|Date: June 25, 2006
|Venue: Charlotte Bobcats Arena |City: Charlotte, North Carolina
|Attendance: 6,800 |Buys: 337,000
|Brand: Raw (& ECW)

|tweet me: @BastionBlogger

Vengeance is due tonight and this years show features the official return of D-Generation X. Vince McMahon is given Shawn Michaels and Triple H so much hell that the two former friends have teamed back up and bought back the green and black. Shawn Michaels returned to help out Triple H two weeks ago on Raw when Helmsley was put in a gauntlet match against The Spirit Squad. DX returned last week and played their practical jokes on Vince McMahon who announced that at Vengeance they would be in a 5 on 2 handicap match against The Spirit Squad.

The WWE Championship is set to be defended as Rob Van Dam defends the title he won at One Night Stand against the number one contender Edge. Edge beat Big Show to become number one contender and then cost John Cena the championship at One Night Stand. Since then Edge has hit Van Dam with a spear on the first episode of ECW on Sci-Fi. Van Dam got his revenge, attacking Edge after his match with Ric Flair. Then on ECW Episode 2 Rob Van Dam and Kurt Angle beat Edge and Randy Orton. Another ECW involvement comes in the form of John Cena against Sabu. A battle royal was held on the first episode of ECW to decide who would face John Cena at Vengeance and the battle royal was won by Sabu. Sabu would legdrop Cena through a table on Raw and the next night on ECW John Cena showed up and made the challenge to Sabu for an extreme rules lumberjack match.

The Intercontinental Championship is set to be defended as Shelton Benjamin defends in a triple threat match against a man he has been having lots of problems with as of late in Carlito and a newcomer to Raw in the form of Johnny Nitro. Kane is a man that has been haunted by “May 19th” and after the date had passed he thought the haunting would end but it did not. A masked version of Kane would appear, attacking Kane backstage. The real Kane claims to know who the imposter Kane is and tonight the two go one on one. Mick Foley has taken exception to some things that Ric Flair said about him in his book. Flair has said that Mick Foley is a glorified stunt man that can’t wrestle. Foley took offence to this and challenged Ric Flair to a match at Vengeance. Not just any type of match though, a 2 out of 3 falls wrestling match. Two legends of the game go toe to toe for the first ever time on WWE PPV.

Kurt Angle beat Randy Orton at ECW One Night Stand but Randy hasn’t finished with Kurt and has challenged him to a rematch at Vengeance. Kurt has accepted and the two men got a taste of another on ECW last week when Rob Van Dam and Kurt Angle beat Randy Orton and Edge. Also tonight, Umaga takes on Eugene, a man that he has previously attacked. Umaga also took out Eugene’s friend and tag team partner “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan and now Eugene vows to get revenge.

In a dark match prior to the event Val Venis defeated Rob Conway.

Let’s get to the main show.

A video package kicks us off, first focusing on the John Cena/Sabu match, the Rob Van Dam/Edge match and then the DX/Spirit Squad match. There’s a big DX focus on this pay per view, could they be the main event tonight? Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler then welcome us to Vengeance 2006!

Kurt Angle vs. Randy Orton

This is a rematch from ECW One Night Stand a couple of weeks ago where Angle beat Orton. Kurt is 1-3 at Vengeance PPV’s, Randy is 0-1 following a loss to Edge two years ago. These two men had a great match at One Night Stand and will be looking to repeat that tonight. One month ago both of these men were Smackdown superstars but Angle has now been drafted to ECW and Orton has moved over to Raw. Randy backs off in the early going but Kurt hits a takedown and applies a hammerlock before getting the first near fall of the night. Randy escapes to the apron where Kurt attempts to hit a German suplex off the apron but Orton holds on. Kurt has never hit that move. But he does hit a German suplex down on the outside of the ring. Angle suplexes Orton back into the ring and then slaps the back of Ortons head down on the mat. Randy takes the advantage with a thumb to the eye and then a standing dropkick before tossing Angle to the outside.

Randy throws Kurt into the barricade and then back into the ring where he gets a near fall. Randy hits a knee drop for another near fall and then applies a chinlock. Kurt gets out of that with a Samoan drop but Randy is quick to go back to the chinlock. Kurt elbows his way out of it but Orton hits a knee to the gut and then a kneedrop for a two count. Orton once again goes back to the chinlock. Angle gets out of it again but Orton once again knocks Kurt down. Orton then heads to the top but Angle sprints up with him and brings him back down to the mat below with a belly to belly suplex. Kurt hits two more belly to belly suplexes and then attempts the Angle slam but Orton nips down and hits a backbreaker for a two count. Orton then goes for the RKO but Angle flings him into the corner. Randy takes off the top turnbuckle pad but Angle grabs him from behind and hits him with eight German suplexes which somehow only gets Angle a near fall. Kurt hits then Angle slam and then applies the ankle lock but Randy manages to roll Kurt into the top turnbuckle before hitting him with the RKO for the victory!

Randy gets the win back from One Night Stand with the RKO. They can go their separate ways now (although I’d like to see a rubber match. Not as good as their contest at the ECW show.

Rating: 6/10

Vince McMahon is backstage on the phone to somebody. He says that Vengeance will be his. There’s a knock at the door and it’s a kid in a wheelchair wearing a DX t shirt. McMahon thinks it’s a prank from DX and pushes the lad out into the corridor. Coach then arrives and gives Mr McMahon a penis pump he’s found. Coach then says he’s invited a close family friend and of course it’s the kid in the wheelchair. McMahon acts dumb.

Eugene vs. Umaga

Well this is a first. Umaga goes into this match undefeated on PPV following his victory over Ric Flair at Backlash. Eugene is 0-1 at Vengeance events, technically 0-2 if you class Nick Dinsmore’s loss as Doink The clown in 2004. Armando Alejandro Estrada gets on the mic before the match, introduces himself and then says that Eugene apparently has back-up for this match. Eugene then comes out and then Jim Duggans music hits and out comes Hacksaw! Doink The Clowns music then hits and out comes the Doinkster! And then Kamala heads out. 1993 called and asked for its gimmicks back. Umaga is quite similar to Kamala. More talented though. Umaga hits Eugene with a clothesline to knock him down early doors. Umaga then hits chops but Eugene ducks one and hits some lefts and rights before running into an uppercut. Umaga then hits a big kick and then a running butt bump in the corner. Armando snaps his cigar in half which is the call for Umaga to hit the Samoan spike which he does! Umaga hooks the leg and gets the 3!

After the match Jim Duggan and Doink get involved but Umaga disposes of them. Estrada tells Umaga not to go after Kamala and so the two of them head to the back.

Rating: N/A

Todd Grisham is backstage with Mick Foley who reads from Ric Flairs book. Flair famously slated Foley for being a glorified stunt-man but Foley says that tonight he will out-wrestle Flair.

Ric Flair vs. Mick Foley – 2 out of 3 falls match

Ric Flair is wrestling in his hometown tonight in a first PPV match against Mick Foley. Flair is 0-1 at Vengeance events, Mick Foley makes his Vengeance debut tonight. Ric Flairs family is at ringside tonight. A “Foley sucks” chant breaks out. There’s some chain wrestling in the early going, headlocks, hammerlocks and takedowns. Foley gets to the ropes a few times. Foley then takes Flair down before laying into him in the corner. Mick then hits a running knee in the corner and then a double-armed DDT. Foley motions for Mr Socko and then pulls out a Socko dressed as Ric Flair! Foley runs at Flair but Flair catches him with the genital claw! Flair then heads to the top and actually hits a double axe handle! Flair looks like he hurt his knee there and Foley goes right to work on it. Flair then rolls Foley up out of nowhere and gets a 3 count! Ric Flair wins the first fall!

Foley is up first and knocks Flair down with a clothesline before tossing Flair out of the ring and ramming into the barrier. Flair then reverses an Irish whip, sending Foley into the ring steps. Flair hits a chop and then some right hands. Foley escapes over a barricade and Flair follows. Foley rakes the eyes of Flair and then backdrops him back over the barricade. Foley grabs a trash can and tosses it into the ring but stupidly, using it would cost him the match. Flair takes Foley down and locks on the fire four! Foley grabs the trash can and smashes it over Flairs head! That’s a disqualification! Foley loses this match by two falls. Foley then grabs a barb-wire baseball bat and hits Flair with it! Flair is bleeding like only Flair does as Foley continues to lay into him with the bat!

Rating: 4.5/10

Maria is backstage with Carlito and says that the people that don’t want to be cool are usually the cool ones. Carlito is confused but says that nothing will be cooler than Carlito becoming Intercontinental Champion. Torrie Wilson shows up and asks Maria to rub oil on her whilst Carlito holds her puppies. Some porn music hits as the two girls rub oil on one another. Carlito’s music then hits and Carlito is gutted he has to go!

Shelton Benjamin (c) vs. Carlito vs. Johnny Nitro – Intercontinental Championship match

This is a first time triple threat match between these three talented performers. I like the look of this match a lot. Carlito beat Shelton Benjamin at Vengeance last year. That makes Carlito 1-0 at Vengeance events, Shelton Benjamin is 1-1 and Nitro is 0-1 following a loss under his real name in a bar room brawl in 2004. Nitro is joined by his girlfriend Melina. Carlito knocks Nitro out of the ring as the bell rings and Benjamin quickly rolls up Carlito for a near fall. Carlito rolls Benjamin up for a near fall and then takes him down with a headlock. Both men then back body drop Nitro. Nitro ducks a kick and Benjamin nails Carlito. Nitro then lays into Shelton with some kicks but Benjamin fires back with some right hands. Carlito then clotheslines Benjamin outside the ring before catapulting Nitro out of the ring too. Carlito goes out to the apron but Nitro kicks him off and then throws him into the ringpost.

Benjamin slams Nitro outside the ring as Melina watches on. Shelton gets distracted by Melina which gives Nitro the advantage as he attacks Benjamin from behind. Carlito then hits a springboard plancha taking both men out. Back in the ring and Carlito gets a near fall on Nitro. Nitro hits a side Russian leg sweep on Carlito and then baseball slides Benjamin. Near fall for Nitro on Carlito. Carlito could become the first man to win on the 2005 and 2006 Vengeance events should he win this match. He hits a hurricanrana on Nitro but Benjamin gets back involved and launches Carlito into the air. Benjamin attempts a t-bone suplex on Nitro but Nitro blocks it and Benjamin hits the t-bone sending Nitro out of the ring. Benjamin suplexes Carlito for a near fall. Ric Flair’s blood is all over the mat. Shelton hits Carlito with a Samoan drop for a near fall. Nitro is back in and lays into Shelton with right hands. Benjamin then drops Nitro onto the top turnbuckle and covers Johnny but Melina puts her boyfriends foot on the rope.

Carlito hits a victory roll on Shelton for a near fall. Carlito then throws Nitro into Benjamin but Nitro hits a monkey flip on Shelton who lands on his feet until Carlito takes him down with a dropkick. Nitro goes up top with Carlito but Benjamin shakes the ropes, crotching Johnny Nitro. Carlito manages to tie Nitro up in a tree of woe and then Benjamin dives up top for a superplex on Carlito but Nitro sits up and German suplexes Shelton who brings Carlito down with a superplex! That earns Nitro a near fall. Carlito hits left hands on both opponents and then rolls up Benjamin for a near fall. Carlito then takes both Nitro and Benjamin out with a double springboard elbow before getting near falls on both men. Carlito low-bridges Nitro sending him out of the ring and then Shelton kicks Carlito in the back of the head for a near fall. Carlito hits the backcracker on Benjamin but Nitro drags Carlito out of the ring and pins Benjamin for the three! Johnny Nitro wins the match and the Intercontinental Championship! Great match between these three!

Rating: 7.75/10

The Spirit Squad are backstage excited about the prospect of destroying DX tonight. Vince McMahon then shows up and motivates the squad. The squad leave and Vince McMahon grabs the penis pump off the side and heads into the toilet! There’s some comedy inflating sounds and an explosion (played too early) and Vince McMahon walks out with green paint over his face!

There’s a video package next for Rob Van Dam and Edge.

Rob Van Dam (c) vs. Edge – WWE Championship match

Well I’m disappointed that this match is on so early. This should be the final match of the evening. This is a first time meeting between these two men on PPV. Edge is 2-2 at Vengeance events, Rob Van Dam is 1-1. Edge is joined by his girlfriend Lita. Van Dam defends the WWE title on PPV for the very first time. Edge gets on the mic before the bell and isn’t happy about the WWE title being on ECW. He says he’ll be winning the title tonight and then he and Lita will be having one of their live sex celebrations. RVD is on a good PPV run having won Money In The Bank at Wrestlemania, the Intercontinental Championship at Backlash and the WWE Championship at ECW One Night Stand. Edge mocks Rob Van Dam but the crowd are behind the ECW superstar. Van Dam hits a monkey flip but Edge lands on his feet. Van Dam then rolls Edge up but Edge gets his hand to the rope. RVD attempts a springboard moonsault which Edge ducks. Van Dam then ducks a cross body and hits Edge with a standing moonsault for a two count. RVD hits a spinning heel kick and then tries for rolling thunder but Edge rolls out of the ring.

Edge is looking to become a 2 time WWE Champion tonight. Van Dam hits him with a baseball slide and then a moonsault off the barricade. Edge knees Van Dam as he tries to get in the ring and then takes RVD out with a sunset flip powerbomb. Back in the ring and Edge hits some forearms before applying a surfboard stretch to Van Dam. Van Dam gets out of it and knocks Edge onto the apron before taking him down to the floor below with a cross body. RVD then suplexes Edge onto the barricade before attempting his spinning heel kick off the apron but Edge gets out of the way. edge then rolls Rob back into the ring for a near fall. Back outside the ring and Edge powerbomb RVD into the barricade. Back in the ring and Edge can only get a near fall. Edge hits a backbreaker and then wrenches the neck to turn it into a submission. The two men then slug it out until Edge knocks Van Dam down with a big boot. RVD gets back into it with a big boot of his own and then tries for a DDT but Edge blocks it. Van Dam kicks Edge in the face and then hits a springboard kick.

Van Dam hits a back body drop and then a bridging German suplex for a two count. He follows that up with a spinning heel kick and tries for rolling thunder but Edge gets up and hits a powerslam for a near fall. Van Dam heads to the top and hits a thrust kick. He then goes up again and looks to hit the 5 star frog splash but Edge rolls out of the way. Van Dam nips down from the top and hits a modified rolling thunder before hitting a split-legged moonsault for a two count. RVD then attempts a spinning heel kick but edge gets out of the way and Van Dam hits the referee. Edge takes Rob down with a clothesline and then Lita gets him the WWE Championship belt. Van Dam hits a Van Daminator, kicking the belt into Edge’s face! He then heads to the top but Lita gets up on the apron and crotches him. Edge is bleeding from the face now and he gets up and DDTs Van Dam from the top rope to the mat. He hooks the leg and the referee slowly crawls into position only for Van Dam to kick out at 2.

Lita holds up a steel chair and Edge looks to spear Van Dam and you can see where this is heading. Van Dam gets out of the way and Edge spears the chair! RVD then heads to the top and hits Edge with the 5 star frog splash which is enough for the three! Rob Van Dam wins the match and retains the WWE Championship! A slightly surprising result there, I expected Edge to win the title back!

Rating: 7/10

The ECW locker room celebrate backstage. The likes of Tommy Dreamer, Nunzio, Balls Mahoney, Al Snow, Justin Credible, Stevie Richards, The Sandman and Roadkill. Paul Heyman then shows up and says that’s one down and one to go. Heyman then says that there will be an equal amount of Raw lumberjacks in the Cena/Sabu match.

Kane vs. Kane

This is like The Undertaker vs. The Undertaker all over again. I’ll differentiate them by calling one of them either Fake Kane or Masked Kane. “Kane” is the real Kane. The real Kane has a 1-2 record at Vengeance PPV’s. Kane goes right to work on Fake Kane and clotheslines him out of the ring. Fake Kane lands on his feet and pulls out the real Kane, hits him with some right hands and then throws him back into the ring. Kane takes the Fake Kane down with a shoulder block and then tries to take the mask off but Fake Kane gets to the ropes. Fake Kane hits a sidewalk slam and then lays into Kane with right hands. The Fake Kane chokes Kane in a variety of different ways and then hits a suplex and a fistdrop. The two men then slug it out until Kane hits a big boot but the Fake Kane then hits a powerslam for a near fall. The Fake Kane hits some right hands and then applies a chinlock. Kane gets out of that by squashing his opponent in the corner as “boring” chants ring out.

The Fake Kane looks to hit a chokeslam but Kane rakes him in the eyes. Kane then hits a DDT and a powerslam. Kane hits two big clotheslines in the corner and then drops his doppleganger with a sidewalk slam. both men attempt chokeslams but the other man counters. Fake Kane then hits a big boot and heads to the top but the real Kane goes up with him and hits him with a superplex! Kane motions for a chokeslam but Fake Kane elbows his arm away before running into a big boot. Kane heads to the top but Fake Kane catches him on the way down and chokeslams him into the mat! Fake Kane then pins real Kane and gets the three! The Fake Kane has beaten the real Kane tonight! A shocking result! And a pretty shocking match.

Rating: 3.5/10

There’s a video package next for John Cena and Sabu.

John Cena vs. Sabu – Extreme Rules Lumberjack match

This is a first time PPV match between these two men. Sabu goes into this having wrestled 2 WWE PPV matches before, beating Rhyno and going to a no-contest with Rey Mysterio. So technically he’s undefeated. John Cena is 1-1 at Vengeance PPV’s. A win tonight for Cena would make him the first person to win at both the 2005 and 2006 Vengeance events. The ECW lumberjacks are out first, all the guys we saw in the locker room earlier. The Raw lumberjacks are out next. The likes of Rob Conway, Charlie Haas, Matt Striker, Snitsky, Viscera, Val Venis, Trevor Murdoch and Lance Cade. Sabu lays right into Cena and throws him out of the ring but Cena is quick to get back into the ring. John hits an Irish whip and a fishermans suplex for a near fall. Sabu throws Cena out of the ring where the ECW guys lay into him and then throw him back into the ring. Sabu again throws Cena out of the ring where The Sandman lays him out with a singapore cane! Back in the ring and Sabu hits a triple jump moonsault for a two count. Sabu then applies a one arm camel clutch which Cena escapes from.

Sabu hits a low blow and then another triple jump moonsault for a near fall. Sabu follows that up with an Arabian facebuster for a two count. Interesting how most of the Raw lumberjacks are heels and they’re all cheering for Cena. Sabu springboards off a chair but Cena gets out of the way and Sabu hits the top turnbuckle. Cena hits a clothesline, a boot and a powerslam before motioning for the five knuckle shuffle but he gets distracted by some of the Raw and ECW guys fighting on the outside. Cena exits the ring and FU’s Stevie Richards over the barricade. Sabu then nails Cena with a steel chair twice. Sabu and Tommy Dreamer lay Cena down on a table but Viscera saves Cena and John nails Sabu with a kendo stick. Cena then throws a chair at Sabu and then FU’s Sabu through the table outside the ring. Sabu hit the edge of the table which looked painful. Viscera throws Sabu back into the ring where Cena locks on the STFU! Sabu taps out and this one is over! John Cena beats Sabu tonight!

Rating: 4.5/10

John Cena is shown backstage where he bumps into Rob Van Dam. Van Dam tells Cena he had balls to show up at ECW last week and then challenged John to a WWE title match on Raw tomorrow night. Cena accepts and the two men shake hands.

There’s a video package showing what led up to DX re-uniting and getting a match with The Spirit Squad tonight.

D-Generation X (Shawn Michaels & Triple H) vs. The Spirit Squad (Kenny, Mitch, Johnny, Nicky & Mikey)

The World Tag Team Championships aren’t on the line in this match. Tonight marks in-ring PPV debuts for the Spirit Squad tonight. Shawn Michaels is 1-0 at Vengeance events, Triple H is 0-2. So far John Cena is the only man that wrestled at last years Vengeance event and has won at this years. Everyone else that wrestled at last years event has lost tonight (Carlito, Shelton Benjamin, Edge, Kane & Kurt Angle). Shawn Michaels and Triple H both wrestled at last years event, Michaels beat Kurt Angle and Triple H lost to Batista. DX get on the mic before the match and give their classic lines. Michaels starts the match against Mitch who featured on the last series of Tough Enough. Michaels applies a headlock, a takedown, stands all over Mitch and then hits the youngster with some chops. Mitch hits some quick lefts and rights but takes too much time dancing which allows Michaels to take the difference with some more chops. Mitch forces Michaels into the Spirit Squad corner where they all lay into Shawn but Michaels fights them all off.

Michaels and Triple H lay into Mitch in their corner and then take out all the Spirit Squad, cleaning house. Johnny’s nose is busted open now. The Spirit Squad re-group. Mitch tags out to the bloody Johnny who puts a homemade karate kid bandana around his head and makes some comedy sounds. Shawn Michaels doesn’t know what’s going on so tags out to Triple H. Johnny does some karate action so Triple H lays him out with a big right hand. Triple H hits Johnny with a suplex and then a knee drop. Johnny hits a thumb to the eye, some kicks and right hands but gets his Irish whip countered. Shawn ?Michaels then drives Johnny into the ring post and smashes his knee into it as Triple H distracts the referee. Johnny dances around the ring selling his knee injuries which is pretty hysterical. Johnny manages a big boot and tags out to Mikey who immediately gets thrown out of the ring. Michaels crotches Mikey on the barricade and Triple H then lays into Mikey with right hands. No sign of Nicky or Kenny in this match yet. Nicky hits Triple H with a knee to the back which distracts Helmsley long enough for Mikey to knock him out of the ring. All 5 members of The Spirit Squad then throw Triple H into the ring steps.

Mikey tags in Kenny who has been getting the best opportunities on Raw. Triple H takes him down with a neckbreaker. Triple H tags out to Shawn Michaels and Kenny tags in Mikey. Nicky then gets involved and Michaels takes him out with an atomic drop. Michaels slams Mikey and then heads to the top before hitting an elbow drop. Michaels motions for sweet chin music but the rest of the Spirit Squad rush the ring. Johnny takes Michaels down with a spinning heel kick. Mikey tags in Nicky who gets involved legally for the first time. He gets a near fall on Michaels. Michaels hits a dropkick on Nicky who quickly tags out to Johnny. Michaels takes out Johnny but Mitch pulls Michaels out of the ring and Kenny lays him out with a chair! Kenny throws Michaels back into the ring and Mikey springboards off a trampoline and takes Michaels down with a bulldog. Johnny gets a near fall and Triple H then throws the trampoline at the Spirit Squad (and misses). Kenny tags in and hits a reverse elbow for a two count. Kenny tags in Nicky who hits a big right hand, spring-boarding off Kenny for a near fall.

Mikey tags himself in and hits Michaels with some right hands. He then distracts the referee allowing the others to lay into Michaels. Mikey gets a near fall and then tags in Mitch. Mitch tags in Kenny quickly and they hit a double flapjack for a two count. Kenny then applies a cobra clutch which Michaels gets out of and then both men go down as they both hit a clothesline. Mikey takes Michaels down with a clothesline from the apron and then Nicky tags in. Nicky hits some right hands and then tags in Mikey. Mikey misses with a splash in the corner and falls to the outside. Johnny then tags in but Michaels takes both he and Mikey down with a double DDT. Johnny tags in Kenny and Michaels tags in Triple H! Triple H takes down anyone that moves, laying out all of the Spirit Squad. He takes out Nicky with a high knee and then Kenny with a spinebuster. And the same for Mitch. Triple H hits Kenny with a facebuster and then sets up for a pedigree but Nicky splits it up.

Mikey jumps off the trampoline but Shawn Michaels gets out of the way and Mikey takes out his teammates. In the ring Triple H hits Kenny with a pedigree and Michaels hits sweet chin music on Nicky. Triple H and Shawn Michaels both cover their opponents and they get the three! DX win the match tonight in their first match back as a tag team. Michaels takes out Mitch after the match and Johnny eats a pedigree. Nicky gets more sweet chin music. Big win for Triple H and Shawn Michaels tonight. Triple H is the only man to have lost at last years event and win at this years. Michaels and Triple H dispose of the Spirit Squad until only Mitch remains. Michaels then forces Mitch between Triple H’s naked butt cheeks! Entertaining enough match between these guys. Vince McMahon comes out after the match, congratulations DX and says that he’ll see them tomorrow night!

Rating: 6.75/10

And that was Vengeance 2006. It felt like a pretty average show and one I will probably never re-visit. Kurt Angle and Randy Orton kicked off the show in a match Randy Orton won and might end the rivalry. I’d like to see a third match between the two to decide the series once and for all. This match wasn’t as good as their contest at ECW One Night Stand but it is two big names and it did have a big fight feel to it. Good way to start the show. Eugene and Umaga was short and sweet. Umaga was always going to destroy Eugene and it would be nice to see Umaga get some tougher opponents. He’s already beaten Ric Flair at Backlash. I can see this guy going to the top of the card, mixing it up with the likes of John Cena. Eugene is pretty much a jobber and is probably better used in the tag team division with Jim Duggan. Can they sustain his gimmick? Or will he just snap out of it one day?

Ric Flair and Mick Foley was a pretty weird match. Ric Flair won the first fall with a roll-up which is fair enough but then he got intentionally disqualified to lose the second fall? Seems strange. So Ric Flair wins. This feels like the beginning of this rivalry than the end so I’d expect a gimmick match between the two at Summerslam if not before. I struggled to care which of these men won. The Intercontinental Championship triple threat match was great fun. These three men feel like a newer version of the likes of Edge, Randy Orton and Rob Van Dam who were the guys fighting over the belt a few years ago. Johnny Nitro picked up the win which freshens up the title and gives it a new direction. A great match from three great workers here. Rob Van Dam then retained his WWE title against Edge. I hate that this match wasn’t on last, it degrades the title so much. I like that Van Dam won although I was pretty surprised that he did. Edge has been great as of late. I can see this headed towards being a triple threat match with Cena at Summerslam. Good match between these two guys.

The Kane vs. Kane match was pretty terrible. The fake Kane was played by Luke Gallows. In the biggest shocker of the night the real Kane lost to the fake Kane. That means this feud continues sadly and I have absolutely no idea where this is going. Does the imposter Kane get unmasked? I have no idea. Maybe they can merge into one super Kane. John Cena beat Sabu in a fairly fun match. The quality wasn’t great but there were some decent spots in it. Cena was definitely the right winner and as we found out after the match, he gets a shot at RVD on Raw tomorrow night. Don’t be too surprised if Edge gets involved in that match. DX then beat The Spirit Squad in the main event. This was no surprise and although I don’t find their humour very funny, it is nice to see them back together. This shouldn’t have been the main event though, RVD and Edge should have been. I can only see Triple H and Shawn Michaels head towards Vince and Shane McMahon now and I wouldn’t be surprised if they picked up the tag team titles along the way. Overall, a pretty average show. The IC title match, John Cena/Sabu and even the DX/Spirit Squad match are probably worth checking out.

Overall Rating: 57.14/100 (ranked joint 106th out of 196)

Match Of The Night: Shelton Benjamin vs. Carlito vs. Johnny Nitro
Worst Match Of The Night: Kane vs. Kane
Surprise Of The Night: Kane loses to the imposter
Worst Booking Of The Night: Either Kane losing or the WWE title not going on last
Superstars Of The Night: DX
Vengeance 2006 Will Be Remembered For: The return of DX