Rob Van Dam defeated Alberto Del Rio. Because of this victory, RVD became the number one contender. I have an issue with this because it is not logical. Once again, WWE gives us a World Heavyweight Championship match FOR FREE. What is the point of having him earn it against the champion? This only works if the contender is a young guy who has yet to prove himself. I would much rather see him defeat Christian or another opponent to win this title opportunity. They are using Ricardo Rodriguez completely wrong. He has no connection with RVD. I do not mind him trying to exact revenge, but using RVD? The pairing makes no sense and strikes out for me. I would much rather have him bring a new guy in to fight Del Rio in a few months. That would make more sense and give a rub to a guy who needs it from the crowd. RVD has that already.
Grade: C+
Randy Orton defeated Christian in an excellent bout between two veterans who know each other so well. Christian got much of the late offense in the match, which shocked me. I liked how both men were able to reverse and counter the others’ finishing move. It makes for more drama and is more believable if Christian would pick up a victory. We knew Orton would win, but how would he do it? The ending came when Orton poked Christian in the eye and hit an RKO. After a fantastic match that flowed so well and executed all of their offensive moves, it had to be dirty. Orton will not win clean much more now that he is a heel. I am okay with this. They will continue to try and get him cheap heat. This is a simple and age-old way to do it.
Grade: A
Titus O’Neil defeated Jack Swagger in a quick match. Swagger took the early advantage in the ring. He overpowered O’Neil, which is hard to do. Swagger, as he goes for the kill, ends up getting distracted on the outside and O’Neil hits his finisher. I noticed two things in this match that I have not noticed before. First off, Titus can take a bump for a big guy. He has the speed and timing down and continues to improve on the natural instincts. Second, Swagger is underrated in terms of sheer size. He matched up well with Titus. Maybe WWE needs to invest more on Cesaro and Swagger than they have. Overall, it was a good match that did just enough for the faces to get more attention from the crowd.
Grade: B
