WWF Monday Night Raw Results
October 30, 1995 (Taped October 23)
Brandon, Manitoba, Canada (Keystone Centre)
Commentary: Vince McMahon and Jerry “The King” Lawler
Results by: Mike Tedesco of Wrestleview.com
“The World Wrestling Federation: for over fifty years, the revolutionary force in sports entertainment.” The WWF video leads us into the show.
Video: Todd Pettingill narrates a video dressed as Dracula with a lame Transylvanian accent. Tonight, we’ll see Razor Ramon defend the WWF Intercontinental Championship against Owen Hart. Hart won the opportunity after winning a Battle Royal last week. We’ll also see the television debut of Goldust.
Mike’s Thoughts: Typical hokey stuff from Todd Pettingill. Sometimes I find him to be insufferable. Other times, I have to say I respect him. No one person can be so incredibly corny and maintain respect for themselves, but he always seemed to be able to manage it. Good on him.
Video: The Brawl atop the WWF Headquarters Raw video plays.
We go into the Keystone Centre to see some fireworks over the ring. Vince McMahon is dressed as a prisoner, while Jerry Lawler is dressed as a doctor. Lawler says he heard McMahon got his outfit a year ago, but this is the first time he’s had the chance to wear it. He then checks McMahon with a stethoscope and determines he has no heart.
Mike’s Thoughts: I got a good chuckle out of Jerry Lawler’s reference to Vince McMahon getting his prisoner costume a year before, making reference to the legendary Steroid Trial, where the federal government tried to take him down.
Savio Vega makes his entrance and shakes hands with Hugo Savinovich, dressed as a devil, and Carlos Cabrera, dressed as Dracula.
Goldust makes his entrance, bathing the Keystone Centre in gold lighting and raining gold dust onto the crowd.
Savio Vega vs. Goldust
Referee: Earl Hebner
Near the end of his entrance, Goldust attacks Savio Vega from behind and punches away at him. Goldust sends him to the corner and clotheslines him down. Goldust kicks him in the ribs twice before going to his knees and hitting an uppercut. Goldust gets him in the corner and hits some shoulder thrusts to the midsection. Goldust sends him into the ropes, but he lowers his head and eats a kick. Vega punches him before sending him into the ropes for a back elbow. Vega chops him to the corner and sends him into the ropes. Goldust holds on to avoid a dropkick. Vega is down on the canvas. Goldust stomps him and sends him shoulder-first into the ring post. Goldust attacks the shoulder and pulls him down to smother him. Goldust then applies an overhead wristlock. There are four fans dressed as Goldust. Goldust punches Vega to the corner, but Vega fights back. Goldust goes back to the shoulder to stop him. Goldust twists the arm around the ropes before pulling him to the ring post and snapping the arm off it.
-Commercial Break-
Back from the break, Goldust has Vega trapped in an overhead wristlock. Goldust keeps him down, but Vega fights up. Goldust sends him into the ropes, but Vega ducks a clothesline and hits a running crossbody block for a two-count. Goldust immediately pops up and attacks the arm before raking his face in the corner. Goldust sends him to the corner for an avalanche, but Vega moves.
Vega hits a trio of clotheslines and has the crowd going. Vega stomps him and slams his face off the mat. Goldust starts to beg him off, but Vega kicks him. Goldust reverses a whip and avoids a rolling wheel kick. Goldust hits the ropes and boots him in the injured shoulder. Goldust applies a hammerlock and pins him for the win.
Winner by Pinfall: Goldust
Mike’s Thoughts: This was way better than his debut match at In Your House 4. That match was over ten minutes of pure torture and boredom against Marty Jannetty, who looked like he wanted to be anywhere else but in that ring. This match against Savio Vega was much better. Again, Dustin Rhodes is just figuring out this Goldust character. They haven’t quite gotten the mind games aspect of the character down yet, but there’s something there. With IYH 4 doing a record-low buy rate (the WWF was informed of how poor the performance was the week of this show’s airing; they may have lost money on the production of it), this was really a second chance at making a first impression because not many saw the true debut. Much more successful here.
WWF Survivor Series Slam Jam
Dok Hendrix is in his merchandise pit wearing Halloween makeup. Hendrix says he found out from Interim WWF President Gorilla Monsoon that the WWF Championship match with Diesel and Bret Hart will have stipulations. Their previous two encounters were ruined by outside interference. There will be no count-outs, no disqualifications, and no time limit. There has to be a winner by pinfall or submission. Where will the loyalties of the fans lie? Hendrix says they are two of the most popular superstars of all time.
Vince McMahon says there is an altercation happening in the locker room between Razor Ramon and Owen Hart.
Backstage Segment
WWF Intercontinental Champion Razor Ramon is being held back by The 1-2-3 Kid, and he is furious.
-Commercial Break-
Video: Hakushi and Barry Horowitz had a disagreement about Americana and settled it with Milton Bradley’s Karate Fighters. Horowitz won.
Marty Jannetty vs. Joe Dorgan
Referee: Jack Doan
The bell rings, and they lock up. Dorgan wrenches the arm, but Jannetty fights back and hits an arm drag. Jannetty connects with a monkey flip. Vince McMahon says Jannetty will face The British Bulldog next week. Dorgan pushes Jannetty to the corner and punches away at him. Dorgan sends him to the corner, but Jannetty elbows him back. Jannetty hits another monkey flip, followed by a diving fist drop. Jannetty hits a snapmare and applies a rear chin lock. McMahon announces that Jerry Lawler will team with Isaac Yankem to battle Bret “Hitman” Hart and Hakushi. Dorgan fights up, but Jannetty cuts him off with strikes. Jannetty hits a corner clothesline, and Dorgan collapses. Jannetty hits another snapmare before putting the rear chin lock back on. Dorgan sends Jannetty into the ropes, but Dorgan lowers his head. Jannetty slams his face onto the mat and goes to the top rope for a diving fist drop for the win.
Winner by Pinfall: Marty Jannetty
Mike’s Thoughts: Not much of a squash match. It went less than three minutes, and Marty Jannetty managed to get two rest holds on. It’s like he was barely trying in this match. I’m also not a fan of his diving fist drop finish.
Video: Next week on Raw, Bret “Hitman” Hart will team with his old rival, Hakushi, to take on Jerry “The King” Lawler and Dr. Isaac Yankem, DDS.
The British Bulldog and Jim Cornette complain about the fallout of In Your House
Vince McMahon is in the ring with The British Bulldog, Clarence Mason, and Jim Cornette. McMahon says Cornette is not happy with the latest situation. Cornette says that is an understatement. The British Bulldog is being denied and overlooked by the World Wrestling Federation. Gorilla Monsoon came out before In Your House happened and said the winner of the WWF Title match would face Bret Hart with the title on the line at Survivor Series. The British Bulldog won the match, even though it was by disqualification. Monsoon changed his ruling. Now, it’s Diesel vs. Bret Hart with Bulldog nowhere in the equation. Monsoon is saying he meant the champion, but he’s really denying Bulldog of his constitutional rights. Bulldog had the match won, but Bret Hart stuck his nose in the match and ruined it. Bulldog is the rightful champion and wants to face Diesel. Bulldog is also mad at Bret Hart because he’d have the title if not for him.
McMahon asks why Clarence Mason is here. Cornette says that since Gorilla Monsoon isn’t going to live up to his promises, he had to retain Mason. He writes well-written writs. Mason will force Monsoon to live up to his commitment.
Clarence Mason tells Cornette not to worry. He’s on the case, and justice will be served. When he got the call from Mr. Cornette, he came as quickly as possible. Mason observed the tape of what happened at In Your House, and he read the contract. The actions of the Interim President of the World Wrestling Federation, Mr. Gorilla Monsoon, are outrageous and egregious. The contract specifically stated that the winner of the match would face Bret Hart at Survivor Series. The British Bulldog won the match. McMahon says he thought it was understood that the WWF Champion would face Bret Hart. Mason corrects him. Monsoon is playing semantics. This is a business. The British Bulldog is getting railroaded. They won’t stand for it.
Mason demands two things. First, he wants a match against Bret Hart. If not for Hart, Bulldog would have the title. McMahon says they’re running out of time. Cornette cuts in and says justice will be served with the title match. Now, there’s a Wild Card match. Monsoon split his men up and gave each team partners that they couldn’t trust. Each man has a partner who would stab him in the back if he looked at him crossways. Mason will look at the legality of the Wild Card.
McMahon asks about The British Bulldog and Marty Jannetty. Cornette says it makes no sense. Jannetty is in a lot of trouble next week. Bulldog says Jannetty has no right to step into the ring with him. Next week, Bulldog will drop him. Jannetty doesn’t belong in the same ring, class, and style as the Bulldog. Marty Jannetty runs in and dropkicks Bulldog from behind. Jannetty then punches Cornette and sends him into the ropes for a back elbow. Jannetty looks at Clarence Mason, but Mason backs off. Mason threatens to sue him if he hits him. Jannetty then scares him away.
Mike’s Thoughts: This actually wasn’t a bad segment. At least some sound logic comes out of the atrocious In Your House main event. The British Bulldog did technically win the match, so he should be entitled to something. The best heels are the ones that deal in truth, but they just go about it the wrong way. They did kind of start rambling and repeated a few things (Clarence Mason never did get to that second thing they wanted), but it was overall a success for laying down what’s to come past Survivor Series.
Still to come, we’ll see the WWF Intercontinental Championship defended. We’ll also hear from Bret Hart.
-Commercial Break-
Replay: Last week at In Your House, Razor Ramon and The 1-2-3 Kid had the Smoking Gunns beat, but Kid selfishly wanted to get the pin. Billy Gunn then rolled Kid up to beat him, causing Kid to flip out.
Non-Title Tag Team Match
WWF Tag Team Champions The Smoking Gunns (Bart and Billy Gunn) vs. John Rechner and Phil Apollo
Referee: Jimmy Korderas
Phil Apollo applies a side headlock to Billy Gunn. Billy sends him into the ropes and hits a drop toehold, which Apollo horribly takes. Billy hits the ropes and punches Apollo down. Billy wrenches the arm and sends him into the ropes, but Apollo kicks him in the midsection. John Rechner tags in, but Billy hits a drop toehold.
The 1-2-3 Kid is shown on a split screen. Kid apologizes to the Smoking Gunns for his behavior at In Your House in Winnipeg. Kid thought they had the titles won, but they turned it around on him. If they’re the champions they say they are, they will grant him and Razor Ramon a title shot… and they better do it soon.
Back to live action, Bart Gunn is taking it to Rechner. Billy tags in and hits a scoop slam, followed by an elbow drop. Bart tags in and punches Rechner in the midsection. Rechner tags Apollo in. They send Bart into the ropes, but Bart hits a double clothesline. Billy tags in. The Smoking Gunns hit the Sidewinder for the win. Bart dropkicked Rechner down before he could break up the pin.
Winners by Pinfall: WWF Tag Team Champions The Smoking Gunns
Mike’s Thoughts: Decent squash match for The Smoking Gunns. Always nice to see the jobber John Rechner in the ring, who would become famous a few years later as Balls Mahoney of ECW.
Backstage Segment
Bret “Hitman” Hart says Diesel has been walking around with the WWF Title for the last year. Hart got one shot at the Royal Rumble, but no winner was declared. It’s a tough thing when good friends have to go to war, but that’s what this will be. It will be a war. Diesel is big and strong, as well as a great wrestler. Hart respects him. At the Survivor Series, everything plays in Hart’s favor. It’s no countouts, no disqualifications, and no time limit. A winner must be declared. At the Survivor Series, you’ll be looking at the new World Wrestling Federation Champion for a third time. Hart says, “Big boy, you’re looking at the truck stop.”
Mike’s Thoughts: Man, Bret Hart had some of the corniest lines, but he delivered them with such conviction.
Promotional considerations paid for by WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game.
-Commercial Break-
As Owen Hart makes his way to the ring with Jim Cornette, they walk by Barry Didinsky, the Mayor of Merchandise. He’s holding some Diesel and Razor Ramon 8x10s. If you buy a toy WWF Title, you’ll get three Diesel pictures. If you buy a toy Intercontinental Championship, you’ll get three Razor Ramon photos.
-Commercial Break-
Video: Paul Bearer is standing in a cemetery. Bearer says King Mabel must be so proud of what he did to his Undertaker. Even tonight on All Hallows Eve, his Undertaker’s face is too gruesome to be seen, but he will return. Bearer is flipping out. OH YES!
WWF Intercontinental Championship
Owen Hart w/ Jim Cornette vs. Razor Ramon (c)
Referee: Tim White
Razor Ramon quickly charges the ring and hits Hart with a clothesline over the top rope. Jim Cornette checks on Hart at ringside. Hart is furious and stomps up the steps into the ring. Hart shouts at Ramon and signals that he will be the champion. Hart wrenches the arm, but Ramon turns it on him. Hart twists through and kips up. Hart goes for a monkey flip, but Ramon continues to hold the arm. Ramon continues to attack the arm, so Hart fights up and wrenches the arm before pulling the hair. Ramon attacks the shoulder and pulls him down. Hart shouts, “Ow, I’m sorry!” Hart tries to run around the ring, but Ramon pulls him down. Ramon keeps the armbar applied. Hart fights up, but Ramon lifts him by the arm and slams him down. Ramon continues to bend the arm in ways it shouldn’t go. Hart fights up and twists out before applying a side headlock. Ramon whips him off and punches him down. Hart falls into the corner and begs him off. The referee backs Ramon up. Ramon grabs Hart and wrenches the arm once again. Ramon applies a hammerlock, but Hart grabs the head and flips over him before slapping him in the face. Hart hits the ropes, but Ramon catches him and hits a fallaway slam. Jim Cornette gets on the apron, but Ramon punches him down. Ramon applies an armbar.
Yokozuna and Mr. Fuji head down to the ring. Ramon sees him coming and lets Hart’s arm go. Cornette complains to Yokozuna that Ramon punched him in the eye. Cornette appears to be crying.
-Commercial Break-
Back from the break, Ramon applies a hammerlock and slams Hart down. Ramon applies an armbar as Hart screams, “Oh, my arm!” Hart fights up and pulls Ramon’s hair before whipping him into the ropes. Hart sends Ramon over the top rope and shakes some feeling into his arm. Hart hits the ropes and catches Ramon with a baseball slide. Ramon’s mouth appears to hit the metal barricade, and he grabs his jaw in pain. Hart attacks him at ringside and puts him in the ring. Hart heads to the top rope for a missile dropkick to pick up a near fall. Hart brings him to the top rope and rakes his face across it. Hart hits some shoulder thrusts before sending him hard into the opposite corner. Hart sends him back to the other corner hard, and Ramon drops to his knees. Hart chokes him against the middle rope and avalanches him. Hart stomps him and chokes him. Yokozuna watches on from ringside. Hart punches and rakes Ramon’s back. Ramon retaliates with some right hands. Hart reverses a whip, drops down, and hits a spin kick for a near fall.
Hart applies a rear chin lock, but Ramon fights up and whips him off. Ramon lowers his head, and Hart catches him with a reverse neckbreaker. Hart goes to the top rope and drops a beautiful flying elbow for a two-count.
-Commercial Break-
Video: The WWF World Tour de Force is coming to your town. On Friday, November 3, they’re heading to the Cincinnati Gardens in Cincinnati, Ohio. On Saturday, they’re going to the E.A. Diddle Arena in Bowling Green, Kentucky. On Sunday, they’ll be at the Market Square Arena in Indianapolis, Indiana. One week from tonight, they’ll be in South Bend, Indiana, at the Joyce Center.
We return to see Ramon getting out of a sleeper hold with a back suplex. Both men are down. Yokozuna watches on. Hart rolls over and covers Ramon for a two-count. Ramon gets to his feet and starts punching away at Hart, dropping him down to the canvas. Ramon puts Hart on the top rope and goes for a back superplex. Hart shifts his weight and lands on him, but Ramon rolls through and picks up a two-count. Ramon ducks a clothesline and takes Hart down with a clothesline.
-Commercial Break-
Back from the final break of the evening, Ramon goes for a Razor’s Edge, but Yokozuna runs in and pulls Hart down. Yokozuna then clotheslines Ramon down.
Winner by Disqualification: Razor Ramon
Yokozuna drops a leg on Ramon. Hart stomps away at Ramon. The 1-2-3 Kid runs down and attacks Hart and Yokozuna. Yokozuna quickly pokes him in the eyes and headbutts him down. Yokozuna drops a leg on the Kid.
Ahmed Johnson makes his Raw debut by getting in the ring. Johnson waits for Yokozuna to turn around and hits him with a scoop slam to a HUGE ovation! The British Bulldog runs down, but he’s scared off by Johnson.
Mike’s Thoughts: What a debut for Ahmed Johnson. His run-in was done with extremely little fanfare, but he certainly made quite an impact by body slamming Yokozuna, who may have been well over 600 pounds by this point. “Cowboy” Bill Watts was a big fan of Johnson’s, so it was lucky for Ahmed that they’re still going with what looks to be a huge push for him even after the Cowboy unceremoniously left the WWF just weeks into his tenure.
That was definitely a great moment that followed a really disappointing match with Razor Ramon and Owen Hart. The last few moments were great, but the finish was awful. As soon as you saw Yokozuna lumbering down to the ring, you knew where this was heading (sort of like today’s WWE…). Owen and Razor could have had a great match, but it felt like they were given a certain amount of time they had to fill, and were pacing themselves because this was in the midst of a marathon taping. It certainly wasn’t bad, but there were moments that they felt like they were phoning it in.
Quick Match Results
— Goldust def. Savio Vega
— Marty Jannetty def. Joe Dorgan
— WWF Tag Team Champions The Smoking Gunns (Bart and Billy Gunn) def. John Rechner and Phil Apollo in a Non-Title Tag Team Match
— Razor Ramon (c) def. Owen Hart via DQ in a WWF Intercontinental Championship match
Mike’s Wrap-Up: What We Learned from Raw
This was a pretty good edition of Raw. The Halloween stuff was super campy, but I did get a kick out of some of the jokes Jerry Lawler was hitting Vince McMahon with. McMahon, clad in a prisoner’s outfit, was accused of nearly wearing that costume the year before (if the outcome of the Steroid Trial went badly) and almost heading to Riker’s Island. Lawler was amazing with the one-liners. Even after suffering a really debilitating stroke in 2023 (after having one in 2018), Lawler still cracks a good one-liner to this day.
The real story isn’t what’s happened in the ring, it’s what isn’t happening. With The Undertaker still sidelined, Shawn Michaels recovering from the Syracuse beating, and a roster thinned out by half-baked gimmicks, you can feel just how fragile the company’s main event scene really is. Diesel is still the champion, but he doesn’t feel like the guy anymore. That’s a problem when WCW is throwing out Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, Sting, Ric Flair, and even showcasing guys like Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero on a weekly basis.
Matches like tonight’s aren’t necessarily bad, but they’re filler for the most part. That’s the trap WWF kept falling into in late 1995. The shows are “competent,” but when your top star is Diesel, who was having horrible PPV main events and struggled to elevate weaker opponents, it doesn’t build anticipation. It just exposes the thinness of the roster.
Meanwhile, WCW Nitro is building momentum. They’re live, they’re chaotic, and even when they’re goofy (and trust me, the Yeti (or is it YEH-TAY?) is goofy), they’re giving fans big names and unpredictability. That contrast matters.
So, how did this week play out in the ratings war?
— WWF Raw (USA Network, taped): 2.1 (Record: 3-3-2)
— WCW Nitro (TNT, live): 2.3 (Record: 3-3-2)
Winner: WCW Nitro (2-week streak)
WWF isn’t collapsing yet, but the gap is widening. Raw’s safe, taped formula just can’t compete with Nitro’s star power and live buzz. And unless WWF finds a new way to present its top guys, this war is going to get ugly.
That’s not to say that they aren’t doing a good job of laying the groundwork for future success, but survival week to week feels like a bigger challenge at the moment.
The War for Monday Night – October 30, 1995
(TL;DR version)
WWF Raw leaned into Halloween camp and Jerry Lawler’s one-liners, but the bigger story was who wasn’t there: Undertaker is still out, Shawn Michaels is recovering from Syracuse, and Diesel doesn’t feel like “the guy.” The roster is paper-thin, and while the matches weren’t bad, they mostly came off as filler.
Meanwhile, WCW Nitro continues to roll out its heavy artillery, featuring stars like Hogan, Savage, Sting, Flair, as well as newer faces like Benoit and Guerrero. Even when WCW gets goofy, they still feel bigger, louder, and more unpredictable. That contrast is hurting WWF badly.
To find out what happened on WCW Nitro, make sure you check out Roy Nemer’s recap!
Did you miss last week’s WWF Raw? Check it out here!
Did you miss last week’s WCW Nitro? Check it out here!
Did you miss Halloween Havoc? You have to check it out here! The YE-TAY!
Email – mike@wrestleview.com
X – @MikeTedescoWV
Thanks for reading!
Part of Wrestleview’s Monday Night War: 30 Years Later series, with weekly Raw and Nitro recaps every Thursday.