That Was Awesome!

The champ is here!

By Kevin Hunsperger

Monday Night Raw was in my hometown of St. Louis.  I had a lot of friends who attended the show, and wanted to thank my buddy Weston for providing the pictures for this post.  Since I'm going to Wrestlemania, I opted not to go to Raw.  Here are some quick thoughts.

Opening Segment: Personally, I thought the Rock segment to kick off the show was outstanding.  It was very entertaining and quite funny.  I do think it was overproduced as Chad pointed out.  The Rock is always great on the mic, and his work with that kid was over the top.  I loved him letting the kid blow his nose in the purple shirt and then handing him the box of Fruity Pebbles.  If Post isn't a sponsor now, they should be.  Then to have the Miz come out and respond was much needed, as he seems to be the forgotten participant in this feud.  Little did we know at the time, the Miz was just warming up.

During his segment the Raw GM chimed in to say the Miz would face the Great Khali.  While the champ didn't win the match (Alex Riley interfered), the Miz DESTROYED Khali with a chair.  The Miz had a mean streak a mile long last night and busting the chair on Khali's back was the tip of the iceberg.  I liked it.  He finally seemed to no longer be an afterthought.

Flyin' Brian

The Luck of the Irish:  No big surprise here that Sheamus came out on top of this encounter.  Last week the Irishman said if he lost he was quitting.  Couple that with his recent losing streak and you get a new U.S. champion.  I'm trying to remember now (I've already deleted Raw from the DVR), did Sheamus come out as "King Sheamus" last night?

I was really hoping they would have saved this match for Wrestlemania.  I would like to see Bryan somewhere on the card.  I've blogged my recent thoughts on a way to get Bryan and others not yet on the card to the big show.

Will Sheamus go back to dominating in the ring again?  I hope so.  I think the company needs that monster heel type, especially since it seems they're turning Kane face again.  I think this U.S. title reign can be a "sink or swim" opportunity for him.  I hope he takes the ball and runs with it.

"Sooner" or later Cole will pay.

The Real Voice of WWE Returns:  I love Jim Ross, and I was very happy to see him return last night.  Although his role was brief, it was great to see him back.  I've posted before about turning Cole into a manager (leading Jack Swagger & Alex Riley in the tag team ranks).  This would set up for the return of JR behind the mic.

I've got to comment on Brian Christopher too.  I made the comment about how it's a little weird seeing a middle aged guy dancing around the ring with the bleach blond hair.  Then Chad brought me back to reality and asked about middle aged guys dressing up like wrestlers at Wrestlemania.  I stand corrected.  Dance away, Mr. Christopher.

I did like the segment, even though Ross was made to look bad in it in the end.  I also enjoyed the whole "Cole Mine" Michael was set up in throughout the show.  I didn't find him as irritating last night, but I really do hope they put him in a managerial role.

Punk & Orton: the Staredown

Another One Bites the Dust: No real surprises in this match either as Randy Orton faced Mason Ryan.  This was CM Punk's last hope at having a member of Nexus in his corner at Wrestlemania.
And just like the other members of the group, Randall Keith Orton defeated the former FCW champion.  Then he punted him in the head for good measure.

As Orton has proven he's better than the rookies of the group, it'll be showtime for Randy against Punk at Mania.  Punk needs the win here, and I really hope he gets it.  I think (although now the Miz stepped it up big time) that Punk is the best heel in the company right now.  He's devious.  He's evil.  And he's influencing a band of brothers to do his bidding.  Keep that momentum up with a win over Orton on April 3rd.

I've already posted my thoughts on Snooki being a part of Mania and Drew Carey getting inducted into the Hall of Fame.  You can read those if you want my 1-2-3 cents.

The Miz "rocks" Raw

The Miz "Brings It":  The match was John Cena vs. Alberto Del Rio.  Honestly, I didn't pay much attention to the match.  But I did enjoy when the Rock's music hit and he stormed onto the stage.  Then we get a tight shot, and it's none other than the Miz.  I wonder how many fans in the nose bleeds really thought it was the Rock when he hit the ring.  Anyway, the Miz laid the smackdown on John Cena.  Again!  But this time he really went nuts on him.  That mean streak was brought out again.

He whacked the former champ with the mic a couple of times, DDTed him on the ramp, and then delivered the Skull Crushing Finale on the WWE logo on the stage.

The Miz is AWESOME!

I believe this was the first time since winning the WWE title this year that the Miz actually looked like a strong champion.  He's no longer an afterthought in the war of words between Cena and the Rock.  I really hope this momentum continues into Wrestlemania.

Most have the MizCena and Rock are in cahoots and they'll double team the Miz.  At this point, I'm not ready to make a Wrestlemania prediction.  The way he's owned Cena the last couple of weeks, I'm leaning toward him losing the title.  But he's been so poorly booked, maybe the writer's finally woke up and have decided that a heel champion can be dominate.

I guess the proof will be in the pudding in 20 days.  Looking forward to being at the show.  We'll bring you coverage here on the blog, Facebook, and My 1-2-3 Cents on YouTube.