WWE Heat 7/7/2002

World Wrestling Entertainment presents Heat
Date: 7/7/2002
From:

Matches:
1.) Trish Stratus defeated Victoria
2.) Johnny Stamboli defeated Shawn Stasiak
3.) Raven defeated Tommy Dreamer
4.) Matt Hardy defeated Steven Richards

Angle Developments/Notes:
1.) Stratus fights out of a side headlock and is met with a shoulder block by Victoria. Victoria goes back with a headlock. Stratus arm drags Victoria followed by a dropkick and slap. Stratus forearms Victoria a few times, but Victoria stops Stratus with a backdrop and elbow drop to the back for a near fall. Victoria takes Stratus over with a series fo snap suplexs for a near fall. Victoria has a confrontation with Jacqueline and is almost pinned by Stratus. Victoria stomps on Stratus in the corner. Victoria misses a splash in the corner and Stratus delivers several chops. Victoria nails Stratus with a short arm clothesline. Victoria scoop slams Stratus and misses a slingshot somersault leg drop. Stratus fights back with forearm strikes and a leaping clothesline. Stratus ducks a clothesline and kicks Victoria for a two count. Stratus heads to the top rope hitting a flying crossbody, but Victoria rolls through for a two count. Stratus kicks Victoria and hits a springboard bulldog for the win. (*1/2. Victoria got a brief amount of time to showcase her skills in her WWE debut, but this was just a showcase for Stratus. Victoria will be a good addition to the women’s division.)

2.) Stasiak and Stamboli lockup, but neither man gets the advantage until Stamboli gets wrist control. Stasiak gets to the ropes and elbows Stamboli to break free from a hammerlock. Stamboli backs Stasiak into a corner and is kicked by Stasiak. Stasiak shoulder blocks Stamboli and is met with a hip toss and a dropkick to send Stasiak to the floor. Stamboli sends Stasiak through the ropes to the floor. Stasiak is getting aggravated with the lack of offense in his favor. Stasiak pulls Stamboli to the floor and delivers a few strikes. Stasiak hits a vertical suplex on the floor. Stasiak rolls Stamboli back into the ring and stomps on Stamboli several times in the corner. Stasiak puts Stamboli in the tree of woe and chokes Stamboli for a moment. Stasiak continues to stomp on Stamboli before breaking Stamboli free. Stamboli tries to fight back, but can’t deliver a scoop slam. Stasiak continues to stomp on Stamboli. Stasiak plants Stamboli with a side slam for a two count. Stamboli breaks free with a side slam of his own. Stasiak continues to beat on Stamboli in the corner. Stasiak misses a splash in the corner and Stamboli hits an overhead suplex. Stamboli backdrops Stasiak followed by a splash in the corner. Stamboli hits another splash in the corner and a running bulldog for a two count. Stamboli misses an elbow drop and Stasiak connects with a spinebuster for a near fall. Stamboli almost wins with an inside cradle. Stamboli plants Stasiak with the Forget About It and wins the match. (1/2*. That was truly one of the most boring matches I have watched in quite sometime. First off, they literally showed a video package of Stamboli being a heel last week against Dreamer and now he’s a face? It’s hard to be invested in logic lacking booking. Stasiak being the guy to lead a match was proven to be a bad move here, as well.)

3.) Rey Mysterio Jr. is coming to the WWE soon and we get a video package telling us that’s the case.

4.) Earlier today, Raven was interviewed by Terri. Terri wonders how Raven is feeling since Raven can no longer appear on RAW. Raven feels ripped off and says his career is in jeopardy. Raven feels like a pawn in a millionaires chess game. Raven can’t believe he was escorted out of RAW when he loss. Raven promises that Dreamer will pay for his loss. Raven promises the wrath of his retribution.

5.) Raven spits on Dreamer, but Dreamer licks the spit and decks Raven with a right hand. Dreamer stomps on Raven in the corner and elbows a charging Raven in the corner. Dreamer clotheslines himself and Raven over the top to the floor. Dreamer grabs a drink and spits it into Raven’s face. Dreamer rams Raven head first into the railing. Dreamer is sent into the ring steps with a drop toe hold. Raven sends Dreamer into the railing with a side Russian leg sweep. Raven mounts Dreamer with right hands in the ring. Raven comes off the middle rope to drive a knee into the back of Dreamer’s head. Raven knee lifts Dreamer a few times against the ropes and a running knee lift for a two count. Raven gouges Dreamer’s eyes and continues with jabs. Dreamer drops Raven throat first over the top rope. Dreamer kicks Raven and continues with strikes and a swinging neckbreaker. Dreamer clotheslines Raven followed by a powerslam for a two count. Dreamer punches Raven in the corner followed by a spinebuster for a near fall. Dreamer tries for a Death Valley Driver, but settles for a DDT. Raven manages to kick out at two. Raven quickly comes back with a DDT and wins the match. (*1/2. I was a bit surprised to see Raven win since he’s banished from RAW and can only wrestle on Heat. The match was okay, but certainly not to the level of their ECW stuff, for obvious reasons. Raven is over with the crowd and seems to be a wasted talent.)

6.) Richards gets a headlock on Hardy to start the match, but Hardy arm drags Richards leading to a standoff. Richards backs Hardy into a corner, but is met with a right hand. Hardy avoids Richards in the corner and connects with a clothesline for a two count. Richards backdrops Hardy over the top to the floor. Richards stomps on Hardy to keep control of the contest. Richards signals for a DDT, but settles for a snap suplex for a two count. Richards locks in a full nelson submission, but Hardy doesn’t submit. Hardy elbows free, but is yanked down by his hair. Richards scoop slams Hardy and goes to the middle rope trying for a splash, but Hardy got his foot up. Hardy avoids a few strikes and decks Richards with a right hand. Hardy backdrops Richards coming off the ropes. Hardy elbows Richards followed by a standing fist drop for a two count. Richards boots a charging Hardy in the corner, but Hardy hits a hip toss into a neckbreaker. Richards avoids the Side Effect. Hardy blocks a superkick and hits the Side Effect for a near fall. Hardy side slams Richards and goes to the middle rope hitting a leg drop for a near fall. Richards avoids the Twist of Fate and plants Hardy with the Side Effect for a near fall. Richards heads to the top rope, but Hardy avoids an axe handle hitting the Twist of Fate for the win. (**1/4. They got the crowd into the match and they fans bought into the near falls towards the end. So, that is got to be a seen as a small victory. I thought these two worked well together and I also enjoyed the match. Richards tends to get overlooked as he is an entertaining worker.)

Final Thoughts:
Victoria makes her debut and we get a solid main event match. I’m going to give this one a mild thumbs up. The only real downer was the Stamboli/Stasiak match. Nobody needs to suffer through that one.

Thanks for reading.