RAW
July 15th, 2002
Continental Airlines Arena
East Rutherford, New Jersey
 
7/21 Sunday Night Heat taping:
 
1. D-Lo Brown pins Crash Holly at 5:06.
2. Matt Hardy pins Raven at 5:40.
3. Goldust pins Shawn Stasiak at 6:17.
 
Actual Show:
 
We see the Undertaker meeting with Paul Heyman who says he’s not feeling well after last week though says that the main event tonight was his idea, and he says that Taker will team with Brock Lesnar against Ric Flair and Rob Van Dam and Lesnar wanted to say it’s an honor to team with Taker as he hopes Taker retains the title on Sunday so they face meet at Summerslam. Taker says that Heyman has Lesnar’s best interests in mind though they better hope he loses on Sunday, and he says that he made a career out of taking young prospects by making them famous and disappear as Heyman says they need to focus on tonight.
 
We see the opening video for RAW.
 
Your hosts are Jim Ross and Jerry “The King” Lawler.
 
The New World Order’s music hits as Vince McMahon comes down to the ring and he says that everyone is wondering why he came out to that music, and he says that he appreciates the warm New Jersey welcome and the reason is because everyone would want to hear it one last time. He says that it was the last time that music will be played because the New World Order is no more and is history, and he says that era is dead like many of the earlier eras in WWE including many great stars of the past. He says that all these eras made their mark though they change with the times and they must change now as he asks for a little bit of respect, and he says that this program was born 10 years ago in downtown NYC at the Manhattan Center and they will soon celebrate 500 episodes. He says that it’s time for RAW to be reborn and to be shaken up along with Smackdown and the entire WWE brand, and he says that it begins tonight as he’s hired two General Managers for each brand and they will have complete authority over their brands while having his full support. He says that tonight within the hour, he will name RAW’s new General Manager who will be firm and fair, won’t back down from adversity, and someone who will take the show to higher ground, and he says that the new GM will not be disrespected because they will give everyone what they want. He says that this new GM announced tonight will give everyone what they truly deserve as he thanks everyone and heads to the back.
 
We see the members of the RAW roster watching in the back.
 
Commercial break
 
We see a shot outside the Continental Airlines Arena.
 
Terri Runnels interviews Ric Flair, who says that he has no idea who the new GM is and running this company is a thankless job as he doesn’t know of anyone who can’t do it unless their last name is McMahon.
 
1. William Regal, Chris Benoit, and Eddie Guerrero defeat Jeff Hardy and the Dudleyz in an Elimination match.
 
Eliminations:
1. Spike pinned by Eddie at :56.
2. Bubba disqualified at 7:42.
3. Regal pinned by Jeff at 8:04.
4. Eddie pinned by Jeff at 11:09.
5. Jeff passes out at 13:36.
 
Analysis: We kick off this edition of RAW with a big 6-man tag match. These 6 men were set for their own matches in 6 days and face off here to build momentum. Jeff and the Dudleyz get good pops from the crowd while Regal, Benoit, and Eddie had solid heat as heels. The two teams waste no time and brawl to start the match with Spike reversing a whip and he hits a backdrop on Eddie, and he hits an armdrag and an atomic drop on Eddie who ducks a shot and Spike hits a flying forearm for a two count. Eddie rakes the eyes and pounds on Spike who escapes a suplex attempt as he hits a neckbreaker on Eddie, and he rams Eddie into the buckle and Eddie reverses a whip into the corner only for Spike to hit a headbutt to the ribs. He attempts a sunset flip though Eddie rolls through and hooks a small package which gets the three and Spike is eliminated, and Bubba comes in and ducks a shot as he hits a Bubba Bomb on Eddie for a two count as Regal breaks it up and stomps on Bubba repeatedly. Benoit tags in and stomps on Bubba in the corner only for Bubba to hit a spear and they brawl on the mat, and he rams Benoit into the buckle and pounds on him in the corner as he whips him into the other corner and splashes him. Benoit reverses a whip and Regal gets a shot in from the apron as Bubba knocks him to the floor only for Benoit to hit a back elbow, and he hits a snap suplex on Bubba for a two count and stomps on him as Regal tags in and knocks Bubba down for a one count. He pounds on Bubba in the corner and Bubba reverses a whip into the other corner as he hits a backdrop on Regal, and he hits a clothesline and a slam on Regal as he pounds on him and drives the elbow into his head for a two count as he avoids an elbow from Benoit who drops an elbow on Regal by mistake. Bubba hits a back suplex on Benoit as Eddie comes in only for Bubba to hit a hiptoss that sends him over the top to the floor, and Jeff tags in and they whip Regal into the corner as they hit Poetry in Motion on Regal and Bubba ducks a shot before hitting Benoit. He whips him into the corner and they attempt Poetry in Motion only for Regal to yank Jeff to the mat by his hair, and Benoit hits a German suplex on Bubba as Eddie gets in the ring and hits a back suplex on Jeff as Benoit drops an elbow on Jeff. He whips Jeff into the corner and pounds on him as Eddie tags in and stomps on Jeff repeatedly in the corner, and he hits a back elbow on Jeff and stomps on him as he hits a brainbuster for a two count and tags Regal. He kicks at Jeff who ducks a shot and he hits a high crossbody on Regal for a two count as Regal gets a shot in and drives his knees into his face, and Benoit tags in and pounds on Jeff as he hits a back suplex only for Jeff to counter a second one by falling on top of Benoit for a two count. Eddie tags in and rakes his boot across Jeff’s face as he pounds on him and tags Regal who kicks at Jeff and tosses him to the mat, and he drops a knee on Jeff for a two count and then he hits a double underhook suplex for a two count as Bubba breaks it up. Jeff hits a dropkick on Regal and Eddie comes in as he hits a low dropkick on Jeff and Regal hits a suplex on Jeff, and he gets a shot in on Bubba and Jeff battles back on Regal only for Eddie to come in and knocks Jeff down. Benoit slides the belt to Regal as Bubba gets in the ring and takes the belt from Regal before hitting him in the face with it which draws the DQ and Bubba is eliminated, and Jeff goes up top and hits the Swanton on Regal which gets the three and Regal is eliminated as Benoit comes in and stomps on Jeff. He rams Jeff into the buckle and pounds on him in the corner as Eddie tags in and he hits a dropkick on Jeff, and he pounds on Jeff as Benoit tags in and hits a back elbow on Jeff before hitting a headbutt and a slam. Eddie tags in and Jeff avoids a slingshot somersault senton as he trips Eddie up and hooks a rollup which gets the three and Eddie is eliminated, and Benoit comes in and both men stomp on Jeff repeatedly as they pound on him in the corner and whip him into the corner. Jeff ducks a shot and hits a spin kick on Eddie who rolls outside as Benoit hits a German suplex on Jeff and then he hits a short clothesline for a two count, and he pounds on Jeff and rams him into the buckle as he whips him into the other corner only for Jeff to go up top and hit Whisper in the Wind on Benoit. Eddie tries to get back in the ring only for the ref to try and force him to the back as Regal gets in the ring, and he hits Jeff with the brass knuckles and Benoit hooks the Crossface on as Jeff passes out and Benoit wins for his team. The match itself was pretty good as both teams worked hard and put on a solid match. All 6 men were hitting their groove and had good chemistry as Jeff looks strong in nearly overcoming the odds only for the numbers to be too much for him. The crowd was into the match and Jeff, but are not happy when Benoit wins. Benoit, Eddie, and Regal defeat Jeff and the Dudleyz as these issues aren’t over yet. Grade: 2.5
 
After the match, Eddie pulls a table out from under the ring and slides it into the ring as he and Benoit set it up until the Dudleyz run back down to the ring and clear them from the ring.
 
Jonathan Coachman is outside Vince McMahon’s office as he says he is looking to find out who the new General Manager is until Paul Heyman comes up and says no one is more qualified than him, and he goes into the office as Coachman says he will wait until Heyman comes out to get an answer. Just then, a stagehand runs into the office and says that the new GM has arrived as Vince asks her to bring this person to his office and says this will be momentous.
 
Commercial break
 
We see Vince in his office as the stagehand returns and says the new GM is with her as Vince invites him in and Shane McMahon comes in, and Vince asks what he’s doing here as he’s not the new GM and Shane says he’s here to keep Vince from making a huge mistake. Vince says that Shane tried to put him out of business and now he has this concern as Shane says Vince knew he was dealing with, and Shane says the new GM is a parasite and will screw them the first chance he gets as Vince says he appreciates the concern though it is his decision and Shane says this will affect everyone.
 
We see Tommy Dreamer meeting up with Rob Van Dam in the locker room as they talk about the new GM and RVD says he’s glad it’s not Paul Heyman, and Dreamer asks how it felt to give him the Van Terminator last week and RVD says Dreamer knows Heyman had it coming. He says that he hopes to do the same to Brock Lesnar and he has to get ready as he walks away and then Steven Richards walks up to Dreamer with a Singapore cane in hand, and Richards wants to thank him for standing up for ECW last week though he knows it was a load of crap and Dreamer only did it to get noticed. He says that with a new GM coming in, they should make their match more noticeable and they should have a Singapore cane match as Goldust walks up to them and says it’s an offer too good to be true. He walks away as both men laugh and Dreamer accepts as Richards hits him in the ribs with his cane and walks away.
 
Commercial break
 
2. Tommy Dreamer pins Steven Richards with a cane shot in a Singapore Cane match at 4:15.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is a pretty interesting matchup. These two men had a confrontation moments ago and now face off here with the Singapore cane being a legal weapon. Dreamer gets a decent pop from the crowd while Richards had decent heat as a heel. Dreamer grabs a cane and trips Richards up from the floor to start the match as he gets in the ring and blocks a cane shot, and he jabs Richards in the ribs with his cane twice only for Richards to duck a swing and he slides outside to regroup. Dreamer rolls outside as well and hits Richards in the ribs with the cane as he then hits him in the back and gets on the steps, and he comes off with a shot to Richards’ back and he rams him into the barricade twice as he grabs the steps only for Richards to hit him in the head with the cane. He freaks out and hits Dreamer in the back with the cane twice as Dreamer is busted open and Richards hits a suplex on the ramp, and he throws Dreamer back into the ring and stomps on him repeatedly as he chokes Dreamer with his boot and then he chokes him with the cane. He props another cane in the corner and pounds on Dreamer as he whips him into the cane in the corner, and he grabs another cane and beats on Dreamer with it until it breaks apart as Dreamer starts to fire up. He ducks a shot and hits a Russian legsweep on Richards as he grabs the cane and beats on Richards with it, and Richards ducks a shot though Dreamer blocks a Steven Kick and he gets a kick in as he hits the DDT for a two count. He goes up to the middle rope only for Richards to catch him coming in with the Steven Kick for a two count, and he grabs another cane only for Dreamer to hit him in the head with his cane which gets the three and he wins the match. The match itself was decent as both men worked hard and put on a basic brawl. Both men were hitting their stride by this point and had good chemistry as Dreamer gets the clean win. The crowd was into the match and popped for Dreamer when he won. Dreamer gets the win over Richards and both men move on. Grade: 1.5
 
Jonathan Coachman interviews Booker T, who says that when Shawn Michaels came back, he kicked him in the face and the nWo celebrated though one month later, the nWo is now dead and buried as he feels like celebrating and he wants Coachman to do his version of the Spinaroonie. He says that Rock isn’t the only one who can mess with the announcers and Coachman does the Spinaroonie poorly, and Booker asks what the hell that was and asks if he’s really black as he says he will pull an Allen Iverson on the Big Show. He says that he will show him that you don’t put hands on the 5-Time WCW Champion if he can dig that, but then Eric Bischoff walks up to him and shakes his hand as he says it’s good to see him again before walking away as Booker and Coachman are left stunned and Booker says to tell him he didn’t just see that.
 
Commercial break
 
Vince McMahon comes out on the stage and says that it takes a real son of a bitch to be successful in this business and from one SOB to another, he wants to introduce the new General Manager of RAW which is Eric Bischoff who comes out on the stage and they embrace twice as Vince raises his arm. Bischoff comes down to the ring and says that for those who don’t him, his name is Eric Bischoff and he used to run WCW though not that watered down version that invaded, but the real WCW as he became famous and was the only one to take it right to Vince McMahon. He says that when Vince was talking about ruthless aggression a few weeks ago, he’s the one Vince was talking about as he personifies ruthless aggression and when Vince needed star power, he was ruthless and signed everyone from Hulk Hogan to Randy Savage to the Outsiders as he was like a kid in a candy store. He says that he did it because he could and what he did was he took this family business and gave it a kick in the crotch which was sweet, and he says that while Vince was on trial he took his eye off the ball and he raided the company dry. He says that for everyone who say that he was only successful was because of Ted Turner’s money, he was successful because he was innovative and cutting edge as when RAW was taped every week, he would reveal RAW’s results on Nitro so they didn’t have to watch RAW. He says that was ruthless and it worked as he also had signed Alundra Blayze and made her bring the Women’s Title to Nitro and throw it in the trash, and he says that the important thing was he forced Vince to change the way he did TV because he gave away big matches with big stars on Nitro every week. He says that Nitro changed sports-entertainment forever and he forced Vince to change the way he did business so he could keep up with him, and he says that he created the New World Order which wasn’t a stale retread and Nitro beat RAW 84 straight weeks. He says that he came this close to putting WWE out of business forever so he was a bit surprised when he got a call from Vince about becoming GM of RAW, and he says that when he thought about it, he realized it made sense because he’s the one person who can take this struggling franchise and turn it back into a media powerhouse. He says that it will start this Sunday at Vengeance as there was one guy he wanted to sign to WCW and couldn’t do, and he says that if he signed this man, Nitro would still be on the air and Vince would be working for him though it’s ok because it won’t be the nWo who signs Triple H. He says that he looked at the RAW locker room which has guys he’s worked with before and some he’s meeting for the first time, and he says that they will all agree that people like working for him and it’s not about the money as people are drawn to winners like him. He says that’s why Vince hired him and WWE needs him as the people deserve him and he promises that he will put the “E” back in WWE, and we see the RAW Superstars watching in the back with some being happy while others are not.
 
Commercial break
 
We see the Undertaker and Bradshaw in the back talking about Eric Bischoff being the new GM as Bischoff walks up to them and says he’s been dying to meet Taker, and he says that he’s the one guy he hoped to come to WCW though he was loyal and if he needs anything, he’ll do it for him as Bradshaw forcibly introduces himself as well.
 
3. Molly Holly pins Trish Stratus with a rollup and using the ropes at 3:00 to retain the WWE Women’s Championship.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is our first title match of the night. Molly defeated Stratus at King of the Ring to win the Women’s Title and now Stratus finally gets her rematch here. Stratus gets a good pop from the crowd while Molly had solid heat as a heel. The two women lock up to start with Molly working the arm as she flips Stratus to the mat and continues to work the arm, and Stratus nips up and hits an armdrag on Molly who hits a drop toehold that sends Stratus into the bottom buckle. She stomps on Stratus and chokes her with her boot as she yanks her up by the hair and slams her to the mat for a two count, and Stratus tries to battle back until Molly gets a kick in and she hits a modified neckbreaker on Stratus for a two count. She slams Stratus’ head into the mat and whips her into the corner as Stratus catches her with a back elbow and she sends Molly into the corner, and she puts Molly on the middle rope and pounds on her as she hits a handstand hurricanrana on Molly. She pounds on Molly who reverses a whip and Stratus hits a clothesline though she gets tripped up while doing it, and she hits a dropkick on Molly and pounds on her as Molly reverses a whip and Stratus ducks a shot. She hits the Chick Kick on Molly for a two count and Molly slaps Stratus in the face as she gets a kick in, and she hits a backdrop on Stratus and attempts a handspring elbow only for Stratus to leap onto her shoulders. She hooks a victory roll for a two count and ducks a shot only for Molly to catch her in a backbreaker for a two count, and she stomps on Stratus and pounds on her as Stratus counters a whip and gets a kick in though Molly blocks the Stratusfaction with a back suplex as she hooks a rollup while using the ropes which gets the three and she retains the title. The match itself was decent as both women worked hard for the time they got and put on a basic match. Both women were hitting their groove and still had good chemistry as Molly steals the win to retain the title. The crowd was into the match and Stratus, but are not happy when Molly wins. Molly retains the title over Stratus and both women move on. Grade: 1
 
We see Ric Flair walking down the hallway as he runs into Eric Bischoff who says it’s good to see Flair again and they have a lot of history, and he says they should leave that in the past and it’s a new chapter for them as Flair must’ve been surprised when he learned about this. Flair says he wasn’t thinking that though he has a match to think about and he walks away.
 
Commercial break
 
4. Booker T defeats the Big Show by disqualification at 3:10.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is a pretty big matchup. These two men have been going at it for the last few weeks and now they face off here to settle their issues. Booker gets a good pop from the crowd while Show had solid heat as a heel. Booker ducks a shot and pounds on Show to start the match as Show tosses him into the corner though he misses a boot, and Booker kicks Show in the leg and pounds on him until Show sends him into the corner and rams the knee into the ribs repeatedly. He pounds on Booker and hits a hiptoss out of the corner as he hits a delayed suplex only to miss the elbow, and Booker pounds on Show who counters a whip and hits a sidewalk slam on Booker for a two count as he hoists him onto his shoulders. Booker slides off and sends Show into the corner as he stomps on him repeatedly until Show reverses a whip back into the corner, and Booker catches him with a boot to the face and avoids a charge as he hits a side kick on Show and pounds on him. Show counters a whip and Booker ducks a shot as he hits a side kick on Show and then he hits a clothesline which sends both men over the top to the floor, and he avoids a charge as Show kicks the steps and Booker grabs a chair only for Show to avoid a swing and he nails Booker in the back. He throws Booker back into the ring and brings the chair into the ring as Booker grabs it only for Show to punch it out of his hands, and he hits a clothesline on Booker and grabs the chair as the ref tries to take it from him though Show throws him to the outside which draws the DQ and Booker wins the match. The match itself was decent as both men worked hard and put on a basic match. Booker was getting into a groove by this point while Show was also getting into a groove, and they had decent chemistry though the ending was a bit weak. The crowd was into the match and Booker, but are not happy with the ending. Booker gets the win over Show by DQ though this issue isn’t over yet. Grade: 1
 
After the match, Show hits Booker in the back with the chair twice and throws him to the outside as he goes outside himself only for Booker to catch him with a side kick, but Show grabs him by the throat and chokeslams him through the announce table.
 
We see Brock Lesnar working out backstage as Paul Heyman comes up to him and says that anything can happen in WWE as Lesnar will soon be IC Champion and the Undisputed Champion, and Taker bought everything he said as Taker has no idea why they are teaming up tonight and there will be nothing left of RVD for Vengeance.
 
Commercial break
 
In Memory of James Miranda 1962-2002
 
Commercial break
 
5. Bradshaw and Christopher Nowinski wrestle to a no contest when Johnny “The Bull” Stamboli pins Bradshaw at 2:00 to win the WWE Hardcore Championship.
 
Analysis: Our last match before the main event is our second and final title match of the night. These two men have been going at it for the last few weeks and face off here for the Hardcore Title. Bradshaw gets a good pop from the crowd while Nowinski had decent heat as a heel. Nowinski tries to talk his way out of the match and offers to lay down to start the match which he does though he hooks a small package for a two count, and Bradshaw hits a spear on Nowinski and pounds on him as he hits a big boot and clotheslines him over the top to the floor. Nowinski tries to head up the ramp only for Bradshaw to grab him and pound on him as he rams him into the barricades, and he grabs the steps and rams them into Nowinski’s face as he grabs a chair only for Nowinski to head into the crowd. Bradshaw chases after him and pounds on him as he grabs a trash can and hits Nowinski in the head with it, and they head backstage as Bradshaw tosses the can at Nowinski and then he hits Nowinski in the head with a baking sheet. He slams the lid of a rolling case on Nowinski’s head as Johnny Stamboli appears and breaks a 2x4 over Bradshaw’s head which gets the three and we have a new champion. The match itself was basically a squash as Bradshaw dominated Nowinski until Stamboli sneaks in and wins under the 24/7 rule. The crowd was into the match and Bradshaw, but are not happy with the end. The match ends with Stamboli as the new Hardcore Champion though Bradshaw won’t take this lying down. Grade: .5
 
We see Eric Bischoff in his office watching the monitor as the Big Show walks in and they shake hands and embrace, and Show asks how this happened and Bischoff says he’s here as Show says with everything that happened with the nWo, he thought he was screwed though he got a miracle. He says that he knows it’s Bischoff’s first night though he has a favor to ask and he has a pain to deal with in Booker T, and he says that he’s had it and wants him in a match at Vengeance with no countouts or DQs so he can settle it for good as Bischoff says Booker may not make it after what happened and he wants to settle in on his first night though they have history so he’ll make the match. Show thanks him and leaves the office as Bischoff holds up the new Triple H DVD and we see that’s what he is watching on the monitor.
 
Commercial break
 
We see Eric Bischoff and Johnny Stamboli in Bischoff’s office as Stamboli is bragging about what he just did and he wants to thank him for letting him compete, and Bischoff says that he did it on his own and he gave him an opportunity which he will do for any young Superstar. He welcomes him to RAW and they shake hands until Bradshaw busts in and hits the Clothesline from Hell on Stamboli as a ref counts three and Bradshaw regains the Hardcore Title, and he welcomes Stamboli to RAW and reintroduces himself to Bischoff as he leaves the office.
 
We see Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman backstage as Heyman says that he knows what Lesnar is feeling and he will become IC Champion in 6 days before becoming Undisputed Champion at Summerslam as this is his summer, but then the Undertaker walks up and gets in Lesnar’s face as Heyman says it’s an honor for them to team up as each man says they can go first.
 
Commercial break
 
6. The Undertaker and Brock Lesnar (w/ Paul Heyman) defeat Rob Van Dam and “Nature Boy” Ric Flair when Taker pins RVD at 10:02.
 
Analysis: After a fairly quick and memorable night of wrestling, we come to our main event. RVD and Lesnar were set to face off in 6 days and they face off here in a tag match with Flair and Taker as their partners. RVD and Flair get big pops from the crowd while Lesnar and Taker had solid heat as heels. Flair starts off the match with Taker and they lock up with Flair hooking a headlock and Taker whips him off before knocking him down, and he works on Flair’s arm until Flair backs him into the corner and gets a chop in as he ducks a shot and pounds on Taker. He goes back to the headlock and tags RVD who goes up top and hits a crossbody on Taker for a two count as he pounds on him in the corner, and Taker reverses a whip into the other corner and splashes RVD who avoids a big boot and Taker crotches himself on the top rope. RVD kicks at Taker’s legs repeatedly and pounds on him as he hits a dropkick to the knee and tags Flair who hits a chop block on Taker’s knee, and he hooks the Figure-4 on Taker who grabs Flair by the throat to break the hold only for Flair to hit a low blow. He pounds on Taker who grabs him by the throat again and he hits the chokeslam for a two count as RVD breaks the pin up, and Taker stomps on Flair and tags Lesnar who kicks at Flair and he pounds on him as he rams the shoulder into the ribs repeatedly in the corner. He whips Flair into the other corner and again rams the shoulder into the ribs as he whips him back into the other corner and rams the shoulder into the ribs, and he stomps on Flair repeatedly in the corner and chokes him with his boot as he hits a pair of backbreakers. Flair rolls out to the apron and Taker hits a legdrop as he pounds on him and throws him back into the ring, and Lesnar gets a two count and tags Taker who kicks at Flair and pounds on him in the corner as Flair tries to battle back. Taker ducks a shot and hits a flying clothesline on Flair as he stomps on him only to miss the elbow and Flair rolls out to the apron, and he rakes Taker’s eyes and goes up top only for Taker to get a shot in and he goes up himself as he hits a superplex on Flair for a two count with RVD breaking it up. Lesnar tags in and kicks at Flair as he pounds on him in the corner and Flair tries to battle back only for Lesnar to ram the shoulders into Flair’s ribs repeatedly in the corner, and Flair ducks a shot only for Lesnar to catch him in a powerslam and he whips Flair into the corner only to miss a charge as he rams his shoulder into the post. Flair hits a back suplex on Lesnar for a two count and RVD gets the hot tag as he catches Taker with a kick and fires up on him, and Taker reverses a whip and RVD hits a spin kick as he hits a dropkick that knocks Lesnar off the apron to the floor. He rams the shoulder into Taker’s ribs twice and does a backflip as he hits a monkey flip on Taker and he catches Lesnar with a knee that knocks him to the floor, and he hits the Rolling Thunder on Taker for a two count as Lesnar breaks it up and pounds on RVD before whipping him into the corner. RVD catches him with a boot to the face and goes up top as he hits a side kick on Lesnar and then he hits the split-legged moonsault for a two count as Taker breaks it up with a legdrop, and he sets RVD up for the Last Ride only for Flair to pound on him and clotheslines him over the top to the floor. Lesnar hoists Flair onto his shoulders and hits the F-5 as RVD catches him with a side kick and goes up top before hitting the 5-Star Frog Splash, and Taker gets in the ring and hits the Last Ride on RVD which gets the three and he wins the match for his team. The match itself was good as both teams worked hard and put on a solid match. Both teams looked good together and they had good chemistry as Taker pins the IC Champion to win for his team. The crowd was into the match and RVD and Flair, but are not happy when Taker and Lesnar win. Taker and Lesnar get the win over Flair and RVD as both teams move on. Grade: 2.5
 
After the match, Taker celebrates with the title until Lesnar nails him from behind as he pounds on him and hoists him onto his shoulders before hitting the F-5, and Lesnar picks up the title and looks at it as he drops it on Taker and heads to the back with Heyman.
 
We see Eric Bischoff in his office watching the monitor as he pulls out his cellphone and makes a call to someone, and we found out that he is calling the Rock as he leaves a message telling him that he’s the new GM of RAW and he’s a huge fan as he believes RAW needs him and they will talk at Smackdown as we go off the air.
 
Final Analysis: Overall, the last RAW before Vengeance ends up bring a pretty historic show with a major debut carrying the show. With a lot of focus being on Vengeance and what was going to happen there, it was very shrewd to do this on the go-home show which makes it more memorable than it probably would’ve been. We did have two title matches as Molly and Bradshaw retain their titles while Regal, Eddie, Benoit, Dreamer, Booker, Taker, and Lesnar get big wins, and the matches were pretty standard for TV though again the big moment was the surprise debut of Eric Bischoff as the new GM. 2002 has been a pretty memorable year to this point with a lot of major debuts throughout the spring and summer, and as we continue to the summer we will see if this momentum can continue. As for this show, it is a very memorable show for the debut of Bischoff while continuing the build to Vengeance. Final Grade: B-