Raw opened with Donald Trump announcing that he was giving the audience a refund for their tickets tonight.

After Trump left, John Cena and cut a promo about The Miz. They showed a video of The Miz running his mouth. Miz then came out and talked smack to Cena. The two will face each other at The Bash on June 28. After the announcement, The Miz hit a cheap shot on Cena before running away.

Outside the arena, Vince McMahon is having some limo problems. His driver suggested that they walk but Vince makes the driver carry him going to the arena…

Jeff Hardy, Rey Mysterio & The Great Khali vs. Edge, Intercontinental Champion Chris Jericho & Dolph Ziggler
The first match of the night was a 6-Man Tag Team match with Jeff Hardy, Rey Mysterio, and The Great Khali against Edge, Chris Jericho, and Dolph Ziggler. This was a short match with all hell breaking loose in the end with Mysterio launching himself onto Jericho with a moonsault while Khali cleared the house down. Ziggler was the victim of a Jeff Hardy Twist of Fate and that’s all she wrote. After the match, World Heavyweight Champion came out to raise Jeff Hardy’s hand but Hardy didn’t take it.
  

Vince is now backstage and goes to Trump’s office. Trump tells him that Vince has a different office. The Donald then sees Santina and out of disgust, fires her.

Cody Rhodes vs. Unified WWE Tag Team Champion Primo
Back in the ring, The Colons are having fun of Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase. Primo and DiBiase will go up against each other. Both teams will meet each other at The Bash for the WWE Unified Tag Team Championships. DiBiase gets the win on this one after rolling up Primo and getting some leverage after grabbing Primo’s tights.

Backstage, Vince McMahon is still searching for his new office. As it turns out, his office was a cubicle in the men’s room. Ouch.

WWE Champion Randy Orton vs. Triple H in a Last Man Standing Match
Triple H versus Randy Orton in a Last Man Standing match for the WWE Championship ended up as a draw when both men weren’t able to answer to the 10-count. The action had already spilled outside the ring and onto the ramp. Orton was working on Triple H’s leg and was about to give him an RKO off a ladder but Triple H manages to push him away. Triple H hit the Pedigree on Orton and both men fell down, unable to answer the 10-count.
  

Mr. McMahon buys back Raw
Back in the ring, Trump is now cutting a promo about a free WrestleMania and commercial-free Raw each week. Vince comes out horrified at Trump’s announcement. Fearing he’ll go bankrupt, Vince buys Raw back from Trump double the price from last week’s sale. Ouch.
  

Mickie James & The Bella Twins vs. Divas Champion Maryse, Beth Phoenix & Rosa Mendes
Next, we have a 6-Diva Tag Team match with Maryse, Rosa Mendez, and Beth Phoenix against Mickie James and the Bella Twins. The faces got the win as the Bella Twins hit a double drop kick but Rosa tries to attack Mickie from behind. Mickie dodges the attack and hits a Mick Kick on Rosa instead. Mickie then gets the cover and the pin.
  

Big Show vs. John Cena
Our main event saw John Cena go up against The Big Show. John Cena had Big Show on his shoulders ready for a finisher but The Miz interfered and pushed Cena. This allowed Big Show to roll Cena and get a pin.
  

At the back, Randy Orton was on his way to his car when Triple H sneaked up from behind him and smashed him into the trunk. Triple H then told him that come Sunday, they were both going to hell.

Result:
Big Show def. John Cena after interference by The Miz
Mickie James & The Bella Twins defeat Divas Champion Maryse, Beth Phoenix & Rosa Mendes
Mr. McMahon buys back Raw
WWE Champion Randy Orton vs. Triple H in a Last Man Standing Match ended in a draw
Cody Rhodes def. Unified WWE Tag Team Champion Primo
Jeff Hardy, Rey Mysterio & The Great Khali def. Edge, Intercontinental Champion Chris Jericho & Dolph Ziggler

At this week’s Monday Night Raw, 15 stars were traded to either Raw, SmackDown, or ECW as part of the “orders set by Donald Trump” before he sold it back to Vince McMahon. Gail Kim, Alicia Fox, Jack Swagger, Evan Bourne and Mark Henry are all going to Raw. SmackDown will be getting Matt Hardy, Finlay, David Hart Smith, Tyson Kidd and Natalya. Finally, ECW will get Shelton Benjamin, Goldust, William Regal and The Bella Twins.

Swagger, Bourne, and Henry have already appeared at Raw this week, all competing against Randy Orton in a 3-1 gauntlet match.

WD Opinion:
No doubt that the WWE would want to shake things up once more. I absolutely like Swagger going to Raw and it will be interesting how he mixes with the Raw roster. Evan Bourne is more suited for SmackDown while Henry could be in for a face turn. He defeated Randy Orton at Raw this week and the audience was actually cheering for him. Strange days indeed.

Looks like Finlay and Hardy are going back to SmackDown. No doubt Finlay will immediately make an impact there. I don’t know about Matt Hardy going back to Jeff’s show but The Hart Dynasty could make a play for the Unified Tag Titles, but I want to see them wrestle The Colons more.

I think ECW got the short end of the stick here but what they really missed out on is transferring Christian to SmackDown. Christian is hugely popular and with the proper push, he could become SmackDown’s top guy. Where’s the love, Vince?

The WWE creative team allegedly didn’t want to stretch the Trump angle for several weeks as it was meant to be a one shot deal for a quick ratings spike. Although, some expressed thoughts that this angle could lead to a future feud between the two billionaires, the WWE stocks dropping could’ve easily been the reason why the angle was dropped. Add the SEC issues that they’ll be facing, the WWE had to drop the story line.

WD Opinion:
The company really went to great lengths just to cover up The Donald’s WWE involvement, even having Flair just stand backstage to fuel the rumors. Although it was quite a surprise that Trump “bought” Raw, that angle could’ve done a lot more if done right. Donald could have hired Flair as GM and they would then bully Vince into doing menial chores around the arena. I admit, this is kinda cheesy but Vince loves this stuff. I think this angle did more harm than good to the company. The WWE’s stock went down due to their official statements. Now, the Trump angle is deader than the “Vince McMahon is dead” angle. Sheesh.

STAMFORD, CT, June 23, 2009– After yesterday’s monumental announcement by Monday Night Raw® “owner” Donald Trump that all ticketholders attending last night’s show in Green Bay would receive a ticket refund, the tables were turned and he was unceremoniously “fired” by Chairman Mr. McMahon.

Fortunately, prior to being “fired,” Donald Trump doubled his money by selling Monday Night Raw back to Mr. McMahon.

Although Trump is no longer the “owner” of Monday Night Raw, this may not be the end of the feud between these two world class promoters.

WD Opinion:
Reports say that the WWE wanted the Trump angle to last more than just a week or two. The ultimate goal of the storyline was to get as much good press as possible, with Vince feeling that the Trump name has a solid following. Instead, what the WWE got was confusion due to the statements released concerning the “sale” of Monday Night Raw. The SEC is now also hot on their heels for violating securities law because of those official press releases. To remedy the situation, the company ran an angle where Trump would give everyone a refund for their money hoping the press would again pick it up. Instead, only local press in Green Bay, Wisconsin took it and the WWE ended up buying themselves $235,000 worth of publicity. Apparently, the company felt like the publicity they received wasn’t well worth the money and they just pulled the plug on the angle. I was hoping Trump would stick around for a few more weeks and make Vince do some chores while gloating on his triumph. Vince cleaning the toilets…hmmm…who wouldn’t want to pay to see that happening?

On last week’s Monday Night Raw episode, the WWE did an angle where Vince McMahon buys Raw back from Donald Trump for “double” the asking price of Raw. This could signal the end of the Trump ownership angle. Before Vince “purchased” Raw back from Trump, The Donald had already announced that the audience would get a refund for their tickets after the episode. The reported total ticket revenue for the event was $235,000 and the WWE posted signs everywhere regarding how the fans could avail of the refunds.

WD Opinion:
Wow, that sure was quick. We still don’t have reports if this was part of the original plans or changes were made due to some complications but the WWE pulled back quite easily. Earlier this week, it was reported that the SEC is reportedly looking at some violations by the USA Network and Donald Trump’s camp due to press releases indicating that the sale of Monday Night Raw was legitimate. Whether the issue played a part in the change of plans remains to be known but one thing’s for sure: the WWE got the media publicity that they wanted and it played out well for them. For the WWE, there is no such thing as good or bad publicity, it seems.

Jeff Hardy Update
Jeff Hardy still has not signed a long term deal with the WWE and is probably listed as on a “week to week” basis. Although he is expected to sign a long term deal with the WWE, he will probably take some time off and return in the ring in a couple of months.

WWE and USA in Trouble?
The WWE and GE (the parent company of USA Network) could become liable for violations of the securities law when both companies issued official statements regarding the “sale” of Monday Night Raw to Donald Trump. The statements indicated a legitimate “sale”, causing WWE stocks to fall 6% this past Tuesday. The entire story can be read at Foxbusiness.com.

Candice Michelle on her WWE Release
According to her official Twitter page (twitter.com/DIVACANDICEM), Candice Michelle posted “I’m free to grow!” as a reaction to her WWE release.

The USA Network recently released a press statement issuing an apology for those media outlets that picked up the story on Donald Trump’s “purchase” on Raw. Written below is their statement:

“USA Network and WWE issued a press release on June 16 that referred to Monday Night RAW’s storyline of a ’sale’ of WWE’s RAW to Donald Trump. We intended the release to be promotional for that ongoing story arc on the series. There is no such actual ’sale’. We apologize for any confusion.”

It seems that many media outlets believed that Donald Trump’s “purchase” of WWE Monday Night Raw was legitimate and didn’t check the possibility that it was merely a WWE storyline. The WWE have gotten some heat because of the storyline because both the Trump and USA Network parties released statements and reputable media outlets though the purchase was real. Some media outlets have also expressed their opinions about the issue and are said to be done giving press about the WWE in the future. There are also rumors that the SEC isn’t too happy about the situation. Nevertheless, this was what the WWE was going after and they were able to generate much needed publicity for the event.

Donald Trump’s entry into the wrestling scene has once again garnered media attention. His “purchase” of WWE Monday Night Raw has been covered by several media outlets, picking it up as if the story was legitimate. Some of these media outlets didn’t even realize that Trump is just part of the work and the whole thing is a storyline.

WD Opinion: Vince McMahon is laughing is ass off right now. This is exactly the reason why the WWE dealt with Trump and get media attention. The WWE’s association with Trump will most likely spill over Trump’s “The Apprentice”. You have got to hand it over to Vince, this is wrestling gold. Hey, remember what Vince did to the Denver Nuggets?

The USA Network released a press statement regarding the “sale” of Monday Night Raw. The network released that “World Wrestling Entertainment(R) announced the sale of its ratings juggernaut, Monday Night RAW (R), on USA Network to Donald Trump. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.”

“Donald Trump is one of the most entertaining personalities with one of the sharpest business minds of our time. He’s always had the Midas touch, which will only add to the level of excitement for the loyal fans of WWE Monday Night Raw,” said Chris McCumber EVP Marketing, Digital and Brand Strategy for USA Network.

“The Monday Night RAW franchise has been one of the top cable franchises since its launch 17 years ago. I’m going to do things on the show that have never been done or seen before. As my first act as owner, I am doing something unprecedented. I am giving back to the people who have been loyal all these years. For the first time in more than 838 episodes of RAW, next week’s show will be live and commercial free” said Donald Trump.

To know more about Trump’s “purchase”, log on to wwe.com

WD Opinion:
I believe the WWE pulled off quite a surprise last night regarding the Trump “purchase” of Raw. Vince and Trump have always had great chemistry and Trump has always been an interesting personality in the wrestling world. By going with this storyline, both parties can get the customary publicity and it’s already paying dividends. TV Guide posted an article in their website about the issue but quickly pulled it out after they realized it was just a WWE storyline.

I don’t know how long they will run the storyline, but they’ve already hinted that Ric Flair will be back and run things as the new Raw General Manager during that Vince- Santino segment.

This week’s Raw didn’t really deliver that much except lay the grounds for The Bash on June 28. It looked like things were hurried and could you please what’s Orton doing with the title? The man just lost it 2 weeks ago and somebody needs to run with that belt. Orton will always be a douchebag with or without the belt. Out of the four participants, it was Big Show who needed that belt; instead he got buried once again. Hey, at least it took 3 finishers to take the giant down but it doesn’t change the fact his character has lost its credibility. His losses have piled up and the creative team seems to have nothing for him. The last time Big Show had a great run was against The Undertaker.

Just when you think Big Show’s misery couldn’t get any worse, he’s now being sued by Sobe Entertainment. They claim that they gave Big Show a $1 Million advance yet he owed the IRS $450,000. Big Show reportedly backed out of the deal and signed back with the WWE in 2008.

Intercontinental Champion Chris Jericho vs. Rey Mysterio
Raw starts off with Chris Jericho defending his Intercontinental Championship over Rey Mysterio. Before the match starts, Jericho cuts a promo about how Raw has fallen ever since his transfer to SmackDown. Jericho nearly lost the match after Mysterio was able to hit the 619, only for Jericho to turn the tables on a West Coast Pop attempt, turning it into a Codebreaker. Jericho then pins Mysterio for the win.

Backstage, Josh Matthews is interviewing Randy Orton about tonight’s match. John Cena then comes into the picture and mocks Orton.
  

Vince McMahon is shown in the big screen. He said people were expecting him to name a new General Manager tonight but instead, shocks the people by saying he is selling Raw.

ECW Champion Tommy Dreamer def. Christian
After the commercial, Tommy Dreamer defends his ECW Championship against Christian. Dreamer was able to capitalize on a mistake by Christian. Christian went to the top rope but instead lands badly and Dreamer was able to roll him up for the small package and Dreamer is still the ECW Champion.
  

Fatal Four Way Match
Next, we have the Fatal Four Way Match for the WWE Championship between Randy Orton, Triple H, Big Show, and John Cena. The match had a wild finish as Big Show was able to block and RKO attempt, only to fall victim to a Pedigree from Triple H. Cena comes in and hits the Attitude Adjustment on Triple H and he pins Big Show for a two count. Cena then hits another Attitude Adjustment on Big Show for another two-count after Orton makes the save. Orton then proceeds to take down Big Show with an RKO for the pin. Randy Orton is now the new WWE Champion!
  

Mr. McMahon Introduces New Owner Of Monday Night Raw
After the break, Vince McMahon comes down the ring to make a huge announcement as to who has purchased Raw. He said that he has talked with his family and financial advisors about the situation and decided to sell Monday Night Raw to none other than Donald Trump! Trump then appears in the screen and announces that next week’s Raw will be shown entirely commercial free! He then warns Vince about getting in his way and reminds him what happened in WrestleMania 23.
  

Mickie James vs. Rosa Mendes
Next we have Mickie James going up against Rosa Mendez with WWE Divas Champion Maryse standing ringside. Mickie made short work out of Rosa after Mickie plants Rosa with a huge DDT for the pin fall victory. After the match, Maryse walks out of the ring pissed off at the results.

The Miz attacks Goldust and Hornswoggle
Hornswoggle and Goldust are shooting merchandise into the crowd and the Miz stops them and proceeds to hurl insults at Cena. He then proceeds to attack Goldust and grabs the t-shirt cannon from Hornswoggle and shoots him in the gut! The Miz continue to taunt the fallen wrestlers as we go to a commercial.

CM Punk vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Edge in a Triple Threat Match for The World Heavyweight Champion
We now have CM Punk defending his World Heavyweight Championship against Edge and Jeff Hardy. Towards the end of the match, Punk accidentally hit his knee on the ring post and an official had to run to him and check if he can still continue. Hardy hits the Whisper in the Wind on Edge but was only able to get a two-count after Punk made the save from the outside. Hardy sends Punk rolling back outside the ring after numerous stomps to Punk’s hurt leg. Edge tries to sneak a pin and manages to roll Hardy for a two-count. Hardy then counters with a Twist of Fate and nails the Swanton Bomb on Edge! Hardy gets a two-count as Punk grabs him from the outside and rams him to the steel steps. Punk crawls back inside the ring, covers Edge and gets the win!
  

Unified WWE Tag Team Champions Carlito & Primo def. The Hart Dynasty
Next, we have a tag-team match with The Colons against The Hart Dynasty. Carlito had the great advantage after hitting the Backstabber on DH Smith but Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase come running down the ring to interfere and attack Carlito. Primo was also thrown out and we will have The Colons versus Priceless for all the marbles at The Bash!

10-Man Battle Royal
Our last match is a 10-Man Battle Royal for a title shot at the WWE Championship at The Bash. The match ended with Triple H and Cena eliminating Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase. However, both wrestlers come back to the ring and beat Triple H down after The Game hit Cena with a Pedigree. The referees order Rhodes and DiBiase out. The Miz, who was thrown out earlier but wasn’t eliminated, creeps back into the ring and tries to capitalize but ends up getting thrown out. Triple H then dumps Cena off the top rope to become the number one contender!

After the match, we get an Orton-Triple H staredown and Trump appears back in the screen. The new owner of Raw announces that we won’t have to wait long for a title match as Orton will defend his WWE Championship against Triple H at Raw next week in a Last Man Standing match!
  

Result:
Triple H def. nine other Superstars in a 10-Man Battle Royal
Unified WWE Tag Team Champions Carlito & Primo def. The Hart Dynasty (disqualification)
World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk def. Jeff Hardy and Edge in a Triple Threat Match
Mickie James def. Rosa Mendes
Mr. McMahon introduces Raw’s new owner: Donald Trump
Randy Orton def. Triple H, John Cena and Big Show in a Fatal Four Way to become the New WWE Champion