WWE: Vengeance – Night of Champions 2007
June 24, 2007
Houston, TX
Toyota Center

The current WWE champions are as follows:
WWE Champion: John Cena (9/17/2006)
WWE Intercontinental Champion: Santino Marella (4/16/2007)
World Tag Team Champions: Lance Cade & Trevor Murdoch (6/4/2007)
WWE Women’s Champion: Melina (4/24/2007)
ECW World Champion: Vacant (6/11/2007)
World Heavyweight Champion: Edge (5/11/2007)
WWE United States Champion: MVP (5/20/2007)
WWE Tag Team Champions: Deuce & Domino (4/20/2007)
WWE Cruiserweight Champion: Chavo Guerrero (2/18/2007)

Read along if you have the WWE Network!

Your hosts are Jim Ross & Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole & JBL, and Joey Styles & Tazz.

Mike Rotundo and Barry Windham get a shoutout in the crowd. As much as I enjoy these two, the U.S. Express is more like an obscure reference than some sort of “legendary” tag team in WWE.

• World Tag Team Championship: Lance Cade & Trevor Murdoch (c) vs. The Hardy Boyz
  

These two teams have wrestled each other on three of the last four PPVs. It says something about how the WWE Draft didn’t really change anything at least from the standpoint of tag teams. With Matt being so awesome on Smackdown in singles matches, he doesn’t even need this anymore. Cade brags about “following the rules” a little too much to start. That gets Matt fired up. He tags in Jeff for some tandem offense. The Hardyz deliver Poetry in Motion and clean house. The tag champs consider leaving, but they get beaten back into the ring. Murdoch baits Matt outside and back in the ring so that Cade can clip him from behind in order to work on the leg. That leads to a hot tag to Jeff. HE’S A HOUSE OF FIRE! Whisper in the Wind on Cade gets 1-2-NO! He looks for the SWANTON BOMB, but Murdoch shoves him down behind the ref’s back. While Matt limps over to Murdoch, Cade grabs Jeff and delivers the SITOUT SPINEBUSTER for the win. (8:53) That finisher just seems unnecessary for the “sitout” part to me. Anyways, another decent formula tag here. We need to see new challengers though. Even Benjamin and Haas as a tag team feels like old hat. **¾

In the back, Queen Sharmell asks King Booker to be careful tonight. He thinks tonight is his night. So the split has been completely nixed.

Throughout the night, they show clips of great championship wins of the past. The first one shown is Eddie Guerrero defeating Brock Lesnar at No Way Out 2004 for the WWE title.

• WWE Cruiserweight Championship: Chavo Guerrero (c) vs. Jimmy Wang Yang
  

Former cruiserweight champ Dean Malenko was shown watching on backstage. I guess Billy Kidman was busy. We see some back and forth brawling to start. Yang decides to become Tiger Mask and backflip off Chavo’s chest, but pays for it as he’s thrown to the floor and takes a baseball slide into the barricade. Yang recovers quickly though by kicking Chavo off the top rope and diving on him from the top rope. The tide really turns when Chavo catches Yang charging at him and hiptosses Yang into the corner. Chavo gets pretty brutal working the back. Yang comes back with a missile dropkick and the Savio Vega spinning heel kick in the corner. Flying body press gets 1-2-NO! Yang stops the Three Amigos with another spinning heel kick for two. He tries the Flying Moonsault, but Chavo moves out of the way. The Gory Bomb gets countered to a sunset flip for 1-2-NO! The fans were actually hot for that nearfall. Yang goes up, but gets crotched on the top rope, allowing Chavo to hit the FROG SPLASH to the back for the win. (9:16) Solid if unspectacular. These cruiserweight matches just seem to be missing heart and heat. Of course it won’t really matter with the title being turned into a complete joke next month that will ultimately bring it to it’s demise. **½

For the 129,084th time, they air the explosion that killed the Mr. McMahon character.

Over to Todd Grisham, Bobby Lashley wishes Mr. McMahon was here so he could see his face when he wins the WWE title tonight.

• Vacant ECW World Championship: CM Punk vs. Johnny Nitro
  

Tazz gets some love for being a former (and greatest according to Joey Styles) ECW world champ. This was supposed to be Punk versus Chris Benoit, but we all know how that worked out. Styles announces Chris Benoit will not be appearing tonight because of “personal reasons”. The show must go on though. Very loud “We Want Benoit” chants to start. Nitro armdrags Punk down, so Punk lays into him with kicks and slingshots onto him for two. Nitro comes back with the Flying Chuck and tries wearing down Punk with arm holds. He hits a nice backbreaker/armbreaker DDT combo. Punk comes back with an enziguri. Nitro scoops him up in the corner for two, but gets caught using the ropes. Punk comes back with the Pepsi Twist, but can’t hit the Go2Sleep. Punk hits the corner knee into a bulldog, but Nitro avoids the Springboard Clothesline and hits MOONLIGHT DRIVE through the ropes for the upset victory to win the vacant ECW world title. (8:03) The crowd is in *shock*. I don’t know exactly how much notice they had to prepare a match, but this wasn’t all that bad if it was essentially worked on the fly. **

They air a fancy video package for the Bret Hart versus Shawn Michaels iron man match from WrestleMania 12.

In the back, Randy Orton tells Mick Foley to be careful tonight because it looked like Mick got a concussion the week before and Orton is an expert at giving concussions.

• WWE Intercontinental Championship: Santino Marella (c) vs. Umaga
  

Former IC champ Ricky Steamboat comes out to soak up some love from the crowd. They basically have just pulled guys who already work for them backstage and gave them a little public attention. Santino tries a schoolboy early, but Umaga blocks and grabs him by the throat. He hops on Umaga’s back and fires off forearms, but Umaga just squashes him and hits a thrust kick. Umaga grabs Santino by the traps. Marella sells it well! It doesn’t matter though because Umaga beats down Marella in the corner and refuses to listen to the ref to the point he must be disqualified. (2:36) The crowd hates the finish, but he’s a MONSTER. To make up for the quick decision, Umaga gives Marella his finishers and the crowd LOVES it. Either they love Umaga, or the Santino experiment is over. Maria ran out afterwards to tend to Santino and I thought for sure Umaga was going to thumb her as well, but she gets spared. Well I know one thing is for sure, I LOVE UMAGA. <3<3<3. ½*

They replay the announcement from Smackdown where the lead investigator into the death of Mr. McMahon has found DNA on the site of an “well-known personality”.

Cole and JBL hype the Vince McMahon Memorial Service scheduled for the following Raw, a show that eventually became the Chris Benoit Memorial.

• WWE U.S. Championship: MVP (c) vs. Ric Flair
  

Magnum TA gets recognized in the audience! Nice! I take back what I said now about just grabbing champions who were already working backstage. That was pretty cool. In another awesome moment, MVP comes over and gets up in Magnum’s face talking trash. It doesn’t stop with Ric Flair either as MVP gets chopped for running his mouth. They talk more trash and MVP boots Flair to the floor. Flair gets busted open. Back in, MVP tries to put Flair out with a sleeper. Flair comes back with chops and a jawbreaker. He counters another sleeper attempt to a back suplex. He tries mounted punches, but MVP hotshots him right on the turnbuckle. The Helluva Kick misses, and Flair clips his knee. FIGURE-FOUR LEGLOCK. It’s on the wrong leg, but whatevs. MVP makes the ropes, goes to the eyes, and hits the PLAYMAKER for the win. (8:42) I enjoyed the psychology of Flair looking into a mirror wrestling MVP, but actually wrestling MVP is a different story. While this wasn’t horrible by any stretch, their styles just don’t really mesh. **¼

In the back, John Cena and Edge argue over whether Edge is a “pussbag” or not. The Lead Investigator Daniel Beck interrupts to talk to Edge.

• WWE Tag Team Championship: Deuce & Domino (c) (w/Cherry) vs. Sgt. Slaughter & Jimmy Snuka
  

Deuce and Domino make fun of Tony Garea and Rick Martel who are celebrated in the audience. This is father versus son with Snuka versus Snuka Jr. Domino sells for the old guys and falls victim to the COBRA CLUTCH, but backs Sarge into the corner. Looks like Sarge could still go here! Snuka gets the hot tag and beats up his kid. Wrestling is a wacky world, folks! Snuka hits a flying body press, but Deuce rolls through for the pin. (6:31) Afterwards, the old guys Garea and Martel save the other old guys from the other guys who still think it’s the 1950s. I’m so confused! With the fire shown from Garea and Martel, it looks like they should have had the match instead. ¾*

• World Heavyweight Championship: Edge (c) vs. Batista
  

Harley Race gets some love. If Batista doesn’t win the title here, he won’t get another shot as long as Edge is champion. Batista tries to wrestle early. Edge baits Batista into charging him up against the ropes and pulls the top rope down so Bats can spill to the floor. To make matters worse for Batista, Edge posts his shoulder not once but twice. Back in, Batista manages to armdrag Edge to escape an armbar, but posts the same injured shoulder in the corner. Poor Bats. Edge works the shoulder over with a crucifix hold. Batista comes back with some clotheslines. He gets two off a Black Hole Slam. Edge reverses the Demon Bomb to the EDGECUTION for 1-2-NO! They exchange hot nearfalls. Bats sets up for the powerslam, but Edge slips out and hits the Edge-O-Matic. Edge sets up for the spear, but Batista beats him to the punch as it were. Batista sets up for the Demon Bomb, but Edge just hits a blatant low to save the title by DQ! (12:46) BRILLIANT.

Teddy Long won’t go for that though and not just restarts the match but also waives the DQ loophole. Edge hits a SPEAR for 1-2-NO! He grabs a chair, but then realizes he can’t get disqualified and gets rid of it. Back in, Batista pulls him into an inside cradle for 1-2-NO! He lifts up Edge for the DEMON BOMB, but Edge escapes only to be clotheslined out to the floor. Edge yanks him into the steps and tries the SPEAR, but Batista kicks him in the face and finally lands the DEMON BOMB! He rolls Edge into the ring, but Bats isn’t able to beat the count and loses the match! (16:38) Batista gives Edge another DEMON BOMB to vent his frustrations. This was awesome. I would easily consider this their best match. I really enjoyed this and so did the crowd. ***¾

They show the Spider-Lady “angle” where Moolah dressed up as the Spider-Lady to steal the women’s title back from Wendi Richter who refused to do the job.

• WWE Women’s Championship: Melina (c) vs. Candice Michelle
  

Melina strangles her with a headscissors and then headbutts her. Candice comes back with a rollup for two. Melina charges, but falls over the top rope. Back in, the Go Daddy Elbow gets two. The Jericho Bulldog gets two as well. Candice’s top comes off. Don’t get excited. She has a bra on underneath. Candice hits a “spinning heel kick” for the win. (4:21) Candice cries tears of joy after the win. You would think she had slaved away in WWE for a decade to get this far. *

When JBL gets recognized as a former WWE champion, he gives Justin Roberts a prepared statement to read to put himself over as a “wrestling god” among other things.

• WWE Championship: John Cena (c) vs. King Booker (w/Queen Sharmell) vs. Mick Foley vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Randy Orton
  

Booker ducks to the floor to get a massage. Hey, why not. Everyone else teams up on Orton. Foley takes him over the top with a Cactus Clothesline. Lashley gets a running no-hand over-the-top plancha. He gets more air, but the Undertaker’s has better direction. Lashley sets up the announce table, but he stops to go after Orton, so Cena picks him up and gives him an FU through the table. Booker jumps Cena and whips him hard into the buckle. He hits the Scissors Kick, but Orton makes the save. That triggers a slugfest between Orton and Booker. Cena makes the comeback and sets up for the Five Knuckle Shuffle, but Orton comes out of nowhere to hit the RKO. SWEET! Foley makes the save. Foley grabs a chair and swings at Booker, but takes out Lashley instead. He adds one to Booker and another to Cena as well before Orton jumps him from behind. Lashley nails him before getting hit with a Harlem Side Kick from Booker. Cena scoops up Booker for the FU, but Booker slips out. Cena snaps his throat on the ropes though and hits the FU on Foley instead to pick up the win. (10:09) Surprisingly, short match. It was fun while it lasted, though. Lashley is actually starting to look like a superstar. ***¼

Final Thoughts: This show is always going to be associated with the weekend of the Chris Benoit tragedy. We’re ten years passed that and I think we can give this show another look by now without thinking too much about Benoit. I haven’t watched the WWE Network version, but I’m imagining the commentary during the ECW world title match has been edited to leave his name out. Aside from the RAW and Smackdown world title matches, there’s not really a whole lot of interesting stuff to see. Edge and Bats was very fun and seeing some of the legends was cool. All things being considered, I’m going with a solid thumbs in the middle for Vengeance: Night of Champions 2007.