RAW
December 24th, 2001 (taped December 21st)
Miami Arena
Miami, Florida
 
Dark Matches:
 
1. Orlando Jordan defeats an unknown.
2. Mighty Molly pins Dee Dee Venturi at 4:57.
 
12/29 Jakked taping:
 
1. Crash Holly pins Chris Nelson at 6:16.
2. Spike Dudley pins Scoot Andrews at 5:15.
3. Perry Saturn forces Vito DeNucci to tap out at 3:29.
4. Edge pins Funaki at 2:35.
 
Actual Show:
 
We see the opening video for RAW.
 
Your hosts are Jim Ross and Jerry “The King” Lawler.
 
The Rock comes down to the ring and says that he has finally come back home as tonight is a special homecoming for him, and he says that he has a chance to be the Undisputed Champion as he faces Chris Jericho in front of all his friends, family, and the millions of his fans. He says that he will whip Jericho’s ass like the Miami Hurricanes will win the Rose Bowl and since it is the holiday season, and he says that they are in the holiday spirit so he has a special message about tonight as he is handed a book called “The Rock’s Night Before Christmas” which he reads. Just then, Kurt Angle comes out on the stage and asks if he was interrupting something as all this talk about Christmas has got him thinking, and he says that Santa sees everyone when they’re sleeping or awake which makes Santa a pervert. He says that he hopes Santa isn’t watching because he plans on being very naughty and there is one man more powerful than Santa which is Vince McMahon, and he says that Vince has given him a special gift though Rock tells Angle to stop talking so the fans can keep calling him an asshole. Angle says that gift is an Undisputed Championship match which means the match will be a Triple Threat match with him, Rock, and Jericho, and he says that Rock’s chances at winning went from slim to none as Rock says that he will finish his story which he does and says if you smell what he is cooking.
 
We see Vince McMahon hosting a Christmas party in his office as he mentions the look on Rock’s face when Angle made his announcement, and he says that Pat Patterson and Gerald Brisco look ridiculous as elves as he introduces everyone to “Bubba Claus” who has Stacy Keibler on his lap. Just then, Booker T and the Big Bossman come in as Booker thanks Vince for everything as Vince thanks him for what he did to Austin, and he says that he has a surprise for everyone as he brings in Santa’s “reindeer” which he fawns over.
 
Commercial break
 
1. Rikishi defeats Test by disqualification at 1:34.
 
Analysis: We kick off this edition of RAW with a pretty interesting matchup. Test had cost Rikishi his match the previous week on Smackdown and now Rikishi comes here looking for revenge. Rikishi gets a good pop from the crowd while Test was pretty hot as a heel. Rikishi wastes no time and attacks Test to start the match as he hits a clothesline and Samoan drop before whipping him into the corner, but he misses a charge and Test hits a clothesline as he intimidates the ref and pounds on Rikishi in the corner. He chokes him with his boot until the ref forces him off and Test again stalks him as he gets a kick in and hits a DDT for a two count, and he argues again with the ref as he shoves him back only for the ref to punch him in the face and call for the bell as he awards the match to Rikishi by DQ. The match itself was nothing much as both men did what they could for the 94 seconds they got and this was more about furthering Test’s issues with the referees. The crowd was into the match and popped for Rikishi when he won. Rikishi gets the win over Test by DQ and both men move on. Grade: .5
 
After the match, Test knocks the ref down and stomps on him until Rikishi pounds on him and Test ducks a shot, but Rikishi hits a superkick and goes up to the middle rope as he hits the Banzai Drop on Test.
 
We see Ric Flair hosting his own Christmas party in his office and he says that they are partying tonight as he introduces “Tajiri Claus” who has Torrie Wilson on his lap, and she asks if she gets a present and he hands her one out of his bag as she opens it to reveal sexy lingerie. We also see Edge and Albert tell Kane he needs to get in the spirit as Albert puts a Santa hat on him and Edge puts two bows on his mask, and everyone asks Big Show to do an impression as he does one of Hulk Hogan and then Debra comes in with a tray of Christmas cookies as she says that Steve Austin is on his way.
 
Commercial break
 
We go back to Vince’s Christmas party as Booker admires the stripper and Billy Gunn and Chuck Palumbo exchange gifts as they reveal matching headbands with their names on them, and Tazz goes over to Bubba and tells him he needs to do a better job in being Santa and has no class as Bubba says Tazz is mad his elves are taller than him before telling him to leave. Just then, Howard Finkel comes in and says he brought the best entertainment for the party as he brings in the Fabulous Moolah and Mae Young.
 
2. “The One” Billy Gunn and Chuck Palumbo defeat the APA when Billy pins Bradshaw at 1:49.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is our lone tag match of the night. The APA have been cruising in the tag division and look to get a win here over Billy and Chuck, who have been gaining steam as a team and look to get a big win here. The APA get a good pop from the crowd while Billy and Chuck had decent heat as heels. The APA waste no time and attack Billy and Chuck to start the match as Bradshaw sends Billy to the outside and Faarooq pounds on Chuck in the corner, and Billy rolls back into the ring and nails Faarooq from behind as he stomps on him in the corner along with Chuck. Chuck hits a discus punch on Faarooq and hoists him onto his shoulders though Faarooq slides off and gets a kick in as he hits a DDT, and Bradshaw tags in and hits a big boot on Billy as he knocks both men down and then he hits a big boot on Chuck. He hits a powerslam on Billy for a two count as Chuck breaks it up and Faarooq nails him before hitting a spinebuster on Billy, and Chuck hits the Jungle Kick on Faarooq as Bradshaw hits the Clothesline from Hell on Chuck and Billy gets a kick in. He ducks a shot and Bradshaw catches him on a leap only for Chuck to trip him up from the floor as Billy falls on top and Chuck holds the leg down which gets the three and they win the match. The match itself was nothing much as both teams did what they could for the 2 minutes they got and put on a quick match. The crowd was into the match and the APA, but are not happy when Billy and Chuck win. Billy and Chuck get the win over the APA and both teams move on. Grade: .5
 
We see Rob Van Dam looking for someone backstage.
 
Commercial break
 
We see Rob Van Dam go into Chris Jericho’s dressing room though Lance Storm is there and he asks if RVD is looking for someone, and Storm says Jericho is busy preparing for his match and he wanted him to tell RVD he blew his chance and he doesn’t deal with losers. RVD asks if that’s why Storm is here and he might want to do something about it as he wants him to Jericho that the messenger boy will get his ass kicked tonight.
 
We go back to Ric Flair’s Christmas party as Arn Anderson comes in and Flair hands him a beer as Steve Austin then comes in behind him, and he tosses everyone beers out of his cooler before turning his attention to Tajiri as he sits on his lap and pulls out a list which he reads off while everyone says “What”.
 
Commercial break
 
3. Rob Van Dam pins Lance Storm with the 5-Star Frog Splash at 2:27.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is a pretty big matchup. These two men had a confrontation earlier in the night and now they face off here to settle their issues. RVD gets a big pop from the crowd while Storm had solid heat as a heel. The two men waste no time and brawl to start as Storm gets a knee in and RVD reverses a whip only for Storm to catch him ducking with a kick, and RVD ducks a spin kick and hits one of his own only for Storm to hit a jawbreaker as he leaps over the top and hotshots RVD on the top rope. He hits a springboard clothesline on RVD for a two count and he hits a snapmare as he hooks a submission on, and he drives the knee into RVD’s back and goes back to the submission as RVD fights to his feet only for Storm to get a knee in. RVD blocks a German suplex with a pair of back elbows and he catches a kick attempt before hitting a spin kick on Storm, and he hits the Rolling Thunder on Storm for a two count and they trade blows with RVD taking control as he gets a pair of kicks in. He whips Storm into the corner and Storm blocks a monkey flip by shoving RVD to the mat as he hits a superkick for a two count, and he puts RVD on the top rope and pounds on him as he goes up himself only for RVD to land on his feet on a back superplex attempt. He hits a spin kick on Storm and goes up top as he hits the 5-Star Frog Splash which gets the three and he wins the match. The match itself was decent as both men worked hard for the 2 and a half minutes they got and put on a basic match. The crowd was into the match and popped for RVD when he won. RVD gets the win over Storm and both men move on. Grade: 1
 
We go back to Vince’s Christmas party where Test is staring at the stripper before turning his attention to Terri Runnels as she says that she’s the new host of Excess, and he says that he has some mistletoe for her as she brings up him losing to the Rock last week and he says Rock gut lucky. He asks if she wants some of him in her stocking though she refuses as Sharmell interviews Maven, who says that he’s having a great time at the party and he’s excited about Tough Enough 2 as he says the fight at the grocery store a few weeks ago was the funniest thing he’s seen. Just then, Booker T confronts him and asks if Maven is calling him a liar as he wants him in a match tonight to see how tough he is.
 
Commercial break
 
4. Torrie Wilson pins Stacy Keibler with a rollup at 1:54.
 
Stipulation: The two women would compete in a pool filled with eggnog
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is a pretty interesting matchup. These two women were cruising along as valets and they face off here in a pool of eggnog wearing Santa outfits. Wilson gets a good pop from the crowd while Keibler had solid heat as a heel. Keibler slaps Wilson in the face to start the match as she stomps on her and rips at her outfit before getting a kick in, and she slams Wilson into the eggnog and shoves her down twice before arguing with the ref until Wilson pulls both of them into the eggnog. Wilson shoves Keibler’s head into the eggnog twice until Keibler yanks her down and tries to hold her head in the eggnog, and they continue to brawl as Wilson spanks Keibler’s ass repeatedly and hooks a rollup which gets the three and she wins the match. The match itself was nothing much as it was just a way to have both women fight in a Christmas-themed match. The crowd was into the match and popped for Wilson when she won. Wilson gets the win over Keibler and both women move on. Grade: .5
 
We go back to Vince’s Christmas party as the Dudleyz rant about Stacy losing her match though they say she looks good anyway, and then Chris Jericho comes in and says that he is the Undisputed Champion with a problem as he wasn’t expecting to be in a Triple Threat match tonight. Vince says that there’s no conspiracy as it’s all about the odds and to put himself in Vince’s shoes, but just then Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley comes in and says that she knows Vince doesn’t want to see her but she wanted to give him a Christmas present. She says that she hopes he would accept it tonight and he opens it to reveal a personalized money clip as she says she engraved it herself, and he asks what she’s up to and she says that she wanted to see him again as he tells her not to give him that crap. He says that she’s trying to manipulate him as she starts crying and he says he doesn’t want her at his party as she leaves, and he tells everyone to party and have a good time.
 
Commercial break
 
5. Christian pins the Hurricane (w/ Mighty Molly) with the Unprettier at 3:38 to retain the WWF European Championship.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is our first title match of the night. Christian has been rolling as European Champion and faces a tough challenge here in Hurricane, who was back in the WWF and looks to become champion again. Hurricane gets a good pop from the crowd while Christian had solid heat as a heel. Hurricane ducks a shot and hits a hiptoss to start the match as he knocks Christian down and clotheslines him over the top to the floor, and he hits a slingshot somersault senton onto Christian on the floor and throws him back into the ring as he looks for the Eye of the Hurricane. Christian gets a knee in and hits a low blow on Hurricane as he stomps on him repeatedly and hits a pair of gutwrench gutbusters, and he continues to stomp on Hurricane and chokes him on the mat as he hits a snapmare and kicks him in the back. Hurricane tries to battle back only for Christian to catch him with a knee to the ribs for a two count and he pounds on him on the mat, and he chokes him again and Hurricane ducks a shot as he hits a high crossbody for a two count and Christian hits a clothesline for a two count. He grabs Hurricane’s cape only for Molly to take it from him and he scares her to the floor as Hurricane fires up on him, and he ducks a shot and hits a neckbreaker on Christian as he pounds on him and Christian reverses a whip into the corner. Hurricane catches him with a boot to the face and goes up to the middle rope as he hits a modified neckbreaker for a two count, and Christian backdrops him over the top to the floor and then he hits a baseball slide that knocks both Hurricane and Molly down. He throws Hurricane back into the ring and hits the Unprettier which gets the three and he retains the title. The match itself was decent as both men worked hard and put on a solid title match. Christian was hitting his groove by this point while Hurricane was getting back into a groove, and they had good chemistry as Christian gets a clean title defense. The crowd was into the match and Hurricane, but are not happy when Christian wins. Christian retains the title over Hurricane and both men move on. Grade: 1.5
 
We go back to Flair’s Christmas party as Tajiri Claus is handing out gifts to everyone as Tazz comes in and compliments Tajiri being Santa as Vince is saying his Santa is better, and Austin says that Tazz is trying to stir something up and Tazz says that Vince is the one saying his Santa is better as Austin says there should be a battle of the Santas which Flair agrees to.
 
Commercial break
 
6. Booker T (w/ the Big Bossman) pins Maven with a spinebuster at 3:10.
 
Analysis: Our next match on the card is a pretty interesting matchup. Booker confronted Maven earlier in the night and now they face off here to settle their issues. Maven gets a decent pop from the crowd while Booker was pretty hot as a heel. The two men lock up to start with Booker getting a series of knees in and he hits a slam on Maven as he tosses him into the corner, and Maven battles back as Booker reverses a whip and Maven ducks a shot before hitting a pair of dropkicks on Booker who blocks a third one. He hits a clothesline on Maven and pounds on him as he rams him into the buckle and pounds on him in the corner, and Maven ducks a shot only for Booker to hit a side kick for a two count and he slaps Maven in the face before hitting another side kick. He stomps on Maven and hits a superkick as Maven tries to battle back only for Booker to hit a back elbow, and then he hits the scissors kick on Maven and does the Spinaroonie as he hits a spinebuster which gets the three and he wins the match. The match was pretty much a squash as Maven got a few shots in, but he puts Booker over strong in 3 minutes. The crowd was into the match and Maven, but are not happy when Booker wins. Booker gets the win over Maven and both men move on. Grade: 1
 
We see the Dudley Boyz walking down the hallway.
 
We see Tajiri walking down the hallway.
 
Commercial break
 
7. Tajiri pins Bubba Ray Dudley (w/ D-Von Dudley) with a kick to the head at 5:20.
 
Analysis: Our last match before the main event is a pretty interesting one. Both men have been playing Santa Claus at their Christmas parties and now they face off here to see who is the better Santa. Tajiri gets a good pop from the crowd while Bubba had solid heat as a heel. The two men square off to start the match until D-Von distracts Tajiri and Bubba pounds on him before ramming the knee into him, and Tajiri ducks a shot and hits a spin kick on Bubba who rolls outside to regroup as Tajiri goes out to the apron and hits a springboard moonsault onto Bubba. He throws Bubba back into the ring and kicks at him before pounding on him only for Bubba to duck a shot as he hits the Bubba Bomb, and he throws Tajiri to the outside and D-Von pounds on him before throwing him back into the ring as Bubba drops a trio of elbows on Tajiri for a two count. He rams Tajiri into the buckle and pounds on him in the corner as he rams the knee into him and he takes his belt off, and he whips Tajiri with the belt repeatedly and hits a neckbreaker for a two count as he hits a short clothesline and goes up to the middle rope only to miss the senton. Tajiri hits a low dropkick for a two count and he kicks at Bubba repeatedly as Bubba reverses a whip and Tajiri hits the handspring elbow, and he goes up top only for D-Von to crotch him on the top rope as Bubba goes up himself and hits a superplex. He hits a slam on Tajiri and holds his legs up while D-Von goes up top only for Tazz to come down to ringside and he shoves D-Von off the top as he gets crotched on the top rope, and Bubba gets distracted as Tajiri sprays red mist in his face and kicks him in the head which gets the three and he wins the match. The match itself was decent as both men worked hard and put on a solid match. Tajiri was getting into a groove by this point while Bubba looked decent in this solo outing, and they had good chemistry as Tazz helps Tajiri get the win. The crowd was into the match and popped for Tajiri when he won. Tajiri gets the win over Bubba and both men move on. Grade: 2
 
We go to Vince’s Christmas party as they are not happy with what just happened when Kurt Angle comes in, and he says that he won’t disappoint them as he will become the Undisputed Champion and he will make sure Rock doesn’t win in his hometown by stripping him of his dignity and pride. Just then, Mae Young asks if someone said “strip” as she gets on the stage and does a striptease as everyone leaves and Vince tells Moolah to stop her.
 
Commercial break
 
We see a shot outside the Miami Arena.
 
We see highlights from last week of the Undertaker taking out the Hardy Boyz and Lita.
 
We go back to Vince’s Christmas party as Mae Young continues to strip while Vince asks Moolah to have her stop and Patterson and Brisco are having fun, but then a tree moves up to them and Steve Austin appears from behind it as he assaults Vince and shoves Brisco’s head into the punch bowl. He throws him over the table and rams Patterson’s head into the stage before forcing his head between Young’s legs.
 
Commercial break
 
8. Chris Jericho defeats the Rock and Kurt Angle in a Triple Threat match when he pins Rock at 12:44 to retain the WWF Undisputed Championship.
 
Analysis: After a fairly quick and interesting night of wrestling, we come to our main event. Jericho has been rolling as Undisputed Champion and faces a tough challenge here as both Rock and Angle look to become champion. Rock gets a huge pop from his hometown crowd while Jericho and Angle were red hot as heels. The three men square off to start as Angle and Jericho surround Rock who knocks Jericho down and Angle knocks Rock down, and both men stomp on Rock repeatedly and continue to stomp on him in the corner as they pound on him. They whip Rock into the other corner as Rock ducks a shot and hits a clothesline on Angle before knocking Jericho down, and he kicks at Angle and hits a suplex as he goes for a pin only to avoid an elbow from Jericho who hits Angle instead. Rock nails Jericho and looks for the Rock Bottom only for Angle to nail him and he hits a belly-to-belly suplex on Rock, and both men stomp on Rock repeatedly and pound on him in the corner as Jericho chokes Rock until Angle pulls him off and pounds on Rock. Both men go outside and pull Rock out with them as they ram him into the announce table repeatedly until Rock blocks a ram and he rams both men into the table repeatedly, but Angle gets a shot in and Jericho pounds on Rock as he whips him into a clothesline from Angle who tries the same thing only for Rock to hit a clothesline on Jericho. Angle charges only for Rock to send him into the steps and he throws Jericho back into the ring as Jericho begs off, and Rock pounds on him until Jericho reverses a whip and hits a spin kick on Rock for a two count as he hits a suplex on Rock for a two count. He stomps on Rock repeatedly and pounds on him in the corner as he continues to stomp on him and chokes him on the ropes, and he whips Rock into the other corner and hits the running bulldog only for Rock to get his knees up on the Lionsault. He nails Jericho who reverses a whip and Angle trips Rock up from the floor as Jericho hits a standing dropkick on Rock, and Angle gets in the ring and pounds on Rock on the mat as Jericho also pounds on Rock who holds the ropes on a whip. He backdrops Jericho over the top to the floor and pounds on Angle who counters a whip with a short clothesline, and he stomps on Rock repeatedly and pounds on him as Rock reverses a whip and hits a belly-to-belly suplex on Angle for a two count as Jericho breaks it up. He pounds on Rock on the mat and both men continue to pound on Rock who ducks a double clothesline attempt and hits one of his own, and he fires up on both men as he avoids Jericho who hits a clothesline on Angle and Rock hits a Samoan drop on Jericho. He pounds on Angle in the corner and Angle hits a falling headbutt to Jericho’s groin though Angle gets a shot in on Rock, and he chokes Rock on the ropes and pounds on him as Rock reverses a whip and sends Angle into Jericho who gets knocked off the apron. Rock catches a kick attempt and snaps Angle to the mat as he hooks the Sharpshooter on and Jericho gets in the ring, and Rock breaks the hold and hits the spinebuster on Jericho as he hits the People’s Elbow for a two count as Angle breaks it up. He hooks the Ankle Lock on Rock only for Jericho to hit a dropkick on Angle to break it up and they exchange shoves, and then Jericho pounds on Angle who counters a whip as he hits a German suplex only for Jericho to roll through. He looks for the Walls of Jerich only for Angle to trip him up and he hooks the Ankle Lock on Jericho though Rock hits a clothesline on Angle to break it up, and he pounds on Jericho and avoids a flying forearm as Jericho takes out the ref and Rock trips Jericho up. He hooks the Walls of Jericho on Jericho who taps out though the ref is still down as Angle brings a chair into the ring, and Rock avoids the swing as Angle hits Jericho in the head with the chair and Rock ducks another swing. He pounds on Angle and counters a whip as he hits the Rock Bottom only for Jericho to keep the ref from counting, and Rock stomps on Jericho repeatedly until Angle gets a kick in and hits a DDT on the chair though hurts himself as Jericho gets the three and retains the title. The match itself was pretty good as all three men worked hard and put on a solid title match. All three men were hitting their stride and had great chemistry as Rock tries to overcome the odds, but Jericho manages to escape with the belts. The crowd was into the match and Rock, but are not happy when Jericho wins. Jericho retains the title over Rock and Angle as all three men move on. Grade: 3
 
After the match, Jericho celebrates with the belts as we go off the air.
 
Final Analysis: Overall, this edition of RAW was a pretty fun episode given that it was a taped episode. Obviously with this being Christmas Eve, they wanted the crew to have some time off so they taped this episode in advance a few days and did a fun job making it feel special for a holiday episode. We did get two title matches as Jericho and Christian retain their titles while Rikishi, Billy, Chuck, RVD, Wilson, Booker, and Tajiri get big wins, and in terms of the matches the main event was easily the best while most of the show was centered around the Christmas parties and the festive atmosphere. 2001 has been a great year for the company and as we head into 2002, we will see if they keep the momentum going amidst what will be some major changes coming. As for this show, it is a fun and festive show to close out what was a very hot 2001. Final Grade: B-