ECW on Sci-Fi
February 3, 2009
St. Louis, MO
(taped 2/2/2009)

The Current Champions were as follows:
World Champion: John Cena (11/23/2008)
Intercontinental Champion: CM Punk (1/19/2009)
Women’s Champion: Melina (1/26/2009)
World Tag Team Champions: The Miz & John Morrison (12/13/2008)
WWE Champion: Edge (1/26/2009)
U.S. Champion: Shelton Benjamin (7/20/2008)
Diva’s Champion: Maryse (12/26/2008)
WWE Tag Team Champions: Carlito & Primo Colon (9/26/2008)
ECW Champion: Jack Swagger (1/13/2009)

Finlay takes on Swagger, Boogeyman in action, Teddy Long doing “Teddy Long Things.” It must be Tuesday night on ECW!!!

Your hosts are Todd Grisham and Matt “Super Hair” Striker

Before the intro rolls we have a little video package showing what went down between Finlay and Jack Swagger last week. Basically, Hornswoggle stole Swagger’s ECW title and Finlay came out to give the belt back. Well Swagger did what Swagger does and beat up on Horny which lead to ‘belt shot’ to the face. Enough said.

In the arena now Todd and Matt hype up the main event match Swagger vs. Finlay. This should be an interesting match to say the least. Will Swagger stay undefeated? We’ll find out. Paul Burchill’s music starts up and our first match is about to happen.

• Tommy Dreamer vs. Paul Burchill w/Katie Lea

Oh the battle of the jobbers. Which one of these guys that hasn’t won a singles match in over 6 months is going to prevail? Will it be Tommy Dreamer? Two weeks ago he promised us he would be ECW champion or retire by June. Will it be Paul Burchill? He….. well, he just wants to fight DJ Gabriel. Where is DJ Gabriel anyway? This match should have taken place last week after they got into a confrontation in Teddy Long’s office, but I guess they wanted to drag things out which is fine by me. Bell rings and Dreamer immediately goes for a roll-up which gets 1. Dreamer puts Burchill in a side head lock and backs him into the corner. Dreamer kicks away at Burchill until the ref finally breaks it up. You know what happens when a ref breaks up something in the corner?? Well, Burchill hit’s Dreamer with a cheap shot to the face and starts pounding away. Burchill looks for an Irish Whip but Dreamer counters and gets a nice OVER-SOLD hip toss. Dreamer hits another hip toss and locks in an arm bar. Burchill backs Dreamer into the corner and pounds away again. Another reversed Irish Whip sends Burchill into the corner for the “Dreamer bulldog” spot but Dreamer is sent awkwardly into the middle rope instead. Burchill covers for 1 and now Dreamer’s in trouble as Burchill unleashes hell on him, and by hell I mean punches and kicks. After about 30 seconds of that, Burchill hits and scoop slam and locks in a reverse chin lock to kill some time. Dreamer gets to his feet and tries to mount some offensive but Burchill isn’t hearing any of that. Burchill plants a nice elbow in the back of Dreamer’s head which put him in the corner. Burchill hits a clothesline in the corner and continues to punch and kick away at Dreamer. Burchill goes for his Flying Knee in the Corner thing but nobody’s home as Dreamer flattens him which a clothesline. Dreamer sends Burchill into the ropes and hits a flying reverse elbow. Burchill goes to the corner as Dreamer charges at him but is met with an elbow to the face. Burchill goes at Dreamer but is met with a SIT-OUT SPINEBUSTER!! 1-2-NO! Too bad that wasn’t Lance Cade or this match would be over. Dreamer puts Burchill in the Tree of Woe and nails the surfboard dropkick. Dreamer’s finally gonna do it!! He’s finally gonna win a match, I’m so excited!!! And so is Dreamer as he goes for the Dreamer DDT, but Burchill counters and sends him face first into the middle turnbuckle. Burchill rolls him up!! 1-2-NO!! Dreamer puts Burchill up in a fireman’s carry but receives an elbow to the temple. Burchill follows with a neck breaker for the 1-2-3. Well so much for the Tommy’s first win, I’m sure it will come in time. It’s nice to see WWE trying to hold back on us for once. The match was way better than I thought it would be; which isn’t saying much. *¾

Back stage we see Jamie Noble talking to Teddy Long. Where has Jamie Noble been?? Didn’t he have some feud going with William Regal over Layla? I guess it didn’t really matter much. Jamie’s in ECW to save the show, or at least that’s what he’s trying to sell to Teddy. He says that since Matt Hardy is gone, ECW needs a new superstar to take his place. I couldn’t agree more!! And neither could Teddy, he tells Jamie that he will have a match tonight. I wonder who he’ll be taking on….I guess we’ll have to wait!  Back to the ring and Dreamer’s still selling his loss. All of a sudden The Miz and John Morrison come out… what could they possibly want? I guess we’ll have to wait until after the commercial break.

Back from the commercial break and we see John Morrison and the Miz in the ring with Tommy Dreamer. Morrison says, “Just look at yourself Tommy, you’re so slow you can’t even get out of the ring in time for the next segment start.” That was pretty funny. They continue to make fun of Dreamer for being fat and crying a few weeks ago on ECW. Then they ask him if he really thinks he can be ECW champion again. The two clowns are very silly. They tell him that it’s the year 2009 and champions don’t look like him, they look like Miz and Morrison. Personally, I thought they looked Swagger…but whatever. Miz continues by saying that everyone wants Tommy to lose so he’ll finally retire. Then he says something about his wife and kids which I personally wasn’t paying attention to. It must have been really bad though cuz Dreamer went crazy on the Miz. He pounds away on Miz until Morrison comes in which leads to some double team action. Miz hits the “Reality Check” and both Miz and Morrison celebrate their beat down. They scream “Be Jealous” as their music starts up and they leave the ring. Grisham says what I was thinking, “What was the point of that?” I’m assuming they will feud again. It seems like ECW’s come full circle in the last year. Wasn’t it about a year ago when The Miz and Morrison were feuding with Tommy Dreamer and Colin Delaney? Anyone remember that? Well hopefully something will come from this segment. On to commercial break. ELIMINATION CHAMBER MATCH at No Way OUT!!!

Back from the commercial break and we see Jamie Noble in the ring waiting for his opponent. Who will it be? Oh no, it’s the Boogeyman. Looks like Jamie Noble has a short night ahead.

• The Boogeyman vs. Jamie Noble

Well here goes the ECW re-debut of Jamie Noble; Good luck buddy. Jamie Noble does not look happy but I have faith in him. The bell rings and Noble stalls for a bit, he genuinely doesn’t look like he wants anything to do with the Boogeyman. Noble backs into the corner, notices he’s near that bag of worms and high-tails it out of there. Eventually, Noble hints at a collar and elbow tie up but kicks Boogey in the gut instead. Boogey NO-SELLS a few punches, grabs Noble by the throat and throws him into the corner. Boogey pounds away at Noble until he misses a punch and ends up in the corner. Noble kicks away and even goes up to the second rope for a 10 count corner punch which Boogey pushes out of. Boogey catches Noble with a scoop slam and the BoogeyDancing begins. Boogey picks Noble up and sends him face first into the top turnbuckle. Boogey then punches at Noble in the corner and sends him flying with another OVER-SOLD hip toss. What’s up with everyone over-selling hip tosses today? Boogeyman hits a running tackle which sends Noble to the floor. Boogeyman goes out after Noble, hits a few more punches and press slams him back into the ring. As Boogey comes back into the ring, Noble goes Pearl Harbor on him with kicks and knees to the head. Noble goes up top and hits a nice forearm to the back of the head. Noble goes for a cover but only gets 1 as Boogey presses out of the cover and sits up. Who does this guy think he is?? The Undertaker? Noble then locks in a reverse chin lock as Striker compares the Boogeyman to three former Cardinal’s players. The crowd starts getting behind Boogey as he battles his way to his feet. Noble jump up on Boogey’s back but is slammed to the mat. It’s BOOGEY-UP time as Boogey starts to Boogeydance. Noble’s in the corner now as Boogey charges at him. Noble gets the boot up to try to slow Boogey’s momentum. Noble tries to whip Boogey into the corner but is sent in instead. The force of the impact knocks Noble to the mat. Back up and Noble is met with an uppercut that sends him back to the mat. A head butt follows and Noble’s back on the mat again! Boogey picks Noble up only to put him back on the mat with a short-armed clothesline. Another short-armed clothesline turns Noble inside out. Noble crawls to the corner which sets up for the BOOGEYLANCHE!!! Noble looks to be out as Boogey hits the Pump Handle Slam for the 1-2-3. The Boogeyman goes for the worms but Noble rolls out of the ring to safety. It looks like another dinner for 1 for the Boogeyman. I really can’t stand the Boogeyman and even though the crowd got behind him for a sec, they didn’t really give a crap about this match. I hate to see a good, little guy brawler like Jamie Noble have to job to this sorry gimmick. ¼*

Backstage we see Finlay and Hornswoggle gets ready for Finlay’s match tonight as we go to commercial. It must be that time of year again, because we have non-stop Wrestlemania Promos!!! I figured the WWE would want to forget about Wrestlemania 2.

Back from commercial and we get another video promo slowing us what happened last night on RAW. Basically Randy Orton wanted to take on Shane McMahon at No Way Out in a No Holds Bar match after being beaten up last week. Orton then attacked both the McMahon children backstage. After the attack Steph told Kane to get the Undertaker to come to RAW to take on Orton next week. Now we get a run through of all the matches at No Way Out (I can’t friggin’ wait!!). Afterwards Todd tells us we’ll be hearing from the ECW Champion Jack Swagger. Todd asks Swagger what his motivation for his match tonight. Before Todd even finished Swagger got all mad starting going on about being the ECW champion. He’s all mad because Finlay ruined his championship celebration last week on ECW. Don’t mess with Swagger, he’s a two time TWO TIME all American. Is that like being a 4 time all American? Swagger promises to ruin Finlay tonight for hitting him in the face with the ECW Title…. I guess we’ll see what happens after the break.

Back from the commercial break and it’s time for our MAIN EVENT!!! Jack Swagger is already on his way down to the ring WEARING the ECW Title. It’s weird to see someone actually wear that monster belt. As he gets in the ring, he starts to do his in-ring theatrics but his belt fell off. Good thing he caught it and made it look like it was suppose to happen…. Maybe that’s why no one wears those things. He comes Finlay with his “ogre” of a son Hornswoggle. I thought Ogres were huge?

• Finlay w/Hornswoggle vs. ECW Champion Jack Swagger (non title match)

The bell rings and we immediately go into a feeling out process that leads to a collar and elbow tie up. Swagger backs Finlay into the corner and keeps him there until the ref breaks it up. More wondering around the ring leads to another collar and elbow tie up which Finlay counters into a back waist lock. Swagger counters into his own back waist lock which puts both men on the mat. Finlay gets back to his feet but Swagger puts him back on the mat. Finlay eventually flips Swagger over and gets back to his feet. As Swagger makes it to one knee, Finlay slaps him right across the face. Ouch!! Swagger charges at Finlay but is countered into another back waist lock and then a roll-up for 2. Swagger looks really frustrated right now. I guess he’s not used to being out-wrestler… well kayfabe out-wrestled. Finlay goes to lock the fingers but Swagger kicks him in the gut and locks on a key lock bicep cutter; or at least that’s what Striker calls it. Swagger backs Finlay into the corner again until the ref had to break it up. These two are all about the feeling out process has Swagger goes for a single-leg take down, Finlay counters into a cover for 1. Finlay locks on a side head lock while Swagger’s in the ropes; the ref had to break it up again. They go to lock up again but Finlay gets a single-leg take down instead. Finlay locks in a modified Indian Death Lock (thanks again Striker) but Swagger gets to the ropes. Both men are up and Swagger clocks Finlay with a right hand. Swagger punches at Finlay until he’s back in the corner. An Irish Whip sends Finlay to the other corner, he tries to put the brakes on but somehow Finlay and Swagger hit head to head. I’m not sure what happened there but both men are down. Both men are up and Finlay catches Swagger with a backslide for 2. Afterwards, Swagger roll out to the floor as we go to commercial break. Back from commercial and Finlay’s still in control. I’m really surprised by how long the face has had control of this match. Finlay hits short-armed clothesline and goes for a cover which gets 1. Back up and Finlay hits Swagger in the head with a forearm. Another short-armed clothesline follows then Finlay locks in a modified camel clutch. After about a minute of that, Finlay goes for a cover that gets 1. Now Finlay sends Swagger face first into the turnbuckle and follows with not one, BUT TWO European uppercuts. Finlay tries to send Swagger to the other corner but it gets reversed and Finlay goes ribs first into the second turnbuckle pad. That looked painful!! Grisham says, “Now that was a hard Irish Whip to the Irishman.” Really? You just said that on television? Finlay rolls out to the floor for a little break but Swagger follows him out and pummels him. Swagger like a good boy goes after the ribs by sending Finlay into the apron. Swagger rolls Finlay in the ring and covers for 2. Swagger picks Finlay up and rams him hard into the corner, follows that up with a back suplex and covers for another near fall. Now Swagger locks in a body scissors to work on those ribs and kill a little time. Swagger eventually grabs the ropes for leverage right in front of the ref and has to break the hold. Both men up and Swagger hits Finlay right in the face with another forearm. Swagger sends Finlay into the ropes but ducks the head and receives a kick to the face… will anyone ever learn. Finlay charges at Swagger but runs into a bear hug which he immediate battles out of with head butts. Finlay’s still selling those ribs as he goes for a small package for 1. Both men up and Swagger punches Finlay in the face followed by a face slam into the turnbuckle. Swagger kicks and Finlay some more and goes for an Irish Whip that’s countered. Finlay charges in but is met with a European Uppercut followed by a big boot that put him on the mat. OH UH!!! Here comes HORNSWOOGLE!! He distracts Swagger long enough for Finlay to hit an inverted atomic drop followed by a clothesline out over the top rope. Even though Finlay is all hurt and stuff, he follows Swagger out to the floor and pays for it as Swagger sends him into the apron. Swagger follows that up by sends Finlay face first into the steel ring post. Man, Finlay looks to be in serious trouble right now. Swagger grabs Finlay’s SHILLELAHG and throws it down the ramp way to make sure Finlay can’t use it on him. Swagger rolls Finlay back into the ring and gets up on the apron. Finlay nails Swagger with a shoulder to the gut and tries to suplex him back in the ring, but Swagger counters with a hotshot. Finlay looks to be ripe for the pickings, but all of a sudden, Hornswoggle cracks Swagger in the ankle with another SHILLELAHG! Finlay hits a clothesline, CELTIC CROSS, 1-2-3!!! Finlay has just defeated the undefeated ECW Champion Jack Swagger!!!! This match was very good for ECW. I love the fact that Finlay won kinda cleanly. He didn’t win by knocking Swagger out behind the refs back which makes him look good, but since Hornswoggle helped, it still makes Swagger look good. These guys brought it tonight with a great combination of pure wrestling, brawling and psychology. I wouldn’t say this match will go down in history, but it was a good match for ECW. ***½

Finlay and Hornswoggle celebrate in the ring as the show goes off the air. I guess Cha$e got cancelled.

Final Thoughts:

This show is what ECW should always try to be. Great Main Event with a decent under card. Again, I know this won’t go in the history books, but it was one of the best ECWs I’ve seen in a while. They doing this Tommy Dreamer thing really well while setting him up for a victory soon. Swagger and Finlay looked great in their match. The Boogeyman….. well he’s still the Boogeyman. *** for this show.