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Over the Limit (2010)

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Over the Limit
Promotional poster featuring Edge
PromotionWorld Wrestling Entertainment
DateMay 23, 2010
CityDetroit, Michigan
VenueJoe Louis Arena
Attendance11,000[1]
Pay-per-view chronology
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Over the Limit (2011)

Over the Limit (2010) was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), which took place on May 23, 2010 at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan.[3] It was the first event promoted under the Over the Limit name. Eight matches took place during the event.

The event received 197,000 pay-per-view buys, down on the Judgment Day (2009) figure of 228,000 buys.

Background

See also: Professional wrestling

Over the Limit involved different wrestlers from scripted feuds, plots, and storylines that played out on WWE's television programs. Wrestlers portrayed a villain or a hero as they followed a series of events that built tension, and culminated into a wrestling match or series of matches.[4]

The main feud from the Raw brand heading into Over the Limit was between John Cena and Batista over the WWE Championship, and had been going on for several months. Cena retained the WWE Championship against Batista at the Extreme Rules pay-per-view in a Last Man Standing match, by taping Batista's ankles to the ringpost to ensure he could not stand up by the count of ten.[5] The next night on Raw, Batista defeated Randy Orton and Sheamus to become the number one contender to the championship and earn a rematch against Cena.[6] On the May 3 episode of Raw, they competed in a Beat the Clock challenge to determine the stipulation for their match. Batista defeated Daniel Bryan in 5:06, but Cena defeated Wade Barrett in 4:32 to win the challenge and the right to name the stipulation.[7] The following week, Cena announced that the match would be an "I Quit" match.[8]

The predominant feud from the SmackDown brand was between Jack Swagger and The Big Show, over Swagger's World Heavyweight Championship. As part of the 2010 WWE Draft, The Big Show was drafted to SmackDown, where he was named the number one contender upon his debut on April 30.[6][9] Over the next several weeks, The Big Show chokeslammed Swagger through the announce table, and interrupted a promo on the May 14 episode of SmackDown, in which Swagger was boasting about his accomplishments.[10][11] As part of the segment, The Big Show destroyed Swagger's trophies and memorabilia.[11] The following week, The Big Show mocked Swagger in promos throughout the show and distracted Swagger during Swagger's match with Kofi Kingston, allowing Kingston to win.[12]

Former tag team partners Edge (left) and Randy Orton (right) were feuding prior to Over the Limit.

As part of the 2010 WWE Draft on April 26, Edge was drafted to the Raw brand. Later that night, Edge interfered in a match to determine the number one contender to the WWE Championship, spearing Randy Orton and preventing Orton from receiving a WWE Championship match.[6] The following week, Edge hosted an edition of his talk show, The Cutting Edge, with Orton as his special guest. During the show, Edge justified his actions by saying he was trying to make an impact, and attempted to convince Orton to reform Rated-RKO, their former tag team. Instead Orton performed his finishing move, the RKO on Edge.[7] The following week, Orton defeated Edge and Ted DiBiase in a handicap match, which led to "Pick Your Poison" matches on the May 17 episode of Raw, where Edge and Orton picked each other's opponents for the night.[8][13] Edge faced The Undertaker, and lost intentionally by countout, while Orton faced Jack Swagger, and lost by disqualification when Edge interfered.[13]

The rivalry between Rey Mysterio and CM Punk was continued from the previous pay-per-view. After months of feuding, Mysterio challenged Punk to a Straight Edge Society Pledge vs. Hair match at Over the Limit, as they had each won a pay-per-view match over the other in recent months. The stipulation of the match meant that if Punk won, Mysterio would join the Straight Edge Society, Punk's faction which promoted the straight edge lifestyle. If Mysterio won, however, Punk agreed to have his head shaved.[10] On May 14, Mysterio and Punk faced each other in a singles match, but the match never finished, as the Straight Edge Society (Luke Gallows, Serena, and a mystery masked man) interfered and helped Punk to attack Mysterio.[11] The following week, Mysterio interrupted an initiation ceremony, where Punk was shaving the heads of three men, in order to induct them into the Straight Edge Society. Mysterio mocked Punk, and claimed that everyone would be laughing at Punk when he was shaved bald at Over the Limit, before teaming up with Montel Vontavious Porter to defeat Punk and Gallows in a tag team match later that night.[12]

The Intercontinental Champion Drew McIntyre, who lost to Kofi Kingston at Over the Limit.

Another feud was over the WWE Intercontinental Championship between the defending champion Drew McIntyre and Kofi Kingston. SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long stripped McIntyre of the championship after McIntyre refused to stop repeatedly attacking on Matt Hardy, fired him. Long set up a tournament to determine the new champion, in which Christian and Kingston qualified for the final by defeating Cody Rhodes and Dolph Ziggler.[10] The following week, on the May 14 episode of SmackDown, Kingston defeated Christian to win the tournament and the championship. Immediately following the match, however, McIntyre presented Long with a letter from the WWE Chairman Vince McMahon, which stated that McIntyre had been reinstated to the roster, and was still recognized as the Intercontinental Championship.[11] As a result, WWE's official website announced that McIntyre would be defending the championship against Kingston.[14]

The team of Chris Jericho and The Miz had begun feuding with The Hart Dynasty (Tyson Kidd and David Hart Smith) over the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship. The Miz's feud with The Hart Dynasty had begun when The Miz was one-half of the Unified Tag Team Champions with The Big Show. During the Draft episode of Raw, The Hart Dynasty defeated The Miz and The Big Show to win the championship, which led to The Big Show turning on The Miz.[6] The following week, The Miz and Jericho, another former tag team partner of The Big Show, showed signed of an allegiance, when they teamed up to attack The Hart Dynasty.[7] Jericho went on to defeat Smith to earn a championship match for himself and The Miz at Over the Limit.[8]

After WrestleMania XXVI, Ted DiBiase had debuted a new gimmick of an arrogant millionaire, similar to his father's old gimmick.[15] On the April 5 episode of Raw, DiBiase was given possession of the Million Dollar Championship and access to a trust fund by his father.[16] DiBiase then began looking for a "Virgil", a manservant like his father used to have. He offered the position to R-Truth, who refused, leading to a feud between the two.[6] After losing a match to John Morrison, DiBiase attacked him, prompting R-Truth to save him.[7] In retaliation, DiBiase paid The Colóns to attack R-Truth the following week.[8]

In the only Divas match scheduled on the card, Eve defended the WWE Divas Championship against the former champion, Maryse. Eve had won the championship on the May 12 episode of Raw, and in the weeks that followed she was attacked by Maryse, who was attempting to get revenge.[7][17]

Event

Prior to the pay-per-view, Montel Vontavious Porter defeated Chavo Guerrero in a dark match.[18]

Preliminary matches

Kofi Kingston won the WWE Intercontinental Championship from Drew McIntyre.

The first match that aired as part of the pay-per-view was Drew McIntyre defending his Intercontinental Championship against Kofi Kingston. Kingston took the early advantage, by performing a suicide dive to the outside of the ring on McIntyre. McIntyre threw Kingston in the ringpost, and went on the offense.[19] Kingston was able to counter McIntyre's "Future Shock" DDT, and perform his finishing move, the S.O.S, to pin McIntyre for the victory and the championship.[20] Following the match, McIntyre demanded that Teddy Long go out to the ring and reverse the decision, but instead McIntyre was attacked by Matt Hardy, who he had attacked on several occasions in the weeks prior.[20][21] The next match was a singles match between Ted DiBiase, who was accompanied by Virgil and R-Truth.[22] In the early stages of the match, Virgil caused a distraction, allowing DiBiase to take the advantage by performing a reverse neckbreaker and throwing R-Truth into the barricade at ringside. R-Truth was able to counter a move from the top rope, and went on to win the match by utilising his "Lie Detector" finishing move (a corkscrew flying forearm smash).[19]

The third match on the card was a Straight Edge Society pledge vs. hair match, between CM Punk and Rey Mysterio. For this match, the other Straight Edge Society members (Serena and Luke Gallows) were banned from ringside. Early on in the match, Punk threw Mysterio headfirst out of the ring into the barber chair at ringside. Punk had suffered a cut to the head just prior to that exchange, and while Mysterio was on the floor, the match was halted so that the blood could be cleaned up. While Punk was being attended to, he dropkicked Mysterio, who was on the ring apron, and began attacking him on the floor to restart the match. After Mysterio missed a splash from the top rope, Punk went to pin him, but Mysterio was able to perform a crucifix cradle on Punk for the victory.[19] The other Straight Edge Society members attacked Mysterio after the match, but he was saved by Kane, which allowed Mysterio to handcuff Punk to the ring ropes and shave his head.[23]

A tag team match for the Unified Tag Team Championship followed, between the champions The Hart Dynasty (Tyson Kidd and David Hart Smith), who were accompanied by the manager Natalya, and the team of Chris Jericho and The Miz. The Hart Dynasty took the early advantage, but Jericho and The Miz were able to isolate both Smith and Kidd in the ring at different points in the match, wearing them down. Natalya interfered by tripping up Jericho while The Miz had the referee distracted.[19] The Hart Dynasty were able to capitalise, and performed the Hart Attack on The Miz for the pinfall victory.[24] The fifth match that occurred was between Edge and Randy Orton. Edge took control of the match early on by driving Orton into the barricade outside the ring. Orton was able to recover, and performed a rope hung DDT on Edge. While setting up for his finishing move, the RKO, Orton appeared to injure his arm, and went outside the ring in an attempt to recover. Edge followed him, trying to perform the spear, but Orton was able to avoid it, and Edge hit the barricade.[19] Neither man was able to return to the ring before the count of ten, and as a result, the match ended in a double countout.[25]

Main event matches

A blonde Caucasian woman wearing a green crop top standing in a wrestling ring. A red ring rope is visible in front of the woman.
Maryse was unsuccessful in regaining the WWE Divas Championship.

The first main event match of the night was between the World Heavyweight Champion Jack Swagger and his challenger, The Big Show. The Big Show dominated the match, with Swagger getting very little offense.[19] As a result, Swagger hit The Big Show with the World Heavyweight Championship title belt, and was disqualified.[26] After the match, Swagger attacked The Big Show with a steel chair, but The Big Show was able to stop him with a chokeslam. The Big Show then performed his knockout punch on Swagger, before leaving the area.[19][26]

The penultimate match on the card saw Eve defend the WWE Divas Championship against Maryse. Maryse took the early advantage, but when she threw Eve outside the ring, and attempted to kick her, she kicked the ringpost instead, allowing Eve to take control with a series of dropkicks. Eve performed a standing moonsault and a sunset flip for a near-fall. Maryse countered a rolling senton splash attempt by Eve and went for her finishing move, the French Kiss; though that was countered by Eve for the pin, who retained her championship.[19]

The main event was John Cena versus Batista for the WWE Championship in an "I Quit" match, where the object of the match is to force your opponent to say "I Quit". As the bell rang to signal the start of the match, Batista gave Cena the chance to quit immediately, but Cena refused and hit Batista with the microphone. Despite this, Batista was able to take control, and locked in a submission hold, but Cena refused to say "I quit". Cena eventually counters the move into his own submission hold, the STF, and Batista passed out. As he had not said the words "I Quit", however, he had to be revived so the match could continue. Batista fought back, and was able to powerslam Cena through the announce table. As Cena was bleeding, the match was briefly halted so he could be attended to. The two fought into the crowd, before they ended up near the entrance ramp, with Batista hitting Cena with a steel chair. On the entrance stage, Batista got into a car, which had been placed on the stage for decoration, and attempted to run over Cena. Cena avoided it, and was able to pull Batista out of the car and slam him onto it. Cena performed his Attitude Adjustment on Batista onto the car, but when Batista refused to quit, Cena went for the move again. Batista quit, making Cena the winner, but Cena performed the Attitude Adjustment again anyway, sending Batista through the stage to the floor.[19] As Cena was celebrating retaining the championship, he was attacked by Sheamus to end the show.[27]

Aftermath

The Undertaker qualified for the World Heavyweight Championship fatal four-way match at the Fatal 4-Way pay-per-view but was injured and replaced by Rey Mysterio before the event took place.
See also: WWE Fatal 4-Way

During the event, four wrestlers suffered legitimate injuries. Randy Orton dislocated his shoulder while Ted DiBiase suffered a concussion, and although they both appeared on Raw the following night, they did not wrestle.[28][29] CM Punk required 13 staples to close the wound in his forehead he sustained during his match with Mysterio.[28] Batista suffered a back and tailbone injury during his match.[28]

On the episode of Raw following Over the Limit, Bret Hart was announced as the new Raw General Manager. During Batista's promo at the beginning of the show, Hart interrupted and told him that if he wanted a rematch against Cena, he would have to qualify for the fatal four-way match at the Fatal 4-Way pay-per-view in June. Batista refused to wrestle, citing his injuries, and as a result Hart awarded the match to his opponent Orton by forfeit. Following Hart's decision, Batista quit WWE. In the other qualifying matches for the WWE Championship fatal four-way match, Sheamus defeated Mark Henry and Edge defeated Jericho and Cena in a triple threat match.[29]

On the May 28 episode of SmackDown, SmackDown General Manager Teddy Long announced a fatal four-way match for the World Heavyweight Championship would be taking place at the Fatal 4-Way pay-per-view. As the defending champion, Jack Swagger automatically was part of the match, and as a result of his win by disqualification, The Big Show received automatic entry as well. Later in the show, both The Undertaker and CM Punk qualified for the match as well, by defeating Rey Mysterio and Kane respectively. During his qualification match against Kane, Punk wore a mask to the ring in order to hide his newly-shaven head.[30] During his match with Mysterio, The Undertaker suffered a concussion, broken orbital bone and broken nose and the following week, was deemed unable to participate in the match. WWE replaced him in the match by saying that The Undertaker was found in a vegetative state by his (kayfabe) half brother, Kane, then held a battle royal to decide who would replace him, which was won by Rey Mysterio.[31]

At the beginning of the May 28 episode of SmackDown, Drew McIntyre made Teddy Long read out a letter from the WWE Chairman Vince McMahon, which stated that, as a result of attacking McIntyre at Over the Limit, Matt Hardy had been suspended without pay until further notice. On the same episode of SmackDown, McIntyre also continued his feud with Kofi Kingston, teaming with Jack Swagger in a loss to Kingston and The Big Show.[30]

Reception

Rey Mysterio's match with CM Punk was highly praised.

The event received generally negative reviews. Writing for Canadian Online Explorer's wrestling section, Matt Bishop derided the show, calling it "one of the worst WWE pay-per-view events in a long time" and awarded the show 6.5 out of ten.[21] The Sun writer Rob McNichol called the show "one of the oddest WWE PPVs in recent history" and awarded the show six out of ten.[32]

Most of the negative comments centered around the following World Heavyweight Championship match, which ended in disqualification immediately following a double countout in the preceding Orton-Edge match due to injury. McNichol described it "a weak ending in a normal show", but especially when the Orton-Edge match "had ended in such circumstances".[32] Bishop agreed, only awarding the match 2.5 out of 10 and said that the match "hurt the show in a big, big way".[21] Kevin Eck of The Baltimore Sun also criticized the booking of the finish, remarking that "Swagger came off looking like anything but a credible champion".[33] Wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer also criticized the World Heavyweight Championship match, remarking that it was "almost an insult as a PPV main event".[34] Bishop stated that the show was "hampered by several stoppages for blood" and a predictable ending to the main event between Cena and Batista.[21] McNichol also criticized the main event as "overbooked and excessive", while Eck remarked that it had a "predictable result".[32]

Despite the generally negative reviews, the Mysterio-Punk match was highly praised. McNichol touted it as "the highlight of the night" and praised the wrestlers involved for a "terrific closing sequence".[32] Bishop awarded the match 8.5 out of ten, and stated it was one of two matches, along with the Tag Team Championship bout, that were not "underwhelming in every aspect".[21] Eck agreed, calling the Punk-Mysterio match the "most compelling match on the card" and stated that the Tag Team Championship match was "well-worked".[33]

11,000 people attended Over the Limit at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, resulting in a gate of approximately $675,000.[1] In August 2010, WWE reported that the event had received 197,000 pay-per-view buys.[35] The DVD of the event contained extras including a match between Bret Hart and The Miz for the WWE United States Championship and several promos from the weeks preceding the event.[36]

Results

# Matches Stipulations Times[37]
Dark Montel Vontavious Porter defeated Chavo Guerrero[18] Singles match 04:20
1 Kofi Kingston defeated Drew McIntyre (c)[20] Singles match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship 06:24
2 R-Truth defeated Ted DiBiase (with Virgil)[22] Singles match 07:46
3 Rey Mysterio defeated CM Punk[23] S.E.S. Pledge vs. Hair match 13:49
4 The Hart Dynasty (David Hart Smith and Tyson Kidd) (with Natalya) (c) defeated Chris Jericho and The Miz[24] Tag team match for the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship 10:44
5 Randy Orton fought Edge to a double countout[25] Singles match 12:58
6 The Big Show defeated Jack Swagger (c) by disqualification[26] Singles match for the World Heavyweight Championship 05:05
7 Eve Torres (c) defeated Maryse[38] Singles match for the WWE Divas Championship 05:03
8 John Cena (c) defeated Batista[27] "I Quit" match for the WWE Championship 20:33
(c) – refers to the champion(s) heading into the match

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Gerweck, Steve (May 26, 2010). "Attendance for WWE's Over the Limit PPV". WrestleView. Retrieved May 26, 2010.
  2. ^ "The Official Theme Song For WWE Over the Limit: "Crash" by Fit For Rivals". World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved April 30, 2010.
  3. ^ "Over the Limit". World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved March 17, 2010.
  4. ^ "Live & Televised Entertainment of World Wrestling Entertainment". World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved March 17, 2010.
  5. ^ Kapur, Bob (April 25, 2010). "WWE Extreme Rules features strong Mania rematches". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  6. ^ a b c d e Plummer, Dave (April 26, 2010). "RAW: Feeling a draft". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  7. ^ a b c d e Plummer, Dale (May 3, 2010). "RAW: A very Brady Monday Night". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  8. ^ a b c d Plummer, Dale (May 10, 2010). "RAW: The final show at the Igloo". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  9. ^ Hillhouse, Dave (May 1, 2010). "Smackdown!: Comings and goings". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  10. ^ a b c Keller, Wade (May 7, 2010). "WWE SmackDown Report 5/7: Drew McIntyre stripped of IC Title, four-man tournament to crowd new champ, Swagger vs. Kane". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved October 25, 2010.
  11. ^ a b c d Hillhouse, Dave (May 14, 2010). "Smackdown!: Titles shuffle around in Buffalo". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  12. ^ a b Hillhouse, Dave (May 22, 2010). "Smackdown!: Revving up for Over the Limit". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  13. ^ a b Plummer, Dale (May 17, 2010). "RAW: Some Buzz heading toward Over the Limit". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  14. ^ "Preview: Intercontinental Champion Drew McIntyre vs. Kofi Kingston". World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  15. ^ Fowler, Matt (May 20, 2010). "Dipping Into Ted DiBiase's Trust Fund". IGN. p. 1. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  16. ^ Plummer, Dale (April 5, 2010). "Raw: Cena's not on the A-List". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved April 25, 2010.
  17. ^ Plummer, Dale (April 12, 2010). "RAW: Don't Hassel the Hoff". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  18. ^ a b Tucker, Bejamin (May 23, 2010). "WWE News: Over the Limit PPV Results – Pre-PPV dark match for the live crowd". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved May 27, 2010.
  19. ^ a b c d e f g h i Martin, Adam (May 23, 2010). "Over The Limit PPV Results – 5/23/10". WrestleView. Retrieved May 27, 2010.
  20. ^ a b c "Results: Kingston takes McIntyre to the limit". World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
  21. ^ a b c d e Bishop, Matt (May 23, 2010). "Batista quits to end disappointing Over The Limit". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  22. ^ a b "Results: Money can't buy the truth". World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
  23. ^ a b "Results: Rey Mysterio shaves CM Punk's head!". World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
  24. ^ a b "Results: Hart burn". World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
  25. ^ a b "Results: Unlimited aggression". World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
  26. ^ a b c "Results: Tempting the rage of a giant". World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
  27. ^ a b "Results: Cena's drive shows no "quit"". World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
  28. ^ a b c Martin, Adam (May 24, 2010). "Lots of injuries following WWE Over The Limit". WrestleView. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  29. ^ a b Plummer, Dale (May 24, 2010). "RAW: A new GM; Batista quits". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  30. ^ a b Hillhouse, Dave (May 29, 2010). "Smackdown: The Dead Man Cometh". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved May 30, 2010.
  31. ^ Gerweck, Steve (May 3, 20101). "Report: WWE main eventer suffers injury". WrestleView. Retrieved June 1, 2010. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  32. ^ a b c d McNichol, Rob (May 25, 2010). "Over the Limit – And Beyond". The Sun. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  33. ^ a b Eck, Kevin (May 24, 2010). "Over the Limit thoughts". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  34. ^ Meltzer, Dave (May 23, 2010). "WWE Over the Limit live PPV coverage – apparent serious injury to headliner". Wrestling Observer/Figure Four Online. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  35. ^ Martin, Adam (August 5, 2010). "McMahon on lousy quarter, decline in PPV buyrates". WrestleView. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  36. ^ Nemer, Roy (Maty 27, 2010). "WWE Over the Limit PPV DVD listing and details". WrestleView. Retrieved March 28, 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  37. ^ Martin, Adam (May 24, 2010). "Match times for last night's Over The Limit PPV". WrestleView. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  38. ^ "Results: French toast". World Wrestling Entertainment. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
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