WWF Monday Night RAW – November 13th, 1995

November 13, 1995

From the Keystone Centre in Brandon, Manitoba

Your hosts are Vince McMahon and Jerry “The King” Lawler

We get a video package on the tumultuous friendship between Razor Ramon and 1-2-3 Kid, with news of incidents on the house shows from this past weekend where Kid was mad. Therefore, WWF President Gorilla Monsoon concludes since he is unsure Kid can be impartial as a referee, tonight’s Razor Ramon vs. Psycho Sid match will be a non-title match. I mean, if you couldn’t trust Kid as a ref then maybe replace him as referee?

Hunter Hearst Helmsley vs. Henry O. Godwinn

Helmsley knees Godwinn off of the apron then takes him down with a baseball slide. Helmsley heads out and rams Godwinn into the steps before rolling back into the ring to bow. He then grabs his atomizer and starts spraying towards Godwinn. We now see Godwinn grab the slop bucket and head into the ring. Vince screams about if the bucket is brought into the ring it will be an automatic disqualification. Godwinn then slops himself and chases Helmsley around. Helmsley runs away on the outside and slips in the slop before running backstage as even the ref falls in the slop too as this is presumably ruled a no contest (1:20).

Thoughts: Just a bunch of nonsense to prolong the Helmsley/Godwinn feud. Crowd appeared bored but we did get the piped-in cheers so they are go. Also, this has been an incredibly long taping so a bait and switch type deal is not going to impress them at this juncture.

Survivor Series Slam Jam with Dok Hendrix. After a slop joke we hear Dok hype up the Diesel vs. Bret Hart match plus interview later on in the show. He then goes over Wild Card match and how it could be a match in itself.

Next in action will be Ahmed Johnson as we see the clip of him slamming Yokozuna then warming up backstage by curling a guardrail.

We now see Diesel and Bret Hart before their face off interview. Its going to be done via satellite.

A video package on Shawn Michaels airs that he narrates himself. Lots of stuff about being small and told he would never make it but he’s proved everyone wrong and will steal the show. He wants to do whatever will make the fans come out of their seats and show them what they have never seen before, making his name stick in their mind. Solid piece here I thought and its clear he will be pushed even stronger heading into 1996.

Ahmed Johnson vs. Jake Steele

Good reception for Ahmed, who slammed Yokozuna at the beginning of this four show taping. Steele slaps Ahmed after a handshake offer then attacks from behind. However, that just upsets Ahmed and Steele ends up getting clotheslined. We hear from Shawn via insert promo as he puts over Ahmed and says he can trust him at the Survivor Series. Vince tells us that Shawn will face Owen Hart next week on RAW as Ahmed nails Steele with a spinebuster then sticks his tongue out while on all fours. Ahmed then puts Steele in a double underhook and hits a powerbomb, called a “Tiger Bomb” by Vince and that gets the win (2:27).

Thoughts: Ahmed didn’t do much here but what he did looked powerful and the fans were responsive. And that is what matters. The newly pushed guy getting over.

Back from break, Vince interviews Ahmed at ringside. Ahmed calls out Sid and Bulldog, warning them not to “highstep” to the ring at Survivor Series and if they do he will break them off something proper.

Barry Didinsky shills the 1996 Calendar that comes with Diesel gloves and shades.

An ad for Bret Hart vs. Diesel match at the Survivor Series airs.

We now get the split screen interview. Diesel calls Bret one of the best ever but now he has the belt and thinks he is pretty good himself. Bret is asked about Diesel being the leader of the new WWF Generation. Bret says he does not know what that makes him and has a problem with how he lost the title at the Survivor Series to Bob Backlund. Bret believes he should still be champion since he never lost the title fairly. Vince brings up how he never beat Diesel at the Royal Rumble as Bret says it was a hard fought match. Diesel then brings up how Bret never asked for a rematch and said Shawn also gave him a run for his money, telling Bret not to “toot his own horn.” Bret says Diesel has done well against big guys his size but cannot match up with a technical wrestle like Shawn or himself. Bret says while Diesel is a great champion, he avoids technical opponents because that is where he struggles. Diesel responds by saying his first thing as champ was to wrestle Bret and doesn’t dodge anyone. He wrestles everyone and anyone that challenges him. Vince then asks Diesel if he will survive at the Survivor Series and if so how will he do it. Diesel says he will use his power and doesn’t get paid by the hour or win with style points so he beats people up. Bret is asked if he is concerned over what a big, angry man like Diesel can do to him. Bret says he is concerned but the longer the match goes the more its in his favor. Diesel then puts over Bret as a great champion and talent then talks about jackknifing Bret twice but interference has prevented him from making the pin. Diesel says he is bigger, stronger, and smarter than he was in January thus will retain. Bret is asked what makes him tick and how does he reach for the “brass ring” again. Bret says as far as he is concerned, Diesel has been walking around with his title and will get it back at the Survivor Series. The production was fine and Vince did a good job with questions. I will say that the segment went on a bit too long (over eight and a half minutes long) but overall an effective segment. Both guys were relatively calm here but did each vow to come out victorious.

Now, we get Vince and Lawler facing off in a game of Karate Fighters. Lawler wins by using Skull Crusher. However, the video replay shows that Lawler taped down the foot of his fighter. This leads to Vince promising the Undertaker will get revenge on his team at the Survivor Series.

King Mabel w/ Sir Mo vs. Roy Raymond

The announcers wonder what Undertaker’s face will look like. We see Undertaker’s shadow in an insert promo call out Mabel. Match starts with Mabel tossing down Raymond then beating him down in the corner. Mabel drops Raymond with a clothesline after whipping him into the corner a few times. Vince plugs the “Superstar Line” and how Jim Ross gives an update on injuries to some of the Survivor Series competitors. Mabel continues to rough up Raymond, who gets taunted by Mo holding up the crown. Mabel hits a neck snap as this crowd is dead then Mabel hits a splash then finally puts him away with a belly-to-belly suplex (3:02). The announcers then talk about the Cleveland Browns moving to Baltimore.

Thoughts: Felt like it lasted much longer than it did. More teasing for the Undertaker/Mabel feud here. The King Mabel character, however, is just not interesting. The crowds do not care.

The Bill Clinton impersonator is part of an ad for the Survivor Series.

We see clips from “Superstars” where Razor got disqualified costing him and Kid a shot at the Tag Team Titles. Kid was pissed off.

Special Guest Referee 1-2-3 Kid: Psycho Sid w/ Ted DiBiase vs. Razor Ramon

Lawler accuses Kid of giving Sid the “high” sign and how Razor & Kid have set up the Corporation. Vince calls Razor the only four-time Intercontinental Champion. Kid holds up the title to the crowd and hands it to the ring announcer as Vince immediately has to tell us this is non-title. Before that, Vince said the title is what it was all about. Sid backs Razor against the ropes to start. Razor fights back and clotheslines him to the floor. Sid returns and they mix it up for a bit until Sid hits a chokeslam. Sid taunts the crowd and gets booed then goes back to roughing up Razor. Sid’s strikes actually look a little better than usual here. Razor starts firing e Saway but Sid cuts him off with a mat slam. Razor comes back with a knee lift then signals for the Razor’s Edge, right near the ropes, but Sid back drops him to the floor. DiBiase stomps away as Sid distracts Kid then we see Dean Douglas head down the aisle. Douglas now attacks Razor as Vince brings up that Douglas and Razor are tag team partners at the Survivor Series. Razor just beats the ten count then gets beaten down once again by Sid. We see Sid hit a back suplex for a two count. Leg drop gets two then Sid goes to a chin lock. The crowd gets behind Razor as he powers out by using an electric chair drop. Sid landed on his neck there. Both men are down but Sid is up first and lands a big boot. Sid then eats boot on a charge and Razor hits a flying bulldog for a two count as Lawler tries to accuse Kid of using a fast count. Razor then gets Sid up for the Razor’s Edge but Kid yanks Sid down then Sid boots Razor in the gut and hits a powerbomb as Kid uses a fast count to get Sid the win (9:50 shown) **1/4. After the match, DiBiase comes into the ring and shoves a Canadian $5 bill in DiBiase’s mouth then Kid is shown leaving while holding Sid’s hand up the aisle.

Thoughts: The match itself was decent here and as noted above, Sid looked better than usual. The last few minutes really slowed down however until the finish, which was predictable but still well done. And we see that DiBiase has bought off Kid, which was a new twist. However, while billed as a title even as late as the day prior on “Action Zone” was changed to a non-title match. And, it was reported in the newsletters than in fact this was originally a non-title but changed to a title match after it was filmed. Then changed back after Razor was upset with this decision. Just a mess that WWF created themselves but the match itself and turn was fine. There was something in the “Wrestling Observer Newsletter” about Sid being upset the title change was cancelled and he left the last few dates of the house show tour (which was actually cited as a “Family Emergency” but apparently the locker room thought it was a cover) and that Razor was going to retain and eventually drop the title to Hunter Hearst Helmsley, who Razor faced at the Nassau Coliseum show on 11/10. Who knows if this was the plan or not, however.

We then see a replay of the finish and see Razor, shown holding the IC Title, walking up the ramp with Jerry Brisco.

Ross is backstage with Douglas, Cornette, Yokozuna, and Owen Hart. Ross asks Douglas why he attacked Razor, his partner at the Survivor Series. Douglas laughs but Razor runs in and attacks. Razor is held back by officials as the show ends.

Final Thoughts: The main event at least provided some excitement and the face-to-face was solid plus Ahmed got a good reaction making this a better than usual RAW than what we saw as of late. With Survivor Series six days away though, not much to be excited about other than the Title match. And there is at least some intrigue to the Wild Card match. The Women’s match has yet to be mentioned outside of “Action Zone.”