RAVEN VS. SEAN WALTMAN

 Sean Waltman is replacing Jeff Hardy in this match, as Hardy arrived late to this event. It was announced during the preshow. There was also a 10-bell salute to Chris Candido to open the show, as he passed 17 days previous. Mike Tenay and Don West are on commentary for this match. Before the match Terry Taylor is backstage with Raven, who’s disgusted that Jeff couldn’t be bothered to show up. He’s going to hurt who he has to in order to stop being held down, even threatening Taylor and (through modern eyes) awkwardly calling him “crippled.” Jeremy Borash is our ring announcer, and to explain he match simply, there are chains hanging above the ropes with weapons hanging from them, such as kendo sticks, steel chairs and trash can lids, as well as a side of a steel cage, held up against the ropes. Raven makes his way out first and Tenay isn’t sure how ready either man can be for this match. Raven was preparing for Jeff Hardy and Waltman only had an hour’s notice at best.

 

RAVEN VS. SEAN WALTMAN

(Clockwork Orange House of Fun)

TNA Hard Justice 2005 (15^th May 2005)

Sean Waltman’s music plays but he doesn’t come out of the tunnel. He jumps Raven from behind with a spinning heel kick and chops to start the match. Raven is sent off the ropes and Waltman knocks him down before bouncing a trash can on Raven’s head. Raven leaves the ring and Waltman stomps him from the apron, another chop against the guard rail has Waltman thinking he has it won, slightly prematurely I’d say. He grinds Raven’s face against the chicken wire and he’s already busted open. 

  Waltman brings it back into the ring and a drop toehold sends Raven into the trashcan. Waltman chokes Raven with his boot and the referee hangs around out of habit. Raven throws the trashcan at Waltman before the Bronco Buster connects and gets a new one. He sends the bottom of the trash can into Waltman, which you barely see. Waltman’s dumped through the ropes and sent into the ring post on the outside. Raven grinds at Waltman’s forehead and eyes with his fingers before deciding it’s easier to use the steel cage again. Waltman counters with a chop but is kicked in the face. Waltman’s sent into the steps but barely connects before being sent into the ring. Raven has acquired some trash can lids and alternates hands battering Waltman’s head with them. Sean Waltman asks for more and gets an ear clap with the lids. Raven sets up a trash can in the corner, wedging it between the ropes, but is sent into it himself as Waltman reverses an irish whip, Raven recovers first and locks in an ankle lock.

  Sean Waltman kicks Raven, knocking him down momentarily, but is booted in the face as Raven grabs a chair. He sets it up in the middle of the ring and sends Waltman off the ropes, Waltman seems to run through the drop toehold before grabbing the chair and launching it into Raven’s face. They seem to fuck up as Waltman chops Raven, Raven’s chop is almost ignored and they both spin before Waltman knocks Raven down with a spin kick. Waltman ducks a clothesline attempt and hits another spin kick before hitting a Bronco Buster in the corner. He hits the facebuster (formerly X-Factor as X-Pac) and rolls Raven out to the apron, Raven goes all the way to the floor, helped along with another boot to the head from Waltman. Raven is set up on a table, Waltman softens him up with mounted punches and takes a stupid route to the top turnbuckle through the posts needed for the weapons. “if he weighed 5 more pounds he wouldn’t get through there!”

 Fortunately after all that he connected with the somersault senton, 1, 2, no! Raven kicks out. They get back in the ring, and Raven is able to pull Waltman into an Evenflow DDT for a nearfall of his own. Raven brings Waltman up the ramp and throws him from the stage to the floor. He covers and the referee uses the ramp to count but Waltman kicks out again. Raven brings Waltman back to ringside and sends him into the ring steps before looking under the ring for a weapon. He finds the handcuffs he was looking for and cuffs Waltman around the ring post. He throws a staple gun in the ring before using a Singapore cane on Waltman’s back. Raven has a microphone and asks Waltman if he’s had enough. Mirroring the famous ECW angle with Sandman and Tommy Dreamer. Dusty Rhodes walks down to the ring with a handcuff key and unlocks the cuffs, but Raven doesn’t realize as he walks off to find a chair. Waltman is able to get out of the way of the chair shot and a spinning back kick knocks the chair back into Raven’s face.

  A chairshot to the back nudges Raven back into the ring and Waltman goes ham with trash can lids. Sean Waltman offers a receipt for the kendo stick shots to his back as well and grabs a staple gun. Sean Waltman plays doctor by stapling Raven’s cut. He goes for a running attack but Raven counters with a backdrop into the steel cage wall, causing it to collapse to the floor, Raven crawls over to Waltman and covers for the win.

WINNER: RAVEN

Wow, personally I thought that was a disappointing finish. There was the convoluted dive to the outside by Waltman (there were ladders RIGHT THERE, which wasn’t mentioned before this point)  and the mix-up during the kick early on. That being said, this was a fun brawl and on an hour’s notice, it was a perfectly serviceable match. The finish didn’t have the effect that commentary or TNA seemed to want to me personally but it doesn’t take away the rest of the 13 minute run time. Waltman looked pretty tough coming out of this and Raven is just happy hurting people. [***] 6/10