During its early stages, No Mercy appeared as though it was going to be another lackluster PPV all around, however, the double main event that topped off the card proved otherwise, as HHH/Jeff Hardy and Chris Jericho/Shawn Michaels delivered in main event fashion.
No Mercy saw Jericho and Michaels round out the second half of the double main event in a World Heavyweight Championship Ladder match. Both stars are no stranger to the ladder, and they showed that in this match-up.
The bout began with both men exchanging holds and Shawn Michaels looking to land some early Sweet Chin Music. Jericho brought the fight to the floor and slammed Michaels’ taped left arm and shoulder into the ring post, before locking in the Walls of Jericho.
Jericho was then able to bring the ladder into play and use it to whip Michaels. He grabbed a second smaller ladder and propped it in the corner. He went to send Michaels into it, but his attempt was reversed and Jericho ate the ladder. Michaels went to work on Jericho, whose leg was trapped in the ladder. Michaels picked on the leg and even locked in the Figure Four leg lock.
Jericho’s attack remained on the arm, as well as the head of Shawn Michaels. HBK cleared off the SmackDown announce table and laid Jericho on it. He went to climb the ladder and jump off, but was grabbed from behind by Jericho and thrown through the table with a Belly to Back suplex.
The match made its way back into the ring and saw the Michaels elbow drop, as well as Lionsault onto a ladder that was on top of Michaels. Jericho went to climb after that, but HBK pushed the ladder over and sent Jericho all the way to the floor. Jericho was able to regroup and get back into the ring and climb towards the belt, but Michaels again was able to get Jericho in a tree of woe position.
Lance Cade ran out to stop Michaels from climbing, and caught some Sweet Chin Music. Michaels and Jericho climbed the ladder and both of them grabbed a side of the belt, tugging back and forth. Jericho threw a vicious headbutt that was enough to send Michaels to the floor and send him falling to the canvas with the title in hand. An awesome main event that saved an otherwise lackluster pay-per-view attempt.
WWE No Mercy 2008 – PPV Report
The show began with the usual hype as well as Jerry Lawler subbing for Matt Striker alongside Todd Grisham for ECW commentary.
Match One – ECW Championship Match – Matt Hardy (C) vs. Mark Henry w/ Tony Atlas
This was better than other matches they’ve had together. Mark Henry played the power game, while Matt Hardy tried his best to rely on his speed. Henry was able to counter the Twist of Fate, but when he went for the slam, it was also countered into another Twist of Fate, that was enough to give Hardy the win.
Winner Via Pinfall and STILL ECW Champion at 8:00 min – Matt Hardy
Match Rating – 5/10
Jim Ross and Tazz talked about the HHH/Jeff Hardy match.
Eve was shown with HHH and Jeff Hardy. HHH told Jeff Hardy that the only thing he would win is the texting poll. Hardy told HHH that he needs to worry about him. HHH told Hardy that he didn’t mean any disrespect and says that Hardy has all the gifts it takes to be a champion. HHH told Hardy that he wanted the best out of him in their match.
Match Two – WWE Womens Championship Match – Beth Phoenix w/ Santino Marella vs. Candice Michelle
This was pretty much a typical match. Santino Marella got involved by pulling Beth Phoenix out of a pinning situation. Candice Michelle hit Marella with a dropkick, as Phoenix recovered and leveled her with a clothesline. Marella then accidentally tripped up Phoenix in the ring, leading to a near fall. The Candy Wrapper was reversed, as Phoenix hit the Implant Buster for the win.
Winner Via Pinfall and STILL WWE Women’s Champion at 4:30 min – Beth Pheonix
Match Rating – 4/10
A package was shown for the Ric Flair DVD.
Kane did a promo on Rey Mysterio, saying that he was going to take his mask and expose him.
Match Three – Rey Mysterio’s Mask on the Line – Rey Mysterio vs. Kane
Rey Mysterio tried to use his high flying tactics to his advantage, but the power of Kane was evident on several occasions, as he caught Mysterio and did his best to keep him grounded. Kane eventually got frustrated by Mysterio’s attempted comebacks, and whacked him with a steel chair as he dove off the ropes, forcing the disqualification.
Winner via Disqualification at 11:00 min – Rey Mysterio – Mysterio gets to keep his mask.
Match Rating – 6/10
MVP was complaining about not being on the PPV and went to Vickie Guerrero’s office to rant and rave. Big Show answered the door and said that MVP wasn’t going to bother Guerrero on her first night back. Big Show went back into the office to tend to Guerrero, as MVP was brushed away.
Jerry Lawler and Michael Cole hyped Cyber Sunday.
MVP came out to the ring and went on a rant about not being on the PPV, only to be interrupted by Randy Orton. The two went back and forth with insults as, as MVP basically poked fun at the fact that Orton was out injured. Manu, Ted Dibiase and Cody Rhodes then came out and did some jaw-jacking with MVP. CM Punk and Kofi Kingston came out and said they had an idea. They went to go to the ring, but stopped, and allowed MVP to get beat up, before jumping into the battle and cleaning house.
Match Four – World Heavyweight Championship Number One Contenders Match – Batista vs. JBL
Back and forth match, that saw Batista hit the spinebuster on JBL and follow it up with a Batista Bomb for the pin.
Winner Via Pinfall and NEW Number One Contender to the World Heavyweight Championship at 5:00 min – Batista
Match Rating – 5/10
After the match, JBL got on the mic and talked about how traumatic this week has been with all the drama on Wall Street. He said that his heart wasn’t really in the match, but he wants to thank the government for the bailout bill, so he can keep his money. He said that he was going to get into his limo and take off. Cryme Tyme appeared on the TitanTron and they had his limo. They talked about taking the divas out and loaded it up. Sgt. Slaughter also jumped on board, as JBL threw a fit.
A package was then shown of The Big Show beating up The Undertaker at Unforgiven.
Match Five – The Big Show vs. The Undertaker
The Undertaker really took the fight to The Big Show, who got in some offense as well. Show was able to remove a turnbuckle pad, then slam Undertaker’s head into hit, before hitting him with a vicious punch to the face, followed by one to the back of the head that knocked The Undertaker out and forced the referee to stop the match.
Winner Via Referee’s Stoppage at 11:00 min – The Big Show
Match Rating – 6/10
After the match, The Undertaker was shown struggling trying to get to the back.
Jeff Hardy won the text poll with 72% of the votes.
Match Six – WWE Championship Match – HHH (C) vs. Jeff Hardy
This was a great match. This match saw lots of back and forth action, with both competitors nearly getting the win and the championship. Hardy tried on several attempts to hit the Twist of Fate and eventually did after countering a Pedigree. Hardy then went up top and hit the Swanton and slowly crawled and laid on top of HHH. At the two count, HHH rolled him over into a crucifix pin and got the win.
Winner Via Pinfall and STILL WWE Champion at 17:00 min – HHH
Match Rating – 8/10
After the match, HHH and Jeff Hardy shook hands.
Backstage, Arn Anderson congratulated HHH and told him that Jeff Hardy almost got the win. Vladamir Koslov approached him and wanted to discuss some title shot opportunities. The two then engaged in a staredown.
Match Seven – World Heavyweight Championship Ladder Match – Chris Jericho (C) vs. Shawn Michaels
Winner Via Grabbing the Belt at STILL World Heavyweight Champion at 23:00 min – Chris Jericho
Match Rating – 9/10
Overall PPV Rating – 6/10