TJR Retro: WWE Over The Limit 2010 Review

The year 2010 wasn’t a particularly strong one for WWE shows and the post-WrestleMania months are oftentimes a struggle. Over The Limit 2010 doesn’t stand out as a particularly memorable show in any way, but here I am to review it as best I can.

This was right after Shawn Michaels retired from WWE, The Undertaker wasn’t wrestling regularly anymore and it really was time for others to step up with John Cena leading the way, of course. As for Batista, this was his last WWE match until he came back for a short run in early 2014.

This was the first of three years where WWE used the Over the Limit. It did 197,000 buys on PPV, which was right around the average level in 2010. That number is higher than what Over The Limit did in 2011 and 2012, so at least this show can say it was the highest drawing Over The Limit show ever.

This show followed WrestleMania 26 and Extreme Rules 2010, which I haven’t reviewed yet. This was about one year after I started writing the WWE Raw Deal review regularly, but for some reason I didn’t write a review of the show. That’s what I’m here to do now.

Here is the synopsis on WWE Network:

“A brutal “I Quit” Match for the WWE Championship between John Cena and Batista serves as the main event. Jack Swagger defends the World Heavyweight Championship against the Big Show. Plus Randy Orton, Edge, Kofi Kingston, the Miz, Chris Jericho, Rey Mysterio, CM Punk, and more.” PG (V)

The DVD and poster look like this:

Check out the full list of my WWE PPV Review archive right here. Let’s get to the show.

WWE Over The Limit
From Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan
May 23, 2010

There was an opening video package hyping up the big matches and pushing the speed limit idea since it’s called Over The Limit. Detroit is the “Motor City” so that’s part of it too.

The show began with an impressive pyro display and the Detroit crowd welcomed us to the show with cheering along with plenty of signs. There was a car on the stage.

The announce team was Raw’s Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler while Smackdown’s Matt Striker was there as well. The Spanish announcers were there hoping nobody will break their table.

Kofi Kingston made his entrance first as the challenger for the Intercontinental Title. There was a point where Kofi thought he won the vacated IC Title, but Drew McIntyre’s suspension was lifted by Vince McMahon, so McIntyre remained the champion. McIntyre made his entrance to the awesome “Broken Dreams” theme song that was one of my favorite songs of this era.

Intercontinental Championship: Drew McIntyre vs. Kofi Kingston

Pre-match notes: Drew McIntyre was the heel Intercontinental Champion and Kofi Kingston was the babyface challenger. They were on Smackdown. This was nine years before Kofi Kingston won the WWE Title at WrestleMania 35 in 2019 and ten years before Drew McIntyre won the WWE Title for the first time at WrestleMania 36 in 2020.

Kingston was aggressive with a dropkick and a clothesline over the top to the floor. Kingston followed up with a suicide dive onto Drew on the floor. Back in the ring, Kofi hit a leaping clothesline and then McIntyre bailed to the floor. They were on the apron with Drew sending Kofi back first into the turnbuckle. McIntyre worked over Kofi with punches and a knee to the ribs. McIntyre hit a gutbuster into the knee followed by an abdominal stretch. Kingston fought back with punches, but then Drew hit a kick to the ribs for two. McIntyre jumped off the top with nothing, so Kofi got his feet up to block the jumping attack. Kofi was aggressive with dropkicks and punches while on the top rope. McIntyre sent Kofi into the turnbuckle, Kofi landed on the ropes, then up top and Kofi hit a cross body block off the top for two. McIntyre hit a gutbuster into the knee for two. Kofi sent Drew shoulder first into the steel post. Kofi hit the “boom drop” double leg drop on McIntyre for two. Cole got in the “controlled frenzy” phrase that WWE loved to say for Kofi. Drew ducked the Trouble in Paradise kick, Kofi avoided the Future Shock DDT and Kofi hit the SOS trip into the slam for the pinfall win at 6:24. The fans popped for Kofi winning the title.

Winner by pinfall AND NEW Intercontinental Champion: Kofi Kingston

Analysis: **1/4 It was decent for a short match. They could have used more nearfalls to build up to the finish a bit more. Kofi didn’t win matches with the SOS trip into a slam very often, but it was enough to win this match. More time for these guys would have been nice. They did what they could and it was a fine presentation overall.

Kofi Kingston celebrated with the Intercontinental Title.

Drew McIntyre did a promo calling for Smackdown General Manager Teddy Long. McIntyre said that this pay-per-view is going to stop right now until Teddy Long is out there reversing the decision and declares Drew as the Intercontinental Champion. Matt Hardy made his entrance since he had a rivalry with McIntyre. Matt kicked Drew in the gut and hit a Twist of Fate. The fans popped for Hardy.

Analysis: It was just a midcard feud to have Drew working with a veteran like Matt.

CM Punk was shown in his dressing room looking at his hair in the mirror. Punk was joined by Luke Gallows and Serena. Punk said he was the man that got the poison out of their system and he’ll leave with his hair intact. Punk said that Rey Mysterio will be joining them tonight and it’s for the greater good. Punk said tonight they give birth to Straight Edge Mysterio. Punk and his friends smiled about that.

Analysis: I was a big fan of the Straight Edge Society. They were one of the highlights of WWE during this era.

R-Truth made his entrance doing his “What’s Up” rap with the fans chanting along right on cue. Ted Dibiase was up next with the Million Dollar Title that his father gave him and he had Virgil with him.

Ted Dibiase (w/Virgil) vs. R-Truth

Pre-match notes: Ted Dibiase was the heel and R-Truth was the face. It was just a midcard Raw feud.

Dibiase did slap to the face, so Truth slapped back and Truth followed with punches. Truth hit a jumping heel kick and a clothesline over the top to the floor. The announcers talked about how Dibiase looked dazed and in reading about this show, Dibiase did suffer a concussion early in the match likely after a hard slap from Truth. Truth sent Dibiase into the ring, Virgil with a distraction and Dibiase hit a neckbreaker followed by punches. Dibiase sent Truth out of the ring with Ted driving Truth into the barricade. Dibiase hit a flapjack in the ring. Dibiase did one of his favorite spots where he bounced off the ropes with a clothesline. Dibiase with a chinlock leading to a belly to back suplex. Truth came back with a running forearm, then he sat Dibiase on the top rope and delivered another hard slap to the face. Dibiase punched Truth to knock him off the turnbuckle, but then Truth went into the ropes to crotch Dibiase on the top rope. Truth with two clotheslines, then a hiptoss and a flatliner for two. Truth missed a scissors kick when Dibiase moved, Dibiase had Truth on the shoulder and Dibiase dropped back in an Electric Chair drop. That was a bit sloppy. Truth with a takedown into a submission that looked like they messed it up a bit. Truth hit a suplex into a Stunner for a two count. Truth ran the ropes and hit a Lie Detector spinning punch for the pinfall win at 7:48.

Winner by pinfall: R-Truth

Analysis: ** An average match. They probably should have stopped it when they figured out Dibiase was concussed. I don’t think Dibiase did that badly after the concussion because he seemed to get through the match okay, but it’s bad when you let a guy to continue to wrestle with a concussion. It was noted in the Wrestling Observer that the original plan was for Dibiase to blame Virgil for the loss and Dibiase to hit Virgil with a Dream Street slam. Instead, that didn’t happen.

There was a backstage scene with Teddy Long talking on the phone to somebody. Drew McIntyre showed up saying he demands that Teddy changes the result of his match right now. Teddy said he won’t do that. Drew wanted Teddy to fire Matt Hardy too, but Teddy said he won’t do that. Drew destroyed some of the office. Drew thought about destroying a Martin Luther King Jr. picture, but Teddy said it meant a lot to him. Drew told Teddy that MLK is a leader while Teddy is gutless and spineless with Drew saying he is more like him (MLK) that Teddy will ever be.

Analysis: In the Wrestling Observer Newsletter at the time, Dave Meltzer claimed that McIntyre’s “stock has fallen greatly of late as he’s gotten the reputation of being high maintenance.” They had a plan to elevate Drew to the main event level, but then his push was basically given to Jack Swagger instead.

The video package aired for Straight Edge Society leader CM Punk facing Rey Mysterio. Punk told Rey that he needed straight edge and he needs CM Punk. Rey challenged Punk to a match where if Rey loses then he joins the SES, but if Punk loses then Punk has to shave his head.

Analysis: This was one of the best feuds in WWE in 2010. It was mostly on Smackdown and I thought they did a great job in building up this rivalry.

There was a barber chair at ringside along with shaving cream, an electric shaver, towels and other items. I don’t know why they put them right beside the ring, but they did. CM Punk made his entrance for the match. Punk was not accompanied by Luke Gallows and Serena since they were banned by Teddy Long. Rey Mysterio entered as the opponent and got a good pop from the crowd.

CM Punk vs. Rey Mysterio

Pre-match notes: CM Punk was the heel and Rey Mysterio was the face.

If CM Punk wins then Rey Mysterio has to join the Straight Edge Society. If Mysterio wins then Punk must shave his head.

Punk was aggressive with punches, kicks and elbows to work over Rey against the corner. Rey came back with punches, but then Punk escaped and hit a knee to the back. Rey with a kick to the chest, then a charge and Punk sent Rey over the top to the floor. Punk went for a dive over the top, Rey moved and then Rey hit a headscissors that sent Punk into the barricade. Rey punched Punk while he was against the barber’s chair. Rey with a headscissors into the ropes, he ran at Punk and Punk kicked Rey to knock him down. Punk slid Rey under the bottom rope to send Rey into the barber’s chair, so I guess the chair was in that spot so Rey can do that bump. Punk was busted open on his head, so referee Charles Robinson put a towel on his head. That led to Dr. Sampson going into the ring to check on Punk, who had a cut on his head. Punk had a frustrated look on his face because you can tell he didn’t like the match being stopped so the doctor could look at him.

Analysis: Stopping the match to tend to a bloody wrestler is a lame thing to do. The WWE product was PG, but you shouldn’t have to stop the match just because there’s a bit of blood. You could see Punk was frustrated about it.

Punk got back into it with a dropkick, then he whipped Rey into the barricade and Punk hit a suplex on the floor. Punk was still bleeding from the head, so it’s not like it stopped. Back in the ring, Punk hit a senton splash over the top onto Rey for a two count. Punk had Mysterio trapped in a leg scissors. Lawler was getting tired of Striker and told Matt to shut up when Jerry is talking. Rey got a sunset flip for two, but then Punk got back into it with a clothesline. Punk was doing his SES pledge speech as he punched Mysterio. Punk charged, Rey with a boot to the face and Rey hit a Sunset Bomb for a two count. Rey hit a cross body block off the middle ropes for a two count. Mysterio with a shoulder tackle, then a seated senton off the ropes and Rey flipped up into another senton attack for a two count. Rey charged into Punk, who launched Rey face first into the top turnbuckle. Rey sent Punk into the ropes, but Punk kicked him in the gut and hit a backbreaker for two. Rey went for a move to counter a Powerbomb, that failed and Punk hit a Buckle Bomb into the turnbuckle. Punk hit a bulldog off the middle ropes for two. Punk with a hard kick to the head for a two count. Rey with a back elbow, Rey jumped off the ropes, Punk caught him on the shoulders, Rey fought out of that and Rey did a headscissors into the ropes. Rey hit the 619 kick, but then Punk moved out of the way of a splash. Punk smiled about that, so then Rey did a crucifix pin hooking the arms and that was enough for the pinfall win at 13:49.

Winner by pinfall: Rey Mysterio

Analysis: ***1/2 It was a pretty good match. They did have better matches, though. I thought the finish was very creative because Punk was celebrating after avoiding a splash from Rey and then Rey took advantage of that with a crucifix pin to win the match. That’s a clever way to end it. I think the match was hurt when they had to stop the match to clean up Punk’s blood because there was all of this momentum, but then it just came to a halt. Punk did do a nice job after the blood. I just think it’s difficult to pick things back up after a match is stopped like that.

Post match, CM Punk’s masked friend (later revealed as Joey Mercury) with a hood went into the ring and beat up Mysterio with punches. Gallows and Serena made their way down to the ring. Punk, who was still bleeding from the forehead, tried to handcuff Rey to the ropes, but Kane made the save. Kane punched Gallows, knocked down Punk and tossed the masked guy over the top to the floor. Kane hit a Chokeslam on Punk. Kane beat up Gallows to get him out of there. Mysterio handcuffed Punk to the ropes, then Rey hit a dropkick and a 619 kick.

Rey had two sets of handcuffs on Punk against the ropes. Rey get the clippers from ringside. Rey started cutting Punk’s hair while Punk tried fighting it. They kept showing the back of Punk as Rey was cutting the hair probably to avoid showing the blood all over Punk’s face. Cole and Lawler were laughing about it while Striker was trying to say good things about Punk. Rey cut about half of Punk’s hair and then Rey left. Rey had some of Punk’s hair in his hands and Rey left. Rey came back with a mirror and showed punk what he looked like, so Punk was freaking out about it. Serena and the masked guy put towels on Punk and walked to the back with him.

Analysis: That didn’t go well in terms of the shaving. Rey cut some of it, but it was only about half of a haircut. Punk ended up shaving his head on his own although he would wear a mask to cover it up as well. It was the end of the feud with Rey getting the win since he got to shave Punk’s hair.

Chris Jericho was shown backstage going up to his former tag team partner Big Show. Jericho said that Show was the dead weight of Jericho’s team with Show and now Jericho is going all the way with The Miz as his partner. Show reminded Jericho of when Show knocked out Jericho and Bret Hart took The Miz’s US Title last week. By this point, The Miz walked into the screen behind Show as well, so Show threatened to knock both guys out. Jericho said that Big Show is a cheap shot artist and Bret took advantage of cheap shots. When Show threatened both guys, Jericho and Miz backed away. Show is in action later.

The Hart Dynasty team of David Hart Smith and Tyson Kidd were joined by Natalya. They were the Unified Tag Team Champions, which meant that they had two versions of the Tag Team Titles (the Raw and Smackdown tag team titles), so they had to carry four titles down to the ring. The Miz made his entrance as highlights were shown from Raw when Bret Hart beat The Miz for the US Title thanks to an assist from the Hart Dynasty. Chris Jericho was up next to boos from the crowd.

Unified Tag Team Championships: The Hart Dynasty – David Hart Smith & Tyson Kidd (w/Natalya) vs. The Miz & Chris Jericho

Pre-match notes: The Hart Dynasty were the babyface Unified Tag Team Champions. Natalya and David are cousins. Natalya and Kidd were dating at this point and got married a few years after. The Miz and Jericho were the heels.

Miz started with Kidd connecting with multiple kicks to the chest and then Smith hit a delayed vertical suplex like his father the British Bulldog. Smith sent both heels out of the ring. Smith did a press slam over the top onto both heels on the floor. Miz drove Kidd to the heel corner, Jericho with punches, Kidd countered a back body drop by landing on his feet and hitting a spin kick. Smith was back in for the team, but Jericho was able to slow him down with a dropkick followed by a baseball slide dropkick. Miz got in a cheap kick on Smith while the referee wasn’t looking. Jericho with a belly to back suplex. Jericho grabbed a chinlock, Smith got out of that and Smith hit a sidewalk slam. Miz was back in to prevent a tag with Miz bouncing off the ropes with a kick to the face. Smith countered with the Electric Chair drop to slam Miz in the ring. Kidd got the tag against Jericho with a running back elbow, a dropkick and a running dropkick. Kidd with a sliding dropkick on Miz. Kidd jumped on Jericho’s back and got a rollup using his legs. Jericho caught Kidd and applied he Walls of Jericho, which got the biggest reaction of the match as Kidd got to the bottom rope to break the hold. Kidd knocked down Jericho with a kick to the head. Kidd went for a springboard attack, but Jericho was waiting and hit the Codebreaker! That was a great spot there. Jericho crawled over for the cover for a two count because there was a delayed cover. Smith got the tag with punches, a clothesline on Miz and Smith with a belly to belly suplex on Jericho. Smith with a powerslam on Jericho for two. Miz grabbed the foot of Smith causing a trip and Jericho got an inside cradle for two. Miz was complaining, so the referee was looking at him and Natalya tripped up Jericho. Smith hit a running powerslam (like the British Bulldog) for a two count. Miz made the blind tag with the backbreaker/neckbreaker combo for a two count. Smith was able to counter a Sharpshooter attempt into a small package and Smith shoved Miz into Jericho on the apron. Miz got a rollup with the tights for two. Miz tried a corner attack on Smith, but Smith caught him, Kidd got the tag and ran the ropes and Kidd hit the Hart Attack clothesline for the pinfall win at 10:44.

Winners by pinfall: The Hart Dynasty – David Hart Smith & Tyson Kidd

Analysis: ***1/4 Good tag team action here. Kidd is such a great athlete and every time he was in there, the pace picked up. I liked his interactions with Jericho a lot. Smith used his power really well. Jericho/Miz worked well together as the heel team. There were some moments where the crowd wasn’t into it, but by the end of the match, the fans were buying the nearfalls leading to the finish. I thought the Hart Dynasty were definitely one of the best teams of this era while Jericho/Miz were upper midcard heels, so it was smart to have Jericho/Miz put them over. The Hart Dynasty would go on to hold those titles for about five months.

There was a video package about Edge’s match against Randy Orton. Edge was drafted to Raw after being on Smackdown for several years, so Edge targeted his former tag team partner Orton. Edge said that when he attacked Orton, it was a case of Randy being in the wrong place at the wrong time because Edge wanted to make a statement. Edge went for a Spear on Orton, but Orton caught him with a RKO. Edge got payback with a Spear on Orton.

Edge made his entrance and it sounded like boos for him although it wasn’t a big reaction. Edge had a big shiner under his right eye. Randy Orton got a big pop from the crowd since he turned babyface around WrestleMania time although it’s not like Orton was a guy that played to the crowd to encourage cheers that often. Lawler said that a lot of fans still don’t know how to react to Orton.

Randy Orton vs. Edge

Pre-match notes: Edge was the heel in the match that turned a few weeks earlier. Edge returned to WWE at the 2010 Royal Rumble, won that match as a babyface, but then he turned heel when he was moved to Raw. Edge was a nine-time World Champion at this point in his career. Orton was the babyface in the match. Orton was a four-time World Champion at this point in his career.

The fans chanted “RKO” as the match began. Orton with a running shoulder tackle to knock Edge down. Orton with a whip into the corner followed by a clothesline, Orton with stomps and a knee drop. Orton with forearms to the chest of Edge. Orton with a catapult that sent Edge throat first into the bottom rope. Edge bailed to the floor, Orton went after him, Edge sent Orton into the barricade and suplexed Orton onto the top of the barricade. Edge broke the referee’s count and brought Orton back into the ring. Edge stomped on Orton a bit followed by a pose leading to some boos. Orton with punches, but Edge came back with a knee to the ribs. Edge applied a leg scissors around the ribs of Orton for about two minutes as fans chanted “RKO” for Orton. Edge suplexed Orton across the top rope to keep working on the ribs. Edge went top, Orton stopped him and Orton hit a superplex off the middle ropes. They exchanged punches, Edge with a forearm and Orton with two clotheslines followed by the spinning powerslam for two. Edge came back with a boot to the face. Orton with a knee block a charging Edge and Orton hit a draping DDT off the ropes for two with Edge getting his foot on the bottom rope. Edge rolled out of the ring followed by Edge driving Orton’s neck into the top rope. Edge charged, Orton with a kick and Orton started to smack the mat with both of his hands. Uh oh. Orton was grabbing his right hand. You could see Orton saying something to the referee, who said something to Edge and the referee made the “X” symbol with his hand. Orton kicked Edge in the ribs to send him out of the ring so Orton could get some time.

Analysis: Orton suffered a shoulder injury at that moment and the match fell apart right there.

Orton talked to referee Jack Doan with Striker talking about how Orton has had a separated shoulder before. Orton left the ring, he talked to Edge and Orton was favoring his right arm. The referee started counting both guys out of the ring as Edge stomped on Orton. Edge charged at Randy on the floor, Orton moved and Edge hit a Spear into the barricade, so there’s the spot they came up with after the injury. The referee kept counting, he reached a 10 count and that led to a double countout. That finish drew boos from the crowd. It went 12:58.

Match Result: Double Countout

Analysis: *1/2 Bad match well below the standards of both men due to Orton suffering a shoulder injury leading to a change in the finish. Injuries suck and while I’m sure they would have had a better match if Orton was okay, I can only rate what they presented on the show. Once Orton hurt his shoulder, he did the right thing in telling the referee, then they communicated with Edge and came up with a finish. Orton was likely going to get the win here, but the shoulder injury prevented the actual finish from taking place.

Orton was down holding his right arm while Dr. Sampson was talking to him at ringside. The announcers speculated on whether Orton had a shoulder or forearm injury. Orton had his right arm hanging down his side. Two doctors were helping Orton to the back while referees were restraining Edge. The announcers talked about what happened.

Analysis: It was reported in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that there were concerns that Orton would miss a long time with the shoulder injury, but it ended up being okay. Orton was back within two weeks and was in the main event of the Fatal 4-Way PPV one month after this.

The video package aired for the World Heavyweight Championship match between champion Jack Swagger and challenger Big Show. They showed how Swagger won the title after a Money in the Bank cash-in on Chris Jericho. Swagger did promos bragging about how great he was. Big Show was drafted to Smackdown and knocked out Swagger with the KO Punch. Show also Chokeslammed Swagger through the announce table. Show also destroyed Swagger’s trophies and photos. Swagger tried attacking Big Show’s right hand, but Show hit a steel chair with a punch. That set up the match.

Jack Swagger made his entrance as the World Heavyweight Champion. Big Show was next. There wasn’t much of a reaction for either guy.

World Heavyweight Championship: Jack Swagger vs. Big Show

Pre-match notes: Jack Swagger was the heel World Heavyweight Champion. Big Show was the babyface. This was a Smackdown feud.

Swagger tried a takedown, but Show was easily able to push him aside. Show did a waistlock takedown for a pin attempt and Swagger bailed to the floor. Show did some push ups while Swagger went to the floor. Swagger jumped back into the ring with Show hitting a boot to the face. Show delivered hard chops to the chest of Swagger and Show stepped on Swagger’s stomach. Show also stepped on Swagger’s back with Show also choking Swagger across the middle rope. Show wanted a Chokeslam, Swagger avoided it and bailed to the floor. Swagger choked Show across the top rope and hit a running shoulder tackle to the left leg. Swagger with a shoulder tackle for two. Swagger hit the Swagger Bomb splash off the ropes two times and it got a two count with Show doing a power kickout that sent Swagger out of the ring to the floor. Show with two clotheslines, a corner splash and a running shoulder tackle. Show wanted a Chokeslam, Swagger kicked the knees, so Show sent Swagger over the top to the floor. Swagger grabbed the World Title, hit Show in the head with it and was disqualified because the referee was right there. The fans booed loudly. It went 5:05.

Winner by disqualification: Big Show (Jack Swagger remained champion)

Analysis: * This match sucked and the booking didn’t help at all. The basic story was that Swagger was a cowardly heel that didn’t seem to know how to keep Big Show down, so he figured he might as well hit Show with the World Title to get out of the match. It was a disappointing match to only go five minutes on a pay-per-view and have such a weak finish to the match.

After the match, Swagger hit Show in the head with the World Title again. Show was to his knees, Swagger was stunned by that and Swagger got a steel chair. Swagger hit Show in the back with the steel chair. Big Show got up to his knees, Swagger hit him in the back again and when Swagger charged again, Big Show hit a Chokeslam. Show hit Swagger with a chair to the back and Show hit a Chokeslam on the chair. Show delivered a KO Punch to Swagger, who sold it like he was knocked out. Swagger was helped to the back by referees to sell the KO Punch from Show.

Analysis: It was fine for a post match angle to make the fans happy after seeing such a bad match. Swagger’s title reign lasted about 82 days. The booking of Swagger as World Heavyweight Champion wasn’t good at all.

There was a video from two weeks earlier when Big Show beat up Mark Henry with a steel chair and applied a head/arm submission. Batista also beat up Henry on Raw from one week earlier.

Batista was interviewed by Josh Mathews, who asked if Batista can make John Cena quit. Batista said that last week on Raw, Cena was screaming like a little baby or a little girl. Batista said he’ll make Cena quit and he’ll make sure the whole world hears it.

Maryse made her entrance as the challenger for the Divas Championship match. Eve Torres was up next as the champion.

Divas Championship: Eve Torres vs. Maryse

Pre-match notes: Eve Torres was the babyface Divas Champion while Maryse was the heel challenger. Maryse was the former champion. Eve was a Divas Search winner. Maryse was discovered in a Divas Search.

Maryse sent Eve into the turnbuckle followed by Maryse doing a trip where she sent Eve into the mat. Maryse applied a chinlock. Maryse pulled back on Eve’s head against the ropes followed by Maryse hitting a knee to the floor. Maryse went for a kick, Eve moved and Maryse’s foot hit the ring post. Eve sent Maryse back in with Eve hitting a clothesline and two dropkicks. Eve hit a standing moonsault. The fans were quiet for most of the match. Eve hit a running sunset flip for two and then Maryse delivered a kick to the face for two. Eve came back with punches, Maryse charged and Eve delivered a flatliner into the mat for two. Eve went for a senton splash, but Maryse got her knees up to block and then Maryse laughed at Eve. Eve came back with a kick to the gut, then she put her head around Maryse’s head, drove the head into the mat and Eve covered for the pinfall win at 5:03.

Winner by pinfall: Eve Torres

Analysis: *1/4 A short match to put over the champion Eve. I did like some of the nearfalls in the match. The fans really didn’t get into the match that much although they did pop for the finish, so they did live Eve. Maryse was a good character as a heel, but her matches weren’t necessarily that great.

The video package aired for the WWE Championship “I Quit” Match between champion John Cena and Batista. At Extreme Rules, Cena beat Batista in a Last Man Standing Match because Cena tied up Batista’s legs with duct tape and Batista couldn’t get up, so Cena won. Batista called Cena a coward, Cena said he wasn’t a coward and that set up this “I Quit” Match for the final WWE Title match between Cena and Batista. They were telling us it was the end of the rivalry.

Batista made his entrance as the heel in the match. Cole noted that this is their last match because Cena said that if he loses then he won’t invoke his rematch clause.

Analysis: It was reported online that Batista was leaving WWE soon because his contract was expiring. All we knew is that he wanted to try getting into the acting world and had interest in getting into MMA as well. Batista would do both of those things. What we didn’t know is that his next WWE match would be in early 2014.

John Cena made his entrance as the WWE Champion with the fans cheering him for the most part, but this was during the time in his career where plenty of fans were booing Cena too. I think it was more of a pop than boos. The wrestlers stood in the ring as ring announce Justin Roberts did the championship introductions.

WWE Championship “I Quit” Match: John Cena vs. Batista

Pre-match notes: John Cena was the babyface WWE Champion while Batista was the heel. Cena was 32 years old while Batista was 41 years old It was about ten years earlier when both guys were in WWE developmental together in OVW, so they had a long history.

There are no countouts, no disqualifications, no pinfalls and no submissions. The only way to win is to make your opponent say “I Quit.” That’s it. The referee was Mike Chioda, who had a microphone.

Batista did a promo saying he knows Cena said “I Quit” on Raw, so he’ll give him a chance to quit right now. Cena said: “You made your point. I don’t think so.” Cena punched Batista with the microphone and they spilled to the floor. Cena went for a chairshot, Batista moved and Cena hit the ring post. Back in the ring, Batista hit a clothesline and a hard whip into the turnbuckle. Batista with a running boot to the head, then he nearly went for a cover out of instinct, but remembered it’s an I Quit match. Batista drove Cena neck first across the middle rope as the dueling “Let’s Go Cena/Cena Sucks” chants started. Batista hit a running elbow smash to the head. Batista sent Cena shoulder-first into the ring post. Batista hit a running knee that knocked Cena off the apron to the floor. There were more dueling Cena chants as Batista hit a suplex. Cena with a running shoulder tackle, then the belly to back suplex and Cena hit the “five knuckle shuffle” fist drop. Cena wanted the Attitude Adjustment, but Batista held onto the ropes. Cena grabbed the referee as a shield, Batista with a kick to the knee and Batista hit a Spear. Batista applied a submission on the head arm pulling back on Cena, who was asked if he wants to quit and Cena said “no” repeatedly. Cena powered out of the submission and Cena applied the STF, but Batista refused and got to the ropes although there are no rope breaks. Batista sold it like he was passed out, so Cena got a bottle of water from ringside. Cena poured the water on Batista’s head and Batista said “no” that. Cena charged and Batista hit a spinebuster. Batista hit a Batista Bomb in the center of the ring. Cena said “no” when he was asked if he quit. Batista cleared off the Spanish announce table and the English announce table as well, which led to Batista bringing Cena out of the ring. Batista teased a Batista Bomb on the announce table, Cena fought out of that and then Batista hit a Running Powerslam where he ran off the English announce table to powerslam Cena through the Spanish announce table. Cena suffered a legitimate cut on the forehead because he was bleeding, so then a WWE doctor checked on him. The doctor treated Cena’s wound, which is lame, but that’s what WWE did in this PG era. Batista was waiting impatiently and the doctor stepped aside to signal he was done, so Batista got a hold of Cena and tossed him over the barricade.

Batista walked Cena through an area in the crowd. Batista grabbed Cena and they walked up a flight of stairs in the 100 level and then they went up another level. Batista told Cena to quit or he’s tossing him over a barricade. Cena said “no” when Chioda asked if he wanted to quit. Batista teased a Batista Bomb from the second level to the first level, but Cena fought back with punches. Cena punched Batista from the upper level so that Batista bumped off the barricade onto a pile of security guys. Batista said “no” when he was asked if he wants to quit. The wrestlers and referee walked down the stairs to get back towards the floor. They were over by the stage with Cena punching Batista repeatedly and then they were on the ramp. There were two cars on the stage. Batista came back with a chair shot to the ribs and two chair shots to the back. They went up to the stage where Batista hit Cena with five more chair shots to the back. Cena said “no” when he was asked if he wanted to quit. Batista hit Cena with two more chair shots. Batista got into the red car that was on the stage. There were apparently keys in the car for some reason and Batista teased backing into Cena on the stage. Batista went backwards into the stage, but Cena moved out of the way. Cena grabbed Batista from the car and Cena slammed Batista face first into the front of the car. Cena gave Batista the Attitude Adjustment on the front of the car. Batista said “no” to quitting and Cena told Batista he was really hoping he would say that. Cena picked up Batista on the hood of the car, Cena picked Batista up in the AA position and Batista said “I Quit” repeatedly to give Cena the win at 20:33.

Winner: John Cena

Analysis: ***1/2 This was a very good championship match with some cool spots and a memorable finish. I think maybe it dragged on a bit too long, but some of the other matches were cut short and it is typical of a main event to get around 20 minutes. Cena winning was never in doubt because he was champion a lot in this era and as I noted earlier, most of us knew that Batista was leaving WWE. I think they could have done a better job of setting up some of the “I Quit” spots. I did like that they set up spots after submissions, but they could have done more of those.

The bell rang because Cena won the match, but Cena wasn’t done. Cena gave Batista the Attitude Adjustment off his shoulders and onto the ramp, which broke up, so Batista took a big bump through the stage.

Analysis: This was Cena’s way of getting revenge after all of Batista’s cheap attacks in the months leading up to this. I thought it was a creative spot that looked impressive. It was reported in the Wrestling Observer that Batista had a back and tailbone injury after the crash pad bump. Since Batista quit WWE the next night, he had a lot of time to recover from it.

Cena celebrated with the WWE Title in his hands while the medical team checked on Batista after the big bump he took through the stage. They replayed the stage bump for Batista. They replayed Cena tossing Batista off the car and through the stage a few more times. Cena went up the ramp to celebrated with the WWE Title as we could see the medical team looking at Batista. As Cena held up the WWE Title over his head, Sheamus appeared on the stage and Sheamus hit Cena with a Brogue Kick. Sheamus stood over a fallen Cena and that was the end of the show.

Analysis: It set the stage for Sheamus to be Cena’s next opponent. They actually did a Fatal 4-Way match at the PPV, but Sheamus did end up becoming the WWE Champion.

This event had a runtime of 2:39:46 on WWE Network.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljKru1blQiQ

FINAL THOUGHTS

Show rating (out of 10): 5 – It was just an average show in an era where WWE wasn’t producing great content in terms of their TV shows and PPVs. I always look back on 2010 as a bit of a down year even though there was a very good roster. There wasn’t one match that stood out as the best, but I liked Cena/Batista as an “I Quit” match with a memorable finish. That was Batista’s last PPV match for nearly four years. Rey/Punk was fun although they had better matches too. The Swagger/Big Show match was awful and a shining example of why Swagger failed as a World Champion. It was the booking that was the issue more than it was his fault.

There were multiple injuries on the show (Randy Orton’s shoulder and Ted Dibiase’s concussion) that hurt matches while there were two other matches where the action was stopped to have doctors trying to stop blood because WWE was strongly in the PG era. Those things didn’t help the show at all.

This wasn’t some all-time bad show or anything like that. However, I would call it uneventful and a bad night overall due to some of the injuries and poor finishes that took place.

FIVE STARS

1. John Cena
2. Rey Mysterio
3. CM Punk
4. Batista
5. Hart Dynasty/Miz & Jericho

OPINIONS

Best Match: John Cena vs. Batista and Rey Mysterio vs. CM Punk (***1/2 out of 5)

Worst Match: Big Show vs. Jack Swagger (*)

Most Memorable Moment: John Cena giving Batista the Attitude Adjustment off the hood of a car through the stage.

That’s all for me. Check out the full list of my WWE PPV Review archive right here. Thanks for reading.

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My contact info is below.

John Canton

Email mrjohncanton@gmail.com

Twitter @johnreport