Raw - The Quest For The Gold

Card Information:
 Held in: LONG BEACH ARENA
Location: CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
          on March 2004 at 9:00pm

Interview:
William Regal on the WWE Title...
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William Regal announces the vacancy of the WWE Title, and a 16 man tournament
that will take place tonight!


[WWE Title Tournament - Round 1]:
Mick Foley pinned Chris Benoit after a bulldog in 0:11:50.
Rating: *** 1/2
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Great opening match-up.  Foley advances.

[WWE Title Tournament - Round 1]:
Brock Lesnar pinned Kurt Angle with the F-5 in 0:14:15.
Rating: *** 1/2
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A fantastic match, in which Brock advances with the F5.  We now won't see an
early preview of Foley versus Angle.


[WWE Title Tournament - Round 1]:
Jeff Jarrett pinned Steve Austin with the Stroke in 0:09:11.
Rating: ** 1/2
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Who would have thought we'd get this one in the first round?  Jarrett advances,
thus adding more fuel to the fire between him and Austin.


[WWE Title Tournament - Round 1]:
Chris Jericho defeated Kane when Kane passed out in the Walls of Jericho in
           0:17:23.
Rating: * 3/4
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A poor match, but Jericho moves on to face Jarrett.


[WWE Title Tournament - Round 1]:
The Big Show pinned The Rock with the Showstopper in 0:16:30.
Rating: ** 3/4
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Another Wrestlemania match comes early, as the Big Show demolishes The Rock.


[WWE Title Tournament - Round 1]:
Ted DiBiase pinned Hulk Hogan after a gutwrench suplex in 0:19:49.
Rating: ** 1/2
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Anyone would think these brackets were fixed!  DiBiase pins Hogan, but must
now face his own bodyguard in the next round.


[WWE Title Tournament - Round 1]:
Shawn Michaels defeated The Ultimate Warrior by countout in 0:06:43.
Rating: * 1/4
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The Warrior was surprisingly counted out, and goes out in the first round.  He
may have been saving his strength, and simply waiting for the tournament winner
at Wrestlemania.

[WWE Title Tournament - Round 1]:
Scott Hall pinned Triple H with the Outsider Edge in 0:15:43.
Rating: *** 1/4
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The former WWE Champion advances to the next round, where he'll face Shawn 
Michaels.


[WWE Title Tournament - Round 2]:
Brock Lesnar defeated Mick Foley by disqualification in 0:01:51.
Rating: 1/4*
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The crowd seemed confused about the DQ on Foley.  Nevertheless, Brock Lesnar
advances to the semi-finals.


[WWE Title Tournament - Round 2]:
Jeff Jarrett pinned Chris Jericho with the Stroke in 0:07:50.
Rating: ** 1/4
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Jarrett defeats Jericho, and will now face Brock Lesnar in the semis.  Stone
Cold must be fuming.


[WWE Title Tournament - Round 2]:
The Big Show pinned Ted DiBiase with the Showstopper in 0:07:47.
Rating: * 3/4
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Big Show defeats DiBiase, which the Million Dollar Man didn't seem too pleased
about.


[WWE Title Tournament - Round 2]:
Shawn Michaels pinned Scott Hall with the Sweet Chin Music in 0:06:20.
Rating: **
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Short, but sweet - sweet chin music that is.  Michaels must now face the might
of the Big Show in the Semis.


[WWE Title Tournament - Semi-Finals]:
Brock Lesnar pinned Jeff Jarrett after a jack-knife power bomb in 0:04:26.
Rating: * 3/4
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Lesnar advances to the finals.  Could he become the new champion?


[WWE Title Tournament - Semi-Finals]:
Shawn Michaels defeated The Big Show by disqualification in 0:01:20.
Rating: 1/2*
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A very short match, but Michaels still took quite a beating.  Will he have
enough strength to go toe-to-toe with Brock Lesnar in the final?


[WWE Title Tournament - Finals]: Match for the vacant WWE Championship:
Brock Lesnar pinned Shawn Michaels after a running powerslam in 0:02:04.
Rating: **
(Brock Lesnar won the WWE Championship.)
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Clearly too run down to continue, Michaels was defeated easily, as Brock Lesnar
becomes the new WWE Champion.



Card rating: * 3/4


Match observations: 

So, after a gruelling one night tournament, Brock Lesnar came from nowhere to
become the WWE Champion.  He will now square off against the Ultimate Warrior
at Wrestlemania, but must keep in the back of his mind that Bret Hart will
want a title shot when he returns.

A number of Wrestlemania matches ended up on the card tonight, with Jeff 
Jarrett defeating Steve Austin, The Big Show defeating The Rock, and Ted 
DiBiase defeating Hulk Hogan.  We may need to add a few extra stipulations to
these matches to keep them fresh for the PPV.

Anyway, when all is said and done, tonight was the night for Brock Lesnar.

Next Show: Smackdown