Raw Recap 03.30.09

Raw Recap from Dallas, TX:

As Raw opened a stretch hearst was backing in at the parking garage with Undertaker's theme music playing. The Raw video intro kicked off from there. Michael Cole welcomed fans to the show during "Wrestlemania week". Lawler said tonight The Undertaker would hold a funeral ceremony for Mr. Wrestlemania, Shawn Michaels. Michael Cole reminded fans that John Cena will face Big Show after issuing the challenge on Smackdown.

18 Diva Tag Team Match

On one side were the traditional face divas: Mickie James, Kelly Kelly, Alicia Fox, Maria, Tiffany, Brie Bella, Eve Torres, Gail Kim, and Melina against the heel divas: Beth Phoenix, Jillian Hall, Nikki Bella, Maryse, Michelle McCool, Rosa Mendes, Natalya, Katie Lea and Layla. These 18 divas will compete in the upcoming Miss Wrestlemania 25 Divas Battle Royal.

The match started with Mickie James taking on Jillian, and eventually taking control. Tiffany tagged in for a rare appearance in the ring, with Beth Phoenix coming in to continue the heel divas' beatdown of her. Next up, Katie Lea came in and tried to punish Tiffany further. To Katie's surprise, Tiffany rolled her up in a reversal pin to get the victory for her team.

After all the divas got into the ring, Santino Marella came down the ramp with a mic, wearing a silk bathrobe. He told the divas since he didn't make the Battle Royal last week he still wanted to prove he was more dominant than the WWE Divas. Santino gave an in-ring dance in his "mankini" which was similar to what Borat wore, much to the dismay of Beth Phoenix. All the divas started to attack Santino and tossed him out of the ring, with Beth and Rosa rushing out to help him.

Winners: The team of Mickie James, Kelly Kelly, Alicia Fox, Maria, Tiffany, Brie Bella, Eve Torres, Gail Kim, and Melina wins the 18 diva battle royal.

Last week's heinous attack by Randy Orton and Legacy on Triple H was shown, with HHH being handcuffed to the top rope. Stephanie McMahon rushed down to the ring to try to plead with Orton. Orton ended up grabbing Stephanie through the ropes on the apron and DDT'ing her to the mat, with HHH helpless. Afterwards, Orton clocked HHH in the face with the Sledgehammer. Later tonight, Randy Orton will address everyone regarding his actions last week. Michael Cole announced that up next, Jerry the King Lawler will step into the ring to fight Chris Jericho.

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WWE Rewind showed what went down between Ric Flair and Chris Jericho last week on Raw. Jericho punched Flair down in the ring, tore off his suit and shows, and bloodied up Flair around the outside of the ring before removing his watch to stomp on it.

Jerry Lawler vs. Chris Jericho

Jericho took control from the start, and was able to knock Lawler to the ropes then began choking him against them. Jericho continued beating Lawler around the ring, then elbowed him down from against the ropes. Jericho began to repeatedly punch away at Lawler in one corner then tried to whip him to the opposite. Lawler reversed it and from here was able to gain momentum with a barrage of punches on Jericho. Despite having Jericho down, he was able to counter Lawler and turn things into the Walls of Jericho making Lawler quickly tap out.

Jericho started to leave the ring after winning, but stopped then re-entered to further humiliate Lawler. Jericho stood Lawler up, yelling in his face, but Lawler responded by punching him down. Jericho rolled outside and grabbed a mic to tell everyone that at Wrestlemania 25 he's going to embarass and eliminate the legends from WWE.

Winner: Chris Jericho wins via submission over Jerry Lawler.

Michael Cole introduced a preview of the John Cena film "12 Hours". Later tonight, Cena takes on Big Show.

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Highlights were shown from 2 weeks ago when Cena got tangled in the ropes and hit by a Big Show knockout punch. Last week, Show gave Edge the same knockout punch with Vickie Guerrero ringside.

Todd Grisham spoke to Cena in the locker room asking about the upcoming match at Wrestlemania 25. All of a sudden, Edge entered the locker room saying that Cena's chances of walking out of Wrestlemania 25 as champion are slim. Edge then tried to convince Cena they need to work together to get Big Show out of the equation. Cena said he'd rather win or lose on his own because he's never trusted Edge.

Michael Cole interviewed Cody Rhodes & Ted Dibiase who were back in a locker room. They said Orton has something planned for the WWE Universe later on that will change the WWE forever following Wrestlemania 25.

The stretch hearst was shown again in the back parking garage with Undertaker's funeral theme playing. Several men opened the back of the vehicle to pull a casket out and opened it to reveal Shawn Michaels in all black. Michaels got on his side and looked into the camera and said something which was inaudible.

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When Raw returned, Michael Cole said we missed what Shawn Michaels had to say before break. Michaels was shown again saying "You were expecting someone else?"

Jerry Lawler returned from backstage to join Michael Cole for commentary.

Rey Mysterio vs. JBL

The two future Wrestlemania opponents competed in a non-title matchup. JBL came to the ring with a mic saying he's going to beat Rey tonight within an inch of his life to let him known that in 6 days he's going to make him history at Wrestlemania 25. JBL was able to take control early into the match with a boot into Rey as he tried to jump off the middle rope. Raw took a commercial break and returned with Rey escaping a JBL submission hold. JBL was able to regain control and toss Rey over his shoulders. Rey flew across the ring and rolled to the outside.

JBL brought Rey back in for an attempted pin, then started to punch away on his smaller opponent. At one point, JBL sat Rey up on the ropes, allowing Rey to fight him off and jump onto him. Mysterio avoided a big boot from JBL off the ropes, then was eventually able to dropkick him into the ropes for a 619. Rey followed with the Splash off the top rope for the pinfall win.

Winner: Rey Mysterio wins via pinfall over JBL.

Footage was shown from John Cena's appearance on Smackdown last Friday where he vowed to become World Heavyweight Champion. Big Show was shown walking backstage on his way to the ring for the next match.

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Wrestlemania XI highlights were shown which featured Bam Bam Bigelow against Lawrence Taylor in a Lumberjack match featuring wrestlers and NFL players on the outside. LT won it by delivered a forearm punch off the top ropes to knock Bam Bam down for a pinfall.

Members of the Dallas Cowboys were shown in the front row to watch Raw.

John Cena vs. The Big Show

Interim Raw GM Vickie Guerrero was shown backstage in her wheelchair watching the match on a TV. Show dominated from the onset, knocking Cena to the mat and stomping on him. Show wrapped Cena in the ropes at one point to stretch him out. Cena was able to escape Show in the corner when he rushed at him for a Splash. Coming off the ropes Cena went at Show, but Show tossed him up in the air letting him hit the mat. Show continued the beatdown and went for a Splash off the corner. Cena rolled away then got to the top rope for a leg drop on Show. Cena tried to grab Show's leg for the STF, with Show kicking Cena away.

Raw returned from commercial with Show still kicking Cena around and stomping on him. Show finally signalled for the Chokeslam as Cena tried to pull himself up. Cena got up and Show grabbed him around the neck. Cena was able to counter it and DDT Show down, then tried again for the STF. Show's size was too much for Cena to slap the move on and Show elbowed out of it. Cena avoided a Big Show knockout punch, and tried to hoist him up for the Attitude Adjustment. Cena's back was in pain and he couldn't complete the move, allowing Show to grab him and hit the Chokeslam for the win.

After Show's victory, Edge slipped into the ring and began to attack Cena, repeatedly punching on him. WWE officials and staff got into the ring to pull Edge back. Edge had a crazed look in his eyes as he sank down in the corner of the ring, while Show stood in another corner watching him.

Winner: Big Show wins via pinfall over John Cena.

Shawn Michaels dressed in all black was shown walking in front of several men carrying a casket. Michael Cole said Shawn Michaels may be having a funeral ceremony for Undertaker's undefeated streak.

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HBK arrived to the ring in all black with a casket set up in the ring and a wreath. Michaels said this was all for Undertaker because Sunday his undefeated streak will cease to exist. Michaels reminded everyone how they've had epic battles in the past with HBK coming out on top. Michaels reminded everyone of how he's dealt with Undertaker over the past few weeks without fear. Michaels said on Sunday every moment in the past 25 years will pale compared to what HBK achieves. Michaels said they'll discuss who the champs are after Wrestlemania, but none of that will be quite as big as the talk of the man who stopped Undertaker's streak.

Suddenly, the lights went out and music stopped momentarily. When the lights came back on, Undertaker was standing in the ring with no sign of HBK around. Taker was enraged and began punching down the set including the wreath and a poster of Shawn Michaels. After a while, Taker paused and turned his attention to the casket. He opened the casket looking for Michaels but didn't find him. As Undertaker turned around in frustration, Michaels slipped out from under the casket table which was covered in a black blanket. HBK set himself up and hit Sweet Chin Music leveling Undertaker, then went wild getting in his face down on the mat before exiting the ring.

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When Raw returned, they replayed what just went down involving HBK and The Undertaker in the ring.

A promotional piece for the 2009 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony was shown which featured Stone Cold Steve Austin highlights.

Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler discussed the full card for this Sunday's Wrestlemania 25 Pay-Per-View including Jeff vs. Matt Hardy, Shawn Michaels vs. Undertaker and Jericho vs. the 3 WWE Legends Piper, Snuka & Steamboat.

Cody Rhodes & Ted Dibiase were shown backstage talking to WWE security in preparation for Orton's speech later.

8 Man Over-the-Top Rope Battle Royal

All of the competitors from this Sunday's Money in the Bank Ladder Match squared off in the battle royal: Kane, Mark Henry, CM Punk, Finlay, Christian, Mark Henry, Kofi Kingston, Shelton Benjamin & MVP.

Early on, Mark Henry was able to toss Finlay out over the ropes right in front of Hornswoggle. Horney tore off his green jacket and tossed it up at Henry. Henry started leaning over the ropes pointing at him and Kane along with several others rushed over to dump Henry outside. Kane tried to take advantage of CM Punk fighting Christian on the ropes, but both men managed to remain inside. MVP and Shelton fought it out on the apron, with Kane eventually charging at them to kncok them both off. With just Kane, Christian, Punk and Kofi left they formed a brief alliance to try to beat up Kane and eliminate him. Kane fought them off and was able to toss Kofi to the outside. Kane tried to dump Christian out but he fought back. Eventually Christian went at Punk in the corner and tried to eliminate him. Christian tossed Punk out over the top rope, but he hung on. As Christian turned around, Kane pressed him up overhead and threw him at Punk. Both men fell outside the ring in a heap near the crowd barrier with Christian looking like he hit his head/neck against the barrier. Kane was the winner and climbed a ladder to grab the briefcase up above.

Winner: Kane wins the 8 Man Battle Royal over Kofi Kingston, Mark Henry, Finlay, MVP, Shelton Benjamin, CM Punk and Christian.

A background piece was shown about the Hardys and how they grew up with brotherly love, but now have become involved in a heated feud.

Dibiase and Rhodes along with security went to knock on Randy Orton's dressing room door. Orton came out and looked at them and then they all began walking down the hall on their way to the ring, carefully checking around for any sign of HHH.

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As Orton arrived to the ring for his speech, Michael Cole let fans know a Wrestlemania 25 press conference will be held tomorrow in NYC at the Hard Rock Cafe at 1PM EST. Various superstars were shown as part of it including divas Eve and Kelly Kelly, John Cena, Edge and Roddy Piper.

In the ring, Orton reminded fans at age 24 he became youngest world champion in WWE history, which was the greatest moment in his life but was shortlived due to HHH turning on him the next night. Highlights were shown of the incident on Raw years ago where Evolution officially broke apart as HHH, Batista and Flair attacked Orton in the ring. Orton went on to discuss his plan to get revenge on HHH for this. He said it started after he formed a talented new group, Legacy to help him carry things out. Next, they were able to eliminate HHH from the Royal Rumble, allowing Orton to win it. From there he said he wanted to take away what mattered most to HHH, his family. Highlights were shown of Orton attacking Vince, Shane and then Stephanie. Orton revealed he knew exactly what he was doing the entire time and there was no IED. Orton got pissed at the audience briefly and went off.

Orton continued saying he wanted HHH to feel confident, so he made the sacrifice to allow him to attack Rhodes & Dibiase. Orton said last week when HHH's guard was down they were able to carry out the plan even more. Highlights were shown from last week's in-ring incident with Orton DDTing Stephanie to the mat in front of HHH who was cuffed to the ropes. Orton then announced that he spoke with Vickie Guerrero and stipulations were added to their WM25 title match. Orton said if HHH gets counted out, Orton wins the title, and if HHH brings the Sledgehammer to the ring its an automatic DQ and Orton wins the title.

As Orton continued his speech, all of a sudden the camera cut to the parking garage to show a limo quickly pulling in. Orton yelled for them to turn on the lights, then screamed for Ted and Cody to get out there with security. The security lined up on the ramp while Orton was flanked by Rhodes and Dibiase in the ring. The limo was shown again, doors open but nobody inside. Orton began calling out HHH angrily. As Orton continued, suddenly Vince McMahon's music came on. The Chairman came out from backstage and took off his suit coat, followed by Shane McMahon next. Shane's music stopped and HHH was out next to the roar of the crowd. HHH along with the 2 McMahon's stared down intently towards the ring then began to march down the ramp.

Security tried to prevent the 3 men from advancing but they got beatdown. After getting past security, HHH, Vince and Shane went towards the ring with Legacy coming out at them. HHH went after Orton, eventually getting him one on one in the ring. The two exchanged punches, rolling around on the mat. Raw went off the air with the fight still ongoing.

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