Raw

Card Information:
 Held in: WAR MEMORIAL
Location: NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
          on April 2005 at 9:00pm

Interview:
Stone Cold Truth...
Click here to see highlights.

Stone Cold addresses his tag partner tonight, and opponent at Backlash, Chris
Benoit.


15-Man Battle Royal:
Paul London won a 15-man Battle Royal:
         x U. Dragon defeated M. Hardy after a waistlock suplex in 0:03:03
         x U. Dragon defeated Spike after an Asai moonsault in 0:03:07
         x London defeated Scotty after a German suplex in 0:07:25
         x Rey Rey defeated Funaki after a flying cross body press in 0:07:34
         x Moore defeated Grandmaster Sexay after a rana in 0:08:06
         x Styles defeated Hurricane after the Styles Clash in 0:10:05
         x Styles defeated Tajiri after an inverted DDT in 0:10:17
         x Moore defeated U. Dragon after an inside cradle in 0:10:31
         x J. Hardy defeated Moore after a power bomb in 0:10:36
         x Michinoku defeated B. Kendrick after the Michinoku Driver in 0:11:15
         x J. Hardy defeated Michinoku after spinning headscissors in 0:11:21
         x J. Hardy defeated Styles after an Asai moonsault in 0:11:47
         x J. Hardy defeated Rey Rey after a moonsault bodyblock in 0:11:51
         x London defeated J. Hardy after a small package in 0:11:57
Rating: **** 1/4

Paul London puts in another impressive performance to win the Battle Royal.  He
will now face Billy Kidman for the Cruiserweight Title at Backlash.


Christopher Daniels pinned Val Venis with the Gutwrench Falcon Arrow in 0:13:59
.
Rating: *** 1/2

Daniels made an impressive debut, defeating Val Venis.  In the back, Chris
Jericho could be seen watching the match.


Interview:
The Dudleys demand...
Click here to see highlights.

The Dudleys, displaying some uncharacteristic arrogance, call out the tag team
champions...and get them.


The Dudley Boys (Bubba Ray Dudley and D-Von Dudley) defeated
Shawn Michaels and Cactus Jack when Bubba defeated Cactus Jack by countout in
           0:12:18.
Rating: ** 3/4
(Shawn Michaels and Cactus Jack retained the WWE Tag Team Championship.)

The Dudleys got the win, after Cactus was counted out following a missed elbow
drop on the outside.  However, the titles remained with the champs, much to
the dismay of Bubba and D-Von.  They continued to attack HBK after the bell,
only for Tazz and Cena to run down and make the save.


Sting and Edge defeated Vader and Randy Orton when Sting pinned Orton with the
Scorpion Death Drop in 0:12:22.
Rating: *** 3/4

Great match, as Sting made his WWE comeback.  The Stinger put down Randy Orton,
which left the Legend Killer visibly upset afterwards.


Interview:
The Hunter remains the Hunter...
Click here to see highlights.

Triple H is confident that he will soon be the Number 1 contender.


Chris Jericho pinned Shelton Benjamin after an Asai moonsault in 0:22:07.
Rating: ****

Fantastic match, which showcased both men's talents.  As Jericho picked up the
win, Christopher Daniels emerged on the ring ramp, looking somewhat impressed
with what he had seen.


Steve Austin and Chris Benoit defeated Evolution (Batista and Triple H) when
Benoit defeated Batista when Batista passed out in the Crippler Crossface in
           0:26:58.
Rating: ****
Click here to see highlights.

Another great tag match, although Austin was clearly pissed off that Benoit
wouldn't tag him in towards the later stages.  After the match, Austin tried
to Stunner Benoit again, only to wind up caught in the Crossface.



Card rating: *** 3/4


Match observations: 

A pretty good night of action, as tensions escalate between Chris Benoit and
Stone Cold Steve Austin, less than seven days before their title match at
Backlash.  Austin got the upper hand at first by stunning Benoit, but he later
felt the power of the Crippler Crossface, after he and Benoit had earned a big
tag team victory over Evolution.

Speaking of tag team victories, the Dudley Boys earned a win over the tag team
champs here tonight, but failed to take the belts due to the DQ/Count Out rule.
They'll aim to prove that they're worthy of a rematch at Backlash, when they
take on the newly-returned Too Cool in tag team action.  But will it be HBK and
Cactus Jack that they face in the future, or will Thug Life walk away from the
PPV with the gold?

Paul London will look to take gold on Sunday, when he challenges Billy Kidman
for the Cruiserweight Title.  After winning the battle royal here tonight, 
London is still undefeated, and will look to give the champ a real run for his
money.  This could prove to be a very interesting match.

Randy Orton will have his hands full with Edge at Backlash, but he was clearly
unhappy at being pinned by Sting here tonight.  Those two could well cross
paths in the very near future.

Big wins for Christopher Daniels and Chris Jericho tonight, although there can
only be 1 winner when they square off at Backlash.  Who will it be?

Next Show: Smackdown