In Your House - Revolution

IC Title Tournament - Round 1:
Toshiaki Kawada made Bret Hart submit to the Stretch Plum in 0:14:48.
Rating: **** 1/4
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IC Title Tournament - Round 1:
Brian Christopher pinned Dan Severn with the Tennessee Jam in 0:15:15.
Rating: **
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IC Title Tournament - Round 1:
Rob Van Dam defeated Dave Finlay via pinfall in 0:15:03.
Rating: *** 3/4
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IC Title Tournament - Round 1:
Justin Bradshaw pinned Sting with the Lariat in 0:06:27.
Rating: * 1/4
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IC Title Tournament - Round 1:
Owen Hart made Sabu submit to the Sharpshooter in 0:18:18.
Rating: *** 1/2
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IC Title Tournament - Round 1:
Dean Malenko defeated Cactus Jack by disqualification in 0:00:13.
Rating: 1/4*
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IC Title Tournament - Round 1:
Hayabusa pinned Rick Steamboat with the Falcon Arrow in 0:11:31.
Rating: * 3/4
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IC Title Tournament - Round 1:
Ken Shamrock made Yokozuna submit to the Ankle Lock Submission in 0:07:11.
Rating: 1/4*
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Two-out-of-three-Falls Match:
Jushin Liger and Kensuke Sasaki beat Steve Williams and Rick Steiner 2 falls to
 1:
         x S. Williams beat Sasaki via a backdrop driver in 0:13:47
         x Liger beat R. Steiner via the Running Lyger Bomb in 0:19:15
         x Liger beat S. Williams via a moonsault in 0:38:13
Rating: *** 1/2
(Jushin Liger and Kensuke Sasaki retained the WWF World Tag Team Titles.)
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IC Title Tournament - Round 2:
Toshiaki Kawada pinned Brian Christopher after a tiger suplex in 0:08:52.
Rating: *** 1/4
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IC Title Tournament - Round 2:
Rob Van Dam pinned Justin Bradshaw with the Split Legged Moonsault in 0:12:53.
Rating: ** 3/4
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IC Title Tournament - Round 2:
Owen Hart pinned Dean Malenko after a backslide in 0:06:50.
Rating: * 1/4
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IC Title Tournament - Round 2:
Hayabusa pinned Ken Shamrock after a German suplex in 0:18:14.
Rating: ****
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Chris Benoit made Ric Flair submit to the Crippler Crossface in 0:11:58.
Rating: ***
(Chris Benoit retained the WWF World Title.)
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IC Title Tournament - Semi-Finals:
Rob Van Dam pinned Toshiaki Kawada after a Northern Lights suplex in 0:12:44.
Rating: **** 1/4
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IC Title Tournament - Semi-Finals:
Hayabusa pinned Owen Hart with the Falcon Arrow in 0:12:08.
Rating: ****
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The Dudley Boys defeated Shawn Michaels and Diesel when Buh Buh Ray pinned
Diesel after a power bomb in 0:20:58.
Rating: ** 1/4
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Two-out-of-three-Falls Match for the vacant WWF Intercontinental Title:
Rob Van Dam beat Hayabusa 2 falls to 1:
         x Van Dam beat Hayabusa via the Split Legged Moonsault in 0:20:00
         x Hayabusa beat Van Dam via a standing moonsault in 0:26:35
         x Van Dam beat Hayabusa via a rolling reverse cradle in 0:45:42
Rating: *****
(Rob Van Dam won the WWF Intercontinental Title.)
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Card rating: ***


Match observations: 

Rob Van Dam is the new WWF Intercontinental Champion ! Had I been asked in
advance who would win the tournament, I wouldn't have put my money on him.
In all honesty, the way Toshiaki Kawada destroyed Bret Hart and WWF newcomer
Brian Christopher, I was under the impression Kawada would eat him for
lunch. As it was, Van Dam outsmarted the wily veteran Kawada and at that
point it became pretty clear that nobody was going to stop him.

Nobody but Hayabusa, that is. Some say Hayabusa is the rightful IC Champion
because he beat Dean Malenko 1-2-3. Others argue that he should never have
won the title because the time limit clearly had expired. Regardless which
opinion you believe is the right one, Hayabusa made it pretty clear tonight
that he indeed deserved to win the IC title.

He also proved another, not so positive thing, though: Hayabusa is his own
biggest enemy. Make no mistake - Rob Van Dam is wild. Hayabusa, however, is
on a completely different level: he is suicidal. It was simply a matter of
pacing yourself. Hayabusa went all-out against his Rick Steamboat, Ken
Shamrock and Owen Hart.

All three matches had one thing in common: each finish involved a chair. It
goes without saying that Hayabusa's style is exciting to watch and the whole
nine yards. However - this same style is a detriment when it comes to having
to fight multiple matches in the same night.

Rob Van Dam simply paced himself considerably better, not once going all-out
before the finals. Of course, having Bill Alfonso in your corner to watch
your back (and in some cases, save it) also helps.

When the time for the finals came, Hayabusa was spent while Van Dam was
relatively fresh.

In the end, it was Hayabusa's style which cost him the title. Rob Van Dam
is the new Intercontinental champion and deservedly so. Still, he better
watch his back because several men are out to get him.

Rob Van Dam is the WWF's new corporate target. Wish him luck.

It's a shame that Ken Shamrock didn't advance farther in the tournament after
his impressive Ankle Lock victory over Yokozuna. Unlike his partner Dan
Severn, Shamrock may be underutilized in tag team competition.

Jushin Liger and Kensuke Sasaki - still the WWF World Tag Team Champions.
What started out as a fluke win over Steve Williams and Rick Steiner may be
turning into an impressive tag title reign. Still, it is about to end because
the next challengers in line are the Head Hunters. Will lightning strike
twice ? We shall see.

After years of always seeing the same wrestlers on top, it is definitely
refreshing to see somebody like Chris Benoit holding the WWF World Title.
It is even more refreshing to see Dean Malenko challenge Benoit for the
World Title because you can almost guarantee they'll tear the house down.

The match will take place next week on our special Halloween edition of
RAW.

Be sure to drop in !