WWE Bragging Rights
Encyclopedia
Bragging Rights was a professional wrestling
pay-per-view
(PPV) event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment
(WWE), which took place on October 25, 2009 at the Mellon Arena
in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was the final pay-per-view to take place at the Mellon Arena. It was the first Bragging Rights
event and featured talent from the Raw
and SmackDown brands
. Five matches were featured on the card
.
The concept of the show was based around a series of interpromotional matches for "bragging rights
" between wrestlers from the Raw
and SmackDown brands
, with a Bragging Rights trophy awarded to the show that won the most matches out of the series. The matches included Raw's United States Champion
The Miz
defeating SmackDown's Intercontinental Champion
John Morrison, SmackDown's team of Michelle McCool
, Beth Phoenix
and Natalya
defeating Raw's team of Melina
, Kelly Kelly and Gail Kim
, and SmackDown's team of Chris Jericho
, Kane
, R-Truth
, Matt Hardy
, Finlay
, Tyson Kidd and David Hart Smith defeating Raw's team of Triple H
, Shawn Michaels
, The Big Show
, Cody Rhodes, Jack Swagger, Kofi Kingston
and Mark Henry
. The Smackdown brand won the Bragging Rights trophy with two wins to one.
The show also contained three world championship matches including the main event where John Cena
defeated Randy Orton
in an Anything Goes
Iron Man match
to win the WWE Championship
, and The Undertaker defeating CM Punk
, Rey Mysterio and Batista in a Fatal Four-Way match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship
, and a dark match in which Christian defeated William Regal to retain the ECW Championship .
The pay-per-view drew 181,000 buys, and is up from the 153,000 buys Cyber Sunday 2008
got.
The concept of the show featured a 7-on-7 tag team match pitting contingents from Raw
and SmackDown against one another. On the October 12 edition of Raw, it was announced one-half of Unified WWE Tag Team Champions Chris Jericho
would act as the co captain of SmackDown's team with Kane
as the other co-captain, and Shawn Michaels
and Triple H
(collectively known as D-Generation X
) would act as the co-captains of Raw's team. Later in the program, the other half of the Tag Team Champions The Big Show
would qualify for the latter team by defeating Chris Jericho in a match that would qualify him to be on the team. Continuing the trend of qualifying matches on said edition of Raw, Cody Rhodes defeated Ted DiBiase
and John Cena
in a Triple Threat match, Jack Swagger defeated Montel Vontavious Porter, and Kofi Kingston
defeated Evan Bourne. Mark Henry
became the final member of Team Raw by defeating Chris Masters
on the October 15 episode of WWE Superstars. The following night on SmackDown, Kane
revealed that in fact the SmackDown team will be co-captained both by Jericho and himself. Qualifying matches for the SmackDown team commenced on the same night, with Dolph Ziggler
defeating Mike Knox
and Finlay
in a Triple Threat match, Shad Gaspard and JTG (collectively known as Cryme Tyme
) defeating David Hart Smith and Tyson Kidd (collectively known as The Hart Dynasty
), Eric Escobar
defeating Matt Hardy
, and Drew McIntyre defeating R-Truth
. On the October 23 episode of SmackDown, Jericho and Kane booked a 4-on-5 handicap match pitting Ziggler, JTG, Escobar and McIntyre against Finlay, the Hart Dynasty, Hardy and R-Truth, where the winning team would join the two at Bragging Rights. The latter team won the match, thus replacing the former team, along with Gaspard.
The main rivalry from the Raw brand heading into Bragging Rights was the continuing conflict between Randy Orton
and John Cena over the WWE Championship
. The two had faced at the three previous pay-per-view events, with Orton retaining the title at SummerSlam
, Cena winning the title at Breaking Point
in an "I Quit" match, and Orton reclaiming the title at Hell in a Cell in the event's eponymous match. The following night on Raw, Cena challenged Orton to one last rematch for the title, this time a 60-minute Iron Man match
where the competitor with the most decisions at the end of that time would be named the victor. In order to accept the challenge, Orton added two more conditions to the match, that Cena would leave the Raw brand if he loses and that the match would be "anything goes
".
The Undertaker made his return to the company at SummerSlam
after CM Punk
won the World Heavyweight Championship
. Punk would then defeat his challenger at Breaking Point under controversial circumstances before to losing the title to The Undertaker at Hell in a Cell a month later. On the October 9 edition of SmackDown, WWE Chairman Vince McMahon
announced Punk would receive his rematch at Bragging Rights, but it would be in a Fatal Four-Way match with Batista and Rey Mysterio.
On the October 12 edition of Raw, the reigning WWE United States Champion
, The Miz
, announced that he will face the WWE Intercontinental Champion
John Morrison at Bragging Rights. In 2007, the two formed a tag team
and gained success in the tag team division, winning the WWE Tag Team
and World Tag Team Championships as well as the 2008 Slammy Award for Tag Team of the Year. In an untelevised match at WrestleMania XXV
, the team lost their unification match against The Colóns
(Carlito and Primo
) that would form the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship. A week later, The Miz found himself drafted to the Raw brand in the 2009 WWE Draft
due to botched interference from Morrison. Miz subsequently attacked Morrison after the match, ending the partnership. Morrison was later himself drafted to the SmackDown brand. Both wrestlers found singles success with Morrison winning his third Intercontinental Championship from Rey Mysterio in September, while The Miz defeated Kofi Kingston to become the new United States Champion on the October 5 edition of Raw.
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
pay-per-view
Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
(PPV) event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
(WWE), which took place on October 25, 2009 at the Mellon Arena
Mellon Arena
Civic Arena is an indoor arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that is currently undergoing demolition. It was the first retractable roof major sports venue in the world, covering 170,000 sq. feet and constructed with just shy of 3,000 tons of Pittsburgh steel...
in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was the final pay-per-view to take place at the Mellon Arena. It was the first Bragging Rights
WWE Bragging Rights
Bragging Rights was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on October 25, 2009 at the Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was the final pay-per-view to take place at the Mellon Arena. It was the first Bragging Rights event...
event and featured talent from the Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
and SmackDown brands
WWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
. Five matches were featured on the card
Card (sports)
In sports, a card comprises a listing of the matches taking place in a title-match combat-sport event. Organizers divide overall cards into a main-event match and the undercard, which encompasses the rest of the matches. One can also further subdivide the undercard into midcard and lower card,...
.
The concept of the show was based around a series of interpromotional matches for "bragging rights
Bragging rights
Bragging rights refers to an informal claim one can make to holding a certain achievement, such as a record or being the first at something. This claim is not an official title or status, but rather the ability to win an argument to holding the position....
" between wrestlers from the Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
and SmackDown brands
WWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
, with a Bragging Rights trophy awarded to the show that won the most matches out of the series. The matches included Raw's United States Champion
WWE United States Championship
The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
The Miz
Mike Mizanin
Michael "Mike" Gregory Mizanin is an American professional wrestler and reality television personality better known by his nickname and ring name The Miz. He is currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment on its Raw brand...
defeating SmackDown's Intercontinental Champion
WWE Intercontinental Championship
The WWE Intercontinental Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It is the original secondary title of the promotion. Currently, it is the secondary championship exclusive to the SmackDown brand...
John Morrison, SmackDown's team of Michelle McCool
Michelle McCool
Michelle Leigh McCool , is a retired American professional wrestler who is best known for her time in WWE.McCool originally worked as a middle school teacher in Palatka, Florida. She joined WWE in 2004 after participating in the 2004 WWE Diva Search. In her initial on-screen role, she acted...
, Beth Phoenix
Beth Phoenix
Elizabeth Kocianski is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE where she wrestles on the Raw brand under the ring name Beth Phoenix, where she is the reigning WWE Divas Champion....
and Natalya
Nattie Neidhart
Natalie "Nattie" Katherine Neidhart is a Canadian professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE on its SmackDown brand under the ring name Natalya....
defeating Raw's team of Melina
Melina Perez
Melina Nava Perez is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Women Superstars Uncensored. She is best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring mononym Melina....
, Kelly Kelly and Gail Kim
Gail Kim
Gail Kim is a Canadian professional wrestler of Korean descent, who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where she is the current TNA Women's Knockout Champion and one half of the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Champions with Madison Rayne...
, and SmackDown's team of Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho
Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...
, Kane
Kane (wrestler)
Glenn Thomas Jacobs is a Spanish-born American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name, Kane. He is signed to WWE, appearing on its SmackDown brand, but is currently inactive due to injury....
, R-Truth
Ron Killings
Ronald Aaron "Ron" Killings is an American professional wrestler and rapper. He is currently signed to WWE working on its Raw brand. Since working for the company, he has been a one time United States Champion under the ring name R-Truth and a two time Hardcore Champion under the ring name K-Kwik...
, Matt Hardy
Matt Hardy
Matthew Moore "Matt" Hardy is a semi-retired American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stints in World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
, Finlay
Dave Finlay
David John "Fit" Finlay Jr. is a Northern Irish professional wrestler and road agent. He is perhaps best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and WWE as an active wrestler and later as a road agent...
, Tyson Kidd and David Hart Smith defeating Raw's team of Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
, Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
, The Big Show
Paul Wight
Paul Donald Wight, Jr. , better known by his ring name, Big Show, is an American professional wrestler and actor, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand....
, Cody Rhodes, Jack Swagger, Kofi Kingston
Kofi Kingston
Kofi Nahaje Sarkodie-Mensah , is a Ghanaian American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Kofi Kingston. He is currently signed to WWE and works on its Raw brand where he is one half of the WWE Tag Team Champions with Evan Bourne as Air Boom...
and Mark Henry
Mark Henry
Mark Jerrold Henry is an American professional wrestler signed with WWE, where he performs on its SmackDown brand as the reigning World Heavyweight Champion. He is a 1992 Olympian, and winner of the 2002 Arnold Strongman Classic...
. The Smackdown brand won the Bragging Rights trophy with two wins to one.
The show also contained three world championship matches including the main event where John Cena
John Cena
John Felix Anthony Cena is an American professional wrestler, actor, rapper, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE as a member of its WWE Raw brand....
defeated Randy Orton
Randy Orton
Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand...
in an Anything Goes
Hardcore wrestling
Hardcore wrestling is a form of professional wrestling that eschews traditional concepts of match rules in favor of matches that take place in unusual environments, using foreign objects that are not normally permitted...
Iron Man match
Iron Man match
An Iron Man match is a professional wrestling match type that is set to go a specific amount of time, usually 30 or 60 minutes, with the competitor with the most falls at the end of that time named the victor...
to win the WWE Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
, and The Undertaker defeating CM Punk
CM Punk
Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
, Rey Mysterio and Batista in a Fatal Four-Way match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
, and a dark match in which Christian defeated William Regal to retain the ECW Championship .
The pay-per-view drew 181,000 buys, and is up from the 153,000 buys Cyber Sunday 2008
Cyber Sunday (2008)
Cyber Sunday was the fifth and final Cyber Sunday professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on October 26, 2008 at the US Airways Center in Phoenix, Arizona. It featured wrestlers from the Raw, ECW, and SmackDown brands...
got.
Background
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
and SmackDown against one another. On the October 12 edition of Raw, it was announced one-half of Unified WWE Tag Team Champions Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho
Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...
would act as the co captain of SmackDown's team with Kane
Kane (wrestler)
Glenn Thomas Jacobs is a Spanish-born American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name, Kane. He is signed to WWE, appearing on its SmackDown brand, but is currently inactive due to injury....
as the other co-captain, and Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
and Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
(collectively known as D-Generation X
D-Generation X
D-Generation X was a professional wrestling stable in WWE . The group originated in the midst of the WWF's "Attitude Era" from 1997 to 2000...
) would act as the co-captains of Raw's team. Later in the program, the other half of the Tag Team Champions The Big Show
Paul Wight
Paul Donald Wight, Jr. , better known by his ring name, Big Show, is an American professional wrestler and actor, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand....
would qualify for the latter team by defeating Chris Jericho in a match that would qualify him to be on the team. Continuing the trend of qualifying matches on said edition of Raw, Cody Rhodes defeated Ted DiBiase
Ted DiBiase, Jr.
Theodore Marvin "Ted" DiBiase Jr. is an American professional wrestler and actor signed with WWE, where he appears on its SmackDown brand...
and John Cena
John Cena
John Felix Anthony Cena is an American professional wrestler, actor, rapper, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE as a member of its WWE Raw brand....
in a Triple Threat match, Jack Swagger defeated Montel Vontavious Porter, and Kofi Kingston
Kofi Kingston
Kofi Nahaje Sarkodie-Mensah , is a Ghanaian American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Kofi Kingston. He is currently signed to WWE and works on its Raw brand where he is one half of the WWE Tag Team Champions with Evan Bourne as Air Boom...
defeated Evan Bourne. Mark Henry
Mark Henry
Mark Jerrold Henry is an American professional wrestler signed with WWE, where he performs on its SmackDown brand as the reigning World Heavyweight Champion. He is a 1992 Olympian, and winner of the 2002 Arnold Strongman Classic...
became the final member of Team Raw by defeating Chris Masters
Chris Masters
Christopher Todd Mordetzky is an American professional wrestler best known by his ring name Chris Masters. He is best known for his tenure with WWE.-Early career:...
on the October 15 episode of WWE Superstars. The following night on SmackDown, Kane
Kane (wrestler)
Glenn Thomas Jacobs is a Spanish-born American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name, Kane. He is signed to WWE, appearing on its SmackDown brand, but is currently inactive due to injury....
revealed that in fact the SmackDown team will be co-captained both by Jericho and himself. Qualifying matches for the SmackDown team commenced on the same night, with Dolph Ziggler
Nick Nemeth
Nicholas Theodore "Nick" Nemeth is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE performing on its Raw brand under the ring name Dolph Ziggler. He is the reigning WWE United States Champion...
defeating Mike Knox
Mike Knox
Michael Shawn Hettinga is a American professional wrestler. He is best known for wrestling for World Wrestling Entertainment as Mike Knox. He is also an avid fisherman, and fishes in his spare time.-Independent circuit :...
and Finlay
Dave Finlay
David John "Fit" Finlay Jr. is a Northern Irish professional wrestler and road agent. He is perhaps best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and WWE as an active wrestler and later as a road agent...
in a Triple Threat match, Shad Gaspard and JTG (collectively known as Cryme Tyme
Cryme Tyme
For animated series named Crime Time, visit Crime TimeCryme Tyme was a professional wrestling tag team that was signed to WWE.The team consisted of JTG and Shad , an over-the-top parody of stereotypical street thugs.-Early lives:Of Haitian and...
) defeating David Hart Smith and Tyson Kidd (collectively known as The Hart Dynasty
The Hart Dynasty
The Hart Dynasty was a professional wrestling stable that appeared in World Wrestling Entertainment. The unit consisted of the tag team of Tyson Kidd and David Hart Smith, and WWE Diva Natalya...
), Eric Escobar
Eric Perez
Eric Alexander Pérez is a Puerto Rican professional wrestler who currently performs under the ring name Eric Escobar. He is best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment , where he spent most of his career in developmental territories...
defeating Matt Hardy
Matt Hardy
Matthew Moore "Matt" Hardy is a semi-retired American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stints in World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
, and Drew McIntyre defeating R-Truth
Ron Killings
Ronald Aaron "Ron" Killings is an American professional wrestler and rapper. He is currently signed to WWE working on its Raw brand. Since working for the company, he has been a one time United States Champion under the ring name R-Truth and a two time Hardcore Champion under the ring name K-Kwik...
. On the October 23 episode of SmackDown, Jericho and Kane booked a 4-on-5 handicap match pitting Ziggler, JTG, Escobar and McIntyre against Finlay, the Hart Dynasty, Hardy and R-Truth, where the winning team would join the two at Bragging Rights. The latter team won the match, thus replacing the former team, along with Gaspard.
Randy Orton
Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand...
and John Cena over the WWE Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
. The two had faced at the three previous pay-per-view events, with Orton retaining the title at SummerSlam
SummerSlam (2009)
SummerSlam was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on August 23, 2009 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. It was the 22nd annual SummerSlam event and featured talent from the Raw, SmackDown, and ECW brands...
, Cena winning the title at Breaking Point
WWE Breaking Point
Breaking Point was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on September 13, 2009 at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It featured talent from the Raw, SmackDown, and ECW brands. The name of the event was voted by fans via...
in an "I Quit" match, and Orton reclaiming the title at Hell in a Cell in the event's eponymous match. The following night on Raw, Cena challenged Orton to one last rematch for the title, this time a 60-minute Iron Man match
Iron Man match
An Iron Man match is a professional wrestling match type that is set to go a specific amount of time, usually 30 or 60 minutes, with the competitor with the most falls at the end of that time named the victor...
where the competitor with the most decisions at the end of that time would be named the victor. In order to accept the challenge, Orton added two more conditions to the match, that Cena would leave the Raw brand if he loses and that the match would be "anything goes
Hardcore wrestling
Hardcore wrestling is a form of professional wrestling that eschews traditional concepts of match rules in favor of matches that take place in unusual environments, using foreign objects that are not normally permitted...
".
The Undertaker made his return to the company at SummerSlam
SummerSlam (2009)
SummerSlam was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on August 23, 2009 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. It was the 22nd annual SummerSlam event and featured talent from the Raw, SmackDown, and ECW brands...
after CM Punk
CM Punk
Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
won the World Heavyweight Championship
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
. Punk would then defeat his challenger at Breaking Point under controversial circumstances before to losing the title to The Undertaker at Hell in a Cell a month later. On the October 9 edition of SmackDown, WWE Chairman Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
announced Punk would receive his rematch at Bragging Rights, but it would be in a Fatal Four-Way match with Batista and Rey Mysterio.
On the October 12 edition of Raw, the reigning WWE United States Champion
WWE United States Championship
The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
, The Miz
Mike Mizanin
Michael "Mike" Gregory Mizanin is an American professional wrestler and reality television personality better known by his nickname and ring name The Miz. He is currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment on its Raw brand...
, announced that he will face the WWE Intercontinental Champion
WWE Intercontinental Championship
The WWE Intercontinental Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It is the original secondary title of the promotion. Currently, it is the secondary championship exclusive to the SmackDown brand...
John Morrison at Bragging Rights. In 2007, the two formed a tag team
John Morrison and The Miz
John Morrison and The Miz were a professional wrestling tag team and former WWE Tough Enough contestants. The team worked for World Wrestling Entertainment on its ECW brand, but also appeared on the SmackDown and Raw brands due to ECW's talent exchanges with those brands during their tenure as a team...
and gained success in the tag team division, winning the WWE Tag Team
WWE Tag Team Championship
The WWE Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship in WWE. It was established as a second title for tag teams in WWE in 2002 to complement the original World Tag Team Championship...
and World Tag Team Championships as well as the 2008 Slammy Award for Tag Team of the Year. In an untelevised match at WrestleMania XXV
WrestleMania XXV
WrestleMania XXV was the twenty-fifth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on April 5, 2009 at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas...
, the team lost their unification match against The Colóns
The Colóns
The Colóns were a professional wrestling tag team that consisted of real-life brothers, Carlito and Primo. The team worked for World Wrestling Entertainment...
(Carlito and Primo
Eddie Colon
Edwin "Eddie" Carlos Colón is a Puerto Rican professional wrestler. He is currently signed by WWE wrestling on its Raw brand as Primo. He is the son of Carlos Colón, Sr. and the younger brother of wrestlers Stacy and Carly Colón, better known as Carlito in WWE...
) that would form the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship. A week later, The Miz found himself drafted to the Raw brand in the 2009 WWE Draft
2009 WWE Draft
The 2009 World Wrestling Entertainment Draft was the seventh Draft produced by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE. The Draft took place over two days: the first day was televised live for three hours on April 13; the second part, the "Supplemental Draft", was held on April 15...
due to botched interference from Morrison. Miz subsequently attacked Morrison after the match, ending the partnership. Morrison was later himself drafted to the SmackDown brand. Both wrestlers found singles success with Morrison winning his third Intercontinental Championship from Rey Mysterio in September, while The Miz defeated Kofi Kingston to become the new United States Champion on the October 5 edition of Raw.
Reception
The event was generally well received by critics, with positive comments on the opening bout between Morrison and The Miz, and mostly on the Iron Man match main event. The Sun, in a positive review, praised the Iron Man Match and the Fatal 4 Way Match, but criticized the tag team Bragging Rights equalizer as confusing, and causing many of the competitors to become lost in the action. They awarded the event a positive 7 out of 10.Results
| # | Matches | Stipulations | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dark | Christian (c) defeated Paul Burchill Paul Burchill Paul Birchill , better known by his ring name Paul Burchill, is an English professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment , where he signed after training and debuting for the Frontier Wrestling Alliance in his home country.-Frontier Wrestling Alliance... |
Singles match for the ECW Championship | Unknown |
| 1 | The Miz Mike Mizanin Michael "Mike" Gregory Mizanin is an American professional wrestler and reality television personality better known by his nickname and ring name The Miz. He is currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment on its Raw brand... defeated John Morrison |
SmackDown vs. Raw Bragging Rights Match | 10:54 |
| 2 | SmackDown Divas (Michelle McCool Michelle McCool Michelle Leigh McCool , is a retired American professional wrestler who is best known for her time in WWE.McCool originally worked as a middle school teacher in Palatka, Florida. She joined WWE in 2004 after participating in the 2004 WWE Diva Search. In her initial on-screen role, she acted... , Beth Phoenix Beth Phoenix Elizabeth Kocianski is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE where she wrestles on the Raw brand under the ring name Beth Phoenix, where she is the reigning WWE Divas Champion.... and Natalya Nattie Neidhart Natalie "Nattie" Katherine Neidhart is a Canadian professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE on its SmackDown brand under the ring name Natalya.... ) defeated Raw Divas WWE RAW WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States... (Melina Melina Perez Melina Nava Perez is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Women Superstars Uncensored. She is best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring mononym Melina.... , Kelly Kelly and Gail Kim Gail Kim Gail Kim is a Canadian professional wrestler of Korean descent, who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where she is the current TNA Women's Knockout Champion and one half of the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Champions with Madison Rayne... ) |
Interbrand Six-Diva tag team match | 06:54 |
| 3 | The Undertaker (c) defeated CM Punk CM Punk Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion.... , Rey Mysterio and Batista |
Fatal four-way match for the World Heavyweight Championship World Heavyweight Championship (WWE) The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand... |
09:57 |
| 4 | Team SmackDown (Chris Jericho Chris Jericho Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer... , Kane Kane (wrestler) Glenn Thomas Jacobs is a Spanish-born American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name, Kane. He is signed to WWE, appearing on its SmackDown brand, but is currently inactive due to injury.... , R-Truth Ron Killings Ronald Aaron "Ron" Killings is an American professional wrestler and rapper. He is currently signed to WWE working on its Raw brand. Since working for the company, he has been a one time United States Champion under the ring name R-Truth and a two time Hardcore Champion under the ring name K-Kwik... , Matt Hardy Matt Hardy Matthew Moore "Matt" Hardy is a semi-retired American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stints in World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling .... , Finlay Dave Finlay David John "Fit" Finlay Jr. is a Northern Irish professional wrestler and road agent. He is perhaps best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and WWE as an active wrestler and later as a road agent... , and The Hart Dynasty The Hart Dynasty The Hart Dynasty was a professional wrestling stable that appeared in World Wrestling Entertainment. The unit consisted of the tag team of Tyson Kidd and David Hart Smith, and WWE Diva Natalya... (Tyson Kidd and David Hart Smith)) defeated Team Raw WWE RAW WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States... (D-Generation X D-Generation X D-Generation X was a professional wrestling stable in WWE . The group originated in the midst of the WWF's "Attitude Era" from 1997 to 2000... (Triple H Triple H Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley... and Shawn Michaels Shawn Michaels Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December... ), The Big Show, Cody Rhodes, Jack Swagger, Kofi Kingston Kofi Kingston Kofi Nahaje Sarkodie-Mensah , is a Ghanaian American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Kofi Kingston. He is currently signed to WWE and works on its Raw brand where he is one half of the WWE Tag Team Champions with Evan Bourne as Air Boom... and Mark Henry Mark Henry Mark Jerrold Henry is an American professional wrestler signed with WWE, where he performs on its SmackDown brand as the reigning World Heavyweight Champion. He is a 1992 Olympian, and winner of the 2002 Arnold Strongman Classic... ) |
Interbrand 14-man tag team match | 15:34 |
| 5 | John Cena John Cena John Felix Anthony Cena is an American professional wrestler, actor, rapper, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE as a member of its WWE Raw brand.... defeated Randy Orton Randy Orton Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand... (c) 6-5 |
60 minute Anything Goes Hardcore wrestling Hardcore wrestling is a form of professional wrestling that eschews traditional concepts of match rules in favor of matches that take place in unusual environments, using foreign objects that are not normally permitted... Iron Man match Iron Man match An Iron Man match is a professional wrestling match type that is set to go a specific amount of time, usually 30 or 60 minutes, with the competitor with the most falls at the end of that time named the victor... for the WWE Championship WWE Championship The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963... ; if Cena had lost, he would have been required to leave the Raw brand WWE RAW WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States... |
60:00 |
See also
- List of WWE pay-per-view events
- WWE Bragging RightsWWE Bragging RightsBragging Rights was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on October 25, 2009 at the Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was the final pay-per-view to take place at the Mellon Arena. It was the first Bragging Rights event...