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Raw is War

Compaq Center, Houston, Texas
December 20, 1999

RAW kicked off with a healthy dose of holiday spirit as Triple H and Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley made it known that they were going to add a little Christmas cheer to the Federation!

The first contest of the evening saw Test (sporting a protective covering for his broken nose) squaring off against the New Age Outlaws in a handicap match. This was obviously a "present" from Test's former fiancée Stephanie, but the Toronto native was anything but merry after the two degenerates began to beat him down in the center of the ring. Amazingly, Test managed to almost hold his own against the Outlaws, but he eventually fell to a Fame-Asser finishing maneuver.

Next up was an unusual matchup between Edge & Matt Hardy and Christian and Jeff Hardy. This was another contest set up by Triple H and Stephanie, but the novel pairings didn't hamper the in-ring action at all. The momentum kept swinging back and forth between the teams until Jeff Hardy finally managed to score a pinfall over his brother with a Firebird Splash.

Triple H and Stephanie then made their way to ringside to present a very special gift to Jim Ross... another attempt by the degenerate to break the announcer's arm. The attack was broken up by Mankind, who ran into the ring to make the save. In retaliation, Triple H announced that the Hardcore legend would have to fight in a boiler room match later in the night against an unknown opponent. To further add insult to the situation, gigantic pictures of Triple H and Stephanie were projected during the segment onto the screens that frame the Titantron, remaining there for the duration of the program.

Kurt Angle then came out to defend his undefeated record against Viscera! Angle's amateur takedowns were all but ineffective against the monstrous Viscera, so the gold medal winner had to resort to more high-risk maneuvers, including a missile drop kick! The match was decided when Steve Blackman came down to ringside and whacked Viscera with one of his kendo sticks, leading to a pinfall victory for Angle!

A Triple Threat tag team match was next on RAW, featuring The Acolytes, The Dudley Boyz... and the Fabulous Moolah and Mae Young! Unfortunately, the women's legends were no match for the younger, stronger superstars, with Mae Young quickly being pinned by Buh Buh Ray. Post-match, Mark Henry ran in to make the save for his newest love, Mae, but the damage had been done.

In one of the most surreal moments in Federation history, Mankind squared off against Santa Claus in a boiler-room brawl. After Mankind allowed the real Santa to leave the boiler room, three more men in Santa suits appeared to attack Mick. This trio was quickly dispatched by the Hardcore legend, only to be replaced by several other Santas, all of whom bore heavy resemblance to DX. Even Mick Foley couldn't stand against such odds, and Triple H's will was once again enforced on a Federation superstar.

Next up was the Godfather (along with his ho ho hos), challenging for the Intercontinental Championship. Of course, the current titleholder, Chris Jericho wasn't about to give up his gold quite so easily, and the contest between the two superstars quickly turned into a war. As has been the case of late, Chyna appeared from the back, interfering in the match and giving Jericho the win.

A definite television first was next on the card, as a "Holiday Topless Top-Rope Match" took place on RAW. For the bout, BB was in the corner of Val Venis while Terri was in Hardcore Holly's corner. The rules of the match stated that whenever one of the two superstars was tossed over the top rope, his second would have to remove an article of clothing. The first woman to be topless lost the match for "her man." Unfortunately for BB, Val was tossed twice in the contest, and Triple H was there to make sure that she disrobed. The degenerate giveth, and the degenerate taketh away, though, as he blocked the crowd's view of BB, making it so that he was the only person to see her puppies!

Another specialty match followed, as Al Snow took on The Rock in a Brahma Bullrope match. Neither superstar was shy about using the bullrope as a weapon, with both The Rock and Snow battering one another mercilessly with the weapon. Referee Tim White also felt the sting of the bullrope, getting laid out after getting whacked in the head! This opened the door for outside interference, as the Outlaws ran into the ring, giving Snow the win after a covert Fame-Asser!

Christmas came early for the Mean Street Posse, as they then took on Too Cool and Rikishi in six-man competition. Although the Greenwich natives tried their best to stop their opponents, they were just no match for Rikishi's might, with the monstrous superstar pinning Rodney after a modified Piledriver.

The main event of the evening saw the Big Show defending his Federation Championship against Kane, with the stipulation that, should the Big Red Machine lose the contest, Tori would have to spend the holidays with X-Pac. This caused Kane to pull out all of the stops, going so far as to hit the Show with a flying clothesline from the top rope to the floor. The Show then hit Kane with a steel chair, but Triple H (now sitting with Stephanie at the top of the ramp) refused to let the match end on a disqualification. Triple H then made it a falls-count anywhere bout, causing the intensity to increase even further. The contest was then marred by outside interference by the New Age Outlaws who distracted Kane long enough for the Big Show to powerbomb the Big Red Machine through a table, taking the win! As RAW went off the air, it was absolutely clear that the McMahon-Helmsley era will continue to reign over the Federation for some time to come!