World Wrestling Entertainment presents Heat
Date: 2/2/2003
From: Rosemont, IL
Matches:
1.) Goldust defeated Steven Richards
2.) Three Minute Warning (Jamal & Rosey) defeated Andy Ceelen & Ken Anderson
3.) Spike Dudley defeated Rico
4.) Christian defeated Maven
Angle Developments/Notes:
1.) Backstage, Steven Richards walks up to Goldust looking in the mirror and says he can’t believe he has to wrestle a freak like Goldust. Goldust says that freaks are in and wackos are out. Goldust tells Richards to go back to his witch and tell her that he’s coming for him. Goldust walks off and returns to taunt Richards and tells Richards he got his quote from Tombstone.
2.) Goldust goes right after Richards and they lockup, but Richards breaks free to taunt Goldust. Goldust backs Richards into a corner and cleanly backs off. Goldust hip tosses and arm drags Richards to keep arm control on the mat. Goldust yanks on Richards arm, but Richards backs Goldust into the corner. Goldust pummels Richards with strikes and sends Goldust chest first into the corner to deliver a clothesline to the back and stomps Goldust. Richards chokes Goldust while on the apron and forearms Goldust to the mat for a near fall. Richards elbow strikes Goldust on the mat and locks in a sleeper. Goldust breaks free and comes off the ropes, but is stopped by a knee lift to the midsection. Richards controls Goldust on the mat with a sleeper. Goldust ducks a clothesline and avoids a dropkick for a two count. Goldust lifts Richards high into the air to deliver a slam. They begin to trade strikes until Richards delivers a flurry. Goldust clotheslines Richards followed by an atomic drop and a butt strike. Goldust sets Richards up for a reverse DDT, but Richards counters trying for a suplex. Goldust counters with another lifting reverse DDT attempt, but Richards counters. Goldust backs Richards into the corner and tries for Shattered Dreams, but Richards fights free. Goldust nails Richards with a snap powerslam for the win. (*1/2. I wish they had a secondary title because Goldust would be great for that spot to either be a short-term IC Champion or chase after a good heel for a bit. The action here was decent, but nothing overly great. Goldust continues to garner a really good crowd reaction.)
3.) A vignette promoting Nathan Jones is shown.
4.) Ken Anderson would later go on to be known as Mr. Kennedy/Anderson in WWE and TNA.
5.) As you’d expect, 3MW dominated the tag match. Jamal planted Anderson with a pop up Samoan Drop to pickup the win. Rosey nailed Ceelen with a swinging side slam after the match. 3MW hit stereo running hip strikes to their laid out opponents in opposite corners before tossing them out of the ring.
6.) Rico shoves Spike down into the corner out of a lockup to show his strength. Spike arm drags Rico followed by a rollup for a one count. Spike dropkicks Rico to the floor. Rico rolls back into the ring and puts a headlock on Spike. Rico grabs Spike by his hair, but lets go and Spike backs Rico into a corner. Spike grabs Rico’s sideburns and pulls on them. Spike maintains control with a headlock on the mat. Rico runs into a chop after avoiding being sent into the corner. Rico counters a headlock on the mat, but misses an elbow drop. Rico strikes Spike in the corner, but Spike fights back with an elbow. Rico sends Spike hard into the corner back first and taunts the crowd. Rico lifts Spike into the air and hits a nice powerslam for a near fall. Rico tries for a suplex, but Spike knee lifts free and backslides Rico for a near fall. Rico savant kicks Spike followed by a mule kick. Rico knee strikes Spike on the ropes and delivers several kicks in the corner. Spike counters a hurricanrana attempt with a powerbomb. Spike nails Rico with a hurricanrana sending Rico to the floor. Spike leaps off the top to take Rico out with a crossbody. Spike atomic drops Rico followed by a clothesline for a near fall. Spike comes out of the corner to deliver a headbutt to the midsection. Spike takes Rico down with a rollup and manages to pickup the win. (*1/2. Rico showcased his ability in the ring despite his character not really being one that would allow him to showcase his true ability. Rico is a more than capable worker who is focusing more on character as Rico. The action was a bit better than the other bouts thus far, but the crowd seemed to be noticeably uninterested for a good portion of the match.)
7.) A vignette promoting Sean O’Haire is shown. O’Haire continues to promote doing things for yourself, such as cheating on your wife.
8.) Christian starts off with a headlock, but Maven counters into a wrist lock quickly. Maven controls Christian on the mat with an arm bar. Maven gets a hammerlock on Christian, but Christian breaks free. Maven dumps Christian to the apron where Christian yanks Maven backwards over the ropes. Christian stomps Maven on the mat several times to keep the advantage and taunts the crowd. Christian continues with a neckbreaker for a two count. Christian stomps Maven while taunting the fans. Maven fights back with a few strikes, but Christian snapmares Maven to the mat and puts a chin lock on. Maven elbows Christian and tries for a piledriver, but settles for kicking Christian into the corner and nearly wins with an inside cradle. Christian delivers a reverse DDT backbreaker for a near fall. Christian chokes Maven over the middle rope. Maven avoids a splash over the middle rope and both men are down. Maven forearms Christian a few times followed by a shoulder block. Maven rams Christian into the corner to avoid a reverse DDT. Christian avoids Maven in the corner and tris for the Un-Prettier, but Maven counters with a backslide for a two count. Maven hits a middle rope bulldog for a near fall. Maven tries for a running powerslam, but Christian counters with a reverse DDT for a two count. Christian elbows Maven in the corner and heads to the top rope, but Maven cuts Christian off. Maven backdrops Christian off the middle rope. Maven hits a missile dropkick for a near fall. Christian ducks a clothesline and spikes Maven with the Un-Prettier for the win. (**1/4. Maven does a great job in the underdog role and his offense came across very well in his attempts to achieve a major upset. Maven held his own with Christian and the potential for Maven is clear at this point.)
Final Thoughts:
A solid episode of Heat this week with the main event delivering a quality match. I enjoy 3MW and their squash destroying enhancement guys was enjoyable for what it was. Heat tends to be a lot of fun for an hour of guys getting the chance to showcase their skills they’d otherwise not get to do on RAW.
Thanks for reading.