Written by: Bob Colling
World Wrestling Federation presents RAW
Date: 12/9/1996
From: New Haven, CT
Matches:
1.) WWF World Champion Psycho Sid defeated WWF Intercontinental Champion Hunter Hearst Helmsley by count-out
2.) Goldust defeated Bart Gunn
3.) Jesse James defeated Justin Bradshaw & Uncle Zeb in a handicap match
4.) The Undertaker defeated Mankind in a no holds barred match
Angle Developments/Notes:
1.) Sid runs up the aisle way and attacks Helmsley prior to the bell and big boots Hunter a few times before rolling him into the ring. Sid works over Hunter in the corner with a series of strikes. Sid press slams Hunter and clotheslines Hunter over the top to the floor. Sid drops Hunter throat first across the guard railing. Hunter is sent into the corner and flips upside down. Sid grabs Hunter and hits a choke slam and plays to the crowd before following up. Sid goes for the power bomb and plants Hunter to the canvas! Hunter rolls to the floor and is counted out. (1/2*. So, the burial of Hunter continues despite actually being a champion in the company.)
2.) After Goldust got the victory over Bart Gunn, Billy Gunn made his way out to the ring and cut a promo on Bart saying this is what happens without him. Billy takes credit for the Smoking Gunns success saying that Bart is nothing without him. Bart gets to his feet and decks Billy a few times before Billy bails to the floor and heads backstage.
3.) Uncle Zeb accidentally hit Bradshaw with the branding iron and Jesse was able to pin Bradshaw as a result.
4.) Jim Ross is in the ring to interview Bret Hart. Bret will be wrestling Psycho Sid for the WWF World Championship in six days. We are shown footage from twelve days ago in England where Sid choke slammed Bret after Austin attacked him. Bret tells Sid that their match isn’t going to be wrestling match. He has thought about being WWF World Champion for the last seven months over and over again. When Bret snaps they will call him the WWF World Champion and he doesn’t care how big and bad Psycho Sid is. Bret is confident that he will walk out as the champion this Sunday.
5.) Taker hammers away on Mankind to start the main event. Taker hits a leaping clothesline and walks the top rope to come across the shoulder of Mankind. Taker goes for the choke slam and drives Mankind down to the canvas. Taker attempts the tombstone but drops Mankind to knock The Executioner off the apron. Back from commercial, Mankind is hammering away on Taker but Taker tosses Mankind into the railing and punches him several times. Taker rams Mankind head into the ring steps and stomps on Mankind’s finger. Taker drops the ring steps onto Mankind’s arm, which was laying across the other layer of steps. Mankind ducks a clothesline and chop blocks the left knee of Taker to gain the upper hand. Taker back elbows Mankind in the corner but Mankind sends Taker over the top to the floor following a clothesline. Taker is sent knee first into the ring steps. Mankind tosses Taker into the railing and places Taker’s leg on a chair before hitting an elbow drop off the apron onto the leg! Taker is able to kick Mankind to the floor but can’t get up due to his injured leg. Taker kicks Mankind away on the floor and Mankind hits the guard railing. Taker power slams Mankind onto the announcers table. Back in the ring, Mankind chop blocks Taker’s knee as he tried to enter the ring. Taker catches Mankind in midair but Mankind drop toe holds Taker to avoid a choke slam. Mankind has a steel chair but it gets kicked back into his face. Taker punches Mankind in the face sending the chair into his face again. Taker goes for the tombstone but Mankind counters with the Mandible Claw! Taker escapes from the hold by dropping Mankind across the top turnbuckle. Taker spikes Mankind with the tombstone and wins the match. (**. A toned down brawl compared to their other battles in recent months. The feud has lost its steam at this point, too.) After the match, The Executioner attacks Taker with a sleeper hold as the show comes to an end.
Final Thoughts:
A disappointing show despite the Sid/Hunter and Taker/Mankind matches on the program. I had high expectations for the main event and it didn’t deliver.
Thanks for reading.