UNITED STATES CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE:
MVP(c) v. Matt Hardy
BO'S PREDICTION:
MVP has come a long way in a short time. Matt Hardy is perpetually over. What does this all mean? That the two should put on a great match and Matt will likely lose. But there is a chance that he will go over and this fight continues for a few months with MVP as challenger instead of champion. I would hope that they give the two at least 20 minutes to possibly steal the show.

BO'S REVIEW: 
The match that began the show began at a deliberate pace that started a tease of a hand injury to Matt Hardy. JBL and Michael Cole teased that Matt was in MVP's head and mentioned the list of people who have carried the title. It was also teased that Matt has never won a single's title which wasn't true since he was the cruiserweight champ years back. Matt did get to do a cool inverted bulldog from the top rope then a second bulldog from the second rope. We got a lot of near falls but MVP retained the belt with a very sloppy version of his playmaker finisher. A decent opener that isn't going to be the end of the feud. This was followed by Todd Grisham interviewing Dusty Rhodes who began telling the story about the old bull at the top of the hill looking down at a herd of cows but with a different ending.

CRUISERWEIGHT INVITATIONAL:
Chavo Guerrero(c) v. Jimmy Wang Yang v. Shannon Moore v. Funaki v. Jamie Noble v.?
BO'S PREDICTION:
This match was added on Saturday afternoon after the initial predictions were posted to add another match to the card. 

BO'S REVIEW: 
The rules of the match were that whoever got the pin became the new cruiserweight champion. It was pointed out at the start that Chavo won the belt in the same kind of match. As the start Hornswoggle came from under the ring and moved across it as the bell rung. Shannon Moore has lost the mohawk and the eye make up so he looks normal. We saw lots of high flying action here including a 3-man electric chair from the top rope involving Chavo, Yang and Noble. As we watched the three recover Hornswoggle came out and did a frog smash from the top and got the pin making him the new cruiserweight champion. It was sort of explained that since he came out for the bell then he was involved in the match. The wrestlers watched him from inside the ring then came after him but he hid under the ring. The last thing we saw was Chavo throwing a fit. I would doubt that we will have a dwarf as champ for long but I have to say that the match was entertaining. This was followed by a HHH promo that tells us that he will return at SummerSlam.

CANE ON A POLE MATCH:
Carlito v. Sandman
BO'S PREDICTION:
Vince has taken a liking to the Sandman so he has been moved off the endangered species list. His transition to Raw has been smooth and the fans love him. This is a great feud because of the contrast of styles. Sandman is a pure brawler with some wrestling skills and Carlito is a high flyer with a chance to become a major player. The two seem to have no problem working together also so this could be a decent match. I would expect William Regal to involve himself in some way and someone is going to get caned a whole lot before the night is over.

BO'S REVIEW: 
Naturally, Sandman came out first from the crowd and with his own cane. The pole that the cane was on was extremely high but it was mentioned in commentary that Sandman was a construction worker and would have no problems with heights. The style clash was used and Sandman was able to counter the athletic moves of Carlito. Sandman did get the cane from the pole but Carlito used the back stabber/cracker move on him to win the match. Yes, we saw a cane match where the cane was a very minor part of it. This feud isn't over either. Todd Grisham interviewed Randy Orton and Orton mentioned that it was Shawn Michaels birthday.

WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE:
Candice Michelle(c) v. Melina
BO'S PREDICTION:
Surprisingly enough this has been one of the best programs on Raw. Melina has shown that she can be one hell of a wrestler and Candice has shown that she can work as well. I don’t expect either woman to come out alone and we should see liberal interference from Beth Phoenix and Mickie James. Candice is likely to lose here but that could change at the drop of a hat.

BO'S REVIEW: 
There were no other ladies that came out for this match so Candice and Melina were allowed to have fun. The two went at it very well and Melina showed her flexibility whenever she could. JR pushed that Candice was getting better and better in the ring and it showed here. She retained the title with what the King called the candy wrapper, a modified bulldog that had Candice drop Melina on her head but she held her at waist level. This match was followed by Jeff and Matt Hardy talking. Matt was telling Jeff to stay focused and then Candice came backstage and poured water all over herself slowly (as sexy music played). Matt and Jeff watched in open amazement and she drenched herself front and back before Ron Simmons came out and said, "Damn".

INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE:
Umaga(c) v. Jeff Hardy
BO'S PREDICTION:
This is one of those boggles the mind matches. Writers want to keep Umaga strong (sending him to ECW would have been the smart move to do that) so he has to keep winning his matches. Jeff is over as hell and no matter what the fans are going to back him. So Umaga has to win to keep the unstoppable monster gimmick going, right? But then we hear that Jeff is going to be a big part in the Jackass invasion at SummerSlam so he needs to be kept strong as well. My suggestion: start the Jackass angle here and have them cost Umaga the belt then do the rematch at SummerSlam.

BO'S REVIEW: 
Well Umaga was kept strong here but Jeff was allowed to get in some offense to the point that there was an actual feeling that he could have won the match but he didn't. The respect the refs direction of the company was kept here but this time around Umaga wasn't disqualified. This was another clash in styles but the calling of the match and the fans cheering Jeff made it a decent match. Umaga won with a thrust kick and then the Samoan spike. This could lead into the SummerSlam Jackass angle since you could have Jeff scheme with them to begin a campaign to defeat Umaga but I have no idea what you can do with Umaga past that point. He can't challenge for the title as long as Cena has it and we haven't seen Estrada for a month or so. It's hard to turn him face since he hasn't shown the ability to do a promo unless you want to do a long angle civilizing him.

ECW WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
John Morrison(c) v.CM Punk
BO'S PREDICTION:
In case you didn’t know John Hennigan is no longer Johnny Nitro and is using the name Morrison. I have no idea why he just can’t use his real name but I guess there is a reason. He wasn’t even supposed to have been champ before the events of Chris Benoit’s meltdown and they have made a good case that he can be a credible champion, just not maybe an ECW champ. He can talk, he can work and he can go 30 minutes or more and tell a story in the ring. Punk is being set up as the face of the ECW brand and he too can match Morrison or anyone else on the roster move for move in the ring. A brain function would suggest you let the two of them go out and take as long as they want to steal the show but lately that seems to be a rare commodity in the WWE offices. This is a match that may be great whoever wins but I think they will keep the strap on Morrison for a little while longer and keep this feud going.

BO'S REVIEW: 
The duo was allowed to take their time here and this was probably the best match on the card. I wonder what took the WWE so long to change Nitro's name since it was pointless after the breaking up of MNM. Morrison has amazing gymnastic skills and he got the chance to show them here. We saw every move that was humanly possible here including a shining wizard before Punk did a springboard into the ring only to get kicked in the knee by Morrison and get pinned so that Morrison could retain the title. He does do the arrogant bit well and somehow he seems to be growing into the role of ECW champion. House show programs have him taking on Tommy Dreamer for at least a while so the Punk/Morrison feud seems to be over but sitting there in the background waiting to be used.

TEXAS BULLROPE MATCH:
Dusty Rhodes v. Randy Orton
BO'S PREDICTION:
I would bet there have been Texas Bull Rope matches at the Bash since Dusty created the event anyway. If there is a match that has blood this is the one since big Dust bleeds when you breathe hard on his forehead. Cody will come out here and may play a part in the finish. I would expect Orton to go over here and continue his legend killer tour in a short but violent match.

BO'S REVIEW: 
The match was set up with a great promo piece that shows how this match came to be and footage from Texas Bullrope Matches from the past. Orton came out first but did the Larry Zybysko/Ted DiBiase stall before getting the rope around his hand. He did the bulk of the early selling and covered well the fact that Dusty doesn't move as well as he used to. We did get a short match that ended with Dusty getting popped in the head with the cowbell. Orton looked evil and set up that he would kick Dusty in the head but Cody came out and got in the way. Orton's post match facials were off the charts here and did make him look very dangerous.

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE MATCH: (Triple Threat Match)
The Great Khali(c) v. Batista v. Kane
BO'S PREDICTION:
With Edge becoming victim to the Smackdown curse I don’t know if anyone wants to win this title since it seems to lead towards torn muscles. Khali is a panic move by Vince since he has always been a mark for size because there is no way that Khali can be taken seriously as a champ due to his limitations in the ring. You could give the belt to Kane then have him wait for the Undertaker to come back and have them go at it for the belt or you could put the belt back on Batista and do a series of programs with Khali and Kane both coming after him. Putting the belt on Batista also sets up a possible match with Ric Flair that would be a mentor/student feud that culminates in Flair winning the belt one more time before riding off into the sunset but that would involve thinking by the creative team of Smackdown. I would doubt that Khali keeps the belt here.

BO'S REVIEW: 
The match was set up by JBL as going to be monkey butt ugly. We started with Kane and Batista teaming up against Khali. Khali did make liberal use of a nerve hold on both men so that means he has four moves, one more than Hulk Hogan. Khali went outside the ring and took apart the ECW announce table and he was thrown thru it by Kane and Batista. Kane choke slammed Khali but Khali surprisingly kept the title by slamming Kane. I would have expected Khali to drop the strap here but the unstoppable monster bit can get him thru at least a month or so. His matches will suck and they will be horribly short but that means that the rest of the workers on the Smackdown/ECW cards can work longer, more interesting matches until for a while. This was followed by a repeat of the HHH promo that allowed Booker T to come out and maintain that he is the only King on the Raw brand. He called Jerry Lawler Jerome and demanded that Jerry come into the ring and turn over his crown. Lawler, naturally refused and Booker charged him with an act of treason. What that is we don't know because Booker left the ring but I would bet we will find out on tonight's Raw.

WWE CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH:
John Cena(c) v.Bobby Lashley
BO'S PREDICTION:
This is a face vs. face match that will have the fans confused as to who to cheer for. Rumors abound that HHH wants Orton to take the belt from Cena so that he can wrestle him at WrestleMania (and that seems dumb for a number of reasons) so if he gets his way then Cena will keep the strap. You can make the case that Cena is already over to the point that he doesn’t need the belt and since Vince is pushing Lashley to the moon then Bobby should go over here but with Cena selling more merchandise than anyone and the fans lining up to see him I would expect that Cena keeps the belt in a decent match.

BO'S REVIEW:
We learned that Cena has been champion for 308 days, the longest reign in WWE history. We started the match with a test of strength between the two. Lashley used a few of his collegiate wrestling moves and Cena sold them all. The contrast of styles was pushed hard. Cena was put in a body scissors and powered out. We saw a few almost finishes with Lashley escaping the STFU, a FU, Cena taking a spear and then the finish which saw Lashley take a FU from the top rope. Cena pinned him weirdly and retained the title. As Cena celebrated Lashley stared at him but did reach out and shake his hand. Cena celebrated as Lashley slowly walked down the aisle then Cena walked down the aisle as well.

Since bringing back the Bash the previous incarnations have been weak with few decent matches and mostly average ones. Here we had no horrible matches (yes, even with Khali involved on the card) and some very good ones. The new set up with all three announce teams out at the same time worked smoothly this time out and we never saw any of them sitting there like spectators. This was a pretty decent PPV but not an outstanding one.

Photo © 2007 WWE/World Wrestling Entertainment
Article © 2007 Alternate Reality, Inc.