RAW in the Astrodome 2015

Vampiro pinned Dean Malenko with the Vampiro Spike in 0:15:35.
Rating: *** 1/2
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Taz made Brian Christopher submit to the Tazmission in 0:01:56.
Rating: ** 1/4
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Number-One-Contenders-Match:
The Acolytes defeated The Dudley Boys when Bradshaw pinned D-Von with the
Clothesline From Hell in 0:02:55.
Rating: * 1/4
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Number-One-Contenders-Match:
Masato Tanaka pinned Kendo Ka Shin after a short lariat in 0:16:41.
Rating: ****
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Number-One-Contenders-Falls-Count-Anywhere Match:
Mankind made Sabu submit to the Mandible Claw in 0:09:01.
Rating: **
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Ken Shamrock and Chris Benoit and Bret Hart and Val Venis battled to a
double pin in 0:10:44.
Rating: ** 3/4
(Ken Shamrock and Chris Benoit retained the WWF World Tag Team Titles.)
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Edge pinned Shawn Michaels after a spear in 0:01:59.
Rating: ***
(Edge retained the WWF Intercontinental Title.)
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Rocky Maivia pinned Chris Benoit with the Rock Bottom in 0:19:44.
Rating: *****
(Rocky Maivia retained the WWF World Title.)
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Card rating: *** 1/4


Match observations: 

My oh my ! Just when I thought things were going to cool down a bit in the WWF,
here we go with the series of shocks !

WWF officials surprised everybody in the audience - including this writer - by
signing both Vampiro and Taz and debuting them tonight. Both men by themselves
could stir up lots of trouble in the WWF but both entering the WWF at the same
time could and probably will cause turmoil.

Vampiro defeated the master of the Texas Cloverleaf, Dean Malenko, a several-
time former WWF Intercontinental Champion, while Taz made short work out of
recent WWF World Champion Brian Christopher.

Two other former ECW mainstays, the Dudley Boys, also came up with the short end
of the stick in their match against the brutal and ferocious Acolytes, who seem
to not only be picking up steam as far as their careers go but they also seem
to be picking up lots of steam with the fans, as was evident by the crowd 
reaction they got for their match tonight. The Acolytes are now officially the 
top contenders for the World Wrestling Federation Tag Team Titles, currently
held by Chris Benoit and Ken Shamrock.

In another match to determine the number one contender for the WWF IC Title,
Masato Tanaka pulled a win out of nowhere against Kendo Ka Shin. These two are
having really good matches lately... probably at least in part because they have
gotten to know each other very well through their previous encounters.

Lo and behold, it didn't take long for former tag team partners Cactus Jack and
Sabu to end up on opposite ends of the ring. After both won their respective
WrestleMania matches against Hayabusa and Stan Hansen, they moved up in the 
singles rankings to where they were the two top contenders for the WWF World
Title. Mick Foley, in his new Mankind persona, gave Sabu all he could handle -
although, to be honest, the actual match seemed to lack good work. Whether it
is just a temporary problem that both have adjusting to singles competition or
whether the Mankind gimmick is holding Mick Foley back... we can't really tell
for sure yet. Be that as it may be, Mankind caught Sabu offguard, "sock"ed him
and now is the official number one contender for the WWF World Title.

Bret Hart and Val Venis proved to be excellent opponents for the WWF World Tag
Team Champions Chris Benoit and Ken Shamrock. Unfortunately, their match ended
prematurely and in questionable fashion but they will definitely be rematched
at the next In Your House event called "Lock, Sock And Barrel".

Shawn Michaels had his last IC title shot in some time tonight because he now
has lost to Edge two times in a row, and one can only guess which loss was more
embarrassing - the one yesterday where Michaels lost his own speciality match,
the ladder match, or the one today where Edge completely blitzed Michaels, 
defeating him in just under two minutes ! We will see where Masato Tanaka fits
in here...

We have often used the term "Best Match In WWF History" but after tonight, I'm
afraid we won't be using it for a long, long time. Rocky Maivia and Chris Benoit
silenced all the critics that they couldn't possibly have a good match without
help from outside. Thanks for the advice, but you are wrong as wrong can be,
dear critics. Tonight's WWF Title Match was not only packed with electricity,
although the crowd was buzzing from start to finish. It didn't only have
psychology, although you would be hard-pressed to find a match with more of that
in recent history. It had the best finish in WWF history and when it was all
said and done, everybody was on the edge of their seats waiting what would 
happen next. Friends... it may be time to add a sixth star to the ratings 
because this one blew the top off the ratings system. Mankind and Rock will have
a very hard time following this match at In Your House... that's a definite.

See you then !