RAW
June 10th, 2002
Phillips Arena
Atlanta, Georgia
 
Note: Steve Austin was scheduled to appear on the show to continue the feud with Ric Flair, but after learning that he was to lose a KOTR qualifying match to Brock Lesnar, he would refuse to appear at the show and then would subsequently walk out of the company.
 
Dark Matches:
 
1. Bull Buchanan defeats Ron Waterman.
2. The Prototype defeats Scott Vick.
 
6/16 Sunday Night Heat taping:
 
1. Goldust defeats Steven Richards.
2. Tommy Dreamer defeats Shawn Stasiak.
3. D-Lo Brown pins Crash Holly.
4. Raven defeats Jeff Hardy by disqualification.
 
Actual Show:
 
We see the opening video for RAW.
 
Your hosts are Jim Ross and Jerry “The King” Lawler.
 
Ric Flair comes down to the ring and says that last week, he lost a match to Steve Austin which he doesn’t like and he’s not proud of it though it did happen, and he says that one of the stipulations for the match was the loser would be the winner’s personal assistant and would do anything the winner said. He says that he’s not happy about it though he came here tonight to take it like a man, but there’s a problem in that Austin didn’t show up tonight as Vince McMahon comes down to the ring and says that he knows he’s not supposed to be here. He says that he created RAW almost 10 years ago and he knows Flair is sorry that Austin no-showed here tonight, and he says that Austin walked out on Flair and the fans as Flair is the sorriest excuse for an owner he’s ever seen. He says that what Flair has done is taken RAW and driven it into the toilet as Flair made be a 16-time World Champion, but as an owner he sucks and Flair apologizes that he hasn’t lived up to Vince’s expectations. He says that since Vince is talking down to him, he asks what they should do about it and Vince says that while Austin didn’t have the balls to show up here, he does and he has a proposal for Flair as he doesn’t have to work for a living. He says that he has all the money in the world as he is a certified billionaire and he doesn’t do this for the money, and he says that he does this for ego and he can’t stand a further day with Flair co-owning half of what he created. He says that tonight, he proposes that he gambles his life which is WWE and he proposes a match between them which will be no holds barred with the winner earning 100% ownership of WWE. He says that he has nothing to lose and Flair says if Vince wants to wrestle him for complete ownership, he can do so and they will pay the price tonight.
 
Commercial break
 
We see footage from earlier today of the New World Order backstage talking about Shawn Michaels.
 
1. The New World Order defeat Tommy Dreamer, Spike Dudley, and Shawn Stasiak when Booker T pins Dreamer at 2:50.
 
Analysis: We kick off this edition of RAW with our lone tag match of the night. The nWo were gaining steam as a unit and look to get a win here against this makeshift team of Dreamer, Spike, and Stasiak. Dreamer, Spike, and Stasiak get a decent pop from the crowd while the nWo were pretty hot as heels. Spike starts off the match with X-Pac and they lock up with Spike pounding on X-Pac and he hooks a headlock, and X-Pac whips him off and knocks him down as he blocks a hurricanrana attempt with a powerbomb for a two count. He kicks at Spike in the corner and hits the Bronco Buster as he pounds on Spike who battles back and X-Pac reverses a whip, and Spike ducks a shot and hits a headscissors on X-Pac as Stasiak tags in though X-Pac ducks a shot and hits a spin kick. Show tags in and hits a clothesline on Stasiak as he hits a hiptoss and a delayed suplex before tossing him into the corner, and Dreamer tags in as does Booker and Dreamer makes out like he’s going to puke in his bucket only to throw confetti out of it at Booker. He gets a kick in and hits the DDT on Booker for a two count as X-Pac breaks it up and the nWo attack Stasiak and Spike with Show sending Stasiak to the outside, and he presses Spike up and tosses him onto Stasiak on the floor as Booker ducks a shot and hits a side kick on Dreamer which gets the three and he wins the match for his team. The match itself was pretty much a squash as Dreamer, Spike, and Stasiak put the nWo over strong in just under 3 minutes. The crowd was into the match and are not happy when the nWo win. The nWo get the win over Dreamer, Stasiak, and Spike as both teams move on. Grade: 1
 
After the match, Booker takes the mike and has the music cut as he says he wants to give the people what they paid to see and he has his music played before doing the Spinaroonie.
 
Commercial break
 
We see a shot outside the Phillips Arena.
 
We see Booker T backstage as he runs into Goldust who calls himself the “Undercover Brother” and Booker says he tried to get Goldust in the nWo and it didn’t work, and Goldust says he wants Booker to leave the nWo and he knows Shawn Michaels well as he fears Booker’s days are numbered because Michaels isn’t a fan of their kind.
 
Terri Runnels interviews Molly Holly, who says that Trish Stratus hit her in the head with the belt last week and she can’t take Runnels as a competent interviewer as she shows a centerfold of Runnels, and she says that Runnels and Stratus are bad examples as Stratus comes up behind her and says that she understands why she hates them so much. She says that Molly has a big ass and she talks about morals as Molly’s ass is huge and Molly says she’s sleazy and crass, and she says that Stratus doesn’t deserve to be champion as they should have a match tonight. Stratus says that she’ll give Molly a match tonight with a title shot on the line though if Molly loses, then she has to wrestle in one of these as she pulls her tights down revealing a thong and Molly says she’ll see her in the ring.
 
We see Ric Flair in his office as Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit come in and Eddie says Flair put his half on the line without consulting them, and Flair says he was thinking on his feet and told Vince like it is as Eddie says Flair will win tonight and Flair says Eddie needs to worry about his match with RVD.
 
Commercial break
 
2. William Regal pins Bradshaw with a shot from brass knuckles at 3:41 to retain the WWE European Championship.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is our lone title match of the night. Regal was rolling as European Champion and faces a tough challenge here in Bradshaw, who won the Hardcore Title last week and looks to become a double champion. Bradshaw gets a good pop from the crowd while Regal was pretty hot as a heel. The two men lock up to start with Bradshaw backing Regal into the corner and he gives a clean break as they lock up again with Bradshaw hooking a headlock, and he knocks Regal down only for Regal to hit a drop toehold and he floats over into a front facelock though Bradshaw escapes by snapping Regal to the mat by the arm. He gets a knee in and pounds on Regal in the corner as he goes back to the headlock and Regal whips him off, and Bradshaw knocks him down again and he drops an elbow on Regal for a two count as he gets a kick in and pounds on Regal. Regal catches him ducking with a kick and hits a running kneelift on Bradshaw for a series of two counts, and he drives his knees into Bradshaw’s face and drops a knee on him as he pounds on him in the corner. Bradshaw battles back and whips Regal into the corner as he splashes him and whips him into the other corner, and Regal catches him with a boot to the face and hits a modified neckbreaker for a two count as he hooks a submission on. Bradshaw fights out of the hold only for Regal to catch him with a back elbow and Bradshaw catches him on a crossbody attempt as he hits the fallaway slam, and he hits a back elbow on Regal and whips him into the corner as he splashes him and he whips Regal into the other corner before splashing him again. Regal reverses a whip and Bradshaw catches him ducking with a shot as he gets a kick in and hits a DDT for a two count, and he hits a big boot on Regal as Chris Nowinski comes out of the crowd and gets on the apron only for security to pull him down. Nowinski tosses a pair of brass knuckles to Regal who puts them on and he hits Bradshaw in the face with them which gets the three and he retains the title. The match itself was decent as both men worked hard and put on a basic match. Bradshaw was getting into a groove as a singles star while Regal was hitting his stride by this point, and they had decent chemistry as Nowinski helps Regal retain. The crowd was into the match and Bradshaw, but are not happy when Regal wins. Regal retains the title over Bradshaw and both men move on. Grade: 1.5
 
After the match, Regal meets up with Nowinski and they head to the back.
 
We see Trish Stratus walking down the hallway.
 
Commercial break
 
3. Molly Holly pins Trish Stratus with the Molly-Go-Round at 2:27.
 
Stipulations: If Molly wins, she would become the Number One Contender for the Women’s Title and if Stratus wins, Molly must wrestle a match next week on RAW wearing a thong
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is a pretty big matchup. These two women have been going at it for the last few weeks and they face off here with the stipulations in place. Stratus gets a good pop from the crowd while Molly had decent heat as a heel. Molly wastes no time and hotshots Stratus on the top rope to start the match as she gets in the ring and tosses Stratus to the mat by her hair, and she rams Stratus into the buckle repeatedly and stomps on her until Stratus hits a clothesline and she hits a dropkick. She pounds on Molly who ducks the Chick Kick and she yanks Stratus to the mat by her hair for a two count, and she slams Stratus’ head into the mat twice and stomps on her as she whips her into the corner and hits a handspring elbow for a two count. She kicks at Stratus who ducks a shot and she hits a neckbreaker on Molly as she fires up on her until Molly reverses a whip, and Stratus ducks a shot and looks for the Stratusfaction only for Molly to counter with a back suplex. She goes up top and hits the Molly-Go-Round on Stratus which gets the three and she wins the match. The match itself was nothing much as both women did what they could for the time they got and put on a basic match. The crowd was into the match and Stratus, but are not happy when Molly wins. Molly gets the win over Stratus and is the Number One Contender as this issue isn’t over yet. Grade: 1
 
After the match, Molly pulls out the pair of panties Stratus left on her last week and she chokes Stratus with them.
 
We see Vince McMahon in his office as Arn Anderson walks up to him and asks what Vince is thinking as there’s not a better businessman than him, and he says that Flair isn’t the businessman Vince is though he’s going to roll the dice on the chance that he can beat Flair in a wrestling match. Vince says that he might be a bit crazy though he takes calculated risks like Anderson did walking in here and he shoves him back, and Anderson says that Vince needs to get ready for an early retirement.
 
Commercial break
 
We see a shot outside the World.
 
4. Rob Van Dam pins Eddie Guerrero with a rollup at 9:38.
 
Note: This is a King of the Ring qualifying match
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is a pretty big matchup. These two men have been going at it for the last two months and they face off here one more time to see who will advance in the tournament. RVD gets a big pop from the crowd while Eddie was red hot as a heel. The two men lock up to start with Eddie backing RVD into the corner and RVD turns it around as the ref forces a break, and RVD hits a pair of armdrags on Eddie and works the arm as he tries to escape with an armdrag though RVD hangs onto the arm. Eddie escapes with a headscissors and RVD hooks a rollup for a two count as Eddie hooks a submission on the leg before releasing the hold, and they square off as Eddie grabs the leg and hooks an STF on RVD who quickly grabs the rope to force a break. They lock up with Eddie grabbing the arm and he trips RVD up as RVD nips up and takes control of the arm, and he kicks at Eddie repeatedly and hits a spin kick as Eddie goes behind RVD and pounds on him before ramming him into the buckle. He pounds on RVD who reverses a whip and he hits a monkey flip on Eddie who avoids a crossbody as RVD sails over the top to the floor, and Eddie rolls outside and pounds on RVD who reverses a whip as he sends Eddie into the apron and hits a slam on the floor. He gets on the apron and hits a 5-Star Frog Splash on Eddie on the floor as he stomps on him and throws him back into the ring, and he hits a suplex on Eddie for a two count and pounds on him as he kicks at him repeatedly in the corner before pounding on him. He whips Eddie into the other corner and Eddie catches him with a back elbow as he hits a clothesline and stomps on RVD, and he pounds on RVD and kicks at him as he continues to pound on him in the corner and stomps on him. RVD ducks a shot and Eddie catches him with a back elbow for a two count as he hooks a cross armbreaker on RVD, and RVD rolls through and reaches the rope to force a break as Eddie stomps on RVD repeatedly and pounds on him. He hits a back suplex on RVD for a two count and pounds on him as RVD reverses a whip and he hits a powerslam on Eddie, and RVD goes up top only for Eddie to crotch him on the top rope and he goes up himself as he pounds on RVD. He hits a superplex on RVD and pounds on him as RVD reverses a whip and Eddie spins onto RVD’s shoulders, but RVD hits a rolling senton on Eddie and then he hits a springboard moonsault on Eddie for a two count. RVD gets a kick in and pounds on Eddie in the corner as he whips him into the other corner and hits a monkey flip, and Eddie ducks a shot and RVD leaps onto the middle rope as he fakes Eddie out only to miss the split-legged moonsault. Eddie hits a low dropkick for a two count and pounds on RVD who reverses a whip and Eddie attempts a hurricanrana, but RVD rolls through into a rollup which gets the three and he wins the match. The match itself was good as both men worked hard and put on a solid match. Both men were hitting their groove by this point and still had good chemistry as RVD gets the win to finally put this feud to bed. The crowd was into the match and popped for RVD when he won. RVD gets the win over Eddie and advances in the tournament as both men move on. Grade: 2.5
 
We see the Undertaker arrive to the arena.
 
Commercial break
 
Jonathan Coachman interviews Kevin Nash, who says that Shawn Michaels has things to say though he’ll say them in the ring.
 
The Undertaker comes down to the ring and says that some people just don’t get it as he’s getting tired of repeating himself and he is the Undisputed Champion, and he says that as champion he deserves to be treated in a certain manner and he knows the people here in Atlanta aren’t very smart. He says that even they have to know that he deserves to be treated with respect which brings him to Triple H who is supposed to be a smart guy, and he says that Triple H is called the Cerebral Assassin though he didn’t know that he was in the back to jump him last week. He says that there’s blood in the water and he’s the great white shark as we see footage from last week on Smackdown, and he says that by beating Hulk Hogan last week, Triple H thinks he’s the Number One Contender and has a shot at beating him at KOTR. He says the only shot Triple H has is him kicking Triple H’s face off his head and Triple H isn’t the only one that needs to learn about respect, and he says that last week Jeff Hardy kicked him in the back and made him land in a pile of human vomit as we see that footage from last week. He says that he knows Jeff is extreme and lives for the moment though he is asking if Jeff is ready to die in that same moment, and he says that they can do this the easy way which is Jeff comes down to the ring, he slaps him around, Jeff shows him respect, and he’ll let Jeff walk away. He says that if he has to hunt him down in the back, he will inflict more pain that what Jeff was possible and he will make Jeff suffer as he wants to know if it will be the easy way or the hard way. Just then, Matt Hardy comes out on the stage with a ladder and says this isn’t about Jeff as last week, Taker disrespected him and Taker says that he can come down here so he can disrespect him again. Just then, Jeff Hardy comes from out of the crowd and goes up top only for Taker to catch him coming in by the throat and he hits the chokeslam, and Matt runs down to the ring and ducks a shot as he pounds on Taker who reverses a whip and Matt ducks a shot before hitting a hooking clothesline. He gets a kick in only for Taker to block the Twist of Fate by ramming Matt into the corner though Matt ducks a shot, and he pounds on Taker in the corner and Taker reverses a whip into the other corner as he hoists Matt up and hits Snake Eyes. He hits the big boot on Matt and sets him up for the Last Ride only for Jeff to hit a chop block on Taker’s knee and Matt falls on top of Taker, and he pounds on Taker and drops a series of elbows on him as Jeff rolls outside and brings the ladder into the ring. The Hardyz grab the ladder and ram it into Taker twice as Jeff sets it up while Matt pounds on Taker on the mat, and Jeff goes up top and leaps over the ladder as he hits a legdrop on Taker and the Hardyz head to the back.
 
Commercial break
 
Terri Runnels interviews William Regal and Chris Nowinski, who say that Nowinski is a Harvard graduate as Nowinski runs down his credentials until Jeff Hardy interrupts and says something before running off.
 
5. Brock Lesnar (w/ Paul Heyman) pins Bubba Ray Dudley with the F-5 at 4:49.
 
Note: This is a King of the Ring qualifying match
 
Analysis: Our last match before the main event is our second tournament match. These two men have been going at it for the last few weeks and they face off here to see who will advance. Bubba gets a good pop from the crowd while Lesnar was pretty hot as a heel. Lesnar wastes no time and attacks Bubba from behind to start the match as he rams the shoulder into the ribs repeatedly in the corner, and he chokes Bubba and whips him hard into the other corner as he pounds on him and chokes him on the ropes. Bubba reverses a whip into the other corner and splashes Lesnar as he gets a kick in and hits a neckbreaker, and he goes outside and looks for a table as Heyman nails him from behind and leaps over the announce table to escape. Lesnar goes outside and Bubba catches him with a back elbow as he rams him into the table only for Lesnar to counter a whip, and he hits a belly-to-belly suplex on the floor and throws Bubba back into the ring as he stomps on him repeatedly. He whips Bubba hard into the corner and hooks a side bearhug on as Bubba fights out of the hold and blocks a belly-to-belly with a headbutt, and he ducks a shot only for Lesnar to hook the bearhug back on and he hits a modified suplex before hitting another belly-to-belly suplex on Bubba for a two count. He whips Bubba into the corner only to miss a charge as he rams his shoulder into the buckle and Bubba hits a German suplex, and he fires up on Lesnar who reverses a whip and Bubba catches him ducking with a kick as he ducks a shot. He hits a flapjack on Lesnar and pounds on him as he drives the elbow into his head and ducks a shot, and he hits another German suplex on Lesnar for a two count and Lesnar reverses a whip into the other corner as Bubba catches him with a back elbow. He goes up to the middle rope and hits a senton on Lesnar for a two count as Heyman breaks the pin up from the floor, and Bubba goes outside and chases Heyman into the ring as he hits a spear on Lesnar and ducks a shot before sending Heyman into the corner. He looks for the Bubba Bomb on Heyman only for Lesnar to get a shot in as he hoists Bubba onto his shoulders and hits the F-5 which gets the three and he wins the match. The match itself was decent as both men worked hard and put on a decent match. Bubba was getting into a groove by this point while Lesnar was also hitting his groove as well, and they still had decent chemistry as Lesnar gets the win thanks to Heyman. The crowd was into the match and Bubba, but are not happy when Lesnar wins. Lesnar gets the win over Bubba and advances in the tournament as both men move on. Grade: 1.5
 
Commercial break
 
We see footage from earlier tonight.
 
We see Vince McMahon in his office as Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman come in as Heyman says this is business, and he says that he knows Vince will win his match tonight and get total ownership though he is also focused on Steve Austin and he needs to start thinking about Lesnar. He says that Vince needs to focused on Flair tonight and once he gets total ownership, he should give him a call as he has an idea for the King of the Ring and Vince says he might do that.
 
We see Shawn Michaels leaving the nWo dressing room.
 
Commercial break
 
We see footage from Confidential two nights ago.
 
Shawn Michaels comes down to the ring and says that this is a funny business in that in his day, they had it all with garbagemen, clowns, and everything else running around though there was one thing that was real which was him, and he says that he was the Showstopper and every night, he gave the fans everything he had. He says that he gave them his body and then at WrestleMania XIV, Vince decided that his back was broken and they should go in a different direction as they should go with Attitude, and he says that he was Attitude before it was a catchphrase though they put the machine behind Steve Austin. He says that Austin had no problem stealing his spotlight though he’s not here to place blame on Austin and it’s the fans that determine where they go as a company, and he says that it was the fans who dumped him and ran to Austin which begs the question as to why he’s here. He says that he’s not here to wrestle as he did it once and he will never make the same mistake again, and he says that a few weeks ago he said that HBK is dead and he is as all the fans killed him though there is one man who stood by him when everyone else hated him with a passion. He says that this man stayed his friend and when he was kicked to the curb, this man called him on the phone and was there for him as he brings out Kevin Nash who comes down to the ring with the rest of the New World Order. Michaels says that as he looks at Nash, it’s hard to find the words to describe how proud he is and he started as his bodyguard, and he says that Nash is one of the biggest names in the business and he's the leader of the most powerful group the business has ever seen. He says that as he sat home and watched the nWo, he thought to himself something was missing and made him feel uneasy and he wonders what stands out, and he says that something that stands out is the Big Show and he loves him as no one will mess with them as long as Show is watching their backs. He says that maybe it was a lack of focus which directs him to X-Pac and his short-term memory leaves something to be desired, and he says that X-Pac is the most talented performer in the business today and he’ll be on their team every day. Just then, he hits Sweet Chin Music on Booker T and says that he thought to himself that Booker was the problem, and he says that Booker tried to steal their spotlight and from this day forth, no one will steal their spotlight again as Show holds Booker from behind while Nash and X-Pac rip the shirt off of him.
 
Commercial break
 
6. Vince McMahon pins “Nature Boy” Ric Flair after an F-5 from Brock Lesnar at 9:03.
 
Stipulation: The winner would become the sole owner of WWE
 
Analysis: After a fairly quick and interesting night of wrestling, we come to our main event. The issues between Flair and Vince have been going strong since Flair made his return last November and now they face off here to see who gets total control. Flair gets a mixed reaction from the crowd while Vince was red hot as a heel. The two men waste no time and brawl on the floor to start the match as Flair pounds on Vince and rams him into the barricade, and he continues to pound on Vince who rakes the eyes and he pounds on Flair as they trade blows until Flair sends Vince over the barricade into the crowd. Flair goes into the crowd and pounds on Vince as he drags him through the crowd and hits a slam on the floor, and he tears at Vince’s face and pounds on him as he throws Vince over the barricade back to ringside. He throws Vince into the ring and Vince begs off as Flair pounds on him until Vince rakes the eyes and hits a slam, and Vince goes outside and brings the bell into the ring as he hits Flair in the head with it and Flair falls to the outside. We see Flair is busted open as Vince goes outside and pounds on Flair before ramming him into the post, and he continues to pound on Flair who tries to battle back only for Vince to choke Flair with a cord and he rams him into the steps twice. He kicks at Flair and throws him back into the ring as he pounds on him in the corner and Flair flops to the mat, and he knocks Flair down twice for a two count and Flair gets a kick in as he pounds on Vince in the corner. Vince reverses a whip into the other corner and hits a pair of clotheslines on Flair for a two count as he hits a low blow for a two count, and he goes outside and brings a chair into the ring as he charges at Flair who catches him with a boot to the face. He grabs the chair and hits Vince in the back with it as he kicks at Vince’s knee twice and pounds on him in the corner, and then Arn Anderson comes down to ringside as Flair trips Vince up and slams down on his knee repeatedly. He hits a pair of low blows on Vince and hooks the Figure-4 on as Anderson gets in the ring and taunts Vince, but then Brock Lesnar runs down to the ring and scares Anderson out of the ring as he drops an elbow on Flair. He hoists Flair onto his shoulders and hits the F-5 as Vince gets the three and wins the match. The match itself was decent as both men worked hard and put on a basic match. Flair was slowly getting back into a groove by this point while Vince could still go and they had good chemistry though this was nowhere near their Street Fight back at the Rumble, and this was more about Lesnar costing Flair the match. The crowd was into the match and Flair, but are not happy when Vince wins. Vince gets the win over Flair and wins back total control of the company as both men move on. Grade: 2
 
After the match, Lesnar and Paul Heyman head to the back and Vince celebrates as we go off the air.
 
Final Analysis: Overall, this edition of RAW was a pretty decent episode that continues the build to KOTR. Given what was going on behind the scenes due to Steve Austin walking out on this night, the company did a fine job in recovering from that and putting on a decent show. We did have a title match as Regal still rules the midcard while the nWo, Molly, RVD, Lesnar, and Vince get big wins, and the matches were pretty standard as this was about Vince winning back full control of the company amid Austin’s not appearing. 2002 has been an interesting year to this point and now with Vince back in full control, we will see if that ends up affecting the brand extension or if it will continue with Vince running both shows. As for this show, it is a decent show that continues the build to KOTR despite the loss of Austin. Final Grade: C-