[loopydate]

MAY 31, 2004 - MONDAY NIGHT RAW

Tonight, the King of the Ring tournament rolls on as two spots in the quarterfinals are determined, plus, the semifinals of the Queen of the Ring tournament!

We kick things off with six-man tag action pitting six of RAW's least popular wrestlers. It's La Resistance's Rene Dupree, Rob Conway, and Sylvan Grenier against Natural Born Thrillers Chuck Palumbo, Johnny Stamboli, and Mark Jindrak! Chuck Palumbo and Rene Dupree carry most of the in-ring action while Johnny Stamboli and Rob Conway spend most of the action on the apron. Jindrak picks up the win for his team by hitting Dupree with Splash Mountain in the corner.

Booker T comes to the ring, prepared to cut a promo. The camera zooms in tight as he raises the mic to his lips. "I... quit." Down goes the mic, and away goes Booker. Wtf?

Now it's time for midcard mania in the form of a ten-man battle royal! Playboy Lance Cade is the first victim, taken out by Luther Reigns. Rikishi takes out Tommy Dreamer, while Cade's partner Val Venis eliminates Lance Storm, only to get dumped by A-Train. Train continues to roll by taking out Kane. William Regal eliminates Rikishi next. Reigns is the next one out, courtesy of Edge. The match turns into a lengthy triple-threat between Train, Edge, and Regal, with lots of action from all three. Regal winds up taking out Train, only to fall victim to an Edgecution, and Edge wins the match.

Queen of the Ring continues next with our first semifinal match, pitting Women's Champion Trish Stratus against Jazz. This one goes back and forth several times, and Jazz definitely looks like a legit threat, but in the end the champ is just too good, and she picks up the win with Stratusfaction.

Chris Benoit cuts a promo next, talking about his ongoing feud with Edge. Next week, both men have quarterfinal KotR matches. He knows he's going to beat Rhyno and, although he's rooting for a match with his friend Chris Jericho, he'd also love to finally bury Edge once and for all.

We already know that Trish Stratus will be participating in next week's Queen of the Ring finals, but her opponent will be determined in our next match. It's Mickie James versus Molly Holly. These two put on one of the better matches of the year thus far, and I don't just mean Divas matches. Mickie picks up the win with a tornado DDT, but both women look like a million bucks doing it.

King of the Ring continues next as the World Champion Kurt Angle takes on The Ministry's undefeated rookie monster Damien. The crowd was way into this one, even though Angle continues to phone it in. Damien, however, continues to look like a megastar of the future, as he goes step-for-step with the Olympic gold medalist. During a bit of confusion, Chris Jericho hits the ring and locks Angle in the Walls of Jericho! He slides from the ring, and Damien picks up the pieces, pinning the World Champion to advance! After the match, an enraged Angle drives both rivals from the ring and stands tall.

Angle grabs a microphone. Basically, the promo consists of him being in disbelief that Jericho still can't take a hint. How many times does Angle have to beat him before he finally gets the hint that he just doesn't have what it takes? His days as a credible championship contender are behind him. Let go!

Up next is a triple-threat match for the WWE Tag Team Titles. The Ministry's Undertaker and Big Show defend against "Canadian Violence" Benoit and Jericho and the duo of Charlie Haas and Rhyno. The champions isolate Rhyno early, until Rhyno tags in Haas. Haas and Undertaker carry most of the match, with Haas being the only participant to actually share the ring with all four opponents. In a bit of a surprise, Jericho manages to get Haas locked in the Walls of Jericho, and we have new champions! Canadian Violence are the new WWE Tag Team Champions!

Our main event tonight is another King of the Ring second round match as United States Champion Sean O'Haire takes on the World's Greatest Tag Team's Shelton Benjamin. These two put on a tremendous contest that sees reversals and high spots aplenty. At one point, Benjamin lays O'Haire out with a Death Valley Driver. Amidst some confusion, Rob Van Dam hits the ring and lands a Five-Star Frogsplash on O'Haire! The referee turns around just in time to see Benjamin cover O'Haire to pick up the win! Shelton Benjamin is going to the quarterfinals! After the match, RVD continues to pummel O'Haire with a steel chair, finishing him off with a Van Daminator!

As RVD walks off, a bloodied O'Haire grabs the ringside microphone and issues a challenge. Next week on RAW, they are going to finally end things once and for all. And if RVD wants to get hardcore, that's fine with him. Next week, I'll put the United States Title on the line for one last time against you in a Hardcore Match!

Next week on RAW, King of the Ring continues as new WWE Tag Team Champions Chris Benoit and Chris Jericho face off against Rhyno and Edge, respectively! Will it be partner versus partner in the quarterfinals? Plus, Trish Stratus takes on her best friend Mickie James in the finals of the Queen of the Ring tournament! All that, plus a Hardcore Match for the United States Title with Sean O'Haire defending for the last time against Rob Van Dam! You don't want to miss RAW next week!