few minutes of participation in the match. It was Mark Henry who was the lone survivor in the match, will him getting pinfalls over Dustin Runnels and Owen Hart. Going back to Benoit though, I hear that this week on WWF Thunder, he's gonna throw out a challenge to The Rock. We'll have to see what it is this Thursday night. But at this time we're gonna take you backstage where the WWF Tag Team champions are on hand!

Gunn - See OldWarriors? We told you we'd take the titles, cage match or not. The Headhunters? That was just an insurance policy. You don't need to worry about them.

Holly - But you will have to worry about us *again* if you show up at ringside later tonight. When are you guys gonna learn not to mess with us? Sheesh.

Gunn - And that brings us to the Headbangers yeah. You recieve a title shot by beating the Quebecers? Wow! But that's okay, because you ain't gonna cause any threat anyway. At the end of tonight, when you see us, you'll still be looking at the WWF Tag Team champions of the world!

<-commercials->

Ross - Welcome back. We're just a few moments away from the tag team title match, but before that, we've got Hunter Hearst Helmsley on the line in Greenwich Connetticut. Hunter, can you hear me?

Hunter - Yeah I can hear ya. You're live on tv JR.

Ross - Yes of course. Hunter, I gotta ask. What are your feelings towards the finish to last night's match?

Hunter - In regards to the Roadog, or the Roadie, or whatever he's gonna call himself now, I couldn't give a flying (beep). If he wants to align himself with a piece of (beep) like Jeff Jarrett then (beep) him. I'm not gonna waste my time in a feud with this guy, and neither is any other member of DX. As far as we're concerned, (beep) him.

Ross - Ahem. Do you have any news on the condition of Billy Gunn?

Hunter - Mr Ass is severely beat up. And the guy who did it, well, I do give a flying (beep) about him. Crush, if you're listening, I throw out a challenge to you. You and me, next week on Raw if you've got the (beep). We'll see if there's anything you can do apart from attack people when they're already down.

Ross - Thank you for your...

Hunter - Hold on. I got a message from Shawn Michaels. Jeff Jarrett? I know you're listening. "The Heartbreak Kid" Shawn Michaels is gonna get his title back, I guarantee it. It's just a matter of time. Next time you show up in a WWF arena Jeff, watch your back, because Michaels is gonna kick the (beep) out of you, and there's nothing you can do about it.

Ross - And now to the ring!

(WWF Tag Team Champions) The New Midnight Express vs The Headbangers

Bart Gunn and Mosh start things off, and Gunn goes straight for an armbar. Mosh blocks it though, and nails Gunn with a right hand before clotheslining him over the top rope. Mosh then follows him out plancha style! Gunn is sent into the ringpost and the guardrail and then taken down to the concrete with a neckbreaker. Gunn is able to give a little punishment back right after, as he reverses a Mosh whip into the guardrail. Gunn takes Mosh down to the floor with a Russian legsweep before throwing him back into the ring.

Gunn hits another legsweep on Mosh as the action restarts inside, before he tags in Bob Holly. Thrasher tries to enter the ring as Gunn and Holly start to doubleteam Mosh, but the ref cuts him off. Gunn hits a flying fistdrop before leaving. Holly nails Mosh with a back suplex before covering for two. After hitiing an atomic drop he goes to follow it with a DDT, but Mosh pulls him down into a small package and gets a two out of it. As Holly jumps back up to his feet, Mosh knocks him back down with a lariat and then tags Thrasher in for the first time. The Headbangers hit the tag champ with a double splash before Mosh hits a DDT. The ref finally gets Mosh out of the ring whilst Thrasher hits a flying headbutt on Holly.

Holly kicks out at two, but is still on the recieving end following, as Thrasher hits him with a short clothesline. He goes for another, but Holly manages to block it and he takes Thrasher down with a hiptoss. After taking a moment to catch his breath, Holly whips Thrasher into the ropes and then takes him down with an armdrag takedown. Holly pulls Thrasher into his corner and then tags Bart Gunn back in. Gunn once again goes for an armbar as his opening move in the ring, but Thrasher blocks and takes him down with an armdrag. Thrasher now unloads on Gunn with a barrage of punches, sending Gunn back into a corner. The Headbanger places Gunn on the top turnbuckle and goes up as well, setting up for a superplex. Gunn however, gives Thrasher a shove and crotches him on the top rope.

Thrasher falls to the outside and Gunn follows him out. Gunn does the usual on the outside, whipping Thrasher into the guardrail etc. before tossing him back in. He runs into the ropes and then takes Thrasher to the mat with a swinging neckbreaker. He follows it up with a flying fistdrop and then covers for a two count. Gunn tags Holly in, and Holly, after stomping on the back of Thrasher's head, locks on a Boston Crab. Thrasher tries desperately to reach the ropes, but after thirty + seconds, it is the boot of Mosh that breaks the hold. The referee admonishes Mosh and herds him out, whilst Holly pulls Mosh back into the centre of the ring and locks the hold on again. Once again the hold is on for a long period of time, but after sixty seconds, Thrasher reaches the ropes.

It is the Express who are in complete control here, and The RoadWarriors claim that they wouldn't leave the arena with the belts looks like it'll be untrue. As Gunn has Thrasher in an abdominal stretch though, Hawk and Animal arrive at ringside. Gunn breaks the hold and goes over to berate the RoadWarriors, as does Holly who drops down from the apron and gets into a shoving match with Animal. The referee slips to the outside at this point to try and break it up. The foolish thinking by the ref means he doesn't see Thrasher roll Bart Gunn up from behind. Thrasher has Gunn down for a lot longer than a three count. but the package is broken as WWF Champion Jeff Jarrett enters the ring! Jarrett pulls Thrasher up to his feet and plasts him with a chair! Jarrett then rolls out of the ring and leaves through the crowd as Bart Gunn places his arm over the unconscious Thrasher. Mosh can't make the save as he got himself involved on the outside, and the now returned to the ring referee counts the pin.

The New Midnight Express defeated The Headbangers in 9-35 (*)

(The New Midnight Express retained the WWF Tag Team Titles)

Ross - What in the hell? What is Jeff Jarrett's involvement with the New Midnight Express? We're gonna take another ad break, we'll try and find out what's going on. Don't go away!

<-commercials->

Ross - Well we're none the wiser a few minutes later, but the bottom line is that the New Midnight Express are still the tag team champions, and The Headbangers have been robbed! We'd try and get an interview here, but we're dangerously running out of time. We're gonna go straight to ringside where Sycho Sid is scheduled to face the returning Steve Austin!

"Stone Cold" Steve Austin vs Sycho Sid

After these two big men lock up, Sid rakes Austin's eyes and then nails him with a clothesline. Sid executes a ropeburn on Austin, and then sends him into the ropes. Sid goes for another clothesline, but Austin ducks, turns, and then sends Sid to the mat with a single leg takedown. Austin hits a snap mare, but then falls victim to a chokeslam from Sid! Instead of covering or going for another big power move to finish it off, Sid puts Austin an armbar. It doesn't take too long for Austin to break the hold, but Sid keeps the pressure on with a series of stiff looking punches. Sid whips Steve into the corner and then charges in for a clothesline, but Austin raises his boot. This happens again before Austin sends Sid right down to the mat with a bulldog. Jeff Jarrett makes another appearance at ringside at this point. Austin flips Jarrett the middle finger causing Jarrett to jump up on the apron. Before Jarrett can enter the ring though, Shawn Michaels sprints out of the curtain. Turns out he was here after all! Michaels attacks the champion from behind and superkicks him on the outside. Austin gets clobbered from behind by Sid as he watches the action on the outside, but Sid doesn't continue on Austin. He leaves the ring and attacks Michaels as Jarrett lies out cold on the floor. Austin goes up to the top turnbuckle and then jumps on top of everyone on the outside, as the referee rings the bell.

Steve Austin and Sycho Sid fought to a no contest in 3-02

Austin, Sid and Michaels are hammering the hell out of each other as the show goes off the air, whilst Jarrett just lies there unconscious.