WWF Monday Night Raw Results
April 15, 1996 (Taped April 1)
San Bernardino, California (Orange Pavilion)
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: Since he lost the WWF Championship to Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania XII, Bret “Hitman” Hart’s silence has been deafening. We’ll see footage of him after the main event. Hart was interviewed in Bonn, Germany. We’ll hear those comments tonight.
Video: The Raw intro video plays.
Vince McMahon and Jerry “The King” Lawler welcome us to the show. Tonight, we’ll see “Stone Cold” Steve Austin battle Bart Gunn of the Smoking Gunns. We’ll also have an interview with Vader. Finally, Goldust will put the WWF Intercontinental Championship on the line against Savio Vega.
Replay: At WrestleMania XII, following his loss to the Ultimate Warrior, Hunter Hearst Helmsley blamed Sable, who escorted him to the ring, for the loss. “Wildman” Marc Mero heard the commotion and brawled with him. Two weeks ago on Raw, Helmsley was talking to Sable as she sat in the crowd, so she slapped him in the face and left with Mero.
Leif Cassidy w/ Marty Jannetty vs. “Wildman” Marc Mero w/ Sable
Referee: Jack Doan
They lock up, and Cassidy backs him into the ropes before celebrating. Mero quickly rolls him up for a two-count. Cassidy gets up with a goofy grin on his face. They lock up, and Cassidy wrenches his arm. Mero twists out and wrenches Cassidy’s arm. Cassidy twists out and turns it on Mero. Mero twists over him and hits a trio of arm drags. Cassidy quickly takes him down and celebrates before going for an elbow drop, but Mero rolls out of the way. Mero then dropkicks him out of the ring.
Marty Jannetty checks on Cassidy at ringside. Cassidy gets in the ring and doesn’t look happy. Cassidy grabs his hand for a shake before poking him in the eyes. Mero reverses a whip to the corner, rolling Cassidy up the turnbuckles. Cassidy lands on the apron and ducks a strike before sticking his tongue out at him. Mero punches him down to the floor. Jannetty checks on Cassidy again, so Mero clunks their heads together. Mero puts Cassidy in the ring, but Cassidy quickly gets out. Mero chases him around the ringside area before Jannetty clotheslines him down. Cassidy suplexes Mero into the ring and stomps away at him before doing a goofy celebration. Cassidy does some dorky dances before sending Mero to the corner and hitting a corner clothesline. Cassidy hits an arm wringer suplex for a two-count.
Cassidy punches Mero and sends him into the ropes for a clothesline. Cassidy hits a snapmare and dropkicks him in the back of the head for a two-count.
-Commercial Break-
Back from the break, Cassidy wipes out Mero with a somersault senton. Cassidy gets in the ring and distracts the referee. Jannetty attacks Mero and punches away at him. Sable is not happy. Jannetty hits a baseball slide and does some more goofy dances. Mero slowly gets in the ring, and Cassidy applies a full nelson. Mero drops down and goes for a head-scissor, but Cassidy puts him back in the full nelson. Mero drops down and hits a head-scissor carousel, sending Cassidy out of the ring. Mero then wipes him out with a somersault senton!
Mero chops Cassidy at ringside and puts him in the ring. Mero punches Cassidy to the corner. Cassidy tries to reverse a whip to the corner, but Mero turns it on him. Cassidy boots him back and charges, but Mero hits a back body drop. Mero heads to the top rope and hits a diving sunset flip for the win.
Winner by Pinfall: “Wildman” Marc Mero
Mike’s Thoughts: Not a bad match at all. The only issue is, like with what they did with Shawn Michaels the week of WrestleMania XII, they gave Leif Cassidy (Al Snow) WAY too much offense. Marc Mero is coming in with a fast-paced style and doing things that weren’t being done often at this point… so why, when the somersault senton is one of his signature spots, do they have Cassidy hit him with it first? If a goof like Leif Cassidy can do it, what makes Mero so special? Mero’s style in the ring is good, but you can tell right away his size, and his emoting is going to be an issue for him in the company. Still, they saw an opportunity to scoop up an established WCW talent and gave him a guaranteed contract to show that they mean business. The deal actually works out really well for them because they did sign one of the bigger stars of this era. The only problem for Marc Mero is that it’s not him. It’s his wife, Sable.
Phone Call: Diesel calls in from Germany. Footage is shown of Diesel smashing Shawn Michaels in the back at a WWF Live Event on March 17 from Madison Square Garden. Diesel says he was only trying to knock a little sense into him. Vince McMahon asks if he was surprised that Michaels called Diesel out last week on Raw. Diesel says he knows what kind of guy Shawn Michaels is. Diesel just wanted to talk, but Michaels attacked him. Mr. Perfect helped him and gave him the WWF Championship to hit Michaels in the head with it. Diesel says people want to see him, not Michaels.
McMahon announces that Diesel asked for a No Holds Barred match at In Your House. It’ll happen. Diesel says he has a master plan. Shawn Michaels thinks he’s the smartest technician, but Diesel is the smartest guy in the business. No man can beat him in a No Holds Barred match.
Mike’s Thoughts: They didn’t really give us much in this phone promo. This was an actual call from Diesel while he was in Germany, and he sounded tired. No explanation as to why Mr. Perfect got involved in the angle the week before.
Bart Gunn makes his way to the ring. He’ll face “Stone Cold” Steve Austin next.
Still to come, Goldust will put the WWF Intercontinental Championship on the line against Savio Vega. We’ll also hear from Bret “Hitman” Hart, who says he feels a little let down. We’ll also see Sunny.
-Commercial Break-
Replay: This past weekend on WWF Superstars, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin suffered his first pinfall loss to the Caribbean Kid, who wound up being Savio Vega.
Non-Title Match
Bart Gunn vs. Million Dollar Champion “Stone Cold” Steve Austin w/ “The Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase
Referee: Mike Chioda
The bell rings, and they lock up. Gunn applies a side headlock, but Austin whips him off. Gunn shoulder tackles him for a one-count. Gunn hits a headlock takeover, but Austin applies a head-scissor to get out. Gunn gets out and applies a side headlock. Austin rolls him over for a one-count. Gunn keeps the headlock applied, so Austin fights to his feet. Austin eventually twists out and applies a headlock. Gunn whips him off, but Austin sends him into the ropes. Gunn ducks a chop and hits a running crossbody block for a two-count. Gunn quickly pops up and hits a headlock takeover.
Vince McMahon announces that Yokozuna’s leg was not broken in Vader’s attack last week on Raw. After the attack during the Arm Wrestling Match, Ahmed Johnson’s thumb was broken. Austin fights up and whips Gunn off. Gunn shoulder tackles him and hits the ropes, so Austin sends him flying over the top rope. Austin comes off the apron and clubs Gunn’s back. Austin stomps away at Gunn at the ringside area and yells at the referee. Ted DiBiase taunts Gunn at ringside. Austin pulls Gunn into the ring and shoulders him in the midsection before sending him to the opposite corner hard. Austin whips him into the corner again and hits a diving clothesline for a two-count. Austin drives his knee into the spine of Gunn and clubs him for another two-count. Austin applies a rear chin lock. Gunn tries to fight up, but Austin knees and clubs him down before putting the rear chin lock back on. Gunn fights up and elbows out. Austin thumbs him in the eye, sits on the top rope, and leans back to pull Gunn out of the ring! Austin then drops him on the barricade.
-Commercial Break-
Back from the break, Austin turns him inside out with a kitchen sink knee to the midsection for a two-count. Austin knees him in the spine and clubs him in the back before putting another rear chin lock on. Austin really cinches it in. Gunn starts to fight back, elbowing out. They get into a slugfest before Gunn dropkicks him down. Gunn sends the Million Dollar Champion into the ropes for a back body drop. Gunn punches away at Austin and hits a running bulldog for a two-count.
Gunn heads to the second rope and hits a twisting crossbody block for a two-count. Gunn hits the ropes, but DiBiase trips him. Gunn grabs DiBiase by the hair, but Austin avalanches him against the ropes. Austin sends Gunn into the ropes for a knee, but Gunn counters with a roll-up for a two-count. Gunn catches him with a small package for another two-count. Gunn sends him into the ropes for a sleeper hold, but Austin counters with a sit-out jawbreaker, stunning him. Austin drives Gunn’s shoulder into the ring post and applies the Million Dollar Dream for the win.
Winner by Referee Stoppage: “Stone Cold” Steve Austin
Mike’s Thoughts: It’s so bizarre to go back to watching some of these early shows with Steve Austin and reconcile in my mind him having competitive matches with guys like Bart Gunn. He’s still a little ways off from pure superstardom, so we’ll be seeing more matches like this. It’s awesome to see him wrestling like this. He looks so hungry. Bart Gunn wasn’t bad in this as well. It got a little dull with the extended headlock spot, but there were some cool spots in this, including a pseudo-Stone Cold Stunner!
-Commercial Break-
Video: Shawn Michaels will defend the WWF Championship against Diesel in a No Holds Barred match at In Your House.
Vader addresses Yokozuna and his In Your House opponent
Vince McMahon is in the ring as Vader and Jim Cornette enter. Cornette wants to talk about destiny. Cornette says there was a man named Gorilla Monsoon. He was a legend and a Hall of Fame superstar, as well as the President of the World Wrestling Federation, but he stepped into the danger zone and crossed paths with Vader. A video from Raw on January 22 shows Vader viciously attacking Monsoon. Monsoon was out of work for two months and may never be the same again because he’s intimidated by Vader.
Then, there was Yokozuna. Yokozuna cut a path of terror through the WWF. Every superstar fell in his path. He was the WWF Champion twice. In scant seconds, a 650-pound monster was reduced to a blithering, crying mass of flesh at the hands of the man they call Vader. They showed footage of last week’s attack on Raw.
McMahon asks what will happen when Vader crosses paths with the only four-time Intercontinental Champion in two weeks at In Your House. Cornette says Ramon will be the next man to step into the danger zone. Cornette says he has a crystal ball and has looked into Ramon’s future. The career of Razor Ramon after April 28 will take a severe and sharp downward spiral. Ramon may cease to exist. Ramon has made some bad career choices by signing a contract to get into the ring with Vader on April 28. Ramon will never forget April 28 or In Your House. He’ll never forget that the WWF assigned him the man they call Vader. When Vader is done with him, the man who oozes machismo will be at Aunt Bea’s in Mayberry. Nobody will stop Vader from getting to the top. Cornette can manipulate him, but he can’t fully control him. What time is it? Vader growls, “It’s Vader time!”
Mike’s Thoughts: A really strong promo from Jim Cornette with Vader looking wild, running around, and grunting throughout. We haven’t heard Razor Ramon’s name much since he was surreptitiously suspended in February, nearly the same day he gave his notice to the WWF. Ramon missed the WrestleMania payday in his match against Goldust (which went to Roddy Piper instead), as well as this entire set of tapings. He’s got one more match at In Your House against Vader… and then that’s it! They’re definitely treating him differently from how they’re handling Diesel. Diesel is featured weekly and is culminating his time in the WWF with a PPV main event against Shawn Michaels. Ramon is going to be fed to Vader. Cornette’s promo obviously had some double meaning when he was talking about career mistakes Ramon has made. Something tells me Ramon’s decisions will work out for him, at least for a little while.
Still to come, we’ll hear from Bret “Hitman” Hart for the first time since WrestleMania XII. Goldust will also defend the WWF Intercontinental Championship against Savio Vega.
Video: Highlights of Sunny in various bikinis on the beach are shown. Her song, “I Know You Want Me,” plays.
-Commercial Break-
Replay: Last week on Raw, Goldust confronted the Ultimate Warrior. Warrior said he would kick Goldust’s ass and knocked him out of the ring. Goldust will battle the Ultimate Warrior at In Your House.
WWF Intercontinental Championship
Savio Vega vs. Goldust (c) w/ Marlena
Referee: Earl Hebner
The bell rings, and Goldust drops on all fours and licks the Intercontinental Championship before sliding it to the referee. The belt now has a gold strap. They approach each other in the center of the ring, and Goldust rubs himself before licking his lips. Savio Vega is unimpressed and tells him where to stick it. They lock up, and Goldust goes for a waistlock before rubbing Vega all over. Goldust retreats to the corner and puts himself through the ropes as the referee keeps him back. They lock up, and Vega wrenches the arm, taking the Bizarre One down to the canvas. Goldust fights back with a hammerlock, but Vega reverses it. Goldust backs him into the corner and rubs his backside on Vega’s crotch. Vega is furious, so Goldust gets out of the ring and runs up the aisleway.
Vega is furious and gets in the ring, waiting for Goldust to come back. Goldust slowly makes his way back to the ring and gets inside. Vega kicks and clubs him as he gets in the ring. Vega sends Goldust into the ropes for a sidewalk slam. Vega connects with a snapmare and punches away at him for a two-count. Vega sends Goldust into the ropes and hits a back elbow to the jaw. Vega spanks Goldust and bounces him off the top turnbuckle. Vega chops the chest.
-Commercial Break-
Back from the break, Vega smashes Goldust with a corner clothesline. Vega stomps away at the Intercontinental Champion before climbing to the second rope for the ten punches. 1… 2… 3… 4… 5… Goldust lifts him up and hits a guillotine flapjack onto the top rope. Goldust punches Vega and sends him into the ropes for a leaping hip attack. Goldust crawls around the ring and slaps Vega. Goldust stands over him and rubs Vega’s back before applying a clutch.
Goldust lets go of the hold and grabs a microphone. Goldust says if the people don’t shut their mouths right now, he’ll personally come out into the crowd and kiss every one of them. The crowd loudly boos. Goldust sends Vega into the ropes, but Vega ducks a clothesline and hits a running crossbody block for a two-count. Vega punches him and sends him into the ropes for a back body drop. Vega pulls Goldust up and sends him into the ropes, but he lowers his head and eats a kick. Goldust throws himself down onto Vega for a two-count. Goldust stands over Vega’s face and rubs himself before rubbing Vega. Goldust then starts to slap him. Goldust goes to sit on his face seductively, but Vega rolls him up for a two-count. Goldust pops up and clotheslines him down.
Goldust goes to the apron and heads to the top rope. Vega gets up and kicks the rope to crotch Goldust. Vega hits a thrust kick as Goldust sits in pain on the top rope. Vega chops away at him before climbing to the second rope and applying a front facelock. Vega goes for a superplex, but Goldust fights out before kissing him. Vega leaps back and lands hard on the canvas. Goldust stands on the top rope and rubs himself before jumping off, but Vega boots him in the face. The referee is counting both men down, but Vega gets up at seven and is fired up. Vega punches away at Goldust and hits an inverted atomic drop. Vega clotheslines Goldust twice for a near fall.
-Commercial Break-
Video: The WWF Superstar Line is open 24/7. On Option 6, find out what the British Bulldog and Magic Johnson have in common.
We return from the break to see Vega pick up a near fall. Goldust sends him into the ropes and drops down before doing a leapfrog. Goldust drops down again, and Vega runs into the referee, knocking him out. Marlena grabs the Intercontinental Championship and slides it to Goldust. Referee Tim White runs down to check on Earl Hebner.
Vega superkicks Goldust and checks on the referee. Goldust grabs the belt, but Vega blocks an attack and kicks him. Vega hits Goldust in the head with the title and covers. 1… 2… 3!
Winner by Pinfall and new WWF Intercontinental Champion: Savio Vega
Earl Hebner raises Savio Vega’s arm in victory. Tim White explains to Hebner what happened and declares Goldust to be the victor. WWF President Gorilla Monsoon comes down to the ring. Monsoon talks with Hebner and White before talking to the ring announcer, Howard Finkel.
Howard Finkel announces, “Ladies and gentlemen, your attention, please. I have just received from WWF President Gorilla Monsoon the following: he is stripping Goldust of the Intercontinental Championship!”
Goldust is irate and drops down to the mat as Vega celebrates. Finkel continues, “Furthermore, Mr. Monsoon is declaring at this moment that the Intercontinental Championship is vacant! And he has ordered that rematch take place here next week between Savio Vega and Goldust for the Intercontinental Championship.”
Goldust is not happy and leaves with Marlena.
Mike’s Thoughts: A lot of Goldust mind games in this one. Once they got past that and got to the actual wrestling, it wasn’t half bad… until the finish. They did a Dusty Finish along with their favorite booking pastime, which is making Gorilla Monsoon look like a doofus. Yes, Goldust brought the belt into the ring, but he never used it. Vega hit him in the head and pinned him off that. Why is Goldust stripped of the title? This is basically to stretch out a decent match with Goldust and Savio Vega into two shows on a LONG taping with a depleted roster lacking big star power.
Vince McMahon and Jerry “The King” Lawler announce that Vader will be in action next week, as well as Mankind. The Godwinns will be in action. Finally, the vacant Intercontinental Championship will be fought over by Goldust and Savio Vega.
Video: We have a WrestleMania XII exclusive. An irate Bret “Hitman” Hart angrily charged through the curtain after leaving the ring and kicked some cameras out of his locker room. Hart left the building covered in sweat and still in his tights. Hart then drove off.
Video: This past weekend in Bonn, Germany, Bret “Hitman” Hart broke his silence. Hart says there were a lot of things wrong with the Iron Man Match. The match itself wasn’t beneficial to him, but he accepted that. It was supposed to be a 60-minute Iron Man Match, but it wasn’t. It was a 62-minute Iron Man Match. If there was going to be overtime or Sudden Death, why did they ring the bell in the first place? Hart waits and waits and promises himself that he’ll wait until that guy makes one big mistake. At the 59-minute mark, he got careless as Hart knew he would. It’s almost like they have the nerve to come up after he had him beaten. Hart concedes that Shawn Michaels didn’t give up, but there wasn’t any way he was getting out of that. It’s not his job to beat Shawn Michaels. It’s his job to keep the title. Shawn Michaels’ job was to beat him, and he never did. Hart left the ring and should have kept going back to the dressing room. That three-minute delay in restarting the match is where Hart made his big mistake.
Hart says he could never see himself working for another organization because he thinks it would be a step down. There’s a certain wrestling organization throwing a lot of money around, but Hart isn’t greedy for money. He’s greedy for respect. The only place he’ll get that respect is in the World Wrestling Federation. Hart says a certain part of him has less yearning to come back because he feels betrayed. Every time he loses the title, he feels betrayed. Hart says he’d still welcome another title opportunity. You could wake him up at 5 a.m. to give it to him.
Mike’s Thoughts: This was a good promo from Bret Hart. This is the Bret Hart that we all know and love: sounding a little bitter and complaining about something that didn’t go his way. The best characters are the actual person with the volume turned way up. This might just be who Bret Hart is. At this point, he is doing the European tour, but once that’s over, he’ll be taking an extended break.
So, to recap what is happening to this roster, Shawn Michaels is the WWF Champion at the top. The Undertaker is a main event-level talent. They’re trying to build Vader up to be one. Diesel is leaving soon. Razor Ramon is leaving soon. Bret Hart is going on hiatus for an indefinite amount of time. On the other show, they’re absorbing two key pieces from the WWF’s roster, as well as featuring bona fide main eventers like Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, Randy Savage, and Sting WEEKLY. It’s going to become a really unfair fight pretty soon.
Quick Match Results
— “Wildman” Marc Mero def. Leif Cassidy
— Million Dollar Champion “Stone Cold” Steve Austin def. Bart Gunn via Referee Stoppage (non-title)
— Savio Vega def. Goldust (c) in a match for the WWF Intercontinental Championship; WWF President Gorilla Monsoon declared the title vacant after the match
Mike’s Wrap-Up: What We Learned from Raw
After two strong weeks coming out of WrestleMania XII, this show felt like it hit a wall.
A lot of that can be attributed to the circumstances. This was part of a long taping cycle with a roster that is already starting to thin out. With Diesel and Razor Ramon on the way out and Bret Hart heading into a hiatus, the depth just isn’t there right now. You can feel it throughout the show.
That doesn’t mean everything fell apart. There are still some positives. Steve Austin continues to look sharp and motivated, Vader remains a strong presence, and there are pieces in place that could develop into something meaningful. But compared to the previous two weeks, this show felt more like treading water than moving forward. Matches were stretched out (Austin vs. BART GUNN got a commercial break!), the match layout was a little confusing, and in some cases, like the Intercontinental Championship situation, the booking felt more like buying time than building momentum.
That’s really the story right now. The WWF has some interesting pieces, but they’re struggling to maintain consistency week to week, especially under the strain of these marathon tapings. It’s not a lack of ideas as much as it is a lack of depth and flexibility. When the competition does a live show every week against a show taped weeks earlier, it’s not a fair fight.
World Championship Wrestling is stacking its roster and building momentum. Against shows like this (even though I’ll reveal something interesting about the ratings in a moment), it stands out like a sore thumb and feels headed for disaster. The question isn’t whether the WWF can produce a good show. We’ve seen them do that for the last two weeks. The question is whether they can sustain it under these conditions.
Right now, it’s not looking too good.
Still, despite my doom and gloom prognosis following a dull show (as well as knowing what’s coming in the near future), this Raw actually defeated WCW Monday Nitro. After going unopposed last week, Raw gained some serious momentum with its best rating of the entire Monday Night War: a 4.7. Going against WCW and having the audience split dropped them a bit, but they still had enough to come out ahead tonight.
WWF Raw (USA Network, taped): 3.1 (Record: 12-14-2)
WCW Nitro (TNT, live): 2.8 (Record: 14-12-2)
Winner: WWF Raw (2-week streak)
It should be noted that this is also the first time WWF has gone head-to-head with WCW after starting the show three minutes earlier at 8:57 p.m. Eastern. WCW was doing that for a while, so WWF started it last week when they were unopposed. Perhaps this strategy offset what WCW was doing and helped them keep an audience. It could also be post-WrestleMania goodwill. We’ll see if it continues next week!
Email – mike@wrestleview.com
X – @MikeTedescoWV
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Part of Wrestleview’s Monday Night War: 30 Years Later series, with weekly Raw and Nitro recaps every Thursday.