WWE RAW Results: July 23, 2012

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Martyr No More.

Since debuting on January 11, 1993, Monday Night RAW has been the go-to show for all things entertaining, competitive, shocking, and unforgettable in the world of wrestling. Over its unparalleled nineteen year run on television, RAW has dominated television, bringing the WWE into millions of homes worldwide and providing unforgettable moments from Stone Cold Steve Austin going face-to-face with Mike Tyson in the center of the ring to Shane McMahon appearing on WCW Nitro to Mr. McMahon hiring Eric Bischoff to Mr. McMahon orchestrating his own ‘demise’ in a staged limo explosion to CM Punk dropping his first “pipebomb” that changed the face of the WWE forever, RAW will always be a staple of the wrestling business. Monday Night RAW would make television history once again with the unheard of 1,000th Episode of RAW, which came to you, live, in the new three-hour timeslot from the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, MO. On this epic night in sports entertainment, the best and the brightest of the past two decades would converge on the biggest RAW in history as nine-time World Champion turned movie megastar The Rock, former WWE and UFC Champion Brock Lesnar, Hall of Famer Bret “The Hitman” Hart, three-time WWE Champion Mick Foley, “The Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels, and countless other RAW legends would join the Superstars of today in celebration of the television milestone with the three-hour extravaganza even kicking off with the reunion of the most controversial entity in WWE history as Triple H and Shawn Michaels reunite to reform D-Generation X for one night only! In his first live appearance since breaking the arm of WWE COO Triple H the night after Extreme Rules, former WWE and UFC Champion Brock Lesnar appears on RAW as Brock goes face-to-face with Triple H to respond, in person, to the COO’s challenge for a match against Lesnar at the 25th annual SummerSlam! For only the second time in the seven year history of Money-in-the-Bank, the holder of the Money-in-the-Bank briefcase has announced exactly when he will be cashing in his contract for a guaranteed title shot as RAW’s “Mr. Money-in-the-Bank” John Cena announced last week that he will cash in to challenge CM Punk for the WWE Championship on the 1,000th Episode of RAW! After their surprising engagement last week, AJ & Daniel Bryan would waste no time in doing the honors as the unhinged Diva and the former World Heavyweight Champion would join together in matrimony as their wedding would take place live on the 1,000th RAW! Also on the historic RAW, Christian defends the Intercontinental Title against an unknown opponent and the WWE Board of Directors will reveal who they have selected as the permanent General Manager of both RAW and SmackDown!

Match Results

• 6-Man Tag: Sheamus, Rey Mysterio, & Sin Cara (with Dolph Ziggler) def. Dolph Ziggler, Chris Jericho, & Alberto Del Rio by Sheamus pinning Chris Jericho following the Brogue Kick.
• Brodus Clay def. Jack Swagger by pin following the Funkasplash.
• Intercontinental Championship: The Miz def. Christian (c) by pin following the Skull Crushing Finale to win the Intercontinental Title.
• No DQ: Lita (with The A.P.A., Vader, Diamond Dallas Page, Sycho Sid, Sgt. Slaughter, Doink, Roddy Piper, Bob Backlund, Rikishi, & Road Warrior Animal) def. Heath Slater by pin following the moonsault.
• WWE Championship: John Cena def. CM Punk (c) by DQ after Big Show interferes. As a result, CM Punk (c) retains.

Detailed Results

Complete with a completely new look, a new feel, and a new era, the epic 1,000th Episode of WWE Monday Night RAW kicks off with the man who has made the historic RAW and every episode of RAW prior possible, WWE Chairman & CEO Mr. McMahon. The Chairman says “thank you” to the fans before officially welcoming everyone to Monday Night! Mr. McMahon then throws to the stage as the most controversial group in WWE history makes their entrance as the reunited D-Generation X, “The Game” Triple H & Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels, make their way to the ring! Before they can do their signature pyro introduction, Shawn Michaels says that he feels like something is “missing” and, after checking to make sure they were wearing underwear, Triple H asks Michaels if there used to be “more” of them. At the behest of the crowd, Triple H & Shawn Michaels gesture to the entrance where X-Pac, Road Dogg, & Billy Gunn roll into the arena in a tank! The full DX roster then embrace in the ring as the crowd roars its approval. After Road Dogg and Triple H do their customary DX introduction, Billy Gunn and Shawn Michaels were set to do their introduction, but the reunion is interrupted by the self-proclaimed “Intellectual Savior of the Masses” Damien Sandow, who insults the controversial group, admitting that they could easily attack him, but that would make him a “martyr”. The five of them then get in a huddle to discuss what they should do before Shawn Michaels hits Sweet Chin Music on Sandow and Triple H wraps it up with the Pedigree in the middle of the ring! Triple H, Shawn Michaels, X-Pac, Road Dogg, & Billy Gunn then celebrate their reunion.

The 1,000th RAW would not be the same without the longtime voice of the Monday night staple calling the action as Hall of Fame announcer “Good ‘Ol J.R.” Jim Ross joins Michael Cole & Jerry “The King” Lawler at ringside to call the opening match of the night!

The opening match of the night was a big 6-Man Tag match as World Heavyweight Champion Sheamus teams with “The Master of the 619” Rey Mysterio and “The International Sensation” Sin Cara to face the team of “Mr. Money-in-the-Bank” Dolph Ziggler, six-time World Champion Chris Jericho, and “The Mexican Aristocrat” Alberto Del Rio, with Vickie Guerrero and Ricardo Rodriguez in their corner. During the match, it came down to Chris Jericho and Sheamus in the ring, but when Jericho went for the Lionsault, Dolph Ziggler would get a shot in on his tag team partner, allowing Sheamus to hit the Brogue Kick on Jericho en route to picking up the win for his team.

Before going one-on-one with Jack Swagger, Brodus Clay would introduce his funky brother from another mother to be in his corner, none other than one of the Three Faces of Foley, Dude Love!

The funkiest Superstar in recent RAW history was in action on the 1,000th RAW as “The Funkasaurus” Brodus Clay, with Cameron & Naomi in tow, went one-on-one with “The All-American American” Jack Swagger. In the end, it was Brodus Clay hitting the Funkasplash on Jack Swagger en route to picking up the win. After the match, Dude Love would unveil a tie-dyed Mr. Socko, using it to put the Mandible Claw on Swagger!

Then it was time for the nuptials of AJ & Daniel Bryan as the legendary manager, Slick, would preside over the wedding as the reverend. The groom made his way to the ring first as “The Yes Man” Daniel Bryan joins Slick in the ring as they await the bride-to-be, AJ, as she makes her way to the ring. The charismatic and fired-up reverend proclaims that marriage is a “sacred institution” before asking if there is anyone who objects to their marriage, but no one comes out. Daniel Bryan tells AJ that he will “always love” AJ and, once he puts the ring on her finger, a “new chapter” in their lives will begin and he will have “everything” he has always wanted. Both Bryan and AJ say “yes”, but before Slick can officially announce the happy couple as husband and wife, AJ interrupts, saying that she was not saying “yes” to Daniel Bryan, but saying “yes” to another man who made a proposal to her earlier in the evening! This brings WWE Chairman & CEO Mr. McMahon to the ring, but McMahon sets everyone’s minds at ease by saying that it is not “that kind of proposal” as it is a “business proposal”. With that, the Chairman introduces the brand new General Manager of RAW, none other than AJ! The new RAW General Manager then leaves Daniel Bryan at the altar as an irate Bryan snaps, laying waste to the entire wedding setup in the ring!

In the ring, referees are trying to calm Daniel Bryan down as Bryan continues to scream “no” when WWE Champion CM Punk makes his way to the ring. Punk says that he did not come out there to rub it in Bryan’s face, sarcastically saying that Bryan is such a “nice guy” and that, after Bryan treated AJ so well, no one can believe that AJ would leave him at the altar. Punk then tells Bryan that Bryan can continue throwing a tantrum while he will continue being the WWE Champion, as well as being the “best in the world”. Bryan says that Punk is not even the best in the ring and, not only is he better than Punk, he is the “greatest WWE Superstar of all-time”! This brings a legitimate contender to the title of the greatest of all-time as “The People’s Champion” himself, The Rock, makes his way to the ring! The Rock tells Daniel Bryan that Bryan does not get to say who the greatest of all-time is because that job belongs to the WWE fans. Bryan then cuts The Rock off, but Rock says that Bryan doesn’t cut The Rock off like that because St. Louis is where The Rock won his very first WWE Championship. Rock says that he is not there to talk about Bryan, he is there to talk about the WWE Championship before making the blockbuster announcement that, in January at the Royal Rumble, whoever is the WWE Champion will defend the title against none other than The Rock! CM Punk tells The Rock that the “whoever” will be him and, after he “ends” John Cena in the main event, he will “end” The Rock at the Royal Rumble! The Rock then solemnly tells CM Punk that, at the Royal Rumble, he will be the WWE Champion. Daniel Bryan then reinserts himself into the discussion, saying that it was supposed to be his night and, not only will he be the WWE Champion and beat The Rock at the Royal Rumble, but he will become the “new face of the WWE”! Rock calls Bryan an “oompa loompa”, saying that it is not “all bad” for Bryan because he got a “wedding gift” for Bryan before The Rock plants Daniel Bryan with the Rock Bottom!

“The Best There Is, The Best There Was, and The Best There Ever Will Be” would return to RAW as Hall of Famer Bret “The Hitman” Hart appeared on the 1,000th Episode to serve as the special guest ring announcer for the Intercontinental Title match! Bret Hart first introduces fellow Canadian and reigning Intercontinental Champion Christian before “The Hitman” reluctantly introduces The Miz as the challenger.

For the 66th time in the nineteen year history of RAW, the Intercontinental Title was on the line as Christian defended the gold against The Miz. After tweaking his knee early on in the match, Christian would struggle with the knee throughout the match and, in the end, it would spell the end for Christian as The Miz would hit the Skull Crushing Finale on Christian en route to pinning “Captain Charisma” and becoming the new Intercontinental Champion!

Sporting a completely different demeanor from the DX reunion earlier in the night, WWE COO “The Game” Triple H appeared on RAW to hear Brock Lesnar’s answer to his SummerSlam challenge. Triple H says that he has had his “fun” and now it is time to pick up the “intensity”. Triple H wastes no time in calling Lesnar out, saying he wants to “fight” Brock at SummerSlam and he wants to hear Brock’s answer and he wants to hear it now. As has been the case in weeks prior, Triple H does not get Brock Lesnar, but instead gets Lesnar’s legal representative, Paul Heyman. Heyman says that Lesnar is in the building and Lesnar has authorized him to deliver Brock’s answer and that answer is “no”! Triple H then threatens to go to the back and find Brock, but Heyman reminds the COO of the two pending lawsuits against Triple H and the WWE. Triple H says he does not care about any of that before saying that Lesnar is too much of a “coward” to deny him to his face, saying Brock is “afraid” of him. Heyman calls Triple H a “child”, asking if Triple H taught his children to not call people names and Triple H slaps the microphone out of Heyman’s hands and warns Heyman not to talk about his family.

However, Heyman continues to egg Triple H on, saying that he feels “sorry” for Triple H’s children, but as Triple H closes in on Heyman, the seething wife of “The Game” makes her way to the ring as WWE Executive Vice President Stephanie McMahon makes her way to the ring! The VP gets in Heyman’s face, telling Heyman to never talk about her children again. Stephanie then fires back, saying that Heyman’s lawsuits are not about Brock Lesnar, they are about Heyman masking his “failures” as a businessman, his failures at WCW, his failures at ECW, and his failures in the WWE! Stephanie then says that, when it comes to Vince McMahon, Heyman is just “looking in the rearview mirror”. Stephanie then tells Heyman to shut up before continuing that, at least her father was “man enough” to step into the ring and face Triple H, unlike Brock Lesnar and unlike Heyman. The VP continues that her children will be “proud” of their father and grandfather, but Heyman’s children will be “ashamed” to know that Heyman is nothing more than a “professional parasite”, punctuated by Stephanie slapping Heyman across the face! Heyman then starts to leave the ring, but wanting to avoid being embarrassed, Heyman thinks twice and re-enters the ring, agreeing, on behalf of Brock Lesnar, to a match at SummerSlam!

Heyman then applauds Stephanie, saying that she always gets what she wants just like her father always has, but when Heyman again makes mention of Stephanie’s children, the femme fatale snaps, taking Heyman down, blistering the representative with slaps and right hands! Everything comes to a standstill in the ring, however, with the arrival of Brock Lesnar himself! Lesnar marches down to the ring with Triple H getting Stephanie out of the ring just in time as Brock hits the ring, taking “The Game” off of his feet, delivering countless rights and lefts to the COO. Both ring warriors would trade blows for several minutes before Triple H gets the better of the former UFC Champion, sending Brock out of the ring! The match is on at SummerSlam between Triple H and Brock Lesnar, but can even “The Biggest Event of the Summer” contain the rage and unadulterated fury and hatred these two multi-time World Champions have for one another?

Hall of Famer Howard Finkel makes a special appearance on the 1,000th RAW to serve as the guest ring announcer for a match pitting Heath Slater against an unknown RAW legend. Before the match, Heath Slater claims that what has been happening to him on RAW is “in the past” and the only thing that any of the fans will remember is his match on the 1,000th RAW. Slater then lays out a bold challenge to any RAW legend in the back who wants to face him in a match with no disqualifications and no count-outs, but who Slater got was one that no one could expect as the legendary former Women’s Champion Lita accepts the challenge! The bell rings, but Lita lets Slater know that she has hired herself some “protection” for the match before the most hard-hitting, smash mouth tag team in WWE history, the A.P.A., enter the arena as Bradshaw & Faarooq make their way to the ring! Faced with having to deal with two former World Champions, Heath Slater decides to make a run for it, but Slater would not make it far as Vader, Diamond Dallas Page, Sycho Sid, Sgt. Slaughter, “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, Doink, Bob Backlund, Rikishi, & Road Warrior Animal prevent Slater’s escape. The group of legends then chases Slater back into the ring where Lita hits the Twist of Fate on Slater, followed by the Clothesline from Hell by Bradshaw and, finally, the moonsault from Lita as Lita picks up the win over “The One Man Band”! After the match, the legends converge in the ring as Ron Simmons lets loose with his trademark “damn” to sum everything up!

One of the correspondents from the first episode of RAW made a special appearance as Sean Mooney interviewed Daniel Bryan backstage. The angry Bryan states that the whole night has been “tainted” and the whole thing was made worse by Charlie Sheen, who called Bryan an “oompa loompa” via Skype earlier in the show. Bryan continues that Sheen needs “life management” and, if Sheen were there, he would lock the Yes Lock in on Sheen faster than he could say “winning”!

Backstage, a major league confrontation takes place between The Rock and John Cena as the headliners of WrestleMania XXVIII meet for the first time since April. Cena tells Rock that he heard what Rock had to say earlier about challenging the WWE Champion for the title at the Royal Rumble before saying that, after he cashes in and defeats Punk for the WWE Title, he will be looking forward to getting another shot at The Rock! Rock responds by saying he cannot tell Cena how much he is looking forward to that.

“The Big Red Monster” Kane was set for action on the 1,000th RAW, but before the match could take place, Jinder Mahal leads Curt Hawkins, Tyler Reks, Hunico, Camacho, and Drew McIntyre to the ring as Mahal states that no one has given them any opportunities on RAW. The six Superstars then surround the ring as Kane readies himself for a battle, but the unmistakable gong sounds throughout the arena as Kane’s brother, the undefeated, “The Phenom” The Undertaker makes his way to the ring! With the cluster of Superstar regrouping on the outside, Undertaker does not take his eyes off of his brother, Kane. The six Superstars then make a run at The Brothers of Destruction, but Kane & Undertaker make quick work of all of them before the brothers plant Curt Hawkins and Hunico with a double chokeslam, followed by the Tombstone Piledriver to both Superstars!

Charlie Sheen makes another Skype appearance during the show as the actor responds to the comments made by Daniel Bryan, saying that he is not hard to find and he would be happy to face Daniel Bryan the next time Bryan is in the Los Angeles area!

Then it was time for the main event as “Mr. Money-in-the-Bank” John Cena would hand over his Money-in-the-Bank briefcase to challenge CM Punk for the WWE Championship. During the match, the referee gets inadvertently knocked down moments before John Cena is able to hit the Attitude Adjustment on CM Punk. With the referee down, Big Show makes his way to the ring, delivering a Spear and knocking Cena out with the W.M.D.! This leaves CM Punk at a difficult crossroads with Punk ultimately deciding to revive the referee, but when Punk pins Cena, Cena is able to kick out. Punk then goes for the GTS, but Cena counters, locking in the STF on Punk. Just when it looks like Punk might tap out, Big Show re-emerges, attacking Cena and bringing the title match to an end. Big Show then pummels John Cena, delivering boots and right hands to Cena while CM Punk looks on. John Cena finally gets some help as The Rock rushes to the ring, taking it to Big Show, but when Rock goes for the People’s Elbow on Big Show, CM Punk dives at The Rock, taking Rock down with a clothesline! The WWE Champion then measures “The People’s Champion” before laying The Rock out with the GTS! A solemn and expressionless CM Punk then leaves the ring, remorselessly turning his back on the carnage in the ring and turning his back on the fans.

What did you think of the 1,000th Episode of RAW? Post your comments in the box below.