January 2001: Royal Rumble, New Orleans, Louisiana

• Tag Team Championship: DUDLEY BOYZ v. EDGE & CHRISTIAN (champions)
  Although still feeling the after-effects of a vicious chair attack and con-chair-to from the preceding Monday, Bubba Ray and D-Von went into the match strong and fought well.  This didn't stop the Canadian brothers from attempting to give D-Von another con-chair-to, but fortunately he ducked.  Bubba got the tag and cleaned house, setting Edge up for the Wazzup! headbutt, and then telling D-Von to "Get the tables!"  Christian stopped the table search while Bubba was speared by Edge.  Edge and Christian tried to do their own version of the Wazzup! headbutt to Bubba, but he reversed it so Christian delivered it to his own partner!  The Dudleys came back and hit the 3D on Edge for the pin -- and thus regaining the Tag Team Championship!
  (Winners, and new WWF Tag Team Champions: the Dudley Boyz via 3-D)
• TV comedian, sitcom star, and Triple H "mark" DREW CAREY arrived and spoke to Triple H and Stephanie.  Steph took him to see Mr. McMahon, but first decided to introduce him to Trish Stratus.
• Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match: CHRIS JERICHO v. CHRIS BENOIT (champion)
  The two heated rivals were out to destroy one another in this match up, which lived up to its hype as being a possible Match-of-the-Year candidate.  Among the spots used were Jericho smashing Benoit with a chair as the Crippler attempted to hit a tope through the ropes, and then Y2J locking the Walls of Jericho on Benoit on top of the ladder!  Benoit would battle back, but ultimately Jericho knocked him off the ladder and ascended to take down the belt and reclaim the Intercontinental Championship!
  (Winner, and new WWF Intercontinental Champion: Chris Jericho)
• Drew Carey spoke with TRISH STRATUS as MR. McMAHON returned.  The chairman stated that he was giving Carey a chance to participate in the Royal Rumble!  Shortly thereafter, Chris Jericho told Michael Cole that he had just proven Benoit wrong!
• Women's Championship: CHYNA v. IVORY (champion) (w/ STEVEN RICHARDS)
  Returning a month after suffering a heinous spike piledriver at the hands of Val Venis and Ivory, Chyna was out for revenge, despite having been asked by doctors and her friend Billy Gunn not to enter the ring.  Chyna was dominant in the match, laying waste to male and female censor alike, but she apparently aggravated her injury when attempting her handspring back elbow on Ivory.  Ivory quickly took advantage of the situation to pin her and retain the title as EMTs came to check on Chyna.
  (Winner, and still WWF Women's Champion: Ivory, via injury)
• Drew Carey got his ring attire from Harvey Whippleman, then got the silent treatment from Kane.  Meanwhile, Mr. McMahon informed TIGER ALI-SINGH and LO DOWN that he had given their Royal Rumble spot to Drew Carey.
• WWF Championship: TRIPLE H (w/ STEPHANIE McMAHON-HELMSLEY) v. KURT ANGLE (champion) (w/ TRISH STRATUS)
  During the preceding month, all signs seemed to indicate a more-than-business relationship between Trish and Vince McMahon, a fact which served to infuriate Steph.
  During the match, Steph and Trish both began to fight each other, even fighting on top of the Spanish announce table, prompting Vince to come to the ring to try and separate them -- to no avail.  Finally, Mr. McMahon picked Trish up and carried her off on his shoulder, but Steph tackled them as she fought with Trish to the back.  Meanwhile, Triple H had injured Angle's knee with a steel chair and various submission holds, but Angle would not quit.  He reversed a Pedigree into a slingshot, but reinjured his knee in the process.  Referee Earl Hebner was knocked out during the match, so when Angle hit a big-time armdrag on Triple H from the top rope, there was no one to count the pin.  Triple H fought back, managing to hit the Pedigree, but Hebner was still out and couldn't make the count.  Suddenly, Stone Cold Steve Austin came to the ring, pasted the Game with the title belt and then a Stone Cold Stunner.  Hebner was revived and then counted the pin, allowing Angle to retain the title.
  (Winner, and still WWF Champion: Kurt Angle via Austin's Stone Cold Stunner)
• Royal Rumble: JEFF HARDY and BULL BUCHANAN were the first two in the ring, but it wasn't until Jeff's brother MATT HARDY arrived that Buchanan was the first eliminated.  The Hardys fought each other, only teaming up briefly to eliminate the next entrant, FAAROOQ. DREW CAREY came out next, obviously enjoying himself as he sat back to watch the Hardys fight and eliminate each other!  KANE was next out, much to Carey's dismay.  Fortunately, Carey was saved from a chokeslam by RAVEN.  Carey hastily jumped over the top rope and eliminated himself.  AL SNOW came out to add to the mix, bringing a little hardcore action to it, and then PERRY SATURN and STEVE BLACKMAN came out.  Hardcore weapons were used all around as GRANDMASTER SEXAY came out.  They all worked together to try and eliminate Kane, but to no avail.  Kane roared back and cleared the ring, as HONKY TONK MAN came to the ring.  Honky Tonk tried to entertain the crowd with a song, but Kane clobbered him with his guitar and eliminated him.  THE ROCK ran out and battled with Kane until GOODFATHER ran down to the ring -- whereupon The Rock eliminated him and turned back to Kane.  Kane dominated for a full minute until TAZZ (#15) ran down -- only to be immediately whipped over the ropes and out of the match. BRADSHAW (#16) came out and took down both The Rock and Kane with his brawling tactics. ALBERT (#17) came out next to go after The Rock.  HARDCORE HOLLY (#18), K-KWIK (#19), VAL VENIS (#20), and WILLIAM REGAL (#21) were all out next, and Regal was the next man eliminated two mintues later by TEST (#22).  The next entrant was the fresh return of the BIG SHOW (#24), who eliminated Test and K-Kwik upon arrival.  Big Show chokeslammed everyone in sight -- except The Rock, who managed to eliminate him.  Show pulled The Rock out under the ropes to punish him, but since The Rock hadn't gone over the top rope, he wasn't eliminated -- although he was lying amidst the wreckage of the announce table, which Big Show had chokeslammed him through.  Everyone in the ring was trying to eliminate Kane, but then the UNDERTAKER (#25) arrived.  The two brothers cleared the ring and stared at each other as SCOTTY 2 HOTTY (#26) came to the ring.  Scotty was very very nervous as he entered the ring -- and was promptly thrown right back out. STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN (#27) was the next to enter, but before he could even make it to the ring, he was blindsided by an incensed Triple H, who left him bloodied outside the ring as The Rock made it back into the ring to brawl with the Undertaker and Kane.  BILLY GUNN (#28) entered the fray, followed by the returning Islander HAKU (#29) -- who went after Taker.  RIKISHI, the 30th and final entrant, was out next, but he caught the eye of Austin, who traded punches with him on the way to the ring.  Haku was eliminated, and then Taker by Rikishi.  The Samoan turned his attentions to The Rock, but the People's Champion was able to throw him over the top.  Billy Gunn soon followed.  The Rock nearly eliminated Kane when he threw him through the ropes -- but since it wasn't over the top, Kane got back in and eliminated The Rock.  Austin and Kane duked it out, until finally Austin hit a Stunner on the Big Red Monster, then relentlessly pounded him with a steel chair before pushing him over the top rope.  Stone Cold will go on to face the WWF Champion at Wrestlemania X-Seven in Houston!
  (Winner: Stone Cold Steve Austin, last eliminating Kane)

• Hardcore Championship: BIG SHOW v. RAVEN (champion)
  Raven was quite the underdog in this match, as Big Show absorbed almost everything that got thrown at him. Eventually, CRASH ran out to the ring (disguised as a popcorn vendor) and attempted to take the title himself! Soon, STEVE BLACKMAN, HARDCORE HOLLY, and BILLY GUNN all got involved as well -- and Gunn even managed to capture the Hardcore title, only to lose it back to Raven. Soon, however, Big Show delivered a chokeslam to Raven on a trashcan to pick up the win.
  (Winner, and new WWF Hardcore Champion: Big Show, via chokeslam onto trashcan)
• Fatal Fourway Intercontinental Championship Match: EDDIE GUERRERO v. CHRIS BENOIT v. X-PAC v. CHRIS JERICHO (champion)
  Like the previous champion, Jericho was the underdog here, as he took on three men who all had reason to hate him. Benoit and Jericho were long-time rivals, and X-Pac and Guerrero had both been sidelined with injury because of Y2J. The two Radicalz worked together well throughout the match, but soon they started fighting each other over who would get the title. Guerrero suffered a Swandive Headbutt from Benoit, who then took a spinning heel kick to the face from X-Pac, who was promptly rolled up by Jericho to retain his title!
  (Winner, and still WWF Intercontinental Champion: Chris Jericho, via roll-up)
• STEPHANIE McMAHON-HELSMELY v. TRISH STRATUS
  This match was suggested to Vince McMahon by lackey William Regal , who said it was an excellent way for the two women to determine once and for all who the "dominant female" of the WWF was. Trish, you see, had become Vince's paramour, a fact which infuriated Steph.
  The two women cat-fought and actually did bust out some wrestling moves -- as Trish tried to hurracanrana Steph, Mrs. Game powerbombed her to the mat. In the end, both women hit a facebuster on each other, and then WILLIAM REGAL ran out (after Mr. McMahon told him that "he knew what to do" during the match) and put Trish on top of Stephanie. As the ref counted the fall, Regal second-guessed himself and put Steph's foot on the ropes. When Trish slapped him, Regal gave her a Regal Cutter, and Steph made the cover to pick up the win!
  (Winner: Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley, via the Regal Cutter (cobra clutch neckbreaker))
• Three Stages of Hell (One-on-One, Street Fight, Steel Cage) Match: TRIPLE H v. STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN
  The history of hatred between these two men was absolutely intense leading into this match. The feud went back at least a year, to Triple H's masterminding a plot to have Austin run down by a car. Triple H had then screwed Austin out of the WWF title in late December, a favor which Austin had returned at Royal Rumble. More recently Austin had Stunner'd Stephanie and Triple H had Pedigree'd Jim Ross.
  In the first fall, which Triple H had designed to "break Austin's spirit," the two men brawled more than wrestled. Finally, Austin hit a Stunner to get the first fall. (1-0 Austin) In the Street Fight, both men were busted wide open by various attacks, and Austin found Cactus Jack's old barbed-wire 2x4 as Triple H pulled out his trusty sledgehammer. Ultimately, Triple H blasted Austin with the sledge and hit the Pedigree to tie the match. (1-1 tie) In the Steel Cage, both men were near exhaustion already, and went all-out in their attempt to take down the other guy. They both kicked out of each other's finishers, and in the end, hit each other simultaneously with their chosen weapons. Triple H ended up falling on top of Austin, and thus picked up the win.
  (Winner, by a score of 2-1: Triple H)
• JERRY "THE KING" LAWLER (w/ THE KAT) v. STEVEN RICHARDS (w/ IVORY)
  The stipulations of this match stated that if Lawler won, Kat was allowed to strip totally naked on the PPV, but if he lost, then Kat would be forced to join Right to Censor.
  Lawler was dominant through much of the match, causing Richards to tear his shirt off in frustration! Soon, however, Ivory slid her title belt to Richards, who tried to use it on Lawler. He failed, but as he grabbed Lawler from behind, Kat tried to hit Richards with the belt -- but hit Lawler instead! Ivory held Kat away as the referee counted the pin, and Kat was dragged off by a victorious Right to Censor.
  (Winner: Steven Richards, via Kat's belt-shot)
• Tag Team Championship Tables Match: UNDERTAKER & KANE v. EDGE & CHRISTIAN v. DUDLEY BOYZ (champions)
  The rules of this match were simple -- put somebody from one of the other teams through a table and you win. The "Brothers of Destruction" were the dominant force in this match, hitting stereo chokeslams, powerslams, and even flying clotheslines to the other teams. However, the Brothers' nemeses, HAKU and RIKISHI, ran out and brawled with them, leaving Edge & Christian to the Dudleys, who scored a 3D through a table on Christian for the win.
  (Winners, and still WWF Tag Team Champions: the Dudley Boyz, via 3-D)
• WWF Championship: THE ROCK v. KURT ANGLE (champion)
  This was it -- The Rock's last chance to go to WrestleMania's main event. The Rock had warned Angle that his reign as Champion was over -- and Angle warned Rock that he was not letting Rock win. Both men went all out in this match -- as Angle tried to force The Rock to submit to his vicious Angle Lock hold, showing a previously-unseen sadistic side to his personality. Angle soon exposed a turnbuckle and used it on Rock's head, but even after that and an Olympic Slam, The Rock kicked out. Rock threw Angle's head into the exposed bolt, then hit a Rock Bottom -- but Angle managed to squeak a shoulder up! Rock hit a second Rock Bottom, and this time got the win. The Rock is going to WrestleMania!
  (Winner, and new WWF Champion: The Rock, via the Rock Bottom)

April 2001: Wrestlemania X-Seven, Houston, Texas
Theme Music: "My Way" by Limp Bizkit

• Intercontinental Championship: WILLIAM REGAL v. CHRIS JERICHO (champion)
  Regal actually had something of a conflicting interest by booking this match, but it didn't stop the Commissioner. He focused heavily on Jericho's shoulder, putting pressure on it and even throwing it into an exposed turnbuckle, but Jericho would rally and bounce Regal's head off that same turnbuckle and hit the Lionsault for the win!
  (Winner, and still WWF Intercontinental Champion: Chris Jericho, via the Lionsault)
• APA (w/ JACQUELINE) & TAZZ v. RIGHT TO CENSOR (w/ STEVEN RICHARDS)
  Steven tried to start off by addressing the crowd, but Tazz's entrance put a stop to it. Prior to the match, a backstage segment featured Bradshaw waxing nostalgic about the importance of the Astrodome, so the Acolytes (especially Bradshaw) were quite pumped up going into this match. Tazz would end up taking a beating from RTC (even suffering a concussion), but eventually made the tag to Bradshaw, who cleaned house, hitting fall-away slams on both Goodfather and Val Venis. After Goodfather missed the Censored Train on Bradshaw, the big Texan all but beheaded him with a Clothesline from Hell to pick up the win and start Right to Censor on a massive losing streak.
  (Winners: Acolytes & Tazz, via the Clothesline from Hell lariat)
• Hardcore Championship: KANE v. BIG SHOW v. RAVEN (champion)
  Raven didn't waste any time as he attacked Kane before Big Show could even make it to the match. Soon, however, the three began brawling to the backstage, where Raven was thrown through a window by Kane! Big Show then threw Kane through a door and prepared to chokeslam him, but Kane grabbed him and the two crashed through a wall! Raven attempted to escape by commandeering a golf cart, but Big Show derailed him. They brawled back out to the TitanTron, where Show military pressed Raven -- but then Kane kicked Show, who toppled through the stage with Raven! Kane then executed a leg drop on Show to make the cover and become the Hardcore Champion!
  (Winner, and new WWF Hardcore Champion: Kane, via legdrop)
• European Championship: EDDIE GUERRERO (w/ PERRY SATURN) v. TEST (champion)
  Test was on fire during this match, but Guerrero was fired up as well and took it to the big ex-bodyguard. Saturn did wind up getting involved, but got nailed with Test's Big Boot to put him down -- but when Test hit the pumphandle slam on Guerrero, DEAN MALENKO ran out and pulled him off, only to get manhandled by Test. Malenko slingshot him off the ropes, right into a waiting title belt-shot from Guerrero, who promptly covered Test to become the European Champion!
  (Winner, and new WWF European Champion: Eddie Guerrero, via belt-shot)
• KURT ANGLE v. CHRIS BENOIT
  Angle was booked into this match after complaining that despite being the best wrestler in the WWF, he had no match at Wrestlemania, prompting Benoit -- who likewise had no match yet -- to come out and point out that he was the best technical wrestler in the WWF, and demand a match. Angle was also furious that after that match was booked, Benoit forced him to tap out to the Crossface in a non-match setting! Angle insisted that, because it wasn't a match, he hadn't tapped out, and so was determined to prove Benoit wrong in this match-up.
  Both men tried their submissions and finishers on the other in this match -- as well as show off some decent chain wrestling -- but were unable to get the tap-out or pinfall. Eventually, Angle would roll up Benoit and grab a handful of tights to hold him down and get the win!
  (Winner: Kurt Angle, via roll-up & tight-grab)
• Women's Championship: CHYNA v. IVORY (champion)
  Ivory was somewhat confident going into this match -- given that she'd shelved Chyna twice with a neck injury -- in addition to the fact that she'd forced Chyna to sign a release that prevented her from blaming Right to Censor if Chyna were to be re-injured in this match. What Ivory didn't realize was that same contract prevented the rest of RTC from being at ringside! Chyna absolutely dominated the Women's Champion in this match, and finally beat her with a military press drop to become the new champion!
  (Winner, and new WWF Women's Champion: Chyna, via military press drop)
• Street Fight: VINCE McMAHON (w/ STEPHANIE McMAHON-HELMSLEY) v. SHANE McMAHON - with Special Guest Referee MICK FOLEY
  Shane made his triumphant return to the WWF weeks earlier in response to Vince and Trish Stratus' constant public sexual overtones, and had had enough of it. He challenged his father to a Street Fight, and the WWF Chairman readily accepted, then told his son that he'd never, ever forgive his mother for giving birth to him! A week earlier, Vince had made sports entertainment history when he purchased WCW -- his own competition -- but Vince's ego got the better of him: he had not finalized the contract, wanting Ted Turner to sign it over at Wrestlemania, and Shane stepped in and bought WCW right out from under his father's nose. That same night, Mick Foley had returned and revealed that prior to his firing, he and Linda McMahon had had a lengthy signing session, during which Foley signed several contracts -- one of which enabled him to appoint himself Special Referee at the Wrestlemania match of his choosing, which wound up being Vince's match!
  Vince went on the offensive early, but Shane rallied and pounded his father with a kendo stick and some fast punches. He set his father up on the Spanish announce table for a top-rope elbow drop, but Stephanie moved him out of the way, causing Shane to crash through the table! Then TRISH STRATUS wheeled out a comatose LINDA McMAHON in a wheelchair and went over to Vince, helping him up -- then slapping him across the face! Stephanie started fighting with her, and Foley had to separate them, then chased off Steph when she slapped Mick! Vince noticed his wife at last and menaced her, only to be stopped by Foley. Vince clobbered him with a chair while his back was turned, then set his wife up in the corner to watch as he brutalized Shane with garbage cans. Finally, as Vince was setting up to brain his son again, Shane pointed behind Vince, who turned to see that Linda had risen from her chair! As he stood dumbstruck, Linda hauled off and kicked him square in the gonads! Foley pummeled Vince with right hands, then rammed his face with his knee in the corner. Shane picked up the garbage can and set it on his father's lap, then ascended to the opposite corner and executed a Van Terminator dropkick to the can -- sending it right back into his father's face! Shane then scored the pinfall and left with his mother in victory.
  (Winner: Shane McMahon, via Van Terminator to a garbage can)
• TLC II Tag Team Championship: EDGE & CHRISTIAN v. HARDY BOYZ v. DUDLEY BOYZ (champions)
  This match is simply too awe-inspiring to describe, but here goes: all three teams went all-out in this match, and all three teams' third partners got involved. Bubba Ray Dudley would end up powerbombing Jeff Hardy onto Edge -- and through a table. Little SPIKE DUDLEY, the runt of the litter, would come down and hit the Dudley Dog (a tornado bulldog) on Edge & Christian, and RHYNO -- E&C's buddy -- would come out and gore (spear) Matt Hardy through a table. LITA also got involved, nailing Spike with a chair, only to take a 3D for doing so. Jeff then hit a Swanton Bomb off a 20-foot ladder outside the ring -- onto Rhyno and Spike, sending both through tables! Jeff amazingly got back up and walked across the tops of three ladders to the hanging belts, but wound up dangling from the belts -- to take a 20-foot-high spear from Edge! Soon, Matt and Bubba Ray were knocked off a ladder and through a 2x2 stack of tables while D-Von Dudley tried to climb the ladder, being held back by Edge while Christian got an assist by Rhyno to climb the ladder and claim the title belts, becoming record-setting seven-time champions!
  (Winners, and new WWF Tag Team Champions: Edge & Christian)
• Gimmick Battle Royal: a unique time-filler match, this Battle Royal featured old WWF wrestlers with some of the most (in)famous gimmicks of all time. Guest commentators for this match were "MEAN" GENE OKERLUND and BOBBY "THE BRAIN" HEENAN. Featured in this match were KAMALA THE UGANDAN GIANT, KIMCHEE, EARTHQUAKE, TUGBOAT, DOINK THE CLOWN, DUKE "THE DUMPSTER" DROESE, ONE MAN GANG, SGT. SLAUGHTER, THE IRON SHIEK, NICKOLAI VOLKOFF, HILLBILLY JIM, BROTHER LOVE, JIM CORNETTE, THE GOOBLEDY GOOKER, and REPO MAN. The winner was the Iron Shiek (who, according to Internet rumors, was physically incapable of going over the top rope due to health problems), but Sgt. Slaughter got the last laugh when he locked the Shiek in the Cobra Clutch!
  (Winner: the Iron Shiek, last eliminating Hillbilly Jim)
• UNDERTAKER v. TRIPLE H
  This match came to be when Triple H, irate that despite being "that damn good" and being the top man in the business, claimed to have beaten everybody and not having a title shot at Wrestlemania. Undertaker was quick to point out that the Game had never beaten him. After weeks of backstage attacks and sneaky tricks by Triple H -- which included having him arrested, busting his head wide open (necessitating sixteen staples to close up) and destroying Taker's motorcycle -- Undertaker was ready to make Triple H famous -- right in his hometown of Houston!
  Triple H's theme was performed live by MOTÖRHEAD tonight. Taker was dominant in the early-going, but the Game rallied when he pulled the Deadman off the top-rope from his "old school" rope-walk. Taker came back with a powerful move, but the ref had been knocked out and was slow to count. Angry, Taker dropped an elbow on him, and the two began brawling through the crowd. Triple H climbed up a camera tower and brutalized Taker with a steel chair, but the American Badass chokeslammed him off the side of the tower to the floor below, then followed it with an elbow drop! Taker took Triple H back down to the ring, where the Game found his trusty sledgehammer. He then tried to lift Taker for a powerslam, but the Deadman reversed it -- and hit the Tombstone Piledriver! Triple H amazingly kicked out, and Taker menaced him with his own sledge, only to get a low-blow. The Game busted him open again with the hammer, only to then get his Pedigree reversed into a backdrop! Taker then lifted Triple H for a Last Ride, but the Game had his hammer and bludgeoned him with it! Triple H cornered Taker and punched him in the head in the corner, but Taker stood up and lifted Triple H, hitting the Last Ride from the corner for the pin!
  (Winner: Undertaker, via the Last Ride powerbomb)
• WWF Championship: STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN v. THE ROCK (champion):
  The tension was high going into this match. The two were at odds for weeks leading up to Wrestlemania, as both men knew they would face each other, and as Mr. McMahon diabolically named Austin's wife, Debra, manager for The Rock. This didn't sit well for either man, but after the two came to blows on several occasions -- even trading Stone Cold Stunners and Rock Bottoms -- McMahon removed her from The Rock's managerial position.
  Prior to the match, it was announced that the match would be a no-disqualification affair. When The Rock hit the ring, there was no epic staredown between the competitors -- Austin simply opened up on him. The two men brawled back and forth, busting each other open with the ring bell, and soon went for submissions! Rock locked Austin in the Sharpshooter, drawing a bit of nostalgia from the Rattlesnake's Wrestlemania 13 Submission Match with Bret Hart, but Austin got free. Soon, Austin would bust out the Million Dollar Dream -- a move he hasn't used in years! -- on The Rock, who got out by pushing off the corner and getting a pinning predicament, and Austin released him. Rock would then go on to hit Austin with his own version of the Stunner (the Roody Poo Stunner?), then a Rock Bottom -- but then MR. McMAHON came to ringside and pulled Rock off of Austin! Rock began chasing the Chairman, and ran back into the ring to walk into Austin's version of the Rock Bottom! (The Bottom Line?) The two continued to wear each other down, and soon it became clear that Austin was working with his sworn nemesis, Mr. McMahon, against The Rock. Austin directed Vince to get a chair, which he did, and the Rattlesnake held Rock in place for a vile chairshot from the boss. Austin then hit a Stone Cold Stunner -- but Rock kicked out! Furious, Austin began to hammer on Rock with the steel chair without mercy, and finally made the pin to once again become WWF Champion. But after the match, Austin went up to Vince and actually shook his hand, even sharing a beer with his once-archenemy, leaving a bloodied and broken Rock behind.
  (Winner, and new WWF Champion: Stone Cold Steve Austin, via chairshots)

April 2001: Backlash, Chicago, Illinois
Theme Music: "The Fight Song" by Marilyn Manson

• Pre-Backlash Matches
  JERRY LYNN, formerly of ECW, made his WWF debut against CRASH, defeating him to become the new Light-Heavyweight Champion; LITA then challenged MOLLY HOLLY and pinned her in an impromptu match.
• DUDLEY BOYZ v. X-FACTOR
  Just prior to Wrestlemania, X-Pac and Justin Credible allied themselves with Albert to form X-Factor, a group which soon fell on the Dudleys' badside when they attacked Spike backstage.
  Both teams went for the power plays, and soon Justin felt the Wazzup! headbutt. When Bubba Ray sent D-Von for wood, however, Albert nailed him with a Big Boot. This allowed Justin and X-Pac to hit the "X-Marks-the-Spot" double superkick for the win. After the match, the assault continued as X-Factor got out a table, but the Dudleys rallied and hit the 3D on X-Pac through the table!
  (Winners: X-Factor, via X-Marks-the-Spot stereo superkicks)
• Hardcore Championship: RAVEN v. RHYNO (champion)
  Raven had initially been slated to face Eddie Guerrero for the European Championship, but after Guerrero lost the belt to Matt Hardy, Raven was re-booked. Raven and Rhyno both went all-out to put the other man down with hardcore plunder, but soon Rhyno hit the Gore for the win.
  (Winner, and still WWF Hardcore Champion: Rhyno, via the Gore)
• Duchess of Queensberry Match: WILLIAM REGAL (w/ THE DUCHESS) v. CHRIS JERICHO
  Regal hadn't taken to kindly to Jericho's defeat of him at Wrestlemania, so he booked this most unusual match to get his revenge. The match would be fought under the prestigious "Duchess of Queensberry Rules" -- rules which Regal never actually got around to itemizing! Regal was accompanied by the Duchess of Queensberry herself, who sat in a throne at ringside. Jericho used his aerial tactics against Regal, and soon hit a Lionsault -- but before he could make the pin, the bell was rung and "round 1" of the contest was over! Regal locked Jericho in the Regal Stretch, but Jericho made it to the ropes. When Jericho responded to that by locking the Commissioner in the Walls of Jericho -- earning a tap-out -- the Duchess told Howard Finkel that submissions were illegal! When Jericho confronted the Duchess about this, Regal bashed him with the Duchess' scepter -- which was legal under the Duchess' "no-disqualifications" rule. Regal began to hit Jericho with a series of suplexes, but Jericho rallied by kicking Regal with a low-blow -- and sending him right into the Duchess! Jericho pulled the Duchess into the ring, where he locked her in the Walls of Jericho, only to get three chairshots from Regal, who made the cover for the win!
  (Winner: William Regal, via chairshots)
• Thirty-Minute Ultimate Submission Match: KURT ANGLE v. CHRIS BENOIT
  This match was booked as the feud between Angle and Benoit had not been settled at Wrestlemania. The rules of this Iron Man match indicated that only submissions would count, and the man with the most tap-outs earned at the end of the time limit would be the winner. The two men executed some mat wrestling for a bit, and then Benoit went for the Crossface, but Angle got to the ropes. Benoit then locked it on again outside the ring, earning a tap, but being outside the ring, it didn't count. Angle then locked an armbar on Benoit in the ring, getting a tap. (1-0 Angle - armbar) Benoit reversed a chop-block from Angle into the Crossface, and when that didn't work, he rolled it into an armbar, earning a tap-out. (1-1 tie - armbar) The two fought some more, and soon Angle hit Benoit with a chair and put on the anklelock, getting a tap-out. (2-1 Angle - anklelock) Angle then locked Benoit in his own Crossface hold, and the Wolverine tapped out! (3-1 Angle - Crossface) Angle continued to dissect the Crippler with a variety of painful moves, but soon Benoit rallied with a Sharpshooter, then a Boston Crab variant to get another tap-out! (3-2 Angle - Boston Crab) The two men fought back and forth some more, and then Angle locked on the ankelock for 300 seconds. Finally, Benoit managed to rally and hit two German suplexes, then locked Angle in his own specialty -- the anklelock, and Angle tapped out! (3-3 tie - anklelock) Time was short, and Angle managed to get Benoit in the anklelock again, but Benoit waited out the clock. The ref announced that the match must have a winner, so it would now be Sudden Death rules -- the next submission would determine the winner! Angle focused on Benoit's knee and ankle again, but Benoit reached deep down and rallied, locking the Crossface on Angle in the middle of the ring, forcing the Olympian to tap out!
  (Winner in Sudden Death, by a score of 4-3: Chris Benoit, via the Crossface)
• Last Man Standing Match: SHANE McMAHON v. BIG SHOW
  Vince was still sore over losing to his son Shane at Wrestlemania, and when he saw Shane continue to chat up WWF superstars, he assumed he was trying to recruit some of them to WCW. One such superstar was Big Show, and Vince called out his son and the Show to confront them -- and he did so to Show by reminding Show of his previous feud with Shane, recounting the taunts and insulting things Shane had said about him. Show allied himself with Vince, and was on a mission to destroy Shane in this match.
  Shane attacked Show with a kendo stick early on, but Show floored him with a single punch. Shane recovered and attacked Show repeatedly with a steel chair, but Show wouldn't stay down. Shane grabbed a rag soaked in chloroform and gassed Show with it, but then MR. McMAHON ran out and clobbered his son with a chair. Show got back up at 8 and pulled Shane up as well, continuing the brutalization. He continued to pull Shane up at 8, and then TEST -- whom Big Show had attacked the previous Smackdown! -- ran out to attack. Show went after Test, but gave Shane time to recover in doing so. Shane attacked, but an unfazed Show stalked him, forcing Shane to climb up the side of the TitanTron to escape him. Test knocked out Show, and then Shane made a jaw-dropping fifty-foot elbow drop on Show. Test propped Shane up, and Show was counted down, and Shane was the Last Man Standing!
  (Winner: Shane McMahon)
• Triple Threat European Championship: EDDIE GUERRERO v. CHRISTIAN v. MATT HARDY (champion)
  Initially, Eddie Guerrero was the champion and was scheduled to face Raven, but after Matt Hardy pinned Guerrero to become the new champ, Commissioner Regal shuffled things around. Guerrero, the singles specialist in this match, nearly had the match won a few times, but Matt and Christian were too tough to stay down. Soon, EDGE ran out to spear Matt outside the ring, prompting JEFF HARDY to run out and attack Edge. Inside, Christian hit the Unprettier on Matt, but Jeff hit the Swanton Bomb to break the pin, allowing Matt to hit the Twist of Fate to retain his title.
  (Winner, and still WWF European Champion: Matt Hardy, via the Twist of Fate)
• Three Titles Match: STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN (WWF Champion) & TRIPLE H (Intercontinental Champion) (w/ STEPHANIE McMAHON-HELMSLEY) v. KANE & UNDERTAKER (Tag Team Champions)
  The rules of this match stated that the man who got the pin would earn the other man's title for himself or his team. This guaranteed that there would be a title change. Kane's left arm was heavily bandaged -- leftover from a vile attack by Austin and Triple H two weeks earlier.
  Kane was targeted by the "Two-Man Power Trip" as his arm was attacked savagely, but Kane was able to rally back against them and tag in Undertaker. Taker dominated on Austin and Triple H for a while, until they double-teamed him and wore him down. Kane tagged in and -- despite having only one good arm -- took down the Game and the Rattlesnake. The Power Trip focused on his arm again, even using submission holds on it. Triple H hit a Pedigree on Kane, but tagged in Austin instead of covering. Taker came in the ring and chokeslammed Austin -- and Kane tried to make the legal tag, but the ref didn't see it. Taker sent Triple H on the Last Ride, but the ref didn't think he was the legal man and so didn't count the pin. Austin came in and hit a Stunner on Kane, then brawled with Taker outside. Triple H tried to hit Kane with a title belt, but Kane booted him down. He went for a chokeslam, but then stopped to hit Stephanie with a boot to the face as she ran in. Then MR. McMAHON came out with sledgehammer in hand -- which Triple H used on Kane and pinned him.
  (Winners, and new WWF Tag Team Champions: Triple H & Stone Cold Steve Austin, via sledgehammer-shot)

May 2001: Judgment Day, Sacremento, California

• WILLIAM REGAL v. RIKISHI
  This match was booked after the returning Rikishi turned against Mr. McMahon and the Two-Man Power Trip, with the McMahon-friendly Commissioner Regal pitting himself against the 400-pounder to punish him. Rikishi, for his part, was determined to Stink Face Regal, which, after much offense, he did. Regal, despite being on the verge of vomiting, roared back and threw Rikishi's injured shoulder into the steel ringpost and pinned him.
  (Winner: William Regal, via shoulder-to-post)
• Edge and Christian, pumped up for their match in Tag Team Turmoil, couldn't wait to become eight-type Tag Team Champions, and then told Kurt Angle -- who was worried about what to do if his upcoming match came to a third fall -- just to worry about getting his medals back.
• Three Stages of Hell Medals Match (Pinfalls, Submissions, Ladder): KURT ANGLE v. CHRIS BENOIT
  After losing to Benoit at Backlash, Angle was insistent that he had actually won the match (under IOC rules), and when Benoit came out to prove him wrong, the Wolverine knocked out Angle and stole his gold medals! This match was booked after weeks of frustration on Angle's part, with the first fall being decided by pinfalls only, the second by submissions only, and the third (if necessary) as a ladder match with the medals at the top.
  Before the match, Angle said he was going to get his medals back and prove to Benoit that he was the best technical wrestler in the WWF, and that this match had less of a chance getting to the third fall than Chris Webber did of returning to the NBA and leading the Sacremento Kings to a championship! As the match began, Benoit showed Angle that his medals were "safe and warm..." in his tights... next to his genitals. Angle then hit Benoit with three consecutive German Suplexes (a move from Benoit's arsenal), prompting Benoit to give Angle an Olympic Slam to get the first fall! (1-0 Benoit, via Olympic Slam) In the second fall, both men used their trademark submissions on the other, but the other escaped. Angle soon escaped the Walls of Jericho and the Figure-Four Leglock and managed to hit an Olympic Slam and lock on the anklelock to force Benoit to tap out! (1-1 tie, via anklelock) In the third fall, both Benoit and Angle used the ladder liberally on their opponent to weaken him and prevent him from climbing the ladder to retrieve the medals. Ultimately, Benoit locked Angle in the Crossface, but EDGE & CHRISTIAN ran out and attacked Benoit to give Angle the time he needed to climb the ladder and take back his gold medals!
  (Winner, by a score of 2-1: Kurt Angle)
• As Commissioner Regal received medical attention in his office from his match, the UNDERTAKER burst in, demanding his title match later be made No Holds Barred. `Taker was in a foul mood after the previous week, in which the Two-Man Power Trip duped him into believing his wife Sara had been injured in a car accident. Regal hastily agreed to his demands; Meanwhile, at WWF New York, Light-Heavyweight Champion JERRY LYNN bitched about not being at the PPV to give new meaning to the term Judgment Day.
• Triple Threat Hardcore Championship: TEST v. BIG SHOW v. RHYNO (champion)
  As part of a spill-over from their encounter at Backlash, Test and Big Show were both out to maim the other as they quested for Rhyno's Hardcore title. Test and Rhyno, however, realized they were both outmassed by the Big Show, and teamed up several times to try to eliminate him, but to no avail. They brawled all over the arena and back to the ring, where Big Show chokeslammed Rhyno, then got nailed with a Boot-to-the-Head from Test. Finally, Rhyno knocked out Test with a garbage can, threw it to Big Show, and jumped off the steel stairs in the ring to Gore Show through the can and pin him to retain his title!
  (Winner, and still WWF Hardcore Champion: Rhyno, via the Gore)
• Regal entered STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN's dressing room and informed him of the change in the rules for his match later, and Austin said it was fine with him!
• Women's Championship: LITA v. CHYNA (champion)
  Chyna, a dominant force in the Women's division after defeating Ivory at WrestleMania, had said that since she lacked real competition, she would spank all of her opponents. Lita, however, stepped up to the plate, and Chyna was very respectful of the other diva.
  In this match, Chyna had the advantage in size and strength, but Lita used her greater speed to counter this. Chyna had the early run on nearfalls, but Lita came back with a DDT and a second-rope clothesline. Chyna came back with a powerslam, earning another pinfall. Soon, Lita locked Chyna in an armbreaker, which the champion broke with a headscissors! EDDIE GUERRERO came out to watch the match, which Chyna finally won by countering a Twist of Fate with a powerbomb for the pin. After the match, the two women embraced!
  (Winner, and still WWF Women's Champion: Chyna, via powerbomb)
• Michael Cole asked if this chapter in Kurt Angle's life was over now that he'd won back his gold medals, but Angle said no way and promised a full re-enactment of his Olympic winning ceremony at Raw!
• Intercontinental Championship Chain Match: KANE v. TRIPLE H (champion)
  During the match, the two men's wrists were joined by a 12-foot steel chain. Kane's left arm was still heavily bandaged as a result of the Two-Man Power Trip's brutal attack the preceding month. Triple H focused heavily on Kane's injured arm, eventually reattaching the chain to it. Kane rallied back despite Triple H's attacks on his arm, busting him open with the chain and even hanging him with it! Kane soon hit the chokeslam, but STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN ran out, distracting Kane and enabling Triple H to lowblow him. Austin swung a chair at Kane, who ducked, causing Austin to strike Triple H and enabling Kane to pin the Game!
  (Winner, and new WWF Intercontinental Champion: Kane, via Stone Cold Steve Austin's mistake)
• Triple H berated Mr. McMahon about the breakdown in their strategy.
• Tag Team Turmoil: The winners of this bout were assured #1 contendership for the Two-Man Power Trip's Tag Team titles, so Edge & Christian, seven-time champions themselves, were eager to win. Chris Jericho, meanwhile, who had entered the match due to a feud that had grown with the Brothers Grin, swore that he and his mystery partner would eliminate them.
  • A.P.A. v. RADICALZ: Perry Saturn and Dean Malenko were quickly eliminated when Faarooq hit a spinebuster slam on Saturn. (Winners: APA, via spinebuster slam)
  • A.P.A. v. DUDLEY BOYZ: The Dudleys were on fire early, hitting a Dudleyville Device on Bradshaw and the Wassap Drop on Faarooq. As D-Von went to get the tables, however, the HOLLYS ran out and attacked, putting D-Von through the table as Bradshaw pinned Bubba Ray after a Clothesline from Hell. (Winners: APA, via the Clothesline from Hell lariat)
  • A.P.A. v. X-FACTOR (w/ ALBERT): X-Pac and Justin Credible were out to get their team some credibility, and Albert soon got involved, grabbing Bradshaw's foot as he went to slam Credible, enabling X-Pac to pin him! (Winners: X-Factor, via Albert's interference)
  • X-FACTOR (w/ ALBERT) v. HARDY BOYZ: X-Pac got the early advantage with a Bronco Buster on Jeff, but the Hardys came back with a Twist of Fate/Swanton Bomb combination, but Albert broke up the pin. Credible hit Matt with a superkick, allowing X-Pac to pin him and advance. (Winners: X-Factor, via superkick)
  • X-FACTOR v. CHRIS JERICHO & CHRIS BENOIT: Yes, Jericho's mystery partner was none other than his former rival Benoit, and they took the fight to X-Factor. The ref was soon knocked out, and X-Pac and Credible hit an X-Marks-the-Spot double superkick on Jericho. Another ref came out, but Jericho kicked out of the pin. Soon, stereo submissions were locked on (Walls of Jericho on X-Pac, Crossface on Credible) and both men tapped out! (Winners: Chris Jericho & Chris Benoit, via stereo submissions)
  • CHRIS JERICHO & CHRIS BENOIT v. EDGE & CHRISTIAN: E&C had the advantage going into the match -- both as seven-time champions and as Benoit had now had four matches prior to this one -- and soon went for chairs outside the ring. Benoit & Jericho, however, hit a double dropkick, and Benoit locked the Crossface on Christian, who tapped out!
    (Winners, and #1 Contenders for the Tag Team Championship: Chris Jericho & Chris Benoit, via the Crippler Crossface)
    (Note: The following night, Benoit & Jericho got their shot against the Two-Man Power Trip and won the titles. During that match, Triple H tore his quadrucep while saving Austin from the Walls of Jericho, and as a result is out for six months.)
• No Holds Barred WWF Championship: UNDERTAKER v. STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN (champion)
  The two longtime rivals rekindled their age-old feud in this match, as MR. McMAHON came to ringside for commentary! `Taker was a house on fire early in the match, exacting revenge on Austin for the devious trick he and Triple H had played on him the previous week. Austin had no chance to get any offense in. Austin, however, soon rallied and tried to knock Taker off his vertical base by focusing on the legs. The Dead Man came back and chokeslammed Austin through the announce table! Austin staged a huge rally, bloodying Taker by hitting him with a TV monitor, then hanging him in the ropes and braining him with a steel chair. Instead of going for the pin, Austin taunted Undertaker to get up and fight him. Surprisingly, Taker obliged, and got a Stone Cold Stunner for his trouble! Austin then began to brutalize him with the chair, until Taker lowblowed him and took control of the chair. TRIPLE H ran out, but got a chairshot for his trouble. Taker went for the pin, but Mr. McMahon broke it, and got made famous by the Dead Man! Austin went after him, but ended up hitting Mr. McMahon with the chair! Taker was set to send Austin for the Last Ride, but Triple H used a sledgehammer on the American Badass. KANE came out to assist, but it was too late -- Austin made the pin.
  (Winner, and still WWF Champion: Stone Cold Steve Austin, via Triple H's interference)

June 2001: King of the Ring,

• Pre-KOTR
  WWF Heat was hosted by JONATHON COACHMAN and TAZZ, since Tazz's usual broadcast partner Michael Cole was still in the hospital after being brutally attacked on the preceding Smackdown for some disparaging remarks he'd said about Mr. McMahon; SPIKE DUDLEY congratulated his brothers on winning the Tag Team titles and challenged them to a match later that night at King of the Ring; SHANE McMAHON was welcomed by TEST and promised that tonight would be very interesting; The DUDLEYS accepted Spike's challenge and promised he would learn to respect his brothers; EDGE & CHRISTIAN continued to have problems with each other; JIM ROSS and PAUL HEYMAN announced there was a rumor going around that if Chris Benoit or Chris Jericho won the WWF title tonight, they would immediately jump ship to WCW; MATT HARDY put his European title on the line against JUSTIN CREDIBLE and won after LITA assisted with a Litacanrana to allow Matt to hit the Twist of Fate for the win
• WCW's DIAMOND DALLAS PAGE, who the previous week had been revealed as the sicko who had been stalking the Undertaker's wife Sara, entered the arena and said `Taker should thank him for rolling the "PG" footage of Sara instead of his "private" collection, then went on to say he would kick Taker's ass in his own yard and go on to be the first WCW star to set foot in Madison Square Garden at Raw. DDP said he would be easy to find, since he had a front row seat and a sign that read "Make Me Famous!"
• King of the Ring Semifinal: KURT ANGLE v. CHRISTIAN
  Angle was going into the tournament to defend his crown from the previous year, seeking to be the first man to win back-to-back crowns -- this in addition to having a Street Fight against Shane McMahon later that night! So he dominated the early part of the match in an attempt to end it fast, but Christian refused to stay down. Eventually, SHANE McMAHON came to ringside, and when Christian had Angle down for a pin, Shane broke it! (Shane, of course, would want Angle to have another match so as to wear him down before their match.) Angle then hit the Olympic Slam for the win!
  (Winner, advancing to the finals: Kurt Angle, via the Olympic Slam)
• Coachman interviewed STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN backstage, and Austin asked if Coach had seen Mr. McMahon, who on the preceding Smackdown! had told Austin he wouldn't be at King of the Ring. (This after Michael Cole had threatened to sue the WWF because of the beating Austin gave him.) Vince had also told Austin to either retain his title by himself, or have his relationship with the chairman end. Coach reminded Austin of Vince's words, but Austin insisted Vince had been joking. Coach then told Austin of the Benoit/Jericho/WCW rumors, and Austin seemed stunned; at ringside, DDP was surprised when someone aired footage of him eating -- which DDP didn't appreciate.
• King of the Ring Semifinal: EDGE v. RHYNO
  Rhyno started off spitting his gum in Edge's face, prompting a pummeling from the Canadian until Rhyno started fighting back, leading to a brawl. Edge was surprisingly dominant against the Manbeast, until Rhyno exposed a turnbuckle and threw Edge into it chest-first. Now having something to focus on, Rhyno started attacking Edge's ribs, even hitting a top-rope splash, but Edge kicked out! Soon, Rhyno went for a Gore as Edge went for a Spear, and the two collided! Rhyno got back up to charge at Edge again, but ended up Goring the exposed turnbuckle instead! Edge finished him off with an Impaler for the win.
  (Winner, advancing to the finals: Edge, via the Impaler DDT)
• Tazz asked CHRIS JERICHO about the rumors and if he was aware of them. Jericho said he was quite aware of them, just not that everyone else was too!
• Tag Team Championship: DUDLEY BOYZ (champions) v. SPIKE DUDLEY & KANE
  Yes, Spike's partner was none other than the Big Red Machine. Spike started out aggressive and attacked Bubba Ray, but the older, bigger, and meaner Dudley soon made the tag to D-Von. In response to that, Spike tagged in Kane. Kane dominated on D-Von, then tagged in Spike, who wanted revenge after being 3D'd by his brothers. D-Von managed to rally against his runt brother's attack and tagged in Bubba, who flattened Spike with a powerbomb. D-Von went for a headbutt, but Spike got away and tagged in Kane, who laid out both Dudleys, then tagged in Spike and hurled him like a javelin at them! Spike soon hit the Dudley Dogg on Bubba, but D-Von broke the pin and helped Bubba hit the 3D on Spike. After the match, the Dudleys got a table out, but Kane hit the powerbomb on D-Von and tossed Bubba through the table!
  (Winners, and still WWF Tag Team Champions: Dudley Boyz, via the 3-D)
• More personal footage of DDP at his personal business aired, prompting him to demand that Taker come out to the ring.
• King of the Ring Final: KURT ANGLE v. EDGE
  Angle spoke prior to the match, apologizing to Edge for getting mad at him last week and saying he didn't want to injure their friendship. He then said, since he still had a Street Fight to go through later, that the right thing for Edge to do would be forfeit the match. Edge answered by slugging him. Angle soon managed to get the advantage and targeted Edge's still-sore ribs, until the crowd's chanting spurred Edge to get back on his feet and retaliate. Angle started beating on him again, but Edge continued to fight back. Soon, Angle had Edge in the anklelock, which Edge reversed! Edge soon had Angle in a pinning predicament, as CHRISTIAN came to ringside. Angle locked Edge in the anklelock again, but the referee was distracted and didn't see Edge tap out. As Angle went to get the referee, SHANE McMAHON ran out and speared Angle! Edge hit the Unprettier for the pin!
  (Winner, and new King of the Ring: Edge, via the Unprettier)
• Tazz queried CHRIS BENOIT about the rumors, which Benoit was unaware of; Coachman asked Edge how it felt to be the new King of the Ring, when Christian came up and said he was only coming out to help.
• Light-Heavyweight Championship: X-PAC v. JEFF HARDY (champion)
  Both men went at each other in the early going, and soon Jeff got the upper hand and locked onto X-Pac's arm. X-Pac reversed it and they spilled outside. X-Pac held the advantage for a bit, but when he went for the Bronco Buster, Jeff escaped it! Jeff then staged a rally, even hitting the Whisper in the Wind. X-Pac then caught Jeff as he came off the top rope and rolled him through for a nearfall. X-Pac then hit the X-Factor for a three-count, but Jeff's foot was on the rope, so the match continued. Jeff rallied, then hit the Swanton Bomb for the win!
  (Winner, and still WWF Light-Heavyweight Champion: Jeff Hardy, via the Swanton Bomb)
• In the commissioner's office, Austin called up Vince and told him about the WCW/Benoit/Jericho rumors, which COMMISSIONER REGAL backed up! Austin then said he needed Vince here, listened and then thanked him and hung up; at ringside, DDP got angrier as more footage of him was aired and hit the ring to demand Undertaker come out and face him -- only to get more personal footage! Then the stalker's stalker was revealed... SARA! She told him it was time for him to become famous.
• Confrontation: UNDERTAKER v. DIAMOND DALLAS PAGE
  `Taker took his time coming to the ring and putting on his fighting gloves, then stepped through the ropes and started unleashing his pent-up fury on Page! Page managed to escape the corner with a lowblow, only to get another beating from Taker! Then SARA came to the ring with a camcorder to tape the event for posterity. Page grabbed a chair and hit Taker with it, and then the two brawled over the announce table. Taker grabbed a mike and told Page he hoped he enjoyed being famous. Page evidently decided he was famous enough and escaped through the crowd as the Dead Man and his wife celebrated in the ring.
  (Winner: Undertaker)
• Street Fight: KURT ANGLE v. SHANE McMAHON
  This match was first signed after Shane interrupted Angle's Olympic re-enactment to commemorate the retrieveal of his gold medals from Chris Benoit last month. Shane had wanted to inform the world that his company, WCW, would be back in business sooner than everyone thought. Angle wasn't pleased and attacked Shane, getting praise from Vince and ultimately having a match booked for King of the Ring, which Angle later made into a Street Fight so he could punish Shane more.
  The match started with Angle pounding on Shane until the WCW Owner rallied. Angle kept fighting back, hitting Shane with suplex after suplex. Angle finally let up and invited Shane to mat wrestle him, but Shane just kicked him. As they brawled outside the ring, Shane climbed onto the barrier behind Jim Ross and Paul Heyman, then leapt over the announce table and took down Angle! Shane then took hold of his trusty kendo stick and started beating on Angle with it. The two exchanged blows and nearfalls for a bit, then the plunder got taken out. Shane started beating on Angle with street signs, but the Olympian kept kicking out. Soon, Shane locked Angle in the anklelock, which Kurt escaped, only to get put in the Sharpshooter! Angle screamed and managed to get to the kendo stick to free himself. Shane beat on Angle with a trashcan, then laid it on top of the prone Kurt and went for the Shooting Star Press, which missed! Surprisingly, though, Shane kicked out of the pin. They brawled up the aisle, with Angle dishing out suplexes again, and soon he tried to suplex Shane through the glass in the KOTR set. The glass didn't break, and Shane fell on his head! Kurt tried again, and this time the glass broke and Shane started bleeding badly. Angle, bleeding himself, threw Shane through more glass head-first. Angle tried to pin him there, but the match was not "falls count anywhere," so he had to get Shane back to the ring. So Angle put Shane on a travel case and wheeled him down. Shane still managed to kick out, and even managed to rally and hit the Olympic Slam, which Angle kicked out of. Angle went for the anklelock, but Shane got to the ropes. Angle grabbed a board and beat Shane with it, then set it on the top rope as a platform, climbed to the top and hit the Olympic Slam off the platform, finally managing to pin Shane. After the match, the audience gave Shane a standing ovation.
  (Winner: Kurt Angle, via the Olympic Slam)
• Austin was still waiting in the parking lot for Vince when he was informed he needed to get to the ring for his match.
• Triple Threat WWF Championship: CHRIS BENOIT v. CHRIS JERICHO v. STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN (champion)
  The match was booked after a series of title matches against both Canadians, which Austin continued to win through duplicitous means (a Montreal finish, a DQ, etc).
  Austin came to the ring, still looking over his shoulder for Vince. While his back was turned, Benoit and Jericho jumped him, causing Austin to flee through the crowd until the Canadians caught him and brought him back to the ring. Austin started beating on Benoit until Jericho climbed in, and then the two doubleteamed Austin. Soon, Jericho missed a spinning heel kick and hit Benoit, then started doubleteaming him with Austin. When the champion turned on him, Jericho put him in the Walls of Jericho. But then Benoit recovered and suplexed Jericho out of the ring. Benoit put the Crossface on Austin, but he got to the ropes. Austin staged a rally and started pounding on Benoit, then threw Benoit into Jericho as he tried to get back in the ring. Austin went for the Stunner, but Benoit shoved him into the ref and hit the Stunner on Austin! The champion, however, kicked out. Jericho then pulled Benoit out of the ring and started brawling with him, soon knocking him down. Jericho went back in the ring and went after Austin, who put him in the Walls of Jericho! Y2J was able to escape. Jericho kept Benoit out of the ring and went for the Lionsault on a fallen Austin, but the Rattlesnake blocked it with his knees. Benoit then got a chair and smacked Jericho with it, but Austin hit him with a Stunner when he came after him. Jericho broke the pin, so Austin gave him two superplexes for his trouble. Benoit then got back up and hit Austin with three consecutive suplexes. Jericho got back up and locked Austin in the Walls of Jericho, and then Benoit made it a combine submission as he put Austin in the Crossface. Austin tapped out, but since the referee declared there could be only one champion, the match continued. Benoit and Jericho argued, and then Benoit put Jericho in the Crossface, which Y2J escaped. Outside, Austin grabbed a steel chair, but then WCW Champion BOOKER T jumped out of the crowd and slammed Austin through the Spanish announce table! Inside the ring, Jericho reversed some suplexes and put Benoit in the Walls of Jericho, but Benoit got to the ropes. Jericho then hit the Lionsault, but both men were exhausted. Jericho went out to Austin and started beating him with pieces of the table, putting him in the ring and hitting a moonsault. Benoit broke the pin and hit a headbutt on Austin, but Jericho pulled the referee out of the ring. Soon, all three men were out in the ring, but Austin managed to crawl to Benoit and drape an arm over him, getting the win!
  (Winner, and still WWF Champion: Stone Cold Steve Austin)

July 2001: inVasion, Cleveland, Ohio

• The Story of the Invasion
  It all started back in March, when Shane McMahon bought WCW out from under his father's nose in Panama City, Florida, while his father was busy gloating in Cleveland. Shane promised that WCW would kick his father's and the WWF's asses. In the few weeks leading up to King of the Ring, various WCW stars ran in during WWF matches and attacked WWF superstars -- Lance Storm superkicked Perry Saturn, Hugh Morrus gave Edge a moonsault, Stacy Keibler distracted Rhyno and cost him the Hardcore Championship, Diamond Dallas Page revealed himself to be the stalker of the Undertaker's wife Sara, Booker T ran in at King of the Ring and attacked Stone Cold.
  
  But the day after KOTR, as the WWF broadcast from Madison Square Garden -- vintage WWF territory, where no WCW star had ever set foot -- the unthinkable happened. WCW star Mike Awesome ran out and attacked Rhyno after he'd won the Hardcore title, powerbombed him and forced the ref to count him the winner, thus taking the WWF Hardcore title to WCW! It didn't end there. Shane showed up at WWF New York that same night and declared that since he couldn't get a TV spot for WCW, then WCW would just take the WWF's airtime -- and invade the WWF! Booker T joined Shane and challenged Austin to come get him, only to hoodwink him and go to the arena instead as Austin went to WWF New York, enabling Booker T to attack Vince McMahon! The following Smackdown, Linda McMahon came out and essentially forced Vince into allowing WCW to have WWF airtime and change the July PPV to InVasion. The WWF, meanwhile, was being quite protective of its turf. The following Raw, the first WCW match on WWF TV was broadcast, a WCW title match between Booker T and Buff Bagwell. During the match (which, frankly, sucked), Austin and Kurt Angle ran out and attacked Booker T, then Bagwell. Torrie Wilson duped Vince into thinking she wanted to jump ship to WWF, only to lure him into getting caught literally with his pants down by Linda. Then, on Smackdown, DDP lured Undertaker into a beating by other WCW stars, even turning on Shane when he came out to stop him.
  
  Then, the Invasion took a disturbing turn. On the following Raw, as Shane challenged DDP to a Street Fight to punish him, `Taker came out to get him some of DDP -- only to have Shane and DDP doubleteam him. Then, later as Kane and Chris Jericho challenged WCW stars Lance Storm and Mike Awesome, ECW's Tommy Dreamer and Rob Van Dam ran out and joined Storm & Awesome on beating on Kane and Jericho, when the WWF's Tazz, Raven, Justin Credible, Rhyno, and the Dudleys ran out, only to join the other four on beating Kane and Jericho. That's when Paul Heyman got up and declared that ECW had reunited and that "This Invasion just got taken to the Extreme!" Later that night, Shane asked Vince to contribute five of his men to join forces with five WCWers to punish ECW -- but this was another trick, for WCW and ECW were working together, because there had been a merger, and the ECW/WCW combination was dedicated to running the WWF out of business. And to make matters worse for Vince, the new owner of ECW was none other than Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley.
  
  In dismay, Vince rallied his troops and formed Team WWF for the main event at Invasion, the ten-man tag Inaugural Brawl, but he went to Austin and pleaded with him, "I need the old Stone Cold!" Austin refused to give it to him. At Raw, six days from the PPV, Austin seemed indifferent to the whole ordeal, as "WECW" ran roughshod over the WWF. Finally, as the WWF had a town meeting, WWF legend Classy Freddy Blassie showed up and urged the WWF to stand up and fight for what they believe in. This sparked something in the WWF Champion, who left the bar where he'd been sulking and returned to the arena, taking out any WECW person he came across, hitting the ring and dishing out Stunners left and right. But all was not well, for on Smackdown, Austin showed a weakness, as DDP abducted his wife Debra to lure him away from his team-mates. With the fate of the WWF in the balance, it is hoped that Stone Cold Steve Austin will be able to be of some help to his teammates.
• Pre-inVasion Segments
  • In a pre-PPV match, CHAVO GUERRERO, JR. defeated SCOTTY 2 HOTTY with a brainbuster; MICK FOLEY arrived at the arena and explained he would referee the Referees Match, and he had another reason for being here that would become clear later tonight; More matches were announced.
• MIKE AWESOME & LANCE STORM v. EDGE & CHRISTIAN
  Storm once again tried to be serious for a minute, but E&C's arrival interrupted that. Awesome -- the self-styled "Awesome One" -- got the focus from the Canadian brothers for his cheek, but the ECWers managed to rally back. Christian was isolated and picked apart by Awesome and Storm, but Christian managed to counter a top-rope manuever into a backdrop and tagged in Edge. Edge went all out and managed to spear Awesome. Storm aimed a superkick, but Edge took the blow, which was intended for Christian. Awesome went for the Awesome Bomb on Edge, but a spear from Christian allowed his brother to pin the ECWers!
  (Winners: Edge & Christian, via the spear)
• MR. McMAHON celebrated backstage, when COMMISSIONER REGAL walked in to inform Vince that Austin and Debra had arrived. Vince told Regal to give them some time to themselves, after what happened on Smackdown.
• Referees Match: EARL HEBNER v. NICK PATRICK - with special guest referee MICK FOLEY
  The match was booked after Patrick had inserted himself into a few matches that Hebner had officiated, applying fast counts and biased wrestling to enable WCW and ECW to win its matches. Regal had insisted that Hebner stand up for himself, so Hebner challenged Patrick.
  Both senior officials were accompanied by their fellows, and started a brawl, not a wrestling match. Hebner had the fans' support, but Patrick, the younger of the two, soon got the upper hand. Hebner fell outside, where the WCW officials attacked him until the WWF referees saved him. Foley then sent the WCW men to the back. While Patrick was distracted by this, Hebner speared him and pinned him! When Patrick confronted Foley after the match, the hardcore legend gave him a taste of Mr. Socko!
  (Winner: Earl Hebner, via the spear)
• Backstage, DEBRA was still upset about her abduction, and vented her frustrations to SARA who confirmed that DDP was indeed a psycho.
• Champions v. Champions: A.P.A. v. CHUCK PALUMBO & SEAN O'HAIRE
  This match was set up so that the Tag Team Champions of both organizations could square off. The A.P.A., stalwart WWF defenders, had already given Palumbo & O'Haire a beating when they ran in during a WWF tag match, and P&O were out for revenge.
  Palumbo & O'Haire didn't waste any time rushing the ring, where an all-out brawl began. The younger WCWers seemed ready for the seasoned veterans, and soon isolated Faarooq. Faarooq managed to hit a spinebuster slam on O'Haire and tagged in Bradshaw, who started to dish out punishment. He finished the match when he hit the Clothesline from Hell on Palumbo for the pin!
  (Winners: A.P.A., via the Clothesline from Hell lariat)
• Mr. McMahon celebrated yet another WWF win when CHRIS JERICHO walked in and dished out one of his trademark insults on Paul Heyman, prompting Vince to declare that after tonight, Team ECW/WCW would never, ever be the same again; elsewhere, STEPHANIE started yelling about how much she hated Jericho, while SHANE told Kidman he needed to take X-Pac out. Kidman assured Shane that after his match, they'd all see why X-Pac sucks.
• Champion v. Champion: X-PAC v. KIDMAN
  Yet another match set up to determine which champ was better, the WCW Cruiserweight Champion, Billy Kidman, or the WWF Light-Heavyweight Champion, X-Pac. Kidman had won the CW title back from Gregory Helms on Smackdown a few weeks earlier, and X-Pac had scouted Kidman well.
  The two had apparently scouted each other very well as it turned out, since both men showed each other up with each chance they got, and kicked out of or countered a number of moves. X-Pac soon went for a powerbomb, but Kidman reversed it into a modified X-Factor. Kidman went upstairs for a top-rope move, but X-Pac reversed it into an X-Factor of his own. When Kidman kicked out, X-Pac set him up for a Bronco Buster, but Kidman blocked it with a low blow and hit the Shooting Star Press off the top rope for WCW's first win!
  (Winner: Kidman, via the Shooting Star Press)
• Shane, Steph, and PAUL HEYMAN celebrated this win when DDP came in to brag, stating that he was now in Austin's head; elsewhere, WCW divas STACY KEIBLER and TORRIE WILSON talked smack about Trish and Lita.
• WILLIAM REGAL v. RAVEN
  The match was booked earlier that night during Heat, and the two men's styles clashed badly. Regal was looking to make Vince proud against Raven, who soon gained the advantage. Raven went for his finisher, but Regal knocked them both down. That's when TAZZ ran out and suplexed Regal, allowing Raven to hit the Raven Effect for the win.
  (Winner: Raven, via the Raven Effect DDT)
• In a locker room, UNDERTAKER & KANE were warming up when Vince came in and said they couldn't afford to lose any more matches, especially the Inaugural Brawl. Taker promised they'd see the best of him tonight.
• SHAWN STASIAK, KANYON & HUGH MORRUS v. ALBERT, BILLY GUNN & BIG SHOW
  Another match booked on Heat, this six-man tag got off to a big start for the WWF when all three WWFers gorilla pressed the WCWers! Finishers were exchanged and pins were broken up, but Stasiak was able to make a reverse DDT on Gunn for the win. After the match, Big Show plastered all three WCWers with chokeslams and Alley-Oops!
  (Winners: Shawn Stasiak, Kanyon & Hugh Morrus, via reverse DDT)
• Backstage, Shane psyched up BOOKER T, stating that WCW/ECW was up 4-3, counting Chavo's win during Heat; in his office, Regal told Tajiri he had to win for the WWF!
• TAZZ v. TAJIRI
  The match was booked after Tazz had attacked Tajiri at ringside, who was there to do commentary during one of Tazz's matches. Tazz resented that Tajiri had not defected back to ECW with him, and moreso when Tajiri duped Tazz into thinking he had, only to attack him and spew the Mist onto an ECW shirt, showing his disloyalty to ECW.
  Tajiri came out strong, kicking and pummeling Tazz, but the Red Hook native refused to stay down and hit a huge Tazzplex to rally and bully the Japanese Buzzsaw. The battle spilled outside, then back into the ring, where Tazz taunted Tajiri. Tajiri soon spewed the BLINDING GREEN MIST into Tazz's face and pasted him with the Buzzsaw Kick for the win!
  (Winner: Tajiri, via Mist and Buzzsaw Kick)
• Backstage, the Hardys talked about Jeff's upcoming Hardcore title defense, when Rob Van Dam ran by and clobbered Matt with a steel chair!; at WWF New York, HARDCORE HOLLY was signing autographs when he saw a fan wearing a WCW shirt, prompting Holly to tear the shirt off the fan's back!
• WWF Hardcore Championship: ROB VAN DAM v. JEFF HARDY (champion)
  The particulars of this match went back almost four years, to when Van Dam had a short run in the WWF, to a match that RVD had against a jobber known as Jeff Hardy. Jeff was out for some payback, while RVD sought to show why he was called Mr. Pay-Per-View in ECW and bring the Hardcore title to the enemy camp.
  The two started off strong, wowing the crowd with rapid-fire attacks and counters, the flexibility of Jeff meshing well with RVD's martial arts experience. RVD pulled off moves that WWF fans had never seen before, while Jeff just kept battling back as the fight spilled into the crowd. Jeff managed to rally when he managed to powerbomb RVD onto the floor, then pulled out a ladder. RVD knocked Jeff off the ladder and grabbed a chair, but Jeff hit him with the ladder and chased him up the entrance ramp with the chair. There, RVD managed to hit the Van Daminator on Jeff, sending Jeff flying off the stage! RVD busted Jeff open with another Van Daminator and brought him back to the ring, where Jeff reversed a moonsault into a DDT. Jeff went for the Swanton Bomb, but RVD moved, hit Jeff with the title belt and hit the Fivestar Frog Splash for the win!
  (Winner, and new WWF Hardcore Champion: Rob Van Dam, via the Fivestar Frog Splash)
• Backstage, Vince tried to pump up KURT ANGLE for the Inaugural Brawl by talking about American heroics, but Angle said enough with the Americana bullshit, he's going to kick someone's ass!
• Bra-and-Panties Match: TORRIE WILSON & STACY KEIBLER v. LITA & TRISH STRATUS - with special guest referee MICK FOLEY
  The match was booked so the WCW divas could showcase why they thought they were better than their WWF counterparts, and even flirted shamelessly with Matt & Jeff Hardy -- Lita's boyfriend and Trish's special interest.
  Yes, Foley turned out to be the luckiest man in America as this match was his stipulation for accepting the referee job he did earlier. The particulars of this match are unimportant, let's just say that tops and bottoms were lost, and in the end, it was the WWF divas winning the day and leaving arm in arm.
  (Winners: Lita & Trish Stratus)
• Prior to the main event, the WECW Triumvirate told their team it was do or die time, while Austin promised Vince he would whup some ass, and that's the bottom line, `cuz Stone Cold said so!
• Inaugural Brawl: TEAM WCW/ECW (BOOKER T, DIAMOND DALLAS PAGE, RHYNO, DUDLEY BOYZ) (w/ SHANE McMAHON, STEPHANIE McMAHON-HELMSLEY & PAUL HEYMAN) v. TEAM WWF (STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN, KURT ANGLE, CHRIS JERICHO, UNDERTAKER & KANE) (w/ VINCE McMAHON)
  With the two organizations tied at five wins each, this match was all-important. Austin was clearly in "old" Rattlesnake mode tonight, and dished out some punishment to Rhyno, scoring a nearfall with a superplex early in the bout. Jericho then got some, chopping the man-beast's chest. Then men began to trade out and wear each other down, until stuff started to explode as DDP got in the ring with Undertaker. The `Taker went postal on the man who had stalked his wife, demolishing him until Page hit a DDT and tagged in Booker T. Taker DDT'd Booker T, then tagged in Austin, and World Champions went at it in the ring! The action spilled out of the ring as Y2J locked Booker T in the Walls of Jericho, then did the same to DDP when he ran in. D-Von Dudley stopped that, and Angle came to the rescue, suplexing everyone in sight. DDP attacked Angle and stopped him with a tornado powerbomb, but Austin broke the pin. Jericho soon tasted the Dudley's Sans-Wassap Drop, and soon a Pier Ten Brawl started as Taker went after DDP. Rhyno soon Gored Booker T by accident, and Taker signaled for the Last Ride on DDP. When WCW ref Charles Robinson pleaded for Taker not to, Taker gave him the Last Ride instead. Page and Taker battled into the crowd, while Austin had apparently hurt his knee. Kane chokeslammed D-Von through the announce table, but then Bubba Ray and Rhyno suplexed Kane through the Spanish announce table. Jericho then flew off the apron and sent Rhyno crashing through a table the Dudleys had set up. Booker and Bubba double-teamed Angle, who managed to rally and lock Booker in the Angle Lock, but Bubba broke it up and Booker flapjacked Angle. Vince then picked up the WWF title belt, giving it to Angle, but Shane grabbed it back and nailed Vince with it. Angle sent Bubba and Shane out of the ring, Angle Slammed Booker and put him in the Angle Lock again, but then Austin flew to his feet, rolled the ref into the ring -- and Stunner'd Angle! Austin rolled Booker on top of Angle and the ref counted the win for WCW/ECW! As a distraught Vince looked on, Austin shared beer with Shane, Stephanie, and Heyman as the PPV ended.
  (Winner: Team WCW/ECW, via Austin's Stone Cold Stunner)

August 2001: Summerslam, San Jose, California
Theme Music: "Bodies" by Drowning Pool

• Pre-PPV Segments
  LITA was attacked by STACY KEIBLER, TORRIE WILSON, and IVORY, preventing her from participating in her handicap match later on Heat; Shane McMahon and Booker T arrived, and Booker imitated The Rock again; MOLLY HOLLY ran out to help JACQUELINE in her match against the Alliance Women, and helped Lita when she came out to deliver a Twist of Fate to Ivory for Jackie to make the pin.
• WWF Intercontinental Championship - LANCE STORM (champion) v. EDGE
  A spill-over from their feud the previous month, Storm was again trying to show that this business was not about offbeat shenanigans.
  Storm started off attempting to address the crowd, asking for no interruptions, but Edge put an end to that. Both Canadians went after each other, but soon Storm was getting the upperhand, focusing on Edge's weakened back. Soon, CHRISTIAN came out and charged at Storm, but accidentally speared Edge! Storm superkicked Christian, then Edge hit the Buzzkiller for the win!
  (Winner, and new WWF Intercontinental Champion: Edge, via the Buzzkiller DDT)
• Backstage, Michael Cole asked Test why he defected. Test replied that he had been loyal all along, and he got beat up because of some rumor, that there was no loyalty in the WWF! Elsewhere, Chris Jericho remarked that he would beat Rhyno, as there was a first time for everything... as Stephanie could testify to, having an extensive list.
• DUDLEY BOYZ & TEST v. A.P.A. & SPIKE DUDLEY
  The A.P.A. was in full-on bar-room brawl style tonight, and the recently-returned Spike went at his brothers without hesitation, though Bubba Ray quickly beat him back down. Test was soon poised to launch Spike through a table, but Spike managed to get free the first time, but as SHANE McMAHON ran out, Spike was slammed through it. Shane then delivered his trademark flying chairshot to Bradshaw, allowing Test to pin him for the win!
  (Winners: Test & Dudley Boyz, via Shane's flying chairshot)
• Backstage, Edge was congratulated by the WWF, and Christian walked up to say he had good news -- Commissioner Regal had given him a European title match on Raw! Elsewhere, Shawn Stasiak said he knew why he wasn't impressing anyone -- his pink tights! (Stasiak: "I don't even know what 'Mecca' means!") Debra told him the only way to impress Austin was to kick someone's ass.
• WCW Cruiserweight/WWF Light-Heavyweight Championship Unification Match - X-PAC v. TAJIRI
  The two men exchanged high-flying moves early on, but soon X-Pac got the advantage by stretching out Tajiri, who eventually rallied and locked on the Tarantula. Soon, ALBERT walked out and got on the apron to distract Tajiri. Tajiri hit him with the BURNING RED MIST, but the distraction allowed X-Pac to hit the X-Factor to unify the belts.
  (Winner, and new Unified Light-Heavyweight/Cruiserweight Champion: X-Pac, via X-Factor)
• At WWF New York, Perry Saturn asked for help in locating the "love of his life," Moppy. Back in San Jose, Rhyno swore to Stephanie that he would take out Jericho once and for all.
• CHRIS JERICHO v. RHYNO (w/ STEPHANIE McMAHON-HELMSLEY)
  This feud was actually a few months in the making. Since his debut, Rhyno had defeated Jericho in every match between the two, going all the way back to before King of the Ring, when Rhyno pinned Jericho three times, so if Jericho had won the WWF title, and Rhyno the KOTR crown, he would've become #1 contender. Jericho was out for some measure of revenge... and any chance he could get to embarass Stephanie.
  The match was intense and high-impact as both men tried to wear the other one down. At one point, Stephanie prevented Jericho from leaping off the top rope, and when Jericho got free and jumped down, Rhyno Gored him in mid-air! Rhyno continued the assault on the midsection, trying to squeeze the life out of Jericho. At one point, Stephanie distracted the referee when Jericho had Rhyno pinned, so Jericho got up and planted a big wet kiss on Steph! Soon after, Rhyno attempted to put Jericho in the Walls of Jericho, but Y2J reached the ropes and dodged a Gore to lock the Walls on Rhyno, forcing him to tap out! Afterwards, a furious Stephanie stormed backstage.
  (Winner: Chris Jericho, via Walls of Jericho submission)
• Backstage, The Rock assured William Regal that he was ready, despite Booker T's various attacks in previous weeks, and that he would never miss SummerSlam. Shawn Stasiak charged at Rock, who merely sidestepped and let Stasiak hit the wall.
• WWF Hardcore Championship Ladder Match - JEFF HARDY (champion) v. ROB VAN DAM
  After his defeat at InVasion, Jeff Hardy bided his time and ran out during one of RVD's title defenses and ambushed him, quickly pinning him to take back the title. RVD wanted to elevate the feud, so Jeff suggested elevating the title... in a ladder match.
  Both men used standard hand-to-hand moves and used the ladder against one another to try and wear their opponent down so they could climb the ladder unhindered. But neither man would give an inch. Jeff was worn down first, getting knocked off the ladder when going for the title, but when RVD went up the ladder for the belt, Jeff dropkicked him from the top rope to knock him back down. Jeff then missed a Swanton Bomb, but RVD's Fivestar Frog Splash likewise missed. Jeff climbed the ladder as RVD went up the other side to suplex Jeff off the top of the ladder. The climbs began again, and at the top Jeff hit a sunset flip into a powerbomb off the top! Jeff ascended, but RVD pulled out the ladder from underneath him, leaving Jeff dangling from the belt. Jeff fell to the mat, allowing RVD to climb up and reclaim the Hardcore title!
  (Winner, and new WWF Hardcore Champion: Rob Van Dam)
• Backstage, Shane presented Booker T with a pair of bookends made from the wreckage of the announce table that T had slammed The Rock through last week.
• Tag Team Championship Unification Cage Match - KANYON & DDP v. UNDERTAKER & KANE (w/ SARA)
  The Undertaker/DDP feud was slowly building to a head with this match. Kanyon and DDP had joined forces to continue to get in `Taker's head, and then with an assist from Test captured the WWF Tag titles from Test. The Brothers of Destruction then destroyed Palumbo & O'Haire to capture the WCW Tag titles, prompting WWF Commissioner to put Kanyon and DDP in a unification title match against the Brothers... in a steel cage!
  The Brothers arrived after the WCWers, who were already quite nervous, and grew more so when Sara locked the door to the cage! Kanyon and Page wanted nothing to do with the Brothers, and tried to climb out of the cage, but to no avail. The stalker and his cohort were thoroughly beat down. The two managed a brief rally, but Taker and Kane climbed to the top and threw DDP back in, but then Taker told Kane to let Kanyon go. The Deadman then brutalized DDP with a chain and told him to leave -- and if he ever caught him looking at his wife again, he'd kill him! Page started to climb, but Kane convinced him to pull him back and pin him. One chokeslam and Last Ride later, the titles were unified... around the waists of the Brothers of Destruction!
  (Winners, and new Unified Tag Team Champions: Undertaker & Kane, via the Last Ride powerbomb)
• Backstage, The Rock was talking with the trainer and again sidestepped a blind charge by Stasiak.
• WWF Heavyweight Championship - KURT ANGLE v. STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN (champion)
  After Austin's defection at InVasion, Angle became focused on bringing the WWF Championship back home, and promptly challenged Austin to a match at Summerslam. Austin was obsessed with destroying Angle, and the Smackdown! before the PPV, he nearly Pillmanized Angle's ankle with a steel chair.
  Angle was quite fired up going into the match, and attacked Austin in the entrance aisle to start things off. Angle quickly tried to take Austin apart, but the Rattlesnake took his focus to the injured ankle of the Olympian. Angle tried to go for the anklelock, but Austin continued to avoid it. He started dishing out suplexes, but Angle was soon able to reverse and hit seven German suplexes in a row! Austin rallied back and countered an Angle Slam before hitting a big superplex off the top rope. Austin hit a Stunner next, but Angle kicked out. Furious, Austin berated the referee, then Stunner'd Angle again, sending him flying out of the ring. Now the Bionic Redneck's vicious streak shone through as he brutally began to bounce Angle's head off the steel post, busting him wide open. Angle was still able to kick out, however, so Austin began to bounce his head off the announce table. Then the American Hero came back and locked on the anklelock outside the ring, but he couldn't win the match there! Angle dragged him all the way back into the ring and reapplied the anklelock, but Austin still managed to get to the ropes. Angle took Austin outside and suplexed him on the floor, and started throwing him around. Angle hit a moonsault, but the champion still kicked out. Austin then locked on a Cobra Clutch, and still held on when Angle reversed it into a pinning predicament. Austin hit a Stunner, but Angle still managed to kick out. The challenger then hit the Angle Slam, but Austin kicked out. Then Austin grew vicious again, and knocked out referee Earl Hebner. Angle hit a DDT, referee Mike Chioda ran out, but Austin kicked out and gave Chioda a Stunner. Referee Tim White ran out next, but Austin knocked him out as well. Then, as Angle hit another Angle Slam and went for the cover, WCW referee Nick Patrick ran out, but disqualified Austin for excessive abuse to the officials, thus allowing the Rattlesnake to retain his title! Angle, furious, screamed at Patrick, "You robbed me!" and put him in the anklelock.
  (Winner: Kurt Angle, via disqualification; however, still WWF Heavyweight Champion: Stone Cold Steve Austin)
• WCW World Championship - BOOKER T (champion) (w/ SHANE McMAHON) v. THE ROCK
  After Austin's defection, Vince McMahon decided he needed to bring back The Rock so as to keep the WWF strong. The Rock did return, rejected an offer by Shane McMahon to join the Alliance, but did give Vince a Rock Bottom for screwing him back at Wrestlemania. Almost immediately after his return, however, Booker T challenged Rock to a match at Summerslam. The Rock cut some of his famous promos on Booker T, prompting the "Bookerman" to showcase how The Rock was just a "cheap imitation" of him, even planting him with a pair of Rock Bottoms -- which Booker T called the Book End.
  Booker T pulled out all the stops to try and break down the Brahma Bull, and succeeded in the early going, throwing him around the outside of the ring, but soon Rock was able to hit a DDT. Then Shane grabbed the WCW title and hit Rock with it while the referee was looking the other way. At that point, however, the A.P.A. ran out and chased Shane, getting their revenge by clobbering the WCW Owner with a Clothesline from Hell! Booker T hit Rock with a Book End, but was slow to cover, allowing the People's Champion to kick out. The Rock then hit the pinebuster and the People's Elbow, but Shane broke the count. Angry, The Rock chased down Shane and gave him a Rock Bottom outside the ring. When The Rock got back in the ring, however, Booker T hit the Scissors Kick, but took time to celebrate with a spinaroonie, allowing Rock to get back up and hit him with a Rock Bottom for the win to become the new WCW Champion!
  (Winner, and new WCW Champion of the World: The Rock, via the Rock Bottom)

September 2001: Unforgiven, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Pre-Unforgiven Segment
  In tribute to the victims of the World Trade Center and Pentagon terrorist attacks, Grammy winner Jennifer Holliday sang "America the Beautiful."
• Four-Team Elimination WWF Tag Team Championship - THE HURRICANE & LANCE STORM v. SPIKE DUDLEY & BIG SHOW v. HARDY BOYZ v. DUDLEY BOYZ (champions)
  The Dudleys had wrested the Tag Team titles from Undertaker & Kane due to the interference of KroniK a week earlier, and then multiple tandems stepped up to the plate for a shot at the titles... or at the competitors. Spike still harbored a grudge against his older brothers, and the Hardys had unfinished business with Hurricane and Storm. Some blows were traded by several people early in the match, but finally, after Hurricane hit a diving crossbody on Spike, he tagged in Storm, who overshot a blow and struck his partner, allowing Spike to hit the Dudley Dogg on Storm before tagging in the Big Show, who knocked down everyone and chokeslammed Storm to eliminate his team from the match. Shortly thereafter, Matt Hardy eliminated Spike and Show following a Twist of Fate. The Hardys and Dudleys dished out punishment on each other, but the Dudleys retained after hitting Matt with the 3-D, and Jeff with the Bubba Bomb.
  (Winners, and still WWF Tag Team Champions: Dudley Boyz, via the Bubba Bomb)
• Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley informed Rob Van Dam, who was having trouble finding a dressing room large enough to accomodate his "superstar" ego, that he could have any dressing room they wanted. Elsewhere, Michael Cole asked Kurt Angle's family if they were worried about his health, but his family was confident in Kurt's chances and said it would a great day for them if Kurt won the WWF title.
• PERRY SATURN v. RAVEN (w/ TERRI)
  This matchup came as a result of Saturn's dumping Terri for "Moppy," and after Terri abducted Moppy and helped Raven shove "her" through a shredder.
  Raven was the early aggressor, but Saturn ultimately prevailed, hitting the Moss-Covered Three-Handled Family Gredunza for the win.
  (Winner: Perry Saturn, via the Moss-Covered Three-Handled Family Gredunza)
• WWF Intercontinental Championship - CHRISTIAN v. EDGE (champion)
  This matchup came out of the breakup of one of the greatest tag teams in the history of the WWF. Christian, consumed with jealousy and bitterness at his brother's success, finally snapped and turned on Edge, hitting him with a One-Man Conchairto and sidelining him for almost two weeks. Now, the deranged maestro was set to take away his brother's success.
  The two exchanged heated blows, both inside and outside the ring. Christian finally managed to overcome his brother's ferocious attack and rally back, opening up his brother. Christian was soon opened up as well, and soon Christian stole a move from Edge's book and hit the Buzzkiller DDT for a nearfall. Christian then went to try and perform the One-Man Conchairto, but the referee stopped him, and Edge tried to land the move himself. When the referee stopped him, Christian grabbed one of the chairs and racked Edge with it, then rolled him up for the win!
  (Winner, and new WWF Intercontinental Champion: Christian, via low-blow and rollup)
• WCW Tag Team Championship - KRONIK (w/ STEVEN RICHARDS) v. UNDERTAKER & KANE (champions)
  This match came out of Richards' hatred of `Taker, whom he saw as responsible for the dissolution of Right to Censor. In his desire to take down Taker, Richards recruited WCW's KroniK -- Brian Adams and Bryan Clark -- to assault Taker and deliver multiple High Times (double chokeslams) to him. Richards and KroniK then formally joined the Alliance and challenged the Brothers of Destruction to a title match.
  The two giant teams battled all out, but in the end, the Brothers rallied against KroniK, with Kane taking out Adams with a flying clothesline and Taker taking out Clark with the chokeslam for the win! After the match, Richards stalked Taker with a chair, but bumped into Kane and got chokeslammed!
  (Winners, and still WCW Tag Team Champions: Undertaker & Kane, via the chokeslam)
• Shane McMahon and Booker T prepared for their match against The Rock, and Tazz walked in, trying to help pump them up. Tazz pissed Booker off, so Shane kicked him out. Elsewhere, Stephanie told RVD that it was her birthday tomorrow, and she would like nothing more than to see Jericho defeated. Jericho then walked in and said it would be a great idea to have a birthday party on RAW, but that he didn't need to bring balloons, `cuz Steph already had that covered!
• WWF Hardcore Championship - ROB VAN DAM (champion) v. CHRIS JERICHO
  The Whole F'n Show had a great deal of fan support, which made him quite cocky, but Jericho went on the attack first. RVD rallied back, but woun up on the short end of the stick when he missed a spinning heel kick to Jericho on the barricade. Jericho then got out a ladder and started using it on RVD, suplexing him on it. RVD came back and did the same to Jericho, but Jericho went to lock him in the Walls of Jericho. RVD escaped and started flipping Jericho around, but Jericho rallied back and went for the Lionsault, but RVD moved. RVD busted Jericho open with a spinning heel kick and went for the Fivestar Frog Splash, but Jericho moved! Jericho set up the ladder in the ring and locked RVD into a Tarantula on top of the ladder. RVD escaped and fell out of the ring. Jericho attempted to jump onto RVD, but missed and hit the ring barrier. The two battled in and out of the ring some, until Jericho finally grabbed a steel chair and started beating on him. Then STEPHANIE McMAHON-HELMSLEY ran out, distracting Jericho, leaving him open for the Van Daminator and the Fivestar Frog Splash for the win!
  (Winner, and still WWF Hardcore Champion: Rob Van Dam, via Van Daminator/Fivestar Frog Splash combo)
• WCW World Championship Handicap Match - SHANE McMAHON & BOOKER T v. THE ROCK (champion)
  The match was set up by Shane to try and wrest the WCW title back out of The Rock's hands and back to the Alliance. The Rock went after Booker first, taking him down and going for the pin, but Shane broke it up, as he did for the next pin. Rock chased Shane out of the ring, but when he got back in, Shane worked him over to make it easier for Booker, whom he tagged back in. Booker pummeled Rock along with Shane, whom he tagged in, and Shane worked over Rock until the Great One rallied and locked Shane in the Sharpshooter. Shane brutalized Rock on the outside for a while before throwing him back to Booker, who went for a pin, but Rock kicked out. Booker utilized a steel chair, and set up Rock on the Spanish announcers' desk for a flying elbow from Shane, but Rock rolled back into the ring and took down Booker. Shane grabbed the title belt and went to hit Rock, but missed and hit Booker! Shane then turned around and hit Rock too. Shane went for the flying elbow but missed, so he tagged in Booker. Rock took both men down, hitting the Rock Bottom on Shane and the pinebuster on Booker. That's when TEST ran out and booted Rock in the face, only to be chased off by BRADSHAW. WCW referee Nick Patrick ignored all this, even when WWF referee Mike Chioda ran out to lecture Patrick. When Patrick went to count the pin for Booker, Chioda decked Patrick. Rock hit the Rock Bottom on Booker as Earl Hebner ran out to count the pin for the win!
  (Winner, and still WCW Champion: The Rock, via the Rock Bottom)
• WCW U.S. Championship - RHYNO v. TAJIRI (champion) (w/ TORRIE WILSON)
  Rhyno targeted Tajiri's injured ribs -- which had been weakened in previous weeks courtesy of a Gore by the man-beast. Tajiri refused to stay down, however, and even rallied back when Rhyno menaced Torrie, stopping a Gore with a nasty kick to the face. Rhyno rallied back and hit the Gore for the three-count!
  (Winner, and new WCW U.S. Champion: Rhyno, via the Gore)
• WWF Heavyweight Championship - KURT ANGLE v. STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN (champion)
  After his successful, if controversial win at Summerslam, Austin held a celebration on the following Raw, an event which Angle crashed to humiliate the Alliance by hosing them all with milk from a milk truck. Austin retaliated by stealing Angle's gold medals and throwing them off a bridge. Angle, furious, kidnapped Austin and threatened to throw him off a bridge if he wasn't granted a title rematch. Austin agreed, but attempted to remove Angle from the equation by piledriving him into the concrete floor. Angle, who has a history of neck problems (dating back to 1996, when he won the gold medal with a broken neck), refused to quit and still came to the match. Prior to Unforgiven, Commissioner Regal announced that although Angle was not medically cleared for the match, he would take full responsibility for any mishaps.
  The battle was Angle's in the early-goings, as he dominated the champion and kept him on the defensive until Angle hit a suplex that aggravated his neck. Austin rallied back, but Angle recovered and even tried to return the piledriver Austin had given him by doing it himself! Austin focused his attacks on Angle's neck, and soon had Angle on the defensive until the Olympian hit a succession of German Suplexes on Austin. As the match went to end-game, Angle hit a DDT and even a Stunner! Austin kicked out of his own finisher, then hit Angle with an Olympic Slam! Angle kicked out, and even kicked out of the piledriver that Austin gave him. Austin stalked Angle for the Stunner, but Angle reversed the move into the Anglelock. Austin crawled to the ropes, grabbed the apron with his right hand as he tapped out with his left. Referee Earl Hebner, not seeing the apron-grab, awarded the victory to Angle! The victorious Olympic Champion's family celebrated with him and the entire WWF locker room in the ring!
  (Winner, and new WWF Heavyweight Champion: Kurt Angle, via the Anglelock submission)

October 2001: No Mercy, St. Louis, Missouri
Theme Music: "Click Click Boom" by Saliva

• Pre-PPV Matches
  The A.P.A. defeated KANYON and HUGH MORRUS; KIDMAN retained his WCW Cruiserweight Championship against SCOTTY 2 HOTTY.
• WCW Tag Team Championship - THE HURRICANE & LANCE STORM (w/ MIGHTY MOLLY & IVORY) v. HARDY BOYZ (champions) (w/ LITA)
  Hurricane showed off his spectacular "hurri-powers" before the match, but the Hardys, unimpressed, took him down with some high-flying double-team moves. The "hurri-league" then hit some double-team manuevers of their own. Then the Hurricane donned the "hurri-cape" and hit a diving crossbody onto the Hardys on the outside. Jeff was isolated by the Alliance members, but he rallied back and hit a Whisper in the Wind to Storm before tagging in Matt. A brawl ensued, with many near-falls, and Matt's Twist of Fate was countered with a stereo superkick. Lita started fighting with Molly and Ivory, while Storm locked Jeff in the Maple Leaf. Lita stopped that with her top-rope Lita-rana. Hurricane was left wide open for a Twist of Fate and Swanton Bomb for the Hardys to win!
  (Winners, and still WCW Tag Team Champions: Hardy Boyz, via Twist of Fate/Swanton Bomb combo)
• As Rob Van Dam arrived, Alliance Commissioner William Regal failed to get an apology for Stone Cold out of him. Regal then warned him not to have anything to do with Vince McMahon, to which RVD told him he was just looking out for #1; elsewhere, an arriving Vince McMahon told Michael Cole he was here to make an impact.
• TEST v. KANE
  Test, who was still enjoying a big roll of wins, challenged Kane after his tag-team partner Booker T challenged Undertaker.
  The two big men went all-out to destroy one another in this match. Neither man could keep the other down for long, but Test soon hit a Boot-to-the-Head on the outside for a near-fall. Kane countered a second with a chokeslam. Kane hit a powerslam next, but missed the flying Kaneline, allowing Test to actually hit the Meltdown on him. When Kane kicked out of that, Test got a steel chair, but Kane dropkicked it into his face! Nick Patrick then took the chair away from Kane, leaving the door open for another Boot-to-the-Head from Test for the pinfall! After the match, a furious Kane took Patrick apart with two chokeslams and a powerbomb all the way to Hell.
  (Winner: Test, via the Boot-to-the-Head)
• Jonathon Coachman attempted to interview Stone Cold, who had Debra tell him that Kurt Angle is a sorry som'bitch, RVD's a piece of trash, Vince McMahon's a bigger piece of trash, and to get his butt outta here; Stacy Keibler modeled her lingerie for Matt Hardy, who got quite an eyeful... much to Lita's annoyance.
• Lingerie Match - STACY KEIBLER v. TORRIE WILSON
  After Torrie Wilson defied Alliance rules and struck up a relationship with Tajiri, Stacy Keibler challenged her to this... the first-ever Lingerie Match!
  Torrie unveiled her "ring attire" -- a stunning red set -- before Stacy teased the crowd before revealing her own black set. A slap to Torrie's face later, the catfight was on. The specifics of the match are unimportant next to the fact that the entire match was fought in LINGERIE! Soon, Torrie hit Tajiri's handspring elbow for the pinfall!
  (Winner: Torrie Wilson... and every red-blooed male in America)
• Cole interviewed Kurt Angle, who said it didn't matter if Mr. McMahon was apparently supporting RVD, because he would take back his title, oh yeah, it's Van Dam true! Elsewhere, Lillian Garcia interviewed Christian, who said that tonight he would show that no matter how good Edge is, Christian is better.
• Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match - EDGE v. CHRISTIAN (champion)
  After their match the previous month, Edge was quick to demand a rematch, this time a Ladder Match. Over the next few weeks, the two brothers crossed paths more than once, and Christian soon revealed just how deranged he was, phoning in a fake call to J.R., who told Edge that their mother was in an accident. When Edge went to tell Christian, the "deranged maestro" lured Edge into an ambush from the Alliance -- his "new family" -- and told him the accident was 27 years ago: when Mom gave birth to Edge!
  Two years after Edge & Christian launched themselves into the spotlight with their famous Ladder Match against the Hardys, the brothers collided against each other! Like the previous month, the fight was stiff and furious, the ladder coming into play early on, as the brothers brawled through the crowd as well as in the ring. When Christian got the upper hand and trapped Edge in the corner, the crowd started chanting "Christian Sucks!" Christian went and got a steel chair, but Edge fought back and threw his brother into the ladder. Christian rallied back and started pounding Edge with a second ladder, and soon Edge rallied and slammed Christian from the top of both ladders! Edge recovered and climbed for the belt, but Christian came back and hit the Unprettier from the top! The champion got a pair of steel chairs and went for the One-Man Conchairto, but Edge knocked the chair back into his face! The challenger then set a third ladder up on the two chairs and splashed Christian from the top of the ladder! Christian knocked him off the ladder with a ladder to the ribs, then set the third ladder up behind the other two as he climbed. Edge speared Christian from the top rope off the ladder. They then both climbed at the same time, but their ladder fell over and they toppled to the floor. Chrisian recovered first, but he was quite sore as he climbed up. Edge gave him a low-blow with a chair, then positioned Christian face-down on a chair on top of two ladders, then delivered a brain-scrambling One-Man Conchairto ON TOP OF THE F'N LADDER! Christian fell to the mat as Edge reclaimed his title!
  (Winner, and new WWF Intercontinental Champion: Edge)
• At WWF New York, Spike Dudley drowned his sorrows and wished Big Show and Tajiri luck against his brothers, and looked to be on the rebound from Molly's defection.
• WWF Tag Team Championship - BIG SHOW & TAJIRI v. DUDLEY BOYZ (champions)
  In the previous weeks, the Dudleys had put Spike through a table -- making Big Show mad at them. Then they'd put Torrie Wilson through a table -- getting Tajiri mad at them.
  The Dudleys' attempts to soften up Big Show were shrugged off by the giant, while Tajiri's kicks weakened the champions, but then the Dudleys started to isolate Tajiri. Soon, Tajiri tagged in Show, who tore the Dudleys apart, did his best Razor Ramon impression and signaled for the chokeslam. The champions knocked him out of the ring. Tajiri roared back with a series of kicks, locking D-Von in the Tarantula and hitting both with a double handspring elbow! Tajiri then spewed the BLINDING GREEN MIST but hit the referee instead of Bubba Ray. Show got back in the ring and chokeslammed Bubba, but the ref was still trying to clear his eyes. Then RHYNO ran out and Gored Show out of the ring, while Tajiri hit the Buzzsaw Kick to D-Von for a near-fall, but then the Japanese Buzzsaw fell prey to the Dudley Death Drop and the Dudleys retained.
  (Winners, and still WWF Tag Team Champions: Dudley Boyz, via the 3-D)
• Backstage, Regal was proud that Rhyno showed initiative, and the Man-Beast said he would make the public stop viewing the Alliance as a joke... even if he had to do it single-handedly; meanwhile, Shane McMahon congratulated Test on defeating Kane, and said it was time for Booker T to stop the Undertaker.
  
• UNDERTAKER v. BOOKER T
  Sick of not getting any respect, Booker T decided the only way to get some was to beat the most respected guy in the WWF -- the Undertaker.
  The match got started in the entryway where the brawling began, and soon the Bookerman got taken to old school by `Taker. Booker then grabbed the ring bell and tried to hit Taker with it, but referee Tim White took it away. The fight spilled into the crowd, where Booker got the advantage and brought it back to the ring. The Alliance member hit a missile dropkick and a few other moves to wear down the Deadman, but his spinaroonie was put on hold when Taker got back up. Booker managed to maintain the advantage for a while, reversing a Taker avalanche into a snake eyes, and a big kick sent the American Badass to the outside. Booker celebrated with the spinaroonie! Booker hit the Scissors Kick for a near-fall, and countered a chokeslam with a low-blow. Booker then climbed the turnbuckle and punched Taker in the head, but then the Deadman sent him for the Last Ride for the win!
  (Winner: Undertaker, via the Last Ride powerbomb)
• Cocah interviewed Chris Jericho, who said it was time to put up or shut the hell up, and he was finally going to win the "big one."
• WCW World Championship - CHRIS JERICHO v. THE ROCK (champion)
  The feud between these two fan-favorites was sparked after Jericho accidentally hit The Rock with a steel chair in a tag-team match. The two came to blows backstage over the mistake, and then Shane McMahon pointed out to Jericho that he spent too much time thinking up insults for Stephanie, and not enough time focusing on winning the "big one." Jericho decided the only way he can prove that he can win the "big one" is by beating the Great One. Stephanie, while she hated both men, hoped that The Rock would beat Jericho. The tension between the two was unbelievable. Jericho put it quite well: "This is getting good."
  The two men went at each other and looked for the finish early on, while the fans tried to figure out who to cheer for. Soon Jericho got the upper hand, and pulled out all the stops in his attempt to capture WCW gold. Rock hit a superplex to rally back, then started throwing him around, both in and out of the ring. Soon, Jericho was put in a sleeper, but he rallied back, weathered the Brahma Bull's attacks, then fought out of a superplex and hit a missile dropkick. Soon, Jericho hit the Rock Bottom on Rock (Jericho Bottom?) and then the Lionsault for a near-fall! Then Jericho hit a bulldog and went for the Canadian People's Elbow, but Rock got up and put Y2J in the Sharpshooter! Jericho screamed and managed to crawl to the ropes. Rock then tore the top off the Spanish announce table and gave Jericho a Rock Bottom through it! The Great One then pulled Y2J back into the ring and gave him the pinebuster and went for the People's Elbow. Jericho countered it, however, and put Rock in the Walls of Jericho! Suddenly, STEPHANIE McMAHON-HELMSLEY ran out and slid a steel chair into the ring. Jericho broke the hold to chase Steph away, allowing Rock to get up and hit a DDT. Then The Rock brought Steph into the ring and gave her the Rock Bottom! While the ref tried to sort all this out, Jericho hit Rock with the chair for the win! After the match, Jericho mocked Steph, and The Rock grabbed the chair. When Y2J turned around, the People's Champ handed him the chair, which Jericho held up with his new title belt!
  (Winner, and new WCW Champion of the World: Chris Jericho, via chair-shot)
• WWF Heavyweight Championship Triple Threat Match - ROB VAN DAM v. KURT ANGLE v. STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN (champion)
  Three weeks after Unforgiven, Austin returned from absence and immediately challenged Angle to a rematch, and thanks to the defection of William Regal to the Alliance, he managed to regain the WWF title. Angle demanded a rematch as well, but Austin also continued to clash with the popularity of Rob Van Dam, which he felt threatened by. Mick Foley returned to the WWF as its commissioner, and booked all three men in a Triple Threat at No Mercy. RVD's allegiance was brought into question, however, when he was seen getting out of Vince McMahon's limo, and when Vince came out onto the ramp the Smackdown before the PPV and did the thumbs gimmick.
  Austin had words for RVD at the start, allowing Angle to sneak in and suplex both men. The Alliance men double-teamed him, but Austin took time out to trash talk RVD and flip him the bird. RVD gave it right back, and Angle snuck up and attacked him. Angle reversed a Stunner into the anklelock, but RVD broke it up. The Whole Dam Show then attacked Austin, until Angle suplexed him. RVD then hit Rolling Thunder on the Olympian for a near-fall before Austin broke it up. The fans rallied behind RVD as Austin hit him with a spinebuster for a near-fall. Austin worked over RVD's knees and pounded on Angle before putting RVD in a half crab, which Angle broke up. Austin threw Angle out of the ring and put RVD in an STF, which Angle also broke up. The Rattlesnake threw Angle into the steel post, then applied a Figure-4 Leglock on RVD around the post! Soon, both men were down, and RVD went upstairs for the Fivestar Frog Splash, but nobody was home. Austin Stunner'd Angle, but RVD broke it up. Mr. PPV hit the split-legged moonsault to Austin, but then Angle hit the Angle Slam to RVD before the champion broke the pin. Austin took Angle outside and brawled with him there, going for the piledriver through the announce table. Angle backdropped him onto the table, but then RVD flew off the top rope and onto the gold-medalist! VINCE McMAHON strutted out to the ring as RVD hit Angle with a reverse heel kick. Angle fought back, however, with a top-rope Angleplex. Austin got back up and Stunner'd Angle again, sending him out of the ring. The Rattlesnake turned his sights on RVD, and Vince blasted Austin in the back of the head with a steel chair, busting him wide open. RVD then hit the Fivestar Frog Splash, but could not make the pin right away, allowing Angle time to get up and break the pin. Angle then hit four consecutive German suplexes and an Angle Slam, but then SHANE McMAHON ran out and threw Angle into the steel post. Father and son brawled with each other as Austin got up and hit the Stunner on RVD to retain his title, much to Vince's shock.
  (Winner, and still WWF Heavyweight Champion: Stone Cold Steve Austin, via the Stone Cold Stunner)

November 2001: Surv1v(o)r Series, Greensboro, North Carolina
Theme Music: "Control" by Puddle of Mudd

• History of the Surv1v(o)r Series challenge
  Following No Mercy, Vince McMahon, now reunited with his wife Linda against the Alliance, challenged Shane and Stephanie to put it all on the line at Surv1v(o)r Series, with a Winner-Take-All match, in which the loser would go out of business forever. The Siblings agreed to the 10-Man Elimination match. The WWF then went on a roll and won several titles back from the Alliance, but then Stone Cold returned to find the Alliance on the verge of tearing itself apart from within. Austin swore to prevent that and rallied the troops behind him. The Alliance then won a major victory when a member of Team WWF defected to Team Alliance -- Kurt Angle. Citing his accomplishments, Angle said he was and always would be a winner and had joined the "winning team." Further making things very bad for Team WWF was the constant friction between The Rock and Chris Jericho, especially after The Rock reclaimed his WCW title from Jericho. Vince then masterfully played the Alliance against itself when he announced that a member of Team Alliance would defect to the WWF at Surv1v(o)r Series, that man being Stone Cold Steve Austin. Austin emphatically denied any such thing, but the Alliance was heavily suspicious. Meanwhile, more matches were set up, by soon-to-resign WWF Commissioner Mick Foley, designed to unify several titles. The stipulation was added that anybody who held a title belt would still have a job regardless of which company won Winner-Take-All. Thus, everyone had a stake in winning their matches, so as to still hold a job.
• WWF European Championship - CHRISTIAN (champion) v. AL SNOW
  A match booked during the preceding Heat, after Snow had made some disparaging remarks about Christian.
  Prior to the match, Christian got on the mike and said the Federation would die that night. The two went at it fairly well, with Christian holding the early advantage, but Snow turned it around, nearly winning after hitting the Snowplow, but Christian got a foot on the ropes, then hit the Unprettier for the win.
  (Winner, and still WWF European Champion: Christian, via the Unprettier)
• Stone Cold arrived to a cold reception from Shane, Stephanie, RVD, and Kurt Angle, who thought he was planning to jump to the WWF after giving Vince McMahon a smile at the end of Smackdown. Austin swore his loyalty. Elsewhere, Vince McMahon told Linda she should be ready for anything, because "shit happens." Vince then told Michael Cole that he built his empire on calculated risk, and that he had an ace in the hole. William Regal then walked up and said he would be proud to dismantle the WWF's empire.
  
• TAJIRI (w/ TORRIE WILSON) v. WILLIAM REGAL
  Two former allies collided in this match, with each man doing his best to take the other out of commission. Tajiri tried to use his "educated feet" to wear down Regal, but the Alliance Commissioner would not be denied, tying Tajiri's neck in the ropes and pounding him, finally hitting a stiff butterfly powerbomb to win. After the match, Regal delivered a second butterfly powerbomb, then did the same to Torrie when she came in the ring to check on Tajiri.
  (Winner: William Regal, via butterfly powerbomb)
• Backstage, Test prepared for his upcoming match when Stacy Keibler walked by, and seemed warm to the idea of going out with Test after tonight. Edge told Coach that he wasn't worried about feeling the big boot, but that Test would moan after the match, "I lost, what's that all a-boot?"
• WWF Intercontinental/WCW U.S. Championship Unification Match - TEST v. EDGE
  This unification match feud started back when Test when ran in during one of Edge's matches to deliver a Boot-to-the-Head, then won the Intercontinental Championship from Edge by pinning him with his feet on the ropes. Edge then challenged Kurt Angle and won the U.S. title from him. Mick Foley then booked this unification match. Both men had a stake in it, since the winner would be guaranteed a job.
  The match was stiff to start out, as Edge came out swinging, knocking Test around, both in and out of the ring. Then Test hung Edge up in the ropes and took control, savagely beating down on Edge, who refused to quit. Even after taking a Meltdown and a spear, Edge kicked out. Finally, Edge hit a spear of his own and rolled Test up to score the win and unify the belts!
  (Winner, and new Unified Intercontinental/U.S. Champion: Edge, via spear and rollup)
  
• Backstage, Angle consoled Stephanie, who was afraid she might have to become a "regular person" if the Alliance lost. Angle assured her he would make sure Austin didn't screw the Alliance. Elsewhere, Jeff Hardy and Lita tried to make sense of Matt's strange behavior in recent weeks. Matt walked in and said he was upset because his career and dream of being a WWF Superstar was on the line tonight. The Hardys left, and Lita and Trish Stratus wished each other luck in the Six-Pack Challenge later that night.
• Steel Cage Tag Team Championship Unification Match - HARDY BOYZ v. DUDLEY BOYZ (w/ STACY KEIBLER)
  The Dudleys had claimed the WCW titles from the Hardys some weeks earlier, after Stacy distracted Matt, thus making the Dudleys the first-ever Triple Crown Tag Champions. The Hardys had then taken the WWF titles back from Test and Booker T. Mick Foley then booked the unification match in a steel cage. Again, the winning team (and manager, if applicable) would be guaranteed a job.
  The Dudleys came out strong, working over Matt, but Jeff helped his brother rally back. The Hardys then tried to escape the cage, but the Dudleys pulled them back, Jeff suffering a top-rope powerbomb from Bubba Ray. The Dudleys then threw their opponents into the mesh, which almost backfired as Jeff caught the steel and tried to crawl up the cage. The Dudleys pulled them back and stomped them down. The Hardys rallied back and simultaneously jumped onto Bubba from opposite turnbuckles, but D-Von fought back and hit a flying headbutt to Matt's groin. Bubba then got that look in his eye and yelled, "Stacy! Get the tables!" Stacy used her feminine wiles to sway WCW referee NICK PATRICK to unlock the cage door so the table could be brought in. Matt was able to avoid a 3-D through the table, and climbed out of the ring to the outside! Jeff started to do the same, but at the top of the cage, he saw D-Von lying atop the table. Unable to resist his temptation to hit the high spot, he flew off the top of the cage with a Swanton Bomb, but D-Von moved, and Jeff demolished the table, leaving himself easy prey for the pinfall from Bubba. Matt was distraught, as was LITA, who ran out to check on Jeff.
  (Winners, and new Undisputed Tag Team Champions: Dudley Boyz, via pinfall)
• At WWF New York, WWF Commissioner MICK FOLEY said he was there on Vince's orders, and as Commissioner, he had to bow to Vince's wishes. Foley said he was cheering for the WWF, and that he would be in Charlotte for Raw. Back in Greensboro, Test asked Scotty 2 Hotty if he was in the battle royal, which Scotty confirmed. Test then beat Scotty to a pulp and said, "Now you're not."
• Immunity Battle Royal
  The stipulation of this match stated that the winner would be guaranteed a contract for one year, regardless of the winning organization. The contract further stipulated that the winner would be immune from being fired for that year. Thus, all the participants had something to gain.
  All in all, 22 superstars were involved in this over-the-top battle royal, with Scotty 2 Hotty being replaced by TEST. SHAWN STASIAK was the first to be eliminated. TAZZ came out after he left. (He needed immunity, because the preceding week, he'd been the target of a rant from Paul Heyman, prompting Tazz to lock him in the Tazzmission.) Even CHAVO GUERRERO, JR. and HUGH MORRUS got involved. (The preceding week, they'd gone to Vince and asked for a job if the Alliance lost. Vince refused.) They were eliminated, however. Tazz turned and yelled for Heyman to step in the ring. BILLY GUNN hurled Tazz over the top rope, prompting Heyman to burst out laughing. The final four were BRADSHAW, BILLY GUNN, TEST, and LANCE STORM, after Bradshaw eliminated BILLY KIDMAN. Test flung Gunn over the top, but Gunn held on and avoided touching the floor. Then Test eliminated Bradshaw and Storm, and celebrated briefly before Gunn attacked him. Test merely flung him over the top as well to claim immunity for an entire year.
  (Winner: Test, last eliminating Billy Gunn)
• Backstage, Shane and Booker T swore to stick together, regardless of what Austin's role turned out to be.
• Six-Pack WWF Women's Championship Match - LITA v. TRISH STRATUS v. JACQUELINE v. MIGHTY MOLLY v. IVORY v. JAZZ
  After Chyna's contract was not renewed, she was stripped of the Women's title. This match was booked to determine who would be the new champion. Alliance Commissioner William Regal, who booked the match, had invited a sixth "mystery opponent" to fill the third Alliance slot. As the match began, that opponent turned out to be ECW wrestler Jazz.
  The rules of the match allowed either woman in the ring to tag in any of the other four. Jazz and Lita started it off. Soon, Lita had to rescue Trish from a four-way beating from the other four. Soon, Lita hit a Twist of Fate/moonsault combo on Ivory that resulted in a near-fall when Mighty Molly and Jazz broke it up. Soon, Ivory and Trish were left in the ring as the other four fought outside the ring. Trish hit her springboard bulldog, the Stratusfaction, to become the new champion!
  (Winner, and new WWF Women's Champion: Trish Stratus, via the Stratusfaction)
• Backstage, Vince addressed Team WWF and told them not only was he depending on them to win, so was every WWF fan. If they lost, no one would ever forgive them, and they could be justifiably ridiculed for it. Despite that, he was confident they would get the job done.
• Winner Take All 10-Man Elimination Tag Team Match - SHANE McMAHON, STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN, BOOKER T, ROB VAN DAM, KURT ANGLE v. THE ROCK, CHRIS JERICHO, UNDERTAKER, KANE, BIG SHOW
  The week after Vince made the Winner Take All challenge, Kurt Angle defected to the Alliance, immediately securing a place for himself on Team Alliance. The next week, however, Vince announced that someone from the Alliance would defect at Surv1v(o)r Series, that person being Austin. Austin denied this every time someone suspected him, but speculation was running high whether Vince was lying, whether Austin really was a mole, or whether it was someone else. Vince was originally scheduled to fight, but after seeing Big Show impressively take apart several Alliance members in the ring, he replaced himself with Show.
  Rock and Austin started fighting before the match officially began. Soon, many tags were made as each team tried to get the early advantage. Booker T tagged in as Kane did, but the Bookerman stared wide-eyed at the Big Red Monster. Angle tagged himself in, and promptly got beaten down by Kane. Shane broke up that count, as well as another that Undertaker tried to score on Booker T. `Taker went "old school" on Booker, but Shane broke up that pin as well. Taker then did the same to Austin, and got annoyed when Shane broke up that pin too. Soon, Taker was trapped in the hostile corner and pummeled from all sides. Angle fell prey to a DDT, and Taker managed to tag in Big Show, who threw Angle around with ease. When RVD tried to save Angle, he got gorilla pressed. Angle used the distraction to Angle Slam Show, which was followed by a Booker T Scissors Kick, a Fivestar Frog Splash, and a Shane McMahon Savage elbow to eliminate the giant Show. (Elimination -> Big Show, via Savage elbow) Shane's celebration didn't last long as Rock pounded on him, then tagged in Kane for a chokeslam, Taker for a Tombstone, and Jericho for a Lionsault and the pin, eliminating Shane-O Mac. (Elimination -> Shane McMahon, via Lionsault) Kane was the next to go, following a Fivestar Frog Splash. (Elimiation -> Kane, via Fivestar Frog Splash) Undertaker stepped up to lead the WWF, chokeslamming Angle and kicking a chair out of Booker T's hands. Unfortunately, Austin gave Taker a Stunner and dragged Angle over him for the next fall. (Elimination -> Undertaker, via Stone Cold Stunner) Now at a 4-to-2 disadvantage, Rock and Jericho had to reluctantly work together to survive. Rock fought against Booker, managing to fight back after taking a Scissors Kick and score two near-falls. The third time worked, and the Bookerman was eliminated. (Elimination -> Booker T, via pinfall) Rock was exhausted but tried to fight back against RVD. Finally, Jericho was tagged in, and Y2J took it to Mr. PPV. RVD dodged a Lionsault and took down Jericho with a heel kick, but Jericho kicked out and rolled him up to eliminate him. (Elimation -> Rob Van Dam, via rollup) Jericho was immediately besieged by Austin and Angle, but Y2J valiantly fought back and managed to put Angle in the anklelock! Angle managed to get free and tag in Austin, leading to more double-teaming. Finally, Jericho tagged in Rock, who promptly made Angle tap out to the Sharpshooter! (Elimination -> Kurt Angle, via Sharpshooter) Austin was now at a 2-to-1 disadvantage, and Jericho tried to take advantage, going for the Lionsault, but Austin got his knees up to block the move. Austin then set Jericho up for a superplex, but Y2J pushed him down, then went for a high crossbody. Austin rolled it through for the pin. (Elimination -> Chris Jericho, via pinfall) Jericho refused to just let it go, however, and gave Rock a Breakdown before leaving. Rock fortunately managed to kick out of a pin attempt, and Undertaker came out to escort Jericho backstage to prevent any more bad judgment calls. Austin threw Rock around outside the ring, busting him open, then tied him up in the Sharpshooter in the ring. Screaming in pain, Rock managed to get to the ropes. Furious, Austin grabbed the WWF title belt, but Rock tripped him up and put him in the Sharpshooter instead! Austin grabbed the ropes as well, then went for the Stunner. Rock, however, reversed it and hit the "Maivia Stunner" to go for the pin. Before WWF ref EARL HEBNER could count it, WCW ref NICK PATRICK pulled him out and took over. Rock saw him and went to attack him, but Austin gave him the "Bottom Line," but Rock managed to kick out despite Patrick's fast-count. Hebner took Patrick out, but was promptly knocked senseless when Austin barreled into him. Austin took Rock down again, went for the cover, but then Kurt Angle ran back out, grabbed the WWF title belt and blasted Austin with it. Austin staggered into the Rock Bottom, and Hebner groggily counted the fall! The WWF locker room burst into cheers, while Stephanie wailed in disbelief in the Alliance locker room. The Alliance was knocked out of business, and MR. McMAHON came out and raised his arms in triumph.
  (Winner/Survivor: Team WWF's The Rock, last eliminating Stone Cold Steve Austin)

December 2001: Ven gea nce, San Diego, California
Theme Music: "Sinner" by Drowning Pool

• Scotty 2 Hotty & Albert v. Christian & Test
• Intercontinental Championship Match - William Regal v. Edge (champion)
• Women's Championship Match - Jacqueline v. Trish Stratus (champion)
• Tag Team Championship Match - Big Show & Kane v. Dudley Boyz (champion) (w/ Stacy Keibler)
• Special Referee Lita - Matt Hardy v. Jeff Hardy
• WWF Heavyweight Championship Match - Kurt Angle v. Stone Cold Steve Austin (champion)
• WCW World Championship Match - Chris Jericho v. The Rock (champion)
• Undisputed World Championship Match - Chris Jericho v. Stone Cold Steve Austin

Go to 2002 PPVs -->