The first half of 2001

**RatedGSuperstar** · 01-22-2009, 12:54 AM

I'm a little late to the party, but one part of early 2001 that I really liked were the two Austin/Benoit WWF title matches in Canada on back-to-back shows in late May. The "Screwjob Part 2" schtick they did in Calgary on Raw was pretty dumb (Vince at ringside yelling at the timekeeper to ring the bell when Austin locked the sharpshooter on Benoit), but that match was very entertaining.

The rematch on Smackdown in Edmonton was even better...one of the hottest crowds I can remember seeing on TV, with so many near falls and tap outs that it was genuinely unpredictable. Benoit wailing on Vince with a chair was awesome, too...it's one of those matches that I wish would show up in the war room thread some day. One of my favorite TV matches ever, really.

Then there was the classic cage match on Raw between Angle and Benoit that was right before the Austin/Benoit/Jericho match at KOTR. Great match with some great bumps (Angle missing the moonsault from the top of the cage, Benoit's flying headbutt from the top, etc.), and Austin was good on commentary, too.

01-22-2009, 12:54 AM	#26
RatedGSuperstar Stupid Sexy Flanders Posts: 1,728	I'm a little late to the party, but one part of early 2001 that I really liked were the two Austin/Benoit WWF title matches in Canada on back-to-back shows in late May. The "Screwjob Part 2" schtick they did in Calgary on Raw was pretty dumb (Vince at ringside yelling at the timekeeper to ring the bell when Austin locked the sharpshooter on Benoit), but that match was very entertaining. The rematch on Smackdown in Edmonton was even better...one of the hottest crowds I can remember seeing on TV, with so many near falls and tap outs that it was genuinely unpredictable. Benoit wailing on Vince with a chair was awesome, too...it's one of those matches that I wish would show up in the war room thread some day. One of my favorite TV matches ever, really. Then there was the classic cage match on Raw between Angle and Benoit that was right before the Austin/Benoit/Jericho match at KOTR. Great match with some great bumps (Angle missing the moonsault from the top of the cage, Benoit's flying headbutt from the top, etc.), and Austin was good on commentary, too.